Olga Petrova

As a girl in England at the turn of the century, Olga Petrova (born Muriel Harding) felt stifled by her father’s strict rules. According to her memoir, Petrova’s father told her that while she lived in his house and ate his bread, he would set the rules. Petrova was determined to live in her own house and eat her own bread (Petrova 55-56). Her success in reaching this goal, and more, is reflected in the title of her memoir, Butter with My Bread

Beulah Marie Dix

Beulah Marie Dix became a writer because it was one of the few respectable options available for women in the early twentieth century. The daughter of a factory foreman from an old New England family, Dix was educated at Radcliffe College, where she graduated with honors and became the first woman to win the prestigious Sohier literary prize. Instead of teaching, she decided to write after she sold some stories to popular magazines. She wrote mainly historical fiction, including novels and children’s books. In 1916, she went to California to visit her theatre agent, Beatrice deMille, mother of film pioneers Cecil and William, who had moved there with the Jesse L. Lasky Feature Play Film Company, which was that year to become Famous Players-Lasky after a merger with Adolph Zukor’s Famous Players. Dix decided to experiment with writing for the new motion picture industry just for fun, but became a successful and productive silent era scenario writer, as her daughter, Evelyn Flebbe Scott, recalled (7-9)

Intrinsic factors, performance and dynamic kinematics in optimisation of cycling biomechanics

Kinematic measurements conducted during bike set-ups utilise either static or dynamic measures. There is currently limited data on reliability of static and dynamic measures nor consensus on which is the optimal method. The aim of the study was to assess the difference between static and dynamic measures of the ankle, knee, hip, shoulder and elbow. Nineteen subjects performed three separate trials of a 10min duration at a fixed workload (70% of peak power output). Static measures were taken with a standard goniometer (GM), an inclinometer (IM) and dynamic three dimensional motion capture (3DMC) using an eight camera motion capture system. Static and dynamic joint angles were compared over the three trials to assess repeatability of the measurements and differences between static and dynamic values. There was a positive correlation between GM and IM measures for all joints. Only the knee, shoulder and elbow were positively correlated between GM and 3DMC, and IM and 3DMC. Although all three instruments were reliable, 3D motion analysis utilised different landmarks for most joints and produced different means. Changes in knee flexion angle from static to dynamic are attributable to changes in the positioning of the foot. Controlling for this factor, the differences are negated. It was demonstrated that 3DMC is not interchangeable with GM and IM, and it is recommended that 3DMC develop independent reference values for bicycle configuration

Sailing Off the Map: Managing Organizational Change in the Library Instruction Movement

The theme of this conference, uncharted waters, can evoke the disconcerting nature of uncertainty. As instruction librarians face challenges in a landscape of change, how can we navigate our institution’s organizational culture to be a strategic asset rather than a barrier to change? This session will present case studies on organizational change from two instruction programs, Utah State University (USU) and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville (UTK). In our case studies, we analyze artifacts of culture, including program goals and planning documents, and interviews with stakeholders to determine the organization’s dominant culture and its views and expectations about change. We then use this understanding of each culture to explore the best ways to initiate change, especially with respect to the creation of a collaborative instructional improvement environment across campus. This combination of insider and outsider perspectives allowed us to analyze both organizational cultures and create strategies for managing change. The case studies will provide the foundation for a practical discussion of organizational change with session participants. We will suggest strategies for analyzing any organizational culture and using this analysis strategically. We will also describe how conducting explicit discussions about organizational culture can serve as an agent of change, both within the library and across campus. By the end of the session, participants will be able to: read organizational cultures lead discussions about cultural assumptions as a way to intentionally manage change implement strategies that will lead to greater collaboration within the library and between librarians and campus partner

Teaching and Learning Information Synthesis: An Intervention and Rubric Based Assessment

The purpose of this research was to determine how information synthesis skills can be taught effectively, and to discover how the level of synthesis in student writing can be effectively measured. The intervention was an information synthesis lesson that broke down the synthesis process into sequenced tasks. Researchers created a rubric which they used to assess a student’s level of information synthesis demonstrated in their final research essays. A form of counting analysis was also created to see if other methods could help in measuring synthesis.Findings from the rubric analysis revealed that students appear to benefit from the synthesis lesson. The level of synthesis, however, remains low overall. In addition, the study also showed that the different measures of synthesis established were able to identify different levels of information integration. Discovering effective ways to measure and teach synthesis continues to be essential in helping students become information literate

Academic Libraries and Learning Support in Collaboration. Library Based Guidance for Peer Assisted Learning Leaders at Bournemouth University: Theory and Practice.

This article begins with an overview of the University’s pioneering Peer Assisted Learning Scheme (PAL) and describes how in 2005/6, the Library became involved, collaborating with the PAL Coordinator to develop materials for use by PAL Leaders. PAL is intended to foster cross-year support between students on the same course. It encourages students to support each other and learn co-operatively under the guidance of trained students from the year above - called PAL Leaders. Two documents were produced to support and empower these leaders. The first, Using the Library for Your Research, provides leaders with key guidance information on the University Library, its resources and the services it provides. The second, Citing References Using the Harvard System, aims to explain and demystify the Harvard Referencing system and to encourage good referencing habits from an early stage of their course through a practical hands-on exercise. Feedback from PAL Leaders continues to inform the development of these guidance materials, in particular the referencing exercise which was reworked to better suit the needs of the leaders delivering it

Genetic variation in the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal stress axis influences susceptibility to musculoskeletal pain: results from the EPIFUND study

<b>Objectives</b> To determine if genetic variation in genes in the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis, the primary stress response system, influences susceptibility to developing musculoskeletal pain.<p></p> <b>Methods</b> Pain and comorbidity data was collected at three time points in a prospective population-based cohort study. Pairwise tagging single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were selected and genotyped for seven genes. Genetic association analysis was carried out using zero-inflated negative binomial regression to test for association between SNPs and the maximum number of pain sites across the three time points in participants reporting pain, reported as proportional changes with 95% CIs. SNPs were also tested for association with chronic widespread pain (CWP) using logistic regression reporting odds ratios and 95% CI.<p></p> <b>Results</b> A total of 75 SNPs were successfully genotyped in 994 participants including 164 cases with persistent CWP and 172 pain-free controls. Multiple SNPs in SERPINA6 were associated with the maximum number of pain sites; for example, each copy of the T allele of rs941601 was associated with having 16% (proportional change=1.16, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.28, p=0.006) more pain sites compared to participants with the CC genotype. SERPINA6 gene SNPs were also associated with CWP. Significant associations between the maximum number of pain sites and SNPs in the CRHBP and POMC genes were also observed and a SNP in MC2R was also associated with CWP. Associations between SNPs and comorbidity of poor sleep quality and depression explained some of the associations observed.<p></p> <b>Conclusions</b> Genetic variation in HPA axis genes was associated with musculoskeletal pain; however, some of the associations were explained by comorbidities. Replication of these findings is required in independent cohorts

Do genetic predictors of pain sensitivity associate with persistent widespread pain?

Genetic risk factors for pain sensitivity may also play a role in susceptibility to chronic pain disorders, in which subjects have low pain thresholds. The aim of this study was to determine if proposed functional single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the GTP cyclohydrolase (GCH1) and μ opioid receptor (OPRM1) genes previously associated with pain sensitivity affect susceptibility to chronic widespread pain (CWP). Pain data was collected using body manikins via questionnaire at three time-points over a four year period from subjects aged 25-65 in the North-West of England as part of a population based cohort study, EPIFUND. CWP was defined at each time point using standard criteria. Three SNPs forming a proposed "pain-protective" haplotype in GCH1 (rs10483639, rs3783641 and rs8007267) and two SNPs in OPRM1 (rs1777971 (A118G) and rs563649) were genotyped in cases with persistent CWP (CWP present at ≥2 time-points) and controls who were pain-free at all time-points. The expectation-maximisation algorithm was used to estimate haplotype frequencies. The frequency of the "pain-protective" (CAT - C allele of rs10483639, A allele of rs3783641 and T allele of rs8007267) haplotype was compared to the frequency of the other haplotypes between cases and controls using the χ2 test. Allele frequencies and carriage of the minor allele was compared between cases and controls using χ2 tests for the OPRM1 SNPs. The frequency of the proposed GCH1 "pain-protective" haplotype (CAT) did not significantly differ between cases and controls and no significant associations were observed between the OPRM1 SNPs and CWP. In conclusion, there was no evidence of association between proposed functional SNPs, previously reported to influence pain sensitivity, in GCH1 and OPRM1 with CWP. Further evidence of null association in large independent cohorts is required to truly exclude these SNPs as genetic risk factors for CWP

The non-synonymous SNP, R1150W, in SCN9A is not associated with chronic widespread pain susceptibility

Acknowledgements The authors wish to thank all of the primary care practices and participants in the EPIFUND study, the EPIFUND study team and Arthritis Research UK lab staff for carrying out the genotyping. The authors thank the men who participated in the seven countries and the research/nursing staff in the seven centres of the EMAS study used in the current analysis: C Pott (Manchester), E Wouters (Leuven), M del Mar Fernandez (Santiago de Compostela), M Jedrzejowska (Lodz), H-M Tabo (Tartu) and A Heredi (Szeged) for their data collection, and C Moseley (Manchester) for data entry and project coordination. DV and SB are senior clinical investigators of the Fund for Scientific Research-Flanders, Belgium (F W O-Vlaanderen). SB is holder of the Leuven University Chair in Gerontology and Geriatrics. The researchers thank the Framingham study participants and personnel. This work was supported by Arthritis Research UK, Chesterfield, UK. The European Male Ageing Study (EMAS) is funded by the Commission of the European Communities Fifth Framework Programme ‘Quality of life and management of living resources’ grant QLK6-CT-2001-00258. Genotyping of the Dyne Steel DNA Bank for Ageing and Cognition cohort was supported by the BBSRC and the study was supported by AgeUK. The Framingham study was supported by grants from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI contract N01-HC-25195) and NIH AR47785 and AG18393.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The ESR1 (6q25) locus is associated with calcaneal ultrasound parameters and radial volumetric bone mineral density in European men

&lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Purpose:&lt;/b&gt; Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified 6q25, which incorporates the oestrogen receptor alpha gene (ESR1), as a quantitative trait locus for areal bone mineral density (BMD(a)) of the hip and lumbar spine. The aim of this study was to determine the influence of this locus on other bone health outcomes; calcaneal ultrasound (QUS) parameters, radial peripheral quantitative computed tomography (pQCT) parameters and markers of bone turnover in a population sample of European men.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Methods:&lt;/b&gt; Eight single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in the 6q25 locus were genotyped in men aged 40-79 years from 7 European countries, participating in the European Male Ageing Study (EMAS). The associations between SNPs and measured bone parameters were tested under an additive genetic model adjusting for centre using linear regression.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Results:&lt;/b&gt; 2468 men, mean (SD) aged 59.9 (11.1) years had QUS measurements performed and bone turnover marker levels measured. A subset of 628 men had DXA and pQCT measurements. Multiple independent SNPs showed significant associations with BMD using all three measurement techniques. Most notably, rs1999805 was associated with a 0.10 SD (95%CI 0.05, 0.16; p = 0.0001) lower estimated BMD at the calcaneus, a 0.14 SD (95%CI 0.05, 0.24; p = 0.004) lower total hip BMD(a), a 0.12 SD (95%CI 0.02, 0.23; p = 0.026) lower lumbar spine BMD(a) and a 0.18 SD (95%CI 0.06, 0.29; p = 0.003) lower trabecular BMD at the distal radius for each copy of the minor allele. There was no association with serum levels of bone turnover markers and a single SNP which was associated with cortical density was also associated with cortical BMC and thickness.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;b&gt;Conclusions:&lt;/b&gt; Our data replicate previous associations found between SNPs in the 6q25 locus and BMD(a) at the hip and extend these data to include associations with calcaneal ultrasound parameters and radial volumetric BMD.&lt;/p&gt