Longitudinal analysis of genetic risk factors of cardiovascular disease

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) continues to be the leading cause of death in the United States. For this reason, CVD and CVD risk factor prevention poses high public health significance, due to its prevalence and financial burden on society. CVD and risk factors prevalence as well as genetic structures are known to be different in White and African American populations. This indicates that genetic differences could be responsible for differences in disease prevalence. The purpose of this study was to examine if genotype was a significant predictor of CVD risk factor measurements over time using mixed modeling and trajectory group analysis

The Norfolk Island penal station, the panopticon, and Alexander Maconochie and Jeremy Bentham's theories of punishment

Alexander Maconochie (1787–1860), the originator of the “Mark System”, is a major figure in the history of penal discipline and is best known for his attempt to implement it at the Norfolk Island penal station from 1840 to 1844. Among Maconochie’s many works is the eight-page “Comparison Between Mr. Bentham’s Views on Punishment, and Those Advocated in Connexion with the Mark System”, in which Maconochie rejected Bentham’s critique of transportation, as well as fundamental elements of his theory of punishment. Maconochie concluded that mainstream thinking on penal discipline was dominated by “mistakes” that either “in great measure originat[ed] with Mr. Bentham”, or had been “at least sanctioned by his high authority”. This paper questions whether Maconochie’s rejection of Bentham’s views is entirely convincing, since his penal practices, as well as an earlier and lesser-cited work, indicate that Maconochie was, at times, considerably closer to Bentham’s position on punishment than “Comparison” suggests. Section I will provide some brief biographical background. Section II will explore Maconochie’s attempt to implement his reformative system at Norfolk Island, at the heart of which was surveillance and extensive record-keeping to monitor individual behaviour and progress, and in which there are echoes of Bentham’s panopticon scheme. Section III will examine Maconochie’s changing views on criminal transportation, from his adherence to the Benthamite anti-transportation line in 1818, to his qualified support for transportation from 1838 onwards. Finally, Section IV will examine the Mark System and Maconochie’s criticism of Bentham in more detail

Plate kinematic modelling of the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans for conjugate margin studies

The Iberian and Newfoundland conjugate margins are undoubtedly some of the beststudied margins globally. Despite this, there is still very little consensus as to Iberia’s Mesozoic position during its early stages of divergence from North America. Inconsistencies in modelling early stages of plate divergence in this region stem from the extensive transition zones bordering the southern North Atlantic Ocean. Uncertainties in modelling the Iberian plate branch out of the region, making for more complex and questionable regional frameworks in which to interpret geological events in regions such as the Bay of Biscay or Pyrenees. Using three newly acquired seismic profiles from the southern Newfoundland Basin I assess the suitability of commonly used break-up markers (M-Series and J-Anomaly) for plate kinematic reconstructions. Interpretations suggest crustal structure at times coinciding with these breakup markers to comprise exhumed mantle with magmatic additions of an unknown age. Although the events from which these break-up markers originate immediately precede first seafloor spreading, they are neither instantaneous in time nor isochronous along the margin. Taking this analysis one step further, I derive potential seismic conjugates profiles using an already published seismic profile from the conjugate Tagus Abyssal Plain. Conjugate pairing shows there is little benefit as to a data versus model approach when deriving ‘conjugate’ profiles for the Iberia –Newfoundland margins. To work around the Iberia problem I propose the creation of a new, multi-plate circuit constraining the plates surrounding the smaller Iberian plate.To test and validate the plate circuit approach I close the Atlantic – Arctic plate circuit and test its outputs, the relative motions of the Greenland and North American platesagainst magnetic anomaly data of the Labrador Sea region. This model provides a regional context to study both divergent and convergent phases affect the SW Greenland margin with quantified uncertainties attached to the model. I go on to apply this proven plate circuit technique to the Iberia – Newfoundland problem. By generating three new plate circuits using the African, Moroccan, Iberian and North American plates I provide a statistically quantifiable context in which to study the evolution of plate boundaries along the northern and southern Iberian margins as well as in NW Africa. These findings provide rational as to modelling the earliest stages of divergence between Iberia and Newfoundland. <br/

Reliability of TMS measurements of the motor cortex

2010 Summer.Includes bibliographic references (pages 44-47).Covers not scanned.Print version deaccessioned 2022.BACKGROUND: Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was introduced in 1985 and has been used to study the human motor system through a variety of applications including single pulse, paired pulse and repetitive pulse stimulation parameters. Paired pulse TMS studies assess motor cortical excitability, in which the first (conditioning) stimulus (CS) modifies the response to the second (test) stimulus (TS) (Maeda, Gangitano, Thall, & Pascual-Leone, 2002). The time between pulses, or the interstimulus interval, is the distinguishing factor between the application of paired pulse TMS to investigate intracortical inhibition (ICI) or intracortical facilitation (ICF). Studies of cortical excitability using paired pulse TMS can provide novel insights into the pathophysiology of various neurological and psychiatric disorders (Maeda, et ah, 2002) and have begun to be utilized as outcome measures to document changes in cortical excitability in response to repetitive TMS. The stability of the muscle responses known as motor evoked potentials (MEPs) elicited in response to paired pulse stimulation has not been well documented in the literature to date. As such, the primary goal of this study was to establish the test-retest reliability of two paired pulse measures of the motor cortex, ICI and ICF, in two muscle representations; first dorsal interossei (FDI) and abductor pollicis brevis (APB). METHODS: Fifteen healthy individuals, age 19-37 years old, participated in two identical testing sessions held exactly one week apart from each other. Four different types of stimulation (CS, TS, 2ms, and 15ms) were delivered over the motor cortex 20 times in a random order. The corresponding MEPs were recorded and their size were documented using two common methods found in the literature; area under the curve and peak to peak amplitude. RESULTS: Reliability was determined using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs). Poor reliability was documented in both methods of analysis; whether twenty trials or ten trials were averaged, and even still after normalizing data, with ICCs ranging from (-.508 - .347). CONCLUSION: Additional studies investigating the test-retest reliability of paired pulse measures of the motor cortex need to be conducted to document the stability of MEPs. Potential sources of variation in MEPs size include electrode placement variation, stimulation intensity changes, coil placement variability, state of the overall nervous system, and the state of the individual muscle (contracted/relaxed). Until the reliability of paired pulse stimulation is established, researchers should use caution linking the changes in the size of MEPs in response to paired pulse stimulation to interventions, disease, or other external factors

The future of Quiet Eye research – comment on Vickers

The Quiet Eye (QE) phenomenon has a robust literature base. However, the specific mechanisms by which the QE enables athletes to be more accurate are still not fully understood. Furthermore, QE has been shown to negate the negative effects of anxiety, but similarly, the specific role it plays is unknown. A more systematic and strategic approach to future research is needed to delineate the different theories and develop a stronger, more concrete understanding. There is also the question of QE training, which appears to have a significant impact on performance in a relatively short time period. Limitations to current studies as well as suggestions for future projects are outlined. Technological advances are also discussed in relation to enabling researchers to better understand the neural underpinnings of the QE advantage

Experiences of Teachers Who Have Taught Physical Education Remotely: A Qualitative Study

The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to understand and describe the essence of the experiences of teachers who have taught physical education remotely. The problem is physical education is a core curriculum subject that is designed for in-person instruction and is not easily adaptable to an online setting. The central research question that this study sought to address was what are the experiences of K-12 physical education teachers who taught P.E. remotely? The theory guiding of this study is Dabrowski’s theory of positive disintegration as it details how people can adapt and adjust in response to stressful situations and adverse events. I chose a phenomenological research method with an exploratory focus. This study was vital to understanding the experiences of teachers who taught physical education in a remote setting. This type of design was most appropriate for this study because understanding the perspectives of the participants was important to be able to identify the unique challenges of the group being studied. The sample size was 10 participants from schools across the United States who have taught physical education remotely for at least one year in a traditional K-12 school. The data collection included answers from the individual interview questions, and information gathered from the focus groups and questionnaires. To analyze the data, I used a form of manual coding. I looked for themes and patterns and significant statements. I then created a list of non-overlapping statements about how the interviewee experienced the phenomenon being studied. This information was used to draft answers to the research questions. The findings indicated that although teaching physical education remotely is challenging, teachers can adapt and find creative ways to address these challenges in order to provide the best possible educational experience for the student, even when teaching physical education remotely

Dosimetry of Photon and Proton MRI Guided Radiotherapy Beams using Silicon Array Dosimeters

The integration of online magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with photon and pro-ton radiotherapy has potential to overcome the soft tissue contrast limitations of the current standard of care kV-image guided radiotherapy in some challenging treat-ment sites. By directly visualising soft tissue targets and organs at risk, removing the dependence on surrogates for image guidance, it is expected there will be a decrease in the geometric uncertainties related to daily patient setup. This new approach to image guided radiotherapy presents unique challenges due to the permanent mag-netic field of the integrated MRI unit. The trajectory of charged particles including dose depositing secondary electrons are perturbed by the magnetic field, adding to the challenge of calculating the patient dosimetry and validating the calculation with measurement as is standard practice in radiotherapy. The magnetic field may also effect the operation and response of radiation detectors and a method of accurately characterising the influence of the magnetic field on detector response and operation is required. This thesis reports progress made towards real time high spatial resolution dosime-try of photon and proton MRI guided radiotherapy beams using novel monolithic silicon detectors designed at the Centre for Medical Radiation Physics (CMRP). One challenge in experimentally characterising the magnetic field effects on a radiation detectors operation is how to perform dosimetry measurements with and without a magnetic field of varying strength and orientation from a single radiation source as this is not feasible on existing MRI linacs with a permanent magnetic field of fixed strength. A bespoke semi-portable magnet device was developed to meet this need. The device employs an adjustable iron yoke and focusing cones to vary the magnetic field of the central volume, a 0.3 T field can be achieved for volume to 10 x 10 x 10 cm3 and up to a 1.2 T for a volume of at least 3 x 3 x 3 cm3. The device is de-signed to be used with a clinical linear accelerator in both inline and perpendicular magnetic field orientations to meet the challenge of detector characterisation. The performance of the magnetic field generated by the device was within ±2 % of finite element modelling predictions of all configurations tested