The present volume includes the Proceedings of The 14 th International ‘Culture and Power’ Conference, organized by the University of Castilla-La Mancha and held in Ciudad Real, Spain, between 22 and 24 March, 2010 under the auspices of The Iberian Association for Cultural Studies (IBACS). The collection incorporates a selection of the papers presented. The conference revolved around the topic of ‘identity’ and ‘identification’, which, in the contributions, is explored in various cultural products across a wide range of social and national contexts. Identity and identification processes are examined as interrelated with other social and cultural dimensions. Readings echo a multiplicity of theoretical approaches, the number of issues contemplated being representative of the relevance of identity and identification processes as crucial analytical perspectives for cultural studies today.

Few things are as interesting to us as our own bodies and, by extension, our own identities. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the relationship between the body, environment and society. Reflecting upon these developments, this book examines the role of the body in human identification, in the forging of identities, and the ways in which it embodies our social worlds. The approach is integrative, taking a uniquely biological perspective and reflecting on current discourse in the social sciences. With particular reference to bioarchaeology and forensic science, the authors focus on the construction and categorisation of the body within scientific and popular discourse, examining its many tissues, from the outermost to the innermost, from the skin to DNA. Synthesising two, traditionally disparate, strands of research, this is a valuable contribution to research on human identification and the embodiment of identity.

Can a state empower its citizens by classifying them? Or do reservation policies reinforce the very categories they are meant to eradicate? Indian reservation policies on government jobs, legislative seats and university admissions for disadvantaged groups, like affirmative action policies elsewhere, are based on the premise that recognizing group distinctions in society is necessary to subvert these distinctions. Yet the official identification of eligible groups has unintended side-effects on identity politics. Bridging theories which emphasize the fluidity of identities and those which highlight the utility of group-based mobilizations and policies, this book exposes didactic enforcement of categorizations, while recognizing the social and political gains facilitated by group-based strategies.

Using a five-facet framework, this book furthers understanding about collective identities by bringing together contributions from various management disciplines.

Based on a study of V. S. Naipaul's postcolonial writings, this book explores the process of postcolonial subjects' special route of identification. This enables the readers to see how in our increasingly diverse and fragmented post-modern world, identity is a vibrant, complex, and highly controversial concept. The old notion of identity as a prescribed and self-sufficient entity is now replaced by identity as a plural, floating and becoming process. Min Zhou shows how postcolonial literature, among other artistic forms, is one of the most representative reflections of this floating identity.

As virulent nationalism increases in Europe and th debate surrounding political correctness continues to rage in the US, this volume provides a theoretical analysis of these events and the questions they raise for critical theory.

SIM book is not for everyone, but its a packaged combination of great insights, words of encouragement, and action plans for those existing or potential entrepreneurs, business leaders and managers, all kinds of professionals, youths, adults, parents, and spiritual persons wholl want to fulfill their purpose in life and leave behind a legacy that can live beyond them. Its almost impossible for anyone to achieve anything without knowing who they are, where they are, and what they need to do in order to achieve any of their lifes goals. Many of these facts are elicited in the SIM book, and the principles outlined, if implemented and managed properly, can turn a mediocre life into a successful and fulfilling one.

Political Public Relations maps and defines this emerging field, bringing together scholars from various disciplines—political communication, public relations and political science—to explore the area in detail. The volume connects differing schools of thought, bringing together theoretical and empirical investigations, and defines a field that is becoming increasingly important and prominent. It offers an international orientation, as the field of political public relations must be studied in the context of various political and communication systems to be fully understood. As a singular contribution to scholarship in public relations and political communication, this work fills a significant gap in the existing literature, and is certain to influence future theory and research.

The increasingly arcane world of DNA profiling demands that those needing to understand at least some of it must find a source of reliable and understandable information. Combining material from the successful Wiley Encyclopedia of Forensic Science with newly commissioned and updated material, the Editors have used their own extensive experience in criminal casework across the world to compile an informative guide that will provide knowledge and thought-provoking articles of interest to anyone involved or interested in the use of DNA in the forensic context. Following extensive introductory chapters covering forensic DNA profiling and forensic genetics, this comprehensive volume presents a substantial breadth of material covering: Fundamental material – including sources of DNA, validation, and accreditation Analysis and interpretation – including, extraction, quantification, amplification and interpretation of electropherograms (epgs) Evaluation – including mixtures, low template, and transfer Applications – databases, paternity and kinship, mitochondrial-DNA, wildlife DNA, single-nucleotide polymorphism, phenotyping and familial searching Court - report writing, discovery, cross examination, and current controversies With contributions from leading experts across the whole gamut of forensic science, this volume is intended to be authoritative but not authoritarian, informative but comprehensible, and comprehensive but concise. It will prove to be a valuable addition, and useful resource, for scientists, lawyers, teachers, criminologists, and judges.

Explores the roots of modern understandings of bodily identity In the mid-nineteenth-century United States, as it became increasingly difficult to distinguish between bodies understood as black, white, or Indian; able-bodied or disabled; and male or female, intense efforts emerged to define these identities as biologically distinct and scientifically verifiable in a literally marked body. Combining literary analysis, legal history, and visual culture, Ellen Samuels traces the evolution of the “fantasy of identification”—the powerful belief that embodied social identities are fixed, verifiable, and visible through modern science. From birthmarks and fingerprints to blood quantum and DNA, she examines how this fantasy has circulated between cultural representations, law, science, and policy to become one of the most powerfully institutionalized ideologies of modern society. Yet, as Samuels demonstrates, in every case, the fantasy distorts its claimed scientific basis, substituting subjective language for claimed objective fact. From its early emergence in discourses about disability fakery and fugitive slaves in the nineteenth century to its most recent manifestation in the question of sex testing at the 2012 Olympic Games, Fantasies of Identification explores the roots of modern understandings of bodily identity.