Oral History Interview: Rae Ann Parsons

This interview is one of a series conducted concerning West Virginia communities, focusing on Ceredo. At the time of the interview, Rae Ann Parsons was the secretary of the First Baptist Church in Ceredo. She discusses: her family; different pastors of the church (such as Robert Davis and Dr. Armstrong); church programs; age and class differences in the church; the church\u27s mission; raising money for a new building; church events; church deacons; and how the church has changed over the years.https://mds.marshall.edu/oral_history/1292/thumbnail.jp

The development of thirty self-administering and self-scoring elaborative thinking exercises

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

HEALTHCARE NEEDS AND FACTORS RELATED TO NON-USE/UNDERUTILIZATION OF VETERANS HEALTHCARE ADMINISTRATION (VHA) HEALTH SERVICES ENTITLEMENTS BY POST 9/11 WOMEN VETERANS

Ph.D

Passing the time: the lives of women in a northern industrial town

Newfoundlanders are generally familiar with both the idea of working in the north and with towns built by resource-extracting companies to house workers and their families. Not as well known is what the experience of migration to the north and life in such a single-industry town is like, particularly for women. This thesis examines that experience, presenting data collected during a two month period of interviews with a sample of female residents from Labrador City. -- Relying heavily on a phenomenological tradition of ethnography, the author attempted to allow her respondents to define the aspects of their lives which were of salient importance to their own sense of well-being. This data was then organized and interpreted to bring out the features of migration and subsequent residence in Labrador City which are particularly crucial for women's happiness and to emphasize the strategies which they use to cope with their problems. -- The thesis devotes attention, in particular, to early efforts to recruit women to Labrador City, to female migration experience and its motivation, and to women's problems related to the demographic, economic and even climatic features of life in a northern, single-industry town. - Women have quite different experiences in northern industrial towns than do men. This is the focus of the following text, which examines the attractions and difficulties women have found in living in Labrador City and the solutions they've devised for coping

Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy of wet chemically synthesized porous graphene nanoribbons on hydrogen passivated silicon (100)

This dissertation investigates wet-chemically synthesized atomically precise porous graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) exfoliated onto hydrogen passivated silicon H:Si(100) substrates using a dry contact transfer (DCT) method under ultrahigh-vacuum (UHV) conditions. The porous GNRs are characterized in UHV using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS). A unique electronic feature is observed at the pore sites in the STM topographic images. STS measurements indicate the presence of the pores significantly increases the bandgap compared to the surrounding GNR material. First-principles density functional theory (DFT) simulations are used to predict the band structure for the porous GNR. This is compared to theoretical simulations of the non-porous GNR case in order to elucidate how the addition of the pore to the GNR affects the electronic structure. Experimental results and first-principles computation modeling were shown to be in good agreement. Atomically precise GNRs with strategically placed pores expand the possibilities for applications in single-molecule detection and selectivity, including desalination and DNA sequencing

Lived experiences of binge eating and access to care in the New Zealand health system : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Psychology (Health Psychology) at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand

This research inquiry sought to explore lived experiences of binge eating in New Zealand. Previous narrative research on eating disorders, has focused primarily on populations with Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa, and no New Zealand research could be found that provided narrative voices of people that self-identified as binge eaters, or had received a Binge Eating Disorder (BED) diagnosis. The purpose of this research is to provide a step towards filling the narrative gap in current literature, and to improve understandings of binge eating. A secondary focus, was to understand how participants navigated New Zealand primary care pathways. There were two parts to the study. Part one took a narrative inquiry approach, completing semi-structured interviews with eight participants who had self-identified binge eating. Allowing participants to self-identify created a space to discuss a range of experiences outside of BED diagnosis. The research took a Narrative Analysis approach, guided by a Social Constructionist epistemology, and drawing from Feminist, Foucauldian and Stigma Theories. Part two consisted of a quantitative survey sent to General Practitioners in New Zealand, and twelve complete responses were received. Key findings included the importance of protective factors, experiences of stigma, and a lack of adequate treatment pathways. Recommendations included improving education in areas of nutrition, disordered eating and mental health. Protective factors are described that could establish personal frameworks of care for binge eating in future. Stereotypes of eating disorders, alongside DSM-5 criteria (APA, 2013) were perceived as barriers to treatment. The findings suggest that diagnosis and recovery journeys for binge eating are not linear, and that recovery itself is subjective. Participants’ accounts present narratives that move away from ideas of having to reach a place of medical diagnosis and recovery for experiences to be valid. The importance of improving primary care eating disorder pathways in New Zealand is evident through the voices of interview participants and General Practitioners, with participants advocating for improving care structures in New Zealand, with focus on earlier intervention and cultural relevance. This research has provided insight into personal experiences of living with binge eating, and difficulties navigating primary care systems

The tricarboxylic acid cycle in Shewanella oneidensis is independent of Fur and RyhB control

Background: It is well established in E. coli and Vibrio cholerae that strains harboring mutations in the ferric uptake regulator gene (fur) are unable to utilize tricarboxylic acid (TCA) compounds, due to the down-regulation of key TCA cycle enzymes, such as AcnA and SdhABCD. This down-regulation is mediated by a Fur-regulated small regulatory RNA named RyhB. It is unclear in the gamma proteobacterium S. oneidensis whether TCA is also regulated by Fur and RyhB. Results: In the present study, we showed that a fur deletion mutant of S. oneidensis could utilize TCA compounds. Consistently, expression of the TCA cycle genes acnA and sdhA was not down-regulated in the mutant. To explore this observation further, we identified a ryhB gene in Shewanella species and experimentally demonstrated the gene expression. Further experiments suggested that RyhB was up-regulated in fur mutant, but that AcnA and SdhA were not controlled by RyhB. Conclusions: These cumulative results delineate an important difference of the Fur-RyhB regulatory cycle between S. oneidensis and other gamma-proteobacteria. This work represents a step forward for understanding the unique regulation in S. oneidensis

Social Media Use and HIV Transmission Risk Behavior Among Ethnically Diverse HIV-Positive Gay Men: Results of an Online Study in Three U.S. States

Though Black and Hispanic men who have sex with men (MSM) are at an increased risk for HIV, few HIV risk reduction interventions that target HIV-positive MSM, and even fewer that use technology, have been designed to target these groups. Despite similar rates of social media and technology use across racial/ethnic groups, online engagement of minority MSM for HIV prevention efforts is low. Since minority MSM tend to have less representation in online HIV prevention studies, the goals of this online anonymous study of HIV-positive gay-identified men were to test the feasibility of conducting targeted recruitment by race/ethnicity and sexual orientation, to assess technology and social media use,and to assess global HIV transmission risk. In 2011,an anonymous online survey was conducted among 463 members of an HIV-positive personals website. Emails were sent to a subset of HIV-positive male members who self- identified as gay. While 57% were White, substantial proportions of participants were Black (20%) or Hispanic (18 %). Median age was 46 (range 18–79). Men who reported using 3 or more websites or apps to meet sex partners were significantly more likely to report anal intercourse (AOR 4.43, p\.001) and condomless anal sex (CAS) (AOR 2.70, p\.05) in the past 3 months. The only predictor of CAS with HIV-negative or unknown status partners was being under age 30 (AOR3.38, p\ .01). This study helped to inform online targeted recruitment techniques, access to technology and social media use, and sexual risk among a diverse sample of HIV-positive gay men. Efficacy trials of technology-based HIV prevention interventions targeting high-risk minority HIV-positive MSM are warranted

Development and evaluation of a diagnostic cytokine-release assay for Mycobacterium suricattae infection in meerkats (Suricata suricatta)

CITATION: Clarke, C., et al. 2017. Development and evaluation of a diagnostic cytokine-release assay for mycobacterium suricattae infection in meerkats (Suricata suricatta). BMC Veterinary Research, 13:2, doi:10.1186/s12917-016-0927-x.The original publication is available at http://bmcvetres.biomedcentral.comBackground: Sensitive diagnostic tools are necessary for the detection of Mycobacterium suricattae infection in meerkats (Suricata suricatta) in order to more clearly understand the epidemiology of tuberculosis and the ecological consequences of the disease in this species. We therefore aimed to develop a cytokine release assay to measure antigen-specific cell-mediated immune responses of meerkats. Results: Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) were evaluated for the detection of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and IFN-γ inducible protein 10 (IP-10) in meerkat plasma. An IP-10 ELISA was selected to measure the release of this cytokine in whole blood in response to Bovigam® PC-HP Stimulating Antigen, a commercial peptide pool of M. bovis antigens. Using this protocol, captive meerkats with no known M. suricattae exposure (n = 10) were tested and results were used to define a diagnostic cut off value (mean plus 2 standard deviations). This IP-10 release assay (IPRA) was then evaluated in free-living meerkats with known M. suricattae exposure, categorized as having either a low, moderate or high risk of infection with this pathogen. In each category, respectively, 24.7%, 27.3% and 82.4% of animals tested IPRA-positive. The odds of an animal testing positive was 14.0 times greater for animals with a high risk of M. suricattae infection compared to animals with a low risk. Conclusion: These results support the use of this assay as a measure of M. suricattae exposure in meerkat populations. Ongoing longitudinal studies aim to evaluate the value of the IPRA as a diagnostic test of M. suricattae infection in individual animals.http://bmcvetres.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12917-016-0927-xPublisher's versio

Measurement of Insulation Compaction in the Cryogenic Fuel Tanks at Kennedy Space Center by Fast/Thermal Neutron Techniques

The liquid hydrogen and oxygen cryogenic storage tanks at John F. Kennedy Space Center (KSC) use expanded perlite as thermal insulation. Th ere is evidence that some of the perlite has compacted over time, com promising the thermal performance and possibly also structural integr ity of the tanks. Therefore an Non-destructive Testing (NDT) method for measuring the perlite density or void fraction is urgently needed. Methods based on neutrons are good candidates because they can readil y penetrate through the 1.75 cm outer steel shell and through the ent ire 120 cm thickness of the perlite zone. Neutrons interact with the nuclei of materials to produce characteristic gamma rays which are the n detected. The gamma ray signal strength is proportional to the atom ic number density. Consequently, if the perlite is compacted then the count rates in the individual peaks in the gamma ray spectrum will i ncrease. Perlite is a feldspathic volcanic rock made up of the major elements Si, AI, Na, K and 0 along with some water. With commercially available portable neutron generators it is possible to produce simul taneously fluxes of neutrons in two energy ranges: fast (14 MeV) and thermal (25 meV). Fast neutrons produce gamma rays by inelastic scatt ering which is sensitive to Fe and O. Thermal neutrons produce gamma rays by radiative capture in prompt gamma neutron activation (PGNA) and this is sensitive to Si, AI, Na, Kand H. Thus the two energy ranges produce complementary information. The R&D program has three phases: numerical simulations of neutron and gamma ray transport with MCNP s oftware, evaluation of the system in the laboratory on test articles and finally mapping of the perlite density in the cryogenic tanks at KSC. The preliminary MCNP calculations have shown that the fast/therma l neutron NDT method is capable of distinguishing between expanded an d compacted perlite with excellent statistics