Fantasy: Inner journeys for today’s child

Susan Lehr divides the fantasy genre into five categories—high fantasy, time-slip fantasy, animal fantasy, realistic fantasy, and picture-book fantasy—and reviews trends and issues in each. She provides numerous examples of classic and contemporary works in each category.     

Giving and Taking across Borders: The Rockefeller Foundation and Russia, 1919–1928

Until recently, the links between Rockefeller philanthropies and Russianscience and medicine during the 1920s have been virtually ignored, both inofficial Foundation histories and in Soviet accounts of foreign scientificrelations. Materials from the newly-opened Russian archives and the Rockefeller Archive Center reveal dense and tangled connections between multiple Rockefeller givers and multiple Russian takers. Examining the `Russian matter' from the perspective of both `givers' and `takers', this article highlights the impact of domestic and international politics on giving and taking across borders, and reveals the range of meanings of`internationalism' in philanthropy.     

Exercise in the heat: challenges and opportunities

Exercise in the heat poses a formidable challenge to the body's ability to control its internal environment due to the high rates of metabolic heat production and heat gain by physical transfer from the environment. In an attempt to restrict the rise in core temperature, an increased rate of sweat secretion onto the skin is invoked. This may limit the rise in core temperature, and can prolong the time before a limiting temperature is attained, but it does so at the cost of a loss of body water and electrolytes. The effects of the diminished blood volume are offset to some extent by cardiovascular adaptations, including an increased heart rate and an increased peripheral resistance, but these are insufficient to maintain functional capacity when blood volume is reduced. Prior dehydration will impair performance in both prolonged exercise and short-term high-intensity exercise. Athletes living and training in the heat may experience chronic hypohydration due to inadequate replacement of fluid losses. The negative consequences of exercise in the heat are attenuated to some extent by a period of adaptation, and by the ingestion of water or other appropriate fluids. Optimum fluid replacement strategies will depend on the exercise task, the environmental conditions and the individual physiological characteristics of the athlete. Manipulation of pre-exercise body temperature can also influence exercise performance and may be a strategy that can be used by athletes competing in stressful environments.     

Book reviews

Declaring Independence: A Guide to Creating Community-controlled Science Journals Policy Approaches to Copyright in HEIs: A Study of the JISC Committee for Awareness, Liaison and Training by Ralph Weedon University of Strathclyde (available from The Centre for Educational Systems, University of Strathclyde, Alexander Turnbull Building, 155 George Street, Glasgow G1 1RD). ISBN 0-9538312-0-5 Internet Publishing and Beyond: The Economics of Digital Information and Intellectual Property edited by Brian Kahin and Hal R. Varian MIT Press, 2000. Pp. 229. Paperback £16.95. ISBN 0-262-61159-7 How to Present at Meetings edited by George Hall. London: BMJ Books, 2001. Pp. ix + 79. £12.95. ISBN 0-7279-1271-2 Dictionary of Printing and Publishing by Michael Barnard and John Peacock Pira International, UK, 2000. Pp. 216. Softcover, £80.00. ISBN 1-85802-3815     

Promoting the Acquisition and Development of Self-Determination in Young Children with Disabilities

Self-determination is an outcome typically associated with adolescence and adulthood, yet unless there is a solid foundation established during the early elementary years, children will not be prepared to assume greater control over their lives when the time comes to do so. This article provides an introduction to and overview of self-determination and its development, and provides recommendations for instruction during the preschool and early elementary years. We also describe a model of instruction designed to promote self-determination for students from Kindergarten through third grade, and provide suggestions for supporting families to promote this outcome.     

Developing Peer Groups for the Oregon University System: From Politics to Analysis (and Back)

In the fall of 1997, institutional research staff in the central office of the Oregon University System were asked to build a set of peer comparators for the state's seven diverse public universities. The peer groups were to serve the analytic needs of budgeting, performance measurement, and trend analysis. Because of several critical political issues requiring interinstitutional unity, the peer groups had to be developed and implemented with the participation and support of the seven university presidents. In addition, the peer groups had to be understood and accepted by board members, legislators, and the governor's office. Through a process that combined detailed statistical information with a sensitivity to the political dynamics and judgments of campus presidents and staff, the system office developed a set of peer groups that found acceptance in both the political and analytical environments. Ten conditions that contribute to the creation of peer groups on a systemwide basis are identified and offered as guidance to other university systems.