Lessons From an NIH Career: Both/And Thinking to Navigate an Uncertain Future.

We and our chemistry students face an exciting and uncertain future. To meet this future, what does it require of us, especially those who teach introductory courses? One possible answer is to select more interesting topics around which to organize student learning, especially in first-year chemistry courses. Almost any topic will do; a starter set could include energy, water, public health, and food, topics that fall under the larger umbrella of sustainability and global stewardship. A second answer is to develop more robust learning goals for our students, especially those relating to the world around us. For example, we and our students need the ability to think across time and space in order to gain multiple points of view. We need to connect the dots both globally and locally, tracing the pathways of substances from cradle to grave. Although our students don't really need superpowers, perhaps enhanced powers of the imagination could help them better connect chemistry to the world in which they live. The ultimate goal is to better prepare them for an exciting and uncertain future.

Survivors of single ventricle heart disease must cope with the physical, neurodevelopmental, and psychosocial sequelae of their cardiac disease, which may also affect academic achievement and social relationships. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine the experiences of school and social relationships in adolescents with single ventricle heart disease. A descriptive phenomenological methodology was employed, utilising semi-structured interviews. Demographic and clinical characteristics were obtained via chart review. Fourteen adolescents (aged 14 to 19 years) with single ventricle heart disease participated. Interviews ranged from 25 to 80 minutes in duration. Four themes emerged from the interviews, including "Don't assume": Pervasive ableism; "The elephant in the room": Uncertain future; "Everyone finds something to pick on": Bullying at school; "They know what I have been through": Social support. The overall essence generated from the data was "optimism despite profound uncertainty." Adolescents with single ventricle heart disease identified physical limitations and school challenges in the face of an uncertain health-related future. Despite physical and psychosocial limitations, most remained optimistic for the future and found activities that were congruent with their abilities. These experiences reflect "optimism despite profound uncertainty."

The sisyphus factor or a learning approach to the future

Uncertain and transformative futures are faced because of accelerated impacts of climate change and other global drivers. Whilst some social-ecological transformations will likely be forced upon society, proactive and deliberate transformations towards more sustainable futures are possible. As such, futures-thinking and “futures methods” that can be used to anticipate and proactively engage with uncertain futures and transformative change will be increasingly essential in adaptive governance. Futures methods provide strategies and tools to explore, identify, and navigate choices when anticipating and responding to socio-political and environmental change. The chapter contributes to discussions regarding how futures-thinking relates to adaptive governance by exploring how futures methods support adaptive and transformative capacities. We propose that thinking critically, systematically, and strategically about the future is vital for adaptive governance scholarship and practice. We conclude by arguing for an expanded approach to adaptive governance, capable of confronting long-term perspectives of future uncertainty and transformative change.

Broadband in the Burbs: NBN Infrastructure, Spectrum Politics and the Digital Home

Quality of life in prostate cancer survivorship is becoming increasingly important, with mental and social wellbeing recognised as key components. However, limited global evaluation of psychosocial challenges experienced after treatment exists. Therefore, we aimed to explore the lived experiences of men who underwent radical treatment, and its psychosocial impact. This qualitative study was conducted using 19 men who had undergone radical treatment (prostatectomy or radiotherapy) for their cancer. Semi-structured interviews were conducted exploring lived experiences of men after treatment. A Structured thematic analysis of collected data was undertaken, with an inductive co-construction of themes through the lens of the biopsychosocial model. Themes generated were considered within a psychological, social, and physical wellbeing framework. An initial knowledge gap meant mental wellbeing was strongly impacted initially leading to a 'Diagnostic Blow and the Search for Clarity'. Doubt over individuals' future resulted in 'An Uncertain Future' in many men. Once treatment was completed a 'Reflective journey' began, with men considering their outcomes and decisions made. Social wellbeing was also impacted with many identifying the 'Emotional Repercussions' on their relationships and the impact their diagnosis had on their partner and family. Many subsequently sought to increase their support through 'The Social Network and Advocacy', while physical changes led to an increased need for 'Social Planning'. Finally, physical wellbeing was highlighted by a continual acknowledgement of the 'Natural process of ageing' leading to a reluctancy to seek help, whilst simultaneously attempting to improve existing health via 'The Health Kick'. Radical treatments have a considerable impact on mental and social wellbeing of individuals. Anxiety after diagnosis and significant uncertainty over individual futures exist, with physical complications of treatment leading to social repercussions. Future research should aim to identify forms of support to improve quality of life of these men.

Nurses from the European Union (EU) face an 'uncertain future' and need our support, Jane Cummings said, as she opened her fifth chief nursing officer (CNO) for England's summit in Birmingham.

Nurses from the European Union (EU) face an 'uncertain future' in the UK and will need their colleagues' support, England's chief nurse Jane Cummings has said.

This study aimed to understand the experiences of women under 40 years of age with gynecologic cancer. Semi-structured individual in-depth interviews were conducted with 14 Korean female patients aged 21~39 years with gynecologic cancer. The data were analyzed using Corbin and Strauss' grounded theory approach, including open coding, context analysis, and integrating categories. Grounded theory analysis revealed nine categories and a core category of 'the journey to find my life after losing the life as a typical woman.' The categories that emerged as the conditions are 'Unwelcomed guest, cancer,' 'Completely devastated life as an ordinary woman,' 'Uncertain future,' 'Losing my physical characteristics as a woman,' and 'Life tied with treatments.' The actions/interactions were'Decrease of interpersonal relationships,' 'A lonely battle to overcome alone,' and 'The power to overcome hardships.' The consequence was 'Live my own life.' This study contributes to the development of a substantive theory of the experience of gynecologic cancer in young women, which has been on the rise in recent years. The study's results are expected to be used as a basis for providing nursing care to help young women with gynecologic cancer adapt to their disease.

Background: Evolving treatment options for people with cancer mean that increased numbers survive after diagnosis and enter a period where they perceive themselves as cancer free. Unfortunately, some experience a cancer recurrence, which can be at an advanced stage. Their prior treatment experience may influence their approach to this recurrence. New treatments are available to people in this illness stage. This experience is not well understood. Aim: To describe the experience of advanced cancer recurrence in people who have perceived themselves to be cancer free. Methods: A constructivist grounded theory approach. Qualitative interviews (n = 15) with people living a minimum of 2 or more years cancer free, with an advanced incurable cancer recurrence. Constant comparative method was used with theoretical sampling. Initial coding and focused coding enabled the development of final concepts. Concepts were substantiated using focused narrative synthesis literature review. Results: An inductively-developed understanding of three interactive concepts: Reluctant Acceptance, Seeking Life Through Continuous Treatment, and Hope in the Face of an Uncertain Future. These describe the experience from diagnosis of advanced cancer recurrence, with initial anger and sadness that the cancer is no longer curable. This shifts to a state of reluctant acceptance, which is a catalyst to seeking life through continuous treatment. Seeking life through continuous treatment creates hope in the face of an uncertain future, which then influences seeking life through continuous treatment. Conclusion: The experience of advanced cancer recurrence within the context of newly evolving treatment options leads to seeking treatment for advanced-stage cancer that is understood to be incurable but treatable. Seeking life through continuous treatment and hope in the face of an uncertain future are interactively linked to each other, creating a state of personal equilibrium for this population. This study illuminates the ways in which advanced cancer and treatment are perceived by this population. It provides direction for future research, which should focus on testing the model in a variety of settings, and developing understanding about the expectations and needs of people with advanced cancer recurrence.

Mankind has inherited the earth. But, up to now there is little hint on the meaning and the purpose of this inheritance. Science, thus far, has explained only a tiny fraction. The real issue is identified as the problem of surviving the permanently uncertain future. Technically, the problem can be called the Requirement of Permanence. All the knowledge discoveries of the past, the present, and the future and all the wisdom of the universe accumulated from the infinite past seem to be aimed at satisfying this Requirement of Permanence. And, by the best account, merely looking at the living system on earth, the problem seems to have been solved, as far as the universe in concerned. However, science, dealing with certainty, has missed the essence of the problem, which is solving the permanently uncertain future. The solution is expanded and further explained by Post-Science Social Science based on the solution of value, Post-Science Life or Computer Science based on the solution of complete automation, and Post-Creational Fuzzy Logic for describing the fuzzy reality resulting from the sacrifice of precision in the expansion of the range of tolerance of error of a creation for surviving all the possibilities of the uncertain future. The same solution for solving the problem of the uncertain future is used for solving the problems of financial crises and complexity crises, which will plague our society in the Age of Abundance. Post-science promotes the concept of a future cooperative society of abundance guided by knowledge. A knowledge-oriented, not power or money-oriented, society is needed to solve the problem of surviving the uncertain future permanently. Only knowledge will give mankind the right to inherit the earth and to connect to the wisdom of the universe.

For decades, Charles Lemert has been the leading voice in social theory. In Capitalism and its Uncertain Future he teams up with one of the most creative emerging social theorists, Kristin Plys, to examine how social theory imagines capitalism. This engaging and innovative book provides new perspectives on well known theorists from Adam Smith, and Frantz Fanon, to Gilles Deleuze, while also introducing readers to lesser known theorists such as Lucia Sanchez Saornil, Mohammad Ali El Hammi, and many more. The book examines theories of capitalism from four perspectives: macro-historical theories of the origins of capitalism; postcolonial theories of capitalism that situate capitalism as seen from the Global South; theories of capitalism from the perspective of labor; and prospective theories of capitalism’s uncertain future. This provocative and ambitious, yet accessible, perspective on theories of capitalism will be of interest to anyone who wants to explore where we’ve been and where we’re headed.

Forest management in an uncertain future: The role of tree diversity Prof Dr Andreas Rigling and Dr Valentina Vitali highlight the importance of tree diversity for enhancing forest resilience in an uncertain future. The famous quote by Niels Bohr, Nobel Prize winner for physics, “Prediction is very difficult, especially about the future”, applies directly to forests in times of global change, their development, and the ecosystem services they provide. Forests face unprecedented rates of change, creating considerable uncertainty in all aspects of forest development and management. Since forestry decisions are made with time horizons of decades to centuries, the challenge of predicting future climatic and ecological conditions is immense.

Much like any grand-scale social disturbance, COVID-19 has brought increasing attention to emergency preparedness on global, national, and individual levels. Although independent preparedness is considered to play an important role in disturbance and emergency-related survival, little attention has been paid to the ways in which individuals conduct their preparations or the social aspects of these preparatory activities.This article investigates the ways in which survivalists engage with uncertain futures by preparing. Survivalism is a cultural movement that anticipates and prepares for different kinds and scales of disasters and disturbances. The analysis seeks to clarify for what, how, and why Finnish survivalists prepare for. This study employs an experimental setup that combines two different types of media material; media representations about survivalists made by journalists, and online discussions written by survivalists themselves on a Finnish survivalist web forum page. The data was subjected to qualitative thematic text analysis.The factors that motivate preparedness vary from ordinary and personal inconveniences to general and global disaster scenarios, which co-exist despite their different scales. In practice, the survivalist approach continuously moves between speculative futures and the material present. The survivalist worldview balances between different, seemingly opposite poles: norm-criticality, self-sufficiency, privacy, and collectivism.

A Different Nature: The Paradoxical World of Zoos and Their Uncertain Future. D Hancocks (2001). Published by the University of California Press. Distributed by John Wiley and Sons Ltd, Distribution Centre, 1 Oldlands Way, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO22 9SA, UK. 279pp. Hardback (ISBN 0 520 21879 5). Price £24.95. - Volume 11 Issue 1