37200 research outputs found
Sort by
Response Latencies During Confrontation Picture Naming in Aphasia: Are Proxy Measurements Sufficient?
No full textPurpose: Anomia, or word-finding difficulty, is a prevalent and persistent feature of aphasia, a neurogenic language disorder affecting millions of people in the United States. Anomia assessments are essential for measuring performance and monitoring outcomes in clinical settings. This study aims to evaluate the reliability of response time (RT) annotation based on spectrograms and assess the predictive utility of proxy RTs collected during computerized naming tests. Method: Archival data from 10 people with aphasia were used. Trained research assistants phonemically transcribed participants\u27 responses, and RTs were generated from the onset of picture stimulus to the initial phoneme of the first complete attempt. RTs were measured in two ways: hand-generated RTs (from spectrograms) and proxy RTs (automatically extracted online). Interrater agreement was evaluated based on interclass correlation coefficients and generalizability theory tools including variance partitioning and the φ-coefficient. The predictive utility of proxy RTs was evaluated within a linear mixed-effects framework. Results: RT annotation reliability showed near-perfect agreement across research assistants (φ-coefficient = .93), and the variance accounted for by raters was negligible. Furthermore, proxy RTs significantly and strongly predicted hand-annotated RTs (R2 = ~0.82), suggesting their utility as an alternative measure. Conclusions: The study confirms the reliability of RT annotation and demonstrates the predictive utility of proxy RTs in estimating RTs during computerized naming tests. Incorporating proxy RTs can enhance clinical assessments, providing additional information for cognitive measurement. Further research with larger samples and exploring the impact of using proxy RTs in different psychometric models could optimize clinical protocols and improve communication interventions for individuals with aphasia
Genome Editing Using CRISPR-Cas9 in Annual Killifish Species
Get PDFCRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has been used successfully to knock out genes in model organisms such as zebrafish, turquoise killifish, and cichlid fish. CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has not been verified in the annual killifish, Austrofundulus limnaeus. We hypothesize that targeted editing of the tyrosinase gene in embryos of A. limnaeus will lead to fish without the ability to produce black pigment. Embryos at the 1-cell stage were injected with a Cas9 cocktail containing a mix of guide RNA molecules that target the genomic sequence of the tyrosinase gene and either an mRNA coding for the Cas9 protein or Cas9 protein. Guide RNAs were designed using ChopChop, and two guides were selected for injection based on a high predicted percent efficiency for binding with a low probability for off-target effects. When using Cas-9 protein, many injected embryos developed without expressing black pigment. Injections with Cas9 mRNA failed to exhibit an edited phenotype. We found for the first time in this species that CRISPR-Cas9 can be successfully used to knockout the tyrosinase gene. In the future, we plan to establish a breeding line of non-pigmented killifish to aid in embryological studies of this species
It\u27s Disco, Baby: Queer Possibilities and Conservative Outrage
Get PDFFrom 1974 to 1979, disco music was a cultural phenomenon, gracing radio airways and dance clubs across the United States. Just as disco music reached peak popularity, growing disapproval from rock fans and other Americans who saw the genre and scene as overly lavish, too effeminate, and too racially inclusive, forced disco out of American mainstream favor. This paper proposes a viewpoint that contextualizes disco culture as integral to the lives of queer people in New York City, analyzes the prejudices that accompanied the anti-disco movement, and situates the mainstream death of disco as an early cultural consequence of America\u27s turn towards conservatism. Bromham used close-readings and archival analysis coupled with an intersectional queer theory approach to understand the many complexities of disco\u27s history and significance to the queer community. This research reveals that discotheques operated as liberatory spaces for queer communities - before, during and after the AIDS epidemic. Contrary to the findings detailed in other pieces of disco scholarship, the anti-disco movement hinged its hatred on more than just homophobic rhetoric - racism and femmephobia also informed the sentiments of those who hated disco
Exploring Self-Service Technology Adoption: Case of Airline Check in
No full textThe main purpose of this research is to understand the antecedent conditions affecting customers\u27 attitude formation, leading to behavioral intention to co-produce through online check-in. In doing so, this study argues that co-production, even in its simplest form, constitutes a three-pronged interaction. It is argued that trying to understand the process solely from the customer\u27s perspective is insufficient without considering the qualities of the co-production partner and the factors related to the co-produced offering. Therefore, this study examines factors linked to the customer (travelers who have completed online check-in), the company (the airline), and the co-produced offering (the online check-in experience). Furthermore, customers\u27 tangible resources have been included in the study to understand the effect of operand resources on the process. The results of 1095 questionnaires suggest that antecedents related to the co-produced offering and co-production partner are even stronger determinants than those of customers. Moreover, when forming attitudes towards co-production in an airline setting through self-check-in, operand resources of the customer, which have been overlooked in empirical studies, emerge as the predominant factor
Provisioning the 21st Century City: Community and School Gardens as Food Centers
Get PDFThis essay explores the potential impact of urban agriculture and community gardens as sources of education and sustainable and environmentally-sound food production. Using an analysis of case studies and academic research, I argue for the viability of community gardens and urban agriculture as educational hubs and future food production sources. I examine previous research which shows that small scale effort can make lasting impacts in communities. I argue that the research is promising as it highlights that the efforts of people in their everyday lives, can and do contribute to positive change. This essay contributes to the ongoing discussion of alternatives to expensive and climate disrupting current farming practices, pointing to the power of community gardens as a way to empower marginalized communities and create food security. I conclude by suggesting that in provisioning for the twenty-first century, policymakers and urban planners would be wise to look to the grassroots efforts and work to support and expand community gardens as a feasible food production strategy
The Use of Extreme Risk Protection Orders Intended to Prevent Mass Violence in Oregon: A Descriptive Study
Get PDFPurpose: Firearm violence is a critical public health issue in the United States. Extreme Risk Protection Order (ERPO) laws are an intervention method that have been enacted in many states to prevent firearm violence including mass violence threats. This study examined the characteristics of ERPO petitions filed in Oregon for a 6-year period that involved mass violence threats.
Method: ERPO petitions included in court records obtained through the Oregon Judicial Case Information Network, from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2023 were abstracted; a 20% random sample of records was double-coded to ensure interrater reliability. An epidemiologic analysis of cases involving threats of mass violence was conducted by comparing the characteristics and outcomes of those cases to cases involving other types of firearm violence threats.
Results: Data analyzed from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2022 showed there were 649 ERPO petitions filed and 506 (78%) were initially granted. There were 72 petitions that cited risk of mass violence and 67 (93%) were initially granted. There were 24 petitions that cited a risk to schools or college campuses, and all 24 (100%) were initially granted. Ongoing analyses will examine the characteristics of petitions citing threats of mass violence compared to petitions that cited other types of threats.
Conclusion: Oregon’s ERPO law is being used to address firearm injury risk, including mass violence risk and risk to schools and college campuses. This effort will inform efforts to improve implementation of the ERPO law in Oregon for threats of mass violence
Employer voices: Insights on Bolstering Career Development for Graduate Students
Get PDFTitle: Employer voices: Insights on Bolstering Career Development for Graduate Students
Alexandria J. Ashraf, MPH; Josh Hodsden, MBA, CPH; Justin Howe, BA; Danielle Ross, BA, CPH; Dalton Wesemann, BA; Lisa K. Marriott, PhD
Background: The development of the public health workforce has become increasingly vital as our world faces current and future challenges. The workforce has gained considerable insight into job skills that enhance responses to emergent needs. Building the foundation for a larger scale study on public health workforce needs, this project established processes for engaging with professionals who have hired recent public health graduates.
Methods: Open-ended questions assessed the skills employers prioritize among new public health graduates. Organizations that had at least five or more employees were recruited for semi-structured interviews, limited to organizational representatives who had direct experience hiring public health graduates. Interviews were less than 30 minutes in length with interview transcriptions qualitatively coded in Taguette using thematic analysis to identify common themes regarding knowledge and skills that employers consider to be pertinent when hiring.
Results: Ten interviews with organizational representatives described skillsets gained from public health graduate education programs as well as from prior work experience. Themes highlighted the importance of professional communication and an understanding of health equity. Employers shared suggestions to enhance preparation of public health students to meet future workforce needs.
Conclusion: This project builds the foundation for a broader needs assessment of the public health workforce, while highlighting opportunities where this work can inform career development services in the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health (SPH). This project establishes a foundation for future SPH students. This work can be continued, leading to more effective career preparation for public health graduate students
Evidence of Seattle Fault Earthquakes from Patterns in Deep-Seated Landslides
Get PDFEarthquake‐induced landslides can record information about the seismic shaking that generated them. In this study, we present new mapping, Light Detection and Ranging‐derived roughness dating, and analysis of over 1000 deep‐seated landslides from the Puget Lowlands of Washington, U.S.A., to probe the landscape for past Seattle fault earthquake information. With this new landslide inventory, we observe spatial and temporal evidence of landsliding related to the last major earthquake on the Seattle fault ∼1100 yr before present. We find spatial clusters of landslides that correlate with ground motions from recent 3D kinematic models of Seattle fault earthquakes. We also find temporal patterns in the landslide inventory that suggest earthquake‐driven increases in landsliding. We compare the spatial and temporal landslide data with scenario‐based ground motion models and find stronger evidence of the last major Seattle fault earthquake from this combined analysis than from spatial or temporal patterns alone. We also compare the landslide inventory with ground motions from different Seattle fault earthquake scenarios to determine the ground motion distributions that are most consistent with the landslide record. We find that earthquake scenarios that best match the clustering of ∼1100‐year‐old landslides produce the strongest shaking within a band that stretches from west to east across central Seattle as well as along the bluffs bordering the broader Puget Sound. Finally, we identify other landslide clusters (at 4.6–4.2 ka, 4.0–3.8 ka, 2.8–2.6 ka, and 2.2–2.0 ka) in the inventory which let us infer potential ground motions that may correspond to older Seattle fault earthquakes. Our method, which combines hindcasting of the surface response to the last major Seattle fault earthquake, using a roughness‐aged landslide inventory with forecasts of modeled ground shaking from 3D seismic scenarios, showcases a powerful new approach to gleaning paleoseismic information from landscapes
Different Lateral Packing Stress in Acyl Chains Alters Kcsa Orientation and Structure in Lipid Membranes.
No full textThe molecular structures of the various intrinsic lipids in membranes regulate lipid-protein interactions. These different lipid structures with unique volumes produce different lipid molecular packing stresses/lateral stresses in lipid membranes. Most studies examining lipid packing effects have used phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), which are the main phospholipids of eukaryotic cell membranes. In contrast, Gram-negative or Gram-positive bacterial membranes are composed primarily of phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and PE, and the physical and thermodynamic properties of each acyl chain in PG at the molecular level remain unresolved. In this study, we used 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-(1\u27-rac-glycerol) (POPG, 16:0-18:1 PG) and 1-palmitoyl-2-arachidonoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-(1\u27-rac-glycerol) (PAPG, 16:0-20:4 PG) to prepare lipid bilayers (liposome) with the rod-type fluorescence probe DPH. We measured the lipid packing conditions by determining the rotational freedom of DPH in POPG or PAPG bilayers. Furthermore, we investigated the effect of different monoacyl chains on a K channel (KcsA) structure when embedded in POPG or PAPG membranes. The results revealed that differences in the number of double bonds and carbon chain length in the monoacyl chain at sn-2 affected the physicochemical properties of the membrane and the structure and orientation of KcsA
Marshlands and Monasteries: The Impact of Weapon Deposition on Medieval British Christianity
Get PDFThis paper, using proven archeological evidence, time-specific literature, and references on monastic life, local tradition, and social concepts of mythology, draws a clear connection between the prevalent European Iron Age practice of ritual votive and weapon deposition into bodies of water and the state of Christianity in middle ages Great Britain. The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire, particularly the Witham Valley, is featured heavily for its high concentration of deposition and monastic sites in a verifiably close distance of each other. The paper explores the possibility that the existence of these pre-Christian ritual sites remained relevant throughout the Roman period through the practice of syncretization, and eventually became intrinsically associated with the land, until the construction of monasteries and the determination of land use during the middle ages was affected by the spiritual connotations the ritual-associated land maintained. The second half of the paper focuses on selected writings of the Christian era that featured weapon deposition as well as prominent plot elements that suggested a non-Christian influence as evidence that these practices remained relevant enough in the consciousness to be worthy of inclusion in works such as the Arthurian Cycles and several Old English poems. Through an analysis of these literary works, the archeological and geographical make-up of the monastic landscape, and the cultural contexts of both medieval and pre-Roman Britain, this paper argues that ritual deposition was a spiritually and socially significant aspect of Britain\u27s history that had an observable impact on the religion, ritual, literature, and local lore of the British middle ages.
Keywords: Weapon deposition, Votives, River Witham, Witham Valley, Lincolnshire, Arthurian Legends, Swords, Ecclesiastical History, Monastic Architecture, Archaeology, British Archaeology, British Christianity, Rivers, Fiskerton Causeway, Causeways, Old English Poetry
Part of the panel: Preserving the Past through Contemporary BeliefsModerator: Professor John Ot