Developing cognitive complexity and value pluralism within prevention curricula:: An empirical assessment of the Living Well with Difference course for secondary schools in England

Purpose: To promote gains in cognitive complexity (measured by integrative complexity, IC) associated with recognition of validity in others’ viewpoints/values, supporting peaceful conflict reduction. Design: Assessment of effectiveness of Living Well with Difference (LWWD) course designed to promote critical thinking about contested social issues. LWWD was delivered to 199 secondary school students in England, comprising eight hours of sessions in curriculum time. Findings: Results using Paragraph Completion Tests showed that IC increased in the intervention condition in comparison to the smaller control condition IC gains. Resilience scores did not show significant gain, although it correlated moderately with IC gain. Research Limitations: Unequal numbers of control: intervention groups, non-random school sample, and a moderate amount of missing data are potential limitations. Practical Implications: The discussion explores the possible contribution that LWWD can make to citizenship education and ‘deep’ critical thinking that engages with emo-tions and values, complementing prevention curricula in the light of EU recommendations

Optical Structure and Proper-Motion Age of the Oxygen-rich Supernova Remnant 1E 0102-7219 in the Small Magellanic Cloud

We present new optical emission-line images of the young SNR 1E 0102-7219 (E0102) in the SMC obtained with the HST Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). E0102 is a member of the oxygen-rich class of SNRs showing strong oxygen, neon , and other metal-line emissions in its optical and X-ray spectra, and an absence of H and He. The progenitor of E0102 may have been a Wolf-Rayet star that underwent considerable mass loss prior to exploding as a Type Ib/c or IIL/b SN. The ejecta in this SNR are fast-moving (V > 1000 km/s) and emit as they are compressed and heated in the reverse shock. In 2003, we obtained optical [O III], H-alpha, and continuum images with the ACS Wide Field Camera. The [O III] image captures the full velocity range of the ejecta, and shows considerable high-velocity emission projected in the middle of the SNR that was Doppler-shifted out of the narrow F502N bandpass of a previous Wide Field and Planetary Camera 2 image from 1995. Using these two epochs separated by ~8.5 years, we measure the transverse expansion of the ejecta around the outer rim in this SNR for the first time at visible wavelengths. From proper-motion measurements of 12 ejecta filaments, we estimate a mean expansion velocity for the bright ejecta of ~2000 km/s and an inferred kinematic age for the SNR of \~2050 +/- 600 years. The age we derive from HST data is about twice that inferred by Hughes et al.(2000) from X-ray data, though our 1-sigma error bars overlap. Our proper-motion age is consistent with an independent optical kinematic age derived by Eriksen et al.(2003) using spatially resolved [O III] radial-velocity data. We derive an expansion center that lies very close to X-ray and radio hotspots, which could indicate the presence of a compact remnant (neutron star or black hole).Comment: 28 pages, 8 figures. Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal, to appear in 20 April 2006 issue. Full resolution figures are posted at: http://stevenf.asu.edu/figure

A randomised phase II trial of temozolomide with or without cannabinoids in patients with recurrent glioblastoma (ARISTOCRAT):Protocol for a multi-centre, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

BackgroundGlioblastoma (GBM) is the most common adult malignant brain tumour, with an incidence of 5 per 100,000 per year in England. Patients with tumours showing O -methylguanine-DNA methyltransferase (MGMT) promoter methylation represent around 40% of newly diagnosed GBM. Relapse/tumour recurrence is inevitable. There is no agreed standard treatment for patients with GBM, therefore, it is aimed at delaying further tumour progression and maintaining health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Limited clinical trial data exist using cannabinoids in combination with temozolomide (TMZ) in this setting, but early phase data demonstrate prolonged overall survival compared to TMZ alone, with few additional side effects. Jazz Pharmaceuticals (previously GW Pharma Ltd.) have developed nabiximols (trade name Sativex®), an oromucosal spray containing a blend of cannabis plant extracts, that we aim to assess for preliminary efficacy in patients with recurrent GBM.MethodsARISTOCRAT is a phase II, multi-centre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial to assess cannabinoids in patients with recurrent MGMT methylated GBM who are suitable for treatment with TMZ. Patients who have relapsed ≥ 3 months after completion of initial first-line treatment will be randomised 2:1 to receive either nabiximols or placebo in combination with TMZ. The primary outcome is overall survival time defined as the time in whole days from the date of randomisation to the date of death from any cause. Secondary outcomes include overall survival at 12 months, progression-free survival time, HRQoL (using patient reported outcomes from QLQ-C30, QLQ-BN20 and EQ-5D-5L questionnaires), and adverse events.DiscussionPatients with recurrent MGMT promoter methylated GBM represent a relatively good prognosis sub-group of patients with GBM. However, their median survival remains poor and, therefore, more effective treatments are needed. The phase II design of this trial was chosen, rather than phase III, due to the lack of data currently available on cannabinoid efficacy in this setting. A randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial will ensure an unbiased robust evaluation of the treatment and will allow potential expansion of recruitment into a phase III trial should the emerging phase II results warrant this development.Trial registration ISRCTN: 11460478. ClinicalTrials.Gov: NCT0562970

Measuring psychological health in the perinatal period: workshop consensus statement, 19 March 2013

This consensus statement is the result of an invited workshop funded by the society for Reproductive and Infant Psychology on Measuring Psychological Health in the Perinatal Period which was held in Oxford on the 19th March 2013. The details of those who participated in the workshop can be found at the end of the consensus statement. The workshop evolved out of recognition that a major limitation to research and practice in the perinatal period is identifying valid, reliable and clinically relevant measures of psychological health

Coincident, 100 kpc-scale damped Lyman alpha absorption towards a binary QSO: how large are galaxies at z ~ 3?

We report coincident damped Lyman alpha (DLA) and sub-DLA absorption at z = 2.66 and z = 2.94 towards the z ~ 3 13.8 arcsecond separation binary quasar SDSS 1116+4118 AB. At the redshifts of the absorbers, this angular separation corresponds to a proper transverse separation of ~ 110 kpc. A third absorber, a sub-DLA at z = 2.47, is detected towards SDSS 1116+4118 B, but no corresponding high column density absorber is present towards SDSS 1116+4118 A. We use high resolution galaxy simulations and a clustering analysis to interpret the coincident absorption and its implications for galaxy structure at z ~ 3. We conclude that the common absorption in the two lines of sight is unlikely to arise from a single galaxy, or a galaxy plus satellite system, and is more feasibly explained by a group of two or more galaxies with separations ~ 100 kpc. The impact of these findings on single line of sight observations is also discussed; we show that abundances of DLAs may be affected by up to a few tenths of a dex by line of sight DLA blending. From a Keck ESI spectrum of the two quasars, we measure metal column densities for all five absorbers and determine abundances for the three absorbers with log N(HI) > 20. For the two highest N(HI) absorbers, we determine high levels of metal enrichment, corresponding to 1/3 and 1/5 solar. These metallicities are amongst the highest measured for DLAs at any redshift and are consistent with values measured in Lyman break galaxies at 2 < z < 3. For the DLA at z = 2.94 we also infer an approximately solar ratio of alpha-to-Fe peak elements from [S/Zn] = +0.05, and measure an upper limit for the molecular fraction in this particular line of sight of log f(H_2)< -5.5.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. Full resolution simulation images available in pdf copy of the manuscript at http://www.astro.uvic.ca/~sara/1116.pd

Assessing the dust selection bias in quasar absorbers at 0.7 < z< 1.6: Zn/Fe abundances in a radio-selected sample

The Complete Optical and Radio Absorption Line System (CORALS) survey has previously been used to demonstrate that the number density, gas and metals content of z>1.6 damped Lyman alpha systems is not significantly under-estimated in magnitude limited surveys. In this paper, a sample of strong MgII absorbers selected from the optically complete 0.7 < z < 1.6 CORALS sample of Ellison et al. is used to assess the potential of dust bias at intermediate redshifts. From echelle spectra of all CORALS absorbers with MgII lambda 2796 and FeII lambda 2600 rest equivalent widths > 0.5 A in the redshift range 0.7 < z < 1.6, we determine column densities of Zn, Cr, Fe, Mn and Si. The range of dust-to-metals ratios and inferred number density of DLAs from the D-index are consistent with optical samples. We also report the discovery of 4 new absorbers in the echelle data in the redshift range 1.7 < z< 2.0, two of which are confirmed DLAs and one is a sub-DLA, whilst the Lya line is not covered for the fourth.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA

Irs2 Silencing Increases Apoptosis And Potentiates The Effects Of Ruxolitinib In Jak2v617f-positive Myeloproliferative Neoplasms.

The recurrent V617F mutation in JAK2 (JAK2V617F) has emerged as the primary contributor to the pathogenesis of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). However, the lack of complete response in most patients treated with the JAK1/2 inhibitor, ruxolitinib, indicates the need for identifying pathways that cooperate with JAK2. Activated JAK2 was found to be associated with the insulin receptor substrate 2 (IRS2) in non-hematological cells. We identified JAK2/IRS2 binding in JAK2V617F HEL cells, but not in the JAK2WT U937 cell line. In HEL cells, IRS2 silencing decreased STAT5 phosphorylation, reduced cell viability and increased apoptosis; these effects were enhanced when IRS2 silencing was combined with ruxolitinib. In U937 cells, IRS2 silencing neither reduced cell viability nor induced apoptosis. IRS1/2 pharmacological inhibition in primary MPN samples reduced cell viability in JAK2V617F-positive but not JAK2WT specimens; combination with ruxolitinib had additive effects. IRS2 expression was significantly higher in CD34+ cells from essential thrombocythemia patients compared to healthy donors, and in JAK2V617F MPN patients when compared to JAK2WT. Our data indicate that IRS2 is a binding partner of JAK2V617F in MPN. IRS2 contributes to increased cell viability and reduced apoptosis in JAK2-mutated cells. Combined pharmacological inhibition of IRS2 and JAK2 may have a potential clinical application in MPN.

The nature of proximate damped Lyman alpha systems

We present high resolution echelle spectra of 7 proximate damped Lyman alpha (PDLA) systems whose relative velocity separation from the background quasar is Delta V < 3000 km/s. Combining our sample with a further 9 PDLAs from the literature we compare the chemical properties of the proximate systems with a control sample of intervening DLAs. Taken at face value, the sample of 16 PDLAs exhibits a wide range of metallicities, ranging from Z ~ 1/3 Z_sun down to Z ~ 1/1000 Z_sun, including the DLA with the lowest N(SiII)/N(HI) yet reported in the literature. We find several pieces of evidence that indicate enhanced ionization and the presence of a hard ionizing spectrum in PDLAs which lead to properties that contrast with the intervening DLAs, particularly when the N(HI) is low. The abundances of Zn, Si and S in PDLAs with log N(HI) > 21, where ionization corrections are minimized, are systematically higher than the intervening population by a factor of around 3. We also find possible evidence for a higher fraction of NV absorbers amongst the PDLAs, although the statistics are still modest. 6/7 of our echelle sample show high ionization species (SiIV, CIV, OVI or NV) offset by >100 km/s from the main low ion absorption. We analyse fine-structure transitions of CII* and SiII* to constrain the PDLA distance from the QSO. Lower limits range from tens of kpc up to >160 kpc for the most stringent limit. We conclude that (at least some) PDLAs do exhibit different characteristics relative to the intervening population out to 3000 km/s (and possibly beyond). Nonetheless, the PDLAs appear distinct from lower column density associated systems and the inferred QSO-absorber separations mean they are unlikely to be associated with the QSO host. We speculate that the PDLAs preferentially sample more massive galaxies in more highly clustered regions of the high redshift universe.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS. Abstract abridged