Web 2.0 technologies in remote community schools in Western Australia

Web 2.0 Technologies are increasing in their use, particularly as tools for social networking. Their uptake has been pioneered by Generation Y, also known as the ‘Net’ Generation, or ‘Digital Natives’ as tools to enhance online collaboration and communication but the extent to which educators embracing such technologies to enhance teaching and learning is less evident. The purpose of this paper is to report on the research findings of a survey undertaken by teachers in remote community schools in Western Australia focussing upon their use of Web 2.0 technologies in their teaching and learning programs. The results present a number of scenarios that differ from the main stream of belief with regard to both Generation Y and Generation X use of Web 2.0 Technologies suggesting that contexts of learning have a major impact on the integration of such technologies in the classroom and questioning the salience of generational differences in their use

Validating Geologic Storage Potential in the Midwestern USA through Multiple Field Demonstrations

AbstractThe Midwestern Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnership (MRCSP) is implementing an integrated effort to validate the geologic storage potential in the Midwestern states within the USA through multiple field demonstrations. Validation of the geologic storage potential in this area requires regional geologic exploration along with site-specific demonstrations of CO2 injection and monitoring. These demonstrations are being conducted in collaboration with energy companies in Appalachian Basin, Michigan Basin, and Cincinnati Arch geologic regions. Each field test incorporates extensive characterization, reservoir modeling, permitting, outreach, injection and monitoring in a deep saline reservoir setting. The progress that has been achieved during the past year, including the evaluation of injection at two test sites, is presented

Agriculture in the Fertile Crescent, from the deep past to the modern conflict

Jennie Bradbury and Philip Proudfoot reveal how agriculture is at the heart of both strife and heritage in Syri

Echolocation detections and digital video surveys provide reliable estimates of the relative density of harbour porpoises

Acknowledgements We would like to thank Erik Rexstad and Rob Williams for useful reviews of this manuscript. The collection of visual and acoustic data was funded by the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change, the Scottish Government, Collaborative Offshore Wind Research into the Environment (COWRIE) and Oil & Gas UK. Digital aerial surveys were funded by Moray Offshore Renewables Ltd and additional funding for analysis of the combined datasets was provided by Marine Scotland. Collaboration between the University of Aberdeen and Marine Scotland was supported by MarCRF. We thank colleagues at the University of Aberdeen, Moray First Marine, NERI, Hi-Def Aerial Surveying Ltd and Ravenair for essential support in the field, particularly Tim Barton, Bill Ruck, Rasmus Nielson and Dave Rutter. Thanks also to Andy Webb, David Borchers, Len Thomas, Kelly McLeod, David L. Miller, Dinara Sadykova and Thomas Cornulier for advice on survey design and statistical approache. Data Accessibility Data are available from the Dryad Digital Repository: http://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.cf04gPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Reallocation of Responsibilities and/or Financing for Selected Municipal Services to the State: A Municipal Finance Alternative

This report recommends that the administration and/or financing of a selected group of public services be shifted from municipalities to the state government in Massachusetts. Several criteria are used to identify local functions and local fiscal responsibilities which are more suitable for state than local financing. The first criterion is the efficiency of delivery of the service: for some functions, such as solid waste disposal, technology makes it more costly per capita to provide the service separately through individual municipalities than to operate regionally-based waste disposal facilities. The second criterion is the degree to which residents of the service area are agreed as to the quantity or quality of the service to be provided. The greatest degree of consensus can always be found at the lowest jurisdictional level, but this report argues that for the services selected for shifting, state financing will not result in service levels too different from any one municipality\u27s preferences. For example, there is not likely to be much dispute among municipal officials as to correctional institution standards. Third, the report recommends shifting services which have significant spill-in or spill-out characteristics; that is, when municipally-financed, they benefit or adversely affect residents of other local jurisdictions which have no voice in their delivery, on the one hand; and on the other hand, services with these characteristics involve costs without commensurate benefits to the responsible jurisdiction and eventually generate taxpayer resistance which forces severe reductions in service levels. Vocational education and transportation are two good examples of this phenomenon. The fourth criterion is that the area taxed to provide any service which effects a redistribution of services or cash (e.g. health and hospitals, veterans\u27 assistance) should include enough persons in both groups to make redistribution worthwhile: enough of those we wish to redistribute from and enough of those we wish to redistribute to. A great many municipalities in Massachusetts are somewhat internally homogeneous with respect to income; that is, the incomes of residents of any one community are likely to cluster. This tendency inhibits the provision of services with redistributive objectives which might significantly change the relative inequality of opportunity or well-being. In addition, the report notes that over-dependence on the local property tax has both inefficient and inequitable consequences which can be somewhat alleviated by any kind or measure of property tax relief

Scandcleft randomised trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and Palate: 9. Parental report of social and emotional experiences related to their 5-year-old child’s cleft diagnosis

© 2017 Acta Chirurgica Scandinavica Society. Background and aim: Parents of children with a cleft lip and palate may be emotionally affected by the child’s diagnosis. Their experiences and perceptions are important when evaluating the complexity of satisfactory treatment outcomes. The objective was to examine parents’ social and emotional experiences related to their child’s cleft diagnosis, and their perceptions of the child’s adjustment to living with a visible difference. Design: International multicentre study by 10 cleft teams in five countries: Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and the UK. Methods: A cohort of 448 children born with a non-syndromic UCLP were included. A total of 356 parents completed the Scandcleft Parent Questionnaire. Results: The majority of parents experienced practical and emotional support from family, friends, and health professionals. Nevertheless, parents had to cope with other people’s reactions to the cleft, experiences that were described as ranging from hurtful to neutral and/or positive. According to parents, 39% of the children had experienced cleft-related comments and/or teasing. More than half of the parents reported specific worries related to their child’s future. Conclusion: While the majority of the parents experienced positive support and coped well with the child’s diagnosis, some parents were at risk for psychological and emotional challenges that should be identified by the cleft team. To optimise outcomes and the child’s adjustment, these parents should be offered psychological support when necessary. Trial registration: ISRCTN29932826

Scandcleft randomised trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and palate: 10. Parental perceptions of appearance and treatment outcomes in their 5-year-old child

© 2017 Acta Chirurgica Scandinavica Society. Background and aim: Few studies have explored children’s emotional and behavioural reactions to cleft surgery and treatment-related stress. The objective was to investigate parents’ evaluations of appearance and treatment outcomes in their 5-year-old child with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP), and their perceptions of how their child was coping with treatment, comparing this information with recorded postsurgical complications. Design: Three parallel group randomised clinical trials were undertaken as an international multicentre study by 10 cleft teams in five countries: Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and the UK. Methods: Three different surgical procedures for primary palatal repair were tested against a common procedure in the total cohort of 448 children born with a non-syndromic UCLP. A total of 356 parents completed the Scandcleft Parent Questionnaire, and 346 parents completed the Cleft Evaluation Profile. Results: The results indicated that the majority of parents were satisfied with cleft-related features of their child’s appearance. Further, most children coped well with treatment according to their parents. Nevertheless, 17.5% of the children showed minor or short-term reactions after treatment experiences, and 2% had major or lasting difficulties. There were no significant relationships between parent perceptions of treatment-related problems and the occurrence of post-surgical medical complications. Conclusions: Most parents reported satisfaction with their child’s appearance. However, treatment-related problems were described in some children, urging cleft centres to be aware of potential negative emotional and behavioural reactions to treatment in some young children, with a view to preventing the development of more severe treatment-related anxiety. Trial registration: ISRCTN29932826

Infância, exclusão social e educação como utopia realizável

A infância, como construção social, tem sofrido, no decurso da 2ª modernidade, processos de reinstitucionalização que, em larga medida, põem em causa as representações e imagens das crianças, dominantes nos últimos 200 anos. A análise da (re)construção das identidades sociais e das subjectividades infantis constitui, desse modo, uma tarefa teórica da mais exigente actualidade. O que, entretanto, aqui se assinala é que este processo de reinstitucionalização da infância, apesar da construção de consensos globais sobre os direitos das crianças, tem vindo a aumentar os factores e as condições de exclusão das gerações mais jovens face aos direitos sociais e da cidadania. Neste artigo inventariam-se alguns dos principais indicadores de exclusão, considerando diversos espaços estruturais, e assinalam-se alguns dos pontos de ruptura por onde pode passar a construção de uma educação escolar centrada na afirmação activa dos direitos das crianças.Along the second modernity, childhood, as a social construction, has undergone reinstatement processes that question the representations and images of children that have prevailed over last two hundred years. An analysis of the (re) construction of the social identities and childhood subjectivity thus constitute a theoretical task of the most contemporary exigence. Nevertheless, even though a global consensus about children’s rights has been constructed, the increase of factors and conditions that exclude the youngest generations from social rights and citizenship, induced by this reinstatement process of childhood, is here emphasized. This paper lists some of the main indicators of exclusion, considering different structural spaces, and pinpoints some turning points through which the construction of a school education centered on the active affirmation of the children’s rights could be attained.CIFPEC/CIEC - Centro de Investigação em Estudos da Criança, UM (UI 644 e 317 da FCT

Long-Term Impact of Radiation on the Stem Cell and Oligodendrocyte Precursors in the Brain

Background. The cellular basis of long term radiation damage in the brain is not fully understood. Methods and Findings. We administered a dose of 25Gy to adult rat brains while shielding the olfactory bulbs. Quantitative analyses were serially performed on different brain regions over 15 months. Our data reveal an immediate and permanent suppression of SVZ proliferation and neurogenesis. The olfactory bulb demonstrates a transient but remarkable SVZ-independent ability for compensation and maintenance of the calretinin interneuron population. The oligodendrocyte compartment exhibits a complex pattern of limited proliferation of NG2 progenitors but steady loss of the oligodendroglial antigen O4. As of nine months post radiation, diffuse demyelination starts in all irradiated brains. Counts of capillary segments and length demonstrate significant loss one day post radiation but swift and persistent recovery of the vasculature up to 15 months post XRT. MRI imaging confirms loss of volume of the corpus callosum and early signs of demyelination at 12 months. Ultrastructural analysis demonstrates progressive degradation of myelin sheaths with axonal preservation. Areas of focal necrosis appear beyond 15 months and are preceded by widespread demyelination. Human white matter specimens obtained post-radiation confirm early loss of oligodendrocyte progenitors and delayed onset of myelin sheath fragmentation with preserved capillaries. Conclusions. This study demonstrates that long term radiation injury is associated with irreversible damage to the neural stem cell compartment in the rodent SVZ and loss of oligodendrocyte precursor cells in both rodent and human brain. Delayed onset demyelination precedes focal necrosis and is likely due to the loss of oligodendrocyte precursor