”Myös edes se, että asiasta puhuttaisiin kursseilla, saisi reflektoimaan miten itse toimisi.” : luokanopettajaopiskelijoiden ja valmistuneiden luokanopettajien näkemyksiä Oulun ja Lapin yliopiston koulutusohjelmien antamista kielellisesti vastuullisen pedagogiikan valmiuksista

Kielitietoisuus-käsite lisättiin suomalaiseen perusopetuksen opetussuunnitelmaan ensimmäistä kertaa vuonna 2014 ja täten on hyvin ajankohtainen suomalaisessa koulukontekstissa. Kielitietoisuutta edellytetään kaikilta opettajilta, mutta se on jäänyt sisällöltään monelle koulutusalan ammattilaiselle ja luokanopettajalle melko vieraaksi. Kielitietoisuus-käsitteelle löytyy lukuisia eri määritelmiä, mutta sitä voidaan tarkastella opettajan näkökulmasta kielellisesti vastuullisen pedagogiikan viitekehyksen avulla, joka määrittelee kielitietoisuutta kielen roolin huomioimisena opetuksessa sekä oppijoiden kielellisten ja kulttuuristen taustojen arvostamisena. Jokaisella oppijalla on oikeus kieli- ja kulttuuritietoiseen opetukseen kieli- ja kulttuuritaustasta riippumatta. Tässä pro gradu -tutkielmassa tutkin luokanopettajaopiskelijoiden ja valmistuneiden luokanopettajien käsityksiä luokanopettajakoulutuksen kielitietoisesta valmentamisesta hyödyntäen fenomenografista tutkimusmenetelmää. Tutkimukseni tavoitteena on nostaa esiin Lapin yliopiston, Oulun yliopiston sekä sen ITE-ohjelman luokanopettajaopiskelijoiden käsityksiä ja kokemuksia kielitietoisuuden sisältymisestä heidän opintoihinsa. Tarkastelen lisäksi, millaisia kielellisesti vastuullisen pedagogiikan valmiuksia opinnot tarjoavat opiskelijoille ja miten he hyödyntäisivät niitä työelämässä. Tutkimukseni teoreettinen viitekehys käsittelee kielitietoisuuden taustaa, käsitteen moniulotteisuutta sekä sen muovautumista nykypäivän suomalaiseen koulukontekstiin. Keräsin tutkimusaineistoni keväällä 2022 verkkokyselylomakkeen avulla, johon osallistui kaksitoista luokanopettajaopiskelijaa ja valmistunutta luokanopettajaa Lapin yliopistosta, Oulun yliopistosta sekä ITE-ohjelmasta. Tutkin myös näiden korkeakoulujen lukuvuoden 2022–2023 opinto-oppaita ja vertasin niitä kyselyvastauksiin. Aineiston analyysin toteutin teoriaohjaavan sisällönanalyysin keinoin. Tutkimustulokset osoittavat, että tutkimukseen osallistuneet luokanopettajaopiskelijat ja valmistuneet opettajat kokevat vaihtelevasti saaneensa kielitietoisia valmiuksia opinnoistaan. Suuri osa oli sitä mieltä, että kielitietoisuutta ei käsitellä riittävästi ja se tulisi sisällyttää omana pakollisena opintojaksonaan luokanopettajakoulutukseen. Tuloksien mukaan kielellisesti vastuullista pedagogiikan osa-alueita käsitellään vain osittain Oulun yliopiston ja Lapin yliopiston opintojaksoilla, joista suuri osa ovat valinnaisia opintoja tai jatko-opintoja. Luokanopettajakoulutuksella olisi vielä paljon kehitettävää opiskelijoiden kielitietoisuuskäsityksen muovaamisessa ja toivon, että se välittyy myös lukijalle

Guts & Glory H. pylori: Cause of Peptic Ulcer

Due to the 1983 discovery of H. pylori bacteria as the leading cause of peptic ulcers, the understanding of the disease dramatically changed. We now know that stress and spicy foods are not the leading causes of peptic ulcers. Symptoms including acute abdominal pain, vomiting of blood, and weight loss are characteristic of peptic ulcers. Ulcers form because of the inflammation caused by H. pylori leading to sensitivity of gastric cells to the acid secreted by the infected patient’s stomach. Although more than half of the world’s population is infected with H. pylori, most people remain asymptomatic. Current research suggests that several bacterial virulence genes such as CagA and VacA, as well as the individual host’s genetic predisposition, are factors that influence progression of disease. The mechanism of H. pylori infection has been recently examined in detail clarifying the morphological changes of the host cell and how this promotes the formation of a peptic ulcer. Present studies to explain the persistence of H. pylori and propose how this bacterium evolved key mechanisms to evade the host’s immune response. Due to the advances in the understanding of peptic ulcers, effective treatments have been proposed to treat and eliminate this disease

Single Center Outcomes of Status Epilepticus at a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit

Background: Status epilepticus (SE) is a frequent admission diagnosis to paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) and is associated with variable outcomes. We have audited our experience of patients presenting in SE at a Canadian PICU to determine unfavorable outcome variables. Methods: Charts of patients \u3c18 years of age presenting in SE to a tertiary care PICU over a 10-year period were audited. Data were analyzed at three care-points: transport, the emergency department (ED) and the PICU. Patient outcome before PICU discharge was categorized as favorable for return to pre-status functioning level or unfavorable for new deficit/death. Student\u27s t-test and the Kruskal-Wallis test were used for analysis of normal and skewed continuous variables, respectively, and either Chi-square test or Fisher\u27s exact test for categorical variables. Results: 189 patients (54% males) were identified with a median age of 1.9 years. Idiopathic SE had the highest incidence; infectious/vascular etiologies were associated with more unfavorable outcomes. Progression to refractory SE in the ED had a higher incidence of death (p\u3c0.05). Patients with an unfavorable outcome had a higher incidence of apnea during transport (p=0.01), longer hospital stays (p\u3c0.05), need for therapeutic coma (p=0.01), longer duration of therapeutic coma (p\u3c0.05), need for mechanical ventilation (p\u3c0.05), and recurrent or refractory seizures during inpatient stay (p\u3c0.05). Multivariate analysis of unfavorable outcomes of patients in SE presenting to the PICU included renal failure, cerebral edema, apnea during transport, refractory seizures, and recurrent seizures. Conclusions: Refractory seizures in children presenting with SE are associated with worsened outcomes in the PICU

Climatic effects of the Chicxulub impact ejecta

Examining the short and long term effects of the Chicxulub impact is critical for understanding how life developed on Earth. While the aftermath of the initial impact would have produced harmful levels of radiation sufficient for eradicating a large portion of terrestrial life, this process does not explain the concurrent marine extinction. Following the primary impact, a large quantity of smaller spherules would de-orbit and re-enter the earths atmosphere, dispersed nearly uniformly across the planet. This secondary wave of debris would re-enter at high velocities, altering the chemical composition of the atmosphere. Furthermore, the combined surface area for the spherules would be much larger than for the original asteroid, resulting in considerably more potential reactions. For this reason, a new method was developed for predicting the total amount of toxic species produced by the spherule re-entry phase of the Chicxulub event. Using non-equilibrium properties obtained from direct simulation Monte Carlo (DSMC) methods coupled with spherule trajectory integration, the most likely cause of the observed marine extinction was determined

Cord blood versus age 5 mononuclear cell proliferation on IgE and asthma

Abstract Background Fetal immune responses following exposure of mothers to allergens during pregnancy may influence the subsequent risk of childhood asthma. However, the association of allergen-induced cord blood mononuclear cell (CBMC) proliferation and cytokine production with later allergic immune responses and asthma has been controversial. Our objective was to compare indoor allergen-induced CBMC with age 5 peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) proliferation and determine which may be associated with age 5 allergic immune responses and asthma in an inner city cohort. Methods As part of an ongoing cohort study of the Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health (CCCEH), CBMCs and age 5 PBMCs were cultured with cockroach, mouse, and dust mite protein extracts. CBMC proliferation and cytokine (IL-5 and IFN-γ) responses, and age 5 PBMC proliferation responses, were compared to anti-cockroach, anti-mouse, and anti-dust mite IgE levels, wheeze, cough, eczema and asthma. Results Correlations between CBMC and age 5 PBMC proliferation in response to cockroach, mouse, and dust mite antigens were nonsignificant. Cockroach-, mouse-, and dust mite-induced CBMC proliferation and cytokine responses were not associated with allergen-specific IgE at ages 2, 3, and 5, or with asthma and eczema at age 5. However, after adjusting for potential confounders, age 5 cockroach-induced PBMC proliferation was associated with anti-cockroach IgE, total IgE, and asthma (p < 0.05). Conclusion In contrast to allergen-induced CBMC proliferation, age 5 cockroach-induced PBMC proliferation was associated with age 5 specific and total IgE, and asthma, in an inner-city cohort where cockroach allergens are prevalent and exposure can be high

Ensuring the Health Care Needs of Women: A Checklist for Health Exchanges

To inform the development of the state health insurance Exchanges under the Affordable Care Act, this checklist identifies key coverage, affordability and access issues that are important for women. Based on lessons learned from women’s health research and the Massachusetts experience, the checklist considers essential health benefits, implementation of no-cost preventive services including contraception, provider networks and affordability, outreach and enrollment efforts, and the importance of including gender and other demographic characteristics in data collection and reporting standards. It was jointly authored by policy experts at the Kaiser Family Foundation, The Connors Center for Women’s Health and Gender Biology at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Jacobs Institute of Women’s Health at The George Washington University

Single-Chip T/R Module for 1.2 GHz

A single-chip CMOS-based (complementary-metal-oxide-semiconductorbased) transmit/receive (T/R) module is being developed for L-band radar systems. Previous T/R module implementations required multiple chips employing different technologies (GaAs, Si, and others) combined with off-chip transmission lines and discrete components including circulators. The new design eliminates the bulky circulator, significantly reducing the size and mass of the T/R module. Compared to multi-chip designs, the single-chip CMOS can be implemented with lower cost. These innovations enable cost-effective realization of advanced phased array and synthetic aperture radar systems that require integration of thousands of T/R modules. The circulator is a ferromagnetic device that directs the flow of the RF (radio frequency) power during transmission and reception. During transmission, the circulator delivers the transmitted power from the amplifier to the antenna, while preventing it from damaging the sensitive receiver circuitry. During reception, the circulator directs the energy from the antenna to the low-noise amplifier (LNA) while isolating the output of the power amplifier (PA). In principle, a circulator could be replaced by series transistors acting as electronic switches. However, in practice, the integration of conventional series transistors into a T/R chip introduces significant losses and noise. The prototype single-chip T/R module contains integrated transistor switches, but not connected in series; instead, they are connected in a shunt configuration with resonant circuits (see figure). The shunt/resonant circuit topology not only reduces the losses associated with conventional semiconductor switches but also provides beneficial transformation of impedances for the PA and the LNA. It provides full singlepole/ double-throw switching for the antenna, isolating the LNA from the transmitted signal and isolating the PA from the received signal. During reception, the voltage on control line RX/TX (raised bar) is high, causing the field-effect transistor (FET) switch S1 to be closed, forming a parallel resonant tank circuit L1||C1. This circuit presents high impedance to the left of the antenna, so that the received signal is coupled to the LNA. At the same time, FET switches S2 and S3 are open, so that C2 is removed from the circuit (except for a small parasitic capacitance). The combination of L2 and C3 forms a matching network that transforms the antenna impedance of 50 ohms to a higher value from the perspective of the LNA input terminal. This transformation of impedance improves LNA noise figure by increasing the received voltage delivered to the input transistor. This allows lower transconductance and therefore a smaller transistor, which makes it possible to design the CMOS LNA for low power consumption. During transmission, the voltage on control line RX/TX (raised bar) is low, causing switch S1 to be open. In this configuration, the combination of L1 and C1 transforms the antenna impedance to a lower value from the perspective of the PA. This low impedance is helpful in producing a relatively high output power compatible with the low CMOS operating potential. At the same time, switches S2 and S3 are closed, forming the parallel resonant tank circuit L2||C2. This circuit presents high impedance to the right of the antenna, directing the PA output signal to the antenna and away from the LNA. During this time, S3 presents a short circuit across the LNA input terminals to guarantee that the voltage seen by the LNA is small enough to prevent damage

Nodding syndrome may be an autoimmune reaction to the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus

Nodding Syndrome (NS) is an epileptic disorder of unknown etiology that occurs in children in East Africa. There is an epidemiological association with Onchocerca volvulus, the parasite that causes onchocerciasis, but there is limited evidence that the parasite itself is neuroinvasive. We hypothesized that NS was an autoimmune-mediated disease, and using protein chip methodology, we detected autoantibodies to leiomodin-1 from patients with NS as compared to unaffected village controls. Leiomodin-1 autoantibodies were found in both the sera and cerebral spinal fluid from patients. Leiomodin-1 was found to be expressed in mature and developing human neurons in vitro and localized to the murine CA3 region of the hippocampus, Purkinje cells in the cerebellum and cortical neurons, structures that also appear to be affected in patients with NS. Antibodies targeting leiomodin-1 were neurotoxic in vitro and leiomodin-1 antibodies purified from patients with NS were cross-reactive to O. volvulus antigens. This study provides initial evidence supporting the hypothesis that NS is an autoimmune epileptic disorder caused by molecular mimicry with O. volvulus and suggests that patients may benefit from immune-modulatory therapie

Prevalence of MRSA and Antimicrobial Resistance of Staphylococcus aureus in Maryland Ground Meat Products

Gemstone Team Antibiotic ResistanceThe aim of this study was to evaluate the risk of exposure to antimicrobial-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from food-grade raw ground meat products in Maryland. Samples of ground beef (n = 198), pork (n = 300), and turkey (n = 196), were collected by random sampling from March-August, 2008. All isolates were tested for resistance to methicillin and confirmed S. aureus isolates (n = 200) were tested for susceptibility to 21 additional antimicrobials. Overall, turkey- and pork-derived isolates were more likely to be resistant to commonly used antimicrobials. One isolate from pork was confirmed to be the USA100 strain of MRSA and was resistant to 10 antibiotics. In addition, antibiotic-resistant non-S. aureus isolates were characterized and may represent a source for the transfer of resistance genes to S. aureus. Our findings suggest that meat production practices may impact the prevalence and antimicrobial resistance of S. aureus in ground meat

Metallic Strip Gratings in the Sub-Subwavelength Regime

Metallic strip gratings (MSG) have different applications, ranging from printed circuits to filters in microwave domains. When they are under the influence of an electromagnetic field, evanescent and/or abnormal modes appear in the region between the traces, their utilization leading to the development of new electromagnetic nondestructive evaluation methods. This paper studies the behavior of MSGs in the sub-subwavelength regime when they are excited with TEz or TMz polarized plane waves and the slits are filled with different dielectrics. The appearance of propagating, evanescent and abnormal modes is emphasized using an electromagnetic sensor with metamaterials lens realized with two conical Swiss rolls, which allows the extraction of the information carried by the guided evanescent waves. The evanescent waves, manipulated by the electromagnetic sensor with metamaterial lenses, improve the electromagnetic images so that a better spatial resolution is obtained, exceeding the limit imposed by diffraction. Their theoretical and experimental confirmation opens the perspective for development of new types of sensors working in radio and microwave frequencies