Into the American Civil War: Thoughts on the Character of the Nation-Building Event

Streaming video requires Flash Player, RealPlayer, or Windows Media Player to view.Brooks spoke about how to understand events in the public sphere when looking at the American Civil War in the early 1850's. Specifically, he examines texts from Harriet Beecher Stowe that were published as part of the anti-slavery cause.The Ohio State University. Humanities Institute Public Sphere and Modern Social Imaginaries working groupThe Ohio State University. Department of EnglishThe Ohio State University. Department of Germanic Languages and LiteraturesThe Ohio State University. Department of HistoryThe Ohio State University. Department of Political Science DepartmentThe Ohio State University. Department of Spanish and PortugueseThe Ohio State University. Department of Women’s StudiesOhio State University. Mershon Center for International Security StudiesEvent Web page, streaming video, event photo

Simultaneous Coherent Structure Coloring facilitates interpretable clustering of scientific data by amplifying dissimilarity

The clustering of data into physically meaningful subsets often requires assumptions regarding the number, size, or shape of the subgroups. Here, we present a new method, simultaneous coherent structure coloring (sCSC), which accomplishes the task of unsupervised clustering without a priori guidance regarding the underlying structure of the data. sCSC performs a sequence of binary splittings on the dataset such that the most dissimilar data points are required to be in separate clusters. To achieve this, we obtain a set of orthogonal coordinates along which dissimilarity in the dataset is maximized from a generalized eigenvalue problem based on the pairwise dissimilarity between the data points to be clustered. This sequence of bifurcations produces a binary tree representation of the system, from which the number of clusters in the data and their interrelationships naturally emerge. To illustrate the effectiveness of the method in the absence of a priori assumptions, we apply it to three exemplary problems in fluid dynamics. Then, we illustrate its capacity for interpretability using a high-dimensional protein folding simulation dataset. While we restrict our examples to dynamical physical systems in this work, we anticipate straightforward translation to other fields where existing analysis tools require ad hoc assumptions on the data structure, lack the interpretability of the present method, or in which the underlying processes are less accessible, such as genomics and neuroscience

Predictive Monitoring for Respiratory Decompensation Leading to Urgent Unplanned Intubation in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Background: Infants admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and especially those born with very low birth weight (VLBW; \u3c 1,500 g), are at risk for respiratory decompensation requiring endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation. I ntubation and mechanical ventilation are associated with increased morbidity, particularly in urgent unplanned cases. Methods: We tested the hypothesis that the systemic response associated with respiratory decombensation can be detected from physiological monitoring and that statistical models of bedside monitoring data can identify infants at increased risk of urgent unplanned intubation. We studied 287 VLBW infants consecutively admitted to our NICU and found 96 events in 51 patients, excluding intUbations occurring within. 12h of a previous extubation. Results: In order of importance in a multivariable statistical model, we found that the characteristics of reduced O-2 satura, tion, especially as heart rate was falling; increased heart rate correlation with respiratory rate; and the amount of apnea were aIF significant independent pr,edictors.\u27 The predictive model, validated internally by bootStrap, had a receiver-operating characteristic area of 0.84 + / - 0.04. Conclusion: We propose that predictive monitoring in the NICU for urgent unplanned intubation may improve outcomes by allowing clinicians to intervene noninvasively before intubation is required

Perspective : Time-restricted eating—integrating the what with the when

Time-restricted eating (TRE) is a popular dietary strategy that emphasizes the timing of meals in alignment with diurnal circadian rhythms, permitting ad libitum energy intake during a restricted (∼8–10 h) eating window each day. Unlike energy-restricted diets or intermittent fasting interventions that focus on weight loss, many of the health-related benefits of TRE are independent of reductions in body weight. However, TRE research to date has largely ignored what food is consumed (i.e., macronutrient composition and energy density), overlooking a plethora of past epidemiological and interventional dietary research. To determine some of the potential mechanisms underpinning the benefits of TRE on metabolic health, future studies need to increase the rigor of dietary data collected, assessed, and reported to ensure a consistent and standardized approach in TRE research. This Perspective article provides an overview of studies investigating TRE interventions in humans and considers dietary intake (both what and when food is eaten) and their impact on selected health outcomes (i.e., weight loss, glycemic control). Integrating existing dietary knowledge about what food is eaten with our recent understanding on when food should be consumed is essential to optimize the impact of dietary strategies aimed at improving metabolic health outcomes

Police sexual misconduct: A national scale study of arrested officers

Police sexual misconduct is often considered a hidden crime that routinely goes unreported. The current study provides an empirical data on cases of sex-related police crime at law enforcement agencies across the United States. The study identifies and describes incidents where sworn law enforcement officers were arrested for one or more sex-related crimes through a quantitative content analysis of published newspaper articles and court records. The primary news information source was the Google News search engine using 48 automated Google Alerts. Data are analyzed on 548 arrest cases in the years 2005-2007 of 398 officers employed by 328 nonfederal law enforcement agencies located in 265 counties and independent cities in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Findings indicate that police sexual misconduct includes serious forms of sex-related crime and that victims of sex-related police crime are typically younger than 18 years of age

Factors Influencing Northern Bobwhite Hunter Success on a Public Wildlife Management Area in Kentucky

Hunter success is a critical measure of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) restoration. Understanding the factors influencing hunter success can guide wildlife agencies in efforts to improve success and satisfaction and sustain hunter support of conservation initiatives. We compared use of vegetation types by radiomarked bobwhite (n = 30 coveys) and hunting dogs (n = 241) equipped with Global Positioning System collars during the 2014–2015 quail hunting season on Peabody Wildlife Management Area in western Kentucky. We surveyed hunting parties (n = 252) immediately after their hunt to determine success (flushed bobwhite) and gather hunt-party characteristics. We used associated habitat metrics from the dog track, weather variables, hunter and dog characteristics (e.g., age, experience), and hunt metrics (e.g., hours hunted, no. of dogs) to determine factors that influenced hunt success. Dogs used winter wheat firebreaks more than bobwhite regardless of time of day, forested areas more than bobwhite in the morning (0700–1000 hr) and midday (1000–1300 hr), disked areas more than bobwhite during midday, and open herbaceous areas less than bobwhite during morning and midday. The probability of success was positively influenced by number of dogs and hours hunted and negatively influenced by proportion of the hunt track in disked areas. Also, hunter success was greater in November compared with December and January. Our results indicated some key features associated with bobwhite habitat (open areas) may be underexploited by hunters, whereas other features (disked areas, firebreaks, and forested areas) may be overexploited. However, success was influenced primarily by factors that may be related to covey avoidance behavior resulting from substantial hunting pressure rather than where hunters selected to hunt. Lower bobwhite encounter rates (coveys flushed/hour) could cause hunter support to wane and bias hunting data as an indicator of population abundance

Research Brief One-Sheet No.3: Police Drug Corruption: What are the Drugs of Choice?

Police scandals during the 1980s and 90s exposed dramatic cases of drug-related corruption in a number of large American cities. The scandals in New York City culminated in the establishment of the Mollen Commission which focused on the investigation of corruption within the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The two year investigation identified a nexus between police misconduct and the operation of local drug markets, in particular cocaine and crack. A handful of scholarly studies from the same period provide the basis for most of our knowledge on the problem of drug-related police corruption. Data from these studies are primarily qualitative and/or difficult to generalize because they are derived from a single or small number of local police agencies (see e.g., Carter, 1990; Carter and Stephens, 1994; Kraska and Kappeler, 1988). The purpose of our study is to provide contemporary empirical data on drug-related corruption that augments the comparatively short line of existing research on the topic, and to describe the various forms of drug-related corruption as the phenomenon occurs in police agencies across the United States. Our research identifies and describes incidents in which police were arrested for criminal offenses associated with drug-related corruption through content analyses of published newspaper articles

A Study of Drug-Related Police Corruption Arrests

Purpose – The purpose of the study is to provide empirical data on cases of drug-related police corruption. It identifies and describes incidents in which police officers were arrested for criminal offenses associated with drug-related corruption. Design/methodology/approach – The study is a quantitative content analysis of news articles identified through the Google News search engine using 48 automated Google Alerts queries. Statistical analyses include classification trees to examine causal pathways between drugs and corruption. Findings – Data were analyzed on 221 drug-related arrest cases of officers employed by police agencies throughout the United States. Findings show that drug-related corruption involves a wide range of criminal offenses, and that cocaine is the most prevalent drug. Older officers and those employed by large agencies are less likely than others to lose their jobs after a drug-related arrest. Research limitations/implications – The study is limited by the quality of the available content in each case. The data are also limited to cases that involve an official arrest. Additionally, the data are the result of a filtering process that includes the exercise of media discretion as to types of news stories reported and the content devoted to particular news stories. Practical implications – The data provide documentation of drug-related corruption and the drug trade in 141 police agencies and the need for police executives to develop effective strategies to address it. Originality/value – The study augments the few drug corruption studies publishe

Chaid Analysis of Drug-Related Police Corruption Arrests

Purpose- The purpose of the study is to provide empirical data on cases of drug-related police corruption. The study identifies and describes incidents in which police officers were arrested for criminal offenses associated with drug-related corruption. Design/methodology/approach- The study is a quantitative content analysis of news articles identified through the Google News search engine using 48 automated Google Alerts queries. Statistical analyses include classification trees to examine casual pathways between drugs and corruption. Findings- Data are analyzed on 221 drug-related arrest cases of officers employed by police agencies throughout the United States. Findings show that drug-related corruption involves a wide range of criminal offenses, and that cocaine is the most prevalent drug. Older officers and those employed by large agencies are less likely than others to lose their jobs after a drug-related arrest. Research limitations/implications- The data are limited to cases that involve an official arrest. Additionally, the data are the result of a filtering process that includes the exercise of media discretion as to the types of news stories reported and the content devoted to particular news stories. Practical implications- The study provides data on drug-related corruption and the drug trade in 141 police agencies, and suggests the need for police executives to develop effective strategies to address it. Originality/value- The study augments the few existing studies on the topic, and is the only study known to describe drug-related corruption as it occurs within police agencies nationwide