Summary of Twenty-First Century Great Conversations in Art, Neuroscience and Related Therapeutics

Transdisciplinary collaboration is the future of knowledge making in advanced post-industrial societies and there is a growing awareness that the most vexing problems we face cannot be solved by any single discipline. Best practices for complex and challenging physical and mental disorders require a multi-disciplinary approach, yet there is a void in bridging the gap between the most contemporary models. It is in this capacity that the 21st Century Great Conversations in Art, Neuroscience and Related Therapeutics serves as a missing link. It was with active minds and a collective spirit that artists, scientists, therapists, physicians, engineers, technology experts, healthcare practitioners and researchers from across the globe transcended historical silos to explore the capacities for collaborative partnerships to influence the health of patients and the amelioration of disease. Hosted at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), presenters shared insights through didactic sessions and panel discussions aligned with three tracks led by prominent experts in their respective fields: 1) Neuroaesthetics, Anjan Chatterjee, MD; 2) Creativity and Consciousness, Arne Dietrich, PhD; and 3) Mobile Brain/Body Imaging (MoBI), Klaus Gramann, PhD. The goals for this symposium were developed from a vision which embraces cross-disciplinary intersectionality, a merging of viewpoints, and active dialogue surrounding the development of a common language with which to advance the Creative Arts Therapies and neurosciences. The goal was also to contribute to the development of a simplified roadmap to enhance and enrich the CATs with a greater understanding of neuroscience and the available technologies that can assist in research

An Examination of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Antibias-Antiracist Curriculm in a Montessori Setting

The research consisted of a qualitative case study of three urban public Montessori schools with a population of 51% or more of students of color and a commitment of 2 years or more of CRP-ABAR within a Montessori setting. The theoretical framework used for the study was the critical race theory, which is the conceptual foundation for examining inequities in public education. This research dissertation had a focus on gaining an insight into the perceptions of administrators, teachers, and parents toward CRP-ABAR in Montessori schools by examining the practices in three public Montessori schools. The possible connections to student outcomes, such as behavioral referrals, suspension rates, and academic achievement for students of color were explored to determine if any connections exist between CRP-ABAR and outcomes for students of color within a public Montessori setting. Three major themes emerged of the perceptions of administrators, teachers, and parents about the impact of the CRP-ABAR in a Montessori setting. The CRP-ABAR could be delivered through a curriculum-oriented approach or a systemic-oriented approach and the CRP-ABAR connects to Montessori through peace-global education and the prepared teacher-environment. The CRP-ABAR practices impact students of color primarily through social emotional growth with limited academic outcomes. Even with an intentional focus and diversity training, many non-Black teachers’ perceptions of students of color included deficit theory thinking. Some parents believed racism is being dismantled through the curriculum and celebrations of diversity. Other parents identified some teachers-staff with underpinning instances of biases and insensitivity

Monstrare: Imagination in Medicine

According to the American Art Therapy Association, Art therapy is a mental health profession in which clients, facilitated by the art therapist, use art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore their feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, foster self-awareness, manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem. This presentation explores the philosophies of humanistic perspective in medical student training. Special emphasis is on the importance of non-verbal communication and a personalized medical approach to patient care

American Indian Tribal Communities and Individual Development Account (IDA) Policy

American Indian Tribal Communities and Individual Development Account (IDA) Polic

Stranger in a Strange Land: Old Chair, New University

There are opportunities and challenges associated with appointing a chair from within and from outside the organization. This discussion will consider multiple aspects and focus on considerations for changing institutions to assume the chair position

DetectiV: visualization, normalization and significance testing for pathogen-detection microarray data

DetectiV is a tool for analyzing pathogen-detection microarray datasets that allows simple visualisation, normalisation and significance testing

Third order nonlinearities in Ge-As-Se-based glasses for telecommunications applications

We have studied the third order optical nonlinearities of Ge-As-Se-based glasses. The glasses have high melting and glass transition temperatures that offer the potential for integration with traditional compound oxide glasses into highly nonlinear, high-index-contrast fibers. We used z-scan and femtosecond pump-probe techniques to measure the nonlinear refractive index and two-photon absorption coefficient of the glasses at telecommunication wavelengths. Nonlinearities as high as ϳ900ϫ that of silica were measured at 1540 nm in High capacity optical systems require devices such as cross connects, add-drop filters, repeaters, and wavelength converters. While some of these functions are currently being performed electronically, it is expected that they may eventually be replaced with optical devices in which nonlinear materials will play an important role. A key property of such materials is the optical Kerr effect that produces a change in the index of refraction proportional to the optical intensity I and the nonlinear index coefficient n 2 , ⌬n = n 2 I. The Kerr effect has an ultrafast time response and could be the basis for ultrafast optical switches with low switching energy. Two-photon absorption also occurs when the photon energy is above half-gap in the material and limits the maximum phase shift achievable. A figure of merit n 2 / ␤, 1 where n 2 is the nonlinear refractive index and ␤ the two-photon absorption coefficient, can be defined to assess the material properties relevant for efficient optical switching. To achieve a nonlinear optical phase shift of , necessary for a MachZender optical switch, with a nonlinear transmission loss of 20%, a figure of merit of ϳ2 is required. 2 Chalcogenide glasses have large values of nonlinearity at 1.55 m, several orders of magnitude larger than the value for conventional silica glass. 2 Many such glasses have been previously studied. 3-5 Among these, the Ge-As-Se system is of interest due to high nonlinearity, high refractive index (2.4-2.65), suitable optical transmission at 1.55 m and a relatively broad glass formation region. In this paper, we focus on glasses with particular promise for fabrication into high-index-contrast highly nonlinear fiber for 1.55 m applications. Glasses from Ge-As-Se family have glass transition temperatures in the range of 150-390°C making them suitable for integration with low refractive index compoundoxide glasses into high-index-contrast solid-core fiber. Highly nonlinear fiber can be used for applications including supercontinuum generation, 6 frequency metrology, 7 and wavelength conversion. 11 However, the chalcogenide glasses used in the fiber core must have a glass transition and softening temperature compatible with that of lower index glasses used for the cladding. We have investigated several chalcogenide glasses with glass transition temperatures from 292 to 380°C: Ge 33 As 12 Se 55 (commercially available as AMTIR-1, from Amorphous Materials), Ge 35 As 15 Se 50 , Ge 25 As 10 Se 65 , and Ge 22 As 20 Se 58 (commercially available as GASIR1, from Umicore). The glasses are found to have nonlinearities between 200ϫ −900ϫ that of silica, and figures of merit n 2 / ␤ as high as 3.2. The samples of Ge 33 As 12 Se 55 , Ge 35 As 15 Se 50 , and Ge 25 As 10 Se 65 were prepared as follows. For each glass composition, 5N (99.999%) purity amorphous selenium shot, 7.5N (99.999995%) purity crystalline lump arsenic, and 6N (99.9999%) purity single crystal germanium were batched into a fused quartz looped tube along with a magnesium metal strip (4N purity). The tube was placed into a two-level furnace, with the looped portion of the tube, in the hotter furnace zone. Over ϳ12 h, the As and Se components melted and were distilled from the loop into the lower part of the tube containing the Ge. After distillation, the lower portion of the tube was sealed, creating the melt vessel, and the loop containing impurities was discarded. 12 The melt vessel was placed into a rocking furnace at 900°C for 12 h, homogenizing the glass melt. The melt was then placed into a second furnace at the expected glass transition temperature. This furnace was switched off, allowing the glass to cool slowly to room temperature. The glass boules were cut into flat disks of about 3 mm thickness and the facets were ground parallel and polished to optical quality. Samples of Ge 33 As 12 Se 55 prepared in this manner were found to have similar n 2 , ␤, and bandgap energy to commercial samples a) Electroni

In vivo laboratory practicals in research-led teaching: An example using glucose tolerance tests in lean and obese mice

The use of animal models is an essential part of medical research and drug development. The essential skills required to be able to do such research includes experimental design, statistical analysis and the actual handling and treating of the animals (in vivo skills). The number of students in the U.K. receiving training in handling and experimenting on animals has declined rapidly in the last few decades which has led to initiatives to increase numbers of students with these skills to meet demand. Within the Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics at King's College London, we run a course for 2nd year undergraduates entitled “Animal models of disease and injury”. This course not only covers the theoretical and ethical aspects of using animals in research, but also contains practical laboratory classes in which students get hands-on experience using animals. One of the laboratory classes we run is a glucose tolerance test in obese and lean mice. This is an example of research-led teaching which aims to develop research skills through engaging students in research like activities. In this paper, we outline the methodology of the glucose tolerance practical and highlight some of the skills we and the students think they gain by research-led teaching such as this

Leadership in Compassionate Care: Final Report 2012

This report reflects the initiation, planning, running and the important outcomes emerging from the Leadership in Compassionate Care Programme. The team worked in close partnership across the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Social Care, Edinburgh Napier University and NHS Lothian. This report also shares the highlights, challenges and solutions to embed compassionate care education and nursing practice.Additional co-authors: Fiona Smith, Stephen DM Smith, Ria Tocher, and Anne Waug