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Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Marginality in Ancient Greek Philosophy, Science, and Medicine Fall 2020, Tu 3:00-5:30Pm [Remote Instruction Via Zoom: ##]

Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Marginality in Ancient Greek Philosophy, Science, and Medicine Fall 2020, Tu 3:00-5:30Pm [Remote Instruction Via Zoom: ##]

PHIL211: Perspectives on Gender, Race, and Marginality in , , and Medicine Fall 2020, Tu 3:00-5:30pm [Remote instruction via Zoom: ##]

INSTRUCTOR Professor Mariska Leunissen Email: [email protected] Phone: 919-962-2280 Office hours: Mo & Tu 10:00-11:00am or by appointment Zoom link for office hours on Monday: ## Zoom link for office hours on Tuesday: ## Webpage: https://spark.adobe.com/page/qClOxwMBnIbSk/

GRADUATE RESEARCH CONSULTANT ##

Our graduate research consultant be available for quick questions concerning the research process throughout the semester by email, and she will also be holding the following scheduled consultations:

Week 4-12: a 30-minute consultation for each presenter (or presenting team) to discuss the research question and research plan for the presentation (part d of the handout) for a total of three consultation per week. Please schedule your consultation at least one day before your presentation. (3 presenters x 30 minutes x 9 weeks = 13.5 hours)

Week 13-14: a 30-minute consultation for each team working on an adobe spark project to discuss any issues with their research or spark project. Please schedule your consultation at least one day before our project presentations on 11/17. (9 teams x 30 minutes = 4.5 hours)

Week 15: 2 hours of scheduled ‘drop in’ office hours (day and TBA) for individual help with the research paper

All consultations will be held through zoom; please email ## to schedule yours.

1 The GRC Program is sponsored by the Office for Undergraduate Research.

COURSE DESCRIPTION Why is it that almost all ancient philosophical texts focus solely on the views of the elite male members of Greek society? What happened to the voices of the women, the foreigners (or ‘barbarians’ as the referred to them), and the less-than- privileged? In this course, we will study – through the examination of several infamous, ignored, or otherwise uncharted Greek texts of the classical period – the views about gender and race as presented in , medicine, and science. Our aims are to generate a new understanding of how the male elite used such views to further promote or justify (or perhaps challenge) the existing marginalization and silencing of women, foreigners, and less privileged men and to maintain their own social, political, and privilege. We will also consider how ancient perspectives about these issues remain current and influential today.

Some of the questions we will address are: What explanations did the ancient Greeks in the classical period provide for the differences between humans and , men and women, slaves and free men, barbarians and Greeks? What role did notions such as racial formation/racial origin play in the development of Classical Greek of ethnic superiority (e.g. the myth of Athenian autochthony)? How did they see the relationship between biological descent versus cultural or national identity? How did the Greeks of the Classical Period understand sex and gender? In what ways did ‘scientific’ ideas about women and barbarians influence the ethical and political of the classical period? How were philosophical theories used to promote, challenge, or maintain the existing marginalization of women and barbarians?

This course provides a Course Based Undergraduate Research in .

In addition, note that you are able to use this research-exposure course to meet one of the requirements for the Carolina Research Scholar Program transcript designation. Please visit the OUR website to learn more about how you can engage in research while at Carolina.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

There are 5 different kinds of assignments to this course; I will use a 100-point grading scale.

Assignments Points (1) 3 Presentations (1 as lead presenter, 2 as part of your team); graded 20 (10+5+5) (2) Collaborative Adobe Spark Project/Poster Presentation; graded 20

2 (3) Reading Reflection Reports (10 x 0.5 pages = 5 pages); pass/fail 10 (4) Final Research paper (10-12 pages); graded 40 (5) Class participation and peer feedback; graded 10

(1) Three class presentations (20 points):

- 1 presentation in which you take the lead as researcher and presenter (10 points) - 2 presentations in which you are part of the team helping the main presenter with the preparations for their presentation (2 x 5 points) Each student joins one of the nine teams of ‘specialists’, with each team consisting of three students. Each team will develop its own ‘specialization’ by focusing either on one specific genre or on one specific topic, or instead will develop a cross-studies specialization by focusing on different across different genres/subdisciplines. These three approaches represent different ways in which scholars work on ancient texts in the hopes of sparking novel and creative research. Students can indicate their preferences for which team they would like to join by filling out the intake questionnaire provided by the instructor to all enrolled students (you can do so at any time by following the link). The instructor will assign students to groups based on their preferences and based on their background and experience.

(Please note: Enrollment for the course will be changed to ‘by instructor permission only’ one week before the start of classes to avoid last minute changes to the teams. We will use the first couple of weeks of the course to make sure everyone is in a team that fits their specific preferences and background knowledge and , and we will make changes if necessary. Petitions to change teams can be made up until 9/1; after that teams can no longer be changed. The course will be capped at 27 students.)

Specialists in genre: Group 1: philosophy topics: A1; A2; A3 presentation during week: 5, 8, 11 Group 2: science topics: B1; B2; B3 presentation during week: 6, 9, 12 Group 3: medicine topics: C1; C2; C3 presentation during week: 7, 10, 13

Specialists in topic: Group 4: masculinity topics: A1; B1; C1 presentation during week: 5, 6, 7 Group 5: femininity topics: A2; B2; C2 presentation during week: 8, 9, 10 Group 6: ‘the other’ topics: A3; B3; C3 presentation during week: 11, 12, 13

Cross-fertilizers: Group 7: topics: A1; B2; C3 presentation during week: 5, 9, 13 Group 8: topics: A2; B3; C1 presentation during week: 7, 8, 12 Group 9: topics: A3; B1; C2 presentation during week: 6, 10, 11

Genre//Topic 1. Masculinity 2. femininity 3. ‘the Other’ A. Philosophy A1 (week 5) A2 (week 8) A3 (week 11) B. Science B1 (week 6) B2 (week 9) B3 (week 12) C. Medicine C1 (week 7) C2 (week 10) C3 (week 13)

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Each team works together in preparing the three presentations assigned to their group. However, for each of the presentations, a different student takes on the primary responsibility for taking the lead in guiding the research and for presenting the materials to class. The other two students help out as part of the research team. These presentations are given during weeks 5-13.

Each of the presentations should roughly focus on a selection from the set of primary sources and secondary source as listed on the syllabus for each week, as these are the materials that will be read and prepared by all students. However, students are encouraged to take their presentations and research in their own preferred direction and to supplement the readings as needed/when possible.

Students taking the lead for the class presentation are in charge of identifying – in consultation with the instructor and the GRC – their own research question, of guiding their team in searching for additional sources and for putting together relevant materials, and for giving a class presentation based on their joint findings. The lead presenter is also responsible for writing up a short research report outlining the contributions from each of the students to the presentation. Each presentation will take up about 30-40 minutes of class time but presenters should plan on using no more than 15-20 minutes of speaking time so as to allow for plenty of time for discussion and for peer-feedback.

The individual presentations should:

(a) provide an introduction to and brief overview of the relevant parts of the assigned readings (no need to provide a summary of all the readings and of all the main points made in the secondary literature: the point is to provide the relevant background to the primary text you are interested in); (b) include a close reading of a key passage or set of passages from the primary readings selected by the student and a reconstruction of the main theories/ideas/perspectives offered; (c) help focus the discussion on the most important or interesting issues and puzzles in the primary and secondary readings that are relevant to the student’s own research question by providing a list of 2-4 informed discussion questions; (d) introduce a first draft of the student’s own research question and offer the beginnings of a plan for further research so as to invite peer-feedback on those proposals by providing a short research statement (200 words max) and plan (in the form of 3-5 bullet points listing further steps).

The presentation should include a handout that provides: (a) the key take-aways from the assigned readings relevant to your project; (b) the key passage or key passages to be discussed and interpreted in class; (c) a list of 2-4 questions for discussion; (d) and a formulation of the preliminary research question and plan.

4 The presentation will be graded based on the following rubric:

Quality of the presentation overall (quality of the interpretation of the key passage(s), 3 points reconstruction of the argument, and any additional research; quality of interpretation and ideas presented; level and thoroughness of analysis of texts, etc.) Appropriateness of the amount of preparation and effort that have gone into the 3 points production of the presentation (that is, the presentation shows that the appropriate amount of work and care went into the preparation and into the research process) Quality of the discussion (as prompted by the questions of the presenter and as facilitated 2 points by the presenter in class) Quality of the handout (the handout includes all four components as listed in the 2 points instructions: (a) key take-aways; (b) key passage(s); (c) 2-4 discussion questions; (d) draft formulation of research question and plan) Total: 10 points

The handout should be uploaded to sakai by noon on the day of the presentation (sakai > forum > handouts); you can also email them to the instructor so they can upload the handout. In addition (e), lead presenters should prepare a short report (bullet points and/or lists are fine) outlining the contributions of each of the three team-members to the presentation. This report should be emailed to the instructor before the beginning of the class during which the presentation is given. (Team-members receive 5 credit points for their contributions to the presentation, unless they were non-responsive or unwilling to put in any work.)

There will be three presentations covering each topic every week, representing each of the three ‘specializations’.

During week 2-3, in preparation for these presentations, the instructor will model what these presentations and handouts should look like; during these first two weeks, students will also be introduced to the basic methods and resources for the interpretation of ancient philosophical texts and complete exercises to practice their new skills. We will also discuss what a good research question looks like, what a reasonable scope should be for a research project as part of this class, and what counts as a successful project within this course.

During week 4, in preparation for these presentations, there will be a (non-graded) research practicum during class in which each of the nine groups will follow a set of instructions in order to start preparations for one of their joint class presentations (see the table below for the assignments per group). The instructions and more precise guidelines for the practicum will be provided in class.

(2) Collaborative Adobe Spark Project/Poster presentation (20 points)

The three students in each team are also in charge of preparing a joint Adobe Spark project/poster presentation to be displayed and discussed towards the end of the

5 semester (week 15). The posters themselves will be prepared digitally by using Adobe’s Spark tools. The project should present the results of the collaborative research progress and discoveries made within each team and its particular ‘specialization,’ but do so (a) with a focus on showing how ancient perspectives about marginalizations of underrepresented groups remain current and influential today, and (b) in a manner that makes those results available to a broader audience and that maximizes the opportunity for peer-feedback. There will be an introduction to Adobe Spark (week 2) and a project workshop (week 14) devoted to developing the prerequisite digital skills and to sharing rough designs and providing feedback on each other’s work.

These poster presentation sessions will be a key opportunity for students to summarize their current results and, in preparing them, for them to exchange insights from their own specialization and discipline and apply them to others, but also to receive a final round of peer feedback before going on to writing their individual research papers, which will be their final project for the class.

More information, including the grading rubric for this assignment, is available on this Adobe Spark Page.

(3) Ten Reading Reflection Reports (10 points)

During weeks 2-13, students will post a total of ten brief (equivalent to about 0.5 pages in writing) reading reflection reports (see Sakai > Forum > Reading Posts). It is up to the student to decide during which ten weeks they would like to post a reading report and which two weeks they would like to skip.

The reading posts reports should include the following three ingredients:

1. A question/critique about the reading (explained in a sentence or two); 2. Something you liked about the reading (explained in a sentence or two); 3. The identifying information for one passage among the readings that you believe is crucial or of special , given the general research focus of our class, and an explanation – again in a sentence or two – why you believe this passage is so important/relevant/interesting.

Each reading post will be rewarded with one point if posted and completed by the deadline.

Note that the reading posts are due by 10 pm on Sakai on the evening before our class meets.

(4) Final research paper (40 points)

6 Each student will be expected to write a research paper of about 10-12 pages on a topic related to the course material and as developed over the semester with the help of the instructor, their team, and the other students in the class. A research paper should develop a genuine argument, while both giving a thorough analysis of primary texts and taking account of the relevant secondary literature on the issues discussed. More specific instructions will be handed out in class. We will also hold a research paper writing workshop towards the end of the semester (week 14) for final instructions and feedback.

More details about the final writing assignment will be provided in class. The final research paper is due by email ([email protected]) as a word attachement on ##. Include your PID and the title of the assignment in the title of the document and in the subject header of your paper; do NOT include your full name (papers will be graded anonymously).

Late work: Unless special permission is obtained from the instructor in advance, late work will not be accepted without grade penalty, and incompletes will not be given. Permission will only be given in case there is a genuine emergency, or the circumstances are exceptional in some other way. Work is turned in late without special permission, one-third of a letter grade will be deducted (e.g., an A will become an A-) for each calendar day that it is late.

Plagiarism: All students are expected to adhere to the University Honor Code of Honesty. Plagiarism will be punished as severely as the university allows and result in a final grade of F for the course. Please make yourself familiar with the university’s policies on plagiarism, and if you have any questions about how to cite sources, please ask me and/or take the following plagiarism tutorial: http://www.lib.unc.edu/instruct/plagiarism)

(5) Course participation and peer feedback (10 points)

All students are expected to do all the readings for each class session and to participate actively and respectfully in the class discussions. Please bring your assigned readings to class and be ready to talk about them. Students will be asked frequently to provide feedback on the projects from their peers and constructive collaborative work is an important component of the class.

GRADING SCALE

F D- D D+ C- C C+ B- B B+ A- A 0 62 65 68 72 75 78 82 85 88 92 95

COURSE READINGS

All readings will be available online:

7 - as an e-text available through our library: use the hyperlink provided in this syllabus; - as pdf available in a folder on sakai.

Note that a lot of primary texts are available in the The (https://guides.lib.unc.edu/go.php?c=23609356)

Many of the philosophical texts are also available in: S.M. Cohen, P. Curd and C.D.C. Reeve (eds.), Readings in Ancient Greek Philosophy (From Thales to ), Hackett Publishing Company, Indianapolis/Cambridge. Fifth edition. https://catalog.lib.unc.edu/catalog/UNCb8632260

Zoom link:

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COURSE SCHEDULE (subject to adjustment)

SECTION I: INTRODUCTION COURSE & RESEARCH METHODS Week 1 Introduction: key questions, concepts, and frameworks

8/11 Secondary Readings: . Kennedy, Rebecca (5-11-2017), We condone it with our silence, Eidolon (also on Sakai) . Young, Iris Marion (1990), ‘Five Faces of Oppression’, in and the of (1990), 3-22 (also on Sakai) . Syl Ko (2017), ‘By “Human,” Everybody Just Means “White”, Aphro-Ism, Essays on Pop Culture, Feminism, and Black Veganism from Two Sisters, 20-27 (on Sakai) . Agnes Callard (7-21-2020), Should we cancel Aristotle?, New York

8 (on Sakai)

Week 2 Introduction: main topics and methods used in this class – women/gender

8/18 Primary readings: . , Works and Days 43-182 (on Sakai) . Semonides, 7: Ten Types of Women (on Sakai)

Secondary readings: . Pomeroy, S. (1995), Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves, Women in , chapters 4-5, p.57-92 (background reading) (UNC library online) . Sassi, M. M. (2001), chapter 1: The Colors of Humanity, 1-33 and chapter 3: and its Classification: Women and Barbarians, 82-139, both from Maria Michela Sassi, The science of man in ancient , translated by Paul Tucker; The University of Chicago Press (for discussion) (on Sakai)

Group work: practice text #1 (excerpt from Aristotle’s I 23-II 1)

Digital Literacy: introduction to Adobe Spark by ##, to be used for the collaborative project/poster, to be presented at the end of the course.

Week 3 Introduction: main topics and methods used in this class – ‘barbarians’/race

8/25 Primary readings: . , Persae (on Sakai) (focus especially on: 1-92; 176-199; 231- 245; 249-271; 402-405; 535-597; 623-906)

Secondary readings: . Jensen, E. (2018), Barbarians in the Greek and Roman World, chapters 1, 2, and 5 (background reading) (on Sakai) . Isaac, B. (2004), The Invention of in Classical Antiquity, chapter 1: Superior and Inferior Peoples, 55-82 (for discussion) (on Sakai)

Group work: practice text #2 (excerpt from Aristotle’s Politics VII 7)

Library: meeting with the subject librarian for philosophy, Angela Bardeen ([email protected])

Week 4 Introduction: main topics – slaves/disempowerment; research practicum & team building exercises 9/1 . Hunt, P. (2018), Ancient Greek and Roman Slavery, chapters 2-3, p.17-40

9 (background reading) (on Sakai as two separate pdfs) . PRIMARY readings assigned for your first presentation:

Groups Presentation topic Prepare primary readings for week Groups 1, 4, and 7 A1 5 Group 5 A2 8 Group 6 A3 11 Groups 2 and 9 B1 6 Group 3 and 8 C1 7

Group work: students work with their own team through a set of research instructions that will guide them through the first research steps and the identification of their research question in preparation of their first group presentation.

Graduate Student Research Consultant: meeting with our GRC

Research paper instructions: students will be given written research paper writing instructions, which will also be discussed in class.

SECTION II: PERSPECTIVES ON GREEK MASCULINITY, ATHENIAN SUPERIORITY, AND THE MARGINALIZATION OF THE “OTHER”

Week 5 [A1] Philosophy – on the ideal, Athenian-born man

9/8 Primary readings: . Plato, 692e-693a; Republic 414d-415c, 459a-e; Timaeus 18d-19a With , Life of 37.1–5 and Ion 57-75, 260-272, 585-594, 1295-1305, 1569-1594 (on sakai in Kennedy, Ch.4 Genetic Theories) . Plato, Menexenus (online only) . Plato, Republic 434e-436a (on Sakai) . Plato, Timaeus 21e-24d (on Sakai) . Plato, 108e-111e (on Sakai) . Plato, Symposium 201d-212c (on Sakai)

Secondary readings: . Rachana Kamtekar (2002), ‘Distinction Without a Difference? Plato on ‘Genos’ vs. ‘Race’’ (in Ward, on Race: Critical Essays), 1-13. (on Sakai)

10 . Simon Goldhill (2004), “The Perfect Body,” in Love, Sex, and Tragedy: How the Ancient World Shaped our Lives, 11-28. (on Sakai; read online to click links)

Class presentation by groups 1, 4, 7

Week 6 [B1] Science – Physiognomy and the ideal (Greek?) (hu)man

9/15 Primary readings: . Ps.-Aristotle, Physiognomics (on sakai) . Ps.-Aristotle, XXVII, XXVIII, XXX (on sakai) . , Characters (on sakai) . Aristotle, II 27 (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Sassi (2001), chapter 2: ‘The Physiognomical Gaze’, 34-81. (on sakai) . Erich Gruen (2011), Rethinking the Other in Antiquity, chapter 8: ‘People of Color’, 197-220 (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 2, 4, 9

Week 7 [C1] Medicine – Hippocratic and the creation of men

9/22 Primary readings: . , The Seed (on sakai) . Hippocrates, On the of the Child (on sakai) . Cf. Aeschylus, Eumenides 582-675 (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Jean-Baptiste Bonnard (2013), ‘Male and female bodies according to ancient Greek physicians’, Clio: Women, Gender, History 37, 1-19 (on sakai) . Helen King (2013), ‘Sex and gender: the Hippocratic case of Phaethousa and her beard’, online publication. (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 3, 4, 8

11 SECTION III: PERSPECTIVES ON FEMININITY, SEX, GENDER AND THE MARGINALIZATION OF WOMEN

Week 8 [A2] Philosophy – Aristotle on the female as a failed male

9/29 Primary readings: . Aristotle, VIII 1, IX 1, VII 1-3 (on sakai) . Aristotle, Generation of Animals I 1-2, 22-23; II 1; IV 1-3 (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Peter Adamson, Views of women in Plato and Aristotle, online lecture, youtube . Devin Henry (2007), ‘How Sexist is Aristotle’s Developmental ?’ , Vol. 52:3, 251-269. (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 1, 5, 8

Week 9 [B2] Science – Women as experts and educators

10/6 Primary readings . Agnodice: Hyginus, Fabulae (selections) (on sakai) . : , Memorabilia (selections) and Plutarch, Life of Pericles (on sakai) . Diotima: reread Plato, Symposium 201d-212c (week 5, on sakai) . : ‘Pythagorean Letters’ (selections) (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Angela Hobbs (2006), ‘Female Imagery in Plato’, J. Lesher (ed.), Plato’s Symposium: Issues in Interpretation and Receptions, Washington DC, 252-272 (online only) . Helen King, https://mistakinghistories.wordpress.com/2017/10/18/agnodice- reading-the-story/ (online only) . Peter Adamson, https://www.newstatesman.com/2019/07/where-are- all-women-ancient-philosophy with his online lecture on Theano (online only) . Dale Debakcsy, https://womenyoushouldknow.net/theano-of-croton- pythagorean/ (online only)

Class presentation by groups 2, 5, 7

Week 10 [C2] Medicine – Hippocrates on women healing women 10/13 Primary readings: . Hippocrates, On the Nature of Women 1-10; 16-21; 37; 52; 93 (online

12 only) . Hippocrates, Fleshes 19 (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Helen King (1993), ‘Gender and the Healing Role’, Hippocrates’ Woman, Reading the Female Body in , 157-171. (on sakai) . Helen King (1995), ‘Medical texts as a source for women’s history’, A. Powell (ed.), The Greek World, Routledge, 199-218 (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 3, 5, 9

SECTION IV: PERSPECTIVES ON RACE, ETHNICITY, AND ‘BARBARIANS’ AND THE MARGINALIZATION OF “OTHERS”

Week 11 [A3] Philosophy – Aristotle on ‘natural slaves’ and barbarians

10/20 Primary readings: . Aristotle, Politics I & VII 4-7 (on sakai) . Aristotle, II 2-4 (on sakai) . Ps.-Aristotle, Problems XIV (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Heath, Malcolm (2008), ‘Aristotle on Natural Slavery’, Phronesis 53, 243- 270. (on sakai) . Kamtekar, Rachana (2016), ‘Studying Ancient Political Thought through Ancient Philosophers: The Case of Aristotle and Natural Slavery,’ special issue of Polis, Journal for Ancient Greek Political , vol. 33, pp. 150- 71, ed. Ryan Balot. (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 1, 6, 9

Week 12 [B3] Science – and the division of the world

10/27 Primary readings: . , Histories selections 2 (on Egypt) (on sakai) . Herodotus, Histories 3.12 and 9.122 with Xenophon, Agesilaos I.27-28 (on sakai) . Herodotus, Histories 3.101.2 (on sakai) . Herodotus, Histories 4.36-45 (on sakai) . , Histories IV 21 (on sakai)

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Secondary readings: . Thomas, Rosalind. (2001), ‘Dividing the World: Europe, Asia, Greeks and barbarians’, chapter 3 in Herodotus in Context, Ethnography, Science, and the Art of Persuasion, 75-101 (on sakai) . Samuels, Tristan (2015), ‘Herodotus and the Black Body: A Critical Race Theory Analysis’, Journal of Black Studies, vol.46, 723-741 (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 2, 6, 8 Week 13 [C3] Medicine – Hippocrates and environmental 11/3 Primary readings: . Hippocrates, Airs Waters Places 12-24 (on sakai) . Hippocrates, Nature of Man (on sakai)

Secondary readings: . Walsh, Lisl, ‘What a m, and the Translation of Greco-Roman Thought’, Blog (11-1-18), Society for Classical Studies (onDifference sakai) an ἤ Makes: Hippocrates, Racis . Withmarsh, Tim, ‘Black Achilles’, Blog (5-9-18), Aeon (online only) . Bashford, Alison and Sarah Tracy. 2012. “Introduction: Modern Airs, Waters, And Places.” Bulletin of the History of Medicine, vol.86, 495-514 (on sakai)

Class presentation by groups 3, 6, 7

SECTION V: WORKSHOP & ADOBE SPARK PROJECT-PRESENTATIONS

Week 14 Adobe Spark Project Workshop & Paper Writing Instructions 11/10 Secondary readings: . Dotson, Kristie (2012), ‘How is this paper philosophy?’, Comparative Philosophy, vol.3.1, 3-29 (esp. 3-6; 11-16) (on Sakai)

Includes a 30 minute Q&A with ## about Adobe Spark Projects.

Week 15 Adobe Spark Project-presentations 11/17

Research paper due: ##

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