The changing experiences of primary teachers: Responding to scenarios involving diverse sexualities

Sex education and diverse sexualities are controversial topics within the primary school arena. Concepts of childhood innocence have influenced sex education curriculum, policy development and teaching practices within schools. However, research shows that primary school-aged students are aware of and talk about sexualities. The aim of this research is to reveal the pedagogical experiences of primary school teachers in relation to scenarios inclusive of diverse sexualities. Social constructionist theories of pedagogy and phenomenographic methods are used to provide a detailed analysis of the ways in which primary teacher participants conceptualise their encounters with students who introduce concepts of diverse sexualities. This research reveals that primary students ask questions about diverse sexualities, they use homophobic expressions (often as a daily occurrence), they sometimes reveal homosexual feelings to teachers, some have same-sex parents and some are being raised with knowledge of diverse sexualities. Without comprehensive policy and curriculum support, and appropriate professional learning for teachers, teachers are unable to make well informed pedagogical decisions that promote inclusive education.

Undead yakuza: The Japanese zombie movie, cultural resonance and generic conventions

The zombie has long been regarded as a “fundamentally American creation” (Bishop 2010) and a western monster representing the fears and anxieties of Western society. Since the renaissance of the zombie movie in the early 2000s, a subsequent surge in international production has seen the release of movies from Norway, Cuba, Pakistan and Thailand to name a few. Although Japanese zombie movies have been far more visible for Western cult audiences than in mainstream markets, Japanese cinema has emerged as one of the more prolific producers of zombie films outside of Anglophone or Western European countries in recent years. Films such as Helldriver (2010), Zombie TV (2013), Versus (2000), Tokyo Zombie (2005), Happiness of the Katakuris (2001) and anime television series High School of the Dead (2010) have generated varying degrees of popularity and critical attention internationally. At first glance Japanese zombie films, with musical zombie interludes, undead yakuza henchmen and revenge-seeking yūrei zombies, appear fundamentally different to their Western counterparts. Yet, on closer examination, the Japanese zombie movie could be regarded as a hybrid and intertextual generic form drawing on syntactic conventions at the core of a universal zombie sub-genre established by Western filmmaking traditions, while also distilling culturally specific tropes unique to various Japanese horror cinema sub-genres. Most importantly, the Japanese zombie film extracts, emphasises and revises particular conventions and motifs common within Western zombie films that are particularly relevant to Japanese audiences. This chapter investigates the cultural resonance of key generic motifs identifiable in the Japanese zombie film. It establishes a production context and the influence of Japanese horror cinema on style and thematic concerns. It then examines the function of prominent narrative conventions, namely: the source, outbreak and spread of infection; mutation and the representation of the monster; and the inclusion of supernatural and religious motifs.

Taking an evaluative stance to decision-making about professional development options in early childhood education and care

This article builds on our ongoing work in conceptualising an ‘evaluative stance’ framework to assist in understanding how leaders in the field of early childhood education and care (ECEC) make decisions about the selection of professional development options for themselves and their staff. It introduces the notion that evaluative mindsets can be considered in terms of attitudes towards decision-making that are based on personal epistemologies. Drawing on data from semi-structured interviews, it explores the mindsets of six experienced leaders in two long-established ECEC organisations in Australia with respect to their decision-making about professional development. The article concludes with a consideration of the potential utility of the framework and the coding template used in this exploratory study.

The first five days: field and laboratory investigations during the early stages of the equine influenza outbreak in Australia, 2007.

Until August 2007, Australia was one of only three countries internationally recognised to be free of equine influenza (EI). This report documents the diagnosis of the first cases of EI in Australian horses and summarises the investigations that took place over the next 5 days. During that time, a multifocal outbreak was identified across eastern New South Wales and south-eastern Queensland. The use of an influenza type A pan-reactive real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction allowed rapid confirmation of suspect cases of EI.

Meta-analysis identifies 13 new loci associated with waist-hip ratio and reveals sexual dimorphism in the genetic basis of fat distribution

Waist-hip ratio (WHR) is a measure of body fat distribution and a predictor of metabolic consequences independent of overall adiposity. WHR is heritable, but few genetic variants influencing this trait have been identified. We conducted a meta-analysis of 32 genome-wide association studies for WHR adjusted for body mass index (comprising up to 77,167 participants), following up 16 loci in an additional 29 studies (comprising up to 113,636 subjects). We identified 13 new loci in or near RSPO3, VEGFA, TBX15-WARS2, NFE2L3, GRB14, DNM3-PIGC, ITPR2-SSPN, LY86, HOXC13, ADAMTS9, ZNRF3-KREMEN1, NISCH-STAB1 and CPEB4 (P = 1.9 × 10−9 to P = 1.8 × 10−40) and the known signal at LYPLAL1. Seven of these loci exhibited marked sexual dimorphism, all with a stronger effect on WHR in women than men (P for sex difference = 1.9 × 10−3 to P = 1.2 × 10−13). These findings provide evidence for multiple loci that modulate body fat distribution independent of overall adiposity and reveal strong gene-by-sex interactions.

Fungal Planet description sheets: 128-153

Novel species of microfungi described in the present study include the following from Australia: Catenulostroma corymbiae from Corymbia, Devriesia stirlingiae from Stirlingia, Penidiella carpentariae from Carpentaria, Phaeococcomyces eucalypti from Eucalyptus, Phialophora livistonae from Livistona, Phyllosticta aristolochiicola from Aristolochia, Clitopilus austroprunulus on sclerophyll forest litter of Eucalyptus regnans and Toxicocladosporium posoqueriae from Posoqueria. Several species are also described from South Africa, namely: Ceramothyrium podocarpi from Podocarpus, Cercospora chrysanthemoides from Chrysanthemoides, Devriesia shakazului from Aloe, Penidiella drakensbergensis from Protea, Strelitziana cliviae from Clivia and Zasmidium syzygii from Syzygium. Other species include Bipolaris microstegii from Microstegium and Synchaetomella acerina from Acer (USA), Brunneiapiospora austropalmicola from Rhopalostylis (New Zealand), Calonectria pentaseptata from Eucalyptus and Macadamia (Vietnam), Ceramothyrium melastoma from Melastoma (Indonesia), Collembolispora aristata from stream foam (Czech Republic), Devriesia imbrexigena from glazed decorative tiles (Portugal), Microcyclospora rhoicola from Rhus (Canada), Seiridium phylicae from Phylica (Tristan de Cunha, Inaccessible Island), Passalora lobeliaefistulosis from Lobelia (Brazil) and Zymoseptoria verkleyi from Poa (The Netherlands). Valsalnicola represents a new ascomycete genus from Alnus (Austria) and Parapenidiella a new hyphomycete genus from Eucalyptus (Australia). Morphological and culture characteristics along with ITS DNA barcodes are also provided. © 2012 Nationaal Herbarium Nederland & Centraalbureau voor Schimmelcultures.

Scale- and Context-Dependent Selection of Recreational Harvest Estimation Methods: The Australasian Experience

Fisheries managers are becoming increasingly aware of the need to quantify all forms of harvest, including that by recreational fishers. This need has been driven by both a growing recognition of the potential impact that noncommercial fishers can have on exploited resources and the requirement to allocate catch limits between different sectors of the wider fishing community in many jurisdictions. Marine recreational fishers are rarely required to report any of their activity, and some form of survey technique is usually required to estimate levels of recreational catch and effort. In this review, we describe and discuss studies that have attempted to estimate the nature and extent of recreational harvests of marine fishes in New Zealand and Australia over the past 20 years. We compare studies by method to show how circumstances dictate their application and to highlight recent developments that other researchers may find of use. Although there has been some convergence of approach, we suggest that context is an important consideration, and many of the techniques discussed here have been adapted to suit local conditions and to address recognized sources of bias. Much of this experience, along with novel improvements to existing approaches, have been reported only in "gray" literature because of an emphasis on providing estimates for immediate management purposes. This paper brings much of that work together for the first time, and we discuss how others might benefit from our experience.

The culture digitally festival of memeology: An introduction

The collection of essays set to roll out on Culture Digitally over the next month began its life as a pair of panels spanning the last two annual meetings of the International Communication Association. At the 2014 meetings in Seattle, Washington and the 2015 meetings in San Juan, Puerto Rico, various configurations of the contributors in this collection met to discuss the cultures and communicative practices associated with internet memes and viral media. Our shared goal was to bring smart people together to start to think about these digital media genres—still emerging only a few years ago and now seemingly ubiquitous—above the level of the individual example. Together, we asked questions about how internet memes and viral media might be defined, their roles in popular culture, their relationships to far older scientific and scholarly traditions, and their public implications. Two years and two discussions that ended too quickly later, we decided to write up some of our key arguments from the panels. We’ve compiled these write-ups here, in what we’ve taken to calling “The Culture Digitally Festival of Memeology.” - See more at: http://culturedigitally.org/2015/10/00-the-culture-digitally-festival-of-memeology-an-introduction-ryan-m-milner-jean-burgess/#sthash.2KzDogso.dpuf

The distribution and abundance of electrosensory pores in two benthic sharks: a comparison of the wobbegong shark, Orectolobus maculatus, and the angel shark, Squatina australis

Electroreception is an ancient sense found in many aquatic animals, including sharks, which may be used in the detection of prey, predators and mates. Wobbegong sharks (Orectolobidae) and angel sharks (Squatinidae) represent two distantly related families that have independently evolved a similar dorso-ventrally compressed body form to complement their benthic ambush feeding strategy. Consequently, these groups represent useful models in which to investigate the specific morphological and physiological adaptations that are driven by the adoption of a benthic lifestyle. In this study, we compared the distribution and abundance of electrosensory pores in the spotted wobbegong shark (Orectolobus maculatus) with the Australian angel shark (Squatina australis) to determine whether both species display a similar pattern of clustering of sub-dermal electroreceptors and to further understand the functional importance of electroreception in the feeding behaviour of these benthic sharks. Orectolobus maculatus has a more complex electrosensory system than S. australis, with a higher abundance of pores and an additional cluster of electroreceptors positioned in the snout (the superficial ophthalmic cluster). Interestingly, both species possess a cluster of pores (the hyoid cluster, positioned slightly posterior to the first gill slit) more commonly found in rays, but which may be present in all benthic elasmobranchs to assist in the detection of approaching predators.

Intergenerational Perceptions and Conflicts in Multi-Age and Multigenerational Work Environments

One underappreciated consequence of the aging population phenomenon is that we are now experiencing what is arguably the most age-diverse workforce in modern history (Hanks & Icenogle, 2001; Newton, 2006; Toossi, 2004). As our workforce continues to age, shifts in the age demographic composition (i.e., the age diversity) of organizations and their subunits will become more apparent (Roth, Wegge, & Schmidt, 2007). Several factors have influenced and will continue to drive this trend. For example, in Western countries, younger people entering the workforce are more educated than ever before (Hussar & Bailey, 2013; Ryan & Siebens, 2012; Stoops, 2003) and could feasibly rise to positions of power in organizations more quickly than others have in the past (e.g., promotion rates vary as a function of age) (Rosenbaum, 1979; see also Clemens, 2012 conceptualization of the "fast track effect"). Furthermore, older workers are increasingly delaying retirement beyond the normative retirement age (Baltes & Rudolph, 2012; Burtless, 2012; Flynn, 2010), and already retired individuals are seeking re-employment in bridge employment roles in higher numbers than before (e.g., Adams & Rau, 2004; Kim & Feldman, 2000; Weckerle & Shultz, 1999).

Population dynamics of Thaumastocoris peregrinus in Eucalyptus plantations of South Africa

Thaumastocoris peregrinus is a sap-sucking insect that infests non-native Eucalyptus plantations in Africa, New Zealand, South America and parts of Southern Europe, in addition to street trees in parts of its native range of Australia. In South Africa, pronounced fluctuations in the population densities have been observed. To characterise spatiotemporal variability in T. peregrinus abundance and the factors that might influence it, we monitored adult population densities at six sites in the main eucalypt growing regions of South Africa. At each site, twenty yellow sticky traps were monitored weekly for 30 months, together with climatic data. We also characterised the influence of temperature on growth and survival experimentally and used this to model how temperature may influence population dynamics. T. peregrinus was present throughout the year at all sites, with annual site-specific peaks in abundance. Peaks occurred during autumn (February–April) for the Pretoria site, summer (November–January) for the Zululand site and spring (August–October) for the Tzaneen, Sabie and Piet Retief monitoring sites. Temperature (both experimental and field-collected), humidity and rainfall were mostly weakly, or not at all, associated with population fluctuations. It is clear that a complex interaction of these and other factors (e.g. host quality) influence population fluctuations in an annual, site specific cycle. The results obtained not only provide insights into the biology of T. peregrinus, but will also be important for future planning of monitoring and control programs using semiochemicals, chemical insecticides or biological control agents.

On linear order and computation : The expressiveness of interactive computations on linear orders and computations indexed by ordinals

We solve the Dynamic Ehrenfeucht-Fra\"iss\'e Game on linear orders for both players, yielding a normal form for quantifier-rank equivalence classes of linear orders in first-order logic, infinitary logic, and generalized-infinitary logics with linearly ordered clocks. We show that Scott Sentences can be manipulated quickly, classified into local information, and consistency can be decided effectively in the length of the Scott Sentence. We describe a finite set of linked automata moving continuously on a linear order. Running them on ordinals, we compute the ordinal truth predicate and compute truth in the constructible universe of set-theory. Among the corollaries are a study of semi-models as efficient database of both model-theoretic and formulaic information, and a new proof of the atomicity of the Boolean algebra of sentences consistent with the theory of linear order -- i.e., that the finitely axiomatized theories of linear order are dense.

Drug discovery approaches utilizing three-dimensional cell culture

Historically, two-dimensional (2D) cell culture has been the preferred method of producing disease models in vitro. Recently, there has been a move away from 2D culture in favor of generating three-dimensional (3D) multicellular structures, which are thought to be more representative of the in vivo environment. This transition has brought with it an influx of technologies capable of producing these structures in various ways. However, it is becoming evident that many of these technologies do not perform well in automated in vitro drug discovery units. We believe that this is a result of their incompatibility with high-throughput screening (HTS). In this study, we review a number of technologies, which are currently available for producing in vitro 3D disease models. We assess their amenability with high-content screening and HTS and highlight our own work in attempting to address many of the practical problems that are hampering the successful deployment of 3D cell systems in mainstream research.

Changes in preservice teachers’ personal epistemologies

While much has been written about the relationship between personal epistemologies and learning-teaching approaches, outcomes, and intentions, little has focused specifically on these relationships in the context of teacher education. This chapter addresses changes in preservice teachers’ personal epistemologies by overviewing this emerging body of research and arguing for a new approach to conceptualizing and supporting changes in personal epistemologies based on reflexivity. The overview includes definitions of key concepts and research traditions that have been used since the 1970s and a discussion of the emerging role of epistemic justification as a key mechanism of change in the process of belief development.