School Effects on the Wellbeing of Children and Adolescents

Well-being is a multidimensional construct, with psychological, physical and social components. As theoretical basis to help understand this concept and how it relates to school, we propose the Self-Determination Theory, which contends that self-determined motivation and personality integration, growth and well-being are dependent on a healthy balance of three innate psychological needs of autonomy, relatedness and competence. Thus, current indicators involve school effects on children’s well-being, in many diverse modalities which have been explored. Some are described in this chapter, mainly: the importance of peer relationships; the benefits of friendship; the effects of schools in conjunction with some forms of family influence; the school climate in terms of safety and physical ecology; the relevance of the teacher input; the school goal structure and the implementation of cooperative learning. All these parameters have an influence in promoting optimal functioning among children and increasing their well-being by meeting the above mentioned needs. The empirical support for the importance of schools indicates significant small effects, which often translate into important real-life effects as it is admitted at present. The conclusion is that schools do make a difference in children’s peer relationships and well-being

The association between comorbidities and pain, physical function and quality of life following hip and knee arthroplasty

The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between comorbidities and pain, physical function and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after total hip arthroplasty (THA) and total knee arthroplasty (TKA). A cross-sectional retrospective survey was conducted including 19 specific comorbidities, administered in patients who underwent THA or TKA in the previous 7–22 months in one of 4 hospitals. Outcome measures included pain, physical functioning, and HRQoL. Of the 521 patients (281 THA and 240 TKA) included, 449 (86 %) had ≥1 comorbidities. The most frequently reported comorbidities (>15 %) were severe back pain; neck/shoulder pain; elbow, wrist or hand pain; hypertension; incontinence of urine; hearing impairment; vision impairment; and cancer. Only the prevalence of cancer was significantly different between THA (n = 38; 14 %) and TKA (n = 52; 22 %) (p = 0.01). The associations between a higher number of comorbidities and worse outcomes were stronger in THA than in TKA. In multivariate analyses including all comorbidities with a prevalence of >5 %, in THA dizziness in combination with falling and severe back pain, and in TKA dizziness in combination with falling, vision impairments, and elbow, wrist or hand pain was associated with worse outcomes in most of the analyses. A broad range of specific comorbidities needs to be taken into account with the interpretation of patients’ health status after THA and TKA. More research including the ascertainment of comorbidities preoperatively is needed, but it is conceivable that in particular, the presence of dizziness with falling, pain in other joints, and vision impairments should be assessed and treated in order to decrease the chance of an unfavorable outcome

Search for gravitational waves associated with gamma-ray bursts detected by Fermi and Swift during the LIGO–Virgo run O3b

We search for gravitational-wave signals associated with gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) detected by the Fermi and Swift satellites during the second half of the third observing run of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo (2019 November 1 15:00 UTC–2020 March 27 17:00 UTC). We conduct two independent searches: a generic gravitational-wave transients search to analyze 86 GRBs and an analysis to target binary mergers with at least one neutron star as short GRB progenitors for 17 events. We find no significant evidence for gravitational-wave signals associated with any of these GRBs. A weighted binomial test of the combined results finds no evidence for subthreshold gravitational-wave signals associated with this GRB ensemble either. We use several source types and signal morphologies during the searches, resulting in lower bounds on the estimated distance to each GRB. Finally, we constrain the population of low-luminosity short GRBs using results from the first to the third observing runs of Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo. The resulting population is in accordance with the local binary neutron star merger rate

Crystal structure of Bi1-xTbxFeO3 from high-resolution neutron diffraction

Samples of Bi1−xTbxFeO3, with x=0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20 and 0.25, have been synthesised by solid state reaction. The crystal structures of the perovskite phases, characterised via Rietveld analysis of high resolution powder neutron diffraction data, reveal a structural transition from the R3c symmetry of the parent phase BiFeO3 to orthorhombic Pnma symmetry, which is complete for x=0.20. The x=0.10 and 0.15 samples are bi-phasic. The transition from a rhombohedral to orthorhombic unit cell is suggested to be driven by the dilution of the stereochemistry of the Bi3+ lone pair at the A-site. The G-type antiferromagnetic spin structure, the size of the ordered magnetic moment (∼3.8 μB) and the TN (∼375 \ub0C) are relatively insensitive to increasing Tb concentrations at the A-site

Crystal structure of Bi0.9Sm0.1Fe1-xMnxO3 multiferroics

Bi(0.9)Sm(0.1)Fe(1-x)Mn(x)O(3), with x=0.00, 0.15, 0.30 have been synthesised by solid-state reaction. The structures of the materials, characterised via Rietveld analysis of high resolution powder neutron diffraction data, reveal a structural transition from R3c to orthorhombic Imma symmetry is complete for the x=0.30 sample. The antiferromagnetic ordering temperature, magnitude of the ordered magnetic moment at the B-site, and the dielectric constant all decrease as a function of increasing Mn content

Phase stability study of Bi(0.15)Sr(0.85-x)Ae(x)CoO(3-delta) (x=0 and Ae = Ba-0.28; Ca-0.17) perovskites by in-situ neutron diffraction

The oxygen deficient perovskites, Bi0.15Sr0.85-xAexCoO3-δ, x = 0 and Aex = Ba0.28, Ca0.17, were studied with in-situ neutron powder diffraction and combined TGA/DSC in order to investigate their behaviour at elevated temperatures in oxidising conditions. The phase stability of the I4/mmm supercell structure adopted by Bi0.15Sr0.85CoO3-δ is shown to be dependent on temperature and the oxygen content of the phase, with three structural events, at T 250, 590 and 880 °C, detected. The first transition occurs as the perovskite supercell vanishes due to oxygen absorption; the second transition is also associated with oxidation and involves the decomposition of the perovskite phase via an exothermic process to yield a dominant hexagonal phase. Finally, at T 900 °C the perovskite phase re-forms. For the Ba and Ca containing materials the decomposition to the hexagonal phase occurs at T 600 °C and 650 °C respectively. The presence of Ca at the A-site is found to stabilise the I4/mmm supercell structure in the range RT - 650 °C. The antiferromagnetic to paramagnetic transitions occur at TN 250 °C, TN 175 °C and TN 145 °C for the samples with Aex = Ba0.28, x = 0 and Aex = Ca0.17, respectively

Structural transitions and conductivity of BaPrO3 and BaPr_0.9Y_0.1O_3-&#948

The temperature dependence of the crystal structures of the perovskites BaPrO3 and BaPr0.9Y0.1O3-d has been determined between room temperature and 900 \ub0C using time-of-flight neutron powder diffraction data. The orthorhombic room temperature structures evolve to a primitive cubic cell via three changes of symmetry Pnma -> Imma -> R-3c -> Pm-3m which occur at T~240, ~375, and ~860 \ub0C for BaPrO3. The stability fields of the Pnma and Pm-3m structures are lowered markedly by the presence of yttrium on the B-site. The first and last structural transitions are assigned as continuous events, and analysis of the octahedral tilt angle order parameter suggests the latter is tricritical in nature. The Imma -> R-3c transition is expected to be discontinuous first order and hysteresis effects in dilatometry data support this assignment although no discontinuity is found in the refined structural parameters. Conductivity data collected under dry, oxidising conditions reveal significantly higher conductivity levels in 10% acceptor (Y or Gd) substituted samples compared to undoped BaPrO3. For the acceptor substituted samples electron holes are the dominant charge carriers and the conductivity is weakly influenced by the changing crystal structure. In the undoped BaPrO3, a crossover, probably between extrinsic (impurity-derived) and intrinsic electronic conductivity, coincides with the high temperature rhombohedral to cubic transition