Women, Westernization and the Origins of Modern Vietnamese Theatre

Modern spoken theatre emerged in Vietnam in the context of intellectual and social upheaval in the 1920s and 1930s. Plays in this period focused on the status of women, the effects of Westernization and the emergence of Vietnamese nationalism. In Nam Xuong\u27s 1930 play, Ong Tay An-nam, women became conduits through which men expressed their Westernized or nationalist identities

Overcoming cross-cultural group work tensions: mixed student perspectives on the role of social relationships

As universities worldwide rapidly internationalise, higher education classrooms have become unique spaces for collaboration between students from different countries. One common way to encourage collaboration between diverse peers is through group work. However, previous research has highlighted that cross-cultural group work can be challenging and has hinted at potential social tensions. To understand this notion better, we have used robust quantitative tools in this study to select 20 participants from a larger classroom of 860 students to take part in an in-depth qualitative interview about cross-cultural group work experiences. Participant views on social tensions in cross-cultural group work were elicited using a unique mediating artefact method to encourage reflection and in-depth discussion. In our analysis of emergent interview themes, we compared student perspectives on the role of social relationships in group work by their academic performance level. Our findings indicated that all students interviewed desired the opportunity to form social relationships with their group work members, but their motivations for doing so varied widely by academic performance level

Treatment of obstructive sleep apnoea leads to improved microvascular endothelial function in the systemic circulation

Background: Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is a common and potentially reversible cause of systemic hypertension. The mechanisms whereby OSA leads to hypertension and the effects of treatment on arterial function, however, are not well established. Microvascular arterial endothelial and smooth muscle function was assessed in subjects with OSA before and after treatment with continuous positive airways pressure (CPAP). Methods: Ten subjects of mean (SE) age 49 (8) years with at least moderately severe OSA had detailed forearm vascular reactivity studies before and after 3 months of CPAP treatment. The systemic circulation was assessed by measuring brachial artery pressure, flow and resistance responses to intra-arterial infusions of acetylcholine (ACh; an endothelium dependent vasodilator), sodium nitroprusside (SNP; an endothelium independent vasodilator), L-NMMA (a nitric oxide (NO) antagonist), and L-arginine (the substrate for NO). Results: Before CPAP, ACh and SNP infusions increased forearm blood flow in a dose dependent manner (p,0.01). After CPAP, endothelium dependent dilation to ACh was significantly increased (434 (23)% of baseline after CPAP v 278 (20)% before CPAP, p,0.001), whereas SNP induced dilation was unchanged. Resting NO production was higher after CPAP, evidenced by a significantly greater reduction in basal flow by L-NMMA (p = 0.05). L-Arginine reversed the effect of L-NMMA in all cases. Conclusion: In patients with OSA, treatment with CPAP improves baseline endothelial NO release and stimulates endothelium dependent vasorelaxation in the systemic circulation. This is a potential mechanism for improving systemic and vascular function in patients with OSA treated with CPAP

Simpson's Paradox, Lord's Paradox, and Suppression Effects are the same phenomenon – the reversal paradox

This article discusses three statistical paradoxes that pervade epidemiological research: Simpson's paradox, Lord's paradox, and suppression. These paradoxes have important implications for the interpretation of evidence from observational studies. This article uses hypothetical scenarios to illustrate how the three paradoxes are different manifestations of one phenomenon – the reversal paradox – depending on whether the outcome and explanatory variables are categorical, continuous or a combination of both; this renders the issues and remedies for any one to be similar for all three. Although the three statistical paradoxes occur in different types of variables, they share the same characteristic: the association between two variables can be reversed, diminished, or enhanced when another variable is statistically controlled for. Understanding the concepts and theory behind these paradoxes provides insights into some controversial or contradictory research findings. These paradoxes show that prior knowledge and underlying causal theory play an important role in the statistical modelling of epidemiological data, where incorrect use of statistical models might produce consistent, replicable, yet erroneous results

Using a conceptual framework during learning attenuates the loss of expert-type knowledge structure

BACKGROUND: During evolution from novice to expert, knowledge structure develops into an abridged network organized around pathophysiological concepts. The objectives of this study were to examine the change in knowledge structure in medical students in one year and to investigate the association between the use of a conceptual framework (diagnostic scheme) and long-term knowledge structure. METHODS: Medical students' knowledge structure of metabolic alkalosis was studied after instruction and one year later using concept-sorting. Knowledge structure was labeled 'expert-type' if students shared ≥ 2 concepts with experts and 'novice-type' if they shared < 2 concepts. Conditional logistic regression was used to study the association between short-term knowledge structure, the use of a diagnostic scheme and long-term knowledge structure. RESULTS: Thirty-four medical students completed the concept-sorting task on both occasions. Twenty-four used a diagnostic scheme for metabolic alkalosis. Short-term knowledge structure was not a correlate of long-term knowledge structure, whereas use of a diagnostic scheme was associated with increased odds of expert-type long-term knowledge structure (odds ratio 12.6 [1.4, 116.0], p = 0.02). There was an interaction between short-term knowledge structure and the use of a diagnostic scheme. In the group who did not use a diagnostic scheme the number of students changing from expert-type to novice-type was greater than vice versa (p = 0.046). There was no significant change in the group that used the diagnostic scheme (p = 0.6). CONCLUSION: The use of a diagnostic scheme by students may attenuate the loss of expert-type knowledge structure

Integrated Ecosystem Assessment: Lake Ontario Water Management

BACKGROUND: Ecosystem management requires organizing, synthesizing, and projecting information at a large scale while simultaneously addressing public interests, dynamic ecological properties, and a continuum of physicochemical conditions. We compared the impacts of seven water level management plans for Lake Ontario on a set of environmental attributes of public relevance. METHODOLOGY AND FINDINGS: Our assessment method was developed with a set of established impact assessment tools (checklists, classifications, matrices, simulations, representative taxa, and performance relations) and the concept of archetypal geomorphic shoreline classes. We considered each environmental attribute and shoreline class in its typical and essential form and predicted how water level change would interact with defining properties. The analysis indicated that about half the shoreline of Lake Ontario is potentially sensitive to water level change with a small portion being highly sensitive. The current water management plan may be best for maintaining the environmental resources. In contrast, a natural water regime plan designed for greatest environmental benefits most often had adverse impacts, impacted most shoreline classes, and the largest portion of the lake coast. Plans that balanced multiple objectives and avoided hydrologic extremes were found to be similar relative to the environment, low on adverse impacts, and had many minor impacts across many shoreline classes. SIGNIFICANCE: The Lake Ontario ecosystem assessment provided information that can inform decisions about water management and the environment. No approach and set of methods will perfectly and unarguably accomplish integrated ecosystem assessment. For managing water levels in Lake Ontario, we found that there are no uniformly good and bad options for environmental conservation. The scientific challenge was selecting a set of tools and practices to present broad, relevant, unbiased, and accessible information to guide decision-making on a set of management options