Evaluation of the Effectiveness of a Diabetes Managment Training Program for Unlicensed Assistive Personnel in Schools

This study evaluated the diabetes management-training program for unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP). The purpose of the program was to prepare UAP to recognize and respond to the health care needs of students diagnosed with diabetes mellitus. Twenty UAP participated. Teaching strategies were based on Albert Bandura\u27 s social learning theory~ Two instruments were administered before and after the program. One was a 1 0-question survey addressing self-efficacy; the other was a 10 question multiple-choice test measuring knowledge of diabetes. Results of paired t tests indicate consistent and significant improvement in both perceptions of self-efficacy and knowledge (p \u3c .05). This program provides a framework for school nurses training UAP that assist in the health care of students with diabetes. It is important that school nurses capitalize on the contribution that informed confident UAP might contribute to the provision of safe quality care to students with diabetes

Highly Homologous Filamin Polypeptides Have Different Distributions in Avian Slow and Fast Muscle Fibers

The high molecular weight actin-binding protein filamin is located at the periphery of the Z disk in the fast adult chicken pectoral muscle (Gomer, R. H., and E. Lazarides, 1981, Cell, 23: 524-532). In contrast, we have found that in the slow anterior latissimus dorsi (ALD) muscle, filamin was additionally located throughout the l band as judged by immunofluorescence with affinity-purified antibodies on myofibrils and cryosections. The Z line proteins desmin and alpha-actinin, however, had the same distribution in ALD as they do in pectoral muscle. Quantitation of filamin and actin from the two muscle types showed that there was approximately 10 times as much filamin per actin in ALD myofibrils as in pectoral myofibrils. Filamin immunoprecipitated from ALD had an electrophoretic mobility in SDS polyacrylamide gels identical to that of pectoral myofibril filamin and slightly greater than that of chicken gizzard filamin. Two-dimensional peptide maps of filamin immunoprecipitated and labeled with ^(125)I showed that ALD myofibril filamin was virtually identical to pectoral myofibril filamin and was distinct from chicken gizzard filamin

SPATIAL PERCEPTION AND ROBOT OPERATION: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VISUAL SPATIAL ABILITY AND PERFORMANCE UNDER DIRECT LINE OF SIGHT AND TELEOPERATION

This dissertation investigated the relationship between the spatial perception abilities of operators and robot operation under direct-line-of-sight and teleoperation viewing conditions. This study was an effort to determine if spatial ability testing may be a useful tool in the selection of human-robot interaction (HRI) operators. Participants completed eight cognitive ability measures and operated one of four types of robots under tasks of low and high difficulty. Performance for each participant was tested during both direct-line-of-sight and teleoperation. These results provide additional evidence that spatial perception abilities are reliable predictors of direct-line-of-sight and teleoperation performance. Participants in this study with higher spatial abilities performed faster, with fewer errors, and less variability. In addition, participants with higher spatial abilities were more successful in the accumulation of points. Applications of these findings are discussed in terms of teleoperator selection tools and HRI training and design recommendations with a human-centered design approach

RADIAL OUTFLOW IN TELEOPERATION: A POSSIBLE SOLUTION FOR IMPROVING DEPTH PERCEPTION

Practical experience has shown that operators of remote robotic systems have difficulty perceiving aspects of remotely operated robots and their environments (e.g. Casper & Murphy, 2003). Operators often find it difficult, for example, to perceive accurately the distances and sizes of remote objects. Past research has demonstrated that employing a moveable camera that provides the operator optical motion allows for the perception of distance in the absence of other information about depth (Dash, 2004). In this experiment a camera was constrained to move only forward and backward, thus adding monocular radial outflow to the video stream. The ability of remote operators to perceive the sizes of remote objects and to position a mobile robot at specific distances relative to the object was tested. Two different conditions were investigated. In one condition a dynamic camera provided radial outflow by moving forward and backward while atop a mobile robot. In the second condition the camera remained stationary atop the mobile robot. Results indicated no differences between camera conditions, but superior performance for distance perception was observed when compared to previous research (Dash, 2004). This thesis provides evidence that teleoperators of a terrestrial robot are able to determine egocentric depth in a remote environment when sufficient movement of the robot is involved

Women, Birth Control Pills, and Thrombophilia: An Analysis of Risk Communication

The Surgeon General recently issued a call to action to reduce the incidents of blood clots, which can cause pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis, and stroke. This research study was conducted to assess what risk information is available to women regarding thrombosis (blood clots) and thrombophilia (clotting disorders) in combination with birth control pills, what women know about this issue, and how to increase this awareness. A media analysis showed that very little information is available to women about thrombosis and thrombophilia with regard to birth control pills. It also demonstrated that the information that is available is often inadequate or inaccurate. The survey of women who have taken or are taking birth control pills showed a lack of awareness of the side effects of birth control pills, thrombophilia, thrombosis, or the symptoms of thrombosis. Most women taking this medication that increases their risk of blood clots are not even aware of the symptoms of blood clots. Additionally, only one woman out of 311 could correctly identify all of the health risks associated with birth control pills. The survey results also showed that the majority of women would not only be willing to take a blood test to determine if they have thrombophilia, but more than half would be willing to pay for it. In order to reduce thrombosis, awareness of these conditions can be increased by pharmaceutical manufacturers taking a greater responsibility for producing easily understandable risk information. Also, health care providers and patients must communicate more effectively. At a minimum, testing should be offered to women, if not required, before prescribing birth control pills

The Cell Density Factor CMF Regulates the Chemoattractant Receptor cAR1 in Dictyostelium

Starving Dictyostelium cells aggregate by chemotaxis to cAMP when a secreted protein called conditioned medium factor (CMF) reaches a threshold concentration. Cells expressing CMF antisense mRNA fail to aggregate and do not transduce signals from the cAMP receptor. Signal transduction and aggregation are restored by adding recombinant CMF. We show here that two other cAMP-induced events, the formation of a slow dissociating form of the cAMP receptor and the loss of ligand binding, which is the first step of ligand-induced receptor sequestration, also require CMF. Vegetative cells have very few CMF and cAMP receptors, while starved cells possess ~40,000 receptors for CMF and cAMP. Transformants overexpressing the cAMP receptor gene cAR1 show a 10-fold increase of [3H]cAMP binding and a similar increase of [125I]CMF binding; disruption of the cAR1 gene abolishes both cAMP and CMF binding. In wild-type cells, downregulation of cAR1 with high levels of cAMP also downregulates CMF binding, and CMF similarly downregulates cAMP and CMF binding. This suggests that the cAMP binding and CMF binding are closely linked. Binding of ~200 molecules of CMF to starved cells affects the affinity of the majority of the cAR1 cAMP receptors within 2 min, indicating that an amplifying mechanism allows one activated CMF receptor to regulate many cARs. In cells lacking the G-protein β subunit, cAMP induces a loss of cAMP binding, but not CMF binding, while CMF induces a reduction of CMF binding without affecting cAMP binding, suggesting that the linkage of the cell density-sensing CMF receptor and the chemoattractant cAMP receptor is through a G-protein.

Quantum Fluctuations of a Single Trapped Atom: Transient Rabi Oscillations and Magnetic Bistability

Isolation of a single atomic particle and monitoring its resonance fluorescence is a powerful tool for studies of quantum effects in radiation-matter interaction. Here we present observations of quantum dynamics of an isolated neutral atom stored in a magneto-optical trap. By means of photon correlations in the atom's resonance fluorescence we demonstrate the well-known phenomenon of photon antibunching which corresponds to transient Rabi oscillations in the atom. Through polarization-sensitive photon correlations we show a novel example of resolved quantum fluctuations: spontaneous magnetic orientation of an atom. These effects can only be observed with a single atom.Comment: LaTeX 2e, 14 pages, 7 Postscript figure

Enviromental conflict and important social movements. Activism against a port in Granadilla (Tenerife)

El conflicto medioambiental desarrollado en torno a la construcción de un puerto industrial en Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife), a partir del gran impulso del mismo por parte de las élites políticas y empresariales localesen el año 2000, focalizó el amplio descontento social del tedido asociativo y sectores críticos isleños. Este descontento propulsó una gran oleada de movilizaciones contra la construcción de esta gran infraestructura, que llegan hasta el año 2010. El presente artículo parte del cuestionamiento de las razones para esta movilización social sin precedentes. Y se realiza un análisis apoyado en los enfoques, marco técnico y apartado conceptual de la sociología política y del conflicto aplicada a los movimientos sociales de corte medioambiental. De los resultados destacamos, que aparte de las oportunidades políticas favorecedoras para esta movilización –es la gran regularidad del activismo ciudadano, junto a la fortaleza organizativa y el éxito social del discurso del Movimiento, lo que han posibilitado una gran movilización durante todos estos años.The environmental conflict emerged around the construction of an industrial port in Granadilla de Abona (Tenerife) from the moment when it was boosted by the local political and business elites. This issue has generated a widespread unrest in large networks and critical sectors of the island. This discontent unleashed a huge wave of protests against the construction of this major infrastructure that have extended until 2010. This article begins by questioning the reasons for this unprecedented social mobilization. The thesis of this paper is that, without favourable political opportunities for this mobilization, it is the great regularity of civic activism alongside organizational strength, combined with a social and successful Speech Movement that has enabled this ample mobilization to hold on over the years