A NEW TEST OF THE NEWS: AN EXAMINATION OF THE NEW YORK TIMES AND CNN COVERAGE OF THE WAR IN UKRAINE

Russia launched a military invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, setting off Europe’s largest war since World War II. The war captured the attention of American news organizations, which gave the conflict unprecedented levels of coverage. This thesis tested the coverage of the war in Ukraine by two major American news outlets: The New York Times and CNN. This study used qualitative content analysis to examine the top four front-page stories of the Times and CNN Newsroom show. Two timeframes were used to analyze these materials: February 24, 2022, to March 9, 2022, and September 17, 2022, to September 30, 2022. The study used three categories of coverage- types of stories and recurring themes, use of sources and use of technology- to test how CNN and the Times reported the news. CNN and the Times devoted an extensive amount of their coverage to the war in Ukraine. This coverage leaned toward Ukrainians and away from Russians, risking objectivity in reporting. Advancements in technology formed a new type of digital journalism during the war in Ukraine. Digital journalism captured content unattainable during previous wars and is likely to continue to advance reporting by the American media from conflict zones across the world

Antisemitism & Vampires: The Surprising Roots of A Popular Cultural Monster

This essay was for Justin Shaw’s fall 2023 English major capstone class. The essay examines antisemitism and vampires, specifically Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula, John Polidori’s short story The Vampyre; A Tale, and the episode “Monster Movie” from the TV show Supernatural through the lens of antisemitic stereotypes. By looking at the literary history of the vampire one can trace its physical antisemitic stereotypes and the influence of fear of the “other” with reverse-colonization by Jews. Starting with historically classic 19th century texts and ending with a modern day television show, it is evident that the antisemitic physical stereotypes of the vampire are still with us

Comparisons and Contrasts of IT Systems and Socioeconomic Status in School Districts

In a technology thrived society, one would think that anyone can have access to technology – especially in schools. However, it is not always the case due to budgets and other factors. As technology becomes an essential part of the workforce, students need to know certain web applications that companies use. This study will compare four school districts within the Tidewater area of Virginia. The following school districts include Hampton City Schools, Newport News Public Schools, York County School Division, and Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools. Each school will be compared and contrasted by the technology applications that are used along with their socioeconomic status

Simulating the Impact of X-ray Heating during the Cosmic Dawn

Upcoming observations of the 21-cm signal from the Epoch of Reionization will soon provide the first direct detection of this era. This signal is influenced by many astrophysical effects, including long range X-ray heating of the intergalactic gas. During the preceding Cosmic Dawn era the impact of this heating on the 21-cm signal is particularly prominent, especially before spin temperature saturation. We present the largest-volume (349\,Mpc comoving=244~$h^{-1}$Mpc) full numerical radiative transfer simulations to date of this epoch that include the effects of helium and multi-frequency heating, both with and without X-ray sources. We show that X-ray sources contribute significantly to early heating of the neutral intergalactic medium and, hence, to the corresponding 21-cm signal. The inclusion of hard, energetic radiation yields an earlier, extended transition from absorption to emission compared to the stellar-only case. The presence of X-ray sources decreases the absolute value of the mean 21-cm differential brightness temperature. These hard sources also significantly increase the 21-cm fluctuations compared the common assumption of temperature saturation. The 21-cm differential brightness temperature power spectrum is initially boosted on large scales, before decreasing on all scales. Compared to the case of the cold, unheated intergalactic medium, the signal has lower rms fluctuations and increased non-Gaussianity, as measured by the skewness and kurtosis of the 21-cm probability distribution functions. Images of the 21-cm signal with resolution around 11~arcmin still show fluctuations well above the expected noise for deep integrations with the SKA1-Low, indicating that direct imaging of the X-ray heating epoch could be feasible.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure

Maternal Autonomy as a Protective Factor in Child Nutritional Outcome in Tanzania

Child malnutrition is a problem in all countries and centers in poorer communities. Biological and socioeconomic factors alike contribute to malnutrition with recent studies focusing on aspects of maternal autonomy as an influencing factor. In this study, maternal autonomy is defined as the independence in her actions and control over resources a mother has within her household and is made up of several factors, including decision-making power, opinion of domestic abuse, and financial independence. Child nutritional outcomes were operationalized using the anthropometric measures height-for-age (HAZ), weight-for-height (WHZ), and weight-for-age (WAZ). For this study, the 2004-2005 Tanzanian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) dataset was examined using weighted logistic regression in SPSS version 17. After controlling for sociodemographic covariates, the only maternal autonomy variable which was statistically associated with child nutritional outcome (associated with height-for-age) was if the mother had final say in decisions regarding her own healthcare (OR=0.857, 95% CI=0.749-0.980). Sociodemographic variables which were statistically associated with child nutritional outcome were child age (older children had higher odds ratios for stunting and lower odds ratios for wasting), child gender (being female was a protective factor against stunting and underweight), duration of breastfeeding (intervals longer than 24 months had higher odds ratios for stunting, wasting, and underweight), and family’s position in the wealth index (being in the richer and richest quintiles were protective factors against stunting and underweight). While further research is needed to examine other influencing factors such as sanitation, diet, and disease prevalence, decision-making power regarding a mother’s own healthcare is an important factor that may influence her ability to meet the nutritional needs of her children. This implies that public health professionals may want to look into avenues by which maternal autonomy may be enhanced for possible interventions to improve child nutritional status in Tanzania

The implicit theories of child sexual exploitation materials users: an initial conceptualization

Contact sexual offenders have been proposed to hold a set of distorted core beliefs about themselves, others, and the world. These beliefs (or ‘implicit theories’) bias information in an offense-supportive manner, contributing to the etiology and maintenance of sexual offending. In recent years, there has been an increased research interest in online ‘child sexual exploitation material’ (CSEM) users, particularly since research has shown they are distinct from contact child abusers. In light of their distinction, it is hypothesized that CSEM users will possess their own set of implicit theories that guide their interpretation of intra/interpersonal information in a manner that influences the viewing and downloading of CSEM. Following a qualitative analysis of the existing empirical CSEM literature, an initial conceptualization of the implicit theories held by CSEM users is offered in the present paper. These include: ‘Unhappy World’, ‘Children as Sexual Objects’, ‘Nature of Harm (CSEM variant)’, ‘Self as Uncontrollable’, and ‘Self as Collector’, each of which is contextualized by a general assumption about the reinforcing nature of the Internet. The paper provides a detailed account of each implicit theory, including its content and function. Practical and research implications are also highlighted

Metabolic Efficiency During Ramp Test in Collegiate Cyclists

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to determine trend-line patterns for efficiency in collegiate, competitive cyclists. METHODS: Subjects included 17male and 6 female (n=23) . Measures were the following: age (y), height (cm), weight (kg), maximal oxygen consumption (VO2max, mL*kg-1*min.-1), maximal heart rate (MHR, b*min.-1), blood lactate (BLa, mM) and maximal power (w). Subjects were fit, collegiate cyclists competing for Midwestern State University cycling team. Each subject performed a cycle ergometer test utilizing the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) cycle ergometer protocol. Blood lactate was determined by removing 10µl each minute during the cycle ergometer test to volitional fatigue. Oxygen consumption (VO2, mL*kg-1*min.-1) per power output (watts) was calculated as metabolic efficiency (VO2*watts-1). Trend-line analysis was correlated with metabolic efficiency in response to VO2 per work at each stage . Statistical significance was set a priori at p \u3c 0.05. Results: Mean (SD) demographic measures were the following: age (y) 22.8 (3.8); height (cm) 169.4 (16.9); weight (kg) 74.6 (5.20); Metabolic efficiency (VO2*watts-1) indicated a power curvilinear trend-line. Male data averaged across power output resulted in a mathematical power trend-line with a coefficient of determination of R2=.898. Female data averaged across power resulted in a power trend-line with a coefficient of determination of R2=.943. Conclusion: During the cycle ergometer test, cyclists exhibited an enhanced metabolic efficiency as work increased. However, trend-line analysis indicated a plateau as the subjects neared volitional fatigue

LargeScale Precursors to Major Lake Effect Snowstorms Lee of Lake Erie

Lake‐effect snowstorms are primarily a mesoscale feature; however, major lakeeffect snowstorms are linked closely to their synoptic environment. Thus, a lakeeffect system which lasts for more than 24 h cannot only be explained by the boundary layer; it is also associated with the upper tropospheric flow. This research will address whether major lake‐effect snow events off of Lake Erie can also be associated with large‐scale planetary features several days prior to event onset. The goal is to aid in the forecast process by increasing the accuracy and leadtime of lake‐effect snow forecasts. This study includes 31 cases recorded from the National Weather Service at Buffalo’s lake effect database. These 31 cases were then stratified into categories depending on its: length, the time of year, and the type of event. This categorization allowed for comparison of the state of the atmosphere in the days prior to different types of events. In order to assess the large‐scale pattern, teleconnections were used as a proxy for the state of the atmosphere. For cases that lasted for greater than 42 hours, there was a correlation to the phase Madden Julian oscillation eight days prior to onset. The cases that occurred during the positive and negative states of the Arctic Oscillation had two different upper level trough patterns, the former originating in Southern Canada and the latter over the Southwestern United States

Poetry as Social Justice in The English Review

Undergraduate Textual or Investigativ