This paper addresses the teaching of advanced high school courses or undergraduate courses for non-biology majors about genetics or history of genetics. It will probably be difficult to take the approach described here in a high school science course, although the general approach could help improve such courses. It would be ideal for a college…

Huntington's disease (HD), an autosomal-dominant genetic disorder, has historically been viewed as a degenerative movement disorder but it also includes psychiatric symptoms and progressive cognitive decline. There has been a lack of consensus in the literature about whether or not cognitive signs can be detected in carriers before clinical…

This paper explores further the vast topic of child neuropsychiatric disorders--ADHD in particular. It refers to and expands on issues debated in an earlier paper "Ritalin for whom?". In that paper, it was argued that those who benefitted most from children taking Ritalin were parents and teachers struggling with uncontained and out-of-control…

This article presents the making of a safe innovation: the application of ice structuring protein (ISP) in edible ices. It argues that safety is not the absence of risk but is an active accomplishment; innovations are not "made safe afterward" but "safe innovations are made". Furthermore, there are multiple safeties to be accomplished in the…

Weight gain is an often-observed side effect of atypical antipsychotics (AAPs) and is particularly significant in individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). The majority of individuals treated with AAPs will gain at least 10% of their initial body weight over the course of therapy (Umbricht & Kane, 1996). One's genetic constitution is an…

Many professionals working with individuals with intellectual disability are unconcerned with why someone has the impairment. Genetic aspects may be viewed as, at best irrelevant, but more often, potentially negative. However, where the intellectual disability may be inherited, there are implications for family members and the individual. The data…

The double-helical structure of DNA is a pop cultural icon. Images of the DNA molecule appear in newspapers, popular journals, and advertisements. In addition to scientific instrument sales, the aura surrounding the central molecule of life has been used to sell everything from perfume to beverages and is the inspiration of items ranging from…

Purpose: In this article, the authors address the hypothesis that the severe and persistent speech disorder reported in persons with galactosemia meets contemporary diagnostic criteria for Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS). A positive finding for CAS in this rare metabolic disorder has the potential to impact treatment of persons with galactosemia…

Preparing students to be critical thinkers and effective communicators is essential in today's multinational and technologically sophisticated environment. New electronic technologies provide opportunities for creating learning environments that extend the possibilities of "old" but still essential technologies: books, blackboards, and…

Objectives: Examine trends in diabetes-related knowledge, perceptions, and behavior among U.S. adults with and without a diagnosis of diabetes and among subpopulations at risk. Discuss implications for national diabetes education and for the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) in particular. Methods: Three population-based NDEP National…

Background: The phenotypic and genetic associations between decoding skills and ADHD dimensions have been documented but less is known about the association with reading comprehension. The aim of the study is to document the phenotypic and genetic associations between reading comprehension and ADHD dimensions of inattention and…

The development of prosocial behaviors during the preschool years is essential for children's positive interactions with peers in school and other social situations. Although there is some evidence of genetic influences on prosocial behaviors, very little is known about how genes and environment, independently and in concert, affect prosocial…

Approximately 30,000 people in the United States have cystic fibrosis (CF), and each year around 1,000 new cases are diagnosed. About one half of this population consists of school-age youth. With an understanding of the psychosocial and mental health factors surrounding CF, school psychologists are well positioned to support children and…

Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) represents the final step in the conversion of nutrients into cellular energy. Genetic defects in the OXPHOS system have an incidence between 1:5,000 and 1:10,000 live births. Inherited isolated deficiency of the first complex (CI) of this system, a multisubunit assembly of 45 different proteins,…

A recent large-scale meta-analysis of twin and adoption studies indicated that shared environmental influences make important contributions to most forms of child and adolescent psychopathology (Burt, 2009b). The sole exception to this robust pattern of results was observed for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which appeared to be…