Identifying and understanding Indigenous cultural and spiritual strengths in the higher education experience of Indigenous women utilizing a culturally intrinsic research paradigm model

Native students have the highest drop out rate of any racial or ethnic group in the United States, exceeding 65% nationally (Hill, 1991, cited in Bowker, 1992). American Indian females have the highest drop out rate for all groups in the United States, male or female (Bowker, 1992). Of those American Indian students who do graduate and enroll in college, between 75% and 93% will leave college without completing (Hill, 1991, cited in Bowker, 1992).;Researchers have investigated causes for the continuing high dropout rates, the relationship between home environment and education, and socioeconomic factors affecting Indian students in their educational experience. Much of this research has been conducted by non-Natives within a non-culturally intrinsic view. In addition, no research has been conducted on how and why Indigenous people who have completed a higher education experience persisted and achieved their goals. In addition, very little research has been conducted about Indigenous girls and women relative to educational experience, and none relative to higher education.;This research, conducted by an Indigenous researcher, investigated the cultural and spiritual strengths within Indigenous worldviews and value systems that enabled Native women to persist and complete a higher education experience. As a vehicle for this research, a Culturally Intrinsic Research Paradigm Model was created, developed, and implemented. It is a conceptual framework based on tribe-specific ideologies, value systems, and ways of being in the world. It does not rely on Western thought of either quantitative or qualitative paradigms.;Findings from this study lead to the conclusion that the Native women participating in this research relied on traditional Indigenous sources of strength as contexutalized by tribe specific affinity. These sources of strength focus on (1) experiencing all facets of life, including higher education, as a spiritual journey, (2) drawing strength from Indigenous stories, metaphors, images, and historical traditions, and (3) identification and attachment to the traditional Indigenous roles of women within their Nations. Utilization of these cultural and spiritual strengths in individual and unique ways was the means whereby the Indigenous women in this study achieved their higher education goals

Modifying the Body: Canadian Men\u27s Perspectives on Appearance and Cosmetic Surgery

In postmodern scholarship there has been a temporal shift to thinking of the body as malleable rather than fixed, which has opened space for the remaking of the self via the remaking of the body (Featherstone, 1991; Giddens, 1991). Among men, this process is thought to interact with shifting understandings of masculinity. In this study, 14 interviews were conducted to investigate experiences of masculinity, physical appearance and cosmetic surgery among Canadian men who had undergone or were contemplating cosmetic surgery. Responses suggest that bodily presentations and experiences of masculinity continue to influence how people feel about themselves and their perspective toward cosmetic surgery. Findings are discussed in relation to contemporary constructions of masculinity, body, and identity

Diagnosis and management of Pneumocystis jirovecii infection

Introduction: Pneumocystis jirovecii is a ubiquitous fungus, which causes pneumonia in humans. Diagnosis was hampered by the inability to culture the organism, and based on microscopic examination of respiratory samples or clinical presentation. New assays can assist in the diagnosis and even aid with the emergence of resistant infections. Areas covered: This manuscript will provide background information on Pneumocystis pneumonia (PcP). Diagnosis, from radiological to non-microbiological (e.g. Lactate dehydrogenase) and microbiological investigations (Microscopy, PCR, β-D-Glucan) will be discussed. Recommendations on prophylactic and therapeutic management will be covered. Expert commentary: PcP diagnosis using microscopy is far from optimal and false negatives will occur. With an incidence of 1% or less, the pre-test probability of not having PcP is 99% and testing is suited to excluding disease. Microscopy provides a high degree of diagnostic confidence but it is not infallible, and its lower sensitivity limits its application. Newer diagnostics (PCR, β-D-Glucan) can aid management and improve performance when testing less invasive specimens, such as upper respiratory samples or blood, alleviating clinical pressure. Combination testing may allow PcP to be both diagnosed and excluded, and molecular testing can assist in the detection of emerging resistant PcP

Predicting invasive aspergillosis in haematology patients by combining clinical and genetic risk factors with early diagnostic biomarkers

The incidence of invasive aspergillosis (IA) in high risk haematology populations, is relatively low (79.1% in patients with four or more factors. Using a risk threshold of 50%, pre-emptive therapy would have been prescribed in 8.4% of the population

MicroR159 regulation of most conserved targets in Arabidopsis has negligible phenotypic effects

BACKGROUND A current challenge of microRNA (miRNA) research is the identification of biologically relevant miRNA:target gene relationships. In plants, high miRNA:target gene complementarity has enabled accurate target predictions, and slicing of target mRNAs has facilitated target validation through rapid amplification of 5' cDNA ends (5'-RACE) analysis. Together, these approaches have identified more than 20 targets potentially regulated by the deeply conserved miR159 family in Arabidopsis, including eight MYB genes with highly conserved miR159 target sites. However, genetic analysis has revealed the functional specificity of the major family members, miR159a and miR159b is limited to only two targets, MYB33 and MYB65. Here, we examine the functional role of miR159 regulation for the other potential MYB target genes. RESULTS For these target genes, functional analysis failed to identify miR159 regulation that resulted in any major phenotypic impact, either at the morphological or molecular level. This appears to be mainly due to the quiescent nature of the remaining family member, MIR159c. Although its expression overlaps in a temporal and spatial cell-specific manner with a subset of these targets in anthers, the abundance of miR159c is extremely low and concomitantly a mir159c mutant displays no anther defects. Examination of potential miR159c targets with conserved miR159 binding sites found neither their spatial or temporal expression domains appeared miR159 regulated, despite the detection of miR159-guided cleavage products by 5'-RACE. Moreover, expression of a miR159-resistant target (mMYB101) resulted predominantly in plants that are indistinguishable from wild type. Plants that displayed altered morphological phenotypes were found to be ectopically expressing the mMYB101 transgene, and hence were misrepresentative of the in vivo functional role of miR159. CONCLUSIONS This study presents a novel explanation for a paradox common to plant and animal miRNA systems, where among many potential miRNA-target relationships usually only a few appear physiologically relevant. The identification of a quiescent miR159c:target gene regulatory module in anthers provides a likely rationale for the presence of conserved miR159 binding sites in many targets for which miR159 regulation has no obvious functional role. Remnants from the demise of such modules may lead to an overestimation of miRNA regulatory complexity when investigated using bioinformatic, 5'-RACE or transgenic approaches.RSA was funded by an ANU postgraduate scholarship and by a CSIRO Emerging Science Initiative. JL is the recipient of an ANU international student postgraduate scholarship. This research was supported by an Australian Research Council grant DP0773270

An Online Educational Program Improves Pediatric Oncology Nurses’ Knowledge, Attitudes, and Spiritual Care Competence

This study evaluated the potential impact of an online spiritual care educational program on pediatric nurses’ attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and their competence to provide spiritual care to children with cancer at the end of life. It was hypothesized that the intervention would increase nurses’ positive attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and increase nurses’ level of perceived spiritual care competence. A positive correlation was expected between change in nurses’ perceived attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and change in nurses’ perceived spiritual care competence. A prospective, longitudinal design was employed, and analyses included one-way repeated-measures analysis of variance, linear regression, and partial correlation. Statistically significant differences were found in nurses’ attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and nurses’ perceived spiritual care competence. There was a positive relationship between change scores in nurses’ attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and nurses’ spiritual care competence. Online spiritual care educational programs may exert a lasting impact on nurses’ attitudes toward and knowledge of spiritual care and their competence to provide spiritual care to children with cancer at the end of life. Additional studies are required to evaluate the direct effects of educational interventions patient outcomes

Rapid and dynamic subcellular reorganization following mechanical stimulation of Arabidopsis epidermal cells mimics responses to fungal and oomycete attack

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Plant cells respond to the presence of potential fungal or oomycete pathogens by mounting a basal defence response that involves aggregation of cytoplasm, reorganization of cytoskeletal, endomembrane and other cell components and development of cell wall appositions beneath the infection site. This response is induced by non-adapted, avirulent and virulent pathogens alike, and in the majority of cases achieves penetration resistance against the microorganism on the plant surface. To explore the nature of signals that trigger this subcellular response and to determine the timing of its induction, we have monitored the reorganization of GFP-tagged actin, microtubules, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and peroxisomes in <it>Arabidopsis </it>plants – after touching the epidermal surface with a microneedle.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Within 3 to 5 minutes of touching the surface of <it>Arabidopsis </it>cotyledon epidermal cells with fine glass or tungsten needles, actin microfilaments, ER and peroxisomes began to accumulate beneath the point of contact with the needle. Formation of a dense patch of actin was followed by focusing of actin cables on the site of contact. Touching the cell surface induced localized depolymerization of microtubules to form a microtubule-depleted zone surrounding a dense patch of GFP-tubulin beneath the needle tip. The concentration of actin, GFP-tubulin, ER and peroxisomes remained focused on the contact site as the needle moved across the cell surface and quickly dispersed when the needle was removed.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our results show that plant cells can detect the gentle pressure of a microneedle on the epidermal cell surface and respond by reorganizing subcellular components in a manner similar to that induced during attack by potential fungal or oomycete pathogens. The results of our study indicate that during plant-pathogen interactions, the basal defence response may be induced by the plant's perception of the physical force exerted by the pathogen as it attempts to invade the epidermal cell surface.</p

Cenozoic evolution of the eastern Black Sea: a test of depth-dependent stretching models

Subsidence analysis of the eastern Black Sea basin suggests that the stratigraphy of this deep, extensional basin can be explained by a predominantly pure-shear stretching history. A strain-rate inversion method that assumes pure-shear extension obtains good fits between observed and predicted stratigraphy. A relatively pure-shear strain distribution is also obtained when a strain-rate inversion algorithm is applied that allows extension to vary with depth without assuming its existence or form. The timing of opening of the eastern Black Sea, which occupied a back-arc position during the closure of the Tethys Ocean, has also been a subject of intense debate; competing theories called for basin opening during the Jurassic, Cretaceous or Paleocene/Eocene. Our work suggests that extension likely continued into the early Cenozoic, in agreement with stratigraphic relationships onshore and with estimates for the timing of arc magmatism. Further basin deepening also appears to have occurred in the last 20 myr. This anomalous subsidence event is focused in the northern part of the basin and reaches its peak at 15–10 Ma. We suggest that this comparatively localized shortening is associated with the northward movement of the Arabian plate. We also explore the effects of paleowater depth and elastic thickness on the results. These parameters are controversial, particularly for deep-water basins and margins, but their estimation is a necessary step in any analysis of the tectonic subsidence record stored in stratigraphy. <br/

Soldiers\u27 dream continued : a pictorial history of Lincoln University of Missouri

Pictorial history of Lincoln University of Missouri from 1866-1980s.https://bluetigercommons.lincolnu.edu/lu_history_book/1000/thumbnail.jp

Opportunity, ethnicity, gender, and CPA exam performance

Given the preeminence of the CPA certification as a measure of professional achievement and a critical element to advancement in the profession, as well as the concerns over lack of diversity in the accounting profession (AICPA 2017), a key policy question is how to improve candidates’ performance on the CPA exam. In this paper, we examine the role of educational and environmental (socioeconomic and segregation) factors representing opportunity, as well as gender and ethnicity (as defined by the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy), on the CPA exam performance. To accomplish this, we first document CPA exam performance across various demographic, educational, and environmental factors. We then develop several multivariate models to understand the influence of various educational and environmental factors representing opportunity on the CPA exam performance of these groups. Finally, we springboard from our findings to offer suggestions to educators, professional firms, and CPA societies, to implement new, or modify current, programs to meet the profession’s need for more qualified CPAs and its diversity/inclusion goals