January 2016

The teaching evaluation is something of a staple for end-of-term college life. In theory, student feedback provides key information on how well a professor is doing in the classroom. In reality, a new analysis  posted on the post-publication-review site ScienceOpen shows, students give their female instructors worse grades than their male counterparts—and there's no simple way to fix or compensate for that bias. Of course, this is not the first time that...

"Most of us who live and operate in the culinary underworld are in some fundamental way dysfunctional," Anthony Bourdain wrote in 1999, in the New Yorker piece that would lead to his magnum opus Kitchen Confidential. He proclaimed the professional kitchen "the last true refuge of the misfit," and while many would argue that still holds true nearly two decades later, even now there pervades an unfortunate double standard in which the sort of so-called dysfunction that often drives people...

Hair samples may help determine the risk of a child developing mental and other chronic illnesses later in their life, research led by the University of Melbourne has found. Researchers assessed the level of cortisol in the hair of 70 nine-year-old children from primary schools across Victoria. Cortisol is known as the “stress hormone” because it is released in response to acute stress to help the body react and cope. The greater number of traumatic events a child had...

New research finds that environmental design efforts to encourage walking or biking need to be tailored to a community based upon the income level of the residents. Health professionals and policy makers have believed that creating high density environments that combine housing, work-sites, store-fronts, and parks within walking or riding distance from a person’s house will encourage physical activity. In a new study, University of Washington researchers determined that motivating...

It is a precarious line that teachers and staff walk when students erupt into emotional and physical outbursts, kicking, biting or punching fellow students or teachers. It might seem that children should never be physically restrained in school. But, when all other interventions have failed, how do we deter a child from running into traffic, break up a fight between 18-year-olds or stop a teenager in an acute psychotic episode from committing suicide? The use of restraints in schools has not...

Ethan’s face lights up when he hears Gina Hatanpa’s voice. Just waking up from a nap, the 19-month-old was cuddled, shyly and sleepily, in the crook of his mom Mylee Workman’s neck. But by the time Hatanpa takes off her coat, Ethan is ready – goofing off, trading smiles and silly faces, playing with the zippers of her briefcases. He clearly adores the weekly visits. Hatanpa is a registered and public health nurse with Anoka County. She has been visiting Workman...

In the wake of tragedies like the Paris attacks and the San Bernardino shooting, people are left with many questions. Who could do something like this? Who is truly that evil? Forensic psychologist James Garbarino might have some answers. Earlier this year, the Loyola University psychologist published a book tying these experiences together, entitled  "Listening to Killers:  Lessons Learned from My Twenty Years as a Psychological Expert Witness in Murder Cases."   [For...

Trayvon Martin. Manuel Diaz. Rexdale Henry. Michael Brown. Some names may be more familiar to you than others. But all share a common fate of life lost too soon. What happens when you hear their names? Do you think about the circumstances that prematurely ended their lives? Or do you regret losing the chance to benefit from the great contributions they could have made? It's clear that young men of color face daunting barriers to health that directly impact their potential to succeed and...

Good Afternoon, All- I am part of the ACEs Connection group in Sonoma County, Ca. I am reaching out to as many ACEs connected people as possible to spread the word about a consultancy opportunity for folks in the field of ACEs. I work with Valley of the Moon Children’s Home in Sonoma County, CA. We are the County’s Emergency Shelter for youth that are removed from their home for suspected abuse or neglect.  We are wanting to change our program model and staff training...

"What are some of the things that the monsters like to eat in this story?" teacher Marisa McGee asks a trio of girls sitting at her table. McGee teaches kindergarten at Walker Jones Elementary in Washington, D.C. Today's lesson: a close reading of the bookWhat Do Monsters Eat? "They like to eat cake," says one girl. "I noticed you answered in a complete sentence," McGee says. "Can you tell me something else?" "Stinky socks!" McGee follows with a line you might not expect in a kindergarten...

The Virginia school policing system needs an overhaul that emphasizes training, data collection and a clear role for officers in schools, says a new report from the Legal Aid Justice Center . Without a better system, the state will continue to criminalize students for behaviors that schools should deal with, not law enforcement, the center said. Virginia leads the country in referrals of students to law enforcement, according to an analysis by the Center for Public Integrity . The state...

Semaj Clark is a determined young man. The Los Angeles teenager’s steadfastness helped him emerge from a childhood punctuated by a string of foster homes and arrests to become an ambassador to troubled youth. Now he’s determined to learn how to get around in his new wheelchair. [For more of this story, written by Matt Smith, go to http://jjie.org/wounded-teen-activist-returns-to-city-where-he-was-shot/171086/]