Integrating Neuro Technology into the Clinic: a proposed tool for promoting the clinical integration of neuro rehabilitation technology

Advanced neuro rehabilitation technology is becoming more common in upper extremity stroke rehabilitation. It uses the occupational therapy approach of restoration or remediation of function. Advanced neuro rehabilitation technology includes devices such as functional electrical stimulation, robotics, sensor-based technology and virtual reality gaming. Many of these types of devices are based on principles of neuroplasticity and motor learning, and as such, offer an intervention approach that involves high intensity repetitive movement training in engaging environments with performance feedback (Levin, Weiss & Keshner, 2015; Mehrholz, Hadrich, Platz, Kugler & Pohl, 2012); Winstein et al., 2016). Despite emerging evidence-based literature on the efficacy of using neuro rehabilitation technology for upper extremity rehabilitation post-stroke, there is very limited research on how to effectively implement and deploy technology into typical occupational therapy service delivery. Integrating Neuro Technology into the Clinic is a resource tool and mentoring program informed by evidence and grounded in theory. It was designed to encourage clinics to take an active role in adapting the program and evolving the content to support clinicians in using technology to meet their individual clinic goals as their needs change over time. The overall aim of Integrating Neuro Technology into the Clinic is to increase clinicians use of technology for clinically meaningful outcomes and to assist with improving perceived self-efficacy in the appropriate application of the technology. Integrating Neuro Technology into the Clinic consists of a resource binder of education modules and resources and a 13-week occupational therapist led peer mentoring program focusing on technology use and knowledge translation. Integrating Neuro Technology into the Clinic was created to encourage the use of advanced neuro technology in occupational therapy service delivery. The long-term outcomes of this project will contribute to emerging knowledge on technology use in occupational therapy practice and hopefully influence improved technology integration in occupational therapy practice

Newspaper Coverage of People with Disabilities: A New Zealand Perspective

Throughout history the science of mass communication has been a topic of public and academic interest. In the past 3 decades portrayals of various minority groups have been of concern to researchers, health professionals and member of these groups. This study examines how people with disabilities are portrayed within the New Zealand print media and whether or not a traditional (often negative) or progressive (often positive) modes of representations predominate in coverage. Progressive focus views disability and the problems surrounding it as being located in society's failure to accommodate all members of the population. In contrast, traditional focus views people with disabilities as dysfunctional because he or she is unable to function in an environment designed by or for people without disabilities. The research corpus comprises relating to intellectual and physical disabilities and people with disabilities published in three major newspapers of New Zealand; The New Zealand Herald, The Dominion Post and The Sunday Star Times between the 1st of June and the 1st of August 2006 (N=101). These articles were collected and the content of each article was analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively. Aspects such as structure, content, terminology, sources used and attributes assigned to the people with disabilities were analysed within each article as a means of determining whether an article was positive, negative or neutral. Results show that within the New Zealand print media disability is generally portrayed in a positive or neutral manner. Moreover, it was discovered that Clogston's (1989) classifications of traditional and progressive focus were problematic because results indicated that a traditional mode of focus was dominate but this did not reflect a negative portrayal of disability. This may have been due to the disparities between the findings of this thesis and previous research conducted in other countries over a decade ago. Furthermore, it was found that the main source within each article was the government and this supported past research (Tichenor, Donohue, and Olien, 1980)

A Critical Discourse Analysis of Middle-Class African American Parents\u27 Racial Socialization Parenting Behavior with Their 3 and 4-year-old Sons

All parents, whether they are aware of it or not, engage in racial socialization. For African American parents in the United States (U.S.), however, a degree of urgency exists that exceeds what is typical for European American parents (Neblett, Smalls, Ford, Nguyen, & Sellers, 2009; Stevenson & Arrington, 2009). The purpose of this qualitative study was to learn directly from middle-class African American families about how they engaged double consciousness (Du Bois, 1903/1994) as they racially socialized their 3 and 4-year-old sons. Specifically, I wanted to learn about the discourses influenced by intersections of class, race, and gender that they used to educate their sons about 1) how they may be viewed in a racist society, and 2) to ensure positive development. The study is framed by critical race theory (Bell, 2007; Delgado & Stefancic, 2012; Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995), intersectionality (Cooper 1892/1988; Crenshaw, 1995), and community cultural wealth (Yosso, 2005; Yosso & Garcíá, 2007). I collected multiple forms of data from five families over twelve weeks. The study was designed using Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA). In particular, an integrated design using Fairclough’s (2013) explanatory critique and thematic analysis in order to best identify how middle-class African American parents racially socialize their young sons. Two questions guided this research study: a) what factors (e.g., stereotypes, ideologies, values, beliefs, age, gender, socioeconomic status, etc.) influence how middle-class African American parents racially socialize their sons; and b) what genres do middle-class African American parents use to racially socialize their 3 and 4-year-old sons? I found that factors that influenced how parents racially socialized their sons are discriminatory stereotypes grounded in United States history; institutional and structural racism; the age of their child; the gender of their child, and the parent gender; the social class status of the parent during their upbringing; the current family social class status; and cultural resources that the family could access. The language-based and non-language-based genres that the parents used to racially socialize their sons were books, toys, artwork, and conversations. Scholarly and practical implications and recommendations for future research are provided

Lawyers’ Work in the Menendez Brothers Murder Trial

This research addresses the interactional work by which lawyers interrogate witnesses at trial. In particular, the study examines some videotaped segments of interrogation interchange in the first Menendez brothers\u27 murder trial and analyzes lawyer\u27s work in attempting the impeachment of an adverse witness. The paper finds a lived orderliness of the courtroom that resides in the locally organized material detail of real-time interrogation interchange and practices

R&D of a High-Performance DIRC Detector For a Future Electron-Ion Collider

An Electron-Ion Collider (EIC) is proposed as the next big scientific facility to be built in the United States, costing over $1 billion in design and construction. Each detector concept for the electron/ion beam interaction point is integrated into a large solenoidal magnet. The necessity for excellent hadronic particle identification (pion/kaon/proton) in the barrel region of the solenoid has pushed research and development (R&D) towards a new, high-performance Detection of Internally Reflected Cherenkov light (DIRC) detector design. The passage of a high energy charged particle through a fused silica bar of the DIRC generates optical Cherenkov radiation. A large fraction of this light propagates by total internal reflection to the end of the bar, where the photon trajectories expand in a large volume before reaching a highly segmented photo-detector array. The spatial and temporal distribution of the Cherenkov light at the photo-detector array allows one to reconstruct the angle of emission of the light relative to the incident charged particle track. In order to reach the desired performance of 3σ π/K separation at 6 GeV/c particle momentum a new 3-layer spherical lens focusing optic with a lanthanum crown glass central layer was designed to have a nearly flat focal plane. In order to validate the EIC DIRC simulation package, a synergistic test beam campaign was carried out in 2015 at the CERN PS with the PANDA Barrel DIRC group using a prototype DIRC detector. Along with the analysis of the CERN test beam data, measurements of the focal plane of the 3-layer lens were performed using a custom-built laser setup at Old Dominion University. Radiation hardness of the lanthanum crown glass was tested using a 160 keV X-ray source and a monochromator at the Catholic University of America. Results of these test-bench experiments and the analysis of the 2015 CERN test beam data are presented here

A phenomenological study of problematic internet use with massively multiplayer online games

Massively multiplayer online games (MMOG’s) are a specific form of online computer games that allow for millions of people to simultaneously play online at any time. This form of online gaming has become a huge phenomenon worldwide both as a popular past time and a business endeavour for many individuals. There are more than 16 million people worldwide who subscribe to fantasy role-playing online games. Although such games can provide entertainment for many people, they can also lead to problematic Internet use (PIU). PIU has also been referred to as Internet addiction, and can cause significant problems in an individual’s functioning. The study aimed to enhance a greater understanding of the phenomenon of male adults’ experiences PIU with MMOG’s. More specifically the study aims to identify if PIU with MMOG’s can be considered a form of Internet addiction within South Africa. Furthermore, assisting in the further development of online addiction diagnosis and treatment strategies. The study utilised an interpretive phenomenological approach (IPA) and participants were purposively sampled. The data was collected using semi-structured individual interviews. Furthermore, Braun and Clarks thematic analysis was used during data analysis while incorporating the four major processes in phenomenological research, namely 1) epoche, 2) phenomenological reduction, 3) imaginative variation and, 4) synthesis. Themes that emerged from the analysis of the participants’ experiences included, initial description of use, motives for continued use of MMOG’s, consequences of PIU with MMOG’s, perceptions of PIU with MMOG’s, and treatment considerations. This study provided a thick description of South African and international literature and combines the literature with the themes that emerged from the participants experiences in order to produce discussions based on the findings of this qualitative study. Conclusions, recommendations, and limitations of this study informed future research on cyber citizenship by providing a detailed understanding of the context of South African male adults’ experiences of PIU with MMOG’s

The Prepared Flute: A Survey of its History, Techniques, and Repertoire

Beginning with Varese’s Density 21.5 in 1936, composers have been experimenting with extended techniques to expand the flute’s range of sound. In an attempt to increase the timbral possibilities of the instrument, contemporary composers are writing for the prepared flute: adding objects on or inside the flute, or subtracting parts of the flute to alter its sound. is the first written document to focus on the prepared flute. Deborah Fethers, in her major project discussing contemporary flute design in 2005, mentions the use of prepared flute by Michael Pestel, and states that “to my knowledge the only use of such ‘preparation’ of a flute is by Pestel” (Fethers). My research shows that there are, in fact, numerous other examples of composers’ use of preparations when writing for the flute, and this document serves to compile those examples. With compositions for prepared flute written as early as the 1980s, the flute community is in need of a detailed account of the pieces available, how to tackle the technical intricacies, and a reference for composers to consult. As the above quote indicates, most musicians in the flute community are unaware that the prepared flute genre exists, let alone know the major players involved in this area. Limitations of this study include the difficulty to obtain copies of all pieces written for prepared flute because many are either hard to find or unpublished. Correspondence from the composers is deficient, due in part to language and location barriers or lack of response. This document presents the history of the prepared flute through the examination of ten pieces, and discusses objects commonly used to prepare the instrument. In addition, this project involved commissioning a new work for prepared flute and prepared piano, a combination lacking in current repertoire. The preparations for the flute provide new realms of sound possibilities for the instrument, offer new avenues for composing unpredictable music, and inspire new chamber music that includes prepared flute. With greater awareness of prepared flute, the author hopes that more flutists will become aware of the possibilities, composers will be inspired to add to the idiom, and audiences will be inspired by the music that results. Also included in this document are tables that list repertoire and preparations specific to each piece, and two appendixes that provide listening possibilities and locations to purchase the compositions mentioned in this document. Finally, my website (www.staceyleerussell.com) includes a section dedicated to new pieces for prepared flute, experimentations, recordings, and helpful tips

Fairness perceptions of income-based educational inequality: The impact of social class and ideological orientations

Income-based educational inequality is a global issue. In Australia, schools in the relatively large private sector charge a range of fees, with public schools also exhibiting considerable income differences. Using a nationally representative sample in the Australian Survey of Social Attitudes, we examined the public's fairness perceptions of income-based educational inequality and how their fairness perceptions are related to self-interest (particularly regarding social class) and ideological orientations. We found that people hold diverse views about the fairness of income-based educational inequality and that the number of people who perceived it as unfair was almost double the number of those who perceived it as fair. Respondents categorised as upper/upper-middle-class were, however, more likely to perceive income-based educational inequality as fair, while agreement with government responsibility for economic well-being was associated with a negative view of income-based educational inequality. Implications of these findings for the promotion of socially just and equitable education are discussed