Facilitating access to higher education for people seeking asylum in Australia: Institutional and community responses

Higher education remains unattainable for many people seeking asylum in Australia, where temporary visa status renders individuals ineligible for a range of government services including assistance with financing tertiary study. Many universities have responded by offering scholarships and other essential supports; however, our research indicates the challenges associated with studying while living on a temporary visa can affect the success of educational assistance. Here we highlight the importance of scholarships and other supports for facilitating access to tertiary study, particularly given the continuation of restrictive government policies, and identify the need for people seeking asylum to inform institutional and community responses

Initial data for two Kerr-like black holes

We prove the existence of a family of initial data for the Einstein vacuum equation which can be interpreted as the data for two Kerr-like black holes in arbitrary location and with spin in arbitrary direction. When the mass parameter of one of them is zero, this family reduces exactly to the Kerr initial data. The existence proof is based on a general property of the Kerr metric which can be used in other constructions as well. Further generalizations are also discussed.Comment: revtex, 5 pages, no figure

Lambda-proton correlations in relativistic heavy ion collisions

The prospect of using lambda-proton correlations to extract source sizes in relativistic heavy ion collisions is investigated. It is found that the strong interaction induces a large peak in the correlation function that provides more sensitive source size measurements than two-proton correlations under some circumstances. The prospect of using lambda-proton correlations to measure the time lag between lambda and proton emissions is also studied.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure, revtex style. Two short paragraphs are added at referees' recommendations. Phys. Rev. Lett. in pres

Children’s comprehension of informational text: Reading, engaging, and learning

The Reading, Engaging, and Learning project (REAL) investigated whether a classroom intervention that enhanced young children's experience with informational books would increase reading achievement and engagement. Participants attended schools serving low income neighborhoods with 86% African American enrollment. The longitudinal study spanned second through fourth grades. Treatment conditions were: (1) Text Infusion/Reading for Learning Instruction -- students were given greater access to informational books in their classroom libraries and in reading instruction; (2) Text Infusion Alone -- the same books were provided but teachers were not asked to alter their instruction; (3) Traditional Instruction -- students experienced business as usual in the classroom. Children were assessed each year on measures of reading and reading engagement, and classroom instructional practices were observed. On most measures, the informational text infusion intervention did not yield differential growth over time. However, the results inform efforts to increase children’s facility with informational text in the early years in order to improve reading comprehension

Early (and Later) LHC Search Strategies for Broad Dimuon Resonances

Resonance searches generally focus on narrow states that would produce a sharp peak rising over background. Early LHC running will, however, be sensitive primarily to broad resonances. In this paper we demonstrate that statistical methods should suffice to find broad resonances and distinguish them from both background and contact interactions over a large range of previously unexplored parameter space. We furthermore introduce an angular measure we call ellipticity, which measures how forward (or backward) the muon is in eta, and allows for discrimination between models with different parity violation early in the LHC running. We contrast this with existing angular observables and demonstrate that ellipticity is superior for discrimination based on parity violation, while others are better at spin determination.Comment: 31 pages, 19 figures. References added, minor modifications made to section

Computerized Tailored Interventions to Enhance Prevention and Screening for Hepatitis C Virus Among People Who Inject Drugs: Protocol for a Randomized Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is a growing problem among people who inject drugs. Strategies to reduce disease transmission (eg, syringe exchange programs) and facilitate HCV screening and linkage are available but are under-utilized in many communities affected by injection drug use. Novel approaches to increasing the use of these strategies are needed. OBJECTIVE: The goals of this project are to (1) develop and pilot test a computerized tailored intervention for increasing HCV screening and decreasing risky drug use behavior among people who inject drugs and (2) determine the feasibility of disseminating such an intervention using peer-based referrals in the setting of a community-based syringe exchange program. METHODS: This 2-arm, randomized pilot study is being conducted in a large-volume, multisite syringe exchange program in southern Wisconsin. A social network-based strategy was used to recruit a total of 235 adults who reported past-month injection of opioids, cocaine, or methamphetamine. Network recruiters were identified among clients requesting services from the syringe exchange program and were enlisted to refer eligible peers to the study. All participants completed a computer-adapted questionnaire eliciting information about risk behaviors and their knowledge, attitudes, and prior experiences related to HCV screening. Subjects were then randomly assigned to receive usual care, consisting of standard counseling by syringe exchange staff, or the Hep-Net intervention, which provides algorithm-based, real-time tailored feedback and recommendations for behavior change in the style of motivational interviewing. Changes in drug use behaviors and attitudes will be assessed during a second session between 90 and 180 days after the baseline visit. Frequency of repeat HCV testing and HCV incidence will be assessed through a database search 1 year after study completion. RESULTS: Recruitment for this study was completed in April 2015. Follow-up of enrolled participants is expected to continue until March 2016. Network recruiters were enrolled who referred a total of 195 eligible peers (overall N=235). At baseline, the median age was 34 years; 41.3% (97/235) were non-white; and 86.4% (203/235) reported predominantly injecting heroin. Most participants (161/234, 68.8%) reported sharing injection equipment in the past and of these, 30.4% (49/161) had never been tested for HCV. CONCLUSIONS: This study will provide preliminary evidence to determine whether incorporating computerized behavioral interventions into existing prevention services at syringe exchange programs can lead to adoption of healthier behaviors. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02474043; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02474043 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6dbjUQG7J)

Improvements to the APBS biomolecular solvation software suite

The Adaptive Poisson-Boltzmann Solver (APBS) software was developed to solve the equations of continuum electrostatics for large biomolecular assemblages that has provided impact in the study of a broad range of chemical, biological, and biomedical applications. APBS addresses three key technology challenges for understanding solvation and electrostatics in biomedical applications: accurate and efficient models for biomolecular solvation and electrostatics, robust and scalable software for applying those theories to biomolecular systems, and mechanisms for sharing and analyzing biomolecular electrostatics data in the scientific community. To address new research applications and advancing computational capabilities, we have continually updated APBS and its suite of accompanying software since its release in 2001. In this manuscript, we discuss the models and capabilities that have recently been implemented within the APBS software package including: a Poisson-Boltzmann analytical and a semi-analytical solver, an optimized boundary element solver, a geometry-based geometric flow solvation model, a graph theory based algorithm for determining p$K_a$ values, and an improved web-based visualization tool for viewing electrostatics

Pharmacists Are Not Mid-Level Providers

Pharmacists should not be classified as “mid-level” providers. This classification implies that there are different levels or a hierarchy of providers when in fact each health care provider brings unique and essential knowledge and contributions to the health care team and to the care of patients. Pharmacists are no exception. Timely issues germane to pharmacists, including dependent and independent practice, provider status, and professional identity, contribute to the rationale that pharmacists, just like all other health care providers, should be classified by their professional identity. While use of the term mid-level provider to identify various practitioners may not seem consequential, in today’s health care environment, words do matter when it comes to attributing value, and the contributions of all health care providers should be recognized as equally important to the patient care team

Individual-Based Modeling of Amazon Forests Suggests That Climate Controls Productivity While Traits Control Demography

Climate, species composition, and soils are thought to control carbon cycling and forest structure in Amazonian forests. Here, we add a demographics scheme (tree recruitment, growth, and mortality) to a recently developed non-demographic model—the Trait-based Forest Simulator (TFS)—to explore the roles of climate and plant traits in controlling forest productivity and structure. We compared two sites with differing climates (seasonal vs. aseasonal precipitation) and plant traits. Through an initial validation simulation, we assessed whether the model converges on observed forest properties (productivity, demographic and structural variables) using datasets of functional traits, structure, and climate to model the carbon cycle at the two sites. In a second set of simulations, we tested the relative importance of climate and plant traits for forest properties within the TFS framework using the climate from the two sites with hypothetical trait distributions representing two axes of functional variation (“fast” vs. “slow” leaf traits, and high vs. low wood density). The adapted model with demographics reproduced observed variation in gross (GPP) and net (NPP) primary production, and respiration. However, NPP and respiration at the level of plant organs (leaf, stem, and root) were poorly simulated. Mortality and recruitment rates were underestimated. The equilibrium forest structure differed from observations of stem numbers suggesting either that the forests are not currently at equilibrium or that mechanisms are missing from the model. Findings from the second set of simulations demonstrated that differences in productivity were driven by climate, rather than plant traits. Contrary to expectation, varying leaf traits had no influence on GPP. Drivers of simulated forest structure were complex, with a key role for wood density mediated by its link to tree mortality. Modeled mortality and recruitment rates were linked to plant traits alone, drought-related mortality was not accounted for. In future, model development should focus on improving allocation, mortality, organ respiration, simulation of understory trees and adding hydraulic traits. This type of model that incorporates diverse tree strategies, detailed forest structure and realistic physiology is necessary if we are to be able to simulate tropical forest responses to global change scenarios