Working Memory and Music Perception and Production in an Adult Sample

This study examined the relationship between working memory and music perception and production in an adult population. Music perception and production was assessed using The Vocal Auditory Motor Development Assessment (VAMDA). Working memory was examined using both a forward and backward digit span test. A significant positive correlation was found between working memory and melody discrimination, while no significant relationship was found between working memory and pitch discrimination and production. Result implications and future research directions are discussed

The Use of Newspapers for Teaching Language Arts and Reading

The problem of this study was to determine if achievement scores in reading and language arts could be increased for students who participated in the newspapers in education program. Ninety-three seventh grade students were selected for the study; seventy-seven students completed the study, sixteen students were lost due to attrition. Two experimental groups and one control group were selected by random assignment from the seventh grade class at one school. The Metropolitan Achievement Test was administered to all students as a pretest. After completion of the experimental treatment in two successive twelve week periods, the Metropolitan Instructional Test for reading and language arts were administered as posttests. The analysis of covariance was the statistical measure utilized to test seven null hypotheses. The effects of participating in the newspaper in education program was determined by comparing the posttest scores of the experimental groups and control group on the Metropolitan Instructional Test for reading and language arts. The appropriate pretest scores were used as a covariate of the posttest to control for any initial inequalities among the groups. Results at the .05 level of significance were used as criteria for accepting the hypotheses. Based on the findings of the study, a significant difference (p \u3c .001) was found between the experimental groups and the control group on reading comprehension. It can be concluded that participating in the newspaper treatment enabled students to significantly increase the reading comprehension test scores in the study. Although the other subtest scores for reading skills were not significant, the adjusted mean scores of the experimental groups and the control group were approximately equal. Scores on the language arts subtests indicated significant differences in usage, spelling, and study skills. Contrary to expectations, the control group scored significantly higher than either experimental group. It can be concluded that participation in the basal text instruction was more successful in increasing student scores on the Metropolitan Achievement Test than participation in the NIE program for language arts. The study also revealed that participation in the NIE program did not produce any significantly different test scores between sexes

The Effect of Natural Dissolved Organic Carbon on the Acute Toxicity of Copper to Larval Freshwater Mussels (\u3cem\u3eGlochidia\u3c/em\u3e)

The present study examined the effect of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), both added and inherent, on Cu toxicity in glochidia, the larvae of freshwater mussels. Using incremental additions of natural DOC concentrate and reconstituted water, a series of acute copper toxicity tests were conducted. An increase in DOC from 0.7 to 4.4 mg C/L resulted in a fourfold increase (36–150 μg Cu/L) in the 24-h median effective concentration (EC50) and a significant linear relationship (r2=0.98, p=0.0008) between the DOC concentration and the Cu EC50 of Lampsilis siliquoidea glochidia. The ameliorating effect of added DOC on Cu toxicity was confirmed using a second mussel species, the endangered (in Canada) Lampsilis fasciola. The effect of inherent (i.e., not added) DOC on Cu toxicity was also assessed in eight natural waters (DOC 5–15 mg C/L). These experiments revealed a significant relationship between the EC50 and the concentration of inherent DOC (r2=0.79, p=0.0031) with EC50s ranging from 27 to 111 μg Cu/L. These laboratory tests have demonstrated that DOC provides glochidia with significant protection from acute Cu toxicity. The potential risk that Cu poses to mussel populations was assessed by comparing Cu and DOC concentrations from significant mussel habitats in Ontario to the EC50s. Although overall mean Cu concentration in the mussel’s habitat was well below the acutely toxic level given the concentration of DOC, episodic Cu releases in low DOC waters may be a concern for the recovery of endangered freshwater mussels. The results are examined in the context of current Cu water quality regulations including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (U.S. EPA) biotic ligand model

The waiting time paradox: population based retrospective study of treatment delay and survival of women with endometrial cancer in Scotland

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