3,570 research outputs found
Engaging Employers as Partners in Subsidized Employment Programs
Get PDFThe majority of studies of subsidized employment programs for public assistance recipients and low-income, unemployed individuals have focused on employment and earnings outcomes for participants. As employers are key stakeholders in a subsidized employment program, engaging them effectively is essential. This paper reports on interviews with 81 employers in four Northern California counties regarding their experiences in working with employees in a subsidized employment program. The findings focus on marketing, program structure, and suggestions for program improvement
Association Between Fire-Related Particulate Matter Exposure and Childhood Asthma in Peru: A Burden of Disease Assessment
Get PDFWe explore the connection between exposure to particulate matter from forest fire emissions in the Peruvian Amazon and pediatric asthma incidence. The bulk of research and media coverage surrounding the Amazon Rainforest fires has focused on important environmental issues, yet the direct impact that these fires have on the health of children living nearby remains underexplored. We conducted a burden of disease assessment using publicly available data to estimate the number of incident pediatric asthma cases attributable to long term exposure to ambient particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5) resulting from increased forest fires in the Peruvian Amazon. Our model compares pediatric asthma burden that would have resulted from a more “typical'' fire year, such as 2009, with that from 2016, a severe fire year, by applying PM2.5 concentrations from each of those years to the same 2016 population. We estimate that 75,160 (95 % CI 28,638, 121,682) pediatric asthma cases in 2016 were attributable to PM2.5, whereas counterfactually applying the 2009 PM2.5 concentrations would have resulted in 9,636 (95 % CI 5,657, 13,615) fewer attributable cases. Thus, our results suggest that increased forest fire emissions have led to a notable increase in pediatric asthma burden in Peru
Improving the Usability of Archaeological Data through Written Guidelines
Get PDFArchaeologists frequently use written guidelines such as site manuals, recording forms, and digital prompts during excavations to create usable data within and across projects. Most written guidelines emphasize creating either standardized datasets or narrative summaries; however, previous research has demonstrated that the resulting datasets are often difficult to (re)use. Our study analyzed observations and interviews conducted with four archaeological excavation teams, as well as interviews with archaeological data reusers, to evaluate how archaeologists use and implement written guidelines. These excavation team and reuser experiences suggest that archaeologists need more specific best practices to create and implement written guidelines that improve the quality and usability of archaeological data. We present recommendations to improve written guidelines that focus on a project\u27s methods, end-of-season documentation, and naming practices. We also present a Written Guidelines Checklist to help project directors improve their written guidelines before, during, and after fieldwork as part of a collaborative process. Ideally, these best practices for written guidelines will make it easier for team members and future reusers to incorporate their own and others’ archaeological data into their research.
Los arqueólogos utilizan con frecuencia pautas escritas como manuales de sitio, formularios de registro y pautas digitales durante las excavaciones para crear datos utilizables dentro y entre proyectos. La mayorÃa de las pautas escritas enfatizan la creación de conjuntos de datos estandarizados o resúmenes narrativos, sin embargo, investigaciones anteriores han demostrado que los conjuntos de datos resultantes a menudo son difÃciles de (re)utilizar. Este estudio analiza observaciones y entrevistas realizadas a cuatro equipos de excavación arqueológica, asà como entrevistas a reutilizadores de datos arqueológicos, para evaluar cómo los arqueólogos utilizan e implementan pautas escritas. Las experiencias de estos equipos de excavación y reutilizadores sugieren que los arqueólogos necesitan prácticas óptimas más especÃficas para crear e implementar pautas escritas que mejoren la calidad y usabilidad de los datos arqueológicos. Este artÃculo presenta varias recomendaciones para mejorar las pautas escritas que se centran en los métodos del proyecto, la documentación al final de la temporada y las prácticas de denominación. Los hallazgos muestran que tanto las prácticas de datos estandarizados como interpretativos son necesarias para crear datos consistentes, comparables y comprensibles. Además, el artÃculo incluye una Lista de verificación de pautas escritas para ayudar a los directores de proyectos a mejorar sus pautas escritas antes, durante y después del trabajo de campo como parte de un proceso colaborativo. Idealmente, estas mejores prácticas para las pautas escritas facilitarán que los miembros del equipo y los futuros reutilizadores incorporen sus propios datos arqueológicos y los de otros en su investigación
Protective actions of des-acylated ghrelin on brain injury and blood-brain barrier disruption after stroke in mice
Get PDFThe major ghrelin forms, acylated ghrelin and des-acylated ghrelin, are novel gastrointestinal hormones. Moreover, emerging evidence indicates that these peptides may have other functions including neuro- and vaso-protection. Here, we investigated whether post-stroke treatment with acylated ghrelin or des-acylated ghrelin could improve functional and histological endpoints of stroke outcome in mice after transient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAo). We found that des-acylated ghrelin (1 mg/kg) improved neurological and functional performance, reduced infarct and swelling, and decreased apoptosis. In addition, it reduced blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption in vivo and attenuated the hyper-permeability of mouse cerebral microvascular endothelial cells after oxygen glucose deprivation and reoxygenation (OGD + RO). By contrast, acylated ghrelin (1 mg/kg or 5 mg/kg) had no significant effect on these endpoints of stroke outcome. Next we found that des-acylated ghrelin's vasoprotective actions were associated with increased expression of tight junction proteins (occludin and claudin-5), and decreased cell death. Moreover, it attenuated superoxide production, Nox activity and expression of 3-nitrotyrosine. Collectively, these results demonstrate that post-stroke treatment with des-acylated ghrelin, but not acylated ghrelin, protects against ischaemia/reperfusion-induced brain injury and swelling, and BBB disruption, by reducing oxidative and/or nitrosative damage
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