‘Not just a boys' game’: programme evaluation of a multi-agency cricket intervention designed to reduce gender inequity in a city in the east of England

Previous feminist research demonstrates that women’s participation in sport is subject to patriarchal values, which produce and reproduce gender inequity in elite sport (Rowe, D. (2004). Critical Reading: Sport, Culture and Media. Berkshire. McGraw Hill.). Cricket is one sport in which patriarchy remains prevalent. Despite the recent success of the England Women’s cricket team, female participation in elite cricket remains low. The latest Active People Survey suggests the number of women participating in cricket has decreased between 2008 and 2010, further widening the gender gap (Sport England, 2011). This key aim of this study was to evaluate an intervention with the stated aim of reducing gender inequity in cricket in a city in the East of England. The intervention was conducted in conjunction with a multi-agency partnership developed by the authors, including an ECB premier league club, county board and University. A needs assessment highlighted the lack of opportunities for women’s cricket. The intervention therefore targeted women of all cricket abilities, with a view to creating a sustainable women’s team. Project actions included sourcing facilities, staff and equipment, producing advertising material and facilitating partnership work. This study employed a theory-driven programme evaluation to assess the effectiveness of this cricket intervention. Programme evaluation uses programme theory to assess the efficacy of sports development interventions (Rossi et al., 2004, Evaluation: A systematic approach. Sage, London.). In this case, the programme’s theory is founded upon a feminist rationale. Critical success factors have been incorporated. These included assessing sustainable participation rates. Semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders and participants will be completed to evaluate programme effectiveness

Gill Damage in Clarias Gariepinus Exposed to Cypermethrin

Cypermethrin is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide and is used against a wide range of pests in agriculture, public health and animal husbandry. Following the exposure, cypermethrin was administered at concentration of 0.01mg/L, 0.05 mg/L and 0.1 mg/L (A-C) and the control (0.0 mg/L) in a renewal bioassay system for a period of 21 days and standard histological techniques was used for the study. Gill histological section of the 0.01mg/L treated fish showed pathological changes; proliferation of epithelial cell at the secondary lamellae, severe destruction and degeneration of the gill filament, with prominent acidophil cell. Rapid cell lysis throughout the epithelium with chronic degenerated secondary lamella (SL) and disintegrating of epithelial lining, regeneration of mucous cell in the deeper layers of epithelial lining, hyperplasia was evident in 0.05mg/L treated groups. Uncontrolled regeneration of epithelial cells (ECs)  hyperplasia,and proliferation of epithelial cell at the base secondary lamella was prominent in 0.1mg/L group. The degree of distortion of the gills was proportional to the exposure periods and concentration of the cypermethrin was found to be dose and time dependent which possibly led to asphyxiation and stress to fish Key word: Clarias gariepinus, gill damage, cypermethrin

Establishment reality vs maintenance reality: how real is real enough?

Remote and virtual laboratories are increasingly prevalent alternatives to the face-to-face laboratory experience; however, the question of their learning outcomes is yet to be fully investigated. There are many presumptions regarding the effectiveness of these approaches; foremost amongst these assumptions is that the experience must be 'real' to be effective. Embedding reality into a remote or virtual laboratory can be an expensive and time-consuming task. Significant efforts have been expended to create 3D VRML models of laboratory equipment, allowing students to pan, zoom and tilt their perspective as they see fit. Multiple camera angles have been embedded into remote interfaces to provide an increased sense of 'realness'. This paper draws upon the literature in the field to show that the necessary threshold for reality varies depending upon how the students are interacting with the equipment. There is one threshold for when they first interact - the establishment reality - which allows the students to familiarise themselves with the laboratory equipment, and to build their mental model of the experience. There is, however, a second, lower, threshold - the maintenance reality - that is necessary for the students' ongoing operation of the equipment. Students' usage patterns rely upon a limited subset of the available functionality, focusing upon only some aspects of the reality that has been originally established. The two threshold model presented in this paper provides a new insight for the development of virtual laboratories in the future

Histopathology And Activities Of Proteases, Aminases And Glutamate Dehydrogenase In Clarias Gariepinus Fingerlings Exposed To Linear Alkyl Benzene Sulphonate (LAS)

Fingerlings of the African catfish, C. gariepinus (mean weight 13.13±2.77g) were exposed to linear alkyl benzene sulphonate (0.0166mg/L) under laboratory conditions. The tissues (liver, gill, muscle and kidney) enzyme parameters were analysed after 0hr (initial) 2hr, 12hr and 24h exposure. The increased neutral and alkaline proteases activities in the different tissues of C. gariepinus indicates the damage caused due to impairment of energy supply and alkaline proteases activity indicates higher protein degradation. Therefore, the proteins are denatured leading to more activation of protease. During the toxic exposure of LAS, the aspartate aminotransfarase (AAT) and alaninetransfarase (ALAT) were enhanced which led to incorporation of amino acids into TCA cycle for energy production. Whereas, glutamate dehydrogenase activity similarly enhanced the elevated level of amino acids, transaminases which possibly suggest the utilization of protein under stress condition of fish. Possible Impaired respiration was evident due to the toxic insult of LAS to the gill which showed severe damage such as filaments with disjointed lamella. In the liver, there was mild vacuolation and congestion of the liver tissue. The kidney showed sequensiation of the kidney architecture with accumulation of hyaline droplets in the tubular epithelial cell. These changes occur predominantly in the 24hr exposure. LAS is toxic to fingerlings fish C. gariepinus are more susceptible to LAS, therefore their use on/near fish farm or in area close to aquatic environment should be discouraged. Keyword:  Linear alkyl benzene sulphonate, proteases, aminases, glutamate dehydrogenase, histopatholog

PubMatrix: a tool for multiplex literature mining

BACKGROUND: Molecular experiments using multiplex strategies such as cDNA microarrays or proteomic approaches generate large datasets requiring biological interpretation. Text based data mining tools have recently been developed to query large biological datasets of this type of data. PubMatrix is a web-based tool that allows simple text based mining of the NCBI literature search service PubMed using any two lists of keywords terms, resulting in a frequency matrix of term co-occurrence. RESULTS: For example, a simple term selection procedure allows automatic pair-wise comparisons of approximately 1–100 search terms versus approximately 1–10 modifier terms, resulting in up to 1,000 pair wise comparisons. The matrix table of pair-wise comparisons can then be surveyed, queried individually, and archived. Lists of keywords can include any terms currently capable of being searched in PubMed. In the context of cDNA microarray studies, this may be used for the annotation of gene lists from clusters of genes that are expressed coordinately. An associated PubMatrix public archive provides previous searches using common useful lists of keyword terms. CONCLUSIONS: In this way, lists of terms, such as gene names, or functional assignments can be assigned genetic, biological, or clinical relevance in a rapid flexible systematic fashion

Links between energy budgets, somatic condition, and life history reveal heterogeneous energy management tactics in a group-living mesocarnivore

Peer reviewe

Examining the Influence of COVID-19 on Elementary Mathematics Standardized Test Scores in a Rural Ohio School District

In the United States, national and state standardized assessments have become a metric for measuring student learning and high-quality learning environments. As the COVID-19 pandemic offered a multitude of learning modalities (e.g., hybrid, socially distanced face-to-face instruction, virtual environment), it becomes critical to examine how this learning disruption influenced elementary mathematic performance. This study tested for differences in mathematics performance on fourth grade standardized tests before and during COVID-19 in a case study of a rural Ohio school district using the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) mathematics test. A two-way ANOVA showed that fourth- grade MAP mathematics scores were statistically similar for the 2019 pre-COVID cohort (n = 31) and 2020 COVID-19 cohort (n = 82), and by gender group, between Fall 2019 and Fall 2020. Implications for rural students’ academic performance in virtual learning environments are discussed

The relationship between mental health conditions and hearing loss in low- and middle-income countries.

OBJECTIVE: Hearing loss can have far-reaching effects on social, emotional and cognitive development, but few studies have addressed the link with mental health conditions. We conducted a systematic review of the association between hearing loss and mental health conditions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). METHODS: We searched six electronic databases using predetermined criteria to retrieve original research reporting mental health in people with hearing loss. We considered quantitative studies measuring any type of mental health conditions according to the ICD10 classifications of 'Mental and behavioural disorders' in relation to any measure of hearing loss. We assessed risk of bias using a set of criteria according to the SIGN50 guidelines. RESULTS: We included 12 studies evaluating 35 604 people with hearing loss in 10 countries. Poorer mental health (measured as stress and anxiety, depression, and/or behavioural and emotional disorders) was more common among people with hearing loss compared to those without in 10 studies. One study found no difference in mental health outcomes between people with hearing, visual and no impairment. Another study reported that after hearing aids, those with severe hearing loss had significant improvement in psychosocial function, compared to no change among those without hearing loss. Overall, one study was judged to be high quality, seven medium quality and four low quality. CONCLUSIONS: Included studies showed a trend towards poorer mental health outcomes for people with hearing loss than for those without. However, our findings indicate that very few high-quality studies have been conducted in LMICs

Healthcare costs of asthma comorbidities: a systematic review protocol

Chief Scientist’s Office of the Scottish Government and Asthma UK as part of the Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research [AUK-AC-2012-01]. BN and AS are supported by the Farr Institute and Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research.This work is supported by the Chief Scientist’s Office of the Scottish Government and Asthma UK as part of the Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research (AUK-AC-2012-01). BIN and AS are supported by the Farr Institute and Asthma UK Centre for Applied Research

The Primacy of Public Health Considerations in Defining Poor Quality Medicines

Paul Newton and colleagues argue that public health, and not intellectual property or trade issues, should be the prime consideration in defining and combating counterfeit medicines, and that the World Health Organization (WHO) should take a more prominent role