Sport as a Social Spectacle

The purpose of this thesis paper was to examine the relationship that exists between sports and society. Throughout all of the research that had been conducted, the author has drawn the conclusion that sports and society are closely related. The author started by examining the relationship between society and two specific sports events in history. Those two events were Jackie Robinson crossing the color barrier into Major League Baseball and the 1980 “Miracle on Ice”. The author chose these two events because of the great impact they had on society respectively. In addition, the author also outlined outside resources that teachers could use in the Social Studies curriculum that will further link sports and society. The author also put some additional focus on the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and the 2013 Boston Marathon Bombing as they are recent events that will allow teachers to demonstrate the impact that these events had on both society and sports. The author concluded that sports and society are directly related to each other and can have an impact on one another

Stage to Screen: Pivoting from Traditional Theatrical Education Using Selected Techniques of Michael Chekhov

This thesis is motivated by a pedagogical need that I identified while engaging with actors who graduated from undergraduate theatre programs. Many were unprepared to navigate the technical demands of camera work, and had difficulty transitioning to meet the different emotional needs of each scene. I explored the disparity between stage and screen acting and submit that effective transition to film requires an education in techniques enabling combination of the body, mind, and spirit of the actor. A seminal training experience led to my consideration of Michael Chekhov’s techniques towards acting for camera, as Chekhov provides a method grounded in the notion of integration to engender a “feeling of the whole”. I have theoretically and empirically investigated the outcome of introducing, synthesizing, and applying selected techniques of Michael Chekhov. I proposed a new acting for camera one-semester B.A. undergraduate course at the University of Pittsburgh, Acting on Camera with Ease: Camera Acting Utilizing Selected Techniques of Michael Chekhov. I explored course topics I believed would maximally benefit the undergraduate actors. I paired these explorations with scripted scene work from current film, television, and commercials, audition techniques, and peer audits to demonstrate what serves the performer in real time. A course of this type may indeed be an essential part of the undergraduate actor’s formation, readying students for a variety of performance contexts. Course outcomes showed that the Chekhov technique enhances the actor’s ability to remain both emotionally and physically engaged and honest during camera performance

Differences in Managerial Perception of Performance Between Veterans and Nonveterans

The merits of veteran affirmative action placement and review of performance by management were the rationale of this study. The mismatch theory was applied to explain when an individual receives a favor from affirmative action but is unable to keep pace with others performing in the same role. This quantitative quasi-experimental study was used to examine what differences exist between managerial perceptions of job-related performance and employee designations. A series of hypothetical scenarios were administered to respondents using vignettes that describe the actions taken by employees regarding an unfair labor practice. A paired t test was conducted in this quantitative research to assess if there were differences in the scores of the hypothetical characters specifically as it pertained to their veteran designations. From a 107 person sample and an inclusion criteria of federal government managers who manage attorneys hired with and without veteran-related affirmative action assistance, an analysis included conducting a test for 24 different pairs that compared the characters\u27 aggregate scores and specific performance measures. The test showed that there were no real differences in the ratings of the employees after disclosing their veteran status to the raters. This study indicated greater insights on whether management can identify actual differences in employee performance or if the 2 designations themselves, veteran and nonveteran, are the driving forces of their comprehension and subsequent action. Positive social change may emanate from this study because the insights revealed offer a greater context for the effectiveness of affirmative action programs like veteran preference and if greater controls and/or training needed to be implemented to fortify their effectiveness

The emotional invalidation from performance management and measurement tools in organizations

Treballs Finals del Màster en Oficial en Empresa Internacional / International Business, Facultat d'Economia i Empresa, Universitat de Barcelona. Curs: 2020-2022. Tutor: Ryan ArmstrongInvestigate the topic of emotional invalidation when dealing with different managerial tools used in organizationsandto analyze the role invalidation plays in public organizations from the dysfunctional outcomes of using performance measurement and management (PMM) tools (...

Solvothermal synthesis of oxides for catalysis

Hydro(solvo)thermal synthesis was used to synthesise a range of oxide, oxyhydroxide and hydroxide materials. Their structures were characterised by a wide variety of diffraction, spectroscopic, and other analytical techniques. Many of the oxides were screened for potential applications in catalysis. High energy X-ray diffraction was used to follow in situ the crystallisation of a cobalt gallium oxide prepared from metallic gallium in ethanolamine. Two transient metastable layered double hydroxide phases were observed prior to the formation of the spinel product when a solvent of 1:1 water:ethanolamine mixture was used. Photocatalytic studies showed that the spinel had activity as a water oxidation catalyst. A different cobalt gallium oxide spinel was prepared by solvothermal reaction using pre-formed γ-Ga2O3 and a solution of Co2+. Its metastable structure was characterised by a variety of techniques including analysis of Bragg and diffuse neutron scattering data. The material was investigated for three-way catalysis. The polymorphism of Ga2-xAlxO3 was investigated and the structures of materials characterised. The solvothermal synthesis of the defect spinel γ-Ga2-xAlxO3 in 2-propanol was optimised for 240 °C with up to 90% of the Ga replaced by Al. A novel oxyhydroxide Ga5-xAlxO7(OH) was prepared by solvothermal reaction in 1,4-butanediol. Solid-state MAS NMR was used to determine the coordination of the metals in these materials. All the materials are found to be metastable, transforming into thermodynamically stable polymorphs above 1400 °C. Ga2O3 and Ga2-xAlxO3 polymorphs were tested as palladium supports in the diesel oxidation reaction and the semi-hydrogenation of acetylene. A novel oxyhydroxide, Ga2.52V2.48O7.31(OH)0.69, was prepared by reaction of Ga metal and Na3VO4 in a 1:1 ethanolamine:water mixture. The structure of this material was investigated by neutron diffraction and found to isostructural with the minerals tohdite and nolanite. The material is metastable, dehydrating around 300 °C to form Ga2.52V2.48O8, and then decomposing above 500 °C. The material was found to show good activity as a catalyst for oxidative propane dehydrogenation. A new chromium substituted γ-Ga2O3 has been prepared and characterised. This material was prepared by solvothermal reaction in 1,4-butanediol and found to be very poorly crystalline. The spinel is stable to 900 °C before phase separating into its respective binary oxides. The hydrothermal reaction of RhCl3·3H2O with AO2 or A(OH)2 (A = Ca, Sr, Ba) in either NaOH or KOH at 200 °C yielded a range of hydroxides. Ca3Rh2(OH)12 and Sr3Rh2(OH)12 are hydrogarnets which can be dehydrated to oxides on heating. A new hydroxide in the system Ca-Na-Rh-OH was synthesised. Reaction with barium salts in NaOH yielded BaNaRh(OH)6 a new hydroxide. The structure of this material was solved by single crystal diffraction and found to contain isolated Rh-OH octahedra, two crystallographically different 8 coordinate Na sites and a 10 coordinate Ba site

Does type 1 diabetes mellitus affect Achilles tendon response to a 10 km run? A case control study Epidemiology of musculoskeletal disorders

Background: Achilles tendon structure deteriorates 2-days after maximal loading in elite athletes. The load-response behaviour of tendons may be altered in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) as hyperglycaemia accelerates collagen cross-linking. This study compared Achilles tendon load-response in participants with T1DM and controls. Methods: Achilles tendon structure was quantified at day-0, day-2 and day-4 after a 10 km run. Ultrasound tissue characterisation (UTC) measures tendon structural integrity by classifying pixels as echo-type I, II, III or IV. Echo-type I has the most aligned collagen fibrils and IV has the least. Results: Participants were 7 individuals with T1DM and 10 controls. All regularly ran distances greater than 5 km and VISA-A scores indicated good tendon function (T1DM = 94 +/- 11, control = 94 +/- 10). There were no diabetic complications and HbA1c was 8.7 +/- 2.6 mmol/mol for T1DM and 5.3 +/- 0.4 mmol/mol for control groups. Baseline tendon structure was similar in T1DM and control groups -UTC echo-types (I-IV) and anterior-posterior thickness were all p > 0.05. No response to load was seen in either T1DM or control group over the 4-days post exercise. Conclusion: Active individuals with T1DM do not have a heightened Achilles tendon response to load, which suggests no increased risk of tendon injury. We cannot extrapolate these findings to sedentary individuals with T1DM

Sea-Cards for the Impetuous Muse: A Reading of Shaftesbury\u27s Characteristicks

Characteristicks of Men, Manners, Opinions, Times, by Anthony Ashley Cooper, Third Earl of Shaftesbury, marks an important dissent from the general trend of early modern philosophy. This dissertation argues that Shaftesbury\u27s book undertakes a restoration of the classical understanding of philosophy in contradistinction to the understanding presented by the writings of Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, and other modern thin0kers. According to Shaftesbury, modern philosophy introduces a method of radical skepticism in order to combat the moral and political effects of Christianity. This methodical skepticism, however, turns out to be at least as corrosive to moral and political life as the worldview it hopes to undermine. Shaftesbury proposes as an alternative the restoration of the classical critique of religion, which made possible the coexistence of philosophy and religion and was accompanied by political toleration of a variety of religious practices. To this end Shaftesbury distinguishes a noble form of enthusiasm akin to Platonic eros, which in his account is the source of all higher human aspirations, including philosophy. Shaftesbury\u27s primary concern is to preserve and defend the distinctly human things as they come to light in the writings of the ancients. This concern informs both the substance and the presentation of his defense of the noble and beautiful

Told and retold : the Solomon narratives in the context of Tanak

This thesis explores the relationship between the books of Kings and Chronicles and considers the value of having two different versions of the same monarchic history within the Tanak. It furthermore explores how these books are read in relation to one another. To be more specific, its concern is how the book of Chronicles is read in relation to the book of Kings as Chronicles is so often considered to be a later rewritten text drawing upon an earlier version of the Masoretic Text of Kings. The predominant scholarly approach to reading the book of Chronicles is to read it in light of how the text was emended (additions, deletions, etc.). This approach has great value and has furthered our understanding of the theology and purpose of Chronicles. While this thesis fully affirms this diachronic approach to reading Chronicles, it also finds it to be lacking. This said, I suggest that this predominant way of reading Chronicles through the lens of its source (Kings) sometimes misses the theological and rhetorical features of the Chronicler’s text. In light of this suggestion, this thesis will answer the following question: “why were two narratives retained in the Tanak and what possible answers to this question might emerge by looking at the similarities and differences in the two narratives’ contents, arguments, and theology?” The method by which this question will be addressed is to read the Solomon narratives in the books of Kings and Chronicles in two ways: first, to read each narrative as a whole and independently of one another, and second, to examine each narrative together in an effort to understand their uniqueness. The result of this analysis will show that these narratives can in fact read as whole narratives independent of one another, and furthermore, that Solomon is in fact less idealized (contra popular scholarly opinion) in the book of Chronicles