6 results
Search Results
2. "You Will Not Surely Die": The Pentecostal Aesthetics and Ethics of Serpent Handling.
- Author
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Kamenicky, Michael Austin
- Subjects
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PENTECOSTALISM , *AESTHETICS , *ETHICS , *STATUS (Law) , *FREEDOM of religion - Abstract
This paper is an aesthetic analysis of the practice of serpent handling by Christians in the Appalachian region of the United States. The purpose of this analysis is to understand serpent handling's aesthetic relationship to the Pentecostal tradition and exposit the implications of this relationship for the practice's legal status. The first section examines the history and defining characteristics of serpent handling and introduces the controversial problem of whether the practice can be categorized within the Pentecostal movement. The second section argues that serpent handling can be understood as belonging within the broader global Pentecostal tradition through engagement with the Pentecostal aesthetics of Nimi Wariboko. The final section concludes that if serpent handling is legible according to the aesthetic norms of Pentecostalism, a now broadly tolerated religious tradition in the United States, then this necessitates a wholesale reconsideration of antiserpent handling legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
3. Stories, crisis, and meaning-making: storying possibility and community in the terrain of cultural struggle.
- Author
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Harris, Dylan M
- Subjects
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CLIMATE change , *CRISES , *ECONOMIC change , *POSSIBILITY , *STORYTELLING - Abstract
In a time of multiple, competing, and nested crises, the draw to storytelling is intuitive. Stories help us make sense of the world around us. People are drawn to stories because of their emphasis on community, and the way they create possibilities when it feels like there are none. This paper builds upon geographic research on storytelling, articulating how stories are critical for creating meaning in light of crises. Based on 14 months of fieldwork with storytellers in Appalachia and Alaska, two regions facing profound social, climatic, and economic change and with culturally rich storytelling traditions, research for this paper discusses the practice of storytelling, as told by storytellers, and how different approaches to storytelling help address the climate crisis specifically with notes for crises more broadly. Further, considering calls to use storytelling to address climate change, this paper examines and critiques the stories that are currently being told and valued. Finally, this paper outlines the kinds of stories that could be told to address crises, noting specifically how stories are sites of cultural and political struggle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
4. Spatial-temporal Bayesian accelerated failure time models for survival endpoints with applications to prostate cancer registry data.
- Author
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Wang, Ming, Li, Zheng, Lu, Jun, Zhang, Lijun, Li, Yimei, and Zhang, Liangliang
- Subjects
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SKIN cancer , *PROSTATE cancer , *PROPORTIONAL hazards models , *MARKOV chain Monte Carlo , *LARGE space structures (Astronautics) , *FLEXIBLE structures - Abstract
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer after non-melanoma skin cancer and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in US men. Its incidence and mortality rates vary substantially across geographical regions and over time, with large disparities by race, geographic regions (i.e., Appalachia), among others. The widely used Cox proportional hazards model is usually not applicable in such scenarios owing to the violation of the proportional hazards assumption. In this paper, we fit Bayesian accelerated failure time models for the analysis of prostate cancer survival and take dependent spatial structures and temporal information into account by incorporating random effects with multivariate conditional autoregressive priors. In particular, we relax the proportional hazards assumption, consider flexible frailty structures in space and time, and also explore strategies for handling the temporal variable. The parameter estimation and inference are based on a Monte Carlo Markov chain technique under a Bayesian framework. The deviance information criterion is used to check goodness of fit and to select the best candidate model. Extensive simulations are performed to examine and compare the performances of models in different contexts. Finally, we illustrate our approach by using the 2004-2014 Pennsylvania Prostate Cancer Registry data to explore spatial-temporal heterogeneity in overall survival and identify significant risk factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
5. The semantics, sociolinguistics, and origins of double modals in American English: New insights from social media.
- Author
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Morin, Cameron and Grieve, Jack
- Subjects
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AMERICAN English language , *ENGLISH language , *AFRICAN languages , *SOCIAL media in business , *SOCIOLINGUISTICS , *SOCIAL media - Abstract
In this paper, we analyze double modal use in American English based on a multi-billion-word corpus of geolocated posts from the social media platform Twitter. We identify and map 76 distinct double modals totaling 5,349 examples, many more types and tokens of double modals than have ever been observed. These descriptive results show that double modal structure and use in American English is far more complex than has generally been assumed. We then consider the relevance of these results to three current theoretical debates. First, we demonstrate that although there are various semantic tendencies in the types of modals that most often combine, there are no absolute constraints on double modal formation in American English. Most surprisingly, our results suggest that double modals are used productively across the US. Second, we argue that there is considerable dialect variation in double modal use in the southern US, with double modals generally being most strongly associated with African American Language, especially in the Deep South. This result challenges previous sociolinguistic research, which has often highlighted double modal use in White Southern English, especially in Appalachia. Third, we consider how these results can help us better understand the origins of double modals in America English: although it has generally been assumed that double modals were introduced by Scots-Irish settlers, we believe our results are more consistent with the hypothesis that double modals are an innovation of African American Language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
6. Developing, implementing, and evaluating the visiting Neighbors' program in rural Appalachia: A quality improvement protocol.
- Author
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Piamjariyakul, Ubolrat, McKenrick, Susan R., Smothers, Angel, Giolzetti, Angelo, Melnick, Helen, Beaver, Molly, Shafique, Saima, Wang, Kesheng, Carte, Kerri J., Grimes, Brad, Haut, Marc W., Navia, R. Osvaldo, Patrick, Julie Hicks, and Wilhelmsen, Kirk
- Subjects
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OLDER people , *TRAINING of volunteers , *LIVING alone , *TELEPHONE calls , *SOCIAL isolation , *YOUNG adults , *RURAL women - Abstract
Introduction: Older adults living alone in rural areas frequently experience health declines, social isolation, and limited access to services. To address these challenges, our medical academic university supported a quality improvement project for developing and evaluating the Visiting Neighbors program in two rural Appalachian counties. Our Visiting Neighbors program trained local volunteers to visit and guide rural older adults in healthy activities. These age-appropriate activities (Mingle, Manage, and Move– 3M's) were designed to improve the functional health of older adults. The program includes four in-home visits and four follow-up telephone calls across three months. Purpose: The purpose of this paper was to describe the 3M's Visiting Neighbors protocol steps guiding the quality improvement procedures relating to program development, implementation, and evaluation. Methods and materials: This Visiting Neighbors study used a single-group exploratory quality improvement design. This program was tested using quality improvement standards, including collecting participant questionnaires and visit observations. Results: Older adults (> 65 years) living alone (N = 30) participants were female (79%) with a mean age of 82.96 (SD = 7.87) years. Volunteer visitor participants (N = 10) were older adult females. Two volunteer visitors implemented each visit, guided by the 3M's activities manual. All visits were verified as being consistently delivered (fidelity). Enrollment and retention data found the program was feasible to conduct. The older adult participants' total program helpfulness ratings (1 to 5) were high (M = 51.27, SD = 3.77). All volunteer visitor's program helpfulness ratings were also high (M = 51.78, SD = 3.73). Discussion: The Visiting Neighbors program consistently engaged older Appalachian adults living alone in the 3M's activities. The feasibility and fidelity of the 3M's home visits were verified. The quality improvement processes included engaging the expert advisory committee and rural county stakeholders to ensure the quality of the program development, implementation, and evaluation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF
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