The physiology of deep-water running

Deep-water running is performed in the deep end of a swimming pool, normally with the aid of a flotation vest. The method is used for purposes of preventing injury and promoting recovery from strenuous exercise and as a form of supplementary training for cardiovascular fitness. Both stroke volume and cardiac output increase during water immersion: an increase in blood volume largely offsets the cardiac decelerating reflex at rest. At submaximal exercise intensities, blood lactate responses to exercise during deep-water running are elevated in comparison to treadmill running at a given oxygen uptake (VO2). While VO2, minute ventilation and heart rate are decreased under maximal exercise conditions in the water, deep-water running nevertheless can be justified as providing an adequate stimulus for cardiovascular training. Responses to training programmes have confirmed the efficacy of deep-water running, although positive responses are most evident when measured in a water-based test. Aerobic performance is maintained with deep-water running for up to 6 weeks in trained endurance athletes; sedentary individuals benefit more than athletes in improving maximal oxygen uptake. There is some limited evidence of improvement in anaerobic measures and in upper body strength in individuals engaging in deep-water running. A reduction in spinal loading constitutes a role for deep-water running in the prevention of injury, while an alleviation of muscle soreness confirms its value in recovery training. Further research into the applications of deep-water running to exercise therapy and athletes' training is recommended.     

加拿大华人儿童的母语传承

本文旨在调查与记录生活在加拿大的华人移民家庭对于使用中文的态度、影响华人子女中文能力的因素以及华人父母为此所采用的方法.这项研究在加拿大一座华人移民总数约为300人的城区完成.研究显示,在华人移民稀少的地区,中国语言与文化的教育主要是在家庭内部或小规模华人团体的努力下得以维持.在这种情况下,华人父母对于母语传承的认识与观念显得至为重要.     

Creative curriculum: Teaching self-awareness in a day care system

Conclusion It has been several years since I began our center, and as my understanding about self-awareness has become more sophisticated, I have enlarged on the development of the Concept Center ideas. I am now designing a general day care curriculum based on these ideas, because I think it is vital to approach all aspects of the child's development, that is, motor skills, readiness skills, cognitive / intellectual / perceptual skills, readiness skills, language skills, social and emotional skills, from the core of growth which is self-awareness.As teachers we are guides to the adventurous journey of life. Difficult, draining as it is, I think it is a real privilege to act as such guides to the bright and innocent young humans we work with in day care, who are so vigorously acquiring the fluency they need to participate in this life. With a little recognition, support and belief, we have the opportunity to provide the foundation for the development of extraordinary human beings. In doing this we contribute to a more healthful human community. Seen in this area day care is a moveable feast of rich energy and growth. All small contributions to this end mean a future sparkling with promise for our young children of today. I believe it is through tools like the Concept Center that we can begin to make them such a promise.     

Beginning readers' use of ‘talking books’ software can affect their reading strategies

This paper reports on a small‐scale study that considered whether a phonic‐based ‘talking book’ could outperform one‐to‐one reading tuition with an adult with respect to improving beginning readers' phonological awareness over a short period. It also examined whether the children's reading strategies were affected by their use of the software. Two groups of children, one aged five years and one aged six years, used three phonic‐based talking books over six 15‐minute sessions and were assessed on their phonological awareness and reading strategies both before and after this intervention. Their performance was compared to that of matched comparison groups who were given one‐to‐one adult tutoring with the paper versions of the same books. There were no significant differences between the two groups in their phonological awareness attainment, with both groups showing equivalent gains from pre‐ to post‐test. Use of specific features of the software was associated with gains in rhyme detection ability and with changes in the children's reading strategies.     

TRANSFRONTIER REGIONAL UNIVERSITY COOPERATION (TRUC)

Academic mobility is up and running in the European Community. Beyond its borders, there are sign3 that non‐EC countries also do not want to be left out of what seems to be an important development. Hand on the heels of the Joint Study Programmes (1976‐1986), ERASMUS and COMETT have been launched albeit with limited budgets. Will their resources be sufficient to meet growing demand? What are the prospects for non‐Community countries that want to participate?.

This article assumes that the momentum for mobility will be greater than the resources available or predicted to meet it and that complementary strategies will have to be sought for and found if a great wave of enthusiasm for cooperation across borders is not to be frustrated. It describes the Council of Europe's recent initiatives in promoting transfrontier regional university cooperation, in various forms, and sees in them possible models for developing exchanges between regions on a modest flexible ad‐hoc basis.     

Decolonising the reading of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander writing: reflection as transformative practice

ABSTRACT

First Nations writing within English literary studies risks contemporary colonisation if encountered as a literary object for close reading without context or reflection on the role of the reader. This article will explore the processes involved in constructing an innovative reading practice amongst tertiary students to counter the potential for intentional or unintentional colonial readings. Dr Sandra Phillips, First Nations academic and researcher, initiated and applied the reading practice (which overtly incorporates student/reader standpoint and then reflection on the impact of that standpoint among other considerations) from her PhD scholarship then applied it to her curriculum design of ‘Reading Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Writing’, which forms the basis of this research. Dr Clare Archer-Lean continued the coordination and teaching of the curriculum at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Queensland after Sandra moved tertiary institutions. The two academics continue to collaborate on the curriculum review and reflect on the processes of teaching and crafting this form of reading practice and assessment. Their aim has been to create a reading practice that accounts for the position and influence of the reader in the cross-cultural, or co-cultural, reading process. This is primarily achieved by acknowledging the role and influence of standpoint in the reading process as well as deepening reading through an understanding of the cultural, social and political discourses affecting the production, distribution and reception of First Nations writing in the Australian context.     

The fluid and electrolyte balance of New Zealand European and Māori/Pacific Island athletes: An observational study

Observational research on professional athletes from the USA suggests differences may exist in sweat sodium loss based on ethnic differences. The New Zealand (NZ) sporting population is mainly of European or Māori/Pacific Island origin. Therefore, this study aimed to describe the fluid-electrolyte balance of athletes by ethnicity. A total of 20 Māori/Pacific Islanders (MP; body mass 100.97 ± 13.05 kg) and 29 NZ European (NZE; body mass 89.11 ± 11.56 kg) elite male athletes were recruited. Sweat rates were determined by body mass change during a 1-h spin cycle exercise session, during which fluid intakes and heart rate were recorded. Sweat samples were analysed for sodium concentration. Mean ± SD sweat sodium concentrations were 73.4 ± 27.2 mmol·L^?1 and 55.5 ± 26.8 mmol·L^?1 for the MP and NZE groups, respectively (p = 0.070). Sweat rate was 0.93 ± 0.26 L·h^?1 for the MP group and 0.89 ± 0.33 L·h^?1 for the NZE group (p = 0.357). Fluid intake was 1.05 ± 0.48 L and 0.93 ± 0.49 L for MP and NZE, respectively (p = 0.395). Half of the MP group gained weight during the exercise session compared to 37% of the NZE group. Pre-exercise urine specific gravity was significantly lower amongst the NZE group (1.016 ± 0.009 g mL^?1) than the MP group (1.024 ± 0.008 g mL^?1) p = 0.001. There was no significant difference in heart rate between the groups, p = 0.082. Hydration practices of athletes in NZ may differ by ethnicity, and this may highlight the need for more targeted education by ethnicity.     

The effect of β-alanine supplementation on cycling time trials of different length

The varying results reported in response to β-alanine supplementation may be related to the duration and nature of the exercise protocol employed. We investigated the effects of β-alanine supplementation on a wide range of cycling performance tests in order to produce a clear concise set of criteria for its efficacy. Fourteen trained cyclists (Age?=?24.8?±?6.7?years; VO_2max?=?65.4?±?10.2 mL·kg·min^?1) participated in this placebo-controlled, double-blind study. Prior to supplementation, subjects completed two (familiarization and baseline) supramaximal cycling bouts until exhaustion (120% pre-supplementation VO_2max) and two 1-, 4- and 10-km cycling time trial (TT). Subjects then supplemented orally for 4 weeks with 6.4?g/d placebo or β-alanine and repeated the battery of performance tests. Blood lactate was measured pre-exercise, post-exercise and 5 min post-exercise. β-alanine supplementation elicited significant increases in time to exhaustion (TTE) (17.6?±?11.5 s; p?=?0.013, effect compared with placebo) and was likely to be beneficial to 4-km TT performance time (?7.8?±?8.1 s; 94% likelihood), despite not being statistically different (p?=?0.060). Performance times in the 1- and 10-km TT were not affected by treatment. For the highly trained cyclists in the current study, β-alanine supplementation significantly extended supramaximal cycling TTE and may have provided a worthwhile improvement to 4-km TT performance. However, 1- and 10-km cycling TT performance appears to be unaffected by β-alanine supplementation.