Cyprianic Ecclesiology: Redefining the Office of the Christian Bishop

St. Cyprian was a pivotal figure in the early Church. During his tenure as bishop of Carthage, 248-9 to 258, the Roman emperor Decius ignited the first empire-wide persecution of the Christian Church. The problems that resulted from this persecution were unprecedented. This thesis will analyze the letters and treatises of Cyprian and will illustrate how Cyprian solidified certain powers of the bishop and built upon the existing orthodoxy of the Church. The actions of Cyprian will be viewed as a microhistory. Cyprian is not a fringe character in history; he is a well-known Church father and a saint in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches. Thus, this microhistory is focused on the textualsources of Cyprian rather than all the available material on the subject of the Decian persecution and the controversies Cyprian experienced. The epistles and treatises written and received by Cyprian will be the bases of research chronicling the events in which he lived. Thus, differing from other modern scholarship, this thesis states that at the pinnacle of Cyprianic ecclesiology is the belief that the bishop, as the divine head of an ecclesiastical community, was to guard both the faithful and the damaged until the return of their Lord

A feminist coven in the university

Inspired by Sara Ahmed’s call to study what is near to you, we write about our sometimes-joyful, sometimes-furious, always passionate struggles as graduate students in the academy. As a site of imperialism, racism, and patriarchy, the university grinds especially hard on women, people of color, black, indigenous, queer, disabled, and otherwise oppressed scholars. Out of a desire not just to get by or get ahead in this hostile space of competition and scarcity, we write about a feminist praxis that subverts the academy. Using collaborative auto-ethnography, asynchronous online interviews, and co-theorization, we conjure a network of rebels - what we call the feminist coven. We solicited contributions from feminist graduate students in response to three prompts about forms of communication, emotional labor, and imaginaries. Our findings show a vibrant landscape of creativity, love, rage, and longing for academia to be a more hospitable place. We and our contributors, whose voices pepper this article, offer ideas for how to summon new worlds and ways of being through small actions and everyday practices, subverting the violence of the academy by being the storm that blows through it

Piloting an Oral History Approach to Investigate Cancer Perspectives Among Residents of Appalachian Kentucky

Introduction: Kentucky ranks first in the U.S. in overall cancer incidence and mortality rates. Areas of the state that fall within the Appalachian Region, along Kentucky’s eastern border, experience disproportionately high rates of cancer compared to non-Appalachian counties. Purpose: This pilot study investigates whether oral history interviews can be used to understand perspectives on cancer among residents of Appalachian Kentucky. Methods: In 2020, participants (n = 5) who identified as being from and/or having strong connections to Appalachian Kentucky were recruited to participate in this pilot study. Participants included individuals working in cancer-related fields, oncology professionals, and those with personal cancer experience. Using an oral history approach, subjects were asked about challenges within Appalachia that contribute to high rates of cancer regionally. Interviews were analyzed using qualitative content analysis, and data were condensed into themes, subthemes, and subtopics. Relational content analysis was then used to illustrate relationships between the problems being faced in Appalachia and their contributing factors, with potential solutions to those problems. Results: Six key themes emerged from analysis of the oral history interviews: (1) problems being faced in Appalachia; (2) contributing factors; (3) potential solutions; (4) Appalachian disposition; (5) experiences with and thoughts on cancer; and (6) defining success v. the future without changes (intervention). A further 25 subthemes were identified from within these themes. Taken together, these themes and subthemes point to potential areas for specific intervention to shift Appalachia’s cancer burden. Implications: This pilot study demonstrates potential benefit in using oral history interviews to elucidate Appalachian Kentuckians’ perspectives on cancer. From the nuanced insights gained through this method, a set of culturally appropriate interventions were identified that could address the disproportionate cancer burden in the region. Future studies using an oral history approach could aim to reveal other specific aspects of how cancer impacts individuals, families, and communities

What Water Works for SWOSU?

Bottled water has become a staple of our fast paced lives. Between 2000 to 2008, the sales of bottled water in the United States doubled from $6.1 to$12.6 billion (“Bottled Water,” 2008). One of the major reasons that bottled water drinkers give for their preference is convenience. Alternatively, critics assert that bottled water hurts the environment, is overpriced, and is no safer than tap water. This raises the question: does taste or other less physiological factors such as cost and availability affect what water people choose to drink? A study conducted at University of Applied Sciences Hamburg sampled females on whether type of water affecd sensitivity to taste (Hoehl, Schoenburger, & Busch- Stockfishch, 2010). Researchers found most subjects tasted a sourness when sampling water containing minerals. Nordin, Razani, Markison, & Murphy (2003) reported older subjects to have a poorer ability to discriminate between taste intensities. These researchers also observed some gender differences. Therefore, the objective of our study was to determine whether taste, age, gender, cost and/or availability have an effect on what water that people at Southwestern Oklahoma State University (SWOSU) actually prefer

The influence of brand image on Generation Y consumers at electronic dance music festivals by creating a sensory and relational experiential environment linked to global brands.

This study shows that global brands can enhance their overall brand image by becoming involved in the sensory and relational EDM experience, depending on the type of brand, its personality and whether the Generation Y festivalgoer enjoyed consuming the brand within the festival experience. The dissertation focused on exploring a global brand’s involvement in the sensory (visual and sound) and relational (social) experiential environment of an electronic dance music festival in relation to enhancing brand image among Generation Y. The approach was taken from a social constructivist point of view that is exploratory and interpretivist in nature. The inductive research was conducted through a triangulation method, combining qualitative and quantitative data. The participant observational qualitative data was conducted through the experience of the researcher, by observing two global beverage brands, Red Bull and Heineken, at the EDM festival, Ultra Europe. Quantitative studies were explored through conducted surveys based on the research objective and conceptual framework. The surveys were completed using a non-probability purposive sampling method with 20 participants for the Heineken survey and 46 for the Red Bull survey, which was distributed via social media. The research uncovered the positive relationships and themes between the EDM experience, brand involvement and brand image based on the investigative studies of Red Bull and Heineken at Ultra Europe. Limitations to this research were evident due to the small sample size and bias of the researcher. Suggestions are made that in order to enhance the overall brand image in the sensory and relational experiential environment of an EDM festival, the global brand must already be seen as youth-conscious or energetic among Generation Y. If this is not the case, assumptions are made that the brand should consider taking an active involvement within the experience. Although this study lacks firm conclusions as the research is exploratory and interpretivist in nature, the data presents and analyses each factor of the created conceptual framework in relation to the research objective. This conceptual framework can be used for future studies, as assumptions are made that the framework is insightful in measuring how global brands should become involved in the sensory and relational experiential environment of an electronic dance music festival

Characterising network paths through their role in induced substructures

Paths are vital in facilitating network connectivity and have been traditionally characterised by global graph theoretic measures. However, motivated by large or dynamic complex networks, alternative analysis methods have been become popular, based on assessing the presence of induced substructures. These typically involve profiling networks based on the under of over representation of particular induced triads. We examine in detail how induced triads support paths and network connectivity. We begin by considering a triadic census derived from all possible shortest paths as compared to a triadic census from the full network. We find distinct differences, and present a classification for induced triads based on the extent to which their edges can be used in a shortest path. This leads to a new binary classification for edges, called overt or covert, based on supporting flooding across induced triads. We develop these concepts to create local centrality measures that are computationally efficient and which can be used to express the potential for containment or spread from a path. We extend these measures to introduce a convenient edge criticality measure, and compare it against conventional criticality metrics. Results are demonstrated through networks from the literature and synthesised network

A Comparative Study of the Effects of Computer-Assisted Instruction on the Reading Achievement of First Graders

With reading proficiently by the end of third grade as a common goal, many school districts are exploring options to enhance early reading instruction. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the supplemental, computer-assisted reading program i-Ready would significantly affect first grade students’ reading achievement. Participants (n=159) were first graders at two elementary schools - treatment (n= 82) and comparison n= 77). An independent samples t-test was used to compare the mid-year reading achievement scores of the treatment and comparison groups and found no statistically significant differences between groups. Following 10 weeks of twice-weekly 45-minute sessions of i-Ready reading instruction for the treatment group, an independent samples t-test showed that no statistically significant differences in reading achievement existed between the treatment and comparison groups. Several possibilities for this finding are discussed

Plasma Soluble Human Elastin Fragments as an Intra-Aneurysmal Localized Biomarker for Ruptured Intracranial Aneurysm

Background—Fragmentation of the tunica media is a hallmark of intracranial aneurysm formation, often leading to aneurysmal progression and subsequent rupture. The objective of this study is to determine the plasma level of elastin fragments in the lumen of ruptured versus unruptured human intracranial aneurysms. Methods and Results—One hundred consecutive patients with/without ruptured saccular intracranial aneurysms undergoing endovascular coiling or stent-assisted coiling were recruited. Blood samples were collected from the lumen of intracranial aneurysm using a microcatheter. The tip of the microcatheter was placed inside the aneurysm’s sac in close proximity to the inner wall of the dome. Plasma levels of elastin fragments were measured using an ELISA-based method. Mean plasma level of soluble human elastin fragments was significantly greater in ruptured aneurysms when compared with nonruptured aneurysms (102.0±15.5 versus 39.3±9.6 ng/mL; P\u3c0.001). Mean plasma level of soluble human elastin fragments did not have significant correlation with age, sex, size, or aneurysm location. Conclusions—The present study revealed that a significantly higher concentration of soluble human elastin fragments in the lumen of ruptured intracranial aneurysms when compared with nonruptured ones. © 2018 The Authors