Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, indices of cognitive control, and academic achievement in preadolescents

To assess whether preadolescents' objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) is associated with cognitive control and academic achievement, independent of aerobic fitness.A sample of 74 children (Meanage = 8.64 years, SD = .58, 46% girls) were included in the analyses. Daily MVPA (min/d) was measured over 7 days using ActiGraph wGT3X+ accelerometer. Aerobic fitness was measured using a maximal graded exercise test and expressed as maximal oxygen uptake (mL*kg(-1)*min(-1)). Inhibitory control was measured with a modified Eriksen flanker task (reaction time and accuracy), and working memory with an Operation Span Task (accuracy scores). Academic achievement (in reading, mathematics, and spelling) was expressed as standardized scores on the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement. The relationships were assessed using hierarchical regression models adjusting for aerobic fitness and other covariates.No significant associations were found between MVPA and inhibition, working memory, or academic achievement. Aerobic fitness was positively associated with inhibitory control (P = .02) and spelling (P = .04) but not with other cognitive or academic variables (all P > .05).Aerobic fitness, rather than daily MVPA, is positively associated with childhood ability to manage perceptual interference and spelling. Further research into the associations between objectively measured MVPA and cognitive and academic outcomes in children while controlling for important covariates is needed

Short‐term outcomes of 59 dogs treated for ilial body fractures with locking or non‐locking plates

Objective: To determine the influence of plating systems on the clinical outcomes in dogs treated for ilial fractures. Design: Retrospective study. Animals: Fifty‐nine dogs (63 hemipelves). Methods: Radiographs and medical records of dogs with ilial fractures presented to Iowa State University between 2003 and 2019 were reviewed. After fracture reduction, fractures were fixed with a locking plate system (LPS) or non‐locking plate system (NLS). Perioperative, long‐term complications, and follow‐up data were recorded. The frequency of implant failure and pelvic collapse were compared using a logistic and linear regression analysis, respectively. Where the univariate test was statistically significant, a multivariate analysis across categories was performed to identify statistically different categories. Results: LPS and NLS implants were used in 25/63 and 38/63 hemipelves, respectively. Median follow‐up time was 8 weeks (3–624 weeks). Implant failure occurred in 18/63 (29%) of fracture repairs, consisting of 17 with NLS and 1 with LPS. Revision surgery was recommended in five cases of implant failure, all with NLS. The probability of implant failure was higher when fractures were fixed with NLS (p = .0056). All other variables evaluated did not seem to influence outcome measures. Conclusion: The variable with the most influence on the outcomes of dogs treated for ilial fractures consisted of the fixation method (NLS vs. LPS). Fractures repaired with NLS were nearly 20 times more likely to fail than those repaired with LPS. Clinical Relevance: Surgeons should consider repairing ilial body fractures in dogs with LPS to reduce the risk of short‐term implant failure

Moderate-to-Vigorous Physical Activity, Indices of Cognitive Control, and Academic Achievement in Preadolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether preadolescents' objectively measured moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) is associated with cognitive control and academic achievement, independent of aerobic fitness. STUDY DESIGN: A sample of 74 children (Meanage = 8.64 years, SD = .58, 46% girls) were included in the analyses. Daily MVPA (min/d) was measured over 7 days using ActiGraph wGT3X+ accelerometer. Aerobic fitness was measured using a maximal graded exercise test and expressed as maximal oxygen uptake (mL*kg(-1)*min(-1)). Inhibitory control was measured with a modified Eriksen flanker task (reaction time and accuracy), and working memory with an Operation Span Task (accuracy scores). Academic achievement (in reading, mathematics, and spelling) was expressed as standardized scores on the Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement. The relationships were assessed using hierarchical regression models adjusting for aerobic fitness and other covariates. RESULTS: No significant associations were found between MVPA and inhibition, working memory, or academic achievement. Aerobic fitness was positively associated with inhibitory control (P = .02) and spelling (P = .04) but not with other cognitive or academic variables (all P > .05). CONCLUSIONS: Aerobic fitness, rather than daily MVPA, is positively associated with childhood ability to manage perceptual interference and spelling. Further research into the associations between objectively measured MVPA and cognitive and academic outcomes in children while controlling for important covariates is needed.This study was funded in part by a grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development HD069381 to Charles Hillman and Arthur Kramer, which also funded the work of Bonnie Hemrick and Jeanine Bensken. Lauren Sherar and Dale Esliger were funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Diet, Lifestyle & Physical Activity Biomedical Research Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester; the National Institute for Health Research Collaboration for Leadership in Applied Health Research and Care – East Midlands (NIHR CLAHRC – EM); Lauren Raine was funded by the National Institute for Agriculture under the Illinois Transdisciplinary Obesity Prevention Program grant (2011-67001-30101); the Hatch Project #ILLU-971-358. The manuscript formed a part of a PhD research by Dominika Pindus funded by the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Loughborough University. No industry relations were noted for Bonnie Hemrick or Jeanine Bensken. Conflict of interests: Neither authors nor individuals listed in the acknowledgements report any potential, perceived or real conflict of interests in relation to this manuscript.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2016.02.04

Gospel Rape

Gospel Rap

"Broad is my Motherland": The Mother Archetype and Space in the Soviet Mass Song

Günther H. "Broad is my Motherland": The Mother Archetype and Space in the Soviet Mass Song. In: Dobrenko EA, Naiman E, eds. The Landscape of Stalinism. Seattle, Wash.: Univ. of Washington Press; 2003: 77-95

Introducing cinematic scientific visualization: a new frontier in science communication

Data and its visualizers have always exploited the latest trends in media and communication in its quest to make seemingly dull numbers engaging, affective and interesting. In this post Kalina Borkiewicz, Eric Jensen, Stuart Levy, Jill .P. Naiman, and Jeff Carpenter discuss the emerging concept of cinematic scientific visualization. Locating it between traditional scientific visualization and illustration, they explore how the aesthetics of cinema can be used to highlight different aspects of scientific research and how this in turn can create more compelling visualizations