New Releases by Laura Jones

A manual for prevention, rapid response and control of invasive non-native plants.

"Activation of the transcription factor Stat3 has been reported in numerous human cancers and is often correlated with poor prognosis. In particular, Stat3 activation has been reported in 30-60% of human breast cancers. Indeed, Stat3 regulates numerous targets involved in the processes of proliferation, angiogenesis, migration/invasion and immune response, all of which are essential to cancer progression. Furthermore, Stat3 activity has been specifically linked to metastasis, immune suppression and resistance to therapy. However, the use of genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs) to examine the role of Stat3 in these processes has been limited. Utilizing a novel inducible PyVmT-driven mouse model of mammary tumourigenesis, we have highlighted an essential role for Stat3 in immunosuppression during early stages of tumour progression. Indeed, Stat3 loss results in a robust anti-tumourigenic immune response against early hyperplasic lesions in this model, driven primarily, but not exclusively, by activated cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and M1 macrophages. This immune response was successful in the complete and rapid elimination of these early lesions. Furthermore, this model allowed us to examine a proportion of Stat3 ablated tumours that were able to eventually circumvent this immune surveillance, but lacked the ability to further metastasize. Here we report a down regulated Stat3-dependent inflammatory gene signature in these non-metastatic tumours and a corresponding lack of infiltrating macrophages, essential to metastasis. This firmly supports a role for Stat3 in modulating the tumour immune microenvironment at various stages of tumour progression. Differences in the immune microenvironment, however, did not fully account for a Stat3 dependent decrease in metastasis. Thus, we further examined the cell intrinsic roles of Stat3 in promoting breast cancer cell metastasis. Here we have shown that Stat3 ablation in breast cancer cell lines results in increased focal adhesion formation and a dysregulation of focal adhesion dynamics. This was correlated with impaired cellular migration and metastasis. Together, this suggests that Stat3 works through various mechanism to promote tumour progression and metastasis, and is thus an interesting target for potential therapeutic intervention. Nevertheless, important consideration should be given to how these transgenic mice are modeling breast cancer and if phenotypes are reproducible across models. In this vein, we have generated two novel inducible mouse models of breast cancer, driven by the human version of HER2 as well as a potentially activating, naturally occurring, alternatively spliced isoform. These models will allow for the investigation into differences between the signaling of the two HER2 isoforms, whose relative importance to human cancer is debated. With these new additions to our tool box, we can further examine these reported roles of Stat3 in an increasingly robust manner, parse differences between models, and gain a better understanding of how these models represent the cancers we are attempting to study. In summary the work presented here strongly implicates Stat3 in promoting mammary tumourigenesis at various stages of tumour progression through both cell intrinsic and extrinsic processes with an emphasis on its role in modulating the immune system to the benefit of the cancer. However, it also stresses the importance of varied models to gain an improved understanding of these processes and potentially highlights context specific considerations related to Stat3-targeted therapies." --

This book is about one business owner's experiences over the years from cleaning homes to running her own Home Cleaning business. It contains interesting stories about real life situations that employers face with employees and clients.From dealing with adversity with employees, to learning as much from the "bad" customers as from the "good" customers. The last chapter details best practices for cleaning that you may find useful in your personal or business life.

And what if Jack the Ripper was actually Florence Maybrick, a woman having existed in 1888? Here is the life of Florence Chandler, from the age of eighteen when she meets James Maybrick, her future English husband, herself being an American. This story is a blend of psychology, of facts concerning the criminal who terrorized England and of an authentic biography. Combining biography and real events, could this novel be a key?

And what if Jack the Ripper was actually Florence Maybrick, a woman having existed in 1888? Combining biography and real events, could this novel be a key?A theory on the identity of Jack the Ripper, having as a central idea that the murderer was none other than a woman.Here is the life of Florence Chandler, from the age of eighteen when she meets James Maybrick, her future English husband, herself being an American.How was this 'foreigner' driven in a corner? An insecure childhood, a castrating mother of easy virtue, an unfaithful husband and the puritanical Victorian era are all elements leading us towards the answer. This story is a blend of psychology, of facts concerning the criminal who terrorized England and of an authentic biography."

Cranberry is a little red bird with a big mission. Along with his band of bird friends, he's going on a mysterious adventure to save his family. A family he didn't even know he had. TRUE BLUE is a tale filled with page-turning excitement and the joy of being both a hero and true friend. Excellent for parents and children to read aloud together. Best for ages 6-10.

The purpose of this systematic grounded theory study was to explore the process of change in teacher attitudes toward including Roma (Gypsy) students in non-segregated schools in Romania. The theories guiding this study included Mezirow's (1991, 2000) theory of transformation, Gay's (2002, 2013) theory of culturally responsive teaching, and Bandura's (1977, 1997) theory of self-efficacy. These three theories guided this research inquiry into how attitudes change, how teacher attitudes affect beliefs and actions, and how self-efficacy affects teacher attitudes. This study sought to answer the following questions: What is the process of transforming Romanian teacher attitudes toward including Roma students? What factors influence attitude change of Romanian teachers toward the Roma? How do Romanian teachers use their transformed attitudes in working with Roma students? What role does self-efficacy play in developing Romanian teacher attitudes toward Roma students? Interviews, observations, and timelines of 23 current teachers took place in Romania. The Model of Transformation: Awakening to Empowering was constructed to show the process of transformation that was revealed during this study. The greatest influences discovered for affecting attitude change were personal reflection, childhood experiences, role models, and ongoing education courses. Teachers who chose to see their classroom as a familial unit, becoming like a foster parent for their students, and incorporated new teaching strategies, worked most successfully with their Roma students. Based on the data, self-efficacy was important for empowering the teachers and helping them to empower others in working with the Roma.

Potting training can be a frustrating time for both parents and toddlers. This book is designed with the idea of making this tasks as easy and fun as possible for you and your child. The same process isn't going to work with every child; therefore we have put together several ideas for you to try. Each child learns at a different pace and will respond differently to different methods. Nothing about potty training is set in stone and there is no one hundred percent cure to make it happen over night. All of the ideas in this book have been tried and have been proven to work.If you are thinking you have tried everything; chances are there is going to be a minimum of one idea in this book you haven't tried and that might just be then one you are looking for. Reading this book is going to benefit you and your child; it could even put a whole new spin on the way you once thought of potty training. As you read you will probably come across ideas and suggestions that you have heard about in the past and some of the suggestions you may think are just a little over the top; that's okay, not every suggestion is for every style of parenting. We want you to read the book and make decision based on your style of parenting and what you know that your child will respond to.During this book with will cover the following topics and break them down by chapters to make it easier for you to reference back when needed: Traditional rules of potty training. Using incentives for potty training. Making the potty fun. Making the potty fun. Parent need to knows. Potty training product suggestions. Getting Your FREE BonusRead this book to the end and see "BONUS: Your FREE Gift" chapter after the introduction and conclusion.

A Polar Bear Christmas tells the delightful tale of two children, Audrey and Pierre, who befriend a baby polar bear at the Central Park Zoo. On Christmas Eve, the two help the baby bear escape for a tour of the town. What follows is an adventurous, hilarious story that captures all the heartfelt magic of New York City at Christmastime. A book the whole family will enjoy. Perfect for reading aloud.

Faith has beauty, brains, and very high hopes in becoming the best restaurant owner in town. She left her hometown of Atlanta looking for a change and starting her new career in Chicago by invite of her childhood friend, Javon. Javon offers a place to stay at her lakeside two bedroom condo downstairs from her twin sister, Vanessa, in whom Faith can not stand. As the story unfolds with Faith finding out the truth about her roommate, she begins to fantasize each day of Vanessa's fiance, Alex. With each page turn, truths are being revealed, friendships and love are gained and lost, but ultimately it would be As Faith Would Have It.

For the past twenty years, the data visualization movement has reworked the way we engage with information. It has brought fresh excitement to researchers and reached broad audiences. But what comes next for data? I seek to create example "Data Experiences" that will contribute to developing new spaces of information engagement. Using data from Silent Spring Institute's environmental health studies as a test case, I explore Data Experiences that are immersive, interactive, and aesthetic. Environmental health datasets are ideal for this application as they are highly relevant to the general population and have appropriate complexity. Dressed in Data will focus on the experience of an individual with her/his own environmental health data while BigBarChart focuses on the experience of the community with the overall dataset. Both projects seek to present opportunities for nontraditional learning, community relevance, and social impact.

How does one let go of the love he has when he finds it is the love he needs? And how does one find strength in the one who makes him weak?After walking away from a dead-end relationship, Gihon (Ghee-on) struggles to put her life back together. But she soon realizes that it is easier said than done. She finds herself homeless and unemployed. Determined not to return to the life she had with her shrewd and calculating ex, Melchi (Mel-khi), she finds herself in the arms of a stranger, Avalon. But, will the secret she has stand in the way of them getting closer? Or, will she be destroyed by the secret he has?Faced with some of life's most defining challenges, Gihon and Avalon find themselves at a crossroad and are forced to come to terms with the life altering choices they must make. The experience tests their love and her strength to make it on her own. But, will she have to, after a redeemed and financially secure Melchi re-enters her life? The love she lost and the love she found exposed her to her own weakness. But, she is not alone.

In a 1981 New York Times review of Dan Fogelberg's The Innocent Age, Stephen Holden claimed that the album's lyrics were, "perhaps the most spectacular example of artistic overreaching that the singer/songwriter genre has produced.&" Other critics at the time also disdained the album as too serious or ambitious (Pond; Browning). Holden and his contemporaries clearly did not foresee the album's subsequent commercial and financial success nor its value as musical art. Through music-text analysis and considerations of historical context, I argue that The Innocent Age was not only a commercial success but also worthy of recognition as an artistic achievement, and that it is indeed a song cycle. This thesis will inform issues related to music-text analysis and analytical methods drawn from those of concept albums and song cycles. Sources for this thesis include album reviews, Of Time and the River by Thomas Wolfe, the score, recordings, published interviews, survey data, and other secondary sources.

The aim of this research was to investigate the barriers to effective type two diabetes self-management faced by people in rural and remote areas of Australia. This research is timely for several reasons including the current rise in the prevalence of type two diabetes across the world (International Diabetes Federation [IDFJ, 2009), and data supporting the fact that that type two diabetes is poorly managed, especially in rural and remote contexts (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare [AIHW]. 2008a). Specifically, the research presented in this thesis aimed to identify barriers to effective self-management in rural and remote areas, to develop a tool for the measurement of these barriers, and to determine the importance of barriers to self-management in diabetes-dependant quality of life in both rural and urban populations. A mixed methods framework was adopted to address the aims of this research. This approach involved two separate but related data collections and three separate data analyses. Study 1 utilised the methods proposed by Braun and Clarke (2006) in order to conduct a thematic analysis regarding barriers to self -management. Semi-structured interviews with health professionals (n=18) and people with type two diabetes (n=10), and one focus group with people with type two diabetes (n=8) provided the data for this thematic analysis. A socio-ecological framework was used to organise identified themes. Results of Study 1 were subsequently used to inform the development of a survey for collecting quantitative data, which were used in Study 2 and Study 3. Study 2 used Principal Components Analysis to validate an adapted measure of barriers to effective type two diabetes self-management in a mixed rural and urban population (n=326). Study 3 utilised univariate and multivariate analyses to investigate both the demographic predictors of barriers to self-management, and the barrier predictors of diabetes-dependant quality of life in rural and urban populations. Study 1 identified barriers to effective self-management at intrapersonal, interpersonal, organisational and societal levels of influence. Across all levels of influence, the difficulty of maintaining lifestyle changes was emphasised. Results of Study 2 indicated that the adapted survey was valid in a mixed rural and urban population. Age, number of complications and remoteness were identified as significant predictors of various barriers to self-management in Study 3. Diabetes-dependant quality of life was similar in the rural and urban populations. Psychosocial barriers to management were the only significant predictor of diabetes-dependant quality of life in the rural population, while depression, psychosocial barriers and self-monitoring barriers were significant predictors of diabetes-dependant quality of life in the urban population. The research presented in this thesis identified barriers to effective type two diabetes self-management in rural and remote areas of Australia, and indicates that, of the barriers identified, psychosocial barriers are the most important in predicting diabetes-dependant quality of life in both rural and urban populations. These results have useful implications for provision of care in that they lend support to the principle that psychological and social factors must be taken into consideration if the goals of type two diabetes self-management, specifically improving quality of life, are to be realised across settings.

This groundbreaking book explores the current state of doctoral education in the United States and offers a plan for increasing the effectiveness of doctoral education. Programs must grapple with questions of purpose. The authors examine practices and elements of doctoral programs and show how they can be made more powerful by relying on principles of progressive development, integration, and collaboration. They challenge the traditional apprenticeship model and offer an alternative in which students learn while apprenticing with several faculty members. The authors persuasively argue that creating intellectual community is essential for high-quality graduate education in every department. Knowledge-centered, multigenerational communities foster the development of new ideas and encourage intellectual risk taking.

Have you ever wondered how the animals in the zoo start their day? Take a look and count your way through the Morning Zoo. The monkey is peeking right back at you while the baby lion wakes up to his daddy's roar. Find out what the other animals are doing in the Morning Zoo!