“Are the girls out to bingo? And is “Frenchie” gettin tipsy? On a Sudbury Saturday night”: Gambling among Older Francophones in North-Eastern Ontario

Since its legalization, gambling has become a popular form of entertainment in Canada (e.g., Tepperman & Wanner, 2012). Despite this increase in popularity, little research has been done examining gambling among older adults, and even in this area of research there is a lack of attention to minority groups (e.g., Ariyabuddhiphongs, 2012; Munro, Cox-Bishop, McVey, & Munro., 2003). Tirachaimongkol and colleagues (2010) proposed a theoretical pathways model to help explain problem gambling risk in older adults. This model includes three “clusters” of risk factors, including individual vulnerability factors, social and environmental factors, and behavioural regulation factors. The second cluster is especially relevant to problem gambling research on minority groups. There is almost no gambling research that has been conducted with Francophone minority populations. Francophones in Ontario have been found to be at risk of marginalization and exclusion (e.g., Fougère, 2006; Kauppi et al., 2004; Picard & Charland, 1999), and thus at greater risk for psychological distress (e.g., Cairney & Krause, 2005; Clark, Colantonio, Rhodes, & Escobar, 2007; Thériault & Stones, 2009). The purpose and goal of this work was to better understand gambling in a sample of older Francophones from North-Eastern Ontario. A sample of 181 older (over 55 years) Francophones from North-Eastern Ontario (M age = 68.7, SD = 7.6) were recruited using snowball sampling with the help of key individuals, organizations, and networks within the Francophone community. Most of the participants were women (59.7%) and were married (74.0%). The participants filled out a culturally modified and translated version of a questionnaire designed by Norris and Tindale (2006). This instrument included a wide variety of scales, items, and measures concerning demographics, gambling attitudes and behaviours, problem gambling, and various comorbidities. This dissertation is divided into two studies; the first had the purpose of constructing a demographic, social, and intergenerational family profile of gambling in older Francophones in North-Eastern Ontario. This profile was then compared to a similar profile of older Anglophones in Ontario constructed by Norris and Tindale (2006; Tindale & Norris, 2012). Since this study was the first to examine gambling in this population, it was thus exploratory in nature. This study found that gambling was not an important recreational activity or pastime for the participants and that remarkably few of those in the sample were at risk of problem gambling compared to the samples from Norris and Tindale (2006; Tindale & Norris, 2012). It was also found that participants had a high level of community involvement which may be why this sample is unique, and why problem gambling is so low. Considering these findings, the second study aimed to apply the pathways model proposed by Tirachaimongkol and colleagues (2010) in order to better understand problem gambling risk and, specifically, to understand why those in the Francophone sample were not at higher problem gambling risk. The results of this study supported the link between problem gambling and individual vulnerability factors; however, the cluster of social and environmental factors identified by Tirachaimongkol and colleagues did not explain why Francophone participants were still at a lower risk of problem gambling. One plausible explanation for this finding, and something that this pathways model does not take into account, is the possibility that a positive ethnic identity might act as a protective factor for problem gambling risk. By testing the pathways model’s applicability to the older Francophone population in North-Eastern Ontario, this study helped to elaborate its usefulness by highlighting both its successes and failures/omissions. Although the two studies presented here have their limitations, they are the first to examine these issues in this population. The findings of these studies help us better understand gambling among older Francophones in North-Eastern Ontario. The fact that, contrary to expectations and to the previous literature, problem gambling was not an issue for the Francophone sample means that there more that needs to be done to understand gambling among older minority groups

Depression and aggressive behaviour in continuing care: how cognitive impairment might not explain the whole story

Context: There is currently little research examining the relationship between depression and aggressive behaviour among individuals receiving long-term care. Previous research has focused on older adults with neurocognitive disorders (e.g., Alzheimer’s). These studies have found a positive association between aggressive behaviour and depression and are additionally associated with cognitive impairment in older adults. Objectives: The current study aims to better understand the relationship between aggressive behaviour and depression amongst older adults with and without cognitive impairment, as previous studies have not yet examined how these relationships may differ across levels of cognitive functioning. Methods: Data from the Continuing Care Reporting System administered by the Canadian Institute for Health Information was used. At the time of analysis, data for individuals receiving continuing care was available across seven Canadian provinces and one territory. Findings: Data from 2,682,612 individuals were extracted (Mage = 80.42, SD = 11.5). A positive relationship between aggressive behaviour and depressive symptoms was found for those with and without cognitive impairment. There was no evidence of a mediating effect of cognitive impairment on aggressive behaviour. Individuals with symptoms of depression demonstrated more aggressive behaviours. Limitations: A limitation of the current work is the cross-sectional nature of the data examined. This restricts the ability to determine causation, and the questions of “Do depressive symptoms predict aggressive behaviour?” or “Are aggressive behaviours early symptoms of depression?” remain. Implications: These findings indicate that, independent of cognition, those with depressive symptoms are more likely to exhibit aggressive behaviour. Recommendations on identification and treatment of depression in this population are discussed and related policy changes are considered

Neutron to proton ratios of quasiprojectile and midrapidity emission in the 64^{64}Zn + 64^{64}Zn reaction at 45 MeV/nucleon

Simultaneous measurement of both neutrons and charged particles emitted in the reaction $^{64}$Zn + $^{64}$Zn at 45 MeV/nucleon allows comparison of the neutron to proton ratio at midrapidity with that at projectile rapidity. The evolution of N/Z in both rapidity regimes with increasing centrality is examined. For the completely re-constructed midrapidity material one finds that the neutron-to-proton ratio is above that of the overall $^{64}$Zn + $^{64}$Zn system. In contrast, the re-constructed ratio for the quasiprojectile is below that of the overall system. This difference provides the most complete evidence to date of neutron enrichment of midrapidity nuclear matter at the expense of the quasiprojectile

Exposures of children in Canada to 60-Hz magnetic and electric fields

Objectives This study characterized personal exposures of Canadian children to 60-Hz magnetic and electric fields and explained the variability. Methods Altogether 382 Canadian children up to 15 years of age wore meters recording 60-Hz electric and magnetic fields over 2 days. Meter location was recorded. Thereafter, meters recorded fields in the center of the children's bedrooms for 24 h. Personal exposures were calculated for home, school or day care, outside the home, bedroom at night, and all categories combined (total). Results The arithmetic mean (AM) was 0.121 mT [geometric mean (GM): 0.085 mT), range 0.01-0.8 mT] for total magnetic fields. Fifteen percent of the total exposures exceeded 0.2 mT. The AM of the total electric fields was 14.4 (GM 12.3, range 0.82-64.7) V/m. By location category, the highest and lowest magnetic fields occurred at home during the day (0.142 mT) and during the night (0.112 mT), respectively. Measurements during sleep provided the highest correlation with total magnetic field exposure. Province of measurement explained 14.7% of the variation in the logarithms of total magnetic fields, and season accounted for an additional 1.5%. Electric heating, air conditioning, and housing type appeared to be useful predictors of magnetic field exposures. Conclusions In identifying differences in children's magnetic field exposures between provinces, measurements at night provided the best surrogate for predicting total magnetic field exposure, followed by at-home exposure and 24-h bedroom measurements. Electrical heating and air conditioning, wiring type, and type of housing appear to be promising indicators of magnetic field levels

Validation of Live Animal Ultrasonic Measurements of Body Composition in Market Lambs

Market lambs from the state fair of Virginia (n = 172) were ultrasonically evaluated by 4 scan technicians and 3 image interpreters to determine accuracy of ultrasonic estimates of loin muscle area (ULMA), backfat thickness (UBF), and body wall thickness (UBW). Lambs were initially scanned at the preferred magnification setting of each technician; 2 chose 1.5× and 2 chose 2.0×. Lambs were then scanned a second time for ULMA and UBF with machine magnification settings changed from 1.5 to 2.0×, or vice versa, midway through the second scan. Lambs were then slaughtered, and analogous measurements [carcass loin muscle area, carcass backfat thickness, and carcass body wall thickness (CBW)] were recorded on chilled carcasses. Pooled, residual correlation coefficients within technicians and interpreters between ultrasonic measurements from the first scan and carcass measurements were 0.66 for loin muscle area, 0.78 for backfat thickness, and 0.73 for body wall thickness, but were reduced to 0.43, 0.69, and 0.50, respectively, by inclusion of linear effects of carcass weight in the model. Mean bias for technicians and interpreters ranged from −1.30 to −2.66 cm2 for loin muscle area, −0.12 to −0.17 cm for backfat thickness, and 0.14 to −0.03 cm for body wall thickness; prediction errors ranged from 1.86 to 2.22 cm2, 0.12 to 0.14 cm, and 0.35 to 0.38 cm, respectively. Pooled correlations between repeated measures were 0.67 for ULMA, 0.79 for UBF, and 0.68 for UBW at the same magnification and 0.73 for ULMA and 0.76 for UBF across different magnification settings. Mean differences between repeated measures were more variable among technicians and interpreters than statistics comparing ultrasound to carcass measures. Standard errors of repeatability ranged from 1.61 to 2.45 cm2 for ULMA, 0.07 to 0.11 cm for UBF, and 0.36 to 0.42 cm for UBW. The effect of changing magnification setting on technician and interpreter repeatability was small for UBF and ULMA. The accuracy of prediction of CBW from UBW was similar to that achieved for backfat thickness; further assessment of the value of ultrasonic measurements of body wall thickness in lambs is warranted. These results indicate that ultrasound scanning can reliably predict carcass loin muscle area and backfat thickness in live lambs and, accordingly, has value in selection programs to improve composition. Development of certification standards for US lamb ultrasound technicians based on results of this study and others is proposed

School-Aged Children With Higher Reflective Functioning Exhibit Lower Cardiovascular Reactivity

Despite extensive theorizing regarding the regulatory role of reflective functioning (RF), few studies have explored the links between RF and physiological indices of emotion regulation, and none have examined these associations in children. Further, while scholars contend that RF promotes resilience via enhanced ability to process emotional experiences, including those occurring in attachment relationships, this argument has seldom been tested empirically in children. In the current study, we explore the association between RF and physiological measures of emotion reactivity and regulation, as well as the interaction of RF and attachment insecurity. We test these associations by examining children’s (N = 76; 8 to 12 years old) cardiovascular responses (respiratory sinus arrhythmia) to a standardized paradigm designed to evoke reactions regarding the experience and expression of attachment-related needs. Children also completed a semi-structured attachment interview, which was later coded for children’s attachment insecurity (operationalized as attachment dismissal and preoccupation) and RF. Our findings were largely consistent with theory and our hypotheses, suggesting that higher RF is associated with lesser cardiovascular reactivity (higher levels of RSA) during the stressor task and better recovery following the task. These links were especially strong for children with greater attachment preoccupation but did not vary as a function of children’s levels of attachment dismissal. These findings contribute to developmental theory in suggesting that RF is closely linked to physiological emotion regulation in children

Correlation effects on electronic transport through dots and wires

We investigate how two-particle interactions affect the electronic transport through meso- and nanoscopic systems of two different types: quantum dots with local Coulomb correlations and quasi one-dimensional quantum wires of interacting electrons. A recently developed functional renormalization group scheme is used that allows to investigate systems of complex geometry. Considering simple setups we show that the method includes the essential aspects of Luttinger liquid physics (one-dimensional wires) as well as of the physics of local correlations, with the Kondo effect being an important example. For more complex systems of coupled dots and Y-junctions of interacting wires we find surprising new correlation effects.Comment: to appear in "Advances in Solid State Physics" Volume 46, Ed. R. Haug (Springer, 2006

Precipitation characteristics and associated weather conditions on the eastern slopes of the Canadian Rockies during March–April 2015

Precipitation events that bring rain and snow to the Banff–Calgary area of Alberta are a critical aspect of the region's water cycle and can lead to major flooding events such as the June 2013 event that was the second most costly natural disaster in Canadian history. Because no special atmospheric-oriented observations of these events have been made, a field experiment was conducted in March and April 2015 in Kananaskis, Alberta, to begin to fill this gap. The goal was to characterize and better understand the formation of the precipitation at the surface during spring 2015 at a specific location in the Kananaskis Valley. Within the experiment, detailed measurements of precipitation and weather conditions were obtained, a vertically pointing Doppler radar was deployed and weather balloons were released. Although 17 precipitation events occurred, this period was associated with much less precipitation than normal (−35&thinsp;%) and above-normal temperatures (2.5&thinsp;°C). Of the 133&thinsp;h of observed precipitation, solid precipitation occurred 71&thinsp;% of the time, mixed precipitation occurred 9&thinsp;% and rain occurred 20&thinsp;%. An analysis of 17&thinsp;504 precipitation particles from 1181 images showed that a wide variety of crystals and aggregates occurred and approximately 63&thinsp;% showed signs of riming. This was largely independent of whether flows aloft were upslope (easterly) or downslope (westerly). In the often sub-saturated surface conditions, hydrometeors containing ice occurred at temperatures as high as 9&thinsp;°C. Radar structures aloft were highly variable with reflectivity sometimes  &gt; 30&thinsp;dBZe and Doppler velocity up to −1&thinsp;m&thinsp;s−1, which indicates upward motion of particles within ascending air masses. Precipitation was formed in this region within cloud fields sometimes having variable structures and within which supercooled water at least sometimes existed to produce accreted particles massive enough to reach the surface through the relatively dry sub-cloud region.</p