Men Who Care: Analyzing Masculinity within Peer Support Organizations

This study examines the concept of “healthy masculinity” through qualitative interviews with men in peer support roles. Men involved in peer support organizations highlighted values of empathy, understanding, and protecting others as being central to masculinity. Results revealed that men in peer support roles invoked cultural idioms or phrases of masculinity, which centered around the following themes: the lack of men, how men in peer support are different from other men, and how these are the “right kind” of men

The Role of Upper Ocean Heat Content and Sea Surface Temperature on Northeast Pacific Hurricane Evolution during Average and Active Years

Upon comparison to typical neutral-ENSO conditions in the Northeast Pacific Ocean, the 2014 hurricane season has been identified as highly anomalous in both tropical cyclone frequency and intensity. This thesis seeks to investigate the influence of sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and upper ocean heat content (UOHC), defined as the excess of heat present above 26°C, upon the upper ocean thermal structure, mesoscale features, and anomalies that led to an active hurricane season in the Northeast Pacific. The 2012 Northeast Pacific hurricane season was selected as a ‘normal’ season to fully quantify the anomalous 2014 hurricane season. Data sets utilized in this work included optimally interpolated SSTs, UOHC, and the National Hurricane Center’s post-storm observation database. Oceanic variables were extracted nearest-pixel to the hurricane path and were scrutinized through the use of along-track time series analysis, gridded UOHC fields, and a complex scheme of linear regression models. In order to quantify intensity modulation throughout a hurricane, enthalpy flux was calculated along-track for the duration of the storm with atmospheric model data, as well as from in-situ dropsonde observations. Results suggest that variable SSTs and UOHC were critical in tropical cyclone genesis, duration, and maximum intensity. A minimum requirement of 30 kJ cm-2 of UOHC was found at genesis for all storms. At least 7 of the major hurricanes interacted with a warm oceanic mesoscale feature either at genesis or along-track that induced rapid intensification periods, including one high-end Category-5 hurricane. Cool wake signatures from deep upwelling along-track were detected within gridded UOHC and were also found to be influential in changes of subsequent hurricane trajectories. Linear regressions suggested that storm-specific models, and not season-specific models, were optimal for estimating the influence of oceanic and environmental parameters within the intensification phase. Specifically, regressions for Hurricanes Emilia (2012) and Odile (2014) performed extremely well, indicating that a combination of oceanic parameters, storm position, and storm translation speed could explain 98% of along-track intensity variability. Along-track enthalpy fluxes peaked at 1234 W m-2 as the hurricane attained maximum intensity, while dropsonde-derived enthalpy emphasized stronger enthalpy fluxes within the northeast quadrants of the hurricane

Measurements of underwater piling noise during nearshore windfarm construction in the UK potential impact on marine mammals in compliance with German UBA limit

Offshore construction work, such as pile and conductor driving, can potentially cause acoustic disturbance to marine mammals, such as cetaceans (whales, dolphins and por-poises), the odontocetes (toothed cetaceans) of which rely on the underwater sound field for spatial orientation, navigation, prey capture, communication, and predator avoidance. Disturbance ranges from behavioural changes, masking of communication signals, and temporary or even permanent hearing loss. There is currently no specific legal noise threshold in UK waters, but the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) has stipulated the requirement for noise monitoring during pile-driving operations when some windfarms are constructed. Measurements presented in this paper were taken during nearshore pile driving in the UK from a support vessel located 750 m from each pile (wind-turbine foun-dation). Results were compared with a threshold issued by the German Federal Environ-ment Agency (UBA). Noise level beyond the measurement location was predicted using a numerical model. Comparing results with the Southall criteria (Southall, B. L., et al., Ma-rine Mammal Noise Exposure Criteria: Initial Scientific Recommendations. Aquatic Mam-mals, 33 (4), 2007), the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) 500 m exclusion zone offered protection for most of marine mammals during pile driving events in this particular case. Keywords: Underwater piling noise, wind-farm, marine mammals, UBA limi

Bryn Mawr Home-based Business Survey.

Conducted on behalf of Bryn Mawr Neighborhood Association. Sponsored by Neighborhood Planning for Community Revitalization, Center for Urban and Regional Affairs, University of Minnesota

The Effects of Completing PREP Academy: A University-Based Transition Project for Students with Disabilities (Practice Brief)

This practice brief provides an overview of a project designed to support students with disabilities considering postsecondary education. Postsecondary Rewarding Education is Possible (PREP) Academy was developed by individuals from a state vocational rehabilitation agency and a public research university. PREP Academy is a campus-based, weeklong experience in which students participate in activities designed to mirror the “college experience.” In an evaluation of the project’s second year, a total of 23 students and six parents/guardians completed a pre- and post-survey to examine how attending the project affected students’ perceptions related to students attending college. Interview data from three student and parent/guardian pairs were collected to further explore students’ perceptions and to learn what components of the project were most beneficial. Results provided evidence both students and parents/guardians believe students are better prepared to attend college after participating. An emerging theme related to increasing the project’s emphasis on mirroring aspects of college was identified

Between generations: Imagination, collaboration, and the nineteenth-century child

Shifting ideas about the qualities of children's imaginations transformed relationships between adults and children in nineteenth-century Britain. This dissertation contends that these new paradigms of children's fancy led authors of children's literature to partner with the young as creative collaborators, which accounts for frequent representations of children as an adult author's auditor, coauthor, illustrator, or guiding genius. These intergenerational collaborations were new models of authorship and evidence of a growing cultural imperative to recognize the young as active agents shaping their own social worlds. Alert to the fact that depictions of children are historically variable, I situate children's literature with and against discourses from psychology to education reform, demonstrating how the perceived powers of fancy granted children agency in a variety of cultural arenas. My project, then, offers an alternative to critical accounts that represent children as ciphers fulfilling adults' psychological and sexual desires. My introduction examines children's literature of the early nineteenth century, which I contend was a collaboration between adults Debates about the child's imagination, however, indicate a shift in expectations regarding adults' relationships to children. The remaining chapters detail the consequences of this shift, exploring four ways children were acknowledged as creative collaborators. Chapter one explores how many authors for children, inspired by fairy tale collections and cultural associations between children and preliterate cultures, structured their fictions according to models of oral narration. These authors defined children not as silent listeners but as participants in the narrative. Chapter two investigates coauthorship in the work of Robert Louis Stevenson, who understood composition as a collaboration between multiple familial, literary, and psychological personas. Partnering with his stepson, Stevenson developed a vocabulary of images that resurface throughout his works and express a social model of authorship. My third chapter explores the unruly child, examining children's literature that depicts collaborations between disobedient children and dim-witted adults in the context of education reforms that privileged imagination over adult authority. The figure of the disorderly child suggests anxieties about the imaginative power of those considered socially vulnerable. I conclude with a chapter on illustration, situating images by Edward Lear and Rudyard Kipling against ideas about children and art, arguing that these author-illustrators fuse childlike spontaneity and adult order, representing collaboration through playful images

Influenza Vaccination Of The Older Adult Patient And Documentation By The Healthcare Provider

The purpose of this project was to review the treatment prescribed by providers and evaluate the return rate for each treatment

Characterisation of Campylobacter jejuni genes potentially involved in phosphonate degradation

Potential biological roles of the Campylobacter jejuni genes cj0641, cj0774c and cj1663 were investigated. The proteins encoded by these genes showed sequence similarities to the phosphonate utilisation PhnH, K and L gene products of Escherichia coli. The genes cj0641, cj0774c and cj1663 were amplified from the pathogenic C. jejuni strain 81116, sequenced, and cloned into pGEM-T Easy vectors. Recombinant plasmids were used to disrupt each one of the genes by inserting a kanamycin resistance (KmR) cassette employing site-directed mutagenesis or inverse PCR. Campylobacter jejuni 81116 isogenic mutants were generated by integration of the mutated genes into the genome of the wild-type strain. The C. jejuni mutants grew on primary isolation plates, but they could not be purified by subsequent passages owing to cell death. The mutant C. jejuni strains survived and proliferated in co-cultures with wild-type bacteria or in media in which wild-type C. jejuni had been previously grown. PCR analyses of mixed wild-type/mutant cultures served to verify the presence of the mutated gene in the genome of a fraction of the total bacterial population. The data suggested that each mutation inactivated a gene essential for survival. Rates of phosphonate catabolism in lysates of E. coli strain DH5α were determined using proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Whole-cell lysates of the wild-type degraded phosphonoacetate, phenylphosphonate and aminomethylphosphonate. Significant differences in the rates of phosphonate degradation were observed between lysates of wild-type E. coli, and of bacteria transformed with each one of the vectors carrying one of the C. jejuni genes, suggesting that these genes were involved in phosphonate catabolism

Prognostic implications of left ventricular global longitudinal strain in heart failure patients with narrow QRS complex treated with cardiac resynchronization therapy: a subanalysis of the randomized EchoCRT trial

Aim: Left ventricular (LV) global longitudinal strain (GLS) reflects LV systolic function and correlates inversely with the extent of LV myocardial scar and fibrosis. The present subanalysis of the Echocardiography Guided CRT trial investigated the prognostic value of LV GLS in patients with narrow QRS complex. Methods and results: Left ventricular (LV) global longitudinal strain (GLS) was measured on the apical 2-, 4- and 3-chamber views using speckle tracking analysis. Measurement of baseline LV GLS was feasible in 755 patients (374 with cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT)-ON and 381 with CRT-OFF). The median value of LV GLS in the overall population was 7.9%, interquartile range 6.2–10.1%. After a mean follow-up period of 19.4 months, 95 patients in the CRT-OFF group and 111 in the CRT-ON group reached the combined primary endpoint of all-cause mortality and heart failure hospitalization. Each 1% absolute unit decrease in LV GLS was independently associated with 11% increase in the risk to reach the primary endpoint (Hazard ratio 1.11; 95% confidence interval 95% 1.04–1.17, P < 0.001), after adjusting for ischaemic cardiomyopathy and randomization treatment among other clinically relevant variables. When categorizing patients according to quartiles of LV GLS, the primary endpoint occurred more frequently in patients in the lowest quartile (<6.2%) treated with CRT-ON vs. CRT-OFF (45.6% vs. 28.7%, P = 0.009) whereas, no differences were observed in patients with LV GLS ≥6.2% treated with CRT-OFF vs. CRT-ON (23.7% vs. 24.5%, respectively; P  = 0.62). Conclusion: Low LV GLS is associated with poor outcome in heart failure patients with QRS width <130 ms, independent of randomization to CRT or not. Importantly, in the group of patients with the lowest LV GLS quartile, CRT may have a detrimental effect on clinical outcomes

Reclaiming our spirits: Development and pilot testing of a health promotion intervention for indigenous women who have experienced intimate partner violence

Indigenous women are subjected to high rates of multiple forms of violence, including intimate partner violence (IPV), in the context of ongoing colonization and neo-colonization. Health promotion interventions for women who experience violence have not been tailored specifically for Indigenous women. Reclaiming Our Spirits (ROS) is a health promotion intervention designed for Indigenous women living in an urban context in Canada. In this paper, we describe the development of the intervention, results of a pilot study, and the revised subsequent intervention. Building on a theory-based health promotion intervention (iHEAL) showing promising results in feasibility studies, ROS was developed using a series of related approaches including (a) guidance from Indigenous women with research expertise specific to IPV and Indigenous women’s experiences; (b) articulation of an Indigenous lens, including using Cree (one of the largest Indigenous language groups in North America) concepts to identify key aspects; and (c) interviews with Elders (n10) living in the study setting. Offered over 6-8 months, ROS consists of a Circle, led by an Indigenous Elder, and 1:1 visits with a Registered Nurse, focused on six areas for health promotion derived from previous research. Pilot testing with Indigenous women (n21) produced signs of improvement in most measures of health from pre- to post-intervention. Women found the pilot intervention acceptable and helpful but also offered valuable suggestions for improvement. A revised intervention, with greater structure within the Circle and nurses with stronger knowledge of Indigenous women’s experience and community health, is currently undergoing testing