Temperature stressed males are less attractive to female red flour beetles

Male red flour beetles (Tribolium castaneum) are shown to attract females through an aggression pheromone that may be altered due to varying degrees of stress (Wade, 1984). If these females do follow certain pheromone cues, then we would predict that they have a preference when given a choice between stressed and non-stressed males. This was tested by putting two sets of temperature stressed and non-stressed males in an arena with females and noting each interaction through a series of trials. By taking note of each mating, aggression, and simple encounter, we were able to find that females do prefer a non-stressed male. While stress can suppress multiple mechanisms in beetles, this sexual preference study provides insights into the reproductive processes of this pest and other invertebrates

Using a Head-Mounted Video Camera to Understand Social Worlds and Experiences

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Building Visible Allies for Safe And Supportive Environments: Systemic Implementation of the OUT for Safe Schools Campaign

Contemporary data illustrate a greater risk in school environments for students who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, or queer (LGBTQ). Verbal or physical harassment, and feeling generally unsafe in school, can lead to higher absence rates and lower levels of academic performance for these youth, when compared to their heterosexual peers. School districts across the country are responding to this challenge. This article profiles an implementation of the OUT for Safe Schools Campaign which is designed to provide visible adult allies for LGBTQ students throughout a school district. It highlights the systemic nature of both the OUT for Sale Schools Campaign, as well as its implementation within a carefully designed complement of synergistic programs and policies within the San Diego Unified School District. Qualitative examples of impact are detailed, along with long-term plans for evaluating the campaign’s effectiveness over time

Self efficacy measurement and goal attainment after pulmonary rehabilitation

Rachel Garrod, Johanna Marshall, Fiona JonesSchool of Physiotherapy, St George’s, University of London and Kingston University Faculty of Health and Social Care Sciences, UKBackground: Little is known about self-efficacy in COPD and its role as a mediator of goal attainment after rehabilitation. We hypothesized that higher baseline self efficacy may facilitate goal attainment.Methods: 48 COPD patients completed pulmonary rehabilitation, self-efficacy was measured using the COPD Self Efficacy Scale (CSES). Personal goals were used as self reported outcome. Relationships were evaluated between CSES and St George’s Hospital Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ); depression; using Brief Assessment Schedule Cards (BASDEC), London Chest Activity of Daily Living Scale (LCADL) and exercise tolerance; using Six-Minute Walking Distance (6MWD) and muscle strength.Results: 74 Stable COPD patients, mean FEV1 1.2 (0.6) l, age 68.1 (10.2) years were recruited. 51 patients completed rehabilitation and 48 of those CSES and reported goal attainment. 94 goals were documented. Baseline self efficacy did not differ according to whether goal was achieved or not. Relationships were evident between CSES and SGRQ (r = –0.53), 6MWD (r = 0.36), BASDEC (r = –0.31), LCADL (r = –0.33) (all p ≤ 0.01), but not FEV1, pack years or muscle strength. There was a significant improvement in CSES scores pre to post rehabilitation, mean difference (95% CI) 0. 27 (0.04 to 0.51).Conclusions: Self efficacy, using the CSES, improves with rehabilitation but baseline self efficacy does not appear to influence goal attainment.Keywords: self-efficacy, COPD, pulmonary rehabilitation, goa

Gastrointestinal dysfunction in the critically ill: can we measure it?

Gastrointestinal dysfunction is an intuitively important, yet descriptively elusive component of the multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Reintam and colleagues have attempted to quantify this dimension using a combination of intolerance of enteral feeding, and the development of intra-abdominal hypertension. While they show that both parameters are associated with an increased risk of death (and therefore that, in combination, the risk of death is even greater), they fall short in developing a novel descriptor of gastrointestinal dysfunction. Nonetheless, and even with its shortcomings, their effort is a welcome contribution to the surprisingly complex process of describing the morbidity of critical illness

Developmental hypomyelination in Wolfram syndrome: New insights from neuroimaging and gene expression analyses

Wolfram syndrome is a rare multisystem disorder caused by mutations in WFS1 or CISD2 genes leading to brain structural abnormalities and neurological symptoms. These abnormalities appear in early stages of the disease. The pathogenesis of Wolfram syndrome involves abnormalities in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and mitochondrial dynamics, which are common features in several other neurodegenerative disorders. Mutations in WFS1 are responsible for the majority of Wolfram syndrome cases. WFS1 encodes for an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) protein, wolframin. It is proposed that wolframin deficiency triggers the unfolded protein response (UPR) pathway resulting in an increased ER stress-mediated neuronal loss. Recent neuroimaging studies showed marked alteration in early brain development, primarily characterized by abnormal white matter myelination. Interestingly, ER stress and the UPR pathway are implicated in the pathogenesis of some inherited myelin disorders like Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease, and Vanishing White Matter disease. In addition, exploratory gene-expression network-based analyses suggest that WFS1 expression occurs preferentially in oligodendrocytes during early brain development. Therefore, we propose that Wolfram syndrome could belong to a category of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by ER stress-mediated myelination impairment. Further studies of myelination and oligodendrocyte function in Wolfram syndrome could provide new insights into the underlying mechanisms of the Wolfram syndrome-associated brain changes and identify potential connections between neurodevelopmental disorders and neurodegeneration

To Blend or Not To Blend: Online-only and Blended Learning Environments

Increasing curricular demands and the desire to provide meaningful, engaging instruction have pressed teacher educators to review and revise their programs. Many have viewed the assets of online learning as a potential solution to meet the seemingly ever increasing state- and accreditation-mandated course content and competencies. Universities have explored the inclusion of Web based courses for students for several decades. According to Martyn (2003), over 90% of higher education institutions use some type of electronically enhanced learning or “e-learning” option. These options vary between courses that are offered completely “online” to those that include a blend of differing amounts of face-to-face and online contact time. Research comparing student experiences with online-only and blended delivery has often concentrated on graduate students and nontraditional programs. However, the effectiveness of online and blended delivery depends on audience and subject matter (Saunders & Werner, 2002), suggesting that findings based on data from graduate and nontraditional programs may not hold true for undergraduate students in traditional teacher education programs. This study attempted to address this need in the literature by examining the work of undergraduate teacher candidates who participated in modules delivered in an online environment. Specifically, this study addresses students’ comfort and perceived competence while working in online and blended learning environments, as well as the function of teamwork in an online space