Wayne Vander Schaaf Letter

A letter from a former student of Theora England, Wayne Vander Schaaf, given to her on her retirement.https://nwcommons.nwciowa.edu/theorareflections/1022/thumbnail.jp

Country of the Risen King: An Anthology of Christian Poetry (Book Review)

Reviewed Title: The Country of the Risen King: An Anthology of Christian Poetry. Compiler, Merle Meeter. Baker Book House. 446 pp

An Investigation into Three Dimensional Probabilistic Polyforms

Polyforms are created by taking squares, equilateral triangles, and regular hexagons and placing them side by side to generate larger shapes. This project addressed three-dimensional polyforms and focused on cubes. I investigated the probabilities of certain shape outcomes to discover what these probabilities could tell us about the polyforms’ characteristics and vice versa. From my findings, I was able to derive a formula for the probability of two different polyform patterns which add to a third formula found prior to my research. In addition, I found the probability that 8 cubes randomly attached together one by one would form a 2x2x2 cube. Finally, I discovered a strong correlation between the probability of a polyform and its number of exposed edges, and I noticed a possible relationship between a polyform’s probability and its graph representation

The Factors Shaping NC Health Choice and its Relationship with Community Care of North Carolina

American policy governing children's health services changed in 1997 with the passage of legislation mandating that each state create a government-run health insurance program aimed at providing health care coverage for children of families earning too much to qualify for Medicaid and not enough to be able to independently purchase private insurance. (Lambrew 2007) States were afforded flexibility to develop a program that fit these simple criteria and some federal funding would be provided to states based on an algorithm using the state's number of uninsured children and average state income level (Gitterman et al. 2007). Out of a broad constellation of political and contextual variables, North Carolina developed and implemented NC Health Choice (NCHC) in 1998. This was a separate block-grant program; the state was not mandated to enroll eligible children if sufficient funding was not available. It would serve children from birth to age 18 in families earning between 100 and 200% of the federal poverty limit (FPL). It was also to be administered by the State Health Plan (SHP) and paid by a third-party payer, Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC). Over the subsequent decade, NCHC changed in response to internal or external pressures (Gitterman et al. 2007). Community Care of North Carolina (CCNC) is a care management program first piloted in 1988 and implemented statewide on North Carolina Medicaid patients in 2006. The program is divided into fourteen networks across the state, each striving to maximize health benefits and reduce costs. These networks utilize care managers to promote appropriate health behaviors amongst individual higher-risk or chronic patients. Care managers are intended to ensure that their patients understand treatment regimens as well as appropriate utilization of specialist and emergency room care. The networks also fuel population-based efforts to reduce overall spending, such as requiring prior authorization for prescribing brand name medications over generic ones. In compensation for this added effort, and to reward providers for creating healthier patients, physicians and networks are given a per-member-per month(PMPM) fee.(CCNC Website; Steiner et al. 2008, 361; Willson 2005, 229-233). Studies have shown CCNC to be highly effective at improving health outcomes while reducing state cost. CCNC reports a 21% increase in the numbers of asthmatic patients who have been staged and a 112% increase in asthmatics receiving the flu vaccine. In addition, asthmatics enrolled in CCNC had an average of 34% fewer hospital admissions and 8% fewer emergency department visits than did controls. The Mercer Human Resources Counseling Group projected that CCNC's strategies would produce savings of $60 million dollars in 2003,$124 million in 2004, and $231 in 2005 and 2006.(CCNC Website) As a result, North Carolina's unique solution to creating Medicaid medical homes has been widely touted as a success both locally and nationally. With such an obviously successful structure for managing and improving care in place, would it not be reasonable to expect that state policymakers would extend CCNC 's portfolio to include NCHC children as well? In 2007, the General Assembly enacted the necessary enabling legislation to make CCNC responsible for managing the care of NCHC recipients. Beginning in March of 2007, NCHC was still administered by SHP and paid for by BCBSNC, but care managers and CCNC networks were to manage the patients' health. In July of 2009, however, the General Assembly reversed course, removing NCHC recipients from CCNC management.(Gitterman et al. 2007; Sack 2009, 1) This study examines the political and circumstantial factors that contributed to the development of the initial NCHC program and shaped its subsequent triumphs and troubles. It also examines the role of these and other factors in the relationship between NCHC and CCNC, including what may have led to the decision to include- and later remove- NCHC under CCNC care management.Master of Public Healt

Association of Picky Eating and Food Neophobia with Weight: A Systematic Review

Background: Picky eating and food neophobia are common during childhood. Childhood eating behaviors are often predictive of adult eating behaviors

The environment and physical activity: The influence of psychosocial, perceived and built environmental factors

This study sought to integrate perceived and built environmental and individual factors into the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) model to better understand adolescents' physical activity

Chemoorganotrophic Bacteria From Lake Fryxell, Antarctica, Including Pseudomonas Strain LFY10, a Cold-Adapted, Halotolerant Bacterium Useful in Teaching Labs

Lake Fryxell, situated in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, is an intriguing aquatic ecosystem because of its perennial ice cover, highly stratified water column, and extreme physicochemical conditions, which collectively restrict lake biodiversity to solely microbial forms. To expand our current understanding of the cultivable biodiversity of Lake Fryxell, water samples were collected from depths of 10 and 17 m, and pure cultures of eight diverse strains of aerobic, chemoorganotrophic bacteria were obtained. Despite having high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to mesophilic bacteria inhabiting various temperate environments, all Lake Fryxell isolates were psychrotolerant, with growth occurring at 0°C and optimal growth from 18–24°C for all isolates. Phylogenetic analyses showed the isolates to be members of six taxonomic groups, including the genera Brevundimonas, Arthrobacter, Sphingobium, Leifsonia, and Pseudomonas, as well as the family Microbacteriaceae (one strain could not reliably be assigned to a specific genus based on our analysis). Pseudomonas strain LFY10 stood out as a useful tool for teaching laboratory activities because of its substantial cold adaptation (visible growth is evident in 1–2 days at 4°C), beta-hemolytic activity, and halotolerance to 8.5% (w/v) NaCl. These cold-adapted bacteria likely play a role in carbon mineralization and other nutrient cycling in Lake Fryxell, and their characterization broadens our understanding of microbial biodiversity in aquatic polar ecosystems

Feasibility, design and conduct of a pragmatic randomized controlled trial to reduce overweight and obesity in children: The electronic games to aid motivation to exercise (eGAME) study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in developed countries. Sedentary screen-based activities such as video gaming are thought to displace active behaviors and are independently associated with obesity. Active video games, where players physically interact with images onscreen, may have utility as a novel intervention to increase physical activity and improve body composition in children. The aim of the Electronic Games to Aid Motivation to Exercise (eGAME) study is to determine the effects of an active video game intervention over 6 months on: body mass index (BMI), percent body fat, waist circumference, cardio-respiratory fitness, and physical activity levels in overweight children.</p> <p>Methods/Design</p> <p>Three hundred and thirty participants aged 10–14 years will be randomized to receive either an active video game upgrade package or to a control group (no intervention).</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>An overview of the eGAME study is presented, providing an example of a large, pragmatic randomized controlled trial in a community setting. Reflection is offered on key issues encountered during the course of the study. In particular, investigation into the feasibility of the proposed intervention, as well as robust testing of proposed study procedures is a critical step prior to implementation of a large-scale trial.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12607000632493</p