Entertaining “Chineseness”: Chinese Singing Clubs in Contemporary Bangkok

ABSTRACT

This article explores the link between music and the construction of identity among a group of middle-class Thai-Chinese in contemporary Bangkok. Based on fieldwork conducted there, the article describes the nature, function, and activities of singing clubs that cater to middle-class Thai-Chinese singing Mandarin Chinese popular songs. Riding on the economic boom in Thailand in the early 1990s, these singing clubs have drastically increased in number since early 1994. Informed by the notion that identity is a social construct within specific historical moments, this essay focuses on a particular type of singing activity and calls attention to the importance of music as a way to understand the complex issues of overseas Chinese identity. Through an analysis of performance context, musical behavior, and music, I explore issues of “Chineseness,” and the nature of diasporic Chinese culture, against the sociopolitical climate in contemporary Thai society. I argue that identity politics are integral to understanding music and performance because the choice to participate in any type of performance is often motivated by and embedded in ethnic consciousness and group identity. This case study enhances understanding of the processes of identity formation and the multifaceted dimensions of Chinese music in a changing global context.     

Perceived and Physiological Indicators of Relaxation: As Different as Mozart and Alice in Chains

The effects of listening to different types of music on perceived and physiological indicators of relaxation were evaluated. Fifty-six undergraduate students, 24 males and 32 females, mean age of 21, were randomly assigned to listen to classical, hard rock, self-selected relaxing music, or no music. Participants' relaxation level, skin temperature, muscle tension and heart rate were evaluated before and after exposure to a music condition. Analyses of variance using baseline measures as covariates indicated that skin temperature decreased for all conditions (p = 0.001) and the classical, self-selected relaxing music and no music groups reported significant increases in feelings of relaxation (p = 0.004). These results partially support the hypothesis that classical and self-selected relaxing music can increase perceptions of relaxation to a greater degree than listening to hard rock music. However, no differences were found between different types of music on physiological indicators of arousal. Implications for using music to reduce stress were discussed.     

A Practical Plan for Public Works of Art Heckman Summer School at Woodstock

The 1957 launch of Sputnik and the 1983 publication of A Nation at Risk shifted national education policy. Music educators promoted an “intrinsic value” of music philosophy following Sputnik and music advocacy through politics and public performances following A Nation at Risk. Examining the history of both the intrinsic value philosophy and advocacy reveals that music educators responded to Sputnik and A Nation at Risk by continuing to work within their existing language and practices rather than reacting to and transforming after either event. The political, social, and cultural contexts of these events may explain music educators’ responses.     

Valuable New Resistances Ensure Improved Management of Sclerotinia Stem Rot (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) in Horticultural and Oilseed Brassica Species

Field resistances against Sclerotinia rot (SR) (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) were determined in 52 Chinese genotypes of Brassica oleracea var. capitata, 14 Indian Brassica juncea genotypes carrying wild weedy Brassicaceae introgression(s) and four carrying B‐genome introgression, 22 Australian commercial Brassica napus varieties, and 12 B. napus and B. juncea genotypes of known resistance. All plants were individually inoculated by securing an agar disc from a culture of S. sclerotiorum growing on a glucose‐rich medium to the stem above the second internode with Parafilm tape. Mean stem lesion length across tested genotypes ranged from <1 to >68 mm. While there was considerable diversity within the germplasm sets from each country, overall, 65% of the B. oleracea var. capitata genotypes from China showed the highest levels of stem resistance, a level comparable with the highest resistance ever recorded for oilseed B. napus or B. juncea from China or Australia. One Indian B. juncea line carrying weedy introgression displayed a significant level of both stem and leaf resistance. However, the vast majority of commercial Australian oilseed B. napus varieties fell within the most susceptible 40% of genotypes tested for stem disease. There was no correlation between expressions of stem versus leaf resistance, suggesting their independent inheritance. A few Chinese B. oleracea var. capitata genotypes that expressed combined extremely high‐level stem (≤1 mm length) and leaf (≤0.5 mean number of infections/plant) resistance will be particularly significant for developing new SR‐resistant horticultural and oilseed Brassica varieties.     

Aberrant human leucocyte antigen‐G expression and its clinical relevance in hepatocellular carcinoma

The clinical relevance of human leucocyte antigen‐G (HLA‐G) has been postulated in malignancies. Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a major contributor to cancer incidence and mortality worldwide; however, potential roles of HLA‐G in HCC remain unknown. In the current study, HLA‐G expression in 219 primary HCC lesions and their adjacent non‐tumourous samples was analysed with immunohistochemistry. Correlations among HLA‐G expression and various clinical parameters were evaluated. Meanwhile, functional analysis of transfected cell surface HLA‐G expression on NK cell cytolysis was performed in vitro. HLA‐G expression was observed in 50.2% (110/219) of primary HCC lesions, and undetectable in corresponding adjacent normal liver tissues. HLA‐G expression was found in 37.8%, 41.9% and 71.4% of stage I, II and III HCC lesions, respectively. Data revealed that HLA‐G expression in HCC was strongly correlated to advanced disease stage (I versus II, P= 0.882; I versus III, P= 0.020; II versus III, P= 0.037). HLA‐G expression was also more frequently observed in elder patients (≥median 52 years, 57.5%versus 43.4%, P= 0.004). Meanwhile, plasma soluble HLA‐G in HCC patients was significantly higher than that in normal controls (median, 92.49U/ml versus 9.29U/ml, P= 0.000). Functional assay showed that HLA‐G expression in transfected cells could dramatically decrease the NK cell cytolysis (P= 0.036), which could be markedly restored by the blockade of HLA‐G (P= 0.004) and its receptor ILT2 (P= 0.019). Our finding indicated that HLA‐G expression was strongly correlated to advanced disease stage, and more frequently observed in elder patients. Its relevance to HCC progression might be result from the inhibition of NK cell cytolysis.     

The development and status of Bt rice in China

Multiple lines of transgenic rice expressing insecticidal genes from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) have been developed in China, posing the prospect of increases in production with decreased application of pesticides. We explore the issues facing adoption of Bt rice for commercial production in China. A body of safety assessment work on Bt rice has shown that Bt rice poses a negligible risk to the environment and that Bt rice products are as safe as non‐Bt control rice products as food. China has a relatively well‐developed regulatory system for risk assessment and management of genetically modified (GM) plants; however, decision‐making regarding approval of commercial production has become politicized, and two Bt rice lines that otherwise were ready have not been allowed to enter the Chinese agricultural system. We predict that Chinese farmers would value the prospect of increased yield with decreased use of pesticide and would readily adopt production of Bt rice. That Bt rice lines may not be commercialized in the near future we attribute to social pressures, largely due to the low level of understanding and acceptance of GM crops by Chinese consumers. Hence, enhancing communication of GM crop science‐related issues to the public is an important, unmet need. While the dynamics of each issue are particular to China, they typify those in many countries where adoption of GM crops has been not been rapid; hence, the assessment of these dynamics might inform resolution of these issues in other countries.     

Control of biofouling on pearl oysters Pinctada imbricata using wax and Chinese herbs

Abstract

Biofouling poses severe challenges to pearl oyster Pinctada imbricata culture in China, and controlling it is both labor- and capital-intensive. The antifouling properties of wax, and wax mixed with Chinese herbs, sprayed onto pearl oyster shell surfaces during peak biofouling seasons were evaluated. Pearl oysters coated with three wax treatments (plain wax, Chinaberry seed extract, Chinese honeylocust fruit extract) and a control (no treatment), were cultured in nets for up to 60?days. Mortality rate, fouling organism and pearl-oyster weights, and shell height are reported for individual oysters on each of six sampling dates. With the exception of oysters submerged for 12?days, all oysters were significantly affected by treatment type and submersion duration. Fouling weight increased more rapidly over time in the control-treatment oysters. Wax-based coatings deterred fouling-organism settlement on oysters for at least 2?months during the intensive fouling season, reducing mortality and not adversely effecting growth.     

中国菌绒孢属的研究

菌绒孢是一个小属,已描述过的种约50个,都是植物寄生菌,有的引致植物病害还较 严重.本文报告了我国产的21个种,其中1个是新种,4个是新组合和2个新记录,对18个种均有英文描述和附图,新种还附有拉丁文简介,各个种的地区分布也予以载述.但文中有分布地区而其后未附HMAS标本号码者多系据《中国真菌总汇》(1979)转录.从前人的描述和我们研究中看出,菌绒孢属的属级特征有:(1)产孢细胞合生,合轴式多点全壁芽茁产孢;(2)分生孢子梗壁上和分生孢子顶端和基脐,或仅基脐的孢痕疤明显而厚;(3)分生孢子梗主要从表生甸甸菌丝上作为侧枝或顶生,但有的种也兼有从子座上 簇生的;(4)菌丝多结集成菌丝绳或攀缘于叶毛上;(5)分生孢子链生,少数种也不链生. 这就清楚表明菌绒孢属与尾孢菌属和色链隔孢属(Phaeoramularia)少不同之处在于,尾孢 菌和色链隔孢属二者的分生孢子梗均成簇发生且无表生匍匐菌丝,与极其近似的假尾孢属(Pseudocercospora)不同之处在于,后者的分生孢子梗也着生于表生匍匐状菌丝和簇 生于子座上,但其分生孢子梗和分生孢子的孢痕疤却薄而不明显,因而易于区别开.虽然1974年von Arx在其《纯培养产孢真菌的属》一书中,曾把菌绒孢属作为枝孢 属(Cladosporium)的异名,但这一观点我们未予接受,其理由已在《中国色链隔孢曲(1982)一文中加以说明,这里未予重述.上述这21个种除3个种,即M. costaricensis, M, pawlownicola和M. vaginae我们未获得研究材料,仅据以前作者的报导转录外,其余18个种均系根据标本进行的.这些标本,含M. merremiae sp. nov.的模式标本在内,均贮藏于中国科学院微生物研究所真菌标本室.     

The moral challenge of natality: towards a post-traditional concept of family and privacy in repro-genetics

Modern repro-genetics is going to change the way we conceive our children, and will have a substantial influence on the family. Two concepts of the family have been present in the ethical debate: the traditional model and the care model of the family. The first one has been rightly criticized because it privileges form over function. I will show that the second model is also insufficient and does not answer to the moral challenge of human natality, particularly from a child's point of view. Instead, I will suggest a third, kinship model of the family as moral agent. In post-traditional and post-patriarchal societies, the family must be reconsidered as actor in the ethical debates. This poses a challenge for ethical theory. The family's interests are best protected by a concept of relational privacy.     

越南赤车属(荨麻科)二新记录

报道越南赤车属(荨麻科)二新记录种,即翅茎赤车(Pellionia caulialata S．Y．Liou)和光果赤车(P ．leio-carpa W．T．Wang),并提供描述.它们原记载分布于中国,现在越南北部发现有分布,凭证标本保存在PE.     

Exploration of the Production of Three Thiodiketopiperazines by an Endophytic Fungal Strain of Cophinforma mamane

Endophytic fungi possess a versatile metabolism which is related to their ability to live in diverse ecological niches. While culturing under laboratory conditions, their metabolism is mainly influenced by the culture media, time of incubation and other physicochemical factors. In this study, we focused on the production of 3 thiodiketopiperazines (TDKPs) botryosulfuranols A−C produced by an endophytic strain of Cophinforma mamane isolated from the leaves of Bixa orellana L collected in the Peruvian Amazon. We studied the time-course production of botryosulfuranols A−C during 28 days and evaluated the variations in the production of secondary metabolites, including the TDKPs, produced by C. mamane in response to different culture media, light versus dark conditions and different incubation times. We observed a short time-frame production of botryosulfuranol C while its production was significantly affected by the light conditions and nutrients of the culture media. Botryosulfuranols A and B showed a similar production pattern and a similar response to culturing conditions. Molecular networking allowed us to detect three compounds related to TDKPs that will be the focus of future experiments.     

The Interdiction of Music in Islam

There is no authorisation in the Qur'an for the interdiction on music. That interdiction, when it is voiced, is the product of a conviction among some Muslims, supported by hadith (just as it is opposed with hadith) that Islam does not countenance music. In a country such as Pakistan, with a strong tradition of devotional music which (taken with the poetry, with which it is always associated) has become entwined with the identity politics of the provinces or sub‐‘nations’ which make up the vaster nation, a comprehensive ban on music would be impossible to enforce, though there are ‘ulamā’ and sectarian parties who desire it. This paper focuses on an instance where music is even harder to extricate from an accompanying text: the recitation of the Qur'ān. In the eyes of Muslims, Qur'anic recitation is not music. This denial raises further questions about the nature of music and, in particular, its involvement with the ‘extramusical’. Adorno's observations on the relation of music to language, and the anthropologist Friedson's complaint that ethnographers focus on text, at the expense of music, are examined in the light of the circumstance that the world over, music is associated with texts of one kind or another. Even when, as in the case of the ‘curing’ ritual described by Friedson, words are unimportant, or missing, music is seldom a phenomenological whole. Music ‘leans’, or is ‘leant on’: it lends its unrivalled ‘eloquence’ to many a cause, from commodity marketing to the structured working out of ritual, or, among lovers, to the remembered quality of experience. All these potentialities of music are relevant to the question of its interdiction and to the Muslim denial that the recitation of the Qur'ān is music.     

Isolation of Paenibacillus sp. and Assessment of its Potential for Enhancing Mineral Weathering

One mineral-solubilizing bacterial strain designated KT was isolated from a soil in Henan Province, China. The full-length 16S rRNA gene sequence showed 95.2 to 96.7% similarity to the bacteria of the genus Paenibacillus, indicating that the strain KT belonged to the genus Paenibacillus. The potential of this strain to release potassium from silicate minerals was investigated using a potassium-bearing rock as the sole source of potassium to support its growth. After inoculation for 7 days, the concentrations of water-soluble Al, Ca and Fe released from the potassium-bearing rock in active bacterial culture were higher than those from the control with autoclaved inoculum, but the concentration of water-soluble K in active bacterial culture was similar to that in the control. The concentrations of HNO₃-extractable Al, Ca, Fe and K from the bacterial culture were also higher than those in the control. These results showed strain KT was able to release potassium from potassium-bearing rock. These results have important implications for extraction of potassium from rocks to support plant growth.     

The perioperative time course and clinical significance of the chemokine CXCL16 in patients undergoing cardiac surgery

The chemokine CXCL16 and its receptor CXCR6 have been linked to the pathogenesis of acute and chronic cardiovascular disease. However, data on the clinical significance of CXCL16 in patients undergoing cardiac surgery with acute myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) are still lacking. Therefore, we determined CXCL16 in the serum of cardiac surgery patients and investigated its kinetics and association with the extent of organ dysfunction. 48 patients underwent conventional cardiac surgery with myocardial I/R and the use of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) were consecutively enrolled in the present study. We investigated the peri‐ and post‐operative profile of CXCL16. Clinical relevant data were assessed and documented throughout the entire observation period. To identify the influence of myocardial I/R and CPB on CXCL16 release data were compared to those received from patients that underwent off‐pump procedure. Pre‐operative serum CXCL16 levels were comparable to those obtained from healthy volunteers (1174 ± 55.64 pg/ml versus 1225 ± 70.94). However, CXCL16 levels significantly increased during surgery (1174 ± 55.64 versus 1442 ± 75.42 pg/ml; P = 0.0057) and reached maximum levels 6 hrs after termination of surgery (1174 ± 55.64 versus 1648 ± 74.71 pg/ml; P < 0.001). We revealed a positive correlation between the intraoperative serum levels of CXCL16 and the extent of organ dysfunction (r² = 0.356; P = 0.031). Patients with high CXCL16 release showed an increased extent of organ dysfunction compared to patients with low CXCL16 release. Our study shows that CXCL16 is released into the circulation as a result of cardiac surgery and that high post‐operative CXCL16 levels are associated with an increased severity of post‐operative organ dysfunctions.     

Polymorphic microsatellite markers for the Iberian rock lizard species,Iberolacerta cyreni,and cross‐species priming in other Iberolacerta species

Eight polymorphic microsatellite loci are described for the Iberian rock lizard species, Iberolacerta cyreni. Loci were isolated from a partial genomic library that had been enriched for AAAG repeat sequence. Number of alleles per locus ranged from two to 13 in a sample of 24 individuals from the Sierra de Guadarrama (central Spain). Observed heterozygosity ranged from 0.13 to 0.96. At least three loci were amplified and polymorphic in four other Iberian rock lizard species: Iberolacerta monticola, Iberolacerta bonnali, Iberolacerta aranica and Iberolacerta aurelioi. These markers will be used to study mating strategies and reproductive success in I. cyreni.     

A NEW SPECIES OF THE GENUS IOWANA HOTTES (HOMOPTERA:APHIDIDAE) FROM CHINA*

Abstract This paper deals with a new species of Iowana Hottes, Icrwana zhangi, sp. nov. in China. This new species is closely related to J. frisoni, but differs from the latter in the shape of cauda, length of processus terminalis, length of ultimate rostral segment, and as well as in having smooth siphunculi, having 6‐segmented antennae and primary rhinarium with accessory rhinaria on the ultimate antennal segment. All the type specimens of this new species, collected from Heilongjiang Province, are deposited in the Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing. Iowana Hottes is a new record genus to China.     

Universal Optimization of Flight Initiation Distance and Habitat-Driven Variation in Escape Tactics in a Namibian Lizard Assemblage

Some aspects of escape predicted by theoretical models are intended to apply universally. For example, flight initiation distance (distance between an approaching predator and prey when escape begins) is predicted from predation risk and the costs of escaping. Escape tactics and refuge selection are not currently predicted by theoretical models, but are expected to vary with structural features of the habitat. One way of studying such variation is to compare aspects of antipredatory behavior among sympatric species that differ in habitat or microhabitat use. In an assemblage of lizards in northwestern Namibia, we conducted experiments to test predictions of escape theory for three risk factors in representatives of three families and observed escape tactics in additional species. As predicted by escape theory, flight initiation distance increased with directness of a predator's approach and predator speed in Agama planiceps, Mabuya acutilabris, and Rhotropus boultoni, and with distance from refuge in M. acutilabris. As predicted by theory, the probability of entering refuge increased with risk in R. boultoni. All available data indicate that flight initiation distance and refuge entry by lizards conform to theoretical predictions. Escape tactics varied greatly as a function of habitat type: (1) arboreal species fled up and around trees and sometimes entered tree holes; (2) saxicolous species used rock crevices as refuges, but differed in tactics prior to entering refuges; and (3) terrestrial species fled into bushes or other vegetation, often to the far sides of them. Some M. acutilabris entered small animal burrows or buried themselves in sand beneath bushes. Escape tactics varied even among congeners in Mabuya, highlighting the important effect of habitat structure on them. Although habitat partitioning has traditionally been viewed as favoring species coexistence, an interesting by‐product appears to be structuring of escape tactics in lizard communities.     

Evaluation of Multi-Target and Single-Target Liposomal Drugs for the Treatment of Gastric Cancer

We studied the effects of multi- and single-target liposomal drugs on human gastric cancer cell AGS both in vitro and in vivo. The cytotoxic effect of dihydrotanshinone I was significantly enhanced by treatment with octreotide-polyethylene glycol(PEG)-liposome, Arg-Gly-Asp(RGD)-PEG-liposome, and RGD/octreotide-PEG-liposome encapsulated with 0.5 μg/ml of dihydrotanshinone I to AGS cell for 24 h, compared to control. Furthermore, the AGS cell survival rate for multi-target versus single target liposomal drugs was significantly suppressed. Microsocpic examination revealed that significant cell death occurred in the multi- and single-target liposomal encapsulated drug groups. Significant suppression of tumor growth in AGS cell xenograft nude mice given octreotide-PEG-liposome, RGD/octreotide-PEG-liposome encapsulated drug, versus those given a free drug was noted after 13 d of experimentation with the multi-targeted liposome: up to 60.75% and 41.2% reduction of tumor volume as compared to dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) control and the free drug groups respectively. The treated animals showed no gross signs of toxicity. The results have potential clinical application.     

Systematic revision of mountain dragons (Reptilia: Agamidae: Diploderma) in China,with descriptions of six new species and discussion on their conservation

Cryptic diversity not only introduces confusion to taxonomic studies, but it also poses major challenges to conservation and environmental legislation. One such troubling group are the Mountain Dragons in the genus Diploderma in Southwest China. Previous studies have suggested that the genus contains considerable cryptic diversity, particularly in the D. flaviceps complex. Owing to taxonomic confusion, micro‐endemic lineages are still neglected by the Chinese wildlife protection laws, despite their urgent conservation needs. Combining multivariate morphological and multi‐locus phylogenetic data, we provide the first integrative systematic revision of the genus Diploderma. Specifically, we confirm that the six examined populations of D. cf. flaviceps from the upper Jinsha and Yalong River Valleys in Sichuan and Yunnan Provinces represent six cryptic, undescribed lineages, and we describe each of them as a new species. With the updated taxonomy and distribution information, we discuss the taxonomy of the D. flaviceps complex in Southwest China, provide an updated diagnostic key along with distributional ranges for all species of the genus, and discuss some of the suspicious records of other congeners in China. Lastly, we evaluate the IUCN status of each of the six new species and highlight the major challenges for Diploderma conservation in China due to delayed environmental legislation and misleading conservation assessments.     

Scientia sexualis versus ars erotica: Foucault, van Gulik, Needham

This paper begins with a discussion of the scientia sexualis/ars erotica distinction, which Foucault first advances in History of Sexuality Vol. 1, and which has been employed by many scholars to do a variety of analytical work. Though Foucault has expressed his doubts regarding his conceptualization of the differences between Western and Eastern discourses of desire, he never entirely disowns the distinction. In fact, Foucault remains convinced that China must have an ars erotica. I will explore Foucault’s sources of authority. To this end, I introduce the work of famous Dutch sinologist Robert Hans van Gulik, who published the tremendously influential Sexual Life in Ancient China in 1961, and also explore Joseph Needham’s view on Chinese sex. I argue that, Foucault, in his fierce polemic against the “Repressive Hypothesis”, himself imagined a utopian Other where pleasure and desire were organised differently. I end on a discuss on Orientalism and the project of “Sinography” of comparative literature scholars Haun Saussy, Eric Hayot and others.