The Academic Workplace: Perception versus Reality

Why are faculty becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the quality of the academic workplace? What accounts for burnout and low morale among so many college and university faculty? Is work life for professionals any more satisfying in the business world? What can academic leaders learn from business executives who work vigorously to reenergize their enterprises? Are corporate strategies aimed at enhancing the quality of work life applicable to improving satisfaction and productivity in our colleges and universities? These concerns were addressed by a number of education leaders at a conference on faculty work life jointly sponsored by the New England Resource Center for Higher Education and the New England Board of Higher Education in December 1988. This article sets forth contrasting viewpoints on a range of critical variables that affect the nature of the academic workplace and have a direct impact on the quality of faculty life. In an era of increasingly scarce resources and organizational uncertainty, it is anticipated that the crisis of faculty vitality will intensify. Strategies and options for enhancing the condition of faculty at this critical juncture in academe\u27s history warrant serious attention as higher education in New England charts its future development

The Status of Black and Hispanic Faculty in Massachusetts Colleges and Universities

To implement policies and programs that facilitate recruitment and retention of minority faculty, educators and policymakers must first determine the status of Blacks and Hispanics in the Commonwealth\u27s colleges and universities. The principal objective of this report is to provide that knowledge. The study has a dual purpose: to develop a data base on the availability of and demand for Black and Hispanic faculty in Massachusetts institutions of higher education, and to enhance our understanding of the strategies and programs required to foster recruitment and retention of underrepresented faculty. Furthermore, it seeks to identify hiring trends in different types of institutions in the state. In addition to ascertaining the number of Black and Hispanic faculty in colleges and universities, this study sought to determine the status of Black and Hispanic doctoral students in Massachusetts universities

The Academic Workplace: Perception versus Reality

Why are faculty becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the quality of the academic workplace? What accounts for burnout and low morale among so many college and university faculty? Is work life for professionals any more satisfying in the business world? What can academic leaders learn from business executives who work vigorously to reenergize their enterprises? Are corporate strategies aimed at enhancing the quality of work life applicable to improving satisfaction and productivity in our colleges and universities? These concerns were addressed by a number of education leaders at a conference on faculty work life jointly sponsored by the New England Resource Center for Higher Education and the New England Board of Higher Education in December 1988. This article setsforth contrasting viewpoints on a range of critical variables that affect the nature of the academic workplace and have a direct impact on the quality of faculty life. In an era of increasingly scarce resources and organizational uncertainty, it is anticipated that the crisis of faculty vitality will intensify. Strategies and options for enhancing the condition of faculty at this critical juncture in academe\u27s history warrant serious attention as higher education in New England charts its future development

CHARACTERIZATION OF UMAMI TASTE SENSITIVITY IN CHILDREN WITH AND WITHOUT CANCER

INTRODUCTION: The umami taste comes from glutamate and 5 ribonucleotides including inosinate and guanylate, which appear naturally in many foods. It can be identified by monosodium glutamate, being considered as a subtle taste, but blending well with other tastes, expands and enhances the flavor. OBJECTIVE: to identify umami taste thresholds in children with ALL or NHL and in healthy school children and to correlate taste sensitivity with nutritional status, age and gender. METHODS: The threshold sensitivity test was applied to determine umami taste using 6 solutions containing increasing concentrations of deionized water and monosodium glutamate. Subjects were weighed and measured, and BMI was calculated to determine nutritional status. For statistical analyses were used version 2.6.6 of the R Statistical software and Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests with descriptive levels (p = 0.05). RESULTS: The sample consisted of 102 patients and 42 school children, and that subjects were male (53.9% and 54.8%), eutrophic (63.7% and 69.0%) and aged from 6 to 9 years (58.8% and 52.4%), respectively. Most patients (92.0%) and school children (97.4%) were sensitive to umami taste and had similar umami taste threshold values. No statistically significant difference was found between umami taste thresholds of sensitive patients and school children, BMI, gender. CONCLUSIONS: Perception of umami taste was independent of gender, age, nutritional status or presence of disease

Phase Analysis of Particles Nano Licoo2 as Cathode Materials of Rechargeable Battery Using X-ray Diffractometer

Research of the analysis of particle nano LiCoO2 phase as cathode material of lithium ion based batteries rechargeable using XRD has been done. Particle Nano LiCoO2 are synthesized using planetary milling technique followed by sonication. The morphology of particle nano LiCoO2 are characterized by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) dan Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), the phase of particle nano LiCoO2 have been analyzed using XRD. The results show that the size of the particle nano LiCoO2 isare 20-40 nm, the phase of n-particles LiCoO2 is rhombohedral, R-3m, with a = b = 2.82 Å and c = 14.08 Å, where LiCo formed octahedral symmetry, 3-3m, and CO2 to formed tetrahedral symmetry, 63m

Analyzing sensitiveness to umami taste in children with cancer

O câncer pediátrico possui alta incidência, principalmente a leucemia linfoide aguda e o linfoma não Hodgkin. A quimioterapia, devido a seus efeitos colaterais, diminui a ingestão de alimentos, por causar alteração do paladar, ressecamento da boca, náuseas e ou vômitos. A sensação do gosto é responsável pela detecção e resposta ao estímulo doce, salgado, azedo, amargo e umami, este último proveniente do glutamato monossódico, o qual está relacionado ao aumento da palatabilidade de preparações, fato que pode colaborar para a melhoria da aceitação alimentar em pacientes pediátricos com câncer. O objetivo deste estudo foi identificar os limiares de detecção do gosto umami em crianças portadoras de câncer que seguem os protocolos quimioterápicos: GBTLI LLA 97, 99 e 2009 e LNH 2000. Foi aplicado o teste de sensibilidade de Threshold em duplicata para determinação do limiar do gosto umami, utilizando seis concentrações crescentes de água deionizada e glutamato monossódico. Os dados foram analisados com auxílio do programa Epinfo 6.0. Foram avaliados 69 pacientes, 63,8por cento do sexo masculino; 69,6 por cento portadores de leucemia linfoide aguda e o restante de linfoma não Hodgkin. Em relação à idade, cerca de 69por cento estavam na faixa etária de 6 a 10 anos. A maioria da população (mais de 70 por cento) detectou o gosto umami a partir da segunda concentração oferecida no teste, nas duas aplicações, sendo sensíveis a este gosto. As crianças com câncer em tratamento quimioterápico mostraram-se sensíveis ao gosto umami. A utilização de forma moderada desse componente nas preparações e orientação alimentar adequada pode colaborar para a melhora do estado nutricional das crianças em tratamento quimioterápic

Androgens correlate with increased erythropoiesis in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia.

OBJECTIVE: Hyperandrogenism in congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) provides an in vivo model for exploring the effect of androgens on erythropoiesis in women. We investigated the association of androgens with haemoglobin (Hb) and haematocrit (Hct) in women with CAH. DESIGN: Cross-validation study PATIENTS: Women with CAH from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, UK (cohort 1, the training set: n=23) and National Institutes of Health, USA (cohort 2, the validation set: n=53). MEASUREMENTS: Androgens, full blood count and basic biochemistry, all measured on the same day. Demographic and anthropometric data. RESULTS: Significant age-adjusted correlations (P<0.001) were observed for Ln testosterone with Hb and Hct in cohorts 1 and 2 (Hb r=0.712 & 0.524 and Hct r=0.705 & 0.466), which remained significant after adjustments for CAH status, glucocorticoid treatment dose and serum creatinine. In the combined cohorts Hb correlated with androstenedione (P=0.002) and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (P=0.008). Hb and Hct were significantly higher in cohort 1 than those in cohort 2, while there were no group differences in androgen levels, glucocorticoid treatment dose or body mass index. In both cohorts, women with Hb and Hct in the highest tertile had significantly higher testosterone levels than women with Hb and Hct in the lowest tertile. CONCLUSIONS: In women with CAH, erythropoiesis may be driven by androgens and could be considered a biomarker for disease control