Toward a second-person neuroscience

LS & BT : equal contributions (shared first-authorship)Peer reviewedPreprin

Effects of Service Learning on Physical Education Teacher Education Students’ Subjective Happiness, Prosocial Behavior, and Professional Learning

Purpose: This study aims to analyze the effects of a service learning (SL) program on the subjective happiness (SH), prosocial behavior (PB), and professional learning (PL) perceptions of Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) students as well as to examine the correlations among these variables. Methods: The study used a quasi-experimental design of two non-equivalent groups (control and experimental) comparing pre-test and post-test data. The instruments used were the Subjective Happiness Scale, the Prosocial and Civic Competence questionnaire, and the Impact of Service Learning during Initial Training of Physical Activity and Sports questionnaire. Results: Data indicated that SL only had a significant influence on SH when the students compared themselves with their peers. On the other hand, the effect of SL on promoting PB and PL perceived was significant in several of their dimensions. Finally, the results showed a greater correlation of the perceived PL with the PB than with the SH. Discussion/Conclusion: The results of the study provide educational researchers with valuable information to better understand how SL influences the training of PETE students

Infant mortality and isotopic complexity: new approaches to stress, maternal health, and weaning

Objectives: Studies of the carbon and nitrogen stable isotope ratios (δ13C and δ15N) of modern tissues with a fast turnover, such as hair and fingernails, have established the relationship between these values in mothers and their infants during breastfeeding and weaning. Using collagen from high-resolution dentine sections of teeth, which form in the perinatal period we investigate the relationship between diet and physiology in this pivotal stage of life. Materials and Methods: Childhood dentine collagen δ13C and δ15N profiles were produced from horizontal sections of permanent and deciduous teeth following the direction of development. These were from two 19th-century sites (n = 24) and a small number (n = 5) of prehistoric samples from Great Britain and Ireland. Results: These high-resolution data exhibit marked differences between those who survived childhood and those who did not, the former varying little and the latter fluctuating widely. Discussion: Breastfeeding and weaning behavior have a significant impact on the morbidity and mortality of infants and the adults they become. In the absence of documentary evidence, archaeological studies of bone collagen of adults and juveniles have been used to infer the prevalence and duration of breastfeeding. These interpretations rely on certain assumptions about the relationship between isotope ratios in the bone collagen of the adult females and the infants who have died. The data from this study suggest a more complex situation than previously proposed and the potential for a new approach to the study of maternal and infant health in past populations

Clinical Risk Factors Associated with Anti-Epileptic Drug Responsiveness in Canine Epilepsy

The nature and occurrence of remission, and conversely, pharmacoresistance following epilepsy treatment is still not fully understood in human or veterinary medicine. As such, predicting which patients will have good or poor treatment outcomes is imprecise, impeding patient management. In the present study, we use a naturally occurring animal model of pharmacoresistant epilepsy to investigate clinical risk factors associated with treatment outcome. Dogs with idiopathic epilepsy, for which no underlying cause was identified, were treated at a canine epilepsy clinic and monitored following discharge from a small animal referral hospital. Clinical data was gained via standardised owner questionnaires and longitudinal follow up data was gained via telephone interview with the dogs’ owners. At follow up, 14% of treated dogs were in seizure-free remission. Dogs that did not achieve remission were more likely to be male, and to have previously experienced cluster seizures. Seizure frequency or the total number of seizures prior to treatment were not significant predictors of pharmacoresistance, demonstrating that seizure density, that is, the temporal pattern of seizure activity, is a more influential predictor of pharmacoresistance. These results are in line with clinical studies of human epilepsy, and experimental rodent models of epilepsy, that patients experiencing episodes of high seizure density (cluster seizures), not just a high seizure frequency pre-treatment, are at an increased risk of drug-refractoriness. These data provide further evidence that the dog could be a useful naturally occurring epilepsy model in the study of pharmacoresistant epilepsy

Poor adherence to antibiotic prescribing guidelines in acute otitis media—obstacles, implications, and possible solutions

Many countries now have guidelines on the clinical management of acute otitis media. In almost all, the public health goal of containing acquired resistance in bacteria through reduced antibiotic prescribing is the main aim and basis for recommendations. Despite some partial short-term successes, clinical activity databases and opinion surveys suggest that such restrictive guidelines are not followed closely, so this aim is not achieved. Radical new solutions are needed to tackle irrationalities in healthcare systems which set the short-term physician–patient relationship against long-term public health. Resolving this opposition will require comprehensive policy appraisal and co-ordinated actions at many levels, not just dissemination of evidence and promotion of guidelines. The inappropriate clinical rationales that underpin non-compliance with guidelines can be questioned by evidence, but also need specific developments promoting alternative solutions, within a framework of whole-system thinking. Promising developments would be (a) physician training modules on age-appropriate analgesia and on detection plus referral of rare complications like mastoiditis, and (b) vaccination against the most common and serious bacterial pathogens

Bostonia: The Boston University Alumni Magazine. Volume 14

Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs