Contemplating Architecture as an Instrument of Policy Implementation:: Or Translating Rhetoric into Architectural Form

Just as means are to an end, public policies are to the documentation of the general will, administrative processes are to public policy implementation, and building regulations are to architecture. Consider then that architecture is an instrument of public policy implementation. The dictionary definition of instrument is, "3. that with or by which something is effected; means; agency.” In the case of government, the implementation of public policy is the result of administrative procedures. In the realm of the built world, architecture is the effect. Examined under a different light, both public policy and architecture can be considered the instrument by which something else is effected instead of being the result alone. If we recognize that public policy reflects the general will of the people, then in its rhetorical form, it is used to articulate the desires of a society. It is the agent of a democracy. Identifying architecture as a means instead of an end is more difficult since it is rarely considered as such consciously. Architecture, unlike public policy, is often open to interpretation. For some the term architecture evokes images of well known buildings, for some it is simply the quotidian built environment, while for others, "Architecture is whatever in a building does not point to utility,”. Once the term architecture is defined by designers and users (just as procedures for enforcing public policy are legislated) one can propose considering architecture among those methods by which something is effected. The importance of the contemplative architect to society is clear when distinction is made between projects where architecture is an end and those where it is the means to an end as identified by the general will of a society

Staying Safe: Observing Warning Signs of a Dangerous Liaison

(Excerpt) Cults and their connection with human trafficking are ever more timely as a topic of discussion. The insidious crime of human trafficking is spiraling at a fast pace. Human Trafficking is the second-largest criminal industry in the world (with the drug trade being the first). An estimated 100,000 to 300,000 American children are considered high risk for trafficking every year. With the selling and reselling of human labor, trafficking is highly profitable. ICSA’s momentous conference on Cults and Sex Trafficking, held in Los Angeles, California (April 2016) served as a catalyst for researchers and practitioners. At the conference, presenters compared the characteristics of cults with human-trafficking rings

Building Teacher Capacity to Support English Language Learners in Schools Receiving School Improvement Grants

The Study of School Turnaround examines the improvement process in a purposive sample of 35 case study schools receiving federal funds through the School Improvement Grants (SIG) program over a three-year period (2010 -- 11 to 2012 -- 13 school years). This brief focuses on 11 of these SIG schools with high proportions of English Language Learner (ELL) students (a median of 45 percent ELLs), describing their efforts to improve teachers' capacity for serving ELLs through staffing strategies and professional development (PD). Key findings that emerged from the ELL case study data collected during the 2011 -- 12 and 2012 -- 13 school years include:Few schools reported leveraging staffing strategies to improve teacher capacity for serving ELLs. Administrators in 3 of the 11 schools reported considering ELL expertise and experience when hiring classroom teachers, while respondents in 2 of the 11 schools reported that teachers' ELL expertise and experience purposefully factored into assignment of teachers to specific classrooms.Most teacher survey respondents (54 to 100 percent) in all 11 schools reported participating in ELL-related PD during the 2011 -- 12 school year. On average, teachers reported that ELL-related PD accounted for less than 20 percent of their total PD hours.Teacher survey respondents in schools that reported a greater PD focus on ELL-related topics, such as instructional strategies for advancing English proficiency or instructional strategies to use for ELLs within content classes, also generally appeared more likely to report that PD improved their effectiveness as teachers of ELLs

Law Students Are Different from the General Population: Empirical Findings Regarding Learning Styles

(Excerpt)It was a snowy day during a semester break when Prof. Robin Boyle was discussing teaching law students and learning styles with Dr. Andrea Honigsfeld, who has performed numerous empirical studies and has published many books and articles on teaching to the learning style of children and adults. Also at the table was Susan Rundle, president of Performance Concepts International (PCI). PCI develops and administers the Building Excellence (BE) Survey, an online learning style assessment survey (described below). Prof. Boyle was aware during this conversation that professors who teach in other graduate programs are fascinated by law students. Dr. Honigsfeld asked a question of Prof. Boyle, much like one she’s been called upon to answer before: “What are law students like as students? Are they really different from students in other disciplines?” It was at this point in the conversation that Dr. Honigsfeld suggested conducting an empirical study to compare the learning styles of law students with other young adults—do they have similar learning styles? Although the question was a simple one, little did the researchers realize on that cold New York day that the empirical study would involve data compilation from several schools around the country, as far south as sunny Florida. The results would evolve over the next couple of years

Prototype effective-one-body model for nonprecessing spinning inspiral-merger-ringdown waveforms

We first use five non-spinning and two mildly spinning (chi_i \simeq -0.44, +0.44) numerical-relativity waveforms of black-hole binaries and calibrate an effective-one-body (EOB) model for non-precessing spinning binaries, notably its dynamics and the dominant (2,2) gravitational-wave mode. Then, we combine the above results with recent outcomes of small-mass-ratio simulations produced by the Teukolsky equation and build a prototype EOB model for detection purposes, which is capable of generating inspiral-merger-ringdown waveforms for non-precessing spinning black-hole binaries with any mass ratio and individual black-hole spins -1 \leq chi_i \lesssim 0.7. We compare the prototype EOB model to two equal-mass highly spinning numerical-relativity waveforms of black holes with spins chi_i = -0.95, +0.97, which were not available at the time the EOB model was calibrated. In the case of Advanced LIGO we find that the mismatch between prototype-EOB and numerical-relativity waveforms is always smaller than 0.003 for total mass 20-200 M_\odot, the mismatch being computed by maximizing only over the initial phase and time. To successfully generate merger waveforms for individual black-hole spins chi_i \gtrsim 0.7, the prototype-EOB model needs to be improved by (i) better modeling the plunge dynamics and (ii) including higher-order PN spin terms in the gravitational-wave modes and radiation-reaction force.Comment: 20 pages, 8 figures. Minor changes to match version accepted for publication in PR

Influence of High Energy Diet and Polygenic Predisposition for Obesity on Postpartum Health in Rat Dams

It is estimated that 30% of pregnant women worldwide are overweight or obese, leading to adverse health effects for both mother and child. Women with obesity during pregnancy are at higher risk for developing both metabolic and mental disorders, such as diabetes and depression. Numerous studies have used rodent models of maternal obesity to understand its consequences on the offspring, yet characterization of changes in the dams is rare, and most rodent models rely solely on a high fat diet to induce maternal obesity, without regarding genetic propensity for obesity. Here we present the influence of both peripartum high energy diet (HE) and obesity-proneness on maternal health using selectively bred diet-resistant (DR) and diet-induced obese (DIO) rat dams. Outbred Sprague-Dawley rats were challenged with HE diet prior to mating and bred according to their propensity to gain weight. The original outbred breeding dams (F0) were maintained on low-fat chow during pregnancy and lactation. By comparison, the F1 dams consuming HE diet during pregnancy and lactation displayed higher gestational body weight gain (P < 0.01), and HE diet caused increased meal size and reduced meal frequency (P < 0.001). Sensitivity to the hormone amylin was preserved during pregnancy, regardless of diet. After several rounds of selective breeding, DIO and DR dams from generation F3 were provided chow or HE during pregnancy and lactation and assessed for their postpartum physiology and behaviors. We observed strong diet and phenotype effects on gestational weight gain, with DIO-HE dams gaining 119% more weight than DR-chow (P < 0.001). A high-resolution analysis of maternal behaviors did not detect main effects of diet or phenotype, but a subset of DIO dams showed delayed nursing behavior (P < 0.05). In generation F6/F7 dams, effects on gestational weight gain persisted (P < 0.01), and we observed a main effect of phenotype during a sucrose preference test (P < 0.05), with DIO-chow dams showing lower sucrose preference than DR controls (P < 0.05). Both DIO and DR dams consuming HE diet had hepatic steatosis (P < 0.001) and exhibited reduced leptin sensitivity in the arcuate nucleus (P < 0.001). These data demonstrate that both diet and genetic obesity-proneness have consequences on maternal health

Elements of Episodic Memory: Insights from Artificial Agents

Many recent AI systems take inspiration from biological episodic memory. Here, we ask how these ‘episodic-inspired’ AI systems might inform our understanding of biological episodic memory. We discuss work showing that these systems implement some key features of episodic memory whilst differing in important respects, and appear to enjoy behavioural advantages in the domains of strategic decision-making, fast learning, navigation, exploration and acting over temporal distance. We propose that these systems could be used to evaluate competing theories of episodic memory’s operations and function. However, further work is needed to validate them as models of episodic memory and isolate the contributions of their memory systems to their behaviour. More immediately, we propose that these systems have a role to play in directing episodic memory research by highlighting novel or neglected hypotheses as pursuit-worthy. In this vein, we propose that the evidence reviewed here highlights two pursuit-worthy hypotheses about episodic memory’s function: that it plays a role in planning that is independent of future-oriented simulation, and that it is adaptive in virtue of its contributions to fast learning in novel, sparse-reward environments

Potential inequities in availability of care from breast care nurses: a qualitative study reporting the experiences and perspectives of women with metastatic breast cancer in Australia.

Abstract Background: International consensus guidelines recommend patients with metastatic breast cancer have access to a nurse experienced in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. This study aimed to explore women’s experiences of supportive care from breast care nurses, including their perspectives on the role breast care nurses currently play in providing support to people with metastatic breast cancer. Methods: Multiple semi-structured qualitative interviews with 38 women with metastatic breast cancer in Australia. Data relating to nursing care were extracted and analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Three themes were identifed: (1) feeling that supportive care needs are unrecognised; (2) confusion about role and relevance of breast care nurse to those with metastatic breast cancer; (3) care from metastatic breast care nurses (when available) was appreciated, valued and benefcial. Participants’ experiences difered in relation to ease of access to, amount of contact with, and level of care provided by breast care nurses. Contact and care ranged from little or none to comprehensive and ongoing. A key system-level challenge was that the diversity of diagnostic and treatment pathways for metastatic breast cancer meant that no systematic means existed to support routine or regular contact between breast care nurses and participants. Participants who did report having access to a specialised metastatic breast care nurse placed considerable value on the care received. For these participants, care from the breast care nurse extended and complemented care from the oncologist and included much needed psychosocial and practical support. For these participants, the breast care nurse assumed the role of key contact and care coordinator and was valued for their availability, accessibility and responsiveness. High levels of trust developed between patient and breast care nurse. Conclusions: Findings indicate that there may be gaps and inequities in supportive care in Australia for people diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer, a finding that supports earlier reports of limited access to breast care nurses for people with metastatic breast cancer in Australia. The specialised metastatic breast care nurse could potentially play a key role in addressing the high level of unmet supportive care needs and improve continuity of care for these patients

Body weight lowering effect of glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide receptor agonists is more efficient in RAMP1/3 KO than in WT mice

The glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIPR) and glucagon-like peptide (GLP-1R) receptor agonists are insulin secretagogues that have long been shown to improve glycemic control and dual agonists have demonstrated successful weight loss in the clinic. GIPR and GLP-1R populations are located in the dorsal vagal complex where receptor activity-modifying proteins (RAMPs) are also present. According to recent literature, RAMPs not only regulate the signaling of the calcitonin receptor, but also that of other class B G-protein coupled receptors, including members of the glucagon receptor family such as GLP-1R and GIPR. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the absence of RAMP1 and RAMP3 interferes with the action of GIPR and GLP-1R agonists on body weight maintenance and glucose control. To this end, WT and RAMP 1/3 KO mice were fed a 45% high fat diet for 22 weeks and were injected daily with GLP-1R agonist (2 nmol/kg/d; NN0113-2220), GIPR agonist (30 nmol/kg/d; NN0441-0329) or both for 3 weeks. While the mono-agonists exerted little to no body weight lowering and anorectic effects in WT or RAMP1/3 KO mice, but at the given doses, when both compounds were administered together, they synergistically reduced body weight, with a greater effect observed in KO mice. Finally, GLP-1R and GIP/GLP-1R agonist treatment led to improved glucose tolerance, but the absence of RAMPs resulted in an improvement of the HOMA-IR score. These data suggest that RAMPs may play a crucial role in modulating the pharmacological actions of GLP-1 and GIP receptors