Asthma, a huge burden on millions of individuals worldwide, is one of the most important public health issues in many countries. As genetic and   environmental factors interact, asthma may be programmed very early in life, perhaps even in utero. The aim of this thesis was to assess the impact of gestational age, cord blood immunoglobulin E (IgE), a family history of asthma, migration, and pertussis immunization in early life on the development of asthma in child and adult populations. As a proxy for asthma disease, dispensed asthma medication was used as the main outcome variable based on data from the Swedish Prescribed Drug  Register. Data from other national registers were used to control for  confounders. Three of our studies were based on national cohorts, and one on a local birth cohort that was initiated in 1974–75. Gestational age had an inverse dose-response relationship with dispensed asthma medication in 6– to 19-year-olds. Odds ratios for dispensed asthma medication increased with degree of prematurity compared with children born in term. Furthermore, asthma medication was more likely to be dispensed among children and adolescents born early term after 37–38 weeks’ gestation than among those at the same age who were born in term. Elevated cord blood IgE and a family history of asthma in infancy were associated with a two- to threefold increased likelihood of dispensed asthma medication and self-reported allergen-induced respiratory symptoms at the age of 32–34 years, but the predictive power was poor. Age at migration had an inverse dose-response relationship with dispensed asthma medication at the age of 6–25 years in adoptees and foreign-born children with foreign-born parents. International adoptees and children born in Sweden to foreign-born parents had three- to fourfold higher rates of asthma medication compared with foreign-born children who were raised by their foreign-born birth parents. No association was found between pertussis immunization in early infancy and dispensed asthma medication in 15-year-olds. The type of vaccine or vaccine schedule did not affect the outcome. Fetal life is a vulnerable period. This thesis strengthens the evidence that every week of gestation is important for lung maturation. Cord blood IgE, however, did not predict the risk of asthma in adults. Furthermore, the study of migrating populations demonstrated that environmental changes at any age during childhood may affect the risk of asthma. Another, important public health message from this thesis is that vaccination against pertussis in early childhood can be considered safe with respect to the long-term development of asthma.

This report proposes to create an historic preservation plan for the rehabilitation of 1108 Olive Street, a National Register Eligible Building, to remain a residence. The plan calls for rehabilitating the house while maintaining its architectural integrity in an economical manner. In addition to revealing the architectural importance of the house, 1108 Olive’s evaluation serves as a guideline for maintaining its architectural significance and historic fabric by informing the development of the rehabilitation plan. This plan assesses the building’s condition and includes recommendations for maintenance and repair of the existing structure based on the criteria found in the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation. Divided into two primary sections, the first part of the project provides cultural context, documentation, and an outline of current conditions for 1108 Olive, while the second section presents the rehabilitation plan. Findings are presented through both written and visual aids, including photographs, measured drawings, and maps. A condition assessment and rehabilitation plan based on the research are presented through written documentation. / text

Significance and integrity are key concepts for archaeology, and how they are judged is determined by an archaeologist’s perceptions of disturbance. This thesis explicitly considers these concepts and how they relate to evolutionary theory and National Register eligibility. A site with known disturbance was chosen to determine whether it could be judged significant assuming that there was no disturbance. Controlled surface collection, magnetometer survey, excavation and landowner interview data were used to determine whether what made the site significant had been lost due to disturbance. The results indicate that the co-mingling of occupations in the plow zone normally would have prevented the site from being determined eligible. However, because of the clusters of Gulf Formational-period diagnostics and intact Early Archaic midden, the site was determined significant. If future work were to be performed, occupation-based work focusing on the artifact clusters and the Archaic midden is recommended.

Music is an essential piece of the culture of south Louisiana. Three genres -- Cajun, Zydeco, and Swamp Pop -- grew up in this region. The genres developed as separate cultures, primarily Cajun and Creole, developed and blended before entering a period of cultural assimilation in the early twentieth century. The music, and the social dancing that accompanies it, took place at weekly gatherings in rural residences in the eighteenth century. Commercial dance halls began to appear in the state around 1900 and have evolved throughout the century. The evolution of dance halls and their use follows a cultural evolution from relative isolation to assimilation and eventually cultural awareness and promotion as tourism blossomed in the state. Despite their significant place in the region's history, dance halls are not yet recognized in any official capacity, including the National Register of Historic Places. The Center for Louisiana Studies is collecting information about the extant and demolished buildings to advocate for preservation of dance hall culture and extant buildings. I am contributing to this advocacy effort with a National Register of Historic Places Multiple-Property Documentation Form for extant historic dance halls. The form will discuss the historic contexts of Cajun, Zydeco, and Swamp Pop music and establish typical and variable characteristics, both physical and associative, for dance hall buildings. Registration requirements based on significance and integrity will establish criteria for eligibility of extant buildings for the National Register of Historic Places. / text

On the 16 of June 2009 the South African government put into force the National Register for Sexual Offenders in an attempt to alleviate the problem of sexual crime. The aim of this dissertation was thus, to engage in a comparative study on how the National Register for Sexual Offenders will operate in South Africa compared to a similarly implemented register in the UK, with specific references being made to the US. The dissertation also sought to ask the question of whether the implementation of the register could be the solution to protecting children in South Africa. After, an analysis into sexual offender registers abroad, the findings revealed that registers are not proactive, a crime must have already occurred and an offender must be listed on the register, before the register can be of any preventative value. Furthermore, they are expensive to maintain they are punitive and impede on any form of rehabilitation or reintegration of offenders into society. As to whether the register could make South African communities safer, further research showed that the conviction rate of child sex abuse is very low as only one in nine children ever report such abuse and only 4% of these cases will result in conviction. Therefore because the provisions of the register require an offender to be convicted before they are registered, the consequence is that very few sex offenders will be listed on the register. Moreover the provisions of the register are narrow and seek to prevent registered offenders from being employed in positions where they may have access to children. Such an approach fails to recognise that in South Africa the majority of sexual offences involving children occur within the family environment and not at the work place. The conclusion of the research is that the National Register for Sex Offenders is not the solution to protecting children in South Africa and it was recommended that the South African government should look into a more immediate, long term and preventative solution to curbing sexual crime. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Private Law / unrestricted

Throughout history, the direct or indirect choice of preservation has resulted in the successful incorporation of tangible products of the human past into modern cultural environments. Within the current American historic preservation system, "significance" is used as a delimiter for identifying historic properties that are determined beneficial to the heritage of the American people. As defined under U.S. law, however, "significance" is attributed only to places and objects whose importance is limited within an historical or scientific framework. This thesis proposes that the significance of historic properties transcends the boundaries of these limited frameworks of importance, and demonstrates that the public benefits of preservation are maximized when history is reified through the modern-use of these places and objects as cultural resources for the current and future generations of the American people.

This study has presented a comprehensive overview of the properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places from Pennsylvania and Indiana. The project systematically examines what types of properties are listed on the National Register from each state. The evidence, which was compiled into an electronic database, suggests that property listings did not follow larger social trends. However, the evidence did show that certain events, such as federal legislation and federal tax credits, led to a larger number of properties to be listed at certain times. The research also proved that the State Historic Preservation Offices of Pennsylvania and Indiana have many similarities in the way properties are nominated. / Department of Architecture

The focus of this study is on the South Fork of the Teton River Canyon Settlement, a previously unevaluated historic settlement associated with the history of the Métis in Montana. The site is located along the South Fork of the Teton River, approximately thirty miles west of Choteau, Montana, and was once occupied by Métis families fleeing persecution for alleged involvement in the Northwest Rebellion of 1885. The study establishes precedent for the site's inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places and addresses the potential for the site's designation as a Traditional Cultural Property, despite the challenges inherent in such an approach.This study contributes to both existing documentation of the Métis narrative across the state of Montana and to the ongoing discussion among historic preservation professionals concerning the viability and possible revision of National Register Bulletin 38: Guidelines for Evaluating and Documenting Traditional Cultural Properties.

National Register Bulletin 38: Guidelines for Evaluating and Documenting Traditional Cultural Properties was first published in 1990 as a response to the Secretary of the Interior's report Cultural Conservation. Submitted to Congress and the President in 1983, Cultural Conservation "recommended in general that traditional cultural resources...be more systematically addressed in implementation of the National Historic Preservation Act and other historic preservation authorities." Bulletin 38 defined Traditional Cultural Properties (TCPs), as those "whose significance is derived from the role the property plays in a community's historically rooted beliefs, customs, and practices." Bulletin 38 provides guidance in determining whether properties of traditional cultural significance are potentially eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). This thesis investigates whether or not the NRHP Criteria, and guidelines set forth in Bulletin 38, provide adequate protection for non-tribal TCPs under the NHPA. An outline of applicable federal regulations and procedures for identification and evaluation of historic properties provides a framework for evaluating TCPs. Examination of four cases studies, Mt. Graham, Bighorn Medicine Wheel/Medicine Mountain, the Dune Shacks of the Peaked Hill Bars, and Gladesmen Folk Culture, illustrates several fundamental difficulties in the treatment of TCPs. First, emphasis on professionalization within the fields of Cultural Resource Management and Historic Preservation has discouraged consideration of community perspectives in the identification and evaluation of both tribal and non-tribal historic sites. Second, divergent viewpoints between federal agencies, Native American tribes, professional practitioners, and individual communities prevent meaningful consultation and cooperation. Third, the existing standards and guidelines for identification and evaluation of TCPs are vague, and subject to variable interpretation. Finally, a conflict of interest exists between agencies and communities when considering properties located on federally owned land. In order for TCPs, especially non-tribal TCP's, to receive adequate attention and protection agencies and professionals need to change how they implement and interpret the procedures and guidelines set forth in the NHPA. This thesis concludes with suggestions for improving the process of identifying and evaluating non-tribal TCPs. It advocates creating independent, regional sub-committees to make informed recommendations and determinations of eligibility for TCPs located on federally owned land. Finally, it outlines strategies for promoting more community involvement in the NRHP review process through training programs administered by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. / text

This historic preservation report focuses on the Gaines-Oliphint house in Sabine County, Texas. The first part of the report establishes the geographic and historic context of the home. Next, the report concentrates on establishing significance of the Gaines- Oliphint house based on the National Register’s criteria through both an association with a significant person in history and architectural characteristics representative of a particular time and style. Finally, the report outlines a preliminary conditions assessment of the Gaines-Oliphint house followed by recommendations for stabilization, preservation and restoration of the home. / text