Lack Of Receptivity Research Articles

Mulher do fim do mundo: violência feminicida contra a saúde da mulher negra

ABSTRACT This article discusses feminicidal violence and some of its manifestations against Black women. It aims to highlight how everyday experiences and social and power relationships affect this population group and trivialize the violence that affects them, legitimizing high mortality rates from different preventable causes without these being considered a public health problem. Based on a bibliographical survey, the text shows the avoidability of deaths in cases of malignant neoplasms, HIV/AIDS, and suicide resulting from the mitigated access to healthcare associated with subjugations in the racist patriarchal system. Negligence and disregard motivated by structural racism and misogyny shape the death of Black women, revealed by a necropolitics of late diagnoses, failures in sensitization and prevention campaigns, lack of receptiveness, and adequate policies for that population. Relating such violations of the right to health with songs by Elza Soares, this study aims to bring art as an instrument of denunciation and a revival of silenced voices.

Leveraging Informal Learning Pedagogies to Empower Coastal Communities for Disaster Preparedness

With the increasing frequency and intensity of hurricanes, people and communities within hurricane-prone zones are often overwhelmed and lack effective preparedness in terms of social connectivity critical for making proactive decisions to survive anticipated disasters. Disaster management agencies traditionally share preparedness guidelines through formal educational and other public media channels (such as academic institutions, articles, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, etc.) only. However, such formal modalities seldom consider the socio-economic status, cultural background, diversity, and education level of communities. Consequently, vulnerable communities are challenged by poor inclusive accessibility, lack of receptiveness, and responsiveness. An Informal Learning Pedagogy (ILP) for hurricane preparedness can be a practical solution to disseminate knowledge on preparedness and hurricane impacts at the community level through nurturing enthusiasm to learn from one another within the community setting, which causes ripple effects that are more profound within a diverse community. This approach would effectively support educating more people about hurricane preparedness. The main objectives of this study are: 1) to assess the hurricane preparedness awareness of people living in a hurricane-prone coastal community in South Florida, United States; 2) to investigate the applicability of adopting novel ILP mechanisms for a disaster-prone community and; 3) analyze and plan for the development of online community-centered hurricane preparedness training with a primary focus on preparedness, warning, evacuation, and early recovery. Developing training modules focused on disaster preparedness through informal learning environments depends on incorporating actual community requirements, which reflect audience-centered needs as part of enhancing the resilience capacity of coastal communities. As such, in this study, an online questionnaire survey focusing on the validation of the research hypothesis was designed and conducted among South Florida residents. The survey data results indicated that participation in disaster-preparedness training through informal modalities highly depends on the length of an individual’s stay in a disaster-prone zone, anticipated benefits of disaster education, and the availability of online training. This research study contributes to the disaster preparedness and response bodies of knowledge by identifying informal ways of communicating hazard preparedness knowledge to advance the resilience capacities in disaster-prone communities.

Barriers to implementing asthma self-management in Malaysian primary care: qualitative study exploring the perspectives of healthcare professionals

Asthma self-management is a crucial component of asthma management. We sought to explore healthcare professionals’ (HCPs’) perceptions on barriers to asthma self-management implementation in primary care. We recruited 26 HCPs from six public primary care clinics in a semi-urban district of Malaysia in 2019. The analysis was done inductively. HCPs described barriers that resonated with the “COM-B” behaviour change framework. Capability-related issues stemmed from a need for specific self-management skills training. Opportunity-related barriers included the need to balance competing tasks and limited, poorly tailored resources. Motivation-related barriers included lack of awareness about self-management benefits, which was not prioritised in consultations with perceived lack of receptiveness from patients. These were compounded by contextual barriers of the healthcare organisation and multilingual society. The approach to implementation of asthma self-management needs to be comprehensive, addressing systemic, professional, and patient barriers and tailored to the local language, health literacy, and societal context.

National Sovereignty Versus Transboundary Water Cooperation: Can You See International Law Reflected in the Water?

Could Turkey dam the Tigris and Euphrates and deprive its downstream neighbors of vital water resources? Could Brazil over-pump the Guarani Aquifer System to the detriment of the other aquifer states? Could Egypt put pressure on upstream Nile states and prevent them from developing river related infrastructure that might limit downstream flow? International law in the field of transboundary water cooperation has evolved and would appear to condemn unilateral practices such as the ones suggested above. However, hydro politics and the lack of reception of international water law instruments by many countries sometimes make it difficult to see international law properly reflected in the management of major rivers, lakes and aquifers around the world. In this essay, I first highlight what international law dictates when it comes to the tension between national sovereignty and transboundary water cooperation. I then explore how this tension plays out in the three examples noted above. Due to limited acceptance of the existing international, bilateral, or regional legal instruments, the resolution of the tension between national sovereignty and transboundary water cooperation will often be left to customary international law.

Male circumcision as an example of bioethics as (immaterial) social ethics

The medicalization of male circumcision has created opportunity for bioethicists and medical societies to debate the moral value of circumcision through a bioethics framework, predominantly that of principlism. The difficulty with this debate, however, is that it does not speak to the religious motivations or reasons for why those who observe the religious ritual of circumcision do so. Given the axiological gap between bioethicists’ understanding of circumcision and that of religious communities, religious and secular ethicists suffer from an inability to converse about the ethics of the issue, both due to each sides’ different frame of reference as well as from a lack of receptivity on both sides to the arguments made by others. This essay will focus on the perennial controversy of ethical discourse in a multicultural environment, with particular attention to when two groups interpret an action – and the normative implications of that action – differently. Through the case of male circumcision, I will show how ethicists on both sides of the debate speak past each other regarding the crux of their arguments. La médicalisation de la circoncision masculine a permis aux bioéthiciens et aux sociétés médicales de débattre de la valeur morale de la circoncision dans un cadre bioéthique, principalement celui du principe. La difficulté de ce débat, cependant, est qu’il ne porte pas des motivations religieuses ou des raisons pour lesquelles ceux qui observent le rituel religieux de la circoncision le font. Étant donné le fossé axiologique entre la compréhension de la circoncision par les bioéthiciens et celle des communautés religieuses, les éthiciens religieux et laïques souffrent d’une incapacité à converser sur l’éthique de la question, à la fois en raison du cadre de référence différent de chaque partie ainsi que d’un manque de réceptivité des deux parties aux arguments avancés par d’autres. Cet essai se concentrera sur la controverse éternelle du discours éthique dans un environnement multiculturel, avec une attention particulière sur le cas où deux groupes interprètent différemment une action – et les implications normatives de cette action. À travers le cas de la circoncision masculine, je montrerai comment les éthiciens des deux côtés du débat s’expriment l’un l’autre sur le cœur de leurs arguments.

Análise das apresentações da performance através do público

Este trabalho, pretende visar a relação da performance “Nada Poderá Tornarmos Menos Pretos Que Somos”, trecho referente à música “Paz, Coroas e Tronos” do cantor/rap negro e LGBT+ Rico Dalasam, cujo objetivo é mostrar através da arte poética, da música, da expressão corporal a luta e o combate contra o racismo, além de buscar valorizar a história e os saberes da população preta do Brasil, seus processos de resistência, suas dores, a falta de receptibilidade e todas as adversidades sofridas, através do tempo, ao acionar aspectos relevantes da cultura, raízes e á ancestralidade. Desse modo, a performance se constitui uma autoafirmação e um meio de reconhecimento do negro, aponta a falta de evolução de direitos desde a abolição e a busca incessante por autovalorização.

Factors associated with reasons for men not seeking Primary Health Care services

For men to adhere to health services and to perceive themselves as the subject of their care, it is of utmost importance that professionals receive them through qualified listening, listening to their desires and difficulties giving them a welcoming environment. Given this, the objective of this study was to analyze the factors associated with the reasons why men do not seek Primary Health Care services. This was an exploratory, cross-sectional approach, quantitative approach, descriptive study with an analytical character. Data collection was performed through semi-structured interviews with the aid of the primary care assessment instrument in the adult version (PCATool-brasil adult version) with 485 adult men living in rural and urban areas of a city of Sergipe. Statistical analysis was performed using univariate and bivariate techniques, Fisher’s Chi-squared and Exact test by IBM® SPSS - Statistical Package for Social Sciences, version 20.0. There was an association with the delay in care reported by 173 (35.7%) respondents, which were among the rural residents and those with less education. Also, the absence of diseases reported by 164 men (33.8%) was associated with housing in rural areas; and the lack of reception by health professionals (16.7%; n=81) was higher among alcoholics and lower among rural residents. It is concluded that the reasons men do not seek the services offered in Primary Health Care are significantly interfered with by sociodemographic and lifestyle characteristics.

A Neonicotinoid Affects the Mating Behavior of Spalangia endius (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), a Biological Control Agent of Filth Flies.

Spalangia endius Walker is a parasitoid wasp that is commercially available as a biological control agent for filth fly pests in livestock-rearing operations. Imidacloprid is often used to control these flies. The present study examined the sublethal effect of field-realistic concentrations of imidacloprid on mating behavior, offspring sex ratios, and male preference for virgin females. After exposure to imidacloprid, S. endius females that survived were less likely to mate than control females, which will result in male-biased sex ratios because only mated females can produce daughters. Males did not avoid exposed females, but exposed females were almost always unreceptive. Males that survived exposure to imidacloprid exhibited reduced mating competitiveness against unexposed males. However, if an exposed male mated, his mate's sex ratio and ability to control flies was unaffected. Exposed males were also still able to discriminate against mated, and thus usually unreceptive, females. Together with previous studies, these results suggest that not only does imidacloprid reduce the ability of S. endius females to survive and parasitize hosts, but when an exposed female does survive and parasitize hosts, she is likely to produce just sons, because of her lack of receptivity. More-male-biased populations of S. endius will decrease their efficacy for fly control. Thus, the use of imidacloprid along with this parasitoid may be financially inefficient for pest management.

Charity sport event participants and fundraising: An examination of constraints and negotiation strategies

Charity sport events provide participants with a meaningful event experience, and the opportunity to support a charitable cause is a critical component of this experience. This opportunity often involves fundraising, either as a requirement of event participation or as an option to supplement registration. However, fundraising as part of charity sport event participation is a difficult task. In the current research, the authors examine the challenges faced by charity sport event participants in soliciting donations, and the effort made to overcome these challenges. Constraint negotiation served as a theoretical framework to guide this examination. Semi-structured interviews (N = 27) were conducted with Triathlon Pink participants to discuss their fundraising process and their attitudes towards fundraising. Four constraints were revealed: lack of receptivity among potential donors, perceived lack of money from potential donors, discomfort in asking, and lack of time. These constraints were negotiated through three strategies: narrative, prizes and incentives, and emphasising that any bit helps. Based upon the themes uncovered, charity sport event managers can implement increased education of fundraisers and point of sale donations within the registration process.

The use of contraceptive techniques in managed wild African lion (Panthera leo) populations to mimic open system cub recruitment

Context Managed wild lions (Panthera leo) are lions found in smaller (<1000 km2), fenced protected areas that hold a substantial portion of South Africa’s wild lion population. Because the natural population control mechanisms are compromised within these properties, managers must actively control population growth rates. Fecundity control is used by wildlife managers, but long-term, empirical data on the impact and consequences of such interventions in lions are lacking. Aims The aim of the present study was to assess the effectiveness of two methods of contraception (deslorelin implant and unilateral hysterectomy) in reducing cub recruitment of managed wild lions. Methods Survey data spanning 14 years from 94 managed wild lions on 19 protected areas were used to evaluate the effectiveness of deslorelin implant treatments and unilateral hysterectomies on population growth rates through mimicking open system cub recruitment. Key results Deslorelin implants were effective at increasing the age of first reproduction and lengthening inter-birth intervals. There was also an unexpected decrease in litter size. Behavioural side-effects were recorded in 40% of individuals: 19% pride fragmentation; 13% lack of receptiveness towards males; 8% other. The more successive deslorelin implants a lioness had, the more likely it was that weight gain was reported. Unilateral hysterectomy resulted in a decrease in litter size post-surgery, but this was not statistically significant. No behavioural or physiological side-effects were noted after unilateral hysterectomy. Conclusions Deslorelin treatment was more effective in reducing the reproductive output of managed wild lionesses than unilateral hysterectomy surgery. While more side-effects were associated with deslorelin implants than unilateral hysterectomies, a single deslorelin treatment is currently a good option for fecundity reduction. More research is required on unilateral hysterectomy surgery. Implications Neither deslorelin implants nor unilateral hysterectomies offer a ‘silver bullet’ solution for reducing rapid population growth in managed wild lions. Reproductive control should be integrated with other best-practice approaches.

Formação continuada em serviço: metatexto das memórias de professores do Ensino Fundamental em fase final de carreira

Este artigo visa comunicar parte dos resultados de uma pesquisa que teve como objetivo desvelar as memórias de professores do Ensino Fundamental em fase final de carreira da Rede Municipal de Ensino de Blumenau (SC) sobre a formação continuada em serviço, vivenciada em suas carreiras docentes. Realizou-se uma pesquisa socio-histórica, de abordagem qualitativa, sustentada em Gatti e Barretto (2009), Davis, Nunes e Almeida (2011), Nóvoa (2009; 2013) e Imbernón (2010; 2011). Os dados foram gerados por meio de cartas pessoais e técnica de complemento. O método de análise empregado foi a Análise Textual Discursiva. A pesquisa envolveu 14 professores em fase final de carreira da Rede Municipal de Ensino de Blumenau (SC). Os resultados indicaram as seguintes marcas positivas: diferentes modalidades formativas; relevância do curso do Magistério em nível de Ensino Médio; cursos do governo federal; formadores da própria rede de ensino e de profissionais externos; formação durante o horário de trabalho; formações por áreas específicas do conhecimento e grupos menores; encontros formativos mensais ou quinzenais; espaço de formação comum; troca de experiências; parceria entre professor experiente e iniciante; protagonismo do professor; equilíbrio entre teoria e prática; formação na escola; e análise de situações problemáticas. Em relação às marcas negativas, os dados revelaram: problemas em relação à eficiência e à qualidade da formação ofertada pelos formadores da SEMED; ausência de formações inovadoras e atraentes; práticas ocasionais, ausência ou descontinuidade na formação; pouco tempo disponível para a realização da formação; falta de acolhimento no período de inserção profissional; ausência do trabalho colaborativo; comodismo, desinteresse do professor na formação; descontinuidade de políticas educacionais eficazes; opiniões dos professores não são ouvidas; e excesso de teoria distante da prática. Recomenda-se ouvir os professores em fase final de carreira e realizar diagnóstico das suas necessidades formativas para elaborar uma política de formação continuada.

Protecting visible minority children: Family–caseworker dynamics and protective authority intervention strategies.

In Canada, the expression refers to members of cultural minorities, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-White in colour (National Council of Welfare, 2014). According to the National Council of Welfare (2014), members of visible minorities are a relatively young and growing population. Most live with family members, and they are often highly educated but have lower incomes than people who are not visible minorities. Like Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minorities are more likely to face systemic discrimination on the basis of their physical appearance or certain easily recognizable cultural attributes (Chan, 2008). Visible minority families may be first-generation immigrants or born in the host community. Our study was done in the Montreal area of the province of Quebec, where visible minorities account for 32% of the population (Ville de Montreal, 2013).Not all visible minorities families are vulnerable or in difficulty. Furthermore, the trajectories and vulnerabilities observed vary depending on whether the members of visible minorities are new immigrants or not (Dettlaff & Earner, 2012; Hassan et al., 2011). Nevertheless, they often face numerous systemic obstacles as they seek to provide for their needs (LeBrun et al., 2015). Members of visible minorities face high levels of poverty: 22% compared with 9% for nonvisible minorities (National Council of Welfare, 2014). Such forms of adversity may cause considerable stress and put pressure on family relationships (LeBrun et al., 2015). In addition to those common to all children, some risk and protective factors for child maltreatment could be specific to visible minorities, although the available evidence is mixed (LeBrun et al., 2015).Caseworkers run up against a number of difficulties when they offer services to parents from visible minorities. Among sources of misunderstanding (Dufour, Hassan, & Lavergne, 2012), communications problems, relations between men and women, lack of receptiveness on the part of clients, difficulty reassuring clients, and the presence of a third party may hinder the development of a rapport. The language barrier can adversely affect the assessment of the family situation and children's needs, as well as isolate some family members from the treatment plan and thus jeopardize the intervention. Differences between caseworkers' and clients' representations may complicate the casework relationship, its outcomes, and the content covered. Caseworker and clients may not share a common understanding of the nature and intent of social services and their work together. Beyond the predictable clashes between their respective values (what is deemed valid and important) and customs (habits and practices), the true culture shock lies in the differences in the ways clients and caseworkers construct meaning, not necessarily attributing the same explanation to a problem. Their differing views of the origin and consequences of a problem are crucial because they influence whether those involved recognise that there is a problem or not, the sources of the problem, and how to solve it. For example, quite distinct views on child rearing and children's needs may clash. The difficulties may be so great that caseworkers feel they are dealing only superficially with problems (Denis, 2004).In child protection, as in other situations involving imposed assistance, there are challenges that can hamper work with families (Cahalane, 2013). More than half of youth receiving protection services in Montreal are members of visible minorities (Lavergne, Dufour, Sarmiento, & Descoteaux, 2009). Families' rights and freedom to choose are limited by the law. Caseworkers assess whether parents have the capacity to be fit and then compel them to comply with established service standards (Lemay, 2013). The difficulties can be exacerbated when child protective services (CPS) are involved, as in cases of child maltreatment. …

Review of the Causes of Students' Lack of Reception of Vocational Schools of Arts

The purpose of the present research is to review the causes of lack of reception of students of vocational schools of arts. The statistical population has been composed of 16 counselors, 588 students and 588 parents and in proportion with the Delphi method, 16 consultants, 58 students and 58 parents were selected in which the consultants were selected through census and students and their parents were selected randomly. By using the researcher-made questionnaire, data was gathered and the obtained data was analyzed by using the indexes of descriptive and inferential statistics. The results obtained from the research are: in total, 30 causes of lack of reception of vocational institutes have been recognized; in which field, in terms of consultants, based on their opinions, the first priorities are in the field educational factors, lack of success of vocational course in creating and presenting educations in proportion with the need of working market, cultural and social factors: priority of employment, economic factors: duration of the time of unemployment of graduates, individual factors: lack of curiosity associated with the way technical tools work are among them. Also in terms of students, based on students' opinions, the first priorities are in the field of educational factors of making undesirable connections between the system of education and occupation, cultural and social factors: social value and status of technical vocational education, economical factors: rate of income and individual factors: unawareness of vocational majors. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n2s2p176

Scotland's 'Mixed' Feelings About Mediation

This paper was delivered at the 25th International Association for Conflict Management Conference in Stellenbosch, South Africa on 12 July 2012. It considers Scotland’s lack of receptivity towards mediation in the light of its ‘mixed’ legal heritage of both civilian and common law influences. It contrasts the approach to mediation in England and Wales with that of France, where litigation acts like an ‘attracting magnet’. The paper draws on public pronouncements about mediation by senior Scottish judiciary to support its hypothesis that Scotland’s disputing culture retains civilian attitudes despite centuries of common law jurisprudence.

A Critique of Blackstone's Praemunire

By an uneasy de facto compromise struck by William the Conqueror in 1066, the Christian church in England had its own judicial system, in order that the secular authority might not attempt to wield indirect influence over sacred doctrine and faith. There is a bifurcation to this bifurcation, though. Although the judiciary of the Church existed to judge the Church, it was was necessarily in dialogue with its secular counterpart, much as the King was necessarily in dialogue with the Pope. The church courts might face the East, but they were hewn from English timber, and structural necessities dictated that they account for the peculiarities of the adjoining structures. An assertion of Praemunire, which is to say, a claim that the Christian sovereignty had usurped the powers proper to the secular powers, would be split between a claim against the courts structurally intertwined with the secular courts and one against the distant political agency of the Pope similarly intertwined with the King. Critically, these assertions of power against the foreign or foreign-allied entities are not synonymous, and were, in fact, frequently contradictory. The interplay between these two readings of the offense is the history of the offense; it is not so much that it never rallies to its proper function, but rather that the purpose of the common law offense and the subsequent statutes was to sow doubt over what they might mean. In effect, the history of praemunire was a deliberate ambiguity designed to confound the assertions of sovereignty by two very different political agencies. If this is a tenable reading of the story, the Enlightenment and post-Reformation claims of Praemunire as a liberation of Englishmen from the false sovereignty of sacred institutions is cast into serious doubt. England did not decide to be free from the Pope by means of a common law writ developed three centuries before the Reformation, but rather legally situated the ambiguity between the two sovereignties within a certain calculus. The rest is politics, not law. When Blackstone wrote that Praemunire was some sort of Lockean entitlement under the traditions of the common law that had kept the scarlet lady of Rome (or Avignon) at bay, we are forced to come up for another reason for this assertion other than that it was what actually had occurred. By tracing out the varying historical narratives of the writ and the statute and then proceeding to a critical reading of Blackstone's text, it might be possible to cast doubt on the old chestnut that the distinctiveness of the English common law came from the doctrinal purity of its lack of reception of the foreign traditions of civil law and its healthy distrust of the non-legal adjudications of ecclesiastical equity.

Development and Field Test of Voltage VAR Optimization in the Korean Smart Distribution Management System

This paper is a summary of the development and demonstration of an optimization program, voltage VAR optimization (VVO), in the Korean Smart Distribution Management System (KSDMS). KSDMS was developed to address the lack of receptivity of distributed generators (DGs), standardization and compatibility, and manual failure recovery in the existing Korean automated distribution system. Focusing on the lack of receptivity of DGs, we developed a real-time system analysis and control program. The KSDMS VVO enhances manual system operation of the existing distribution system and provides a solution with all control equipment operated at a system level. The developed VVO is an optimal power flow (OPF) method that resolves violations, minimizes switching costs, and minimizes loss, and its function can vary depending on the operator’s command. The sequential mixed integer linear programming (SMILP) method was adopted to find the solution of the OPF. We tested the precision of the proposed VVO on selected simulated systems and its applicability to actual systems at two substations on the Jeju Island. Running the KSDMS VVO on a regular basis improved system stability, and it also raised no issues regarding its applicability to actual systems.

A multi-attribute approach for release time and reliability trend analysis of a software

In a Software Development Life Cycle the testing phase is given a lot of importance. But testing cannot be done indefinitely due to many reasons ranging from marketing considerations to increase in cost. Hence it is pertinent to find the optimal release time during testing phase. Firms routinely face the challenging decision of when to stop testing and release the product in the market. It has been observed that the pace of introduction of new software is much higher in recent years in comparison to any time in the past. Thus to get the competitive edge it is critical to know about the optimal entry time. Too late an entry is likely to lead to significant loss of opportunity. On the other hand early introduction of a product might hinder its growth due to lack of receptiveness of users towards new technology. Many release time problems with optimization criteria like cost minimization, reliability maximization and budgetary constraints etc. have been discussed in the literature. The release time problem discussed in this paper depends on the combined effect of cost and the Failure Intensity function; therefore we formulated an optimal release planning problem based on multi-attribute utility theory. A numerical illustration is provided towards the end of the paper. Furthermore, a trend line for the reliability of software has also been plotted to show the behaviour of reliability.

Sensory system for obstacle detection on high-speed lines

This work presents an intelligent system which allows the detection of obstacles on railways. The sensory system is based on one barrier of infrared emitters and another of receivers, placed on opposing sides of the railway. Obstacle detection is achieved by a lack of reception in the detectors. The efficiency of the system is improved with the geometrical distribution of the sensory system and the encoding used at the emitting and receiving stages. Additionally optimal estimation techniques have been proposed to avoid false alarms, based on Kalman and H∞ filtering. Furthermore, Principal Component Analysis is applied to validate the obstacle detection, and to improve the efficiency of the system. A high reliability under adverse conditions is obtained with the barrier, it now being possible to detect the presence of obstacles, and to report on their position.

Narrowing the Range of Permissible Lies: Recent Battles in the International Image Tribunal

Narrowing the Range of Permissible Lies: Recent Battles in the International Image Tribunal Jim Hicks Abstract The essay investigates the representational constraints and presuppositions that generate images of war and influence their reception, or lack of reception, by the U.S. public. Such journalism still largely follows representational practices put into place during the eighteenth century, a structure of representation that has outlived its usefulness. Following Bruno Latour’s observation that, for critique, the “question was never to get away from facts but closer to them, not fighting empiricism but, on the contrary, renewing empiricism,” it is suggested that recent controversies over war photos, and over those of Abu Ghraib in particular, often substitute an argument about images for one that confronts the acts they depict. The “prisoner abuse” story is of course far from settled; in fact it’s hardly been opened. And yet, as Ernesto Sábato’s preface to Nunca Más (the work published by the Argentine National Commission on the Disappeared) demonstrated long ago, properly applied, even narratology can have policy implications. I begin with a naïve question. How is it possible that the publication of the Abu Ghraib photographs did not (yet) adversely affect the careers of those responsible for the war in Iraq? The photos offer dramatic evidence to the court of public opinion. And the case at hand, at least as prosecuted by Mark Danner, is clear enough: It has . . . become clear that President Bush and his highest officials, as they confronted the world on September 11, 2001, and in the days after, made a series of decisions about methods of warfare and interrogation . . . . The effect of those decisions . . . was officially to transform the United States from a nation that did not torture to one that did. (22) Michael Ignatieff, in describing the benefits of truth commissions, suggests that they may at least “narrow the range of permissible lies.”1 Yet days following his re-election, President Bush appointed Alberto Gonzales to head the U.S. Justice Department—Gonzales, the author of a White House memo describing the Geneva limitations on the questioning of enemy prisoners as “obsolete.” The U.S. press, after the election, widely speculated that Donald Rumsfeld would be a single-term appointee. He was not, and few would cite the Abu Ghraib scandal as an important factor in his long-awaited departure. Condoleezza Rice replaced Colin Powell as Secretary of State. Major General Geoffrey Miller, former head of the prison at Guantanamo Bay, was given command of Abu Ghraib. How could this happen? Perhaps someone somewhere believes they’ve all been doing a heck of a job. On an apparently unrelated front, theater critic turned pundit Frank Rich has opined that the U.S. public is “living in a permanent state of suspension of disbelief,” always “ready and willing to be duped by the next tall tale.” Though Rich’s immediate subject is a fake memoir by James Frey, he uses the best-seller success of this scam publication to decry (or was it admire?) his real target—the “Frey-like genius of the right” and “the White House propaganda operation,” with their “intricate network of P.R. outfits and fake-news outlets.” According to Rich, Stephen Colbert nailed it when he coined the word “truthiness”; today the public demands nothing more substantial, reputable or real than that. One explanation for the lack of outcry regarding the promotions of the gang that brought us Abu Ghraib might thus be that the U.S. public ingests whatever Bushite is dished out to it. Where there are counterstories in the media at all, they are buried, squelched, or otherwise rendered ineffective. And yet, just a decade ago, things seemed different. Reiterated in most accounts of the war in Bosnia is the claim that photojournalism helped bring the slaughter to an end. This notion is familiar, of course, at least since Vietnam: reporting has been said to set the terms of public opinion, and politicians in the West are often seen as responding to the sentiments of their various publics. In short, the right pictures are worth a thousand divisions. I won’t speculate here about whether the power of...

Are environmental concerns drivers of innovation? Interpreting Portuguese innovation data to foster environmental foresight

The relationship between environmental concerns and innovation is analyzed in the context of Portuguese manufacturing firms, with the ultimate goal to foster measures of environmental foresight. Based on data from the Community Innovation Survey in Portugal, simple statistical tests, including Chi 2, t, and Levene's tests and contingency tables (adjusted standardized residuals), were used to study the relationship between firms' characteristics and the introduction of innovation aiming to reduce environmental damage. Environmental foresight is discussed based on three groups of variables that allow considering the industrial context that frames firm's actions, the economic performance of the firm and its innovation patterns. Results show that the development of innovation due to environmental concerns is positively associated with the firm's size and exports share, and negatively associated with its technological content. Moreover, it is shown that the firms that introduced innovations due to environmental concerns are likely to belong to an economic group, to have performed continuous R&D, or received public support. It is also shown that “lack of organizational flexibility” and “lack of receptivity by customers” are the two most relevant innovation barriers for these firms.