Diversity and the ADA

This brochure is one of a series on human resources practices and workplace accommodations for persons with disabilities edited by Susanne M. Bruyère, Ph.D., CRC, SPHR, Director, Program on Employment and Disability, School of Industrial and Labor Relations – Extension Division, Cornell University. It has been updated by Jennifer Rhodes, Diversity Initiative Manager, Society for Human Resource Management, from the original, which was written in 1996 by Susanne M. Bruyère

The Wagnerian Novel: Iterations of the Gesamtkunstwerk in Prose

This dissertation traces Richard Wagner’s influence on the twentieth century Western European novel. Through a close reading of three monumental works: Gabriele d’Annunzio’s Il fuoco (1900), Marcel Proust’s À la recherche du temps perdu (1913-1927), and Thomas Mann’s Doctor Faustus: The story of the German composer Adrian Leverkühn, as told by a friend (1947), I argue that Wagner’s artistic and theoretical legacy helps set the course for modernist prose. By investigating the vast webs of intertextual references present in these works, this project examines how novelists manipulate multimedia collage, autobiographical incursion, and narrative silence to replicate the ideal of the Gesamtkunstwerk, or “Total Work of Art” both championed by Richard Wagner in his early theoretical manifesti and deployed, in evolving ways, throughout the composer’s life. I argue that, rather than creating simple allusions to the Wagnerian ideal across media, d’Annunzio, Proust, and Mann strive to reproduce the full spectrum of Wagner’s biographical and operatic spectacle within the confines of the printed page. In so doing, they pioneer revolutionary prose techniques that bring Wagner’s innovations to an audience far beyond the walls of the opera house

Fire protection of surface coatings

Multilayer paint is a significant fire hazard particularly concerning rapid spread of flame,smoke and toxic species production. Fire protective coatings are often employed to protect this unpredictably flammable substrate from ignition (for example resulting from arson attacks in the communal areas of multi- occupancy buildings). Literature shows a gap in the understanding of this problem,a lack of suitable flammability tests,and methods for screening new fire protective coatings required to address this problem. This work investigates the factors affecting coating performance and develops screening test methods to estimate protection performance in standard fire tests. The dependence of these tests has been investigated with regard to substrate, coating thickness,composition of coating, thermal conductivity and rheological properties, to inform the development of modified coating formulations with enhanced fire safety.Coating materials have been investigated using thermogravimetric ana lysis (TGA) in both air and inert atmospheres and their burning behaviour using the cone calorimeter (ISO 5660). Novel screening test methods also include a test adapted from BS EN 367 for measurement of thermal conductivity, a thermocouple embedded in cone samples to assess the temperature profile at the substrate-coating interface and BS 476: Part 6 (adapted) as a scaled down version of the standard fire test. The chemical changes occurring during burning of current coatings formulations were investigated using CHN analysis, pyrolysis gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (pyGC-MS),inductively coupled plasma coupled with mass spectrometry (ICP-MS),diamond attenuated total reflectance coupled with fourier transform infra-red (dATR-FTIR),nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR} and scanning electron microscopy coupled with electron dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM- EDAX} to inform the development of novel formulations. Generally,intumescent formulations tend to exhibit lower fire propagation indexes when assessed in the BS 476: Part 6,longer time to ignition and lower peak heat release rates in the cone calorimeter, as well as reduced thermal conductivity recorded in the BS EN 367. Results report mixed performance,suggesting that it is not only char residue formation that ensures a pass in the standard fire tests. Rheological properties of the coatings are crucial to performance,with softening temperature and reduction in viscosity coinciding with gas release of the fire retardant additive. Each screening test method assesses one particular aspect of flammability, they are dependent on the controlled conditions under which results are collected,and the limited correlation observed with the performance in the standard fire tests, do not conclusively predict performance in a real fire situation

Understanding Alzheimer’s Disease Knowledge in Low-Income, Richmond, VA Community Dwelling Older Adults

Background: Different populations of individuals demonstrate varying levels of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) knowledge, as well as commonly held misconceptions about the nature of the disease and its risk factors. Older adults often demonstrate lower scores on Alzheimer’s disease knowledge scales and African American adults are often specifically not aware of their higher Alzheimer’s risk status compared to other racial groups. In addition, African American older adults are more likely to receive the fewest AD interventions. Methods: We measured the Alzheimer’s knowledge of twenty community-dwelling elders at two separate time points (baseline and 6 month follow-up) as part of a larger study on AD health coaching. Participants (n=20) were recruited from low-income communities within the Richmond, Virginia (RVA) area; the sample was 85% African American individuals (n=17), 45% female (n=9) and 55% male (n=11). Participants completed demographic measures, true/false AD knowledge measures, a relational ageism scale, and questions about their health and habits. Results: Similar to previous research, this population of older adults held common misconceptions about AD, including the ideas that mental exercise can prevent Alzheimer’s disease (20% answered correctly) and individuals with Alzheimer’s are incapable of making decisions about their care (30% answered correctly). In this sample, the majority of African American older adults were aware of the fact that they make up the population at the highest risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease (80% answered correctly). Analyses also found no significant relationship between AD knowledge and health outcomes, alcohol consumption, or education. Conclusion: AD knowledge needs to be better addressed in low-income, racially diverse older adults.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/gradposters/1073/thumbnail.jp

An Evaluation of Highway Flood Damage statistics

Hydraulic events result in thousands of incidents of property damage each year. The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers estimates that annual damage averages over $2 billion (CaE, 1991). Federal, state, and local agencies have set up emergency assistance programs to help pay these unusually heavy expenses. Despite the detail of the policies regulating such programs, a comprehensive database describing the causes and consequences of flood losses does not exist. In an effort to obtain clear and consistent statistics on highway related damage, the disaster files of the Federal Highway Administration\u27s (FHWA) Emergency Relief (ER) Fund and the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u27s (FEMA) Disaster Assistance Program (DAP) have been studied

Fire protection of surface coatings

Multilayer paint is a significant fire hazard particularly concerning rapid spread of flame,smoke and toxic species production. Fire protective coatings are often employed to protect this unpredictably flammable substrate from ignition (for example resulting from arson attacks in the communal areas of multi- occupancy buildings). Literature shows a gap in the understanding of this problem,a lack of suitable flammability tests,and methods for screening new fire protective coatings required to address this problem. This work investigates the factors affecting coating performance and develops screening test methods to estimate protection performance in standard fire tests. The dependence of these tests has been investigated with regard to substrate, coating thickness,composition of coating, thermal conductivity and rheological properties, to inform the development of modified coating formulations with enhanced fire safety.Coating materials have been investigated using thermogravimetric ana lysis (TGA) in both air and inert atmospheres and their burning behaviour using the cone calorimeter (ISO 5660). Novel screening test methods also include a test adapted from BS EN 367 for measurement of thermal conductivity, a thermocouple embedded in cone samples to assess the temperature profile at the substrate-coating interface and BS 476: Part 6 (adapted) as a scaled down version of the standard fire test. The chemical changes occurring during burning of current coatings formulations were investigated using CHN analysis, pyrolysis gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (pyGC-MS),inductively coupled plasma coupled with mass spectrometry (ICP-MS),diamond attenuated total reflectance coupled with fourier transform infra-red (dATR-FTIR),nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR} and scanning electron microscopy coupled with electron dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDAX} to inform the development of novel formulations. Generally,intumescent formulations tend to exhibit lower fire propagation indexes when assessed in the BS 476: Part 6,longer time to ignition and lower peak heat release rates in the cone calorimeter, as well as reduced thermal conductivity recorded in the BS EN 367. Results report mixed performance,suggesting that it is not only char residue formation that ensures a pass in the standard fire tests. Rheological properties of the coatings are crucial to performance,with softening temperature and reduction in viscosity coinciding with gas release of the fire retardant additive. Each screening test method assesses one particular aspect of flammability, they are dependent on the controlled conditions under which results are collected,and the limited correlation observed with the performance in the standard fire tests, do not conclusively predict performance in a real fire situation.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

The Institute of Archaeology & Siegfried H. Horn Museum Newsletter Volume 27.3

Tent Dinner and Art Auction, Jennifer L. Green Younker Lecture, Carrie Rhodes Global Moments, Paul J. Ray, Jr. Al-Maktába: The Bookstore Random Surveyhttps://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/iaham-news/1027/thumbnail.jp

An ethnographic exploration of drug markets in Kisumu, Kenya.

BACKGROUND: Illegal drug markets are shaped by multiple forces, including local actors and broader economic, political, social, and criminal justice systems that intertwine to impact health and social wellbeing. Ethnographic analyses that interrogate multiple dimensions of drug markets may offer both applied and theoretical insights into drug use, particularly in developing nations where new markets and local patterns of use traditionally have not been well understood. This paper explores the emergent drug market in Kisumu, western Kenya, where our research team recently documented evidence of injection drug use. METHODS: Our exploratory study of injection drug use was conducted in Kisumu from 2013 to 2014. We draw on 151 surveys, 29 in-depth interviews, and 8 months of ethnographic fieldwork to describe the drug market from the perspective of injectors, focusing on their perceptions of the market and reports of drug use therein. RESULTS: Injectors described a dynamic market in which the availability of drugs and proliferation of injection drug use have taken on growing importance in Kisumu. In addition to reports of white and brown forms of heroin and concerns about drug adulteration in the market, we unexpectedly documented widespread perceptions of cocaine availability and injection in Kisumu. Examining price data and socio-pharmacological experiences of cocaine injection left us with unconfirmed evidence of its existence, but opened further possibilities about how the chaos of new drug markets and diffusion of injection-related beliefs and practices may lend insight into the sociopolitical context of western Kenya. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest a need for expanded drug surveillance, education and programming responsive to local conditions, and further ethnographic inquiry into the social meanings of emergent drug markets in Kenya and across sub-Saharan Africa