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This study evaluates the effectiveness of a newly developed educational framework for enhancing scientific literacy in rural high school classrooms. The Confluence Approach (TCA) is a curriculum aligned to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) that utilizes a combination of project-based learning (PrBL) and place-based education (PlBE). TCA educational activities take place in students' local watersheds where they interact with local partners and gain experience carrying out science and engineering practices focused on water quality, water quantity, and water use in real world settings. In 2014-15, before and after participation in a year-long TCA program, researchers administered attitudinal surveys to understand the program's impact on two important aspects of scientific literacy: students' perceptions of science as important to society and personal decision-making, and student ability to carry out scientific practices. Qualitative and quantitative survey results were analyzed using a mixed methods approach, where qualitative data were coded using both a priori and grounded theories and quantitative data were analyzed with exploratory factor analysis and Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon tests to compare pre- and post-survey responses. Results show that completion of a TCA program positively changed students' perceptions of the importance of science, both locally and globally, and it increased their confidence engaging in scientific practices. Recommendations from this work include utilizing local contextual factors as frequently as possible to enhance curriculum relevance for students and to use PrBL curriculum elements to elevate student confidence with scientific practices.

Pisonia grandis, now threatened, is an important source of soil organic matter on atoll islands and historically composed the dominant canopy of many atoll ecosystems across the Pacific. How the tree manages water to exist across wide precipitation gradients is poorly understood. This study tests the hypotheses that P. grandis is using organic‐rich soils that develop under their canopy and soil layering where organic soils contact carbonate sands as part of their water management strategy. We analysed the chemical and physical properties of soils from two atolls in the central Pacific Ocean, one wet (Palmyra, USA) and one dry (Nikumaroro, Kiribati). Additionally, we used HYDRUS‐1D to simulate vadose zone water dynamics under a range of organic cap thicknesses (0, 14, 30 and 50 cm), precipitation intensities (1, 5 and 10 cm/h) and average precipitation amounts (50, 100, 200 and 400 cm/yr). Laboratory results indicate organic soils are strongly, though not exclusively, associated with P. grandis. Water holding capacity increases with soil organic carbon up to about 10% but not beyond that amount. Modelling results indicate significant water retained in organic soils where they overlie coarse carbonate sediments suggesting a capillary barrier development as the plant‐mediated organic soil accumulates. Retained soil water extends modelled dry‐down times of root‐accessible soil by more than 3 weeks. This indicates that capillary barrier‐enhanced water availability can help explain how P. grandis and other soil‐building atoll species can exist across variable precipitation regimes. To our knowledge, this work is the first description of plant‐mediated capillary barrier development as a water management strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the mountainous regions of the Western United States, increasing wildfire activity and climate change are putting forests at risk of regeneration failure and conversion to non‐forests. During periods with unfavorable climatic conditions, locations that are suitable for post‐fire tree regeneration (regeneration refugia) may be essential for forest recovery. These refugia could provide scattered islands of recovering forest from which broader forest recovery may be facilitated. Spring ecosystems provide cool and wet microsites relative to the surrounding landscape and may act as regeneration refugia, though few studies have investigated their influence on post‐fire regeneration. To address this knowledge gap, we quantified coniferous tree regeneration adjacent to and away from springs in mixed‐conifer forests in a mountainous region of central Idaho, USA. Our research objectives were to (1) quantify post‐fire conifer density near and away from springs, (2) assess the relative importance of distance to a spring compared with other biophysical factors important to post‐fire regeneration, and (3) examine the temporal trends of post‐fire seedling establishment near and away from springs. In areas burned at high severity from fires in 1988, 2000, and 2006, we sampled transects at 27 springs for the count, age, and height of extant conifer seedlings, as well as topographic factors and distance to surviving seed source. We modeled the relative effects of distance to a spring, topographic variables (slope, heat load index, elevation), post‐fire climate, and distance to surviving seed source for the two dominant species, Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta), using a generalized linear mixed‐effects model. Our study revealed that proximity to springs resulted in higher conifer density and earlier establishment after high‐severity wildfire when conditions for available seeds and topography were also met. Our results demonstrate that springs are important and previously undescribed regeneration refugia with landscape‐scale implications for post‐fire forest recovery in increasingly water‐limited environments. Springs are relatively abundant features of montane landscapes and may offer continued regeneration refugia for post‐fire recovery into the future, but additional springs mapping and hydroclimatic considerations are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Climate change has resulted in the geographic and vertical expansion of oxygen minimum zones but their impact on the vertical distribution of commercially important species, such as tunas, is [...]

Five species of the marine insect Halobates share similar ecology but have distinct biogeographic ranges in the eastern tropical Pacific, a region from approximately 75°W-160°W and 10°S-35°N. Between 2001 and 2010, the Sea Education Association collected Halobates from 682 neuston tows (surface net 1 m x 0.5 m, 335-µm mesh) during fifteen cruises between San Diego, USA, Mexico and Tahiti. Total Halobates spp. densities varied substantially from year to year, but our data do not show a sustained change from a data set collected 40 years earlier from 1967 to 1968 (Cheng and Shulenberger in Fish Bull 78(3):579-591, 1980). Halobates are sensitive to sea surface temperature and we observed significant differences in species distributions over time, but these were not due to differences in water temperature or climate change. Our analyses show that the patterns observed are attributable to substantial but previously undescribed seasonal shifts that occur each year in the ranges for both Halobates sobrinus and Halobates micans. There is substantial overlap in ranges during seasonal shifts, but very little co-occurrence of H. sobrinus and H. micans in individual net tows, suggesting biological mechanisms rather than physical factors are restricting distribution and co-occurrence of these two species., Introduction How multiple small marine organisms with similar niches coexist in the relatively unstructured environment of mixed surface waters is a long-standing question that continues to intrigue ecologists (Hutchinson 1961; [...]

Development of a 25-item Psychological Maltreatment Inventory, based on five categories of psychological maltreatment found in the literature on child development, is described. Two major factors emerged from a factor analytic study of the responses of 118 clinical outpatients. Reported childhood experiences of Emotional Neglect and Hostile Rejection were related to several measures of psychological dysfunction among adult outpatients.

Among 43 women with panic disorder (38 with agoraphobia), 23 reported histories of childhood sexual abuse associated with high incidence of other early adverse experiences. The finding that subjects reporting childhood sexual and physical abuse were more likely to receive an Axis II diagnosis than those who did not confirms prior work.

Introduction: Recruiting rural-practicing clinicians is a high priority. In this study, we explored burnout and contributing work conditions among rural, urban, and family practice physicians and advanced practice clinicians (APCs) in an Upper Midwestern health care system., Methods: The Mini Z burnout reduction measure was administered by anonymous electronic survey in March 2022. We conducted bivariate analyses of study variables, then assessed relationships of study variables to burnout with multivariate binary logistic regression., Results: Of 1118 clinicians (63% response rate), 589 physicians and 496 APCs were included in this study (n = 1085). Most were female (56%), physicians (54%), and White (86%), while 21% were in family practice, 46% reported burnout, and 349 practiced rurally. Rural and urban clinician burnout rates were comparable (45% vs 47%). Part-time work protected against burnout for family practice and rural clinicians, but not urban clinicians. In multivariate models for rural clinicians, stress (OR: 8.53, 95% CI: 4.09 to 17.78, P < .001 ), lack of workload control (OR: 3.06, 95% CI: 1.47-6.36, P = .003 ), busy/chaotic environments (OR: 2.53, 95% CI: 1.29-4.99, P = .007 ), and intent to leave (OR: 2.18, 95% CI: 1.06-4.45, P = .033 ) increased burnout odds. In family practice clinicians, stress (OR: 13.43 95% CI: 4.90-36.79 , P < .001 ) also significantly increased burnout odds., Conclusions: Burnout was comparable between rural and urban physicians and APCs. Part-time work was associated with decreased burnout in rural and family practice clinicians. Addressing burnout drivers (stress, workload control, chaos) may improve rural work environments, reduce turnover, and aid rural clinician recruitment. Addressing stress may be particularly impactful in family practice., Competing Interests: Conflict of interest: Dr. Linzer is supported through his employer Hennepin Healthcare for work on burnout reduction projects with large healthcare organizations including the American Medical Association, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the American Board of Internal Medicine, Optum, Gillette Children’s Hospital and the California Area Health Education Center System. His work on this paper was supported through his employer by Essentia Health. Ms. Poplau is supported through her employer Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute for work on burnout reduction projects with large healthcare organizations including the American Medical Association, the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, the American College of Physicians, Optum, Gillette Children’s Hospital and the California Area Health Education Center System. Her work on this paper was supported through her employer by Essentia Health. Dr. Stillman is supported through his employer, Hennepin Healthcare, for work on burnout reduction projects with healthcare organizations including the American Medical Association, Optum, Inc., and Gillette Children’s Hospital. His work on this paper was supported through his employer by Essentia Health. Dr. Sudak, Ms. Engels, and Ms. Horn are supported by their employer, Essentia Health. Their work on this paper was supported by Essentia Health., (© Copyright 2024 by the American Board of Family Medicine.)