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Determining the impact of a 10-week HIIT exercise intervention on perceived stress among recent graduates of cardiac rehabilitation
No full textPsychological stress is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and following a cardiac event, stress levels increase. Exercise training has been shown to reduce stress; however, following exercise-based cardiac rehabilitation (CR) programs, the impact of maintaining supervised exercise training on stress and other outcomes is unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a 10-week high intensity interval training (HIIT)-based cardiac maintenance program on perceived stress and secondarily, self-efficacy for exercise, anxiety, depression and aerobic fitness. Recent graduates (<1 year) of hospital-based CR were eligible to participate. Assessments (Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and Self-Efficacy for Exercise (SEE), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), 6-miute walk test (6MWT)) were administered at pre- and post-program. Exercise sessions were thrice weekly for 50-minutes, consisting of interval-based (4:3 high to low intervals) aerobic and resistance training. Data are presented as means and standard deviations, paired samples t-tests were conducted to determine differences from pre to post program. A total of 21 participants (23.8% female; age range: 49-84 years) completed the study. Perceived stress decreased (pre: 13.76±7.32, post 10.54±6.70, p = 0.02). No changes in SEE were observed (pre: 65.05±18.82, post: 57.65±19.59, p=0.07). No significant changes in HADS were observed; however, 19% of participants experienced a clinically meaningful reduction in anxiety and depression. 6MWT distance increased from pre- to post-program (pre: 490±101, post: 543±81.1, p<0.001). These results demonstrate the stress reducing benefits of ongoing community-based exercise interventions (i.e. cardiac maintenance programs) following hospital-based CR, which may have important implications on quality of life and disease management.</p
For whom does awe promote greater meaning in life? Exploring trait authenticity and curiosity as potential moderators
No full textAwe is an emotion induced by vast stimuli that challenges existing mental frameworks and generates a need for accommodation. Whereas awe has been linked to various positive outcomes, its relationship with meaning in life is less consistent. Meaning in life is the perception that one’s life is coherent, purposeful, and significant, making it a foundational aspect of human experience. Some studies find that awe enhances meaning in life, while others find mixed effects. Previous studies have explored mediating variables to understand this relationship. Taking a different approach, I examine possible moderating variables, focusing on two personality traits: trait curiosity and trait authenticity. After completing measures of trait curiosity and authenticity, participants (final N = 295) were assigned to view either an awe inducing video or a control (amusement inducing) video. Emotions (including awe and amusement) and meaning in life were then assessed. Participants in the awe (vs. control) condition experienced greater feelings of awe, which led to greater meaning in life, with no evidence of moderation. However, an unexpected pattern was observed whereby participants in the awe (vs. control) condition who were lower in trait curiosity or trait authenticity reported lower meaning in life. Consistent with previous work, this demonstrates that the relationship between awe and meaning in life is complex. Further, curiosity and authenticity do influence this relationship, although not in the way originally expected. Overall, this study brings the literature one step further in exploring the puzzling relationship between awe and meaning in life.</p
American eel and alewife passage in low flow fishways
No full textThe American Eel Anguilla rostrata and Alewife Alosa Pseudoharengus both have extensive ranges along the Atlantic coast of North America. In areas of their extensive ranges, both species have experienced declines in local populations. These declines have been attributed in part to reduced access to fresh waters and to habitat fragmentation. Attempts to improve access have included the use of passage enhancement devices that have frequently been deployed in Europe at dams of diverse sizes with and without conventional fish passage; installations in North America have largely been focused on large-scale hydroelectric dams. The construction of fishways has been used to improve the passage for Alewife and Yellow Phase American Eel, to assist in navigation at dams of varying form, scale and function. Previous studies using PIT telemetry have monitored Alewife passage through both pool and weir and Denil style fishways. During this work observations were made of high abundances of juvenile yellow phase American eel at the base of low head height ( < 2 m height) dams with pool and weir and Denil style fishways and at sites without dedicated passage facilities. We documented through 93 individual dip net surveys and visual observations of eel behaviour in interactions at low head dams with and without fish passage structures, all presented a temporal delay for the upstream migration of American eel. A zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) model highlighted differences in CPUE at sites within each location we assessed including three water control structures, one pool and weir and one Denil style fishway. The magnitude of this effect may have been reduced by active commercial harvesting areas and aboideaux or tidal control gates that occurred downstream of sampling sites, reducing the overall abundance of eel moving upstream. Four low-cost passage enhancement devices were tested using the passive flow from the dam head at two sites to assess the effectiveness of facilitating upstream passage. All four passage devices enabled the upstream passage of eel, the ramp-style bristle pass and vertical geotextile-style passes were particularly effective at facilitating upstream movements by assessing passage counts. Additional work is required to inform the suitability and optimization of specially designed passage infrastructure with considerations of cost, maintenance, operational requirements. This work has presented a framework for rapid and low-cost assessment and provided evidence to identify an under-studied threat of connectivity impairment at low head dams for American eel. This work also provides considerations for organizations responsible for the regulation and operation of low-overhead dams and a framework to assess the function of commercially available passage solutions. Data that were collected as a part of a long-running Alewife passage monitoring project were analysed using a time-to-event model; this analysis supported observations made concerning the importance of fish demographic and continued monitoring of technical fishways across time. Results support the importance of collaboration and interdisciplinary expertise to advance our understanding and abilities to make continued improvements towards facilitating passage for these ecologically and economically important cultural species.</p
Metamorphism and deformation in the eastern Meguma terrane, Nova Scotia
No full textThe eastern Meguma terrane contains Cambrian to Ordovician metasedimentary rocks of the Goldenville and Halifax groups. The Meguma terrane experienced regional greenschist-facies M1 metamorphism in the Early Devonian. The regional M1 chlorite- and biotite- zone assemblages were overprinted by two types of high-temperature low-pressure M2 metamorphism that was coeval with plutonic activity between 380 Ma and 360 Ma, with a peak at ca. 375 Ma. The interpreted metamorphic conditions vary from about 480 to 550 °C and pressures below 2.5 kbar to 550 to 650 °C and pressures between 4 and 5 kbar. The M1 assemblages are overprinted by cordierite- and andalusite-bearing M2 contact metamorphic assemblages near plutons, and by staurolite-, garnet-, and/or cordierite-bearing M2 regional high heat flow metamorphic assemblages away from plutons. Metamorphism and pluton emplacement took place in a largely transpressional tectonic setting and peak metamorphic assemblages were variably overprinted with retrograde chlorite and sericite M3 assemblages while deformation continued. The metamorphic history in the northeastern Meguma terrane can be adequately explained by the two major metamorphic events, the second of which appears to be a single progressive event that started in close association with plutonic activity, overlapped in space and time with dextral transpression during the juxtaposition of the Meguma terrane with Avalonia, and evolved into retrograde M3 metamorphism that continued during cooling and exhumation while transpressional deformation continued.</p
Navigating life's challenges: the role of impulsiveness and fatalistic withdrawal in psychological resilience
No full textImpulsivity is a recognized risk factor for suicidality; however, its role in goal disengagement and fatalistic withdrawal remains underexplored. Hayes and Tupper (in press) theorize that impulsivity may accelerate the transition from life dissatisfaction to suicidal ideation. Moreover, the interaction between impulsivity, goal regulation, and psychological resilience is not fully understood. Thus, this study examined these associations using data from an online self-report survey of 446 participants. Multiple regression analyses tested whether impulsivity moderated the relationship between life satisfaction, hope, and suicidality. Greater impulsivity was associated with a lower desire to live and higher suicidal ideation. Although the predicted correlations were not statistically significant in primary analyses, exploratory analyses revealed that the adverse impact of impulsivity was most pronounced among individuals with low life satisfaction and diminished hope for the future. Among these effects, sadness paralysis, the experience of emotional immobility, demonstrated the strongest association with suicidality, suggesting it may be a potent psychological risk factor. Additionally, sensation seeking displayed a fascinating pattern: suicide risk was elevated in high sensation seekers with low life satisfaction and in low sensation seekers with low hope for the future. These findings suggest that different facets of impulsivity may heighten suicidal risk in unique ways, depending on an individual’s protective buffers. The discussion focuses on the theoretical implications and potential clinical applications of individualized treatment of suicidal symptomatology and improving the identification of those most at risk of suicidality.Keywords: impulsivity, goal disengagement, suicidality, fatalistic withdrawal, psychological resilience, life satisfaction, desire to live, hope</p
Determining the feasibility of an 8-week virtual pulmonary rehabilitation program among women in Nova Scotia
No full textChronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of illness and death in Canada, with the highest prevalence observed in Nova Scotia. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is comprised of exercise and educational components, and can reduce symptom severity and improve quality of life; however, it is often inaccessible due to lack of program availability, transportation issues, and financial constraints, particularly in the province of Nova Scotia. Canadian women and men are affected equally with COPD (13.2%), yet women may be less likely to participate in PR due to gender-related barriers (e.g., caregiving responsibilities, lack of time, transportation). Thus, we sought to address these barriers by determining the feasibility of implementing the Living Well with COPD (LWWCOPD) PR program virtually, among women in Nova Scotia. METHODS: An 8-week PR program, consisting of supervised group-based exercise and education modules, was delivered via Zoom twice weekly. Feasibility was defined as: recruitment rate ≥ 60%, drop-out rate ≤ 20%, adherence and attendance rates ≥ 70%. Qualitative feedback was collected, and thematic analyses were used to understand participant-perceived barriers and facilitators. RESULTS: To date, 18 participants (mean age: 71.30 ± 7.55, range: 58-86) have completed the program, with a recruitment rate of 74.1%, dropout rate of 10.0%, adherence rate of 78.3%, and an attendance rate of 81.0%. Social interaction was cited as the most enjoyed aspect of this program. CONCLUSION: These preliminary data suggest the virtual PR program is feasible and enjoyed. Future efforts are needed to increase virtual PR offerings across the Maritimes.</p
Experiences of healthy older adults with a new home-based rehabilitation protocol for visuospatial neglect: a qualitative study
No full textBackground: Visuospatial neglect is a disorder of attention that impairs the ability to attend or respond to stimuli on the left side of space. While prism adaptation (PA) is a promising treatment, its clinical use has been limited by accessibility issues and low user engagement. Peg-the-Mole (PTM) is a novel, home-friendly PA protocol designed to address these barriers through a mobile, more engaging, and user-friendly protocol. This study explores the user experience of healthy older adults with a home-based PTM protocol to inform a future clinical trial. Method: Forty healthy older adults were randomly assigned to complete four home-based PTM sessions using either 15-degree (experimental condition) or 5-degree (active control condition) prism goggles. After the final session, participants completed an exit questionnaire to provide feedback on their experience. Content analysis was used to identify key themes in the data. Results: Participants found PTM easy to use and appreciated the game-like features. Concerns included iPad instability, lower user engagement, and frustration with the goggles. Implications: User feedback led to immediate protocol improvements, particularly enhancing clinical feasibility, with additional aesthetic refinements planned for future clinical implementation. This study highlights the value of incorporating healthy user feedback in the development of patient-centred rehabilitation protocols.Keywords: visuospatial neglect, prism adaptation, cognitive rehabilitation, user experience</p
Financial literacy and confidence effects on household equity investment: pre- and post-pandemic evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances
No full textThe COVID-19 pandemic brought elevated volatility to the US stock market and economic policy uncertainty severe enough to contend with the December 2008, October 1987, and 1929 crashes. Sharif et al. (2020) indicated the need to research the financial effects of the pandemic stating “the COVID-19 pandemic is a source of systematic risk as the US markets were one of the main sources of a spillover effect to other markets and regions”. This thesis uses microdata from the 2019 and 2022 waves of the Survey of Consumer Finances to understand the changes in the share of household equity investment due to financial literacy effects in addition to confidence in one’s own personal finance knowledge and confidence in the economy, which is particularly inspired by Cupák et al. (2020). I estimate the share of household equity investment through a series of Survey Generalised Linear Models using R based on these three key independent variables of financial literacy, self-confidence and confidence in the economy, while controlling for various economic and demographic covariates as well as measures of risk sensitivity and tolerance. Additionally, this thesis distinguishes between financial net worth and total net worth to better understand the channels and margins through which confidence, literacy, and education affect investment and portfolio decisions. Results illustrate a statistically significant relationship between financial literacy and household investment. Controlling for other factors, higher levels of financial literacy were associated with lower levels of household investment in equity than before (7.1% on average in 2019). The percentage of household investment in equity for each higher level of financial literacy, when controlling for other variables, remained substantial. The effect of the self-confidence variable on household investment decisions, specifically on share of equities, also proved to be statistically significant after the pandemic in 2022, seeing an increase of 1.8% points from a meagre 0.1% to 1.9% in 2019 and 2022, respectively. This indicated the importance of confidence in one’s own financial knowledge in making investing decisions post-pandemic. Households with more confidence in their own financial knowledge, ceterus paribus, are expected to have an equity investment of 1.9% of their total financial net worth in 2022. Confidence in the economy has a negative relationship with the share of investment in equity, suggesting that households had a lower share of investment in equity in 2022 by 0.6% points with each level decrease of confidence in the economy. This was interpreted as the influence of the confidence variables, together, being larger on household investment decisions than the level of financial literacy which corroborated the findings of Cupák et al., (2020). In the total net worth model, the intercept flipped its sign in 2022, indicating that the base groups with positive total net worth had a lower share of investment in equities on average. For households with positive financial net worth, higher levels of financial literacy remain substantial and significant and more importantly, confidence in one’s own financial knowledge plays a significant role in volatile equity markets. Confidence in the economy was lower post-pandemic prompting households to own a lower share of investment in equities. For households with positive total net worth, only financial literacy has a significant impact on the share of equity investment, based on its larger magnitude. Confidence in the economy is lower still in 2022, while self-confidence sees a relatively bigger increase; however, the effect is much tamer than for their financial counterpart. Overall, results of the analysis indicate that financial literacy effects, unsurprisingly, continue to be strong determinants for household investment decisions, particularly in equity. However, confidence in one’s own financial knowledge and confidence in the economy are only relatively significant influences households with positive financial net worth.</p
Underneath the aspen trees
No full textUnderneath the Aspen Trees takes the novella form and explores themes of identity and culture, and the interconnectedness of the two, through a Young Adult folkloric-fantasy approach. Set in Marion Bridge, Cape Breton Island, the novella follows the life of Eilidh, a fifteen-year-old girl who finds herself in the timeless and mystical world of the Celtic fae after entering a fae trap found beneath an aspen grove. On the other side of the trap, she is greeted by Béara, the Celtic goddess of Winter, who informs her the only way she can leave the fae world is with the permission of Nicneven, the Queen of the Fae. Together, the group travels through the kingdom in search of Nicneven and meets other fae who both aid in and hinder their journey. Interwoven with the fae chapters are chapters which provide insight into Eilidh’s contemporary life in Marion Bridge, specifically focused on the relationship between her and her parents.</p
Community science and social media in conservation using recreational angling reports of striped bass Morone saxatilis (Walbaum, 1792)
No full textThis study demonstrates the viability of social media-derived data for monitoring populations of Morone saxatilis (Walbaum,1792) by analyzing a total of 6 556 striped bass from 6160 posts from six Maritime Facebook groups scraped from 2016 to 2024). Analysis of striped bass in posts, identified critical conservation gaps. Analyses revealed significant provincial disparities in the proportion in striped bass sizes, with New Brunswick reporting larger fish compared with Nova Scotia that reported medium-sized fish. Vertical fish handling – a practice that increases post-release mortality – was found in 24% of posts, and only 9.8% of shore-caught striped bass were properly handled. Retention rates varied markedly from 47% in NS to 16.5% in NB. Chi-square tests found significant bait preference variations, with NB (59%) and NS (61%) favouring bait compared with PEI’s lure dominance (78%). Temporal analysis found a 19% decline in median striped bass size and a 33% increase in shore fishing since 2017.The findings advocate for three policy interventions: 1) standardized interprovincial handling protocols, 2) expansion of DFO's iREC program with mobile reporting integration, and 3) targeted angler education through social media partnerships. The demonstrated 27% annual increase in artificial lure adoption suggests viable pathways for sustainable gear transition. This research established social media analytics as a cost-effective complement to traditional surveys, providing near-real-time insights for adaptive fisheries management while fostering science-based community collaboration.</p