Gendered priorities for ‘improved’ sanitation: insights from Kisumu Kenya

This paper explores how official concepts of ‘improved’ sanitation often fail to reflect the priorities of female users. As the health benefits associated with improved sanitation cannot be fully realised until all potential user groups habitually utilize it, specific user preferences/constraints need to be better understood and catered for. Drawing on empirical work in nine schools in Kisumu, Kenya, attention is focused on gendered sanitation priorities including menstrual hygiene management, gender-based violence and broader safety, privacy and dignity issues associated with accessing and using sanitation facilities

Understanding the current travel patterns and use of technologies in family households

The purpose of the research is to understand the current travel attitudes and habits of families, and also to understand the current usage patterns of technologies in families. The study aimed to identify where opportunities exist for digital technologies to influence travel attitudes and habits in families. In order to conduct research into the role that technologies could have in this setting, the context of use needed to be fully understood. Therefore an exploratory approach was taken. A greater understanding of the daily travel patterns of family units and how they interact with technologies on a daily basis was achieved. The study used a mixed methods approach to capture and explore travel behaviours and use of technologies in 13 family households. A questionnaire was given to households to gather data on demographic variables of the family that might affect their travel behaviour. A diary study captured patterns in household travel and in how and when family members use technologies in their everyday lives. Interviews were carried out to increase understanding of their motivations and explanations for why they chose certain modes of transport and the reasons behind their uses of technology. The household types associated with high car usage were households with two or more cars and households with an older child (10+ years old) living in the house. The adults in households with an older child also took more single occupancy car trips. Several one car households, who travelled by active modes of transport regularly on working days/weekdays, took a higher proportion of weekend trips by car. A smartphone was the technology used most often before a journey. The conclusions of the study should help to guide the development of an intervention delivered using digital technologies that aims to influence the travel behaviour of family groups

Azithromycin Use in Upper Respiratory Infection

Antibiotic resistance is a problem that is growing worldwide. Misuse and overprescribing of antibiotics leads to a rise in pathogens that are resistant to the conventional drugs prescribed, causing increases in morbidity and mortality rates. Antibiotic resistance occurs when microbes still survive despite the presence of an antibiotic. The remaining microbes grow in strength and multiply until there is a population that are now resistant to treatment. One such treatment is azithromycin, an antibiotic often prescribed for upper respiratory tract infections (URI). A URI is any infection of the respiratory tract from the nasal cavities to the larynx that can have symptoms ranging from acute to severe and life-threatening. Although URIs are caused by either a viral or bacterial pathogens, antibiotics are not effective for viral infections. The current treatment guidelines for URIs do not recommend an initial antibiotic prescription, but encourage delayed antibiotic prescribing techniques in which the practitioner waits 48 to 72 hours before prescribing an antibiotic. However, these guidelines are not consistently followed. To determine the rate of azithromycin prescribing, this study will collect data from three different Federally Qualified Health Centers. These rates will then be compared with the number of articles available in the PubMed database on the topic of antibiotic resistance, to determine whether the current literature available on antibiotic prescribing has an effect in decreasing the misuse of antibiotics. Results from this study will be used to enhance clinical performance. Our data can add to already existing campaigns within pharmacy, as well as promote pharmacists’ responsibilities in patient care involvement and counseling for antibiotics. If there is no correlation found between antibiotic prescribing and education campaigns, this may be grounds for additional research to determine an alternate education methods to promote antibiotic stewardship

Describing the relationships among meat quality traits in domestic turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) populations.

The presence of meat quality defects is increasing in the turkey industry. While the main strategy for mitigating these issues is through improved housing, management, and slaughter conditions, it may be possible to incorporate meat quality into a turkey breeding strategy with the intent to improve meat quality. Before this can occur, it is important to describe the current state of turkey meat quality as well as the correlations among the different meat quality traits and important production traits. The main objective of the present study was to provide a descriptive analysis of 8 different meat quality traits for turkey breast meat from 3 different purebred lines (A, B, and C), and their correlation with a selection of production traits. Using a total of 7,781 images, the breast meat (N = 590-3,892 birds depending on trait) was evaluated at 24 h postmortem for color (L*, a*, b*), pH, and physiochemical characteristics (drip loss, cooking loss, shear force). Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and Pearson correlations were computed to describe the relationships among traits within each genetic line. A one-factor ANOVA and post hoc t-test were conducted for each trait and between each of the genetic lines. We found significant differences between genetic lines for some color traits (L* and a*), pHinitial, drip loss, and cooking loss. The lightest line in weight (line B) had meat that was the lightest (L*) in color. The heaviest line (line C) had meat that was less red (a*) with a higher pHinitial and greater cooking loss. Unfavorable correlations between production traits and meat quality were also found for each of the genetic lines where increases in production (e.g., body weight, growth rate) resulted in meat that was lighter and redder in color and in some cases (line B and C), with an increased moisture loss. The results of this study provide an important benchmark for turkey meat quality in purebred lines and provide an updated account of the relationships between key production traits and meat quality. Although the magnitude of these correlations is low, their cumulative effect on meat quality can be more significant especially with continued selection pressure on growth and yield

It’s a girl thing: menstruation, school attendance, spatial mobility and wider gender inequalities in Kenya

Recent attention has been drawn to possible linkages between poor sanitation in sub-Saharan African schools and low attendance rates amongst post-pubescent girls. In particular, questions have been raised about the influence of menstruation and access to sanitary products on schoolgirl absenteeism but research on this topic is scarce. Moreover, the few detailed empirical studies that have been conducted in sub-Saharan Africa on this topic have produced contradictory results. These uncertainties coupled with theories of how concepts of pollution and taboo are used to construct or police spatial boundaries (and maintain power relations within society) provide an interesting context for examining everyday geographies of menstruation. Kisumu, Kenya provides the context for the study which utilises a feminist political ecology framework to investigate cultural and spatial limitations associated with menstruation and puberty. Drawing on schoolgirls’ lived experiences, we illustrate how emotional geographies of puberty and menstruation are productive of and help to reproduce gender inequalities in mobility and access to social capital resources (especially education). At the same time we show how poverty coupled with low levels of sexual and reproductive health and rights education can exacerbate gendered bodily inequalities as girls face an increased risk of sexual exploitation when they reach puberty

Beautification of the Gateway Corridors and Historical Downtown of Columbus, Texas

This report presents “Master Plan and Landscape Improvement Plan for the Gateway Corridors in the City of Columbus, Texas”. It is a service-learning project funded by the City of Columbus, Texas through the Texas Target Communities Program and completed by a class of 23 undergraduates in Land 312 from the landscape architecture program at Texas A&M University during the spring semester 2020. The purpose of the project was to enhance the city’s gateway image and visitors’ first impression of the city, improve visitors’ sense of arrival sequence to the historical downtown district, and strengthen the linkage between Hwy 71, downtown area and Colorado River

Sheridan School of Architectural Technology Volume 1 [W2017]

Welcome to Sheridan’s School of Architectural Technician/Technology inaugural printed portfolio. This volume is a celebration of the architectural achievements of Sheridan students. Much of the content presented here has been incubated in CADD39788, Architectural Computer Visualisation. Inside you will find an amalgamation of student and faculty work put together into a publication that reflects the rich theatre of creativity and complexity that is architectural education here at Sheridan. Student work within the magazine is from the last year of studies in the Architectural Technology program. Each student has selected their best work to represent some of the skills that they have learned over the years as part of Sheridan. Faculty work is a selection of research, teaching, and professional projects that represents that quality and diversity of educators that serve not only as teachers, but also as mentors to our students. They showcase the talent and skill of some of the individuals that make the Sheridan program a reality.https://source.sheridancollege.ca/fast_books/1001/thumbnail.jp

City of Hitchcock Comprehensive Plan 2020-2040

Hitchcock is a small town located in Galveston County (Figure 1.1), nestled up on the Texas Gulf Coast. It lies about 40 miles south-east of Houston. The boundaries of the city encloses an area of land of 60.46 sq. miles, an area of water of 31.64 sq. miles at an elevation just 16 feet above sea level. Hitchcock has more undeveloped land (~90% of total area) than the county combined. Its strategic location gives it a driving force of opportunities in the Houston-Galveston Region.The guiding principles for this planning process were Hitchcock’s vision statement and its corresponding goals, which were crafted by the task force. The goals focus on factors of growth and development including public participation, development considerations, transportation, community facilities, economic development, parks, and housing and social vulnerabilityTexas Target Communitie

Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo

Meeting Abstracts: Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo Clearwater Beach, FL, USA. 9-11 June 201