Teaching Independent Transitioning to Young Children with Autism Using Video Self-Modeling with Video Feedback via iPads

This study investigated the efficacy of Video Self-Modeling (VSM) with video feedback using iPads to improve independent transitioning of two young children, a first grader and a preschooler, with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) across play activities and school routines. It was hypothesized that participants would transition independently through play activities and daily routines after watching their exemplary behaviors on an iPad. Teachers and teacher assistants delivered the intervention in inclusive classrooms. An A-B-A-B research design was used with the first grader whereas an A-B-A design was implemented with the preschooler. Findings show that both participants improved targeted behaviors. Independent transitioning skills were also maintained for both participants one month after the intervention was withdrawn. Social validity results show that parents of participants and their teachers favored and recommended the video self-modeling with video feedback intervention for other children with autism

The Sandwich Generation Diner: Development of a Web-Based Health Intervention for Intergenerational Caregivers

Background: Women are disproportionately likely to assist aging family members; approximately 53 million in the United States are involved with the health care of aging parents, in-laws, or other relatives. The busy schedules of “sandwich generation” women who care for older relatives require accessible and flexible health education, including Web-based approaches. Objective: This paper describes the development and implementation of a Web-based health education intervention, The Sandwich Generation Diner, as a tool for intergenerational caregivers of older adults with physical and cognitive impairments. Methods: We used Bartholomew’s Intervention Mapping (IM) process to develop our theory-based health education program. Bandura’s (1997) self-efficacy theory provided the overarching theoretical model. Results: The Sandwich Generation Diner website features four modules that address specific health care concerns. Our research involves randomly assigning caregiver participants to one of two experimental conditions that are identical in the type of information provided, but vary significantly in the presentation. In addition to structured Web-based assessments, specific website usage data are recorded. Conclusions: The Sandwich Generation Diner was developed to address some of the informational and self-efficacy needs of intergenerational female caregivers. The next step is to demonstrate that this intervention is: (1) attractive and effective with families assisting older adults, and (2) feasible to embed within routine home health services for older adults

Subspace Correction for Constraints

We demonstrate that it is possible to construct operators that stabilize the constraint-satisfying subspaces of computational problems in their Ising representations. We provide an explicit recipe to construct unitaries and associated measurements for some such constraints. The stabilizer measurements allow the detection of constraint violations, and provide a route to recovery back into the constrained subspace. We call this technique ``subspace correction". As an example, we explicitly investigate the stabilizers using the simplest local constraint subspace: Independent Set. We find an algorithm that is guaranteed to produce a perfect uniform or weighted distribution over all constraint-satisfying states when paired with a stopping condition: a quantum analogue of partial rejection sampling. The stopping condition can be modified for sub-graph approximations. We show that it can prepare exact Gibbs distributions on $d-$regular graphs below a critical hardness $\lambda_d^*$ in sub-linear time. Finally, we look at a potential use of subspace correction for fault-tolerant depth-reduction. In particular we investigate how the technique detects and recovers errors induced by Trotterization in preparing maximum independent set using an adiabatic state preparation algorithm.Comment: 12 + 4 pages, 6 figure

Social Entrepreneurship and Social Business: Retrospective and Prospective Research

Ye

Lessons learnt from comprehensive evaluation of community-based education in Uganda: a proposal for an ideal model community-based education for health professional training institutions

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Community-based education (CBE) can provide contextual learning that addresses manpower scarcity by enabling trainees acquire requisite experiences, competence, confidence and values. In Uganda, many health professional training institutions conduct some form of community-based education (CBE). However, there is scanty information on the nature of the training: whether a curriculum exists (objectives, intended outcomes, content, implementation strategy), administration and constraints faced. The objective was to make a comprehensive assessment of CBE as implemented by Ugandan health professional training institutions to document the nature of CBE conducted and propose an ideal model with minimum requirements for health professional training institutions in Uganda.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We employed several methods: documentary review of curricula of 22 institutions, so as to assess the nature, purpose, outcomes, and methods of instruction and assessment; s<it>ite visits </it>to these institutions and their CBE sites, to assess the learning environment (infrastructure and resources); in-depth interviews with key people involved in running CBE at the institutions and community, to evaluate CBE implementation, challenges experienced and perceived solutions.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>CBE was perceived differently ranging from a subject, a course, a program or a project. Despite having similar curricula, institutions differ in the administration, implementation and assessment of CBE. Objectives of CBE, the curricula content and implementation strategies differ in similar institutions. On collaborative and social learning, most trainees do not reside in the community, though they work on group projects and write group reports. Lectures and skills demonstrations were the main instruction methods. Assessment involved mainly continuous assessment, oral or written reports and summative examination.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This assessment identified deficiencies in the design and implementation of CBE at several health professional training institutions, with major flaws identified in curriculum content, supervision of trainees, inappropriate assessment, trainee welfare, and underutilization of opportunities for contextual and collaborative learning. Since CBE showed potential to benefit the trainees, community and institutions, we propose a model that delivers a minimum package of CBE and overcomes the wide variation in the concept, conduct and implementation of CBE.</p

A reference frame for blood volume in children and adolescents

BACKGROUND: Our primary purpose was to determine the normal range and variability of blood volume (BV) in healthy children, in order to provide reference values during childhood and adolescence. Our secondary aim was to correlate these vascular volumes to body size parameters and pubertal stages, in order to determine the best normalisation parameter. METHODS: Plasma volume (PV) and red cell volume (RCV) were measured and F-cell ratio was calculated in 77 children with idiopathic nephrotic syndrome in drug-free remission (mean age, 9.8 ± 4.6 y). BV was calculated as the sum of PV and RCV. Due to the dependence of these values on age, size and sex, all data were normalised for body size parameters. RESULTS: BV normalised for lean body mass (LBM) did not differ significantly by sex (p < 0.376) or pubertal stage (p < 0.180), in contrast to normalisation for the other anthropometric parameters. There was no significant difference between reference values for children and adults. CONCLUSION: LBM was the anthropometric index most closely correlated to vascular fluid volumes, independent of age, gender and pubertal stage

Social Entrepreneurship and Social Business: Retrospective and Prospective Research

Ye

The Homeobox Transcription Factor Barx2 Regulates Plasticity of Young Primary Myofibers

Adult mammalian muscle retains incredible plasticity. Muscle growth and repair involves the activation of undifferentiated myogenic precursors called satellite cells. In some circumstances, it has been proposed that existing myofibers may also cleave and produce a pool of proliferative cells that can re-differentiate into new fibers. Such myofiber dedifferentiation has been observed in the salamander blastema where it may occur in parallel with satellite cell activation. Moreover, ectopic expression of the homeodomain transcription factor Msx1 in differentiated C2C12 myotubes has been shown to induce their dedifferentiation. While it remains unclear whether dedifferentiation and redifferentiaton occurs endogenously in mammalian muscle, there is considerable interest in induced dedifferentiation as a possible regenerative tool.We previously showed that the homeobox protein Barx2 promotes myoblast differentiation. Here we report that ectopic expression of Barx2 in young immature myotubes derived from cell lines and primary mouse myoblasts, caused cleavage of the syncytium and downregulation of differentiation markers. Microinjection of Barx2 cDNA into immature myotubes derived from primary cells led to cleavage and formation of mononucleated cells that were able to proliferate. However, injection of Barx2 cDNA into mature myotubes did not cause cleavage. Barx2 expression in C2C12 myotubes increased the expression of cyclin D1, which may promote cell cycle re-entry. We also observed differential muscle gene regulation by Barx2 at early and late stages of muscle differentiation which may be due to differential recruitment of transcriptional activator or repressor complexes to muscle specific genes by Barx2.We show that Barx2 regulates plasticity of immature myofibers and might act as a molecular switch controlling cell differentiation and proliferation