A Guide to Distributed Digital Preservation

This volume is devoted to the broad topic of distributed digital preservation, a still-emerging field of practice for the cultural memory arena. Replication and distribution hold out the promise of indefinite preservation of materials without degradation, but establishing effective organizational and technical processes to enable this form of digital preservation is daunting. Institutions need practical examples of how this task can be accomplished in manageable, low-cost ways."--P. [4] of cove

Working through lymphedema: exploring women's functional well-being and quality of life

Thesis (M.A.)--Boston UniversityBackground: In order to best treat breast cancer related lymphedema it is important to realize that it is a progressive, and for some, a lifelong condition requiring surveillance. Breast cancer patients are educated to be aware of the signs of lymphedema, as are physicians. This is critical to capturing those patients most in need of treatment since there are less options and more comorbidities associated with more severe swelling. Impaired shoulder usage, loss of range of motion and discomfort associated with the swelling of lymphedema can severely impact a patient’s lifestyle reducing their ability to work, be self sufficient and lowering their quality of life. Since 20% or more of patient’s treated for breast cancer will go on to deal with lymphedema in the long term or transiently it is necessary to understand who is most affected and at what level of swelling it is necessary to treat this condition. Methods: As a part of the lymphedema screening protocol at Massachusetts General Hospital we were able to analyze data on 138 women with newly diagnosed breast cancer. They were followed for at least 18 months and measured at least 3 times using the perometer, which records their arm volume and compares it to baseline. At the same time they were asked to fill out the LEFT-BC questionnaire to assess their quality of life and answer relevant questions relating to arm usage. [TRUNCATED

Between School and Work: The Literacies of Urban Adolescent Females

This article argues for a broader conception of both school and work literacies. I present the writing and narratives of adolescent females in their senior year of an urban high school to begin a dialogue about the ways schools and communities can support youth to both imagine and plan for their futures. Ethnographic research methods were used to collect narratives and construct case studies of four young women. In their nuanced pictures of youth, these narratives will inform educators, policy makers, and researchers as they write about and make decisions concerning the futures of these young people

Almanac

This project is composed of numerous pocket-sized cards, designed to be conveniently portable navigation tools. Each in this series bears a small drawing of a forageable food and a map of the location where the item can be found locally in the city of Akron. The cards also contain references to nearby points of interest, historical sites, and local folklore. The information has been compiled in a non-linear format, creating an opportunity for exploration of the area in an unconventional manner. This approach is intended for logical and imaginative engagement --in addition to delighting the tastebuds, thus making the pieces amount to more than a simple field guide. My intent is that the cards will be used to expand knowledge of the city of Akron’s land and food sources (including issues of seasonality and waste) while also developing a sense of community

Out of Disaster Comes Opportunity: Initial Lessons from Teacher Mentoring in Banda Aceh, Indonesia

As a science educator, I have learned that teachers sometimes feel like they can’t teach science without specialized equipment. In my experience, however, there are many science concepts that can be demonstrated with very basic tools. Building a sundial is one activity that is rich in content and requires very few materials. Building sundials had been a successful activity for me with both students and teachers in the U.S, so I was excited to share the activity with teachers in Aceh during our two-week professional development session

Locating Literacy Theory in Out-of School Contexts

In public discourse, literacy has long been associated with schooling. Talk about literacy crises is often accompanied by calls for better schools and more rigorous curricula, and images of reading and writing are closely connected to school-based or essayist forms of literacy. However, when we widen the lens of what we consider literacy and literate activities, homes, communities, and workplaces become sites for literacy use. It was in fact in these out-of-school contexts, rather than in school-based ones, that many of the major theoretical advances in the study of literacy have been made in the past 25 years. Studies of literacy out-of-school have been pivotal in shaping the field. Indeed, to talk about literacy these days, both in school and out, is to speak of events, practices, activities, ideologies, discourses, and identities, and at times to do so almost unreflectively, since these categories and terminology have become so much a part of our customary ways of thinking in academic domains. Through an exploration of three major theoretical traditions that have launched numerous studies of literacy, we show that in large part this new theoretical vocabulary sprang from examinations of the uses and functions of literacy in contexts other than school

Connecting Schools with Out-of-School Worlds

In Chapter 1 we trace the ways in which examinations of literacy in out-of-school settings have provided pivotal moments theoretically, turning the field toward new understandings of literacies and into different lines of research. Indeed, we argue that most of the theoretical advances that have been made in the field of literacy studies over the last 25 years have had their origin in discoveries about literacy and learning not in school, but outside it. To talk about literacy these days, both in school and out, is to speak of events, practices, activities, ideologies, discourses, and identities (and at times to do so almost unreflectively, so much a part of our customary academic ways of thinking have these categories and terminology become). Again, we argue that in large part this new theoretical vocabulary sprang from examinations of the uses and functions of literacy in contexts other than school