Geographic distance,the measurement of socioeconomic development,and the extent of migration

A study of migration in the region of Wojewodztwo Wloclawskie, Poland, is presented for the period 1975-1979 using a gravitational model. The model includes migration variables and variables measuring the level of socioeconomic development.     

The use of traditional and modern methods of fertility control in Kinshasa, Zaire

Abstract The practice of post-partum abstinence has been a long-standing tradition in many societies of tropical Africa, yet recent research suggests an erosion of the taboo on post-partum sexual relations as a means of fertility control. The current study among women in the lower income groups in Kinshasa, Zaire, provides evidence of this. There is strong motivation toward child-spacing, as shown by 80 per cent of the women who reported to be currently practising some means of fertility control: 73 per cent with traditional methods, only 7 per cent with modern contraceptives. There appears to be some carry-over of traditional practice, in that abstinence is related to the age and nursing status of the last born child. However, the most widely practised method is withdrawal. This suggests a desire on the part of this population for alternatives to abstinence, an issue with important implications for future family planning programs in Zaire.     

Fertility differences between the family of orientation and the family or procreation in Barbados

Data from an island-wide probability sample of 4119 Barbadian females aged 16-50 were used to study whether there has been an intergenerational fertility decline between the respondents and their mothers. The fertility of the respondents, all from the low or lower middle class, was significantly lower than that of their mothers. However, the size of the family of procreation was seen to be positively related to the size of the family of orientation; i.e., those from large families tended to have large families and vice versa. There was, however, a regression to the mean. There were no differences between women from small and large families as to fertility norms, age at 1st use of contraceptives, or actual practice of contraception. Women from small families did tend to enter sexual relationships and get pregnant at a later age. The women from small families were better educated, earned higher incomes, and had higher status occupations, all factors which might have influenced their fertility. Women from larger families cited higher numbers for both small and large families than did the women from small families. This indicates a perceptual difference which was, in turn, related to fertility differences.     

当代生活与艺术之死:第二、第三和第一世界

当今所谓的艺术,主要是受20世纪七八十年代以来发展并在全球范围内扩散的美国式“艺术”观念所支配,而再也不受德语的“艺术”或法语的“美的艺术”体系所支配。自从现代主义诞生以来,艺术的历史使命的减弱或者消失已经成为事实,但从全球范围而言,“艺术的终结”这一论断仍有些夸大其词。因为在第一世界的艺术死亡之后(这里存在更多的是文化),第二和第三世界的艺术还生长着。艺术从根本上说还不是一个媒介事件和现象,而是一个同我们每个人相关的东西——不管它是不是商品。