Aiming higher : the Plymouth and Peninsula Tri-Level Model (PPM) for school/HE links : putting the university into school and community

"This report outlines an innovative, effective model of school/higher education (HE) liaison, the Plymouth & Peninsula Model (PPM). The PPM is of major national and international importance. The defining quality of PPM is that it is a genuine partnership, with parity of esteem between HEIs, schools and local authorities (LAs), supported by other major stakeholders. The PPM is based upon firm research evidence, is highly cost effective and could be rolled out nationally to cover geographically all primary and secondary schools and college grouped in consortia" - page iii

Learning to Unlearn White Supremacist Consciousness

Using cooperative inquiry as a self-directed learning strategy, people of European-American descent learn to unlearn white supremacist consciousness. Facilitators of changed thinking and behavior include relationships of trust in the all-white inquiry groups and relationships with people of color in participants\u27 daily lives

“We’re happy as we are”: the experience of living with possible undiagnosed dementia.

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Cambridge University Press via the DOI in this record. It is estimated that a third of people in the United Kingdom with signs of dementia are living without a formal diagnosis. In Wales, the proportion is nearly half. Some explanations for the gap between prevalence of dementia and number of diagnoses include living with a long-term partner/spouse and systemic barriers to diagnosis. This study recruited participants from the Cognitive Function and Ageing Studies-Wales (CFAS-Wales) cohort, randomly selected from people aged over 65 living in two areas of Wales, who met study criteria for a diagnosis of dementia and did not have a record of a formal diagnosis in general practice records. We aimed to understand more about the contexts and circumstances of people who live with and cope with cognitive difficulties without having a formal diagnosis of dementia. We conducted qualitative interviews with six participants and their spouses, and additionally with four family members of three invited people who were unable to take part. Themes were generated using thematic analysis. We present the argument that there is an adaptive response to low service levels and a complex interaction between the expectations of levels of service, perceptions of the legitimacy of cognitive problems and the right to make demands on services. This paper concludes that more could be done to address barriers to diagnosis and treatment services for those living with symptoms of dementia, but that the value placed on diagnosis by some individuals might be lower than anticipated by government policy.Alzheimer's SocietyEconomic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Проблема коррупции в современном обществе

Abstract Background Agricultural workers may be exposed to potential carcinogens including pesticides, sensitizing agents and solar radiation. Previous studies indicate increased risks of hematopoietic cancers and decreased risks at other sites, possibly due to differences in lifestyle or risk behaviours. We present findings from CanCHEC (Canadian Census Health and Environment Cohort), the largest national population-based cohort of agricultural workers. Methods Statistics Canada created the cohort using deterministic and probabilistic linkage of the 1991 Canadian Long Form Census to National Cancer Registry records for 1992–2010. Self-reported occupations were coded using the Standard Occupational Classification (1991) system. Analyses were restricted to employed persons aged 25–74 years at baseline (N = 2,051,315), with follow-up until December 31, 2010. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were modeled using Cox proportional hazards for all workers in agricultural occupations (n = 70,570; 70.8% male), stratified by sex, and adjusted for age at cohort entry, province of residence, and highest level of education. Results A total of 9515 incident cancer cases (7295 in males) occurred in agricultural workers. Among men, increased risks were observed for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (HR = 1.10, 95% CI = 1.00–1.21), prostate (HR = 1.11, 95% CI = 1.06–1.16), melanoma (HR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.02–1.31), and lip cancer (HR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.70–2.70). Decreased risks in males were observed for lung, larynx, and liver cancers. Among female agricultural workers there was an increased risk of pancreatic cancer (HR = 1.36, 95% CI = 1.07–1.72). Increased risks of melanoma (HR = 1.79, 95% CI = 1.17–2.73), leukemia (HR = 2.01, 95% CI = 1.24–3.25) and multiple myeloma (HR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.16–4.37) were observed in a subset of female crop farmers. Conclusions Exposure to pesticides may have contributed to increased risks of hematopoietic cancers, while increased risks of lip cancer and melanoma may be attributed to sun exposure. The array of decreased risks suggests reduced smoking and alcohol consumption in this occupational group compared to the general population

Beyond the regional average: drivers of geographical rainfall variability during East Africa's short rains

The East African “short rains” from October–December (OND) are crucial for the region's cultural and agricultural landscape. Traditional climate studies have often treated these rains as a single mode, representing the average rainfall across the region. This approach, however, fails to capture the complex geographical variations in seasonal rainfall. In our study, we analyse 4200 reforecasts from a seasonal prediction system spanning 1981–2022, identifying distinct clusters that represent different geographical patterns of the short rains. We explore the influence of tropical sea-surface temperature patterns, upper-level tropospheric flow, and low-level moisture fluxes on these clusters. A key revelation of our research is the limited predictability of certain geographical rainfall structures based on large-scale climatic drivers. This finding highlights a gap in current forecasting methodologies, emphasising the necessity for further research to understand and predict these intricate patterns. Our study illuminates the complexities of regional rainfall variability in East Africa, underlining the importance of continued investigation to improve climate resilience strategies in the region

A Preliminary DTI Tractography Study of Developmental Neuroplasticity 5-15 Years After Early Childhood Traumatic Brain Injury

Plasticity is often implicated as a reparative mechanism when addressing structural and functional brain development in young children following traumatic brain injury (TBI); however, conventional imaging methods may not capture the complexities of post-trauma development. The present study examined the cingulum bundles and perforant pathways using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) in 21 children and adolescents (ages 10-18 years) 5-15 years after sustaining early childhood TBI in comparison with 19 demographically-matched typically-developing children. Verbal memory and executive functioning were also evaluated and analyzed in relation to DTI metrics. Beyond the expected direction of quantitative DTI metrics in the TBI group, we also found qualitative differences in the streamline density of both pathways generated from DTI tractography in over half of those with early TBI. These children exhibited hypertrophic cingulum bundles relative to the comparison group, and the number of tract streamlines negatively correlated with age at injury, particularly in the late-developing anterior regions of the cingulum; however, streamline density did not relate to executive functioning. Although streamline density of the perforant pathway was not related to age at injury, streamline density of the left perforant pathway was significantly and positively related to verbal memory scores in those with TBI, and a moderate effect size was found in the right hemisphere. DTI tractography may provide insight into developmental plasticity in children post-injury. While traditional DTI metrics demonstrate expected relations to cognitive performance in group-based analyses, altered growth is reflected in the white matter structures themselves in some children several years post-injury. Whether this plasticity is adaptive or maladaptive, and whether the alterations are structure-specific, warrants further investigation

Subseasonal precipitation prediction for Africa: forecast evaluation and sources of predictability

This paper evaluates sub-seasonal precipitation forecasts for Africa using hindcasts from three models (ECMWF, UKMO, and NCEP) participating in the Subseasonal to Seasonal (S2S) prediction project. A variety of verification metrics are employed to assess weekly precipitation forecast quality at lead times of one to four weeks ahead (Weeks 1-4) during different seasons. Overall, forecast evaluation indicates more skilful predictions for ECMWF over other models and for East Africa over other regions. Deterministic forecasts show substantial skill reduction in Weeks 3-4 linked to lower association and larger underestimation of predicted variance compared to Weeks 1-2. Tercile-based probabilistic forecasts reveal similar characteristics for extreme categories and low quality in the near-normal category. Although discrimination is low in Weeks 3-4, probabilistic forecasts still have reasonable skill, especially in wet regions during particular rainy seasons. Forecasts are found to be over-confident for all weeks, indicating the need to apply calibration for more reliable predictions. Forecast quality within the ECMWF model is also linked to the strength of climate drivers’ teleconnections, namely El Niño-Southern Oscillation, Indian Ocean Dipole, and the Madden-Julian Oscillation. The impact of removing all driver-related precipitation regression patterns from observations and hindcasts shows reduction of forecast quality compared to including all drivers’ signals, with more robust effects in regions where the driver strongly relates to precipitation variability. Calibrating forecasts by adding observed regression patterns to hindcasts provides improved forecast associations particularly linked to the Madden-Julian Oscillation. Results from this study can be used to guide decision-makers and forecasters in disseminating valuable forecasting information for different societal activities in Africa

A call for transparent reporting to optimize the predictive value of preclinical research

The US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke convened major stakeholders in June 2012 to discuss how to improve the methodological reporting of animal studies in grant applications and publications. The main workshop recommendation is that at a minimum studies should report on sample-size estimation, whether and how animals were randomized, whether investigators were blind to the treatment, and the handling of data. We recognize that achieving a meaningful improvement in the quality of reporting will require a concerted effort by investigators, reviewers, funding agencies and journal editors. Requiring better reporting of animal studies will raise awareness of the importance of rigorous study design to accelerate scientific progress

Effects of antiplatelet therapy on stroke risk by brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases: subgroup analyses of the RESTART randomised, open-label trial

Background Findings from the RESTART trial suggest that starting antiplatelet therapy might reduce the risk of recurrent symptomatic intracerebral haemorrhage compared with avoiding antiplatelet therapy. Brain imaging features of intracerebral haemorrhage and cerebral small vessel diseases (such as cerebral microbleeds) are associated with greater risks of recurrent intracerebral haemorrhage. We did subgroup analyses of the RESTART trial to explore whether these brain imaging features modify the effects of antiplatelet therapy