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Solar Turbines: Mars SoLoNOx Fuel Injector Serviceability
Get PDFThe ability to remove a fuel injector from a Solar Turbines Mars 100 Engine has been a strenuous and demanding task for Field Service Representatives (FSRs). Not only is it physically demanding for an FSR, taking an average of 2-3 hours to remove a single fuel Injector, with 14 located radially around the combustor section of the engine, it is also a costly one. Due to the large amount of time consumed when removing, the company using the turbine can lose a sizable amount of money. FSRs are requested to complete maintenance cycles every 5,000 hours the engine is run or annually, where they must remove the fuel injectors in order to either borescope inside the engine or examine the state of the injectors themselves
Expansion of Hydra Phylogeny and Biogeography with the help of Citizen Scientists
Get PDFHydra are freshwater polyps of the Cnidaria phylum with limited research done on their phylogeny and biogeography. While the majority of Hydra phylogenetic research has been conducted on only Northern Hemisphere samples, citizen scientists are an essential part of broadening the scope of understanding where Hydra live in the wild and how they are related to one another. Citizen scientists contacted via the website iNaturalist provided researchers at USD with Hydra samples. From there 3 hydra samples were sequenced and compiled in a phylogenetic tree, providing more information about Hydra phylogeny and biogeography. In addition, improvements to molecular protocols were made making the process faster and less expensive. Overall this project shows how everyday people can make meaningful advancements in areas of scientific research that wholly depend on their participation
Language and Music Perception Lab Projects
Get PDFOrganizing complex perceptual input in real time is crucial for our ability to interact with the world around us, and information received in the auditory modality in particular is central to many fundamental aspects of human behavior. In the Language and Music Perception Lab, we take an interdisciplinary approach to studying auditory perception. Our research encompasses cross-modal, music, and speech perception using a combination of behavioral, cognitive neuroscience, and computational modeling approaches. Our research focuses on the importance of interactions, including the interaction of bottom-up and top-down processing and interactions within and across modalities. Our current studies employ behavioral testing, qualitative data collection, and electroencephalogram (EEG) neuroimaging to further our understanding of auditory perception and higher cognitive processe
Implementing a Naloxone Training and Opioid Overdose Prevention Program at a Residential Addiction Treatment Center
Get PDFIntroduction: Amidst the escalating opioid overdose crisis in the United States, it is imperative to deploy effective harm-reduction strategies. This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project involved the development, implementation, and evaluation of a Naloxone Training and Opioid Overdose Prevention Program delivered to clients at a residential addiction treatment center. The primary objective of this project was to determine if the educational intervention led to an improvement in participants\u27 knowledge and attitudes about opioid overdose and naloxone use.
Background: Overdose fatalities are a leading cause of injury-related death in the United States. The majority of fatal overdoses involve opioids. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has further accelerated the rate of overdose fatalities. In the past two years, preventable drug overdose fatalities increased by 58%. Research suggests that implementing Naloxone Training and Opioid Overdose Prevention Programs within high-risk populations is an effective, low-risk, harm-reduction strategy.
Methods: The National Harm Reduction Coalition’s Guide to Developing and Managing Overdose Prevention and Take-Home Naloxone Programs, along with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s Opioid Overdose Prevention Toolkit, were used to design a 45-minute nurse-led Naloxone Training and Opioid Overdose Prevention group for patients at a residential addiction treatment center. The interactive educational intervention encompassed a comprehensive discussion of overdose response and prevention, including the examination of overdose risk factors, recognition of overdose symptoms, steps to take when responding to an overdose, and guidance on the proper administration of naloxone.
Results: The project\u27s findings demonstrate significant improvements in knowledge and attitudes about opioid overdose management. Total scores on both the OOAS and OOKS improved with statistical significance (p \u3c 0.05). All seven subdomains measured by the OOAS and OOKS showed directional improvement, with four reaching statistical significance (p \u3c 0.05). Participants\u27 attitudes toward competence and concerns about opioid overdose management improved significantly before and after the intervention (p \u3c 0.05). Additionally, participants\u27 knowledge of naloxone use and recognition of overdose signs significantly improved (p \u3c 0.05).
Evaluation: The findings of this project highlight the effectiveness of Naloxone training and opioid overdose prevention interventions in enhancing preparedness to address opioid overdoses within high-risk populations. The success of this program suggests implications for practice, emphasizing the importance of incorporating comprehensive opioid overdose harm reduction strategies into addiction treatment settings. Future projects should aim to explore the long-term effectiveness of the program by assessing sustained changes in knowledge and attitudes over time
Parental Perceptions of Childhood Vaccines: A Qualitative Study
No full textObjective: The purpose of this study was to explore parents’ views and practices regarding routine childhood vaccination.
Background: Recently, pediatric healthcare providers have reported seeing an alarming increase in the number of families no longer maintaining their child’s recommended vaccination schedule. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes vaccinations as one of the top 10 greatest public health achievements worldwide and recommends routine immunizations for children through adolescents against vaccine-preventable death. A properly vaccinated child protects not only themselves and their immediate family, but the community at large. Despite these advances and notable triumphs, millions of children and adolescents experience a vaccine-preventable death due to their parent or caregiver not immunizing their child. It has become clear parents’ intent to vaccinate, decision-making, perceptions, and vaccine hesitancy have changed post-COVID-19 pandemic and must be examined.
Methods: A qualitative descriptive study using a constructivist approach was used. Participants were parents from a local Jewish temple in southern California, an international adoption agency based in Colorado serving families living across the United States, and a local mom’s group. A combination of snowball sampling and purposive sampling was used to recruit participants and to ensure diverse characteristics. Data were collected from participants through individual, semi-structured interview via Zoom, as none of the participants who lived locally wanted to interview in person. Data analysis was completed using inductive thematic analysis.
Findings: Parental decision-making for routine childhood vaccinations was expressed in the five themes that emerged: (a) Trust affects decision-making, (b) protecting against vaccine preventable diseases, (c) frustration with others’ choices, and (d) COVID-19 pandemic related concerns. Some parents expressed a newfound questioning of their own previous deep-seated opinions about vaccinations. Although guided interview questions did not address the COVID-19 pandemic, mention of both the pandemic as well as the COVID-19 vaccine were common in participant responses. Discussing childhood vaccinations is now synonymous with discussing the COVID-19 vaccine. In turn, study findings were congruent with the current literature
Sidney Lawton Smith Bookplate Commissioned for Daniel B. Fearing
No full texthttps://digital.sandiego.edu/bookplates-artists-smith/1006/thumbnail.jp
Sidney Lawton Smith Bookplate Commissioned for Vail Library
No full texthttps://digital.sandiego.edu/bookplates-artists-smith/1030/thumbnail.jp
Sidney Lawton Smith Bookplate Commissioned for Keblers
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Onboarding Students at Scale: A New Student Orientation Course that Prepares Students to Succeed in their Online Degree Programs
Get PDFA new online orientation course equips students with the tools and skills to thrive in online programs. It welcomes them to the university, introduces the learning management system, fosters peer connection, and locates essential resources. Additionally, it teaches valuable strategies for time management, motivation, and success in online learning. This adaptable base course caters to the university’s diverse online programs while maintaining a core structure. Designed for efficient facilitation by Academic Directors, it also allows for a personalized touch. Surveys indicate the course effectively prepares students for their first online course. Notably, completing the orientation has become the strongest predictor of student retention and academic success. This award-winning approach serves as a valuable example for designing online student orientation programs
Climate Regulation and Co-Benefits: The Reality of Co-Benefits in Climate Policy and the Reality We Face Without Them
Get PDFThe United States has long required administrative agencies to conduct Cost-Benefit Analyses (“CBA”) in their rulemaking. By conducting CBA, agencies “show their work” to Congress, courts, and constituencies as to why the agency wishes to regulate a certain way and what it would cost to do so.
This Article will focus on co-benefits, an increasingly divisive component of CBA. Co-benefits, or benefits occurring secondary to the targeted purpose of statutory authority, assist agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) in painting a holistic picture of everything the public has to gain from a rule’s passage. In recognizing that value, the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) and the EPA have included co-benefits, and their counterpart, indirect costs, in their CBA for decades.
However, recent trends present a new challenge to co-benefit accounting in CBA, spurred mainly by a Supreme Court with conflicting attitudes toward co-benefits and cost-focused administrations. Although there has been no official prohibition on their inclusion, co-benefits face considerable skepticism in current jurisprudence. This skepticism is not limited to the judiciary. Multiple practitioners, organizations, and industry leaders have cited the Court’s doubts as support for eliminating the EPA’s inclusion of co-benefits. This erosion in public trust threatens confusion, inaction, and underinvestment in a time-sensitive era for climate policy.
This Article will first detail a background analysis of how CBA came to be, then focus on the turning point in the EPA’s rulemaking, health and economic co-benefits, and finally the leading policy considerations on both sides of the inclusion argument. Ultimately, the analysis will show that co-benefit inclusion in rulemaking is consistent with years of EPA practice and guidance, is a logical counterpart to widely accepted indirect cost inclusion, and presents significant and accountable gains to public health