27392 research outputs found
Sort by
The Effects of Varying Temperatures and Food Availability on the Reproductive Output of the Acorn Barnacle: Chthamalus fissus
Full text linkClimate change is predicted to intensify ocean warming and the reduction in phytoplankton abundance, potentially disrupting reproductive processes in filter-feeding intertidal invertebrates. This study investigated the combined effects of water temperature increases and food availability on the reproductive output on Chthamalus fissus, a dominant intertidal barnacle species found along the Southern California coastline. Using a controlled laboratory experiment, adult barnacles collected from the nearshore rocky intertidal habitat in La Jolla, California, were exposed to two temperature regimes (ambient water temperature ~ 18°C and elevated water temperature ~ 20-21°C) and two food concentration treatments (low and high phytoplankton and rotifer densities). Each week, temperature and salinity were monitored, tanks were cleaned, and the number of barnacle nauplii produced (barnacle reproductive output) was measured for each experimental treatment. Temperature had a significant effect on reproductive output (p=0.0046), with warm-water treatments producing more nauplii than cold-water treatments, regardless of food concentration. Food availability did not significantly affect reproductive output (p=0.3372), and no significant interaction between temperature and food was detected. These results suggest that elevated temperatures may enhance short-term reproduction in C. fissus, but the long-term effects under reduced food conditions remain uncertain. Given the ecological role of barnacles as habitat-forming species, shifts in their reproductive output under climate change could have cascading impacts on intertidal community structure
Should school board elections be partisan? Analyzing elite discourse in the debate over the structure of local elections
Full text linkThe goal of this research paper is to identify the most prevalent arguments for and against partisan school board elections while also examining what differences, if any, exist between Republicans and Democrats with respect to the way they talk about the issue. The interdisciplinary fields of political science and linguistics provide helpful context to the effectiveness of political communication in smaller scale, yet salient elections in communities where impacts are most directly felt. My interest lies in how the nationalization of politics influences local government and elections, and how language and the media act as conduits for that relationship. It is important to undertake this research due to the implications that could arise if there is a significant difference in Republican or Democratic support for or against the addition of adding party labels to school board ballots, especially if the shared goal is the well-being of students. To identify both the arguments for such legislative changes and any potential partisan differences, I code descriptive data found in local newspaper articles from Arizona, Florida, Indiana, and Kentucky, and compare the specific language used to describe the importance of these elections and the justification for the support or denial of partisan elections. These four states represent various outcomes regarding the proposal of shifting to partisan elections for school board officials. The goal of this research is to provide nuance when it comes to the linguistic tactics employed that effectively shape the political sphere and collective sentiment about local issues that are increasingly becoming nationalized
Including Conscientiously: How Charter School Educators Experience Inclusion Education Implementation
Full text linkThis narrative inquiry examined how charter school educators experience inclusive education implementation while confronting ableist systems that maintain exclusion through seemingly neutral practices. This research emerged from my lived experience of how educational structures systematically marginalize disabled students while appearing progressive. The study investigated two research questions: how support structures and leadership practices either perpetuate or dismantle ableist assumptions embedded in educational practice, and how educators negotiate tensions between implementing evidence-based inclusive strategies and addressing environmental factors that create the need for those strategies.
Data collection employed semistructured interviews with eight credentialed educators across two Southern California charter school sites, supplemented by classroom observations. Analysis utilized Disability Studies in Education framework through Capper\u27s seven tenets, employing thematic analysis to identify patterns illuminating how educational systems perpetuate exclusion or create transformative change.
Findings revealed sophisticated exclusion practices that maintain segregation while appearing inclusive. Both school sites demonstrated persistent ableism through institutional structures prioritizing adult comfort while systematically marginalizing disabled students despite stated commitments to inclusion. Professional development emerged as a critical battleground where competing ideologies about disability played out, with traditional approaches reproducing medical model assumptions while transformative approaches centered disabled voices and critiqued power structures. Participants described navigating contradictions between implementing interventions and addressing systemic barriers that necessitated those interventions, revealing how environmental obstacles are treated as natural rather than socially constructed impediments.
Results demonstrate that individual attitude change, especially when buttressed by a prioritization for comfort, cannot address barriers requiring systematic environmental transformation. The study contributes an Implementation Science Inclusion Fidelity Framework, demanding dismantling institutional structures that maintain exclusion rather than pursuing superficial accommodations that preserve ableist hierarchies while appearing progressive. Educational systems must confront how organizational practices perpetuate oppression against disabled students through policies, procedures, and professional discourse that appear neutral but function as sophisticated mechanisms of exclusion
Renters\u27 Tax Credits
No full textAmerica is facing an affordable housing crisis that current policies have failed to mitigate. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, half of American tenants were rent burdened, paying more than one-third of their income on rent. For this reason, Renters\u27 Tax Credit (RTC) proposals are gaining traction in Washington and in policy circles. The most ambitious proposals would reimburse tenants for rent payments that exceed 30 percent of their income level, subject to rent limits. In scale and significance, such RTCs would almost certainly overshadow—or even replace—the nontax Housing Choice Voucher program that has been the centerpiece of federal housing policy since 1974. It would be the first time since 1993 that a large, existing nontax public welfare program was shifted into the Tax Code, and it would be the first time that a major nontax, in-kind welfare benefit was integrated into the tax system.Through a case study of the evolution of American housing policy, the recent failures of the Housing Choice Voucher Program, and current RTC proposals, this Article explores the potential and limits of in-kind integration of housing benefits in the tax system. Drawing on theory about the integration of tax and spending programs, it argues that an RTC may be appropriate if the goal is to expand access to housing. However, if the goal is to fight poverty by assisting rent-burdened tenants, then a more efficient and equitable approach would be to “cash out” the vouchers by converting them into unrestricted cash or tax credits. Cashed out vouchers would have advantages over an RTC, including institutional design, simplification, efficiency, and distributive benefits. It would also fundamentally change the nature of the intervention from a public-private partnership model to a public assistance model, with consequences for program outcomes. The analysis provides essential context for policy debates about RTCs, advances theory about the integration of in-kind benefits, and highlights the urgent need for clarity in policy goals
A Foundation\u27s Role in Collaboratively Enabling Drug Discovery
No full textA guest lecture given by Dr. Pacifici in Dr. Kenneth P. Serbin\u27s Spring 2025 Class, A History of the Brain: Examining Huntington\u27s Diseas
With ‘great promise’ for treating Huntington’s disease, four drug programs press ahead (Part I)
Full text linkGuide to the Department of Religious Studies records
Full text linkThese records contain correspondence, reports, and meeting minutes pertaining to the Department of Religious Studies in the early 1970s. The majority of these records pertain to discussions about the Catholicity of the merging USD College for Men and College for Women and general education requirements in religion.
Finding Aids are tools used to aid research by describing the materials in a collection. University Records Finding Aids include historical and/or biographical information along with a description of the collection and a folder listing of the content.
To view this collection please email University Archives and Special Collections staff at [email protected]://digital.sandiego.edu/findingaidsur/1010/thumbnail.jp
Guide to the Construction records (University of San Diego)
Full text linkThis collection contains construction records for the University of San Diego. Records include architectural drawings, correspondence, photographs, planning information, and reports.
Finding Aids are tools used to aid research by describing the materials in a collection. University Records Finding Aids include historical and/or biographical information along with a description of the collection and a folder listing of the content.
To view this collection please email University Archives and Special Collections staff at [email protected]://digital.sandiego.edu/findingaidsur/1045/thumbnail.jp
Implementation of a Tracheostomy Discharge Education Class for NICU Nurses
No full textInfants who are ventilator-dependent or have anatomic anomalies of their airway frequently require tracheostomy placement prior to discharge from the hospital in order to be cared for safely at home. At this large quaternary children’s hospital in Southern California, preparing these infants for discharge after tracheostomy placement has not been the role of the NICU nurse. There was no system in place on how to train caregivers, and the NICU staff felt unprepared. Evidence supports use of intensive educational programs to improve nurse knowledge and skills of tracheostomy care, allowing NICU nurses to provide improved care and pre-discharge teaching.
A course was developed by a multidisciplinary team of experts which included didactic and simulation components. Forty-nine nurses from three classes completed the pre- and post-tests. Mean comfort with family teaching and tracheostomy care improved from 3.2 to 4.3 measured with a 5-point Likert scale (p \u3c 0.001). Average performance on the knowledge quiz improved from 71% to 88% correct (p \u3c 0.001), with improvement seen in nurses of all levels of experience.
This project showed that a single class using an existing curriculum can improve both knowledge and comfort. It also demonstrated the value of cross-disciplinary and inter-unit cooperation in teaching nurses. The course should be formalized by the institution and offered on a regularly scheduled basis. This project can lead to research measuring the impact of this training on patient outcomes, in particular length of stay, caregiver stress, and complication rates
Beyond the BMI: An Educational, Family-Centered Approach to Identifying Risk for Childhood Obesity
Full text linkBackground: In the United States, the increasing prevalence of obesity has caused public health concerns. From 2017 to 2020, 14.7 million children ages 2 to 19 were considered obese. The main parameter for diagnosis is a body mass index (BMI) at or above the 95th percentile on the growth chart. Additionally, overweight is defined as a BMI between the 85th and 95th percentiles. At a pediatric primary care clinic in San Diego, CA, over a third of patients are considered overweight or obese. Obesity comorbidities can include type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. Overweight adolescents have a 70% likelihood of becoming overweight or obese in adulthood. Adult patients with obesity pay on average $1,861 more annually for healthcare than a patient of a healthy weight.
Purpose of Project: The Family Nutrition and Physical Activity (FNPA) screening tool can be implemented in pediatric primary care clinics to address lifestyle habits and risk for childhood obesity. Using this tool will flag more obesogenic behaviors to the provider than the standard practice, enabling them to counsel the family on lifestyle changes. Ultimately, this will increase screening and allow earlier intervention for childhood obesity.
EBP Model/Frameworks: The Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice model (JHNEBP) was used to critically analyze current research and translate it into practice. This model has a standardized problem-solving approach to evidence-based project (EBP) that is user-friendly, regularly updated, and aims to incorporate new ideas into practice quickly.
Evidence Based Interventions: Thirty-three families with children aged 4 to 18 presenting for their well-child visits filled out the FNPA tool and the standard 5210 Healthy Habits Questionnaire. Motivational interviewing (MI) techniques were used to counsel the family on areas of potential improvement and set a specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goal. After three months, families were contacted to fill out the FNPA tool again. Height, weight, and BMI of each patient were collected and de-identified for data analysis purposes.
Evaluation of Results: After three months, 27 families participated in a follow-up via phone call. Twenty-five participants’ FNPA scores improved, signifying that family lifestyle changes were implemented. A paired sample t-test showed that scores significantly increased from the pre-intervention score (mean = 64.67, SD = 5.903) to the post-intervention score (mean = 70.67, SD = 5.407); t(26) = -7.109, p\u3c 0.001. Additionally, this tool flagged more obesogenic behaviors to the primary care provider than the usual 5210 Healthy Habits Questionnaire. This helped providers identify patients at risk earlier than the standard of care.
Implications for Clinical Practice: In using the FNPA screening tool, the provider can better counsel and intervene towards a family’s lifestyle behaviors when compared to the 5210 Healthy Habits Questionnaire. Increased screening has the potential to identify more children at risk and begin weight management interventions. Improved lifestyle behaviors can potentially minimize the risk for childhood obesity. In turn, reduced rates of childhood obesity will likely have large cost savings.
Conclusions: Families that were screened using the FNPA tool and counseled with MI techniques had a mean improvement of 9% (six points) in their score and demonstrated improved lifestyle behaviors over three months. Future studies may be necessary to follow-up with families for a longer period after intervention to see long-term lifestyle changes