The Effects of Peer-Tutoring in Social Skills Development Groups for Antisocial Children

Sixteen children in grades 1–6, displaying antisocial behavior, as judged by teachers, guidance counsellors, principals and parents, participated in an 18 week social skills training program. The effectiveness of the program was assessed using a pre-test, post-test non-equivalent comparison group design and a multiple baseline analysis of individual children’s daily positive and negative behavior as rated by teachers. The comparison group consisted of 16 social skilled children, as judged by teachers, guidance counsellors and principals. Results indicated that the antisocial children had as much knowledge of social skills as socially skilled children before the intervention program began and they gained even more knowledge after participating in the program. The pre-post tests showed little improvement in the overall behavior of the children who participated in the program. However, the daily report data indicated that specific negative behaviors significantly decreased during the program. Results were discussed in terms of the need for a more intensive, long-term intervention program focusing on the child&38217;s natural environment to modify the child’s overall behavior

High Frequency Transducer Development for Ultrasonic Tests on Ceramic Components

The detection of critical flaws in ceramics requires the use of high frequency ultrasonics. Whilst shorter wavelengths are necessary to detect low micrometer range flaws, so the higher the frequency, the higher the attenuation and so ultimate power and sensitivity is required from examining transducers. This paper outlines the development of such devices. Satisfactory transducers in the frequency range 30–100 MHz are not available commercially and the characteristics of a number of piezoelectric materials for the purpose of their development are being established. Properties such as composition, electrodes, backing and lenses are being investigated

Enhancement of urban pluvial flood risk management and resilience through collaborative modelling: a UK case study

This paper presents the main findings and lessons learned from the development and implementation of a new methodology for collaborative modelling, social learning and social acceptance of flood risk management technologies. The proposed methodology entails three main phases: (1) stakeholder analysis and engagement; (2) improvement of urban pluvial flood modelling and forecasting tools; and (3) development and implementation of web-based tools for collaborative modelling in flood risk management and knowledge sharing. The developed methodology and tools were tested in the Cranbrook catchment (London Borough of Redbridge, UK), an area that has experienced severe pluvial (surface) flooding in the past. The developed methodologies proved to be useful for promoting interaction between stakeholders, developing collaborative modelling and achieving social acceptance of new technologies for flood risk management. Some limitations for stakeholder engagement were identified and are discussed in the present paper

Alcohol, drugs and sexual abuse in Cameroon's rainforest

Plant science

Захист від недобросовісної конкуренції у медичній сфері: проблеми правововго регулювання

Кожна людина має право на здорові умови життя, але напевно ще жодному не вдавалось уникнути звернень до лікарень, аптек, та інших організацій медичної сфери. Метою даної статті є дослідження захисту від недобросовісної конкуренції у медичній сфері в Україні та інших країнах та розроблення наукових рекомендацій щодо вдосконалення українського законодавства щодо врегулювання відносин щодо здійснення господарювання в медичній сфері

Assessment of Chimpanzee Nests Detectability on Drone-Acquired Images

As with other species of great apes, chimpanzee numbers have declined during the past decades. Proper conservation of the remaining chimpanzees requires accurate and frequent data on their distribution and density. In Tanzania, 75% of the chimpanzees live at low densities on land outside national parks and little is known about their distribution, density, behavior or ecology. Given the sheer scale of chimpanzee distribution across western Tanzania (>20,000 km2), we need new methods that are time and cost efficient while providing precise and accurate data across broad spatial scales. Scientists have recently demonstrated the usefulness of drones to detect wildlife, including apes. Whilst direct observation of chimpanzees is unlikely given their elusiveness, we investigated the potential of drones to detect chimpanzee nests in the Issa valley, western Tanzania. Between 2015 and 2016, we tested and compared the capabilities of two fixed-wing drones. We surveyed twenty-two plots (50x500m) in gallery forests and miombo woodlands to compare nest observations from the ground with those from the air. We performed mixed-effects logistic regression models to evaluate the impact of image resolution, seasonality, vegetation type, nest height and color on nest detectability. An average of 10% of the nests spotted from the ground were detected from the air. From the factors tested, only image resolution significantly influenced nest detectability on drone-acquired images. We discuss the potential, but also the limitations of this technology for determining chimpanzee distribution and density and provide guidance for future investigation on the use of drones for ape population surveys. Combining traditional and novel technological methods of surveying allows more accurate collection on animal distribution and habitat connectivity that has important implications for apes conservation in an increasingly anthropogenically disturbed landscape

African Rice (Oryza glaberrima Steud.): Lost Crop of the Enslaved Africans Discovered in Suriname1

African Rice (Oryza glaberrimaSteud.): Lost Crop of the Enslaved Africans Discovered in Suriname. African rice (Oryza glaberrima Steud.) was introduced to the Americas during the slave trade years and grown by enslaved Africans for decades before mechanical milling devices facilitated the shift towards Asian rice (O. sativa L.). Literature suggests that African rice is still grown in Guyana and French Guiana, but the most recent herbarium voucher dates from 1938. In this paper, evidence is presented that O. glaberrima is still grown by Saramaccan Maroons both for food and ritual uses. Saramaccan informants claim their forefathers collected their first “black rice” from a mysterious wild rice swamp and cultivated these seeds afterwards. Unmilled spikelets (grains with their husk still attached) are sold in small quantities for ancestor offerings, and even exported to the Netherlands to be used by Maroon immigrants. Little is known of the evolution of O. glaberrima, before and after domestication. Therefore, more research is needed on the different varieties of rice and other “lost crops” grown by these descendants of enslaved Africans who escaped from plantations in the 17th and 18th centuries and maintained much of their African cultural heritage in the deep rainforest

The diverse nature of island isolation and its effect on land bridge insular faunas

Aim: Isolation is a key factor in island biology. It is usually defined as the distance to the geographically nearest mainland, but many other definitions exist. We explored how testing different isolation indices affects the inference of impacts of isolation on faunal characteristics. We focused on land bridge islands and compared the relationships of many spatial and temporal (i.e., through time) isolation indices with community‐, population‐ and individual‐level characteristics (species richness, population density and body size, respectively). Location: Aegean Sea islands, Greece. Time period: Current. Taxon: Many animal taxa. Methods: We estimated 21 isolation indices for 205 islands and recorded species richness data for 15 taxa (invertebrates and vertebrates). We obtained body size data for seven lizard species and population density data for three. We explored how well indices predict each characteristic, in each taxon, by conducting a series of ordinary least squares regressions (controlling for island area when needed) and a meta‐analysis. Results: Isolation was significantly (and negatively) associated with species richness in 10 of 15 taxa. It was significantly (and positively) associated with body size in only one of seven species and was not associated with population density. The effect of isolation on species richness was much weaker than that of island area, regardless of the index tested. Spatial indices generally out‐performed temporal indices, and indices directly related to the mainland out‐performed those related mainly to neighbouring islands. No index was universally superior to others, including the distance to the geographically nearest mainland. Main conclusions: The choice of index can alter our perception of the impacts of isolation on biological patterns. The nearly automatic, ubiquitous use of distance to the geographically nearest mainland misrepresents the complexity of the effects of isolation. We recommend the simultaneous testing of several indices that represent different aspects of isolation, in order to produce more constructive and thorough investigations and avoid imprecise inference

Consequences of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade on medicinal plant selection: plant use for cultural boud syndromes affecting children in Suriname and Western Africa.

Folk perceptions of health and illness include cultural bound syndromes (CBS), ailments generally confined to certain cultural groups or geographic regions and often treated with medicinal plants. Our aim was to compare definitions and plant use for CBS regarding child health in the context of the largest migration in recent human history: the trans-Atlantic slave trade. We compared definitions of four CBS (walk early, evil eye, atita and fontanels) and associated plant use among three Afro-Surinamese populations and their African ancestor groups in Ghana, Bénin and Gabon. We expected plant use to be similar on species level, and assumed the majority to be weedy or domesticated species, as these occur on both continents and were probably recognized by enslaved Africans. Data were obtained by identifying plants mentioned during interviews with local women from the six different populations. To analyse differences and similarities in plant use we used Detrended Component Analysis (DCA) and a Wald Chi-square test. Definitions of the four cultural bound syndromes were roughly the same on both continents. In total, 324 plant species were used. There was little overlap between Suriname and Africa: 15 species were used on two continents, of which seven species were used for the same CBS. Correspondence on family level was much higher. Surinamese populations used significantly more weedy species than Africans, but equal percentages of domesticated plants. Our data indicate that Afro-Surinamers have searched for similar plants to treat their CBS as they remembered from Africa. In some cases, they have found the same species, but they had to reinvent the largest part of their herbal pharmacopeia to treat their CBS using known plant families or trying out new species. Ideas on health and illness appear to be more resilient than the use of plants to treat them