Translocal Pragmatics: Operationalizing Postnational Heuristics to Locate Salient Cultural Overlap

The importance of creating projects that allow students enrolled in American universities to collaborate with students enrolled in foreign institutions cannot be overemphasized. However, for these projects to be effective in terms of learning outcomes, it is important that instructors identify the factors that either prevent or prompt fruitful collaboration across cultural boundaries. The power of cultural boundaries demands that research on intercultural communication conceptualize and measure cultural difference. Additionally, research on intercultural communication has been irrevocably altered by the pace of communication technology change that allows for rapid and rich cross-cultural communication across great distances. An understanding of culture that takes into consideration how the variety of communication technologies that Arjun Appadurai calls “technoscapes” (Appadurai, 1996) allow faster and denser interaction across all sorts of boundaries can help researchers ask questions that are relevant

The Impact of Climate Change on Environmental Sustainability and Human Mortality

Climate dictates the critical aspects of human environmental conditions. The frequency and intensity of extreme weather conditions due to human-induced climate change have alarmingly increased. Consequently, climate change directly affects environmental sustainability and human mortality in the short term and creates prolonged and complicated long-term indirect grave risks. This paper examines three-level environmental impact risks associated with climate change on human mortality. It proposes a conceptual framework for developing an empirical event-based human mortality database related to climate change and communication strategies to enhance global environmental adaptation, resilience, and sustainability

Preventing torture for people deprived of freedom: The Atlantic Hope and Black Swan Prison Model

International law and minimum standards provide certain protection for detainees and prisoners of war (POW) against torture and ill-treatment. Places of detention and parties to conflicts are often monitored to ensure that they adhere to the required standards through, for example, visits to individual detainees and the assessment of facilities. However, monitoring between the point of arrest and eventual remand in prisons is largely inadequate. This paper explains an emerging model to enhance protection of prisoners through readiness training for prospective humanitarian personnel. The Atlantic Hope simulation exercise on monitoring detainees and visits to the mock Black Swan prison represents a teaching model to enhance sustainable protection of detainees and POW during incarceration. The simulation entails comprehensive monitoring, assessment, visits and provision of services to prisoners from the point of arrest, during the transition to places of custody, and imprisonment. These enhance protection of detainees to avoid deaths in custody, disappearance and torture throughout the chain of imprisonment

Emerging magnetic resonance imaging techniques and analysis methods in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Objective markers of disease sensitive to the clinical activity, symptomatic progression, and underlying substrates of neurodegeneration are highly coveted in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in order to more eloquently stratify the highly heterogeneous phenotype and facilitate the discovery of effective disease modifying treatments for patients. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a promising, non-invasive biomarker candidate whose acquisition techniques and analysis methods are undergoing constant evolution in the pursuit of parameters which more closely represent biologically-applicable tissue changes. Neurite Orientation Dispersion and Density Imaging (NODDI; a form of diffusion imaging), and quantitative Magnetization Transfer Imaging (qMTi) are two such emerging modalities which have each broadened the understanding of other neurological disorders and have the potential to provide new insights into structural alterations initiated by the disease process in ALS. Furthermore, novel neuroimaging data analysis approaches such as Event-Based Modeling (EBM) may be able to circumvent the requirement for longitudinal scanning as a means to comprehend the dynamic stages of neurodegeneration . Combining these and other innovative imaging protocols with more sophisticated techniques to analyse ever-increasing datasets holds the exciting prospect of transforming understanding of the biological processes and temporal evolution of the ALS syndrome, and can only benefit from multicentre collaboration across the entire ALS research community

Developing a Digital Management System for the SYDRC

Non-profits often struggle with managing their resources as a result of underfunding. Our project attempts to address the SYDRC’s growing clientele base by providing the staff with a new digital management system. We achieved this goal by analyzing potential cloud-based systems and determining the needs and requirements of the SYDRC. Our team then iteratively developed a software-based solution. To get the staff acclimated to the new system, we conducted in- person training sessions and put together a user manual that details how to use and maintain the system. Ultimately, we provided the centre with a new data management system and room booking web application that catered to the specific needs of the SYDRC while being both cost-effective and intuitive to use

Effect of bromoform and linseed oil on greenhouse gas emissions from stored beef manure

Emissions of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide – potent greenhouse gases - from stored beef feedlot manure are a significant concern relative to climate change. Research on methane reduction strategies for enteric emissions has identified the application of organic additives, such as bromoform and linseed oil, to ruminant diets as potential solutions for reducing enteric emissions and pathogenic bacteria in excreted manure. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of bromoform and linseed oil on greenhouse gas emissions from beef feedlot manure, and on E. coli concentration in beef cattle manure, during a 5-week storage period. The experiment used a completely randomized block design (CRBD) with 4 replications of 5 treatments: 5.5 g/kg and 11 g/kg of linseed oil, 4.3 g/kg, and 8.6 g/kg of bromoform, and a control receiving no additives. Treatments were added to a 3-liter mix of 50% manure, 50% soil, mixed by hand, and stored in airtight columns (10-cm diameter x 40-cm tall) in a greenhouse maintained at 25 C during the storage period. Gas samples were collected 10 times during the 5-week test period using a 15 ml syringe and were analyzed using gas chromatography to determine concentrations of methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide. A 1-cm diameter core of material was removed from the top 20 cm of each column 4 times during the sampling period to conduct bacterial enumerations. Quantification of E.coli in samples was determined by incubating serial dilutions for 24 hours at 36 C and manually counting colonies. Preliminary results of the study showed that through 5 weeks of observation, 11g/kg linseed oil reduced the average concentration of E. coli (p \u3c0.05) compared to all other treatments. Preliminary results also indicate that bromoform at 8.6g/kg decreased carbon dioxide emissions but neither bromoform concentration had any significant effect on methane or nitrous oxide emissions compared to control. Linseed oil at 11g/kg increased methane emissions compared to control but neither linseed oil concentrations significantly impacted the average flux of carbon dioxide, or nitrous oxide from manure storages when compared to control

A micro-geoarchaeological view on stratigraphy and site formation processes in the Middle, Upper and Epi-Paleolithic layers of Sefunim Cave, Mt. Carmel, Israel

This paper presents a micro-geoarchaeological study carried out on the sedimentary sequence exposed at the entrance of Sefunim Cave, Israel, a sequence that spans from the Middle Paleolithic to the early Epipaleolithic periods. Using FTIR and micromorphological techniques, we investigated the stratigraphic sequence to reconstruct patterns of site use and archaeological formation processes. We identified formation processes that are common among Paleolithic caves sites in the Southern Levant, mainly the deposition of local terra rossa through colluvial sedimentation. Taphonomic disturbances of the deposits range from minimal to moderate, exhibited mainly by root and burrowing activity, but with no evidence for significant transport of archaeological materials. While the upper layers (II–III) are decalcified, the precipitation of secondary calcite results in increasing cementation of the sediments with depth in the lower layers (V–VII). We observed variation at the microscopic scale and identified an inverse correlation between human and carnivore activity throughout the layers. We observed human activity by the presence of micro-archaeological materials such as chert, bone, charcoal, rubified clay, burnt bone and shell, and wood ash. We observed carnivore activity by the presence of phosphatic grains and coprolite fragments as well as chewed and digested bones. We conclude that human activity at the site was characterized by episodes of varying intensity, based on the frequency of archaeological finds within the different layers. The alternating episodes of human and carnivore activity at Sefunim Cave may demonstrate the close-knit interactions and reciprocal relations that humans and carnivore shared at Paleolithic caves.publishedVersio

Information seeking behaviours and uncertainty around accessing primary care in the changing landscape of the COVID-19 pandemic : a qualitative study

This work was funded by Medical Research Scotland.Background The COVID-19 pandemic has and will continue to have a disproportionate effect on the most vulnerable. Public health messaging has been vital to regulate the impact of the pandemic. However, messages intended to slow the transmission of the virus may also cause harm. Understanding the areas where public health messaging could be improved may help reduce this harm. Aim To explore and understand health communication issues faced by those most likely to be impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Design & setting A qualitative study using online surveys. The area of focus was Fife, a local authority in Scotland, UK. Method Two consecutive surveys were conducted. Survey 1: N=19 support workers and Facebook group moderators, focussing on key issues faced by service users, as well as examples of good practice. Survey 2: N=34 community members, focussing on issues regarding access to and communication around access to primary care. Results Survey one found broad issues around communication and access to primary care services. Survey two emphasised key issues in accessing primary care, including, (a) the lengthy process of making appointments, (b) feeling like a burden for wanting to be seen, (c) a lack of confidence in remote triaging and consultations, and (d) not knowing what to expect prior to getting an appointment. Conclusion Clear issues regarding access to primary care were identified. Our new understanding of these issues will inform a co-creation process designed to develop clear, actionable and effective public health messages centred on improving access to primary care.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe