A COMPARISON ON FARMERS’ PARTICIPATION IN FARMERS’ ORGANIZATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR RURAL EXTENSION IN MINAS GERAIS

This paper describes a comparison on farmers’ participation in farmers’ organisations and attempts to explain why they prefer to carry out production and marketing activities by themselves. It also examines the implications of the findings for rural extension and related services. A total of 122 interviews were conducted with different categories of farmers and with the extension workers. The comparative analysis of two case studies (Cruz Alta and Pantano) showed that socio-economic characteristics were not very significant in determining the level of farmers’ participation in farmers’ organizations in Minas Gerais. The ability of managers emerged as one of the most important factors in the success or failure of farmers’ organizations. The presence of private competitors can also greatly determine the direction and the destiny of the whole process. Another relevant conclusion is that farmers are more predisposed to participate when the organisations offer additional benefits to them, such as tractor services and sale of inputs. The research findings show that the role of rural extension should be more related to providing more advice on participatory activities and management techniques to farmers’ organisations. The major implication of the findings for rural extension, and other institutions involved in the development of rural communities and farmers’ organisations, relates to the importance of putting more emphasis on providing knowledge to local people in the technical aspects of managing collective businesses.rural extension, associations, management, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

EXPERIENCES OF ADOLESCENTS IN THE GENERAL EDUCATION SETTING INTERACTING WITH PEERS WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY

Social interaction is critical to health, quality of life, and linguistic and cognitive development. However, young people with intellectual disabilities are unlikely to have equitable opportunities for social interaction. This may be particularly true of adolescents. This study used qualitative phenomenological methods to examine the lived experiences of students in the general education setting interacting with their peers with intellectual disability. Twenty participants engaged in one on one interviews with the author. Interviews were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed for overarching themes. Four main themes emerged from the data including: (1) Teens just don’t have many opportunities to interact with peers with intellectual disability in the school setting because they are separated from each other both by school structure and by adult interference; (2) Teens feel that people with intellectual disabilities are different, and that feels complicated and can result in bullying and negative attitudes; (3) Teens feel that peers with and without intellectual disabilities should be integrated in school, and that can be positive, but some worry it could be burdensome, and (4) Teens feel they have to make accommodations for peers with ID. Additional research is needed to further examine the barriers to communication described by participants

Solid State Physics

Contains a report on a research project

Solid State Physics

Contains reports on one research project

Multi-Method Approaches to Understanding Bidirectional Links between Sexuality and Testosterone in Women.

Testosterone (T) is often studied for its role in causally influencing (male) sexual behavior. However, research in females and males from a variety of species also demonstrates evidence for the ‘reverse relationship’, i.e., effects of sexual stimuli and behaviors on T. Although sexuality clearly modulates T, T does not respond the same way in every individual or in every sexual situation. What accounts for this variability in sexually-modulated T is not well-characterized. However, the social context surrounding a sexual interaction, over and above specific sensory modalities or behaviors, seems important in shaping sexual modulation of T. Additionally, in humans, sexual thoughts in the absence of external stimuli or the mere anticipation of sexual activity can increase T. These findings suggest that one source of variability in sexually-modulated T may be how an event is experienced internally (i.e., cognitively, perceptually, and affectively). In this dissertation, I examined how internal experiences shaped sexual modulation of T and bidirectional sexuality-T associations in women. To address my research questions, I employed longitudinal, qualitative, and experimental methods. First, I demonstrated that women’s T was positively associated with solitary sexual behavior (i.e., being sexual alone) but negatively associated with dyadic sexual behavior (i.e., being sexual with a partner). Second, mirroring their differential associations with T, solitary and dyadic sexuality were described as qualitatively different experiences by women themselves. In focus group discussions, women defined solitary sexual pleasure as oriented around autonomy and orgasm, and dyadic sexual pleasure as oriented around nurturant intimacy (among other components). These findings supported theoretical predictions that sexual contexts oriented around genital/erotic pleasure would be linked with higher T, and those oriented around nurturance would be linked with lower T. Finally, I showed that cognitive/emotional experiences predicted women’s acute T responses to visual sexual stimuli. Specifically, identification with stimuli (i.e., taking the perspective of film characters) moderated T responses to self-chosen versus researcher-chosen erotic films. Taken together, my findings highlight (a) the bidirectional and dynamic nature of T-sexuality associations and (b) the power of even subtle internal cues to shape physiology.PhDPsychologyUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113340/1/kalusi_1.pd

Propulsion simulator for magnetically-suspended wind tunnel models

The objective of phase two of a current investigation sponsored by NASA Langley Research Center is to demonstrate the measurement of aerodynamic forces/moments, including the effects of exhaust gases, in magnetic suspension and balance system (MSBS) wind tunnels. Two propulsion simulator models are being developed: a small-scale and a large-scale unit, both employing compressed, liquified carbon dioxide as propellant. The small-scale unit was designed, fabricated, and statically-tested at Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI). The large-scale simulator is currently in the preliminary design stage. The small-scale simulator design/development is presented, and the data from its static firing on a thrust stand are discussed. The analysis of this data provides important information for the design of the large-scale unit. A description of the preliminary design of the device is also presented

Sexual Arousal and Desire: Interrelations and Responses to Three Modalities of Sexual Stimuli

Introduction.  Traditionally, sexual desire is understood to occur spontaneously, but more recent models propose that desire responds to sexual stimuli. Aims.  To experimentally assess whether sexual stimuli increased sexual desire; to compare how sexual arousal and desire responded to three modalities of sexual stimuli: erotic story, unstructured fantasy, and the Imagined Social Situation Exercise (ISSE). Methods.  In an online study, participants (128 women, 98 men) were randomly assigned to one of four arousal conditions (ISSE, story, fantasy, or neutral), and then completed desire measures. In the ISSE, participants imagined and wrote about a positive sexual encounter with a self‐defined attractive person. Main Outcome Measures.  Sexual arousal (perceived genital, psychological, and perceived autonomic), anxiety, positive and negative affect, and state sexual desire via self‐report measures pre‐ and post‐condition; “trait” desire via the Sexual Desire Inventory post‐condition. Results.  All three sexual conditions significantly increased sexual arousal and positive affect compared with the neutral condition, with trends for higher arousal to unstructured fantasy than the ISSE or story conditions. Sexual conditions significantly increased scores on state measures of sexual desire. In addition, sexual context influenced measurement of “trait” solitary sexual desire in women, such that women reported significantly higher trait desire after the neutral and ISSE conditions vs. fantasy. Conclusion.  Results highlight the responsiveness of sexual desire, problems with measurement of desire as a long‐term trait, trade‐offs of using the ISSE and other stimuli in sexuality research, and the need to address context in discussions of women's and men's desire. Goldey KL and van Anders SM. Sexual arousal and desire: Interrelations and responses to three modalities of sexual stimuli. J Sex Med 2012;9:2315–2329.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/93670/1/j.1743-6109.2012.02845.x.pd

Solid State Physics

Contains reports on two research projects

Solid State Physics

Contains reports on three research projects