Five Benefits I Got From Doing Pro Bono

Based on a talk given at the November 2015 Student Pro Bono Conference in Birmingham, this paper is written by a final year LLB student, and highlights the impact of her participation in Birmingham Law School's Pro Bono Group

The great delusion

The climate crisis is a wicked problem that poses many obstacles for action and understanding. This thesis is a non-linear accumulation of academic essays, interpolated with lists, anecdotal observations, data, and artwork that together explore the entanglements and complications of the climate crisis and my journey in making artwork as a response to those complications. The thesis surveys six bodies of artwork created over the course of graduate school, which use photography, sculptural installation, performance, and video to illustrate various topics and methodologies. Grounded in research on environmental justice, this essay explores temporal disjunctures, climate data encounters, the decolonization of nature, and how to visualize the imperceptible

Using the ICF and psychological models of behavior to predict mobility limitations

Aims to test the ability of a model that integrates the theory of planned behavior (TPB) into the International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health (ICF) to predict walking limitations in adults awaiting hip or knee replacement surgery. Study Design and Participants: Cross-sectional structural equation modeling study of activity limitations in 190 adults. Method: A postal questionnaire measuring the TPB, ICF and walking limitations. Results: The integrated model accounted for more variance in activity limitations (57%) than either the TPB or ICF alone. Control beliefs (TPB) significantly mediated the relationship between impairment (ICF) and activity limitations. Conclusions: The integrated model provides an interdisciplinary theoretical framework that identifies intervention targets to effect reductions in disability without the need for concomitant reductions in impairment

Electric slow cookers : use and care

"File: Household Equipment, 9/77/8M""Slow cooking has long been recognized as an excellent method of food preparation. This method of preparation has become a more practical one for every cook, from beginner to gourmet, with the introduction of electrically-heated, self-contained, slow-cooking units. Slow cookers provide a quick and convenient means of preparing good tasting and nutritious meals."--First paragraph.Mary Beth Johnston (Student in the UMC College of Home Economics), Marilyn W. Caselman (State Family Economics and Management Specialist)Includes bibliographical reference

Synthesis of analogs of aflatoxin B2 and glycinoeclepin A

The aflatoxins are a class of naturally occurring toxins which possess a synthetically interesting furofuran ring system. An analog of aflatoxin B[subscript]2, racemic demethoxyaflatoxin B[subscript]2, was synthesized in a concise manner. The key step in the synthesis was a silver-mediated oxidative radical cyclization to form the furofuran system. The conditions developed for this cyclization are milder and more convenient than those reported for many similar reactions, and are mildly basic, rather than acidic;Glycinoeclepin A is the naturally occurring hatching stimulus for the soybean cyst nematode (SCN). Several analogs, containing representations of various parts of glycinoeclepin A, were synthesized and tested for SCN hatching ability in an effort to identify a compound which could be used to cause premature hatching as a means of nematode control

Training Researchers on Data Management: A Scalable, Cross-Disciplinary Approach

This article describes the curriculum, implementation, and results of the research data management training offered by the University of Minnesota (UMN) Libraries. The UMN Libraries have offered the workshop titled, “Creating a Data Management Plan for Your Grant Application,” to more than 300 researchers and faculty since late 2010. With University partnerships, this training satisfies the requirement for the continuing education component to maintain PI eligibility. Based on workshop feedback, the authors conclude that academic libraries can provide support to researchers with federal mandates to share their research data by providing timely, discussion-based training and resources on how to create a data management plan. The unanticipated benefits for library staff education and professional development on this topic are explored

Electric slow cookers - selection

"File: Household Equipment, 9/77/8M""Slow cooking is a convenient method of food preparation that is being rediscovered in many homes. The idea of slow cooking dates back to the crockery bean pot nestled in hot coals and the cauldron hung over the hearth on a swivel hook. The food cooked slowly and evenly with little attention from the busy homemaker."--First paragraph.Mary Beth Johnston (Student in the UMC College of Home Economics), Marilyn W. Caselman (State Family Economics and Management Specialist)Includes bibliographical reference

Recovery from disability after stroke as a target for a behavioural intervention: Results of a randomised controlled trial

Purpose: Disability following stroke is highly prevalent and is predicted by psychological variables such as control cognitions and emotions, in addition to clinical variables. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a workbook-based intervention, designed to change cognitions about control, in improving outcomes for patients and their carers. Method: At discharge, stroke patients were randomly allocated (with their carers) to a 5-week intervention (n = 103) or control (normal care: n = 100). The main outcome (at 6 months) was recovery from disability using a performance measure, with distress and satisfaction as additional outcomes. Results: The intervention group showed significantly better disability recovery, allowing for initial levels of disability, than those in the control group, F(1,201) = 5.61, p = 0.019. Groups did not differ in distress or satisfaction with care for patients or carers. The only psychological process variable improved by the intervention was Confidence in Recovery but this did not mediate the effects on recovery. Conclusions: A large proportion of intervention participants did not complete the workbook tasks. This was perhaps associated with the fairly low level of personal contact with workbook providers. The modest success of this intervention suggests that it may be possible to develop effective behavioural interventions to enhance recovery from disability in stroke patients

The Parents\u27 Perspective: Experiences in Parent-Mediated Pediatric Occupational Therapy for Children with Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Background: Parent-mediated occupational therapy (OT) is a family-centered method of providing care for children and their families. This study aimed to understand and describe the parents’ perspectives of whether parent-mediated OT services improve child participation and parent-child social interactions in the home and community. Method: This study was performed with a qualitative, phenomenological research design using focus groups. Eight participants were included in the study who were parents of children with at least one NDD, such as autism spectrum disorder or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Results: Four major themes were developed: It’s a Family Affair, Sometimes it Just Takes a Bit of Training, Using [OT Strategies] to the Full Extent, and It’s Definitely Better to be in the Session. One-hundred percent of the participants experienced the phenomenon described in two themes and 87.5% of the participants experienced the phenomenon described in two themes. Conclusion: Parent-mediated OT services may lead to substantial learning among parents, facilitate parents’ use of OT strategies in their home and community environments, improve child participation in daily activities, and improve parent-child communication and engagement

What does the chronic pain grade questionnaire measure?

This study explored the ability of the Chronic Pain Grade Questionnaire (CPG) to operationalise the WHO's model of health outcomes, namely the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Twelve expert judges used the method of discriminant content validation to allocate the seven items of the CPG to one or more ICF outcome, namely, impairment, activity limitations and participation restrictions. One-sample t-tests classified each item as measuring impairment, activity limitations or participation restrictions, or a combination thereof. The results indicated that the CPG contains items able to measure each of the three ICF outcomes. However, the pain grade classification system used in the CPG conflates the ICF outcomes. The implication of this conflation of outcome for the assessment of interventions is discussed