Mobile identities: photography, smartphones and aspirations in urban Nigeria

Africa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 89 (2) ◽  
pp. 246-265
Author(s):  
Juliet Gilbert

AbstractSince 2012, the influx of affordable smartphones to urban Nigeria has revolutionized how young people take, store and circulate photographs. Crucially, this ever-expanding digital archive provides urban youth with a means to communicate new ideas of self, allowing a marginalized group to display fortunes that often belie their difficult realities. Through gestures and poses, fashion and style, the companionship of others, or the use of particular backdrops and locations, these photographs contain certain semiotics that allude to the subject owning the means for success in urban Nigeria. Similarly, as youth constantly store photographs of themselves on their handsets alongside those of celebrities, patrons and friends, coveted commodities and aspirational memes, they construct personal narratives that place them at the centre of global flows and networks. With the ability to constantly retake, update and propagate photographs, the discrepancies between in- and off-frame identities become ambiguous. This article explores how young people in Calabar, south-eastern Nigeria, use digital photographs on their mobile phones to cultivate new visions of themselves. Arguing that these photographs not only represent superlative aspirations but are also integral to social becoming, the discussion examines how digital images allow youth to reposition themselves within (and beyond) Nigerian society. Ephemerality is central: digital photographs can be easily circulated and retain some permanence on social media, yet these immaterial objects can easily be lost from handsets. In thinking about the futures of African youth and African photography, this article therefore interrogates the tensions of private and public archives.

1980 ◽  
Vol 24 (04) ◽  
pp. 203-226 ◽  
Author(s):  
Otto Grim

The vane wheel is a freely rotating device installed on the propeller shaft behind the propeller to provide additional thrust at no increase in power. The wheel, which is larger in diameter than its companion propeller, functions as a turbine by using the otherwise-wasted propeller slipstream to generate the extra thrust. This paper describes a series of tests performed at the Hamburg Ship Model Tank to compare the efficiency of the vane wheel arrangement with other propulsion units, including a conventional propeller, contrarotating propeller, and propeller with fixed guide mechanism. The Appendix provides a mathematical analysis of the performance of the various units investigated. Preface: For many years I had the great pleasure to live near Georg Weinblum, to work with him, and to receive his advice. After he retired I became his successor at Hamburg University. In 1938 I had met Georg Weinblum for the first time; in 1952 — after his return from the United States — for the second time, and after that we met regularly. He encouraged me to write my thesis and to work as a scientist. He always took a great interest in promoting young people and in awakening their enthusiasm for science. Many young people have had this experience and think of him with gratitude. Due to the founders' intentions, the memorial lecture should deal with a subject which belongs to naval architecture and which serves its development. I have chosen the subject, Propeller and Vane Wheel, which I presented for the first time to the German Society of Naval Architecture (Schiffbautechnische Gesellschaft) in 1966. I take this opportunity to discuss the subject again, and to a different extent, because I believe that the purpose of this work is really important and can be achieved without any difficulty in the present situation, where the search for new ideas with regard to the saving of energy has become an urgent necessity.


Author(s):  
Halina Kurek

The subject of the article is the “impracticability of the Polish language” understood as the uselessness of Polish in terms of comfortable communication among the members of the network generation, especially through the Internet and mobile phones. This generation perceives language only as a useful code. Young people believe that the basic advantage of Polish should be the simplicity of sending-receiving mechanisms. It means aiming at the optimisation of the Polish language that, in future, may result in significant simplifications and system changes from the inflectional type to the synthetic-analytical type.


Author(s):  
Dorota Kozaryn

The subject of the article is the “impracticability of the Polish language” understood as the uselessness of Polish in terms of comfortable communication among the members of the network generation, especially through the Internet and mobile phones. This generation perceives language only as a useful code. Young people believe that the basic advantage of Polish should be the simplicity of sending-receiving mechanisms. It means aiming at the optimisation of the Polish language that, in future, may result in significant simplifications and system changes from the inflectional type to the synthetic-analytical type.


2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-89
Author(s):  
Matshidiso Kanjere

The South African youth faces multiple challenges that range from illiteracy, drug and alcohol abuse, crime and HIV/AIDS, to unemployment. These challenges and many other ills in society have led to interventions by government, and private and other civil societies. The government has established and initiated a number of programmes that aim at building capacity and helping the youth to cope with these multiple challenges. Some of the programmes are aimed at building leadership capacity among the impoverished youth in rural communities. A lot of money is being invested in these programmes, which are meant to develop young South Africans. However, there are some young people who do not participate in these programmes. They are also not in the formal education system, self-employed or employed elsewhere. And they are despondent. The government, private sector and non-governmental organisations are trying hard to bring these youths and others into the developmental arena, so that they can be active participants in the economy of the country in the near future. However, little research has been conducted to assess the broad impact of the various programmes in the country. The contribution that these programmes are making toward improving the livelihoods of young people has to be determined on a larger scale. Nevertheless, this article reports on an investigation that was conducted on a smaller scale, at the Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality. The aim of the research was to explore the perceptions young South Africans have of the leadership development programmes that they have participated in. A mixed research approach was used to collect data and the key findings indicated that knowledge accumulated through participation in the programmes does not always translate into practical applications. However, the programmes were deemed to be valuable in instilling a positive life-view. The study recommends that support systems be established in the rural areas to assist young people with life challenges.


2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 263-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Parry ◽  
Stephen Weatherhead

Purpose – Due to the emergence of rich personal narratives within recent research, the purpose of this paper is to review and to explore the experience of transition from care and consider how these accounts can inform care services. Design/methodology/approach – This meta-synthesis follows from several quantitative and mixed method reviews examining how young people experience aging out of the care system. Findings – Three themes emerged from an inductive analysis: navigation and resilience – an interrelated process; the psychological impact of survival; and complex relationship. Research limitations/implications – The findings of a meta-synthesis should not be over generalised and are at least partially influenced by the author's epistemological assumptions (Dixon-Woods et al., 2006). However, a synthesis of this topic has the potential to provide greater insight into how transition can be experienced through the reconceptualising of the personal experiences across the studies reviewed (Erwin et al., 2011). Practical implications – This synthesis discusses the themes; their relationship to existing research and policies, and suggestions for further exploration. The experience of transition is considered critically in terms of its often traumatic nature for the young person aging out of care but also the ways in which the experience itself can build essential resiliencies. Social implications – Reflections for clinical practice are discussed with importance placed upon systemic working, accommodating likely challenges and considering appropriate therapeutic approaches for the client group and their systems. Originality/value – No review thus far has qualitatively examined the narratives told by the young people emerging from care and how these narratives have been interpreted by the researchers who sought them (Hyde and Kammerer, 2009).


Author(s):  
T ABDRASSİLOV ◽  
Zh NURMATOV ◽  
K KALDYBAY

This study intends to explore the salience of national identity for young people from the perspective of ‘commitment and loyalty’ to their nation. The uniqueness of this study is that it provides the opportunity to observe the salience of civic, ethnic, and cultural features of national identity in Kazakhstan.This article has examined the importance of national identity theoretically and critically reviewed the literature on this theme. For the case study, a small survey was conducted in order to evaluate the role of inclusion in shaping national identity among young students.An academic implication of this research entails further research on the salience of belonging and sense of attachment to national identity among young people in other cosmopolitan cities of Kazakhstan, such as Almaty, Nur-Sultan and Atyrau, where the effect of globalisation is more prevalent and the Kazakh customs and traditions less noticeable in order to make a comparative evaluation.In this context, the authors consider the importance of national identity for young individuals by analysing the theories on nations and nationalism, specifically emphasising the relation between individuals and their nations. Analysis is complemented by a short survey on the subject of national identity, which was carried out among students of the Kazakh-Turkish International University in Turkistan, Kazakhstan.


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