Measurement invariance and latent mean differences of the Chinese version physical activity self-efficacy scale across gender and education levels

Background: Self-efficacy has been identified as an important determinant of youth's behavior change including physical activity(PA) participation. However, the dimensionality check of a PA self-efficacy scale has rarely been conducted in China. The current study aims to examine(1) the unidimensionality of a shortened Chinese version of PA self-efficacy scale(S-PASESC);(2) the measurement invariance of S-PASESC across gender and levels of education;(3) the latent factor mean difference between gender and levels of education;(4) the direct effects of self-efficacy on PA by different gender and education levels; and(5) the comparisons of the direct effects of self-efficacy on PA across gender and education levels.Methods: The participants were 5 th through 11 th grade public school students recruited from 7 cities located in different geographic regions of China. The final data include a total of 3003 participants(49.7% boys) who have completed the scales.Results: Confirmatory factor analysis(CFA) test supported the unidimensionality of S-PASESC. The S-PASESC is invariant across gender and 3 levels of education at both configural, full metric, and full scalar levels. Findings from latent mean comparisons showed that boys reported higher PA self-efficacy than girls. Students' perceived PA self-efficacy tend to decrease from elementary to high school. Finally, self-efficacy positively related to PA by groups of different gender and education levels and the relationship between self-efficacy and PA is stronger among middle school boys than girls.Conclusion: Findings suggest S-PASESC is a valid scale for measuring Chinese students' PA self-efficacy.

The role of dyadic interactions in the mixed-mating strategies of the mangrove rivulus Kryptolebias marmoratus

The mangrove rivulus Kryptolebias marmoratus a small cyprinodont fish native to tropical and subtropical watersfrom Florida to Brazil, is one of two known self-fertilizing, hermaphroditic vertebrates of which K. marmoratus displays androdioecy,a complex system of reproduction in which hermaphrodites and males are present. This study describes the behavioralrepertoires observed during dyadic interactions in the laboratory. Kryptolebias marmoratus exhibited 23 distinctive acts or behaviors.Acts were divided into four categories: aggressive, submissive, neutral, and reproductive. Leading and following behaviorsplayed important roles in the behavioral repertoires of these fish. In hermaphrodite-male dyads, males exclusively initiatedthe reproductive process and actively pursued hermaphrodites. When hermaphrodites were paired, there was no evidence that theybehaved like other simultaneous hermaphrodites that alternate sexual roles (e.g. serranids). Hermaphrodites were extremely aggressivetowards one another, and the aggressor established dominance rapidly. Male-male dyads were divided into two subdivisionsbased on the presence or absence of the caudal ocellus on one fish. A caudal ocellus on one male appeared to signal the possibilityof a potential mating partner to males lacking it. Pairings of males without an ocellus were similar to hermaphrodite-hermaphrodite dyads in that both members of the pair were aggressive towards one another. These observations may be indicativeof interactions taking place in natural communities or assemblages of fish in which both males and hermaphrodites occurand provide evidence on the role of dyadic interactions in the mixed-mating

Spatial and Temporal Patterns of In Situ Sea Surface Temperatures within the Gulf of Mexico from 1901-2010

This work examines the spatial and temporal patterns of seasonal sea surface temperatures (SSTs) across the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) for the period 1901-2010. The Extended Reconstructed Sea Surface Temperature, version 4 (ERSST.v4), dataset was selected for this study over other reconstructions because of its 2° × 2° grid cell spatial resolution, its recent update to adjust for known biases in SST observations, and its ability to be compared to other in situ studies of GoM SSTs. The monthly ERSST.v4 data were averaged seasonally for each year and grid cell in the GoM. Seasonal SST trends were then calculated for each grid cell with varying start dates (e.g., 1901-2010, 1911- 2010) to account for nonlinear SST changes over the study period. Results indicate that the GoM SSTs closely resemble those of global annual temperature trends: SSTs warmed from 1901 to ~1940, followed by a period with little trend or a slight cooling until the mid-1970s, and then a warming afterwards through 2010. The spatial patterns and magnitudes of SST changes, however, varied by season and location within the GoM. The spatial patterns involved gradients with latitudinal and/or longitudinal components: a southwest-northeast (warmer-cooler) gradient in winter, an east-west (warmer-cooler) gradient in spring and fall, and a northwest-southeast (warmer-cooler) gradient in summer. The magnitude of SST changes tended to be largest in summer, followed by spring, fall, and winter. The long-term (1901-2010) SST trends were significant throughout the GoM in summer and fall, but only significant towards the southwestern GoM in winter and spring. These results have implications in discussion of climate change and its impacts on tropical activity in the GoM Basin.

Mathematical assessment of the role of vector insecticide resistance and feeding/resting behavior on malaria transmission dynamics:Optimal control analysis

The large-scale use of insecticide-treated bednets(ITNs)and indoor residual spraying(IRS),over the last two decades,has resulted in a dramatic reduction of malaria incidence globally.However,the effectiveness of these interventions is now being threatened by numerous factors,such as resistance to insecticide in the mosquito vector and their preference to feed and rest outdoors or early in the evening(when humans are not protected by the bednets).This study presents a new deterministic model for assessing the population-level impact of mosquito insecticide resistance on malaria transmission dynamics.A notable feature of the model is that it stratifies the mosquito population in terms of type(wild or resistant to insecticides)and feeding preference(indoor or outdoor).The model is rigorously analysed to gain insight into the existence and asymptotic stability properties of the various disease-free equilibria of the model namely the trivial diseasefree equilibrium,the non-trivial resistant-only boundary disease-free equilibrium and a non-trivial disease-free equlibrium where both the wild and resistant mosquito geneotypes co-exist).Simulations of the model,using data relevant to malaria transmission dynamics in Ethiopia(a malaria-endemic nation),show that the use of optimal ITNs alone,or in combination with optimal IRS,is more effective than the singular implementation of an optimal IRS-only strategy.Further,when the effect of the fitness cost of insecticide resistance with respect to fecundity(i.e.,assuming a decrease in the baseline birth rate of new resistant-type adult female mosquitoes)is accounted for,numerical simulations of the model show that the combined optimal ITNs-IRS strategy could lead to the effective control of the disease,and insecticide resistance effectively managed during the first 8 years of the 15-year implementation period of the insecticides-based anti-malaria control measures in the community.

Universal Deformation Rings of Modules over Self-injective Cluster-Tilted Algebras Are Trivial

Let k be a fixed algebraically closed field of arbitrary characteristic,let Λ be a finite dimensional self-injective k-algebra,and let ∨ be an indecomposable non-projective left Λ-module with finite dimension over k.We prove that if τΛ∨ is the Auslander-Reiten translation of ∨,then the versal deformation rings R(Λ,∨)and R(Λ,τΛ∨)(in the sense of F.M.Bleher and the second author)are isomorphic.We use this to prove that if Λ is further a cluster-tilted k-algebra,then R(Λ,∨)is universal and isomorphic to k.

A Multi-Level Analysis of the Effects of Epoch Length on the Estimates of Children’s Moderate to Vigorous Physical Activity

Using an ActiGraph GT3X+accelerometer,the study examined the effects of different epoch lengths on children’s moderate to vigorous physical activity(MVPA).The study also tested how different MVPA levels influence the relationship between epoch length and MVPA.The participants included third(n=28)and fourth grade(n=35)students.The third graders participated in a physical education class while the fourth graders were engaged in an active video game(AVG)class.Data were downloaded using six different epoch lengths.MVPA estimates were determined by five different cut points.Multi-level analyses were used to analyze the data.Results showed that when lower cut points were used,MVPA was positively related to epoch lengths,and this relationship was stronger when the MVPA level was higher.When higher cut points were used,epoch length was negatively related to MVPA,and this relationship was stronger when the MVPA level was lower.This study revealed that different epoch lengths generate various estimates of MVPA,and the relationship between epoch length and MVPA is affected by MVPA levels.