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Academic Freedom Under Attack: How Faculty and Students can Protect their Rights Situated in the Scholarly and Public Spheres
Get PDFThis thesis project challenged me to apply my learning to the larger community and accomplish something that would make a lasting impact at Roger Williams University. When I was attempting to come up with my topic, I tussled with how my project could accomplish my main goal, to help people. With the current threats to academic freedom and institutional autonomy from the Trump Administration, I recognized that the faculty were expressing concern about the permanence of their jobs. The general feeling on campus and in the news was fear. So, I thought to myself, “How do I put these fears at ease during such an uncertain time?
Examining the probiotic potential of Pseudoalteromonas rubra Situated in the Scholarly and Public Spheres
Get PDFClimate change is affecting our oceans negatively in many ways, such as rising temperatures and increased disease outbreaks. While there are many diseases that are affecting marine organisms, bacteria of the genus Vibrio are present globally and are known to favor warmer waters, which means increasing temperatures will cause an uptick in infections. One species, V. coralliilyticus, has been identified as a pathogen responsible for coral disease and death as well as mortality in rainbow trout, brine shrimp, and Pacific oyster larvae. A possible solution to the rising prevalence of disease is the use of probiotics. One such probiotic candidate species, Pseudoalteromonas rubra, has been isolated from tropical corals in the Indo-Pacific, Pacific, and Atlantic Oceans, with 45 different strains isolated from a variety of substrates, organisms, and seawater. In order to test the effectiveness of P. rubra against V. coralliilyticus in anthozoans, the anemone Exaiptasia diaphana can be used as an analogous organism to corals. During challenge assays with E. diaphana using P. rubra and V. coralliilyticus, P, rubra was shown to prevent mortality when used as a post-Vibrio treatment. Challenge assays were also performed with eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) larvae, with P. rubra being effective as a pretreatment, seeing survival rates of up to 99% in larvae that were given V. coralliilyticus after an initial P. rubra dose. Exposure assays using P. rubra were also performed on the algae Tisochrysis lutea to determine if P. rubra will interfere with feeding in oysters. There was found to be no impact on the density of algal cells, indicating that P. rubra will not interfere with oyster feeding. Across the three experiments, P. rubra has been shown to be an effective probiotic when used against V. coralliilyticus. Future work should examine the potential for using in larger scale operations and expand assays to other organisms and pathogens
Pulling Back the Curtain: Toward Data-Driven Decision-Making in an Intensive English Program
No full textData-driven decision-making is becoming increasingly prevalent in a wide range of institutional contexts around the world. The fields of institutional research (IR) and strategic enrollment management (SEM) have much to offer; however, many institutions have yet to systematically utilize the data that they routinely collect. This article presents research conducted in an intensive English as a foreign language program at a Thai university, where the researchers analyzed the records of 2,231 students who had enrolled in the program between 2015 and 2020. The purpose of the research was to find quantitative answers to questions regarding student success: whether success varies by gender, age group, type of high school credential, nationality, and initial placement in the program. Analysis did not reveal a statistically significant correlation between those factors and student success but did inform instructors’ knowledge of student success rates. The methods used in this article are within the means of many other programs and will be of interest to educators who seek data-driven insights into their students’ success
New exact solutions of two-field inflationary model via Noether symmetries
No full textIn this paper, we consider a cosmological model of hyperbolic inflation involving two-scalar fields. By examining the Noether symmetries of the corresponding Lagrangian in the context of a spatially flat Friedmann–Lemaître–Robertson–Walker spacetime, we identify conserved quantities or first integrals corresponding to specific cases. These conserved quantities facilitate the derivation of novel solutions to the field equations, offering new perspectives on the dynamics of two-field inflationary models
The Thai Subjective Happiness Scale: A Tool for Assessing Well-Being
No full textMost psychological research has been conducted in Western countries; however, the value of psychological research conducted in diverse contexts has been gaining increasing recognition. One concrete step toward conducting such research in diverse contexts is the translation of well-established psychometric tools into additional languages. To this end, the authors of this study have translated the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS), a well-established questionnaire for assessing happiness, from English into Thai. While the SHS has been translated into many languages, no Thai version has yet been published. The SHS has been used widely by researchers in the positive psychology movement; thus, SHS results can be understood in the context of numerous prior studies. This article presents the history of the SHS. It then establishes the need for a Thai-language SHS and presents a Thai SHS that has been translated, back-translated, and piloted. A total of 482 respondents completed the Thai SHS; the results are presented and discussed. The creation of the Thai SHS provides a tool for researchers aiming to conduct psychological research in Thailand
The half-life of cyanide in the blood of the marine fish, Amphiprion clarkii after cyanide exposure
No full textCyanide fishing continues to be used in the Indo-Pacific region to capture live reef fish for use by the live fish food and marine aquarium trades. The deliberate release of this broad-spectrum poison in reef environments is one of many anthropogenic threats to coral reefs today. Although this capture method is illegal in most countries, regulating its use is challenging due to the difficulty in determining whether a fish was captured using cyanide. A reliable method to test if marine fish have been caught using cyanide has long been the goal of the marine aquarium trade, but to date no test has been validated on fish with known cyanide (CN) exposure. Additionally, there are little to no toxicokinetic data on CN metabolism following CN exposure for marine fish. In this study, we exposed 38 specimens of Amphiprion clarkii to cyanide (50 ppm for 45 s) and measured the concentration of cyanide in their blood over time to characterize the detoxification process. CN was isolated from the blood by microdiffusion and derivatized to the highly fluorescent β-isoindole and then quantified by HPLC. The half-life of cyanide in the blood of the marine fish A. clarkii was found to be 3.1 ± 2.0 hrs. CN levels were seen to be slightly above control levels 1 day post exposure and below control levels 3 days post exposure suggesting that any test for CN exposure by measuring cyanide must be conducted soon after exposure. To our knowledge, this is the first direct measurement of cyanide in the blood of a marine fish following CN exposure
