Lähi-itä - mielikuvat, media ja konflikti : Tutkimuskohteena opettajaopiskelijat

This study examines Finnish student teachers' images of The Middle East conflict and its parties and medias' influence on these images. The research problems are 1) how student teachers understand the Middle East as a geographical and a cultural area 2) what kind of conceptions they have of the Middle East conflict and its parties; Israelis, Palestinians and Arabs and societies and religions closely connected to them and 3) how the media has influenced on these conceptions. Theoretical background of this study concerns with different mental images, their construction and meaning, stereotypes, intercultural competence, media and its influence as well as media literacy. The methods used in this study were survey and theme interview. Also headlines of the news were analysed. The survey was directed at student teachers of the University of Helsinki (n = 75). Six of them were interviewed. The survey was conducted in February and interviews were made in the turn of May and June 2003. The headlines analysed dealt with the Middle East conflict in the newspaper "Helsingin Sanomat" in January, April and July 2003. Main results: Images of the Middle East area differed largely from respondent to another. Student teachers didn't know much about the Middle East conflict. Stereotypes occurred in the conceptions connected to the parties of the conflict. Stereotypes appeared especially in the negative conceptions of islam and muslims and one-sided conceptions of Arabs. The influence of the conflict was noticeable in conceptions related to Israelis, Israel and Palestinians. Palestinians were sympathized. Attitudes towards Israelis, Palestinians and Arabs were negative to some extend and their societies were not valued very equal, open or modern. On the basis of the research, student teachers' intercultural competence was not good enough. Media had influence on the conceptions. Also skills in critical use of media varied largely. Some trusted strongly in the objectivity of a picture and the news. It can be argued, on the grounds of the results, that teacher education should concentrate more on themes of intercultural competence and media literacy. These two are interrelated and are both needed in understanding and conceptualising the world.

Porn, censorship, classification and free speech: Global paradoxes in the governance of media content

In this presentation, I reflect upon the global landscape surrounding the governance and classification of media content, at a time of rapid change in media platforms and services for content production and distribution, and contested cultural and social norms. I discuss the tensions and contradictions arising in the relationship between national, regional and global dimensions of media content distribution, as well as the changing relationships between state and non-state actors. These issues will be explored through consideration of issues such as: recent debates over film censorship; the review of the National Classification Scheme conducted by the Australian Law Reform Commission; online controversies such as the future of the Reddit social media site; and videos posted online by the militant group ISIS.

Regulation beyond government: Weber, Foucault and the liberal governance of media content

This paper steps back from the question of how regulation of digital media content occurs, and whether it can be effective, to consider the rationales that inform regulation, and the ethics and practices associated with content regulation. It will be argued that Max Weber's account of bureaucratic expertise remains relevant to such discussions, particularly insofar as it intersects with Michel Foucault's concept of governmentality, and contemporary applications of the notion of 'governing at a distance'. The nature of the challenges to media regulators presented by online environments, and by digital and social media, are considered in depth, but it is argued that the significance of regulatory innovations that respond to such challenges should not be underestimated, nor should the continuing national foundations of media regulation. It will also discuss the relevance of the concept of 'soft law' to contemporary regulatory practice.

An interactive graphics system for 2-D drawing and design

This paper is about a software system, GRASS-Graphic Software System for 2-D drawing and design—which has been implemented on a PDP-11/35 system with RSX-11M operating system. It is a low cost interactive graphics system for the design of two dimensional drawings and uses a minimum of hardware. It provides comprehensive facilities for creating, editing, storing and retrieving pictures. It has been implemented in the language Pascal and has the potential to be used as a powerful data-imputting tool for a design-automation system. The important features of the system are its low cost, software character generation and a user-trainable character recognizer, which has been included.

Self-reported bruxism : Associated factors among media personnel with or without irregular shift work

Tutkimuksen kohderyhmänä oli mediatyöntekijöitä, joiden toimenkuva on viime vuosina muuttunut yhä kuormittavammaksi epäsäännöllisen vuorotyön sekä jatkuvien teknisten, organisatoristen ja taloudellisten tekijöiden ristipaineessa. Väitöskirjatutkimus on osa laajempaa tutkimushanketta, joka suunniteltiin selvittämään epäsäännöllisen vuorotyön mahdollisia haittoja. Tutkimusta tukivat taloudellisesti Työsuojelurahasto ja Suomen Hammaslääkäriseura Apollonia sekä resurssipanostuksin Hammaslääketieteen laitos (HY), Työterveyslaitos ja Yleisradio Oy. Bruksismi on tahdosta riippumatonta hampaiden narskuttelua tai yhteenpuristamista. Hampaiden narskuttelu on rytmistä jaksoittain toistuvaa puremalihasten toimintaa, joka esiintyy nukkuessa -tavallisimmin kevyen unen ja havahtumisjaksojen yhteydessä. Valveilla ollessa bruksismi on terveillä ihmisillä lähinnä hampaiden yhteenpuristamista. Yleisen käsityksen mukaan toistuvaa unibruksismia esiintyy noin 10 %:lla ja valveilla tapahtuvaa hampaiden yhteenpuristamista noin 20 %:lla. Aiemmin bruksismi kuului kansainvälisen unihäiriöluokituksen (ICSD 1997) mukaan unen erityishäiriöihin, mutta tuorein luokitus (ICSD 2005) listaa sen unen liikehäiriöihin. Väitöstutkimuksen yleisenä tavoitteena oli kartoittaa koetun bruksismin ja uni- valvehäiriöiden yhteyttä. Tutkimus oli poikittainen vertailututkimus epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä ja säännöllisiä päivävuoroja tekevien välillä. Mielenkiinto kohdistui myös bruksismin ja kasvojen alueen kivun mahdolliseen yhteyteen. Lisäksi tutkimuksessa selvitettiin joidenkin tunnetusti unen laatua huonontavien psykososiaalisten, neurologisten ja fysiologisten tekijöiden yhteyttä koettuun bruksismiin. Tutkimuksen kohderyhmän muodosti 750 Yleisradion epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevää työntekijää. Vertailuryhmänä käytettiin samansuuruista satunnaistetusti valittua kaltaistettua Yleisradion työntekijäjoukkoa, joka tekee samankaltaista työtä, mutta säännöllisenä päivätyönä. Kohderyhmälle lähetettiin kyselylomakkeet, jotka kartoittivat koetun bruksismin lisäksi mm. tutkittavien taustatiedot, yleisen terveydentilan, yleisiä koettuja stressioireita ja tuntemuksia, kipuoireita, sekä unen laatua. Lisäksi esitettiin jaksamista ja työympäristöä koskevia kysymyksiä. Kyselyyn vastasi kaikkiaan 874 henkilöä. Kokonaisvastausprosentti oli 58,3 % (53,7 % miehiä). Epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevien vastausprosentti oli 82,3 % ja säännöllistä päivätyötä tekevien ryhmässä 34,3 %. Työtehtävät sisälsivät ohjelmien toimitus- ja tuottamistyötä, teknistä tuotanto- ja tukityötä, sekä esimies- ja hallintotyötä. Miesten keski-ikä vuorotyöryhmässä oli 45,0 (± 10,6) vuotta ja naisten keski-ikä 42,6 (± 10,7) vuotta, vastaavat luvut päivätyötä tekeville olivat 47,4 (± 9,7) ja 45,5 (± 10,1) vuotta. Vuorotyötä tekevistä oli miehiä 56,6 %, päivätyöryhmässä miehien osuus oli 46,7 %. Usein koettua bruksismia havaittiin koko tutkimusjoukossa 10,6 %:lla. Bruksismin esiintyvyydessä ei ollut merkitsevää eroa epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä ja päivätyötä tekevien välillä. Kun bruksismia ja stressiä arvioitiin suhteessa tyytyväisyyteen nykyiseen työaikamuotoon, molemmat olivat merkitsevästi vallitsevimpia niillä, jotka halusivat vaihtaa nykyistä työaikamuotoaan. Epäsäännöllistä vuorotyötä tekevät lisäksi ilmoittivat kokevansa enemmän stressiä kuin päivätyötä tekevät sekä olivat tyytymättömämpiä työaikamuotoonsa. Tutkittavista henkilöistä katkonaista unta esiintyi 43,6 %:lla sekä 36,2 % koki unensa virkistämättömäksi. Kasvokipua esiintyi 19,6 %:lla. Usein toistuva bruksaus sekä tyytymättömyys työaikamuotoon olivat erittäin merkitsevästi yhteydessä unihäiriöiden sekä riittämättömän unen oireiden kanssa. Bruksismi ja katkonainen uni osoittautuivat myös kasvokivun taustatekijöiksi. Tutkimus osoitti, että koetulla bruksismilla oli merkitsevä yhteys unihäiriöihin, kasvokipuun, koettuun stressiin ja ahdistuneisuuteen, nuorempaan ikään, runsaampiin hammaslääkäri- ja lääkärikäynteihin sekä siihen että oli tyytymätön työaikamuotoonsa (itse työaikamuoto ei ollut merkitsevä tekijä). Tutkimuksen yhtenä johtopäätöksenä todettiin, että koettu bruksismi voi terveillä työikäisillä henkilöillä olla osa stressaavaa tilannetta ja siihen liittyvää käyttäytymistä. Tämän tiedostaminen terveydenhuollossa voisi olla hyödyllistä.

Is Habermas on Twitter? Social Media and the Public Sphere

Jürgen Habermas’s concept of the public sphere remains a major building block for our understanding of public communication and deliberation. Yet ‘the’ public sphere is a construct of its time, and the mass media-dominated environment which it describes has given way to a considerably more fragmented and complex system of distinct and diverse, yet interconnected and overlapping publics that represent different themes, topics, and approaches to mediated communication. This chapter argues that moving beyond the orthodox model of the public sphere to a more dynamic and complex conceptual framework provides the opportunity to more clearly recognise the varying forms that public communication can take, especially online. Unpacking the traditional public sphere into a series of public sphericules and micro-publics, none of which are mutually exclusive but which co-exist, intersecting and overlapping in multiple forms, is crucial for understanding the ongoing structural transformation of ‘the’ public sphere.

Agenda-Setting Revisited: Social Media and Sourcing in Mainstream Journalism

In political journalism, the battle over agenda-setting between journalists and their sources has been described using many metaphors and concepts. Herbert Gans saw it as a dance where the two parties competed for leadership, arguing that sources usually got the lead. We address the question of how social media, in particular Twitter, contribute to media agenda-building and agenda-setting by looking at how tweets are sourced in election campaign coverage in Australia, Norway and Sweden. Our findings show that the popularity of elite political sources is a common characteristic across all countries and media. Sourcing from Twitter reinforces the power of the political elites to set the agenda of the news media – they are indeed “still leading the dance”. Twitter content travels to the news media as opinions, comments, announcements, factual statements, and photos. Still, there are variations that must be explained both by reference to different political and cultural characteristics of the three countries, as well as by the available resources and journalistic profiles of each media outlet.

Compulsory Voting, Encouraged Tweeting? Australian Elections and Social Media

This chapter examines patterns in social media activity around Australian elections, focusing primarily on the 2013 federal election and supplemented by extended research into social media and Australian politics between 2007 and 2015. The coverage of Australian elections on social media is analysed from three perspectives: the evolution of the use of online platforms during elections; politician and party social media strategies during the 2013 election, focusing on Twitter; and citizen engagement with elections as demonstrated through election day tweeting practices. The specific context of Australian politics, where voting is compulsory, and the popularity of social media platforms like Twitter makes this case notably different from other Western democracies. It also demonstrates the extended mediation of politics through social media, for politicians and citizens alike.

The Routledge Companion to Social Media and Politics

Social media are now widely used for political protests, campaigns, and communication in developed and developing nations, but available research has not yet paid sufficient attention to experiences beyond the US and UK. This collection tackles this imbalance head-on, compiling cutting-edge research across six continents to provide a comprehensive, global, up-to-date review of recent political uses of social media. Drawing together empirical analyses of the use of social media by political movements and in national and regional elections and referenda, The Routledge Companion to Social Media and Politics presents studies ranging from Anonymous and the Arab Spring to the Greek Aganaktismenoi, and from South Korean presidential elections to the Scottish independence referendum. The book is framed by a selection of keystone theoretical contributions, evaluating and updating existing frameworks for the social media age. "Comprehensive and definitive, this is an outstanding book that provides a panoramic view of politics in an era of social media. From the Mediterranean to East Asia to Oceania, from Scandinavia to sub-Sahara Africa to Latin America, the volume as a whole is truly global, yet with nuanced regional and national analyses in each chapter. Theoretically informed, the research presented here breaks new empirical grounds using latest digital methods. The result is a milestone for our collective understanding of new media technology and comparative politics in the twenty-first century." ―Jack Linchuan Qiu, The Chinese University of Hong Kong "This book brings together top scholars from across disciplines and across the globe to examine social media use in a variety of political systems and for distinct purposes. It is required reading for anyone interested in understanding the many ways that digital communication technologies now are used in political life." ―Jennifer Stromer-Galley, Syracuse University

Growth of Mycobacterium smegmatis in minimal and complete media

The growth patterns of Mycobacterium smegmatis SN2 in a minimal medium and in nutrient broth have been compared. The growth was monitored by absorbancy (Klett readings), colony forming units, wet weight and content of DNA, RNA and protein. During the early part of the growth cycle, the bacteria had higher wet weight and macromolecular content in nutrient broth than in minimal media. During the latter half of the growth cycle however, biosynthesis stopped much earlier in nutrient broth and the bacteria had a much lower content of macromolecules than in the minimal medium. In both the media, a general pattern of completing biosynthesis rapidly in the initial phase and a certain amount of cell division at a later time involving the distribution of preformed macromolecules was seen. The possible adaptive significance of this observation has been discussed.

Harbouring dissent: Greek independent and social media and the antifascist movement

This article examines Greek activists’ use of a range of communication technologies, including social media, blogs, citizen journalism sites, Web radio, and anonymous networks. Drawing on Anna Tsing’s theoretical model, the article examines key frictions around digital technologies that emerged within a case study of the antifascist movement in Athens, focusing on the period around the 2013 shutdown of Athens Indymedia. Drawing on interviews with activists and analysis of online communications, including issue networks and social media activity, we find that the antifascist movement itself is created and recreated through a process of productive friction, as different groups and individuals with varying ideologies and experiences work together.

Young people's perceptions of the wood products industry : a relational view

The basis for this study was in poor attractiveness of the wood products industry among young people as a field to study and work in. The purpose was to produce new information of how to improve the relationship between young people and the wood products industry in order to better attract young people with different relational orientation. A survey was conducted among students of comprehensive schools and students of wood industry at vocational schools selected by systematic cluster sampling. The final sample consisted of 613 students. The study combined the theories and concepts of relationships, communication and trust of several disciplines. In addition, it applied theories of relationship marketing, stakeholders, publics, involvement and concepts of reputation and values. It studied the central relational elements in the form of antecedents, relationship state and its consequences. The study examined, how young people with different background and level of interest perceive wood industry as a field to study and work in from relational point of view, what are the central deficiencies in perceived relational elements and what are the public relations activities enhancing the relationship between wood industry and young people with less and high interest in the sector. The results indicate poor visibility of the wood industry among young people: unfamiliarity with the industry and unawareness of the opportunities to study in the field. It appeared that instead of increasing only information sharing, interactive communication in different forms is needed. The study also suggests that behaviors of the industry sector advancing perceived trustworthiness are of crucial importance. Moreover, the wood industry needs to pay attention to its behaviors and communication also among other stakeholder groups, especially the media, as reputation plays an important role in building up trust and satisfaction between young people and the sector. Finally, the less and highly interested young people were found to assess the relationship partly through different relational elements. In order to develop the relationship with highly interested young people they should be regarded clearly as future employees of the wood industry through activities affirming that they are desired and valued employees in the sector. Further, openness of information disclosure, whether concerning current situation or future prospects, seems to increase credibility and attractiveness of the wood industry. Highly interested young people were also found to appreciate socially responsible activities. The less interested young people seem to be insecure about the reliability of the wood industry as an employer, as well as, its ability and interest to invest in young people s skills. In addition,involvement in issues relevant for young people was found crucial in enhancing the relationship with the less interested young people.The conclusions of the study provide tools for enhancing the attractiveness of the wood industry among young people not only to the industry itself, but also to its advocates, teachers and student counselors of comprehensive and vocational schools, authorities and policy makers.

Simple technique for noise reduction in images retrieved from crystalline storage media

Now that crystals are being considered suitable for high density optical information storage, it is important to reduce the noise levels of retrieved images. The paper describes a simple technique to bring this about.

Biaxial-load effects on isopachics for a crack at the interface of dissimilar media

The plane problem of two dissimilar materials, bonded together and containing a crack along their common interface, which were subjected to a biaxial load at infinity, is examined by giving a closed-form expression for the first stress invariant of the normal stresses, which is equally valid everywhere, near to, and far from, the crack-tip region. This exact expression for the first-stress invariant is compared by constructing the respective isopachic-fringe patterns, to the approximate expression with non-singular terms, due to the biaxiality factor, for the same quantity. Significant differences between respective isopachic-patterns were found and their dependence on the elastic properties of both materials and the applied loads was demonstrated. The relative errors between the computedK I - andK II -components by using the approximate expression for the first stress-invariant and the accurate one, derived from closed-form solution along either isopachic-fringes or along circles and radii from the crack-tip have been given, indicating in some cases large discrepancies between exact and approximate solutions.