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“Popping it” as family in Mosquitoes & Me: affective accumulation and Anzaldúan aesthetic consciousness in Ciencia Zurda

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Abstract

This article uses key concepts of Anzaldúan philosophy to describe the Mosquitoes & Me summer camp as ciencia zurda or left-handed science. It details a day-in-the-life portrait of Elena, a first-generation Latina middle schooler, as she experiences the opportunities that Mosquitoes & Me provided for self-other bridge crossing and radically relational, Nepantlan potential. Our discussion of Elena’s experiences in terms of Nepantlan principles of diversity, Affect, and spirit, as well as Affective accumulation and aesthetic consciousness, infuse an emotional and spiritual dimension to inquiry science- and responsive science-complementarity and revisit a call for soul-centered, socially-transformative science.

Resumo

Este artículo utiliza conceptos clave de la filosofía de Anzaldúan para describir el campamento de verano Mosquitos & Me como ciencia zurda. Detalla un retrato del día a día en la vida de Elena, una estudiante de secundaria latinoamericana de primera generación, mientras experimenta las oportunidades que Mosquitoes & Me le brindó para cruzar el puente entre sí misma y el potencial Nepantla que es radicalmente relacional. Nuestra discusión sobre las experiencias de Elena en términos de los principios de Nepantla sobre diversidad, afecto y espíritu, así como la acumulación afectiva y la conciencia estética, infunden una dimensión emocional y espiritual a la complementariedad de la ciencia investigadora y la ciencia receptiva, y hacen un llamado por una ciencia centrada en el alma y socialmente transformadora.

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Correspondence to Katherine Richardson Bruna.

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Bruna, K.R., Farley, J. & Bartholomay, L. “Popping it” as family in Mosquitoes & Me: affective accumulation and Anzaldúan aesthetic consciousness in Ciencia Zurda. Cult Stud of Sci Educ 18, 393–422 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-023-10180-5

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