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Infrasound from Genesee High Falls, Rochester, NY, USA
No full textThis is one of the datasets referred to in a paper on waterfall infrasound by Anderson, Ortiz, and Barber, that relates a waterfall\u27s infrasound to its physical characteristics (height, discharge, and power), maps infrasound power over the waterfall\u27s surroundings, and models audibility distance for pigeons as an example of a well-studied infrasound-sensitive animal
The Caitlin Clark Effect: Illuminating Women’s Sport History
Get PDFThe Caitlin Clark Effect is a term that describes the impact of the University of Iowa basketball player on the popularity of women’s basketball, which occurred in conjunction with Clark’s record-breaking performances in 2023 and 2024, as well as the Iowa team’s successes in the NCAA championship tournament. While the Caitlin Clark Effect is associated with intense media attention, ticket sales, and viewership, it also illuminates significant and lesser-known aspects of women’s sport history, specifically media coverage, the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW), and the state of Iowa’s unique basketball heritage and ‘6-on-6’ basketball rules. The purpose of this article is to present these three topics as important historical foundations underlying the Caitlin Clark Effect. More importantly, these three topics help to demonstrate the complex and uneven movement towards equitable, visible, and valued women’s sports participation in the US—in other words, social change
Traumatic Brain Injury Prevention Through Helmet Safety Education for Parents and Free Helmets for Elementary-Aged School Children
Get PDFProblem Description: Head injuries from bicycle accidents are a leading cause of emergency visits among elementary-aged children, particularly in rural areas (Safe Kids Worldwide, 2017). Helmets significantly reduce traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) up to 88% (Field Neurosciences Institute, n.d.). However, low-income families, especially in rural areas, often lack access to helmets and safety education, resulting in lower helmet use and higher injury rates. These challenges are amplified in communities facing high traffic injury rates, limited access to safety resources, and economic constraints (Gilna et al., 2022; World Health Organization, 2023).
Setting: This project took place in Othello, WA (pop. 8,915), where 22% of residents live in poverty, and a majority identify as Hispanic or Latino (United States Census Bureau, 2022). Held at Othello Community Hospital, the event incorporated bilingual materials and engaged community stakeholders to provide accessible safety education and helmet fittings, supported through donations (U.S. Census Bureau, 2022).
Rationale: Guided by the Health Belief Model, the program addressed barriers to helmet use by emphasizing injury prevention benefits, promoting parent confidence, and facilitating behavior change (Karl et al., 2022). A Cochrane review supports the effectiveness of community-based education with free helmet distribution, making local partnerships essential for expanding reach (Owen et al., 2011).
Specific Aims: The goal of this project was to increase parental knowledge regarding helmet safety and TBIs in children, increase the rate of helmet use, and provide access to safety equipment in an underserved area.
Project Outcomes: Questionnaire results revealed significant improvements in parental knowledge and confidence. Parents’ understanding of head injury, confidence in checking helmet fit, and the likelihood of recommending helmet use all increased after the event. Baseline scores had notable gains in knowledge and safety intentions. Confidence in helmet use grew from a mean of 3.1 pre-education to 4.7 at a 30-day follow-up. All attendees accessed educational materials in their preferred language, and 27% of parents opted for continued follow-up.
Implementation and Evaluation Plan: The project distributed bilingual promotional materials and conducted pre- and post-surveys to assess learning and safety intentions. The session included information on TBI prevention, helmet fitting, and hands-on demonstrations. Upon completion, children received free fitted helmets. Parents provided feedback on the most effective teaching methods and suggested future safety topics.
Results: The event raised community awareness about TBI risks and encouraged helmet use. Post-event questionnaires and follow-ups indicated increased helmet usage and parent confidence in promoting helmet safety. Many parents expressed interest in further safety education, highlighting the project’s impact and potential for behavior change.
Interpretation: The project demonstrated how community-based education can drive positive behavioral shifts and increase awareness of TBI prevention. Positive participant feedback and requests for expanded safety education show that similar programs could be effective in other rural areas, emphasizing the need for sustained community partnerships.
Conclusions: This helmet safety initiative improved TBI awareness and helmet usage, offering a replicable model for injury prevention in rural settings. Continued collaboration with local organizations will be essential for scaling and sustaining this safety culture within the community
Needs Assessment: Examining Nurse Mentorship in a Military Treatment Facility
Get PDFBackground
Despite 4.3 million registered nurses (RNs) in the United States, nearly a third are not practicing, exacerbating nursing workforce shortages across the nation’s healthcare settings. The Military Health System (MHS) reported significant attrition, with some specialties losing up to 37% annually. Research shows mentorship boosts job satisfaction and retention, yet the MHS lacks a formal program to support and sustain its nursing workforce long-term.
Aim
This needs assessment investigates the feasibility of establishing a nurse mentorship program at a Military Treatment Facility (MTF) to help elevate job satisfaction and strengthen nursing retention.
Methods
Anonymous questionnaires, structured interviews, and stakeholder engagement assessed mentorship benefits and barriers. Two pre- and post-literature exposure questionnaires and face-to-face stakeholder interviews gathered critical insights.
Outcomes
Study findings indicated that 91% of respondents acknowledged mentorship’s potential to enhance job satisfaction, while 87% agreed it would improve nurse retention. However, 30% of respondents expressed neutrality regarding participation, citing time constraints and staffing limitations as key barriers. Interviews reinforced these findings, emphasizing the need for voluntary, standardized mentorship programs.
Impact
The findings provide a basis for initiating a mentorship program at an MTF, with promising prospects for MHS-wide adoption to improve job satisfaction and stabilize the nursing workforce
Spatiotemporal Gait Parameter Analysis Utilizing Gaitrite and Opencap
No full textRecently low-cost markerless motion capture systems have shown promise for accurate kinematic analysis of human motion. Yet, despite relative accurate estimation of joint kinematics, it is unknown if markerless motion accurately quantifies gait spatiotemporal parameters. This study sought to compare spatiotemporal gait parameters quantified by a GaitRite instrumented walkway (Gold-standard) and markerless motion capture, OpenCap. 16 participants had gait spatiotemporal parameters quantified during a walk (1.3 m/s) and jog (3.0 m/s). Specifically, gait speed, cadence, stride length, single and double support time, and step width will be quantified with the instrumented treadmill and iOS based OpenCap. We expect the markerless based gait spatiotemporal parameters to exhibit moderate to strong relation with instrumented walkway derived measures, but consistently overestimate gait speed, cadence and stride length. The capability to accurately estimate spatiotemporal gait variables with markerless motion capture would be a significant step towards untethering biomechanical analysis from the laboratory
Social Media Effects on Health Habits
No full textSocial media in recent decades has grown to become an essential part of everyday life. The rise of new social media platforms, such as TikTok, has brought many concerns in how excessive usage may or may not affect other areas of life. While prior research has been aimed toward older social media platforms, this study is more focused on the growing impacts of current popular apps, like TikTok, that have yet to be thoroughly researched. This study aims to understand the relationship between social media and health habits such as sleep, body image, and attention span, specifically within college students. Data will be collected through a self-assessed survey of around 300 Psychology 101 students. We hypothesize that excessive social media usage will have an effect on students’ sleep, body image, and attention span. Late adolescence and early adulthood are crucial developmental periods in an individual’s life; understanding the role that social media plays during these life stages will benefit us in our overall understanding of human behavior, cognition, and social influences
Flameproof Future: Strategies for Wildfire Prevention and Recovery
No full textDuring the summertime in Idaho, it is often difficult to engage in outdoor activities due to air quality issues caused by wildfires. This research will look at the prevalence of wildfires in central Idaho and how they contribute to air pollution and accessibility to green spaces. The method used to address the research question will be compiling and analyzing peer-reviewed sources along with various organization websites, focusing on reducing the risk of wildfires, improving the quality of natural environments, and promoting outdoor activities. This research will raise awareness about the organizations that can reduce wildfire prevalence and the consequences of poor air quality while increasing the ability for people to access the outdoors. Wildfires contribute to air quality issues which act as a determinant of health because it can impact physical health and act as a barrier to outdoor spaces
Social Media Usage
No full textOBJECTIVE:
How does social media usage contribute to the decline of consumers\u27 mental health?
METHODOLOGY:
We collected survey data using the Qualtrics online survey tool by leveraging our personal and professional networks to maximize participation. The survey link was distributed to peers, including fellow students, as well as to family members through direct messages and family group chats. We also shared the survey within our work networks by reaching out to co-workers, and we expanded our reach further by posting it on various social media platforms. This approach allowed us to gather responses from a diverse range of participants, including close family, distant relatives, friends, and professional acquaintances.
SAMPLE:
We received completed surveys from 254 respondents. The average age of respondents in our sample was on average 18-24 and varied from 18 - 55. The employment status of the respondents was a high of 40% of full time workers then following, 24 % part-time, 24% student, 7% unemployed and 5% of the respondents are retired. Another demographic we found is the survey was 54% male, 42% female, and 5% preferred not to say.
ANALYSIS:
We used our quantitative data from our survey to show the observed relationship between social media and the effect on their everyday routines, self-esteem, and mental health. Using SPSS statistical software to find the descriptive statistics, we then could gain further insight by way of inferential statistics. We used Pearson correlation tests to find the overall strength between the variables.
KEY FINDINGS:
Our findings indicate a complex relationship between social media use and behavioral tendencies, emotional health, and self-perception. Regarding the effect of social media on their everyday routines, self-esteem, and mental health, participants expressed differing degrees of agreement. The study shows that excessive social media use is linked to elevated anxiety, mood swings, and self-comparison, but positive relationships were found between some aspects of social media use and mental health with preserving long-distance relationships. Every relationship, difference, and outcome shown here was statistically significant
How Much for a Dozen Eggs: Indebtedness and Rural Resilience
No full textRural community resilience is, in part, impacted by social bonds and networks that exist within the community. It is the existence of these bonds that provides the community with the ability, or resilience, to persevere through periods of struggle. The social bonds are upheld by different forms of social contracts; some are transactional, some are relational, and some are different altogether. These forms of indebtedness create a social structure that impacts the resiliency of the rural communities, which we examine through conceptual and philosophical analysis.
As rural communities face shifting demographic and economic systems, understanding how their ability to adapt and remain resilient is increasingly important. There are factors acting on these communities that have implications for the social bonds and resilience of the communities. For example, recreational tourists that engage with rural communities operate on a different social contract than the ones existing within the communities themselves. This research takes a philosophical approach to conceptualize the influence of transitory actors (e.g., recreational tourists) and the structured disincentives to form the same indebted relations that exist in the communities. The aim is to better understand the true effect that indebtedness, both transactional and relational, has on rural community resilience
Characterization of Components in Whey Permeate to Assess Upcycling Potential
No full textThe increasing demand for dairy products like cheese and Greek yogurt has led to a surge in whey permeate by-product. The most common outlet for dairy process by-products is low value fertilizer and animal feed. The aim of the current study was to characterize the energy content and component composition of sweet whey and acid whey to explore their potential for conversion to energy or upcycle into higher-value food or feedstock. Whey permeate, whether acid whey or sweet whey, is nutrient-rich, and we hypothesize that it can be converted into a feedstock for bio-oil production by hydrothermal liquification. Here we present bomb calorimetry data obtained to assess energy content, and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) data that was used to measure lactose content. Results indicated energy densities of 14.2 ± 0.4 kcal/g and 15.2 ± 0.6 kcal/g for sweet whey and acid whey, respectively. Lactose levels were measured at 41.1 ± 0.5 mg/mL in sweet whey and 18.78 ± 1.2 mg/mL in acid whey. These findings indicate the potential for whey permeate to be used for on-site bioenergy production that may contribute to more sustainable dairy industry operations