Invitation to the Table Conversation: A Few Diverse Perspectives on Integration

This article represents an invitation to the integration table to several previously underrepresented perspectives within Christian psychology. The Judeo-Christian tradition and current views on scholarship and Christian faith compel us to extend hospitality to minority voices within integration, thereby enriching and challenging existing paradigms in the field. Contributors to this article, spanning areas of cultural, disciplinary, and theological diversity, provide suggestions for how their distinct voices can enhance future integrative efforts

Newsletters: Treasures or Trash? Parenting Newsletter Series Results in Positive Behavior Changes

The study discussed here was designed to learn if parents of kindergarten children would report a change in parenting behavior based on reading parent education newsletters. The study was done in a rural area where valued face-to-face parenting education is often impossible, given the current norm of parent\u27s lifestyles and the climate of Extension cost restrictions. The study used a post and then pre questionnaire with a sampling of parents. The study concluded that parents of kindergarten children read the newsletters and changed parenting behavior practices, thus validating the use of newsletters as a parent education tool for this audience

Ecological values of Hamilton urban streams (North Island, New Zealand): constraints and opportunities for restoration

Urban streams globally are characterised by degraded habitat conditions and low aquatic biodiversity, but are increasingly becoming the focus of restoration activities. We investigated habitat quality, ecological function, and fish and macroinvertebrate community composition of gully streams in Hamilton City, New Zealand, and compared these with a selection of periurban sites surrounded by rural land. A similar complement of fish species was found at urban and periurban sites, including two threatened species, with only one introduced fish widespread (Gambusia affinis). Stream macroinvertebrate community metrics indicated low ecological condition at most urban and periurban sites, but highlighted the presence of one high value urban site with a fauna dominated by sensitive taxa. Light-trapping around seepages in city gullies revealed the presence of several caddisfly species normally associated with native forest, suggesting that seepage habitats can provide important refugia for some aquatic insects in urban environments. Qualitative measures of stream habitat were not significantly different between urban and periurban sites, but urban streams had significantly lower hydraulic function and higher biogeochemical function than periurban streams. These functional differences are thought to reflect, respectively, (1) the combined effects of channel modification and stormwater hydrology, and (2) the influence of riparian vegetation providing shade and enhancing habitat in streams. Significant relationships between some macroinvertebrate community metrics and riparian vegetation buffering and bank protection suggest that riparian enhancement may have beneficial ecological outcomes in some urban streams. Other actions that may contribute to urban stream restoration goals include an integrated catchment approach to resolving fish passage issues, active reintroduction of wood to streams to enhance cover and habitat heterogeneity, and seeding of depauperate streams with native migratory fish to help initiate natural recolonisation

An Assessment of Teacher Education Students’ Perceptions and Satisfaction of their Learning Experiences in a Summer Pilot Program

This study assessed teacher education students\u27 perceptions and satisfaction of their learning experiences concerning an accelerated summer pilot program. In addition, the study provided information on the impact and teaching effectiveness of the accelerated teacher education summer pilot program on participating students. Results from this study determined that compelling information and significant differences were found between students who attended summer session I and summer session II. Most importantly this study documented statistical significant differences among the two groups for questions regarding, “the clarity of exam questions,” (t(198) = 10.460, p \u3c .05), “exams’ coverage of important aspects of the course,” (t(198) = 16.566, p \u3c .05), “overall quality of the textbooks(s),” (t(198) = 25.983, p \u3c .05), “problems or questions presented by the instructor for small group discussions,” (t(198) = 1.971, p \u3c .05) and “work load for this course in relation to other courses of equal credit,” (t(198) = 2.518, p \u3c.05). Open-ended data was retrieved from the Student Survey and Praxis Workshop Survey. The open-ended data was used to corroborate the findings from the Student Instructional Report II, Student Survey and Praxis Workshop Survey item analysis. Findings are discussed in terms of their implications on future research and prevention programming

Length of College Service Experience Effect on Future Life Over Time

The college experience offers many opportunities for students to become engaged in service activities. Most studies about these activities have been conducted on populations of students who have either just completed their service activity or just graduated from college. Inconsistent findings on how the length of service activities during college influence choices later in life have left researchers unsure of the value in lengthening service opportunities. To determine if the length of service makes a difference on benefits associated with service, an online survey of 277 former college student volunteers ranging in age from 21 to 71 was completed. Findings showed a positive effect with the length of service on future service attitudes, dispositions, and behavior. The study found that as the length of the time period volunteers served for one organization in college increased, the more likely they were to give service later in life, value giving service to others in need, and believe they could make a difference in their community

The Mass of the Black Hole in Arp 151 from Bayesian Modeling of Reverberation Mapping Data

Supermassive black holes are believed to be ubiquitous at the centers of galaxies. Measuring their masses is extremely challenging yet essential for understanding their role in the formation and evolution of cosmic structure. We present a direct measurement of the mass of a black hole in an active galactic nucleus (Arp 151) based on the motion of the gas responsible for the broad emission lines. By analyzing and modeling spectroscopic and photometric time series, we find that the gas is well described by a disk or torus with an average radius of 3.99 +- 1.25 light days and an opening angle of 68.9 (+21.4, -17.2) degrees, viewed at an inclination angle of 67.8 +- 7.8 degrees (that is, closer to face-on than edge-on). The black hole mass is inferred to be 10^(6.51 +- 0.28) solar masses. The method is fully general and can be used to determine the masses of black holes at arbitrary distances, enabling studies of their evolution over cosmic time.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Mycobiome of the Bat White Nose Syndrome (WNS) Affected Caves and Mines reveals High Diversity of Fungi and Local Adaptation by the Fungal Pathogen Pseudogymnoascus (Geomyces) destructans

The investigations of the bat White Nose Syndrome (WNS) have yet to provide answers as to how the causative fungus Pseudogymnoascus (Geomyces) destructans (Pd) first appeared in the Northeast and how a single clone has spread rapidly in the US and Canada. We aimed to catalogue Pd and all other fungi (mycobiome) by the culture-dependent (CD) and culture-independent (CI) methods in four Mines and two Caves from the epicenter of WNS zoonotic. Six hundred sixty-five fungal isolates were obtained by CD method including the live recovery of Pd. Seven hundred three nucleotide sequences that met the definition of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were recovered by CI methods. Most OTUs belonged to unidentified clones deposited in the databases as environmental nucleic acid sequences (ENAS). The core mycobiome of WNS affected sites comprised of 46 species of fungi from 31 genera recovered in culture, and 17 fungal genera and 31 ENAS identified from clone libraries. Fungi such as Arthroderma spp., Geomyces spp., Kernia spp., Mortierella spp., Penicillium spp., and Verticillium spp. were predominant in culture while Ganoderma spp., Geomyces spp., Mortierella spp., Penicillium spp. and Trichosporon spp. were abundant is clone libraries. Alpha diversity analyses from CI data revealed that fungal community structure was highly diverse. However, the true species diversity remains undetermined due to under sampling. The frequent recovery of Pd indicated that the pathogen has adapted to WNS-afflicted habitats. Further, this study supports the hypothesis that Pd is an introduced species. These findings underscore the need for integrated WNS control measures that target both bats and the fungal pathogen.Comment: 59 pages, 7figure

Parental Perceptions of Participation in 4-H Beef, Sheep and Swine Livestock Projects and the Fostering of Life Skill Development in Youth

Beef, sheep and swine 4-H youth livestock projects have a great deal of hands-on learning opportunities for members. However, what are parents’ perceptions about livestock projects and the development of life skills? The purpose of this research effort was to determine the life skill development gained by 4-H members participating in 4-H beef, sheep or swine projects in West Virginia. A total of 207 caregivers offered insight into the study and answered life skill development questions. These questions were related to decision making, relating to others, developing and maintaining records, accepting responsibility, building positive self esteem, self motivation, knowledge of the livestock industry, developing organizational skills, problem solving, developing oral communication skills, setting goals, developing self-discipline, and working in teams. The findings of this study provide positive insights into the relationship between the development of valuable life skills and 4-H beef, sheep and swine projects