Facilitating Acceptance of Alternative Communication Devices in Classrooms by Teachers

There exists a number of persons who lack adequate speech for communicative purposes. Many of the non-vocal children and adults from these populations have benefitted from the development of various alternative communication devices. The non-vocal individual is one whose speech does not provide a functional means of meeting communication needs. However, this does not necessarily mean that the non-vocal individual has no speech or vocalization at all, nor does it mean that the individual may not develop fully functional speech in the future. (Vanderheiden, 1975). The devices used with these people allow an increase in the abilities to meet various communication needs. Such devices make it possible for the user to transmit desired messages

Protestants and Gaelic culture in 17th-century Ireland

The complex political and religious developments in the seventeenth century continue to be a subject of considerable debate among historians of Ireland. Central to these discussions is the problem of how a Protestant administration with an English monarch as head of state governed a kingdom that was predominantly Catholic and apparently loyal only to the pope. In this scenario Ireland is seen as a country riven by sectarian hatred, where the Protestant "New English" community was continually at loggerheads with its ethnic and religious adversaries: the Old English and native Gaelic Irish. There is little indication that this trend is losing momentum. These acute confessional divisions, manifested in the violence of the 1641 rebellion, still hold centre stage in the study of the seventeenth century. Therefore, the indications are that the current orthodoxy seems set to prevail

Irish warrants— hidden treasures from the East (Riding)

Abstract included in text

‘Value-free’ history? The scholarly network of Sir James Ware

There is a perception of early modern Ireland, particularly during the early Stuart period, as riven with sectarian hatred. Certainly a strong case can be made, given the emphasis on the 1641 rebellion and the stark divisions that subsequently engulfed the kingdom. Thus the conclusion that it was a highly polarised society seems virtually inescapable. But is that the full picture? An examination of the scholarly network created by Sir James Ware (1594–1666), arguably the leading Irish historian and antiquarian of his day, suggests a more polychrome picture

NEONATAL IMMUNE MODULATION TO IMPROVE PNEUMOCYSTIS CLEARANCE

Pneumocystis carinii is an opportunistic fungal pathogen that causes lifethreatening pneumonia in immunocompromised individuals. Infants appear to be particularly susceptible to Pneumocystis (PC) pulmonary infections. The higher incidence of PC as well as other pulmonary infections among infants is likely due to an immature immune system. The neonatal lung environment is deficient immunologically in preterm as well as term infants (1, 2). Decreased phagocytic capacity of macrophages in newborns may increase the risk of infection from inhaled pathogens (1, 2). We have previously demonstrated that there is approximately a 3-week delay in the clearance of PC organisms from pup mouse lungs compared to adults. Herein, we demonstrate that there is also a 1-week delay in the infiltration of AMs in pup compared to adult PC-infected mice. We go on to show that there is a delay in pup versus adult lung macrophage phenotypic expression and cytokine production in response to PC organisms. We demonstrated that pup AMs are competent to produce cytokine in response to LPS and that stimulation with zymosan generates cytokine production in pup AMs that is comparable to adult cytokine production. These data indicate that pup lung macrophages are specifically poorly responsive to PC organisms and likely require exogenous stimulation to mount a significant immune response and expedite clearance of the organism. We go on to show that heat-killed Escheriae coli improves cytokine response, cellular infiltration and reduces organism burden in PC-infected pup mice. The clinically relevant cytokine, GM-CSF, has been used to improve the clearance of several pulmonary infections, including PC in adult animal models. We show that monotherapy with GM-CSF is insufficient to improve PC clearance in pup mice; however, when combined with TMP/SMX it improves PC clearance and maintains a reduced PC burden following discontinuation of therapy. Furthermore, we have shown that GM-CSF improves the ability of human infant lung macrophages to phagocytose PC organsms without generating an increased inflammatory response. These data suggest that combination therapy with TMP/SMX and GM-CSF may be a viable treatment option for infants failing or intolerant to standard therapy

Phase Change Materials for Thermal Management of Kennedy Library Study Rooms

The overall purpose of this study was to find a phase change material (PCM) or a combination of PCMs as a thermal management solution for the fifth-floor study rooms in Kennedy Library. First and foremost, the PCM must take in heat to change phase. A PCM would be a better candidate the more heat it needs to change phase. To quantify this, the team utilized a DSC to find how much energy each candidate PCM required to change phase. Coconut oil, palm oil, and white chocolate were found to have the best ability to absorb heat. Secondly, the PCM should not hinder a study environment by blocking much light entering a room or having a dull color. Most of the team’s candidate PCMs had intriguing colors or phase transition already, but the anhydrous salt was a dull color that didn’t change during the phase transition. To aid the aesthetic appeal of this candidate PCM, an XRF and XRD were used to introduce F-center defects to change the color of the salt. This failed to produce a color change in the salt. The final step for the project is implementation. The team involved several architecture members whose tasks were to find a housing system for the final PCM(s). Glass tiles with a hollow space inside to house the PCM is the team’s proposed solution

Master of Fine Arts

thesisThis thesis explores the potential and the origin of dance and theatre as performing arts. I examine the relationship of the audience to performers, discuss the possibility for ritual and the sacred, and develop ideas for meaningful and effective collaboration of theatre and dance. It is through the lens of my own choreographic work and process of creating Another Night that I explore ideas, methods and theories from theatre and dance practitioners who have paved the way in their investigation and integration of these two ultimately interdependent art forms. Through my research I have come to understand that when the four areas of audience, the sacred, dance and theatre are integrated, artists create more possibilities to communicate with their audiences

XENOBIOTIC TRANSPORTERS IN LACTATING MAMMARY EPITHELIAL CELLS: PREDICTIONS FOR DRUG ACCUMULATION IN BREAST MILK

Recent literature has established that breast cancer resistance protein (ABCG2) is upregulated during lactation and is responsible for the greater than predicted accumulation of many drugs in breast milk. The objectives of this project were (1) to investigate the role of this transporter in the reported apically-directed nitrofurantoin flux in the CIT3 cell culture model of lactation, (2) to develop a mathematical model for drug transfer into breast milk to relate initial flux rates, steady-state concentrations, efflux ratios, and in vivo milk to serum ratios (M/S) and (3) to identify xenobiotic transporters that are highly expressed, and therefore potentially important for drug accumulation during lactation in mice and humans. Expression, localization, and functional assays confirmed that Abcg2 is the molecular mechanism for the apically-directed nitrofurantoin flux in CIT3 cells despite an unchanged expression level following lactogenic hormone stimulation in this model. A simple three compartment model for drug transfer into breast milk incorporating the permeability-surface area products for passive diffusion (PSD), paracellular flux (PSPC), endogenous transporters (PSB,U, PSA,E, PSB,E, and PSA,U), and ABCG2 (PSA,E(ABCG2)) transfection was developed. A stably transfected ABCG2 overexpressing MDCKII cell line was successfully created and used to explore the theoretical relationships of this new model. Derivations and correlations presented herein show the relationships between the calculated efflux ratios, PSA,E(ABCG2), and M/S attributed to ABCG2. Six xenobiotic transporters (Abcg2, Slc22a1, Slc15a2, Slc29a1, Slc16a1, and Abcc5) were identified as upregulated during lactation in murine developmental datasets analyzed by microarray expression profiling. As existing methods were inadequate to obtain pure populations of luminal epithelial cells in sufficient numbers from human breast milk or reduction mammoplasty samples for microarray analysis, a new fluorescence activated cell sorting method was developed and validated. ABCG2, SLC15A2, SLC22A12, SLC6A14, and SLCO4C1 were significantly upregulated 164-, 70-, 41-, 8-, and 2-fold during lactation, respectively. ABCC10, SLC10A1, SLC16A1, SLC22A4, SLC22A5, SLC22A9, SLC28A3, SLC29A1, SLC29A2, and SLCO4A1 had an expression level similar to, or greater than, levels in the kidney or liver. The significant upregulation of SLCO4C1 with ABCG2 is a novel finding that suggests a coordinated vectorial pathway for substrate movement into breast milk

Participation in education, training and development : a study of the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission

This study sought to identify factors that deterred employees of the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission from accessing the training and development fund for personal and professional development. The researcher used an instrument modeled on Darkenwald and Valentine’s (1985) Deterrents to Participation Scale (DPS-G) and incorporated the Rosenberg (1965) Self-Esteem Scale and Robitschek (1998) Personal Growth Initiative Scale to investigate employee perceptions of deterrents to participation. For purposes of this study, participation was defined as enrolment in a course, workshop, seminar or training program for which the employee had requested prior approval and reimbursement of expenses from their employer. Principal components analysis identified the combined category and factor, workplace issues as having the greatest potential for decreasing deterrents to participation for Commission employees. Results indicated (1) the mean score on the item personal growth initiative was significantly lower for respondents with one year of post secondary education than for both respondents with two years and greater than four years of education after high school; (2) the mean score on the item personal growth initiative was significantly lower for respondents in the office and clerical occupational category than for all other Commission work groups. Another significant factor was that thirty-two percent of Commission staffs were eligible to retire within five years. Sixty-six percent of staffs were between the ages of forty-six and sixty. Survey data revealed the mean score on the item lack of relevance was significantly lower for respondents with greater than ten years until retirement than for respondents with three to five years until retirement. This result was anticipated, as Martindale and Drake (1989) clearly indicated that the closer one was to retirement, the less relevant education for career became. Marginally significant difference in the mean score on the item lack of relevance between respondents with one to two years until retirement and those with three to five years revealed a contradicting hypothesis. Participation in education, training, and development was less relevant to persons with three to five years until retirement than for those expecting to retire in one to two years. Personal and family constraints also influenced employee participation in educational opportunities. In order for the Commission to become a learning organization as indicated in the Draft Human Resource and Organizational Learning Strategy, 2003, innovative strategies are required to include all staffs in training and development. Thus, by identifying a framework of deterrents, the Commission could use this checklist as a tool in future planning and policy development efforts related to staff professional development. Participation by Commission employees in surveys related to this study has increased their awareness of opportunities to participate in personal and professional growth initiatives