Home Ownership in Philadelphia: On the Decline

This report finds that Philadelphia's long tradition of high homeownership is changing. From 2000 to 2012, homeownership declined in this city as well as others across the United States. But the drop has been more pronounced in Philadelphia, with sections of Northeast Philadelphia recording the biggest decreases. The decline, which has been accompanied by an increase in renting, is largely due to stagnant incomes, rising home prices, tight credit standards for mortgages, and shifting attitudes toward buying a home, particularly among the city's growing number of young adult residents. Also examined in the report are the changing demographics of owner-occupants in Philadelphia and its neighborhoods, including the share of homes owned by low-income residents and families, and those owned free and clear, without mortgages

Shuttered Public Schools: The Struggle to Bring Old Buildings New Life

Large-scale public school closures have become a fact of life in many American cities, and that trend is not likely to stop now. This report looks at what happens to the buildings themselves, studying the experiences of Philadelphia and 11 other cities that have decommissioned large numbers of schools in recent years: Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Mo., Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Tulsa and Washington

Palestinian Refugees in Gaza

Events since Arthur Helton\u27s death - including the change in leadership of the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli proposal for disengagement from Gaza make it even timelier to examine some practical solutions. For improving Palestinian lives in the short term, much can be learned from the approaches taken in other refugee situations. This Article begins with background information on Palestinian refugees in Gaza. It then discusses Israeli plans for disengagement from Gaza. In the following section, the Article reviews options for addressing the problems faced by Palestinian refugees in Gaza, utilizing the broader literature devoted to the integration of refugees and displaced persons in post-conflict and post-occupation societies. It concludes with an agenda of action for the international community, Palestinian Authority, and Israel

\u3ci\u3eAbrum\u27s Tale\u3c/i\u3e

It was dusk again, and the alien sun had been particularly scorching. Abrum had gone for a swim to cool off

Shaping Academic Success: Understanding the Interrelationship Between Intelligence Beliefs, Motivation, Learning, and Achievement

The findings of recent studies in the area of achievement indicate that the motivation to learn contributes to academic success, apart from intelligence, individually and significantly. While the early motivational theorists concluded that cognitive skills and abilities were factors of intelligence, and that behavioral and psychosocial attributes were factors of motivation, the more contemporary motivational researchers have found that the belief one holds about intelligence influences both cognition and behavior, more powerfully than previously estimated. Presented here are the main social cognitive components of motivation: (a) competence beliefs and self-efficacy, (b) attributions, (c) intrinsic motivation, and (d) achievement goals. The research on each of these components was reviewed, along with its relationship to academic achievement, based upon which suggestions are offered for instruction and assessment. The goal of this project is to provide a useful means by which student motivation might be increased and achievement improved, thereby shaping student success. This project includes an Instructional Booklet for Educators, including Learning Motivation and Academic Achievement Models, which were designed by the author to inform teachers of the ways in which beliefs about the nature of intelligence (i.e., those of students, teachers, and parents) affect academic achievement. In addition, this booklet may guide educators in instructional and classroom design, along with the informal assessment of intelligence beliefs, which they may use to shape academic achievement through the feedback and the developmental actions that foster motivation and learning, immediately and continually

Role of the endothelium and COX-1 in prostacyclin generation by whole vessels stimulated with different agonists

Prostacyclin is an important cardioprotective hormone produced by the vascular wall, whose synthesis is dependent on cyclo-oxygenase (COX) enzymes. In healthy vessels the endothelium is thought to be the main site of prostacyclin release (Moncada et al 1977). Two isoforms of COX exist, and we have recently published data demonstrating that it is COX-1 rather than COX-2 that drives the production of prostacyclin in mouse aorta (Kirkby et al 2012). In this study we aimed to extend these observations by investigating what proportion of the COX-1 driven aortic prostacyclin production that comes from the endothelium versus the rest of the vessel wall (smooth muscle layers and adventitia). To do this, we explored how removal of the endothelium would influence the ability of aortic tissue to release prostacyclin in response to a range of agonists that are known to activate the endothelium and the vessel wallNon peer reviewe

Role of COX-1 and COX-2 in the release of prostanoids in murine lung and isolated lung fibroblasts

Cyclooxygenase (COX) is the first enzyme in the conversion of arachidonic acid to prostanoids. There are two isoforms of COX; COX-1, which is constitutively expressed with a homeostatic role in most tissues, and COX-2, which while constitutively expressed in some discreet sites is generally inducible by growth factors and during inflammation. In the current study, we have used tissues and cells from knock-out mice to investigate the relative contributions of COX-1 and COX-2 to PGE2 production by lung tissue ex vivo and by proliferating lung fibroblasts in vitro. Lung tissues from WT (C57Bl6), COX-1-/- and COX-2-/- mice were immediately dissected (<15 min after death) and incubated (37 °C) for 30 min in DMEM containing 50 µM calcium ionophore (A23187). Release of PGE2 was determined by competitive immunoassay. In parallel studies, murine lung fibroblasts from COX-1-/- and COX-2-/- mice were explanted and cultured before being seeded in 96-well plates at sub-confluence (5000-8000/well) and incubated for 24-48 hours in the presence of 10% FCS. Accumulated release of PGE2 was then measured as above. Over 30 min PGE2 was released by lung pieces from wild type (1117 ± 55 pg/ml) and COX-2-/- (2013 ± 255 pg/ml) but not from COX-1-/- (<61pg/ml) mice (n=4). In contrast, proliferating lung fibroblasts from COX-1-/- (4978.9 ± 1392 pg/ml) mice released higher levels of PGE2 than cells from COX-2-/- (1194 ± 617 ng/ml) mice (n=4 using cells from 2-3 separate mice for each genotype). These results show that COX-1 activity underpins the stimulated release of PGE2 in healthy mouse lung tissue. Conversely, COX-2 activity predominates in proliferating lung fibroblasts, which may be important as COX-derived PGE2 mediates proliferation of lung fibroblasts (Trends Immunol.2004;25(1):40-6). Our results suggest a switch in COX isoform in lung cells during proliferation which could be relevant to our understanding of conditions such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.Non peer reviewedFinal Accepted Versio

Los planes de adaptación nacionales y la movilidad humana

Para evitar el desplazamiento en la medida de lo posible, los asuntos relacionados con éste y con la movilidad humana deben integrarse mejor dentro de los procesos nacionales y regionales de planificación para la adaptación

Influences of lifelong learning on adults' expectations and experiences of returning to formal learning contexts

This multi-site qualitative study focused on mature students'\ud meanings for and experiences of learning inside and outside formal\ud education. Its purpose was to ascertain how influences of lifelong\ud learning shape adults' expectations and experiences of returning to a\ud formal learning situation after a gap of at least three years. Eight\ud cycles of inquiry were guided by continual data analysis. Sources for\ud data collection and analysis during cycles 1-7, involving 48\ud participants, included life story interviews with 3S; group\ud interviews with 21, 11 of whom were also seen individually or in\ud pairs; conversations with students; written material; reflexive\ud field notes. Two cycles involved follow ups of participants who had\ud moved to another formal learning situation. Additional groups of adult\ud learners were used in Cycle 8 to check meaningfulness and credibility\ud of the final data analysis. In Cycles 1-7, adults spoke from the\ud vantage points of 55 different formal learning situations, 48 of which\ud were in higher education. The majority of participants are identified\ud as 'non-traditional' in the higher education literature.\ud The final analysis is presented in four main sections: learning\ud during the initial school years; learning as an adult outside formal\ud education; expectations of and transitions to formal learning\ud contexts; experiences of formal learning situations, and especially\ud higher education. An additional section summarises checks for\ud meaningfulness and credibility of the final data analysis with study\ud and non-study participants. The notion of 'disjunction and\ud integration' serves to organise the final analysis. Learning\ud experiences characterised by disjunction or integration are seen to\ud shape a sense of 'learner identity and possibility' in particular\ud ways. These sensitising concepts provide a way of illuminating the\ud situation of adult learners from a perspective not currently found in\ud the literature relating to access and mature students. The\ud implications of study outcomes are considered with respect to current\ud concerns to widen access to British higher education