In this study, we characterized and compared vegetation types associated with geomorphological units susceptible to distinct flooding levels. Differences in vegetation are related to landform ...variations. We aimed to 1) characterize the vegetation structure and quantify community compositional differences among landforms and 2) compare landforms soil characteristics and how these correlate with the tree vegetation. The study area is located in the Brazilian Caatinga domain, near the Verde Grande river, a tributary of São Francisco river (14°54′38ʺS, 43°42′53ʺW). We allocated six plots in each of the five landforms sampled (from wettest to driest sites): 1) marginal dike (RF – riparian forest), 2) upper terrace (RWF – riparian wetland forest), 3) lower terrace (WF – wetland forest), 4) lower plain (OFF – occasionally flooded forest) and 5) upper plain (UF – unflooded forest). We ran a non‐metric multidimensional scaling, produced a Venn diagram, and performed a principal component analysis (PCA) on the soil data (compared through a Tukey test at 5% significance after a significant ANOVA). A total of 1422 individuals, 26 families, 70 genera and 89 species were recorded. The NMDS revealed two distinct floristic groups: one group is associated with landforms with assumed higher flood frequency (RF, RWF, WF) and one with less frequently flooded landforms (OFF and UF). The RF, OFF, and UF landforms contained exclusive species (that only occurred in the plots of a particular landform). The species Geofroea spinosa (Fabaceae) was responsible for 70% of the total biomass recorded in the landforms RWF and WF. The soil analysis showed a gradient of soil acidity and fertility related to water saturation, whereby the most frequently flooded plots had the highest acidity values and highest fertility. We found that flood‐related conditions significantly influence tree community structure and species distribution in this floodplain in the Brazilian Caatinga domain.
OBJECTIVE:The aim of the study was to declare a call to action to improve mental health in the workplace.
METHODS:We convened a public health summit and assembled an Advisory Council consisting of ...experts in the field of occupational health and safety, workplace wellness, and public policy to offer recommendations for action steps to improve health and well-being of workers.
RESULTS:The Advisory Council narrowed the list of ideas to four priority projects.
CONCLUSIONS:The recommendations for action include developing a mental health in the workplace (1) “how to” guide, (2) scorecard, (3) recognition program, and (4) executive training.
We conducted integrative somatic-germline analyses by deeply sequencing 864 cancer-associated genes, complete genomes and transcriptomes for 300 mostly previously treated children and ...adolescents/young adults with cancer of poor prognosis or with rare tumors enrolled in the SickKids Cancer Sequencing (KiCS) program. Clinically actionable variants were identified in 56% of patients. Improved diagnostic accuracy led to modified management in a subset. Therapeutically targetable variants (54% of patients) were of unanticipated timing and type, with over 20% derived from the germline. Corroborating mutational signatures (SBS3/BRCAness) in patients with germline homologous recombination defects demonstrates the potential utility of PARP inhibitors. Mutational burden was significantly elevated in 9% of patients. Sequential sampling identified changes in therapeutically targetable drivers in over one-third of patients, suggesting benefit from rebiopsy for genomic analysis at the time of relapse. Comprehensive cancer genomic profiling is useful at multiple points in the care trajectory for children and adolescents/young adults with cancer, supporting its integration into early clinical management.
A primary goal of university instruction is the students' demonstration of improved, highly developed critical thinking (CT) skills. However, how do faculty encourage CT and its potential concomitant ...increase in student workload without negatively impacting student perceptions of the course? In this investigation, an advanced biology course is evaluated after structural changes (implemented in 2010) met with a poor student evaluation of the course and the instructor. This analysis first examines the steps used to transform a course to encourage CT and then explains how it can be assessed. To accomplish these goals, the instructor collaborated with an educational developer to redesign the course using a philosophy informed by SoTL. This approach, as we see it, represents a set of principles that demand transparency in the development and application of strategies whose aim is to encourage student learning. However, the SoTL approach would be insufficient to simply promote a set of strategies without some mechanism for evaluating its efficacy. Therefore, we designed a "Graded Response" (GR) multiple-choice test to measure CT development and hence to properly evaluate whether the strategies embedded in our SoTL-informed course redesign have adequately met our goals.
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