Citizen science reveals widespread negative effects of roads on amphibian distributions

Landscape structure is important for shaping the abundance and distribution of amphibians, but prior studies of landscape effects have been species or ecosystem-specific. Using a large-scale, citizen science-generated database, we examined the effects of habitat composition, road disturbance, and habitat split (i.e. the isolation of wetland from forest by intervening land use) on the distribution and richness of frogs and toads in the eastern and central United States. Undergraduates from nine biology and environmental science courses collated occupancy data and characterized landscape structure at 1617 sampling locations from the North American Amphibian Monitoring Program. Our analysis revealed that anuran species richness and individual species distributions were consistently constrained by both road density and traffic volume. In contrast, developed land around wetlands had small, or even positive effects on anuran species richness and distributions after controlling for road effects. Effects of upland habitat composition varied among species, and habitat split had only weak effects on species richness or individual species distributions. Mechanisms underlying road effects on amphibians involve direct mortality, behavioral barriers to movement, and reduction in the quality of roadside habitats. Our results suggest that the negative effects of roads on amphibians occur across broad geographic regions, affecting even common species, and they underscore the importance of developing effective strategies to mitigate the impacts of roads on amphibian populations

Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, or cardiovascular death. RESULTS: At 48 months, the median reduction from baseline in the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level was 26 percentage points greater in the group that received the 50-mg dose of canakinumab, 37 percentage points greater in the 150-mg group, and 41 percentage points greater in the 300-mg group than in the placebo group. Canakinumab did not reduce lipid levels from baseline. At a median follow-up of 3.7 years, the incidence rate for the primary end point was 4.50 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group, 4.11 events per 100 person-years in the 50-mg group, 3.86 events per 100 person-years in the 150-mg group, and 3.90 events per 100 person-years in the 300-mg group. The hazard ratios as compared with placebo were as follows: in the 50-mg group, 0.93 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.80 to 1.07; P = 0.30); in the 150-mg group, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.74 to 0.98; P = 0.021); and in the 300-mg group, 0.86 (95% CI, 0.75 to 0.99; P = 0.031). The 150-mg dose, but not the other doses, met the prespecified multiplicity-adjusted threshold for statistical significance for the primary end point and the secondary end point that additionally included hospitalization for unstable angina that led to urgent revascularization (hazard ratio vs. placebo, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.95; P = 0.005). Canakinumab was associated with a higher incidence of fatal infection than was placebo. There was no significant difference in all-cause mortality (hazard ratio for all canakinumab doses vs. placebo, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.83 to 1.06; P = 0.31). Conclusions: Antiinflammatory therapy targeting the interleukin-1β innate immunity pathway with canakinumab at a dose of 150 mg every 3 months led to a significantly lower rate of recurrent cardiovascular events than placebo, independent of lipid-level lowering. (Funded by Novartis; CANTOS ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01327846.

Reconsidering Silent Sustained Reading: An Exploratory Study of Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR)

The purpose of this study was to design, implement, and evaluate the efficacy of scaffolded silent reading (ScSR) compared with the evidence-based practice of guided repeated oral reading (GROR) with feedback on 3rd-grade students\u27 fluency and comprehension growth. Using a mixed-model dominant-less dominant design, the authors collected both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative results indicated no significant differences between these 2 forms of reading fluency practice on 3rd-grade students\u27 fluency and comprehension development with the exception of 1 significant difference favoring ScSR on expression of a single passage. Qualitative results indicated that either ScSR or GROR approaches used exclusively tended toward tedium and reduced overall student enjoyment and motivation. The authors discuss how the ScSR approach represents a viable alternative or companion to GROR for promoting 3rd-grade students\u27 reading fluency and comprehension growth

Words to Go: Evaluating a First-Grade Parent Involvement Program for “Making” Words at Home.

Parents make powerful contributions to their children\u27s early literacy learning in school. The purpose of this study was to design, implement, and evaluate the efficacy of the Words to Go parent involvement program as part of a larger effort to reach out to parents in early literacy. Quantitative data from surveys and qualitative data from focus group meetings were collected about the Words‐to‐Go program and demonstrated moderate to highly favorable perceptions among parents, teachers, and students. A pretest post test comparison of first‐graders’ word reading, word writing ability and criterion‐referenced reading test performance in two matched elementary schools showed significant effects favoring the Words‐to‐Go program participants

Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR): A complement to guided repeated oral reading that works!

An effective alternative to the traditional classroom practice of Silent Sustained Reading (SSR) called Scaffolded Silent Reading (ScSR), is described in detail in this article. An implementation of ScSR in a third-grade classroom is presented. Quantitative and qualitative results from a year-long field experiment are reported in which ScSR is compared to the evidence-based practice of Guided Repeated Oral Reading with feedback on third-grade students\u27 fluency and comprehension growth. The evidence reported shows that ScSR can be considered a complementary approach for teachers to effectively engage their third-grade students in silent reading practice

Reading Attitudes: The influence of differing the paths to an incentive on third-graders’ recreational and academic reading

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of four incentive paths on third graders’ reading vocabulary and comprehension achievement and recreational and academic reading attitude. One hundred and twenty third-grade students were assigned to one of four incentive path treatment conditions. Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with Fisher\u27s least significant difference (LSD) post hoc comparisons. An effect size of .09 was calculated using a partial η2 (eta squared) statistic. Findings indicated that the four incentive path treatment conditions did not differentially impact student vocabulary, comprehension, and recreational reading. A significant difference for students’ academic reading attitudes was identified across the four incentive path treatment conditions

Fitness and Wellness

Fitness and Wellness delivers the information, tools and guidelines to create--and stick with--a lifetime physical fitness and wellness program. Led by Werner W.K. Hoeger, the authors teach students how to take control of their lifestyles and make changes to promote overall health and wellness. Personalized information shows students how content relates to them and provide easy steps to begin the process of behavior change. Through hands-on activities and self-review exercises, students learn core concepts and immediately apply their knowledge. In addition, this integrated program incorporates online resources that further students\u27 understanding through applied knowledge activities, online labs and behavior change progress tracking.https://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/fac_books/1493/thumbnail.jp