Wishes, beliefs, and jealousy: use of mental state terms in Cinderella retells after traumatic brain injury.

Introduction: Traumatic brain injury (TBI) negatively impacts social communication in part due to social cognitive difficulties, which may include reduced mental state term (MST) use in some discourse genres. As social cognitive difficulties can negatively impact relationships, employment, and meaningful everyday activities, assessing and treating these difficulties post-TBI is crucial. To address knowledge gaps, the present study examined MST use in the narrative retells of adults with and without severe TBI to compare between-group performance, evaluate changes over the first two years post-TBI, and investigate the impact of participant and injury-related variables. Methods: The total number of MSTs, ratio of MSTs to total utterances, and diversity of MSTs were identified in the Cinderella narratives of 57 participants with no brain injury and 57 with TBI at 3, 6, 9, 12, and 24-months post-TBI. Results: Reduced MST use in participants with TBI was found at 3, 6, 9, and 12-months post-TBI, but these reductions disappeared when story length (total utterances) was accounted for. Further, MST diversity did not differ between groups. Similarly, although the total number of MSTs increased over time post-TBI, no changes were observed in the ratio of MSTs to total utterances or MST diversity over time. Injury severity (post-traumatic amnesia duration), years of education, and verbal reasoning abilities were all related to MST use. Discussion: Overall, although individuals used fewer MSTs in complex story retells across the first year following severe TBI, this reduction reflected impoverished story content, rather than the use of a lower ratio of MSTs. Further, key prognostic factors related to MST use included injury severity, educational attainment, and verbal reasoning ability. These findings have important implications for social communication assessment and treatment targeting social cognition post-TBI.

Elephant 'selfies': Evaluating the effectiveness of Instagram's warning of the potential negative impacts of photo opportunities with wild animals.

Wildlife tourist attractions offering opportunities to observe, touch, and interact with wild animals, are visited by millions of people every year. Wildlife tourism has considerable economic value in many countries and can have positive impacts on wild animal populations (e.g. through habitat protection); it can also have negative impacts on population conservation and individual welfare (due to, e.g. habitat encroachment, disturbance, or disease). The recent phenomenon of 'wildlife selfies' shared on social media may seem harmless but can involve animals illegally or unsustainably captured from the wild, kept in poor conditions, or subject to cruel treatment. To address this issue, Instagram introduced a pop-up alert system that is triggered when users search for wild animal selfie hashtags (e.g. #elephantselfie), warning of the potential negative impacts of wildlife selfies on wild animals. Using elephant selfies as a case study, we found that Instagram's alert was triggered by only 2% of 244 elephant selfie-related hashtags tested. By comparing three pairs of similar hashtags (one of each pair that triggered the warning and one that did not), we were unable to detect a consistent difference in the type of post using each of the hashtags, the popularity of posts, or the sentiment of viewer comments. The warning is not shown when posting an image, or if a post is viewed directly by a follower, only if the post is encountered via a hashtag search. Currently, what is portrayed on social media appears to be inconsistent with apparent recent shifts in social acceptibilty regarding tourism, particularly as concerns direct contact between tourists and elephants. Instagram's wildlife selfie initiative was commendable but given its apparent lack of effect, we urge Instagram and other social platforms to do more to prevent harmful content from being posted on their platforms and to promote fair, ethical and sustainable interactions between wild animals and people.

Trading Animal Lives: Ten Tricky Issues on the Road to Protecting Commodified Wild Animals.

Wildlife commodification can generate benefits for biodiversity conservation, but it also has negative impacts; overexploitation of wildlife is currently one of the biggest drivers of vertebrate extinction risk. In the present article, we highlight 10 issues that in our experience impede sustainable and humane wildlife trade. Given humanity's increasing demands on the natural world we question whether many aspects of wildlife trade can be compatible with appropriate standards for biodiversity conservation and animal welfare, and suggest that too many elements of wildlife trade as it currently stands are not sustainable for wildlife or for the livelihoods that it supports. We suggest that the onus should be on traders to demonstrate that wildlife use is sustainable, humane, and safe (with respect to disease and invasion risk), rather than on conservationists to demonstrate it is not, that there is a need for a broad acceptance of responsibility and, ultimately, widespread behavior change. We urge conservationists, practitioners, and others to take bold, progressive steps to reach consensus and action.

Consequences Matter: Compassion in Conservation Means Caring for Individuals, Populations and Species.

Human activity affecting the welfare of wild vertebrates, widely accepted to be sentient, and therefore deserving of moral concern, is widespread. A variety of motives lead to the killing of individual wild animals. These include to provide food, to protect stock and other human interests, and also for sport. The acceptability of such killing is widely believed to vary with the motive and method. Individual vertebrates are also killed by conservationists. Whether securing conservation goals is an adequate reason for such killing has recently been challenged. Conventional conservation practice has tended to prioritise ecological collectives, such as populations and species, when their interests conflict with those of individuals. Supporters of the 'Compassionate Conservation' movement argue both that conservationists have neglected animal welfare when such conflicts arise and that no killing for conservation is justified. We counter that conservationists increasingly seek to adhere to high standards of welfare, and that the extreme position advocated by some supporters of 'Compassionate Conservation', rooted in virtue ethics, would, if widely accepted, lead to considerable negative effects for conservation. Conservation practice cannot afford to neglect consequences. Moreover, the do-no-harm maxim does not always lead to better outcomes for animal welfare.

Contraception in US servicewomen: emerging knowledge, considerations, and needs.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: We describe current literature regarding contraceptive use among women serving in the military. We explore the state of contraceptive use by female servicewomen, gaps in knowledge, special considerations, and evidence of unmet needs. RECENT FINDINGS: Recent data on US servicewomen show that overall rates of contraceptive use remain low. Data highlight disparities and suggest barriers to contraceptive uptake persist, with contraceptive use being lower around the time of deployment. Methods that do not require daily use or prescription refills, such as long-acting reversible contraception (LARC) - intrauterine devices and contraceptive implants - may be distinctly well suited for service and deployment. Two contemporary studies document growing popularity of LARC methods among female members of the military, possibly driven by a surge in contraceptive implant use. Nonetheless, LARC appears to remain underutilized. SUMMARY: Despite no-cost provision, the importance of preventing unplanned pregnancy, and the potential benefits of cycle control during service, emerging data about the US military suggest barriers to and underutilization of contraception, particularly LARC. Research is needed to explore preferences and tailor contraceptive counseling to servicewomen. Existing and future work can inform efforts to standardize military provider training and ensure all servicewomen are appropriately counseled and have timely access to any method they may choose.

Curing Chronic Hepatitis C: A Cost Comparison of the Combination Simeprevir Plus Sofosbuvir vs. Protease-Inhibitor-Based Triple Therapy

ABSTRACT Introduction. Interferon-free, multi-direct acting antiviral (DAA) therapy for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is highly effective and well tolerated, but costly. To gain perspective on the evolving economics of HCV therapy, we compared the cost per cure of a multi-DAA regimen with the prior standard of triple therapy. Material and methods. Patients infected with HCV genotype 1 who were treated through the University of Colorado Hepatology Clinic between May 2011 and December 2014 comprised the study population. The multi-DAA regimen of simeprevir plus sofosbuvir (SMV/SOF) was compared to the triple therapy regimen consisting of peginterferon and ribavirin, with either boceprevir or telaprevir (TT). Sustained-virologic response (SVR) rates, total costs per treatment and adverse events were recorded. Total cost per SVR were compared for the two treatments, controlling for patient demographics and clinical characteristics. Results. One hundred eighty-three patients received SMV/SOF (n = 70) or TT (n = 113). Patients receiving SMV/SOF were older, more treatment experienced, and had a higher stage of fibrosis. SVRs were 86% and 59%, average total costs per patient were $152,775 and $95,943, and average total costs per SVR were $178,237 vs. $161,813.49 for SMV/SOF and TT groups, respectively. Medication costs accounted for 98% of SMV/SOF and 85% of TT treatment costs. Conclusion. The high cure rate of multi-DAA treatment of HCV is offset by the high costs of the DAAs, such that the cost per cure from TT to multi-DAA therapy has been relatively constant. In order to cure more patients, either additional financial resources will need to be allocated to the treatment of HCV or drug costs will need to be reduced.

Curing Chronic Hepatitis C: A Cost Comparison of the Combination Simeprevir Plus Sofosbuvir vs. Protease-Inhibitor-Based Triple Therapy.

INTRODUCTION: Interferon-free, multi-direct acting antiviral (DAA) therapy for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is highly effective and well tolerated, but costly. To gain perspective on the evolving economics of HCV therapy, we compared the cost per cure of a multi-DAA regimen with the prior standard of triple therapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Patients infected with HCV genotype 1 who were treated through the University of Colorado Hepatology Clinic between May 2011 and December 2014 comprised the study population. The multi-DAA regimen of simeprevir plus sofosbuvir (SMV/SOF) was compared to the triple therapy regimen consisting of peginterferon and ribavirin, with either boceprevir or telaprevir (TT). Sustained-virologic response (SVR) rates, total costs per treatment and adverse events were recorded. Total cost per SVR were compared for the two treatments, controlling for patient demographics and clinical characteristics. RESULTS: One hundred eighty-three patients received SMV/SOF (n = 70) or TT (n = 113). Patients receiving SMV/SOF were older, more treatment experienced, and had a higher stage of fibrosis. SVRs were 86% and 59%, average total costs per patient were $152,775 and $95,943, and average total costs per SVR were $178,237 vs. $161,813.49 for SMV/SOF and TT groups, respectively. Medication costs accounted for 98% of SMV/SOF and 85% of TT treatment costs. CONCLUSION: The high cure rate of multi-DAA treatment of HCV is offset by the high costs of the DAAs, such that the cost per cure from TT to multi-DAA therapy has been relatively constant. In order to cure more patients, either additional financial resources will need to be allocated to the treatment of HCV or drug costs will need to be reduced.

Sexual size dimorphism in musteloids: An anomalous allometric pattern is explained by feeding ecology.

Rensch's rule states that sexual size dimorphism (SSD) increases with body size in taxa where males are larger, and decreases when females are larger. The dominant explanation for the trend is currently that competitive advantage for males is greater in larger individuals, whereas female size is constrained by the energetics of rearing offspring. This rule holds for a variety of vertebrate taxa, and opposing trends are rare. We examine the allometry of SSD within the Musteloidea and demonstrate a hypo-allometry contrary to Rensch's rule, with lower SSD associated with larger body size. We provide evidence that feeding ecology is involved. Where diet promotes group-living, the optimal strategy for the males of larger species is often not to attempt to defend access to multiple females, obviating any competitive advantage of relatively greater size. We conclude that the effect of feeding ecology on mating systems may be a hitherto neglected factor explaining variation in SSD.

Conflicting and complementary ethics of animal welfare considerations in reintroductions.

Despite differences in focus, goals, and strategies between conservation biology and animal welfare, both are inextricably linked in many ways, and greater consideration of animal welfare, although important in its own right, also has considerable potential to contribute to conservation success. Nevertheless, animal welfare and animal ethics are not always considered explicitly within conservation practice. We systematically reviewed the recent scientific peer-reviewed and online gray literature on reintroductions of captive-bred and wild-caught animals (mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles) to quantify the occurrence of animal welfare issues. We considered monitoring that could be indicative of the animal's welfare status and supportive management actions that could improve animal welfare (regardless of whether the aim was explicitly animal-welfare orientated). Potential welfare issues (of variable nature and extent) were recorded in 67% of 199 projects reviewed; the most common were mortality >50%, dispersal or loss of animals, disease, and human conflict. Most (>70%) projects monitored survival, 18% assessed body condition, and 2% monitored stress levels. Animal welfare, explicitly, was referred to in 6% of projects. Supportive actions, most commonly use of on-site prerelease pens and provision of supplemental food or water, were implemented in 79% of projects, although the extent and duration of support varied. Practitioners can address animal-welfare issues in reintroductions by considering the potential implications for individual animals at all stages of the release process using the decision tree presented. We urge practitioners to report potential animal-welfare issues, describe mitigation actions, and evaluate their efficacy to facilitate transparent evaluation of common moral dilemmas and to advance communal strategies for dealing with them. Currently, comparative mortality rates, health risks, postrelease stress, effectiveness of supportive measures, and behavior of individuals warrant further research to improve animal welfare in reintroductions and to increase success of such projects.

The impact of native competitors on an alien invasive: temporal niche shifts to avoid interspecific aggression?

The American mink, Neovison vison, is an established, alien invasive species in the United Kingdom that originally colonized the country at a time when two native mustelids (otters, Lutra lutra, and polecats, Mustela putorius) were largely absent. Both of these species are now recovering their populations nationally. We compared the relative abundance and the behavior of mink in the 1990s and in the 2000s in an area of southern England where both otters and polecats were absent in the 1990s but reappeared in the intervening years. We found that mink were still abundant in the 2000s in the presence of otters and polecats, but that they appeared to have altered some aspects of their behavior. In accordance with previous studies, we found that mink consumed fewer fish in the presence of otters. We also found that mink were predominantly nocturnal in the 1990s (in the absence of competitors) but were predominantly diurnal in the 2000s (in the presence of competitors). We hypothesize that this temporal shift may be an avoidance mechanism allowing the coexistence of mink with the otter and the polecat, although we are unable to attribute the shift to one or the other species. We also found that mink in the presence of competitors weighed less but remained the same size, suggesting the possibility of a competitor-mediated decline in overall body condition. This is one of very few field studies demonstrating a complete temporal shift in apparent response to competitors. The implications of this study are that recovering otter populations may not lead to significant and long-term reductions in the number of invasive mink in the United Kingdom as has been suggested in the media, although we cannot exclude the possibility of a decline in mink in the longer-term.

Recording the free-living behaviour of small-bodied, shallow-diving animals with data loggers.

1. Time-depth data recorders (TDRs) have been widely used to explore the behaviour of relatively large, deep divers. However, little is known about the dive behaviour of small, shallow divers such as semi-aquatic mammals. 2. We used high-resolution TDRs to record the diving behaviour of American mink Mustela vison (weight of individuals 580-1275 g) in rivers in Oxfordshire (UK) between December 2005 and March 2006. 3. Dives to > 0.2 m were measured in all individuals (n = 6). Modal dive depth and duration were 0.3 m and 10 s, respectively, although dives up to 3 m and 60 s in duration were recorded. Dive duration increased with dive depth. 4. Temperature data recorded by TDRs covaried with diving behaviour: they were relatively cold (modal temperature 4-6 degrees C across individuals) when mink were diving and relatively warm (modal temperature 24-36 degrees C across individuals) when mink were not diving. 5. Individuals differed hugely in their use of rivers, reflecting foraging plasticity across both terrestrial and aquatic environments. For some individuals there was < 1 dive per day while for others there was > 100 dives per day. 6. We have shown it is now possible to record the diving behaviour of small free-living animals that only dive a few tens of centimetres, opening up the way for a new range of TDR studies on shallow diving species.