LEADING ARTICLE
Is it ‘inevitable’ that men die more than five years earlier than women?
STAT News
ARTICLES AND ESSAYS
Education
Readings Skills of 12th Graders Hit a New Low
New York Times
Replacing Standards with Sympathy
Martin Center for Academic Renewal
A Nebraska initiative offers a troubling look at higher ed’s “equity”-driven future.
The Daily Sceptic
Positionality and Its Problems: Questioning the Value of Reflexivity Statements in Research
Perspectives on Psychological Science
Abstract: There has been a remarkable push for the use of positionality statements—also known as reflexivity statements—in scientific-journal articles and other research literatures. Grounded in reputable philosophical traditions, positionality statements are meant to address genuine concerns about the limits of knowledge production. However, there are at least three reasons why they should be avoided in scholarship. First, it is impossible to construct credible positionality statements because they are constrained by the very positionality they seek to address. Second, positionality statements are unnecessary because reducing bias—positional or otherwise—in scientific literatures does not hinge on the biographical details of individual scholars but on the integrity of the collective process of truth-seeking. Third, by asking scholars to disclose information about themselves, positionality statements undermine the very norms and practices that safeguard the impartiality of research. Instead of asking individual scholars to issue subjective declarations about their positionalities, scholarly communities should focus on improving the rules of intersubjective competition at the heart of scientific progress. In our view, the most productive path to increasing representation and reducing positional bias in research is to protect the freedom of scholarly inputs while insisting on methodological transparency and rigor.
Epidemiology
Trends in Births and Deaths: United States, 2010-2023
National Vital Statistics Reports
Abstract: Objectives: This report presents and compares trends in U.S. births and deaths from 2010 through 2023. Births and deaths are shown by race and Hispanic origin and urbanicity of county of residence. Methods: Descriptive tabulations of trends in the numbers, rates, and ratios of births and deaths for the United States from 2010 through 2023 are presented and interpreted. Results: From 2010 through 2023, the number of births for the United States declined by a total of 10%. Births were essentially stable from 2010 through 2016, declined from 2016 through 2019, and then fluctuated from 2019 through 2023. In contrast, the number of deaths generally increased from 2010 through 2023, by a total of 25%. Deaths increased from 2010 through 2019 and fluctuated from 2019 through 2023. The crude birth rate decreased 18% from 2010 through 2023, declining 0.8% per year from 2010 through 2015 and 2.0% per year from 2015 through 2019; the rate then fluctuated from 2019 through 2023. In contrast, the crude death rate increased 15% from 2010 through 2023, rising 1.0% on average from 2010 through 2019, and then fluctuating from 2019 through 2023. The birth-to-death ratio declined from 2010 through 2023, by a total of 28%, with the ratio decreasing 1.6% per year from 2010 through 2014 and 2.8% per year from 2014 through 2019; the ratio then fluctuated from 2019 through 2023. The ratio generally declined for the three largest race and Hispanic-origin groups from 2010 through 2023, fluctuating but increasing from 2019 through 2023. The differences in the ratios among the groups narrowed from 2010 through 2023. The birth-to-death ratio declined for both urban and rural counties from 2010 through 2023, with differences between ratios narrowing.
Exercise Science
Physical Activity and Exercise Patterns of Submariners in Land and Sea Environments
Military Medicine
Abstract: Introduction: Submarine environments pose unique challenges to maintaining physical activity and exercise routines due to confined spaces, demanding schedules, and limited resources. This study investigated submariners' physical activity patterns, sleep quality, and perceived exercise barriers in both land- and sea-based settings, with the goal of informing targeted health interventions. Materials and methods: Ethics approval was granted by the Defence Science and Technology Group and Edith Cowan University review panels. This cross-sectional study surveyed 21 Royal Australian Navy submariners (25-48 years; 18 male) using a modified version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Participants reported weekly engagement in general physical activity (e.g., walking, moderate- and vigorous-intensity activity) and structured exercise training (high-intensity interval training, moderate-intensity continuous training, and resistance training [RT]), as well as sitting time and sleep duration. Additional items assessed perceived barriers and motivations to exercise, time spent on land and at sea over the past 12 months (9 ± 3 and 3 ± 3 months, respectively), and their longest continuous deployment. Descriptive statistics and paired t-tests were used to compare outcomes between land and sea environments. Results: Total physical activity was lower (P < .001) at sea (118 ± 30 minutes/week) compared to land (745 ± 60 minutes/week), with the greatest reductions observed in walking (-86%, P < .001) and moderate-intensity cardiovascular training (-95%, P = .002). High-intensity interval training declined by 81% (P = .006), and RT dropped by 84% (P = .045). Reported barriers at sea included water usage restrictions (57%), limited space (43%), inadequate facilities (43%), time constraints (38%), fatigue (38%), and noise restrictions (19%). Sleep quality declined by 37% at sea (P < .001), though changes in sleep duration were not statistically significant. Sitting time increased by 51% on workdays (P = .014). Conclusions: Sea deployments are associated with substantial declines in physical activity and sleep quality among submariners, accompanied by increased sitting time and widespread behavioral disengagement. These findings highlight the need for practical strategies to support health, well-being, and operational readiness in constrained environments. Strengths of the study include context-specific survey design and rich participant engagement, as reflected by detailed qualitative responses. Limitations include small sample size, variability in responses, potential recall bias, and the inability to assess survey reliability because of ethical constraints. Future research should prioritize longitudinal designs and explore implementable interventions to promote physical activity and sleep during deployment. These findings may also apply to other constrained environments, such as naval surface ships, remote field sites, or mining operations, where similar occupational barriers exist. Overall, these results offer valuable insight into how deployment conditions shape health behaviors in submariners and provide a foundation for developing evidence-based strategies to improve activity and well-being in this and similar populations.
RUBBISH BIN
Dying to Be Men: American Masculinity as Death Cult
Ms. Magazine
(*See Janice Fiamengo’s critique of this article at The Fiamengo File here).
Using positionality and reflexivity to support equity in partnership-driven research
Conservation Biology
Abstract: Social and economic position and power shape everyone, including scientists and researchers. The way researchers do conservation science and the voices centered in the process are a result of researcher upbringing, experiences, access to resources, and values and are a manifestation of positionality. Positionality is a concept that can help one think about one's position and power in one's work. Creating a successful research partnership requires careful thinking about how equity, diversity, inclusivity, and accessibility are accounted for in the research environment. We drew on our own experiences as early career, mid-career, and Indigenous researchers to explore researcher positionality and how understanding one's positionality can bring to the fore power dynamics in conservation science and research. We focused on the use of reflexive practice to recognize diverse roles and responsibilities, build strong project governance, and enrich relationships. We considered 2 large research partnerships, Apoqnmatulti'k (Mi'kmaw for we help each other) and the SakKijânginnaniattut Nunatsiavut Sivunitsangit (Inuttitut for Sustainable Nunatsiavut Futures) project, to examine moments of tension and interrogation of power and the ways in which this interrogation led to stronger relationships and better research. We advise that large transdisciplinary and cross-cultural research teams use positionality and reflexivity to explicitly make choices about power dynamics in the context of executing partnership-driven work. This can be accomplished through personal and collective interrogation of the power dynamics at play in project administration, research questions, and interpersonal relationships.
The pedagogy of discomfort: Transformational experiential learning
International Journal of Design for Social Change, Sustainable Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Abstract: Education is intended to be a transformative experience for the student. In the practice of transformative pedagogy, instructors provide students with the time and space to explore their own sets of beliefs, values and standards and how they incorporate those beliefs into their work, subconsciously and consciously. At times, transformative pedagogy can be uncomfortable. However, the value of discomfort in the pedagogical process of a design course is the ability to acknowledge a knowledge gap between one’s social experiences and the experiences of other social identities. This paper focuses on the value of transformative pedagogy in working through discomfort when learning about limit situations, developing a foundation for transformative pedagogy in a course setting, the importance of critical thinking in transformative pedagogy and how transformative pedagogy is presented with a focus on ethics, disability and responsible design. By embedding ethics, critical consciousness and strategic thinking, the process translates into a transformative practice of design and innovation. Students learn new emerging ways of affecting change with a multiplicity of ideas when educators engage in transformative pedagogy. It is also to ascertain what kind of learning enables people to create solutions for communities involved in a continuously ongoing process of defining sustainable development.
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