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Item 1862 in Dakota Land, a Genocide Forgotten: How civilizational transformation can get lost in the fading rate of history(2008-06-26) Andregg, Michael M.1862 was a critical year in a process by which a land larger than many nations was transformed from one civilization to another. But the process was not a classic conquest easily marked in history books. Rather, it was a slower ‘digestion’ of over 20 million hectares of territory by one civilization accompanied by moments of true genocide or at least “ethnic cleansing” amidst much longer periods of very high death rates for one group and high birth rates and especially immigration rates for the other group. But this was sufficiently gradual that most historians did not record it on their lists of wars and other organized conflicts. I will discuss some extremely divergent views on what happened then. One reason they are so divergent is because the conflict of 1862 and its aftermath were extremely complex, with massacres on both sides, and with Indians working on both sides. Some whites fought to exterminate the Indians while others risked their lives to save them, and vice versa. Half-breeds of many kinds were caught in the middle, trying to survive a dramatic civilizational transformation that was occurring all around them. The result: In 1800, the territory now called Minnesota was 99%+ Indian, and by 1900 it was 99%+ whites of European descent.Item A Place for Neuroscience in Teacher Knowledge and Education(Mind, Brain, and Education published by International Mind, Brain, and Education Society and Wiley Periodicals LLC., 2022-08-22) Dubinsky, Janet M; Roehrig, Gillian; Varma, SashankThe foundational contributions from neuroscience regarding how learning occurs in the brain reside within one of Shulman’s seven components of teacher knowledge, Knowledge of Students. While Knowledge of Students combines inputs from multiple social science disciplines that traditionally inform teacher education, teachers must also (and increasingly) know what happens inside students’ brains. Neuroscience professional development provides neuroscience principles that teachers can learn and apply to distinguish among pedagogical choices, plan lessons, guide in-the-moment classroom decisions, and inform the views of students. Neuroscience does not directly invent new pedagogies. Rather, knowledge of neuroscience guides teachers in choosing appropriate pedagogies, pragmatically informing teaching. By providing physiological explanations for psychological phenomena relevant to education, teachers benefit from neuroscience content in their training and professional development.Item Acceptability of Neuroscientific Interventions in Education(Springer, 2021-08-05) Schmied, Astrid; Varma, Sashank; Dubinsky, Janet MResearchers are increasingly applying neuroscience technologies that probe or manipulate the brain to improve educational outcomes. However, their use remains fraught with ethical controversies. Here, we investigate the acceptability of neuroscience applications to educational practice in two groups of young adults: those studying bioscience who will be driving future basic neuroscience research and technology transfer, and those studying education who will be choosing among neuroscience- derived applications for their students. Respondents rated the acceptability of six scenarios describing neuroscience applications to education spanning multiple methodologies, from neuroimaging to neuroactive drugs to brain stimulation. They did so from two perspectives (student, teacher) and for three recipient populations (low-achieving, high-achieving students, students with learning disabilities). Overall, the biosciences students were more favorable to all neuroscience applications than the education students. Scenarios that measured brain activity (i.e., EEG or fMRI) to assess or predict intellectual abilities were deemed more acceptable than manipulations of mental activity by drug use or stimulation techniques, which may violate body integrity. Enhancement up to the norm for low-achieving students and especially students with learning disabilities was more favorably viewed than enhancement beyond the norm for high-achieving students. Finally, respondents rated neuroscientific applications to be less acceptable when adopting the perspective of a teacher than that of a student. Future studies should go beyond the acceptability ratings collected here to delineate the role that concepts of access, equity, authenticity, agency and personal choice play in guiding respondents’ reasoning.Item Active Learning in a Neuroethics Course Positively Impacts Moral Judgment Development in Undergraduates(Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience, 2015-03-09) Abu-Odeh, Desiree; Dziobek, Derek; Torres Jimenez, Natalia; Barbey, Christopher; Dubinsky, Janet MThe growing neuroscientific understanding of the biological basis of behaviors has profound social and ethical implications. To address the need for public awareness of the consequences of these advances, we developed an undergraduate neuroethics course, Neuroscience and Society, at the University of Minnesota. Course evolution, objectives, content, and impact are described here. To engage all students and facilitate undergraduate ethics education, this course employed daily reading, writing, and student discussion, case analysis, and team presentations with goals of fostering development of moral reasoning and judgment and introducing application of bioethical frameworks to topics raised by neuroscience. Pre- and post-course Defining Issues Test (DIT) scores and student end-of-course reflections demonstrated that course objectives for student application of bioethical frameworks to neuroethical issues were met. The active-learning, student-centered pedagogical approaches used to achieve these goals serve as a model for how to effectively teach neuroethics at the undergraduate level.Item Adolescent Sleep and Mental Health Across Race/Ethnicity: Does Parent-Child Connectedness Matter?(Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, 2021-04-22) So, Marvin; Perry, Nicole B.; Langenfeld, Adam D.; Barnes, Andrew J.Objective: Sleep is vital for healthy development, yet most adolescents do not meet recommended nightly hours. Although racial/ethnic minorities often experience relatively worse sleep outcomes compared with White peers, little is known about how the sleep-mental health relationship holds across diverse groups or how family relationships affect this association. Method: Using data on 8th, 9th, and 11th grade public school respondents to the 2016 Minnesota Student Survey (N = 113,834), we conducted univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analyses to examine whether sleep duration was associated with depressive symptoms, suicide ideation, and suicide attempt, adjusting for sociodemographic covariates. Furthermore, we examined the effect of the parent-child connectedness by sleep interaction on these relationships. Analyses were conducted for 9 racial/ethnic groups collectively and separately. Results: Overall, youth sleep duration and parent-child connectedness were independently associated with reduced rates of depressive symptoms, suicide ideation, and suicide attempt. There was significant interaction between parent-child connectedness and sleep, demonstrating that connectedness magnifies the benefits of the sleep-mental health relationship. Main effects of sleep and parent-child connectedness for mental health were similar for most individual racial/ethnic groups, although magnitudes varied. The connectedness-sleep interaction only remained significant for White and Asian youth on select suicide-related outcomes. Conclusion: Despite racial/ethnic differences, adolescent sleep and parent-child connectedness both seem to buffer youth from poor mental health in a large, multiethnic sample. On the whole, these factors demonstrate a synergistic protective effect and reflect promising intervention targets. The extent to which their interactive benefit translates across diverse populations requires additional study.Item Aerodynamics of highway sign structures: from laboratory tests and field monitoring to structural design guidelines(American Society of Civil Engineers, 2020-08-20) Heisel, Michael; Daugherty, Carly; Finley, Nicole; Linderman, Lauren; Schillinger, Dominik; French, Catherine E; Guala, MicheleField- and model-scale experiments were conducted to quantitatively assess the effects of wind loading on Rural Intersection Conflict Warning System (RICWS) highway sign structures. A field-scale RICWS was instrumented with acceleration and linear displacement sensors to monitor unsteady loads, dynamics, and displacement of the sign under various wind events classified by cup and vane wind velocity measurements. To complement the field-scale results, tests on a 1:18-scale model were conducted under controlled laboratory conditions in the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory towing tank and wind tunnel facilities. Aerodynamic effects on the sign structure were identified through analysis of the mean and oscillating drag and lift forces. Vortices periodically shed by the structure induced forces at a frequency governed by the Strouhal number. The shedding frequency overlapped with the estimated natural frequency during strong wind events, leading to possible resonance. Amplified oscillations were additionally observed when the wind direction was parallel to the structure, possibly due to an aeroelastic instability. The findings highlight the relevance of aerodynamic effects on roadside signs or similar complex planar geometries under unsteady wind loading.Item After the vote: climate policy decision-making in the administrative state.(Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2021) Struthers, Cory L.; Arnold, Gwen; Scott, Tyler A.; Fleischman, ForrestWhile the science-policy interface has been a major focus of recent climate policy research, the role of agency practices and bureaucratic behavior has been largely overlooked. With a focus on U.S. federal agencies and similar bureaucratic contexts, we review the literature on how administrative decision-making influences the acquisition and application of climate evidence, including information provided by both scientists and stakeholders. We show that administrative procedures (requirements for gathering and analyzing information), agency characteristics (such as mission and institutional design), and bureaucrat attributes (an individual’s expertise and values) shape agencies’ use of climate evidence. Given the key role of the administrative state in policymaking, our review calls for greater attention to public administration and its consequences for climate responsiveness.Item The Agenda for Dialogues among Civilizations should be Human Survival(2005-06) Andregg, Michael M.THE Agenda for Dialogues Among Civilizations Should be Human Survival Prepared for the ISCSC’s 34th conference in St. Paul, Minnesota, USA at the University of St. Thomas, June 9-11, 2005. By Michael Andregg, University of St. Thomas, mmandregg@stthomas.edu Abstract The first, and last item on my agenda for dialogues among civilizations is human survival. The prime reason is that this goal generates more cooperation and less argument than any other I have found. If we are to avoid the “clash” of civilizations that many fear, we should avoid angry “debates” about political or ideological issues. The core difference between a “clash” or a “debate” and a “dialogue” is style or tone. These are vague concepts, but profoundly important. Safe food, clean water, fuel for heating and fibers to wear or write on can be politicized (as can anything) but they are also the most universal human needs. Therefore they are also understood by the illiterate as well as by erudite elites. The goal of human survival promotes a positive tone that helps with the very hard work of finding viable solutions to the manifold challenges of our time. From this point of entry, 10,000 other topics can be discussed constructively, including contentious ones. The point is to establish more rapport between participants than often exists initially, by focusing on common ground before the more difficult issues of war, peace and politics inevitably emerge. Even religion and its varieties may be dialogued very constructively if rapport exists with some minimal empathy for the problems that other human beings face. Lacking this, if one starts with religion or politics by contrast, one too often encounters dogmatic views or demonization of the other, and constructive dialogue becomes nearly impossible. Here are some threats to human survival that might better be addressed by a “dialogue” instead of a great “debate” among the civilizations of the earth today. War should be obvious, particularly when weapons of mass destruction are considered. Energy, oil-based and otherwise, is a challenge of vast scale with huge consequences for all. Threats to human survival include the many environmental challenges and even catastrophes cited by the recent Report of the United Nations Department for Economic and Social Affairs, and forewarned by the Global 2000 Report to the President (of the United States, then Jimmy Carter) 25 years ago. They include religious extremism (or militant religion) and the challenges of how to preserve cultural and political diversity in an age of globalization. Each of those threats to physical or cultural survival includes many sub-topics, all of which benefit from a constructive attitude among those who seek solutions through dialogue as opposed to debate. Partisan bickering is the antithesis of this. So I say again that promoting this attitude is as important as any topic or line item on an agenda. No, it is more important than the intellectual elements on such lists of good things one might do.Item Altered Reality. An inquiry-based neuroscience lesson for helping students understand neuroplasticity and its role in learning(National Science Teachers Association, 2020) Ellingson, Charlene; Dubinsky, Janet MEffective science instruction requires knowledge of subject matter and scientific practices (Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), 2013), as well as the context within which learning occurs (Anthony, Hunter and Hunter, 2014). For science teachers, there is often a tension between the efficiency of lecture and student engagement that comes with hands-on activities. In this article, we present Altered Reality, an inquiry-based neuroscience lesson that can bridge the gap between efficiency and engagement by concurrently teaching neuroscience, scientific practices, and modelling neuroplasticity.Item AMUSE: Empowering Users for Cost-Aware Offloading with Throughput-Delay Tradeoffs(IEEE Transactions on Networking, 2016-05) Im, Youngbin; Joe-Wong, Carlee; Ha, Sangtae; Sen, Soumya; Kwon, Ted T.; Chiang, MungTo cope with recent exponential increases in demand for mobile data, wireless Internet service providers (ISPs) are increasingly changing their pricing plans and deploying Wi-Fi hotspots to offload their mobile traffic. However, these ISP-centric approaches for traffic management do not always match the interests of mobile users. Users face a complex, multi-dimensional tradeoff between cost, throughput, and delay in making their offloading decisions: while they may save money and receive a higher throughput by waiting for Wi-Fi access, they may not wait for Wi-Fi if they are sensitive to delay. To navigate this tradeoff, we develop Adaptive bandwidth Management through USer-Empowerment (AMUSE), a functional prototype of a practical, cost-aware Wi-Fi offloading system that takes into account a user’s throughput-delay tradeoffs and cellular budget constraint. Based on predicted future usage and Wi-Fi availability, AMUSE decides which applications to offload to what times of the day. Since nearly all traffic flows from mobile devices are TCP flows, we introduce a new receiver-side bandwidth allocation mechanism to practically enforce the assigned rate of each TCP application. Thus, AMUSE users can optimize their bandwidth rates according to their own cost-throughput-delay tradeoff without relying on support from different apps’ content servers. Through a measurement study of 20 smartphone users’ traffic usage traces, we observe that though users already offload a large amount of some application types, our framework can offload a significant additional portion of users’ cellular traffic. We implement AMUSE on Windows 7 tablets and evaluate its effectiveness with 3G and Wi-Fi usage data obtained from a trial with 37 mobile users. Our results show that AMUSE improves user utility; when compared with AMUSE, other offloading algorithms yield 14 and 27 percent lower user utilities for light and heavy users, respectively. Intelligently managing users’ competing interests for cost, throughput, and delay can therefore improve their offloading decisions.Item An Analysis of the Problematic Discourse Surrounding "Authentic Texts"(Hispania, 2019-06) Simonsen, Russell LIn L2 (second language) pedagogy, texts are commonly distinguished based on whether language instruction was a consideration in their creation. Texts that are not created for L2 instruction, or “authentic texts,” have been thought to represent the target language in an accurate and reliable way (Zyzik and Polio 2017). Conversely, texts that are produced with language learning in mind (“non-authentic texts”), such as those often found in textbooks, have received a markedly negative depiction; they have been considered contrived texts with distorted and artificial language, and their sociocultural purpose has been questioned (e.g., Gilmore 2007; Glisan and Donato 2017). An analysis of these polarized characterizations reveals an overreliance on subjective qualities to distinguish the two types of texts and an implicit assumption that language can exist in an authentic, complete form. Additionally, the ideology of authenticity continues to influence our perception of language users, since native speakers are more often associated with authenticity than others. This paper problematizes the “authentic text”/“non-authentic text” dichotomy in L2 pedagogy and promotes a post-structuralist vision—one in which the value of a text is not determined in isolation from how students might interpret and interact with it in specific learning contexts (Guerrettaz and Johnston 2013).Item Are the Kids All Right? A Look at Flourishing among School-age Children and Youth in Minnesota(Minnesota Medical Association, 2021-01-01) So, Marvin; Lynn, AnnaFlourishing is a state characterized by positive social and behavioral functioning in children, which can be influenced by family, health care, and community factors. The National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) provides an opportunity to describe characteristics of the children who are—and are not yet—flourishing at the state level. Using the 2016-2017 NSCH to calculate prevalence estimates and odds ratios (ORs), this study examined parents’ perspectives on Minnesota children aged 6–17 in households, and explored select child, family, and health care correlates. The findings indicate that 41.4% of children in the state met flourishing criteria. Unadjusted ORs demonstrated differences in flourishing by child, family, and health care characteristics; after accounting for relevant covariates, parent-child connectedness, family resilience during difficult times, medical home status, and encountering adverse childhood experiences remained significantly associated with flourishing. Through highlighting factors predictive of parent-perceived flourishing, this study outlines potential insights for intervention that could accelerate child and adolescent well-being in Minnesota.Item The Birth of Professional Ethics: Some Comparisons among Medicine, Law and Intelligence Communities(2008-02-22) Andregg, Michael M.Doctors in antiquity used leeches, herbs and shamanistic rituals to try to help their patients heal from the wounds and illnesses of life. Yet even in this long pre-scientific period, some felt a need to develop an ethos and codes of ethics specific to their craft. One goal was prestige, a social good of intangible but real value (especially when practitioners are ridiculed by many, common when medicine was young). Close behind was another goal, a privileged and eventually exclusive right to practice their craft commercially. As science and technology advanced, a third goal emerged. This was continuing professional education to meet a growing need for both technical competence and some systematic way to evaluate novel dilemmas that emerged as medicine became truly effective. The best examples of those dilemmas come from “test-tube babies,” but there are many other dilemmas like end of life issues when machines can sustain a brain-dead body, or access to intrinsically scarce resources like transplantable organs. The concept of a professional medical ethos was built upon more general ethics of the Greeks (and independently within the Chinese and Indian civilizations at least). Its earliest generally recognized form was the oath of Hippocrates. This served to identify special responsibilities to be assumed by those who would call themselves ‘professionals’ of the healing arts. Sometimes rights were included, but the responsibilities were primary to Hippocrates, like his famous injunction to first, “do no harm.” In addition to that he urged doctors to take care of mentors who trained them and to not dishonor the emerging profession by sexual acts with patients or their families, or by inducing abortion. American Law developed a variety of professional ethos over about 100 years, which is another long story. Intelligence professionals (a.k.a. 'spies') who desired to improve the reputation of 'the world's second oldest profession' began thinking about ethics for spies in the early 2000's, and created an International Intelligence Ethics Association in 2005 as part of a broader effort to "professionalize" what was, in practice, a craft. This paper attempts to integrate these three paths to thinking about codified "professional ethics" and records some of the early efforts in that direction among intelligence professionals and those who study them.Item Birth Rates Determine Life Expectancy in Theoretical Equilibrium Populations: Implications for political demography and conflict early warning(American Intelligence Journal, 2018-04) Andregg, Michael M.Executive Summary This paper examines implications for political demography of a theoretical population that is in complete equilibrium. By “complete equilibrium,” we mean that the population neither grows nor shrinks, there is neither immigration to nor emigration from it, and that the age structure has stabilized so that it no longer changes over time. These are all important elements of complete equilibrium, as opposed to stability in just absolute numbers. This condition is found in some natural populations of animals and plants, but it has not obtained in most human populations in recorded history. Reduced to basics, this theoretical population has the following characteristics: 1. In complete equilibrium populations, birth rates will equal death rates so the population neither grows nor shrinks. 2. In a complete equilibrium population, death rates determine life expectancy, expressible as: LE = 1000/DR. 3. Since, in a complete equilibrium population, birth rates equal death rates, this can also be expressed as: LE = 1000/BR. 4. This implies that fundamentally, birth rates determine life expectancy in complete equilibrium populations. This paper has two goals. The first is simply to check the accuracy of the theoretical formulas identified above. Since they are quite simple and likely accurate, I invite others to identify any errors. The second goal is at least as important. How do human populations evade this limiting outcome? Or do they really? I fear the short answer to these questions is a) genocide and war, and b) no, they do not really escape an iron law of biology. However, they often do displace the high death rates to marginal or weaker populations. If correct, this has significant implications for conflict early warning as illustrated by several real-world examples.Item Building Bridges Between Cultures(Busan National University, South Korea, 2002-03-18) Andregg, Michael M.1. Why? Building bridges between cultures can involve many challenges, so the first subject I will address is: Why do this work? Answers important to me include: human survival, achieving prosperity through trade, compassion (especially for those who suffer, like refugees of war and relatives separated by politics) and achieving “the good life” spiritually as well as materially. All of these objectives benefit from a principle of living systems called “hybrid vigor.” These concepts will be illustrated by a few examples. Human civilization is facing a terrible crisis. It is a crisis of population growth combined with excessive consumption by the rich, which results in serious environmental problems and severe competition for the means of survival. Combined with other strains of politics, both normal differences of opinion about how to organize social life and more serious issues of corruption of governance and tyranny, this results in many wars (about 25 – 30 each year during the 23 years I have studied that subject). On the average half a million people die each year directly from these wars. Suffering from dispersed effects like refugee migrations and malnutrition related to the economic costs of these conflicts affects hundreds of millions every year. Human civilization is groaning in pain, but powerful psychological and social defenses exist that keep most people from hearing that pain clearly. It is the business of biologists to attend the living system. I testify before you that the living system itself is in danger because of these problems. If you need convincing I will gladly spend another hour or a day on that alone, because in my country at least, there are always excuses for taking just a little bit more from the living system despite its obvious distress. But our business today is building bridges between cultures, so I will return to that now with the simple observation that if the living system of earth is in trouble, human beings are in trouble. Human survival may even be at risk. So one reason to build bridges between cultures is to restrain people from blowing up the world with nuclear weapons, or despoiling it with endless conventional wars and the new, exotic biological and chemical weapons. Long ago I was a medical geneticist at a major University hospital. One reason I switched to why wars begin was what I knew about biological weapons 25 years ago. We have come a long way since then, and it is not a pretty picture. But even without such exotic weapons, the annual death rate from ordinary bombs and bullets should be plenty to inspire us to build some bridges to a better future for us all. A positive reason for building bridges is the prospect of increasing prosperity through trade. Now, I will venture a small observation on Korean politics. I apologize if I offend anyone. It is very sad to read about starvation in the North at the same time we read about fear created by Taepo-Dong II missiles, and a million-man army. Therefore, it was a happy day when we read about a new “sunshine policy,” and I was pleased when your President Kim Dae Jung was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his lifelong work for a better future.Item Butterfly Production Management(Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station, 1977) Kulman, H.M.A speculative overview of butterfly production management is presented which includes manipulation of habitats to enhance larval and adult food plants, accessibility and longevity of adults, early season introduction of migrants, and use of exotic butterflies and larval host plants. Concentration and accessibility of butterfly adults for viewing and collecting may be influenced by adult longevity, adult food sources, larval host plant odors, and other factors. Dangers to butterflies and their host plants by concentrating adults are discussed. Production management opportunities by manipulation of larval host plants appears to be much greater for expansion of the local and regional range of butterflies than for increasing butterfly density. The paucity of the literature does not permit general conclusions concerning population regulating factors, carrying capacity concepts, etc. However, there is sufficient observational data to guide experimental production management studies. Migratory species are considered for management although the carryover from management inputs are lower than with resident butterflies. Introduction of exotic species is limited mainly to butterflies useful in weed control programs. Speculative production research possibilities are given for the Pipevine Swallowtail, Battus philenor ( L.); Black Swallowtail, Papilio polyxenes asterius Stoll; Giant Swallowtail, Papilio cresphontes Cramer; Little Sulphur, Eurema lisa (Boisduval and Le Conte); Dainty Sulphur, Nathalis iole Boisduval; Baltimore, Euphydryas phaeton (Drury); and Monarch, Danaus plexippus ( L.).Item Calibration-Free Catalytic Microreactor for Analysis of Pesticides in Food(AMER LABORATORY-LABCOMPARE, 2016-01-01) Dauenhauer, Paul; Sapnjers, CharlieItem Can We Resolve Tensions between the US and China?(The Future Center in Dubai publishes Arab language commentary on many issues including security issues, 2019-04-27) Andregg, Michael M.Can We Resolve Tensions between the US and China? Michael Andregg, University of St. Thomas, mmandregg@stthomas.edu The trade war between the US and China worries many people these days, not least the business community. Worst-case scenarios involve real war, because trade and conflict have been connected throughout human history. A Harvard professor recently wrote a book called “Destined for War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides’s Trap?” (2017). Allison’s research suggests a 75% probability for the harsh outcome. A thermonuclear war would set the world economy back by generations at least, and even a “small” military conflict in the South China Sea between a rising China and declining US could cost trillions, and disrupt supply chains all over the world. Economic damage could last decades, even if land armies never met. So peace between these behemoths is imperative for many reasons. Both prefer to behave as empires, however, so neighbors should stay cautious. Therefore, the short answer to whether the US and China can patch up their trade differences must be a “yes” even if the challenges are large, which they are. Current US President Trump enjoys trade wars, and is unrealistic about their consequences. China’s push for dominance in key technologies, like artificial intelligence, quantum computing and 5G cell systems, will not abate. Those trends frighten national security hawks, and businesses that do not want to be left behind like the buggy-whip makers a century ago. In the short term, the most likely place for conflict to turn into bombs and bullets on targets is the South China Sea. China resents the projection of American power into the Pacific, despite the historic fact that American naval power was essential to rescue China from dominance by Japan. Hence, China’s massive engineering project to raise tiny islands in the South China Sea, and turn several into military bases.Item Causes of Wars and the Developing Global Crisis(2018-06-15) Andregg, Michael M.This paper connects some ultimate causes of wars through history with a set of contemporary problems we have been calling the “Developing Global Crisis” for about 20 years. Therefore, one first step is identifying what that crisis entails. Very briefly, the living system that sustains all of our global civilizations is in great distress these days. This leads to many armed conflicts and even “failed states.” Sometimes failed states produce terrorists and large numbers of other desperate people who flee the chaos that results. Former US Director of National Intelligence, General James Clapper provides an apt description of the Developing Global Crisis on page 157 of his 2018 memoirs: “Factors like food and water shortages and poor living conditions – increasingly driven by climate change – oppression of political freedoms, corruption by autocratic governments and rulers who had been in place for decades … made them (North African and some Middle Eastern states) extremely unstable. The spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) threatens Everything under Heaven, because many terrorists want WMD and are not deterred by threats of retaliation. There are at least 40 recurring causes of wars through history, so we cannot consider them all in the time available. Today we will focus on four especially important ultimate causes of wars. They are Population Pressure, Militant Religion, Authoritarian Law, and Corruptions of Governance. The case of contemporary Syria will be examined briefly to illustrate connections between these causes of organized armed conflict and many other problems. There is also a particular reason why I came to China. This is called “Thucydides’ Trap” which is a theory about great power relations of Harvard political scientist Graham Allison, inspired by an ancient Greek historian named Thucydides. Thucydides wrote about the Peloponnesian War that ended Greece’s dominance of the Eastern Mediterranean and Western civilization about the same time that Sun Tzu wrote his incomparable “Art of War.” Allison’s more recent theory suggests that when one “great power” declines while another great power rises, war between them is almost inevitable.Item The Center for Regional and Tribal Child Welfare Studies: Reducing disparities through Indigenous social work education(Children and Youth Services Review, 2019-02-28) Haight, Wendy; Waubanascum, Cary, B.; Glesener, David; Day, Priscilla; Bussey, Brenda; Nichols, KarenThis research addresses one of the most pressing and controversial issues facing child welfare policymakers and practitioners today: the dramatic overrepresentation of Indigenous families in North American public child welfare systems. Effective, inclusive education is one necessary component of efforts to reduce such disparities. Yet recruiting students from various cultural communities to the field and educating white social work students and professionals to practice in culturally responsive ways are ongoing challenges. In this ethnography, we examine an apparently successful model of inclusive education: the Center for Regional and Tribal Child Welfare Studies (the Center) at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, Department of Social Work. For over a decade, the Center has graduated Indigenous and non-Indigenous child welfare workers with MSWs now practicing within tribal communities, as well as provided continuing education for child welfare professionals. At the Center, Indigenous scholars and social workers, tribal leaders and their allies design and sustain a model of honoring and integrating Indigenous worldviews with Western social work. Experiential learning – engaging the “heart and head” – is a cornerstone of the Center's educational practices. Students and professional colleagues are approached with a “good heart” as “relatives” with positive intentions. They learn about the spirituality, language, culture and history of Indigenous people. The strengths-based curriculum also includes challenging content on the legacy of genocide and historical trauma on Indigenous families and communities, as well as contemporary laws and policies such as the Indian Child Welfare Act. The educational worldview and practices of the Center provide understanding for social work, generally, and child welfare, specifically, that supports effective practice and policy within diverse communities.