Music teacher education in the United States and the Republic of Korea: a comparison of music teacher licensure policies and their implementation in two contexts

Teacher preparation programs have played a major role in developing candidates’ knowledge and abilities in teaching. These preparation programs have been designed according to the policies and regulations of national and state governments, accrediting agencies, and universities. Moreover, cultural contexts influence practices and educational systems. Investigating education policies and their implementation in the United States and the Republic of Korea would shed light on music teacher training in each context, and help officials understand and diagnose local problems. The purpose of this study was to analyze documented policies and procedures for music teacher licensure programs in two countries, to explore their implementation, and investigate candidates’ learning during both programs. The perspectives of two types of knowledge, subject matter knowledge and general pedagogical knowledge, also guided the study. Massachusetts policies and regulations were analyzed. Tito University in Massachusetts and Quinn University in the ROK were selected. Document analysis, individual interviews with professors, and focus group interviews with student teachers in licensure programs in each context were employed. Both Massachusetts and the ROK required music teacher candidates to possess knowledge and skills in Western Classical music. While Massachusetts regulations included what kinds of music and music education knowledge teacher candidates must have, the ROK regulations indicated how many credits teacher candidates must complete in music, music education, and general education areas. In both contexts, interviews with professors revealed that these programs followed policies and standards of the national, state, and accrediting agencies. In planning curriculum, all professors must consider policies. However, at Tito, professors reported paying closer attention to training students in classroom expertise, whereas Quinn professors paid closer attention to preparing students for the national exam. Teacher candidates wanted to have more field-based experiences in both contexts, although students in Massachusetts worked at practice for a longer period than those in the ROK. Candidates at Tito needed to learn a variety of music from other traditions besides Western Classical music. Candidates at Quinn were overwhelmed due to preparation for The Examination. Individual policy interpretation produced different outcomes. Further research is needed regarding implementation of policies in other licensure programs

Antidiscrimination Rights of Contingent Workers in the United States

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits an employer\u27s discriminatory employment practices against an employee on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, or national origin. Most contingent workers in the United States are faced with discriminatory employment practices, such as low wages and low or no benefits, and they are disproportionately women and minorities. Title VII is the focal point, but Title VII has not functioned as a remedy for contingent workers. This dissertation examines why contingent workers suffer discrimination, despite Title VII, and suggests possible solutions. In the United States, the distinctive interpretation of laws has not functioned as a remedy for contingent workers: 1. The Definition of Employee in Determining Who is Covered by Antidiscrimination Laws is too Narrow. The United States Excludes Independent Contractors as Defined Under the Right to Direct and Control Test. Some Independent Contractors can be Dependent, Suffer Discrimination just like Employees, and Have few Opportunities to offer work subject to discrimination by Contractors. 2. The Definition of Employer in Determining Whom is Covered by Antidiscrimination Laws is too Narrow. Temporary Employees Are Employees of the Temporary Agency, but Not the Primary Contractor for Whom They Work. The Primary Contractor is the One Who Has Economic Control of the Situation, Effectively Sets Wages and Benefits, and can Discriminate Against Contingent Workers. 3. The Definition of What constitutes Discrimination is too Narrow. The United States Does Not Accept Applications of Disparate Impact Analysis, But Accepts Business Necessity Defense. The Employer\u27s Pay Practices Have a Disparate Impact on Vulnerable Classes to Their Detriment, Even though there Is No Intent to Discriminate. This study suggests that the U.S. needs to give antidiscrimination remedies to contingent workers through a change in the interpretation of the law and/or legislation: 1. Congress and/or courts must broaden the definition of covered employee to include contingent workers in the term worker, and adopt the economic realities test to include some independent contractors as covered worker. 2. Congress and/or courts must apply the single employer doctrine more broadly to include both the primary contractor and the temporary agency as one employer under the antidiscrimination laws. 3. Congress and/or courts must apply the disparate impact theory more broadly (business necessity defense such as saving cost and market standard should not succeed), or pass legislation requiring proportional wages and benefits for workers in the same workplace

Ulmus davidiana var japonica Attenuates Neuroinflammatory Responses in Activated BV2 Murine Microglial Cells via Nuclear Factor-KappaB Signaling Pathway

Purpose: To investigate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of Ulmus davidiana extract (UDE) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated BV-2 cells.Methods: Antioxidant activity was measured using 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay. Cell viability was evaluated using 3 (4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2, 5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. BV-2 cells were stimulated with LPS to study protein expression and production of inflammatory mediators, and determined by Western blot analysis.Results: UDE significantly inhibited DPPH-generated free radicals showing maximum inhibition at 40 μg/mL (p < 0.001). UDE alone did not exhibit any signs of cytotoxicity towards BV-2 cells up to 100 μg/mL concentration. The LPS induced increase in the production of nitric oxide was concentration dependently suppressed with half-maximal concentration (IC50) of 67.4 μg/ mL of UDE (p < 0.05 at 10 μg/mL, p < 0.01 at 20 μg/mL and p < 0.001 at 40 μg/mL, respectively). UDE also inhibited dosedependently the LPS-induced increase in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expressions with IC50 of 52.3 ug/ mL. Furthermore, the production of pro inflammatory cytokines, via tumor necrosis factor-α by LPS-stimulation in BV2 murine cells was inhibited dosedependently with IC50 of 85.1 ug/ mL by UDE pretreatment. Mechanistic studies revealed that UDE acts by regulation of nuclear factor kappa-B signaling pathway in LPS-stimulated BV-2 cells.Conclusion: This study shows, for the first time, that UDE possesses antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects and can be developed as a potential therapeutic agent for ameliorating macrophage-mediated inflammation.Keywords: Ulmus davidiana, Anti-oxidant, Anti-inflammatory, iNOS, NF-κB, MCP-1, ER

Personalized Cinemagraphs using Semantic Understanding and Collaborative Learning

Cinemagraphs are a compelling way to convey dynamic aspects of a scene. In these media, dynamic and still elements are juxtaposed to create an artistic and narrative experience. Creating a high-quality, aesthetically pleasing cinemagraph requires isolating objects in a semantically meaningful way and then selecting good start times and looping periods for those objects to minimize visual artifacts (such a tearing). To achieve this, we present a new technique that uses object recognition and semantic segmentation as part of an optimization method to automatically create cinemagraphs from videos that are both visually appealing and semantically meaningful. Given a scene with multiple objects, there are many cinemagraphs one could create. Our method evaluates these multiple candidates and presents the best one, as determined by a model trained to predict human preferences in a collaborative way. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach with multiple results and a user study.Comment: To appear in ICCV 2017. Total 17 pages including the supplementary materia

Analyses of gait parameters and fall risk in Korean older adults

More than one in four older adults fall each year. As the first fall doubles one’s chances of falling again, fall prevention in older adults is a public health priority. Since it is well-established that most falls occur on flat surfaces during walking, identifying the changes in gait parameters before one’s first fall may be a strong predictor of falling.PURPOSE: To examine gait parameters in older adults associated with the risk of falls.METHODS: 200 older adults (72.8 ± 5.6 years; 74% women) participated in the study. Participants’ gait parameters were measured through a gait analysis system. The Fall Risk Assessment (FRA) system measured sensory, nervous, integrated balance abilities, and musculoskeletal systems to assess fall risks. Participants were classified into one of two groups: low- and high-risk of falls based on the FRA scores. Independent t-tests were used to compare the gait parameters between the two groups. One-way ANOVAs were performed to compare the differences in gait parameters by age (65-69, 70-74, 75-79, and ≥80 years). Lastly, Pearson correlation and logistic regression were used to examine variables in step length and fall risk.RESULTS: For both men and women, there were significant differences (p < .001) in all gait parameters between the two groups except for cadence in men. There were also significant changes in trends of gait parameters by age in both men and women except for cadence in men (Ptrend <.001). Lastly, significant positive correlations were observed between adjusted stride length (stride length/height) and the FRA scores (r=.524 and .323 for men and women, respectively). For both men and women, the participants in the fourth quartile (shorter) of adjusted stride length were more likely to increase one’s fall risk (OR = 9.10 and 7.88; 95% CI: 1.39, 59.62 and 2.50, 24.84 for men and women, respectively) compared to the first quartile (longer).CONCLUSION: The risk of falls was increased by changes in gait parameters such as shorter and slower gait cycles and higher proportions of the stance phase and double supporting phase. Gait changes could be a successful indicator for identifying high-risk of falls in older adults.Community Health Sciences, Counseling and Counseling Psycholog

Effect on Balance According to Various Recovery Techniques after Induce Muscle Fatigue in Male College Students

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to effect balance according to various recovery techniques after Harvard step test-induced muscle fatigue in male college students. METHODS Twenty male college students(22.20±2.06 yrs, 177.80±4.28 cm, 77.50±4.28 kg) participated in the study, and their static balance and dynamic balance(Humac balance system) were measured after inducing lower extremity muscular fatigue using Harvard step test. Muscle fatigue was treated in the following order: no treatment in the 1st week, stretching in the 2nd week, icing therapy in the 3rd week, and sports massage in the 4th week, and then post-test was performed in the same manner as the pre-test. RESULTS In the case of static balance, path length on eye opened-foam was a significant difference in interaction effect between the group and time(p<0.001). Also, average velocity on eye opened-foam was a significant difference in interaction effect between the group and time(p<0.001). Dynamic balance was no a significant difference to recovery techniques(stretching, icing therapy, and sports massage). CONCLUSIONS Various recovery techniques such as stretching, icing, and sports massage after the Harvard step test-induced muscle fatigue in male college students did not affect balance. In future research, it is crucial to enhance the scope of the target group, various methods of inducing muscle fatigue, and identify the effects of recovery techniques

Seismic Improvement of RC Beam-Column Joints Using Hexagonal CFRP Bars combined with CFRP Sheets

Under severe earthquake conditions, the lack of strength and ductility in reinforced concrete beam–column joints with non-seismic details raises serious concerns for overall structural safety. In this study, experimental research was carried out in order to try and improve the seismic strength and performance of reinforced concrete exterior beam–column joints by applying embedded carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) bars combined with CFRP sheets. CFRP bars have a flat-typed hexagonal cross-section. Specimens of reinforced concrete exterior beam–column joints were manufactured based on a newly developed strengthening method by applying embedded CFRP hexagonal bars combined with externally bonded CFRP sheets, and tested for comparison with the specimen of a conventional reinforced concrete exterior beam–column joint. The newly developed design approach could minimize damage and improve the overall structural performances of beam–column joints under cyclic load reversals

MOF-Derived Cu@Cu2O Nanocatalyst for Oxygen Reduction Reaction and Cycloaddition Reaction

Research on the synthesis of nanomaterials using metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), which are characterized by multi-functionality and porosity, as precursors have been accomplished through various synthetic approaches. In this study, copper and copper oxide nanoparticles were fabricated within 30 min by a simple and rapid method involving the reduction of a copper(II)-containing MOF with sodium borohydride solution at room temperature. The obtained nanoparticles consist of a copper core and a copper oxide shell exhibited catalytic activity in the oxygen reduction reaction. The as-synthesized Cu@Cu2O core-shell nanocatalyst exhibited an enhanced limit current density as well as onset potential in the electrocatalytic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Moreover, the nanoparticles exhibited good catalytic activity in the Huisgen cycloaddition of various substituted azides and alkynes under mild reaction conditions

Prevalence of sarcopenia and sarcopenic obesity in Korean adults: The Korean Sarcopenic Obesity Study (KSOS)

*Context:* Sarcopenic obesity (SO), a combination of excess weight and reduced muscle mass and/or strength, is suggested to be associated with an increased risk of adverse health outcomes. &#xd;&#xa;*Objectives:* To examine the prevalence and characteristics of Sarcopenic and SO defined by using different indices such as Appendicular Skeletal muscle Mass (ASM)/height^2^ and Skeletal Muscle Index (SMI (%): skeletal muscle mass (kg)/weight (kg) &#xd7; 100) for Korean adults. &#xd;&#xa;*Methods:* 591 participants were recruited from the Korean Sarcopenic Obesity Study (KSOS) which is an ongoing prospective observational cohort study. Analysis was conducted in 526 participants (328 women, 198 men) who had complete data on body composition using Dual X-ray absorptiometry and computed tomography. &#xd;&#xa;*Results:* The prevalence of sarcopenia and SO increases with aging. Using two or more standard deviations (SD) of ASM/height^2^ below reference values from young, healthy adults as a definition of sarcopenia, the prevalence of sarcopenia and SO was 6.3% and 1.3% in men and 4.1% and 1.7% in women over 60 years of age. However, using two or more SD of SMI, the prevalence of sarcopenia and SO was 5.1% and 5.1% respectively in men and 14.2% and 12.5% respectively in women. As defined by SMI, subjects with SO had 3 times the risk of metabolic syndrome (OR = 3.03, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.26-7.26) and subjects with non-sarcopenic obesity had approximately 2 times the risk of metabolic syndrome (OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.18-3.02) compared with normal subjects. &#xd;&#xa;*Conclusion:* Obese subjects with relative sarcopenia were associated with a greater likelihood for metabolic syndrome. As Koreans were more obese and aging, the prevalence of SO and its impact on health outcomes are estimated to be rapidly grow. Further research is requested to establish the definition, cause and consequences of SO.&#xd;&#xa