Digital Commons @ Texas A&M University-San Antonio
Not a member yet
3365 research outputs found
Sort by
KEYNOTE: La Palabra Como Refugio: Enjoying Dixza Language And Culture
No full textAs a child I never saw any book written in Zapotec, and I never had a teacher that spoke the language of my town—rather, speaking Zapotec in front of them, the teachers, was disrespectful. Zapotec is acquired orally within the family and among the community, social and political life, but never in a classroom. I remember in my elementary and middle school education, which I attended in my town, the history and geography books portrayed the Zapotecs as a culture from the past who spoke a language that was not Spanish and who were weavers and farmers, a civilization that lived in the same territory in which I live today. Neither books nor teachers would recognize that we were living and being educated in a very much alive Zapotec community where its inhabitants are weavers, farmers, academics and Zapotec speakers, a community that has very well-founded traditions, customs and beliefs strongly supported both by time and by the present
Study abroad as a tool for internationalization and linguistic justice: A case study on Latine medical humanities and healthcare interpreting students
Get PDFStudy abroad as a tool for internationalization and linguistic justice: A case study on Latine medical humanities and healthcare interpreting students
Mobility programs are an essential vehicle for fomenting global competencies and for internationalizing the curricula of students preparing to serve patients as clinicians or as healthcare interpreters (Wu et al. 2020). This presentation examines a study abroad program designed for Spanish-speaking students of medical humanities and healthcare interpreting at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), a public Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) where 59 percent of students identify as Latine (UTSA 2022b) and 45 percent are first-generation college students (UTSA 2022a). At UTSA, less than ½ of 1 percent of undergraduates participate in study abroad programs (Nolan-Ferrell, Catherine, personal communication, July 2, 2023); however, all participants in the study abroad experience examined here (n=11) identify as Latine. Because study abroad for minoritized students is often seen as frivolous or irrelevant, or as the purview of white students (Kentengian and Peace 2019: 87), the positionality of our students was an essential consideration throughout the design and execution of the experience.
In the present case study, personal and social dimensions of instruction, in line with Martínez-Gómez 2020, were leveraged to foment dialog about identity, race, discrimination, health equity, and language access. Furthermore, Latine students’ bilingualism in Spanish and English was leveraged, with the primary objective of facilitating unique access to transnational systems. Internationalization of the curriculum was implemented via a comparative approach to (a) public health and preventive medicine, (b) hospital administration, (c) dietary diversity and health, (d) medicine and the arts, and (e) healthcare interpreting and language access. Encouraging Latine students to more effectively position themselves in communities of (medical) practice as Spanish speakers contributed directly to facilitating dialog about language access as an issue of social justice.
With these objectives in mind, students were required to do extensive guided journaling and craft ontological narratives via written reflections and oral presentations. Through exposure to facilities, resources, and expertise at a multi-campus Spanish university, students acquired substantive knowledge in the five aforementioned domains while engaging in conversations around health inequities, access to care, discrimination (personal, cultural, systemic), and location of the self as Spanish speakers. Their reflections on these elements were examined through thematic coding, revealing high levels of self-awareness and self-assurance in the face of discrimination, confidence in their Spanish, and revelations about language access as an issue of social justice. The first iteration of this study abroad experience for Spanish-speaking Latine students promises to shed light on as-yet uninterrogated dimensions of global medical education for primarily heritage speakers of Spanish in Spain.
References
Kentengian, I. M. and Peace, M. M. (2019). Mi Idioma’: Heritage speakers’ language varieties and identity positioning during study abroad. Contact, community, and connections: Current approaches to Spanish in multilingual populations: 83-108.
Martínez-Gómez, A. (2020). Language brokering experience among interpreting students: pedagogical implications for the development of interpreting competence. The Interpreter and Translator Trainer, 14(3), 303–321. https://doi.org/10.1080/1750399X.2020.1736436
University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) (2022a). First-generation & transfer student programs. https://www.utsa.edu/firstgen/
University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) (2022b). Institutional research and analysis: Student demographics. https://www.utsa.edu/ir/content/dashboards/student-demographics.html
Wu, A., Leask, B., Choi, E., Unangst, L., & de Wit, H. (2020). Internationalization of medical education—a scoping review of the current status in the United States. Medical Science Educator, 30(4), 1693–1705. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40670-020-01034-
Cattle in Our Local Area
No full textI will be uncovering information regarding the great western cattle trail/Matamoras feeder trails located south of Atascosa country and the area of Bandera, Texas. I will discuss the influence of the cattle business in south to central Texas from the 1870s to the 1890s during height of the cattle drive business in the late 19th century. This will disclose information regarding the development of family Ranches along with the development of South to Central Texas towns in mind. Overall, my goal is to bring the influence of the South Texas cattle business to the limelight and develop a narrative around the cattle business that helped the growth of Texas into a ranching state
From Jackie Robinson to Today
No full textThe presence of African Americans in the sport of baseball has been declining in the United States since the 1980s. Several factors have contributed to this decline including increased popularity in other sports, the increase in international players, societal changes within the United States, and overall lack of representation in leadership positions in Major League Baseball. From 1947 to 1986 Major League Baseball saw the highest percentages of African American participation in baseball with the decline starting in 1987. Based on literature review, player statistics, and societal trends we can see the impact this had on the decline of African Americans in Major League Baseball. This paper explores the shifting pattern of African American participation in baseball and uses it to explore the broader shifts in American social and cultural landscapes
Effect of Probiotics and Lime Water on Body Weight and Body Composition
No full textPURPOSE: To determine if probiotics or lime water is more effective in weight loss or changes in body composition. METHODS: Eleven participants (28.2±12.0 years, 85.5±41.9 lbs, 65.2±3.5 in) were assigned into two groups: Lime Water (LW) and the Probiotics (PB). Percent body fat (%BF) and body mass was measured using the Bodpod. Participants were instructed maintain dietary or exercise habits during this time. The LW group consumed 60 ounces of water with eight limes each day and the PB group consumed one pill per day (Renew Life Extra Care). After six weeks, %BF and body mass was again measured.
RESULT: There was no significant difference in body weights by group or time (pre and post), (F(1, 9)=.04, p= .846), nor in %BF of PB from pre to post (p=.174) and of LW from pre to post (p=.114).
CONCLUSION: It can be inferred that the probiotics do not affect %BF
Reproductive Natural History of the American Grass Mantid, Thesprotia graminis
No full textThe American grass mantis, Thesprotia graminis, is an understudied mantis native to Texas, including the campus of Texas A&M-SA. Mantids are influential members of the ecosystem as a major predator of small insects. Therefore, measuring maternal investment, timing of oviposition, and fecundity provides important insight into their reproductive natural history. We measured the mass of 1st, 6th, and 7th instar mantids of both sexes and the masses of oothecas (egg cases) pre- and post-hatch. Interestingly, we found that this species lays multiple, progressively smaller oothecas throughout the reproductive season. Using the maternal masses, ootheca masses, and offspring masses, we were able to estimate variation in reproductive investment among females and the average number of offspring produced. Additionally, we documented the size of these species across multiple stages of development. These data represent the majority of the documented knowledge of the reproductive natural history of this small predator
Unveiling Hidden Factors: Spatial-Temporal Roadway Accident Visualization and Analysis in San Antonio
No full textRoadway traffic accidents annually pose a threat, with 1.35 million lives lost in 2018 alone, creating financial burdens. The economic impact on countries reached 3% of GDP. Over the last two decades, San Antonio has seen an increase in accidents from 2001 to 2021. This research project, in multiple phases, aims to uncover drivers behind this surge for better accident reduction strategies. Employing a data-driven approach, we gathered accident records spanning 20-years, offering various information. Currently, we\u27re developing a spatial-temporal roadway crash visualization system, providing an interactive portal. This tool will unveil accident patterns and correlate them with community-specific challenges in San Antonio. Future steps involve using AI techniques, like unsupervised machine learning, to identify patterns linking accidents and societal drivers, such as community underrepresentation. This research seeks valuable insights for informed urban safety strategies. Transparent data visualization aims to foster public awareness, supporting interventions for enhanced safety and well-being
Cicatrix Poetics, Trauma and Healing in the Literary Borderlands: Beyond Survival
No full textThis book explores how Chicana literature often represents gender violence while simultaneously presenting strategies of survival in response. Adrianna M. Santos aims to contribute to a broader conversation concerning the intersections between Chicana literature and decolonial trauma theory, one which questions the colonial matrix of power and the universality of Western knowledge. Santos argues that Chicana survival narratives arise out of colonial wounds and form scars that both mark and protect the violated body. Cicatrix Poetics, Trauma and Healing in the Literary Borderlands proposes a “cicatrix poetics” that makes bold gestures toward healing and narrative/storytelling as survival. The book contends that the cicatrix fashioned through artistic expression is a necessary component for Chicana communities—not just to survive, but to thrive. The books presents several case studies that examine transformative narrativity and by theorizing the texts as survival narratives, social protest works that bring attention to violence and erasure, the chapters explore how literature can be an effective catalyst for both social change and personal transformation, an orientation towards freedom, liberation through love.https://digitalcommons.tamusa.edu/engl_books/1008/thumbnail.jp
Health Benefits and Adverse Effects of Kratom: A Social Media Text-Mining Approach
Get PDFBackground: Kratom is a substance that alters one’s mental state and is used for pain relief, mood enhancement, and opioid withdrawal, despite potential health risks. In this study, we aim to analyze the social media discourse about kratom to provide more insights about kratom’s benefits and adverse effects. Also, we aim to demonstrate how algorithmic machine learning approaches, qualitative methods, and data visualization techniques can complement each other to discern diverse reactions to kratom’s effects, thereby complementing traditional quantitative and qualitative methods. Methods: Social media data were analyzed using the latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) algorithm, PyLDAVis, and t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE) technique to identify kratom’s benefits and adverse effects. Results: The analysis showed that kratom aids in addiction recovery and managing opiate withdrawal, alleviates anxiety, depression, and chronic pain, enhances mood, energy, and overall mental well-being, and improves quality of life. Conversely, it may induce nausea, upset stomach, and constipation, elevate heart risks, affect respiratory function, and threaten liver health. Additional reported side effects include brain damage, weight loss, seizures, dry mouth, itchiness, and impacts on sexual function. Conclusion: This combined approach underscores its effectiveness in providing a comprehensive understanding of diverse reactions to kratom, complementing traditional research methodologies used to study kratom