Nikkola of Dur is no mans slave, no mans property, and no mans fool. She refuses to be a victim to the darkness that threatens everything she loves and dreams about. Rather than join those who did nothing to escape from the slavers, she chooses to flee into the wilderness. Even though her planet has been enslaved by imperial forces, she will not be discouraged by the overwhelming fear and hopelessness that surrounds her. Hers is a story of great eviland great good. Hers is a story of unimaginable terrorand those who bring hope to the hopeless.Hers is a story of a brutal dominationand the brave woman who fought for freedom. In book two of the Princesses of the Light saga, the battle rages for dignity and freedom of the human race. The Princesses of the Light fight to unlock the very Gates of Time and come back into reality. They are the champions of a culture that has balanced ancient traditions with modern technology without the loss of their moral core. The saga of the Princesses of the Light is not a fairy story, nor is it a childrens tale; it is a warning. The Light and the Dark are both very real, and they are both inside each of us. It is the responsibility of each individual to choose which will shape her soul.

Once, Juvana had been a space-faring worldbut a nuclear war destroyed all technology of the planet, taking them back to the Stone Age. This is the story of the people who brought Juvana back into the family of humanity and back to the starsand of the people who helped them. It is the story of heart and courage, of love and faith. It is the story of Juvana Rising.

The princesses of the light lived full lives. They died and met at the gates of time. There they found out they had to do it again. This is their story. It could also be the story of us.

The Princess of the Light: Book One of the Saga of the Princesses of the Light by James McKenzie The Princess of the Light by James A. McKenzie is a "fantastical" ride through space among thousands of civilizations that achieved much, but never conquered the problem of greed. This is a story that could have taken place several thousand years ago, or could possibly take place several thousand years in the future. This ethereal tale began in the surface world of Sha'nia, whose great trading ship returned from the cosmos with unexpected cargo-a plague that was so communicable that even trained medical personnel were unaware of it until it was too late. In two days, nearly the entire population had died. Now 6,000 people were the beneficiaries of 50 billion. In the Royal Palace, only 25 survived, including Queen Anne and her four children-William, Elizabeth, Andrea, and Andrew. They knew they were safe with the resources to feed, clothe, and educate themselves. However, over time, a problem came to light-only 100 women and 5 men remained fertile-how would they restore their population?Now, join the Sha'nia in their adventurous travels to other civilizations, as they look for ways to keep their planet alive. About the Author James A. McKenzie is a Michigan native, raised in Montrose, and currently residing in Haslett. The father of three children, he has enjoyed coaching their sports teams. An alumnus of Michigan State University, he trained as an engineer and is a skilled metal model maker by profession, able to create items that do not exist at present. If it can be imagined, he can make it. In addition to writing, his interests include sports and he has been a season ticketholder of Michigan State's women's basketball for years.

This book investigates the causes and consequences of image-based sexual abuse in a digital era. Image-based sexual abuse refers to the taking or sharing of nude or sexual photographs or videos of another person without their consent. It includes a diversity of behaviours beyond that of "revenge porn", such as the secret trading of nude or sexual images online; "upskirting", "downblousing" and other "creepshots"; blackmail or "sextortion" scams; the use of artificial intelligence to construct "deepfake" pornographic videos; threats to distribute photographs and videos without consent; and the taking or sharing of sexual assault imagery. This book investigates the pervasiveness and experiences of these harms, as well as the raft of legal and non-legal measures that have been introduced to better respond to and prevent image-based sexual abuse. The book draws on groundbreaking empirical research, including surveys in three countries with over 6,000 respondents and over 100 victim-survivor and stakeholder interviews. Guided by theoretical frameworks from gender studies, sociology, criminology, law and psychology, the authors argue that image-based sexual abuse is more commonly perpetrated by men than women, and that perpetration is higher among some groups, including younger and sexuality minority men. Although the motivations of perpetrators vary, a dominant theme to emerge was that of power and control. The gendered nature of the abuse means that it is best understood as a "continuum of sexual violence" because victim-survivors often experience it as part of a broader pattern of gendered harassment, violence and abuse. Written in a clear and direct style, this book will appeal to students and scholars of criminology, sociology, law and psychology. Image-based Sexual Abuse is also an essential resource for activists, legal and policy practitioners, technology companies and victim-survivors seeking to understand the deeply complex nature of intimate-image sharing in a digital era.

Women, Business and the Law 2021 is the seventh in a series of annual studies measuring the laws and regulations that affect women’s economic opportunity in 190 economies. The project presents eight indicators structured around women’s interactions with the law as they move through their lives and careers: Mobility, Workplace, Pay, Marriage, Parenthood, Entrepreneurship, Assets, and Pension. This year’s report updates all indicators as of October 1, 2020 and builds evidence of the links between legal gender equality and women’s economic inclusion. By examining the economic decisions women make throughout their working lives, as well as the pace of reform over the past 50 years, Women, Business and the Law 2021 makes an important contribution to research and policy discussions about the state of women’s economic empowerment. Prepared during a global pandemic that threatens progress toward gender equality, this edition also includes important findings on government responses to COVID-19 and pilot research related to childcare and women’s access to justice.

Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites is a complete summary of the existing knowledge on this topic, from the basic concepts of synthesis and design to their applications in timely topics such as high-performance composites, environment, and energy issues. This book covers many aspects of synthesis such as in- situ polymerization within the interlamellar spacing of the clays or by reaction of pristine or pre-modified clays with reactive polymers and prepolymers. Indeed, nanocomposites can be prepared at industrial scale by melt mixing. Regardless the synthesis method, much is said in this book about the importance of theclay pre-modification step, which is demonstrated to be effective, on many occasions, in obtaining exfoliated nanocomposites. Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites reports the background to numerous characterization methods including solid state NMR, neutron scattering, diffraction and vibrational techniques as well as surface analytical methods, namely XPS, inverse gas chromatography and nitrogen adsorption to probe surface composition, wetting and textural/structural properties. Although not described in dedicated chapters, numerous X-ray diffraction patterns of clay–polymer nanocomposites and reference materials are displayed to account for the effects of intercalation and exfoliations of layered aluminosilicates. Finally, multiscale molecular simulation protocols are presenting for predicting morphologies and properties of nanostructured polymer systems with industrial relevance. As far as applications are concerned, Clay–Polymer Nanocomposites examines structural composites such as clay–epoxy and clay–biopolymers, the use of clay–polymer nanocomposites as reactive nanocomposite fillers, catalytic clay-(conductive) polymers and similar nanocomposites for the uptake of hazardous compounds or for controlled drug release, antibacterial applications, energy storage, and more. - The most comprehensive coverage of the state of the art in clay–polymer nanocomposites, from synthesis and design to opportunities and applications - Covers the various methods of characterization of clay–polymer nanocomposites - including spectroscopy, thermal analyses, and X-ray diffraction - Includes a discussion of a range of application areas, including biomedicine, energy storage, biofouling resistance, and more

This book - a product of an international symposium held in Greece in June 2008 and arranged by the international academic association Learning in Higher Education - addresses the importance of moving from a content-based view to a learning-centered view of higher education. Researchers and practitioners from five continents discuss three central themes that concern learning-centered higher education - the concept of learning; curriculum; and learning, teaching, and assessment processes. The chapters integrate theoretical conceptualizations and empirical examples. The book thereby offers both new approaches to the understanding of learning-centered higher education, as well as normative implications and examples of best practices from people involved in everyday practices of quality enhancement within higher education.

This thematic volume explores the relationship between the arts and learning in various educational contexts and across cultures, but with a focus on higher education and organizational learning. Arts-based interventions are at the heart of this volume, which addresses how they are conceived, designed, carried out, and assessed in different higher educational and cultural contexts. Readers will discover diverse perspectives of the contributing authors from across the world and from a variety of settings: formal education, informal learning for adults and organisational learning. A necessary introductory conceptualisation sets the stage for the discussion of the different cases, with chapters presented according to the art forms the address: performing arts, dance, music, language arts, visual arts, multi-arts and a conclusive chapter on future perspectives for arts-based educational approaches. Arts-based Methods and Organisational Learning: Higher Education Around the World will inspire and inform both scholars and practitioners who are dealing with the arts in education and organisations.

As the title suggests, and unlike other existing books on sleep medicine, Neuroendocrine Correlates of Sleep/Wakefulness will be devoted primarily to endocrine regulation of the behavioral state control. It will address a wide spectrum of sleep./wakefulness phenomena (both animals and humans), including pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management. From molecular biology to applied clinical therapy, sleep research has been transformed in the last few years from a research backwater to an important interdisciplinary field. Anyone who regularly reads the literature on sleep, biological rhythms, or neuroendocrinology is aware that one of the subspecialties within sleep medicine, the neuroendocrine correlates of sleep/wakefulness, has in particular experienced a growth rate that is even faster than that of the field as a whole. To a significant extent this has been due to the introduction of new research technologies. The widespread adoption of a range of new methods in sleep research has opened a window into activities at the cellular and molecular level, which previously had been tightly closed. Consequently these activities are being characterized with a degree of precision and sensitivity that is without precedent. This volume invites the reader to explore the new vistas that have been opened onto the neuroendocrine frontier of sleep medicine. The editors have selectively identified a number of key articles having a citation frequency, which is considerably above the norm or which otherwise have contributed importantly to defining the neuroendocrine perspective. This new volume on Neuroendocrine Correlates of Sleep/Wakefulness is an up-to-date resource of research summaries and reviews written by major contributors to the fields of sleep, biological rhythms and neuroendocrinology. Its coverage is broad and its basic and clinical science reviews are detailed. In this volume, an international team of experts discuss their latest ideas, concepts, methods, and interpretations with supporting examples. This volume is intended for advanced students and specialists in psychobiology, neuroscience, neuroendocrinology, and psychiatry but might also be interest to anyone concerned with understanding the Neuroendocrine correlates of sleep/wakefulness. The contributions are directed more towards providing an integrated view of the field from the perspective of the authors, rather than being a compendium of recent results. The intent is to provide a reference book for recent and future workers in this and related areas of medicine and biology. Each topic in this volume has received the attention of a panel of authors who have responded to our request to review and place into perspective the major issues, which will undoubtedly confront newcomers to the field. The topics dealt with in Neuroendocrine correlates of Sleep/wakefulness are both diverse and complex. The editors hope that this volume will provide an authoritative summary of important issues in the neuroendocrine correlates of sleep/wakefulness. We also hope that it will motivate new researchers to join the quest for solutions to the problems that have been identified by our contributing authors.