Study of a Byzantine Silver Dish

"In the study of ancient artifacts, a question that constantly plagues researchers concerns the establishment of provenance. While many works of art have documents listing their history of ownership, such written evidence rarely accompanies ancient objects. In these instances, the scholar must determine provenance from the evidence left on the artifact itself. One such object, a small silver dish with a cruciform monogram, sits on display in the collection of the Museum of Art and Archaeology at the University of Missouri, but very little is known about the date and place of its creation or its original function. The following article is an attempt to understand this beautiful piece better. It begins with a description of the object, including manufacturing techniques, current condition, and decoration. Then, a stylistic comparison to other artifacts and a brief consideration of the sociohistorical environment in Late Antiquity suggest a more precise date, region of origin, and function for the Missouri dish."--First paragraph.Includes bibliographical reference

The Effect of Poverty on the Achievement of Urban African American Male Students Successfully Completing High School

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of poverty on the achievement of African American male high school students attending the same large Midwest urban school district. Cumulative grade point average (GPA) at the tenth grade level were compared to the level of poverty provided through census data of African American male tenth grade high school students (N = 162) and compared again two years later using cumulative GPA of the same African American male students at graduation. Standardized achievement test scores, PLAN test taken in the fall of the tenth grade year and ACT test taken during the twelfth grade year, were compared to poverty levels to explore if there is a correlation between the scores and poverty level

Occupation Based Program Enhancement: Promoting Social and Leisure Participation Post-Stroke

This presentation describes the importance of social and leisure participation for individuals who have had a stroke and explores the role of occupational therapy in promoting this area of occupation for the population.https://soar.usa.edu/otdcapstonesspring2023/1036/thumbnail.jp

Neuromuscular control of wingbeat kinematics in Anna's hummingbirds (Calypte anna)

Hummingbirds can maintain the highest wingbeat frequencies of any flying vertebrate – a feat accomplished by the large pectoral muscles that power the wing strokes. An unusual feature of these muscles is that they are activated by one or a few spikes per cycle as revealed by electromyogram recordings (EMGs). The relatively simple nature of this activation pattern provides an opportunity to understand how motor units are recruited to modulate limb kinematics. Hummingbirds made to fly in low-density air responded by moderately increasing wingbeat frequency and substantially increasing the wing stroke amplitude as compared with flight in normal air. There was little change in the number of spikes per EMG burst in the pectoralis major muscle between flight in normal and low-density heliox (mean=1.4 spikes cycle^(–1)). However the spike amplitude, which we take to be an indication of the number of active motor units, increased in concert with the wing stroke amplitude, 1.7 times the value in air. We also challenged the hummingbirds using transient load lifting to elicit maximum burst performance. During maximum load lifting, both wing stroke amplitude and wingbeat frequency increased substantially above those values during hovering flight. The number of spikes per EMG burst increased to a mean of 3.3 per cycle, and the maximum spike amplitude increased to approximately 1.6 times those values during flight in heliox. These results suggest that hummingbirds recruit additional motor units (spatial recruitment) to regulate wing stroke amplitude but that temporal recruitment is also required to maintain maximum stroke amplitude at the highest wingbeat frequencies

Conservation data services

Presented at the fifth 2022 CNHP Partners' meeting, Conserving Biodiversity in a Changing Colorado, held on March 11, 2022 in the Grand Ballrooms C and D of the Lory Student Center, Colorado State University Campus, Fort Collins, Colorado

CAMPUS-LEVEL TEACHER TURNOVER IN TEXAS PUBLIC ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS: AN EXAMINATION OF THE IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP FACTORS AND SCHOOL DEMOGRAPHICS USING HEIRARCHICAL LINEAR MODELING

The 2022 Texas Teacher Survey conducted by the Charles Butt Foundation reported that in the past year 77% of public school teachers in Texas considered leaving their positions or the teaching profession, an increase of 19% since 2020. A secondary finding was that the presence or absence of administrative support was a key factor in the decision making about whether to leave. Teachers are the backbone of the U.S. education system which exists to educate future generations of citizens and leaders, and the teacher–student relationship is one of the most important school-related factors to student learning and success (Ronfeldt et al., 2013). The loss of this relationship is a problem for schools. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of campus-level variables on campus teacher turnover in Texas public elementary schools. The variables were student socioeconomic status; the number of students in the school; the percentage of English language learners in the school; the campus principal’s tenure in the role of principal and at their current campus, and whether the principal has attended the Texas Instructional Leadership Program, as well as the district-level variable of district geographic classification. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) techniques were used to examine turnover at the campus level in public elementary schools in the state of Texas. School- and district-level variables were examined to determine their relationship to campus turnover. Data were obtained directly from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) website and through Public Information Request (PIR) to the TEA. This study was underpinned by systems theory (von Bertalanffy, 1968) and its component theory cybernetics (Wiener, 1961), both of which examine the structure and functioning of multifaceted systems and their component parts. The findings confirmed previous research that student socioeconomic status is a key indicator of teacher turnover (Holme et al., 2017), noting that the tenure of the principal on the campus can decrease the amount of teacher turnover. The variables of English language learner and number of students in the school had minimal positive impact on campus teacher turnover. The HLM process identified that the principal tenure variable has more impact between school districts than within districts. The research implications include the need for continued study of factors impacting teacher turnover and continued use of HLM to highlight the impact of variables at different levels. Practice implications suggest continued principal leadership development that includes components of communication, relationship building, and creation of a productive, supportive school culture

Report of the 2015 NSF Cybersecurity Summit for Large Facilities and Cyberinfrastructure

This event was supported in part by the National Science Foundation under Grant Number 1234408. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed at the event or in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation

High variability of food and nutrient intake exists across the Mediterranean Dietary Pattern- a systematic review

A Mediterranean style dietary pattern (MDP) is considered beneficial for health. The MD Score (MDS) definition has evolved, resulting in considerable variability in the foods and nutrients associated with MDS adherence. We systematically investigated food and nutrient composition of the MD between studies, countries, and methods of classifying the MDS. We searched Embase for MD systematic reviews and selected observational studies reporting intakes of foods, macronutrients, or micronutrients by categories of MDS adherence. The percentage differences in food and nutrient intakes between categories of high and low adherence to the MDS were calculated for each study. A total of 369 full-text primary papers were reviewed from the included systematic reviews and 74 papers selected (66 adults, 8 children). We found considerable differences in MDS definitions and scoring criteria. Between-study variation in food intake between high- and low-adherence MDS adherence categories ranged from a mean of −23% for meat, to 119% for fruit, and 278% for fish. Greater variability was evident in non-Mediterranean than Mediterranean regions. We conclude that few studies report food and nutrient intakes across the range of the MDP in adults and even fewer in children. The considerable variability in the foods and nutrients reported makes comparison of results from studies and translation into dietary guidelines difficult. We recommend that future publications of MD studies include full details of the range of food and nutrient intakes across the distribution of MD adherence in order to facilitate translation into health policy and practice

A Mediterranean Diet Is Positively Associated with Bone and Muscle Health in a Non-Mediterranean Region in 25,450 Men and Women from EPIC-Norfolk.

Research on Mediterranean diet (MD) adherence and musculoskeletal health is limited. The current study determined if adherence to the alternative MD score (aMED) and MD score (MDS), quantified from 7-d food diaries, was associated with fracture incidence, bone density (calcaneal broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA)) and fat free mass (expressed over BMI (FFMBMI) using bioelectrical impedance) in 25,450 men and women recruited to the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer study in Norfolk, UK. During 17.4 years of follow up (443,178 total person years) 2195 incident fractures occurred. Higher aMED adherence was associated with 23% reduced total (Q5-Q1 HR 0.77; 95% CI 0.67, 0.88; p-trend < 0.01) and 21% reduced hip (Q5-Q1 HR 0.79; 95% CI 0.65, 0.96; p-trend = 0.01) fracture incidence, and significantly higher BUA (Q5-Q1 1.0 dB/MHz 95% CI 0.2, 1.9; p-trend < 0.01) and FFMBMI (Q5-Q1 0.05 kg/(kg/m2) 95% CI 0.04, 0.06; p-trend < 0.01), comparing extreme adherence quintiles. Higher MDS was also associated with reduced total fractures (Q5-Q1 HR 0.83; 95% CI 0.71, 0.96; p-trend = 0.03) and significantly higher BUA (Q5-Q1 1.4 dB/MHz 95% CI 0.5, 2.3; p-trend < 0.01) and FFMBMI (Q5-Q1 0.03 kg/(kg/m2) 95% CI 0.01, 0.04; p-trend < 0.01). This evidence supports the need to develop interventions to enhance MD adherence, particularly in women, where evidence for associations was stronger