Use of performance-enhancing drugs and the Internet

The use of physical performance-enhancing drugs is not limited to professional sports only, but has also been reported as common practice in recreational sports. A significant amount of epidemiological studies have highlighted the collective of fitness center visitors to be a high-risk group for using performance-enhancing drugs. From a sociological perspective, however, the decision to use performance-enhancing drugs (e.g., doping in the context of high-performance sport) is not an individual phenomenon only, but rather a result of social opportunity structures. This research article gives insight into enhancing-related Internet forums, in which the expertise of using and applying substances is passed on step by step. Using selected criminological learning theories, the “doping talk” in these social networks is hermeneutically reanalyzed and the Internet is exposed as a previously under-analyzed option for acquiring knowledge on the use of performance-enhancing drugs. This article shows that users of “doping platforms” are highly informed about doping and this offer of information acts like a knock-on effect to athletes who have so far abstained from doping. Consequently, future prevention models against the abuse of performance-enhancing drugs should consider the subcultural background of the milieu in which the athletes act.     

70 Candles! Women thriving in their 8th decade

A sample of 141 predominately working class middle age (X = 53.03 years; SD = 6.92) and young adult (X = 21.34 years; SD = 3.65) university students responded to a survey instrument that assessed motives for enrolling in university classes and reactions to instructional strategies commonly used in the classroom. Results indicated that middle age and younger students’ motives for enrolling in university classes were intrinsic in nature and based on needs for intellectual growth and self‐development. In addition, findings revealed that younger students viewed learning life adjustment skills as a more powerful motivator for pursuing advanced education than did middle age students (p < .01). Both age groups of students were found to have similar attitudes about the effectiveness of teaching techniques presently used in the university classroom. Middle age and younger students reported positive reactions to the use of hands‐on‐experiences, lectures with discussions, and the lecture‐only format and negative reactions to the use of student presentations and role playing. It was concluded that the findings of this study supported the design of age‐integrated university programs and suggested that much of the present curricula satisfies the educational goals and needs of middle age and younger students.     

The Impact of Digital Resource and Service Use on Urban Residents in New England Public Libraries—A Survey Report

Today, access to digital information is essential to patrons using public libraries, whether they have contact with computers at home, work or school or whether the public library is their only contact. In order to evaluate and ultimately enhance public library digital resources and services, it is critical for administrators, librarians and digital information architects to recognize the impact their current digital offerings have on users. This study utilizes a survey to gauge the perceptions of patrons who use digital resources and services in six urban New England public libraries as part of ongoing research into digital information access in public libraries in the United States from the perspective of users.     

Google and Libraries in Russia: First Experience

The paper describes the Russian library system's current landscape and outlines its relationship with electronic technologies and Internet technologies in particular. The author discusses Google projects in Russia, and then analyzes possibilities for more substantial and elaborate Google activities in the Russian and CIS library and information sector. The paper concludes with specific project proposals.     

Deadline 2025: AIATSIS and the audiovisual archive

ABSTRACT

The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS), Australia’s archival repository for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage, is the nation’s peak body for collecting, recording, archiving and returning Indigenous-related knowledge and information. Since 1964 AIATSIS has amassed the world’s largest collection of print, audio and film materials on Australian First Nations peoples. This paper canvasses the Deadline 2025 campaign for audiovisual collections at risk and the complexities of preserving audiovisual archives. It argues that while the Plan’s institutional focus is essential, equally essential is institutional leadership in establishing integration with community-held archives, supported by appropriately resourced and skilled community-based partnerships.     

Examining Instructional Design Principles Applied by Experienced Designers in Practice

There has been ongoing debate regarding the efficacy of teaching instructional design models to novice designers given that experienced instructional designers often use principles and adapted models when they engage in the instructional design problem‐solving process. This study utilized the Delphi technique to identify a core set of guiding principles used by designers in their practice. The purpose of this study was (1) to examine and describe the principles that guided instructional designers’ practice and (2) to identify the extent to which participants’ frames of reference included components of the ADDIE instructional design model. Sixty‐one principles were ultimately identified (reached consensus among the Delphi panel members). Thirty‐two of the principles aligned with the primary components of the design process (e.g., analysis, design, development, and evaluation). Additional principles (n = 29) related to other characteristics of design such as communication, project management, and design characteristics.