Oersted Medal Lecture 2007: Interactive simulations for teaching physics: What works, what doesn't, and why

We give an overview of the Physics Educational Technology (PhET) project to research and develop web-based interactive simulations for teaching and learning physics. The design philosophy, simulation development and testing process, and range of available simulations are described. The highlights of PhET research on simulation design and effectiveness in a variety of educational settings are provided. This work has shown that a well-designed interactive simulation can be an engaging and effective tool for learning physics

Making sense of eating, weight and risk in the early teenage years: views and concerns of parents in poorer socio-economic circumstances

Peer reviewe

Point of Care Tools and Libraries: 12th Annual Health Sciences Lively Lunch

This session included a discussion about point of care tools in the health information setting. Klimley provided a presentation on the point of care tools landscape that highlighted the importance and relevance of this topic now, evaluations that have been published about these tools, funding issues, and desirable elements of the tools. The presentation included examples of marketing techniques and product advertisements to portray the various claims and testimonials regarding these products, which provided a critical discussion on the products and their use in health information settings. A lively discussion followed the presentation to allow participants to express some of their concerns about point of care tools and their role in the future. The results of the session are explained in the document

Strengthening the ethical assessment of placebo-controlled surgical trials : three proposals

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Motion adaptation and attention: A critical review and meta-analysis

The motion aftereffect (MAE) provides a behavioural probe into the mechanisms underlying motion perception, and has been used to study the effects of attention on motion processing. Visual attention can enhance detection and discrimination of selected visual signals. However, the relationship between attention and motion processing remains contentious: not all studies find that attention increases MAEs. Our meta-analysis reveals several factors that explain superficially discrepant findings. Across studies (37 independent samples, 76 effects) motion adaptation was significantly and substantially enhanced by attention (Cohen's d = 1.12, p < .0001). The effect more than doubled when adapting to translating (vs. expanding or rotating) motion. Other factors affecting the attention-MAE relationship included stimulus size, eccentricity and speed. By considering these behavioural analyses alongside neurophysiological work, we conclude that feature-based (rather than spatial, or object-based) attention is the biggest driver of sensory adaptation. Comparisons between naïve and non-naïve observers, different response paradigms, and assessment of 'file-drawer effects' indicate that neither response bias nor publication bias are likely to have significantly inflated the estimated effect of attention

Experiencing discrimination increases risk taking.

Prior research has revealed racial disparities in health outcomes and health-compromising behaviors, such as smoking and drug abuse. It has been suggested that discrimination contributes to such disparities, but the mechanisms through which this might occur are not well understood. In the research reported here, we examined whether the experience of discrimination affects acute physiological stress responses and increases risk-taking behavior. Black and White participants each received rejecting feedback from partners who were either of their own race (in-group rejection) or of a different race (out-group rejection, which could be interpreted as discrimination). Physiological (cardiovascular and neuroendocrine) changes, cognition (memory and attentional bias), affect, and risk-taking behavior were assessed. Significant participant race × partner race interactions were observed. Cross-race rejection, compared with same-race rejection, was associated with lower levels of cortisol, increased cardiac output, decreased vascular resistance, greater anger, increased attentional bias, and more risk-taking behavior. These data suggest that perceived discrimination is associated with distinct profiles of physiological reactivity, affect, cognitive processing, and risk taking, implicating direct and indirect pathways to health disparities

Law and Public Health: Beyond Emergency Preparedness

This Article examines three questions: What is public health? What is public health law? What roles can lawyers play in public health? It first describes the breadth of public health, highlighting six trends shaping its future: social determinants of health; synergy between medicine and public health; shifts in focus from external (e.g., environmental and social) to internal (behavioral) risks to health; federalization of public health law; globalization of health risks and responses; and bioterrorism. Because the domains of law that apply to public health are equally broad, the Article next offers a conceptual framework for identifying the types of laws most suitable to different public health problems. Finally, the role of lawyers in the applied field of public health law is examined, first to encourage attention to law\u27s effect on health, even laws having little apparent relationship to health; and second, to recognize that laws intended to achieve specific health outcomes may affect broader legal principles. Lawyers have a unique role to play in ensuring that the legal principles used to promote health also preserve justice