Shadow dancing in the wings : lesbian women talk about health care : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Nursing at Massey University

Women who claim a lesbian identity as part of their cultural articulation have to date been poorly represented within research particularly within a New Zealand setting. Rather than couch this single identifier within a contextualised environment, research has predominantly sought to pathologise lesbian existence at an individualistic level. Lesbian women are a minority group for whom crucial differences from the dominant culture may not readily be recognisable. Such differences may be associated with existing in a society where silence and invisibility subsume a meaningful and tangible cultural expression. This study aims to explore the factors which hinder or facilitate sense of safety for lesbian women, when accessing health care, in order to provide information from which health professionals may judge the appropriateness of their current service delivery. A participatory approach grounded in both critical social and feminist research has been utilised to explore issues relevant to health care and it's access with seven women who claim lesbian as part of their identity. The representational void is uncovered and forms a suitable backdrop from whence to explore with these participants health issues and factors relevant for them in the context of their daily lives. The concept of cultural safety gives power to the users of services to determine whether or not they feel safe. From the perception of the service user then, cultural safety assumes that the nurse (or other health care professional) is the extraordinary element as opposed to the neo-colonial held view that the user is the extraordinary member of the interaction (Ramsden, 1995). Cultural safety is the term originally employed in New Zealand to describe the partnership between nursing and the indigenous people intent upon removing barriers in order to facilitate safe access and delivery of health care. From this juncture the Nursing Council of New Zealand (1996) acknowledging that prejudicial and judgmental attitudes exist with regard to lesbian women has fostered awareness. Subsequently the need for appropriate qualitative research has been recognised. In support of the tenets of cultural safety this study will prove useful to nurses and other health professionals intent upon ensuring safe care provision for this marginalised group

Using Groupware for international collaborative learning

The paper reports the lessons learned from a two year collaborative learning trial between students at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) and Uppsala University. The trials took place using a combination of email and a custom developed Lotus NotesTM database. The first trial involved a case study in which students performed different roles in designing a software solution for an Auckland based nailcare distributor. The second trial built upon the knowledge base of the earlier trial, and required students to evaluate and rank the previous design proposals. A theoretical model developed from the group support systems literature guided some of the changes in the second trial. The software, the collaboration process and the evaluation methods evolved over the course of these trials. The challenges of creating global student communities within a short collaboration window in existing courses of study are discussed. Further extensions to this research are proposed and some general recommendations are mad

A search in the COS-B data base for correlated time variability in regions containing objects of interest

As is well known, association of the gamma-ray sources with celestial objects is, in general, difficult on a pure positional basis, while correlated time variability could obviously provide such proof. This technique can be employed on regions of the gamma-ray sky containing interesting objects of known variability at some wavelength even in the absence of a recognized gamma-ray excess with the aim to extract a weak but predictable signal from the surrounding noise. This technique is applied here on a longer variability time scale, generally of the order of days. Photons coming from the sky regions centered on the various celestial objects considered were selected with energies 100 MeV and with arrival directions within an energy-dependent area of radius of approx 6 deg at 100 MeV. In order to construct a time profile of such photons, their arrival times were grouped in bins of dimensions defined by the available photons number and by the value of the period searched for

Motivation, Optimal Experience and Flow in First Year Computing Science

We examine the concept of motivation from the perspective of Self Determination Theory and give a brief overview of relevant results. We also consider the optimal state known as "Flow" and give an account of its conceptualisation in the theory due to Csikszentmihalyi. After discussion of ways in which these concepts can be measured, we describe a set of preliminary studies that investigate motivation and flow in the context of a first year computing class. We analyse student responses to enquiries about perceptions of motivation and flow experiences and look at links between them. We also discuss intrinsic motivation within the subject

Nonprofit governance: The shape of board organisation communication

This qualitative study investigated corporate governance and management practices, with a particular focus on communications between the board and senior management, in two disability service organisations in the nonprofit sector. Fifteen interviewees participated across the two case studies and their insights and contributions were thematically analysed. Among the key findings was a significant contrast in communication processes across the two organisations. In one, communications were tightly controlled by the CEO (hourglass-shaped approach) and, in the second, there was a more accessible communication process between the board and senior management. This paper explores these two communication models

Sexual Coercion and Sexual Violence at First Intercourse Associated with Sexually Transmitted Infections

BACKGROUND: Violence against women has been associated with subsequent risky sexual behaviors and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). We explored whether sexual coercion or violence at first intercourse was associated with self-reported STIs. METHODS: Using nationally representative data from the 2006 to 2010 National Survey of Family Growth, we analyzed female respondents aged 18 to 44 (n = 9466) who answered questions on coercion at first intercourse (wantedness, voluntariness, and types of force used) and STIs using logistic regression analyses. We explored degrees of coercion, which we label as neither, sexual coercion (unwanted or nonphysical force), or sexual violence (involuntary or physical force). RESULTS: Eighteen percent of US women reported sexual coercion, and 8.4% experienced sexual violence at first intercourse. Compared with women who experienced neither, the odds of reporting an STI was significantly greater for women who experienced sexual coercion (odds ratio, 1.27; 95% confidence interval, 1.01-1.60), after controlling for all variables. The association between sexual violence at first intercourse and STIs (odds ratio, 1.20; 95% confidence interval, 0.91-1.57) seemed to be attenuated by subsequent sexual violence. CONCLUSIONS: Understanding that women who reported a variety of coercive sexual experiences are more likely to have contracted an STI may indicate a need to focus on the broader continuum of sexual violence to fully understand the impact of even subtle forms of violence on women\u27s health. In addition, focusing on subsequent sexual behaviors and other negative consequences remains important to improve the sexual health of women who have experienced coercive sexual intercourse

Resources for instructors of capstone courses in computing

Most computing programs now have some form of integrative or capstone course in which students undertake a significant project under supervision. There are many different models for such courses and conducting these courses is a complex task. This report is intended to assist instructors of capstone courses, particularly those new to the model of teaching and learning inherent in the capstone course.This paper discusses important issues that must be addressed when conducting capstone courses. These issues are addressed through a series of questions, with answers reflecting the way that different institutions have chosen to handle them, and commentary on the impact of these different choices. These questions include: Goals of the Course; Characteristics of Projects; Project Deliverables; Sponsors; Teams; Prerequisites and Preparation; Grading and Assessment; Administration and Supervision; and Reflection, Analysis and Review.Subsequently we present information about the companion Web site, intended as an active repository of best practice for instructors of capstone projects. The Web site will have examples of information about capstone courses and materials used by instructors. Readers are invited to contribute content to this site. The paper concludes with a bibliography of additional reference material and resources

Preparing the Global Software Engineer

With a goal of preparing software engineering students for practice in today’s global settings, Uppsala University has for some years run courses involving global collaboration. The “IT in Society” course is one such course which applies an ‘Open Ended Group Project’ model, in partnership with a local health sector client and global educational partners. Within each iteration of the course, students across the partnering institutions are given a brief around an open-ended problem. They work in collaboration with their client and stakeholders to investigate options and produce a report with their findings and recommendations, informed by global perspectives. The report may or may not be supported by working software prototypes. We analyze student evaluations & reflections on the course to unpack their perceptions of software engineering, the perceived relevance of a global learning experience and its role in reshaping their identities as global software engineers

Effect of time of harvest on the incidence of Fusarium spp. in kernels of silage corn

The effect of time of harvest (at 75, 50 and 25% of milkline) on the incidence of kernel-borne Fusarium spp. was examined in four silage corn (Zea mays) hybrids (MAIZEX Leafy 4, NK BRAND Enerfeast 1, PIONEER 37M81 and MYCOGEN TMF94) in Ottawa, Ontario, in 2001 and 2002. Eleven Fusarium species were isolated over the 2 yr. Fusarium subglutinans was the dominant species recovered from 28.8% of the kernels. Other frequently isolated species included F. oxysporum (2.6%), F. graminearum (2.5%), F. proliferatum (0.3%) and F. sporotrichioides (0.2%). Trace amounts (< 0.1%) of the remaining six species, F. avenaceum, F. crookwellense, F. culmorum, F. equiseti and F. solani, were recovered from the kernels. When the kernels were harvested at 75, 50 and 25% of milkline, the incidence of F. subglutinans increased from 20.9 to 26.7 and to 38.7%, respectively; that of F. graminearum increased from 1.7 to 2.9 and to 3.1%; and for the total of the five main Fusarium species it increased from 28.7 to 32.2 and to 42.3%. Incidence of the other species was not affected by harvesting date. Of the four silage corn hybrids, NK BRAND Enerfeast1 had a significantly lower incidence of Fusarium species in kernels than the other hybrids, indicating a genotypic variation in resistance to kernel-borne infection by Fusarium species.L’effet de trois temps de récolte, correspondant à 75, 50 et 25 % de l’état laiteux, sur l’incidence des espèces de Fusarium a été étudié chez les grains de quatre hybrides de maïs (Zea mays) ensilage (MAIZEX Leafy 4, NK BRAND Enerfeast 1, PIONEER 37M81 et MYCOGEN TMF94) en 2001 et 2002 à Ottawa, en Ontario. Onze espèces de Fusarium ont été isolées pendant ces deux années. Le F. subglutinans a été l’espèce dominante, trouvée sur 28,8 % des grains. Les autres espèces détectées ont été les F. oxysporum (2,6 %), F. graminearum (2,5 %), F. proliferatum (0,3 %) et F. sporotrichioides (0,2 %). Des traces (< 0,1 %) des six autres espèces, les F. avenaceum, F. crookwellense, F. culmorum, F. equiseti et F. solani, ont aussi été détectées sur les grains. L’incidence du F. subglutinans a augmenté respectivement de 20,9 à 26,7 puis à 38,7 % en fonction du temps de récolte (75, 50 et 25 % de l’état laiteux), tandis qu’elle a augmenté de 1,7 à 2,8 puis à 3,1 % pour le F. graminearum et de 28,7 à 32,2 puis à 42,3 % pour les cinq espèces principales confondues. L’incidence des autres espèces n’a pas été affectée par les dates de récolte. Parmi les quatre hybrides à l’essai, l’hybride commercial NK BRAND Enerfeast1 a eu la plus basse incidence d’espèces de Fusarium dans le grain, ce qui indique qu’il existe une variation génotypique de la résistance des grains aux infections causées par les espèces de Fusarium