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As global engineering education projects and programs are initiated, too often social outcomes and long-term impacts are assumed to be positive. This is particularly true for sustainable development projects, which often have an inherent assumption of positive transformation through engineering solutions. We argue that a focus on technical deliverables absent prioritization of how and with whom our partnerships happen is less likely to actually lead to our desired social outcomes and longer-term impacts. We draw from the fields of community-based global learning, global development, and program evaluation to provide tools and insights for university-based engineering teams and off-campus partners to improve their long-term outcomes and impact. In particular, we draw on the fair-trade-learning (FTL) framework and core principles. We suggest adaptations to the FTL framework for engineering education, namely (i) broadening the definition of "community" to explicitly incorporate multiple types of off-campus partners, including for-profit enterprises; and (ii) more clearly distinguishing between outputs (e.g. deliverables), outcomes, and longer-term social impacts. Our analysis suggests integration of the FTL core principles of partner/community voice and direction and dual purposes increases the likelihood of achieving the desired social impact.

Abstract Background The way physical activity (PA) and sedentary behaviour (SB) independently and interactively modify the age‐related decline in physical capacity remains poorly understood. This cross‐sectional study investigated the independent and interactive associations of PA and SB with physical function and performance throughout the adult life course. Methods Data from 499 community‐dwelling adults (63% female) aged 20–92 years, involved in the INSPIRE Human Translational Cohort, were used in this cross‐sectional study. Daily time spent on moderate‐to‐vigorous PA (MVPA, min/day) and SB (h/day) was measured with activPAL triaxial accelerometers. Physical function and performance were assessed through the measurement of the 4‐m usual gait speed (m/s), handgrip strength (kg), lower‐limb strength (isokinetic knee extension torque, N·m), estimated lower‐limb power (five‐time chair‐rise test performance, s) and cardiorespiratory fitness (V̇O2max, mL/kg/min). Confounder‐adjusted multiple linear and curvilinear regressions were performed to investigate how MVPA, SB and their interactions were associated with the physical outcomes (all square root‐transformed except gait speed) throughout the adulthood spectrum. Results Interaction analyses revealed that the combination of higher levels of MVPA with lower levels of SB favourably reshaped the negative relationship between handgrip strength and age (age2 × SB × MVPA: B = −7E‐08, SE = 3E‐08, P

This article draws on existing literature, a large, multi-institutional dataset, and several case studies to explore two empirical questions: Do students of color (SOC) differ from white students in statistically significant ways in respect to the global learning goal of cultural humility? And what interactive effects do students and faculty from diverse backgrounds, diversity and inclusion advocacy, and diverse community contexts have on one another? We draw on existing literature and quantitative data to demonstrate that SOC tend to bring strengths to global learning experiences. We share several case studies to demonstrate how those strengths may lead to specific alliances regarding justice work in host communities, complicating any conception of students as visitors unattached to local justice struggles. Throughout the article, we draw on current literature and practice to present several questions at the intersections of education abroad, diversity, equity, inclusion, community-based global learning, and critical global citizenship.

Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by progressive muscle weakness. Adenine nucleotide translocator 1 (ANT1), the only 4q35 gene involved in mitochondrial function, is strongly expressed in FSHD skeletal muscle biopsies. However, its role in FSHD is unclear. In this study, we evaluated ANT1 overexpression effects in primary myoblasts from healthy controls and during Xenopus laevis organogenesis. We also compared ANT1 overexpression effects with the phenotype of FSHD muscle cells and biopsies.Here, we report that the ANT1 overexpression-induced phenotype presents some similarities with FSHD muscle cells and biopsies. ANT1-overexpressing muscle cells showed disorganized morphology, altered cytoskeletal arrangement, enhanced mitochondrial respiration/glycolysis, ROS production, oxidative stress, mitochondrial fragmentation and ultrastructure alteration, as observed in FSHD muscle cells. ANT1 overexpression in Xenopus laevis embryos affected skeletal muscle development, impaired skeletal muscle, altered mitochondrial ultrastructure and led to oxidative stress as observed in FSHD muscle biopsies. Moreover, ANT1 overexpression in X. laevis embryos affected heart structure and mitochondrial ultrastructure leading to cardiac arrhythmia, as described in some patients with FSHD.Overall our data suggest that ANT1 could contribute to mitochondria dysfunction and oxidative stress in FSHD muscle cells by modifying their bioenergetic profile associated with ROS production. Such interplay between energy metabolism and ROS production in FSHD will be of significant interest for future prospects.

This study explored the perspectives of community organization representatives and community residents about a partnership between a College of Engineering and a rural municipality in Nicaragua. The intended community outcomes described by university participants during interviews corresponded with tangible project outcomes, such as access to clean drinking water and electricity as well as improved access to healthcare services. However, the community participants also described the following community outcomes: confianza, sense of pride, and consciencia. Comments about using the community as a laboratory illuminate how categorizing outcomes as positive or negative represents an oversimplification and draw attention to the importance of community participation in various ways including data analysis. Findings are analyzed using Fraser's framework for social justice and provide a model for enacting global service-learning partnerships with the potential to advance social justice.

Objective: To explore the long-term safety and efficacy of canine allogeneic mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) administered intra-articularly as single or repeated injections in appendicular joints of dogs affected by moderate to severe refractory osteoarthritis.Study Design: 22 pet dogs were recruited into a non-randomized, open and monocentric study initially administering one cellular injection. A second injection was offered after 6 months to owners if the first injection did not produce expected results.Materials and Methods: Anti-inflammatory treatment (if prescribed) was discontinued at last one week before the onset of treatment. Each injection consisted of at least 10 million viable neonatal allogeneic mesenchymal stromal cells obtained from fetal adnexa. Medical data was collected from veterinary clinical evaluations of joints up to 6 months post-injection and owner's assessment of their dog's mobility and well-being followed for a further 2 years when possible.Results: Mild, immediate self-limiting inflammatory joint reactions were observed in 5/22 joints after the first injection, and in almost all dogs having a subsequent injection. No other MSC-related adverse medical events were reported, neither during the 6 months follow up visits, nor during the long-term (2-years) safety follow up. Veterinary clinical evaluation showed a significant and durable clinical improvement (up to 6 months) following MSC administration. Eight dogs (11 joints) were re-injected 6 months apart, sustaining clinical benefits up to 1 year. Owner's global satisfaction reached 75% at 2 years post-treatmentConclusion: Our data suggest that a single or repeated intra-articular administration of neonatal MSC in dogs with moderate to severe OA is a safe procedure and confer clinical benefits over a 24-month period. When humoral response against MSC is investigated by flow cytometry, a positive mild and transient signal was detected in only one dog from the studied cohort, this dog having had a positive clinical outcome.

Three rescue excavations conducted in the years between 2007 and 2012, covering a total surface of 17 790 m2, and a campaign of geophysical prospection conducted in 2014 (total surface investigated: 20 000 m2) allowed to investigate extensively the archaeological remains of a Roman villa at the locality Entre Deux Cours, municipality of Laquenexy (Moselle, Lorraine, France). While the rescue excavations focused principally on the remains of the pars rustica, the geophysical prospection made it possible to investigate the maximal extension of the villa and to obtain first results concerning the features and architectural organization of the pars urbana. The architectural plan of the villa is well-fitting into the established typology of the villae of northeastern Gaule: the villa of Laquenexy belongs to the type of the villae “à pavillons multiples alignés” (villae of axial organisation, characterized by opposite rows of annexe buildings surrounding the central courtyard of the pars rustica). The agricultural part of the villa complex is characterized by five buildings constructed on stone foundations, but there have been also some wooden, probably timber-framed buildings, and, furthermore, the excavation revealed several postholes, hearths and ditches. These remains are characterizing this extended villa and agricultural exploitation, covering a total surface of about 4 hectares. Several features (circular oven constructions with straight fireying pit and corn drying kiln are indicating the importance of cereal production within the agricultural economy of the Gallo-Roman site. Archaeobotanical analysis has revealed valuable information concerning the agricultural activities and cereal production. The archaeological finds unearthed during the different excavations (iron tools, small metal objects, stone-made objects) have been studied extensively. This focus of the archaeological research enables us to characterize the find assemblage. Furthermore, a paleo-metallurgical study of slags has delivered remarkable results concerning activities like blacksmithing and metalworking. Stratigraphic information confronted with the results of the find analysis (ceramics, coins…) and two radiocarbon dates enable us to fix the chronological time frame of the Gallo-Roman occupation between the 1st and the 4th c. AD.

The pig spine is widely used as a large animal model for preclinical research in human medicine to test new spinal implants and surgical procedures. Among them, pedicle screw is one of the most common method of fixation of those implants. However, the pedicle of the porcine vertebra is not as well defined and not as large as the pedicle of the human vertebra. Therefore, the position of the screw should be adapted to the pig and not merely transposed based on the literature on humans. The purpose of this study is to determine the characteristics of the optimum implantation corridors for pedicle screws in the thoracolumbar spine of piglets of different ages using computed tomography (CT) and to determine the size and length of these corridors in pigs of different ages. CT scans from five groups of age: 6, 10, 14, 18, and 26 weeks were reviewed. For each thoracolumbar vertebrae, the pedicle width, pedicle axis length, and the pedicle angle was measured for the left and right pedicle. A total of 326 thoracic vertebrae and 126 lumbar vertebrae were included in the study. Pedicles are statistically larger but not longer for the lumbar vertebrae. An important variation of the pedicle angle is observed along the spine. In all pigs, an abrupt modification of the pedicle angle between T10 and T11 was observed, which corresponds to the level of the anticlinal vertebra which is the vertebra for which the spinous process is nearly perpendicular to the vertebral body. In conclusion, this study provides a quantitative database of pedicle screw implantation corridors in pigs of different ages. When using pedicle screws in experimental studies in pigs, these results should be considered for selecting the most suitable implants for the study but also to ensure a correct and safer screw position. Improving study procedures may limit postoperative complications and pain, thereby limiting the use of live animals.

This article is based on some findings in a larger project concerned with Deaf settlement in Maine. Maine is the site of one of the oldest and largest extended Deaf families in the United States: the Lovejoy-Jellison-Berry family (Jones 1996). However, in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, many extended Deaf families lived in Maine. Examining the 1850 census, the first government census to identify all of the household members who were "Deaf and Dumb," will give some idea of the number. This article recounts intermarriage and family life in a nineteenth century extended Deaf family in Maine: the Rowes and the Curtises. It draws on letters between Nancy Rowe, George Curtis, and members of their families, letters that have fortunately been preserved. (Contains 5 figures, 2 tables and 2 notes.)

The natural restoration of soils polluted by aromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and m- and p-xylene (BTEX) may be accelerated by inoculation of specific biodegraders (bioaugmentation). Bioaugmentation mainly involves introducing bacteria that deploy their metabolic properties and adaptation potential to survive and propagate in the contaminated environment by degrading the pollutant. In order to better understand the adaptive response of cells during a transition to contaminated material, we analyzed here the genome and short-term (1 h) changes in genome-wide gene expression of the BTEX-degrading bacterium Pseudomonas veronii 1YdBTEX2 in non-sterile soil and liquid medium, both in presence or absence of toluene. We obtained a gapless genome sequence of P. veronii 1YdBTEX2 covering three individual replicons with a total size of 8 Mb, two of which are largely unrelated to current known bacterial replicons. One-hour exposure to toluene, both in soil and liquid, triggered massive transcription (up to 208-fold induction) of multiple gene clusters, such as toluene degradation pathway(s), chemotaxis and toluene efflux pumps. This clearly underlines their key role in the adaptive response to toluene. In comparison to liquid medium, cells in soil drastically changed expression of genes involved in membrane functioning (e.g., lipid composition, lipid metabolism, cell fatty acid synthesis), osmotic stress response (e.g., polyamine or trehalose synthesis, uptake of potassium) and putrescine metabolism, highlighting the immediate response mechanisms of P. veronii 1YdBTEX2 for successful establishment in polluted soil.

The Deaf world in the United States has major roots in a triangle of New England Deaf communities that flourished in the early nineteenth century. Hypothesizes that the social fabric of these communities differed as a reflection of language and marriage practices that were underpinned. To evaluate the hypothesis, local records and newspapers, genealogies, and other publications are used to illuminate the Henniker Deaf community in New Hampshire. (Author/VWL)

The article in the Journal of Small Animal Practice discusses a case of intravesical urinary bladder duplication in a 2-year-old male Staffordshire bull terrier presenting with chronic dysuria. The dog underwent a CT scan which revealed a tubular structure inside the urinary bladder, connected to the bladder wall and the prostatic urethra. Surgical removal of the abnormal structure led to complete resolution of clinical signs, with histological examination confirming urinary bladder duplication. This rare congenital anomaly was unique in that the duplicated bladder was located inside the main bladder and connected to the prostatic urethra through an accessory urethra. [Extracted from the article]

According to the established historiography, the generic label “film noir” was used in France in 1946 to refer to a series of Hollywood crime fictions produced in the 1940s and 1950s. Since then, the term has been exclusively associated with Hollywood pictures and “film noir” has been considered a specifically American form. In the 1990s, North American and British scholars started to re-evaluate film noir and show that this genre was not exclusive to American cinema: in fact, Charles O’Brien revealed that the label “film noir” had first been used in France before the war to describe a group of French films that are more or less the same ones we now identify as “poetic realism”; he then went on to refer to a new tendency in post-World-War-II Hollywood cinema. However, his work has, for the most part, gone unrecognized in France, where film noir is still seen as purely American. In the face of the persistence of this distorded vision and the progressive sinking into oblivion of the French “noir” tradition, it is necessary to replace the term in its original context, that of 1930s France. What did the term “film noir” mean for film reviewers of the time? To what extent was it used to describe a certain kind of transnational criminal fiction? Can the forgotten history of this famous term’s French origins enlighten us on film noir’s identity and international dimension?

Abstract Background Fibromyalgia (FM) is a heterogeneous syndrome and its classification into subgroups calls for broad-based discussion. FM subgrouping, which aims to adapt treatment according to different subgroups, relies in part, on psychological and cognitive dysfunctions. Since motor control of gait is closely related to cognitive function, we hypothesized that gait markers could be of interest in the identification of FM patients' subgroups. This controlled study aimed at characterizing gait disorders in FM, and subgrouping FM patients according to gait markers such as stride frequency (SF), stride regularity (SR), and cranio-caudal power (CCP) which measures kinesia. Methods A multicentre, observational open trial enrolled patients with primary FM (44.1 ± 8.1 y), and matched controls (44.1 ± 7.3 y). Outcome measurements and gait analyses were available for 52 pairs. A 3-step statistical analysis was carried out. A preliminary single blind analysis using k-means cluster was performed as an initial validation of gait markers. Then in order to quantify FM patients according to psychometric and gait variables an open descriptive analysis comparing patients and controls were made, and correlations between gait variables and main outcomes were calculated. Finally using cluster analysis, we described subgroups for each gait variable and looked for significant differences in self-reported assessments. Results SF was the most discriminating gait variable (73% of patients and controls). SF, SR, and CCP were different between patients and controls. There was a non-significant association between SF, FIQ and physical components from Short-Form 36 (p = 0.06). SR was correlated to FIQ (p = 0.01) and catastrophizing (p = 0.05) while CCP was correlated to pain (p = 0.01). The SF cluster identified 3 subgroups with a particular one characterized by normal SF, low pain, high activity and hyperkinesia. The SR cluster identified 2 distinct subgroups: the one with a reduced SR was distinguished by high FIQ, poor coping and altered affective status. Conclusion Gait analysis may provide additional information in the identification of subgroups among fibromyalgia patients. Gait analysis provided relevant information about physical and cognitive status, and pain behavior. Further studies are needed to better understand gait analysis implications in FM.

In this article I analyze postcolonial theory as a critical framework to improve understanding of global service-learning (GSL) partnerships. Although research on student learning outcomes from participation in GSL has grown dramatically over the past decade, scholarship on community outcomes and perspectives in GSL continues to lag. Just as participation in GSL does not necessarily result in global learning outcomes for students without intentional programming, I argue that GSL research on community perspectives does not necessarily result in ethical community-university partnerships without interrogation of who is involved and how that research happens. In this article, I pull back the curtain to describe my positionality (who) and the methods utilized (how)--including the cautionary tales and challenges encountered--to provide an example of a participatory orientation to GSL research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses the benefits of rubber flooring for college fitness areas and what to look for when buying it. Money-saving tips when selecting rubber flooring are discussed. (GR)