Telling (Dangerous) Stories: A Narrative Account of a Youth Coach's Experience of an Unfounded Allegation of Child Abuse

This paper (re)tells the story of a sports coach who was accused of emotional abuse of a child athlete and, following an investigation by his club, cleared of the allegation. Accounts of such allegations are rare and no research to date has explored coaches’ lived experiences of this. Such stories are ‘dangerous’ and remain largely unrecognised and undebated as they represent a challenge to the meta-narrative of child protection. Using the stance of a ‘storyteller’, the coach-participant’s story is presented as a monologue crafted using his words and embellished with literary techniques. The story is purposefully largely left open for interpretation in an attempt to encourage readers to engage cognitively and emotionally with it. Telling such a ‘dangerous’ story aims to add to the narrative repertoires available to those working in this field and expand understandings of child protection in sport.</p

Is the Donnan effect sufficient to explain swelling in brain tissue slices?

Brain tissue swelling is a dangerous consequence of traumatic injury and is associated with raised intracranial pressure and restricted blood flow. We consider the mechanical effects that drive swelling of brain tissue slices in an ionic solution bath, motivated by recent experimental results that showed that the volume change of tissue slices depends on the ionic concentration of the bathing solution. This result was attributed to the presence of large charged molecules that induce ion concentration gradients to ensure electroneutrality (the Donnan effect), leading to osmotic pressures and water accumulation. We use a mathematical triphasic model for soft tissue to characterize the underlying processes that could lead to the volume changes observed experimentally. We suggest that swelling is caused by an osmotic pressure increase driven by both non-permeating solutes released by necrotic cells, in addition to the Donnan effect. Both effects are necessary to explain the dependence of the tissue slice volume on the ionic bath concentration that was observed experimentally

Graduate Colleague Mentorship: Meaningful Connections for Emerging Women in Student Affairs

The Vermont Connection, at its core, is about people who invest in people. As aspiring and practicing student affairs educators, we invest in ourselves, in our students, in our colleagues, and in our research—research that frequently centers on the relationships among these groups of people. We invest because we grew from relationships with those who cared enough to do the same for us. We are the product of myriad connections across time and landscapes, knit together in our common experience in the University of Vermont’s Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA) program. Intentional connection building is the purpose of HESA’s Graduate Colleague (GC) program, where incoming first-year students are matched with second-year students to assist in the transition to Vermont, the University, and HESA. In the following article, five generations of GCs discuss, through the lens of feminist theory, how our special connection informed and shaped each of our academic experiences, professional development, and voice-finding processes

Impact of Janus Kinase Inhibition with Tofacitinib on Fundamental Processes of Bone Healing

Both inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and anti-inflammatory treatment of RA with glucocorticoids (GCs) or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) negatively influence bone metabolism and fracture healing. Janus kinase (JAK) inhibition with tofacitinib has been demonstrated to act as a potent anti-inflammatory therapeutic agent in the treatment of RA, but its impact on the fundamental processes of bone regeneration is currently controversially discussed and at least in part elusive. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to examine the effects of tofacitinib on processes of bone healing focusing on recruitment of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) into the inflammatory microenvironment of the fracture gap, chondrogenesis, osteogenesis and osteoclastogenesis. We performed our analyses under conditions of reduced oxygen availability in order to mimic the in vivo situation of the fracture gap most optimal. We demonstrate that tofacitinib dose-dependently promotes the recruitment of hMSCs under hypoxia but inhibits recruitment of hMSCs under normoxia. With regard to the chondrogenic differentiation of hMSCs, we demonstrate that tofacitinib does not inhibit survival at therapeutically relevant doses of 10-100 nM. Moreover, tofacitinib dose-dependently enhances osteogenic differentiation of hMSCs and reduces osteoclast differentiation and activity. We conclude from our data that tofacitinib may influence bone healing by promotion of hMSC recruitment into the hypoxic microenvironment of the fracture gap but does not interfere with the cartilaginous phase of the soft callus phase of fracture healing process. We assume that tofacitinib may promote bone formation and reduce bone resorption, which could in part explain the positive impact of tofacitinib on bone erosions in RA. Thus, we hypothesize that it will be unnecessary to stop this medication in case of fracture and suggest that positive effects on osteoporosis are likely

The evolution of inverted magnetic fields through the inner heliosphere

Local inversions are often observed in the heliospheric magnetic field (HMF), but their origins and evolution are not yet fully understood.Parker Solar Probe has recently observed rapid, Alfvénic, HMF inversions in the inner heliosphere, known as ‘switchbacks’, which have been interpreted as the possible remnants of coronal jets. It has also been suggested that inverted HMF may be produced by near-Sun interchange reconnection; a key process in mechanisms proposed for slow solar wind release. These cases suggest that the source of inverted HMF is near the Sun, and it follows that these inversions would gradually decay and straighten as they propagate out through the heliosphere. Alternatively, HMF inversions could form during solar wind transit, through phenomena such velocity shears, draping over ejecta, or waves and turbulence. Such processes are expected to lead to a qualitatively radial evolution of inverted HMF structures. Using Helios measurements spanning 0.3–1 AU, we examine the occurrence rate of inverted HMF, as well as other magnetic field morphologies, as a function of radial distance r, and find that it continually increases. This trend may be explained by inverted HMF observed between 0.3–1 AU being primarily driven by one or more of the above in-transit processes, rather than created at the Sun. We make suggestions as to the relative importance of these different processes based on the evolution of the magnetic field properties associated with inverted HMF. We also explore alternative explanations outside of our suggested driving processes which may lead to the observed trend

Medical device design for adolescent adherence and developmental goals: a case study of a cystic fibrosis physiotherapy device

Purpose: This study investigates the psychosocial aspects of adolescent medical device use and the impact on adolescent adherence and goals for the transitional years between child and adulthood. Patients and methods: Interviews were carried out with 20 adolescents with cystic fibrosis, investigating adolescent medical device use and experiences in relation to their personal and social lives and development through the adolescent years. The qualitative dataset was thematically examined using a content analysis method. Results: The results show that adolescent users of medical technologies want their independence and capabilities to be respected. Adolescent adherence to medical device use was associated with short- and long-term motivations, where older adolescents were able to comprehend the longer-term benefits of use against short-term inconvenience more acutely than younger adolescents. It was suggested that medical devices could provide a tool for communication with families and clinicians and could support adolescents as they take responsibility for managing their condition. Themes of “fitting into teenage life” and “use in the community” were associated with adolescents' needs to form their own identity and have autonomy. Conclusion: This study shows that adolescent needs regarding medical device use are complex. It provides evidence to suggest that devices designed inclusively for adolescents may lead to improved adherence and also facilitate transition through the adolescent years and achievement of adolescent goals

Parametric Study of an Ablative TPS and Hot Structure Heatshield for a Mars Entry Capsule Vehicle

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is planning to send humans to Mars. As part of the Evolvable Mars Campaign, different en- try vehicle configurations are being designed and considered for delivering larger payloads than have been previously sent to the surface of Mars. Mass and packing volume are driving factors in the vehicle design, and the thermal protection for planetary entry is an area in which advances in technology can offer potential mass and volume savings. The feasibility and potential benefits of a carbon-carbon hot structure concept for a Mars entry vehicle is explored in this paper. The windward heat shield of a capsule design is assessed for the hot structure concept as well as an ablative thermal protection system (TPS) attached to a honeycomb sandwich structure. Independent thermal and structural analyses are performed to determine the minimum mass design. The analyses are repeated for a range of design parameters, which include the trajectory, vehicle size, and payload. Polynomial response functions are created from the analysis results to study the capsule mass with respect to the design parameters. Results from the polynomial response functions created from the thermal and structural analyses indicate that the mass of the capsule was higher for the hot structure concept as compared to the ablative TPS for the parameter space considered in this study

S100B is increased in Parkinson’s disease and ablation protects against MPTP-induced toxicity through the RAGE and TNF-α pathway

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Electronic monitoring of adherence to inhaled medication in asthma

The main treatment of asthma is inhaled corticosteroids. However adherence to these medications in asthma is often poor, with low adherence associated with excessive health care costs and an increased risk of emergency room visits and mortality. Although various methods are used to indirectly assess adherence, all have significant limitations whether used in clinical or research practice. The recent development of electronic monitoring devices (EMDs) for use with inhalers presents an exciting opportunity to easily and accurately measure inhaler adherence. This article summarises the current devices available; for each device features and limitations are considered, followed by a review of both the current clinical literature and data on reliability and accuracy. An overall summary is also provided to aid comparison of capabilities between devices and future issues pertaining to the use of EMDs are discussed, including barriers to adoption, stakeholder involvement, novel methods of communicating adherence data, recording of data and cloud storage. Finally key areas that still require investigation are highlighted