Improving Listening in a Financial Aid Office

As part of a major effort to improve its negative image among students and to raise staff morale, the Financial Aid Office at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) undertook a series of projects to upgrade its services. In addition, the office set out to become a warmer, friendlier place for student applicants. This article reports on one of the projects to improve the communication climate-a training program in listening which included personal videotaping of staff members, followed by feedback for the staff and a handout for students to help facilitate a more successful interview. While the overall effort continues, initial response to the changes has been highly positive

Shorter Granulocyte Telomeres Among Children and Adolescents With Perinatally Acquired Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection and Chronic Lung Disease in Zimbabwe.

BACKGROUND: Chronic lung disease (CLD) has been reported among African children with perinatally acquired human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection (C-PHIV), despite combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). In adults, shorter telomere length (TL) has been reported in association with both CLD and HIV. As little is known in children, our objective was to compare TL in HIV-positive (cART-naive or -treated) and HIV-negative children with and without CLD. METHODS: Participants included Zimbabwean C-PHIV, aged 6-16, who were either newly diagnosed and cART-naive, or on cART for >6 months, and HIV-negative controls of similar age and sex. Packed blood cell (granulocyte) TLs from 621 children were compared cross-sectionally between groups. For a subset of newly diagnosed C-PHIV, changes in TL following cART initiation were evaluated. RESULTS: C-PHIV had shorter granulocyte TL compared with uninfected peers, regardless of cART. Among 255 C-PHIV without CLD, TL was shorter in cART-naive participants. In multivariable analyses adjusted for age, sex, CLD, and HIV/cART status, shorter TL was independently associated with older age, being HIV positive, and having reduced forced vital capacity (FVC). Last, cART initiation increased TL. CONCLUSIONS: In this cohort, C-PHIV and those with reduced FVC have shorter granulocyte TL, possibly the result of increased immune activation and cellular turnover due to longstanding HIV infection with delayed cART initiation

Canagliflozin and renal outcomes in type 2 diabetes and nephropathy

BACKGROUND Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the leading cause of kidney failure worldwide, but few effective long-term treatments are available. In cardiovascular trials of inhibitors of sodium–glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2), exploratory results have suggested that such drugs may improve renal outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes. METHODS In this double-blind, randomized trial, we assigned patients with type 2 diabetes and albuminuric chronic kidney disease to receive canagliflozin, an oral SGLT2 inhibitor, at a dose of 100 mg daily or placebo. All the patients had an estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR) of 30 to <90 ml per minute per 1.73 m2 of body-surface area and albuminuria (ratio of albumin [mg] to creatinine [g], >300 to 5000) and were treated with renin–angiotensin system blockade. The primary outcome was a composite of end-stage kidney disease (dialysis, transplantation, or a sustained estimated GFR of <15 ml per minute per 1.73 m2), a doubling of the serum creatinine level, or death from renal or cardiovascular causes. Prespecified secondary outcomes were tested hierarchically. RESULTS The trial was stopped early after a planned interim analysis on the recommendation of the data and safety monitoring committee. At that time, 4401 patients had undergone randomization, with a median follow-up of 2.62 years. The relative risk of the primary outcome was 30% lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group, with event rates of 43.2 and 61.2 per 1000 patient-years, respectively (hazard ratio, 0.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59 to 0.82; P=0.00001). The relative risk of the renal-specific composite of end-stage kidney disease, a doubling of the creatinine level, or death from renal causes was lower by 34% (hazard ratio, 0.66; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.81; P<0.001), and the relative risk of end-stage kidney disease was lower by 32% (hazard ratio, 0.68; 95% CI, 0.54 to 0.86; P=0.002). The canagliflozin group also had a lower risk of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke (hazard ratio, 0.80; 95% CI, 0.67 to 0.95; P=0.01) and hospitalization for heart failure (hazard ratio, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.47 to 0.80; P<0.001). There were no significant differences in rates of amputation or fracture. CONCLUSIONS In patients with type 2 diabetes and kidney disease, the risk of kidney failure and cardiovascular events was lower in the canagliflozin group than in the placebo group at a median follow-up of 2.62 years

Vsevolod Meyerhold: Toward Political Expression in the Theater

This thesis explores art and aristocracy in nineteenth century Russia as well as Meyerhold's "Theater Theatrical" during the Stalin era

Lessons for Designing an Entrepreneurship Curriculum: The Case of Two Schools in Laguna, Philippines

The study compares the personal entrepreneurial competency (PEC) levels of BS in Agribusiness Management (BS ABM) students of UP Los Baños (UPLB) with the PEC levels of the BS in Entrepreneurship (BSE) students of De La Salle University-Science and Technology Complex (DLSU-STC). A comparison of the PECs of the two groups can generate insights which can serve as a source of valuable lessons for the design of the curricular revisions of UPLB’s BS ABM program. Demographic information and responses to 55 PEC-related statements were gathered from students of different year levels in the two schools. The data were analyzed using Mann-Whitney U test and ordinal logistic analysis and marginal effect analysis. Results reveal that that, except for persistence and goal setting, the BSE students have significantly higher mean scores in all the PECs compared with the BS ABM students. The differences in PEC mean scores are more highly significant between the sophomores of the two schools. The study recommends that the design and sequence of entrepreneurship courses at the Department of Agribusiness Management and Entrepreneurship (DAME) - College of Economics and Management (CEM), UPLB should enable students to experience the whole entrepreneurial process. It should also promote the holding of informal activities which can capture the authenticity of real entrepreneurial situations like business plan competitions and mentoring relationships