Eulogy to Architecture: The Three-Dimensional Collage City of Nostalgia

In our time of existence on the Earth, human beings have designed and realized beautiful things. As we face the challenges that confront us today, we begin to understand the fragility of humankind’s creations. Many of the world’s cities and buildings lie in ruins, gazed at by tourists, studied by scholars, while more lie buried in the ground for hundreds of years, some never to be rediscovered. Everything around us is an accumulation of knowledge and ideas built upon for centuries, now facing questionable circumstances. Of course, the more recent Aleppo and other Middle Eastern cities have fallen subject to bombings over the past years, now lost forever. Climate change threatens coastal cities around the world; natural disasters unexpectedly take from our grasp things that we have had for centuries. Nothing is for certain. Nothing lasts forever. Every built structure, no matter the value, eventually falls. What if the earth is one day no longer ours? Its livelihood depends on us, and our sustained wars and climatic abuse continue to decay the soil we walk on and the air we breathe. Will humans be forced from the planet that we have forever called home? This project imagines a new world built on the framework of nostalgia. It is a eulogy to architecture, a compilation of fragments of our world to recreate a place once lost. The city is designed as a three-dimensionalization of Rowe’s Collage City so as to create an assemblage of parts that form a whole. Various scales of fragments of earth, ranging from single buildings to neighborhood fabrics, are arranged in a volumetric space. This space is located away from the gravitational pull of the Earth, making it possible to collage fragments vertically as well as horizontally. The city embraces both the beauty and imperfections of the collected places. To call it a utopia is forward, considering that the majority of each of the employed places were not originally designed as utopian; thus one cannot project utopianism upon them simply because they have a diĐerent context. One might question how an organic system of organization could ever be considered utopian, considering the lack of planning. However, if utopianism is based on the perfection of the human itself rather than the environment, this city aims to imbue a sense of nostalgia in each human mind, with the idea that these places are inherently important to us as a species and to our connection to Earth itself. This project is a visual essay about the importance of what humans have created for themselves on the Earth. It is a conceptual idea that aims to transcend fears of loss by giving hope for a new world collaged from existing fragments of built fabric

Moving to the Beat: The Role of Movement on the Perception of Musical Expressivity

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect body movement would have on listeners’ (N = 7) perceptions of the musical expressivity of different conducting patterns. An audio/video recording of a conductor from the University of Southern Mississippi was used for the stimulus, and listeners were asked to rate each video recording on perceived expressiveness, congruency between movement and music, and participant’s willingness to play under each conducting style. While the video portion of the stimulus changed to reflect two different conducting styles (beat centric – traditional movements that adhere to notated meter, non-beat centric – non-traditional movements that do not adhere to notated meter) and two different musical excerpts (a ballad excerpt from Lincolnshire Posy by Percy Grainger and an excerpt from the march The Glory of the Yankee Navy by John Philip Sousa), the audio portion of the stimulus remained the same. Results indicated that the different conducting patterns did affect listeners’ ratings of perceived expressivity, enjoyment of the conducting style, and congruency between the movement and music. The different musical excerpts also affected listeners’ perceptions of musical expressivity in favor of the ballad excerpt. The sample size for this study was small, so implications and suggestions for future research are discussed

Nebraska Extension educators bring entrepreneurship education to Georgia and Armenia

In a unique initiative by the American Councils for International Education, Nebraska Extension educators Molly Brandt and Marilyn Schlake were invited to travel to the countries of Georgia and Armenia in 2022 to train local educators in the principles of the 4-H Entrepreneurship Investigation (ESI) curriculum. Brandt, an innovation and entrepreneurship 4-H educator, and Schlake, a Rural Prosperity Nebraska educator in the Department of Agricultural Economics, prepared for what they thought was a one-time experience. However, after their successful endeavor in Tbilisi, Georgia, in October 2022, they were invited back in April 2023, to deliver similar training in Yerevan, Armenia

Family Semiotics and the Experience of Women in the Early American Republic

This thesis addresses the familial roles occupied by women in the Early American Republic (c.1770s-1820s), when, despite a lack of direct political power, they inherited aspects of the Revolution and were invested with a sense of political and educational responsibility for imparting republican values to future generations. In an era and a historiography dominated by 'Founding Fathers', it considers how familial semiotics were expressed and historicised, to emphasise particular female analogies, aspirations, and limitations. A young woman played a variety of familial roles; mother, wife, sister, and daughter; all of which retained its own expectations and responsibilities and consequently placed a heavy burden on the shoulders of the daughters of the revolution. The thesis addresses how familial concepts were invoked at the time and subsequently engaged - both within and beyond scholarship - drawing on an interdisciplinary American Studies framework and sources in visual and popular culture as well as historical texts. It argues we need to extend the family metaphor to incorporate daughterhood and sisterhood, constructing an overarching image of womanhood and its many layers. This reflection of womanhood and the new female identity that was forged in the private sphere, is portrayed through case studies of three prominent female figures. These case studies are broken down into individual familial terms to signpost how their responsibilities changed as they matured; to showcase their dedication to the republic; and to highlight the differences between the male and female roles in society. The thesis closes by drawing on a multi-disciplinary approach to consider the legacies of 'Founding Mothers' and how these female revolutionaries were romanticised and folded into notions of identity and politics in different ways. Their lives were viewed and deployed differently from their male counterparts, but it remains vital that scholars continue to address and develop their meanings, whilst portraying the value of the domestic sphere and kinship

The Future of Aging in the Town of Chatham: Chatham Council on Aging Needs Assessment Study

This report describes efforts undertaken by the Town of Chatham Council on Aging (COA), in partnership with the Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging within the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts Boston, to investigate the needs, interests, preferences, and opinions of Chatham’s older population. The focus of this report is on two cohorts of Chatham’s residents—those aged 50 to 59, and those individuals who are currently aged 60 and over. The content of this report is intended to inform the Town of Chatham, the Chatham Council on Aging, and organizations that provide services to older residents, as well as those who advocate for older people, and community members at large

Utilization of Herbal Medicines among Diabetic Patients Attending Kenyatta National Hospital Outpatient Clinic

Background: World Health Organization has estimated that 70-90 % of Africa’s population still relies on herbal remedies in order to meet their healthcare needs. Although the role of herbal medicines in the management of diabetes is an emerging health issue, use of herb remedies is common among diabetics. Objectives: To evaluate knowledge, perception and describe the pattern of utilization of herbal medicines among diabetic outpatients at Kenyatta National Hospital. Methodology: The study was a tertiary hospital-based cross sectional study. Simple random sampling technique was used to select 251 adult diabetic outpatients who were interviewed. Data was captured into Microsoft Excel computer software and then exported to SPSS version 17.0 for analysis. Descriptive data was analyzed quantitatively and presented in form of charts and tables as appropriate. Statistical significance was determined using Pearson Chi Square at p<0.05. Where numbers of participants were too small, Fishers exact results were used. Results: The prevalence of use of herbal remedies for managing diabetes mellitus was 7.2%. However, the total prevalence of use of herbs among the diabetic outpatients was 39.5% implying that 32.3% of the study participants used herbs for other medical conditions. The commonest herbs used were ginger and Aloe vera used by 50% of the herbal users. Almost half of the herb users did not regard it important to inform the doctor about their use of herbs. The reasons given for use of herbal medicines were varied; the commonest being that herbs could easily be accessed 13 (13.1%) of the herbal users. There was no statistically significant relationship between socio-demographic characteristics and use of herbs (P>0.05). Conclusion: About 40% of diabetic outpatients are in some form of herbal remedy. In addition, 1 out of 5 of diabetic herbal users use them for managing diabetes; commonest herbs being Aloe vera and ginger. Therefore, healthcare workers and researchers should find ways of harmonizing the utilization of herbal and conventional medicines amongst diabetic patients

The Future of Aging in the Town of Brewster: Brewster Council on Aging Needs Assessment Study

This report describes efforts undertaken by the Town of Brewster Council on Aging, in partnership with the Center for Social and Demographic Research on Aging within the Gerontology Institute at the University of Massachusetts Boston, to investigate the needs, interests, preferences, and opinions of Brewster’s older population. The focus of this report is on two cohorts of Brewster’s residents — those aged 45 to 59, and the cohort of individuals who are currently aged 60 and over (“seniors”). The content of this report is intended to inform the Town of Brewster, the Brewster Council on Aging, and organizations that provide services to older residents, as well as those who advocate for older people, and community members at large

The Lived Experiences of Post-Operative Pain Management for Patients with Fibromyalgia

This review introduces an initial understanding of fibromyalgia and then focuses on the lived experiences of post-operative pain management for patients with fibromyalgia; this is a specific period within fibromyalgia patients’ healthcare journey that has not been identified within research. Most research on fibromyalgia is related to overall, day-to-day pain within fibromyalgia or specific pharmacological or non-pharmacological outcomes following specific surgery. This review relates to post-operative pain management when undergoing nonfibromyalgia related surgery and how various factors contribute to fibromyalgia patients’ pain. It highlights the reduced pain assessments and management pathways available specific to fibromyalgia pain and new acute surgical pain. If further research was to be undertaken, then a blanket post-operative surgical pathway could be introduced specifically for fibromyalgia patients to improve their surgical experience and reduce symptoms and co-morbidities from being exacerbated during the post-operative period. This research could also promote the education of healthcare professionals and introduce new guidance and pathways to help individualise pain plans for all fibromyalgia patients in the pre-operative periods to prepare for the post-operative stage. Having a wider knowledge base of pain assessments, management and analgesia for fibromyalgia patients will allow them to be assessed correctly with a personalised pain plan that relates to their individual pain instead of being based on the surgical procedure undertaken. It will also help decrease the stigmatism around fibromyalgia, as due to limited knowledge biases have been identified leading to fibromyalgia patients feeling isolated and misjudged. Many nurses have highlighted the importance of the wider knowledge of fibromyalgia, and many would like to increase their knowledge to improve overall patient experience and quality of care provided

Age-Friendly Yarmouth Needs Assessment Report

Communities throughout the nation are pursuing new strategies to promote health and quality of life among their residents. In 2014, the Town of Yarmouth joined the Age-Friendly Network through the World Health Organization and embarked on a five-year process to evaluate the community’s age-friendly features, plan for improvements, and implement change. The primary purpose of this report is to describe findings developed as part of the initial needs assessment phase of Yarmouth’s age-friendly initiative

Understanding determinants of acute stroke thrombolysis using the tailored implementation for chronic diseases framework: a qualitative study

Abstract Background The Tailored Implementation in Chronic Disease (TICD) framework is a comprehensive framework describing the determinants of implementation success that has been used extensively in primary care settings. We explored the utility of the TICD to identify determinants of practice in an acute setting, namely guideline concordant acute stroke thrombolysis in a low-resourced, predominately minority serving, large, Emergency Department (ED). Methods Through workshops and expert review, we developed an interview guide informed by the TICD framework. We then conducted semi-structured interviews with data collected through written transcripts, audio transcripts or interviewer notes based on participant availability. Three independent coders then performed a content analysis using template analysis, but open to new determinants that arose from the data, into the TICD framework. Results We performed a total of 15 semi-structured interviews with ED acute stroke providers including medical technicians, nurses, and physicians. We found that guideline factors, individual health professional factors, and patient factors domains were barriers to guideline concordant acute stroke thrombolysis. The domain professional interactions was a facilitator to treatment. We identified three determinants, healthcare professional burnout, health care professional turnover and surrogate decision making, that are not part of the TICD framework. Conclusions Most determinants of acute stroke thrombolysis are included within the TICD framework. Inclusion of healthcare professional burnout, healthcare professional turnover and surrogate decision making may assist in expanding the TICD to time-sensitive ED conditions. Further work is needed to confirm this finding and to establish whether the TICD is applicable for use in non-time sensitive ED conditions. Interventions that address guideline, individual health professional and patient factors may improve guideline concordant acute stroke thrombolysis.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148315/1/12913_2019_Article_4012.pd