Digital Commons Network^™

Developing Literacy Through Play, Alissa Mielonen, Wendy Paterson

Journal of Inquiry and Action in Education

Researchers agree that language and literacy derive from the first days of a child’s life. Children become literate members in society by listening and interacting with the people that surround them. This study examines how children develop literacy through play by looking closely at the benefits of uninterrupted play and how it encourages language development. The development of language skills, including reading and writing competence, through social interaction was observed to see how literacy development occurs within a home environment. This study also offers successful strategies to use during play that will enhance reading and writing skills within young children.

Arrow's Theorem And The Exclusive Shareholder Franchise, Grant M. Hayden, Matthew T. Bodie

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

In this essay, we contest one of the main arguments for restricting corporate board voting to shareholders. In justifying the limitation of the franchise to shareholders, scholars have repeatedly turned to social choice theory—specifically, Arrow’s theorem—to justify the exclusive shareholder franchise. Citing to the theorem, corporate law commentators have argued that lumping different groups of stakeholders together into the electorate would result in a lack of consensus and, ultimately, the lack of coherence that attends intransitive social choices, perhaps even leading the corporation to self-destruct. We contend that this argument is misguided. First, we argue that scholars have greatly overestimated …

Mainstreaming Ec In Africa: The Ec Facilitative Re-Granting Program—Final Narrative Report, Jill Keesbury, Wilson Liambila, Youmane Niang Faye, Victoria Rumbold

Reproductive Health

Since 2006, ECafrique has been working to build the capacity of African nongovernmental organizations to design, implement, and evaluate successful emergency contraception (EC) mainstreaming projects. Through a process of “facilitative regranting,” ECafrique annually awarded nine grants ranging from $25,000 to $30,000 to organizations from across Anglophone and Francophone Africa. The program’s objectives were to increase access to EC across Africa by supporting projects intended to introduce, scale up, or mainstream the method, and build the capacity of African NGOs to design, implement, and evaluate successful EC mainstreaming projects. Each grantee participated in an international proposal development workshop and received individualized …

Being (Becoming Empowered In Nursing Growth): Training Guide For Nursing Students On Sexuality And Gender, Maryann Washington

Reproductive Health

This training guide was produced as part of a Health and Population Innovation Fellowship administered by the Population Council, India, and aims to help the faculty of nursing students to deliver comprehensive sexuality education effectively and efficiently, to help trainee nurses see the whole picture of sexuality in its matrix of safety, pleasure, reproduction, illness, and health. The package is called ‘BEING’ (acronym for Becoming Empowered in Nursing Growth) as it is assumed that, if delivered well, it could empower nurses’ growth to address these issues.

The Refentse Model For Post-Rape Care: Strengthening Sexual Assault Care And Hiv Post-Exposure Prophylaxis In A District Hospital In Rural South Africa, Julia C. Kim, Ian Askew, Lufuno Muvhango, Ntabozuko Dwane, Tanya Abramsky, Stephen Jan, Ennica Ntlemo, Jane Chege, Charlotte Watts

Reproductive Health

The Refentse study aimed to develop a nurse-driven, post-rape care model that could be integrated into existing reproductive health/HIV services within a rural South African hospital, and to evaluate the impact of this model on the quality of care delivered. Following the intervention, there were significant improvements in the quality of clinical history and examination, and the provision of pregnancy testing, emergency contraception, STI treatment, HIV counseling and testing, post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), trauma counseling, and referrals. The report concludes that it is possible to improve sexual assault services including PEP within a rural South African hospital at modest cost, using …

Nebraska Biomechanics Core Facilty 2008 Annual Report, Issue 7, Nebraska Biomechanics Core Facility

Biomechanics Annual Report

April 2008 - March 2009

This issue features Announcements, Featured News, Nonlinear Workshop, Projects, Collaborations, Visitors, Awards, Publications, and Support.

Assessment Of Training Needs For Early/Primary Private School Teachers, Regina Flora

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

The problem of this study was to determine the training needs of staff at Mercy Crossing Christian Academy to project pertinent courses for professional development.

The Effects Of The Integrated Learning Environment On Student Performance At The Navy And Marine Corps Intelligence Training Center, Maria Fox

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of the Integrated Learning Environment curriculum at the Navy and Marine Corps Intelligence Training Center.

Consumer Behavior And Eco-Friendly Fashion Apparel, Christine Montero

OTS Master's Level Projects & Papers

The problem of this study was to determine consumer behavior toward eco-friendly fashion lines in order to increase sales.

Apopo Annual Report 2009, Apopo

Global CWD Repository

In 2009, APOPO has made tremendous progress in reaching its mission to become the Centre of Excellence in detection rats technology and achieving social impact for underprivileged communities and people in Africa.

Implementation of the strategic plan and transformation process, which was started in 2008, has improved both APOPO’s internal structure and operational outputs. These changes have strengthened the management team and fostered the formation of strategic partnerships that will provide the basis to further enhance the impact of APOPO’s life-saving technology and facilitate the sustainable growth of the organization.

However, the most tangible results of this year can be …

Successional Change In Phosphorus Stoichiometry Explains The Inverse Relationship Between Herbivory And Lupin Density On Mount St. Helens, Jennifer L. Apple, Michael Wink, Shannon E. Wills, John G. Bishop

Biology

Background: The average nitrogen-to-phosphorus ratio (N:P) of insect herbivores is less than that of leaves, suggesting that P may mediate plant-insect interactions more often than appreciated. We investigated whether succession-related heterogeneity in N and P stoichiometry influences herbivore performance on N-fixing lupin (Lupinus lepidus) colonizing primary successional volcanic surfaces, where the abundances of several specialist lepidopteran herbivores are inversely related to lupin density and are known to alter lupin colonization dynamics. We examined larval performance in response to leaf nutritional characteristics using gelechiid and pyralid leaf-tiers, and a noctuid leaf-cutter. Methodology/Principal Findings: We conducted four studies. First, growth of larvae …

A Density Functional Study Of The Relative Stability Of Intermediates In A Mcmurry Coupling Reaction, Andrew Jozef Livingston

Senior Honors Theses and Projects

Reductive cyclization via McMurry coupling is a common way to form pyrrolizidine rings. In this work we investigate the titanium-catalyzed McMurry coupling reaction leading to a pyrrolizidine alkaloid using density functional methods. Specifically, we compare the relative energies of all possible pinacolate intermediates at the UB3LYP/6-31G level of theory. The most stable intermediate is found to be the one resulting from C-O bond insertion in the ester group. The McMurry product is not predicted to form.

Highlights From International Meetings: American Academy Of Neurology Aan 61st Annual Meeting, Seattle, April 25th - May 2, 2009, Kenneth W. Imerman, J. Douglas Miles, Ingrid Park, Araya Puwanant, Robert B. Daroff, Shireen Qureshi

Neurosciences

No abstract provided.

Ultrastructural Evaluation Of The Effects Of Cinnamon On The Nervus Ischiadicus In Diabetic Rats, Selen Bahceci, Mehmet U. Aluclu, Naime Canoruc, Mithat Bahceci, Murat Akkus, Sedat Baran, Deniz Gokalp, Mehmet E. Akbalik

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of oral cinnamon supplementation on the nervus ischiadicus at the electron microscopical level in rats. METHODS: This study was performed between 2004-2006 in Dicle University School of Medicine, Diyarbakir, Turkey in 15 adult Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats were divided into 3 groups; control (C) (n=5), diabetic without cinnamon (D) (n=5), and diabetic with cinnamon (D-C) (n=5). Diabetes was induced with intraperitoneal alloxan administration. All diabetic rats were treated with human insulin. All rats were fed with standard pellet chow. The D-C group rats were fed with standard pellet chow plus Cinnamomum cassia at the dose of …

Protective Effect Of Yulangsan Polysaccharide On Focal Cerebral Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury In Rats And Its Underlying Mechanism, Jian Chen, Ren-Bin Huang

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To study the focal cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury induced by a middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO), and the effects of Yulangsan (YLS) polysaccharide on this injury. METHODS: This study took place in the Pharmacology Research Laboratory at Guangxi Medical University, China, between March and May 2007. Two hundred and forty rats were randomly divided into I/R group, sham-operated group, high-, medium-, and low-dose of YLS polysaccharide groups, and nimodipine (Nim) group. The animals were intragastrically administered with drugs for 7 days. An operation was performed to induce an MCAO model in the rats. Reperfusion was started after 2 hours …

Electron Microscopic Study Of The Myelinated Nerve Fibres And The Perineurial Cell Basement Membrane In The Diabetic Human Peripheral Nerves, Wagih G. El-Barrany, Raid M. Hamdy, Abdulmonem A. Al-Hayani, Sawsan M. Jalalah

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To study the quantitative and ultrastructural changes in myelinated nerve fibers and the basement membranes of the perineurial cells in diabetic nerves. METHODS: The study was performed at the Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 2003 to 2005. Human sural nerves were obtained from 15 lower limbs and 5 diabetic nerve biopsies. The total mean and density of myelinated nerve fibers per fascicle were calculated, with density of microtubules and mitochondria in the axoplasm. The number of the perineurial cell basement membrane layers was counted, and thickness of the basement membrane was …

The Metal Chelators, Trientine And Citrate, Inhibit The Development Of Cardiac Pathology In The Zucker Diabetic Rat, John W. Baynes, David B. Murray

Faculty Publications

Purpose. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of dietary supplementation with the metal chelators, trientine or citric acid, in preventing the development of cardiomyopathy in the Zucker diabetic rat.

Hypothesis. We hypothesized that dietary chelators would attenuate metal-catalyzed oxidative stress and damage in tissues and protect against pathological changes in ventricular structure and function in type II diabetes.

Methods. Animals (10 weeks old) included lean control (LC, fa/+), untreated Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF, fa/fa), and ZDF rats treated with either trientine (triethylenetetramine) or citrate at 20 mg/d in drinking water, starting …

P Wave Duration Changes And Dispersion. A Risk Factor Or Autonomic Dysfunction In Stroke?, Abdulkadir Kocer, Irfan Barutcu, Selcuk Atakay, Burcu Ozdemirli, Levent Gul, Osman Karakaya

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the P wave duration andP wave dispersion in stroke patients, and to compare those with healthy subjects. METHODS: We measured maximum and minimum P wave durations, and dispersion on the 12-lead surface ECG in 67 consecutive patients with first ever-acute ischemic stroke and 58 controls at the neurology wards of the Medical School, Duzce, Turkey, between May 2005 and October 2006. The subjects were not included if there were a history of atrial fibrillation, cardiac problem, and using drugs related to cardiovascular diseases or psychiatric problems. RESULTS: P wave durations and dispersion were similar in stroke patients …

Epilepsy In Patients 60 Years And Above, Yahya M. Mousali, Tahir H. Obeid, Hussein A. Al-Gahtani, Mansour A. Al-Janadi, Ahmed A. Attar, Hassnah O. Dammas

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical characteristics and etiology of epilepsy at age 60 years and above in the Western Region of Saudi Arabia (KSA), as epilepsy is now considered to be the third most frequent neurological problem in the elderly population. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients 60 years and above at King Khalid National Guard Hospital, Jeddah, KSA between 1999 and 2007 with new onset of seizures and diagnosed as suffering from epilepsy. We excluded patients 60 and above with provoked seizures. RESULTS: Seventy-five patients of late onset epilepsy were studied. Partial seizure (focal) was found …

Ethylmalonic Encephalopathy. Another Patient From Kuwait, Essam A. Ismail, Tarek M. Seoudi, Eman A. Morsi, Ahmad H. Ahmad

Neurosciences

We report a Kuwaiti girl with ethylmalonic encephalopathy. She presented at the age of 4 months with chronic mucoid diarrhea and delayed psychomotor development, and at 6 months she developed myoclonic epilepsy. She was found to have central hypotonia with pyramidal tract signs, acrocyanosis, and petechiae. Plasma lactate level was elevated. Blood spot and urine for organic acids results were consistent with the diagnosis of ethylmalonic encephalopathy. Cerebral MRI showed basal ganglia and white matter changes. Gene mutation study revealed homozygous deletion of exon 4 of theETHE1 gene. The patient died at 14 months after extensive bronchopneumonia. Our objective is …

Anti-Inflammatory Activity Of Silymarin In Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis. A Comparative Study With Piroxicam And Meloxicam, Saad A. Hussain, Nizar A. Jassim, Intesar T. Numan, Ihab I. Al-Khalifa, Talal A. Abdullah

Saudi Medical Journal

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the anti-inflammatory effect of Silymarin in patients with knee osteoarthritis OA in comparison with piroxicam and meloxicam. METHODS: A double-blind clinical trial was performed at the Department of Rheumatology, Baghdad Teaching Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq during the period from October 2004 to September 2005, in which 220 patients 79 males and 141 females with painful knee osteoarthritis were randomized into 5 groups, treated with either silymarin 300mg/day, piroxicam 20mg/day, meloxicam 15mg, or a combination of silymarin with piroxicam or meloxicam. Serum levels of interleukin-1 alpha, interleukin-8, and the complement proteins C3 and C4 were assessed at zero time, …

The Effects Of Acupuncture On Rats With Brain Ischemia-Reperfusion, Ahmet Kavakli, Evren Kose, Nusret Akpolat, Mustafa Sarsilmaz

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the damage of brain ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) caused by occlusion of the middle cerebral artery (MCA), and the effects of acupuncture on this damage. METHODS: This investigation took place in the Experimental Research Unit of Firat University, Elazig, Turkey in January-February 2007. For this aim, 14 rats were divided into 2 groups: I/R (control) and I/R+acupuncture (experiment). In the I/R group, the MCA was occluded for 60 minutes, after this reperfusion was applied. In the I/R+acupuncture group, dry needle acupuncture was applied after reperfusion for 10 days. At the end of the experiment, all rats were sacrificed. The …

Gradual Increase In Neuronal Density Of Rats’ Lateral Geniculate Nucleus From Anterior To Posterior, Mohammad Abdolrahmani, Seyed B. Jameie

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To clarify the organization of the rat lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN). METHODS: A total of 50 male Sprague-Dawley albino rats of 2 months of age were used in this study carried out in the Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran in Spring-Fall 2007. The rats were cardially perfused under deep ether anesthesia, first with a small amount of saline then with a fixative solution containing 4% paraformaldehyde and 0.2% glutaraldehyde in 0.1M phosphate buffer pH 7.2. The brains were removed, processed, and then 50 um coronal sections of the LGN were cut and divided into 3 groups: anterior, …

Depression And Neurological Disorders, Medhat M. Bassiony

Neurosciences

Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder in neurological disorders such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, stroke, and Parkinsons disease. It is associated with reduction of quality of life, functional impairment, and higher mortality. The diagnosis of depression in neurological disorders is difficult because of the overlapping symptoms. Neurological disorders are usually associated with sleep and appetite disturbances, fatigue, apathy, and lack of concentration, which is similar to those of depression. The etiology of depression with neurological disorders is unknown, but the interaction between biological, psychosocial, and neuropathological factors could be responsible for it. Few controlled trials have been carried out …

Teratogenic Effects Of Gabapentin On The Skeletal System Of Balb/C Mice Fetuses, Mohammad Afshar, Mohammad M. Hassanzadeh-Taheri, Seyed-Adel Moallem, Azadeh Tamizi, Mohammad J. Golalipour

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of gabapentin (GBP) administration on mice fetuses. METHODS: This study was carried out in Birjand University of Medical Sciences during 2008. Thirty Balb/c pregnant mice were divided randomly into 3 groups: 2 experimental groups that received 25 mg/kg (I) and 50 mg/kg (II) of GBP intraperitoneally for the first 15 days of pregnancy, and a control group that received normal saline. External observations of day 18 fetuses and skeleton double staining were performed. RESULTS: Both experimental groups showed similar disorders that can be categorized as the following: 1) decrease of fetal body weight and increase …

Adiponectin And Infarction Size In Subjects With And Without Cerebrovascular Disease, Anila Jaleel, Saima Aqil, Farhan Jaleel, Hakim R. Ahmad, Adnan Zuberi, Ejaz Alam

Neurosciences

OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether hypo-adiponectinemia is present in ischemic stroke patients. METHODS: This comparative study was carried out in the Biochemistry Department, Ziauddin University, Karachi, Pakistan in 2008. In this study, plasma adiponectin concentration was measured by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in subjects with and without ischemic cerebrovascular disease (CVD). RESULTS: A total of 80 subjects were studied (40 patients with CVD, and 40 without CVD as controls). The mean plasma level of adiponectin of the 40 patients with ischemic CVD was significantly lower than that of the 40 subjects without CVD (4.36+/-0.21 ug/mL versus 6.97+/-0.241 ug/mL; p=0.000). Decreasing concentrations …

Isolation, Detection And Genomic Differentiation Of Escherichia Coli From Aquatic Environments In Kelantan, Malaysia / Rathi Devi Athimurthy, Rathi Devi Athimurthy

Student Works (2000-2009)

No abstract provided.

The Effectiveness Of Computer Assisted Language Learning : A Case Study / Rajeswari Raji., Rajeswari Raji

Student Works (2000-2009)

No abstract provided.

Biological Activities And Chemical Constituents Of Chromolaena Odorata (L.) King & Robinson / Faridah Hj Jasnie, Farnidah Haji Jasnie

Student Works (2000-2009)

Chloromolaena odorata was screened for its phytochemical properties and pharmacological activities. Phytochemical screening of C. odorata indicates the presence of terpenoid, flavonoid and alkaloid. GCMS analysis of the leaf extract of C. odorata shows four major compounds which are cyclohexane, germacrene, hexadecoic acid and caryophyllene. While, HPLC analysis has identify five peaks; quercetin-4 methyl ether, aromadendrin-4’-methyl ether, taxifolin-7-methyl ether, taxifolin-4’-methyl ether and quercetin-7-methyl ether, kaempferol-4’-methyl ether and eridicytol-7, 4’-dimehyl ether, quercetin-7,4’-dimethyl ether. By using the column chromatography, three compounds were isolated; 5,7-dihydroxy-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)chromen-4-one; 3,5-dihydroxy-2-(3-hydroxy-4-methoxy-phenyl)-7-methoxy-chromen-4-one and of 2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)-3,5-dihydroxy-7-methoxy-chromen-4-one. The toxicity evaluation and dermal irritation of the aqueous leaf extract of C. odorata …

Beyond The Kyoto Protocol :|Bmalaysia's Response To Climate Change / Harkiranpal Singh Karpal Singh., Harkiranpal Singh Karpal Singh

Student Works (2000-2009)

In the last century, the world has experienced a drastic change in its climate. In order to prevent this situation from becoming worse, the international community has come up with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in 1992. As a result of this, the Kyoto Protocol came about in 1998. However, the United States of America which is the world's largest carbon emitter has yet to ratify this Protocol