Adventures in Nurturing Belonging for Community through Nature and Soul Care

All people who feel disconnected need equal opportunity for nurturing belonging, healing and community through nature and spiritual formation. Participants of the project ‘nature, journey’ benefitted from finding belonging in community, healing and connection through nature, and spiritual formation. Participants of the program also experienced an increased level of fitness, outdoor education and wilderness skills development. During a time of global Pandemic and increased social-isolation, community and connection are possible, perhaps even essential. The project ‘nature, journey’ offered the opportunity of community for individuals experiencing disconnection. The context for the community engagement of ‘nature, journey,’ begins on the street in the city, and comes together on the trail in nature. Every week, the group of participants journeyed to a new location wherein belonging was nurtured and healing connection was experienced through nature and practices of spiritual formation. The project ‘nature, journey’ was offered over a period of 8 weeks for individuals of the Mustard Seed Street Church community, a street church in Victoria, British Columbia (Canada). The program was extended to those who have experienced disconnection and who have expressed an interest in the possibility of finding belonging in community. Planned, weekly hiking excursions, throughout the first 7 weeks of the program, prepared participants for a concluding, multi-day, adventure on a rugged west coast Vancouver Island trail. Healing and belonging were encouraged in natural environments to draw connection between the wholeness and togetherness of the individual and community, alongside the wonderful example of life revealed through all of creation. The shared experience of healing and belonging was reinforced, as we journeyed together, in the offering of spiritual formation and soul care practices

Shutting the Stable Door after the Horse has Bolted? Risk Assessment and Regulation for Transgenic Forages

The regulation of GM agriculture in Europe is a matter of considerable public interest. The development of a regulatory framework has imposed significant additional costs without generating broad public acceptance. However, the current risk assessment and management framework does provide a basis for considering how the broader issues surrounding the introduction of any novel agricultural technology might be approached

Effects of drinking-water filtration on Cryptosporidium Seroepidemiology, Scotland

Continuous exposure to low levels of Cryptosporidium oocysts is associated with production of protective antibodies. We investigated prevalence of antibodies against the 27-kDa Cryptosporidium oocyst antigen among blood donors in 2 areas of Scotland supplied by drinking water from different sources with different filtration standards: Glasgow (not filtered) and Dundee (filtered). During 2006–2009, seroprevalence and risk factor data were collected; this period includes 2007, when enhanced filtration was introduced to the Glasgow supply. A serologic response to the 27-kDa antigen was found for ≈75% of donors in the 2 cohorts combined. Mixed regression modeling indicated a 32% step-change reduction in seroprevalence of antibodies against Cryptosporidium among persons in the Glasgow area, which was associated with introduction of enhanced filtration treatment. Removal of Cryptosporidium oocysts from water reduces the risk for waterborne exposure, sporadic infections, and outbreaks. Paradoxically, however, oocyst removal might lower immunity and increase the risk for infection from other sources

Prevalence of cervical disease at age 20 after immunisation with bivalent HPV vaccine at age 12-13 in Scotland: retrospective population study

The manuscript was reviewed by Jo’s Trust, which supports the conclusions. It made the following statement: We think (it has) massive implications for the screening programme, vaccine and also impact on diagnoses in the future. It gives weight for activity to increase vaccine uptake, has implications on screening intervals. The clinically relevant herd protection is very interesting too. It also feeds into our policy calls for a new IT infrastructure (for the screening programme in England) to record and enable invitations based on whether someone has at the vaccine if intervals can be extended. Funding: This study has been undertaken as part of the programme of surveillance of immunisation against human papillomavirus in Scotland, included within the routine work of Health Protection Scotland, a part of the Scottish National Health Service. No funding has been received from industry.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Grass and Forage Improvement: Temperate Forages

Key points 1. Plant breeding has contributed significantly to the development of effective grassland production systems. 2. New technologies offer enhanced precision in breeding and access to wider genetic variation. 3. The requirement for more sustainable production systems will require genetic improvements in complex traits where the use of new technology will be vital

Grass and Forage Improvement: Temperate Forages

Plant breeding has contributed significantly to the development of effective grassland production systems. New technologies offer enhanced precision in breeding and access to wider genetic variation. The requirement for more sustainable production systems will require genetic improvements in complex traits where the use of new technology will be vital

A model to estimate the impact of changes in MMR vaccine uptake on inequalities in measles susceptibility in Scotland

In 1998 an article published by Andrew Wakefield in The Lancet (volume 351, pages 637-641) led to concerns surrounding the safety of the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine, by associating it with an increased risk of autism. The paper was later retracted after multiple epidemiological studies failed to fnd any association, but a substantial decrease in UK vaccination rates was observed in the years following publication. This paper proposes a novel spatio-temporal Bayesian hierarchical model with accompanying software (the R package CARBayesST) to simultaneously address three key epidemiological questions about vaccination rates: (i) what impact did the controversy have on the overall temporal trend in vaccination rates in Scotland; (ii) did the magnitude of the spatial inequality in measles susceptibility in Scotland increase due to the MMR vaccination scare; and (iii) are there any covariate effects, such as deprivation, that impacted on measles susceptibility in Scotland. The efficacy of the model is tested by simulation, before being applied to measles susceptibility data in Scotland among a series of cohorts of children who were aged 2-4, in the years 1998 to 2014

Game Development for Computer Science Education (Extended Abstract)

Educators have long used digital games as platforms for teaching. Games tend to have several qualities that aren’t typically found in homework: they situate problems within a compelling alternate reality that unfolds through intriguing narrative, they draw more upon a player’s intrinsic motivations than extrinsic ones, they facilitate deliberate low intensity practice, and they emphasize a spirit of play instead of work. At ITiCSE 2016, this working group convened to survey the landscape of existing digital games that have been used to teach and learn computer science concepts. Our group discovered that these games lacked explicitly defined learning goals and even less evaluation of whether or not the games achieved these goals. As part of this process, we identified and played over 120 games that have been released or described in literature as means for learning computer science concepts. In our report, we classified how these games support the learning objectives outlined in the ACM/IEEE Computer Science Curricula 2013. While we found more games than we expected, few games explicitly stated their learning goals and even fewer were evaluated for their capacity to meet these goals. Most of the games we surveyed fell into two categories: short-lived proof-of-concept projects built by academics or closed-source games built by professional developers. Gathering adequate learning data is challenging in either situation. Our original intent for the second year of our working group was to prepare a comprehensive framework for collecting and analyzing learning data from computer science learning games. Upon further discussion, however, we decided that a better next step is to validate the design and development guidelines that we put forth in our final report for ITiCSE 2016. We extend this working group to a second year—with a mission to collaboratively develop a game with clearly defined learning objectives and define a methodology for evaluating its capacity to meet its goals

A new tram network for Bristol:a possible scenario?

Some UK cities have seen the successful reintroduction of trams to complement and improve public transport services. This paper investigates the impact a hypothetical tramline would have in Bristol. This study was conducted in light of proposals for a bus rapid transit (BRT) network in Bristol. The literature review undertaken concludes that while BRT systems tend to have lower capital costs, a tram system could also be considered. At near-capacity operation, trams may be more effective in encouraging a modal shift away from travelling by car. Evidence from a preliminary simulation model, which was built to evaluate the demand a hypothetical tramline from the airport to the city centre would attract, suggests that a tram would encourage users to switch to public transport. Suggestions for further work for model refinement coupled with better understanding system impacts of the proposed tram system are included. </jats:p