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Foster Parent Experiences of Stress During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Full text linkFoster parents face many unique parenting challenges due to their role. Many foster parents feel isolated and may lack close friends who understand their experiences. They face constant change and uncertainty as they navigate the caring of vulnerable children, often with complex needs and in complex situations. The COVID-19 pandemic only exacerbated these feelings of isolation and uncertainty, as well as adding increased stress to the lives of foster parents. The present study explored the experience of stress among foster parents during COVID-19. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 licensed foster parents in one Midwestern state during the summer of 2021. Fifteen participants were female and one participant was male. Fostering experience ranged broadly from less than one year as a foster parent to over 10 years as a foster parent, with some parents only fostering one child and others having fostered six children or more. The interviews were transcribed and coded and the authors conducted thematic analysis to develop themes surrounding the experience of stress for foster parents during the pandemic, specifically what was experienced and how it was experienced. Findings indicated that foster parents were asked to do more and faced an increase in role-related tasks. Some of these tasks included helping with school and therapy, supervising visits and parenting time, providing childcare, creating routines, and facilitating any other virtual communication for their children. Foster parents reported that these additional responsibilities caused them to experience increased stress. These findings suggest implications for both research and policy, specifically research on developing evidence-based practices for the virtual delivery of services, as well as developing clear policies around virtual parenting time
Investigation of Convection Cells Via Truncated Eigenmode Decomposition
Full text linkConvection cells are found in a variety of contexts throughout physics, including plasmas within the stellar interior and in neutral fluids such as planetary atmospheres. Rayleigh Benard Convection (RBC) is the most well studied model for this behavior, describing convection in fluids that are heated from below and cooled from above, resulting in a temperature gradient which can drive instabilities. Under the right conditions, this instability develops and drives convective heat transport, which is still actively researched in fluid and plasma dynamics today. We study the neutral fluid configuration of this system using a novel modeling approach that approximates the solutions of the 2D nonlinear Boussinesq equations via a truncated sum of linear eigenmodes. The contribution of each eigenmode to the nonlinear state is determined by an appropriately defined inner product, which we discuss. The effectiveness of this approximation is assessed by calculating the error between the truncated sum and the full nonlinear solution. Importantly, we find that a number of stable eigenmodes contribute significantly to the nonlinear state. As a physical application of this new modeling approach to describe RBC, we calculate the Nusselt number time averaged over the saturated dynamics
He Said, She Said: The Role of Gender and Task-Oriented Communication
Full text linkMen and women are expected to communicate differently based on societal stereotypes. This has made it difficult for women to engage in task-oriented communication without receiving negative evaluations from others. The present study attempts to investigate how these expectations influence people\u27s perceptions of messages delivered by both men and women in a collegiate setting. A mock text message within a group project hypothetical situation was sent by either a female or male. Participants only viewed one condition and were asked to rate the likability and competence of the sender based on their message. Results indicated that there were no significant differences in how men and women\u27s communication competence and likability are perceived. However, interaction effects were discovered between participants\u27 reported gender and the text conditions they viewed such that male participants rated female message senders lower between identical message styles than male message senders
Potential Non-carbonate Buffering in an Interdunal Wetland/Slack Along Lake Michigan
Full text linkInterdunal wetlands/slacks occur in Lake Michigan\u27s coastal dunes where the wind scours the sand to the water table. Since May 2016 we have performed ecohydrological studies on the largest interdunal wetlands/slack, ~1.25 ha in size, lying within a deflated parabolic dune east of Lake Michigan at the Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area, Michigan. The slack’s hydrology is influenced by Lake Michigan-Huron, appearing and increasing in size and water depth with rising lake levels and decreasing in size to drying with low levels. Prior to 2014, the slack was completely dry and dominated by upland dune species due to low lake levels. In 2014, rising lake levels rewetted the slack. Pools of standing water and hydrophytic vegetation appeared and expanded. While the surface waters of the pools are often supersaturated with O2 due to photosynthesis, bottom waters at the sediment interface exhibit low O2 saturation, allowing for the accumulation of organic matter from algae and cyanobacteria as well as emergent wetland vegetation. Surface and groundwater sampling indicate denitrification and sulfate reduction processes in the wetlands. Average total alkalinity in the slack pools, determined by titration, ranged from 3.57 meq/L (winter 2021) to 2.55 meq/L (June 2023) with a low of 1.67 meq/L (July 2021). Beginning in July 2021 and continuing to summer 2023, the titration data exceeded the acceptance criteria for carbonate speciation, suggesting that accumulating organic matter and the associated organic acids were a potential source of non-carbonate alkalinity. Many total alkalinity models assume a carbonate-based system wherein non-carbonate/organic alkalinity is discounted. However, our research finds that the organic fraction of total alkalinity can be considerable. Hence, care must be taken in using total alkalinity values to assess the buffering capacity, especially with respect to CO2 calculations, for these freshwater systems
The Effect of Foam Rolling with Vibration on Vertical Jump Performance in Division III Football Players
Full text linkVibrating foam rollers are a new percussive device that has become increasingly popular to perform myofascial release. Various studies have assessed these devices\u27 effects on vertical jump performance in athletes. Prior research has reported that vibrating rollers (1) have no effect on performance, (2) improve performance to a similar degree as regular foam rollers, and (3) improve performance to a greater degree than regular foam rollers. The inconsistency of these results suggests that further investigation is warranted. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of vibrating and non-vibrating foam rolling on vertical jump performance in division III football players. 50 division III college football players were assessed on their vertical jump performance following no foam rolling, regular foam rolling, and foam rolling with vibration. Participants visited the lab on three separate occasions and completed each trial in a counterbalanced manner. Prior to each jump assessment, participants completed a 10 minute dynamic warm-up led by a researcher. After 30 seconds of rest, a 5-minute treatment was completed. In each foam-rolling trial, quadriceps, hamstrings, calf, and glute muscles in both legs were rolled out for 30 seconds each using a metronome to assure consistent rolling. In the non-foam rolling trial, participants rested for 5 minutes after the dynamic warm-up before jumping. The jumping protocol consisted of 3 countermovement jumps from a stationary position on the Just Jump mat. Thirty seconds separated each jump, and the highest jump was recorded for comparison between groups. It was hypothesized that the foam rolling with vibration would improve vertical jump performance to a greater degree than regular foam rolling and no foam rolling. This study is ongoing, and results will be available during the poster celebration
Deep Roots, New Shoots: Modern and Contemporary African Art from the KAM Collection
Full text linkKruizenga Art Museum, Hope College Catalog for the exhibition: Deep Roots New Shoots: Modern and Contemporary African Art from the KAM Collection. Exhibition dates: January 12 – May 18, 2024. Charles Mason, author. Andie Near, photographer, designer.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/kam_catalogs/1005/thumbnail.jp
Deep Roots, New Shoots: Modern and Contemporary African Art from the KAM Collection
Full text linkA poster for the exhibition Deep Roots, New Shoots held January 12–May 18, 2024.https://digitalcommons.hope.edu/kam_poster/1062/thumbnail.jp
News from Hope College, Volume 56.2: Winter 2024
Full text linkhttps://digitalcommons.hope.edu/news_from_hope_college/1267/thumbnail.jp
The Role of Brain Injury in Neural Proliferation and Neuronal Migration in Adult Zebrafish
Full text linkTraumatic brain injury (TBI) is increasing in prevalence, with around 1.5 million people in the United States sustaining a head injury every year. Neural death following TBI contributes significantly to neurological dysfunction and, in extreme cases, death. Adult zebrafish prove a unique and advantageous model of study as they are capable of de novo neural regeneration (i.e., neurogenesis) following brain injury. While it is known that robust cell proliferation occurs in the ventricular zone (VZ) of the telencephalon of adult zebrafish, it is unknown whether these newly-generated cells and their migration aid in the process of neural repair after TBI. In previous research, we showed that lesioned olfactory bulbs (OB) are capable of regeneration and recovery. We aimed to further investigate neural proliferation in the VZ, including neuronal migration to the OB following injury to assess if new neurons originating from the VZ could contribute to OB recovery. We expect to see increased cell proliferation in the lesioned OB compared to the contralateral, undamaged side. We also expect to see an increased migration of the new neurons from the VZ to the lesioned side. We used adult zebrafish that were lesioned using quinolinic acid (QA) injections into one OB while leaving the contralateral side undamaged as control. Fish recovered for 1-day post-lesion or 21-days post-lesion to measure the timing of cell proliferation. Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) and Hu antibodies were used to assess total cell proliferation and neurogenesis. This work aims to demonstrate the regenerative properties of the zebrafish CNS by observing the migration of new neurons following brain injury. The capacity for cell proliferation in zebrafish has implications for human treatment following TBI, which should be further investigated
Retrograde Degeneration of the Olfactory Epithelium Following Neurotoxic Lesioning in Zebrafish
Full text linkParkinson’s Disease (PD), a neurodegenerative disease that deteriorates dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, is characterized by movement deficits, sleep disturbances, mental deficits, and hallucinations. About 95% of those with PD experience olfactory dysfunction or loss of the sense of smell. Prior research found evidence of retrograde degeneration in animal models of PD, which occurs when axons degenerate proximal to the neural injury itself, beginning in the axon terminals and proceeding to the cell body. Although dopaminergic retrograde degeneration has been observed in PD models, it is unknown if this contributes to some non-motor PD’s symptoms, such as olfactory loss. To study this, we aimed to establish whether retrograde degeneration occurs between the olfactory bulb (OB) and the olfactory epithelium (OE), since the OB contains dopaminergic neurons, and this could be linked to olfactory loss. We use zebrafish due to the amenability of using this species, which produces many offspring, as well as the easily accessible olfactory system. We used 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), a neurotoxin that targets dopaminergic neurons and injected it intracerebroventricularly (i.c.v.; i.e., directly into the CSF.) To study the OE, we performed hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stainings on sectioned tissue. Light microscopy was used to take images of the stained samples. We predicted that degeneration in the OB will result in OE degeneration, manifesting as important tissue changes such as a reduction in epithelial thickness. This research aims to shed light on the pattern and extent of olfactory retrograde degeneration in the zebrafish PD model. It is essential to understand the complexity of the zebrafish model, in order to continue and refine research on the second most common neurodegenerative disease, in order to find real help, for real people