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\"Unpacking the complicated ways superheroes reproduce cultural beliefs about gender, sexuality, and romance, Love, Sex, Gender, and Superheroes delves into the underlying and erotic implications of caped crusaders. Superheroes are more popular than ever, with a seemingly endless run of record-breaking Hollywood movies, hit television and streaming series, the mainstreaming of comic books as a literary form, and superhero themed merchandising available almost everywhere. The genre has always been about good vs. evil, larger-than-life heroes vs. stylish villains, and a never-ending fight for \"Truth, Justice and the American way.\" But, in a less obvious way, the genre has also been about gender ideals: how men and women are supposed to look, act, and interact with each other. Under the guise of being merely childish fantasies, superheroes have consistently provided fantastic adventures that make abstract ideas about gender and sexuality seem natural. Superheroes deal with topics as diverse as: fetishism, phallic symbolism, bodies, love, marriage, eroticized violence, queer identities, homosociality, transexuality, orgasms, and robot/human sexual relations. This spicier underside of superheroes reveals and reinforces attitudes about gender and sex, and how some of those ideas are changing in a modern world\"-- Provided by publisher.

An examination of the art in superhero comics and how style influences comic narratives. For many, the idea of comic book art implies simplistic four-color renderings of stiff characters slugging it out. In fact, modern superhero comic books showcase a range of complex artistic styles, with diverse connotations. Leading comics scholar Jeffrey A. Brown assesses six distinct approaches to superhero illustration-idealism, realism, cute, retro, grotesque, and noir-examining how each visually represents the superhero as a symbolic construct freighted with meaning. Whereas comic book studies tend to focus on text and narrative, Super Bodies gives overdue credit to the artwork, which is not only a principal source of the appeal of comic books but also central to the values these works embody. Brown argues that superheroes are to be taken not as representations of people but as iconic types, and the art conveys this. Even the most realistic comic illustrations are designed to suggest not persons but ideas-ideas about bodies and societies. Thus the appearance of superheroes both directly and indirectly influences the story being told as well as the opinions readers form concerning justice, authority, gender, puberty, sexuality, ethnicity, violence, and other concepts central to political and cultural life.

Marvel is one of the hottest media companies in the world right now, and its beloved superheroes are all over film, television and comic books. Yet rather than simply cashing in on the popularity of iconic white male characters like Peter Parker, Tony Stark and Steve Rogers, Marvel has consciously diversified its lineup of superheroes, courting controversy in the process. Panthers, Hulks, and Ironhearts offers the first comprehensive study of how Marvel has reimagined what a superhero might look like in the twenty-first century. It examines how they have revitalized older characters like Black Panther and Luke Cage, while creating new ones like Latina superhero Miss America. Furthermore, it considers the mixed fan responses to Marvel's recasting of certain \"legacy heroes,\" including a Pakistani-American Ms. Marvel, a Korean-American Hulk, and a whole rainbow of multiverse Spidermen.  If the superhero comic is a quintessentially American creation, then how might the increasing diversification of Marvel's superhero lineup reveal a fundamental shift in our understanding of American identity? This timely study answers those questions and considers what Marvel's comics, TV series, and films might teach us about stereotyping, Orientalism, repatriation, whitewashing, and identification. 

Urbanization is one of the most widespread and extreme examples of habitat alteration. As humans dominate landscapes, they introduce novel elements into environments, including artificial light, noise pollution, and anthropogenic food sources. One understudied form of anthropogenic food is refuse from restaurants, which can alter wildlife populations and, in turn, entire wildlife communities by providing a novel and stable food source. Using data from the Maricopa Association of Governments and the Central Arizona-Phoenix Long Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) project, we investigated whether and how the distribution of restaurants influences avian communities. The research aimed to identify restaurants, and thus the associated food they may provide, as the driver of potential patterns by controlling for other influences of urbanization, including land cover and the total number of businesses. Using generalized linear mixed models, we tested whether the number of restaurants within 1 km of bird monitoring locations predict avian community richness and abundance and individual species abundance and occurrence patterns. Results indicate that restaurants may decrease avian species diversity and increase overall abundance. Additionally, restaurants may be a significant predictor of the overall abundance of urban-exploiting species, including rock pigeon ( Columba livia ), mourning dove (Zenaida macroura) , and Inca dove ( Columbina Inca ). Understanding how birds utilize anthropogenic food sources can inform possible conservation or wildlife management practices. As this study highlights only correlations, we suggest further experimental work to address the physiological ramifications of consuming anthropogenic foods provided by restaurants and studies to quantify how frequently anthropogenic food sources are used compared to naturally occurring sources.

Negative interactions between people and wildlife pose a significant challenge to their coexistence. Past research on human–wildlife interactions has largely focused on conflicts involving carnivores in rural areas. Additional research is needed in urban areas to examine the full array of negative and positive interactions between people and wildlife. In this study, we have conducted interviews in the desert metropolis of Phoenix, Arizona (USA), to explore residents’ everyday interactions with wildlife where they live. Our multifaceted approach examines interactions involving physical contact and observational experiences, as well as associated attitudinal and behavioral responses and actions toward wildlife. Overall, the qualitative analysis of residents’ narratives identified two distinct groups: people who are indifferent toward wildlife where they live, and those who appreciate and steward wildlife. Instead of revealing conflicts and negative interactions toward wildlife, our findings underscore the positive interactions that can foster human wellbeing in urban areas. The holistic approach presented herein can advance knowledge and the management of coexistence, which involves not only managing conflicts but also tolerance, acceptance, and stewardship. Understanding diverse human–wildlife interactions and managing coexistence can advance both wildlife conservation and human wellbeing in cities.

Introduction: Demarcation laser photocoagulation (DLP) is an infrequently utilized modality for limited retinal detachments. The current study, a retrospective consecutive case series, reviewed anatomic and visual outcomes in these patients at a single academic center. Case Presentations: A search of the electronic medical record identified 10 eyes of 10 patients. Five of the 10 patients were asymptomatic at the time of initial treatment. Five patients had symptoms corresponding to retinal detachment. The asymptomatic patients remained stable without progression at the last follow-up (range 1–8 years). In 2 of 5 symptomatic patients, the retinal detachment progressed through the laser demarcation and, subsequently, underwent vitreoretinal surgery. At the last follow-up, the retina was attached in all five symptomatic patients. Conclusion: In this small series of patients undergoing DLP, the retina remained stable in asymptomatic patients but the retinal detachment progressed through the laser demarcation in the majority of symptomatic patients.

Dangerous Curves: Action Heroines, Gender, Fetishism, and Popular Cultureaddresses the conflicted meanings associated with the figure of the action heroine as she has evolved in various media forms since the late 1980s. Jeffrey A. Brown discusses this immensely popular character type as an example of, and challenge to, existing theories about gender as a performance identity. Her assumption of heroic masculine traits combined with her sexualized physical depiction demonstrates the ambiguous nature of traditional gender expectations and indicates a growing awareness of more aggressive and violent roles for women. The excessive sexual fetishism of action heroines is a central theme throughout. The topic is analyzed as an insight into the transgressive image of the dominatrix, as a refection of the shift in popular feminism from second-wave politics to third-wave and post-feminist pleasures, and as a form of patriarchal backlash that facilitates a masculine fantasy of controlling strong female characters. Brown interprets the action heroine as a representation of changing gender dynamics that balances the sexual objectification of women with progressive models of female strength. While the primary focus of this study is the action heroine as represented in Hollywood film and television, the book also includes the action heroine's emergence in contemporary popular literature, comic books, cartoons, and video games.

Functional neurosurgery resource features state-of-the-art approaches from renowned experts! For patients with inadequately treated epilepsy, tremor, dystonia, spasticity, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease, functional neurosurgery offers hope. Functional Neurosurgery: The Essentials is a reader-friendly introduction to this fascinating and rapidly evolving field. The text is edited by internationally prominent functional neurosurgeons Jeffrey A. Brown, Julie G. Pilitsis, and Michael Schulder. It features contributions from authors with expertise spanning the disciplines of neurosurgery, neurology, rehabilitation and physical medicine, neurophysiology, bioengineering, psychiatry and ophthalmology. Opening with a brief history of stereotaxy/functional neurosurgery and brain stereotactic frames, 41 concise and coherent chapters explore cutting-edge approaches to a broad range of functionally treatable conditions. The chapters yield a solid foundation of understanding of the field, with insightful commentary, pearls, and nuances from the editors. The starting question in the neuroprosthetics chapter, \"Can a computer infer human intention or perception?\" brings to life the exciting, inquisitive, and pioneering spirit of this subspecialty. The robust reference list provides a guide to deeper study that should continue throughout training and practice. Highlights * Imaging: MRI and CT for stereotactic neurosurgery, fMRI and resting state MRI * Movement disorders: A comparative analysis of the risks and benefits of deep brain stimulation versus lesioning * Epilepsy: Temporal lobectomy and extra-temporal surgery; invasive monitoring, neuromodulation, laser interstitial thermal therapy, and vagus nerve stimulation * Dystonia: Etiology to diagnosis, medical and surgical options * Future innovations: Exoskeletons, intention controlled, and visual neuroprosthetics The text is a fundamental resource for neurosurgical residents during their functional neurosurgery rotations and for general neurosurgeons and functional subspecialists on procedures they may not routinely perform in clinical practice.

Urbanization is one of the most widespread and extreme examples of habitat alteration. As humans dominate landscapes, they introduce novel elements into environments, including artificial light, noise pollution, and anthropogenic food sources. One understudied form of anthropogenic food is refuse from restaurants, which can alter wildlife populations and, in turn, entire wildlife communities by providing a novel and stable food source. Using data from the Maricopa Association of Governments and the Central Arizona-Phoenix Long Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) project, we investigated whether and how the distribution of restaurants influences avian communities. The research aimed to identify restaurants, and thus the associated food they may provide, as the driver of potential patterns by controlling for other influences of urbanization, including land cover and the total number of businesses. Using generalized linear mixed models, we tested whether the number of restaurants within 1 km of bird monitoring locations predict avian community richness and abundance and individual species abundance and occurrence patterns. Results indicate that restaurants may decrease avian species diversity and increase overall abundance. Additionally, restaurants may be a significant predictor of the overall abundance of urban-exploiting species, including rock pigeon (Columba livia), mourning dove (Zenaida macroura), and Inca dove (Columbina Inca). Understanding how birds utilize anthropogenic food sources can inform possible conservation or wildlife management practices. As this study highlights only correlations, we suggest further experimental work to address the physiological ramifications of consuming anthropogenic foods provided by restaurants and studies to quantify how frequently anthropogenic food sources are used compared to naturally occurring sources.