An Empirical Investigation of a 21st Century Career Development Program for Business Majors

When a small, Midwestern business school launched a required, four-year career development curriculum, robust practicum courses, and a dynamic, co-curricular program, it proved itself to be in the vanguard of career development practices. Due to the extensive experiential learning this program provides, greater numbers of business and accounting majors are graduating with raised employment aspirations and the knowledge, skills, and confidence to begin their professional lives. Using quantitative measures, the results suggest the positive impact of these career development activities on students’ certainty about career direction, assessment of the quality of their resumes and LinkedIn profiles, and confidence in interviewing

Provoking Punches: Factors Influencing Perceived Violent Reactions to Negative Situations

Purpose: Violence among college students is an important area of research as this group is at an increased risk of both engaging in and being a victim of violence. As such, the current research aimed to examine factors that may influence violent tendencies among a sample of college students. Method: Data from 101 completed surveys were analyzed. Principal components factor analysis and Cronbach’s alpha resulted in the creation of six independent variables (gun experience, weapons support, anger contagion, witness violence, violent community, and aggressive beliefs) and four dependent variables (competition for resources, social attacks, physical attacks, and unfair situations). OLS regression was used to estimate the impact of each variable on perceptions of reacting with violence to four negative situations. Results: Gun experience and violent community significantly predicted responding violently to both social and physical attacks, while gun support was only predictive of violence in competition for resources. Additionally, aggressive beliefs predicted perceptions of violent responses to physical attacks and in unfair situations. Finally, anger contagion was associated with students reporting an increased likelihood of responding violently to social attacks. Conclusions: While research shows the importance of understanding violence exposure and aggressive norms in creating and improving violence prevention programs and anti-violence strategies, the role that perceptions play is largely absent. Furthermore, this research supports the importance of implementing these programs and strategies among college students/young adults to potentially reduce violence and aggression within this age group

Understanding the decision to screen for lung cancer or not: A qualitative analysis

Background Although new screening programmes with low‐dose computed tomography (LDCT) for lung cancer have been implemented throughout the United States, screening uptake remains low and screening‐eligible persons' decisions to screen or not remain poorly understood. Objective To describe how current and former long‐term smokers explain their decisions regarding participation in lung cancer screening. Design Phone interviews using a semi‐structured interview guide were conducted to ask screening‐eligible persons to describe their decisions regarding screening with LDCT. The interviews were transcribed and analysed with conventional content analytic techniques. Setting and participants A subsample of 40 participants (20 who had screened and 20 who had not) were drawn from the sample of a survey study whose participants were recruited by Facebook targeted advertisements. Results The sample was divided into the following five groups based on their decisions regarding lung cancer screening participation: Group 1: no intention to be screened, Group 2: no deliberate consideration but somewhat open to being screened, Group 3: deliberate consideration but no definitive decision to be screened, Group 4: intention to be screened and Group 5: had been screened. Reasons for screening participation decisions are described for each group. Across groups, data revealed that screening‐eligible persons have a number of misconceptions regarding LDCT, including that a scan is needed only if one is symptomatic or has not had a chest x‐ray. A physician recommendation was a key influence on decisions to screen. Discussion and conclusions Education initiatives aimed at providers and long‐term smokers regarding LDCT is needed. Quality patient/provider communication is most likely to improve screening rates

Patterning in time and space: HoxB cluster gene expression in the developing chick embryo

The developing embryo is a paradigmatic model to study molecular mechanisms of time control in Biology. Hox genes are key players in the specification of tissue identity during embryo development and their expression is under strict temporal regulation. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying timely Hox activation in the early embryo remain unknown. This is hindered by the lack of a rigorous temporal framework of sequential Hox expression within a single cluster. Herein, a thorough characterization of HoxB cluster gene expression was performed over time and space in the early chick embryo. Clear temporal collinearity of HoxB cluster gene expression activation was observed. Spatial collinearity of HoxB expression was evidenced in different stages of development and in multiple tissues. Using embryo explant cultures we showed that HoxB2 is cyclically expressed in the rostral presomitic mesoderm with the same periodicity as somite formation, suggesting a link between timely tissue specification and somite formation. We foresee that the molecular framework herein provided will facilitate experimental approaches aimed at identifying the regulatory mechanisms underlying Hox expression in Time and Space.Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia (FCT), Portugal [PTDC/SAU-OBD/105111/2008, UMINHO/BI/7/2014, SFRH/BPD/65652/2009]; Ciencia Program Contract; Programa Operacional Regional do Norte (ON. 2) [NORTE-07-0124-FEDER-000017]; FCT (National and FEDER COMPETE Program) [PTDC/SAU-BID/121459/2010, PTDC/SAU-OBD/099758/2008]; [PEst-OE/EQB/LA0023/2011]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sexual learning among East African adolescents in the context of generalized HIV epidemics: A systematic qualitative meta-synthesis

Background AIDS-related illness is the leading cause of mortality for adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. Together, Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda account for 21% of HIV-infected adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. The United Nations framework for addressing the epidemic among adolescents calls for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health education. These HIV prevention efforts could be informed by a synthesis of existing research about the formal and informal sexual education of adolescents in countries experiencing generalized epidemics. The purpose of this study was to describe the process of sexual learning among East African adolescents living in the context of generalized HIV epidemics. Methods Qualitative metasynthesis, a systematic procedure for integrating the results of multiple qualitative studies addressing a similar phenomenon, was used. Thirty-two research reports met study inclusion criteria. The reports were assessed in a four-step analytic process: appraisal, classification of findings, synthesis of findings, and construction of a framework depicting the process of sexual learning in this population. Results The framework includes three phases of sexual learning: 1) being primed for sex, 2) making sense of sex, and 3) having sexual experiences. Adolescents were primed for sex through gender norms, cultural practices, and economic structures as well as through conversations and formal instruction. They made sense of sex by acquiring information about sexual intercourse, reproduction and pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, and relationships and by developing a variety of beliefs and attitudes about these topics. Some adolescents described having sexual experiences that met wants or needs, but many experienced sex that was coerced or violent. Whether sex was wanted, coerced, or violent, adolescents experienced worry about sexually transmitted infections or premarital pregnancy. Conclusions The three phases of sexual learning interact to shape adolescents’ sexual lives and their risk for HIV infection. This framework will contribute to the development of sexual education programs that address HIV risk within the broader context of sexual learning

Relationship between latent and rebound viruses in a clinical trial of anti-HIV-1 antibody 3BNC117.

A clinical trial was performed to evaluate 3BNC117, a potent anti-HIV-1 antibody, in infected individuals during suppressive antiretroviral therapy and subsequent analytical treatment interruption (ATI). The circulating reservoir was evaluated by quantitative and qualitative viral outgrowth assay (Q2VOA) at entry and after 6 mo. There were no significant quantitative changes in the size of the reservoir before ATI, and the composition of circulating reservoir clones varied in a manner that did not correlate with 3BNC117 sensitivity. 3BNC117 binding site amino acid variants found in rebound viruses preexisted in the latent reservoir. However, only 3 of 217 rebound viruses were identical to 868 latent viruses isolated by Q2VOA and near full-length sequencing. Instead, 63% of the rebound viruses appeared to be recombinants, even in individuals with 3BNC117-resistant reservoir viruses. In conclusion, viruses emerging during ATI in individuals treated with 3BNC117 are not the dominant species found in the circulating latent reservoir, but frequently appear to represent recombinants of latent viruses

Original Article Utilization of 3-Month Yoga Program for Adults at High Risk for Type 2 Diabetes: A Pilot Study

Various modes of physical activity, combined with dieting, have been widely recommended to prevent or delay type 2 diabetes. Among these, yoga holds promise for reducing risk factors for type 2 diabetes by promoting weight loss, improving glucose levels and reducing blood pressure and lipid levels. This pilot study aimed to assess the feasibility of implementing a 12-week yoga program among adults at high risk for type 2 diabetes. Twenty-three adults (19 Whites and 4 non-Whites) were randomly assigned to the yoga intervention group or the educational group. The yoga group participated in a 3-month yoga intervention with sessions twice per week and the educational group received general health educational materials every 2 weeks. All participants completed questionnaires and had blood tests at baseline and at the end of 3 months. Effect sizes were reported to summarize the efficacy of the intervention. All participants assigned to the yoga intervention completed the yoga program without complication and expressed high satisfaction with the program (99.2%). Their yoga session attendance ranged from 58.3 to 100%. Compared with the education group, the yoga group experienced improvements in weight, blood pressure, insulin, triglycerides and exercise self-efficacy indicated by small to large effect sizes. This preliminary study indicates that a yoga program would be a possible risk reduction option for adults at high risk for type 2 diabetes. In addition, yoga holds promise as an approach to reducing cardiometabolic risk factors and increasing exercise self-efficacy for this group

Ongoing monitoring of Tortugas Ecological Reserve: Assessing the consequences of reserve designation

Over the past five years, a biogeographic characterization of Tortugas Ecological Reserve(TER) has been carried out to measure the post-implementation effects of TER as a refuge for exploited species. Our results demonstrate that there is substantial microalgal biomass at depths between 10 and 30 m in the soft sediments at the coral reef interface, and that this community may play an important role in the food web supporting reef organisms. In addition, preliminary stable isotope data, in conjunction with prior results from the west Florida shelf, suggest that the shallow water benthic habitats surrounding the coral reefs of TER will prove to be an important source of the primary production ultimately fueling fish production throughout TER. The majority of the fish analyzed so far have exhibited a C isotope signature consistent with a food web which relies heavily on benthic primary production. Fish counts indicate a marked increase in the abundance of large fish (>20 cm) within the Reserve relative to the Out and Park strata, across years. Faunal collections from open and protected soft bottom habitat near the northern boundary of Tortugas North strongly suggest that relaxation of trawling pressure has increased benthic biomass and diversity in this area of TER. These data, employing an integrated Before - After Control Impact (BACI) design at multiple spatial scales, will allow us to continue to document and quantify the post-implementation effects of TER. (PDF contains 58 pages