Language acquisition for deaf children: Reducing the harms of zero tolerance to the use of alternative approaches

Children acquire language without instruction as long as they are regularly and meaningfully engaged with an accessible human language. Today, 80% of children born deaf in the developed world are implanted with cochlear devices that allow some of them access to sound in their early years, which helps them to develop speech. However, because of brain plasticity changes during early childhood, children who have not acquired a first language in the early years might never be completely fluent in any language. If they miss this critical period for exposure to a natural language, their subsequent development of the cognitive activities that rely on a solid first language might be underdeveloped, such as literacy, memory organization, and number manipulation. An alternative to speech-exclusive approaches to language acquisition exists in the use of sign languages such as American Sign Language (ASL), where acquiring a sign language is subject to the same time constraints of spoken language development. Unfortunately, so far, these alternatives are caught up in an "either - or" dilemma, leading to a highly polarized conflict about which system families should choose for their children, with little tolerance for alternatives by either side of the debate and widespread misinformation about the evidence and implications for or against either approach. The success rate with cochlear implants is highly variable. This issue is still debated, and as far as we know, there are no reliable predictors for success with implants. Yet families are often advised not to expose their child to sign language. Here absolute positions based on ideology create pressures for parents that might jeopardize the real developmental needs of deaf children. What we do know is that cochlear implants do not offer accessible language to many deaf children. By the time it is clear that the deaf child is not acquiring spoken language with cochlear devices, it might already be past the critical period, and the child runs the risk of becoming linguistically deprived. Linguistic deprivation constitutes multiple personal harms as well as harms to society (in terms of costs to our medical systems and in loss of potential productive societal participation)

Why Do Developers Get Password Storage Wrong? A Qualitative Usability Study

Passwords are still a mainstay of various security systems, as well as the cause of many usability issues. For end-users, many of these issues have been studied extensively, highlighting problems and informing design decisions for better policies and motivating research into alternatives. However, end-users are not the only ones who have usability problems with passwords! Developers who are tasked with writing the code by which passwords are stored must do so securely. Yet history has shown that this complex task often fails due to human error with catastrophic results. While an end-user who selects a bad password can have dire consequences, the consequences of a developer who forgets to hash and salt a password database can lead to far larger problems. In this paper we present a first qualitative usability study with 20 computer science students to discover how developers deal with password storage and to inform research into aiding developers in the creation of secure password systems

Differential Downregulation of E-Cadherin and Desmoglein by Epidermal Growth Factor

Modulation of cell : cell junctions is a key event in cutaneous wound repair. In this study we report that activation of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor disrupts cell : cell adhesion, but with different kinetics and fates for the desmosomal cadherin desmoglein and for E-cadherin. Downregulation of desmoglein preceded that of E-cadherin in vivo and in an EGF-stimulated in vitro wound reepithelialization model. Dual immunofluorescence staining revealed that neither E-cadherin nor desmoglein-2 internalized with the EGF receptor, or with one another. In response to EGF, desmoglein-2 entered a recycling compartment based on predominant colocalization with the recycling marker Rab11. In contrast, E-cadherin downregulation was accompanied by cleavage of the extracellular domain. A broad-spectrum matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor protected E-cadherin but not the desmosomal cadherin, desmoglein-2, from EGF-stimulated disruption. These findings demonstrate that although activation of the EGF receptor regulates adherens junction and desmosomal components, this stimulus downregulates associated cadherins through different mechanisms

Differential Downregulation of E-Cadherin and Desmoglein by Epidermal Growth Factor

Modulation of cell : cell junctions is a key event in cutaneous wound repair. In this study we report that activation of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor disrupts cell : cell adhesion, but with different kinetics and fates for the desmosomal cadherin desmoglein and for E-cadherin. Downregulation of desmoglein preceded that of E-cadherin in vivo and in an EGF-stimulated in vitro wound reepithelialization model. Dual immunofluorescence staining revealed that neither E-cadherin nor desmoglein-2 internalized with the EGF receptor, or with one another. In response to EGF, desmoglein-2 entered a recycling compartment based on predominant colocalization with the recycling marker Rab11. In contrast, E-cadherin downregulation was accompanied by cleavage of the extracellular domain. A broad-spectrum matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor protected E-cadherin but not the desmosomal cadherin, desmoglein-2, from EGF-stimulated disruption. These findings demonstrate that although activation of the EGF receptor regulates adherens junction and desmosomal components, this stimulus downregulates associated cadherins through different mechanisms

General Environment, Marketing Management Practices, and Level of Profitability of the Baye-baye Industry of Santa Barbara, Iloilo, Central Philippines

As a popular native Ilonggo delicacy, baye-baye production is considered as one of the oldest and most flourishing industries from the historic town of Sta. Barbara, Iloilo. Made of pounded rice mixed with scraped coconut and sugar, Sta. Barbara’s baye-baye is considered as the best tasting in the region. However, the baye-baye entrepreneurs need assistance towards more gainful and sustainable livelihood operations, but so far, no studies have been conducted that draw a fit between enterprise requirements and enterprise development efforts. This paper presents the results of a study on the general environment, marketing practices, and profitability of the baye-baye enterprises using Jensen’s model for value stream mapping. The study addresses the need for an empirical basis for livelihood development promotions for the industry. Primary data from interviews with twelve baye-baye entrepreneurs reveal the use of modern production technology, customers consisting mostly of local tourists and balikbayans who purchase the delicacy mainly as pasalubong, and stores and vendors along the town’s national highway serving as major outlets for baye-baye. Marketing problems include inflation, lack of capital, and inadequate supply of raw materials, among others. Entrepreneurs report an average monthly sale of more than PhP 40,000.00 and a gross profit margin of PhP 29,200.00. Problems on unsold inventory, the absence of financial records, and lack of marketing and promotions challenge profitability. For a more lucrative and sustainable industry, the study recommends provision of business development support such as financial assistance, technical trainings on product development, promotions, and market linkaging delivered within a governance framework

Compendium of Current Total Ionizing Dose Results and Displacement Damage Results for Candidate Spacecraft Electronics for NASA

Sensitivity of a variety of candidate spacecraft electronics to total ionizing dose and displacement damage is studied. Devices tested include optoelectronics, digital, analog, linear bipolar devices, and hybrid devices