COLUMBIA MEDICAL CENTER AND THE COCAINE ADDICTED PHARMACIST (A)

Tom Zenor, a pharmacist for Columbia Medical Center, became addicted to cocaine. He checked himself into a rehabilitation center and, upon request, was placed on leave as allowed by the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). During his FMLA leave the company decided to terminate his employment upon the completion of his twelve week leave of absence. Columbia, in an attempt to be proactive, is considering any legal recourse Zenor might attempt. Columbia’s Human Resources manager, Carmen Estrada, is preparing evidence to defend the company against a potential Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) lawsuit. Her primary concern is that Zenor will claim that his cocaine addiction is a qualified disability under the ADA. (Contact author for a copy of the complete report.)Personnel, Unjust Termination, At-Will Employment

Columbia Medical Center and the Cocaine-Addicted Pharmacist: Unjust Termination? (B)

Tom Zenor, a pharmacist for Columbia Medical Center, became addicted to cocaine. He checked himself into a rehabilitation center and, upon request, was placed on leave as allowed by the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Upon his return, the company decided to terminate his employment. Zenor was upset at the dismissal, which he saw as unjust. Columbia Medical Center, in an attempt to be proactive, sought to consider any legal recourse Zenor might attempt. Columbia’s Human Resources manager, Carmen Estrada, attempted to construct evidence to defend the company against a potential unjust discharge case. The company operated in Texas, which was an “at-will” state. Nonetheless, Estrada had concerns which included whether Zenor could claim an exception to the Doctrine of Employment at-will, and if including a disclaimer in an employee handbook that employees are retained “at-will” provided adequate legal protection for the organization. (Contact author for a copy of the complete report.)Personnel, Addiction, ADA

But It Was With My Wife: Failing To Address After-Hours Workplace Indiscretions

Tom, an employee at Aztec Systems, was caught by Rose, a member of the cleaning staff, having sex, after hours, on his work desk with his wife.  An upset Rose discussed the matter with Aztec’s human resources manager.  The HR manager Fred, Tom’s boss Janet, and the company CEO Alan, decide that there was no disciplinary action needed since Tom and Janet were married.  An angry Rose was faced with a difficult decision – whether or not to file a claim against Aztec Systems for sexual harassment

The Multiple-Working Hypothesis As Applied to Alaska\u27s Oriented Lakes

The problem of the oriented lakes on Alaska\u27s Arctic Coastal Plain provides an excellent opportunity for illustrating the application of the method of multiple-working hypotheses to a geologic problem. Five hypotheses are considered and are deemed to be inconclusive; a composite of these is thought to provide an explanation of the lakes\u27 origin. The hypotheses considered are: (1) that waves, produced by an ancient prevailing wind blowing parallel to the lake elongation, eroded the basins; (2) that the present winds produce wave current systems which preferentially scour the north and south lake shores, thus producing elongation; (3) that the winds produce a preferred distribution of sediment which determines orientation of the lakes by insulating the east and west shores, thus protecting them from erosion ; (4) that orientation is developed by thaw produced by maximum insolation during the noon-hours; and (5) that the lakes are developed along north-south trending ice-wedges which formed in the north-south components of a right-angle fracture system. The process of consideration and elimination of these hypotheses leads to a composite hypothesis. This proposes that oriented ice-wedges might develop in the fracture system; that maximum insolation would be more effective in melting the north-south trending wedges than the complementary set; that the oriented depressions so oriented would in effect be perpetuated and enlarged by thaw and wind (wave) oriented sediments on the east-west shores

Integrating The Wall Street Journal Into A Business School Curriculum: A Success Story At Samford University

In the Spring of 2006 Samford University’s School of Business made a decision to participate in The Wall Street Journal’s Academic Partnership (AP) program beginning with the Fall semester of 2006.  This paper examines School of Business student and faculty attitudes and usage of the WSJ that made for a successful implementation this past year.&nbsp

A Preliminary Blooms Taxonomy Assessment Of End-Of-Chapter Problems In Business School Textbooks

This article examines textbook problems used in a sampling of some of the most common core courses found in schools of business to ascertain what level of learning, as defined by Blooms Taxonomy, is required to provide a correct answer. A set of working definitions based on Blooms Taxonomy (Bloom & Krathwohl, 1956) was developed for the six different levels of the taxonomy. Because the course credit model relies so heavily on textbooks, the end of chapter problems for a leading text book in eight traditional business disciplines were evaluated. The initial findings indicate that the vast majority of end of chapter problems examined only required students to function at Level 1 (Knowledge) or Level 2 (Comprehension). While preliminary in nature, these data suggest the need for the use of other methods to challenge the student to think on higher cognitive levels

Hydrodynamics in Some Arctic Lakes

Two hypotheses concerning wind-driven current systems in Alaska\u27s oriented lakes are discussed. The first describes end-currents in the lakes returning upwind due to a hydrostatic pressure gradient on the downwind side. The second describes end-currents flowing in a windward direction and being related to the angle at which the waves approach the shoreline near the ends. These hypotheses are evaluated in the light of recent field work designed to test them

Anisotropic ultrasonic backscatter from the renal cortex

We have demonstrated a significant, directionally dependent, anisotropic, echogenicity from the cortices of two sheep kidneys and a normal human cadaver kidney. The anisotropy corresponds to the relationship of the sound field to the medullary rays and interlobular arteries. At 7.5 MHz, the backscatter from specimens of cortex of a sheep kidney was 4.7 +/- .7 dB (mean +/- SEM) greater in parts of the cortex where the field was perpendicular to these structures as opposed to where it was parallel to them. In addition, we measured the angular distribution of this anisotropy and compared it to the 5 dB inclusion angle of the 5 MHz linear array that was used in measurements on the whole kidney specimens. The transducer inclusion angle was 10[deg] +/- 2[deg], while the angular distribution was 34[deg] +/- 22[deg] and 23[deg] +/- 11[deg] (mean +/- SD) for the intact sheep and human kidney, respectively, demonstrating some variation of the medullary rays from perfect specular reflectors. This anisotropy should be visible in standard diagnostic scanning, and its recognition could increase ultrasound's sensitivity for the detection of renal disease.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/27571/1/0000615.pd

The Douglas-Fir Genome Sequence Reveals Specialization of the Photosynthetic Apparatus in Pinaceae.

A reference genome sequence for Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii (Mirb.) Franco (Coastal Douglas-fir) is reported, thus providing a reference sequence for a third genus of the family Pinaceae. The contiguity and quality of the genome assembly far exceeds that of other conifer reference genome sequences (contig N50 = 44,136 bp and scaffold N50 = 340,704 bp). Incremental improvements in sequencing and assembly technologies are in part responsible for the higher quality reference genome, but it may also be due to a slightly lower exact repeat content in Douglas-fir vs. pine and spruce. Comparative genome annotation with angiosperm species reveals gene-family expansion and contraction in Douglas-fir and other conifers which may account for some of the major morphological and physiological differences between the two major plant groups. Notable differences in the size of the NDH-complex gene family and genes underlying the functional basis of shade tolerance/intolerance were observed. This reference genome sequence not only provides an important resource for Douglas-fir breeders and geneticists but also sheds additional light on the evolutionary processes that have led to the divergence of modern angiosperms from the more ancient gymnosperms