Visualizing Culturally Relevant Science Pedagogy Through Photonarratives of Black Middle School Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Goldston, M. Jenice; Nichols, Sharon

2009-04-01

This study situated in a Southern resegregated Black middle school involved four Black teachers and two White science educators’ use of photonarratives to envision culturally relevant science pedagogy. Two questions guided the study: (1) What community referents are important for conceptualizing culturally relevant practices in Black science classrooms? and (2) How do teachers’ photonarratives serve to open conversations and notions of culturally relevant science practices? The research methodologically drew upon memory-work, Black feminism, critical theory, visual methodology, and narrative inquiry as “portraiture.” Issues of positionality and identity proved to be central to this work, as three luminaries portray Black teachers’ insights about supports and barriers to teaching and learning science. The community referents identified were associated with church and its oral traditions, inequities of the market place in meeting their basic human needs, and community spaces.

Hydrogen interaction with fusion-relevant materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caorlin, M.

1990-01-01

This paper is an outline of the work carried out at JRC Ispra in the Tritium-materials Interaction Laboratory, on the interaction of gaseous hydrogen with several materials of interest in the field of fusion technology. Experimental work is reported and a concise review of relevant theoretical and numerical supporting activity is given as well. A period of about seven years is covered since 1982. Current work and possible future extensions are also briefly mentioned. 11 figs., 18 refs

Object Lessons: Thinking about Material Culture

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Burkhart, Anne

2006-01-01

This article describes why art educators might consider studying material forms from everyday life, presents suggestions for exploring them in an art classroom, and includes an example to illustrate teaching about an object of material culture. The author presents reasons for studying material culture in the art classroom and offers suggestions…

Cultural Speak: Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and Experiential Learning in a Public Speaking Classroom

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Colvin, Janet; Tobler, Nancy

2013-01-01

This study describes the efficacy of modifications made to a higher education Latina/o public speaking course to enhance student growth and understanding. The changes included the addition of a service-learning component and the incorporation of culturally relevant pedagogy. Selected research, particularly related to college students, on…

Effect of lunar materials on plant tissue culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Walkinshaw, C. H.; Venketeswaran, S.; Baur, P. S.; Croley, T. E.; Scholes, V. E.; Weete, J. D.; Halliwell, R. S.; Hall, R. H.

1973-01-01

Lunar material collected during the Apollo 11, 12, 14, and 15 missions has been used to treat 12 species of higher plant tissue cultures. Biochemical and morphological studies have been conducted on several of these species. Tobacco tissue cultures treated with 0.22 g of lunar material exhibited increased greening more complex chloroplasts, less cytoplasmic vacuolation and greater vesiculation. Pine tissue cultures reacted to treatment by an increased deposition of tannin-like materials. The percentage of dry weight and soluble protein was increased in cultures treated with either lunar or terrestrial rock materials.

Perceptions and Practices of Culturally Relevant Science Teaching in American Indian Classrooms

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Nam, Younkyeong; Roehrig, Gillian; Kern, Anne; Reynolds, Bree

2013-01-01

This study explores the perceptions of culturally relevant science teaching of 35 teachers of American Indian students. These teachers participated in professional development designed to help them better understand climate change science content and teaching climate change using both Western science and traditional and cultural knowledge. Teacher…

Culturally relevant science: An approach to math science education for Hispanics. Final technical report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ortiz de Montellano, B.

1996-11-14

As planned a letter was sent out to 17 teachers who had participated in a Summer 1994 workshop on ``Culturally Relevant Science for Hispanics`` at Michigan State. These teachers were supposed to have spent the intervening time developing lesson plans and curricula. The letter requested a report of any activities undertaken and copies of lesson plans and materials developed by February 1996 with a stipend of $400 for satisfactory reports. It was a disappointment to only get 9 responses and not all of them demonstrating a satisfactory level of activity. Diana Marinez, Dean of Science at Texas A and M University, Corpus Christi, who is the other developer of this curriculum and the author reviewed the submitted materials and chose those showing the most promise to be invited to participate in the Summer Writing Workshop. Spring of 1996 and particularly in May--June, the author wrote a partial first draft of a companion volume for the teacher`s manual which would provide a rationale for doing culturally relevant science, present the cultural and the scientific background that teachers would need in order to be able to teach. One of the goals of this curriculum is that it should be off-the-shelf ready to teach and that teachers would not have to do extra research to encourage its adoption. The outline of the book is appendix 1. The Writing Workshop was held at Texas A and M University, Corpus Christi from July 14 to July 27, 1996. Participating teachers chose topics that they were interested in developing and wrote first drafts. These were distributed to all participants and critiqued by the workshop directors before being rewritten. Some teachers were more productive than others depending on their science background. In total an impressive number of lesson plans were written. These lesson plans are listed in Appendix 3. Appendix 4 is a sample lesson. Work still needs to be done on both the source book and the teachers` manual.

Material culture of multilingualism and affectivity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Larissa Aronin

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Affectivity is an important dimension in humans’ social and individual lives. It is either a stimulating or hindering aspect of language learning. This article aims to draw attention to material culture as a powerful, but mostly neglected source of data on the use and acquisition of languages, and demonstrates the close and intricate links between affectivity and material culture. It is hoped that revealing these interrelationships will assist in understanding and managing language diversity. It will allow practitioners and teachers to carry out social and private encounters, events and language teaching with more care, understanding and expertise. Researchers will be encouraged to join the investigation of yet one more important facet of multilingualism – material culture.

Exploring Material Culture in the Barrenlands

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MacEachren, Zabe

2012-01-01

Although the author loves winter camping and holds the Inuit culture in great regard, thinking about material culture in a northern landscape referred to as barren constitutes a daunting lesson. She wondered, when a landscape is barren is it possible at all for someone to find material, make useful items and survive? So it was she joined the Mara…

A Framework for Culturally Relevant Online Learning: Lessons from Alaska's Tribal Health Workers.

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Cueva, Katie; Cueva, Melany; Revels, Laura; Lanier, Anne P; Dignan, Mark; Viswanath, K; Fung, Teresa T; Geller, Alan C

2018-03-22

Culturally relevant health promotion is an opportunity to reduce health inequities in diseases with modifiable risks, such as cancer. Alaska Native people bear a disproportionate cancer burden, and Alaska's rural tribal health workers consequently requested cancer education accessible online. In response, the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium cancer education team sought to create a framework for culturally relevant online learning to inform the creation of distance-delivered cancer education. Guided by the principles of community-based participatory action research and grounded in empowerment theory, the project team conducted a focus group with 10 Alaska Native education experts, 12 culturally diverse key informant interviews, a key stakeholder survey of 62 Alaska Native tribal health workers and their instructors/supervisors, and a literature review on distance-delivered education with Alaska Native or American Indian people. Qualitative findings were analyzed in Atlas.ti, with common themes presented in this article as a framework for culturally relevant online education. This proposed framework includes four principles: collaborative development, interactive content delivery, contextualizing learning, and creating connection. As an Alaskan tribal health worker shared "we're all in this together. All about conversations, relationships. Always learn from you/with you, together what we know and understand from the center of our experience, our ways of knowing, being, caring." The proposed framework has been applied to support cancer education and promote cancer control with Alaska Native people and has motivated health behavior change to reduce cancer risk. This framework may be adaptable to other populations to guide effective and culturally relevant online interventions.

A Vietnamese man with selective mutism: the relevance of multiple interacting 'cultures' in clinical psychiatry.

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Hollifield, Michael; Geppert, Cynthia; Johnson, Yuam; Fryer, Carol

2003-09-01

Multiple cultural variables have effects on the psychobiology and behavioral manifestations of illness, as do patient and physician perceptions of illness. The interaction among these variables is at the heart of clinical psychiatry. This case of a Vietnamese man with selective mutism underscores the relevance of the 'cultures' of medicine, psychiatry, and war and trauma on the manifestations of illness and illness perceptions by patient and physician. The discussion focuses on how these cultures interact and play a crucial role in formulating diagnosis and treatment planning. Suggestions are given for shifts in medical education that will encourage relevant cultural paradigms to make their way into educational and clinical systems, which in turn should improve cultural competence in clinical psychiatry.

Portable Material Culture and Death Factory Auschwitz

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adrian T. Myers

2007-11-01

Full Text Available Like any other factory, the death factory of Auschwitz consumed primary materials and produced secondary products. Unique to Auschwitz, though, is that the primary material consumed was human life; not just the life of the breathing human body, but also the material possessions associated with that life. The detritus of this most efficient genocide – clothing, jewellery, food, corpses – was appropriated and put to new uses by the SS and the prisoners. Others have recognised the various postwar material cultural outcomes of the camp: the writing, the film, the theatre, the art, the tourism. This article, however, demonstrates that the material culture of Auschwitz is not a phenomenon exclusive to the postwar era. It focuses on the fact that inside the camp during the war, despite the landscape of death and deprivation, intimate interaction between humans and material culture continued.

Improving the Science and Mathematic Achievement of Mexican American Students Through Culturally Relevant Science. ERIC Digest.

Science.gov (United States)

Marinez, Diana I.; Ortiz de Montellano, Bernardo R.

There are many ways in which science can be made culturally relevant: archeoastronomy, mathematics, geology, ethnobotany, chemistry, and art can all be taught from a perspective celebrating the accomplishments of Mexican American and American Indian science and encouraging exploration. A culturally relevant curriculum provides teachers with…

Cross-Cultural Studies of Personality Traits and their Relevance to Psychiatry

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Terracciano, Antonio; McCrae, Robert R.

2009-01-01

Aims This article provides a brief review of recent cross-cultural research on personality traits at both individual and culture levels, highlighting the relevance of recent findings for psychiatry. Method In most cultures around the world, personality traits can be clearly summarized by the five broad dimensions of the Five-Factor Model (FFM), which makes it feasible to compare cultures on personality and psychopathology. Results Maturational patterns and sex differences in personality traits generally show cultural invariance, which generates the hypothesis that age of onset, clinical evolution, and sex differences in the prevalence of psychiatric disorders might follow similar universal patterns. The average personality profiles from 51 cultures show meaningful geographical distributions and associations with culture-level variables, but are clearly unrelated to national character stereotypes. Conclusions Aggregate personality scores can potentially be related to epidemiological data on psychiatric disorders, and dimensional personality models have implications for psychiatric diagnosis and treatment around the world. PMID:17128620

Learning Things: Material Culture in Art Education

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Blandy, Doug; Bolin, Paul E.

2018-01-01

This is the first comprehensive book to connect art education to material culture--an evolving pedagogy about the meaning of "things" in the lives of children, youth, and adults. Written by luminaries in the field, this resource explores a range of objects exemplifying material culture, defined as "the human-formed objects, spaces,…

Lift Every Voice and Sing: Constructing Community through Culturally Relevant Pedagogy in the University of Illinois Black Chorus

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Chadwick, Sheelagh

2011-01-01

For Gloria Ladson-Billings, culturally relevant pedagogy is characterized by three criteria: academic success, cultural competence and critical consciousness. Those engaged in culturally relevant pedagogy are connected by how they see themselves as teachers and how they see their students, how they view knowledge and how they structure social…

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy 20 Years Later: Progress or Pontificating? What Have We Learned, and Where Do We Go?

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Howard, Tyrone C.; Rodriguez-Scheel, Andrea

2017-01-01

In this paper, the authors discuss the concept of culturally relevant pedagogy 20 years after its introduction to the professional literature. The authors discuss key tenets of culturally relevant pedagogy, examine empirical examples of it, and makes recommendations on how the concept may inform and influence the outcomes of culturally diverse…

Glimmers for Cultural Relevance: The Pedagogical Knowledge of an Indigenous Cabécar Teacher

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Marielos Vargas Morales

2017-07-01

Full Text Available Indigenous education is becoming a priority to be dealt with in Higher Education. Therefore, efforts are oriented towards newly nourishing inclusive proposals for education; for them to take cultural diversity on and generate quality learning processes while also promoting the vindication of the right towards a culturally-relevant education for indigenous populations. Hence, the article sets forth an analysis of the pedagogical practice by an indigenous cabécar teacher, which unveils elements and cultural aspects that constitute valuable input to be considered in teacher education proposals. This research took place in the educative community of Sharabata, which is part of the High Chirripó Cábecar Indigenous Territory, which in turn is located in the province of Cartago in the Central American country of Costa Rica. The current research was conducted as a case study. Obtained results now create curricular content that responds to socio-cultural, linguistic and natural needs and characteristics of the cabécar culture. The present research recovers oral communication and the value of words, of learning by imitation, cosmovision as cultural heritage and the importance of recognizing mother languages in originary populations. It is forewarned that, though handled under the discourse of cultural displacement, practical and ritualistic practices still persist, all of which must be acknowledged and valued in school by young people in order for culture as ancestral heritage to be prolonged. It is given the mentioned situations where education must be made present; as a fight towards respect, inclusion and the strengthening of originary cultures. In that sense and in order to achieve cultural relevance, the process of the construction of knowledge with children must be inserted in its historical, social and cultural context, for which knowledge, experience and the practice of cabécar cosmovision is transcendental. As part of cultural relevance

Culturally Relevant Teaching: Hip-Hop Pedagogy in Urban Schools. Counterpoints: Studies in the Postmodern Theory of Education. Volume 396

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Prier, Darius D.

2012-01-01

"Culturally Relevant Teaching" centers hip-hop culture as a culturally relevant form of critical pedagogy in urban pre-service teacher education programs. In this important book, Darius D. Prier explores how hip-hop artists construct a sense of democratic education and pedagogy with transformative possibilities in their schools and communities. In…

Culturally Relevant Literature: What Matters Most to Primary-Age Urban Learners

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Cartledge, Gwendolyn; Keesey, Susan; Bennett, Jessica G.; Ramnath, Rajiv; Council, Morris R., III.

2016-01-01

The ratings and rationales primary-age urban learners gave culturally relevant reading passages was the focus of this descriptive study. First- and second-grade students each read 30 researcher-developed passages reflecting the students' immediate and historical backgrounds. The students rated the passages and gave a reason for their ratings. A…

Cultural Factors relevant to Korean Americans in Health Research: A Systematic Review.

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Shin, Cha-Nam; Keller, Colleen; Sim, Jeongha

2018-04-01

To eliminate health disparities in the United States, identifying cultural contexts salient to the target populations in an intervention study is critical; however, little research has been conducted on the identification of cultural contexts among Korean Americans who have significant risk factors for chronic diseases. This systematic review identifies critical cultural contexts central to the literature discussed in health research on Korean Americans. We examined 14 research reports of 801 potentially eligible articles published between 2000 and 2016 and analyzed their contribution to cultural contexts among Korean Americans based on the PEN-3 model. This review highlights how cultural contexts impact health and health behaviors of Korean Americans, and may contribute to health disparities in the United States. The key cultural contexts highlighted in this review include social support/social network, family, gender role expectations, and a holistic view of health and illness. These cultural contexts should be incorporated in designing culturally relevant, effective, and sustainable health interventions for Korean Americans, which will contribute to eliminating health disparities for this ethnic group who experience great obstacles to healthcare access and healthy behaviors.

Teaching for Change: New Teachers' Experiences with and Visions for Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

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Borrero, Noah; Ziauddin, Asra; Ahn, Alexandra

2018-01-01

This paper presents the voices of thirteen pre- and in-service teachers to showcase their perspectives of culturally relevant pedagogy as a teaching framework. Positionality, critical consciousness, and cultural assets are used as foundations to explore social justice pedagogy. These new teachers discuss the challenges they face in making the…

A Study of Novice Science Teachers' Conceptualizations of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Redman, Elizabeth Horst

This qualitative study examined new science teachers' conceptualization of culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP). The study followed six novice science teachers from their preservice teaching placements into their first jobs as instructors of record, observing in their classrooms and interviewing them about their use of CRP. The study sought to understand (1) how the participating teachers conceptualize CRP in science, and (2) what challenges the teachers faced in trying to implement CRP. Findings suggest that the teachers conceptualized CRP in ways that were consistent with Enyedy, Danish and Fields' (2011) interpretations of relevance: relevance of authentic purpose, relevance of content and/or context, and relevance of practices. The teachers, however, translated those interpretations of relevance into their conceptualizations and classroom practice in a variety of ways. While they encountered difficulties in conceptualizing and practicing CRP, they also made productive moves in their practice and evidenced positive elements in their conceptualizations of CRP. In order to address the challenges these teachers faced in implementing CRP, I suggest an approach to teacher preparation in CRP that builds upon the understandings and productive moves the teachers evidenced in this study.

Promoting culturally competent chronic pain management using the clinically relevant continuum model.

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Monsivais, Diane B

2011-06-01

This article reviews the culture of biomedicine and current practices in pain management education, which often merge to create a hostile environment for effective chronic pain care. Areas of cultural tensions in chronic pain frequently involve the struggle to achieve credibility regarding one's complaints of pain (or being believed that the pain is real) and complying with pain medication protocols. The clinically relevant continuum model is presented as a framework allowing providers to approach care from an evidence-based, culturally appropriate (patient centered) perspective that takes into account the highest level of evidence available, provider expertise, and patient preferences and values. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Enhancing Access to Primary Cultural Heritage Materials of India

Science.gov (United States)

Scharf, Peter M.; Hyman, Malcolm

This chapter is about enhancing access to primary cultural heritage materials of India housed in academic libraries by integrating them with machine-readable texts, lexical resources, and linguistic software in a digital library. Integrating primary cultural materials with a digital library can enable broad use of Indic collections for research and education. For the purposes of illustrating this procedure, we outline here the development of a prototype using the collections of Sanskrit manuscripts in the libraries at Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania and integrating them with The Sanskrit Library. The result is extendable to collections of Indic materials throughout the world and can serve as a model for digitization projects of cultural materials in other major culture-bearing languages such as Greek, Latin, Arabic, Persian, and Chinese.

Is the Appropriateness of Emotions Culture-Dependent? The Relevance of Social Meaning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Welpinghus Anna

2018-02-01

Full Text Available This paper contributes to the question to what extent the socio-cultural context is relevant for the appropriateness of emotions, while appropriateness of an emotion means that the emotion entails a correct, or adequate, evaluation of its object. In a first step, two adequacy conditions for theories of emotions are developed: the first condition ensures that the socio-cultural context is not neglected: theories must allow for the fact that appropriateness often depends on the social meaning of the emotion’s particular object. The second condition rules out implausible forms of cultural determinism. In a second step, an account that meets both conditions is presented: the Acceptance within Social Context account.

Clinically applied medical ethnography: relevance to cultural competence in patient care.

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Engebretson, Joan

2011-06-01

Medical anthropology provides an excellent resource for nursing research that is relevant to clinical nursing. By expanding the understanding of ethnographic research beyond ethnicity, nurses can conduct research that explores patient's constructions and explanatory models of health and healing and how they make meaning out of chronic conditions and negotiate daily life. These findings can have applicability to culturally competent care at both the organizational or systems level, as well as in the patient/provider encounter. Individual patient care can be improved by applying ethnographic research findings to build provider expertise and then using a cultural negotiation process for individualized patient care. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Inc.

What Kind of Culture?

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Knoll, Samson B.

The question of what should be taught as the cultural component of language instruction is discussed, with special reference to German. A present-directed humanism is urged, with emphasis on the relevance and immediacy of cultural materials. Mistaken and irrelevant directions in the teaching of German culture are discussed in some detail; similar…

They Have "Verve": Preservice Teachers' Perceptions about Culturally Relevant/Responsive Pedagogy

Science.gov (United States)

Nash, Kindel

2018-01-01

Based on concerns about the permanence of racism in our society and its impact on opportunities for children's equitable education, this empirical study used narrative inquiry to explore four preservice teachers' developing dispositions as they studied and implemented culturally relevant/responsive pedagogy (CR/RP) in an early literacy education…

Final Report: Laser-Material Interactions Relevant to Analytic Spectroscopy of Wide Band Gap Materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dickinson, J. Thomas [Washington State Univ., Pullman, WA (United States)

2014-04-05

We summarize our studies aimed at developing an understanding of the underlying physics and chemistry in terms of laser materials interactions relevant to laser-based sampling and chemical analysis of wide bandgap materials. This work focused on the determination of mechanisms for the emission of electrons, ions, atoms, and molecules from laser irradiation of surfaces. We determined the important role of defects on these emissions, the thermal, chemical, and physical interactions responsible for matrix effects and mass-dependent transport/detection. This work supported development of new techniques and technology for the determination of trace elements contained such as nuclear waste materials.

Integration of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy Into the Science Learning Progression Framework

Science.gov (United States)

Bernardo, Cyntra

This study integrated elements of culturally relevant pedagogy into a science learning progression framework, with the goal of enhancing teachers' cultural knowledge and thereby creating better teaching practices in an urban public high school science classroom. The study was conducted using teachers, an administrator, a science coach, and students involved in science courses in public high school. Through a qualitative intrinsic case study, data were collected and analyzed using traditional methods. Data from primary participants (educators) were analyzed through identification of big ideas, open coding, and themes. Through this process, patterns and emergent ideas were reported. Outcomes of this study demonstrated that educators lack knowledge about research-based academic frameworks and multicultural education strategies, but benefit through institutionally-based professional development. Students from diverse cultures responded positively to culturally-based instruction. Their progress was further manifested in better communication and discourse with their teacher and peers, and increased academic outcomes. This study has postulated and provided an exemplar for science teachers to expand and improve multicultural knowledge, ultimately transferring these skills to their pedagogical practice.

Security Culture in Physical Protection of Nuclear Material and Facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Susyanta-Widyatmaka; Koraag, Venuesiana-Dewi; Taswanda-Taryo

2005-01-01

In nuclear related field, there are three different cultures: safety, safeguards and security culture. Safety culture has established mostly in nuclear industries, meanwhile safeguards and security culture are relatively new and still developing. The latter is intended to improve the physical protection of material and nuclear facility. This paper describes concept, properties and factors affecting security culture and interactions among these cultures. The analysis indicates that anybody involving in nuclear material and facility should have strong commitment and awareness of such culture to establish it. It is concluded that the assessment of security culture outlined in this paper is still preliminary for developing and conduction rigorous security culture implemented in a much more complex facility such as nuclear power plant

Object Lessons: Material Culture on the World Wide Web.

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Mires, Charlene

2001-01-01

Describes the content of a course on material culture for undergraduate students that was separated into two sections: (1) first students read books and analyzed artifacts; and (2) then the class explored the Centennial Exhibition held in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) in 1876, applying material culture methods and constructing a Web site from their…

Cultural Sensitivity in English Language Teaching Materials

OpenAIRE

MEHMET, Sean Collin

2008-01-01

This expository paper will begin by uncovering and examining some lesser known, Western journal articles, ones that deal specifically with the issue of cultural sensitivity in language classrooms. This opening discussion will attempt to reveal that cultural sensitivity in teaching materials is by no means an issue limited solely to the Western world. After this, the discussion will focus on Edward Said's widely-known Culture and Imperialism. Said's monograph will be used as a springboard to e...

The Evolution of Polystyrene as a Cell Culture Material.

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Lerman, Max J; Lembong, Josephine; Muramoto, Shin; Gillen, Greg; Fisher, John P

2018-04-10

Polystyrene (PS) has brought in vitro cell culture from its humble beginnings to the modern era, propelling dozens of research fields along the way. This review discusses the development of the material, fabrication, and treatment approaches to create the culture material. However, native PS surfaces poorly facilitate cell adhesion and growthin vitro. To overcome this, liquid surface deposition, energetic plasma activation, and emerging functionalization methods transform the surface chemistry. This review seeks to highlight the many potential applications of the first widely accepted polymer growth surface. Although the majority of in vitro research occurs on 2D surfaces, the importance of 3D culture models cannot be overlooked. Here the methods to transition PS to specialized 3D culture surfaces are also reviewed. Specifically, casting, electrospinning, 3D printing, and microcarrier approaches to shift PS to a 3D culture surface are highlighted. The breadth of applications of the material makes it impossible to highlight every use, but the aim remains to demonstrate the versatility and potential as both a general and custom cell culture surface. The review concludes with emerging scaffolding approaches and, based on the findings, presents our insights on the future steps for PS as a tissue culture platform.

Teaching Religion and Material Culture

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Carp, Richard M.

2007-01-01

Because religions discipline and interpret bodies; create and define sacred spaces; generate, adore and study images in all media; regulate the intake of food; structure temporal experience; and in general interpenetrate and are permeated by the cultural landscapes in which they exist, religious studies must engage material religion and religious…

Low technology tissue culture materials for initiation and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Low technology tissue culture materials for initiation and multiplication of banana plants. ... African Crop Science Journal ... locally available macronutrients, micronutrients, sugar, equipment and facility reduced the cost of consumable material

Analyzing the Heterogeneous Hierarchy of Cultural Heritage Materials: Analytical Imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Trentelman, Karen

2017-06-12

Objects of cultural heritage significance are created using a wide variety of materials, or mixtures of materials, and often exhibit heterogeneity on multiple length scales. The effective study of these complex constructions thus requires the use of a suite of complementary analytical technologies. Moreover, because of the importance and irreplaceability of most cultural heritage objects, researchers favor analytical techniques that can be employed noninvasively, i.e., without having to remove any material for analysis. As such, analytical imaging has emerged as an important approach for the study of cultural heritage. Imaging technologies commonly employed, from the macroscale through the micro- to nanoscale, are discussed with respect to how the information obtained helps us understand artists' materials and methods, the cultures in which the objects were created, how the objects may have changed over time, and importantly, how we may develop strategies for their preservation.

[On the Way to Culture-Sensitive Patient Information Materials: Results of a Focus Group Study].

Science.gov (United States)

Ries, Zivile; Frank, Fabian; Bermejo, Isaac; Kalaitsidou, Chariklia; Zill, Jördis; Dirmaier, Jörg; Härter, Martin; Bengel, Jürgen; Hölzel, Lars

2018-06-01

This study was part of a double-blind randomised controlled trial aimed to evaluate the effects of culture-sensitive patient information materials (PIM) compared with standard translated material. The study aimed to obtain the data for the development of culture sensitive PIM about unipolar depression for the 4 largest migrant groups in Germany (Turkish, Polish, Russian and Italian migration background). A qualitative study using 4 manual-based focus groups (FG), one for each migrant group, with 29 participants (9 with a Turkish (TüG), 8 with a Polish (PoG), 5 with a Russian (RuG) and 7 with an Italian (ItG) migration background) was conducted. The discussions were recorded, transcribed and analyzed using qualitative content analysis. 7 categories were identified. For the (1.) development of a good culture-sensitive PIM an easy language, a clear structure, an assessable extent of information and the avoidance of stereotypes were highlighted cross-culturally in all four FG. RuG and PoG had the largest (2.) lack of information about the German health care system. Concerning the (3.) illness perception RuG named problems with recognizing and understanding depression. PoG, RuG and TüG thematized (4.) feared consequences of the illness and of professional helpseeking. ItG, PoG, RuG had fears concerning (5.) psychotropic drugs as a result from insufficient knowledge about medication. For (6.) doctor-patient relationship cultural specifics were identified in RuG and TüG and for (7.) migration or culture specific reasons for depression in RuG, ItG and TüG. Although the identified categories were relevant for all or for the majority of migrant groups, for most categories specific cultural aspects were discovered. These findings show the importance of a culture sensitive adaptation of PIM. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Cultural Relevance and Working with Inner City Youth Populations to Achieve Civic Engagement

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Ward, Shakoor; Webster, Nicole

2011-01-01

This article helps Extension professionals consider the cultural relevant needs of inner city residents in hopes of achieving ongoing civic engagement and appropriate program activities in these communities. Having a deep understanding of how the various dimensions of marginalized community life among inner city populations affect participation in…

Incorporating Local Culture in English Teaching Material for Undergraduate Students

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wijaya Mahardika I Gusti Ngurah Agung

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses the incorporation of local cultural material in a teaching material developed for the students of the Hinduism Education Department of IHDN Denpasar. Teaching material plays an important part in teaching learning process, yet inappropriate teaching materials may become more harmful than useful. The unique nature of the HED students warranted the need for a tailor-made teaching material. The study found that the use of culturally familiar materials is beneficial for the students learning process. The result of the study also highlighted students’ needs and prior knowledge as the main factors to be considered when developing teaching material.

Assessing the cultural in culturally sensitive printed patient-education materials for Chinese Americans with type 2 diabetes.

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Ho, Evelyn Y; Tran, Henrietta; Chesla, Catherine A

2015-01-01

Type 2 diabetes affects Chinese Americans at an alarming rate. To address this health disparity, research in the area of cultural sensitivity and health literacy provides useful guidelines for creating culturally appropriate health education. In this article, we use discourse analysis to examine a group of locally available, Chinese- and English-language diabetes print documents from a surface level and deep structure level of culture. First, we compared these documents to research findings about printed health information to determine whether and how these documents apply current best practices for health literacy and culturally appropriate health communication. Second, we examined how diabetes as a disease and diabetes management is being constructed. The printed materials addressed surface level culture through the use of Chinese language, pictures, foods, and exercises. From a deeper cultural level, the materials constructed diabetes management as a matter of measurement and control that contrasted with previous research suggesting an alternative construction of balance. A nuanced assessment of both surface and deeper levels of culture is essential for creating health education materials that are more culturally appropriate and can lead to increased health literacy and improved health outcomes.

Reflections on Visual and Material Culture: An Example from Southwest Chicago

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Ulbricht, J.

2007-01-01

Although several art educators have called our attention to the importance of studying visual culture, others have widened the discussion to include material culture and its effects on our lives. Because of growing concern for the value of exploring the personal and social functions of visual and material culture, the purpose of this article is to…

The Power of Digital Storytelling as a Culturally Relevant Health Promotion Tool.

Science.gov (United States)

Briant, Katherine J; Halter, Amy; Marchello, Nathan; Escareño, Monica; Thompson, Beti

2016-11-01

Digital storytelling is an emergent method in health promotion. It addresses health inequities by combining technology with the voices of members of vulnerable, often underrepresented populations. The overall goal of this pilot project was to explore if digital storytelling could be a culturally relevant health promotion tool for Hispanics/Latinos to share their experiences with cancer, or other diseases. Promotores participated in a train-the-trainer workshop. Community members worked with trained promotores to create digital stories through community workshops. We conducted one-on-one interviews with digital story creators to elicit perspectives and assess their experience. One overarching theme among storytellers was the power of storytelling. Supporting subthemes that emerged in the interviews were (1) connection and communication, (2) lack of opportunities and barriers to telling stories, and (3) potential for disease prevention awareness and education. This study found digital storytelling to be culturally relevant for Hispanics/Latinos of Mexican origin. For these storytellers it was a uniquely valuable tool for sharing personal stories of overcoming or managing health issues. Participants found the digital story experience to be positive and beneficial. It provided a healing outlet to reflect on a difficult experience and find support within one's own community. © 2016 Society for Public Health Education.

Developmental Psychopathology in a Racial/Ethnic Minority Group: Are Cultural Risks Relevant?

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Chiaying; Eisenberg, Ruth E; Ramos-Olazagasti, María A; Wall, Melanie; Chen, Chen; Bird, Héctor R; Canino, Glorisa; Duarte, Cristiane S

2017-12-01

The current study examined (a) the mediating role of parenting behaviors in the relationship between parental risks and youth antisocial behaviors (YASB), and (b) the role of youth cultural stress in a racial/ethnic minority group (i.e., Puerto Rican [PR] youth). This longitudinal study consisted of 3 annual interviews of PR youth (N = 1,150; aged 10-14 years at wave 1) and their caretakers from the South Bronx (SB) in New York City and from San Juan, Puerto Rico. Parents reported on parental risks, parenting behaviors, and YASB. Youth also self-reported on YASB and youth cultural stress. A lagged structural equation model examined the relationship between these variables across 3 yearly waves, with youth cultural stress as a moderator of the association between effective parenting behaviors and YASB. Findings supported the positive influence of effective parenting on YASB, independently of past parental risks and past YASB: higher effective parenting significantly predicted lower YASB at the following wave. Parenting also accounted for (mediated) the association between the composite of parental risks and YASB. Youth cultural stress at wave 1 was cross-sectionally associated with higher YASB and moderated the prospective associations between effective parenting and YASB, such that for youth who perceived higher cultural stress, the positive effect of effective parenting on YASB was weakened compared to those with lower/average cultural stress. Among PR families, both parental and cultural risk factors influence YASB. Such findings should be considered when treating racial/ethnic minority youth for whom cultural factors may be a relevant influence on determining behaviors. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Culturally relevant model program to prevent and reduce agricultural injuries.

Science.gov (United States)

Helitzer, D L; Hathorn, G; Benally, J; Ortega, C

2014-07-01

Limited research has explored pesticide injury prevention among American Indian farmers. In a five-year agricultural intervention, a university-community partnership, including the University of New Mexico School of Medicine, New Mexico State University, Shiprock Area Cooperative Extension Service, and Navajo Nation communities, used a culturally relevant model to introduce and maintain safe use of integrated pest management techniques. We applied the Diffusion of Innovations theory and community-based approaches to tailor health promotion strategies for our intervention. In a longitudinal study with repeated measures, we trained six "model farmers" to be crop management experts in pesticide safety, application, and control. Subsequently, these model farmers worked with 120 farm families randomized into two groups: intervention (Group 1) and delayed intervention (Group 2). Measurements included a walk-through analysis, test of knowledge and attitudes, and yield analysis. Both groups demonstrated improvements in pesticide storage behaviors after training. Test scores regarding safety practices improved significantly: from 57.3 to 72.4 for Group 1 and from 52.6 to 76.3 for Group 2. Group 1 maintained their knowledge and safety practices after the intervention. Attitudes about pesticides and communication of viewpoints changed across the study years. With pesticides and fertilizer, the number of corn ears increased by 56.3% and yield (kg m(-2)) of alfalfa increased by 41.2%. The study combined traditional farming practices with culturally relevant approaches and behavior change theory to affect knowledge, safety practices, attitudes, communication channels, and crop yield. Storage behaviors, use of pesticides and safety and application equipment, and safety practice knowledge changed significantly, as did attitudes about social networking, social support, and the compatibility and relative advantage of pesticides for farms.

Teaching Students to Infer Meaning through Material Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Brewer, Ernest Andrew; Fritzer, Penelope

2011-01-01

Social studies students can learn to glean historical information from the study of material culture through active engagement as curators. Teachers can guide students through a pre-survey of helpful reading materials and then through selecting items of personal significance to them: creating labels that objectively describe the chosen items as to…

Material Culture of Multilingualism and Affectivity

Science.gov (United States)

Aronin, Larissa

2012-01-01

Affectivity is an important dimension in humans' social and individual lives. It is either a stimulating or hindering aspect of language learning. This article aims to draw attention to material culture as a powerful, but mostly neglected source of data on the use and acquisition of languages, and demonstrates the close and intricate links between…

Supercritical CO2 Foaming of Thermoplastic Materials Derived from Maize: Proof-of-Concept Use in Mammalian Cell Culture Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Trujillo-de Santiago, Grissel; Portales-Cabrera, Cynthia Guadalupe; Portillo-Lara, Roberto; Araiz-Hernández, Diana; Del Barone, Maria Cristina; García-López, Erika; Rojas-de Gante, Cecilia; de los Angeles De Santiago-Miramontes, María; Segoviano-Ramírez, Juan Carlos; García-Lara, Silverio; Rodríguez-González, Ciro Ángel; Alvarez, Mario Moisés; Di Maio, Ernesto; Iannace, Salvatore

2015-01-01

Background Foams are high porosity and low density materials. In nature, they are a common architecture. Some of their relevant technological applications include heat and sound insulation, lightweight materials, and tissue engineering scaffolds. Foams derived from natural polymers are particularly attractive for tissue culture due to their biodegradability and bio-compatibility. Here, the foaming potential of an extensive list of materials was assayed, including slabs elaborated from whole flour, the starch component only, or the protein fraction only of maize seeds. Methodology/Principal Findings We used supercritical CO2 to produce foams from thermoplasticized maize derived materials. Polyethylene-glycol, sorbitol/glycerol, or urea/formamide were used as plasticizers. We report expansion ratios, porosities, average pore sizes, pore morphologies, and pore size distributions for these materials. High porosity foams were obtained from zein thermoplasticized with polyethylene glycol, and from starch thermoplasticized with urea/formamide. Zein foams had a higher porosity than starch foams (88% and 85%, respectively) and a narrower and more evenly distributed pore size. Starch foams exhibited a wider span of pore sizes and a larger average pore size than zein (208.84 vs. 55.43 μm2, respectively). Proof-of-concept cell culture experiments confirmed that mouse fibroblasts (NIH 3T3) and two different prostate cancer cell lines (22RV1, DU145) attached to and proliferated on zein foams. Conclusions/Significance We conducted screening and proof-of-concept experiments on the fabrication of foams from cereal-based bioplastics. We propose that a key indicator of foamability is the strain at break of the materials to be foamed (as calculated from stress vs. strain rate curves). Zein foams exhibit attractive properties (average pore size, pore size distribution, and porosity) for cell culture applications; we were able to establish and sustain mammalian cell cultures on zein

Supercritical CO2 foaming of thermoplastic materials derived from maize: proof-of-concept use in mammalian cell culture applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Trujillo-de Santiago, Grissel; Portales-Cabrera, Cynthia Guadalupe; Portillo-Lara, Roberto; Araiz-Hernández, Diana; Del Barone, Maria Cristina; García-López, Erika; Rojas-de Gante, Cecilia; de Los Angeles De Santiago-Miramontes, María; Segoviano-Ramírez, Juan Carlos; García-Lara, Silverio; Rodríguez-González, Ciro Ángel; Alvarez, Mario Moisés; Di Maio, Ernesto; Iannace, Salvatore

2015-01-01

Foams are high porosity and low density materials. In nature, they are a common architecture. Some of their relevant technological applications include heat and sound insulation, lightweight materials, and tissue engineering scaffolds. Foams derived from natural polymers are particularly attractive for tissue culture due to their biodegradability and bio-compatibility. Here, the foaming potential of an extensive list of materials was assayed, including slabs elaborated from whole flour, the starch component only, or the protein fraction only of maize seeds. We used supercritical CO2 to produce foams from thermoplasticized maize derived materials. Polyethylene-glycol, sorbitol/glycerol, or urea/formamide were used as plasticizers. We report expansion ratios, porosities, average pore sizes, pore morphologies, and pore size distributions for these materials. High porosity foams were obtained from zein thermoplasticized with polyethylene glycol, and from starch thermoplasticized with urea/formamide. Zein foams had a higher porosity than starch foams (88% and 85%, respectively) and a narrower and more evenly distributed pore size. Starch foams exhibited a wider span of pore sizes and a larger average pore size than zein (208.84 vs. 55.43 μm2, respectively). Proof-of-concept cell culture experiments confirmed that mouse fibroblasts (NIH 3T3) and two different prostate cancer cell lines (22RV1, DU145) attached to and proliferated on zein foams. We conducted screening and proof-of-concept experiments on the fabrication of foams from cereal-based bioplastics. We propose that a key indicator of foamability is the strain at break of the materials to be foamed (as calculated from stress vs. strain rate curves). Zein foams exhibit attractive properties (average pore size, pore size distribution, and porosity) for cell culture applications; we were able to establish and sustain mammalian cell cultures on zein foams for extended time periods.

Supercritical CO2 foaming of thermoplastic materials derived from maize: proof-of-concept use in mammalian cell culture applications.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Grissel Trujillo-de Santiago

Full Text Available Foams are high porosity and low density materials. In nature, they are a common architecture. Some of their relevant technological applications include heat and sound insulation, lightweight materials, and tissue engineering scaffolds. Foams derived from natural polymers are particularly attractive for tissue culture due to their biodegradability and bio-compatibility. Here, the foaming potential of an extensive list of materials was assayed, including slabs elaborated from whole flour, the starch component only, or the protein fraction only of maize seeds.We used supercritical CO2 to produce foams from thermoplasticized maize derived materials. Polyethylene-glycol, sorbitol/glycerol, or urea/formamide were used as plasticizers. We report expansion ratios, porosities, average pore sizes, pore morphologies, and pore size distributions for these materials. High porosity foams were obtained from zein thermoplasticized with polyethylene glycol, and from starch thermoplasticized with urea/formamide. Zein foams had a higher porosity than starch foams (88% and 85%, respectively and a narrower and more evenly distributed pore size. Starch foams exhibited a wider span of pore sizes and a larger average pore size than zein (208.84 vs. 55.43 μm2, respectively. Proof-of-concept cell culture experiments confirmed that mouse fibroblasts (NIH 3T3 and two different prostate cancer cell lines (22RV1, DU145 attached to and proliferated on zein foams.We conducted screening and proof-of-concept experiments on the fabrication of foams from cereal-based bioplastics. We propose that a key indicator of foamability is the strain at break of the materials to be foamed (as calculated from stress vs. strain rate curves. Zein foams exhibit attractive properties (average pore size, pore size distribution, and porosity for cell culture applications; we were able to establish and sustain mammalian cell cultures on zein foams for extended time periods.

Improving Elementary School Students’ English Vocabulary Through Local Cultural Content Materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frans Manurung

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Elementary students of a certain public school in Indonesia had difficulties in learning English. One of the crucial problems was learning English vocabulary. In an attempt to help the students learn and improve English vocabulary, the researchers decided to use CAR to teach English vocabulary with local cultural content materials. The aim of this study was to investigate how the teaching of English vocabulary with local cultural content materials contributed to the improvement of the students’ English vocabulary mastery. The topics covered in the materials were selected based on schemata theory. Vocabulary learning process was done through several activities provided in the materials: classroom and outside vocabulary learning. The results showed that the teaching of local cultural content materials have contributed to the improvement of the Elementary students’ vocabulary mastery. The schematic knowledge found in the familiar topics has aroused the students’ interest and motivation in learning English vocabulary. Students who were more familiar with the topics could respond to the vocabulary learning better than those who were not familiar with. The vocabulary mastery was more successful only if the students participated in both classroom and outside vocabulary learning process. Keywords: Vocabulary Mastery, Vocabulary Improvement, Local Cultural Content Materials, Vocabulary Learning, Schemata

Cultural and Ideological Roots of Materialism in China

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Song; Stening, Bruce W.

2012-01-01

This study examines the role of cultural values and political ideologies in the development of materialism, and the impact of materialism on subjective well-being, in the Chinese context. A survey was conducted of 487 persons in two cities in China and the results analyzed using structural equation modeling. The findings show that China's…

Heterogeneous reaction mechanisms and kinetics relevant to the CVD of semiconductor materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Creighton, J.R.; Coltrin, M.E.

1994-03-01

This report documents the state of the art in experimental and theoretical techniques for determining reaction mechanisms and chemical kinetics of heterogeneous reactions relevant to the chemical vapor deposition of semiconductor materials. It summarizes the most common ultra-high vacuum experimental techniques that are used and the types of rate information available from each. Several case studies of specific chemical systems relevant to the microelectronics industry are described. Theoretical methods for calculating heterogeneous reaction rate constants are also summarized.

Libretexts: a flexible online open system for disseminating educational materials relevant to geophysics at all levels

Science.gov (United States)

Halpern, J. B.

2017-12-01

Libretexts is an online open system for distributing educational materials with over 5 million page views per month. Covering geophysics, chemistry, physics and more it offers a platform for authors and users including faculty and students to access curated educational materials. Currently there are on line texts covering geology, geobiology, natural hazards and understanding the refusal to accept climate change as well as relevant materials in other sections on aquatic and atmospheric chemistry. In addition to "written" materials Libretexts provides access to simulations and demonstrations that are relevant. Most importantly the Libretext project welcomes new contributors. Faculty can use available materials to construct their own texts or supplementary materials in relatively short order. Since all material is covered by a Creative Commons Copyright, material can be added to as needed for teaching.

Second-Grade Urban Learners: Preliminary Findings for a Computer-Assisted, Culturally Relevant, Repeated Reading Intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Bennett, Jessica G.; Gardner, Ralph, III; Cartledge, Gwendolyn; Ramnath, Rajiv; Council, Morris R., III

2017-01-01

This study investigated the effects of a multicomponent, supplemental intervention on the reading fluency of second-grade African-American urban students who showed reading and special education risk. The packaged intervention combined repeated readings and culturally relevant stories, delivered through a novel computer software program to enhance…

Relevant documents to IAEA regulations for the safe transport of radioactive materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

El-Shinawy, R.M.K.; Sabek, M.G.; Gomma, M.

1998-01-01

IAEA regulations for the safe transport of radioactive materials provide standards for insuring a high level of safety of people, property, and environment against radiation, contamination, and criticality hazards as well as thermal effects associated with the transport of radioactive materials. IAEA routinely publishes technical reports which are relevant to radioactive material transportation such as INTERTRAN, directory of transport packaging test facilities, and others. A case study was performed to assess the impact of transporting radioactive materials through the suez canal using the two computer codes namely INTERTRAN and RADTRAN-4 which are part of IAEA technical documents. A comparison of the results of these two codes is given

Nanoparticle dispersion in environmentally relevant culture media: a TiO2 case study and considerations for a general approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horst, Allison M.; Ji, Zhaoxia; Holden, Patricia A.

2012-01-01

Nanoparticle exposure in toxicity studies requires that nanoparticles are bioavailable by remaining highly dispersed in culture media. However, reported dispersion approaches are variable, mostly study-specific, and not transferable owing to their empirical basis. Furthermore, many published approaches employ proteinaceous dispersants in rich laboratory media, both of which represent end members in environmental scenarios. Here, a systematic approach was developed to disperse initially agglomerated TiO 2 nanoparticles (Aeroxide® TiO 2 P25, Evonik, NJ; primary particle size range 6.4–73.8 nm) in oligotrophic culture medium for environmentally relevant bacterial toxicity studies. Based on understanding particle–particle interactions in aqueous media and maintaining environmental relevance, the approach involves (1) quantifying the relationship between pH and zeta potential to determine the point of zero charge of select nanoparticles in water; (2) nominating, then testing and selecting, environmentally relevant stabilizing agents; and (3) dispersing via “condition and capture” whereby stock dry powder nanoparticles are sonicated in pre-conditioned (with base, or acid, plus stabilizing agent) water, then diluted into culture media. The “condition and capture” principle is transferable to other nanoparticle and media chemistries: simultaneously, mechanically and electrostatically, nanoparticles can be dispersed with surrounding stabilizers that coat and sterically hinder reagglomeration in the culture medium.

Current R and D status on material motion and interactions relevant to core disruptive accidents

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kondo, Satoru [Safety Engineering Division, O-arai Engineering Center, Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation, O-arai, Ibaraki (Japan)

1994-07-01

In this paper, the current status of research and development activities are briefly reviewed on evaluation of material-coolant interactions and material movement and relocation relevant to the safety of liquid-metal fast reactors. Since the status of European activities are well summarized in other papers submitted to the present meeting, the activities in Japan and the United States are highlighted in this paper. The review includes: out-of-pile experiments, in-pile experiments and relevant computer code development. It is emphasized that improved understanding on material motion has contributed to establishing more realistic and rational safety evaluation methods, where various mitigation mechanisms are inherently effective. (author)

Why relevance theory is relevant for lexicography

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bothma, Theo; Tarp, Sven

2014-01-01

This article starts by providing a brief summary of relevance theory in information science in relation to the function theory of lexicography, explaining the different types of relevance, viz. objective system relevance and the subjective types of relevance, i.e. topical, cognitive, situational...... that is very important for lexicography as well as for information science, viz. functional relevance. Since all lexicographic work is ultimately aimed at satisfying users’ information needs, the article then discusses why the lexicographer should take note of all these types of relevance when planning a new...... dictionary project, identifying new tasks and responsibilities of the modern lexicographer. The article furthermore discusses how relevance theory impacts on teaching dictionary culture and reference skills. By integrating insights from lexicography and information science, the article contributes to new...

Cross-cultural relevance of the Interpersonal Theory of suicide across Korean and U.S. undergraduate students.

Science.gov (United States)

Suh, Sooyeon; Ebesutani, Chad K; Hagan, Christopher R; Rogers, Megan L; Hom, Melanie A; Ringer, Fallon B; Bernert, Rebecca A; Kim, Soohyun; Joiner, Thomas E

2017-05-01

This study investigated the cross-cultural relevance and validity of the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide (ITS) utilizing young adult samples from South Korea (n =554) and the United States (U.S.; n =390). To examine the ITS, all participants completed self-report questionnaires measuring Thwarted Belongingness, Perceived Burdensomeness, and Capability for Suicide. We examined whether each construct significantly predicted the severity of suicidal risk in both samples. We also determined whether the strength of the effects of Thwarted Belongingness and Perceived Burdensomeness on suicidal ideation differed between the two samples due to the greater degree of importance placed on interpersonal relationships in collectivistic cultures such as South Korea. Structural equation modeling was used to examine these hypotheses. Thwarted Belongingness, Perceived Burdensomeness, and Capability for Suicide significantly predicted elevated suicidal risk. However, there were no significant differences in the paths from Thwarted Belongingness or Perceived Burdensomeness to suicide risk between the South Korean and U.S. These findings support the cross-cultural relevance and applicability of the ITS, whereby Thwarted Belongingness and Perceived Burdensomeness serve as indicators of suicide risk in both Western (U.S.) and East Asian (Korean) samples. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Material Culture and Cultural Meanings: Current Studies of Archaeological Ceramics and in Ce­ramic Ethnoarchaeology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charles C. Kolb

2000-05-01

Full Text Available Pottery and People: A Dynamic Interaction. James M. Skibo and Gary M. Feinman (editors. Founda­tions of Archaeological Inquiry. Salt Lake City. University of Utah Press. 1999. 260 pp. 91 figures. 30 tables. ISBN 0-87480-576-7. $55.00 (cloth; 0-87489-577-5. $25.00 (paperback. Material Meanings: Critical Approaches to the Interpretation of Material Culture. Elizabeth S. Chilton (editor. Foundations of Archaeological Inquiry. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press. 1999.179pp. 35 figures. 11 tables. ISBN 0-87480-632-1. $55.00 (cloth; 087480-633-X. $35.00 (paperback. The description and interpretation of material culture may be regarded as the essence of archaeology, a discipline that seeks to recover, describe, document, and interpret past human culture. More recently, understanding that actions occur in a material world that is constituted symbolically, archaeological explanations are often framed in sociocultural meanings, the analysis of agencies, practices and behaviors. I shall subsequently return to this issue. Because of their longevity in the archaeological record, lithic and ceramic artifacts are crucial to the endeavor to interpret human culture. Objects fashioned from clay and subjected to intentional artificial sources of heat made their initial appearance in the archaeological record more than 26.000 years ago. Ceramic objects have been created in a seemingly endless variety of shapes and forms, varying from fertility figurines. to cooking and food storage vessels. lamps, smoking pipes, medicinal pastilles, tokens, beehives, and coffins to modern whitewares and pyroceramics.

Material Culture and Daily Hygiene in Córdoba in the Nineteenth Century

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cecilia Moreyra

2017-06-01

Full Text Available From the history of everyday life and material culture studies, in this paper we describe and analyze household cleaning practices in the city of Cordoba (Argentina. We look for the presence (or absence of material objects and rooms for the daily hygiene in post mortem inventories. Changes in material culture and the domestic architecture allow us to recognize both changes as stays in the sensibilities and the ideas of cleanliness and dirtiness.

Ramón Reichert and Annika Richterich, eds., Digital Material/ism Vol. 1, Issue 1 – Digital Culture and Society

OpenAIRE

Pournara, Lizzy

2017-01-01

Ramón Reichert and Annika Richterich, eds., Digital Material/ism Vol. 1, Issue 1 – Digital Culture and Society Bielefeld: [transcript] Verlag, 2015. ISBN 978-3-8376-3153-1. Lizzy Pournara Aristotle University of Thessaloniki The issue Digital Material/ism edited by Ramón Reichert and Annika Richterich inaugurates the first volume of the journal Digital Culture & Society. The significance of this volume’s work lies in its attempt to redress the concept of materiality in digital environments an...

Big brains, small worlds: material culture and the evolution of the mind.

Science.gov (United States)

Coward, Fiona; Gamble, Clive

2008-06-12

New developments in neuroimaging have demonstrated that the basic capacities underpinning human social skills are shared by our closest extant primate relatives. The challenge for archaeologists is to explain how complex human societies evolved from this shared pattern of face-to-face social interaction. We argue that a key process was the gradual incorporation of material culture into social networks over the course of hominin evolution. Here we use three long-term processes in hominin evolution-encephalization, the global human diaspora and sedentism/agriculture-to illustrate how the cultural transmission of material culture allowed the 'scaling up' of face-to-face social interactions to the global societies known today. We conclude that future research by neuroimagers and archaeologists will need to investigate the cognitive mechanisms behind human engagement with material culture as well as other persons.

Hispanic Culture and Relational Cultural Theory

Science.gov (United States)

Ruiz, Elizabeth

2005-01-01

Traditional personality theories do not consider the impact of culture on personality development. Yet, to provide culturally relevant services to the increasing Hispanic population in the U.S., more culturally relevant theories must be identified. This paper presents Relational Cultural Theory (RCT) as an alternative model to understanding…

German Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the German Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the German Language and Culture Nine-year…

Punjabi Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the Punjabi Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the Punjabi Language and Culture Nine-year…

Improving Elementary School Students’ English Vocabulary Through Local Cultural Content Materials

OpenAIRE

Frans Manurung; Ignatius Harjanto

2015-01-01

Abstract Elementary students of a certain public school in Indonesia had difficulties in learning English. One of the crucial problems was learning English vocabulary. In an attempt to help the students learn and improve English vocabulary, the researchers decided to use CAR to teach English vocabulary with local cultural content materials. The aim of this study was to investigate how the teaching of English vocabulary with local cultural content materials contributed to the improvement ...

Teaching the First Ladies using Material Culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Mayo, Edith P.

2001-01-01

Addresses two aspects of the First Lady's role that are applicable to the use of material culture in the classroom: (1) the First Lady's social role, its impact on the presidential administration, and its use as a reflection of the changing status of the nation; and (2) the First Lady's role as campaigner. (CMK)

The relevance of cultural factors in predicting condom-use intentions among immigrants from the Netherlands Antilles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kocken, P.L.; Dorst, A.G. van; Schaalma, H.

2006-01-01

A study into the relevance of cultural factors in predicting condom-use intentions among Antillean migrants in the Netherlands is described in this article. The association between the intention to use condoms with a new sexual partner and a perceived taboo on discussing sex, beliefs about sex

Complicating Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: Unpacking West African Immigrants' Cultural Identities

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Keisha McIntosh; Jackson, Iesha; Knight, Michelle G.

2012-01-01

This study presents findings from a case study of 18 second- and 1.5-generation West African immigrants. We draw upon notions of elusive culture and indigenous knowledges to highlight participants' complex cultural identities and respond to anti-immigration discourses through positioning West African immigrant students as assets in American…

Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) as a Culturally Relevant Pedagogy (CRP) in Qatar: a Perspective from Grade 10 Chemistry Classes

Science.gov (United States)

Treagust, David F.; Qureshi, Sheila S.; Vishnumolakala, Venkat Rao; Ojeil, Joseph; Mocerino, Mauro; Southam, Daniel C.

2018-04-01

Educational reforms in Qatar have seen the implementation of inquiry-based learning and other student-centred pedagogies. However, there have been few efforts to investigate how these adopted western pedagogies are aligned with the high context culture of Qatar. The study presented in this article highlights the implementation of a student-centred intervention called Process-Oriented Guided Inquiry Learning (POGIL) in selected independent Arabic government schools in Qatar. The study followed a theoretical framework composed of culturally relevant pedagogical practice and social constructivism in teaching and learning. A mixed method research design involving experimental and comparison groups was utilised. Carefully structured learning materials when implemented systematically in a POGIL intervention helped Grade 10 science students improve their perceptions of chemistry learning measured from pre- and post-tests as measured by the What Is Happening In this Class (WIHIC) questionnaire and school-administered achievement test. The study further provided school-based mentoring and professional development opportunities for teachers in the region. Significantly, POGIL was found to be adaptable in the Arabic context.

The influence of self-relevant materials on working memory in dysphoric undergraduates.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Qin; Rahman, Shaoon; Lau, Becky; Sook Kim, Hyang; Deldin, Patricia

2015-10-30

Difficulties in updating working memory (WM) may underlie problems with regulating emotions that contribute to depression. To examine the ability of updating affective materials in WM, 33 dysphoric and 34 non-dysphoric participants were asked to evaluate the self-descriptiveness of emotional adjectives and provide answers to self-relevant questions. Within 3-7 days, they completed a two-back task with a series of self-irrelevant or self-relevant emotional words (they had generated previously) and four conditions (match-set, break-set, perseveration-set, and no-set). After the WM task, an unexpected recall task was administered; controls recalled more positive self-relevant words and intrusions while dysphoric participants recalled more negative self-relevant words and intrusions. In break-set trials of the two-back task, dysphoric individuals showed slower response to self-relevant words regardless of valence. In the match-set and perseveration-set trials, dysphoric participants showed delayed response to self-related negative words. Moreover, longer reaction times for self-relevant negative words were correlated with higher rumination and worse depression. The results suggest that dysphoric undergraduates are interfered more by and have a better memory of self-relevant negative stimuli in WM, which is closely correlated with rumination. This study is among the first to confirm the potential mechanism that could underwrite the involvement of self-schema in effectively regulating negative affect. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Towards cultural materialism in the medical humanities: the case of blood rejuvenation

Science.gov (United States)

2018-01-01

This paper argues for an approach within the medical humanities that draws on the theoretical legacy of cultural materialism as a framework for reading cultural practices and their relationship to the social and economic order. It revisits the origins and development of cultural materialism in cultural studies and literary studies between the 1970s and 1990s and considers how, with adaptation, this methodology might facilitate ideological criticism focused on material formations of health, disease and the human body. I outline three key characteristics of a medicocultural materialist approach along these lines: (a) interdisciplinary work on a broad range of medical and cultural sources, including those drawn from ‘popular’ forms of culture; (b) the combination of historicist analysis with scrutiny of present-day contexts; (c) analyses that engage with political economy perspectives and/or the work of medical sociology in this area. The subsequent sections of the paper employ a medicocultural materialist approach to examine conjectural understandings of, and empirical investigations into, the capacity of transfused human blood to rejuvenate the ageing body. I trace textual faultlines that expose the structures of power which inform the movement of blood between bodies in ‘medical gothic’ fictions from the 19th-century fin de siècle, including Mary Elizabeth Braddon's ‘Good Lady Ducayne’ (1896) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). I conclude with a critique of biomedical innovations in blood rejuvenation in the era of medical neoliberalism, before considering the potential applications of medicocultural materialism to other topics within the field of the medical humanities. PMID:28495908

Genomic instability of osteosarcoma cell lines in culture: impact on the prediction of metastasis relevant genes.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roman Muff

Full Text Available Osteosarcoma is a rare but highly malignant cancer of the bone. As a consequence, the number of established cell lines used for experimental in vitro and in vivo osteosarcoma research is limited and the value of these cell lines relies on their stability during culture. Here we investigated the stability in gene expression by microarray analysis and array genomic hybridization of three low metastatic cell lines and derivatives thereof with increased metastatic potential using cells of different passages.The osteosarcoma cell lines showed altered gene expression during in vitro culture, and it was more pronounced in two metastatic cell lines compared to the respective parental cells. Chromosomal instability contributed in part to the altered gene expression in SAOS and LM5 cells with low and high metastatic potential. To identify metastasis-relevant genes in a background of passage-dependent altered gene expression, genes involved in "Pathways in cancer" that were consistently regulated under all passage comparisons were evaluated. Genes belonging to "Hedgehog signaling pathway" and "Wnt signaling pathway" were significantly up-regulated, and IHH, WNT10B and TCF7 were found up-regulated in all three metastatic compared to the parental cell lines.Considerable instability during culture in terms of gene expression and chromosomal aberrations was observed in osteosarcoma cell lines. The use of cells from different passages and a search for genes consistently regulated in early and late passages allows the analysis of metastasis-relevant genes despite the observed instability in gene expression in osteosarcoma cell lines during culture.

Genomic instability of osteosarcoma cell lines in culture: impact on the prediction of metastasis relevant genes.

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Muff, Roman; Rath, Prisni; Ram Kumar, Ram Mohan; Husmann, Knut; Born, Walter; Baudis, Michael; Fuchs, Bruno

2015-01-01

Osteosarcoma is a rare but highly malignant cancer of the bone. As a consequence, the number of established cell lines used for experimental in vitro and in vivo osteosarcoma research is limited and the value of these cell lines relies on their stability during culture. Here we investigated the stability in gene expression by microarray analysis and array genomic hybridization of three low metastatic cell lines and derivatives thereof with increased metastatic potential using cells of different passages. The osteosarcoma cell lines showed altered gene expression during in vitro culture, and it was more pronounced in two metastatic cell lines compared to the respective parental cells. Chromosomal instability contributed in part to the altered gene expression in SAOS and LM5 cells with low and high metastatic potential. To identify metastasis-relevant genes in a background of passage-dependent altered gene expression, genes involved in "Pathways in cancer" that were consistently regulated under all passage comparisons were evaluated. Genes belonging to "Hedgehog signaling pathway" and "Wnt signaling pathway" were significantly up-regulated, and IHH, WNT10B and TCF7 were found up-regulated in all three metastatic compared to the parental cell lines. Considerable instability during culture in terms of gene expression and chromosomal aberrations was observed in osteosarcoma cell lines. The use of cells from different passages and a search for genes consistently regulated in early and late passages allows the analysis of metastasis-relevant genes despite the observed instability in gene expression in osteosarcoma cell lines during culture.

The Relevance of Cultural Factors in Predicting Condom-Use Intentions among Immigrants from the Netherlands Antilles

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Kocken, P. L.; van Dorst, A. G.; Schaalma, H.

2006-01-01

A study into the relevance of cultural factors in predicting condom-use intentions among Antillean migrants in the Netherlands is described in this article. The association between the intention to use condoms with a new sexual partner and a perceived taboo on discussing sex, beliefs about sex education and machismo beliefs on gender and power…

IMPLEMENTING A STUDENT-CENTERED PEDAGOGY THROUGH THE USE OF INTERESTING AND CULTURALLY CONTEXTUALIZED AUTHENTIC MATERIALS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tabitha Kidwell

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The selection and use of appropriate materials is one of the most critical challenges facing English teachers today. In this article, we tell the stories (vignettes of some of the major challenges we have faced as educators in this regard, and we offer a research base and practical suggestions related to each vignette. Selection of interesting and culturally contextualized authentic materials can go a long way towards creating a student-centered peddagogy. This will help to increase student motivation, achievemnt, and retention. Our first recommendation is to cultivate interst in the classroom. Interest can be elicited by selecting materials that lead to individual interest, students‘ personal interests, situational interest, the inherant interest in a specific situation like amystery or a puzzle, or topic interest, interest in the subject of the activity. An excellent way to elicit student interest is through the use of authentic materials. Teachers should endeavor to create interst in their classrooms by choosing interesting topics and texts, editing those texts, and using suspense and surprise. Our second suggestion is to use culturally contextualized authentic materials. These can come from two directions: either they can be situated in the culture of the students (the ―home‖ culture, or they can be situated in the culture of native speakers (the ―target‖ culture. Use of both types of cultural materials is important, and both can be termed ―authentic.‖ The most important point is that the materials are authentic, and therefore more meaningful to students.

Indigenous Knowledge and Language: Decolonizing Culturally Relevant Pedagogy in a Mapuche Intercultural Bilingual Education Program in Chile

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Ortiz, Patricio R.

2009-01-01

This article illustrates how Mapuche Indigenous knowledge (Kimun) and language (Mapudungun) incorporated into an Intercultural Bilingual Education (IBE) program of a school within a Mapuche context in Chile creates decolonizing counter-hegemonic narratives as forms of culturally relevant pedagogy. Based on a six-month school ethnography, this…

Health behavior change models and their socio-cultural relevance for breast cancer screening in African American women.

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Ashing-Giwa, K

1999-01-01

Models of health behavior provide the conceptual bases for most of the breast cancer screening intervention studies. These models were not designed for and have not been adequately tested with African American women. The models discussed in this paper are: The Health Belief Model, the Theory of Reasoned Action/Theory of Planned Behavior, and the Transtheoretical Model. This paper will examine the socio-cultural relevance of these health behavior models, and discuss specific socio-cultural dimensions that are not accounted for by these paradigms. It is critical that researchers include socio-cultural dimensions, such as interconnectedness, health socialization, ecological factors and health care system factors into their intervention models with African American women. Comprehensive and socio-culturally based investigations are necessary to guide the scientific and policy challenge for reducing breast cancer mortality in African American women.

A Case Study of Culturally Relevant School-Based Programming for First Nations Youth: Improved Relationships, Confidence and Leadership, and School Success

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Crooks, Claire V.; Burleigh, Dawn; Snowshoe, Angela; Lapp, Andrea; Hughes, Ray; Sisco, Ashley

2015-01-01

Schools are expected to promote social and emotional learning skills among youth; however, there is a lack of culturally-relevant programming available. The Fourth R: Uniting Our Nations programs for Aboriginal youth include strengths-based programs designed to promote healthy relationships and cultural connectedness, and improve school success…

Exploring the relevance of autonomy and relatedness for mental health in healthy and depressed women from two different cultures: when does culture matter?

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Balkir, Nazli; Arens, Elisabeth A; Barnow, Sven

2013-08-01

It is well known that the absence of both autonomy and social support (relatedness) are two important etiologic pathways to major depressive disorder (MDD). However, cross-cultural researchers state that the implications of autonomy and relatedness for mental health vary across cultures. To test these assumptions, the current study investigated the relevance of autonomy and relatedness for mental health in healthy and depressed women from two different cultures (Germans and Turkish immigrants in Germany). One hundred and eight (108) women were evaluated for their levels of autonomy/relatedness satisfaction, for overall psychopathological complaints including depression, for affectivity and for perceived loneliness through self-report measures. Among healthy groups, relatedness satisfaction predicted better mental health in Turkish women, whereas in German women, autonomy satisfaction was the better mental health predictor. Within depressed groups however, cultural differences in mental health outcomes regarding autonomy were no longer evident. Autonomy was associated with higher levels of mental health in Turkish as well as in German patients. Our findings indicate that the relationship between autonomy and mental health is culture-specific in healthy women, but disappears in depressed women. These findings are discussed with consideration of clinical implications and an outlook regarding further research.

Plant Materials are Sustainable Substrates Supporting New Technologies of Plant-Only-Based Culture Media for in vitro Culturing of the Plant Microbiota.

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Mourad, Elhussein F; Sarhan, Mohamed S; Daanaa, Hassan-Sibroe A; Abdou, Mennatullah; Morsi, Ahmed T; Abdelfadeel, Mohamed R; Elsawey, Hend; Nemr, Rahma; El-Tahan, Mahmoud; Hamza, Mervat A; Abbas, Mohamed; Youssef, Hanan H; Abdelhadi, Abdelhadi A; Amer, Wafaa M; Fayez, Mohamed; Ruppel, Silke; Hegazi, Nabil A

2018-03-29

In order to improve the culturability and biomass production of rhizobacteria, we previously introduced plant-only-based culture media. We herein attempted to widen the scope of plant materials suitable for the preparation of plant-only-based culture media. We chemically analyzed the refuse of turfgrass, cactus, and clover. They were sufficiently rich to support good in vitro growth by rhizobacteria isolates representing Proteobacteria and Firmicutes. They were also adequate and efficient to produce a cell biomass in liquid batch cultures. These culture media were as sufficient as artificial culture media for the cultivation and recovery of the in situ rhizobacteria of barley (Hordeum murinum L.). Based on culture-dependent (CFU plate counting) and culture-independent analyses (qPCR), mowed turfgrass, in particular, supported the highest culturable population of barley endophytes, representing >16% of the total bacterial number quantified with qPCR. This accurately reflected the endophytic community composition, in terms of diversity indices (S', H', and D') based on PCR-DGGE, and clustered the plant culture media together with the qPCR root populations away from the artificial culture media. Despite the promiscuous nature of the plant materials tested to culture the plant microbiome, our results indicated that plant materials of a homologous nature to the tested host plant, at least at the family level, and/or of the same environment were more likely to be selected. Plant-only-based culture media require further refinements in order to provide selectivity for the in vitro growth of members of the plant microbiome, particularly difficult-to-culture bacteria. This will provide insights into their hidden roles in the environment and support future culturomic studies.

Towards cultural materialism in the medical humanities: the case of blood rejuvenation.

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Oakley, Catherine

2018-03-01

This paper argues for an approach within the medical humanities that draws on the theoretical legacy of cultural materialism as a framework for reading cultural practices and their relationship to the social and economic order. It revisits the origins and development of cultural materialism in cultural studies and literary studies between the 1970s and 1990s and considers how, with adaptation, this methodology might facilitate ideological criticism focused on material formations of health, disease and the human body. I outline three key characteristics of a medicocultural materialist approach along these lines: (a) interdisciplinary work on a broad range of medical and cultural sources, including those drawn from 'popular' forms of culture; (b) the combination of historicist analysis with scrutiny of present-day contexts; (c) analyses that engage with political economy perspectives and/or the work of medical sociology in this area. The subsequent sections of the paper employ a medicocultural materialist approach to examine conjectural understandings of, and empirical investigations into, the capacity of transfused human blood to rejuvenate the ageing body. I trace textual faultlines that expose the structures of power which inform the movement of blood between bodies in 'medical gothic' fictions from the 19th-century fin de siècle, including Mary Elizabeth Braddon's 'Good Lady Ducayne' (1896) and Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897). I conclude with a critique of biomedical innovations in blood rejuvenation in the era of medical neoliberalism, before considering the potential applications of medicocultural materialism to other topics within the field of the medical humanities. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Cultural Literacy Based Critical Reading Teaching Material with Active Reader Strategy for Junior High School

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Damaianti, Vismaia S.; Damaianti, Lira Fessia; Mulyati, Yeti

2017-01-01

This article describes the findings of a study aimed at producing a set of cultural literacy-oriented critical reading teaching material. This material is developed as a countermeasure to the increasingly thin sensitivity of society, especially the students toward noble values of religion, custom, and culture. With this material student get a…

A long-term three dimensional liver co-culture system for improved prediction of clinically relevant drug-induced hepatotoxicity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kostadinova, Radina; Boess, Franziska; Applegate, Dawn; Suter, Laura; Weiser, Thomas; Singer, Thomas; Naughton, Brian; Roth, Adrian

2013-01-01

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is the major cause for liver failure and post-marketing drug withdrawals. Due to species-specific differences in hepatocellular function, animal experiments to assess potential liabilities of drug candidates can predict hepatotoxicity in humans only to a certain extent. In addition to animal experimentation, primary hepatocytes from rat or human are widely used for pre-clinical safety assessment. However, as many toxic responses in vivo are mediated by a complex interplay among different cell types and often require chronic drug exposures, the predictive performance of hepatocytes is very limited. Here, we established and characterized human and rat in vitro three-dimensional (3D) liver co-culture systems containing primary parenchymal and non-parenchymal hepatic cells. Our data demonstrate that cells cultured on a 3D scaffold have a preserved composition of hepatocytes, stellate, Kupffer and endothelial cells and maintain liver function for up to 3 months, as measured by the production of albumin, fibrinogen, transferrin and urea. Additionally, 3D liver co-cultures maintain cytochrome P450 inducibility, form bile canaliculi-like structures and respond to inflammatory stimuli. Upon incubation with selected hepatotoxicants including drugs which have been shown to induce idiosyncratic toxicity, we demonstrated that this model better detected in vivo drug-induced toxicity, including species-specific drug effects, when compared to monolayer hepatocyte cultures. In conclusion, our results underline the importance of more complex and long lasting in vitro cell culture models that contain all liver cell types and allow repeated drug-treatments for detection of in vivo-relevant adverse drug effects. - Highlights: ► 3D liver co-cultures maintain liver specific functions for up to three months. ► Activities of Cytochrome P450s remain drug- inducible accross three months. ► 3D liver co-cultures recapitulate drug-induced liver toxicity

A long-term three dimensional liver co-culture system for improved prediction of clinically relevant drug-induced hepatotoxicity

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kostadinova, Radina; Boess, Franziska [Non-Clinical Safety, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Grenzacherstrasse 124, Building 73 / Room 117b, 4070 Basel (Switzerland); Applegate, Dawn [RegeneMed, 9855 Towne Centre Drive Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92121 (United States); Suter, Laura; Weiser, Thomas; Singer, Thomas [Non-Clinical Safety, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Grenzacherstrasse 124, Building 73 / Room 117b, 4070 Basel (Switzerland); Naughton, Brian [RegeneMed, 9855 Towne Centre Drive Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92121 (United States); Roth, Adrian, E-mail: adrian_b.roth@roche.com [Non-Clinical Safety, Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Grenzacherstrasse 124, Building 73 / Room 117b, 4070 Basel (Switzerland)

2013-04-01

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is the major cause for liver failure and post-marketing drug withdrawals. Due to species-specific differences in hepatocellular function, animal experiments to assess potential liabilities of drug candidates can predict hepatotoxicity in humans only to a certain extent. In addition to animal experimentation, primary hepatocytes from rat or human are widely used for pre-clinical safety assessment. However, as many toxic responses in vivo are mediated by a complex interplay among different cell types and often require chronic drug exposures, the predictive performance of hepatocytes is very limited. Here, we established and characterized human and rat in vitro three-dimensional (3D) liver co-culture systems containing primary parenchymal and non-parenchymal hepatic cells. Our data demonstrate that cells cultured on a 3D scaffold have a preserved composition of hepatocytes, stellate, Kupffer and endothelial cells and maintain liver function for up to 3 months, as measured by the production of albumin, fibrinogen, transferrin and urea. Additionally, 3D liver co-cultures maintain cytochrome P450 inducibility, form bile canaliculi-like structures and respond to inflammatory stimuli. Upon incubation with selected hepatotoxicants including drugs which have been shown to induce idiosyncratic toxicity, we demonstrated that this model better detected in vivo drug-induced toxicity, including species-specific drug effects, when compared to monolayer hepatocyte cultures. In conclusion, our results underline the importance of more complex and long lasting in vitro cell culture models that contain all liver cell types and allow repeated drug-treatments for detection of in vivo-relevant adverse drug effects. - Highlights: ► 3D liver co-cultures maintain liver specific functions for up to three months. ► Activities of Cytochrome P450s remain drug- inducible accross three months. ► 3D liver co-cultures recapitulate drug-induced liver toxicity

Cultural Adaptation and Translation of Outreach Materials on Autism Spectrum Disorder

Science.gov (United States)

Grinker, Roy R.; Kang-Yi, Christina D.; Ahmann, Chloe; Beidas, Rinad S.; Lagman, Adrienne; Mandell, David S.

2015-01-01

In order to connect with families and influence treatment trajectories, outreach materials should address cultural perceptions of the condition, its causes, and post-diagnostic care. This paper describes the cultural adaptation and translation of the Autism Speaks First 100 Days Kit into Korean for the purpose of improving autism spectrum disorder…

Motivating Young Native American Students to Pursue STEM Learning Through a Culturally Relevant Science Program

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Stevens, Sally; Andrade, Rosi; Page, Melissa

2016-12-01

Data indicate that females and ethnic/race minority groups are underrepresented in the science and engineering workforce calling for innovative strategies to engage and retain them in science education and careers. This study reports on the development, delivery, and outcomes of a culturally driven science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) program, iSTEM, aimed at increasing engagement in STEM learning among Native American 3rd-8th grade students. A culturally relevant theoretical framework, Funds of Knowledge, informs the iSTEM program, a program based on the contention that the synergistic effect of a hybrid program combining two strategic approaches (1) in-school mentoring and (2) out-of-school informal science education experiences would foster engagement and interest in STEM learning. Students are paired with one of three types of mentors: Native American community members, university students, and STEM professionals. The iSTEM program is theme based with all program activities specifically relevant to Native people living in southern Arizona. Student mentees and mentors complete interactive flash STEM activities at lunch hour and attend approximately six field trips per year. Data from the iSTEM program indicate that the program has been successful in engaging Native American students in iSTEM as well as increasing their interest in STEM and their science beliefs.

The Relevance of Cultural and Media Studies to Theatre and Television in Bali

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark Hobart

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract A critical approach to Balinese society presents a starkly different picturefrom the representations that Balinese usually tell themselves, whichare largely myths to disguise a painful reality. Bali no longer belongsto Balinese but to international capital, a process of alienation by whichBalinese energetically commoditize their culture while claiming theopposite. Even the frames of reference for discussing what is happeningare inadequate because they predate the rise of contemporary consumercapitalism and the mass media. That is why critical media and culturalstudies, disciplines designed precisely to address such phenomena, arepotentially so relevant for Indonesian intellectuals.

Fixed, Fluid, and Transient: Negotiating Layers of Art Classroom Material Culture

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Woywod, Christine

2015-01-01

Objects of material culture have meaning. American flags, worktables, bulletin boards, interactive whiteboards, and large white-faced clocks signify "classroom" while color wheels, cupboards, cabinets, sinks, drawing supplies, and that particular scent that lingers after years of exposure to painting materials even more specifically…

Strength behaviour of sintered steel from the view of design-relevant material data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sonsino, C.M.; Esper, F.J.; Leuze, G.

1982-01-01

A reliable design of sintered components and an aimed material's selection requires the knowledge of designrelevant material data as Cyclic stress-strain-curves, crack propagation and fracture toughness properties as well as statistically evaluated S-N-curves, because conventional material data as tensile strength, monotonic yield strength, elongation, area reduction and impact strength can lead to a false estimation of the material's fatigue behaviour. For this reason the powder metallurgical industry began to determine design-relevant material data on the example of the porous Fe-Cu-C- and Fe-Cu-Ni-alloys. The fatigue tests with notched specimen and different modes of loading show that porous sintered parts having mechanical notches are less sensitive to external notches than wrought steel, because crack-propagation is delayed by pores. The possibility to manufacture cyclic hardening alloys, their relative notch-insensitivity and with wrought steel comparable scatter of fatigue properties show the importance of sintered alloys as alternative materials. (orig.) [de

Use of Neutron Beams for Materials Research Relevant to the Nuclear Energy Sector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2015-10-01

Nuclear technologies such as fission and fusion reactors, including associated waste storage and disposal, rely on the availability of not only nuclear fuels but also advanced structural materials. In 2010–2013, the IAEA organized and implemented the Coordinated Research Project (CRP) on Development, Characterization and Testing of Materials of Relevance to Nuclear Energy Sector Using Neutron Beams. A total of 19 institutions from 18 Member States (Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation (two institutions), South Africa, Switzerland and United States of America) cooperated with the main objective to address the use of various neutron beam techniques for characterization, testing and qualification of materials and components produced or under development for applications in the nuclear energy sector. This CRP aimed to bring stakeholders and end users of research reactors and accelerator based neutron sources together for the enhanced use of available facilities and development of new infrastructures for applied materials research. Work envisioned under this CRP was related to the optimization and validation of neutron beam techniques, including facility and instrument modifications/optimizations as well as improved data acquisition, processing and analysis systems. Particular emphasis was placed on variable environments during material characterization and testing as required by some applications such as intensive irradiation load, high temperature and high pressure conditions, and the presence of strong magnetic fields. Targeted neutron beam techniques were neutron diffraction, small angle neutron scattering and digital neutron radiography/tomography. This publication is a compilation of the main results and findings of the CRP, and the CD-ROM accompanying this publication contains 19 reports with additional relevant technical details

THE FEDERAL LIST OF EXTREMIST MATERIALS AS A CULTURAL ARTEFACT “FAN-FICTION”

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E. V. Salnikov

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The article suggests the analysis of problem of counteraction to distribution of extremist materials. According to the author, a strictly legal interpretation of the Federal list of extremist materials ignores the problem of the nature of extremist materials and the question of the applicability of this concept. As a result extremist materials can be understood as phantom, determined by fight the power with its political opponents. Overcoming this negative interpretation is possible through the interpretation of extremist materials in the context of the practices of the prohibition of texts that took place in society at different historical stages. Qualitative difference of extremist materials from other forms of censorship sets a postmodern culture in which there is a transformation of the concept of the author of the text up until his disappearance. This is the epitome of cultures fan-fiction – free community of persons who in their literary works – fanfiction – develop, modify or refine some of the original idea, embodied in a book, film, computer game. The author offers the interpretation of extremist materials as of fanfics object, where the list of extremist materials sets the boundaries of the field of extremist ideas, acting as a marker of the space limitation of the creative generation of information in the world of mass culture.

Culture through Comparison: Creating Audio-Visual Listening Materials for a CLIL Course

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Zhyrun, Iryna

2016-01-01

Authentic listening has become a part of CLIL materials, but it can be difficult to find listening materials that perfectly match the language level, length requirements, content, and cultural context of a course. The difficulty of finding appropriate materials online, financial limitations posed by copyright fees, and necessity to produce…

A critical review of cell culture strategies for modelling intracortical brain implant material reactions.

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Gilmour, A D; Woolley, A J; Poole-Warren, L A; Thomson, C E; Green, R A

2016-06-01

The capacity to predict in vivo responses to medical devices in humans currently relies greatly on implantation in animal models. Researchers have been striving to develop in vitro techniques that can overcome the limitations associated with in vivo approaches. This review focuses on a critical analysis of the major in vitro strategies being utilized in laboratories around the world to improve understanding of the biological performance of intracortical, brain-implanted microdevices. Of particular interest to the current review are in vitro models for studying cell responses to penetrating intracortical devices and their materials, such as electrode arrays used for brain computer interface (BCI) and deep brain stimulation electrode probes implanted through the cortex. A background on the neural interface challenge is presented, followed by discussion of relevant in vitro culture strategies and their advantages and disadvantages. Future development of 2D culture models that exhibit developmental changes capable of mimicking normal, postnatal development will form the basis for more complex accurate predictive models in the future. Although not within the scope of this review, innovations in 3D scaffold technologies and microfluidic constructs will further improve the utility of in vitro approaches. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Social Studies Pedagogy for Latino/a Newcomer Youth: Toward a Theory of Culturally and Linguistically Relevant Citizenship Education

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Jaffee, Ashley Taylor

2016-01-01

This study examines how teachers in 4 urban newcomer high schools conceptualized and implemented social studies education for Latino/a newcomer youth through an emerging framework of culturally and linguistically relevant citizenship education. Through a multi-site, collective case study design, the perspectives and decision making of social…

Analytical techniques for characterization of raw materials in cell culture media

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sharma Chandana

2011-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Raw materials are a critical part of any cell culture medium; therefore, it is of utmost importance to understand and characterize them for high-quality product. The raw material characterization (RMC program at SAFC focuses on individual screening of raw materials both analytically and biologically. The goal of the program is to develop the best-in-class knowledge base of the raw materials used in SAFC’s media formulations and their impact on performance of products.

How to offer culturally relevant type 2 diabetes screening: lessons learned from the South asian diabetes prevention program.

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van Draanen, Jenna; Shafique, Ammara; Farissi, Aziz; Wickramanayake, Dilani; Kuttaiya, Sheela; Oza, Shobha; Stephens, Neil

2014-10-01

The literature on diabetes mellitus in the South Asian population clearly states the high-risk status of this group, yet there is a lack of effective models of culturally relevant, community-based screening and education programs for such a group. The South Asian Diabetes Prevention Program (SADPP) was developed to enhance equitable access to diabetes prevention resources for the South Asian communities in Toronto by offering language-specific and culturally relevant services. The SADPP model works through 3 participant education sessions plus an additional attachment and enrolment component. The screening tool that SADPP uses to provide participants with their individual risk score at the first education session is derived from the multiculturally validated Canadian Diabetes Risk Assessment Questionnaire (CANRISK), which has been modified to reflect the distinctive characteristics of the South Asian population. After analyzing the risk scores, 32% of participants were at increased risk, 40% were at high risk, 21% were at very high risk and only 7% were found to be at low risk of diabetes development. Evaluations of the program conducted in 2010 and 2013 revealed that the program is achieving its objectives and that participants increase their knowledge and self-efficacy related to diabetes prevention after program participation. Participants reported that the presentation from the nurse and dietitian, the question-and-answer time, the healthy eating demonstration, the multiple languages of delivery and the convenient location were especially beneficial. Those working in the field are encouraged to adapt this model and to contribute to the development of culturally relevant, community-driven diabetes prevention programs. Copyright © 2014 Canadian Diabetes Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assessing environmental effects on organic materials in cultural heritage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Boyatzis, Stamatis; Ioakimoglou, Eleni; Facorellis, Yorgos

2015-01-01

Under the auspices of INVENVORG (Thales Research Funding Program – NRSF), and within a holistic approach for assessing environmental effects on organic materials in cultural heritage (CH) artefacts, the effect of artificial ageing on elemental and molecular damage and their effects...... on the structural integrity of bone was investigated. Metapodial roe deer bone samples were artificially aged under humidity and atmospheres of sulfur and nitrogen oxides in room temperature. Elemental micro-analysis of bone material through SEM-EDX and molecular investigations through FTIR and Raman spectroscopy...

Relevant optical properties for direct restorative materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Pecho, Oscar E; Ghinea, Razvan; do Amaral, Erika A Navarro; Cardona, Juan C; Della Bona, Alvaro; Pérez, María M

2016-05-01

To evaluate relevant optical properties of esthetic direct restorative materials focusing on whitened and translucent shades. Enamel (E), body (B), dentin (D), translucent (T) and whitened (Wh) shades for E (WhE) and B (WhB) from a restorative system (Filtek Supreme XTE, 3M ESPE) were evaluated. Samples (1 mm thick) were prepared. Spectral reflectance (R%) and color coordinates (L*, a*, b*, C* and h°) were measured against black and white backgrounds, using a spectroradiometer, in a viewing booth, with CIE D65 illuminant and d/0° geometry. Scattering (S) and absorption (K) coefficients and transmittance (T%) were calculated using Kubelka-Munk's equations. Translucency (TP) and opalescence (OP) parameters and whiteness index (W*) were obtained from differences of CIELAB color coordinates. R%, S, K and T% curves from all shades were compared using VAF (Variance Accounting For) coefficient with Cauchy-Schwarz inequality. Color coordinates and optical parameters were statistically analyzed using one-way ANOVA, Tukey's test with Bonferroni correction (α=0.0007). Spectral behavior of R% and S were different for T shades. In addition, T shades showed the lowest R%, S and K values, as well as the highest T%, TP an OP values. In most cases, WhB shades showed different color and optical properties (including TP and W*) than their corresponding B shades. WhE shades showed similar mean W* values and higher mean T% and TP values than E shades. When using whitened or translucent composites, the final color is influenced not only by the intraoral background but also by the color and optical properties of multilayers used in the esthetic restoration. Copyright © 2016 Academy of Dental Materials. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Contingencies and metacontingencies: Toward a synthesis of behavior analysis and cultural materialism

Science.gov (United States)

Glenn, Sigrid S.

1988-01-01

A synthesis of cultural materialism and behavior analysis might increase the scientific and technological value of both fields. Conceptual and substantive relations between the two fields show important similarities, particularly with regard to the causal role of the environment in behavioral and cultural evolution. Key concepts in Marvin Harris's cultural materialist theories are outlined. A distinction is made between contingencies at the behavioral level of analysis (contingencies of reinforcement) and contingencies at the cultural level of analysis (metacontingencies). Relations between the two kinds of contingencies are explored in cultural practices from paleolithic to industrial sociocultural systems. A synthesis of these two fields may offer the opportunity to resolve serious problems currently facing modern cultures. PMID:22478011

An Examination of Culturally Relevant Stressors, Coping, Ethnic Identity, and Subjective Well-Being in Urban, Ethnic Minority Adolescents

Science.gov (United States)

Vera, Elizabeth M.; Vacek, Kimberly; Coyle, Laura D.; Stinson, Jennifer; Mull, Megan; Doud, Katherine; Buchheit, Christine; Gorman, Catherine; Hewitt, Amber; Keene, Chesleigh; Blackmon, Sha'kema; Langrehr, Kimberly J.

2011-01-01

This study explored relations between culturally relevant stressors (i.e., urban hassles, perceived discrimination) and subjective well-being (SWB; i.e., positive/ negative affect, life satisfaction) to examine whether ethnic identity and/or coping strategies would serve as moderators of the relations between stress and SWB for 157 urban, ethnic…

State-dependent cognition and its relevance to cultural evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Nettle, Daniel

2018-02-05

Individuals cope with their worlds by using information. In humans in particular, an important potential source of information is cultural tradition. Evolutionary models have examined when it is advantageous to use cultural information, and psychological studies have examined the cognitive biases and priorities that may transform cultural traditions over time. However, these studies have not generally incorporated the idea that individuals vary in state. I argue that variation in state is likely to influence the relative payoffs of using cultural information versus gathering personal information; and also that people in different states will have different cognitive biases and priorities, leading them to transform cultural information in different ways. I explore hunger as one example of state variable likely to have consequences for cultural evolution. Variation in state has the potential to explain why cultural traditions and dynamics are so variable between individuals and populations. It offers evolutionarily-grounded links between the ecology in which individuals live, individual-level cognitive processes, and patterns of culture. However, incorporating heterogeneity of state also makes the modelling of cultural evolution more complex, particularly if the distribution of states is itself influenced by the distribution of cultural beliefs and practices. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Nuclear weapon relevant materials and preventive arms control. Uranium-free fuels for plutonium elimination and spallation neutron sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liebert, Wolfgang; Englert, Matthias; Pistner, Christoph

2009-01-01

Today, the most significant barrier against the access to nuclear weapons is to take hold on sufficient amounts of nuclear weapon-relevant nuclear materials. It is mainly a matter of fissionable materials (like highly enriched uranium and plutonium) but also of fusionable tritium. These can be used as reactor fuel in civil nuclear programmes but also in nuclear weapon programmes. To stop or to hinder nuclear proliferation, in consequence, there is not only a need to analyse open or covered political objectives and intentions. In the long term, it might be more decisive to analyse the intrinsic civil-military ambivalence of nuclear materials and technologies, which are suitable for sensitive material production. A farsighted strategy to avoid proliferation dangers should take much more account to technical capabilities as it is done in the political debate on nuclear non-proliferation so far. If a technical option is at a state's disposal, it is extremely difficult and lengthy to revert that again. The dangers, which one has to react to, are stemming from already existing stocks of nuclear weapon-relevant materials - in the military as well as in the civil realm - and from existing or future technologies, which are suitable for the production of such materials (cf. info 1 and 2). Therefore, the overall approach of this research project is to strive for a drastic reduction of the access to nuclear weapon-relevant material and its production capabilities. Thus, on one hand the nuclear proliferation by state actors could be answered more effectively, on the other hand by that approach a decisive barrier against the access on nuclear weapons by sub-national groups and terrorists could also be erected. For this purpose, safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and other measures of physical accountancy will remain indispensable elements of arms control. However, one has to consider that the goal of nuclear non-proliferation could not be achieved and

IFMIF, a fusion relevant neutron source for material irradiation current status

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knaster, J.; Chel, S.; Fischer, U.; Groeschel, F.; Heidinger, R.; Ibarra, A.; Micciche, G.; Möslang, A.; Sugimoto, M.; Wakai, E.

2014-01-01

The d-Li based International Fusion Materials Irradiation Facility (IFMIF) will provide a high neutron intensity neutron source with a suitable neutron spectrum to fulfil the requirements for testing and qualifying fusion materials under fusion reactor relevant irradiation conditions. The IFMIF project, presently in its Engineering Validation and Engineering Design Activities (EVEDA) phase under the Broader Approach (BA) Agreement between Japan Government and EURATOM, aims at the construction and testing of the most challenging facility sub-systems, such as the first accelerator stage, the Li target and loop, and irradiation test modules, as well as the design of the entire facility, thus to be ready for the IFMIF construction with a clear understanding of schedule and cost at the termination of the BA mid-2017. The paper reviews the IFMIF facility and its principles, and reports on the status of the EVEDA activities and achievements

Slice cultures of the imprinting-relevant forebrain area MNH of the domestic chick: quantitative characterization of neuronal morphology.

Science.gov (United States)

Hofmann, H; Braun, K

1995-05-26

The persistence of morphological features of neurons in slice cultures of the imprinting-relevant forebrain area MNH (mediorostral neostriatum and hyperstriatum ventrale) of the domestic chick was analysed at 7, 14, 21 and 28 days in vitro. After having been explanted and kept in culture the neurons in vitro have larger soma areas, longer and more extensively branched dendritic trees and lower spine frequencies compared to the neurons in vivo. During the analyzed culturing period, the parameters soma area, total and mean dendritic length, number of dendrites, number of dendritic nodes per dendrite and per neuron as well as the spine densities in different dendritic segments showed no significant differences between early and late periods. Highly correlated in every age group were the total dendritic length and the number of dendritic nodes per neuron, indicating regular ramification during dendritic growth. Since these morphological parameters remain stable during the first 4 weeks in vitro, this culture system may provide a suitable model to investigate experimentally induced morphological changes.

Culture in Teaching EFL in Saudi Arabia from Learners’ Perspective

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Nasir Uddin

2017-03-01

Full Text Available This paper aims to study the attitude of Saudi Arabian undergraduate English students towards the American and British culture by studying their attitude to materials with relevant cultural contents in their textbooks. As strict followers of Islamic principles, the learner might be misunderstood to be reactive to the cultural contents of the nations of completely different culture. However, primary data shows that the learners are more tolerant in their attitude to the English culture than they socially appear to be, but they are keen to learn English as a language with relatively less interest in its cultural aspects.

Estimating alcohol content of traditional brew in Western Kenya using culturally relevant methods: the case for cost over volume.

Science.gov (United States)

Papas, Rebecca K; Sidle, John E; Wamalwa, Emmanuel S; Okumu, Thomas O; Bryant, Kendall L; Goulet, Joseph L; Maisto, Stephen A; Braithwaite, R Scott; Justice, Amy C

2010-08-01

Traditional homemade brew is believed to represent the highest proportion of alcohol use in sub-Saharan Africa. In Eldoret, Kenya, two types of brew are common: chang'aa, spirits, and busaa, maize beer. Local residents refer to the amount of brew consumed by the amount of money spent, suggesting a culturally relevant estimation method. The purposes of this study were to analyze ethanol content of chang'aa and busaa; and to compare two methods of alcohol estimation: use by cost, and use by volume, the latter the current international standard. Laboratory results showed mean ethanol content was 34% (SD = 14%) for chang'aa and 4% (SD = 1%) for busaa. Standard drink unit equivalents for chang'aa and busaa, respectively, were 2 and 1.3 (US) and 3.5 and 2.3 (Great Britain). Using a computational approach, both methods demonstrated comparable results. We conclude that cost estimation of alcohol content is more culturally relevant and does not differ in accuracy from the international standard.

Gelatin methacrylamide as coating material in cell culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Egger, Michael; Tovar, Günter E M; Hoch, Eva; Southan, Alexander

2016-06-13

Unmodified gelatin (uG) is widely used as a coating material in cell culture for improving surface properties. In this study, the authors investigated if gelatin methacrylamide (GM) with a medium degree of methacrylamide modification (GM1.5) and a high degree of methacrylamide modification (GM4) are equally suitable for this purpose. Therefore, gold surfaces were coated with uG, GM1.5, and GM4 by adsorption of the polymers on the surfaces. Coating success was confirmed by spectroscopic ellipsometry, contact angle measurements, surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy (SPRS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The authors found that upon adsorption of uG, GM1.5, a nd GM4 on gold, thin films with thicknesses of 2.95 nm, 2.50 nm, and 2.26 nm were formed. The coated surfaces showed advancing contact angles of 46° (uG and GM1.5) and 52° (GM4) without alteration of the surface roughness determined by AFM. Protein adsorption taking place on the coated surfaces was measured during contact of the surfaces with fetal calf serum by SPRS. Protein adsorption on the coated surfaces was reduced by the factor of 6.4 (uG), 5.4 (GM1.5), and 4.6 (GM4) compared to gold surfaces. Human fibroblasts cultured on the surfaces showed excellent viability shown by water soluble tetrazolium salt assay as well as live/dead staining with propidium iodide and fluorescein diacetate. No cytotoxic effects of the GM coated surfaces were observed, giving rise to the conclusion that GMs are suitable materials as coatings in cell culture.

Teaching Material Culture and Chinese Gardens at American Colleges

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Li Han

2012-11-01

Full Text Available The paper reflects on the experience of designing and teaching a course on material culture and Chinese gardens. Involving traditional philosophy, ethics, religion, painting, calligraphy, craft, literature, architecture and horticulture, a classical Chinese garden can be considered a microcosm of Chinese culture. This essay discusses the textbooks and general organization of the course, particularly focusing on how students study the key elements (rocks, water, plants and architecture in building a Chinese garden. Some Chinese literature with representations of gardens that can be used for this class is also introduced. In addition, this essay uses two classical Chinese gardens built in the United States (the Astor Court and the Garden of Flowing Fragrance to discuss the appropriation of “Chinese-ness” in different geographical, physical and cultural environments. Finally, some available online resources and technologies that have enhanced student understanding of the subject matter are introduced.

Looking at, Engaging More: Approaches for Investigating Material Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Blandy, Doug; Bolin, Paul E.

2012-01-01

Objects of material culture are not always those items most commonly explored in the art classroom, and are, instead, the frequently overlooked things in people's everyday world. They are the items people collect in their homes, carry with them in backpacks, purses, and pockets, and stow on shelves in the back of closets--often the things they…

Acting and Collecting: Imagining Asia through material culture and musical theatre

OpenAIRE

Peter Thorley

2015-01-01

This paper explores the link between Asian-inspired material culture and musical theatre through the collections of Anglo-Australian performer Herbert Browne (1895-1975). Brown played lead roles in 1920s Australian musical theatre productions of The Mikado and Chu Chin Chow and re-lived his connection with oriental theatre by collecting and responding to objects performatively in the Chinoiserie room of his Melbourne home. Oriental musical theatre blended exotic cultures and locales in visual...

Acting and Collecting: Imagining Asia through material culture and musical theatre

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peter Thorley

2015-07-01

Full Text Available This paper explores the link between Asian-inspired material culture and musical theatre through the collections of Anglo-Australian performer Herbert Browne (1895-1975. Brown played lead roles in 1920s Australian musical theatre productions of The Mikado and Chu Chin Chow and re-lived his connection with oriental theatre by collecting and responding to objects performatively in the Chinoiserie room of his Melbourne home. Oriental musical theatre blended exotic cultures and locales in visually spectacular productions which bore little resemblance to reality. The taste for escapist fiction in the theatre took place against a backdrop of museum collecting which aimed to reproduce authentic Asian and Other cultures. In this paper, I draw on French philosopher Merleau-Ponty’s observations on the relationship between thought and the body’s interaction with space to interpret the influence of Browne’s theatricality on collecting choices. From this perspective, objects materialize particular understandings of the world which originate in the body and the body’s performative engagement with space.

Culturally-Relevant Online Cancer Education Modules Empower Alaska's Community Health Aides/Practitioners to Disseminate Cancer Information and Reduce Cancer Risk.

Science.gov (United States)

Cueva, Katie; Revels, Laura; Cueva, Melany; Lanier, Anne P; Dignan, Mark; Viswanath, K; Fung, Teresa T; Geller, Alan C

2017-04-12

To address a desire for timely, medically accurate cancer education in rural Alaska, ten culturally relevant online learning modules were developed with, and for, Alaska's Community Health Aides/Practitioners (CHA/Ps). The project was guided by the framework of Community-Based Participatory Action Research, honored Indigenous Ways of Knowing, and was informed by Empowerment Theory. A total of 428 end-of-module evaluation surveys were completed by 89 unique Alaska CHA/Ps between January and December 2016. CHA/Ps shared that as a result of completing the modules, they were empowered to share cancer information with their patients, families, friends, and communities, as well as engage in cancer risk reduction behaviors such as eating healthier, getting cancer screenings, exercising more, and quitting tobacco. CHA/Ps also reported the modules were informative and respectful of their diverse cultures. These results from end-of-module evaluation surveys suggest that the collaboratively developed, culturally relevant, online cancer education modules have empowered CHA/Ps to reduce cancer risk and disseminate cancer information. "brought me to tears couple of times, and I think it will help in destroying the silence that surrounds cancer".

Conceptualising 'materialities of care': making visible mundane material culture in health and social care contexts.

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Buse, Christina; Martin, Daryl; Nettleton, Sarah

2018-02-01

'Materialities of care' is outlined as a heuristic device for making visible the mundane and often unnoticed aspects of material culture within health and social care contexts, and exploring interrelations between materials and care in practice. Three analytic strands inherent to the concept are delineated: spatialities of care, temporalities of care and practices of care. These interconnecting themes span the articles in this special issue. The articles explore material practice across a range of clinical and non-clinical spaces, including hospitals, hospices, care homes, museums, domestic spaces, and community spaces such as shops and tenement stairwells. The collection addresses fleeting moments of care, as well as choreographed routines that order bodies and materials. Throughout there is a focus on practice, and relations between materials and care as ongoing, emergent and processual. We conclude by reflecting on methodological approaches for examining 'materialities of care', and offer some thoughts as to how this analytic approach might be applied to future research within the sociology of health and illness. © 2018 Foundation for the Sociology of Health & Illness.

Mutual Relevance of Mainstream and Cross-Cultural Psychology.

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Clark, Lee Anna

1987-01-01

Asserts that mainstream and cross-cultural psychology address many of the same basic issues and that cross-cultural studies may be a direct and logical extension of the search for causes of variation in human psychology and psychopathology. Discusses differences in theoretical orientation and methodological approach and barriers to communication…

Japanese Language and Culture: 9-Year Program Classroom Assessment Materials, Grade 4

Science.gov (United States)

Alberta Education, 2008

2008-01-01

This document is designed to provide assessment materials for specific Grade 4 outcomes in the Japanese Language and Culture Nine-year Program, Grades 4-5-6. The assessment materials are designed for the beginner level in the context of teaching for communicative competence. Grade 4 learning outcomes from the Japanese Language and Culture…

Do material e do simbólico : capitalismo, imagem e a intermediação cultural pós-modernista

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João Valente Aguiar

2010-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper we have a main goal to give relevant clues on the framing of images in the cultural logic of post-modernism. At the same time, we will give space to a brief description on the relation between post-modernism and flexible accumulation, primary support from where our object comes from. Along with this, we conceptualize central dimensions such as the imagetic transmutation, the primacy of image and the effect of dematerialization induced by the image in the perception of social relations. In this way, a conceptual chain is constituted with the purpose of connecting phenomena and social processes only apparently fragmented such as the productive basis of contemporary capitalism, its cultural reality and the place of image in all that wide framing. From an epistemological point of view, one must highlight that all the theoretical work developed here points out to a parallel relation between material and symbolical domains

Plasma facing materials performance under ITER-relevant mitigated disruption photonic heat loads

Science.gov (United States)

Klimov, N. S.; Putrik, A. B.; Linke, J.; Pitts, R. A.; Zhitlukhin, A. M.; Kuprianov, I. B.; Spitsyn, A. V.; Ogorodnikova, O. V.; Podkovyrov, V. L.; Muzichenko, A. D.; Ivanov, B. V.; Sergeecheva, Ya. V.; Lesina, I. G.; Kovalenko, D. V.; Barsuk, V. A.; Danilina, N. A.; Bazylev, B. N.; Giniyatulin, R. N.

2015-08-01

PFMs (Plasma-facing materials: ITER grade stainless steel, beryllium, and ferritic-martensitic steels) as well as deposited erosion products of PFCs (Be-like, tungsten, and carbon based) were tested in QSPA under photonic heat loads relevant to those expected from photon radiation during disruptions mitigated by massive gas injection in ITER. Repeated pulses slightly above the melting threshold on the bulk materials eventually lead to a regular, "corrugated" surface, with hills and valleys spaced by 0.2-2 mm. The results indicate that hill growth (growth rate of ∼1 μm per pulse) and sample thinning in the valleys is a result of melt-layer redistribution. The measurements on the 316L(N)-IG indicate that the amount of tritium absorbed by the sample from the gas phase significantly increases with pulse number as well as the modified layer thickness. Repeated pulses significantly below the melting threshold on the deposited erosion products lead to a decrease of hydrogen isotopes trapped during the deposition of the eroded material.

Plasma facing materials performance under ITER-relevant mitigated disruption photonic heat loads

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klimov, N.S., E-mail: klimov@triniti.ru [SRC RF TRINITI, ul. Pushkovykh, vladenie 12, Troitsk, Moscow 142190 (Russian Federation); National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Kashirskoye shosse 31, Moscow 115409 (Russian Federation); Putrik, A.B. [SRC RF TRINITI, ul. Pushkovykh, vladenie 12, Troitsk, Moscow 142190 (Russian Federation); Linke, J. [Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, EURATOM Association, Jülich D-52425 (Germany); Pitts, R.A. [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 3640, Karlsruhe 76021 (Germany); Zhitlukhin, A.M. [SRC RF TRINITI, ul. Pushkovykh, vladenie 12, Troitsk, Moscow 142190 (Russian Federation); Kuprianov, I.B. [Bochvar Institute, ul. Rogova, 5a, Moscow 123098 (Russian Federation); Spitsyn, A.V. [NRC «Kurchatov Institute», Akademika Kurchatova pl., 1, Moscow 123182 (Russian Federation); Ogorodnikova, O.V. [Max-Planck-Institut für Plasmaphysik, Garching (Germany); National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Kashirskoye shosse 31, Moscow 115409 (Russian Federation); Podkovyrov, V.L.; Muzichenko, A.D. [SRC RF TRINITI, ul. Pushkovykh, vladenie 12, Troitsk, Moscow 142190 (Russian Federation); Ivanov, B.V.; Sergeecheva, Ya.V.; Lesina, I.G. [Bochvar Institute, ul. Rogova, 5a, Moscow 123098 (Russian Federation); Kovalenko, D.V.; Barsuk, V.A.; Danilina, N.A. [SRC RF TRINITI, ul. Pushkovykh, vladenie 12, Troitsk, Moscow 142190 (Russian Federation); Bazylev, B.N. [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, P.O. Box 3640, Karlsruhe 76021 (Germany); Giniyatulin, R.N. [Efremov Institute, Doroga na Metallostroy, 3 bld., Metallostroy, Saint-Petersburg 196641 (Russian Federation)

2015-08-15

PFMs (Plasma-facing materials: ITER grade stainless steel, beryllium, and ferritic–martensitic steels) as well as deposited erosion products of PFCs (Be-like, tungsten, and carbon based) were tested in QSPA under photonic heat loads relevant to those expected from photon radiation during disruptions mitigated by massive gas injection in ITER. Repeated pulses slightly above the melting threshold on the bulk materials eventually lead to a regular, “corrugated” surface, with hills and valleys spaced by 0.2–2 mm. The results indicate that hill growth (growth rate of ∼1 μm per pulse) and sample thinning in the valleys is a result of melt-layer redistribution. The measurements on the 316L(N)-IG indicate that the amount of tritium absorbed by the sample from the gas phase significantly increases with pulse number as well as the modified layer thickness. Repeated pulses significantly below the melting threshold on the deposited erosion products lead to a decrease of hydrogen isotopes trapped during the deposition of the eroded material.

Analysis of carbon based materials under fusion relevant thermal loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Compan, Jeremie Saint-Helene

2008-01-01

Carbon based materials (CBMs) are used in fusion devices as plasma facing materials for decades. They have been selected due to the inherent advantages of carbon for fusion applications. The main ones are its low atomic number and the fact that it does not melt but sublimate (above 3000 C) under the planned working conditions. In addition, graphitic materials retain their mechanical properties at elevated temperatures and their thermal shock resistance is one of the highest, making them suitable for thermal management purpose during long or extremely short heat pulses. Nuclear grade fine grain graphite was the prime form of CBM which was set as a standard but when it comes to large fusion devices created nowadays, thermo-mechanical constraints created during transient heat loads (few GW.m-2 can be deposited in few ms) are so high that carbon/carbon composites (so-called Carbon Fiber Composites (CFCs)) have to be utilized. CFCs can achieve superior thermal conductivity as well as mechanical properties than fine grain graphite. However, all the thermo-mechanical properties of CFCs are highly dependent on the loading direction as a consequence of the graphite structure. In this work, the background on the anisotropy of the graphitic structures but also on the production of fine grain graphite and CFCs is highlighted, showing the major principles which are relevant for the further understanding of the study. Nine advanced CBMs were then compared in terms of microstructure and thermo-mechanical properties. Among them, two fine grain graphites were considered as useful reference materials to allow comparing advantages reached by the developed CFCs. The presented microstructural investigation methods permitted to make statements which can be applied for CFCs presenting similarities in terms of fiber architecture. Determination of the volumetric percentage of the major sub-units of CFCs, i.e. laminates, felt layers or needled fiber groups, lead to a better understanding on

Effects of Pop Culture as Authentic Materials toward Students’ Writing Skill

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Ratnawati Ratnawati

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Writing, one of the four skills which has to be taught by educators in language learning. Starting from classroom observation implied that students confronted the difficulties in writing involving generating ideas, organizing words, and making compositions. This study supposes to explore some effects of pop culture as authentic materials for English language teaching in improving students‘ writing skill. Due to pop culture relates to students‘ life and experience, it is considered to be a stimulus for gaining students‘ ideas, information, motivation, and interest in teaching writing. The students of secondary school were involved in this study and descriptive case study was employed to observe the importance of pop culture in writing class. Also, questionnaires and students‘ works are the instruments to measure its effects. Both students‘ works and result of the questionnaires pointed out that significantly improvement obtained after applying pop culture. In line with findings, it can be said that pop cultures have significant effects toward students‘ writing skill. So, educators need to apply pop culture as their choices in future planning lesson.

Recommendations for a culturally relevant Internet-based tool to promote physical activity among overweight young African American women, Alabama, 2010-2011.

Science.gov (United States)

Durant, Nefertiti H; Joseph, Rodney P; Cherrington, Andrea; Cuffee, Yendelela; Knight, BernNadette; Lewis, Dwight; Allison, Jeroan J

2014-01-16

Innovative approaches are needed to promote physical activity among young adult overweight and obese African American women. We sought to describe key elements that African American women desire in a culturally relevant Internet-based tool to promote physical activity among overweight and obese young adult African American women. A mixed-method approach combining nominal group technique and traditional focus groups was used to elicit recommendations for the development of an Internet-based physical activity promotion tool. Participants, ages 19 to 30 years, were enrolled in a major university. Nominal group technique sessions were conducted to identify themes viewed as key features for inclusion in a culturally relevant Internet-based tool. Confirmatory focus groups were conducted to verify and elicit more in-depth information on the themes. Twenty-nine women participated in nominal group (n = 13) and traditional focus group sessions (n = 16). Features that emerged to be included in a culturally relevant Internet-based physical activity promotion tool were personalized website pages, diverse body images on websites and in videos, motivational stories about physical activity and women similar to themselves in size and body shape, tips on hair care maintenance during physical activity, and online social support through social media (eg, Facebook, Twitter). Incorporating existing social media tools and motivational stories from young adult African American women in Internet-based tools may increase the feasibility, acceptability, and success of Internet-based physical activity programs in this high-risk, understudied population.

Social marketing: approach to cultural and contextual relevance in a community-based physical activity intervention

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Colleen; Vega-López, Sonia; Ainsworth, Barbara; Nagle-Williams, Allison; Records, Kathie; Permana, Paska; Coonrod, Dean

2014-01-01

We report the social marketing strategies used for the design, recruitment and retention of participants in a community-based physical activity (PA) intervention, Madres para la Salud (Mothers for Health). The study example used to illustrate the use of social marketing is a 48-week prescribed walking program, Madres para la Salud (Mothers for Health), which tests a social support intervention to explore the effectiveness of a culturally specific program using ‘bouts’ of PA to effect the changes in body fat, fat tissue inflammation and postpartum depression symptoms in sedentary Hispanic women. Using the guidelines from the National Benchmark Criteria, we developed intervention, recruitment and retention strategies that reflect efforts to draw on community values, traditions and customs in intervention design, through partnership with community members. Most of the women enrolled in Madres para la Salud were born in Mexico, largely never or unemployed and resided among the highest crime neighborhoods with poor access to resources. We developed recruitment and retention strategies that characterized social marketing strategies that employed a culturally relevant, consumer driven and problem-specific design. Cost and benefit of program participation, consumer-derived motivation and segmentation strategies considered the development transition of the young Latinas as well as cultural and neighborhood barriers that impacted retention are described. PMID:23002252

Social marketing: approach to cultural and contextual relevance in a community-based physical activity intervention.

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Colleen; Vega-López, Sonia; Ainsworth, Barbara; Nagle-Williams, Allison; Records, Kathie; Permana, Paska; Coonrod, Dean

2014-03-01

We report the social marketing strategies used for the design, recruitment and retention of participants in a community-based physical activity (PA) intervention, Madres para la Salud (Mothers for Health). The study example used to illustrate the use of social marketing is a 48-week prescribed walking program, Madres para la Salud (Mothers for Health), which tests a social support intervention to explore the effectiveness of a culturally specific program using 'bouts' of PA to effect the changes in body fat, fat tissue inflammation and postpartum depression symptoms in sedentary Hispanic women. Using the guidelines from the National Benchmark Criteria, we developed intervention, recruitment and retention strategies that reflect efforts to draw on community values, traditions and customs in intervention design, through partnership with community members. Most of the women enrolled in Madres para la Salud were born in Mexico, largely never or unemployed and resided among the highest crime neighborhoods with poor access to resources. We developed recruitment and retention strategies that characterized social marketing strategies that employed a culturally relevant, consumer driven and problem-specific design. Cost and benefit of program participation, consumer-derived motivation and segmentation strategies considered the development transition of the young Latinas as well as cultural and neighborhood barriers that impacted retention are described.

Development of a theory-based (PEN-3 and Health Belief Model), culturally relevant intervention on cervical cancer prevention among Latina immigrants using intervention mapping.

Science.gov (United States)

Scarinci, Isabel C; Bandura, Lisa; Hidalgo, Bertha; Cherrington, Andrea

2012-01-01

The development of efficacious theory-based, culturally relevant interventions to promote cervical cancer prevention among underserved populations is crucial to the elimination of cancer disparities. The purpose of this article is to describe the development of a theory-based, culturally relevant intervention focusing on primary (sexual risk reduction) and secondary (Pap smear) prevention of cervical cancer among Latina immigrants using intervention mapping (IM). The PEN-3 and Health Belief Model provided theoretical guidance for the intervention development and implementation. IM provides a logical five-step framework in intervention development: delineating proximal program objectives, selecting theory-based intervention methods and strategies, developing a program plan, planning for adoption in implementation, and creating evaluation plans and instruments. We first conducted an extensive literature review and qualitatively examined the sociocultural factors associated with primary and secondary prevention of cervical cancer. We then proceeded to quantitatively validate the qualitative findings, which led to development matrices linking the theoretical constructs with intervention objectives and strategies as well as evaluation. IM was a helpful tool in the development of a theory-based, culturally relevant intervention addressing primary and secondary prevention among Latina immigrants.

Monochloramine Cometabolism by Nitrifying Biofilm Relevant ...

Science.gov (United States)

Recently, biological monochloramine removal (i.e., cometabolism) by a pure culture ammonia–oxidizing bacteria, Nitrosomonas europaea, and a nitrifying mixed–culture have been shown to increase monochloramine demand. Although important, these previous suspended culture batch kinetic experiments were not representative of drinking water distribution systems where bacteria grow predominantly as biofilm attached to pipe walls or sediments and physiological differences may exist between suspension and biofilm growth. Therefore, the current research was an important next step in extending the previous results to investigate monochloramine cometabolism by biofilm grown in annular reactors under drinking water relevant conditions. Estimated monochloramine cometabolism kinetics were similar to those of ammonia metabolism, and monochloramine cometabolism was a significant loss mechanism (25–40% of the observed monochloramine loss). These results demonstrated that monochloramine cometabolism occurred in drinking water relevant nitrifying biofilm; thus, cometabolism may be a significant contribution to monochloramine loss during nitrification episodes in distribution systems. Investigate whether or not nitrifying biofilm can biologically transform monochloramine under drinking water relevant conditions.

19 CFR 10.121 - Visual or auditory materials of an educational, scientific, or cultural character.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-04-01

... 19 Customs Duties 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Visual or auditory materials of an educational... RATE, ETC. General Provisions Visual Or Auditory Materials § 10.121 Visual or auditory materials of an... the articles are visual or auditory materials of an educational, scientific, or cultural character...

Cultural Materialism and Behavior Analysis: Common Problems and Radical Solutions

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Marvin

2007-01-01

This article presents a transcribed audio recording of the invited address the author gave to Sigrid Glenn on the relations between cultural materialism and radical behaviorism at the 12th annual conference of the Association for Behavior Analysis in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on May 23rd, 1986. In his address, the author emphasizes that the necessity…

Relevant principal factors affecting the reproducibility of insect primary culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Ogata, Norichika; Iwabuchi, Kikuo

2017-06-01

The primary culture of insect cells often suffers from problems with poor reproducibility in the quality of the final cell preparations. The cellular composition of the explants (cell number and cell types), surgical methods (surgical duration and surgical isolation), and physiological and genetic differences between donors may be critical factors affecting the reproducibility of culture. However, little is known about where biological variation (interindividual differences between donors) ends and technical variation (variance in replication of culture conditions) begins. In this study, we cultured larval fat bodies from the Japanese rhinoceros beetle, Allomyrina dichotoma, and evaluated, using linear mixed models, the effect of interindividual variation between donors on the reproducibility of the culture. We also performed transcriptome analysis of the hemocyte-like cells mainly seen in the cultures using RNA sequencing and ultrastructural analyses of hemocytes using a transmission electron microscope, revealing that the cultured cells have many characteristics of insect hemocytes.

PREFACE: Modern Archaeoastronomy: From Material Culture to Cosmology

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Daniel

2016-02-01

The Royal Astronomical Society National Astronomy Meeting (NAM) 2014 was hosted by the Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation (ICG) at the University of Portsmouth. It was held from June 23-26 2014 and was sponsored by the RAS, STFC, SEPnet and Winton Capital. As part of this meeting a session stream titled Modern Archaeoastronomy: From Material Culture to Cosmology took place on Monday 23rd proposed and organized by Brian Sheen (Roseland Observatory) and Daniel Brown (Nottingham Trent University). It consisted of an illustration of the many aspects of archaeoastronomy or cultural-astronomy as it has developed and embraced areas such as anthropology, public engagement and sociology. Anita Heward (Press Officer NAM) stated that 'sessions on the history of astronomy have been a feature of many NAM programmes over the years, but NAM 2014 was the first to include a dedicated session on archaeoastronomy.' It was motivated from past decades where our understanding of astronomy of our ancestors has become more strongly based on factual data. As such it allowed researchers to identify possible traces of astronomical knowledge in archaeological remains and artefacts. Archaeoastronomy is an ideal example of the advancement in this area as well as the power of interdisciplinary work that in recent times has started to interpret these findings through cultural, anthropological and educational research. This session will offer an opportunity to present a multitude of different approaches of analyzing the perception and origins of astronomy in ancient and modern cultures, and also bring together young researchers and students in the field to present their research to a wider community.

Valuing Stuff: Materials Culture and Artifactual Literacies in the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Randall, Régine; Mercurio, Mia Lynn

2015-01-01

Recent interest in materials culture and artifactual literacies has helped the authors of this article rethink how they teach preservice and inservice teachers and collaborate with K-12 teachers. Each discipline has its own stuff that can help students understand the products and practices of a field beyond what they might be able to glean from…

Journeys of our ancestors: Conservation science approaches to the analysis of cultural material

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O'Grady, Caitlin Rose

The application and use of non-destructive portable x-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis is a critical tool in the preservation and interpretation of cultural material. Portable XRF instrumentation produce elemental compositional data that is used to reconstruct current artifact composition, which can be related to materials and methods of manufacture, technological practice, as well as object condition and presence of corrosion surfaces. Portable XRF analysis is used to assess a variety of material classes utilized in artifact manufacture. The dissertation research is based on a series of three case studies that represent typical groups of material culture commonly encountered in conservation and conservation science research. Conservators and conservation scientists frequently undertake analysis and interpretation of disparate groups of materials. Often, these objects are tied together by research questions or themes directed by outside influences including preservation issues requiring action; curatorial research interests; museum exhibition programs; as well as many other cultural heritage stakeholders. To this end, both non-destructive and destructive tools that provide measurements of interest play critical roles in analysis. The case studies have been designed to answer common compositional questions relating to (a) bulk analysis of Chinese coins, (b) characterization of Southwestern ceramic colorants, and, (c) chemical examination of post-depositional manganese dioxide accretions occurring on archaeological ceramic materials. They evaluate the value of data produced using effectiveness of non-destructive portable XRF analysis for the interpretation of archaeological materials. The case studies provide a template for the development of conservation science research, predicated on object preservation, which produce meaningful data for the interpretation and conservation of the analyzed archaeological artifacts. Portable XRF provides useful data that is used to

Reinvigorating Ethnic Cultural Identity Through Mother-Tongue-Teaching Materials in Taiwan.

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Chen, Su-chiao

1996-01-01

Explores to what extent a mother-tongue educational program can reinvigorate Taiwan's ethnic cultural identity. Content of mother-tongue materials used in Taipei county for Taiwanese, Hakka, and Ataylic students is analyzed, and interviews with members from each ethnic group are also conducted as a supplement. (JL)

Double pulse laser induced breakdown spectroscopy applied to natural and artificial materials from cultural heritages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brai, Maria; Gennaro, Gaetano; Schillaci, Tiziano; Tranchina, Luigi

2009-01-01

The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an applied physical technique that has shown in recent years its great potential for rapid qualitative analysis of materials. Thanks to the possibility to implement a portable instrument that perform LIBS analysis, this technique is revealed to be particularly useful for in situ analysis in the field of cultural heritages. The purpose of this work is to evaluate the potentiality of LIBS technique in the field of cultural heritages, with respect to the chemical characterization of complex matrix as calcareous and refractory materials for further quantitative analyses on cultural heritages. X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyses were used as reference. Calibration curves of certified materials used as standards were obtained by XRF analyses. The LIBS measurements were performed with a new mobile instrument called Modi (Mobile Double pulse Instrument for LIBS Analysis). The XRF analyses were performed with a portable instrument ArtTAX. LIBS and XRF measurement were performed on both reference materials and samples (bricks and mortars) sampled in the ancient Greek-Roman Theatre of Taormina. Although LIBS measurements performed on reference materials have shown non linear response to concentrations, and so we were not able to obtain quantitative results, an integrated study of XRF and LIBS signals permitted us to distinguish among chemical features and degradation state of measured building materials.

Double pulse laser induced breakdown spectroscopy applied to natural and artificial materials from cultural heritages

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brai, Maria; Gennaro, Gaetano [Dipartimento di Fisica e Tecnologie Relative, Universita di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze Ed.18, 90128 Palermo (Italy); Schillaci, Tiziano, E-mail: tschillaci@unipa.i [Dipartimento di Fisica e Tecnologie Relative, Universita di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze Ed.18, 90128 Palermo (Italy); Tranchina, Luigi [Dipartimento di Fisica e Tecnologie Relative, Universita di Palermo, Viale delle Scienze Ed.18, 90128 Palermo (Italy)

2009-10-15

The laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is an applied physical technique that has shown in recent years its great potential for rapid qualitative analysis of materials. Thanks to the possibility to implement a portable instrument that perform LIBS analysis, this technique is revealed to be particularly useful for in situ analysis in the field of cultural heritages. The purpose of this work is to evaluate the potentiality of LIBS technique in the field of cultural heritages, with respect to the chemical characterization of complex matrix as calcareous and refractory materials for further quantitative analyses on cultural heritages. X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analyses were used as reference. Calibration curves of certified materials used as standards were obtained by XRF analyses. The LIBS measurements were performed with a new mobile instrument called Modi (Mobile Double pulse Instrument for LIBS Analysis). The XRF analyses were performed with a portable instrument ArtTAX. LIBS and XRF measurement were performed on both reference materials and samples (bricks and mortars) sampled in the ancient Greek-Roman Theatre of Taormina. Although LIBS measurements performed on reference materials have shown non linear response to concentrations, and so we were not able to obtain quantitative results, an integrated study of XRF and LIBS signals permitted us to distinguish among chemical features and degradation state of measured building materials.

Associations between Culturally Relevant Recruitment Strategies and Participant Interest, Enrollment and Generalizability in a Weight-loss Intervention for African American Families.

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Huffman, Lauren E; Wilson, Dawn K; Kitzman-Ulrich, Heather; Lyerly, Jordan E; Gause, Haylee M; Resnicow, Ken

2016-07-21

Culturally relevant recruitment strategies may be an important approach for recruiting ethnic minorities for interventions. Previous research has examined associations between recruitment strategies and enrollment of African Americans (AA), but has not explored more deeply the role of incorporating sociocultural values into recruitment strategies. Our current study explores whether sociocultural recruitment mediums were associated with demographics, interest and enrollment in a weight-loss intervention. Sociocultural mediums included community partnerships, culturally relevant ads, sociocultural events, or word-of-mouth. Non-sociocultural mediums included community/school events that did not specifically target AAs. Analyses examined whether demographics of enrolled families differed by recruitment strategy and if recruitment strategy predicted scheduling a baseline visit, enrolling in a run-in phase, and enrolling in the intervention program. Families recruited from culturally relevant ads, sociocultural events, or word-of-mouth were 1.96 times more likely to schedule a baseline visit (OR=1.96, 95% CI=1.05, 3.68) than families recruited from non-sociocultural mediums. No differences were found for sociocultural mediums on enrolling in the run-in phase or the intervention. However, among enrolled families, those recruited from sociocultural mediums were less likely to be employed (X(2) [1, N=142] =5.53, P<.05) and more likely to have lower income (X(2) [1, N=142] =13.57, P<.05). Sociocultural mediums were associated with scheduling a baseline visit, but not enrollment. They were, however, effective in recruiting a more generalizable sample among enrolled participants based on demographic characteristics. Integrating sociocultural values into recruitment methods may be a valuable strategy for increasing interest in participation among underrepresented AA families.

Relevance of culture-bound syndromes in the 21st century.

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Ventriglio, Antonio; Ayonrinde, Oyedeji; Bhugra, Dinesh

2016-01-01

Culture-bound syndromes were first described over 60 years ago. The underlying premise was that certain psychiatric syndromes are confined to specific cultures. There is no doubt that cultures influence how symptoms are perceived, explained and from where help is sought. Cultures determine what idioms of distress are employed to express distress. Rapid globalization and industrialization have made the world a smaller place and cultures are being more influenced by other cultures. This has led to social and economic changes in parts of the world where such syndromes were seen more frequently. In this review we illustrate these changes using the example of dhat syndrome (semen-loss anxiety). The number of syndromes in the DSM-5 has been reduced, acknowledging that these syndromes may be changing their presentations. Clinicians need to be aware of social and economic changes that may affect presentation of various psychiatric syndromes. © 2015 The Authors. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences © 2015 Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology.

Towards sociology of poverty: the relevance of cultural dimensions

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María Cristina Bayón

2013-01-01

Full Text Available mensions affect both the relations between social classes, the public discourse on poverty, the representations and experiences, as policies and institutions that emerge in relation to it. In the contemporary debate on poverty, while recognizing their importance, these dimensions have not been suffi ciently explored in the literature on the subject. In order to investigate possible routes theoretical and empirical implications for their approach, we analyze the concepts of frames and cultural repertoires, symbolic boundaries, narratives and cultural capital, emphasizing its use in various poverty researches. The potential of these concepts lies in its openness to account for the heterogeneity of experiences, meanings and possible responses against similar structural constraints, allowing remove the stigmas and stereotypes about “the poor” and “their culture” emerging from the thesis of the “culture of poverty”. Finally, we emphasize the need to inquire about the mechanisms by which cultural dimensions contribute to generate and reproduce inequality in a particular society.

Exploring Culturally Relevant Texts with Kindergartners and Their Families

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Schrodt, Katie; Fain, Jeanne Gilliam; Hasty, Michelle

2015-01-01

This article shares a monthly curricular model that can help teachers and families bridge the gap between home and school by using literature and response inspired from the cultures in the classroom. Integrating culturally responsive texts and family response journals into the classroom and the home can help children, their families, and peers…

Culture as a problem in linking material inequality to health: on residential crowding in the Arctic.

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Lauster, Nathanael; Tester, Frank

2010-05-01

Two problems are noted in the process of measuring material inequality and linking it to health across cultural boundaries. First, comparative measurements may be used as the basis for policy making, which ends up disciplining cultural minorities. In this way, policies intended to relieve disparities can actually have the effect of extending the power of the dominant group to define appropriate cultural understanding of the world for the minority group. Second, comparative measurements may inaccurately inform theories of how inequality works to influence health and well-being. To the extent that culture mediates the relationship between inequality and outcomes of interest to researchers, those ignoring cultural differences will fail to adequately assess the impact and significance of material inequality. In this paper we discuss and illustrate these problems with reference to the study and measurement of overcrowding and its effects on health and well-being for Inuit communities in Nunavut, Canada. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Culture in the Media: the Representation of Culture in "Jutarnji List"

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Marko Pavlovski

2015-09-01

Full Text Available In today's picture of the widely circulated print media a famous assertion is that culture as a subject is decreasing in relevancy, as seen by the amount of pages dedicated to the cultural section and informations on cultural events, especially those of international importance, in the entire content of the most widely read newspapers. The aim of this paper is to show the presence of cultural themes in one of the most popular daily newspaper published in the Republic of Croatia, Jutarnji list. The research will cover the content of this daily for a period of one year (January 1st 2013 to 1st January 2014, to show the presence of cultural themes in it. I suppose, because of a prior knowledge of the materials, that notifications on events in culture at home and abroad will reside outside pages dedicated to the cultural section, so it will be necessary to examine the contents of whole numbers. Furthermore, I will compare the representation of various artistic genres, the presence of film art compared to the amount of articles devoted to literature, and I will devote particular attention to the content dedicated to the non-commercial aspects of a particular genre, for example the amount of information about events in the poetry scene, promotions or group exhibitions of young filmmakers at home and abroad.

Encouraging Family Involvement through Culturally Relevant Pedagogy

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Goodman, Kela; Hooks, Laura

2016-01-01

The purpose of this article is to describe one teacher education program's experience using an integrated approach to provide preservice teachers with both knowledge of and experience with diverse cultures. Included are three important components within this program that strive to assist preservice teachers as they develop an understanding of…

Cultural alternatives. A material reading of the mourning of 11th-M / Alternativas de la cultura. Una lectura material del duelo del 11-M

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Pilar Jimeno Salvatierra

2009-10-01

Full Text Available Since the human ecology approach occurs a break in the forms of studying culture or its accomplishments. The novelty has to do with the need to examine it not in itself or in their performances, but as an element of the ecological system is interconnected with the rest of their material elements. This material functional analysis model is described as a substantive by its main theoretical. Thus the cultural behaviours are responses to disturbances belonging to the system environment. One of the most interesting for the study of social and cultural are rituals, as part of retroactive mechanisms within any human ecological system. The aims of this paper is to theorize about the observation of the material aspects of collective behaviours, such as rituals, ceremonies, or others collective manifestations, that highlight the social importance and interpretative of these aspects. The article manifests both the creation and the orientation of “enactment of meanings” through the analysis of collective behaviours. It also shows an important part of social truth in material performances. Methodological applications such as Rappaport’s reference to material signs in his ritual theory, placing emphasize on the communication role of these are used to interpret the mourning ritual.

Cultural Competence in the Treatment of Addictions: Theory, Practice and Evidence.

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Gainsbury, Sally M

2017-07-01

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations often have high rates of addictive disorders, but lower rates of treatment seeking and completion than the mainstream population. A significant barrier to treatment is the lack of culturally relevant and appropriate treatment. A literature review was conducted to identify relevant literature related to cultural competence in mental health services delivery and specifically treatment for addictive disorders. Several theoretical models of cultural competence in therapy have been developed, but the lack of rigorous research limits the empirical evidence available. Research indicates that culturally competent treatment practices including providing therapy and materials in the client's language, knowledge, understanding and appreciation for cultural perspectives and nuances, involving the wider family and community and training therapists can enhance client engagement, retention and treatment outcomes for substance use and gambling. Further methodologically rigorous research is needed to isolate the impact of cultural competence for the treatment of addictions and guide research to determine treatment efficacy within specific CALD populations. Training therapists and recruiting therapists and researchers from CALD communities is important to ensure an ongoing focus and improved outcomes for CALD populations due to the importance of engaging these populations with addiction treatment. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Key Practitioner Message: The treatment needs of culturally diverse individuals with addictions are often not met. Theoretical models can guide therapists in incorporating cultural competence. Culturally targeted treatments increase recruitment, retention and treatment outcomes. Cultural competence includes matching clinicians and clients on linguistic and cultural backgrounds as well as being mindful of the impact of culture on client's experience of addiction problems. Few methodologically

Material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors in the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in oral health.

Science.gov (United States)

Duijster, Denise; Oude Groeniger, Joost; van der Heijden, Geert J M G; van Lenthe, Frank J

2017-12-19

This study aimed to assess the contribution of material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors in the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities (education and income) in oral health of Dutch adults. Cross-sectional data from participants (25-75 years of age) of the fifth wave of the GLOBE cohort were used (n = 2812). Questionnaires were used to obtain data on material factors (e.g. financial difficulties), behavioural factors (e.g. smoking), cultural factors (e.g. cultural activities) and psychosocial factors (e.g. psychological distress). Oral health outcomes were self-reported number of teeth and self-rated oral health (SROH). Mediation analysis, using multivariable negative binomial regression and logistic regression, was performed. Education level and income showed a graded positive relationship with both oral health outcomes. Adding material, behavioural, cultural and psychosocial factors substantially reduced the rate ratio for the number of teeth of the lowest education group from 0.79 (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.75-0.83) to 0.92 (95% CI: 0.87-0.97) and of the lowest income group from 0.80 (95% CI: 0.73-0.88) to 1.04 (95% CI: 0.96-1.14). Inclusion of all factors also substantially reduced the odds ratio for poor SROH of the lowest education group from 1.61 (95% CI: 1.28-2.03) to 1.12 (95% CI: 0.85-1.48) and of the lowest income groups from 3.18 (95% CI: 2.13-4.74) to 1.48 (95% CI: 0.90-2.45). In general, behavioural factors contributed most to the explanation of socioeconomic inequalities in adult oral health, followed by material factors. The contribution of cultural and psychosocial factors was relatively moderate. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Public Health Association.

Historical microbiology, is it relevant in the 21st century?

Science.gov (United States)

Robertson, Lesley A

2015-05-01

Facsimile microscopes have been used to examine the possibilities of van Leeuwenhoek microscopes with a range of magnifications, particularly to confirm that bacteria can be seen if the microscope is strong enough. The relevance of historical microbiology in education is also illustrated by adapting versions of van Leeuwenhoek's pepper water experiment and Beijerinck's use of bioluminescent bacteria as oxygen probes. These experiments can demonstrate fundamentals such as enrichment and isolation cultures, physiology and experimental planning as well as critical reading of published material. © FEMS 2015. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Pages of the phytomorphology history in the monuments of material culture

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Viktor Yu. Barshteyn

2012-03-01

Full Text Available It was reviewed Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome sources of plants morphology, plant morphology knowledge in Renaissance age – scientific works of Andrea Cesalpino, Joachim Jungius, Marcello Malpighi and plant morphology formation as the separate branch of science due to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe scientific works and its reflection in the monuments of material culture.

Estimation of raw material performance in mammalian cell culture using near infrared spectra combined with chemometrics approaches.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Hae Woo; Christie, Andrew; Liu, Jun Jay; Yoon, Seongkyu

2012-01-01

Understanding variability in raw materials and their impacts on product quality is of critical importance in the biopharmaceutical manufacturing processes. For this purpose, several spectroscopic techniques have been studied for raw material characterization, providing fast and nondestructive ways to measure quality of raw materials. However, investigations of correlation between spectra of raw materials and cell culture performance have been scarce due to their complexity and uncertainty. In this study, near-infrared spectra and bioassays of multiple soy hydrolysate lots manufactured by different vendors were analyzed using chemometrics approaches in order to address variability of raw materials as well as correlation between raw material properties and corresponding cell culture performance. Principal component analysis revealed that near-infrared spectra of different soy lots contain enough physicochemical information about soy hydrolysates to allow identification of lot-to-lot variability as well as vendor-to-vendor differences. The identified compositional variability was further analyzed in order to estimate cell growth and protein production of two mammalian cell lines under the condition of varying soy dosages using partial least square regression combined with optimal variable selection. The performance of the resulting models demonstrates the potential of near-infrared spectroscopy as a robust lot selection tool for raw materials while providing a biological link between chemical composition of raw materials and cell culture performance. Copyright © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).

Incidence of Propionibacterium acnes in initially culture-negative thioglycollate broths

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kvich, L.; Jensen, Peter Østrup; Justesen, U. S.

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to prospectively investigate the incidence of Propionibacterium acnes in thioglycollate broths reported as culture-negative at the Department of Clinical Microbiology, Rigshospitalet, to evaluate whether 5 days of incubation was enough to find all relevant cases. Five....... After exclusion criteria were met, P. acnes was cultured from ten out of 151 patients (6.6%) in the infected group and from one out of 138 participants (0.7%) in the control group. This resulted in more findings of P. acnes in the infected group on day 14 than on day 5 (p 0.002). Furthermore, P. acnes...... was cultured more often from bone tissue and tissue surrounding foreign materials on day 14 than on day 5 (p 0.04). Clinical microbiology laboratories should consider incubating thioglycollate broths for at least 14 days to find all relevant cases of P. acnes, especially when it comes to bone tissue and tissue...

Materializing Mind: The Role of Objects in Cognition and Culture

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tylén, Kristian; McGraw, John J.

2014-01-01

, and distributed cognition, we review and classify a set of cognitive processes mediated by material representations. Specifically, we ask how—in a range of everyday cognitive and cultural practices—we employ objects (1) to scaffold memory, (2) to alter cognitive complexity, (3) to facilitate epistemic......If mind is investigated as the set of interactions that accomplish a cognitive task, that is, if mind is more than that which occurs inside the head, then how does the interplay of biological and environmental resources produce human cognition? Informed by active externalism, joint action...... experimentation, (4) to enable the division of cognitive labor, (5) to promote confidence and trust, (6) to consolidate social structure, and (7) to support dialogical coupling. We conclude that through cultural practices the stable, “manipulable”, and public properties of objects have come to afford...

Einige didaktische Ueberlegungen fuer den Kulturkunde-Unterricht (Some Instructional Considerations for the Teaching of Culture)

Science.gov (United States)

Ruttkowski, Wolfgang V.

1976-01-01

Discusses the necessity of teaching German culture in English translation and the difficulty of selecting relevant subject matter and appropriate materials. Some guidelines for the structure and content of such courses are suggested. (Text is in German.) (TL)

On negotiating White science: a call for cultural relevance and critical reflexivity

Science.gov (United States)

Bettez, Silvia Cristina; Aguilar-Valdez, Jean Rockford; Carlone, Heidi B.; Cooper, Jewell E.

2011-12-01

This article is a response to Randy Yerrick and Joseph Johnson's article "Negotiating White Science in Rural Black America: A Case for Navigating the Landscape of Teacher Knowledge Domains". They write about research conducted by Yerrick in which videos of his teaching practice as a White educator in a predominately Black rural classroom were examined. Their analysis is framed through Shulman's (1986) work on "domains of teacher knowledge" and Ladson-Billings' (1999) critical race theory (CRT). Although we appreciate a framework that attends to issues of power, such as CRT, we see a heavier emphasis on Shulman's work in their analysis. We argue that a culturally relevant pedagogy (CRP) framework has the potential to provide a more nuanced analysis of what occurred in Yerrick's classroom from a critical lens. Thus we examine Yerrick and Johnson's work through the five main CRP components (as defined by Brown-Jeffy and Cooper 2011) and ultimately argue that science educators who want to promote equity in their classrooms should engage in continuous critical reflexivity, aid students in claiming voice, and encourage students to become not only producers of scientific knowledge but also users and critics of such knowledge.

Effects of Air Pollution on Materials and Cultural Heritage: ICP Materials Celebrates 25 Years of Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Johan Tidblad

2012-01-01

Full Text Available An overview is given of all results from the International Co-operative Programme on Effects on Materials including Historic and Cultural Monuments (ICP Materials, which was launched in 1985. Since then, about twenty different materials have been exposed repeatedly in a network of test sites consisting of more than twenty sites with an extensive environmental characterisation and more than sixty official reports have been issued. Recent results on trends in corrosion, soiling, and pollution show that corrosion of carbon steel, zinc, and limestone is today substantially lower than 25 years ago, but while corrosion of carbon steel has decreased until today, corrosion of zinc and limestone has remained more or less constant since the turn of the century. Unique data are given on measured HNO3 concentrations from 2002-2003, 2005-2006, and 2008-2009, and the relative average decrease was about the same from 2002-2003 to 2005-2006 as it was from 2005-2006 to 2008-2009.

Quantitative volumetric Raman imaging of three dimensional cell cultures

KAUST Repository

Kallepitis, Charalambos

2017-03-22

The ability to simultaneously image multiple biomolecules in biologically relevant three-dimensional (3D) cell culture environments would contribute greatly to the understanding of complex cellular mechanisms and cell–material interactions. Here, we present a computational framework for label-free quantitative volumetric Raman imaging (qVRI). We apply qVRI to a selection of biological systems: human pluripotent stem cells with their cardiac derivatives, monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages in conventional cell culture systems and mesenchymal stem cells inside biomimetic hydrogels that supplied a 3D cell culture environment. We demonstrate visualization and quantification of fine details in cell shape, cytoplasm, nucleus, lipid bodies and cytoskeletal structures in 3D with unprecedented biomolecular specificity for vibrational microspectroscopy.

Quantitative volumetric Raman imaging of three dimensional cell cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Kallepitis, Charalambos; Bergholt, Mads S.; Mazo, Manuel M.; Leonardo, Vincent; Skaalure, Stacey C.; Maynard, Stephanie A.; Stevens, Molly M.

2017-03-01

The ability to simultaneously image multiple biomolecules in biologically relevant three-dimensional (3D) cell culture environments would contribute greatly to the understanding of complex cellular mechanisms and cell-material interactions. Here, we present a computational framework for label-free quantitative volumetric Raman imaging (qVRI). We apply qVRI to a selection of biological systems: human pluripotent stem cells with their cardiac derivatives, monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages in conventional cell culture systems and mesenchymal stem cells inside biomimetic hydrogels that supplied a 3D cell culture environment. We demonstrate visualization and quantification of fine details in cell shape, cytoplasm, nucleus, lipid bodies and cytoskeletal structures in 3D with unprecedented biomolecular specificity for vibrational microspectroscopy.

On the development of standardization methods for measuring the degree of graphitization of industrial materials, correlation of scientific characterization with the industrially relevant secondary properties of graphitic material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fitzer, E.; Koechling, K.H.

1984-01-01

The completed research roject comprised the development of standardization methods for measuring the degree of graphitization of industrial materials, the testing of characterization methods with regard to significance, the correlation of scientific characterization with industrially relevant material properties and the resultant modification of industrial processes for the manufacture of coke raw materials and graphitic materials. Also targeted within the scope of this project were the grouping of comparable characterization methods and the drawing up of unequivocal terminology for scientific and industrial-commercial usage, with both aims based on intensified national and international teamwork. (orig./WL) [de

Novel approach of signal normalization for depth profile of cultural heritage materials

Science.gov (United States)

Syvilay, D.; Detalle, V.; Wilkie-Chancellier, N.; Texier, A.; Martinez, L.; Serfaty, S.

2017-01-01

The investigation of cultural heritage materials is always complex and specific because unique. Materials are most often heterogeneous and organized in several layers such as mural paintings or corrosion products. The characterization of a complete artwork's stratigraphy is actually one of the questions of science conservation. Indeed, the knowledge of these layers allows completing the history of the work of art and a better understanding of alteration processes in order to set up an appropriate conservation action. The LIBS technique has been employed to study the stratigraphy of an artwork thanks to the ablation laser. However, as we know, atomic information could be insufficient to characterize two materials composed by the same based elements. Therefore, an additional molecular analysis, like Raman spectroscopy; is sometimes necessary for a better identification of the material in particular for organic coatings in cultural heritage. We suggest in this study to use Standard Normal Variate (SNV) as a common normalization for different kinds of spectra (LIBS and Raman spectroscopy) combined with a 3D colour representation for stratigraphic identification of the different layers composing the complex material from artwork. So in this investigation, the SNV method will be applied on LIBS and Raman spectra but also on baseline Raman spectra often considering as nuisance. The aim of this study is to demonstrate the versatility of SNV applied on varied spectra like LIBS, Raman spectra as well as the luminescence background. This original work considers the SNV with a 3D colour representation as a probable new perspective for an easy recognition of a structure layered with a direct overview of the depth profile of the artwork.

Beyond Cultural History? The Material Turn, Praxiography, and Body History

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Iris Clever

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The body came to be taken seriously as a topic of cultural history during the “corporeal” or “bodily” turn in the 1980s and 1990s. Soon, however, critique was raised against these studies’ conceptualization of the body as discursively shaped and socially disciplined: individual bodily agency and feeling were felt to be absent in the idea of the material body. This article critically analyzes new approaches in the field of body history, particularly the so-called “material turn”. It argues that the material turn, especially in the guise of praxiography, has a lot to offer historians of the body, such as more attention to material practices, to different kinds of actors and a more open eye to encounters. Potential problems of praxiographical analyses of the body in history include the complicated relationship between discourses and practices and the neglect of the political and feminist potential of deconstructive discourse analyses. However, a focus on the relationship between practices of knowledge production and the representation of the body may also provide new ways of opening up historical power relations.

Current Activities on Nuclear Safety Culture in Korea. How to meet the challenges for Safety and Safety Culture?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, Chaewoon [International Policy Department Policy and Standard Division, Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, 19 Gusung-Dong Yuseong-Ku, 305-338 DAEJEON (Korea, Republic of)

2008-07-01

'Statement of Nuclear Safety Policy' declared by the Korean Government elucidates adherence to the principle of 'priority to safety'. The 3. Comprehensive Nuclear Energy Promotion Plan (2007-2011) more specifically addressed the necessity to develop and apply 'safety culture evaluation criteria' and to strengthen safety management of concerned organizations in an autonomous way. Putting these policies as a backdrop, Korean Government has taken diverse safety culture initiatives and has encouraged the relevant organizations to develop safety culture practices of their own accord. Accordingly, KHNP, the operating organization in Korea, developed a 'safety culture performance indicator', which has been used to evaluate safety mind of employees and the evaluation results have been continuously reflected in operational management and training programs. Furthermore, KHNP inserted 'nuclear safety culture subject' into every course of more than two week length, and provided employees with special lectures on safety culture. KINS, the regulatory organization, developed indicators for the safety culture evaluation based on the IAEA Guidelines. Also, KINS has hosted an annual Nuclear Safety Technology Information Meeting to share information between regulatory organizations and industries. Furthermore, KINS provided a nuclear safety culture class to the new employees and they are given a chance to participate in performance of a role-reversal socio-drama. Additionally, KINS developed a safety culture training program, published training materials and conducted a 'Nuclear Safety Culture Basic Course' in October 2007, 4 times of which are planed this year. In conclusion, from Government to relevant organizations, 'nuclear safety culture' concept is embraced as important and has been put into practice on a variety of forms. Specifically, 'education and training' is a starting line and sharing

Optimization of cell adhesion on mg based implant materials by pre-incubation under cell culture conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Willumeit, Regine; Möhring, Anneke; Feyerabend, Frank

2014-05-05

Magnesium based implants could revolutionize applications where orthopedic implants such as nails, screws or bone plates are used because they are load bearing and degrade over time. This prevents a second surgery to remove conventional implants. To improve the biocompatibility we studied here if and for how long a pre-incubation of the material under cell culture conditions is favorable for cell attachment and proliferation. For two materials, Mg and Mg10Gd1Nd, we could show that 6 h pre-incubation are already enough to form a natural protective layer suitable for cell culture.

Optimization of Cell Adhesion on Mg Based Implant Materials by Pre-Incubation under Cell Culture Conditions

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Regine Willumeit

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Magnesium based implants could revolutionize applications where orthopedic implants such as nails, screws or bone plates are used because they are load bearing and degrade over time. This prevents a second surgery to remove conventional implants. To improve the biocompatibility we studied here if and for how long a pre-incubation of the material under cell culture conditions is favorable for cell attachment and proliferation. For two materials, Mg and Mg10Gd1Nd, we could show that 6 h pre-incubation are already enough to form a natural protective layer suitable for cell culture.

Assessment of cellular materials generated by co-cultured ‘inflamed’ and healthy periodontal ligament stem cells from patient-matched groups

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tang, Hao-Ning [State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Department of Periodontology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi' an (China); Department of Stomatology, The First Affiliated Hospital of the Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing 100048 (China); Xia, Yu [State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Department of Periodontology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi' an (China); Department of Stomatology, The 309th Hospital of Chinese People' s Liberation Army, Beijing 100091 (China); Xu, Jie; Tian, Bei-Min; Zhang, Xi-Yu [State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Department of Periodontology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi' an (China); Chen, Fa-Ming, E-mail: cfmsunhh@fmmu.edu.cn [State Key Laboratory of Military Stomatology & National Clinical Research Center for Oral Diseases & Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Department of Periodontology, School of Stomatology, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi' an (China)

2016-08-01

Recently, stem cells derived from the'inflamed’ periodontal ligament (PDL) tissue of periodontally diseased teeth (I-PDLSCs) have been increasingly suggested as a more readily accessible source of cells for regenerative therapies than those derived from healthy PDL tissue (H-PDLSCs). However, substantial evidence indicates that I-PDLSCs exhibit impaired functionalities compared with H-PDLSCs. In this study, patient-matched I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs were co-cultured at various ratios. Cellular materials derived from these cultures were investigated regarding their osteogenic potential in vitro and capacity to form new bone following in vivo transplantation. While patient-matched I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs could co-exist in co-culture systems, the proportion of I-PDLSCs tended to increase during in vitro incubation. Compared with H-PDLSC monoculture, the presence of I-PDLSCs in the co-cultures appeared to enhance the overall cell proliferation. Although not completely rescued, the osteogenic and regenerative potentials of the cellular materials generated by co-cultured I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs were significantly improved compared with those derived from I-PDLSC monocultures. Notably, cells in co-cultures containing either 50% I-PDLSCs plus 50% H-PDLSCs or 25% I-PDLSCs plus 75% H-PDLSCs expressed osteogenesis-related proteins and genes at levels similar to those expressed in H-PDLSC monocultures (P>0.05). Irrespective of the percentage of I-PDLSCs, robust cellular materials were obtained from co-cultures with 50% or more H-PDLSCs, which exhibited equivalent potential to form new bone in vivo compared with sheets generated by H-PDLSC monocultures. These data suggest that the co-culture of I-PDLSCs with patient-matched H-PDLSCs is a practical and effective method for increasing the overall osteogenic and regenerative potentials of resultant cellular materials. - Highlights: • Co-culturing H-PDLSCs with I-PDLSCs led to rapid cell expansion. • H-PDLSCs and I-PDLSCs co-cultured

Assessment of cellular materials generated by co-cultured ‘inflamed’ and healthy periodontal ligament stem cells from patient-matched groups

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, Hao-Ning; Xia, Yu; Xu, Jie; Tian, Bei-Min; Zhang, Xi-Yu; Chen, Fa-Ming

2016-01-01

Recently, stem cells derived from the'inflamed’ periodontal ligament (PDL) tissue of periodontally diseased teeth (I-PDLSCs) have been increasingly suggested as a more readily accessible source of cells for regenerative therapies than those derived from healthy PDL tissue (H-PDLSCs). However, substantial evidence indicates that I-PDLSCs exhibit impaired functionalities compared with H-PDLSCs. In this study, patient-matched I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs were co-cultured at various ratios. Cellular materials derived from these cultures were investigated regarding their osteogenic potential in vitro and capacity to form new bone following in vivo transplantation. While patient-matched I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs could co-exist in co-culture systems, the proportion of I-PDLSCs tended to increase during in vitro incubation. Compared with H-PDLSC monoculture, the presence of I-PDLSCs in the co-cultures appeared to enhance the overall cell proliferation. Although not completely rescued, the osteogenic and regenerative potentials of the cellular materials generated by co-cultured I-PDLSCs and H-PDLSCs were significantly improved compared with those derived from I-PDLSC monocultures. Notably, cells in co-cultures containing either 50% I-PDLSCs plus 50% H-PDLSCs or 25% I-PDLSCs plus 75% H-PDLSCs expressed osteogenesis-related proteins and genes at levels similar to those expressed in H-PDLSC monocultures (P>0.05). Irrespective of the percentage of I-PDLSCs, robust cellular materials were obtained from co-cultures with 50% or more H-PDLSCs, which exhibited equivalent potential to form new bone in vivo compared with sheets generated by H-PDLSC monocultures. These data suggest that the co-culture of I-PDLSCs with patient-matched H-PDLSCs is a practical and effective method for increasing the overall osteogenic and regenerative potentials of resultant cellular materials. - Highlights: • Co-culturing H-PDLSCs with I-PDLSCs led to rapid cell expansion. • H-PDLSCs and I-PDLSCs co-cultured

On Tea Bowl from Jianzhan to Tenmoku: Material Culture and Intangible Culture in Cultural Diffusion

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Jianping Guan

2014-12-01

Full Text Available According to precise and scientific literature that recorded, Chinese tea culture has a documented history of more than 1700 years. During which period, Yuan Dynasty was considered a crucial turning-point with great changes. The current tea culture in China is an adoption and innovation of Ming and Qing dynasty, especially in the form of processing technology. For those elements inherited from Tang and Song dynasties, however, they were more directly adopted systematically by Japan. Ever since powdered tea culture from Song dynasty was accepted in Japan, Jianzhan, the tea bowl that gained renowned reputation in the Song tea culture was also introduced and became tenmoku (tianmu after localization. As the transformation of Chinese tea culture ended in Japan, Japanese tea culture of wabi-cha was shaped after the tenmoku’s obvious decline in value. Jianzhan’s prosper, and tenmoku’s emergence and transition, all proved a definitive impact from intangible culture.

Antenatal services for Aboriginal women: the relevance of cultural competence.

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Reibel, Tracy; Walker, Roz

2010-01-01

Due to persistent significantly poorer Aboriginal perinatal outcomes, the Women's and Newborns' Health Network, Western Australian Department of Health, required a comprehensive appraisal of antenatal services available to Aboriginal women as a starting point for future service delivery modelling. A services audit was conducted to ascertain the usage frequency and characteristics of antenatal services used by Aboriginal women in Western Australia (WA). Telephone interviews were undertaken with eligible antenatal services utilising a purpose specific service audit tool comprising questions in five categories: 1) general characteristics; 2) risk assessment; 3) treatment, risk reduction and education; 4) access; and 5) quality of care. Data were analysed according to routine antenatal care (e.g. risk assessment, treatment and risk reduction), service status (Aboriginal specific or non-specific) and application of cultural responsiveness. Significant gaps in appropriate antenatal services for Aboriginal women in metropolitan, rural and remote regions in WA were evident. Approximately 75% of antenatal services used by Aboriginal women have not achieved a model of service delivery consistent with the principles of culturally responsive care, with few services incorporating Aboriginal specific antenatal protocols/programme, maintaining access or employing Aboriginal Health Workers (AHWs). Of 42 audited services, 18 Aboriginal specific and 24 general antenatal services reported utilisation by Aboriginal women. Of these, nine were identified as providing culturally responsive service delivery, incorporating key indicators of cultural security combined with highly consistent delivery of routine antenatal care. One service was located in the metropolitan area and eight in rural or remote locations. The audit of antenatal services in WA represents a significant step towards a detailed understanding of which services are most highly utilised and their defining characteristics

Objects and identities : Dowry and material culture in Venetian Crete in regional and European context (1600-1645)

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Markaki, T.

2018-01-01

This comparative study explores the socioeconomic and cultural meanings of the dowry movables in Venetian Crete and attempts to place the island in the broader context of European material culture studies; especially of those which are based on probate inventory research. Through qualitative and

Is 'modern culture' bad for our health and well-being?

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Hanlon, Phil; Carlisle, Sandra

2009-12-01

Evidence is accumulating that well-being in high-income societies may be static or in decline. One influential theory argues that this is because 'modern' societies are influenced by values of materialism, individualism and consumerism. Does this intellectual critique resonate with ordinary people? This article reports on interviews with purposefully selected groups in Scotland, where the relevance of the cultural critique was explored. Participants in the study believed that cultural values such as individualized consumerism do exert a damaging influence on well-being. They suggested that such values are given particular power in the context of widespread social change and increasing inequalities. Nevertheless, they also believed that individuals and communities possess the capacity to resist such trends. This article concludes that efforts to achieve material improvement for disadvantaged people may not suffice in redressing deep-seated inequalities, if the contribution of some subtle but pernicious effects of contemporary culture remains neglected. However, the research does suggest that positive responses are also possible.

Production of bio-based materials using photobioreactors with binary cultures

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Beliaev, Alex S; Pinchuk, Grigoriy E; Hill, Eric A; Fredrickson, Jim K

2013-08-27

A method, device and system for producing preselected products, (either finished products or preselected intermediary products) from biobased precursors or CO.sub.2 and/or bicarbonate. The principal features of the present invention include a method wherein a binary culture is incubated with a biobased precursor in a closed system to transform at least a portion of the biobased precursor to a preselected product. The present invention provides a method of cultivation that does not need sparging of a closed bioreactor to remove or add a gaseous byproduct or nutrient from a liquid medium. This improvement leads to significant savings in energy consumption and allows for the design of photobioreactors of any desired shape. The present invention also allows for the use of a variety of types of waste materials to be used as the organic starting material.

Culturally Relevant Pedagogy and the Public Speaking Classroom

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Colvin, Janet Weston; Tobler, Nancy

2012-01-01

From the earliest roots of rhetoric, practitioners emphasized the need for analyzing one's audience before developing a speech. Textbooks for most basic public speaking courses spend at least one chapter discussing audience analysis. Authors discuss adapting messages to various demographic, cultural, and individual differences. As a result,…

Intercultural Interpretations: Making Public Relations Education Culturally Relevant

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Chia, Joy

2009-01-01

Public relations educators delivering courses to international students find that each cohort of students interprets and understands public relations theory and its application to practice according to their respective cultures. The premise of this paper is to reflect on some of the interpretations and expectations of public relations students…

Post-Materialism as a Cultural Factor Influencing Entrepreneurial Activity across Nations

OpenAIRE

Uhlaner, L.M.; Thurik, A.R.; Hutjes, J.

2002-01-01

textabstractThe study of the determinants of entrepreneurship at the country level has been dominated by economic influences. The relative stability of differences in levels of entrepreneurship across coun-tries suggests that other forces such as certain institutional and/or cultural factors are at play. The objective of this paper is to explore how post-materialism explains differences in entrepreneurial activity across countries. Entrepreneurial activity is defined as the percent of a count...

To Encounter, to Build the World and to Become a Human Being. Advocating for a Material-Cultural Turn in Developmental Psychology.

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Moro, Christiane

2016-12-01

Why have material world of daily life and material objects in their conventional features or to say it in other words, why have the mundane world and mundane objects, in which the human beings live and children come to, encounter, experience and develop through, received so little attention from psychologists thus remaining a blind spot in mainstream developmental psychology? Certainly the object has not been totally forgotten (e.g. Piaget's constructivist paradigm) but it has been considered as theoretically determined by the categories of understanding (cf. Kant), and considered as a key to understanding the world in its physical properties by the infant. But the material world and the material objects that are used for everyday purposes (i.e. pragmatically) belonging to material culture, have been totally neglected by developmental psychologists. Reacting to the Kantian agenda of developmental psychology but also to heterodox non developmentalist thinkers such as Gibson who is a growing source of inspiration for developmental psychologists today, we challenge the taken-for-granted mundane world, arguing for the importance of material objects related to material culture in psychological development during the prelinguistic period. On the basis of recent research in early development grounded in the Vygotskian paradigm, we discuss this issue through Marxist Anthropology, Material Culture Studies and Phenomenology. As a consequence we advocate for a material-cultural turn in psychological development in order to place the issue of material world and material objects in their pragmatic and semiotic features on the agenda of developmental psychology.

Culture, Prevention, and the Politics of Disparities

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Vera, Elizabeth M.

2007-01-01

The following article is a response to Adams's (2007 [this issue]) and Griffin and Miller's (2007 [this issue]) reactions to the Major Contribution articles presented on Culturally Relevant Prevention. Each reaction article identifies important implications for engaging in culturally relevant prevention efforts that are relevant to developing this…

The Islamic Orient and the Development of Material Culture of Muscovy: Evaluation Methods

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Belyaev Leonid A.

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The author discusses approaches to archaeological analysis of the Muslim contribution to the development of Muscovy, as well as the mere possibility of such analysis. So far, the studies focused on identifi cation of some interpenetrating elements of the material and artistic culture, which is necessary, but not quite suffi cient. New tasks must be formulated: to outline and characterize areas of intersection of various cultural streams; to identify forms and stages of such contacts; to understand ways for primary perception of impulses, which gave birth to distinctive national cultures in the Middle Ages and in the Modern era; to trace processing of such impulses further on; to try and understand whether there was a monocultural archaeological environment that existed in the past and belonged to the coexisting groups speaking different languages and belonging to different confessions.

Domestically Produced TV-Drama and Cultural Commons

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

From, Unni

2005-01-01

The Chapter elaborates empirically some of the aspects and means by which drama can occasion an articulation of cultural commons. Further, it explores explanations why audiences might retain a national perspective as a dominating frame of interpretation even though universal or late-modern interp......-modern interpretation frames would be equally relevant. I argue that institutional policy and politically regulations of media in general, combined with press material and a flow of news articles, chronicles, reviews, interviews and portraits , may establish a dominating paradigm....

Incorporating organisational safety culture within ergonomics practice.

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Bentley, Tim; Tappin, David

2010-10-01

This paper conceptualises organisational safety culture and considers its relevance to ergonomics practice. Issues discussed in the paper include the modest contribution that ergonomists and ergonomics as a discipline have made to this burgeoning field of study and the significance of safety culture to a systems approach. The relevance of safety culture to ergonomics work with regard to the analysis, design, implementation and evaluation process, and implications for participatory ergonomics approaches, are also discussed. A potential user-friendly, qualitative approach to assessing safety culture as part of ergonomics work is presented, based on a recently published conceptual framework that recognises the dynamic and multi-dimensional nature of safety culture. The paper concludes by considering the use of such an approach, where an understanding of different aspects of safety culture within an organisation is seen as important to the success of ergonomics projects. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: The relevance of safety culture to ergonomics practice is a key focus of this paper, including its relationship with the systems approach, participatory ergonomics and the ergonomics analysis, design, implementation and evaluation process. An approach to assessing safety culture as part of ergonomics work is presented.

Culture-specific delusions. Sense and nonsense in cultural context.

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Gaines, A D

1995-06-01

It can be said that a definition of delusions requires the invocation of cultural understandings, standards of acceptability, as well as conceptions of reality and the forces that animate it. For these reasons, the determination of delusional or normative ideation can only be effected properly within particular cultural contexts. The cross-cultural record suggests that it is difficult to separate the delusional from the cultural; a belief that is patterened and culturally specific is, by definition a cultural, not a delusional belief. One must rely upon particular, relevant local cultural understandings to ascertain when the bounds of culture have been transgressed and meaning has given way to unshareable nonsense.

Bridging Theory and Practice: Using Hip-Hop Pedagogy As A Culturally Relevant Approach In The Urban Science Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Adjapong, Edmund S.

This dissertation explores the context of urban science education as it relates to the achievement and engagement of urban youth. This study provides a framework for Hip-Hop Pedagogy, an approach to teaching and learning anchored in the creative elements of Hip-Hop culture, in STEM as an innovative approach to teaching and learning demonstrates the effect that Hip-Hop Pedagogy, as a culturally relevant approach to teaching has on teaching and learning in an urban science classroom. This study establishes practical tools and approaches, which were formed from by theory and research that transcend the traditional monolithic approaches to teaching science. Participants in this study are middle school students who attend an urban school in one of the largest school systems in the country. This research showed that as result of utilizing Hip-Hop pedagogical practices, students reported that they developed a deeper understanding of science content, students were more likely to identify as scientists, and students were provided a space and opportunities to deconstruct traditional classroom spaces and structures.

Creating a Model of Acceptance: Preservice Teachers Interact with Non-English-Speaking Latino Parents Using Culturally Relevant Mathematics and Science Activities at Family Learning Events

Science.gov (United States)

Ramirez, Olga; McCollough, Cherie A.; Diaz, Zulmaris

2016-01-01

The following describes a culturally relevant mathematics and science content program implemented by preservice teachers (PSTs) at Family Math/Science Learning Events (FM/SLEs) conducted through two different university programs in south Texas. These experiences are required course activities designed to inform PSTs of the importance of…

Cultural Diversity and Team Performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hoogendoorn, Sander; Van Praag, Mirjam

One of the most salient and relevant dimensions of team heterogeneity is cultural background. We measure the impact of cultural diversity on the performance of business teams using a field experiment. Companies are set up by teams of undergraduate students in business studies in realistic though...... similar circumstances. We vary the cultural composition of otherwise randomly composed teams in a multi-cultural student population. Our data indicate that a moderate level of cultural diversity has no effect on team performance in terms of business outcomes (sales, profits and profits per share). However......, if at least the majority of team members is culturally diverse then more cultural diversity seems to affect the performance of teams positively. Our data suggest that this might be related to the more diverse pool of relevant knowledge facilitating (mutual) learning within culturally diverse teams....

"Their Little Wooden Bricks": A History of the Material Culture of Kindergarten in the United States

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Prochner, Larry

2011-01-01

This article explores the material culture of kindergarten in the United States in relation to the production and consumption of materials and kindergarten theory and pedagogy. The focus is on Friedrich Froebel's building gifts as they were manufactured and sold by the Milton Bradley Company from 1869 to 1939. A review of trade catalogues over the…

Cultural repertoires and food-related household technology within colonia households under conditions of material hardship

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Dean Wesley R

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Introduction Mexican-origin women in the U.S. living in colonias (new-destination Mexican-immigrant communities along the Texas-Mexico border suffer from a high incidence of food insecurity and diet-related chronic disease. Understanding environmental factors that influence food-related behaviors among this population will be important to improving the well-being of colonia households. This article focuses on cultural repertoires that enable food choice and the everyday uses of technology in food-related practice by Mexican-immigrant women in colonia households under conditions of material hardship. Findings are presented within a conceptual framework informed by concepts drawn from sociological accounts of technology, food choice, culture, and material hardship. Methods Field notes were provided by teams of promotora-researchers (indigenous community health workers and public-health professionals trained as participant observers. They conducted observations on three separate occasions (two half-days during the week and one weekend day within eight family residences located in colonias near the towns of Alton and San Carlos, Texas. English observations were coded inductively and early observations stressed the importance of technology and material hardship in food-related behavior. These observations were further explored and coded using the qualitative data package Atlas.ti. Results Technology included kitchen implements used in standard and adapted configurations and household infrastructure. Residents employed tools across a range of food-related activities identified as forms of food acquisition, storage, preparation, serving, feeding and eating, cleaning, and waste processing. Material hardships included the quality, quantity, acceptability, and uncertainty dimensions of food insecurity, and insufficient consumption of housing, clothing and medical care. Cultural repertoires for coping with material hardship included reliance on

Cultural repertoires and food-related household technology within colonia households under conditions of material hardship.

Science.gov (United States)

Dean, Wesley R; Sharkey, Joseph R; Johnson, Cassandra M; St John, Julie

2012-05-15

BSTRACT: Mexican-origin women in the U.S. living in colonias (new-destination Mexican-immigrant communities) along the Texas-Mexico border suffer from a high incidence of food insecurity and diet-related chronic disease. Understanding environmental factors that influence food-related behaviors among this population will be important to improving the well-being of colonia households. This article focuses on cultural repertoires that enable food choice and the everyday uses of technology in food-related practice by Mexican-immigrant women in colonia households under conditions of material hardship. Findings are presented within a conceptual framework informed by concepts drawn from sociological accounts of technology, food choice, culture, and material hardship. Field notes were provided by teams of promotora-researchers (indigenous community health workers) and public-health professionals trained as participant observers. They conducted observations on three separate occasions (two half-days during the week and one weekend day) within eight family residences located in colonias near the towns of Alton and San Carlos, Texas. English observations were coded inductively and early observations stressed the importance of technology and material hardship in food-related behavior. These observations were further explored and coded using the qualitative data package Atlas.ti. Technology included kitchen implements used in standard and adapted configurations and household infrastructure. Residents employed tools across a range of food-related activities identified as forms of food acquisition, storage, preparation, serving, feeding and eating, cleaning, and waste processing. Material hardships included the quality, quantity, acceptability, and uncertainty dimensions of food insecurity, and insufficient consumption of housing, clothing and medical care. Cultural repertoires for coping with material hardship included reliance on inexpensive staple foods and dishes, and

Culturally adapting an evidence-based parenting intervention for Latino immigrants: the need to integrate fidelity and cultural relevance.

Science.gov (United States)

Parra Cardona, Jose Ruben; Domenech-Rodriguez, Melanie; Forgatch, Marion; Sullivan, Cris; Bybee, Deborah; Holtrop, Kendal; Escobar-Chew, Ana Rocio; Tams, Lisa; Dates, Brian; Bernal, Guillermo

2012-03-01

Latinos constitute the largest ethnic minority group in the United States. However, the cultural adaptation and dissemination of evidence-based parenting interventions among Latino populations continues to be scarce despite extensive research that demonstrates the long-term positive effects of these interventions. The purpose of this article is threefold: (1) justify the importance of cultural adaptation research as a key strategy to disseminate efficacious interventions among Latinos, (2) describe the initial steps of a program of prevention research with Latino immigrants aimed at culturally adapting an evidence-based intervention informed by parent management training principles, and (3) discuss implications for advancing cultural adaptation prevention practice and research, based on the initial feasibility and cultural acceptability findings of the current investigation. © FPI, Inc.

A common basis for facilitated legitimate exchange of biological materials proposed by the European Culture Collections' Organisation

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Dagmar Fritze

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Being charged with the task of accessioning and supplying of living microbiological material, microbial culture collections are institutions that play a central role between the interests of a variety of user communities. On the one side are the providers of living microbiological material, such as individual scientists, institutions and countries of origin and on the other side are the various kinds of recipients/users of cultures of microorganisms from academia and industry. Thus, providing access to high quality biological material and scientific services while at the same time observing donor countries' rights, intellectual property rights, biosafety and biosecurity aspects poses demanding challenges. E.g. donor countries rights relate to Article 15 of the Convention on Biological Diversity: "Contracting parties …. recognize the sovereign rights of states over their natural resources …. shall facilitate access to resources … and not impose restrictions that run counter to the aims of the Convention. Access to natural resources shall be by mutually agreed terms and subject to prior informed consent ..." The use of a proposed standard contract by culture collections is discussed as a way of contractually safeguarding the existing research commons, while observing the new rights established in the Convention on Biological Diversity as well as other existing and new legislation impacting on the accessibility of living microbial material.

Cultural diversity and patient teaching.

Science.gov (United States)

Price, J L; Cordell, B

1994-01-01

Cultural diversity challenges health care providers to facilitate bridging cross-cultural gaps with clients. It is through providing culturally relevant care that health care practitioners truly serve the needs of all clients in our diverse society. A theory of Cultural Care Diversity and Universality offers a framework for building linkages of clinical knowledge to cultural care. A four-step approach to providing culturally sensitive patient teaching is described: (1) health care providers should assess their own cultural beliefs and be aware of general ethnic, regional, and religious beliefs and practices in their area; (2) develop a teaching plan; (3) implement the plan; (4) evaluate the success of the teaching-learning process and make alterations based on evaluation. When providers assess clients' beliefs and practices and incorporate them into the teaching plan design, teaching becomes more relevant and clients become more successful at learning.

Investigating longitudinal and cross cultural measurement Invariance of Inglehart’s short post-materialism scale

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ippel, L.; Gelissen, J.P.T.M.; Moors, G.B.D.

2014-01-01

Inglehart applies a four item ranking scale to measure post-materialism which is used for cross-cultural and cross-temporal comparative purposes. The aim of this research is to test measurement invariance of the scale to establish to what extent the scale produces comparable results in time and

Contextually-relevant resources in Speech-language Therapy and Audiology in South Africa: Are there any?

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Michelle Pascoe

2011-11-01

Full Text Available In this editorial introduction we aim to explore the notion of contextually-relevant resources. We argue that it is the responsibility of Speech Language Therapists (SLTs and Audiologists (As working in South Africa to develop contextually relevant resources, and not to rely on the countries or cultures where the professions originated to do so. Language is often cited as the main barrier to contextually relevant resources: most SLTs and As are aware of the need for more resources in the indigenous local languages. However, the issue is not as straightforward as translating resources from English into other languages. The challenges related to culture, e.g. formal education, familiarity with the test situation, have to be considered; as well as the population on which norms were obtained; the nature of vocabulary or picture items. This paper introduces four original research papers that follow in this edition of the journal, and showcases them as examples of innovative development in our field. At the same time we call for the further development of assessment materials, intervention resources, and contributions to the evidence base in our context. We emphasise the importance of local knowledge to drive the development of these resources in innovative and perhaps unexpected ways, and suggest that all clinicians have an important role to play in this process.

SWeRF--A method for estimating the relevant fine particle fraction in bulk materials for classification and labelling purposes.

Science.gov (United States)

Pensis, Ingeborg; Luetzenkirchen, Frank; Friede, Bernd

2014-05-01

In accordance with the European regulation for classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures (CLP) as well as the criteria as set out in the Globally Harmonized System (GHS), fine fraction of crystalline silica (CS) has been classified as a specific target organ toxicity, the specific organ in this case being the lung. Generic cut-off values for products containing a fine fraction of CS trigger the need for a method for the quantification of the fine fraction of CS in bulk materials. This article describes the so-called SWeRF method, the size-weighted relevant fine fraction. The SWeRF method combines the particle size distribution of a powder with probability factors from the EN 481 standard and allows the relevant fine fraction of a material to be calculated. The SWeRF method has been validated with a number of industrial minerals. This will enable manufacturers and blenders to apply the CLP and GHS criteria for the classification of mineral products containing RCS a fine fraction of CS.

Fostering Intelligent Moderation in the Next Generation: Insights from Remida-Inspired Reuse Materials Education

Science.gov (United States)

Parnell, Will; Downs, Christine; Cullen, Julianne

2017-01-01

Ecologically minded leaders and early childhood teacher educators offer a culturally significant shiny fish project in their community as a way to launch an environmental-material reuse project. Questioning if environmental collapse is imminent, their project investigation of developing a locally relevant Remida Reggio-inspired center serves as…

Ureolytic/Non-Ureolytic Bacteria Co-Cultured Self-Healing Agent for Cementitious Materials Crack Repair

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Hyeong Min Son

2018-05-01

Full Text Available The present study investigated the CaCO3 precipitation performance of ureolytic and non-ureolytic bacteria co-cultured as a self-healing agent for cementitious materials crack repair. Three different inoculum ratios of ureolytic Sporosarcina pasteurii and non-ureolytic Bacillus thuringiensis (10:0, 8:2, or 5:5 were used. The effect of coculturing ureolytic and non-ureolytic bacteria on microbial metabolism was investigated by measuring the rate of growth in urea-containing medium and the rate of NH4+ and CaCO3 production in urea–calcium lactate medium. The self-healing efficiency of co-cultured bacteria was examined by exposing cement mortar specimens with predefined cracks to media containing single urease-producing or co-cultured bacteria. The obtained results provide new findings, where CaCO3 precipitation is improved by co-culturing ureolytic and non-ureolytic bacteria, owing to the relatively faster growth rate of non-ureolytic bacteria. The crack filling rate correlated with the width of crack, in particular, specimens with a smaller crack width showed the faster filling effect, indicating that the crack width can be a dominant factor influencing the CaCO3 precipitation capacity of co-cultured bacteria.

3D Cell Culture in a Self-Assembled Nanofiber Environment.

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Yi Wen Chai

Full Text Available The development and utilization of three-dimensional cell culture platforms has been gaining more traction. Three-dimensional culture platforms are capable of mimicking in vivo microenvironments, which provide greater physiological relevance in comparison to conventional two-dimensional cultures. The majority of three-dimensional culture platforms are challenged by the lack of cell attachment, long polymerization times, and inclusion of undefined xenobiotics, and cytotoxic cross-linkers. In this study, we review the use of a highly defined material composed of naturally occurring compounds, hyaluronic acid and chitosan, known as Cell-Mate3DTM. Moreover, we provide an original measurement of Young's modulus using a uniaxial unconfined compression method to elucidate the difference in microenvironment rigidity for acellular and cellular conditions. When hydrated into a tissue-like hybrid hydrocolloid/hydrogel, Cell-Mate3DTM is a highly versatile three-dimensional culture platform that enables downstream applications such as flow cytometry, immunostaining, histological staining, and functional studies to be applied with relative ease.

Lessons Learned from Native C.I.R.C.L.E., a Culturally Specific Resource.

Science.gov (United States)

Garcia, Andrea; Baethke, Lisa; Kaur, Judith S

2017-12-01

Cancer is now the second leading cause of death among American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN), and trends in cancer-related mortality over the past 2 decades show inferior control in AIAN compared to non-Hispanic Whites. The American Indian/Alaska Native Cancer Information Resource Center and Learning Exchange (Native C.I.R.C.L.E.) was developed in the year 2000 as part of a comprehensive network of partnerships to develop, maintain, and disseminate culturally appropriate cancer and other health information materials for AIAN educators and providers. Now, in its 15th year of existence, enough data has been accumulated by Native C.I.R.C.L.E. to analyze trends in the distribution of culturally relevant cancer information materials and compare access to both printed (hard copy) and online materials. The amount of culturally appropriate materials available since its creation has increased more than 10-fold. Print materials are now distributed throughout the world, and the number of materials requested from print and downloads combined are in the thousands on a monthly basis. Native C.I.R.C.L.E. is in the process of expanding its access and capabilities to target more of the lay AIAN public in order to address the digital divide.

Recalling community: Using material culture and digital archives in Salford

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Lawrence Cassidy

2012-08-01

Full Text Available This article explores strategies for engaging geographically fragmented urban communities as active participants in conceptually re-mapping their former localities. It looks in detail at the ongoing Retracing Salford project in Salford, UK, which employs the use of everyday objects and oral histories to engage and enable former residents to reconnect with their recently demolished neighbourhoods and each other. The project also seeks to document an urban working class history largely overlooked by the large-scale institutions. The project is based on a PhD study undertaken by the author at The District Six Museum in Cape Town, South Africa, which examined the use of material artefacts in exhibitions and memory workshops at that museum (Cassidy 2009. Like District Six, Salford has undergone wide-scale demolition and population dispersal over the past 40 years. What began as relatively simple installations in museums, libraries and the like, has now grown to include digitised versions of the family snaps, street signs and oral histories, as a developing online Streets Museum archive (www.streetsmuseum.co.uk. This article reflects on how the methodology employed in the Retracing Salford project has helped rejuvenate and reconnect these dispersed communities. The article argues that the approach used is succeeding in widening the circle of participation and debate in relation to heritage issues, in particular the absence of commemoration of working-class community culture in the city. It has also increased awareness of urban land clearance issues. Its continued success depends on numerous factors, such as developing new strategies of engagement with the community, regularly gaining publicity and organising new exhibitions and workshops. Keywords: Material culture, community participation, urban working class history

Cultural objects as objects: materiality, urban space, and the interpretation of AIDS campaigns in Accra, Ghana.

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McDonnell, Terence E

2010-05-01

AIDS media lead unexpected lives once distributed through urban space: billboards fade, posters go missing, bumper stickers travel to other cities. The materiality of AIDS campaign objects and of the urban settings in which they are displayed structures how the public interprets their messages. Ethnographic observation of AIDS media in situ and interview data reveal how the materiality of objects and places shapes the availability of AIDS knowledge in Accra, Ghana. Significantly for AIDS organizations, these material conditions often systematically obstruct access to AIDS knowledge for particular groups. Attending to materiality rethinks how scholars assess the cultural power of media.

General principles of researching the lexicon of traditional material culture

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Nedeljkov Ljiljana

2009-01-01

Full Text Available The paper discusses a linguistic research of terminological systems connected with basic fields of human life and work which, in modern conditions, are either transformed into contemporary modern forms or gradually disappear due to changes in the way of life and work. The lexicon of material culture of native inhabitants of Vojvodina is examined, resulting in monographs on the terminologies of fishing, cartwrighting, shepherding and houses and furniture, all of which have in common the fact that the starting point was the research of the lexicon in question by semantic fields. The paper shows the lexicological and lexicographical procedures used while researching these terminological systems.

Engaging First Nation and Inuit communities in asthma management and control: assessing cultural appropriateness of educational resources.

Science.gov (United States)

Latycheva, O; Chera, R; Hampson, C; Masuda, J R; Stewart, M; Elliott, S J; Fenton, N E

2013-01-01

Asthma is a growing concern in First Nations and Inuit communities. As with many health indicators and outcomes, Aboriginal peoples living in remote areas experience greater disparities in respiratory health compared with non-Aboriginal Canadians. Therefore, it is critically important to take into account their unique needs when developing asthma educational materials and resources. The purpose of this study is to assess the cultural relevance of existing asthma education materials for First Nations and Inuit peoples. Five First Nations and Inuit communities from across Canada participated in the project. A combination of quantitative evaluations (eg surveys) and qualitative approaches (eg open discussion, live chats) were used to assess printed and web-based asthma education materials. Participants represented First Nations and Inuit communities from across Canada and were selected on the basis of age and role: 6 to 12 years old (children), 12 and over (youth), parents and grandparents, community leaders and teachers, and community advisory group members. In general, the results showed that although participants of all age categories liked the selection of asthma educational materials and resources, they identified pictures and images related to First Nations and Inuit people living and coping with asthma as ways of improving cultural relevance. This reinforces findings that tailoring materials to include Aboriginal languages, ceremonies and traditions would enhance their uptake. Our findings also demonstrate that visually based content in both printed and virtual form were the preferred style of learning of all participants, except young children who preferred to learn through play and interactive activities. Asthma is a growing concern in First Nations and Inuit communities. Given this concern, it is essential to understand cultural needs and preferences when developing asthma education materials and resources. The findings from this research emphasize the need

Criteria of selection of basic linguacultural units within the context of cross-cultural communication

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Khalupo Olga Ivanovna

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The article considers the problems associated with the analysis and selection of basic linguacultural units that are necessary for a more effective cross-cultural communication. To make the process of dialogue between different cultures and languages more appropriate and productive, it is necessary to possess certain knowledge, skills, which are acquired by man in the process of learning. Important in our opinion in this area are the mastery means which will prepare the person to communicate in a different communicative space. Such means, in our opinion, are the basic linguacultural units, which are considered as carriers of information and expression of cultural identity. They inform choice contributes to a worldview, understanding linguacultural picture of the world community. The basis of selection of linguistic units on the following criteria: the information content, functionality, sufficiency, cultural identity, realism, pivotal importance to the basic sense, social and cultural significance. Application of the proposed criteria allowing more appropriate to make the selection of the material and linguacultural integral components of the scope of cross-cultural interaction, which are characterized by their relevant material necessary for an adequate understanding of the processes occurring in different communicative space.

IMPLEMENTING A STUDENT-CENTERED PEDAGOGY THROUGH THE USE OF INTERESTING AND CULTURALLY CONTEXTUALIZED AUTHENTIC MATERIALS

OpenAIRE

Tabitha Kidwell; Hanung Triyoko

2017-01-01

The selection and use of appropriate materials is one of the most critical challenges facing English teachers today. In this article, we tell the stories (vignettes) of some of the major challenges we have faced as educators in this regard, and we offer a research base and practical suggestions related to each vignette. Selection of interesting and culturally contextualized authentic materials can go a long way towards creating a student-centered peddagogy. This will help to increase student ...

Regulatory focussing of the relevant aspects related to the transport of radioactive materials in Argentina

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lopez Vietri, J.R.; Novo, R.G.; Bianchi, A.J.

1998-01-01

Full text: This paper points out a summary of the relevant aspects related to the transport of radioactive material in Argentina treated only from a regulatory focussing, it is to say from the point of view of its competent authority of application the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (in Spanish, the Autoridad Regulatoria Nuclear, ARN). Firstly, it is introduced the legal and regulatory framework applicable to the transport of radioactive material and the corresponding authorities involved (ARN, Secretary of Transport, and the Argentine Air Force, Naval Prefecture and Navy). Then, it is presented a schedule of the main characteristics of the shipments of radioactive material used in both the nuclear cycle and in medicine, industry and research, and an average of the shipments annually transported in Argentina. Further on the paper briefly analyses the ARN sources and the way in which it performs the compliance assurance with the in-force transport regulations in the country. Particularly, it is explained certain main tools used by the compliance system, as for example, transport notice, data base, licensing of certain design packages, shipments and materials, inspection and audits, and fees and sanctions regimes. On the other hand, it is mentioned the Argentine experience in the development, licensing, manufacture and use of domestic designs of Type B(U) packages and special form radioactive material (cobalt 60 and iridium 192 sealed sources). Moreover, it is concisely described test facilities available in the country necessary to perform the mentioned designs. Finally, the paper shortly describes the ARN main transport activities exclusively concerning the relationship with other national organisations (Federal Police, Gendarmerie, Naval Prefecture and Argentine Institute of Material Rationalisation, in Spanish Instituto Argentino de Racionalizacion de Materiales - IRAM) and with regional and inter regional organisations (South American Common Market, in Spanish

Laser-induced emission, fluorescence and Raman hybrid setup: A versatile instrument to analyze materials from cultural heritage

Science.gov (United States)

Syvilay, D.; Bai, X. S.; Wilkie-Chancellier, N.; Texier, A.; Martinez, L.; Serfaty, S.; Detalle, V.

2018-02-01

The aim of this research project was the development of a hybrid system in laboratory coupling together three analytical techniques, namely laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) and Raman spectroscopy in a single instrument. The rationale for combining these three spectroscopies was to identify a material (molecular and elemental analysis) without any preliminary preparation, regardless of its organic or inorganic nature, on the surface and in depth, without any surrounding light interference thanks to time resolution. Such instrumentation would allow characterizing different materials from cultural heritage. A complete study on LIBS-LIF-Raman hybrid was carried out, from its conception to instrumental achievement, in order to elaborate a strategy of analysis according to the material and to be able to address conservation issues. From an instrumental point of view, condensing the three spectroscopies was achieved by using a single laser for excitation and two spectrometers (time-integrated and not time-integrated) for light collection. A parabolic mirror was used as collecting system, while three excitation sources directed through this optical system ensured the examination of a similar probe area. Two categories of materials were chosen to test the hybrid instrumentation on cultural heritage applications (copper corrosion products and wall paintings). Some examples are reported to illustrate the wealth of information provided by the hybrid, thus demonstrating its great potential to be used for cultural heritage issues. Finally, several considerations are outlined aimed at further improving the hybrid.

Materializing Culture - Culturizing Material. On the Status, Responsibilities and Function of Cultural Property Repositories within the Framework of a "Transformative Scholarship"

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Markus Hilgert

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Certain theoretical streams in the cultural and social sciences that are occasionally subsumed under the term “New Materialism” 2 (see Witzgall, as well as recent social, political, cultural and media technology developments require a theoretical and research-political repositioning of academic object repositories. For it is obvious that under the influence of these multi-layered, partly interwoven processes, the status, responsibilities, as well as the function and spheres of activity of these object or cultural property repositories with research commitment (on the term see section 2 below are currently undergoing long-lasting change. For the respective institutions, these changes not only result in complex challenges regarding contents and structure, but also present extraordinary opportunities for the fulfillment of their academic, social and political responsibilities. The appropriate handling of these challenges and opportunities can substantially contribute to the sharpening of the academic and social profile of these institutions and increase their visibility on both a national and international level.

From basic raw material goods to cultural and environmental services: the Chinese bamboo sophistication path

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Manuel Ruiz Pérez

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Bamboo has deep cultural and economic roots in China, the country with the largest bamboo resources in the world. Over the last three decades bamboo has evolved from a supply of raw material for basic goods into the material base of an increasingly diversified array of products and, more recently, into a potentially important source of cultural and environmental services. Based on a general literature review and the lessons learned from detailed case studies in different regions of China, we explored the changing roles of bamboo, and its effects on local economies and farmers' livelihood strategies. As the country develops and new economic activities continue to appear, bamboo production has shifted from a superior income-generating opportunity that largely benefited the better-off to a less attractive option left for those who have no other choice. The nature of the work has also changed, from families working directly on their bamboo plots to an emphasis on hired labor, with prosperous bamboo owners devoting most of their time to more lucrative activities. A similar process can be observed in bamboo processing in counties where previous industrial structures hinged around raw material harvests, but which have now entered into other secondary and tertiary industry activities. At the same time, bamboo has attracted new opportunities as a source of cultural, aesthetic, and leisure-related activities, as well as some potentially important climatic, watershed, and biodiversity functions. We analyze the complementarity between goods and services provided by bamboo and discuss some research issues and future trends that may help in overcoming these conflicts.

Emotions, Development and Materiality at School: a Cultural-Historical Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Muller Mirza, Nathalie

2016-12-01

In the school context, feelings and emotions are generally perceived as obstacles to learning. Today, however, the introduction of complex real-world issues in lessons of Geography, History or civic education, such as international migration or cultural diversity, blurs the classic boundaries between emotions and cognition when they prompt students' personal opinions and experiences. In the frame of a research on teaching and learning practices in education for cultural diversity, this paper examines how students' personal emotions were elicited in the lessons, and how they were semiotized, transformed in the course of social interactions. We analyze empirical data gathered in 12 Primary and Junior school classrooms in Switzerland. 12 teachers and 232 students (from 11 to 16 years old) participated. We adopt a cultural-historical perspective inspired by Vygotsky and his followers and show the interactional processes by which the emotions undergo semiotization and influence the unfolding of the students' psychological processes. In the sequences we analyze, using the Valsiner's schema (Human Development, 44, 84-97, 2001), we identify three different modalities of semiotization: 1) the students' feelings are simply verbalized and linked to the speaker's affective world; 2) the verbalized emotions are reframed and interwoven with factual information; 3) the verbalized emotions are linked to information and reframed with collective emotional experiences. These processes are described, illustrated and discussed. We shed light on the central role of the verbal interventions of the teacher (who supports but also hinders the processes sometimes) and of materiality, here photographs, which mediated the teacher-student interactions.

Culturally Adapting an Evidence-Based Parenting Intervention for Latino Immigrants: The Need to Integrate Fidelity and Cultural Relevance1

Science.gov (United States)

Cardona, Jose Ruben Parra; Domenech-Rodriguez, Melanie; Forgatch, Marion; Sullivan, Cris; Bybee, Deborah; Holtrop, Kendal; Escobar-Chew, Ana Rocio; Tams, Lisa; Dates, Brian; Bernal, Guillermo

2011-01-01

Latinos constitute the largest ethnic minority group in the US. However, the cultural adaptation and dissemination of evidence-based parenting interventions among Latino populations continues to be scarce in spite of extensive research that demonstrates the long-term positive effects of these interventions. The purpose of this article is threefold: (a) justify the importance of cultural adaptation research as a key strategy to disseminate efficacious interventions among Latinos, (b) describe the initial steps of a program of prevention research with Latino immigrants aimed at culturally adapting an evidence-based intervention informed by parent management training (PMT) principles, and (c) discuss implications for advancing cultural adaptation prevention practice and research, based on the initial feasibility and cultural acceptability findings of the current investigation. PMID:22428711

Effects of Apollo 12 lunar material on lipid levels of tobacco tissue and slash pine cultures

Science.gov (United States)

Weete, J. D.

1972-01-01

Investigations of the lipid components of pine tissues (Pinus elloitii) are discussed, emphasizing fatty acids and steroids. The response by slash pine tissue cultures to growth in contact with Apollo lunar soil, earth basalt, and Iowa soil is studied. Tissue cultures of tobacco grown for 12 weeks in contact with lunar material from Apollo 12 flight contained 21 to 35 percent more total pigment than control tissues. No differences were noted in the fresh or dry weight of the experimental and control samples.

Materiales Maria Maya: community-based materials development.

Science.gov (United States)

Moran, B C

1982-01-01

Materials Maria Maya (MMM) is a Guatemalan organization which has dedicated itself to making health education more relevant to the rural Mayans who constitute the majority of Guatemala's population. The administration and direction of the project is in the hands of a team of qualified Mayan men and women. Funding is primarily through various charitable international organizations. The content of preexisting health education programs, strongly influenced by the dominant "ladino" Spanish speaking culture was found to be inappropriate to the goal of this program. MMM set about to formulate a new teaching format which would draw upon, rather than trample over, established cultural practices and life styles. By a process of trial and error, involving small scale field tests, a new program format was developed. By questioning local women about perceived priority areas, through the study of morbidity and mortality data, decisions were made as to topics to be covered. Investigators, authors, and artists worked together to form a "materials package" which was then subject to pretesting. Out of this effort, MMM has been able to come up with a method to encourage more effective participative teaching through the use of education materials.

Culture, Materiality, Memory: Collective Ownership and Action In Romanian Mutual Funds

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Narcis TULBURE

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the tensions between collectivist and corporatist forms of ownership for Romanian mutual funds. Drawing on my research among retail investors of funds that ended up in bankruptcy throughout the postsocialist period, I document the material practices and graphic artefacts they deploy in litigation as ways to make claims and produce evidence regarding their ongoing financial involvement and the rights to compensations. I focus specifically on the files documenting their personal histories (providing moral reasons for pursuing “speculative” investments as well as those materializing the memory of their involvement with the capital market. I conclude that material practices are constitutive of vernacular forms of financial and legal knowledge. Furthermore, they engender specific types of property that serve as premises for the defense of investor rights and as grounds for emerging forms of collective action. Methodologically, the conclusion of the paper is that qualitative methods constitute alternative approaches and a valuable complement of quantitate research methods for the behaviors of mutual fund investors illustrating some of the cultural components giving specific dynamics to the popular participation to the capital market that can be subsequently quantified.

The Value Relevance Of Value Added And Stakeholder Compensation Across Business Cultures

OpenAIRE

John Darcy

2011-01-01

This research performed a partial test of the instrumental validity of the stakeholder model by examining the value relevance of value added relative to income and the incremental value relevance of two stakeholder compensation components of value added, wages and interest for Japan, Germany, United States, and United Kingdom.

Maker Cultures and the Prospects for Technological Action.

Science.gov (United States)

Nascimento, Susana; Pólvora, Alexandre

2018-06-01

Supported by easier and cheaper access to tools and expanding communities, maker cultures are pointing towards the ideas of (almost) everyone designing, creating, producing and distributing renewed, new and improved products, machines, things or artefacts. A careful analysis of the assumptions and challenges of maker cultures emphasizes the relevance of what may be called technological action, that is, active and critical interventions regarding the purposes and applications of technologies within ordinary lives, thus countering the deterministic trends of current directions of technology. In such transformative potential, we will explore a set of elements what is and could be technological action through snapshots of maker cultures based on the empirical research conducted in three particular contexts: the Fab Lab Network, Maker Media core outputs and initiatives such as Maker Faires, and the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA). Elements such as control and empowerment through material engagement, openness and sharing, and social, cultural, political and ethical values of the common good in topics such as diversity, sustainability and transparency, are critically analysed.

THE RELEVANCE OF TEACHING MATERIALS OF VOCATIONAL SCHOOL AND THEIR UTILIZATION IN KRETEK INDUSTRY IN KUDUS

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Nuraeningsih Nuraeningsih

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, technology development demands candidates of employees to be highly qualified workers as companies or manufacturers make use of machinary. Therefore, they are supposed to to master English as the language of operation manual. With good English proficiency, workers are able to operate the machine in their workplace correctly and human errors could be eliminated. In other words, the companies will not get loss if all workers understand English in practical way. To answer this challange, vocational schools play an important role in providing ready-work graduates. Through curriculum design and appropriate teaching materials, students are taught to achieve the competence stated there. This research was conducted to describe the utility of English teaching materials of vocational schools to the application in work places, in this case, kretek industry in Kudus. A descriptive need analysis was used to analyze the data that was collected through a deep interview. The result of the research shows that emplyees perceived that vocabulary is the most important language component to learn. In addition, they considered skill mostly needed is reading comprehension. In other words, the materials are not very relevant to the need of kretek industry in Kudus. Hopefully, this research can assists English teachers of vocational schools to consider the students‘ need and develop the suitable materials for them.

Trepanation and Roman medicine: a comparison of osteoarchaeological remains, material culture and written texts.

Science.gov (United States)

Tullo, E

2010-06-01

Evidence for prehistoric trepanation is limited to preserved osteoarchaeological material, namely human skulls, and the occasional discovery of surgical instruments. However, the Roman empire gave rise to an abundant and diverse range of source types, including skeletal remains, material culture and detailed medical texts, each of which harbours the potential to contribute to our understanding of trepanation during this historical period. This paper highlights the advantages and inherent biases of each of these source types, and proposes that the simultaneous analysis and integration of different types of historical evidence is essential for the study of trepanation as a surgical procedure.

The relevance of cultural activities in ethnic identity among California Native American youth.

Science.gov (United States)

Schweigman, Kurt; Soto, Claradina; Wright, Serena; Unger, Jennifer

2011-01-01

This study analyzed data from a large statewide sample of Native American adolescents throughout California to determine whether participation in cultural practices was associated with stronger ethnic identity. The Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) scale was used to measure the ethnic identity of 945 Native American adolescents (416 male, 529 female) aged 13 - 19 across California. Respondents who participated in cultural activities including pow-wows, sweat lodge, drum group and roundhouse dance reported significantly higher Native American ethnic identity than their counterparts who did not take part in cultural activities. The association between cultural activities and ethnic identity was only significant among urban youth and not among reservation youth. Higher grades in school were associated with ethnic identity among females but not among males. Findings from this study show a strong association between cultural activities and traditional practices with tribal enculturation among Native American youth in California. Cultural-based practices to enhance Native identity could be useful to improve mental and behavioral health among Native American youth.

Iron Age Material Culture in South Asia – Analysis and Context of Recently Discovered Slag Sites in Northwest Kashmir (Baramulla District in India

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Mumtaz A Yatoo

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with presence or absence of Iron Age material culture and explores the development of Iron Age in northwest Kashmir (Baramulla District. It has been noted from the previous surveys that a chronological gap existed (c. 1000 BCE – 100 CE, which roughly equates to the Iron Age in Kashmir (Yatoo 2005; Yatoo 2012. Furthermore, considering that there is very little evidence of Iron Age material culture from the few excavated (or explored sites in Kashmir, there is a debate about the very presence of Iron Age in Kashmir. The little information we have about Iron Age material culture from key sites in Kashmir (such as a few sherds of NBPW, some iron artefacts and slag at one site, has been largely dismissed as imports and lacked serious attention by scholars. It was therefore difficult to build any comparisons in the material culture for the present study. Instead the Iron Age material culture in other parts of South Asia, such as the Indian plains and northern regions of Pakistan, are discussed, as these regions have documented evidence of iron and its associated material culture but very few have archaeometallurgical evidence. Furthermore, Kashmir historically had communication links with these regions in South Asia since the early third millennium BCE until the 10th century CE, so we might expect some contact during the period of early iron production and use. Therefore, one key issue for archaeology in northwest Kashmir in this paper is to understand the link between the newly discovered slag and tuyeres with the key sites in Kashmir and in South Asia; and a further key issue is to determine whether or not there was a distinct Iron Age in north west Kashmir (or whole of Kashmir, or whether the few recovered iron artefacts from key sites of Kashmir are indeed all imports.

Tracing and control of raw materials sourcing for vaccine manufacturers.

Science.gov (United States)

Faretra Peysson, Laurence

2010-05-01

The control of the raw materials used to manufacture vaccines is mandatory; therefore, a very clear process must be in place to guarantee that raw materials are traced. Those who make products or supplies used in vaccine manufacture (suppliers of culture media, diagnostic tests, etc.) must apply quality systems proving that they adhere to certain standards. ISO certification, Good Manufacturing Practices for production sites and the registration of culture media with a 'Certificate of Suitability' from the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and Healthcare are reliable quality systems pertaining to vaccine production. Suppliers must assure that each lot of raw materials used in a product that will be used in vaccine manufacture adheres to the level of safety and traceability required. Incoming materials must be controlled in a single 'Enterprise Resource Planning' system which is used to document important information, such as the assignment of lot number, expiration date, etc. Ingredients for culture media in particular must conform to certain specifications. The specifications that need to be checked vary according to the ingredient, based on the level of risk. The way a raw material is produced is also important, and any aspect relative to cross-contamination, such as the sanitary measures used in producing and storing the raw material must be checked as well. In addition, suppliers can reduce the risk of viral contamination of raw materials by avoiding purchases in countries where a relevant outbreak is currently declared. 2010 The International Association for Biologicals. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Hetero-cellular prototyping by synchronized multi-material bioprinting for rotary cell culture system.

Science.gov (United States)

Snyder, Jessica; Son, Ae Rin; Hamid, Qudus; Wu, Honglu; Sun, Wei

2016-01-13

Bottom-up tissue engineering requires methodological progress of biofabrication to capture key design facets of anatomical arrangements across micro, meso and macro-scales. The diffusive mass transfer properties necessary to elicit stability and functionality require hetero-typic contact, cell-to-cell signaling and uniform nutrient diffusion. Bioprinting techniques successfully build mathematically defined porous architecture to diminish resistance to mass transfer. Current limitations of bioprinted cell assemblies include poor micro-scale formability of cell-laden soft gels and asymmetrical macro-scale diffusion through 3D volumes. The objective of this work is to engineer a synchronized multi-material bioprinter (SMMB) system which improves the resolution and expands the capability of existing bioprinting systems by packaging multiple cell types in heterotypic arrays prior to deposition. This unit cell approach to arranging multiple cell-laden solutions is integrated with a motion system to print heterogeneous filaments as tissue engineered scaffolds and nanoliter droplets. The set of SMMB process parameters control the geometric arrangement of the combined flow's internal features and constituent material's volume fractions. SMMB printed hepatocyte-endothelial laden 200 nl droplets are cultured in a rotary cell culture system (RCCS) to study the effect of microgravity on an in vitro model of the human hepatic lobule. RCCS conditioning for 48 h increased hepatocyte cytoplasm diameter 2 μm, increased metabolic rate, and decreased drug half-life. SMMB hetero-cellular models present a 10-fold increase in metabolic rate, compared to SMMB mono-culture models. Improved bioprinting resolution due to process control of cell-laden matrix packaging as well as nanoliter droplet printing capability identify SMMB as a viable technique to improve in vitro model efficacy.

Effects of culture-sensitive adaptation of patient information material on usefulness in migrants: a multicentre, blinded randomised controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Hölzel, Lars P; Ries, Zivile; Kriston, Levente; Dirmaier, Jörg; Zill, Jördis M; Rummel-Kluge, Christine; Niebling, Wilhelm; Bermejo, Isaac; Härter, Martin

2016-11-23

To evaluate the usefulness of culture-sensitive patient information material compared with standard translated material. Multicentre, double-blind randomised controlled trial. 37 primary care practices. 435 adult primary care patients with a migration background with unipolar depressive disorder or non-specific chronic low back pain were randomised. Patients who were unable to read in the language of their respective migration background were excluded. Sufficient data were obtained from 203 women and 106 men. The largest group was of Russian origin (202 patients), followed by those of Turkish (52), Polish (30) and Italian (25) origin. Intervention group: provision of culture-sensitive adapted material. provision of standard translated material. Primary outcome: patient-rated usefulness (USE) assessed immediately after patients received the material. patient-rated usefulness after 8 weeks and 6 months, symptoms of depression (PHQ-9), back pain (Back Pain Core Set) and quality of life (WHO-5) assessed at all time points. Usefulness was found to be significantly higher (t=1.708, one-sided p=0.04) in the intervention group (USE-score=65.08, SE=1.43), compared with the control group (61.43, SE=1.63), immediately after patients received the material, in the intention-to-treat analysis, with a mean difference of 3.65 (one-sided 95% lower confidence limit=0.13). No significant differences were found for usefulness at follow-up (p=0.16, p=0.71). No significant effect was found for symptom severity in depression (p=0.95, p=0.66, p=0.58), back pain (p=0.40, p=0.45, p=0.32) or quality of life (p=0.76, p=0.86, p=0.21), either immediately after receiving the material, or at follow-up (8 weeks; 6 months). Patients with a lower level of dominant society immersion benefited substantially and significantly more from the intervention than patients with a high level of immersion (p=0.005). Cultural adaptation of patient information material provides benefits over high quality

Culture and Negotiation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bülow, Anne Marie; Kumar, Rajesh

2011-01-01

The literature on cross-cultural negotiation has expanded considerably over the past few decades, but the findings are often ambiguous and sometimes even contradictory. This introduction highlights the critical areas where objections are commonly raised about the relevance of national culture......, the applicability of typologies that treat cultures as static, and the problem of ambiguous terminology. It may not be surprising that studies contradict each other given the ambiguity of the national cultural construct and variations in the context of the negotiating situations that are studied. The articles...... in this issue contribute to deepening our understanding about cross-cultural negotiation processes....

How relevant are Hofstede's dimensions for inter-cultural studies? A ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Research in Hospitality Management is co-published by NISC (Pty) Ltd and Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group ... Hofstede's research among current international business students ..... the different cultures of the students' country of origin.

Why ritual plant use has ethnopharmacological relevance

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Quiroz, Diana; Sosef, Marc; Andel, Van Tinde

2016-01-01

Ethnopharmacological relevance Although ritual plant use is now recognised both for its socio-cultural importance and for its contribution to nature conservation, its potential pharmacological effects remain overlooked. Aim of the study Our objective was to see whether ritual plant use could have

Effects of testing on subsequent re-encoding and long-term forgetting of action-relevant materials: On the influence of recall type.

Science.gov (United States)

Kubik, Veit; Nilsson, Lars-Göran; Olofsson, Jonas K; Jönsson, Fredrik U

2015-10-01

Testing one's memory of previously studied information reduces the rate of forgetting, compared to restudy. However, little is known about how this direct testing effect applies to action phrases (e.g., "wash the car") - a learning material relevant to everyday memory. As action phrases consist of two different components, a verb (e.g., "wash") and a noun (e.g., "car"), testing can either be implemented as noun-cued recall of verbs or verb-cued recall of nouns, which may differently affect later memory performance. In the present study, we investigated the effect of testing for these two recall types, using verbally encoded action phrases as learning materials. Results showed that repeated study-test practice, compared to repeated study-restudy practice, decreased the forgetting rate across 1 week to a similar degree for both noun-cued and verb-cued recall types. However, noun-cued recall of verbs initiated more new subsequent learning during the first restudy, compared to verb-cued recall of nouns. The study provides evidence that testing has benefits on both subsequent restudy and long-term retention of action-relevant materials, but that these benefits are differently expressed with testing via noun-cued versus verb-cued recall. © 2015 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Radiation transformation studies: are they relevant to radiation protection problems?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seymour, C.B.; Mothersill, C.

1988-01-01

Because of the difficulties of studying radio-carcinogenesis in humans, several in vitro systems are utilised. These cell transformation systems are reviewed, with particular emphasis on their relevance to human radiological protection problems. Most available systems use rodent fibroblasts. These are discussed in detail. Attention is drawn to certain artefacts which can cause problems with interpretation of such data. The relevance of these systems is questionable because of species differences, particularly concerning life span and because most human tumours are derived from epithelial cells. New epithelial culture systems and three-dimensional tissue culture methods becoming available are discussed in the light of their potential for addressing radiation protection problems. (author)

Thomas DaCosta Kaufmann and Michael North (eds., Mediating Netherlandish Art and Material Culture in Asia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claartje Rasterhoff

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Book notice of: Thomas DaCosta Kaufmann and Michael North (eds., Mediating Netherlandish Art and Material Culture in Asia (Amsterdam Studies in the Dutch Golden Age Amsterdam, Amsterdam University Press, 2014. 348 pp. ISBN 978-90-8964-569-2. € 99,00.

Investigation of erosion mechanisms and erosion products in divertor armour materials under conditions relevant to elms and mitigated disruptions in ITER

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Safronov, V.M.; Arkhipov, N.I.; Klimov, N.S.; Kovalenko, D.V.; Moskaleva, A.A.; Podkovyrov, V.L.; Toporkov, D.A.; Zhitlukhin, A.M.; Landman, I.S.; Poznyak, I.M.

2008-01-01

Carbon fibre composite (CFC) and tungsten were irradiated by intense plasma streams at plasma gun facilities MK-200UG and QSPA-T. The targets were tested by plasma loads relevant to Edge Localised Modes (ELM) and mitigated disruptions in ITER. Onset condition of material erosion and properties of erosion products have been studied

Introgression of genetic material from Zea mays ssp. Mexicana into cultivated maize was facilitated by tissue culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, L.; Gu, X.; Qu, M.; Luan, J.; Zhang, J.

2012-01-01

Zea mays ssp. mexicana, a wild relative of cultivated maize (Z. mays ssp. mays), is a useful gene resource for maize breeding. In this study, two populations were generated by conventional breeding scheme (population I) or tissue culture regime (population II), respectively, to introgress genetic material of Z. mays ssp. mexicana into maize. Karyotype analysis showed that the arm ratios of 10 pairs of chromosomes in parent maize Ye515 and derivative lines from 2 different populations with 26% and 38% chromosome variation frequencies, respectively. Alien chromatin was detected in the root tip cells of progeny plants through genomic in situ hybridization (GISH). There were 3.3 chromosomes carrying alien chromatin on average in population I and 6.5 in population II. The hybridization signals were located mainly at the terminal or sub terminal regions of the chromosomes and the sizes were notably variant among lines. Based on those results, it is concluded that the introgression of genetic material from Z. mays ssp. mexicana into cultivated maize was facilitated by tissue culture, and subsequently some excellent materials for maize breeding were created. (author)

Relevance of Piagetian cross-cultural psychology to the humanities and social sciences.

Science.gov (United States)

Oesterdiekhoff, Georg W

2013-01-01

Jean Piaget held views according to which there are parallels between ontogeny and the historical development of culture, sciences, and reason. His books are full of remarks and considerations about these parallels, with reference to many logical, physical, social, and moral phenomena.This article explains that Piagetian cross-cultural psychology has delivered the decisive data needed to extend the research interests of Piaget. These data provide a basis for reconstructing not only the history of sciences but also the history of religion, politics, morals, culture, philosophy, and social change and the emergence of industrial society. Thus, it is possible to develop Piagetian theory as a historical anthropology in order to provide a basis for the humanities and social sciences.

Cultural Memory Banking in Preservice Science Teacher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Handa, Vicente C.; Tippins, Deborah J.

2012-12-01

This study focused on the exemplification of cultural memory banking as an ethnographic tool to understand cultural practices relevant to science teaching and learning in a rural coastal village in a central island of the Philippine archipelago. Using the collaborative action ethnography as a research methodology, 10 prospective science teachers and a science teacher educator/doctoral candidate formed a research team and documented community funds of knowledge relevant to science teaching and learning through their participation in a Community Immersion course. The study employed the use of the cultural memory banking as a meditational tool to analyze, make sense of, and represent interview, focus-group discussion, and observation data, among others, for the development of culturally relevant science lessons. Originally used as an anthropological tool to preserve cultural knowledge associated with the cultivation of indigenous plant varieties, the cultural memory banking, as adapted in science education, was used, both as a data collection and analytic tool, to locate relevant science at the intersection of community life. The research team developed a cultural memory bank exemplar, "Ginamos: The Stinky Smell that Sells," to highlight the learning experiences and meaning-making process of those involved in its development. Dilemmas and insights on the development and use of cultural memory banking were discussed with respect to issues of knowledge mining and mainstreaming of indigenous/local funds of knowledge, troubling the privileged position of Western-inspired nature of science.

Quasi-Appropriation of Dialectical Materialism: A Critical Reading of Marxism in Vygotskian Approaches to Cultural Studies in Science Education

Science.gov (United States)

Rodrigues, André; Camillo, Juliano; Mattos, Cristiano

2014-01-01

In this review essay we examine five categories of dialectical materialism proposed by Paulo Lima Junior, Fernanda Ostermann, and Flavia Rezende in their study of the extent to which the articles published in "Cultural Studies of Science Education," that use a Vygotskian approach, are committed to Marxism/dialectical materialism. By…

Bioinspired catalytic materials for energy-relevant conversions

Science.gov (United States)

Artero, Vincent

2017-09-01

The structure of active sites of enzymes involved in bioenergetic processes can inspire design of active, stable and cost-effective catalysts for renewable-energy technologies. For these materials to reach maturity, the benefits of bioinspired systems must be combined with practical technological requirements.

Cultural Collision and Collusion: Reflections on Hip-Hop Culture, Values, and Schools. Educational Psychology: Critical Pedagogical Perspectives. Volume 14

Science.gov (United States)

Beachum, Floyd D.; McCray, Carlos R.

2011-01-01

"Cultural Collision and Collusion" addresses the complexity of problems that surround youth culture and school culture. By broadening the scholarly dialogue and examining and disseminating relevant research to practitioners, the book seeks to provide insight into youth culture and some manifestations of popular culture (e.g., hip-hop). In…

Colloid and materials science for the conservation of cultural heritage: cleaning, consolidation, and deacidification.

Science.gov (United States)

Baglioni, Piero; Chelazzi, David; Giorgi, Rodorico; Poggi, Giovanna

2013-04-30

Serendipity and experiment have been a frequent approach for the development of materials and methodologies used for a long time for either cleaning or consolidation of works of art. Recently, new perspectives have been opened by the application of materials science, colloid science, and interface science frameworks to conservation, generating a breakthrough in the development of innovative tools for the conservation and preservation of cultural heritage. This Article is an overview of the most recent contributions of colloid and materials science to the art conservation field, mainly focusing on the use of amphiphile-based fluids, gels, and alkaline earth metal hydroxide nanoparticles dispersions for the cleaning of pictorial surfaces, the consolidation of artistic substrates, and the deacidification of paper, canvas, and wood. Future possible directions for solving several conservation issues that still need to be faced are also highlighted.

A Cultural Immersion Field Experience: Examining Pre-Service Music Teachers' Beliefs about Cultural Differences

Science.gov (United States)

VanDeusen, Andrea J.

2017-01-01

With the intent of informing music teacher education practices and developing more culturally responsive and relevant teachers, the purpose of this research was to explore pre-service music teachers' understandings of culture and diversity, and to examine the impact of a short-term cultural immersion field experience on pre-service music teachers'…

The in vitro viability and growth of fibroblasts cultured in the presence of different bone grafting materials (NanoBone and Straumann Bone Ceramic).

Science.gov (United States)

Kauschke, E; Rumpel, E; Fanghänel, J; Bayerlein, T; Gedrange, T; Proff, P

2006-02-01

Different clinical applications, including dentistry, are making increasing demands on bone grafting material. In the present study we have analysed the viability, proliferation and growth characteristics of fibroblasts cultured in vitro together with two different bone grafting materials, NanoBone and Straumann Bone Ceramic, over a period of 24 and 28 days respectively. Viability was measured at least every 72 hours by using the alamarBlue assay, a test that measures quantitatively cell proliferation and viability but does not require cell fixation or extraction. After one week of culture fibroblast viability was as high as in controls for both grafting materials and remained high (> 90%) for the duration of the experiment. Cell growth was evaluated microscopically. Scanning electron microscopy revealed a dense fibroblast growth at the surface of both bone grafting materials after three weeks of in vitro culture. Generally, our in vitro analyses contribute to further insights into cell - scaffold interactions.

Occupation, well-being, and culture: Theory and cultural humility.

Science.gov (United States)

Hammell, Karen R Whalley

2013-10-01

The Canadian Model of Occupational Performance and Engagement depicts individuals embedded within cultural environments that afford occupational possibilities. Culture pertains not solely to ethnicity or race but to any dimension of diversity, including class, gender, sexual orientation, and ability. This paper highlights specific dimensions of cultural diversity and their relationships to occupational engagement and well-being. Cultural variations constitute the basis for a socially constructed hierarchy of traits that significantly determine occupational opportunities and impact mental health and well-being. Cultural humility is an approach to redressing power imbalances in client-therapist relationships by incorporating critical self-evaluation and recognizing that cultural differences lie not within clients but within client-therapist relationships. It is proposed that theoretical relevance would be enhanced if culturally diverse perspectives were incorporated into theories of occupation. Cultural humility is advocated as an approach to theoretical development and in efforts to counter professional Eurocentrism, ethnocentrism, and intellectual colonialism.

Exploring the 'cultural' in cultural competencies in Pacific mental health.

Science.gov (United States)

Samu, Kathleen Seataoai; Suaalii-Sauni, Tamasailau

2009-02-01

Cultural competency is about the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully and effectively to the cultural needs of peoples of all cultures. Its general attributes include knowledge, attitudes, skills and professional judgment. In Pacific mental health, 'the cultural' is generally understood to be ethnic culture. Accordingly, Pacific cultural competencies assume ethnic specific markers. In mental health Pacific cultural competencies has seen a blending of cultural and clinical beliefs and practices. This paper provides an overview of five key theme areas arising from Auckland-based ethnic-specific Pacific workshop data: language, family, tapu relationships, skills and organisation policy. Workshop participants comprised of Pacific mental health providers, Pacific consumers, family members of Pacific consumers and members of the Pacific community members. This paper purports that identifying the perceptions of different Pacific groups on ethnic-specific elements of cultural competencies are necessary to build and strengthen the capacity and capability of mental health services to provide culturally relevant services.

Patient-centered care: the key to cultural competence.

Science.gov (United States)

Epner, D E; Baile, W F

2012-04-01

Much of the early literature on 'cultural competence' focuses on the 'categorical' or 'multicultural' approach, in which providers learn relevant attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors of certain cultural groups. In essence, this involves learning key 'dos and don'ts' for each group. Literature and educational materials of this kind focus on broad ethnic, racial, religious, or national groups, such as 'African American', 'Hispanic', or 'Asian'. The problem with this categorical or 'list of traits' approach to clinical cultural competence is that culture is multidimensional and dynamic. Culture comprises multiple variables, affecting all aspects of experience. Cultural processes frequently differ within the same ethnic or social group because of differences in age cohort, gender, political association, class, religion, ethnicity, and even personality. Culture is therefore a very elusive and nebulous concept, like art. The multicultural approach to cultural competence results in stereotypical thinking rather than clinical competence. A newer, cross cultural approach to culturally competent clinical practice focuses on foundational communication skills, awareness of cross-cutting cultural and social issues, and health beliefs that are present in all cultures. We can think of these as universal human beliefs, needs, and traits. This patient centered approach relies on identifying and negotiating different styles of communication, decision-making preferences, roles of family, sexual and gender issues, and issues of mistrust, prejudice, and racism, among other factors. In the current paper, we describe 'cultural' challenges that arise in the care of four patients from disparate cultures, each of whom has advanced colon cancer that is no longer responding to chemotherapy. We then illustrate how to apply principles of patient centered care to these challenges.

Taijin kyofusho and social anxiety and their clinical relevance in indonesia and Switzerland.

Science.gov (United States)

Vriends, N; Pfaltz, M C; Novianti, P; Hadiyono, J

2013-01-01

Taijin Kyofusho Scale (TKS) is an interpersonal fear to offend others and is defined by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) as a culturally bound syndrome that occurs in Japan and Korea. Recently, cases with TKS have also been recognized in other cultures. The present questionnaire study investigated self-report TKS symptoms and social anxiety symptoms, and their clinical relevance in an Indonesian and Swiss sample. It also investigated whether self-construal is associated with TKS and social anxiety, and if self-construal is a mediator of the expected association between cultural background and social anxiety and TKS symptoms. 311 Indonesian and 349 Swiss university students filled out the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, the Taijin Kyofusho Scale, the Self-Construal Scale, self-report social phobia DSM-IV criteria, and rated their wish for professional help to deal with social fears. TKS and social anxiety symptoms were higher in the Indonesian than the Swiss sample. TKS symptoms were associated with clinical relevance in Indonesia, whereas in Switzerland only social anxiety symptoms were associated with clinical relevance. Independent self-construal was negatively associated and interdependent self-construal was positively associated with TKS and social anxiety symptoms. Interdependent self-construal mediated the association between cultural background and these symptoms. TKS might be a clinically relevant syndrome in all individuals or cultures with an interdependent self-construal or less independent self-construal. The proposal to include the fear of offending others in the DSM-V criteria of social phobia is supported by the present findings.

Taijin Kyofusho and Social Anxiety and their clinical relevance in Indonesia and Switzerland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noortje eVriends

2013-02-01

Full Text Available Background: Taijin Kyofusho (TKS is an interpersonal fear to offend others and is defined by DSM-IV as a culturally bound syndrome that occurs in Japan and Korea. Recently, cases with TKS have also been recognized in other cultures. The present questionnaire study investigated self-report TKS symptoms and social anxiety symptoms, and their clinical relevance in an Indonesian and Swiss sample. It also investigated if self-construal is associated with TKS and social anxiety, and if self-construal is a mediator of the expected association between cultural background and social anxiety and TKS symptoms. Method: 311 Indonesian and 349 Swiss university students filled out the Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale, the Taijin Kyofusho Scale, the Self-Construal Scale, self-report social phobia DSM-IV criteria, and rated their wish for professional help to deal with social fears.Results: TKS and social anxiety symptoms were higher in the Indonesian than the Swiss sample. TKS symptoms were associated with clinical relevance in Indonesia, whereas in Switzerland only social anxiety symptoms were associated with clinical relevance. Independent self-construal was negatively associated and interdependent self-construal was positively associated with TKS and social anxiety symptoms. Interdependent self-construal mediated the association between cultural background and these symptoms.Discussion: TKS might be a clinically relevant syndrome in all individuals or cultures with an interdependent self-construal or less independent self-construal. The proposal to include the fear of offending others in the DSM-V criteria of social phobia is supported by the present findings.

American Material Culture: Investigating a World War II Trash Dump

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Julie Braun

2005-10-01

The Idaho National Laboratory: An Historical Trash Trove Historians and archaeologists love trash, the older the better. Sometimes these researchers find their passion in unexpected places. In this presentation, the treasures found in a large historic dump that lies relatively untouched in the middle of the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) will be described. The U.S. military used the central portion of the INL as one of only six naval proving grounds during World War II. They dumped trash in dry irrigation canals during and after their wartime activities and shortly before the federal government designated this arid and desolate place as the nation’s nuclear reactor testing station in 1949. When read critically and combined with memories and photographs, the 60-year old trash provides a glimpse into 1940s’ culture and the everyday lives of ordinary people who lived and worked during this time on Idaho’s desert. Thanks to priceless stories, hours of research, and the ability to read the language of historic artifacts, the dump was turned from just another trash heap into a treasure trove of 1940s memorabilia. Such studies of American material culture serve to fire our imaginations, enrich our understanding of past practices, and humanize history. Historical archaeology provides opportunities to integrate inanimate objects with animated narrative and, the more recent the artifacts, the more human the stories they can tell.

Oral exposure to culture material extract containing fumonisins predisposes swine to the development of pneumonitis caused by Pasteurella multocida

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Halloy, David J.; Gustin, Pascal G.; Bouhet, Sandrine; Oswald, Isabelle P.

2005-01-01

Fumonisin B 1 (FB 1 ) is a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium verticillioides and F. proliferatum that commonly occurs in maize. In swine, consumption of contaminated feed induces liver damage and pulmonary edema. Pasteurella multocida is a secondary pathogen, which can generate a respiratory disorder in predisposed pigs. In this study, we examined the effect of oral exposure to fumonisin-containing culture material on lung inflammation caused by P. multocida. Piglets received by gavage a crude extract of fumonisin, 0.5 mg FB 1 /kg body weight/day, for 7 days. One day later, the animals were instilled intratracheally with a non toxin producing type A strain of P. multocida and followed up for 13 additional days. Pig weight and cough frequency were measured throughout the experiment. Lung lesions, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cell composition and the expression of inflammatory cytokines were evaluated at the autopsy. Ingestion of fumonisin culture material or infection with P. multocida did not affect weight gain, induced no clinical sign or lung lesion, and only had minimal effect on BALF cell composition. Ingestion of mycotoxin extract increased the expression of IL-8, IL-18 and IFN-γ mRNA compared with P. multocida infection that increased the expression of TNF-α. The combined treatment with fumonisin culture material and P. multocida delayed growth, induced cough, and increased BALF total cells, macrophages and lymphocytes. Lung lesions were significantly enhanced in these animals and consisted of subacute interstitial pneumonia. TNF-α, IFN-γ and IL-18 mRNA expression was also increased. Taken together, our data showed that fumonisin culture material is a predisposing factor to lung inflammation. These results may have implications for humans and animals consuming FB 1 contaminated food or feed

Oral exposure to culture material extract containing fumonisins predisposes swine to the development of pneumonitis caused by Pasteurella multocida

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Halloy, David J [Department of Functional Sciences, Unit of Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liege, Liege (Belgium); Gustin, Pascal G [Department of Functional Sciences, Unit of Pharmacology, Pharmacotherapy and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liege, Liege (Belgium); Bouhet, Sandrine [INRA, UR66, Laboratory of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 180 Chemin de Tournefeuille, BP3, 31931 Toulouse (France); Oswald, Isabelle P [INRA, UR66, Laboratory of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 180 Chemin de Tournefeuille, BP3, 31931 Toulouse (France)

2005-09-15

Fumonisin B{sub 1} (FB{sub 1}) is a mycotoxin produced by Fusarium verticillioides and F. proliferatum that commonly occurs in maize. In swine, consumption of contaminated feed induces liver damage and pulmonary edema. Pasteurella multocida is a secondary pathogen, which can generate a respiratory disorder in predisposed pigs. In this study, we examined the effect of oral exposure to fumonisin-containing culture material on lung inflammation caused by P. multocida. Piglets received by gavage a crude extract of fumonisin, 0.5 mg FB{sub 1}/kg body weight/day, for 7 days. One day later, the animals were instilled intratracheally with a non toxin producing type A strain of P. multocida and followed up for 13 additional days. Pig weight and cough frequency were measured throughout the experiment. Lung lesions, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cell composition and the expression of inflammatory cytokines were evaluated at the autopsy. Ingestion of fumonisin culture material or infection with P. multocida did not affect weight gain, induced no clinical sign or lung lesion, and only had minimal effect on BALF cell composition. Ingestion of mycotoxin extract increased the expression of IL-8, IL-18 and IFN-{gamma} mRNA compared with P. multocida infection that increased the expression of TNF-{alpha}. The combined treatment with fumonisin culture material and P. multocida delayed growth, induced cough, and increased BALF total cells, macrophages and lymphocytes. Lung lesions were significantly enhanced in these animals and consisted of subacute interstitial pneumonia. TNF-{alpha}, IFN-{gamma} and IL-18 mRNA expression was also increased. Taken together, our data showed that fumonisin culture material is a predisposing factor to lung inflammation. These results may have implications for humans and animals consuming FB{sub 1} contaminated food or feed.

Toxicity of functional nano-micro zinc oxide tetrapods: impact of cell culture conditions, cellular age and material properties.

Science.gov (United States)

Papavlassopoulos, Heike; Mishra, Yogendra K; Kaps, Sören; Paulowicz, Ingo; Abdelaziz, Ramzy; Elbahri, Mady; Maser, Edmund; Adelung, Rainer; Röhl, Claudia

2014-01-01

With increasing production and applications of nanostructured zinc oxide, e.g., for biomedical and consumer products, the question of safety is getting more and more important. Different morphologies of zinc oxide structures have been synthesized and accordingly investigated. In this study, we have particularly focused on nano-micro ZnO tetrapods (ZnO-T), because their large scale fabrication has been made possible by a newly introduced flame transport synthesis approach which will probably lead to several new applications. Moreover, ZnO-T provide a completely different morphology then classical spherical ZnO nanoparticles. To get a better understanding of parameters that affect the interactions between ZnO-T and mammalian cells, and thus their biocompatibility, we have examined the impact of cell culture conditions as well as of material properties on cytotoxicity. Our results demonstrate that the cell density of fibroblasts in culture along with their age, i.e., the number of preceding cell divisions, strongly affect the cytotoxic potency of ZnO-T. Concerning the material properties, the toxic potency of ZnO-T is found to be significantly lower than that of spherical ZnO nanoparticles. Furthermore, the morphology of the ZnO-T influenced cellular toxicity in contrast to surface charges modified by UV illumination or O2 treatment and to the material age. Finally, we have observed that direct contact between tetrapods and cells increases their toxicity compared to transwell culture models which allow only an indirect effect via released zinc ions. The results reveal several parameters that can be of importance for the assessment of ZnO-T toxicity in cell cultures and for particle development.

The materials irradiation experiment for testing plasma facing materials at fusion relevant conditions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Garrison, L. M., E-mail: garrisonlm@ornl.gov; Egle, B. J. [Oak Ridge National Laboratory, 1 Bethel Valley Road, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831 (United States); Fusion Technology Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Engineering Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States); Zenobia, S. J.; Kulcinski, G. L.; Santarius, J. F. [Fusion Technology Institute, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1500 Engineering Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 (United States)

2016-08-15

The Materials Irradiation Experiment (MITE-E) was constructed at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Inertial Electrostatic Confinement Laboratory to test materials for potential use as plasma-facing materials (PFMs) in fusion reactors. PFMs in fusion reactors will be bombarded with x-rays, neutrons, and ions of hydrogen and helium. More needs to be understood about the interactions between the plasma and the materials to validate their use for fusion reactors. The MITE-E simulates some of the fusion reactor conditions by holding samples at temperatures up to 1000 °C while irradiating them with helium or deuterium ions with energies from 10 to 150 keV. The ion gun can irradiate the samples with ion currents of 20 μA–500 μA; the typical current used is 72 μA, which is an average flux of 9 × 10{sup 14} ions/(cm{sup 2} s). The ion gun uses electrostatic lenses to extract and shape the ion beam. A variable power (1-20 W), steady-state, Nd:YAG laser provides additional heating to maintain a constant sample temperature during irradiations. The ion beam current reaching the sample is directly measured and monitored in real-time during irradiations. The ion beam profile has been investigated using a copper sample sputtering experiment. The MITE-E has successfully been used to irradiate polycrystalline and single crystal tungsten samples with helium ions and will continue to be a source of important data for plasma interactions with materials.

The Impact of Latino Values and Cultural Beliefs on Brain Donation: Results of a Pilot Study to Develop Culturally Appropriate Materials and Methods to Increase Rates of Brain Donation in this Under-Studied Patient Group.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilbrey, Ann Choryan; Humber, Marika B; Plowey, Edward D; Garcia, Iliana; Chennapragada, Lakshmi; Desai, Kanchi; Rosen, Allyson; Askari, Nusha; Gallagher-Thompson, Dolores

2018-01-01

Increasing the number of Latino persons with dementia who consent to brain donation (BD) upon death is an important public health goal that has not yet been realized. This study identified the need for culturally sensitive materials to answer questions and support the decision-making process for the family. Information about existing rates of BD was obtained from the Alzheimer's Disease Centers. Several methods of data collection (query NACC database, contacting Centers, focus groups, online survey, assessing current protocol and materials) were used to give the needed background to create culturally appropriate BD materials. A decision was made that a brochure for undecided enrollees would be beneficial to discuss BD with family members. For those needing further details, a step-by-step handout would provide additional information. Through team collaboration and engagement of others in the community who work with Latinos with dementia, we believe this process allowed us to successfully create culturally appropriate informational materials that address a sensitive topic for Hispanic/Latino families. Brain tissue is needed to further knowledge about underlying biological mechanism of neurodegenerative diseases, however it is a sensitive topic. Materials assist with family discussion and facilitate the family's follow-through with BD.

Identification of blue staining vaccine-derived material in inflammatory lesions using cultured canine macrophages.

Science.gov (United States)

Scruggs, Jennifer L; LeBlanc, Casey J

2015-03-01

Vaccine reactions are described in cytology textbooks as having eosinophilic to magenta colored globules within and admixed with inflammatory cells. Recently, we have seen increased numbers of inflammatory lesions containing blue to blue-gray globular material, with historical information suggesting an association with rabies vaccination. The purpose of the study was to confirm the blue-gray and the eosinophilic material observed microscopically in some inflammatory lesions as being vaccine-derived. Three different vaccines were cytocentrifuged and Wright stained. Vaccine aliquots were also added to the culture media of canine-derived macrophages for 24 hours and the cells subsequently harvested, cytocentrifuged, and Wright stained. The globular material present in both preparations was compared to that observed in vaccine-induced inflammatory lesions. Morin staining was used to identify metal within vaccine material in both in vitro- and in vivo-derived cytology samples. Vaccine-derived material has a characteristic color and appearance. Appearance of the material was consistent in cytologic samples, in cells incubated with the vaccine, and in cytocentrifuged preparations of the vaccine vial contents. The blue-gray globules stained positively for Morin stain, while the eosinophilic material did not stain. Vaccine-induced inflammatory lesions may contain blue to blue-gray or magenta stained globular material. Blue-gray material was associated with administration of rabies vaccine Imrab 3 TF and the observed material may be metal-containing adjuvant. Magenta material was associated with other vaccines and negative for Morin stain, suggesting a metal-free adjuvant. © 2014 American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology.

Some relevant parameters for assessing fire hazards of combustible mine materials using laboratory scale experiments.

Science.gov (United States)

Litton, Charles D; Perera, Inoka E; Harteis, Samuel P; Teacoach, Kara A; DeRosa, Maria I; Thomas, Richard A; Smith, Alex C

2018-04-15

When combustible materials ignite and burn, the potential for fire growth and flame spread represents an obvious hazard, but during these processes of ignition and flaming, other life hazards present themselves and should be included to ensure an effective overall analysis of the relevant fire hazards. In particular, the gases and smoke produced both during the smoldering stages of fires leading to ignition and during the advanced flaming stages of a developing fire serve to contaminate the surrounding atmosphere, potentially producing elevated levels of toxicity and high levels of smoke obscuration that render the environment untenable. In underground mines, these hazards may be exacerbated by the existing forced ventilation that can carry the gases and smoke to locations far-removed from the fire location. Clearly, materials that require high temperatures (above 1400 K) and that exhibit low mass loss during thermal decomposition, or that require high heat fluxes or heat transfer rates to ignite represent less of a hazard than materials that decompose at low temperatures or ignite at low levels of heat flux. In order to define and quantify some possible parameters that can be used to assess these hazards, small-scale laboratory experiments were conducted in a number of configurations to measure: 1) the toxic gases and smoke produced both during non-flaming and flaming combustion; 2) mass loss rates as a function of temperature to determine ease of thermal decomposition; and 3) mass loss rates and times to ignition as a function of incident heat flux. This paper describes the experiments that were conducted, their results, and the development of a set of parameters that could possibly be used to assess the overall fire hazard of combustible materials using small scale laboratory experiments.

Communication received from the permanent mission of Austria regarding the provision of certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The Director General received a note verbale of 13 June 1996 from Permanent Mission of Austria regarding the provision of certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material. In the light of the request expressed at the end of the note verbale, the text of the note verbale is being circulated

Communication received from the permanent mission of Finland regarding the provision of certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The Director General received a note verbale of 8 February 1996 from Permanent Mission of Finland regarding the provision of certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material. In the light of the request expressed at the and of the note verbale, the text of the note verbale is being circulated

Apollo 12 lunar material - Effects on lipid levels of tobacco tissue cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Weete, J. D.; Walkinshaw, C. H.; Laseter, J. L.

1972-01-01

Tobacco tissue cultures grown in contact with lunar material from Apollo 12, for a 12-week period, resulted in fluctuations of both the relative and absolute concentrations of endogenous sterols and fatty acids. The experimental tissues contained higher concentrations of sterols than the controls did. The ratio of campesterol to stigmasterol was greater than 1 in control tissues, but less than 1 in the experimental tissues after 3 weeks. High relative concentrations (17.1 to 22.2 per cent) of an unidentified compound or compounds were found only in control tissues that were 3 to 9 weeks of age.

[Influence of reverse osmosis concentrate on physicochemical parameters of Sini decoction material system and their relevance].

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Tang-Hui; Zhang, Liu-Hong; Zhu, Hua-Xu; Guo, Li-Wei; Li, Bo; Lu, Ming-Ming

2014-04-01

By studying the process of reverse osmosis system for traditional Chinese medicine materials physicochemical parameters affecting the osmotic pressure of its relevance, new compound system reverse osmosis process design methods were explored. Three concentrations materials for high, middle and low were dubbed with Sini decoction as a model drug, and pretreated by 50 thousand relative molecular weight cut-off ultrafiltration membrane. The viscosity, turbidity, conductivity, salinity, TDS, pH value and osmotic pressure of each sample were determined after the reverse osmosis to study the physical and chemical parameters between their respective correlations with the osmotic pressure, and characterized by HPLC chromatograms showing changes before and after the main chemical composition of samples of reverse osmosis. Conductivity-osmotic pressure, salinity-osmotic pressure of the linear correlation coefficient, TDS-osmotic pressure between the three sets of parameters were 0.963 8, 0.932 7, 0.973 7, respectively. Reverse osmosis concentrate and its characteristic spectrum ultrafiltrate HPLC similarity were up to 0. 968 or more, except the low concentrations. There is a significant correlation between the three physicochemical parameters (conductivity, salinity, TDS) and osmotic pressure of each sample system, and there is also significant linear correlation between salinity, conductivity, TDS. The original chemical composition of Sini decoction material concentrate was completely remained after the process of reverse osmosis.

The Use of Culturally Relevant Videos To Draw Attention to Cultural Diversity: A Preliminary Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Alexander, Charlene M.; Rivera, Lourdes M.; Collins, Laura J.

2000-01-01

Videos celebrating Hispanic Heritage and Black History month were presented at two regionally and ethnically distinct college campuses. Students (N=62) were interviewed regarding what attracted them to the video. Students of color commented positively on the cultural content as well as the musical and dance components of each video. Presents…

Wonderful Things? A Consideration of 3D Modelling of Objects in Material Culture Research

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Molloy Barry

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The role of 3D modelling in archaeology is increasing exponentially, from fieldwork to architecture to material culture studies. For the study of archaeological objects the roles of digital and print models for public engagement has been much considered in recent literature. For model makers, focus has typically been placed on exceptional and visually striking objects with inherent appeal. In contrast, this paper explores some of the potential roles for 3D digital models for routine artefact research and publication. Particular emphasis is placed on the challenges this technology raises for archaeological theory and practice. Following a consideration of how 3D models relate to established illustration and photographic traditions, the paper evaluates some of the unique features of 3D models, focussing on both positive and negative aspects of these. This is followed by a discussion of the role of potential research connections between digital and craft models in experimental research. Our overall objective is to emphasise a need to engage with the ways in which this gradual development has begun to change aspects of longestablished workflows. In turn, the increasing use of this technology is argued to have wider ramifications for the development of archaeology, and material culture studies in particular, as a discipline that requires reflection.

Qualitative Analysis of a Cultural Dexterity Program for Surgeons: Feasible, Impactful, and Necessary.

Science.gov (United States)

Udyavar, Rhea; Smink, Douglas S; Mullen, John T; Kent, Tara S; Green, A; Harlow, Alyssa F; Castillo-Angeles, Manuel; Columbus, Alexandra B; Haider, Adil H

2018-02-15

Ineffective cross-cultural communication contributes to adverse outcomes for minority patients. To address this, the authors developed a novel curriculum for surgical residents built on the principle of cultural dexterity, emphasizing adaptability to clinical and sociocultural circumstances to tailor care to the needs of the individual patient. This study's objective was to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and perception of this program upon conclusion of its first year. The curriculum was implemented at 3 general surgery programs. The flipped classroom model combined independent study via e-learning modules with interactive role-playing sessions. Sessions took place over 1 academic year. Four focus groups were held, each with 6 to 9 participants, to gain feedback on the curriculum. Focus groups were recorded and transcribed, and the data were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Five major themes emerged: (1) Role modeling from senior colleagues is integral in developing communication/interpersonal skills and attitudes toward cultural dexterity. (2) Cultural dexterity is relevant to the provision of high-quality surgical care. (3) Barriers to providing culturally dexterous care exist at the system level. (4) "Buy-in" at all levels of the institution is necessary to implement the principles of cultural dexterity. (5) The shared experience of discussing the challenges and triumphs of caring for a diverse population was engaging and impactful. Early implementation of the curriculum revealed that the tension between surgical residents' desire to improve their cultural dexterity and systemic/practical obstacles can be resolved. Combining surgically relevant didactic materials with experiential learning activities can change the paradigm of cross-cultural training. Copyright © 2018 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cultural Landscape and Migration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gunnar Haaland

2011-04-01

Full Text Available This paper focus on the way Nepalese migrants in Myanmar use features of the natural environment in their homeland in metaphoric constructions of a cultural landscape expressing ethnic identity. It is through such "symbolic work" that perceptions of "ethnoscapes" are shaped and indoctrinated. Although the appeal is to symbols that can serve to foster the importance of Nepaliness as a basis for belonging to an imagined community, this does not mean that the caste/ethnicity interaction boundaries are broken down. It does mean however that sectors of activities where such boundaries are made relevant have been changed and so has the cultural content organized through such interaction boundaries. Ethnoscapes do not exist by themselves from a 'primordial' past; they require ongoing expression and confirmation. Features of a natural environment most migrants have never seen is used as sources for spinning compelling webs of significance extolling the values of belonging to a group that shares a common past in that environment. I shall here present material of an ethnoscape very different from what is experienced in Nepal, namely Nepalese multi-caste/ethnic communities among Kachins, Shans, Burmese, Indian and Chinese traders in the Kachin state of Northern Myanmar. Keywords: Nepali migrants; Myanmar; ethnic identity; cultural landscape DOI: 10.3126/dsaj.v4i0.4515 Dhaulagiri Journal of Sociology and Anthropology Vol.4 2010 pp.99-110

Do Cultural Attitudes Matter? The Role of Cultural Orientation on Academic Self-Concept among Black/African College Students

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Wendi S.; Chung, Y. Barry

2013-01-01

The authors explored the relationship between academic self-concept and noncognitive variables (i.e., Africentric cultural orientation, academic class level, gender, and involvement in culturally relevant school and community activities) among Black/African college students. Results indicated that Africentric cultural orientation and academic…

Scientific methods and cultural heritage an introduction to the application of materials science to archaeometry and conservation science

CERN Document Server

Artioli, Gilberto

2010-01-01

Artioli provides an introduction to the methods and rationales of the scientific investigation of cultural heritage materials, with an emphasis placed on the analytical strategies, modes of operation and resulting information rather than on technicalities.

Navigating Online Selves: Social, Cultural, and Material Contexts of Social Media Use by Diasporic Gay Men

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexander Dhoest

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Social media not only create new opportunities but also pose new challenges for the ways people navigate their online selves. As noted by boyd, social media are characterized by unique dynamics such as collapsed contexts, implying that one’s distinct offline social worlds meet online. This creates particular challenges for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ people, at least those who find it crucial to maintain distinct contexts in which they disclose or conceal their gender and/or sexual selves. However, the existing scholarship on social media use by LGBTQs is predominantly anchored in English-language Western contexts and tends to lose sight of the cultural specificities of Internet use. Therefore, in this article, we build on the scholarship to further investigate the role of context for disclosing or concealing gender and/or sexual selves online. More specifically, we ask, “How do social, cultural, and material contexts affect the ways LGBTQs navigate their selves on social media?” To investigate this question, we analyze in-depth face-to-face interviews with gay men who themselves, or whose parents, migrated to Belgium. Because their migration background forces them to negotiate different social, cultural, and material contexts, our focus on diasporic gay men helps to bring out the issue of context in social media use.

Letters and Letter Writing in Early Modern Culture: An Introduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gabriella Del Lungo Camiciotti

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The recently renewed scholarly interest in historical letters and letter writing has given rise to several studies which explore the culture of epistolarity from different perspectives. The article offers an introduction to recent scholarship on epistolary discourse and practices in early modern culture. Given the importance of letters as data for several types of diachronic investigation, the article focuses on three points that are crucial for an understanding of the relevance of epistolary discourse itself in early modern European culture. Firstly, letters are invaluable data for historical linguistics, to which they provide information for the history of languages, and sociohistorical and sociolinguistic research. A second recent field of investigation considers letters as documents and material items; the results of research in this area have contributed to the reconstruction of official relationships and information exchanges in past cultures and shed light on social interaction. A third, more traditional area of study, deals with the letter as a form that has given rise to many different genres across the centuries, both practical and literary.

Cultural adaptation in translational research: field experiences.

Science.gov (United States)

Dévieux, Jessy G; Malow, Robert M; Rosenberg, Rhonda; Jean-Gilles, Michèle; Samuels, Deanne; Ergon-Pérez, Emma; Jacobs, Robin

2005-06-01

The increase in the incidence of HIV/AIDS among minorities in the United States and in certain developing nations has prompted new intervention priorities, stressing the adaptation of efficacious interventions for diverse and marginalized groups. The experiences of Florida International University's AIDS Prevention Program in translating HIV primary and secondary prevention interventions among these multicultural populations provide insight into the process of cultural adaptations and address the new scientific emphasis on ecological validity. An iterative process involving forward and backward translation, a cultural linguistic committee, focus group discussions, documentation of project procedures, and consultations with other researchers in the field was used to modify interventions. This article presents strategies used to ensure fidelity in implementing the efficacious core components of evidence-based interventions for reducing HIV transmission and drug use behaviors and the challenges posed by making cultural adaptation for participants with low literacy. This experience demonstrates the importance of integrating culturally relevant material in the translation process with intense focus on language and nuance. The process must ensure that the level of intervention is appropriate for the educational level of participants. Furthermore, the rights of participants must be protected during consenting procedures by instituting policies that recognize the socioeconomic, educational, and systemic pressures to participate in research.

The Study about the Influence of the Pop Culture for the Japanese Fashion　：　The Historical Materials Collection about the Connection of Japanese Fashion and Pop Cultures after World War II

OpenAIRE

田中, 里尚; 中村, 仁; 梅原, 宏司; 齋木, 吉隆; 古賀, 令子

2010-01-01

The purpose of this research collect and arrange documents and historical materials to determine how pop culture influenced the fashion in Japan after World War II. In 2010, we firstly collected previous fashion and popular culture studies done in foreign countries. We found many intriguing studies, but we came upon one which was particularly noteworthy. As a means of clarifying the relationship between fashion and pop culture, we collected books written by Angela McRobbie. Second, we collect...

Creating organizational cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mouton, Nicolaas T.O.; Just, Sine Nørholm; Gabrielsen, Jonas

2012-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to re-conceptualize the relations between rhetorical strategies and material practices in the processes whereby leaders create or change organizational cultures. Design/methodology/approach – The authors compare and contrast two broad perspectives on cultural...... insights. The authors propose an integrated perspective in which material practices and rhetorical strategies are seen as two analytical sides of the same ontological coin. This enables a fuller and more detailed explanation of how organizational cultures are created or changed. A brief illustration...

Design of biomimetic cellular scaffolds for co-culture system and their application

Science.gov (United States)

Kook, Yun-Min; Jeong, Yoon; Lee, Kangwon; Koh, Won-Gun

2017-01-01

The extracellular matrix of most natural tissues comprises various types of cells, including fibroblasts, stem cells, and endothelial cells, which communicate with each other directly or indirectly to regulate matrix production and cell functionality. To engineer multicellular interactions in vitro, co-culture systems have achieved tremendous success achieving a more realistic microenvironment of in vivo metabolism than monoculture system in the past several decades. Recently, the fields of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine have primarily focused on three-dimensional co-culture systems using cellular scaffolds, because of their physical and biological relevance to the extracellular matrix of actual tissues. This review discusses several materials and methods to create co-culture systems, including hydrogels, electrospun fibers, microfluidic devices, and patterning for biomimetic co-culture system and their applications for specific tissue regeneration. Consequently, we believe that culture systems with appropriate physical and biochemical properties should be developed, and direct or indirect cell–cell interactions in the remodeled tissue must be considered to obtain an optimal tissue-specific microenvironment. PMID:29081966

Sweden in the Delaware Valley: Everyday Life and Material Culture in New Sweden

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Naum, Magdalena; Ekengren, Fredrik; Zagal Mach Wolfe, Ulla Isabel

2013-01-01

In 1637 the Swedish Crown, encouraged by Dutch merchants, developed a plan to establish a colonial outpost in America to tap into profitable tobacco and beaver pelt trade. The same year the first cargo ships left Sweden and sailed westwards to claim their piece of America along the Delaware River......, their perception and interactions with the neighbouring Native American groups. It discusses the ways material culture was used, exchanged and appropriated by the colonists and the local Lenape and Susquehannock in the processes of meeting, negotiations and daily coexistence....

A framework for understanding culture and its relationship to information behaviour: Taiwanese aborigines' information behaviour

OpenAIRE

Nei-Ching Yeh

2007-01-01

Introduction. This article proposes a model of culture and its relationship to information behaviour based on two empirical studies of Taiwanese aborigines' information behaviour. Method. The research approach is ethnographic and the material was collected through observations, conversations, questionnaires, interviews and relevant documents. In 2003-2004, the author lived with two Taiwan aboriginal tribes, the Yami tribe and the Tsau tribe and conducted forty-two theme-based interviews. An...

Promoting Teachers' Implementation of Culturally and Contextually Relevant Class-Wide Behavior Plans

Science.gov (United States)

Fallon, Lindsay M.; Cathcart, Sadie C.; DeFouw, Emily R.; O'Keeffe, Breda V.; Sugai, George

2018-01-01

Disproportionality in disciplinary actions for certain racial groups has been well documented for several decades. In an effort to support all students, specifically those who are culturally and linguistically diverse, many have called for adopting a multitiered system of support framework that is considerate of student culture and school context.…

Experiences in assessing safety culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spitalnik, J.

2002-01-01

Based on several Safety Culture self-assessment applications in nuclear organisations, the paper stresses relevant aspects to be considered when programming an assessment of this type. Reasons for assessing Safety Culture, basic principles to take into account, necessary resources, the importance of proper statistical analyses, the feed-back of results, and the setting up of action plans to enhance Safety Culture are discussed. (author)

Undoing forgetfulness: Chiasmus of Poetical Mind - a Cultural Paradigm of Archetypal Imagination

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Isar, Nicoletta

2005-01-01

into some old cosmologies and visions in which chiasmus constantly emerged as an enduring cultural paradigm with ontological relevance. Spanning from Plato to Christian theology, up to the contemporary Neo-Platonism of archetypal psychology, this paper hopes to put forth, if not a theory, at least a vision...... about man and cosmos, cosmos and man, a chiastic epiphany in which the body and the material world partake both of the sacred. Key words: memory; chiasmus; image; imagination; archetypal psychology; DNA....

Acceleration of the direct identification of Staphylococcus aureus versus coagulase-negative staphylococci from blood culture material: a comparison of six bacterial DNA extraction methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Loonen, A J M; Jansz, A R; Kreeftenberg, H; Bruggeman, C A; Wolffs, P F G; van den Brule, A J C

2011-03-01

To accelerate differentiation between Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS), this study aimed to compare six different DNA extraction methods from two commonly used blood culture materials, i.e. BACTEC and BacT/ALERT. Furthermore, we analysed the effect of reduced blood culture incubation for the detection of staphylococci directly from blood culture material. A real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) duplex assay was used to compare the six different DNA isolation protocols on two different blood culture systems. Negative blood culture material was spiked with methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). Bacterial DNA was isolated with automated extractor easyMAG (three protocols), automated extractor MagNA Pure LC (LC Microbiology Kit M(Grade)), a manual kit MolYsis Plus and a combination of MolYsis Plus and the easyMAG. The most optimal isolation method was used to evaluate reduced bacterial incubation times. Bacterial DNA isolation with the MolYsis Plus kit in combination with the specific B protocol on the easyMAG resulted in the most sensitive detection of S. aureus, with a detection limit of 10 CFU/ml, in BacT/ALERT material, whereas using BACTEC resulted in a detection limit of 100 CFU/ml. An initial S. aureus or CNS load of 1 CFU/ml blood can be detected after 5 h of incubation in BacT/ALERT 3D by combining the sensitive isolation method and the tuf LightCycler assay.

Athletes’ careers across cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ryba, Tatiana; Stambulova, Natalia

This symposium will introduce a project developed under the auspices of the International Society of Sport Psychology (ISSP) in an effort to inspire and support the development of culturally sensitive theoretical frameworks and research methodologies in career studies and career assistance services...... around the world. The cultural approach to the theory and practice of sport psychological research has been recently articulated in two edited books, Cultural Sport Psychology (Schinke & Hanrahan, 2009) and The Cultural Turn in Sport Psychology (Ryba, Schinke, & Tenenbaum, 2010). The presenters...... in this symposium continue the initiated dialogue of the relevance of culture and cultural issues in their analyses of how social and cultural discourses shape career development and career transitions of athletes in different countries. Opening the foundations of sport psychological knowledge to culturally diverse...

Communication received from the Permanent Mission of Sweden regarding the provision of certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-01-01

The document reproduces the text of a note verbale dated 28 June 1996 received by the Director General of IAEA from the Permanent Mission of Sweden through which the Government of Sweden provides, on a voluntary basis, certain additional information on production, inventories and international transfers of nuclear material and on exports of certain relevant equipment and non-nuclear material, in order to assist the Agency in the discharge of its safeguards responsibilities

Regulations relevant to the transport of radioactive materials in Switzerland

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, L.

1996-01-01

As is the case in many countries, the transport of radioactive materials in Switzerland is primarily regulated by the national regulations for the transport of dangerous goods. Currently these regulations, in the case of radioactive material, incorporate the 1985 IAEA Safety Series 6 Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material (As amended 1990). However, as is also the case in some other countries, consignors, shippers and carriers of radioactive materials must also comply with additional laws when shipping radioactive materials. The most important of these other laws and their accompanying regulations are those concerned with radiation protection (import, export and carriers licences) and nuclear power (import, export, inland transport and transit licences). This paper sets out to describe the collective requirements resulting from all three of these sets of regulations. (Author)

CULTURE, CULTURE LEARNING AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES: TOWARDS A PEDAGOGICAL FRAMEWORK

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mike Levy

2007-02-01

Full Text Available This paper seeks to improve approaches to the learning and teaching of culture using new technologies by relating the key qualities and dimensions of the culture concept to elements within a pedagogical framework. In Part One, five facets of the culture concept are developed: culture as elemental; culture as relative; culture as group membership; culture as contested; and culture as individual (variable and multiple. Each perspective aims to provide a focus for thinking about culture, and thereby to provide a valid and useful point of departure for thinking about the practice of culture learning and teaching with new technologies. The referenced literature draws from a broad range of disciplines and definitions of culture. In Part Two, five projects are chosen to represent relevant technologies currently in use for culture learning: e-mail, chat, a discussion forum and a Web-based project. Each project is used to illustrate facets of the culture concept discussed in Part One with a view to identifying key elements within a pedagogical framework that can help us respond effectively to the challenge of culture learning and teaching utilising new technologies. Thus the goal is to align fundamental qualities of the culture concept with specific pedagogical designs, tasks and technologies.

Cultural and Contextual Issues in Exemplar Research

Science.gov (United States)

King, Pamela Ebstyne; Oakes Mueller, Ross A.; Furrow, James

2013-01-01

This chapter specifically addresses how exemplar methods are especially relevant to examining cultural and contextual issues. Cross-cultural, cultural, and indigenous psychologies are discussed in order to highlight how studying actual exemplars in their unique and complex developmental contexts has the potential to identify themes that either…

TRADITIONAL PHYSICAL CULTURE OF BELARUSIANS

OpenAIRE

Shamak, Ales

2017-01-01

Relevance. The study of the history of physical culture makes it possible to reveal the laws of its development, the relationship with socio-political and economic factors. The aim of the research is to substantiate the essence, types and structure of the traditional physical culture of Belarusians. Results of the Research. Traditional physical culture has been the main type of physical culture of the Belarusian people for about a thousand years. It is regarded as the activity of the society ...

Cultural evolutionary theory: How culture evolves and why it matters.

Science.gov (United States)

Creanza, Nicole; Kolodny, Oren; Feldman, Marcus W

2017-07-24

Human cultural traits-behaviors, ideas, and technologies that can be learned from other individuals-can exhibit complex patterns of transmission and evolution, and researchers have developed theoretical models, both verbal and mathematical, to facilitate our understanding of these patterns. Many of the first quantitative models of cultural evolution were modified from existing concepts in theoretical population genetics because cultural evolution has many parallels with, as well as clear differences from, genetic evolution. Furthermore, cultural and genetic evolution can interact with one another and influence both transmission and selection. This interaction requires theoretical treatments of gene-culture coevolution and dual inheritance, in addition to purely cultural evolution. In addition, cultural evolutionary theory is a natural component of studies in demography, human ecology, and many other disciplines. Here, we review the core concepts in cultural evolutionary theory as they pertain to the extension of biology through culture, focusing on cultural evolutionary applications in population genetics, ecology, and demography. For each of these disciplines, we review the theoretical literature and highlight relevant empirical studies. We also discuss the societal implications of the study of cultural evolution and of the interactions of humans with one another and with their environment.

Culture of health of a person as a part of physical culture

OpenAIRE

A.P. Khalajtsan

2014-01-01

Purpose: to determine the general concepts of the theory and methods of physical education. On the basis of their form defining the components of physical culture and personality reflect the place of culture health of individuals among these components. Material: processed more than 40 references. Results: a definition of generalizing concepts of "culture", "health", "physical culture", "culture of health" formulated defining components of physical culture personality: health culture personal...

[Detection of biofilm formation by selected pathogens relevant to the food industry].

Science.gov (United States)

Šilhová-Hrušková, L; Moťková, P; Šilha, D; Vytřasová, J

2015-09-01

Detection of biofilm formation by microbial pathogens relevant to the food industry and comparison of biofilm formation under different conditions of culture. The following microorganisms were selected for the study: Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria innocua, Listeria ivanovii, Cronobacter sakazakii, Cronobacter muytjensii, Arcobacter butzleri, Arcobacter cryaerophilus, Campylobacter jejuni, and Campylobacter coli. To detect biofilm formation the microtiter plate assay, as described by Christensen and culture on stainless steel coupons were used. The biofilm forming capacity was confirmed in all microorganisms tested, both on the microtiter plates and stainless steel coupons. Biofilm formation was influenced by the culture medium, material used, and culture duration as well as by the test microorganism. It was found that different species and strains of the same genus differ in biofilm formation. Differences were also found between the collection strains and isolates from the environment. Some bacteria tended to form biofilm more readily on the surface of the polyethylene microtiter plates and less readily on stainless steel coupons while others appeared to have an opposite tendency. Some pathogens were able to increase the planktonic cell density in the initial suspension even by three orders of magnitude within 72 hours while producing plenty of biofilm. The study of biofilm formation by high risk pathogens is of utmost importance, not only to the food industry. From the obtained results, it is evident that bacterial biofilms form rapidly (within 24 hours in the present study). Due to their architecture, these biofilms are difficult to eradicate, and therefore, it is crucial to prevent biofilm formation.

Culture Change in the English Classroom: An Anthropological Approach to the Education of Culturally Disadvantaged Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Farr, Helen Louise Kuster

This library study investigated the problems of (1) what anthropological generalizations are of greatest value for English teachers of culturally disadvantaged students, and (2) how these generalizations are particularly relevant for classroom use. The theoretical and empirical research literature was surveyed and relevant sections were…

Darwinism and cultural change.

Science.gov (United States)

Godfrey-Smith, Peter

2012-08-05

Evolutionary models of cultural change have acquired an important role in attempts to explain the course of human evolution, especially our specialization in knowledge-gathering and intelligent control of environments. In both biological and cultural change, different patterns of explanation become relevant at different 'grains' of analysis and in contexts associated with different explanatory targets. Existing treatments of the evolutionary approach to culture, both positive and negative, underestimate the importance of these distinctions. Close attention to grain of analysis motivates distinctions between three possible modes of cultural evolution, each associated with different empirical assumptions and explanatory roles.

Extending Cultural Literacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Riecken, Ted J.; Court, Deborah

1992-01-01

Advocates defining cultural literacy to recognize the mass media's role in transmitting and maintaining cultural stereotypes and shaping values and beliefs. Distinguishes between ideational and material aspects of culture. Advocates teaching critical thinking and respect for persons in light of questionable moral perspectives in certain media…

Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Rock Art from the Mongolian Altai: The Material and its Cultural Implications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esther Jacobson-Tepfer

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Rock-pecked images from the northern Mongolian Altai attest to the presence of human communities within the high valleys of that region during the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene. The material provides evidence that is hitherto largely missing from the archaeological record of that region. This paper reviews the rock art, its find sites and larger physical contexts and uses evidence from paleoenvironmental studies to propose dating and cultural significance. The material is compared with other sites said to have Paleolithic imagery from Mongolia and the adjoining Russian Altai. The body of presented material offers a major resource for the study of early hunter-gatherer communities at the interface of Central and North Asia.

Research Opportunities in Corrosion Science for Long-Term Prediction of Materials Performance: A Report of the DOE Workshop on “Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository”.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Payer, Joe H. [Case Western Reserve Univ., Cleveland, OH (United States); Scully, John R. [Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA (United States)

2003-07-29

The report summarizes the findings of a U.S. Department of Energy workshop on “Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository”. The workshop was held on July 29-30, 2003 in Bethesda, MD, and was co-sponsored by the Office of Basic Energy Sciences and Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The workshop focus was corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of materials performance in hostile environments, with special focus on relevance to the permanent disposal of nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain Repository. The culmination of the workshop is this report that identifies both generic and Yucca Mountain Project-specific research opportunities in basic and applied topic areas. The research opportunities would be realized well after the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s initial construction-authorization licensing process. At the workshop, twenty-three invited scientists deliberated on basic and applied science opportunities in corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of damage accumulation by corrosive processes that affect materials performance.

Information Needs/Relevance

OpenAIRE

Wildemuth, Barbara M.

2009-01-01

A user's interaction with a DL is often initiated as the result of the user experiencing an information need of some kind. Aspects of that experience and how it might affect the user's interactions with the DL are discussed in this module. In addition, users continuously make decisions about and evaluations of the materials retrieved from a DL, relative to their information needs. Relevance judgments, and their relationship to the user's information needs, are discussed in this module. Draft

On Chinese-English Translation of Tourist Attraction in Cross-cultural Perspective--Taking Qi Culture as An Example

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

张滕龙

2014-01-01

Tourist textsfeature vividness and distinctiveness and its translation is a typical cross-cultural activity.By applying cross-cultural consciousness to the tourist material's translation, foreigners can understand the cultural connotation easily. Therefore, cross-cultural consciousness plays an important role in the translation of tourist materials.This thesis, taking Qi culture as an exam-ple, explores some typical tourist attractions from perspectives of historical allusions and legend as well as traditional customs. The analysis of Qi cultural connotation concludes business culture, Pu culture and filial piety culture. So, in order to transmit the cul-tural information to foreign tourists accurately, it is necessary to apply inter-cultural consciousness to the translation of tourist texts.

Materials Developed from American Indian Culture-Based Curriculum Workshop (Tacoma, Washington, April 25-29, 1977). Book One.

Science.gov (United States)

Disney, Dick, Comp.

Materials presented in this resource guide are the direct result of an American Indian Culture-Based Curriculum Development Workshop. Activities consist of nine flannelboard stories (including The Fire War, How Coyote Made the Columbia River, Legend of the Mayan Moon God); two games (American Indian Games and Indian Picture Symbol Checkerboard);…

Materials Developed from American Indian Culture-Based Curriculum Workshop (Tacoma, Washington, October 24-28, 1978). Book Two.

Science.gov (United States)

Disney, Dick, Comp.

Developed as a result of the second 5-day American Indian Culture-Based Curriculum Workshop conducted in Tacoma, Washington, the resource guide presents materials oriented toward Native American dance, music, and games, which were the major thrust of the workshop. The guide provides four flannelboard stories/legends (How Man Was Created, The Gull…

Overview of security culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matulanya, M. A.

2014-04-01

Nuclear Security culture concept has been aggressively promoted over the past several years as a tool to improve the physical protection of the nuclear and radioactive materials due to growing threats of catastrophic terrorism and other new security challenges. It is obvious that, the scope of nuclear security and the associated cultures need to be extended beyond the traditional task of protecting weapons-usable materials. The role of IAEA is to strengthen the nuclear security framework globally and in leading the coordination of international activities in this field. Therefore all governments should work closely with the IAEA to take stronger measures to ensure the physical protection, the safety and security of the nuclear and radioactive materials. In the effort to reflect this new realities and concerns, the IAEA in 2008 came up with the document, the Nuclear Security Culture, Nuclear Security Series No. 7, Implementing Guide to the member states which urged every member state to take appropriate measures to promote security culture with respect to nuclear and radioactive materials. The document depicted this cultural approach as the way to protect individual, society and the environment. Among other things, the document defined nuclear security culture as characteristics and attitudes in organizations and of individuals which establishes that, nuclear security issues receives attention warranted by their significance. (au)

Re-enacting the relevance of the moral codes of the un-shrined ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Also they maintain social justice, give cultural identity and encourage patriotism. The work will, identify the moral codes and analyze the methods of enforcing them. It will also delve into how the gods are appeased. The socio-cultural significance would be treated for a clearer view of the relevance of the moral codes of the ...

Ineffable Cultures or Material Devices: What Valuation Studies can Learn from the Disappearance of Ensured Solidarity in a Health Care Market

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Teun Zuiderent-Jerak

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Valuation studies addresses how values are made in valuation practices. A next - or rather previous - question becomes: what then makes valuation practices? Two oppositional replies are starting to dominate how that question can be answered: a more materially oriented focus on devices of valuation and a more sociologically inclined focus on ineffable valuation cultures. The debate between proponents of both approaches may easily turn into the kind of leapfrog debates that have dominated many previous discussions on whether culture or materiality would play a decisive role in driving history. This paper explores a less repetitive reply. It does so by analyzing the puzzling case of the demise of solidarity as a core value within the recent Dutch health care system of regulated competition. While "solidarity among the insured" was both a strong cultural value within the Dutch welfare-based health system, and a value that was built into market devices by health economists, within a fairly short time "fairness" became of lesser importance than "competition". This makes us call for a more historical, relational, and dynamic understanding of the role of economists, market devices, and of culture in valuation studies.

Making Material and Cultural Connections: the fluid meaning of ‘Living Electrically’ in Japan and Canada 1920–1960

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heather Chappells

2018-05-01

Full Text Available This article explores how material and cultural ‘connections’ to households were crucial in defining historical pathways of domestic electrification in Canada and Japan. Though relatively overlooked in the history of energy, we contend that the intricacies of household connections are important in understanding convergence and divergence in electrified ways of life. Electricity’s arrival in urban and rural homes was an uneven process in part due to geographical diversity and the variable connection policies of public or private providers. Selective insights from our two countries show that spatial irregularities in grid expansion and social inequities in the meaning of electrical service further arose out of misalignments between developers’ visions and the diverse material cultures of households. This disparity manifested in the form of disconnections between non-standard wiring and equipment, as well as in the form of consumer resistance, protests and even illicit acts as people fought to get the electrical service they desired. Instead of seeing electrification as a single, universal ideal around which all countries eventually converged, we conclude that it has always been an open-ended, negotiable and culturally fluid process.

Irish International Cultural and Educational Exchange: Two Models for Inspiration

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bøss, Michael

2006-01-01

An account of the cultural and educational foreign policies of Denmark and Canada and a discussion of their relevance for the future of Irish foreign policy.......An account of the cultural and educational foreign policies of Denmark and Canada and a discussion of their relevance for the future of Irish foreign policy....

Cultural neuroscience and psychopathology: prospects for cultural psychiatry.

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhury, Suparna; Kirmayer, Laurence J

2009-01-01

There is a long tradition that seeks to understand the impact of culture on the causes, form, treatment, and outcome of psychiatric disorders. An early, colonialist literature attributed cultural characteristics and variations in psychopathology and behavior to deficiencies in the brains of colonized peoples. Contemporary research in social and cultural neuroscience holds the promise of moving beyond these invidious comparisons to a more sophisticated understanding of cultural variations in brain function relevant to psychiatry. To achieve this, however, we need better models of the nature of psychopathology and of culture itself. Culture is not simply a set of traits or characteristics shared by people with a common geographic, historical, or ethnic background. Current anthropology understands culture as fluid, flexible systems of discourse, institutions, and practices, which individuals actively use for self-fashioning and social positioning. Globalization introduces new cultural dynamics and demands that we rethink culture in relation to a wider domain of evolving identities, knowledge, and practice. Psychopathology is not reducible to brain dysfunction in either its causes, mechanisms, or expression. In addition to neuropsychiatric disorders, the problems that people bring to psychiatrists may result from disorders in cognition, the personal and social meanings of experience, and the dynamics of interpersonal interactions or social systems and institutions. The shifting meanings of culture and psychopathology have implications for efforts to apply cultural neuroscience to psychiatry. We consider how cultural neuroscience can refine use of culture and its role in psychopathology using the example of adolescent aggression as a symptom of conduct disorder.

Translation and adaptation of smoking relapse-prevention materials for pregnant and postpartum Hispanic women.

Science.gov (United States)

Simmons, Vani Nath; Cruz, Ligia M; Brandon, Thomas H; Quinn, Gwendolyn P

2011-01-01

Quitting smoking is one of the most important behavior changes a pregnant woman can make, with health benefits extending beyond pregnancy for the woman and her child. Increasing numbers of pregnant women are quitting smoking; however, the majority resume smoking later in their pregnancy or shortly after giving birth. Previous research has demonstrated the efficacy of self-help smoking relapse-prevention booklets; however, there is a dearth of materials available in Spanish for Hispanic smokers. The goal of the present study was to translate and adapt existing, theoretically based, smoking relapse-prevention materials for pregnant and postpartum Hispanic women. This article describes the transcreation approach used to ensure the Forever Free for Baby and Me booklets were linguistically and culturally relevant for the heterogeneous populations of Hispanic women. The authors conducted multistage formative research to adapt the booklets and modify vignettes and graphics. Compared with previous research conducted with pregnant non-Hispanic women, results revealed the following: (a) a lack of association or concern about smoking and weight gain, (b) the importance of family approval of behavior, and (c) stress related to difficulties surrounding the immigration experience. The authors' qualitative findings confirm and extend past research that has suggested ways to enhance the cultural relevance and acceptability of a health intervention.

SPACES OF MEMORY – “THE PRESENCE OF ABSENCE” CULTURAL MEMORY AND OBLIVION MECHANISMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Isidora Stanković

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this paper is to emphasize the role of tangibility, particularly that of material places relevant for different social or interest groups in the process of preservation and the communication with the past. Ac-cording to various scholars the culture of memory is frequently bounded to concrete spaces, gestures, imag-es, and objects. In the first part of this paper the differ-ence between the biological and neurological foundation of memory will be scrutinized as well the social aims that create relevant topoi which should provide ade-quate identification of different groups with their past. Furthermore, the significance of oblivion in creating the culture of memory will be recognized, likewise its im-portance in establishing mechanisms for remembering different aspects of the past. The second part of the pa-per will be dedicated to Pierre Nora’s definition of the lieux de mémoire, as a way of reviving the past eras and place events, people, and phenomena in our memory. However, not only does Nora’s definition include mate-rial spaces and places, but it encompasses the more ab-stract ones as well – any idea of making a connection with the past in literature, music, etc., with the purpose to avoid oblivion. In the third part of the text, Nora’s ideas will be linked to Foucault’s concept of heterotopia – a way of intersecting things that could or could not be seen in the realm of the same time and space. This thesis could, on the other hand, send us back to mechanisms of cultural and individual memory. The final part of this paper will be dedicated to observing spaces of memory as a place of cultural encounters, therefore, of heritage itself, as a phenomenon that combines different cultures through the use of the past in the present and its preser-vation for the future

Analysis and radiological assessment of residues containing NORM materials resulting from earlier activities including modelling of typical industrial residues. Pt. 1. Historical investigation of the radiological relevance of NORM residues and concepts for site identification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reichelt, Andreas; Niedermayer, Matthias; Sitte, Beate; Hamel, Peter Michael

2007-01-01

Natural radionuclides are part of the human environment and of the raw materials used. Technical processes may cause their accumulation in residues, and the result will be so-called NORM materials (Naturally occurring radioactive material). The amended Radiation Protection Ordinance (StrlSchV 2001) specifies how the public should be protected, but there are also residues dating back before the issuing of the StrlSchV 2001, the so-called NORM residues. The project intended to assess the risks resulting from these residues. It comprises four parts. Part 1 was for clarification of the radiological relevance of NORM residues and for the development of concepts to detect them. The criterion for their radiological relevance was their activity per mass unit and the material volume accumulated through the centuries. The former was calculated from a wide bibliographic search in the relevant literature on radiation protection, while the mass volume was obtained by a detailed historical search of the consumption of materials that may leave NORM residues. These are, in particular, residues from coal and ore mining and processing. To identify concrete sites, relevant data sources were identified, and a concept for identification of concrete NORM residues was developed on this basis. (orig.) [de

Managing culture in IJVs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dao, Li

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to extend a cultural sense-making perspective to the context of international joint ventures. The dominant literature on cultural issues in this inter-firm setting has been criticized for relying on a narrow view of culture mainly as a country-level construct. The pap...... through individual sense-making and mutual learning and adjustment as key to the process of cultural negotiation.......The purpose of this paper is to extend a cultural sense-making perspective to the context of international joint ventures. The dominant literature on cultural issues in this inter-firm setting has been criticized for relying on a narrow view of culture mainly as a country-level construct. The paper...... argues that dynamic aspects of culture as enacted by key individual actors and constructed in a given context are far more relevant and critical for the joint venture’s managerial process. With evidence from four Danish – Vietnamese joint ventures, the paper proposes a way of managing culture in IJVs...

Integration of Geomatics Techniques for Digitizing Highly Relevant Geological and Cultural Heritage Sites: the Case of San Leo (italy)

Science.gov (United States)

Girelli, V. A.; Borgatti, L.; Dellapasqua, M.; Mandanici, E.; Spreafico, M. C.; Tini, M. A.; Bitelli, G.

2017-08-01

The research activities described in this contribution were carried out at San Leo (Italy). The town is located on the top of a quadrangular rock slab affected by a complex system of fractures and has a wealth of cultural heritage, as evidenced by the UNESCO's nomination. The management of this fragile set requires a comprehensive system of geometrical information to analyse and preserve all the geological and cultural features. In this perspective, the latest Geomatics techniques were used to perform some detailed surveys and to manage the great amount of acquired geometrical knowledge of both natural (the cliff) and historical heritage. All the data were also georeferenced in a unique reference system. In particular, high accurate terrestrial laser scanner surveys were performed for the whole cliff, in order to obtain a dense point cloud useful for a large number of geological studies, among others the analyses of the last rockslide by comparing pre- and post-event data. Moreover, the geometrical representation of the historical centre was performed using different approaches, in order to generate an accurate DTM and DSM of the site. For these purposes, a large scale numerical map was used, integrating the data with GNSS and laser surveys of the area. Finally, many surveys were performed with different approaches on some of the most relevant monuments of the town. In fact, these surveys were performed by terrestrial laser scanner, light structured scanner and photogrammetry, the last mainly applied with the Structure from Motion approach.

Cultural Systems and Land Use Decision Making.

Science.gov (United States)

Schaefer, Larry; Pressman, Rob

This material includes student guide sheets, reference material, and tape script for the audio-tutorial unit on Cultural Systems. An audio tape is used with the materials. The material is designed for use with Connecticut schools, but can be adapted to other localities. The materials in this unit consider components of cultural systems, land use…

Cultural, behavioral, social, and psychological perceptions of saliva: relevance to clinical diagnostics.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Sean; Wong, David T

2006-04-01

The search for a resource that can be used to detect a broad range of diseases easily and reliably is akin to a search for the diagnostic Holy Grail. Yet, each of us may have inside our mouths, a key to the pathological and disease biomarker library hidden inside our bodies. Saliva--the source of all this information--is the secretory product of glands located in or around the oral cavity. If one could read the stories of diagnostic information present within saliva, then the abundance of information waiting to be found could be comparable to a vast vault of information, such as the Internet. Upon dissection of this data, it would be seen that the source of this information is from saliva's origin as a filtrate of blood, and that the validity of both mediums should be equal. Although one day this may be the view, most people's hold of saliva, current and past cultures, have fared much more diverse meanings to the secretion. Ivan Pavlov's experiments has shown how closely tied salivation is with the thought of food, one of life's primary indulgences. The relationship between salivation and behaviors within our daily lives is undeniable. Yet most people never appreciate the uniqueness of saliva. Throughout the world, saliva carries definite positive and negative connotations, based upon its social, psychological, behavioral, and cultural settings. The thought of saliva may be viewed as grotesque in one population, yet may be the vehicle of blessing in other cultures. Saliva's double nature brings up some interesting cultural, social, behavioral, and psychological points about how saliva is perceived in the world, some of which are subsequently stated in order to present saliva as the spirited fluid it is.

Innovation, Corporate Strategy, and Cultural Context: What Is the Mission for International Business Communication?

Science.gov (United States)

Ulijn, Jan; O'Hair, Dan; Weggeman, Mathieu; Ledlow, Gerald; Hall, H. Thomas

2000-01-01

Reviews relevant literature in the areas of communication and innovation and explores how efforts toward innovative practices are directly related to globalism and business strategy. Focuses on issues associated with national culture, corporate culture, and professional culture that are relevant to strategies for researching business communication…

Encouragement proverbs and their discourse relevance: A case ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Proverbs imbue the speaker with the ability to make his or her expressions more flashy and culturally relevant to the topic of discourse. This is the reason why Africans employ them in conversations to accomplish acts which cannot be realised by ordinary words. Be that as it may, certain proverbs in Oghe dialect of Igbo are ...

Commentary on “Co-creating Stakeholder and Brand Identities: A Cross-cultural Consumer Perspective”

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Csaba, Fabian

2017-01-01

This commentary raises awareness for the relevance of other cultural dimensions- besides individualism and collectivism - and alternative approaches to cross-cultural research for exploring cultural variations in stakeholders' co-construction of brand identity and their own identities. The author...... influence of various cultures on each other can provide additional, relevant insights into reciprocal identity co-construction processes between brands and stakeholders....

Toward a cogenetic cultural psychology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tateo, Luca

2016-01-01

The dialogue between cultural psychology and phenomenological and semiotic philosophy seems to be extremely promising. I have tried to present some relevant aspects of this dialogue and to use them as cornerstones to elaborate a metatheoretical and epistemological discourse about the way of build......The dialogue between cultural psychology and phenomenological and semiotic philosophy seems to be extremely promising. I have tried to present some relevant aspects of this dialogue and to use them as cornerstones to elaborate a metatheoretical and epistemological discourse about the way...... to account for developmental processes must emerge from a triadic system, rather than following the procedures of a binary logic, in order to have any correspondence between concept building and phenomenological world in psychology. Then, I sketch an epistemological approach called method of complementary...... negation that could help cultural psychology to build more developmental abstract models of very concrete human phenomena....

Cultural management and government role

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Edalat Nemati

2012-08-01

Full Text Available Culture plays an important role on human lives and it has been in four ancient civilizations of China, Iran, Egypt and Greece. The civilization achievements are normally categorized in two different groups of material and immaterial. Practical experience of the material, social objective is called as a civilization and the mental aspect of spiritual experiences, spiritual and personal is called culture. The purpose of this research is to find a framework for cross-cultural management. First, we define the cultural planning and we review the existing cultural examples in Iranian society and try to provide an overall analysis. The paper also investigates the role of government on creating adaptive culture within the society and explains that government must act as leadership in creating value added culture.

Considering the role of time budgets on copy-error rates in material culture traditions: an experimental assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Schillinger, Kerstin; Mesoudi, Alex; Lycett, Stephen J

2014-01-01

Ethnographic research highlights that there are constraints placed on the time available to produce cultural artefacts in differing circumstances. Given that copying error, or cultural 'mutation', can have important implications for the evolutionary processes involved in material culture change, it is essential to explore empirically how such 'time constraints' affect patterns of artefactual variation. Here, we report an experiment that systematically tests whether, and how, varying time constraints affect shape copying error rates. A total of 90 participants copied the shape of a 3D 'target handaxe form' using a standardized foam block and a plastic knife. Three distinct 'time conditions' were examined, whereupon participants had either 20, 15, or 10 minutes to complete the task. One aim of this study was to determine whether reducing production time produced a proportional increase in copy error rates across all conditions, or whether the concept of a task specific 'threshold' might be a more appropriate manner to model the effect of time budgets on copy-error rates. We found that mean levels of shape copying error increased when production time was reduced. However, there were no statistically significant differences between the 20 minute and 15 minute conditions. Significant differences were only obtained between conditions when production time was reduced to 10 minutes. Hence, our results more strongly support the hypothesis that the effects of time constraints on copying error are best modelled according to a 'threshold' effect, below which mutation rates increase more markedly. Our results also suggest that 'time budgets' available in the past will have generated varying patterns of shape variation, potentially affecting spatial and temporal trends seen in the archaeological record. Hence, 'time-budgeting' factors need to be given greater consideration in evolutionary models of material culture change.

Application of stem-cell media to explant culture of human periosteum: An optimal approach for preparing osteogenic cell material.

Science.gov (United States)

Uematsu, Kohya; Nagata, Masaki; Kawase, Tomoyuki; Suzuki, Kenji; Takagi, Ritsuo

2013-01-01

As part of our clinical tests on bone regeneration using cultured periosteal sheets, here, we prepared cultured periosteal sheets in two types of stem-cell culture media, STK1 and STK3. Human periosteum was expanded either in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1 for 28 days, in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1 for 14 days followed by 1% human serum-supplemented STK3 for 14 days (1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3), or in 10% fetal bovine serum-supplemented Medium 199 for 28 days (control). Cultured periosteal sheet diameter and DNA content were significantly higher, and the multilayer structure was prominent in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1 and 1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3. The messenger RNA of osteoblastic markers was significantly upregulated in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3. Osteopontin-immunopositive staining and mineralization were evident across a wide area of the cultured periosteal sheet in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3. Subcutaneous implantation in nude mice following expansion in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3 produced the highest cultured periosteal sheet osteogenic activity. Expansion in 1% human serum-supplemented STK1+3 successfully induced cultured periosteal sheet growth while retaining osteogenic potential, and subsequent osteoblastic induction promoted the production of homogeneous cell material.

Manuscript Cultures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

What do Mesoamerica, Greece, Byzantium, Island, Chad, Ethiopia, India, Tibet, China and Japan have in common? Like many other cultures of the world, they share a particular form of cultural heritage: ancient handwritten documents. In 2007, scholars from some20 countries around the world gathered...... at the University of Copenhagen for a workshop on manuscripts to compare notes. This event led to the publication of this volume, which brings together16 articles on philological, cultural, and material aspects of manuscripts in search for a common ground across disciplines and cultures....

GENDER GENEALOGY OF READING AS CULTURAL PRACTICE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Yu. Kryvda

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Purpose. The article is devoted to the cultural aspect of texts using in European culture. The paper found out methodological basis of correctly interpreting the term "practice" in the philosophical and sociological discourses. In the first case the concept reveals human nature; appealing to the field of ethics and intersubjective interactions. In sociological approach the term practice is contrasted to institutional life. It seems to be an organic; vital relevance of actions for contrast to the mechanically regulated community life. Methodology. The paper considered the typology of human intellectual conditions according to Kant’s divided into pure and practical reason. The last one directs action-willed individual efforts so as to meet the universal relevance and ethical coherence. Gottlieb Fichte interpreted practice reason as the way to combine intellectual intentions and material conditions of human being. G. W. F. Hegel enriched the concept with terms of "objectification" and "alienation” of labour. Karl Marx formulated the main features of activity approach to the human nature exploring. In sociological discourse the term practice is opposed to mechanically done actions (according to institutional normativity. Given the philosophical and sociological methodological contexts the reading is studied as activity that aimed emotional and volitional contact with sense. Originality. The paper analysed the genealogy of reading practices. There were selected two types of text perception – rapid "masculine" and prudent "women's" reading. Women salon environment of the XVIII-th century capitalistic Europe was the main condition for the forming of literary-aware public. The authors analysed the process of reading of the text-as-satisfaction and text-as-pleasure (R. Barthes. The work presents the overview of classical studies of sociocultural field: Thorstein Veblen; Vladimir Toporov; Rolan Barthes and contemporary researchers such as T. Markova

The relevance of clinical ethnography: reflections on 10 years of a cultural consultation service.

Science.gov (United States)

Dominicé Dao, Melissa; Inglin, Sophie; Vilpert, Sarah; Hudelson, Patricia

2018-01-11

Training health professionals in culturally sensitive medical interviewing has been widely promoted as a strategy for improving intercultural communication and for helping clinicians to consider patients' social and cultural contexts and improve patient outcomes. Clinical ethnography encourages clinicians to explore the patient's explanatory model of illness, recourse to traditional and alternative healing practices, healthcare expectations and social context, and to use this information to negotiate a mutually acceptable treatment plan. However, while clinical ethnographic interviewing skills can be successfully taught and learned, the "real-world" context of medical practice may impose barriers to such patient-centered interviewing. Creating opportunities for role modeling and critical reflection may help overcome some of these barriers, and contribute to improved intercultural communication in healthcare. We report and reflect on a retrospective analysis of 10 years experience with a "cultural consultation service" (CCS) whose aim is to provide direct support to clinicians who encounter intercultural difficulties and to model the usefulness of clinical ethnographic interviewing for patient care. We analyzed 236 cultural consultation requests in order to identify key patient, provider and consultation characteristics, as well as the cross cultural communication challenges that motivate health care professionals to request a cultural consultation. In addition, we interviewed 51 clinicians about their experience and satisfaction with the CCS. Requests for cultural consultations tended to involve patient care situations with complex social, cultural and medical issues. All patients had a migration background, two-thirds spoke French less than fluently. In over half the cases, patients had a high degree of social vulnerability, compromising illness management. Effective communication was hindered by language barriers and undetected or underestimated patient

Who is reducing their material consumption and why? A cross-cultural analysis of dematerialization behaviours.

Science.gov (United States)

Whitmarsh, Lorraine; Capstick, Stuart; Nash, Nicholas

2017-06-13

The environmental and economic imperatives to dematerialize economies, or 'do more with less', have been established for some years. Yet, to date, little is known about the personal drivers associated with dematerializing. This paper explores the prevalence and profile of those who are taking action to reduce consumption in different cultural contexts (UK and Brazil) and considers influences on dematerialization behaviours. We find that exemplar behaviours (avoiding buying new things and avoiding packaging) are far less common than archetypal environmental behaviours (e.g. recycling), but also that cultural context is important (Brazilians are more likely to reduce their material consumption than people in the UK). We also find that the two dematerialization behaviours are associated with different pro-environmental actions (more radical action versus green consumption, respectively); and have distinct, but overlapping, psychological (e.g. identity) and socio-demographic (e.g. education) predictors. Comparing a more traditional value-identity model of pro-environmental behaviour with a motivation-based (self-determination) model, we find that the latter explains somewhat more variance than the former. However, overall, little variance is explained, suggesting that additional factors at the personal and structural levels are important for determining these consumption behaviours. We conclude by outlining policy implications and avenues for further research.This article is part of the themed issue 'Material demand reduction'. © 2017 The Author(s).

Cultural diversity in organizations : Enhancing identification by valuing differences

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Luijters, Kyra; van der Zee, Karen I.; Otten, Sabine

The present research investigated the role of perceived similarity in cultural values (associated with diversity in cultural backgrounds) and an intercultural group climate in predicting identification with both the organization and the work team. The relevance of perceived similarity in cultural

Cultural Health Capital on the margins: Cultural resources for navigating healthcare in communities with limited access.

Science.gov (United States)

Madden, Erin Fanning

2015-05-01

Communities struggling with access to healthcare in the U.S. are often considered to be disadvantaged and lacking in resources. Yet, these communities develop and nurture valuable strategies for healthcare access that are underrecognized by health scholars. Combining medical sociology and critical race theory perspectives on cultural capital, this paper examines the health-relevant cultural resources, or Cultural Health Capital, in South Texas Mexican American border communities. Ethnographic data collected during 2011-2013 in Cameron and Hidalgo counties on the U.S.-Mexico border provide empirical evidence for expanding existing notions of health-relevant cultural capital. These Mexican American communities use a range of cultural resources to manage healthcare exclusion and negotiate care in alternative healthcare spaces like community clinics, flea markets and Mexican pharmacies. Navigational, social, familial, and linguistic skills and knowledge are used to access doctors and prescription drugs in these spaces despite social barriers to mainstream healthcare (e.g. cost, English language skills, etc.). Cultural capital used in marginalized communities to navigate limited healthcare options may not always fully counteract healthcare exclusion. Nevertheless, recognizing the cultural resources used in Mexican American communities to facilitate healthcare challenges deficit views and yields important findings for policymakers, healthcare providers, and advocates seeking to capitalize on community resources to improve healthcare access. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Runyakitara Culture Wiki

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Frederick Iraki

wiki as a tool for Runyakitara culture documentation, collaboration, sharing, ... collaboration in education and research are augmented by technology [2, 10, 11]; ... Runyakitara culture; and section 5 concludes and discusses future work. ..... material which reflects the Runyakitara culture, perspective, and reality; as compared.

Viewpoint: Cultural competence and the African American experience with health care: The case for specific content in cross-cultural education.

Science.gov (United States)

Eiser, Arnold R; Ellis, Glenn

2007-02-01

Achieving cultural competence in the care of a patient who is a member of an ethnic or racial minority is a multifaceted project involving specific cultural knowledge as well as more general skills and attitude adjustments to advance cross-cultural communication in the clinical encounter. Using the important example of the African American patient, the authors examine relevant historical and cultural information as it relates to providing culturally competent health care. The authors identify key influences, including the legacy of slavery, Jim Crow discrimination, the Tuskegee syphilis study, religion's interaction with health care, the use of home remedies, distrust, racial concordance and discordance, and health literacy. The authors propose that the awareness of specific information pertaining to ethnicity and race enhances cross-cultural communication and ways to improve the cultural competence of physicians and other health care providers by providing a historical and social context for illness in another culture. Cultural education, modular in nature, can be geared to the specific populations served by groups of physicians and provider organizations. Educational methods should include both information about relevant social group history as well as some experiential component to emotively communicate particular cultural needs. The authors describe particular techniques that help bridge the cross-cultural clinical communication gaps that are created by patients' mistrust, lack of cultural understanding, differing paradigms for illness, and health illiteracy.

Boosting Culture

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

无

2011-01-01

Culture makes up an indispensable part of our lives, just like material comfort. It is thought of as an important source of a nation’s vitality and creativity, and constitutes a key factor uniting the nation,while making it distinctive from other countries. It is also said culture is a productiv

Print versus a culturally-relevant Facebook and text message delivered intervention to promote physical activity in African American women: a randomized pilot trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Joseph, Rodney P; Keller, Colleen; Adams, Marc A; Ainsworth, Barbara E

2015-03-27

African American women report insufficient physical activity and are disproportionally burdened by associated disease conditions; indicating the need for innovative approaches to promote physical activity in this underserved population. Social media platforms (i.e. Facebook) and text messaging represent potential mediums to promote physical activity. This paper reports the results of a randomized pilot trial evaluating a theory-based (Social Cognitive Theory) multi-component intervention using Facebook and text-messages to promote physical activity among African American women. Participants (N = 29) were randomly assigned to receive one of two multi-component physical activity interventions over 8 weeks: a culturally-relevant, Social Cognitive Theory-based, intervention delivered by Facebook and text message (FI) (n = 14), or a non-culturally tailored print-based intervention (PI) (n = 15) consisting of promotion brochures mailed to their home. The primary outcome of physical activity was assessed by ActiGraph GT3X+ accelerometers. Secondary outcomes included self-reported physical activity, physical activity-related psychosocial variables, and participant satisfaction. All randomized participants (N = 29) completed the study. Accelerometer measured physical activity showed that FI participants decreased sedentary time (FI = -74 minutes/week vs. PI = +118 minute/week) and increased light intensity (FI = +95 minutes/week vs. PI = +59 minutes/week) and moderate-lifestyle intensity physical activity (FI = + 27 minutes/week vs. PI = -34 minutes/week) in comparison to PI participants (all P's  .05). Results of secondary outcomes showed that in comparison to the PI, FI participants self-reported greater increases in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (FI = +62 minutes/week vs. PI = +6 minutes/week; P = .015) and had greater enhancements in self-regulation for physical activity (P program to a friend

Culture, intangibles and metrics in environmental management.

Science.gov (United States)

Satterfield, Terre; Gregory, Robin; Klain, Sarah; Roberts, Mere; Chan, Kai M

2013-03-15

The demand for better representation of cultural considerations in environmental management is increasingly evident. As two cases in point, ecosystem service approaches increasingly include cultural services, and resource planners recognize indigenous constituents and the cultural knowledge they hold as key to good environmental management. Accordingly, collaborations between anthropologists, planners, decision makers and biodiversity experts about the subject of culture are increasingly common-but also commonly fraught. Those whose expertise is culture often engage in such collaborations because they worry a practitioner from 'elsewhere' will employ a 'measure of culture' that is poorly or naively conceived. Those from an economic or biophysical training must grapple with the intangible properties of culture as they intersect with economic, biological or other material measures. This paper seeks to assist those who engage in collaborations to characterize cultural benefits or impacts relevant to decision-making in three ways; by: (i) considering the likely mindset of would-be collaborators; (ii) providing examples of tested approaches that might enable innovation; and (iii) characterizing the kinds of obstacles that are in principle solvable through methodological alternatives. We accomplish these tasks in part by examining three cases wherein culture was a critical variable in environmental decision making: risk management in New Zealand associated with Māori concerns about genetically modified organisms; cultural services to assist marine planning in coastal British Columbia; and a decision-making process involving a local First Nation about water flows in a regulated river in western Canada. We examine how 'culture' came to be manifest in each case, drawing from ethnographic and cultural-models interviews and using subjective metrics (recommended by theories of judgment and decision making) to express cultural concerns. We conclude that the characterization of

The Culture-Work-Health Model and Work Stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, Michael; Wilson, John F.

2002-01-01

Examines the role of organizational culture in the etiology of workplace stress through the framework of the Culture-Work- Health model. A review of relevant business and health literature indicates that culture is an important component of work stress and may be a key to creating effective organizational stress interventions. (SM)

The Changing Materiality of Music

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bødker, Henrik

A great deal of effort has gone into discussing issues of copyright in relation to the new materialities of the digital distribution of popular music; there has, however, been less focus on the changes that these new developments may invoke with respect to the cultural and social usages of music....... Against the backdrop of recent discussions of popular music as material culture it is argued that emergent usages must be seen in relation to accumulations of different materialities and that such a perspective highlights issues related to both aesthetic reflexivity and agency. Keywords: cultural...... commodity, materiality, reflexivity, music, MP3...

Relevance of workplace social mixing during influenza pandemics: an experimental modelling study of workplace cultures.

Science.gov (United States)

Timpka, T; Eriksson, H; Holm, E; Strömgren, M; Ekberg, J; Spreco, A; Dahlström, Ö

2016-07-01

Workplaces are one of the most important regular meeting places in society. The aim of this study was to use simulation experiments to examine the impact of different workplace cultures on influenza dissemination during pandemics. The impact is investigated by experiments with defined social-mixing patterns at workplaces using semi-virtual models based on authentic sociodemographic and geographical data from a North European community (population 136 000). A simulated pandemic outbreak was found to affect 33% of the total population in the community with the reference academic-creative workplace culture; virus transmission at the workplace accounted for 10·6% of the cases. A model with a prevailing industrial-administrative workplace culture generated 11% lower incidence than the reference model, while the model with a self-employed workplace culture (also corresponding to a hypothetical scenario with all workplaces closed) produced 20% fewer cases. The model representing an academic-creative workplace culture with restricted workplace interaction generated 12% lower cumulative incidence compared to the reference model. The results display important theoretical associations between workplace social-mixing cultures and community-level incidence rates during influenza pandemics. Social interaction patterns at workplaces should be taken into consideration when analysing virus transmission patterns during influenza pandemics.

SOCIO-CULTURAL AND MEDICAL INDICATORS OF THE SCHOOLCHILDREN'S QUALITY OF LIFE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Slobodanka Bašić

2003-01-01

Full Text Available An estimate of life quality is based upon medical, psychological and social indicators. It increasingly engages the attention of doctors of medicine, sociologists and psychologists.The aim of this research is to headlight some more relevant socio-cultural parametres in order to determine the quality of life of schoolchildren, that is, to determine whether the crisis in which our society has found itself has produced such socio-cultural conditions that could have induced changes in the children's quality of life and, if they have, to what extent the crisis has been reflected upon their health. The research has comprised 398 schoolchildren and their parents, three elementary schools from Nish and one in Sokobanja.The research of the socio-cultural and medical indicators of their quality of life has shown that the parent's education and ther material position have had an important influence upon the children's life quality.Since there has been no significant presence of any disease recorded in the observed children's sample, it can be concluded that the socio-cultural features have affected the children's life but they have not any significant impact upon their health.

Sources of Marital Conflict in Five Cultures

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Lisa M. Dillon

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This analysis of previously collected data examined four fitness-relevant issues for their possible role in marital conflict. These were sex, finances, division of labor, and raising children, selected in light of their pertinence to sex differences in reproductive strategies. Over 2,000 couples in five diverse cultures were studied. Marital conflict was assessed by the Problems with Partner scale, which was previously shown to demonstrate measurement invariance across cultures and genders. All four issues were significantly related to perceived marital problems in almost all cases. Thus, conflict tended to arise around issues relevant to reproductive strategies. A few cultural idiosyncrasies emerged and are discussed. In all cultures, wives reported more problems than husbands. Another important issue was kindness. The results suggest that a key factor in marital success or failure may be kindness necessary to sustain this prolonged and intimate relationship of cooperation for raising one's offspring.

Culture and art: Importance of art practice, not aesthetics, to early human culture.

Science.gov (United States)

Zaidel, Dahlia W

2018-01-01

Art is expressed in multiple formats in today's human cultures. Physical traces of stone tools and other archaeological landmarks suggest early nonart cultural behavior and symbolic cognition in the early Homo sapiens (HS) who emerged ~300,000-200,000 years ago in Africa. Fundamental to art expression is the neural underpinning for symbolic cognition, and material art is considered its prime example. However, prior to producing material art, HS could have exploited symbolically through art-rooted biological neural pathways for social purpose, namely, those controlling interpersonal motoric coordination and sound codependence. Aesthetics would not have been the primary purpose; arguments for group dance and rhythmical musical sounds are offered here. In addition, triggers for symbolic body painting are discussed. These cultural art formats could well have preceded material art and would have enhanced unity, inclusiveness, and cooperative behavior, contributing significantly to already existing nonart cultural practices. © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Are cultural dimensions relevant for explaining cross-national differences in antibiotic use in Europe?

Science.gov (United States)

Deschepper, Reginald; Grigoryan, Larissa; Lundborg, Cecilia Stålsby; Hofstede, Geert; Cohen, Joachim; Kelen, Greta Van Der; Deliens, Luc; Haaijer-Ruskamp, Flora M

2008-06-06

Antibiotics are widely-used medicines for which a more prudent use has been advocated to minimize development of resistance. There are considerable cross-national differences that can only partially be explained by epidemiological difference and variations in health care structure. The aim of this study was to explore whether cross-national differences in use of antibiotics (prescribed and non-prescribed) are associated with differences between national cultures as described in Hofstede's model of cultural dimensions (Power Distance, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance and Long-Term Orientation). Country-level data of prescribed antibiotic use and self-medication with antibiotics were correlated to country-specific scores of cultural dimensions obtained from Hofstede. Data on use of antibiotics were provided by three European studies, based on different methods and/or countries: Self-medication with Antibiotics and Resistance in Europe (SAR), based on a survey in 2003 on reported use of antibiotics in 19 countries, the European Surveillance on Antimicrobial Consumption, based on distribution and reimbursement of antibiotics in ambulatory care (1997-2002), and the 2002 interview-based Eurobarometer study, asking whether respondents had taken antibiotics in the previous 12 months. These studies provided data on antibiotics use for 27 European countries in total, for which scores of cultural dimensions were also available. The SAR-study differentiated between prescribed antibiotics and self-medication with antibiotics. Significant positive correlations were found for Power Distance Index with use of prescribed antibiotics in the three studies (rho between 0.59 and 0.62) and with self-medication (rho = 0.54) in the SAR study. Positive significant correlations were found for the Uncertainty Avoidance Index with the use of antibiotics as reported in two studies (rho between 0.57 and 0.59; for the SAR study the correlations were insignificant). Masculinity

Perceived usefulness and culture as predictors of teachers attitudes ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Perceived usefulness and culture as predictors of teachers attitudes towards ... perceived usefulness, perceived cultural relevance, perceived competence and access to ... and senior phase, completed the Attitudes Towards Computer Scale.

Developing Curriculum to Help Students Explore the Geosciences' Cultural Relevance

Science.gov (United States)

Miller, G.; Schoof, J. T.; Therrell, M. D.

2011-12-01

Even though climate change and an unhealthy environment have a disproportionate affect on persons of color, there is a poor record of diversity in geoscience-related fields where researchers are investigating ways to improve the quality of the environment and human health. This low percentage of representation in the geosciences is equally troubling at the university where we are beginning the third and final year of a project funded through the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Opportunities to Enhance Diversity in the Geosciences (OEDG). The purpose of this project is to explore a novel approach to using the social sciences to help students, specifically underrepresented minorities, discover the geosciences' cultural relevance and consider a career in the earth, atmospheric, and ocean sciences. To date, over 800 college freshmen have participated in a design study to evaluate the curriculum efficacy of a geoscience reader. Over half of these participants are students of color. The reader we designed allows students to analyze multiple, and sometimes conflicting, sources such as peer-reviewed journal articles, political cartoons, and newspaper articles. The topic for investigation in the reader is the 1995 Chicago Heat Wave, a tragic event that killed over 700 residents. Students use this reader in a core university course required for entering freshmen with low reading comprehension scores on standardized tests. To support students' comprehension, evaluation, and corroboration of these sources, we incorporated instructional supports aligned with the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), reciprocal teaching, historical reasoning, media literacy, and quantitative reasoning. Using a digital format allows students to access multiple versions of the sources they are analyzing and definitions of challenging vocabulary and scientific concepts. Qualitative and quantitative data collected from participating students and their instructors included focus

Bioengineering of cultured epidermis from adult epidermal stem cells using Mebio gel sutable as autologous graft material

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lakshmana K Yerneni

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Closure of burn wound is the primary requirement in order to reduce morbidity and mortality that are otherwise very high due to non-availability of permanent wound covering materials. Sheets of cultured epidermis grown from autologous epidermal keratinocyte stem cells are accepted world over as one of the best wound covering materials. In a largely populated country like ours where burn casualties occur more frequently due to inadequate safety practices, there is a need for indigenous research inputs to develop such methodologies. The technique to culturing epidermal sheets in vitro involves the basic Reheinwald-Green method with our own beneficial inputs. The technique employs attenuated 3T3 cells as feeders for propagating keratinocyte stem cells that are isolated from the epidermis of an initial skin biopsy of about 5 cm2 from the patient. The cultures are then maintained in Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium strengthened with Ham's F12 formula, bovine fetal serum and various specific growth-promoting agents and factors in culture flasks under standard culture conditions. The primary cultures thus established would be serially passaged to achieve the required expansion. Our major inputs are into the establishment of (1 an efficient differential trypsinization protocol to isolate large number epidermal keratinocytes from the skin biopsy, (2 a highly specific, unique and foolproof attenuation protocol for 3T3 cells and (3 a specialized and significant decontamination protocol. The fully formed epidermal sheet as verified by immuno-histochemical and light & electron microscopic studies, is lifted on to paraffin gauze by incubating in a neutral protease. The graft is then ready to be transported to the operating theatre for autologous application. We have a capability of growing cultured epidermal sheets sufficient enough to cover 40 per cent burn wound in 28 days. The preliminary small area clinical applications undertaken so far revealed

Cross-Cultural Research and Qualitative Inquiry

OpenAIRE

Liamputtong, Pranee

2010-01-01

Cross-cultural research has become important in this postmodern world where many people have been made, and are still, marginalised and vulnerable by others in more powerful positions like colonial researchers. In this paper, I contend that qualitative research is particularly appropriate for cross-cultural research because it allows us to find answers which are more relevant to the research participants. Cross-cultural qualitative research must be situated within some theoretical frameworks....

Development and testing of culturally sensitive patient information material for Turkish, Polish, Russian and Italian migrants with depression or chronic low back pain (KULTINFO): study protocol for a double-blind randomized controlled trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Hölzel, Lars P; Ries, Zivile; Zill, Jördis M; Kriston, Levente; Dirmaier, Jörg; Härter, Martin; Bermejo, Isaac

2014-07-04

Many of the approximately 15 million people with a migration background living in Germany (19% of the population) are inadequately reached by existing healthcare provision. In the literature, the necessity for cultural adaptation of information material for patients with a migration background is often cited as a measure for improving healthcare.In this study, culturally sensitive information material will be developed and evaluated for patients with a migration background and depression or chronic low back pain. In this respect, it will be examined whether culturally sensitive information material is judged as more useful by the patients than standard translated patient information without cultural adaptation. The implementation and evaluation of culturally sensitive patient information material will occur in the framework of a double-blind randomized controlled parallel-group study in four study centres in Germany. Primary care patients with a Turkish, Polish, Russian or Italian migration background with a diagnosis of depressive disorder or chronic low back pain will be included and randomly allocated to the intervention group or the control group. In the intervention group, culturally sensitive patient information will be handed to the patient at the end of the physician consultation, while in the control group, standard translated patient information material will be provided. The patients will be surveyed by means of questionnaires following the consultation as well as after 8 weeks and 6 months. In addition to the primary outcome (subjective usefulness), several patient- and physician-rated secondary outcomes will be considered. The study will provide an empirical answer to the question of whether persons with a migration background perceive culturally sensitive patient information material as more useful than translated information material without cultural adaptation. Deutsches Register Klinischer Studien (DRKS-ID) DRKS00004241 and Universal Trial Number

The Structure of the Chinese Material Value Scale: An Eastern Cultural View

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jiangqun Liao

2017-10-01

Full Text Available This study investigated the structure of the Chinese Material Value Scale (MVS. A two-factor structure, rather than the original three-factor structure, was proposed for China by means of confirmatory factor analysis. Direct evidence showed that the dimensions of success and happiness could be merged together. Both explicit and implicit methods were used to examine the relationship between success and happiness based on possession. In particular, as an implicit method, the dot-probe paradigm recording participants’ response time supported the idea that the two-factors could be merged together. The results also showed that for Chinese people, success to an extent means happiness, while the converse is not necessarily true. Chinese are much more concerned about social evaluation than their own feelings, and this cultural characteristic is reflected in our findings.

Morphology like science in the physical culture and its use as a teaching supporting material

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valia Alina Crespo-Almeira

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Morphology is a branch of Biology that is part of the biomedical basic sciences; it fundamentally studies the structure, that is to say, the form of organization of the systems of organs. The poor bibliography existence for the content assimilation related with locomotive human system in the Physical culture career first year students, as well as, the access increase of computer equipment. This research proposes a teaching supporting material to teach the content of Morphology II, where the students can apply and check the acquisition and domain of these contents for the a better professional development. The investigation methods used were the historical tendencies, systemic and analysis and synthesis methods. The empiric methods were: the observation, the interview and documents analysis. The consulted theoretical and methodological referents about the treatment of the contents related with the human locomotive system confirm the necessity of these contents in Morphology as science in the career of Physical Culture.

Some Aspects of Culture Teaching in Foreign Language and ESP Classes: Cultural Scripts and Small Talk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ivona Baranovskaja

2011-12-01

Full Text Available The present paper deals with the problem of teaching culture in the foreign language classes at all levels of education. Cultural studies should not be separated from the language syllabus and foreign language learning should not be limited to formal learning of systems of sounds, words, and syntactic structures, but should also include learning the culture of the target language. Success in intercultural communication depends greatly on the understanding of a number of cultural features. The article emphasizes the importance of teaching and learning target culture, as well as introduces the analysis of cultural scripts and small talk in English, Russian and Polish languages. Understanding the cultural differences will benefit and facilitate cross-cultural communication under diverse circumstances. Thereby, this issue is relevant to foreign language and ESP classes focusing on the improvement of both students’ language and cultural skills.

Perceived usefulness and culture as predictors of teachers attitudes ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Sumaya Laher

2015-11-24

Nov 24, 2015 ... qualitative study on four secondary school teachers, from two schools, found a ... ceived usefulness and perceived cultural relevance predicted attitudes .... relevance, ET com- petence, ET access and personal characteristics.

Teacher Perception of Cultural Difference in L2 Materials: Is Filtering Culture the Right Approach?

Science.gov (United States)

Hermessi, Tarek

2017-01-01

With the emergence of the intercultural approach to L2 teaching, several studies investigated teachers' attitudes and beliefs concerning the cultural dimension of L2 teaching in different foreign language settings. This study explored teachers' perceptions of the relationship between teaching English and culture in Tunisia, an EFL setting where…

50 CFR 424.13 - Sources of information and relevant data.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 50 Wildlife and Fisheries 7 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Sources of information and relevant data... Sources of information and relevant data. When considering any revision of the lists, the Secretary shall..., administrative reports, maps or other graphic materials, information received from experts on the subject, and...

'It's All Done With Mirrors': V.S. Ramachandran and the Material Culture of Phantom Limb Research.

Science.gov (United States)

Guenther, Katja

2016-07-01

This article examines the material culture of neuroscientist Vilayanur S. Ramachandran's research into phantom limbs. In the 1990s Ramachandran used a 'mirror box' to 'resurrect' phantom limbs and thus to treat the pain that often accompanied them. The experimental success of his mirror therapy led Ramachandran to see mirrors as a useful model of brain function, a tendency that explains his attraction to work on 'mirror neurons'. I argue that Ramachandran's fascination with and repeated appeal to the mirror can be explained by the way it allowed him to confront a perennial problem in the mind and brain sciences, that of the relationship between a supposedly immaterial mind and a material brain. By producing what Ramachandran called a 'virtual reality', relating in varied and complex ways to the material world, the mirror reproduced a form of psycho-physical parallelism and dualistic ontology, while conforming to the materialist norms of neuroscience today.

Kertha Gosa Court Hall of Klungkung Bali as an effort to conserve cultural heritage based on traditional culture

Science.gov (United States)

Kurnia Widianti, An-nisaa; Bambang Studyanto, Anung

2018-03-01

Kertha Gosa Klungkung Court Hall in Bali is one of the relics of the cultural heritage of The Kingdom of Bali which is a part of the Klungkung Castle. The existence of Kertha Gosa Architecture Hall as one of the relics of cultural heritage holds historical values, especially Bali traditional values. Indonesia is a country which has the rich culture heritage history, especially on historical buildings. This research seeks for a redenomination to solve problems being faced recently, namely the lack of activities to conserve a historic building as an asset of the country and source of knowledge in education. Listed in Law Number 11 of 2010 the conservation has some criteria, such as : 1.it has 50 years or more; represents the period of a certain style lat least 50 years; has special meaning for the history, science, education, religion, and culture or cultural value as a nation’s personality. The procedure to conduct this research uses a descriptive method by doing observation, interviews, taking some pictures, official documents or personal and other data that have a relevance to the research related to object to describing the condition of the building systematically, factual and actual. Consideration of the selection of objects is based on research by looking at the criteria of architectural, historical and symbolic criteria. Kertha Gosa Hall classic has been there for 395 years was built with zoning system called Sanga Mandala or similar to a chess board using natural materials such as eben wood, and padas rocks which make it authentic and possesses characteristic values of patriotism expression. During the kingdom of Kertha Gosa, Court Hall was like a court nowadays, but people still trust the constructive value of Hindu religion and culture as a product of thinking and live experience.

Using Foreign Virtual Patients With Medical Students in Germany: Are Cultural Differences Evident and Do They Impede Learning?

Science.gov (United States)

Walldorf, Jens; Jähnert, Tina; Berman, Norman B; Fischer, Martin R

2016-09-27

Learning with virtual patients (VPs) is considered useful in medical education for fostering clinical reasoning. As the authoring of VPs is highly demanding, an international exchange of cases might be desirable. However, cultural differences in foreign VPs might hamper learning success. We investigated the need for support for using VPs from the United States at a German university, with respect to language and cultural differences. Our goal was to better understand potential implementation barriers of a intercultural VP exchange. Two VPs were presented to 30 German medical students featuring a cultural background different from German standards with respect to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, ethical aspects, role models, and language (as identified by a cultural adaptation framework). Participants were assigned to two groups: 14 students were advised to complete the cases without further instructions (basic group), and 16 students received written explanatory supplemental information specifically with regard to cultural differences (supplement group). Using a 6-point scale (6=strongly agree), we analyzed the results of an integrated assessment of learning success as well as an evaluation of cases by the students on usefulness for learning and potential issues regarding the language and cultural background. The German students found it motivating to work with cases written in English (6-point scale, 4.5 points). The clinical relevance of the VPs was clearly recognized (6 points), and the foreign language was considered a minor problem in this context (3 points). The results of the integrated learning assessment were similar in both groups (basic 53% [SD 4] vs supplement 52% [SD 4] correct answers, P=.32). However, students using the supplemental material more readily realized culturally different diagnostic and therapeutic strategies (basic 4 vs supplement 5 points, P=.39) and were less affirmative when asked about the transferability of cases to a German

Are cultural dimensions relevant for explaining cross-national differences in antibiotic use in Europe?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kelen Greta

2008-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Antibiotics are widely-used medicines for which a more prudent use has been advocated to minimize development of resistance. There are considerable cross-national differences that can only partially be explained by epidemiological difference and variations in health care structure. The aim of this study was to explore whether cross-national differences in use of antibiotics (prescribed and non-prescribed are associated with differences between national cultures as described in Hofstede's model of cultural dimensions (Power Distance, Individualism, Masculinity, Uncertainty Avoidance and Long-Term Orientation. Methods Country-level data of prescribed antibiotic use and self-medication with antibiotics were correlated to country-specific scores of cultural dimensions obtained from Hofstede. Data on use of antibiotics were provided by three European studies, based on different methods and/or countries: Self-medication with Antibiotics and Resistance in Europe (SAR, based on a survey in 2003 on reported use of antibiotics in 19 countries, the European Surveillance on Antimicrobial Consumption, based on distribution and reimbursement of antibiotics in ambulatory care (1997–2002, and the 2002 interview-based Eurobarometer study, asking whether respondents had taken antibiotics in the previous 12 months. These studies provided data on antibiotics use for 27 European countries in total, for which scores of cultural dimensions were also available. The SAR-study differentiated between prescribed antibiotics and self-medication with antibiotics. Results Significant positive correlations were found for Power Distance Index with use of prescribed antibiotics in the three studies (rho between 0.59 and 0.62 and with self-medication (rho = 0.54 in the SAR study. Positive significant correlations were found for the Uncertainty Avoidance Index with the use of antibiotics as reported in two studies (rho between 0.57 and 0.59; for the SAR study

Does Cultural Capital Matter?: Cultural Divide and Quality of Life

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Seoyong; Kim, Hyesun

2009-01-01

Since the remarkable work of Pierre Bourdieu, the concept of cultural capital has gained wide popularity along with theoretical and conceptual debates. This trend represents the social-structural change from materialism to postmaterialism. However, there are few empirical studies which find the cause and effect of cultural capital. Based on…

Embodied Cultures of Mobilities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Ole B.

2010-01-01

and material artifacts. The paper target the complex relationship between the moving, sensing body and the material and built environment of infrastructures and mobility modes in order to explore what norms, and meanings, and everyday life mobility cultures are being produced and re-produced in this process....... A particular emphasis is put on how mobilities produce and re-produce norms, meanings and cultures in relation to the Everyday life perspective. By looking into walking, running, cycling, driving and mass transit mobilities different modes of embodied mobility is identified. The theoretical framework is based...... and interaction (Lynch). The argument is thus that understanding embodied cultures of mobilities from the vantage point of this paper lend is self to new interpretations, explorations and understandings of what it means to move within and between other social agents in particular material and physical...

Cultural context and school counseling: Cultural sensitivity to advocate for social justice

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moshé Tatar

2008-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper the relevance of understanding the different meanings of culture in the counseling profession is presented. Two approaches to the concept of culture as they relate to counseling are suggested: the first approach stresses the organisational culture of the institution where the counselor works; the second —the multicultural approach— calls for the complex recognition of the variety of ethnic cultural backgrounds of those involved in the counseling situation. Professional practices are analysed as means for the reinforcement of present conditions or as ways for changing them. The concepts of empowerment of and advocacy for our clients are put forward as main components in the challenging new roles of the counseling profession. Implications for counselors are suggested.

Dispositional optimism and physical wellbeing: the relevance of culture, gender, and socioeconomic status.

Science.gov (United States)

Khallad, Yacoub

2013-01-01

The present study examined the relationship between dispositional optimism and physical wellbeing (as reflected in physical symptom reporting) in two groups of American and Jordanian college students. It also assessed moderation effects of culture, gender, and socioeconomic status (SES). Participants were administered a questionnaire consisting of items pertaining to dispositional optimism (as measured by the Revised Life Orientation Test, LOT-R) along with items assessing physical symptom reporting and sociodemographic factors (e.g., gender, socioeconomic status). The results revealed significant negative correlations between dispositional optimism and physical symptom reporting for both American and Jordanian participants, although the magnitude of the correlation for the American group was noticeably larger than that for the Jordanian group. The results also showed that women, especially Jordanians, were more likely than men to report physical symptoms. Among Jordanians, physical symptom reporting was more common among those of lower SES. No statistically significant differences in physical symptom reporting were found between American men and women or between the two cultural groups. Multiple regression analyses revealed no statistically significant interactions between optimism and cultural background, optimism and gender, or optimism and SES. Overall, the results suggest that optimism is the factor most predictive of physical symptom reporting, followed by SES and gender. These results corroborate previous findings on the relationship between dispositional optimism and physical wellbeing, and point to crosscultural differences in relationship patterns. These differences suggest that although personality characteristics such as optimism may play an important role in the physical wellbeing of both Western and non-Western groups, the influence of sociodemographic factors such as gender and SES and their interaction with cultural variables must not be overlooked.

Teaching Science from Cultural Points of Intersection

Science.gov (United States)

Grimberg, Bruna Irene; Gummer, Edith

2013-01-01

This study focuses on a professional development program for science teachers near or on American Indian reservations in Montana. This program was framed by culturally relevant pedagogy premises and was characterized by instructional strategies and content foci resulting from the intersection between three cultures: tribal, science teaching, and…

The Materiality of Exclusion and the Ideology of Research

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pais, Alexandre

2013-01-01

of resources, teacher formation, mathematical content for social justice, etc.). In this paper I shall argue that such dissemination of the problem of inequity disavows its materiality. Mathematics education as a research field will be used to illustrate how postmodern moves in educational research, and its...... the contemporary reading of Lacan made by Žižek, to show how the real of schools—that is, its materiality, the fact that schools are economical places—has to be repressed by existing postmodern educational research—and its emphasis on discourse and identity politics— in order for research to be possible...... education, valorization of different cultures, useful and critical mathematics. However, an ideology critique sees these obstacles as symptomatic points which allow one to grasp the political and economical relevance of mathematics in the school system. Baldino, R., & Cabral, T. (2006). Inclusion...

Radiological safety in petroleum industry. Towards prevention culture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Truppa, Walter A.

2007-01-01

Within the frame of regulatory control of industrial applications the audit of sealed and open radioactive sources in oil uses is one of the most relevant. The handling of radioactive sources, the requirement of procedures and training are just a few examples among all those that make up the radiological safety culture. A number of requirements divided into three main groups: operational safety at the storage area of radioactive sources, during transportation and during the applications (Cementation, well logging and use of radiotracers) are highlighted. Due to the great number of aspects that have to be taken in account as well as the interrelation of all control processes it is highly recommended that aspects of safety culture and quality should be considered and improvements regarding prevention, should be introduced so as to correct deviations that could arise in order to avoid radiological risk situations, emphasizing risk perception situations, attitude training, implementation of audit and level of safety in the facilities and control of duties, involving radiological material handling, described in the present work. (author) [es

Working with culture: culturally appropriate mental health care for Asian Americans.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Mijung; Chesla, Catherine A; Rehm, Roberta S; Chun, Kevin M

2011-11-01

The aim of this study is to describe how mental healthcare providers adapted their practice to meet the unique needs of Asian Americans. As the number of ethnic minorities and multicultural patients and families rapidly increases, cultural competency becomes an essential skill for all healthcare providers. The lack of knowledge about how healthcare providers grapple with diverse cultures and cultural competency limits the ability of others to deliver patient-centred care across cultural lines. Interpretive phenomenology guided the design and conduct of this study. Twenty mental healthcare providers who treated Asian Americans were recruited. Narrative data were collected through face-to-face, in-depth interviews between 2006 and 2007. Three characteristics of culturally appropriate care for Asian Americans were identified. Cultural brokering: providers addressed issues stemming from cultural differences via bicultural skills education. Asian American patients generally received broader education than current literature recommended. Supporting families in transition: providers assisted Asian American families during transition from and to professional care. Using cultural knowledge to enhance competent care: providers' knowledge of Asian culture and flexible attitudes affected the care that they provided. Culturally competent providers were able to identify cultural issues that were relevant to the specific situation, and incorporated cultural solutions into the care provided. Culturally appropriate care is nuanced and context specific. Thus, more sophisticated and broader conceptualizations are necessary to prepare nurses for such complex practice. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Hetero-cellular prototyping by synchronized multi-material bioprinting for rotary cell culture system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Snyder, Jessica; Son, Ae Rin; Hamid, Qudus; Sun, Wei; Wu, Honglu

2016-01-01

Bottom-up tissue engineering requires methodological progress of biofabrication to capture key design facets of anatomical arrangements across micro, meso and macro-scales. The diffusive mass transfer properties necessary to elicit stability and functionality require hetero-typic contact, cell-to-cell signaling and uniform nutrient diffusion. Bioprinting techniques successfully build mathematically defined porous architecture to diminish resistance to mass transfer. Current limitations of bioprinted cell assemblies include poor micro-scale formability of cell-laden soft gels and asymmetrical macro-scale diffusion through 3D volumes. The objective of this work is to engineer a synchronized multi-material bioprinter (SMMB) system which improves the resolution and expands the capability of existing bioprinting systems by packaging multiple cell types in heterotypic arrays prior to deposition. This unit cell approach to arranging multiple cell-laden solutions is integrated with a motion system to print heterogeneous filaments as tissue engineered scaffolds and nanoliter droplets. The set of SMMB process parameters control the geometric arrangement of the combined flow’s internal features and constituent material’s volume fractions. SMMB printed hepatocyte-endothelial laden 200 nl droplets are cultured in a rotary cell culture system (RCCS) to study the effect of microgravity on an in vitro model of the human hepatic lobule. RCCS conditioning for 48 h increased hepatocyte cytoplasm diameter 2 μm, increased metabolic rate, and decreased drug half-life. SMMB hetero-cellular models present a 10-fold increase in metabolic rate, compared to SMMB mono-culture models. Improved bioprinting resolution due to process control of cell-laden matrix packaging as well as nanoliter droplet printing capability identify SMMB as a viable technique to improve in vitro model efficacy. (paper)

IBA techniques: Examples of useful combinations for the characterisation of cultural heritage materials

Science.gov (United States)

Beck, L.; Pichon, L.; Moignard, B.; Guillou, T.; Walter, P.

2011-12-01

For many years, ion beam analysis techniques have successfully been used to the study of cultural heritage objects. The chemical composition of work art is usually determined by PIXE, but in many cases, RBS and/or PIGE can provide useful complementary information. RBS gives information about the depth distribution and concentration in light elements, such as carbon and oxygen. In the past years, the experimental facilities at the AGLAE (Accélérateur Grand Louvre d'Analyse Élémentaire) accelerator has been progressively developed in order to apply simultaneously PIXE, PIGE and RBS under optimal conditions using an external beam. This combination is now routinely used for point analyses or mappings. In this contribution, we present several examples of applications: manufacturing technology of lustre-decorated ceramics and silver plating, control of altered or restored surfaces, and quantification of organic phase in painting and bone. The final conclusion is that the association of PIXE with RBS is very attractive for the investigation of cultural heritage objects, in particular of materials containing both mineral and organic components or possessing a multilayered structure. The first results of the production of monochromatic X-rays for radiography purposes by PIXE are also presented.

IBA techniques: Examples of useful combinations for the characterisation of cultural heritage materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beck, L.; Pichon, L.; Moignard, B.; Guillou, T.; Walter, P.

2011-01-01

For many years, ion beam analysis techniques have successfully been used to the study of cultural heritage objects. The chemical composition of work art is usually determined by PIXE, but in many cases, RBS and/or PIGE can provide useful complementary information. RBS gives information about the depth distribution and concentration in light elements, such as carbon and oxygen. In the past years, the experimental facilities at the AGLAE (Accélérateur Grand Louvre d’Analyse Élémentaire) accelerator has been progressively developed in order to apply simultaneously PIXE, PIGE and RBS under optimal conditions using an external beam. This combination is now routinely used for point analyses or mappings. In this contribution, we present several examples of applications: manufacturing technology of lustre-decorated ceramics and silver plating, control of altered or restored surfaces, and quantification of organic phase in painting and bone. The final conclusion is that the association of PIXE with RBS is very attractive for the investigation of cultural heritage objects, in particular of materials containing both mineral and organic components or possessing a multilayered structure. The first results of the production of monochromatic X-rays for radiography purposes by PIXE are also presented.

Electro-Analytical Study of Material Interfaces Relevant for Chemical Mechanical Planarization and Lithium Ion Batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Turk, Michael C.

galvanic corrosions in chemically controlled low-pressure CMP. The CMP specific functions of the slurry components are characterized in the tribo-electro-analytical approach by using voltammetry, open circuit potential (OCP) measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in the presence as well as in the absence of surface abrasion, both with and without the inclusion of colloidal silica (SiO2) abrasives. The results are used to understand the reaction mechanisms responsible for supporting material removal and corrosion suppression. The project carried out in the area of Li ion batteries (LIBs) uses electro-analytical techniques to probe electrolyte characteristics as well as electrode material performance. The investigation concentrates on optimizing a tactically chosen set of electrolyte compositions for low-to-moderate temperature applications of lithium titanium oxide (LTO), a relatively new anode material for such batteries. For this application, mixtures of non-aqueous carbonate based solvents are studied in combination with lithium perchlorate. The temperature dependent conductivities of the electrolytes are rigorously measured and analyzed using EIS. The experimental considerations and the working principle of this EIS based approach are carefully examined and standardized in the course of this study. These experiments also investigate the effects of temperature variations (below room temperature) on the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) formation characteristics of LTO in the given electrolytes. This dissertation is organized as follows: Each experimental system and its relevance for practical applications are briefly introduced in each chapter. The experimental approach and the motivation for carrying out the investigation are also noted in that context. The experimental details specific to the particular study are described. This is followed by the results and their discussion, and subsequently, by the specific conclusions drawn from the given

FEMALE SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND SOCIO-CULTURAL CONTEXT: AN INTERNATIONAL ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David Urbano Pulido

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this article we analyse the socio-cultural factors that influence the likelihood of women becoming social entrepreneurs, using institutional economics. Binary logistic regression has been applied as the statistical method to test the hypotheses proposed, using data (40 countries and 56,875 individuals from the World Value Survey (WVS and the World Bank (WB. The main findings of the study reaffirm the relevance of socio-cultural factors to social entrepreneurship. Particularly, we have found that altruistic attitudes and being a member of a social organization are the most relevant socio-cultural factors for social female entrepreneurship.

Comparison of the Osteogenic Potential of Mineral Trioxide Aggregate and Endosequence Root Repair Material in a 3-dimensional Culture System.

Science.gov (United States)

Rifaey, Hisham S; Villa, Max; Zhu, Qiang; Wang, Yu-Hsiung; Safavi, Kamran; Chen, I-Ping

2016-05-01

The ability to promote osteoblast differentiation is a desirable property of root-end filling materials. Several in vitro studies compare the cytotoxicity and physical properties between mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA) and Endosequence root repair material (ERRM), but not their osteogenic potential. Three-dimensional cultures allow cells to better maintain their physiological morphology and better resemble in vivo cellular response than 2-dimensional cultures. Here we examined the osteogenic potential of MTA and ERRM by using a commercially available 3-dimensional Alvetex scaffold. Mandibular osteoblasts were derived from 3-week-old male transgenic reporter mice where mature osteoblasts express green fluorescent protein (GFP) driven by a 2.3-kilobase type I collagen promoter (Col(I)-2.3). Mandibular osteoblasts were grown on Alvetex in direct contact with MTA, ERRM, or no material (negative control) for 14 days. Osteoblast differentiation was evaluated by expression levels of osteogenic genes by using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and by the spatial dynamics of Col(I)-2.3 GFP-positive mature osteoblasts within the Alvetex scaffolds by using 2-photon microscopy. ERRM significantly increased alkaline phosphatase (Alp) and bone sialoprotein (Bsp) expression compared with MTA and negative control groups. Both MTA and ERRM increased osterix (Osx) mRNA significantly compared with the negative control group. The percentage of Col(I)-2.3 GFP-positive cells over total cells within Alvetex was the highest in the ERRM group, followed by MTA and by negative controls. ERRM promotes osteoblast differentiation better than MTA and controls with no material in a 3-dimensional culture system. Alvetex scaffolds can be used to test endodontic materials. Copyright © 2016 American Association of Endodontists. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cultural Resource Investigation for the Materials and Fuels Complex Wastewater System Upgrade at the Idaho National Laboratory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Brenda R. Pace; Julie B raun Williams; Hollie Gilbert; Dino Lowrey; Julie Brizzee

2010-05-01

The Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) located in Bingham County at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in southeastern Idaho is considering several alternatives to upgrade wastewater systems to meet future needs at the facility. In April and May of 2010, the INL Cultural Resource Management Office conducted archival searches, archaeological field surveys, and coordination with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes to identify cultural resources that may be adversely affected by the proposed construction and to provide recommendations to protect any resources listed or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. These investigations showed that one National Register-eligible archaeological site is located on the boundary of the area of potential effects for the wastewater upgrade. This report outlines protective measures to help ensure that this resource is not adversely affected by construction.

Cultural Modulation and The Zero Originality Clause of Remix Culture in Australian Contemporary Art

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ross Rudesch Harley

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Australian media artists particularly have been engaged in using found-footage strategies — as evidenced by work made over the past three decades and included in recent retrospective exhibitions such as 'SynCity: Remixing three generations of sample culture' (2006. Armed with techniques of cut and copy, these artists purposefully manipulate and hack found material for their own strategic purposes. In doing so, they dislocate archival material from its original techno-cultural location and re-animate global popular culture in their own personal/local style. Artists have always been plugged into archives, whether it be for inspiration, research purposes, or as a source of raw material. The present digitisation of archives into web databases and peer-to-peer networks has further accelerated this relationship of storage and cultural exchange. Tracing a conceptual bass-line that can be followed from the avant-garde filmmakers of the 20s, Situationist détournement and Burroughs’ cut-up techniques of the 1960s, 1980s Super8 strategies, contemporary VJ culture, creative commons, wikimedia, open source and P2P networks, this article lays out some of the stakes involved in remixing the archive in the bit-torrent age.

A cross-cultural comparison of expatriates’ shopping behavior

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wijnen, G.J.; Kemperman, A.D.A.M.; Janssen, I.I.

2012-01-01

Explored is how shopping centre attributes can be adapted to culture-related shopping behaviour of expatriates. While awareness of consumer ethnicity and effectiveness of culture-based market segmentation are on-going and relevant topics in retailing, there is only limited information available on

Critical-Cultural Studies in Research and Instruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Switzer, Les; McNamara, John; Ryan, Michael

1999-01-01

Outlines two paradigms in critical-cultural analysis that seek to identify and explain the meaning of phenomena that make a culture, focusing on their relevance to research and teaching in journalism and mass communication. Identifies key issues and implications for mass communication research and teaching. Suggests ways educators can apply…

Managerial factor of ethnic minority cultural space: changes (1990 – 2000 – years

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. M. Pekarchuk

2014-09-01

Full Text Available On the basis of archival, statistical materials, analytical inputs predecessors considered the place and role of management factor in the development of cultural space Ethnic minorities during 1990 - 2000 - ies. Nonfiction includes problems of participation of public authorities in the cultural renaissance of ethnic minorities in part addresses the issue of directions, principles, nature management decisions involving relevant administrative instruments regarding implementation in practice of the basics of cultural - artistic policy. Importance designated problem caused primarily by the need to have a clear understanding of the mechanisms of decision independent state problems of interethnic relations, promoting the principles of many cultural, ethnic and national tolerance and harmony. Fundamental approaches to the creation of prerequisites cooperation executive authorities and representative bodies of national - cultural society, the maintenance of ethnic and cultural needs of ethnic groups in Ukraine. We considered the prospect of continuity and management activities in the direction of improving the principles of such support. Considerable attention is paid to the current management mechanism (mosaic bodies involved in financing, material support, investment projects. At first, in the historiography on the basis of specific methodological tools to analyze conformity issued by the President of Ukraine, the Cabinet of Ministers, Ministry departments strategic objectives - development of social and cultural environment Ethnic minorities of Ukraine. Particular attention is given to explaining the problems of social - political participation of ethnic minorities, ethnic consolidation of the principles of conservation of space. Stressed that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine actively promoted satisfaction ethno-cultural needs of ethnic groups, the revival of their customs and traditions. A significant part of the articl is devoted to clarify

Revisiting diversity: cultural variation reveals the constructed nature of emotion perception.

Science.gov (United States)

Gendron, Maria

2017-10-01

The extent of cultural variation in emotion perception has long been assumed to be bounded by underlying universality. A growing body of research reveals, however, that evidence of universality in emotion perception is method-bound. Without the assumption of underlying universality, new lines of inquiry become relevant. Accumulating evidence suggests that cultures vary in what cues are relevant to perceptions of emotion. Further, cultural groups vary in their spontaneous inferences; mental state inference does not appear to be the only, or even most routine, mode of perception across cultures. Finally, setting universality assumptions aside requires innovation in the theory and measurement of culture. Recent studies reveal the promise of refinements in psychological approaches to culture. Together, the available evidence is consistent with a view of emotion perceptions as actively constructed by perceivers to fit the social and physical constraints of their cultural worlds. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Assessing Culturally Competent Scholarship.

Science.gov (United States)

Mendias, Elnora P.; Guevara, Edilma B.

2001-01-01

Eight criteria for culturally competent scholarship (contextuality, relevance, communication styles, awareness of identity and power differences, disclosure, reciprocation, empowerment, time) were applied to an international education/research nursing program. Appropriate measures for each were developed and ways to improve the program were…

Culture and concepts of power.

Science.gov (United States)

Torelli, Carlos J; Shavitt, Sharon

2010-10-01

Five studies indicate that conceptualizations of power are important elements of culture and serve culturally relevant goals. These studies provide converging evidence that cultures nurture different views of what is desirable and meaningful to do with power. Vertical individualism is associated with a conceptualization of power in personalized terms (i.e., power is for advancing one's personal status and prestige), whereas horizontal collectivism is associated with a conceptualization of power in socialized terms (i.e., power is for benefiting and helping others). Cultural variables are shown to predict beliefs about appropriate uses of power, episodic memories about power, attitudes in the service of power goals, and the contexts and ways in which power is used and defended. Evidence for the cultural patterning of power concepts is observed at both the individual level and the cultural-group level of analysis.

Perceptions of the Host Country's Food Culture among Female Immigrants from Africa and Asia: Aspects Relevant for Cultural Sensitivity in Nutrition Communication

Science.gov (United States)

Garnweidner, Lisa Maria; Terragni, Laura; Pettersen, Kjell Sverre; Mosdol, Annhild

2012-01-01

Objective: To explore how female immigrants from Africa and Asia perceive the host country's food culture, to identify aspects of their original food culture they considered important to preserve, and to describe how they go about preserving them. Design: Qualitative in-depth interviews. Setting: Oslo, Norway. Participants: Twenty one female…

Bacterial cell culture

OpenAIRE

sprotocols

2014-01-01

### Materials 1. Glass culture tubes with metal caps and labels - Growth medium, from media room or customized - Glass pipette tubes - Parafilm ### Equipment 1. Vortexer - Fireboy or Bunsen burner - Motorized pipette - Micropipettes and sterile tips ### Procedure For a typical liquid culture, use 5 ml of appropriate medium. The amount in each tube does not have to be exact if you are just trying to culture cells for their precious DNA. 1. Streak an a...

Strategies for selecting effective patient nutrition education materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Clayton, Laura H

2010-10-01

Nutrition and diet therapy are at the center of health promotion activities and self-management of chronic diseases. To assist an individual in making informed decisions regarding his or her diet and increase adherence to dietary recommendations or treatments, healthcare professionals must select health information that is appropriate to the client's level of understanding. A systematic approach in the evaluation of patient education material, whether in print or on the World Wide Web, must focus on the information's content, literacy level, graphical displays, layout and typography, motivating principles, cultural relevance, and feasibility. Additional criteria should be evaluated when accessing Web sites and include source, site credibility, conflict of interest, disclaimer, disclosure, navigation, and interactivity information.

A principled and cosmopolitan neuroethics: considerations for international relevance

OpenAIRE

Shook, John R; Giordano, James

2014-01-01

Neuroethics applies cognitive neuroscience for prescribing alterations to conceptions of self and society, and for prescriptively judging the ethical applications of neurotechnologies. Plentiful normative premises are available to ground such prescriptivity, however prescriptive neuroethics may remain fragmented by social conventions, cultural ideologies, and ethical theories. Herein we offer that an objectively principled neuroethics for international relevance requires a new meta-ethics: un...

Culture in salutogenesis: the scholarship of Aaron Antonovsky

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Benz, C.; Bull, T.; Mittelmark, M.; Vaandrager, L.

2014-01-01

Aaron Antonovsky wrote extensively, although disjointedly, about the roles of culture in salutogenesis. This paper provides a synopsis of his work in this arena. A literature review identified those of his English language writings in which culture was a subject, and relevant text segments were

The missing dimension: the relevance of people's conception of time.

Science.gov (United States)

Norgate, Sarah H; Davies, Nigel; Speed, Chris; Cherrett, Tom; Dickinson, Janet

2014-02-01

While a timely conceptual innovation for the digital age, the "map" proposed by Bentley et al. would benefit from strengthening through the inclusion of a non-clock-time perspective. In this way, there could be new hypotheses developed which could be applied and tested relevant to more diverse societies, cultures, and individuals.

Nuclear security culture in comparison with nuclear safety culture. Resemblances and differences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kawata, Norio

2015-01-01

Since the terrorist attacks on the U.S. on September 11th, 2001, Nuclear Security has been focused on and treated as a global issue in the international community and it has also been discussed as a real and serious threat to nuclear power plants in the world since 'The Great East Japan Earthquake' in March, 2011. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) issued a document including Nuclear Security Recommendations (INFCIRC/225/Rev.5) (NSS 13) in the Nuclear Security Series and emphasized the necessity of fostering Nuclear Security Culture. Nuclear Security Culture has been frequently discussed at various kinds of seminars and events. Since the officials in charge of Nuclear Security are familiar with the area of Nuclear Safety, the relationships between Nuclear Safety Culture and Nuclear Security Culture have been the point in controversy. This paper clarifies relevance between Nuclear Safety and Security, considers resemblances and differences of their concepts and lessons learned for each culture from nuclear power plant accidents, and promotes deeper understanding of Nuclear Safety and Nuclear Security Culture. (author)

Culture, Pedagogy and Equity in a Meritocratic Education System: Teachers' Work and the Politics of Culture in Singapore

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Leonel; Tan, Michael

2018-01-01

Drawing upon insights gained from the extant work on culture and pedagogy, this paper explores the ways in which, in an ostensibly meritocratic education system, ideas about students' cultural backgrounds and its relevance for teaching are interpreted, negotiated, and ultimately drawn upon to engage students in the low-progress academic tracks.…

Molecular dynamics simulations of interactions between hydrogen and fusion-relevant materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rooij, Dagmar de

2010-01-01

In a thermonuclear reactor fusion between hydrogen isotopes takes place, producing helium and energy. The so-called divertor is the part of the fusion reactor vessel where the plasma is neutralized in order to exhaust the helium. The surface plates of the divertor are subjected to high heat loads and high fluxes of energetic hydrogen and helium. In the next generation fusion device - the tokamak ITER - the expected conditions at the plates are particle fluxes exceeding 10 24 per second and square metre, particle energies ranging from 1 to 100 eV and an average heat load of 10 MW per square metre. Two materials have been identified as candidates for the ITER divertor plates: carbon and tungsten. Since there are currently no fusion devices that can create these harsh conditions, it is unknown how the materials will behave in terms of erosion and hydrogen retention. To gain more insight in the physical processes under these conditions molecular dynamics simulations have been conducted. Since diamond has been proposed as possible plasma facing material, we have studied erosion and hydrogen retention in diamond and amorphous hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H). As in experiments, diamond shows a lower erosion yield than a-C:H, however the hydrogen retention in diamond is much larger than in a-C:H and also hardly depending on the substrate temperature. This implies that simple heating of the surface is not sufficient to retrieve the hydrogen from diamond material, whereas a-C:H readily releases the retained hydrogen. So, in spite of the higher erosion yield carbon material other than diamond seems more suitable. Experiments suggest that the erosion yield of carbon material decreases with increasing flux. This was studied in our simulations. The results show no flux dependency, suggesting that the observed reduction is not a material property but is caused by external factors as, for example, redeposition of the erosion products. Our study of the redeposition showed that the

Nuclear reaction data for IBA applications to cultural heritage diagnostics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maino, G.; Menapace, E. [Bologna Univ., ENEA (Italy)

2008-07-01

Main aspects are discussed concerning nuclear reaction cross-sections for PIXE and PIGE (Particle Induced Gamma-ray Emission) analyses, especially referring to cultural heritage diagnostics, within the framework of ion beam analysis (IBA) methods, also reviewing recent results from international Conferences on Nuclear Data for Science and Technology and from NEANSC meetings and IAEA initiatives on the matter.To sum up this work, it is then worth remarking the following items: IBA techniques are powerful tools to derive unique information as for corrosion, degradation and, generally, conservation conditions of materials. Careful analyses of specific systems require accurate evaluations and establishment of complete databases, in particular for stopping powers and relevant cross sections. The physical parameters to be accurately determined are, therefore, nuclear reaction cross sections of importance for NRA analysis of light elements and stopping powers and ranges of light and heavy ions in various matrices. Light elements (H, Li, B, C, N, O, etc.) play an important role as constituents of many important organic as well inorganic materials in historical and artistic objects. To a large extent these materials occur in the near-surface area of a material with altered or degraded composition.

Nuclear reaction data for IBA applications to cultural heritage diagnostics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maino, G.; Menapace, E.

2008-01-01

Main aspects are discussed concerning nuclear reaction cross-sections for PIXE and PIGE (Particle Induced Gamma-ray Emission) analyses, especially referring to cultural heritage diagnostics, within the framework of ion beam analysis (IBA) methods, also reviewing recent results from international Conferences on Nuclear Data for Science and Technology and from NEANSC meetings and IAEA initiatives on the matter.To sum up this work, it is then worth remarking the following items: IBA techniques are powerful tools to derive unique information as for corrosion, degradation and, generally, conservation conditions of materials. Careful analyses of specific systems require accurate evaluations and establishment of complete databases, in particular for stopping powers and relevant cross sections. The physical parameters to be accurately determined are, therefore, nuclear reaction cross sections of importance for NRA analysis of light elements and stopping powers and ranges of light and heavy ions in various matrices. Light elements (H, Li, B, C, N, O, etc.) play an important role as constituents of many important organic as well inorganic materials in historical and artistic objects. To a large extent these materials occur in the near-surface area of a material with altered or degraded composition

Fluorescent in situ hybridization of pre-incubated blood culture material for the rapid diagnosis of histoplasmosis.

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva, Roberto Moreira; da Silva Neto, João Ricardo; Santos, Carla Silvana; Cruz, Kátia Santana; Frickmann, Hagen; Poppert, Sven; Koshikene, Daniela; de Souza, João Vicente Braga

2015-02-01

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) has been shown to be useful for the detection of Candida and Cryptococcus species in blood culture materials. FISH procedures for the detection of Histoplasma capsulatum var. capsulatum have not been reported so far. This study describes the development and evaluation of fluorescently labeled rRNA-targeting FISH probes to detect and identify H. capsulatum in blood cultures. All three analyzed H. capsulatum reference strains and clinical isolates showed positive signals with the newly designed specific oligonucleotide probes for H. capsulatum, whereas negative reactions were observed for all three nontarget yeast species and the two nontarget bacteria. The assay was also successfully applied for detections of H. capsulatum cells in pre-incubated blood culture samples of patients with clinical suspicion of histoplasmosis (n = 33). The described FISH-based assay was shown to be easy to apply, sensitive, and specific (compared to polymerase chain reaction) for the detection and identification of H. capsulatum in this proof-of-principle analysis. Larger multicentric assessments are recommended for a thorough diagnostic evaluation of the procedure. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The International Society for Human and Animal Mycology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

We Look More, Listen More, Notice More: Impact of Sustained Professional Development on Head Start Teachers' Inquiry-Based and Culturally-Relevant Science Teaching Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Roehrig, Gillian H.; Dubosarsky, Mia; Mason, Annie; Carlson, Stephan; Murphy, Barbara

2011-10-01

Despite many scholars' recommendations, science is often avoided during early childhood education. Among the reasons provided by early childhood teachers for the exclusion of science from their daily routines included science anxiety, low self-efficacy with respect to teaching science, lack of experience participating in science activities as students, or the notion that literacy and language are more important during the early years. In minority populations the problem is even greater due to identification of science with the `culture of. This article presents results from Ah Neen Dush, a sustained and transformative professional development program for Head Start teachers on an American Indian Reservation. The goal of the program is to support early childhood teachers in developing inquiry-based and culturally-relevant teaching practices. Through analysis of teachers' classroom practices, surveys and interviews, we explore changes in teachers' attitudes toward science and inquiry-based practices. Classroom observations were conducted using CLASS (Classroom assessment Scoring System), a tool used to evaluate the quality of classroom interactions. After 1 year of professional development teachers' attitudes were found to improve and after 2 years teachers classroom practices were more inquiry-based with statistically significant increases in CLASS observation scores.

A Cross-Cultural Perspective:An Integration of Traditional Chinese Cul-ture into College English Textbooks

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

ZHANG Ni

2014-01-01

Teaching language is teaching culture. English is an international language with local and global significance.In“New Horizon College English”, Chinese culture elements are deficient, which is not conducive to our country ’s higher education and cross-cultural communication skills and to achieve the goal of innovation of Chinese culture. As an important part of world cul⁃ture, Chinese culture should be integrated into college English education. College English teaching materials should include not only western cultural elements but also fully present Chinese culture elements.

A principled and cosmopolitan neuroethics: considerations for international relevance.

Science.gov (United States)

Shook, John R; Giordano, James

2014-01-03

Neuroethics applies cognitive neuroscience for prescribing alterations to conceptions of self and society, and for prescriptively judging the ethical applications of neurotechnologies. Plentiful normative premises are available to ground such prescriptivity, however prescriptive neuroethics may remain fragmented by social conventions, cultural ideologies, and ethical theories. Herein we offer that an objectively principled neuroethics for international relevance requires a new meta-ethics: understanding how morality works, and how humans manage and improve morality, as objectively based on the brain and social sciences. This new meta-ethics will simultaneously equip neuroethics for evaluating and revising older cultural ideologies and ethical theories, and direct neuroethics towards scientifically valid views of encultured humans intelligently managing moralities. Bypassing absolutism, cultural essentialisms, and unrealistic ethical philosophies, neuroethics arrives at a small set of principles about proper human flourishing that are more culturally inclusive and cosmopolitan in spirit. This cosmopolitanism in turn suggests augmentations to traditional medical ethics in the form of four principled guidelines for international consideration: empowerment, non-obsolescence, self-creativity, and citizenship.

A principled and cosmopolitan neuroethics: considerations for international relevance

Science.gov (United States)

2014-01-01

Neuroethics applies cognitive neuroscience for prescribing alterations to conceptions of self and society, and for prescriptively judging the ethical applications of neurotechnologies. Plentiful normative premises are available to ground such prescriptivity, however prescriptive neuroethics may remain fragmented by social conventions, cultural ideologies, and ethical theories. Herein we offer that an objectively principled neuroethics for international relevance requires a new meta-ethics: understanding how morality works, and how humans manage and improve morality, as objectively based on the brain and social sciences. This new meta-ethics will simultaneously equip neuroethics for evaluating and revising older cultural ideologies and ethical theories, and direct neuroethics towards scientifically valid views of encultured humans intelligently managing moralities. Bypassing absolutism, cultural essentialisms, and unrealistic ethical philosophies, neuroethics arrives at a small set of principles about proper human flourishing that are more culturally inclusive and cosmopolitan in spirit. This cosmopolitanism in turn suggests augmentations to traditional medical ethics in the form of four principled guidelines for international consideration: empowerment, non-obsolescence, self-creativity, and citizenship. PMID:24387102

Hyperspectral analysis of cultural heritage artifacts: pigment material diversity in the Gough Map of Britain

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Di; Messinger, David W.; Howell, David

2017-08-01

The Gough Map, one of the earliest surviving maps of Britain, was created and extensively revised over the 15th century. In 2015, the map was imaged using a hyperspectral imaging system while in the collection at the Bodleian Library, Oxford University. The goal of the collection of the hyperspectral image (HSI) of the Gough Map was to address questions such as enhancement of faded text for reading and analysis of the pigments used during its creation and revision. In particular, pigment analysis of the Gough Map will help historians understand the material diversity of its composition and potentially the timeline of, and methods used in, the creation and revision of the map. Multiple analysis methods are presented to analyze a particular pigment in the Gough Map with an emphasis on understanding the within-material diversity, i.e., the number and spatial layout of distinct red pigments. One approach for understanding the number of distinct materials in a scene (i.e., endmember selection and dimensionality estimation) is the Gram matrix approach. Here, this method is used to study the within-material differences of pigments in the map with common visual color. The application is a pigment analysis tool that extracts visually common pixels (here, the red pigments) from the Gough Map and estimates the material diversity of the pixels. Results show that the Gough Map is composed of at least five kinds of dominant red pigments with a particular spatial pattern. This research provides a useful tool for historical geographers and cartographic historians to analyze the material diversity of HSI of cultural heritage artifacts.

Ultra-thin Polyethylene glycol Coatings for Stem Cell Culture

Science.gov (United States)

Schmitt, Samantha K.

Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) are a widely accessible and a clinically relevant cell type that are having a transformative impact on regenerative medicine. However, current clinical expansion methods can lead to selective changes in hMSC phenotype resulting from relatively undefined cell culture surfaces. Chemically defined synthetic surfaces can aid in understanding stem cell behavior. In particular we have developed chemically defined ultra-thin coatings that are stable over timeframes relevant to differentiation of hMSCs (several weeks). The approach employs synthesis of a copolymer with distinct chemistry in solution before application to a substrate. This provides wide compositional flexibility and allows for characterization of the orthogonal crosslinking and peptide binding groups. Characterization is done in solution by proton NMR and after crosslinking by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The solubility of the copolymer in ethanol and low temperature crosslinking, expands its applicability to plastic substrates, in addition to silicon, glass, and gold. Cell adhesive peptides, namely Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) fragments, are coupled to coating via different chemistries resulting in the urethane, amide or the thioester polymer-peptide bonds. Development of azlactone-based chemistry allowed for coupling in water at low peptide concentrations and resulted in either an amide or thioester bonds, depending on reactants. Characterization of the peptide functionalized coating by XPS, infrared spectroscopy and cell culture assays, showed that the amide linkages can present peptides for multiple weeks, while shorter-term presentation of a few days is possible using the more labile thioester bond. Regardless, coatings promoted initial adhesion and spreading of hMSCs in a peptide density dependent manner. These coatings address the following challenges in chemically defined cell culture simultaneously: (i) substrate adaptability, (ii) scalability over large areas

Malama I Ka `Aina: Fostering the Culture-Science connection

Science.gov (United States)

Bruno, B.; Chinn, P.

2005-12-01

The Malama I Ka `Aina Project (Caring for the land, or sustainability) aims to improve and expand the education of Hawai`i's children by developing and disseminating standards-based, culturally relevant science curricular materials based on an understanding and appreciation of the ways in which traditional Hawaiians interacted with their environment for sustainability. Key concepts include the role of water and the ahupua`a (traditional Hawaiian system of land management), and a culture-based sense of place that includes knowledge of and connection to the land. Elementary, middle, high school and University of Hawai`i teachers work together to develop and implement curricula that are especially relevant to a particular school's science program and issues, e.g., invasive species, students, community and/or geographical location. Participants (typically a mix of teachers, education majors and science majors) enroll in Malama I Ka `Aina, a three-credit course offered through the University of Hawai`i`s Dept. of Curriculum Studies and applicable toward a Bachelor's or Master's degree. This course (team taught by scientists, cultural experts and educational professionals) enables participants to: (1) Study Hawai`i`s unique geology, geography and environmental issues in the context of Hawaiian culture and post Western contact; (2) Use course knowledge to develop, teach and assess Hawaii-oriented, project-based, inquiry activities that address the Hawaii Science Content Standards; (3) Gain an appreciation for the scientific method, and the curiosity that drives science (4) Use educational technology such as PowerPoint, graphing packages and web authoring software to develop electronic resources for educational activities. A sample of the lessons developed by course participants can be found on http://malama.hawaii.edu/schools/index2.html. This project is based at the University of Hawai`i College of Education and funded by an award to P. Chinn by the US Department of

Research Opportunities in Corrosion Science for Long-Term Prediction of Materials Performance: A Report of the DOE Workshop on ''Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository''

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Payer, Joe H.; Scully, John R.

2003-01-01

The report summarizes the findings of a U.S. Department of Energy workshop on ''Corrosion Issues of Relevance to the Yucca Mountain Waste Repository''. The workshop was held on July 29-30, 2003 in Bethesda, MD, and was co-sponsored by the Office of Basic Energy Sciences and Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management. The workshop focus was corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of materials performance in hostile environments, with special focus on relevance to the permanent disposal of nuclear waste at the Yucca Mountain Repository. The culmination of the workshop is this report that identifies both generic and Yucca Mountain Project-specific research opportunities in basic and applied topic areas. The research opportunities would be realized well after the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's initial construction-authorization licensing process. At the workshop, twenty-three invited scientists deliberated on basic and applied science opportunities in corrosion science relevant to long-term prediction of damage accumulation by corrosive processes that affect materials performance.

Cross-cultural differences in caregiving: The relevance to community care in India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohan Isaac

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Deinstitutionalization movement in the West brought about community care movement of mentally ill. Because of this, caring for the mentally ill became an important aspect. In resource-rich countries, caregiving is done by trained persons and in resource-poor country (like India, caregiving was done by untrained family members. Cross-cultural factors such as interdependence and greater family involvement in care have contributed for family members′ decision-making in caregiving in India. Nevertheless, cross-cultural similarities in caregiving are more striking than differences. Genuine caregiving of mentally ill will make significant difference to the recipient. In India, majority of the persons with mental illness are cared by family members. Family members lack knowledge about the nature of the illness, have little support and advice by the medical professional, and have difficulties in understanding illness-related behavior. Hence, in India, there is need to develop effective, user-friendly, educational modules in all languages; to increase the knowledge of the carers about the mental illness, and help in decreasing their distress.

Culturally Tailored Depression/Suicide Prevention in Latino Youth: Community Perspectives.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford-Paz, Rebecca E; Reinhard, Christine; Kuebbeler, Andrea; Contreras, Richard; Sánchez, Bernadette

2015-10-01

Latino adolescents are at elevated risk for depression and suicide compared to other ethnic groups. Project goals were to gain insight from community leaders about depression risk factors particular to Latino adolescents and generate innovative suggestions to improve cultural relevance of prevention interventions. This project utilized a CBPR approach to enhance cultural relevance, acceptability, and utility of the findings and subsequent program development. Two focus groups of youth and youth-involved Latino community leaders (n = 18) yielded three overarching themes crucial to a culturally tailored depression prevention intervention: (1) utilize a multipronged and sustainable intervention approach, (2) raise awareness about depression in culturally meaningful ways, and (3) promote Latino youth's social connection and cultural enrichment activities. Findings suggest that both adaptation of existing prevention programs and development of hybrid approaches may be necessary to reduce depression/suicide disparities for Latino youth. One such hybrid program informed by community stakeholders is described.

Culturally Aware Agent Communication

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Rehm, Matthias; Nakano, Yukiko; Koda, Tomoko

2012-01-01

Agent based interaction in the form of Embodied Conversational Agents (ECAs) has matured over the last decade and agents have become more and more sophisticated in terms of their verbal and nonverbal behavior like facial expressions or gestures. Having such “natural” communication channels...... available for expressing not only task-relevant but also socially and psychologically relevant information makes it necessary to take influences into account that are not readily implemented like emotions or cultural heuristics. These influences have a huge impact on the success of an interaction...

Copper minerals and archaeometallurgical materials from the Vinča culture sites of Belovode and Pločnik: Overview of the evidence and new data

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Radivojević Miljana

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The Vinča culture sites of Belovode and Pločnik have been attracting scholarly attention for decades now, due to numerous discoveries indicative of copper mineral and metal use in these settlements, which are confirmed as, currently, the earliest worldwide and very likely developed independently in Eurasia.1 The authors attempt to give an overview of already published data along with new results stemming from the recently completed doctoral research of the primary author.2 All materials related to copper mineral use and pyrometallurgical activities are presented through the concept of metallurgical chaîne opératoire, following the established sequence of operations,3 which is adjusted for this specific case study and divided into three categories: copper mineral processing, (smelting debris, and the making and working of finished metal objects. The qualitative overview of available data is therefore focused mainly around the material side of the studied samples and provides an insight into the technological choices for making copper mineral ornaments and copper metal artefacts in the sites of Belovode and Pločnik. Accordingly, it provides a model for the understanding of similar material assemblages that occur in other Vinča culture sites, or beyond. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br.177012: Society, spiritual and material culture and communications in the prehistory and early history of the Balkans

Cultural realities of being

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Cultural Realities of Being offers a dialogue between academic activity and everyday lives by providing an interface between several perspectives on human conduct. Very often, academic pursuits are arcane and obscure for ordinary people, this book will attempt to disentangle these dialogues, lift...... fresh light on the everyday events presented in the text. Cultural Realities of Being will be essential reading for those studying Cross Cultural Psychology as well as those interested in social representation and identity......., lifting everyday discourse and providing a forum for advancing discussion and dialogue. Nandita Chaudhary, S. Anandalakshmy and Jaan Valsiner bring together contributors from the field of cultural psychology to consider how people living within social groups, regardless of how liberal, are guided...... of cultural psychology. The book builds upon rich cultural traditions present in India, and precisely because of this focus, the book has much larger implications and relevance to the field and aims to orient the academic reader from around the world to viewing India and Indian society as a valuable area...

Perfusion based cell culture chips

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heiskanen, Arto; Emnéus, Jenny; Dufva, Martin

2010-01-01

Performing cell culture in miniaturized perfusion chambers gives possibilities to experiment with cells under near in vivo like conditions. In contrast to traditional batch cultures, miniaturized perfusion systems provide precise control of medium composition, long term unattended cultures...... and tissue like structuring of the cultures. However, as this chapter illustrates, many issues remain to be identified regarding perfusion cell culture such as design, material choice and how to use these systems before they will be widespread amongst biomedical researchers....

Nigerian cultural heritage: preservation, challenges and prospects ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Nigerian is a country endowed with a lot of cultural heritages sourced from its multicultural communities. Contemporary status of most Nigerian cultural heritages (both material and non-material) is best described as endangered. This paper derives from a functionalist perspective which descriptively presents a historical, ...

Cultural factors and the International Space Station.

Science.gov (United States)

Ritsher, Jennifer Boyd

2005-06-01

The American and Russian/Soviet space programs independently uncovered psychosocial risks inherent in long-duration space missions. Now that these two countries are working together on the International Space Station (ISS), American-Russian cultural differences pose an additional set of risk factors. These may echo cultural differences that have been observed in the general population of the two countries and in space analogue settings, but little is known about how relevant these are to the select population of space program personnel. The evidence for the existence of mission-relevant cultural differences is reviewed and includes cultural values, emotional expressivity, personal space norms, and personality characteristics. The review is focused primarily on Russia and the United States, but also includes other ISS partner countries. Cultural differences among space program personnel may have a wide range of effects. Moreover, culture-related strains may increase the probability of distress and impairment. Such factors could affect the individual and interpersonal functioning of both crewmembers and mission control personnel, whose performance is also critical for mission safety and success. Examples from the anecdotal and empirical literature are given to illustrate these points. The use of existing assessment strategies runs the risk of overlooking important early warning signs of behavioral health difficulties. By paying more attention to cultural differences and how they might be manifested, we are more likely to detect problems early while they are still mild and resolvable.

Cultural Memory Banking in Preservice Science Teacher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Handa, Vicente C.; Tippins, Deborah J.

2012-01-01

This study focused on the exemplification of cultural memory banking as an ethnographic tool to understand cultural practices relevant to science teaching and learning in a rural coastal village in a central island of the Philippine archipelago. Using the collaborative action ethnography as a research methodology, 10 prospective science teachers…

Cultural norm fulfillment, interpersonal belonging, or getting ahead? : A large-scale cross-cultural test of three perspectives on the function of self-esteem

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gebauer, J.E.; Sedikides, C.; Wagner, J.; Bleidorn, W.; Rentfrow, P.J.; Potter, J.; Gosling, S.D.

2015-01-01

What is the function of self-esteem? We classified relevant theoretical work into 3 perspectives. The cultural norm-fulfillment perspective regards self-esteem a result of adherence to cultural norms. The interpersonal-belonging perspective regards self-esteem as a sociometer of interpersonal

Corporate culture and the culture of the labor collective: the methodology of distinguishing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Y. Dmytrenko

2014-07-01

The author points out the content and characteristics of corporate culture and the culture of the staff. The culture of the staff in the Late Modern constellations as well as corporate culture has both similarities and differences. Their common features are due to the influence of mass culture, subculture of the information society, organizational culture. Their differences are primarily of historical and anthropological nature. Corporate culture is defined as the essence of material, spiritual and social values created by the employees of the companies in the course of their activities and which reflect the uniqueness and individuality of this company. The author grounds the statement about the importance of working out methodological criteria for their differentiation.

Japanese Quality Assurance System Regarding the Provision of Material Accounting Reports and the Safeguards Relevant Information to the IAEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goto, Y.; Namekawa, M.; Kumekawa, H.; Usui, A.; Sano, K.

2015-01-01

The provision of the safeguards relevant reports and information in accordance with the comprehensive safeguards agreement (CSA) and the additional protocol (AP) is the basis for the IAEA safeguards. The government of Japan (Japan Safeguards Office, JSGO) has believed that the correct reports contribute to effective and efficient safeguards therefore the domestic quality assurance system for the reporting to the IAEA was already established at the time of the accession of the CSA in 1977. It consists of Code 10 interpretation (including the seminars for operators in Japan), SSAC's checks for syntax error, code and internal consistency (computer based consistency check between facilities) and the discussion with the IAEA on the facilities' measurement system for bulk-handling facilities, which contributes to the more accurate reports from operators. This spirit has been maintained for the entry into force of the AP. For example, questions and amplification from the IAEA will be taken into account the review of the AP declaration before sending to the IAEA and the open source information such as news article and scientific literature in Japanese is collected and translated into English, and the translated information is provided to the IAEA as the supplementary information, which may contribute to broadening the IAEA information source and to their comprehensive evaluation. The other safeguards relevant information, such as the mail-box information for SNRI at LEU fuel fabrication plants, is also checked by the JSGO's QC software before posting. The software was developed by JSGO and it checks data format, batch IDs, birth/death date, shipper/receiver information and material description code. This paper explains the history of the development of the Japanese quality assurance system regarding the reports and the safeguards relevant information to the IAEA. (author)

Mass culture and manipulation with consciousness

OpenAIRE

Simukanova Guldariga Serikovna

2015-01-01

The article gives the definition of such concepts as mass society, mass culture and mass consciousness. Specific examples indicate positive and negative effects of globalization on national culture. Particular attention is paid to the interest of independent states for the conservation, protection and development of national values in the context of globalization. The conclusion about the relevance of stability provision and protection of the state raised by globalization has been drawn.

Cultural Contrasts--A Broader Concept

Science.gov (United States)

Hahn, Sidney L.

1975-01-01

This article describes various attempts at teaching and learning cross-cultural understanding through workshops; preparing instructional materials, including magazine advertisements, to be analyzed; and interdisciplinary lectures and programs. Aspects of German culture are emphasized. (CHK)

Aromatherapy Oils: Commodities, Materials, Essences

OpenAIRE

Barcan, Ruth

2014-01-01

This article examines the essential oils that are the central tools of aromatherapy and uses them as a case study for different approaches to material culture. It considers the conceptual and political implications of thinking of essential oils as, in turn, commodities, materials and essences. I argue that both cultural studies and aromatherapy have something to learn from each other. Classic materialist approaches might do well to focus more attention on the material properties and effects o...

Contributions of cultural services to the ecosystem services agenda

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Daniel, T.C.; Muhar, A.; Arnberger, A.; Aznar, O.; Boyd, J.W.; Chan, K.M.A.; Costanza, R.; Elmqvist, T.; Flint, C.G.; Gobster, P.H.; Grêt-Regamey, A.; Lave, R.; Muhar, S.; Penker, M.; Ribe, R.G.; Schauppenlehner, T.; Sikor, T.; Soloviy, I.; Spierenburg, M.J.; Taczanowska, K.; Tam, J.; Dunk, A. von der

2012-01-01

Cultural ecosystem services (ES) are consistently recognized but not yet adequately defined or integrated within the ES framework. A substantial body of models, methods, and data relevant to cultural services has been developed within the social and behavioral sciences before and outside of the ES

Is It Culture or Democracy? The Impact of Democracy and Culture on Happiness

Science.gov (United States)

Dorn, David; Fischer, Justina A. V.; Kirchgassner, Gebhard; Sousa-Poza, Alfonso

2007-01-01

We analyze the relation between democracy and perceived subjective well-being while controlling for other relevant determinants such as culture measured by languages. We conduct a cross-national analysis covering 28 countries using data from the 1998 International Social Survey Programme. Contrasting existing empirical evidence, we observe a…

KAJIAN SOSIOLOGI SASTRA DAN PENDIDIKAN KARAKTER DALAM NOVEL NUN PADA SEBUAH CERMIN KARYA AFIFAH AFRA SERTA RELEVANSINYA DENGAN MATERI AJAR DI SMA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kundharu Saddhono

2017-03-01

Full Text Available This study aimed to describe the content of the novel Nun: In A Mirror by Afifah Afra in terms of literature sociology. This novel also has a character education materials and relevance to the senior high school teaching material in class 12, 2013. This novel curriculum Nun Tells about the characters and the problems of his life as an actress Ketoprak and economic problems. This study is a qualitative research approach through content analysis of literature study sociology. The results of this study is that the novel Nun: In a Mirror phenomenon shows that close to the community. This novel also provide elements of art and local culture are able to enrich the cultural knowledge of the people, especially for students. Therefore, the content of the novel has the potential to be used as teaching material in high school class 12, according to KD 3.1 and 4.1.

Special Day Desserts: Importance in Terms of Cultural Tourism

OpenAIRE

SEVİMLİ, Yaşar

2017-01-01

Culture is generally described as all the items that a society has transferred to the next generation, which it creates materially and spiritually. Cultural transfer is possible with the existence of human life. For this reason, eating and drinking, which is physiological necessity, should be regarded the first of cultural element as a material item. Historically, societies have formed their own culinary culture as a result of eating and drinking. Culinary culture belonging to a society has b...

Taijin Kyofusho and Social Anxiety and their clinical relevance in Indonesia and Switzerland

OpenAIRE

Vriends, Noortje; Pfaltz, Monique C.; Novianti, Peppy; Hadiyono, Johana

2013-01-01

Background: Taijin Kyofusho (TKS) is an interpersonal fear to offend others and is defined by DSM-IV as a culturally bound syndrome that occurs in Japan and Korea. Recently, cases with TKS have also been recognized in other cultures. The present questionnaire study investigated self-report TKS symptoms and social anxiety symptoms, and their clinical relevance in an Indonesian and Swiss sample. It also investigated if self-construal is associated with TKS and social anxiety, and if self-constr...

Taijin Kyofusho and Social Anxiety and Their Clinical Relevance in Indonesia and Switzerland

OpenAIRE

Vriends, N.; Pfaltz, M. C.; Novianti, P.; Hadiyono, J.

2013-01-01

Background: Taijin Kyofusho Scale (TKS) is an interpersonal fear to offend others and is defined by Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) as a culturally bound syndrome that occurs in Japan and Korea. Recently, cases with TKS have also been recognized in other cultures. The present questionnaire study investigated self-report TKS symptoms and social anxiety symptoms, and their clinical relevance in an Indonesian and Swiss sample. It also investigated whether self-cons...

Taijin Kyofusho and Social Anxiety and their clinical relevance in Indonesia and Switzerland

OpenAIRE

Noortje eVriends; Noortje eVriends; Monique C Pfaltz; Peppy eNovianti; Johana eHadiyono

2013-01-01

Background: Taijin Kyofusho (TKS) is an interpersonal fear to offend others and is defined by DSM-IV as a culturally bound syndrome that occurs in Japan and Korea. Recently, cases with TKS have also been recognized in other cultures. The present questionnaire study investigated self-report TKS symptoms and social anxiety symptoms, and their clinical relevance in an Indonesian and Swiss sample. It also investigated if self-construal is associated with TKS and social anxiety, and if self-const...

The Cultural Content of Business Spanish Texts.

Science.gov (United States)

Grosse, Christine Uber; Uber, David

A study examined eight business Spanish textbooks for cultural content by looking at commonly appearing cultural topics and themes, presentation of cultural information, activities and techniques used to promote cultural understanding, and incorporation of authentic materials. The texts were evenly divided among beginning, intermediate, and…

Child welfare employee recruitment and retention: an organizational culture perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Agbényiga, DeBrenna LaFa

2009-01-01

Drawing data from an organizational culture study, this cross-sectional study investigates the effect of organizational culture on child welfare employee recruitment and retention (N=92). Findings from quantitative analyses of the organizational culture inventory suggest that constructive culture style in child welfare organizations, especially humanistic-encouraging and self-actualizing culture norms, highly predict recruitment through employees' perception of "fit" and satisfaction as a member of the organization. Limitations, future research, and relevant implications are discussed.

Cultures of choice: towards a sociology of choice as a cultural phenomenon.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwarz, Ori

2017-09-07

The article explores different ways to conceptualize the relationship between choice and culture. These two notions are often constructed as opposites: while sociologies of modernization (such as Giddens') portray a shift from cultural traditions to culturally disembedded choice, dispositional sociologies (such as Bourdieu's) uncover cultural determination as the hidden truth behind apparent choice. However, choice may be real and cultural simultaneously. Culture moulds choice not only by inculcating dispositions or shaping repertoires of alternatives, but also by offering culturally specific choice practices, ways of choosing embedded in meaning, normativity, and materiality; and by shaping attributions of choice in everyday life. By bringing together insights from rival schools, I portray an outline for a comparative cultural sociology of choice, and demonstrate its purchase while discussing the digitalization of choice; and cultural logics that shape choice attribution in ways opposing neoliberal trends. © London School of Economics and Political Science 2017.

Improved enrichment culture technique for methane-oxidizing bacteria from marine ecosystems: the effect of adhesion material and gas composition.

Science.gov (United States)

Vekeman, Bram; Dumolin, Charles; De Vos, Paul; Heylen, Kim

2017-02-01

Cultivation of microbial representatives of specific functional guilds from environmental samples depends largely on the suitability of the applied growth conditions. Especially the cultivation of marine methanotrophs has received little attention, resulting in only a limited number of ex situ cultures available. In this study we investigated the effect of adhesion material and headspace composition on the methane oxidation activity in methanotrophic enrichments obtained from marine sediment. Addition of sterilized natural sediment or alternatively the addition of acid-washed silicon dioxide significantly increased methane oxidation. This positive effect was attributed to bacterial adhesion on the particles via extracellular compounds, with a minimum amount of particles required for effect. As a result, the particles were immobilized, thus creating a stratified environment in which a limited diffusive gas gradients could build up and various microniches were formed. Such diffusive gas gradient might necessitate high headspace concentrations of CH 4 and CO 2 for sufficient concentrations to reach the methane-oxidizing bacteria in the enrichment culture technique. Therefore, high concentrations of methane and carbon dioxide, in addition to the addition of adhesion material, were tested and indeed further stimulated methane oxidation. Use of adhesion material in combination with high concentrations of methane and carbon dioxide might thus facilitate the cultivation and subsequent enrichment of environmentally important members of this functional guild. The exact mechanism of the observed positive effects on methane oxidation and the differential effect on methanotrophic diversity still needs to be explored.

Efficient generation of patient-matched malignant and normal primary cell cultures from clear cell renal cell carcinoma patients: clinically relevant models for research and personalized medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lobo, Nazleen C.; Gedye, Craig; Apostoli, Anthony J.; Brown, Kevin R.; Paterson, Joshua; Stickle, Natalie; Robinette, Michael; Fleshner, Neil; Hamilton, Robert J.; Kulkarni, Girish; Zlotta, Alexandre; Evans, Andrew; Finelli, Antonio; Moffat, Jason; Jewett, Michael A. S.; Ailles, Laurie

2016-01-01

to establish primary cultures of ccRCC cells and matched normal kidney epithelial cells from almost every patient provides a resource for future development of novel therapies and personalized medicine for ccRCC patients. The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12885-016-2539-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Broadening the examination of socio-cultural constructs relevant to African American colorectal cancer screening

Science.gov (United States)

Sanders Thompson, V. L.; Harris, J.; Clark, E.M.; Purnell, J.; Deshpande, A.D.

2014-01-01

The importance of socio-cultural constructs as influences on cancer attitudes and screening has been established in the literature. This paper reports on efforts to explore alternatives to constructs previously associated with African American cancer screening, but with low acceptance among community members or incomplete measurement (empowerment and collectivism) and develop a measure for a recently identified construct of interest (privacy). We report preliminary psychometric data on these socio-cultural scales and their associations with cancer attitudes. African Americans (N=1021), 50 to 75 years of age participated in this study. Participants were identified via a listed sample and completed a telephone survey administered via call center. Socio-cultural attitudes were assessed using items identified through computerized database searches, reviewed by advisory panels, edited and tested using cognitive response strategies. Cancer screening pros and cons, cancer worry, perceived cancer risk, colorectal cancer screening subjective norms, and perceived self-efficacy for colorectal cancer screening were also assessed. Confirmatory factor analyses and multivariate analyses were conducted to provide support for the validity of the constructs and to understand the associations among the selected socio-cultural constructs (empowerment, collectivism and empowerment) and cancer beliefs and attitudes (CRC perceived benefits and barriers, perceived risks, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control/self-efficacy). Consistent with the literature, the factor analytic model (RMSEA for the model was 0.062; 90% CI: 0.060-0.065) provided support for the empowerment, collectivism and privacy constructs. The modified collectivism and privacy scales had acceptable reliability. The privacy scale demonstrated the strongest associations with measures of cancer beliefs and attitudes. The implication of the findings and need for further scale development activities is discussed

Culture and social class.

Science.gov (United States)

Miyamoto, Yuri

2017-12-01

A large body of research in Western cultures has demonstrated the psychological and health effects of social class. This review outlines a cultural psychological approach to social stratification by comparing psychological and health manifestations of social class across Western and East Asian cultures. These comparisons suggest that cultural meaning systems shape how people make meaning and respond to material/structural conditions associated with social class, thereby leading to culturally divergent manifestations of social class. Specifically, unlike their counterparts in Western cultures, individuals of high social class in East Asian cultures tend to show high conformity and other-orientated psychological attributes. In addition, cultures differ in how social class impacts health (i.e. on which bases, through which pathways, and to what extent). Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Effect of Text Materials with Relevant Language, Illustrations and Content Upon the Reading Achievement and Reading Preference (Attitude) of Black Primary and Intermediate Inner-City Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, Gloria W.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of text materials with relevant language, illustrations, and content upon the reading achievement and reading preference (attitude) of black primary and intermediate grade inner-city students. The subjects for the study were 330 black students enrolled in three schools in a large urban area. A…

Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage in South Africa: The Development of Relevant Management Strategies in the Historical Maritime Context of the Southern Tip of Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Sharfman, Jonathan; Boshoff, Jaco; Parthesius, Robert

2012-10-01

South Africans have a long association with water. It has provided a source of food, a medium for trade and a catalyst for migration and development. The country's geographical position as a crossroads of maritime trade between Europe and the East means that its history is inextricably linked to the history of the rest of the world. The result is a multi-faceted representation of sites, objects and mythologies related to water and maritime heritage that reflect not only local historical and social development, but global cultural change as well. Given the importance of South Africa's underwater cultural heritage (UCH), managers have grappled with management principles, ethics and theoretical models in an effort to produce and enforce heritage legislation that is relevant and effective. This paper outlines South Africa's maritime context from 1.5 million years ago until the present, summarises legislative and mitigation developments over the past half century and provides details of current trends in maritime archaeology and UCH management at the southern tip of Africa. Training programmes and public awareness are keys to this strategy to bring UCH and maritime archaeology into the mainstream and counter treasure hunting and looting of this rich, friable resource.

History, modernity, material and spiritual culture of Lemko, Boyko and Transcarpathian Rusyns in the problem field of interdisciplinary researches

OpenAIRE

Пронь, Тетяна Михайлівна

2016-01-01

The publication represents the interdisciplinary research professionals of social science and literature of Poland, Ukraine, Slovakia, the United States and Canada in history, modernity, material and spiritual culture Lemko, Boyko and Transcarpathian Rusyns disclose at the IV International scientific conference (23-24 September 2011 , Slupsk, Poland) and in the new collective proceedings of the Institute of Political Science Zelenogorsk University and the Institute of History Pomeranian Acade...

The use of material culture to establish the ethnic identity of victims in genocide investigations: a validation study from the American Southwest*.