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There has always been war and conflict in our world. Conflict almost always goes hand-in-hand with human suffering and is usually caused by issues related to religion, power and politics linked to greed and money. Ordinary people, trying to live their everyday lives often suffer the greatest effects, with extreme hardship, misery and intense unhappiness frequently leading to death, destruction and displacement. This article looks at the concept of migration caused by war and conflict as dealt with by a text set of picturebooks. It considers the responses of a group of 9- and 10-year-old children as they discuss what is meant by migration, migrants and refugees and focuses on what it would be like if, because of war, they found themselves in the situation of having to leave their homes and seek refuge in a new country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article gives a brief overview of reader response theory before sharing the views of some nine-year-old children working collaboratively as part of a community of readers. Prior to responding to some philosophical picturebooks the children talked about what they thought philosophy was, they then shared their thoughts on some of the very questions of existence to include: Who am I? Why am I here? Where did I come from? and Where will I go to? Their initial thoughts and responses were followed by detailed reading, thinking and responding to one specific picturebook,Die Schopfung (The Creation)by F.K. Waechter. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children from literate home backgrounds, who have exposure to supportive, positive reading role models using good quality texts, are the ones who are best able to cope with the demands of learning about literacy and the transition from home to school. This study of 3-year-old children will focus on their interactions with picturebook read aloud, their repeated requests to have favourite books read over and over again, their developing sense of identity and their growing ability to respond to the books through play, oral retellings, drawings, emergent writing and ‘readings' of the stories in their own words. Over a period of time, as the children had a series of picturebooks read to and shared with them, they were able to identify a sense of self mirrored in the content of some of the books and to make informed choices about their favourites. The children identified themselves in the storybook narratives and went on to record their responses in a variety of differing modes some of which led to them becoming real authors as they constructed their own books to be read, re-read and enjoyed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There is probably a comic or graphic novel to suit the needs and requirements of all kinds of readers. However, in addition, there is now a new kid on the block! A different kind of book is emerging, one that exhibits some, but not always all, of the characteristics normally thought of as belonging to comics and graphic novels. These books blur the boundaries and include elements of comics, graphic novels and picturebooks, fusing them and creating a category that is a synthesis of aspects from all of them, hence the term, “fusion” texts. This article challenges the view that comics, graphic novels and picturebooks are aimed at a younger and/or immature audience and shows how they are often complex fusion texts dealing with challenging, controversial issues which frequently deliver thought provoking and uncomfortable messages. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

It is increasingly accepted that one can respond to picturebooks in a variety of different ways, however it is only in the last decade or so that some picturebooks are being recognized as extremely complex multimodal texts which often make great intellectual and cognitive demands on the reader. Picturebooks can be very powerful texts; they can stimulate rich discussion and release previously untapped thoughts and emotions allowing the reader to reflect on life and its vagaries. This article asks who is the audience for picturebooks that are challenging, controversial, and unconventional and outlines why it is crucial to read, share, and talk about them collaboratively. It describes how one such book, The Short and Incredibly Happy Life of Riley by Colin Thompson and Amy Lissiat, at first glance a seemingly simple, humorous text, was used with 10 and 11 year old children as the stimulus for some reader response work which quickly led to some profound, indeed, quite philosophical discussions about the purpose of life and the choices that human beings make as they exist in a material world. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

It has long been accepted that one can respond to fine art in a variety of different ways. However, it is only in the last decade or so that picturebooks have been attracting the kind of recognition that they have long deserved as art forms to be considered and responded to both creatively and aesthetically. There is a growing body of research focusing on how we can respond creatively to the illustrations in picturebooks in addition to the picturebooks themselves as art objects. There is also a growing number of author illustrators who use famous works of art as an integral part of the storyline in their picuturebooks. This article describes how one such book, Katie's picture show, was initially used as the stimulus for some reader response work which quickly led onto more in-depth, detailed responses to fine art - Fernando Botero's art in particular. It then goes on to share the oral, written and illustrative responses of some 10 year old children, showing the creative and aesthetic links between picturebooks and fine art. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a qualitative research project undertaken with Y6 children. It draws on transcriptions of children's discussions; recordings of collaborative writing sessions; and the children's responses to a series of questions relating to Beanie soft toys, their origins, their intended market audience and their creator's entrepreneurial intentions in relation to the global market. The paper considers how far the children were motivated by working with popular icons as a purpose for collaborative writing. It also analyses children's stated views on the manufacturers who make, advertise and sell these types of popular toys and explores children's relationship to the consumerist ideology which surrounds popular culture. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents information on eating disorders, essentially anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa. It is particularly afflicting young people, particularly young women. It assesses the relationships between discourses of food refusal and those of obesity. In addition, it examines their effect on curricular concerned with the education of the "body" in schools. Eating disorders have received lot of attention in recent years in the popular media as well as the scientific literature across the disciplines. Focusing attention on eating disorders raises many queries about how young women and men generally experience and are treated in the contemporary conditions of schooling. In addition, the issues related to the social production of the body, the curriculum of sport, health and physical education. In Great Britain, the Eating Disorders Association estimate that about 165,000 people have eating disorders and are held accountable for the highest number of deaths from psychiatric illness.

This article looks at why talk is important for young children learning mathematics, how talk fosters mathematical understanding and the importance of having something to talk about by relating maths to real situations. It then looks at the revealing comments of some four and five year old children talking about simple number activities linked to a favourite rhyming story song they had been singing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Presents various research on neuropsychology, featured in the 1998 issue of the periodical 'Neuropsychological Rehabilitation.' Frontal lobe deficits after head injury; Prospects for the wider use of virtual reality and its potential for influencing cognitive rehabilitation; Patterns of performance of closed-head injured and healthy samples in Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale.

Reviews several studies on neuropsychological rehabilitation. 'The Neuropsychology of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Review and Consideration of Clinical Implications,' by F. Tallis; 'Feeling Cold: An Unusual Brain Injury Symptom and Its Treatment With Vasopressin,' by P. Eames; 'Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Head Injury As a Dual Diagnosis: 'Islands' of Memory As a Mechanism,' by N.S. King.

Provides information on several studies related to rehabilitation medicine and psychology. 'Quality of Life as a Measure of Rehabilitation Outcome in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis,' by A. Jonsson; J. Dock and M.H. Ravborg; 'Motivational Deficits After Brain Injury: Effects of Bromocriptine in 11 Patients,' by J.H. Powell, S. Al Adawi, J. Morgan and R.J. Greenwood; 'Outpatients in Neurological Rehabilitation,' by M.P. Barnes and D.A. Skeil.

Describes an alternative approach to patient with phocomelia by using salivary hormone estimation. Medical history of the patient; Methods of monitoring ovulation; Benefits of salivary progesterone measurement.

We analyse a corpus of 99 recent Spanish-language picturebooks, based on converging recommendations of prestigious reading promotion institutions in different countries. Focusing on the books that feature non-human characters, we inquire into how animals and other creatures may open possibilities to present diverse and intercultural worlds narrating difference differently. Using critical content analysis with an intersectional lens, we give an overview of the predominant narratives about groups and societal organisations in recommended children's books. Most of the books in this sample (re)produce a desire for a social homogeneity, depicting communities of similar creatures threatened by those of a different kind and/or by the destabilisation of hierarchical orders. We highlight a few books that open up possibilities to narrate shifting identities and social positionings, as well as dynamics of exclusion and propose to look at the potential of non-representational stories for intercultural education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We quantified the impact of consumer awareness about beef safety on U.S. beef exports. An index to reflect consumer awareness is constructed based on publicized reports in the media. Results showed a 0.8% reduction in U.S. beef exports arose from foodborne-disease news. In addition, using impulse response functions derived from a panel vector autoregressive model (panel VAR with the system GMM estimator), we found that the negative impact of a shock in food safety news intensified after three quarters and then diminished. Investing in any scheme that minimizes the impact of food safety events, such as quality labeling, is suggested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article lists the journal's editors and editorial board members, including board member Dr. William Crawley, editor Barney Smith and board member Michael Pye.

The article lists editorial board members for the scholarly journal "Asian Affairs," including William Crawley, Alexander Evans, and Lucy Kelaart.

In the evolving world of children’s literature, lines get blurred as formats and genres shift and adapt to the demands of readers and society as a whole. Nowhere is this more the case than in illustrations found within children’s literature. Illustrations, and visuals, play an integral role in children’s literature. In this article, the authors describe an emerging trend that comes from the convergence of picture books, comics and graphic novels. They identify this new genre as blended narrative, in which visual and textual media equally share the burden of storytelling. Specific titles from children’s literature are highlighted to showcase examples of blended narratives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flotsam (2006), the award-winning wordless picturebook by David Wiesner is about the power and mystery of photographs but, at the same time, it plays with many of the techniques of photography to tell its story. This article discusses these themes and techniques and also examines children's responses to the picturebook, both oral and photographic. It considers photography with children as a research tool for investigating identity, culture, and literacy. The discussion about Flotsam and the photographs provided an insight into children's understanding, not only of wordless narrative but also of the techniques and uses of photography. We argue that the photographs increase the children's control of the way in which their space, as well as their identity, is represented to others; a representation that is particularly important for immigrant pupils. We conclude that Flotsam can act as an incentive to reflect on the idea of looking carefully; to think about artistically complex texts and about the potential of photography. Finally, we suggest that photography is a promising way of exploring the visual image, not only from an investigative but also from a pedagogic point of view, as it can draw attention to the construction and metalanguage of image and thus strengthening comprehension and critical literacy skills. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Technological advances and picturebook studies do not typically go hand in hand. There has long existed, not only a large divide between the two, but an unarticulated friction as well. Picturebooks as artifacts have certain elements of their makeup that cannot fully be replicated. It is no wonder, then, that for years now, technology such as computer software, although attempting to mimic aspects of a picturebook reading experience, had never truly attained its end. The particular technological product considered here is the iPad, a recent phenomenon I view to hold a potential turning point in the way the picturebook, in particular those in series, will be received. Drawing from existing scholarship on picturebooks, series fiction for children, and paratextual components of texts, the exploration is based on inquiring into and pointing to parallels in form between a conventional codex picturebook and its equivalent - the hypertextual variety it has been adapted into. The aim, thus, is to demonstrate that the technology has managed to come much closer to what a picturebook is and means. The particular picturebook App examined, one in a series, is Dr. Seuss's The Cat in the Hat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the conflicts between the practices of economics and human rights. There is an assumption that economic progress is closely linked to the human rights experienced by the poor of the world, the author states, allowing for scarcity to be overcome which would then provide a basis for human rights to develop. Mainstream economics is individualistic and equilibrium driven, and defines its goals in terms of the pursuit of personal interest by isolated individuals. Also discussed is the reduction of society's complexity.

The article features Backpages, a collection of articles which gives an opportunity to engage with theatre and performance practice with immediacy and insight and for theatre workers and performance artists to engage critically and reflectively on their work and the work of their peers. The publication includes the articles entitled "Multiculturalism and Theatre in the 1980s," "The Rachel Corrie Affair," and "New Writing 2006" among others.

A study of reviews of gardening books published in 1988-1990 by Library Journal, Booklist, Publishers Weekly, and Horticulrure suggests that review sources aimed at gardening audiences could help librarians keep up with the literature by identifying books not reviewed in library-oriented journals. The overall lack of evaluative and comparative reviews of gardening books also suggests the need for annual roundups of the literature in library journals. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Focuses on the role of social reproduction in economics, with reference to Cuba in the 1990s, a middle-income developing country. Notion that reproductive activity is equal to domestically based work; Severity of the economic dislocation of daily life; Cuba's transition in the 1990s; Implications for a gendered political economy in the privatization of reproduction.