Discovering the Gender Lens: The Influence of an Introductory Gender Studies Course on Personal Change

Thesis (PhD) - Indiana University, School of Education, 2006The discipline of gender studies, driven by the social movement of feminism, has become an established area of study on a number of university campuses. Early examinations of gender studies courses identified two specific influences of this newly formed branch of education, intellectual mastery of the course content and the less traditional goal of personal change (the effects of student connections between class materials and personal experiences). Based on existing research, feminist theory and theories of gender development, the author of the present study hypothesized a continued personal change impact of current gender studies courses. The study explored this concept of personal change through an examination of the pre-course relationships between biological sex, experiences with sexism, parental nontraditional gender roles and students' feminist perspectives. Furthermore, the study examined post-course effects related to the concept of personal change through an inquiry on the influence of an introductory gender studies course on students' feminist perspective, gender identity, and gender self-confidence. As pre-course and post-course measures, gender studies students (n = 118) from three separate sections of the same undergraduate course completed a series of questionnaires pertaining to these areas. As a control, 48 education students also completed the questionnaires. Pre-course measures revealed that experience with sexism was a significant predictor of the following feminist perspective self-reports: low acceptance of inequities, high awareness of inequities, high exploration of feminist perspective, and high consolidation of feminist perspective for female students. Post-course measures revealed that gender studies students were less accepting of gender inequities than education students. Gender studies students were also more likely to change their gender identities than education students. The present study offers support for gender studies courses as agents of personal change through influences on feminist perspective and gender identity

The Financial Aspect of Adequate Representation Under Rule 23(a)(4): A Prerequisite to Class Certification?

This article examines the financial implications of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(a)(4) which requires that the representative for a class action provide fair and adequate representation in an adjudication of the class\u27 rights. The authors trace the development in case law of the 23(a)(4) financial condition considerations. They then examine the tensions which arise as a result of imposition of heavy financial responsibilities on the class plaintiff under 23(a)(4). Requiring the prospective plaintiff to prove financial competence serves to provide due process and protection for the rights of absent class members but it may also preclude a plaintiff from bringing the suit at all. The authors suggest possible directions for legislative reform and recommend further legislative consideration of resolution of the competing objectives

Cross-modality temporal resolution for auditory, vibrotactile, and visual stimuli

This paper reviews a study of cross-modalities and within-modalities and their effects on speech perception

Investigating Types of Errors

An interactive Excel spreadsheet investigation of random and systematic errors including the effect of curvature on linear models is presented for introductory-level science classes. Students are engaged in higher-order thinking and science process skills as they navigate through the activity

Shifting and Shaping Perceptions: Towards the Characterization and Literacy of Female Pelvic Organ Support

Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP) is a pelvic floor condition characterized by the unnatural descent of pelvic organs into the vagina. It occurs as the result of compromised connective tissues and musculature following vaginal delivery and/or changes in tissue composition due to aging. Approximately 50% of women in the United States experience some degree of POP during their lifetime, with symptoms that include altered urination and defecation, physical discomfort, depression, and anxiety. Over the last decade, POP treatments have gained public notoriety due to surgical complications and recurrence of prolapse after surgical repair. Both outcomes stem, in part, from gaps in knowledge regarding the complex interactions of pelvic viscera, tissues, and musculature, and is exacerbated by the significant time span between events surrounding vaginal birth injuries and symptomatic prolapse. Over the last century, fields such as cardiovascular medicine and orthopedics have made significant strides to improve the human condition through the application of biomechanics, diagnostic imaging techniques, and modeling. Such methods have been used to reliably differentiate normal and diseased anatomy with respect to orientation, location, and other geometric attributes. In contrast, urogynecology remains decades behind as a result of a failure to adopt new interdisciplinary methods, limiting our ability to effectively treat POP. Thus, approximately 80% of women with symptomatic POP choose to suffer in silence. This is troubling, given that POP and related disorders will become increasingly prevalent due to the advancing age of the global population. This dissertation explores the assessment and development of diagnostic tools that improve our ability to quantify the position of the vagina with respect to physiologic changes that may occur over the lifespan within the normal range. These tools provide valuable information regarding the physical changes that occur over time and the differences between populations while serving as a potential standard by which pelvic anatomy can be quantified. Furthermore, this work explores our knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes regarding female pelvic health to challenge misconceptions surrounding normal and abnormal physiological functions, foster attitudes of empathy and acceptance for disorders, and improve health literacy by illustrating the impact that it has on lives worldwide

The Boyle’s Law Simulator: A Dynamic Interactive Visualization for Discovery Learning of Experimental Error Analysis

As a follow-up to the classic Boyle’s law experiment, students can investigate experimental error in the virtual realm of a spreadsheet. Students engage in numerous higher-order thinking and science process skills as they work through the simulation

Radiometric Dating for Novice Learners: Visualizing, Modeling, and Simulating via Animated Spreadsheets

Radiometric dating is introduced to beginning students in a real-world fashion through animated spreadsheets. Students discover the behavior of the parent-daughter relationship in radioactive decay, how the parent-daughter ratio yields the age, and a number of assumptions involved in radiometric dating. After exploring the concepts, and with some elementary mathematical modeling skills, students analyze data from the literature

Monitoring the Effects of Anti-angiogenesis on the Radiation Sensitivity of Pancreatic Cancer Xenografts Using Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced CT

Purpose To image the intra-tumor vascular physiological status of pancreatic tumors xenografts and their response to anti-angiogenic therapy using Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced CT (DCE-CT), and to identify parameters of vascular physiology associated with tumor X-ray sensitivity following anti-angiogenic therapy. Methods and Materials Nude mice bearing human BxPC-3 pancreatic tumor xenografts were treated with 5Gy of radiation therapy (RT), either a low-dose (40mg/kg) or a high-dose (150mg/kg) of DC101, the anti-VEGF receptor-2 anti-angiogenesis antibody, or with combination of low or high dose DC101 and 5Gy RT (DC101-plus-RT). DCE-CT scans were longitudinally acquired over three week period post-DC101 treatment. Parametric maps of tumor perfusion and fractional plasma volume (Fp) were calculated and their averaged values and histogram distributions evaluated and compared to controls, from which a more homogeneous physiological window was observed 1-week post-DC101. Mice receiving a combination of DC101-plus-RT(5Gy) were imaged baseline prior to receiving DC101 and 1-week after DC101 (prior to RT). Changes in perfusion and Fp were compared with alternation in tumor growth delay for RT and DC101-plus-RT(5Gy) treated tumors. Results Pretreatment with low or high doses of DC101 prior to RT significantly delayed tumor growth by an average 7.9 days compared to RT alone (p≤0.01). The increase in tumor growth delay for the DC101-plus-RT treated tumors was strongly associated with changes in tumor perfusion (ΔP>−15%) compared to RT treated tumors alone (p=0.01). In addition, further analysis revealed a trend linking the tumor’s increased growth delay to its tumor volume-to-DC101 dose ratio. Conclusions DCE-CT is capable of monitoring changes in intra-tumor physiological parameter of tumor perfusion in response to anti-angiogenic therapy of a pancreatic human tumor xenograft that was associated with enhanced radiation response

DNA damage response (DDR) pathway engagement in cisplatin radiosensitization of non-small cell lung cancer

Non-small cell lung cancers (NSCLC) are commonly treated with a platinum-based chemotherapy such as cisplatin (CDDP) in combination with ionizing radiation (IR). Although clinical trials have demonstrated that the combination of CDDP and IR appear to be synergistic in terms of therapeutic efficacy, the mechanism of synergism remains largely uncharacterized. We investigated the role of the DNA damage response (DDR) in CDDP radiosensitization using two NSCLC cell lines. Using clonogenic survival assays, we determined that the cooperative cytotoxicity of CDDP and IR treatment is sequence dependent, requiring administration of CDDP prior to IR (CDDP-IR). We identified and interrogated the unique time and agent-dependent activation of the DDR in NSCLC cells treated with cisplatin-IR combination therapy. Compared to treatment with CDDP or IR alone, CDDP-IR combination treatment led to persistence of γH2Ax foci, a marker of DNA double-strand breaks (DSB), for up to 24h after treatment. Interestingly, pharmacologic inhibition of DDR sensor kinases revealed the persistence of γ-H2Ax foci in CDDP-IR treated cells is independent of kinase activation. Taken together, our data suggest that delayed repair of DSBs in NSCLC cells treated with CDDP-IR contributes to CDDP radiosensitization and that alterations of the DDR pathways by inhibition of specific DDR kinases can augment CDDP-IR cytotoxicity by a complementary mechanism