Can electronic textbooks help children to learn?

Purpose – This paper investigates the potential electronic textbooks (e-textbooks) have to augment the learning and education of children. Design/methodology/approach – The study consisted of a total of 60 pupils, split into five groups of 12 participants (six boys and six girls). Each of the five groups were in turn split into two sub-groups of six (three boys and three girls): one sub-group used the printed textbook, while the other used a CD-ROM on a laptop computer. The pupils completed a group test and an individual multiple choice test on information found in the textbooks. Findings – The study showed that the e-textbook was widely accepted by the participants, and motivated group participation. Those using the e-textbook achieved significantly higher test results on average in the group test. Higher (but not significant) average results were achieved by e-textbook users in the individual test. Research limitations/implications – An acknowledged limitation of the study is that the textbooks used for the study were not identical in content. They were equivalent according to subject and recommended age range, but did not contain specifically the same information. Further studies would benefit from making use of an electronic version which is identical, or more similar, to a printed textbook. It would also be worthwhile to investigate the effects of long-term use once the novelty value of the electronic book has subsided. Originality/value – The paper aims to fill the gap in the original literature on the subject of how children relate to and learn from electronic textbooks. The research is of particular interest to teachers, librarians and parents

No Impact of Calorie or Unit Information on Ad Libitum Alcohol Consumption.

AIMS: To investigate the impact of unit and calorie information on drinking behaviour in an ad libitum taste test paradigm. METHODS: In this experimental human laboratory study, participants were randomized to one of four conditions, balanced by gender, using a 2 (unit information: present vs. absent) × 2 (calorie information: present vs. absent) between-subjects design. The percentage of beer consumed during the taste test was the primary outcome measure. RESULTS: Among this largely undergraduate student population, we found no evidence that either unit or calorie information impacted alcohol consumption in an ad libitum taste test. A manipulation check indicated that few of the participants receiving either unit and/or calorie information could accurately recall the number of units and/or calories in the beverages provided to them, indicating low levels of engagement with this information. Analysis of qualitative reactions to calorie and unit labelling indicated possible negative unintended consequences of calorie and unit information, including using unit information to facilitate consumption of higher strength beverages, and calorie information to reduce food consumption prior to a drinking episode. CONCLUSION: We find no evidence to support an effect of unit or calorie information, a public-health initiative supported by the alcohol industry, on drinking behaviour. It is possible that compulsory unit and calorie labelling, at least in the numeric format used here, would have no effect on alcohol intake and may even have some negative unintended consequences among certain populations

The Internet profiles of men who have sex with men within bareback websites

The Internet has become a venue for men who have sex with men to search for sexual partners. Some of these men intentionally seek unprotected anal intercourse with other men (‘bareback’ sex). This paper focuses on the creation, use, and content of Internet personal profiles of men who have sex with men in the greater New York City metropolitan area who use bareback sites for sexual networking. We used a mixedmethods approach to examine data from a cybercartography of Internet sites conducted during the first phase of the research (199 personal profiles) and from in-depth interviews conducted during its second phase (120 men who have sex with men who sought partners online for bareback sex). Results indicate that men generally followed offline stereotypical patterns in their online profiles. However, men who disclosed being HIV-positive were more likely to include face and head pictures. Overall, the images they used were heavily sexualised in accordance with group norms perceived and reinforced by the websites’ design and imagery. Bottom-identified men tended to be more explicit in the exposition of their sexual and drug use interests online. This paper highlights how certain virtual and social performances play upon and reinforce other, in the flesh, performances

Have e-cigarettes renormalised or displaced youth smoking? Results of a segmented regression analysis of repeated cross-sectional survey data in England, Scotland and Wales

Objectives: To examine whether during a period of limited e-cigarette regulation and rapid growth in their use, smoking began to become renormalised among young people. Design: Interrupted time-series analysis of repeated cross-sectional time-series data. Setting: Great Britain Participants: 248 324 young people aged approximately 13 and 15 years, from three national surveys during the years 1998–2015. Intervention Unregulated growth of e-cigarette use (following the year 2010, until 2015). Outcome measures: Primary outcomes were prevalence of self-reported ever smoking and regular smoking. Secondary outcomes were attitudes towards smoking. Tertiary outcomes were ever use of cannabis and alcohol. Results: In final models, no significant change was detected in the pre-existing trend for ever smoking (OR 1.01, CI 0.99 to 1.03). There was a marginally significant slowing in the rate of decline for regular smoking (OR 1.04, CI 1.00 to 1.08), accompanied by a larger slowing in the rate of decline of cannabis use (OR 1.21, CI 1.18 to 1.25) and alcohol use (OR 1.17, CI 1.14 to 1.19). In all models and subgroup analyses for smoking attitudes, an increased rate of decline was observed after 2010 (OR 0.88, CI 0.86 to 0.90). Models were robust to sensitivity analyses. Conclusions: There was a marginal slowing in the decline in regular smoking during the period following 2010, when e-cigarettes were emerging but relatively unregulated. However, these patterns were not unique to tobacco use and the decline in the acceptability of smoking behaviour among youth accelerated during this time. These analyses provide little evidence that renormalisation of youth smoking was occurring during a period of rapid growth and limited regulation of e-cigarettes from 2011 to 2015

Have e-cigarettes renormalised or displaced youth smoking? Results of a segmented regression analysis of repeated cross sectional survey data in England, Scotland and Wales

Background Small yet significant impacts of e-cigarettes on population smoking cessations rates indicate promise for harm reduction. However, non-smoking young people are increasingly experimenting with e-cigarettes, and while regular use remains rare, arguments for regulation have been driven by fears that e-cigarettes re-normalize smoking. Others counter that e-cigarettes may displace youth smoking and further de-normalize it. This study tests whether the secular decline in youth smoking prevalence, as well as perceived smoking norms, slowed or accelerated during the period from 2011–2015 (when e-cigarettes were emerging but prior to recent moves to regulate their use). Methods Data were taken from the Smoking Drinking and Drug Use survey in England, Health Behaviour in School Aged Children/School Health Research Network surveys in Wales, and the Scottish Adolescents Lifestyle and Substance Use Surveys between 1998 and 2015, including 247,515 13 and 15 year-old respondents. Segmented regression analyses examined trends for smoking prevalence (ever smoking and weekly smoking) and perceived smoking norms, testing for change in trend from 2011–15. Falsifiability checks examined change in trends for alcohol use and cannabis use for the same period. Results In final models for the whole sample, there was no change in rate of decline for ever smoking (OR=1.01; CI 0.99 to 1.03), with a marginally significant slowing in the rate of decline for weekly smoking (OR=1.04; CI 1.00 to 1.08). This slowing decline in weekly smoking was however limited to groups for whom rates were declining prior to 2010 at a rate which could not be sustained (i.e. girls and 13 year olds), and occurred in a greater magnitude for other substances, including cannabis use (OR=1.21, CI 1.18 to 1.25) and alcohol use (OR=1.17; CI 1.14 to 1.19). There was consistent evidence across all subgroups of an increased rate of decline in the percentage of young people saying that smoking is ok (OR=0.83; CI 0.81 to 0.86). Conclusion We found no evidence that the growing prevalence of e-cigarette use has led to increased experimentation with smoking, and some evidence that young people’s perceptions against smoking as a normative behavior have hardened rather than softened. Although the decline in weekly smoking rates is slowing, this appears to reflect a floor effect and is of smaller magnitude than change in trend for other substances. While the idea that e-cigarettes renormalize smoking has been central to much policy debate surrounding regulation, these findings indicate no reason to believe that this renormalization is occurring

In vivo characterization of connective tissue remodeling using infrared photoacoustic spectra

Premature cervical remodeling is a critical precursor of spontaneous preterm birth, and the remodeling process is characterized by an increase in tissue hydration. Nevertheless, current clinical measurements of cervical remodeling are subjective and detect only late events, such as cervical effacement and dilation. Here, we present a photoacoustic endoscope that can quantify tissue hydration by measuring near-infrared cervical spectra. We quantify the water contents of tissue-mimicking hydrogel phantoms as an analog of cervical connective tissue. Applying this method to pregnant women in vivo, we observed an increase in the water content of the cervix throughout pregnancy. The application of this technique in maternal healthcare may advance our understanding of cervical remodeling and provide a sensitive method for predicting preterm birth

Life In The Cold: An Investigation Of Polar Regions

Polar areas provide unique environments that, though they may seem extreme and uninhabitable, are flourishing with life. These areas around the North and South poles include deep oceans, shallow shelf regions, tundra, mountain ranges and vast glaciers. With the increasing effects of global climate change, a basic knowledge of polar regions is crucial to understand future impacts and implications. The purpose of this book is to give a broad background of polar biology, and also provide details on specific examples through case studies. Topics included throughout this book are: Ice, Life in Polar Regions, Species Interactions, and Anthropogenic Impacts. The students in the Polar Biology course (MAR 464) at the University of New England have researched and reviewed scientific literature to educate readers about these regions. The class, comprised of fourteen junior and senior Marine Science, Ocean Studies and Marine Affairs, and Environmental Sciences students, selected the different topics, presented the material, wrote the chapters, and assembled the final versions into this book. This book cannot be all inclusive, but we think it will provide an excellent broad overview of the most important aspects of Polar Biology and will stimulate the reader to dive into the material further.https://dune.une.edu/marinesci_studproj/1001/thumbnail.jp