A Philadelphia Story: Building Civic Capacity for School Reform in a Privatizing System

Following the 2001 state takeover of the School District of Philadelphia, a new governance structure was established and an ambitious set of reforms went into effect, generating renewed public confidence in the district. Despite this, maintaining reform momentum continues to be difficult in Philadelphia. This can be traced to on-going challenges to civic capacity around education. Defined by Stone et al (2001), civic capacity involves collaboration and mobilization of the city's civic and community sectors to pursue the collective good of educational improvement. Using interviews conducted with over 65 local civic actors and district administrators, and case studies of local organizations involved with education, the authors examine civic capacity in the context of Philadelphia. The authors find that while many individuals and organizations are actively involved with the schools, there are several factors that present unique challenges to the development of civic capacity in Philadelphia. Despite these challenges, the authors conclude that there are many reasons to be optimistic and offer several recommendations for generating civic capacity -- the kind that creates and sustains genuine educational change

Connections between propulsive efficiency and wake structure via modal decomposition

We present experiments on oscillating hydrofoils undergoing combined heaving and pitching motions, paying particular attention to connections between propulsive efficiency and coherent wake features extracted using modal analysis. Time-averaged forces and particle image velocimetry (PIV) measurements of the flow field downstream of the foil are presented for a Reynolds number of Re=11$\times$10$^3$ and Strouhal numbers in the range St=0.16-0.35. These conditions produce 2S and 2P wake patterns, as well as a near-momentumless wake structure. A triple decomposition using the optimized dynamic mode decomposition (opt-DMD) method is employed to identify dominant modal components (or coherent structures) in the wake. These structures can be connected to wake instabilities predicted using spatial stability analyses. Examining the modal components of the wake provides insightful explanations into the transition from drag to thrust production, and conditions that lead to peak propulsive efficiency. In particular, we find modes that correspond to the primary vortex development in the wakes. Other modal components capture elements of bluff body shedding at Strouhal numbers below the optimum for peak propulsive efficiency and characteristics of separation for Strouhal numbers higher than the optimum.Comment: 28 pages, 14 figure

Influence of statin use on clinicopathological characteristics of localized prostate cancer and outcomes obtained after radical prostatectomy: a single center study

To assess the impact of statin use on biochemical recurrence (BCR) of prostate cancer after radical prostatectomy (RP)

Welcome Wednesday Event Blurb for the Website ‏ 2009

Welcome Wednesday Event Blurb for the Website 2009; Welcome Wednesday: Trans itioning into College; The change from high school to college can be a difficult one for any person and there can be added stress for members of the Transgender community. As Transgender Day of Remembrance approaches on November 20th, this Welcome Wednesday discussion will address issues of invisibility, healthcare, housing, as well as others that the Transgender community faces in college; more specifically, at URI. Representatives of Rhode Island\u27s Transgender Community will be able to shed light on some issues, answer questions, and share some experiences.; *PLEASE NOTE A CHANGE IN TIME* Due to the Student Movement Against Hate Crimes at URI Protest taking place in the Quad between 12 and 12:15pm, the starting time for this session is 1pm in the GLBT Center. It is important that anyone able to attend the protest does, as hate crimes on campus have increased.; Joe Santiago and URI; Joseph A Santiago AND URI; Andrew Winters; Morgan Cottrell; Eva Jone

Variation in Mating Dynamics across Five Species of Leiobunine Harvestmen (Arachnida: Opliones)

The study of mating choices often focuses on correlates of traits to the overall outcome of a mating interaction. However, mating interactions can proceed through a series of stages, with opportunities for assessment at each stage. We compared whether male or female size predicted mating interaction outcome across several stages of mating in five species of North American leiobunine harvestmen (commonly known as daddy longlegs). Leiobunine harvestmen have been previously shown to exhibit incredible morphological diversity consistent with a spectrum of male–female antagonism. Across all of the species, we found a general progression of female size predicting the outcome (success and timing) of early stages of interactions, and male size or male size relative to female size predicting the outcome and timing of later stages of interactions. We also found that size was not a strong predictor of outcome in the two species on the lower end of the antagonism spectrum. The variation in how female and male size predicted outcomes across species and stages of mating suggests that multiple mechanisms may operate to shape mating dynamics within and across species. Given the close relatedness of the species studied, the patterns we uncovered suggest a rapid evolution of the traits and processes predicting the outcome of mating interactions

Cascades of multisite phosphorylation control Sic1 destruction at the onset of S phase.

Multisite phosphorylation of proteins has been proposed to transform a graded protein kinase signal into an ultrasensitive switch-like response. Although many multiphosphorylated targets have been identified, the dynamics and sequence of individual phosphorylation events within the multisite phosphorylation process have never been thoroughly studied. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, the initiation of S phase is thought to be governed by complexes of Cdk1 and Cln cyclins that phosphorylate six or more sites on the Clb5-Cdk1 inhibitor Sic1, directing it to SCF-mediated destruction. The resulting Sic1-free Clb5-Cdk1 complex triggers S phase. Here, we demonstrate that Sic1 destruction depends on a more complex process in which both Cln2-Cdk1 and Clb5-Cdk1 act in processive multiphosphorylation cascades leading to the phosphorylation of a small number of specific phosphodegrons. The routes of these phosphorylation cascades are shaped by precisely oriented docking interactions mediated by cyclin-specific docking motifs in Sic1 and by Cks1, the phospho-adaptor subunit of Cdk1. Our results indicate that Clb5-Cdk1-dependent phosphorylation generates positive feedback that is required for switch-like Sic1 destruction. Our evidence for a docking network within clusters of phosphorylation sites uncovers a new level of complexity in Cdk1-dependent regulation of cell cycle transitions, and has general implications for the regulation of cellular processes by multisite phosphorylation

Getting back to fire suméŝ: exploring a multi-disciplinary approach to incorporating traditional knowledge into fuels treatments

Background: Evaluating fuel treatment effectiveness is challenging when managing a landscape for diverse ecological, social, and economic values. We used a Participatory Geographic Information System (PGIS) to understand Confederated Colville Tribal (CCT) member views regarding the location and effectiveness of fuel treatments within their ancestral territory within the Colville National Forest (CNF) boundary. The 2015 North Star Fire burned 88 221 ha (218 000 acres) of the CCT ancestral territory. Results: We sampled thirty plot pairs that were treated or untreated prior to being burned by the North Star Fire and again one growing season post fire. Species diversity was significantly increased by wildfire in both treated and untreated plots. Species richness was significantly increased in the plots that were treated, and there was no significant change in species richness from wildfire within the untreated plots. The percent canopy cover of two of the six culturally important plants (Fragaria spp. L. and Arnica cordifolia Hook.) significantly increased one growing season post wildfire within treated plots and one (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi [L.] Spreng.) significantly decreased in the treated plots post wildfire. These post-fire monitoring results were consistent with CCT member management recommendations and desired outcomes of understory thinning, prescribed fire, and natural ignition found using PGIS. Conclusions: Together, the results suggest that prior thinning and prescribed burning can foster vegetation response to subsequent wildfires, including culturally important plants. Further, integrating Traditional Knowledge (TK) into fuels treatments can improve ongoing adaptive management of national forests that include tribal ancestral lands.Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Program; USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Region's Ecology Program; University of Idaho; International Association of Wildland Fire; Colville National Forest; Rocky Mountain Research StationOpen access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Promoting Healthy Behaviour Choices: Understanding Patient Challenges by Undertaking a Personal Behaviour Change Task

INTRODUCTION: Unhealthy behaviours such as poor diet, smoking and physical inactivity contribute significantly to chronic disease. Our first year medical school project aims to increase student awareness of: the importance of these behaviours and their systematic measurement; recommended behaviour targets in health professional guidelines; challenges in achieving patient behaviour change; and psychological theories which aid behaviour change. METHODS: Students are provided with evidence-based health behaviour guidelines for prevention of heart disease. Students select whichever behaviour they would personally like to achieve improvement in, systematically record behaviour for one week (baseline), and then try to implement (healthy) behaviour change for the next two weeks, using psychological theory as an aide. Students report their results and discuss outcomes reflecting on explanations for the success or otherwise of their behaviour attempts. A virtual learning environment (Moodle) ensures project engagement and completion during the relevant timeframes. RESULTS: This assignment has been successfully completed by students over previous academic years. The use of deadlines for uploading sections of coursework to Moodle (e.g. baseline data) has increased the quality and completeness of the projects. Students learn to use standard instruments such as the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence and also learn recommended professional guidelines on diet and physical activity at an early point in a medical training. Also, self-reported health behaviours improved over the course of the assignment. CONCLUSIONS: This project allows students to test the difficulty of adhering to professional advice they themselves will give to future patients. The assignment combines knowledge (e.g. education on chronic conditions, on the role of behaviour change and on professional guidelines), skills (e.g. documenting behaviours, planning and implementing change) and attitudes (e.g. on understanding the difficulties encountered by individuals when making and sustaining recommended behaviour change). The novel use of a virtual learning environment ensures high participation

PRECEPT: an evidence assessment framework for infectious disease epidemiology, prevention and control

Decisions in public health should be based on the best available evidence, reviewed and appraised using a rigorous and transparent methodology. The Project on a Framework for Rating Evidence in Public Health (PRECEPT) defined a methodology for evaluating and grading evidence in infectious disease epidemiology, prevention and control that takes different domains and question types into consideration. The methodology rates evidence in four domains: disease burden, risk factors, diagnostics and intervention. The framework guiding it has four steps going from overarching questions to an evidence statement. In step 1, approaches for identifying relevant key areas and developing specific questions to guide systematic evidence searches are described. In step 2, methodological guidance for conducting systematic reviews is provided; 15 study quality appraisal tools are proposed and an algorithm is given for matching a given study design with a tool. In step 3, a standardised evidence-grading scheme using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation Working Group (GRADE) methodology is provided, whereby findings are documented in evidence profiles. Step 4 consists of preparing a narrative evidence summary. Users of this framework should be able to evaluate and grade scientific evidence from the four domains in a transparent and reproducible way.Funding Agencies|European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) [2012/040, 2014/008]</p

Mapping the scope of occupational therapy practice in palliative care: A European Association for Palliative Care crosssectional survey

© The Author(s) 2018 CC-BY-NCBackground: Occupational therapists play an integral role in the care of people with life-limiting illnesses. However, little is known about the scope of occupational therapy service provision in palliative care across Europe and factors influencing service delivery. Aim: This study aimed to map the scope of occupational therapy palliative care interventions across Europe and to explore occupational therapists’ perceptions of opportunities and challenges when delivering and developing palliative care services. Design: A 49-item online cross-sectional survey comprised of fixed and free text responses was securely hosted via the European Association for Palliative Care website. Survey design, content and recruitment processes were reviewed and formally approved by the European Association for Palliative Care Board of Directors. Descriptive statistics and thematic analysis were used to analyse data. Setting/respondents: Respondents were European occupational therapists whose caseload included palliative care recipients (full-time or part-time). Results: In total, 237 valid responses were analysed. Findings demonstrated a consistency in occupational therapy practice in palliative care between European countries. Clinician time was prioritised towards indirect patient care, with limited involvement in service development, leadership and research. A need for undergraduate and postgraduate education was identified. Organisational expectations and understanding of the scope of the occupational therapy role constrain the delivery of services to support patients and carers. Conclusion: Further development of occupational therapy in palliative care, particularly capacity building in leadership and research activities, is warranted. There is a need for continuing education and awareness raising of the role of occupational therapy in palliative care