The Impact of a School-Based Program on Diabetes and Cardiovascular Risk Factors

Obesity is an increasing health issue both in the United States and worldwide. Furthermore, childhood obesity is increasing in prevalence. Childhood obesity is associated with an increased risk of comorbidities in adulthood. Obesity in childhood and adolescence makes one more likely to become obese during adulthood. This study sought to determine the effect of a school-based obesity prevention program on diabetes and cardiovascular risk factors such as body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, waist circumference, and acanthosis nigricans. Measurements were taken before education in the fall semester, and again after two education sessions in the spring semester. Student and faculty researchers at the University of Arkansas developed the Eat Better, Move More program to be implemented in two classrooms in George Elementary School. Teaching points were developed and given to teachers who implemented the education in their classrooms. Topics covered in the teaching included sleep habits, exercise, nutrition, and healthy habits. A paired sample T-test was used to evaluate the difference in pre- and post-education data points. Results showed a significant difference in pre- and post- education BMI; however, the BMI increased significantly instead of the desired decrease. Results showed no significant difference in pre- and post-education blood pressure or waist circumference. Results of a Wilcoxon sign-rank test showed no significant difference in pre- and post-education acanthosis nigricans. Results of the study indicate that the school-based program did not have a positive impact on obesity and cardiovascular risk factors such as BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, and acanthosis nigricans. Further research can be done to determine the effects of a long-term program on these risk factors

School Turnaround: Cristo Rey Boston High School Case Study

The mandates of the federal No Child Left Behind Law, including the threat of closing a school for underperformance, have led to multiple public school turnaround attempts. Because turnaround is a relatively new area of focus in education, there is limited research on what does and does not work, and even the definition of turnaround is a work in progress. The research that is available is almost exclusively from the public school sector. This article gives some history and context for school turnarounds currently taking place in the United States and describes the turnaround of a Catholic, inner-city high school in the Archdiocese of Boston. The school, Cristo Rey Boston High School—formerly North Cambridge Catholic High School—has a history spanning nearly 100 years. Unlike a public school, North Cambridge Catholic High School was not subject to closure or takeover for consistently poor student performance on standardized tests. Instead, the principal and his faculty were driven by their own desire to improve the quality of education they were offering their students

Total synthesis of the baulamycins, The

2019 Fall.Includes bibliographical references.Described herein are the total syntheses of the antibiotic polyketides baulamycin A and baulamycin B. A synthesis giving rise to much of the baulamycins' initially-proposed structures is also described

The Personality of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

This paper presents the results of an indirect assessment of the personality of U.S. Supreme Court associate justice Clarence Thomas, from the conceptual perspective of Theodore Millon. Information concerning Justice Thomas was collected from biographical sources, speeches, and published reports and synthesized into a personality profile using the second edition of the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with Axis II of DSM–IV. The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed on the basis of interpretive guidelines provided in the MIDC and Millon Index of Personality Styles manuals. Justice Thomas’s primary personality patterns were found to be Contentious/oppositional and Reticent/inhibited, with secondary features of the Conscientious/respectful pattern. The amalgam of Contentious and Reticent patterns in Justice Thomas’s profile suggests the presence of an adaptive, nonpathological variant of Millon’s conflicted avoidant syndrome. People with this personality composite seek social acceptance while simultaneously anticipating rejection and disillusionment. They have a disproportionate fear of failure and humiliation, but see little alternative but to depend on supporting persons and institutions, which kindles resentment. To protect themselves from the feelings of anger and anxiety prompted by this inner conflict, they tend to withdraw from social interaction or public view. The major implication of the study is that it offers an empirically based personological framework for understanding the enigmatic Justice Clarence Thomas, who claims to be untroubled by the harsh judgment of his critics while simultaneously casting himself as a besieged victim. In truth, he is hypersensitive to rejection and deeply resentful of his detractors, yet his strong need for acceptance and respect make it difficult for him to confront his critics directly, which carries the risk of further alienation

Dust particle velocity measurement

A laser Doppler velocimeter was used to measure the velocity distributions for particles entering a vacuum chamber from the atmosphere through calibrated leaks. The relative number of particles per velocity interval was obtained for particulates of three size distributions and two densities passing through six different leak geometries. The velocity range 15 to 320 meters per second was investigated. Peak particle velocities were found to occur in the 15 to 150 meters per second range depending upon type of particle and leak geometry. A small fraction of the particles were found to have velocities in the 150 to 320 meters per second range

Appellate Reversal for Insufficient Evidence In Criminal Cases: The Interaction of the Proof and the Jury Charge

Garrett\u27s disturbing outcome is the most egregious in a series of decisions promulgated by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals during the past decade. The result is the product of a sufficiency of evidence analysis in which appellate courts compare the evidence presented to the jury charge alone. Such a sufficiency review exceeds the constitutional safeguards announced by the United States Supreme Court. While a state may provide greater rights than those protected by the federal constitution, doing so in this situation represents poor policy and ill-conceived law. This article will explore various methods for analyzing sufficiency of evidence and trace the evolution of Texas cases culminating in Garrett. Finally, the authors will suggest an alternative analysis that is consistent with constitutional due process and avoids the pitfalls of the current scheme

Baccio del Bianco at the Court of Spain: Early Modern Scenic Design in Context

This dissertation examines the life and work of seventeenth-century artist and architect, Baccio del Bianco, to imagine alternative research strategies for histories of theatre. Traditional scholarship of theatre design is rooted in art historical practices, which has limited the consideration of influences beyond visual culture. It has also posited Italian theatre culture as the driver of innovations in Early Modern theatre design. In this project, I argue for and engage in a practice of scenic design historiography that replaces Italy as the dominant actor in the theatrical scene of this period with a more nuanced approach that places emphasis on the contexts of artistic production. Baccio del Bianco was born and trained in Florence, and he later worked in Italy and the Holy Roman Empire, before taking up the post of court theatre designer for King Philip IV of Spain in Madrid. There is a large amount of extant documentation relating to his life and work, including a presentation copy of a play by Pedro Calderón de la Barca containing eleven signed, hand drawn illustrations. This manuscript is central to this project, though I also draw upon selected other works from Baccio’s oeuvre. These include many with no direct relation to theatre or performance, such as his work on military fortifications and civic waterways, and his designs for ornamental glassware. The research and writing of this dissertation were influenced by a cultural history approach to design, as well as Actor-network-theory. The former is based on the work of theatre scholar Christin Essin and, in part, posits theatre design as a creative practice in conversation with cultural, social, and economic flows outside the realms of theatre and performance. Actor-network-theory, promulgated by sociologist Bruno Latour, provides strategies for analyzing networks composed of both human and non-human actors. It offers approaches to archival research that draw attention not just to the connections between people but also to those created by material elements in archival collections. Together these methodologies encourage robust engagement with primary and secondary sources, objects, and felicitous encounters (both literal and imaginative) to build a fuller image of past events and practices. My project is in-and-of-itself an argument for this kind of engagement with the history of theatre design

Cryptic species status of Anopheles (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquitoes in Canada using a multidisciplinary approach

Many species of Anopheles mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) are now recognized as species complexes whose members are often indistinguishable morphologically but identifiable based on ecological, genetic, or behavioural data. Because the members of species complexes often differ in their vector potential, accurate identification of vector species is essential for successful mosquito control. To investigate the cryptic species status of Anopheles mosquitoes in Canada, specimens were collected from across the country and examined using morphological, molecular, and ecological data. Six of the seven traditionally recognised species from Canada were collected from locations in British Columbia, Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador, and throughout Ontario, including Anopheles barberi, An. earlei, An. freeborni, An. punctipennis, An. quadrimaculatus s.l., and An. walkeri. Variation in polymorphic traits within An. earlei, An. punctipennis, and An. quadrimaculatus s.l. were quantified and egg morphology examined using scanning electron microscopy. Morphological identification of adult and larval specimens suggested that two described cryptic species, An. perplexens and An. smaragdinus, were present in Canada. DNA sequence data were analysed for evidence of cryptic species using three molecular markers: COl, ITS2, and ITS!. Intraspecific COl variation was very low in most species «1 %), except for An. punctipennis with 2% sequence divergence between those from British Columbia (BC) and Ontario (ON), and An. walkeri with 7% sequence divergence between populations from Manitoulin Island (NO) and Long Point Provincial Park (LP). Similar patterns were also seen using ITS2 and ITS 1. Therefore, molecular data revealed the presence of two putative cryptic species within two species examined (i.e., An. walkeri and An. punctipennis), corresponding to collection location (i.e., NO vs. LP and BC vs. ON, respectively). Surprisingly, there was no molecular support for the presence of either An. perplexens or An. smaragdinus in Canada despite the morphological assessments. Ecological data from all collection sites were recorded and are available in an online database designed to manage all collection and identification data. Current bionomic information, including regional abundance, larval habitat, and species associations, was determined for each species. This multidisciplinary study of Anopheles mosquitoes is the first detailed investigation of these potential disease vectors in Canada and demonstrates the importance of an integrated approach to anopheline systematics that includes molecular data