Virunga: Guns, Gorillas, and the Construction of Transnational Natures

The recent western media attention surrounding Virunga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has brought up significant scholarly questions about the discursive portrayal of “ideal” Natures. In this thesis, I undertake a discursive analysis of western media materials about Virunga National Park in order to understand how ideas of Nature are transnationally constructed. In order to do this, undertake an analysis of the western oriented discursive material associated with three socio-political processes within the park: green militarization, gorilla trekking, and the ecotourist industry. Ultimately, I conclude that the discursive material portrays a highly spectacularized and commodified “ideal” nature, which is consumed by western viewers, thus reinforcing the marginalization of alternative notions of the “natural” by global hegemonic forces. Drawing from alternative ideas of the “natural”, I highlight that in a world increasingly enveloped by what scholars coin as “capitalist ruination”, finding ways to problematize ideal nature discourses, such as those demonstrated through a study of Virunga, and thus develop new ways of thinking about human and nonhuman relationships is imperative

Occupational Therapy: A Vital Link to Transition Success of High School Students

Occupational therapists have engaged in school-based therapy practice since the 1970\u27s when the Education for the Handicapped Act (EHA) was enacted to provide a free public education for students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment. Since law mandated related services, occupational therapists have the opportunity to service students in all grade levels. However, over the course of time, most therapists gravitated toward servicing the student under the age of twelve. As a result, few therapists have devoted their full attention to meeting all the challenges of secondary level students with disabilities, especially for transitioning of students into the community. A literature review of occupational therapy practices reveals much uncertainty in the assessment selection process, documentation procedures, meeting assistive technology needs, service interventions, and familiarity with transition concepts of planning. To meet this need, a person-centered occupational therapy high school transition assessment checklist (OTHST AC) guided by the Ecology of Human Occupation Model was developed and serves as an assessment guideline, listing a variety of appropriate occupational-based assessments suitable for the school and community settings. OTHSTAC incorporates best practice principles based on occupational-based models. A focal point is to appraise student skills within their environment, assist with future plans, and strive for successful integration into the community. An appendix supplies a listing of contact information for obtaining the assessments, tools, and outcome measurements. The scholarly project also provides in-service training material to support school-based occupational therapists looking to broaden their knowledge and explore options in transition services. The inservice materials provide the rationale for occupational therapy\u27s involvement in the transition planning; reviews current transition literature; follows assessment guidelines; facilitates problem solving; supplies transition strategies; and supp011s creation of occupational therapy services to guide students in obtaining their transition goals

Assessing & Improving Online Learning Using Data From Practice

This research uses a qualitative case study approach to investigate online course instruction, and the dimensions of both learner and facilitator/instructor engagement. The research team analyzed archival data from course management software "Course Statistics," and coded indicators using word processing software to examine learner and facilitator writings in the courses

Soy versus whey protein bars: Effects on exercise training impact on lean body mass and antioxidant status

BACKGROUND: Although soy protein may have many health benefits derived from its associated antioxidants, many male exercisers avoid soy protein. This is due partly to a popular, but untested notion that in males, soy is inferior to whey in promoting muscle weight gain. This study provided a direct comparison between a soy product and a whey product. METHODS: Lean body mass gain was examined in males from a university weight training class given daily servings of micronutrient-fortified protein bars containing soy or whey protein (33 g protein/day, 9 weeks, n = 9 for each protein treatment group). Training used workouts with fairly low repetition numbers per set. A control group from the class (N = 9) did the training, but did not consume either type protein bar. RESULTS: Both the soy and whey treatment groups showed a gain in lean body mass, but the training-only group did not. The whey and training only groups, but not the soy group, showed a potentially deleterious post-training effect on two antioxidant-related related parameters. CONCLUSIONS: Soy and whey protein bar products both promoted exercise training-induced lean body mass gain, but the soy had the added benefit of preserving two aspects of antioxidant function

Overall Survival With Maintenance Olaparib at a 7-Year Follow-Up in Patients With Newly Diagnosed Advanced Ovarian Cancer and a BRCA Mutation: The SOLO1/GOG 3004 Trial

Overall survival; Olaparib; Ovarian cancerSupervivencia global; Olaparib; Cáncer de ovario avanzadoSupervivència global; Olaparib; Càncer d'ovari avançatPURPOSE In SOLO1/GOG 3004 (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01844986), maintenance therapy with the poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor olaparib provided a sustained progression-free survival benefit in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer and a BRCA1 and/or BRCA2 (BRCA) mutation. We report overall survival (OS) after a 7-year follow-up, a clinically relevant time point and the longest follow-up for any poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase inhibitor in the first-line setting. METHODS This double-blind phase III trial randomly assigned patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer and a BRCA mutation in clinical response to platinum-based chemotherapy to maintenance olaparib (n = 260) or placebo (n = 131) for up to 2 years. A prespecified descriptive analysis of OS, a secondary end point, was conducted after a 7-year follow-up. RESULTS The median duration of treatment was 24.6 months with olaparib and 13.9 months with placebo, and the median follow-up was 88.9 and 87.4 months, respectively. The hazard ratio for OS was 0.55 (95% CI, 0.40 to 0.76; P = .0004 [P < .0001 required to declare statistical significance]). At 7 years, 67.0% of olaparib patients versus 46.5% of placebo patients were alive, and 45.3% versus 20.6%, respectively, were alive and had not received a first subsequent treatment (Kaplan-Meier estimates). The incidence of myelodysplastic syndrome and acute myeloid leukemia remained low, and new primary malignancies remained balanced between treatment groups. CONCLUSION Results indicate a clinically meaningful, albeit not statistically significant according to prespecified criteria, improvement in OS with maintenance olaparib in patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer and a BRCA mutation and support the use of maintenance olaparib to achieve long-term remission in this setting; the potential for cure may also be enhanced. No new safety signals were observed during long-term follow-up

Serum Zinc Correlates with Parent- and Teacher-Rated Inattention in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of zinc nutrition to the severity of attentiondeficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in a middle-class American sample with well-diagnosed ADHD. Previous reports of zinc in ADHD, including two positive clinical trials of supplementation, have come mainly from countries and cultures with different diets and/or socioeconomic realities. Method: Children 5–10 years of age with DISC- and clinician-diagnosed ADHD had serum zinc determinations and parent and teacher ratings of ADHD symptoms. Zinc levels were correlated (Pearson’s and multiple regression) with ADHD symptom ratings. Results: Forty-eight children (37 boys, 11 girls; 33 combined type, 15 inattentive) had serum zinc levels with a median/mode at the lowest 30% of the laboratory reference range; 44 children also had parent/teacher ratings. Serum magnesium levels were normal. Nutritional intake by a parent-answered food frequency questionnaire was unremarkable. Serum zinc correlated at r = -0.45 (p = 0.004) with parent-teacher-rated inattention, even after controlling for gender, age, income, and diagnostic subtype, but only at r = -0.20 (p = 0.22) with CPT omission errors. In contrast, correlation with parent-teacher-rated hyperactivity-impulsivity was nonsignificant in the opposite direction. Conclusion: These findings add to accumulating evidence for a possible role of zinc in ADHD, even for middle-class Americans, and, for the first time, suggest a special relationship to inattentive symptoms. They do not establish either that zinc deficiency causes ADHD nor that ADHD should be treated with zinc. Hypothesis-testing clinical trials are needed

Beyond The Gap:Placing Biodiversity Finance in the Global Economy

Governments and conservation organisations often point to a large gap between existing financial resources and the resources needed to achieve biodiversity objectives. But the gap is almost always presented without context, as though biodiversity loss will be resolved through increased funding alone. To illuminate crucial pathways for transformative change, this report examines the political and economic dimensions of biodiversity loss. “Beyond the gap: placing biodiversity finance in the global economy” addresses two questions: how does the organization of the global economy drive biodiversity loss, and how has existing biodiversity finance performed? Trade, investment and financial regulation (or lack thereof), global economic pressures that push biodiverse countries into debt, and inequality across racialized, gender, class and colonial lines, all drive biodiversity loss and require urgent attention. Instead of transformation, a series of voluntary measures and market-based mechanisms such as payments for ecosystem services or blended finance schemes have been presented as tools to span the resource gap. This report shows that these efforts are marginal at best, and, at worst, entrench the power of rich world governments and non-state institutions like banks, large international NGOs, and supranationals. It is apparent that we must move “beyond the gap”. Only by placing biodiversity loss in the global economy will it be possible to realize transformative, inclusive and equitable change. The authors offer concrete recommendations for negotiators, civil society organizations, and activist groups to push questions of biodiversity finance beyond the gap

Validation of a Multivariate Serum Profile for Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Using a Prospective Multi-Site Collection

In previous studies we described the use of a retrospective collection of ovarian cancer and benign disease samples, in combination with a large set of multiplexed immunoassays and a multivariate pattern recognition algorithm, to develop an 11-biomarker classification profile that is predictive for the presence of epithelial ovarian cancer. In this study, customized, Luminex-based multiplexed immunoassay kits were GMP-manufactured and the classification profile was refined from 11 to 8 biomarkers (CA-125, epidermal growth factor receptor, CA 19-9, C-reactive protein, tenascin C, apolipoprotein AI, apolipoprotein CIII, and myoglobin). The customized kits and the 8-biomarker profile were then validated in a double-blinded manner using prospective samples collected from women scheduled for surgery, with a gynecologic oncologist, for suspicion of having ovarian cancer. The performance observed in model development held in validation, demonstrating 81.1% sensitivity (95% CI 72.6 &#x2013; 87.9%) for invasive epithelial ovarian cancer and 85.4% specificity (95% CI 81.1 &#x2013; 88.9%) for benign ovarian conditions. The specificity for normal healthy women was 95.6% (95% CI 83.6 &#x2013; 99.2%). These results have encouraged us to undertake a second validation study arm, currently in progress, to examine the performance of the 8-biomarker profile on the population of women not under the surgical care of a gynecologic oncologist