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We set out to determine the rate, time-trend, and defining factors associated with publication of abstracts presented at two annual scientific meetings of the Canadian Association of Radiation Oncology (caro). All abstracts accepted for oral presentation in 2007 and 2010 were obtained from the caro program archives and searched using the PubMed database. Variables in the dataset included the year of presentation at caro and of publication in a scientific journal, time to publication (in months), publishing journal, impact factor of publishing journal, abstract research type (clinical, technical, or basic science) and disease site, country of origin, and university of the first author. Overall, 88 of 172 abstracts from the 2007 (n = 102) and 2010 (n = 70) caro meetings were published in peer-reviewed journals (publication rate: 51.2%). Mean time to publication was 18.5 months. Among research types, clinical research (62.5%) and, among disease sites, prostate cancer (40.4%) were most likely to be published. Of all the abstracts, 50.1% were contributed by only 2 universities, a proportion that resembles the overall abstract publication rate of 51.2%. The conversion rate for those 2 universities (51.1%) is very similar to that for all abstracts presented at the two meetings. Half the abstracts presented at the 2007 and 2010 caro meetings were ultimately published in journals indexed in PubMed by about 1.5 years after presentation. Half the abstracts and publications came from just 2 universities, more must to be done to close the gap.

We examined the impact of television viewing at ages 3 and 4 on vocabulary and at age 5 on executive functioning in the context of home learning environment and parental scaffolding. Children (N = 263) were seen in the lab when they were 3 years old and then again at ages 4 and 5. Parents completed measures assessing child television viewing and the home environment at ages 3 and 4, and mother-child interaction was observed during a problem-solving task. At age 5, children completed measures of vocabulary and executive functioning. Results indicated that although the amount of television viewing was negatively related to vocabulary and executive functioning, this association was no longer significant once background variables, home learning environment, and parental scaffolding were taken into consideration. Parental scaffolding emerged as a primary predictor of vocabulary above demographic covariates. Implications of the research are discussed in terms of recommendations for parents regarding television viewing by preschool children.