bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The role of Dichaete in transcriptional regulation during Drosophila embryonic development
Authors: Aleksic Jelena , Ferrero Enrico , Fischer Bettina , Shen Shih Pei , Russell Steven
Published: December 2013

Background

Group B Sox domain transcription factors play conserved roles in the specification and development of the nervous system in higher metazoans. However, we know comparatively little about how these transcription factors regulate gene expression, and the analysis of Sox gene function in vertebrates is confounded by functional compensation between three closely related family members. In Drosophila, only two group B Sox genes, Dichaete and SoxN, have been shown to function during embryonic CNS development, providing a simpler system for understanding the functions of this important class of regulators.

Results

Using a combination of transcriptional profiling and genome-wide binding analysis we conservatively identify over 1000 high confidence direct Dichaete target genes in the Drosophila genome. We show that Dichaete plays key roles in CNS development, regulating aspects of the temporal transcription factor sequence that confer neuroblast identity. Dichaete also shows a complex interaction with Prospero in the pathway controlling the switch from stem cell self-renewal to neural differentiation. Dichaete potentially regulates many more genes in the Drosophila genome and was found to be associated with over 2000 mapped regulatory elements.

Conclusions

Our analysis suggests that Dichaete acts as a transcriptional hub, controlling multiple regulatory pathways during CNS development. These include a set of core CNS expressed genes that are also bound by the related Sox2 gene during mammalian CNS development. Furthermore, we identify Dichaete as one of the transcription factors involved in the neural stem cell transcriptional network, with evidence supporting the view that Dichaete is involved in controlling the temporal series of divisions regulating neuroblast identity.
Direct measurement of electrostatic fields using single Teflon nanoparticle attached to AFM tip
Authors: Chang Joe-Ming , Chang Wei-Yu , Chen Fu-Rong , Tseng Fan-Gang
Published: December 2013

A single 210-nm Teflon nanoparticle (sTNP) was attached to the vertex of a silicon nitride (Si3N4) atomic force microscope tip and charged via contact electrification. The charged sTNP can then be considered a point charge and used to measure the electrostatic field adjacent to a parallel plate condenser using 30-nm gold/20-nm titanium as electrodes. This technique can provide a measurement resolution of 250/100 nm along the X- and Z-axes, and the minimum electrostatic force can be measured within 50 pN.

PACS

07.79.Lh, 81.16.-c, 84.37. + q
Quantifying circulating hypoxia-induced RNA transcripts in maternal blood to determine in uterofetal hypoxic status
Authors: Whitehead Clare , Teh Wan Tinn , Walker Susan P , Leung Cheryl , Mendis Sonali , Larmour Luke , Tong Stephen
Published: December 2013

Background

Hypoxia in utero can lead to stillbirth and severe perinatal injury. While current prenatal tests can identify fetuses that are hypoxic, none can determine the severity of hypoxia/acidemia. We hypothesized a hypoxic/acidemic fetus would up-regulate and release hypoxia-induced mRNA from the fetoplacental unit into the maternal circulation, where they can be sampled and quantified. Furthermore, we hypothesized the abundance of hypoxia induced mRNA in the maternal circulation would correlate with severity of fetal hypoxia/acidemia in utero. We therefore examined whether abundance of hypoxia-induced mRNA in the maternal circulation correlates with the degree of fetal hypoxia in utero.

Methods

We performed a prospective study of two cohorts: 1) longitudinal study of pregnant women undergoing an induction of labor (labor induces acute fetal hypoxia) and 2) pregnancies complicated by severe preterm growth restriction (chronic fetal hypoxia). For each cohort, we correlated hypoxia induced mRNA in the maternal blood with degree of fetal hypoxia during its final moments in utero, evidenced by umbilical artery pH or lactate levels obtained at birth. Gestational tissues and maternal bloods were sampled and mRNAs quantified by microarray and RT-PCR.

Results

Hypoxia-induced mRNAs in maternal blood rose across labor, an event that induces acute fetal hypoxia. They exhibited a precipitous increase across the second stage of labor, a particularly hypoxic event. Importantly, a hypoxia gene score (sum of the relative expression of four hypoxia-induced genes) strongly correlated with fetal acidemia at birth. Hypoxia-induced mRNAs were also increased in the blood of women carrying severely growth restricted preterm fetuses, a condition of chronic fetal hypoxia. The hypoxia gene score correlated with the severity of ultrasound Doppler velocimetry abnormalities in fetal vessels. Importantly, the hypoxia gene score (derived from mRNA abundance in maternal blood) was significantly correlated with the degree of fetal acidemia at birth in this growth restriction cohort.

Conclusions

Abundance of mRNAs coding hypoxia-induced genes circulating in maternal blood strongly correlates with degree of fetal hypoxia/acidemia. Measuring hypoxia-induced mRNA in maternal blood may form the basis of a novel non-invasive test to clinically determine the degree of fetal hypoxia/acidemia while in utero.
Integrating gene and protein expression data with genome-scale metabolic networks to infer functional pathways
Authors: Pey Jon , Valgepea Kaspar , Rubio Angel , Beasley John E , Planes Francisco J
Published: December 2013

Background

The study of cellular metabolism in the context of high-throughput -omics data has allowed us to decipher novel mechanisms of importance in biotechnology and health. To continue with this progress, it is essential to efficiently integrate experimental data into metabolic modeling.

Results

We present here an in-silico framework to infer relevant metabolic pathways for a particular phenotype under study based on its gene/protein expression data. This framework is based on the Carbon Flux Path (CFP) approach, a mixed-integer linear program that expands classical path finding techniques by considering additional biophysical constraints. In particular, the objective function of the CFP approach is amended to account for gene/protein expression data and influence obtained paths. This approach is termed integrative Carbon Flux Path (iCFP). We show that gene/protein expression data also influences the stoichiometric balancing of CFPs, which provides a more accurate picture of active metabolic pathways. This is illustrated in both a theoretical and real scenario. Finally, we apply this approach to find novel pathways relevant in the regulation of acetate overflow metabolism in Escherichia coli. As a result, several targets which could be relevant for better understanding of the phenomenon leading to impaired acetate overflow are proposed.

Conclusions

A novel mathematical framework that determines functional pathways based on gene/protein expression data is presented and validated. We show that our approach is able to provide new insights into complex biological scenarios such as acetate overflow in Escherichia coli.
Restoration of LRIG1 suppresses bladder cancer cell growth by directly targeting EGFR activity
Authors: Chang Lei , Shi Runlin , Yang Tao , Li Fan , Li Guohao , Guo Yonglian , Lang Bin , Yang Weimin , Zhuang Qianyuan , Xu Hua
Published: December 2013

Background

Recently, leucine-rich repeats and immunoglobulin-like domains 1 (LRIG1), a negative regulator of EGFR, was discovered is a novel agent for suppressing bladder cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of LRIG1 on the biological features of aggressive bladder cancer cells and the possible mechanisms of enhanced apoptosis induced by upregulation of LRIG1.

Methods

In this study, we examined the mRNA and protein expression of LRIG1 and EGFR in bladder cancers and normal bladder. Meanwhile, we overexpressed LRIG1 with adenovirus vector in T24/5637 bladder cancer cell lines, and we used real time-PCR, western blot, and co-immunoprecipitation analysis in order to examine the effects of LRIG1 gene on EGFR. Furthermore, we evaluate the impact of LRIG1 gene on the function of human bladder cancer cells and EGFR signaling.

Results

The expression of LRIG1 was decreased, while the expression of EGFR was increased in the majority of bladder cancer, and the ratio of EGFR/LRIG1 was increased in tumors versus normal tissue. We found that upregulation of LRIG1 induced cell apoptosis and cell growth inhibition, and further reversed invasion in bladder cancer cell lines in vitro by inhibiting phosphorylation of downstream MAPK and AKT signaling pathway.

Conclusion

Taken together, our findings provide us with an insight into LRIG1 function, and we conclude that LRIG1 evolved in bladder cancer as a rare feedback negative attenuator of EGFR, thus could offer a novel therapeutic target to treat patients with bladder cancer.
Modification of heparanase gene expression in response to conditioning and LPS treatment: strong correlation to rs4693608 SNP
Authors: Ostrovsky Olga , Shimoni Avichai , Baryakh Polina , Morgulis Yan , Mayorov Margarita , Beider Katia , Shteingauz Anna , Ilan Neta , Vlodavsky Israel , Nagler Arnon
Published: December 2013

Heparanase is an endo-β-glucuronidase that specifically cleaves the saccharide chains of HSPGs, important structural and functional components of the ECM. Cleavage of HS leads to loss of the structural integrity of the ECM and release of HS-bound cytokines, chemokines, and bioactive angiogenic- and growth-promoting factors. Our previous study revealed a highly significant correlation of HPSE gene SNPs rs4693608 and rs4364254 and their combination with the risk of developing GVHD. We now demonstrate that HPSE is up-regulated in response to pretransplantation conditioning, followed by a gradual decrease thereafter. Expression of heparanase correlated with the rs4693608 HPSE SNP before and after conditioning. Moreover, a positive correlation was found between recipient and donor rs4693608 SNP discrepancy and the time of neutrophil and platelet recovery. Similarly, the discrepancy in rs4693608 HPSE SNP between recipients and donors was found to be a more significant factor for the risk of aGVHD than patient genotype. The rs4693608 SNP also affected HPSE gene expression in LPS-treated MNCs from PB and CB. Possessors of the AA genotype exhibited up-regulation of heparanase with a high ratio in the LPS-treated MNCs, whereas individuals with genotype GG showed down-regulation or no effect on HPSE gene expression. HPSE up-regulation was mediated by TLR4. The study emphasizes the importance of rs4693608 SNP for HPSE gene expression in activated MNCs, indicating a role in allogeneic stem cell transplantation, including postconditioning, engraftment, and GVHD.
Photobleaching imprinting microscopy: seeing clearer and deeper
Authors: Gao Liang , Garcia-Uribe Alejandro , Liu Yan , Li Chiye , Wang Lihong V.
Published: December 2013

We present a generic sub-diffraction-limited imaging method – photobleaching imprinting microscopy (PIM) – for biological fluorescence imaging. A lateral resolution of 110 nm was measured, more than a two-fold improvement over the optical diffraction limit. Unlike other super-resolution imaging techniques, PIM does not require complicated illumination modules or specific fluorescent dyes. PIM is expected to facilitate the conversion of super-resolution imaging into a routine lab tool, making it accessible to a much broader biological research community. Moreover, we show that PIM can increase the image contrast of biological tissue, effectively extending the fundamental depth limit of multi-photon fluorescence microscopy.
Steel and Strawberries: How Chinese Rock Became State-Sponsored
Authors: Groenewegen-Lau Jeroen
Published: December 2013

The discourses of the cultural and creative industries have encouraged local governments in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to provide subsidies to local festival organizers, resulting in a music festival boom since 2007. These festivals have become the major source of income for Chinese bands. In short, a middle ground is emerging where government agencies, music companies, and bands negotiate collaborations. However, both conservative communists and neomarxists deplore this neo-liberal trend of depoliticization and co-optation. This paper describes how various stakeholders benefit from the festival boom, and considers the claims made on behalf of those that are excluded.
“It’s Our Culture ”: Dynamics of the Revival and Reemergence of Punjabi Jhummar
Authors: Schreffler Gibb
Published: December 2013

In the Indian state of Punjab there has been a revival of a centuries-old dance called “ jhummar .” The intensely energetic, new folkloric dance dubbed “bhangra” initially marginalized the historically more popular jhummar during an era of modern state-building efforts. Jhummar was nonetheless able to reemerge in the Punjabi cultural consciousness through the cumulative interaction between vernacular performers retaining identification with the dance and institutions looking for alternatives to the oversaturated bhangra. This article details the development of modern jhummar , arguing that the millennial ethos of Punjab, with its renewed emphasis on traditionality and regional culture, engendered the revival of jhummar .
There Is No Amen in Shaman: Traditional Music Preservation and Christianity in South Korea
Authors: Maliangkay Roald
Published: December 2013

1962년 문화재보호법을 제정한 이후, 한국 정부는 국내 문화유산을 보존하기 위해서 상당한 노력을 해 왔다. 전통음악 공연 및 교육도 그 동안 정부가 지원한 여러 분야 중 하나이다. 그 동안은 특정 전통이나 전통 보유자를 선정하는 제도에 대해서 주로 많은 비판이 있어 왔으나, 최근 십여년 들어 새로운 도전에 직면하고 있다. 아직은 그 수가 적기는 하지만, 일부 기독교인들이 특정 전통음악을 미신으로 취급하여 문제삼기 시작했다. 처음에는 대부분이 전통음악계 외부의 사람들이었지만 최근 몇 년 사이에 많은 원로 국악인들 또한 자기 분야 전통음악의 미신적 요소에 대한 부정적 견해를 보이기 시작했다. 이 논문은 한국 전통음악 관련 편협한 시각과 전통성 주장이 갖는 잠재적 함의를 논하고자 한다.
Venerable Traditions, Modern Manifestations: Understanding Mayuzumi’s Bunraku for Cello
Authors: Cook Lisa M.
Published: December 2013

This article takes a fresh look at the Japanese composer Toshirō Mayuzumi, who many view mainly as a reactionary right-wing Japanese nationalist. This paper uses a transcultural framework developed by the author to examine Mayuzumi’s career and his Bunraku for cello in a larger biographical and compositional context. It concludes that bunraku was most strongly influenced by Mayuzumi’s interest in creating a modern Japanese repertory, which he did in part by adapting and synthesizing foreign musical styles into music that reflects the transcultural musical climate of modern Japan.
The Pragmatics of Prophet-Praise Formulas in Jordan
Authors: Migdadi Fathi , Badarneh Muhammad A.
Published: December 2013

This article explores the pragmatics of prototypically religious prophet-praise formulas as used in everyday interactional settings in Jordan. Analysis of naturally occurring data shows that formulas of this type serve various pragmatic functions—place-holding during hesitations, seeking protection from envy, marking success, and intensifying the basic message of the utterance. Imperative and interrogative versions are used to terminate a disruptive activity or to elicit involvement and agreement, and as a device for claiming the floor. The pragmatic deployment of these formulas shows the intertwining of language, culture, and religion in communicating meaning in Arabic.
Linguistic Archaeology, Kinship Terms, and Language Contact in Suriname
Authors: Borges Robert
Published: December 2013

As a relatively young linguistic area, Suriname offers great possibilities for understanding the processes that produce complex outcomes of language contact. In this article, directionality, mechanisms, and relative chronology of contact-induced changes are reconstructed by examining synchronic variation and diachronic changes in the semantics of kinship terminology for a sample of Surinamese languages.
The Quichua System of Beliefs about Language Acquisition and Social Use: Cultural Resilience in Quichua-Spanish Contact
Authors: Bouchard Lise
Published: December 2013

Exploratory research conducted in Imbabura, Ecuador, reveals that the Quichua system of beliefs about language acquisition and social use involves three components: cognitive development, language socialization, and childcare (more precisely, hygiene and diet). Most interviewees shared this core belief system regardless of their score on a biculturalism scale, age, educational background, and mother tongue. The Quichua belief system remains even when linguistic shift occurs, in which case it is transposed to the acquisition of the new language (Spanish). Linguistic shift thus does not necessarily imply global acculturation.
Education/Connection/Action: Community Literacies and Shared Knowledges as Creative Productions for Social Justice
Authors: Licona Adela C. , Gonzales J. Sarah
Published: December 2013

This article highlights Education/Connection/Action (ECA), a locally developed community pedagogy deployed at a youth activism summer camp that served as a site for a community/academic teaching and research collaboration. Youth considered connections between a set of issues, including a local ban on Ethnic Studies, the School-to-Prison Pipeline, and Youth Sexuality, Health, and Rights. They drew from lived and learned literacies to inform participatory media projects that critically and creatively address restrictions on access to local knowledges and information with particular relevance to youth sexuality, health, and rights (broadly defined). In highlighting youth voices, desires, and needs across distinct youth communities, their collaborative productions demonstrate coalitional potential and a collective call for change.
Empower Latino Youth (ELAYO): Leveraging Youth Voice to Inform the Public Debate on Pregnancy, Parenting and Education
Authors: Villaseñor Elodia , Alcalá Miguel , Valladares Ena Suseth , Torres Miguel A. , Mercado Vanessa , Gómez Cynthia A.
Published: December 2013

Youth perspectives are routinely absent from research and policy initiatives. This article presents a project that infuses youth participation, training and mentorship into the research process and teaches youth how to become policy advocates. Empower Latino Youth (ELAYO) studies the individual and systemic factors impacting sexuality and childbearing among Latino youth and seeks to reduce negative stereotypes and elevate the social standing of Latino youth. As a team-in-training, ELAYO provides adolescents, undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to develop research skills while learning the importance of linking science to policy. This paper was developed in collaboration with Latino youth.
Addressing Economic Devastation and Built Environment Degradation to Prevent Violence: A Photovoice Project of Detroit Youth Passages
Authors: Graham Louis F. , Reyes Armando Matiz , Lopez William , Gracey Alana , Snow Rachel C. , Padilla Mark B.
Published: December 2013

This project increased awareness about issues of violence to youth, their communities, and policy makers through the technique of photovoice and its translation into photo exhibitions and other community events. Youth participants learned photography skills, engaged in critical communal discussions about important issues affecting their health, wrote reflective stories about their photos, and engaged in policy change efforts. Their photos depict the need to address economic devastation and built environment degradation to prevent violence in their communities. Youth presented policy makers and community leaders with an "insider's perspective" of the issues facing their communities, with the hope of promoting policy change.
Paying to Listen: Notes from a Survey of Sexual Commerce
Authors: Snow Rachel C. , Williams Angela , Collins Curtis , Moorman Jessica , Rangel Tomas , Barick Audrey , Clay Crystal , Reyes Armando Matiz
Published: December 2013

As the study of sexual commerce has grown dramatically in recent decades due to interest in HIV/AIDS, an expanded literature has scrutinized how research teams manage the operational challenges of accessing spaces that typically resist scrutiny. This paper ventures a combination of both scholarly reflections on the utility of ethical listening and specific methodologies for working with hard-to-reach populations, and selective use of field notes to illustrate the ethical and operational challenges of data collection with marginalized youth. The paper highlights several pivotal commitments and procedures for generating an effective community-based research project, the extent of time demanded for such research, and collective reflections on the potential for both harm and good in such projects. Efforts to understand the social context in which young adults engage in sexual exchange—both on the street and in erotic dance clubs—requires a commitment to ethical listening, and to progressive learning.
Moving Past Assumptions: Recognizing Parents as Allies in Promoting the Sexual Literacies of Adolescents through a University-Community Collaboration
Authors: Horn Stacey S. , Peter Christina R. , Tasker Timothy B. , Sullivan Shannon
Published: December 2013

This article recounts how a university-community collaborative challenged prevailing assumptions about parents as barriers to the provision of gender and sexuality information to their children, allowing for the recognition of parents as critical stakeholders and partners in sexual literacy work with youth. We provide evidence that parents' support for inclusive sexuality education uniquely situates them to educate and advocate for young people around these issues, and in so doing we hope to disrupt the rhetoric that casts parents in the United States as solely gatekeepers when it comes to young people's access to information about the broad spectrum of human sexuality.
An Examination of College Students’ Receptiveness to Alcohol-Related Information and Advice
Authors: Leahy Matthew M. , Jouriles Ernest N. , Walters Scott T.
Published: December 2013

This project examined the reliability and validity of a newly developed measure of college students’ receptiveness to alcohol-related information and advice. Participants were 116 college students who reported having consumed alcohol at some point in their lifetime. Participants completed a measure of receptiveness to alcohol-related information and advice at two time points, spaced 1 month apart. Participants also completed measures of general receptiveness to advice, alcohol consumption, and readiness to change. The measure of receptiveness to alcohol-related information and advice was internally consistent and reliable over a 1-month period. Receptiveness was negatively associated with student alcohol consumption, even after controlling for readiness to change. This measure of college students’ receptiveness to alcohol-related information and advice about their drinking seems to be reliable and correlates with students’ alcohol consumption.
First-Year Students’ Psychological Well-Being and Need for Cognition: Are They Important Predictors of Academic Engagement?
Authors: Cole James S. , Korkmaz Ali
Published: December 2013

This study focused on the dispositions of entering first-year students, their perceptions of classroom and institutional environments, and their subsequent academic engagement. Total variance explained by variables included in the path model for academic engagement was 30%. The results of this study found evidence to support the theoretical model that environment does mediate the relationship between two personality constructs (Need for Cognition and Psychological Well-Being) and academic engagement. Results of this study provide additional evidence that the environment matters and that institutions should continue to focus on creating supportive, positive environments that foster engagement.
The Sexual Assault Teach In Program: Building Constructive Campus-Wide Discussions to Inspire Change
Authors: Katz Jennifer , DuBois Melinda
Published: December 2013

To begin to address the problem of campus sexual assault, we conducted a Teach In, an educational forum used to explore complex social problems. All students, faculty, and staff at our small liberal arts college were invited to participate. This paper summarizes our Teach In program, goals, and methods. By engaging in constructive, informed discussions, we ended the general silence about this problem. By considering multiple sources of knowledge, participants expanded their understandings of campus sexual assault. Outcome data suggest that many participants began planning constructive action. The development of collaborative relationships through the Teach In program will enhance our future work promoting awareness and safety.
Examining the Impact Learning Communities Have on College of Education Students on an Urban Campus
Authors: Hill William , Woodward Laura Susanne
Published: December 2013

Student attrition is a problem in universities. A systems perspective describing both departure and retention is helpful in explaining the circumstances in which student retention is increased, particularly for students traditionally excluded from university participation. Risk factors for departure include poor preparation for college and belonging to a demographic group traditionally excluded from academia. We sought to evaluate the impact of participation in a Learning Community on student retention at an urban public research university. We included all students who had been accepted into the College of Education at Level 1 for the fall 2007 semester. We found that involvement in a Learning Community, whether it is specifically formed to address and promote student success in a given area/major, or in a more general/university-wide Learning Community improves student retention.
When the Army Post is the Campus: Understanding the Social and Academic Integration of Soldiers Attending College
Authors: Wilson Kristin B. , Smith Natesha L. , Lee Allisha L. , Stevenson Melissa A.
Published: December 2013

In this study, the Tinto model of student integration is applied qualitatively to soldiers attending college. The authors found that soldiers commit to the military primarily and to college secondarily; therefore, military policies and relationships related to college offered a better understanding of college commitments than did college policies and relationships. For understanding the college integration of non-traditional students, like soldiers, this study highlights the importance of viewing higher education as part of a larger social system, rather than as a stand-along institution.
A Metatheory of Spiritual Formation Through Service-Learning in Higher Education
Authors: Welch Marshall , Koth Kent
Published: December 2013

This article presents a hybrid metatheory of spiritual formation that can be applied to understanding college students’ spiritual development through service-learning experiences. A definition and overview of spirituality is presented and contrasted with religion, followed by a review of various theoretical models from developmental psychology and spiritual development. Salient features from these models have been identified as a common thread to generate a hybrid metatheory of spiritual formation. A description of the spaces that comprise the spiritual formation process is provided, followed by an example. The article concludes with a discussion on the implications and application of the model for students, faculty members, and directors of centers involved with service-learning.
Does Involvement Really Matter? Indicators of College Student Success and Satisfaction
Authors: Webber Karen L. , Krylow Rebecca Bauer , Zhang Qin
Published: December 2013

Theories of involvement and quality of effort posit that student engagement in academic activities is critical to success. College officials invest substantial resources in activities and facilities to encourage student involvement, yet some reports find that many students study few hours per week and commit little time to academic activities. A critical question we must ask is: Does involvement lead to authentic gains in student success? Results from the 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement at one research university found that higher levels of engagement in a variety of curricular and cocurricular activities significantly contribute to cumulative GPA and students’ perception of the overall academic experience. Females and full-time students who spent more time preparing for class or otherwise engaging in academic tasks earned a higher GPA and reported higher satisfaction with their overall academic experience. Implications for program planning and resource allocation are discussed.
Experiences and Perceptions of Gay and Bisexual Fraternity Members From 1960 to 2007: A Cohort Analysis
Authors: Rankin Susan R. , Hesp Grahaeme A. , Weber Genevieve N.
Published: December 2013

The study included 337 self-identified gay and bisexual fraternity members, with 170 joining their chapters in the year 2000 or after, 99 joining their chapters between the years 1990 and 1999, and 68 joining in the year 1989 or before. Participants who self-identified as gay or bisexual men and who joined in the year 2000 or after reported a more positive experience overall as fraternity members than did the participants who joined at any time prior. Each new cohort showed movement toward a more accepting environment for gay or bisexual individuals. The data suggest that the fraternity environment is increasingly becoming more accepting of gay and bisexual individuals and the LGBT community.
The Rehabilitation of Patronage in Hoccleve’s Series
Authors: Vines Amy N.
Published: December 2013

This article argues that, in the Series , Thomas Hoccleve not only appeals to the system of patronage, but attempts to revise it, creating a new template for literary sponsorship and engagement based on collaboration and mutual responsibility. The process of literary production Hoccleve outlines supports a reading of patronage that is not exclusively financially-based; rather, it is flexible, less hierarchical, and demands more from the patron than Hoccleve’s previous work—and indeed the work of most medieval authors—would suggest. In order to understand Hoccleve’s attempts to redefine his relationship to the system of literary sponsorship, however, we must be willing to take the structure of the Series seriously, following the signposts of creative collaboration Hoccleve weaves throughout the texts rather than their misleading, seemingly random nature. In addition to offering an alternate reading of Hoccleve’s work in the Series , this article suggests new ways of thinking about literary patronage in the Middle Ages more generally.
Circuits of Power: A Model for Rereading Poet-Patron Relations in Late-Medieval Defences of Women
Authors: Swift Helen
Published: December 2013

This essay applies a theoretical model drawn from twentieth-century organization studies to late-medieval texts written in defence of women, in order to refresh critical appreciation of the dynamics of poet-patron relations at play in this corpus, the interest of whose patronage situations has been underestimated. By reading three sample poems (in both textual and paratextual dimensions) as “circuits of power,” we will be able to unpick the manoeuvrings of the agents contributing to a given book’s production and reception; to re-assess the framework of power relations in patronage as fulfilling a productive rather than a regulatory role; and to question more fully what constitutes authority and identity, in its various and multi-faceted forms in premodern literary practice.
Erich Auerbach’s Earthly (Counter-)Philology
Authors: Porter James I.
Published: December 2013

Erich Auerbach held an expansive notion of what philology is and does. Taking literature as his starting point (often under the rubric of a concrete Ansatzpunkt , be this a phrase, an isolated feature of style, or a self-contained logical sequence), Auerbach restlessly sought to establish nothing less than an intellectual—or better yet, spiritual (he often calls it “inner”)—history of the Western European mind as it lunged into contemporary modernity. Literary forms were for Auerbach a gateway to forms of thought, feeling, and expression. Philology was the method best suited to grasping these. The result was a philology of the world ( Weltphilologie )—a politically, ideologically, and ethically engaged counter-philology that is as relevant today as it was in his own lifetime.
Introduction: Rethinking the Boundaries of Patronage
Authors: McGrady Deborah
Published: December 2013

Patronage regularly figures as the dominant paradigm in discussions of late-medieval literary production and circulation. Common practice dictates that behind every text, a patron-figure looms, typically identified as a member of nobility for whom the text was composed. Many medieval texts promote this view by spotlighting extratextual relations in dedication materials or by folding into the narrative itself the story of its inception. Regardless of the source of these narratives, scholarship places under the patronage umbrella a large spectrum of exchanges said to have fostered the literary enterprise while excluding other partnerships that are seen to destabilize the system. Thus, transactions as distinctive as Guillaume de Machaut’s Confort d’amy , presented as an unsolicited text intended to comfort the imprisoned Charles of Navarre; Jean Froissart’s fictive account of literary collaboration with a prince in the Prison amoureuse ; Christine de Pizan’s biography of Charles V, identified in the prologue as a commission ordered by the duke of Burgundy; and Geoffrey Chaucer’s dedication of Troilus and Criseyde to fellow poet John Gower and the lawyer Ralph Strode are presented as forms of patronage with little thought to the implications of the relational variations. At the same time, a number of transactions are sidelined in patronage studies because they seem to transgress the boundaries of expected exchange, even though they reproduce many of the same dynamics; hence, regifting, seizure of books, multi-copy dissemination of a single work, and purchase of a book from a third party regularly fail to figure into analysis. To date, scholars have avoided interrogating these arbitrary boundaries that define patronage studies. Critical avoidance of the heterogeneity of literary support networks is further exacerbated by a generalized failure to interrogate the impact of time, place, or cultural practices on sponsorship, not to mention possible manipulations of this exchange based on political, economic or personal concerns.
Stolen Scriptures: The Bible Historiale and the Hundred Years’ War
Authors: Patterson Jeanette
Published: December 2013

This article explores the politics of owning, or taking ownership, of Bible historiale manuscripts during the Hundred Years’ War. As theft and capture disrupted predictable patterns of patronage and exchange, new owners’ additions, erasures, and alterations can shed new light on ways in which the French Bible conditioned readers’ experience of the war on both sides. Such marginal acts of appropriation also force us to revise traditional notions of patronage to account for the sometimes violent refashioning of books to match the image and needs of unintended owners.
To Console and Control: Philippe de Mézières’s Epistre Lamentable
Authors: Tarnowski Andrea
Published: December 2013

Written in the wake of the devastating Christian defeat at Nicopolis, the Epistre lamentable consistently draws on individual examples to target universal reform. Mézières establishes an intimate connection to Duke Philip of Burgundy as a fellow sufferer in Christ, attentuating the distance of hierarchical position. Once the duke is consoled by means of proven analogies—Mézières, Burgundy, and indeed all Christians are bound by wounds that replicate those of the Crucifixion—the author can go further. He becomes the duke’s counselor, or physician, and seeks to address how the Christians were routed at Nicopolis despite the justice of their crusade. Mézières dismantles the standard, self-interested bases of authorpatron address by targeting a larger and higher purpose to which to recruit Philip. He points the way to Christian recovery through his long-cherished project of a perfect knighthood, the Order of the Passion of Jesus Christ.
Sara Shilo’s No Gnomes Will Appear : A Linguistic Analysis
Authors: Henshke Yehudit
Published: December 2013

This article examines the unique, nonstandard features of the Hebrew language of Sara Shilo’s award-winning book No Gnomes Will Appear (2005). Raising the question of whether this language is simply nonstandard Hebrew, or whether its “faults” have an identifiable background, it identifies the origins of many of its features in the spoken Judeo-Arabic that underlies the Hebrew of the book’s protagonists. Subjecting the colorful language of the book’s characters to a linguistic analysis, it notes and exemplifies the influence of North African Judeo-Arabic on semantic, lexical, morphological, and syntactic phenomena in what is defined here as the “language of the periphery.”
Hasidic Myth on the Death of Moses and its Metamorphosis
Authors: Wineman Aryeh
Published: December 2013

Hasidic homilies contain a myth relating to Moses’ request to live on to enter into the land of Israel as motivated by his intent to perform there actions that would unify and redeem all the worlds and permanently annul the exile. His request was denied for various reasons that all go beyond the biblical account. In what is probably the myth’s earliest rendition as found in Elimelekh’s Delight , Moses had to die so that his soul might then return to the world in the form of the righteous of all the generations who study the Torah with an unblemished motivation—a description that implicitly identifies them with Hasidism’s self-image. This rendition, reflecting a basic mythic thrust that involves a paradoxical relationship between death and renewed life, also provided the young, insecure Hasidic movement with a mythic identity as a manifestation of Moses’ soul. Later, the myth underwent a startling metamorphosis. Not only is there no mention of Moses’ continued presence, but his request is denied due to his own misunderstanding of the nature of exile and the redemptive path. This metamorphosis may indicate that with Hasidism’s continued growth, it no longer felt the need for a mythic identification with Moses and could even extol the righteous by contrasting their path with Moses’ failed messianic aspirations and strategies.
Understanding the Locative Alternation in Swarm-Drip Verbs: Evidence from Hebrew
Authors: Halevy Rivka
Published: December 2013

This paper is concerned with the locative alternation of swarm-drip verbs in Hebrew. It focuses on the predicate-argument relationship in the alternating construction with the location as subject, for example, הגן שורץ דבורים (the garden swarms with bees [lit. swarms bees]). This type of locative alternation has not received much attention in Semitic linguistics. In the pertinent literature, largely based on English, there is an effort to cope with the problem of what licenses the subject coding of the location and what is the syntactic position of the demoted actor-subject. Hebrew, unlike many Indo-European languages, realizes the demoted subject (e.g., “bees”) in direct object position ( Tamyiz in Arabic). Based on the notion of viewpoint as an event-structuring concept, it is claimed that the realization of the construction in Hebrew corresponds directly to the vantage point from which the event is presented. Hebrew can thus contribute cross-linguistically to a better understanding of the construction at hand.
Grammatical Gender in the Early Modern Hasidic Hebrew Tale
Authors: Kahn Lily
Published: December 2013

This paper offers the first analysis of grammatical gender in nineteenth and early twentieth century Hasidic Hebrew hagiographic tales. Hasidic Hebrew grammatical gender is noteworthy because it exhibits conspicuous differences from that of other historical forms of Hebrew, including non-standard noun and pronoun gender as well as widespread noun-adjective and subject-verb gender discord. While these phenomena initially appear highly erratic, examination suggests that in most cases the seemingly inconsistent usages are actually governed by relatively regular patterns, many of them phonetic. These trends underscore the need to re-evaluate Hasidic Hebrew as an independent linguistic system with its own grammatical conventions.
The Indelible Stamp of Reality on the Subject: David Grossman’s To the End of the Land
Authors: Shiffman Smadar
Published: December 2013

To the End of the Land is the first novel Grossman wrote in which the dominant consciousness is that of adults. As adults, especially as parents, the story we tell ourselves about ourselves is no longer an open-ended, multifarious story which can shield our fragile ego against a hostile and conformist world, it has turned into a story which has assimilated this outside world. Grossman’s protagonists have always struggled in an attempt to block the outside world’s invasion into their unique individual inner self. In To the End of the Land , the struggle is revealed as a hopeless one: this novel’s protagonists are what others perceive them as. When Grossman’s protagonists turn into parents, they are forced to send their child, this embodiment of their most fragile inner self, to the world outside. As a result of sending the apple of one’s eye out into the world, one is exposed to being defined or redefined by this world—one loses himself (or herself) in this outside world. Ora is “a soldier’s mother” because she sent Offer to the army. Avram is “a soldier’s father” although he did his very best to avoid being a father and acknowledging his son. Not only are we defined by the outside world, we are the outside. The subject is not only the inner uniqueness of the individual, but its endless shaping by the outside world as well. If you strip the consciousness of its constant struggle with itself, with others, and with the “situation”, you strip it of what it is. Not only is the private political, but the political is the most private.
A New Methodology for Ascertaining the Semantic Potential of Biblical Hebrew Prepositions
Authors: Lyle Kristopher A.
Published: December 2013

Recently, there has been a mounting realization that lexical semantic analysis of Biblical Hebrew has, on the whole, both historically and characteristically lacked an explicit methodological framework that might facilitate the assessment of a lexeme’s range of meaning. This necessarily has resulted in lexica that are underpinned by implicit, intuitive-driven analyses. In light of this lacuna, the present article proposes a methodology for ascertaining the semantic potential of a particular Biblical Hebrew word class, which happens to showcase the versatility of meaning: prepositions. The aim of the proposal is not to provide a better method for the presentation of semantic content (i.e., lexicography), but rather, and more fundamentally, to explore the ways in which this content might more systematically be derived (i.e., lexicology). The proposal is anchored primarily in the cognitive linguistic enterprise and secondarily, in the theory of grammaticalization. Employing insights from the two fields, the author suggests that a replicable and rigorous assessment of a preposition’s semantic potential might be offered. In particular, such assessment would afford a well-endowed identification and explanation of the various elements comprising a target lexeme’s semantic network—both its constituent parts and the composite structure as a whole. Specifically, this would be accomplished through the provision of criteria and parameters aimed at determining sense-distinction, -primacy, and -contingency as well as the employment of alternate modes of network-viewing that allow, among other things, the dynamic nature of meaning to surface.
Letters of Charity from Yemen
Authors: Gaimani Aharon
Published: December 2013

The itinerant poor were forced to improve their situation by appealing to various communities. Wherever they arrived, they would approach the synagogue or teacher’s room, and community members made an effort to care for them. In this article, I present charity letters from different communities in Yemen that the itinerant poor took with them, and I discuss the structure of the letters and their content as well as issues of formulation and language reflected by the letters. A study of the charity letters shows that the writer used rhetorical means to convince the readers and listeners to contribute to the person presenting the letter. At the beginning of the letter, the writer uses famous figures known for offering charity as well as biblical verses and rabbinic sayings about giving charity. In the ensuing comes the life story of the petitioner for charity, and at the end of the letter, the writer specifies the reward for the giver of charity, which is another means of persuasion.
Two Philological Notes on Haggai 2:15–19
Authors: Rogland Max
Published: December 2013

The Masoretic Text of Hag 2:15–19 is one of the most philologically challenging passages in the Hebrew Bible. As such, it has been subjected to frequent emendation (see the Biblia Hebraica Quinta). The present article focuses on two particular problems in this pericope: first, the meaning of Hag 2:16 along with the inter-clausal relations in Hag 2:15–17, and second, the function of in Hag 2:19. In both instances, it is argued that the Masoretic Text can be interpreted without resorting to emendation.
Grossman After 2000: An Ambivalent Complaint in Nine Parts
Authors: Hasak-Lowy Todd
Published: December 2013

This unconventional essay attempts to translate the author’s overall negative opinion of David Grossman’s 2008 novel, To the End of the Land , into larger claims about Israeli society and culture since 2000, as well as Grossman’s place within it. The author’s negative opinion of the novel stems from what he views as its tediousness and flawed narrative structure. Moreover, the author argues that though To the End of the Land represents a breakthrough for Grossman in some senses, that overall Grossman here continues recycling themes and motifs that have been common in his work for almost two decades. However, changes in the Israeli context post-2000—among them a new consensus regarding the inescapable nature of Israeli suffering—find Grossman employing these themes and motifs to different effect. The author claims that these elements in this novel give voice to Grossman’s preoccupation with Israeli suffering, thus making it an unusually representative text in post-2000 Israel.
Clay in the Potter’s Hand: The Song of Songs and the Case of Lea Goldberg
Authors: Shacham Chaya
Published: December 2013

Besides being the most “European” poet of her generation, Lea Goldberg was also greatly attached to Hebrew cultural tradition and especially to certain biblical books like Genesis, Song of Songs, and Ecclesiastes. This article studies the modes in which Goldberg artistically uses biblical materials from Song of Songs in her poetry. It transpires that these materials became in her writing a means of concealing as well as exposing and hinting at personal feelings and matters of the heart related to the speaker. The article examines the techniques by which these goals were achieved and shows how Goldberg was mastering the biblical materials rather than being carried away by them.