Preacher-as-witness : the homiletical approach of E. Stanley Jones

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/1271/thumbnail.jp

Divergent ESG-ratings and their impact on corporate financial performance evidence from Europe

In recent years, stakeholders' interests in companies' socially and responsible behavior have increased significantly. The evolving focus on sustainability within the business has led to several companies implementing ESG aspects as part of their business strategy, resulting in the emergence of ESG-rating agencies. However, evaluating a company's ESG performance is not a standardized approach as each ESG-rating provider has its distinct methodology and framework. Building on the divergence between these rating agencies, this paper aims to investigate if selecting one ESG-rater versus another can impact the results and conclusions obtained in empirical analysis. To do so, this thesis examines whether and how environmental, social, and governance ratings from different ESG-rating agencies influence companies' financial performance, using a sample of STOXX Europe 600 listed companies. Based on correlation and regression analysis, this research finds support for a positive and statistically significant relationship between ESG-score and financial performance for European listed firms. This conclusion holds regardless of Refinitiv Eikon, Bloomberg, or S&P Global being the rating provider. However, the results reveal that the strength of the relationship between ESG performance and financial performance differs slightly between the providers. Moreover, the difference in the strength of influence is minimal, signifying that the results and conclusions drawn in the analysis are not significantly dependent on the chosen ESG-rating provider.Nos anos recentes, o interesse dos stakeholders relativamente aos comportamentos socialmente responsáveis das empresas aumentou significativamente. O referido acréscimo do foco no business sustentability tem levado a que várias empresas incorporem fatores ESG nas suas estratégias de negócio. O renovado interesse levou à emergência das agências de rating ESG. Contudo, a avaliação da performance ESG de uma empresa não está padronizada dado que cada agência de rating ESG utiliza metodologias e estruturas diferentes. Dada a divergência de abordagens entre agências, este estudo tem como propósito investigar caso a seleção de uma particular agência de rating ESG poderá ter impacto nos resultados e conclusões resultantes de uma análise empírica. Esta tese examina se, e de que forma, os ratings atribuídos pelas diferentes agências de rating ESG a fatores ambientais, sociais e de governação influenciam a performance financeira de uma empresa. A análise foi realizada utilizando uma amostra de ações cotadas do Índex STOXX Europe 600. Através de análise de correlações e de regressões lineares, este estudo encontra uma relação positiva estatisticamente significante entre a pontuação ESG e a performance financeira. Independentemente da seleção da agência - Refinitiv Eikon, Bloomberg ou S&P Global - esta descoberta é observável. Os resultados do estudo revelam, também, que a correlação entre a pontuação ESG e performance financeira de uma dada empresa difere ligeiramente entre agências. No entanto, as diferenças nos valores são residuais e, como tal, os resultados e inferências derivadas da análise não são dependentes da seleção de uma particular agência de rating ESG

“I believe anyone can learn anything, you just learn in different ways” – Claimed by Anne Marthe A qualitative study about pupils with ADHD and their experiences in school

Mastergradsoppgave i tilpasset opplæring, Høgskolen i Innlandet, 2020.Norsk: I den norske skolen har man som lærer forskrifter, lover og læreplaner og forholde seg til. Opplæringsloven tar for seg blant annet elevens rettigheter om tilpasset opplæring (§1-3) og elevens rett til spesialundervisning når den ikke får tilfredsstillende utbytte av den ordinære opplæringen (§5-1). Med en skole med et vidt spekter av mangfold kommer også ulike forutsetninger og behov, noe som stiller en rekke krav og forventninger til læreren. Formålet for oppgaven er å belyse hvilke erfaringer og opplevelser informanter med diagnostisert ADHD har fra sin skolegang. Informantene ser tilbake på sin skolegang i voksen alder og reflekterer rundt dette. ADHD kjennetegnes ved hyperaktivitet, oppmerksomhetsforstyrrelser og impulsivitet, og elever med ADHD har ofte vansker for å holde konsentrasjonen over lang tid. Samtidig kommer det fram både i intervjuene at dette kan skyldes undervisningsmetodene. Isak og Anne Marthe fikk begge påvist diagnosen ADHD i barneskolen, mens Sara ikke fikk diagnosen før i voksen alder. Problemstillingen i min masteroppgave er som følger: «Hvilke erfaringer og opplevelser har elever med ADHD fra egen skolegang?». For å få svar på problemstillingen har jeg benyttet en kvalitativ tilnærming med semistrukturert intervju som metode. Jeg har valgt å intervjue tre voksne som er ferdig med grunnskolen fordi disse kan reflektere i et retroperspektiv og bidra til å belyse problemstillingen tydligere. Resultatene viser flere faktorer som kan relateres til elevenes erfaringer og opplevelser i grunnskolen. Relasjoner, anerkjennelse, medvirkning, tilhørighet og atferdsvansker er det som er gjentagende temaer hos informantene. I tillegg viser intervjuene med informantene verdien av å lytte, anerkjenne og hele tiden jobbe med relasjoner. Oppgaven forteller oss at uten en god relasjon mellom lærer og elev er det ikke hensiktsmessig å drive med kartleggingsprøver og testing, da relasjoner er en så avgjørende faktor for læring og utvikling.English: In the Norwegian school system there are a number of laws, regulations, regulations, and a curriculum to adhere to. The Education Act (opplæringsloven) provides the pupils rights to adapted education (§1-3), and the right to special education when the pupil doesn´t achieve satisfactory learning outcomes from ordinary teaching (§5-1). A school full of diversity comes with different preconditions and needs. This places a number of expetations and demands on the teacher. The purpose of this thesis is to shed light on the school experiences of prior pupils have from their schooling. The informants are asked to look back on their school experiences and reflect on them. ADHD is an abbreviation for Attention deficit, hyper-activity disorder, and pupils with ADHD often find it difficult to stay focused for longer periods of time. It appears in the interviews that this may be due to teaching methods. Isak and Anne Marthe were both diagnosed with ADHD in primary school, while Sara was not diagnosed until she became an adult. The issue I wish to focus on: “What kind of experiences do pupils with ADHD have from their own schooling?” The method I have used is a qualitative research approach consisting of semi-structured interviews with three adults that have finished primary school. The results show several factors related to the pupils´ experiences in primary school. Relations between pupil and teacher, and pupil and pupil, recognition, involvement, a sence of belonging, and behavioral difficulties are themes related to all informants. In addition, the interviews show the value of listening, recognizing and constantly working with relations to the pupils. The results tell us that the relationship is a crutial factor for learning and development, and it is not expedient to cunduct tests without an established a positive relationship

Utfordrende adferd ved demenssykdom, hvordan forstå og hjelpe?

Studentarbeid i sykepleie (bachelorgrad) - Universitetet i Nordland, 201

Osteoclast-Like Giant Cell Carcinoma of the Distal Ureter

Extraskeletal osteoclast-like giant cell (OGC) tumors are uncommon and have mainly been found in the breast and pancreas. OGC neoplasms of the urinary tract are extremely rare. Most cases found in the renal pelvis and bladder are associated with either an in situ urothelial malignancy or a conventional high-grade urothelial carcinoma. These malignancies tend to be associated with a poor prognosis and disease course. To our knowledge, no cases of OGC tumors of the distal ureter only have been published. Here, we present the case of a 76-year-old man who underwent hand-assisted laparoscopic nephroureterectomy because of painless gross hematuria with right flank pain. Pathologic examination showed OGC carcinoma of the right distal ureter. No local tumor recurrence or distant metastasis was found at the 5-month follow-up

Systemic sclerosis is associated with specific alterations in gastrointestinal microbiota in two independent cohorts.

ObjectiveTo compare faecal microbial composition in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) from 2 independent cohorts with controls and to determine whether certain genera are associated with SSc-gastrointestinal tract (GIT) symptoms.DesignAdult patients with SSc from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Oslo University Hospital (OUH) and healthy controls participated in this study (1:1:1). All participants provided stool specimens for 16S rRNA sequencing. Linear discriminant analysis effect size demonstrated genera with differential expression in SSc. Differential expression analysis for sequence count data identified specific genera associated with GIT symptoms as assessed by the GIT 2.0 questionnaire.ResultsThe UCLA-SSc and OUH-SSc cohorts were similar in age (52.1 and 60.5 years, respectively), disease duration (median (IQR): 6.6 (2.5-16.4) and 7.0 (1.0-19.2) years, respectively), gender distribution (88% and 71%, respectively), and GIT symptoms (mean (SD) total GIT 2.0 scores of 0.7 (0.6) and 0.6 (0.5), respectively). Principal coordinate analysis illustrated significant microbial community differences between SSc and controls (UCLA: p=0.001; OUH: p=0.002). Patients with SSc had significantly lower levels of commensal genera deemed to protect against inflammation, such as Bacteroides (UCLA and OUH), Faecalibacterium (UCLA), Clostridium (OUH); and significantly higher levels of pathobiont genera, such as Fusobacterium (UCLA), compared with controls. Increased abundance of Clostridium was associated with less severe GIT symptoms in both cohorts.ConclusionsThe present analysis detected specific aberrations in the lower GIT microbiota of patients with SSc from 2 geographically and ethnically distinct cohorts. These findings suggest that GIT dysbiosis may be a pathological feature of the SSc disease state

The Molecular Basis for Oat Intolerance in Patients with Celiac Disease

BACKGROUND: Celiac disease is a small intestinal inflammatory disorder characterized by malabsorption, nutrient deficiency, and a range of clinical manifestations. It is caused by an inappropriate immune response to dietary gluten and is treated with a gluten-free diet. Recent feeding studies have indicated oats to be safe for celiac disease patients, and oats are now often included in the celiac disease diet. This study aimed to investigate whether oat intolerance exists in celiac disease and to characterize the cells and processes underlying this intolerance. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We selected for study nine adults with celiac disease who had a history of oats exposure. Four of the patients had clinical symptoms on an oats-containing diet, and three of these four patients had intestinal inflammation typical of celiac disease at the time of oats exposure. We established oats-avenin-specific and -reactive intestinal T-cell lines from these three patients, as well as from two other patients who appeared to tolerate oats. The avenin-reactive T-cell lines recognized avenin peptides in the context of HLA-DQ2. These peptides have sequences rich in proline and glutamine residues closely resembling wheat gluten epitopes. Deamidation (glutamine→glutamic acid conversion) by tissue transglutaminase was involved in the avenin epitope formation. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that some celiac disease patients have avenin-reactive mucosal T-cells that can cause mucosal inflammation. Oat intolerance may be a reason for villous atrophy and inflammation in patients with celiac disease who are eating oats but otherwise are adhering to a strict gluten-free diet. Clinical follow-up of celiac disease patients eating oats is advisable