Accounting for Athletics: A Balanced Scorecard Approach

The Balanced Scorecard is a managerial accounting system designed for internal use in order to align four different facets of a business with its overall vision and strategy. It emphasizes that an organization should not be judged on financial performance alone, but also on a variety of non-financial metrics. Using the Balanced Scorecard, the Athletic Department at the University of Connecticut has been analyzed as to which metrics are the most important in terms of fulfilling their mission statement.

Salivary cortisol, psychological stress and depressive symptoms among patients undergoing colon cancer screenings

As the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, colon cancer has a high cure rate if detected early by a colonoscopy (U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group, 2007). However, more than 41 million at-risk Americans are not properly receiving colonoscopy screenings according to the recommendations of the Center for Disease Control. This study provides insight into the physiological and psychological benefits of the colonoscopy procedure over and above cancer detection and prevention. Thirty-six patients receiving colonoscopic screening at the University of Connecticut Health Center participated in this study. A questionnaire battery that assessed perceived stress, depressive symptoms, colon cancer related worry, and social support, and optional saliva sampling was completed 2 weeks prior to and post colonoscopy. It was hypothesized that salivary cortisol concentrations, perceived stress, and self-reported depressive symptoms would show significant decreases from pre to post colonoscopy, and that these variables would all be positively correlated with one another. Results showed significant, positive correlations between depressive symptoms and both salivary cortisol (r (34)= .348, p< .05) and perceived stress (r (34)= .635, p< .01). Morning salivary cortisol levels decreased significantly from pre to post colonoscopy to levels below the population mean (t (16)=-3.711, p<. 01). No such differences were observed in either perceived stress or depressive symptoms. These results indicate that by decreasing cortisol concentrations to levels below that of the population mean, the colonoscopy provided physiological health benefits to patients beyond cancer screening. From a health psychology standpoint, this may encourage some of the 41 million Americans not receiving proper colon cancer screenings to adopt this potentially life-saving health behavior.

A cohort study of occupational asbestos-exposure related neoplasms in Texas Gulf Coast area

A cohort study was conducted in Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast area on individual workers who have been exposed to asbestos for 15 years or more. Most of these workers were employed in petrochemical industries. Of the 15,742 subjects initially selected for the cohort study, 3,258 had positive chest X-ray findings believed to be related to prolonged asbestos exposure. These subjects were further investigated. Their work out included detailed medical and occupational history, laboratory tests and spirometry. One thousand eight-hundred and three cases with positive chest X-ray findings whose data files were considered complete at the end of May 1986 were analyzed and their findings included in this report.^ The prevalence of lung cancer and cancer of the following sights: skin, stomach, oropharyngeal, pancreas and kidneys were significantly increased when compared to data from Connecticut Tumor Registry. The prevalence of other chronic conditions such as hypertension, emphysema, heart disease and peptic ulcer was also significantly high when compared to data for the U.S. and general population furnished by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). In most instances the occurrence of cancer and the chronic ailment previously mentioned appeared to follow 15-25 years of exposure to asbestos. ^

Genetic epidemiology of childhood brain tumors

A rare familial cancer syndrome involving childhood brain tumors (CBT), breast cancer, sarcomas and an array of other tumors has been described (Li and Fraumeni 1969, 1975, 1982, 1987). A survey of CBT identified through the Connnecticut Tumor Registry in 1984 revealed a high frequency of CBT, leukemia and other childhood cancer in siblings of CBT patients (Farwell and Flannery, 1984). Other syndromes such as neurofibromatosis and nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome have also been associated with CBT; however, no systematic family studies have been conducted to determine the extent to which cancer aggregates in family members of CBT patients. This family study was designed to determine the frequency of cancer aggregation overall or at specific sites, to determine the frequency of known or potentially hereditary syndromes in families of CBT patients, and to determine a genetic model to characterize familial cancer syndromes and to identify specific kindreds to which such a model(s) might apply. This study includes 244 confirmed CBT patients referred to the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center between the years 1944 and 1983, diagnosed under the age of 15 years and resident in the U.S. or Canada. Family histories were obtained on the proband's first (parents, siblings and offspring) and second degree (proband's aunts, uncles and grandparents) relatives following sequential sampling scheme rules. To determine if cancer aggregates in families, we compared the cancer experience in the population to that expected in the general population using Connecticut Tumor Registry calendar year, age, race and sex-specific rates. The standardized incidence ratio (SIR) for cancer overall was 0.91 (41 observed (O) and 44.94 expected (E); 95% Confidence Interval (CI) = 0.65-1.24). We observed a significant excess of colon cancer among the proband's first degree relatives (O/E = 5/1.64; 95% CI = 1.01-7.65), in particular those under age 45 year. Segregation analysis showed evidence for multifactorial inheritance in the small percentage (N = 5) of the families. ^

Incidence of breast cancer in first-degree female relatives of men with newly diagnosed prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is the most common incident cancer and the second leading cause of death in men in the United States. Although numerous attempts have been made to identify risk factors associated with prostate cancer, the results have been inconsistent and conflicting. The only established risk factors are age and ethnicity. A positive family history of prostate cancer has also been shown to increase the risk two- to three-fold among close relatives.^ There are several similarities between breast and prostate cancer that make the relationship between the two of interest. (1) Histologically, both cancers are predominantly adenocarcinomas, (2) both organs have a sexual and/or reproductive role, (3) both cancers occur in hormone-responsive tissue, (4) therapy often consists of hormonal manipulation, (5) worldwide distribution patterns of prostate and breast cancer are positively correlated.^ A family history study was conducted to evaluate the aggregation of prostate cancer and co-aggregation of breast cancer in 149 patients referred to The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center with newly diagnosed prostate cancer. All patients were white, less than 75 years of age at diagnosis and permanent residents of the United States. Through a personal interview with the proband, family histories were collected on 1,128 first-degree relatives. Cancer diagnoses were verified through medical records or death certificate. Standardized incidence ratios were calculated using a computer program by Monson incorporating data from Connecticut Tumor Registry.^ In this study, familial aggregation of prostate cancer was verified only among the brothers, not among fathers. Although a statistically significant excess of breast cancer was not found, the increased point estimates in mothers, sisters and daughters are consistent with a co-aggregation hypothesis. Rather surprising was the finding of a seven-fold increased risk of prostate cancer and a three-fold increased risk of breast cancer among siblings in the presence of a maternal history of any cancer. Larger family history studies including high risk (African-Americans) and lower-risk groups (Hispanics) and incorporating molecular genetic evaluations should be conducted to determine if genetic differences play a role in the differential incidence rates across ethnic groups. ^

Major and trace element compositions of the Buendnerschiefer samples

The Bündnerschiefer of the Swiss-Italian Alps is a large sedimentary complex deposited on the Piemonte-Liguria and Valais oceans and associated continental margins from the upper Jurassic to Eocene. It is made of a large variety of sequences associated or not with an ophiolitic basement. The Bündnerschiefer makes an accretionary prism that developed syn-tectonically from the onset of alpine subduction, and it records orogenic metamorphism following episodes of HP metamorphism. The Bündnerschiefer shares important similarities with the Otago schists of New Zealand and with the Wepawaug schists of Connecticut, both of which form accretionary prisms and have an orogenic metamorphic imprint. With the aim of testing the hypothesis of mobility of chemical components as a function of metamorphic grade, in this work I present fifty-five bulk chemical analyses of various lithological facies of the Bündnerschiefer collected along the well-studied field gradient of the Lepontine dome of Central Switzerland, in the Prättigau half window of East Switzerland, and in the Tsaté Nappe of Valle d'Aosta (Italy). The dataset includes the concentration of major components, large ion lithophile elements (Rb, Sr, Ba, Cs), high field strength elements (Zr, Ti, Nb, Th, U, Ta, Hf), fluid-mobile light elements (B, Li), volatiles (CO2, S), REEs, and Y, V, Cr, Co, Sn, Pb, Cu, Zn, Tl, Sb, Be, and Au. These data are compared against the compositions of the global marine sediment reservoir, typical crustal reservoirs, and against the previously measured compositions of Otago and Wepawaug schists. Results reveal that, irrespective of their metamorphic evolution, the bulk chemical compositions of orogenic metasediments are characterized by mostly constant compositional ratios (e.g., K2O/Al2O3, Ba/Al2O3, Sr/CaO, etc.), whose values in most cases are undistinguishable from those of actual marine sediments and other crustal reservoirs. For these rocks, only volatile concentrations decrease dramatically as a function of metamorphic temperature, and significant deviations from the reservoir signatures are evident for SiO2, B, and Li. These results are interpreted as an indication of residual enrichment in the sediments, a process taking place during syn-metamorphic dehydration from the onset of metamorphism in a regime of chemical immobility. Residual enrichment increased the absolute concentrations of the chemical components of these rocks, but did not modify significantly their fundamental ratios. This poor compositional modification of the sediments indicates that orogenic metamorphism in general does not promote significant mass transfer from accretionary prisms. In contrast, mass transfer calculations carried out in a shear zone crosscutting the Bündnerschiefer shows that significant mass transfer occurs within these narrow zones, resulting in gains of H2O, SiO2, Al2O3, K2O, Ba, Y, Rb, Cu, V, Tl, Mo, and Ce during deformation and loss of Na2O, CO2, S, Ni, B, U, and Pb from the rock. These components were presumably transported by an aquo-carbonic fluid along the shear zone. These distinct attitudes to mobilize chemical elements from orogenic sediments may have implications for a potentially large number of geochemical processes in active continental margins, from the recycling of chemical components at plate margins to the genesis of hydrothermal ore deposits.

Reflexiones personales

Fil: Nijensohn, Daniel. St. Vincent's Medical Center (Connecticut, Estados Unidos)

Telurismo, Vanguardia y Tiempo Literario en Doña Bárbara

Para legitimar su propia modernidad, los escritores y críticos asociados al Boom solían describir a Rómulo Gallegos como un autor arcaico, neonaturalista o neorromántico, todavía activo en el siglo XX. Este artículo se propone reconstruir el horizonte de expectativas que cimentó el prestigio inicial de Doña Bárbara. Se argumenta que su éxito se debió al menos parcialmente a la proximidad —que después dejaría de percibirse con claridad— entre el regionalismo o mundonovismo y la estética de vanguardia. La comprensión del interés de Gallegos en la cinematografía resulta esencial para entender dichas afinidades.

Prácticas defensivas, conflictos y autoridades en la frontera bonaerense.Los pagos de Magdalena y Pergamino (1752-1780)

Este trabajo ahonda en el funcionamiento de la frontera bonaerense a partir del análisis de distintas Comandancias de Fronteras, principalmente las ubicadas en los pagos de Pergamino al norte y Magdalena al sur de la jurisdicción, haciendo hincapié en la articulación generada entre las fuerzas militares regulares y los cuerpos milicianos para llevar a cabo la práctica defensiva. El recorte temporal (1752-1780) contempla desde la puesta en funcionamiento de las Comandancias hasta las reformas defensivas efectuadas por el Virrey Vértiz, que trastocaron algunos rasgos básicos de nuestro objeto de estudio. Nos interesa conocer la formación de tal frontera, las prácticas concretas que le daban vida, los sujetos sociales que emergieron en este proceso y los conflictos que protagonizaron. Seguimos las trayectorias de los Sargentos Mayores de Milicias -en especial, Diego Trillo en Pergamino y Clemente López Osornio en Magdalena- como ejemplos de una forma de autoridad local resultante de la legitimidad que proveía el ejercicio de la "defensa".

Tributo y armas en Bolivia : Comunidades indígenas y estrategias de visibilización ciudadana, Siglo XIX

El artículo aborda la acción y la capacidad transformadoras de los procesos políticos nacionales ejercidas por las comunidades indígenas bolivianas a lo largo del siglo XIX, a partir del desempeño de las funciones cívicas de trabajador-contribuyente y de soldado de milicias. Tales actividades las hicieron sujeto y objeto de un complejo proceso de ciudadanización y desciudadanización en un contexto de sufragio censitario en el que la violencia y la ley coadyuvaron en el proceso de institucionalización del Estado.

El servicio de armas de los habitantes de la campaña durante el Sitio de Buenos Aires. La Guardia de Luján, 1852-1853

El siguiente artículo analiza cómo operó el reclutamiento de hombres para el servicio de armas durante el levantamiento de Hilario Lagos y el sitio de la ciudad de Buenos Aires, de diciembre de 1852 a julio de 1853, en el partido de la Guardia de Luján (hoy Mercedes). Para ello, presta especial atención al rol de los jueces de paz y de las autoridades militares de la campaña, los instrumentos utilizados para hacer efectivo el control y organización de las milicias, así como los principios de resistencia existentes

La invasión inglesa y la participación popular en la Reconquista y Defensa de Buenos Aires 1806-1807

Nuestro trabajo intentará abordar algunas cuestiones en torno a las milicias y la participación plebeya que entre 1806 y 1807 emprendieron la Reconquista y Defensa de Buenos Aires durante el proceso de invasión inglesa. Consideramos importante analizar qué pasó en el Río de la Plata entre 1806 y 1807 y, puntualmente, quiénes fueron los actores que formaron parte de estos eventos debido al rol significativo que muchos de ellos tendrán, posteriormente, durante el proceso de Independencia

La "frontera" bonaerense en el siglo XVIII, un espacio políticamente concertado. Resistencia y complementariedad política entre vecinos e indígenas en los pagos de Luján

El trabajo se propone argumentar porqué se define la frontera bonaerense como un espacio políticamente concertado. Para esto se analizan las acciones defensivas practicadas, para determinar que los recursos materiales constructivos y los efectivos militares de carrera fueron insuficientes para proteger la región. Por el contrario, se demuestra que el servicio en las milicias resultó esencial para proteger el espacio y resultó constituyente de condiciones de vecindad que posibilitaron que algunos vecinos-milicianos pudieran acceder a instancias de autoridad. Poderes locales que se desplazaban desde el ámbito urbano, la villa de Luján, a la campaña, espacios de frontera. Para argumentar esto se exponen los conocimientos arribados sobre el servicio miliciano y la estructura -red- defensiva que se organizó en la jurisdicción de Buenos Aires durante la primera mitad del siglo XVIII.