older adults developing a preference for LAT

This study explores living-apart-together (LAT) relationships among Midwestern men and women between the ages of 60 and 88. Twenty-five men and women completed genograms and unstructured interviews addressing decision-making processes leading to living apart together, and strategies for maintaining LAT relationships. Grounded theory analyses suggest that deciding to LAT in older adulthood is a gendered process involving seven contributing factors, including: personal and relational goals, age, health, partner factors, relationship history, historical time, and relationship beliefs. Reconciling relationship beliefs represent the core concept because the data demonstrate that reconciling these beliefs--particularly those surrounding commitment and expectations--is key to understanding the process of how older adults decide to LAT. Participants had varied responses regarding their preference to LAT, ranging from opposing the arrangement, being ambivalent, to championing LAT as a lifestyle choice. Two broad relational maintenance strategies were identified: maintaining separateness and redefining commitment.Includes bibliographical references (pages 76-82)

Public Scholarship: A Tool for Strengthening Relationships Across Extension, Campus, and Community

Higher education resources are increasingly limited due to declining budget revenue and other challenges. Thus, it is vital for Cooperative Extension to synergize efforts of disseminating education to the public. Promoting public scholarship in and beyond Extension is a promising initiative that can foster collaborations by leveraging existing resources in advancing the Extension mission. We highlight a new program aimed at encouraging a culture of public scholarship across academia. The program is intended to increase knowledge about public scholarship and awareness of its benefits to stakeholders, identify barriers to public scholarship, and provide concrete examples of ways Extension and non-Extension faculty can collaborate on research and programming efforts

Advancing family science through public scholarship: fostering community relationships and engaging in broader impacts

This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Monk, J.K., Bordere, T.C. and Benson, J.J. (2021), Emerging Ideas. Advancing Family Science Through Public Scholarship: Fostering Community Relationships and Engaging in Broader Impacts. Fam Relat, 70: 1612-1625. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12545, which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12545. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley's version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.Objective: To increase the awareness and support for family scientists' engagement in public scholarship. Background: Without appropriate dissemination efforts, important research findings may remain solely in academic journals and never reach the public. Grounded in a social justice perspective, we argue that family scientists are and should be on the frontlines of direct social change and activities related to broader impacts. Method: In this call-to-action, we articulate the utility and praxis of public scholarship, or the production and dissemination of scientific knowledge for and with communities to create social change for the public good. Results: When engaging in public scholarship, we can build community trust, increase our impact and demonstrate the relevance of family science. Therefore, we offer practical suggestions like collaborating with individuals who serve in complementary roles, hosting a research press conference to disseminate key findings, and writing for local outlets like community newspapers. We also provide insights to help implement (e.g., resources for developing press releases, infographics or visual abstracts) and document (e.g., in promotion and tenure materials) these activities. Conclusion: We encourage scholars to keep these suggestions in mind when trying to think of creative broader impacts activities that illustrate the relevance of research in people's lives. Implications: By shifting academic cultures and engaging in public scholarship, family scholars can increase their reach and contribute to the enfranchisement of marginalized populations, while also enhancing the visibility of findings, building their scholarly networks, and growing public support for family science

An Analysis of Aging-Related Needs and Programming Across the Extension North Central Region

As the U.S. population ages, Extension\u27s need for associated organizational readiness increases. We conducted a needs assessment with a sample of 1,028 Extension professionals in the Extension North Central Region (NCR) to identify the current scope of aging-related community needs. Health care, chronic disease prevention and management, housing, and transportation emerged from qualitative analysis as top aging-related needs. A rank-order analysis identified finances, healthy aging, and aging-friendly communities as chief community concerns. Additionally, the NCR Extension professionals indicated the importance of resources and programs and need for community capacity building related to aging issues, regardless of their programming area and/or responsibilities

Seeing the way: visual sociology and the distance runner's perspective

Employing visual and autoethnographic data from a two‐year research project on distance runners, this article seeks to examine the activity of seeing in relation to the activity of distance running. One of its methodological aims is to develop the linkage between visual and autoethnographic data in combining an observation‐based narrative and sociological analysis with photographs. This combination aims to convey to the reader not only some of the specific subcultural knowledge and particular ways of seeing, but also something of the runner's embodied feelings and experience of momentum en route. Via the combination of narrative and photographs we seek a more effective way of communicating just how distance runners see and experience their training terrain. The importance of subjecting mundane everyday practices to detailed sociological analysis has been highlighted by many sociologists, including those of an ethnomethodological perspective. Indeed, without the competence of social actors in accomplishing these mundane, routine understandings and practices, it is argued, there would in fact be no social order

PREX: PeroxiRedoxin classification indEX, a database of subfamily assignments across the diverse peroxiredoxin family

PREX (http://www.csb.wfu.edu/prex/) is a database of currently 3516 peroxiredoxin (Prx or PRDX) protein sequences unambiguously classified into one of six distinct subfamilies. Peroxiredoxins are a diverse and ubiquitous family of highly expressed, cysteine-dependent peroxidases that are important for antioxidant defense and for the regulation of cell signaling pathways in eukaryotes. Subfamily members were identified using the Deacon Active Site Profiler (DASP) bioinformatics tool to focus in on functionally relevant sequence fragments surrounding key residues required for protein activity. Searches of this database can be conducted by protein annotation, accession number, PDB ID, organism name or protein sequence. Output includes the subfamily to which each classified Prx belongs, accession and GI numbers, genus and species and the functional site signature used for classification. The query sequence is also presented aligned with a select group of Prxs for manual evaluation and interpretation by the user. A synopsis of the characteristics of members of each subfamily is also provided along with pertinent references

SARS Surveillance during Emergency Public Health Response, United States, March–July 2003

In response to the emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), the United States established national surveillance using a sensitive case definition incorporating clinical, epidemiologic, and laboratory criteria. Of 1,460 unexplained respiratory illnesses reported by state and local health departments to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from March 17 to July 30, 2003, a total of 398 (27%) met clinical and epidemiologic SARS case criteria. Of these, 72 (18%) were probable cases with radiographic evidence of pneumonia. Eight (2%) were laboratory-confirmed SARS-coronavirus (SARS-CoV) infections, 206 (52%) were SARS-CoV negative, and 184 (46%) had undetermined SARS-CoV status because of missing convalescent-phase serum specimens. Thirty-one percent (124/398) of case-patients were hospitalized; none died. Travel was the most common epidemiologic link (329/398, 83%), and mainland China was the affected area most commonly visited. One case of possible household transmission was reported, and no laboratory-confirmed infections occurred among healthcare workers. Successes and limitations of this emergency surveillance can guide preparations for future outbreaks of SARS or respiratory diseases of unknown etiology