Effect of ovulatory follicle size on luteal function, pregnancy rate, and late embryonic/fetal mortality in beef cattle

The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file.Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on January 25, 2011).Thesis advisor: Dr. Michael F. Smith.Vita.Ph. D. University of Missouri--Columbia, 2009.Previous reports indicate that ovulation of small dominant follicles resulted in reduced pregnancy rates compared ovulation of large follicles in cattle. A reciprocal embryo transfer approach was used to differentiate between oocyte competence and uterine environment factors that affect establishment of pregnancy following induced single ovulations of small follicles. Embryos from donor cows that ovulated a small follicle ( [less than] 12.5 mm) were transferred into recipient cows that ovulated a large follicle ([equal to] 12.5 mm) and vice versa resulting in the following treatment groups: small to large (S-L; primary effects of oocyte quality; n = 111), large to small (L-S; primary effects of uterine environment; n = 122), small to small (S-S; negative control; n = 71), and large to large (L-L; positive control; n = 50). The probability of recovering a fertilized and live embryo 7 d after breeding increased as the diameter of the ovulatory follicle increased (p = 0.01). As ovulatory follicle diameter and serum concentrations of progesterone at embryo transfer increased in the recipient cow, the probability of pregnancy increased (p = 0.05 and [less than] 0.001, respectively); however neither follicle size nor progesterone at ET in the donor cow was significant (p [greater than] 0.3). In summary, ovulatory diameter at GnRH2 was positively associated with recovery of a live embryo (possibly indicating improved oocyte competence and (or) an early uterine environment that was more conducive to embryonic/fetal development in cows that ovulated a large follicle). Pregnancy establishment following embryo transfer was related to the uterine environment established by the ovulatory follicle independent of oocyte quality.Includes bibliographical reference

A Mixed Methods Approach to Challenging Stigma at a Faculty of Education

This dissertation investigates the stigma of mental illness in schools. In today’s Canadian classrooms, at least one in five students is experiencing a mental disorder, which without treatment or support can severely impede students’ academic performance and can reinforce stereotypical beliefs about: (a) these students’ ability to be successful in the classroom, and (b) their teachers’ abilities to meet their needs. While mental health awareness about these issues is steadily increasing, stigmatizing attitudes – which present a major barrier to help-seeking – are not decreasing at a comparable rate. Therefore, I used mixed methods to explore the experience of mental illness stigma at school from two perspectives: (1) youth living with mental illness, and (2) teacher candidates at a Faculty of Education. In particular, I investigated whether personal contact with youth self-identifying as having a mental illness influenced teacher candidates’ perceptions of students with mental illness. I asked: What is the impact on the stigma of mental illness when youth share their stories with teacher candidates? Using two quantitative measures of stigma – the Attribution Questionnaire-9 and the Opening Minds Scale – I found that youth stories about their experience with mental illness at school were not significantly associated with a decrease in stigma among teacher candidates. Using semi-structured interviews and short-answer questions, the majority of teacher candidates who heard youth’s stories at a mental health literacy professional development day specifically named these stories as having the “biggest impact” on them. During the design studio and focus groups, youth revealed that reflecting on the specific messages they wanted to send to teacher candidates allowed youth to discover new insights about what they had learned and how they had grown from their experiences living with mental illness at school. This study offers educators firsthand perspectives from youth and teacher candidates about how they and other mental health stakeholders can work together to challenge the stigma of mental illness in educational contexts

Black Students\u27 Perspectives on Academic Success

This thesis investigates the academic achievement of Black high school students. It employs a theoretical framework of social constructivism grounded in anti-racism to conduct five case studies of achieving black Canadian high school students to examine how these students managed to achieve in the midst of a system that predicts their failure. I asked three questions: (1) What factors do achieving black Canadian high school students identify as being helpful to their academic achievement? (2) How do these students perceive their racial identities? (3) What is the significance of these students’ racial identity at school? I found that these students identified their own hard work and their parents’ support as the main contributors to their academic achievement. Each student conceptualized his or her racial or cultural identity differently, but none identified with an Afrocentric identity. Most students expressed a desire to see more visible minority representation in the curriculum and to receive more support for black students in the school community. The results of this study offer educators insight into the areas where they can partner with black students, their families, and their communities to inspire academic success for all

Pre-service Teacher Education for Mental Health and Inclusion in Schools

Pre-service teacher education in mental health and mental health literacy is essential to creating the conditions necessary to support the mental health and wellness of children and youth in schools. Many teachers report never having received any education about mental health, but recognize the importance of this knowledge in meeting the needs of their students in regular classrooms. This article describes the development of a completely online mental health course organized around five learning objectives and delivered in a large pre-service teacher education program in Canada. Next, this article presents the results of research to evaluate impact on the pre-service teacher education students. Results are organized into expected and unexpected learning outcomes. Implications for further research and practice are shared

Lemons to Lemonade: Educational Modifications During the COVID-19 Pandemic and their Utility Moving Forward

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated changes across social institutions, including education. This case study outlines specific innovations using five cases of pedagogical developments made by social science faculty members at a public university, and their utility for undergraduate students in a post-pandemic world. These innovations relate specifically to office hour scheduling, class assignment reminders, building informal class support groups, experiential learning, and virtual paper submission and evaluation. For each case, we outline the implementation procedure, evaluate its effectiveness, and discuss the benefits. We argue that these methods, forged during “challenging times”, will help improve students’ experiences and success during their time in college, and benefit instructors in higher education in a variety of ways

Marine ecosystem services: Linking indicators to their classification

© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. There is a multitude of ecosystem service classifications available within the literature, each with its own advantages and drawbacks. Elements of them have been used to tailor a generic ecosystem service classification for the marine environment and then for a case study site within the North Sea: the Dogger Bank. Indicators for each of the ecosystem services, deemed relevant to the case study site, were identified. Each indicator was then assessed against a set of agreed criteria to ensure its relevance and applicability to environmental management. This paper identifies the need to distinguish between indicators of ecosystem services that are entirely ecological in nature (and largely reveal the potential of an ecosystem to provide ecosystem services), indicators for the ecological processes contributing to the delivery of these services, and indicators of benefits that reveal the realized human use or enjoyment of an ecosystem service. It highlights some of the difficulties faced in selecting meaningful indicators, such as problems of specificity, spatial disconnect and the considerable uncertainty about marine species, habitats and the processes, functions and services they contribute to

Improving public services through open data: public toilets

Bichard’s work for the TACT3 project (Bichard REF Output 3) found that UK toilet provision is not centrally collated and no national map or database of toilets exists. In contrast, the UK government’s white paper Open Public Services (2011) emphasised its commitment to incorporating the use of Open Data in public services provision that could be tailored to community preferences, and therefore be more sustainable. Incorporating Open Data on public toilet provision, Bichard and Knight (RCA) developed The Great British Public Toilet Map (GBPTM). Whilst a number of other websites and applications map toilets by ‘crowd surfing’, GBPTM is entirely populated by Open Data, and not only uses the data as information for users, but informs members of the public that such information is available and accessible for their use. This paper presents the development of the GBPTM, including inclusive design research and studies that compare accuracy of information directly provided by users with Open Data collected by local authorities. It suggests that, to meet the health and well-being of an ageing population, a sustainable and cost-effective solution must be found for ‘publicly accessible’ toilet provision, including opening up provision beyond that ‘for customers only’ and providing accurate information on current public provision. The paper highlights the barriers encountered in the production of Open Data by local authorities. A review of the paper in the journal Civil Engineering (May 2013) described the design of the GBPTM as a ‘simple and elegant solution’. The development of a digital output and an understanding of digitally based research led to Bichard’s successful submission to an EPSRC Digital Economy sandpit, in which she developed an interdisciplinary project with the Universities of Newcastle, Bournemouth and the West of England. The project, Family Rituals 2.0, secured £750,000 in research funding with Bichard as co-investigator (2013–15)