Lucky Star Research Articles

“I Thank My Lucky Star for the Time spent with my Family”: Efforts to Reunite with Families among Members of the Great Emigration

“I Thank My Lucky Star for the Time spent with my Family”: Efforts to Reunite with Families among Members of the Great Emigration

Conventional Sphagnum peatlite substrate can be reduced by 50% in stratified substrate systems while growing equivalent size and quality Pentas lanceolata

Floriculture crop production heavily relies on the use of peat-based substrates to quickly mass produce containerized crops. The sustainability of using peat moss has been an increasing concern for both horticultural stakeholders and the community. The concept of stratifying soilless substrates (i.e., vertically layering unique substrates atop of each other within the container) has been shown to reduce peat moss applications by upwards of 50 %. Although, most stratified substrate research has only studied an equal partition in which the substrate is evenly split into two layers. This necessitates further studying modification of the limits and optima for the depth of each layer. This study evaluated adjusting this stratified depth layer for possible further benefits, such as reduced water and peat moss applications. Lucky Star Dark Red Pentas lanceolata ‘PAS1231189’ was grown in one of four substrate treatments, including a (1) non-stratified 100 % peat and perlite blend (peat-lite), (2) 13.4 cm peat-lite placed above 4.4 cm pine bark (PB) horizon with the container consisting of 75 % (by vol.) peat-lite and 25 % (by vol.) PB; (3) 8.9 cm peat-lite placed above 8.9 cm PB layer with the container consisting of 50 % (by vol.) peatlite and 50 % (by vol.) PB; (4) 4.5 cm peat-lite placed above 13.3 cm PB with the container consisting of 25 % (by vol.) peat-lite and 75 % (by vol.) pine bark. Crops were placed on irrigation-actuated lysimetry systems to maintain substrate volumetric water contents between 0.20 and 0.30 cm3 cm−3. This study identified successful production of pentas in stratified profiles when the depth layer is ≥ 50 % peatlite by vol., with equal growth to pentas grown traditionally (i.e., 100 % peat-lite; non-stratified). Crops grown in a 25 % peat-lite : 75 % PB depth layer experienced significantly reduced growth with regards to growth index, quality, and dry biomass. Moreover, crops grown in the 25 % peat-lite by vol. also experienced faster peak inflorescence with a subsequent continuous decline in flower development due to water stress; whereas, plants grown in ≥ 50 % peatlite by vol. continued to develop blooms throughout the study. This study demonstrates that a popular floriculture crop can be grown by stratifying expensive floriculture media above inexpensive PB with little to no differences in growth if the stratified peat layer is equal or greater than 50 % the container vol.

Differential aperture photometry and digital coronagraphy with PRAIA

PRAIA – Package for the Reduction of Astronomical Images Automatically – is a suite of photometric and astrometric tasks designed to cope with huge amounts of heterogeneous observations with fast processing, no human intervention, minimum parametrization and yet maximum possible accuracy and precision. It is the main tool used to analyse astronomical observations by an international collaboration involving Brazilian, French and Spanish researchers under the Lucky Star umbrella for Solar System studies. Here, we focus on the concepts of differential aperture photometry and digital coronagraphy underneath PRAIA, used in the reduction of stellar occultations, rotational light curves, mutual phenomena and natural satellite observations. We highlight novelties developed by us and never before reported in the literature, which significantly enhance the precision and automation of photometry and digital coronagraphy, such as: (a) PRAIA’s pixelized aperture photometry (PCAP), which avoids pixel sub-sampling or fractioning; (b) fully automatic object detection and aperture determination (BOIA), which abolishes the use of arbitrary sky background sigma factors, and finds better apertures than by using subjective FWHM factors; (c) better astrometry improving the aperture and coronagraphy centres, including the new Photogravity Center Method besides circular and elliptical Gaussian and Lorentzian generalized profiles; (d) coronagraphy of faint objects close to bright ones and vice-versa; e) use of elliptical rings for the coronagraphy of elongated profiles; (f) refined quartile ring statistics; (g) multiprocessing image capabilities for faster computation speed. We give examples showing the photometry performance, discuss the advantages of PRAIA over other popular packages for Solar System differential photometric observations, point out the uniqueness of its digital coronagraphy in comparison with other coronagraphy tools and methods, and comment about future planed implementations. Besides Solar System works, PRAIA can also be used in the differential photometry of variable and cataclysmic stars and transient phenomena like exoplanet transits and microlensing, and in the digital coronagraphy of astrophysical observations. PRAIA codes and input files are publicly available for the first time at: https://ov.ufrj.br/en/PRAIA/.

Astrometry with PRAIA

PRAIA – Package for the Reduction of Astronomical Images Automatically – is a suite of astrometric and photometric tasks designed to cope with huge amounts of heterogeneous observations with fast processing, no human intervention, minimum parameterization and yet maximum possible accuracy and precision. It is the main tool used to analyse astronomical observations by an international collaboration involving Brazilian, French and Spanish researchers under the Lucky Star umbrella for Solar System studies. In this paper, we focus on the astrometric concepts underneath PRAIA, used in reference system works, natural satellite and NEA astrometry for dynamical and ephemeris studies, and lately for the precise prediction of stellar occultations by planetary satellites, dwarf-planets, TNOs, Centaurs and Trojan asteroids. We highlight novelties developed by us and never reported before in the literature, which significantly enhance astrometry precision and automation. Such as the robust object detection and aperture characterization (BOIA), which explains the long standing empirical photometry/astrometry axiom that recommends using apertures with 2 – 3 σ (Gaussian width) radius. We give examples showing the astrometry performance, discuss the advantages of PRAIA over other astrometry packages and comment about future planed astrometry implementations. PRAIA codes and input files are publicly available for the first time at: https://ov.ufrj.br/en/PRAIA/. PRAIA astrometry is useful for Solar System as well as astrophysical observations.

Evaluation of Native and Nonnative Ornamentals as Pollinator Plants in Florida: I. Floral Abundance and Insect Visitation

Diverse floral resources impart immense value for pollinating insects of all types. With increasing popularity and demand for modern ornamental hybrids, cultivation by breeders has led to selection for a suite of traits such as extended bloom periods and novel colors and forms deemed attractive to the human eye. Largely understudied is pollinator preference for these new cultivars, as compared with their native congeners. To address this gap in understanding, 10 species of popular herbaceous flowering plants, commonly labeled as pollinator-friendly, were evaluated at two sites in Florida [U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) cold hardiness zones 8b and 9a] and across three seasons for their floral abundance and overall attractiveness to different groups of pollinating insects. Each genus, apart from pentas, encompassed a native and nonnative species. Native species included blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella), lanceleaf coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata), pineland lantana (Lantana depressa), and scarlet sage (Salvia coccinea). Nonnative species included Barbican™ yellow-red ring blanket flower (G. aristata ‘Gaiz005’), Bloomify™ rose lantana (L. camara ‘UF-1011-2’), mysty salvia (S. longispicata ×farinacea ‘Balsalmysty’), Lucky Star® dark red pentas (Pentas lanceolata ‘PAS1231189’), ruby glow pentas (P. lanceolata ‘Ruby glow’) and Uptick™ Gold & Bronze coreopsis (Coreopsis × ‘Baluptgonz’). Flower-visiting insects were recorded during five-minute intervals in the morning and categorized into the following morpho-groups: honey bees, large-bodied bees (bumble and carpenter bees), other bees (small to medium-bodied native bees), butterflies/moths, and wasps. Floral abundance and pollinator visitation varied widely by season, location, and species. Of the plant species evaluated, nonnative plants produced nearly twice as many flowers as native plants. About 22,000 floral visitations were observed. The majority of visits were by native, small to medium-bodied bees (55.28%), followed by butterflies and moths (15.4%), large-bodied native bees (11.8%), wasps (10.0%), and honey bees (7.6%). Among plant genera, both native and nonnative coreopsis and blanket flower were most attractive to native, small to medium-bodied bees (e.g., sweat bees, leafcutter bees) with the greatest number of visitations occurring during the early and midmonths of the study (May–August). Across the study, butterflies and moths visited lantana more frequently than all other ornamentals evaluated, whereas pentas were most attractive to wasps. Large-bodied bees visited plants most frequently in May and June, primarily foraging from both native and nonnative salvia. While results from this study showed nominal differences between native and nonnative species in their ability to attract the studied pollinator groups, care should be taken to making similar assessments of other modern plant types.

Evaluation of Native and Nonnative Ornamentals as Pollinator Plants in Florida: II. Floral Resource Value

Consumer demand for novel, visually attractive ornamentals has often overshadowed the functional value plants may provide for flower-visiting insects. As native and nonnative species are hybridized for form, color, flowering, and disease resistance, it is important to assess whether some of these alterations influence plant nutrient quality for foraging insect pollinators. A study was conducted to ascertain the resource value of ornamental cultivars compared with their native congeners. The nectar volume and pollen quantity, viability, and protein content of 10 species of popular herbaceous flowering plants, commonly advertised as pollinator-friendly, were evaluated in northcentral Florida. Each genus encompassed a native and nonnative species, apart from pentas. Native species included blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella), lanceleaf coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata), pineland lantana (Lantana depressa), and scarlet sage (Salvia coccinea). Nonnative species included Barbican™ yellow-red ring blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata ‘Gaiz005’), Bloomify™ rose lantana (Lantana camara ‘UF-1011-2’), mysty salvia (Salvia longispicata × farinacea ‘Balsalmysty’), Lucky Star® dark red pentas (Pentas lanceolata ‘PAS1231189’), ruby glow pentas (Pentas lanceolata ‘Ruby glow’) and UpTick™ Gold & Bronze coreopsis (Coreopsis × ‘Baluptgonz’). Floral rewards differed significantly across species. The native scarlet sage exhibited the largest nectar volume per flower in the summer (2.13 ± 0.17 µL), followed by the nonnative mysty salvia (1.26 ± 0.17 µL). In the fall, ruby glow pentas exhibited the largest nectar volume per flower (1.09 ± 0.17 µL) compared with all other ornamentals. The composite flowers of the native and nonnative blanket flower and coreopsis species had the lowest nectar volume per flower regardless of sampling date. Likewise, ruby glow pentas displayed the highest quantity of pollen grains (96.29 ± 0.12) per sample, followed by Lucky star pentas (52.33 ± 0.12), and Barbican blanket flower (50.98 ± 0.12). Pollen viability was similarly high (92% to 98%) among all species, apart from Bloomify rose lantana (20%) and pineland lantana (48%). Pollen protein content was highest in Uptick coreopsis (11.378 ± 1.860 μg/mg dry weight) and Lucky star pentas (10.656 ± 3.726 μg/mg dry weight), followed by lanceleaf coreopsis (7.918 ± 1.793 μg/mg dry weight). These results largely showed that the nonnative ornamentals selected provided resource-rich floral rewards, comparable to native congeners. Still, care should be taken in making similar assessments of other modern floral types.

A Single-chord Stellar Occultation by the Extreme Trans-Neptunian Object (541132) Leleākūhonua

Abstract A stellar occultation by the extreme large-perihelion trans-Neptunian object (541132) Leleākūhonua (also known by the provisional designation of 2015 TG387) was predicted by the Lucky Star project and observed with the Research and Education Collaborative Occultation Network on 2018 October 20 UT. A single detection and a nearby nondetection provide constraints for the size and albedo. When a circular profile is assumed, the radius is km, corresponding to a geometric albedo , for an adopted absolute magnitude of H V = 5.6, typical of other objects in dynamically similar orbits. The occultation also provides a high-precision astrometric constraint.

Long Live Cinema! Long Live FESPACO. <em>A luta continua</em>

Long Live Cinema!Long Live FESPACO. A luta continua Claire Diao (bio) February 2005. In the open air auditorium of the Georges Méliès Cultural Center in Ouagadougou (renamed the French Institute of Ouagadougou), is being screened Ismaël Ferroukhi's Le grand voyage (2004, Morocco), opening on a star-studded night with a voice over by ARTE. "This film was born under a lucky star." In the stands, hundreds of spectators are religiously following this competing fiction feature film that traces the story of a boy, born in France, and his father, born abroad, going together to Mecca despite strong cultural misunderstandings. What about the first time I attended FESPACO! I was certain I would meet the film family (composed of directors, actors, technicians, faculty, and programmers from all over the world)! The screening of Diaspora films was sometimes done in French and anglophones had trouble finding their way around. Discussions on movies were held at Hôtel Indépendance, by the pool, although Ousmane Sembène can no longer attend, as he passed away the year before. Some dared to approach filmmakers they did not know, others stayed in their corners. And always, at the entrance of cinema rooms, those interminable queues, those crowded stairs, and those screenings where the magic of cinema transpires. A feeling of union and collectivity… For me who was born in Africa and raised abroad, there was a feeling of homecoming, added to my passion for cinema which, unintentionally created a perfect link between my father's country—my dear and beautiful Faso, cradle of FESPACO, INAFEC, CIPROFILMS, and CIDC—and that of my mother—cradle of the Lumières brothers, the cinematograph, the Cannes Film Festival, and the CNC. What to say about this feeling that I had then, watching dozens of films, rubbing shoulders with hundreds of moviegoers, meeting late Samba Félix N'Diaye, then president of the FESPACO Documentary jury backed by Écrans Association, of which I had the honor of being a member? This is where I met Teboho Edkins who was vilified in the Petit Méliès room for shooting a documentary about men spreading the AIDS virus in South [End Page 260] Africa. There, I met many journalists who later became my colleagues. There, I confirmed my love for cinemas from Africa which later guided my university and professional choices. During my internship at the Centre Culturel Georges Méliès, I had the pleasure of organizing two screenings for four hundred students from Ouagadougou around the Second World War. These high school students came in large numbers and above all, actively participated in the ensuing debate with their History teachers. It was a personal revelation—that of transmitting cinema–but also a cultural revelation. There was (and still is) in Burkina, an unprecedented thirst for learning, far from the overconsumption and overcrowded cultural offer available to French high school students, overwhelmed by TV screens, cultural outings, discounted rates and video recorders in class to illustrate courses delivered by their teachers. In my discussions with Ouaga high school teachers, two remarks held my attention: the first one was related to language. Savvy moviegoers like to see movies in VO. One teacher hailed me "Why screen a film in English when even French is not the mother tongue of our students?" Then the remark from this other lady: "This movie screening idea is very good. But why bring high school students to you while cinema could come to the students? You could reach a lot more people." Here are two remarks I have never forgotten and which helped forge my career. While studying cinema in France and then in England, I discovered many filmmakers and scholars, many of whom wrote great papers for the magazine Écrans d'Afrique edited by the Italian association COE. I realized that the cinema of a whole continent was often shrinking due to lack of knowledge, of interest and especially of means. We talk about "African cinema" as if there were only ten productions per year on the continent, whereas in reality, each country has built its cinematography since (or well before) the independences! The fight is on all fronts...

Тема Галлиполи в русской литературе

We consider the history of Russian refugees who found themselves on the territory of Turkey. They were placed in the Naked Field. Despite the conditions that are difficult to compatible with life, they maintained discipline and led an active social life within the settlement, however, the profits and achievements of this activity went far beyond these limits and, thanks to the works of I.S. Lukash and G.I. Gazdanov, became the property of Russian classical literature. The fate of these two pen masters is sometimes literally parallel, sometimes exactly the opposite. Not all the writers of the Naked Field had such a lucky literary star as they had: the young poet junker V. Rutkovsky died of wounds in the “Valley of Roses and Death”. I.S. Lukash and G.I. Gazdanov never write about each other, but the analogies in their prose coincide, sometimes word for word. We carry out an indicative analysis of several pages. They write about the same events that be-came part of their personal and collective experience. We analyze the book “Gazdanov” by O.M. Orlova from the “Life of Wonderful People” series. The work contains evidence of the Gal-lipoli standing of Russian refugees practically from first hand, provides information about the chronicle of their everyday life.

Business Development Using Business Model Canvas in Lucky Star Digital Printing

Large amount of the demands for branding and spreading the information makes the business of digital printing dominate the market needs. Lucky Star located in Cepu has been operating for 5 years. Unfortunately, they do not have the right business model. To collect the data was obtain from Focus Group Discussion (FGD). Questions asked on FGD were directed to gain knowledge about the owner and employees’ wants, also customers needs. Afterwards, the data were classified according to the categories of BMC. The researcher offered BMC hope that it can lead the business become market leader. Business model Canvas is validated using the javelin board to show that problems and the solutions are correct. The results of this study indicate that customer segments must be determined with STP (Segmenting, Targeting, Positioning) strategy. The additional value proposition is create a promo, bundling products, and add delivery services. the best channel is the word of mouth method. Lucky Star's additional revenue stream comes from supplier because offers products at wholesale prices. Additional key resources is give responsibility to employees for financial reports and promotion sections. In customer relation aspect, give member card for customers and providing after-sales services. Additional for key activities are Quality control, business evaluation, Promotion. In key partnerships aspect, must looking for suppliers of digital printing equipment at wholesale prices. For cost structure, need requires employees who are responsible for online financial management

Born Under a Lucky Star: Financial Aid, College Completion, Labor Supply, and Credit Constraints

Higher education has experienced many changes since the 1970s, including an increase in the price of college, an increase in student employment during college, a decrease in college completion rates, and an increase in time to degree. This paper ties these trends together by causally linking changes in financial aid with time to degree and student employment during college. I find that additional financial aid accelerates graduation for university seniors because they increase credits attempted and reduce earnings while in college. In reaching this finding, I use administrative education and earnings data to examine a discrete change in the amount of federal financial aid available to financially independent students. The estimates in this paper imply that roughly 50 percent of the observed increase in time to degree can be explained by changes in tuition.

Born Under a Lucky Star: Financial Aid, College Completion, Labor Supply, and Credit Constraints

Born Under a Lucky Star: Financial Aid, College Completion, Labor Supply, and Credit Constraints

Following my lucky star.

About 30 years ago, while lunching with science faculty members during a campus visit, I was asked to what I attributed my success. My spur of the moment reply, “The ability to write and speak easily and well,” surprised them. But I answered this way because many of the activities I engaged in

PhDs in academic gastroenterology: key to a successful career.

PhDs in academic gastroenterology: key to a successful career.

An Interview with David Millington.

David Millington was born under a lucky star. To hear him tell it, his life story consists of one serendipitous event after another. Certainly from a historical point of view, he has been at the right place at the right time. In 1941, just three years before he was born, the Americans George Beadle and Edward Tatum made a discovery that paved the way for the modern science of molecular biology. Mutating genes in Neurospora , a type of red bread mold, they were able to alter specific enzymes in the metabolic pathways of the mold, thereby confirming a hypothesis put forth in 1902 by the British physician Archibald Garrod that hereditary diseases are due to “inborn errors of metabolism.” This discovery was followed 20 years later—just as Millington was entering college—when the American microbiologist Robert Guthrie came up with the first blood test for phenylketonuria (PKU), which opened up the field of newborn screening. Millington wrote his own chapter in the tale in the late 1980s when he and colleagues had the idea to apply the cutting-edge technique of tandem mass spectrometry to the analysis of newborn blood samples. Their work—which has saved thousands of lives not just in North America but worldwide—revolutionized the field of newborn screening, turning it from a backwater into a scientific success story. In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control called newborn screening one of the great public health achievements of the past 10 years. Millington, who held the post of Medical Research Professor of Pediatrics and Director of the Biochemical Genetics Laboratory at Duke University Medical Center, spoke with me from his office in early July. He had just retired after over 30 years of service. This is a great moment—you've just retired! Two days ago. After a long and illustrious career. I …

Contents tourism and local community response: Lucky star and collaborative anime-induced tourism in Washimiya

This article demonstrates how a local community succeeded in forming favourable relationships with fans and copyright holders in Washimiya, a town in which the anime television series Lucky star was set. Washimiya is now visited by fans from all across Japan as a so-called anime sacred site. Through interviews with fans, local people and the anime production company, participant observation and analysis of primary documents, the article outlines how the local community, fans and copyright holders formed relationships based on mutual consideration to the benefit of all. Mutual understanding and common goals emerged from their shared respect for the contents (Lucky star), a phenomenon that has received little attention in discussions about ‘contents tourism’. By viewing contents tourism not only as a licensing business or business between the host and the guest, but instead as communication between people in an actual space and time with contents at the centre of interactions, many important insights are gained into the potential for contents tourism.

Born under a lucky star? Latin American CEOs' perceptions about their own career development

This article explores Latin American Chief Executive Officers' (CEOs') perceptions about the influence of career self-management practices and chance events on their career pathways. Through an edited topical life story approach, we investigate the relationship between those variables throughout CEO's career trajectories in the Latin American context. Semi-structured in-depth interviews with 22 CEOs working for multinational companies were conducted. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed with the aid of QSR NVivo 7 software. The study showed that even in volatile macroeconomic environments, typical of Latin American countries, CEOs do plan their careers. Career planning constitutes the backbone of the career management process. To deal with low predictability chance events, CEOs relied on active development network as the main career self-management practice. However, choice of mobility was the key career self-management behavior when responding to high predictability chance events. These central strategies were frequently combined with other career self-management practices, taking into consideration the type of chance event being responded to. According to this study, if individuals want to develop their careers in unstable environments, they will need to be proficient in career self-management practices, with particular emphasis on network development and choice of job mobility, as well as in happenstance skills.

The purine nucleotides guanine, adenine and inosine are a dietary requirement for optimal growth of black tiger prawn, P. monodon

Prawns have a dietary requirement for nucleotides for optimum growth. Commercial diets and many natural feed ingredients, including fishmeal are high in nucleotides, with guanine and its derivatives contributing the highest proportion of total nucleotide. The aim of this study was to test the role of guanine alone and in combination with other purified nucleotides on growth, survival rate and non-specific immunity of prawns using a supplemented semi-purified diet. Semi-purified diets as basal (or control) and basal diets supplemented with 0.4% GMP, 0.5% GMP and with combinations of 0.4% GMP with 0.1% of each of AMP, CMP, IMP or UMP were used to feed the prawns (initial mean weight of 3.83±0.01g) for 53days. Two positive control diets, one comprising the semi-purified diet supplemented with a commercial nucleotide mixture, Optimun at 2.27% (0.5% total nucleotide) and a commercial diet, Lucky Star, were also included. Supplementation levels were chosen based on the optimal total nucleotide content determined in previous trials with the semi-purified diet. Growth rates of prawn (DGC, %/day) were significantly higher in groups of prawn fed diets supplemented with 0.5% GMP, GMP+AMP, GMP+IMP than prawns fed the basal, 0.4% GMP, and GMP+UMP (p≤0.030). THC were highest in groups of prawns fed diets containing GMP+AMP, GMP+IMP, GMP+CMP and the basal diet supplemented with Optimun (32×106–33×106cells/mL) and were significantly higher than THC in groups of prawns fed basal diet and diet supplemented with 0.4% GMP alone (~26.5×106cells/mL) (p≤0.038). On day 52, concentrations of guanine, adenine, total purine and total nucleotide in prawn diets were highly positively correlated with weight of prawns (p≤0.013), whilst THC was significantly correlated with guanine, total purine and total nucleotide content (p≤0.023). Survival rates of prawns were very high (between 92 and 100%) and did not differ significantly among diet treatments (p=0.449). Purine nucleotides, especially guanine, appear to be critical for optimal growth of black tiger prawn, Penaeus monodon.

Can Euromillions Lottery Be Profitable?

EuroMillions is a major pan-European lottery where the player chooses 5 main numbers out of 50 and 2 different lucky star numbers out of 11 (the latest rules from May 10, 2011). A standard ticket costs EUR 2.00. The lottery imposes a Jackpot Cap, the maximal amount that can be won by guessing all the winning numbers. After the draw on July 12, 2011, this Cap is set to EUR 190,000,000 and since January 12, 2012 this Cap is locked permanently so it will not increase in the near future. The Jackpot Cap before July 12, 2011 was EUR 185,000,000. Since the last significant change of rules on May 10, 2011 there were several notable Jackpot wins: EUR 190M won on August 10, 2012 (the current Jackpot Cap), EUR 185M won on July 12, 2011 (the previous Jackpot Cap), or EUR 162.257M won on September 13, 2011. The fact that the Jackpot can get to rather significant numbers raises a question whether it is possible to have a profitable betting strategy.

Distinction, intentions, and the consumption of fiction: Negotiating cultural legitimacy in a gay reading group

The relationship between the ‘legitimate’ (or highbrow) and the ‘popular’ (or lowbrow) in cultural consumption has been extensively researched and debated in relation to Pierre Bourdieu’s concepts of ‘distinction’ and ‘cultural capital’ and Richard Peterson’s concept of ‘omnivorousness’. This paper contributes to that sociological tradition by carrying out qualitative discourse analysis of a gay reading group’s verbal responses to Joe Keenan’s comic novel, My Lucky Star (2006) — a strategy that is acknowledged to be controversial, given the discourse analytic critique of sociology. It is found that members of the reading group studied here exhibit aspects of distinction and omnivorous openness in their arguments over the novel’s merits (or lack thereof), and that perceptions of authorial intention — in particular, Keenan’s non-intention to write a ‘serious’ book — are deeply implicated in this evaluative discourse. Evidence is found not only for a high degree of alignment between the group’s discourse on the novel and written discourse on the same novel in the mass media, but also for the importance of a specifically gay variety of ‘subcultural capital’, to which some group members appeal in order to contest other members’ dismissal of the book as insufficiently ‘serious’ to be worthy of discussion.