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From ancient statuary to modern auto designs-students of
art find new ways to express old
of art history going onl' he states. Art historians in the department are studying, for example, such issues as art and religion, archaeological approaches to art history and the connection between modern design and medieval sculpture and architecture. "One of the good things here is that we have a diversity of approach. I really think that's terribly importantl' comments Folda. Folda points also to artists in the depart ment who are interested in new techniques and creating innovative ideas while drawing on a knowledge of the past. Folda notes, "Frank Owen, for example, our visiting artist, is utitizing many of the tools and techniques of a traditional sculptor while working in very contemporary media, plasticene and seven different kinds
I
Dr. Jaroslou T Folda, choirmon of the Deportment of Art, discusses recent photographs of twelfth-century crusader art with doctoral student, Geneuro Kornbluth.
acrylicsi'
lYhy In the University's Department of Art,
Stud Ail History?
the
study and creation of art are characterized by diversity as well as an underlying sense of commonality. Art historians, studio art pro fessors and visiting artists, together with their students, display a striking variety of pur-
suits-all of which are focused by an intense desire to understand and experience the human urge toward artistic expression. For Chairman and Professor of Art History Jaroslav T. Folda, the presence of strong pro grams in art history along with studio art is exciting. Folda points out that Chapel Hill is one of the few universities in the country where both disciplines are emphasized. "One of the best aspects of a department like this is that even though there are eleven art historians here, there are five or six or even
Dr. Folda believes it is important for beginning artists to have a knowledge of art history. "lt is one thing for students to walk into a drawing class and draw a tree, but they must at some point make the intellectual leap from mastery of the technical problem of drawing to understanding what a work of art ig" explains Folda. In order for this to happen, students of art need to know the possibilities existing in the rich legacy of former art traditions. Second-year master's student Bruce Nell-
Smith agrees; he notes that all of his work contains references t0 some art historical tradition. "Most artists feel they are building on something, and that structure upon which they build has its roots in art history. In a
ideas
sense, art history is the validation from which we workl' states Nell-Smith. He notes that even an art historian whose work is apparently unrelated to the interests of a particular artist makes a piece of art or an idea about art more accessible and for that reason
is valuable. Dennis Zaborowski, assistant chairman for
studio art and associate professor, believes the study of art history enhances greatly the work of artists, especially those just starting out. "You hope a young artist will have certain realizations about the purpose of art, that art has content, that it says something about the society and the time in which it was madel' Zaborowski notes that new ideas in art always originate from previous ideas. 'Art generates art. The more information, knowledge and awareness of art history an artist has, the better off he or she is. Sometimes we get so caught up in the mechanics of art, we forgetl' says Zaborowski. How then might the work of a contemporary artist bear on that of an art historian? Folda explains that although few of the media of contemporary art, such as acrylics or welding, utilize historical technique, many processes are similar. A great deal can be learned about the possibilities and limitations inherent in a 200-year-old work of art, for example, by watching the work of a twentiethcentury artist. "Technique and materials change, but often one process will tell much about another and add to the intellectual appreciation of the finished productl' says Folda.
In his own research, Folda is examining the process used by twelfth-century crusader artists at a pilgrim holy site in Nazareth. He
chaeology,
t0 name a few. Folda states, "Art
history is one of those special areas in which it is the synthesis that counts because the visual material makes possible bringing to bear all kinds of points of view. Even when focusing on one work, on 'the head of a pinl so to speak, the art historian must recreate the universe which surrounded the work so that people can enter it from the world of the artistl'
Medieval Masonry and Automobile Decign Associate Professor of Art History C. Edson Armi has recently completed a book in which he raises questions about the when
Dr. C. Edson Armi deuelops photograph tahen ot Cluny III, site of research for his book. The fraction of sculpture shoun on the photograph in deueloping pon represents on eye on a face of sculpture and measures only about one-eighth of on inch. By utilizing macrophotography, Armi is able to exomine the stone ot extremely close range.
is currently completing a book which focuses on a set of five sculptures carved for the church of the Annunciation to the Virgin
and how of sculpture and architecture in medieval Burgundy. The two-volume work, Masons and Sculptors in Romanesque Burgundy: The New Aesthetic at Cluny lll, won the 1983 International Award of the Confid{ration Internationale des Nigociants en Oeuvres dArt. ln his book, Dr. Armi asserts that Cluny lll, the great center of architectural development in the Middle Ages, was the work of local stonemasons. His theory refutes the commonly held assumption that Cluny lll was a sudden revolutionary production of one genius over-seer who brought in foreign designers. Armi states, "Cluny III was the climax of living regional architectural
traditionl' Furthermore, he claims that the
Mary. Folda asserts that the crusader decora-
stonemasons who crafted the buildings at
tion for that particular site is unusual and possibly unique in its meaning and content.
Cluny
lll
controversial, cannot be ignoredl' insists Armi's colleague, Dr. Folda. "Dr. Armi has rethought completely the meaning of what it was to be an artist- something that is not the same as it is now. These people were masons. How do you decide who was a mason and who was an artist?" Using macrophotography, a process whereby a photograph is enlarged up to 20 times its original size, Armi reached his conclusions through a detailed analysis of archaeological evidence, including mason's marla. Through
"hand analysis" of sculpture, Armi observed not only design and style, but the very way the artist was working with particular toolseach cut and stroke. Analyses were then painstakingly charted and catalogued. Developed during Armi's 15 years of research at Cluny, the methodology itself represents a valuable contribution t0 the study and understanding of architecture and sculpture. Dr. Armi's class in modern design, which often has enrollments of 300, is likely to be asked to consider medieval sculpture and architecture alongside twentieth-century design-cars, for instance. Both Cluny
were its sculptors. "The book, while
He also studies problems such as stylistic dit of tools and
ferences and contrasts the kinds
stone used, drawing conclusions about the way the availability of stone may have influenced the type of work the artists did. In addition, to understand a work, Folda asks certain questions about the sculptors: "Where
did the artists come from? Did the artists work elsewhere in the Holy Land? Did they return from home to do more work?" These questions are important because they reflect upon the identification of artistic style. "Our idea of what an artist is capable of as an 'oeuvre' is very hard to pin down in this periodl' Folda comments. "We don't know whether he could have been doing several different styles. We don't think so, but it is an open question. Maybe what we are calling the work of five different artists is really the hand of one. How do we tell?" The discipline of art history demands the inclusion of other intellectual approaches through literature, religion, history and ar-
Dr. Armi leods his modern design closs in o discussion of the ronge of post-uar
III
and
the twentieth-century design shops have in common artists and craftsmen who are anonymous but who, in their own unique ways, have been creators of art. "Usually in art history you are shown courtly worla, intellectual works or those which have a complex iconographic program. But everyday works of art such as chairs or non-
design hom the purely functionol to psychedelic.
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representative images, abstract worls such as buildings, don't have a very specific meaning.
In that
way, a car and a medieval work are similar. Also they are alike in the sense that someone who is not widely known created
theml' Armi explains. Dr. Armi has just completed a 90-page essay for the upcoming historical exhibit of automobile design sponsored by the Detroit Institute of the Arts. His paper entitled
'Automobile and Culture, Detroit Stylel' is the result of a year of travel and interviews with former designers of the Ford and General Motors companies. Armi found that there were powerful personalities behind each area
of automobile design, especially during the 1930s and 1940s and that these designs strongly reflect the personalities of their creators, much as a Picasso painting represents the personality of its painter. One example is Harley Earle, who was head of the General Motors design shop irom 1927 to 1958. Armi believes that the personal traits of this very large, tall man had much to do with the design of automobiles of that period which tended to be massive and round. Armi insists that an anonymous work of art is not without an artistic personality behind it. Indeed, in the cases of Ford and General
Motors, whose design shops were each dominated by a sole overseer, one is reminded of a Renaissance sculpture studio where workers carried out the creations and
plans of a master artist. Armi notes the role of eclecticism in creativity, especially in the art of today. "More and more oftenl' he observes, "artists are drawing from the past to enrich their workl' He cites the example of Milton Glaser, the designer of a well-known poster of Bob Dylan. "Glaserl' says Armi, "consciously studied the cultures whose art most strongly paralleled the ideas he had in mind for the Dylan poster. He found in Arab art the strong linear form and colors of high value from which he generated his own adaptationi' Armi refers to another example to illustrate his point. "The new Art Classroom Studio
Building itself is an eclectic blend. The
like many post-modernists, were after a both-and approach, adapting to the context, in this case, neighboring Ackland, while also adding new and original ideas in order to transform the building into something contemporary and pertinent to its designers,
character. Even the triumphal arch leading into a brick wall, adapts and combines what is next door in Ackland, but it makes its own distinctive statementl'
Dr. Mary C. Sturgeon shous recent drowings rendered by o droftsperson os a result of her reconstruction of the "Perirrhonterion," uhich dotes from the seDenth century B.C. The Perirrhanterion
is o monument uith o large bosin uhich is supported by four stotues of girls, or "Kores," on lions. Using o strong roking
Reconctructing the Pact Assistant Chairman for Art History Dr. Mary C. Sturgeon, travels each summer to the Isthmus of Corinth to spend her days among
the basement shelves and marble piles of the Corinthian Archaeological Museum, extracting pieces of marble which relate to one another and re-creating sculpture that until now has been completely lost to students of art. Dr Sturgeon is one of only a few archaeologists who are also art historians. Contrasting her interests, she explains that when archaeologists dig, they are looking for answers to historical questions like problems of topography, architecture and chronology. 0n the other hand, the goal of her explorations is to learn how earlier cultures expressed themselves through their art.
From an undergradute major in Greek and Latin, Dr. Sturgeon developed an interest in classical art. Her dissertation, which was published by the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, involved going through some 2,000 fragments of marble and pulling out small pieces of heads, hands, feet, hair and torsos-some of which were attached to backgrounds, some not. By analyzing style and other elements like type of marble, she was able to piece together three complete and different friezes that had been used to
light, Dr. Sturgeon uos able not only to reconstruct the statues, but to discem troces of paint on these pieces of stone, preuiously thought to be entirely without paint. She then identified colors ond style of dress, raising questions about possible influences on eorly Greeh stone sculpture.
decorate the Theatre of Corinth which was
totally destroyed, probably by earthquake, at the end of the fourth century A.D. The friezes comprise three subjects traditional in 0reek art: a Gigantomachy, an Amazonomachy and the Labors of Herakles. Sturgeon found that the pieces reflected a stylistic uni-
ty and, therefore, probably belonged to
the
same period, around the second quarter of the second century A.D. She also determined the placement of the friezes on the theatre
building. Dr. Sturgeon relates, "l was somewhat aghast at the huge pile of marbles facing me in the beginning, but the project was a lot of fun in the doing-a kind of archaeological detective worki' Dr. Sturgeon's findings add yet another link to the past and, therefore, to a greater understanding of art history. "So much of later art builds on the classical traditionl' she comments. Commonly held notions of style, tradition and dress, for instance, must be rethought after a statue or sculpture is reconstructed and found incongruous with its
period. 'All of this influences how we teach art historyi' Sturgeon states. Another interesting project in the field of
art history is that of doctoral student Genevra Kornbluth, who is examing the 20 surviving ninth-century Carolingian carved gems. The most famous of these is the Susanna Crystal,
Groduate student in studio art, Bruce Nell-Smith hos been working uith the concept of combining figuratiue elements ond abstroct elements-oll normolly thought of as existing outside the realm of painting.
sometimes known as the Lothar Crystal, a circular rock crystal, four and one-half inches in diameter, upon which was engraved the
Biblical account of Susanna in eight scenes. Kornbluth explains that gem carving was a ma.ior art form in the ninth-century but that it has not been done since; consequently few people know much about it. In order to see the intricate detail in the stones, Kornbluth occassionally uses a microscope, but most often works with
on details until she can see the actual toolmarks. She is attempting to work a chronology and a progression within the body of the 20 gems. She is also looking for dependencies within the macrophotography, focusing down
works and linls to other art forms and expects t0 discover important insights into the culture from which the gems originated. "l'm asking what each piece means and what it is
in
t0 the other media of the timel' she remarks. In one case a possible difference in the iconography points to the saying
respect
contemporary liturgy; another example contains references to the political situation of
the time. Explaining the relevance of this form of study to practicing artists of today, Kornbluth notes that any art form, even gem carving, which survives, if at all, in greatly reduced form, shares certain problems in common
with other art. [n representational art, for example, an artist takes a given scene and must then decide how t0 use it t0 express whatever he or she wishes to get across.
In order to understand more clearly just what ideas have been conveyed throughout art history, Dr. Mary D. Sheriff, assistant professor of art, is studying the writings of artists, academicians and aestheticians. Sheriff notes, "ln analyzing texts written in earlier centuries, the reader must be particularly sensitive to the meaning of key termsi' She is currently focusing on defining two important concepts
in eighteenth-century
French
aesthetics-the "pittoresque" and the "poetici' Sheriff states, "The changing relationship between these two terms shows how the eighteenth-century theorists explained and justi-
fied the move from poetic to picturesque values
in painting.
Along similar lines Associate Professor of Art Richard Shiff strives to define the role of the "modern" artists in a "modern" society. Shiff states, "Obviously this involves not only a definition of what is peculiar about the modern period, which I take to be around 1750 to the present, but an analysis of what constitutes the essence of 'modernism' in the artsl' Dr. Shiff is studying the concept of
originality as it is expressed in the arts and as it guides the artist in his artistic choices.
The concept of "classicism" bears on the question of originality because the "modern" classic is said to become original by returning to an "original" source, a past originality. Shiff comments, "The way in which a return to the past could constitute originality is not adequately understood today, but I believe it
is a fundamental feature of modernisml'
Studio Art Many of the awarenesses raised by delving into artistic expression of the past inform new expressions of working artists
in
the
department. In the studios of graduate students and faculty, now located mainly on the third floor of the new building, one finds a vitality and freshness that reflect the spirit of the master's of fine arts program. Second-year student Bruce Nell-Smith is pleased with the latitude given students in
terms ol individual expression. Nell-Smith, whose paintings were featured in an exhibit at the Center for Visual and Performing Arts in Carrboro this fall, may teach after leaving UNC-Chapel Hill and definitely plans a career in art. A recent article describes his work as expressing "the division between thought and feeling, private and public lifei' Underlying
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Assistont professor of art Xauier Toubes and groduote student Doug Williamson drscuss Williamson's mono lithtype sculptures in which he uses concrete and plaster. The art lob, located two miles north of compus, houses o sculpture, wood-uorking and ceramic focility olong uith faculty ond student studios.
much of his work is a serious concern for social issues, particularly iniustices in South Africa. [n a group of paintings he calls the "Missionary" series, for example, one can
a feeling of fun in the midst of a concerned, even wry, view of the world. sense
Jane Filer, another second-year student, characterizes her art as representational, often using people and animals as her subjects.
Filer's art, which sometimes contains elements of the grotesque, speaks largely to human issues. "l worry about human experience, how people are acting toward each other, how they relate to each otherl' states Filer. She attempts t0 capture brief or fleeting moments of illumination or intimacy in the human experience. A striking example is her painting of two women seated at a table, a work which incorporates its title, "Drink Coffee with a Friendl' A significant enrichment for the department is the visiting artist program, which brings well-known artists to Chapel Hill lor a semester 0r a year's residence, thereby providing
students with exposure t0 current trends in art as practiced by nationally recognized figures. Painter Frank Owen, who is spending
the fall semester with the art department, teaches a graduate seminar and conducts oneon-one critiques with students, while pursuing his own artistic creations. Owen's paintings, large abstract works of
color and energy, take a great deal of time. He begins a painting by building a motd, filling it with plasticene, then carving relief surfaces into it. Next he fills the carved mold with acrylic paint in successive layers. When it dries, he peels the paint off and transfers it to a stretched canvas. When asked how he begins a piece so massive and complex, Owen replies, "[ ask myself what kind of presence I want, what kind of resonance I want and then work from the guti' Students are enthusiastic about the visiting artist program and find that 0wen particularly has been very accessible. "He is a really enloyable person and the way he makes art is funl' one student has commented.
The visiting artist program is one of the ways the department demonstrates
a com-
munity experience not only for the members 0f the department but for the larger Chapel
Hill
area as
well. Professor Zaborowski points
out the department's many offerings of lectures, films, and exhibits which are shared with a pubic audience. A well-known art historian, John Canady, has remarked, 'Art is. . .a form of communication with our time and all times, an extension of our experience of living, sometimes profound, sometimes entertainingi' Members of the University's art department have clearly adopted art as their way of communicating with the world. Many of them, t00, seem t0 approach artistic creations with a special reverence for what has gone before. Thus one can observe a great variety of activities in the University's art department representing both a deep commitment t0 creating art and the scholarly endeavor to rethink the many ways of perceiving art'
--Ann E Stonford
The of
Discovery
[Ium
of factors which
regulate growth process opens
new possibilities for treatment
of
disease
For almost thirty years researchers in UNCChapel Hills Department of Pediatrics have been conducting research on the hormones which control human growth. Their work has been generously supported by the National
Institute of Health. Eleven years ago the team of researchers led by Judson J. Van Wyk, Kenan professor of pediatrics and chief of the Division of Endocrinology, reported the isolation of somatomedin-C, a compound present
in
human blood which mediates the action of or growth hormone. Until that
Drs. Van Wyk and Underwood at pipetting station, a staging area in the beginning of the rodioimmunoossoy process, deliuer serum in assay tubes containing mixtures of blood sample, antibodies, and radioac-
tiue material. From this point, the mixture uill be incubated from one hour to 3 days in order to prepore for the seporatory procedure when somatomedin-C counts will be measured.
in controlling the growth of different organs and tissues. The discoveries of Dr. Van Wyk and his colleagues have opened new areas of research which may facilitate the understanding and treatment of disorders affecting virtually every organ system of the body. "Physical growth which occurs between conception and maturity is due to an increase both in the number of cells and in
the size of certain individual cellsl' notes Van Wyk. Growth is not confined to childhood, however, since cell replication must occur throughout life to replace cells that have died. The rates at which tissues replace themselves are highly regulated and change according to body needs. The tissue repair which occurs after a wound or disease is one example of
somatotropin,
time the whole phenomenon of growth factors was a relatively unknown and largely ignored area. "Since thenl' says Van Wyk, "somatomedin-C has come to be recognized as one of the important hormones in growth controll' Somatomedin-C is a member of a family of recently discovered peptide growth factors
which may prove t0 be as important as the traditional hormones of the endocrine system
physiologic growth regulation. Van Wyk and
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his associate, Dr. Louis Underwood, professor of pediatrics, explain that if the mechanisms governing cell growth rates of different tissues
began the work of purifying it. "The process has been long and tediousl' notes Svoboda. "lt is easy t0 get very discouraged in this
could be manipulated selectively, new possibilities would open up, not only for correcting growth abnormalities during childhood but for accelerating healing and organ regeneration following injury or disease, curtailing the abnormal growth of cancer cells and understanding the process of aging.
workl' However, as she notes, until a peptide such as somatomedin-C is purified and its structure determined, its physiological value cannot be assessed. "Not only do you want to know what it does, but what it isl' explains Svoboda, "and you have to know what you are looking forl'
s
blood. The highest somatomedin-C levels are reached at the peak of the adolescent growth spurt. Measurements of somatomedin-C have proven to be more reliable than measurements of growth hormone itself in the diagnosis of acromegaly,
a disease caused by growth-
hormone-producing tumors. Likewise the radioimmunoassay is a helpful tool in the diagnosis of hypopituitarism as a cause of dwarfism in small children.
Svoboda, Van Wyk, and Dr. David Klapper
of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology have determined the amino acid
Ihe Appearance of
sequence
Somatomedins When Van Wyk came to UNC-Chapel Hill from The Johns Hopkins University in 1955, research in pediatric endocrinology was focused on sexual development and genital abnormalities in children. A parallel interest developed as Van Wyk began to study hormonal control of somatic (or physical) growth and particularly the control of growth by growth hormones. ln the early 1960s Van Wyk's laboratory was involved in measuring growth hormone in short children and studying what happens when doses of pituitary growth hormone are administered.
Around that same time researchers at Washington University in St. Louis observed that the administration of pituitary growth hormone led to the appearance in blood of a substance which stimulates the growth of skeletal tissue in vitro. The realization that growth hormone alone has no effect on this in vitro system led the St. Louis researchers t0 suggest the presence of unknown substances which are produced by growth hor-
Ilaining and
Recearch
of somatomedin-C, essentially clear-
ing the way for a wider variety of research than scientists ever imagined in the early years of tracking the unknown compound. Dr. Svoboda and other members of the research team are currently interested in cells which produce materials similar to somatomedin-C. The procedures for isolating and purifying somatomedin-C, originated at Chapel Hill, have led to the development of tools for studying malfunction of the human growth process. Van Wyk and Underwood used the growth factor to produce an antibody and to develop a highly specific radioimmunoassay which has now become widely used for clinical diagnosis of somatomedin-C deficiency through licensing t0 a commercial laboratory. The development 0f this radioimmunoassay soon disclosed the growth hormone dependency
of somatomedin-C. For example,
A large part of the
research
on somatomedin
has been carried out by fellows in the training program in endocrinolgy and metabolism. The program is sponsored by the Department
of
Pediatrics and the Department of Medicine, and has as its primary purpose the provision of research training for internists and pediatricians, as well as postgraduates from other disciplines-to prepare them for aca-
demic careers on medical school faculties. Predoctoral training leading to the Ph.D. has long been a part of the program also. Ten investigators serve as preceptors to the
five to eight trainees each year. In addition to Van Wyk, the primary training faculty in pediatrics is comprised of Dr. Frank French, Dr. Elizabeth Wilson, Dr. Louis E. Underwood, and Dr. A. Joseph D'Ercole, all of whom received their postdoctoral training in
when a short child is given growth hormone, not only does he begin to grow, but somatomedin-C levels rise dramatically in the
Van Wyks program. Van Wyk is justly proud ol the program. "l don't know of any other training program in our discipline that has
Dr. Suobodo operotes a High Performonce
L
mone and which mediate its actions. Based on these findings, postdoctoral fellow, Dr. Leo Van den Brande, along with Dr. Van Wyk, began research in 1966 on these substances,
later named "somatomedinsl' The name somatomedin was suggested by Dr. H. Stanley Bennett, a linguist and former chairman of anatomy at UNC-Chapel Hill. Somatomedin-C, isolated by Dr. Van Wyk and his associates, was identified on the basis of its growthhormone dependency and its growth-promoting actions in cartilage. At the same time, researchers
in Zurich isolated two forms
of
insulinlike growth factors. The structure of one of these has now been shown to be identical with somatomedin-C. After identifying somatomedin-C as the most growth-hormone-dependent somatomedin, Van Wyk and his associate Dr. Mar-
jorie Svoboda, a protein chemist and associate
in the Department of
research
Pediatrics,
iq u id C hro m oto grap
hy
op porotus.
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determinging the role of hormones in the growth and development of fertilized eggs into fetuses, and in post-natal adiustment to extra-fetal life is extremely important to our overall research. As an embryologist and a perinatalogist, he brings many ditferent skills to pediatric endocrinologyl'
Doctoral student Billie Moats-Stoats in the
loboratory of Dr. Kay Lund, uses a Pasteur pipette to extroct plugs from o phage plote gel. The first step in finding where the somotomedin gene is expressed, and in describing the gene, is to isolate the complementary DNA which codes for somatomedin-C. Each plug represents a uirus carrying humon DNA. Moots-Stoats will purify and anolyze the plugs by looking at DNA fragment size on gel electro-
phoresis, a method of separating shorter from longer nucleic ocid seguences. She ond Dr. Lund ore also able to label the DNA frogments radioactiuely in order to find, for exomple, the gene's chemical mokeup, where the gene is in relation to other genes, uhether the gene for somatomedin is linked to other genes, where it is on o chromosome, and uhat things moy regulote its expression.
Postdoctoral fellow Dr. Eric Smith is working with Dr. French and Dr. Abraham Kierszenbaum in the Department of Anatomy to study the role of somatomedin-C in germ cells (cells connected with sexual reproduction) and in sperm development. Dr. Smith explains, "Somatomedin-C has not been studied in terms of reproduction, but in just about every study thus far, reserchers have found that somatomedins are made at some level by most cells. lt appears to be almost ubiquitousl' Smith is currently examining the sertoli cell that nurtures the germ cell and controls division and maturation of sperm, and asking how the two cells communicate with each other. Sertoli cells seem to make a form of somatomedin which is passed on to germ cells and used for some purpose, either in cell division or in the enhancement of individual cell growth. It appears that in the normal function of male reproductive systems, growth hormone plays a role and that
somatomedin mediates
it. "ln general,
growth
hormone has been ignored in reproductive research, but we are finding that many other factors such as growth hormone are involved in reproductive biologyl' states Smith.
Glinical Research turned out more reserchers than this onei' he declares. He is quick to point out, however, that the scope of the training program extends far beyond growth-factor research. "Peo ple are trained here in the technique and art of doing research-from seeing a problem, identifying it, developing a hypothesis, and designing experiments to looking at results and writing them up. 0nce you've learned that, you can apply it to any kind of researchl' explains Van Wyk.
Billie Moats-Staats, whose preceptor is Dr. D'Ercole, associate professor of pediatrics, is working in the laboratory of Dr. Kay Lund, assistant professor of physiology. Moats-Staats
and Dr. Lund are interested in describing the somatomedin gene and finding where it is expressed and produced. They are c0nducting research in the cloning of the somatomedin-C gene and are using probes to determine when the hormone is made and how it is turned off and 0n. Eventually they hope to
determine the DNA sequence of the somatomedin gene, which could make it possible to diagnose disease states by looking at the structure of the gene and perhaps in the future to make possible the repair of damaged genes.
Dr. D'Ercole is investigating the influence
of growth factors on fetal growth by studying their biologic action on cultured fetal cells and their levels in blood and tissues in various fetal animals. He is also studying somatomedin receptors (molecules on the cells which make interaction with the growth factor possible) in fetal tissues in order to determine the capacity of the cell to respond to somatomedin, in binding proteins which may modulate somatomedin's biologic activity. These studies will be useful in understanding fetal growth, and in the future they may be helpful in developing strategies to treat disorders which involve aberrant fetal growth. Dr. Van Wyk notes, "Dr. D'Ercole's work in
Unlike insulin, human growth hormone is highly species-specific, which means that growth hormone from no other species has any biological effect in humans. When the department began measuring and studying growth hormone in growth-deficient children over 20 years agq the only sources for growth hormone were human pituitary glands obtained from hospital autopsies. This already limited supply became even more scarce when hospitals were no longer required to
perform a fixed number of autopsies in order to retain their accreditation. Now scientists have learned
to make growth hormone
syn-
thetically by using recombinant DNA techniques. Drs. Van Wyk and Underwood are two of a select few researchers in this country who are permitted to conduct tests using synthetic growth hormone manufactured by re combinant methods. The cases referred to them by clinicians nationwide are important
E,
to the department's research on the effects of growth hormone and its interaction with factors such as somatomedin-C. The work of Van Wyk and Underwood has great significance for the large population of persons affected by growth abnormalities. For example, synthetic growth hormone is being used in clinical protocols on children referred to the Department of Pediatrics. These patients generally have a predicted mature height of less than five feet, present stature and bone age that is at least two years retarded and a current annual growth rate of under one and onehalf inches. Dr. Underwood notes that one in every 4,500 children is affected by growth hormone deficiency. Idiopathic hypopituitarism is a common factor
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hormone derived from the pituitary glandl' reports Underwood. "The potential for getting unlimited quantities of growth hormone is
one of the most exciting features of this striking technologyl' adds Van Wyk.
Somatomedins and Gancer Research The work of Van Wyk and his many associates has been aided by the recent development of a monoclonal antibody against the somatomedin-C hormone developed in close collaboration with Dr. Yancey Gillespie of the Cancer Center. A monoclonal antibody is a super-purified ver-
sion of the natural antibodies that serve as the body's protectors against disease. The laboratory-produced antibody
to somatomedin-
C will enable reseachers to stop temporarily the growth-stimulating activity of blood plasma, both in the cells cultured in laboratory and in growing animals. Van Wyk says that if giving the monoclonal antibody to animals inhibits their growth, it could be the final proof of the role of somatomedin as a growth regulator. Van Wyk explains that some growth factors have recently been found to be related to the products of oncogenes, which are present in the viruses that cause cancer. "TLmor
virusesl' continues Van Wyk, "act by picking out genes from host mammals and incorporating them into their own DNAI' By using recombinant DNA genespticing techniques, it has been determined what part of the virus
Dr. Judson
T
gene is causing cancer. Some of these virus genes, 0r oncogenes, are structurally related to normal growth factors that occur in cells. There is a strong suspicion that somato medin-C may be involved in some of these tumor viruses, although this hypothesis has
Von Wyk
in the growth retardation of boys with
no
history of familial short stature seen at the Chapel Hill clinic. Since the department tends to select for this type of patient, this is probably a distortion of true incident, however. Short stature in girls, on the other hand, is much more likely to be due to a
hypothyroid state 0r to reflect TLrner's syndrome rather than hypopituitarism and is, therefore, not treated as often with growth hormone.
"We have been treating children with biosynthetic growth hormone now for three years and have shown that
their growth
response is virtually identical with the response seen in children who receive growth
yet to be proved. One of the oncogenes has been found to be identical to the platelet-derived growth factor on which Dr. W. Jackson Pledger is working. Dr. Pledger is associate professor of pharmacology and heads the Lineberger Cancer Center's cell biology section of which Dr. Van Wyk is a member. Van Wyk notes that it was long believed that the main function of platelet cells was to gather at the site of an injury and to release substances which initiate the process of blood coagulation. Since the discovery of a platelet-derived growth factor released during the coagulation process, it has now become apparent that an equally important function is to release a
growth factor which initiates the process of wound healing by reprogramming tissue cells to undergo division. Dr. Pledger's studies have shown that the action of the platelet is
to sensitize cells so that they now become capable of responding subsequently to other mitogenic factors which are present in plasma. Neither the platelet-derived growth factor nor plasma will by itself stimulate cell division. Efforts to find a relationship between somatomedins and oncogenes is one of the most exciting areas for these scientists. "We are getting deeper and deeper into basic science and are relating to a whole body of knowledge we didn't know we were related to for a long timel' comments Van Wyk. Underwood adds,
"l don't think 15 or 20 years
ago
it
was obvious that we would be where we are now. Our thrust then was more of a clinically oriented approach in the study of physiologic regulation. We've just gone t0 a little bit higher power on the microscopel' Another area of discovery may lie in learning how somatomedins can be used in the laboratory. Because they are not stored in any tissue, it has been necessary to purify them from human blood, but it takes many hundreds of liters of blood to obtain only a few milligrams of somatomedin; therefore, the
supply has been exceedingly scarce. Although there is little liketihood that sufficient quantities of somatomedin can be extracted from human blood for therapeutic purposes, recent developments in molecular genetics, such as recombinant DNA methodology, have caused Van Wyk to be more hopeful about eventual synthetic production of somatomedin-C. "lf
and when this occursl'Van Wyk observes, "the possibility of selectively modifying the growth of different tissues may well open up vast new therapeutic opportunities in virtually every area
of medicinel'
-Ann E
Stanford
HiII development along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts make hurricane planning more important than everl' he said. Godschalk and Brower conducted their
initial research in this area in a project funded by the Office of Coastal Management, North Carolina Department of Natural Resources and Community Development.
New Findings on EpsteinBarr Virus Research conducted in the laboratory of Dr. Joseph Pagano, professor in the School of Medicine and director of the Lineberger
Cancer Research Center, is yielding clues to the structure and activity of the complex Epstein-Barr virus, which has often been linked with infectious mononucleosis and nasopharyngeal carcinoma. The work of Pagano and his team of researchers John Sixbey, Nancy Raab-TYaub, and John Nedrud, was
Douid J. Brower and Dr. Dauid R. Godschalk
published recently
Hurricane Hazard Reduction University researchers
in regional planning
a grant by the National Science Foundation to continue their work on the use of developmental management techniques to reduce hurricane and tropical storm have been awarded
hazards.
Principal investigators, Dr. David
R.
Godschalk and David J. Brower, are examin-
ing ways to assist state and local governments in the 16 storm-prone Atlantic and Gulf coast states in development and construction both before and after weather disasters. Brower, an attorney and planner, is the associate director of the University's Center for Urban and Regional Studies. Godschalk is professor of city and regional planning and a former
chairman of that department, a division of the College of Arts & Sciences. Tim Beatley, a doctoral candidate in city and regional planning, is serving as research associate. Also assisting the research are Jan HodgesCopple, Jane Hegenbarth, Kathleen Leyden, Luther Propst and Chilin Ko, master's degree candidates in the area of planning. "The purpose of the research is to examine the use of development management tech-
niques, both in the pre-disaster mitigation and postdisaster recovery stagesl' Godschalk said. Development management includes the implementation of programs that influence
in the
urban development. The researchers are seeking to discover what types of development management programs are currently employed by various states, how effective they are at reducing storm hazards and problems en-
in their implementation. to Godschalk, hurricanes,
According
as
"low probability eventsl' have traditionally received little attention by local planners or developers. "Local efforts
t0
manage develop-
ment frequently face strong political opposition from development forces within the communityl' he said. "Coastal areas are often not strictly regulated because that's where the most valuable real estate is-and that's also where the hazards are typically the highestl' Godschalk noted that there had been little research regarding the effectiveness of development management techniques in the reduction of hurricane damage. "Existing research seems
t0 write off development
management as being the least politically acceptable approach, and therefore, the least feasible. But rapid population growth and
lour-
reviewers as "perhaps the most illuminating
location, density, type, quality and timing of
countered
lYew England
nal of Medicine, and characterized by
Dr. Joseph Pagano
ll
study t0 datel' Research funding for this project was provided by the American Cancer Society and the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Pagano's data have proven that EpsteinBarr virus can and does enter the epithelial cells which line the throat during a mononucleosis infection. His findings also suggest the first steps in understanding how the Epstein-Barr virus may be involved in nasopharyngeal carcinoma through the infection of the epithelial cells. Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a malignancy which, while uncommon in the continental United States, is widespread in and endemic to South China, Alaska, and North Africa. Since most cancers begin in epithelial cells, it is important to develop models for looking at cancer formation in the cells themselves. Most cancer research, however, has been conducted with fibroblast 0r support cells because 0f their significantly longer Iife span in culture. Because epithelial cells do not grow well in culture and because of their
specific cell type in which Epstein-Barr virus replicates when it is being shed in the throat. This has helped to explain how the virus eventually turns up in nasopharyngeal carcinoma, since carcinomas are neoplastic, 0r cancerous epithelial cells. Finally, the observations offer an explanation for the sore
throat so characteristic of infectious mononucleosis, now recognized possibly to be due to invasion and destruction of epithelial cells lining the back of the throat by virus. In the future, Pagano plans to study in greater detail what occurs when Epstein-Ban virus infects epithelial cells, he will also attempt to infect epithelial cells grown in vitro with Epstein-Barr virus. Researchers in Dr. Pagano's lab will attempt to transform normal human epithelial cells into rapidly growing cells similar to carcinoma and, therefore, add a key link to the growing chain of evidence that Epstein-Barr virus has a causal role in certain cancers.
transient life span, research has proven difficult.
Dr. Paganos findings were made possible by the use of sophisticated new nucleic acid hybridization techniques which have enabled him to visualize Epstein-Barr virus genomes, or complete pieces of viral DNA, in cells obtained from throat washings of patients with acute infectious mononucleosis. The process of hybridization involves opening up the DNA helixes contained in cells suspected of harboring Epstein-Barr virus and attempting to match up portions of the DNA with an Epstein-Barr virus probe. By using this highly sensitive probe, the homologous regions are detected, showing if in fact the cell in question does contain Epstein-Barr virus DNA. Epstein-Barr virus has been thought to have an exclusive attraction for BJympho cytes, the white blood cells important to immunity. Diseases involving lymphocytes and Epstein-Barr virus include infectious mononucleosis and Burkitt's lymphoma, a childhood cancer found in parts of Africa. "l have been intrigued by the fact that Epstein-Barr virus
to Sunny Christensen, administrative director. One of the new cancer electives introduced this fall is "Fundamentals of Oncologyl' taught through the department 0f pathology.
appears t0 cause at least several diseasesl' states Pagano. "We felt that in order for the
Christensen said the course focuses on basic cancer biology and the team approach to
Epstein-Barr virus to do this, it would have to infect or at least be associated with epithelial
clinical management of the cancer patient. Cancer prevention will also be emphasized. Another elective, planned for the spring
cellsl' Paganos research identifies the long-sought
Multidisciplinary Cancer Education The University recently received a five-year, $l million grant from the National Cancer Institute to support and expand cancer education and research in the schools of medicine, nursing, public health and dentistry. "The award will primarily be used to develop educational programs over and above the usual curriculuml' said Dr. James F. Newsome, director ol the Cancer Education Program and professor of surgery. The CEP will expand cancer education opportunities through the development of an integrated, multidisciplinary approach for students in the health professions, according
semester,
will
cover aspects of applied
biostatistics in cancer and epidemiology. That course will be offered through the School of Public Health. The CEP also subsidizes an assistantship program that affords both undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity
to
assist
faculty members from all four schools in cancer-related research. Students have the
chance to work with health professionals in the care of cancer patients and to participate in laboratory reserch and discussions of cancer treatments.
Dr. William P Webster of the School of Dentistry is associate director of the CEP, and Dr. John Currie of the School of Medicine is the education director. Dr. Barbara Hulka of the School of Public Health and Dr. Margery Duffey of the School of Nursing are responsible for program development in their respective schools.
v o R.s
ENI)
t2
q a'rq
Study based on Venezuela helps explain how democratic regimes lose public confidence
reported on the politics of Latin America for more than 20 years. His research on democratization and the breakdown of dictatorships has focused on EI Salvador, Argentina and Brazil. His published works on these countries include a number of articles and a book, Salvador in Tlansition, published in 1982 by UNC Press and now in its second printing.
f/
As noted political scientist and journalist Walter Lippman saw it in 1921, "The world that we have to deal with politically is out of reach, out of sight, out of mind. It has to be explored, reported, imaginedi' Dr. Enrique Baloyra, professor of political science and director of UNC-Chapel Hill's Institute of Latin American Studies, has explored and
Baloyra, much has been written during the last ten years about the deterioration of democracy in Latin America. While acknowledging that there are aspects of the Venezuelan government that deserve criticism,
Baloyra said that many of the country's detractors had failed to focus their condemnations. "lt is not enough to say that there is a crisisl' he said. "lt behooves the analyst to
the issue. How do democratic regimes lose public confidence and deteriorate? "[ wanted to study this question in terms of the relationship between high levels of criticisml' said Baloyra. "lt is impotant to see what is, or is not, holdine people loyal to relatively
specify what is in crisis, and there is a tendency to neglect this in favor of more sweeping generalizations concerning the shortcomings of political institutions and the unacceptable results of the political process. Very frequently the crisis is linked to the dominant values of the contemporary political culture, which cannot be expected to change abrupt-
young democratic regimesi' According to
lvl'
He is currently winding up a ten-year study of Venezuela that explores the other side of
E.il
I}
l3
E
Andrds Pdrez, 1974-1979 (AD); Luis Herrera Campins, 1979-1984 (COPEI); and Jaime
Lusinchi, 1984-1989 (AD). Venezuela is one of the world's leading oil producers, and the country enjoys the highest per capita income in Latin America, although wealth is quite unevenly distributed. The future of Venezuelas democratic reformist system will depend on the republic's ability to settle a number of issues, including petroleum dependency, growth, economic
distribution and social-welfare measures, without stagnating or reverting to military dictatorship. Political legitimacy is still fragile. The country's democracy should not be judged atainst the standards 0f the United
or Western Europe, according to Baloyra, but against how far it has come since the 1958 inauguration of the democratic States
regime.
Research Design Baloyra conducted national surveys
in
1973
and again in 1983 under the auspices of three National Science Foundation grants. The 1983 survey was
a collaborative project with
ol the
Coordinac-idn de Estudios de Posisrado en Ciencia Polifica of Universidad SIm6n Bolivar. Personal interviewers questioned 1,521 and 1,789 Venezuelan investigators
citizens
Dr Aristides Tores
(left) and Dr. Enrique Baloyra houe recently concluded o study
of
Venezuelo that explores the deterioro-
tion of demr.tcrotic
regimes.
Political Overview
Leadership has peacefully alternated between the country's two major parties-the Democratic Action (AD) party and the Social
A brief summary of Venezuelan politics will help to put Baloyras research in perspective.
Christian Party (COPEI). The AD party's brand of politics emphasizes a social
The South American country achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and formed a separate republic in 1830. Its history of political instability and lengthy periods of authoritarian rule culminated in the dictatorships of General Juan Vicente Gdmez in 1908-1935 and General Pdrez Jim6nez in 1952-58. The interim was punctuated by unsuccesslul at-
democracy,
tempts t0 establish democratic governments. The overflow of the Pdrez Jim6nez regime by a military-backed popular movement in January, 1958, ultimately prepared the way
with policies geared towards
equality, social redistribution and Western values. Its membership is more homogeneous than the C0PEI, according to Baloyra. The COPEI's affiliates range from a clerical right
wing to an ultra-progressive, youthful left wing, with a majority adhering to a moderately conservative reflection of the social doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church.
for the viable, democratic governments that
Democratic presidents, elected by compulsory suffrage, include: Rdmulo Betancourt, 1959-1964 (AD); Raril Leoni, 1964-1969 (AD);
have since prevailed.
Dr. Rafael Caldera,
1969-1974 (COPEI); Carlos
in
1973
and 1983, respectively, on
public support of the democracy. Random samples were drawn from communities of 10,000 or more inhabitants and were progressively stratified for age, sex, social class and region.
Collaborating with Baloyra on the study is Dr. Aristides Torres, a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Fulbright scholar spending the fall semester at UNC-Chapel Hill. Deborah Lee, a graduate student in political science, is assisting them
in
data analysis.
Initial
Study
In 1973, Baloyra found that support for the theory of democracy was quite strong. Specifically, the data showed: (1) high tevels of support and favorable evaluations of the regime among the middle ctass; (2) very high levels of support among members 0f the AD and COPEI parties; (3) higher levels of criticism among young, educated leftists who felt more efficacious than other voters; and (4) very high levels of support for competitive elections and multi-party politics.
E
l4 Despite strong support indicated for the regime, the 1973 data revealed widespread discontent with several political institutions and low levels of what Baloyra terms "political efficacyl' the belief that individual
political involvement can have an impact on the governmental process. Although the public believed that the democratic government had done a better job than military regimes, the public was disillusioned with the government's policies, incidents of corruption and mounting foreign debt, according to Baloyra. He said that he was intrigued by the absence of widespread protests and civil disobedience in Venezuela in the face of such
disillusionment, so he returned to the survey to establish further distinctions among types of criticisms. That is where he departed from the established practice of dealing with
criticism as a conditioned, rather than an
o.R.s
II .D
attitudes to build a cumulative, unidimensional scale to separate cynics from critics. He found that the relatively high levels of public criticism prevalent in Venezuela were closely connected to party biases and ideological considerations, while cynicism tended to relate to apolitical leanings and social circumstance, namely, feelings of inequality. The study also revealed that increasing levels of
both criticism and cynicism led to a diminished sense of political efficacy and to greater tendency to withdraw from the election process*but not t0 forms of protest behaviors
or preference for
a
dictatorship.
How much have these patterns changed during the last ten years?
evaluative response.
Venezuela Revisited
Baloyra said that previously, most discussions of political criticism failed to consider the context in which individuals related to the political system. Instead, some political
Baloyra compared data collected in 1973 with the 1983 survey results to describe how public evaluation of the democracy had
scientists considered political criticism as part of the cluster of attitudes characterized by political apathy, low trust in government and
changed. Comparisons are in four different areas of opinions: criticism of the governments of the last 25 years; criticism of elec-
a diminished feeling of political
tions; criticism of the role of politicians; and feelings of political efficacy (see Table). Generally, the public has become more dissatisfied with the democratic governments. More Venezuelans believed in 1983 that those
efficacy.
Therefore, criticism has been treated as a symptom of individual frustration, and not as
a result of individuals'perceived shortcomings ol the performance of the political system, said Baloyra. "The average voter has traditionally been considered a con-
governments wasted public funds, that their policies were harmful, that they served special interests and that politicians were corrupt. Yet, Baloyra said that the data did not suggest an irreversible process of deterioration. He pointed out that, while evaluation of
the government was more negative, opinions about the performance of politicians were more favorable than in 1973. He also noted that support for the electoral process had remained firm, but that levels of political et ficacy had not improved over the decade. "ln synthesis, Venezuelans remain very supportive of the manner in which their governments have come to office, increasingly dissatisfied with what they do once they get there, and imbued with the feeling that the suffrage is the only way to improve thingsl' said Baloyra. The 1983 survey included a number of questions concerning preference for democracy or dictatorship, not included in the 1973 study. Democracy was given a better rating
over dictatorship in its ability to resolve national problems and to produce individual well-being. Three-fourths of those polled said it is better for Venezuela, and 82 percent declared a preference for democracy. Yet among those responding, a large maiority rated democracy more corrupt than dictatorship. "The magnitudes involved in the overall preference for one or the other show an overwhelming preference for democracyl' said Baloyra.
sumer-passive, guided by cues and not rational or evaluative. I wanted to show that people who criticized the government were not nuts, were not revolutionary, and that the most drastic thing they might do is to refuse
to votel' Baloyra said that it was important to remove political criticism from its context of subversion in order to facilitate interpretation
of its function in contemporary democracies. "The fact that the Venezuelan democratic regime is able to function in a context of substantial public criticism suggests that such criticism is not so destructivel' he said. "lf a relatively fragile and young regime can cope
with critical opposition, then there is reason to believe that more institutionalized regimes can cope with highly critical, mobilized electoratesl'
Baloyra manifested his departure from traditional treatments of political detraction by distinguishing between criticism (ftom Webster's: "judging with knowledge and pro priety") and cynicisn (also Webster's; "fault finding, captious criticism"). He used path
Dr. Enrique Boloyra, professor of pctliticol
analysis of survey responses regarding civic
science ond director of UNC's Institute of
Lotin Americon Studies.
l5
Ileble: Publlc lDlccontent ln Yenezucla, lg73 and
lgt3 1973
1983
(Percentageg
Oddclrn of tLc aovcrrrort
(195t-10E3):
Government action almost never right
28
26
Covernments. . .have wasted money
56
68
Impact of policy personally harmful
17
29
Governrnents have served powerful groups
60
68
Many government officials crooked
39
66
Covernment policy has been bad for nation
34
38
Voting not important in politics
5
4
Democracy possible without elections
8
4
Elected candidates do not care about constituency problems
43
9e
Elections do not make the government care about people's problems
26
,1
Crtdclrn of clccdorr:
Grldcbn of polldclur: Politicians always lie
8l
78
Government better off without politicians
56
40
Politicians do not care about the problems of people like me
bt
60
Politicians do not care about the problems of the nation
45
36
Politicians talk much and do nothing
82
72
Fcrrord polttlcd efflcecy: People
in government do not worry about what people like me think
62
People like me cannot influence what the government does
66
OJ
Politics is so complex that people like me do not know what is going on
IU
65
Voting is the only way that people like me can influence the government
65
70
Sources: 1973 (n=1,521), 1983 (n=1,789)
Evidence also found in 1983 shows that a majority of Venezuelans could still think of circumstances in which they would support a
orientations, while cynicism is a more rigid form of criticism inseparable from the individual's social circumstances.
Summary
ousted by a coup, Baloyra said that such a coup would not have been linked to substitution of the democratic system. "Most of the people who believed that conditions justified a coup did not turn out to favor the installation of a dictatorshipl' he said. 'Apparently,
said.
It is not surprising, then. to find that even in 1983, some 53 percent of the
Is the Venezuelan democracy deteriorating?
they felt that Herreras lackluster performance justified a shortening of his term by whatever
respondents could conceive of situations in which military coups were justified. "This doesn't necessarily imply the wish for the in-
Venezuelan version,
military coup. However, Baloyra said this finding was not alarming. "One must remember that a military coup made possible the redemocratization of Venezuela
in ig58l'
he
auguration of an authoritarian regimel' he said.
The portrait of critics of the system versus cynics remained fairly constant over the tenyear period. "Discontenl still runs in terms of differences between the have and the have nots, between the younger and older voters,
and between mainstream and more extreme partisan and ideological preferencesl' Baloyra said. The consistency further strengthens his theory that criticism is triggered by political
"Democracy, whether the abstract ideal
or
the
is not in trouble at the
present timel' Baloyra said. "There is Iittle evidence t0 suggest that Venezuelans prefer authoritarianism and dictatorship, despite the serious drawbacks that they detect in the performance of the governments of the democratic eral' Baloyra also noted the public's "foul
in 1983, attributing discontent to the pre-election climate. "The administration of President Henera (COPEI) received the lowest marks of any post-1958 administrationl' While exasperation was strong enough for a significant number to think Herrera should be mood"
meansl'
But deterioration is detectable, according to Baloyra, despite improvements in some of the public's evaluations. "Concern with corruption
in general and with the dishonesty 0l government officials is not to be taken lightlyl' he said. "While the numbers are not there yet to talk about a crisis of Venezuelan democracy, there is little in those numbers...which suggests that what we see in Venezuela is business as usuall'
-
N oijl
Todd-McLoughlin
YO
l6
been funded largely by the oceanography section of the National Science Foundation, and in more recent years by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Additional support has been provided by the UNC Water Resources Research Institute, which funded an estuarine research project done by Martens in
theChemistry
ofthehnFloor
conjunction with Larry K. Benninger, associate professor in geology and curriculum of
New findings by marine scientists help explain changes in earth's
sediments accumulating in three aquatic environments: river estuaries, such as the Neuse; shallow waters in an area called the inner continental shelf; and the deeper waters of the upper continential slope. The researchers do much of their work in waters off Cape Lookout, North Carolina, at the southern tip
natural recycling processes Prospecting for natural resources that can be used as alternative forms of energy has taken researchers into an area often called one of
Christopher Martens has paved the way for a fuller understanding of the formation of this substance and has also yielded important in-
the "last frontiers'l-.the ocean floor. Scientists have discovered here that a geochemical process associated with the bacterial degradation of organic matter produces methane, a maior component of natural gas and a valuable fuel source. It is also here that methane is being studied as a possible threat to our environ-
sights into the changing composition of the earth's atmosphere. Dr. Martens, professor of marine sciences
ment.
While researchers have known that methane in the sediment of the ocean floor, they have not always understood its origins. Breakthrough reseach by University Professor existed
and geology, conducts much of his research at the University's Institute of Marine Sciences in Morehead City. He is assisted by staff member Carol Green, and by Jeffrey Chanton, Robert Haddad and Steve Dougherty, doctoral students in marine sciences. Another of his colleagues, Dr. David J. Bufdige, is doing postdoctoral work at UNC-Chapel Hill. Over the past ten years, the research has
marine sciences. The UNC Marine Sciences Council and the University Research Council also gave Dr. Martens' project crucial support at its inception. The researchers study the chemistry of
of Core Bank. There a quiet lagoon, called a "bightl' is enclosed by a recurved spit, or point of land which traps sediment before it flows into the ocean via the neighboring Barden Inlet. This makes it an ideal place to study geochemical processes resulting from the accumulation and degradation of organic-
rich particles, according to Martens. Sediments
in
shallow waters are sampled
either by divers or by sediment coring devices, called box corers. "These corers are capable of penetrating to a depth of several meters into the sedimentl' Martens said. ln deeper waters the researchers work off the research ship Cape Hatteras (operated by the Duke-UNC Consortium), from which they drop a large coring device that operates like earthmoving equipment in scooping up chunks of
the sea bed.
The Degradation Process Organic matter linds its way to the ocean floor in a number of ways, including agricul-
tural runoff from tributary rivers and streams. But most of that found accumulating in 1
I rji :i
{' $'
{
Dr. Christopher Martens (right) ond two
of
his research teom, Carol Green and Jeff Chanton. measure the
members
rodon content of gases tropped in sediment samples to help explain the physics of methone transport to the otmosphere.
marine sediments comes from land and salt marsh plant debris, or single-celled plants such as diatoms, which thrive in surface ocean waters. Bacteria, abundant in sediments, break down the organic debris for growth and energy. The cycle is completed by
the release of nutrient compounds, such as ammonia, phosphorus and methane, to overlying waters. In sunlit, shallow waters, nutrient resupply from the sediments supports greater than 50 percent of the fertilizer
Y.O.R.S
needs of new generation tiny plant lifq which in turn will produce the next round of decaying organic matter settling to the bottom. In areas where nutrients are in great abundance, overproduction of organic matter can lead to rapid rates of decomposition and subsequent oxygen depletion.
"North Carolin-
ians have, regrettably, become familiar with these processes in river estuaries such as the Chowan, where oxygen depletion during warm summer months has created major problemsl' Martens said. The orygen supply required for total decomposition can diminish quickly in any environment if too much organic matter
is dumped into the water. When this occurs, the system goes to an alternative respiration process using dissolved sulfate (which
in ocean water) instead of oxygen. And if the rates of organic decomposition in the sediment exceed the sulfate supply, a different form of degradation begins called abounds
fermentation-which yietds methane. "The
of degradation of organic matter can be described as a thre+step process: the removal of oxygen, followed by the reduction of sulfates to toxic sulfides and finally the consequences
formation of methane gasl' Martens said. "The more organic substances you dump in, the more you force the system towards mak-
ing methanei' Martens' research has had a direct bearing on the advent of doit-yourself methods of making fuel from waste and other organic matter. "You can pick up most any magazine Iike Mother Earth News and see advertisements for kits to make methane by degrading organic matter in airtight containersl' Martens said. And it is precisely this reason that
methane concentration and other trace gases been considered a threat. "This scares people to deathl' Martens said. "They think, 'Here's another greenhouse gas we weren't even counting oni"
The greenhouse effect involves atmospheric gases that selectively allow short-wave radia-
tion from the sun to penetrate the earth's surface while trapping longer-wave radiation reemitted from the earth. Martens compared the process to that which occurs in a closed car on a sunny day. "Sunlight coming through the glass in the form of short-wave radiation is transformed into longer-wave radiation that cannot escape back through the glass and, thus, warms the carl'The greenhouse effect similarly warms the earth. "Carbon dioxide and methane act as a car window and trap the long-wave radiation (heat) instead
of allowing it to re-emit into spacel' Martens said. "The warming can ultimately alter the climate, melt glaciers and raise the sea levell' NASA specifically wants to know how methane gets from organic-rich coastal sediments to the earth's atmosphere. To study the physics of that transport, Martens and his research team are using a natually-occurring radioactive gas called radon-222. Because radon, an inert gas, is not subject to biological or chemical transformations, it can be used to study how methane escapes from sediments to overlying waters and the atmosphere. Back at the lab, researchers measure the radon content of gases still
t7
floor. At freezing temperatures, the gas collects on charcoal columns which are then heated to 500 degrees Celsius and pressurized with helium to force the radon into counting cells. "We use the data to elucidate the physical transport process of radon, and that gives us insight into the physics of methane transport to the atmospherel' Martens said. Though methane only comprises 1.6 parts in one million of the earth's atmosphere, Martens said that the gas content is increasing at the rate of approximately one percent per year. While this is not alarming, it is thought that methane concentration, if elevated significantly, could have quite an effect on the earth's atmospheric composition. For this reason Martens and his colleagues believe their study of methane production and its transport to the atmosphere is particularly relevant to environmental concerns.
-Noâ‚Źl
Todd McLaughlin
trapped in sediment samples, as well as that found escaping with other gases from the sea
Martens' research has spawned interest from
yet another camp-environmentalists concerned with the way we use and dispose of organic matter.
Another Greenhouse
Gas?
There is good reason for this concern, according to Martens. "Man's influence on the carbon cycle, including use of organic materials such as fossil fuels, is now chang-
ing the composition of the atmospherei' Culprit gases not only include carbon dioxide but also methane. Both are produced from the degradation of organic matter. Until recently, scientists thought that carbon dioxide production from burning fossil fuels was the biggest contribution to a phenome non known as the "greenhouse effectl' Only in the last five years has the increase of
A sediment coring operation in oction ot Cape Lookout Bight shows the large
squore barrell oDer the stern which collects sediment cores up to three meters long.
il.D.E
IE
A
Communicationfor Team
of specialists develops
substitutes for human speech Over one million children and adults in this country have cognitive deficiencies 0r motor handicaps which prevent them from speaking
clearly enough to be consistently understood. To study and develop alternative forms of communication, a team of specialists was organized in 1979 by Dr. Patricia Porter, assistant professor in the Department of Medical Allied Health Professions. The Augmentative Communication Team, as it is called, is paft of the Division for Disorders of Development and Learning, a unit of the Biological Sciences Research Center. Augmentative communication is a relatively new field of research. As early as a decade ago no position on the subject had been taken by the American Speech, Language and Hearing Association. "We used t0 think that if we provided an augmentative communica' tion means to a speechless person, he would be rendered speechless forever, as if we were giving up on his speech. We know now that this is not true. If an individual can develop speech, he willl' reports Porter. Another persistent belief hindering the development of augmentative communication was the notion that if a person cannot speak, he cannot understand speech. But explains Porter, "Speech and language are essentially two different activities. In order to know what
a person understands, he must have a means of communicating it to you. We couldn't get at what speechless persons knew, so we assumed they didn't know; we know now it is often our own deficiency in providing them a means to communicatel' For many years non-verbal and minimally verbal children were excluded from public education. They were served in residential institutions, day care programs or they remained at home. Many were placed in men-
Dr. Pat furter with ougmentotiDe communicotion team memberc (from left) Shelly Stouerc, Martho Reed ond Saro Carter (in foreground), discussing picture ouerloy for
the Vois 130, o uoice synthesis communital retardation facilities. Observes Porter, "l know many adult persons who are physically handicapped and cognitively intact who have had to fight the system throughout their lives to convince people that they are, in fact, thinking individualsl' When the Division for Disorders of Development and Learning was established in 1962 with federal funding, it was given three mandates: to train professionals representing many different disciplines in the assessment and management of developmental disabilities; to provide models of clinical services for
cator. The ouerloy is used by non-uerbal clients who ore unable to read. Other teom members not pictured are: Mary Ruth Atherdi, Barboro Wurth, Nancy Mortin, Eloine Goolsby and Jeon Liuermore.
communicative disorders specialists, two occupational therapists, a physical therapist, a psychologist, a special educator and a social worker, with an electronics specialist serving as consultant.
Glinical Scrvices Augmentative communication is not meant to replace an individual's communication system but to increase his ability to transmit infor-
other centers throughout the state; and to conduct a wide range of research including the evaluation of service-delivery models and clinical drug trials. The particular mission of the Augmentative
mation. ln unaided augmentative communication a part of the body other than the speaking mechanism is used, as in sign language. Aided augmentative communication involves the use of some device in addition to the body for the purposes of communication.
Communication Team is to design effective responses to the unique problems presented by non-verbal clients who are referred by practitioners all over North Carolina and the region. The team of nine consists of two
from simple lap boards and pointers t0 complex and expensive devices which incorporate voice synthesis, printed typewriter readouts and sometimes digital readouts. "No one is
Augmentative communication devices range
E.tf
so handicapped anymore that he can't make use of a communication devicel' insists Porter.
In order to prescribe the best
augmentative
communication system, the team is commit ted to providing the best assessment possible. "We believe it is not enough to know one element of an individuall' says Porter. The team gives consideration to the client's cognitive functioning, receptive language, current means of communication such as gestures and rudimentary sound usage, vision, hearing, fine and gross motor capabilities. Another important factor in early evaluation is the involvement of the individual's family,
D.D,.A
Y.O
n.S
pediatrics and social work. Students are selected for practica as undergraduates from other disciplines at Chapel Hill; as doctoral candidates they may apply from other universities as well. Porter explains that the experiential training has become so popular that she maintains a waiting list. Dr. Porter has been teaching a class in augmentative communication for four years in the Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences and notes that enrollment has doubled each year. In-service training for professionals in the community is also an important part of the program. "We are the only active multi-disciplinary team in this state performing augmentative communi-
l9
cation evaluations, and having been together since 1979, we have developed an expertise in the areal' explains Porter. One finds graduate students in virtually every activity in which the team is involved, including evaluations, planning, and program implementation. Three of the five papers presented by the team to the lnternational Society of Augmentative and Alternative Communication's recent conference were written
by graduate students Carolyn Eddins, Merle Crawford and Paul Yoder. Eddins, in her second year of a speech and language pathology master's degree,
of science is working with the newly begun
Aug-
"Communication is a twoway process, and if we don't have a family willing to work with the child who will be using an augmentative device, then provision of that device doesn't make sensel' notes Porter. The team tries to involve as much of the community as possible so that the individual will have an environment that is receptive to his or her communication attempts. Often prescribed first, simple communica-
tion boards are usually twodimensional arrangements of visually represented objects and ideas from which the user selects his choice. Communication boards may be mounted on wheelchair trays and folders, attached to ambulation equipment or furniture,
.4t; a:7
0r worn on the user's body. A lightweight pointer fastened to the hand that is most mobile makes possible pointing responses. Picture boards have a series of commonly used items and scenes placed on a flannel board and are used most often with children
Saro Leuer uses a Phonic Ear Vois 140, an encoded system whereby a series of numbers is equiualent to a word (1-2-3 pro-
$s*-,6'
duces "hello"). This deuice may also be operated with o head stick or hand-held pointer.
who do not recognize printed words. A more sophisticated board is the noun/verb/oblect board which increases the number of ideas and complexity of responses. Devices are prescribed and often designed by team members themselves as an individual progresses. It is not unusual for the team
to provide a series of augmentative communication devices beginning with the simple lapboard and progressing to a computerized voice synthesis device, programmed specifically to meet the needs of a particular client.
Graduate Rccearch
llaining
Graduate students come
and Sara Leuer ond teocher Elaine Leight of
to the augmentative
communication team from fields such as occupational therapy, physical therapy, psychology, speech and language pathology, nutrition,
North Carolino Memoriol Hospital's crosscotegoricol classroom (operated by the
Diuision for Deuelopmental Disorders and the Chopel Hill-Canboro school system) drscuss an upcoming classroom euent
using o simple language boord deueloped by team members along with Sarob mother. The boord has seoeral eosylo-lift cordboard "poges" filled with words, numbers, nomes of friends and family,
ond uorious pictures.
EN
20
DEAYO
and other signifrcant members of the child's community. One example of the need for strong follow-up models was discovered by the team recently. fuo years ago they evaluated a young girl from a low-income family who was afflicted with severe cerebral palsy. The child was judged to have normal intelligence but Imited motor abilities. The team recommended an electronic communication device with programming together with placement in a normal classroom with resource help. When she was evaluated again, however, the team found her still in a developmental center with children whose abilities were much below hers. Her teachers
reported that she cried at the sight of her communication device. However, the team found that the device was being used primarily during lunch, at which time she was required to ask for each bite of food. From
Physicol therctpist and tectm member Barbaro Wurth checks toys thot haue beert ctdopted for use by hondicopped children.
the teacher's point 0f view she had become behavior problem. From the perspective of the communication team this represented a significant failure to create communication and called for further work with the child's
l-hese toys are octiuoted by pressing a treadle sulitch.
a
teachers and family.
fuo models of follow-up programs have been developed. Last year with funds from mentative Communication Center at Lenox Baker Children's Hospital in Durham. Observing children's use of augmentative communication devices, she is exploring ways to improve their communication. By videotaping interviews and conversation sessions, she is able to analyze interaction according to elements such as questions and responses. Eddins is further investigating the phenomenon of communication breakdown and the complex process of its repair. She is developing a communicative behavior inventory which will prove useful to speech and language pathologisls
in
assessing problem areas
of commu-
nication. Comments Eddins, "The whole area of augmentative communication is so new that very little has been done with the pragmatics of communicationl'
Continuing Goals
dred at the most recent annual conference in May. Recently established augmentative com-
munications teams in North Carolina have drawn heavily on the Chapel Hill group's
training and expertise. The team continues to work at modifying curricula for physically handicapped persons. They point out that presently there are no good assessment tools and very little good curriculum suitable for handicapped nonverbal youngsters. One of their projects has been to adapt various toys for physrcally handicapped youngsters-toys Iike radios, tape recorders, video games and televisions.
"lt
is
not unusual for a nine- or ten-year-old to come through the door here without ever having had the opportunity to engage his environment in any independent way. Giving him a battery-operated toy, allowing him to press the lever switch and see the toy actrvate is a very significant thing and for some is the first step toward moving into an
The augmentative communication team is
augmentative communication systeml' explains
committed to ongoing dissemination of information about their field. Over the past few years the North Carolina Augmentative Com-
Porter.
One of the most important areas of concern, the team feels, is follow-up. After work-
munication Association has been developed. Porter, the current president, says the association grew from the interest of several people
ing with children for awhile, they frequently have to send them back into communities where none of the professionals know
in this area and the desire to exchange information. At last count there were 90
anything about augmentative communication. It is of utmost importance, therefore, to provide training for parents, teachers, physicians
members, with an attendance of several hun-
the Kate B. Reynolds Health Tlust and the North Carolina State Developmental Disabilities Council, team members conducted on-site visits in ten different locations within the state. Equipment was modified, vocabulary on certain augmentative communication devices was expanded and parent and teacher training was conducted. A second model was developed as a collaborative project between the Augmentative Communication Team and the Lenox Baker Children's Hospital. Children were brought into the Hospital for short{erm intensive residential follow up. The daily access afforded by
this model allows research
and traininq in the settinq of actual social
A new project, based on this collaborative model, has been slated for funding next year by the North Carolina Developmental Disabilities Council. experiences.
Faculty team members and graduate students working on these projects report that it is an enriching experience to see their work help individuals for whom speech has not been an option to have a chance at satisfying and meaningful communication. "After all, says Porter, "communication is the window through which others know us, makes us humanl'
it is what
-Ann F
Stanford