Motivational climate interventions in school based physical education: A meta Analysis

This article was published in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise [© Elsevier Ltd]. The definitive version is available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.psychsport.2011.06.005Objective: The purpose of this study was to synthesize findings from motivational climate interventions employing Ames (1992a, 1992b) and Epstein’s (1988, 1989) TARGET framework within school-based physical education contexts. Design: The present study employed a quantitative research synthesis design. Meta-analysis uses empirical studies to summarize past research by drawing overall conclusions from separate investigations. This research design highlights important and unsolved issues related to motivational climate interventions within physical education. Methods: Standard meta-analytic procedures incorporating inclusion and exclusion criteria, literature search, coding procedures, and statistical methods were used to identify and synthesize 22 studies with 24 independent samples. Cohen’s (1988) criteria for effect sizes were used to interpret and evaluate results. Results: There was an overall small positive treatment effect (g ¼ 0.103) for groups exposed to mastery motivational climates. Outcome analyses identified the most consistent and largest overall treatment effects for behavioral outcomes (g ¼ 0.39e0.49) followed by affective outcomes (g¼ 0.27 to 0.59) and cognitive outcomes (g¼ 0.25 to 0.32). Moderator analyses were directed by study heterogeneity and identified several trends in intervention features and study features with the most substantial trend for participant features as elementary students had the largest overall treatment effect (g¼ 0.41). Conclusions: Outcome and moderator analyses identified several trends in methodological features, participant features, and study features that should be addressed in future physical education motivational climate interventions

Perfectionism and achievement goals in young Finnish ice-hockey players aspiring to make the Under-16 national team

Research on perfectionism suggests that is it useful to differentiate between perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns. Regarding the 2 x 2 achievement goal framework, the usefulness of this differentiation was recently demonstrated in a study with university student athletes (Stoeber, Stoll, Pescheck, & Otto, 2008, Study 2), in which it was found that perfectionistic strivings were associated with mastery-approach and performance-approach goals and perfectionistic concerns with mastery-avoidance, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals. Because the study was largely exploratory and only used non-elite athletes, the aim of the present research was to replicate and extend these findings by investigating a sample of 138 young, elite ice-hockey players, while adding further measures of perfectionism and using structural equation modelling (SEM) to confirm the relationships between perfectionistic strivings, perfectionistic concerns,and the 2 x 2 achievement goals. The SEM results showed that, in elite athletes also, perfectionistic strivings are associated with mastery-approach and performance-approach goals, whereas perfectionistic concerns are associated with masteryavoidance, performance-approach, and performance-avoidance goals. Our findings corroborate the importance of differentiating between perfectionistic strivings and perfectionistic concerns when studying perfectionism in sports, because only perfectionistic concerns (and not perfectionistic strivings) are associated with maladaptive patterns of achievement goals

Compositional Characteristics and Trends Within the Vera Rubin Ridge, Gale Crater, Mars as Determined by APXS: Sedimentary, Diagenetic and Alteration History

The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity rover has spent the last two years investigating a prominent resistant ridge, informally named the Vera Rubin Ridge (VRR), at the base of Mount Sharp (Aeolis Mons). The ridge has been a high priority science target for the MSL mission since landing in Gale crater more than 6 years ago because of the detection of a strong hematite spectral signature, and its distinct topography. Examining the chemistry of the ridge can aid in determining the relationship to other rocks analyzed during the rover traverse, specifically the Murray formation (fm) encountered below the ridge. We can also determine compositional trends with elevation and/or laterally within the ridge, and whether spectral properties observed on the ridge, both from orbit and in situ, correspond with changes in chemistry. The composition of the ridge, combined with mineralogy of drilled samples, can help to elucidate bigger picture questions regarding depositional environment, possible changing lake water chemistry and diagenetic/alteration history

Time Constants of Heating and Cooling in the Eastern Water Dragon. Physignathus Lesueurii and Some Generalizations About Heating and Cooling in Reptiles

In keeping with other reptiles, core temperature of the lizard Physignathus lesueurii responds more rapidly to a step function increase in temperature than to a corresponding decrease. 2. Observations on twelve species (five families) of non-Chelonian reptiles heating and cooling in air and water show that strongly predictable relationships exist between thermal time constants and body size. Chelonia show a different pattern. 3. These observations are compared with the predictions of a simple model which, although not sufficiently complex to simulate physiological changes, provides insight into the relative importance of the physical and biological factors which underlie the observed relationships

Fluids during diagenesis and sulfate vein formation in sediments at Gale crater, Mars

We model the fluids involved in the alteration processes recorded in the Sheepbed Member mudstones of Yellowknife Bay (YKB), Gale crater, Mars, as revealed by the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover investigations. We compare the Gale crater waters with fluids modeled for shergottites, nakhlites, and the ancient meteorite ALH 84001, as well as rocks analyzed by the Mars Exploration rovers, and with terrestrial ground and surface waters. The aqueous solution present during sediment alteration associated with phyllosilicate formation at Gale was high in Na, K, and Si; had low Mg, Fe, and Al concentrations—relative to terrestrial groundwaters such as the Deccan Traps and other modeled Mars fluids; and had near neutral to alkaline pH. Ca and S species were present in the 10−3 to 10−2 concentration range. A fluid local to Gale crater strata produced the alteration products observed by Curiosity and subsequent evaporation of this groundwater-type fluid formed impure sulfate- and silica-rich deposits—veins or horizons. In a second, separate stage of alteration, partial dissolution of this sulfate-rich layer in Yellowknife Bay, or beyond, led to the pure sulfate veins observed in YKB. This scenario is analogous to similar processes identified at a terrestrial site in Triassic sediments with gypsum veins of the Mercia Mudstone Group in Watchet Bay, UK

Dark Matter Annihilation around Intermediate Mass Black Holes: an update

The formation and evolution of Black Holes inevitably affects the distribution of dark and baryonic matter in the neighborhood of the Black Hole. These effects may be particularly relevant around Supermassive and Intermediate Mass Black Holes (IMBHs), the formation of which can lead to large Dark Matter overdensities, called {\em spikes} and {\em mini-spikes} respectively. Despite being larger and more dense, spikes evolve at the very centers of galactic halos, in regions where numerous dynamical effects tend to destroy them. Mini-spikes may be more likely to survive, and they have been proposed as worthwhile targets for indirect Dark Matter searches. We review here the formation scenarios and the prospects for detection of mini-spikes, and we present new estimates for the abundances of mini-spikes to illustrate the sensitivity of such predictions to cosmological parameters and uncertainties regarding the astrophysics of Black Hole formation at high redshift. We also connect the IMBHs scenario to the recent measurements of cosmic-ray electron and positron spectra by the PAMELA, ATIC, H.E.S.S., and Fermi collaborations.Comment: 12 pages, 7 figures. Invited contribution to NJP Focus Issue on "Dark Matter and Particle Physics

QCD correction to gluino decay to ttˉχ~10t\bar{t}\tilde{\chi}^0_1 in the MSSM

We calculate the complete next-to-leading order QCD corrections to the three-body decay of gluino into top-pair associated with a lightest neutralino in the minimal supersymmetric standard model. We obtain that the LO and NLO QCD corrected decay widths of $\tilde{g} \to t \bar{t} \tilde{\chi}_1^0$ at the ${\rm SPS 6}$ benchmark point are $0.1490 GeV$ and 0.1069 GeV respectively, and the relative correction is -28.2%. We investigate the dependence of the QCD correction to $\tilde{g} \to t \bar{t} \tilde{\chi}_1^0$ on $\tan\beta$ and the masses of gluino, scalar top quarks and the lightest neutralino around the ${\rm SPS6}$ benchmark point, separately. We find that the NLO QCD corrections suppress the LO decay width, and the absolute relative correction can exceed 30% in some parameter space. Therefore, the QCD corrections to the three-body decay $\tilde{g} \to t\bar{t}\tilde{\chi}^0_1$ should be taken into account for the precise experimental measurement at future colliders. Moreover, we study the distributions of the top-pair invariant mass ($M_{t\bar t}$) and the missing energy ($E^{miss}$), and find that the line shapes of the LO distributions of $M_{t\bar t}$ and $E^{miss}$ are not obviously distorted by the NLO QCD corrections.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figure

Gap junctions in olfactory neurons modulate olfactory sensitivity

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>One of the fundamental questions in olfaction is whether olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) behave as independent entities within the olfactory epithelium. On the basis that mature ORNs express multiple connexins, I postulated that gap junctional communication modulates olfactory responses in the periphery and that disruption of gap junctions in ORNs reduces olfactory sensitivity. The data collected from characterizing connexin 43 (Cx43) dominant negative transgenic mice OlfDNCX, and from calcium imaging of wild type mice (WT) support my hypothesis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>I generated OlfDNCX mice that express a dominant negative Cx43 protein, Cx43/β-gal, in mature ORNs to inactivate gap junctions and hemichannels composed of Cx43 or other structurally related connexins. Characterization of OlfDNCX revealed that Cx43/β-gal was exclusively expressed in areas where mature ORNs resided. Real time quantitative PCR indicated that cellular machineries of OlfDNCX were normal in comparison to WT. Electroolfactogram recordings showed decreased olfactory responses to octaldehyde, heptaldehyde and acetyl acetate in OlfDNCX compared to WT. Octaldehyde-elicited glomerular activity in the olfactory bulb, measured according to odor-elicited <it>c-fos </it>mRNA upregulation in juxtaglomerular cells, was confined to smaller areas of the glomerular layer in OlfDNCX compared to WT. In WT mice, octaldehyde sensitive neurons exhibited reduced response magnitudes after application of gap junction uncoupling reagents and the effects were specific to subsets of neurons.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>My study has demonstrated that altered assembly of Cx43 or structurally related connexins in ORNs modulates olfactory responses and changes olfactory activation maps in the olfactory bulb. Furthermore, pharmacologically uncoupling of gap junctions reduces olfactory activity in subsets of ORNs. These data suggest that gap junctional communication or hemichannel activity plays a critical role in maintaining olfactory sensitivity and odor perception.</p