A History of the Audiology Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: 1920 to 2015

Programs for the hearing impaired have been in existence at the University of Nebraska for many years. However, there is no comprehensive history of these efforts. This work is an attempt to provide a complete picture of these programs and to detail the history and growth of the Audiology Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. When the author came to the University in 1977 audiology was already well established at the University as well as in the State. After joining the faculty, the author served in the capacity of Coordinator of the Audiology and Hearing Science Program from 1977 until his retirement in 2011 and so, is in a unique position to compile this history. As well be seen, the audiology program at UNL has been under steady development since the very early years. In addition, its focus has grown from one of educating teachers about the causes and effects of hearing loss, to providing therapeutic programs for those who have speech and hearing disabilities and providing a four year, post-baccalaureate professional degree in the form of the Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) Audiology as a profession and course of study is an outgrowth of the profession of “speech correction” later called Speech Pathology or Speech-Language Pathology. Many of those who early on referred to themselves as “audiologists” were in fact trained in the speech pathology realm and saw a connection between hearing impairment and distorted speech and language. Thus, it is completely appropriate to begin this historical account with those early “speech correctionists-audiologists”. It is also the case that the growth of the audiology program is closely tied to the development of the Barkley Memorial Center on East Campus. For that reason, some mention will be made of the conception and construction of the Barkley Center. As previously stated, there is no central compendium of information about the development of audiology in Nebraska. The author is grateful to the Archives of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, people with past ties to the program and who allowed themselves to be interviewed, and professional colleagues at Nebraska and elsewhere who had memories to share. Errors of omission are solely those of the author

Branching Fractions of tau Leptons to Three Charged Hadrons

From electron-positron collision data collected with the CLEO detector operating at CESR near \sqrt{s}=10.6 GeV, improved measurements of the branching fractions for tau decays into three explicitly identified hadrons and a neutrino are presented as {\cal B}(\tau^-\to\pi^-\pi^+\pi^-\nu_\tau)=(9.13\pm0.05\pm0.46)%, {\cal B}(\tau^-\to K^-\pi^+\pi^-\nu_\tau)=(3.84\pm0.14\pm0.38)\times10^{-3}, {\cal B}(\tau^-\to K^-K^+\pi^-\nu_\tau)=(1.55\pm0.06\pm0.09)\times10^{-3}, and {\cal B}(\tau^-\to K^-K^+K^-\nu_\tau)<3.7\times10^{-5} at 90% C.L., where the uncertainties are statistical and systematic, respectively.Comment: 10 pages postscript, also available through http://w4.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Psychosocial interventions for patients with advanced cancer – a systematic review of the literature

Advanced cancer is associated with emotional distress, especially depression and feelings of sadness. To date, it is unclear which is the most effective way to address these problems. This review focuses on the effects of psychosocial interventions on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with advanced cancer. It was hypothesised that patients will benefit from psychosocial interventions by improving QoL, especially in the domain of emotional functioning. The review was conducted using systematic review methodology involving a systematic search of the literature published between 1990 and 2002, quality assessment of included studies, systematic data extraction and narrative data synthesis. In all, 10 randomised controlled studies involving 13 trials were included. Overall interventions and outcome measures across studies were heterogeneous. Outcome measures, pertaining to the QoL dimension of emotional functioning, were most frequently measured. A total of 12 trials evaluating behaviour therapy found positive effects on one or more indicators of QoL, for example, depression. The results of the review support recommendation of behaviour therapy in the care of patients with advanced cancer

Psychosocial interventions for patients with advanced cancer – a systematic review of the literature

Advanced cancer is associated with emotional distress, especially depression and feelings of sadness. To date, it is unclear which is the most effective way to address these problems. This review focuses on the effects of psychosocial interventions on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with advanced cancer. It was hypothesised that patients will benefit from psychosocial interventions by improving QoL, especially in the domain of emotional functioning. The review was conducted using systematic review methodology involving a systematic search of the literature published between 1990 and 2002, quality assessment of included studies, systematic data extraction and narrative data synthesis. In all, 10 randomised controlled studies involving 13 trials were included. Overall interventions and outcome measures across studies were heterogeneous. Outcome measures, pertaining to the QoL dimension of emotional functioning, were most frequently measured. A total of 12 trials evaluating behaviour therapy found positive effects on one or more indicators of QoL, for example, depression. The results of the review support recommendation of behaviour therapy in the care of patients with advanced cancer

Wess-Zumino Current and the Structure of the Decay tau^- to K^-K^+ pi^- nu_tau

We present the first study of the vector (Wess-Zumino) current in tau^-\to K^-pi^-K^+\nu_\tau decay using data collected with the CLEO III detector at the Cornell Electron Storage Ring. We determine the quantitative contributions to the decay width from the vector and axial vector currents. Within the framework of a model by Kuhn and Mirkes, we identify the quantitative contributions to the total decay rate from the intermediate states \omega\pi, \rho^{(\prime)}\pi and K^{*}K.Comment: 10 pages postscript, als available through http://www.lns.cornell.edu/public/CLNS/2003/, accepted by PR

A History of the Audiology Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln: 1920 to 2015

Programs for the hearing impaired have been in existence at the University of Nebraska for many years. However, there is no comprehensive history of these efforts. This work is an attempt to provide a complete picture of these programs and to detail the history and growth of the Audiology Program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. When the author came to the University in 1977 audiology was already well established at the University as well as in the State. After joining the faculty, the author served in the capacity of Coordinator of the Audiology and Hearing Science Program from 1977 until his retirement in 2011 and so, is in a unique position to compile this history. As well be seen, the audiology program at UNL has been under steady development since the very early years. In addition, its focus has grown from one of educating teachers about the causes and effects of hearing loss, to providing therapeutic programs for those who have speech and hearing disabilities and providing a four year, post-baccalaureate professional degree in the form of the Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) Audiology as a profession and course of study is an outgrowth of the profession of “speech correction” later called Speech Pathology or Speech-Language Pathology. Many of those who early on referred to themselves as “audiologists” were in fact trained in the speech pathology realm and saw a connection between hearing impairment and distorted speech and language. Thus, it is completely appropriate to begin this historical account with those early “speech correctionists-audiologists”. It is also the case that the growth of the audiology program is closely tied to the development of the Barkley Memorial Center on East Campus. For that reason, some mention will be made of the conception and construction of the Barkley Center. As previously stated, there is no central compendium of information about the development of audiology in Nebraska. The author is grateful to the Archives of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, people with past ties to the program and who allowed themselves to be interviewed, and professional colleagues at Nebraska and elsewhere who had memories to share. Errors of omission are solely those of the author