bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Yahweh versus Baal: A Narrative-Critical Reading of the Gideon/Abimelech Narrative *
Authors: Endris Vince
Published: November 2008

The story of Gideon and his son Abimelech lies at the center of the book of Judges. This article offers a reading of this narrative that lends a clearer understanding of the book as a whole. Gideon and Abimelech are seen as human representatives of Yahweh and Baal. In this way, the narrative is seen as a fight between the two gods for Israel's fidelity. Yahweh defeats Baal, yet the Israelites still reject Yahweh and turn to the defeated god. After this, Yahweh's activity with the Israelites is less frequent and more ambiguous. The text suggests that Israel's problems with fidelity will be solved once a human representative of Yahweh sits on the throne of Israel.
Naboth's Vineyard and the Foundation of Jezreel
Authors: Na'aman Nadav
Published: November 2008

This article examines the possible historical background of the story of Naboth's vineyard. It opens with a methodological introduction to the problem of the historicity of prophetic stories, which is followed by a short analysis of the story's date, its literary structure and plot. The results of the excavations at Tel Jezreel are compared with the biblical description and archaeological evidence of the foundation of Samaria. In light of the archaeological and textual analysis and some extra-biblical sources, it is suggested that the story takes place in Jezreel and refers to the time when Ahab was planning to build a new royal centre in the place and negotiated with the local inhabitants about purchasing their lands. The article compares the different descriptions of Naboth's murder in 1 Kings 21 and 2 Kgs 9.25-26, and makes clear distinction between the original historical episode and the literary and ideological details that were added by the author in order to fill the gaps and elaborate the plot.
Being as Breath, Vapor as Joy: Using Martin Heidegger to Re-read the Book of Ecclesiastes
Authors: Shuster Martin
Published: November 2008

This article is a philosophical re-examination of Ecclesiastes using the work of Martin Heidegger, particularly his early work in Being and Time. Heidegger's focus on death, temporality, and history provides a powerful and compelling framework for understanding these same themes in Ecclesiastes. In elaborating these philosophical motifs and correspondences, this article proposes that ‭לכה‬ should be understood as an analog to Heidegger's concept of Geschichtlichkeit (historicity). If ‭לכה‬ is understood as such, then most of the traditionally puzzling terms in Ecclesiastes (e.g. ‭םלעה‬, ‭למע‬, ‭החמש‬) can be made sense of using the aforementioned philosophical framework. This framework additionally shows that Ecclesiastes (like Being and Time) cannot be understood as a proto-existentialist text.
Structuring Asynchronous Discussion Groups by Introducing Roles
Authors: De Wever Bram , Schellens Tammy , Van Keer Hilde , Valcke Martin
Published: November 2008

This study focused on the introduction of roles as a scripting tool in asynchronous text-based discussion groups. Five roles were selected: source searcher, theoretician, summarizer, moderator, and starter. Because existing research on role assignment often neglects to check whether the role assignment is successful, the main goal was to examine to what extent the participants enacted assigned roles. The study took place in the 1st year of a university course in Instructional Sciences ( N = 200). Quantitative content analysis of students' postings was performed, and logistic regressions revealed that all participants enacted the roles they were assigned. The participants generally did not neglect other activities while discussing. The introduction of roles appeared to be a successful structuring intervention.
Translation Barriers in Conducting Qualitative Research With Spanish Speakers
Authors: Lopez Griselda I. , Figueroa Maria , Connor Sarah E. , Maliski Sally L.
Published: November 2008

Cross-cultural qualitative research is rare and challenging because of difficulties of collecting reliable and valid information when conducting research in a language other than the researcher's primary language. Although standards of rigor exist for the data collection, analysis, interpretation, and reporting of qualitative data, no such standards exist for translation of translinguistic qualitative research. Therefore, a new methodology modeled after Brislin's translation principles was utilized with 60 Latino participants experiencing side effects as a result of prostate cancer treatment. Interviews were conducted in Spanish, transcribed verbatim, and then translated by research staff. By adapting Brislin's process, a new methodology was developed that more accurately conveys the true meaning of the participant's experience, is more appropriate and meaningful, and opens doors to researchers interested in conducting research in a language other than their own, while at the same time ensuring the reliability and validity of study data.
The Neuromodulatory System: A Framework for Survival and Adaptive Behavior in a Challenging World
Authors: Krichmar Jeffrey L.
Published: November 2008

Biological organisms have the ability to respond quickly to an ever-changing world. Because this adaptability is so critical for survival, all vertebrates have sub-cortical structures, which comprise the neuromodulatory systems, to regulate fundamental behavior and drive decision making in response to environmental events. In the vertebrate, there are separate neuromodulators that respond to threats, reward anticipation, novelty, and attentional effort. However, each of these neuromodulatory systems has a similar effect, that is, to cause an organism to be decisive when environmental conditions call for such actions, and allow the organism to be more exploratory when there are no pressing events. In this article, it is proposed that principles of the neuromodulatory system could provide a framework for controlling artificial agents that may improve current artificial agent behavior. These agents would operate autonomously, effectively explore their environment, and be decisive when environmental conditions call for action.
Associative Learning on a Continuum in Evolved Dynamical Neural Networks
Authors: Izquierdo Eduardo , Harvey Inman , Beer Randall D.
Published: November 2008

This article extends previous work on evolving learning without synaptic plasticity from discrete tasks to continuous tasks. Continuous-time recurrent neural networks without synaptic plasticity are artificially evolved on an associative learning task. The task consists in associating paired stimuli: temperature and food. The temperature to be associated can be either drawn from a discrete set or allowed to range over a continuum of values. We address two questions: Can the learning without synaptic plasticity approach be extended to continuous tasks? And if so, how does learning without synaptic plasticity work in the evolved circuits? Analysis of the most successful circuits to learn discrete stimuli reveal finite state machine (FSM) like internal dynamics. However, when the task is modified to require learning stimuli on the full continuum range, it is not possible to extract a FSM from the internal dynamics. In this case, a continuous state machine is extracted instead.
Primary Prevention of Violence Against Women
Authors: Martin Sandra L. , Coyne-Beasley Tamera , Hoehn Mary , Mathew Mary , Runyan Carol W. , Orton Steve , Royster Leigh-Anne
Published: November 2008

Practitioners in domestic violence and sexual assault programs have been encouraged by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control to enhance their activities in violence prevention; however, many practitioners have not been trained in prevention concepts and strategies. Therefore, a needs assessment was undertaken with practitioners in the Domestic Violence Prevention Enhancement and Leadership Through Alliances and the Rape Prevention and Education programs to determine training needs. Results show that practitioners are very interested in primary prevention. They want to learn about working at the community level (rather than the individual level), developing and evaluating prevention activities, and identifying effective primary prevention programs.
Making Evaluations Work
Authors: Sridharan Sanjeev
Published: November 2008

This article describes the design and evaluation approaches to address the complexity posed by systems change initiatives. The role of evaluations in addressing the following issues is briefly reviewed: moving from strategic planning to implementation, impacts on system-level coordination, anticipated timeline of impact, and individual level impacts. The role of evaluations in enhancing multiple types of learning is also summarized.
Educational Leaders' Perceptions About Ethical Practices in Student Evaluation
Authors: Johnson Robert L. , Green Susan K. , Kim Do-Hong , Pope Nakia S.
Published: November 2008

The Student Evaluation Standards call for student evaluations to be ethical, fair, useful, feasible, and accurate. However, little is known about educators' perceptions about the ethics of student evaluation practices. This study was designed to examine the degree of agreement among administrators about ethical student evaluation practices. It describes the results from a Web-based survey of principals and principal candidates in which they read a brief scenario and indicated whether the student evaluation practice in the depiction was ethical or unethical. Results show diversity in educators' perceptions about the ethicality of student evaluation practices and indicate a need for continued dialog and professional training of practitioners in ethical conduct.
An Assessment of the Theoretical Underpinnings of Practical Participatory Evaluation
Authors: Smits Pernelle A. , Champagne Francois
Published: November 2008

This article is concerned with the underpinnings of practical participatory evaluation (PPE). Evaluation approaches have long been criticized because their results are often not used. It is believed that PPE addresses this drawback. The article focuses on the mechanisms underlying the links between activities and consequences in PPE. A PPE theory is proposed, based on learning theories and knowledge transfer theories, which comprises four key concepts and three hypotheses. The key concepts are interactive data production, knowledge coconstruction, local context of action, and instrumental use. The hypotheses articulate the relationships between these concepts. The article provides theoretical and empirical evidence to support the hypotheses discussed and present a framework for the proposed PPE theory. The importance of practitioner knowledge and participation in the PPE process in enhancing the use of results is partially supported by the literature. In general, it seems that the support is more theoretical than empirical.
Sustainability of Social Programs
Authors: Savaya Riki , Spiro Shimon , Elran-Barak Roni
Published: November 2008

The article reports on the findings of a comparative case study of six projects that operated in Israel between 1980 and 2000. The study findings identify characteristics of the programs, the host organizations, and the social and political environment, which differentiated programs that are sustained from those that are not. The findings reaffirm the importance of the human factor, namely, the commitment of the leadership of the host organization. In addition, the findings of these case studies point to factors that until now have not gained sufficient attention, such as the type of host organization or public attitudes toward different target populations.
“Tits Out for the Boys and No Back Chat”
Authors: Andrews Hazel
Published: November 2008

This article explores the dynamics between the structure of overarching gendered social relations and the practice of gendered identities in the cultural space of one particular tourist destination, Magaluf on the Mediterranean Island of Mallorca. Although there have been many studies concerning constructions of gendered identity in tourism, these have tended to examine sexual relations rather than everyday touristic practice. The data are drawn from several months of ethnographic fieldwork, which involved the production of maps of the resort. The position of the researcher is used in a reflexive analysis of the maps postfieldwork. The article demonstrates how the resort is encoded in the assignation of place names with an idealized type of masculinity that excludes women from the public sphere and furthermore how elements of touristic practice serve to reinforce ideas of women as sexual objects and belonging to the domestic sphere.
`World Opinion' and the Founding of the UN: Governmentalizing International Politics
Authors: Jaeger Hans-Martin
Published: November 2008

While `world opinion' is a staple in political discourse, the concept has received little attention in IR. Locating it along the `realist—idealist' divide, existing studies have conceptualized `world opinion' empirically, as an aggregative or intersubjective phenomenon, annexed or opposed to state sovereignty, and embodying a normative standard. Drawing on Luhmann's conception of public opinion and Foucault's governmentality approach, this article reconceptualizes `world opinion' discursively (functionally and semantically), as a medium of communication that enables post-sovereign forms of international governance irrespective of an inherent normativity. The alternative conception of `world opinion' is illustrated in the discourse of the emerging United Nations in the early 1940s. In this context, `world opinion' addressed problems concerning the failure of the League of Nations, total war, and threats to `civilization'. With public opinion research as a technical backdrop, `world opinion' underwrote governmentalities of international policing, welfare and rights liberalism, post-colonial pastoralism, and pedagogical panopticism in response to these problems.
Open Doors and Closed Frontiers: The Limits of American Empire
Authors: Colás Alejandro
Published: November 2008

This article argues that the contemporary American empire displays two structural limits. The first refers to geographical limits. As opposed to most of its imperial predecessors, the logic of contemporary US power militates against direct, territorial domination as a means of sustaining global hegemony. The second limitation, tightly linked to this first one, is that of power defined in a conventional sense as the capacity to secure outcomes. Consequently, since 1945 the USA has generally projected its global power through open doors (capitalist markets) and closed frontiers (sovereign territorial states). The article explores the peculiar limits to US empire with reference to two of its principal western precursors — the Roman and British empires — and concludes that the recent invasion and occupation of Iraq highlights the perils of an American strategy that seeks to conquer territories militarily and politically control their populations.
Bargaining Power and Trade Liberalization: European External Trade Policies in the 1960s
Authors: Dür Andreas
Published: November 2008

Shortly after the creation of the European Economic Community (EEC, 1958), European countries accepted a far-reaching liberalization of their previously fairly protectionist external trade relations. I provide an explanation of this astonishing development that builds on the argument that the establishment of a customs union increases the bargaining power of its member countries in international trade negotiations. When facing discrimination from a customs union, exporters in excluded countries have an incentive to become politically active and lobby their governments for relief. This increase in exporter lobbying, in turn, weakens the negotiating position of excluded countries in international trade negotiations by making them more eager to achieve a negotiated agreement that lowers the external barriers of the customs union. The evidence presented backs this argument by showing that the EEC member countries accepted external trade liberalization in the 1960s because they could gain disproportionate concessions for European exporting interests in international trade negotiations.
The Body of the Diplomat
Authors: Neumann Iver B.
Published: November 2008

Over the past two decades, the body has emerged as an increasingly important focus of study in the social sciences generally, but little work has been done on it in International Relations. Drawing on a disparate yet voluminous literature on gender, as well as on Bourdieu's analysis of class, this article demonstrates the importance of gendered and classed bodies within the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA). Part one, which is based on archival work and interviews, details the emergence of women within the diplomatic service. In part two, which is based on interviews and ethnographic data, I postulate the existence of three masculinity scripts and three femininity scripts within MFA discourse. I conclude that the gendering and classing of diplomats' bodies is a constitutive factor of the MFA hierarchic order and so differentiates diplomats' life chances. It follows that the body is of crucial importance to social life in at least one traditional site of IR study.
The Rise and Fall of Bureaucratic Rationalization: Exploring the Possibilities and Limitations of the UN Secretariat in Conflict Prevention
Authors: Piiparinen Touko
Published: November 2008

If it is correct to say that the UN's policy has been dominated by great powers, then it is also true that the academic debate on the UN's failures in general, and the Rwandan tragedy in particular, has been dominated by an emphasis on Realpolitik , which has limited and precluded analysis of other possible causes of the UN's malfunctions. Power politics alone cannot fully explain why the downfall of `grand strategies' for the UN envisaged in Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali's An Agenda for Peace (1992), most notably conflict prevention, was almost as rapid as their emergence. By drawing upon new empirical evidence from interviews and by reflecting on theories of bureaucratization, this article explores one previously ignored mechanism underlying the failure of the Agenda in general and the Rwandan case in particular, namely bureaucratic rationalization. It is argued that bureaucratic rationalization delineates the political manoeuvring space for the UN Secretariat. Bureaucratic thinking is a double-edged sword whose functions may generate severe side-effects in conflict prevention. Its main function is to attain enhanced efficiency, accuracy and stability of decision-making, but sometimes this comes as a Pyrrhic victory. The downside, or dysfunction, of bureaucratization is strict categorization and mechanic behaviour. With regard to the Rwandan case, this article presents new information on the way in which the failure of the UN bureaucracy to overcome the strict separation between the peace settlement and the preventive deployment of peacekeeping operations contributed to the failure to prevent the genocide.
Commentary: Making the Familiar Unfamiliar
Authors: Wagoner Brady
Published: November 2008

New meanings can be produced through messages coming from outside a group (e.g. other cultures, experts and active minorities), but can also be created by creatively using social tools one already possesses by belonging to a society. The two pathways of creativity are related and opposing processes: the former `makes the unfamiliar familiar', whereas the latter `makes the familiar unfamiliar'. Both utilize the existing `field of representations' as super-ordinate meanings to (re)situate and therefore understand some object, activity or event. Representations are schematized in and with a context, through discourse, in such a way that both the representation and the context are transformed.
Social Representation, Change and Resistance: On the Difficulties of Generalizing New Norms
Authors: Castro Paula , Batel Susana
Published: November 2008

This article addresses the difficulties of generalizing new norms and practices, focusing on the role of the legal system for proposing change and innovation to society. It first presents some contributions offered by the social representational approach for understanding these issues, based on the assumptions of the interdependence both of change and stability, and of the social and the individual. Afterwards it is argued that for advancing the study of change the approach needs to offer more attention to: (1) the role of expert mediating systems regarding the translation of new norms to concrete contexts and their articulation with practices; (2) the arguments and discursive strategies employed in everyday communication to resist change with normative force; and (3) the consequences for the relations between representations and practices of the distinction between 'transcendent' and 'immanent' representations. In the empirical part of the paper, and with the goal of better understanding the difficulties linked to the generalization of new norms and practices, these notions are used for analysing a controversy which, in a context of changed norms regarding public participation, involved the expert and lay spheres in a debate about the built heritage of a community.
Legal Struggles and Political Resistance: Same-Sex Marriage in Canada and the USA
Authors: Nicol Nancy , Smith Miriam
Published: November 2008

This article explores the nature of legal struggles surrounding same-sex marriage in the USA and Canada, focusing specifically on the ways in which the cultural power of law is used to frame claims of injustice and to develop strategies of political resistance. Drawing on theoretical perspectives from the literatures on 'law and social movements' and 'legal consciousness', the article compares the claims-making discourse and strategies of same-sex couples seeking access to legal civil marriage in the USA and Canada. Based in part on interviews with same-sex couples, lawyers and political activists, the article demonstrates the ways in which the claims of law have been used to frame political strategies in places where same-sex marriage is 'illegal', the ways in which claims of legal equality are enacted, produced and explained by same-sex couples, and the ways in which equality discourse is deployed as a strategic political resource in the struggle over same-sex marriage.
Recognizing (and Resisting) Regulation: Attitudes to the Introduction of Civil Partnership
Authors: Harding Rosie
Published: November 2008

This article is an exploration of lesbians' and gay men's views about the introduction of civil partnership in the UK. The article draws on 10 in-depth interviews carried out as part of a wider research project examining legal consciousness and sexuality. The focus is to explore some of the more 'critical' views about the effects of legal recognition that were raised by participants in this study. I begin by outlining the theoretical and methodological approaches used in this exploration of lesbians' and gay men's experiences of the introduction of civil partnership. I then move on to analyse participants' views about the legal recognition of same-sex relationships, focusing on two themes: the complex interplays between recognition and regulation; and participants' views about the uneasy relationship between civil partnership and marriage.
Healthcare managers' decision making: findings of a small scale exploratory study
Authors: MacDonald Jackie , Bath Peter A. , Booth Andrew
Published: November 2008

Managers who work in publicly funded healthcare organizations are an understudied group. Some of the influences on their decisions may be unique to healthcare. This study considers how to integrate research knowledge effectively into healthcare managers' decision making, and how to manage and integrate information that will include community data. This first phase in a two-phase mixed methods research study used a qualitative, multiple case studies design. Nineteen semi-structured interviews were undertaken using the critical incident technique. Interview transcripts were analysed using the NatCen Framework. One theme represented `information and decisions'. Cases were determined to involve complex multi-level, multi-situational decisions with participants in practical rather than ceremonial work roles. Most considered organizational knowledge in the first two decision phases and external knowledge, including research, in the third phase. All participants engaged in satisficing to some degree.
Topic maps for exploring nosological, lexical, semantic and HL7 structures for clinical data
Authors: Paterson Grace I. , Grant Andrew M. , Soroka Steven D.
Published: November 2008

A topic map is implemented for learning about clinical data associated with a hospital stay for patients diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, diabetes and hypertension. The question posed is: how might a topic map help bridge perspectival differences among communities of practice and help make commensurable the different classifications they use? The knowledge layer of the topic map was generated from existing ontological relationships in nosological, lexical, semantic and HL7 boundary objects. Discharge summaries, patient charts and clinical data warehouse entries reified the clinical knowledge used in practice. These clinical data were normalized to HL7 Clinical Document Architecture (CDA) markup standard and stored in the Clinical Document Repository. Each CDA entry was given a subject identifier and linked with the topic map. The ability of topic maps to function as the infostructure `glue' is assessed using dimensions of semantic interoperability and commensurability.
Action research in developing knowledge networks
Authors: Seeley Helen , Urquhart Christine
Published: November 2008

This paper describes the experiences of the Eastern Head Injury Study in creating a strategic regional head injury service framework using a collaborative action research methodology. The types of data, information and knowledge required to develop and support such a framework for both development and successful implementation are identified. This includes the identification of existing knowledge/information systems, the variability and gaps in these, and how the systems fit together, using a number of evidence-gathering and knowledge-sharing methods. The discussion debates the value of the action research approach and what principles are necessary in developing and maintaining knowledge networks. The project demonstrates that an understanding of the social learning cycle can help in understanding how the pieces fit together, and how the information systems need to be in place to provide the information (or data or knowledge) in the appropriate format to make the learning possible.
A content analysis of mass media sources in relation to the MMR vaccine scare
Authors: Guillaume Louise , Bath Peter A.
Published: November 2008

In light of the mass media coverage that the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) vaccine received as a result of questions raised about its safety, a content analysis of mass media articles about the MMR vaccine was undertaken. The analysis examined 227 articles published in five different information sources in a 2 month period. The analysis looked at 94 content-based variables and the key attributes of these articles including word count and date of publication. Descriptive and analytical statistics relating to both article content and format were produced. The analysis showed that the content and format of articles between different information sources varied widely. These differences can be attributed to the information source in which they are published, but the variability in the content of these information sources provides a challenge to parents who were shown to be using the mass media as an information source.
'Race' on the Japanese internet: discussing Korea and Koreans on '2-channeru'
Authors: McLelland Mark
Published: November 2008

This article investigates discourse about 'race' on the Japanese internet, particularly regarding resident Koreans and their relationship to the Japanese. One board relating to arguments about Korea on the notorious 2-channeru (Channel 2) bulletin board system, Japan's most visited internet site, is investigated, since it is one of the main public forums in which racial vilification takes place, perpetrated by both Japanese and Korean posters. Nakamura's contention that the internet is 'a place where race is created as an effect of the net's distinctive uses of language' is taken as a starting point to investigate the differences between Japanese and Anglophone notions of racial inclusion and exclusion, and to draw attention to the particularities of racial discourse that take place in this virtual Japanese space.
Community and social interaction in the wireless city: wi-fi use in public and semi-public spaces
Authors: Hampton Keith N. , Gupta Neeti
Published: November 2008

A significant body of research has addressed whether fixed internet use increases, decreases or supplements the ways in which people engage in residential and workplace settings, but few studies have addressed how wireless internet use in public and semi-public spaces influences social life. Ubiquitous wi-fi adds a new dimension to the debate over how the internet may influence the structure of community.Will wireless internet use facilitate greater engagement with co-located others or encourage a form of 'public privatism'? This article reports the findings of an exploratory ethnographic study of how wi-fi was used and influenced social interactions in four different settings: paid and free wi-fi cafes in Boston, MA and Seattle,WA.This study found contrasting uses for wireless internet and competing implications for community.Two types of practices, typified in the behaviors of 'true mobiles' and 'placemakers', offer divergent futures for how wireless internet use may influence social relationships.
Signs of meta-change in second modernity: the growth of e-sport and the World Cyber Games
Authors: Hutchins Brett
Published: November 2008

Media, communication and information flows now define the logic and structure of social relations, a situation that affects almost every dimension of cultural life and activity. This article analyses the transformation of the relationship between computer gaming, media and sport in the global age of 'second modernity'. This analysis is undertaken through a critical case study of the World Cyber Games (WCG). This popular event and the 'cyber-athletes' that compete in it cannot be explained fully by reference to existing studies of computer and video gaming, media and sport, media events or organized sporting competition. It is not possible to think in terms of sport and the media when considering the WCG and organized competitive gaming. This is sport as media or e-sport, a term that signifies the seamless interpenetration of media content, sport and networked information and communications technologies.
Getting up on the download: college students' motivations for acquiring music via the web
Authors: Kinnally William , Lacayo Anamarcia , McClung Steven , Sapolsky Barry
Published: November 2008

The objective of this study is to understand the gratifications behind music downloading among college students, and examine how the gratifications along with music interest are associated with a variety of downloading-related activities.The results suggest that the process of downloading music files is an entertaining and convenient way to acquire music.The downloading motives were not linked significantly to filesharing (uploading as well as downloading music). However, entertainment/pass time, convenience/economic utility and information-seeking factors and experience were predictors of building a library of music on one's computer. Males reported having more songs stored in their computers than females and were more likely to burn compilation compact discs (CDs) with the music files they downloaded. Affinity for music was not associated significantly with any of the downloading activities examined, but was positively associated with CD purchasing.
Journalistic objectivity redefined? Wikinews and the neutral point of view
Authors: Thorsen Einar
Published: November 2008

Wikinews is a news website which allows anyone with internet access to publish and edit journalistic content directly on its site without prior authorization or registration. This article examines the way in which Wikinews contributors negotiate its 'neutral point of view' policy, which differs from the traditional sense of journalistic objectivity in the way that it is both defined and implemented. The study encompasses a detailed review of 2332 news articles and their associated 'talk pages', published in the period from November 2004 to July 2005. Close textual analysis is used to conduct a qualitative study of a selection of these Wikinews articles, their documented editorial history and referenced sources, so as to offer a thorough critique of the 'neutral point of view' policy, as assessment is made of the importance of the Wikinews model for online journalism more widely.
Beyond good and evil?
Authors: Fassin Didier
Published: November 2008

There is a paradox with morals in anthropology: on the one hand, morals are not considered as a legitimate object of study and are looked upon with suspicion; on the other hand, there is an increasing concern for moral issues both in society and within the discipline. Basing my analysis on several empirical studies which I briefly evoke, I call for the development of a moral anthropology. This does not mean that anthropologists should become moralists but that they should study morals as they do politics, religion or medicine. I discuss the two reasons, epistemological and historical, why anthropologists have been reluctant to enter this field of research. I analyse the ambiguities and risks which are effectively inherent to this particular domain. I conclude with two propositions and their two corollaries in favour of moral anthropology, but insist on the heuristic value of the intellectual discomfort aroused by morals among anthropologists.
The 'fourth aim' of anthropology
Authors: Stoczkowski Wiktor
Published: November 2008

Any anthropological research mobilizes an axiological system, composed at once of moral values and epistemological values. Starting from the example of my first fieldwork among officers of the secret political police in Poland under marshal law in 1982—3, and subsequently examining several types of moral agendas in anthropology (as a science of moral reform in E.B. Tylor; as a salutary revelation of social mechanics in E. Durkheim; as a lesson of ethics in C. Lévi-Strauss; as an expedient for raising the moral standard of colonial action in M. Delafosse; 'applied anthropology' as a science useful in the struggle against totalitarian regimes during the Second World War and the Cold War; as cultural criticism in 1970—1980; 'moral anthropology' as a way of defending the rights of the oppressed in the 1990s), I stress some potentially negative consequences of moral stances in anthropology, insofar as values of ethical commitment may come into conflict with epistemological values. In conclusion, I plead for an anthropology able to objectify its own moral agenda and to grasp its epistemological impact on scholarly representations we aspire to produce.
Rethinking time's arrow
Authors: Hodges Matt
Published: November 2008

Since the early 1970s, time has come to the fore as a constitutive element of social analysis in the guise of what I term here 'fluid time'. Anthropologists of multiple theoretical persuasions now take for granted that social life exists in 'time', 'flow', or 'flux', and this temporal ontology is commonly accepted as a universal, if habitually unquestioned, attribute of human experience. Similarly, it underpins today's dominant paradigm of 'processual' analysis, in its many forms. Yet this concept is notably under-theorized, in keeping with a history of uneven study by social scientists of time. In this article I draw on anthropological approaches by Gell and Munn, and philosophical work by Bergson and Deleuze, to put forward a critical theorization. I then discuss its ramifications. Ultimately, I argue that this model points to a rapprochement between the anthropological study of time and history, sociality and temporality, and an enhanced role for temporal analysis in anthropological theory.
Journalists and the information-attention markets
Authors: Fengler Susanne , Ruß-Mohl Stephan
Published: November 2008

In this article we suggest economic theory (specifically rational choice theory) as a promising approach to analyze the dramatic changes journalism is currently going through. Referring to the model of the 'homo economicus maturus' as well as to previous research by a small but growing number of scholars of mass communication, we describe journalists as rational actors seeking to maximize materialistic and non-materialistic rewards (e.g. attention, reputation, fringe benefits). We explain why, how and under what kind of restrictions journalists trade information for attention with their sources, calculating risks and benefits. Further, we apply economic concepts (free-riding, external effects, and principal-agent theory) to journalism to provide more in-depth explanations for specific developments in journalism such as 'pack reporting'. We conclude that assuming self-interested behaviour of media professionals will enable scholars of journalism to identify and predict more systematically the failures of journalism and blind spots of media coverage.
Conflation, collocation and confusion
Authors: Mason Paul , Monckton-Smith Jane
Published: November 2008

Despite research to the contrary, a recent British Home Office report by Kelly et al. (2005) notes that in public consciousness a 'real rape' is perceived to occur in a public place, is perpetrated by a stranger and involves aggravating violence. Further, it notes that such skewed perceptions are implicated in the high attrition rate that this offence attracts in the United Kingdom. This paper suggests that a significant factor in the reinforcing of this skewed perception is the reporting of violence against women in the print media. It is argued that murders of women are regularly sexualized by journalists and conversely that sexual assaults of women are framed within a discourse of murder. Through a discourse analysis of six case studies of rape and/or murder of women by men between 2003 and 2004, this research contends that the habitual linking of the concepts of sex and death in such reporting, which in some contexts effectively produces a conflation of the offences of rape and murder, contributes to the way in which rape is received by criminal justice professionals, victims and the wider public.
Why they wouldn't cite from sites
Authors: Jha Sonora
Published: November 2008

This study uses qualitative in-depth interviews to examine journalists' attitudes and decisions about social protest coverage in the wake of (a) journalists' own use of the internet and (b) the use of the internet by social movement organizations. Interviews were conducted with journalists who covered protests that formed part of the movement for democratic globalization in US cities and in Canada during 1999 and 2000. Although regarded as major success stories for the role of the internet in political communication, mobilization over the web seems to have had little impact on journalists. The in-depth interviews revealed skepticism, not early adoption, of web resources in the coverage of these protests. This study provides an exploratory model for the sustained study of journalists' internet use and their attitudes toward social movements and protest as the internet age evolves.
Structure and wear behaviour of nanostructured and ultrafine HVOF spraying WC–17Co coatings
Authors: Chen H. , Gou G. Q. , Tu M. J. , Liu Y.
Published: November 2008

Nanostructured and ultrafine WC–17Co coatings have been prepared by means of the high velocity oxyfuel (HVOF) technique. The structures of the two feedstock powders were analysed. The wear resistances at the elevated temperature (600°C) of the two coatings were compared using GCr15 steel as a counterpart in sliding wear tests. The results show that the WC particles are of nanosize, ranging from 50 to 500 nm. Finer subparticles of 2–5 nm are also found, composed of the nanosized WC particles. These subparticles can act as crystallising nuclei and make the grains much finer during the HVOF spraying process, which is beneficial to the formation of nanostructure in the coating. The wear resistance and fracture toughness of the nanostructured coatings at elevated temperatures are better than that of ultrafine coatings.
Damage of repeatedly nitrocarburised steel dies for aluminium extrusion
Authors: Matteis P. , Scavino G. , Quadrini E. , Perucci P. , Firrao D.
Published: November 2008

The dies employed for the hot extrusion of aluminium alloys are subjected to repeated cycles of nitriding, or nitrocarburising, after service periods of given length. Three dies, fabricated with ISO X40CrMoV5-1 (AISI H13) steel and liquid nitrocarburised, were examined either in the asfabricated condition, or after one service period, or after 12 nitrocarburising and service cycles (end of life). Samples cut from the die subjected to one service period were re-nitrocarburised for increasing durations and similarly examined. The examination methods included X-ray diffraction, metallography, microhardness profile measurements and SEM fractography. The service temperature induced microstructural modifications in the core and in the case. Microcracks and wear craters, due to adhesive wear, occurred at the bearing surfaces. The wear mechanisms at a bearing surface, the microstructural evolution close to the same surface, the fatigue crack nucleation and early growth, and their interrelations and consequences during the whole die life are discussed.
Abrasive wear characteristics of coating area of low carbon steel surface alloyed through tungsten inert gas welding process
Authors: Korkut M. H. , Gök M. S.
Published: November 2008

Low carbon steel surfaces were alloyed with composite powders using the tungsten inert gas welding method. After the alloying process, the effects of welding parameters, such as energy input, progress speed and coating thickness on the microstructural characteristics of the alloyed samples were examined. In the experimental investigation, a low carbon steel surface was alloyed with austenitic stainless steel powder and austenitic stainless steel composites mixed with 4·5% Co, Mo and Ti particles respectively. Following surface alloying, conventional characterisation techniques, such as optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrograph and X-ray diffraction, were used to study the microstructure of the alloyed zone. Hardness measurements were also performed across the alloyed zone. Examination of the microstructure revealed the presence of M23C6 carbides, solid melt phases, and intermetallic phases, such as Ni3Ti, depending on the alloying element in the composite. As the amount of the reinforcing material increased, the saturation rates for the samples decreased, while their hardness increased. The abrasive wear tests conducted revealed that temperature input plays a significant role on the microstructure characteristics, which positively affected the abrasive wear values of the samples. Consequently, the tungsten inert gas welding method was successfully used for the surface alloying of low carbon steels.
Investigation on phosphorus doping using H3PO4 as doping source by simple dip method and its electrical characterisation
Authors: Moon I. , Gunasekaran M. , Kim K. , Ju M. , Han S. , Yi J.
Published: November 2008

In this article, the authors present the work on emitter diffusion in crystalline silicon solar cell fabrication, and determine that phosphorus doping using phosphoric acid (H3PO4) with dipping is convenient and cost effective. H3PO4 was mixed with different solvents such as deionised water, ethanol, methanol and butanol. However, deionised water is hydrophobic to the silicon surface. The emitter layers were obtained by varying emulsion concentrations and diffusion temperatures. The sheet resistance of the prepared emitter layers was measured. The sheet resistance varied between 60 and 130 Ω/〉 using butanol as a solvent at 900°C for 5 min. Also, butanol as a solvent exhibited uniform sheet resistance over the wafer surface, compared to other solvents. The sheet resistance decreases as the annealing time and temperature was increased. Based on sheet resistance measurements it is evident that this method can be used for solar cell fabrication, and it is cost effective and easy to scale up.
Wear corrosion properties of DLC films with different C2H2 gas flows and CN layer of magnetic recording disks
Authors: Chen C. P. , Tan A. H.
Published: November 2008

The wear corrosion properties of magnetic recording disks which correlate to hardness, lubricant bonded ratio and friction coefficient of ultra thin diamond like carbon films deposited with ion beam hydrogenated carbon and sputtering nitrogenated carbon respectively when, deposited on NiP/Al substrates were investigated. Results show that the ion beam deposition hydrogenated carbon (IBD–CH) films prepared at lower C2H2 gas flowrates or 1 nm sputter nitrogenated carbon (CN) deposited on 2 nm IBD–CH layers, exhibit a higher Raman intensity ratio Id/ Ig and G peak frequency. The hardness of diamond like carbon films increases with decreasing G peak frequency and intensity ratio Id I/g. The lubricant bonded ratio is dramatically increased from 12 to 38% when a 1·0 nm CN is deposited on a 2·0 nm IBD–CH layer. IBD–CH with 35 sccm C2H2 gas flowrate which shows the lowest weight loss, the lowest friction coefficient and the best wear corrosion resistance because of the optimised lubricant bonded ratio and the highest hardness.
Low temperature fabrication of highly transparent conducting SnO2–ZnO films by inexpensive, simplified spray technique
Authors: Ravichandran K. , Saravanakumar K. , Muruganantham G. , Sakthivel B.
Published: November 2008

Transparent conducting SnO2–ZnO films were fabricated by employing an inexpensive, simplified spray technique using a perfume atomiser at relatively low substrate temperature (360±5°C) compared with the conventional spray pyrolysis method. The structural studies reveal that the films are crystalline in nature with preferential orientation along the (101) plane. The average optical transmittance in the visible range is >88%. The electrical resistivity increases with the increase in Zn concentration. The low temperature coefficient of resistance (–1·191 K–1) shows that the films have good thermal stability. The wide band gap (3·50–3·56 eV) and reasonable figure of merit (1·63 × 10–2 Ω–1) of the films make them desirable candidates for low cost solar cell window layers. Thus, this simplest spray technique can be used as a promising alternative to conventional spray for the massive production of economic SnO2–ZnO films for solar cell applications.
Reactive detonation spraying of in situ synthesised TiC reinforced Fe36Ni based composite coatings via sucrose as carbonaceous precursor
Authors: Wang H. T. , Zhang S. Q. , Huang J. H. , Zhu J. L. , Zhang H.
Published: November 2008

A kind of Ti–Fe–Ni–C compound powder was obtained by heating a mixture of FeTi, Ni and sucrose to pyrolyse sucrose. The sucrose is the source of carbon that is a reactive constituent as well as a binder in the compound powders. These powders were employed to in situ synthesise TiC–Fe36Ni cermet coatings by reactive detonation spraying. The cermet coatings are mainly composed of different reinforcement areas where the round fine TiC particles homogeneously distribute within the metallic matrix. The surface hardness and average microhardness of the cermet coatings are about 94±2 (HR15N) and 1752 HV(0·2) respectively. Finally, the TiC–Fe36Ni cermet coatings have good wear resistance performance and bonding strength.