bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Risk stratification and management of women with cardiomyopathy/heart failure planning pregnancy or presenting during/after pregnancy: a position statement from the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology Study Group on Peripartum Cardiomyopathy
Authors: Sliwa Karen , van der Meer Peter , Petrie Mark C. , Frogoudaki Alexandra , Johnson Mark R. , Hilfiker‐Kleiner Denise , Hamdan Righab , Jackson Alice M. , Ibrahim Bassem , Mbakwem Amam , Tschöpe Carsten , Regitz‐Zagrosek Vera , Omerovic Elmir , Roos‐Hesselink Jolien , Gatzoulis Michael , Tutarel Oktay , Price Susanna , Heymans Stephane , Coats Andrew J.S. , Müller Christian , Chioncel Ovidiu , Thum Thomas , de Boer Rudolf A. , Jankowska Ewa , Ponikowski Piotr , Lyon Alexander R. , Rosano Giuseppe , Seferovic Petar M. , Bauersachs Johann
Published: February 2021

This position paper focusses on the pathophysiology, diagnosis and management of women diagnosed with a cardiomyopathy, or at risk of heart failure (HF), who are planning to conceive or present with (de novo or previously unknown) HF during or after pregnancy. This includes the heterogeneous group of heart muscle diseases such as hypertrophic, dilated, arrhythmogenic right ventricular and non‐classified cardiomyopathies, left ventricular non‐compaction, peripartum cardiomyopathy, Takotsubo syndrome, adult congenital heart disease with HF, and patients with right HF. Also, patients with a history of chemo‐/radiotherapy for cancer or haematological malignancies need specific pre‐, during and post‐pregnancy assessment and counselling. We summarize the current knowledge about pathophysiological mechanisms, including gene mutations, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and medical and device management, as well as risk stratification. Women with a known diagnosis of a cardiomyopathy will often require continuation of drug therapy, which has the potential to exert negative effects on the foetus. This position paper assists in balancing benefits and detrimental effects.
Enhanced oxygen and hydrogen evolution reaction by zinc doping in cobalt–nickel sulfide heteronanorods
Authors: Du Jing , Zou Zehua , Xu Cailing
Published: February 2021

Developing highly efficient electrocatalysts for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is critical to enable electrical‐to‐hydrogen energy conversion technologies to reality. Herein, zinc‐doped cobalt sulfide‐modified nickel sulfide (ZCNS) heteronanorod hybrid electrocatalysts are prepared through a facile hydrothermal method to enhance the electrocatalytic performance of cobalt‐nickel sulfide. The doping of Zn optimizes the electronic structure of cobalt‐nickel sulfide thus improving the conductivity and charge transfer ability of cobalt‐nickel sulfide. In addition, benefiting from the hierarchical structure of one‐dimensional nanorods and three‐dimensional Ni foam, abundant catalytically active sites and fast ion and charge transportation are obtained. As a result, the optimal zinc doped cobalt‐nickel sulfide hybrid presents overpotentials of 138 and 235 mV to achieve a current density of 10 mA/cm2 in 1.0 M KOH for HER and OER, respectively. Assembled as an electrolyzer for overall water splitting using the heteronanorod hybrids as both anode and cathode catalysts, the low cell voltage of 1.56 V at 10 mA/cm2 is achieved, which is similar to that of the IrO2‐Pt/C couple.
Seismic modal identification using a new approach based on weighted transmissibility
Authors: Damadipour Majid , Tarinejad Reza
Published: February 2021

In recent years, the transmissibility‐based operational modal analysis has attracted the attention of many researchers due to its effective applications in output‐only modal identification. However, the present research indicates that the application of this approach is not so appropriate for the ambient vibration records with short length and high spectral leakage, such as seismic records. The existence of nonperiodic frequency components in the records leads to an increase in the spectral leakage and dispersion. In this paper, an effective approach called weighted transmissibility‐based operational modal analysis is proposed to properly identify the structural modal parameters using the seismic records. The proposed method identifies the natural frequencies and mode shapes based on weighed transmissibility, so that it combines the single‐reference weighted transmissibility functions associated with different transferring outputs obtained from single or multiple loading conditions in a unique matrix formulation. Then, it extracts the vibration modes using the efficient spectra obtained from the singular value decomposition of weighted transmissibility matrices. In this paper, a theoretical example (5DOF system) is provided to indicate the capabilities of the proposed approach for identifying the modal parameters of structural systems.
Contamination of Clostridium perfringens in soy sauce, and quantitative microbial risk assessment for C. perfringens through soy sauce consumption
Authors: Seo Yeongeun , Lee Yewon , Kim Sejeong , Ha Jimyeong , Choi Yukyung , Oh Hyemin , Kim Yujin , Rhee Min Suk , Yoon Yohan
Published: February 2021

The objective of this study was to conduct QMRA (quantitative microbial risk assessment) of Clostridium perfringens through soy sauce consumption. Four hundred and ninety soy sauce samples from markets were analyzed to detect C. perfringens. Temperature and time were also measured during transportation and display of soy sauce. A primary model was developed by fitting the Weibull model to the C. perfringens cell counts in soy sauce at 7–35°C, and δ (the time needed to decrease 1 log CFU/ml) and ρ (curve shape) were calculated. The parameters were analyzed, using the Exponential model (secondary model) as a function of temperature. The consumption amount and percentage of soy sauce were surveyed, and a dose‐response model was searched. Using all collected data, a simulation model was prepared in the @RISK program to estimate the probability of C. perfringens foodborne illness by soy sauce consumption. C. perfringens were negative in 490 samples. Thus, the initial contamination level was estimated to be −2.9 log CFU/ml. The developed predictive models showed that C. perfringens cell counts decreased during transportation and display. The average consumption amounts, and the percentage of soy sauce were 7.81 ml and 81.2%, respectively. The simulation showed that the probability of C. perfringens foodborne illness by consumption of soy sauce was 1.7 × 10–16 per person per day. Therefore, the risk of C. perfringens by consumption of soy sauce is low in Korea.
Astrocytes in stress accumulate lipid droplets
Authors: Smolič Tina , Tavčar Petra , Horvat Anemari , Černe Urška , Halužan Vasle Ana , Tratnjek Larisa , Kreft Mateja Erdani , Scholz Nicole , Matis Maja , Petan Toni , Zorec Robert , Vardjan Nina
Published: February 2021

When the brain is in a pathological state, the content of lipid droplets (LDs), the lipid storage organelles, is increased, particularly in glial cells, but rarely in neurons. The biology and mechanisms leading to LD accumulation in astrocytes, glial cells with key homeostatic functions, are poorly understood. We imaged fluorescently labeled LDs by microscopy in isolated and brain tissue rat astrocytes and in glia‐like cells in Drosophila brain to determine the (sub)cellular localization, mobility, and content of LDs under various stress conditions characteristic for brain pathologies. LDs exhibited confined mobility proximal to mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum that was attenuated by metabolic stress and by increased intracellular Ca2+, likely to enhance the LD–organelle interaction imaged by electron microscopy. When de novo biogenesis of LDs was attenuated by inhibition of DGAT1 and DGAT2 enzymes, the astrocyte cell number was reduced by ~40%, suggesting that in astrocytes LD turnover is important for cell survival and/or proliferative cycle. Exposure to noradrenaline, a brain stress response system neuromodulator, and metabolic and hypoxic stress strongly facilitated LD accumulation in astrocytes. The observed response of stressed astrocytes may be viewed as a support for energy provision, but also to be neuroprotective against the stress‐induced lipotoxicity.
Outcomes and prognostic factors of major salivary gland tumors treated with proton beam radiation therapy
Authors: Zakeri Kaveh , Wang Huili , Kang Jung Julie , Lee Anna , Romesser Paul , Mohamed Nader , Gelblum Daphna , Sherman Eric , Dunn Lara , Boyle Jay , Wong Richard , Chen Linda , Yu Yao , Tsai C. Jillian , McBride Sean M. , Riaz Nadeem , Lee Nancy
Published: February 2021

Background

Proton beam radiation therapy (PBRT) has dosimetric advantages compared to photon radiation therapy for the treatment of major salivary gland tumors (MSGTs).

Methods

Patients with non‐metastatic MSGTs treated at a single proton therapy center from October 2013 to October 2018 were retrospectively reviewed.

Results

Sixty‐eight patients with MSGTs were included and the most common site and histology were the parotid gland (75.0%) and adenoid cystic carcinoma (22.1%), respectively. The 3‐year rates of locoregional control, progression‐free survival, and overall survival were 95.1% (95% CI: 89.9%‐100.0%), 80.7% (70.2%‐92.7%), and 96.1% (95% CI: 90.9%‐100.0%), respectively.

Conclusion

In a large cohort of MSGTs treated with PBRT, the rates of locoregional control were high in short‐term follow‐up and treatment was well tolerated.
Serum Laminin γ2 Monomer as a Diagnostic and Predictive Biomarker for Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Authors: Yamashita Taro , Koshikawa Naohiko , Shimakami Tetsuro , Terashima Takeshi , Nakagawa Masatoshi , Nio Kouki , Horii Rika , Iida Noriho , Kawaguchi Kazunori , Arai Kuniaki , Sakai Yoshio , Yamashita Tatsuya , Mizukoshi Eishiro , Honda Masao , Kitao Azusa , Kobayashi Satoshi , Takahara Shizuko , Imai Yasuhito , Yoshimura Kenichi , Murayama Toshinori , Nakamoto Yasunari , Yoshida Eisaku , Yoshimura Toru , Seiki Motoharu , Kaneko Shuichi
Published: February 2021

Backgrounds and Aims

Structural dynamics of basement membrane components are still to be elucidated in the process of hepatocarcinogenesis. We evaluated the characteristics of HCC expressing laminin γ2 monomer (LG2m), a basement membrane component not detected in normal tissues, for HCC diagnosis. We further determined whether elevated serum LG2m is a risk factor for HCC development in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC).

Approach and Results

In HCC cell lines, LG2m was expressed in alpha‐fetoprotein (AFP)‐negative, CD90‐positive cells characterized by highly metastatic natures. Using 14 cell lines and 258 HCC microarray data, we identified that LG2m gene signature was associated with Hoshida’s S1/Boyault’s G3 molecular subclasses with poor prognosis, which could not be recognized by AFP. Serum LG2m was assessed in 24 healthy donors, 133 chronic liver disease patients, and 142 HCC patients, and sensitivity and specificity of LG2m testing for HCC diagnosis were 62.9% and 70.5%, respectively (cutoff, 30 pg/mL). We evaluated the consequence of LG2m elevation in two independent HCC cohorts (n = 47 and n = 81), and LG2m‐high HCC showed poor prognosis with later development of distant organ metastasis (cutoff, 60 pg/mL). LG2m was slightly elevated in a subset of CHC patients, and Kaplan‐Meier analysis indicated a high incidence of HCC (n = 70). For validation, we enrolled 399 CHC patients with sustained virological response (SVR) as a multicenter, prospective study, and serum LG2m elevation correlated with a high incidence of HCC in the CHC patients with SVR (P < 0.0001).

Conclusions

LG2m is a predictive biomarker for the development of metastatic HCC. Elevated serum LG2m is an HCC risk in CHC patients who have achieved SVR.
miR‐17‐3p promotes the proliferation of multiple myeloma cells by downregulating P21 expression through LMLN inhibition
Authors: Xiang Pu , Yeung Yiu To , Wang Jiheng , Wu Qiong , Du Ruijuan , Huang Chuntian , Jia Xuechao , Gao Yunfeng , Zhi Yafei , Guo Fangqin , Wei Huifang , Zhang Dandan , Liu Yuzhang , Liu Lina , Liang Lijie , Wang Juan , Song Yongping , Liu Kangdong , Fang Baijun
Published: February 2021

Multiple myeloma (MM), a hematological malignancy, has a poor prognosis and requires an invasive procedure. Reports have implicated miRNAs in the diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of hematological malignancies. In our study, we evaluated the expression profiles of miR‐17‐3p in plasma and bone marrow mononuclear cells of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and MM patients and healthy subjects. The results showed that the plasma and mononuclear cell expression levels of miR‐17‐3p in MM patients were higher than those in MGUS patients and normal controls. In addition, the expression of miR‐17‐3p was positively correlated with diagnostic indexes, such as marrow plasma cell abundance and serum M protein level, and positively correlated with the International Staging System stage of the disease. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis suggested that miR‐17‐3p might be a diagnostic index of MM. Moreover, miR‐17‐3p regulated cell proliferation, apoptosis and the cell cycle through P21 in MM cell lines and promoted MM tumor growth in vivo. Furthermore, we predicted and verified LMLN as a functional downstream target gene of miR‐17‐3p. Negatively regulated by miR‐17‐3p, LMLN inhibits MM cell growth, exerting a tumor suppressive function through P21. Taken together, our data identify miR‐17‐3p as a promising diagnostic biomarker for MM in the clinic and unveil a new miR‐17‐3p‐LMLN‐P21 axis in MM progression.
Automatic three‐dimensional detection and volume estimation of low‐grade gliomas
Authors: Boudrioua Asma , Aloui Abdelouahab , Solaiman Basel , Asli Larbi , Ben Salem Douraied , Tliba Souhil
Published: February 2021

Brain tumor segmentation is routinely needed in diagnostic radiology. Automatic volume estimation has been used for diagnosis improvement and treatment process. This article presents a new approach for tumor volume estimation, using a variational level set method. The new adapted representation of intensity allows the method to be efficient in the region of interest identification, regardless the shape, size, and location of the tumor. For the estimation of an optimal bounding box, a fuzzy preference optimization model is used. The proposed approach is suitable for the zero level set initialization as well as for the reduction of the processing area, which ultimately speeds up the curve evolution. Moreover, tumor contours are determined using the hybrid level set technique, which combines the gradient and local phase information as an edge indicator term. Such an approach is robust to attenuation and intensity inhomogeneity. The proposed method is evaluated using a set of real and synthetic images. Our method achieved a performance of 96% accuracy, with an average execution time of 4.75 seconds. The proposed method is fast, accurate, and does not require training data or prior knowledge. With such experimental results, our approach outperforms 18 state‐of‐the‐art methods.
Autonomous water and nutritional anti‐stress device to solve a plant irrigation problem based on harvested rainwater: A Tunisian case study*
Authors: Medhioub Samir , Euchi Jalel , Makhloufi Slim
Published: February 2021

Water consumption has increased significantly around the world in recent years, whereas existing water resources are becoming rarer. Even in tropical areas, where the rains offer an average of 2600 mm of water yearly, the soil water source can reduce gradually throughout the dry season and limit the growth of vegetation. Different irrigation methods have been developed to meet plants’ water needs for productivity. These methods depend closely on mobilization of the water source and its permanent control. In this paper, we have proposed an autonomous water and nutritional anti‐stress device for plants based on the recovery of rainwater. It is a new concept inspired by irrigation in antique clay pots. It is designed to ensure regular cyclical storage and transfer to the plant of an almost constant daily flow of mobilized rainwater. These waters are also enriched with nutrients during their journey to the plant. This delayed water storage and transfer process will compensate for the lack of water necessary for the survival of the plant in dry periods. The device was tested in a reduced environment and has given good results in decreasing water stress and increasing the level of nutrition for plants.
Review: Islam Dot Com: Contemporary Islamic Discourses in Cyberspace
Authors: Sisler Vit
Published: February 2021

Mohammed el-Nawawy and Sahar Khamis. Islam Dot Com: Contemporary Islamic Discourses in Cyberspace. Palgrave Macmillan, 2009. ISBN: 978-0- 230-60035-5, ISBN10: 0-230-60035-2, 280 pages.
The King, the Mufti & the Facebook Girl: A Power Play. Who Decides What is Licit in Islam?
Authors: Chraibi Khalid
Published: February 2021

Saudi Arabia enforces a ban on woman driving on the grounds that it is prohibited by sharia law. Women's associations have actively denounced this ban for years, arguing that it was the only Muslim country which had such a peculiar interpretation of Islamic law. A power play is taking place online on this subject between the ulema (who support the ban), the Saudi authorities and feminine associations. This situation raises the question: “Who decides what is licit or illicit in Islam?” Muslim women's associations merely ask for the implementation in Muslim countries of the “best practices” in Islamic law which exist anywhere, as a substitute for those laws which are unfavorable to women's rights or do not protect their interests adequately.
Remixing the Spring!: Connective leadership and read‐write practices in the 2011 Arab uprisings
Authors: Ratta Donatella Della , Valeriani Augusto
Published: February 2021

This article discusses the connections between the unfolding of the 2011 Arab uprisings and the “culture of the net.” Being far from overestimating the role that Internet has played in the uprisings, we propose to look at it not as an ensemble of tools, applications and technologies; but as a specific set of values, behaviors, skills and strategies that define the cultural dimension of the web. The article shows how linking, sharing and remixing have been among the core cultural practices behind the social movements that were successful in confronting Egypt and Tunisia's regimes. We also discuss how, despite the fact that the Syrian uprising has not achieved its political goal, yet it shares a similar cultural framework based on participation, peer-production, remix practices.
Digital Images and Visions of Jihad: Virtual Orientalism and the Distorted Lens of Technology
Authors: Pun Raymond
Published: February 2021

Since the aftermath of September 11, Western media have repeatedly lampooned and echoed the term “jihad” as a principle of the Islamic faith, arguing that this term inspires Muslims to wage wars against the west and modernity. The studies of jihad as a core belief of radical Islamic groups are numerous; the term is not a new phenomenon; it is mentioned in the Quran at least 164 times in various meanings and contexts. This piece analyzes how contemporary technology specifically search engines such as Google Images, pervades, distorts and reinvents Orientalist images of the term jihad from a western worldview. In these visual representations of jihad, we find abundant images of violence, mystery, terror, and even mockery and satire of Islam. The study focuses on the effects of these digital images to the consumers and how technology reinforces and reproduces “visual knowledge” in a transfixed level that neglects the multiple and ambiguous meanings of jihad in the Islamic context. This piece is not arguing for an authentic visual representation of the notion of jihad but is suggesting that the role of contemporary technology can be complicit in distorting and reconfiguring the meanings of sacred texts and ideas of Islam in the West.
Muslimhiphop.com: Constructing Muslim Hip Hop Identities on the Internet
Authors: Rantakallio Inka
Published: February 2021

Although music is not clearly permissible (halal) nor prohibited (haram) in Islam, many young Muslims today make hip hop music and also portray Muslim identities in their lyrics. The article discusses a case study of how Muslim identity and Muslim hip hop are constructed discursively on an American web site entitled Muslimhiphop.com. The site features Muslim artists from multicultural backgrounds from several different countries. The theoretical framework of social constructivism along with discourse analysis guide the study: identity is seen as contextually and socially constructed.

According to the web site's official stance, if the lyrics and the artists follow the principles of Islam, then the music is permissible. Islamic hip hop is argued to be a positive alternative to mainstream hip hop, to strengthen a positive Muslim identity especially among Muslim youth by teaching Islam and to enhance a positive social change for example by fighting stereotypes. However, it becomes evident that many Muslim artists struggle to integrate Islam with artistic creativity as well as commercial success with religious beliefs. Muslims who make and listen to Islamic hip hop have to continuously defend the music to Muslims who shun it as forbidden and to non-Muslims who feel estranged by its religiousness. Muslim identity is constantly negotiated, multidimensional and situational.
Hanouneh style resistance. Becoming hip‐hop authentic by balancing skills and painful lived experiences
Authors: Dankic Andrea
Published: February 2021

The aim of this article is to examine the dialogically constructed authenticity between an independent hip-hop and reggae artist and her audience and how this construction in turn influences the music-making process, art production and artist identity. It is argued that authenticity is constructed by the artist deconstructing the expected connections between on the one hand particular cultural belongings, lived experiences and ethnic origins, and on the other hand a certain appearance, style, set of values and behaviour. The representation of the Middle East found in the music and the album imagery is analysed as a part of the authenticity construction. The ethnographic study which the article is based on utilises qualitative interviews with the artist and her audience as well as observation in addition to analyses of multimedia content to provide a perspective into the dialogically constructed authenticity.
Arab Women's Changing Identities, Activisms and Resistances in a Changing Region
Authors: Khamis Sahar
Published: February 2021

The wave of uprisings which swept the Arab world in 2011 did not just instigate a “political awakening” that has shaken the power structures in a number of Arab countries and resulted in dictators fleeing their countries, resigning from office, or facing brutal death. Rather, it also instigated a “social awakening” that has shaken Arab societies’ commonly held assumptions about gender roles and women's ability to challenge them. This was evident in the many heroic examples and iconic images of Arab women's multiple activisms and resistances, in both the political and social spheres, which stunned the world and earned its respect and recognition, as evident in the selection of Tawakul Karman, as the first Arab Nobel Prize winner ever, in what has been seen by many as a node to the “Arab Spring” movements, in general, and to Arab women's roles in them, in particular.
Sowing the Seeds of The Message: Islamist Women Activists Before, During, and After the Egyptian Revolution
Authors: Abdel-Fadil Mona
Published: February 2021

This article focuses on the activities and experiences of a group of Islamist women activists, socialized within the ranks of Islam Online Arabic (IOL). These activists engaged in a range of significant social, political, and media practices, before, during and after the ousting of Mubarak; as individuals, as journalists, as counsellors, as agenda setters and creators of media campaigns. Drawing on longitudinal and ethnographic research, this article is able to highlight and document the continuities in modes of civic engagement and activism across multiple media platforms, organizations, and time. It demonstrates how these women's activism continues to be framed by the (IOL) trope the message, which entails cultivation of self, social, and political awareness. The Egyptian revolution is theoretically conceptualized as a phase of liminality (Turner 1979). Liminality entails upheaval, fear, and promise. The article draws attention to the gendered experiences of the revolution including circumvention of patriarchal structures and the re-negotiations of gender norms. Upon conclusion, it is argued that the message has proven highly adaptable to shifting political scenarios. Indeed, the betwixt and between stage of liminality that Egypt was thrust into after the ousting of Mubarak, was particularly fertile soil for sowing and reaping the seeds of the message.
The Saudi Blogosphere: Implications of New Media Technology and the Emergence of Saudi‐Islamic Feminism
Authors: Tschirhart Philip
Published: February 2021

he Kingdom of Saudi Arabia serves as a protector of the social, cultural, and religious epicenters of the Islamic faith; Mecca and Medina. While other Islamic autocracies have fallen in the wake of the Arab Spring, Saudi Arabia and its religious and political elite remain. However, threats to their legitimacy are growing. Especially relevant are increasing calls for women___s rights. The Saudi Arabian public sphere of the pre-digital era had effectively banned women___s participation in public. More recently, the spread of Internet authored blogs has created a new public sphere for women___s deliberation.

This study seeks to analyze how the Saudi blogosphere, as a public sphere of deliberation, provides insight into the emergence of Saudi-Islamic feminism through a critical discursive analysis. Three discursive themes emerge to identify how Saudi women negotiate identity and manage dialectical tensions stemming from their intersectional positions: displaying and defending iman (faith), repositioning the ___ulam__,___ and restoring Saudi history. Taken together these discursive themes detail a Saudi-Islamic Feminist perspective that is emerging in resistance to Western feminist frameworks and in defense of a distinctively Islamic claim to women___s rights, education, and equitable treatment within the public sphere.
“My Life is More Important Than Family Honor:” Offline Protests, Counter‐Cyberactivism, and Article 308
Authors: Tobin Sarah A.
Published: February 2021

In summer 2012, protests erupted in Jordan in light of several high-profile enactments of Article 308 of the Penal Code, or “Rape Law,” that allows rape charges to be dropped if the perpetrator agrees to marry the victim, which were organized offline and aimed to create a groundswell of public support for changing gender inequities in society rather than political and legal structures. Users of social media were quick to deride and disparage the protests and protesters in highly visible and aggressive ways. This case demonstrates that the Internet can simultaneously act as a vehicle for resisting social exclusion and gender segregation through cyberactivism, while also serving as a mechanism for reinforcing preexisting cultural norms through, what I call, “counter-cyberactivism.” Such displays amplify the argument that the Internet serves as a space for online cultural performance of offline life, which enables the capacity for both cultural change and durability simultaneously. I conclude with the implications of this case for the online, virtual umma.
Social Media As an Opportunity to Bahraini Women
Authors: Alwadi Nada
Published: February 2021

Since the uprising in February 2011 the Bahraini female activists but also ordinary Bahraini women have emerged as new leaders in the society, and this due to the increasing role of social media. Their ideas, voices and activities have been receiving stronger support from within their — often conservative — communities. It is now more accepted by the public that the democratic transition cannot be achieved without the participation of women.
Violence and Visibility in Contemporary Syria: An Ethnography of the “Expanded Places”
Authors: Ratta Donatella Della
Published: February 2021

This article reflects on the relationship between visibility and violence as redefined by the combined action of warfare and networked communication technologies. Drawing on the author's own ethnography conducted in Syria in 2010, and on anonymous YouTube videos, it introduces the concept of “expanded places” to look at sites that have been physically annihilated; yet, at the same time, they have been re-animated through multiple mediated versions circulating and re-circulating on the networks. Building on Rancière's work on the distribution of the sensible, the article argues that, at the intersection of those simultaneous actions of annihilation and regeneration, a new geography of visibility and violence is being shaped which rearranges the existing into a completely new political form and aesthetic format. Thriving on the techno-human infrastructure of the networks, and relying on the endless proliferation of images resulting from the loss of control of image-makers over their own production, expanded places are aggregators of new communities that add novel layers of signification to the empirical world, and create their own multiple realities and histories.
The Shifting Nature of Cyberwarfare in Middle Eastern States
Authors: Fekete Emily
Published: February 2021

While some theorists make the claim that “kinetic and traditional military power are losing importance to symbolic and media power,” in reality the present military situation is complicated by the variety of tactics used by both governments and civilians in multiple and overlapping war zones. The Middle East has recently been the center of enormous military and media attention regarding the use of many forms of “new” media military operations. However, rather than arguing that online warfare has trumped physical encounters, cyber campaigns must be seen as being deployed in conjunction with on-the-ground military maneuvers. The use of online strategies disperses power and allows for an increasing role by non-state actors in both online and offline spaces of conflict. Drawing from the geographic literature on war, especially Derek Gregory's concept of “everywhere war,” examples are offered from Syria, Iran, Gaza, and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
A Page and Its Politics: Situating Kullinā Khālid Sa‘īd in Egypt's Ideological Landscape at the Time of Revolution‘
Authors: Woltering Robbert , Abdulla Rasha , Poell Thomas , Rieder Bernhard , Zack Liesbeth
Published: February 2021

In discussions concerning the importance of social media in the 25January revolution, a central role is given to the “Kullinā Khālid Sa‘īd” [We're all Khaled Said] Facebook page. Using an advanced data collection and extraction application called Netvizz, a research team consisting of Arabists and Media studies specialists has collected and analysed all of the posts and comments exchanged through the page. This data set allows for a systematic analysis of the page. This article offers an outline of the ideological nature of “Kullinā Khālid Sa‘īd,” with particular emphasis on the “revolutionary” period between 1 January – 11 February 2011. It argues that the page shows no evidence of political bias in the sense of explicit favoring of a political group. Rather, the page constituted a community of users who abstained from using politically factional language. Reflecting the mood and concerns of the revolution's grassroots masses, it clearly illustrates the disinclination to engage with formal politics.
Saudi Women and Socio‐Digital Technologies: Reconfiguring Identities
Authors: Bourdeloie Hélène , Gentiloni Silveri Caterina , Houmair Sara
Published: February 2021

Drawing on research conducted in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this paper explores the specific uses of digital technologies by Saudi women. It shows how these women – whose gender identity is strongly constrained by a host of social and religious norms characterizing Saudi society – make use of digital technologies, and particularly mobile telephones. The various applications available for mobile telephony open up to them a whole range of choices on how to communicate and use photography, thus enabling them to circumvent their assigned gender identity, at least at the margin.
Big Data in the MENA Region: The Next Path towards Socio‐economic and Cultural Development
Authors: Allagui Ilhem , Ayish Mohammad
Published: February 2021

As elsewhere, big data is perceived as central to the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) nations’ socio-economic and cultural development. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, by virtue of its advanced information technology infrastructure, relevant knowledge economy policies and flexible free government and market orientations, stands at the forefront of MENA's big data integration. This article discusses selected sectors in the GCC region that leverage the power of big data including the media business industries and the oil and gas industry. The authors argue that in addition to bolstering big data applications in the aforementioned sectors, MENA countries also need to ensure that those applications embrace other sectors like education, government services and cultural development. Yet, to be able to achieve those goals, the region needs to address numerous challenges pertaining to knowledge infrastructure, human capital, technology mindset and regulation.
“The Best Damn Representation of Islam:” Muslims, Gender, Social Media, and Islamophobia in the United States
Authors: Eckert Stine , Wallace Sydney O'Shay , Metzger-Riftkin Jade , Kolhoff Sean
Published: February 2021

Islamophobia reached new heights during the 2016 United States presidential election. We applied the theory of intersectionality to 15 in-depth focus group interviews conducted in gender-separated groups with 61 Muslim participants (41 women, 20 men) in South East Michigan between October 2016 and April 2017 to understand the role of gender in their responses regarding Islamophobia during the 2016 United States presidential election and Trump's first hundred days in office as president. Both, Muslim women and Muslim men, labored to educate others about Islam online, but Muslim women emphasized their efforts to act as exemplars online of what it means to be Muslim in America more frequently and more strongly than men. Muslim women and men often used ignoring and contextualization as coping mechanisms as the number of Islamophobic messages online was perceived as overwhelming. The high amount and ubiquity of Islamophobic messages online has lead to a sense of futility and high levels of stress among young Muslims in South East Michigan, particularly for Muslim women.
Cultural Adoption Through Online Practices Across Social Media Platforms: The Case of Saudi Women
Authors: Aljuwaiser Ghayda
Published: February 2021

This article reports ongoing qualitative research into Saudi women's online practices across several social media platforms (SMP). It is based on eight semi-structured interviews conducted between March and September 2015 with four Saudi women from different cities in Saudi Arabia. This work's findings address the knowledge gap between the accelerating consumption of SMP and the limited existing scholarly literature to understand empirically the relationship between Saudi women's online practices and the changes in Saudi culture in terms of values, norms and traditions, such as veiling and cross-gender communication.
Echoes of Populism and Terrorism in Libya's Online News Reporting
Authors: Lombezzi Letizia
Published: February 2021

This article focuses on news reporting in Libya, assessing both official and citizen journalism. Special attention is paid to online resources, primarily spontaneous posts written in Arabic. Social media shows the emergence of citizen journalism together with so-called User-generated Content. Both have proved capable of creating legitimacy. Political inclinations, including Islamic ideology and its religious claims, are presented, supported, or criticized by ordinary citizens who post their comments and opinions on the web. Official press and news agencies have their social media profiles as well, sharing the same online space with nonprofessionals. Monitoring and analysis of reporting show that there is no relevant difference in journalistic models; nor do concerns between professionals and nonprofessionals vary. Libya appears today to be a mosaic of different interests: one that is interconnected and in conflict at the same time. These interests are vying to establish new supremacies in the country. Journalism in its various typologies faces pressure from the abovementioned interests, so it is negatively affected by rhetoric in both reporting and commentary. These preliminary arguments lead us to the core topics of populism – for which a definition is suggested – and reporting about terrorism in Libya. Against this background, we analyze news flows, sources, and other issues. I conclude with a brief review of the main issues, the characteristics of the Arabic narrative discourse, and the emerging Arabic lexicon.
American‐Muslims’ E‐Jihad: Trumping Islamophobia in the Trump Era
Authors: Khamis Sahar
Published: February 2021

Islamophobia, or the irrational, exaggerated fear of Islam and Muslims, has been on the rise lately in the United States, especially after President Trump came to office. Some of the worst Islamophobes launched their campaigns online, using the Internet as a platform to spout hatred and fuel anger and discrimination against immigrants and minorities, in general, and Muslims, in particular. In an effort to counter this dangerous new tide of Islamophobia and to overcome its destructive consequences, American-Muslims launched a number of well-orchestrated online campaigns. This essay examines the double role of the Internet, as a platform through which Islamophobia could be both fostered and resisted, simultaneously. It sheds light on some of the Islamophobic posts online, as well as some of the most popular social media campaigns which American-Muslims launched to combat and resist this complex and multifaceted phenomenon of Islamophobia. It discusses how American-Muslims understand, negotiate, challenge, and respond to Islamophobia, and its varied cultural, social, and political manifestations and implications, through a variety of mediated discourses and ongoing social media campaigns. In doing so, it emphasizes the plurality of American-Muslims’ voices, identities, realities, and strategies, as exemplified in their responses to Islamophobia.
Deterritorializing Cyber Security and Warfare in Palestine: Hackers, Sovereignty, and the National Cyberspace as Normative
Authors: Cristiano Fabio
Published: February 2021

Cyber security strategies operate on the normative assumption that national cyberspace mirrors a country's territorial sovereignty. Its protection commonly entails practices of bordering through infrastructural control and service delivery, as well as the policing of data circulation and user mobility. In a context characterized by profound territorial fragmentation, such as the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT),1 equating national cyberspace with national territory proves to be reductive. This article explores how different cyber security strategies – implemented by the Israeli government, the Palestinian Authority, and Hamas – intersect and produce a cyberspace characterized by territorial annexation, occupation, and blockade. Drawing on this analysis, it then employs the conceptual prism of (de-)–(re-) territorialization to reflect on how these strategies, as well as those of Palestinian hackers, articulate territoriality beyond the normativity of national cyberspace.
Commentary: The Future of Socially Engaged Anthropology: A Student Perspective
Authors: Brown Robin Lewis
Published: February 2021

Many anthropologists have begun to shy away from disengaged textual analysis and extreme relativism, which were common in the discipline's earlier years. Instead, many have turned increasingly to issues of social justice and activism. These anthropologists must walk a fine line, respecting the agency of their interlocutors while remaining an assisting force in their struggles. In this article, I examine what socially engaged anthropology looks like to an undergraduate anthropology student. I comparatively examine the subfields of applied and public anthropology and consider the implications of such socially engaged scholarship for the broader discipline of anthropology. I also consider the relevance of these subfields to the newest generation of engaged anthropologists. In particular, I discuss public anthropology's power to allow anthropologists to advocate for, while not drowning out the voices of, their interlocutors. In my own work, I have struggled to reconcile not just my own privileged position with the position of my interlocutors, but also my hesitance to impose my own viewpoints on them with my desire to perform effective social activism. I ultimately find that the most effective way to perform useful solidarity work as a student anthropologist is to negotiate solutions by directly confronting any differences of privilege that may exist between researcher and interlocutor.
“I'd Rather Pay”: Bribery and Informal Practices in Ukrainian Bureaucracy
Authors: Fedirko Taras
Published: February 2021

In the last two decades, bribery has been a salient issue in social science research in general and anthropology in particular. The subject poses considerable challenges to ethnographic research, and therefore many aspects remain understudied. My article addresses one of them, namely, the relationship between bribery, networking, ‘petty’ informality, and everyday social relations within the bureaucratic domain. I argue that bribery becomes possible because of informal practices that allow both officials and citizens to manipulate formal rules and processes. I also argue that mundane formal procedures that form the basis of bureaucracy become channels for informal practices. In order to research these aspects of bribery, which usually remain undisclosed and inaccessible through traditional methods of participant observation and interviews, I use legal case documents of bribery in the real estate domain in the Kiliya district of the Odesa region. I rely on an official anti‐corruption court record and explore methodological challenges pertinent to the analysis of court records as an alternative to ethnography in research on corruption. My article contributes to the study of bribery as an embedded and situated practice, linking it to ways people engage with, manipulate, and apply bureaucratic norms by enforcing informal modes of sociality in formal contexts.
Ethnographic Strategies for Engaging Deaf Youth Participants: Photovoice and Participatory Analysis
Authors: Anne E. Pfister
Published: February 2021

Researchers across disciplines have looked to deaf individuals and communities to learn about many aspects of human experience, earning deaf people's unique biological and social status a subjugated position in scientific inquiry. All too often deaf people appear in the literature as research “subjects” rather than active, autonomous participants, or partner‐researchers. My research investigated deaf youth identity in Mexico City, Mexico, with a focus on the emic perspectives of my adolescent participants and their families. My focus deaf epistemologies led me to photovoice for data collection and analysis. This article outlines the engagement of deaf youth participants through the participatory visual data collection method photovoice, which allowed me to achieve the goals of a community‐based research design. This article explores the unique needs of deaf youth research participants and epistemological considerations for community‐based work among deaf youth in Mexico City. I discuss innovative ethnographic results revealing deaf youth's emic perspectives through participatory analysis.
Intensive Predictive Mapping of Surface Topography at Archaeological Sites in Peru
Authors: Matthew Piscitelli , Jonathan Haas , Winifred Creamer
Published: February 2021

Limited resources often hamper archaeologists’ ability to accurately identify promising areas to excavate at large‐scale sites. High‐resolution maps can serve as predictive tools for locating subsurface architecture based on patterns in surface topography. This paper presents recent intensive mapping conducted at three Late Archaic (3,000‐1,800 B. C. E.) archaeological sites in the Fortaleza Valley of Peru. Total station data were used to generate 3D surface maps in ArcGIS to delineate elevation changes in fine‐grained detail. Distinctive features on the surface and microtopography reveal small‐scale patterns that can inform our choices for targeted excavations. This procedure will provide a methodological tool for finding subsurface architecture at large‐scale sites elsewhere.
Drumming for the Orisa: (Re)inventing Yoruba Identity in Oyotunji Village
Authors: Townsend Colin
Published: February 2021

I explore the ways identity is constructed among a group of drummers at Oyotunji Village, South Carolina. Oyotunji Village was founded by Oba Oseijeman I, born Walter King of Detroit, in 1970 with the purpose of providing African‐Americans in the United States with a geographical, political, and cultural space to experience African culture. Modeled after Yoruba culture of southwest Nigeria, members of the community practice a religion known as orisa‐voodoo. Throughout the year, festivals are held dedicated to various orisa, “deities,” in which the drummers play a crucial role in the religious experience of the orisa‐voodoo adherents. An essential part of Yoruba culture, drumming acts as a musical bridge between humans and orisa, enabling orisa‐voodoo practitioners to petition the orisa for guidance and intervention in their daily lives. Drumming traditions at Oyotunji Village provide drummers with a repository of cultural knowledge and practices from which to draw, while at the same time offering them a creative outlet capable of reshaping and redefining those very same traditions. I examine various processes of identity formation among the drummers as part of their musical apprenticeship, during which they learn not only how to play the instrument but also about Yoruba culture in general. I employ an analytical framework proposed by Timothy Rice (2003) involving a “subject‐centered musical ethnography” within a threedimensional space of musical experience including time, location, and metaphor.