Distinct Threat Research Articles

White enough to be American?: race mixing, indigenous people, and the boundaries of state and nation

This title presents disrupting notions of race and citizenship. Racial mixture posed a distinct threat to European American perceptions of the nation and state in the late nineteenth century, says Lauren Basson, as it exposed and disrupted the racial categories that organized political and social life in the United States. Offering a provocative conceptual approach to the study of citizenship, nationhood, and race, Basson explores how racial mixture challenged and sometimes changed the boundaries that defined what it meant to be American.Drawing on government documents, press coverage, and firsthand accounts, Basson presents four fascinating case studies concerning indigenous people of descent. She reveals how the ambiguous status of racially mixed people underscored the problematic nature of policies and practices based on clearly defined racial boundaries. Contributing to timely discussions about race, ethnicity, citizenship, and nationhood, Basson demonstrates how the challenges to the American political and legal systems posed by racial mixture helped lead to a new definition of what it meant to be American - one that relied on institutions of private property and white supremacy.

The Impact of Depressive Symptoms and Chronic Diseases on Active Life Expectancy in Older Americans

The authors prospectively examined whether depressive symptoms (DS) in older adults negatively affected active live expectancy (ALE), or remaining years free of disability, and mortality, independently and in the presence of chronic diseases, and after stratification by gender. Prospective cohort study, first three waves (1993-1998) of the Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old. University of Michigan; analysis: University of South Florida. Nationally representative sample of community-dwelling adults age 70 and older (N = 7,381). DS (Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression, 8-item version), self-reported cancer, diabetes, heart disease, or stroke, difficulty with activities of daily living, death, and estimates of total, active, and disabled life expectancy. DS reduced ALE by 6.5 years for young-old men (age 70), 3.2 years for old-old men (age 85), 4.2 years for young-old women, and 2.2 years for old-old women, and these effects remained significant at all ages and across gender even after controlling for chronic disease, the one exception being DS and cancer in old-old women. DS also reduced total life expectancy significantly, although controlling for some chronic diseases (particularly cancer and stroke) eliminated the effect of DS across age and gender groups. Depressive symptoms represent a serious and distinct threat to independent functioning in older adults. Whether experienced alone, or in combination with chronic diseases, depressive symptoms shorten ALE substantially. Timely diagnosis and treatment of depressive symptoms in older adults may delay the onset of disability and improve the quality of life.

GROWTH OF BROWN PELICAN NESTLINGS EXPOSED TO SUBLETHAL LEVELS OF SOFT TICK INFESTATION

Abstract Ectoparasites are a common component of seabird colonies and are generally considered to have a negative impact on their hosts. Nest parasites such as the soft tick Carios capensis may pose a distinct threat to altricial nestlings confined to the nest and unable to escape infestation. To assess the potential effects of ticks on growth, we measured linear growth rates of Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) nestlings during early development in relation to C. capensis infestation at insecticide treated and untreated nests at two colonies in South Carolina during the 2004 and 2005 breeding seasons. Tick infestation levels differed between colonies but not between years. We found a positive relationship between tick infestation and both growth rates and hatching success at the more infested colony. We did not find a consistent relationship between insecticide treatment and growth rates, although chicks from nests treated with insecticide had fewer ticks compared to chicks from untreated nests. Our...

The Conquest of Lead Poisoning: A Pyrrhic Victory

The Conquest of Lead Poisoning: A Pyrrhic Victory

Deadly Words, Captive Imaginations: Women and Poetic Creation in Jean Froissart's Prison Amoureuse

Jean Froissart's Prison Amoureuse (c. 1372), a courtly narrative by an author better known today for his historical works, is very much a poet's poem. The most noteworthy human relationship in this self-reflexive tale is the literary friendship between the poet and his male patron, and the traditional romantic intrigue takes a back seat to the story of the book's composition. Flos, the narrator-poet, and Rose, his patron, exchange a series of poems and letters that Flos eventually compiles into a book--the Prison itself. Meanwhile, the female figures of the Prison are relegated to its margins: the two unnamed ladies whom Flos and Rose love make brief appearances, and a smattering of the book's allegorical and mythological figures are female, but the Prison's main concern would appear to be the male characters and their collaborative literary project. The Prison's lack of prominent female characters might seem to indicate that the book's subject, literary creation, is for Froissart the domain of men. However, this essay will argue that such is not the case. Rather than excluding women from the literary process, the Prison in fact portrays them as having creative powers that are by turns helpful and threatening to the male writers. Both Flos's and Rose's ladies compose poetry, and both have the potential to contribute to the success of the men's literary project by adopting the roles of reader and critic. (1) However, when these women misread, refuse to read, or adopt independent voices that run counter to the male poet's, they pose a distinct threat. The Prison makes it clear both that feminine creativity can be harnessed in the service of a male-authored book, and that it must be kept under strict control, captured in much the same way as the male poet harnesses the feminine principle of imagination in order to imprison it in his text. I. Deadly Words: misreading and refusing to read Two poems in women's voices bracket the text of the Prison, the first sung by Flos's lady, the second composed by Rose's. Within the space framed by these parallel compositions, the two women perform acts of reading, misreading and literary commentary in scenes that sketch out the range of their creative functions vis a vis the two male writers. These scenes, while brief in terms of the overall length of the Prison, nonetheless demonstrate both the importance and the dangers of women for writers. The Prison's first episode involves a poem sung by Flos's lady, in a scene that showcases not only her role as a reader of Flos's work, but also her own creative abilities. We learn that Flos has composed a virelai about his sufferings in love (II. 273-326). (2) His lady hears of the virelai, asks for a copy, learns it, and sings it--a success for the poet (11. 337-42). However, soon afterwards the lady does something that upsets Flos greatly. At a dance, when his virelai is sung by a young lady, his lady immediately sings another virelai as if in response. Mes a painnes peut il fin prendre, Quant ma dame en volt un reprendre Qu'onques mes je n'avoie oI. (II. 421-23) [But it (my virelai) was seareely finished when my lady wanted to take up another one that I had never heard before.] The virelai sung by the lady, in a first person feminine voice, expresses the speaker's happiness at seeing her lover downcast, because he takes joy and delight [in melancholy] (1. 438). The song that his lady sings casts Flos into deep despair, for reasons that bear a closer look. As he explains: Li oi par tres grant revel Chanter un virelai nouvel. Bien le glosai, mieuls 1 entendi: A celi qui pour Vamour d'elle Fu fes et q'une damoiselle Eut chante. Trop fort me reprens, Quant pour s'amour ensi m'esprens. Lors est elle, ce dist, moult lie Quant je sui en merancolie, Et qu'elle me feroit grant tort Se j'avoie grasce ou confort. Ce sont parolles pour morir! (11. 505-17; emphasis mine) [1 heard her sing a new virelai with great merriment. …

Intergroup Threat and Outgroup Attitudes: A Meta-Analytic Review

This article examines the relationship between intergroup threat and negative outgroup attitudes. We first qualitatively review the intergroup threat literature, describing the shift from competing theories toward more integrated approaches, such as the integrated threat theory (ITT; W. G. Stephan and Stephan, 2000). The types of threats discussed include: realistic threat, symbolic threat, intergroup anxiety, negative stereotypes, group esteem threat, and distinctiveness threat. We then conducted a quantitative meta-analysis examining the relationships between various intergroup threats and outgroup attitudes. The meta-analysis, involving 95 samples, revealed that 5 different threat types had a positive relationship with negative outgroup attitudes. Additionally, outgroup status moderated some of these relationships. Implications and future directions are considered.

The link between identification and in‐group favouritism: Effects of threat to social identity and trust‐related emotions

The relation between identification and in-group favouritism was analysed across two studies, in which the relevance of three intervening factors was demonstrated: (a) the moderating role of social identity threat, (b) the mediating role of trust-related emotions experienced towards in-group and out-group members, and (c) the importance of the distinction between in-group and out-group evaluations. When the in-group was not threatened, the link between identification and in-group bias was unreliable. The effect of in-group identification on in-group bias was stronger when either the value or the distinctiveness of the in-group were threatened. A value threat strengthened the influence of identification on in-group evaluation and, via out-group distrust, on out-group derogation. Under a distinctiveness threat, identification affected out-group evaluation and intergroup differentiation. These results demonstrate that the relation between identification and in-group favouritism is reliable only in a clear intergroup context. Moreover, they show that the role and the strength of in-group and out-group trust are altered by the type of social identity threat introduced. Finally, they clarify that in-group love and out-group hate phenomena are not zero-sum, and that their presence may be simultaneous when the value of the in-group is threatened by out-group members.

Avian Influenza Virus H5N1: A Review of Its History and Information Regarding Its Potential to Cause the Next Pandemic

Avian influenza virus H5N1, which has been limited to poultry, now has spread to migrating birds and has emerged in mammals and among the human population. It presents a distinct threat of a pandemic for which the World Health Organization and other organizations are making preparations. This article reviews information about the virus itself and its spread among poultry, migrating birds, mammals, and humans.

Chiropractic as spine care: a model for the profession

BackgroundMore than 100 years after its inception the chiropractic profession has failed to define itself in a way that is understandable, credible and scientifically coherent. This failure has prevented the profession from establishing its cultural authority over any specific domain of health care.ObjectiveTo present a model for the chiropractic profession to establish cultural authority and increase market share of the public seeking chiropractic care.DiscussionThe continued failure by the chiropractic profession to remedy this state of affairs will pose a distinct threat to the future viability of the profession. Three specific characteristics of the profession are identified as impediments to the creation of a credible definition of chiropractic: Departures from accepted standards of professional ethics; reliance upon obsolete principles of chiropractic philosophy; and the promotion of chiropractors as primary care providers. A chiropractic professional identity should be based on spinal care as the defining clinical purpose of chiropractic, chiropractic as an integrated part of the healthcare mainstream, the rigorous implementation of accepted standards of professional ethics, chiropractors as portal-of-entry providers, the acceptance and promotion of evidence-based health care, and a conservative clinical approach.ConclusionThis paper presents the spine care model as a means of developing chiropractic cultural authority and relevancy. The model is based on principles that would help integrate chiropractic care into the mainstream delivery system while still retaining self-identity for the profession.

Different Emotional Reactions to Different Groups: A Sociofunctional Threat-Based Approach to "Prejudice".

The authors suggest that the traditional conception of prejudice--as a general attitude or evaluation--can problematically obscure the rich texturing of emotions that people feel toward different groups. Derived from a sociofunctional approach, the authors predicted that groups believed to pose qualitatively distinct threats to in-group resources or processes would evoke qualitatively distinct and functionally relevant emotional reactions. Participants' reactions to a range of social groups provided a data set unique in the scope of emotional reactions and threat beliefs explored. As predicted, different groups elicited different profiles of emotion and threat reactions, and this diversity was often masked by general measures of prejudice and threat. Moreover, threat and emotion profiles were associated with one another in the manner predicted: Specific classes of threat were linked to specific, functionally relevant emotions, and groups similar in the threat profiles they elicited were also similar in the emotion profiles they elicited.

Phosphorus mobility in sediments of acid mining lakes, Lusatia, Germany

Changes in benthic retention and mobility of P were studied in a chronosequential approach in acid (pH 2.5–3.5) to moderately acid (pH 5.6–6.8) mining lakes (MLs) with respect to the threat of eutrophication during maturation. Although various MLs exhibit a high pelagic P availability there is currently no distinct threat of an enhanced eutrophication due to a C limitation and a high benthic P immobilization potential. The sequential P extraction applied revealed an increase in sedimentary total P with increasing pH due to the additional uptake of P by Al- and Fe-hydroxides, but no increase in mobile P forms. Currently, the excess in reactive Fe at a high Fe:P ratio in surface sediment at pH ∼3 favours an efficient P precipitation of Fe-oxi-hydroxides with a high specific surface area for P adsorption. However, an enhanced future P mobility of ML sediments and a threat of eutrophication results from: (1) a distinct reduction of the import of Fe and Al from the catchment over time, resulting in a lower supply towards the sediments, and (2) a reduction in the sedimentary Fe mineral surface area due to the future rise in pH.

Identification of Russian wheat aphid (Homoptera: Aphididae) populations virulent to the Dn4 resistance gene.

The Russian wheat aphid, Diuraphis noxia (Mordvilko), is a serious worldwide pest of wheat and barley. Russian wheat aphid populations from Hungary, Russia, and Syria have previously been identified as virulent to D. noxia (Dn) 4, the gene in all Russian wheat aphid-resistant cultivars produced in Colorado. However, the virulence of Russian wheat aphid populations from central Europe, North Africa, and South America to existing Dn genes has not been assessed. Experiments with plants containing several different Dn genes demonstrated that populations from Chile, the Czech Republic, and Ethiopia are also virulent to Dn4. The Czech population was also virulent to plants containing the Dnx gene in wheat plant introduction PI220127. The Ethiopian population was also virulent to plants containing the Dny gene in the Russian wheat aphid-resistant 'Stanton' produced in Kansas. The Chilean and Ethiopian populations were unaffected by the antibiosis resistance in Dn4 plants. There were significantly more nymphs of the Chilean population on plants of Dn4 than on Dn6 plants at both 18 and 23 d postinfestation, and the Ethiopian population attained a significantly greater weight on Dn4 plants than on plants containing Dn5 or Dn6. These newly characterized virulent Russian wheat aphid populations pose a distinct threat to existing or proposed wheat cultivars possessing Dn4.

Bullying and social identity: The effects of group norms and distinctiveness threat on attitudes towards bullying

Drawing from social identity theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1979), an experiment was carried out to determine the extent to which children's attitudes towards bullying could be moderated by in‐group norms and perceived threat to group distinctiveness. The study investigated the responses of 120 male primary school students aged 10‐13 years from five schools. The children read a story about a popular in‐group and an unpopular out‐group which involved the manipulation of three variables: the norms of the in‐group (bullying vs. fairness); distinctiveness threat (out‐group similarity vs. out‐group difference); and the behaviour of the in‐group character towards the out‐group character (bullying vs. helpful). It was predicted that a perceived threat to group distinctiveness, represented by similarity between the in‐group and the out‐group, and salient group norms that prescribed either bullying or fairness, would moderate the acceptability of bullying behaviours. Two story response measures were analysed: in‐group character liking and whether the in‐group character would be retained as a group member following his behaviour. The strongest support for social identity theory was revealed in the retention of in‐group character variable. The in‐group character was much more likely to have been retained as a group member when he behaved in accordance with group norms. Evidence was also found that bullying was more acceptable when directed at an out‐group member who was similar and therefore possibly represented a threat to the in‐group.

Multiplexed Electrical Detection of Single Viruses

ABSTRACTWe report direct, real-time electrical detection of single virus particles with high selectivity using nanowire field effect transistors. Measurements made with nanowire arrays modified with antibodies for influenza A showed discrete conductance changes characteristic of binding and unbinding in the presence of influenza A but not paramyxovirus or adenovirus. Moreover, simultaneous electrical and optical measurements using fluorescently-labelled influenza A demonstrate conclusively that the conductance changes correspond to binding/unbinding of single viruses at the surface of nanowire devices. In addition, studies of nanowire devices modified with antibodies specific for either influenza or adenovirus show that multiple viruses can be selectively detected in parallel. The possibility of large scale integration of these nanowire devices suggests potential for simultaneous detection of a large number of distinct viral threats at the single virus level.

Gulf Cooperation Council Threat Perceptions Deterrence Objectives

This article highlights existing threat perceptions in the Arab world, with a special emphasis on the Gulf region in order to determine who the oil-rich states are attempting to deter through their steady buildup of arms since the mid eighties. Based on interviews with Middle Eastern policy makers and experts, this article concludes that GCC States have their own distinct threat perceptions. In addition to terrorism, proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction constitute the main sources of threat to Gulf countries. The signing of defense pacts with Western powers, and the possession of an advanced high-tech arsenal of conventional weapons and contemplating the deployment of a regional missile defense shield seem to be means to develop a powerful deterrent to protect GCC states against threats from the north and the east.

Sexual harassment under social identity threat: the computer harassment paradigm.

Two laboratory experiments investigated the hypothesis that threat to male identity would increase the likelihood of gender harassment. In both experiments, using the computer harassment paradigm, male university students (N=80 in Experiment 1, N=90 in Experiment 2) were exposed to different types of identity threat (legitimacy threat and threat to group value in Experiment 1 and distinctiveness threat and prototypicality threat in Experiment 2) or to no threat and were then given the opportunity to send pornographic material to a virtual female interaction partner. Results show that (a) participants harassed the female interaction partner more when they were exposed to a legitimacy, distinctiveness, or prototypicality threat than to no threat; (b) this was mainly true for highly identified males; and (c) harassment enhanced postexperimental gender identification. Results are interpreted as supporting a social identity account of gender harassment.

Toward an emergent global culture and the effects of globalization on obsolescing national cultures

One of the major effects of globalization is the creation of a new and identifiable class of persons who belong to an emergent global culture. As membership in this new global culture rises, many critics find a distinct threat to national cultures, resulting quite possibly in their eventual obsolescence. In this paper, we consider the trends driving the growth of this newly emerging global culture, the process by which new members are socialized into it, the characteristics, or features, that appear to be descriptive of its members, and the impact of this emerging global culture on the obsolescence of national cultures. Finally, while it is unrealistic to expect that the emerging global culture will replace national cultures, we nevertheless conclude that national cultures must be adaptable and able to emphasize the attractiveness of their core elements if they wish to remain relevant in some viable fashion.

The New Financial Landscape in Asia

All Asian exchanges will eventually succumb to the technological winds of change. The Hong Kong exchanges were some of the first to take action by merging in March 2000 to form the HKEx. Each Asian exchange faces distinct threats to its existence (broker consortiums and electronic communications networks), challenges it must meet head on (globalization and conflicting standards), and unparalleled opportunities for growth (increasing trading hours and new listing sources, particularly mainland China).

Gambling with God: The Use of the Lot by the Moravian Brethren in the Eighteenth Century

Gambling with God: The Use of the Lot by the Moravian Brethren in the Eighteenth Century Elisabeth Sommer The use of the lot in decision-making marks the Moravian Brethren as peculiar in eighteenth-century Europe. Their belief that the lot represented the true will of Christ stands at odds with a century which had inherited a changing world view in which a strong confidence in the power of human reason gradually replaced the assumption of God’s providential power. 1 Historian Andrew Fix has traced this intellectual shift as it affected the seventeenth-century Dutch Collegiants, who moved from a spiritualist to a rationalist approach to religious questions. The Moravian Brethren, known in Europe as the Renewed Unity of the Brethren, resisted the triumph of reason over revelation into the late eighteenth century. In this they reflected the general hostility toward the emphasis on science and reason to which George Becker has pointed as a hallmark of the Halle Pietists. 2 This similarity is not surprising given the fact that the Brethren were very much a part of the later Pietist movement and had strong ties with Halle during the formative years of the Unity. Count Nicholas Ludwig von Zinzendorf, the dominant influence in the development of the new Unity, attended the Pädegogium at Halle from 1710 to 1716 and modeled his initial projects on his estate after similar ones in Halle. 3 Halle preceded the Brethren in a struggle over the role of reason in spiritual life. In the 1740s the philosophy of Christian Wolff (and hence also of Leibniz) [End Page 267] became popular among many at Halle, despite his having been removed from the faculty in 1722. Although the Halle Pietists did not reject science and reason out of hand, some among the faculty had perceived a distinct threat to faith from Wolff’s particular focus. 4 Through his view of reason as the divine source of human knowledge, Wolff shifted the ultimate test of religious insight from revelation to reason. 5 This same decade saw the Brethren’s piety reach a height of intensely emotional, even sensual, expression. This may have prevented Wolffian ideas from extending their influence into the Unity at that time. By the 1790s, however, it became clear that, at least among many of the lay members of the Unity, the Enlightenment stress on the primacy of reason was winning. Just as the Collegiants had come to view “free prophecy” as a function of human reason, several of the Brethren ultimately saw the lot as something open to human manipulation and objected to its use, arguing that decisions were best left simply to “brotherly reason.” 6 Although the emphasis on reason invaded the Unity later than it entered Halle, they shared traits that made them vulnerable. In both cases piety was linked to behavior and a certain level of indoctrination. The tendency to drill young people in proper belief and conduct created a climate in which rival ideas could prove quite seductive. 7 A study of the Unity’s use of the lot and its place within their spiritual life over the course of the century reveals this process. It also reveals something of the nature of authority within the Unity since the change was driven by the laity, while the leadership struggled, largely in vain, to maintain the old order. Most importantly, the debate over the use of the lot shows the dynamics of changing ideas outside of the realm of the university and seminary. This allows a view of the impact of practical concerns and individual desires on intellectual change and illuminates the relationship between abstract ideas and social reality. The Unity of the Brethren began as a gathering of Protestant exiles who settled on the Saxon estate of Count von Zinzendorf in 1722. There they founded the village of Herrnhut, and in 1727, under Zinzendorf’s watchful eye, they drew up a set of village statutes in which they sought to preserve its character as a community “built by the living God and a work of his almighty hand.” 8 Their vision of a godly community resulted in a fusion of spiritual authority with economic and domestic authority...

Distinctiveness threat and prototypicality: combined effects on intergroup discrimination and collective self‐esteem

The combined influence on ingroup bias of threat to group distinctiveness and prototypicality as a group member was examined in two studies. It was predicted, in line with social identity theory, that threat to group distinctiveness would lead to more ingroup bias. In addition, on the basis of self-categorization theory it was predicted that protypical and peripheral group members would react differently to a threat to their group distinctiveness. Only group members who define themselves as prototypical group members should be motivated to defend their threatened distinctiveness by engaging in increased ingroup bias. This hypothesis was first supported in a modified minimal group setting in which threat was operationalized as overlapping group boundaries, These results were then replicated in a Second study, using better-established groups, fdr whom distinctiveness threat was manipulated in terms of intergroup similarity. Moreover, some support was found in Study 2 for the prediction that the opportunity to engage in intergroup differentiation can, under restricted conditions, enhance group-related self-esteem. (C) 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.