Re-fitting Etton: space, time and material culture within a causewayed enclosure in Cambridgeshire

This paper considers the dynamics of deposition around and across the causewayed enclosure at Etton, Cambridgeshire. As a result of detailed re-analysis (particularly refitting) of the pottery and flint assemblages from the site, it proved possible to shed new light both on the temporality of occupation and the character of deposition there. Certain aspects of our work challenge previous interpretations of the site, and of causewayed enclosures in general; but, just as importantly, others confirm materially what has previously been suggested. The quantities of material deposited at Etton reveal that the enclosure was occupied only very intermittently and certainly less regularly than other contemporary sites in the region. The spatial distribution of material suggests that the enclosure ditch lay open for the entirety of the monument's life, but that acts of deposition generally focused on a specific part of the monument at any one time. As well as enhancing our knowledge of one particular causewayed enclosure, it is hoped that this paper – in combination with our earlier analysis of the pit site at Kilverstone – makes clear the potential that detailed material analysis has to offer in relation to our understanding of the temporality of occupation on prehistoric sites in general.

Resources, staff beliefs and organizational culture: factors in the use of information and communication technology for adults with intellectual disabilities

Background  Access to, and the use of, information and communication technology (ICT) is increasingly becoming a vital component of mainstream life. First-order (e.g. time and money) and second-order factors (e.g. beliefs of staff members) affect the use of ICT in different contexts. It is timely to investigate what these factors may be in the context of service provision for adults with intellectual disabilities given the role ICT could play in facilitating communication and access to information and opportunities as suggested in Valuing People. Method  Taking a qualitative approach, nine day service sites within one organization were visited over a period of 6 months to observe ICT-related practice and seek the views of staff members working with adults with intellectual disabilities. All day services were equipped with modern ICT equipment including computers, digital cameras, Internet connections and related peripherals. Results  Staff members reported time, training and budget as significant first-order factors. Organizational culture and beliefs about the suitability of technology for older or less able service users were the striking second-order factors mentioned. Despite similar levels of equipment, support and training, ICT use had developed in very different ways across sites. Conclusion  The provision of ICT equipment and training is not sufficient to ensure their use; the beliefs of staff members and organizational culture of sites play a substantial role in how ICT is used with and by service users. Activity theory provides a useful framework for considering how first- and second-order factors are related. Staff members need to be given clear information about the broader purpose of activities in day services, especially in relation to the lifelong learning agenda, in order to see the relevance and usefulness of ICT resources for all service users.

Representation and interpretation : textbooks, teachers, and historical culture

This article presents a study of how contemporary Swedish lower secondary school textbooks present the emergence of the Cold War and how 10 active lower secondary school history teachers interpreted a quotation that was ambiguous in relation to the general narrative in the studied Swedish textbooks, seeking to analyse textbooks both from the perspectives of content and reception. Applying a theoretical framework of uses of history, the study finds that the narratives presented in the studied textbooks are what could be called traditional in the sense that they do not acknowledge perspective and representation in history. While the interviewed teachers generally acknowledged that textbook narratives are representations of history and contingent on perspective, few teachers extended this to include how their own views affect their interpretations, suggesting an intermediary appreciation of the contextual contingency of historical narratives.

Writing, English and digital culture

In their out-of-school lives, young people are immersed in rich and complex digital worlds, characterised by image and multimodality. Computer games in particular present young people with specific narrative genres and textual forms: contexts in which meaning is constructed interactively and drawing explicitly on a wide range of design elements including sound, image, gesture, symbol, colour and so on. As English curriculum seeks to address the changing nature of literacy, challenges are raised, particularly with respect to the ways in which multimodal texts might be incorporated alongside print based forms of literacy. Questions focus both on the ways in which such texts might be created, studied and assessed, and on the implications of the introduction of such texts for print based literacies.

This paper explores intersections between writing and computer games within the English classroom, from a number of junior secondary examples. In particular it considers tensions that arise when young people use writing to recreate or respond to multimodal forms. It explores ways in which writing is stretched and challenged by enterprises such as these, ways in which students utilise and adapt print based modes to represent multimodal forms of narrative, and how teachers and curriculum might respond. Consideration is given to the challenges posed to teaching and assessment by bringing writing to bear as the medium of analysis of, and response to, multimodal texts.

Fakes, literary identity and public culture

The fake presupposes the genuine. The fake author implies the real author, and fake literature presupposes real literature. But literature itself is often about— perhaps fundamentally about—successfully faking it. However, the concern and hostility with which literary public culture has responded to fake authors and what is deemed to be their “fake” literature suggests that the notions of real authors and literature remain centrally important.

Fisheries and cage culture of three reservoirs in west Java, Indonesia; a case study of ambitious development and resulting interactions

The interactions between cage culture and wild fishery activities in three Indonesian reservoirs, Saguling, Cirata and Jatiluhur, of the greater Ciratum watershed, West Java, were evaluated using historical data and interviews with cage culture operators. In all three reservoirs, cage culture of common carp, Cyprinus carpio L., and later of common carp and Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus (L.), were encouraged as an alternative livelihood for persons displaced by the impoundment. Currently, a two-net culture system, locally known as 'lapis dua', in which in the inner cage (7 × 7 × 3 m) is used for common carp culture and the outer cage (7 × 7 × 5/7 m) is stocked with Nile tilapia, is practised. On average each cage is stocked with  approximately 100 kg fingerlings each of common carp and Nile tilapia. The numbers of cages and production of cultured fish has increased in the reservoirs, but total and per cage production began to decline from about 1995 in Saguling from 2200 kg cage−1 in 1989 to <500 kg cage−1 in 2002, and in Cirata from a peak of approximately 2300 kg cage−1 in 1995 to approximately 400 kg cage−1 in 2002. In Jatiluhur, which has a considerably lower cage density, total fish production and production per cage has increased since 2000, and currently is approximately 4000 kg cage−1, close to production in the early years of cage culture activities. The cage culture operations also resulted in substantial nutrient loading, estimated at 3.2, 15.2 and 3.1 t of nitrogen and 134, 636 and 128 kg of phosphorous per year in the maximum years of production for Saguling, Cirata and Jatiluhur reservoirs, respectively. In later years, when cage culture production was high, fish kills occurred in the cages, and in Jatiluhur reservoir coincided with a dramatic decline in wild fishery catches. An attempt is made to determine the maximum number of cages for each of the reservoirs that will bring long-term sustainability of cage culture operations and the wild fisheries in the three reservoirs.

The influence of collectivism in society and its implications for research on information systems and national culture

This paper argues that the nature of IS research that deals with indigenous culture must be informed as much by context as it is by culture models, which has been the focus of such research in the past. This is considered important because it better reflects the meaning of the data collected for the researcher. To appreciate the importance of context this papers also argues that research subjects from designated individualist societies will inform the researcher in different ways from those subjects located in collectivist societies. To illustrate the practical implications of this argument the paper reports three separate case studies in IS research where the researchers reflect on the impact that a collectivist view has had on the research findings. The paper suggests that (1) similar ethnicity and appearance are significant in gaining the trust of subjects in a collectivist society; that is the researcher is part of the in-group as they belong to the same culture or ethnic group; that (2) who introduced the researcher to the subject is significant in that trust is best reflected when a member of the group/collective plays an important role in the research process itself; and that (3) an ability to (a) communicate in the natural language and (b) understand the implicit body language and (c) cultural codes is important in gaining significant and more meaningful research outcomes. This is enabled via the implicit meanings embedded in members of the collectivist society.

Smaller steps into longer journeys : experiencing African music and expressing culture

This paper outlines an exploratory research project that draws on survey data from both primary and secondary school music teachers in Victoria. The research stems from a study that I undertook in 2002-2003 with final year Deakin University undergraduate students. That project investigated the potential of African music to enhance the generic musical experiences, learning, motivation, interest, confidence and competence of non-specialist primary teacher education students. The research project being reported in this paper is an extension of the previous study to focus on practising music teachers at both primary and secondary school levels. The research addresses the significance and contribution of African music and culture as a cross-cultural experience for music teachers, their students and the wider community. It further considers my role as an African music practitioner in terms of transformation and acculturation. This paper outlines the progress of, and provides preliminary data about, the emergence of an innovative area of teaching and learning based on African music in Victorian schools. It also explores the notion of why cross-cultural and multi-cultural engagement matters in the contemporary context of educational change.

Preliminary observations on the tank and pond culture of the glass eels of the Australian shortfin eel, Anguilla Australis Richardson

There is expanding interest in the culture of the Australian shortfin eel Anguilla australis Richardson; however, there is a lack of fundamental biology and husbandry information necessary to further develop an industry within Australia. The present study was undertaken to gain a preliminary understanding of basic husbandry requirements for rearing of juvenile A. australis (glass eels and elvers) in tanks and earthen ponds. Newly caught glass eels were successfully acclimated to culture conditions. During tank culture trials, specific growth rates (SGR) and survival rates ranged from −2.1 to 2.8% day⁻¹ and 52% to 100% respectively. Glass eels weaned onto a commercial eel diet exhibited a significantly greater SGR and survival rate than those weaned onto a commercial trout diet. Glass eels weaned onto an eel diet over a 15-day period grew slightly faster than eels weaned over a 5-day period, but survival rates were not significantly different for each treatment. SGRs (up to 2.8% day⁻¹) were significantly higher for glass eels fed at 9 and 12% day⁻¹ than at 6% day⁻¹. Stocking densities between 2.5 kg m⁻³ and 30 kg m⁻³ did not influence either SGR or survival rates. SGRs were significantly higher for glass eels cultured at 25 °C than at lower temperatures. During pond culture trials, SGRs and survival rates ranged from 1.36 to 1.65% day⁻¹ and 39% to 77% respectively. The SGR and survival rates of juvenile eels stocked into ponds receiving supplementary feeding with a commercial eel diet were not significantly different to those of eels stocked into ponds that did not receive supplementary feeding.