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The Master of Divinity (M.Div.) remains the "gold standard" degree for students preparing for vocational Christian ministry. The curriculum is anchored in the areas of Bible, biblical languages, history, theology, and practical ministry. It also includes apprenticeships, which provide students with hands-on experience in vital local ministries. Our streamlined M.Div. is 72 hours and can be completed in as few as two years.
The Master of Arts, Intercultural Studies (MAIS) is an emerging area of theological education in our globalized world. The MAIS is designed to prepare students for vocations in intercultural contexts. The curriculum provides advanced theological engagement with pressing missiological questions in light of Scripture and the rich heritage of Christian faith and practice. The MAIS is 36 hours and can be completed in two years. The first cohort will be in Fall 2021 (pending approval by SACSCOC).
Our Ph.D. in Practical Theology begins with a two year program of coursework designed to train scholar-leaders to work within a diversity of theological specializations.
The Master of Arts, Christian Studies (MACS) provides a graduate-level understanding of theological disciplines for laypersons who desire graduate theological studies but are not pursuing full-time vocational ministry. This degree is designed to provide students with both an advanced theological education and the opportunity to concentrate in subjects important to their theological interests. The MACS is 36 hours and can be completed in one and a half years.
The Master of Arts, Philosophy of Religion (MAPR) provides rigorous study of philosophy of religion in the pursuit of wisdom and knowledge for human flourishing. Fueled by the conviction that all truth finds its source in Christ, the MAPR is designed for students pursuing academic vocations or parachurch ministries. It is also for those who desire graduate studies in philosophy of religion but are not pursuing full-time vocational ministry. The MAPR is 36 hours and can be completed in two years.
In partnership with other schools within Palm Beach Atlantic University, we offer three joint/dual degrees. These degree programs require a total of fewer credit hours than required if each degree were earned separately. These three configurations give students the opportunity to engage in integrative interdisciplinary coursework that prepares students with the knowledge, skills, and character for a variety of vocations in Christian ministry.
Students will develop both theological depth and management acumen for effective executive and administrative vocations in churches or parachurch organizations. The MDiv/MBA is 93 credit hours and can be completed in three years.
Students will integrate theological learning with mental health theory and practices for effective ministry and counseling vocations in churches or parachurch settings. The MDiv+MHC is 117 credit hours and can be completed in four years.
Students will develop the theological, economic, and philosophical knowledge to implement strategies and policies for effective developmental practices in parachurch and global settings. The MACS+MSGD is 72 credit hours and can be completed in as few as two years.
Our seminary began only seven years ago with an enthusiastic faculty and twenty eager students. Our dream then was to be a multi-denominational seminary within the evangelical tradition with one mission: to equip followers of Jesus with the knowledge, skills, and character for twenty-first-century ministry for God's Kingdom.
Our location is the urban melting pot of West Palm Beach, the most "never churched" city in America (Barna). Our evangelical commitment is expressed in spiritual formation, theological reflection, and in gospel proclamation through word and works.
Our academic community represents the beauty of the diverse and multi-ethnic body of Christ. Our partnerships with over seventy-five dynamic churches across many traditions and cultures invigorates the learning environment.
Today, our exciting journey is one of awe and wonder at God's faithfulness, especially in our recent membership in the Association of Theological Schools, the "gold-standard" accrediting commission in North America. Our first fifty alumni are thriving in Kingdom work, from pastors to chaplains, from community builders to ministers among displaced peoples, from PhD students to Bible teachers.
Our story is growing, and we invite you to be part of it!


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Recent News
June 13, 2018
Planned Parenthood Loses Federal Lawsuit Challenging DHSS Abortion Complication Regulation
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo .- The United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri has issued a ruling upholding the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services' (DHSS) complication plan regulation in Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood Great Plains v. Williams. DHSS developed a regulation to implement Senate Bill 5, abortion legislation passed during a 2017 special legislative session. The legislation requires physicians who prescribe or administer certain drugs to induce abortions to have in place a complication plan approved by DHSS. Under DHSS' regulation, the complication plan must ensure that a board-certified or board-eligible obstetrician/gynecologist is on call and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to treat complications related to abortion drugs prescribed or administered by the physician.
\"My experience in state government has taught me that much can be accomplished when people work together. I appreciate both the legislature's passage of this important law and the efforts of those who worked so hard to implement and defend it,\" Governor Mike Parson stated. Senate Bill 5 was sponsored by Senator Andrew Koenig (R-15). \"I was happy to hear that the court denied the injunction,\" stated Koenig. \"Senate Bill 5 protects and provides for the health and safety of women in Missouri.\"
DHSS Director Randall W. Williams, MD, FACOG, a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist with thirty years of experience, is voluntarily an expert witness in the case as well as a defendant. He provided expert testimony in the case regarding the standard of care for physicians who initiate elective procedures.
Williams stated, \"DHSS is pleased with the Court's ruling upholding its complication plan regulation. Ensuring the safety of all patients is always the Department's foremost concern. The complication plan regulation protects the health and safety of patients by reemphasizing the importance of the physician-patient relationship, providing for continuity of care, and ensuring communication among the physician and patient.\"
About the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services: The department seeks to be the leader in protecting health and keeping people safe. More information about DHSS can be found at health.mo.gov or find us on Facebook and Twitter @HealthyLivingMo.

subset: commoncrawl


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Asthma can be debilitating and even life threatening if it's left untreated. If your child has difficulty breathing during exercise or even at rest, the expert pediatrics team at All About Children Pediatrics in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, can help. They test for and treat asthma cases in children of all ages. If you suspect your child has asthma, schedule an appointment with All About Children Pediatrics over the phone or online today.
Asthma is a chronic condition in which your child's airways can swell, become narrow, and produce mucus. This, in turn, makes breathing difficult and can trigger debilitating symptoms, some of which are life-threatening. Simple asthma tests and treatments are available at All About Children Pediatrics to restore your child's quality of life.
The following signs and symptoms are associated with asthma in children:
Asthma symptoms may come and go or be long-lasting. They might get worse with allergies, cold weather, smoke, other irritants, or being overweight. Exercise-induced asthma can occur when your child is physically active.
The exact cause of asthma isn't entirely clear, but it seems to stem from genetic factors. The environment might also play a role in its development. Kids with allergies may have a higher risk of experiencing asthma.
To find out if your child has asthma, All About Children Pediatrics providers review your child's medical history and symptoms. They complete a physical exam, listen to your child's breathing, and complete lung function tests, such as peak flow and spirometry tests, to diagnose your child's condition and develop a personalized treatment plan.
During the tests, your child blows into a special breathing device. Your pediatrician may also recommend allergy testing using a skin prick test to determine if allergies contribute to asthma flare-ups and require treatment.
Asthma treatments are based on the severity of your child's asthma. Your pediatrician might recommend asthma inhalers for fast relief, allergy treatments, oral medications, or immunotherapy to improve your child's resistance to allergens.
Your All About Children Pediatrics provider works with you and your child to develop a personalized treatment plan that best suits their needs and lifestyle. Asthma treatments are simple and noninvasive.
Don't let breathing problems associated with asthma negatively affect your child's life or ability to stay active. Schedule an appointment with All About Children Pediatrics over the phone or online for an evaluation today.


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Q: What is the average cost of an adoption through FIA?
A: The cost of an adoption averages between $30,000 and $50,000. Costs generally incurred by the adopting couple/single are: agency fee, home study fees, advertising and outreach fees, counseling fees, legal fees, telephone and travel expenses, and in some cases medical expenses (unless the pregnant woman is covered by insurance or Medicaid) and/or reasonable living expenses for the pregnant woman as allowed by individual state laws. Adopting families can make adopting more affordable through federal adoption tax credits and/or corporate employee benefits. For additional information on making adoption more affordable, please speak to your tax advisor.


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Recognizing All Involved Specialists In Veterinary Diagnostic Labs
A few families have owned pets and they have done it for a reason. As an owner, they have to be obligated to maintain the good conditions of their pet. It can either be a dog or a cat but for as long as it was domesticated. However, just like human these animals tend to be prone to any health issues as well. It is time to call a veterinarian. There are veterinary diagnostic labs in Cohasset MA wherein most of the tests will be submitted.
Take note that even other animals aside from cats and dogs are prone as well with diseases. If the conditions are severe, then that will be the right time to consult with a professional. Animals used to have a separate doctor and they are called as veterinarians. Normally, they are conducting medical tests in laboratories.
There has been a separate laboratory wherein veterinary diagnostic is conducted. There are also some tests and medical examinations involved. These services are very well provided for the same reason as well. The most requested service has been diagnostic medical testing intended for the sick animals.
The people who have been submitting the tests are known, veterinary practitioners. They are the person who often being relied on by the pet owners and even other entities. Aside from private people, even private organizations used to ask for help from these professionals. The zoos and other law and wildlife management are one of the examples.
The medical testing is intended to find out any toxins and any infections agents or any major causes of these diseases. Once again, the samples are the only way to find out if there are toxins involved. Resolving the issues should be the first thing that these people must have to do in the first place. Expect that there is a collaborative effort involved in these parties.
Research projects are often discussed and planned as well. The laboratories are the best place wherein everything can be discussed related to the tests, samples and other matters. Even the students who are taking the veterinary course will surely benefit from participating and giving samples in the laboratory.
It widens their knowledge about animals and their anatomy. Training has been very important and it was not just applied towards the students but also to the professional vets already. Programs about zoology will be conducted. Further studies about it are normally encouraged by vets and other professionals.
If you are wondering who is taking in charge with the labs, the staff and faculty are clearly comprised of the most disciplined specialists. These people could be pathologists, microbiologists, serologists and even immunologists. The specialists are collaborating to one another with the primary goal of discovering related matters.
Each of those people involved is expected to contribute to the projects. Lab tests are expected and also another kind of examinations. If it so happens that you aspire to be included in the team, you should work hard for it. All of the teams have been contributing an enormous amount of effort in order to contribute.


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Original Paper
Background: Information and communication technology (ICT) has been used with increasing frequency for the assessment of diet and physical activity in health surveys. A number of Web-based questionnaires have been developed for children and adolescents. However, their usability characteristics have scarcely been reported, despite their potential importance for improving the feasibility and validity of ICT-based methods.
Objective: The objective of this study was to describe the usability evaluation of the Consumo Alimentar e Atividade Física de Escolares (CAAFE) questionnaire (Food Consumption and Physical Activity Questionnaire for schoolchildren), a new Web-based survey tool for the self-assessment of diet and physical activity by schoolchildren.
Methods: A total of 114 schoolchildren aged 6 to 12 years took part in questionnaire usability testing carried out in computer classrooms at five elementary schools in the city of Florianopolis, Brazil. Schoolchildren used a personal computer (PC) equipped with software for recording what is on the computer screen and the children's speech during usability testing. Quantitative and qualitative analyses took into account objective usability metrics such as error counts and time to complete a task. Data on the main difficulties in accomplishing the task and the level of satisfaction expressed by the children were assessed by the observers using a standardized form and interviews with the children. Descriptive statistics and content analysis were used to summarize both the quantitative and the qualitative aspects of the data obtained.
Results: The mean time for completing the questionnaire was 13.7 minutes (SD 3.68). Compared to the children in 2nd or 3rd grades, those in 4th or 5th grades spent less time completing the questionnaire (median 12.4 vs 13.3 minutes, P=.022), asked for help less frequently (median 0 vs 1.0 count, P=.005), had a lower error count (median 2.0 vs 8.0 count, P<.001), and obtained a higher overall performance score (median 73.0 vs 68.0, P=.005). Children with a PC at home spent less time completing the questionnaire (median 12.3 vs 14.9 minutes, P<.001), had a lower overall error count (median 2.0 vs 9.0 count, P=.03), and had a higher performance score (median 72.0 vs 64.0, P=.005) compared to the children without a PC at home. The most common difficulty in completing the questionnaire was in using the scroll bar. The majority of children reported a positive evaluation (liked a lot or liked) for the four design elements, which were evaluated.
Conclusions: The results of the present study provided feedback to improve the final version of the CAAFE questionnaire. Quantitative data showed minor errors and system failures, while qualitative data indicated that, overall, the children enjoyed the CAAFE questionnaire. Grade levels and PC use must be taken into account in Web-based tools designed for children.
Obesity is a major public health problem worldwide, affecting people of all ages. In past decades, developed countries have experienced a rapid growth in childhood obesity, as have developing countries such as Brazil []. According to a survey performed on 9,018 Brazilian children in 2008-2009, one-third of them (~3006 children) aged 5 to 9 years were found to be overweight and 1497 (16.60%) were obese. These figures are worrying compared to those of 1970s, when less than 10% of the children were overweight and 3% were obese [ ]. Although obesity epidemics have complex causes, physical activity and diet are the two main determinants of energy balance, and are therefore directly related to the worldwide increase in obesity. To tackle the pediatric obesity epidemic, monitoring tools for nutritional status, physical activity, and diet can be very helpful in determining the effectiveness of policies and health promotion programs.
Due to their importance and strategic role in promoting the health of young people, several survey systems have been specially designed to monitor the physical activity, diet, and nutritional status of schoolchildren [- ]. All these systems rely on self-reported assessment, as this is the most practical and cost-effective way of collecting data for survey purposes. However, children's self-reported assessments are often prone to bias, as they rely on their cognitive ability to recall details of both physical activities (eg, type, frequency, duration, intensity) [ ] and dietary habits (eg, the types and amount of food consumed) [ ]. Therefore, the data collection instruments designed for children must be adapted in terms of language and cognitive demand to provide reliable and valid data.
In 2002 and 2007, two surveys using similar methods to investigate nutritional status in schoolchildren and its association with behavioral and sociodemographic factors were conducted in the city of Florianopolis in Southern Brazil [- ]. A paper-and-pencil questionnaire was used to assess the food consumption and physical activity of schoolchildren aged 7 to 10 years [ ]. The validated paper-and-pencil version of the questionnaire titled "Previous Day Food Questionnaire (PDFQ)" was subjected to reliability and validity studies. The results of the reliability study indicated that agreement level between answers from the questionnaire and the observations of school meals was moderate or high for all food categories [ ]. In the validity study of the third version of the PDFQ, mean values for sensitivity and specificity were 70.5% and 87.1%, respectively, for 12 food items in three combined school meals [ ]. Based on this experience, we developed the CAAFE questionnaire: Consumo Alimentar e Atividade Física de Escolares (Schoolchildren Food Consumption and Physical Activity), a new tool for monitoring the physical activity and diet of young children in Web-based surveys.
The access of Brazilian students to new information and communication technologies (ICTs) has increased as a result of national policies to equip public schools with computers and Internet (eg, Programa Nacional de Tecnologia Educacional—ProInfo and Programa Um Computador por Aluno) []. In Florianopolis, the city where the software CAAFE has been tested, all public and private schools are equipped with computer labs and Internet. Taking into account the infrastructure presented in the school setting, the increasing familiarity of children with ICT, and the scarcity of data on the diet and physical activity of Brazilian schoolchildren, it is expected that an online self-reported assessment like the CAAFE questionnaire will be a feasible and cost-effective tool capable of providing data for the planning of health policies.
Web-based health surveys are a promising and attractive alternative to traditional data collection methods. They have several advantages over paper-and-pencil surveys such as standardized questionnaire administration, the elimination of interviewer-associated bias, reduced survey costs, and improved data quality due to automated data checking and storage [, ]. The past decade has seen the rapid development of several ICT-based tools for assessing diet and physical activity [ - ]. A number of these tools were developed specifically for young people and seem to be feasible for survey purposes [ - ]. Despite their advantages, Web- and technology-based tools are prone to producing measurement bias in addition to that produced by traditional methods. Simple errors such as not scrolling down to see an entire webpage or difficulties in understanding how to correct an erroneous response may lead to invalid data [ ]. Some of these errors may occur as a result of poor usability [ ].
As far as we are aware, there are few Web-based physical activity and food consumption assessment tools that have presented the results of usability testing [, ], particularly among schoolchildren [ ]. Since usability is an instrument attribute of utmost importance in providing more reliable and valid data, a detailed description of usability testing can promote its use for the development of tools, and provide more quantitative and qualitative data for study comparisons. To that end, usability evaluation of the CAAFE questionnaire is the first step in establishing its feasibility as a tool for Web-based health surveys. The aim of this paper is to describe the general attributes of the CAAFE questionnaire as well as to give a detailed description of its usability characteristics.
Description of the CAAFE Questionnaire
The CAAFE questionnaire was developed for school-based surveys of 7 to 10-year-old children. Schoolchildren can access the CAAFE questionnaire by logging on with a password automatically created by the system and specific for each survey, school, and time of day (morning or afternoon), to prevent the same respondent from answering the questionnaire more than once in a day.
In the formative research to develop the CAAFE questionnaire, several data sources were taken into account including: (1) our experience with the validation studies conducted with the paper-and-pencil versions of the PDFQ [, ] and Previous Day Physical Activity Questionnaire (PDPAQ) [ ], (2) food consumption and physical activity data reported by schoolchildren participating in school surveys using the PDFQ and PDPAQ [ , ], (3) previous Web-based instruments designed for schoolchildren [ - , - , ], (4) data from focus groups conducted with physical education (PE) teachers of schoolchildren [ ] and nutritionists working with the school meals program, (5) 7-day food and activity diaries completed by 180 schoolchildren from three schools, and (6) research team discussions with a specialist in child psychology and education to choose the questions and the Web layout according to the children's cognitive abilities. The main lessons learned in the formative research process indicated that the instrument must: (1) be as simple as possible both in the quantity and quality of information required from the children, (2) be attractive and interactive, and (3) include only relevant items to be marked by the children. A more complete description of the formative process of the CAAFE questionnaire will be provided in an upcoming publication.
The CAAFE questionnaire is a single-day recall procedure divided into three sections: (1) registration form, (2) diet, and (3) physical activity. The registration section refers to information about respondents, such as their name, mother's name, sex, weight, height, age, date of birth, and study period. These are simple questions with each screen presenting only one question. The option "I don't know" is offered for almost all the questions, to avoid frustration when the respondent is unsure about the answer. Four questions require the answers to be typed (ie, the name, mother's name, weight and height of the respondent), whereas all the other questions could be answered only by clicking on large icons. In the CAAFE survey system, it is planned that all participants will have their weight and height measured 2 weeks before completing the questionnaire, and will keep these measurements to assist them in answering the survey. The name of the school, city, and state are automatically entered on the database, based on a previously compiled list linked to the password entered. In case of response interruption (eg, Internet disconnected), children can continue the questionnaire at a later time on the same day. Otherwise, children would have to start the questionnaire all over again.
The food consumption section of the questionnaire was divided into six parts (breakfast, morning snack, lunch, afternoon snack, dinner, and evening snack), to help children recall foods and beverages consumed during the previous day. This approach has been frequently used in questionnaires for young children, as it facilitates the recall process [, , ]. The foods and food groups, including healthy and unhealthy items, were chosen taking into account the food patterns of children in this age group (reported by schoolchildren in the 7-day food diaries), foods offered in school meals, and foods recommended in the Brazilian Food Guidelines. Upon choosing the food items from a screen with 32 food icons (see ), schoolchildren can check all six meals to add or exclude specific items. After completing the six-meal events, four questions are asked on different screens: (1) "Did you have a school meal yesterday?" (yes/no); (2) If yes, "Which of these foods did you eat during the school meal?"; (3) "How many times per week do you have school meals?" (none, 1, 2, 3, 4, every school day); and (4) "How do you like the food served in the school meal?" (five options illustrated by a hedonic scale). The meals listed in question 2 are those likely to be offered in the school setting (the first four meals of the day), and include only the foods/beverages previously marked by the children.
The physical activity section is divided into the three parts of the day (morning, afternoon, and evening). Other ICT-based questionnaires have used this strategy to help children recall the physical activities performed [, , ]. A closed list of leisure activities, sports, home chores, and sedentary activities was compiled based on the results from focal groups, previous instruments for this age range, and the 7-day recall completed by 180 schoolchildren. Children can choose sedentary and physical activity icons from among 32 options (see ). When a physical activity is chosen, a modal window opens and the avatar asks the children about its intensity, "How tired did you get during this activity?" and three illustrated icons depicting different degrees of physical exertion are presented. As in the food section, children can check their answers and make changes if necessary in this section also. Next, the avatar asks five questions on separate screens: (1) "Click on the activities you did yesterday when the teacher was present."; (2) "Did you have a PE class yesterday?" (yes/no); (3) "How many days per week do you have PE classes?" (none, 1, 2, 3, 4, every day of the week); (4) "How do you like PE classes?" (five options on a hedonic scale); and (5) finally, children are asked about the mode of transport they use to travel to school (car, school bus, regular bus, motorcycle, on foot, bike, skateboard, or boat).
The final CAAFE questionnaire flow can be accessed in. The total number of screens can vary according to the responses chosen (eg, omitting questions regarding the previous school day if the child did not go to school that day). presents the major functionality of the CAAFE survey system as well as the interaction between researchers, children, professionals, and policy makers.
Usability Testing
The most basic and useful method for improving the website usability is user testing that contains three components: (1) selecting representative users, (2) asking them to perform representative tasks with the Web-based interface, and (3) observing where they succeed and where they have difficulties with the user interface []. Several methodologies are available for usability testing, depending on the study objectives and on limitations such as time, money, management backing, development team support, and ability to recruit participants [ ]. In the present study, we opted to adapt the multiple testing product version method described by Rubin and Chisnell [ ]. Our strategy differs from the original method in that each software version was tested by different children.
Pilot Test
A pilot test of usability for the first version of the CAAFE questionnaire was conducted with 110 children (85% of the eligible subjects from five selected classes) aged 7 to 13 years (59 girls/110 children, 53.6%), from two elementary public schools in the city of Florianopolis, the capital of the Santa Catarina, Brazil. This first version had a different questionnaire flow compared to the final version previously described. The metaphor of a diary was used to help children record what they ate/did over the course of the previous day. Both physical activities and food consumption were assessed in the same screen.
The same usability test procedures were used for the pilot test. Several design elements caused disruptions in the flow (eg, hidden buttons, poor quality of drawings), and the children were unable to complete the questionnaire without assistance. In addition, almost all the children (109/110, 99.1%) enjoyed answering the questionnaire, and only a few children reported they had any difficulty completing the task. The mean time to complete the first version was 29 minutes. The low usability performance of this version led to the redesign of the software layout. The main improvements to the final version of the software were the presentation of diet and physical activity sections in separate screens. Improvements were also made in the Web design.
Six other classes were invited to test the second version of the software. To represent schoolchildren from different socioeconomic backgrounds, four public schools from different regions of the city (central, north, east, and south) were selected. A total of 114 (114/152, 75.0% of the eligible subjects) schoolchildren aged 6 to 12 years (58 girls/114 children, 50.8%) took part in this phase. In order to assess child computer use, all parents answered a questionnaire on the number of computers at home (none, 1, 2, 3, 4, or more), child access to computers at home (yes, no, or sometimes), a computer in the child's bedroom (yes/no), main use of the computer by the child (Internet search, games, social network sites, and/or schoolwork), frequency of computer use in a typical week (none to every day), and average time spent on the computer per day (less than one hour to more than five hours).
Both studies were approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (protocol 2250/11). All children gave their oral consent, and parents or guardians were asked to authorize their participation by signing an informed consent form.
Location, Equipment, and Schedule
The location of the test sessions is closely linked to the study design and users []. In the present study, all sessions were carried out in the computer labs of the participating schools. There were two main reasons for this: (1) children were familiar with the school computer labs because several academic and nonacademic assignments had been completed there, and (2) school computer labs will be the primary setting for the CAAFE survey system in the near future.
In order to record screen logs and user audio during usability sessions, team laptops were equipped with Morae Recorder. Along with Morae Manager, this software kept a record of the children's navigation process through the CAAFE questionnaire, compiling these data for a subsequent review. A personal computer (PC) monitor, keyboard, and mouse were attached to the research team laptops (equipped with a Morae Recorder) once the children became familiar with the computers. Sessions were arranged in advance with school staff and carried out in November and December 2012.
Test Session Protocol
At the start of the session with children, the moderator introduced the task to the entire class. The children were told that we were testing software and would like to improve it with their help. Small groups of children (n=3-6) were taken to the computer lab according to observer availability. Upon arrival at the computer lab, the children were again introduced to the task and a few questions were asked in order to put them at ease (eg, What is your name? How old are you? Do you have a computer at home? What do you enjoy doing on your computer?). The next step was to introduce each child to one of the observers (one observer per child), who told them that an avatar would explain the task. Each child answered the questionnaire as independently as possible while the observer took notes about their performance. The observers were instructed to position themselves at a desk outside the child's line of sight and to give minimal feedback when asked for help. They were also instructed to encourage the child to try again.
The observer protocol included a four-level performance scale (0, 1, 2, 3) for the 25 screens in the CAAFE questionnaire, providing a total score ranging from 0 to 75 (25 × 3=75). Children's requests for help and any other relevant observations were recorded in the appropriate fields. The scoring on the performance scale is interpreted as follows. Performance scale for level 0 signifies that the child is unable to fill out the questionnaire and continue the Web flow alone. It also interprets that child does not know what has to be done. Level 1 on performance scale tells that child has difficulty with typing, navigates and chooses icons slowly and/or with many unnecessary clicks on the screen, and gives long periods of inactivity on the same screen. Level 2 states that child types efficiently but with a few errors. Child may find difficulty in navigating and selecting icons/items. Score 3 on performance level demonstrates that child types efficiently without errors, and can navigate and choose the options quickly and efficiently. Child showing score 3 on the scale is said to be self-assured.
The children's primary task was to complete the entire questionnaire. Immediately after the task, the observers were instructed to record their observations according to four predefined categories: (1) usability issues: child's difficulties in moving forward and answering the questionnaire due to the Web design; (2) audio and visual elements: any specific comments regarding the icons, screens, or avatar speech; (3) system errors: any programming failure displayed by the system or interrupted Internet access; and (4) child performance, comments on computer skills (eg, using the mouse and scroll bar, typing), cognitive and emotional aspects: understanding the speech, reading and writing levels, and the behavior exhibited (eg, calm, agitated, anxious).
After the children completed the CAAFE questionnaire, an interviewer asked them about their satisfaction with the task performed and what they liked or disliked about the questionnaire. We used a standard form created by the research team. A five-level hedonic pictorial scale was used to evaluate specific aspects of the software layout, such as colors/screens, food and activity icons, and avatars. In addition, children were asked to describe their difficulties during the task and to suggest possible changes for improving the software.
Quantitative Analysis
For quantitative analysis, all recorded screen logs were reviewed and analyzed by the first two authors. The primary task was divided into three parts (registration form, diet, and activities) to describe usability issues in specific sections of the CAAFE questionnaire. Time to accomplish the task (average and range) was set from the first click on the "Start" button.
Each recorded screen was carefully reviewed to divide the main usability issues into four broad categories: Web design usability issues, response inconsistencies, requests for help, and system or Internet failure. Information on the response to the question "Have you already done this task before?", name and date of birth, the time of day the children attend school (morning, afternoon, or both), and the number of PE classes were checked using information from the school staff, and served as the basis for assessing response inconsistencies. Height and weight were not measured in the usability study; therefore, the validity of this information could not be checked. Instead, we looked for "unlikely" data on height (eg, 2.5 m) and weight (eg, 10 kg) and categorized this as "response inconsistencies." Height and weight will be measured in the validation study; we will therefore be able to detect mistakes in data entered by the children and to compare the mistakes with the measures previously collected. All registered occurrences were graphically presented. The three main errors, namely Web design usability issues, response inconsistencies, and request for help, system bugs, and Internet failure were identified for types II, III, and IV, while type I presented only a single error, that is Web design usability issues.
Usability attributes were compared according to gender, grade (2nd/3rd vs 4th/5th), and access to a computer at home (yes/no). The Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test was used in these comparisons because the distributions were either positively (time to accomplish the task, help request, or mean error count) or negatively (total performance score) skewed. We considered differences to be significant at the P<.05 level, and used SPSS version 21 for statistical analysis.
Qualitative Analysis
Qualitative Analysis Was Based on Observers' Notes Made After the Children Completed the Caafe Questionnaire and on the Children's Interviews. for the Former, the Most Relevant Usability Issues Were Highlighted Based on Four Prespecified Topics: (1) Children's Difficulties in the Navigation Process (eg, to Move Forward After Answering a Question), (2) Audio and Visual Elements That Would Cause Doubts, or Any Comments Made by the Children, (3) System Errors That Occurred During Completion, and (4) Difficulties and Behaviors Displayed by the Children. the Children's Impressions of the Software Were Described Based on Content Analysis Along With Frequency Distribution of Their Evaluation of the Key Elements of Software Design.
Participant Characteristics
The characteristics of the 114 schoolchildren who participated in the study are presented in. It was found that 3 out of 4 children had a computer at home, while 16 of the 114 students (14.0%) had no access to computers outside the school environment. The average time spent on the computer was almost 10 hours/week, ranging from no use to 49 hours/week of computer use. The most common use of computers by children, as reported by their parents, was schoolwork and social networking, followed by Internet searches. This result partially contrasted with the data reported by the children in the pretest interview, in which games were cited as the most common computer use, followed by social networks (data not shown).
Quantitative Results
The usability test sessions with 95 of the 114 participants were recorded, providing data for quantitative analysis (19 individual test sessions could not be recorded due to technical problems). The mean time to complete the registration form, diet, and activity sections was 3.5 min (SD 1.9), 5.7 min (SD 1.5), and 3.9 min (SD 1.1), respectively. The mean time to complete the entire questionnaire was 13.7 minutes (SD 3.7) (Task 4).shows the mean error count for each specific task. The mean error count for the entire questionnaire (Task 4) was 7.2 (median 4; range 0-22; interquartile range 11).
The most frequent difficulty encountered in the Task 1 was the request for help in typing in the respondent's name (17/95, 18%). In addition, about 16 of the 95 children (17%) reported they had already answered the questionnaire when in fact they had not. In the diet and activity sections (Task 2 and 3), the most common error was related to Web design usability issues. In the physical activity section, 48% (46/95) of participants saw the "Continue" button before clicking in a response option. Moreover, about 36% (34/95) of children did not report the correct frequency of PE classes per week. Overall, the most common error in completing the questionnaire was difficulty in using the scroll bar (50/95, 52%). The top three error types are presented in.
shows four usability performance indicators according to gender, grade, and the presence of a PC at home. No difference was found between genders. The children attending 4th and 5th grades spent less time completing the questionnaire, asked for help less frequently, had a lower error count, and had a higher overall performance score compared to those attending 2nd and 3rd grades. Children with a PC at home spent less time completing the questionnaire, had a lower overall error count, and obtained a higher performance score compared to those without a computer at home.
|n (%) or mean (SD)
|56 (49.1)
|58 (50.8)
|Age (years)
|9.2 (1.27)
|2nd and 3rd
|53 (46.4)
|4th and 5th
|61 (53.5)
|Exposure to computer
|Computer at home (yes)
|86 (75.4)
|No access to computer at home
|28 (24.5)
|Access to a computer at home
|All the time
|71 (62.2)
|27 (23.6)
|No access
|16 (14.0)
|Computer in the bedroom
|26 (22.8)
|Average time of computer use (hours/week)
|9.8 (8.8)
|Computer use
|Internet search
|43 (37.7)
|38 (33.3)
|Social networking
|54 (47.3)
|54 (47.3)
|Error type
|Error type I
|Web design usability issuesa
|Poor scroll bar visibility in diet and activity sections
|Error type II
|Response inconsistencies
|Number of physical education classes per week
|Children reporting they had already completed the task when in fact they had not
|Name misspelled
|Error type III
|Requests for help
|To choose an option
|To type in own name
|To select date of birth
|Error type IV
|System bugs and Internet failure
|"Continue" button visible before response options appeared on the screen
|Old version of the intensity scale for physical activities used in the questionnaire
|Need to click twice or more to continue the questionnaire
aThere was only one error of type I.
|Usability attributes
|P valueb
|P valueb
|PC at home
|P valueb
|Time to complete (minutes)
|Help request (count)
|Mean error counta
|Performance score (0-75)
aExcluding system errors (type IV).
bP values for the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test.
Qualitative Results
shows the results obtained from the children's interviews regarding satisfaction with the design elements of the CAAFE questionnaire. The majority of children reported a positive evaluation (liked a lot or liked) for the four design elements.
When children were asked about what they disliked about the CAAFE questionnaire, the majority reported liking everything. Two children disliked having to report their height. Two others considered the food section repetitive and the physical activity section boring. One child disliked the avatar's voice, one complained about the sound volume, and another about the need to type in the full name.
When asked about the most difficult part of the CAAFE questionnaire, a majority of children answered that the task was easy to perform. The most common difficulty reported by the children was to recall what they had done the previous day (20/114, 17.5%). Some children (6/114, 5.2%) reported difficulty in remembering their height and weight. Less frequent difficulties cited by the children included typing their own name and that of their mother (4/114, 3.5%), indicating activities organized by an adult (1/114, 0.8%), finding a specific food item (n=1), and reporting the frequency of PE classes (1/114, 0.8%). Only a few children reported something they would like to change in the questionnaire. Some children (12/114, 10.5%) said that additional food/activity/transport options should be included. Some children (8/114, 7.0%) asked to include games related to food and physical activity.
|Satisfaction level
|Design elements
|Colors/Screens (%)
|Food icons (%)
|Activity icons (%)
|Avatar (%)
|Liked a lot
|103 (90.0)
|78 (68.4)
|85 (74.6)
|103 (90.3)
|8 (7.3)
|29 (25.4)
|20 (17.5)
|10 (8.7)
|3 (2.7)
|4 (3.5)
|9 (7.9)
|1 (0.9)
|0 (0.0)
|3 (2.6)
|0 (0.0)
|0 (0.0)
|Disliked a lot
|0 (0.0)
|0 (0.0)
|0 (0.0)
|0 (0.0)
The present study describes an interactive Web-based tool to assess the food consumption and physical activity of schoolchildren in a school-based survey, as well as the results of usability testing, which provided feedback and improved the final version of the CAAFE questionnaire. Quantitative data showed some minor errors and system failures, while qualitative data indicated that children enjoyed the CAAFE questionnaire. Subgroup comparisons demonstrated that children enrolled in higher grades and those who have a PC at home exhibited higher usability performance compared to children in lower grades and those who do not have a PC at home.
Subgroup Usability Performance Comparisons
Markopoulos and Bekker [] reported that several characteristics of children such as their capacity and inclination to verbalize, ability to concentrate, and motivation to perform the task may have an impact on usability testing. Gender, knowledge of language and general concepts, and prior experience with a PC are known to affect usability test results and were therefore included in the present study.
No gender differences were observed in usability performance. Gender differences in computer attitudes were reported in the early 1990s as a sex-role stereotyping issue [], which would hypothetically lead to a gender effect on usability performance. However, recent studies have shown that gender differences are of little significance in this context [ , ]. Hypothetically, children born in the 21st Century have more experience with computers and other new information technology devices regardless of sex, which would explain similar performance in usability testing. These results partially differ from those of Ruggeri [ ], who found that girls reported more difficulties in using the NUTRISIM, a new Web-based software for assessing diet of 10- to 14-year-old Brazilian schoolchildren.
As expected, children in higher grades exhibited better usability testing performance on the CAAFE questionnaire compared to those in lower grades. No other Web-based physical activity and/or diet assessment tool has reported such findings. This result is relevant to other Web-based questionnaires targeting a wider age range. The present study showed that children attending 2nd and 3rd grades needed more time to complete the task, asked for help more frequently, had a higher error count, and got a lower performance score. This indicates that special attention should be paid to younger children during data collection to minimize input data errors. However, it is interesting to note that our findings may not be generally applicable to all age groups. Younger children (11 year) demonstrated fewer difficulties in using the NUTRISIM compared to older children (12-14 year), although the latter reported fewer difficulties with regard to comprehension of the questions [].
Another important factor in usability testing is computer knowledge and skills. Children who are more exposed to computers are expected to perform better in usability tests. In our study, having a computer at home was used as proxy of computer use. As expected, children with a PC at home showed improved usability performance compared to those without one. A preliminary question about computer ownership in the children's families may help teachers and other staff members recognize difficulties in Web-based surveys designed for schoolchildren.
Regardless of differences in usability performance across grade levels and in PC ownership subgroups, the time to complete the task, requests for help, and error count were all acceptable, particularly considering the young age of the participants. First, the mean completion time of 13.6 minutes is deemed reasonable for children, as this is a sufficiently short time to hold their attention and to motivate them to complete the task. This time was even shorter than that reported to complete similar questionnaires for assessing physical activity among young children [, , ]. Second, the median of help requests was near to zero. Unfortunately, other questionnaires similar to ours have not provided the necessary information for comparison purposes of the mean error count and performance score.
Software Improvements
The primary aim of usability testing is to identify and correct usability deficiencies []. Based on usability test results with end users, some improvements have been made in the CAAFE questionnaire. The biggest challenge was to make the scroll bar "visible" for children. Despite the fact that it is a common component in Web pages, 50 of the 95 (53%) children could not manage to use the scroll bar correctly. Some of them tried to click on the bar instead of dragging it down. A study with 7-year-old children who were inexperienced with a computer mouse supports this observation, since they were quicker and more accurate in pointing compared to dragging [ ]. To solve the scroll bar problem in the CAAFE questionnaire, automated scrolling was set on each screen with a scroll bar. This allows children to see how the scroll bar works and how many food and activity options they can select.
In order to improve data quality from the question about the number of PE classes, we inserted the option "I don't know." Other minor changes were made without significantly altering the program. First, the "Continue" button was programmed to appear only after an answer was selected, thereby ensuring that children clicked on an option before proceeding to the next screen. Second, the intensity scale for physical activities illustrated in the first version was substituted by a new one.
The need to click two or more times to continue the questionnaire was probably related to the Internet speed, despite the fact that the software was designed and programmed to run with low-speed Internet connections. However, to minimize technical problems in future school-based surveys, the research team will provide minimal system and Internet access requirements to the computer labs of the participating schools, and will inform school principals about these requirements.
Error type II (response inconsistencies) and III (requests for help) were not solved by Web-design modifications. Instead, we expect to minimize these and other errors by way of appropriate training for the school staff where children will take part in the Web-based survey. In usability testing, the observers were trained to provide basic assistance to schoolchildren. However, school staff may be able to help children better with routine Web-based health surveys than outside observers. Tutorials and frequently asked questions on the CAAFE website will be made available to the school staff to standardize adult interventions during completion of the questionnaire.
Strengths and Limitations
The present study exhibited a number of strengths that deserve to be mentioned. First, the participants and test setting closely mirrored the real context of future CAAFE Web-based surveys. Second, we gathered data using several methodological strategies (eg, direct observation, user interviews, test sessions recordings), which allowed us to obtain both quantitative and qualitative data for usability evaluation. Third, the number of participants was large enough to compare performance indicators across subgroups of interest. Nevertheless, some limitations must also be noted. The results should be interpreted with caution because methods and usability performance indicators were created especially for this study. Even though they are all natural extensions of existing performance indicators in various other contexts (eg, education, market research), direct comparisons with other studies in the field are limited. Furthermore, some children may have been unable to express their difficulties or to make appropriate suggestions for improving the software, or were too timid to do so during the testing sessions.
Accurate diet and physical activity assessment in young children is a challenge for researchers. Parents may help in reporting their children' food intake in the home but often do not know what their consumption is outside the home. More precise methods such as 24-hour recalls and food diaries are costly and put too much burden on the respondents, making them impractical in a school setting. Self-report assessment of diet and physical activity among young children has a number of limitations such as social desirability, difficulties in recalling past events, and classifying and quantifying activities and food consumed. Children younger than 10 years are still developing cognitive abilities to accurately recall diet and physical activity [, ], which must therefore be taken into account with any instrument designed for this age group. The CAAFE was designed considering the cognitive skills and literacy levels of children aged 7-10 years to respond to the questionnaire. The CAAFE was designed neither to estimate energy and nutrient intake, nor to estimate energy expense or to quantify activities performed. Questions about the size of food portions, or the frequency and duration of physical activities, were therefore not included. In addition, the closed list of foods and activities is not intended to represent the diversity of diet and activities. On the other hand, this simplifies the task of recall by prompting only the relevant food items eaten and the types of physical activities performed on the previous day, and also keeps the questionnaire relatively brief and easy both for completion and for administration. The cognitive task required for estimating portion size, frequency, and averaging may not be compatible with the perceptual and conceptual capacities of children who have not reached the stage of abstract reasoning, at approximately 10-11 years of age [ , ].
Future Developments
The next step in the Web-based survey system is to provide data on the validity and reproducibility of the CAAFE questionnaire. Data collection is currently under way. It is expected that self-reported diet and physical activities will match the data that will be obtained by trained researchers through direct observation. Once the validity and reproducibility of the CAAFE questionnaire have been properly tested, a Web-based survey will be conducted in all 37 elementary public schools in the city of Florianopolis. The survey will provide data to evaluate response rate, technical and operational problems, as well as the time needed to complete the investigation. After further improvements have been made, a new Web-based survey will be conducted in other Brazilian cities to evaluate its feasibility as a national survey instrument. General information on the survey system is available on a CAAFE questionnaire website [].
The profusion of technology and information tools to assess physical activity and eating behavior in children has not been accompanied by adequate assessment of their usability features. This study sought to detail the methodological procedures and to report major usability problems found with end users of the CAAFE questionnaire, as well as to relate them to user characteristics. The results helped to improve the Web design and methodological procedures for future CAAFE Web-based surveys for schools. We expect the methods developed in this usability testing to be applied in other similar Web-based tools to compare and discuss results regarding their potential effects on instrument validity and reliability.
This study was supported by the Brazilian Ministry of Health (Departamento de Ciência, Tecnologia e Insumos Estratégicos—DECIT), the Brazilian Ministry of Education (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior-CAPES), and the Brazilian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico [CNPq]). We gratefully thank the Education Secretary of the Prefeitura Municipal de Florianopolis, the staff of the schools, and children and parents for their participation in the study.
Conflicts of Interest
None declared.
Multimedia Appendix 1
CAAFE questionnaire flow.WMV File (Windows Media Video), 122MB
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|CAAFE: Consumo Alimentar e Atividade Física de Escolares
|ICT: information and communication technology
|PC: personal computer
|PDFQ: Previous Day Food Questionnaire
|PDPAQ: Previous Day Physical Activity Questionnaire
|PE: physical education
Edited by G Eysenbach; submitted 02.04.13; peer-reviewed by D Thompson, D Kerr; comments to author 28.04.13; revised version received 09.06.13; accepted 20.07.13; published 19.08.13Copyright
©Filipe Ferreira da Costa, Camilie Pacheco Schmoelz, Vanessa Fernandes Davies, Patrícia Faria Di Pietro, Emil Kupek, Maria Alice Altenburg de Assis. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 19.08.2013.
This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in JMIR Research Protocols, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on http://www.researchprotocols.org, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.


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text:
I was in search for a milk substitute mainly for my children when they have a cold. Dairy is mucus forming so they tend to gum them up really badly. I couldn't find any almond milk that doesn't contain a whole list of ingredients besides almond and water and most of them contain carrageenan, which is a big no no for anyone with gut issues. So I experimented with pumpkin seeds and my omega juicer. I personally find seeds a bit easier on my digestion than nuts and the soaking make it even better to absorb. Give it a try and let me know which seeds or nuts you like best. I hear Cashew milk is yummy!
|I took 1 cup of pumpkin seeds
|Soak them overnight in water
|strain out soaking water, rinse and add 3 cups of fresh water and ladle seeds and water into my juicer
|It tastes creamy but bland so I added maple syrup and a dash of gluten free vanilla for the boys and it was a hit.
|Ta Da!


text:
It has been nearly a month since Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico. In that time, Donald Trump has done his best to display a complete lack of leadership, tweeting about the NFL instead of the island's crisis, breezily dropping in to throw a few paper towels rolls around, and attacking the mayor of San Juan. And just last week, Trump tweeted that "We cannot keep FEMA, the Military & the First Responders, who have been amazing (under the most difficult circumstances) in P.R. forever!"
All of this, despite the fact that a huge majority of the island still lacks electricity, people are drinking water from Superfund sites, and more rural and remote areas on the island are still having trouble receiving aid. Now there are concerns about post-hurricane disease outbreaks. While there is continued debate as to who is responsible for the humanitarian crisis on the island, it's undeniable that Puerto Rico is far from achieving a semblance of recovery. Yet, the president claimed on Friday that "They're all healing. Their states and territories are healing and they are healing rapidly."
This is simply not the case. To get a better sense of the situation on the ground, I spoke to Frankie Miranda, senior vice president at the Hispanic Federation, a non-profit that has been working to coordinate aid to the island.
The following interview has been edited and condensed.
SPLINTER: Tell me about your work with the Hispanic Federation and its efforts in Puerto Rico
I just got back from Puerto Rico last weekend. I had to travel there because my grandmother passed a week ago. I took advantage of seeing my family and making sure they were OK, but at same time it allowed me to witness the situation on the island firsthand.
The Hispanic Federation is an organization dedicated to providing technical assistance and capacity-building grants to other non-profits. Because of our involvement with groups here in the Puerto Rican diaspora and also our work on the island, we were very aware that this was going to be a catastrophic emergency. We started preparing for that. The first phase of our efforts was to collect items and send them to Puerto Rico. Soon after we realized that the federal response and response from local government...that there were issues with regards to the magnitude of this emergency.
In what ways?
I grew up in Puerto Rico, I have gone through several hurricanes in the past, but this is the first time you have the island losing complete power, water supply, no communications, and also an extreme shortage of gas. So from the very beginning, when we were starting to get reports from the island, we realized that the aid was not getting to those who need it the most.
Instead of sending aid to San Juan and having a bottleneck at the airports that were not fully operational, we started looking for alternatives. My sister, who is working for Walgreens in Puerto Rico, told me that she was able to move merchandise and moving trucks out of the ports and out of the warehouses in Puerto Rico and be able to reach half of the 120 stores on the island. I said, 'How are you able to do that and not the government?' and she said, 'Well there is a series of food distributors on the island that already had supplies, they already had items inside of the warehouse even before Maria hit.' So we decided to skip all the bottlenecking and we were able to start contacting the food distributors on the island. Within the warehouses on the island we were able to move more than a million pounds of food into 13 towns that were hard hit. In that way we were completely bypassing the FEMA response and the emergency response from the government of Puerto Rico. That's how we started to move water, food, batteries, and other supplies.
What do you think about the federal government's response to the situation down there?
There's a lot of conflicting reports. Our experience has been that the 13 towns that we have served so far, they have told us that they have not gotten help, or they have not gotten enough help. Some of them have said all they have gotten is a shipment of snacks, which is troublesome when you take into consideration that there are people there suffering from dehydration and malnutrition.
The other part that I'm extremely concerned about is the emphasis on the death toll. At beginning when President Trump arrived to Puerto Rico, there was a very low death toll and he tried to compare it with Katrina, making it sound like Puerto Rico was having a great time and that it was not such an important or grave emergency. But I want us to be very careful with those metrics. Let me remind you, many of municipalities have not been able to really calculate how many people died during aftermath or during the emergency. And how do you count the casualties? If my grandmother who needed oxygen and was in a home-assisted living facility, is she going to be counted as part of the death toll? Her facility lost power, many of the employees had enormous challenges to actually get there, and at some point she was not receiving the oxygen and the other services that she needed to stay alive. So what exactly is the death toll? There is enormous suffering on the island. I want people to really understand that when they make these estimates and they are the most positive forecasts.
Again, we can argue if federal response was timely or not. What I heard and saw on the ground is that it's still needed and that they need to move faster.
What do you need right now that is the most pressing issue?
Money. We're going to continue our fundraising efforts, we have raised $14 million in 24 days. More than 100,000 donors have contributed and this is something that we're going to try to continue pushing as much as possible. With this money we can invest in projects that we are identifying right now, like being able to invest in purification of water plants and projects that are trying to create solar panels to provide power to communities.
We are also very concerned about those communities in the mountains who have not received help as of yet. The challenge is making contact with the municipalities, finding out where distribution centers are. It's a constant hurdle to be able to move faster. We have wanted to serve many more towns, but at this point it's very difficult to do that. I was able to make contact with the mayor of Corozal, a town in the mountains, because the mayor went to my grandmother's funeral. He was there with his team, and I got the information I needed and passed it on to my colleague here in New York via WhatsApp and we were able to serve that town just because I was able to run into the mayor.
Are there things that you think are not getting enough media coverage?
The media needs to continue paying attention to the fact that this is going to be a very long recovery. We cannot abandon American citizens in Puerto Rico. Many people still think this is foreign aid to an island in the Caribbean and that these people had enough and that they should make do on their own. We're not challenging or questioning the aid that went to Houston, or the aid that went to places in Florida after Hurricane Irma. We're just asking for fair aid to Puerto Rico.
Are a lot of people leaving the island?
When I went to Puerto Rico I was able to get on a flight that was half-empty going in, and coming back it was completely full. I have never in my life seen the bridge that connects the plane to the gate at JFK so full of personnel from the airline with wheelchairs waiting to get people out of the plane. It was completely full. Normally you see one or two wheelchairs, but here it was the entire bridge all the way to the gate. I saw people at the airport in Puerto Rico moaning in pain, people that were not ready to take a commercial flight, but their situation is so desperate—if you are in some sort of compromised position with your health or you're too old or you're unemployed and you see there is no hope inside and you can afford a one-way ticket, you are going to leave the island.
Are there any problems that are happening on the island that you think people aren't hearing about?
Those who were a little bit prepared and had some sort of generator, like small businesses, are seeing that none of this equipment is prepared to withstand four weeks of constant use. Right now those small businesses, hospitals, restaurants, or any kind of office that provides critical needs to the population are now facing the fact that their equipment was never designed to withstand all this. So even those who have been prepared, and those who are getting back online are still facing enormous challenges.
The second thing is that because of the rainy season and people that are going into the streams to get water, there are a lot of concerns about mosquitoes and illnesses like dengue. We still are very worried about the health impact of the emergency and people not being able to sanitize everything properly, not having access to drinkable water. On the AM radio, which is the one that was functioning when I was there, it was encouraging people to boil water before using it. But if you don't have electricity and you don't have gas how are you going to boil the water? It is an overwhelming snowball effect.
The story of the recovery of Puerto Rico will take many months. We need to make people understand that this is not a one-stop deal to do something then move on, we need to continue having this conversation.


text: Fernando Mazariengas of Guatemala invented a clay-pot water filtration system that can be inexpensively produced in factories using locally sourced material. The filter has since been improved and widely distributed by MIT's Susan Murcott and others. Factories built at 52 locations in 31 countries are helping to curb disease, while also bringing jobs. About nine years ago, Murcott's team started disseminating the ceramic filter in northern Ghana -- where over a million people lack access to a reliable supply of clean drinking water. It's now starting to make a difference. Murcott cofounded a nonprofit company in 2005 called Pure Home Water to sell filters produced in Accra, Ghana's capital. But the rough 12-hour truck ride to deliver them to where they're needed most caused a lot of breakage. So in 2011, a factory was built in the impoverished, rural northern region. They reached full production by 2012 -- providing sustainable, safe drinking water to more than 100,000 people.MIT News explains: The flowerpot-like filters are made with a mixture of local clays and combustible material, such as rice husks or sawdust.The combustible material burns off when the clay is fired, leaving a network of tiny pores that filter out sediment, bacteria, and parasites, while allowing water to trickle through. The filter is further treated by applying colloidal silver nanoparticles that have antimicrobial properties. The pot is set into the top of a plastic barrel, which is fitted with a spigot at the bottom to dispense the water.One filter can produce enough clean water daily to serve the needs of a large family.They've been shown to reduce microbial contamination in water by 98 percent, leading to a more than two-thirds decrease in diarrheal disease among families using them. The factory churns out hundreds of filters a month, and while they cost $10 to make, they're sold for $6 to the rural poor. Though that's still a steep price in a place where most people earn less than $1 a day. Murcott and colleagues recently received grants from the government of Dubai, which will allow them to expand production and distribution in Ghana, Guatemala, and Nepal. [Via MIT News Office]Image: http://purehomewater.org\nThis post was originally published on Smartplanet.com\n


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What Exercises Get You to Hit Harder in Football?
Like the vertical jump in basketball, a big tackle in football is essential. A big hit can win both the ball and also the respect of the opposing team. If you deliver enough big hits, your opponents may hesitate for a split second during play and give you a vital, and even game-winning, advantage. There are numerous exercises that you can preform to help develop your hitting power.
Thrusters develop all of the muscles used when delivering a big hit in football. This exercise requires you to use your arms and legs in synergy to generate a large amount of power. Stand with a barbell held at shoulder level and your feet shoulder-width apart. Push your hips back, bend your knees and descend into a deep squat position. Explosively extend your legs and drive up and out of the squat. Maintain the momentum of the bar and drive it overhead to arm's length using your arms. Bend your arms, lower the bar back to your shoulders and repeat. This exercise is most effective when performed with heavy weights for low repetitions.
Barbell Squat Jumps
Barbell squat jumps target your thighs and hips. These muscles are responsible for developing the majority of your power when making a tackle in football. Place and hold a heavy barbell across your shoulders. Make sure you hold the bar down tightly. Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Push your hips back, bend your knees and squat down until your thighs are parallel to the floor. From this position drive up and leap into the air as high as your can. Land on the balls of your feet with your knees slightly bent and then descend into another repetition. Perform this exercise using a moderate to heavy weight for maximum benefit.
Sled Bear Crawls
The sled bear crawl mimics the scrimmage starting position and develops the muscles responsible for driving you forward and into the opposition when blocking or tackling. Load up a weighted sled with a heavy weight and fix the tow straps around your waist. Alternatively you can use a chest harness. Bend your knees, lean forward and place your hands on the ground. Move one foot slightly in front of the other so you are ready to drive forward. Keeping your hips low, move your hands and feet to pull the sled forward for a predetermined length of time or distance.
High Pulls
The high pull exercise develops hip extension strength and power. The hips are essential for generating a big hit. Place a barbell on the floor and stand with your feet hip-width apart with your toes just under the bar. Bend your knees and lean forward. Grasp the bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip. Straighten your arms and lower your hips below your shoulders. With your chest up and lower back tightly arched, explosively pull the bar off the ground and stand up. Pull the bar up the front of your body to lower chest-height while keeping your elbows high and your wrists straight. Lower the bar back to the floor and repeat. This exercise should be performed as dynamically as possible.
- "Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning"; National Strength and Conditioning Association; 2008
- "Complete Conditioning For Rugby"; Dan Luger, Paul Pook; 2004
- "Designing Resistance Training Programs"; Steven Fleck, William Kraemer; 2003
- "Dinosaur Training: Lost Secrets of Strength and Development"; Brooks D Kubik; 2006
Writer Bio
Patrick Dale is an experienced writer who has written for a plethora of international publications. A lecturer and trainer of trainers, he is a contributor to "Ultra-FIT" magazine and has been involved in fitness for more than 22 years. He authored the books "Military Fitness", "Live Long, Live Strong" and "No Gym? No Problem!" and served in the Royal Marines for five years.


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Bloomberg To Resume Leadership Of Firm He Founded
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg is set to resume the leadership of his business empire -- although he said in a news release that was planning no such thing.
The Bloomberg LP financial data and media firm announced Wednesday that current chief executive Daniel L. Doctoroff would be leaving his post at the end of the year, and Bloomberg would reassume it.
Bloomberg had insisted for several years that he did not plan to return to running the company, according to a New York Times report reported.
He had been expected to focus on philanthropic work on such issues as gun control, public health and immigration issues, while spending a few hours a day at the firm, the newspaper reported.
Former Mayor Michael Bloomberg To Head Back To Work At Bloomberg LP
But Bloomberg has been taking a greater hands-on role at the company, and Doctoroff decided to resign in frustration with the changes in how the leadership was operating, the newspaper reported.
Bloomberg told the newspaper that the new arrangement was the brainchild of Doctoroff, who also once served as deputy mayor for economic development and rebuilding under Bloomberg.
The former mayor said in the news release that he wanted Doctoroff to stay as CEO.
"This is a sad day for me and my company," Bloomberg said in the release. "I really wanted Dan to stay and continue in his leadership role. But I understand his decision. I never intended to come back to Bloomberg LP after twelve years as Mayor. However, the more time I spent reacquainting myself with the company, the more exciting and interesting I found it – in large part, due to Dan's efforts.
Bloomberg told the paper he feels energized back at the company and his work there won't get in the way of his other mission: giving away his many billions of dollars.
Bloomberg left office at the end of last year, after three terms.
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Don't believe the smear campaign against fat
For decades, health-conscious folks have put themselves on a low-fat or fat-free diet to protect their hearts and lose weight.
Yet all the while, they guzzled fizzy drinks and chomped on candy -- because sugar wasn't the enemy. FAT was.
You see, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco recently discovered that 50 years of nutrition and heart disease research may have been built on a lie -- and that lie was funded by the sugar industry.
Professor of medicine Stanton Glantz found documentation revealing that the Sugar Association, known back then as the Sugar Research Foundation, actually paid three Harvard scientists the equivalent of $50,000 each in today's dollars to hammer home the link between saturated fat and heart disease, while drastically downplaying sugar's role.
This 1967 study was published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, and it shaped our eating habits and beliefs for DECADES. And because the journal didn't disclose who funded the studies until 1984, no one knew it was funded by the sugar industry, and no one questioned it.
And this wasn't just a one-time deal, and it wasn't just a matter of antiquated scientific reporting or accidental misinformation.
Just last year, Coca-Cola paid influential scientists and health pros to teach the world to focus less on what you eat and more on getting exercise when trying to lose weight. That, in turn, would downplay the role that a daily can of Coke could play in your risk for obesity.
These health experts didn't receive some token fee; they cashed in MILLIONS of dollars.
Of course, that's what Big Sugar stands to lose if everybody were to catch on to the fact that fat isn't the enemy -- but sugar (especially the high fructose corn syrup you find in colas) IS.
The Sugar Association has said that while they should have been more transparent, they still believe that they're doing us all a favor by funding research like this.
Thanks but no thanks. The simple truth is: Sugar, like what you'd find in a can of soda a day, can increase your risk for high blood pressure and heart disease.
Eating and drinking lots of sugar can increase the levels of sugar in your blood -- and high blood sugar is a precursor to cardiovascular disease, obesity, and diabetes and increases your risk of stroke. And if you've already got diabetes, having elevated blood glucose levels can make it difficult for wounds to heal.
Now, not all fats are created equal, so not ALL fats are good -- or bad -- for you.
As we recently discovered, the fats in processed snacks like chips, cookies, and fries can zap your energy; while quality proteins and fats can GIVE you energy and improve everything from your waistline to your brain health.
You can take the guesswork out of choosing the right fats by following a back to basics diet like Paleo, the "Caveman" diet. Eating all-natural animal fats and polyunsaturated or monounsaturated fats from sources like nuts, beans, and avocado will keep your heart healthy.


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Apr 24
GETPlugged: Beyoncé Releases New Album LEMONADE
Beyoncé premiered her one-hour long LEMONADE special on HBO. Shortly after the premiere, Beyonce released a 12-track album called Lemonade which includes the single Formation available exclusively on TIDAL. LEMONADE includes guest appearances by The Weeknd, James Blake, Kendrick Lamar, … Read More
Posted in GETPlugged Tagged Beehive, Beyonce, Cheating, hip hop, Infidelity, Jay-Z, Lemonade, Rachel Roy, RocNation Leave a comment


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