The impact of online social participation on social capital and mental health outcomes of young adults: A systematic review & participation and quality of life of young adults living in Western Australia: Research report

Introduction: The widespread acceptance and availability of the Internet and subsequent advent of social networking sites, is believed, in part, to be responsible for the reduction of face-to-face interaction, particularly among young adults. This has lead to suggestions that while virtual participation may enhance our ability to communicate with others; it may in fact come at the detriment of wellbeing. Depression is one of the leading causes of mental illness for young people, with social isolation and exclusion being identified as key risk factors for depression among this group. The aim of this review was to systematically review available research examining the relation between online social participation and the psychological wellbeing of young adults. Methodology: Electronic searches of five electronic databases (ERIC, PsycINFO, Scopus and Web of Science) were used to identify and locate studies for inclusion in this review. Each database was searched for studies conducted since 2000 to May 2011. Results: Seven articles met the inclusion criteria, with a total of 4 190 participants. Of the seven studies four were cross sectional surveys, two were non-experimental pre-test post-test studies and one was a longitudinal study. Conclusion: This review found significant evidence to suggest that greater time spent in online chat was associated with increased feelings of loneliness post social exclusion. Social networking sites were not found to facilitate strong bonds between individuals, but rather complement to face-to-face interaction. Social networking sites do potentially provide powerful networking tools that individuals can turn to in times of need

Viewpoints of pedestrians with and without cognitive impairment on shared zones and zebra crossings

Background: Shared zones are characterised by an absence of traditional markers that segregate the road and footpath. Negotiation of a shared zone relies on an individual’s ability to perceive, assess and respond to environmental cues. This ability may be impacted by impairments in cognitive processing, which may lead to individuals experiencing increased anxiety when negotiating a shared zone. Method: Q method was used in order to identify and explore the viewpoints of pedestrians, with and without cognitive impairments as they pertain to shared zones. Results: Two viewpoints were revealed. Viewpoint one was defined by “confident users” while viewpoint two was defined by users who “know what [they] are doing but drivers might not”. Discussion: Overall, participants in the study would not avoid shared zones. Pedestrians with intellectual disability were, however, not well represented by either viewpoint, suggesting that shared zones may pose a potential barrier to participation for this group

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

The effects of semi-natural habitats on integrated pest management and biodiversity enhancement in arable agriculture

Semi-natural habitats are used under various names in agri-environment schemes. A recent iteration of the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union designated some specific semi-natural habitats as Ecological Focus Areas (EFA). These were habitats and landscape features introduced to support biodiversity within agricultural landscapes. One potential EFA option was arable margins. These strips of grass and/or wildflowers are created alongside or surrounding an arable crop, occupying the outer edge of the field previously used for crop production. Research in other European countries on arable margins has shown they support local insect biodiversity and contribute to pest management; encouraging local populations of predatory species that can move into the adjacent crop and feed on pests. On a wider scale re-introducing semi-natural habitats such as arable margins to simplified agricultural landscapes has proved to effectively support insect biodiversity and halt decline. Where density of these semi-natural habitats is low, the insects dependent on them are forced to compete amongst each other for the limited resources available. Once the density of semi-natural habitat rises the competition eases and the insect populations are supported. This research supporting the implementation of arable margins has not yet been carried out in Ireland. The landscape that margins are implemented in is vulnerable: In Ireland these arable margins were implemented in cereal producing areas. These areas are predominantly in the east of the country where the decline of insect biodiversity is most pronounced compared to the west. Ireland’s insect diversity is limited to a lower number of species than even the closest neighbouring countries. Yet also has a seemingly dense network of hedgerows which may provide sufficient support for insect species, so the introduction of an arable margin may not make an apparent difference. With these differences in landscape and species richness, a key question is “will arable margins have similar beneficial effects, or different effects compared with other countries for both the biodiversity and potential pest control services?”. This thesis explores the impact of various vegetation mixes in arable margins on biodiversity and pest control support. It examines whether the introduction of arable margins in a landscape with declining biodiversity but also a dense hedgerow network can enhance biodiversity support. The study also investigates the effects of arable margins on overall invertebrate diversity and abundance, as well as on specific taxonomic groups with specialized resource requirements such as Carabidae and wild pollinators. Key findings show that different vegetation mixes provide varying levels of support for groups with specialized resource requirements. The results inform margin vegetation design to target specific conservation interests in the local environment. Pest control services were not significantly affected by the implementation of these margins, and more mobile species were less impacted by margins introduction. Locally foraging species were found to be more affected by the presence of margins and the specific vegetation composition compared to far-ranging species. Additionally, there was no observed competition between foragers. The study concludes that margins effectively support insect populations and can be adapted further to meet local conservation needs or provide pest control services

Visual search strategies of pedestrians with and without visual and cognitive impairments in a shared zone: A proof of concept study

© 2016 Elsevier Ltd. Shared zones have gained increasing popularity in urban land use and design as a means of incorporating the needs of multiple modes of transport, while at the same time promoting social interaction between users. Interactions within shared zones are based on a set of informal social protocols, communicated via eye contact and social cues. This proof of concept study utilised eye-tracking technology to examine the visual search strategies of individuals, with and without visual and cognitive impairments as they navigated a strategically chosen shared zone. In total 3960 fixations were analysed and the fixations were distributed across the shared zone and a pedestrian crossing. Those with impairments were more likely to fixate on traffic specific areas and objects compared to those without, suggesting that they required more input ascertaining when and where it was safe to perform tasks. However, the duration of fixation was not significantly different for an object whether it was traffic related or not, indicating a global need for increased processing time of the surrounding environment. Shared zones are claimed to increase driver awareness and safety and reduce congestion, but the implications on participation and safety for those with visual and cognitive impairments is yet to be extensively explored

Visual search strategies in a shared zone in pedestrians with and without intellectual disability

People with intellectual disability (ID) may find shared zones troublesome to negotiate because of the lack of the traditional clearly defined rules and boundaries. With the built environment identified as a barrier to active travel and community access, it is vital to explore how pedestrians with ID navigate shared zones to ensure that this group is not placed in harm's way or discouraged from active travel because of the implications of shared zones. This study investigated the visual strategies of 19 adults with ID and 21 controls who wore head mounted eye trackers in a Shared Zone and at a zebra crossing (as a contrast traffic environment). In total 4750 valid fixations were analysed. Participants with ID fixated on traffic relevant objects at a rate of 68 percent of the control participants. Furthermore, the males with ID were 9(4.4–18.7) times more likely to fixate on non-traffic relevant objects compared with traffic relevant objects, much higher odds than that of females with ID 1.8(0.4–1.7). Zebra crossings appeared to act as a cue, drawing pedestrians' visual attention to the traffic environment, with both groups more likely to look at traffic relevant objects on/at the zebra crossing (66%: 34%). Future implementation of shared zones needs to be carefully considered in relation to the safety of road users with ID and their capacity to identify and assess salient environmental information.</p

Scree plot dotted line assists to identify the inflection point.

EV = eigenvalue. % = Percentage of explained variance.</p