title: Visualising state biographical narratives: A rhetorical analysis of Chinese and North Korean propaganda photographs

authors: Hellmann, Olli

abstract: Biographical narratives generate a continuous sense of political community across the state’s past, present and future, and provide the state with ontological security. Building on growing International Relations scholarship that highlights the power of visuals in shaping global politics, our article proposes visual rhetorical analysis as a tool to interrogate how governments employ images to tell their biographical narratives. The rhetorical approach transcends the methodological divide in the current ‘visual turn’ literature between the cognitive psychological and poststructuralist perspectives. We illustrate the analytical value of the rhetorical approach through an empirical study of how the totalitarian regimes of China and North Korea communicate their biographical narratives – the ‘rightful great power’ narrative and the ‘family state’ narrative, respectively – through propaganda imagery of their leaders. To this end, we develop a close semiotic reading of selected photographs of Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-un in different narrative settings.

text: Visualising state biographical narratives: A rhetorical analysis of Chinese and North Korean propaganda photographs Biographical narratives generate a continuous sense of political community across the state’s past, present and future, and provide the state with ontological security. Building on growing International Relations scholarship that highlights the power of visuals in shaping global politics, our article proposes visual rhetorical analysis as a tool to interrogate how governments employ images to tell their biographical narratives. The rhetorical approach transcends the methodological divide in the current ‘visual turn’ literature between the cognitive psychological and poststructuralist perspectives. We illustrate the analytical value of the rhetorical approach through an empirical study of how the totalitarian regimes of China and North Korea communicate their biographical narratives – the ‘rightful great power’ narrative and the ‘family state’ narrative, respectively – through propaganda imagery of their leaders. To this end, we develop a close semiotic reading of selected photographs of Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-un in different narrative settings.

year: 2023-10-28

title: Characterisation of Hydrocarbon Degrading Antarctic Pseudomonas species

authors: Rhodes, Phillippa

subjects: Antarctica

abstract: Hydrocarbon contamination of Antarctica poses a threat to the unique and fragile ecosystems of this continent. Bioremediation, utilising indigenous hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria, has been proposed as an environmentally friendly method for clean up of contaminated terrestrial sites in Antarctica. Design and implementation of a successful bioremediation process requires detailed information of the degradative bacteria present at the contaminated site(s). This study focused on toluene and naphthalene-degrading Pseudomonas species isolated from JP8 jet-fuel contaminated sites at Scott Base, Antarctica.
Isolates were assessed for their ability to grow on toluene and meta-toluate or naphthalene as a sole carbon source on solid and in liquid media at 6°C and 15°C. All the toluene degrading isolates could grow on 5 mM meta-toluate in liquid and on solid media at 6°C and 15°C. Toluene degrading isolates, with the exception of 8/43 and 8/51, were able to grow on solid media supplemented with toluene vapour but none could grow on toluene in liquid media. Naphthalene degrading isolates could grow on solid media, with naphthalene vapour as a carbon source, at 15°C but at 6°C two of the six isolates, 8/47 and 7/38, could not grow on solid media supplemented with naphthalene vapour. None of the toluene and naphthalene degrading isolate could grow on carbon-free solid or liquid media without the addition of a growth substrate. Presumptive plasmids were isolated from the following toluene degrading isolates, 8/46, 7/163, 7/167, 7/22, and the following naphthalene degrading isolates, 7/156, 7/38, ant5, ant9. Two toluene degrading isolates, 7/167 and 8/46, were studied in more depth. Both isolates grew in liquid media, with meta-toluate supplied as a sole carbon source, over a range of temperatures, 6°C, 1 DOC, 15°C, 2DoC, and 25°C. The optimum growth temperature for isolate 7/167 is between 20°C and 25°C and the optimum growth temperature for isolate 8/46 is 15°C. Isolates were able to sustain growth on meta-toluate at 6°C, 15°C, and 25°C. Isolate 7/167 could not sustain growth on meta-toluate at 30°C. Isolate 8/46 could sustain growth on meta-toluate at 30°C but could not grow at 35°C. All of the Antarctic isolates are psychrotrophic.
Degradative plasmids were isolated from 7/167 and 8/46. Restriction enzyme digest fragment patterns of plasmid DNA generated with Xhol showed isolates 7/167 and 8/46 contain different sized plasmids, 61 kb and 95 kb, respectively. Regions of toluene catabolic genes were amplified by the Polymerase Chain Reaction. Sequence data of the PCR products produced using xylB primers revealed isolate 7/167 to be 100% homologous to the xylB gene region amplified from the archetypal TOL plasmid, pWWO, isolated from the Northern Hemisphere, and 8/46 to be 92% homologous.
Assays of four enzymes, involved in toluene degradation, catechol 1,2-dioxygenase, catechol 2,3-dioxygenase, benzyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and benzaldehyde dehydrogenase, from isolates 7/167 and 8/46 showed catechol 2,3-dioxygenase, benzyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and -benzaldehyde dehydrogenase to be present and active. No activity was detected for catechol 1,2-dioxygenase, indicating the presence of a meta cleavage pathway of toluene degradation, typical of that found on TOL type plasmids, and not ortho cleavage of catechol typical of chromosomal gene expression.
Isolates 7/167 and 8/46 contain large plasmids, similar to Northern Hemisphere isolated TOL degradative plasmids, and cleave meta-toluate via the meta cleavage pathway. This degradative mechanism is analogous to the toluene degradative pathway encoded by the archetypal TOL plasmid, pWWO, in the mesophilic bacterium P. putida mt-2. These indigenous psychrotrophic toluene degrading Antarctic bacteria have the ability to degrade meta-toluate at temperatures typical of the Antarctic soil at Scott Base in the summer months. These toluene degrading Antarctic bacteria have the potential to be used to develop a bioremediation programme to successfully clean up JP8 jet fuel contaminated soil at Scott Base, Antarctica.

text: Characterisation of Hydrocarbon Degrading Antarctic Pseudomonas species Hydrocarbon contamination of Antarctica poses a threat to the unique and fragile ecosystems of this continent. Bioremediation, utilising indigenous hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria, has been proposed as an environmentally friendly method for clean up of contaminated terrestrial sites in Antarctica. Design and implementation of a successful bioremediation process requires detailed information of the degradative bacteria present at the contaminated site(s). This study focused on toluene and naphthalene-degrading Pseudomonas species isolated from JP8 jet-fuel contaminated sites at Scott Base, Antarctica.
Isolates were assessed for their ability to grow on toluene and meta-toluate or naphthalene as a sole carbon source on solid and in liquid media at 6°C and 15°C. All the toluene degrading isolates could grow on 5 mM meta-toluate in liquid and on solid media at 6°C and 15°C. Toluene degrading isolates, with the exception of 8/43 and 8/51, were able to grow on solid media supplemented with toluene vapour but none could grow on toluene in liquid media. Naphthalene degrading isolates could grow on solid media, with naphthalene vapour as a carbon source, at 15°C but at 6°C two of the six isolates, 8/47 and 7/38, could not grow on solid media supplemented with naphthalene vapour. None of the toluene and naphthalene degrading isolate could grow on carbon-free solid or liquid media without the addition of a growth substrate. Presumptive plasmids were isolated from the following toluene degrading isolates, 8/46, 7/163, 7/167, 7/22, and the following naphthalene degrading isolates, 7/156, 7/38, ant5, ant9. Two toluene degrading isolates, 7/167 and 8/46, were studied in more depth. Both isolates grew in liquid media, with meta-toluate supplied as a sole carbon source, over a range of temperatures, 6°C, 1 DOC, 15°C, 2DoC, and 25°C. The optimum growth temperature for isolate 7/167 is between 20°C and 25°C and the optimum growth temperature for isolate 8/46 is 15°C. Isolates were able to sustain growth on meta-toluate at 6°C, 15°C, and 25°C. Isolate 7/167 could not sustain growth on meta-toluate at 30°C. Isolate 8/46 could sustain growth on meta-toluate at 30°C but could not grow at 35°C. All of the Antarctic isolates are psychrotrophic.
Degradative plasmids were isolated from 7/167 and 8/46. Restriction enzyme digest fragment patterns of plasmid DNA generated with Xhol showed isolates 7/167 and 8/46 contain different sized plasmids, 61 kb and 95 kb, respectively. Regions of toluene catabolic genes were amplified by the Polymerase Chain Reaction. Sequence data of the PCR products produced using xylB primers revealed isolate 7/167 to be 100% homologous to the xylB gene region amplified from the archetypal TOL plasmid, pWWO, isolated from the Northern Hemisphere, and 8/46 to be 92% homologous.
Assays of four enzymes, involved in toluene degradation, catechol 1,2-dioxygenase, catechol 2,3-dioxygenase, benzyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and benzaldehyde dehydrogenase, from isolates 7/167 and 8/46 showed catechol 2,3-dioxygenase, benzyl alcohol dehydrogenase, and -benzaldehyde dehydrogenase to be present and active. No activity was detected for catechol 1,2-dioxygenase, indicating the presence of a meta cleavage pathway of toluene degradation, typical of that found on TOL type plasmids, and not ortho cleavage of catechol typical of chromosomal gene expression.
Isolates 7/167 and 8/46 contain large plasmids, similar to Northern Hemisphere isolated TOL degradative plasmids, and cleave meta-toluate via the meta cleavage pathway. This degradative mechanism is analogous to the toluene degradative pathway encoded by the archetypal TOL plasmid, pWWO, in the mesophilic bacterium P. putida mt-2. These indigenous psychrotrophic toluene degrading Antarctic bacteria have the ability to degrade meta-toluate at temperatures typical of the Antarctic soil at Scott Base in the summer months. These toluene degrading Antarctic bacteria have the potential to be used to develop a bioremediation programme to successfully clean up JP8 jet fuel contaminated soil at Scott Base, Antarctica.

year: 1999

title: Challenges Faced – Implications for Policy: The Everyday Lives of Eastern European Women in New Zealand

authors: Ember, Adrienna

subjects: everyday life

abstract: This study explored the everyday lives, aspirations, and coping strategies of seven Eastern European immigrant women in New Zealand who came from Bulgaria, the former Eastern Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and Slovakia. The answers to the research questions aimed to contribute to the deconstruction of the invisibility and marginalisation of these women in New Zealand.
Guided by the philosophies of Kaupapa Māori Research; the theory of Human Wellbeing; and the theory of Positive Psychology, and using the methods of narrative inquiry, three interviews were conducted with each participant. The focus of the first interviews was to learn about the everyday lives of research participants in their countries of origin. The second interview explored the reasons of relocation to New Zealand, the settlement process, and how women re-established their lives in their new locations. In the final interviews women talked about their current everyday lives and their plans for the future.
Interviews were recorded and summarised in interview summary reports which research participants modified in collaboration with the researcher until a final version was achieved. In addition, women participated in two focus group sessions. The first session was devoted to establish connections among the participants and allow themes to emerge from their conversations. The second group session aimed to explore areas women struggled with in their lives the most: relationships and employment opportunities.
The study yielded contributions to the research topic, to the acculturation literature, and to the design of research with migrants. Firstly, it revealed both negative and positive aspects of the participants’ everyday lives and highlighted some under-researched cultural differences from the mainstream population.
Women highlighted as an important cultural difference their strong preference for straightforward communication which was often experienced as offensive and blatant by local New Zealanders. Research participants critiqued the necessity of networking to obtain jobs in New Zealand which is a clear obstacle for a newly arrived migrant.
This study also highlighted how the acculturation process is more individual and complex than conventional models have sought to explain. While traditional acculturation literature suggests that migrants go through some common patterns during their settlement that ideally leads to their assimilation to the host culture, in this research not all migrant women intended to assimilate. Indeed, those with a stronger wish to become part of the host culture reported more disappointments than those who embraced their cultural otherness as a positive aspect and did not mind reminding different from the dominant Pakeha culture.
Finally, for migrant studies a less common research design was applied by using the Kaupapa Māori framework. This philosophy proposes a research process that empowers immigrants to voice their needs and strengthen them as agents of their lives beyond the research process. While two strength based theories were used for data interpretation (the 3-D model of the Human Wellbeing Theory and the PERMA model of Positive Psychology), the data analysis revealed that both models showed some limitations by failing to incorporate the dimension of spiritual and physical wellbeing within their domains.

text: Challenges Faced – Implications for Policy: The Everyday Lives of Eastern European Women in New Zealand This study explored the everyday lives, aspirations, and coping strategies of seven Eastern European immigrant women in New Zealand who came from Bulgaria, the former Eastern Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, and Slovakia. The answers to the research questions aimed to contribute to the deconstruction of the invisibility and marginalisation of these women in New Zealand.
Guided by the philosophies of Kaupapa Māori Research; the theory of Human Wellbeing; and the theory of Positive Psychology, and using the methods of narrative inquiry, three interviews were conducted with each participant. The focus of the first interviews was to learn about the everyday lives of research participants in their countries of origin. The second interview explored the reasons of relocation to New Zealand, the settlement process, and how women re-established their lives in their new locations. In the final interviews women talked about their current everyday lives and their plans for the future.
Interviews were recorded and summarised in interview summary reports which research participants modified in collaboration with the researcher until a final version was achieved. In addition, women participated in two focus group sessions. The first session was devoted to establish connections among the participants and allow themes to emerge from their conversations. The second group session aimed to explore areas women struggled with in their lives the most: relationships and employment opportunities.
The study yielded contributions to the research topic, to the acculturation literature, and to the design of research with migrants. Firstly, it revealed both negative and positive aspects of the participants’ everyday lives and highlighted some under-researched cultural differences from the mainstream population.
Women highlighted as an important cultural difference their strong preference for straightforward communication which was often experienced as offensive and blatant by local New Zealanders. Research participants critiqued the necessity of networking to obtain jobs in New Zealand which is a clear obstacle for a newly arrived migrant.
This study also highlighted how the acculturation process is more individual and complex than conventional models have sought to explain. While traditional acculturation literature suggests that migrants go through some common patterns during their settlement that ideally leads to their assimilation to the host culture, in this research not all migrant women intended to assimilate. Indeed, those with a stronger wish to become part of the host culture reported more disappointments than those who embraced their cultural otherness as a positive aspect and did not mind reminding different from the dominant Pakeha culture.
Finally, for migrant studies a less common research design was applied by using the Kaupapa Māori framework. This philosophy proposes a research process that empowers immigrants to voice their needs and strengthen them as agents of their lives beyond the research process. While two strength based theories were used for data interpretation (the 3-D model of the Human Wellbeing Theory and the PERMA model of Positive Psychology), the data analysis revealed that both models showed some limitations by failing to incorporate the dimension of spiritual and physical wellbeing within their domains.

year: 2016