A Paleoethnobotanical Perspective on Late Classic Maya Cave Ritual at the Site of Pacbitun, Belize

This thesis presents the results of paleoethnobotanical investigations conducted at nine karst sites associated with the Maya site of Pacbitun in western Belize. The archaeobotanical remains were deposited during the Late Classic period and the site was abandoned at some point during this same time (c. A.D. 900). Paleoenvironmental data from the Maya Lowlands indicates that human activity contributed to regional climate change during the Late/Terminal Classic period. However, site-specific research has demonstrated a variety of responses to these social and ecological changes. The archaeobotanical data from this study is used as a proxy for understanding how people at Pacbitun ritually responded to macro-regional environmental stress. Ritual plant use at the cave sites does not conform to behavioral ecology models that predict biological, cost-fitness related responses to resource scarcity. Instead, the data supports a model of behavior based on culturally motivated ritual practices

Optimizing Air & Water CPU Cooling

Efficient computer cooling is crucial for maintaining hardware integrity and performance. This projects researches air and water cooling methods. Air cooling, employing fans and heat sinks, is cost-effective and easy to maintain but may lack in cooling capacity and generate noise. Conversely, water cooling systems use liquid coolant for superior thermal performance and quieter operation, albeit with higher complexity and cost. Key components like heat sinks and thermal compounds play vital roles in dissipating heat efficiently. Challenges such as fan reliability and environmental factors like temperature and humidity can affect cooling efficiency and hardware integrity. Regular monitoring and strategic airflow optimization are essential for addressing these challenges. Understanding cooling principles helps users optimize performance and extend hardware lifespan

The Woman who Devours the Land

Pages 64-7

Creating an Accessible Campus Environment

This project consists of a series of journalistic articles pertaining to the level of accessibility for current students, faculty, and/or visitors with physical disabilities and/or impairments at The University of Akron. Journalistic articles were selected as a method of investigating and increasing awareness of accessibility in the given situation. Interviews were conducted with members of the campus and those, in addition to press releases, were used as the basis of the content within each article. The conclusion drawn from this journalistic inquiry is that while the level of accessibility at The University of Akron is not optimal for current students, faculty, and/or visitors with physical disabilities and/or impairments based on a few emergency situations that occurred, adequate and significant steps are being taken by the Office of Accessibility to make improvements. The series of journalistic articles generated was published in The Buchtelite, the student newspaper at The University of Akron. The researcher applied concepts from Agenda Setting Theory and set the agenda through increased coverage of accessibility with the goal of increasing awareness of this topic across campus. In addition to the text of the articles, photographs were also used to provide visual framing for the stories

Be careful what you say: The relationship between prosecutorial language in closing statements and sentencing outcomes in real capital cases

Moral disengagement refers to how individuals rationalize the decisions they make, especially if they may be immoral or difficult. Individuals can be primed to engage in moral disengagement through the use of specific language. The current study analyzed language strategies used in closing statements of real capital murder cases to investigate which are correlated with a death penalty sentence. Because jurors are responsible for sentencing another individual to death, they may have some difficulty making such a decision. The current study found that future dangerousness and empathetic language were significantly correlated to jurors sentencing the death to the death penalty. This finding suggests that there are types of language strategies that may reduce the guilt associated with jurors’ death penalty decisions

A Comparison of Bullying and Victimization Rates among Gifted and High-Achieving Students

Rates of bullying and victimization among gifted and non-gifted, high-achieving (HA) high school students were assessed by using the Reynolds Bully Victimization Scale (BVS; Reynolds, 2003). Results indicate that both gifted and HA high school students bully others and are victimized by others at unelevated rates based on scores on the BVS. The rates of bullying and victimization found among gifted and HA high school students were not significantly different from each other as well. Rates of bullying and victimization for male and female participants were also compared, and no significant differences were found between males and females for either bullying or victimization. Results from this study do not provide support for across-the-board social skills programs for gifted students as a group but suggest that gifted programs continue to focus on promoting primarily advanced intellectual endeavors (Colangelo, Assouline, & Gross, 2004). However, individual gifted students may need targeted interventions focused on reducing bullying and victimization

Commonwealth Local Government Forum Pacific Project

The Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF) Pacific Project works with local government and other stakeholders in nine Pacific Island countries – Cook Islands, Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. It seeks to strengthen local democracy and good governance, and to help local governments deal with the increasing challenges of service delivery and urban management in the unique Pacific environment.Human settlement patterns in the region are changing rapidly. The Pacific has traditionally been a rural agricultural/subsistence society, but this is no longer the case. The accelerated pace of urbanisation has impacted significantly on Pacific nations and in the very near future the majority of Pacific Islanders will be found in urban areas. Already over 50% of Fiji’s population are urban dwellers. Rapid urbanisation brings with it unique challenges and opportunities. Local governments are at the forefront of this phenomenon, with the responsibility to manage urban development and the transition from rural areas to cities and towns. Their success or failure to manage urbanisation and provide the required levels of physical and social infrastructure will affect many lives in a new urban Pacific.The project now has three components – the main Pacific Regional Project and two country-specific programmes: the Honiara City Council Institutional Capacity Building Project and the Commonwealth Local Government Good Practice Scheme in Papua New Guinea

The association between sedentary behaviour and risk of anxiety: a systematic review

BACKGROUND: Previous research has linked sedentary behaviour (SB) to adverse physical health outcomes in adults and youth. Although evidence for the relationship between SB and mental health outcomes (e.g., depression) is emerging, little is known regarding risk of anxiety. METHODS: A systematic search for original research investigating the association between SB and risk of anxiety was performed using numerous electronic databases. A total of nine observational studies (seven cross-sectional and two longitudinal) were identified. Methodological quality of studies was assessed and a best-evidence synthesis was conducted. RESULTS: One cross-sectional study demonstrated a strong methodological quality, five cross-sectional studies demonstrated a moderate methodological quality and three studies (two cross-sectional one longitudinal) received a weak methodological quality rating. Overall, there was moderate evidence for a positive relationship between total SB and anxiety risk as well as for a positive relationship between sitting time and anxiety risk. There was inconsistent evidence for the relationship between screen time, television viewing time, computer use, and anxiety risk. CONCLUSION: Limited evidence is available on the association between SB and risk of anxiety. However, our findings suggest a positive association (i.e. anxiety risk increases as SB time increases) may exist (particularly between sitting time and risk of anxiety). Further high-quality longitudinal/interventional research is needed to confirm findings and determine the direction of these relationships