COMMUNISM

6,000 years ago, men and women had equal access to resources

A UNIGE team shows that all the people who lived and were buried in Barmaz necropolises (Switzerland) during the Neolithic period had the same access to food resources.

UNIVERSITÉ DE GENÈVE

Using isotope geochemistry, a team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has uncovered new information about the Barmaz necropolis in Valais (Switzerland): 14% of the people buried 6,000 years ago at this site were not locals. What’s more, the study suggests that this Middle Neolithic agropastoral society - one of the oldest known in the western part of Switzerland - was relatively egalitarian. The isotope ratios of carbon, nitrogen and sulphur contained in the bones reveal that all members of the community, including people from elsewhere, had access to the same food resources. These results are published in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.

Neolithic times marked the beginning of animal husbandry and agriculture. In Switzerland, this period spans between 5500 and 2200 BC. The first agropastoral communities gradually moved from a predatory economy - in which hunting and gathering provided the nutrients essential for survival - to a production economy. This radically changed the dietary habits and functioning dynamics of Neolithic populations. The bones and teeth of individuals retain chemical traces that scientists are now able to detect and interpret.

The aim of the study carried out by Déborah Rosselet-Christ, a doctoral student at the Laboratory of Archaeology of Africa and Anthropolgy in the UNIGE Faculty of Science, is to apply isotope analysis to human remains dating from the Neolithic period to learn more about their diet and mobility. The levels of certain isotopes of carbon, nitrogen, sulphur and strontium depend on the environment in which each individual lives and eats. Isotopes are atoms that have the same number of electrons and protons but a different number of neutrons. This very precise and delicate technique is being applied for the first time to alpine agropastoral populations from the Middle Neolithic period in the western part of Switzerland.

Mobility according to the second molar 

Excavated in the 1950s and 1990s, the Barmaz site at Collombey-Muraz in the Chablais region of Valais is one of the oldest remains of agropastoral societies in the western part of Switzerland to have preserved human remains. It comprises two necropolises containing the bones of around seventy individuals. For her master degree, Déborah Rosselet-Christ, the study’s first author, selected 49 of them (as many women as men) from whom she systematically took samples of collagen from certain bones, as well as fragments of enamel from their second molars.
 

‘‘The second molar is a tooth whose crown forms between the ages of three and eight,’’ explains the researcher. ‘‘Once formed, tooth enamel is not renewed for the rest of its life. Its chemical composition therefore reflects the environment in which its owner lived during childhood. Strontium (Sr) is a good marker of mobility. The ratio of abundance between two of its isotopes - i.e. their proportion - varies greatly depending on the age of the surrounding rocks. These chemical elements end up in the enamel via the food chain, leaving an indelible signature that is specific to each environment.’’

Analysis of the strontium isotope ratios in the 49 individuals from Barmaz reveals a high degree of homogeneity in most of them and markedly different values in only 14% of the samples, indicating a different origin. ‘‘The technique makes it possible to determine that these are individuals who did not live the first years of their lives in the place where they were buried, but it is more difficult to determine where they come from’’, moderates Jocelyne Desideri, senior lecturer at the Laboratory of Archaeology of Africa and Anthropolgy in the UNIGE Faculty of Science, last author of the article. ‘‘Our results show that people were on the move at that time. This comes as no surprise, as several studies have highlighted the same phenomenon in other places and at other times during the Neolithic period.’’

Diet recorded in collagen 

Collagen is used to determine the ratios of isotopes of carbon (δ13C), nitrogen (δ15N) and sulphur (δ34S). Each measurement provides information on specific aspects of the diet, such as the categories of plants according to the type of photosynthesis they use, the amount of animal protein or the intake of aquatic animals. As bones are constantly being renewed, the results only concern the last few years of an individual’s life. That said, the scientists were able to deduce that these former residents of the region of Barmaz had a diet based on terrestrial (rather than aquatic) resources, with a very high consumption of animal protein.

‘‘What’s more interesting is that we didn’t measure any differences between men and women,’’ notes Déborah Rosselet-Christ. ‘‘Nor even between locals and non-locals. These results therefore suggest equal access to food resources between the different members of the group, whatever their origin or sex. However, this is not always the case. There are, for example, dietary differences between the sexes in Neolithic populations in the south of France.’’

A clearer picture of agropastoral societies

However, the scientists were able to show that non-local people were only buried in one of the necropolises (Barmaz I) and that higher levels of the nitrogen isotope were measured in the other (Barmaz II). Given that the two necropolises were contemporaneous (and only 150 metres apart), the latter observation raises the question of whether there was a difference in social status between the two groups of deceased.

‘‘Our isotope measurements are an interesting complement to other approaches used in archaeology,’’ says Jocelyne Desideri. ‘‘They help to clarify the picture we are trying to paint of the life of these early Alpine agropastoral societies, the relationships between individuals and their mobility.’’

Déborah Rosselet-Christ is currently pursuing this work as part of her doctoral thesis, funded by the ALPproject of the Swiss National Science Foundation and co-directed by Jocelyne Desideri and Massimo Chiaradia (senior lecturer, Department of Earth sciences). Working alongside a multidisciplinary team specialising in genetics, palae-opathology, dental calculus and morphology, she is broadening her field of study by including other sites in Valais and the Val d’Aosta in Italy, covering a wider Neolithic period and using other isotopes, such as neodymium, which are potentially interesting in a prehistoric archaeological context.

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JOURNAL

Journal of Archaeological Science Reports

DOI

10.1016/j.jasrep.2024.104585 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

News article

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Not applicable

ARTICLE TITLE

"First Swiss alpine agropastoral societies: Contribution of isotope analysis to the study of their diet and mobility"

Wildfire smoke and health

CANADIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION JOURNAL

With wildfires becoming more frequent and extensive in Canada, it’s important for people to understand the health risks of wildfire smoke. An article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.240135 aims to provide information for clinicians and people in Canada as wildfire season is upon us.

"As climate change causes more frequent and severe wildfires, wildfire smoke becomes a larger health problem,” says Dr. Mehdi Aloosh, assistant professor, Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact, McMaster University, Hamilton, and medical officer of health of Windsor–Essex County, Ontario. “Communities need to be aware and prepared to reduce the harmful health effects of wildfire smoke, and health care practitioners play a crucial role in this effort."

1. Exposure to wildfire smoke is linked to negative health outcomes, including respiratory conditions, such as asthma, and heart issues.
2. Wildfire smoke can be more toxic than other types of air pollution. The fine particulates in wildfire smoke can travel more than 1000 km, enter the body, generate free radicals, and cause inflammation in body organs.
3. The Air Quality Health Index (AQHI) is a useful tool to communicate risk of wildfire smoke. The AQHI scale measures air quality on a scale of 1–10, and a level of more than 7 indicates that at-risk people, including those with respiratory and chronic diseases, older adults, pregnant people, and children, should minimize time spent outdoors in strenuous activity.
4. Health care providers can help people understand health risks. Clinicians should discuss the risks of wildfire smoke with at-risk patients, the usefulness of the AQHI, and the value of indoor air filtration, and ensure patients with respiratory conditions have updated action plans and an adequate supply of medications.
5. Reducing exposure will reduce health risks. Staying indoors and using high-efficiency particulate air cleaners, and when outside wearing well-fitted N95 or KN95 masks can reduce exposure to fine particles by more than 90%.

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JOURNAL

Canadian Medical Association Journal

DOI

10.1503/cmaj.240135 

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Wildfire smoke

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

17-Jun-2024

 

US sexual health curriculum could force LGBTQ+ students to seek potentially inaccurate education outside of school

Addressing the negligence could be “life-saving”, argue authors of new study, launched during Pride Month

Peer-Reviewed Publication

TAYLOR & FRANCIS GROUP

Children across the United States who identify as LGBTQ+ say the sexual health education curricula they receive is leaving them without essential information to make informed decisions about their sexual health – which could force them to seek potentially dangerous advice elsewhere. 

The results of a new, national, peer-reviewed survey, show that these young people — aged 13 to 17 — believe crucial topics surrounding sexual orientation and gender identity are being omitted from sexual health education programs.

Experts who led the study – published today in The Journal of Sex Research, as people around the world celebrate Pride month – say the addition of key items in the curricula could be “life-saving”.     

“The exclusion of LGBTQ+ students from the curricula may contribute to poor health outcomes in LGBTQ+ youth, with some research beginning to document these experiences and provide recommendations for curricula changes,” explains lead author Steven Hobaica, a clinical psychologist and Research Scientist at The Trevor Project, whose mission is to end suicide among LGBTQ+ young people. 

“Addressing this negligence is urgent and could be life-saving.

“Given the current political climate, with legislation attempting to exclude LGBTQ+ information in schools, we encourage policymakers to continue fighting for LGBTQ+ inclusion in curricula as a means to prevent health problems for a vulnerable group.”

Of more than 800 respondents to the survey, most participants reported a lack of LGBTQ+ content in their sexual health education experiences. In order to be educated on sexual health, most were using extracurricular sources including online spaces, friends, and personal experiences with sexual exploration. The authors found that these extracurricular sources are frequently preferred by LGBTQ+ youth; but may lack accuracy and reliability.

Overall, participants described feeling marginalized by curricula that were based on abstinence-only approaches, religious principles, or contained oppressive and suppressive elements – such as negative remarks about LGBTQ+ individuals or skipping required LGBTQ+ content altogether. 

“LGBTQ+ youth expressed a strong desire to learn more about topics related to their sexual orientation and gender identity, highlighting a critical gap in existing curricula,” says co-author Dr. Erica Szkody, who is a Postdoctoral Research Associate, at the Lab for Scalable Mental Health, at Northwestern University.

“Despite the well-known benefits of comprehensive sexual health education, the majority of school sexual health education curricula in the U.S. is non-comprehensive and excludes LGBTQ+ students.

“Our analyses underscore the extent of this exclusion.”

The survey also provided LGBTQ+ young people the opportunity to openly share on their experiences, as well as recommendations for change, in regard to sexual health education:

These suggestions included:

• More LGBTQ+ content in sexual health education curricula, as well as more detail on healthy and diverse relationships (e.g., non-monogamy, polyamory), consent, safety in relationships, and communication skills.
• Creating safe and supportive spaces, while considering legitimate fears due to a possible increase in bullying, as they had heard students make fun of the material or use discriminatory language during past implementation.
• Updating sexual health education materials to reflect LGBTQ+ lived experiences, history, and risk factors.
• Creating sexual health interventions focused on LGBTQ+ experiences and concerns.
• Improving access to reliable sexual health information.
• Creating more accessible sexual health information via other avenues, such as online and through mobile applications.

Summarizing their experiences of sexual health curricula in the U.S., LGBTQ+ study participants left heartfelt responses:

“I wish I was taught about gay sex, sexual orientation, and all the other controversial topics that [are deemed] ‘grooming.’ When kids aren’t taught good sex ed, they learn how to do it in an unhealthy way from other sources like the internet or word of mouth. If we teach children about these topics, they’ll be safer when they become teenagers,” one said.

Another added: “I wish others understood that while the anatomy-related knowledge is important, we need sexual [health] education that is relevant to today’s world. This involves sexual [health] education [about] dangers and safety on the Internet, [same-sex/gender] relations, and education geared towards attraction and feelings rather than a lesson only [regarding] heterosexual procreation. I wish they took our real-life experiences and insecurities into account.”

One more exclaimed: “It is NOT HARMFUL to talk about gender identity and sexuality with high schoolers. It SAVES LIVES.”

The authors hope that their findings contribute to a “critical” policy shift toward including LGBTQ+ young people in sexual health education, a community that is “often underserved”.    

“By including the voices of LGBTQ+ young people in curricula design, we can not only provide the necessary knowledge for youth to engage in healthy relationships and health behaviors, but also can contribute to a more accepting and equitable society for years to come,” states Hobaica.

Although this study incorporated quantitative and qualitative analyses with a large national sample of LGBTQ+ youth, it had limitations. “Given sample size constraints, we could not draw conclusions regarding recommendations from students with specific identities,” explain the authors who state future work could collect similar data from even larger samples for further generalizability and comparisons.

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JOURNAL

The Journal of Sex Research

DOI

10.1080/00224499.2024.2355564 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Survey

ARTICLE TITLE

Sexual Health Education Experiences and Recommendations from the Perspective of LGBTQ+ Youth

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

17-Jun-2024

 

Masterstrokes and markets: a bibliometric journey through art's value

KEAI COMMUNICATIONS CO., LTD.

 

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TIME ZONE MAP OF KEYWORDS

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CREDIT: MINGJUN GUO, XUERONG LI, YUNJIE WEI

The art market, blending culture and commerce, has long intrigued economists and enthusiasts. A new article offers a comprehensive bibliometric analysis over five decades, examining pricing mechanisms and efficiency metrics. It highlights the COVID-19 pandemic's role in accelerating digital transformations within the market. This analysis provides valuable insights for future research, offering a robust foundation for understanding the dynamic interplay between art, economics, and culture.

The art market, with its centuries-old history, has undergone significant transformations, especially in recent decades. Scholars have examined various aspects, from art pricing and artist branding to the implications of digital platforms and regulatory measures. Despite extensive research, gaps remain in understanding the full scope of market efficiency and the evolving dynamics influenced by technological advancements and global events. Due to these challenges, there is a pressing need for comprehensive studies that delve deeper into these areas, especially in light of recent shifts in market behavior and regulatory landscapes.

A recent review (DOI: 10.1016/j.dsm.2024.03.006) by researchers from the Academy of Mathematics and Systems Science at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, published in Data Science and Management on April 13, 2024, provides a thorough bibliometric analysis of the art market spanning the last 50 years. Utilizing big data and various analytical methods, the study maps out significant trends, influential works, and emerging themes within the art market.

The study utilized a comprehensive dataset from the Web of Science Core Collection, encompassing 912 pieces of literature on the art market from 1972 to 2021. Through descriptive statistical analysis and various bibliometric methods, including co-citation and co-word analysis, the researchers identified key trends and shifts in research focus. Notably, the study found a consistent annual increase in research interest in the art market, with significant shifts from hedonic art prices to topics such as artist brand management, digital art platforms, and anti-money laundering supervision. The analysis highlighted the substantial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in expediting digital transformations within the art market. Additionally, the study revealed five primary research clusters: anonymous painting and artistic brands, hedonic art price indices, digital art platforms, anti-money laundering regulation, and market efficiency. Each cluster represents a critical area of focus within the field, providing a detailed roadmap for future research directions.

Dr. Yunjie Wei, a corresponding author from the Academy of Mathematics and Systems Science, stated, "Our findings illuminate the evolving priorities within art market research, particularly the growing importance of digital platforms and regulatory measures. This comprehensive analysis not only maps out past trends but also highlights critical areas for future exploration, offering valuable insights for scholars and practitioners alike."

The study's findings have significant implications for both academic research and practical applications within the art market. By identifying key trends and emerging areas of focus, it provides valuable insights for scholars and practitioners, including art dealers, auction houses, and regulatory bodies. These insights help navigate the complexities of digital transformation and regulatory compliance. The study underscores the necessity for ongoing monitoring and analysis to keep pace with the rapidly evolving art market landscape, ensuring that stakeholders remain informed and adaptive to new trends and regulatory demands.

###

Media contact:

Name: Yajuan Zhao

Email: dsm@xjtu.edu.cn

Expert contact: weiyunjie@amss.ac.cn

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JOURNAL

Data Science and Management

DOI

10.1016/j.dsm.2024.03.006 

ARTICLE TITLE

Bibliometric analysis of the art market: from art price to market efficiency

 

If you feel unsafe in your neighborhood, a new study shows you are more likely to smoke

University of Houston report indicates perceptions of powerlessness also make it harder to quit smoking

UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

 

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MICHAEL J. ZVOLENSKY, UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON HUGH ROY AND LILLIE CRANZ CULLEN DISTINGUISHED UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR OF PSYCHOLOGY, IS REPORTING HIGHER LEVELS OF SMOKING AND MORE SEVERE PROBLEMS QUITTING AMONG THOSE WHO FEEL THREATENED IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS.

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CREDIT: UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON

Research from the University of Houston indicates that more people smoke – and have trouble quitting – in neighborhoods where they feel unsafe. High crime rates, low police presence or trust, and a history of neglect in these neighborhoods result in heightened neighborhood vigilance among residents to protect against personal harm. 

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the neighborhoods people live in have a major impact on their health and well-being, making them key non-medical drivers of care. Although non-medical drivers have increasingly been understood as clinically important factors in the onset, maintenance and relapse of substance use behavior, little research has evaluated neighborhood vigilance in terms of smoking. 

"High levels of neighborhood threat shape perceptions of powerlessness among residents, amplifying a general sense of mistrust, that can promote maladaptive coping behavior like smoking,” reports Michael J. Zvolensky, Hugh Roy and Lillie Cranz Cullen Distinguished University Professor of Psychology, in the journal Substance Use & Misuse.  

Zvolensky examined the role of neighborhood vigilance in terms of smoking abstinence expectancies and severity of problems when trying to quit among adults who smoke. Abstinence expectancies pertain to the expected personal consequences of refraining from smoking. 

“Neighborhood vigilance was also associated with more severe problems when trying to quit smoking. The current findings suggest neighborhood vigilance represents an important contextual factor involved in certain negative beliefs about abstinence and challenges in quitting.” 

Participants in this analysis included 93 adult smokers who were seeking cessation treatment. Of the group 64.5% identified as Black or African American, 30.1% identified as White, 3.2% identified as Other and 2.2% identified as Asian. The group answered questions about their own socio-demographic characteristics and their neighborhoods. 

“Generally consistent with prediction, greater levels of neighborhood vigilance were associated with negative abstinence smoking expectancies, including negative mood and harmful consequences,” said Zvolensky.  

Zvolensky said the study indicates a need to continue building theoretical knowledge and clinical intervention programming for smoking cessation that more directly focuses on social context factors like neighborhood vigilance. His team includes Bryce K. Clausen, Justin M. Shepherd and Brooke Y. Redmond, all from UH. 

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JOURNAL

Substance Use & Misuse

ARTICLE TITLE

Neighborhood Vigilance in Terms of Abstinence Expectancies for Smoking and Severity of Problems When Quitting

 

"Lost" birds list will aid in protecting species

CORNELL UNIVERSITY

 

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THE LOUISIADE PITTA IS ONE OF THE "LOST" SPECIES FOUND IN 2022 AND 2023 ON ROSSEL ISLAND, PAPUA NEW GUINEA. THERE HAD BEEN NO DEFINITE RECORD OF THIS BIRD SINCE 1898.

 

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CREDIT: PHOTO BY WANG BIN | CORNELL LAB OF ORNITHOLOGY | MACAULAY LIBRARY.

A group of scientists has released the first comprehensive list of birds that haven’t been seen in more than a decade, with the help of Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Their methods, and the global list of “lost” birds, have been published in the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.

“We started with the Macaulay Library because it is the richest depository of bird media, and we quicky found documentation for the vast majority of the world’s birds,” said lead author Cameron Rutt, a bird biologist with the American Bird Conservancy at the time of the research. “We also used data from iNaturalist and xeno-canto. We looked for species not represented at all with a recent image, video, or sound recording. A species would be considered ‘lost’ to science if there was no media of the bird within the past 10 years or more.”

The list was generated on behalf of the Search for Lost Birds at the American Bird Conservancy. This project is a global partnership among the American Bird Conservancy, Re:wild and BirdLife International. Repeating this data exercise every year or two will help capture new species approaching the 10-year benchmark without searchable media.

The study’s authors collated 42 million photos, videos and audio records – with more than 33 million from the Macaulay Library alone. Out of all the records, 144 species, 1.2% of all known bird species, qualified as lost.

Since this study was initiated, other lost birds have been rediscovered, including the black-naped pheasant-pigeon, which hadn’t been documented on a remote island of Papua New Guinea in more than 100 years. Currently the list stands at 126 species, the majority of which are threatened with extinction.

“We had several goals in mind here,” said study co-author Eliot Miller, then a postdoctoral researcher at the Cornell Lab. “We wanted to see if well-vetted public media databases would be comprehensive and trustworthy enough to document the presence or absence of species. Once absent species are identified, we can look for them and see if they need some kind of protection – this method helps identify research priorities for possible conservation action.”

Most of the undocumented species are concentrated in Asia, Africa and the scattered islands of Oceania. In some cases, species may be considered lost simply because their habitat is so remote that nobody has returned since the initial sightings. Only three species made the lost list in the continental United States: Eskimo curlew, Bachman’s warbler, and the ivory-billed woodpecker. Six native species are on the list from Hawaii.

“One of the things I learned from doing this is how many whimbrel and curlew relatives have likely gone extinct or seem to be heading in that direction,” Miller said. “It seems to be a group of birds that does not do well with people.”

A vital element of the project is tapping into local knowledge with on-site partners and helping fund expeditions to find the birds and assess their conservation needs. This knowledge will be crucial to the success of efforts to find species such as the Himalayan quail, Itombwe nightjar, Jerdon’s courser or the Bates’s weaver in Cameroon.

“A narrow slice of the world’s birds has fallen through the cracks,” said Rutt. “The coming years and decades will be critical if these birds are going to persist.”

This work was supported by the Constable Foundation and the American Bird Conservancy. It was conducted by scientists from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, American Bird Conservancy, BirdLife International, and Re:wild.

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JOURNAL

Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment

DOI

10.1002/fee.2778 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Global gaps in citizen-science data reveal the world's “lost” birds

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

17-Jun-2024

 

Frederick Douglass’ relationship with audiences illustrates ‘outsized impact’ of public speaking in politics, scholar says

UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS

LAWRENCE, KANSAS — The late 18th to the mid-19th century was the golden age of public speaking. Part education, part entertainment, being a good orator was critical — particularly in certain social circles.

For writer and reformer Frederick Douglass, public speaking was among the vehicles he used to tell his story of enslavement, to call for abolition and to defend Black Americans’ rights. 

A new scholarly article from Laura Mielke, “‘The Sea of Upturned Faces’: The Rhetorical Role of Audience in Frederick Douglass’s Constitutional Interpretation at Midcentury,” examines Douglass’ relationship as an orator with his audiences — both present and imagined — and how this give-and-take was present during a notable shift in his thinking. 

Mielke is the Dean’s Professor of English at the University of Kansas, where she also serves as interim chair of the Department of History. The article appeared in the journal MELUS (Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States).

Douglass was acutely aware of his audiences, both those in the room and the audience that would read written accounts of his oration in newspapers and other publications. In fact, Douglass advised fellow anti-slavery organizers to make sure the venues for lecturers had the audience illuminated.

“I imagine how Douglass wanted to see his audience so that he was constantly gauging their reaction, shifting his delivery and his tactics based on what he saw,” Mielke said. “He could shift from fire to comedy, from condemnation to satire.” 

Mielke, whose scholarship has delved into the impact of theatre on the anti-slavery movement, said Douglass and his contemporaries understood how to leverage the art form’s popularity, even incorporating imitations of pro-slavery preachers and politicians.

“We can have a negative connotation with performance, but he was a talented performer,” Mielke said. “He knew it was important for him to perform — to capture imaginations — but also to counter the racist performances of popular theater,” Mielke said.

In her article, Mielke explores Douglass’ ideological transformation from seeing the U.S. Constitution as a pro-slavery document to seeing it as an anti-slavery document through the lens his relationships with his audiences. What has otherwise been described as Douglass’ personal and intellectual transformation, Mielke sees having taken place in the presence of his many live audiences, as well as other writers, thinkers, readers and activists.

“He had shifted from lectures that were primarily focused on his autobiography to lectures that are more about what he is reading, what others should read — the sense of it being a collective project,” Mielke said. “Thinking about audience and the way he was seeing audiences and they were seeing him led him down this road toward reinterpreting the Constitution.”

Particularly in a presidential election year, the term “political theatre” is a charged one. Yet the way candidates relate to and play off their audiences matters, even to those who aren’t present to witness it.

“Today it might be too easy for us to say politics are all about social media and the internet,” Mielke said. “I would suggest that public speaking still has an outsized impact on the American political scene.”

Case in point, the amount of coverage given to candidates’ audiences as well as the candidates themselves — not unlike newspaper coverage of Douglass in the 1800s. 

“Live public speaking and its reception are very powerful, even when we are encountering them in a written record,” Mielke said.

The written record of Douglass’ life is a particular area of interest for Mielke, who has been involved in KU’s observance of Douglass Day, a nationwide event during which volunteers transcribe documents related to Black history to make the content digitally accessible.

“I love participating in Douglas Day because I love looking at old documents and learning about history,” Mielke said. “But I also have a sense that if I'm going to do scholarship in the field of 19th century African American literature I should do something to help sustain it. Anything we can do to help sustain community around the preservation of that history and the dissemination of those documents is important.”
 

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DOI

10.1093/melus/mlae009 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Content analysis

ARTICLE TITLE

“‘The Sea of Upturned Faces’: The Rhetorical Role of Audience in Frederick Douglass’s Constitutional Interpretation at Midcentury"

 

New funding to support Wales’ development of pioneering marine energy technology

Grant and Award Announcement

SWANSEA UNIVERSITY

 

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A PHOTO OF THE PELAFLEX FLOATING WIND TURBINE.

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CREDIT: MARINE POWER SYSTEMS.

Innovate UK has awarded funding to further optimise a unique and flexible floating offshore wind platform for applications in the Celtic Sea, a collaboration involving Swansea University.

The funding will help establish the Launchpad project to ensure that, where possible, a local supply chain will support the fabrication, manufacture, and deployment of the platform, known as PelaFlex.

Led by Marine Power Systems, Swansea University’s Department of Mechanical Engineering will be working with Ledwood Mechanical Engineering, Tata Steel UK, ABP (Associated British Ports) Port Talbot, and the Port of Milford Haven on the project, which is worth over £800,000.

Launchpad will optimise PelaFlex's structural efficiency, paying particular attention to the challenging environment in the Celtic Sea while minimising the cost of materials and deployment. This includes using strip steel manufactured in Port Talbot, components fabricated by local suppliers, and assembly and rollout using existing ports in southwest Wales.

Swansea University will provide design input by applying the latest developments in structural design modelling, and Ledwood, based in Pembrokeshire, will provide feedback that will help maximise the extent to which local suppliers can support fabrication.

Input from Associated British Ports and the Port of Milford Haven will ensure that the platform can be assembled and deployed from those locations whilst minimising the investment required to do so.

The project will support Tata Steel UK’s vision to decarbonise Port Talbot’s steel production, one example being the production of green strip steel using an electric arc furnace. It will also help position the town as an industrial hub for the development and deployment of offshore wind.

Dr Will Harrison, Senior Lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at Swansea University, said: “It is a great opportunity to be working with MPS, Ledwood, Tata Steel, the Port of Milford Haven and ABP Port Talbot to deliver this exciting project. Each of the partners brings different and complementary expertise to this engineering challenge, and the project really showcases the potential of industry in South-West Wales. MPS has developed a world-class concept which we are really excited to help them optimise, using experience in computation techniques at Swansea University and to support local industry.”

Graham Foster, Chief Technology Officer at Marine Power Systems, commented: “We are really excited to receive support through Innovate UK. With the deployment of floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea becoming a reality the time is absolutely right to work with local supply chain to optimise the detailed design of our technology and maximise its deliverability. A good example of that, is that we are confident that through this project we will be able to optimise our platform design to increase the amount of local steel used to fabricate it from around 10% to over 50%.”

Mark Davies of Ledwood Mechanical Engineering commented: “Launchpad represents another step forward for the emerging floating offshore wind industry. As a locally-based engineering company, we are pleased to be working with MPS, Tata Steel, the Port of Milford Haven, ABP Port Talbot and Swansea University to help build a local supply chain by capitalising on the skills, expertise and infrastructure that we have here in South-West Wales. This is an exciting time for us and we hope the region can take advantage of the opportunities that will soon emerge.”

WWIII

SwRI breaks ground on new hypersonic engine research facility

Institute will demonstrate faster methods of producing high-speed propulsion systems

SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE

 

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SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE (SWRI) TODAY CELEBRATED THE GROUNDBREAKING OF THE CENTER FOR ACCELERATING MATERIALS AND PROCESSES (CAMP), A NEW RESEARCH FACILITY THAT DEMONSTRATES FASTER METHODS OF PRODUCING HYPERSONIC ENGINES.

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CREDIT: SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE

SAN ANTONIO — June 17, 2024 —Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) today celebrated the groundbreaking of the Center for Accelerating Materials and Processes (CAMP), a new facility that will support research and development for tomorrow’s high-speed aerospace engines.

“This project will help ensure the U.S. is a leader in high-speed propulsion research and development,” said Dr. Barron Bichon, director of SwRI’s Materials Engineering Department. “SwRI is committed to advancing this vital technology on behalf of Texas and the nation.”

Market forces including growth in global defense, air travel, delivery and transportation needs are driving the demand for high-speed engines. Initial projects in the new CAMP facility will focus on demonstrating faster, more efficient techniques for manufacturing high-speed propulsion systems.

Once construction on the new two-story, 36,600 square-foot facility is complete, SwRI will begin evaluating new materials and processes designed to produce a high-speed engine in a considerably shorter amount of time than current production timelines.

“This new facility will see the development of innovative technology that reflects SwRI’s mission of serving humankind,” said Dr. Ben Thacker, vice president of SwRI’s Mechanical Engineering Division. “Advancing high-speed propulsion systems propels us toward a future with stronger defense capabilities and greater global connectivity.”

One of the CAMP facility’s initial projects will involve procuring and installing manufacturing process test equipment. Under a contract from the Office of the Secretary of Defense’s Manufacturing Science and Technology Program, SwRI engineers will demonstrate how the facility will reduce production times and costs. The Institute will invest $34 million in the construction of the CAMP facility.

For more information, visit https://www.swri.org/technical-divisions/mechanical-engineering.