Experience design of digital period trackers

The aim of this thesis is to identify and address the main challenges around designing digital period trackers. These challenges will focus mainly on (i) the range of user groups and their motivations and challenges in period tracking; (ii) the social climate in which these technologies operate and their effect on social attitudes and stigma surrounding periods; and (iii) the issues surrounding data, ethics, privacy and trustability, particularly in an intimate health use case. The research incorporates a literature review, cross-analysed with insights from 14 in-depth user interviews, which identified 5 main user groups according to tracking motivations. From the challenges identified in this analysis, solution concepts were co-created with users, which forms the basis of a test dashboard interface to test user preferences. Finally, the findings are summarised as industry-relevant, actionable recommendations for the designing of period trackers, comprising of Key Questions and a Three-Step Guideline

Domesticated Cats as a Source of Environmental Contamination with Toxocara cati and Other Soil-Transmitted Helmminth Eggs in Urban Area, Manila-Philiphines

Toxocariasis and soil-transmitted helminthiases are the most prevalent parasitic zoonoses affecting humans and animals that cause environmental contamination.  Toxocara and other soil-transmitted helminth eggs in animal feces are the primary sources of soil-transmitted helminthiases transmission in the environment particularly in urban areas. These parasite eggs constitute a source of infection for both definitive and paratenic hosts. Avian and rodents, that can be paratenic hosts of these parasites, are a significant source of food for cats in urban settings. Stray cats and dogs also consume leftover food or receive frequent feedings from locals that increases the chance of acquiring soil-transmitted helminth infections. Despite the risks that these soil-transmitted helminths have, studies and information regarding their zoonotic potential is very limited to date. This study aimed to determine the relationship between cat feces and the environmental contamination of residential soils with Toxocara cati and other soil-transmitted helminth eggs. A total of 50 samples were collected in selected urban residences in Malate, Manila. Stool samples were processed using Formol-Ether Concentration Technique while optimized sugar flotation technique was used for the soil samples then both were subjected to microscopy. The overall infection rate was 76% and the contamination rate was 52%. Toxocara cati was the most prevalent zoonotic parasite identified in 48% of stool and 44% of soil samples followed by Ascaris spp. with 32% in stools and 16% in soil samples. Trichuris spp. with 24% and hookworm with 16% were also detected in stool samples but were absent in soil samples. The presence of Toxocara cati and Ascaris spp. eggs in feces and their environmental contamination might be accounted to their durable and highly resistant eggs as well as the as the Philippines as a tropical country which may induce optimal conditions for Toxocara spp. and other soil-transmitted helminth eggs’ development and survival. &nbsp

Learners’ Reading Metacognition and Summary Writing Skills Nested in Psychological and Sociocultural Factors

This paper investigates the relationship between secondary school students’ reading metacognition and summary writing skills—which represent a part of their academic language skills—within a network of psychological and sociocultural factors consisting of positivity, tolerance and respect, resilience, and culture and cooperation. We used data from the 2018 OECD’s Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) database (n = 612,004) from 79 countries. We conducted a series of confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to validate the variance and covariance structure of the tests and questionnaires used. Next, we performed structural equation modeling (SEM) to investigate the effect of the predictors on reading metacognition and summary writing skills. A significant relationship was found between sociocultural factors, reading metacognition, and summary writing skills. We propose that it is essential to consider how a student’s background, experiences, and school curriculum determine how these indicators present themselves in each student and affect their academic language performance

Vulvar dermatoses: a histopathologic review and classification of 183 cases

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113165/1/cup12541.pd

Enhancing efforts at global digital governance: recommendations to the G20

This policy brief highlights the challenges in attaining effective global digital governance. These include uncertainty regarding the ethical, operational, and strategic implications of digital technologies, and limited avenues for private sector expertise. The G20 is well-placed to effect meaningful change in global digital governance. The brief proposes three recommendations: (1) the establishment of a scientific advisory committee, which is intended to be an honest (knowledge) broker and fill gaps in subject matter expertise; (2) the formation of a public-private partnership task force to stuck and provide recommendations based on previous experiences with multilateralism and global governance that have successfully incorporated private sector expertise; and (3) the launch of a new Sherpa Track initiative that will serve as a platform for senior leaders to discuss global digital governance topics. By adopting these recommendations, the G20 can effectively enhance global digital governance efforts and contribute to a more stable and secure world

Implementation of Professional Learning Standards in Georgia Schools: An Examination of the Current Reality

Professional learning is considered important for improving teacher quality and for development of organizational capacity to boost school improvement for student learning. This mixed methodology study examines the implementation of the National Staff Development Council Standards (NSDC) in professional learning in Georgia schools through the NSDC Standards Assessment Instrument and six open-ended follow-up questions. The findings suggest that teachers in Georgia did not perceive that professional learning holds a high priority by their school leaders, state legislators, and key policy makers. However, they rated their effort toward context and content areas of professional learning to be above average

Characterizing changes in marine ecosystem services

The benefits of marine ecosystems for people are increasingly being characterized through the concept of ecosystem services, with the promise to aid decision making from marine spatial planning to ecosystem-based management. The characterization of changes in marine ecosystem services is central to the application of ecological science to policy contexts, and this field is quickly evolving with innovations in frameworks for integrating science, understanding of ecosystems and human benefits, and innovations in tools for the modeling of services. In this article, we review efforts to characterize changes in marine ecosystem services, including recent advances, and we propose five key future directions for research: cultural values, qualitative or semi-quantitative modeling approaches, cumulative impacts, model evaluation, and markets