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Background: Diabetes self-management education (DSME) is generally considered to be a key determinant of the treatment outcomes and related costs of diabetes mellitus. While DSME programmes generally have positive outcomes, their effects may depend on certain factors, such as the type of programmes provided and patients' level of health literacy (HL). Low HL has been associated with poorer self-management behaviours and poor medication adherence in diabetic patients, but its impact on the effects of DSME has not yet been systematically investigated. This study aimed to investigate the influence of HL on the self-reported effects of DSME programmes while taking the type of programme into consideration. Method: A total of 366 diabetic patients from nine countries completed a questionnaire measuring HL, self-management behaviours, problem perception, coping, perceived general health and well-being, before and after participating in a DSME programme. Results: DSME programmes were found to have positive effects on self-reported self-management behaviours and almost all psychological and health outcomes, regardless of HL level. Patients with high HL scored better on several diabetes outcomes than those with low HL, but all patients described benefiting from DSME. Individual and group-based programmes resulted in more positive effects on several diabetes outcomes than self-help groups, but no interaction with HL was found. Conclusion: Our findings confirm those of previous studies showing that DSME programmes have positive effects and that low HL is associated with lower diabetes outcomes but do not support the assumption that the effects of DSME programmes are influenced by the patient's HL. However, due to the limitations of this study, further investigation is necessary to support these findings and improve our understanding about the impact of HL on DSME programmes' effectiveness.

The purpose of this study was to investigate young children's perspectives related to their experiences in child care. Researchers used individual interviews and drawings in an early childhood program in Denmark and one in the United States as the basis for examining children's perspectives on their everyday lives in child care. Observations documented the everyday cultural practices for the children in the two child care centers and provided a foundation for interpreting the interviews and the drawings. The information collected was analyzed to determine what aspects of child care young children like best and least, as well as their thoughts on the adults and peers in their center.

In an era of accountability focused primarily on academic outcomes, it may be useful to reconsider the other original aim of U.S. schools: citizenship development. Using longitudinal, nationally representative data (Adolescent Health and Academic Achievement Study [AHAA] and the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health [Add Health]), we employ multilevel models to investigate the effects of social science programs and other measures of school context on young adult voting and voter registration. Findings suggest that school social science context directly influences young adult electoral engagement to the extent that peers' social science performance can counteract an individual's low level of social connection to produce an active voter in young adulthood.

Here, we look at the enrolments of students in undergraduate mathematics courses in a number of countries. The data show various increases and decreases and we suggest some common reasons for the fluctuations. These include students' goals of a secure and well-paid job, government actions and the state of the economy in the country concerned. We consider several ways in which departments have successfully approached downturns in numbers by their interactions with students by introducing new teaching approaches, using technology and establishing mathematics centres. (Contains 5 figures.)

In the United States and Germany, effective school leadership is pivotal to a school's success. Yet in each country, attracting and retaining qualified school leaders is a formidable challenge. This study compares the influence of possible motivators and inhibitors that impact teachers' decisions to become principals in the two countries. Survey responses of 311 U.S. students in principal preparation programs in the United States and responses of 117 German students in similar programs in Germany indicate that many factors that motivate and inhibit U.S. and German teachers to become school leaders are similar. The results also reveal areas in which the U.S. and Germany may learn from each other regarding motivators and inhibitors to becoming school administrators. (Contains 2 figures and 4 tables.)

The aim of this paper is to examine changing discursive conceptualizations of technology transfer mechanisms for speeding up innovation in Germany and the US since World War II with particular emphasis on universities. According to our analysis, the concepts of technology transfer are getting more and more complex, taking off from a linear model of innovation to a more complex model allowing for networking and entrepreneurial activities of the universities themselves. We suggest that the discourses in both countries can be framed employing three ideal-typical models: the "information and documentation" model, the "cooperation" model, and the "blurring of boundaries" model. In addition to these similarities, we also discuss differences that can be traced back to broader political cultures in which technology transfer is embedded. Both similarities and differences allow for a comparative perspective which is not limited to the countries analyzed here.

Reports an evaluation of the perceived visibility and quality of human development journals in France, Great Britain, and West Germany. Overall, the dominance of English-language journals (and especially American journals) is notable. Achieving particular international prominence were "Child Development,""Developmental Psychology,""Human Development," and "Journal of Experimental Child Psychology." (Author/RH)

Comparative analyses reveal different corporate priorities and giving agendas in the United States and Canada that signal the need for unique approaches to fund raising in each country. U.S. firms have sponsorship agendas that follow established priorities and are programmatic in nature, unlike Canadian companies whose support has varied considerably. (Author/MLW)

The blowout of the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) drilling rig in 2010 released an unprecedented amount of oil at depth (1,500 m) into the Gulf of Mexico (GoM). Sedimentary geochemical data from an extensive area (∼194,000 km 2 ) was used to characterize the amount, chemical signature, distribution, and extent of the DWH oil deposited on the seafloor in 2010–2011 from coastal to deep-sea areas in the GoM. The analysis of numerous hydrocarbon compounds (N = 158) and sediment cores (N = 2,613) suggests that, 1.9 ± 0.9 × 10 4 metric tons of hydrocarbons (>C9 saturated and aromatic fractions) were deposited in 56% of the studied area, containing 21± 10% (up to 47%) of the total amount of oil discharged and not recovered from the DWH spill. Examination of the spatial trends and chemical diagnostic ratios indicate large deposition of weathered DWH oil in coastal and deep-sea areas and negligible deposition on the continental shelf (behaving as a transition zone in the northern GoM). The large-scale analysis of deposited hydrocarbons following the DWH spill helps understanding the possible long-term fate of the released oil in 2010, including sedimentary transformation processes, redistribution of deposited hydrocarbons, and persistence in the environment as recycled petrocarbon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, the author examines the history of voter registration laws in the U.S., and provides valuable lessons applicable to the current political climate, and discusses Crawford v. Marion County Election Board, and Shelby County v. Holder court case on same.

The article discusses the treatment of captured rebels after the American Civil War; focusing on the Trent Affair that occurred in 1861 and the public reaction it received, making them more conciliatory and appreciative.

This study examined the factorial structure of the construct core self-evaluations (CSE) and tested a mediational model of the relationship between CSE and life satisfaction in college students with disabilities. We conducted a quantitative descriptive design using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and multiple regression analysis. Participants included 97 college students with disabilities majoring in science and technology who received academic and career support services from an urban university on the east coast of the United States. The four CSE traits (self-esteem, self-efficacy, emotional stability, and locus of control) all loaded onto one higher-order CSE variable. Perceived stress, positive affect, and social support were found to completely mediate the relationship between CSE and life satisfaction. CSE was validated as a unidimensional construct in a sample of college students with disabilities. Higher levels of CSE were associated with better life satisfaction because students with high CSE were better at coping with stress, maintaining a positive mood, and building social support than students with low CSE, and this was associated with a higher satisfaction with life. Future research should explore the development of interventions to increase CSE in order to reduce stress, improve affect, and build social support to increase positive psychosocial outcomes such as life satisfaction in college students with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyses the surge in genetically modified organism (GMO) labeling legislation and also highlights the benefits of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issuing an official definition of the term "natural" as GMO. Topics include the benefits and potential downfalls of GMOs, consumer concerns regarding GMOs, food-labeling regulation in the U.S., and recent class actions regarding "all natural" labels.

The need for a statutory framework to manage valuable marine resources in the United States is highlighted by problems such as fragmented ocean governance and increasing conflict over the use of ocean spaces. On July 19, 2010 President Obama signed Executive Order 13547 to create a National Ocean Policy (NOP) for the United States. A subsequent Implementation Plan, released in 2013, set up hundreds of actions to be accomplished between 2013 and 2025 to address economic, community, scientific and other issues. Progress implementing the NOP appears to have stalled. The purpose of this paper is to give an overview of the NOP and its Implementation Plan, and then discuss what needs to be done to bring the vision it set forth to fruition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect and validity of an intensive laboratory-based laparoscopic skills training curriculum on operative proficiency in obstetrics and gynecology residents.Study Design: This was a prospective, randomized, block-design trial of postgraduate year 3 and 4 residents. The following study schedule was used: week 1 (pre-randomization) included an orientation to study objectives, the administration of a laparoscopic experience questionnaire, timed video-laparoscopic drills (5 total), and the performance of a video-recorded laparoscopic partial salpingectomy; during weeks 2 and 3, the skills group residents repeated the laparoscopic drills 30 minutes daily for 10 days, and the control group residents had no formal practice sessions; during week 4, the week 1 evaluation was repeated. Operative proficiency was quantified by the Global Skills Assessment Tool through blinded, independent scoring of videotapes.Results: Twenty-six residents (skills group, 12; control group, 14) consented to the trial. Patient-related issues excluded 8 residents (30%). At week 1, no significant differences existed in previous laparoscopic experience, timed video skills, or resident operative proficiency (Global Skills Assessment Tool score) between cohorts. At week 4, both groups significantly improved their timed drill test scores. The percent reduction in time from baseline was of greater magnitude in the skills group versus control group (51% vs 18%,P <.0001). Laparoscopic performance also improved in both cohorts (P =.002). However, only the skills group demonstrated significant intra-cohort improvement from baseline (mean, 4.9 points; P =.015; 95% CI, 1-7.5).Conclusion: A core curriculum of intensive video laparoscopic skills training improves not only technical but also operative performance among postgraduate year 3 and 4 residents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents portraits of American pharmacy in German pharmacy journals from 1880 to 1950. Paper presented at a special symposium co-sponsored by the Institute and the International Pharmaceutical Federation at the 1991 Pharmacy World Congress.

Focuses on the development of social and life skills of young adolescents during the middle school years. Skills for sound identity development; Developmental tasks of early adolescence; Development tasks and emerging identities; Psychology of adolescence for a globally interdependent world.

The article presents information on the effects of ascribed and achieved characteristics on social values in Japan and the United States. There is a widely accepted belief that the structure of values follows the lines of the stratification system and that education, as a component of class, is a basic determinant of the values held by individuals. In modern industrial societies, education rather than tradition or religion, has been shown to play a major role in shaping individual values. James Davis (1982), in a classical study using the General Social Survey (GSS), showed that education was the most pervasive predictor of individual values in a wide range of areas, and that occupational items had little additional impact. Moreover, education has been shown to have a similar effect on values in many industrialized societies. It is therefore reasonable to inquire whether education has a different impact on the structure of values in a society like the United States, which supports an ideology of individual mobility and individual achievement, as compared to Japan, which encourages group solidarity within a more traditional stratification system.

The article discusses the data validation and applications of the 2006 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) organized by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in the U.S. The result of the mission has been an unprecedented near-global high-resolution elevation dataset. The efficiency of the use of SRTM is evident in the engineering accomplishments realized in the successful construction, flight and operation of the radar interferometer.

Presents a report that describes the results of the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention evaluation of Bacillus anthracis in the Brentwood Mail Processing and Distribution Center in Washington D.C. Widespread contamination of the facility; Suggestion that wipe samples and high efficiency particulate air vacuum samples complement each other in assessing contamination; Note on the cases of anthrax at the facility.

Comments on the progress in the Landsat Program in the U.S. Revision of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission specification; Concern on the pricing and distribution policy for Landsat data.