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Welcome Address
No full textWelcome Address and overview of symposium goals and AHA\u27s role in advancing cardiovascular researc
Effect of Bioactive Glass on PXDDA / PXDDA-co-PLA Nanocomposite for Hard Tissue Reconstruction: Synthesis and Characterization
Get PDFNewer bone graft materials face various challenges in achieving optimal mechanical strength, bioactivity, and antibacterial action simultaneously, which can result in suboptimal regeneration outcomes and increased infection risks In the present study, we developed a novel nanocomposite of poly (xylitol-co-dodecanedioic acid) (PXDDA) and poly (lactic acid) (PLA) with 1-10 wt% incorporation of bioactive glass (BG), utilizing a a PXDDAco-PLA compatibilizer for maintaining homogeneity. Extensive characterization techniques including, Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Brunauere Emmette Teller (BET), Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (¹H NMR) and contact angle measurements, revealed that the addition of BG imparted a microporous, rough surface morphology (with a contact angle of 55-60 degrees), ideal for cell attachment. Mechanical testing demonstrated a significant enhancement with 10 wt% BG, increasing tensile strength by approximately 120 % while reducing elongation. In vitro bioactivity tests indicated that hydroxyapatite deposition depended on BG concentration, reaching a maximum of 96.7 % surface coverage at 10 wt% BG. Antibacterial action against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli confirmed substantial inhibition (approximately 85 % decrease), with saturation occurring at 7 wt% BG. With tunable mechanical properties, enhanced biomineralization, and intrinsic antibacterial capacity, this nanocomposite overcomes the significant limitations of existing bone grafts, providing a clinically viable load-bearing alternative
Using Mindfulness to Manage Moral Injury in Veterans: Feasibility and Satisfaction of a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial
Get PDFObjective
The present study assessed program feasibility and satisfaction among recent-era veterans who participated in Mindfulness to Manage Moral Injury (MMMI), a live facilitated web-based 7-week mindfulness-based program targeting moral injury among veterans.
Method
In total, 56 post-9/11 veterans were recruited with 28 randomized to the MMMI condition and 28 to the Education and Support (ES) condition. Most participants identified as being White (71.4%), male (66.1%), and had a reported mean age of 41.50 years (Median = 39.50, SD = 9.26).
Results
Among the 56 participants, 82.1% attended at least one treatment session and 44.6% completed all seven sessions. There were no significant differences in the average number of sessions attended between the MMMI (M = 4.79, SD = 2.70) and the ES (M = 4.68, SD = 2.84) conditions, t(54) = 0.145, p = 0.87. Regarding randomization, there were no statistically significant differences on almost all demographic (i.e., years in military, gender, ethnicity) characteristics and baseline scores on all outcomes across treatment conditions, thus ensuring randomization was adequately met. Of the 56 who consented, 41 (73.21%) completed most study components (i.e., completed baseline and follow-up surveys, at least 1 weekly survey, and attended at least one treatment session). Regarding treatment satisfaction, individuals in the MMMI condition reported higher treatment satisfaction (Cohen\u27s d = 0.66).
Conclusions
Preliminary findings suggest MMMI is feasible and acceptable and may be able to reach veterans who may not seek traditional Veterans Affairs Medical Center care or who prefer a web-based program. Given its promise for the treatment of moral injury among veterans, MMMI warrants additional large-scale clinical-trial testing
Pillars of Purpose: Postsecondary Career and Technical Education Faculty Viewpoints on Retention
Get PDFThe retention of postsecondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) faculty in community colleges is critical for maintaining a skilled workforce to meet evolving labor market demands. This study employs Q methodology to explore the subjective viewpoints of community college CTE faculty regarding factors influencing their job satisfaction and retention. Grounded in Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory of Motivation and Job Embeddedness Theory, the research integrates the concept of Employee Experience Management (EEM) to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding faculty retention. Data collected from Q sorts and follow-up focus group interviews reveal six distinct factors representing diverse faculty perspectives on job satisfaction, institutional support, and professional development. The findings highlight the significance of intrinsic motivators, such as personal growth and meaningful work, alongside extrinsic factors like job security and compensation. This study addresses a critical gap in the literature by focusing on postsecondary CTE faculty retention. It offers actionable insights for community college administrators to enhance faculty engagement, reduce turnover, and ensure the sustainability of high-quality CTE programs. The results have implications for policy development and workforce readiness initiatives to strengthen the pipeline of qualified educators in career and technical education
What a Good OPR Looks Like : How Air Force Officers Learn to Write Performance Evaluations Without Formal Training
Get PDFEvery year, Air Force officers receive an Officer Performance Report (OPR) from their supervisory chain of commands. Air Force regulations state that officers should not write the content for their own reports; however, this is not what occurs in practice as “Ratees” usually compose their own evaluations. At the time of writing, the Air Force has not established a service-wide training or education program to teach officers how to compose these complex and career-altering documents, leaving Ratees to figure out how to navigate the genre’s unique conventions for themselves.
This dissertation examines what rhetorical knowledge Air Force officers must possess to write effective OPRs as well as how and where they accumulate this knowledge. Findings from surveys and interviews with participants—past and present Air Force officers—reveal that officers must possess the personal initiative to seek instruction and feedback from others to improve their OPR writing. Additionally, officers inherently develop a three-step learning process to teach themselves how to compose OPRs. This learning process parallels established rhetorical genre studies (RGS) teaching approaches, despite officers’ never using RGS-focused terminology
Route 420: An Examination of Cannabis Knowledge, Attitudes, and Use Behaviors Among Young Adults by Primary Route of Administration
Get PDFCannabis use among young adults in the United States has reached unprecedented levels in recent years. Previous research suggests that the escalating legalization of cannabis across the U.S. has made cannabis use more socially acceptable as well as accessible (e.g., expanding routes of administration) to young adults. However, less is known about how combined individual-level factors (i.e., knowledge and attitudes) may predict cannabis use patterns among young adult college students. Using the Knowledge-Attitude-Behavior (KAB) model, the current study examined a) the mediating effect of cannabis beliefs on the association between cannabis knowledge and cannabis use behaviors (frequency and typical intoxication time) and b) how these relationships differ across young adults’ primary cannabis route of administration (ROA; smoke, vape, edible). A sample of 549 young adult (ages 18 – 30; Mage = 19.25, SD = 1.83) college students reporting past 30-day recreational cannabis use was collected from nine institutions across the U.S. Participants primarily used cannabis by smoking (48.6%), vaping (37.7%), or ingesting edibles (13.7%), with significant differences in knowledge and cannabis use frequency and typical intoxication time across primary cannabis ROA. Smoking was associated with lower knowledge than vaping, while smoking and vaping were linked to more frequent and longer intoxication durations than cannabis edibles. Mediation analysis revealed that cannabis beliefs did not mediate the relationship between knowledge and use behaviors, and multiple-group analysis showed that primary cannabis ROA only moderated the correlation between cannabis use frequency and typical intoxication time and did not moderate KAB associations, indicating that the KAB model pathways were consistent across primary cannabis ROA. Findings suggest that prevention and intervention efforts should account for unique behavioral and psychosocial patterns across different cannabis ROAs, emphasizing targeted and tailored education and harm reduction strategies to promote safer cannabis use behaviors
[Review of the book The age of insecurity: Coming together as things fall apart, by A. Taylor]
No full text[First paragraph] The lectures of social theorist Astra Taylor focus on the insecurities of social life and wellbeing in the age of late capitalism. The subtitle refers to the benefits of a society based on social solidarity and mutuality as opposed to one based on acquisitive individualism. The lectures may have gone over slightly better in Canada where there is more of a sense of this than they would in the U.S. with its ideology of the self-sufficient individual. Indeed in the U.S. context, individualism is so pervasive that readers may be slightly shocked to see that there is an alternative to an atomistic society
Navigating the Path to Persistence and Belonging: The Role of Multifaceted Support in the First Two Years of Undergraduate Engineering Education
No full textThe Engaged Engineering Program (EEP) project at ABC University is a five-year Track 2 NSF S-STEM that responds to challenges in recruiting and retaining academically talented, low-socioeconomic status students from diverse backgrounds into undergraduate engineering programs. The EEP project has successfully recruited four cohorts of Scholars and supported them via a series of targeted activities, including a summer bridge program, seminar-style introductory courses, mentoring, and dedicated advising, all concentrated within the first two years of an undergraduate engineering degree. As part of the project, a research study has been conducted guided by the following questions: 1) How and to what extent do the targeted activities support the retention of Scholars through their second year of engineering (persistence), 2) How and to what extent do the targeted activities impact Scholars\u27 self-efficacy, identity, and belonging in engineering (belonging)? The research study draws on social cognitive career theory and research related to identity and sense of belonging in engineering and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) more generally. We have previously shared findings from our research study in several venues, describing qualitative evidence of how EEP-related experiences have impacted Scholars\u27 affect, including supporting their developing identities and sense of belonging related to engineering. Now that the final cohort of Scholars is finishing their second and last year in the program, we have conducted additional analyses to assess EEP\u27s impacts on multiple student development and success dimensions. Analyses of institutional data suggest that, compared to non-EEP students, Scholars have largely been successfully retained into their second year and progressed toward acceptance into their major. Analyses of qualitative focus group data from the most recent year make connections between program elements and important socio-emotional outcomes. Implications are discussed for other programs seeking to support engineering undergraduates\u27 retention and success in the first two years of study
Analysis of Errors in the Management of Cutaneous Disorders
Get PDFIn this study, we prospectively and retrospectively evaluated the occurrence of errors in the management of cutaneous disorders from patient visits and medical records in a single dermatology practice in southeast Virginia over a 3-year period (June 2020-July 2023). Providers should be able to improve diagnostic accuracy by utilizing established rapid bedside diagnostic techniques
Why We Don\u27t Talk Anymore
No full textWhy We Don’t Talk Anymore is a memoir in essays about a series of endings that happen all in close succession around the start of covid. In exploring these endings, I look for the reasons these relationships ended. In retrospect, most of them are obviously doomed, but who is at fault? or is finding fault even the name of the game