The Mediated Qur’an: Religious Education and Recitation via Online Distance Learning in the Sultanate of Oman

This article considers the role of media in relation to memorization and recitation of the Qur’an and modern religious education. Specifically, it considers the example of the online program of distance learning for recitation and memorization of the Qur’an as developed and maintained under the auspices of the Ministry of Endowments and Religious Affairs in the state of Oman in the Arab Gulf region. The online learning program presents an example of how religious education in Oman both has a long history at the same time that it draws on modern media practices. Even further, it does so in the context of the modern regulation of religion in relation to broader concerns of cultivation of Omani national identity and heritage.The system reflects the broader placement and shifting relationships of religion and secularity across modern development of structures of governance and education in Oman

Interpreting how we value parks through photographs from social media : a case study of Zilker Park in Austin, Texas

As social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram have grown and evolved, users of these internet technologies have deposited a wealth of diverse data with the potential to inform research on a wide range of topics. In particular, the sharing of photographs of outdoor spaces through social media platforms provides important opportunities for analysis of meaning and significance, especially in terms of how planned landscapes such as public parks are perceived and socially produced. In this study, I chose to analyze photographs of Zilker Park posted on Instagram and Twitter in order to better understand how users value this important park in Austin, Texas. This report presents the content, quantitative, and qualitative analyses I conducted in order to develop a concise understanding of elements that people value most in Zilker Park. Through my research and methodological exploration, I seek to offer a new tool for public participation in park planning that can augment existing engagement methods.Community and Regional Plannin

Assessing U.S. Veterans\u27 Work Role Functioning: Influences of Posttraumatic Stress, Sense of Coherence, and Vocational Identity

Since beginning military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks that now characterize the Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) combat eras, unique stressors and conditions have faced service members. Advancements in military medicine have resulted in greater survival rates of combat veterans, but have also increased rates of chronic psychological distress (Schnurr, Lunney, Bovin, & Marx, 2009). Research regarding these concerns has increased as these service members are now returning home and re-entering civilian life and many studies show the detrimental effects on psychosocial functioning following combat including employment difficulties. As unemployment among veterans has dropped since the beginning of 2013 (US Department of Labor, 2014), understanding how veterans are functioning in their new civilian work roles is the next step in better understanding their unique experiences of transitions (Strauser, Lustig, Cogdal, & Uruk, 2006). This study assessed the relationship between PTSS and current work role functioning among OIF and OEF veterans including evaluation of the influence of personal variables including reports of sense of coherence and vocational identity. Results of the study found PTSS and sense of coherence to predict work role functioning and PTSS to predict vocational identity in line with hypotheses. Further, sense of coherence was found to mediate the relationship between PTSS and work role functioning in support of hypotheses. Results indicate that sense of coherence does not moderate the relationship between PTSS and work role functioning nor does it moderate the relationship between PTSS and vocational identity. Additionally, vocational identity was not found to moderate the relationship between PTSS and work role functioning. Clinical implications, limitations, and directions for future research are addressed

Evidence for 24-hour posture management: A scoping review

© The Author(s) 2023. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, to view a copy of the license, see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Introduction:: People with complex physical disabilities unable to change their position independently are at risk of developing postural deformities and secondary complications. 24-hour posture management is needed to protect body structure. With inconsistencies in current service provision, this research aimed to scope the evidence for a 24-hour posture management approach. Method:: A scoping review was conducted using four health and social science databases. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied; further papers were included through citation chaining. Results:: The evidence for 24-hour posture management was often low quality due to the complications of completing robust research studies in this complex specialty. However, many professionals in the field agree that a 24-hour approach to postural care is essential. Conclusion:: There is a need for clear national policy and guidance relating to postural care and scope for development of dedicated posture management services. Current NHS service provision is variable and inconsistent. Lack of postural care is a safeguarding and human rights issue. Specialist training and research in postural care within the Occupational Therapy profession is required to raise awareness of the role Occupational Therapists can play in preventing postural deformities and other secondary complications through providing good postural care.Peer reviewe

Graphene derivatives potentiate the activity of antibiotics against Enterococcus faecium, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli

Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is developing at a faster rate than new antibiotics can be discovered. This study investigated the antimicrobial activity of several carbon-based derivative compounds alone and in combination with clinically relevant antibiotics against key ESKAPE pathogens Enterococcus faecium, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli. Three compounds, graphite, graphene and graphene oxide, in conjunction with ciprofloxacin (CIP), chloramphenicol (CHL) and piperacillin/tazobactam (TZP) were examined using fractional inhibitory concentration (FIC) testing. CIP combined with graphene demonstrated additive antimicrobial activity against E. faecium compared to individual application. Furthermore, CIP supplemented with graphene, graphene oxide or graphite showed additive activity with ∑FIC values of 1.0 against K. pneumoniae, whereas only TZP showed ∑FIC value

Assessing health risks from multiple environmental stressors: Moving from G×E to I×E.

Research on disease causation often attempts to isolate the effects of individual factors, including individual genes or environmental factors. This reductionist approach has generated many discoveries, but misses important interactive and cumulative effects that may help explain the broad range of variability in disease occurrence observed across studies and individuals. A disease rarely results from a single factor, and instead results from a broader combination of factors, characterized here as intrinsic (I) and extrinsic (E) factors. Intrinsic vulnerability or resilience emanates from a variety of both fixed and shifting biological factors including genetic traits, while extrinsic factors comprise all biologically-relevant external stressors encountered across the lifespan. The I×E concept incorporates the multi-factorial and dynamic nature of health and disease and provides a unified, conceptual basis for integrating results from multiple areas of research, including genomics, G×E, developmental origins of health and disease, and the exposome. We describe the utility of the I×E concept to better understand and characterize the cumulative impact of multiple extrinsic and intrinsic factors on individual and population health. New research methods increasingly facilitate the measurement of multifactorial and interactive effects in epidemiological and toxicological studies. Tiered or indicator-based approaches can guide the selection of potentially relevant I and E factors for study and quantification, and exposomics methods may eventually produce results that can be used to generate a response function over the life course. Quantitative data on I×E interactive effects should generate a better understanding of the variability in human response to environmental factors. The proposed I×E concept highlights the role for broader study design in order to identify extrinsic and intrinsic factors amenable to interventions at the individual and population levels in order to enhance resilience, reduce vulnerability and improve health

Windscapes shape seabird instantaneous energy costs but adult behavior buffers impact on offspring

Acknowledgements K. Ashbrook, M. Barrueto, K. Elner, A. Hargreaves, S. Jacobs, G. Lancton, M. LeVaillant, E. Grosbellet, A. Moody, A. Ronston, J. Provencher, P. Smith, K. Woo and P. Woodward helped in the field. J. Nakoolak kept us safe from bears. N. Sapir and two anonymous reviewers provided very useful comments on an earlier version of our manuscript. R. Armstrong at the Nunavut Research Institute, M. Mallory at the Canadian Wildlife Service Northern Research Division and C. Eberl at National Wildlife Research Centre in Ottawa provided logistical support. F. Crenner, N. Chatelain and M. Brucker customized the GPS at the IPHC-CNRS. KHE received financial support through a NSERC Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship, ACUNS Garfield Weston Northern Studies scholarship and AINA Jennifer Robinson Scholarship and JFH received NSERC Discovery Grant funding. J. Welcker generously loaned some accelerometers. All procedures were approved under the guidelines of the Canadian Council for Animal Care.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Use of mHealth Technology for Patient-Reported Outcomes in Community-Dwelling Adults with Acquired Brain Injuries: A Scoping Review.

The purpose of our scoping review was to describe the current use of mHealth technology for long-term assessment of patient-reported outcomes in community-dwelling individuals with acquired brain injury (ABI). Following PRISMA guidelines, we conducted a scoping review of literature meeting these criteria: (1) civilians or military veterans, all ages; (2) self-reported or caregiver-reported outcomes assessed via mobile device in the community (not exclusively clinic/hospital); (3) published in English; (4) published in 2015-2019. We searched Ovid MEDLINE(R) \u3c 1946 to 16 August 2019, MEDLINE InProcess, EPub, Embase, and PsycINFO databases for articles. Thirteen manuscripts representing 12 distinct studies were organized by type of ABI [traumatic brain injury (TBI) and stroke] to extract outcomes, mHealth technology used, design, and inclusion of ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Outcomes included post-concussive, depressive, and affective symptoms, fatigue, daily activities, stroke risk factors, and cognitive exertion. Overall, collecting patient-reported outcomes via mHealth was feasible and acceptable in the chronic ABI population. Studies consistently showed advantage for using EMA despite variability in EMA timing/schedules. To ensure best clinical measurement, research on post-ABI outcomes should consider EMA designs (versus single time-point assessments) that provide the best timing schedules for their respective aims and outcomes and that leverage mHealth for data collection

Bringing the homefront to the forefront: UK perspectives on critical research with military spouses

On the 9th of July 2021, the Rethinking Military Spouses: Critical Research Group hosted a webinar titled ‘Bringing the Homefront to the Forefront: UK Perspectives on Critical Research with Military Spouses’. This report provides some information about the event and includes an overview of the main points of discussion