Being Mindful: A Long-term Investigation of an Interdisciplinary Course in Mindfulness

Background: Burnout and work-related stress in health-care professionals (HCPs) is a growing concern to the optimal functioning of the health-care system. Mindfulness-based interventions may be well-suited to address burnout in HCPs. Objective: The purpose of this study was (1) to quantitatively evaluate the effect of a mindfulness-based intervention for interdisciplinary HCPs over time and at a long-term follow-up and (2) to explore perceived benefits, facilitators, and barriers to the practice of mindfulness at the long-term follow-up. Design: A mixed-method, repeated measures, within-subjects design was used to investigate Mindfulness for Interdisciplinary HCPs (MIHP) at baseline, post-MIHP, and a follow-up (6 months to 1.5 years after MIHP). MIHP is an 8-week, group-based course for interdisciplinary HCPs and students, with weekly meditation training, gentle yoga, and discussions on the application of mindfulness to common stressors faced by HCPs. Main outcome measures were the Maslach Burnout Inventory—Health Services Survey and the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire. A semistructured interview was used to explore participants’ perceptions of sustained effects and practice in the context of HCP work at the long-term follow-up. The study protocol was registered with ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT02736292). Results: Eighteen HCPs (88% female) participated in the study. Significant reductions were found after the intervention for 2 subscales of burnout: depersonalization, F(2, 17) = 5.98, P = .01, and emotional exhaustion, F(2, 17) = 2.64, P = .10. Three facets of dispositional mindfulness showed significant increases at long-term follow-up, act aware: F(2, 15) = 4.47, P = .03, nonjudge: F(2, 15) = 4.7, P = .03, and nonreactivity: F(2, 15) = 3.58, P = .05. Continued practice of skills long term was facilitated by the use of informal practice and perceived improvement in work and personal life. Conclusion: In sum, MIHP improved subscales of burnout and mindfulness. These findings should be further explored with a larger, controlled study. Interventions should focus on developing mindfulness practice that can be integrated into the work of HCPs

Response of Glacier Melt and Discharge to Future Climate Change, Susitna Basin, Alaska

A large dam for hydropower with a 67 km long reservoir is proposed in the Susitna basin, leading to multiple studies of the basin. This study focuses on the response of climate change of the Susitna basin glaciers and the effects on basin discharge

How curiosity drives actions and learning: Dopamine, reward, and information seeking

Curiosity drives many of our daily pursuits and interactions; yet, we know surprisingly little about how it works. Here, I harness an idea implied in many conceptualizations of curiosity – that information has value in and of itself. Reframing curiosity as the motivation to obtain reward – where the reward is information – allows me to leverage major advances in theoretical and computational mechanisms of reward-motivated learning. Using willingness to wait, an established measure of reward-motivated behavior, I test the reward value of information, finding that people are more willing to wait for information about which they’re more curious. I then provide new evidence supporting several predictions that emerge from this information-as-reward framework. In Chapter 1, I examine whether the valence of information affects its reward value, finding an asymmetric effect of positive vs. negative information, with positive valence associated with both enhanced curiosity and enhanced long-term memory for information. I then test an idea drawn from computational and neurobiological accounts of reward learning, which suggest that it is not the absolute value of information that drives learning, but, rather, the gap between the reward expected and the reward received. By asking people to rate both their curiosity about a question and their satisfaction with the answer, I obtain measures of the values of the reward expected (curiosity) and the reward received (satisfaction) and find that the discrepancy between the two – the information prediction error – facilitates learning. These findings suggest a conceptual correspondence between dopaminergic mechanisms of reward learning and curiosity. Aging is associated with decrements in dopaminergic functioning, but it is unclear whether these deficits extend to curiosity, as few behavioral investigations of curiosity and aging exist. In Chapter 2, I, therefore, sought to explore the effects of aging on curiosity, providing behavioral evidence that curiosity is not diminished in aging, but, rather, that it is enhanced. These findings also revealed that older adults are more likely to wait for more positive information, consistent with existing theories of emotional processing. In Chapter 3, I sought to test whether the dopaminergic reward system, particularly the striatum, plays a necessary and causal role in curiosity by examining curiosity in patients with Parkinson’s disease, a neurological disorder characterized by dopamine depletion in the striatum and striatal dysfunction. I provide evidence for diminished curiosity in people with Parkinson’s disease, relative to age- and education-matched controls. In particular, I find that participants with Parkinson’s disease are less likely to wait for lower-value rewards, i.e., information about which they’re less curious. Taken together, these results support the idea that information functions as a reward – much like money or food – guiding choices and driving learning in systematic ways

Multicopper oxidase-1 is a ferroxidase essential for iron homeostasis in Drosophila melanogaster

Multicopper ferroxidases catalyze the oxidation of ferrous iron to ferric iron. In yeast and algae, they participate in cellular uptake of iron; in mammals, they facilitate cellular efflux. The mechanisms of iron metabolism in insects are still poorly understood, and insect multicopper ferroxidases have not been identified. In this paper we present evidence that Drosophila melanogaster multicopper oxidase-1 (MCO1) is a functional ferroxidase. We identified candidate iron binding residues in the MCO1 sequence and found that purified recombinant MCO1 oxidizes ferrous iron. An association between MCO1 function and iron homeostasis was confirmed by two observations: RNAi-mediated knockdown of MCO1 resulted in decreased iron accumulation in midguts and whole insects, and weak knockdown increased the longevity of flies fed a toxic concentration of iron. Strong knockdown of MCO1 resulted in pupal lethality, indicating that MCO1 is an essential gene. Immunohistochemistry experiments demonstrated that MCO1 is located on the basal surfaces of the digestive system and Malpighian tubules. We propose that MCO1 oxidizes ferrous iron in the hemolymph and that the resulting ferric iron is bound by transferrin or melanotransferrin leading to iron storage, iron withholding from pathogens, regulation of oxidative stress and/or epithelial maturation. These proposed functions are distinct from those of other known ferroxidases Given that MCO1 orthologs are present in all insect genomes analyzed to date, this discovery is an important step toward understanding iron metabolism in insects

The cat at the polyclinic : a comparison between accredited ”Cat Friendly Clinics” and non-accredited clinics

Katten är idag ett vanligt sällskapsdjur men inte en lika vanlig patient på kliniken. En anledning till det är att många kattägare upplever flertalet svårigheter med att ta sin katt till en klinik. För att förbättra kattens välmående har International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) skapat ett program där kliniker kan ansöka om att bli ackrediterade “Cat Friendly Clinic” (CFC), eller kattvänlig klinik. Krav ställs på anpassningar av lokaler, utrustning och hantering för att ackreditering ska uppnås. En litteraturöversikt visade att katter är unika i hur de uppfattar sin omgivning och att miljön bör anpassas därefter. Det är viktigt att både personal och kattägare hanterar katten på ett respektfullt och artanpassat sätt för att katten ska vara så stressfri som möjligt i samband med besöket. Den genomförda enkätstudien syftade till att jämföra CFC-ackrediterade och icke ackrediterade kliniker i Sverige, med avseende på åtgärder som vidtagits för att förbättra kattens klinikbesök. Enkäten besvarades av 20 st CFC-ackrediterade kliniker och nio st icke ackrediterade kliniker. Resultatet av studien tyder på att CFC-ackrediterade kliniker har genomfört fler anpassningar och visar ett större intresse för att utbilda sin personal inom området. Författarna till detta kandidatarbete ville belysa ämnet katthantering på klinik. På grund av enkätstudiens begränsade storlek går det inte att avgöra om resultaten speglar de verkliga förhållandena på svenska kliniker idag. Trots det tyder litteraturöversikten på att de anpassningar som CFC-ackrediterade kliniker har genomfört kan ge ett ökat välmående för katten i samband med ett klinikbesök. Nyckelord: katt, hantering, stress, CFC-ackrediterad, icke ackrediteradThe cat is a common pet nowadays but not a frequent patient in the clinic. One reason for this is that many cat owners experience several difficulties in taking their cat to the clinic. To improve the cat's well-being, the International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM) has created a program where clinics can apply to become an accredited "Cat Friendly Clinic" (CFC). Requirements are made for adaptations of premises, equipment and handling to achieve accreditation. The literature review shows that cats are unique in how they perceive their surroundings and the environment should be adapted accordingly. It is important that both staff and cat owners handle the cat in a respectful manner, specifically tailored for cats so that the cat is as stress-free as possible in connection with the visit. The survey conducted was aimed at comparing CFC-accredited and non-accredited clinics in Sweden, with regard to measures taken to improve the cat's visit at the clinic. A questionnaire was answered by 20 CFC-accredited clinics and nine non-accredited clinics. The results of the study indicate that CFC-accredited clinics have implemented more adaptations and they also show a greater interest in educating their staff about this subject. The authors of this bachelor thesis wanted to highlight the subject of cat management at the clinic. Due to the limited size of the survey, it is not possible to determine if the results reflect the true conditions in Swedish clinics today. Despite this, the literature review suggests that the adaptations that CFC-accredited clinics have implemented can provide an increased well-being for the cat in connection with a visit to the clinic. Keywords: cat, handling, stress, CFC-accredited, non-accredite

A pictorial dot probe task to assess food-related attentional bias in youth with and without obesity : overview of indices and evaluation of their reliability

Several versions of the dot probe detection task are frequently used to assess maladaptive attentional processes associated with a broad range of psychopathology and health behavior, including eating behavior and weight. However, there are serious concerns about the reliability of the indices derived from the paradigm as measurement of attentional bias towards or away from salient stimuli. The present paper gives an overview of different attentional bias indices used in psychopathology research and scrutinizes three types of indices (the traditional attentional bias score, the dynamic trial-level base scores and the probability index) calculated from a pictorial version of the dot probe task to assess food-related attentional biases in children and youngsters with and without obesity. Correlational analyses reveal that dynamic scores (but not the traditional and probability indices) are dependent on general response speed. Reliability estimates are low for the traditional and probability indices. The higher reliability for the dynamic indices is at least partially explained by general response speed. No significant group differences between youth with and with obesity are found, and correlations with weight are also non-significant. Taken together, results cast doubt on the applicability of this specific task for both experimental and individual differences research on food-related attentional biases in youth. However, researchers are encouraged to make and test adaptations to the procedure or computational algorithm in an effort to increase psychometric quality of the task and to report psychometric characteristics of their version of the task for their specific sample

Specific adsorption sites and conditions derived by thermal decomposition of activated carbons and adsorbed carbamazepine

The adsorption of organic micropollutants onto activated carbon is a favourable solution for the treatment of drinking water and wastewater. However, these adsorption processes are not sufficiently understood to allow for the appropriate prediction of removal processes. In this study, thermogravimetric analysis, alongside evolved gas analysis, is proposed for the characterisation of micropollutants adsorbed on activated carbon. Varying amounts of carbamazepine were adsorbed onto three different activated carbons, which were subsequently dried, and their thermal decomposition mechanisms examined. The discovery of 55 different pyrolysis products allowed differentiations to be made between specific adsorption sites and conditions. However, the same adsorption mechanisms were found for all samples, which were enhanced by inorganic constituents and oxygen containing surface groups. Furthermore, increasing the loadings led to the evolution of more hydrated decomposition products, whilst parts of the carbamazepine molecules were also integrated into the carbon structure. It was also found that the chemical composition, especially the degree of dehydration of the activated carbon, plays an important role in the adsorption of carbamazepine. Hence, it is thought that the adsorption sites may have a higher adsorption energy for specific adsorbates, when the activated carbon can then potentially increase its degree of graphitisation.DFG, 414044773, Open Access Publizieren 2019 - 2020 / Technische Universität Berli

“Catch 22”: biosecurity awareness, interpretation and practice amongst poultry catchers

Campylobacter contamination of chicken on sale in the UK remains at high levels and has a substantial public health impact. This has prompted the application of many interventions in the supply chain, including enhanced biosecurity measures on-farm. Catching and thinning are acknowledged as threats to the maintenance of good biosecurity, yet the people employed to undertake this critical work (i.e. ‘catchers’) are a rarely studied group. This study uses a mixed methods approach to investigate catchers’ (n = 53) understanding of the biosecurity threats posed by the catching and thinning, and the barriers to good biosecurity practice. It interrogated the role of training in both the awareness and practice of good biosecurity. Awareness of lapses in biosecurity was assessed using a Watch-&-Click hazard awareness survey (n = 53). Qualitative interviews (n = 49 catchers, 5 farm managers) explored the understanding, experience and practice of catching and biosecurity. All of the catchers who took part in the Watch-&-Click study identified at least one of the biosecurity threats with 40% detecting all of the hazards. Those who had undergone training were significantly more likely to identify specific biosecurity threats and have a higher awareness score overall (48% compared to 9%, p = 0.03). Crucially, the individual and group interviews revealed the tensions between the high levels of biosecurity awareness evident from the survey and the reality of the routine practice of catching and thinning. Time pressures and a lack of equipment rather than a lack of knowledge appear a more fundamental cause of catcher-related biosecurity lapses. Our results reveal that catchers find themselves in a ‘catch-22′ situation in which mutually conflicting circumstances prevent simultaneous completion of their job and compliance with biosecurity standards

OBSERVAÇÃO DA PERDA DE PRODUTOS HORTIFRUTIGRANJEIROS

Este trabalho apresenta elementos que visam dar embasamento teórico para a aquisição de itens hortifrutigranjeiros, uma vez que nessa atividade as compras dos lotes de mercadorias acontecem geralmente através de deduções ou pela média de venda dos produtos. O artigo apresenta um estudo de caso, envolvendo pesquisa observatória sobre o estado de conservação de hortifrutigranjeiros, elaborada por meio de relatos diários, de acordo com a disponibilidade de cada mercadoria. Foram analisados os seguintes itens: alface (Lactuca sativa); batata cv. monalisa (Solanum tuberosum); maçã cv. fuji (Malus domestica); maçã cv. gala (Malus domestica); mamão cv. formosa (Carica papaya); mamão cv. papaia (Carica papaya); manga (Mangifera indica); morango (Fragaria × ananassa), repolho verde (Brassica oleracea L. var. capitata) e tomate longa vida (Solanum lycopersicum), desde a sua chegada até o seu escoamento na prateleira ou por descarte. Os produtos que apresentaram os maiores percentuais de perdas foram: maçã cv. fuji, repolho e manga. Os itens com menores quebras foram: tomate longa vida, batata cv. monalisa e maçã cv. gala. O volume adquirido de cada item interferiu diretamente no resultado