Implicit knowledge and memory for musical stimuli in musicians and non-musicians.

The phoneme monitoring task used by Bigand, Tillmann, Poulin, D’Adamo and Madurell (2001) is a musical priming paradigm that demonstrates that both musicians and non-musicians have gained implicit understanding of prevalent harmonic structures. Little research has focused on implicit music learning in musicians and non-musicians. This current study aimed to investigate whether the phoneme monitoring task would identify any implicit memory differences between musicians and non-musicians. It focuses on both implicit knowledge of musical structure and implicit memory for specific musical sequences. Thirty-two musicians and non-musicians (19 female and 13 male) were asked to listen to a seven-chord sequence and decide as quickly as possible whether the final chord ended on the syllable /di/ or /du/. Overall, musicians were faster at the task, though non-musicians made more gains through the blocks of trials. Implicit memory for musical sequence was evident in both musicians and non-musicians. Both groups of participants reacted quicker to sequences that they had heard more than once but showed no explicit knowledge of the familiar sequences

Strategic Planning for Local Tourism Destinations: An Analysis of Tourism

This paper reports on a study of the planning practices of local tourism destinations. The tourism plans of 30 local tourism destinations in Queensland, Australia were analyzed to determine the extent to which sustainability principles, namely strategic planning and stakeholder participation, were integrated into the planning process. Utilizing a tourism planning process evaluation instrument developed by Simpson (2001), it was found that local tourism destinations are not integrating sustainability principles in their planning processes

Microscopic model approaches to fragmentation of nuclei and phase transitions in nuclear matter

The properties of excited nuclear matter and the quest for a phase transition which is expected to exist in this system are the subject of intensive investigations. High energy nuclear collisions between finite nuclei which lead to matter fragmentation are used to investigate these properties. The present report covers effective work done on the subject over the two last decades. The analysis of experimental data is confronted with two major problems, the setting up of thermodynamic equilibrium in a time-dependent fragmentation process and the finite size of nuclei. The present status concerning the first point is presented. Simple classical models of disordered systems are derived starting with the generic bond percolation approach. These lattice and cellular equilibrium models, like percolation approaches, describe successfully experimental fragment multiplicity distributions. They also show the properties of systems which undergo a thermodynamic phase transition. Physical observables which are devised to show the existence and to fix the order of critical behaviour are presented. Applications to the models are shown. Thermodynamic properties of finite systems undergoing critical behaviour are advantageously described in the framework of the microcanonical ensemble. Applications to the designed models and to experimental data are presented and analysed. Perspectives of further developments of the field are suggested.Comment: 150 pages including 28 figures. To be published in Phys. Rep. Corrected discussion in section 3.2.3 and new Fig.5. New caption of Fig.2

HeadStart local evaluation: qualitative perspectives from schools: Second Report

HEADLINES There is some discontent within schools as to the levels of support from HeadStart, and a clear confusion about responsibility for the programme/s offered. Some school staff seem to want or expect HeadStart staff to run the programme/s, and there has been little take-up of staff responsibility for these. This lack of consistency from, and communication with, the HeadStart team has affected schools’ involvement and satisfaction. Where HeadStart initiatives and programmes have had time and resources allocated to them by the schools they are reported as being effective for raising the resilience, self-esteem and selfconfidence of children, but schools are clear on the need for high quality training for all members of staff, which needs to be maintained as staff move key stages or new staff join the school. There is a clear perception that schools have been hampered by the turnover of HeadStart staff and what they see as a lack of consistency in the support offered. The intermittent participation of schools and discontinuous support from HeadStart has resulted in limited impacts on children. Although the profile of MHWB has been raised for staff and children, the Standards still dominate the school outlook and the input from HeadStart has not by itself been enough to meet the growing need identified by our research participants. The development of a shared language through the use of the SUMO highlighted as a clear positive in round 1 of the research was much less obvious in this focus group exercise, with respondents stating that this was not being used by staff or students in schools

HeadStart Wolverhampton local evaluation: qualitative perspectives from schools

KEY FINDINGS • Schools stated programmes which were embedded in school practice had greater impact. In these cases HeadStart activities are seen as complementary rather than an add-on. • Schools reported that children were involved in learning essential skills for life, coupled with developing greater self-esteem and resilience. • The development of a shared language through SUMO was highlighted as positive, but schools were clear about the need for high quality training for all members of staff, which needs to be maintained as staff move key stages or new staff join the school. • Teachers have also become more conscious of their own mental health and wellbeing as a result of their engagement with HeadStart

Sirt1 overexpression attenuates Western‐style diet‐induced aortic stiffening in mice

Abstract Increased arterial stiffness is a cardiovascular disease risk factor in the setting of advancing age and Western diet (WD) induced obesity. Increases in large artery stiffness, as measured by pulse wave velocity (PWV), occur within 8 weeks of WD feeding in mice. Sirtuin‐1 (Sirt1), a NAD‐dependent deacetylase, regulates cellular metabolic activity and activation of this protein has been associated with vasoprotection in aged mice. The aim of the study was to elucidate the effect of global Sirt1 overexpression (Sirttg) on WD‐induced arterial stiffening. Sirt1 overexpression did not influence PWV in normal chow (NC) fed mice. However, PWV was higher in wild‐type (WT) mice (p < 0.04), but not in Sirttg mice, after 12 weeks of WD and this effect was independent of changes in blood pressure or the passive pressure diameter relation in the carotid artery. Overexpression of Sirt1 was associated with lower collagen and higher elastin mRNA expression in the aorta of WD fed mice (both p < 0.05). Although MMP2 and MMP3 mRNA were both upregulated in WT mice after WD (both p < 0.05), this effect was reversed in Sirttg mice compared to WT mice fed WD (both p < 0.05). Surprisingly, histologically assessed collagen and elastin quality were unchanged in the aortas of WT or Sirttg mice after WD. However, Sirttg mice were protected from WD‐induced glucose intolerance, although there was no difference in insulin tolerance between groups. These findings demonstrate a vasoprotective effect of Sirt1 overexpression that limits the increase in arterial stiffness in response to consumption of a WD

Modern Children's Literature: An Introduction

Modern children's literature is currently receiving much public and critical attention. Organized to show developments in children's literature over time and across genres, this introductory guide looks at key British, American and Australian works, from picture books and texts for younger children, through to graphic novels and young adult fiction. Each chapter applies specific critical approaches, supported by explanatory boxed material and suggestions for further reading. The second edition of this established, classic text has been thoroughly revised, updated and expanded to reflect current issues in the field. It features new chapters by leading names on key topics such as canon formation, psychoanalytic approaches, fantasy, and technology, and includes an essay on children's poetry by the former Children's Laureate, Michael Rosen