Digital Commons Network^™

Medical Decision Making By And On Behalf Of Adolescents: Reconsidering First Principles, B. Jessie Hill

Faculty Publications

The school nurse cannot give your teenage daughter an aspirin for her headache without your permission, but that same daughter can get an abortion without even informing you. Or can she? The obligations on medical personnel providing care to adolescents are famously indeterminate.

Two common-law presumptions have long lurked in the background, but, far from elucidating matters, those presumptions have contributed to the state of confusion. The first presumption is that, absent any special rule, children lack the legal authority to consent to medical treatment on their own. A parallel and corresponding presumption is that parents have a legal entitlement …

What Is The Meaning Of Health? Constitutional Implications Of Defining 'Medical Necessity' And 'Essential Health Benefits' Under The Affordable Care Act, B. Jessie Hill

Faculty Publications

One consequence of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is that government will come to play a more extensive role in healthcare decision-making by individuals and their providers. The ACA does not directly regulate access to health services, but by means of a system of funding, mandates, and penalties, it essentially requires many employers to provide, and most individuals to carry, a certain minimum level of health insurance. Governmental decisions about which medical services qualify as medically necessary and appropriate may take on a new and greater importance, because government officials will be required to decide what sorts of procedures must …

Breaking The Cycle Of ‘Unequal Treatment’ With Health Care Reform: Acknowledging And Addressing The Continuation Of Racial Bias, Ruqaiijah Yearby

Faculty Publications

Since the Civil War access to health care in the United States has been racially unequal. This racially unequal access to health care remains even after the passage of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ("Title VI") and the election of an African-American President. Both of these events held the promise of equality, yet the promise has never been fulfilled. Now, many hail the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act ("ACA") as the biggest governmental step in equalizing access to health care because it has the potential to increase minority access to health …

The Twelve-Year-Old Girl's Lawsuit That Changed America: The Continuing Impact Of Now V. Little League Baseball, Inc. At 40, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

In 1972, Little League's national office forced 12-year-old Maria Pepe off her Hoboken (N.J.) team because "[g]irls are not eligible." The New Jersey Division on Civil Rights sustained her gender discrimination claim in 1973, and the courts upheld the administrative decision a year later.

National reaction to Maria Pepe's courageous insistence on gender equity helped sustain the evolution in gender roles that had accelerated since the Women's Movement of the 1960s. Her landmark legal action also likely influenced the Supreme Court's gradual movement toward intermediate scrutiny of gender discrimination claims; the 1975 federal regulations that assured Title IX of the …

Access To Consumer Remedies In The Squeaky Wheel System, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

This article explores the “Squeaky Wheel System” (“SWS”) in business-to-consumer (“B2C”) contexts, referring to merchants’ reservation of purchase remedies and other contract benefits for only the relatively few “squeaky wheel” consumers who have the requisite information and resources to persistently seek assistance. The article uncovers how this system fosters contractual discrimination and hinders consumers’ awareness and access with respect to contract remedies. It also adds empirical insights from my recent e-survey, and offers suggestions for using the internet to empower consumers of all economic and status levels with efficient and accessible means for learning about their purchase rights and asserting …

Important Information Literacy Standards For Life And Health Sciences, Betsy S. Hopkins

Faculty Publications

Information literacy in the life and health sciences is a dynamic field, with challenges, opportunities, and rewards for the successful practitioner. This chapter will describe the big picture of information literacy in these disciplines, list relevant performance indicators from the ALA/ACRL/STS Task Force on Information Literacy for Science and Technology [STS-TFILST] (2006) Information Literacy Standards for Science and Technology (hereafter Standards), and give some practical advice for life and health sciences librarians and librarians with instructional responsibilities in those disciplines. The focus is on undergraduates at research universities, although many principles and strategies will apply to other circumstances.

The Implications Of Arminius’ Understanding Of The Intellect On Knowledge Exchange Strategies In The Mission Of The Sda Church, Terry Dwain Robertson

Faculty Publications

Arminius differed from the Calvinism he debated in the causal role of information in bringing a person to salvation. This accounts for the distinction between an Adventist Philosophy of Education, following Arminius, in which the outcome of education is to lead the student to a saving relationship with God, a bottom-up eternal salvation perspective. A Calvinist Philosophy of Education, on the other hand, suggests that the outcome of education is to change society, a top-down, temporal perspective. Therefore, it is necessary for the Adventist Church to assume a more intentional role in providing quality information sources to emerging institutions training …

The Rise Of The New Apostolic Reformation And Its Implication For Adventist Eschatology, Trevor O'Reggio

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Reception Of Ellen G. White's Trinitarian Statements By Her Contemporaries, 1897-1915, Denis Kaiser

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

[Book Review Of] Calvinismus In Seiner Vielfalt: Die Bedeutung Des Reformators Für Die Evangelische Christenheit, By Reiner Zimmermann, Denis Kaiser

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

The Stories They Tell: An International Focus Group Study Identifying Families’ Communication About Alcohol, Marie Haverfield, J. Theiss

Faculty Publications

This study sought to explore how alcoholism is experienced and communicated in the context of the family. Drawing on Fitzpatrick and Ritchie’s (1994) Family Communication Patterns Theory, this study compared features of conversation and conformity in family interactions about alcoholism in German and American culture. This cross-cultural comparison provides insight to the cultural extremes of alcohol related behavior and how such behaviors may or may not affect communication in the family. 

A Proposal For A Feasible, First-Step, Legislative Agenda For Divorce Reform, Alan J. Hawkins

Faculty Publications

American sociologist Andrew Cherlin argues that the institutional boundaries of marriage have shrunk; marriage no longer effectively governs intimate associations before marriage, or structures "proper" pathways to the desired goal of healthy, stable marriage. Personal development and individual emotions are at the core of modern marriage, rather than societal expectations and religious and civil norms. Accordingly, marriages are held together now by internal, psychological forces rather than external, societal forces, and these bonds are substantially weaker. As a result, divorce is common, with about half ending within twenty years; second marriages have even higher rates of disruption. While the divorce …

Using Automatic Speech Recognition Technology With Elicited Oral Response Testing, Troy L. Cox, Randall S. Davies

Faculty Publications

This study examined the use of automatic speech recognition (ASR) scored elicited oral response (EOR) tests to assess the speaking ability of English language learners. It also examined the relationship between ASR-scored EOR and other language proficiency measures and the ability of the ASR to rate speakers without bias to gender or native language. To that end, 179 subjects were given an ASR-scored EOR test with 60 items, followed by an oral proficiency interview (OPI) type assessment and a battery of other language tests. Findings suggest that ASR-scored EOR results could be used alone to predict speaking ability in specific …

Forgiveness And Relationship Satisfaction: Mediating Mechanisms, Scott R. Braithwaite, Edward A. Selby, Frank D. Fincham

Faculty Publications

Although the ability to forgive transgressions has been linked to overall relationship satisfaction, the mechanisms that mediate this association have not been established. We propose that the tendency to forgive a romantic partner increases relationship satisfaction via increased relational effort and decreased negative conflict. In two studies, we used structural equations modeling to examine these variables as potential mechanisms that drive this association. In Study 1 (N = 523) and Study 2 (N = 446) we found that these variables significantly mediated the association between forgiveness and relationship satisfaction. The findings were robust when examined concurrently and longitudinally, across multiple …

Retrotransposons As A Major Source Of Epigenetic Variations In The Mammalian Genome, Muhammad B. Ekram, Keunsoo Kang, Hana Kim, Joomyeong Kim

Faculty Publications

Transcription of retrotransposons is usually repressed by DNA methylation, but a few elements, such as intracisternal A-particles (IAPs) associated with the Agouti and Axin-fused loci, partially escape this repression mechanism. The levels of this repression are also variable among individuals with an identical genome sequence, generating epigenetically different states of loci or epialleles. In the current study, we tested the existence of additional retrotransposon-derived epialleles in the mouse genome. Using a series of bioinformatics approaches, 143 candidate epialleles were first identified from the mouse genome based on their promoter activity and association with active histone modification marks. Detailed analyses suggest …

Contextual Chemosensory Urine Signaling In An African Cichlid Fish, Karen P. Maruska, Russell D. Fernald

Faculty Publications

Chemosensory signaling is crucial for communication in many fish species, but little is known about how signalers modulate chemical output in response to sensory information and social context. Here, we tested the hypothesis that dominant male African cichlid fish (Astatotilapia burtoni) use urine signals during social interactions, and demonstrate that this signaling depends on social context (reproductive; territorial) and on available sensory information (visual cues; full interaction). We injected males with dye to visualize urine pulses and exposed them to full sensory information or visual cues alone of four types: (1) dominant male; (2) gravid (reproductively receptive) females; (3) mouth-brooding …

The Oxford Handbook Of Slavery In The Americas, Andrew Sluyter

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Amino Acid Differences In Glycoproteins B (Gb), C (Gc), H (Gh) And L(Gl) Are Associated With Enhanced Herpes Simplex Virus Type-1 (Mckrae) Entry Via The Paired Immunoglobulin-Like Type-2 Receptor Α, Sona Chowdhury, Misagh Naderi, Vladimir N. Chouljenko, Jason D. Walker, Konstantin G. Kousoulas

Faculty Publications

© 2012 Chowdhury et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. Background: Herpes simplex virus type-1 (HSV-1) enters into cells via membrane fusion of the viral envelope with plasma or endosomal membranes mediated by viral glycoproteins. HSV-1 virions attach to cell surfaces by binding of viral glycoproteins gC, gD and gB to specific cellular receptors. Here we show that the human ocular and highly neurovirulent HSV-1 strain McKrae enters substantially more efficiently into cells via the gB-specific human paired immunoglobulin-like type-2 receptor-a (hPILR-α). Comparison of the predicted amino acid sequences between HSV-1(F) and McKrae strains indicates that amino acid changes within gB, …

Next-Generation Sequencing Reveals Phylogeographic Structure And A Species Tree For Recent Bird Divergences, John E. Mccormack, James M. Maley, Sarah M. Hird, Elizabeth P. Derryberry, Gary R. Graves, Robb T. Brumfield

Faculty Publications

Next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies are revolutionizing many biological disciplines but have been slow to take root in phylogeography. This is partly due to the difficulty of using NGS to sequence orthologous DNA fragments for many individuals at low cost. We explore cases of recent divergence in four phylogenetically diverse avian systems using a method for quick and cost-effective generation of primary DNA sequence data using pyrosequencing. NGS data were processed using an analytical pipeline that reduces many reads into two called alleles per locus per individual. Using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) mined from the loci, we detected population differentiation …

Player Safety In Youth Sports: Sportsmanship And Respect As An Injury Prevention Strategy, Douglas E. Abrams

Faculty Publications

Preventing avoidable injury is the first obligation of adults who conduct and supervise youth sports events. The law plays only a limited role because lawsuits occur only after the injury. As the behavior of many parents and coaches has deteriorated, national youth sports governing bodies have produced materials that cast adults as role models and urge them to teach and practice sportsmanship and respect. These bodies should now recast these useful citizenship-based adult-education materials to stress also that adherence to sportsmanship and respect helps prevent injuries that can occur when adults acting irresponsibly neutralize national safety standards. Protective equipment is …

The Revolution In Family Law Dispute Resolution, John M. Lande

Faculty Publications

This article surveys a wide range of procedures that divorcing parties now use, including self-representation. Lawyers sometimes provide “unbundled” legal services to help parties who want to divide responsibilities for legal tasks between themselves and their lawyers. Parties often use mediation, arbitration, and private judging. Norms for lawyers’ professional roles have emphasized the importance of cooperation and some lawyers offer “planned early negotiation” processes such as Collaborative and Cooperative Law. Family courts engage in a wide range of activities beyond traditional litigation and adjudication. Many courts manage or mandate parent education and services related to domestic violence. Courts regularly appoint …

Building Bridges To Consumer Remedies In International Econflicts, Amy J. Schmitz

Faculty Publications

Consumer purchases over the Internet (“ePurchases”) are on the rise, thereby causing an increase in conflicts regarding these purchases (“eConflicts”). Furthermore, these conflicts are increasingly international as consumers purchase goods over the Internet not knowing or caring where the seller is physically located. The problem is that if the purchase goes awry, consumers are often left without recourse due to the futility of pursing international litigation and the textured law and policy regarding enforcement of private dispute resolution procedures, namely arbitration. The United States strictly enforces arbitration contracts in business-to-consumer (“B2C”) relationships, while other countries have refused or limited enforcement …

Not A Free Press Court?, Lyrissa Lidsky

Faculty Publications

The last decade has been tumultuous for print and broadcast media. Daily newspaper circulation continues to fall precipitously, magazines struggle to survive, and network television audiences keep shrinking. In the meanwhile, cable news is prospering, mobile devices are contributing to increased news consumption, and many new media outlets appear to be thriving. Despite the dynamism in the media industry, the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts has taken up relatively few First Amendment cases directly involving the media. The Court has addressed a number of important free speech cases since 2005, but thus far the only Roberts Court decisions …

Of Backyard Chickens And Front Yard Gardens: The Conflict Between Local Governments And Locavores, Sarah B. Schindler

Faculty Publications

Locavores aim to source their food locally. Many locavores are also concerned more broadly with living sustainably and decreasing reliance on industrial agriculture. As more people have joined the locavore movement, including many who reside in urban and suburban areas, conflict has emerged between the locavores’ desires to use their private property to produce food — for personal use and for sale — and municipal zoning ordinances that seek to separate agriculture from residential uses.

In this article, I consider the evolution of this conflict and its implications for our systems of land use, local government, and environmental law. Specifically, …

Verification Of Tg-61 Dose For Synchrotron-Produced Monochromatic X-Ray Beams Using Fluence-Normalized Mcnp5 Calculations, Thomas A.D. Brown, Kenneth R. Hogstrom, Diane Alvarez, Kenneth L. Matthews, Kyungmin Ham

Faculty Publications

Purpose: Ion chamber dosimetry is being used to calibrate dose for cell irradiations designed to investigate photoactivated Auger electron therapy at the Louisiana State University Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD) synchrotron facility. This study performed a dosimetry intercomparison for synchrotron-produced monochromatic x-ray beams at 25 and 35 keV. Ion chamber depth-dose measurements in a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) phantom were compared with the product of MCNP5 Monte Carlo calculations of dose per fluence and measured incident fluence. Methods: Monochromatic beams of 25 and 35 keV were generated on the tomography beamline at CAMD. A cylindrical, air-equivalent ion chamber was used …

Dose-Response Curve Of Ebt, Ebt2, And Ebt3 Radiochromic Films To Synchrotron-Produced Monochromatic X-Ray Beams, Thomas A.D. Brown, Kenneth R. Hogstrom, Diane Alvarez, Kenneth L. Matthews, Kyungmin Ham, Joseph P. Dugas

Faculty Publications

Purpose: This work investigates the dose-response curves of GAFCHROMIC ® EBT, EBT2, and EBT3 radiochromic films using synchrotron-produced monochromatic x-ray beams. EBT2 film is being utilized for dose verification in photoactivated Auger electron therapy at the Louisiana State University Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD) synchrotron facility. Methods: Monochromatic beams of 25, 30, and 35 keV were generated on the tomography beamline at CAMD. Ion chamber depth-dose measurements were used to determine the dose delivered to films irradiated at depths from 0.7 to 8.5 cm in a 10 × 10 × 10-cm3 polymethylmethacrylate phantom. AAPM TG-61 protocol was applied …

Verification Of Tg-61 Dose For Synchrotron-Produced Monochromatic X-Ray Beams Using Fluence-Normalized Mcnp5 Calculations, Thomas A.D. Brown, Kenneth R. Hogstrom, Diane Alvarez, Kenneth L. Matthews, Kyungmin Ham

Faculty Publications

Purpose: Ion chamber dosimetry is being used to calibrate dose for cell irradiations designed to investigate photoactivated Auger electron therapy at the Louisiana State University Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD) synchrotron facility. This study performed a dosimetry intercomparison for synchrotron-produced monochromatic x-ray beams at 25 and 35 keV. Ion chamber depth-dose measurements in a polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) phantom were compared with the product of MCNP5 Monte Carlo calculations of dose per fluence and measured incident fluence. Methods: Monochromatic beams of 25 and 35 keV were generated on the tomography beamline at CAMD. A cylindrical, air-equivalent ion chamber was used …

Dose-Response Curve Of Ebt, Ebt2, And Ebt3 Radiochromic Films To Synchrotron-Produced Monochromatic X-Ray Beams, Thomas A.D. Brown, Kenneth R. Hogstrom, Diane Alvarez, Kenneth L. Matthews, Kyungmin Ham, Joseph P. Dugas

Faculty Publications

Purpose: This work investigates the dose-response curves of GAFCHROMIC ® EBT, EBT2, and EBT3 radiochromic films using synchrotron-produced monochromatic x-ray beams. EBT2 film is being utilized for dose verification in photoactivated Auger electron therapy at the Louisiana State University Center for Advanced Microstructures and Devices (CAMD) synchrotron facility. Methods: Monochromatic beams of 25, 30, and 35 keV were generated on the tomography beamline at CAMD. Ion chamber depth-dose measurements were used to determine the dose delivered to films irradiated at depths from 0.7 to 8.5 cm in a 10 × 10 × 10-cm3 polymethylmethacrylate phantom. AAPM TG-61 protocol was applied …

Gaba Is Excitatory In Adult Vasopressinergic Neuroendocrine Cells, Juhee Haam, Ion R. Popescu, Linda A. Morton, Katalin C. Halmos, Ryoichi Teruyama, Yoichi Ueta, Jeffrey G. Tasker

Faculty Publications

Neuronal excitability in the adult brain is controlled by a balance between synaptic excitation and inhibition mediated by glutamate and GABA, respectively. While generally inhibitory in the adult brain, GABAA receptor activation is excitatory under certain conditions in which the GABA reversal potential is shifted positive due to intracellular Cl-accumulation, such as during early postnatal development and brain injury. However, the conditions under which GABA is excitatory are generally either transitory or pathological. Here, we reveal GABAergic synaptic inputs to be uniformly excitatory in vasopressin (VP)-secreting magnocellular neurons in the adult hypothalamus under normal conditions. The GABA reversal potential (EGABA) …

Subordinate Male Cichlids Retain Reproductive Competence During Social Suppression, Jacqueline M. Kustan, Karen P. Maruska, Russell D. Fernald

Faculty Publications

Subordinate males, which are excluded from reproduction often save energy by reducing their investment in sperm production. However, if their position in a dominance hierarchy changes suddenly they should also rapidly attain fertilization capability. Here, we asked how social suppression and ascension to dominance influences sperm quality, spermatogenesis and reproductive competence in the cichlid Astatotilapia burtoni, where reproduction is tightly coupled to social status. Dominant territorial (T) males are reproductively active while subordinate non-territorial (NT) males are suppressed, but given the opportunity, NT males will perform dominance behaviours within minutes and attain T male testes size within days. Using the …