Changing Stakeholder Needs and Changing Evaluator Roles: The Central Valley Partnership of the James Irvine Foundation

This case study describes the evolution of the evaluator's role as the program evolved and developed, and as the needs of the client and intended users changed over time. The initiative aimed to assist immigrants in California's Central Valley. The case illustrates important tensions among accountability, learning and capacity building purposes of evaluation

Storyville: A Study of Artifacts

Operating from 1897 to 1917, sixteen blocks from the French Quarter district of New Orleans, Louisiana, several buildings were created to establish a legal red light district known as “Storyville.” The area was named after its creator, Alderman Sidney Story, who enacted the applicable ordinances and helped to establish the district. The creation of Storyville was meant to bring regulation to the sex trade and organized crime. The creation of the sixteen blocks of the district was influenced by a diverse range of experiences, ranging from cheap cribs, vibrant music halls, saloons, and lavish mansions filled with top dollar ladies. The Storyville district is estimated to have boasted approximately 230 brothels and nearly 2,000 sex workers during the height of its popularity. The district was not only known for its sex work, however. In addition, it was also well-known for the solid feminist entrepreneurship seen from the women who ran the high-end brothels, such as LuLu White and Josie Arlington. In fact, there are historians who argue that Storyville allowed for some of the first entrepreneurial women in New Orleans at a time when there were no other options. Storyville is also considered groundbreaking for a vibrant music scene that allowed musicians, such as Jelly Roll Morton, to gain popularity (Permenter, 2021). However, after Storyville was abolished in 1917, New Orleans started slowly removing all buildings and disguising the fact that the district ever existed. While Storyville operated, the brothels would produce promotional postcards, guidebooks, and cameos of the girls. But, over the decades, many of these items have been considered lost or destroyed; most exist in few dedicated archives. This leads to the notion of Storyville’s mystique. But, if you are walking around the city, you will not find any standing buildings and very little information about its history. Further, some people that grew up in New Orleans do not even know the area ever existed, which leads more to its lore (Permenter, 2021). The study examines the artifacts available in The Historic New Orleans Collection Archives about The Storyville District, the city of New Orleans’ red-light district during a period ranging from 1897 to 1917

Embedding Peer Support as a Core Learning Skill in Higher Education

Abstract Information, digital and academic literacy skills are more important than ever as the nature of global information streams becomes more complex and increasingly online. New methods are needed to ensure that students are taught to identify, use and critically evaluate this complex information myriad during their education and in their future careers. Peer assisted learning is one method that has been shown to help, and previous research in the field of peer support has indicated that the interaction between students at different levels enhances a first-year student’s successful transition into higher education (HE). In 2016, a peer support scheme was introduced at the Technological University Dublin (ITT Dublin) as collaboration between the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the library. Initial evaluation of the programme showed that some students respond positively to the inclusion of peer support within an academic module. We also found that peer tutors have a critical role in the support of a first-year student’s learning and their transition into higher education. They act as role models and guides and can help students form the essential linkages between the different resources they will need to be successful in higher education and beyond. An attractive social strand to the programme can act as a critical motivator for students. Further research is needed to identify the essential elements required

The impact of operative approach on outcome of surgery for gastro-oesophageal tumours

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The choice of operation for tumours at or around the gastro-oesophageal junction remains controversial with little evidence to support one technique over another. This study examines the prevalence of margin involvement and nodal disease and their impact on outcome following three surgical approaches (Ivor Lewis, transhiatal and left thoraco-laparotomy) for these tumours.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A retrospective analysis was conducted of patients undergoing surgery for distal oesophageal and gastro-oesophageal junction tumours by a single surgeon over ten years. Comparisons were undertaken in terms of tumour clearance, nodal yield, postoperative morbidity, mortality, and median survival. All patients were followed up until death or the end of the data collection (mean follow up 33.2 months).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 104 patients were operated on of which 102 underwent resection (98%). Median age was 64.1 yrs (range 32.1–79.4) with 77 males and 25 females. Procedures included 29 Ivor Lewis, 31 transhiatal and 42 left-thoraco-laparotomies. Postoperative mortality was 2.9% and median survival 23 months. Margin involvement was 24.1% (two distal, one proximal and 17 circumferential margins). Operative approach had no significant effect on nodal clearance, margin involvement, postoperative mortality or morbidity and survival. Lymph node positive disease had a significantly worse median survival of 15.8 months compared to 39.7 months for node negative (<it>p </it>= 0.007), irrespective of approach.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Surgical approach had no effect on postoperative mortality, circumferential tumour, nodal clearance or survival. This suggests that the choice of operative approach for tumours at the gastro-oesophageal junction may be based on the individual patient and tumour location rather than surgical dogma.</p

Coping with kidney disease – qualitative findings from the Empowering Patients on Choices for Renal Replacement Therapy (EPOCH-RRT) study

Abstract Background The highly burdensome effects of kidney failure and its management impose many life-altering changes on patients. Better understanding of successful coping strategies will inform patients and help health care providers support patients’ needs as they navigate these changes together. Methods A qualitative, cross-sectional study involving semi-structured telephone interviews including open- and closed-ended questions, with 179 U.S. patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), either not yet on dialysis ([CKD-ND], n = 65), or on dialysis (hemodialysis [HD], n = 76; or peritoneal dialysis [PD], n = 38) recruited through social media and in-person contacts from June to December 2013. Themes identified through content analysis of interview transcripts were classified based on the Coping Strategies Index (CSI) and compared across groups by demographics, treatment modality, and health status. Results Overall, more engagement than disengagement strategies were observed. “Take care of myself and follow doctors’ orders,” “accept it,” and “rely on family and friends” were the common coping themes. Participants often used multiple coping strategies. Various factors such as treatment modality, time since diagnosis, presence of other chronic comorbidities, and self-perceived limitations contributed to types of coping strategies used by CKD patients. Conclusions The simultaneous use of coping strategies that span different categories within each of the CSI subscales by CKD patients reflects the complex and reactive response to the variable demands of the disease and its treatment options on their lives. Learning from the lived experience of others could empower patients to more frequently use positive coping strategies depending on their personal context as well as the stage of the disease and associated stressors. Moreover, this understanding can improve the support provided by health care systems and providers to patients to better deal with the many challenges they face in living with kidney disease.https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136225/1/12882_2017_Article_542.pd

A unique Mycobacterium species isolated from an epizootic of striped bass (Morone saxatilis)

We isolated a Mycobacterium sp. resembling Mycobacterium marinum and M. ulcerans from diseased striped bass (Morone saxatilis) during an epizootic of mycobacteriosis in the Chesapeake Bay. This isolate may represent an undescribed Mycobacterium species, based on phenotypic characteristics and comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence

Center Director's Discretionary Fund 2005 Annual Report

The FY 2005 CDDF projects were selected from the following spaceport and range technology and science areas: fluid system technologies; spaceport structures and materials; command, control, and monitoring technologies; and biological sciences (including support for environmental stewardship). The FY 2005 CDDF research projects involved development of the following: a) Capacitance-based moisture sensors to optimize plant growth in reduced gravity; b) Commodity-free calibration methods; c) Application of atmospheric plasma glow discharge to alter the surface properties of polymers for improved electrostatic dissipation characteristics; d) A wipe-on, wipe-off chemical process to remove lead oxides found in paint; e) A robust metabolite profiling platform for better understanding the "law" of biological regulation; f) An explanation of the excavation processes that occur when a jet of gas impinges on a bed of sand; g) "Smart coatings" to detect and control corrosion at an early stage to prevent further corrosion h) A model that can produce a reliable diagnosis of the quality of a software product; i) The formulation of advanced materials to meet system safety needs to minimize electrostatic charges, flammability, and radiation exposure; j) A lab-based instrument that uses the electro-optic Pockels effect to make static electric fields visible; k) A passive volatile organic compound (VOC) cartridge to filter, identify, and quantify VOCs flowing into or emanating from plant flight experiments