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Education Matters: Certified health professionals have higher credibility than non health professionals on Instagram
Full text linkSocial media serves as an accessible source of health information and nutrition information. Instagram, an internationally known social media platform with an average of more than 1 billion monthly active users, allows its users to create and share content. However, the credibility of the nutrition content created by users with unknown qualifications may be questionable. The objective of this study is to assess the credibility of content created by nutrition influencers on Instagram by comparing health professionals with non-health professionals.
For this study, “influencer” is defined as an Instagram user with at least 15,000 followers who promotes products, services, or ideas and who creates nutrition- or health-related content. For each influencer (n=29), two posts were selected every month from August 2018 to July 2019. Using the “Credible Information Factsheet” from the Dietitians of Canada, a credibility score based on four dichotomous criteria was created. Looking at the 24 posts of each influencer holistically, a credibility score out of 4 was calculated, with 0 being the least credible and 4 being the most credible.
Without exception, a greater proportion of health professionals compared to non-health professionals met each criterion from the “Credible Information Factsheet”. 92% of the health professionals met criteria 1 (Miracle Cure) compared to only 31% of non-health professionals. This demonstrates how the vast majority of health professionals would not promise a miracle cure, while most non-health professionals would readily promise a miracle cure. Additionally, 46% of health professionals met criteria 4 (Research-based) compared to only 19% of non-health professionals, which demonstrates how non-health professionals do not support claims with research. When looking at the total credibility scores for health professionals and non-health professionals, not a single health professional scored a total of 0, while not a single non-health professional scored a total of 4. Most importantly, health professionals had an average credibility score of 2.4, which is twice as high as that of non-health professionals (1.2).
Overall, health professionals appeared to be more credible than non-health professionals. By viewing nutrition information posted on Instagram by non-health professionals, followers potentially expose themselves to misinformation. Further research should be undertaken to validate the credibility score based on the “Credible Information Factsheet” by determining how adept the factsheet is at differentiating credibility for Instagram content
Optimal Zwitterionic Surfactant Slug for an Improved Oil Recovery in Oil Wet Carbonate Rocks
Full text linkOf recent, there has been research and development in the technologies/techniques required to meet the ever-growing energy demand in the world. Oil is a major source of energy which is contained in over 50% of carbonate reservoirs. The oil/mixed wettability of carbonate rocks makes it technically challenging to recover the needed oil. The process of crude oil recovery has three different stages primary, secondary and tertiary recovery. Tertiary recovery is also known as enhanced oil recovery or EOR. EOR includes the use of surfactants to reduce the interfacial tension between a hydrocarbon and brine, thus suspending them both in a microemulsion. Surfactant performance can be affected by multiple variables, including brine salinity, surfactant concentration, and type of hydrocarbon. A petroleum engineer must take all variables into consideration when selecting a surfactant to make sure that its efficiency is as high as possible, especially because the use of surfactants is costly.
In this work, a chembetaine zwitter ionic surfactant of two different concentrations are evaluated at various synthetic formation brine salinities for their favourable wettability alteration and interfacial tension reduction in oil-wet carbonate- Silurian Dolomite. For the evaluation, fluid-fluid and rock-fluid analysis are carried out to select the optimal surfactant concentration and brine salinity with the greatest improved oil recovery potential.
Results are indicative that the surfactant at the two concentrations studied is compatible at the ranges of salinities evaluated. However, from the fluid-fluid analysis, there was no ultra-low interfacial tension that is needed for oil mobilization. More so, the rock-fluid analysis shows that the surfactant is not able to alter the wettability of oil-wet rocks favourably. The optimal surfactant slug for the greatest oil recovery, in this case, would be expected at 0.5% surfactant concentration in 10,000 ppm synthetic formation brine salinity. This study, therefore, serves as a guide for the design of optimal surfactant slug in oil-wet carbonate cores requires to reduce non-productive time, prevent reservoir damage and therefore improve recovery
Wing polymorphisms of Pterostichus melanarius (Coleoptera: Carabidae) (Illiger, 1978) in Alberta pulse crops
Full text linkIn a 6 week research project, a wing-dimorphic carabid species was studied to identify the proportions of macropterous (large functional wings) individuals and brachypterous (short, rudimentary wings) individuals from different pulse growing regions of Alberta. Pterostichus melanarius I. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) can be short-winged (SW) due to brachyptery being a dominant gene or long-winged (LW) individuals causing macroptery. Although macroptery is a recessive trait, the LW morph persists through the recolonization of populations due to human disturbance. Their ability to fly facilitates their dispersal across Alberta to uncolonized areas. Samples of P. melanarius were captured as bycatch from pea leaf weevil, Sitona lineatus L. (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) pitfall traps from the East, Capital, and Central regions of Alberta. Traps were positioned on a 175 meter transect pea and faba field margins in spring and again in the fall. Captured P. melanarius were identified and separated by collection site and date and stored in 95% ethanol until measurements. The beetles from the bycatch samples were sexed using tarsal characteristics. Anterior tarsal segments of the front pair of tarsi are dilated in males and normal in females. After being identified and recorded as “M” or “F”, they were mounted on a foam board with insect pins for measurement. The elytra (forewings) length and width was measured followed by measurement of their hindwings. They were classified as “SW” or “LW” depending on the functionality of their wings. Out of 440 individuals from the Capital region, 17.1% of captured P. melanarius were LW and 83.0% were SW. From the Central region 21.6% of 495 beetles were LW and 83.4% of them were SW. In the East region less P. melanarius were captured and from 94 individuals, 46.8% were LW and 53.2% were SW. Macropterous individuals are more common in the East region due to recolonization of populations whereas in the Central and Capital region the proportions of SW are much larger. In regions that have established populations of P. melanarius the proportions of SW are greater than LW
Thermochemical and Structural Analysis of Tautomers of Sulfur and Selenium Modified RNA Nucleobases
Full text linkNucleobases (adenine, cytosine, guanine, and uracil), the four molecules that forms RNA, have been found to be useful in probing in the human body when modified because they can emit light. Non-modified nucleobases do not exhibit emissive properties and cannot be used as probes. Some of the modifications include the substitution of nitrogen atoms with sulfur and selenium, and the resulting modified nucleobases give place to the so-called tz- and ts- RNA alphabets, respectively. Therefore, the aim of this project was to provide insights about the viability, from a computational perspective, of using the modified nucleobases as probes, evaluating the differences in thermochemical, structural and emissive properties of the modified nucleobases with respect to the non-modified ones. Nucleobases can coexist with other modified nucleobases or tautomers, molecules that differ due to the change in position of hydrogen atoms in a molecule’s structure and as a result have different physical and chemical properties. The thermochemical properties evaluation mainly consisted in the computation of the relative Gibbs Free Energy (G), which is related to the fraction F, an index of the relative population among tautomers. This was done using Gaussian 09 software by performing geometry analysis and frequency computations on each one of the tautomers. By comparing the equilibrium fractions, it was determined that in both cases, tz- and ts- guanine and cytosine exist principally in the form of one of their tautomers (Cytosine 2 and Guanine 2) as in the case of the non-modified cases. After confirming which tz- and ts- tautomers were the ones with the largest probable population, infrared (IR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectra were obtained. The IR spectra of selenium and sulfur tautomers of guanine and cytosine indicated that the tautomers had peaks at similar frequencies with respect to each other, however, the intensities varied, implying slight structural changes between the tautomers. On the other hand, the UV-vis spectra showed a change in peak positions between the tautomers with sulfur and selenium, suggesting that the change between sulfur and selenium has an effect on the spectra by shifting the peaks from the original molecules’ λmax values. Their relative population fractions show that only the canonical forms of the modified nucleobases exist in a larger extent than the rest of their tautomer forms. In addition, the features in their UV-vis and IR spectra allow these tautomers to be differentiated from each other
Characterization of Lignin
Full text linkLignin is a complex organic compound crucial to the structural tissues of vascular plants, such as trees. The cyclic structure and aromaticity of lignin give it significant potential to be used as a renewable and safe replacement for toxic aromatic compounds in chemical and industrial processes. The purpose of this experiment was to characterize lignin, specifically the particle diameter and zeta potential, using both the Zetasizer Nano ZSP and the ImageJ image processing software, and to compare the accuracy of both measurement methods. Due to the natural fluorescence of lignin, a fluorescence microscope is used to capture images of lignin particles. By having a known distance and the scale of measurement, with ImageJ it is possible to calculate distances, such as the diameters of particles in images. The Zetasizer Nano ZSP is a device capable of measuring both particle diameter and zeta potential, which is the electrical charge existing on particles suspended in a medium. Small amounts of lignin, in powder form, are placed into scintillation vials with different amounts of distilled water to create 3 different concentrations of sample to measure using the Zetasizer. Between 10-15mL of sample are placed into specialized measurement cells and put into the Zetasizer. Multiple measurements are conducted and averaged to achieve accurate results. The measured zeta potential value is indicative of the stability of the lignin. If the value of zeta potential is higher than 30mV, negative or positive, it has a high stability and low reactivity. The average values of zeta potential measured by the Zetasizer ranged from -27mV to -21mV. The particle diameter is important in characterization, as the smaller and more distributed the particles are, there is a larger surface area for reactions to occur. Average particle diameter measured by the Zetasizer ranged from 926-976µm. The results from the Zetasizer Nano ZSP are more accurate than those from the ImageJ software, as ImageJ allows for a substantial amount of human error to impact the results. The outcomes help direct future experiments using lignin and beneficial to future research concerning lignin and its potential
3D Models of Fractured Pelvic Bones for Analysis of Symmetry and Deviation
Full text linkPelvic fractures are a fairly common result of falls, automobile collisions, or other direct impact incidents. Most fractures are relatively mild and not life-threatening, but severe damage may have debilitating effects on the victim\u27s health and quality of life. Pelvic breakage often requires surgery to alleviate, but procedures may be difficult given the complex anatomical structure of the area and the specific location of the fractures. This project aimed to make the planning stage easier for surgeons by analyzing left-right symmetry of the pelvis and using this property to create, in cases where one side is fractured and the other remains intact, 3D models of reconstructed pelvic fractures. Pelvic bone has been proven to be highly symmetrical. This method would provide surgeons with a clearer idea of how to best reassemble and otherwise correct fractures in the pelvis. First, various one-sided pelvic fractures from a batch of anonymized subjects obtained from the University of Alberta Hospital were digitized in medical imaging software. Data from six subjects in total was used in the collection of results. The digitized pelvises were then used to construct 3D models. The fractured pieces were aligned in best-fit with a mirrored intact side. Colour deviation maps, which differentiated between areas of high and low symmetry by measuring the degree of point deviance against a scale, were then generated. Deviance was generally more prevalent along the fracture lines. The predefined threshold considered a maximum of 2 mm of deviation as highly symmetrical. The average RMS value was found to be 1.65 mm and the average percentage of points within 2 mm of difference was 85.1%, indicating that the pelvic bones studied possessed a reasonably high degree of left-right symmetry. The results from this study suggest that this virtual reconstruction method is reliable for use in surgical planning for one-sided pelvic fractures
Embryonic Cannabidiol Exposure Does Not Affect Adult Zebrafish Swimming Performance
Full text linkCannabis is used for a variety of reasons such as relieving pain, relieving stress, and reducing nausea during chemotherapy. While cannabis originates from central and south Asia, the drug has become extremely popular in North America. In July of 2001, medicinal use of cannabis was legalized in Canada, and on October 17 2018, recreational use of cannabis was legalized nationally. Many scientific studies have shown the negative effects of cannabis in consumers and of second hand smoke exposure, including lung cancer, respiratory issues, and reduced decision making and cognitive function. Because of the rapid increase in cannabis, high concentrations have filtered into the water treatment facilities and spread into lakes and ponds through pipelines that could potentially cause harm to the fish. While there are studies that have concluded that there are alterations to the fish’s neuronal patterns and cardiac systems in zebrafish, there were no reports of how the medical ingredient of cannabis (cannabidiol or CBD) may affect the ability of a fish to swim. Proper swim behaviour is an essential survival characteristic to fish and other marine animals, but when a novel potentially toxic compound is introduced into their environment, impacts to vital biological functions in the organism may occur. This study aimed to investigate the potential effects of cannabidiol on zebrafish by evaluating their critical swimming speed (Ucrit value). Using a swim tunnel, we were able to control the environment and easily identify at what point the fish would be fatigued. Comparisons were made between three different fish tanks: one tank exposed to CBD, and the other two tanks contained a fresh water control and a solvent control. Using both our “p” and “F” stat values, we can conclude that there were no significant differences observed between the three fish tanks. In the future, we hope to analyse the neurology of the fish exposed and complete a fish respirometry measuring the oxygen consumption of CBD exposed fish. 
Z-Selective Hydrofunctionalization of Dienes
Full text linkOlefins play a fundamental role in synthetic organic chemistry because they are useful building blocks that create molecules. However, geometry control (E- vs Z-) in olefin synthesis is of utmost importance because the olefin geometry has a tremendous impact on its physical, chemical and biological properties. Additionally, Z-olefins are less stable compared to their E-olefin counterparts; due to this difference, general methods to make olefins results in more cases of E-olefins production with relatively fewer Z-olefins caused by its instability. It has been reported that Z-olefins can be synthesized from dienes through a rhodium-catalyzed formate mediated transformation, with tolerance to several reducible functional groups. With this successful method in hand, the focus is to make functionalized Z-alkenes while still maintaining tolerance to reducible functional groups under mild reaction conditions.
Thus, this project presents the production of Z-olefins through rhodium-catalyzed hydrofunctionalization using the starting materials, dienes and aldehydes. This method requires an inert atmosphere and the reaction progress can be monitored by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) using an internal standard to quantify the amount of product formed. In this process, it was observed that the starting material was consumed until more than 95% conversion. In addition, the possibility of using different dienes, such as diene esters and phenyl dienes, as well as different aldehydes could further broaden the scope of this method. The usefulness of this process can be applied to the production of complex molecules. For example, in the synthesis of a glucagon receptor antagonist, which is a drug that is used in the treatment of diabetes. Currently, there is a limited number of methods used to create Z-olefins; however, this proven procedure can be further implicated in other hydrofunctionalization experiments
Paternal Treatment Barriers Predictability of Preference for Types of Postpartum Depression Treatment
No full textBackground: There is a growing prevalence of paternal postpartum depression (PPD) but many individuals fail to seek treatment due to some form of inconvenience or receiving treatment outside their first choice of treatment. Recent research has shown that identifying specific preferences to types of treatment encourage fathers to continue treatment and improve depression outcome. The objective of this study is to explore treatment barriers of PPD within health care systems to further improve treatment outcomes and to provide more accessible therapy. Method: Fathers of infants aged 0-12 months were recruited from low-risk maternity clinics, baby shows and partner referrals. Participants (N = 140) completed a 20-minute survey upon recruitment. Surveys contained measurements of barriers to treatment and preferences to broad treatment categories for paternal PPD including pharmacotherapy, couple therapy and individual therapy. Correlation analyses and multinomial logistic regression using pharmacotherapy as the reference group was conducted to examine if specific types of barriers could predict types of treatments for depression in fathers. Results: Correlation analyses indicated that three specific barriers were significantly related to treatment preference; specifically, participants’ responses indicated that barriers included that prayer would be enough in helping to treat depression (r = .21, p = .011), the depression would go away once the baby is a little older (r = .18, p = .033), and professional mental health services would not be sensitive to the participants’ race, ethnicity or culture (r = .19, p = .022). One broad category of treatment barriers, Spiritual Barriers, was also significantly related to treatment preference (r = .19, p = .023). Multinomial regression models were significant for the three significant individual barriers (χ2 = 23.01, p = .001) and Spiritual Barriers (χ2 = 16.54, p < .001) in predicting likelihood for treatment preference. Conclusions: The results of the current study indicated that barriers to seek professional therapies included spirituality, beliefs that the depression would remit overtime, and concerns over professionals’ responses to demographic characteristics. Future research should focus on addressing the barriers to treatment to promote mental health treatment for new fathers
A Reading Tutor for Low-Literacy Adults
Full text linkAccording to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the mean proficiency in literacy among adults in the US and Canada is at Level 2. Adults at this level cannot process dense texts, eliminate irrelevant information, perform multi-step operations, or evaluate the reliability of a source. The Reading Tutor is a website that was created to help low-literacy adults improve their English. It will be free to use the website that is personalized to the literacy level of every user. Creating a website allows people to increase their literacy levels without facing the stigma that comes with attending a class in person. Adults are inclined to improve their English because it often affects their career potential, socio-economic status, and health. The Reading Tutor has two major components: the passages and the scenarios. Passages are stories that the user can read and answer questions about. Scenarios are plots with questions that the user must answer to move on. In recent work, the information for each scenario was organized into spreadsheets to simplify the process of entering data into the code.
The system architecture consists of HTML, CSS, Javascript, MySQL, Python, and Django. The newest development in this project was the improvement of the user intake experience. Before starting the passages and scenarios, the website collects information from each adult. The user "interests" pages are the latest additions to the site and these pages ask about the user’s hobbies. That data will then be used to incorporate their interests into later questions. It was important to add this feature to the website because relevance is a motivator for the user demographic. The next steps for the website are to log the user’s interests into the database. Future enhancements also include the creation of more scenarios to accommodate to the different user interests.