Evaluation of a Memory Book Intervention With Orphaned Children in South Africa

The purpose of this collaborative research study was to evaluate the use of the Memory Book intervention for orphaned children\u27s grief and loss recovery. A qualitative phenomenological approach was implemented to evaluate the Memory Book intervention with orphaned children at two children\u27s homes in South Africa. Study findings support the ability of children to work through loss and grief when they are assisted in preserving and telling their story. The Memory Book intervention assists children to chronicle their lives and demonstrates the potential to guide future interventions by care providers and nurses in this context

Northeast IPM Center Participation by the NYS IPM Program, 2006

NYS IPM Program staff were involved with several key activities of theNortheast IPM Center in 2006. Included were participation and leadership in the Center’s Working Groups and meeting with Natural Resource Conservation Service representatives

Getting “Just Deserts” or Seeing the “Silver Lining”: The Relation between Judgments of Immanent and Ultimate Justice

People can perceive misfortunes as caused by previous bad deeds (immanent justice reasoning) or resulting in ultimate compensation (ultimate justice reasoning). Across two studies, we investigated the relation between these types of justice reasoning and identified the processes (perceptions of deservingness) that underlie them for both others (Study 1) and the self (Study 2). Study 1 demonstrated that observers engaged in more ultimate (vs. immanent) justice reasoning for a "good" victim and greater immanent (vs. ultimate) justice reasoning for a "bad" victim. In Study 2, participants' construals of their bad breaks varied as a function of their self-worth, with greater ultimate (immanent) justice reasoning for participants with higher (lower) self-esteem. Across both studies, perceived deservingness of bad breaks or perceived deservingness of ultimate compensation mediated immanent and ultimate justice reasoning respectively. © 2014 Harvey and Callan

Arthropod Phylogenetics in Light of Three Novel Millipede (Myriapoda: Diplopoda) Mitochondrial Genomes with Comments on the Appropriateness of Mitochondrial Genome Sequence Data for Inferring Deep Level Relationships

Background Arthropods are the most diverse group of eukaryotic organisms, but their phylogenetic relationships are poorly understood. Herein, we describe three mitochondrial genomes representing orders of millipedes for which complete genomes had not been characterized. Newly sequenced genomes are combined with existing data to characterize the protein coding regions of myriapods and to attempt to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships within the Myriapoda and Arthropoda. Results The newly sequenced genomes are similar to previously characterized millipede sequences in terms of synteny and length. Unique translocations occurred within the newly sequenced taxa, including one half of the Appalachioria falcifera genome, which is inverted with respect to other millipede genomes. Across myriapods, amino acid conservation levels are highly dependent on the gene region. Additionally, individual loci varied in the level of amino acid conservation. Overall, most gene regions showed low levels of conservation at many sites. Attempts to reconstruct the evolutionary relationships suffered from questionable relationships and low support values. Analyses of phylogenetic informativeness show the lack of signal deep in the trees (i.e., genes evolve too quickly). As a result, the myriapod tree resembles previously published results but lacks convincing support, and, within the arthropod tree, well established groups were recovered as polyphyletic. Conclusions The novel genome sequences described herein provide useful genomic information concerning millipede groups that had not been investigated. Taken together with existing sequences, the variety of compositions and evolution of myriapod mitochondrial genomes are shown to be more complex than previously thought. Unfortunately, the use of mitochondrial protein-coding regions in deep arthropod phylogenetics appears problematic, a result consistent with previously published studies. Lack of phylogenetic signal renders the resulting tree topologies as suspect. As such, these data are likely inappropriate for investigating such ancient relationships

Mitochondrial genome deletions and minicircles are common in lice (Insecta: Phthiraptera)

Background The gene composition, gene order and structure of the mitochondrial genome are remarkably stable across bilaterian animals. Lice (Insecta: Phthiraptera) are a major exception to this genomic stability in that the canonical single chromosome with 37 genes found in almost all other bilaterians has been lost in multiple lineages in favour of multiple, minicircular chromosomes with less than 37 genes on each chromosome. Results Minicircular mt genomes are found in six of the ten louse species examined to date and three types of minicircles were identified: heteroplasmic minicircles which coexist with full sized mt genomes (type 1); multigene chromosomes with short, simple control regions, we infer that the genome consists of several such chromosomes (type 2); and multiple, single to three gene chromosomes with large, complex control regions (type 3). Mapping minicircle types onto a phylogenetic tree of lice fails to show a pattern of their occurrence consistent with an evolutionary series of minicircle types. Analysis of the nuclear-encoded, mitochondrially-targetted genes inferred from the body louse, Pediculus, suggests that the loss of mitochondrial single-stranded binding protein (mtSSB) may be responsible for the presence of minicircles in at least species with the most derived type 3 minicircles (Pediculus, Damalinia). Conclusions Minicircular mt genomes are common in lice and appear to have arisen multiple times within the group. Life history adaptive explanations which attribute minicircular mt genomes in lice to the adoption of blood-feeding in the Anoplura are not supported by this expanded data set as minicircles are found in multiple non-blood feeding louse groups but are not found in the blood-feeding genus Heterodoxus. In contrast, a mechanist explanation based on the loss of mtSSB suggests that minicircles may be selectively favoured due to the incapacity of the mt replisome to synthesize long replicative products without mtSSB and thus the loss of this gene lead to the formation of minicircles in lice

School IPM Outreach and Research Activities, 2006

Integrated pest management in schools is needed to reduce risks to children and others from both pests and the overuse of pesticides.  The NYS IPM Program was involved in several extension and applied research activities at schools in 2006. In the lower Hudson River Valley, we continued with a “learning community” approach. Three school districts are working with extension and school peers to assist each other in the development of model IPM programs. Following up with a cockroach IPM plan and demonstration in 2005, a training program was held at South Huntington UFSD for facilities workers that added the category of 7A “structural and rodent” to their pesticide applicator licenses. These facilities workers then became an in-house pest management team that assumed the responsibility for future cockroach and other pest management. In New York City, the Director of Pest Control requested an IPM STAR evaluation from the IPM Institute. The NYS IPM program has been closely involved with NYC schools for many years, and helped in 2006 by conducting the pre-evaluation using IPM STAR standards. NYS IPM then helped conduct the official IPM STAR evaluation. We participated in a nation-wide group preparing a USDA-funded Pest Management Strategic Plan for school IPM and started the development of outreach efforts to small, rural school districts in the Adirondacks. NYS IPM Program staff organized a meeting of the Statewide School IPM Committee and interacted with numerous school districts and others about school IPM via presentations and site visits

School IPM Outreach and Research Activities, NYS IPM Program, 2009

Integrated pest management in schools is needed to reduce risks to children and others from both pests and the overuse of pesticides.  The NYS IPM Program was involved in several outreach activities at schools in 2009. We organized and conducted on-site assessments of the pest management programs of several NYS school districts, three that have received the IPM Institute’s STAR certification. We also did on-site consultations for specific pest management situations at two Long Island districts and the New York City Board of Education. We participated in a nation-wide group preparing a USDA-funded Pest Management Strategic Plan for school IPM and were involved in plans to implement the Plan’s recommendations including organizing the Northeast School IPM Working Group. In 2009, NYS IPM Program staff organized a meeting of the Statewide School IPM Committee and assisted the US EPA in school IPM outreach in Oneida County. We also began planning a repeat of the statewide survey of school pest management policies and practices

Integrated Pest Management for Stinging Insects

Stinging insects, such as bees, yellowjackets, and other aggressive wasps, pose a significant threat to humans in the outdoor environment. Social wasps and bees will sting when provoked or especially when the colony is threatened. Although otherwise beneficial, many of these social wasps and bees build colonies and forage very close to human activities, such as around homes, schools, parks, concession stands, festivals, and the like. The standard type of control for stinging insects tends to focus on reactive pesticide use. Several alternative approaches exist but it is unclear to what extent they work. Integrated pest management strategies are also available, but many practitioners do not use them. Most homeowners know nothing about the types of stinging insects, the risks each may pose, and ways to reduce their impact before resorting to a pesticide. In 2006 the work of NYS IPM specialists helped push forward our understanding of how traps can be used to manage wasps in outdoor settings and whether repellant trash bags can reduce foraging. In addition, a draft manuscript was written for a publication that will serve as an IPM reference tool for anyone dealing with wasps and bees in the Northeast