Ethnicity as a moderator of the theory of planned behavior and physical activity in college students

Most college students do not meet physical activity (PA) guidelines, and ethnic disparities exist. The present study examined the utility of the theory of planned behavior (TPB) in explaining PA intentions and behavior in black and white college students and whether any TPB relationships were moderated by ethnicity. Black (n=170) and white (n=180) students completed a baseline TPB questionnaire and PA assessment 2 weeks later Hierarchical latent variable regression analyses showed that affective attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) were significant predictors of intention for both ethnic groups, whereas the PBC-intention relationship was significantly stronger for white students. Intention significantly predicted PA for both ethnic groups. Furthermore, common and ethnic-specific beliefs were identified.     

Most ankle sprain research is either false or clinically unimportant: A 30-year audit of randomized controlled trials

BackgroundLateral ankle sprain is the most common musculoskeletal injury. Although clinical research in this field is growing, there is a broader concern that clinical trial outcomes are often false and fail to translate into patient benefits.MethodsWe audited 30 years of experimental research related to lateral ankle sprain management (n = 74 randomized controlled trials) to determine if reports of treatment effectiveness could be validated beyond statistical certainty.ResultsA total of 77% of trials reported positive treatment effects, but there was a high risk of false discovery. Most trials were unregistered and relied solely on statistical significance, or lack of statistical significance, rather than on interpreting key measures of minimum clinical importance (e.g., minimal detectable change, minimal clinically important difference).ConclusionFuture clinical trials must adopt higher standards of reporting and data interpretation. This includes consideration of the ethical responsibility to preregister their research and interpretation of clinical outcomes beyond statistical significance.     

The onset of deep recycling of supracrustal materials at the Paleo-Mesoarchean boundary

The recycling of supracrustal materials, and in particular hydrated rocks, has a profound impact on mantle composition and thus on the formation of continental crust, because water modifies the physical properties of lithological systems and the mechanisms of partial melting and fractional fractionation. On the modern Earth, plate tectonics offers an efficient mechanism for mass transport from the Earth''s surface to its interior, but how far this mechanism dates back in the Earth''s history is still uncertain. Here, we use zircon oxygen (O) isotopes to track recycling of supracrustal materials into the magma sources of early Archean igneous suites from the Kaapvaal Craton, southern Africa. The mean δ¹⁸O values of zircon from TTG (tonalite–trondhjemite–granodiorite) rocks abruptly increase at the Paleo-Mesoarchean boundary (ca. 3230 million years ago; Ma), from mantle zircon values of 5‰–6‰ to approaching 7.1‰, and this increase occurs in ≤3230 Ma rocks with elevated Dy/Yb ratios. The ¹⁸O enrichment is a unique signature of low-temperature water–rock interaction on the Earth''s surface. Because the later phase was emplaced into the same crustal level as the older one and TTG magmas would derive from melting processes in the garnet stability field (>40 km depth), we suggest that this evident shift in TTG zircon O isotopic compositions records the onset of recycling of the mafic oceanic crust that underwent seawater hydrothermal alteration at low temperature. The onset of the enhanced recycling of supracrustal materials may also have developed elsewhere in other Archean cratons and reflects a significant change in the tectonic realm during craton formation and stabilization, which may be important processes for the operation of plate tectonics on early Earth.     

Examining social identity and intrateam moral behaviours in competitive youth ice hockey using stimulated recall

Social identity – identity formed through membership in groups – may play an important role in regulating intrateam moral behaviour in youth sport (Bruner, M. W., Boardley, I., & Côté, J. (2014). Social identity and prosocial and antisocial behavior in youth sport. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 15(1), 56–64. doi:10.1016/j.psychsport.2013.09.003). The aim of this study was to qualitatively examine this potential role through stimulated recall interviews with competitive youth-ice-hockey players. Twenty-three players (M_age = 13.27 years, SD = 1.79) who reported engaging in high, median or low frequency of antisocial teammate behaviour (determined through pre-screening with the Prosocial and Antisocial Behaviour in Sport Scale [Kavussanu, M., & Boardley, I. D. (2009). The prosocial and antisocial behavior in sport scale. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 31(1), 97–117. doi:10.1123/jsep.31.1.97]) were recruited from eight youth-ice-hockey teams in Canada. Interviews involved participants recalling their thoughts during prosocial/antisocial interactions with teammates, prompted by previously recorded video sequences of such incidents. Thematic analysis of interview data revealed all athletes – regardless of reported frequency of intrateam antisocial behaviour – felt prosocial interactions with teammates enhanced social identity. In contrast, the perceived influence of antisocial teammate behaviour on social identity differed depending on athletes’ reported frequency of intrateam antisocial behaviour; those reporting low and median frequencies described how such behaviour undermines social identity, whereas athletes reporting high frequency did not perceive this effect. The study findings highlight the potential importance of intrateam moral behaviour and social identity for youth-sport team functioning.     

Real-time processing of social media with SENTINEL: A syndromic surveillance system incorporating deep learning for health classification

Interest in real-time syndromic surveillance based on social media data has greatly increased in recent years. The ability to detect disease outbreaks earlier than traditional methods would be highly useful for public health officials. This paper describes a software system which is built upon recent developments in machine learning and data processing to achieve this goal. The system is built from reusable modules integrated into data processing pipelines that are easily deployable and configurable. It applies deep learning to the problem of classifying health-related tweets and is able to do so with high accuracy. It has the capability to detect illness outbreaks from Twitter data and then to build up and display information about these outbreaks, including relevant news articles, to provide situational awareness. It also provides nowcasting functionality of current disease levels from previous clinical data combined with Twitter data.The preliminary results are promising, with the system being able to detect outbreaks of influenza-like illness symptoms which could then be confirmed by existing official sources. The Nowcasting module shows that using social media data can improve prediction for multiple diseases over simply using traditional data sources.     

Introducing Information and Communication Technologies into Schools: The blurring of boundaries

This article considers the impact of Superhighways technology on schools in the UK, in terms of the debate concerning the development of the conditions of postmodernity. In particular, it charts how the collapse of boundaries associated with postmodernism may have affected traditional divisions within schooling, following the introduction of broadband connectivity and Internet capability to schools and colleges. The authors review the broad approaches taken to the introduction of new technologies, such as the Utopian and Dystopian, transformative and incrementalist. By drawing upon the findings of the Education Departments' Superhighways Initiative, the authors explore the effects of new information and communication technologies on a number of traditional boundaries, including those between curriculum subjects, between pupils and teachers, and, more generally, traditional conceptions of space and time. The article concludes that, although initial indications suggest that the impact of Superhighways capability may be a transformative one, the effect on boundaries is mixed. While some boundaries such as those of space and time seem to be dissolving, others such as the division between academic subjects are much more resistant.     

A Brief History of Timing: the impact of the National Literacy Strategy on the marketing and publishing of resources to support literacy teaching

Since the announcement of the National Literacy Project in April 1996, publishers of children’s books and teaching materials have been keen to provide appropriate materials for use in the literacy hour. With the new government in 1997 came generous funding for books and publishers were quick to respond in terms of marketing and new publications. Lack of time and training to assimilate the new approaches caused many teachers to rely on materials to show them how to teach. While this reliance on materials underlines the ongoing need for teachers to be updated about resources, time to become more knowledgeable and confident about practice remains paramount.     

Digital badging systems as a set of cultural tools for personalized professional development

Educational technology research and development - Through design-based research, this study examines a digital badging system to support online, independent teacher Professional development (PD) in...     

Effects of aerobic and cognitively-engaging physical activity on academic skills: A cluster randomized controlled trial

ABSTRACT

This cluster randomized controlled trial (trial-number #) compares effects of two school-based physical activity interventions (aerobic vs. cognitively-engaging) on reading, mathematics, and spelling achievement; and whether effects are influenced by volume of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and baseline achievement. Twenty-two primary schools participated, where a third and fourth grade class were randomly assigned to the intervention or control group. Intervention groups were randomly assigned to a 14-week aerobic or cognitively-engaging intervention, receiving four physical education lessons a week. Control groups followed their regular physical education program. Academic achievement of 891 children (mean age 9.17 years, 49.4% boys) was assessed with standardized tests before and after the interventions. Post-Test academic achievement did not significantly differ between intervention groups and control group. A higher volume of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity resulted in better post-test mathematics achievement in both intervention groups, and post-test spelling achievement in the cognitively engaging intervention group. Compared to the control group, lower achievers in reading performed better in reading after the cognitively-engaging intervention. A combination of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and cognitively-engaging exercises seems to have the most beneficial effects. Future intervention studies should take into account quantitative and qualitative aspects of physical activity, and children’s baseline academic achievement.