The Presiding Eldership from a Layman\u27s Standpoint

The article addresses the presiding eldership, an office in the Methodist Church that is part of the superintendancy of the work of the clergy. It argues that the structure of the Methodist Church has kept the church healthy, and that the presiding elders are an important part of that structure

A 120 megacycle self-contained high-frequency titrimeter

The analytical chemist is ever eager to improve and expedite present analytical methods.. In the past ten years considerable interest .has been elicited in the field of high frequency oscillators and their application to analytical chemistry. One of the main reasons for this interest is the uniqueness of the apparatus. No direct contact is made between the measuring instrument and the solution. Credit tor this interest must be given primarily to Jensen and Parrack of Texas A & M University. Their article in 1946 described a simple tuned plate-tuned grid electronic oscillator, operating in the high frequency range. A solution was exposed to t he electromagnetic field or the plate coil. During the titration the electrical characteristics of the solution changed. These changes were reflected in measurements of the electrical constants of the oscillator. Upon analysis the constants clearly showed the end point and yet no physical contact had been made with t he solution. Since the instrument of Jensen and Parraok many modifications have appeared and even entirely new instruments. However they still keep the one common feature: no contact with the solution. In addition to titrations, the instrument has been used to advantage in many other fields of analytical chemistry. After ten years it has clearly established itself as a valuable tool rather than just a laboratory curiosity. The object of this present research was to build an original instrument and test its effectiveness in as many fields as possible

“WE’RE JUST FAMILY”: AFRICAN AMERICAN STEPFAMILIES’ PERSPECTIVES ON STEPFAMILY LIFE AND THE IMPACT OF INSTITUTIONAL RACISM

Today, nearly forty percent of Americans are a part of a stepfamily. With a divorce rate at nearly fifty percent for couples in their first marriage and the increasing rate of cohabitation among couples with children, stepfamily structures are more prevalent than ever. Stepfamily couples are under significant stress. With a divorce rate of nearly sixty percent, stepfamily couples are tasked with addressing the stepfamily integration process, parenting and step-parenting concerns, children’s wellbeing, and relationship with former partners and financial support to nonresidential children while simultaneously developing and maintaining a marital bond. African American stepfamily couples in particular experience unique challenges that are specific to their experience in the United States. This dissertation explores the unique challenges and strengths of African American stepfamily couples. Twenty-one semi-structured interviews were conducted using qualitative methods and interpretative phenomenological analysis. The results of this study found that African American stepfamily couples feel stigmatized by their family structure, are less likely to identify with the term stepfamily, generally feel positive about their status as a stepfamily, and they believe that racial and society pressures have an impact on the prevalence and success of African American stepfamilies. This study expands upon literature on stepfamilies by providing specific insight into the familial experience of African American stepfamily couples through the lens of attachment theory and intergenerational trauma, and explores the impact of racial and societal factors. These insights could enable clinicians to better support African American adults within stepfamilies. While several important themes emerged from this qualitative study, additional research is needed to explore the marital bond of stepfamily couples and how they build and maintain their marital relationship and connection

The Effects of Institutional Structure of Predominantly White Land-Grant Colleges and Universities in the Southeast on African American Graduation Rates in Engineering

The U.S. Department of Labor reports that only 5% of U.S. workers are employed in fields related to science and engineering, yet they are responsible for more than 50% of our sustained economic expansion (U.S Department of Labor, 2007). Furthermore, minorities makeup 0.0025 % (1/400) of that Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) workforce. Methods are currently underway to understand and address the attrition of minority students in the STEM workforce. The problem of underrepresentation of minorities (URMs) in STEM careers continues to result in a “leaky pipeline” where URMs have cited institutional factors such “chilly campus” climates as barriers to persistence and success (Tinto, 1993 Astin, 1993, Seymour & Hewitt, 1997). Despite the “separate but equal” challenge surrounding the early establishment of US educational institutions, the US remains a model for accessible and affordable education. Social equity concerning URM student outcomes in STEM has become a prominent topic of discussion. Researchers and practitioners seek to understand why the growing disparity exists for minority students as this underserved population represents those that higher education has been least successful in educating (Bensimon, 2007). This daunting assertion of disparate educational attainment by race and ethnicity is alarming. In this study the researcher used archived data and web content analysis to conduct a quantitative study to understand the effect of institutional constructs on the graduation rate of African American students pursing engineering degrees. The research model included hypotheses resulting from independent institutional variables of African American engineering students, institutional size and type, institutional endowment and social equity initiatives. The dependent variable of African American engineering student graduation rates was considered in relation to each independent variable. To answer research questions 1 and 2, descriptive statistics were used to analyze data that provided a comprehensive description of the institutions’ resources and social equity initiatives. Spearman’s Rho with ordinal variables and a small number of cases were computed to analyze the data. This analysis revealed a positive correlation between the numbers of social equity initiatives and engineering graduation rates of African American students at PWI southeast land-grant colleges and universities located in the southeastern portion of the U.S. The outcomes of this study help to expand the literature on underrepresented minority (URM) STEM retention in higher education. Understanding the effects of institutional constructs on the success of African American engineering students allows for the implementation of effective intervention strategies that will help to increase the pipeline of well-prepared African American engineers for the global STEM workforce

Characterization of the Role of Hepatoma-Derived Growth Factor-Related Protein 2 in Heterochromatin Biology

An organism’s genome stores its unique, hereditary information in the form of DNA. Sequences of DNA are segmented into individual genes, about 1% of which encode for proteins that serve specialized roles in cells that are dependent on time and location of expression. Therefore, precise control of gene expression patterns is critical for proper cellular development, differentiation, and function. Because each cell contains identical genetic information and the DNA molecules within each cell contain approximately 3 million base pairs collectively, epigenetic mechanisms promote the compaction of DNA around histone proteins, forming a dynamic macromolecular complex called chromatin. Chromatin regulatory proteins can enhance or occlude access to transcriptional machinery, allowing for conditional expression of underlying sequences. Disruption of this carefully balanced system often leads to developmental errors or disease. Therefore, characterization of epigenetic regulatory pathways is integral to prevention and correction of cellular defects. The heterochromatin protein 1, or HP1, pathway and human silencing hub, or HUSH, complex compress and silence genes by adding repressive trimethyl modifications to lysine 9 of histone H3, which forms heterochromatin. Dysregulation of these pathways results in aberrant expression of genes, driving diseases such as breast and pancreatic cancers. The complete mechanisms of HP1- and HUSH- mediated gene silencing, characterization of their molecular components, and distinctions between HP1- and HUSH-designated functions are still active areas of research. Proteomics studies from our lab and the Lindsey James lab found that hepatoma-derived growth factor-related protein 2, or HRP2, enriched with inhibitors of both the HP1 pathway and MPP8, the chromatin-binding component of HUSH. Here, we characterized HRP2 as an integrated component of both key heterochromatin regulatory pathways. Using several cell lines and cutting-edge techniques, such as CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genetic engineering, the Chromatin in vivo Assay, flow cytometry, and chromatin-immunoprecipitation, we show that HRP2 stably interacts with HP1 and HUSH to influence heterochromatin dynamics and alter gene expression. These findings identify a previously unknown contributor to heterochromatin stability and provide a pivotal connection between two prominent repressive complexes. Future genome-wide analyses will be important for comprehensively understanding the implications of HRP2 dysregulation in development and disease.Doctor of Philosoph

Delivery of care in perinatal mental health: A systematic review and meta-analysis of psychological interventions for perinatal anxiety and a qualitative exploration of healthcare professionals’ experiences of working with women experiencing perinatal mental health difficulties

Background: Perinatal mental health (PMH) is a significant global public health concern. Up to 20% of women will experience mental health difficulties during the perinatal period (conception to one-year post childbirth; Jones et al., 2014). Perinatal mental health difficulties (PMHDs) can have a significant and detrimental impact on women, their infants and families (Silverwood et al., 2019). Improving service provision and care pathways for PMH is regarded as a public health priority for both the UK and Scottish Governments. This thesis aims to extend the current evidence base by providing a systematic review and meta-analysis of the psychological treatments for perinatal anxiety and by qualitatively exploring the personal experiences of healthcare professionals working with women experiencing PMHDs in non-specialist settings. Method: The review involved conducting a systematic search of relevant online databases to identify appropriate articles which were then selected by utilising pre-set inclusion and exclusion criteria. This process led to the identification of 16 articles, 12 of which were included in the meta-analysis. The methodological quality and risk of bias of each included study were independently evaluated by two reviewers using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials. The qualitative empirical study involved conducting in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 13 community-based healthcare professionals. These interviews were digitally recorded and transcribed verbatim. The transcripts were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Results: The meta-analysis found that psychological interventions were more effective than control conditions in reducing symptoms of perinatal anxiety, with a medium post treatment effect size. The results also indicated support for the use of group-based and self-guided interventions, and both face to face and online delivery methods. In addition, small but significant effect sizes were found for both Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Mindfulness Based Interventions (MBIs) in the treatment of perinatal anxiety. In the qualitative study, a number of superordinate and subordinate themes emerged from the analysis of the interview transcripts. The five superordinate themes were: navigating a complex system, two lives to care for, “working at the coalface”, “it’s okay to talk about it” and needs led interventions. Conclusions: From the results of the review, it is suggested that psychological interventions should be made more readily available for women experiencing anxiety during pregnancy and in the postnatal period. Both CBT and MBIs demonstrated effectiveness, as did group-based, self-guided, online and face to face interventions, suggesting that therapeutic modality, type of intervention and mode of delivery could be tailored to meet the individual and perinatal-specific needs of each woman. The results of the empirical study suggest that the delivery of care to women experiencing PMHDs is common across a number of professions and services. Whilst this is a common occurrence, participants indicated that the difficulties women experience are often complex and multifaceted, and practitioners often feel that they have not received sufficient training to confidently address concerns and deliver care. In addition, the findings suggested that there were a number of service and organisational barriers that impacted on their ability to deliver an optimal integrated and multi-disciplinary approach