Ruinous Wings is a young adult fantasy novel that examines the drive to seek power and how the power of others can shape our lives. In a world where the gods grant magic to favored mortals through divine birds, those who lack the proper training and affluence are often left at the mercy of Volitants, those who have been blessed with magic. Aina is a pickpocket whose only trusted friend was killed in a Volitant's battle. Vib is a thief and a liar obsessed with the pursuit of fame, even as she runs from her past. Kay is an apprentice historian in a Volitant temple, trapped in a life he does not want for the crimes of his family. When Aina steals a divine bird and is given destructive magic from a mysterious god, the three must work together to stop a brewing war and decide what power is worth to them.

A defendant’s age can be an important determinant of judicial outcomes, but the perception of a defendant’s age can have implications for how these outcomes are determined. Research has suggested a connection between racial bias and age perception. This study sought to describe an age bias against African-Americans, and to connect this to jury sentencing outcomes. Undergraduate participants (N = 318) were recruited from university in the Appalachia region. First, participants estimated the ages of individuals in photographs. Analyses primarily focused on 18 and 19-year-old African-American and Caucasian males, but included a number of photographs from older males and females. Then, participants suggested a prison sentence in a mock jury sentencing task. African-Americans were estimated to be older than Caucasians by nearly four years (d = 1.75). This difference was present when controlling for exposure to African Americans, but with a negligible effect (d = 0.17). A modest increase (0.5 years, d = 0.32) was found in the sentence lengths assigned to African-American defendants. Discrepancies between age estimates and Page 112 2015 Appalachian Student Research Forum sentence lengths were not correlated. However logistic regression analyses found that age estimates of African-Americans were predictive of sentences exceeding state guidelines for this group, and the difference in age estimates between African-Americans and Caucasians was predictive of excessive sentences for both groups. While these regressions produced statistically significant (p < 0.05), the effect sizes of these regressions were negligible (d < 0.20). These findings suggest age bias is present and may have implications for juveniles and young adults in criminal proceedings.

This study examines how family socialization and religiosity are associated with young men's intention to someday become a father. Data from the National Survey of Families and Households are used to measure the influence of family connection, family regulation, family psychological autonomy and public and private religiosity on young men's fatherhood intentions. Family connection and private religiosity are associated with young men's fatherhood plans.

Syftet med mitt examensarbete är att ge ett bidrag till analysen av ungdomars grundläggande värderingar, genom att undersöka hur elever rangordnar och diskuterar tio instrumentella värden. Undersökningen är utförd med flermetodsforskning, där både en kvantitativ och kvalitativ metod använts, enkät och fokusgrupp. En pilotstudie används för att säkerställa god validitet och reliabilitet. Undersökningen gjordes på 20 ungdomar, tio pojkar och tio flickor, fördelade i tre åttondeklasser i samma skola. Resultatet i undersökningen visar att ungdomar mellan 14 till 15 år anser att familjen, tillsammans med frihet och rättvisa är viktigast av de tio värdena jag undersökt och att det skett vissa förändringar i jämförelse vilka värden som är viktiga idag hos ungdomar jämfört med från SOM undersökningsserie (1986-2000)

Each year the number of uninsured individuals in the United States continues to grow. This unfortunate occurrence creates negative consequences for those who are uninsured, but also for those who are covered by health insurance plans. Through cost-shifting practices, hospitals and other healthcare organizations are increasing the cost of other healthcare services to help subsidize the care they must provide for those who cannot pay for that care. There have been attempts to solve this problem, but a successful solution has not been implemented. Rather than attempt to study the entire uninsured population, this study seeks to determine precisely why young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 are the largest segment of our population that does not purchase health insurance. Socioeconomic status, perceived health, cost, gender, race, and perceived need are all examined in order to determine what type of relationship each one has with a young adult's decision to purchase private health insurance. Structural equation modeling is used to analyze data obtained from the 2005 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey. This study is unique because is includes latent variables and examines a variable that is not often included in health insurance studies that exist in the literature, perceived need. The results of the study indicate that being uninsured is largely a matter of having a higher socioeconomic status and being a non-minority. Perceived health, cost, gender, and perceived need were not shown to have a significant relationship with the dependent variable, private health insurance coverage.

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No description available.

Resistance training (RT)-induced skeletal muscle hypertrophy is partly responsible for the RT-induced increase in strength. Previously, we reported that exercise repetition load played a minimal role in the promotion of RT-induced gains in hypertrophy and strength gains in RT-naïve participants performing RE to volitional failure. Thus, the main aim of this study were to determine the effects of 12 weeks of RT on muscle strength and hypertrophy in a trained population. 49 resistance-trained men (mean ± SEM, 23 ± 1 years, 85.9 ± 2.2 kg, 181 ± 1 cm) were randomly allocated into a lower load-high-repetition group (HR, n=24) or a higher load-low-repetition group (LR, n=25). Repetition load was set so that volitional lifting failure was achieved within the repetition ranges of 20-25 (~35-50% of 1RM) for HR or 8-12 for LR (~70-85% of 1RM). Strength as one repetition maximum (1RM) was assessed pre and post. Changes in lean body mass (LBM), appendicular lean mass (ALM) and leg lean mass (LLM) were assessed using dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). There were significant increases in strength in all exercises with no differences between groups (p > 0.05) with the exception of bench press where LR showed a greater increase in 1RM than HR (p = 0.012). Similarly, LBM, ALM, and LLM increased significantly following training in the HR group (1.0 ± 0.9kg, p < .001; 0.8 ± 1.1 kg, p < 0.05; 0.7 ± 0.9 kg, p < 0.01 respectively) and the LR group (1.6 ± 1.4 kg, p < .001; 1.0 ± 1.2 kg, p < 0.05; 0.7 ± 1.0 kg, p < 0.01 respectively) with no significant differences between groups (all p > 0.05). These data show that RE performed to volitional failure using either HR or LR induces similar adaptations strength and lean mass accrual in young resistance-trained men. / Thesis / Master of Science in Kinesiology / Resistance training (RT) results in an increase in muscle growth and an increase in strength. Previously, we have shown in young untrained males, that when exercise is performed until failure, or until the weight can no longer be lifted, that gains in muscle and strength were similar with the use of either light or heavy weights. The purpose of the study was to determine the effects of 12 weeks of RT on muscle growth and strength in young men who were already regularly participating in resistance exercise when performing either lower load high repetition RT (HR) or higher load low repetition RT (LR). Maximum strength and changes in muscle mass were assessed prior to and upon completion of the training protocol. Following 12 weeks of RT both groups increased muscle mass and strength to a similar extent with the exception of bench press which increased more in the LR group.

<p> Neonatal rats exposed to heat stress were studied to determine the age at which the saliva-spreading response appears, and to elucidate any other heat defenses that might exist before the response develops.</p> <p> Saliva-spreading appeared on the 17th day of age, the age at which hypothalamic maturity is attained. This finding thus agrees with previous hypotheses that the hypothalamus is involved in the regulation of body temperature.</p> <p> The tolerance of rats to an ambient temperature of 40 C dropped from 16 - 26 hours to 2 - 4 hours in the first 10 days of life. Three factors accounted for this change: decreased body water, increased rates of water loss, and increased metabolic rate.</p> / Thesis / Master of Arts (MA)

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