Vodou Value in Haitian Life

Ever since the night of August 14, 1791 at Bwa Kayman, where Boukman Dutty declared war on the French during a Vodou ritual, Vodou has shown its dominance in the Haitian culture (Dominique 103). Along with being a religion practiced across the class boundaries of over six million Haitians, Vodou is a philosophy as well; a way of life for the majority of Haiti. Vodou “brings coherence where there might otherwise be chaos” (Michel 282-283). Used as a common ground for the intermixed Africans in the New World, Vodou has played a key role in the daily life of the Haitian population since its origination. Held anywhere from Haiti to Brooklyn, Vodou’s popularity still remains today. Evident in its history, characteristics, emphasis on service, worship of the lwas, communal expectations, and oral performance: Vodou is a vital aspect of Haitian life, past and present; Vodou is simply not just a religion. [excerpt

The spectroscopic orbits and the geometrical configuration of the symbiotic binary AR Pavonis

We analyze optical and near infrared spectra of intermediate and high resolution of the eclipsing symbiotic system AR Pavonis. We have obtained the radial velocity curves for the red and the hot component from the M-giant absorption lines and from the wings of Halpha, H and He II4686 emission profiles, respectively. From the orbital elements we have derived the masses, Mgiant=2.5 and Mhot =1.0 solar masses, for the red giant and the hot component, respectively. We also present and discuss radial velocity patterns in the blue cF absorption spectrum as well as various emission lines. In particular, we confirm that the blue absorption lines are associated with the hot component. The radial velocity curve of the blue absorption system, however, does not track the hot companion's orbital motion in a straightforward way, and its departures from an expected circular orbit are particularly strong when the hot component is active. We suggest that the cF-type absorption system is formed in material streaming from the giant presumably in a region where the stream encounters an accretion disk or an extended envelope around the hot component. The broad emission wings originate from the inner accretion disk or the envelope around the hot star.We also suggest that the central absorption in H profiles is formed in a neutral portion of the cool giant's wind which is strongly concentrated towards the orbital plane. The nebula in AR Pav seems to be bounded by significant amount of neutral material in the orbital plane. The forbidden emission lines are probably formed in low density ionized regions extended in polar directions and/or the wind-wind interaction zone.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures, accepted by A&

Stepped Care for Smoking Cessation: A Cost-Effectiveness Analysis and Simulation of Future Outcomes

It has been well established that smoking is the leading avoidable cause of premature morbidity and mortality in the United States and abroad. Smoking is attributable to over 400,000 annual deaths, and $193 billion in healthcare costs and lost productivity. Despite the apparent dangers and tremendous costs of tobacco use and dependence, smokers find difficulty quitting. Recently, stepped care has been proposed as a viable intensive approach for achieving long-term cessation. This research sought to evaluate cost-effectiveness of stepped care in a diverse population of smokers and analyze future health outcomes of smoking cessation. Cost-effectiveness analysis was conducted from an institutional perspective alongside an NIH-funded multi-site study, “Long-term Smoking Cessation Using Prescription Step Care” (STEP), which compared stepped care to a repeat care intervention. The outcome of interest was incremental cost per quit achieved by stepped care. Secondly, long-term cost-effectiveness of successful smoking cessation was analyzed using a societal perspective. A microsimulation model was developed to predict changes in morbidity and mortality over the lifetime for four smoking-related diseases (ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, lung cancer, and emphysema) due to successful cessation. Here, the outcome of interest was incremental cost per quality-adjusted life year due to successful cessation. Lastly, sensitivity analyses were conducted to gauge robustness of estimates. In the STEP study, costs for stepped versus repeat care were$875.09 and $422.26, respectively. Point-prevalence abstinence was validated among 20.5$49,025 and $48,956, respectively; QALYS gained were 8.62 and 8.6, for the aforementioned analyses. Successful cessation yielded incremental cost-effectiveness of$3,450 per QALY. In sensitivity analysis, incremental cost-effectiveness varied from cost-saving to $13,700 per QALY. Stepped care was not cost-effective relative to repeat intervention. Quitting at the UTHSC site and among ethnic minorities was low, despite better rates of participation. Higher depression scores may have attributed to these results. Success of repeat care in STEP affirms findings of two recent studies. However, long-term cessation did prove highly cost-effective. Smoking cessation interventions continue to be extremely cost-effective and provide sizable returns on investment to employers and payers alike; enhanced coverage of smoking cessation treatments and programs will likely increase quit attempts and ultimately, cessation

Exploring Thai Physicians’ Perceptions Of And Willingness To Prescribe Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (prep)

Background: Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is a daily medication that can prevent HIV infection. PrEP may further support HIV prevention initiatives in Thailand, particularly as it becomes more accessible in the country’s government clinics and hospitals. While studies have explored perceptions of PrEP for at-risk people in Thailand, there has been limited investigation into Thai physicians’ opinions of and willingness to prescribe PrEP. Methods: Using convenience sampling, this cross-sectional study recruited 132 Thai physicians to complete an anonymous, online survey. The survey assessed physicians’ concerns about PrEP, experience with PrEP, and willingness to prescribe PrEP. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regressions were conducted to assess factors associated with willingness to prescribe. Results: The majority of the sample had heard of PrEP before the survey (81.1%) and were willing to prescribe it (68.2%), though a minority had experience prescribing (18.2%). Common concerns regarding PrEP included the potential for decreased condom use, antiretroviral resistance, inadequate patient compliance, medication side effects, and an increase in STIs. The most frequently reported barrier to prescribing was a lack of clinical knowledge of PrEP. In a multivariable model, believing that PrEP was essential for addressing the HIV epidemic (aOR=20.87; 95% CI=3.69-118.12) and being willing to attend continuing medical education on PrEP (aOR=9.46; 95% CI=3.27-27.36) were associated with significantly higher odds of being willing to prescribe PrEP. Conclusion: This is the first study to assess Thai physicians’ willingness to prescribe PrEP. While the majority of our sample expressed willingness to prescribe, our results indicate a need to strengthen and promote medical education on PrEP to improve physicians’ knowledge of the medication and confidence in its safety and effectiveness. Public health messaging should also address physicians’ concerns about risk compensation following PrEP initiation and should further emphasize the potential importance of PrEP in reducing HIV incidence in Thailand

Effect of Increased Academic Tone on Reading Achievement of Sixth Grade Students with Disabilities

This study investigated the effect of increased academic time on reading achievement of sixth grade students with varying mild disabilities (n=15) and compar~ their results to a control group (n=18). After receiving a year of intensive reading intervention, the experimental group scored better on the reading section of Georgia\u27s Criterion Referenced Competency Test (M = 324, SD= 28) than the controls (M = 316, SD= 25). ANCOVA was statistically significant. The effect size was .33. The boys in the experimental group (M = 338, SD = 28) outscored the girls (M = 304, SD = 9). One way of increasing achievement of middle school students with disabilities without extending the actual school day is to substitute a remedial instructional session for an exploratory class

Stereodivergent, Diels-Alder-initiated organocascades employing α,β-unsaturated acylammonium salts: scope, mechanism, and application.

Chiral α,β-unsaturated acylammonium salts are novel dienophiles enabling enantioselective Diels-Alder-lactonization (DAL) organocascades leading to cis- and trans-fused, bicyclic γ- and δ-lactones from readily prepared dienes, commodity acid chlorides, and a chiral isothiourea organocatalyst under mild conditions. We describe extensions of stereodivergent DAL organocascades to other racemic dienes bearing pendant secondary and tertiary alcohols, and application to a formal synthesis of (+)-dihydrocompactin is described. A combined experimental and computational investigation of unsaturated acylammonium salt formation and the entire DAL organocascade pathway provide a rationalization of the effect of Brønsted base additives and enabled a controllable, diastereodivergent DAL process leading to a full complement of possible stereoisomeric products. Evaluation of free energy and enthalpy barriers in conjunction with experimentally observed temperature effects revealed that the DAL is a rare case of an entropy-controlled diastereoselective process. NMR analysis of diene alcohol-Brønsted base interactions and computational studies provide a plausible explanation of observed stabilization of exo transition-state structures through hydrogen-bonding effects

“We’re doing things that are meaningful”: Student Perspectives of Project-based Learning Across the Disciplines

Supporters of project-based learning (PBL) argue that outcomes from the model include better performance in academic (Bell, 2010; Thomas, 2000) and non-academic outcomes (Saunders-Steward, Gyles, & Shore, 2010). The New Tech Network (NTN) is a school improvement network that provides training and development for high school faculty who commit to using project and/or problem-based learning as the primary instruction methodology (New Tech Network, 2017). This study uses qualitative data to investigate student perspectives of PBL across multiple disciplines at the high school level in NTN schools. Results suggest that students find value in the “hard work” they engaged in whilst completing PBL tasks. Moreover, students can articulate the value of their work and its applicability to a “real-world” setting. We argue that for PBL to work effectively, approaches to PBL from an interdisciplinary perspective must be balanced

Irinotecan toxicity: genes or intestinal microflora?

No abstract availabl

Variaciones espectrales en estrellas Ap

Se obtuvieron alrededor de 450 espectros, en Cerro Tololo y La Plata, con una dispersión de 40 Å/mm de una lista de 30 estrellas Ap. En la mayoría de ellos se observan variaciones en la intensidad de líneas de elementos tales como el calcio, europio, silicio, estroncio y cromo y además variaciones en algunos perfiles tales como en la línea K del calcio ionizado. El trabajo completo, con la determinación de períodos, se publicará más adelante.Asociación Argentina de Astronomí

Variaciones espectrales en estrellas Ap

Se obtuvieron alrededor de 450 espectros, en Cerro Tololo y La Plata, con una dispersión de 40 Å/mm de una lista de 30 estrellas Ap. En la mayoría de ellos se observan variaciones en la intensidad de líneas de elementos tales como el calcio, europio, silicio, estroncio y cromo y además variaciones en algunos perfiles tales como en la línea K del calcio ionizado. El trabajo completo, con la determinación de períodos, se publicará más adelante.Asociación Argentina de Astronomí