After over a decade of scholarly research and well-documented harassment, sexism, and other forms of exclusion and marginalization, digital games culture is currently the object of heightened attention and discourse related to diversity and inclusion. This paper considers the context of this shift with a particular focus on the relationship between gender-focused inclusivity-based action in the form of women in games incubators, post-feminist discourse, and the neoliberal context of digital games production. As opposed to rife anti-feminism and similar "backlash" sentiments, articulations of post-feminism within the digital game industry provide insights into the tensions inherent in introducing action for change within a conservative culture of production, particularly for women in the industry. At the same time, the contradictions and tensions of the post-feminist ethos allow for actions that function through this logic while subverting it. Through a brief consideration of three exemplary post-feminist articulations by visible female figures in the North American digital games community, this article explores the challenges and opportunities presented by the gaps and contradictions of post-feminism in games culture and production. It concludes with equal measures of caution and optimism, indicating future directions for study and activism.Keywords: feminism; post-feminism; gender; digital games; Women in Games; video games This is the final accepted peer reviewed manuscript. The publisher pdf is available, Harvey, A. & Fisher, S., "Everyone can make games!": the post-feminist context of women in digital game production, Feminist Media Studies, 2015, 15(4), pp. 576-592 DOI: 10.1080/14680777.2014 Introduction: From Women in Games to Feminist Action in Games CultureFor over a decade, the term "Women in Games" (WIG) has referred to an array of projects and initiatives that share a common goal: getting more women into the digital games industry. Organizations with variations on this mission statement include a range of advocacy and networking groups such as WIG International, the WIG Special Interest Group of the International Game Developers Association (IGDA), local associations including WIG Vancouver, and the United Kingdom-based WIG group, which focuses in particular on collaborations between the academy and the games industry. However, the goals of each group differ in important ways depending on the organization, demonstrating that despite their shared emphasis on gender, WIG bodies should not be mistaken in any way as having a universal feminist mission. For instance, the IGDA and WIG Vancouver focus on women already working within the industry, their professional development, and the dissemination of statistics on female participation in the workforce. WIG International's objectives are less tangible, positioning their members as advocates for issues related to equality, diversity, and camaraderie in the game industry workforce, without defining what these nebulous terms mean or how to achieve ...
Gellan gum is an attractive biomaterial for fibrocartilage tissue engineering applications because it is cell compatible, can be injected into a defect, and gels at body temperature. However, the gelling parameters of gellan gum have not yet been fully optimized. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanics, degradation, gelling temperature, and viscosity of low acyl and low/high acyl gellan gum blends. Dynamic mechanical analysis showed that increased concentrations of low acyl gellan gum resulted in increased stiffness and the addition of high acyl gellan gum resulted in greatly decreased stiffness. Degradation studies showed that low acyl gellan gum was more stable than low/high acyl gellan gum blends. Gelling temperature studies showed that increased concentrations of low acyl gellan gum and CaCl₂ increased gelling temperature and low acyl gellan gum concentrations below 2% (w/v) would be most suitable for cell encapsulation. Gellan gum blends were generally found to have a higher gelling temperature than low acyl gellan gum. Viscosity studies showed that increased concentrations of low acyl gellan gum increased viscosity. Our results suggest that 2% (w/v) low acyl gellan gum would have the most appropriate mechanics, degradation, and gelling temperature for use in fibrocartilage tissue engineering applications.
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