Funny names

In this column, a childbirth educator recalls Sharron Humenick's influence as the former editor of The Journal of Perinatal Education and her belief in the power of humor. The author also takes an amusing look at names parents choose for their children, one of Sharron Humenick's favorite humorous topics.     

Critical factors influencing secondary school pupil’s decisions to study computing in tertiary education: Gender differences

This paper aims to determine the factors affecting the decisions of both male and female secondary school pupils whether or not to pursue undergraduate studies in Computing. It is based on research conducted in Greece, on a sample of 248 pupils, 135 of whom were female. All were aged 17 and about to decide on their future undergraduate studies. Questionnaires were used, addressing issues in the following four main categories: a) the reasons pupils chose/rejected Computing, b) how family and friends, the media and the school environment contribute to their decision, c) how pupils perceived their future after studying Computing and d) how pupils perceived the profile of a computer professional in terms of gender.

Toward a resolution of inconsistencies in the phonological deficit theory of reading disorders: phonological reading difficulties are more severe in high-IQ poor readers

This study examined whether high- and low-IQ poor readers differed in patterns of reading performance. Ten-year-old poor readers with IQ scores of 110 and higher showed difficulty in taking a phonological approach to reading, failing to show an advantage in reading high-frequency regular versus irregular words and showing impaired nonword reading accuracy for their reading age. However, poor readers with IQ scores of 90 and below showed a more phonological approach to reading, with better reading of regular than irregular words of both high and low frequency, and with nonword reading skills slower than, but as accurate as, those of reading-age controls. We concluded that the high-IQ poor readers experienced difficulty in taking a phonological approach to reading, whereas the low-IQ poor readers had much less marked phonological problems, supporting Stanovich's phonological-core variable-difference model.     

Expanding and enacting transformative meanings of equity,diversity and social justice in science education

Cultural Studies of Science Education - In this paper, we provide a conceptual critique of the various constructs often used to justify policies and/or research to promote equity, diversity and...     

IPv6: The next generation Internet Protocol

IPv4, the workhorse protocol of the currently popular TCP/ IP protocol suite, is fast becoming obsolete. The exponential growth of the Internet is the main reason that has required the creation of the next generation of Internet Protocol-IPv6. IPv6 is much more flexible and promises to take care of the address space and security issues in the foreseeable future. Part 1 of the paper lays the foundation of the various issues involved in designing the Internet Protocol and motivates the need for an upgraded version of this protocol.     

Effects of dynamic upper-body exercise on lower-limb isometric endurance

Following preliminary indications that in some individuals arm exercise enhanced rather than reduced simultaneous leg endurance, ten young men and women performed three forms of intermittent work to volitional exhaustion, under duty cycles of 45 s work, 15 s rest. The protocols were as follows: (A) knee extensions at 30% maximum voluntary contraction (MVC); (B) 30% MVC knee extensions combined with arm cranking at 130% of their own lactate threshold; (C) combined 30% MVC knee extensions and arm cranking at 20% of their own lactate threshold. Heart rate, oxygen uptake (VO(2)), and blood lactate concentration were among the variables recorded throughout. All physiological indicators of demand were substantially higher in protocol B than in protocols A or C [heart rate: (A) 154 beats . min(-1), (B) 171 beats . min(-1), (C) 150 beats . min(-1); VO(2): (A) 11.9 ml . kg(-1) . min(-1), (B) 21.7 ml . kg(-1) . min(-1), (C) 14.2 ml . kg(-1) . min(-1); blood lactate concentration: (A) 3.3 mmol . l(-1), (B) 5.1 mmol . l(-1), (C) 2.8 mmol . l(-1)], yet there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in the endurance times between the three conditions [(A) 11.43 min, (B) 11.1 min, (C) 10.57 min] and seven participants endured longest in protocol B. Results from protocol (C) cast doubt on explanations in terms of psychological distraction. We suggest that lactic acid produced by the arms is shuttled to the legs and acts there either as a supplementary fuel source or as an antagonist to the depressing effects of increased potassium concentration.     

Fluid balance and hydration assessment during the weight-stable preparation phase in elite youth boxers

This study investigated (i) the prevalence of hypohydration and (ii) association between urinary indices of hydration status and confounding factors (e.g., urine protein content, water intake) in elite youth boxers during their weight-stable phase before competition. Sixteen national champion boxers (all male, 17 ± 1 y) were measured on 3 occasions (baseline, day 3, day 10), 30-day prior to competition. Body mass, total body water, urine specific gravity (USG), osmolality (UOSM) and total protein content (TPC) were evaluated to determine hydration status and fluid balance. Overall macronutrient and water intake were assessed using dietary records. Both UOSM and USG increased from day 3 to day 10 by 16% and 0.4% (P < 0.001), despite athletes being in their weight-stability period, and regardless of ad libitum fluid intake. Hypohydration was universally prevalent among all athletes on both test days with USG: 1.027 ± 0.003 g · mL^?1 and UOSM: 1035 ± 108 mOsmol · kg^?1. An inverse association between mean UOSM values and mean water intake was observed (R = ?0.52, P = 0.04), while TPC was not associated with any urinary dehydration markers (USG, P = 0.51; UOSM, P = 0.61). The present outcomes find that the most prevalent urinary dehydration markers used to classify hydration status in competition exhibit large variability, even during weight-stable periods.     

The influence of race length on arterial compliance following an ultra-endurance marathon

There is inconclusive evidence concerning the effects of routine participation in ultra-endurance events on cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. Arterial compliance is a reliable, non-invasive, and effective tool for evaluating CVD risk. The purpose of this research was to examine if race length influences acute changes in arterial compliance following an ultra-marathon event. A total of 46 ultra-marathon runners were recruited including 21 participants (39.8?±?8.3?years, 6 females) in the 80-km event and 25 participants (43.7?±?9.8?years, 3 female) in the 195-km event. Arterial compliance was measured via radial applanation tonometry (CR-2000, HDI) for diastolic pulse contour analysis before and following the race. Significant between-group differences were found for changes in large arterial compliance with a decrease (increase in stiffness) following the 195-km event and an increase following the 80-kilometre event (p?<?.05). Longer race lengths are associated with greater reductions in large arterial compliance following recreational ultra-marathon running. Assessment of arterial compliance might be a useful prognostic tool to assess the long-term risk of CVD among ultra-marathon runners.     

Practical Applications as a Source of Credibility: A Comparison of Three Fields of Dutch Academic Chemistry

In many Western science systems, funding structures increasingly stimulate academic research to contribute to practical applications, but at the same time the rise of bibliometric performance assessments have strengthened the pressure on academics to conduct excellent basic research that can be published in scholarly literature. We analyze the interplay between these two developments in a set of three case studies of fields of chemistry in the Netherlands. First, we describe how the conditions under which academic chemists work have changed since 1975. Second, we investigate whether practical applications have become a source of credibility for individual researchers. Indeed, this turns out to be the case in catalysis, where connecting with industrial applications helps in many steps of the credibility cycle. Practical applications yield much less credibility in environmental chemistry, where application-oriented research agendas help to acquire funding, but not to publish prestigious papers or to earn peer recognition. In biochemistry practical applications hardly help in gaining credibility, as this field is still strongly oriented at fundamental questions. The differences between the fields can be explained by the presence or absence of powerful upstream end-users, who can afford to invest in academic research with promising long term benefits.