19 research outputs found
Diagnostic and clinical value of routine polymerase chain reaction analysis of intraocular fluid specimens in the diagnosis of suspected infectious posterior uveitis
No full textValues Affecting Collaboration Among Psychologists and Evangelical Clergy
No full textPrevious research has shown that shared values are important to both clergy and psychologists when considering the possibility of collaborating with one another, but it is not clear which values must be shared. Eighty-one psychologists and 56 evangelical Protestant clergy were surveyed using a values questionnaire developed by Jensen and Bergin (1988) with some additional items specifically pertaining to evangelical beliefs, revealing differences within value themes between clergy and psychologists. The epistemological foundations of the two professions create obstacles to collaboration, suggesting a need for psychologists to develop trusting relationships with clergy, engage in specialized training, and reevaluate the post-modern distinction between facts in the public domain and privately held values
A literature review and critical analysis of school violence and teachers' perception of the zero tolerance policy
No full textPlan BAs a precursor to a proposed study examining teacher perceptions of the zero tolerance policy, this paper will review and critically analyze research and literature pertaining to school violence and zero tolerance policies. The goal of the proposed research is to identify the benefits, drawbacks, and perceived effectiveness of the zero tolerance policy as a preventative tool against school violence. The research hypothesis for the proposed study is that the majority of public school teachers will believe the zero tolerance policy is ineffective, has a negative impact on students, and does not prevent school violence; that is it does not fulfill its intended purpose
Musical Experience Relates to Insula-Based Functional Connectivity in Older Adults
No full textEngaging in musical activities throughout the lifespan may protect against age-related cognitive decline and modify structural and functional connectivity in the brain. Prior research suggests that musical experience modulates brain regions that integrate different modalities of sensory information, such as the insula. Most of this research has been performed in individuals classified as professional musicians; however, general musical experiences across the lifespan may also confer beneficial effects on brain health in older adults. The current study investigated whether general musical experience, characterized using the Goldsmith Music Sophistication Index (Gold-MSI), was associated with functional connectivity in older adults (age = 65.7 ± 4.4, n = 69). We tested whether Gold-MSI was associated with individual differences in the functional connectivity of three a priori hypothesis-defined seed regions in the insula (i.e., dorsal anterior, ventral anterior, and posterior insula). We found that older adults with more musical experience showed greater functional connectivity between the dorsal anterior insula and the precentral and postcentral gyrus, and between the ventral anterior insula and diverse brain regions, including the insula and prefrontal cortex, and decreased functional connectivity between the ventral anterior insula and thalamus (voxel p < 0.01, cluster FWE p < 0.05). Follow-up correlation analyses showed that the singing ability subscale score was key in driving the association between functional connectivity differences and musical experience. Overall, our findings suggest that musical experience, even among non-professional musicians, is related to functional brain reorganization in older adults
Quantitative analysis of chloroplast protein targeting
No full textThis thesis presents the first use of the Partition of Unity Method in quantifying
the spatio-temporal dynamics of a fluorescent protein targeted to
the chloroplast twin-arginine translocation pathway.
The fluorescence loss in photobleaching technique is applied in a modified
fashion to the measurement of substrate mobilities in the chloroplast
stroma. Our in vivo results address the two suggested protein targeting
mechanisms of membrane-binding before lateral movement to the translocon
and direct binding to the translocon.
A high performance computing C/C++ implementation of the Partition
of Unity Method is used to perform simulations of fluoresence loss
in photobleaching and allow a compelling comparison to photobleaching
data series. The implementation is both mesh-free and particle-less
Bank Chartering and Political Corruption in Antebellum New York: Free Banking as Reform
No full textOne traditional and oft-repeated explanation of the political impetus behind free banking connects the rise of Jacksonian populism and a rejection of the privileges associated with corporate chartering. A second views free banking as an ill-informed inflationist, pro business response to the financial panic of 1837. This chapter argues that both explanations are lacking. Free banking was the progeny of the corruption associated with bank chartering and reflected social, political and economic backlashes against corruption dating to the late-1810s. Three strands of political thought -- Antimasonic egalitarianism, Jacksonian pragmatism, and pro-business American Whiggism -- converged in the 1830s and led to economic reform. Equality of treatment was the political watchword of the 1830s and free banking was but one manifestation of this broader impulse.
The Inverted City: London and the Constitution of Homosexuality, 1885-1914
No full textPhDThis thesis examines the ways in which male homosexuality came to be closely
associated with urban life between 1885 and 1914. It focuses on London and argues
that particular aspects of the city's history and reputation were integral to the social,
sexual and political aspects of emerging homosexual identities.
The thesis draws on literature, sexology, the largely overlooked diaries and
scrapbooks of George Ives (an early campaigner for homosexual law reform), and
previously unexamined newspaper reports. The first chapter outlines changes to
London during the period, and examines the intensification of concerns about poverty,
degeneracy, decadence and sexual profligacy. The chapters that follow show how
these changes and concerns informed understanding and expressions of
homosexuality. Chapter two looks at the history of homosexuality in London, and
indicates the significance of urban change in shaping patterns of behaviour. Chapter
three examines legislation, the ways in which men were policed and surveyed in
London, and newspaper accounts of court cases. Chapter four shows how sexology
strengthened and elaborated this connection between homosexuality and the city.
The last two chapters consider material written by, and explicitly or implicitly
concerning, men involved in homosexual activity. Chapter five discusses how the city
provided an ideal locale for a decadent understanding of desire, and the final chapter
focuses on writing that attempted to counter this decadence with an appeal to
Hellenism and pastoralism. It shows how the city was envisaged as a locus for the
formation of political and sexual identities that might initiate a process of social
change
Caudate Nucleus Volume Mediates the Link between Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Cognitive Flexibility in Older Adults
No full textThe basal ganglia play a central role in regulating the response selection abilities that are critical for mental flexibility. In neocortical areas, higher cardiorespiratory fitness levels are associated with increased gray matter volume, and these volumetric differences mediate enhanced cognitive performance in a variety of tasks. Here we examine whether cardiorespiratory fitness correlates with the volume of the subcortical nuclei that make up the basal ganglia and whether this relationship predicts cognitive flexibility in older adults. Structural MRI was used to determine the volume of the basal ganglia nuclei in a group of older, neurologically healthy individuals (mean age 66 years, N=179). Measures of cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2max), cognitive flexibility (task switching), and attentional control (flanker task) were also collected. Higher fitness levels were correlated with higher accuracy rates in the Task Switching paradigm. In addition, the volume of the caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus positively correlated with Task Switching accuracy. Nested regression modeling revealed that caudate nucleus volume was a significant mediator of the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness, and task switching performance. These findings indicate that higher cardiorespiratory fitness predicts better cognitive flexibility in older adults through greater grey matter volume in the dorsal striatum
Caudate Nucleus Volume Mediates the Link between Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Cognitive Flexibility in Older Adults.
No full textThe basal ganglia play a central role in regulating the response selection abilities that are critical for mental flexibility. In neocortical areas, higher cardiorespiratory fitness levels are associated with increased gray matter volume, and these volumetric differences mediate enhanced cognitive performance in a variety of tasks. Here we examine whether cardiorespiratory fitness correlates with the volume of the subcortical nuclei that make up the basal ganglia and whether this relationship predicts cognitive flexibility in older adults. Structural MRI was used to determine the volume of the basal ganglia nuclei in a group of older, neurologically healthy individuals (mean age 66 years, N = 179). Measures of cardiorespiratory fitness (VO(2max)), cognitive flexibility (task switching), and attentional control (flanker task) were also collected. Higher fitness levels were correlated with higher accuracy rates in the Task Switching paradigm. In addition, the volume of the caudate nucleus, putamen, and globus pallidus positively correlated with Task Switching accuracy. Nested regression modeling revealed that caudate nucleus volume was a significant mediator of the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness, and task switching performance. These findings indicate that higher cardiorespiratory fitness predicts better cognitive flexibility in older adults through greater grey matter volume in the dorsal striatum.</p
