Physical Instruments Research Articles

Toward the end-to-end optimization of particle physics instruments with differentiable programming

The full optimization of the design and operation of instruments whose functioning relies on the interaction of radiation with matter is a super-human task, due to the large dimensionality of the space of possible choices for geometry, detection technology, materials, data-acquisition, and information-extraction techniques, and the interdependence of the related parameters. On the other hand, massive potential gains in performance over standard, “experience-driven” layouts are in principle within our reach if an objective function fully aligned with the final goals of the instrument is maximized through a systematic search of the configuration space. The stochastic nature of the involved quantum processes make the modeling of these systems an intractable problem from a classical statistics point of view, yet the construction of a fully differentiable pipeline and the use of deep learning techniques may allow the simultaneous optimization of all design parameters. In this white paper, we lay down our plans for the design of a modular and versatile modeling tool for the end-to-end optimization of complex instruments for particle physics experiments as well as industrial and medical applications that share the detection of radiation as their basic ingredient. We consider a selected set of use cases to highlight the specific needs of different applications.

Amplitude Measurements With SiPM and ASIC (Citiroc 1A) Front-End Electronics

The use of Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs) in nuclear physics instrumentation is drastically increasing, thanks to the possibility of incorporating a large number of acquisition channels in compact devices. In this paper, we describe a SiPM-based application with CAEN Front-End Readout System [1] based on Citiroc 1A chip from Weeroc [2]. Besides the use of this chip for well known single photon spectra and event counting, this paper exploits the possibility to acquire energy spectra directly from scintillators, paired with SiPM, through peak-and-hold readout. In particular, good energy resolutions have been achieved even with slow scintillators, like LYSO, CsI(Tl), and BGO, which have 40 ns, 1000 ns, and 300 ns of light decay time, respectively. These values are of the same order of magnitude of the shaping time of the Citiroc 1A chip (maximum value of 87.5 ns) in the case of LYSO, and higher in the case of CsI(Tl) and BGO. Several measurements have been performed using multiple radioactive γ sources and the resulting energy spectra demonstrate a resolution compatible with that found in literature [4] [5] [6] [7], as well as with an alternative acquisition system based on a digitizer that implements an algorithm of Charge Integration in the FPGA [8].

Development of norms of physical ability tests of students aged 13 -18 years

Evaluation of physical abilities in sports is one of the necessary components in determining achievement and improving sports achievement for all sports. Physical ability includes two components, namely the physical fitness component and the motor fitness component. Physical fitness consists of muscle strength (strength), flexibility (flexibility), muscle endurance (endurance), cardiovascular-respiratory endurance. The components of fitness include speed, coordination, agility, power strength and balance. The purpose of this research is to produce a norm test that fits the physical characteristics of students aged 13-18 year. The specific objective of this research is to obtain an effective physical ability test instrument that is suitable for the characteristics of the ages of 13-18 years and to produce students' physical ability test norms. The test development in this study was designed to have a fairly high level of accuracy, cheap, and easy to implement by anyone. Based on the results of the FGD (Focus Group Discussion), trainer opinions and expert recommendations, the researchers developed the existing test norms, that can predict the type of test that is appropriate for athletes aged 13-18. The physical test developed consists of 10 test item components, including Endurance, Strength, Agility, Speed, Flexibility, Coordination, Balance, Accuracy. accuracy), reaction speed (reaction). In addition to involving lecturers as research members, data collection was also carried out directly by the instructors who assisted in collecting the research data. The data on the results of this physical ability test include male athletes, as well as female athletes who took part in the selection, as well as second and third generation athletes. It should be noted that in the training program there are regulations that stipulate that if within a certain period of time, for example when athletes take part in try outs and try ins, both at regional, national and international levels, if they do not excel then these athletes will be degraded, or the age has exceeded the stipulations. determined by the Ministry of Youth and Sports in participating in the National Student Sports Week (POPNAS) these athletes will be replaced with those who meet the age and achievement requirements.

Measurment Of Youth Physical Fitness In Pontianak City Using TKPN Instruments

The current rate of development and shift in human activity today demands to be in high sedentary activity. Departing from the high inactivity in children, the authors need to measure the physical fitness level. This study used the latest fitness instrument, TKPN. So that a portrait of physical fitness for students at the secondary school level also needs to be implemented. This research is a descriptive study using a cross sectional survey method, data collection techniques using tests and measurements, then for data collection tools using the Equator Physical Fitness Test instrument. The sample used in this study were students at the senior high school level in Pontianak, with a total of 35 samples. The results showed a trend that was not very good, as many as 34% of students were in the very poor category, followed by 17% in the less category, 26% were in the sufficient category, 23% were in the good category, and no one student fall into the very good category. The conclusion of this study is that the description of the physical fitness of students in the city of Pontianak at the high school level still shows an unfavorable trend. Intervention of physical activity through physical education subjects and motivational encouragement from parents is highly recommended.

Convergent Validity of the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System-Pediatric Physical Activity Instrument (PROMIS®-PA) with Wearable Devices in Adolescents.

The study was conducted mainly to examine the convergent validity of the Patient Reported Outcome Measurement Information System-Pediatric Physical Activity instrument (PROMIS®®®-PA) with step counts from wearable devices and another validated self-reported outcome measure. As a secondary aim, we explored the effect of different recall time frames (7-day, end-of-day [EoD], and ecological momentary assessment [EMA] time frames during the day) in terms of their feasibility and associations with each other and with step counts. This was a prospective cohort study that examined the associations between measures of PA in school-age children and adolescents (n = 84, aged 10-20). The participants wore Fitbit devices for 7 consecutive days, and then completed the 7-day-recall PROMIS-PA short form and Youth Activity Profile (YAP). Additional analyses were completed in a sub-sample (n = 25, aged 11-18 years) using the PROMIS-PA for the EMA at five intervals during the day (shorter form) and at the EoD. In the total sample, the PROMIS-PA results showed positive moderate correlations with the YAP and average daily steps (r = 0.533, p < 0.001 and r = 0.346, p = 0.002, respectively). In the sub-sample, the 7-day PROMIS-PA was highly correlated with the averaged EMA or EoD ratings for the week, and moderately correlated with the daily step counts. These findings support the validity of the PROMIS-PA as a measure of self-reported physical activity. Adolescents demonstrated higher compliance rates and preference for the 7-day recall and EoD assessments compared to more frequent EMA reporting.

CyRSoXS: a GPU-accelerated virtual instrument for polarized resonant soft X-ray scattering.

Polarized resonant soft X-ray scattering (P-RSoXS) has emerged as a powerful synchrotron-based tool that combines the principles of X-ray scattering and X-ray spectroscopy. P-RSoXS provides unique sensitivity to molecular orientation and chemical heterogeneity in soft materials such as polymers and biomaterials. Quantitative extraction of orientation information from P-RSoXS pattern data is challenging, however, because the scattering processes originate from sample properties that must be represented as energy-dependent three-dimensional tensors with heterogeneities at nanometre to sub-nanometre length scales. This challenge is overcome here by developing an open-source virtual instrument that uses graphical processing units (GPUs) to simulate P-RSoXS patterns from real-space material representations with nanoscale resolution. This computational framework - called CyRSoXS (https://github.com/usnistgov/cyrsoxs) - is designed to maximize GPU performance, including algorithms that minimize both communication and memory footprints. The accuracy and robustness of the approach are demonstrated by validating against an extensive set of test cases, which include both analytical solutions and numerical comparisons, demonstrating an acceleration of over three orders of magnitude relative to the current state-of-the-art P-RSoXS simulation software. Such fast simulations open up a variety of applications that were previously computationally unfeasible, including pattern fitting, co-simulation with the physical instrument for operando analytics, data exploration and decision support, data creation and integration into machine learning workflows, and utilization in multi-modal data assimilation approaches. Finally, the complexity of the computational framework is abstracted away from the end user by exposing CyRSoXS to Python using Pybind. This eliminates input/output requirements for large-scale parameter exploration and inverse design, and democratizes usage by enabling seamless integration with a Python ecosystem (https://github.com/usnistgov/nrss) that can include parametric morphology generation, simulation result reduction, comparison with experiment and data fitting approaches.

The Peculiarities of Physical Literacy Assessment in Primary School Students

Over the last decade, academics, professionals, and politicians have become increasingly interested in the assessment of children’s and adolescents' physical literacy in physical education. Physical literacy has been measured and quantified as a multidimensional term comprising behavioral, psychological, and physical components. The majority of this research was conducted on children and adolescents in educational settings, emphasizing the importance of this age group in establishing the foundations of physical literacy, which will influence lifetime physical activity, health, and well-being. Since there are no studies in the population of Lithuanian primary school students, evaluating children's physical literacy or the validity and reliability of individual physical literacy assessment instruments, the current overview may be useful in guiding the development of future research in this area in our country.&#x0D; The objective of this study is to review the assessment of physical literacy in primary school children from a theoretical standpoint.&#x0D; Methods: analysis of scientific literature and assessment instruments for physical literacy.&#x0D; Conclusions:1. There is no consensus on the assessment of children's physical literacy. Representatives of the idealistic approach suggest using subjective, qualitative, and interpretive methods to monitor a student’s progress on their individual path to physical literacy. Supporters of the pragmatic approach view physical literacy as the result of practical activities that must be measured and assessed using instruments to evaluate fundamental movement skills, physical fitness, motivation, etc.&#x0D; &#x0D; Physical literacy in primary school students could be assessed across four domains: affective, behavioral, cognitive, and physical. The affective part of the assessment tools for elementary school children is indicated by the child's motivation and self-confidence. The behavioral part is reflected by the child's objective physical activity, subjective physical activity, variety and frequency of physical activities, and participation in physical activities in different places and at different times of the year. The cognitive part is shown by the child's knowledge of physical activity and the benefits of taking part in physical activities, as well as by the child's understanding of how to plan and carry out physical activities. The physical part is demonstrated by physical fitness, movement skills, and self-perceived competence.&#x0D; &#x0D; Keywords: physical literacy, primary school students, assessment.

Physical literacy as a determinant of physical activity level among late adolescents.

This study aimed to investigate the level of physical literacy among late adolescents according to the current physical activity level and to examine the relationship between current physical activity, barriers to engaging in physical activity, and enjoyment of physical activity and physical literacy. A total of 568 university students (405 women) aged from 18 to 20 were involved in this study. The physical literacy, physical activity level, enjoyment from activity, and barriers to physical activity were assessed with the Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (PPLI), the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF), Physical Activity Enjoyment Scale (PACES), and the Physical Activity Barriers Questionnaire (PABQ), respectively. Multinomial and binary logistic regression analyses were employed to explore the association between physical literacy and physical activity level. Highly physically active adolescents had better scores on the PPLI, PACES, and PABQ than moderately active and inactive participants. The PPLI total score was significantly moderately correlated with PACES total, positive, and negative scores and the PABQ score. There were significant poor correlations between the IPAQ-MET value and the PPLI scores. Adjusted logistic regression analysis revealed the PPLI total score and the PACES positive sub-scale scores, and gender (men) were associated with being highly active relative to moderately active. The findings highlight the evidence that physical literacy, gender, and enjoyment from activity can be determinants of high or moderate physical activity levels. Therefore, improving physical literacy among late adolescence may be key to achieving increased physical activity level.

Development of Physical Education Learning Outcomes Assessment Instruments for Volleyball Materials Based on Game Performance Assessment Instrument

Study purpose. The basic assumption of this development is that there is no Game Performance Assessment Instrument (GPAI) based on physical education (PE) learning outcome assessment, so researchers are trying to develop the instrument. The teacher has not used the GPAI instrument in assessing the PE learning outcomes for volleyball material. The purpose of the study was to develop a valid and reliable assessment of PE learning outcomes for volleyball based on GPAI. Materials and methods. This type of research is research and development. The subjects used were PE learning expert lecturers and volleyball expert lecturers with a minimum qualification of 5 Doctoral degrees. The field test was conducted on 18 junior high school students. The instrument uses a questionnaire with a score of 1-4 with the terms “Very Appropriate (score 4)”, “Agreed (score 3)”, “Not Appropriate (score 2)”, and “Very Not Appropriate (score 1)”. The validity data analysis technique uses Aiken validity, and reliability tests are carried out using Intraclass Correlation Coefficients. Results. Based on the results of the research and the results of the data analysis that has been carried out, it is concluded that the instrument for assessing the learning outcomes of PE on volleyball material in Junior High School based on GPAI that was developed is valid and reliable, with V Aiken ≥ 0.87. Furthermore, the reliability of the PE learning outcomes assessment instrument for volleyball material in GPAI-based junior high schools was 0.797 in the "High" category. Conclusions. The researcher hopes that the resulting product in the form of an assessment of PE learning outcomes for volleyball material in junior high schools based on the GPAI can be a guide or reference for evaluating students on volleyball material.

Perceived Physical Literacy Is Associated with Cardiorespiratory Fitness, Body Composition and Physical Activity Levels in Secondary School Students.

Overweight and obese adolescents are often associated with lower Physical Activity (PA) levels and low Cardiorespiratory Fitness (CRF). Recently, the concept of Physical Literacy (PL), has been suggested to be associated with higher levels of active behavior and better health in adolescents. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between PL, body composition, cardiorespiratory fitness and physical activity levels in French secondary school students. The level of PL was assessed in 85 French adolescents using a French version of the Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (F-PPLI). Cardiorespiratory fitness was measured by the "20 m adapted walk/shuttle run test". The PA level was assessed by the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System questionnaire. Weight status was measured by the Body Mass Index (BMI) and the body composition data. We find a significant association between the PL and the percentage Fat Mass (%FM) (r = -0.43; p ≤ 0.01), between the PL and moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) per week (r = 0.38; p ≤ 0.01). The PL was associated (r = 0.36; p ≤ 0.01) with the percentage of Skeletal Muscle Mass (%SMM) and cardiorespiratory fitness (r = 0.40; p ≤ 0.05). Developing the PL for the most disadvantaged secondary school students in a PA program could be a suitable strategy to increase their PA level, reduce their adiposity, and promote better long-term health.

Development of a Physical Fitness Activity Movement Quality Test Instrument

This study aims to produce a test instrument for the quality of motion for physical fitness activities and to determine the feasibility of a test instrument for the quality of movement for physical fitness activities in junior high school students. This type of research is research and development (research &amp; development) of the Borg and Gall model, which is simplified by Puslitjaknov involving five steps, namely: 1) analysis of the product being developed, 2) product development, 3) expert validation and revision, 4) group trials small scale and revision, 5) final product. The results of the research are in the form of a test instrument for the quality of movement for physical fitness activities, suitable for use and has been validated by experts for valid and reliable criteria, where the validity criteria are high, namely 0.80, with moderate expert consistency, namely 0.562, and based on the results of product trials of motion quality test instruments obtained valid and reliable criteria, where the results of the product Cobe test received an average value of r count 0.78 &gt; 0.70, the validity was classified as high, and the reliability test received a score of 0.943 from 12 students the data is valid thus the instrument is in the high criteria. So the resulting motion quality test instrument is suitable for a learning evaluation tool on physical fitness activity material.

Cross-cultural adaptation, reliability, and validation of the Spanish perceived physical literacy instrument for adolescents (S-PPLI)

Background/ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to examine the reliability and validity of the Spanish Perceived Physical Literacy Instrument (S-PPLI) questionnaire in Spanish adolescents. MethodThe participants of this study were 360 Spanish adolescents (aged 12–17 years) from three secondary schools in the Region of Murcia (Spain). A cultural adaptation process of the original version of the PPLI questionnaire was developed. Confirmatory factor analysis was applied to test the three-factor structure of physical literacy. Intraclass correlation coefficients were computed to estimate the test-retest concordance. ResultsUsing a confirmatory factor analysis, the factor loading of all items above the standard of 0.40 ranged from 0.53 to 0.77, suggesting that the observed variables sufficiently represented the latent variables. Analyses for convergent validity showed average variance extracted values that ranged from 0.40 to 0.52 and composite reliability values higher than 0.60. All the correlations were below the recommended cutoff point of 0.85, which indicated that the three physical literacy factors achieved adequate discriminant validity. Intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.62 to 0.79 (p < 0.001 for all items), which indicated moderate/good reliability. ConclusionsOur results suggest that the S-PPLI is a valid and reliable measure of physical literacy among Spanish adolescents.

Comparison of 2D and autostereoscopic 3D visualization during mixed reality simulation.

In general minimally invasive surgical procedures, surgeons are tied to 2D visualization, leading to the loss of depth perception. This can lead to large mental load for the surgeons and may be responsible for the long learning curve. To restore the sense of depth, this study investigated the use and benefits of an autostereoscopic (3D) display during a simulated laparoscopic task. A mixed reality simulator was developed for comparing the performance of participants while using 2D and autostereoscopic 3D visualization. An electromagnetic sensor was mounted on a physical instrument, and its pose was mapped to the virtual instrument. The virtual scene was developed using Simulation Open Framework Architecture (SOFA). Finite element modeling was used to calculate interaction forces, which were then mapped to visual soft tissue deformation. Ten non-expert participants completed a virtual laparoscopic task, where the subjects were asked to contact eighteen target areas distributed on the surface of the vagina, both in 2D and 3D. Results showed an improvement with 3D vision in task completion time (-16%), total traveled distance (-25%) and errors made (-14%). There was no difference in the average contact forces between the vagina and the instrument. Only the difference in time and forces were shown to be statistically significant. Overall, autostereoscopic 3D showed superiority over conventional 2D visualization. The traveled trajectory increased in 2D as the instrument was retracted more between the targets to avoid contact. The 2D and 3D deformation upon contact seems not to contribute differently to force perception. However, the participants only had visual feedback, but no haptic feedback. Therefore, it could be interesting to include haptic feedback in a future study.

The Good, the Bad and the ‘Entropic Potential of an Event’

The definitions of “good” and “bad” typically belong to the field of ethics. Does physics have a property that can distinguish and group “good” and “bad” events using only its own physical instruments and equations? Although the physical property “entropy” as a measure of chaos appears to be the prime candidate for such a grouping, it is in fact unsuitable for a detailed analysis. However, the “Entropic Potential of an Event”, which describes the influence of the current event to the future change in entropy, perfectly suits this role. While the second law of thermodynamics dictates the direction of entropy change in an isolated system it does not dictate the speed of entropy growth. The speed of entropy growth on Earth is changing in particular due to human-related events, which ethics calls "good" or "bad". Such events, which ethics defines as "good", always eventually decelerate entropy growth. In contrast, events which ethics defines as "bad", always eventually accelerate entropy growth. This article presents the methods of calculating the “Entropic Potential of an Event” for the cases: “A commander receives an order to bombard a city”, “A cancer tumor is growing inside a human’s body” and other. This article also stresses the importance of the “Time factor” since only for a sufficiently large time interval T the “En-tropic Potential of an Event” Z(T, A) can be estimated and potentially precisely calculated. This article also checks on a scale of several centuries if real-life events are averaged in such a way that their entropic potentials become negligible. This analysis shows that prior 1750 the averaged entropic potential of events occurred in human society was negative and had the value of approximately 10^17 bits (value is an initial approximation). The situation after the industrial revolution is more complicated, as past 1750 human civilization began to utilize non-renewable resources (oil, coal, gas, etc.) for warming, cooling, and transportation with a corresponding entropy growth. The term “entropy” is applicable to a very wide range of events, from physics and chemistry to art and information. Correspondingly, the significant advantages of the “Entropic Potential of an Event” as a physical foundation of the intuitive terms “good” and “bad” is its measurability, ability to compare events of entirely different natures and its universality Weak point of "Utilitarianism" is inability to quantify, compare, or measure happiness or well-being which is postulated to be the ultimate goal of moral behavior. The "Entropic Potential of an Event" solves this problem and presents in formulas (and sometime calculates in bits) the Entropic Potentials of events we normally label as "good" and "bad".

The Effect of Physical Fitness, Play Activities, Nutritional Status on Children's Motor Skills in Three Public Elementary Schools Pancung about South Coast District

The problem of this research is the low motor skills of children in the Pancung Sol Pesisir Selatan sub-district. The low motor skills of children are influenced by several factors, such as physical fitness, play activities and nutritional status. This study aims to reveal direct and indirect effects, as well as the simultaneous influence between variables. This type of research is quantitative associative with a path analysis approach. The population in this study were all 3rd and 4th grade students at several elementary schools in Pancung, South Pesisir Selatan sub-district, totaling 60 people. Samples were taken using purposive sampling. Physical fitness instruments using TKJI, playing activities using a questionnaire, nutritional status using BMI and children's motor skills using the Scott motor ability test. Data were analyzed by path analysis through structural model testing at α = 0.05. The results of hypothesis testing show: (1) there is a direct effect of physical fitness on motor skills (py1 = 0.334 or 11.1%), (2) there is a direct effect of play activities on motor skills (py2 = 0.349 or 12.1%), ( 3) there is a direct effect of nutritional status on motor skills (py3 = 0.440 or 19.3%), (4) there is an indirect effect of physical fitness on motor skills through nutritional status (p31.py3 = 0.234 total effect of 32.3%), (5) there is an indirect effect of play activity on motor skills through the nutritional status of students (p32.py3 = 0.272 total effect of 38.6%), and (6) there is an effect of physical fitness, play activity and nutritional status together with the ability motor (Rsquare = 0.931 or 93.1%).

Profile of Body Mass Index and Physical Fitness of Santri of Al Yumna Qur'an Tahfizh Boarding School

Purpose of study. This study aims to determine the description of body mass index and physical fitness of students of the Al Yumna Banyuresmi Garut Tahfizh Islamic Boarding School, Garut. Materials and methods. The method used was a quantitative descriptive survey, with the technique of the 2019 Department of Education of the Republic of the Philippines physical fitness instrument test. The variables in this study were BMI and Physical Fitness. The sampling technique used a random sampling technique of 57 people consisting of 27 men and 30 women, data collection techniques through the Philippine physical fitness test, BMI with anthropometric measurements, strength with push ups and basic plank, flexibility with zipper test and sit and reach , coordination with juggling test, agility using hexagon agility test, speed with 40 meter sprint test, strength with standing long jump, balance with stork balance test and reaction time speed with stick drop test. Results. The data processing method uses descriptive statistics using Microsoft Excel. For male students, there were 2 people (7.14%) in the underweight category, 5 people (18.52%) in the underweight category, 18 people (66.60%) in the normal category, 1 person (3.70%) in the overweight category, 1 person (3.70%) in the overweight category. As for females, there are 4 people (13.33%) with severe underweight, 2 people (6.66%) with mild underweight, 20 people (66.60%) with normal weight, 1 person (3.33%) with mild overweight and 3 people (10 %) with severe overweight. For men, the physical fitness category is very good as many as 17 people (62.96%), the good category is 10 people (37.03%) and for the category of very good, sufficient and less there are none (0%). Whereas for women the good category was 19 people (63.30%), the sufficient category was 11 people (36.50%). Conclusion. With the largest norm value of 5 for men having an average fitness value of 3.98 and 2.7 for women, the average for men and women is 3.34, this shows that the overall physical fitness of Tahfizh Qur'an Al Yumna Islamic Boarding School students is in the good category.

CO2 Adsorption Based on Porphyrin Based Porous Organic Polymers

In order to efficiently catalyze the cycloaddition reaction of CO2 and epoxy alkanes under mild environment and no catalyst, this paper designed and synthesized two kinds of porphyrin based porous organic polymers—porphyrin based porous organic polymer containing carboxyl group (ppop-cooh) and porphyrin based porous organic polymer containing quaternary ammonium salt ion pair. Quaternary ammonium salt cation anion pair nucleophilic groups and metal active centers were introduced into the polymer by pre- and post-modification respectively. The chemical structure and pore structure of the polymer were characterized by infrared spectroscopy and physical adsorption instrument, and its effect as a catalyst on the cycloaddition reaction of CO2 and epoxy alkanes was studied. From the results, it is demonstrated that the two polymers had a multistage pore structure with a specific surface area of 302 m2/g-514 m2/g. The synergistic effect of Lewis acid metal ions, nucleophiles and multistage pore structure in the polymer significantly promotes the cycloaddition reaction between CO2 and epoxy alkanes. Under mild conditions (80°C, 0.3 MPa, 24h), the selectivity and conversion of the reaction reach more than 99%. The polymer is repeated for many times. After use, it still has good catalytic performance.

Identifying neurodevelopmental disabilities from nationalised preschool health check.

Models of psychometric screening to identify individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities (NDDs) have had limited success. In Aotearoa/New Zealand, routine developmental surveillance of preschool children is undertaken using the Before School Check (B4SC), which includes psychometric and physical health screening instruments. This study aimed to determine whether combining multiple screening measures could improve the prediction of NDDs. Linked administrative health data were used to identify NDDs, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability, within a multi-year national cohort of children who undertook the B4SC. Cox proportional hazards models, with different combinations of potential predictors, were used to predict onset of a NDD. Harrell's c-statistic for composite models were compared with a model representing recommended cutoff psychometric scores for referral in New Zealand. Data were examined for 287,754 children, and NDDs were identified in 10,953 (3.8%). The best-performing composite model combining the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, the Parental Evaluation of Developmental Status, vision screening and biological sex had 'excellent' predictive power (C-statistic: 0.83) compared with existing referral pathways which had 'poor' predictive power (C-statistic: 0.68). In addition, the composite model was able to improve the sensitivity of NDD diagnosis detection by 13% without any reduction in specificity. Combination of B4SC screening measures using composite modelling could lead to significantly improved identification of preschool children with NDDs when compared with surveillance that rely on individual psychometric test results alone. This may optimise access to academic, personal and family support for children with NDDs.

Adapting an evidence-based physical activity questionnaire for people with physical disabilities: A methodological process

BackgroundPractitioners and researchers often adapt tools, practices, and programs to meet the needs of culturally diverse population groups, but do not consider populations with disability. While there is some research on guidelines for adapting evidence-based programs, there is no systematic process for adapting survey instruments. Rather than creating separate instruments for people with physical disabilities (PWD), it is critical that instruments are designed to capture data on people with and without disabilities for comparison purposes. Given the disproportionately high rates of physical inactivity and obesity in PWD, we developed a methodology to adapt an evidence-based physical activity instrument. ObjectiveTo create a methodology to adapt surveys to be inclusive of PWD and use the methodology to adapt an evidence-based physical activity survey. MethodsA framework was developed to adapt a physical activity survey instrument (International Physical Activity Questionnaire, IPAQ) to be inclusive of PWD. The framework, referred to as SAVe-IT, includes five steps: Step 1) Select survey instrument to adapt; Step 2) Adapt the survey instrument; Step 3) Verify adaptations with experts; Step 4) Implement pilot test; Step 5) Test the tool to confirm reliability. ResultsThe adapted IPAQ passed review by the expert panels and the pilot test (n = 20). Assessment of test-retest reliability (n = 30) yielded strong intraclass correlation coefficients of 0.950 for the total score for the whole sample, 0.950 for PWD (n = 15) and 0.952 for people without disability (n = 15). ConclusionsThe SAVe-IT framework resulted in the successful adaptation of the IPAQ and can be used in populations with and without physical disabilities.

The evolution of Physics textbooks used in Ireland 1860–2022

This paper focuses on the evolution of Physics textbooks used in Ireland from 1860 to 2022, in addition to the Irish influence on early Physics textbooks in the latter part of the 19th century. Both Physics and Physics education are continually evolving and so textbooks change in response to that and to the changing priorities of educators. Physics is both experimental and theoretical and the presentation of it has always been multimodal. Physics textbooks tend to include diagrams, demonstrations, experiments, the use of mathematics and derivations, historical references to people, and applications of Physics, among other features. Our research looks at these various characteristics to discern what has changed and what has not, over the course of time. Twenty-eight textbooks were examined in the course of this study. A Physics concept (refraction) and a Physics instrument (electroscope) were chosen for special attention, so that the findings would be firmly rooted in how Physics has been represented in textbooks rather than general textbook publishing trends. A specific analysis of four textbooks by the same two authors across three syllabi is also presented. Our findings show that a great deal has changed in the realm of Physics textbooks, and given that this is the case, it is remarkable how many things changed very little in 162 years.