Differences Between African American and White Males in Grades 6-8: Comparative Evidence from Selected Texas Rural Schools

The academic achievement gap among Black males in grades 6-8 across Texas is a growing concern. Based on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR), secondary data from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) was used to evaluate scores from a sample of Texas rural schools. In this quantitative, non-experimental methods study, the dependent variable examined was the STAAR reading score at the “meets grade level,” and the independent dichotomous variables examined were: race, whether or not the student was classified in one of the following groups: ECD, at-risk, and special education. Academic trends from the 2017-2019 academic school years suggested there were few statistical differences in STAAR reading performance between the Black and White male students in the years examined in this study. These findings will benefit teachers and administrators of K-12 schools in the selected districts. Future recommendations are discussed

Final report of the Conference on the eradicability of Onchocerciasis

Sixty-four experts from a variety of disciplines attended a Conference on the Eradicability of Onchocerciasis at The Carter Center, in Atlanta GA, held January 22-24, 2002. The Conference, which was organized by The Carter Center and the World Health Organization, with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, addressed the question: "Is onchocerciasis (River Blindness) eradicable with current knowledge and tools?" Former US President Jimmy Carter attended part of the final plenary proceedings on January 24. The Conference consisted of a series of presentations by invited expert speakers (Appendix C) and further deliberations in four workgroups (Appendix D) followed by plenary discussion of major conclusions. The presentations underlined epidemiological and entomological differences between onchocerciasis in Africa and the Americas. Whilst onchocerciasis in Africa covers extensive areas and is associated with striking human and fly population migrations and remarkably efficient black fly vectors, in the Americas onchocerciasis is found in limited foci. Human and fly population migration are not major problems in the Americas, where most black fly species are inefficient, though some efficient black flies are also found there. Vector control has been effectively applied in the Onchocerciasis Control Program in West Africa (OCP) with remarkable results, interrupting transmission in most parts of the original Program area. The use of ivermectin has given variable results: while ivermectin treatment has been effective in all endemic areas in controlling onchocerciasis as a public health problem, its potential for interrupting transmission is more promising in hypo- and mesoendemic areas. The African Program for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC), which supports onchocerciasis control in endemic African countries outside the OCP, applies ivermectin, its principal control tool, to communities in high-risk areas as determined by rapid epidemiological mapping of onchocerciasis (REMO) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). In the Americas, through support of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program in the Americas (OEPA), a strategy of bi-annual ivermectin treatment of at least 85% of the eligible populations in all endemic communities is showing very good results and promises to be effective in eliminating onchocerciasis in the region.The Conference concluded that onchocerciasis is not eradicable using current tools due to the major barriers to eradication in Africa. However, the Conference also concluded that in most if not all the Americas, and possibly Yemen and some sites in Africa, transmission of onchocerciasis can be eliminated using current tools. The Conference recommended that where interruption of transmission is feasible and cost effective, programs should aim for that goal using all appropriate and available interventions so that the Onchocerca volvulus can eventually be eliminated and interventions halted. Although interruption of transmission of onchocerciasis cannot currently be achieved in most of Africa, the Conference recommended that efforts be made to preserve areas in West Africa made free of onchocerciasis transmission through the Onchocerciasis Control Program over the past 25 years. In the remaining hyper and mesoendemic foci in Africa, continued annual distribution of ivermectin will keep onchocerciasis controlled to a point where it is no longer a public health problem or constraint to economic development

Cost-effectiveness of a nurse-led ORIF ankle care programme

In response to current outdated models of outpatient fracture care, a nurse-led ankle care protocol was implemented by Glasgow Royal Infirmary’s (GRI) fracture clinic. Its aim was to standardise post- surgery care for Open Reduction Internal Fixation (ORIF) ankle fractures, while maintaining patient reported outcomes. The demand for evaluation across healthcare in the UK is exponentially increasing and although the protocol has been widely accepted throughout the clinic, no evidence existed to confirm its cost-effectiveness. This study fills that gap in knowledge through a thorough cost-evaluation using Discrete Event Simulation (DES), a widely recognised and powerful modelling tool within healthcare evaluation. It was found that the difference between the total number of appointments attended patients between the two groups was not significant (p>0.05). However, results of the cost-modelling clearly show that a 28.12% saving can be achieved when comparing total staffing costs and X-ray costs between the two groups

So many others: reconstructions of whiteness in the literature of the American South, 1880-1920

The study explores reconstructions of whiteness in the literature of the American South, offering a deconstructive approach to whiteness. Navigating its way through contemporary scholarship on whiteness, it questions the conflation of whiteness with white identity, which locks its interpretations within the white versus black dichotomy. Adopting a place specific approach, the thesis situates its discussion in the Post-Reconstruction South, proposing that whiteness is not a homogeneous category, but rather its constructions are unique to particular locales. The thesis engages with the works of such nineteenth century southern writers as Thomas Nelson Page, Ellen Glasgow, Charles Waddell Chesnutt and Alice Dunbar-Nelson. Although immersed in the tradition of the region, these writers are positioned on the opposite sides of the colour line, and an examination of their unique narrative positions allows for an objective delineation of southern whiteness. Combining ‘white’ and ‘black’ perspectives, the discussion explores what constitutes the southern variety of whiteness and the ways in which these writers reconstruct it. Following Richard Dyer’s identification of perfect whiteness with the figures of Christ and the Virgin Mary, the study argues that whiteness consists in replicating these biblical paradigms in the ordinary. In the South, these models of whiteness are conflated with notions of antebellum gentility and apotheosised in the figures of the gentleman planter and southern belle, who are involved in the process of mimetic reconstructions of the divine and genteel ideals. Casting whiteness as a composite of distinct totalities that resist unification into an organic whole, the thesis argues that the desire to replicate the biblical and genteel models is perpetuated by a conviction of intrinsic ‘blackness’ that needs to be exorcised. Such awareness blights reconstructions of whiteness, transmuting them into sites of rupture and transgression. Haunted by the preconceived perfection of the divine and antebellum paradigms, the southern gentleman and lady are transformed into inadequate approximations, while whiteness proper remains elusive

Testing Astronaut-Controlled Telerobotic Operation of Rovers From the International Space Station as a Precursor to Lunar Missions

Missions to Earth-Moon libration points can advance capabilities for human exploration and provide unique opportunities to advance scientific knowledge. For example, NASAs Orion spacecraft, currently under development, could serve as a platform from which astronauts would explore the lunar farside using robots that they remotely operate from a libration point. During Summer 2013, we conducted initial testing of this surface telerobotics concept of operations using the International Space Station (ISS) as a proxy for Orion orbiting the Moon. Over the course of three test sessions, Expedition 36 astronauts Chris Cassidy, Luca Parmitano, and Karen Nyberg on the ISS remotely operated NASAs K10 planetary rover in an outdoor terrain located at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC). In this paper, we discuss the motivation for Earth-Moon libration point missions, describe the surface telerobotics tests performed to date, and outline directions for future ISS testing

Comparative performance of the new Aptima HIV-1 Quant Dx assay with three commercial PCR-based HIV-1 RNA quantitation assays

AbstractBackgroundQuantitative measurement of HIV-1 RNA levels in plasma (‘viral load’) plays a central role in clinical management. The choice of assay platform can influence results and treatment decisions.ObjectiveTo compare the analytical performance of the new TMA-based Hologic Aptima® HIV-1 Quant Dx assay with that of three PCR-based assays: Abbott RealTime HIV-1, Qiagen Artus® HI Virus-1 QS-RGQ, and Roche CAP/CTM HIV-1 Test v2.Study designAssay performance was evaluated using Acrometrix HIV-1 RNA Standard panels; the 3rd WHO HIV-1 RNA International Standard (12–500copies/ml; 6 dilutions; 9 replicates); and plasma samples from 191 HIV-positive patients.ResultsAptima showed high (>0.99) precision, accuracy and concordance with the Acrometrix Standards across a wide dynamic range (2.0–6.7 log10copies/ml). Variance caused up to 2.1 (Aptima), 1.7 (RealTime), 7.5 (Artus), and 1.9 (CAP/CTM) fold changes in the International Standard quantifications at 50–500copies/ml. HIV-1 RNA detection rates in plasma samples were 141/191 (74%), 119/191 (62%), 108/191 (57%), and 145/191 (76%) for Aptima, RealTime, Artus and CAP/CTM, respectively. For categorising samples either side of 50 copies/ml, Aptima had excellent agreement with RealTime (kappa 0.92; 95% CI 0.87–0.98); lowest agreement was with Artus (kappa 0.79; 95%CI 0.70–0.88). Aptima quantifications were mean 0.12 and 0.06 log10copies/ml higher compared with RealTime and CAP/CTM, respectively, and 0.05 log10copies/ml lower compared with Artus. Limits of agreement were narrowest when comparing Aptima to RealTime.ConclusionsThe new Aptima HIV assay is sensitive, precise, and accurate. HIV assays exhibit discordance at low HIV-1 RNA copy numbers

Weight Gain in High-Risk Pregnant Women: Comparison by Primary Diagnosis and Type of Care

Reasonable weight gain in pregnancy is essential for the health of the woman and fetus. The purpose of this secondary analysis was to examine patterns of prenatal weight gain in women with diabetes and hypertension using data from a randomized controlled trial examining physician-only (n = 29) versus APN and physician-delivered (n = 38) prenatal care. Data collection included gestational age at enrollment, delivery, diagnosis (diabetes, hypertension), prepregnancy body mass index (BMI), weight every 4 weeks during pregnancy, and total weight gain during pregnancy. Based on prepregnancy BMI, 21% of the sample was normal weight, 16% overweight, and 63% obese. There were no significant differences between physician versus APN and physician prenatal care and weight gained during pregnancy; the trend in favor of APN and physician care was evident. For women entering pregnancy with a chronic health condition, compounded by obesity, education on nutrition, diet, and behavioral modification is essential

Science of entropy-stabilized ultra-high temperature materials: predictive and multi-physics modelling

Our team is exploring a new concept in the development of ultra-high temperature materials - engineering the configurational entropy contribution to the free energy. We are doing this by using compositions with multiple refractory elements in near equi-molar concentrations. The work has focused primarily on unique refractory alloys that combine multi- and single-component sublattices; these are di-borides with layered sublattices, as well as nitrides, carbides, and carbo-nitrides with interpenetrating multi-and single-component face-centered-cubic sublattices. Please click Additional Files below to see the full abstract