K-5 Educators\u27 Perceptions of the Role of Speech Language Pathologists

Rarely is a school-based speech language pathologist (SLP) thought of as an active contributor to the achievement of students or to the learning community in general. Researchers have found benefits for students when members of the learning community collaborate, and the SLP should be a part of this community collaboration. This qualitative case study examined elementary school teachers\u27, administrators\u27, and reading specialists\u27 perspectives related to knowledge of and the inclusion of the SLP in the learning community at a local elementary school in central Georgia. Schon\u27s theory of reflective practice and Coleman\u27s theory of social capital provided the conceptual framework. Via an open-ended questionnaire and intensive interviews, 8 educators with 3 or more years of experience in 1 of the K-5 elementary schools in this local community provided data for this study. Data were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed through inductive methods using open and axial coding with thematic analysis. The results of the study showed 4 common themes that the participants felt were important. These themes included the fact that teachers understood the SLP to be a resource, but were unsure how to access their specialty; teachers and SLPs needed allotted time to work together; teachers and SLPs needed to communicate frequently; and teachers desired more knowledge of the SLP\u27s role in the educational setting. Important implications for social change in elementary school learning communities include increasing involvement of the SLP, promoting SLP involvement in the identification of at-risk students, increasing educator awareness of the SLP\u27s benefit, and increasing collaboration between SLPs and educators promoted through a 3-day professional learning project

Social Cognitive Dynamics of Popularity and Indirect Aggression: The Role of Social Goals and Social Intelligence

This study investigated the social goals of adolescents and their use of indirect aggression. Additionally, it examined how gender, peer status (i.e. perceived popularity) and individual differences in social intelligence relate to adolescents' social goals and their use of indirect aggression. 109 seventh-graders completed a social goals measure and the Tromsø Social Intelligence Scale (TSIS; Silvera, Martinussen, & Dahl, 2001). Participants also completed a peer nomination assessment of popularity and indirect aggression. Results indicated reliable associations among social goals and peer-nominated indirect aggression. Gender, popularity, and social intelligence further moderated these associations. These findings suggest that the social goals of adolescents can be a motivating force to engage in hurtful behaviors and provide a framework from which peer relations researchers can improve peer relationships and be better equipped to intervene in indirect aggression

Analytic philosophy for biomedical research: the imperative of applying yesterday's timeless messages to today's impasses

The mantra that "the best way to predict the future is to invent it" (attributed to the computer scientist Alan Kay) exemplifies some of the expectations from the technical and innovative sides of biomedical research at present. However, for technical advancements to make real impacts both on patient health and genuine scientific understanding, quite a number of lingering challenges facing the entire spectrum from protein biology all the way to randomized controlled trials should start to be overcome. The proposal in this chapter is that philosophy is essential in this process. By reviewing select examples from the history of science and philosophy, disciplines which were indistinguishable until the mid-nineteenth century, I argue that progress toward the many impasses in biomedicine can be achieved by emphasizing theoretical work (in the true sense of the word 'theory') as a vital foundation for experimental biology. Furthermore, a philosophical biology program that could provide a framework for theoretical investigations is outlined

Lung deposition of inhaled once-daily long-acting muscarinic antagonists standard jet nebulizer or dry powder inhaler, measured using functional respiratory imaging, in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Background: Data for bronchodilator deposition via nebulizers and dry powder inhalers (DPIs) in the respiratory tract of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are limited. We used functional respiratory imaging (FRI) to determine deposition patterns for revefenacin solution via a PARI LC ® Sprint ® nebulizer and tiotropium powder via HandiHaler ® DPI. Methods: Ten patients with COPD, of whom 9 had severe airflow obstruction, were selected from FLUIDDA’s database. The study did not enroll patients. Drug deposition in the extrathoracic and intrathoracic regions, including the central and peripheral airways was simulated by FRI. The percentage of delivered dose and central-to-peripheral (C/P) deposition ratio for nebulizer and DPI were evaluated. Results: Mean ± standard deviation (SD) age was 64.7 ± 7.1 years, height was 168.8 ± 8.5 cm, and percent predicted forced expiratory volume in 1 s was 40.8 ± 12.3%; 50% of patients were men. At optimal inhalation flow, intrathoracic and peripheral deposition was three-fold higher for revefenacin via nebulizer than tiotropium via HandiHaler (mean ± SD 34.6 ± 8.53% versus 10.9 ± 5.67% and 18.2 ± 4.30% versus 5.8 ± 2.73% of delivered dose, respectively). Similar results were observed for suboptimal flow (mean ± SD percentage of revefenacin versus tiotropium: intrathoracic, 32.1 ± 8.3% versus 15.1 ± 5.9%; peripheral; 16.6 ± 4.1% versus 8.4 ± 2.9%). The C/P deposition ratio for nebulizer was similar to DPI (mean ± SD 0.915 ± 0.241 versus 0.812 ± 0.249 at optimal; 0.947 ± 0.253 versus 0.784 ± 0.219 at suboptimal flow), even though the mass median aerodynamic diameter of revefenacin was higher than tiotropium. C/P deposition ratio for revefenacin decreased after bronchodilation (0.915 ± 0.241 pre-bronchodilation versus 0.799 ± 0.192 post-bronchodilation), suggesting progressively better deposition in the peripheral region, assuming bronchodilation occurred during the nebulization process. Conclusions: These results demonstrate more efficient intrathoracic and peripheral deposition for revefenacin via standard jet nebulizer than tiotropium via HandiHaler, with similar C/P deposition ratio in patients with COPD. Nebulizers are an efficient alternative to DPIs for bronchodilator administration in patients with COPD

Sensing Material Systems - Novel Design Strategies

The development of new building materials has decisively influenced the progression of architecture through the link between built form and available material systems. The new generation of engineered materials are no exception. However, to fully utilise these materials in the design process, there is a need for designers to understand how these new materials perform. In this paper we propose a method for sensing and representing the response of materials to external stimuli, at the early design stage, to help the designer establish a material awareness. We present a novel approach for embedding capacitive sensors into material models in order to improve material performance of designs. The method was applied and tested during two workshops, both discussed in this paper. The outcome is a method for anticipating engineered material behaviour

NAP (Davunetide): The Neuroprotective ADNP Drug Candidate Penetrates Cell Nuclei Explaining Pleiotropic Mechanisms

(1) Background: Recently, we showed aberrant nuclear/cytoplasmic boundaries/activity-dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) distribution in ADNP-mutated cells. This malformation was corrected upon neuronal differentiation by the ADNP-derived fragment drug candidate NAP (davunetide). Here, we investigated the mechanism of NAP nuclear protection. (2) Methods: CRISPR/Cas9 DNA-editing established N1E-115 neuroblastoma cell lines that express two different green fluorescent proteins (GFPs)—labeled mutated ADNP variants (p.Tyr718* and p.Ser403*). Cells were exposed to NAP conjugated to Cy5, followed by live imaging. Cells were further characterized using quantitative morphology/immunocytochemistry/RNA and protein quantifications. (3) Results: NAP rapidly distributed in the cytoplasm and was also seen in the nucleus. Furthermore, reduced microtubule content was observed in the ADNP-mutated cell lines. In parallel, disrupting microtubules by zinc or nocodazole intoxication mimicked ADNP mutation phenotypes and resulted in aberrant nuclear–cytoplasmic boundaries, which were rapidly corrected by NAP treatment. No NAP effects were noted on ADNP levels. Ketamine, used as a control, was ineffective, but both NAP and ketamine exhibited direct interactions with ADNP, as observed via in silico docking. (4) Conclusions: Through a microtubule-linked mechanism, NAP rapidly localized to the cytoplasmic and nuclear compartments, ameliorating mutated ADNP-related deficiencies. These novel findings explain previously published gene expression results and broaden NAP (davunetide) utilization in research and clinical development