Feeling Different: Being the 'Other' in US Workplaces

What does it mean to be an "other" in the workplace?Everyone has complex and multiple identities that define both how they see themselves and how others perceive them. These include personal attributes such as gender, race, ethnicity, or nationality and are lenses through which people view the world. The more different someone is and feels from their workgroup or workplace as a whole, the more they may feel like the "other" at the table.This report examines the experience of otherness in the US workplace and focuses on how people with multiple sources of otherness in a workplace are impacted in terms of their opportunities, advancement, and aspirations

The Use of a Biopsychosocial Framework in Evaluating and Treating Patellofemoral Pain

Patellofemoral pain (PFP) is a chronic pain condition of the knee that afflicts approximately 25% of the population, and may lead to long-term complaints of pain and dysfunction. In the current literature, PFP is primarily studied using the framework of the pathomechanical model of biomechanical and muscular factors that increase patellofemoral joint loading. However, PFP may be better understood examining it through the Biopsychosocial Model of Sport Injury Rehabilitation (Brewer et al., 2002) as a conceptual framework to explore how injury characteristics, sociodemographic factors, and intermediate biopsychosocial outcomes may impact a patient’s perceptions of pain and function. These relationships may also have in impact on treatment for PFP, as both the perception of pain and perception of function are commonly used as clinical outcomes to determine progress and prognosis. While there are several interventions that have been examined and implemented to treat patients with PFP, the long-term prognosis remains poor, with patients reporting symptoms months or even years after diagnosis. One treatment approach that is effective in both changing patient’s perceptions of pain and function as well as their biomechanics is gait retraining. This approach, based on the concepts of motor learning, is commonly performed during running gait. Not all individuals with PFP are runners or may select not to run due to their knee pain. There is limited evidence to suggest that the concept of movement retraining applied to more universal tasks, such as a step-down, could yield similar results. Within the context of the Biopsychosocial Model (Brewer et al., 2002), the intervention chosen for the treatment intervention, along with delivery of that intervention by a trained health care professional, are components of the rehabilitation environment. The rehabilitation environment is one of many social and contextual factors within the Biopsychosocial Model (Brewer et al., 2002) that may impact the patient’s perceptions of pain and function, as well as the intermediate rehabilitation outcomes. Therefore, using the Biopsychosocial Model (Brewer et al., 2002) as a conceptual framework, the purpose of this study was two-fold: 1) to better understand how selected injury characteristics (duration of symptoms and location of pain), sociodemographic factors (gender and age), and intermediate biopsychosocial outcomes (hip and knee strength and trunk, hip and knee biomechanics) relate to participant’s perceptions of pain and function, and 2) to assess how a squat retraining intervention changes a participant’s hip and knee strength, trunk, hip, and knee biomechanics, and perceptions of pain and function in individuals with PFP. Three separate studies were conducted to achieve the study purpose. Study 1 consisted of a cross-sectional, U.S. population-based online survey shared via social media, email, and word of mouth to adults (18-45 years) with knee pain. Out of 400 respondents, 243 participants completed all four components of the survey, and 137 (105 females, 32 males, 30.80+8.68 years) were identified as having PFP. Duration of symptoms, location of pain, gender, age, perception of pain, and perception of function were assessed with the online survey. A multinomial logistic regression was utilized to create a model of the relationship between the independent variables and perception of pain score. A multiple linear regression was used to create a model for the relationship of the independent variables and perception of function score. Study 2 was a cross-sectional study conducted in a laboratory, with 40 participants (30 females, 10 males, 33.9+7.5 years) with PFP. Perceptions of pain and function, isometric hip and knee strength, and trunk, hip and knee 3-D kinematics and 2-D biomechanics during a step-down task were assessed. Pearson correlations were performed to determine if relationships existed among any of the variables. Separate multiple linear regressions were used to create a model of the relationship between all of the strength and biomechanical variables and perceived pain and function. Study 3 was a feasibility study consisting of 10 participants (9 females, 1 male, 36.30 + 6.48 years) using a novel movement retraining intervention aimed at correcting knee alignment during a step-down. Wilcoxon Signed Rank tests and paired t-tests were performed to determine differences from baseline to post-intervention for perceived pain and function, hip and knee strength, and the biomechanical variables. A summary of the results is presented here, with full statistics in each respective chapter. In Study 1, individuals who had PFP for a longer period of time, experienced widespread pain, and reported higher perceptions of pain also reported lower perceptions of function. Age and gender were not related to perceptions of pain or function in our sample. In Study 2, perception of pain was significantly correlated with perception of function and hip internal rotation (IR) angle, while perception of function score was significantly correlated with the perception of pain, hip abduction (ABD) strength, hip external rotation (ER) strength, knee extension (EXT) strength, and 2-D lateral trunk motion (LTM). For Study 3, perception of pain changed significantly from baseline to post-intervention and LTM significantly improved from baseline to post-intervention. Results of this study support that symptom duration and painful locations are related to the perception of function in individuals with PFP. It emphasizes the need for early identification and treatment of PFP to minimize pain and preserve function early in the course of the overuse injury. We did not find a statistically significant predictive relationship between hip and knee strength and trunk, hip, and knee biomechanics and participant perceptions of pain and function in our sample. This suggests that there may not be a specific pattern of movement or muscle weakness that is uniform across individuals with PFP. Rather, the experience of PFP may be more individualized. The movement retraining intervention piloted in this study was effective at improving perceptions of pain, even though it did not lead to significant changes in strength or biomechanics, or perception of function. Taken together, these results provide preliminary support for the Biopsychosocial Model (Brewer et al., 2002) to be used as a framework to examine the overuse injury of PFP

Commercialization and the Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR): An Examination of the Impacts of Commercialization on the Small Businesses\u27 Ability to Provide Research and Development Innovation to the Department of Defense

This research explored the small business\u27s perceived ability to provide goods and services to the Department of Defense through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. The research was sparked by the enactment of Public Law 102-564, which increased the emphasis in commercialization as a basis for contract award and required a business plan to demonstrate commercial potential and third-party funding commitments. Five SBIR participants in the acquisition of Air Force research and developments innovation, were investigated through case-study methodology. The research concluded that although the defense industries recognized the cumbersome nature of government procurement, they are eager to provide recommendations that may enhance the effectiveness of the program. The research findings also suggested that the Government periodically solicit the perceptions of small business participants prior to making policy changes to ensure the impact of those changes is not contrary to the intent of the program. Finally, the research uncovered issues that impact small business participation in the program. Additional research into these issues may further improve the efficacy of the SBIR program which promotes technology transfer through the use of small businesses

Income security during periods of ill health: A scoping review of policies, practice and coverage in low-income and middle-income countries

The COVID-19 pandemic is a reminder that insufficient income security in periods of ill health leads to economic hardship for individuals and hampers disease control efforts as people struggle to stay home when sick or advised to observe quarantine. Evidence on income security during periods of ill health is growing but has not previously been reviewed as a full body of work concerning low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). We performed a scoping review to map the range, features, coverage, protective effects and equity of policies that aim to provide income security for adults whose ill health prevents them from participating in gainful work. A total of 134 studies were included, providing data from 95% of LMICs. However, data across the majority of these countries were severely limited. Collectively the included studies demonstrate that coverage of contributory incomesecurity schemes is low, especially for informal and lowincome workers. Meanwhile, non-contributory schemes targeting low-income groups are often not explicitly designed to provide income support in periods of ill health, they can be difficult to access and rarely provide sufficient income support to cover the needs of eligible recipients. While identifying an urgent need for more research on illness-related income security in LMICs, this review concludes that scaling up and diversifying the range of income security interventions is crucial for improving coverage and equity. To achieve these outcomes, illnessrelated income protection must receive greater recognition in health policy and health financing circles, expanding our understanding of financial hardship beyond direct medical costs.Funding for this research was received from the Swedish Research Council (2018–05174)

Ultralow phase noise microwave generation with an Er:fiber-based optical frequency divider

We present an optical frequency divider based on a 200 MHz repetition rate Er:fiber mode-locked laser that, when locked to a stable optical frequency reference, generates microwave signals with absolute phase noise that is equal to or better than cryogenic microwave oscillators. At 1 Hz offset from a 10 GHz carrier, the phase noise is below -100 dBc/Hz, limited by the optical reference. For offset frequencies > 10 kHz, the phase noise is shot noise limited at -145 dBc/Hz. An analysis of the contribution of the residual noise from the Er:fiber optical frequency divider is also presented.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Climate change, marine resources and a small Chilean community: making the connections

Climate change is affecting large-scale oceanic processes. How and when these changes will impact those reliant on marine resources is not yet clear. Here we use end-to-end modeling to track the impacts of expected changes through the marine ecosystem on a specific, small community: Cochamó, in the Gulf of Ancud wider area, Chile. This area is important for Chilean fisheries and aquaculture, with Cochamó reliant on both lower and upper trophic level marine resources. We applied the GOTM-ERSEM-BFM coupled hydro-biogeochemical water-column model to gauge lower-trophic level marine ecological community response to bottom-up stressors (climate change, ocean acidification), coupled to an existing Ecopath with Ecosim model for the area, which included top-down stressors (fishing). Social scientists also used participatory modeling (Systems Thinking and Bayesian Belief Networking) to identify key resources for Cochamó residents and to assess the community’s vulnerability to possible changes in key resources. Modeling results suggest that flagellate phytoplankton abundance will increase at the cost of other species (particularly diatoms), resulting in a greater risk of harmful algae blooms. Both climate change and acidification slightly increased primary production in the model. Higher trophic level results indicate that some targeted pelagic resources will decline (while benthic ones may benefit), but that these effects might be mitigated by strong fisheries management efforts. Participatory modeling suggests that Cochamó inhabitants anticipate marine ecosystem changes but are divided about possible adaptation strategies. For climate change impact quantification, detailed experimental studies are recommended based on the dominant threats identified here, with specific local species

Signatures of adaptation to a monocot host in the plant-parasitic cyst nematode Heterodera sacchari.

Interactions between plant-parasitic nematodes and their hosts are mediated by effectors, i.e. secreted proteins that manipulate the plant to the benefit of the pathogen. To understand the role of effectors in host adaptation in nematodes, we analysed the transcriptome of Heterodera sacchari, a cyst nematode parasite of rice (Oryza sativa) and sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum). A multi-gene phylogenetic analysis showed that H. sacchari and the cereal cyst nematode Heterodera avenae share a common evolutionary origin and that they evolved to parasitise monocot plants from a common dicot-parasitic ancestor. We compared the effector repertoires of H. sacchari with those of the dicot parasites Heterodera glycines and Globodera rostochiensis to understand the consequences of this transition. While, in general, effector repertoires are similar between the species, comparing effectors and non-effectors of H. sacchari and G. rostochiensis shows that effectors have accumulated more mutations than non-effectors. Although most effectors show conserved spatiotemporal expression profiles and likely function, some H. sacchari effectors are adapted to monocots. This is exemplified by the plant-peptide hormone mimics, the CLAVATA3/EMBRYO SURROUNDING REGION-like (CLE) effectors. Peptide hormones encoded by H. sacchari CLE effectors are more similar to those from rice than those from other plants, or those from other plant-parasitic nematodes. We experimentally validated the functional significance of these observations by demonstrating that CLE peptides encoded by H. sacchari induce a short root phenotype in rice, whereas those from a related dicot parasite do not. These data provide a functional example of effector evolution that co-occurred with the transition from a dicot-parasitic to a monocot-parasitic lifestyle.BBSR