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This quasi-experimental, pre-post study with non-equivalent comparison groups explores the potential for resequencing of course content to affect positive change in an undergraduate, introductory statistics course at a mid-sized, flagship university that is located in a southern state. Quantitative analyses suggest that the implementation of resequencing not only expands content coverage, but also improves student success rates, student learning, and student perceptions of the course. These findings, filling a gap in the statistics education literature, point to resequencing as one possible curriculum design that might improve student outcomes and further the future investigation of content sequencing in statistics and related disciplines.

Large-scale declines of grassland ecosystems in the conterminous United Stales since European settlement have led to substantial loss and fragmentation of lesser prairie-chicken Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) habitat and decreased their occupied range and population numbers by ~85%. Breeding season space use is an important component of lesser prairie-chicken conservation, because it could affect both local earning capacity and population dynamics. Previous estimates of breeding season space use are largely limited to one of the four currently occupied ecoregions, but potential extrinsic drivers of breeding space use, such as landscape fragmentation, vegetation structure and composition, and density of anthropogenic structures, can show large spatial variation. Moreover, habitat needs vary greatly among the lekking/prelaying, nesting, brood-rearing, and postbreeding stages of the breeding season, but space use by female lesser prairie-chickens during these stages remain relatively unclear. We tested whether home range area and daily displacement (the net distance between the first and last location of each day) of female lesser prairie-chickens varied among ecoregions and bleeding stages at four study sites in Kansas and Colorado, U.S.A., representing three of the four currently occupied ecoregions. We equipped females with very-high-frequency (YHF) or Global Positioning System (GPS) transmitters, and estimated home range area with kernel density estimators or biased random bridge models, respectively. Across all ecoregions, breeding season home range area averaged 190.4 ha ([+ or -]19.1 ha SE) for birds with VHF and 283.6 ha ([+ or -]23.1 ha) for birds with GPS transmitters, whereas daily displacement averaged 374.8 m ([+ or -]14.3 m). Average home range area and daily displacement of bird with GPS transmitters were greater in the Short-Grass Prairie/Conservation Reserve Program Mosaic and Sand Sagebrush Prairie Ecoregions compared to sites in the Mixed-Crass Prairie Kroregion. Home range area and daily displacement were greatest during lekking/prelaying and smallest during the brood-rearing stage, when female movements were restricted by mobility of chicks. Ecoregion- and breeding stage-specific estimates of space use by lesser prairie-chickens will help managers determine the spatial configuration of breeding stage-specific habitat on the landscape. Furthermore, ecoregion-and breeding stage-specific estimates are crucial when estimating the amount of breeding habitat needed for lesser prairie-chicken populations to persist., INTRODUCTION Since European settlement, grassland ecosystems in the conterminous United States have seen large-scale declines in their extent and quality (Samson and Knopf, 1994; Hoekstra et al, 2005; Augustine et [...]

Income-based childcare programs provide children access to developmentally appropriate and vocabulary-rich literacy experiences. For this study, participating U.S. Head Start Centers requested families complete a weekly home literacy log to encourage vocabulary-rich shared book reading activities in the home. Using participant characteristics, including literacy log competition, this study examined which factors adequately predicted vocabulary growth as measured by Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test–Fourth Edition standard scores. Results indicated that vocabulary increased significantly for children who were enrolled in participating Head Start pre-kindergarten (Pre-K) programs. Important predictors of the magnitude of vocabulary growth during an academic year included sex, language(s) spoken in the home, and completion of home literacy logs. Clinical implications of this study would warrant recommending home literacy logs as a component of holistic Head Start programming, as completion of literacy logs emerged as an important variable in predicting the magnitude of vocabulary growth second only to race and sex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medium viscosity strongly affects the dynamics of solvated species and can drastically alter the deactivation pathways of their excited states. This study demonstrates the utility of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) as a room-temperature solid-state medium for optical spectroscopy. As a thermoset elastic polymer, PDMS is transparent in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared spectral regions. It is easy to mould into any shape, forming surfaces with a pronounced smoothness. While PDMS is broadly used for the fabrication of microfluidic devices, it swells in organic solvents, presenting severe limitations for the utility of such devices for applications employing non-aqueous fluids. Nevertheless, this swelling is reversible, which proves immensely beneficial for loading samples into the PDMS solid matrix. Transferring molecular-rotor dyes (used for staining prokaryotic cells and amyloid proteins) from non-viscous solvents into PDMS induces orders-of-magnitude enhancement of their fluorescence quantum yield and excited-state lifetimes, providing mechanistic insights about their deactivation pathways. These findings demonstrate the unexplored potential of PDMS as a solid solvent for optical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Objective: The study aimed to 1) examine relationships between contexts of PA, personality traits, and high school sports participation (sports) and 2) determine significant PA correlates in a college population. Participants: 237 undergraduates at a university in the United States between September 2020 and May 2021 participated. Methods: Participants completed a survey evaluating PA, personality traits, sports, and demographic variables. Pearson partial correlations assessed correlations between different PA domains, personality traits, and sports. Conscientiousness was positively associated with all PA measures (r = .14-.30), except for active transport PA. Sports were related to vigorous and leisure PA. Conscientiousness is related to PA measures and is a significant PA correlate. However, more research is necessary to understand if leisure time PA can enhance Conscientiousness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last two years, agencies have experimented with new systems and tactics to reach as many people as possible with critical preparedness information. This paper describes how COVID-19 forced FEMA Region 10 to adapt its public education and outreach strategy to a fully online space in order to keep the public informed about potential disasters. The paper discusses how the Individual and Community Preparedness team at FEMA Region 10 reaches thousands of people around the world by hosting regular webinars, live events, workshops and training sessions, and publishing a monthly newsletter. The paper also argues that if preparedness and response organisations are to evolve their outreach strategies and messaging plans and extend the reach of their messages, they must continue to adapt and to meet their target audience where they are. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Canada, sexual and gender minority youth use opioids at disproportionately high rates. Yet, little is known about the distinct contexts of opioid use within this group, challenging capacity to develop well founded policy and practice supports. This case study aims to examine – in depth – the experiences and contexts of opioid use among a sample of four sexual and gender minority youth in Vancouver, Canada. Qualitative data from photovoice methods and in-depth, semi-structured interviews were collected in 2019. Analysis adopted a reflexive thematic approach from a critical interpretive standpoint, informed by minority stress theory. Three interconnected themes were constructed: (i) minoritised contexts of entry into and continuation of opioid use; (ii) mental health-maintaining and stress-mitigating effects of opioid use in the context of minoritisation; and (iii) intersections of stigma, violence and poverty with opioid use and minoritisation. Findings suggest that the health of sexual and gender minority youth who use opioids is shaped by minority stress and overlapping forms of structural marginalisation. They signal the need for responsive strategies that hold promise in supporting this population, including advancing integrated approaches to substance use and mental health care alongside interventions targeted towards the social and structural determinants of health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Law enforcement agencies continue to grow in the use of spatial analysis to assist in identifying patterns of outcomes. Despite the critical nature of proper resource allocation for mental health incidents, there has been little progress in statistical modeling of the geo-spatial nature of mental health events in Little Rock, Arkansas. In this article, we provide insights into the spatial nature of mental health data from Little Rock, Arkansas between 2015 and 2018, under a supervised spatial modeling framework. We provide evidence of spatial clustering and identify the important features influencing such heterogeneity via a spatially informed hierarchy of generalized linear, tree-based, and spatial regression models, viz. the Poisson regression model, the random forest model, the spatial Durbin error model, and the Manski model. The insights obtained from these different models are presented here along with their relative predictive performances. The inferential tools developed here can be used in a broad variety of spatial modeling contexts and have the potential to aid both law enforcement agencies and the city in properly allocating resources. We were able to identify several built-environment and socio-demographic measures related to mental health calls while noting that the results indicated that there are unmeasured factors that contribute to the number of events. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population declines of disturbance‐dependent species due to suppression of natural disturbances are realized across ecosystems. The piping plover (Charadrius melodus; plover), a disturbance‐dependent and conservation‐reliant shorebird that nests on sandy beaches and barrier islands on the Atlantic Coast, was listed under the United States Endangered Species Act in 1986. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy landed on Fire and Westhampton islands, barrier island nesting sites for plovers in New York, USA. Hurricane Sandy was a natural disturbance in this system, creating abundant nesting habitat. The number of chicks produced by a pair, or a population, is a direct measure of reproductive output, and gaining a better understanding of productivity and chick behavior following large‐scale habitat creation may improve plover habitat management and potentially species persistence. We evaluated the effects of landscape features on habitat selection, behavior, and survival of plover broods using logistic regression, generalized linear mixed effects models, and survival models. Plover broods selected flatter sites with less dense vegetation than available at random. Chick foraging rates were highest in moist substrates and were lower in areas of higher nesting plover density. Chick survival was greater for broods that hatched earlier in the breeding season and increased as chicks aged. Generally, providing access to sites with flatter, moist substrates will likely result in higher quality brood rearing habitat on the landscape. Ultimately, vegetation removal and habitat management may be needed to reduce plover nesting density and ensure sufficient habitat, which may in turn improve plover chick survival. Moreover, sustaining natural landscape disturbances such as those resulting from storms, and not taking actions to prevent hurricane‐created overwash, will allow these landscape features to persist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the heart rate synchrony between a single couple in emotionally focused therapy (EFT) as a method of measuring coregulatory effects over the course of treatment. A clinician who is an EFT certified therapist, supervisor, and trainer administered all eight sessions in a private practice setting. Surrogate synchrony analysis assessed heart rate synchrony between partners, indicating that significant heart rate synchrony was more likely over time. Significant heart rate synchrony was more likely during sessions that focused on clients' sharing attachment injuries, bonds, and longings with their partner compared to sessions more focused on cognitive processing of the relationship. Additionally, there were delays in heart rate synchrony that occurred between the couple, which may be indicative of the emotional processing speed of the empathic response of each partner. Understanding the physiological synchrony patterns between dyads in treatment could clarify the potential of coregulation in the therapeutic process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]