First Occurrence of Lithostrotion (Diphyphyllum) from the Mississippian Redwall Limestone in the Beaver Dam Mountains, Washington County, Utah

The Paleozoic stratigraphy of the Beaver Dam Mountains of southwestern Utah correlates well with the better known deposits of the Grand Canyon, Arizona. However, a detailed list of the fossil fauna from the Beaver Dam Mountains is lacking. Here we describe a rugose coral from the Mississippian Redwall Limestone from Washington Country, Utah. The rugose coral is highly recrystallized, but identified as Lithostrotion (Diphyphyllum) based on morphology and geographic extent. An analysis was conducted to determine conodont zonation, but proved inconclusive. This is the first documented case of Lithostrotion (Diphyphyllum) from the Beaver Dam Mountains

Monitoring the Alteration and Natural Recovery of a Monsoon-Dominated Stream System after a Wild Fire Disturbs its Watershed, Stout Canyon, Utah

The alteration of a stream’s morphology and recovery following a watershed fire is well documented in streams where high flow events occur during spring runoff. However, there are very little data regarding the alteration and natural recovery of streams that have high flow events during the late summer monsoon rains. Stout Canyon, a tributary to the East Fork of the Virgin River, is located approximately 30 miles southeast of Cedar City, Utah, and is a monsoon-dominated stream system whose watershed was burned by the Shingle Fire of 2012. Employees of the Dixie National Forest have monitored Stout Canyon since 2002, using Rosgen Field Methods. The alteration and recovery of Stout Canyon after the fire were documented using the same methods. The comparison of the pre-fire and post-fire data demonstrates how the fire altered the morphology of Stout Canyon. The data were also compared to similarly collected data from three snow-melt-runoff-dominated streams in the Rocky Mountain area whose watersheds have also been disturbed by fires. Bank full indicators began to reappear at Stout Canyon three years after the fire, suggesting that the stream is just beginning to redevelop its floodplain. Some results match the general trends that occur in spring runoff-dominated systems. However, major differences between Stout Canyon and other streams appear in bank geometry. In most streams, the largest changes in bank geometry occur within the first year after the fire with minor alteration occurring in the subsequent years, with bank re-stabilization within about three years. Stout Canyon’s banks, however, saw the most alteration during the second year after the fire and it is continuing to undergo major alteration with no signs of stabilizing three years after the fire. This may be a result of the fact that monsoon-caused high-water-events vary greatly from year to year, whereas snowmelt-runoff-caused high-water-events are generally more consistent. Through the course of the study, monsoonal rains led to erosion rates that were ten times greater than spring runoff. The inconsistent high water events on streams like Stout Canyon make it difficult for the stream banks to stabilize as efficiently and quickly as observed on other streams in the Rocky Mountain Region. The information presented here may be applied to other monsoon-dominated-systems to determine proper preventative and restoration methods

Exploring the experiences and needs of children living with a parent with a mental health issue

Abstract available at each chapter

Lithostratigraphy and Fossil Avifaunas of the Pleistocene Fossil Lake Formation, Fossil Lake, Oregon, and the Oligocene Etadunna Formation, Lake Palankarinna, South Australia

Lacustrine sediments of the Pleistocene Fossil Lake Formation of Oregon, and the Oligocene Etadunna Formation of South Australia record packages of upwardly fining sequences that are fossiliferous, including fossil birds. These two paleo-lakes were studied to determine whether stratigraphically collected bird fossils, in conjunction with lithostratigraphy, are a useful tool to infer broad past climatic conditions of ancient lacustrine systems. To do so, depositional environments are inferred from facies analysis of both lake sections and the stratigraphically collected fossil bird bones were identified to the lowest taxonomic group possible, and then grouped into ecologic groups for analysis of changes in abundances and diversity.The Fossil Lake Formation is divided into four facies; (i) Conglomeratic Sandstone/Siltstone Facies; (ii) Cross-bedded Siltstone Facies; (iii) Siltstone Facies; and (iv) Mudstone Facies. Eight depositional packages were deposited from 646 ka to approximately 10 ka (Martin et al., 2005) as the lake waxed and waned. The facies data suggest the lake experienced periods of gradual deepening followed by abrupt shallowing. The fossil avifauna recovered from the Fossil Lake Formation reveal that shallow-water birds are consistently the most abundant overall. Fossils of diving birds are most abundant in the finer-grained sediments. Geochemically dated tephra dates within the formation allow for correlation to other regional climatic data and the global Marine Isotope Stages. Based on these correlations, the Fossil Lake Formation was primarily deposited during pluvial episodes.The Etadunna Formation is dominated by siltstone and is divided into three facies: (i) Brecciated and Fossiliferous Siltstone Facies; (ii) Siltstone with Root Traces Facies; and (iii) Dolomitic Mudstone Facies. Four depositional packages record the rapid in-filling and gradual shallowing of the lake system. Relatively few bird fossils were recovered from the Etadunna Formation and most of the Anseriformes were unavailable for this study. Nevertheless, the fossil avifauna from this study was divided into the same three eco-groups as in the Fossil Lake study. The shallow-water birds were the most abundant, and only a single specimen from the diving bird eco-group has been recovered, suggesting that the lake was likely shallow during most of its history.As with many fossil collections, inferences made solely from fossil avifauna may be limited, because of sample size or taphonomic biases. However, stratigraphic collections of avifauna can be combined with other datasets, such as lithologic data, to better construct broad past paleoenvironmental conditions, such as water depth. In this study, the fossil avifauna of both formations are in agreement with the interpreted depositional environments

Women’s experiences of accessing individualized disability supports: gender inequality and Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme

Background Care services in industrialized nations are increasingly moving towards individualized funding models, which aim to increase individuals’ flexibility, choice and control over their services and supports. Recent research suggests that such schemes have the potential to exacerbate inequalities, however none has explored gendered dimensions of inequality. The Australian National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is a major individualized funding reform, and has a female participation rate of only 37%, despite women and girls making up half of the disability population. Methods The objective of the study is to explore possible gendered barriers to applying for and receiving adequate support through the NDIS, and to suggest directions for future research. We report on semi-structured interviews with 30 women with disability and explore their experiences with the NDIS and their perspectives on challenges associated with being a woman seeking disability support in Australia. We analyse the results using thematic analysis. Results Most women in our sample reported differences between the experiences of men and women seeking disability support in Australia. Commonly reported gendered barriers to women being able to access the right supports for their disability involve a) confidence, negotiation and self-advocacy, b) gendered discrimination in diagnosis and the medical system, which has implications for disability support access, and c) support for and recognition of caring roles. Conclusions These results suggest that women are not receiving equitable treatment with regard to the NDIS, and that further research and policy reform are needed to ensure that women with disability are not further disadvantaged as a result of the move toward individualized funding models

Parents' responses to prognostic disclosure at diagnosis of a child with a high-risk brain tumor:Analysis of clinician-parent interactions and implications for clinical practice

BackgroundPrevious studies have found that parents of children with cancer desire more prognostic information than is often given even when prognosis is poor. We explored in audio‐recorded consultations the kinds of information they seek.MethodsEthnographic study including observation and audio recording of consultations at diagnosis. Consultations were transcribed and analyzed using an interactionist perspective including tools drawn from conversation and discourse analysis.ResultsEnrolled 21 parents and 12 clinicians in 13 cases of children diagnosed with a high‐risk brain tumor (HRBT) over 20 months at a tertiary pediatric oncology center. Clinicians presented prognostic information in all cases. Through their questions, parents revealed what further information they desired. Clinicians made clear that no one could be absolutely certain what the future held for an individual child. Explicit communication about prognosis did not satisfy parents’ desire for information about their own child. Parents tried to personalize prognostic information and to apply it to their own situation. Parents moved beyond prognostic information presented and drew conclusions, which could change over time. Parents who were present in the same consultations could form different views of their child's prognosis.ConclusionPopulation level prognostic information left parents uncertain about their child's future. The need parents revealed was not for more such information but rather how to use the information given and how to apply it to their child in the face of such uncertainty. Further research is needed on how best to help parents deal with uncertainty and make prognostic information actionable

Altered Auditory Feedback

The purpose of the study was to determine if combining delayed auditory feedback (DAF) and frequency altered feedback (FAF) would be more fluency enhancing than either DAF or FAF alone. Ten stutterers read at normal and fast speech rates under nonaltered auditory feedback (NAF), DAF (i.e., a 50 ms delay), FAF (i.e., a one half octave downward shift), and a combination of DAF and FAF [(COMBO), i.e., a 50 ms delay plus a one half octave downward shift]. Results indicated that stuttering frequency was significantly reduced under all altered auditory conditions at both speech rates relative to the NAF condition. There was, however, no significant differences between the altered auditory feedback conditions (i.e., DAF, FAF, and COMBO). It is suggested that further studies be undertaken to explore the combination of altered auditory feedback conditions, as it may be the case that a floor effect was demonstrated with the singular presentations of DAF and FAF and further improvements in fluency enhancement could not be exhibited in the combined condition. Finally, these findings support the notion that a slowed rate of speech is not necessary for fluency enhancement under conditions of altered auditory feedback

Changes in Drug Utilization during a Gap in Insurance Coverage: An Examination of the Medicare Part D Coverage Gap

Jennifer Polinski and colleagues estimated the effect of the "coverage gap" during which US Medicare beneficiaries are fully responsible for drug costs and found that the gap was associated with a doubling in discontinuing essential medications

The relationship between executive functions and broad written language skills in students ages 12 to 14 years old

The purpose of this investigation was to explore the relationship between executive functions and written language skills. Five hundred and forty-three students between the ages 12 and 14 were administered the Planning, Retrieval Fluency, Pair Cancellation, and Number Reversal subtests from the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities – Third Edition (WJIII; Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001a) and the subtests included under the Broad Written Language cluster of the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement – Third Edition (WJIII; Woodcock, McGrew, & Mather, 2001b). The sample was taken from the larger sample used to norm the WJIII tests. Relationships were explored between the executive function subtest scores and Broad Written Language scores and were found to be significantly correlated. The four executive function measures and gender were entered simultaneously into a multiple regression equation and found to significantly predict Broad Written Language scores. Further examination revealed that all the composites with the exception of the Planning subtest significantly predicted Broad Written Language skills. Subtests measuring the executive functions working memory and attention (Number Reversal and Pair Cancellation) were the most significant contributors when the composite scores were examined. Results provide researchers with a foundation to further investigate the underlying executive functions that may help or hinder students' ability to produce quality written products and eventually design intervention studies based on areas of executive functioning. Limitations of the study are presented as well as implications for research and practice and directions for future research.Educational Psycholog