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Political Science News And Views, Spring 2009, Department Of Politics And Government

Department of Politics and Government News and Views

Newsletter of the Department of Politics and Government at Illinois State University

Inflammatory Biomarkers And Subclinical Atherosclerosis In African-American Women With Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Sle), Edith M. Williams, Carlos J. Crespo, Joan Dorn

Community Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Women with lupus are at increased risk for developing cardiovascular disease (CVD). Previous studies of atherosclerosis in SLE have not been representative of the minority groups most affected by lupus and its complications. Therefore, a study of 41 lupus cases and 83 controls was conducted to investigate the relationship between carotid atherosclerosis and inflammation in African-American women. Participation consisted of a questionnaire, physical examination, fasting blood draw, and ultrasound of the carotid arteries. There were observed differences between cases and controls with regard to carotid intima media thickness (IMT) and traditional cardiovascular risk factors, although few reached statistical significance. Tumor …

Raps Sheet, April 2009, Retirement Association Of Portland State

RAPS Sheet: Monthly Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Research Choice And Finance In University Bioscience, David E. Ervin, Steven T. Buccola, Hui Yang

Economics Faculty Publications and Presentations

Academic bioscience's rising importance for downstream technology and growing private sector relationships have evoked substantial policy attention. We contribute to the scrutiny by asking how university bioscientists design and finance their research, with particular attention to the mutuality of research portfolio choice and funding success. The analysis requires consideration of other major influences on academic science, including scientific norms, human capital, and institutional environment. Drawing on a national survey of university bioscientists, we find that public financial support encourages more basic investigation and private support encourages more applied investigation. Yet downstream research is only moderately more excludable than upstream. Once …

The Impact Of Size On The Growth And Development Of A Church, Gary L. Mcintosh

Journal of the American Society for Church Growth

Churches operate differently depending on the size of the congregation. "Right sizing" the various ministries and processes of communicating, welcoming, training, involving, and a host of other activities is crucial for smooth operation, as well as increased growth of a church. As a church grows, it connot simply employ business as usual practices. Larger churches are not simply bigger versions of smaller churches. In reality, they are an entirely different structure that requires different operational procedures.

Introduction Winter 2009, Alan Mcmahan

Journal of the American Society for Church Growth

With this issue, I have assumed the General Editorship of the Journal under the new and vigorous sponsorship of the School of Intercultural Studies at Biola University. In the spirit of the Journal’s founding, the School of Intercultural Studies, now celebrating its 25th anniversary, has long been in the business of preparing men and women to cross the barriers that prevent people from hearing the good news of the gospel of Christ. Biola’s commitment to this task insures the continuation of the Journal into the future, a future that will bring many new opportunities for expansion and impact. This edition …

“But Who Can I Talk To?” Psychological Services For The Parents And Children Of Apdk, Jessica Steinke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This is a study examining the adequacy of the psychological services and support offered by the Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya, APDK, to the children in its care and the families who utilize the centre. First and foremost this study examined the psychological effect physical disabilities have on children and their families to determine what services are necessary for these individuals. The availability of mental health services was then analyzed in the context of the need for them as expressed by children at APDK and parents of disabled children. It was discovered that very few services are available …

The Role And Potential Of Businesswomen In Morocco’S Civil Society, Teresa Mbagaya

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The expansion of women in the private sector not only affects the economic sphere, but further influences women’s participation in social and political decision-making. In aiming to strengthen the roles of women in the economy, professional organizations hope to equip women with the skills necessary to succeed as leaders in the businesses sector. The capacities of these organizations vary from region and often employ different strategies to achieve their missions. What links them, however, is the objective to enhance the capabilities of women as heads of households, students, professionals and leaders. This focus on social and economic development takes the …

Grita. Erga-Se : Colonial Cycles Of Violence In Domestic Labour In Salvador, Bahia, Jessica Nina Pine

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research analyses the multiple forms of violence that Afro-Brasilian domestic workers in Salvador, Bahia face in their profession, and how the origin of this aggression is rooted in slavery, a colonial tool of oppression. This study also serves to highlight how domestic workers are empowering themselves to change this unjust situation. In order to research this dynamic, I worked with Sindoméstico, a domestic workers union in Salvador.

Through my research, I concluded that the disturbing mentalities of superiority and the false hierarchical binaries that came forth from slavery still exist in modern-day Salvador in the relationship between employer and …

Die Taal Is Gans Die Volk? Building A Common Afrikaans-Language Identity And Community In Post-Apartheid South Africa, Susan Demartino

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The following paper examines some of the ways in which Afrikaans-speakers have begun to renegotiate Afrikaans-speaking identity and community in reaction to a perceived decline in Afrikaans in post-apartheid democratic South Africa. It also examines the values of re-negotiating Afrikaans for a multilingual South Africa.

The data was obtained through interviews with four Afrikaans-speaking South Africans who connect with the language both as a mother-tongue speaker and as players in renegotiating its role through empowerment efforts, blogging, and creating positive language policy and programming.

I have concluded that the renegotiation of Afrikaans involves depoliticizing and consciously separating Afrikaans from ideologies …

Breaking The Silence: Professionals Of Hera Speak Out About Lesbian Battering, Janelle Thompson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In a heterosexist world, the unique needs of homosexuals are often ignored. Lesbians in the area of intimate partner violence (IPV) are no different. Most organizations that work with IPV only provide services for heterosexual women. However, lesbian battering occurs at almost the same rate as in heterosexual relationships. Therefore, this study seeks to assess if service providers and the organizations that work with domestic abuse in the Netherlands are altering their structure (i.e. health programs, services, attitude) to incorporate lesbian battering and if those alterations carry over in practice to the shelters. Through personal interviews and a questionnaire this …

Gendered Perspectives On Holland’S Prison Programs: Statistics And Practices, Amanda Pisetzner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study is the capstone project of an exploratory study of prison programming in Holland examining gender equity or inequity in opportunity of available programs. It also serves to assess the efficacy of BONJO, Holland’s largest prison-programming oversight and networking group sponsoring my work. Through over twenty interviews with independent prison-related organizations, information was gathered on perceived problems of the prison system. Also documented were differences in need of male and female inmates, and programming opportunities for men and women. This data was set in contrast to secondary data extrapolated from studies sponsored by the Dutch Ministry of Justice.

It …

The Realities And Effectiveness Of Ecotourism Operations On Moreton Island, Yoshihiko Kubota

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ecotourism is the fastest growing sector of the tourism industry, but there has been a lack of studies assessing the tour operators’ views on the environment of the area of their operation, and of the effectiveness of their interpretation methods. This study focuses on Moreton Island for its relatively undisturbed environment and restricted accessibility.. Interviews with a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employee, representative of a local conservation group, and multiple tour operators were conducted to assess the knowledge of tour operators on the environmental issues of Moreton Island, while pre-visit and post-visit surveys were conducted with Moreton Island visitors …

The Transition Movement In Australia: An Analysis Of The Progress, Challenges, And Future Of Transition Initiatives, Mia Goldwasser

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The threats of climate change and peak oil have roots in our society’s dependence on the availability of cheap fossil fuels for its function and design. In order to both decrease greenhouse gas emissions and significantly lower the demand on fossil fuels, our settlements –built when oil was cheap and abundant- must ‘relocalize’, or develop the systems which will enable the local production of food, energy, materials, employment, and goods. The Transition Movement has developed as a grassroots, community-based response to these challenges, grounded in the belief that a higher quality of life has the opportunity to emerge from a …

Graffiti En Managua: Una Expresión Democrática De La Juventud Nicaragüense, Katie Laroque

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Semiotics, or the philosophical study of signs and symbols, makes us rethink the familiar and the things we take for granted. If someone walks to work everyday on the same street, after time he will probably stop thinking about the graffiti on the corner. Graffiti is probably something that most of us take for granted, or hardly see anymore, but I argue that its role in society must be rethought. What does graffiti on the wall represent? It is a manifestation of the ideas and beliefs of the artist, as well as a reflection of his artistic talent. When several …

‘They Have To Know That They Are Moroccan’: A Sending Country’S Perspective On The Second Generation Of Emigrants Abroad, Olivia Paquette

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In this project, I set out to understand the relations that Morocco has with its second-generation population abroad, the children of emigrants from Morocco who were born and are living in a foreign nation. As citizens of Morocco and as members of Moroccan families, who nonetheless have lived their lives in another country and may perhaps identify themselves in many ways other than Moroccan, I wondered what role these individuals had in the eyes of the Moroccan state and in the eyes of their relatives who live in Morocco. My questions extended to the very categorization of this group that …

Globalization’S Impact On Identity Through Billboard Advertisements, Sarah Hogan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

When one walks down the main streets of Tunis it is clear that the faces represented in billboards do not match the faces of those walking along the streets. Why is this? Are the ads representative of the layering of civilizations that Tunisia has undergone? Are the ads from another source, such as the French, and just implementing their system on top of Tunisians expecting it to be successful? Moreover, what are the implications of these advertisements on the Tunisian identity? W.E.B. DuBois discusses the phenomenon of a “double consciousness” that has developed in African-Americans due to the portrayal of …

Ceeb Ak Jën: Deconstructing Senegal’S National Plate In Search Of Cultural Values, Megan Duffy

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ceebu jën, Senegal’s national plate of rice and fish, is an integral part of diet among the Senegalese despite differences in religious, ethnic, and geographic identity. Due to the plate’s democratic nature in Senegalese culture this study deconstructs the significance of the plate in relation to Senegalese values placed tradition, personal pride, community, and national identity. This study argues that ceebu jën’s widespread presence and cultural reflexivity finds its source in the universal accessibility of the meal.

Behind Your Beach Vacation: A Review And Evaluation Of Eias As A Legal Framework To Regulate The Environmental Impacts Of Tourism In Zanzibar, Mahima Sukhdev, Ayelet Singer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and related legislation in Zanzibar were examined, and their implementation by hotels in the coastal villages of Nungwi, Kiwengwa and Uroa were studied. Interviews were conducted with relevant government agencies and legal documents were examined in order to understand the current framework within which hotels operate. Hotels in the study area both with and without EIAs were questioned about their environmental and social impacts. The environmental management plans of those hotels with EIAs were considered in light of their current practices in order to gage the effectiveness of the EIA process in regulating the environmental impacts …

Alienation In Acholiland: War, Privatization, And Land Displacement In Northern Uganda, Nicole Kligerman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper presents the various dynamics, causes, and consequences of land conflicts in Acholiland. In order to comprehensively address these complex issues, this paper analyzes land conflict in connection to the Northern Uganda war, explaining the military strategies that resulted in widespread displacement and alienation from the land. This paper further explores changing Acholi cosmology and customary land law in connection to land alienation. Additionally, I examine local land conflicts as well as three privatization and “development” plans in relationship to preexisting land displacement issues. This paper highlights the opinions of my fieldwork participants regarding the importance of land to …

Rompiendo El Espejo Invertido: La Búsqueda Para Autosuficiencia Y Una Vida Campesina Y Digna, Tara Brian

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

La vida campesina e indígena ha sido amenazada por siglos de explotación y marginalización. Ahora neoliberalismo, el último capitulo en la historia de dominio, está creando cada vez más pobreza, vulnerabilidad y dependencia en el campo. En el intento, las diversas culturas rurales están perdiendo su autosuficiencia, costumbres, sabiduría y relación con la naturaleza. Se enfrentan un dilema: tratar de entrar en el mundo “moderno” a costa de perder su cultura, o quedarse en el campo empobrecidos y olvidados. En este proyecto yo exploro como comunidades campesinas e indígenas están luchando para crear una tercera opción: un futuro en que …

Lessons From Cideci Las Casas : The Potential For Non-Directive Learning Spaces In The United States, Gideon Mausner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of my project was to observe the informal, non-directive and communal learning space of CIdeCI Las Casas in San Cristobal, Chiapas and consider its potential applications in the United States of America. The following paper presents the results of this project in five sections. In the first section I examine the meaning of modern education and its primary vessel, the school. In the second section I give a detailed background of CIdeCI: its history and purpose and its place within the cultural and political realities of Chiapas. In the third section I share my experiences and observations from …

Naši Narodi? Moji Identiteti: Four Youth Perspectives On National Identity In Post-Dayton Bosnia And Herzegovina, Jacob Seigel-Boettner

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

On December 14th, 1995, the Dayton Peace Accords stopped the bullets in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Dayton split BiH along ethno-national lines. The Dayton-established constitution recognized three national groups as the constituents of BiH: Bosniaks, Serbs, and Croats. Three presidents, three languages, three textbooks. Residents of BiH are often required to identify themselves as either one of the constituent identities or Other. Bosnian and Herzegovinian is not an option.

Unlike the pre-war generations, young people in BiH today do not have a unifying Yugoslav identity to bring them together. For many, there is no such thing as a collective “Bosnian” national …

Redrawing The Walls: Street Art In Belgrade, Emily Levitt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This research examines street art in Belgrade as a means of changing the political, social, and cultural atmosphere of Belgrade, Serbia. Street art is examined as a means of breaking down consumer/producer binaries, an alternative to dominant culture, as part of the contemporary city, and as a transformative use of and re-appropriation of imagery. The research data was collected through semi-structured interviews in the Spring of 2009. Students, artists, and former artists were interviewed in order to collect data. In addition, participant observation and visual analysis contributed to and gave context to the interview based data. Ultimately, it was discovered …

L’Identité Dans La Musique Occitane : La Conservation De L’Art Pour Exprimer La Culture = Identity In Occitan Music : Expressions Of Culture Through The Preservation Of Art, Christina Lambert

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This project focused on how identity is expressed and preserved through Occitan music, and what exactly that identity means to whom that identity belongs. The researcher studied and listened to many different bands and artists, all of who had unique styles and sounds. While conducting research on the history of Occitania and of its music, the researcher interviewed several musicians and others who worked with the Occitan culture. These interviews and research led to a greater understanding of Occitania, and of the people who are fighting to keep it alive. By attending traditional dances, concerts, and book readings, the researcher …

The Cost Of Progress: Failed Development And Community Response On Pulau Serangan, Julia Nakad

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Introduction - extract

No place on Bali illustrates the promise and heartbreak of development more clearly than the failed development project on Serangan Island, the location of a halted (if not completely aborted) development project in the 1990s that drastically changed the landscapes and livelihoods on the island in a relatively short span of time. Prior to the development project, most Serangan people made a living from fishing in the ocean surrounding the island, as well as from extracting coral and engaging in the turtle trade. These same people were promised jobs in the resorts that were to be built …

“For They Shall Inherit The Earth”: Seeking Solutions For Durban’S Street Children, Allison La Fave

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As a visiting white, American female, I could not help but be struck by Durban’s highly visible population of young African boys in the streets and on the beachfront. Although my experiences at a student-run homeless shelter and in the Housing Unit of Boston Legal Services have made me well aware of urban poverty and racial inequality, I was nonetheless shocked to see the extent to which young people bear the brunt of the problem in one of Africa’s most “developed” young democracies. Interested in what, if any, measures were being taken to curb the problem, I began to investigate …

Political Science Spring 2009, Dan Sabia

Political Science Newsletter Spring 2009

No abstract provided.

A Prototype Platform For Policy-Based Archive Replication, Micah Altman, Bryan Beecher, Jonathan Crabtree

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.

Op-Ed -- Pelikan's Antidisambiguation: The Kindle Is The 8-Track Tape Player Of The Ebook Age, Michael P. Pelikan

Against the Grain

No abstract provided.