Alternative Venues Research Articles

The proliferation of alternative film exhibition spaces in Istanbul: cultural segregation and urban cinephilia

In the last decade, Istanbul witnessed the rapid proliferation of alternative film exhibition spaces such as museums, cafes, art and cultural centres in specific neighbourhoods. This increase is a result of mostly three forces: the monopoly of dominant distribution companies, authoritarian pressure of the government and urban transformation in Istanbul. These places provide space for censored films and are essentially important for independent and experimental films as well as documentaries and short films which have very limited or no theatrical release. On the other hand, their concentration in specific districts and that they target the audience with certain cultural capital is aggregate hierarchical clusters. Through analysing these alternative exhibition spaces in Istanbul, this study investigates the changing relationship between film exhibition, audience and the city. It discovers how urban transformation, authoritarian cultural policies and economic capital changed cinema-going and urban cinephilia in Istanbul. It suggests that while these alternative film exhibiton venues provide space for independent filmmakers, festivals and censored films, they also articulate to social hierarchy and cultural segregation.

Racialized Social Class Pedagogical Praxis: Critical Compassion, Cariño, Respeto and Confianza

This article explores the ways in which high school teachers understand their students in relation to their own racialized social class backgrounds. It problematizes ethnic outsider inabilities to engage teaching philosophies and practices, which render teachers unable to create constructive dialogues with students that have been marginalized in the culture of schooling. Given classed, raced, and gendered past practices in education and their schooling trajectory, which have historically truncated their potential mobility, this study is mediated by racial social class positions, which veil issues that intersect with structural inequalities. As such, this case study explores teacher/student engagements, focusing on reproduction of consciousness as unrealized teacher/learner schooling interactions. It is framed in contradiction to normative teaching practices, problematizing the absences of critical pedagogy in instruction, as it suggests alternative venues from an empowered perspective.

Food-related health risks due to accessibility barriers

Issues with access to fresh and healthy produce can have long-lasting impacts on health, especially food-related health outcomes such as obesity and diabetes. To address these health outcomes (at least partially), researchers have often discussed various solutions to ameliorate access issues to fresh and healthy produce in order to encourage residents to purchase and consume more nutritious foods. Access to healthy foods have been discussed in terms of traditional grocery stores availability, alternative fresh food venues such as farmers markets and farm stands, and federal programmes that provide support for food procurement for lower income families. Access by itself also refers to the physical ability of getting to these fresh food venues and research has also discussed the ownership of, and access to vehicles by households of varying economic abilities. In this paper, we suggest that apart from these initiatives, there needs to be a conscientious effort in understanding that public transit also plays a crucial role in accessibility, and added to that, the understanding of food needs and preferences of ethnically diverse populations is in order to be able to address the nutritional component and cultural acceptance of foods that are commonly sought by these populations. Awareness, availability, acceptance and accessibility need to be combined with affordability to help encourage residents to include fresh and healthy produce into their daily diets in order to combat common food-related health issues.

The Bigger, the Better?

I empirically investigate wind energy production dynamics and correlations to electricity prices on a turbine-individual level. I find that large turbine production outputs are less negatively correlated to electricity prices than those of small turbines. Apart from the fact that large turbines produce more and are less volatile in their production outputs over time, they sell electricity at a higher average price, outperforming their smaller peers. Additional tests on high-frequency data confirm these results and indicate that the financial impacts are large when considering short-term dynamics. These findings are important for investors to consider when allocating capital to alternative venues as renewable energy.

Declining Use of Primary Care Among Commercially Insured Adults in the United States, 2008-2016.

Primary care is known to improve outcomes and lower health care costs, prompting recent U.S. policy efforts to expand its role. Nonetheless, there is early evidence of a decline in per capita primary care visit rates, and little is understood about what is contributing to the decline. To describe primary care provider (PCP) visit trends among adults enrolled with a large, national, commercial insurer and assess factors underlying a potential decline in PCP visits. Descriptive repeated cross-sectional study using 100% deidentified claims data from the insurer, 2008-2016. A 5% claims sample was used for Poisson regression models to quantify visit trends. National, population-based. Adult health plan members aged 18 to 64 years. PCP visit rates per 100 member-years. In total, 142 million primary care visits among 94 million member-years were examined. Visits to PCPs declined by 24.2%, from 169.5 to 134.3 visits per 100 member-years, while the proportion of adults with no PCP visits in a given year rose from 38.1% to 46.4%. Rates of visits addressing low-acuity conditions decreased by 47.7% (95% CI, -48.1% to -47.3%). The decline was largest among the youngest adults (-27.6% [CI, -28.2% to -27.1%]), those without chronic conditions (-26.4% [CI, -26.7% to -26.1%]), and those living in the lowest-income areas (-31.4% [CI, -31.8% to -30.9%]). Out-of-pocket cost per problem-based visit rose by $9.4 (31.5%). Visit rates to specialists remained stable (-0.08% [CI, -0.56% to 0.40%]), and visits to alternative venues, such as urgent care clinics, increased by 46.9% (CI, 45.8% to 48.1%). Data were limited to a single commercial insurer and did not capture nonbilled clinician-patient interactions. Commercially insured adults have been visiting PCPs less often, and nearly one half had no PCP visits in a given year by 2016. Our results suggest that this decline may be explained by decreased real or perceived visit needs, financial deterrents, and use of alternative sources of care. None.

Emergence of the Nurcu Movement, the Gülen Movement, Milli Görüş Movement in Turkey

The single-party regime of the CHP (1923-1950) conducted top-down modernization reforms which were accommodated by a total ban on public expression of religion and embrace and practice of Western social Darwinist principles. Under these conditions, many Islamic movements emerged. The need for people to express and satisfy their religious needs could not be shut off but these top-down reforms and people needed alternative venues to satisfy their religious and belief sentiments. Banning religious movements, orders, and groups, brought them underground, hiding, and in fact this let to various groups using this situation to gain followers, independently if they were religiously literate or not. in the polarized context of the 1970s, the MSP provided an anti-communist, anti-Zionist, and anti-Westernist stance. This rhetoric drew support from the underdeveloped Kurdish and Central-Eastern Anatolian regions, and especially from the merchants who were disadvantaged in their competition with bigger capitalists. The same discourse will be alter used by Erdogan to claim his leadership in the Umma, and the need for chancing the parliamentarian system of Turkish politics into a one-man-show Presidential system.

Effect of Accountable Care Organizations on Emergency Medicine Payment and Care Redesign: A Qualitative Study

Accountable care organizations are provider networks aiming to improve quality while reducing costs for populations. It is unknown how value-based care within accountable care organizations affects emergency medicine care delivery and payment. Our objective was to describe how accountable care has impacted emergency care redesign and payment. We performed a qualitative study of accountable care organizations, consisting of semistructured interviews with emergency department (ED) and accountable care organization leaders responsible for strategy, care redesign, and payment. We analyzed transcripts for key themes, using thematic analysis techniques. We performed 22 interviews across 7 accountable care organizations. All sites were enrolled in the Medicare Shared Savings Program; however, sites varied in region and maturity with respect to population health initiatives. Nearly all sites were focused on reducing low-value ED visits, expanding alternate venues for acute unscheduled care, and redesigning care to reduce ED admission rates through expanded care coordination, including programs targeting high-risk populations such as older adults and frequent ED users, telehealth, and expanded use of direct transfer to skilled nursing facilities from the ED. However, there has been no significant reform of payment for emergency medical care within these accountable care organizations. Nearly all informants expressed concern in regard to reduced ED reimbursement, given accountable care organization efforts to reduce ED utilization and increase clinician participation in alternative payment contracts. No participants expressed a clear vision for reforming payment for ED services. Care redesign within accountable care organizations has focused on outpatient access and alternatives to hospitalization. However, there has been little influence on emergency medicine payment, which remains fee for service. Evidence-based policy solutions are urgently needed to inform the adoption of value-based payment for acute unscheduled care.

Slow dynamic nonlinearity in unconsolidated glass bead packs.

Slow dynamic nonlinearity describes a poorly understood, creeplike phenomena that occurs in brittle composite materials such as rocks and cement. It is characterized by a drop in stiffness induced by a mechanical conditioning, followed by a log(time) recovery. A consensus theoretical understanding of the behavior has not been developed. Here we introduce an alternative experimental venue with which to inform theory. Unconsolidated glass bead packs are studied rather than rocks or cement because the structure and internal contacts of bead packs are less complex and better understood. Slow dynamics has been observed in such systems previously. However, the measurements to date tend to be irregular. Particular care is used here in the experimental design to overcome the difficulties inherent in bead pack studies. This includes the design of the bead pack support, the use of low-frequency conditioning, and the use of ultrasonic waves as a probe with coda wave interferometry to assess changes. Slow dynamics is observed in our system after three different methods for low-frequency conditioning, one of which has not been reported in the literature previously.

Resolving Business and Human Rights Disputes – Is Arbitration the Way to Go?

The insufficient level of protection afforded to human rights violations caused by business-related activities of multinational enterprises has recently begun to garner increased attention. On an intergovernmental level, the elaboration of an internationally binding treaty regulating the activities of transnational corporations is underway. States have also taken initiatives on a national level to reflect their commitment in implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. In both respects, much work remains ahead. Against this background, a group of prominent lawyers have suggested the use of arbitration as an alternative venue for resolving business and human rights disputes. After a span over five years of concept elaboration, public consultation and drafting, the idea has materialised in the creation of the Hague Rules on Business and Human Rights Arbitration (the Hague Rules or Rules), which were officially launched on 12 December 2019. This paper aims to take stock of the proposed Rules and the context of their appearance and examine if arbitration is a suitable medium for resolving business-related human rights infringements. In doing so, it discusses the legal framework governing the confluence of business and human rights as well as the features which speak both in favor and against arbitration as a means of settling business-related human rights disputes. The provisions of the Hague Rules are addressed in detail, particularly where default rules where tailored to better respond to the needs of human rights disputes. The paper concludes with an assessment of arbitration’s potential to ensure protection and enforcement of human rights in international business and reflects whether the Rules are robust enough to empower victims in this endeavor.

Development of black soldier fly larvae (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) on seafood wastes

The black soldier fly,Hermetia illucens (L.) (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) is well suited for remediating biological waste. Larvae of this species are nutrient rich, grow rapidly, and convert organic wastes while suppressing pathogens and pests. Therefore, they could be used in waste management systems and as feed for livestock and in aquaculture. The goal of this study was to test suitability of several seafood wastes from Maine processing facilities forH. illucens development in order to find alternative venues for their utilization. The following substrates were tested under laboratory conditions: dry sea cucumber, wet sea cucumber, crab meal, finfish, dry quahog, wet quahog, and sea urchin (‘wet’ and ‘dry’ refer to the original condition of the wastes while their moisture levels were similar during the experiment).H. illucens eggs were placed on wax paper above each substrate, and larval growth and survival to pupation were measured. Based on the numbers and weights of surviving larvae, substrates potentially suitable forH. illucens rearing included finfish trimmings, wet sea cucumber, dry quahog, and sea urchin. Crab meal produced large larvae (0.091±0.021 g [mean ± SE], compared to experiment-wide mean of 0.064±0.007 g) in a relatively short period of time. However, larval mortality was very high, with only 4.7±1.17 larvae surviving to prepupae, compared to experiment-wide mean of 9.78±0.63 larvae. There were dramatic differences in seemingly similar materials. On wet sea cucumber, 28.82±1.49 larvae per replication survived to pre-pupae, while on dry sea cucumber the number was only 0.33±0.01. On wet and dry quahog, the numbers of surviving larvae were 1.83±0.60 and 10.1±1.97, respectively. This highlights the importance of thorough testing of specific substrates instead of extrapolating from published data.

Reading Hebrew Bible Narratives

Reading Hebrew Bible Narratives

Dams, neoliberalism, and rights: Mainstreaming environmental justice claims

AbstractDams have a contentious reputation. Symbols of independence, progress, and prosperity to some, they are a lived reality of displacement, obliteration of sacred sites, and environmental degradation to others. Given the massive expansion of dam construction in recent years, this article engages in a critical assessment of the institutional limitations to dam opposition and explores alternative venues for anti‐dam mobilization and the voicing of claims to environmental justice. The article argues that a potentially effective means of dam opposition requires the alignment of both environmental justice and rights claims with mainstream societal conversations and government priorities. In order to resonate with a broader community vision of national interests and priorities, anti‐dam opposition also needs to integrate a message of collective duties and responsibilities.

Opinión de la comunidad de Huajintlán, Morelos, sobre la vinculación con estudiantes de nivel superior

El presente estudio se llevó a cabo en la comunidad de Huajintlán, Morelos, México. Su objetivo fue conocer la opinión de los actores de la comunidad sobre las actividades realizadas mediante la vinculación con los estudiantes del Sistema de Integración al Medio Rural (SIMR). Se realizó una investigación de tipo cualitativa con la aplicación del método fenomenológico; la muestra se compuso de 30 personas, hombres y mujeres, cuyas edades oscilaban entre 24 y 65 años. Para la recolección de datos se utilizó un instrumento con 17 ítems, el cual se aplicó a los pobladores de la comunidad que participaron en el desarrollo de las actividades con los alumnos.
 Los resultados arrojaron que la primordial forma de inserción hacia la comunidad por parte de los estudiantes del SIMR se dio a través de las acciones realizadas con los niños que cursaban la primaria (84 %). Las principales actividades que llevaron a cabo los participantes de la comunidad con los estudiantes fueron la elaboración de mermeladas, mazapán y nieve (53 %), las cuales representaron una alternativa para generar ingresos, contribuir al gasto familiar y propiciar un intercambio de saberes entre los educandos y los habitantes de la comunidad; asimismo, manifestaron su disposición para contratar un estudiante una vez que egrese. El binomio vinculación-interacción está presente dentro de las actividades contempladas en la unidad de aprendizaje del SIMR de la Licenciatura en Desarrollo Rural. A través de este proceso se generaron beneficios y necesidades, los cuales son considerados como parte de los métodos que fomentan el crecimiento y desarrollo de los participantes mediante el contraste, la relación y la aplicación de la información recibida en el aula contra lo que está pasando en un escenario real en la comunidad.

The FWF’s Open Access Policy over the last 15 Years – Developments and Outlook

The report outlines the developments of the open access (OA) policy of the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) since its first release in 2004. Over the last 15 years, the FWF has not only continuously updated its OA policy but has also adapted its support mechanisms to include dedicated funding programmes and financial support structures for alternative publication venues and infrastructures. A brief analysis of the FWF’s open access funding will be provided in the second part of the article, which will conclude with an outlook of the upcoming revisions to the OA policy.

The perfect spectatorship: Culture and criticism in Mexico’s La dictadura perfecta/The Perfect Dictatorship (2014) and Ingobernable/Ungovernable (2017)

La dictadura perfecta/The Perfect Dictatorship (Estrada, 2014) calls attention to the current state of funding, social criticism and censorship in Mexican cinema, and to the state of the cultural and electoral Mexican Left. To explore present and future distribution and production tendencies, I look at how Netflix might provide an alternative venue for Mexican filmmakers and how its Ingobernable/Ungovernable (2017) caters to a global audience, while simultaneously incorporating a timid social criticism that activates identity sensibilities in a Mexican audience. I argue that Estrada’s film(s) – along with the social and cultural impact of leftist movements on a collective Mexican memory – jointly paved the aesthetic and ideological road to making this incorporation palatable.

Learning without Widespread Policy Adoption: Early Childhood Education in the American States

AbstractDo states learn from other states through venues other than the legislative enactment of new policies? This article demonstrates that two-way learning can occur through alternative venues: (1) legislators can adjust the budget of similar state policies to mirror other states’ policies and (2) bureaucrats can learn from other states’ policies and incorporate that learning through non-legislative state action, such as standards. Using an original forty-three state, thirteen-year dataset, I find that elected officials can learn from nearby states’ policies and adjust other policies to mirror those states through the budget process. Using an additional and original forty-three state, nineteen-year dataset, I also find the bureaucrats can learn from other states’ policies and incorporate that learning into the development of their own standards. This article assesses how states learn from other states through venues other than legislative enactment of new, diffusing legislation.

Punctuating the equilibrium: A lens to understand energy and environmental policy changes

Punctuating the equilibrium: A lens to understand energy and environmental policy changes

Shehui Ren: cultural production and rural youths’ use of the Kuaishou video-sharing app in Eastern China

ABSTRACT Rural youths in China face very limited life opportunities. Urban-biased educational policies have resulted in an unappealing school environment, where rural students become ‘invisible dropouts’ who physically attend school but have already mentally disengaged. Invoking the Birmingham School’s class-based analyses of youths’ cultural production, we examine how middle school students in rural Zouping, Shandong Province, engage the smart phone video-sharing app Kuaishou to realize their dreams of upward socio-economic mobility as Internet ‘micro-celebrities’ (Senft, T. (2008). Camgirls: Celebrity and community in the age of social media. New York: Peter Lang). These students produce a sub-culture centered on the figure of the shehui ren (‘society man’) and his associated values of brute strength and supporting one’s family. We maintain that in an increasingly neoliberal China where family wealth once again conditions social reproduction and the upward social mobility that education affords, the shehui ren criticizes the widening income gap by highlighting alternate venues of socio-economic advancement.

Putting claims data to work: Using analytics in an evolving healthcare ecosystem

As the US healthcare ecosystem undergoes rapid evolution, hospitals and health systems need up-to-date analytics to manoeuvre and thrive. National claims data that is both robust and reliable can provide the basis for such analytics. Data reflecting billed charges and negotiated (or allowed) amounts can inform fee schedule development, payer negotiations and dispute resolution. Claims data, which includes procedure and diagnostic codes and relevant demographic factors, also reveals important trends and patterns in four alternative venues of care: retail clinics, telehealth, urgent care centres and ambulatory surgery centres. Factors considered include rural versus urban growth in utilisation, patient age groups, gender utilisation and common diagnoses. The paper also presents clinical trends illuminated by claims data analysis for the following conditions or procedures: obesity and type 2 diabetes in paediatric patients, psoriatic arthritis, Lyme disease, breast cancer, knee and hip surgeries and opioid abuse and dependence. Issues in the analyses include comorbidities, costs and gender and age disparities. Finally, the paper suggest how claims data can be a basis for bundled payments and associated analytics to aid in the transition from a fee-for-service model to value-based reimbursement or otherwise shed light on provider performance.

Theorising Things, Building Worlds: Why the New Materialisms Deserve Literary Imagination

Abstract The New Materialisms constitute a rich field of critical inquiry that does not represent a unified approach; yet there is a general tendency to theorise objects by highlighting their agency, independence, and withdrawnness from human actors. Jane Bennett speaks of “thing power” in order to invoke the activities of “nonsubjects,” and she suggests to marginalise questions of human subjectivity and focus instead on the trajectories and propensities of material entities themselves. This essay takes issue with Bennett’s and other New Materialist thought, and it also offers a critical engagement with Bruno Latour’s notion of nonhuman agency. In his recent work, Latour has been concerned with the question of how we can tell our “common geostory.” Taking up his literary example (by Mark Twain) and adding one of my own (by William Faulkner), this essay argues that our understanding of the powers of rivers and other nonhuman agents remains rather limited if we attend primarily to the mechanics of storytelling in the way Latour does. Rather, it is the aesthetic and experiential registers of literary worlding that offer alternative venues for imagining nonhuman beings and our interactions with them in the era of the Anthropocene.