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A growing number of U.S. cities have large numbers of untested sexual assault kits (SAKs) in police property facilities. Testing older kits and maintaining current case work will be challenging for forensic laboratories, creating a need for more efficient testing methods. Methods: We evaluated selective degradation methods for DNA extraction using actual case work from a sample of previously unsubmitted SAKs in Detroit, Michigan. We randomly assigned 350 kits to either standard or selective degradation testing methods and then compared DNA testing rates and CODIS entry rates between the two groups. Results and conclusions: Continuation-ratio modeling showed no significant differences, indicating that the selective degradation method had no decrement in performance relative to customary methods. Follow-up equivalence tests indicated that CODIS entry rates for the two methods could differ by more than ±5%. Selective degradation methods required less personnel time for testing and scientific review than standard testing.

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects up to 20% of women but remains poorly understood. It is a heterogeneous condition with many potential comorbidities. This review offers an overview of the dysregulation of the reproductive and metabolic systems associated with PCOS. Review of the literature informed the development of a comprehensive summarizing ‘wiring’ diagram of PCOS-related features. This review provides a justification for each diagram aspect from the relevant academic literature, and explores the interactions between the hypothalamus, ovarian follicles, adipose tissue, reproductive hormones and other organ systems. The diagram will provide an efficient and useful tool for those researching and treating PCOS to understand the current state of knowledge on the complexity and variability of PCOS.

Objective: The purpose of this study was twofold: first, to evaluate a typical pediatric diagnostic audiology report to establish its readability and comprehensibility for parents and, second, to revise the report to improve its readability, as well as the comprehension, sense of self-efficacy, and positive opinions of parent readers.Method: In Experiment 1, a mock audiology report was evaluated via a readability analysis and semistructured interviews with 5 parents. In Experiment 2, the report was revised using best practice guidelines and parental recommendations from Experiment 1. The revision was verified by randomly assigning 32 new parent participants to read either the revised or unrevised report before their comprehension, self-efficacy, and opinions were assessed. Results: In Experiment 1, results confirmed that the report was difficult to read and understand. In Experiment 2, parents who read the revised report had significantly greater comprehension, self-efficacy, and opinion ratings than those who read the unrevised report. In addition, the readability of the revised report was markedly improved compared with the unrevised report.Conclusions: This study shows that pediatric diagnostic audiology reports can be revised to adhere to best practice guidelines and yield improved readability, in addition to improving the comprehension, sense of self-efficacy, and positive opinions of parents of children with hearing impairment.

Resilient Pedagogy offers a comprehensive collection on the topics and issues surrounding resilient pedagogy framed in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the social justice movements that have swept the globe. As a collection, Resilient Pedagogy is a multi-disciplinary and multi-perspective response to actions taken in different classrooms, across different institution types, and from individuals in different institutional roles with the purpose of allowing readers to explore the topics to improve their own teaching practice and support their own students through distance, disruption, and distraction.

College students have long used community-based practices such as study halls, review sessions, study groups, homework buddies, and the like as academic strategies to support their learning (Hogan, 1999; Madland & Richards, 2019; Thalluri et al., 2014). With increased access to online conferencing capabilities, working in community has been adapted by faculty who have used the technology to participate in virtual write-on-sites, writing retreats and writing sprints. Thus, it is no surprise that both faculty and learning centers saw the potential for creating virtual spaces for students to work together.

Objectives: There has been a substantial increase in people with health conditions seeking health-related information online. The aim of this study was to examine the media usage by older adults with hearing loss.Method: The study used a cross-sectional survey design. A total of 556 older adults with hearing loss (Hearing Tracker website users) completed the survey that was focused on (a) demographic information, (b) general electronic media usage, (c) sources of hearing health information, and (d) social media use for hearing health information. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests.Results: When seeking hearing health care information, the majority of the participants turned to the Internet (54%) followed by health professionals (34%) as the first response to their symptoms. Both sources were also rated as the easiest means of obtaining hearing health information. The information from health care providers was rated as more reliable and important for decision making than that from the Internet. Facebook and YouTube were the most frequently used social media platforms with over 40% of the respondents using them “most of the time” or “sometimes.” All the social media platforms were rated less favorably than other sources for ease of finding information, reliability, and importance in decision making.Conclusion: Older adults with hearing loss use various forms of electronic media for seeking hearing health information. They place the most trust on the information obtained from hearing health care professionals. These professionals need to be aware of the quality of information available on the Internet and social media sources in order to direct patients to credible sources.Supplemental Material S1. Electronic media usage survey. Manchaiah, V., Bellon-Harn, M. L., Kelly-Campbell, R. J., Beukes, E. W., Bailey, A., & Pyykkő, I. (2020). Media use by older adults with hearing loss: An exploratory survey. American Journal of Audiology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1044/2020_AJA-19-00039

Rebecca Campbell is a PhD candidate in the Department of English at the University of Western Ontario.

The presence of a toxic strain of a fine filamentous cyanobacterium belonging to the Oscillatorialean family Pseudanabaenacea was detected during a survey of cyanobacterial taxa associated with the presence of cylindrospermopsin in dams in Central Queensland (Australia). The strain, AC0243, was isolated and cultured, its genomic DNA extracted and 16S RNA gene sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis placed AC0243 with Limnothrix species, although this genus appears polyphyletic. Moreover, not all morphological characters are consistent with this genus but more closely fit the description of Geitlerinema unigranulatum (R.N. Singh) Komárek and Azevedo. The potential toxic effects of AC0243 extract were assessed chemically and biologically. Cell free protein synthesis was inhibited by the extract. Exposure of Vero cells to the extract resulted in a significant reduction in cellular ATP levels following 24-72 h incubation. The presence of cylindrospermopsin was excluded based on the nature of responses obtained in cell and cell-free assays; in addition, (i) it could not be detected by HPLC, LC-MS, or immunological assay, and (ii) no genes currently associated with the production of cylindrospermopsin were found in the genome. Other known cyanobacterial toxins were not detected. The apparent novelty of this toxin is discussed. Refereed/Peer-reviewed