The Effects of Totalitarian Regimes and the Individual on Russian and Soviet Music

This paper addresses the development of Russian and Soviet music from the 1860’s through Stalin’s terror in the late 1930’s. It focuses on the constraints placed on the composers by the totalitarian regime and how these individual composers were able to not only survive, but leave a greater impact on the development and style of music than the state that was constraining them. The paper focuses on how individual composers were able to use their innovation and talent to create unique material that captivated audiences both at home and abroad

Impact of winter ocean warming and reduced heterotrophy on the physiological response of the temperate coral Oculina arbuscula

Increasing sea surface temperatures from anthropogenic climate change cause significant stress to marine organisms. A plethora of studies have examined the response of corals to thermal stress under controlled laboratory conditions, which often led to bleaching or mortality of the corals. However, these studies have mainly focused on investigating the response of tropical corals to elevated summer seawater temperatures, leaving a gap in our understanding of how temperate corals are responding to elevated winter temperatures. In this study, we investigated the physiological response of the temperate coral, Oculina arbuscula, to end-of-century winter ocean warming and reduced food availability for heterotrophy predicted under climate change. Colonies of O. arbuscula were reared for 60 days in two temperature treatments, present-day winter average seawater temperature and elevated winter ocean temperature for predicted end-of-the-century conditions in the northwestern mid-Atlantic region. The corals were also exposed to two feeding treatments of freshly hatched Artemia sp. nauplii (low and normal) to examine the effects of heterotrophy on the net calcification rate of the corals. The results of this experiment showed that elevated winter temperatures caused increased calcification rates compared to present-day winter conditions. We also found that heterotrophy has little effect on growth rates for O. arbuscula. These findings could have important implications for our understanding of how corals might respond to future climate change effects.Bachelor of Scienc

Is the Nationwide Health Information Network Feasible?

Nationwide Health Information Network (NHIN) use in healthcare facilities was examined for utilization and efficacy, although the advantages are abundant, healthcare facilities have been reluctant to adopt it due to associated costs. The purpose of this study was to analyze the feasibility of a U.S NHIN by exploring and determining the benefits of and assessing the barriers to its implementation. The results of this study suggest that implementation and utilization of NHIN by healthcare industry stakeholders leads to an increased quality of patient care, increased patient-provider communication, and cost savings opportunities. Increased quality of care is achieved by reducing adverse drug events and medical errors. Cost savings opportunities are generated by a reduction in spending and prices that is attributable to electronic health record systems’ increased efficiency and effectiveness

Improving the use of evidence in legislatures: the case of the UK Parliament

Despite claims that we now live in a post-truth society, it remains commonplace for policy-makers to consult research evidence to increase the robustness of decision-making. Few scholars of evidence-policy interfaces, however, have used legislatures as sites of study, despite the fact that they play a critical role in modern democracies. There is thus limited knowledge of how research evidence is sourced and used in legislatures, which presents challenges for academics and science advisory groups, as well as to others interested in ensuring that democratic decisions are evidence-informed. Here, we present results from an empirical study into the use of research in the UK Parliament, obtained through the use of a mixed methodology, including interviews and surveys of 157 people in parliament, as well as an ethnographic investigation of four committees. Here we are specifically interested in identifying the factors affecting the use of research evidence in Parliament, with the aim of improving its use. We focus on providing advice for the Higher Education Sector, which includes improving knowledge of, and engagement in, parliamentary processes, reform of academic incentives to stimulate the production of policy relevant information and to assist engagement, and working with trusted knowledge brokers. Implementing this advice should improve the chances that parliamentary decision-making is informed by research evidence

What Is Medieval European Literature?

The editors of Interfaces: A Journal of Medieval European Literatures explain the scope and purpose of the new journal by mapping out the significance and possible meanings of the three key terms of the subtitle: ‘literature,’ ‘medieval,’ ‘Europe.’ The specific theme of Issue 1 is introduced: ‘Histories of Medieval European Literatures: New Patterns of Representation and Explanation.’ With respect to this theme, theoretical problems concerning teleology and the present possibilities for literary historical narratives are raised. Finally the editors state the journal’s commitment to a scholarly forum which is non-profit and open-access. The bibliography refers to key critical reading which shapes the journal’s approach to medieval European literatures

Characterization of Ultrasound Contrast Agents as HyperCEST Agents for Molecular MRI

Molecular imaging is defined as an imaging technique capable of visualizing events that occur at the molecular level. For each imaging modality, there is a wide variety of molecular contrast agents that can be used for either therapeutic or diagnostic applications. Recently, there has been a push toward developing multipurpose theranostic contrast agents that are detectable across multiple imaging modalities. Gaseous microbubbles are an FDA-approved contrast agent that produce excellent ultrasound image contrast and have also been used for transport and delivery of drugs and gases. In this work, we explore if microbubbles can also be used as a contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging. In order to detect microbubbles using MRI at the clinical in-blood concentration used for contrast ultrasound studies, an alternative detection scheme known as hyperCEST must be used. Through simulations and in vitro experiments, microbubbles were characterized as efficient hyperCEST agents. We show that due to their high xenon loading capacity and favorable xenon exchange dynamics, microbubbles provided exceptional contrast and were detected at concentrations as low as 10s of fM, the lowest concentration for hyperCEST detection to date. In preparation for in vivo translation, our lab optimized our hyperCEST imaging protocol by using cucurbit[6]uril. These results were the first demonstration of in vivo hyperCEST in mice. We show that in order to produce significant and reliable hyperCEST contrast, it is vital to establish a steady-state magnetization. These studies also revealed a spurious hyperCEST effect from direct saturation of the gas-phase signal in the lungs, a potential roadblock for in vivo translation of gas microbubbles as a hyperCEST agent. Microbubbles are the precursor of liquid-core nanodroplets, and together, they act as a phase change contrast agents for ultrasound. In the liquid phase, perfluorocarbon nanodroplets have a Xe resonance that is separated from the gas-phase, which may allow them to be distinguishable from the gas phase in the lung airspaces. We demonstrated that hyperCEST enables the detection of both liquid phase nanodroplets and gas phase microbubbles, as well as their phase-conversion following exposure to US waves. This work establishes the feasibility of using nanodroplets as dual-phase dual modality contrast agent. Despite the promising in vitro results, in vivo translation of these agents has proven to be challenging. Therefore future work should be focused on characterizing the hyperCEST properties of these agents in blood.Doctor of Philosoph