Women Miners\u27 Fight for Parental Leave

[Excerpt] In the late 1970s, for the first time in our nation\u27s history, coal miners started getting pregnant. In many cases, the mother had spent years fighting to get her coal mining job, fought against sexual harassment and discrimination in the mines, and worked hard to prove her competence and gain acceptance as a miner. For some, pregnancy forced them to quit their jobs, give up their seniority and lose their health insurance just when they needed it most. For others, pregnancy meant worries about the potential effects of mining on the fetus. In response to this problem and to the dramatic need of their union brothers, a small band of women miners—constituting less than 2% of the United Mine Workers of America— developed a campaign for parental leave as a formal employee benefit. At a minimum, parental leave would allow mothers and fathers to safeguard their jobs and insurance coverage while taking adequate time off to safely bring children into the world and to care for them during serious illnesses. The women miners have focused their campaign on two fronts simultaneously — building support for a parental leave clause in the UMWA contract and for federal legislation that would affect all working parents. Both approaches build on each other and connect with the efforts of women in other unions as momentum is gathering for a new approach to the relationship of family and work

Adulterants and interpretive challenges in forensic science: effects on colorimetric spot tests for presumptive drug identification and adverse side effects in the body

A common practice amongst street drug manufacturers and dealers is to combine the illicit drug of abuse they intend to distribute with additional substances. Substances added in an attempt to mimic or enhance the desired effect of the drug of abuse are known as adulterants as opposed to diluents, which are added simply to increase the weight of the product. By definition, an adulterant has a physiological effect on the body and as physiologically active compounds these adulterants may have side effects apart from the drug it is added to. They can be minimal, treatable, or otherwise manageable while others can be worse than those incurred from the drug of abuse itself. Due to varying trends in street drug purity, an effort must be made to understand the effects adulterants and diluents, as well as mixtures thereof, may have on forensic drug analysis. Colorimetric spot test analysis is typically performed using a representative sample of the raw, suspected drug material. These tests are often employed in the lab prior to any attempt to isolate a specific compound or at the scene before an arrest is made. This being the case, the reagents will be exposed to and have the potential to react with anything present in the sample with the drug of abuse. While much work has been done regarding the specificity and cross reactivity of colorimetric spot tests, limited information is available about how mixtures of adulterants may affect the results. This research consists of two parts which approach the common theme of adulterants differently. The first part is a literature based investigation into the pathological side effects of several common drug adulterants. The specific compounds discussed are: levamisole, phenacetin, atropine, and several topical anesthetics (benzocaine, lidocaine, prilocaine, and procaine). A review of articles from the scientific literature was conducted in order to convey what is known in the medical field regarding the effects these compounds can have on the body. The second part of this research was a laboratory based investigation which analyzed the effects of twenty-three common adulterants on two colorimetric spot tests: the Marquis reagent for the presumptive identification of heroin, morphine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, and 3,4-methylenedioxy-N-methamphetamine (MDMA) and the modified Scott test for the presumptive identification of cocaine. This was performed in order to observe the reactivity of these compounds so that a better understanding of the effect their presence can have on the analysis of seized drug samples using these tests could be obtained. The literature review portion of this research revealed that the adulterants levamisole, atropine, phenacetin, and the topical anesthetic adulterants lidocaine, prilocaine, benzocaine, and procaine, can be toxic and have severe, deleterious effects on the body in both chronic and acute exposures. Levamisole stimulates the immune system resulting in the production of self-reactive antibodies that attack neutrophils. This causes an autoimmune disorder that weakens the immune system and causes leukocyte agglutination leading to necrotizing vasculitis. Atropine functions to decrease the parasympathetic tone and increase the sympathetic tone in the body. An overdose can cause anticholinergic toxicity, a syndrome very similar to sympathomimetic toxidrome caused by cocaine overdose. Both are characterized by hypertension, hyperthermia, tachycardia, ataxia, disorientation, and mydriasis. However, they can be distinguished as anticholinergic toxicity causes dry and flush skin and mydriasis which is unreactive to light while sympathomimetic toxidrome causes profuse sweating and mydriasis which is reactive to light. Phenacetin is metabolized to O-ethyl-N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine (O-Et-NAPQI), a highly reactive and unstable electrophile. It is capable of covalently binding with proteins and other cellular components, including deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). This leads to mutagenesis and subsequent tumor generation as well as apoptosis and necrosis of various tissues in the bladder and kidneys. The topical anesthetics have each been associated with the development of methemoglobinemia. This is a condition caused by an increase in the concentration of methemoglobin in the blood. Methemoglobin binds more strongly to oxygen so that it cannot be released to the tissues resulting in oxygen starvation. This was found to be caused by the metabolism of prilocaine and lidocaine to the oxidative compounds O-toluidine and 2,6-xylidine respectively. The cause has not been previously reported for benzocaine or procaine. The laboratory portion of this research revealed the impact several adulterants and their mixtures can have on colorimetric spot tests. Testing with approximately 1 mg of sample material revealed that eight out of the twenty-three adulterants reacted with the Marquis reagent to cause a color change within 15 minutes. Of the ten 3-component mixtures tested, eight resulted in a color change. Of the six five-component mixtures, four resulted in a color change; of the six eight-component mixtures, three resulted in a color change; and of the six ten-component mixtures, five resulted in a color change. Of the color changes observed, none were consistent with the "expected" color change for a presumptively positive result of the Marquis test. Testing with the adulterant diphenhydramine revealed that this compound had a unique and intense reaction with the Marquis reagent. This compound initially reacted by turning the liquid a vibrant yellow-green upon contact with the sample. Prior to 2 minutes, solid red-brown aggregates formed in the liquid and proceeded to increase in size while the reagent solution darkened to a red-black color over the 15 minutes of observation. Mixtures containing diphenhydramine each reacted differently. Solid material did not form in the mixture tests and the color changes observed ranged from light orange to a dark red-orange. In addition, one 3-component mixture containing adulterants which did not cause a color change when tested individually (diltiazem, acetaminophen, and quinine) was observed to cause a light brown color to develop, which darkened over the 15 minutes of observation. The results for the modified Scott test showed that the complexity of this test has made it highly specific for cocaine. None of the individual components or mixtures tested reacted in a manner consistent with a presumptively positive identification for cocaine hydrochloride (HCl) or cocaine base for all three steps. Of the twenty-three adulterants tested, eight of the twenty-three gave a similar result to cocaine base in step 1, however, of these eight, only one (quinine) gave a similar result to cocaine base in step 2, and this adulterant did not react consistently to cocaine base in step 3. The research using the adulterant mixtures revealed that the compounds present in these samples tended to react individually with the modified Scott test reagents. In other words, the results for each mixture appeared as a combination of the individual results for each component. While the results observed for the adulterants and mixtures tested were not consistent with the expected presumptively positive results for the drugs these tests are used to detect, it was concluded that the presence of adulterants in a sample has the potential to affect the results of a colorimetric spot test in a variety of ways. Given that these tests are typically employed on samples of raw suspected drug material, it is important that analysts understand the impact adulterants can have on the interpretation of presumptive drug tests

A Time Geography Approach to Understanding the Impact of Gasoline Price Changes on Traffic Safety.

The impact of gasoline price changes on traffic safety has received increasing attention in empirical studies. However, this important relationship has not been explained within a conceptual or theoretical framework. In this study, we examine this relationship within a time geography framework in an attempt to understand the effect of time-varying fluctuations in gasoline prices and their relationship to traffic safety in a case study of Mississippi from April 2004 to December 2008. We further extend this work by examining the degree to which this relationship is differential in impact by age, gender, and race. The results suggest that changes in gasoline prices have immediate effects on reducing total traffic crashes and crashes of younger drivers, women, and whites. However, changes in gasoline prices do not affect total crashes of older drivers, men, or blacks. Within the theoretical framework of time geography, we understand gasoline prices as one type of capability constraint of the space-time path and space- time prism. As gasoline prices increase (that is, as the capability constraint becomes stronger), traffic crash rates will decrease. However, the effects vary by age, gender, and race because the capability constraint of gasoline prices differs across demographic groups.gasoline prices, traffic incidents, traffic safety, age, gender

Playing the Roles of the Eating Disorder: Suggestions for the Use of Drama Therapy in Adolescent Residential Eating Disorder Treatment

Adolescents with eating disorders are faced with a variety of medical and psychological complications. This literature review examines these complications and the treatments available to adolescents with eating disorders, as well as factors influencing treatment resistance and dropout, specifically at the residential level of care. Additionally, the use of drama therapy as a treatment option for adolescents with eating disorders is explored. The use of role theory and role based work is proposed as a way of tackling treatment resistance in adolescents. Through role-based work, a client is given the opportunity to explore the functional aspects they attribute to their eating disorder, including but not limited to the roles of identity, control, and guardian. Further research recommendations include creating manualized versions of drama therapy for the treatment of eating disorders, additional outcome studies about residential eating disorder treatment, and an exploration of role expansions before and after treatment

The Wesleyan Quadrilateral and Teaching Biblical Studies

Messiah College faculty scholarship papers : submitted by faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for promotion to the rank of professo

Seventh Annual Meeting of the Missouri Society of Teachers of Mathematics and Science

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A PROVIDER NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOR A PULMONARY REHABILITATION PROGRAM AT A RURAL COMMUNITY HOSPITAL

Pulmonary rehabilitation is a comprehensive rehabilitation program that utilizes exercises and education in order to assist with the management of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by decreasing COPD exacerbations and increasing patient quality of life. A critical component to proposing a pulmonary rehabilitation program at a rural community hospital involves the support for a program by the potential referring providers. It is theorized that positive thoughts and attitudes towards pulmonary rehabilitation by providers correlates with support and ongoing success of a pulmonary rehabilitation program. A survey of providers associated with Labette Health was conducted to assess such attitudes and thoughts on pulmonary rehabilitation. Results of the survey indicated that providers were generally supportive of pulmonary rehabilitation and that developing a pulmonary rehabilitation program should be considered by Labette Health administrators