In this thesis, I argue that the ethical theory Plato develops in the Republic assigns critical importance to the role of one’s moral dispositions in their ability to make progress in philosophy. On this view, cultivating a good character, although not sufficient for pursuing philosophy, is necessary for success in philosophic endeavor. Conversely, having a vicious character precludes one from being able to acquire wisdom, which is the goal of philosophy. This is in contrast to Socratic intellectualism, which Plato is commonly seen to have adhered to in his earlier writings. The intellectualist view holds that knowledge is sufficient for virtue, and so one naturally becomes virtuous through the acquisition of wisdom. In other words, rather than virtuous character being necessary for philosophy, it is merely an effect of becoming wise. I argue that Plato moderates this kind of intellectualism in Republic in a way that makes the relationship between moral virtue and wisdom bidirectional. I demonstrate the plausibility of this thesis by examining an array of themes in the Republic, starting with the nature of philosophy and what it means to be a philosopher, and concluding with a look at the theory of education Plato advances throughout the dialogue. / Thesis / Master of Philosophy (MA)

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Skin infections by the ectoparasitic mite Sarcoptes scabiei are a preventable source of morbidity worldwide. While scabies affects all socioeconomic sectors, it is especially prominent in the developing world where crowding, poor hygiene, and limited access to basic health care are commonplace. Mass eradication efforts of this parasite have historically been hampered by delivery and compliance issues surrounding topical standards of care. There have been advances in eradication over the last decade due to the expanded use of oral Ivermectin for the treatment and prevention of ectoparasites such as scabies. Previous research focused on various treatment aspects of the disease, yet most identified the need for basic scabies health education to accompany future studies to improve program sustainability and the overall health literacy of target populations. The Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine sponsors a public health clinic in Veron, Dominican Republic that reports a high prevalence of scabies infections among its general patient population. The lack of any means of direct measurement, proper intervention, or control raises concerns that long-term infection may lead to multiple other secondary disease sequelae. The Veron Scabies Eradication and Education Program was designed to address this deficiency and build on previous studies related to this problem by using a novel treatment and education protocol. The purpose of this research was to identify, treat, and prevent primary and secondary health problems due to long-term scabies infection in the community of Barrio Nuevo, Veron, Dominican Republic in order to provide long-term sustainable eradication through a researcher-designed health education program and medical service protocol. Participants continued typical daily life while interventions and education were monitored to detect change over a 9-month timeline using selected measurement intervals to test multiple scabies disease and knowledge objectives and related hypotheses. Following this basic protocol, the following scabies markers were evaluated at baseline: subject demographics, scabies diagnosis and treatment history, baseline treatments and reported side effects, and scabies education pre-test results. The following scabies markers were also assessed at baseline and reassessed at 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, 8 months, and 9 months: risk and prevention behaviors, symptomatology, skin exam findings, and scabies education post-test results. There was a statistically significant post-intervention improvement in scabies markers when compared to pre-intervention values (p<0.05). This study demonstrated that a community scabies program involving large-scale treatment and education can provide rapid and long lasting improvements to the health of a highly endemic population. Community-wide scabies eradication is possible with the appropriate level of structure and support using low cost medication available to the health care system that serves Veron, Dominican Republic. Given the efficacy and safety profile of Ivermectin demonstrated in this study and substantiated by others, it is recommended that the Dominican Republic Ministry of Health consider adopting Ivermectin as the standard of care for scabies treatments and enforce an existing formal ban on Lindane products. The protocol from this research should be considered for adoption to provide a sustainable, practical, self-sufficient model for improved health outcomes, health behaviors, and health literacy. Future studies should replicate this research to determine validation in other settings, cultures and situations, build on the findings by exploring additional variables related to environmental risk factors, and continue to develop interventions that promote health education and enhance clinical practices. / Ph. D.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston University / PLEASE NOTE: Boston University Libraries did not receive an Authorization To Manage form for this thesis or dissertation. It is therefore not openly accessible, though it may be available by request. If you are the author or principal advisor of this work and would like to request open access for it, please contact us at open-help@bu.edu. Thank you. / STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM: This study is an attempt to determine the degree to which the Higher Institute of Nursing is meeting the contemporary needs of the United Arab Republic. The purposes of this investigation are: 1. To determine to what extent the existing program has accomplished the following: a) the philosophy and goals have been in accordance with the educational program; b) the functions and goals of graduates have been specified and were in accordance with these objectives and aims; c) graduates have been educationally prepared to assume the positions to which they were assigned. 2. To view nursing in the broad social context and investigate the socio-cultural, political, and economic factors which have influenced the development of the nursing profession in the United Arab Republic. 3. To propose a plan for developing a curriculum for nursing at the university level which will take into account the general characteristics of the society and will satisfy the medical and health needs that are evident in the country. PROCEDURAL METHOD: The case study method has been employed in the research and writing of this dissertation. This method was selected for reasons related to the nature of the study undertaken: 1. The writer was working in an unformulated area where there was relatively little available in terms of previous studies on nursing education in the United Arab Republic which would serve as a guide. 2. The intensive case method which involves the case study of a group has been found to be a particularly fruitful method for stimulating insights and suggesting hypotheses. 3. The attitude of the investigator is one of alert receptivity of seeking rather than testing. Instead of limiting himself to the testing of hypotheses, the investigator is guided by the features of the object being studied; his inquiries are constantly in the process of reformulation and redirection as new information is obtained. 4. The intensity of the study of the group selected for investigation and the intensity of the attempt to obtain sufficient information will characterize and explain the unique features of the case and those which it has in common with other cases. 5. It relies on the integrative powers of the investigator, on his ability to draw together many bits and pieces of information into a unified interpretation. FINDINGS: 1. The United Arab Republic is undergoing rapid social, economic and political changes which the education institutions both reflect and effect. 2. In founding the Higher Institute of Nursing with the aid of World Health Organization, the United Arab Republic adopted the program of studies from foreign curriculae patterns. International nursing leaders were among those who helped establish this institute because no Egyptian nurses were qualified at that time to participate in this program. The program did not have the necessary adjustments made to meet the needs of the culture concerned: a) the program does not deal with problems and issues which are peculiar to the culture and contribute to its health and nursing problems; b) the program does not equip students with the necessary tools and techniques which would enable them to attempt to reach a solution to some of the most urgent nursing problems. 3. The Higher Institute of Nursing prepared students who, upon termination, were not assigned to positions which were in accordance with the education they received. 4. The Institute has not made explicit what the role of the university educated nurse is to be. 5. Changes in medical and health practices have influenced the responsibilities of nurses. CONCLUSIONS: The adoption of a foreign curricula pattern without taking into consideration possible outcomes and consequences due to cultural forces may bring about not only unfavorable results but total failure. From the findings, suggestions were made to improve the situation. / 2999-01-01

Slavery was established in Texas with the first Anglo-American settlement in 1822. The constitution of the Republic of Texas protected slavery as did laws passed by the legislature from 1836 to 1846, and the institution of slavery grew throughout the period. Slaves were given adequate food, clothing, and shelter for survival, and they also managed to develop a separate culture. Masters believed that slaves received humane treatment but nevertheless worried constantly about runaways and slave revolts. The Republic's foreign relations and the annexation question were significantly affected by the institution of slavery. The most important primary sources are compilations of the laws of Texas, tax rolls, and traveler's accounts. The most informative secondary source is Abigail Curlee's unpublished doctoral dissertation, "A Study of Texas Slave Plantations, 1822 to 1865" written at the University of Texas in 1932.

Coastal lakes, lagoons, and wetlands often provide excellent records of environmental change related to both marine and terrestrial processes. Although coastal paleoenvironments in the Caribbean have been a subject of increasing interest, long-term environmental reconstructions from lakes on the Atlantic side of the Caribbean islands are lacking. Laguna Limon is a freshwater lake in the El Seibo province of northeastern Dominican Republic. We collected a 315-cm sediment core from the center of the lake to examine lake evolution using loss-on-ignition and foraminiferal analysis. Loss-on-ignition results indicated the presence of a low-energy lagoon in the lake's present location between about 4700 and 1400 cal yr BP. During this period a foraminiferal assemblage dominated by the brackish-water Ammonia parkinsoniana but also containing relatively-abundant normal-marine salinity taxa (e.g., Quinqueloculina spp., Archaias angulatus, and Trochulina rosea) gradually was replaced by a low-diversity assemblage dominated by Ammonia tepida and Ammonia parkinsoniana, indicating a gradual decline in salinity due to the lagoon's growing isolation from the Atlantic Ocean. By 1400 cal. Yr. BP, the lake had become a shallow wetland, indicated by sediments with a high organic content. At 1200 cal. Yr. BP the lake flooded with freshwater, as it remains today. This study provides context for ongoing research into the environmental and human history of the Laguna Limon area. / Master of Science

The study of lake sediments can provide valuable insights into lake history and climate variation throughout time. In-depth studies have been carried out at Lake Miragoane, Haiti and in high- and mid-elevation sites in the Dominican Republic, and a few other inland and coastal locations throughout the Caribbean; however, to date little has been published on prehistoric conditions in other coastal areas of Hispaniola. Laguna Alejandro (informally named by researchers) (~18.31°N, 71.03°W), on the southwest coast of the Dominican Republic, was examined to expand our knowledge of long-term environmental history in this region. This ~25 hectare lake is separated from the Caribbean Sea by a 100 m wide limestone ridge about 3–5 m tall. We recovered two consecutive cores (0–100 cm, 100–185.5 cm) close to the limestone barrier to investigate the potential for paleotempestology and other paleoenvironmental reconstructions. Three AMS 14C dates indicate that the lake is ~1100 years in age. Sediment analyses revealed three major events that correlate with bands of uncharacteristic sediment composition and particle size at 74–77.5 cm, 150.5–153 cm, and 183.5–185.5 cm. Four distinct strata containing serpulids and several pockets of Ammonia beccarii provided insights on changes in salinity and the connections between the lagoon and the ocean. The upper deposit (74–77.5 cm, 620 ±60 YBP) contains gypsum and represents a period of increased salinity within the lake brought on by drought. The two lower bands are composed of sand consistent with nearby beach sands. The 150.5–153 cm band provides evidence of a hurricane landfall at 1022 ± 60 YBP. The combination of biological data from 165–183.5 cm and sediments within the 183.5–185.5 cm band provide evidence for salinity fluctuations that indicate the closure of the lake. Sediments contained a variety of invertebrates that helped to document changes in lake chemistry through time. This study of Laguna Alejandro sediments documented lake history and provided information on recent climatic shifts in the region. / Master of Science

This thesis examines grassroots peace building in Kosovo during the period 2001 - 2008 and seeks to understand how international actors have best supported, or otherwise, a process of deepening peace at this level. The research centres on analysis of thirty-three in-depth interviews with the main actors from this field. Through analysing interpretations of peace and peace building in Kosovo, I identify a contradiction between on the one hand, the dominant approach of building peace through relationships (favoured by international actors); and on the other, the need for peace to address personal needs. This means helping individuals come to terms with the past, and affecting a broader normalization of people’s everyday lives. I assert that a ‘deepening’ of peace in Kosovo will ultimately come about through offering young people more opportunities to ‘open up their hearts and minds’ - to broaden their horizons in ways that they feel empowered to view themselves and the world around them through a critical lens. This research identifies negative attitudes and behaviours amongst external actors in Kosovo, and illustrates how our personal qualities and conduct are of primary importance when it comes to peace building. In doing so, I identify a need for a higher level of self-awareness, commitment and empathy amongst external actors. Whilst reports have emerged which seek to evaluate the impact of peace building in Kosovo, this research examines the experiences of those engaged in such endeavours and encompasses a strong story-telling element. It also seeks to ground the issues at stake within a broader understanding of Kosovo’s social and historical landscape.

The results of the model can be used for enhancing the integrated management of the water resources of the Azua Valley. The model shows the effects of an extensive drainage network on the high ground-water levels which prevailed from 1983 to 1988. A sensitivity analysis also shows the zones of the aquifer which require development of new pumpage in order to overcome the drainage problem in areas still flooded by uncontrolled artesian flow. The results of the model can be used for enhancing the integrated management of the water resources of the Azua Valley.

The process of becoming a teacher is an area of a great deal of research. Different researchers have focused on different parts of the process. This study examines the concerns and their development for a group of Yemeni student-teachers as they become science teachers. After discussing the context of teacher training in the Yemen Arab Republic, the different arguments put forward by researchers who investigated the process of becoming a teacher, were examined. The field work was conducted in the Yemen between March 1983 and January 1985. Two different interview schedules with open-ended questions were used: one was general and the focus of the another was teaching-a-lesson. The former was conducted at three different occasions: during the second term of the third year i.e. before teaching practice, during the second term of the fourth year i.e. after teaching practice, and during the first few months of the first year of teaching. The latter was conducted during teaching practice and during the first few months of the first year of teaching. Both interviews were conducted for thirty-one Yemeni student-teachers at Sana'a University as they become science teachers. A further interview was conducted for the Faculty of Education staff to know their reactions to their students' views of their training. The concerns' development of the group and some individuals was followed, and the relationship of the findings of this research to the different theoretical arguments was considered. The research shows the stability and change of student teachers' concerns as they become science teachers in the Yemen. In examining this phenomenon the research points out the importance of: the kind of concern investigated, when they are investigated, and the situational and the personal factors which all have bearing on the process of concerns' development during the process of becoming a teacher.