Search

Spiritual Dimensions in the Music of Edmund Rubbra. By Lucinda Cradduck. Abingdon, Eng.: Routledge, 2023. [xiii, 282 p. ISBN 9780367635374 (hardcover), $160; ISBN 9781003119555 (ebook), $49.49.] Music examples, illustrations, bibliography, [...]

This qualitative case study explored the perceptions of struggling students who identified as first- generation, low-income, and/or Students of Color (i.e., Historically Excluded Groups), and their beliefs about success, struggle, and characteristics of supportive instructors. Thematic analysis revealed student participants understood academic success and struggle in terms of "Identifying Performance Measures," "Developing a Growth Mindset," and "Integrating Knowledge." Students identified supportive instructors by using one or more of the following themes, which were described using in vivo codes: "Creates More Motivation for Me," "Puts the Joy into Learning," "Doesn't Make You Feel Dumb," "Not Here to Hurt Your Grades," "Makes Material Understandable," "Treats Us as More Than Just Students," and "If I Ever Needed Anything." Implications for practice include expanding the definition of academic success and engaging specific instructor dispositions and behaviors to better support these students.

Teacher education's primary goal is to train prospective teachers, which differs from study programmes, such as philosophy or mathematics, that do not cater to defined professions. This traditional understanding of the teaching profession becomes apparent when students ask: 'How is this content, topic, method, task, or question relevant to school work?' It is also reflected in the inclusion of practical school training in teacher education curricula. In Austria's teacher training, these practical elements are accompanied by theoretical and methodological teaching foundations. However, students often question the applicability of theoretical knowledge to the teaching profession, which creates tension between the academic and pedagogical orientations. This paper discusses these very theory-practice tensions in teacher education based on findings from the project Habitus.Power.Education, which involved student teachers at an Austrian university. We argue that teacher training at universities is neither merely a place for producing a future workforce nor a self-growth space without purpose. Teacher training, rather, combines both (sometimes ambivalent) elements: education in its broadest sense and professional training. Using our empirical material, we show that the theory-praxis gap manifests in the tension between academic and pedagogical orientation. To address and mediate this tension, we propose the concept of habitus reflexivity. Promoting such a form of reflexivity among students makes it possible to bridge the gap between the different logics of university and school. Furthermore, it helps to comprehend inequality and power imbalances in the education system and develop agency, which is essential for navigating the ever-changing and complex world of modern schools.

Abstract Objective Ultra-marathon running races are held as distance-limited or time-limited events, ranging from 6 h to 10 days. Only a few runners compete in 10-day events, and so far, we have little knowledge about the athletes’ origins, performance, and event characteristics. The aim of the present study was to investigate the origin and performance of these runners and the fastest race locations. A machine learning model based on the XG Boost algorithm was built to predict running speed from the athlete´s age, gender, country of origin, country where the race takes place, the type of race and the kind of running surface. The model explainability tools were then used to investigate how each independent variable would influence the predicted running speed. Results The model rated the origin of the athlete as the most important predictor, followed by age group, running on dirt path, gender, running on asphalt, and event location. Running on dirt path led to a significant reduction of running speed, while running on asphalt showed faster running speeds compared to other surfaces. Most athletes came from USA, followed by Russia, Germany, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Most of the runners competed in USA. The fastest 10-day runners were from Finland and Israel. The fastest 10-day races were held in Greece. Conclusions Most 10-day runners originated from USA, but the fastest runners originate from Finland and Israel. The fastest race courses were in Greece. Running on dirt paths leads to a significant reduction in running speed while running on asphalt leads to faster running speeds.

Abstract Ultramarathon running is of increasing popularity, where the time-limited 24-hour run is one of the most popular events. Although we have a high scientific knowledge about different topics for this specific race format, we do not know where the best 24-hour runners originate from and where the fastest races are held. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the origin of these runners and the fastest race locations. A machine learning model based on the XG Boost algorithm was built to predict running speed based on the athlete´s age, gender, country of origin and the country where the race takes place. Model explainability tools were used to investigate how each independent variable would influence the predicted running speed. A sample of 171,358 race records from 63,514 unique runners from 73 countries participating in 24-hour races held in 57 countries between 1807 and 2022 was analyzed. Most of the athletes originated from the USA, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Russia, Australia, Austria, and Canada. Tunisian athletes achieved the fastest average running speed, followed by runners from Russia, Latvia, Lithuania, Island, Croatia, Slovenia, and Israel. Regarding the country of the event, the ranking looks quite similar to the participation by the athlete, suggesting a high correlation between the country of origin and the country of the event. The fastest 24-hour races are recorded in Israel, Romania, Korea, the Netherlands, Russia, and Taiwan. On average, men were 0.4 km/h faster than women, and the fastest runners belonged to age groups 35–39, 40–44, and 45–49 years. In summary, the 24-hour race format is spread over the world, and the fastest athletes mainly originate from Eastern Europe, while the fastest races were organized in European and Asian countries.

OBJECTIVE: There are few studies on intestinal parasitic infections in elderly populations. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of intestinal parasites and identify the association between this prevalence and the sociodemographic, environmental, and health factors of the elderly attended by the Family Health Strategy (FHS). METHOD: This cross-sectional study involved the analysis of data collected from a random sample of elderly individuals. Community health workers drafted a general questionnaire to collect epidemiological data. The project team also collected blood and stool samples at the healthcare unit where each individual was enrolled. RESULTS: Among 581 elderly people, the prevalence of intestinal parasites was 10.8%. The parasites found were as follows: Endolimax nana (42.7%), Entamoeba coli (33.8%), Giardia lamblia (8.8%), Ascaris lumbricoides (5.9%), Strongyloides stercoralis (4.4%), Trichuris trichiura (2.9%), and Iodamoeba bütschlii (1.5%). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of intestinal parasites in elderly persons was lower than that reported in other studies, and the parasites identified were predominantly non-pathogenic. The findings suggest the possibility that interpersonal transmission, environmental contamination, or the ingestion of contaminated food or water is occurring in this population. These findings also highlight the importance of the ongoing implementation of sanitation and hygiene education programs in this community.

Purpose This study aimed to verify participation and performance in all road and trail-based races in Switzerland over two decades (1999–2019). Methods This is a secondary data-based study. We used 1,149,182 race records (788,818 from men and 360,364 from women) from 407,944 unique finishers of the 5 km, 10 km, half-marathon, marathon, and ultra-marathon races in Switzerland, between 1999 and 2019. Data included the athletes’ genders, ages, race distances, and types of races (road or trail). The mento- women ratio was calculated and box plots were used to present differences according to gender, age groups, and race distances in both terrains. Differences between the groups were calculated. Results The men-to-women ratio has generally decreased in all race distances over the years. Runners competing in roadbased races were faster than those in a trail run in all distances. Men had faster finish times than women independent of age, except those competing in 10 km trail races. In road-based races, the men-to-women ratio was higher among older marathoners, while for trail runs, a higher men-to-women ratio was shown for older half-marathoners and participants in 10 km races. For 5 km, 10 km, half-marathon, and ultra-marathon races, a decrease in running speed differences was shown until the age of 50 years. Conclusions In Switzerland, most of the runners competed in road-based races, but the interest in trail running has increased. The men-to-women ratio declined over time, which could show an increase in the interest of women to participate in endurance activities.

Abstract Background Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) are benign tumors of the vestibulocochlear nerve that often cause significant neurological and functional impairment. Patient-reported outcomes, including quality of life (QoL), are essential for understanding the overall impact of VS and its treatment. This study aimed to translate and culturally adapt the Vestibular Schwannoma Quality of Life (VSQOL) Index into German to expand its relevance to German-speaking populations. Methods We used a qualitative approach including translation and cognitive interviews with 10 patients who underwent VS surgery. The translation process followed the TRAPD protocol to ensure linguistic and conceptual accuracy. Cognitive interviews assessed the comprehensibility and relevance of the translated questionnaire. Results The translation showed remarkable consistency between translators, with minor discrepancies resolved by consensus. Cognitive interviews provided valuable insights that led to refinements in item wording. Participants emphasized the importance of an additional item on physician referrals, reflecting differences in health care systems between the United States and Germany. Conclusions The German VSQOL provides a comprehensive tool for assessing QoL in patients with VS that integrates patient-centered dimensions. A Validation study is underway to establish its reliability and validity.

Attitudes towards inclusion (ATI) are regarded as an important aspect for the implementation of inclusive education. Yet, explicit measures of ATI have some limitations. Single-target implicit association tests (ST-IAT) provide an opportunity to an implicit ATI measure based on differences in reaction times. However, this can be a time-consuming procedure. The present study is a replication and extension of the study 'Implicitly measuring attitudes towards inclusive education: a new attitude test based on single-target implicit associations' by investigating reliability of a shortened version of the ST-IAT Inclusion. Prior studies did not investigate the reliability continuously, nor did they consider different ways of calculating the ST-IAT effect size (D-score). In this study, data from 594 university students are analysed to evaluate the reliability of a shortened ST-IAT Inclusion. Results show that the reliability of the shortened ST-IAT is good and in line with findings on reliability of other ST-IAT procedures. However, the difference between several D-score procedures was rather marginal. Altogether, the shortened ST-IAT Inclusion can provide an economic and reliable measure for ATI.

BackgroundChildren with medical complexity represent a heterogeneous group of children with multiple chronic health care conditions. Caregivers of children with medical complexity experience a high intensity of caregiving that is often variable, extends across several networks of care, and often lasts for the entirety of the child’s life. The spillover, or indirect, economic impacts of caregiving are understudied in the context the family units of children with medical complexity. There have been recognized limitations to the sole use of quantitative methods when developing economic models of disease, because they lack direct caregiver voice and context of caregiving activities, and existing methods have been noted to be ableist. ObjectiveThis study aimed to explore the economic spillover impacts of caregiving among families of children with medical complexity using their own words and perspectives, with the intent of expanding caregiver-centered perspectives when developing economic models. MethodsThis study was a secondary analysis of a qualitative study that was conducted to examine family management practices among caregivers of children with medical complexity and their social networks. Caregivers of children with medical complexity were recruited through a pediatric complex care clinic at an academic medical center in the mid-Atlantic region, United States. This study used inductive qualitative descriptive methods and a template to define features of the person impacted and to define the economic construct as either a direct or indirect (spillover) cost. ResultsA total of 20 caregivers were included in this study. Perspectives from the caregivers of children with medical complexity revealed several key themes: (1) time lost from employment, impacting the primary caregivers; (2) physical and mental health impacts, impacting the child themselves, siblings, and the primary caregivers; (3) impacts to leisure activities and self-care, impacting the child themselves, siblings, and the primary caregivers; and (4) impacts to the social network or social capital. ConclusionsThe themes described can be operationalized into inclusive family-centered models that represent the impacts of caregiving in the context of the family units of children with medical complexity. The use of qualitative methods to expand our development of quantitative economic models can be adapted to other populations where caregivers are involved in care. Caregivers can and should have an active voice in preference-based assessments that are operationalized in economic contexts to make them more inclusive. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)RR2-10.2196/14810

Abstract The electrochemical performance of cathode materials in Li‐ion batteries is reflected in macroscopic observables such as the capacity, the voltage, and the state of charge (SOC). However, the physical origin of performance parameters are atomistic processes that scale up to a macroscopic picture. Thus, revealing the function and failure of electrochemical devices requires a multiscale (and ‐time) approach using spectroscopic and microscopic techniques. In this work, we combine near‐edge X‐ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy (NEXAFS) to determine the chemical binding state of transition metals in LiNi0.6Co0.2Mn0.2O2 (NCM622), electrochemical strain microscopy to understand the Li‐ion mobility in such materials, and nanoindentation to relate the mechanical properties exhibited by the material to the chemical state and ion mobility. Strikingly, a clear correlation between the chemical binding, the mechanical properties, and the Li‐ion mobility is found. Thereby, the significant relation of chemo‐mechanical properties of NCM622 on a local and global scale is clearly demonstrated.

Summary: Background: Rhabdomyosarcoma and other soft tissue sarcomas (STS) with high-risk features are still associated with an unsatisfactory outcome. We evaluated the efficacy of oral maintenance therapy added at the end of standard therapy in patients with high-risk rhabdomyosarcoma and STS. Methods: CWS-2007-HR was a multicentre, open-label, randomised controlled, phase 3 trial done at 87 centers in 5 countries. Eligible patients were those aged 6 months to 21 years with non-metastatic incompletely resected embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma occurring in unfavourable sites with unfavourable age (≥10 years) and/or tumour size (>5 cm); all non-metastatic alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma and those with any non-metastatic rhabdomyosarcoma with nodal involvement. A further group was also eligible: patients with non-metastatic undifferentiated sarcoma, extraskeletal Ewing sarcoma and primary unresected synovial sarcoma. Patients in complete remission at the end of standard therapy (nine cycles of ifosfamide, vincristine with doxorubicine or dactinomycin, and surgery or radiotherapy, or both) were randomised to either stop treatment (S-arm) or to receive oral maintenance therapy (M-arm) with eight 10-day courses (25 weeks) of trofosfamide (2 × 75 mg/m2/day) and idarubicin (1 × 5 mg/m2/day 1,4,7,10) alternating with trofosfamide and etoposide (2 × 25 mg/m2/day). The primary outcome was event-free survival (EFS) and the secondary outcome was overall survival (OS) in the intent-to treat population. This trial is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT00876031, and, EudraCT 2007-0001478-10. Findings: Between July 1st, 2009 and June 30th, 2019, 195 patients were randomly assigned to the M-arm (n = 96) or S-arm (n = 99). In the intent-to-treat population, with a median follow-up of 5.2 years (IQR 3.9–6.1) for surviving patients, the 3-year EFS in the M-arm was 66.9% (95% CI 58.1–77.2) versus 75.6% (67.6–84.6) in the S-arm (hazard ratio, (HR) 1.62, 95% CI 0.98–2.69, p = 0.06). 3-year OS was 82.8% (95% CI 75.4–90.8) in the M-arm versus 84.7% (95% CI 77.8–92.1) in the S-arm (HR 1.55, 95% CI 0.84–2.89, p = 0.17). Grade 3–4 adverse events were haematological in 66% of patients, febrile infections in 6%, gastrointestinal in 10%, and sensory neuropathy in 1%. Interpretation: The addition of 25 weeks of oral maintenance therapy with trofosfamide, etoposide and idarubicin after standard therapy does not improve EFS and OS in patients with high-risk rhabdomyosarcoma and other STS. Funding: Deutsche Kinderkrebsstiftung Grant No.DKS 2009.09, DKS 2012.06, DKS 2015.13, DKS 2018.10 and DKS 2021.04.

Purpose: Antarctic expeditions are exceptional physiological challenges. Sleep plays a critical role in athletic performance, recovery, and wellness, with sleep disturbances having a negative impact on health and performance. Methods: The authors investigated sleep, fatigue, and recovery profiles of the longest solo unsupported one-way polar ski journey across Antarctica. A 33-year-old woman covered 1484.53 km from Hercules Inlet to the South Pole, finishing at the Ross Ice Shelf, in 70 days and 16 hours. Questionnaires on sleep (Pittsburgh Insomnia Rating Scale and Karolinska Sleepiness Scale), fatigue (Subjective Assessment of Fatigue), recovery (Total Quality Recovery), and wellness were completed at different time points (before, during, and after the expedition). Results: Average daily sleep time was between 4 and 5 hours, increasing to 7 hours for the final part of the expedition. Satisfaction of sleep and lack of energy deteriorated as the expedition progressed, alongside signs of clinical insomnia. Fatigue and muscle soreness increased with increasing milage, with extreme levels and very poor recovery toward the end of the expedition. Despite this, the adventurer continued to perform on extremely high levels. Postexpedition scores returned to baseline, demonstrating the incredible adaptation and ability to recovery. The postexpedition interview showed that prior experience of an Antarctic expedition may have prepared the athlete and made her more resilient for this challenge. Conclusions: The data provide unique insights into Antarctic expeditions and may help us understand the limits of human performance when planning future expeditions of this nature. Female athletes are capable of extreme challenges, breaking established performance boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]