Exploring transitions in notions of identity as perceived by beginning post-compulsory teachers

This paper reports on Phase Two of a small scale qualitative research project. Phase One (2015-2016) focused on pre-service student teachers’ perceptions of observation and feedback in relation to their developing identity as teachers. In Phase Two, two previous participants reflected on the research findings as qualified and beginning teachers. New participants were invited to contribute their perspectives of the transition they had made from the PGCE PCE (Postgraduate Certificate in Post Compulsory Education) one year full time course to their first year of teaching. Phase Two considers constructs of teacher identity and theoretical models of communities of practice and ecological learning systems. Participants reviewed transitions from PGCE PCE in to their first year of teaching in relation to a continuum of practice that saw them taking increased levels of ownership of their development. They described the extent to which and the ways in which they identified themselves with the teacher role and as members of a community at work. Applications of the community of practice model were discussed and occasionally compared unfavourably to the community of practice context of the PGCE PCE course. Community of practice concepts such as ‘membership’ and ‘validation’ are re-explored in this paper

Dark Energy and Projective Symmetry

Nurowski [arXiv:1003.1503] has recently suggested a link between the observation of Dark Energy in cosmology and the projective equivalence of certain Friedman-Lemaitre-Robertson-Walker (FLRW) metrics. Specifically, he points out that two FLRW metrics with the same unparameterized geodesics have their energy densities differing by a constant. From this he queries whether the existence of dark energy is meaningful. We point out that physical observables in cosmology are not projectively invariant and we relate the projective symmetry uncovered by Nurowski to some previous work on projective equivalence in cosmology

Stoichiometry and planktonic grazer composition over gradients of light, nutrients, and predation risk

Mechanisms that explain shifts in species composition over environmental gradients continue to intrigue ecologists. Ecological stoichiometry has recently provided a new potential mechanism linking resource (light and nutrient) supply gradients to grazer performance via elemental food-quality mechanisms. More specifically, it predicts that light and nutrient gradients should determine the relative dominance of P-rich taxa, such as Daphnia, in grazer assemblages. We tested this hypothesis in pond mesocosms (cattle tanks) by creating gradients of resource supply and predation risk, to which we added diverse assemblages of algal producer and zooplankton grazer species. We then characterized the end-point composition of grazer assemblages and quantity and elemental food quality of edible algae. We found that somatically P-rich Daphnia only dominated grazer assemblages in high-nutrient, no-predator treatments. In these ecosystems, P sequestered in producers exceeded a critical concentration. However, other grazers having even higher body P content did not respond similarly. These grazers were often abundant in low-nutrient environments with poorer food quality. At face value, this result is problematic for ecological stoichiometry because body composition did not correctly predict response of these other species. However, two potential explanations could maintain consistency with stoichiometric principles: species could differentially use a high-P resource (bacteria), or body composition might not always directly correlate with nutrient demands of grazers. Although our data cannot differentiate between these explanations, both suggest potential avenues for future empirical and theoretical study.We thank T. Darcy, A. Downing, P. Geddes, and N. Howe for help with sampling, and G. Dwyer, T. Wootton, J. Bergelson, D. Spiller, W. DeMott, and an anonymous reviewer for their comments on the manuscript. We analyzed the C:N 2300 SPENCER R. HALL ET AL. Ecology, Vol. 85, No. 8 samples in the Robertson laboratory at Kellogg Biological Station (KBS) with the help of A. Corbin and T. Darcy. Thanks also go to G. Mittelbach, N. Consolatti, A. Tessier, and P. Woodruff at KBS for technical support. M. Bishop of the Michigan DNR permitted us to sample ponds in Barry and Middleville SGAs. Primary funding came from NSF DEB 98-15799 to M. A. Leibold and V. H. Smith. S. R. Hall was also supported by an NSF Graduate Fellowship, a University of Chicago Harper Fellowship and Hinds Fund Award, a Department of Education GAANN training grant, and a NSF DDIG (DEB 01-05014, PI Mathew Leibold). This is KBS contribution number 1128

Constraints on primary producer n:p stoichiometry along n:p supply ratio gradients

A current principle of ecological stoichiometry states that the nitrogen to phosphorus ratio (N:P) of primary producers should closely match that from environmental nutrient supplies. This hypothesis was tested using data from ponds in Michigan, USA, a freshwater mesocosm experiment, a synthesis of studies from diverse systems (cultures, lakes, streams, and marine and terrestrial environments), and simple dynamic models of producer growth and nutrient content. Unlike prior laboratory studies, the N:P stoichiometry of phytoplankton in Michigan ponds clustered around and below the Redfield ratio (7.2:1 by mass), despite wide variation in N:P supply ratios (2:1–63:1 by mass) and the presence of grazers. In a mesocosm experiment, the N:P stoichiometry of phytoplankton cells again deviated from a nearly 1:1 relationship with N:P supply. Phytoplankton seston exhibited lower N:P content than expected at high N:P supply ratios, and often higher N:P content than anticipated at low N:P supply ratios, regardless of herbivore presence. Similar deviations consistently occur in the N:P stoichiometry of algae and plants in the other diverse systems. The models predicted that both high loss rates (sinking, grazing) and physiological limits to nutrient storage capacity could attenuate producer stoichiometry. In the future, research should evaluate how limits to elemental plasticity of producers can influence the role of stoichiometry in structuring communities and ecosystem processes.We thank T. Darcy-Hall, A. Downing, P. Geddes, and N. Howe for help with tank and field sampling; and C. Klausmeier, G. Mittelbach, two anonymous reviewers, and Editor P. Leavitt for very helpful comments on the manuscript. We analyzed the C:N samples in the Robertson lab at Kellogg Biological Station (KBS) with the help of A. Corbin and T. Darcy-Hall. Thanks also go to G. Mittelbach, N. Consolatti, A. Tessier, and P. Woodruff at KBS for technical support. M. Bishop of the Michigan DNR permitted us to sample ponds in Barry and Middleville State Game Areas. Primary funding came from NSF DEB 98-15799 to Mathew A. Leibold and Val H. Smith. Spencer R. Hall was also supported by an NSF Graduate Fellowship, a University of Chicago Harper Fellowship and Hinds Fund Award, a Department of Education GAANN training grant, and a NSF DDIG (DEB 01-05014, P.I., Mathew Leibold). Some of the data described in this article were produced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through its Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (EMAP). This is KBS contribution #1169

Grazers, producer stoichiometry, and the light : nutrient hypothesis revisited.

The stoichiometric light : nutrient hypothesis (LNH) links the relative supplies of key resources with the nutrient content of tissues of producers. This resource-driven variation in producer stoichiometry, in turn, can mediate the efficiency of grazing. Typically, discussions of the LNH attribute this resource–stoichiometry link to bottom-up effects of light and phosphorus, which are mediated through producer physiology. Emphasis on bottom-up effects implies that grazers must consume food of quality solely determined by resource supply to ecosystems (i.e., they eat what they are served). Here, we expand upon this largely bottom up interpretation with evidence from pond surveys, a mesocosm experiment, and a model. Data from shallow ponds showed the ‘‘LNH pattern’’ (positive correlation of an index of light: phosphorus supply with algal carbon : phosphorus content). However, algal carbon: phosphorus content also declined as zooplankton biomass increased in the ponds. The experiment and model confirmed that this latter correlation was partially caused by the various bottom-up and top-down roles of grazers: the LNH pattern emerged only in treatments with crustacean grazers, not those without them. Furthermore, model and experiment clarified that another bottom-up factor, natural covariation of nitrogen : phosphorus ratios with light : phosphorus supply (as seen in ponds), does not likely contribute to the LNH pattern. Finally, the experiment produced correlations between shifts in species composition of algae, partially driven by grazing effects of crustaceans, and algal stoichiometry. These shifts in species composition might shape stoichiometric response of producer assemblages to resource supply and grazing, but their consequences remain largely unexplored. Thus, this study accentuated the importance of grazing for the LNH; deemphasized a potentially confounding, bottom-up factor (covarying nitrogen : phosphorus supply); and highlighted an avenue for future research for the LNH (grazer-mediated shifts in producer composition).We thank T. Darcy-Hall, A. Downing, P. Geddes, and N. Howe for help with sampling the cattle tank experiment and natural ponds. We analyzed the C:N samples in the Robertson lab at the W. K. Kellogg Biological Station (KBS) with the help of A. Corbin and T. Darcy-Hall. Thanks also go to G. Mittelbach, N. Consolatti, A. Tessier, and P. Woodruff for technical support. Finally, S. Diehl kindly provided us with data from his experiments. Primary funding came from NSF DEB 98-15799, DEB 02-35579, and funds from Indiana University. This is KBS contribution number 1277

Inedible Producers in Food Webs: Controls on Stoichiometric Food Quality and Composition of Grazers

Ecological stoichiometry and food web theories focus on distinct mechanisms that shape communities. These mechanisms, however, likely interact in ways that neither theory alone addresses. To illustrate, we show how a model that tracks flow of energy and nutrients through two producers and two grazers reveals two indirect, interrelated roles for “neutrally inedible” producers. First, inedible producers can exert controls over the nutrient content of edible producers and indirectly influence whether grazers are nutrient or energy limited. Second, through these controls, inedible producers can shape community assembly by excluding grazers that are weak competitors for nutrients contained in edible producers. A mesocosm experiment revealed patterns consistent with both predictions: high abundances of inedible algae were accompanied by low phosphorus contents of edible algae and low abundances of the grazer Daphnia. Both lines of inference suggest that interactions between stoichiometry and plant heterogeneity may shape plankton communities

Anoxia- and hypoxia-induced expression of LDH-A* in the Amazon Oscar, Astronotus crassipinis

Adaptation or acclimation to hypoxia occurs via the modulation of physiologically relevant genes, such as erythropoietin, transferrin, vascular endothelial growth factor, phosphofructokinase and lactate dehydrogenase A. In the present study, we have cloned, sequenced and examined the modulation of the LDH-A gene after an Amazonian fish species, Astronotus crassipinis (the Oscar), was exposed to hypoxia and anoxia. In earlier studies, we have discovered that adults of this species are extremely tolerant to hypoxia and anoxia, while the juveniles are less tolerant. Exposure of juveniles to acute hypoxia and anoxia resulted in increased LDH-A gene expression in skeletal and cardiac muscles. When exposed to graded hypoxia juveniles show decreased LDH-A expression. In adults, the levels of LDH-A mRNA did not increase in hypoxic or anoxic conditions. Our results demonstrate that, when given time for acclimation, fish at different life-stages are able to respond differently to survive hypoxic episodes

Rearranging Edgeworth-Cornish-Fisher Expansions

This paper applies a regularization procedure called increasing rearrangement to monotonize Edgeworth and Cornish-Fisher expansions and any other related approximations of distribution and quantile functions of sample statistics. Besides satisfying the logical monotonicity, required of distribution and quantile functions, the procedure often delivers strikingly better approximations to the distribution and quantile functions of the sample mean than the original Edgeworth-Cornish-Fisher expansions.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figure

Management of patient adherence to medications: protocol for an online survey of doctors, pharmacists and nurses in Europe

Introduction It is widely recognised that many patients do not take prescribed medicines as advised. Research in this field has commonly focused on the role of the patient in non-adherence; however, healthcare professionals can also have a major influence on patient behaviour in taking medicines. This study examines the perceptions, beliefs and behaviours of healthcare professionals-doctors, pharmacists and nurses-about patient medication adherence. Methods and analysis This paper describes the study protocol and online questionnaire used in a cross-sectional survey of healthcare professionals in Europe. The participating countries include Austria, Belgium, France, Greece, The Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Switzerland, Hungary, Italy and England. The study population comprises primary care and community-based doctors, pharmacists and nurses involved in the care of adult patients taking prescribed medicines for chronic and acute illnesses. Discussion Knowledge of the nature, extent and variability of the practices of healthcare professionals to support medication adherence could inform future service design, healthcare professional education, policy and research

‘Function First’: how to promote physical activity and physical function in people with long-term conditions managed in primary care? A study combining realist and co-design methods

Objectives To develop a taxonomy of interventions and a programme theory explaining how interventions improve physical activity and function in people with long-term conditions managed in primary care. To co-design a prototype intervention informed by the programme theory. Design Realist synthesis combining evidence from a wide range of rich and relevant literature with stakeholder views. Resulting context, mechanism and outcome statements informed co-design and knowledge mobilisation workshops with stakeholders to develop a primary care service innovation. Results A taxonomy was produced, including 13 categories of physical activity interventions for people with long-term conditions. Abridged realist programme theory Routinely addressing physical activity within consultations is dependent on a reinforcing practice culture, and targeted resources, with better coordination, will generate more opportunities to address low physical activity. The adaptation of physical activity promotion to individual needs and preferences of people with long-term conditions helps affect positive patient behaviour change. Training can improve knowledge, confidence and capability of practice staff to better promote physical activity. Engagement in any physical activity promotion programme will depend on the degree to which it makes sense to patients and professions, and is seen as trustworthy. Co-design The programme theory informed the co-design of a prototype intervention to: improve physical literacy among practice staff; describe/develop the role of a physical activity advisor who can encourage the use of local opportunities to be more active; and provide materials to support behaviour change. Conclusions Previous physical activity interventions in primary care have had limited effect. This may be because they have only partially addressed factors emerging in our programme theory. The co-designed prototype intervention aims to address all elements of this emergent theory, but needs further development and consideration alongside current schemes and contexts (including implications relevant to COVID-19), and testing in a future study. The integration of realist and co-design methods strengthened this study