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A Comparison of the Magnitude of the Mental Health Benefits of Exercising Outdoors vs Exercising Indoors: A Review
No full textMany people in the United States suffer from poor mental health which can lead to suicide, self-harm, or negative effects on job performance and relationships. Not everyone can afford traditional therapy nor feels comfortable with it. With a greater emphasis placed on taking care of one’s mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, there should also be a greater emphasis placed on finding alternative types of therapy that can be matched to individuals based on their personalities and preferences. One such alternative is outdoor exercise. This review was conducted to examine whether exercising or performing physical activity outdoors results in greater mental health benefits than exercising or performing physical activity indoors. EBSCO host and internet website searches were used to find relevant journal articles, as well as the reference lists of systematic reviews/meta-analyses related to the topic. Both randomized and nonrandomized trials were included. Eligible studies compared the psychological benefits of exercising outdoors with those of exercising indoors. Eligible studies also included participants of at least 15 years of age. All included journal articles were published between January 2005 and May 2022. Thirteen studies consisting of a total of 6,522 participants were chosen for inclusion. Eight of these studies reported that exercising outdoors resulted in greater mental health benefits than exercising indoors. Performing physical activity outdoors may be an alternative option for those suffering from mental illness or looking to maintain good mental health
A Study of Cobalt (III) Oxide Nanoparticle Delivery of siRNA Molecules Directed Against Signaling Intermediates of the P2Y2 Receptor
No full textG protein-coupled receptors are evolutionarily ubiquitous sensors of extracellular signals, propagating intracellular signal cascades through heterotrimeric G proteins. P2Y2 receptors are GPCRs which are activated by extracellular nucleotides to mediate signaling cascades via Gαq coupling. Many GPCRs are subject to a common mechanism for signal termination involving phosphorylation of the C-terminal tail followed by β-arrestin binding and subsequent endocytic internalization of the complex. This effect has been described for the P2Y2 R in the 1321N1 astrocytoma cell line, and UTP-induced activation and desensitization profiles have been previously defined. There is need to develop molecular vehicles for safe and effective delivery of nucleic acids such as siRNA, a therapeutic target largely unrealized. Cobalt (III) Oxide nanoparticles, chosen due to preliminary success, were used to deliver β-arrestin1 siRNA to 1321N1 cells. MTT assay shows Co3O4NP are not toxic in this cell line. No baseline for β-arrestin1 expression could be established during qRT-PCR, as such neither LipofectamineTM nor Co3O4NP delivery of the siRNA conferred measurable knockdown. Calcium assays reveal no significant differences between desensitization proficiency with or without siRNA, though there is visible grouping between treatments. Similarly, unexpected wild type dose-response desensitization trends complicated calcium assay analysis, such that previously reported behavior could not be replicated. Overall, no significant trends were observed, and further trials will be required, largely due to the difficult nature of working with these inorganic nanoparticles
The Me [Unnamed]: Essays
No full textThis creative thesis includes six flash nonfiction pieces and four essays exploring my relationships with my father, mother, and older sister; this exploration is filtered through the lenses of trauma and mental illness. Notably, five of the six flash nonfiction pieces are written in the literary mode of magical realism, which are analyzed in this thesis’ critical introduction. By evaluating magical realism’s origins in German surrealism and its development within Latin-America—as well as its theoretical correlation to Charles Baxter’s defamiliarization and Milan Kundera’s appeal of dream—I acknowledge magical realism’s literary techniques and cultural motivations within published fiction. I analyze magical realism’s growing influence in creative nonfiction, specifically within poetry and memoirs by Natalie Diaz and Sofia Samatar; this analysis is used as a foundation for analyzing my own magical realist flash nonfiction pieces included in this thesis. Through this critical discussion, I support magical realism as a viable method for creative nonfiction writers to use when processing and sharing stories of trauma and otherness
Addictive Incentive Mechanism in Crowdsensing from the Perspective of Behavioral Economics
No full textIn mobile crowdsensing, many mobile devices are collectively used to complete complex sensing tasks. Most tasks require users to consume resources to ensure continuous performance over multiple periods of time. Therefore, it is important to incentivize enough users to continuously participate in the tasks. However, there are two issues with current incentive mechanisms. First, most studies are designed for maximizing the revenue of a single round of tasks rather than long-term incentives. Second, although some studies use historical data to design mechanisms for long-term operation, the law of diminishing marginal utility is not considered; thus, the actual performance is lower than expected. In this study, the concepts of capital deposit and intertemporal choice from behavioral economics are introduced to explain the principle of addiction, which is a representative long-term incentive. Consequently, an Addiction Incentive Mechanism (AIM) is proposed. It influences the utility and demand functions of users by accelerating the accumulation of capital deposits and promoting users to become addicted to cooperative behavior. It also mitigates the effect of diminishing marginal utility through intertemporal choice theory to maintain user engagement. Simulations demonstrate that AIM improves participation and repetition rates compared with the state-of-the-art mechanisms
Effects of Sex and Reproductive Condition on Behavior of Southern Red-Backed Salamanders: Activity, Agonistic Behavior and Escape Velocity
No full textProducing and carrying eggs is energetically costly and therefore can affect behavior. Female Southern Red-backed Salamanders (Plethodon serratus) in the Ozarks reproduce biennially, and so during the reproductive season some females are gravid and some are non-gravid. In this study, we compared the exploratory and aggressive behaviors of gravid females, non-gravid females, and males, as well as the escape velocities of each sex class. In exploratory trials, sex did not affect distance travelled, but gravid females and males showed shorter latencies to move than non-gravid females during the winter. During the aggression trials, individuals were subjected to a stress treatment (simulated attack) or a control (no attack) and allowed to recover for 5 min. Individuals were then placed into chambers containing chemical secretions from another salamander, and agonistic and movement data were recorded. For all behaviors, salamanders in all three groups decreased their activity when they were in the stress treatment. Gravid females showed a faster latency to move and higher levels of threat behavior than non-gravid females or males. Sex class did not significantly affect the escape velocities of the salamanders. Overall, gravid females moved sooner than non-gravid females and males and showed higher levels of aggressive behavior
Geology of the Porter Gap 7.5–minute Quadrangle, Alabama, and Stretched Pebble Analysis Within the Western Blue Ridge of the Southern Appalachians
No full textThe Porter Gap 7.5–minute quadrangle in eastern Alabama contains portions of the undifferentiated sedimentary Knox Group of the Valley and Ridge province, the metamorphic Talladega Group of the western Blue Ridge, and the metamorphic Ashland Supergroup of the eastern Blue Ridge. Three major faults separate the rock units, including the Talladega-Cartersville fault, the Hillabee thrust fault, and the Hollins Line fault. Deformation and metamorphism of rocks within the Talladega Group occurred during the middle to late Mississippian (~334–320 Ma) recorded by stretched pebbles within the Cheaha Quartzite member of the Lay Dam Formation. Stretched pebbles within the Cheaha Quartzite have been elongated north-south and flattened east-west, suggesting an east-west deformational force acting on the rocks. Elongation was likely during the metamorphism of the Talladega Group. The beginning of deformation can be estimated using the youngest Talladega Group member, the Erin Slate (360-350 Ma), and the faulting of the Hillabee thrust onto the Talladega Group (∼350 and 320 Ma). The overall estimate for deformation time is ~359-325 Ma during an Acadian-Alleghanian Transition. Two hypotheses could explain the deformation patterns of the pebble elongation: subregional faulting of the Hollins Line fault and a regional deformation from an Appalachian-wide stress field
The Praxis of Realizing Election Imperatives in Trump’s America
No full textAmerican democracy and higher education were not guided by the principle of equality. However, the sociopolitical history of the United States does not negate the responsibility that educators, university administrators, and policymakers maintain today. As a means to advance the praxis of civic engagement within higher education, this study details the work that was accomplished to (a) establish a nonpartisan higher education coalition in the state of Tennessee and (b) institutionalize student political learning and engagement at Vanderbilt University, Tennessee\u27s premier research university. Tennessee is a voting restrictive state with poor educational outcomes for historically marginalized populations—this present day reality illustrates longstanding civil rights violations and educational inequities that are especially prevalent in the American South. Given the sociopolitical context in which this work was developed, the findings from this study inform best student political learning and engagement policies and practices for voting resrictionist and hyper-partisan states
The Commonwealth Takes an Important Step in Protecting Our Democracy
No full textNorthern Kentucky University’s President Ashish Vaidya wrote an article celebrating Kentucky’s new bipartisan voting rights bill. Signed into law in April, the legislation is contrary to what we are seeing in other states and expands voting options in Kentucky. As an immigrant to the U.S. from India, President Vaidya has a unique perspective on democracy in America, and he is very passionate about higher education’s role to inform its students on their responsibility
Sheltered Cohort: A Restorative Approach to Relational Conflict and Disempowering Policies at a Men’s Homeless Shelter
No full textAlthough homeless shelters provide refuge, they also present several challenges that can negatively affect an individual\u27s sense of internal and external control. A mix-method design was used to explore and address these challenges. Participants (N = 12) were recruited from a men’s homeless shelter via the snowball method. To identify the challenges, in-person, semistructured interviews were conducted. Participants discussed barriers that included being around others who displayed abnormal and deviant behavior, and disparaging policies that censored and restricted basic decision-making processes. Once the challenges were identified, a restorative technique called circles was utilized to increase participants\u27 self-efficacy and satisfaction while living in a homeless shelter. Chen et al.’s (2001) New general self-efficacy scale and a newly constructed satisfaction questionnaire was used to respectively measure participants\u27 self-efficacy and satisfaction scores before and after a circle intervention. Although a paired sample t-test found no difference in participants’ self-efficacy before and after the circle intervention (t (11) = -1.03, p ˃ .05), there was a significant change in overall satisfaction (t (11) = -2.80, p ˂ .05, d = 0.87). These results are important because it contributes to our understanding of homelessness and serves as a future vision for the application of restorative practices within a sheltered setting
The Impact of NATO´s Ballistic Missile Defense Efforts on the Relationship with Russia
No full textStrategic missile defense or anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems are considered deterrence by denial assets. The debate on the question if these systems stabilize or destabilize the balance of power between nuclear powers is still unresolved. This work reviews this impact using the example of the East – West relationship by focusing on NATO´s missile defense efforts. This is done in two parts. The first is a historical part, reviewing the East – West relationship during the Cold War based on strategic arsenals, crisis events and arms control talks related to missile defense developments. The second part reviews the development since the year 2000, using again strategic arsenals, crisis events, arms control talks as well as a comparison of missile defense of NATO and the Russian Federation. Neither the historical analysis nor the current situation analysis show a significant escalation-causing character of ABM systems. Especially in the historical view, ABM systems appear to have had a stabilizing effect. However, each development in missile defense creates a picture of a future where the technological advantage of an adversary could outpace offensive capabilities, degrading the offensive capabilities of a nation. The current situation shows in detail that such a future never took form and likely won’t for the foreseeable future. It shows how immense the disadvantage of a defender against a nuclear attack would be. There are physical constraints to position interceptors to be able to successfully intercept a missile. More importantly the cost of one intercept is significantly higher than the cost of an attacking missile. These constrains make the development and deployment of missile defense against a major Russian missile attack almost impossible. Russia, on the opposite side, communicates about missile defense primarily when trying to create a picture of NATO as an aggressor trying to mitigate Russia´s rightful ability for nuclear defense. This narrative is completely false. Russia is not the main target for NATO´s missile defense efforts and is only to a very limited degree influenced by the systems. Current missile defense systems contribute on two levels to stability. Firstly, deterrence by denial towards rogue regimes that don´t have the capabilities to overcome the defense. Secondly, by creating the ability to stop an accidental launch. Missile defense should therefore not be subject to restrictive arms control treaties