249 research outputs found
Additional Agents of Change in Promoting Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered Inclusiveness in Organizations
King and Cortina (2010) describe several ways in which organizations can promote equity in the workplace environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) employees. We commend the authors for promoting such inclusiveness and describing both the moral and fiscally responsible reasons for doing so. We are hopeful that employers will heed the valuable suggestions offered by King and Cortina and work to adopt formal policies that protect the rights of LGBT employees, launch diversity initiatives to make LGBT employees feel more accepted, and advocate on behalf of LGBT interests. As King and Cortina mention, however, employers are not prescribed by law to adopt such policies or act on behalf of the best interests of their LGBT employees. And ultimately, some employers simply will not. What, then, can be done to work toward and achieve the same important outcomes? Are there other sources that also have the power to motivate LGBT inclusiveness and initiatives within organizations other than the employers themselves? We asser
Employing the Houseless as Corporate Social Responsibility
Purpose
Many hospitality organizations see the benefits of engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR), which can take many forms. This study aims to examine one relatively unique form of CSR: hiring individuals experiencing houselessness. This research aimed to investigate the impact of hiring individuals experiencing houselessness on customersâ behavioral intentions, attitudes toward an organization and perceptions of CSR actions. Design/methodology/approach
Across two experiments, this study investigated the impact of employing individuals experiencing houselessness on customersâ perceptions of the employee and organization using organizational legitimacy theory. Findings
Results demonstrate that employees known to be houseless elicited more positive employee and organizational perceptions from the customers, mediated by CSR perceptions. In addition, the gender of the employees or the quality of the organization did not impact these findings. Practical implications
Hospitality and tourism organizations should consider using available resources or tax benefits to make a deliberate effort to employ those experiencing houselessness. Originality/value
Using organizational legitimacy theory, this study examines CSR perceptions as a potential explanatory mechanism between houselessness and customersâ reactions
Not Your âTypicalâ Research: Inclusion Ethics in Neurodiversity Scholarship
Research focusing on neurodiversityFootnote1 is critical for including all marginalized populations in the organizational diversity literature and for promoting theoretical innovation. It is imperative that such research models the ethics of inclusion (Gowen et al., Reference Gowen, Taylor, Bleazard, Greenstein, Baimbridge and Poole2019; Nicolaidis et al., Reference Nicolaidis, Raymaker, Kapp, Baggs, Ashkenazy, McDonald, Weiner, Maslak, Hunter and Joyce2019). Despite positive intent, majority group researchers have historically produced biased scholarship on novel marginalized populations (Colella et al., Reference Colella, Hebl and King2017). As all research includes some subjective bias, neurotypical researchers are likely to publish information that further marginalizes neurodivergentFootnote2 people as they inherently do not have the lived experience of being neurodivergent themselves. Researchers should include the perspectives of the members of the populations they are conducting research on and aim to support neurodivergent voices. We recommend that researchers (a) include neurodivergent research team membersFootnote3 when researching neurodiversity and (b) strengthen the marginalized participant impact on research findings through methods like qualitative and participatory action research, especially if including neurodivergent research team members is not feasible despite legitimate attempts to do so
Identification of new transmembrane proteins concentrated at the nuclear envelope using organellar proteomics of mesenchymal cells
The double membrane nuclear envelope (NE), which is contiguous with the ER, contains nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) - the channels for nucleocytoplasmic transport, and the nuclear lamina (NL) - a scaffold for NE and chromatin organization. Since numerous human diseases linked to NE proteins occur in mesenchyme-derived cells, we used proteomics to characterize NE and other subcellular fractions isolated from mesenchymal stem cells and from adipocytes and myocytes. Based on spectral abundance, we calculated enrichment scores for proteins in the NE fractions. We demonstrated by quantitative immunofluorescence microscopy that five little-characterized proteins with high enrichment scores are substantially concentrated at the NE, with Itprip exposed at the outer nuclear membrane, Smpd4 enriched at the NPC, and Mfsd10, Tmx4, and Arl6ip6 likely residing in the inner nuclear membrane. These proteins provide new focal points for studying the functions of the NE. Moreover, our datasets provide a resource for evaluating additional potential NE proteins
Filtration efficiency of air conditioner filters and face masks to limit exposure to aerosolized algal toxins
Harmful algal blooms (HABs) can generate toxins that can be aerosolized and negatively impact human health through inhalation. HABs are often found in waterways near residences, therefore, aerosolized HAB toxins can potentially affect both indoor and outdoor air quality. Given that HABs are predicted to increase worldwide, effective mitigation strategies are needed to prevent the inhalation of aerosolized HAB toxins. In this work, we characterized both the particle filtration efficiency using particle sizing instruments as well as the mass concentration of different congeners of aerosolized microcystin (MC) toxins that penetrate through commercially available face masks and air conditioner (AC) filters. Particles were generated from cultures of the toxin-producing cyanobacteria Microcystis aeruginosa. Hydrophobic congeners of microcystin including MC-LF and MC-LW were enriched in aerosols compared to water, with MC-LR being the most abundant, which has implications for the toxicity of inhalable particles generated from HAB-contaminated waters. Particle transmission efficiencies and toxin filtration efficiencies scaled with the manufacturer-provided filter performance ratings. Up to 80% of small, microcystin-containing aerosols were transmitted through AC filters with low filter performance ratings. In contrast, both face masks as well as AC filters with high filter performance ratings efficiently removed toxin-containing particles to below limits of quantification. Our findings suggest that face masks and commercially available AC filters with high filtration efficiency ratings are suitable mitigation strategies to avoid indoor and outdoor air exposure to aerosolized HAB toxins. This work also has relevance for reducing airborne exposure to other HAB toxins, non-HAB toxins, pathogens, and viruses, including SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic
Bodyweight Perceptions among Texas Women: The Effects of Religion, Race/Ethnicity, and Citizenship Status
Despite previous work exploring linkages between religious participation and health, little research has looked at the role of religion in affecting bodyweight perceptions. Using the theoretical model developed by Levin et al. (Sociol Q 36(1):157â173, 1995) on the multidimensionality of religious participation, we develop several hypotheses and test them by using data from the 2004 Survey of Texas Adults. We estimate multinomial logistic regression models to determine the relative risk of women perceiving themselves as overweight. Results indicate that religious attendance lowers risk of women perceiving themselves as very overweight. Citizenship status was an important factor for Latinas, with noncitizens being less likely to see themselves as overweight. We also test interaction effects between religion and race. Religious attendance and prayer have a moderating effect among Latina non-citizens so that among these women, attendance and prayer intensify perceptions of feeling less overweight when compared to their white counterparts. Among African American women, the effect of increased church attendance leads to perceptions of being overweight. Prayer is also a correlate of overweight perceptions but only among African American women. We close with a discussion that highlights key implications from our findings, note study limitations, and several promising avenues for future research
The Fifth Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey
This paper describes the Fifth Data Release (DR5) of the Sloan Digital Sky
Survey (SDSS). DR5 includes all survey quality data taken through June 2005 and
represents the completion of the SDSS-I project (whose successor, SDSS-II will
continue through mid-2008). It includes five-band photometric data for 217
million objects selected over 8000 square degrees, and 1,048,960 spectra of
galaxies, quasars, and stars selected from 5713 square degrees of that imaging
data. These numbers represent a roughly 20% increment over those of the Fourth
Data Release; all the data from previous data releases are included in the
present release. In addition to "standard" SDSS observations, DR5 includes
repeat scans of the southern equatorial stripe, imaging scans across M31 and
the core of the Perseus cluster of galaxies, and the first spectroscopic data
from SEGUE, a survey to explore the kinematics and chemical evolution of the
Galaxy. The catalog database incorporates several new features, including
photometric redshifts of galaxies, tables of matched objects in overlap regions
of the imaging survey, and tools that allow precise computations of survey
geometry for statistical investigations.Comment: ApJ Supp, in press, October 2007. This paper describes DR5. The SDSS
Sixth Data Release (DR6) is now public, available from http://www.sdss.or
A community-based lifestyle and weight loss intervention promoting a Mediterranean-style diet pattern evaluated in the stroke belt of North Carolina: the Heart Healthy Lenoir Project
Abstract
Background
Because residents of the southeastern United States experience disproportionally high rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD), it is important to develop effective lifestyle interventions for this population.
Methods
The primary objective was to develop and evaluate a dietary, physical activity (PA) and weight loss intervention for residents of the southeastern US. The intervention, given in eastern North Carolina, was evaluated in a 2Ă year prospective cohort study with an embedded randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a weight loss maintenance intervention. The intervention included: Phase I (months 1ââŹâ6), individually-tailored intervention promoting a Mediterranean-style dietary pattern and increased walking; Phase II (months 7ââŹâ12), option of a 16-week weight loss intervention for those with BMIââŹâ°Ă˘â°ÂĽĂ˘âŹâ°25Ă kg/m2 offered in 2 formats (16 weekly group sessions or 5 group sessions and 10 phone calls) or a lifestyle maintenance intervention; and Phase III (months 13ââŹâ24), weight loss maintenance RCT for those losingââŹâ°Ă˘â°ÂĽĂ˘âŹâ°8 lb with all other participants receiving a lifestyle maintenance intervention. Change in diet and PA behaviors, CVD risk factors, and weight were assessed at 6, 12, and 24Ă month follow-up.
Results
Baseline characteristics (NââŹâ°=ââŹâ°339) were: 260 (77Ă %) females, 219 (65Ă %) African Americans, mean age 56Ă years, and mean body mass index 36Ă kg/m2. In Phase I, among 251 (74Ă %) that returned for 6Ă month follow-up, there were substantial improvements in diet score (4.3 units [95Ă % CI 3.7 to 5.0]), walking (64Ă min/week [19 to 109]), and systolic blood pressure (âËâ6.4Ă mmHg [âËâ8.7 to âËâ4.1]) that were generally maintained through 24Ă month follow-up. In Phase II, 138 (57 group only, 81 group/phone) chose the weight loss intervention and at 12Ă months, weight change was: âËâ3.1Ă kg (âËâ4.9 to âËâ1.3) for group (NââŹâ°=ââŹâ°50) and âËâ2.1Ă kg (âËâ3.2 to âËâ1.0) for group/phone combination (NââŹâ°=ââŹâ°75). In Phase III, 27 participants took part in the RCT. At 24Ă months, weight loss was âËâ2.1Ă kg (âËâ4.3 to 0.0) for group (NââŹâ°=ââŹâ°51) and âËâ1.1Ă kg (âËâ2.7 to 0.4) for combination (NââŹâ°=ââŹâ°72). Outcomes for African American and whites were similar.
Conclusions
The intervention yielded substantial improvement in diet, PA, and blood pressure, but weight loss was modest.
Trial registration
clinicaltrials.gov Identifier:
NCT0143348
Fatal Disseminated Cryptococcus gattii Infection in New Mexico
We report a case of fatal disseminated infection with Cryptococcus gattii in a patient from New Mexico. The patient had no history of recent travel to known C. gattii-endemic areas. Multilocus sequence typing revealed that the isolate belonged to the major molecular type VGIII. Virulence studies in a mouse pulmonary model of infection demonstrated that the strain was less virulent than other C. gattii strains. This represents the first documented case of C. gattii likely acquired in New Mexico
Development of the PSYCHS: Positive SYmptoms and Diagnostic Criteria for the CAARMS Harmonized with the SIPS
Aim: To harmonize two ascertainment and severity rating instruments commonly used for the clinical high risk syndrome for psychosis (CHR-P): the Structured Interview for Psychosis-risk Syndromes (SIPS) and the Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States (CAARMS). Methods: The initial workshop is described in the companion report from Addington et al. After the workshop, lead experts for each instrument continued harmonizing attenuated positive symptoms and criteria for psychosis and CHR-P through an intensive series of joint videoconferences. Results: Full harmonization was achieved for attenuated positive symptom ratings and psychosis criteria, and modest harmonization for CHR-P criteria. The semi-structured interview, named Positive SYmptoms and Diagnostic Criteria for the CAARMS Harmonized with the SIPS (PSYCHS), generates CHR-P criteria and severity scores for both CAARMS and SIPS. Conclusions: Using the PSYCHS for CHR-P ascertainment, conversion determination, and attenuated positive symptom severity rating will help in comparing findings across studies and in meta-analyses
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