9 research outputs found
How one nutrient controls cell size
No full textThe metabolic fate of a nutrient called pyruvate determines how big cells become
Ketchup and Blood: Documents, Institutions and Effects in the Performances of Paul McCarthy 1974-2013
No full textSince the 1970s, the work of Los Angeles-based artist Paul McCarthy (b. 1945) has included live performance, video, sculpture, kinetic tableaux, and installation. Tracing the development of McCarthy’s work between 1974 and 2013, I undertake a critical discussion of the development of performance in relation to visual art practices. Using one artist’s work as a guide through a number of key discussions in the history of performance art, I argue that performance has influenced every aspect of McCarthy’s artistic practice, and continues to inform critical readings of his work.
My thesis follows the trajectory of McCarthy’s performance practice as it has developed through different contexts. I begin with the early documentation and dissemination of performance in the Los Angeles-based magazine High Performance (1978-83), which established a context for the reception of performance art, and for McCarthy’s early work. I then examine specific examples of McCarthy’s practice in relation to his critical reception: live performances and videos from the 1970s are discussed alongside critical readings of his work influenced by psychoanalysis; and the wider public recognition of McCarthy’s object-based art in the 1980s and early 1990s. I then look more broadly at the recent trend of re-enacting historical performances in the Getty’s Pacific Standard Time project (2011-12), as a mode of engaging with performance history and exploring how histories of ephemeral art are re-iterated over time. Finally, I discuss a number of McCarthy’s recent exhibitions and installations that mobilises a wider consideration of the histories of performance and ephemeral practices in art institutions.
McCarthy’s work is firmly established in the art world, and I argue that his work also provides a significant touchstone for histories of performance. I look historically at how McCarthy’s work has been documented, disseminated, curated, and re-performed, and open wider discussions about ways of engaging with performance history. In turn, I complicate the relationship between performance and the art world; between ephemeral art and object-based art practices; and between scholarly engagements with performance history, and the public presentation of performance in curatorial practices and institutional contexts.This project was funded by a College Studentship from Queen Mary, University of London. Additional financial support for a research trip to Los Angeles in 2012 to undertake primary research and conduct interviews was provided by the Queen Mary Central Research Fund (now the Postgraduate Research Fund). I would also like to acknowledge the support of the Glynne Wickham Scholarship fund, which contributed to travel expenses for a conference presentation at Stanford University in 2013
Paul, Antioch, and Jerusalem: a study in relationships and authority in earliest Christianity
No full textPaul's life and work, including his relationship with the Jerusalem church, were dynamic, rather than having been predetermined in his conversion. The Antiochene church was crucial to Paul's development, to a degree not previously appreciated. Little is known of the years following Paul's conversion, other than it was unsettled, and included travels and sojourns in Arabia, Damascus, Jerusalem, and Tarsus. The encounter with the Jerusalem church did not result in a stable relationship or social integration. It was at Antioch that Paul was first fully incorporated into a Christian community, from which he derived his dyadic identity, and later his apostolic commission. His relationship with the Jerusalem church consisted in corporate participation in the коιυυυία between the churches of Jerusalem and Antioch. In this context, Paul joined Barnabas in defending the Antiochene gospel of uncircumcision, and not his own theology or apostleship, at the Jerusalem conference. The Antioch incident resulted in Paul's separation from the Antiochene church, and exclusion from its коιυυυία with the Jerusalem church. His independent ministry followed, during which he developed his conception of apostleship independent of human authority, in which his self-identity is bound up with the gospel, in response to his isolation, and loss of dyadic identity and apostolic commission. Paul sought to end his isolation through reconciliation with the Antiochene church, and, through its коιυυυία, with the Jerusalem church. This was the object of the collection, but the crisis in Corinth delayed completion, requiring Paul to convey his offering separately. His implicit claim to коιυυυία accordingly became overt, and the collection became the basis, rather than a correlative obligation, of the relationship. This jeopardized the acceptability of Paul's overtures, and, while his reception is uncertain, the journey occasioned his arrest, and ended his missionary career
Plautus' 'Mercator': a commentary
No full textThis thesis comprises an introduction, a lemmatic commentary, and indices. The introductory
chapter, apart from a brief discussion of a more general nature, investigates the play and the
relation it bears to Philemon's Emporos, its lost Greek model, especially with regard to the actdivisions
of the Greek play and the pacing of the action in Plautus' adaptation. The commentary is
provided to address problems posed by the Latin text, notably those of exegesis, textual criticism,
metre, grammar, humour, imagery, staging, and the relationship to the Graeco-Roman comic
tradition. An attempt is also made to distinguish between elements which may reflect the Greek
comic tradition and those which suggest Plautine origin. In recent work about Plautus and
Philemon it has been argued that the plot of the Emporos underwent far-reaching changes at the
hands of Plautus, but the author of this thesis argues for the essential unity of the Mercator and
for Plautus' conservative treatment of the plot of the Greek original, at the same time allowing for
the fact that Plautus may have Romanised, exaggerated, and extended Philemon's play at certain
points. By its structure, metrical arrangement, pacing, juxtaposition of contrasting types, parallel
arrangement of core scenes, and the recurrence of key imagery, themes and motifs, the Mercator
proves to be a carefully conceived, effectively balanced, and well-composed play
Virtue and democracy in Plato's late dialogues
No full textBoth Plato's theory of virtue and his attitude towards
democracy -the two being correspondent- change significantly as we
move from the middle to the late dialogues. The Republic is a
substantially authoritarian work which expresses an unmitigated
rejection of democracy. Its authoritarianism is deeply rooted in
the fact that its ethical and political assertions are justified
on a metaphysical basis. Plato suggests that virtue and
metaphysical knowledge legitimize political power, but both virtue
and knowledge are so defined as to be attainable only by a tiny
minority. In the Politicus Plato reasserts the superiority of a
complete virtue grounded on philosophical knowledge, but seriously
questions the attainability of this ideal. In the closing part of
this dialogue Plato demonstrates an interest in history and in
this respect the Politicus anticipates the Laws, where political
theory is not justified by metaphysics, but is informed by
historical experience. More specifically, Plato attempts to
reproduce on a theoretical level a legislation similar to the
actual historical legislation of Solon and he underlines the need
for a moderate state involving elements from different
constitutions. Because Plato adopts a historical perspective in
the Laws, his earlier authoritarianism is severely curtailed
(though not completely abandoned). So, despite still holding a low
opinion of democracy, Plato does use some democratic elements in
his Magnesian constitution and the predominant conception of moral
virtue put forward in the Laws is not the highly exclusive virtue
of the Republict but a virtue falling within the capacities of the
ordinary citizen. In comparison to the state of the Republic the
city of the Laws is for Plato only a "second best". Even so,
however, the latter dialogue with its moderation, its rejection of
absolutism and its surprisingly modern emphasis on the
accountability of all officials constitutes a contribution of
lasting interest to Western political thinking
Blue energy: electricity production from salinity gradients by reverse electrodialysis
No full textEnergie opwekken op grote schaal uit het mengen van zoet en zout water is technisch en praktisch mogelijk. Wereldwijd is de potentie van deze schone energie – ‘blauwe stroom’ – zeer groot. Ook in Nederland kunnen over minimaal tien jaar blauwe stroomcentrales worden geplaatst, onder meer aan de Afsluitdijk, die samen de helft van de huidige elektriciteitsbehoefte kunnen dekken. Het principe dat stroom kan worden opgewekt uit het mengen van zoet en zout water, door gebruik te maken van het verschil in lading, is al meer dan 100 jaar bekend en in de vijftiger jaren van de vorige in een laboratorium voor het eerst beproefd. Er zijn twee methoden voor de opwekking van blauwe stroom: ‘onderdrukte osmose’ en ‘omgekeerde dialyse’. In zijn onderzoek heeft Post zich met name gericht op de laatste methode omdat die aantrekkelijker is voor de opwekking van energie uit zee- en rivierwater. De Afsluitdijk is een ideale plaats volgens Post vanwege de vrij abrupte scheiding van zout en zoet water. Bovendien is de Afsluitdijk een zeer geschikte locatie voor een noodzakelijke praktijktest op grote schaa
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The human myeloproliferative disorders: molecular pathogenesis and clonal heterogeneity
No full textThe classical myeloproliferative disorders (MPD), comprising essential thrombocythaemia (ET), polycythaemia vera (PV) and idiopathic myelofibrosis (IMF), are clonal premalignant haematopoietic neoplasms associated with activating mutations in signalling pathway molecules and a variable tendency to develop acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). This thesis examined genotype-phenotype associations of JAK2 and MPL mutations, the presence of clonal diversity in the MPD and the genetic events associated with progressive disease.
Mutations in MPL were identified in 4% of ET and 7% of IMF but not in PV. Three different acquired MPL mutations were identified, one of which had been reported as an inherited allele. Although MPL mutations did not delineate a distinct clinical or histopathological subtype of ET, molecular testing provides an important new tool in the diagnostic armamentarium. Clones homozygous for the JAK2 V617F mutation were identified in female but not male patients with ET, suggesting that gender differences may be important in the determination of disease phenotype. In patients with two acquired genetic alterations, a signalling pathway mutation and a cytogenetic abnormality were usually present within the same clone. By contrast, coexistence of two signalling pathway mutations indicated the presence of biclonal disease that in two patients had arisen independently and not from a shared founder clone.
RAS mutations were identified as potential cooperating events in patients with JAK2 or MPL mutant IMF. In patients developing AML following a JAK2 V617F-positive MPD, those with V617F-positive leukaemia had progressed via an accelerated phase of disease and harboured acquired alterations of RUNX1 or EVI1. V617F-negative leukaemias tended to follow directly from ET or PV, and loss of the JAK2 mutation by reversion to wild-type due to mitotic recombination, gene deletion or gene conversion was excluded. The thesis concludes with a discussion of how clonal heterogeneity can be integrated into current models of MPD disease pathogenesis
Metabolic decisions in development and disease-a Keystone Symposia report
No full textThere is an increasing appreciation for the role of metabolism in cell signaling and cell decision making. Precise metabolic control is essential in development, as evident by the disorders caused by mutations in metabolic enzymes. The metabolic profile of cells is often cell-type specific, changing as cells differentiate or during tumorigenesis. Recent evidence has shown that changes in metabolism are not merely a consequence of changes in cell state but that metabolites can serve to promote and/or inhibit these changes. Metabolites can link metabolic pathways with cell signaling pathways via several mechanisms, for example, by serving as substrates for protein post-translational modifications, by affecting enzyme activity via allosteric mechanisms, or by altering epigenetic markers. Unraveling the complex interactions governing metabolism, gene expression, and protein activity that ultimately govern a cell's fate will require new tools and interactions across disciplines. On March 24 and 25, 2021, experts in cell metabolism, developmental biology, and human disease met virtually for the Keystone eSymposium, “Metabolic Decisions in Development and Disease.” The discussions explored how metabolites impact cellular and developmental decisions in a diverse range of model systems used to investigate normal development, developmental disorders, dietary effects, and cancer-mediated changes in metabolism
