cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
On the Margins of Humanity: Humanitarianism, Displacement, and the Politics of Recognition among Displaced Yezidis
Creators: name: Kooraei Oliaei, Houman
Publisher: name: Brandeis University
Year: 2024
Subjects: Displacement
Humanitarianism
Statelessness
Temporality
Citizenship
Iraq

description: The attacks carried out in the Shingal Region of northern Iraq by the so-called Islamic State uprooted almost the entire Yezidi community from their homeland in 2014. Most Yazidis sought refuge in Iraqi Kurdistan, an autonomous region in northern Iraq. In my dissertation, I trace the lived experiences and quotidian deliberations of internally displaced Yezidis living in an interstitial space between transnational humanitarian regimes of care and Iraqi sectarian politics. In focusing on the category of “internally displaced minority,” I ask: what does it mean to be a citizen while living on the brink of statelessness? Although internally displaced persons (IDPs), such as Yezidis, maintain their citizenship and reside within national borders, displacement places them in a liminal spatiotemporal state in which they are neither refugees nor fully citizens. As internally displaced persons, Yezidis have been grappling with the challenges of restoring their rights within Iraq, while simultaneously engaging with normative humanitarian ideas about refugeeness, displacement, and human rights. Using the experiences of internally displaced Yezidis, the research demonstrates that not only does internal displacement generate a different kind of dynamic between humanitarian agencies, state organizations, and displaced populations from other contexts; but it also entails “coexisting temporalities” in which IDPs must continuously navigate between multiple positionings. I demonstrate how shifting between being “Yezidis,” “Yezidi Kurds,” “genocide survivors,” “religious minorities,” or “victims of sexual violence,” enacts alternative possibilities and changing prospects within the everchanging fields of power at the national, and international levels. Finally, I argue that this spatial and temporal liminality of IDPness has created a new sense of belonging among displaced Yezidis, which fluctuates between striving to restore Iraqi citizenship while simultaneously seeking recognition as cosmopolitan citizens.
Methylmercury sources in the Canadian High Arctic
Creators: name: Loseto, Lisa Lucia
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2003
Subjects: subject: Biology, Ecology.
subject: Environmental Sciences.

description: Mercury is increasing to toxic levels in Arctic biota living at the top of food webs. The rapid bioaccumulation and biomagnification of methylmercury (MeHg) in food chains, and the subsistence lifestyle of northern populations, has resulted in high levels of Hg in their blood. No prior measurements of MeHg sources to Arctic ecosystems have been made. In southern latitudes wetlands are considered important sources of MeHg with sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) thought to be responsible. Thus, the production of MeHg in Arctic wetlands was evaluated as well as SRB presence. Arctic wetlands were further evaluated as sources of MeHg in Arctic ecosystems, as well since snowmelt water provides 60 to 80% of water to Arctic terrestrial systems it was also evaluated as a source of MeHg. This was the first study to evaluate sources of MeHg entering Arctic ecosystems, and showed that although wetlands produced MeHg, the export to downstream lakes was dependant on site characteristics such as DOC levels, furthermore snowmelt water was the most significant source of MeHg to Arctic ecosystems measured here. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Building Brandeis: A Jewish-American Movement
Creators: name: Marks, Eitan Ariel
Publisher: name: Brandeis University
Year: 2024
Subjects: Brandeis University
American-jewish history
zionism
Abram L. Sachar
Jehuda Reinharz
Evelyn E. Handler
Marver Hillel Bernstein
Israel Goldstein
American History
Higher Education, Private
Jewish History
Jewish Studies

description: This thesis will start by giving the pre-history of Brandeis and the origins of the idea of a Jewish-sponsored university. Then it will examine the founding period, the first twenty years, the original key supporters, how the Jewish community operated in partnership with Brandeis, President Sachar, and the early development of the campus and University. Then it will explore the intermediate years, the tumultuous late 60s and early 70s, President Bernstein, and his challenges, and how the relationship with the Jewish community was handled under his tenure. The next section covers President Evelyn Handler, the controversies during her tenure, her expansion of certain programs and vision for Brandeis, and her strained relationship with the American Jewish community. The final section will cover the Presidency of Jehuda Reinharz, his vision for Brandeis, his immense fundraising and building successes, and eventually the financial crisis which brought an end to his term. Understanding all of this will allow  us to understand how Brandeis has grown throughout the years, how Brandeis has maintained its “special relationship” with American Jewry, and how Brandeis is more than just a university, it is a distinct movement in American Jewish history. 
Exotic fermionic superfluidity in low-dimensional atomic Fermi gases
Creators: name: Toniolo, Umberto
Publisher: name: Swinburne
Year: 2024

description: Superfluidity and superconductivity are quantum mechanical features of gases of atoms cooled down close to -273.15 Celsius, where they display neither viscosity nor electrical resistence. Forcing a gas to live in a two-dimensional space almost all the superfluidity-related properties are enhanced and easier to test experimentally. In this thesis we conduct a study of a typical 2D phase, called FFLO, and we built a general setting to address the investigation of Fermi gases when brought to low-dimensionality by a new type of confinement. Results presented include signatures and protocols experimentalists might use to probe the systems we described.
Global reconstruction of Hinduism: A case study of Sri Lankan Tamils in Canada.
Creators: name: Sekar, Radhika.
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2001
Subjects: subject: Religion, History of.

description: The main hypothesis of this dissertation is that the emergence, development, and subsequent spread of modern Hinduism, beginning from the late 18 th century India, are products of an ongoing process of globalization. The Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora in Canada is an example of the larger historical process of a globalization of Hinduism. It is therefore argued that any analysis of contemporary socio-religious change must be undertaken within the broader parameters of globalization theory. The discussion begins with an examination of the social and historical contexts that led to the emergence of Hinduism as a "religion" in the modern sense of the term, and surveys its spread and development in the global diaspora. It is proposed that such factors as population size, ethnic composition, and density, along with socio-political and technological developments at universal and particular levels, each have played prominent roles in the reconstruction of Hinduism in minority situations. This assumption is illustrated with a case study of Sri Lankan Tamils in Canada. The globalising processes of Sri Lankan Tamils began at the end of the 17th century when Ceylon came under Portuguese rule. The introduction of modern institutions under subsequent Dutch and British rule escalated the process, bringing about socio-religious changes that led to the current political situation. Consequently, Sri Lankan Tamils began arriving in Canada in the 1980s as refugees. The majority settled in Toronto and Montreal where they soon began reconstructing their religious institutions and temples. Three particular religious institutions, the Ganesha Temple in Toronto, the Thirumurukan Temple in Montreal and the Hindu Temple of Ottawa-Carleton, are examined in order to determine how Tamils are reconstructing Hinduism as a minority religion in Canada under global conditions. Results based on field data show the occurrence of "globalization", that is the simultaneous globalization of local forms of Hinduism and the localization of global Hinduism.
La figure de Berkeley dans la pensée des lumières : immatérialisme et scepticisme au XVIIIe siècle.
Creators: name: Charles, Sébastien.
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2001
Subjects: subject: Philosophy.

description: Notre travail doctoral s'articule autour de deux questions: comment la pensée de Berkeley, qui semble en accord avec celle de la majorité des penseurs des Lumières sur un certain nombre de points bien précis (distinction entre qualités premières et secondes, primat de la sensation, nominalisme affirmé, etc.), a-t-elle été perçue par ceux-ci comme l'antithèse même de leur projet épistémologique? Pourquoi l'immatérialisme berkeleyen a-t-il été confondu durablement avec une position solipsiste, que l'on qualifiait d'égciiste au XVIIIe siècle, l'égoïsme revenant à se penser seul existant? Très vite, nous nous sommes rendu compte que le traitement de ces deux questions pouvait avoir une répercussion majeure sur l'image que nous nous faisons aujourd'hui des Lumières et qu'il impliquait une relecture d'ensemble du XVIIIe siècle par le biais d'une mise en rapport serrée avec le scepticisme, et plus particulièrement avec l'immatérialisme qui, en tant que perçu comme solipsisme, semblait fournir une clef d'interprétation féconde. Ce qui explique le plan d'ensemble suivi, organisé autour d'une histoire du scepticisme, de la Renaissance au début du XVIIIe siècle, suivie d'une histoire de l'immatérialisme, qui s'échelonne de la première réception de Berkeley (en gros de 1710 à 1730) à la fin du siècle des Lumières, l'Académie de Berlin pour la Prusse et l'Idéologie pour la France marquant la fin de notre enquête. Au terme d'une telle étude, nous pensons être parvenu à faire ressortir dans toute son étendue et sous ses différentes formes le scepticisme des Lumières, qui se construit autour d'un refus du pyrrhonisme absolu qui dénie toute existence au monde extérieur et d'une acceptation du scepticisme comme outil méthodologique permettant aux penseurs des Lumières de construire une science des phénomènes sans doute incertaine, mais néanmoins ayant tous les caractères d'une forte probabilité et sujette à amélioration continuelle. Par là, une autre vision du XVIIIe siècle nous paraît avoir été acquise, sans doute moins flamboyante mais également plus objective.
La question de la responsabilité chez les jeunes : causes capitales au Québec de 1874 à 1967.
Creators: name: Pinsonneault, Chrystèle.
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2000
Subjects: subject: History, Canadian.

description: La question qui nous intéresse est celle de la responsabilité pénale. Responsabilité bien particulière puisqu'il s'agit de celle exclusivement d'une jeunesse jugée pour meurtres, puis, subséquemment trouvée coupable et condamnée au châtiment suprême (soit la mort par pendaison) dans l'espace-temps du Québec en ses XIXè et XXè siècles (soit de 1874 à 1967). À dessein de s'enquérir du discours autour de la responsabilité pénale d'adolescents (entre 15 et 20 ans) auteurs d'homicides, notre travail trouve principalement ses sources dans le dépouillement de dossiers de procès. Notre démarche comporte exclusivement une recherche en archives (aux Archives nationales du Canada). Il s'agit, plus précisément, d'une analyse documentaire de contenu du discours sur la responsabilité (arguments, affirmations, énoncés, propos) qui se dégage du matériau à l'étude. Discours tant institué (avocats, juges, jurés, psycho-médical, etc.) que celui donnant à entendre les paroles de gens «ordinaires» (organisations, prêtres, journalistes, etc.). Il est important de préciser que concernant LE discours analysé, quelque soit l'acteur social qui s'exprime, il est toujours question du " sens commun " de la notion de responsabilité . En somme, on pouvait dire que le sens commun entend la responsabilité des jeunes dans un SENS LARGE. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
Cinema Through the Holy See
Creators: name: Burnett, Brett
Publisher: name: Brandeis University
Year: 2010
Subjects: Film
Roman Catholic
Italy

description: This thesis look at the Roman Catholic Church’s role in the production and censorship of the Italian film industry in the 1950s. This is done in two sections. The first covers the background of the Vatican’s role and the opinion that the Church had as to what should be in a film and what should be excluded. Looking at Papal Encyclicals and speeches the pontiffs made to those in the film industry, a view of the general position that the Roman Catholic Church has towards the burgeoning film industry becomes clear. Secondly, the paper looks to analyze a major theme in the Roman Catholic Church’s critique of popular American and Italian films. Looking to the Centro Cattolico Cinematografico’s Segnalazioni cinematografiche, a pattern of negative reviews become evident for films that challenge the traditional gender roles of the Italian state. Along this same line of thought, films that support the Roman Catholic views on sexuality, marriage and traditional gender roles are lauded by the Segnalazioni cinematografiche.
N4-Hydroxycytidine/molnupiravir inhibits RNA virus-induced encephalitis by producing less fit mutated viruses
Creators: name: Swanstrom R.
name: Peterson K.E
name: Schinazi R.F
name: Leung J.M
name: Evans A
name: Woods T.A
name: Amblard F
name: Zhou S
name: Hill C.S
name: Baric R.S
name: Schneider C.A
name: Ojha D
Publisher: name: Public Library of Science
Year: 2024

description: A diverse group of RNA viruses have the ability to gain access to the central nervous system (CNS) and cause severe neurological disease. Current treatment for people with this type of infection is generally limited to supportive care. To address the need for reliable antivirals, we utilized a strategy of lethal mutagenesis to limit virus replication. We evaluated ribavirin (RBV), favipiravir (FAV) and N4-hydroxycytidine (NHC) against La Crosse virus (LACV), which is one of the most common causes of pediatric arboviral encephalitis cases in North America and serves as a model for viral CNS invasion during acute infection. NHC was approximately 3 to 170 times more potent than RBV or FAV in neuronal cells. Oral administration of molnupiravir (MOV), the prodrug of NHC, decreased neurological disease development (assessed as limb paralysis, ataxia and weakness, repeated seizures, or death) by 31% (4 mice survived out of 13) when treatment was started on the day of infection. MOV also reduced disease by 23% when virus was administered intranasally (IN). NHC and MOV produced less fit viruses by incorporating predominantly G to A or C to U mutations. Furthermore, NHC also inhibited virus production of two other orthobunyaviruses, Jamestown Canyon virus and Cache Valley virus. Collectively, these studies indicate that NHC/MOV has therapeutic potential to inhibit viral replication and subsequent neurological disease caused by orthobunyaviruses and potentially as a generalizable strategy for treating acute viral encephalitis.
May you live in interesting – and conflictual – times
Creators: name: Vanzan, Anna
Publisher: name: Altre Modernità
Year: 2020

description: May you live in interesting – and conflictual – times Dalla 58ª Biennale d’Arte di Venezia, 2019 di Anna Vanzan
description: Altre Modernità, N. 23 (2020): Regards francophones sur paysage français
Initialization protocols for TDMA in single-hop wireless network
Creators: name: Micic, Aleksandar
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 2003
Subjects: subject: Computer Science.

description: Although collision free TDMA schemes have been proposed and used for more than two decades, an important ingredient of these schemes, the initialization of stations (that is, assigning ID numbers 1,2,...,N) was not investigated until recently. In this thesis, we propose several new randomized and deterministic initialization methods, and measure the performance of these new and some known methods. The main contributions of this thesis are new randomized hybrid algorithms for the cases of known and unknown number of users. Performance of these algorithms was evaluated by comparing it with improved versions of existing algorithms, and an improvement from e·N to approximately 2.2·N was obtained. We also proposed the first deterministic initialization algorithms, and showed that they have comparable performance to the corresponding randomized algorithms. The initialization algorithms are then incorporated into collision free TDMA schemes, which take into account the dynamic nature of network and dynamic bandwidth requirements.
Edoardo Esposito, Con altra voce. La traduzione letteraria tra le due guerre
Creators: name: Caponi, Paolo
Publisher: name: Altre Modernità
Year: 2020

description: Edoardo Esposito, Con altra voce. La traduzione letteraria tra le due guerre (Roma, Donzelli, 2018, pp. 169 ISBN 978-88-6843-869-2) di Paolo Caponi
description: Altre Modernità, N. 23 (2020): Regards francophones sur paysage français
title: Renal Cell Carcinoma Metastatic to the Liver
title: Early Response Assessment after Intraarterial Therapy Using 3D Quantitative Tumor Enhancement Analysis
titleType: Subtitle
Creators: name: Fleckenstein, Florian Nima
name: Schernthaner, Ruediger Egbert
name: Duran, Rafael
name: Sohn, Jae Ho
name: Sahu, Sonia
name: Marshall, Karen
name: Lin, MingDe
name: Gebauer, Bernhard
name: Chapiro, Julius
name: Salem, Riad
name: Geschwind, Jean-Francois
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: PURPOSE Liver metastases from renal cell carcinoma (RCC) are not uncommon in the course of disease. However, data about tumor response to intraarterial therapy (IAT) are scarce. This study assessed whether changes of enhancing tumor volume using quantitative European Association for the Study of the Liver (qEASL) on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) can evaluate tumor response and predict overall survival (OS) early after therapy. METHODS AND MATERIALS Fourteen patients with liver metastatic RCC treated with IAT (transarterial chemoembolization: n= 9 and yttrium-90: n= 5) were retrospectively included. All patients underwent contrast-enhanced imaging (MRI: n= 10 and CT: n= 4) 3 to 4 weeks pre- and posttreatment. Response to treatment was evaluated on the arterial phase using Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors (RECIST), World Health Organization, modified RECIST, EASL, tumor volume, and qEASL. Paired t test was used to compare measurements pre- and post-IAT. Patients were stratified into responders (≥65% decrease in qEASL) and nonresponders (<65% decrease in qEASL). OS was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier curves with log-rank test and the Cox proportional hazard model. RESULTS Mean qEASL (cm3) decreased from 93.5 to 67.2 cm3 (P= .004) and mean qEASL (%) from 63.1% to 35.6% (P= .001). No significant changes were observed using other response criteria. qEASL was the only significant predictor of OS when used to stratify patients into responders and nonresponders with median OS of 31.9 versus 11.1 months (hazard ratio [HR], 0.43; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.19-0.97; P= .042) for qEASL (cm3) and 29.9 versus 10.2 months (HR, 0.09; 95% CI, 0.01-0.74; P= .025) for qEASL (%). CONCLUSION Three-dimensional (3D) quantitative tumor analysis is a reliable predictor of OS when assessing treatment response after IAT in patients with RCC metastatic to the liver. qEASL outperforms conventional non- 3D methods and can be used as a surrogate marker for OS early after therapy.
Erminio Corti, I manifesti delle avanguardie artistiche latinoamericane (1920-1935)
Creators: name: Secomandi, Alessandro
Publisher: name: Altre Modernità
Year: 2020

description: Erminio Corti, I manifesti delle avanguardie artistiche latinoamericane (1920-1935) (Verona, Ombre Corte, 2018, 266 pp. ISBN 978-88-6948-111-6) di Alessandro Secomandi
description: Altre Modernità, N. 23 (2020): Regards francophones sur paysage français
Efficacy and usability of a novel nebulizer targeting both upper and lower airways
Creators: name: Posa, Daniela
name: Pizzulli, Antonio
name: Wagner, Petra
name: Perna, Serena
name: Hofmaier, Stephanie
name: Matricardi, Paolo Maria
name: Lau, Susanne
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: Asthma
subject: Children
subject: Nebulizer
subject: Oxymetazoline
subject: Rhinitis
subject: Salbutamol
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Background Upper and lower airways diseases share in part their pathogenic mechanisms and frequently occur simultaneously as “United Airway Disease.” Local treatment with nebulizers delivers anti-symptomatic drugs in either the upper or the lower airways, according to the particle size generated by the nebulizer. To our knowledge, no nebulizer combines both application ways. The aim of this study is to test the efficacy and usability of a new nebulizer (OMRON A3 complete), generating aerosols with particles diameters of 2-4.5 μm, 4.5-7.5 μm or >7.5 μm, according to the user’s choice. Methods Seventy-seven patients between 5 and 17 years of age with a diagnosis of rhinitis or asthma were examined. Oxymetazoline or Salbutamol were prescribed according to best clinical practice guidelines. Both drugs were administered through the OMRON A3 Complete nebulizer, with a particle dimension of >7.5 μm to treat nasal obstruction and 2-4.5 μm for bronchial obstruction. The efficacy of treatment was assessed by total nasal inspiratory airflow and FEV-1, Tiffeneau index (FEV1/FVC) and MMEF 25/75 respectively, 10 min before and after treatment. Symptom improvement and usability were measured by patients’ and doctors’ questionnaires. Results Overall, 77 patients seeking care for acute respiratory symptoms were assigned to the upper (n = 39) or lower (n = 38) airways disease group. For symptoms of the upper airways, 92% (95% CI, 77-97%) of the patients reported subjective improvement, while 87% (95% CI, 73-94%) did so for the lower airways. The average total nasal inspiratory airflow improved significantly (p = 0.030) among the patients with upper airways symptoms, from 275 ml/s (95% CI, 207-342 ml/s) to 359 ml/s (95% CI, 300-419 ml/s) after Oxymetazoline administration. All selected lung function parameters (FEV1, Tiffeneau Index and MMEF25-75) significantly improved among the patients with lower airways symptoms after inhalation of Salbutamol (p < 0.001). The nebulizer was assessed as “easy to use” by over 95% of participants in both groups. Conclusions The OMRON A3 efficiently delivers anti-symptomatic drugs in both upper and lower airways in a user-friendly way. This device may be useful to facilitate adherence to a complete treatment of respiratory symptoms in patients with symptoms of the so-called United Airway Disease.
Homework in online CBT for OCD
Creators: name: Avrahami, Annabel
Publisher: name: Swinburne
Year: 2024

description: This paper focused on the role of homework in psychotherapy for OCD, using a clinically diagnosed sample undergoing a 12 weeks online cognitive behavioural therapy program. While the benefits of using homework in therapy are fairly unanimous, the findings of this study provide insights into factors that may influence clients’ motivation to engage with homework tasks. This knowledge would ultimately help improving the process of homework planning, design, and application, and lead to more individually tailored treatments, and enhance the efficacy of psychological interventions.
Loading spectrum for highway bridges and damage criteria for cumulative loading.
Creators: name: Kwok, Chun-Kong.
Publisher: name: Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Year: 1972
Subjects: subject: Engineering, Civil.

description: Bridges are presently designed to withstand the bending moments and shear forces produced by a standard design truck such as AASHO H2O-S16. However, bridges are subjected to a large number of loads of different magnitude randomly ordered with respect to time. This thesis describes a literature summary to obtain a description of the magnitude of loads and number of occurrences (load spectrum) on highway bridges. Secondly, the behaviour of bridges under random fatigue load was investigated. From the data obtained at weigh stations of the gross weight and.axle loads of actual trucks, a general description of the load spectrum was obtained. By applying factors to allow for regional trends and local factors a design spectrum could be obtained for any particular bridge. Literature concerning the damage criteria of bridges is very limited and no criteria has been found which satisfactorily summarizes the cumulative damage to bridge materials by random loads.
The Expenditures for Academic Inpatient Care of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patients Are Almost Double Compared with Average Academic Gastroenterology and Hepatology Cases and Not Fully Recovered by Diagnosis-Related Group (DRG) Proceeds
Creators: name: Baumgart, Daniel C.
name: Claire, Marie Le
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Background Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) challenge economies worldwide. Detailed health economic data of DRG based academic inpatient care for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients in Europe is unavailable. Methods IBD was identified through ICD-10 K50 and K51 code groups. We took an actual costing approach, compared expenditures to G-DRG and non-DRG proceeds and performed detailed cost center and type accounting to identify coverage determinants. Results Of all 3093 hospitalized cases at our department, 164 were CD and 157 UC inpatients in 2012. On average, they were 44.1 (CD 44.9 UC 43.3 all 58) years old, stayed 10.1 (CD 11.8 UC 8.4 vs. all 8) days, carried 5.8 (CD 6.4 UC 5.2 vs. all 6.8) secondary diagnoses, received 7.4 (CD 7.7 UC 7 vs. all 6.2) procedures, had a higher cost weight (CD 2.8 UC 2.4 vs. all 1.6) and required more intense nursing. Their care was more costly (means: total cost IBD 8477€ CD 9051€ UC 7903€ vs. all 5078€). However, expenditures were not fully recovered by DRG proceeds (means: IBD 7413€, CD 8441€, UC 6384€ vs all 4758€). We discovered substantial disease specific mismatches in cost centers and types and identified the medical ward personnel and materials budgets to be most imbalanced. Non-DRG proceeds were almost double (IBD 16.1% vs. all 8.2%), but did not balance deficits at total coverage analysis, that found medications (antimicrobials, biologics and blood products), medical materials (mostly endoscopy items) to contribute most to the deficit. Conclusions DRGs challenge sophisticated IBD care.
Network determinants of relationship influence on HIV prevention decision-making among people in the social networks of women who have experienced incarceration in the US
Creators: name: Jackson, Jamie B.
name: Knittel, Andrea K.
name: Hulshult, Hannah
name: Ferguson, Ella G.
name: Moody, James
name: Varela, Gabriel
name: Adimora, Adaora A.
Publisher: name: Public Library of Science
Year: 2024

description: Background Many cisgender women in the US who have experienced incarceration are at substantial risk for HIV acquisition after they return to the community. Various network interventions have been leveraged for HIV prevention in this population. The objective of this study was to identify network and relationship determinants of influence on HIV prevention decisions, including PrEP. Methods We conducted interviews with a network mapping exercise with participants recruited from the social and sexual networks of women who had experienced incarceration. Participants enumerated important individuals in their lives from the past six months and provided demographic and relationship data as well as whether each relationship influenced their HIV prevention decisions. We abstracted network data from the interview transcripts and described the data set using descriptive statistics and network density graphs. To measure associations between characteristics at each level and whether a relationship was considered influential regarding PrEP decision-making, we use multiple logistic regression with random intercepts for each respondent. Results We interviewed 32 participants, average age 33.5 years (SD = 8.98), majority female (n = 28, 87.5%), white (n = 23, 71.8%), heterosexual/straight (n = 25, 78.1%), and with a personal history of incarceration (n = 29, 90%). They reported 253 relationships (119 family, 116 friend, 18 sexual relationships). Most adult network members had used drugs or alcohol (n = 182, 80.9%), and of those, 30.8% had used them with the participant (n = 53). The mean network size was 7 (SD = 4) and network density was 52.2%. In the full model, significant positive predictors of an influential relationship included participant non-heterosexual identity (OR 27.8), older average age in the network (OR 3.9 per standard deviation), and being a current or prior sexual partner (OR 10.1). Significant negative predictors included relationships with individuals who use or had used drugs (OR 0.28), longer average relationship duration in the network (OR 0.09) and being in a network with at least one sexual partner (OR 0.2). Conclusions There are significant positive and negative determinants of relationship influence related to PrEP at individual-, dyad-, relationship-, and network-levels. These support using nuanced network approaches to behavior change that respect and leverage the diversity of relationships that comprise the social networks of women who have experienced incarceration.
title: Decolonizing safety
title: a critical narrative analysis to end policing
titleType: Subtitle
Creators: name: Drustrup, David
Publisher: name: University of Iowa
Year: 2024
Subjects: Abolition
Critical Narrative Analysis
Police
Psychological safety
Racism
public abstract
Safety

description: The dominant narrative in much of the world is that public safety is provided by policing. This is evidenced in supportive rhetoric from institutional forces such as politicians and media, as well as large budget allocations in all levels of government. Alongside a long history of violence committed by police, especially against Black, Brown, and poor people, many social movements have rejected the idea that policing provides safety and have sought out other methods for community wellness. Although this ideology is gaining popularity amidst protests and organizing for Black lives in recent years, it is still a minority viewpoint. The present study attempts to utilize critical narrative analysis (CNA) to provide empirical evidence for how financially insecure Black and Brown residents of a small city in Eastern Iowa construct their understanding of personal and community safety. Seven financially insecure Black and Brown residents were interviewed two times each and told stories that illuminated how they understood and constructed feelings of safety in their lives and in their communities. Their stories and the dialectic exchange of the interviews illustrated several counternarratives and moments of conscientization for participants and the research team where safety was deconstructed and understood outside the power of recycled institutional narratives. Participants rejected popular notions of safety such as police and embraced more robust relationships, community resources, and forms of self-knowledge such as mental health, among other sources of safety. We analyze their interviews as efforts to be humanly recognized within violent white supremacist structures and their stories and responses help to decolonize the popular messages about how safety is achieved in society. Finally, we highlight their world-making abilities as they craft their own networks of community and safety outside of the state and other popularly understood notions of safety.
Feasibility and first results of a group program to increase the frequency of cognitively stimulating leisure activities in people with mild cognitive impairment (AKTIVA–MCI)
Creators: name: Tesky, Valentina A.
name: Köbe, Theresa
name: Witte, A. Veronica
name: Flöel, Agnes
name: Schuchardt, Jan Philipp
name: Hahn, Andreas
name: Pantel, Johannes
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: older people
subject: MCI
subject: pilot study
subject: intervention study
subject: cognitively stimulating leisure activities
subject: training program
subject: daily activity protocols
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: AKTIVA-MCI is a program for patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) that aims to enhance participation in cognitively stimulating leisure activities. Participation in cognitively stimulating activities seems to be a potential strategy for people with MCI delaying cognitive decline for a while. In total, 35 MCI patients were enrolled in the pilot study of whom 29 completed the whole program (16 female, 71.1±7.5 years; Mini Mental Status Examination score: 28±2.2). Daily activity protocols were used to measure the frequency of participation in cognitively stimulating activities during the program (12 sessions). Additional standardized psychometric tests and questionnaires were used to assess cognition, mood, and subjective memory decline. Analyses of the daily activity protocols showed that during the intervention participants increased the frequency of several cognitively stimulating leisure activities. Comparison of pre-post data indicates no changes in cognitive status, mood, and subjective memory decline. These findings indicate that the program is suitable for patients with MCI.
Quantum anomaly and collective oscillations in 2D Fermi gases
Creators: name: Peppler, Tyson
Publisher: name: Swinburne
Year: 2024

description: The thesis concerns the creation and manipulation of ultra-cold gases of Fermions, which at such low temperatures and densities form exotic phases of matter. Specifically the gas of Fermions is constrained to two dimensions, and a breathing oscillation set up in the gas. The frequency of this breathing oscillation in certain regimes shows the existence of the 'quantum anomaly', a phenomenon of quantum physics.
Modulation depth affects perceptual decision-making with rate-varying visual signals
Creators: name: Gori, Elena Teresa
Publisher: name: Brandeis University
Year: 2024
Subjects: Perceptual decision-making
Rate change
Temporal modulation

description: Important aspects of our visual environment give rise to informative time-varying signals. I examined temporal processing experimentally, using a variety of size-modulating visual stimuli. The visual stimulus modulated sinusoidally in size at 5 HZ, subjects’ ability to tell whether the rate increased, decreased, or remained constant was tested. The depth of the size modulation varied: 5%, 10%, 20%, and 40%. Subjects categorized the direction of change as increasing, constant, or decreasing across the four modulation depths. The direction of rate change could linearly increase from 3.9 Hz to 6 Hz, remain constant at 5 Hz, or linearly decrease from 6 Hz to 3.9 Hz. Subjects’ mean identification accuracy increased linearly with the log of modulation depth, and variance in response times lessened as modulation depth increased. The results demonstrate how perceptual decision-making is affected by modulation depth.
Alterations of microRNA and microRNA-regulated messenger RNA expression in germinal center B-cell lymphomas determined by integrative sequencing analysis
Creators: name: Hezaveh, Kebria
name: Kloetgen, Andreas
name: Bernhart, Stephan H.
name: Das Mahapatra, Kunal
name: Lenze, Dido
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: MicroRNA are well-established players in post-transcriptional gene regulation. However, information on the effects of microRNA deregulation mainly relies on bioinformatic prediction of potential targets, whereas proof of the direct physical microRNA/target messenger RNA interaction is mostly lacking. Within the International Cancer Genome Consortium Project “Determining Molecular Mechanisms in Malignant Lymphoma by Sequencing”, we performed miRnome sequencing from 16 Burkitt lymphomas, 19 diffuse large B-cell lymphomas, and 21 follicular lymphomas. Twenty-two miRNA separated Burkitt lymphomas from diffuse large B-cell lymphomas/follicular lymphomas, of which 13 have shown regulation by MYC. Moreover, we found expression of three hitherto unreported microRNA. Additionally, we detected recurrent mutations of hsa-miR-142 in diffuse large B-cell lymphomas and follicular lymphomas, and editing of the hsa-miR-376 cluster, providing evidence for microRNA editing in lymphomagenesis. To interrogate the direct physical interactions of microRNA with messenger RNA, we performed Argonaute-2 photoactivatable ribonucleoside- enhanced cross-linking and immunoprecipitation experiments. MicroRNA directly targeted 208 messsenger RNA in the Burkitt lymphomas and 328 messenger RNA in the non-Burkitt lymphoma models. This integrative analysis discovered several regulatory pathways of relevance in lymphomagenesis including Ras, PI3K-Akt and MAPK signaling pathways, also recurrently deregulated in lymphomas by mutations. Our dataset reveals that messenger RNA deregulation through microRNA is a highly relevant mechanism in lymphomagenesis.
NUCB2/nesfatin-1 Is Associated with Elevated Levels of Anxiety in Anorexia Nervosa
Creators: name: Hofmann, Tobias
name: Ahnis, Anne
name: Elbelt, Ulf
name: Rose, Matthias
name: Klapp, Burghard F.
name: Stengel, Andreas
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Objective NUCB2/nesfatin-1 is an anorexigenic hormone with elevated levels in obese and decreased levels in anorexia nervosa (AN) patients. Moreover, a role in the regulation of stress and emotions was suggested by several rodent and preliminary human studies. Since anxiety and depression are common comorbidities in AN, we investigated the association of NUCB2/nesfatin-1 with anxiety, depression and perceived stress in AN. Methods We analyzed circulating NUCB2/nesfatin-1 levels in 64 female inpatients diagnosed with anorexia nervosa (body mass index, BMI; mean±SD, 14.7±2.3 kg/m2). At the same time anxiety (GAD-7), depression (PHQ-9), stress (PSQ-20) and disordered eating (EDI-2) were measured psychometrically. Results No correlation was observed between NUCB2/nesfatin-1 and BMI (r = 0.06, p = 0.70). The study population was divided in patients with low anxiety (n = 32, GAD-7 scores, mean±SD, 7.5±3.3) and high anxiety (n = 32, 16.0±3.0, p<0.001). Patients with high anxiety scores displayed 65% higher NUCB2/nesfatin-1 levels (p = 0.04). This was reflected by a positive correlation of GAD-7 and NUCB2/nesfatin-1-levels (r = 0.32, p = 0.04). Scores of PSQ-20 (73.3±14.3 vs. 48.6±17.2) and PHQ-9 (18.8±5.0 vs. 10.3±5.1) were higher in the high anxiety group (p<0.001) but did not correlate with NUCB2/nesfatin-1 (p>0.05). EDI-2 total score was also higher in the high anxiety group (52.3±14.1 vs. 40.2±16.0, p = 0.02), while no correlations of EDI-2-scores with plasma NUCB2/nesfatin-1 were observed (p>0.05). Conclusions Circulating NUCB2/nesfatin-1 levels correlated positively with perceived anxiety, whereas no association with BMI or eating disorder symptoms was observed. NUCB2/nesfatin-1 might be primarily involved in the modulation of anxiety and subsequently in the regulation of eating habits and body weight in AN.
Methodological pitfalls of measuring race : International comparisons and repurposing of statistical categories
Creators: name: Roth, Wendy D.
Publisher: name: The University of British Columbia
Year: 2019

description: Official statistics are political creations more than theoretically-guided concepts. The papers in this panel make this exceptionally clear, as does the work of many others (e.g., Loveman 2014; Nobles 2000; Prewitt 2013). This means that official measures of race in countries around the world are unlikely to be guided by theoretical concern for distinguishing the different dimensions that are all embedded under the umbrella term: “race”. Furthermore, categories created for official statistics or national censuses can take on a life of their own. They can be applied to new contexts and inform public debates beyond their original demographic or political purposes. Here, I argue that the need for theoretical clarity across dimensions of race is magnified by comparisons across national contexts. I also discuss, using the example of the Canadian measure of “visible minorities” how the repurposing of statistical categories can create its own methodological pitfalls in measuring distinct dimensions of race.
Myocardial Infarction Injury in Patients with Chronic Lung Disease Entering Pulmonary Rehabilitation : Frequency and Association with Heart Rate Parameters
Creators: name: Lau, Benny C.
name: Taylor, Carolyn M.
name: Eeden Van, Stephan F.
name: Camp, Pat
name: Sima, Carmen Aurelia
name: Reid, Wendy Darlene
name: Sheel, A. William
name: Kirkham, Ashley
Publisher: name: The University of British Columbia
Year: 2018

description: Background: Myocardial infarction (MI) remains under-recognized in chronic lung disease (CLD) patients. Rehabilitation health professionals need accessible clinical measurements to identify the presence of prior MI in order to determine appropriate training prescription. Objectives: We aimed to estimate prior MI in CLD patients entering a pulmonary rehabilitation program, as well as its association with heart rate parameters such as resting heart rate and chronotropic response index. Design: Retrospective cohort design.Setting: Pulmonary rehabilitation outpatient clinic in a tertiary care university-affiliated hospital. Patients: Eighty-five CLD patients were studied. Methods: Electrocardiograms at rest and peak cardiopulmonary exercise testing, performed before pulmonary rehabilitation, were analyzed. Electrocardiographic evidence of prior MI, quantified by the cardiac infarction injury score (CIIS), was contrasted with reported myocardial events and then correlated with resting heart rate and chronotropic response index parameters. Main outcome measurements: Cardiac infarction injury score, resting heart rate and 40 chronotropic response index. Results: Sixteen CLD patients (19%) demonstrated electrocardiographic evidence of prior MI, but less than half (8%) had a reported MI history (p <.05). The Cohen’s Kappa test revealed poor level of agreement between CIIS and medical records (kappa = 0.165), indicating that prior MI diagnosis was under-reported in the medical records. Simple and multiple regression analyses showed that resting heart rate but not chronotropic response index was positively associated with CIIS in our population (R2 = 0.29, p <.001). CLD patients with a resting heart rate over 80 beats/min had approximately 5 times higher odds of having prior MI, as evidenced by a CIIS > 20. Conclusions: CLD patients entering pulmonary rehabilitation are at risk of unreported prior MI. Elevated resting heart rate seems to be an indicator of prior MI in CLD patients; therefore, careful adjustment of training intensity such as intermittent training is recommended under these circumstances. Level of evidence: III
Cerebrovascular reactivity, metabolism and cognitive function in healthy aging
Creators: name: Catchlove, Sarah
Publisher: name: Swinburne
Year: 2024

description: This thesis investigated the impact of brain blood vessel integrity, cerebral oxygen consumption and blood flow on cognitive performance in normally aging adults. The research was conducted using various neuroimaging applications to measure different aspects of vascular function. The novel findings enhance scientific knowledge of the contribution of hemodynamic markers to memory and attention tasks. Specifically, in older adults, the reactivity of small capillaries in the hippocampus were found to contribute to memory function, and blood flow was inversely related to attention task performance.
Sost deficiency led to a greater cortical bone formation response to mechanical loading and altered gene expression
Creators: name: Pflanz, David
name: Birkhold, Annette I.
name: Albiol, Laia
name: Thiele, Tobias
name: Julien, Catherine
name: Seliger, Anne
name: Thomson, Erin
name: Kramer, Ina
name: Kneissel, Michaela
name: Duda, Georg N.
name: Kornak, Uwe
name: Checa, Sara
name: Willie, Bettina M.
Publisher: name: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin
Year: 2017
Subjects: subject: Osteoporosis
subject: Preclinical research
subject: 600 Technik, Medizin, angewandte Wissenschaften::610 Medizin und Gesundheit

description: Bone adaptation optimizes mass and structure, but the mechano-response is already reduced at maturation. Downregulation of sclerostin was believed to be a mandatory step in mechano-adaptation, but in young mice it was shown that load-induced formation can occur independent of sclerostin, a product of the Sost gene. We hypothesized that the bone formation and resorption response to loading is not affected by Sost deficiency, but is age-specific. Our findings indicate that the anabolic response to in vivo tibial loading was reduced at maturation in Sost Knockout (KO) and littermate control (LC) mice. Age affected all anabolic and catabolic parameters and altered Sost and Wnt target gene expression. While load-induced cortical resorption was similar between genotypes, loading-induced gains in mineralizing surface was enhanced in Sost KO compared to LC mice. Loading led to a downregulation in expression of the Wnt inhibitor Dkk1. Expression of Dkk1 was greater in both control and loaded limbs of Sost KO compared to LC mice suggesting a compensatory role in the absence of Sost. These data suggest physical activity could enhance bone mass concurrently with sclerostin-neutralizing antibodies, but treatment strategies should consider the influence of age on ultimate load-induced bone mass gains.