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The Eurocentric canon remains the predominant focus of music education often excluding the role of music and experiences of Black individuals and people of color. This singular perspective creates an incomplete and inaccurate understanding of the comprehensive nature of music and the humans who create, perform, and engage with it. In this article, the author shares her experience as a Black music educator and her aspirations for a music profession that incorporates the full range of human music engagement and expression. The paper begins with a reflection on W.E.B. DuBois's double consciousness followed by an exploration of the nuances, complexities, contradictions, and beauty of being a Black educator in a primarily white field. Subsequently, the essay presents four conceptual principles for a reimagined, inclusive music education approach, drawing inspiration from Sylvia Wynter's "new science of the Word." These principles advocate retelling the music education narrative to incorporate historically marginalized voices, reorienting music education to be human-centered, embracing interdisciplinary approaches to view music teaching and learning, and acknowledging the power of music in uplifting the human condition. Finally, this paper proposes a pathway for reconciling diverse identities prevalent in American culture with music education and academia.

A rich literature has argued that so-called aspiration-raising policies tend to individualize structural conditions and thereby reproduce forms of inequality through young people's aspirations. This paper explores how aspiration-raising policy discourses are lived in ways that both accentuate but that might also contest their terms. Drawing on Lauren Berlant, we theorize aspiration as ongoing performances that can be altered and remade in affective scenes of interruption. We put our theorization to work in a longitudinal study that followed a young woman, Marie, throughout her upper secondary education. Whilst Marie's performances of aspiration predominantly chimed with such individualistic policy discourses, she would also describe moments where these performances were seemingly interrupted. These were moments where Marie vividly experienced concerns related to planetary crises. The analysis carefully unpacks these moments, and we argue that they bring Marie into contact with the political stakes in her life and lead her to search for alternative, more sustainable, and collective modalities of aspiration. Hence, supplementing previous studies that have shown how inequality is reproduced through aspirations, the paper contributes with new understandings of how alternative modalities of aspiration may emerge that potentially exceed structural limits.

This paper focuses on data from a study of middle- to upper-middle class Scottish S2 ([approximately]seventh grade) students who participated in Inspiring Purpose, a school-based character development program, during the 2016 to 2017 school year. Directed by their teachers, participating youth reflected on values and future aspirations and researched and wrote about an inspiring person. We examine the hypotheses that youth who select a more proximal inspiring figure and/or make a personal connection with that person will demonstrate higher developmental outcomes in the areas of confidence, contribution, self-reflection, goal development, and self-concept. We connected 230 student posters of inspirational figures, 34 youth interviews, and 462 student surveys. Mixed-method analysis revealed students were more likely to describe proximal figures as inspiring and make explicit personal connections over the course of their engagement with the Inspiring Purpose program. Moreover, youth who made personal connections were more likely to score higher on confidence, general self-concept, and contribution. These results suggest that when youth see themselves in inspiring figures and firmly articulate this connection, this can spur beneficial developmental outcomes.

While studies on refugee-background students in school contexts have been prolific, research of this population in higher education or post-tertiary education is still emergent. The paper attends to this gap by drawing on the narratives of five refugee-background young adults who are undertaking Australian higher education or have completed university studies. An interpretive analysis of their life-story interviews is drawn from Appadurai's concept of 'voice' as a tool to understand the intergenerational nature of 'aspiration'. We illustrate the heterogeneous ways their resourcefulness is activated in pursuit of their aspirations, and the enabling role parental aspirations play in realising their pathways. It offers new insights on the enabling role refugee parents play to support their children's pathway into higher education. It also highlights the significance of individual refugee youth agency in navigating on-going challenges to attain their personal aspirations through education. We argue that the concept of inclusive education should contain a strength-based view of refugee students that positions them as aspirational individuals who are actively engaging in complex forms of negotiation, adaptability and resistance. Further research into inclusive education for increased social inclusion, incorporating the intergenerational aspirations of both refugee youth and their parents is clearly warranted.

Stories of children moving in and out of refugee camps are not uncommon yet are often overshadowed by the dominant narratives of oppression, political failure, and war -- the stories "told of" rather than "told by" refugees. Dominant narratives on refugees largely shape perceptions about children and youth in displacement as vulnerable, voiceless, and passive. Instead, stories "told by" these populations highlight their identities as capable and determined. Employing a narrative approach to inquiry in relation to agency, this study seeks to understand how lived experiences of female refugee youth are shared through storytelling. Written narratives of 55 adolescent girls in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya revealed not only the complex and complicated circumstances of their educational journey but also their agency. This paper concludes by emphasizing the importance of storytelling, which enables us to better understand the needs of the displaced populations, but also their capabilities, aspirations and agency.

This paper looks at the national and international geographic mobility paths of young graduates in Italy and their educational and professional trajectories. By departing from the research fields of youth studies, mobility studies and higher education studies, we aim to highlight the multiple meanings and effects that mobility experiences may have in structuring graduates' future projects and/or desires. On the other hand, we argue that their expectations for both their mobility experiences and careers are also shaped by family socialisation, considering furthermore that the building of embodied and scholastic cultural capitals is spatially differentiated depending on the places where they grow up. The empirical research is based on two rounds of semi-narrative interviews conducted with 51 Italian graduates between 2020 and 2021. For the analysis, we have outlined four types of mobility paths. For each type, we focus on how socio-structural and cultural variables influence the ways the interviewees framed their mobility and professional experiences, desires and projects, focusing furthermore on how the COVID-19 pandemic differently affected their objective possibilities and strategies of mobility between the first and second waves.

Research exploring the influences of cultural experiences, future imaginations and aspirations on the formation of pedagogy among immigrant Early Childhood (EC) educators remains scarce. This collaborative autoethnography (CAE) is about the first author's pedagogical journey. Educated and trained in India as an EC educator, the stories shared in this paper offer insights into how the first author navigated and negotiated her understandings of pedagogies from padhana, a more traditional Indian focused pedagogy to 'Western' play-based pedagogy. Using photo-elicitation techniques from visual images as data and Appadurai's theoretical framework on cultural global flows, the changes and continuities of conceptions of pedagogy influenced by cultural experiences, future imaginations and aspirations are explored. The iterative process supported by CAE helped redefine understandings about pedagogies, teacher identity and EC education.

With global trends focussed on standardisation of curriculum and increased teacher accountability, it has become commonplace for curriculum to be viewed simplistically as a product. While all teachers engage in forms of classroom curriculum-making, questions remain as to what this looks like within an educational landscape that continues to portray teaching as a purely technical activity. This paper explores two Australian early career primary teachers' experiences of curriculum-making, drawing attention to the enabling and constraining conditions which shape such experiences. We consider the impact of these enabled and constrained experiences on early career teachers' aspirations and ongoing development as knowledge-led curriculum-makers. We contend that such constrained experiences limit opportunities for early career teachers to develop professional identities as knowledge-led curriculum-makers and continue to reinforce unhelpful representations of teachers as 'technicians'.

Sustainable Development Goal 5 challenges governments to address child marriage, which may inhibit girls from developing an agentic self. This paper assesses the direct influence of community gender norms on adolescent agency, and the normative contexts in which gender gaps in adolescent agency are larger or smaller in Nepal. Using baseline data for adolescent girls, adolescent boys, and adults in 54 clusters participating in the CARE Tipping Point Trial, multilevel analysis tested whether: adolescent boys had higher agency than girls; and community gender norms among adults "partly accounted for or modified" gender gaps in adolescent agency. Gender gaps in agency disfavoring girls were common. Community gender norms were more positively associated with intrinsic agency among girls than boys, and more negatively associated with instrumental and collective agency among girls than boys. Enhancing girls' agency while promoting gender-equitable community norms may empower girls' transition to adulthood.

Access to higher education remains elusive for many young people despite substantial investment in outreach interventions, most of which target students in underrepresented equity groups. This paper explores an alternative approach to widening participation in Australia that focuses on teacher professional development to support student aspirations. We examine school teachers' responses to a course designed to develop their conceptual understanding of aspirations and provide a framework for developing aspirations-related initiatives with their students and colleagues. The course pilot was evaluated drawing on surveys (N = 49) and interviews (N = 21). Teachers reported that they gained the following: (1) access to robust evidence of factors affecting aspirations; (2) relevant theoretical perspectives to conceptualise aspirations in new ways; and (3) insights on practical strategies with which they might nurture student pathways to higher education. To support widening participation in higher education, we argue that the scope of current outreach initiatives offered by universities must broaden to capitalise on the untapped potential of teachers.

A rich literature has argued that so-called aspiration-raising policies tend to individualize structural conditions and thereby reproduce forms of inequality through young people's aspirations. This paper explores how aspiration-raising policy discourses are lived in ways that both accentuate but that might also contest their terms. Drawing on Lauren Berlant, we theorize aspiration as ongoing performances that can be altered and remade in affective scenes of interruption. We put our theorization to work in a longitudinal study that followed a young woman, Marie, throughout her upper secondary education. Whilst Marie's performances of aspiration predominantly chimed with such individualistic policy discourses, she would also describe moments where these performances were seemingly interrupted. These were moments where Marie vividly experienced concerns related to planetary crises. The analysis carefully unpacks these moments, and we argue that they bring Marie into contact with the political stakes in her life and lead her to search for alternative, more sustainable, and collective modalities of aspiration. Hence, supplementing previous studies that have shown how inequality is reproduced through aspirations, the paper contributes with new understandings of how alternative modalities of aspiration may emerge that potentially exceed structural limits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nil per os (NPO), also referred to as Nil by Mouth (NBM), is a health-related intervention of withholding food and fluids. When implemented in the context of a person with dysphagia, NPO aims to mitigate risks of aspiration. However, evidence demonstrating that NPO is beneficial as an intervention for people with dysphagia is lacking. This paper explores the theoretical and empirical evidence relating to the potential benefits and adverse effects of NPO and asserts that NPO is not a benign intervention. This paper argues for applying an ethics framework when making decisions relating to the use of NPO as an intervention for dysphagia, in particular addressing informed consent and a person's right to self-determination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the work experiences of specialty coffee baristas in São Paulo, Brazil, considering specifically the role of passion and aspiration. Through ethnographic profiles of four baristas, it reveals how the pursuit of a good life through employment extends beyond immediate economic gain, but that there are complexities in converting forms of capital within the café workplace which are shaped by Brazil’s social context and distinct histories and hierarchies around food service labor. Success and longevity in the position was shaped by baristas’ preexisting capital, and heavily mediated by socioeconomic status; although certain baristas faced more precarious trajectories, they called upon discourses of passion to mitigate challenges inherent in lower-waged food service work. By exploring the experiences and aspirations of baristas in Brazil, this paper sheds light on the complex dynamics of social mobility and labor in emerging connoisseur and artisan markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Different models of L3 acquisition have different predictions about the cross-linguistic effects of previous learning. The 'Cumulative Enhancement Model' predicts that both L1 and L2 have cumulative facilitative effects on L3, but L2 the Status Factor (L2SF) claims that L2 has stronger effects on L3 acquisition. Similarly, while the Typological Primacy Model claims that among the already acquired languages, a typologically similar language transfers more properties to L3, the Linguistic Proximity Model predicts a transfer of structurally similar properties from the previously learnt languages. On the other hand, the Scalpel Model, besides considering linguistic similarity, gives importance to factors such as frequency of use and nature of the input, language dominance, and learning context. The current paper contributes to this debate by presenting data collected from two groups of Balochi learners of English in Balochistan (Pakistan) who were taught British English (BrE) aspiration contrast in plosives at the allophonic level after they had acquired Pakistani English (PakE) as adult L2 learners. Thus, Balochi was L1, PakE L2, and BrE L3 of the learners. After teaching for more than a year, the learners were tested for accuracy in VOTs for BrE plosives. The results support the L2SF and Scalpel Model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sheds light on the experiences of middling Filipino transnational families in Singapore concerning the intersections of hope and aspiration in constructing their imagined futures. In particular, I examine how middling migrants engage in transnational migration and their children's university education to achieve such futures. Using their case, I explain how hope undergirds and sustains aspired-for familial futures until they come to fruition. I argue that hope, while futural and uncertain, is felt in the present because it is the scaffold on which the imagined future lives of families rest. Moreover, in investigating the importance of place in the construction of future lives, I show how Singapore provides space for hope to emerge in relation to the future lives imagined by middling Filipino transnational families. Finally, veering away from the normative conception of hope as a constant banner of optimism, I suggest that when entangled with familial aspirations, hope brings to the fore emotions and practices that are not always positive but necessary for the realization of aspired-for familial futures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foreign body (FB) aspiration/ingestion in children represents a major cause of hospital admission and mortality. Evaluating risk factors and identifying trends in specific FB products could improve targeted health literacy and policy changes. A cross-sectional study querying emergency department patients less than 18 years old with a diagnosis of aspirated/ingested FB was conducted using the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System database between 2010 and 2020. Incidence rates per 100 000 people-year were calculated and multivariate analyses were performed to identify risk factors for hospital admission and mortality. There has been a significantly decreasing rate of aspirated (−23.6%; P =.013) but not ingested FB (−9.4%; P =.066) within the study period. Within pediatric aspirated FB, black compared with white patients had decreased odds of same hospital admission (odds ratio [OR]: 0.8), but increased odds of transfer admission (OR: 1.6) and mortality (OR: 9.2) (all, P <.001). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nil per os (NPO), also referred to as Nil by Mouth (NBM), is a health-related intervention of withholding food and fluids. When implemented in the context of a person with dysphagia, NPO aims to mitigate risks of aspiration. However, evidence demonstrating that NPO is beneficial as an intervention for people with dysphagia is lacking. This paper explores the theoretical and empirical evidence relating to the potential benefits and adverse effects of NPO and asserts that NPO is not a benign intervention. This paper argues for applying an ethics framework when making decisions relating to the use of NPO as an intervention for dysphagia, in particular addressing informed consent and a person's right to self-determination.

Although migrants wish to make friends with local urbanites, they may not eventually realise their aspirations. This paper considers the mismatch between migrants' intention and intergroup relations in China to reveal the gap between aspirations and outcomes. The instrumental variable results suggest that residing in migrant-concentrated neighbourhoods can lead to a gap between migrants' aspired and real intergroup relations. This confirms the negative role of neighbourhood ethnic concentration in a domestic migrant context. Moreover, having a rural hukou indirectly hinders migrants from bridging the gap by lowering their socioeconomic status, demonstrating the disadvantage of rural migrants in the socialisation field. We highlight that migrants in China continue to face the challenges to achieving their integration aspirations. • We study the gap between migrants' aspired and real intergroup relations. • Migrants living in migrant-concentrated neighbourhoods are more likely to face such gap. • Rural hukou indirectly leads to the gap by lowering migrants' socioeconomic status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Key Clinical Message: Foreign body aspiration is common in old age, sometimes lodged in unusual locations like the left upper lobe bronchus when aspiration happens in a recumbent position. Computed tomography is the preferred diagnostic tool, while flexible bronchoscopy is effective for removing the foreign body. Tracheo‐bronchial foreign body aspiration (FBA) is common in children and elderly, but often goes unnoticed due to vague symptoms and atypical imaging findings. We present a case of aspiration of pea in elderly presenting with acute symptoms. Computed tomography (CT) reveled an atypical site of foreign body (FB), that is left upper lobe bronchus and immediate removal of the FB was done using a flexible bronchoscope. The symptoms subsided after removal of the FB. Missed FBs can lead to chronic issues like pneumonia and airway obstruction. Advanced age, psychiatric illness, stroke, seizure disorder, and neuromuscular disease increase the risk of aspiration in older adults. Commonly, FBs get lodged in the right middle and lower lobes after aspiration due to vertical orientation of the airways. CT is a helpful tool for diagnosis of FBA and flexible bronchoscopy is effective in removal of the FB in elderly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Acute ischemic stroke occurs when a blood clot occludes a cerebral artery. Mechanical interventions, primarily stent retrievers and aspiration thrombectomy, are used currently for removing the occluding clot and restoring blood flow. Aspiration involves using a long catheter to traverse the cerebral vasculature to reach the blood clot, followed by application of suction through the catheter bore. Aspiration is also used in conjunction with other techniques such as stent retrievers and balloon guide catheters. Despite the wide use of aspiration, our physical understanding of the process and the causes of the failure of aspiration to retrieve cerebral clots in certain scenarios is not well understood. Experimental and computational studies can help develop the capability to provide deeper insights into the procedure and enable development of new devices and more effective treatment methods. We recapitulate the aspiration-based thrombectomy techniques in clinical practice and provide a perspective of existing engineering methods for aspiration. We articulate the current knowledge gap in the understanding of aspiration and highlight possible directions for future engineering studies to bridge this gap, help clinical translation of engineering studies, and develop new patient-specific stroke therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pulmonary aspiration is a particularly problematic condition in patients in hospitals and nursing home. To promote patient safety and prevent serious complications, the nurse's role in preventing and caring for patient at high risk of pulmonary aspiration is crucial. Our team has developed an online training system on pulmonary aspiration for nurses to improve their ability to identify early risk factors, scientifically assess the risk of aspiration, and effectively intervene and manage when pulmonary aspiration occurs. This system was developed via WeChat app, the most popular social media application in China. It has four main functions, such as online training, online assessment, announcement interaction, and learning record. This online training systems offer the benefits of flexible learning time with anytime access, rich resources that are easy to update, and greater cost-effectiveness. This paper presents and discusses the development process of this system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite significant amounts spent on widening access to higher education (HE), there is sparse evidence of what works. Evaluation of multi-intervention programmes is challenging because it is difficult to elucidate which elements of programmes are important (and why). Here we present results from focus groups and surveys at different time points on a multi-intervention programme based at a UK university. At the start of the programme, attitudes towards studying at - and belonging in - HE were already positive. Confidence in how to apply to and fund HE was relatively low at the start of the programme and increased significantly during it. In contrast, the perception of being able to afford to participate in HE was relatively low throughout. Focus group data also suggested that information on application and funding was helpful and additionally highlighted concerns over affordability and the social side of HE. Information, advice and guidance (IAG) elements of multi-intervention programmes therefore appear to confer significant benefit to students in understanding how to apply to and fund HE. Whilst aspiration raising seems not to be a critical aspect of widening access, focus on attainment and away from aspiration raising should not be done at the expense of excluding IAG. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Laryngotracheal aspiration has a widely-held reputation as a primary cause of lower respiratory infections, such as pneumonia, and is a major concern of care providers of the seriously ill orelderly frail patient. Laryngeal mechanical inefficiency resulting in aspiration into the lower respiratory tract, by itself, is not the cause of pneumonia. It is but one of several factors that must be present simultaneously for pneumonia to develop. Aspiration of oral and gastric contentsoccurs often in healthy people of all ages and without significant pulmonary consequences. Inthe seriously ill or elderly frail patient, higher concentrations of pathogens in the contents of theaspirate are the primary catalyst for pulmonary infection development if in an immunocompromised lower respiratory system. The oral cavity is a complex and ever changing eco-environment striving to maintain homogeneity among the numerous microbial communities inhabiting its surfaces. Poor maintenance of these surfaces to prevent infection can result inpathogenic changes to these microbial communities and, with subsequent proliferation, can altermicrobial communities in the tracheal and bronchial passages. Higher bacterial pathogen concentrations mixing with oral secretions, or with foods, when aspirated into an immunecompromised lower respiratory complex, may result in bacterial aspiration pneumonia development, or other respiratory or systemic diseases. A large volume of clinical evidence makes it clear that oral cleaning regimens, when used in caring for ill or frail patients in hospitals and long-term care facilities, drastically reduce the incidence of respiratory infection and death. The purpose of this narrative review is to examine oral health as a required causative companionin bacterial aspiration pneumonia development, and the effectiveness of oral infection control inthe prevention of this disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Gastric fluid volume has been used as a surrogate marker for pulmonary aspiration risk in studies evaluating fasting protocol safety. This study measured residual gastric fluid volume in children using a protocol in which diluted oral contrast medium was administered up until one hour before anesthesia. Methods: This was a single-center prospective observational cohort trial of 70 children for elective abdominal/pelvic computed tomography (CT). Imaging was performed after diluted enteral contrast medium administration, beginning two hours before and ending at least one hour before induction. For each patient, gastric fluid volume was calculated using an image region of interest. The primary outcome measure was gastric fluid volume measured using the computed tomography image. Results: The median time from the end of contrast administration to imaging was 1.5 h (range: 1.1 to 2.2 h). Residual gastric volume, measured using CT was <0.4 mL/Kg in 33%; ≥0.4 mL/Kg in 67%; and ≥1.5 mL/Kg in 44% of patients. Residual gastric volumes measured using CT and aspiration were moderately correlated (Spearman's correlation coefficient = 0.41, p = 0.0003). However, the median residual gastric volume measured using CT (1.17, IQR: 0.22 to 2.38 mL/Kg) was higher than that of aspiration (0.51, IQR: 0 to 1.58 mL/Kg, p = 0.0008 on differences in paired measures). Three cases of vomiting were reported. No evidence of pulmonary aspiration was identified. Conclusions: Children who receive large quantities of clear fluid up to one hour before anesthesia can have a significant gastric residual volume. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study was conducted to determine the effect of music on the pain, anxiety, and comfort levels of patients who underwent bone marrow aspiration and biopsy. Methods: This study was conducted on patients with hematological malignancies. Music was used with the intervention group. Patients' pain, anxiety, and comfort levels were measured. In addition, qualitative data were obtained through in-depth interviews with patients. Results: A significant difference (p < 0.05) was found between the experimental and control groups regarding pain, comfort and anxiety levels following the application of music. It was found that there was a negative correlation between comfort and pain (r=-0.442 p < 0.001) and between comfort and anxiety (r=-0.544 p < 0.001). As a result of qualitative interviews, patients mentioned the relaxing effect of music and the reduction of anxiety and pain levels. They also stated that music can be utilized as an alternative method. Conclusion: According to the results of the present study, music reduced the pain and anxiety levels of the patients in bone marrow aspiration and biopsy and increased their comfort levels. We can say that music can be used in the clinic as a non-pharmacological method for pain, anxiety and comfort. Clinical Trials Number: NCT05895357 (Date:08/06/2023). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Swallowing disorders, or dysphagia, can lead to bolus aspiration in the airway, causing serious adverse health effects. Current clinical interventions for dysphagia are mainly empirical and often based on symptoms rather than etiology, of which a thorough understanding is still lacking. However, it is challenging to study the swallowing process that involves sequential structural motions and is inaccessible to standard visualization instruments. This study proposed an in vitro method to visualize swallowing hydrodynamics and identify the fundamental mechanisms underlying overflow aspirations. An anatomically accurate pharynx–epiglottis model was developed from patient-specific CT images of 623 µm isotropic resolution. A compliant half-pharynx cast was prepared to incorporate dynamic structures and visualize the flow dynamics in the mid-sagittal plane. Three locations of frequent overflow aspiration were identified: the epiglottis base, cuneiform tubular recesses, and the interarytenoid notch. Water had a consistently higher aspiration risk than a 1% w/v methylcellulose (MC) solution. The contracting–relaxing pharynx and flapping epiglottis spread the liquid film, causing a delayed esophageal entry and increased vallecular residual, which was more pronounced with the MC solution. Dispensing the liquid too slowly resulted in water aspiration, whereas this was not observed with the MC solution. An incomplete epiglottis inversion, such as horizontal or down-tilt 45°, aggravated the aspiration risks of water. This study suggests that it is practical to use anatomically accurate respiratory–digestive models to study the swallowing process by incorporating varying physiological details. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Young men from disadvantaged contexts are the least likely to attend university in Australia; furthermore, when they do attend, they are likely to struggle. This article draws on empirical data documenting the aspirations and resilience of first-in-family young men in Australian higher education, with the aim of nuancing their classed experience of university. Drawing on an exploratory longitudinal study (n = 42) and adopting a mixed method approach, we use the 25-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC) and semi-structured interviews over a three-year period to explore changes in resilience of first-in-family men from the age of 17 to 20. The mixed-method approach employed in this study allows us to draw connections between the participants' subjective experience of resilience and the more objective measures of resilience as captured by the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, a psychometrically sound and validated instrument. Quantitative analyses of data enable us to document the trends in resilience over time for different groups of first-in-family men, while qualitative data provide insights structured around three key themes: independence and isolation; managing and adjusting; and using support structures. The article draws on analysis across these data to consider the participants' perceptions of their resilience, and how these perceptions change in reference to their experience, in order to paint a more nuanced picture of first-in-family men's classed experience of higher education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

New suction endoscopes, ureteral access sheaths (UAS) and catheters aim to improve the efficacy of flexible ureteroscopy and optimize its safety. Suction UAS with non-flexible tips have shown promising results, especially in maintaining low intrarenal pressure, but also in removing small debris and reducing the "snow globe" effect. In addition, suctioning UAS with a flexible tip offers the advantage of being able to be navigated through the pyelocaliceal system to where the laser lithotripsy is performed. It can also remove small stone fragments when the flexible ureteroscope is retracted, using the Venturi effect. Direct in-scope suction (DISS) involves aspirating dust and small stone debris through the working channel of a flexible ureteroscope, thus regulating intrarenal pressure and improving visibility. Steerable aspiration catheters are other devices designed to increase stone clearance of the pyelocaliceal system. They are inserted under fluoroscopic guidance into every calyx after retraction of the flexible ureteroscope, alternating irrigation and aspiration to remove dust and small gravels. Combining flexible-tip suction UAS and the DISS technique may offer some advantages worth evaluating. The advantage of using these instruments to achieve a low intrarenal pressure was demonstrated. The true practical impact on the long-term stone-free status is a matter requiring further studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Tamarind seed aspiration is not frequent in children and is usually observed in kids from rural backgrounds, with easy access to tamarind fruits and their by-products. Materials and Methods: We report a retrospective review of five patients managed in the pediatric surgery department for tamarind seed aspiration into the tracheobronchial tree. The data were analyzed based on age, clinical presentation, bronchoscopic observations, and the challenges faced during the rigid bronchoscopic retrieval and postoperative course. Results: There were four boys and one girl with a median age of 10 years. High-resolution computed tomography thorax was done in all patients. The foreign body was identified in the right main bronchus in one and the left main bronchus in four patients. All five patients underwent rigid bronchoscopy and retrieval of the seed. Two patients had an early presentation (within a week) - they needed temporary tracheotomy as the swollen seed could not be negotiated through the narrow glottis. Two patients had a late presentation (around 15 days) - they required removal in piecemeal using crushing forceps and multiple insertions of bronchoscope prolonging surgical time. 0ne patient presented at 22 days posttamarind aspiration. It was soft enough for easy disintegration with crocodile forceps and expeditiously removed in three to four pieces. All patients recovered uneventfully. Conclusion: Removal of tamarind seed foreign body from the tracheobronchial tree is challenging. Anticipating the difficulties and being prepared well, helps to reduce the intraoperative difficulty, and allow successful removal with favorable patient outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Computational thinking (CT) has attracted global research attention. However, the relationship between CT education and later aspirations in computing careers was less explored, and less attention was paid to understanding the intermediary role of computational identity. Based on social cognitive career theory, this study examined the relationships among CT learning experiences, computational identity, programming selfefficacy, and computing aspirations. Data were collected using questionnaires with 742 high school students from an urban city in China. A structural equation modeling analysis revealed the influencing factors of computing aspirations and the intermediary role of computational identity in bridging CT learning experiences to programming self-efficacy and computing aspiration. This study has implications for policies and research to further examine computational identity and understand the pathways to cultivating computing talents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Voluntary contributions are a crucial resource for nonprofit organizations and challenging to acquire. Social information on other people's contributions has been found to positively influence individual giving behavior. However, a clear understanding how social information reference groups impact volunteering intentions is missing. Drawing on social comparison theory, we conducted a survey experiment with variations in social information reference groups to shed light on mechanisms within social comparison processes in volunteering. Results show that volunteering intention increases when social information refers to reference groups similar to recipients (ingroups) compared with reference groups without similarities (outgroups). This effect is mediated by group identification. In contrast, shifts in volunteering aspiration are anchored by observed performance levels and independent of reference groups. The study contributes to the social information literature and suggests the need to distinguish different forms of social information to understand social comparison processes in volunteering, relevant for researchers and practitioners alike. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Thickened liquids are commonly recommended to reduce the risk of penetration-aspiration. However, questions persist regarding the impact of bolus consistency on swallowing safety. The common practice of summarizing Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS) scores based on worst scores is a bias in prior analyses. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of liquid consistency on PAS scores using a Bayesian multilevel ordinal regression model approach, considering all scores across repeated bolus trials. A second aim was to determine whether PAS scores differed across thickener type within consistency. Methods: We analyzed two prior datasets (D1; D2). D1 involved 678 adults with suspected dysphagia (289 female; mean age 69 years, range 20-100). D2 involved 177 adults (94 female; mean age 54 years, range 21-85), of whom 106 were nominally healthy and 71 had suspected dysphagia. All participants underwent videofluoroscopy involving ≥3 boluses of 20% w/v thin liquid barium and of xanthan-gum thickened barium in mildly, moderately and extremely thick consistencies. D2 participants also swallowed trials of slightly thick liquid barium, and starch-thickened stimuli for each thickened consistency. Duplicate blinded rating yielded PAS scores per bolus, with discrepancies resolved by consensus. PAS ratings for a total of 8,185 and 3,407 boluses were available from D1 and D2, respectively. Bayesian models examined PAS patterns across consistencies. We defined meaningful differences as non-overlapping 95% credible intervals (CIs). Results: Across D1 and D2, penetration occurred on 10.87% of trials compared to sensate (0.68%) and silent aspiration (1.54%), with higher rates of penetration (13.47%) and aspiration (3.07%) on thin liquids. For D1, the probability of a PAS score > 2 was higher for thin liquids with weighted PAS scores of 1.57 (CI: 1.48, 1.66) versus mildly (1.26; CI: 1.2, 1.33), moderately (1.1; CI: 1.07, 1.13), and extremely thick liquids (1.04; CI: 1.02, 1.08). D2 results were similar. Weighted PAS scores did not meaningfully differ between thin and slightly thick liquids, or between starch and xanthan gum thickened liquids. Discussion: These results confirm that the probability of penetration-aspiration is greatest on thin liquids compared to thick liquids, with significant reductions in PAS severity emerging with mildly thick liquids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) is the standard of care for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) due to large vessel occlusion (LVO). The choice of a transradial approach (TRA) for anterior circulation LVOs is still debatable; the use of a specific tricoaxial system could help mitigate numerous issues related to transradial MT. Materials and Methods: From November 2022 to November 2023, 22 patients underwent TRA-MT for anterior circulation LVOs, both as first-line and rescue from transfemoral approach (TFA) failure, with the same triaxial setup consisting of a 7F introducer sheath, 7F guide catheter, and aspiration catheters ranging from 5.5F to 5F in relation to the occlusion site. Choice of thrombectomy technique was at operator discretion. Patients' demographic data, clinical presentation, treatment details, complications, rate of crossover to TFA, successful revascularization (modified thrombolysis in cerebral infarction [mTICI] score =2b), and good clinical outcome at 3 months (modified Rankin scale [mRS] 0-2) were reported. Results: Of 20 patients selected, 10 (50%) had occlusion of M1 segment of middle cerebral artery (MCA), 6 (30%) of internal carotid artery (ICA) terminus, and 4 (20%) with M2 MCA occlusions; 12/20 (60%) were right-sided occlusions and 8/20 (40%) were left-sided. The mean National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score was 9.25 at admission. Successful revascularization to mTICI 2b-3 was achieved in 18/20 patients (90%). Intracranial complications were reported in 2 (10%) patients. Rate of radial artery occlusion at 24 hours was 10,6%; no access-site haemorrhagic complications were reported. Symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage occurred in 2 (10%) patients. mRS score 0-2 at 3 months was 50%. Conclusion: The high technical effectiveness and good safety profile of this specific tricoaxial setup for TRA-MT in AIS, even for large proximal LVOs, could constitute a viable alternative to TFA-MT in selected cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]