Health care in Saskatoon's inner city : a comparative study of native and non-native utilization patterns

Report: vi, 52 p., charts, digital fileThis report presents an overview of the findings of the "Westside Clinic-Friendship Inn" exploratory study into the health care utilization patterns of urban Native and non-Native people in the west core area of Saskatoon. The focus of the research was upon Native utilization patterns and a general hypothesis was formulated, guided by the existing literature, that suggested that Natives tend to "underutilize" or "inappropriately" utilize urban health care facilities and services in relation to non-Natives. Pragmatic in design, the intent of the research was to investigate this hypothesis as well as to provide a data base and recommendations that would contribute to an improvement in health care delivery in the west core area of downtown Saskatoon.University of Saskatchewan President's SSHRCC research progra

Supersymmetric AdS_5 solutions of M-theory

We analyse the most general supersymmetric solutions of D=11 supergravity consisting of a warped product of five-dimensional anti-de-Sitter space with a six-dimensional Riemannian space M_6, with four-form flux on M_6. We show that M_6 is partly specified by a one-parameter family of four-dimensional Kahler metrics. We find a large family of new explicit regular solutions where M_6 is a compact, complex manifold which is topologically a two-sphere bundle over a four-dimensional base, where the latter is either (i) Kahler-Einstein with positive curvature, or (ii) a product of two constant-curvature Riemann surfaces. After dimensional reduction and T-duality, some solutions in the second class are related to a new family of Sasaki-Einstein spaces which includes T^{1,1}/Z_2. Our general analysis also covers warped products of five-dimensional Minkowski space with a six-dimensional Riemannian space.Comment: 40 pages. v2: minor changes, eqs. (2.22) and (D.12) correcte

Supersymmetric AdS_5 Solutions of Type IIB Supergravity

We analyse the most general bosonic supersymmetric solutions of type IIB supergravity whose metrics are warped products of five-dimensional anti-de Sitter space AdS_5 with a five-dimensional Riemannian manifold M_5. All fluxes are allowed to be non-vanishing consistent with SO(4,2) symmetry. We show that the necessary and sufficient conditions can be phrased in terms of a local identity structure on M_5. For a special class, with constant dilaton and vanishing axion, we reduce the problem to solving a second order non-linear ODE. We find an exact solution of the ODE which reproduces a solution first found by Pilch and Warner. A numerical analysis of the ODE reveals an additional class of local solutions.Comment: 33 page

Superconducting phases of f-electron compounds

Intermetallic compounds containing f-electron elements display a wealth of superconducting phases, that are prime candidates for unconventional pairing with complex order parameter symmetries. For instance, superconductivity has been found at the border of magnetic order as well as deep within ferro- and antiferromagnetically ordered states, suggesting that magnetism may promote rather than destroy superconductivity. Superconductivity near valence transitions, or in the vicinity of magneto-polar order are candidates for new superconductive pairing interactions such as fluctuations of the conduction electron density or the crystal electric field, respectively. The experimental status of the study of the superconducting phases of f-electron compounds is reviewed.Comment: Rev. Mod. Phys. in print; 75 pages, 23 figures; comments welcom

Climate-sensitive health priorities in Nunatsiavut, Canada

Background: This exploratory study used participatory methods to identify, characterize, and rank climate-sensitive health priorities in Nunatsiavut, Labrador, Canada. Methods: A mixed method study design was used and involved collecting both qualitative and quantitative data at regional, community, and individual levels. In-depth interviews with regional health representatives were conducted throughout Nunatsiavut (n = 11). In addition, three PhotoVoice workshops were held with Rigolet community members (n = 11), where participants took photos of areas, items, or concepts that expressed how climate change is impacting their health. The workshop groups shared their photographs, discussed the stories and messages behind them, and then grouped photos into re-occurring themes. Two community surveys were administered in Rigolet to capture data on observed climatic and environmental changes in the area, and perceived impacts on health, wellbeing, and lifestyles (n = 187). Results: Climate-sensitive health pathways were described in terms of inter-relationships between environmental and social determinants of Inuit health. The climate-sensitive health priorities for the region included food security, water security, mental health and wellbeing, new hazards and safety concerns, and health services and delivery. Conclusions: The results highlight several climate-sensitive health priorities that are specific to the Nunatsiavut region, and suggest approaching health research and adaptation planning from an EcoHealth perspective

TRY plant trait database – enhanced coverage and open access

Plant traits - the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants - determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait‐based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits - almost complete coverage for ‘plant growth form’. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait–environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives

Ethnostatus Distinctions in the Western Canadian Subarctic: Implications for Inter-Ethnic and Interpersonal Relations

Subarctic ethnologists have rarely considered the implications of legal Indian and treaty status in their examinations of inter-ethnic and interpersonal relations. Utilizing the concept of ethnostatus, the author argues that Native identity must be seen as the product of the interplay between both cultural and legal/treaty status factors. Ethnostatus identities present themselves differently in different social, economic and political contexts. Inter-ethnic and interpersonal relations, therefore, are only partially governed by cultural factors, and in certain contexts the legal status of the role players seems to be paramount. Examples from the ethnographic literature are presented to support this argument.Les ethnologues de la région subarctique ont rarement considéré les implications des statuts d’Indien légal et de traité dans l’examen des relations inter-ethniques et interpersonnelles. Au moyen du concept d’ethno-statut, l’auteur entend démontrer que l’identité du Natif doit être perçue comme le produit de l’effet réciproque des facteurs culturels et de ceux associés au statut légal/traité. Les identités ethno-statutaire se présentent différemment selon qu’il s’agisse de contextes social, économique ou politique. Les relations inter-ethnique et interpersonnelle, donc, ne sont que partiellement gouvernées par les facteurs culturels et, dans certains contextes, le statut légal des intervenants prédomine. Des exemples de la littérature ethnographique sont présentés pour étoffer cette discussion

Aboriginal Healing in Canada: Studies in Therapeutic Meaning and Practice

The healing movement among Aboriginal people in Canada is perhaps the most profound example of social reformation since Confederation. The efforts to restabilize Aboriginal societies after centuries of damaging government policies continue to revitalize individuals and communities that, in turn, contribute to a healthy and vibrant future

Participatory Ethnographic Film: Video Advocacy and Engagement with Q’eqchi’ Maya Medical Practitioners in Belize

There continues to be significant debate about what constitutes an “ethnographic film.” Contemporary standards for production require large budgets and sophisticated film crews, and as a result marginalizes those films produced at the local level designed to meet local needs. This article documents the process of creating a participatory ethnographic film at the behest of a group of Q’eqchi’ Maya medical practitioners in Belize. From conception through to the approval of the final cut and distribution, the project was directed by the practitioners and executed on a shoestring budget and ‘in kind’ contributions.  I argue that the genre of ethnographic film must accommodate local level aesthetic sensibilities about what constitutes a “good” representation of cultural issues, and consider the nature of the intended audience, thereby allowing space for a collaborative filmmaking process attendant to the world of the participants rather than that of international film festivals