Exploring behaviour in the online environment: student perceptions of information literacy

The aim of this paper is to show how information literacy can be conceptualised as a key learning process related to discipline and academic maturity, rather than as a generic skill. Results of a small-scale study including questionnaires and observation of student behaviour are reported and analysed in relation to Bruces 'seven faces of information literacy' framework. The findings illustrate that information literacy is a highly situated practice that remains undeveloped through mandatory schooling. Some methodological issues are considered in relation to researching information literacy, including the limits of the Bruce model as a framework for analysis. We also show how decontextualised courses can foreground and privilege certain behaviours that are beneficial but that developing higher-level information literate attitudes is likely to be an iterative and contextualised process

Baseline Opioid Survey: Access, Consumption, Consequences, and Perceptions among Young Adults in Alaska

In September of 2015, SAMHSA awarded the Partnerships for Success (PFS) grant to the State of Alaska  Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Behavioral Health (DBH). The PFS grant program is  a five‐year effort that focuses on preventing and reducing substance use and building prevention  capacity at both the state and community levels. DBH provides leadership for the project and facilitates  the conduct of project activities by community‐level coalitions. Additionally, DBH contracted with the  Center for Behavioral Health Research and Services (CBHRS) at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA)  to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the PFS project.   Using a data‐informed prioritization process to narrow the substance abuse focus of the grant, the State  Epidemiological Outcomes Workgroup chose two PFS priority areas: 1) non‐medical use of prescription  opioids among 12‐25 year olds; and 2) heroin use among 18‐25 year olds. Data on the use of and  consequences related to prescription opioids and heroin in Alaska are described below.  Partnerships for Success (PFS) Priority Area: Non‐Medical Use of Prescription Opioids  Data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) indicate that young adults aged 18‐25  consistently have the highest percentage of non‐medical use of prescription pain relievers in Alaska  compared to youth aged 12‐17 and adults aged 26 and older (see Figure 1).1,2,3 While small decreases in  use were observed among all age groups from 2009 to 2014, the age‐specific pattern remained  consistent.   Figure 1. Past year non‐medical use of prescription pain relievers in Alaska from 2009 to 2014 by age  Additional data requested from NSDUH (see Table 1) indicated no significant change in non‐medical use  of prescription pain reliever estimates among 12‐25 year olds in Alaska between years 2007‐2010 and  2011‐2014 but a decreasing trend was observed for past year use and past year prescription pain  reliever dependence or abuse.4 0 5 10 15 2009-2010 2011-2012 2013-2014 Percentage 12-17 years 18-25 years 26+ years 4 Table 1. Past year non‐medical use of prescription pain reliever estimates among individuals aged 12  to 25 in Alaska from 2007 to 2014  1 Dependence/abuse is based on definitions found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM‐IV)  Estimates of past year non‐medical use of prescription pain relievers among individuals aged 12 and  older in Alaska are slightly higher than national estimates but both follow a small decreasing trend in use  from 2009 to 2014 (see Figure 2).1,2,3 Figure 2. Past year non‐medical use of prescription pain relievers among individuals aged 12 and older in  the U.S. and Alaska from 2009 to 2014  Other indicators related to non‐medical use of prescription opioids in Alaska have also decreased slightly  or stabilized in recent years. Treatment admissions for synthetic opiates (opiates or synthetics including  Methadone, Oxycodone, or Oxycontin) as a primary, secondary, or tertiary substance of abuse have  stayed relatively stable from 2013 to 2015 (1,052 to 1,011 treatment admissions), according to the  Alaska Automated Information Management System (AKAIMS).5  Age‐adjusted overdose death rates in  Alaska have decreased from 11.2 per 100,000 in 2009 to 8.5 per 100,000 in 2015. Although overdose  deaths from prescription opioids are decreasing, Alaska still has higher rates of overdose deaths from  prescription opioids than the nation overall (7.3 vs. 5.1 per 100,000 in 2012).6 Funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental  Health Services (Grant #SP020783) through the State of Alaska, Division of Behavioral Health Background / Survey Methods / Prescription Opioids / Heroin / Conclusion / Reference

Regulation of the \u3cem\u3eEscherichia coli\u3c/em\u3e Tryptophan Operon by Early Reactions in the Aromatic Pathway

7-Methyltryptophan (7MT) or compounds which can be metabolized to 7MT, 3-methylanthranilic acid (3MA) and 7-methylindole, cause derepression of the trp operon through feedback inhibition of anthranilate synthetase. Tyrosine reverses 3MA or 7-methylindole derepression, apparently by increasing the amount of chorismic acid available to the tryptophan pathway. A mutant isolated on the basis of 3MA resistance (MAR 13) was found to excrete small amounts of chorismic acid and to have a feedback-resistant phenylalanine 3-deoxy-d-arabinoheptulosonic acid-7-phosphate (DAHP) synthetase. Genetic evidence indicates that the mutation conferring 3MA resistance and feedback resistance is very closely linked to aroG, the structural gene for the DAHP synthetase (phe). Since feedback inhibition of anthranilate synthetase by l-tryptophan (or 7MT) is competitive with chorismic acid, alterations in growth conditions (added tyrosine) or in a mutant (MAR 13) which increase the amount of chorismic acid available to the tryptophan pathway result in resistance to 7MT derepression. Owing to this competitive nature of tryptophan feedback inhibition of anthranilate synthetase by chorismic acid, the early pathway apparently serves to exert a regulatory influence on tryptophan biosynthesis

Mechanism of 3-Methylanthranilic Acid Derepression of the Tryptophan Operon in \u3cem\u3eEscherichia coli\u3c/em\u3e

3-Methylanthranilic acid (3MA) inhibits growth and causes derepression of the tryptophan biosynthetic enzymes in wild-type strains of Escherichia coli. Previous reports attributed this effect to an inhibition of the conversion of 1-(o-carboxyphenylamino)-1-deoxyribulose 5-phosphate to indole-3-glycerol phosphate and a consequent reduction in the concentration of endogenous tryptophan. Our studies have shown that 3MA-resistant mutants linked to the tryptophan operon have a feedback-resistant anthranilate synthetase; mutants with an altered indole-3-glycerol phosphate synthetase were not found. 3MA or 7-methylindole can be metabolized to 7-methyltryptophan, and 3MA, 7-methylindole, and 7-methyltryptophan lead to derepression of the tryptophan operon. Furthermore, 3MA-resistant mutants are also resistant to 7-methylindole derepression. These results strongly suggest that the primary cause of derepression by 3MA is through its conversion to 7-methyltryptophan, which can inhibit anthranilate synthetase, thereby decreasing the concentration of endogenous tryptophan. Unlike 5- or 6-methyltryptophan, 7-methyltryptophan does not appear to function as an active corepressor

Constraints on neutrino and dark radiation interactions using cosmological observations

Observations of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) and large-scale structure (LSS) provide a unique opportunity to explore the fundamental properties of the constituents that compose the cosmic dark radiation background (CDRB), of which the three standard neutrinos are thought to be the dominant component. We report on the first constraint to the CDRB rest-frame sound speed, ceff^2, using the most recent CMB and LSS data. Additionally, we report improved constraints to the CDRB viscosity parameter, cvis^2. For a non-interacting species, these parameters both equal 1/3. Using current data we find that a standard CDRB, composed entirely of three non-interacting neutrino species, is ruled out at the 99% confidence level (C.L.) with ceff^2 = 0.30 +0.027 -0.026 and cvis^2 = 0.44 +0.27 -0.21 (95% C.L.). We also discuss how constraints to these parameters from current and future observations (such as the Planck satellite) allow us to explore the fundamental properties of any anomalous radiative energy density beyond the standard three neutrinos.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, comments welcome; v2: updated with SPT data, corrected minor typos; v3: version accepted for publication in PR

Medicaid Policies for Alcohol SBI Reimbursement

The purpose of this report was to review existing reimbursement policies by state Medicaid agency, including the District of Columbia (D.C.), in order to understand similarities and differences associated with financial compensation for alcohol screening and brief intervention (SBI) services. Alcohol SBI is an evidence-based practice known to help reduce atrisk alcohol consumption among patients who drink too much. 1 Although alcohol SBI was designed to be a population-based approach to address unhealthy alcohol consumption, its current utilization is limited. 2 Implementation of the practice into routine clinical care remains a challenge at the health system level even with support from federal resources (e.g., SBIRT: Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment). One way to encourage the uptake of alcohol SBI/SBIRT among providers is to ensure that the service is reimbursable by third-party payers. However, reimbursement opportunities vary by state and payer, and in some locations are non-existent. Information about the current status of policies will assist in the development of policies and incentives to encourage healthcare providers and systems to submit claims for alcohol SBI/SBIRT and potentially increase the routine uptake of the service in clinical careCenters for Disease Control and Prevention Cooperative Agreement Number DD00114

The threshold for jigsaw percolation on random graphs

Jigsaw percolation is a model for the process of solving puzzles within a social network, which was recently proposed by Brummitt, Chatterjee, Dey and Sivakoff. In the model there are two graphs on a single vertex set (the `people' graph and the `puzzle' graph), and vertices merge to form components if they are joined by an edge of each graph. These components then merge to form larger components if again there is an edge of each graph joining them, and so on. Percolation is said to occur if the process terminates with a single component containing every vertex. In this note we determine the threshold for percolation up to a constant factor, in the case where both graphs are Erd\H{o}s--R\'enyi random graphs.Comment: 13 page