Finite-size effects in dynamics of zero-range processes

The finite-size effects prominent in zero-range processes exhibiting a condensation transition are studied by using continuous-time Monte Carlo simulations. We observe that, well above the thermodynamic critical point, both static and dynamic properties display fluid-like behavior up to a density {\rho}c (L), which is the finite-size counterpart of the critical density {\rho}c = {\rho}c (L \rightarrow \infty). We determine this density from the cross-over behavior of the average size of the largest cluster. We then show that several dynamical characteristics undergo a qualitative change at this density. In particular, the size distribution of the largest cluster at the moment of relocation, the persistence properties of the largest cluster and correlations in its motion are studied.Comment: http://pre.aps.org/abstract/PRE/v82/i3/e03111

The Long-Term Effects of Parent Military Deployment on Perceived Parent/Child Relationship Quality

There remains a paucity of research surrounding the potential long-term effects of parental military deployment. This article provides counselors with an ability to better understand the long-term implications of parental deployment on the parent/child relationship through qualitative interviews with the, now, young adults who experienced a parent’s deployment, using consensual qualitative research methodology. The study makes several contributions to the knowledge base. Utilizing Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory, this study examined how adult children of deployed parents view their past and current parental relationships. Four domains emerged, including 1) factors impacting relationship with dad, 2) deployment cycle, 3) military culture, and 4) changes in perspective. Implications for both research and clinical work stem from the study’s results, including a proposed ecological developmental framework

Nesting Induced Peierls-type Instability for Compressed Li-CI16

Alkalies are considered to be simple metals at ambient conditions. However, recently reported theoretical and experimental results have shown an unexpected and intriguing correlation between complex structures and an enhanced superconducting transition temperature in lithium under pressure. In this article we analyze the pressure induced Fermi surface deformation in bcc lithium, and its relation to the observed cI16 structure. According to our calculations, the Fermi surface becomes increasingly anisotropic with pressure and develops an extended nesting along the bcc [121] direction. This nesting induces a phonon instability of both transverse modes at N, so that a Peierls-type mechanism is proposed to explain the stability of Li-cI16.Comment: Proceedings of Fukuoka 2006 Conference on Novel Pressure-induced Phenomena in Condensed Matter Systems. To be published in J. Phys. Soc. Jpn. 2 pages and 3 figure

Correlating Pedestrian Flows and Search Engine Queries

An important challenge for ubiquitous computing is the development of techniques that can characterize a location vis-a-vis the richness and diversity of urban settings. In this paper we report our work on correlating urban pedestrian flows with Google search queries. Using longitudinal data we show pedestrian flows at particular locations can be correlated with the frequency of Google search terms that are semantically relevant to those locations. Our approach can identify relevant content, media, and advertisements for particular locations.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, 1 tabl

Luokanopettajien kokemuksia koulukiusaamisesta ja koulukiusaajista

Tiivistelmä. Tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli selvittää luokanopettajien kokemuksia koulukiusaamisesta ja koulukiusaajista. Ensimmäisellä tutkimuskysymyksellä etsittiin luokanopettajien määritelmiä koulukiusaamiselle ja luokanopettajien kokemuksia koulukiusaamisesta ja sen eri muodoista. Toisen tutkimuskysymyksen avulla saimme vastauksia luokanopettajien koulukiusaamiseen puuttumiskeinoista ja -malleista. Kolmannen tutkimuskysymyksen avulla selvitimme, havaitsevatko luokanopettajat koulukiusaajille tyypillisiä piirteitä ja jos havaitsevat, mitä nämä piirteet ovat. Tutkimuksen kohderyhmä koostuu kymmenestä luokanopettajasta, joista viisi on miehiä ja viisi on naisia. Luokanopettajat työskentelevät vuosiluokilla 2.–6. alakoulussa. Tutkimukseen vastanneilla henkilöillä on kokemusta luokanopettajan työstä 1 vuodesta 38 vuoteen. Aineisto on kerätty keväällä ja syksyllä 2014 sähköisen teemahaastattelulomakkeen avulla. Tutkimus on kvalitatiivinen ja lähestymistapana on fenomenologia sovellettuna tähän tutkimukseen sopivaksi. Sovellettu fenomenologia valikoitui tutkimuksen lähestymistavaksi, sillä tarkoituksena oli tutkia luokanopettajien kokemuksia aiheesta. Kaikki tutkimukseen osallistuneet luokanopettajat ovat olleet tekemisissä koulukiusaamisen kanssa työssään. Tutkimuksesta kävi ilmi, että luokanopettajat määrittelevät oulukiusaamisen fyysiseen ja henkiseen kiusaamiseen. Tutkimukseen osallistuneet henkilöt ovat kohdanneet työssään fyysisen ja henkisen kiusaamisen muotoja. Luokanopettajat nimesivät enemmän henkisen kuin fyysisen kiusaamisen muotoja. Yleisesti luokanopettajat määrittelivät koulukiusaamisen melko samalla tavalla kuin iemmat kiusaamista käsittelevät tutkimukset osoittavat. Luokanopettajat käyttävät työssään erilaisia kiusaamiseen puuttumiskeinoja ja -malleja. Heidän käytössään on niin yleisiä kuin omiakin kiusaamiseen puuttumismalleja. Luokanopettajat kokivat erilaisten mallien helpottavan kiusaamiseen puuttumista. Tutkimukseen osallistuneet uokanopettajat kokivat kiusaajan määrittelemisen vaikeaksi. Vastauksista nousi kuitenkin esille piirteitä, joita luokanopettajat pitävät koulukiusaajalle tyypillisinä piirteinä. uokanopettajat määrittelivät koulukiusaajan melko samalla tavalla kuin aiemmat kiusaamista käsittelevät tutkimukset määrittelevät, mutta vastauksista löytyi myös joitakin eroavaisuuksia

A qualitative assessment of community acceptability and use of a locally developed children's book to increase shared reading and parent-child interactions in rural Zambia

INTRODUCTION: Early reading interventions hold promise for increasing language and literacy development in young children and improving caregiver-child interactions. To engage rural caregivers and young children in home reading, Zambian child psychologists and education specialists developed a culturally representative, local language children's book targeted at pre-grade 1 children. OBJECTIVES: We qualitatively assessed community acceptability and use of the book distributed to households with young children in two provinces of Zambia. METHODS: We conducted 15 focus group discussions (FGDs) with women (n=117) who received the "Zambian folktales adapted stories for young children" book. A codebook was created a priori, based on established themes in the guide; content analysis was conducted in Nvivo v12. Data were interpreted against the Theoretical Framework on Acceptability. FINDINGS: Respondents described wide acceptability of the children's book across multiple framework constructs. Respondents believed the book was culturally appropriate for its folktale structure and appreciated the morals and lessons provided by the stories. Respondents described using the book in multiple ways including reading in one-on-one or group settings, asking the child questions about the narrative or pictures, and providing additional commentary on the actions or figures in the pictures. Respondents believed the books were helping children grow their vocabulary and early literacy skills. The book's simple vocabulary facilitated use by less educated caregivers. The primary concern voiced was the ability of low literacy caregivers to utilize the book for reading. DISCUSSION: The children's book was widely considered acceptable by rural Zambian communities. It provided a platform for an additional method of caregiver-child interactions in these households for reading, dialogue, and oral storytelling. Shared reading experiences have potentially substantial benefits for the language development and emergent literacy of young children. Programs to develop and deliver culturally acceptable books to households with limited access should be considered by governments and funders

COVID-19 knowledge and prevention behaviors in rural Zambia: a qualitative application of the information-motivation-behavioral skills model

In early 2020, the Zambian Ministry of Health instituted prevention guidelines to limit spread of COVID-19. We assessed community knowledge, motivations, behavioral skills, and perceived community adherence to prevention behaviors (i.e., hand hygiene, mask wearing, social distancing, and limiting gatherings). Within a cluster-randomized controlled trial in four rural districts, in November 2020 and May 2021, we conducted in-depth interviews with health center staff (N = 19) and community-based volunteers (N = 34) and focus group discussions with community members (N = 281). A content analysis was conducted in Nvivo v12. Data were interpreted using the Information-Motivation-Behavioral Skills Model. Generally, respondents showed good knowledge of COVID-19 symptoms, spread, and high-risk activities, with some gaps. Prevention behavior performance was driven by personal and social factors. Respondents described institutional settings (e.g., clinics and church) having higher levels of perceived adherence due to stronger enforcement measures and clear leadership. Conversely, informal community settings (e.g., weddings, funerals, football matches) lacked similar social and leadership expectations for adherence and had lower perceived levels of adherence. These settings often involved higher emotions (excitement or grief), and many involved alcohol use, resulting in community members "forgetting" guidelines. Doubt about disease existence or need for precautions persisted among some community members and drove non-adherence more generally. Although COVID-19 information successfully penetrated these very remote rural communities, more targeted messaging may address persistent COVID-19 doubt and misinformation. Engaging local leaders in religious, civic, and traditional leadership positions could improve community behaviors without adding additional monitoring duties on an already overburdened, resource-limited health system

Trends in maternal mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic-evidence from Zambia

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased social and emotional stressors globally, increasing mental health concerns and the risk of psychiatric illness worldwide. To date, relatively little is known about the impact of the pandemic on vulnerable groups such as women and children in low-resourced settings who generally have limited access to mental health care. We explore two rounds of data collected as part of an ongoing trial of early childhood development to assess mental health distress among mothers of children under 5-years-old living in two rural areas of Zambia during the COVID-19 pandemic. We examined the prevalence of mental health distress among a cohort of 1105 mothers using the World Health Organization's Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in August 2019 and after the first two infection waves in October-November 2021. Our primary outcome was mental health distress, defined as SRQ-20 score above 7. We analyzed social, economic and family level characteristics as factors modifying to the COVID-19 induced changes in the mental health status. At baseline, 22.5% of women were in mental health distress. The odds of mental health distress among women increased marginally over the first two waves of the pandemic (aOR1.22, CI 0.99-1.49). Women under age 30, with lower educational background, with less than three children, and those living in Eastern Province (compared to Southern Province) of Zambia, were found to be at highest risk of mental health deterioration during the pandemic. Our findings suggest that the prevalence of mental health distress is high in this population and has further worsened during COVID-19 pandemic. Public health interventions targeting mothers' mental health in low resource settings may want to particularly focus on young mothers with limited educational attainment

Numerical Computations with H(div)-Finite Elements for the Brinkman Problem

The H(div)-conforming approach for the Brinkman equation is studied numerically, verifying the theoretical a priori and a posteriori analysis in previous work of the authors. Furthermore, the results are extended to cover a non-constant permeability. A hybridization technique for the problem is presented, complete with a convergence analysis and numerical verification. Finally, the numerical convergence studies are complemented with numerical examples of applications to domain decomposition and adaptive mesh refinement.Comment: Minor clarifications, added references. Reordering of some figures. To appear in Computational Geosciences, final article available at http://www.springerlink.co

Effect of commercial rye whole-meal bread on postprandial blood glucose and gastric emptying in healthy subjects

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The intake of dietary fibre has been shown to reduce the risk of developing diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of commercial rye whole-meal bread containing whole kernels and white wheat bread on the rate of gastric emptying and postprandial glucose response in healthy subjects.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Ten healthy subjects took part in a blinded crossover trial. Blood glucose level and gastric emptying rate (GER) were determined after the ingestion of 150 g white wheat bread or 150 g whole-meal rye bread on two different occasions after fasting overnight. The GER was measured using real-time ultrasonography, and was calculated as the percentage change in antral cross-sectional area 15 and 90 minutes after completing the meal.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>No statistically significant difference was found between the GER values or the blood glucose levels following the two meals when evaluated with the Wilcoxon signed rank sum test.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The present study revealed no difference in postprandial blood glucose response or gastric emptying after the ingestion of rye whole-meal bread compared with white wheat bread.</p> <p>Trial registration</p> <p>NCT00779298</p