Cyberspace, Y2K: Giant Robots, Asian Punks

On the eve of the 21st century, a group of young Asian American writers bravely announced—tongue partially in cheek, in keeping with the aesthetic of sincere irony that characterizes the so-called Generation X—their recreation of “a monster.” This announcement, posted on the internet (at www.gidra.net), was drafted by the “editorial recollective” of Gidra, a samizdat (self-published) monthly newsletter launched thirty years earlier by a group of UCLA students who wanted a forum where they could address the particular concerns and issues facing Asian Pacific Americans in the Vietnam War era. Writers and editors of a new Gidra declared in 1999 with a flourish their intention to create a publication that would provide a way to “get off our collective asses, look ahead and define the world of tomorrow.

Untitled [Informational letter by CCISSA co-chairs]

A paper by the co-chairs of the Chicago Committee in Solidarity with Southern Africa (CCISSA) explaining why they will be co-hosting a Soweto Day Walkathon in Chicago, Illinois with Church World Services.https://digitalcommons.colum.edu/soweto/1006/thumbnail.jp

Untitled [Thank you letter]

A thank you letter issued to participants of the 1989 Soweto Day Walkathon in Chicago, Illinois.https://digitalcommons.colum.edu/soweto/1013/thumbnail.jp

Is it Possible to Change the Way College Students Think About Stress? The Benefits of a Stress Management Course

The purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of a stress management course on college students’ stress mindsets. Stress mindset encompasses the beliefs one holds about stress. Those who view stress as beneficial have a stress-is-enhancing mindset, while those who view stress as detrimental have a stress-is-debilitating mindset. Subjects enrolled in a physical activity course (control group, n=25) and a stress management course (n=24) possessed a neutral stress mindset at baseline. Students in the intervention group showed a significant shift to a more stress-is-enhancing mindset by the end of the semester. Students in the control group did not show any significant changes in stress mindset over the course of the semester. Additionally, we analyzed the relationships between personality traits and baseline stress mindset and found significant correlations. However, no relationships existed when personality and changes in stress mindset were analyzed.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters/1007/thumbnail.jp

Feasibility-study for space-based transit photometry using mid-sized nanosatellites

Thesis (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, 2012.Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (p. 85-88).The photometric precision needed to measure a transit of small planets cannot be achieved by taking observations from the ground, so observations must be made from space. Mid-sized nanosatellites can provide a low-cost option for building an optical system to take these observations. The potential of using nanosatellites of varying sizes to perform transit measurements was evaluated using a theoretical noise budget, simulated exoplanet-transit data, and case studies to determine the expected results of a radial velocity followup mission and transit survey mission. Optical systems on larger mid-sized nanosatellites (such as ESPA satellites) have greater potential than smaller mid-sized nanosatellites (such as CubeSats) to detect smaller planets, detect planets around dimmer stars, and discover more transits in RV followup missions.by Rachel Bowens-Rubin.S.M

Modeling the Epidemiologic and Economic Impacts of Nosocomial Infection Prevention Strategies

It is estimated that more than 1.7 million nosocomial infections and 98,000 deaths occur annually in the U.S. Nosocomial infections are associated with a longer length of stay (LOS), which is in-turn associated with higher costs and is a risk factor for additional infections. Infection prevention measures may allow a significant number of cases to be averted, although consensus has not been reached about the ultimate epidemiologic and economic value of prevention strategies. A multifaceted program of nosocomial infection prevention evaluating the surveillance test attributes, target population, and intervention implementation has potential to both improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs. I developed models to evaluate and estimate the impact of these infection control interventions. First, testing adult hospital inpatients has the potential to prevent transmission of MRSA among patients. However, policy makers and hospital administrators must consider the diagnostic test used in a screening program. Increasing the number of anatomic sites tested with surveillance cultures does not appear to have as great an impact as decreasing turnaround time on the economic value of a MRSA testing strategy. Second, weekly surveillance of neonates in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and isolation of those who test positive is a technique that hospitals could use to decrease the incidence on nosocomial infections, selecting neonates as a target population where MRSA infections have substantial morbidity. Hospitals with moderate to high adherence to isolation protocols have the potential to prevent adverse clinical outcomes and mortality among NICU populations. Third, routine dispensing of home-based preoperative chlorhexidine bathing kits has the potential to prevent post-operative surgical site infections (SSIs). Our model suggests that preoperative bathing would have substantial economic value throughout a wide range of intervention implementation scenarios: patient compliance levels, cloth efficacies, costs, and SSI-attributable LOS, supporting the distribution of chlorhexidine cloths preoperatively. The public health significance is that decision makers can use the models described here to benchmark the test characteristics, potential target populations, and intervention implementation strategies to utilize in local infection prevention programs. A comprehensive approach including the interventions modeled here may help move towards the elimination of healthcare acquired infections

Tinnitus as a Measure of Salicylate Toxicity in the Overdose Setting

Introduction: The development of tinnitus and/or hearing loss (THL) in patients receiving chronic salicylate therapy has been demonstrated. However, to date, little scientific data validates this relationship in the large single overdose setting.Objective: To correlate salicylate levels in patients with the subjective complaint of THL, following an acute salicylate overdose.Methods: A retrospective chart review of cases of acute salicylate toxicity and THL reported to the Illinois Poison Control Center (IPC) from 2001-2002 was performed. Data abstracted included age, gender, ingestion time, salicylate levels, and arterial blood gases.Results: Ninety-nine cases of THL were reviewed and analyzed with mean age of 23.7 years (SD: 10.9), 30.3% male, and 82.2% intentional overdoses. The average dose ingested was 20.0 grams (SD:20.2) and the mean time from ingestion to medical care was 12.4 hours (SD: 11.1). The mean initial ASA level was 48.3 mg/dl (SD: 16.4) with 86.9% having initial level ≥ 30mg/dl and 40.4% ≥ 50 mg/dl. 85.9% of cases presented to the hospital with their ASA level at or past peak. The mean pH was 7.45, pO2 = 108, pCO2 = 28.0, and HCO3 = 19.9.Conclusion: In this limited study, 85.9% of patients presenting with tinnitus and/or hearing loss following a single salicylate ingestion had initial salicylate levels at or past their peak and 86.9% were in the toxic range