3,292 research outputs found
ISM In-Space Manufacturing
Develop and enable the technologies, materials, and processes required to provide affordable, sustainable on-demand manufacturing, recycling, and repair during Exploration Missions
Where Do You Turn? Student-Identified Resources in the Basic Course Experience, Sources of Information, Feedback, and Help-Seeking Behaviors
This study explored the formal and informal resources students enrolled in a basic communication course use to gather information and receive feedback about their course experience, including presentations and work in the class. To do so, an online survey was completed by 393 students at three universities. The data were analyzed thematically using an iterative process facilitated through NVivo coding software. This process not only allowed for a descriptive summary of the studentsâ responses and the creation of a typology of resources, but also revealed four emergent themes related to student motivations to seek out and use sources of information/feedback: (1) the level of availability (2) the value of personalized feedback, (3) the perceived authority, and (4) need for of examples. Taken together, these findings inform practical implications about information literacy, availability of vetted examples, and family/friend involvement, all of which are important for basic course administrators and instructors to consider in order to support student success and learning in the basic communication course classroom
Mapping Research Directions in the Introductory Communication Course: A Meta-Synthesis of Published Scholarship
The introductory communication course has a history of producing meaningful scholarship that shapes teaching and learning at institutions of higher education around the world. The scope of this research is broad and, as such, calls for a meta-synthesis of trends in and avenues for future research. This project examines published work from the past decadeâ2010 through 2019âin key outlets that regularly publish introductory course-focused research (The Basic Communication Course Annual, Communication Education, Communication Teacher, The Journal of Communication Pedagogy). This analysis of 98 articles revealed that publications tend to focus on three primary areas: (1) students and instructors, (2) the structure of the course, and (3) assessmentâwhile calling for future research to âreplicateâ past studies. Based on this meta-synthesis, we propose directions for future scholarship that will continue to impact teaching and learning practices beyond replication
A Search for Exozodiacal Clouds with Kepler
Planets embedded within dust disks may drive the formation of large scale
clumpy dust structures by trapping dust into resonant orbits. Detection and
subsequent modeling of the dust structures would help constrain the mass and
orbit of the planet and the disk architecture, give clues to the history of the
planetary system, and provide a statistical estimate of disk asymmetry for
future exoEarth-imaging missions. Here we present the first search for these
resonant structures in the inner regions of planetary systems by analyzing the
light curves of hot Jupiter planetary candidates identified by the Kepler
mission. We detect only one candidate disk structure associated with KOI 838.01
at the 3-sigma confidence level, but subsequent radial velocity measurements
reveal that KOI 838.01 is a grazing eclipsing binary and the candidate disk
structure is a false positive. Using our null result, we place an upper limit
on the frequency of dense exozodi structures created by hot Jupiters. We find
that at the 90% confidence level, less than 21% of Kepler hot Jupiters create
resonant dust clumps that lead and trail the planet by ~90 degrees with optical
depths >~5*10^-6, which corresponds to the resonant structure expected for a
lone hot Jupiter perturbing a dynamically cold dust disk 50 times as dense as
the zodiacal cloud.Comment: 22 pages, 6 figures, Accepted for publication in Ap
Exile Vol. XXXII No. 1
ARTWORK
Red and White by Karen Koch (cover)
Vicissitudes I by Claudia H. Donegan 1
Untitled (\u2784} by Kok Fooi Yong 11
Lines by Don Jacobs 15
Vicissitudes II by Claudia H. Donegan 19
Waltham, Boston, Winter of \u2784 by Kok Fooi Yong 25
Statue You by Claudia H. Donegan 29
Museum Sketch by Deanna Lynne Bridgeforth 41
FICTION
Sheba by Theresa Copeland 4-9
Was There Really Someone in the Kitchen With Dinah? by Susan Hanlon 21-24
What Do You Say Liza Blue? by Joan R. DeWitt 32-40
POETRY
Ode by Jeff Masten 3
Misdemeanor by Karen J. Hall 10
Aimee and Kate by Jennifer Miller 13
Bound by Betsy Oster 14
Drawing by Reid Benes 17
Great-Grandfather by Debra Benko 18
Grammy Hayes and the Infamous Beaver by Jennifer Miller 27
Seabed by Judson B. Curry 28
Gentleman\u27s Quarterly (anonymous) 31
CONTRIBUTOR NOTES 43
Editors share equally all editorial decisions -ii
Special thanks to Susan Moran and Elizabeth Wright -i
SARS-CoV-2 infection in the first trimester and the risk of early miscarriage: a UK population-based prospective cohort study of 3041 pregnancies conceived during the pandemic
STUDY QUESTION: Does maternal infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in the first trimester affect the risk of miscarriage before 13 week's gestation? SUMMARY ANSWER: Pregnant women with self-reported diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 in the first trimester had a higher risk of early miscarriage. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: Viral infections during pregnancy have a broad spectrum of placental and neonatal pathology. Data on the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnancy are still emerging. Two systematic reviews and meta-analyses reported an increased risk of preterm birth, caesarean delivery, maternal morbidity and stillbirth. Data on the impact of first trimester infection on early pregnancy outcomes are scarce. This is the first study, to our knowledge, to investigate the rates of early pregnancy loss during the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak among women with self-reported infection. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION: This was a nationwide prospective cohort study of pregnant women in the community recruited using social media between 21st May and 31st December, 2020. We recruited 3545 women who conceived during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic who were less than 13 week's gestation at the time of recruitment. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: The COVID-19 Contraception and Pregnancy Study (CAP-COVID) was an on-line survey study collecting longitudinal data from pregnant women in the UK aged 18 years or older. Women who were pregnant during the pandemic were asked to complete on-line surveys at the end of each trimester. We collected data on current and past pregnancy complications, their medical history and whether they or anyone in their household had symptoms or been diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection during each trimester of their pregnancy. RT-PCR-based SARS-CoV-2 RNA detection from respiratory samples (e.g., nasopharynx) is the standard practice for diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 in the UK. We compared rate of self-reported miscarriage in three groups: 'presumed infected' i.e those who reported a diagnosis with SARS-CoV-2 infection in the first trimester; 'uncertain' i.e those who did not report a diagnosis but had symptoms/household contacts with symptoms/diagnosis; and 'presumed uninfected' i.e., those who did not report any symptoms/diagnosis and had no household contacts with symptoms/diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: A total of 3545 women registered for the CAP-COVID study at less than 13 weeks gestation and were eligible for this analysis. Data for the primary outcome were available from 3041 women (86%). In the overall sample, the rate of self-reported miscarriage was 7.8% (238/3041 [95% CI, 7-9]). The median gestational age at miscarriage was 9 weeks (interquartile range 8-11). Seventy-seven women were in the 'presumed infected' group (77/3041, 2.5% [95% CI 2 - 3]), 295/3041 were in the uncertain group (9.7%, [95% CI 9-11]) and the rest in the 'presumed uninfected' (87.8%, 2669/3041, [95% CI 87-89]). The rate of early miscarriage was 14% in the 'presumed infected' group, 5% in the 'uncertain' and 8% in the 'presumed uninfected' (11/77 [95% CI 6-22] versus15/295, [95% CI 3-8] versus 212/2669 [95% CI 7-9], pâ=â0.02). After adjusting for age, BMI, ethnicity, smoking status, gestational age at registration and the number of previous miscarriages, the risk of early miscarriage appears to be higher in the 'presumed infected' group (relative rate 1.7, 95% CI 1.0-3.0, pâ=â0.06). LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: We relied on self-reported data on early pregnancy loss and SARS-CoV-2 infection without any means of checking validity. Some women in the 'presumed uninfected' and 'uncertain' groups may have had asymptomatic infections. The number of 'presumed infected' in our study was low and therefore the study was relatively underpowered. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS: This was a national study from the UK, where infection rates were one of the highest in the world. Based on the evidence presented here, women who are infected with SARS-CoV-2 in their first trimester may be at an increased risk of a miscarriage. However, the overall rate of miscarriage in our study population was 8%. This is reassuring and suggests that if there is an effect of SARS-CoV-2 on the risk of miscarriage, this may be limited to those with symptoms substantial enough to lead to a diagnostic test. Further studies are warranted to evaluate a causal association between SARS-CoV-2 infection in early pregnancy and miscarriage risk. Although we did not see an overall increase in the risk of miscarriage, the observed comparative increase in the presumed infected group reinforces the message that pregnant women should continue to exercise social distancing measures and good hygiene throughout their pregnancy to limit their risk of infection. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S): This study was supported by a grant from the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Hospital Charity, (G13-559194). The funders of the study had no role in study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, or writing of the report. JAH is supported by an NIHR Advanced Fellowship. ALD is supported by the National Institute for Health Research University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centre. All authors have completed the ICMJE uniform disclosure form at www.icmje.org/coi_disclosure.pdf and declare: support to JAH and ALD as above; no financial relationships with any organisations that might have an interest in the submitted work in the previous 3 years; no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: n/a
Group Versus Individual Physical Therapy for Veterans With Knee Osteoarthritis: Randomized Clinical Trial
BACKGROUND: Efficient approaches are needed for delivering nonpharmacological interventions for management of knee osteoarthritis (OA).
OBJECTIVE: This trial compared group-based versus individual physical therapy interventions for management of knee OA.
DESIGN AND METHODS: Three hundred twenty patients with knee OA at the VA Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina, (mean age=60 years, 88% male, 58% nonwhite) were randomly assigned to receive either the group intervention (group physical therapy; six 1-hour sessions, typically 8 participants per group) or the individual intervention (individual physical therapy; two 1-hour sessions). Both programs included instruction in home exercise, joint protection techniques, and individual physical therapist evaluation. The primary outcome measure was the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC; range=0-96, higher scores indicate worse symptoms), measured at baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks. The secondary outcome measure was the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB; range=0-12, higher scores indicate better performance), measured at baseline and 12 weeks. Linear mixed models assessed the difference in WOMAC scores between arms.
RESULTS: At 12 weeks, WOMAC scores were 2.7 points lower in the group physical therapy arm compared with the individual physical therapy arm (95% confidence interval [CI]-5.9, 0.5; P=.10), indicating no between-group difference. At 24 weeks, WOMAC scores were 1.3 points lower in the group physical therapy arm compared with the individual physical therapy arm (95% CI-4.6, 2.0; P=.44), indicating no significant between-group difference. At 12 weeks, SPPB scores were 0.1 points lower in the group physical therapy arm compared with the individual physical therapy arm (95% CI-0.5, 0.2; P=.53), indicating no difference between groups.
LIMITATIONS: This study was conducted in one VA medical center. Outcome assessors were blinded, but participants and physical therapists were not blinded.
CONCLUSIONS: Group physical therapy was not more effective than individual physical therapy for primary and secondary study outcomes. Either group physical therapy or individual physical therapy may be a reasonable delivery model for health care systems to consider
A Radial Velocity Survey of the Cygnus OB2 Association
We conducted a radial velocity survey of the Cygnus OB2 Association over a 6
year (1999 - 2005) time interval to search for massive close binaries. During
this time we obtained 1139 spectra on 146 OB stars to measure mean systemic
radial velocities and radial velocity variations. We spectroscopically identify
73 new OB stars for the first time, the majority of which are likely to be
Association members. Spectroscopic evidence is also presented for a B3Iae
classification and temperature class variation (B3 - B8) on the order of 1 year
for Cygnus OB2 No. 12. Calculations of the intial mass function with the
current spectroscopic sample yield Gamma = -2.2 +/- 0.1. Of the 120 stars with
the most reliable data, 36 are probable and 9 are possible single-lined
spectroscopic binaries. We also identify 3 new and 8 candidate double-lined
spectroscopic binaries. These data imply a lower limit on the massive binary
fraction of 30% - 42%. The calculated velocity dispersion for Cygnus OB2 is
2.44 +/- km/s, which is typical of open clusters. No runaway OB stars were
found.Comment: 56 pages, 23 figures, 5 tables, accepted for publication in the
Astrophysical Journa
A risk prediction model for the assessment and triage of women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy in low-resourced settings: the miniPIERS (Pre-eclampsia Integrated Estimate of RiSk) multi-country prospective cohort study.
BACKGROUND: Pre-eclampsia/eclampsia are leading causes of maternal mortality and morbidity, particularly in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). We developed the miniPIERS risk prediction model to provide a simple, evidence-based tool to identify pregnant women in LMICs at increased risk of death or major hypertensive-related complications. METHODS AND FINDINGS: From 1 July 2008 to 31 March 2012, in five LMICs, data were collected prospectively on 2,081 women with any hypertensive disorder of pregnancy admitted to a participating centre. Candidate predictors collected within 24 hours of admission were entered into a step-wise backward elimination logistic regression model to predict a composite adverse maternal outcome within 48 hours of admission. Model internal validation was accomplished by bootstrapping and external validation was completed using data from 1,300 women in the Pre-eclampsia Integrated Estimate of RiSk (fullPIERS) dataset. Predictive performance was assessed for calibration, discrimination, and stratification capacity. The final miniPIERS model included: parity (nulliparous versus multiparous); gestational age on admission; headache/visual disturbances; chest pain/dyspnoea; vaginal bleeding with abdominal pain; systolic blood pressure; and dipstick proteinuria. The miniPIERS model was well-calibrated and had an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC ROC) of 0.768 (95% CI 0.735-0.801) with an average optimism of 0.037. External validation AUC ROC was 0.713 (95% CI 0.658-0.768). A predicted probability â„25% to define a positive test classified women with 85.5% accuracy. Limitations of this study include the composite outcome and the broad inclusion criteria of any hypertensive disorder of pregnancy. This broad approach was used to optimize model generalizability. CONCLUSIONS: The miniPIERS model shows reasonable ability to identify women at increased risk of adverse maternal outcomes associated with the hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. It could be used in LMICs to identify women who would benefit most from interventions such as magnesium sulphate, antihypertensives, or transportation to a higher level of care
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