CNS Connections, Winter 2006-07

Inside this issue: -- Message from the Dean-- Mini-robots duel in sumo competition-- Earth Science offers B.S. in air quality-- College News-- Biology prof helps test method to reduce erosion-- Title II grants fund CNS science education projects-- Update from the Centers-- Change of address for Computer Science-- Carver grants strengthen CNS programs-- Partnership for Goods starts at UNI-- Faculty and Student Research Highlights-- Ensuring a bright future for UNI-- Alumni News-- CNS Advisory Boardhttps://scholarworks.uni.edu/cnsconnections/1001/thumbnail.jp

Recycled tyre rubber modified bitumens for road asphalt mixtures: a literature review

Nowadays, only a small percentage of waste tyres are being land-filled. The Recycled Tyre Rubber is being used in new tyres, in tyre-derived fuel, in civil engineering applications and products, in moulded rubber products, in agricultural uses, recreational and sports applications and in rubber modified asphalt applications. The benefits of using rubber modified asphalts are being more widely experienced and recognized, and the incorporation of tyres into asphalt is likely to increase. The technology with much different evidence of success demonstrated by roads built in the last 40 years is the rubberised asphalt mixture obtained through the so-called “wet process” which involves the utilisation of the Recycled Tyre Rubber Modified Bitumens (RTR-MBs). Since 1960s, asphalt mixtures produced with RTR-MBs have been used in different parts of the world as solutions for different quality problems and, despite some downsides, in the majority of the cases they have demonstrated to enhance performance of road’s pavement. This study reports the results of a literature review upon the existing technologies and specifications related to the production, handling and storage of RTR-MBs and on their current applications within road asphalt mixtures. Furthermore, considering that RTR-MBs technologies are still struggling to be fully adopted worldwide, mainly because of poor information, lack of training of personnel and stakeholders and rare support of local policies, the present work aims to be an up-to-date reference to clarify benefits and issues associated to this family of technologies and to finally provide suggestions for their wide-spread use

PARCE: Protocol for Amino acid Refinement through Computational Evolution

The in silico design of peptides and proteins as binders is useful for diagnosis and therapeutics due to their low adverse effects and major specificity. To select the most promising candidates, a key matter is to understand their interactions with protein targets. In this work, we present PARCE, an open source Protocol for Amino acid Refinement through Computational Evolution that implements an advanced and promising method for the design of peptides and proteins. The protocol performs a random mutation in the binder sequence, then samples the bound conformations using molecular dynamics simulations, and evaluates the protein-protein interactions from multiple scoring. Finally, it accepts or rejects the mutation by applying a consensus criterion based on binding scores. The procedure is iterated with the aim to explore efficiently novel sequences with potential better affinities toward their targets. We also provide a tutorial for running and reproducing the methodology

Preparing Today’s Middle School Science Students for the Real World of Science Through Relevant and Inquiry-Based Activities

During the past several decades we have seen an increase in the demand for individuals trained in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) disciplines (Rothwell, 2013). While this is this case, according to the Bureau of Labor, the United States will see a shortage of STEM workers over the next decade, with the demand for highly trained STEM workers exceeding the minimal supply (Rothwell, 2013). In a study of bachelor and associate students in the academic year of 2003 and 2004, only 28% of bachelor students and 20% of associate students entered STEM fields (Chen & Soldner, 2013). This study took place from 2003 to 2009, and it was reported that 48% of these bachelor students and 69% of the associate students either switched to a non-STEM major, or dropped out of school. One major aspect that was found to impact attrition rates in STEM majors is precollege experiences and preparation. This issue can be directly related to the education system and its lack in preparing today’s students to fill the overwhelming amount of positions (Educator’s Voice). This is evidenced by low test performance of U.S. students as compared to those from other countries on several STEM assessment tests, which is causing the U.S. to lag behind other developed countries in the global economy. It is well established that in order to retain students in STEM majors, interest in these fields needs to be cultivated at a young age (Dejarnette, 2016). It was reported that 94% of eighth grade students chose their courses in order to prepare for a future career. If these students do not have interest or see potential in STEM fields and careers at this age, it is unlikely that these students will remain in the field (UMASS Donahue Institute, 2011). Unfortunately, however, it is very common for students to go through school not knowing the purpose of much of their learning. Specifically in middle school science classrooms, students often perform experiments where they are given step-by-step protocols where the outcome is known. However, this does not represent how science really works. The purpose of this project is to conduct a thorough literature review of current practices in STEM education in the middle school classroom. Using this information, a module appropriate for middle school science classrooms will be developed and aligned to 2016 Massachusetts Science and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Frameworks standards. The activities in the module will be focused on practicing the real processes of science, and will also be inquiry-driven, allowing students to explore and discover for themselves. Ultimately this will allow students to see purpose in their work, become aware of the exciting world of science, become familiar with the process of science and take interest in the field. As a result, it is expected that more students will pursue STEM careers after being exposed to such modules, which will help the U.S. to improve its position in the global economy

Developing an Electronic Health Record Training Program for New Employees

In May 2015, an electronic health record (EHR) was implemented at an urban, long-term care facility. This facility is part of the county Department of Public Health (DPH) and was one of the last locations to implement the designated EHR system. The unique nature of the facility compared to the smaller, health care centers within the DPH network necessitated development of a customized training and onboarding program for new employees. It was not possible to duplicate an existing training program. The registered nurse (RN) informaticist assigned to the EHR used data from nursing staff surveys and information collected through a literature search to assist with developing a training program. Several “best practices” for training and instructional design recommendations based on adult learning theory were identified. The budget for the project was $26,649 which included establishing a mobile classroom, certification training for the informatics RN, and educational materials. The potential and perceived value for improved patient safety, nurse satisfaction, and interoperability among other facilities justified the initial program investment. The program established a channel for communication between departments regarding EHR access, training, and staff support. Tools were developed to track and document the onboarding process; these resources are available for future orientations and ongoing implementation and training needs. This paper will describe program development, tools, and best practices that directly impact the clinical and operational phases of onboarding for new technology deployment in a long-term care setting