To Engage Research Critically : A Review of Kerry Howell ’s The Philosophy of Methodology

The turn to philosophical grounding in qualitative research demands a depth of historical and conceptual knowledge that many trained in the social sciences may lack. Kerry Howell ’ s A Philosophy of Methodology is a concise and useful guide to the key developments in Western epistemology then linking philosophical thought to social theory and paradigm of inquiry. For the novice researcher or graduate student, this book is an excellent desk reference, however there are several omissions, including feminism, which renders it a less - than - complete guide to the role of epistemology in social science inquiry

Fair Trade Learning in an Unfair World

Recent critical research on international experiential or service learning, (IESL), raises questions and reveals challenges for host communities working in partnership with universities to provide community-based learning opportunities for students, primarily from the Global North.  The exercise of power, privileges of transnational mobility, and the potential reinforcement of a neocolonial relationship between partners, within the context of globalized higher education, are among the barriers to equitable practices facing practitioners.  As researchers and practitioners work with host partners to articulate ethical and equitable responses to IESL practices, the model of fair trade standards has recently gained traction in this field. as an opportunity to provide an ethical framework, developed by practitioners and host partners, to provide transparency and accountability for the enactment of IESL programs.   Fair trade standards, in the context of commodities pricing and labour, have produced some measure of improvement in trade practices, yet in this field too, researchers have identified gaps and inconsistencies that often leave unchanged the benefit to and experience of local partners outside of the Global North.  This essay first considers some of the key issues challenging IESL practice and moves to consider the possibilities and/or contradictions of applying a Fair Trade framework for IESL.  Finally, the concept of encounter, developed by Ananya Roy and colleagues, emerges as a dynamic pedagogical framework that rather than foreclosing questions of history, power, privilege and ongoing global poverty, seeks to confront these issues at the root sources

Internationalizing Canadian Higher Education through North-South Partnerships: A Critical Case Study of Policy Enactment and Programming Practices in Tanzania

The contemporary internationalization of higher education promotes the formation of North-South (N-S) partnerships to facilitate access to new research sites and opportunities for international programming. This study conceptualizes N-S partnerships as an extension of internationalization policy. In the current context of internationalization, there is a reliance on higher education to produce economic benefits to support national economic objectives. There are particular concerns, however, with a practice of N-S partnerships that are enacted in communities located in the Global South. Internationalization policy does not adhere to the principles of N-S partnership outlined in multilateral agreements and is increasingly focused on the production of economic returns from investment in partnerships projects. This research focuses on the enactment of a specific N-S ISL partnership in Tanzania to consider the effects of higher education internationalization on local communities. It raises critical concerns for a socially just practice of international partnership

Book Review - Educating children in conflict zones: Research, policy and practice for systemic change. A tribute to Jackie Kirk.

Educating children in conflict zones: Research, policy and practice for systemic change is a volume dedicated to the memory of Jackie Kirk, an educational researcher who was killed while working in Afghanistan. This collection of research articles is an excellent contribution to the field of education, conflict and development studies, Kirk\u27s area of expertise. The initial article is by Kirk and is a seminal piece in the field of education and conflict studies, and subsequent contributions by leading researchers in the field such as Lyn Davies, round out a volume that both adds to the growing knowledge of the contested role of education in conflict and lays out an agenda for future research

Drought Influences Annual Survival of Painted Turtles in Western Nebraska

Aquatic habitats in the Great Plains of North America have increased risk of droughts under climate forecasts. Droughts have the potential to influence the population dynamics of pond turtles, and long-term studies are useful to assess the impact of climatic variation on turtles. We compiled twelve years of mark-recapture data for painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) captured in a pond in Keith County, Nebraska during 2005–2016 that included two periods of drought. We used a robust design analysis to investigate influences on population size, annual survival, temporary immigration, and capture probability. Estimates of the annual population size ranged from 92 (CI: 90–94) to 180 (CI: 175–186) but did not vary with drought conditions. Despite a relatively stable depth of water in our study pond, the probability of annual survival was reduced by 0.07 in females and 0.10 in males during drought years. Approximately one-fifth (temporary emigration probability: 0.19, CI = 0.16–0.23) of the population was outside the study pond at any given time. Our long-term research provides insights into the potential challenges to turtles in aquatic habitats undergoing prolonged changes in long-term climate conditions

Sulfide intrusion in the seagrass Halodule wrightii as assessed by tissue sulfur isotopic composition

Seagrass populations are declining considerably due to anthropogenic pressures, such as nutrient loading into coastal waters. Excessive nutrient availability in these environments can induce eutrophication events that ultimately generate anoxia in marine sediments. This promotes the activity of anaerobic sulfate-reducing bacteria, which reduce sulfate (SO42-) to hydrogen sulfide (H2S) for energy production. When high levels of this bacterial activity persist, H2S accumulates in the sediment. This small molecule can be highly toxic to living cells; yet, seagrasses appear to withstand relatively high concentrations of H2S in their environments. The purpose of this study is to assess sulfide intrusion in the seagrass Halodule wrightii from various locations along the Texas Gulf Coast, and determine whether the uptake and distribution of sulfide-derived sulfur in H. wrightii vegetation differs between locations. Vegetation, sediment, and seawater samples were collected from three H. wrightii meadows within two estuaries near Corpus Christi, TX: two from the Upper Laguna Madre and one from Oso Bay. Root, rhizome, and leaf tissue from vegetation samples were separated, lyophilized, and homogenized into a fine powder. Sediment samples underwent a distillation procedure capable of liberating H2S gas, which was precipitated as Ag2S. Seawater samples were acidified and treated with BaCl2 to precipitate seawater sulfate as BaSO4. Tissue, Ag2S, and BaSO4 samples were analyzed for their sulfur stable isotopic composition by EA-IRMS. 34S values of H. wrightii samples taken from the Upper Laguna Madre, for all tissue types, were lower than those obtained for vegetation from Oso Bay, suggesting that the Upper Laguna Madre populations sourced more sulfur from sedimentary sulfide compared to the Oso Bay population. Results interpreted to date suggest a difference between H. wrightii populations from these two locations in sulfide uptake and assimilation, and allows for future research into the effects of local conditions on seagrass sulfur metabolism

Inverse expression of fas ligand and asthma-related cytokines in an apergillus challenge murine model of asthma

Introduction Resolution of inflammation in asthma is typically thought of as a passive phenomenon in which proinflammatory Th2-type cytokines wane after the initial trigger. We hypothesized that active mechanisms, including anti-inflammatory cytokines and proapoptotic factors, contribute to this process. Fas Ligand (FasL) expression was particularly interesting since important effector cells in asthma (e.g. eosinophils and T helper cells) are Fas-sensitive

Racial disparities in asthma-related health care use in the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Severe Asthma Research Program

BackgroundDespite advances in asthma care, disparities persist. Black patients are disproportionally affected by asthma and also have poorer outcomes compared with white patients.ObjectiveWe sought to determine associations between black and white patients and asthma-related health care use, accounting for complex relationships.MethodsThis study was completed as part of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute's Severe Asthma Research Program, a prospective observational cohort. Between November 2012 and February 2015, it enrolled 579 participants 6 years and older with 1 year of observation time and complete data. Inverse probability of treatment weighting was used to balance racial groups with respect to community and family socioeconomic variables and environmental exposure variables. The primary outcome was emergency department (ED) use for asthma. Secondary outcomes included inhaled corticosteroid use, outpatient physician's office visits for asthma, and asthma-related hospitalization.ResultsBlack patients had greater odds of ED use over 1 year (odds ratio, 2.19; 95% CI, 1.43-3.35) but also differed in the majority (>50%) of baseline variables measured. After statistical balancing of the racial groups, the difference between black and white patients with respect to ED use no longer reached the level of significance. Instead, in secondary analyses black patients were less likely to see an outpatient physician for asthma management (adjusted odds ratio, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.38-0.85).ConclusionsThe disparity in ED use was eliminated after consideration of multiple variables. Social and environmental policies and interventions tailored to black populations with a high burden of asthma are critical to reduction (or elimination) of these disparities