A Complicated Story, An Unsolved Mystery : An Experiment in Poetry and the Ethics of Representation

The New York Juvenile Asylum, founded in 1851, was one of New York’s first institutional responses to the problems associated with the poor. It, and the theories of asylum that undergird the institution, still exist today in the form of Children’s Village. The location of Children’s Village, located just a few hundred yards from my home, prompted me to consider the distance between my family and the children who reside at Children’s Village; between my historical context and that of the children who resided at the New York Juvenile Asylum - and their parents who surrendered them there; and between my situation and theirs, bridgeable or unbridgeable through my capacity for empathy and imagination. This project attempts to understand and deepen my relationship to the children surrendered to the New York Juvenile Asylum and their parents by: considering the theory of the ethics of representation in literature; researching the historical and theoretical context for the New York Juvenile Asylum; and crafting a series of poems in the persona of the children surrendered to the New York Juvenile Asylum and their parents

Effects of Culverts on Brook Trout Genetic Diversity

Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) are a species of concern within their native range due to a historical loss of habitat, overfishing, and stocking of non-native salmonids. Road culverts have been recognized as an additional impediment to population persistence as movement between diverse habitat types has been identified as an alternative life-history strategy to maximize spawning and growth. Brook trout were genetically analyzed using a suite of 13 microsatellite loci above 7 culverts with varying levels of passability classified through a physical protocol. While most sites were not found to have losses in genetic diversity, populations above culverts with a high outlet drop were found to have significant population differentiation when compared to streams with passable culverts and streams without culverts. Additionally, restoration of an impassable road culvert on a second order stream (Beaver Creek) occurred in June 2011, potentially reestablishing connectivity between brook trout populations. Genetic assignment to 18 potential source populations identified 24 individuals (63%), of which six (25%) were found to be from source populations other than Beaver Creek within one year post restoration. The results of this study emphasize the importance of uninterrupted connection between populations and highlight the success of such restoration projects

John Wesley\u27s Use of the Atonement

Even though John Wesley claimed that the atonement was crucial to his theology, he never articulated a systematic theory of the atonement. This paper explores the way in which the atonement functions within his theology as the best approach for deciphering his understanding of the atonement as a foundational concept for his moral theology. The cross functions in his via salutis in two ways. It plays a substitutionary role in the removal of sin and guilt and has a participatory function, through the work of the Holy Spirit, to affect holiness in the life of the believer. These aspects of the atonement are seen in his sermons, New Testament Notes, and the hymns he selected

Having impact and doing it quickly: the place for brief and single-session cognitive-behavioral therapies in sport psychology practice

Cognitive-behavioral therapies and related approaches are highly prevalent within sport psychology practice. Traditionally, these approaches are delivered across interventions comprising multiple sessions. However, in the fast-paced environments in which many applied sport psychologists operate, practitioners are sometimes required to provide fast, effective, and impactful interventions to athletes at their point of need within a single session. Single-session integrated cognitive-behavioral therapy presents a potentially effective approach for practice wherein time is often at a premium, and there is frequently pressure to make an impact quickly to improve performance. In this article, we put forward a stimulus piece that contextualizes single-session integrated cognitive-behavioral therapy and overviews how sport psychology practitioners may use such techniques with athletes. We also put forth a call for more practitioners to report more idiographic case studies that feature the use of brief or single-session interventions to further build the evidence base for such approaches

Westlock Grain Terminals : A Case Study

This presentation to the 2009 symposium of the BC-Alberta Social Economy Research Alliance (BALTA) reports on a case study of Westlock Grain Terminals, a new generation co-operative in Alberta, Canada.BC-Alberta Social Economy Research Alliance (BALTA) ; Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) ; Alberta Community and Co-operative Association (ACCA) ; Athabasca University ; Canadian Centre for Community Renewa

Westlock Grain Terminals : A Case Study

This is a case study of Westlock Grain Terminals, a very successful new generation co-operative located in Westlock, Alberta. In 2002, when the community found out that their grain terminal was going to be sold, they rallied together to raise more than $1.2 million to purchase the terminal as a community owned venture. Since then, the co-op has paid a healthy dividend on its shares to members and investors every year and are following through on plans to continually expand their grain handling capacity. Its success was a result of the vision and dedication of a small group of farmers, with the support of other key individuals. The experience of Westlock Terminals has lessons to offer to any community faced with the loss of a major economic asset.BC-Alberta Social Economy Research Alliance (BALTA) ; Alberta Community and Co-operative Association (ACCA) ; Athabasca University ; Canadian Centre for Community Renewal ; Rural and Co-operatives Secretariat's Co-operative Development Initiative, Government of Canad

Distinguishing Social from Nonsocial Navigation in Moving Animal Groups

Many animals, such as migrating shoals of fish, navigate in groups. Knowing the mechanisms involved in animal navigation is important when it comes to explaining navigation accuracy, dispersal patterns, population and evolutionary dynamics, and consequently, the design of conservation strategies. When navigating toward a common target, animals could interact socially by sharing available information directly or indirectly, or each individual could navigate by itself and aggregations may not disperse because all animals are moving toward the same target. Here we present an analysis technique that uses individual movement trajectories to determine the extent to which individuals in navigating groups interact socially, given knowledge of their target. The basic idea of our approach is that the movement directions of individuals arise from a combination of responses to the environment and to other individuals. We estimate the relative importance of these responses, distinguishing between social and nonsocial interactions. We develop and test our method, using simulated groups, and we demonstrate its applicability to empirical data in a case study on groups of guppies moving toward shelter in a tank. Our approach is generic and can be extended to different scenarios of animal group movement. © 2012 by The University of Chicago

Valorising nutrient-rich digestate: Dilution, settlement and membrane filtration processing for optimisation as a waste-based media for microalgal cultivation

Digestate produced from the anaerobic digestion of food and farm waste is primarily returned to land as a biofertiliser for crops, with its potential to generate value through alternative processing methods at present under explored. In this work, valorisation of a digestate resulting from the treatment of kitchen and food waste was investigated, using dilution, settlement and membrane processing technology. Processed digestate was subsequently tested as a nutrient source for the cultivation of Chlorella vulgaris, up to pilot-scale (800L). Dilution of digestate down to 2.5% increased settlement rate and induced release of valuable compounds for fertiliser usage such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Settlement, as a partial processing of digestate offered a physical separation of liquid and solid fractions at a low cost. Membrane filtration demonstrated efficient segregation of nutrients, with micro-filtration recovering 92.38% of phosphorus and the combination of micro-filtration, ultra-filtration, and nano-filtration recovering a total of 94.35% of nitrogen from digestate. Nano-filtered and micro-filtered digestates at low concentrations were suitable substrates to support growth of Chlorella vulgaris. At pilot-scale, the microalgae grew successfully for 28 days with a maximum growth rate of 0.62 day−1 and dry weight of 0.86 g⋅L−1. Decline in culture growth beyond 28 days was presumably linked to ammonium and heavy metal accumulation in the cultivation medium. Processed digestate provided a suitable nutrient source for successful microalgal cultivation at pilot-scale, evidencing potential to convert excess nutrients into biomass, generating value from excess digestate and providing additional markets to the anaerobic digestion sector

The UK myotonic dystrophy patient registry: facilitating and accelerating clinical research

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is the most frequent muscular dystrophy worldwide with complex, multi-systemic, and progressively worsening symptoms. There is currently no treatment for this inherited disorder and research can be challenging due to the rarity and variability of the disease. The UK Myotonic Dystrophy Patient Registry is a patient self-enrolling online database collecting clinical and genetic information. For this cross-sectional “snapshot” analysis, 556 patients with a confirmed diagnosis of DM1 registered between May 2012 and July 2016 were included. An almost even distribution was seen between genders and a broad range of ages was present from 8 months to 78 years, with the largest proportion between 30 and 59 years. The two most frequent symptoms were fatigue and myotonia, reported by 79 and 78% of patients, respectively. The severity of myotonia correlated with the severity of fatigue as well as mobility impairment, and dysphagia occurred mostly in patients also reporting myotonia. Men reported significantly more frequent severe myotonia, whereas severe fatigue was more frequently reported by women. Cardiac abnormalities were diagnosed in 48% of patients and more than one-third of them needed a cardiac implant. Fifteen percent of patients used a non-invasive ventilation and cataracts were removed in 26% of patients, 65% of which before the age of 50 years. The registry’s primary aim was to facilitate and accelerate clinical research. However, these data also allow us to formulate questions for hypothesis-driven research that may lead to improvements in care and treatment

Identification of Genes Involved in Lipid Biosynthesis through de novo Transcriptome Assembly from Cocos nucifera Developing Endosperm

Cocos nucifera (coconut), a member of the Arecaceae family, is an economically important woody palm that is widely grown in tropical and subtropical regions. The coconut palm is well known for its ability to accumulate large amounts of oil, approximately 63% of the seed weight. Coconut oil varies significantly from other vegetable oils as it contains a high proportion of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFA; 85%). The unique composition of coconut oil raises interest in understanding how the coconut palm produces oil of a high saturated MCFA content, and if such an oil profile could be replicated via biotechnology interventions. Although some gene discovery work has been performed there is still a significant gap in the knowledge associated with coconut’s oil production pathways. In this study, a de novo transcriptome was assembled for developing coconut endosperm to identify genes involved in the synthesis of lipids, particularly triacylglycerol. Of particular interest were thioesterases, acyltransferases and oleosins because of their involvement in the processes of releasing fatty acids for assembly, esterification of fatty acids into glycerolipids and protecting oils from degradation, respectively. It is hypothesized that some of these genes may exhibit a strong substrate preference for MCFA and hence may assist the future development of vegetable oils with an enriched MCFA composition. In this study, we identified and confirmed functionality of five candidate genes from the gene families of interest. This study will benefit future work in areas of increasing vegetable oil production and the tailoring of oil fatty acid compositions