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In this paper we present an empirical case study into the effects\ud of attending a philosophy conference on social skill development in 15- to 18-year-old students. We focus on the impact that the conference had on their communication skills, sociability, cooperation and teamwork skills, self-confidence, determination, social responsibility, and empathy. These are social skills previously studied in 2017 by Siddiqui et al. who found student development in these areas as a result of Philosophy for Children (P4C) sessions in primary schools. In this paper, we ask whether our conference—Pursuit of Knowledge—brought about comparable results. Overall, attendees reported that they felt that the conference had improved their communication skills, sociability, cooperation and teamwork, self-confidence, determination, social responsibility and empathy. We conclude that further research into the potential of models of philosophy akin to the model employed by the conference should be conducted. We discuss the potential of this model as a means of educating for social skills.

AIM: To investigate the interdependence between risk factors associated with long-term intellectual development in individuals with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). METHOD: The Tuberous Sclerosis 2000 Study is a prospective longitudinal study of individuals with TSC. In phase 1 of the study, baseline measures of intellectual ability, epilepsy, cortical tuber load, and mutation were obtained for 125 children (63 females, 62 males; median age=39mo). In phase 2, at an average of 8 years later, intellectual abilities were estimated for 88 participants with TSC and 35 unaffected siblings. Structural equation modelling was used to determine the risk pathways from genetic mutation through to IQ at phase 2. RESULTS: Intellectual disability was present in 57% of individuals with TSC. Individuals without intellectual disability had significantly lower mean IQ compared to unaffected siblings, supporting specific genetic factors associated with intellectual impairment. Individuals with TSC who had a slower gain in IQ from infancy to middle childhood were younger at seizure onset and had increased infant seizure severity. Structural equation modelling indicated indirect pathways from genetic mutation, to tuber count, to seizure severity in infancy, through to IQ in middle childhood and adolescence. INTERPRETATION: Early-onset and severe epilepsy in the first 2 years of life are associated with increased risk of long-term intellectual disability in individuals with TSC, emphasizing the importance of early and effective treatment or prevention of epilepsy. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: Intellectual disability was present in 57% of individuals with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). Those with TSC without intellectual disability had significantly lower mean IQ compared to unaffected siblings. Earlier onset and greater severity of seizures in the first 2 years were observed in individuals with a slower gain in intellectual ability. Risk pathways through seizures in the first 2 years predict long-term cognitive outcomes in individuals with TSC.

Conservation practice has sometimes been criticized for relying on simplistic assumptions about social contexts in natural resource management. Despite recent advances conceptualizing the interface between human well-being and the environment, very few studies moving from theory to practice exist. We address this gap by providing one of the first careful examinations of local conceptualizations of well-being in a conservation context, using mixed methods to examine the multidimensionality and heterogeneity of well-being conceptualizations across three sites in northern Cambodia. Each site faced different levels of conservation activities and development pressures, the latter being mainly linked to the degree of impact from economic land concessions. Our results highlight village context as a key line of variation in individual well-being, rather than differences related to age, gender, or wealth. Our results suggest that conservation incentives that mirror people's aspirations can balance out negative trade-offs linked to compliance and can contribute to well-being. We show that multifaceted values are attached to well-being components, highlighting the importance of subjective indicators and perceptions to capture fully the social changes and impacts of conservation in complex contexts. We conclude that enquiries into subjective well-being should become an integral part of participatory assessments and adaptive management of conservation interventions.

We report the first case of a simultaneous pancreas and renal transplantation, in Australia, in a 45 year old male with long standing human immunodeficiency virus infection, type 1 diabetes mellitus and diabetic nephropathy requiring haemodialysis. This patient experienced previous virological failure and subsequent resistance to most nucleoside and non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. However, using novel combinations of anti-retroviral agents, along with careful monitoring, successful outcomes were achieved during the peri and post transplantation period, with excellent pancreas and renal graft function at one year.

Protected areas are a key strategy in conserving biodiversity, and there is a pressing need to evaluate their social impacts. Though the social impacts of development interventions are widely assessed, the conservation literature is limited and methodological guidance is lacking. Using a systematic literature search, which found 95 relevant studies, we assessed the methods used to evaluate the social impacts of protected areas. Mixed methods were used by more than half of the studies. Almost all studies reported material aspects of wellbeing, particularly income; other aspects were included in around half of studies. The majority of studies provided a snapshot, with only one employing a Before-After-Control-Intervention design. Half of studies reported respondent perceptions of impacts, while impact was attributed from researcher inference in 1/3 of cases. Although the number of such studies is increasing rapidly, there has been little change in the approaches used over the last 15 years, or in the authorship of studies, which is predominantly academics. Recent improvements in understanding of best practice in social impact evaluation need to be translated into practice if a true picture of the effects of conservation on local people is to be obtained.

BackgroundMany adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) remain undiagnosed. Specialist assessment clinics enable the detection of these cases, but such services are often overstretched. It has been proposed that unnecessary referrals to these services could be reduced by prioritizing individuals who score highly on the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), a self-report questionnaire measure of autistic traits. However, the ability of the AQ to predict who will go on to receive a diagnosis of ASD in adults is unclear.MethodWe studied 476 adults, seen consecutively at a national ASD diagnostic referral service for suspected ASD. We tested AQ scores as predictors of ASD diagnosis made by expert clinicians according to International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 criteria, informed by the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-Generic (ADOS-G) and Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) assessments.ResultsOf the participants, 73% received a clinical diagnosis of ASD. Self-report AQ scores did not significantly predict receipt of a diagnosis. While AQ scores provided high sensitivity of 0.77 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.72–0.82] and positive predictive value of 0.76 (95% CI 0.70–0.80), the specificity of 0.29 (95% CI 0.20–0.38) and negative predictive value of 0.36 (95% CI 0.22–0.40) were low. Thus, 64% of those who scored below the AQ cut-off were ‘false negatives’ who did in fact have ASD. Co-morbidity data revealed that generalized anxiety disorder may ‘mimic’ ASD and inflate AQ scores, leading to false positives.ConclusionsThe AQ's utility for screening referrals was limited in this sample. Recommendations supporting the AQ's role in the assessment of adult ASD, e.g. UK NICE guidelines, may need to be reconsidered.

Background: Increasing numbers of people are being referred for assessment for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The NICE (UK) and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend\ud gathering a developmental history using a tool that operationalises ICD/DSM criteria. However the best-established diagnostic interview instruments are time-consuming, costly and rarely used outside national specialist centres. What is needed is a brief, cost-effective measure validated in community settings. We tested the Development and Well-Being Assessment (DAWBA) for diagnosing ASD in a sample of children/adolescents representative of those presenting in community mental health settings.\ud Methods: A general population sample of twins (TEDS) was screened and 276 adolescents were selected as at low (CAST score