The Effect of Social Security on Elderly Migration and Location Choice

Increasing taxation, reducing benefits, and raising the retirement age are popular topics of debate surrounding the Social Security program. Past research has shown that lower benefits decrease independent living and homeownership, and increases poverty amongst the elderly. However, the ability to live in desirable locations also impacts welfare. How do Social Security benefits reductions impact elderly migration and location choice? Higher local wages generally compensate higher local housing costs. However, unlike their children, Social Security recipients have mostly retired. With soaring metropolitan real estate prices and rent hikes, are those relying on Social Security benefits forced to move from high-cost to low-cost locations? What are the impacts on welfare if the elderly must live in lower-cost areas or potentially live farther from their children? I shed light on these questions by exploiting the Social Security notch to examine the effects of an exogenous decrease in Social Security benefits on where the elderly have chosen to live

Experience of and support for beginning English teachers : a qualitative Hong Kong case study

This thesis reports on qualitative case study research into the experience of six novice English teachers in Hong Kong (HK). It describes their perceived experience, particularly the problems and challenges they encountered, as well as the induction and mentoring support they received during the first year of teaching. While the benefits of different forms of induction support (mentoring in particular) have been established, few studies have focused on specific factors that affect the perceived effectiveness of mentoring, from the point of view of both the mentors and the mentees. The current study therefore breaks new ground in investigating the perspectives of different stakeholders in the mentoring process. What is more, the majority of research reports the nature of the first year of teaching in one snapshot, often not paying attention to the professional development and changes throughout the year. The study follows a group of novice language teachers for the whole of their first year in teaching. The purpose of the case study is to give voice to the perspectives of individual novice teachers within the complex wider sociocultural context that these teachers have to negotiate. Consequently, the thesis begins by establishing key aspects of the HK context that impact on the experience of HK teachers and especially that of novice teachers in their first year. It then provides a literature review that details important contributions to an international understanding of induction and mentoring, as well as relating these to the specific HK situation. After presenting the research methodology and the issues involved, the thesis provides a discussion that both details the needs and challenges of the six participating novices and investigates the provision and perception of school-based induction and mentoring, as well as the roles these mechanisms play in their professional development, support and socialisation. As a subsidiary research question, the project also investigates whether and how the Induction Tool Kit (ACTEQ, 2009), the first official document supporting HK schools in providing support for beginning teachers, is used in schools the participants teach in. It also examines how challenges of first-year teachers, support for them, and professional development are understood by ACTEQ, the commission that advises the HK government on teacher education and development policies, manifested in the design and language of the tool kit. These are compared to the actual experience of the participating novices in the case study. The thesis concludes by suggesting the implications of the findings, as well as providing recommendations on how ACTEQ, teacher-training universities and schools can better support novice English language teachers and their mentors. The limitations of the project and ways of disseminating the findings will also be discussed after outlining these contributions

Coating of particulates by bottom-spray air suspension processes

Ph.DDOCTOR OF PHILOSOPH

University campus as service site : addressing campus needs through service-learning

Service-Learning (S-L) has been proven in many studies to be a good means for promoting university students’ civic / community engagement (e.g. Vickers, Harris & McCarthy, 2004; Astin et al., 2006). A vast majority of the services in S-L courses in Higher Education take place in partnering service agencies and communities they serve, such as elderly homes and social enterprises. The idea that university campus is a community with unique needs and therefore a potential service site is often neglected. There are indeed social needs within university campuses, such as food waste (e.g. UC Berkeley, 2012; The City University of Hong Kong, 2012) and food insecurity (e.g. The Florida State University, 2013), which have been identified and addressed by students and faculty, albeit few. At Lingnan University, Hong Kong, the Office of S-L offers an introductory S-L course, titled Community Engagement through Service-Learning. Students are exposed to the basic S-L theories and engage in discussion related to social welfare, a selection of social issues, S-L and critical reflection. They are also required to design, implement and evaluate a S-L project that addresses a specific need on the Lingnan campus. This study aims to explore the impact of different service site arrangements on students’ perceived learning outcomes (with regard to the generic intended outcomes for all S-L courses in the university) and service experience. This will be done qualitatively, by analysing the contents of students’ group project proposals and final reports, as well as that of a mid-term reflective meeting and an end-of-term focus group with the students (N=7). Also, half of the class (4 out of 7) have had S-L experience in other courses, in which they served in external agencies. They will be able to offer comparisons between these two types of service experience (i.e. those on campus and outside campus). The preliminary findings will be available in late May, 2013

Propofol inhibits the voltage-gated sodium channel NaChBac at multiple sites.

Voltage-gated sodium (NaV) channels are important targets of general anesthetics, including the intravenous anesthetic propofol. Electrophysiology studies on the prokaryotic NaV channel NaChBac have demonstrated that propofol promotes channel activation and accelerates activation-coupled inactivation, but the molecular mechanisms of these effects are unclear. Here, guided by computational docking and molecular dynamics simulations, we predict several propofol-binding sites in NaChBac. We then strategically place small fluorinated probes at these putative binding sites and experimentally quantify the interaction strengths with a fluorinated propofol analogue, 4-fluoropropofol. In vitro and in vivo measurements show that 4-fluoropropofol and propofol have similar effects on NaChBac function and nearly identical anesthetizing effects on tadpole mobility. Using quantitative analysis by 19F-NMR saturation transfer difference spectroscopy, we reveal strong intermolecular cross-relaxation rate constants between 4-fluoropropofol and four different regions of NaChBac, including the activation gate and selectivity filter in the pore, the voltage sensing domain, and the S4-S5 linker. Unlike volatile anesthetics, 4-fluoropropofol does not bind to the extracellular interface of the pore domain. Collectively, our results show that propofol inhibits NaChBac at multiple sites, likely with distinct modes of action. This study provides a molecular basis for understanding the net inhibitory action of propofol on NaV channels. © 2018 Wang et al

Genome-wide analysis of a avirulent and reveal the strain induces pro-tective immunity against challenge with virulent Streptococcus suis Serotype 2

BACKGROUND: It was previously reported in China that two recent large-scale outbreaks of Streptococcus suis serotype 2 (S. suis 2) infections in human were caused by two highly virulent S. suis 2 strains, from which a novel genomic island (GEI), associated with disease onset and progression and designated 89 K, was identified. Here, an avirulent strain, 05HAS68, was isolated from a clinically healthy pig. RESULTS: By comparing the genomes of this avirulent strain with virulent strains, it was found that massive genomic rearrangements occurred, resulting in alterations in gene expression that caused enormous single gene gain and loss. Important virulent genes were lost, such as extracellular protein factor (ef) and suilysin (sly) and larger mutants, such as muramidase-released protein (mrp). Piglets vaccinated with the avirulent strain, 05HAS68, had increased TNF-α and IFN-γ levels in the peripheral blood and were fully protected from challenge infection with the most virulent S. suis 2 strain, 05ZYH33. Transfusion of T cells and plasma from vaccinated pigs resulted in protection of recipient animals against the 05ZYH33 challenge. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that analysis genome of the avirulent strains are instrumental in the development of vaccines and for the functional characterization of important of genetic determinants

Teaching and learning global citizenship through service-learning : the success story of cross-border service-learning summer institute, Lingnan University, Hong Kong

Global Citizenship education is an important concept in the curricular reforms worldwide and Lingnan University’s internationalization strategy. Since 2012, this concept has been integrated in the teaching and learning in different Service-Learning courses and programs, including the Cross-Border Service-Learning Summer Institute (SLSI), which is a 7-week summer course (bearing 3 credits) that has been offered since 2010. It is one of the first international Service-Learning programs in Asia that enables students from different cultural backgrounds to engage in learning of and discussion on global issues and their regional implications, as well as putting into practice what they have learned, through services and research. Students learn to be global citizens, being prepared for future social and civic challenges. According to Morais and Ogden (2010), Global Citizenship consists of three dimensions: Social Responsibility, Global Competence and Global Civic Engagement: 1. Social Responsibility: Students can perceive a certain level of interdependence and show concern to others, society and the environment 2. Global Competence: Students are open-minded, actively seeking to understand others’ cultural norms and expectations and utilizing this knowledge to interact, communicate, and work effectively even outside their environment 3. Global Civic Engagement: Students demonstrate a predisposition toward recognizing local, state, national and global community issues and respond through actions such as volunteerism. Service-Learning is the platform in SLSI upon which students become global citizens following these three aspects. They are given the service and research opportunities to apply course materials to authentic situations and develop high-level knowledge and skills (e.g. intercultural competence) in the process. Through the diverse teaching and learning activities (which include guest lectures, Service-Learning practicums both in Hong Kong and Mainland China etc), students’ sense of civic responsibility and qualities as competent global citizens are enhanced. Results from the pre- and post-course questionnaires and content analysis of the end-of-course focus group show that Service-Learning, in particular SLSI, is an effective pedagogy in supporting the development of global citizen efficacy among undergraduate students