Factors associated with recall of media reports about vitamin D and sun protection

Objective: To assess the recall of media reports about vitamin D and associated factors. Methods: Analysis of cross-sectional telephone interview data (2,001 Queensland adults, 18-70 years) on vitamin D and personal sun protection, recall of media reports and participant characteristics. Results: 83.7% of participants had heard of vitamin D, 47.5% through the media. Only 513 (25.6%) participants recalled the media content within four main themes: vitamin D is beneficial/comes from the sun (47.0%); some people aren’t getting enough vitamin D, need more sun (27.9%); need to balance sun exposure and skin protection (11.5%); or other (13.6%). Only 65 of the 950 participants (6.8%) reported a change to their behaviour(s) due to the media report. Conclusion: Although the media were the main source of information about vitamin D for almost 50% of participants, recall of the content and direct effect on behaviour was low. Only a small minority recalled a balanced media report of beneficial and harmful aspects of sun exposure. Implications Health professionals often supply media with background information. To achieve best public health practice for sun protection and vitamin D, information to foster balanced media reports should be provided.

High speed rail and regional competitiveness

The presence of High Speed Rail (HSR) systems influences market shares of road and air transport, and the development of cities and regions they serve. With the deployment of HSR infrastructure, changes in accessibility have occurred. These changes have lead researchers to investigate effects on the economic and spatial derived variables. Contention exists when managing the trade off between efficiency, and access points which are usually in the range of hundreds of kilometres apart. In short, it is argued that intermediate cities, bypassed by HSR services, suffer a decline in their accessibility and developmental opportunities. The present Chapter will analyse possible impacts derived from the presence of HSR infrastructure. In particular, it will consider small and medium agglomerations in the vicinity of HSR corridors, not always served by HSR stations. Thus, a methodology is developed to quantify accessibility benefits and their distribution. These benefits will be investigated in relation to different rail transit strategies integrating HSR infrastructure where a HSR station cannot be positioned. These strategies are selected principally for the type of service offered: (i) cadenced, (ii) express, (iii) frequent or (iv) non-stopping. Furthermore, to ground the theoretical approach linking accessibility and competitiveness, a case study in the North-Eastern Italian regions will be used for the application of the accessibility distributive patterns between the HSR infrastructure and the selected strategies. Results indicate that benefits derive from well informed decisions on HSR station positioning and the appropriate blend of complementary services in the whole region to interface HSR infrastructure. The results are significant for all countries in Europe and worldwide, not only for investing in HSR infrastructure, but mostly in terms of building territorial cohesion, while seeking international recognition for developing successful new technology and systems.

Photochemistry and chemometrics : an overview

Photochemistry has made significant contributions to our understanding of many important natural processes as well as the scientific discoveries of the man-made world. The measurements from such studies are often complex and may require advanced data interpretation with the use of multivariate or chemometrics methods. In general, such methods have been applied successfully for data display, classification, multivariate curve resolution and prediction in analytical chemistry, environmental chemistry, engineering, medical research and industry. However, in photochemistry, by comparison, applications of such multivariate approaches were found to be less frequent although a variety of methods have been used, especially with spectroscopic photochemical applications. The methods include Principal Component Analysis (PCA; data display), Partial Least Squares (PLS; prediction), Artificial Neural Networks (ANN; prediction) and several models for multivariate curve resolution related to Parallel Factor Analysis (PARAFAC; decomposition of complex responses). Applications of such methods are discussed in this overview and typical examples include photodegradation of herbicides, prediction of antibiotics in human fluids (fluorescence spectroscopy), non-destructive in- and on-line monitoring (near infrared spectroscopy) and fast-time resolution of spectroscopic signals from photochemical reactions. It is also quite clear from the literature that the scope of spectroscopic photochemistry was enhanced by the application of chemometrics. To highlight and encourage further applications of chemometrics in photochemistry, several additional chemometrics approaches are discussed using data collected by the authors. The use of a PCA biplot is illustrated with an analysis of a matrix containing data on the performance of photocatalysts developed for water splitting and hydrogen production. In addition, the applications of the Multi-Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) ranking methods and Fuzzy Clustering are demonstrated with an analysis of water quality data matrix. Other examples of topics include the application of simultaneous kinetic spectroscopic methods for prediction of pesticides, and the use of response fingerprinting approach for classification of medicinal preparations. In general, the overview endeavours to emphasise the advantages of chemometrics' interpretation of multivariate photochemical data, and an Appendix of references and summaries of common and less usual chemometrics methods noted in this work, is provided. Crown Copyright © 2010.

Professional conversations : a new approach to professional learning in ECEC

In 2009, Australia celebrated the introduction of a national Early Years Learning Framework. This is a critical component in a series of education reforms designed to support quality pedagogy and practice in early childhood education and care (ECEC) and successful transition to school. As with any policy change, success in real terms relies upon building shared understanding and the capacity of educators to apply new knowledge and support change and improved practice within their service. With these outcomes in mind, a collaborative research project is investigating the efficacy of a new approach to professional learning in ECEC: the professional conversation. This paper reports on the trial and evaluation of a series of professional conversations on the Early Years Learning Framework, and their capacity to promote collaborative reflective practice, shared understanding, and improved practice in ECEC. The paper details the professional conversation approach, key challenges and critical success factors, and the learning outcomes for conversation participants. Findings support the efficacy of this approach to professional learning in ECEC, and its capacity to support policy reform and practice change in ECEC.

Economic growth and suicide rate changes : a case in China from 1982 to 2005

It is to estimate the trend of suicide rate changes during the past three decades in China and try to identify its social and economic correlates. Official data of suicide rates and economic indexes during 1982–2005 from Shandong Province of China were analyzed. The suicide data were categorized for the rural / urban location and gender, and the economic indexes include GDP, GDP per capita, rural income, and urban income, all adjusted for inflation. We found a significant increase of economic development and decrease of suicide rates over the past decades under study. The suicide rate decrease is correlated with the tremendous growth of economy. The unusual decrease of Chinese suicide rates in the past decades is accounted for within the Chinese cultural contexts and maybe by the Strain Theory of Suicide.

Book Review : Beyond criminology : taking harm seriously edited by Paddy Hillyard, Christina Pantazis, Steve Tombs and Dave Gordon (2004)

Hillyard et al.'s Beyond Criminology: Taking Crime Seriously is an innovative collection that attempts to take criminology beyond state definitions of crime to discourses involving harm, or what the editors refer to as ‘zemiology’, or what could be called ‘social harm theory’. The central theme of the book is that ‘it makes no sense to separate out harms, which can be defined as criminal, from all other types of harm’ (p. 2). At long last, ‘harm’ is discussed with the theoretical and practical integrity it deserves as an academic and intellectual narrative. For too long it has been ignored or omitted from the criminological lexicon. This book ensures that it captures centre stage within analyses that refocus the agenda to deleterious acts not always covered by the state legislature...

Private equity bidders : barbarians or best friends

The deal value of private equity merger and takeover activity has achieved unprecedented growth in the last couple of years, in Australia and globally. Private equity deals are not a new feature of the market; however, such deals have been subject to increased academic, professional and policy interest. This study examines the particular features of 15 major deals involving listed company "targets" and provides evidence – based on a comparison with a benchmark sample – to demonstrate the role that private equity plays in the market for corporate control. The objective of this study was to assess the friendliness of private equity bids. Based on the indicia compiled, lower bid premiums, the presence of break fees and the intention to retain senior management are compellingly different for private equity bids than for the comparative sample of bids. Using these several characteristics of "friendliness", the authors show that private equity deals are generally friendly in nature, consistent with industry rhetoric, but perhaps inconsistent with the popular belief that private equity bidders are the "barbarians at the gate".

Victims Speak: Comparing Child Sexual Abusers and Their Victims Accounts of Offence Circumstances

This article presents findings from a longitudinal study. The research aimed to explore the effectiveness of a treatment program for offenders which lasted for three years. The research design was structured around the program with interviews and psychometric testing undertaken at key points in time with the same group of respondents. View all notes that sought to evaluate a treatment program for child sexual abusers. A triangulated methodological approach was adopted drawing upon quantitative and qualitative methodological techniques. The focus here is upon one element of this research. 2 2The quantitative element of this research will be published shortly but is referred to in the following reports Davidson 2000, 2003 [research funded by the National Probation Service]. Psychometric testing was undertaken over a four-year period with the men attending the treatment program to explore shifts in the extent of denial, blame attribution, and victim empathy over time. Offender cognitive distortions, general health, and self-esteem were also explored via psychometric testing. An interview-administered survey was undertaken with all sex offenders registered with the Probation Service (those on probation and in custody) in order to gather demographic data, and 117 of 150 offenders responded. View all notes Ninety-one in-depth interviews were conducted over a four-year period with a small, nonrandom sample of twenty-one male offenders who had been convicted of sexual offenses against children. All of the men were subject to probation orders with a psychiatric condition (Criminal Justice Act, 1991). One of the aims of this element of the research was to explore the extent to which evidence of denial could be found in offenders’ accounts of offense circumstance and also to explore the extent to which offenders minimized the nature and extent of abuse perpetrated. Offenders’ accounts of offense circumstances were compared to victim statements, and stark differences emerge. These findings have considerable implications for treatment practice with sex offenders, where victims’ perceptions could be used to directly confront offender denial and minimization.

Friedman Economic Policies, Social Exclusion and Crime: Toward a Gendered Left Realist Subcultural Theory.

Left realists contend that people lacking legitimate means of solving the problem of relative deprivation may come into contact with other frustrated disenfranchised people and form subcultures, which in turn, encourage criminal behaviors. Absent from this theory is an attempt to address how, today, subcultural development in North America and elsewhere is heavily shaped simultaneously by the recent destructive consequences of right-wing Friedman or Chicago School economic policies and marginalized men's attempts to live up to the principles of hegemonic masculinity. The purpose of this paper, then, is to offer a new left realist theory that emphasizes the contribution of these two key determinants.

Unexpected issues and solutions: Emerge from environmental manipulation strategy

Environmental manipulation removes students from their everyday worlds to unfamiliar worlds, to facil- itate learning. This article reports that this strategy was effective when applied in a university design unit, using the tactic of immersion in the Second Life online virtual environment. The objective was for teams of stu- dents each to design a series of modules for an orbiting space station using supplied data. The changed and futuristic environment led the students to an important but previously unconsidered design decision which they were able to address in novel ways because of, rather than in spite of, the Second Life immersion.

APS grant enhances educational psychology’s impact in Bangladesh

The APS Grant for Intercultural and/or International Projects of up to $10,000 supports innovative projects that have an intercultural and/or international focus, particularly in countries where psychology is an emerging discipline. Associate Professors Linda Gilmore MAPS and Marilyn Campbell MAPS from Queensland University of Technology were awarded the APS Grant in 2010-11. Their project aimed to promote and advance the profession of psychology in Bangladesh by supporting the newly introduced specialisation of educational psychology. With a population of 159 million in a country only twice the size of Tasmania, Bangladesh is one of the poorest and most densely populated countries in the world. Yet at the time this project commenced, there was only one school psychologist in the entire country. Linda Gilmore shared her experiences and insights about the project with InPsych.

Pandemic (H1N1) Influenza 2009 and Australian emergency departments : implications for policy, practice and pandemic preparedness

Objective: To describe the reported impact of Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 on EDs, so as to inform future pandemic policy, planning and response management. Methods: This study comprised an issue and theme analysis of publicly accessible literature, data from jurisdictional health departments, and data obtained from two electronic surveys of ED directors and ED staff. The issues identified formed the basis of policy analysis and evaluation. Results: Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 had a significant impact on EDs with presentation for patients with ‘influenza-like illness’ up to three times that of the same time in previous years. Staff reported a range of issues, including poor awareness of pandemic plans, patient and family aggression, chaotic information flow to themselves and the public, heightened stress related to increased workloads and lower levels of staffing due to illness, family care duties and redeployment of staff to flu clinics. Staff identified considerable discomfort associated with prolonged times wearing personal protective equipment. Staff believed that the care of non-flu patients was compromised during the pandemic as a result of overwork, distraction from core business and the difficulties associated with accommodating infectious patients in an environment that was not conducive. Conclusions: This paper describes the breadth of the impact of pandemics on ED operations. It identifies a need to address a range of industrial, management and procedural issues. In particular, there is a need for a single authoritative source of information, the re-engineering of EDs to accommodate infectious patients and organizational changes to enable rapid deployment of alternative sources of care.

The use of amenities in high density neighbourhoods by older urban Australians residents

Like other major cities, Brisbane (Australia) has adopted policies to increase residential densities to meet the liveability goal of decreasing car dependence. This objective hinges on urban neighbourhoods being amenity-rich spaces, reducing the need for residents to leave their neighbourhood for everyday living. While older people are attracted to urban settings, there has been little empirical evidence linking liveability satisfaction with older people's use of urban neighbourhoods. Using a case study approach employing qualitative (diaries, in-depth interviews) and quantitative (Global Positioning Systems and Geographical Information Systems mapping) methods,this paper explores the effect of the neighbourhood environment and its influence on liveability for older urban people. Reliance on motor vehicles and issues with availability and access to local amenities inhibit local participation for older people. Highlighting these issues furthers our understanding of the landscape planning and design factors that make urban neighbourhoods more liveable for older residents.

Effect of Australia's walk to work day campaign on adults' active commuting and physical activity behavior

Purpose. To determine whether Australia's Walk to Work Day media campaign resulted in behavioural change among targeted groups. Methods. Pre- and postcampaign telephone surveys of a cohort of adults aged 18 to 65 years (n = 1100, 55% response rate) were randomly sampled from Australian major melropolitan areas. Tests for dependent samples were applied (McNemax chi(2) or paired t-test). Results. Among participants who did not usually actively commute to work was a significant decrease in car only use an increase in walking combined with public transport. Among those who were employed was a significant increase in total time walking (+16 min/wk; t [780] = 2.04, p < .05) and in other moderate physical activity (+120 min/wk; t [1087] = 4.76, p < .005), resulting in a significant decrease in the proportion who were inactive (chi(2) (1) = 6.1, p < .05). Conclusion. Although nonexperimental, the Walk to Work Day initiative elicited short-term changes in targeted behaviors among target groups. Reinforcement by integrating worksite health promotion strategies may be required for sustained effects.

Efficacy of oral or intrauterine device-delivered progestin in patients with complex endometrial hyperplasia with atypia or early endometrial adenocarcinoma : a meta-analysis and systematic review of the literature

Objectives: To investigate the efficacy of progestin treatment to achieve pathological complete response (pCR) in patients with complex atypical endometrial hyperplasia (CAH) or early endometrial adenocarcinoma (EC). Methods: A systematic search identified 3245 potentially relevant citations. Studies containing less than ten eligible CAH or EC patients in either oral or intrauterine treatment arm were excluded. Only information from patients receiving six or more months of treatment and not receiving other treatments was included. Weighted proportions of patients achieving pCR were calculated using R software. Results: Twelve studies met the selection criteria. Eleven studies reported treatment of patients with oral (219 patients, 117 with CAH, 102 with grade 1 Stage I EC) and one reported treatment of patients with intrauterine progestin (11 patients with grade 1 Stage IEC). Overall, 74% (95% confidence interval [CI] 65-81%) of patients with CAH and 72% (95% CI 62-80%) of patients with grade 1 Stage I EC achieved a pCR to oral progestin. Disease progression while on oral treatment was reported for 6/219 (2.7%), and relapse after initial complete response for 32/159 (20.1%) patients. The weighted mean pCR rate of patients with grade 1 Stage I EC treated with intrauterine progestin from one prospective pilot study and an unpublished retrospective case series from the Queensland Centre of Gynaecologic Oncology (QCGC) was 68% (95% CI 45- 86%). Conclusions: There is a lack of high quality evidence for the efficacy of progestin in CAH or EC. The available evidence however suggests that treatment with oral or intrauterine progestin is similarly effective. The risk of progression during treatment is small but longer follow-up is required. Evidence from prospective controlled clinical trials is warranted to establish how the efficacy of progestin for the treatment of CAH and EC can be improved further.