How can project-based mentorships enhance the dietetics profession?

Research Outcomes: The RD Mentorship Program is designed to provide dietetic students (mentee) with the opportunity to gain one-on-one experience with a Registered Dietitian (mentor). This nationwide program evaluates project-based mentorships. Methods: Potential mentors and mentees completed an initial survey that indicated mentor projects and mentee interests. Mentees (n=378) were matched to a mentor (n=264) based on their project preferences and interests. Matches met virtually monthly from September 2020 to April 2021. A mid-program evaluation was sent out in December 2020. Analysis: Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data Results: The mid-program evaluation indicated that 96% (n=265) of participants found the application and matching process good to very good. The majority of mentee participants liked the variety of dietitians and projects. Some of the projects were, but not limited to, the following: social media and website development, food photography, grocery store tours, virtually shadowing, recipe development, community involvement projects, meal plans, writing and research, analyzing recipes for allergens, literature reviews, cooking classes, case studies, creating exams, resume building, newsletters, course development, interviewing skills development, public policy task force, community assessments, reviewing needs assessments, menu reviews and development, podcast development and patient education handouts. Conclusion: Through the RD Mentorship Program’s project-based mentorship format, mentees are exposed to a broad range of activities that Registered Dietitians perform across many sectors. These projects help to build relationships and offer valuable experiential learning opportunities in dietetics

Economic language and economy change: with implications for cyber-physical systems

The implementation of cyber-physical and similar systems depends on prevailing social and economic conditions. It is here argued that, if the effect of these technologies is to be benign, the current neo-liberal economy must change to a radically more cooperative model. In this paper, economy change means a thorough change to a qualitatively different kind of economy. It is contrasted with economic change, which is the kind of minor change usually considered in mainstream discourse. The importance of language is emphasised, including that of techno-optimism and that of economic conservatism. Problems of injustice, strife, and ecological overload cannot be solved by conventional growth together with technical efficiency gains. Rather, a change is advocated from economics-as-usual to a broader concept, oikonomia (root-household management), which takes into account all that contributes to a good life, including what cannot be represented quantitatively. Some elements of such a broader economy (work; basic income; asset and income limits) are discussed. It is argued that the benefits of technology can be enhanced and the ills reduced in such an economy. This is discussed in the case of cyber-physical systems under the headings employment, security, standards and oligopoly, and energy efficiency. The paper concludes that such systems, and similar technological developments, cannot resolve the problems of sustainability within an economy-as-usual model. If, however, there is the will to create a cooperative and sustainable economy, technology can contribute significantly to the resolution of present problems

Bordetella pertussis Infection Exacerbates Influenza Virus Infection through Pertussis Toxin-Mediated Suppression of Innate Immunity

Pertussis (whooping cough) is frequently complicated by concomitant infections with respiratory viruses. Here we report the effect of Bordetella pertussis infection on subsequent influenza virus (PR8) infection in mouse models and the role of pertussis toxin (PT) in this effect. BALB/c mice infected with a wild-type strain of B. pertussis (WT) and subsequently (up to 14 days later) infected with PR8 had significantly increased pulmonary viral titers, lung pathology and mortality compared to mice similarly infected with a PT-deficient mutant strain (ΔPT) and PR8. Substitution of WT infection by intranasal treatment with purified active PT was sufficient to replicate the exacerbating effects on PR8 infection in BALB/c and C57/BL6 mice, but the effects of PT were lost when toxin was administered 24 h after virus inoculation. PT had no effect on virus titers in primary cultures of murine tracheal epithelial cells (mTECs) in vitro, suggesting the toxin targets an early immune response to increase viral titers in the mouse model. However, type I interferon responses were not affected by PT. Whole genome microarray analysis of gene expression in lung tissue from PT-treated and control PR8-infected mice at 12 and 36 h post-virus inoculation revealed that PT treatment suppressed numerous genes associated with communication between innate and adaptive immune responses. In mice depleted of alveolar macrophages, increase of pulmonary viral titers by PT treatment was lost. PT also suppressed levels of IL-1β, IL-12, IFN-γ, IL-6, KC, MCP-1 and TNF-α in the airways after PR8 infection. Furthermore PT treatment inhibited early recruitment of neutrophils and NK cells to the airways. Together these findings demonstrate that infection with B. pertussis through PT activity predisposes the host to exacerbated influenza infection by countering protective innate immune responses that control virus titers

EU security and defence cooperation in times of dissent: analysing PESCO, the European Defence Fund and the European Intervention Initiative (EI2) in the shadow of Brexit

Has the United Kingdom(UK) Brexit referendum been a catalyst for more European Union security cooperation? How significant are post-referendum initiatives in security and defence? What are the implications of Brexit for European Union (EU) and UK security and defence? This article analyses EU post-Brexit strategic choices following the launch of the EU Global Strategy (2016). EU autonomy in security and defence requires close cooperation with third countries, including Norway and post-Brexit UK. It remains to be seen whether the EU and the UK can forge a new bespoke security and defence relationship that delivers mutual benefits through shared strategic ambitions, while also protecting their various interests. We suggest there will be serious collateral damage to UK-EU security and defence cooperation if post-Brexit trade negotiations descend into acrimony and mistrust, especially in the event of “no-deal” once the “transition period” ends. This would undermine European security and the EU’s quest for strategic autonomy in world affairs and have serious implications for both UK and EU security. We conclude that the EU needs to work with the UK on a plan to achieve global strategic autonomy, or both risk reduced influence in the wider world in the years ahead

The EU and Central and Eastern Europe: the absence of inter-regionalism

In contrast to its relations with many other areas of the world, the EU's relations with Central and Eastern Europe are not 'interregional'. The EU has developed intensive bilateral relations with the Central and East European countries, which has allowed it to use economic and political conditionality to encourage them to undertake reforms — and successfully so. It has promoted sub-regional cooperation, but not consistently or extensively, and strong sub-regional groupings have not evolved in Central and Eastern Europe. The 'big-bang' enlargement of 2004 extended the EU's regional model to much of the European continent, but is not an example of interregionalism. The shadow of enlargement has also created considerable challenges for the EU in its relations with its new neighbours