A Bland–Altman Comparison of the Lead Care® System and Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry for Detecting Low-Level Lead in Child Whole Blood Samples

Chronic childhood lead exposure, yielding blood lead levels consistently below 10 μg/dL, remains a major public health concern. Low neurotoxic effect thresholds have not yet been established. Progress requires accurate, efficient, and cost-effective methods for testing large numbers of children. The LeadCare® System (LCS) may provide one ready option. The comparability of this system to the “gold standard” method of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for the purpose of detecting blood lead levels below 10 μg/dL has not yet been examined. Paired blood samples from 177 children ages 5.2–12.8 years were tested with LCS and ICP-MS. Triplicate repeat tests confirmed that LCS and ICP-MS had comparable repeatability. As compared with ICP-MS, LCS had a negative bias of 0.457 μg/dL with an average variability of 1.0 μg/dL. The reproducibility and precision of the LCS is appropriate for the evaluation and monitoring of blood lead levels of individual children in a clinical setting. Recent research however has suggested that increments as small as 0.5 μg/dL may distinguish those at risk of low-level lead-induced neurotoxicity. Thus, we also conclude that the LCS is not useful for research applications attempting to identify neurotoxic effect thresholds for chronic lowest level lead exposure in children. For these types of research applications, a convenient and low-cost device is needed for the precise detection of child blood lead levels below 10 μg/dL

Kernel Density Estimation and Convolution

Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) is a widely used technique for estimating the probability density function of a random variable. In this study, we revisit KDE through the lens of convolution and extend this perspective to special cases such as positive, bounded and heavy tailed random variables. Building on this foundation, we propose a novel simulation-based density estimation method that generates new data by adding noise to observed values and then smoothing the resulting histogram using splines. A minor adjustment to natural cubic splines is required to ensure nonnegative estimates. The noise is drawn from a class of bounded polynomial kernel densities obtained via convolution of uniform random variables, with the smoothing parameter naturally defined by the support bound. A practical choice for this parameter is determined by a percentile of the neighboring distances among sorted data. The proposed method offers enhanced flexibility for handling variables with specific support constraints (e.g., positive, bounded and heavy tailed) through simple transformations, and numerical studies demonstrate its competitive or superior performance compared to standard KDE across various scenarios

Enhancing Developmental Care in the NICU: A Program Evaluation and Roadmap for Trauma- Informed Practice

This capstone evaluated the current state of trauma-informed developmental care practices in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at El Paso Children’s Hospital to identify barriers and inform sustainable improvement strategies. The capstone student shadowed across multiple disciplines, including occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, nursing, and lactation consultants. The capstone student surveyed NICU team members and interviewed unit leadership to assess staff knowledge, confidence, and feedback mechanisms. The capstone student found that staff expressed moderate confidence in delivering developmental care but faced barriers, including communication gaps between disciplines, limited leadership prioritization, and knowledge gaps. The capstone student developed a roadmap specific to the needs of the NICU. The roadmap includes actionable steps to take as well as evidence-based recommendations based on observations, shadowing experience, survey feedback, and formal interviews.https://scholarworks.utep.edu/otcapstones/1014/thumbnail.jp

El terror y el ritual: Estudio de los festivales de cine de terror en México

Esta investigación contribuye al campo de los estudios de festivales de cine, cine de género y representaciones simbólicas del miedo. Analiza el papel de los festivales de cine de terror en México como espacios de construcción simbólica, circulación cultural y resignificación del miedo. A partir de un enfoque cualitativo basado en entrevistas a organizadores de festivales y cineastas colaboradores, se examina cómo estos festivales configuran experiencias colectivas en torno al terror a través de prácticas rituales, afectivas y culturales. Se retoman conceptos como el capitalismo gore, necro-máquina y contra-máquina para contextualizar la investigación. Se utilizan categorías de los estudios de festivales de cine como cinefilia, curaduría, espacio-tiempo festivo, economía afectiva, y plataforma de legitimación. La investigación muestra que el terror en los festivales de cine es manejado desde una lógica distinta al de la violencia, por lo que puede convertirse en una herramienta para reconfigurar el miedo desde lo cultural. Abstract (English) This research contributes to the fields of film festival studies, genre cinema, and symbolic representations of fear. It analyzes the role of horror film festivals in Mexico as spaces of symbolic construction, cultural circulation, and reconfiguration of fear. Based on a qualitative approach grounded in interviews with festival organizers and collaborating filmmakers, the study examines how these festivals create collective experiences around horror through ritual, affective, and cultural practices. Concepts such as gore capitalism, necro-machine, and counter-machine are used to contextualize the investigation. Key categories from film festival studies—such as cinephilia, curatorship, festive space-time, affective economy, and platforms of legitimization—are also employed. The research shows that horror, as managed in these festivals, follows a logic distinct from that of real-world violence, and therefore can become a tool for reconfiguring fear through culture

Investigation Of High-Frequency Electron Spin Dynamics In The Kagome-Lattice Ymn6sn6 Crystal

Kagome magnetic crystals received a great deal of research attention in the recent past for their intriguing magnetic properties. Recently, YMn6Sn6 (Y166) has shown to exhibit several nontrivial magnetic phases (such as the Distorted Spiral (DS) phase, Transverse Conical Spiral (TCS) phase, Fan-like (FL) phase and the Forced-Ferromagnetic (FF) phase) and complex magnetic interactions. In this work, we employed very high-frequency electron paramagnetic resonance (VHF-EPR) spectroscopy to investigate the local microscopic magnetic interactions of Mn ions in the Kagome Crystal Y166 to better understand the new observed magnetic phases. Particularly, we studied the temperature-dependent EPR behavior at variable very-high microwave frequency (ν = 120, 240, and 300 GHz). To broaden our knowledge and understanding of magnetic interactions, we also investigated the EPR spectral behavior above room temperature (5 K-350 K) on Y166 single crystals, where the magnetic field was applied in-plane (IP) and out-of-plane (OOP) orientations of the sample layers. In addition, we have performed EPR at room temperature (290 K) for v = 240 GHz to study the angular dependence of the resonance field, g-value, and linewidth as a function of angle of rotation θ (degrees). We find that the EPR linewidth of Y166 follows a (3cos2 − 1)2-like angular dependence whilst the g-value and resonance field follow a (3cos2 − 1)- like angular dependence which reveals the “W-shape and U-shape” of the linewidth and g-values, respectively. This behavior shows the presence of 2D spin correlations in Y166. This 2D character is responsible for spin fluctuations at higher temperatures. The temperature dependencies of the EPR signal behavior, signal width, and g-values were tracked to study the magnetic phase transitions in Y166 as a function of temperature (5 – 350 K)

The Moderating Effects Of Motivation And ADHD On The Relationship Between Academic Burnout And Prescription Stimulant Misuse Among College Students With ADHD

This study examined whether ADHD symptom severity and motivational orientations moderate relationships between academic burnout and stimulant outcomes in college students with ADHD symptoms. Using a cross-sectional survey design, 180 undergraduate students who screened positive for ADHD symptoms completed measures assessing academic burnout, motivation orientations, ADHD symptomatology, and prescription stimulant misuse behaviors and expectancies. Testing these moderation hypotheses addresses important gaps in understanding risk and protective factors that may influence stimulant misuse risk. Negative binomial regression was employed for stimulant misuse analyses using the full sample (N = 180), while linear regression examined expectancies across all participants. Results revealed one significant finding and consistent null effects across moderation analyses. Academic burnout did not directly predict either prescription stimulant misuse or positive expectancies about stimulants, contradicting self-medication models. None of the hypothesized moderation effects were supported, suggesting that relationships between academic stress and stimulant outcomes operate universally rather than conditionally across individual characteristics. The single significant finding provided important support for self-determination theory: extrinsic motivation significantly predicted positive stimulant expectancies (β = .181, p = .013), accounting for 4.73% of variance. Students driven by external rewards and approval developed more favorable beliefs about prescription stimulants\u27 potential benefits. However, given the multiple hypotheses tested (eight total), this finding requires replication to rule out Type 1 error. These findings indicate that academic burnout and prescription stimulant misuse represent independent psychological processes requiring separate explanatory frameworks rather than overlapping self-medication phenomena. The consistent null moderation findings suggest that relationships between academic motivation, ADHD symptoms, and stimulant-related outcomes are more stable and universal than current theoretical models propose. The strong correlational relationships between burnout and motivational variables suggest that future research should examine sequential pathways to better understand underlying mechanisms. Practically, addressing academic burnout and prescription stimulant misuse requires distinct intervention approaches. Campus interventions should focus on creating autonomy-supportive educational environments while providing separate, targeted prevention programs for stimulant misuse. The study\u27s theoretical implications highlight the need for replication studies examining mediation pathways to better understand the mechanisms underlying prescription stimulant phenomena in academic contexts

Voice-Language Cues in Speech Comprehension

Voice familiarity has a powerful effect on speech comprehension, improving both intelligibility and recall. Speaker consistency also benefits speech comprehension with better recall for words spoken by one versus multiple speakers. The goal of the present study was to test the hypothesis that the benefits of voice familiarity for bilinguals depend on the consistency between a familiarized voice and the language of production, with improved perception for words when the speaker produces in the same language versus in a different language. Highly proficient Spanish-English bilinguals performed a speech-in-noise transcription task. During a familiarization phase, participants listened to brief utterances in both English and Spanish that were either produced by the same voice or each produced by a different voice. This was followed by a test phase in which they listened to individual words presented in speech-shaped noise and typed in the word they heard. At test, the initial voice-language pairing was either kept consistent or inconsistent - one-voice condition words were produced by a novel voice and two-voice condition words had the voice-language pairing swapped. Consistent with the central hypothesis, transcription accuracy was significantly lower in the two-voice conditions when the language pairing was swapped relative to when it was kept consistent

Temporal Partitioning And Coexistence Among Four Sympatric Felid Species In The Northern Jaguar Reserve

Coexistence among sympatric carnivores is shaped by behavioral strategies that mediate competition and mortality risk in heterogeneous landscapes. Understanding how sympatric carnivores, such as felids, use space and time in relation to one another requires models that account for both spatial and temporal overlap across landscapes. Models incorporating time-to-event probabilities provide a powerful framework for detecting behavioral dynamics across shared landscapes. This study evaluated the spatiotemporal responses of two apex predators â?? the jaguar (Panthera onca) and mountain lion (Puma concolor) - and two mesopredators - bobcat (Lynx rufus) and ocelot (Leopardus pardalis) - across five years of camera trap data from the Northern Jaguar Project in Sonora, Mexico. Jaguars in particular have experienced significant range contraction due to habitat loss, and the Northern Jaguar Project seeks to protect the critical breeding populations restricted to remote areas in northern Sonora, Mexico (Blust 2019). I used Piecewise Exponential Additive Mixed Models (PAMMs) to test four hypotheses of time-to-detection of mesopredators following apex predator presence, which included (1) no effect of spatial or temporal avoidance, (2) spatial avoidance, (3) spatial following, or (4) temporal displacement. Models comparing mountain lions to ocelots and bobcats supported no significant spatial avoidance or temporal displacement. In contrast, jaguar-mesopredator models revealed structured temporal dynamics. Ocelot detections peaked 10-15 days after jaguar events indicating temporal displacement while bobcats showed a sustained decline in detection throughout the 30-day interval indicating spatial avoidance. These patterns are consistent with the spatial following hypothesis (H2). Vegetation cover was not a significant predictor in any model, and no statistical evidence supported habitat-based spatial avoidance. These findings suggest that jaguars, but not mountain lions, might be altering mesopredator behavior patterns through temporal behavioral mechanisms. This study highlights the value of time-to-event models for detecting subtle interspecific interactions and advances for understanding how sympatric carnivores partition time to mitigate competition and mortality risk across shared landscapes. Furthermore, understanding how felids such as jaguar, mountain lion, bobcat, and ocelot use space and time in relation to one another can inform conservation strategies that prioritize shared habitat use

The Alchemy of Respect in the First-Year Composition Classroom

In this research, I wanted to understand how respect in the First-Year Composition classroom was understood, applied, and negotiated by undergraduate students. Also, I proposed a concept called the alchemy of respect, which describes the transformations, addition of value to students\u27 ideas, and the refinement of their abilities in the classroom. The study relied on three theoretical approaches: virtue ethics by John Duffy, community literacy by Linda Flower, and rhetoric of respect by Tiffany Rousculp. I found important concepts in their work, such as the analysis of morals in the decisions people make, the construction of communities across differences, and the change students experience when they write. I conducted the study in one RWS 01 or two RWS 02 classes. The research methodology was qualitative, using three data collection methods: observation, questionnaires, and a drawing activity. For the observation, I visited writing classrooms nine times and took notes. For the questionnaire, participating students answered twelve narrative questions. For the drawing activity, I asked students to draw respect and briefly describe it. I analyzed the data using Grounded Theory. From the observations, I found that respect encompasses various expressions such as trust, listening, time, inclusion, effort, kairos, and more. I gathered them in groups, and I called them signs of respect. From the questionnaire, some of these signs were confirmed again, but since the students\u27 responses inspired them, they were called principles of respect: listening, attention, equality, confidence, safety, comfort, group work, feedback, healthy environment, mutual support, and more. My findings suggest that the alchemy of respect is present in the FYC classroom, and it is expressed in different activities that constantly transform depending on how students feel, their academic responsibilities, and the classroom environment. Additionally, that respect is defined by the students\u27 knowledge, experiences, and actions

A Call for Integration of Trauma-Informed Care into Occupational Therapy: Improving Provider Competency Through a Case Study of a Cooking Skills Program for Survivors of Human Trafficking

Trauma, such as abuse, neglect, and violence, has evident lasting physical and mental health effects, such as chronic illness, behavioral changes, and depression. While trauma-informed care (TIC) helps providers recognize and respond to trauma, this training is often limited to mental health and social work fields. Many survivor populations never receive interventions designed with TIC in mind, restricting outcomes leading to reduced rehabilitation and reintegration. Occupational therapy (OT) is fundamentally client-centered and functional, making it well suited for TIC. However, while they cover many similar topics, most OT programs do not include specific curriculum on TIC. TIC education in OT school programs may lead to better outcomes for trauma survivors as future practitioners will be better equipped to apply TIC principles in interventions. This project explores the use of TIC in developing and implementing a cooking skills program for survivors of human trafficking, which then serves as a case study within a TIC curriculum for OT students to promote TIC integration in future practice to improve survivor outcomes.https://scholarworks.utep.edu/otcapstones/1011/thumbnail.jp