Promoting Character and Resiliency Among Elementary School Students: An Assessment of the CARE Now Program

Youth, especially in inner-city areas of the country, are in need of effective, outcome-based camp programs when school is not in session. Character and Resiliency Education (CARE) Now (CN) is a comprehensive in- and afterschool program designed to promote academic enrichment through positive youth development with a focus on enhancing character and resiliency. In the summer of 2013, CN was adapted to create a three-week long day camp at a high-needs elementary school in eastern Virginia. Using theoretically-based and outcome focused programming, CN was widely praised for its effectiveness among youth in this summer camp. To assess its impact, a mix-method approach was used, producing desirable results. Consequently, the supporting organization moved forward to fund CARE Now for a year-long program at the same school

Promoting Character and Resiliency among Elementary School Students: An Assessment of the CARE Now Program

Youth, especially in inner-city areas of the country, are in need of effective, outcome-based camp programs when school is not in session. Character and Resiliency Education (CARE) Now (CN) is a comprehensive in- and afterschool program designed to promote academic enrichment through positive youth development with a focus on enhancing character and resiliency. In the summer of 2013, CN was adapted to create a three-week long day camp at a high-needs elementary school in eastern Virginia. Using theoretically-based and outcome focused programming, CN was widely praised for its effectiveness among youth in this summer camp. To assess its impact, a mix-method approach was used, producing desirable results. Consequently, the supporting organization moved forward to fund CARE Now for a year-long program at the same school

The Resiliency and Attitudes Skills Profile: An Assessment of Factor Structure

This study examines the Resiliency Attitudes and Skills Profile (RASP) in an afterschool recreation program with sixth grade students (N=137). The purpose of the study was to inspect the psychometric properties of the RASP and the internal consistency of the RASP global scale and subscales. This article expands on research reported on the RASP. Findings suggest that the RASP measures aspects of resiliency along four factors/dimensions. Suggestions for future research are provided

Gypsum-DL: an open-source program for preparing small-molecule libraries for structure-based virtual screening

Computational techniques such as structure-based virtual screening require carefully prepared 3D models of potential small-molecule ligands. Though powerful, existing commercial programs for virtual-library preparation have restrictive and/or expensive licenses. Freely available alternatives, though often effective, do not fully account for all possible ionization, tautomeric, and ring-conformational variants. We here present Gypsum-DL, a free, robust open-source program that addresses these challenges. As input, Gypsum-DL accepts virtual compound libraries in SMILES or flat SDF formats. For each molecule in the virtual library, it enumerates appropriate ionization, tautomeric, chiral, cis/trans isomeric, and ring-conformational forms. As output, Gypsum-DL produces an SDF file containing each molecular form, with 3D coordinates assigned. To demonstrate its utility, we processed 1558 molecules taken from the NCI Diversity Set VI and 56,608 molecules taken from a Distributed Drug Discovery (D3) combinatorial virtual library. We also used 4463 high-quality protein-ligand complexes from the PDBBind database to show that Gypsum-DL processing can improve virtual-screening pose prediction. Gypsum-DL is available free of charge under the terms of the Apache License, Version 2.0

Risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma associated with occupational exposure to solvents,metals, organic dusts and PCBs (Australia)

Objective: Several studies have suggested that there is an occupational component to the causation of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). We aimed to use accurate means to assess occupational exposures to solvents, metals, organic dusts and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in a case-control study. Methods: Cases were incident NHLs during 2000 and 2001 in two regions of Australia. Controls were randomly selected from the electoral roll and frequency matched to cases by age, sex and region. A detailed occupational history was taken from each subject. For jobs with likely exposure to the chemicals of interest, additional questions were asked by telephone interview using modified job specific modules. An expert allocated exposures using the information in the job histories and the interviews. Odds ratios were calculated for each exposure adjusting for age, sex, region and ethnic origin. Results: 694 cases and 694 controls (70% and 45% respectively of those potentially eligible) participated. The risk of NHL was increased by about 30% for exposure to any solvent with a dose response relationship, subgroup analysis showed the finding was restricted to solvents other than benzene. Exposure to wood dust also increased the risk of NHL slightly. Exposures to other organic dusts, metals, and PCBs were not strongly related to NHL. Conclusions: The risk of NHL appears to be increased by exposure to solvents other than benzene and possibly to wood dust

Exploring the work–life challenges and dilemmas faced by managers and professionals who live alone

This article aims to question the dominant understanding of work–life balance or conflict as primarily a ‘work–family’ issue. It does this by exploring the experiences of managers and professionals who live alone and do not have children – a group of employees traditionally overlooked in work–life policy and research but, significantly, a group on the rise within the working age population. Semi-structured interviews with 36 solo-living managers and professionals were carried out in the UK, spanning a range of occupations. In addition to previously identified work–life issues, four themes emerged that were pressing for and specific to solo-living managers and professionals. These are articulated here as challenges and dilemmas relating to: assumptions about work and non-work time; the legitimacy of their work–life balance; lack of support connected to financial and emotional well-being; and work-based vulnerabilities

WireWall: a new approach to coastal wave hazard monitoring

WireWall will be the first agile in situ system to make field measurements of overtopping on a wave-by-wave basis. Such data will enable site-specific calibration of (i) numerical tools used in sea defence design, (ii) flood forecasting models and (iii) public safety tolerances used by shoreline managers. The new approach transfers existing laboratory and offshore wave monitoring capabilities to the problem of coastal hazard monitoring. The capacitance wire system will collect high frequency field data to quantify wave overtopping velocity and volume. Our approach will replace the use of water collection tanks, which provide very limited information, are cumbersome, and hence rarely deployed. The method will use a coupled modelling-observational-modelling approach. Industry standard overtopping tools will generate a numerical dataset of plausible overtopping conditions at our study site Crosby (NW England). This data will inform the configuration of the wire units to be used in dockside and flume tests prior to the design of the field rig. The newly collected field observations will allow site-specific calibration and validation of the numerical tools, which will then be applied for a range of storm and beach conditions to develop site-specific overtopping safety tolerances and identify overtopping trigger levels for the existing sea wall

Anger problems and posttraumatic stress disorder in male and female National Guard and Reserve Service members

Anger is a common problem among veterans and has been associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This study aimed to improve understanding of how anger and PTSD co-occur by examining gender differences and differences by whether the triggering traumatic event is deployment-related vs. civilian-related in current service members. A representative cohort of Reserve and National Guard service personnel (n = 1293) were interviewed to assess for deployment- or civilian-related traumas, PTSD, and anger. The prevalence of self-reported anger problems was estimated among male (n = 1036) and female (n = 257) service members. Log Poisson regression models with robust standard errors were used to estimate the associations of problems with anger with PTSD and PTSD symptom severity for men and women. Self-reported anger problems were common among male (53.0%) and female (51.3%) service members. Adjusted prevalence ratios (PR) showed associations between anger and PTSD connected to both civilian- and deployment-related traumas (PR were 1.77 (95% CI 1.52–2.05) and 1.85 (95% CI 1.62–2.12), respectively). PTSD symptom severity was also associated with anger. This study was cross-sectional and so a causal relationship between PTSD and anger cannot be established. Problems with anger are common among male and female current Guard and Reserve members. These findings suggest that anger treatment should be made available to current service members and that clinicians should assess anger problems irrespective of gender. Future research should examine the effectiveness of anger treatment protocols by gender

Storytelling in den Vereinten Nationen: Mahbub ul Haq und menschliche Entwicklung

Ausgehend von der Beobachtung, dass Mitarbeiter der Vereinten Nationen eine wichtige Rolle in Prozessen des ideellen Wandels auf internationaler Ebene spielen können, beschäftigt sich dieser Beitrag mit einer bestimmten Form individuellem Einflusses – dem storytelling. Mein Verständnis von storytelling als Einflusstaktik kombiniert dabei kollektive Elemente der soziologischen Praxistheorie mit den reflexiven, akteursbezogenen Überlegungen von Michel de Certeau. Ich analysiere storytelling anhand von drei analytischen Elementen: einem (chronologischen) Plot, einer Reihe von Charakteren und einem interpretativen Thema – die jeweils ihre Wirkung im Zusammenspiel mit der Subjektivität ihres storytellers entfalten. Ich illustriere diese theoretischen Überlegungen mit dem Fall von Mahbub ul Haq, dem es als Sonderberater des United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-Administrators zu Beginn der 1990er Jahre gelungen ist, die Idee der menschlichen Entwicklung im System der Vereinten Nationen und der internationalen Entwicklungspolitik zu etablieren

Rethinking energy, climate and security: a critical analysis of energy security in the US

Understanding the complicated relationship between energy, climate and security is vital both to the study of international relations and to ensure the continued survival of a world increasingly threatened by environmental change. Climate change is largely caused by burning fossil fuels for energy, but while discussions on the climate consider the role of energy, energy security debates largely overlook climate concerns. This article traces the separation between energy and climate through an analysis of US energy security discourse and policy. It shows that energy security is continually constructed as national security, which enables very particular policy choices and prioritises it above climate concerns. Thus, in many cases, policies undertaken in the name of energy security contribute directly to climate insecurity. The article argues that the failure to consider securing the climate as inherently linked to energy security is not just problematic, but, given global warming, potentially harmful. Consequently, any approach to dealing with climate change has to begin by rethinking energy security and security more broadly, as national (energy) security politics no longer provides security in any meaningful sense