The Nurture of Nature: Biology, Psychology and Culture

In this thesis I explore what consequences taking development seriously in evolutionary considerations will have for how we understand the evolution of psychology and culture. I first explicate the relationship between development and evolution that informs a number of approaches to evolution, including neo-Darwinian evolutionary biology and evolutionary developmental biology. I argue that, to a greater or lesser extent, developmental processes have been misconstrued in these accounts and that the full role of development, from an evolutionary point of view, has not always been acknowledged. Instead, I suggest that a better model of the relationship between development and evolution can be found in developmental systems theory. I explore the neo-Darwinian underpinnings of a number of accounts of the evolution of culture and psychology, including the branch of evolutionary psychology associated with the work of, among others, John Tooby and Leda Cosmides, and the gene-culture co-evolutionary account of Peter Richerson and Robert Boyd. I argue that as well as being vulnerable to the same sorts of problems that plague neo-Darwinian evolutionary biology, they face other difficulties. These accounts suppose an internalist model of the mind, and this model is neither justified nor useful. The extended mind hypothesis offers a different model of the mind whereby cognitive processes can be partially constituted by structures in the environment. I sketch an alternative account of what the evolution of human psychology and culture by combining a developmental systems approach to evolution and development with the extended mind hypothesis. This will result in a very different understanding of the relationship between biology, psychology and culture

Developing Student Leadership Opportunities through Mentoring

Graduate assistants fulfill many roles and functions within the university setting. The partnership formed with supervisors is critical for mutual development and implementation of programs, building professionalism and student confidence. Supervisors provide many opportunities through coaching, sponsoring and connector roles. Intentional collaboration maximizes best practices supporting graduate student leadership development

A Guide to Political Epistemology

Political epistemology is a newly flourishing area of philosophy, but there is no comprehensive overview to this burgeoning field. This chapter maps out the terrain of political epistemology, highlights some of the key questions and topics of this field, draws connections across seemingly disparate areas of work, and briefly situates this field within its historical and contemporary contexts

Concert recording 2017-04-12b

[Track 1]. Angel Falls / Lewis Songer -- [Track 2]. Grand Canyon Octet. Andante appassionato [Track 3]. Lento-allegro molto / Eric Ewazen -- [Track 4]. Quipperies / Lowell Shaw -- [Track 5]. Birdland / Josef Zawinul arranged by Kummerlander

Concert recording 2017-11-15

[Track 1]. Fanfare for barcs / Kerry Turner -- [Track 2]. Three for five / James Naigus -- [Track 3]. Big sky country / Daniel Baldwin

Lessons learned from pre-clinical testing of xenogeneic decellularized esophagi in a rabbit model

Summary Decellularization of esophagi from several species for tissue engineering is well described, but successful implantation in animal models of esophageal replacement has been challenging. The purpose of this study was to assess feasibility and applicability of esophageal replacement using decellularized porcine esophageal scaffolds in a new pre-clinical model. Following surgical replacement in rabbits with a vascularizing muscle flap, we observed successful anastomoses of decellularized scaffolds, cues of early neovascularization, and prevention of luminal collapse by the use of biodegradable stents. However, despite the success of the surgical procedure, the long-term survival was limited by the fragility of the animal model. Our results indicate that transplantation of a decellularized porcine scaffold is possible and vascular flaps may be useful to provide a vascular supply, but long-term outcomes require further pre-clinical testing in a different large animal model

A user preference analysis of commercial breath ketone sensors to inform the development of portable breath ketone sensors for diabetes management in young people

BACKGROUNDPortable breath ketone sensors may help people with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) avoid episodes of diabetic ketoacidosis; however, the design features preferred by users have not been studied. We aimed to elucidate breath sensor design preferences of young people with T1DM (age 12 to 16) and their parents to inform the development of a breath ketone sensor prototype that would best suit their diabetes management needs.RESEARCH DESIGNS AND METHODSTo elicit foundational experiences from which design preference ideas could be generated, two commercially available breath ketone sensors, designed for ketogenic diet monitoring, were explored over one week by ten young people with T1DM. Participants interacted with the breath ketone sensing devices, and undertook blood ketone testing, at least twice daily for five days to simulate use within a real life and ambulatory care setting. Semi-structured interviews were conducted post-testing with the ten young participants and their caregivers (n = 10) to elicit preferences related to breath sensor design and use, and to inform the co-design of a breath ketone sensor prototype for use in T1DM self-management. We triangulated our data collection with key informant interviews with two diabetes educators working in pediatric care about their perspectives related to young people using breath ketone sensors.RESULTSParticipants acknowledged the non-invasiveness of breath sensors as compared to blood testing. Affordability, reliability and accuracy were identified as prerequisites for breath ketone sensors used for diabetes management. Design features valued by young people included portability, ease of use, sustainability, readability and suitability for use in public. The time required to use breath sensors was similar to that for blood testing. The requirement to maintain a 10-second breath exhalation posed a challenge for users. Diabetes educators highlighted the ease of use of breath devices especially for young people who tended to under-test using blood ketone strips.CONCLUSIONSBreath ketone sensors for diabetes management have potential that may facilitate ketone testing in young people. Our study affirms features for young people that drive usability of breath sensors among this population, and provides a model of user preference assessment.</p

Concert recording 2016-11-15

[Track 1]. Subjugation. Connection [Track 2]. Captivation / Durgan Maxey -- [Track 3]. Fight / Bryce Owens -- [Track 4]. Overture to Stay / Joshua Bland -- [Track 5]. A cellist\u27s legacy. Part I [Track 6]. Part II / Eric Dreggors -- [Track 7]. Evening prayer / Robbie Baker -- [Track 8]. Elegy / Brandon Wade -- [Track 9]. The grotesques trio. Gargoyles [Track 10]. Chimera [Track 11]. Grotesques / Marissa Johnson -- [Track 12]. Crosshair / Joshua Bland -- [Track 13]. Nightwind sings / L. Coley Pitchford -- [Track 14]. Six reflections through poetry. Memories (Walt Whitman) [Track 15]. The musician\u27s wife (Weldon Kees) [Track 16]. The road not taken (Robert Frost) [Track 17]. Lessons (Whitman) [Track 18]. Stronger lessons (Whitman) [Track 19]. O me! O life! (Whitman) / Nick Vecchio -- [Tracks 20-21]. String quartet #1 / Jeremiah Flannery -- [Track 22]. Tides. Morning tide [Track 23]. Bore tide / Elizabeth Greener -- [Track 24]. Shepherd\u27s contemplation / Robbie Baker -- Green grass / arranged by Eva Martin -- [Track 25]. Urbe fracta est II. A prayer for Jerusalem / Joshua Bland

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy

Full-length transcript sequencing of human and mouse cerebral cortex identifies widespread isoform diversity and alternative splicing.

Alternative splicing is a post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism producing distinct mRNA molecules from a single pre-mRNA with a prominent role in the development and function of the central nervous system. We used long-read isoform sequencing to generate full-length transcript sequences in the human and mouse cortex. We identify novel transcripts not present in existing genome annotations, including transcripts mapping to putative novel (unannotated) genes and fusion transcripts incorporating exons from multiple genes. Global patterns of transcript diversity are similar between human and mouse cortex, although certain genes are characterized by striking differences between species. We also identify developmental changes in alternative splicing, with differential transcript usage between human fetal and adult cortex. Our data confirm the importance of alternative splicing in the cortex, dramatically increasing transcriptional diversity and representing an important mechanism underpinning gene regulation in the brain. We provide transcript-level data for human and mouse cortex as a resource to the scientific community