4,448 research outputs found
Self-Portraits for Social Change: Audience Response to a Photovoice Exhibition by Women with Disability
Negative attitudes about and behaviours towards women with disability are harmful and exclusionary, contributing to poorer health, income, educational, and employment outcomes. Our study focused on what audiences learnt, felt, and did (what changed) after viewing self-portraits and stories by women with disability. We questioned whether a public exhibition of their artworks, created through photovoice methodology, could be an effective platform to provoke social change and increase inclusion for people with disability. We collected audience response to our exhibition to address a research gap and to provide an example for other photovoice researchers. We employed interpretive thematic analysis through a generic social processes framework to interrogate responses. Our findings indicate that audiences learnt as much about themselves and their views of disability as they did about the women photographers. The audience described feelings of empathic engagement. They also expressed an unsettling between previously held assumptions around disability and new perspectives gained through the exhibition. Audiences changed how they view women with disability by engaging with the underlying messages of equality in the self-portraits and stories. Audiences thought the exhibition would change other peopleâs views, too, indicating a pathway to greater inclusion for people with disability
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Corticospinal Inputs to Primate Motoneurons Innervatingthe Forelimb from Two Divisions of Primary Motor Cortexand Area 3a
Previous anatomical work in primates has suggested that only corticospinal axons originating in caudal primary motor cortex (ânewM1â) and area 3a make monosynaptic cortico-otoneuronal connections with limb motoneurons.By contrast, the more rostral âold M1â is proposed to control motoneurons disynaptically via spinal interneurons. In six macaque monkeys, we examined the effects from focal stimulation within old and new M1 and area 3a on 135 antidromically identified motoneurons projecting to the upper limb. EPSPs withsegmental latency shorter than 1.2 ms were classified as definitively monosynaptic; these were seen only after stimulation within new M1or at the new M1/3a border (incidence 6.6% and 1.3%, respectively; total n=27). However, most responses had longer latencies. Usingmeasures of the response facilitation after a second stimulus compared with the first, and the reduction in response latency after a third stimulus compared with the first, we classified these late responses as likely mediated by either long-latency monosynaptic (n=108) ornon-monosynaptic linkages (n=108). Both old and new M1 generated putative long-latency monosynaptic and non-monosynaptic effects; the majority of responses from area 3a were non-monosynaptic. Both types of responses from new M1 had significantly greateramplitude than those from old M1. We suggest that slowly conducting corticospinal fibers from old M1 generate weak late monosynaptic effects in motoneurons. These may represent a stage in control of primate motoneurons by the cortex intermediate between disynapticoutput via an interposed interneuron seen in nonprimates and the fast direct monosynaptic connections present in new M1.This work was supported by the Wellcome Trust
Polarization of coalitions in an agent-based model of political discourse
Political discourse is the verbal interaction between political actors in a policy domain. This article explains the formation of polarized advocacy or discourse coalitions in this complex phenomenon by presenting a dynamic, stochastic, and discrete agent-based model based on graph theory and local optimization. In a series of thought experiments, actors compute their utility of contributing a specific statement to the discourse by following ideological criteria, preferential attachment, agenda-setting strategies, governmental coherence, or other mechanisms. The evolving macro-level discourse is represented as a dynamic network and evaluated against arguments from the literature on the policy process. A simple combination of four theoretical mechanisms is already able to produce artificial policy debates with theoretically plausible properties. Any sufficiently realistic configuration must entail innovative and path-dependent elements as well as a blend of exogenous preferences and endogenous opinion formation mechanisms
Non-destructive monitoring of viability in an ex vivo organ culture model of osteochondral tissue
Organ culture is an increasingly important tool in research, with advantages over monolayer cell culture due to the inherent natural environment of tissues. Successful organ cultures must retain cell viability. The aim of this study was to produce viable and non-viable osteochondral organ cultures to assess the accumulation of soluble markers in the conditioned medium for predicting tissue viability. Porcine femoral osteochondral plugs were cultured for 20 days, with the addition on day 6, of Triton X-100 (to induce necrosis), camptothecin (to induce apoptosis) or no toxic additives. Tissue viability was assessed by the tissue destructive XTT (sodium 3'-[1-[(phenylamino)-carbonyl]-3,4-tetrazolium]-bis(4-methoxy-6-nitro)benzene-sulfonic acid hydrate) assay method and LIVE/DEADÂź staining of the cartilage at days 0, 6 and 20. Tissue structure was assessed by histological evaluation using haematoxylin & eosin and safranin O. Conditioned medium was assessed every 3-4 days for glucose depletion, and levels of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), alkaline phosphatase (AP), glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), and matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9. Necrotic cultures immediately showed a reduction in glucose consumption, and an immediate increase in LDH, GAG, MMP-2 and MMP-9 levels. Apoptotic cultures showed a delayed reduction in glucose consumption and delayed increase in LDH, a small rise in MMP-2 and MMP-9, but no significant effect on GAGs released into the conditioned medium. The data showed that tissue viability could be monitored by assessing the conditioned medium for the aforementioned markers, negating the need for tissue destructive assays. Physiologically relevant whole- or part-joint organ culture models, necessary for research and pre-clinical assessment of therapies, could be monitored this way, reducing the need to sacrifice tissues to determine viability, and hence reducing the sample numbers necessary
Effect of spatial configuration of an extended nonlinear Kierstead-Slobodkin reaction-transport model with adaptive numerical scheme
In this paper, we consider the numerical simulations of an extended nonlinear form
of Kierstead-Slobodkin reaction-transport system in one and two dimensions. We
employ the popular fourth-order exponential time differencing Runge-Kutta (ETDRK4)
schemes proposed by Cox and Matthew (J Comput Phys 176:430-455,
2002), that was modified by Kassam and Trefethen (SIAM J Sci Comput 26:1214-1233,
2005), for the time integration of spatially discretized partial differential equations. We demonstrate
the supremacy of ETDRK4 over the existing exponential time differencing integrators
that are of standard approaches and provide timings and error comparison. Numerical
results obtained in this paper have granted further insight to the question "What is the
minimal size of the spatial domain so that the population persists?" posed by Kierstead
and Slobodkin (J Mar Res 12:141-147,
1953
), with a conclusive remark that the popula-
tion size increases with the size of the domain. In attempt to examine the biological
wave phenomena of the solutions, we present the numerical results in both one- and
two-dimensional space, which have interesting ecological implications. Initial data and
parameter values were chosen to mimic some existing patternsScopus 201
An investigation of fingerstick blood collection for pointof- care HIV-1 viral load monitoring in South Africa
Background: Viral load (VL) quantification is an important tool in determining newly developed drug resistance or problems with adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) in HIV-positive patients. VL monitoring is becoming the standard of care in many resource-limited settings. Testing in resource-limited settings may require sampling by fingerstick because of general shortages of skilled phlebotomists and the expense of venepuncture supplies and problems with their distribution.Objective: To assess the feasibility and ease of collecting 150 ÎŒL capillary blood needed for the use of a novel collection device following a classic fingerstick puncture.Methods: Patients were recruited by the study nurse upon arrival for routine ART monitoring at the Themba Lethu Clinic in Johannesburg, South Africa. Each step of the fingerstick and blood collection protocol was observed, and their completion or omission was recorded.Results: One hundred and three patients consented to the study, of whom three were excluded owing to the presence of callouses. From a total of 100 patients who consented and were enrolled, 98% of collection attempts were successful and 86% of participants required only one fingerstick to successfully collect 150 ÎŒL capillary blood. Study nurse adherence to the fingerstick protocol revealed omissions in several steps that may lower the success rate of capillary blood collection and reduce the performance of a subsequent VL assay.Conclusion: The findings of this study support the feasibility of collecting 150 ÎŒL of capillary blood via fingerstick for point-of-care HIV-1 VL testing in a resource-limited setting
Predictors of Employee Involvement in a Worksite Health Promotion Program
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67001/2/10.1177_109019819001700404.pd
A simple mathematical model of gradual Darwinian evolution: Emergence of a Gaussian trait distribution in adaptation along a fitness gradient
We consider a simple mathematical model of gradual Darwinian evolution in
continuous time and continuous trait space, due to intraspecific competition
for common resource in an asexually reproducing population in constant
environment, while far from evolutionary stable equilibrium. The model admits
exact analytical solution. In particular, Gaussian distribution of the trait
emerges from generic initial conditions.Comment: 21 pages, 2 figures, as accepted to J Math Biol 2013/03/1
Single and two-particle energy gaps across the disorder-driven superconductor-insulator transition
The competition between superconductivity and localization raises profound
questions in condensed matter physics. In spite of decades of research, the
mechanism of the superconductor-insulator transition (SIT) and the nature of
the insulator are not understood. We use quantum Monte Carlo simulations that
treat, on an equal footing, inhomogeneous amplitude variations and phase
fluctuations, a major advance over previous theories. We gain new microscopic
insights and make testable predictions for local spectroscopic probes. The
energy gap in the density of states survives across the transition, but
coherence peaks exist only in the superconductor. A characteristic pseudogap
persists above the critical disorder and critical temperature, in contrast to
conventional theories. Surprisingly, the insulator has a two-particle gap scale
that vanishes at the SIT, despite a robust single-particle gap.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures (plus supplement with 4 pages, 5 figures
Coccidioidomycosis Incidence in Arizona Predicted by Seasonal Precipitation
The environmental mechanisms that determine the inter-annual and seasonal variability in incidence of coccidioidomycosis are unclear. In this study, we use Arizona coccidioidomycosis case data for 1995â2006 to generate a timeseries of monthly estimates of exposure rates in Maricopa County, AZ and Pima County, AZ. We reveal a seasonal autocorrelation structure for exposure rates in both Maricopa County and Pima County which indicates that exposure rates are strongly related from the fall to the spring. An abrupt end to this autocorrelation relationship occurs near the the onset of the summer precipitation season and increasing exposure rates related to the subsequent season. The identification of the autocorrelation structure enabled us to construct a âprimaryâ exposure season that spans August-March and a âsecondaryâ season that spans AprilâJune which are then used in subsequent analyses. We show that OctoberâDecember precipitation is positively associated with rates of exposure for the primary exposure season in both Maricopa County (Râ=â0.72, pâ=â0.012) and Pima County (Râ=â0.69, pâ=â0.019). In addition, exposure rates during the primary exposure seasons are negatively associated with concurrent precipitation in Maricopa (Râ=ââ0.79, pâ=â0.004) and Pima (Râ=ââ0.64, pâ=â0.019), possibly due to reduced spore dispersion. These associations enabled the generation of models to estimate exposure rates for the primary exposure season. The models explain 69% (pâ=â0.009) and 54% (pâ=â0.045) of the variance in the study period for Maricopa and Pima counties, respectively. We did not find any significant predictors for exposure rates during the secondary season. This study builds on previous studies examining the causes of temporal fluctuations in coccidioidomycosis, and corroborates the âgrow and blowâ hypothesis
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