Post Borders: Informal Bilingual Blogging and Iintercultural Ccommunication Competence

This paper describes an informal bilingual blogging environment that was created to develop intercultural communicative competence. After a consideration of ICC, the paper explores the opportunities for development of ICC that were created by three features of this blogging activity. A descriptive analysis shows that the design features of informality of topic, and intentional lack of strict language protocol, as well as attention to cultures of use of blogging\ud were associated with users’ display of ICC

Fish use of largely unexplored sub-tidal habitats in the Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary, Queensland

This study examines the use of sub-tidal open-bottom, rocky, and seagreass habitats by the Siganus genus (herbivores), Gerres genus (benthivores), and planktivores in the Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary in Queensland, Australia. The Hinchinbrook Channel Estuary, a tropical estuary cutting between Hinchinbrook Island and the Australian mainland, is surrounded primarily by mangroves. Its sub-tidal habitats are largely unexplored due to factors such as low visibility and the presence of estuarine crocodiles. In this study, I reviewed 699 underwater videos collected by James Cook University PhD candidate Michael Bradley in order to analyze feeding and movement behavior of pre-identified fish. The results of this study show that Siganids feed mostly in seagrass areas but are often present in rocky areas, potentially using the rocky structures as protection and refuge. Gerres also feed mostly in seagrass areas but also feed in open-bottom areas, which suggests that while seagrass areas are important, even habitats that appear barren provide service to certain fish. I observed Gerres searching on the benthos in all habitats but did not see them feed in rocky habitats, and they were seldom sighted there. Planktivores, on the other hand, feed most often in rocky habitats and also feed occasionally in the other two habitats, suggesting a need to apply conservation efforts to all of these sub-tidal habitats. The videos revealed site-attached behavior (when fish remain in the same area for an extended period of time) mostly in rocky areas yet at least some site attachment in all of the habitats, again suggesting that all hold some importance for fish. Understanding the use of sub-tidal habitats by these particular groups of fish is important, as they all are connected to other habitats like coral reefs through their movement and feeding, and thus the habitats studied affect these other ecosystems. Understanding these connections can help inform management techniques to maintain maximum connectivity and increase resilience of the ecosystems. I recommend management techniques including stringent fishing and recreation rules in the Hinchinbrook Channel and a reduction in agricultural chemicals used in the surrounding areas. I also recommend further research on other habitats and fish species in the estuary and similar research in other estuaries

A Case Study: Perceptions of an Indigenous STEM Nonprofit Contributions to Self-Efficacy and Educational Experience

Native American people and Indigenous people are underrepresented in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. According to the National Science Foundation (NSF, 2015), Indigenous people represented 1.7% of the United States population, but only accounted for 0.6% of bachelor’s degrees, 0.4% of master’s degrees, and 0.2% of doctoral degrees in science and engineering. The low participation of Indigenous people in STEM disciplines have been attributed to reasons such as (a) lack of exposure, (b) lack of interest, (c) lack of confidence, (d) lack of a sense of belonging, and (e) lack of goal congruency. This qualitative research study sought to discover how Indigenous STEM graduates perceive a STEM nonprofit has contributed to their self-efficacy and educational experience. Data were gathered through a questionnaire, interviews, and a focus group with self-identifying Indigenous people who have completed a college degree within a STEM field since 2015 that have also held membership within AISES. Seventeen participants participated in the study. After manual and software coding, the data were analyzed in reference to the research question. Results revealed AISES has made major contributions to the self-efficacy and educational experiences of Indigenous STEM graduates. While both internal and external factors influenced graduates, self-efficacy, and educational experience, membership in AISES contributed to greater self-efficacy and the participants perceived AISES contributed to their educational and professional success. The findings also indicated more can be done to highlight the importance of STEM nonprofits and their contributions

Relational Aggression Among Caucasian And Northern Plains American Indian School Children

Relational aggression is a form of aggression that has received increasing attention within the psychological literature. Among the American Indian population, however, research on relational aggression is currently non-existent. To date, research is continuing to grow with regard to the base rates of relational aggression. The current study has examined both peer-nominated and self-report relational aggression among Caucasian and Northern Plains American Indian school children in order to explore cultural, gender, grade level, and age differences. Other forms of aggression and social status were also explored in order to understand how these constructs may play a role in peer relations. Among Northern Plains American Indian children, differences in acculturation were examined with regard to relational aggression. Comparisons and interactions were further explored among culture, gender, and grade level on relational aggression. Lastly, group comparisons and associations were explored on the various demographics and measures of the study. The overall sample consisted of 488 middle school students recruited from three rural schools within the Northern Plains region. In addition to a demographic questionnaire, the participants completed multiple inventories pertaining to bullying behavior, social acceptance/popularity, social group membership, and cultural identification. The results indicated that middle school girls reported significantly higher relational aggression and were nominated by their peers for displaying this form of aggression at a significantly higher rate than boys. Caucasian students did not report significantly higher relational aggression but were nominated by their peers as being significantly more relationally aggressive than American Indian students. Acculturation differences among Northern Plains American Indian children were found on peer-nominated relational aggression only. Differences in grade level and age on both self-report and peer-nominated relational aggression were insignificant but were present in the demographic trends/base rates. Differences were also found in the demographic trends/base rates of peer-nominated overt aggression and measures of social status; however, none of these differences were significant. The findings revealed no significant interactions among relational aggression and the demographic variables of the study. Clinical implications, limitations of the current study, and future research directions are discussed

Contribution de l’hôpital au traitement du patient borderline

Les patients borderlines sont, de par leur symptomatologie, de grands utilisateurs des services de santé (mentale et physique). Une revue de la documentation scientifique récente montre que les auteurs favorisent un traitement dans la communauté qui soit éclectique, au long cours, et dont l'intensité puisse varier. L'hôpital fait partie des outils disponibles pour le traitement de ces patients et servira, pour la très grande majorité des cas, à contenir les crises, à préciser le diagnostic et à préparer et à renforcer un retour rapide à la communauté. Par exception, une hospitalisation prolongée (plus de 6 mois) sera indiquée, surtout pour les adolescents.Borderline patients, because of their symptomatology are frequent users of health care services (mental and physical). A recent review of the literature shows that the authors of this article favor a treatment within the community that should be eclectic, on a long-term basis and with varied intensity. The hospital is part of the therapeutic tools available for the treatment of these patients and should serve to contain crisis, specify diagnosis and to prepare and reinforce a rapid return in their community. Exceptionally, a prolonged hospitalization (> 6 months) would be indicated especially for adolescents

Hospitalisation prolongée et sécuritaire d’adolescents du continuum « narcissique-limite » : de l’approche psychodynamique à l’approche cognitive

La notion de médiation a transformé en profondeur les approches cliniques qui visent un changement, soit dans les connaissances, soit dans la façon d'être et de se comporter. Les stratégies de traitement prolongé des adolescents du continuum « narcissique-limite » dans un hôpital sécuritaire n'y échappent pas. L'approche analytique-psychodynamique a jusqu'ici été la seule à présenter des hypothèses d'intervention dans un tel contexte. Le présent article présente l'évolution des approches cliniques dans un milieu hospitalier sécuritaire québécois, et traduit, dans le langage cognitif de J. E. Young, une partie du travail clinique qui y est actuellement fait. Le rôle actif et médiateur de l'intervenant clinique (dont le psychothérapeute) constitue la ligne directrice de cette transformation graduelle des approches.The notion of "mediation" has profoundly transformed clinical approaches aiming at a change either in knowledge, in the way of being or of behaving. The way to treat narcissistic-borderline adolescents in the long-term in a secure hospital does not escape this notion. Until now, the psychodynamic-analytical approach has been the only one presenting interventions in such context, and this, since many decades. The present article attempts to witness the evolution of the clinical approaches within the Quebec security-hospital milieu, and to translate in J. E. Young's cognitive language part of the clinical work currently done. The active and mediation role of the clinical intervenor (including the psychotherapist) constitutes the guiding line of the gradual transformation of approaches

Development of safety performance functions and a GIS based spatial analysis of collision data for the City of Saskatoon

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) produced the first edition of the Highway Safety Manual (HSM) in 2010. The HSM introduces a six-step safety management process which provides engineers with a systematic and scientific approach to identifying and managing safety concerns on a road network. Each step plays a vital role in improving the safety of target road networks, and the first step, network screening, is the step where the safety issues are first identified. This is accomplished through the use of a series of Safety Performance Functions (SPFs). SPFs are mathematical equations that relate the collision frequency at a particular location with traffic volume and roadway characteristics. The purpose of this research is to develop a series of locally derived SPFs for the City of Saskatoon to allow engineers to estimate the expected number of collisions for the purpose of evaluating new roadway design alternatives and screening the existing roadway network in terms of safety. By developing locally derived SPFs, it may be possible to obtain a better prediction of the expected number of collisions than from using the base model SPFs provided in the HSM. The development of SPFs required three separate databases containing roadway characteristics, traffic volume, and collision records to be integrated into a single database. Using the statistical program R-Language, SPFs were developed and validated for the City of Saskatoon. The developed SPFs were used to conduct a network screening of Saskatoon’s roadways and intersections to identify locations with safety concerns. The results from the network screening were incorporated into ArcGIS to allow for a visual analysis of the spatial collision patterns. Finally, the locally derived SPFs were compared with the HSM base model SPFs to determine if other jurisdictions would benefit from developing their own locally derived SPFs for urban areas

Exploring The Impact Of Self-Determination On The Political Practices Of The Turtle Mountain Band Of Chippewa Indians: A Critical Content Analysis

This study examined the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA) of 1975 specific to the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians (TMBCI). The purpose of this study was to provide evidence as to the impact of the ISDEAA on the Tribe as well as if, and how, the Tribe set their own definition of self-determination, above and beyond the definition of the ISDEAA. This study also examined the tensions that exist between the federal government and the TMBCI using federal policies such as the ISDEAA. Tribal Critical Race Theory (TribalCrit) and Content Analysis were used as the theoretical framework and methodology, respectively. TribalCrit allowed for a discussion to unfold that would take into account colonization that has held Native peoples captive within western systems as it is positioned to analyze power and authority. Content analysis, on the other hand, provided a structure that allowed for the analysis of written text, tribal meeting minutes. While the ISDEAA was operational for the TMBCI, it did not appear to further self-determination efforts for the TMBCI. Rather, it limited self-determination as the only mention of the ISDEAA was in regard to contracting set activities such as construction for which processes and procedures were plainly laid out to which the TMBCI had to comply. This clearly speaks to the authority of federal rule as opposed to the TMBCI self-determining and as such, the ISDEAA appears to have further embedded the concept of colonization. On the other hand, however, TMBCI appears to have an internal definition of self-determination. This was witnessed through examples such as chartering a tribal community college and implementing a culturally responsive Teacher Education program. In terms of values, there was a definite tension between the values of individuality versus community interest. From the side of the federal government, it appeared that the value of individuality was a key component underlying policies while the TMBCI appeared to be more concerned with community interest. The TMBCI, however, also provided a venue for individual expression as noted in instances such as the Relocation policy

On Docking, Scoring and Assessing Protein-DNA Complexes in a Rigid-Body Framework

We consider the identification of interacting protein-nucleic acid partners using the rigid body docking method FTdock, which is systematic and exhaustive in the exploration of docking conformations. The accuracy of rigid body docking methods is tested using known protein-DNA complexes for which the docked and undocked structures are both available. Additional tests with large decoy sets probe the efficacy of two published statistically derived scoring functions that contain a huge number of parameters. In contrast, we demonstrate that state-of-the-art machine learning techniques can enormously reduce the number of parameters required, thereby identifying the relevant docking features using a miniscule fraction of the number of parameters in the prior works. The present machine learning study considers a 300 dimensional vector (dependent on only 15 parameters), termed the Chemical Context Profile (CCP), where each dimension reflects a specific type of protein amino acid-nucleic acid base interaction. The CCP is designed to capture the chemical complementarities of the interface and is well suited for machine learning techniques. Our objective function is the Chemical Context Discrepancy (CCD), which is defined as the angle between the native system's CCP vector and the decoy's vector and which serves as a substitute for the more commonly used root mean squared deviation (RMSD). We demonstrate that the CCP provides a useful scoring function when certain dimensions are properly weighted. Finally, we explore how the amino acids on a protein's surface can help guide DNA binding, first through long-range interactions, followed by direct contacts, according to specific preferences for either the major or minor grooves of the DNA

Validité empirique versus validité factorielle dans les inventaires de personnalité : le MMPI-2 et les échelles restructurées RC.// Empirical validity versus factorial validity in personality inventories: The MMPI-2 and the restructured RC scales

Depuis 2003, plusieurs publications américaines ont paru sur les "échelles Cliniques Restructurées RC". Ces échelles ont été construites en contradiction avec la stratégie psychométrique empirique adoptée d'emblée pour le MMPI (1943) et le MMPI-2 (1989). Les échelles RC sont plutôt basées sur une stratégie théorique-factorielle, que les experts de longue date des MMPI/MMPI-2 désavouent parce qu'elle ne remplit pas sa promesse de validité. En 2003, les échelles RC (Tellegen et coll., 2003) ont d'abord été ajoutées arbitrairement à l'ensemble des échelles empiriques du MMPI-2. Puis, en 2008 (voir Tellegen et Ben-Porath), elles ont plutôt été intégrées comme un atout à un tout nouvel instrument basé sur l'analyse factorielle, appelé MMPI-2-RF sur la seule base de l'emprunt de 338 des 567 items du MMPI-2. Le présent article a donc comme toile de fond la compromission possible du plus important test de personnalité utilisé en expertise psycholégale et en contexte clinique. Le but est de faire le point à la fois sur les fondements psychométriques du MMPI-2, ainsi que sur la valeur de ces échelles RC (Tellegen et coll., 2003) en affrontement maintenant ouvert avec le MMPI-2. \\ Since 2003, several American publications have appeared on the "Restructured Clinical Scales RC". These scales were constructed in contradiction with the empirical psychometric strategy adopted from the outset for the MMPI (1943) and MMPI-2 (1989). Rather, RC scales are based on a theoretical-factorial strategy, which longtime MMPI / MMPI-2 experts disavow because they do not fulfill their promise of validity. In 2003, these RC scales (Tellegen et al., 2003) were first arbitrarily grafted to the set of empirical MMPI-2 scales. Then, in 2008 (see Tellegen and Ben-Porath), they were instead integrated as an asset to a brand new instrument based on factor analysis, called MMPI-2-RF on the sole basis of the borrowing of 338 of the 567 items of the MMPI-2. The background to this article is therefore the possible compromise of the most important personality test used in forensic expertise and in a clinical context. The goal is to review both the psychometric foundations of MMPI-2, as well as the value of these RC scales (Tellegen et al., 2003) in the now open confrontation with MMPI-2