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Uncommon Trends, Common People: Alternative Modernity, Identity Formation, Class, and Gender in Colonial Nigeria 1920-1960
No full textMuch of the discourse on modernity in Africa is frequently centered around the influence of Western colonialism and education. However, this focus raises questions about what form African modernity might have taken had the continent practiced isolation or entirely rejected foreign influence. Could we have experienced an alternate version of African modernity, one largely unseen but preserved in documents like newspaper articles, private letters, and oral histories? By revisiting these sources, we can attempt to reconstruct and reimagine Africa’s modern story from a fresh perspective.
In the case of Nigeria, this research reveals that an alternate form of modernity was well established, resulting in the creation of a new social class that emerged from the fusion of Western and Indigenous Nigerian cultures. What made this alternative modernity particularly unique and compelling was that it was shaped by the agency of Nigerians themselves. They actively selected, vetted, and integrated foreign influences that aligned with their indigenous values and cultural roots. This process led to the development of a distinct form of partial cosmopolitanism, reflecting both global and local identities.
This alternate modernity permeated everyday life in Nigeria—shaping relationships, religion, and family. It was evident in the rise of industries like indigo dyeing, the creation of at-home celebration clubs, and organizations such as the Abeokuta Ladies Club. Nigerians also crafted a unique fashion that fused traditional clothing with Western styles, producing something entirely original. As a result, a class-conscious middle class emerged, along with a consumer culture that combined local and foreign influences. The consumerist culture that had previously been seen in England was now uniquely replicated and reinterpreted by Nigerians themselves, highlighting the distinctiveness of this process.
Furthermore, while scholars often associate modernity with institutionalized forms that suppress the agency of rural communities and overlook the role of women, this research highlights the significant contributions of informal groups, women, and rural communities. Their involvement was crucial in shaping an alternative modernity, which played a key role in the emergence of a new middle class. Although colonialism influenced ideas and culture, it did not overshadow the Nigerian way of life. Instead, the cultural fusion emphasized “Nigerianness” by integrating Indigenous traditions with selective Western ideas, demonstrating the resilience and adaptability of Nigerian culture
Evaluating the efficacy of the archaeal proteasome to alleviate protein-misfolding retinopathy
Get PDFNearly all neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) and some eye diseases are characterized by the presence of misfolded and aggregated proteins. The ubiquitin proteasome system (UPS) is responsible for degrading the majority of proteins including misfolded and aggregated proteins. However, in NDs the performance of the UPS is impaired, and this impairment partially comes from these protein aggregates inhibiting the proteasome. This inhibition leads to an accumulation of protein aggregates, more proteasomal inhibition, and fewer chaperones for newly synthesized proteins, triggering a collapse in proteostasis, which is thought to contribute to the pathogenesis of NDs. Consequently, stimulating proteasome function is being investigated as a therapeutic strategy to treat NDs and eye diseases. Here we evaluated an alternative approach, expression of the archaeal proteasome subunits, PAN and the 20S to stimulate protein degradation. Hypothetically, PANand the archaeal 20S could increase proteostasis and reduce disease-associated protein aggregates by facilitating protein refolding, reducing protein aggregation, or enhancing protein degradation. Although, there was concern that an exogenous unfoldase and protease would be detrimental to mammalian cells, we found that PAN and the archaeal 20S proteasome did not reduce photoreceptor function or viability. We also show that PAN increased photoreceptor survival and visual function in two mouse models with protein misfolding retinopathy. These results support that archaeal proteasomes may be an effective therapeutic approach to increase protein turnover in eye diseases and NDs with protein-misfolding etiology
Processing, Stability, and High-Temperature Properties of Doped LaCrO3-Based Refractory Ceramics and Composites for Harsh Environments Sensing Applications
Get PDFIn order to test and monitor the operational stability and conditions of various energy, transportation, and manufacturing systems and their components, accurate sensors capable of operating at temperatures over 1000 °C in various environments for long durations are required. In addition, many of these harsh environmental systems do not permit sensors to be directly inserted into the environment, so the sensors need to be embedded into the surrounding support or thermal protective materials. Some technological and industrial applications that require the use of harsh environment conditions sensing include nuclear and chemical reactors, jet engines, heavyduty gas turbines, rotating bearings in aircraft engines, and solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC). For use in solid-stated sensor designs, various high-temperature conductorssuch as noble refractory metals, nitrides, carbides, and silicides have been applied for this purpose; however, those materials are not stable at high temperatures and under different working atmospheres. Other systems such as conductive oxides have been selected as potential conductors for harsh environment sensors development. Lanthanide chromite perovskites (LaCrO3, LC), and various dopant schemes of this composition, exhibit a group of physical properties that satisfy those expected for high temperature sensing applications, such as high melting point, good electrical conductivity at high temperatures, chemical stability under reducing and oxygen-rich atmospheres. In the current dissertation, the physical properties of pure and doped LC were characterized at temperatures up to 1500 oC under different working atmospheresto apply these materials to various solid-state sensor designs. Most previous literature for these compositions limited their studies toSr-, Ca-, Sr-/Mn co-doped LaCrO3 materials at the levels of 10-40 mol% up to 1500 oC under oxidizing, reducing, and variant partial oxygen pressure atmospheres. This work included defining the electronic band structure and band gap energies trends experimentally and through DFT modeling. In addition, the thermoelectric properties were also measured for various doped LaCrO3 compositions and composites (which contained secondary refractory phases). The data acquired was utilized to fabricate thermoelectric sensor devices (thermocouples) which were tested in various temperature regimes and environments for the first time. Finally, the chemical and microstructural stability of these materials were characterized after hightemperature operation, where specifically the electrical and thermoelectrical degradation mechanisms were studied and modeled to better define the working life of such sensors in real industrial and commercial applicationssuch as coal boilers and high-temperature chemical reactors monitoring
Geochemical Phase Associations of Rare Earth Elements and Lithium in Black Shales of the USA: A study in the Appalachian and Haynesville Basins
No full textCritical elements are an indispensable part of the clean energy transition. In the race for alternative energy technologies, lithium and rare earth elements have a proven record of being few of the most sought-after minerals. Limited availability of conventional mineral ores warrants a need to explore, understand and exploit unconventional sources of these elements. To that end, several studies have attempted to understand the rock and mineral assemblages of diverse geological systems. This doctoral thesis focuses on understanding the geochemistry of REE and Li in sedimentary environments, particularly black shale basins in the US. A suite of samples from natural oil and gas producing wells from the Appalachian and Haynesville basins were studied by employing experimental, microscopic and spectrometric techniques to analyze interrelationships between inorganic shale minerals, organic matter, thermal maturity and trace elemental behavior. Several key findings from this thesis inform us about fluid-rock interactions that occur under low-temperature sedimentary low-grade metamorphic conditions, which result in characteristic associations of Li and REE with organic matter. Furthermore, access to basin fluids and syngenetic and diagenetic processes play a critical role in determining REE and Li mobilization from the host phases, that are further remobilized, re-adsorbed or precipitated, leading to enrichment of black shales. Economic assessment of black shales as a probable source of REE is assessed help us develop a critical understanding of black shales being an important candidate for critical mineral resources