Parenting Style Predicts Peer Victimization in Children
Modern Medicine – Oct. 9
Young children who receive harsh parenting are more likely to be chronically victimized by their peers in preschool and early elementary school, according to the results of a study published in the October issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry. Edward D. Barker, Ph.D., of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and colleagues used mothers’ reports of peer victimization to assess 1,970 children between ages 3.33 and 6.2 years, and teacher and child reports of peer victimization to assess the children during first grade (mean age 7.2 years). The researchers identified three trajectory groups with respect to peer victimization: low/increasing, moderate/increasing, and high/chronic. They found that a high level of harsh, restrictive parenting was the most important predictor of high/chronic peer victimization. They also found that low family income and aggressive behavior in infancy predicted both high/chronic and moderate/increasing peer victimization.
The Targets of School Bullies
Health Scout – Oct. 9
Galactic hit-and-run leaves trail of destruction
NewScientistSpace.com – Oct. 9
A trail of gas connecting two galaxies shows they once suffered a high-speed collision. The event could help explain why many galaxies cannot form new stars. One victim of this intergalactic accident is the “disturbed” spiral galaxy NGC 4438, which sits roughly 50 million light years from us in the Virgo galaxy cluster. The spiral arms of this galaxy look mangled, and it is unusually poor in gas compared with similar spirals. Astronomers thought both of these symptoms could be the result of NGC 4438 colliding with another galaxy. But if so, where was the second crash victim? . . . The gas must have been ripped out from one or both of the galaxies by the collision. That comes as a surprise to some astronomers, who suspected that a different galaxy, much closer to NGC 4438, was involved. “Now it looks like we were fooled,” says William Keel of the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, who was not associated with the study.
Column – Jon Mark Beilue: Bragg, readers bond through struggle
Amarillo.com – Oct. 8
Rick Bragg hears it all the time. He heard it Tuesday morning and heard it again Tuesday night. He’s heard it just about everywhere his travels take him. “I didn’t expect people to respond like this, but I’ve heard it by the thousands and thousands and thousands,” he said. “It’s, ‘Hey, you stole my story.’ I get e-mails and letters every day – maybe it’s taken them this long to find me – who say that.” “All Over but the Shoutin'” is the first book in what now is a trilogy of his life growing up poor in rural Alabama in the 1960s and 1970s. The book was published in 1997… For Bragg, now a professor of journalism at the University of Alabama, he says he carries with him still a bit of a chip on his shoulder, some resentment for what life’s unfairness did to his momma, and a toughness that steeled him and still does.
Education briefs
Birmingham News – Oct. 9
Creative Leaps International will present the concert “Unless the Mind Catch Fire … A Concert of Ideas” on Monday at 7:30 p.m. in the Concert Hall of the Moody Music Building at the University of Alabama. The concert is free and open to the public. Information: www.as.ua.edu/public/programs/mindcatchfire/. . . .Joe Brown, assistant professor in New College and biological sciences at the University of Alabama, was recently awarded the 2008 International Water Association’s Project Innovation Awards Global Grand Prize in the small projects category. Brown, along with Mark Sobsey of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, won for their project “Ceramic water filters in Cambodia: A sustainable solution for rural drinking water treatment.”
Bryant Museum turns 20
WVUA – Oct. 9
The University of Alabama is saying happy birthday to an important part of the UA family. The Paul W. Bryant Museum turned 20 years old Wednesday. Officials with the museum say it’s been a good run, and they’re looking forward to the future.
Accounting foundation announces 2008 scholarship winners
AccountingWeb.com – Oct. 9
Since 1969, the National Society of Accountants (NSA) Scholarship Foundation has provided nearly $1 million to deserving undergraduate and graduate students who are committed to pursuing a career in accounting, helping to develop more qualified young accountants. This year, 44 students will receive scholarships ranging from $500 – $2,000. . . . Laura E. Blackman, University of Alabama, Alabama Association of Accountants.
Being healthy on the go: Some fast-food choices light in calories; others not so much
Tuscaloosa News – Oct. 9
More and more people going through that fast-food drive- through are opting for something healthier than a double cheeseburger with an extra large side of fries. But what exactly does “more healthy” mean when it comes to fast food? Sometimes it’s not very clear. A salad sounds healthy, but a salad with crispy chicken, garlic croutons and honey dijon dressing can have more calories and fat than any of the burgers on a fast-food menu. “It’s best to always know the places where you are going and to review the menu before you go,” said Suzanne Henson, an assistant professor of nutrition at the University of Alabama. “That way, you can look at the menu and get a sense of how many calories something has and make a healthy decision ahead of time.”
Though both camps may feel they won, it all comes down to how the voter feels
WIAT-CBS – Oct. 8
A top McCain supporter says: McCain scored points last night in making Obama appear liberal, while an Obama adviser says: McCain was all over the map on issues. Today, CBS 42’s Nicole Wyatt hit the University of Alabama campus to find out what real people had to say about the debate. Two post debate polls showed that Barack Obama performed better than John McCain, but University of Alabama political science chair Dr. David Lanoue thinks it was pretty even. “I don’t think this debate moved the needle really far. It covered a lot of the same material we talked about already, the candidates really stayed with comfort zones, I don’t think this will have much of an impact on the election.”
Huxford selected for rural study
Atmore Advance – Oct. 8
Huxford Elementary is one of 10 rural schools in the state being recognized for its outstanding performance despite high poverty levels and will be part of a study focusing on how these schools have achieved such results in the face of adversity. . . . Dr. Owen Sweatt, an adjunct professor at the University of Alabama and a former principal at Fayette Elementary, and Gerald Carter, principal with Carter & Associates and an expert in how personality impacts behavior, are the other two members to comprise the group.