Digital Commons Network^™

Session D-1: Science And Spaghetti Monsters: Addressing The Ethical Issues And Controversy Related To Genomics And Evolution In The Biology Classroom, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll

Professional Learning Day

As science teachers, we may shy away from addressing the controversy surrounding particular topics in our classrooms in order to maintain focus on content. However, the real world context of knowledge is essential, and the performance expectations in the life sciences as outlined in the NGSS state that students should be able to discuss the ethical issues related to genetic modifications and the nature of science. We will discuss ideas for how to address these topics effectively and help our students understand their importance beyond academics in our global community.

Session F-3: “It Is Rocket Science”, Carmela Jones, Christine L. Moskalik

Professional Learning Day

All current NASA rocket launchers are no longer useable because all of the available rocket-fuel sources on Earth have been depleted. Participants will serve as NASA engineers tasked with developing non-fuel-based rocket launcher prototypes in an effort to maintain current and future NASA space programs and missions. Model how you will get your students to take off with Rocket Science.

Aligning Mapping Tools To Support Successful Learning In An Introductory Biology Course, Erin Duckett, Danilo M Baylen

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Most undergraduate students take a science course during their first two years. One of the challenges of teaching an introductory science course is the reality that many undergraduate students are not prepared to be self-directed learners. Many students expect to earn a grade of A or B just like in high school. However, the failing results of the first exam can be a shocker to the students. Not only do the students not know the science content they studied, they had difficulties retaining and recalling the information.

This presentation discusses and describes the use of concept or visual mapping as …

21st Century Stem Reasoning, Robert L. Mayes Dr., Shawn Jackson

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

The Georgia Southern University Real STEM Project is collaborating with 10 middle and high schools on development and implementation of an interdisciplinary STEM research and design course that actively engages students in real-world problem solving. We will discuss the expected outcomes of such interdisciplinary STEM experiences which is the development of 21st century STEM reasoning. Examples of using authentic teaching strategies to promote complex systems reasoning, model-based reasoning, computational reasoning, engineering design-based reasoning, and quantitative reasoning will be shared with participants.

Session B-3: Operation Paperclip And The Rise Of Weapons Of Mass Destruction, Diane Haleas, Matthew Miller

Professional Learning Day

On November 26, 1944 Dutch-American particle physicist Samual Goudsmit and his fellow members of the secret Operation Alsos carefully scoured the private papers of Nazi scientists, uncovering startling information on the extent of Nazi biological weapons experiments. Operation Alsos would give rise to Operation Paperclip – the U.S. government’s effort to bring over 1,600 German and Nazi scientists, doctors, engineers, and technologists to the United States. Also recruited were Nazi war criminals whose scientific prowess seemed to override the U.S. government’s moral qualms. The period from November, 1944 – May, 1945 changed the world as the U.S. government began to …

Cultivating A Community Of Stem Polymaths At Ung, Sarah Formica, Royce Dansby-Sparks, Margaret Smith, Gregg Velatini

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

The University of North Georgia (UNG), Dahlonega, suffers from high attrition of STEM majors and low STEM graduation rates. In response to this challenge, a transdisciplinary (TD) team of UNG STEM faculty – from biology, chemistry, mathematics, and physics - has designed and developed hands-on laboratory experiments that employ empirical, interpretive, critical, and transdisciplinary research methodologies. The TD laboratory curriculum exposes undergraduate STEM students to cutting-edge techniques and new scientific frontiers, which will foster creativity and passion about scientific research, help undergraduates develop skills in analytical thinking and experimental design, and improve their technological fluency. In turn, this will improve …

Session C-5: Biotech Basics, Elizabeth Martinez, Emily Hood Ferrin

Professional Learning Day

The field of biotechnology is rapidly expanding. What is biotech? What are the applications? How is biotech studied? These topics will be explored as participants engage in hands-on lessons developed at an appropriate level for middle school students. Activities may be used to introduce students to the world of biotech.

Session C-1: Ecosystem Disruption: Using Lab And Real-World Examples To Bring Changes In Earth’S Ecosystems To Life, Crystal Randall, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Sowmya Anjur, Don Dosch

Professional Learning Day

The magnitude of the changes occurring in Earth’s ecosystems seems difficult to tackle in the classroom and lab. Here we explore ways to demonstrate the changes in the Earth’s water and carbon cycles in the lab and bring them to life in real-world ecosystems in the classroom.

A Semester In The Life: Reflections Of A Faculty Member, Theresa Tensuan

Teaching and Learning Together in Higher Education

No abstract provided.

Interdisciplinary Stem Teaching & Learning Conference Program [2016], Interdisciplinary Stem Teaching & Learning Conference

Interdisciplinary STEM Teaching & Learning Conference (2012-2019) (Archived)

Conference Program for the 2016 Interdisciplinary STEM Teashing & Learning Conference

Objecting (To) Infrastructure: Ecopolitics At The Ukrainian Ends Of The Danube, Tanya Richardson

Anthropology Faculty Publications

In southern Ukraine, two hydraulic infrastructures continue to exist despite environmentalist campaigns that have exposed them as fragile, broken or unprofitable. The Danube-Dnister Irrigation Project (DDIS), a Soviet mega-project that diverted water from the Danube and turned the Sasyk estuary into a reservoir, receives state funding despite a 1994 ban on its use for irrigation. The Bystre Shipping Canal, built in 2004 despite domestic and international opposition, is losing money but continues to operate. These cases exemplify the material politics of infrastructuring in which infrastructure is understood as an antagonistic process of assembling networks of humans and nonhumans rather than …

Boyd Briefs - Mar. 4, 2016, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas -- William S. Boyd School Of Law

Boyd Briefs / Road Scholars

Boyd Briefs provides weekly information regarding the activities and accomplishments of the faculty, students, and alumni of the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Biology Students Earn Nih Mhirt Research Fellowships, Sarah Gardner, Dave Albee

Press Releases

Frida Ceja and Alexis Toruño, juniors from Dr. Roland Cooper’s Research Methodology class during the 2015-16 academic year, utilized last summer National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Global Health Disparities Research Fellowships, through UC Berkeley’s Center for Emerging and Neglected Diseases.

Why Should Biochemistry Students Be Introduced To Molecular Dynamics Simulations—And How Can We Introduce Them?, Donald E. Elmore

Faculty Research and Scholarship

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations play an increasingly important role in many aspects of biochemical research but are often not part of the biochemistry curricula at the undergraduate level. This article discusses the pedagogical value of exposing students to MD simulations and provides information to help instructors consider what software and hardware resources are necessary to successfully introduce these simulations into their courses. In addition, a brief review of the MD-based activities in this issue and other sources are provided.

Inmate Education As A Service Learning Opportunity For Students: Preparation, Benefits, And Lessons Learned, Cheryl L. Meyer, Megan K. Harned, Amanda Schaad, Katherine Sunder, Judson Palmer, Christy Tinch

School of Professional Psychology Faculty Publications

There is mounting evidence that prison inmates benefit from educational opportunities but may not be offered to them. In addition, when they are offered, priority is given to prisoners who will be released in the near future, and those serving long-term or life sentences are less likely to have access to classes. A service learning opportunity was created where students taught a life span development class to women serving long-term sentences. This article provides a guide to setting up the class while avoiding obstacles along the way. It also outlines benefits to students, inmates, supervising faculty, and society. In order …

Relationship Of Soil Moisture And Reflected Gps Signal Strength, Charles V. Privette Iii, Ahmad Khalilian, William Bridges, Stephen Katzberg, Omar Torres, Young J. Han, Joe Mari Maja, Xin Qiao

Panhandle Research and Extension Center

Many agricultural fields across the country have a high degree of variability in soil type and water holding capacity that affects irrigation management. One way to overcome problems associated with the field variability for improving irrigation management is to utilize a site-specific irrigation system. This system applies water to match the needs of individual management zones within a field. A real-time continuous soil moisture measurement is essential for the success of site-specific irrigation systems. Recently the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) developed sensor technology that records the global positioning system (GPS) signal reflected from the surface of Earth, which …

Phylogenetic Organization Of Bacterial Activity., Ember M Morrissey, Rebecca L Mau, Egbert Schwartz, J Gregory Caporaso, Paul Dijkstra, Natasja Van Gestel, Benjamin J Koch, Cindy M. Liu, Michaela Hayer, Theresa A Mchugh, Jane C Marks, Lance B. Price, Bruce A Hungate

Environmental and Occupational Health Faculty Publications

Phylogeny is an ecologically meaningful way to classify plants and animals, as closely related taxa frequently have similar ecological characteristics, functional traits and effects on ecosystem processes. For bacteria, however, phylogeny has been argued to be an unreliable indicator of an organism's ecology owing to evolutionary processes more common to microbes such as gene loss and lateral gene transfer, as well as convergent evolution. Here we use advanced stable isotope probing with (13)C and (18)O to show that evolutionary history has ecological significance for in situ bacterial activity. Phylogenetic organization in the activity of bacteria sets the stage for characterizing …

Dimensionality Reduction Based Optimization Algorithm For Sparse 3-D Image Reconstruction In Diffuse Optical Tomography, Tanmoy Bhowmik, Hanli Liu, Zhou Ye, Soontorn Oraintara

Bioengineering Faculty Publications - Archive

No abstract provided.

Harbor Notes, March 4, 2016, University Of South Florida St. Petersburg. Office Of University Advancement.

Harbor Notes

The March 4, 2016, issue of Harbor Notes.

Bonded Cumomer Analysis Of Human Melanoma Metabolism Monitored By 13c Nmr Spectroscopy Of Perfused Tumor Cells., Alexander A Shestov, Anthony Mancuso, Seung-Cheol Lee, Lili Guo, David S Nelson, Jeffrey C Roman, Pierre-Gilles Henry, Dennis B. Leeper, Ian A Blair, Jerry D Glickson

Department of Radiation Oncology Faculty Papers

A network model for the determination of tumor metabolic fluxes from (13)C NMR kinetic isotopomer data has been developed and validated with perfused human DB-1 melanoma cells carrying the BRAF V600E mutation, which promotes oxidative metabolism. The model generated in the bonded cumomer formalism describes key pathways of tumor intermediary metabolism and yields dynamic curves for positional isotopic enrichment and spin-spin multiplets. Cells attached to microcarrier beads were perfused with 26 mm [1,6-(13)C2]glucose under normoxic conditions at 37 °C and monitored by (13)C NMR spectroscopy. Excellent agreement between model-predicted and experimentally measured values of the rates of oxygen and glucose …

2016 Program: Honors Student Symposium, University Of Dayton. University Honors Program

Honors Student Symposium

No abstract provided.

Mitigation Of Ergot Vasoconstriction By Clover Isoflavones In Goats (Capra Hircus), Glen E. Aiken, Michael D. Flythe, Isabelle A. Kagan, Huihua Ji, Lowell P. Bush

Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Faculty Publications

Ergot alkaloids produced by a fungal endophyte (Epichloë coenophiala; formerly Neotyphodium coenophialum) that infects tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum) can induce persistent constriction of the vasculature in ruminants, hindering their capability to thermo-regulate core body temperature. There is evidence that isoflavones produced by legumes can relax the vasculature, which suggests that they could relieve ergot alkaloid-induced vasoconstriction and mitigate the vulnerability to severe heat stress in ruminants that graze tall fescue. To test if isoflavones can relieve alkaloid-induced vasoconstriction, two pen experiments were conducted with rumen-fistulated goats (Capra hircus) to determine with ultrasonograpy if …

Bulletin, Dmacc Marketing

Bulletin

No abstract provided.

Attosecond Transient Absorption In Dense Gases: Exploring The Interplay Between Resonant Pulse Propagation And Laser-Induced Line-Shape Control, Chen Ting Liao, Arvinder Sandhu, Seth Camp, Kenneth J. Schafer, Mette B. Gaarde

Faculty Publications

We investigate the evolution of extreme ultraviolet (XUV) spectral line shapes in an optically thick helium gas under near-infrared (IR) perturbation. In our experimental and theoretical work, we systematically vary the IR intensity, time-delay, gas density, and IR polarization parameters to study line-shape modifications induced by collective interactions in a regime beyond the single-atom response of a thin, dilute gas. In both experiment and theory, we find that specific features in the frequency-domain absorption profile, and their evolution with propagation distance, can be attributed to the interplay between resonant attosecond pulse propagation and IR-induced phase shifts. Our calculations show that …

Dna Mismatch Repair Interacts With Caf-1- And Asf1a-H3-H4-Dependent Histone (H3-H4)2 Tetramer Deposition., Elena Rodriges Blanko, Lyudmila Y Kadyrova, Farid A Kadyrov

Articles

DNA mismatch repair (MMR) is required for the maintenance of genome stability and protection of humans from several types of cancer. Human MMR occurs in the chromatin environment, but little is known about the interactions between MMR and the chromatin environment. Previous research has suggested that MMR coincides with replication-coupled assembly of the newly synthesized DNA into nucleosomes. The first step in replication-coupled nucleosome assembly is CAF-1-dependent histone (H3-H4)2 tetramer deposition, a process that involves ASF1A-H3-H4 complex. In this work, we used reconstituted human systems to investigate interactions between MMR and CAF-1- and ASF1A-H3-H4-dependent histone (H3-H4)2 tetramer deposition. We have …

International Perspectives On The State-As-Parent: Naı¨Ve Idealism Or Reluctant Pragmatism, Pa Welbourne, J Dixon

School of Health Professions

Too many children remain at risk of harm, regrettably, in all too many societies. This is despite the almost universal acceptance of the 1990 United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Its intention, arguably somewhat naı¨vely, is to create two state imperatives: to protect children against threats of harm; and to advance their welfare. Governments, however, have evidenced a pragmatic reluctance to meet these challenges, perhaps a product of conflicting community expectations on the appropriate role of the state, combined with a scarcity of public resources. For the state to meet its UNCRC obligations requires it to …

Daily Eastern News: March 04, 2016, Eastern Illinois University

March

No abstract provided.

Choral Collage: Women's Choir, Barbara Tagg; Hendricks Chapel Choir, Peppie Calvar; Windjammer, Jeffrey Welcher; University Singers, John Warren; Concert Choir, Elisa Dekaney; Syracuse Children's Chorus, Marcia Demartini, Syracuse University Women's Choir, Setnor School Of Music, Barbara Tagg, Hendricks Chapel Choir, Setnor School Of Music, Jose Calvar, Windjammer, Setnor School Of Music, Jeffrey Welcher, University Singers, Setnor School Of Music, John Warren, Concert Choir, Setnor School Of Music, Elisa Dekaney, Syracuse Children's Chorus, Marcia Demartini

Setnor School of Music - Performance Programs

No abstract provided.

Suan Guess-Hanson, Suan Guess-Hanson, Meg Miner

All oral histories

Guess-Hanson recalls Myers attending campus and community events and comments on the effects such visibility had with him, and other presidents, on the community. She taught in the same school that Ellen Myers did and mentions seeing her in the years since the time of Myers' presidency. Guess-Hanson shares recollections of changes in campus over the years and notes the positive impact that being able to attend events in different campus venues had on the community. She composed a choral piece in memoriam to Myers and donated a copy it to the archives which is also linked below.

A Metallomics Study On Protein Function Assignment Using Promol, Venkata Aditya Kovuri

Theses

Metal ions are an integral part in both the structural and functional stability of enzymes. The function of an enzyme is exhibited through its active site region, which carries out the reaction for that particular protein. When a metal ion is present in an active site, it not only acts as a structural support for the active site but is often plays a critical role in the functional behavior of the protein. An exhaustive screening for proposed metal ion active sites was performed through online resources including Metal MACiE, Metal PDB, the Catalytic site Atlas and Metal Mine. A total …