Exploring Masculinity For a Healthy Campus Culture

1 in 5 female students is and will be sexually assaulted in college. This is a public health issue as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Sexual violence (SV) is a significant problem in the United States. SV refers to sexual activity when consent is not obtained or not given freely. Anyone can experience SV, but most victims are female. The person responsible for the violence is typically male and usually someone the victim is familiar with. The person can be, but is not limited to, a friend, coworker, neighbor, family member and even classmate. Boys and young men grow up identifying with unhealthy perceptions of masculinity. Emotional intelligence, compassion and equity. These traits are the characteristics needed to sustain a safe and inclusive university campus. Subtle themes that did not suggest a separation of students and athletes. However there was influence to include all male students into the conversation. Now, which causes were enticing men to perpetrate? What was creating and sustaining sexual assault in such a small setting; such as a college campus? There needs to be more support in the protection of women and more directed guidance offered to the development of healthy men. Because athletes schedules are already massively packed with athletic priorities yet still must uphold their student obligations, it is often difficult for athletes to participate in much else. As an addition to the biannual fall and spring orientations, a retreat geared toward men would be an ideal outlet for not only the general students, but athletes, as well as the surrounding community. The method of integrating an evidence based men’s program will embrace students- allowing them to feel an increased sense of self security and safety on the university campus. Emotionally intelligent men are more self aware and thus leads to increased awareness of their community. A heightened awareness and protection of the campus and their female classmates who they share the campus with. A university Mindfulness based Men’s Retreat opens the door for students to safely discuss a new framework and definition of healthy masculinity

In Defense of the Internet: The Relationship between Internet Communication and Depression, Loneliness, Self-Esteem, and Perceived Social Support

As more people connect to the Internet, researchers are beginning to examine the effects of Internet use on users' psychological health. Due in part to a study released by Kraut and colleagues in 1998, which concluded that Internet use is positively correlated with depression, loneliness, and stress, public opinion about the Internet has been decidedly negative. In contrast, the present study was designed to test the hypothesis that Internet usage can affect users beneficially. Participants engaged in five chat sessions with an anonymous partner. At three different intervals they were administered scales measuring depression, loneliness, self-esteem, and social support. Changes in their scores were tracked over time. Internet use was found to decrease loneliness and depression significantly, while perceived social support and self-esteem increased significantly.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/63277/1/109493102753770552.pd

Development of a "Self-Cleaning" Encapsulation Technology for Implantable Glucose Monitoring

The increasing prevalence of diabetes and the severity of long-term complications have emphasized the need for continuous glucose monitoring. Optically-based methods are advantageous as they have potential for noninvasive or minimally invasive detection. Fluorescence-based affinity assays, in particular, can be fast, reagentless, and highly specific. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) microspheres have been used to encapsulate such fluorescently labeled molecules in a hydrogel matrix for implantation into the body. The matrix is designed to retain the sensing molecules while simultaneously allowing sufficient analyte diffusion. Sensing assays which depend upon a spatial displacement of molecules, however, experience limited motility and diminished sensor response in a dense matrix. In order to overcome this, a process of hydrogel microporation has been developed to create cavities within the PEG that contain the assay components in solution, providing improved motility for large sensing elements, while limiting leaching and increasing sensor lifetime. For an implanted sensor to be successful in vivo, it should exhibit long-term stability and functionality. Even biocompatible materials that have no toxic effect on surrounding tissues elicit a host response. Over time, a fibrous capsule forms around the implant, slowing diffusion of the target analyte to the sensor and limiting optical signal propagation. To prevent this biofouling, a thermoresponsive nanocomposite hydrogel based on poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) was developed to create a self-cleaning sensor membrane. These hydrogels exist in a swollen state at temperatures below the volume phase transition temperature (VPTT) and become increasingly hydrophobic as the temperature is raised. Upon thermal cycling around the VPTT, these hydrogels exhibit significant cell release in vitro. However, the VPTT of the original formula was around 33-34 degrees C, resulting in a gel that is in a collapsed state, ultimately limiting glucose diffusion at body temperature. The hydrogel was modified by introducing a hydrophilic comonomer, N-vinylpyrrolidone (NVP), to raise the VPTT above body temperature. The new formulation was optimized with regard to diffusion, mechanical strength, and cell releasing capabilities under physiological conditions. Overall, this system is a promising method to translate a glucose-sensitive assay from the cuvette to the clinic for minimally invasive continuous glucose sensing

Experimentation and modelling of near field explosions

Repeatable experimental results and numerical work has shown that using the Jones-Wilkins-Lee (JWL) equation of state (EOS) will give very accurate results of peak pressures and impulse delivered to a rigid target at large scaled distances. However, recent experiments/numerical modelling at small scaled distances show that the JWL will overpredict peak pressures and impulse due to the assumption of (near) instantaneous energy release from detonation. The results of this experimental/numerical study are presented herein. In the experimental work PE4 spheres at two different scaled distances have been tested using an array of Hopkinson Pressure Bars (HPB) at specific points on a rigid target to measure the local pressure-time histories. From the HPB measurements, it appears that below certain scaled distances there are chemical-physical mechanisms that do not have sufficient time to contribute to the energy driving the loading mechanisms, explaining the over-prediction of the JWL. Importantly though, the experimental results show that at very small scaled distances (0.172 m/kg1/3) the test to test percentage variation is very low (5.1%); whilst at larger scaled distances (0.819 m/kg1/3) it is much higher (23.1%). This paper presents a model which describes the process by which experimental results move from repeatable to variable to repeatable as scaled distance increases from the extreme near field to far field

Methods for Diagnosing and Treating Alzheimer\u27s Disease (AD) Using the Molecules that Stabilize Intracellular Calcium (CA\u3csub\u3e2+\u3c/sub\u3e) Release

The subject technology relates, in part, to a method of treating Alzheimer\u27s Disease (AD), early-stage AD, elevated risk of AD, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or other forms of age-related cognitive decline in a subject in need thereof by administering to the subject a molecule that promotes calcium-release stabilization in ryanodine receptors (RyRs) and/or inosital triphosphate receptors (InsP3Rs) in brain cells. Diagnostic methods using calcium-release stabilizing immunophilins, junctophilins or calmodulin are also disclosed

Urban tourism and population change: Gentrification in the age of mobilities

The prepandemic unbridled growth of tourism has triggered a significant debate regarding the future of cities; several authors suggest that neighbourhood change produced by tourism should be conceived as a form of gentrification. Yet research on population shifts—a fundamental dimension of gentrification—in such neighbourhoods is scarce. Our exploration of the Gòtic area in Barcelona, using quantitative and qualitative techniques, reveals a process of population restructuring characterised by a decrease of long-term residents and inhabited dwellings, and the arrival of young and transnational gentrifiers that are increasingly mobile and form a transient population. We then use some insights from the mobilities literature to make sense of these results. In the gentrification of the Gòtic, the attractiveness of the area for visitors and for a wider palette of transnational dwellers feeds one another, resulting in an uneven negotiation whereby more wealthy and ‘footloose’ individuals gain access and control of space and housing over less mobile and more dependent populations.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Reflected pressures from explosives buried in idealised cohesive soils

Recent work has concentrated on the characterisation of the temporal and spatial impulse distribution of blast form buried charges. A new soil container preparation methodology has been created to allow for the generation of highly repeatable, tightly controlled clay beds which will allow clays of different undrained strengths to be generated. Tests using these well controlled beds has allowed for an improved understanding into which geotechnical parameters govern the impulse delivered by a buried charge. Namely in the current programme of work this is an investigation into the ‘undrained strength’ of a cohesive material as an indicator of potential impulse output. Initial results are compared against previously published work on cohesionless soils (sands) to try to establish the full range of loading which can be generated by a buried charge

Influence of particle size distribution on the blast pressure profile from explosives buried in saturated soils

The spatial and temporal distribution of pressure and impulse from explosives buried in saturated cohesive and cohesionless soils has been measured experimentally for the first time. Ten experiments have been conducted at quarter-scale, where localised pressure loading was measured using an array of 17 Hopkinson pressure bars. The blast pressure measurements are used in conjunction with high-speed video filmed at 100,000 fps to investigate in detail the physical processes occurring at the loaded face. Two coarse cohesionless soils and one fine cohesive soil were tested: a relatively uniform sand, a well-graded sandy-gravel, and a fine-grained clay. The results show that there is a single fundamental loading mechanism when explosives are detonated in saturated soil, invariant of particle size and soil cohesion. It is also shown that variability in localised loading is intrinsically linked to the particle size distribution of the surrounding soil

Localised variations in reflected pressure from explosives buried in uniform and well-graded soils

Recent experiments into characterisation of the loading resulting from detonation of a shallow buried explosive have highlighted the complex underlying physical mechanisms present at the face of a target situated above the soil surface. This paper presents the results from such experiments, where the localised blast pressure and impulse is measured using an array of Hopkinson pressure bars at specific points on the target surface. Two different soil types are tested; a relatively uniform sand, and well-graded sandy-gravel. It is observed that the variability in localised loading is intrinsically linked to the particle size distribution of the soil medium; the uniform soil produces repeatable data with little variation whereas the well-graded soil demonstrates considerable spread. The cause of this spread is quantified and discussed with reference to the distinct loading mechanisms acting on the target as seen in the experimental data

FK506-Binding Protein 12.6/1b, a Negative Regulator of [Ca\u3csup\u3e2+\u3c/sup\u3e], Rescues Memory and Restores Genomic Regulation in the Hippocampus of Aging Rats

Hippocampal overexpression of FK506-binding protein 12.6/1b (FKBP1b), a negative regulator of ryanodine receptor Ca2+ release, reverses aging-induced memory impairment and neuronal Ca2+ dysregulation. Here, we tested the hypothesis that FKBP1b also can protect downstream transcriptional networks from aging-induced dysregulation. We gave hippocampal microinjections of FKBP1b-expressing viral vector to male rats at either 13 months of age (long-term, LT) or 19 months of age (short-term, ST) and tested memory performance in the Morris water maze at 21 months of age. Aged rats treated ST or LT with FKBP1b substantially outperformed age-matched vector controls and performed similarly to each other and young controls (YCs). Transcriptional profiling in the same animals identified 2342 genes with hippocampal expression that was upregulated/downregulated in aged controls (ACs) compared with YCs (the aging effect). Of these aging-dependent genes, 876 (37%) also showed altered expression in aged FKBP1b-treated rats compared with ACs, with FKBP1b restoring expression of essentially all such genes (872/876, 99.5%) in the direction opposite the aging effect and closer to levels in YCs. This inverse relationship between the aging and FKBP1b effects suggests that the aging effects arise from FKBP1b deficiency. Functional category analysis revealed that genes downregulated with aging and restored by FKBP1b were associated predominantly with diverse brain structure categories, including cytoskeleton, membrane channels, and extracellular region. Conversely, genes upregulated with aging but not restored by FKBP1b associated primarily with glial–neuroinflammatory, ribosomal, and lysosomal categories. Immunohistochemistry confirmed aging-induced rarefaction and FKBP1b-mediated restoration of neuronal microtubular structure. Therefore, a previously unrecognized genomic network modulating diverse brain structural processes is dysregulated by aging and restored by FKBP1b overexpression