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The Being of the Performer
No full textThis work presents an autoethnographic, practice-as-research inquiry into Tender Steps (Adaire to Dance, 2024), a dance-for-film grounded in the author’s lived experience of baby loss. Through embodied reflection, the article explores how personal experience becomes a site of inquiry, examining the relationship between the performer’s being and the act of performance. Drawing on phenomenological and performance-based perspectives, it considers how posture, weight, breath, and voice function as embodied knowledge and how meaning is co-constructed through the intersubjective relationship between performer and audience. It reflects on the ethical and emotional implications of making lived experience public within a digitally mediated form and extends this inquiry into pedagogical practice. It argues for embodied, experiential approaches to inquiry that privilege presence, vulnerability, and reflection as ways of knowing within both artistic and educational contexts
From Essays to Embodiment: Reimagining Student-Centered Assessment through Creative Practice
No full textThis essay explores the experience of implementing podcast-based assessment in ‘Feeling History, Making History,’ a semester-long course at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) in South Africa. The course is designed to cultivate broad-based critical and interdisciplinary skill sets in first-year Humanities students. Through pedagogical reflection across three consecutive iterations of this course, we investigate how creative assessment practices such as podcasting both enabled our students to bring their whole “selves” into the academy and productively challenged our own preconceived notions about effective, decolonial pedagogy
HIGH- SPEED WIRELESS INTERFERENCE SEPARATION BASED ON PHOTONIC DEEP LEARNING ACCELERATORS AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL IMAGE RECONSTRUCTION FOR MEDICAL APPLICATIONS
No full textThis dissertation is centered on fast wideband interference management through advanced photonic signal processing and hybrid communication architectures. The core of this work is based on an optical pulse sampling technique proposed for photonic blind source separation (BSS) to recover wideband signals from their sub-Nyquist samples. With the use of ultra-short optical pulses to obtain statistically representative samples, this method retains important statistical properties of the signals while significantly reducing constraints imposed by analog to digital conversion and digital signal processing. Building on this foundation, we further apply the photonic BSS system within a hybrid free space optical (FSO) and radiofrequency (RF) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication platform for dynamic interference mitigation. The hybrid architecture dynamically switches between FSO and RF modes to adapt to varying environmental conditions. Additionally, this dissertation also leverages artificial intelligence algorithms in both optical communications and optical imaging area, combined with structured-light technology, galvo-mirror systems and passive sensing model to provide applications in medical and civil area, such as selective targeted ultraviolet disinfection system and microscopic three-dimensional reconstruction system
A Call to Care: An Investigation of Rhetorical Inquiry in First-Year Composition Educators
No full textThroughout colleges and universities across the country, First-Year Composition is known to be a general education course requirement that commonly works to set students up for academic success throughout their postsecondary educational journey and pursuits. This general education course works to focus on developing composition-based skill sets that help students in various academic areas and disciplines of study throughout their undergraduate degree completion (Kinnevay, 1971; The Council of Writing Program Administrators, 2014). While much scholarship in First-Year Composition has focused on student growth and development, there have been minimal practical considerations and examinations of a large stakeholder in this education setting: the educators themselves. This dissertation case study works to investigate First-Year Composition educators through providing them with the opportunity to engage in the “first condition” of the “rhetorical inquiry” process (Kopp, 2011; Kopelson 2003). Over the course of the Fall 2024 semester, four participants within Avenue University participated in this case study throughout qualitative interviewing methods and responsive interviewing (Rubin & Rubin, 2012). This case study aims to examine the idealized expectations, roles of authority, and positionality that first-year composition educators hold towards their courses, students, and even the pedagogical choices they make within the classroom environments they teach and lead within
Cargo Hitchhiking Autophagy - A Hybrid Autophagy Pathway Utilized in Yeast
Get PDFMacroautophagy is a catabolic process that maintains cellular homeostasis by recycling intracellular material through the use of double-membrane vesicles called autophagosomes. In turn, autophagosomes fuse with vacuoles (in yeast and plants) or lysosomes (in metazoans), where resident hydrolases degrade the cargo. Given the conservation of autophagy
A QUALITATIVE STUDY TO DETERMINE TEACHER SELF-EFFICACY IN ACTIVE SHOOTER INCIDENTS IN ONE CATHOLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL
Get PDFActive shooter incidents in K-12 schools pose a significant threat to schools throughout the country. Presently, there is a gap in the existing literature regarding the readiness of Catholic secondary school teachers for active shooter scenarios, particularly in terms of assessing their self-efficacy levels for such incidents. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive embedded case study was to determine Catholic secondary school teachers’ sources of self-efficacy in responding to active shooter incidents and to explore how those sources of self-efficacy contributed to teachers’ active shooter preparedness. The aim of this study was to explore the sources of teachers\u27 self-efficacy in responding to active shooter incidents and how they would apply that self-efficacy to implement their school\u27s active shooter plan
Scaling New Heights: A Prospective Survey of Rock Climbing\u27s Impact on Mental Health
Get PDFBACKGROUND: Sport climbing, officially added to the 2020 Summer Olympics, has grown rapidly, with U.S. climbing gyms increasing from 310 in 2013 to 591 in 2021. Over the past decade, European research has identified bouldering as a potential psychotherapeutic treatment for anxiety and depression. Randomized controlled trials have compared bouldering psychotherapy (BPT) to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), showing that BPT produces comparable results and positively impacts mental health.
PURPOSE: There have been very few studies dedicated to the use of rock climbing as a therapy in the United States; further, there are few surveys that investigate whether American climbers would even consider climbing as beneficial towards mental health or not. With the ever-growing prevalence of mental health disorders and as climbing gains more traction, it is important to explore the potential of climbing as a therapeutic modality. It is hypothesized that rock climbing will be viewed as beneficial towards mental health amongst the population surveyed.
METHODS: A prospective survey was conducted to assess rock climbing\u27s impact on mental health, focusing on participants\u27 climbing habits and perceptions of its therapeutic benefits. The protocol was approved by the Rowan-Virtua IRB (Reference #: PRO-2022-353) in accordance with the latest guidelines of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors. Participants were recruited using flyers and posters at climbing gyms, an online climbing forum, and social media. The survey included individuals aged 18 years and older who engage in rock climbing at least once per week. No specific exclusion criteria was set in place, though participants were given the option to omit the mental health portion. The survey included questions on climbing frequency, mental health impact, and demographics. The survey was distributed online via Qualtrics Forms between February 2023 to June 2023, with informed consent obtained from participants, explaining both risks and data safeguards in place. Univariate graphs and bivariate analyses via chi square analysis were done using R Studio.
RESULTS: A total of 748 survey responses were received, with 50.4% of participants aged 26-40 years. Most were White Non-Hispanic (59.7%) and resided in the Mid-Atlantic/Tri-State Area. Climbing preferences showed indoor bouldering (24.9%) as the most popular, followed by indoor top rope (16.4%) and indoor lead climbing (12.4%). Outdoor climbing activities were less common, with traditional climbing at 10.1% and speed climbing at 0.2%. Significant associations were found between climbing frequency and age (p = 0.0045), session length and age (p = 8.2e-10), and climbing frequency by gender (p = 0.0024). Regarding social behavior, 46.8% identified as introverts and 37.1% as ambiverts. Mental health data revealed that 73.1% of climbers felt rock climbing positively impacted their mental health. Depression and anxiety were the most reported conditions. When compared to therapy and medications, 73.3% of participants found rock climbing more beneficial than medications, and 64.8% found it more beneficial than therapy. Gender and race were significantly associated with perceptions of climbing\u27s mental health benefits (p = 0.0448 and p = 0.0422, respectively).
CONCLUSION: Survey results offered future focal points of interest and affirmed that BPT would be received well as a therapeutic modality in the United States. Further, survey participation of 748 completed responses illustrates the community\u27s support and open communication regarding mental health, creating a promising field to continue exploring. Overall, rock climbing holds potential as a treatment modality for mental health disorders, further bridging the gap between physical and mental health
INVESTIGATING THE EFFECTS OF SEX AND ESTROUS CYCLE ON THE INCUBATION OF CUE-INDUCED OXYCODONE CRAVING
Get PDFThe overprescription and misuse of opioids like oxycodone has played a significant role in the ongoing opioid crisis. While effective painkillers, drugs like oxycodone are also reinforcing and often misused. While sex and ovarian hormones can impact the analgesic effects of these drugs, the impact of these factors on oxycodone reinforcement are not fully understood. This relationship between ovarian hormones and opioid reward is further complicated by the fact that opioid use can disrupt ovarian hormone levels and produce reproductive cycle irregularities. Using a rat model of drug craving and relapse vulnerability, we found that chronic oxycodone exposure produced reproductive (estrous) cycle dysregulation in the majority of animals (~60%) during both oxycodone self-administration and/or the first month of abstinence. During periods of normal cyclicity, we observed estrous cycle-dependent changes in both oxycodone intake and craving that differs from that found with other drugs like psychostimulants. We also observed estrous cycle-dependent changes in opioid receptor expression in the nucleus accumbens, a region that plays a critical role in drug seeking behavior. Together the studies in this thesis highlight the importance of ovarian hormones on oxycodone reinforcement and identify estrous cycle-dependent changes in the accumbens opioid receptor system that may contribute to these effects
A New Paliperidone Palmitate Formulation: How Is It Different and Where Does It Fit in Our Array of Choices for Long-Acting Formulations of Risperidone and Paliperidone?
Get PDFLong-acting injectable (LAI) antipsychotics have been shown to enhance treatment adherence and outcomes in individuals with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder. In recent years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved several LAIs with differing amenities of care, such as mode of administration, duration of oral medication supplementation, dosing frequency, needle gauge and size, and injection volume, amongst others. Additionally, several LAIs are distinct formulations of risperidone and paliperidone, making it difficult to distinguish between formulations, and many providers are unfamiliar with these newer agents. In 2024, a once-monthly LAI formulation of paliperidone palmitate, manufactured by Luye (PP1M Luye), was approved for the treatment of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. There are similarities and differences between PP1M (Luye) and once-monthly paliperidone palmitate manufactured by Janssen (PP1M Janssen), which was FDA approved in 2009. The focus of this commentary will be to identify common characteristics and differences between these competing formulations, as well as how they relate to the overall compendium of risperidone and paliperidone LAI antipsychotic formulations
Physical Activity Measurement Reactivity Among Midlife Adults With Elevated Risk for Cardiovascular Disease: Protocol for Coordinated Analyses Across Six Studies.
Get PDFBACKGROUND: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death in the United States, and adults aged 40-60 years with specific health conditions are at particularly elevated risk for developing CVD. Physical activity (PA) is a key cardioprotective behavior and many interventions exist to promote PA in this group. Effective promotion requires accurate assessment of PA behavior; as PA is often estimated by averaging across multiple days, a threat to accurate assessment is measurement reactivity, or an atypical increase in PA behavior at the start of measurement periods that may bias conclusions. Evidence for PA measurement reactivity is equivocal, though concern has resulted in recommendations to add or drop PA measurement days from inclusion, which may introduce undue burden on participants. At present, the extent of PA measurement reactivity and the behaviors most likely to be affected (eg, steps vs minutes of exercise) among those at risk for CVD are unclear, as are participant characteristics such as gender and study expectations (eg, intervention vs observation only) that may contribute to differences in these patterns.
OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study is to improve on the current understanding of the extent of PA measurement reactivity and potential moderators among US adults aged 40-60 years with CVD risk factors.
METHODS: To achieve this goal, we will conduct coordinated multilevel analyses across 6 studies. Data are from nationally representative, publicly available datasets (observation only: 2 studies) and baseline weeks of observation from behavioral weight loss clinical trials (4 studies), all collected in the United States. The publicly available datasets National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES; 2013-2014) and the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) Study (2004-2009; total n=1385) were used, which are available from the Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research website. Behavioral weight loss trials were conducted by the Drexel University Weight Eating and Lifestyle (WELL) Center (2011-2023; total n=444), in person or remotely via Zoom. Relevant data from each study were extracted for adults aged 40-60 years who have ≥1 risk factor for CVD (total n=1832; 11,707 total days of PA measurement with 6-7 days per person). Changes in PA behavior across the measurement period will be examined at the day level, using 2-level multilevel models (days nested within persons) and cross-level interactions (for moderation effects).
RESULTS: This project was funded in August 2022 and received supplementary funding in September 2023. Dataset acquisition and data cleaning were completed in October 2024. Analyses are expected to be completed in April 2025, and findings are anticipated to be shared in July 2025.
CONCLUSIONS: Results from this coordinated analysis project will provide the first large-scale estimation of the extent of PA measurement reactivity in an at-risk group. Findings will inform best practices for mitigating potential measurement reactivity in multiday assessments of PA behavior.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/67438