A Qualitative Study of How Adolescents’ Use of Coping Strategies and Support Varies in Line With Their Experiences of Adversity

BACKGROUND: Adolescence is associated with a rise in the incidence of mental health issues. Thus, the factors, processes, and contexts that protect and promote positive mental health in adolescence are of key interest to policymakers. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was twofold: First, to explore the coping strategies and sources of support that adolescents identify as protective (or not) in the face of difficulty over a three-year period; second, to examine how and why this may vary in line with the levels of adversity that they report experiencing in life. METHODS: Participants were attending schools in England implementing a mental health prevention programme called HeadStart. 93 semi-structured interviews were conducted with 31 adolescents (age 11–12 at the outset of the study; 58% female) once per year over three years. The interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Six coping strategy themes (e.g., ‘Disengaging from problems’) and five support themes (e.g., ‘Parents as a source of comfort and advice’) were derived from the interviews. The types, quality, and consistency of reported coping strategies and support varied in line with whether adolescents were experiencing higher or lower levels of adversity in life over time, and according to the resources that they had available within their physical and social contexts. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings underscore the importance for mental health prevention programmes of bolstering both individual-level coping strategies and the resources available within adolescents’ environments to help them to manage adversity

Does early introduction of peanuts to an infant's diet reduce the risk for peanut allergy?

Q: Does early introduction of peanuts to an infant's diet reduce the risk for peanut allergy? Evidence-based answer: Probably not, unless the child has severe eczema or egg allergy. In a general pediatric population, introducing peanuts early (at age 3 to 6 months) doesn't appear to alter rates of subsequent peanut allergy compared with introduction after age 6 months (strength of recommendation [SOR]: B, randomized clinical trial [RCT] using multiple potential food allergens). In children with severe eczema, egg allergy, or both, however, the risk for a peanut allergy is 12% to 24% lower when peanut-containing foods are introduced at age 4 to 11 months than after age 1 year. Early introduction of peanuts is associated with about 1 additional mild virus-associated syndrome (upper respiratory infection [URI], exanthem, conjunctivitis, or gastroenteritis) per patient (SOR: B, RCT). Introducing peanuts before age 1 year is recommended for atopic children without evidence of pre-existing peanut allergy; an earlier start, at age 4 to 6 months, is advised for infants with severe eczema or egg allergy (SOR: C, expert opinion).Greg Jungwirth, MD; Kevin Stock, PharmD; Jon O. Neher, MD (Valley Family Medicine Residency, University of Washington at Valley in Renton); Sarah Safranek, MLIS (University of Washington Health Sciences Library, Seattle)Includes bibliographical reference

Palaeobiology, ecology, and distribution of stromatoporoid faunas in biostromes of the mid-Ludlow of Gotland

Six well exposed mid−Ludlow stromatoporoid−dominated reef biostromes in four localities from the Hemse Group in southeastern Gotland, Sweden comprise a stromatoporoid assemblage dominated by four species; Clathrodictyon mohicanum, “Stromatopora” bekkeri, Plectostroma scaniense, and Lophiostroma schmidtii. All biostromes investigated in this area (of approximately 30 km2) are interpreted to belong to a single faunal assemblage forming a dense accumulation of fossils that is probably the best exposed stromatoporoid−rich deposit of the Silurian. The results from this comprehensive study strengthen earlier interpretations of a combination of genetic and environmental control on growth−forms of the stromatoporoids. Growth styles are similar for stromatoporoids in all six biostromes. Differences in biostrome fabric are due to variations in the degree of disturbance by storms. The uniformity of facies and the widespread low−diversity fauna support the view that palaeoenvironmental conditions were similar across the area where these biostromes crop out, and promoted the extraordinary growth of stromatoporoids in this shallow shelf area

Anticipating the Successor to Mexico's Largest Historical Earthquake

Note in proof: On October 9, as this article was being prepared for publication, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake occurred beneath the Jalisco region and caused significant loss of life and property. This earthquake highlights the societal need for accurate measurements of crustal strain rates in earthquake-prone zones. In the coming months, we plan to measure the amount of displacement that occurred within the GPS network during and after this earthquake

Fault‐Slip Distribution of the 1999 M_w 7.1 Hector Mine Earthquake, California, Estimated from Postearthquake Airborne LiDAR Data

The 16 October 1999 Hector Mine earthquake (M_w 7.1) was the first large earthquake for which postearthquake airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data were collected to image the fault surface rupture. In this work, we present measurements of both vertical and horizontal slip along the entire surface rupture of this earthquake based on airborne LiDAR data acquired in April 2000. We examine the details of the along‐fault slip distribution of this earthquake based on 255 horizontal and 85 vertical displacements using a 0.5 m digital elevation model derived from the LiDAR imagery. The slip measurements based on the LiDAR dataset are highest in the epicentral region, and taper in both directions, consistent with earlier findings by other works. The maximum dextral displacement measured from LiDAR imagery is 6.60±1.10  m, located about 700 m south of the highest field measurement (5.25±0.85  m). Our results also illustrate the difficulty in resolving displacements smaller than 1 m using LiDAR imagery alone. We analyze slip variation to see if it is affected by rock type and whether variations are statistically significant. This study demonstrates that a postearthquake airborne LiDAR survey can produce an along‐fault horizontal and vertical offset distribution plot of a quality comparable to a reconnaissance field survey. Although LiDAR data can provide a higher sampling density and enable rapid data analysis for documenting slip distributions, we find that, relative to field methods, it has a limited ability to resolve slip that is distributed over several fault strands across a zone. We recommend a combined approach that merges field observation with LiDAR analysis, so that the best attributes of both quantitative topographic and geological insight are utilized in concert to make best estimates of offsets and their uncertainties

Magnetism and superconductivity driven by identical 4ff states in a heavy-fermion metal

The apparently inimical relationship between magnetism and superconductivity has come under increasing scrutiny in a wide range of material classes, where the free energy landscape conspires to bring them in close proximity to each other. This is particularly the case when these phases microscopically interpenetrate, though the manner in which this can be accomplished remains to be fully comprehended. Here, we present combined measurements of elastic neutron scattering, magnetotransport, and heat capacity on a prototypical heavy fermion system, in which antiferromagnetism and superconductivity are observed. Monitoring the response of these states to the presence of the other, as well as to external thermal and magnetic perturbations, points to the possibility that they emerge from different parts of the Fermi surface. This enables a single 4$f$ state to be both localized and itinerant, thus accounting for the coexistence of magnetism and superconductivity.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Effect of Statistical Fluctuation in Monte Carlo Based Photon Beam Dose Calculation on Gamma Index Evaluation

The gamma-index test has been commonly adopted to quantify the degree of agreement between a reference dose distribution and an evaluation dose distribution. Monte Carlo (MC) simulation has been widely used for the radiotherapy dose calculation for both clinical and research purposes. The goal of this work is to investigate both theoretically and experimentally the impact of the MC statistical fluctuation on the gamma-index test when the fluctuation exists in the reference, the evaluation, or both dose distributions. To the first order approximation, we theoretically demonstrated in a simplified model that the statistical fluctuation tends to overestimate gamma-index values when existing in the reference dose distribution and underestimate gamma-index values when existing in the evaluation dose distribution given the original gamma-index is relatively large for the statistical fluctuation. Our numerical experiments using clinical photon radiation therapy cases have shown that 1) when performing a gamma-index test between an MC reference dose and a non-MC evaluation dose, the average gamma-index is overestimated and the passing rate decreases with the increase of the noise level in the reference dose; 2) when performing a gamma-index test between a non-MC reference dose and an MC evaluation dose, the average gamma-index is underestimated when they are within the clinically relevant range and the passing rate increases with the increase of the noise level in the evaluation dose; 3) when performing a gamma-index test between an MC reference dose and an MC evaluation dose, the passing rate is overestimated due to the noise in the evaluation dose and underestimated due to the noise in the reference dose. We conclude that the gamma-index test should be used with caution when comparing dose distributions computed with Monte Carlo simulation

Using Adobe Connect to deliver innovative learner support

The University of Sheffield has recently moved to improve its digital offer for students within learning and teaching. Lecture capture was introduced in 2016/17, and this was recently followed by the University of Sheffield Digital Media Hub to host and disseminate video content. Although helpful to all students, the move is particularly beneficial to those not predominantly based in Sheffield: distance and off-campus learners, international partners and part-time students. In this environment of change, the University Library’s Faculty Engagement Team (FET) decided to develop our digital offer and increase the number of students able to access library support. This article outlines the ‘Digital Delivery Project’, established by FET to explore, test and implement strategies for expanding the Library’s learner support online