Research Issues Surrounding Holocaust Survivors: Adaptability and Aging

The thesis of this article is that, in spite of a large body of literature on the subject, a significant need exists for sociological research on the long-term consequences of the trauma experienced by survivors of Nazi concentration camps. Most of what is known about the adjustment of Holocaust survivors is based upon limited case histories of survivors who sought psychiatric aid, or requested assistance in qualifying for indemnification payments from the German government. The social and psychological dynamics of successful adjustment to life after the traumatic Holocaust experience by the majority of survivors has largely been ignored. Reasons for this oversight are discussed, and several areas of further research are suggested

Filial factors of kwashiorkor survival in urban Ghana: Rediscovering the roles of the extended family

This paper discusses the findings of two field studies in urban Accra, Ghana that investigated the social and familial factors that were associated with survival of childhood kwashiorkor, a protein-caloric deficiency form of malnutrition that is endemic in that nation. Data was collected from qualitative interviews with family groups that included teenaged survivors of kwashiorkor, and the adults who were involved in the young person’s childhood rearing, including those who were  responsible for compliance with the Ghana Ministry of Health malnutrition  rehabilitation effort. Extensive interviews were documented in audio and video tape and field notes by a team that included the fields of social work, public health, nursing and sociology. All members of the participating families who were involved in the data collection were offered compensation for their time as well as full protection of privacy through the human subjects informed consent protocol and oversight of the University of Ghana, Eastern Michigan University and Wayne State University. The findings included reporting of a consistently critical role of the grandmothers and other senior women in the family units. The senior women either managed the economics and maintenance of the extended household, or took  principal responsibility for sustaining the malnourished children’s participation in rehabilitation efforts. In some cases, the mothers were deceased and two or more senior women in the family carried out roles of parenting as well as familial  economic support and coordination of care for the afflicted child. The findings  suggest that full compliance with rehabilitation efforts for a single mother with multiple children and no extended familial support system would be very difficult and more likely to result in non-compliance and failure of the child to survive.   Suggestions are offered for family oriented, community health education regarding the irony of this form of malnutrition being endemic in communities that do not lack appropriate food. Implications for increased recognition and support for the elderly and senior family members to enhance child survival are discussed within the  context of changing social and epidemiological profiles of urban centers in Ghana and elsewhere among developing nations of sub- Saharan Africa.Keywords: Kwashiorkor, Malnutrition, Rehabilitation compliance, Grandmothers, Endemic malnutritio

Economic crisis of opportunity? The ageing of Africa 2015–2050

Note: There is no abstract for this article. What follows is the first paragraph of the paper The purpose of this brief discussion is to highlight issues of demographic changes associated with an ageing population in Africa and what, I believe, must happen to avoid the next social crisis among African nations, especially here in Ghana. However, this is not a discussion of doom, gloom and crisis, because the demographic changes that I will discuss are products of development. These are problems to overcome, for certain, but also opportunities that we hope become part of the current agenda throughout Ghanaian society instead of considered only to be a remote or theoretical concern of the future

The Atmospheric Effects of Stratospheric Aircraft: a First Program Report

Studies have indicated that, with sufficient technology development, high speed civil transport aircraft could be economically competitive with long haul subsonic aircraft. However, uncertainty about atmospheric pollution, along with community noise and sonic boom, continues to be a major concern; and this is addressed in the planned 6 yr HSRP begun in 1990. Building on NASA's research in atmospheric science and emissions reduction, the AESA studies particularly emphasizing stratospheric ozone effects. Because it will not be possible to directly measure the impact of an HSCT aircraft fleet on the atmosphere, the only means of assessment will be prediction. The process of establishing credibility for the predicted effects will likely be complex and involve continued model development and testing against climatological patterns. Lab simulation of heterogeneous chemistry and other effects will continue to be used to improve the current models

Clinical Case Mix and other Challenges to Detroit\u27s Medicaid-Dependent Nursing Homes

Nursing homes that care for the poor in Detroit are frequently dependent upon Medicaid as their principal source of revenue. These facilities face numerous challenges because they face limited resources for maintenance of facilities, staff and administrative supports, and other normal costs. They lack the kinds of support that are provided in-kind, or by more generous sources of revenue and are often characterized as institutions of poor quality; yet nearly 70% of the nation’s Medicaid-recipient elderly nursing home patients are in for-profit facilities that are sustained largely on Medicaid funding. These facilities are often sources of care for underserved minority populations, the adult mentally-ill, and others for whom alternative venues of care are no longer available. The case mix of aged, mentally ill, and numerous other chronic adult conditions is unlike any other health care environment in Michigan, yet the facilities that offer such care are poorly understood and insufficiently supported. The situation has established a health care disparity for the aged, urban poor

Lethal Injection, Politics, and the Future of the Death Penalty

“Welcome and Keynote:” Stephen Bright, Harvey Karp Visiting Lecturer at Yale Law School, and President and Senior Counsel with the Southern Center for Human Rights. (9:00 a.m. - 9:45 a.m.) “The Death Penalty Today: Lethal Injection Issues:” Panel 1 featured Deborah W. Denno, Arthur A. McGivney Professor of Law at Fordham University School of Law; Joel Zivot, Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Surgery at Emory University School of Medicine, and Medical Director of the Cardiothoracic Intensive Care Unit at Emory University Hospital; Eric Berger, Associate Professor of Law at Nebraska College of Law; and Frank Green, Reporter for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Jim Gibson, Associate Dean for Student Affairs and Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, served as moderator. (10:00 a.m. -11:30 a.m.) “The Shifting Politics of the Death Penalty:” Panel 2 featured Mark Earley, former Attorney General of Virginia; Richard B. Roper, Partner with Thompson & Knight LLP, Corinna Barrett Lain, Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law; and Stephen Smith, Professor of Law at Notre Dame Law School. Henry L. Chambers, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, served as moderator. (1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.) “The Future of the Death Penalty:” Panel 3 featured John Douglass, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law; Brandon L. Garrett, Professor of Law at the University of Virginia School of Law; and Richard Dieter, Executive Director of the Death Penalty Information Center. Mary Kelly Tate, Professor of Law at the University of Richmond School of Law, served as moderator. (2:45 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.

The 1995 scientific assessment of the atmospheric effects of stratospheric aircraft

This report provides a scientific assessment of our knowledge concerning the impact of proposed high-speed civil transport (HSCT) aircraft on the atmosphere. It comes at the end of Phase 1 of the Atmospheric Effects of Stratospheric Aircraft element of the NASA High-Speed Research Program. The fundamental problem with stratospheric flight is that pollutant residence times are long because the stratosphere is a region of permanent temperature inversion with stable stratification. Using improved two-dimensional assessment models and detailed fleet emissions scenarios, the assessment examines the possible impact of the range of effluents from aircraft. Emphasis is placed on the effects of NO(x) and H2O on the atmospheric ozone content. Measurements in the plume of an in-flight Concorde supersonic transport indicated a large number of small particles. These measurements, coupled with model sensitivity studies, point out the importance of obtaining a more detailed understanding of the fate of sulfur in the HSCT exhaust. Uncertainties in the current understanding of the processes important for determining the overall effects of HSCT's on the atmosphere are discussed and partially quantified. Research directions are identified to improve the quantification of uncertainties and to reduce their magnitude

Cultivating Agricultural Literacy: Challenge for the Liberal Arts

A review and analysis of 11 pacesetting experiments funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation to generate greater awareness among liberal arts students and faculty about the role and importance ofthe agriculture enterprise to the nation

Different paths to the modern state in Europe: the interaction between domestic political economy and interstate competition

Theoretical work on state formation and capacity has focused mostly on early modern Europe and on the experience of western European states during this period. While a number of European states monopolized domestic tax collection and achieved gains in state capacity during the early modern era, for others revenues stagnated or even declined, and these variations motivated alternative hypotheses for determinants of fiscal and state capacity. In this study we test the basic hypotheses in the existing literature making use of the large date set we have compiled for all of the leading states across the continent. We find strong empirical support for two prevailing threads in the literature, arguing respectively that interstate wars and changes in economic structure towards an urbanized economy had positive fiscal impact. Regarding the main point of contention in the theoretical literature, whether it was representative or authoritarian political regimes that facilitated the gains in fiscal capacity, we do not find conclusive evidence that one performed better than the other. Instead, the empirical evidence we have gathered lends supports to the hypothesis that when under pressure of war, the fiscal performance of representative regimes was better in the more urbanized-commercial economies and the fiscal performance of authoritarian regimes was better in rural-agrarian economie