Digital Commons Network^™

Online College Laboratory Courses: Can They Be Done And Will They Affect Graduation And Retention Rates?, Eddy Van Hunnik

Higher Learning Research Communications

Online education has been steadily growing during the last decade. This growth has mainly taken place in the non-laboratory science fields. This essay describes some of the best practices to increase and maintain student retention, increase student engagement and increase graduation rates for college running online laboratory science courses. This article further discusses how to run successful, hands-on laboratory courses for your online students. The most common issues are being discussed and what can be done to provide the students with the same hands-on experience online as what they would experience in a more traditional classroom setting.DOI: 10.18870/hlrc.v5i4.289

Limnological Assistance For Lake Mead National Recreation Area: Quarterly Report, Period Ending September 30, 2011, Margaret N. Rees

Limnological Studies

Project 1

• Technical assistance with the implementation of the Interagency Monitoring Action Plan (I-MAP) for Quagga Mussels is ongoing. During this quarter, processing of all 2010 juvenile/adult samples was completed; remaining analyses are underway. The project team assisted NPS with 2011 collections.
• A final report on Veliger abundance and settlement at different depths of Lake Mead is in preparation for delivery at the end of November 2011; sample analysis continues for Growth of adult quagga mussels within Las Vegas Wash/Las Vegas Bay with report delivery planned for the end of November 2011.
• The Interagency Quagga Mussel Meeting was held on …

High Ethanol Titers From Cellulose By Using Metabolically Engineered Thermophilic, Anaerobic Microbes, D. Aaron Argyros, Shital A. Tripathi, Trisha F. Barrett, Stephen R. Rogers, Lawrence F. Feinberg, Daniel G. Olson, Justin M. Foden, Bethany B. Miller, Lee R. Lynd, David A. Hogsett, Nicky C. Caiazza

Dartmouth Scholarship

This work describes novel genetic tools for use in Clostridium thermocellum that allow creation of unmarked mutations while using a replicating plasmid. The strategy employed counter-selections developed from the native C. thermocellum hpt gene and the Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum tdk gene and was used to delete the genes for both lactate dehydrogenase (Ldh) and phosphotransacetylase (Pta). The Δldh Δpta mutant was evolved for 2,000 h, resulting in a stable strain with 40:1 ethanol selectivity and a 4.2-fold increase in ethanol yield over the wild-type strain. Ethanol production from cellulose was investigated with an engineered coculture of organic acid-deficient engineered strains of …

Global Analysis Of Serine-Threonine Protein Kinase Genes In Neurospora Crassa, Gyungsoon Park, Jacqueline A. Servin, Gloria E. Turner, Lorena Altamirano

Dartmouth Scholarship

Serine/threonine (S/T) protein kinases are crucial components of diverse signaling pathways in eukaryotes, including the model filamentous fungus Neurospora crassa. In order to assess the importance of S/T kinases to Neurospora biology, we embarked on a global analysis of 86 S/T kinase genes in Neurospora. We were able to isolate viable mutants for 77 of the 86 kinase genes. Of these, 57% exhibited at least one growth or developmental phenotype, with a relatively large fraction (40%) possessing a defect in more than one trait. S/T kinase knockouts were subjected to chemical screening using a panel of eight chemical treatments, with …

Differential Interactions Of The Formins Inf2, Mdia1, And Mdia2 With Microtubules, Jeremie Gaillard, Bvinay Ramabhadran, Emmanuelle Neumanne, Pinar Gurel, Laurent Blanchoin, Marylin Vantard, Henry N. Higgs

Dartmouth Scholarship

A number of cellular processes use both microtubules and actin filaments, but the molecular machinery linking these two cytoskeletal elements remains to be elucidated in detail. Formins are actin-binding proteins that have multiple effects on actin dynamics, and one formin, mDia2, has been shown to bind and stabilize microtubules through its formin homology 2 (FH2) domain. Here we show that three formins, INF2, mDia1, and mDia2, display important differences in their interactions with microtubules and actin. Constructs containing FH1, FH2, and C-terminal domains of all three formins bind microtubules with high affinity (K(d) < 100 nM). However, only mDia2 binds microtubules at 1:1 stoichiometry, with INF2 and mDia1 showing saturating binding at approximately 1:3 (formin dimer:tubulin dimer). INF2-FH1FH2C is a potent microtubule-bundling protein, an effect that results in a large reduction in catastrophe rate. In contrast, neither mDia1 nor mDia2 is a potent microtubule bundler. The C-termini of mDia2 and INF2 have different functions in microtubule interaction, with mDia2's C-terminus required for high-affinity binding and INF2's C-terminus required for bundling. mDia2's C-terminus directly binds microtubules with submicromolar affinity. These formins also differ in their abilities to bind actin and microtubules simultaneously. Microtubules strongly inhibit actin polymerization by mDia2, whereas they moderately inhibit mDia1 and have no effect on INF2. Conversely, actin monomers inhibit microtubule binding/bundling by INF2 but do not affect mDia1 or mDia2. These differences in interactions with microtubules and actin suggest differential function in cellular processes requiring both cytoskeletal elements.

Chimes: September 30, 2011, Calvin College

Chimes

Volleyball beats Dutch by Jess Koster

Food fest educates campus, community by Libby Stille

ArtPrize enthralls GR by Hayley Cox

Study compares Internet speeds by Jon Hielkema

Nobel peace prize winner passes away by Greg Kim

Cut Copy rocks the CFAC by Nathan Ritsema

Knights win Alma invite by Josh Yonker

Punish And Perish?, Angelo Antoci, Luca Zarri

Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Working Papers

The evolution of large-scale cooperation among genetic strangers is a fundamental unanswered question in the social sciences. Behavioral economics has persuasively shown that so called ‘strong reciprocity’ plays a key role in accounting for the endogenous enforcement of cooperation. Insofar as strongly reciprocal players are willing to costly sanction defectors, cooperation flourishes. However, experimental evidence unambiguously indicates that not only defection and strong reciprocity, but also unconditional cooperation is a quantitatively important behavioral attitude. By referring to a prisoner’s dilemma framework where punishment (‘stick’) and rewarding (‘carrot’) options are available, here we show analytically that the presence of cooperators who …

09-29-2011 Manning Named Interim Dean Of Swosu Sayre Campus, Southwestern Oklahoma State University

THE BARK ARCHIVE 2011

Sherron Manning has been named the interim dean of the College of Associate and Applied Sciences on the Southwestern Oklahoma State University-Sayre campus.

Library Impact Statement For Mls 496 Global Health, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement in response to new course proposal for MLS 496 Global Health. New course was supported with no need for additional resources.

Library Impact Statement For Mls 575 Business Of Biotechnology, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement in response to new course proposal for MLS 575 Business of Biotechnology. New course was supported with no need for additional resources.

Ucc Minutes September 29, 2011, Kutztown University Curriculum Committee

UCC Minutes

No abstract provided.

Biol 4103 Course Proposal 09/29/2011, Curriculum Committee

Curriculum Committee Reports

No abstract provided.

Safe Vs. Fair: A Formidable Trade-Off In Tackling Climate Change, Massimo Tavoni, Shoibal Chakravarty, Robert Socolow

Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei Working Papers

Global warming requires a response characterized by forward-looking management of atmospheric carbon and respect for ethical principles. Both safety and fairness must be pursued, and there are severe trade-offs as these are intertwined by the limited headroom for additional atmospheric CO2 emissions. This paper provides a simple numerical mapping at the aggregated level of developed vs. developing countries in which safety and fairness are formulated in terms of cumulative emissions and cumulative per capita emissions respectively. It becomes evident that safety and fairness cannot be achieved simultaneously for strict definitions of both. The paper further posits potential global trading in …

The Good 5 Cent Cigar (9/29/2011), University Of Rhode Island

The Good 5 Cent Cigar (Student Newspaper Archives)

This is a digitized, downloadable version of the University of Rhode Island school newspaper.

The Setonian, September 29, 2011, Seton Hall University

2011

No abstract provided.

The Carroll News- Vol. 88, No. 4, John Carroll University

The Carroll News

No abstract provided.

Library Impact Statement For Mls 572 Vaccines And Biologics, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement in response to new course proposal for MLS 572 Vaccines and Biologics. New course was supported with no need for additional resources.

Library Impact Statement For Mls 573 Molecular Biology Methods, Michael Cerbo

Library Impact Statements

Library Impact Statement in response to new course proposal for MLS 573 Molecular Biology Methods. New course was supported with no need for additional resources.

Male Gender Preference, Female Gender Disadvantage As Risk Factors For Psychological Morbidity In Pakistani Women Of Childbearing Age - A Life Course Perspective, Farah Qadir, Murad M. Khan Dr., Girmay Medhin, Martin Prince

Department of Psychiatry

Background: In Pakistan, preference for boys over girls is deeply culturally embedded. From birth, many women experience gendered disadvantages, less access to scarce resources, poorer health care, higher child mortality, limited education, less employment outside of the home and circumscribed autonomy. The prevalence of psychological morbidity is exceptionally high among women. We hypothesise that, among women of childbearing age, gender disadvantage is an independent risk factor for psychological morbidity. Methods: A cross-sectional catchment area survey of 525 women aged 18 to 35 years living in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. The effect of gender disadvantage was assessed as a latent variable using …

Transcription Factor Phox2 Upregulates Expression Of Norepinephrine Transporter And Dopamine Β-Hydroxylase In Adult Rat Brains, Y. Fan, J. Huang, M. Duffourc, R. L. Kao, G. A. Ordway, R. Huang, Meng Yang Zhu

ETSU Faculty Works

Degeneration of the noradrenergic locus coeruleus (LC) in aging and neurodegenerative diseases is well documented. Slowing or reversing this effect may have therapeutic implications. Phox2a and Phox2b are homeodomain transcriptional factors that function as determinants of the noradrenergic phenotype during embryogenesis. In the present study, recombinant lentiviral eGFP-Phox2a and -Phox2b (vPhox2a and vPhox2b) were constructed to study the effects of Phox2a/2b over-expression on dopamine β-hydroxylase (DBH) and norepinephrine transporter (NET) levels in central noradrenergic neurons. Microinjection of vPhox2 into the LC of adult rats significantly increased Phox2 mRNA levels in the LC region. Over-expression of either Phox2a or Phox2b in …

Daily Eastern News: September 29, 2011, Eastern Illinois University

September

No abstract provided.

The Pan American (2011-09-29), Alma E. Hernandez, Roxann Garcia

UTPA Archives - The Pan American Newspaper

Vol. 68, No. 5

The Pan American (2011-09-29), Sandra Gonzalez

UTPA Archives - The Pan American Newspaper

Vol. 68, No. 5

Exponent Vol. 43, No. 4, 2011-09-29, University Of Alabama In Huntsville

2011

No abstract provided.

Heterogeneity And Data Analysis, Peter J. Taylor

Working Papers on Science in a Changing World

This working paper is a discussion paper for a September 2011 meeting of the research group of Prof. Di Cook on data visualization and exploratory data analysis at Iowa State University. A taxonomy of eleven kinds of heterogeneity is presented, followed by a set of vignettes that illustrate some of the meanings and sketch some implications, then a series of images that illustrate the heterogeneities. Several of the vignettes speak to a broad contention about heterogeneity and control: In relation to modern understandings of heredity and development over the life course, research and application of resulting knowledge are untroubled by …

The Advocate, September 29, 2011, Minnesota State University Moorhead

The Advocate

No abstract provided.

A Mathematical Model Of Muscle Containing Heterogeneous Half-Sarcomeres Exhibits Residual Force Enhancement, Stuart G. Campbell, P. Chris Hatfield, Kenneth S. Campbell

Physiology Faculty Publications

A skeletal muscle fiber that is stimulated to contract and then stretched from L₁ to L₂ produces more force after the initial transient decays than if it is stimulated at L₂. This behavior has been well studied experimentally, and is known as residual force enhancement. The underlying mechanism remains controversial. We hypothesized that residual force enhancement could reflect mechanical interactions between heterogeneous half-sarcomeres. To test this hypothesis, we subjected a computational model of interacting heterogeneous half-sarcomeres to the same activation and stretch protocols that produce residual force enhancement in real preparations. Following a transient period of elevated force associated with …

Agronomy / Soil Microbiology - Purdue University, Jake R. Carlson

Data Curation Profiles Directory

The graduate student interviewed for this data curation profile is studying studying the management strategies for bioenergy crops and their effect on soil structure and the sustainability of soil quality. She collects data on the soil structure and quality through a series of experiments and analysis to identify the effects of a particular soil treatment. Data management issues surround the use of a physical, rather than electronic, lab notebook that is hard to connect to the digital files that contain her data. Thus, the process of pasting data printouts into her notebook is cumbersome. Additionally, although the graduate student is …

The Niddk Central Repository At 8 Years—Ambition, Revision, Use And Impact, Charles F. Turner, Huaqin Pan, Gregg W. Silk, Mary-Anne Ardini, Vesselina Bakalov, Stephanie Bryant, Susanna Cantor, Kung-Yen Chang, Michael Delatte, Paul Eggers, Laxminarayana Ganapathi, Sujatha Lakshmikanthan, Joshua Levy, Sheping Li, Joseph Pratt, Norma Pugh, Ying Qin, Rebekah Rasooly, Helen Ray, Jean E. Richardson, Amanda Flynn Riley, Susan M. Rogers, Charlotte Scheper, Sylvia Tan, Stacie White, Philip C. Cooley

Publications and Research

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Central Repository makes data and biospecimens from NIDDK-funded research available to the broader scientific community. It thereby facilitates: the testing of new hypotheses without new data or biospecimen collection; pooling data across several studies to increase statistical power; and informative genetic analyses using the Repository’s well-curated phenotypic data. This article describes the initial database plan for the Repository and its revision using a simpler model. Among the lessons learned were the trade-offs between the complexity of a database design and the costs in time and money of implementation; the …

The Cowl - V. 76 - N. 4 - Sept 29, 2011

The Cowl

The Cowl - student newspaper of Providence College. Volume 76 - Number 4 - September 29, 2011. 36 pages.