Despite its continued importance in the maintenance of black identity, hip hop has become a global phenomena popular among all races. In this age of mass cultural exchange, hip hop culture itself endures glocalization, that is it serves the global market, but becomes customized to suit the local culture. Where hip hop was orginally confined to specfic boroughs In New York, hip hop artists are now composing from their own local thresholds in regions all over the United States and worldwide. Virginia USA is a region that is increasingly thriving in regards to hip hop artists, fan base, and lifestyles. The hip hop identities found in Virginia are a product of Virginia's situatedness in the broader hip hop landscape. This study will shed light on the connections among music, place, and identity and specfically delve into Virginia's situatedness between the East Coast and Southern rap sub genres as they relate to Virginia's place based identity. / Master of Science

Hip-knee-ankle-foot (HKAF) prostheses are full lower limb devices for people with hip amputations. They are designed to enable individuals to regain their mobility and move freely with little restriction. HKAFs typically have high rejection rates among users, as well as gait asymmetry and increased trunk anterior-posterior lean and pelvic tilt. In this thesis, a novel integrated hip-knee (IHK) unit was designed and evaluated to address the limitations of existing solutions. This IHK combines powered hip and microprocessor controlled knee joints into one structure, with shared electronics, sensors, and batteries. The unit is also adjustable to the user leg length by a prosthetist. ISO-10328 standard mechanical testing demonstrated acceptable structural safety and rigidity. Successful functional testing involved three able-bodied participants walking with the IHK in a hip prosthesis simulator. Hip and knee joint angles and pelvic tilt angles were recorded, gait characteristics were analyzed using video recordings. Testing showed that the participants were able to walk using the IHK, and data showed that participants used different walking strategies. Points of improvement were identified for future development of the thigh unit, including completion of a synergistic gait control system, improved battery holding mechanism, and amputee user testing.

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis (M.Tech.: Chiropractic)- Dept. of Chiropractic, Durban Institute of Technology, 2005. xvii, 109 leaves : ill. ; 30 cm / The paucity of clinical research into the cause of canine hip dysplasia, efficacy and effects of the different treatment protocols available for the management of symptoms, as well as the differing presentations, has led to a continued variation in standardized care for this condition. The aim of this study was to contribute further information on the use of instrument manipulation as an alternative or adjunctive means of managing the symptoms of canine hip dysplasia. Both manual and instrument manipulation have effectively been used in the short-term management of human musculoskeletal pconditions, it was hypothesized that the use of instrument manipulation would benefit the canine patient. The use of human based studies was a guideline, as no previous chiropractic studies have been conducted on the canine subject.

Canine cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture is a common veterinary orthopaedic problem, and has been associated with problems at the ipsilateral hip joint. However, the relationship between stifle and hip dysfunction has not been fully investigated. The purpose of this study was to establish whether CCL pathology is associated with a limitation in hip extension range large enough to affect gait. In a prospective, crosssectional study, passive and active hip extension range was determined in normal dogs as well as CCL deficient dogs. There was a significant reduction in ipsilateral passive hip extension range in the CCL deficient dogs (18.63º+/-7.57).There was a significant increase in hip extension range of the unaffected leg during gait compared to the normal group (7.03º+/-8.41). It was therefore concluded that canine CCL pathology directly affects hip extension range to a degree sufficient to affect normal gait.

Este trabalho apresenta uma análise sobre a difusão do rap no cenário cultural, a partir da influência de um dos principais mediadores culturais presentes nesse processo, a mídia hegemônica. Dessa maneira, buscou-se identificar as consequências desse fenômeno nos processos de produção, difusão e recepção cultural, a partir da análise da cobertura midiática sobre o rap e o hip-hop no Brasil, entre os anos 1980 e 2000. Partindo da premissa de que o rap figura como uma ferramenta de instrumentalização da luta pelo reconhecimento de direitos das minorias políticas, além de revelar uma linguagem estética relevante, que rompe com os padrões tradicionais de produção artística, a presente pesquisa foca no processo de mediação do rap pelo agente midiático, especificamente, a partir da veiculação de seu conteúdo no jornal Folha de S.Paulo, nas revistas Veja e BIZZ e na programação da emissora MTV. Considerando o fato de que o rap se constitui em uma expressão inovadora, tanto no campo cultural quanto social, durante a trajetória da pesquisa ficou evidente o seu apelo mercadológico e o crescente interesse com que a mídia acompanhou a evolução desse fenômeno. Considerando a aproximação da mídia à cena rap, foi possível verificar a influência exercida da primeira sobre a segunda, revelando as relações simbióticas e recíprocas entre as esferas de mediação, produção e de circulação no campo cultural. A análise também revelou que a abordagem da mídia tradicional sobre o rap mobiliza códigos que o associam a três perspectivas: moda, movimento e mercado. A alternância do predomínio de uma dessas abordagens se alinha às transformações sociais e à emergência de novos discursos que ecoam em um determinado contexto. Contudo, a partir da ocupação de um espaço definitivo do rap na mídia hegemônica e da consolidação de um mercado próprio, o rap passa a contar com uma nova frente dentro do movimento que se mobiliza a partir dos recursos materiais e simbólicos em voga para elaborar estratégias alternativas de produção, difusão e comercialização cultural. / This work presents an analysis about the rap diffusion in the cultural scene, starting from the influence of one of the main cultural mediators present in this process, the mainstream media. Therefore, it was identified the consequences of this phenomenon in production processes, dissemination and cultural reception, from the analysis of media coverage of the rap and hip-hop in Brazil, between the years of 1980 and 2000. Considering that rap figures as tool of instrumentalization of the struggle for recognition of rights of political minorities, besides proves itself a relevant aesthetic language, which breaks with traditional patterns of artistic production, the following research focuses on the process of mediation by rap media agent, specifically, based on the diffusion of their content in Folha de S.Paulo newspaper, in the magazines Veja and BIZZ and on MTV station. Considering the fact that rap constitutes an innovative expression, both in the cultural field as social, while devoloping this research, it became clear its marketing appeal and the growing interest that the media followed the evolution of this phenomenon. Considering the approach of the media to rap scene, it was possible to identify the influence exerted from media to rap, revealing the symbiotic and reciprocal relationship between mediation spheres, production and circulation in the cultural field. The analysis also revealed that the approach and influence of traditional media over the rap mobilizes codes that combines it into three perspectives: fashion, moviment and market. The alternation of the predominance of one of these approaches is aligned with the social changes and the emergence of new discourses that echo in a determinated context. However, from the occupation of a definitive rap space in the mainstream media and the consolidation of its own market, the rap now has a new front in the movement that is mobilized from the material and symbolic resources in vogue to develop alternative strategies production, dissemination and cultural marketing.

This thesis asks why women gangsta rappers have been excluded from virtually all academic and popular discourses about the genre. While ‘positive’ and ‘empowering’ New York-based female rappers in the late 80s and 90s are often referenced by those concerned with gangsta rap’s misogynistic tendencies, women rappers in Los Angeles who performed alongside male gangsta rappers, were represented on labels managed by gangsta rappers, and were otherwise self-consciously engaging in the gangsta rap style are almost never acknowledged by either the genre’s defenders or detractors. By interrogating this discursive absence, I reevaluate the neoliberal sexual and racial politics of gangsta rap’s censorship discourse and interrogate the rhetorical and representational strategies deployed by female gangsta rappers such as Lady of Rage, Bo$$, NiNi X, Menajahtwa, H.W.A., and Yo-Yo to both contest misogyny and express coalitional affinity with their male counterparts from within the genre itself.

Corrosion at the head-neck junction of total hip replacements is a poorly understood phenomenon with an incidence of 1 - 2 %. Concerns around taper junction corrosion have focused on design factors including changes in taper surface topography and geometry as well as operating conditions such as high bearing surface friction and fluid ingress-egress at the taper junction. Hence, this thesis considered 3 aspects of the head taper junction namely: (1) frictional torque at the bearing surface and below the taper junction for varying head sizes and bearing material combinations, (2) Cobalt and Chromium ion release from CoCr/Ti taper junctions, (3) FE analysis of tapers utilising variables including taper length, material, angle, and clearance under loading conditions representative of walking, hip simulator profiles and stair climb. Bearing friction and the torque about the taper axis beneath the taper junction were positively correlated with the head size (R2 = 0.57 bearing friction, R2 = 0.88 torque) and average surface roughness (Ra) (R2 = 0.66 bearing friction, R2=0.79 torque) of the femoral head. Torque generated on large MoP bearings (0.93 ± 0.2 Nm) was found to be comparable to MoM (0.81 Nm). The median cumulative Cr release rate was at least 2 times greater than that of Co (0.0220 ppb/cycle Cr relative to 0.0109 ppb/cycle Co) due to the acidic environment utilised in the accelerated tests. No statistically significant difference in ion release was found, between the trunnions of different surface finishes. Finite element analyses showed that the largest gaps generated at the mouth of the taper, were associated with smaller taper contact areas. Clearances within ±0.1° enabled the tapers to engage over comparable lengths and therefore did not show differences in taper opening, showing this was influenced by the taper engagement length rather than location (proximal or distal) of contact. Stair climb loading generated the largest taper gaps (80 m) and surface stresses on the head taper (1200 MPa); these were greatest on the shortest trunnion. Although the stair climb loading condition is not currently mandated in testing THR devices, its use could provide a more accurate prediction of taper performance in vivo and may be beneficial to 'beyond compliance' initiatives to improve implant performance.

There are many aspects that have direct effects on total hip replacement performance (THR), such as material properties, applied loads, surgical approach, femur size and quality, prosthesis design, bone-implant interface etc. Bone mechanics and traditional implant materials cause a frequent problem for patients of total hip arthroplasty (THA): the bone becomes shielded from the loading. Bone structure follows what is called "Wolff's Law", meaning it has an adaptive structure, which alters its geometry when experiencing forces over its life (Goldstein, 1987); (Pearson & Lieberman, 2004). The improved femoral stems act weakly in transferring stress onto the remnant bone and bone tissue atrophies at the interface, which will result in loosening of the implant, pain and thus, revision surgery will need to take place to correct the issue ( Feldt, 2011). For the current study, an innovative hollow spherical structure is developed for femoral hip stems. The aim is to extract volume in the spherical shape from the stainless steel hip implant stems, in order to focus solely on correlating with titanium behaviour. Internal geometry for the femoral stem is optimised in order to transfer more stress onto the bone. Moreover, the approach involves extracting volume in the spherical shape from internal structure to reduce stress shieling. New novel implant is proposed that demonstrated reduction in stress shielding. A new structure has been developed in this study for biomedical applications, such as implants, with the aid of the rule of mixtures and finite element analysis was applied to various models with different complex internal structures. Firstly, the rule of mixtures was used as finite element could not handle the simulation due to the large number of elements created, and also helped developing the designs analysed in this study. Secondly, computational analysis was applied to simplified finite elements containing hollow spheres in their outer shell. Moreover, a compression test was applied to a solid sample and the experimental case. This approach was adopted to investigate the effects of a hollow structure near the side surface and the bone-implant interface. The same method was applied to samples containing uniformly distributed hollow spheres. In the both scenarios, the specimens were designed differently based on the sphere size, their distance from wall and that from each other. Finally, finite element was applied to actual implant samples containing hollow spheres. The sphered models have a smaller Young's modulus and strength than the solid stainless steel sample. The spheres in hollowed structures reduce the stress shielding and they transfer more stress onto the bone when compared to the solid stainless steel models. This approach also involves restructuring a hard material, such as stainless steel, to enhance osseointegration. The reduction of the Young's modulus and stress directly depends on the volume of the hollow spheres in the models; however, there is certain volume that can be extracted from solid.