A history of Vermont for use in junior high school.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Intrasexual aggression reduces mating success in field crickets

This work was supported by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NE/L011255/1 and NE/T000619/1).Aggressive behaviour is thought to have significant consequences for fitness, sexual selection and the evolution of social interactions, but studies measuring its expression across successive encounters?both intra- and intersexual?are limited. We used the field cricket Teleogryllus oceanicus to evaluate factors affecting repeatability of male aggression and its association with mating success. We quantified focal male aggression expressed towards partners and received from partners in three successive, paired trials, each involving a different male partner. We then measured a proxy of focal male fitness in mating trials with females. The likelihood and extent of aggressive behaviour varied across trials, but repeatability was negligible, and we found no evidence that patterns of focal aggression resulted from interacting partner identity or prior experience. Males who consistently experienced aggression in previous trials showed decreased male mating ?efficiency??determined by the number of females a male encountered before successfully mating, but the effect was weak and we found no other evidence that intrasexual aggression was associated with later mating success. During mating trials, however, we observed unexpected male aggression towards females, and this was associated with markedly decreased male mating efficiency and success. Our findings suggest that nonadaptive aggressive spillover in intersexual mating contexts could be an important but underappreciated factor influencing the evolution of intrasexual aggression.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Mechanical sound-reproducing devices: their use in music and education.

This item has been digitized by the Internet Archive. Thesis (M.A.)--Boston Universit

A Patient-Friendly Web Resource for Vascular Anomalies: Establishing a Connection between Patients and Clinicians

Abstract Patient education is fundamental to patient-centered care which emphasizes shared decision-making between patients and clinicians. Patients and families must have a sufficient understanding of health information to participate in health decision-making, and this understanding is garnered from accurate, reliable, and readable health resources accompanied by helpful visuals. With 84% of Americans accessing health information online, the importance of ensuring these resources are comprehended by consumers must be emphasized. If health care providers wish to communicate with the general public, they must ensure health information is written at a level understandable to the average American. A 2016 study of online resources about vascular anomalies, including those from Boston Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and Johns Hopkins Hospital, revealed none of these resources are readable by the average American. The language and sentence structure are complex, commensurate with the reading level of high school or college graduates, while the average American reads at the seventh grade level. Additionally, few visual aids about vascular anomalies exist, and the primary visual representations shown are graphic patient photographs. The lack of understandable resources about vascular anomalies hinders a shared decision-making process between patients or families and clinicians. By utilizing a combination of readability tests as well as the first standardized index of quality health information, known as DISCERN, a comprehensive and readable source of health information about vascular anomalies was developed. The diagnostic and treatment information was gathered from several experts in the field and vetted by the specialists at Johns Hopkins Hospital. This web resource contains text that is understandable to the average American and illustrations that show the condition without frightening patients. A disparity exists between how patients and clinicians approach health information; this is apparent in how web-based patient resources are currently presented. To establish a connection between patients and clinicians through web-based patient education, the principles of design governing traditional visual communication must be applied in the virtual world and amended to include accessibility, readability, and organization in virtual space. Eleanor Bailey Chairpersons of the Supervisory Committee Clifford R. Weiss, M.D. Associate Professor of Radiology, Surgery, and Biomedical Engineering The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Medical Director, Johns Hopkins CBID Director, Interventional Radiology Research The Johns Hopkins Hospital Katherine Brown Püttgen, M.D. Assistant Professor of Dermatology The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Division Chief, Pediatric Dermatology The Johns Hopkins Hospital Gary P. Lees, M.S., C.M.I., F.A.M.I. Professor and Chair, Department of Art as Applied to Medicine The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicin

DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF CHITOSANS AS TRANSFORMATIVE COAGULANTS-FLOCCULANTS TO IMPROVE SAND FILTER DRINKING WATER TREATMENT

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 2.1 billion people worldwide lack access to safely-managed water sources. Sand filtration at point-of-use is widely used but does not meet WHO performance targets to reduce virus and bacteria levels in drinking water. This research evaluated chitosan, an organic coagulant-flocculant, to improve microbial and turbidity reductions by sand filtration. Bench-scale 3.9-cm diameter intermittently-operated slow sand column filters with 16-cm sand layers of two different grain sizes were dosed daily over 57-days with microbially-spiked surface water volumes corresponding to daily household use. E. coli bacteria and MS2 coliphage virus reductions were quantified biweekly using culture methods. Bacteria and virus reductions were significantly improved at optimal chitosan doses of 10 and 30 mg/L (Wilcoxon Rank-Sum, p < 0.05), and achieved log10 reductions meeting 2-star WHO performance levels. Microbial and turbidity reductions generally improved over filter operating time and showed no correlation with water filtration rate

The Mental Health and Social Media Use of Young Australians during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Young people may be particularly vulnerable to the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and may also be more likely to use social media at this time. This study aimed to explore young people\u27s mental health and social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic and examined their use of social media to seek and provide support for suicidal thoughts and self-harm during this period. Young people aged 16-25 (n = 371, M = 21.1) from the general population in Australia completed an anonymous, cross-sectional online survey advertised on social media from June to October 2020. Participants reported high levels of psychological distress, with over 40% reporting severe levels of anxiety and depression, and those with a mental health diagnosis were more likely to perceive the pandemic to have had a negative impact on their mental health. Gender-diverse participants appeared the most negatively impacted. Social media use was high, with 96% reporting use at least once a day, and two-thirds reporting an increase in social media use since the start of the pandemic. One-third had used social media to seek support for suicidal thoughts or self-harm, and half had used it to support another person. This study adds to a growing literature suggesting social media can provide an opportunity to support young people experiencing psychological distress and suicide risk. Uniquely, this study points to the utility of using social media for this purpose during high-risk periods such as pandemics, where access to face-to-face support may be limited. To promote the quality and safety of support provided on social media, resources for help-seekers and help-givers should be developed and disseminated. Social media companies must consider the vulnerability of some users during pandemics and do what they can to promote wellbeing and safety

Suicide risk management in research on internet-based interventions for depression:A synthesis of the current state and recommendations for future research

BACKGROUND: The number of studies examining internet-based interventions (IBIs) for depression is increasing. Although many individuals with depression experience suicidal ideation, there is only insufficient information available on how to manage and support individuals at risk of suicide in IBI trials. Here, we examined the current practice regarding the management of individuals experiencing suicidal thoughts or behaviors in studies of IBIs for depression. METHODS: Information pertaining to the management of suicidality was extracted from 24 studies. Additionally, researchers in the field completed a questionnaire (n = 13) before being interviewed (n = 11) about their procedures and considerations regarding the management of suicidality. RESULTS: In most trials (N = 17; 71%), individuals at risk of suicide were excluded based on varying criteria. N = 7 studies used structured interviews and N = 5 studies used single items of self-report questionnaires for assessing suicidality. The nature and degree of support provided to individuals at risk of suicide varied and only one intervention comprised suicide-specific content. LIMITATIONS: Most experts referred to research on interventions with some level of human support (e.g. written feedback) which might limit the representativeness of the results of the interviews for unguided interventions. CONCLUSIONS: Suicidality is often treated more as an exclusion criterion rather than a treatable condition in research on IBIs for depression. This paper provides an overview of the current practice and gives recommendations for the design of future trials

Older UK sheltered housing tenants’ perceptions of wellbeing and their usage of hospital services

The aim of this study was to examine sheltered housing tenants’ views of health and wellbeing, the strategies they adopted to support their wellbeing and their use of health and social care services through a Health Needs Assessment. Sheltered housing in the UK is a form of service-integrated housing for people, predominantly over 60. The study used a parallel, three-strand mixed method approach to encompass the tenants’ perceptions of health and wellbeing (n=96 participants), analysis of the service’s health and wellbeing database and analysis of emergency and elective hospital admissions (n= 978 tenant data sets for the period January to December 2012). Tenants’ perceptions of wellbeing were seen to reinforce much of the previous work on the subject with strategies required to sustain social, community, physical, economic, environmental, leisure, emotional and spiritual dimensions. Of the tenants’ self-reported chronic conditions, arthritis, heart conditions and breathing problems were identified as their most common health concerns. Hospital admission data indicated that 43% of the tenant population was admitted to hospital (886 admissions) with 53% emergency and 47% elective admissions. The potential cost of emergency as opposed to elective admissions was substantial. The mean length of stay for emergency admissions was 8.2 days (median 3.0 days). While elective hospital admission had a mean length of stay of 1.0 day (median 0.0 days). These results suggest the need for multi-professional health, social care and housing services interventions to facilitate sheltered housing tenants’ aspirations and support their strategies to live well and independently in their own homes. Equally there is a need to increase tenants’ awareness of health conditions and their management; the importance of services which offer facilitation, resources and support and the key role played by prevention and reablement

Patient and family communication during consultation visits: The effects of a decision aid for treatment decision-making for localized prostate cancer

To analyze the effects of a decision aid on improving patients’ and family members’ information giving and question asking during consultations for prostate cancer treatment decision-making

The Iowa Homemaker vol.2, no.3-4

Table of Contents What Do You Choose in Table Service? by Clara Jordan, page 1 The Home We Had to Have – and Had It by Katherine Goeppinger, page 2 Preparing to Meet the Linen Needs of Bridedom by Helen Paschal, page 3 Canning Without Mother for a Helper by Carrie Plunkett, page 4 Summing Up the Serving of Well Planned Meals by N. Beth Bailey, page 5 Finding Brushes to Fit Special Needs by Glenna Hesse, page 6 Bridal Showers of Blessings by Harriet Schleiter, page 7 The Art of Garnishing Foods by Mildred B. Elder, page 7 Who’s There and Where by Jeanette Beyer, page 10 Seasonable Desserts of Fruits and Berries by N. Beth Bailey, page 11 Forget It All-And a Picnicking Go! by Eleanor Murray, page 1