Dangerous liaisons: youth sport, citizenship and intergenerational mistrust

This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in International Journal of Sport Policy and Politics on 24/3/2014, available online: DOI 10.1080/19406940.2014.896390This paper reflects on and offers a critical analysis of the relationship between youth sport and citizenship development, in practice and in the UK policy context of sports coaching and physical education. While deploying data and insights from a recently completed research project in England, which identified substantial tensions in intergenerational relationships in sport and coaching, the argument and analysis also invokes wider international concerns and more generally applicable implications for policy and practice. Drawing heuristically upon the philosophy of Dewey (2007 [1916]), it is recognised that the concept of citizenship as a form of social practice should seek to encourage the development of complementary traits and dispositions in young people. To develop socially and educationally thus entails engagement in meaningful social and cultural activity, of which one potentially significant component is participation in youth sport, both within and outside formal education. However, it is argued that any confident assumption that sporting and coaching contexts will necessarily foster positive traits and dispositions in young people should be considered dubious and misplaced. Deploying a Lacanian (1981) perspective to interpret our data, we contend that ‘liaisons’ and interactions between coaches and young people are often treated suspiciously, and regarded as potentially ‘dangerous’

Development of materials to support parents whose babies cry excessively: findings and health service implications

Aim: To develop evidence-based materials which provide information and support for parents who are concerned about their baby's excessive crying. As well as meeting these parents' needs, the aim was to develop a package of materials suitable for use by the UK National Health Service (NHS). Background: Parents report that around 20% of 1-4 month-old infants in western countries cry excessively without apparent reason. Traditionally, research has focused on the crying and its causes. However, evidence is growing that how parents evaluate and respond to the crying needs to receive equal attention. This focus encompasses parental resources, vulnerabilities, wellbeing, and mental health. At present, the UK NHS lacks a set of routine provisions to support parents who are concerned about their baby's excessive crying. The rationales, methods and findings from a study developing materials for this purpose are reported. Method: Following a literature review, 20 parents whose babies previously cried excessively took part in focus groups or interviews. They provided reports on their experiences and the supports they would have liked when their baby was crying excessively. In addition, they identified their preferred delivery methods and devices for accessing information and rated four example support packages identified by the literature review. Findings: During the period their baby cried excessively, most parents visited a health service professional and most considered these direct contacts to have provided helpful information and support. Websites were similarly popular. Telephones and tablets were the preferred means of accessing online information. Groups to meet other parents were considered an important additional resource by all the parents. Three package elements - a Surviving Crying website, a printed version of the website, and a programme of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy-based support sessions delivered to parents by a qualified practitioner, were developed for further evaluation

Crystallization and preliminary structural analysis of the giant haemoglobin from Glossoscolex paulistus at 3.2 Å

Diffraction data to 3.2 Å from crystals of the 3.6 MDa erythrocruorin from a Brazilian earthworm represent the highest resolution reported to date for similar complexes. An unambiguous molecular replacement solution shows the particle to belong to the type I class

Direct characterisation of tuneable few-femtosecond dispersive-wave pulses in the deep UV

Dispersive wave emission (DWE) in gas-filled hollow-core dielectric waveguides is a promising source of tuneable coherent and broadband radiation, but so far the generation of few-femtosecond pulses using this technique has not been demonstrated. Using in-vacuum frequency-resolved optical gating, we directly characterise tuneable 3fs pulses in the deep ultraviolet generated via DWE. Through numerical simulations, we identify that the use of a pressure gradient in the waveguide is critical for the generation of short pulses.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

The benefits of hedgerows for pollinators and natural enemies depends on hedge quality and landscape context

Ecological intensification advocates the harnessing of regulating and supporting ecosystem services to promote more sustainable food production, and this relies on effective management of non-cropped habitats. Hedgerows are an important component of the landscape in many farming systems across the world, management of which provides a potential mechanism to enhance ecological intensification. Here we investigate the value of hedgerows in Southern England as a source of functionally important taxa, and how hedgerow quality and local landscape composition impact on their potential contribution to sustainable agriculture in arable landscapes. We show that hedgerows are a source habitat for many natural enemies which spill over into neighbouring fields, and that hedgerows provide a valuable forage resource and corridor for movement of pollinators. Hedgerow quality affects these benefits and continuous unbroken hedgerows, with a high diversity of woody species, are more valuable for the provision of bumblebees and Linyphiid spiders, while the presence of trees within the hedgerow supports Lycosid spiders. Floral resources, beyond the woody hedgerow species themselves, are also a key forage resource for hoverflies. The impact of these hedgerows on invertebrate abundance is moderated by local landscape, and hedgerows are a more valuable forage resource for pollinators in more intensely managed landscapes. Our study shows that in order to support abundant and a broad range of natural enemies and pollinators in agricultural landscapes, both hedgerows and local semi-natural habitats need to be protected and managed. The benefit of hedgerows, as a habitat for functionally important taxa depends on hedgerow quality and management practices such as avoiding gaps, high hedge species diversity and maintaining an abundant understory of plants, can improve their value for ecological intensification

The Generic Short Patient Experiences Questionnaire (GS-PEQ): identification of core items from a survey in Norway

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Questionnaires are commonly used to collect patient, or user, experiences with health care encounters; however, their adaption to specific target groups limits comparison between groups. We present the construction of a generic questionnaire (maximum of ten questions) for user evaluation across a range of health care services.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Based on previous testing of six group-specific questionnaires, we first constructed a generic questionnaire with 23 items related to user experiences. All questions included a "not applicable" response option, as well as a follow-up question about the item's importance. Nine user groups from one health trust were surveyed. Seven groups received questionnaires by mail and two by personal distribution. Selection of core questions was based on three criteria: applicability (proportion "not applicable"), importance (mean scores on follow-up questions), and comprehensiveness (content coverage, maximum two items per dimension).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>1324 questionnaires were returned providing subsample sizes ranging from 52 to 323. Ten questions were excluded because the proportion of "not applicable" responses exceeded 20% in at least one user group. The number of remaining items was reduced to ten by applying the two other criteria. The final short questionnaire included items on outcome (2), clinician services (2), user involvement (2), incorrect treatment (1), information (1), organisation (1), and accessibility (1).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The Generic Short Patient Experiences Questionnaire (GS-PEQ) is a short, generic set of questions on user experiences with specialist health care that covers important topics for a range of groups. It can be used alone or with other instruments in quality assessment or in research. The psychometric properties and the relevance of the GS-PEQ in other health care settings and countries need further evaluation.</p

923-6 Intravenous Adenosine and Lidocaine to Limit Reperfusion Injury During Acute Myocardial Infarction: Preliminary Data

Adenosine (ADO) and lidocaine (LDO) given prior to restoration of blood flow reduces reperfusion injury in animals. We conducted a pilot study of intravenous ADO and LDO in pts undergoing direct angioplasty for acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Pts with ≤12 hours of chest pain and electrocardiographic evidence of AMI were given LDO 1mg/kg iv bolus and 2mg/min iv infusion beginning at the time of recruitment, and ADO 70mcg/kg iv infusion beginning when coronary occlusion (TIMI grade 0–1 blood flow) was confirmed angiographically. Pts with bronchospasm, blood pressure &lt;100mmHg, or&lt;1° heart block were excluded. ADO and LDO were given for 1 hour after vessel patency was restored. Myocardial area at risk and final infarction area were measured with serial Tc-99m-sestamibi perfusion studies (prior to angioplasty, before hospital discharge and 6 weeks after discharge). A salvage index (S1) was constructed by correcting the change in sestamibi perfusion defect for the mass of myocardium at risk. Analysis of 25 patients completing the protocol revealed a mean (±SD) salvage of 20±17% and S1=0.55. Salvage and S1 were 25±18% and 0.54 for anterior infarctions, 13±5% and 0.57 for inferior infarctions, respectively. These data were compared to an historical control group consisting of 50 patients undergoing direct angioplasty for AMI without adjunctive ADO/LDO. After adjustment for time to treatment and perfusion nadir, analysis of covariance revealed a similar degree of early salvage in the study and control groups (p=0.3). However, at 6 weeks, the median infarct size for study pts was 0. Using logistic regression analysis, significantly more study pts had no final measureable infarction at 6 weeks than control pts at hospital discharge (p=0.007). After adjusting for infarct size, location and time to treatment, this difference persisted (p=0.04).ConclusionsAdjunctive ADO and LDO during angioplasty for AMI may favorably affect late final infarction size. Randomized studies assessing 6 week final infarction size are needed

Delivery of stable ultra-thin liquid sheets in vacuum for biochemical spectroscopy

The development of ultra-thin flat liquid sheets capable of running in vacuum has provided an exciting new target for X-ray absorption spectroscopy in the liquid and solution phases. Several methods have become available for delivering in-vacuum sheet jets using different nozzle designs. We compare the sheets produced by two different types of nozzle; a commercially available borosillicate glass chip using microfluidic channels to deliver colliding jets, and an in-house fabricated fan spray nozzle which compresses the liquid on an axis out of a slit to achieve collision conditions. We find in our tests that both nozzles are suitable for use in X-ray absorption spectroscopy with the fan spray nozzle producing thicker but more stable jets than the commercial nozzle. We also provide practical details of how to run these nozzles in vacuum