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Mindfulness Meditation and Evidence of Brain Changes: A Review of the Literature
No full textMindfulness meditation is a practice that can develop greater awareness of the mind and body. It has been used to treat stress, anxiety, chronic pain (12) and depression. Current studies shed light on research findings associated with the effects of mindfulness meditation on the brain. This literature review will reveal evidence of neuroplasticity through functional imaging, such as the fMRI. Likewise, evidence of emotional regulation involving amygdala activation has been in presented in some studies (4,2). Additionally, increased gray matter density in the brain stem has been documented after meditation therapy (MT) using magnetic resonance imaging(9). Researchers have additionally uncovered significant improvements in immune system function among meditators (10)
Influences of the Extract of Agaricus Blazei Murill on Hepatitis, Cancer and Immunity
No full textThis thesis is being archived as a Digitized Shelf Copy for campus access to current students and staff only. We currently cannot provide this open access without the author's permission. If you are the author of this work and desire to provide it open access or wish access removed, please contact the Wahlstrom Library to discuss permission.Objective – The purpose of this study was to evaluate the benefit of medicinal mushroom Agaricus blazei Murill looking at clinical evidences which mainly focus on its function for immunomodulation, infection and tumor suppression as well as potential uses of it key constituents found therein. Basic Procedures – The database used for searching was PubMed. Researched focused on papers showing Agaricus blazei Murill and cancer and its mechanism of action on immune system and infection. Papers were chosen that were published within the last 14 years. Principal Conclusions – Data from in vitro and animal studies indicate that Agaricus blazei Murill (AbM) brings about positive effects in different disease models. The majority of data showed that AbM conveys a variety of health benefits due to its modulation of the immune system when used as a supplement. Some clinical data have shown that AbM could be a promising remedy in treatments for varies infections and hepatitis especially for patients with the resistant type of the disease. AbM could prove to be invaluable in easing side effects and thus improving the quality of life for cancer patients. Not only do AbM extracts help enhance the clinical outcome of Western cancer treatments, but they also ease the physical and psychological suffering from the side effects of chemotherapy, providing much needed relief to cancer patients
Hierarchical Cluster-Based FIFO Asynchronous Data Transfer Technique for Reducing Congestion for Energy Efficient State Wireless Sensor Network-HAEEW
No full textThe applications of WSN can be quiet numerous. In applications like battlefield monitoring, grid power generation, health systems, sensors are deployed on large scale. During such deployment, energy efficiency must be proficient, which requires clustering, in the WSN architecture. Clustering architecture requires maintenance of sensor nodes due to alfunctioning of sensor which becomes depleted of energy. As some nodes leaves and some are being replaced, congestion is introduced in the network due the limited processing capability of memory, computations, and bandwidth condition. This paper proposes one of the energy efficient clustering techniques (HAEEW), using asynchronous data transfer (ADT), which has been modeled from data transfer technique (EEHCR), and using hierarchical clustering. Our model uses synchronization in clock time queries in one and each iterations round time, to determine cluster head, and head-set member formation, using Ad hoc on-demand energy aware routing protocols (AOERP) to make decision. In each iteration, the head-set members receives message request from neighboring nodes to confirm their average distance estimation, in which to transmit aggregated data to the base station. In a sensor deployment, which is aimed for data collection, control and management of sensor nodes, play a vital role, where nodes can be adjusted to boost energy in the network life time. We used matlab for simulations analysis of our result
Enhancing Hadoop MapReduce Performance for Scientific Data using NoSQL Database
No full textScientific data sets usually have similar jobs that are frequently applied to the data by different users. In addition, many of these data sets are unstructured, complex, and required fast and simple processing. In order to increase the performance of the existing Hadoop and MapReduce algorithm, it is necessary to develop an algorithm based on the type of data sets and requirements of the jobs. In this poster, we represent a Hadoop MapReduce environment that uses genomic and biological data as an example of unstructured and complex data
A Descriptive Analysis of the Nigerian Educational Framework
No full textNigeria inherited a colonial educational framework at independence from Britain on October 1st 1960. The systemic thrust of this education centered on the liberal arts modality and not the sciences. This system of education was formulated to serve the colonial interest which was at the center of colonial policy formulation whereas the interest of Nigeria atrophied at the periphery. This arrangement has not worked well for Nigeria. Presently, Nigerian education is in crisis. The purpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship between the pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial periods of the evolution of the Nigerian educational framework. The study further sought to understand what was behind the crisis in Nigerian education so as to make recommendations for a different way forward. To find a way forward, a paradigm shift from the status quo is needed. This study used the qualitative methodology. Purposeful and random sampling methods were used to gather data. At the heart of the study was the work of a focus group that discussed and answered a set of questions related to the study. In all, four groups in Nigeria participated in the study. The study found that there was a significant relationship between the pre-colonial, colonial and post-colonial periods of the evolution of the Nigerian educational framework. The study also showed that, embedded within the educational system inherited at independence, were cultural and other values that have created a dissonance in the Nigerian, between the centeredness of his African roots, and, the acquired Western frame of reference. The study concluded that policy formulation in theory must actually be put into practice is sustainable change is to occur. It further concluded that adequate and sustained funding should be at the heart of the paradigm shift towards an African education for Africa. The study recommends that Nigeria must look within Africa's rich repository of culture to harness a new way forward
Application for Big Data Visualization using Google BigQuery and Google Charts
No full textPoster also presented at the Northeast Section American Society for Engineering Education 2015 at Northeastern University in Boston, MA on 2015-04-30.Big data visualization conveys information much faster than tables containing numbers and text. Therefore, this poster presents an efficient method for big data visualization on top of Google BigQuery. Google BigQuery is a cloud-based interactive query service for massive datasets built on Dremel. In this project, we used 'natality' dataset that has United States birth data from 1969 to 2008 saved in 137 million rows. For the implementation of dashboard application, we employ Google App Engine using Python and Google Charts with JavaScript
Participatory Development Is Not Only About the Poor: A Case Study of Egypt
No full textAs an alternative to traditional approaches to development, participatory development programs have been earning increasing attention and funding since its emergence in the 1970s. In the case of Egypt, the Participatory Development Program in Urban Areas (PDP) has been adopted under the argument of boosting economy through the enhancement of people’s freedoms. Previous literature has focused on studying the performance of PDP’s first phase (Piffero, 2009a, 2009b, 2010, and Ibrahim, 2012), hence this paper analyzes the second phase through the cooperation, unity, organization, and cultural synthesis elements of Freire’s dialogical theory of action (1970, 2005). After identifying persistent challenges, the present research argues that focusing solely on the development of the poor is not enough to promote consistent participatory development practices
Antiracist Curriculum and Pedagogy: Teaching Critical Theory, Participatory Action Research, and Narrative Storytelling to Reduce Oppression
No full textOppression of racial groups, indigenous people, and the disabled continues to be a worldwide problem (Christ, 2007; Mertens, 2007). Historically, acts such as colonization, suppression of knowledge, language, and culture (Denzin, 2010) have resulted in whole groups being voiceless and powerless to change their social conditions. Smith (2006) argues that traditional western research does little to alleviate the oppression that these groups face. Fortunately numerous innovative research techniques have recently emerged that challenges traditional methodologies which does little to support the disenfranchised. Participatory Action Research (Rahman, 2008), Auto-Ethnography (Grbich, 2007), and Narrative Storytelling (Meyer, 2004) are three of the methodologies that have emerged to overshadow the western-based research methods promoted in postsecondary institutions that have done little to alleviate the imbalances in power and authority over the disenfranchised. This chapter highlights the importance of teaching research inclusive of a critical transformative and emancipatory paradigm (Kemmis, 2008; Greene, 2007) that is used to frame research methodologies that better meet the needs of disenfranchised minorities. This chapter also advocates for postsecondary institutions to advance more inclusive curricula designed to brings voice to the oppressed while providing students the skills they need to help advocate for the causes they believe in
Detecting Bad Posture using Postuino among Engineering Graduate Students
No full textPoster also presented at the Northeast Section American Society for Engineering Education 2015 at Northeastern University in Boston, MA on 2015-04-30.To understand how good posture minimizes computer related injury’s pain, we developed Postuino. A device that warns the computer users if they are leaning too close towards computer screen. Postuino has an accompanying web application that visualizes the collected data and displays a chart to simplify comparing be-tween straight time and slouch time. Also, the app suggests taking frequent breaks to minimize the risk of injuries and to increase productivity. Then, we designed an experiment with different factors to evaluate the efficiency of Postuino. In our study, 24 subjects first use the computer for 3 hours after disabling Postuino’s alert system. Afterwards, they use the computer again for another 3 hours after enabling the alert system. We collected data, analyzed it, and presented the results in this paper
UB Knightlines Fall/Winter 2015
No full textThe UB Knightlines newsletter for the Summer of 2015. This issue contains articles discussing a UB student helping UNESCO protect the Petra archaeological site in Jordan over the summer, UB CPIA student taking internships across the world, alumna Gloria Velasquez helping others achieving the American Dream, UB members running the Tough Mudder, UB student Janaina Bordignon's internship at the United Nations, UB being awarded a Department of Education Student Support Services grant, the Saudi Student Club wins award from Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission, two UB students win prestigious UPE Scholarships, UB Engineering professors awarded CQIA Gold Innovation Prize, UB pays tribute to former football players who died in Vietnam, Jani Pallis's teaching engineering design, new facilities at UB, changes to UB food service, the Ernest C. Trefz School of Business holding a business competition for high school students, a focus on alumnus Thomas O'Hare, faculty news, alumni news, books published by alums and faculty, UB shortstop John Ascenzia winning the NCAA Division II National Gold Glove Winner, UB alum and early 70s pitcher Rick Smith, UB student athletes, and other campus and sports news