Risk factors for injuries and other health problems sustained in a marathon.
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OBJECTIVES: To identify risk factors for injuries and other health problems occurring during or immediately after participation in a marathon. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was undertaken of participants in the 1993 Auckland Citibank marathon. Demographic data, information on running experience, training and injuries, and information on other lifestyle factors were obtained from participants before the race using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Information on injuries and other health problems sustained during or immediately after the marathon were obtained by a self administered questionnaire. Logistic regression analyses were undertaken to identify significant risk factors for health problems. RESULTS: This study, one of only a few controlled epidemiological studies that have been undertaken of running injuries, has identified a number of risk factors for injuries and other health problems sustained in a marathon. Men were at increased risk of hamstring and calf problems, whereas women were at increased risk of hip problems. Participation in a marathon for the first time, participation in other sports, illness in the two weeks before the marathon, current use of medication, and drinking alcohol once a month or more, were associated with increased self reported risks of problems. While increased training seemed to increase the risk of front thigh and hamstring problems, it may decrease the risk of knee problems. There are significant but complex relations between age and risk of injury or health problem. CONCLUSIONS: This study has identified certain high risk subjects and risk factors for injuries and other health problems sustained in a marathon. In particular, subjects who have recently been unwell or are taking medication should weigh up carefully the pros and cons of participating. (+info)
Stability and variability in competitive communities.
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Long-term variability in the abundance of populations depends on the sensitivity of species to environmental fluctuations and the amplification of environmental fluctuations by interactions among species. Although competitive interactions and species number may have diverse effects on variability measured at the individual species level, a combination of theoretical analyses shows that these factors have no effect on variability measured at the community level. Therefore, biodiversity may increase community stability by promoting diversity among species in their responses to environmental fluctuations, but increasing the number and strength of competitive interactions has little effect. (+info)
Life games and statistical models.
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A set of equations is obtained, which describes the rules of a class of games (life games). These games simulate the processes of growth, death, survival, and competition. The equations are nonlinear difference equations, where the degree of nonlinearity is directly related to the number of interacting neighbors. The time evolution and the development of geometric patterns can be studied starting from these equations. Extensions and generalizations, such as the introduction of stochastic elements, can easily be accommodated in the formalism. Some significant unsolved problems are noted. (+info)
An experimental analysis of competitive indeterminacy in Tribolium.
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This report reexamines experimentally the problem of competitive indeterminacy in mixed-species populations of the flour beetles, Tribolium confusum and T. castaneum. Indeterminacy takes the form of alternative competitive outcomes: in some replicate cultures one species exterminates the other with a probability, say p, whereas in others, the opposing species wins with a complementary probability, 1-p. The conventional explanation for this is the genetic founder effect hypothesis--an explanation based on genetic stochasticity. The experiment reported here partitioned indeterminacy into founder effect and nonfounder effect components. The results implicate demographic stochasticity, not classical genetic founder effect, as a factor influencing the identity of the winning species. (+info)
Competition between noncontingent and contingent reinforcement schedules during response acquisition.
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We examined the extent to which noncontingent reinforcement (NCR), when used as treatment to reduce problem behavior, might interfere with differential reinforcement contingencies designed to strengthen alternative behavior. After conducting a functional analysis to identify the reinforcers maintaining 2 participants' self-injurious behavior (SIB), we delivered those reinforcers under dense NCR schedules. We delivered the same reinforcers concurrently under differential-reinforcement-of-alternative-behavior (DRA) contingencies in an attempt to strengthen replacement behaviors (mands). Results showed that the NCR plus DRA intervention was associated with a decrease in SIB but little or no increase in appropriate mands. In a subsequent phase, when the NCR schedule was thinned while the DRA schedule remained unchanged, SIB remained low and mands increased. These results suggest that dense NCR schedules may alter establishing operations that result in not only suppression of problem behavior but also interference with the acquisition of appropriate behavior. Thus, the strengthening of socially appropriate behaviors as replacements for problem behavior during NCR interventions might best be achieved if the NCR schedule is first thinned. (+info)
Effects of alpha-tocopherol acetate on the swimming endurance of trained swimmers.
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Well-trained, competitive swimmers were divided into two groups. Group A was given 900 IU alpha-tocopherol acetate daily for 6 months while group B was given placebos. A swimming endurance test was given before the start of supplementation and after 1, 2, 5 and 6 months. No difference in swimmers' endurance was observed between the two groups during the 6-month period. There was also no difference in postexercise serum lactic acid levels. Younger, less well-trained, competitive swimmers were also divided into two groups. Group A received 900 IU alpha-tocopherol acetate daily while group B received placebos. Swimming times for these swimmers were erratic, reflecting a lack of training. alpha-Tocopherol did not appear to have any effect on their swimming endurance. (+info)
Effects of competitive reward distribution on auditing and competitive responding.
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This study allowed subjects to audit each other's responding during a series of competitive contests. Six pairs of female college students competed in 3-min contests in which the competitive response was a knob pull. A sum of money was divided using a proportional distribution or a 100%/0% reward distribution. In the proportional distribution, a subject's proportion of the sum was her proportion of the total number of responses. Also, in every contest either subject could make a response that would end the contest prematurely and give both subjects the same amount: a sum equal to 33% of the competitive total. Each subject could press either or both of two audit buttons that displayed her own and the other's response total for 10 s. Results replicated earlier findings in showing the superiority of the proportional distribution in total number of competitive responses made. No subject audited continuously, and only 1 audited most of the time. Most audits were interpersonal, including both own and other's scores. Auditing typically was more frequent in 100%/0% contests in which subjects were more likely to stop the contest when they were far behind. Winners were more likely to audit than were losers. Competitive response rates increased when the differences revealed by audits were small and decreased when they were large. Overall audit patterns were consistent with the view that feedback as "news" is more often sought when it can lead to improved outcomes. (+info)
The spatial distribution and size of rook (Corvus frugilegus) breeding colonies is affected by both the distribution of foraging habitat and by intercolony competition.
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Explanations for the variation in the number of nests at bird colonies have focused on competitive or habitat effects without considering potential interactions between the two. For the rook, a colonial corvid which breeds seasonally but forages around the colony throughout the year, both the amount of foraging habitat and its interaction with the number of competitors from surrounding colonies are important predictors of colony size. The distance over which these effects are strongest indicates that, for rooks, colony size may be limited outside of the breeding season when colony foraging ranges are larger and overlap to a greater extent. (+info)