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An animal's diet breadth is a central aspect of its life history, yet the factors determining why some species have narrow dietary breadths (specialists) and others have broad dietary breadths (generalists) remain poorly understood. This challenge is pronounced in herbivorous insects due to incomplete host plant data across many taxa and regions. Here, we develop and validate machine learning models to predict pollen diet breadth in bees, using a bee phylogeny and occurrence data for 682 bee species native to the United States, aiming to better understand key drivers. We found that pollen specialist bees made an average of 72.9% of their visits to host plants and could be predicted with high accuracy (mean 94%). Our models predicted generalist bee species, which made up a minority of the species in our dataset, with lower accuracy (mean 70%). The models tested on spatially and phylogenetically blocked data revealed that the most informative predictors of diet breadth are plant phylogenetic diversity, bee species' geographic range, and regional abundance. Our findings also confirm that range size is predictive of diet breadth and that both male and female specialist bees mostly visit their host plants. Overall, our results suggest we can use visitation data to predict specialist bee species in regions and for taxonomic groups where diet breadth is unknown, though predicting generalists may be more challenging. These methods can thus enhance our understanding of plant-pollinator interactions, leading to improved conservation outcomes and a better understanding of the pollination services bees provide.

Associating different aspects of experience with discrete events is critical for human memory. A potential mechanism for linking memory components is phase precession, during which neurons fire progressively earlier in time relative to theta oscillations. However, no direct link between phase precession and memory has been established. Here we recorded single-neuron activity and local field potentials in the human medial temporal lobe while participants (n = 22) encoded and retrieved memories of movie clips. Bouts of theta and phase precession occurred following cognitive boundaries during movie watching and following stimulus onsets during memory retrieval. Phase precession was dynamic, with different neurons exhibiting precession in different task periods. Phase precession strength provided information about memory encoding and retrieval success that was complementary with firing rates. These data provide direct neural evidence for a functional role of phase precession in human episodic memory.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is not a new concept. Still, the press, the worry, and the hype around the potential benefits and limitations of the explosion of these tools in this field is a current topic in teacher education. In this article, the authors summarize the past use of AI, present easily adaptable tools in teacher education, and discuss what is on the horizon in industry and special education teacher education. The authors highlight tools that should be considered in programs today, followed by ways to expand the field of AI in teacher education to support the learning outcomes of struggling students.

Derivative fiction is a genre of fiction that involves writing or reading about or within the worlds of previously established works. People often do not realize it, but many works of classic literature are, in their own ways, derivative fiction of other stories entirely. Dante’s Inferno is a derivative work based on The Bible, for example, but in addition to that, much of Arthurian legend—including all of Sir Lancelot’s legends, and the existence of Sir Lancelot in the first place—comes from derivative works, sometimes even from other countries such as France (which is where Sir Lancelot’s stories all come from). Even Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is based on an Italian play called The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet, but while the original play framed the deaths of the main characters as caused by their not listening to their parents, Shakespeare changed the ending and other parts of the story to focus on tragic love (Spencer et al.). Even nowadays, derivative works are popular—the superhero comic book industry, for example, is almost entirely derivative fiction, seeing as how almost all comic books nowadays (that are about the big-name superheroes, at least) are written by people who did not create the original characters, showing their own takes on popular figures like Superman, Batman, and Spiderman, and the worlds around them.

This article is premised on the idea that storytelling and storytelling pedagogies have material and ethico-political implications for children and those with whom they share the world - in the small moments of their everyday experiences and in how they are read, written, and positioned as inheritors of social worlds and cultural narratives. Accordingly, in the context of an outdoor literacy program for young children, conducted over two summers, we consider the pedagogies enacted in two storied play encounters and the stories told with/in them. We ask, "What stories composed the material-discursive worlds of the children's play?" and "What kinds of worlds were animated through the storied play?" The study is guided by posthuman socio-material assemblage perspectives that understand the human and more-than-human world as existing in non-hierarchical relation to one another. Our analysis engages with the concept of mycelia, making the case for the mycelial network, rather than the rhizome (a mainstay of post-qualitative educational research over the past two decades or more) as a methodological construct. Our findings, presented as two troubled stories of contaminated diversity, animate in/visible encounters in the storied worlds of settler futurity and what we come to call emergent reciprocity. Through an exploration of these entanglements, we ultimately make the arguments that the stories we tell in a particular place shape what ensues in that place "and" that the re/storying of such narratives (both larger cultural narratives and moment-to-moment play narratives) offer possibility for being and doing otherwise in that place.

This mixed-methods study explores the relationship between early elementary students' domain-specific vocabulary knowledge and their ability to comprehend grade-level reading passages on unfamiliar science topics. Specifically, this study used (a) structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the extent to which students' networks of domain-specific vocabulary knowledge in Grades 1 and 2 mediated the effects of a Tier 1 content-based literacy intervention on domain-specific reading comprehension scores in Grade 2 (N = 2,156); and (b) quantitative survey and qualitative interview data from teachers (N = 48) to surface new themes about teacher vocabulary instruction that might suggest potential explanations for the SEM findings. SEM analysis revealed that students' domain-specific vocabulary knowledge in first and second grade explained 69% of the treatment effect on a domain-specific reading comprehension outcome. Results from the quantitative survey also indicated that treatment group teachers reported providing more incidental exposures to vocabulary than control teachers (effect size = 0.54), and qualitative analyses revealed that teachers with high incidental exposures tended to provide expanded opportunities for their students to engage with words and to connect words to topics. Findings from this mixed-method study paint a more complete picture of (a) the important role domain-specific vocabulary knowledge plays in facilitating reading comprehension transfer in the domain of science, and (b) what teachers do during vocabulary instruction to promote transfer in domain-specific reading comprehension.

Superior rodent management is critical to preserve the diversity of wildlife, and to mitigate environmental and social damage. Pest management strategies can employ 21st century methods to balance the human-animal conflict, especially regarding rodents. Non-toxic fertility control has several advantages over the use of poison when the following parameters are true: 1) rate of removal exceeds rate of population increase; 2) compounds do not bioaccumulate in the rodents or the environment; 3) non-lethal method targets both males and females; 4) animals can be detected at low densities; 5) cost analysis favors fertility control over lethality; 6) method has socio-political acceptance. Our fertility control system meets each of these requirements. Utilizing plant-root-based extracts from Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F, we have formulated a proprietary rodent feed pellet that is efficacious in reducing mice and rat populations in multiple settings. The pellets target rodents with a population reduction capacity of 98% that is sustainable over 12 months. The cost of the pellet solution is less than 90% of other fertility control products, and less than 47% of poison products. The functional key to the success of fertility-control approaches is optimizing feeding protocols to achieve maximum population reduction. We have developed an application-based system to provide sustainable cost-effective management. The monitoring system captures consumption and feeder service data. Point-of-entry data validation is enforced. Compliance with the service program is monitored and configurable alerts are issued for outlying events. These data are ingested into a data analytics engine which generates real-time dashboards for oversight and analysis. Administrative features provide user management, project definition and configuration. In-line instructional documentation and pellet supply order forms provide support for field technicians. As a 501(c)3 non-profit charity we are funded by Open Philanthropy to provide the rigorous data sets presented: a 21st century solution to rodent management.

The primary aim of this manuscript is to describe the process of developing a reliable and valid instrument for measuring all users, including students with disabilities, sense of presence in a virtual environment. Presence can be described as feeling a part of another place other than where you are. A seven-step process is discussed and was utilized to validate item and response formats. Original items were written based on the proposed population and the intended presence construct. Focus groups and experts were conducted to validate the instruments' ability to address the concept of presence. Further focus groups were utilized to verify language and references were accurate to participants. Finally, a pilot study consisting of 30 participants aged eight and older was conducted to test the instrument for initial reliability. The 30 participants used a device with a virtual environment and then completed the Technology Immersion Presence Scale (TIPS). Initial results indicate the TIPS is a reliable and valid measure of presence for most users with and without disabilities from age 8 to 65. Implications of validating TIPS are discussed.

Virtual reality (VR) is an innovative technology that is rapidly gaining popularity in and out of the classroom. With improvements in hardware and software technology and the push for one-to-one computing, teachers have access to innovative VR supports and resources. These innovative technologies have the potential to improve instruction for diverse learners in today's classroom, particularly students with identified disabilities. VR, as an interactive and visual tool, provides teachers with the ability to support and enhance traditional classroom materials for students, particularly those with disabilities. However, teacher time is often compromised and finding new technology can be daunting. This article intends to assist educators in utilizing VR in the classroom, with minimal effort and money. Using a detailed vignette, we guide the reader through a detailed example of how VR apps can be located and implemented for students with disabilities who struggle with motivation and engagement through experiential learning. Finally, we offer additional apps and their delivery devices as a starting point for teachers to begin creating more immersive and interactive content through VR technology.

Virtual reality (VR) has evolved to include non-immersive to fully-immersive experiences for the classroom. This study seeks to understand the potential effects VR may offer, specifically characteristics associated with how a student experiences a VR intervention and the effects of using a VR device for learning. A group experimental design was used to compare a fully-immersive VR intervention and an identical non-immersive VR intervention for a group of middle school participants with ASD (N = 22). Participants were randomly assigned a screen-based VR experience or a head-mounted display VR experience through rolling randomization. Results indicate that while the more immersive condition did not produce higher acquisition than the non-immersive condition, both device conditions did produce significant increases in learning.

This activity provides students with a way of understanding expectancy violations theory (EVT) by examining incidents that occurred during televised award shows. In this activity, in small groups, students will delve into well-known award-show incidents, such as Will Smith's slapping of Chris Rock at the 2022 Academy Awards, to understand the events leading up to the incident, what happened at the time of the event, and the repercussions occurring after. Using this information, students will work through the components of EVT to enhance their understanding of the theory and its lens through which to view relationships. This activity allows students to use their familiarity with pop culture to gain a greater understanding of EVT in order to better utilize the theory when examining their own interpersonal relationships. Courses: Introduction to Mass Media Communication, Interpersonal Communication, Mass Media Theory and Criticism, Organizational Communication. Objectives: Students will understand the principles of EVT; be able to explain EVTs components (expectancy, communicator reward valance, and violation valence); and be able to apply EVT to examples of interpersonal interactions.

Northern myotis Myotis septentrionalis are one of the bat species most affected by white-nose syndrome (WNS), and disease-induced declines may cause compounding effects when combined with other threats such as habitat loss and fragmentation. Recent evidence suggests that peripheral populations are persisting in post-WNS years; however, the environmental factors that influence the occurrence of this species along the Atlantic Coastal Plain are virtually unknown. We conducted a large-scale acoustic survey on 3 islands: Long Island, New York, and Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, Massachusetts, USA, and used a multi-scale occupancy modeling approach to determine the landscape and abiotic factors affecting the distribution of northern myotis. Our estimates of occupancy and detection probability suggest widespread presence across the islands. At the local (200 m) scale, we identified strong negative effects of development on Long Island and Nantucket and a strong positive effect of forest habitat on Martha’s Vineyard. None of the variables we measured sufficiently explained the landscape (1 km2) occupancy of this species, which was very high (ψ = 0.81-0.97), representing an outlier for this species in the post-WNS landscape. The lack of association at the landscape scale suggests that general differences in land cover are not a driving factor of higher occupancy of peripheral northern myotis populations, while local site-specific conditions may be supporting critical foraging or roosting habitat. Because islands are particularly vulnerable to human-driven habitat alteration due to the constraint of limited space, and development pressure is expected to increase, this study provides a baseline to enable managers to assess the effects of future environmental disturbances and monitor population trends to support long-term survival of northern myotis.

RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM) is a plant-specific de novo methylation pathway that is responsible for maintenance of asymmetric methylation (CHH, H = A, T or G) in euchromatin. Loci with CHH methylation produce 24 nucleotide (nt) short interfering (si) RNAs. These siRNAs direct additional CHH methylation to the locus, maintaining methylation states through DNA replication. To understand the necessary conditions to produce stable methylation, we developed a stochastic mathematical model of RdDM. The model describes DNA target search by siRNAs derived from CHH methylated loci bound by an Argonaute. Methylation reinforcement occurs either throughout the cell cycle (steady) or immediately following replication (bursty). We compare initial and final methylation distributions to determine simulation conditions that produce stable methylation. We apply this method to the low CHH methylation case. The resulting model predicts that siRNA production must be linearly proportional to methylation levels, that bursty reinforcement is more stable and that slightly higher levels of siRNA production are required for searching DNA, compared to RNA. Unlike CG methylation, which typically exhibits bi-modality with loci having either 100% or 0% methylation, CHH methylation exists across a range. Our model predicts that careful tuning of the negative feedback in the system is required to enable stable maintenance.

Working with a group of Alberta Grade 1 and 2 teachers we have observed and heard described several of the complexities they face in practicing well amidst multiple and competing dimensions of contemporary literacy instruction. The outcomes-driven machinery of their provincial context, their school district’s system for communicating classroom assessments, and the increasing dominance of synthetic phonics are factors the teachers note as constraining their knowledge, skills, and ways of being/doing, and that of their students. When these material expectations are positioned against other commitments to literacy education and diverse ways of being/becoming literate they both intend a certain future and serve as reminders of literacy education’s philosophical and practical “trouble without end” (Tsing, 2015, p. 2). Conceptualizing instructional contexts and practices as research assemblages, the study in which this paper is based investigates how early elementary teachers work at, with, and within the current conditionings of school-based literacy practices. Drawing on teacher interviews, photographs from within literacy teaching and learning situations (Snaza, 2019), and extended observations with a Grade 1 French Immersion teacher and class, the purpose of this paper is to explore liveable possibilities in reading, writing, and language instruction for the “right now” of literacy education (Kuby et al., 2019). Focusing on examples in which teachers seek “and…and…and…” pedagogies (Deleuze & Guattari, 1987, p. 25) our purpose is not to settle the troubled waters of literacy education but to trace contours of possibility as teachers encounter literacy education’s boxes and boundaries and exceed their confines. We follow teachers’ material and social participation in curricular attentions to affect and cultivations of newness as a practice of care for and curiosity about a shared world in early elementary literacy instruction.

By Marceleen Mosher. All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, edited by Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Dr. Katharine K. Wilkinson, is an anthology for anyone looking to turn away from the brink of disaster and toward a life-affirming future for all of Earth’s inhabitants. The collection brings forward the feminist voices of people at the forefront of the climate movement, weaving together creativity and science through essays, poems, and art that face the existential threat of climate change head-on while illuminating a way out of our current mess with energy, humility, and a spirit of collective action.

Objective Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may need to access rheumatology care between scheduled visits. WelTel is a virtual care platform that supports secure two‐way text‐messaging between patients and their health care team. The objective of the present study was to explore perspectives and experiences of health care providers (HCPs) and patients related to the use of WelTel as an adjunct to routine care. Methods Seventy patients with RA were enrolled in a six‐month WelTel pilot project launched in September 2021. Patients received monthly “How are you?” text message check‐ins and could message their health care team during clinic hours to request health advice. The current project is a qualitative study of the WelTel pilot. A subgroup of pilot participants was purposively sampled and invited to participate in interviews. A thematic analysis of transcripts was conducted using a deductive approach leveraging quality of care domains. Results Thirteen patients (62% female, mean age 62 years, 10 White) completed interviews. Patients’ views suggested that text messaging with the rheumatology team supported high‐quality care across multiple quality domains including patient‐centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, safety, effectiveness, equity, and appropriateness. Seven HCPs (57.1% female, one pharmacist and six rheumatologists) completed interviews. HCPs' perspectives varied based on their experience with the WelTel platform. Additional themes reported by HCPs included perceived increased workload and burnout. Conclusions Patients with RA perceived text‐based messaging as supporting high‐quality care. The impact of increased communications on HCP burnout and workload requires consideration, and future studies should evaluate the effect of texting on patient outcomes.

Abstract Background Measuring antimicrobial use is a core component of antimicrobial stewardship. Purchasing data may be easier to obtain than prescription data in some situations, but differences in clinic size, caseload and collection timeframes must be considered. Objective Our objective was to evaluate purchases of systemic antibacterial agents by small animal veterinary facilities in 5 networks across 3 countries, using a mg/veterinarian full time equivalent (FTE)/week as the metric. Methods Data were obtained from purchasing records of 2194 veterinary facilities from networks from the United States (US, n = 3: US‐A, 1036 facilities; US‐B, 101 facilities; US‐C, 886 facilities), Canada (n = 1: 117 facilities) and the United Kingdom (UK, n = 1: 54 facilities) during 2019‐2021. Results In total, 20 020 269 767 mg (20.02 t) of antimicrobials were purchased. Overall differences between the UK and North America were driven by significantly higher purchases of amoxicillin‐clavulanic acid in the UK (P

Abstract Background The development of the in vitro cell culture model has greatly facilitated the ability to study gene expression and regulation within human tissues. Within the human uterus, the upper (fundal) segment and the lower segment may provide distinct functions throughout pregnancy and during labour. We have established primary cultured human myometrial cells, isolated from both upper and lower segment regions of the pregnant human uterus, and validated them for the purpose of studying human pregnancy and labour. The specific objectives of this study were to monitor the viability and characterize the expression profile using selected cellular, contractile and pregnancy associated markers in the primary cultured human myometrial cells. Labour has been described as an inflammatory process; therefore, the ability of these cells to respond to an inflammatory stimulus was also investigated. Methods Myometrial cells isolated from paired upper segment (US) and lower segment (LS) biopsies, obtained from women undergoing Caesarean section deliveries at term prior to the onset of labour, were used to identify expression of; α smooth muscle actin, calponin, caldesmon, connexin 43, cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2), oxytocin receptor, tropomyosin and vimentin, by RT-PCR and/or immunocytochemistry. Interleukin (IL)-1β was used to treat cells, subsequently expression of COX-2 mRNA and release of interleukin-8 (CXCL8), were measured. ANOVA followed by Bonferroni’s multiple comparisons test was performed. Results We demonstrate that US and LS human myometrial cells stably express all markers examined to at least passage ten (p10). Connexin 43, COX-2 and vimentin mRNA expression were significantly higher in LS cells compared to US cells. Both cell populations respond to IL-1β, demonstrated by a robust release of CXCL8 and increased expression of COX-2 mRNA from passage one (p1) through to p10. Conclusions Isolated primary myometrial cells maintain expression of smooth muscle and pregnancy-associated markers and retain their ability to respond to an inflammatory stimulus. These distinct myometrial cell models will provide a useful tool to investigate mechanisms underlying the process of human labour and the concept of functional regionalization of the pregnant uterus.

This systematic literature review was conducted to explore the social validity of augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR) as a means of providing social skill instruction to students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Forty-one articles met the inclusion criteria, including five studies utilizing AR and the remaining 36 utilizing VR for social skill interventions. No studies implemented MR. The targeted skills of the studies included emotion recognition, relationship skills, social awareness, cooperation, and executive functioning. The intervention was considered effective in 63% of studies, not effective in 10% of studies, and mixed results in 27% of studies. The social validity indicators reported by researchers ranged from two to 14 of 17 determined categories. Findings indicate the primary socially valid reasons for utilizing AR/VR for social skill instruction were high student motivation toward the intervention and a positive attitude toward the technology. Findings indicate that increasing the role of parents, educators, and students as both social skill selectors and treatment agents and adding valid and reliable skill measures may improve the effects of an intervention. Sustainability may increase by providing training to both treatment agents and participants. AR has the potential to improve generalization and VR provides a practice environment for performance deficits. Combining these technologies may provide a more effective social skill intervention.

SUMMARY: We present a new compilation and analysis of broad-band ocean bottom seismometer noise properties from 15 yr of seismic deployments. We compile a comprehensive data set of representative four-component (seismometer and pressure gauge) noise spectra and cross-spectral properties (coherence, phase and admittance) for 551 unique stations spanning 18 U.S.-led experiments. This is matched with a comprehensive compilation of metadata parameters related to instrumentation and environmental properties for each station. We systematically investigate the similarity of noise spectra by grouping them according to these metadata parameters to determine which factors are the most important in determining noise characteristics. We find evidence for improvements in similarity of noise properties when grouped across parameters, with groupings by seismometer type and deployment water depth yielding the most significant and interpretable results. Instrument design, that is the entire deployed package, also plays an important role, although it strongly covaries with seismometer and water depth. We assess the presence of traditional sources of tilt, compliance, and microseismic noise to characterize their relative role across a variety of commonly used seismic frequency bands. We find that the presence of tilt noise is primarily dependent on the type of seismometer used (covariant with a particular subset of instrument design), that compliance noise follows anticipated relationships with water depth, and that shallow, oceanic shelf environments have systematically different microseism noise properties (which are, in turn, different from instruments deployed in shallow lake environments). These observations have important implications for the viability of commonly used seismic analysis techniques. Finally, we compare spectra and coherences before and after vertical channel tilt and compliance noise removal to evaluate the efficacy and limitations of these now standard processing techniques. These findings may assist in future experiment planning and instrument development, and our newly compiled noise data set serves as a building block for more targeted future investigations by the marine seismology community.