The effects of supplemental educational services on student achievement

Supplemental educational services (SES) are a core component of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) that provide free academic assistance in reading, language arts and mathematics for eligible students. Supplemental educational services include tutoring and other educational interventions that align with the state\u27s academic content standards provided outside of the regular school day. Despite four years of supplemental services educational and millions of dollars spent, little is known about the effects of SES on student achievement. This study hypothesized that after the sixth month of SES tutoring, students in the experimental group would achieve higher scores on the language arts and mathematics posttests in comparison to the students in the control group, those students who did not receive SES. The participants for this research were fourth and fifth grade students drawn from an after-school program located in a small urban district in southern New Jersey. The sample size included 42 students. Results indicated that the experimental group raised their posttest scores from initial pretest scores. The experimental group displayed a twenty point mean score increase compared to the control group in both the language arts and mathematics posttests

Schmerzverhalten von Saugferkeln bei der chirurgischen Kastration unter Lokalanästhesie

Die vorliegende Untersuchung zum Schmerzverhalten von Saugferkeln bei der chirurgischen Kastration war Teil eines Verbundprojektes des Lehrstuhls für Tierschutzes und der Klinik für Schweine der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München sowie dem Zentrum für präklinische Forschung der Technischen Universität München und wurde vom Bundesministerium für Ernährung und Landwirtschaft (BMEL) gefördert und durch die Bundesanstalt für Landwirtschaft und Ernährung (BLE) betreut. Die Studie umfasste eine dreiteilige Laborstudie und eine Feldstudie. Die einzelnen Studienteile bauten aufeinander auf und so wurde die verwendete Lokalanästhesiemethode fortlaufend optimiert. Die chirurgische Kastration von Saugferkeln stellt einen schmerzhaften Eingriff dar. Das deutsche Tierschutzgesetz fordert deshalb für die Durchführung dieses Eingriffes eine wirksame Schmerzausschaltung. Hierfür sind in Deutschland bisher die Injektionsnarkose mit Ketamin/Azaperon und die Inhalationsnarkose mit Isofluran zugelassen. Ob unter Lokalanästhesie eine ausreichende Schmerzausschaltung bei der Kastration erreicht wird, ist hingegen noch nicht abschließend geklärt. In der vorliegenden Studie wurden unterschiedliche Lokalanästhetika und Injektionsmethoden an 288 Ferkeln in zwei Betrieben verwendet und das Schmerzverhalten der Ferkel einzeln anhand eines Ethogramms in einer Observationsarena beurteilt. Die Ferkel wurden dabei stets vor allen Eingriffen sowie nach Injektion der Lokalanästhetika, direkt nach Kastration und in den Stunden danach bis zu 24 Stunden nach Kastration beobachtet. Die wichtigsten beobachteten Schmerzparameter waren Veränderungen der Schwanzposition, Aufkrümmen des Rückens in der Sägebockhaltung und die Sägebockhaltung mit Pressen des Rumpfes an die Arenawand. Die wenigsten Schmerzparameter wurden von der nichtkastrierten Kontrollgruppe gezeigt. Bereits nach der Injektion der verwendeten Injektionsanästhetika konnten vermehrte Verhaltensänderungen wie Schwanzschlagen gesehen werden. Bei der Kastration und in den Stunden danach konnte mit der Lokalanästhesie eine Schmerzreduktion erreicht werden. Aufgrund der begrenzten Wirkdauer der Lokalanästhesie zeigten die Ferkel jedoch auch am Tag nach der Kastration Schmerzverhalten. Der Fokus zur Beurteilung einer wirksamen Schmerzausschaltung bei der Ferkelkastration wird in den meisten Untersuchungen nur auf den akuten Schmerz zum Zeitpunkt bzw. am Tag der Kastration gesetzt. Da Kastrationsschmerzen jedoch über einen längeren Zeitraum bestehen bleiben, sollten aus Gründen des Tierwohls die langanhaltenden Schmerzen durchaus in die Beurteilung einer Kastrationsmethode mit einbezogen werden. Die Gabe von lokalen Betäubungsmitteln scheint zwar die Schmerzen bei der Kastration zu reduzieren aber, insbesondere durch die begrenzte Wirkdauer der Lokalanästhetika, nicht länger anhaltend vollständig auszuschalten. Eine Empfehlung für ein bestimmtes Lokalanästhetikum oder eine Injektionsmethode ist mithilfe der Verhaltensanalyse in der Observationsarena nicht eindeutig möglich. Tendenziell ist jedoch erkennbar, dass einige der Lokalanästhetika, wie Lidocain und Mepivacain zu stärkeren bzw. länger anhaltenden Verringerungen der schmerzassoziierten Parameter führen. Die in dieser Studie etablierten Parameter „Veränderungen der Schwanzposition“ und „Sägebockstellung“ sowie „Sägebockstellung und Pressen an Arenawand“ erscheinen als valide, um Schmerzen beim Saugferkel zu beurteilen und erbringen reproduzierbare Ergebnisse, die eine Unterscheidung der beiden Kontrollgruppen betäubungslose Kastration (NaCl-Injektion) und Handling (Sham) ermöglichen. Da schmerzbedingte Verhaltensänderungen beim Saugferkel sehr individuell und transient sind, sind weitere Untersuchungen erforderlich, um zu evaluieren, inwieweit sich Schmerzanzeichen nach Alter und Rasse der untersuchten Schweine unterscheiden. Langfristig wäre eine standardisierte Beurteilungsmethode zur Schmerzerkennung bei Saugferkeln sinnvoll, um eine bessere Vergleichbarkeit verschiedener Studien zu ermöglichen

Effects of muffin processing on fumonisins from 14C-labeled toxins produced in cultured corn kernels.

The persistence of fumonisins during cooking is known to be affected by several factors, including thermal degradation and the presence of various ingredients in corn-based food recipes that can react with the toxin. A method for the production of corn kernels containing 14C-fumonisins was developed. The corn kernels were colonized by Fusarium verticillioides MRC 826 and supplemented with 1,2-14C-sodium acetate. The specific activity of 14C-FB1 produced made the study of its fate in cornmeal muffins possible. The double-extraction acetonitrile-water-methanol/immunoaffinity column/o-phthaldialdehyde high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method was used to determine FB1 levels in cornmeal muffins. Reductions in FB1 levels in muffins spiked with 14C-labeled and unlabeled FB1 (43 and 48%, respectively) were similar, indicating that the extraction method was efficient and consistent with previous reports. However, with the labeled corn kernel material, recovery levels based on the 14C counts for the eluate from an immunoaffinity column were much higher (90%). This finding indicates that some fumonisin-related compounds other than FB1 that were present in the cornmeal were recognized by the antibodies but not by the HPLC method

Pectus excavatum and chest pain: a case report

© 2008 Kim and Baker; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

Promoting the Value of Career Education Programs

12.5 million secondary and postsecondary students are currently enrolled in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs in the United States (“Career,” 2019). CTE programs provide students with the academic skills, technical skills, knowledge, and training necessary to succeed in future careers and to become lifelong learners (“Career,” 2019). Students are prepared for the workplace as a result of a competency-based learning approach and through partnerships with local employers who provide hands-on experience and work-based learning opportunities (“Career,” 2019). By 2020, 65 percent of American jobs will require some postsecondary education or training, with half of these positions requiring an associate degree, certificate or credential (“Community,” 2017, p.3). The Department of Labor reported 6.2 million unfilled jobs in 2017; community colleges are an essential element in addressing this challenge (“Community,” 2017, p.3). Career and Technical Education represents a crucial path from education to employment (“Community,” 2017, p.3). The Virginia Community College System (VCCS) works to create opportunities for students to complete CTE pathways and has made great strides in working to promote the value of CTE education for all students. A number of challenges, opportunities, best practices, and recommendations are associated with promoting the value of CTE programs

Synthesis and Oxidation Catalysis of [Tris(oxazolinyl)borato]cobalt(II) Scorpionates

The reaction of CoCl2·THF and thallium tris(4,4-dimethyl-2-oxazolinyl)phenylborate (TlToM) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) provides ToMCoCl (1) in 95 % yield; however, appropriate solvents and starting materials are required to favor 1 over two other readily formed side-products, (ToM)2Co (2) and {HToM}CoCl2 (3). ESR, NMR, FTIR, and UV/Vis spectroscopies were used to distinguish these cobalt(II) products and probe their electronic and structural properties. Even after the structures indicated by these methods were confirmed by X-ray crystallography, the spectroscopic identification of trace contaminants in the material was challenging. The recognition of possible contaminants in the synthesis of ToMCoCl in combination with the paramagnetic nature of these complexes provided impetus for the utilization of X-ray powder diffraction to measure the purity of the ToMCoCl bulk sample. The X-ray powder diffraction results provide support for the bulk-phase purity of ToMCoCl in preparations that avoid 2 and 3. Thus, 1 is a precursor for new [tris(oxazolinyl)borato]cobalt chemistry, as exemplified by its reactions with KOtBu and NaOAc to give ToMCoOtBu (4) and ToMCoOAc (5), respectively. Compound 5 is a catalyst for the oxidation of cyclohexane with meta-chloroperoxybenzoic acid (mCPBA), and the rate constants and selectivity for cyclohexanol versus cyclohexanone and ε-caprolactone were assessed

Prevalência de erros refrativos na sequência de Möbius

PURPOSE: To assess the prevalence of refractive errors in Möbius sequence. METHODS: This study was carried out during the Annual Meeting of the Brazilian Möbius Society in November 2008. Forty-four patients diagnosed with the Möbius sequence were submitted to a comprehensive assessment, on the following specialties: ophthalmology, neurology, genetics, psychiatry, psychology and dentistry. Forty-three patients were cooperative and able to undertake the ophthalmological examination. Twenty-two (51.2 %) were male and 21 (48.8%) were female. The average age was 8.3 years (from 2 to 17 years). The visual acuity was evaluated using a retro-illuminated logMAR chart in cooperative patients. All children were submitted to exams on ocular motility, cyclopegic refraction, and fundus examination. RESULTS: From the total of 85 eyes, using the spherical equivalent, the major of the eyes (57.6%) were emmetropics (>-0.50 D and -0,50 D e <+2,00 D). A prevalência de astigmatismo maior que 0,75D foi 40%. CONCLUSÃO: A prevalência de erros refrativos, pelo equivalente esférico, no grupo estudado foi de 42,4%.Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Department of OphthalmologySão Paulo University Department of OphthalmologySanta Casa Medical School Department of OphthalmologyUniversity of Illinois Department of Ophthalmology & Visual SciencesAltino Ventura FoundationUNIFESP, Department of OphthalmologySciEL

For Whom the Bell Tolls: Psychopathological and Neurobiological Correlates of the DNA Methylation Index of Time-To-Death

Psychopathology is a risk factor for accelerated biological aging and early mortality. We examined associations between broad underlying dimensions of psychopathology (reflecting internalizing and externalizing psychiatric symptoms), PTSD, and age-adjusted GrimAge (“GrimAge residuals”), a DNA methylation biomarker of mortality risk relative to age. We also examined neurobiological correlates of GrimAge residuals, including neurocognitive functioning, blood-based biomarkers (of inflammation, neuropathology, metabolic disease), and cortical thickness. Data from two independent trauma-exposed military cohorts (n = 647 [62.9% male, Mage = 52], n = 434 [90% male, Mage = 32]) were evaluated using linear regression models to test associations between GrimAge residuals, psychopathology, and health correlates. Externalizing psychopathology significantly predicted GrimAge residuals in both cohorts (ps \u3c 0.028). PTSD predicted GrimAge residuals in the younger (p = 0.001) but not the older cohort. GrimAge residuals were associated with several neurobiological variables available in the younger cohort, including cognitive disinhibition (padj = 0.021), poorer memory recall (padj = 0.023), cardiometabolic pathology (padj \u3c 0.001), oxidative stress (padj = 0.003), astrocyte damage (padj = 0.021), inflammation (C-reactive protein: padj \u3c 0.001; IL-6: padj \u3c 0.001), and immune functioning (padj \u3c 0.001). A subset of inflammatory and neuropathology analytes were available in the older cohort and showed associations with GrimAge residuals (IL-6: padj \u3c 0.001; TNF-α: padj \u3c 0.001). GrimAge residuals were also associated with reduced cortical thickness in right lateral orbitofrontal cortex (padj = 0.018) and left fusiform gyrus (padj = 0.030), which are related to emotion regulation and facial recognition, respectively. Psychopathology may be a common risk factor for elevated mortality risk. GrimAge could help identify those at risk for adverse health outcomes and allow for early disease identification and treatment

Ghost Images in Helioseismic Holography? Toy Models in a Uniform Medium

Helioseismic holography is a powerful technique used to probe the solar interior based on estimations of the 3D wavefield. Porter--Bojarski holography, which is a well-established method used in acoustics to recover sources and scatterers in 3D, is also an estimation of the wavefield, and hence it has the potential to be applied to helioseismology. Here we present a proof of concept study, where we compare helioseismic holography and Porter--Bojarski holography under the assumption that the waves propagate in a homogeneous medium. We consider the problem of locating a point source of wave excitation inside a sphere. Under these assumptions, we find that the two imaging methods have the same capability of locating the source, with the exception that helioseismic holography suffers from "ghost images" (i.e., artificial peaks away from the source location). We conclude that Porter--Bojarski holography may improve the current method used in helioseismology.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figure