In self defense : black female journalists' advocacy in the Cold War

Field of study: Journalism.Dr. Earnest Perry, Dissertation Supervisor.Includes vita.Introduction : "Colored Women of the United States" -- The Rosa Lee Ingram Case -- The Beginnings of Black Feminism -- Black Radicalism and the Cold War -- The Black Press : Advocacy Media -- Methods : Historical Discourse Analysis -- "Gross Miscarriage of Justice:" The Black Press Covers the Ingram Trial -- "Dignity of Negro Womanhood:" Black Women Advocate for Themselves -- Women From All Walks Of Life -- Conclusion-Understanding Black Women's History -- VITA"May 2018.""Mary Church Terrell, Black female journalist and civil rights activist, stood in front of the United Nations board in Lake Success, New York, on Sept. 21, 1949, to present a brief on Rosa Lee Ingram. Ingram and her two sons had been sentenced in 1948 to life in prison after they were accused of murdering John Stratford, their white neighbor who attacked Ingram after her livestock ventured onto his Georgia property. As a mother of 14 children, Ingram believed she acted in self-defense, but the Southern justice of an all-white jury convicted her. In front of an audience of 75 people, Terrell stated: "Under similar circumstances it is inconceivable that such an unjust sentence would have been imposed upon a white woman and her sons." She went further in noting the role that both race and gender played in the Ingram case." -- IntroductionIncludes bibliographical references

The effect of environmental variables on amphibian breeding phenology

Amphibian breeding phenology has generally been associated with temperature and rainfall, but these variables are not able to explain all of the variation in the timing of amphibian migrations, mating and spawning. This thesis examines some additional, previously under-acknowledged geophysical variables that may affect amphibian breeding phenology: lunar phase and the K-index of geomagnetic activity. A serendipitous observation of a large earthquake during the amphibian breeding season enabled a rare record of animal behaviour prior to an earthquake and led to an investigation into the effect of seismicity on amphibians. Data were collected on breeding migrations at three sites in the UK and Italy for frogs (Rana temporaria) and toads (Bufo bufo). Additional data were collated from published literature. Data on the arrivals of two newt species (Triturus cristatus and Lissotriton helveticus) were also analysed. Lunar phase was found to be important in Rana temporaria and Bufo bufo, with more individuals migrating, in amplexus and spawning around the full moon. Newts' response to the full moon was less clear. A meta-analysis of published data revealed that the effect of the lunar cycle on amphibians may be more prevalent than previously supposed and is species-specific, depending on the unique ecology of each species. The effects of the K- index on amphibian reproduction are unclear because of the low number of days when geomagnetism was high. Five days before a large earthquake in L'Aquila, Italy the majority of toads left the breeding site, only re- appearing when the earthquake was over. Numbers of toads were significantly correlated with days since the earthquake but not with weather variables. Finally I attempted to use the variables of interest (two measures of moon phase, plus the K-index of magnetic activity), along with weather variables to construct statistical models of amphibian breeding phenology and to predict arrivals and spawning / amplexus in single years based on the models. This met with variable success; there was a high variability between years in the ability of the models to predict breeding phenology, which could be due to site-specific factors, unmeasured environmental variables, or an endogenous component to breeding phenology

Public value summary background paper

The Australian Centre of Excellence for Local Government (ACELG) at UTS has published a background paper about understanding and promoting public value creation within Australian local government. The paper provides a definition of public value and public value creation from key literature, and links this with current practice within the sector. The Public Value project is a partnership between the Local Government Business Excellence Network (LGBEN) and ACELG and explores how councils create public value in a broad sense – or ‘the common good’ – and deliver this value specifically through planning and managing and delivering a wide range of services, programs and projects. A final phase of the project will provide examples of public value so frameworks and tools can be developed for councils looking at undertaking continual improvement initiatives

Purpura fulminans due to MSSA Toxic Shock Syndrome

Introduction: Purpurafulminansis a rare and serious complication of anacute infectious process, characterized by large purpuricskin lesions, fever, hypotension, and DIC. The mostcommon infectious cause of purpurafulminansismeningococcal disease, though few case reports in theliterature describe Staph aureusas a causative organism. Case Report: •A 53 year-old woman with a history of heart blocks/ppacemaker placement in 2002 presented to the ED withnausea, vomiting, fevers, chills, diffuse muscle pain and asyncopalepisode. •She was found to have multi-organ dysfunction on labs,including AKI and thrombocytopenia.On hospital day 2, shedeveloped acrocyanosis. She became febrile & hypotensive requiring transfer tothe ICU for vasopressor support. Blood cultures were obtained. She wasstarted on broad-spectrum antibiotictherapy . •Because of the patient’s thrombocytopenia and overall critical illness,the differential diagnosis included TTP, DIC, HUS, drug-induced hemolytic anemia, or a rare disorder calledcatastrophic antiphospholipidantibody syndrome (CAPS). •She was treated empirically for CAPS with plasma exchange,heparin, andsteroids. •Blood cultures were positive for methicillin-sensitive Staphaureus, and antibodies for CAPS were negative. •Antibiotictherapy was narrowed toCefazolin, and her infected pacemaker was extracted. •She required bilateral below-the-knee amputations as well as multiple finger amputations duetonecrosis. •Most likely diagnosis is purpurafulminansfrom MSSA toxicshock syndrome. Discussion: • In acutely ill patients with skin findings described in this case as well as multi-organ dysfunction, there are several life-threatening diagnoses which must be recognized and treated promptly . •Given the 50% risk of mortality even with prompt initiation of therapy for CAPS, we did not delay in starting this patient on plasma exchange . •In purpurafulminans, the clotting cascade is disrupted by bacterial endotoxins and inflammatory cytokines, leading to a procoagulantand anticoagulant state, which in turn leads to intravascular thrombosis and hemorrhagic infarction of the skin . • A report of 5 cases of purpurafulminanscaused by MSSA TSS was published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases in 2005, and the isolated strains of MSSA were noted to produce higher-than-expected levels of endotoxins normally associated with TSS. •Treatment of purpurafulminansfrom MSSA TSS is antibiotic therapy. •It remains a rare and serious complication of acute infection which providers should keep on their differential of life-threatening illnesses associated with thrombocytopenia and purpuricskin lesions.https://digitalcommons.psjhealth.org/psv_internal/1005/thumbnail.jp

Solving the woolly mammoth conundrum: amino acid 15N-enrichment suggests a distinct forage or habitat

Understanding woolly mammoth ecology is key to understanding Pleistocene community dynamics and evaluating the roles of human hunting and climate change in late Quaternary megafaunal extinctions. Previous isotopic studies of mammoths’ diet and physiology have been hampered by the ‘mammoth conundrum’: woolly mammoths have anomalously high collagen δ15N values, which are more similar to coeval carnivores than herbivores and which could imply a distinct diet and (or) habitat, or a physiological adaptation. We analyzed individual amino acids from collagen of adult woolly mammoths and coeval species and discovered greater  15N enrichment in source amino acids of woolly mammoths than in most other herbivores or carnivores. Woolly mammoths consumed an isotopically distinct food source, reflective of extreme aridity, dung fertilization and (or) plant selection. This dietary signal suggests that woolly mammoths occupied a distinct habitat or forage niche relative to other Pleistocene herbivores

Identifying features predictive of faculty integrating computation into physics courses

Computation is a central aspect of 21st century physics practice; it is used to model complicated systems, to simulate impossible experiments, and to analyze mountains of data. Physics departments and their faculty are increasingly recognizing the importance of teaching computation to their students. We recently completed a national survey of faculty in physics departments to understand the state of computational instruction and the factors that underlie that instruction. The data collected from the faculty responding to the survey included a variety of scales, binary questions, and numerical responses. We then used Random Forest, a supervised learning technique, to explore the factors that are most predictive of whether a faculty member decides to include computation in their physics courses. We find that experience using computation with students in their research, or lack thereof and various personal beliefs to be most predictive of a faculty member having experience teaching computation. Interestingly, we find demographic and departmental factors to be less useful factors in our model. The results of this study inform future efforts to promote greater integration of computation into the physics curriculum as well as comment on the current state of computational instruction across the United States