Dancing with Down Syndrome: A Look at the Effects and Benefits of Dance Movement Therapy on the Emotional Well-Being and Overall Quality of Life for Individuals with Down Syndrome

This thesis examines how combining the creativity of dance with the functionality of physical therapy can allow individuals with Down syndrome to not only be stimulated physically and cognitively, but also to help them to continue to lead very fulfilling and productive lives. Given the positive effects dance has on individuals with Down syndrome, it is expected that the expressive art form of dance movement therapy would be an optimal approach to increase and improve the emotional well-being and overall quality of life for this population. The literature review consists of an analysis of existing literature and personal interviews with professionals in the area of dance and dance movement therapy. The goal of the project is to raise awareness of the health risks associated with individuals who have Down syndrome and how dance movement therapy can alleviate those problems. An additional aim of the project is to encourage dance instructors and physical therapists to incorporate dance movement therapy into their own lesson plans

The effects of character education on fourth grade students\u27 attitudes toward in-school behavior

The purpose of this study was to show that students would benefit from learning about character education in a classroom setting. This study used scores from a pre-test and post-test which was designed with character development scenarios taken by fourth grade students in a rural elementary school after they participated in a character education unit. Eighteen (n = 18) participated in this quasi-experimental study. The results were analyzed to find the significance of the relationship between the students\u27 scores on the pre-test and post-test. The Sign test indicated there was no significant change between the scores on the pre-test and the scores on the post-test (p = 0.582, α = .05). Therefore, it was concluded that students who participated in a character education unit did not show a significant change between their scores on the pre-test and post-test

Differential Associations of Deprivation and Threat With Cognitive Control and Fear Conditioning in Early Childhood

Early-life adversity (ELA) is strongly associated with risk for psychopathology. Within adversity, deprivation, and threat may lead to psychopathology through different intermediary pathways. Specifically, deprivation, defined as the absence of expected cognitive and social inputs, is associated with lower performance on complex cognitive tasks whereas threatening experiences, defined as the presence of experiences that reflect harm to the child, are associated with atypical fear learning and emotional processes. However, distinct associations of deprivation and threat on behavioral outcomes have not been examined in early childhood. The present study examines how deprivation and threat are associated with cognitive and emotional outcomes in early childhood. Children 4–7 years old completed behavioral tasks assessing cognitive control (N = 58) and fear conditioning (N = 45); deprivation and threat were assessed using child interview and parent questionnaires. Regression analyses were performed including deprivation and threat scores and controls for age, gender, and IQ. Because this is the first time these variables have been examined in early childhood, interactions with age were also examined. Deprivation, but not threat was associated with worse performance on the cognitive control task. Threat, but not deprivation interacted with age to predict fear learning. Young children who experienced high levels of threat showed evidence of fear learning measured by differential skin conductance response even at the earliest age measured. In contrast, for children not exposed to threat, fear learning emerged only in older ages. Children who experienced higher levels of threat also showed blunted reactivity measured by amplitude of skin conductance response to the reinforced stimuli regardless of age. Results suggest differential influences of deprivation and threat on cognitive and emotional outcomes even in early childhood. Future work should examine the neural mechanisms underlying these behavioral changes and link changes with increased risk for negative outcomes associated with adversity exposure, such as psychopathology

Rockport Comprehensive Plan

This document was developed and prepared by Texas Target Communities (TxTC) at Texas A&M University in partnership with the City of Rockport, Texas Sea Grant, Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi, Texas A&M University - School of Law and Texas Tech University.Founded in 1871, the City of Rockport aims to continue growing economically and sustainably. Rockport is a resilient community dedicated to sustainable growth and attracting businesses to the area. Rockport is a charming town that offers a close-knit community feel and is a popular tourist destination for marine recreation, fairs, and exhibitions throughout the year. The Comprehensive Plan 2020-2040 is designed to guide the city of Rockport for its future growth. The guiding principles for this planning process were Rockport's vision statement and its corresponding goals, which were crafted by the task force. The goals focus on factors of growth and development including public participation, development considerations, transportation, community facilities, economic development, parks, and housing and social vulnerability

Classifying Young Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Based on Child, Parent, and Family Characteristics: A Cross-Validation Study

10.3390/ijerph19159195INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH191

Effects of Cold Atmospheric Pressure (CAP) Plasma on Cell Adhesion to Graphene Scaffolds

Recent innovations in tissue engineering include unique combinations of biological and synthetic materials for the regeneration or replacement of living tissues. A major challenge however, is the promotion of cell adhesion to biocompatible scaffolds. Recently, low pressure ethylene/nitrogen plasma treatments have been shown to increase cell adhesion and viability on various scaffolds such as Poly(ε-caprolactone) and graphene foam. We propose a new method for addressing this challenge by exposing graphene foam to a Cold Atmospheric Pressure (CAP) plasma device. The device generates CAP plasmas by combining alternating current with direct current between two sheets of low temperature co-fired ceramics. Electrical current generated between the low temperature co-fired ceramic plates reacts with atmospheric gases to produce various reactive oxygen and nitrogen species, such as oxygen radicals, ozone, and nitric oxide. The reactive oxygen and nitrogen species from the plasma can charge the surface of the graphene foam, which we predict will promote the adhesion of mesenchymal stem cells to the bioscaffold. We plan to utilize X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to determine functional group addition to the graphene surface. Research has shown that charged groups on the surface indicate high wettability and increased cell adhesion. Therefore, cell adhesion will be analyzed by fluorescent microscopy and cell viability assays. The results of this work will provide a preliminary proof-of-concept to determine if application of CAP plasma to mesenchymal stem cells will promote chondrogenic cell formation and development. In addition, success in this particular application will lead to potential applications of CAP plasma in the creation of bioscaffolds that can be used in tissue engineering

Effects of Cold Atmospheric Plasma on Cell Adhesion to Graphene Scaffolds

Recent innovations in tissue engineering include using combinations of biological and synthetic materials to regenerate or replace living tissues. However, promoting cell adhesion to biocompatible scaffolds is challenging. We proposed to promote cell adhesion to graphene foam by exposing the foam to Cold Atmospheric Plasma (CAP) (a gas consisting of various reactive oxygen and nitrogen species produced by accelerating atmospheric gases through an electric field generated between two parallel, low temperature co-fired ceramic plates) prior to seeding C2C12 stem cells on the graphene. We determined surface chemistry changes to the graphene using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and analyzed cell adhesion by fluorescent microscopy using Calcein AM assays. XPS analysis of the graphene surface following CAP treatment revealed a significant increase in oxygen atoms and a significant carbon-oxygen peak suggestive of a covalent bond formed on the graphene surface. Fluorescent microscopy of C2C12 cells on the graphene revealed a visual increase in cell adhesion following CAP exposure, but because of the 3-dimensional character of the graphene it is not possible to quantify these results. We plan to investigate the usage of graphene oxide in further studies to determine if its hydrophilic nature better supports cell adhesion following CAP exposure

Potential Adverse Effects of Broad-Spectrum Antimicrobial Exposure in the Intensive Care Unit

Abstract Background: The potential adverse effects of empiric broad-spectrum antimicrobial use among patients with suspected but subsequently excluded infection have not been fully characterized. We sought novel methods to quantify the risk of adverse effects of broad-spectrum antimicrobial exposure among patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). Methods: Among all adult patients admitted to ICUs at a single institution, we selected patients with negative blood cultures who also received ≥1 broad-spectrum antimicrobials. Broad-spectrum antimicrobials were categorized in ≥1 of 5 categories based on their spectrum of activity against potential pathogens. We performed, in serial, 5 cohort studies to measure the effect of each broad-spectrum category on patient outcomes. Exposed patients were defined as those receiving a specific category of broad-spectrum antimicrobial; nonexposed were all other patients in the cohort. The primary outcome was 30-day mortality. Secondary outcomes included length of hospital and ICU stay and nosocomial acquisition of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (ARB) or Clostridium difficile within 30 days of admission. Results: Among the study cohort of 1918 patients, 316 (16.5%) died within 30 days, 821 (42.8%) had either a length of hospital stay >7 days or an ICU length of stay >3 days, and 106 (5.5%) acquired either a nosocomial ARB or C. difficile. The short-term use of broad-spectrum antimicrobials in any of the defined broad-spectrum categories was not significantly associated with either primary or secondary outcomes. Conclusions: The prompt and brief empiric use of defined categories of broad-spectrum antimicrobials could not be associated with additional patient harm