scholarly journals Old Brains in Alcohol: The Usability of Legacy Collection Material to Study the Spider Neuroarchitecture

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 601
Author(s):  
F. Andres Rivera-Quiroz ◽  
Jeremy Abraham Miller
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Data Extraction ◽  
Specimen Preparation ◽  
Micro Ct ◽  
Natural History Collections ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Critical Point Drying ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Natural history collections include rare and significant taxa that might otherwise be unavailable for comparative studies. However, curators must balance the needs of current and long-term research. Methods of data extraction that minimize the impact on specimens are therefore favored. Micro-CT has the potential to expose new character systems based on internal anatomy to taxonomic and phylogenetic analysis without dissection or thin sectioning for histology. However, commonly applied micro-CT protocols involve critical point drying, which permanently changes the specimen. Here, we apply a minimally destructive method of specimen preparation for micro-CT investigation of spider neuroanatomy suitable for application to legacy specimens in natural history collections. We used two groups of female spiders of the common species Araneus diadematus—freshly captured (n = 11) vs. legacy material between 70 and 90 years old (n = 10)—to qualitatively and quantitatively assess the viability of micro-CT scanning and the impact of aging on their neuroarchitecture. We statistically compared the volumes of the supraesophageal ganglion (syncerebrum) and used 2D geometric morphometrics to analyze variations in the gross shape of the brain. We found no significant differences in the brain shape or the brain volume relative to the cephalothorax size. Nonetheless, a significant difference was observed in the spider size. We considered such differences to be explained by environmental factors rather than preservation artifacts. Comparison between legacy and freshly collected specimens indicates that museum specimens do not degrade over time in a way that might bias the study results, as long as the basic preservation conditions are consistently maintained, and where lapses in preservation have occurred, these can be identified. This, together with the relatively low-impact nature of the micro-CT protocol applied here, could facilitate the use of old, rare, and valuable material from collections in studies of internal morphology.

scholarly journals The impact of sport activities on basic motor skills of children with autism

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 138-144
Author(s):  
O. Huseyin
Keyword(s):  
Motor Skills ◽  
Motor Development ◽  
Life Skills ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Wilcoxon Test ◽  
Sports Training ◽  
Exercise Programs ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact

Background and Study Aim: This study aims to investigate the impact of sports training on basic motor skills of children with autism. Material and Methods: The study included sixteen children with autism who were aged between 12-16 years. The study aims to present the difference between basic motor skills of children with autism before sports training and after taking sports training for 12 weeks. The study was conducted in experimental design and compared values before and after sports training. SPSS 23.0 statistics program was used to perform statistical assessment of the data. The non-parametric Wilcoxon test was used for intragroup changes of fine and gross motor development, balance, life skills and self-care test data in the test battery. Results: At the end of a 12-week study, positive developments were observed in balance, catching, skipping, basic gymnastics, and some psychomotor and life skills, while no significant difference was observed in throwing skills. Based on daily life generalization, it can be said that the learned skills positively contribute to life standards of individuals with autism. Conclusions: The study results show that exercise programs also develop the physical fitness levels of children with autism. At the end of a 12-week sports training, a positive development was seen in basic motor skills and life skills. It is thought that useful results can be obtained with such exercise programs.

scholarly journals Quantifying Institutional Reach Through the Human Network in Natural History Collections

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Shorthouse ◽  
Roderic Page
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Professional Relationships ◽  
Global Biodiversity Information Facility ◽  
Closed Loops ◽  
Natural History Collections ◽  
Darwin Core ◽  
International Audience ◽  
The Impact ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Formal Recognition

Through the Bloodhound proof-of-concept, https://bloodhound-tracker.net an international audience of collectors and determiners of natural history specimens are engaged in the emotive act of claiming their specimens and attributing other specimens to living and deceased mentors and colleagues. Behind the scenes, these claims build links between Open Researcher and Contributor Identifiers (ORCID, https://orcid.org) or Wikidata identifiers for people and Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) specimen identifiers, predicated by the Darwin Core terms, recordedBy (collected) and identifiedBy (determined). Here we additionally describe the socio-technical challenge in unequivocally resolving people names in legacy specimen data and propose lightweight and reusable solutions. The unique identifiers for the affiliations of active researchers are obtained from ORCID whereas the unique identifiers for institutions where specimens are actively curated are resolved through Wikidata. By constructing closed loops of links between person, specimen, and institution, an interesting suite of potential metrics emerges, all due to the activities of employees and their network of professional relationships. This approach balances a desire for individuals to receive formal recognition for their efforts in natural history collections with that of an institutional-level need to alter budgets in response to easily obtained numeric trends in national and international reach. If handled in a coordinating fashion, this reporting technique may be a significant new driver for specimen digitization efforts on par with Altmetric, https://www.altmetric.com, an important new tool that tracks the impact of publications and delights administrators and authors alike.

scholarly journals Effect of Endoscope Flexibility on Tissue Dissection Profile Assessed With Pulsed Water Jet Device: Ensuring Safety, Efficacy, and Handling of Thin Devices for Neuroendoscopic Surgery

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tetsuya Kusunoki ◽  
Tomohiro Kawaguchi ◽  
Atsuhiro Nakagawa ◽  
Yuta Noguchi ◽  
Shinichiro Osawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Jet ◽  
Efficacy And Safety ◽  
Neuroendoscopic Surgery ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Tissue Dissection ◽  
Inner Diameter ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Pulsed Water Jet ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Objective: We developed an actuator-driven pulsed water jet device (ADPJ) for flexible neuroendoscopy to achieve effective tissue dissection with vasculature preservation. Although flexibility is a strong advantage for minimally invasiveness, the effect of the ductile curvature on the dissection profiles remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to clarify the impact of the curvature change of the ADPJ connecting tube on the dissection safety and efficacy.Results: Three ADPJ connecting tubes with different inner diameters (1.0, 0.75, 0.5 mm) were used to dissect the brain phantom. They were bent at 3 angles: 0 °, 60 °, and 120 °. The dissection profiles were evaluated using the mean depth and coefficient of variation (CV) for efficacy and safety, respectively.The larger inner diameter connecting tube dissected more deeply. The dissection depth was not changed regardless of the curvature degree in each tube. There was no significant difference in CVs regardless of inner diameter and curvature. The ductile curvature of the flexible neuroendoscope did not affect the efficacy and safety of the ADPJ dissection profile. Among the numerous instruments, tube-formed devices, including suction and injecting devices such as ADPJ, can be used safely and effectively without flexibility-related limitations.

scholarly journals Impact of the English Advanced Placement (AP) Program on College Grade Point Average among Rural Appalachian Students

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon Deaton
Keyword(s):  
Grade Point Average ◽  
Advanced Placement ◽  
Eastern Kentucky ◽  
Grade Point ◽  
First Semester ◽  
College And University ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Act Score ◽  
The Impact

This study explored the impact of the English Advanced Placement (AP) program on college success among rural Appalachian students attending four private colleges in central and eastern Kentucky: Alice Lloyd College, Georgetown College, Lindsey Wilson College, and University of the Cumberlands. A Pearson Product-Moment Correlation r and an independent-samples t-test were conducted. With respect to rural Appalachian students, statistical analyses revealed that the English ACT score is a better predictor of first-semester college grade point average than the English AP score. Analyses also revealed no statistically significant difference between first-semester college GPAs of rural Appalachian students with English AP credit and rural Appalachian students without AP credit. The study results are helpful for students, parents, administrators, and policymakers evaluating the English AP program at local high schools and colleges.  

scholarly journals Cervical Cancer Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices: Educational Program Management for Female Workers at Port Said University

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Mervat Caber Zagloul ◽  
Hanan Elzeblawy Hassan ◽  
Elsaida Gouda Naser
Keyword(s):  
Cervical Cancer ◽  
Educational Program ◽  
Working Women ◽  
Cancer Knowledge ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
Long Term Impact ◽  
Port Said ◽  
The Impact

Background: Women of all races and ethnicities have the possibility of developing cervical cancer. Cervical cancer has continued to be а significant issue in public health worldwide. Aim: To assess the impact of а cervical cancer educational program on the awareness, attitude, and practice of working women at the University of Port Said. Subject & Methods; Design: Α quasi-experimental design. Setting: The study conducted at Port Said University faculties; Subjects: 260 working women at Port Said University, who accepted to participate in the study. Results: The mean age of the females surveyed was 37.22±11.00 years. There has been а general increase in the awareness, practice, and attitude of the studied women about cervical cancer during the different measurement periods compared with before the program; with а highly statistically significant difference at р-values <0.001. There was a positive highly statistical significant correlation (р<0.001) between total knowledge and attitude scores as well as total knowledge and practice scores at different times of assessment. Conclusion: The implementation of educational program led to significant improvements in women's knowledge, practices, and attitude. Recommendations: The study can be replicated on а larger sample in different settings. More rigorous researches are required to explore the long-term impact of these programs and to plan an individualized educational system in formulating their educational program.

scholarly journals EFFECT OF YOGIC EXERCISES AND MEDITATION ON EMOTIONAL WELLNESS AND SPIRITUAL WELLNESS OF WOMEN IN THOOTHUKUDI

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (9(SE)) ◽  
pp. 63-73
Author(s):  
Thanga Selvam ◽  
Shunmuga SelvaSivaSankari ◽  
A. Nagalakshmi
Keyword(s):  
Personal Health ◽  
Spiritual Wellness ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Emotional Wellness ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Quasi Experimental ◽  
The Impact

Today, yoga is considered as an alternative exercise approach to obtain personal health and wellbeing. Yoga’s holistic methodology strives to unite one’s body, mind, and spirit; it is a method of exercise mirrored in the physical, mental, and emotional benefits which result. The focus of this paper will highlight on the effect of yogic exercises and meditation on emotional wellness and spiritual wellness among women. The objectives of this study were to find out the level of emotional wellness and spiritual wellness of women before and after treatment and to find out the impact of yogic exercises and meditation on the emotional wellness and spiritual wellness of women. The investigators have adopted quasi-experimental method for this study. Results of this study show that there is significant difference between pretest and post test scores on emotional wellness and spiritual wellness of women before and after the yogic exercises and meditation.

scholarly journals The impact of resilience on burnout syndrome in nursing teachers in high medical schools

2021 ◽  
Vol 24 (82) ◽  
pp. 10-14
Author(s):  
Katarina Pavić ◽  
Dragana Milutinović
Keyword(s):  
Work Experience ◽  
Medical Schools ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Burnout Syndrome ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Resilience Scale ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Nursing Teachers

Introduction: Burnout syndrome is a condition caused by chronic stress at the workplace. Resilience is the ability to cope with the negative situations in life. Purpose: To evaluate the extent of burnout syndrome in nursing teachers at medical high schools and the effect of the level of resilience on burnout syndrome. Material and methods: This cross-sectional study interviewed 101 nursing teachers at four medical schools. Teacher Burnout Scale, The Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale and socio-demographic questionnaire have been used as instruments of the study. Results: The majority of nursing teachers had moderate symptom of burnout syndrome. The average result on the burnout scale was 56.1. Statistical analyzes showed that there is no statistically significant difference in the manifestation of burnout syndrome in teachers in relation to demographic characteristics (sex, marital status, years of work experience and subjects at medical school). By analysing the results of the two scales, it has been established that there is no statistically significant association between the burnout intensity and the degree of resilience in nursing teachers. Conclusion: The results of the study showed moderate level of burnout in nursing teachers. This may help as an encouragement to develop a strategy for preventing emergence of the burnout syndrome. The results will be useful for further research of burnout syndrome in nursing teachers.

scholarly journals Comparing Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Nursing Support in Mothers With ‎Newborn Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) and Mothers of Healthy Neonates ‎

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Seyedeh Najmeh Hosseini ◽  
Arash Ghodousi ◽  
Narges Sadeghi ◽  
Somayeh Abbasi
Keyword(s):  
Intensive Care Unit ◽  
Intensive Care ◽  
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit ◽  
Neonatal Intensive Care ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Abstinence Syndrome ◽  
Nursing Support ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact

Background: The experience of having neonates in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is a psychological crisis. It might cause many emotional problems for parents. Entire parental support is among the duties of the healthcare team. Therefore, this study aimed to compare the nursing support received by the mothers with Newborn Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) and the mothers of other neonates admitted to the NICU. Methods: The present cross-sectional descriptive-analytic study was conducted in the selected hospitals in Kerman Province, Iran. In total, 62 mothers with NAS and 61 non-addicted mothers with neonates admitted to the NICU were selected through convenience sampling method. The inclusion criteria were neonates under the care of parents, neonate admitted to the NICU for at least 24 hours, opiate dependence in the case group mothers, and no substance dependence in the control group mothers. The amount of nursing support for mothers having neonates with NAS was compared with that of the control mothers. The study groups were homogenized in terms of the study variables (neonate age, gender, and the duration of hospitalization). The required data were collected by the Nurse-Parent Support Tool (NPST) and analyzed in SPSS. Results: The study results revealed that among the neonates of 123 mothers, 75(60.97%) were boys, and 58(39.02%) were girls. The majority of neonates in both groups were breastfed. The mean±SD age of the mothers in the case and control group were 31.93±7.25 and 28.99±4.36 years, respectively. The nursing support level was desirable in both groups, and no significant difference was found in this regard (P>0.05). Furthermore, the level of nursing support in emotional, information-communication, self-esteem, and quality caregiving support dimensions was desirable in both groups. Conclusion: The obtained results revealed that nurses’ support was desirable in both groups. The prevalence of maternal addiction and the impact of this social harm on neonates who were admitted are essential. Furthermore, families having neonates with NAS need more support from the healthcare staff and nurses, in comparison with healthy parents; thus, the importance of this issue should be addressed in training and briefing courses for nurses.

How reading in single- and multiple-column types influence our cognitive load: an EEG study

2019 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 593-606 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hosam Al-Samarraie ◽  
Atef Eldenfria ◽  
Fahed Zaqout ◽  
Melissa Lee Price
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Brain Signals ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Reading Text ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Electroencephalogram Eeg ◽  
Instructional Design Practices ◽  
The Brain

Purpose The impact of different screen-based typography styles on individuals’ cognitive processing of information has not been given much consideration in the literature, though such differences would imply different learning outcomes. This study aims to enrich the current understanding of the impact of reading in single- and multiple-column types on students’ cognitive processing. Design/methodology/approach An electroencephalogram (EEG) was used to record and analyze the brain signals of 27 students while reading from single- and multiple- column layouts. Findings The results showed a significant difference in students’ cognitive load when reading text from different types of columns. All students exerted less processing efforts when text was presented in two-column format, thus experiencing less cognitive load. Originality/value Using EEG, this study examined the neural consequences of reading in single- and multiple-column types on cognitive load during reading. The findings can be used to enrich the current instructional design practices on how different typographical formats facilitate learners’ cognitive performance.

Application of abiraterone acetate (AA) in chemo-naïve metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) patients who did not fulfil the patient inclusion criteria in the COU-AA-302 study.

2016 ◽  
Vol 34 (2_suppl) ◽  
pp. 317-317
Author(s):  
Darren M. C. Poon ◽  
Chan Kuen ◽  
S.H. Lee ◽  
T.W. Chan ◽  
Chun-Kin Sze ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Performance Status ◽  
Poor Performance ◽  
Abiraterone Acetate ◽  
Poor Performance Status ◽  
Inclusion Criteria ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Visceral Metastases ◽  
Clinical Records ◽  
The Impact

317 Background: Visceral metastases or poor performance status (ECOG 2 or above) were the major exclusion criteria in the COU-AA-302 study, and hence the efficacy of abiraterone acetate (AA) in chemo-naïve mCRPC patients with these characteristics remain undetermined. Our study compares the clinical efficacy of AA in chemo-naïve mCRPC patients with or without the aforementioned characteristics. Methods: The clinical records of chemo-naïve mCRPC patients from all 6 public oncology centers in Hong Kong between August 2011 and December 2014 were reviewed. Patients with visceral disease who were medically unfit for, or who declined, chemotherapy, were allowed for AA in the study period. The median overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), patient and disease characteristics were compared between groups which satisfied, and did not satisfy, the inclusion criteria of COU-AA-302 study. Results: Fifty-eight consecutive chemo-naïve mCRPC patients had received AA in the review period, of which 29 fulfilled the inclusion criteria for the COU-AA-302 study (Group Eligible). All the remaining patients (Group Ineligible) had ECOG 2 or above, including 3 who had non-nodal visceral metastases. Group Ineligible had higher baseline PSA, haemoglobin and alkaline phosphatase level than Group Eligible, but otherwise there was no significant difference in the baseline characteristics between the groups for age, Gleason score, and co-morbidities. Group Ineligible had significantly shorter OS than Group Eligible (7.7 vs 25.0 months, p = 0.0095) and also a shorter PFS that did not reach statistical significance (5.3 vs 9.8 months, p = 0.2936). The duration of use of AA, and frequency of employment of post-AA treatment were comparable between the groups. Conclusions: Our study demonstrated a poor efficacy of AA in chemo-naïve patients who did not fulfil the inclusion criteria for COU-AA-302 study, by virtue of poor performance status or presence of visceral metastases. The impact of AA in this group of patients warrants further examination in clinical trials before its routine clinical use in this subgroup.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document