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Strategizing decolonial subversions: A dialogue. Suresh Canagarajah interviewed by Victoria Odeniyi and Gillian Lazar
Get PDFThis is a conversation in writing between the three participants
A novel scheduling algorithm for improved performance of multi-objective safety-critical wireless sensor networks using long short-term memory
Get PDFThe multiple objective optimisation (MOO) challenges encountered in the context of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) present a formidable NP-hard problem. These issues primarily arise from the constraints imposed by critical factors such as connectivity, coverage, and, most notably, energy consumption. Simultaneously fulfilling these three requirements is no longer considered the standard approach for enhancing system dependability. To illustrate, a prospective solution may optimise one or two of these requirements while bolstering overall network energy efficiency. Nonetheless, prior endeavours documented in the extant literature reveal unexplored avenues for enhancement. Hence, this paper introduces a new methodology aimed at alleviating MOO concerns and thereby enhancing the quality of service (QoS) in WSNs. A long short-term memory (LSTM) model is proposed as an analytical tool to deliver an energy-efficient scheduling solution that aligns and optimises WSN parameters, striving to attain the most favourable system performance. The LSTM algorithm’s effectiveness is assessed through the iterative application of periods, confirming the desired QoS levels. The unique feature of LSTM lies in its capability to observe specific event sequences and subsequently establish them as the system’s default configuration for its entire operational lifespan. Once these favourable parameters are identified, LSTM automatically ensures consistent service availability and reliability throughout the network’s lifespan. The results obtained demonstrate the superiority of the proposed LSTM-based scheduling algorithm in comparison to the self-organising map (SOFM)-based node scheduling algorithm. The LSTM-based approach outperforms the SOFM-based alternative by a remarkable 75% in terms of coverage and exhibits a 20% enhancement in network lifetime, all while maintaining equivalent levels of connectivity (i.e., 99%) in both algorithms
Facial emotion recognition and classification using the Convolutional Neural Network-10 (CNN-10)
Get PDFThe importance of facial expressions in nonverbal communication is significant because they help better represent the inner emotions of individuals. Emotions can depict the state of health and internal wellbeing of individuals. Facial expression detection has been a hot research topic in the last couple of years. The motivation for applying the convolutional neural network-10 (CNN-10) model for facial expression recognition stems from its ability to detect spatial features, manage translation invariance, understand expressive feature representations, gather global context, and achieve scalability, adaptability, and interoperability with transfer learning methods. This model offers a powerful instrument for reliably detecting and comprehending facial expressions, supporting usage in recognition of emotions, interaction between humans and computers, cognitive computing, and other areas. Earlier studies have developed different deep learning architectures to offer solutions to the challenge of facial expression recognition. Many of these studies have good performance on datasets of images taken under controlled conditions, but they fall short on more difficult datasets with more image diversity and incomplete faces. This paper applied CNN-10 and ViT models for facial emotion classification. The performance of the proposed models was compared with that of VGG19 and INCEPTIONV3. The CNN-10 outperformed the other models on the CK + dataset with a 99.9% accuracy score, FER-2013 with an accuracy of 84.3%, and JAFFE with an accuracy of 95.4%
Moving forward by looking back: critiques of commercialized mindfulness and the future of (commercialized) psychedelics
No full textMuch has been written in the academic and popular press on the positive consequences of psychedelic-induced mental states. Following the disappearance of psychedelic research from the public eye between the 1970s and early 2000s, a second wave of psychedelic research is gaining increasing interest from private sector actors looking to explore commercial opportunities. The commercialization of psychedelic substances will likely have consequences for how they are used, to what ends, and to what degree of efficacy. We reflect on the critiques of commercialized mindfulness and explore how they may apply to the future of commercialized psychedelics. Mindfulness and psychedelics share several qualities, including their often spiritual origins and self-transcendent nature. However, mindfulness has already undergone a period of commercialization and represents a precedent case for imagining the possible outcomes of the commercialization of psychedelics. By considering the problems associated with separating the practice from its spiritual roots, co-optation to reinforce neoliberal principles, and alterations to administration to cut costs, the article demonstrates the tensions that arise when trying to implement practices rooted in enhancing well-being in societies dominated by consumer capitalism
Prince with a thousand faces: shifting art-styles and the depiction of violence in Watership Down
No full textFollowing its heavily stylised prologue, the first time we see a rabbit in Watership Down (1978) it is in extreme closeup, and depicted in a detailed and realistic art style. Then, as the ‘camera’ pulls back, the detail fades, leaving us with the less intricate style that will be used through the rest of the film. The deliberate juxtaposition created through this brief use of a hyperrealistic aesthetic draws attention to the degree to which the film’s typical rabbit designs are mediated in order to distance them somewhat from our lived reality.
In this chapter I will examine the film’s use of three distinct visual modes – the cartoonish opening sequence, the detailed closeup, and the default style – and the extent to which the film attempts to moderate its notorious violence by adjusting the realism of its imagery. Typically this serves to dampen its potentially horrific effects, although the results are not always so straightforward, with some of the films’ most shocking scenes appearing more detailed than the default style, heightening the onscreen gore.
I will also draw comparison to the 2018 BBC adaptation, highlighting the differences in its depiction of violence, and asking whether this can be linked to its more photorealistic visuals and its digital production methods
The potential use of food waste in biocementation process for eco-efficient construction materials
No full textBiocement is emerging as a novel and sustainable alternative to current conventional construction materials because the microorganisms used are renewable, environmentally friendly, and safe. However, its implementation is hampered by the prohibitive cost associated with the raw materials required for possible industrial applications. Thus, in this chapter, we examine recent claims that introducing food waste usage into the biocementation process would lead to reduced costs and increased efficiency. The huge quantity of worldwide food waste generation is both an important resource and an environmental burden if not properly managed. Therefore, the motivation to use food waste is both environmental and economical as it makes the biocementation process more cost-effective, sustainable and easier to implement. This chapter reviews recent literature on the use of food waste in biocement technology, and examines other food waste yet to be investigated as raw material for culture media, cementing agent, biopolymer, and enzyme to generate biocement economically and sustainably
Contextualizing Kurdish gender studies: decolonial feminist knowledge production and the genesis of the Kurdish Gender Studies Network
Get PDFEstablished in 2020, the Kurdish Gender Studies Network (KGSN) is an online epistemic community that brings together activists and scholars dedicated to advancing knowledge in Kurdish gender and sexuality studies. This paper aims to introduce the network to a larger public while situating the formation of the KGSN in relation to the growth of Kurdish gender studies (KGS), and the increasing influence of women and queer scholars in Kurdish studies (KS) since 2010. It highlights that both KGSN and KS have been greatly influenced by the conditions shaped by the colonial legacy surrounding Kurdistan and the Kurdish issue while discussing the ways in which Kurdish women’s and gender studies were often marginalized in KS. As Kurdish women scholars and members of the network’s steering committee, we position the trajectory of the network and the evolution of KGS within the broader framework of knowledge production in colonial contexts and address the ongoing struggle to decolonize feminist knowledge production, which, historically, has been dominated by Western-centric epistemologies and methodologies
When is celebrity endorsement effective? Exploring the role of celebrity endorsers in enhancing key brand associations
Get PDFThis study examines how a celebrity endorser’s key associations can complement and help improve a brand’s low corresponding associations. By conducting three studies, we find that when consumers have no prior knowledge about the benefits of a brand, a celebrity’s enabling, enticing, and enriching (3E) associations get transferred to the brand. However, when consumers know that a brand has low 3E benefits, only the celebrity endorsers’ enriching associations are transferred to the brand. Thus, from the current study the importance of a celebrity’s enriching benefits is emphasized for both unknown and well-known brands. Furthermore, we theorize and demonstrate consumer elevation as the underlying mechanism whereby the enriching benefits of a celebrity endorser are transferred to a brand. The current findings extend the extant literature on celebrity endorsement management and provide valuable managerial insights for developing effective celebrity endorsement strategies
Cultural and artistic citizenship in classical music
No full textTo write about citizenship and music in the wake of a pandemic that turned the entire cultural scene upside down is to give the subject an unnervingly new and topical significance. The events of early 2020 abruptly uprooted the assumptions and working practices of concert organisers, musicians, and everyone involved in classical music and music-making at large. No one at the time could predict what the future would hold; indeed, much uncertainty remains. What will the long-term cultural effects of the pandemic be? Will audience numbers recover? Can any positive lessons be learned from the emergency measures that were introduced, such as the fast-tracked adoption of live-streaming or how the industries were forced to pay more than lip service to health and hygiene? Often, remembering history can help answer contemporary questions; a search for comparable cultural crises, in order to learn from past recoveries. Today’s contexts may be new, but the precarities that venues, orchestras, and their musicians face, and the anxiety many feel about the future, are not. Similarly, perceptions from within these industries were already generally pessimistic before the pandemic. In Europe, at least, scepticism of political establishments that have long taken the music industries for granted goes hand in hand with a financially oriented brand of public discourse, in which the industries’ economic “contribution” (e.g. to GDP) and needs (e.g. subsidies) leave little room for appreciating how art and culture can meaningfully improve people’s lives. Adopting a
more sanguine approach, this chapter contends that musicians, musicologists, curators, and administrators
can, and should, build new communities of practice as they seek answers to these questions. The interrelation of music and society, and of art and commerce, means that much of what we cover will be relevant to all musical genres. However, our specific focus is classical music, whose identity and practices have long been scrutinised, from within and outwith, in light of modern thinking
about audience engagement and sociocultural trends at large. By outlining connections between classical music and two forms of citizenship - cultural and artistic - the chapter recognises that much work has already taken place to enact change while preserving what makes the genre identifiable and, indeed, unique. In this context, the special integrative abilities of music mediators warrant some initial attention. As we shall see, they have forged three paths to establish new relationships between music, its performance, and audiences: conceiving new workshops and partnerships, especially those designed with younger listeners in mind; rethinking concert formats in order to locate and engage adult audiences, who rarely come into contact with classical concert repertoire; and collaborating with other cultural organisations to create new possibilities for sharing musical experiences, for example bridging the professional/amateur divide through community orchestras and other projects beyond the concert hall. This chapter addresses how and why such innovations are underway, and will inexorably continue, as classical music faces
up to the challenges of cultural democratisation this century. Among these responses, we include our own efforts to rethink how classical music is mediated, as the final third of the chapter will explain
Forensic collision investigation: finding the order within the chaos
Get PDFThis narrative explores three key areas, Professionalising the Collision Investigation Community, The Wider Demographic and The Expert Witness. It covers a 15-year career of the work of a Forensic Collision Investigator responsible for the investigation of road traffic collisions resulting in catastrophic injuries or fatalities.
Included in the thesis is the development of a series of scientific techniques that have been adopted around the globe. Works within the professional body are also discussed, including the introduction and development of a number of professional elements, such as the introduction of the Certificate of Professional Competence (an assessment of Practitioner’s fitness to practice), the Code of Ethics, Equality and Diversity, training programmes and the production of a Best Practice guidance document and development of the Disciplinary Codes.
Also presented are works including the education of the wider demographic, from members of the public to legal professionals by various means, such as authoring a brand-new chapter in the subject in a long-standing forensic textbook for the Royal Society of Chemistry, to producing webinar series for LexisNexis.
Finally, the work as an Expert Witness, not only in the UK but internationally, is described and the act of giving expert evidence and its significance are all combined in this thesis for the Doctorate by Public Works