Department Public Denfense Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Department Public Denfense Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Homeland Security & Emergency Management Division Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Public Health Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Public Health Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Public Safety Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Revenue and Finance Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Transportation Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Veterans Home Performance Report, FY 2004

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Department of Transportation Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System Performance Report, FY 2005

Agency Performance Report

Coordination pattern variability provides functional adaptations to constraints in swimming performance.

In a biophysical approach to the study of swimming performance (blending biomechanics and bioenergetics), inter-limb coordination is typically considered and analysed to improve propulsion and propelling efficiency. In this approach, 'opposition' or 'continuous' patterns of inter-limb coordination, where continuity between propulsive actions occurs, are promoted in the acquisition of expertise. Indeed a 'continuous' pattern theoretically minimizes intra-cyclic speed variations of the centre of mass. Consequently, it may also minimize the energy cost of locomotion. However, in skilled swimming performance there is a need to strike a delicate balance between inter-limb coordination pattern stability and variability, suggesting the absence of an 'ideal' pattern of coordination toward which all swimmers must converge or seek to imitate. Instead, an ecological dynamics framework advocates that there is an intertwined relationship between the specific intentions, perceptions and actions of individual swimmers, which constrains this relationship between coordination pattern stability and variability. This perspective explains how behaviours emerge from a set of interacting constraints, which each swimmer has to satisfy in order to achieve specific task performance goals and produce particular task outcomes. This overview updates understanding on inter-limb coordination in swimming to analyse the relationship between coordination variability and stability in relation to interacting constraints (related to task, environment and organism) that swimmers may encounter during training and performance.

Neuromotor performance of normally developing left-handed children and adolescents.

Neuromotor functioning - i.e., timed performance and quality of movements - was examined in 66 left-handed children and adolescents between 5 and 18.5 years by means of the Zurich Neuromotor Assessment. Quality of movements was assessed by the degree and the frequency of associated movements. Results were compared to normative data from 593 right-handers. The overall scores for timed motor performance were similar for left-handers and right-handers, while left-handers had more associated movements than right-handers with both sides. In agreement with previous studies in adults, we found that left-handed children were less lateralized than right-handers. They performed faster with their non-dominant side and slower with their dominant side. This finding was roughly independent of age, which may indicate that handedness does not reflect long-term effects of previous motor experience, but may be primarily attributed to genetic factors.