‘Inscribing’ Freud: A Critical Review of Celia Brickman's Aboriginal Populations in the Mind

Working through the particular book under review, this essay seeks to demonstrate how certain entrenched positions in postcolonial feminist writings on psychoanalysis are unproductive. Instead of advancing knowledge and understanding of the human psyche, of society or of therapeutic technique, ideas in the human sciences and psychoanalysis are shown to be appropriated and distorted in order to sustain an academic self‐referential circuitry. The central argument of Brickman's book is that current psychoanalytic practice is inherently racist because Freud's metapsychology was informed by evolutionist ideas. The present discussion attempts to uncover the techniques of bias with which the author tries to substantiate her claim.     

Kurze Notiz über Rivulus beniensis (Pisces,Cyprinodontidae) in seinem natürlichen Lebensraum bei Tingo Maria (ost‐andiner Hang in Peru)

Rivulus beniensis, formerly found by the author in small artificial ditches near Tingo Maria (Peru), is reproted from a natural habitat in the environment. The population in the ditches originates from this habitat. A chemical analysis of the water is included.     

Reflections on Teaching Social Violence in an Age of Genocide and a Time of War

This article is a reflection by a teacher and a student on "structural-violence pedagogy," the process of teaching and learning about the structures of inequality implicated in various forms of social violence, including those of everyday life, massacre, and genocide. Using a case study of an undergraduate course in anthropology, we explore the complexity and emotionally charged nature of this field, some innovative teaching strategies, and contributions of anthropology to understanding a world marked and marred by war, genocide, racialization, and structural poverty. The teacher shapes a course of study informed by critical pedagogy and theories about violence and power. The student draws on her personal experiences, her intellectual interests, and her yearning for fuller answers to deeper questions as she seeks to reciprocate what is being taught to her. Together, teacher and student explore the promise in the power of teaching for understanding the world as it does exist.     

Phytogeographical relations of the Andean dry valleys of Bolivia

Aim The objective of this study is to examine the phytogeographical affinities of the Andean dry valleys of Bolivia in order to contribute to a better understanding of the Andean dry flora's distribution, origin and diversity. Particular emphasis is given to the analysis of the floristic connections of this flora with more austral parts of South America. Location The dry valleys of Bolivia are located in the Andes of the southern half of the country, at elevations between 1300 and 3200 m. Methods An extensive floristic list compiled by the author to evaluate plant diversity in these Andean regions was used as the base for this study. To accomplish this, all recorded genera and species were assigned, respectively, to 11 and 12 phytogeographical elements established previously by the author. Two phytogeographical spectra were thus obtained and analysed. Results At the genus level, the Andean dry valleys of Bolivia are clearly dominated by genera that have widespread distributions (cosmoplitan and subtropical genera). Many of these reached the Andes from the lowland region of the Chaco. At species level, Andean elements constitute more than 60% of the species total, most of which are restricted to the central‐southern Andes. This suggests that Chaco‐related and Andean genera had considerable levels of speciation in these valleys. Many genera and more than half the species have their northernmost distribution in the dry valleys of Bolivia, thereby underlining strong relationships with central‐southern South America (mainly Argentina, Paraguay and southern Brazil). The data supports the belief of the existence, in central‐southern Peru, of a floristic disjunction in dry to arid environments that separates a tropical dry flora north of this limit from a dry subtropical/warm temperate flora south of it. Main conclusions The Andean dry valleys of Bolivia are diverse plant communities with high levels of endemism (c. 18% of the species). The species of this region are more related to those present in central‐southern South America than to the flora of northern South America that ranges southwards to Peru. Many of the species have restricted distributions in the dry Andes of Bolivia and Argentina, and many genera of these dry valleys have their northernmost distribution in Bolivia/southern Peru, too. The data point to high levels of speciation also in the central Andes.     

A Preliminary Study of a Peruvian Diet Using Dietary Analysis and Hair Mineral Content as Indicators

Observations among former American residents living long-term in Peru suggested that hair health improved while in Peru. To determine if a Peruvian diet correlates with hair composition, dietary intake of nutrients and mineral content of hair were measured among Peruvian and matched US residents. Selected foods from Peru were also analyzed for mineral and antioxidant content and compared with equivalent foods available in the USA. Statistically significant differences between Peruvian and US residents’ hair were found for sodium (decreased in Peru, p?=?0.007) and vanadium (decreased in Peru, p?=?0.03). Differences in hair composition between residencies may be explained by lower dietary sodium and vanadium intake among Peruvian residents or by lower concentrations of these minerals in Peruvian drinking water. Many significant mineral differences were also identified between Peruvian foods and their US equivalents. Although no statistically significant correlations between dietary intake and hair mineral content were found, results indicate that a Peruvian diet contributes differently to hair composition than a US diet. More research is needed to elucidate the link between a Peruvian diet and specific aspects of hair health.     

Born too soon

In this Letter, the author walks through 'Memory Lane'. She reflects upon the birth, growth and developmental trajectory of her third child who was born too soon, in a major Hospital in London. Her aim is to share her knowledge and experiences with other parents and professionals. The author acknowledges the feelings which is so common amongst mothers of preterm babies i.e. that the baby does not belong to them. Moreover, she reflects upon her participation in caring for her daughter, how overwhelming it all was and her joy when her child left hospital and is a healthy teenager.     

Genetic Characterization of Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus from Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru: Identification of a New Subtype ID Lineage

Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) has been responsible for hundreds of thousands of human and equine cases of severe disease in the Americas. A passive surveillance study was conducted in Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador to determine the arboviral etiology of febrile illness. Patients with suspected viral-associated, acute, undifferentiated febrile illness of <7 days duration were enrolled in the study and blood samples were obtained from each patient and assayed by virus isolation. Demographic and clinical information from each patient was also obtained at the time of voluntary enrollment. In 2005–2007, cases of Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) were diagnosed for the first time in residents of Bolivia; the patients did not report traveling, suggesting endemic circulation of VEEV in Bolivia. In 2001 and 2003, VEE cases were also identified in Ecuador. Since 1993, VEEV has been continuously isolated from patients in Loreto, Peru, and more recently (2005), in Madre de Dios, Peru. We performed phylogenetic analyses with VEEV from Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru and compared their relationships to strains from other parts of South America. We found that VEEV subtype ID Panama/Peru genotype is the predominant one circulating in Peru. We also demonstrated that VEEV subtype ID strains circulating in Ecuador belong to the Colombia/Venezuela genotype and VEEV from Madre de Dios, Peru and Cochabamba, Bolivia belong to a new ID genotype. In summary, we identified a new major lineage of enzootic VEEV subtype ID, information that could aid in the understanding of the emergence and evolution of VEEV in South America.     

Three days for weeping: dreams,emotions, and death in the Peruvian Amazon

Funeral customs and beliefs about the dead among the Matsigenka of Peru reflect great anxiety over the contagion of death and the power of the dead over the living. In this article, these beliefs and practices are interpreted in light of a native theory about emotion. For the Matsigenka, excessive displays of emotion, especially grief, anger, and aggressive sexuality, cause a vicious cycle of unhappiness, social disruption, illness, and death. Moving beyond a culturally particular, symbolic-interpretive perspective, the author also draws on personal experiences both in the field and at home to reflect on the phenomenology of grief across cultures.     

Comparison of baseline sister-chromatid exchanges (SCE), cyclophosphamide-, ethylnitrosourea (ENU)-induced SCE, ENU-induced cell-cycle delay and chromosome aberrations between Peru and laboratory mice

The baseline sister-chromatid exchange (SCE) frequency and sensitivity to the effects of the mutagens cyclophosphamide (CPP) and ethylnitrosourea (ENU) in bone-marrow cells of descendants of wild mice trapped from Rimac valley in Peru (Peru mice) were studied and compared to the same effects in laboratory mice. Baseline SCE of the Peru mice were significantly higher than those of the C57BL/6J and DBA/2 mice. The average SCE/cell of 4 Peru mice was 5.4 (range 3.8-7.6), while the average of SCE/cell of either 4 C57BL or 5 DBA mice was 3.2 (range 3.0-3.4). The variation of SCE/cell among Peru mice studied was statistically significant whereas among C57BL or DBA mice it was not. SCE frequencies of primary cultures derived from the ear tissue of 10 Peru (mean SCE/cell = 8.5) were also significantly higher than those of 6 C57BL mice (mean SCE/cell = 7.4). CPP treatment resulted in a dose-dependent increase of SCE frequencies in bone-marrow cells of all the mice. However, some of Peru mice treated with CPP had significantly higher SCE than the other Peru mice and than all of the C57BL and DBA mice treated with equivalent dose. ENU induced increased SCE frequencies in Peru and C57BL mice. Again some of Peru mice either had significantly higher SCE, greater extent induced cell-cycle delay or chromosome aberrations (CA) than other Peru mice and than of all the C57BL mice treated with equivalent dose.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

The doctor as patient: an encounter with Guillain-Bárré syndrome.

The author describes the course and treatment of a severe acute illness that began with cranial nerve palsies and ataxia and progressed rapidly to generalized weakness with respiratory embarrassment. There was no sensory loss or elevation of the protein level in the cerebrospinal fluid. The Miller Fisher variant of Guillain-Barré syndrome was diagnosed. At the height of the illness, a period lasting about 2 weeks, the author was almost completely paralysed, retaining only a little motion in some fingers and one foot; she was able to breathe on her own but required suctioning through a tracheostomy, and her eyes had to be taped shut because of her facial paralysis. She remained mentally alert throughout. Proper care of such a helpless patient demands not only excellent technical performance of many nursing procedures but a sensitivity to the patient as a person. The author describes the many shortcomings of the care she received and the value of physiotherapy in her rehabilitation and makes a number of specific recommendations for the care of critically ill conscious patients.     

Blacks as me: narrative identity

This commentary responds to genetic testing of African ancestry through a series of personal narratives that reveal a complex, intimate, and individualised process of identity formation. The author discusses both how her family and others outside her family have fostered and challenged her sense of black identity. She concludes by maintaining that racial identity is not in the genes but in the world in which we live and the stories we construct and are able to maintain.     

Two new species of Andean gymnophthalmid lizards of the genus Euspondylus (Reptilia, Squamata) from central and southern Peru

Two new species of lizards assigned to the genus Euspondylus from the montane forests of the Peruvian Andes in the Pasco Department (central Peru) and Ayacucho Department (southern Peru) both at elevations of 2550 and 3450 m, respectively, are described. The new species are distinguishable from all other Peruvian and Ecuadorian species of Euspondylus by a unique combination of morphometric, scalation and color pattern characteristics. Natural history data for the new species and for Euspondylus spinalis are also provided.     

Narrating Professional Development: Teachers' Stories as Texts for Improving Practice

This article traces a systematic, respectful process for using narrative materials as vehicles for teachers' professional development. Ann, a high school history teacher, wrote a series of stories about school experiences, using them as departure points for discussing, thinking, and writing about her ongoing practice in collaboration with the author. The article outlines in detail the methods of narrative inquiry the author employed to safeguard Ann's voice and perspective while supporting her in critical reflection and changed practices     

The structure of embodiment and the overcoming of dualism: an analysis of Margaret Lock’s paradigm of embodiment

This paper elaborates the structure of the dualistic theory and that of embodiment in order to demonstrate the existence of a linkage between the two using a topological approach. This theoretical step is taken in order to analyze the so-called overcoming of dualistic theories by the theory of embodiment. The author takes into analysis one particular theory of embodiment: Margaret Lock’s. The analysis of her theory of embodiment takes into consideration both the level of enunciation and the enunciated, which enables the conceptualisation and understanding of Lock’s subjectivity as immanent to her theory. The specific moral position taken by Lock, which is required by her ‘project,’ is not transcendental, but rather an effect of the structure of her theory. This approach enables the author to develop a critique that aims at developing further her theory rather than pragmatically negating it. The paper ends with the conclusion that the object of the overcoming is not the dualism itself, but the element called ‘Difference.’ This element belongs to the dualistic relation yet simultaneously cannot be integrated into the relation. Conversely, a theory of embodiment is faced with the same element (Difference), but the former finds another structural solution to it. In the claim of an overcoming of dualities, the theory of embodiment demonstrates a reactionary position in relation to Difference. Precisely this position produces the structural impossibility of accepting the fact that the actual problem is not to bridge Difference, but, rather, to formulate it as such.     

Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in swine from slaughterhouses in Lima, Peru, and Georgia, U.S.A

Toxoplasma gondii is an important pathogen transmitted by food, with raw or undercooked meat as the main foodborne source of toxoplasmosis. In Peru, 2-4 million people have antibodies to T. gondii. It is believed that more than 60 million people in the United States are infected with T. gondii. In this study, the prevalence of T. gondii in pigs from Peru and the United States was determined by Western blot. The presence of IgG antibodies to T. gondii from serum samples was determined. Blood samples were collected from 137 pigs at a slaughterhouse in Lima, Peru, and 152 pigs at a slaughterhouse in Georgia. Of the serum samples collected from swine, 27.7% (n = 38) from Peru and 16.4% (n = 25) from the United States were positive for T. gondii. Swine represent a significant source of human infection with T. gondii in Peru and the United States.     

Occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in the coastal environment of Peru

The occurrence and distribution of Vibrio cholerae in sea water and plankton along the coast of Peru were studied from October 1997 to June 2000, and included the 1997-98 El Ni?o event. Samples were collected at four sites in coastal waters off Peru at monthly intervals. Of 178 samples collected and tested, V. cholerae O1 was cultured from 10 (5.6%) samples, and V. cholerae O1 was detected by direct fluorescent antibody assay in 26 out of 159 samples tested (16.4%). Based on the number of cholera cases reported in Peru from 1997 to 2000, a significant correlation was observed between cholera incidence and elevated sea surface temperature (SST) along the coast of Peru (P < 0.001). From the results of this study, coastal sea water and zooplankton are concluded to be a reservoir for V. cholerae in Peru. The climate-cholera relationship observed for the 1997-98 El Ni?o year suggests that an early warning system for cholera risk can be established for Peru and neighbouring Latin American countries.     

Relaxed skin tension lines (RSTL) versus other skin lines

The seven best known skin tension lines are presented. The directions they convey are schematically compared with those of the relaxed skin tension lines. Commentaries and discussion by the author are given in order to help the reader arrive at his or her own conclusions on which directions his or her incisions should take so as to obtain the best scarring.     

Mapping multiple disease resistance genes using a barley mapping population evaluated in Peru, Mexico, and the USA

We used a well-characterized barley mapping population (BCD 47 × Baronesse) to determine if barley stripe rust (BSR) resistance quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapped in Mexico and the USA were effective against a reported new race in Peru. Essentially the same resistance QTL were detected using data from each of the three environments, indicating that these resistance alleles are effective against the spectrum of naturally occurring races at these sites. In addition to the mapping population, we evaluated a germplasm array consisting of lines with different numbers of mapped BSR resistance alleles. A higher BSR disease severity on CI10587, which has a single qualitative resistance gene, in Peru versus Mexico suggests there are differences in pathogen virulence between the two locations. Confirmation of a new race in Peru will require characterization using a standard set of differentials, an experiment that is underway. The highest levels of resistance in Peru were observed when the qualitative resistance gene was pyramided with quantitative resistance alleles. We also used the mapping population to locate QTL conferring resistance to barley leaf rust and barley powdery mildew. For mildew, we identified resistance QTL under field conditions in Peru that are distinct from the Mla resistance that we mapped using specific isolates under controlled conditions. These results demonstrate the long-term utility of a reference mapping population and a well-characterized germplasm array for locating and validating genes conferring quantitative and qualitative resistance to multiple pathogens.     

Informal Trade,Contrabando and Prosperous Socialities in Arequipa,Peru

The article explores trading activities at an outdoor market in the city of Arequipa, Peru, with the intention of discussing how notions of ‘the market’ are negotiated in terms of moralities. More specifically, it seeks to address the way in which the moralities of ‘the market’ are made the object of negotiation in a context where trade is of a more or less informal kind. In particular, the article describes the practices of smuggling (contrabando) across the border with Bolivia, an issue that has been only briefly discussed in the literature on the Andes. The argument is that the practices of petty trade and ‘informality’, ritual payments and brujería (harmful acts, or witchcraft) in the market context should not necessarily or exclusively be seen in terms of resistance as is often suggested. Instead, these practices should be seen in terms of Andean notions of reciprocity and circulation as significant for the establishment and maintenance of prosperity, that is, prosperity understood as relationally created.