‘Race’, community and ongoing conflict

This review explores Rex and Moore's (1967) study of Birmingham as an enduring model of ethnic segregation, stratification, conflict and cooperation. The commentary focuses on the legacy of this research for understanding ethnic segregation, community and the city as a barometer of social change.     

The British Sociological Association Race and Ethnicity Study Group Conference ‘Mapping the Field: Contemporary Theories of Race,Racism and Ethnicity’

This is a report on the British Sociological Association Race and Ethnicity Study Group Conference ‘Mapping the Field: Contemporary Theories of Race, Racism and Ethnicity’, which took place at Newman University on Friday 31 January 2014.     

Geckos Race Across the Water’s Surface Using Multiple Mechanisms

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What Directions for Race/Ethnic Relations? Kaleidoscope of Options

American Minorities and Economic Opportunity. H. Roy Kaplan .
Uncertain Americans: Readings in Ethnic History. 2nd ed. Leonard Dinnerstein and rederic Cople Jaher , eds.
Ethnicity in the Americas. Frances Henry , ed. World Anthropology Series. Sol Tax, gen. ed.
Ethnic Families in America: Patterns and Variations. Charles H. Mindel and Robert W. Habenstein , eds.
Issues in Race and Ethnic Relations: Theory, Research and Action. Jack Rothman , ed.
The Minority Report: An Introduction to Racial, Ethnic, and Gender Relations. Anthony G. Dworkin and Rosalind J. Dworkin .
American Ethnic Revival: Group Pluralism Entering America's Third Century. Jack F. Kinton , ed.     

Race, ethnicity, and health: can genetics explain disparities?

Over the past decade, numerous studies have documented profound racial and ethnic disparities in disease in the United States. This essay examines how popular and scientific concepts of race and ethnicity converge with dominant understandings of genetics to inform the design and interpretation of research, public health policy, and medical practice. Although there is some acknowledgment in the biomedical community that racial and ethnic categories are social and not genetic, ideas about race and ethnicity that circulate in biomedicine are contradictory. Thus, in practice genetic explanations for observed differences are common both in the scientific literature and in popular media accounts of biomedical research. Such explanations naturalize racial and ethnic difference and create a conceptual barrier to developing a research program that explores the complex ways in which social inequality and experiences of racial discrimination interact with human biology to influence patterns of disease. Importantly, genetically based ideas lead to disease prevention policies that are bound to be ineffective.     

Race,ethnicity and disciplinary divides: what is the path forward?

We pose several questions that emerged for us from Valdez and Golash-Boza’s “U.S. Racial and Ethnic Relations in the twenty-first Century.” First, we raise questions about their framing of the problem with current scholarship – are immigration/ethnicity and race scholars talking past each other or are they having more fundamental disagreements? Second, we raise questions about their critique of the “the race literature” – do too many of us ignore questions of agency and inclusion? Finally, we raise questions about the stability and utility of the concepts they deploy (“race” and “ethnicity”) and draw on recent scholarship that has argued that we need new language or frameworks to adequately describe the reality on the ground.     

Arms Race Coevolution: The Local and Geographical Structure of a Host–Parasite Interaction

Consideration of complex geographic patterns of reciprocal adaptation has provided insight into new features of the coevolutionary process. In this paper, we provide ecological, historical, and geographical evidence for coevolution under complex temporal and spatial scenarios that include intermittent selection, species turnover across localities, and a range of trait match/mismatch across populations. Our study focuses on a plant host–parasitic plant interaction endemic to arid and semiarid regions of Chile. The long spines of Chilean cacti have been suggested to evolve under parasite-mediated selection as a first line of defense against the mistletoe Tristerix aphyllus. The mistletoe, in turn, has evolved an extremely long morphological structure that emerges from the seed endosperm (radicle) to reach the host cuticle. When spine length was traced along cactus phylogenies, a significant association between spine length and parasitism was detected, indicating that defensive traits evolved in high correspondence with the presence or absence of parasitism in two cactus lineages. Assessment of spine-radicle matching across populations revealed a potential for coevolution in 50% of interaction pairs. Interestingly, hot spots for coevolution did not distribute at random across sites. On the contrary, interaction pairs showing high matching values occur mostly in the northern distribution of the interaction, suggesting a geographical structure for coevolution in this system. Only three sampled interaction pairs were so mismatched that reciprocal selection could not occur given current trait distributions. Overall, different lines of evidence indicate that arms-race coevolution is an ongoing phenomenon that occurs in the global system of interconnected populations.     

Democratic Hauntings: Michael Hanchard’s the Spectre of Race and the challenge of comparison

Michael Hanchard’s the Spectre of Race: How Discrimination Haunts Western Democracy is a sophisticated examination of the disciplinary absence and seething presence of race in the subfield and substance of comparative politics. Hanchard’s analysis reveals a genealogy of how certain concepts, such as political culture, came to be institutionalized in the discipline. Because disciplines discipline, the resultant marginalization of race in comparative politics is itself an act of power. Many of his insights are revelatory, though a more explicit excavation of racial transnationalism is warranted. Such an effort would: first, demonstrate that the transnational “entanglements” Hanchard details are even more knotted than originally presumed; second, challenge the conflation of racialization and colonialism; and third, question whether liberal democratic inclusion is possible or even worth the price of the ticket.     

A Race for Survival: Can Bromus tectorum Seeds Escape Pyrenophora semeniperda-caused Mortality by Germinating Quickly?

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Pathogen-seed interactions may involve a race for seed resources, so that seeds that germinate more quickly, mobilizing reserves, will be more likely to escape seed death than slow-germinating seeds. This race-for-survival hypothesis was tested for the North American seed pathogen Pyrenophora semeniperda on seeds of the annual grass Bromus tectorum, an invasive plant in North America. In this species, the seed germination rate varies as a function of dormancy status; dormant seeds germinate slowly if at all, whereas non-dormant seeds germinate quickly. METHODS: Three experimental approaches were utilized: (a) artificial inoculations of mature seeds that varied in primary dormancy status and wounding treatment; (b) naturally inoculated undispersed seeds that varied in primary dormancy status; and (c) naturally inoculated seeds from the carry-over seed bank that varied in degree of secondary dormancy, habitat of origin and seed age. KEY RESULTS: In all three approaches, seeds that germinated slowly were usually killed by the pathogen, whereas seeds that germinated quickly frequently escaped. Pyrenophora semeniperda reduced B. tectorum seed banks. Populations in drier habitats sustained 50 times more seed mortality than a population in a mesic habitat. Older carry-over seeds experienced 30 % more mortality than younger seeds. CONCLUSIONS: Given the dramatic levels of seed death and the ability of this pathogen to reduce seed carry-over, it is intriguing to consider whether P. semeniperda could be used to control B. tectorum through direct reduction of its seed bank.     

A Race for Space? How Sphagnum fuscum stabilizes vegetation composition during long‐term climate manipulations

Strong climate warming is predicted at higher latitudes this century, with potentially major consequences for productivity and carbon sequestration. Although northern peatlands contain one‐third of the world's soil organic carbon, little is known about the long‐term responses to experimental climate change of vascular plant communities in these Sphagnum‐dominated ecosystems. We aimed to see how long‐term experimental climate manipulations, relevant to different predicted future climate scenarios, affect total vascular plant abundance and species composition when the community is dominated by mosses. During 8 years, we investigated how the vascular plant community of a Sphagnum fuscum‐dominated subarctic peat bog responded to six experimental climate regimes, including factorial combinations of summer as well as spring warming and a thicker snow cover. Vascular plant species composition in our peat bog was more stable than is typically observed in (sub)arctic experiments: neither changes in total vascular plant abundance, nor in individual species abundances, Shannon's diversity or evenness were found in response to the climate manipulations. For three key species (Empetrum hermaphroditum, Betula nana and S. fuscum) we also measured whether the treatments had a sustained effect on plant length growth responses and how these responses interacted. Contrasting with the stability at the community level, both key shrubs and the peatmoss showed sustained positive growth responses at the plant level to the climate treatments. However, a higher percentage of moss‐encroached E. hermaphroditum shoots and a lack of change in B. nana net shrub height indicated encroachment by S. fuscum, resulting in long‐term stability of the vascular community composition: in a warmer world, vascular species of subarctic peat bogs appear to just keep pace with growing Sphagnum in their race for space. Our findings contribute to general ecological theory by demonstrating that community resistance to environmental changes does not necessarily mean inertia in vegetation response.     

Lung Cancer Incidence Trends by Gender,Race and Histology in the United States, 1973–2010

Background

Lung cancer (LC) incidence in the United States (US) continues to decrease but with significant differences by histology, gender and race. Whereas squamous, large and small cell carcinoma rates have been decreasing since the mid-80s, adenocarcinoma rates remain stable in males and continue to increase in females, with large racial disparities. We analyzed LC incidence trends by histology in the US with an emphasis on gender and racial differences.

Methods

LC incidence rates from 1973–2010 were obtained from the SEER cancer registry. Age-adjusted incidence trends of five major histological types by gender and race were evaluated using joinpoint regression. Trends of LC histology and stage distributions from 2005–2010 were analyzed.

Results

US LC incidence varies by histology. Squamous, large and small cell carcinoma rates continue to decrease for all gender/race combinations, whereas adenocarcinoma rates remain relatively constant in males and increasing in females. An apparent recent increase in the incidence of squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma since 2005 can be explained by a concomitant decrease in the number of cases classified as other non-small cell carcinoma. Black males continue to be disproportionally affected by squamous LCs, and blacks continue to be diagnosed with more advanced cancers than whites.

Conclusions

LC incidence by histology continues to change over time. Additional variations are expected as screening becomes disseminated. It is important to continue to monitor LC rates to evaluate the impact of screening on current trends, assess the continuing benefits of tobacco control, and focus efforts on reducing racial disparities.     

‘Black and white,a significant contrast’: Race,humanism and missionary photography in the Pacific

Taking the example of ‘Studies in black and white’, a genre of photographs taken around the end of the nineteenth century by Methodist missionaries in the Pacific, this article seeks to go beyond conventional analyses that scrutinize colonial photography for forms of domination. I argue that these photographs, and the context in which some of them were published, reveal a complex interplay between two contradictory principles: on the one hand, a Christian humanism, articulating a vision of commonality and equality, and on the other, paternalism, articulating a vision of superiority and inequality .      

Un-Separate and Still Unequal? Three Books about American Education and Race at the End of the Liberal Century

Multicultural Education, Transformative Knowledge, and Action: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives. James Banks, ed. New York: Teachers College Press, 1996. 352 pp.
Other People's Children: Cultural Conflict in the Classroom. Lisa Delpit. New York: The New Press, 1995. 206 pp.
Beyond Desegregation: The Politics of Quality in African American Schooling. Mwalimu J. Shujaa, ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press, 1996. 268 pp.     

Axial BMD in Diabetic and Nondiabetic Southeast Asians with HIP Fractures: Do Race and Body Mass Index Matter?

Objective: Obesity is less prevalent in Asian subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in contrast to Caucasians. Whether higher axial bone mineral density (BMD) often reported in T2DM is independent of body mass index (BMI) has not been clearly shown. BMD characterization in T2DM patients with hip fractures has also not been performed. We compared the BMD of Asian diabetic and nondiabetic patients with new hip fractures and explored how BMD was influenced by BMI.Methods: We included 255 diabetic and 148 nondiabetic patients. BMD adjusted for age; BMI; race; sex; renal function; and use of statins, proton pump inhibitors, steroids, anticonvulsants, and calcium and/or vitamin D supplements were compared between the groups. We were particularly interested in the BMD comparison between underweight diabetics and nondiabetics with hip fractures.Results: The presence of T2DM was associated with higher BMD (g/cm²) at the femoral neck (0.527 ± 0.103 vs. 0.491 ± 0.102, P<.01) and lumbar spine [LS] (0.798 ± 0.147 vs. 0.723 ± 0.156, P<.01). This association persisted after adjustment for multiple confounding variables including BMI. The age-, BMI-, and sex-adjusted LS BMD was higher in underweight (BMI <18.5 kg/m²) diabetics compared to similar weight nondiabetics (0.733 ± 0.126 vs. 0.649 ± 0.131 g/cm², P = .014).Conclusion: T2DM is independently associated with higher axial BMD in patients with new hip fractures. The finding of higher BMD even in underweight diabetics with hip fractures compared to their nondiabetic counterparts suggests that higher BMD in subjects with T2DM is not due to higher BMI.Abbreviations:BMD = bone mineral densityBMI = body mass indexCV = coefficient of variationDXA = dual-energy X-ray absorptiometryHbA1c = glycated hemoglobinIGF-1 = insulin growth factor-1LS = lumbar spine25(OH)D = 25-hydroxyvitamin DT2DM = type 2 diabetes mellitus     

Genetic Characterization of a Core Set of a Tropical Maize Race Tuxpe?o for Further Use in Maize Improvement

The tropical maize race Tuxpeño is a well-known race of Mexican dent germplasm which has greatly contributed to the development of tropical and subtropical maize gene pools. In order to investigate how it could be exploited in future maize improvement, a panel of maize germplasm accessions was assembled and characterized using genome-wide Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers. This panel included 321 core accessions of Tuxpeño race from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) germplasm bank collection, 94 CIMMYT maize lines (CMLs) and 54 U.S. Germplasm Enhancement of Maize (GEM) lines. The panel also included other diverse sources of reference germplasm: 14 U.S. maize landrace accessions, 4 temperate inbred lines from the U.S. and China, and 11 CIMMYT populations (a total of 498 entries with 795 plants). Clustering analyses (CA) based on Modified Rogers Distance (MRD) clearly partitioned all 498 entries into their corresponding groups. No sub clusters were observed within the Tuxpeño core set. Various breeding strategies for using the Tuxpeño core set, based on grouping of the studied germplasm and genetic distance among them, were discussed. In order to facilitate sampling diversity within the Tuxpeño core, a minicore subset of 64 Tuxpeño accessions (20% of its usual size) representing the diversity of the core set was developed, using an approach combining phenotypic and molecular data. Untapped diversity represents further use of the Tuxpeño landrace for maize improvement through the core and/or minicore subset available to the maize community.