A Review and Meta-Analysis of Age-Based Stereotype Threat: Negative Stereotypes, Not Facts, Do the Damage.

Stereotype threat effects arise when an individual feels at risk of confirming a negative stereotype about their group and consequently underperforms on stereotype relevant tasks (Steele, 2010). Among older people, underperformance across cognitive and physical tasks is hypothesized to result from age-based stereotype threat (ABST) because of negative age-stereotypes regarding older adults’ competence. The present review and meta-analyses examine 22 published and 10 unpublished articles, including 82 effect sizes (N = 3882) investigating ABST on older people’s (Mage = 69.5) performance. The analysis revealed a significant small-to-medium effect of ABST (d = .28) and important moderators of the effect size. Specifically, older adults are more vulnerable to ABST when (a) stereotype-based rather than fact-based manipulations are used (d = .52); (b) when performance is tested using cognitive measures (d = .36); and (c) occurs reliably when the dependent variable is measured proximally to the manipulation. The review raises important theoretical and methodological issues, and areas for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved

Spin physics with STAR

The STAR collaboration aims to study polarized proton-proton collisions at RHIC. The emphasis of the spin run this year is on transverse single spin asymmetries. Beyond 2001, we aim to determine directly and precisely the gluon polarization, as well as the polarizations of the u, $\bar{u}$, d and $\bar{d}$ quarks in the proton by measuring in addition longitudinal and double spin asymmetries. Furthermore, we aim to measure for the first time the quark transversity distributions. These measurements will improve substantially the knowledge and understanding of the spin structure of the nucleon.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures. Talk presented at The 3rd Circum-Pan-Pacific Symposium on "High Energy Spin Physics" October 8-13 2001, Beijing, Chin

Curve number dependence on basic hydrologic variables governing runoff

The suitability of applying the NRCS Curve Number (CN) to continuous runoff prediction is examined by studying the dependence of the CN on several hydrologic variables. The continuous watershed model Hydrologic Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) is employed as a theoretical watershed in two numerical procedures designed to investigate the influence of soil type, soil depth, storm depth, storm distribution, and initial abstraction ratio value (lambda) on the CN. This study stems from a concurrent project involving the design of a computer modeling system to support the Cumulative Hydrologic Impact Assessments (CHIA) of over 230 watersheds throughout WV. A link between the CN and HSPF soil moisture parameters is proposed for continuous runoff simulation in surface mine affected watersheds in West Virginia. A soil physics model and numerical procedure have been developed to back calculate CN\u27s at Antecedent Runoff Condition (ARC) II from synthetic rainfall input and simulated direct runoff. A second method of CN determination is also described to provide a reference to the calculated CN values. Each HSPF parameter set, determined through calibration and by the soil physics model, is treated as a unique hypothetical watershed. It was found that the calculated CN\u27s are highly dependent on all of the computational variables, therefore the use of the CN in continuous modeling based on antecedent soil moisture or rainfall alone does not appear to be appropriate. Differences between lambda = 0.05 and lambda = 0.2 are seen predominantly in the lower storm depth calculations. It is suggested that a different symbol be used to distinguish classic CN\u27s from continuous CN\u27s

Mixed methods evaluation of an educational intervention to change mental health nurses' attitudes to people diagnosed with borderline personality disorder

Aims and objectives: To evaluate and explore mental health nurses’ responses to and experience of an educational intervention to improve attitudes towards people with a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder. Report findings are concordant with relevant EQUATOR guidelines (STROBE and COREQ).Background: Attitudes towards people with a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder are poorer than for people with other diagnoses. There is limited evidence about what might improve this situation. One intervention with reportedly good effect uses an underlying biosocial model of borderline personality disorder. No previous intervention has been co-produced with an expert-by-experience. We developed and delivered a 1-day intervention comprising these elements.Design: A mixed-methods design was used comprising prospective uncontrolled cohort intervention and qualitative elements. Participants were mental health nursing staff working in inpatient and community settings in one NHS Board in Scotland, UK.Methods: Measurement of cognitive and emotional attitudes to people with a borderline personality diagnosis at pre- and post- intervention (N =28) and at 4-month follow-up. Focus groups were used to explore participants’ experiences of the intervention (N =11).Results: Quantitative evaluation revealed some sustained changes consistent with expected attitudinal gains in relation to the perceived treatment characteristics of this group, the perception of their suicidal tendencies, and negative attitudes in general. Qualitative findings revealed some hostility towards the underpinning biosocial model and positive appreciation for the involvement of an expert-by-experience. Conclusions: Sustained benefits of an educational intervention for people working with people diagnosed with BPD in some but not all areas. Participants provided contrasting messages about what they think will be useful.Relevance to clinical practice: The study provides further evidence for incorporation of a biosocial model into staff training as well as the benefits of expert-by-experience co-production. Mental health nurses, however, believe that more well-resourced services are the key to improving care. <br/

Inferring the rules of social interaction in migrating caribou

Social interactions are a significant factor that influence the decision-making of species ranging from humans to bacteria. In the context of animal migration, social interactions may lead to improved decision-making, greater ability to respond to environmental cues, and the cultural transmission of optimal routes. Despite their significance, the precise nature of social interactions in migrating species remains largely unknown. Here we deploy unmanned aerial systems to collect aerial footage of caribou as they undertake their migration from Victoria Island to mainland Canada. Through a Bayesian analysis of trajectories we reveal the fine-scale interaction rules of migrating caribou and show they are attracted to one another and copy directional choices of neighbours, but do not interact through clearly defined metric or topological interaction ranges. By explicitly considering the role of social information on movement decisions we construct a map of near neighbour influence that quantifies the nature of information flow in these herds. These results will inform more realistic, mechanism-based models of migration in caribou and other social ungulates, leading to better predictions of spatial use patterns and responses to changing environmental conditions. Moreover, we anticipate that the protocol we developed here will be broadly applicable to study social behaviour in a wide range of migratory and non-migratory taxa. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Collective movement ecology’

Pressures Around an Inclined Ogive Cylinder with Laminar, Transitional, or Turbulent Separation

This paper reports results From comprehensive pressure tests on an ogive cylinder in the low-turbulence 12-ft pressure wind tunnel at Ames Research Center. The results consist of detailed pressure distributions over a wide range of Reynolds numbers (0.2 x 10(exp 6) to 4.0 x 10(exp 6)) and angles of attack (20 to 90 deg). Most important, the tests encompassed a complete coverage of different roll orientations. This variation of roll orientation is shown to be essential in order to fully define all the possible flow conditions. When the various roll-angle results are combined, it is possible to interpret correctly the effects of changing angle of attack or Reynolds number. Two basic mechanisms for producing asymmetric flow are identified. One mechanism operates in both the laminar and the fully turbulent separation regimes; this mechanism Is the one qualitatively described by the impulsive flow analogy. The other mechanism occurs only in the transitional separation regime. This asymmetric flow has the same form as that found in the two-dimensional cross flow on a circular cylinder in the transitional flow regime. Finally, these results make it possible to draw up critical Reynolds number boundaries between the laminar, transitional, and fully turbulent separation regimes throughout the angle-of-attack range from 20 to 90 deg