Helping veterans through outreach

Master's Project (M.A.) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2017The present Master's project seeks to develop a better understanding of Veterans and what they are going through. Research methods include extensive data on the high suicide rates of Veterans. Veteran and service members are in need of a service to them that will address the issue of suicide and what can be done to help and eliminate this problem. The programs that need to be designed to help needs should be in locations that have Veteran populations so as to serve them with their needs. Ultimately, Veterans Affairs (VA) officials have boosted their mental health personnel and suicide hotline staff in recent years, but at this time their data does not reflect it helping Veterans getting the help that they so desperately need.I. Introduction -- II. Research methods -- III. Literature review -- A. Understanding the veteran and their background -- B. What is being done to help the veteran -- C. Current best practices -- 1. Medical model approach -- 2. Veteran wellness counseling -- 3. Culturally integrated counseling -- V. Program design -- Project Implementation -- VI. Discussion -- VII. Conclusion -- References

Biosatellite environmental control coolant loop system design

Biosatellite 2 environmental control coolant loop syste

Dietary Polyphenols and Periodontitis—A Mini-Review of Literature

Periodontitis, which is a chronic infection and disease of the periodontium, is a significant global health burden and is linked to other chronic health conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Dietary polyphenols present in a wide variety of plant-based foods, herbs, and botanicals have been shown to exert antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and reduced osteoclast and alveolar bone loss activities in animal models of periodontitis. Polyphenol-containing beverages and foods especially green tea and its active catechin epigallocatechin-3-gallate, cranberries, pomegranates, and fruit and vegetable extracts have reported bacteriostatic/bactericidal activity against microbial species such as P. gingivalis and shown total bacterial burden in clinical studies. These polyphenols also exhibit anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, which have the potential to impact various biological mechanisms for reducing the initiation and progression of periodontitis. The main objective of this mini-review is to focus on the mechanisms of action of dietary polyphenols in improving the pathophysiology underlying chronic inflammatory diseases like periodontitis based on pre-clinical and clinical models

A Computer Program for Simplifying Incompletely Specified Sequential Machines Using the Paull and Unger Technique

This report presents a description of a computer program mechanized to perform the Paull and Unger process of simplifying incompletely specified sequential machines. An understanding of the process, as given in Ref. 3, is a prerequisite to the use of the techniques presented in this report. This process has specific application in the design of asynchronous digital machines and was used in the design of operational support equipment for the Mariner 1966 central computer and sequencer. A typical sequential machine design problem is presented to show where the Paull and Unger process has application. A description of the Paull and Unger process together with a description of the computer algorithms used to develop the program mechanization are presented. Several examples are used to clarify the Paull and Unger process and the computer algorithms. Program flow diagrams, program listings, and a program user operating procedures are included as appendixes

Inverter ratio failure detector

A failure detector which detects the failure of a dc to ac inverter is disclosed. The inverter under failureless conditions is characterized by a known linear relationship of its input and output voltages and by a known linear relationship of its input and output currents. The detector includes circuitry which is responsive to the detector's input and output voltages and which provides a failure-indicating signal only when the monitored output voltage is less by a selected factor, than the expected output voltage for the monitored input voltage, based on the known voltages' relationship. Similarly, the detector includes circuitry which is responsive to the input and output currents and provides a failure-indicating signal only when the input current exceeds by a selected factor the expected input current for the monitored output current based on the known currents' relationship

Let\u27s Talk About Sex (Work), Baby: Women College Students And Online Sex Work

INTRODUCTION: Online sex work is becoming an increasingly popular avenue for young women to raise capital. I propose to study the motivations of women-identified undergraduate students who engage in self-produced sex work online, in which they are both privileged and subjugated due to intersecting identities. In particular, this study will examine how college women turned to the online platform, OnlyFans, which evolved from a relatively niche website into a mainstream adult entertainment platform that has allowed many college women to earn an income, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, by posting explicit pictures and videos on the OnlyFans platform to fund their university costs. LITERATURE REVIEW: A review of the existing literature on sex work led me to discover that women college students are an understudied demographic of participants in sex work despite their unique positionality. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY: The aim of this study is to identify interpretative narratives employed by undergraduate women concerning their motivations for producing online sex work. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: The study moves away from the dichotomy of the conflicting paradigms of “empowerment” and “oppression” within sociological and feminist literature on how sex work is conceptualized. METHOD: I propose to conduct this study through Internet and online social research methods, collecting fieldnote data and semistructured interviews of industry participants. PRELIMINARY FINDINGS: Women college students financially profit from sex work; to achieve this end, some women act on agency; other women become victims of an inherently patriarchal system; still others are positioned somewhere in between on the continuum. CONCLUSION AND CONTRIBUTIONS: The results of this study on female college students participating in sex work will add to contemporary feminist literature which seeks to place sex workers on this continuum between agency and exploitation.https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/urs2021socant/1001/thumbnail.jp

Rural Futures: How Can Agricultural Development Lead to a High Quality of Life?

Study Objectives: Uganda, with its wealth of arable land and water resources, has unrealized agricultural development potential. How food is produced and distributed will impact United Nations Millennium Development Goal targets, including the eradication of extreme hunger, reductions in child mortality, and improvements in maternal health and environmental sustainability, yet advances towards the MDG’s have been limited. This study explores how Uganda’s agricultural sector can be developed in a way that improves the quality of life of smallholder farmers in Katente and Namuyenje parishes in Mukono district, Uganda. Ugandan agricultural production is starved of new sources of knowledge and technology, it is undercapitalized, and farm work is increasingly left to an ageing population as youth migrate to Kampala. This study attempts to answer the question: how can agricultural development lead to a high quality of life? To this end the researcher assessed farmer access to sustainable agriculture techniques and marketing strategies, and farmer quality of life in Mukono. Research Methodology: The researcher’s work was supported by VEDCO, a Ugandan NGO that supports sustainable agricultural livelihoods. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of inquiry were used. The researcher observed farms, farming practices, and the living situations of interviewees. The researcher interviewed 29 members of farmer producers groups in Katente and Namuyenje parishes. One interview questionnaire was used for all interviews: it covered basic household demographic information, knowledge of agricultural techniques and challenges, knowledge of marketing strategies, and quality of life indicators. Both qualitative and quantitative measures were used: for example farmers were asked to self-assess their quality of life, and also estimate their average yearly income. Findings and Discussion: The average farmer in Katente and Namuyenje parish is 46 years old, owns 6.25 acres of land, earns UGX 2 million each year, supports seven children, and has had seven years of formal education. All farmers had at least some knowledge of how to prevent soil loss and increase soil fertility, although most lacked a diversity of methods. Pest and disease management was the weakest area of sustainable agricultural knowledge. Drought was the greatest agricultural risk faced by farmers, and most farmers had no technology or knowledge for even partial drought management. Since VEDCO began working in the area farmers have formed producer groups and engaged in collective marketing, but many still face challenges, particularly high input costs for poultry care and low prices for egg sales. Quality of life in the two parishes is fair, based on farmer income, access to health and education services and farmers’ own self-assessment. 84% of farmers have experienced positive income change since they began working with VEDCO. In the future, more sustainable agricultural knowledge transfers are needed in the parishes, along with further farmer training in business and recordkeeping. Technology transfers, including irrigation systems and food processing and storage centers would also improve quality of life

Laban Movement Analysis and Dance Inequality

In this proposal, I am requesting funding to research the intersection of dance inequalities and dance theory – connecting the racism and body image issues of the dance world to potential solutions based in Laban Movement Analysis, a system of dance notation. I intend to continue my academic and bodily research, exploring the six lenses of Laban Movement Analysis in text and in the studio, to gain a deeper understanding of the application of dance theory and therapy to the educational and choreographic processes of dance. Creating inclusive movement while maintaining the authenticity of the choreographic process is a challenge presented in today’s dance community. Though dance therapy continues to move to the forefront of treatments for mental health and physical disabilities, it is rarely applied to dancers themselves. My research will implement an interdisciplinary approach to apply dance theory and therapy to the embodied experience of dancing, to be used at the collegiate education and performance level. Working with my mentor, Dr. Teresa Heiland, and the resources of the LMU Dance Program, I will create a choreographic synthesis of my work with text and embodied experience

Stress as a Moderator of Visual Perception: Do Elevated Stress Levels Interfere with Visual Cognition?

Stress is an unavoidable aspect of human life, and despite a large body of research on stress, the relationship between chronic or traumatic stress and cognition is not yet fully explained. One component lacking research is visual attention, an area of visual cognition which is an essential part of our ability to interact with the world around us. This is especially true in the context of trauma and stress related disorders, and having a better understanding of how traumatic stress impacts attention and perception can inform psychotherapy for these issues. The current study aims to conceptualize how stressors impact the visual perception abilities of college students in a non-clinical population. Utilizing stimulus presentation software, student’s sustained attention, change blindness, and inattentional blindness was measured before and after exposure to either stress inducing or neutral tasks. Participants\u27 preexisting stress levels were measured before engaging in the tasks, and performance of participants with both high and low preexisting stress were compared. Results suggest that acute stress may not have a significant impact on visual attention performance, but that chronic stress does appear to have a detrimental effect on sustained attention and change blindness