The evolution of philanthropy: takeaways for community groups

As philanthropy evolves, nonprofits are responding to trends that include donors’ increased emphasis on results, a movement to pool small contributions for targeted impact, and a preference for contributing professional skills instead of baked goods.Nonprofit organizations

Long-term potentiation of transmission at neocortical synapses in slices of rat sensorimotor cortex and the involvement of NMDA receptors

1. Long-term potentiation (LTP) is an enduring activity-dependent increase in synaptic efficacy which has been considered as a neural substrate for learning and memory. 2. LTP was induced in 22% of postsynaptic potentials (p.s.p.s) and 87% of field potentials evoked by stimulation of the subcortical white matter and recorded in layers III, V & VI of slices of adult rat sensorimotor cortex. Conditioning paradigms used were either high frequency stimulation of an afferent pathway or the repetitive pairing of an afferent volley with a postsynaptic injection of depolarizing current. Intracellularly recorded LTP was found to be input specific, homosynaptic and associative. 3. D-2-amino-5-phosphonopentanoic acid (AP5) was used to assess the involvement of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors in neurotransmission and in the induction and expression of LTP in the neocortex. The majority of p.s.p.s (89%) and field potentials (80%) were mediated in part by NMDA receptors. A non-NMDA receptor mediated component always preceded a NMDA receptor mediated one. 4. AP5 blocked the induction of LTP in field potentials recorded in 5 out of 7 slices; following washout of AP5, a second, identical set of conditioning stimuli induced LTP. 5. AP5 applied 15-20 minutes after the induction of LTP, reduced the magnitude of potentiated field potentials in 13 out of 13 slices and 4 out of 4 potentiated p.s.p.s. A potentiated non-NMDA receptor mediated component preceded a potentiated NMDA receptor mediated one. 6. In most cases, the onset latency of the potentiated component of p.s.p.s was delayed by ~2ms after the onset of synaptic activity. This delay was not voltage-dependent. LTP appeared to be a property of intrinsic neocortical connections but not of the fastest conducting afferents, possibly arising from outside the neocortex

The Role of TAFE as an Equity Pathway to Social Inclusion, Employment, and to University : a submission from The Deakin University Social Work/Gordon TAFE Community Services Work, Geelong Based Project Team

Executive Summary The Deakin University Social Work/Gordon TAFE Community Services Work Geelong Based Project Team (the Project Team) was assisted by Higher Education Partnership and Participation funding made available through Deakin University Participation and Partnerships Program (DUPPP) to carry out research and project work in 2012/13. In the following submission to the House of Representatives Inquiry into the role of Technical and Further Education (TAFE) system and its operation, this Project Team seeks to establish a case for:1. Funding to enable TAFE to continue as:a) an equity pathway to social inclusion, employment, and to university, particularly in regional areas. b) an integral complement to the University education sector to deliver on the ambitious objectives of the Federal Government&rsquo;s widening participation agenda, as a mechanism to deliver the skills, knowledge and workforce needed now, and in the future, in the Australian economy. 2. Increased resources for separate and joint sector developmenta) Publicly funded TAFEs need funding to be restored and increased to enable them to maintain the high quality education they provide and to maintain their successful work in supporting communities, regions and disadvantaged individuals to gain skills, training and employment.b) Universities need increased funding to increase staffing levels and therefore free up teaching staff to spend the necessary time to develop relationships with and provide support to students. This is important for the achieving the goals of the widening participation agenda of increasing access without increasing attrition at the same time.c) TAFEs and Universities need funding to do the work required to further develop and formalise diploma-degree pathways so that disadvantaged individuals can exit into employment at the diploma level or be supported in an efficient and seamless way to undertake further study.3. Active use of localised and nuanced partnership approaches by education institutions. This includes: &bull; Cross teaching by TAFEs and Universities in courses that can be articulated, such as professional practice diplomas and degrees&bull; Programs negotiated and designed according to the needs of students in each location. TAFEs and Universities need resources in order to do this work&bull; Focus on regional centres where there is a particular opportunity for government to make an impact on TAFE pathways to employment and/or further education &bull; Workforce development in regional areas due to new industries is a particular area of need4. Recognise and capitalise on the complementary and symbiotic nature of each sector&rsquo;s skills, strengths and capacities. The submission responds to the second, third and fifth points of the Terms of Reference of the Inquiry and is based on the research work carried out by the Project Team in 2012/13.We provide evidence of Gordon TAFE in Geelong working as an equity mechanism in the particular case of the welfare/ community services diploma to social work degree pathway. The project team considers that there is a strong case for additional resourcing of TAFE to enable it to continue what it does well. TAFE is the key training and education sectorthe &lsquo;education and social hub&rsquo;that can successfully attract, retain, and graduate people who may not otherwise access education due to one or more combinations of:1. having a low SES current or past background;2. living in regional areas; 3. receiving interrupted primary and secondary education; 4. having disabilities; 5. being sole parents; 6. being from refugee backgrounds; 7. having English as an additional language/culture; 8. retrenchment from employment in dying industries; 9. short, medium and long term unemployment; 10. past and/or current caring roles; 11. marriage/relationship breakdowns; 12. domestic violence; 13. gender, class, age, race/ethnicity and dis/ability discriminations; and 14. socialised expectations and fears.The recommendations in this submission are based on research findings about important similarities and differences between Gordon TAFE welfare and Deakin University social work students in Geelong, and their respective institutional organisations and contexts. The two institutions employ a repertoire of diverse administrative, teaching, learning and support approaches to meet different mission goals, requirements and needs. <br /

The weight of waiting: the impact of delayed early intervention on parental self‐efficacy

Early intervention is a systematic approach for identifying and co-ordinating support for children up to five years of age with developmental delay. The increasing number of children needing early intervention is leading to longer waiting lists for assessment, treatment and diagnosis. Through a mixed-methods approach, this study examined the impact of waiting lists on parental self-efficacy (PSE). An online survey was completed by 197 mothers of children with special educational needs aged one to seven years. Six mothers later took part semi-structured interviews. The research aimed to establish (a) whether there was a relationship between length of time on waiting lists and PSE, and (b) whether there were specific themes or patterns associated with delayed early intervention and PSE. Results showed no significant relationship between time spent on a waiting list and perceived PSE. The qualitative results, however, found that limited contact and poor quality of interactions alongside a lack of information did reduce perceived PSE

The Impact of Blatant Stereotype Activation and Group Sex-Composition on Female Leaders

The individual and combined impact of blatant stereotype activation and solo status or mixed-sex groups on the self-appraisals, performance, and anxiety of female leaders was examined across three laboratory studies. The first study utilized a two-condition, two-stage design in which female leaders were exposed to a blatant stereotype threat or control condition after which they completed a leadership task. In the second stage, the threatened leaders received a solo status manipulation (leading a group of men) while the control condition did not. In the second study a 2 (blatant threat, no blatant threat) by 2 (solo status, all-female group) fully factorial design was used to test the hypotheses. Finally, in Study 3, a similar factorial design was used with a mixed-sex, rather than solo, condition. Across the studies it was hypothesized and found that receiving a single stereotype threat would result in a positive, stereotype reactance, response. However, when both threats were combined a stereotype vulnerability response was elicited, as expected. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed

Trial participants’ self-reported understanding of randomisation phrases in participation information leaflets can be high, but acceptability of some descriptions is low, especially those linked to gambling and luck

Acknowledgements We would like to thank the clinical research facilities and clinical trial units who provided us with the PILs to complete this workPeer reviewe

CORROSION OF LEAD SHIELDING IN NUCLEAR MATERIALS PACKAGES

Inspection of United States-Department of Energy (US-DOE) model 9975 nuclear materials shipping package revealed corrosion of the lead shielding that was induced by off-gas constituents from organic components in the package. Experiments were performed to determine the corrosion rate of lead when exposed to off-gas or degradation products of these organic materials. The results showed that the room temperature vulcanizing (RTV) sealant was the most corrosive organic species used in the construction of the packaging, followed by polyvinyl acetate (PVAc) glue. Fiberboard material, also used in the construction of the packaging induced corrosion to a much lesser extent than the PVAc glue and RTV sealant, and only in the presence of condensed water. The results indicated faster corrosion at temperatures higher than ambient and with condensed water. In light of these corrosion mechanisms, the lead shielding was sheathed in a stainless steel liner to mitigate against corrosion