Assessing literacy in children and adolescents

This review provides a framework for examining the assessment of literacy underpinned by current theories of reading and writing. Our choice of assessment tools was influenced by a desire to identify tests that are suitable for diagnosing students of all ages. The key dimensions identified were printed word recognition (lexical and non-lexical), comprehension and writing. We conclude that there is no single test currently available that provides a comprehensive profile of literacy difficulties. The assessor will require critical discrimination in choosing tests that are theoretically sound and diagnostically useful. © 2007 Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health

An in vitro collagen perfusion wound biofilm model; with applications for antimicrobial studies and microbial metabolomics

BackgroundThe majority of in vitro studies of medically relevant biofilms involve the development of biofilm on an inanimate solid surface. However, infection in vivo consists of biofilm growth on, or suspended within, the semi-solid matrix of the tissue, whereby current models do not effectively simulate the nature of the in vivo environment. This paper describes development of an in vitro method for culturing wound associated microorganisms in a system that combines a semi-solid collagen gel matrix with continuous flow of simulated wound fluid. This enables culture of wound associated reproducible steady state biofilms under conditions that more closely simulate the dynamic wound environment. To demonstrate the use of this model the antimicrobial kinetics of ceftazidime, against both mature and developing Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms, was assessed. In addition, we have shown the potential application of this model system for investigating microbial metabolomics by employing selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry (SIFT-MS) to monitor ammonia and hydrogen cyanide production by Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms in real-time. ResultsThe collagen wound biofilm model facilitates growth of steady-state reproducible Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms under wound like conditions. A maximum biofilm density of 1010 cfu slide-1 was achieved by 30 hours of continuous culture and maintained throughout the remainder of the experiment. Treatment with ceftazidime at a clinically relevant dose resulted in a 1.2 – 1.6 log reduction in biofilm density at 72 hours compared to untreated controls. Treatment resulted in loss of complex biofilm architecture and morphological changes to bacterial cells, visualised using confocal microscopy. When monitoring the biofilms using SIFT-MS, ammonia and hydrogen cyanide levels peaked at 12 hours at 2273 ppb (±826.4) and 138 ppb (±49.1) respectively and were detectable throughout experimentation. ConclusionsThe collagen wound biofilm model has been developed to facilitate growth of reproducible biofilms under wound-like conditions. We have successfully used this method to: (1) evaluate antimicrobial efficacy and kinetics, clearly demonstrating the development of antimicrobial tolerance in biofilm cultures; (2) characterise volatile metabolite production by P. aeruginosa biofilms, demonstrating the potential use of this method in metabolomics studies

Busy doing nothing? What do players do in idle games?

Idle games – games where waiting for extended periods is an important dynamic – are increasing in popularity. The game Neko Atsume, a mobile game about collecting cats, is an extreme example of this genre where progress can only be achieved when the game is switched off (so-called "progress while gone"). Do such waiting games engage players? To answer this, we conducted a large survey (N=1972) to understand what players are doing when they play Neko Atsume. Players are highly “engaged” in Neko Atsume as they interact with and around the game in four distinct ways: Time spent playing, Direct sociability; Social media sociability and Checking frequency. However, these characteristics of engagement in Neko Atsume do not fit well with existing models of engagement. We propose that, in future studies, game engagement in idle games could be considered as a habit which players acquire and maintain

2016 Research & Innovation Day Program

A one day showcase of applied research, social innovation, scholarship projects and activities.https://first.fanshawec.ca/cri_cripublications/1003/thumbnail.jp

Adaptation reveals sensory and decision components in the visual estimation of locomotion speed

Locomotion speed provides important social information about an individual’s fitness, mood and intent. Visual estimation of locomotion speed is a complex task for the visual system because viewing distance must be taken into account, and the estimate has to be calibrated by recent experience of typical speeds. Little is known about how locomotion speed judgements are made. Previous research indicates that the human visual system possesses neurons that respond specifically to moving human forms. This research used point-light walker (PLW) displays that are known to activate these cells, in order to investigate the process mediating locomotion speed judgements. The results of three adaptation experiments show that these judgements involve both a low-level sensory component and a high-level decision component. A simple theoretical scheme is proposed, in which neurons sensitive to image flicker rate (temporal frequency) provide a sensory speed code, and a benchmark ‘norm’ value of the speed code, based on prevailing locomotion speeds, is used to make decisions about objective speed. The output of a simple computational model of the scheme successfully captured variations in locomotion speed in the stimuli used in the experiments. The theory offers a biologically-motivated account of how locomotion speed can be visually estimated