Gendered and Racialized Language Ideologies at SDSU

This research project explores the ways in which South Dakota State University students perceive speakers of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) in comparison to how they perceive speakers of Standard American English (SAE). Language ideologies affect these perceptions, and they largely exist on a subconscious level—therefore, I uncover them in order to discover how language ideologies affect SDSU. I conducted a matched-guise test with recordings by four speakers (two African American males, one African American female, and one mixed African American/White female). These speakers each made the first of two recordings in SAE and the second in AAVE. Out of the ten adjectives on which 30 SDSU student listeners judged the speakers, nine produced extremely significant results concerning difference in perception for AAVE and SAE. SAE speakers received significantly higher ratings for being intelligent, successful, nice, attractive, and professional, while AAVE speakers received significantly higher ratings for being aggressive, intimidating, improper, and vulgar. This creates problems because if the SDSU student population (on average) views AAVE-speaking students more negatively than SAE-speaking students, this might affect the way they treat AAVE speaking students. After completion of the matched-guise test, significant distinctions between perceptions of male speakers and female speakers became evident as well. Female speakers received significantly higher ratings for being intelligent, successful, nice, attractive, and professional, while male speakers received significantly higher ratings for being aggressive, intimidating, improper, and vulgar. In this essay, I present some of the social, educational, and professional implications that potentially exist due to these language ideologies and the perceptions they generate, and how this affects the students at SDSU. This study furthers our understanding of language ideologies—it demonstrates how language ideologies have less to do with language perception and more to do with prescriptive stereotypes influencing language perception

Overwintering sites and winter mortality rates of certain predaceous mites in Central Utah orchards (phytoseiidae: typhlodromus)

The overwintering habitats and winter mortality rates of predaceous mites (Phytoseiidae: Typhlodromus) were investigated during three successive winters, 1965-66, 1966-67, and 1967-68. Three species were predominant in derelict apple orchards, Typhlodromus mcgregori Chant on twigs and spurs and rough bark of scaffold limbs and trunk, Typhlodromus occidentalis Nesbitt on rough bark of scaffold limbs and trunk, and Amblyseius cucumeris Oudemans in ground cover. Other species (Typhlodromus columbiensis Chant, Typhlodromus caudiglans Schuster, Amblyseius fallacis (Garman), Amblyseius ovatus (Garman), Amblyseius floridanus (Muma), and Amblyseius rosellus Chant) were collected only incidentally. Substantial numbers of T. mcgregori and T. occidentalis were found to fall with yellowed falling leaves during the autumn leaf drop; however, a majority of the mites stayed on the trees, overwintering on twigs and spurs (T. mcgregori) and bark (T. occidentalis). Typhlodromus mcgregori was found overwintering primarily under old corky abscission layers of leaf petioles and fruit stalks on the 1-5 year old section of twigs and spurs. No significant winter mortality of T. mcgregori was found during the five month period from December to April. The importance of overwintering sites and winter mortality rates to biological and integrated control programs is discussed

Nevada desert dust with heavy metals suppresses IgM antibody production

Systemic health effects from exposure to a complex natural dust containing heavy metals from the Nellis Dunes Recreation Area (NDRA) near Las Vegas, NV, were evaluated. Several toxicological parameters were examined following lung exposure to emissive dust from three geologic sediment types heavily used for recreational off- road activities: yellow sand very rich in arsenic (termed CBN 5); a shallow cover of loose dune sand overlying a gravelly subsoil bordering dune fields (termed CBN 6); and brown claystone and siltstone (termed CBN 7). Adult female B6C3F1 mice were exposed by oropharyngeal administration to these three types of geogenic dusts at 0.01–100 mg of dust/kg of body weight, once per week for four weeks. The median grain sizes were 4.6, 3.1, and 4.4 μm, for CBN 5, 6, and 7, respectively. Each type of dust contained quantifiable amounts of aluminum, vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt, copper, zinc, arsenic, strontium, cesium, lead, uranium, and others. Descriptive markers of immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity, hematology, and clinical chemistry parameters were assessed. Notable among all three CBN units was a systemic, dose-responsive decrease in antigen-specific IgM antibody responses. Geogenic dust from CBN 5 produced more than a 70% suppression in IgM responses, establishing a lowest adverse effect level (LOAEL) of 0.01 mg/kg. A suppression in IgM responses and a corre- sponding increase in serum creatinine determined a LOAEL of 0.01 mg/kg for CBN 6. The LOAEL for CBN 7 was 0.1 mg/kg and also was identified from suppression in IgM responses. These results are of concern given the frequent off-road vehicle traffic and high visitor rates at the NDRA, estimated at 300,000 each year

Hormone replacement therapy, menopausal age and lifestyle variables are associated with better cognitive performance at follow-up but not cognition over time in older-adult women irrespective of APOE4 carrier status and co-morbidities

IntroductionThe impact of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) on cognitive function in postmenopausal women remains a topic of considerable debate. Although estrogen's neuroprotective effects suggest potential cognitive benefits, empirical findings are mixed.MethodsThis study uses data from the Cognitive Function and Ageing Study Wales (CFAS Wales) cohort to explore the relationships between HRT use, age at menopause, APOE4 carrier status, lifestyle factors, comorbidities, and cognitive outcomes in older adult women. Two regression models were employed: one analyzing cognitive performance at follow-up and another examining changes in cognitive scores over time.ResultsResults indicate that while age, education, HRT use, age at menopause, alcohol consumption, and diet were associated with cognitive function at a single later time point, only age remained a significant predictor when modeling cognition over time.DiscussionThese findings suggest that while HRT, menopausal age and lifestyle factors may support cognitive stability, they do not necessarily predict cognitive decline in post-menopausal older women. A major limitation of the current work is the lack of detail regarding HRT use, such as formulation, timing and duration; caveats that future studies should address. The study underscores the need for longer follow-up periods, consideration of other female-specific risk factors, and more comprehensive lifestyle and health assessments to clarify the complex interplay between HRT use, reproductive history, lifestyle, comorbidities and cognitive aging in women

Summary of field collecting and laboratory processing equipment and procedures for sampling arthropods at Pawnee site, A

May 1975.On cover: Grassland Biome, Ecosystem analysis studies, U.S. International Biological Program.Includes bibliographical references