American Contributions Research Articles

Black-oriented EdTech and public interest technology: a framework for accessible and ethically designed technology for K-12 students

Abstract This study explores the intersection of public interest technology (PIT) and K-12 Black-oriented educational technology (EdTech) platforms in addressing educational inequities and racial biases. Despite the increased adoption of EdTech in K-12 settings, it often perpetuates racial biases, marginalizing Black students. Conversely, Black-oriented educational technology has been established to counter the marginalization of Black students by centering Black culture and realities in educational content (Young, P.A. 1999. Roads to travel: a historical look at African American contributions to instructional technology. University of California, Berkeley), emphasizing principles of ethical, accessible, and impactful technology use aligned with PIT. However, research on these digital platforms is limited. This study employs multimodal critical discourse analysis to examine three K-12 Black-oriented platforms – KaiXR, Reconstruction, and TunTimo – developed by Black women, to understand how they address technology inclusion and counteract racial biases in mainstream EdTech.

Understanding workload in occupational health research on nursing

Introduction: The concept of workload has been used by nursing with multiple meanings. Among them, we have considered patient dependency and nursing intensity. We propose to add to this understanding that workloads are biopsychic processes with effects on the worker’s body.Development: We discuss this theoretical concept based on the Latin American contribution and the importance of theory in the conceptual field. Final reflection: This discussion provides other theoretical ways to operate this concept in areas of research, focusing on the worker’s health. Also, this concept in nursing research helps to further study the work process and its relationship with health to analyze the contribution of each component of this in the health nursing workers.

In Pursuit of Freedom and Citizenship: Teaching about the Unsung Experiences of Black Americans during World War II

Secondary learners are often exposed to the triumphs and tragedies of World War II. Unfortunately, however, students receive less awareness of the experiences and contributions of Black Americans to the war effort. Thus, this article provides secondary teachers with a brief history of WWII from the perspective of African Americans and pedagogical strategies as a means of elevating hidden histories and engaging students in social studies concepts.

The African American Collections Relating to Music at Emory University’s Rose Library

ABSTRACT: United States music history has for years privileged whiteness and largely ignored or disregarded the contributions of African Americans. The Stuart R. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, houses over thirty collections (and growing) related to African American musicians that could be used to both uncover and recover the critical role African Americans played in the music culture of the United States. This article presents a brief overview of these holdings to date, including the papers of composers (such as William Dawson, George Walker, and Undine Smith Moore), entertainers (such as Victoria Spivey, Bricktop, and Geoffrey Holder), and researchers (such as Rae Linda Brown, Geneva Southall, and Delilah Jackson). Types of materials held include manuscript letters and scores, photographs, and published music (both print and recorded) by and about African Americans.

The American contribution to attachment theory: John Bowlby’s WHO trip to the USA in 1950 and the development of his ideas on separation and attachment

ABSTRACT This paper explores John Bowlby’s foundational contributions to attachment theory, particularly his fascination with ‘separation’ and its impact on child development. Tracing the origins of Bowlby’s interest to his personal experiences and his exposure to ideas of mental hygiene and child guidance in the 1930s, it underscores the alignment of his ideas with key figures in the English school of psychoanalysis. The central narrative of this paper unfolds during Bowlby’s 1950 WHO research trip, investigating orphaned and separated children in Europe and the USA. Utilizing archival materials from the Wellcome Library in London, the authors offer unique insights into Bowlby’s journey, highlighting his evolving views on mother-child separation through interactions with his American colleagues. This comprehensive exploration sheds light on Bowlby’s pioneering work, emphasizing the American influence on his ideas, and the evolving theoretical framework that continues to shape our understanding of child development and attachment today.

La Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo en América Latina: Una perspectiva histórica

Less than ten years after the 2030 Agenda ends, and more than seventy years after the emergence of the first development cooperation strategies, questions and challenges regarding its scope are emerging. This article proposes to recover the historical process of International Development Cooperation (IDC) from 1945 to the present, from the perspective of Latin America and the Caribbean. For which it aims to recover the Latin American contribution in the construction of this process to rethink a cooperation capable of facing present challenges, such as those posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and anticipate future situations, as an approach to advance the process of transformation and search for alternatives to generate more equitable structural relations from and for the region without depending on traditional North-South aid.

Fifth "Jatene Lecture on Surgical Innovation": Innovation in Congenital Heart Surgery: Contributions From South America.

We present the fifth "Jatene Lecture on Surgical Innovation" on Innovation in Congenital Heart Surgery, given at the Eighth Scientific Meeting of the World Society for Pediatric and Congenital Heart Surgery and Eighth World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery in Washington DC in 2023. We highlight what surgical innovation is and how innovation was accomplished in cardiac surgery and particularly in congenital heart surgery. A brief history of the development of congenital heart surgery across the world is summarized and we finally illustrate the South American contributions to congenital heart surgery, acknowledging the great innovations of Adib Jatene and Guillermo Kreutzer to our field.

Latin American International Political Economy: contributions beyond the transatlantic divide

Abstract The way in which international political economy (IPE) developed in Anglo-Saxon countries set the main standards for its study in other regions of the world, establishing a transatlantic order that separated mainstream IPE from the periphery. This article is part of a debate that seeks to raise awareness of Latin American contributions to IPE. It underlines the connections between thought and political practice, examining how the subfield has developed between 2000 and 2021 by studying works published in the leading journals of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. Three central arguments are discussed. First, the field of IPE in Latin America developed before its conception in the Anglo-Saxon world and separately of mainstream views because distinctive regional problems did not fit well within the frameworks of mainstream approaches. Second, there is a vibrancy in the debate about IPE topics in regional journals, and the intellectual tradition of the 1950s and 1960s is under constant revision. Third, in contrast to the bias in mainstream IR that focuses on policy successes, Latin American IPE has been closely related to the formulation of policies that have often examined adversities in the implementation of policies connected to the different crises the region has faced.

Latin American contributions to Economic Thought: Dependence, Extractivism and Good Living

En las siguientes líneas van a repasarse algunas aportaciones al pensamiento económico, distintivamente latinoamericanas, no solo porque nacen en América Latina sino también porque se orientan a explicar problemas específicamente latinoamericanos. Dentro de ellas vamos a destacar la Teoría de la Dependencia y las conceptualizaciones sobre Extractivismo y Buen Vivir, exponiendo resumidamente sus preocupaciones y el contenido de sus aportaciones. Como se verá, en los tres casos existe una amplia genealogía de contribuciones diversas que confluyen sobre una serie de temáticas y perspectivas comunes. Se trata, además, de desarrollos teóricos que, en todos los casos, tienen un fuerte carácter realista, basados en la observación de una serie de problemáticas identificadas sobre la base de aproximaciones histórico-estructurales. Sobre esta base se construyen aportaciones que, de una u otra forma, suponen una enmienda a las formas dominantes de comprensión y gestión de la economía. En este sentido, resultan una de las expresiones más destacadas de la heterodoxia económica en el último siglo. En este contexto, no solo proponen otras formas de entender las cosas, sino también otros modos de interaccionar con la realidad, es decir, otras políticas.

Youth and Violence in Brazil and Latin America: Theoretical and Empirical Approaches

Abstract Studies in Brazil and other Latin American countries have demonstrated how the expansion of illegal drug markets and firearms trafficking over borders has increased the risks for young people, especially those who live in socially vulnerable neighborhoods, of becoming victims of lethal violence. In addressing this scenario, we review some of the most relevant research approaches that seek to understand the involvement of young men in organized crime, the rise of criminal factions or groups and their internationalization process, and the social and institutional mechanisms that contribute to the production and reproduction of lethal violence. Delving both into sociological and anthropological studies in Brazil, as well as other Latin American contributions, we elaborate on the most promising contributions that combine an intersectional approach to the sociological and criminological theories most often employed to understand the involvement of youth with lethal violence in Brazil and the Latin American context.

Devil on the doorstep v. bandits in the backyard: Iranian and American theory-laden perceptions and judgements during three US-led Middle East operations

ABSTRACT This article employs conceptual tools from the philosophy of science to shed new light on prolonged Iran-US hostility. Iranian and American elites evidently have negative attitudes towards the other nation, but these attitudes lack systematic and theoretical analysis. We apply the post-positivist concepts of theory-laden perception and judgement to anticipate the impact of established attitudes on foreign policy experts. After considering the cognitive training of each foreign policy community in the 1980s, the article hypothesises each group’s perceptions of and judgements about the other’s behaviour during Operation Desert Storm (1991), Operation Enduring Freedom (2001), and Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003). The concurrence of theory-laden judgements with each nation’s actual decisions indicates the likely contributions of American and Iranian foreign policy experts to the lack of substantial long-term bilateral cooperation, while the instance of a lack of concurrence indicates the possibility of future change. Our cross-disciplinary methodology demonstrates the utility of venturing outside the traditional boundaries of international relations scholarship.

Beyond academia: a reflexive exploration of a professor’s journey from awareness to advocacy of the African American studies course curriculum

In 2020, African American studies course was unanimously passed as an elective course for high school credit in Texas. Since that time, the course has been met with societal and legislative resistance, due to the ubiquity of anti-Critical Race Theory laws around the nation. This submission seeks to understand the lived experience of a university professor, who minored in History, taught Social Studies in predominantly Black and Brown communities, but discovered the vast absence of African American contributions in the high school and higher education curricula. It was when he led a national advisory team for the Texas State Board of Education that helped revise, pass, and implement the African American studies course for a high school credit, that he realized how vital this course is for all students. This reflexive narrative account seeks to understand the process of the author’s transition from an interested educator aware of Black History to an avid advocate with full appreciation of a comprehensive African American studies course for high school students.

Inter-regional differences of authorship in secondary analyses of solid malignancies.

e13661 Background: With the increasing number of clinical trials and data availability in recent years, the number of secondary analyses had subsequently increased at a global level. However, the results of such analyses must be interpreted carefully. Our study aimed to study the differences of secondary analyses based on the country of residence of the first author. Methods: We searched OVID database for articles subgroup analyses from the year 2000 until Feb 15, 2022. post-hoc, subgroup, secondary, cancer, tumor, breast, colorectal were some of the terms used in the search. Original trials, observational and secondary analyses of cohort studies were excluded. The country of the first author was used for categorizing the articles. Results: 1491 articles were included in final analysis. The first authors of 646 articles were from North America (43.9%), 476 articles from Europe (32.4%), 258 articles from East Asia (17.6%), and 86 articles from the rest of the globe (5.9%). There was a significant increase in the number of secondary analyses from East Asia especially in the last 4 years (<.001). In addition, East Asian secondary analyses were more likely to have had medical writing assistance compared to other regions (<.001). North American contribution to secondary analyses has been decreasing over the years (<.001). European analyses and analyses from the rest of the world didn’t have a significant increase over the years. Although European publication were less likely to be funded, those that were funded had a higher chance of being funded by pharmaceutical companies in comparison to the different regions (<.001). International trials that included US and non-US participants were more likely to be funded by pharmaceutical companies, had medical writing assistance, and had a higher percentage of authors with conflicts of interest than trials that only included US participants or non-US participants (<.001). Conclusions: The results show that there was an increase in secondary analyses especially from the East Asian region and those secondary analyses of international trials are highly funded and supported by pharmaceutical companies. [Table: see text]

The New York Market for French Art in the Gilded Age, 1867–1893

A lively, informative and meticulously researched empirical consideration of the American taste for nineteenth-century French art in the Gilded Age, Leanne M. Zalewski’s volume is a worthy and welcome contribution to the body of existing scholarship on the topic. Focusing on the post-Civil War period, the volume examines the American enthusiasm for contemporary French academic painting and the creation of a commercial and museal infrastructure that allowed the market for it to flourish. A fundamental question underpinning the book is that of the philanthropic endeavours of the collectors under scrutiny, together with their role and that of their collections in the formation of the institutions that have shaped New York’s cultural landscape. One of the many strengths of the volume lies in its clear chronological chapter structure, which expertly traces the rise of the taste for French academic art and its ultimate demise in favour of Impressionist works. The introductory chapter introduces the key research questions and positions the study within the body of existing research. Taking as a starting point the 1867 Paris Exposition Universelle, the second chapter analyses the critical and often scathing reception of American art, and the overall perceived failure of the American contribution to the exhibition. The episode was a catalyst for the American taste for French Salon paintings; the chapter sheds intelligent light on its pivotal importance in the changing commercial fortunes of French contemporary paintings and the voracious appetite of outre-Atlantique collectors for acquiring them. The third chapter offers an examination of the commercial networks of exchange that underpinned purchases, and the dealers who facilitated such transactions. While the chapter adequately considers key auction sales and the impact of taxation on the fortunes of French academic art in America, the reader is nevertheless left wanting to know more about the relationships between dealers and artists, a topic that is almost entirely skimmed over.

Abstract 5231: Whole genome sequencing reveals significant genetic admixture in multiple myeloma patients, impacting assessment of etiology

Abstract Background: In the U.S. population, having African ancestry (AA) conveys a higher risk of multiple myeloma (MM) than white ancestry (WA), however, published whole genome sequencing (WGS) data is predominantly from WA populations. The Polyethnic-1000 (P1000) is a multi-institutional WGS initiative together with the New York Genome Center, investigating cancers having a higher prevalence in AA populations. We are extending on the P1000 in MM precursor disease; prospectively defining genomic, immune and microbiome factors driving progression, focused on the impact of racial origin. Hypothesis: Self-described race, according to proscribed categories, is insufficient to delineate biological contribution to MM development. We propose that unique biological insights first require a comprehensive definition of genetic origin, considering heterogeneity within historical groups. Methods: For collaborative large-scale analysis, we’ve developed a comprehensive cross-institutional bioinformatic pipeline (https://github.com/pblaney/mgp1000). We’ve included admixture; a composition profile based on SNPs with genotypes corresponding to reference samples from 23 geographic populations. AA is divided into 5 populations (Esan, Luhya, Mende, Gambian and Yoruba), and 3 American populations are defined (Peruvian, Columbian and Puerto Rican). WGS was performed on blood mononuclear cells from 44 patients with MM or precursor disease, 29 self-identified as AA and 18 as Hispanic. Results: Estimating directly from WGS data, complexity hidden by self-reported race was revealed by genetically determined admixture. Filtering to ≥1%, 43/44 patients had contribution from >1 of the 23 reference populations. Patients varied widely in their genetic diversity; 3 had ≥90% from a single population, 21 had ≥25% from at least 2 populations (consistent with grandparents) and 37 had ≥12.5% from different populations (consistent with great-grandparents). Within those 37, 18 patients had contributing populations within the same superfamily (i.e., all African), while 19 were across superfamily’s (i.e., African + East Asian). Hierarchical clustering produced 5 main clusters, with samples in 2 clusters having predominantly Esan and Mende contribution, while differing in contribution from other AA/non-AA populations. All samples in one cluster contained American contribution >60%, another had predominantly European and American contribution, and the final cluster had AA <10%, and heterogenous population contributions. Conclusion: Self-reported race does not consider the significant variability of genetic admixture demonstrated by this analysis, and likely has insufficient granularity regarding inherited risk. Ongoing studies will incorporate genetic admixture alongside somatic genomic assessment to accurately investigate progression risk from precursor disease to MM. Citation Format: Kylee H. Maclachlan, Patrick Blaney, Dylan Gagler, Eileen M. Boyle, Benjamin Diamond, Urvi A. Shah, Neha Korde, Sham Mailankody, Malin Hultcrantz, Hani Hassoun, Carlyn Tan, Faith E. Davies, Alexander M. Lesokhin, C. Ola Landgren, Saad Z. Usmani, Francesco Maura, Gareth J. Morgan. Whole genome sequencing reveals significant genetic admixture in multiple myeloma patients, impacting assessment of etiology. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2023; Part 1 (Regular and Invited Abstracts); 2023 Apr 14-19; Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2023;83(7_Suppl):Abstract nr 5231.

Andrew Jackson Davis and Spiritualist Constructions of Religion(s)

AbstractThat the concept of religion is of recent construction is well established in the literature. What is less understood is the American contribution to this global discourse, in particular its nineteenth-century popularization below the upper echelons of Unitarians, Transcendentalists, and comparative religion scholars. The small but very influential group of Spiritualists associated with the seer Andrew Jackson Davis offer a fascinating window into popular construals of religion and world religions—here, internally oriented, naturalized, and evolutionary—taking shape amid increasing globalization and the challenge of scientific materialism. The subdiscourse articulated by Davis and his circle provides an interesting case not only for its antiinstitutional and individualized qualities but also for its radical decentering of Christianity and paradoxical relationship to science. Moreover, Davis's efforts to define true religion and frame his system as its purest expression are connected to struggles for legitimacy within the public sphere and contests concerning religious authority.

Klaustrofobični prostori i atmosfera fatalizma u Ubojicama Roberta Siodmaka

Film noir is one of American cinema’s most renowned and well-studied phenomena. It is a cycle of films made during the 1940s and 1950s, mostly produced as B-movies, i.e., cheaper films presented as part of a double feature. This is one of the most important reasons why it took such a long time for American film scholars to address the importance of film noir. The first monograph on film noir, Panorama du film noir américain, was published in France in 1955, and this work by Borde and Chaumeton remains one of the most valuable studies covering this important cycle. Generally speaking, French film scholars are those most responsible for highlighting the value of American, and especially Hollywood, film while significant American contributions to the study of film noir only began in the 1970s. Like few American films that preceded it, The Killers presented a completely dark world filled with hapless protagonists, where the only location that evokes even a glimmer of happiness is a terrace on the edge of the city. All other locations are a vivid reflection of the state of mind of the film’s main characters, lost in the dark labyrinths of the metropolis, victims of the unfathable threads that fate uses to play with their lives. Utilizing a combination of extremely claustrophobic locations and flashbacks that further fragment an already very complex narrative, Siodmak created a work that is one of the most faithful evocations of fatalism in American film.

The teaching of social work history and the inclusion of African American contributors: implications for social work educators

ABSTRACT Research suggest that the perspectives of African Americans have been excluded from discussions of the historical development of social work. The purpose of this study was to analyze the extent to which the teaching of social work history was inclusive of African American contributions to the profession. Results of this summative content analysis are consistent with previous research determining that diverse, specifically African American, social work history is underrepresented in social work education. It is imperative for social work curricula to employ an anti-racist approach, which is inherently multiperspective, to teaching how historical forces have shaped the profession.

Still Dreaming/Seguimos Soñando by Claudia Guadalupe Martínez

Reviewed by: Still Dreaming/Seguimos Soñando by Claudia Guadalupe Martínez Kate Quealy-Gainer, Editor Martínez, Claudia Guadalupe Still Dreaming/Seguimos Soñando; illus. by Magdalena Mora; tr. from the Spanish by Luis Humberto Crosthwaite. Lee & Low, 2022 [40p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780892394340 $20.95 Reviewed from digital galleys R 6-9 yrs The young narrator of this bilingual picture book embarks with his family on a journey that clearly no one wants to take. The young boy has been tiptoeing around his stressed parents, hearing hushed whispers and vague references to friends and neighbors taken away, and now Papá has decided they will leave their small pecan orchard before they are forced out. On their way out of town, the boy wistfully remembers playing with his pals, but he's glad to be leaving the shops he and his family were never allowed to enter ("We serve whites only NO MEXICANS" says a sign). The story takes an unexpected turn when they meet a group of fellow travelers, and it's revealed they are all being forced to leave the U.S. for Mexico during the Mexican Repatriation of the 1930s. Martínez saves most of the specific historical details for the author's note, instead focusing on the contributions of Mexicans and Mexican Americans as the people the boy meets talk about their work in Alaska, Los Angeles, Chicago, and other parts of the country. The gouache, ink, and digital art has a softness that belies the bittersweet story, but the palette shifts and body language emphasize its nuance, as the boy and his parents attempt to make the best of a terrible situation. Copyright © 2022 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois

From Italy to Little Italy to Big ’merica and Beyond: Thoughts on Italian Diaspora Studies

From Italy to Little Italy to Big ’merica and Beyond: Thoughts on Italian Diaspora Studies