Agrarian discourse in imperial context: landed property, Scottish stadial theory and indigenes in early colonial Australia

The paper will explore conceptions of property in land within Scottish Enlightenment thought, and how these ideas were variously applied, unsettled and reworked in a particular colonial context. Recent work on imperial Britain has highlighted the themes of agrarianism and agricultural improvement, however such work has often neglected the specifics of how eighteenth-century Scottish thought conceptualised property within a stadial sequence with agriculture at the heart of both stadial progression and understandings of the divide between conceptions of savagery and civilisation. This paper will focus on the linkages between thinking about property and agricultural land use within the work of various Scottish thinkers; and in turn to the use of their thought in relation to perceptions of indigenous land and property in early colonial Australia . In doing so the paper will point to the existence of a particular agrarian discourse within both Scottish stadial theory and the broader imperial sphere

Storytelling for Fundraising: Assessing the Impact of Personal Stories on Donation Behavior

In fundraising, some nonprofits have sought to channel the power of personal stories by including them in appeal letters. Are stories an effective tool in soliciting donations? In this study, participants read one of three appeals from an unnamed abortion fund. Two conditions contained a personal story, either an “unapologetic” or a “uncontroversial” narrative, about a woman who underwent an abortion; one condition did not include a story. Participants were then asked questions regarding the appeal and the organization before being given a “bonus” dollar, and offered the option of donating a portion of that to an abortion fund. Results showed that the effect of the conditions on participants’ willingness to donate depended on their income level. Those with higher reported incomes were significantly more likely to donate, relative to those with lower incomes, after reading the “uncontroversial” message. Overall, we find a “one size fits all” approach to appeals might not be the most effective if the nonprofit’s donor base includes numerous demographics, as groups may react differently to the same information

What Local Officials Need to Know About Wind Power in Their Communities

working paper for project on local policy and the green economyIf the topic of industrial wind development was on the table in your community, where would you begin the discussion? In this working paper, we will provide information to help local officials understand the complicated issue of industrial wind farms. First, we'll describe the basics of wind development and the actors involved. Then, we'll suggest how three actions - planning ahead with residents about their questions and concerns, developing zoning and wind ordinances, and working with a neutral third party who can help with negotiations and regulations - can enable local officials to manage the process of deciding whether wind development is a good option for their communities

Regulation of asymmetric spindle positioning in the early C. elegans embryo

Asymmetric cell division is necessary for proper development in many organisms, and results in daughter cells of unequal size or cell fate, or both. The first mitotic division of the C. elegans embryo is asymmetric, due to movement of the mitotic spindle to an asymmetric position. While this cell division is a well-studied model of asymmetric spindle positioning, the mechanisms that regulate this event are not completely understood. In order to better understand asymmetric spindle positioning, I have studied microtubule dynamics and the timing of spindle movement during mitosis in the one-cell stage C. elegans embryo. The mitotic spindle of the one-cell stage division shifts towards the posterior cortex of the embryo due to an increase in microtubule pulling forces originating from one side. It is not clear, however, how microtubules contribute to generating the pulling forces required to segregate chromosomes during anaphase in C. elegans. To test this, I monitored the dynamics of kinetochore microtubules through the use of photobleaching and high resolution confocal microscopy. Combined with previous data from other labs, my results suggest that the forces that segregate chromosomes are provided by astral microtubules in early C. elegans embryos, and not by kinetochore microtubules. It is not clear in any developmental system how asymmetric spindle positioning is timed. I found that the mitotic spindle begins to shift at a precise time in the early C. elegans embryo, soon after chromosomes have completed congression to the metaphase plate. This observation suggested an interesting hypothesis—that machinery timing mitotic progression might serve a dual function, also timing asymmetric spindle movement until the appropriate time. Upon manipulation of the cell cycle machinery, my results suggest that components of the spindle checkpoint pathway serve a novel role as a timer for asymmetric spindle positioning in the one-cell C. elegans embryo. This additional role for the spindle checkpoint pathway may ensure that chromosomes attach to the spindle before the spindle shifts to an asymmetric position. This work demonstrates a fundamental new link connecting cell and developmental biology, between mitotic regulation and asymmetric cell division

Preparing students for community-based learning using an asset-based approach

One goal of service and community-based learning is to produce students who are more tightly engaged in the larger communities surrounding their institutions. Drawing on data from three courses, we argue that an asset-based approach plays a role in creating authentic campus-community partnerships that strive to engage students as members of the community from the outset and throughout their service learning courses. Asset-based activities help students come to understand the value of relationships amongst community members while also underscoring the value of their individual role in this group.  As such, students are more prepared for future work within the community

Doubling the number of health graduates in Zambia: estimating feasibility and costs

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The Ministry of Health (MoH) in Zambia is operating with fewer than half of the human resources for health (HRH) necessary to meet basic population health needs. Responding urgently to address this HRH crisis, the MoH plans to double the annual number of health training graduates in the next five years to increase the supply of health workers. The feasibility and costs of achieving this initiative, however, are unclear.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We determined the feasibility and costs of doubling training institution output through an individual school assessment framework. Assessment teams, comprised of four staff from the MoH and Clinton Health Access Initiative, visited all of Zambia's 39 public and private health training institutions from 17 April to 19 June 2008. Teams consulted with faculty and managers at each training institution to determine if student enrollment could double within five years; an operational planning exercise carried out with school staff determined the investments and additional operating costs necessary to achieve expansion. Cost assumptions were developed using historical cost data.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The individual school assessments affirmed the MoH's ability to double the graduate output of Zambia's public health training institutions. Lack of infrastructure was determined as a key bottleneck in achieving this increase while meeting national training quality standards. A total investment of US$58.8 million is required to meet expansion infrastructure needs, with US$ 35.0 million (59.5%) allocated to expanding student accommodation and US$23.8 million (40.5$ 58.0 million over the five-year scale-up period. Total cost of expansion is estimated at US$ 116.8 million over five years.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Historic underinvestment in training institutions has crippled Zambia's ability to meet expansion ambitions. There must be significant investments in infrastructure and faculty to meet quality standards while expanding training enrollment. Bottom-up planning can be used to translate national targets into costed implementation plans for expansion at each school.</p

Myogenic Progenitor Cells Control Extracellular Matrix Production by Fibroblasts during Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy

Satellite cells, the predominant stem cell population in adult skeletal muscle, are activated in response to hypertrophic stimuli and give rise to myogenic progenitor cells (MPCs) within the extracellular matrix (ECM) that surrounds myofibers. This ECM is composed largely of collagens secreted by interstitial fibrogenic cells, which influence satellite cell activity and muscle repair during hypertrophy and aging. Here we show that MPCs interact with interstitial fibrogenic cells to ensure proper ECM deposition and optimal muscle remodeling in response to hypertrophic stimuli. MPC-dependent ECM remodeling during the first week of a growth stimulus is sufficient to ensure long-term myofiber hypertrophy. MPCs secrete exosomes containing miR-206, which represses Rrbp1, a master regulator of collagen biosynthesis, in fibrogenic cells to prevent excessive ECM deposition. These findings provide insights into how skeletal stem and progenitor cells interact with other cell types to actively regulate their extracellular environments for tissue maintenance and adaptation