\u27Reflection\u27 and Other Stories

A creative thesis made up of four fiction stories. The stories focus on identity within the major characters and how they cope with the circumstances of life. \u27Reflection and Other Stories\u27 is realistic in plot and style

Peptoids and methods for treating Alzheimer\u27s disease

Provided herein are peptoids capable of inhibiting or reversing amyloid .beta. (A.beta.) fibril or plaque production. The peptoids form a helical structure with three monomers per helical turn and have at least four monomers with a side-chain having an arylalkyl or aryl group. The peptoid may be achiral. Also provided are methods of using the peptoids to inhibit or reverse aggregation of A.beta. and methods of treating subjects with Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) or slowing the progression of AD

Writing in Crisis: Rhetorical Considerations in Child Advocate Reports

One aspect of human rights often overlooked in and beyond professional communication involves the rights of minor children whose parents or guardians are accused of abusing, abandoning, or neglecting them. Children in the United States who enter the dependency court system, where such matters are adjudicated, have few legal protections because of their status as minors, and parents or legal guardians under investigation are seldom appropriate advocates for such children due to real, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest (Litzelfelner & Petr, 1997; Minow, 1995; Reynaert, Bouverne-de-Bie, & Vandevelde, 2009). Many state and county governments have established programs designed to secure advocates for children in jeopardy. Known by names such as Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and Guardian ad Litem (GAL), these programs recruit, train, and appoint volunteers to represent children in court.1 These efforts are significant. According to program websites, in 2007 the national CASA/GAL movement reached a milestone of serving more than two million children in its first 30 years (CASA for Children, 2007; Piraino, 2007). In 2012 alone, the CASA/GAL network consisted of 946 local and state programs. These organizations engage more than 77,000 volunteers and serve more than 234,000 neglected and abused children annually (National CASA, 2012). Research shows that a child who is represented by a CASA/GAL advocate is more likely to find a permanent home, be adopted, and spend less time in the foster care system than one without such representation (CASA Boston, n.d.; CASA for Children, 2012; Litzerfelner & Petr, 1997; Ottmar, 2007; Piraino, 2007). Clearly child advocacy is a critical matter of human rights. In this article we examine relationships among the theory and practice of human rights, children’s rights, and rhetorical action in relation to child advocate report writing

The use of an iPad as a classroom tool

The Apple i line has been steadily increasing in popularity and many educators believe these devices offer great potential as instructional adjuncts. Many schools (including colleges) have begun issuing iPads to students with the assumption that they would enhance the students\u27 educational experience. Little experimental evidence has been produced supporting this claim. This study was an attempt to experimentally evaluate the effectiveness of iPads on learning educational material. Participant\u27s interest and enjoyment while using the iPad versus traditional material presentation (paper images or physical models) were also examined. Participants were randomly assigned to learn 24 anatomical brain structures using one of three conditions; 1) control color paper images, 2) plastic anatomical model, and 3) iPad application 3-D Brain , produced by Dolan DNA Learning Center. Participants were given 10-minutes with their assigned material and were then immediately tested on the material. The results demonstrated that learning & memory performance using the iPad was significantly better than the plastic model, and no different from paper pictures. Compared to the plastic model, participants also reported that they enjoyed the task more, felt more prepared, felt their performance was better, and would be more likely to take a class using the iPad. A gender difference was also discovered, suggesting that females might benefit more from the use of the iPad than males. The limitations and implications of these findings are discussed

Bocchan, It s Time to Wake Up : A corpus-based analysis of how and why Non-Learners code-switch in Japanese fandom-based fanfiction

It has been frequently proven that both bilinguals and language learners code-switch successfully for a variety of functions such as showing familiarity with a community of practice a group that collaborates regularly in some common venture. But what about those who have not learnt the language? Do they code-switch? Do they code-switch differently to language learners? How are they able to code-switch successfully and why would they want to at all? This thesis examined the Japanese-English code-switching in fanfiction based in the Japanese fandom Kuroshitsuji ( Black Butler ) of those who had learnt Japanese at an educational institute (Learners) and those who had not (Non-Learners) as well those who had only learnt Japanese outside of educational institutes (Active Non-Learners) and those who had not learnt it at all (Passive Non-Learners). Using corpus linguistic techniques, the concordance tool AntConc and a log-likelihood calculator, it was found that Learners and Non-Learners code-switched in a very similar way, not only in frequency but also code-switch distribution. However, Active Non-Learners and Passive Non-Learners code-switched very differently. Canon Type (e.g. the anime with fan-translated subtitles vs the anime with official English subtitles) was also examined and it was found that canon type may have had an influence on the code-switching of Non-Learners. To examine why these code-switch patterns occurred, questionnaires were sent to the authors to ask about their code-switch attitudes. Although it was difficult to make connections between the author attitudes and the code-switch frequency patterns it was found that community of practice played an important role in code-switch decisions whether it be in a positive or negative way. This thesis was created in the hope that it would help to broaden code-switching research by using different Learner types and written over spoken material. Using the plethora of negative attitudes found in the author questionnaire responses it was shown that it is important to combat these attitudes and it is hoped that further research would continue to fight against these especially in the field of second language acquisition

Relación entre el nivel de escolaridad, redes de apoyo, riesgo y eventos de caída, con la adherencia al tratamiento de rehabilitación de base comunitaria, en usuarios pertenecientes a la Agrupación de Parkinson, de la comuna de Tomé

Tesis (Magíster en Neurorehabilitación)El envejecimiento en la actualidad se caracteriza por un aumento de la población mayor de 60 años. Dentro de las enfermedades que pueden manifestarse en esta etapa, se encuentra la Enfermedad de Parkinson (EP). El éxito de la intervención que tengan los usuarios diagnosticados con EP, dependerá de la adherencia que adquieran a este proceso. Desde aquí, nace la problemática principal de esta investigación, que corresponde a la fluctuante participación a las sesiones de Rehabilitación de Base Comunitaria (RBC) de los usuarios pertenecientes a la Agrupación de Parkinson de la comuna de Tomé. Se identificaron dentro de esta población, diferente factores que pueden influir sobre la adherencia. Es así que, este estudio tiene como objetivo analizar la relación entre la escolaridad, redes de apoyo, riesgo y eventos de caída, con la adherencia al tratamiento de RBC de estos usuarios. El enfoque de la investigación es cuantitativo, de alcance correlacional, de diseño no experimental y de tipo transversal. La muestra de estudio estuvo conformada por 20 sujetos adultos mayores con EP, los cuales fueron seleccionados basados en el cumplimiento de los criterios de inclusión y exclusión propuestos en la investigación. Para obtener información respecto de la Adherencia al tratamiento de RBC, se recopiló la asistencia de los usuarios de las últimas 12 sesiones. Para lo que respecta a la: Escolaridad, Redes de Apoyo y Eventos de Caída que hayan tenido en los últimos 3 meses, se aplicó una encuesta personal. Por último, para conocer el Riesgo de Caída, se aplicó el test Time Up and Go. Se utilizó el coeficiente de correlación de Spearman, para conocer la relación entre las variables descritas, considerando un nivel de significación de 95%

Quantification of standing balance in survivors of childhood posterior fossa brain tumours

Malgré un intérêt grandissant pour la question du devenir des survivants de tumeur cérébrale pédiatrique, l’évaluation de leur équilibre est souvent négligée. Les objectifs de nos travaux étaient de 1) examiner les écrits portant sur l’équilibre chez les survivants de tumeur cérébrale pédiatrique; 2) comparer l'équilibre debout et la qualité de vie entre les survivants et un groupe d’enfants témoins; et 3) examiner l'association entre l'équilibre debout et qualité de vie chez les survivants. Notre recension des écrits démontra que les survivants de tumeur cérébrale présentent des troubles de l’équilibre, mais les limites méthodologiques des études nous empêchent de conclure de manière définitive. Ensuite, nous avons recruté un groupe d’enfants survivants d’une tumeur cérébrale de la fosse postérieure et un groupe d’enfants sains. Leur équilibre était évalué à l’aide du Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-2nd edition (BOT-2) et du Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS). Certains participants ont aussi été évalués avec une plate-forme de force où les limites de stabilité étaient documentées. Finalement, tous les enfants et leurs parents remplissaient le Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL4.0). Nos résultats démontrent que les survivants présentent une diminution de l’équilibre mise en évidence par le BOT-2, mais que leur qualité de vie est similaire aux enfants sains. La performance au BOT-2 est associée à la dimension physique du PedsQL4.0, suggérant une relation entre l’équilibre et la qualité de vie. Nos résultats suggèrent qu’une évaluation de l’équilibre pourrait être bénéfique chez cette clientèle afin de mieux cerner ses besoins de réadaptation.There is growing interest in studying outcomes in survivors of pediatric brain tumours. Physical outcomes, especially balance abilities, are less investigated. Objectives of this thesis are to: 1) examine the literature for balance outcomes in survivors of pediatric brain tumours, 2) compare standing balance and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) between survivors of pediatric posterior fossa brain tumours (PFBT) and typically-developing controls and 3) explore the association between balance and HRQOL. A comprehensive review demonstrated that although the literature suggests that survivors of pediatric brain tumours display ongoing balance deficits, studies have limitations, emphasizing the need for further research. Survivors of pediatric PFBT and typically-developing children were recruited and their balance assessed with the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-2nd edition (BOT-2) and Pediatric Balance Scale (PBS). Dynamic balance was also evaluated for some participants using a force platform. The Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory measured HRQOL. Statistical analyses included Mann-Whitney U tests to compare results between groups and Spearman's rank correlation coefficient to determine the association between balance and HRQOL. Balance abilities were significantly worse in survivors as measured by the BOT-2. The PBS displayed a ceiling effect. Certain laboratory outcome measures suggested balance difficulties. All participants’ HRQOL scores were within normative values. In survivors, an association was found between BOT-2 scores and the physical dimension of HRQOL. Survivors of PFBT demonstrate persistent balance difficulties, best assessed by the BOT-2; however, they report normal HRQOL. Future research should be collaborative and focus upon the best ways to manage balance deficits

In patients with central lines, does the use of port protector cap effective in preventing CLABSIs.

The abstract is attached as MS Word document file

Engineering Design for Engineering Design: Benefits, Models, and Examples from Practice

Engineering design, a framework for studying and solving societal problems, is a key component of STEM education. It is also the area of greatest challenge within the Next Generation Science Standards, NGSS. Many teachers feel underprepared to teach or create activities that feature engineering design, and integrating a lesson plan of core content with an engineering design perspective can be a daunting task. Nevertheless, engineering design can be a useful tool in building students’ confidence in science, engaging students in science classes, building relationships with the community, and empowering under-represented groups. The problem-solving approach of engineering design can become a template for how a teacher creates new engineering design activities. Engineering design is an ally to the teacher framing the process so that a teacher can creatively and collaboratively find innovative ways to reach and teach their students. The Engineering Design Wheel for Teachers can help teachers to get organized, and the Engineering Design Quality Framework can help a teacher to self-assess the newly created activity