Recession, debt and mental health: challenges and solutions

Background During the economic downturn, the link between recession and health has featured in many countries' media, political, and medical debate. This paper focuses on the previously neglected relationship between personal debt and mental health.Aims Using the UK as a case study, this paper considers the public health challenges presented by debt to mental health. We then propose solutions identified in workshops held during the UK Government's Foresight Review of Mental Capital and Wellbeing.Results Within their respective sectors, health professionals should receive basic 'debt first aid' training, whilst all UK financial sector codes of practice should - as a minimum - recognise the existence of customers with mental health problems. Further longitudinal research is also needed to 'unpack' the relationship between debt and mental health. Across sectors, a lack of co-ordinated activity across health, money advice, and creditor organisations remains a weakness. A renewed emphasis on co-ordinated 'debt care pathways' and better communication between local health and advice services is needed.Discussion The relationship between debt and mental health presents a contemporary public health challenge. Solutions exist, but will require action and investment at a time of competition for funds.     

Arts integration in rural Minnesota: A collaborative arts integration framework

In this article, we demonstrate that arts integration holds unique promise and benefits for helping rural teachers to provide more equitable arts opportunities for their students. These benefits include: professional network development in the service of both curricular development for arts integration and connecting teachers who often work in isolation; additional funding to allow for collaborative planning; and introduction to arts experiences and cultural resources for use in arts-integrated unit planning and implementation. We describe the Perpich Arts Integration Project—an innovative, state-funded program centered on a Collaborative Arts Integration Framework in three rural regions of Minnesota. Then, through data collected via a three-year longitudinal program documentation and evaluation, we describe several themes that we have identified about the implementation of arts integration in rural schools. Finally, we will describe a series of considerations and implications for rural schools seeking to implement such a program in the future.     

Bridging the gap: How the National Core Arts Standards forge the divide between the arts and assessment-based learning

ABSTRACT

This article is a review and thematic analysis of the 2014 National Core Arts Standards (NCAS). Historically, there exists a gap between the arts and assessment-based educational practices. Thematic analysis of the NCAS reveals a policy striving to bridge the gap between the way arts educators envision arts in schools, and the current reality of assessment-based schooling in the United States. This policy could become the foundation for the recognition of the arts as academically rigorous subject matter, capable of existing and thriving in an assessment-oriented world; it remains to be seen as to how and if arts educators will use and adapt NCAS. Is the NCAS merely a symbolic policy or does it have the support behind it to be a material policy that truly creates change in the educational system?     

Decreased cutaneous vasodilation in aged skin: mechanisms,consequences and interventions

Aged men and women respond to both local heating of the skin and to increased body core temperature (T_c) with an attenuated rise in skin blood flow (SkBF). While aerobic capacity (V_O2max), acclimation status, hydration, diseases and medications all influence SkBF, the relative inability of aged skin to vasodilate appears to be a primary consequence of advanced age. (2) Prolonged local heating elicits a lower maximal SkBF in older individuals, presumably reflecting structural changes in the cutaneous vessels. The decline in maximal SkBF is relatively linear from age 10 to 85 yr. Mechanistic changes underlying this decrement (e.g., the role of nitric oxide and sensory nerves) have not been elucidated. (3) Reflex increases in SkBF in response to increasing T_c are likewise attenuated in aged skin. Augmented noradrenergic vasoconstriction plays little or no role in this response; rather decreased active vasodilator sensitivity coupled with the aforementioned structural changes combine to limit the SkBF at a given T_c. (4) In addition to aerobic training, heat acclimation, and other countermeasures, unopposed exogenous estrogen has been shown to increase SkBF at a given T_c in postmenopausal women. Estrogen increases the SkBF at a given T_c by shifting the threshold for onset of vasodilation to a lower T_c, i.e., by directly affecting hypothalamic control. Peripheral effects are minimal. (5) While the primary purpose of increasing human SkBF in hyperthermic conditions is heat transfer and dissipation, the principle challenge of aged individuals exposed to passive heat stress is not to thermal homeostasis, but rather to cardiovascular homeostasis.     

Habitat destruction and the extinction debt revisited: The Allee effect

Habitat destruction, often caused by anthropogenic disturbance, can lead to the extinction of species at an unprecedented rate. It is important, therefore, to consider habitat destruction when assessing population viability. Another factor often ignored in population viability analysis, is the Allee effect that adds to the risk of populations already on the verge of extinction. Understanding the Allee effect on species dynamics and response to habitat destruction has intrinsic value in conservation prioritization. Here, the Allee effect was considered in a multi-species hierarchical competition model. Results showed that species persistence declines dramatically due to the Allee effect, and certain species become more susceptible to habitat destruction than others. Two extinction orders emerged under habitat destruction: either the best competitor becomes extinct first or the best colonizer first. The extinction debt and order, as well as the time lag between habitat destruction and species extinction, were found to be determined by species abundance and the intensity of the Allee effect.     

Powerful allies: Arts educators and early childhood educators joining forces on behalf of young children

ABSTRACT

Arts educators and early childhood educators espouse similar philosophies and purposes surrounding young children's educational lives, yet continue to function in largely separate worlds. This article calls for the creation of intentional alliances between the two disciplines, by first recognizing and embracing these alignments. In addition, this article provides recommendations for arts educators and early childhood educators to consider as they join forces to ensure that all young children have access to high-quality arts-based education.     

Language policy,language ideology,and visual art education for emergent bilingual students

ABSTRACT

In 1968 the Bilingual Education Act marked the first comprehensive federal intervention in the schooling of language minoritized students by creating financial incentives for bilingual education in an effort to address social and educational inequities created by poverty and linguistic isolation in schools. Since that time federal education policies related to language instruction for emergent bilingual students have undergone a number of shifts that reflect changing ideological perspectives on language and citizenship. These shifts, in turn, frame seemingly neutral educational requirements for preservice and practicing art educators related to language and visual art instruction, implicating art educators in ideological stances toward students and families who primarily speak languages other than English. This article reviews the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in its most recent reauthorization as the Every Student Succeeds Act, and offers insight into ideological implications of standards and assessments that impact art educator preparation and art teaching practices with regard to language in the art classroom, including the National Core Arts Standards and the Education Teacher Performance Assessment. Implications regarding ways art education, framed by ideological policies, might support or undermine social and educational inequities educational policies are intended to address are discussed.     

Evidence for a possible extinction debt in Swiss wetland specialist plants

1. Habitat loss leading to smaller patch sizes and decreasing connectivity is a major threat to global biodiversity. While some species vanish immediately after a change in habitat conditions, others show delayed extinction, that is, an extinction debt. In case of an extinction debt, the current species richness is higher than expected under present habitat conditions.
2. We investigated wetlands of the canton of Zürich in the lowlands of Eastern Switzerland where a wetland loss of 90% over the last 150 years occurred. We related current species richness to current and past patch area and connectivity (in 1850, 1900, 1950, and 2000). We compared current with predicted species richness in wetlands with a substantial loss in patch area based on the species‐area relationship of wetlands without substantial loss in patch area and studied relationships between the richness of different species groups and current and historical area and connectivity of wetland patches.
3. We found evidence of a possible extinction debt for long‐lived wetland specialist vascular plants: in wetlands, which substantially lost patch area, current species richness of long‐lived specialist vascular plants was higher than would have been expected based on current patch area. Additionally and besides current wetland area, historical area also explained current species richness of these species in a substantial and significant way. No evidence for an extinction debt in bryophytes was found.
4. The possible unpaid extinction debt in the wetlands of the canton of Zürich is an appeal to nature conservation, which has the possibility to prevent likely future extinctions of species through specific conservation measures. In particular, a further reduction in wetlands must be prevented and restoration measures must be taken to increase the number of wetlands.

     

A Levalloisian jasper cache from the Arts Bogdyn Nuruu massif in the Gobi Altai Mountains,southern Mongolia

A Pleistocene deposit of jasper cores was discovered in the Gobi Altai Mountains, within the Arts Bogdyn Nuruu massif in southern Mongolia. It was situated on a mountain ridge above the Khutul Usny valley at a height of ca. 1500 m a.s.l., away from human settlement (N44°16′09.3″, E102°53′41.5″). Examination of traces of the artefacts’ use proved that at least some of them display evidence of working. Technological analysis of the artefacts revealed that the find should be related to the Levallois-Mousterian population of the central Asian Middle Palaeolithic. The cache from Arts Bogdyn Nuruu is the first discovery of this type recorded within the Gobi Desert. It is a potential source of information contributing to the discussion of the specific nature of raw material exploitation, the dynamics of settlement and hunting strategies in the Altai region.     

Conservation,protected areas and the global economic system: how debt,trade, exchange rates,inflation and macroeconomic policy affect biological diversity

The main characteristics of the dominant economic system, including the increasing use of markets and money are described. The global system has expanded trade, including international trade, and production tremendously. While this system has the potential to favour nature conservation, in practice the opposite has occurred. Difficulties raised for conservation of biodiversity by short-term economic crises such as deficits in a country's international payments, the adoption of policies for structural economic adjustment, international capital flows, international loans and foreign aid as well as debt-for-nature swaps are discussed. As explained, it is politically difficult in market economies to support nature conservation at the expense of economic growth and as more economies develop and become market economies this problem spreads. Given global interdependence of nations, an important issue is the distribution of net benefits from biodiversity conservation between developed and less developed countries. Possible distributions of benefits and related issues are discussed. In conclusion, the importance of political lobbying by nature conservation groups in developed market economies is emphasised as a means of ensuring correction of market failures. Unfortunately, no economic system is likely to prove satisfactory in itself in conserving biodiversity so political action by conservationists is always required.     

Bioenergy Plants: Hopes,Concerns and Prospectives

There are major concerns over both the security of energy supplies (declining supplies and political control) and the environmental costs associated with energy generation and use.The global consumption of carbon-containing fossil fuels for     

Vitamin D deficiency in children with cerebral palsy: A narrative review of epidemiology,contributing factors,clinical consequences and interventions

Sufficient vitamin D levels are necessary, not only for mineralization, normal growth and development of bones, but also for the prevention of fatal chronic diseases like diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome and cancer. This is of particular importance in children with neuro- and musculoskeletal disorders, especially cerebral palsy (CP). CP is a heterogeneous group of childhood developmental disability disorders described by uncharacteristic posture, balance, and movement. Patients with CP are at an increased risk of vitamin D deficiency and as a result reduced bone mineral density, bone fragility, osteopenia, and rickets. The present review aims to combine and summarize available evidence, regarding the epidemiology, underlying contributing factors, clinical consequences, and treatment interventions of vitamin D deficiency in children with CP.     

Chronotype,class times,and academic achievement of university students

Numerous studies over the years have documented an effect of human chronotypes on physiological and psychological processes. Studies evaluating the impact of an individual’s chronotype on his/her academic achievement have indicated that morning chronotypes have an academic advantage over evening chronotypes. However, these studies did not account for the time of day in which the participants were being evaluated. The goal of the present study was to examine whether morning chronotypes do have an academic advantage over evening chronotypes when the time of day of classes and exams is taken into consideration. We obtained morningness–eveningness scores and course grades from 207 university students who took classes (and exams) at different times of the day. We confirmed that morning chronotypes attain better grades than evening chronotypes, although the association is weak (r² = 0.02). The difference persisted even after the time of day of classes and exams was taken into consideration. This is probably due to the fact that evening chronotypes are generally more sleep deprived than morning chronotypes as a result of the early schedule of most schools, which can impair their performance both early and late in the day.     

Conceptions of meiosis: misunderstandings among university students and errors

We have designed and tested an exercise to detect misconceptions among students about meiosis, a fundamental concept in genetics. A total of 30 students responded to a questionnaire, all of whom were in the fifth semester of the Biology bachelor’s degree program offered by the Faculty of Science of the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Our analysis showed that students have a poor understanding of the fundamental processes of meiosis and that they have trouble distinguishing them. When asked to diagram part of the process, none were able to produce a complete and accurate representation.