Isolating and Sequencing Genes Coding for Metal-Reducing Enzymes in Shewanella algae, BrY

The Natural and Accelerated Bioremediation Research (NABIR) Program focuses on efficiently managing and reducing contamination of soil and groundwater by heavy metals and nuclear materials at Department of Energy (DOE) sites across the United States. In an effort to learn how to use microbes to accomplish this goal, four genes that code for metal-reducing enzymes expressed by the soil bacterium Shewanella algae, strain BrY are being sequenced. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is used to amplify the genes of interest, and the PCR products are purified by cloning and sent to the University of Chicago for sequencing. So far, partial sequences of two genes have been obtained. Once the complete sequences of all four genes have been obtained, the research will focus on the characterization of the metal-reducing enzymes themselves

A recital of selected repertoire for the soprano voice

Vado, ma dove? W.A. Mozart (1756-1791) Auf dem Strom Franz Schubert (1797-1828) Canciones clásicas españolas Fernando Obradors (1897-1945) Del cabello más sutil La mi sola, Laureola Al amor INTERMISSION Quatre Poémes Hindous Maurice Delage (1879-1961) I. Madras II. Lahore III. Benares IV. Jeypur Wild Swans Ricky Ian Gordon (b. 1956) The Red Dress Once I Wa

A Memorial and a Name : Construction of Public Memory Through Chronotopic Arrangement of Antecedent Genre at Yad Vashem

This spring marked the 70th anniversary of the defeat of the Nazis and the end of the Holocaust in Europe. Memory of this genocide has occupied a central place in Israeli identity since the establishment of the state. This thesis explores the history of Holocaust memory in Israel and examines how public memory is constructed in the present, as the era of the survivor draws to a close and commemorative efforts linked to survivors take on a sense of urgency. The contemporary memorial places examined in this study are part of Yad Vashem, Israel*s premier institution for Holocaust commemoration. The thesis focuses on the museum*s Hall of Names and its analogous web space, the Central Database of Shoah Victims* Names. Specifically, I draw on two concepts from Rhetorical Genre Studies—the chronotope (Bakhtin) and antecedent genre (Jamieson)—to examine the relationship between genre and the making of public memory. The findings of this analysis point to the importance of the antecedent genre of Holocaust testimony in the construction of public memory at Yad Vashem. Through a chronotopic analysis of the Hall of Names and the Central Database, I found that the genre of testimony changed across these spaces to ideologically construct memory in different ways. It is in the Hall of Names and Central Database*s repurposing of the testimonial genre, and the expression of this genre through chronotopic arrangement in each of these locations, that a legacy of social concerns coalesces into the memorial expression of the contemporary moment. This study contributes to scholarship on the rhetorical construction of public memory and Rhetorical Genre Studies. First, it suggests the importance of genre and genre change in considerations of the rhetorical construction of public memory. Second, it suggests additional considerations in determining how context affects genre and vice versa when features of time and space are especially salient for meaning-making. Specifically, these findings suggest additional complexity in the relationship between genre and the chronotope: genre change across contexts may result from a genre*s integration into places with different space/time arrangements

ENVIRONMENTAL (IN)JUSTICE: EVALUATING THE FACTORS THAT LED TO THE JACKSON WATER CRISIS & PROPOSING A SOLUTION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE IN MISSISSIPPI

40,000. That is the number of residents that were left without potable water for nearly five weeks during Jackson, Mississippi’s February 2021 water crisis. An unusual cold front rolled through, freezing plant equipment, bursting water pipes, and causing many in Jackson to lose access to running water. This was not, however, the first time that Jackson residents had endured hardships with regard to their drinking water—it was just the first time that national attention turned to, and has seemed to remain on, Mississippi’s capital city. Those in Jackson are all too familiar with water pipes bursting, low water pressure, boil water notices, and a water supply contaminated with lead. Access to clean drinking water is taken for granted by most in the United States (U.S.); however, for a disadvantaged minority, such as those in Jackson, it seemed—and sometimes still seems—nearly unattainable. The human right to water has been recognized as a “prerequisite for the realization of other human rights” and was even declared a fundamental human right itself—just not by the U.S. However, growing concerns about the availability of safe drinking water in communities across the U.S. led the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council (NEJAC), in response to a charge from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2016, to release a report with recommendations on water infrastructure needs in disadvantaged communities. Ironically, the first goal included in the report was that Governments treat water as a human right

Like straight people do : an exploration of issues lesbian women encounter during their coming out process

A qualitative, flexible research method design was used to obtain data from a focus group, to investigate how lesbians experience a change in internal self and object relations in the process of coming out. More specifically, the research investigated: 1) what internal/external object representations are affected by coming out as a lesbian; 2) what are the internal issues of identity change; 3) what are the interpersonal issues of support; 4) what internal/interpersonal issues of losses/gains exist while coming out? Five adult lesbian women between the ages of 25 and 29 participated in this focus group study in Northern California. The major findings of this study suggest that coming out is a complex internal and interpersonal process. The narrative responses from these five women indicated a process of first recognizing homosexual feelings as a child, suppressing these feelings, and having these feelings resurface as a young adult. Several of the women stated that the coming out process resulted in pain/hurt for their mothers, which in turn, seemed to cause shame/guilt related to integrating their lesbian sexual orientation. In developing an identity the participants described working through homophobia embedded from important internalized objects. In this process, a new consciousness allows them to come to terms with their own internal homophobia and their important object\u27s homophobia, by being true to the self. The internal world of self and object can interact iv synergistically to support the transition to an expressible and expressed lesbian identity. It may be critical for clinicians to recognize the importance of internalized object representations that contribute to conflict in developing a cohesive sense of internal as well as interpersonal self. It might also be essential for clinicians to be attuned to the joy and process of being true to the self, since the participants in this focus group discussion indicated this as a crucial part of coming out as a lesbian woman

The Line of the Light: Painting backstage affective atmospheres.

This project explores the embodied experience of the affective atmosphere of the backstage of the theatre, questioning how this site can be visually translated using oil painting. Through the analysis of the affective capabilities of painting, the phenomenology of acting processes, and atmospheres that reside in backstage interiors, I investigate how the lived-experience of backstage sites can contribute to paintings which register affective atmospheres linked to heightened energy, focused concentration, imaginative processes, and liminal sensations

Overview of Credit-Bearing Library-Sponsored Courses for Health Sciences Students

Objective: This research project aims to present an overview of credit-bearing library-sponsored courses offered by librarians at Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL) member institutions during the 2017-2018 academic year. Methods: The research team gathered information about credit-bearing library-sponsored courses offered during the 2017-2018 academic year through a national survey, and gathered additional data using semistructured interviews. The cross-sectional survey investigated prevalence, content covered, credits offered, barriers, and other details about credit-bearing library courses. Information gleaned from interviews was thematically analyzed using qualitative methodologies. Results: The survey was completed by 40 of 150 U.S. AAHSL institutions, resulting in a 27% survey completion rate. During the 2017-2018 academic year, 17 institutions (42.5% of survey respondents) reported that they offered library-sponsored courses to students for academic credit, 8 institutions (20%) reported that they did not offer such courses but planned to in the future, and 15 institutions (37.5%) reported that they did not offer such courses and do not plan to. Interviews were conducted with 16 of the institutions that reported offering library sponsored courses, only 3 of which met our definition. Other details obtained through the semi-structured interviews -such as the credit-granting process, tuition distribution, assignments, grading format, and course evolution - will be presented. Conclusions: While many librarians are teaching credit-bearing courses, most of these are not library-sponsored courses. The main barrier to teaching credit-bearing library-sponsored courses is the lack of a central entity to grant course credit and offer the course to multiple disciplines

Redesigning a Hospital’s Evidence-Based Practice Course

The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Value Institute, which falls under the hospital’s Quality Department, has contributed to evidence-based practice (EBP) culture through education, evidence synthesis services, and the development of clinical decision support tools. Three members of the Value Institute -- a librarian, Clinical Evidence-Based Analyst, and Senior Value Specialist -- have taught a variety of EBP courses to clinicians over the years. However, because of increasing course dropout rates, the Value Institute conducted focus groups to identify ways to redesign the course. Two focus groups consisted of 6-8 previous course participants each. The focus groups started with an introduction, challenge statement, and problem statement. Participants silently brainstormed answers to four questions then posted answers to wall-mounted paper. A group discussion followed

Librarian Collaboration in Guideline Development

Objective: This paper describes the experience of three librarians from different institutions working together on a national guideline, the benefits of that collaboration, a suggested approach and the questions that should be asked beforehand to ensure the experience is efficient and the guideline is of the highest quality. Methods: Participating in guidelines is challenging because of the need to balance best practices, time constraints, and researchers\u27 needs. Most clinical guidelines include faculty authors from multiple institutions. When a librarian is invited to join a guideline development team, often times the librarian\u27s role is poorly defined. Before agreeing to participate in a national guideline, librarians should consider authorship versus acknowledgment, time commitment, number and complexity of clinical questions, project management, research team support, team experience with guideline development, and cross-institutional librarian collaboration. Results: Collaborating with librarians from other institutions has many benefits: the burden of completing search strategies is shared; librarian partners can serve as a sounding board for problem-solving; opportunities are provided for librarians to learn new skills, databases, and technology not subscribed to by their own institutions; and peer review improves the quality of the searches, thus ensuring the highest quality guidelines. Lastly, involving more librarians strengthens relationships between librarians and faculty from their own institutions which could lead to other opportunities. Conclusions: When participating in a national guideline, librarians should ask for authorship, be realistic about the time commitment, confirm details of research questions, gauge team experience with guideline development, discuss project management, obtain research team support, and finally, engage in cross-institutional librarian collaboration

The Intersection of Research and Community Health: Using Evidence to Inform Population Health Strategy

Background: Social determinants of health (SDoH) are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, and work, and they significantly impact an individual’s health and wellbeing. With robust connections to community partners, access to data, and touch points with patients, healthcare systems are ideally positioned to address SDoH, yet systems struggle to identify how best to capture and manage SDoH needs. The hospital within our academic medical center leveraged a partnership with our medical library to create an evidence review program, specifically aimed at informing the health system’s population health strategy and implementation tactics using best research evidence. Description: When tasked with developing a comprehensive population health strategy, the hospital within our academic medical center partnered with our medical library to create an evidence synthesis service aimed at infusing best research practices into strategy development and implementation. The hospital’s executive leadership team identified clinical and policy questions, and members of the hospital’s population health department worked closely with a medical librarian to complete literature searches, appraise evidence and summarize findings for leaders. These findings were used to inform strategy and implementation decisions. Examples of topics searched included the following: the most effective way to screen for SDoH needs, the best clinical data to use for predictive risk assessments, approaches to outreaching high-risk patients, and the effectiveness of integrating behavioral health resources into clinics for patients with complex medical conditions. Conclusion: This program led to the successful implementation of population health strategies for our healthcare system, and has benefited our community. The evidence synthesis service helped secure grant funding for two behavioral health resources for our adult and pediatric sickle cell disease clinics. This program also informed our enterprise-wide roll-out of SDoH screening and referral management. These are a few demonstrable ways the program has resulted in improvements in care delivery. Our population health strategy tactics each have metrics of success, which are monitored on our health system’s scorecard. Achievement of these measures will also serve as a way to monitor our program’s effectiveness going forward