Al Gore discusses “Earth in the Balance: The Environmental Crisis for Our Nation and Our World, at the Ford Hall Forum, audio recording and transcript

Al Gore, an American politician and environmentalist, provides an analysis of the environmental crisis and suggestions for individual and collective action in a forum entitled, “Earth in the Balance: The Environmental Crisis for Our Nation and Our World.” Introduced by host and moderator Jan Putnam.https://dc.suffolk.edu/fhf-av/1050/thumbnail.jp

Assessment of an International Virtual Exchange Project with Civil Engineering Students from the US and Palestine: Global Competencies, Perceived Value, and Teamwork

This paper presents the results of a study conducted to assess the value of two iterations of an international virtual exchange (IVE) experience between universities in the US (Clemson University and Bucknell University) and Palestine (An-Najah National University) in 2021 and 2022. The focus of this study was a five-week collaborative project where civil engineering students enrolled in pavement design or environmental engineering courses at three universities were tasked to develop innovative solutions to a pavement related problem in one of five general areas. Based on the course enrollments at each institution (i.e., 50 US and 19 Palestinian students in 2021 and 35 US and 51 Palestinian students in 2022), there were two treatment groups: IVE and non-IVE. In 2021 there were nine bi-national IVE teams and eight non-IVE teams composed only of students from Clemson University (US). In 2022, there were nine bi-national IVE teams, five US non-IVE teams from Clemson, and seven Palestinian non-IVE teams from An-Najah. The evaluation in this study focused on (1) global competencies, (2) value of the experience, and (3) team dynamics. The influence of the experience on the global competencies of the students in IVE and non-IVE teams was assessed quantitatively and qualitatively using pre- and post-program surveys based on the Stevens Initiative and RTI International’s Common Survey Items as well as survey items developed for this IVE to measure whether the program promotes gender equity. The value of the project experience for all students (i.e., IVE and non-IVE) was evaluated using a mixed methods assessment based on the “value-creation framework” of Wenger-Trayner et al. Four cycles of the value-creation framework were included in this assessment: (1) immediate value, (2) potential value, (3) applied value, and (4) realized value. Finally, teamwork was evaluated using the Individual and Team Performance (ITP) Metrics Peer Feedback and Team Dynamics survey. Results showed that modifications made between the first and second project iterations, specifically cross-cultural dialogue modules, had positive impacts on the overall outcomes. The IVE teams exhibited greater improvement in team dynamics measures over the project duration compared to the non-IVE teams. The students on IVE teams also showed greater gains in all aspects of the global competencies assessment than their non-IVE peers. Finally, all students expressed that they found value in the experience. However, there were no differences in perceived value between the IVE and non-IVE teams. The differences came from students from different countries as the Palestinian students perceived greater value in the experience than their US peers regardless of whether they were on an IVE team or not

You Reap What You Plant: Social Networks in the Arab World – The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

The aim of this paper is threefold. First, to describe the general evolution of bonding and bridging social capital in Jordan. Second, to explore the role of state policies in affecting the various forms of social capital. Finally, to analyze how poverty and economic reform influence the extent and nature of social capital. Social networks, a crucial element of social capital, and cleavages are strongly affected by political and economic dislocations. The former include wars and civil wars, while the latter include state policies and economic conditions. Thus wasta, an old but still significant form of social capital in the Arab World, becomes helpful in good times but destructive in bad times. Successful economic reform requires a good understanding of the nature of social relations and of the ways in which social networks themselves are used by members during good times and bad times for both survival and advancement

Mining Diversity on Social Media Networks

The fast development of multimedia technology and increasing availability of network bandwidth has given rise to an abundance of network data as a result of all the ever-booming social media and social websites in recent years, e.g., Flickr, Youtube, MySpace, Facebook, etc. Social network analysis has therefore become a critical problem attracting enthusiasm from both academia and industry. However, an important measure that captures a participant’s diversity in the network has been largely neglected in previous studies. Namely, diversity characterizes how diverse a given node connects with its peers. In this paper, we give a comprehensive study of this concept. We first lay out two criteria that capture the semantic meaning of diversity, and then propose a compliant definition which is simple enough to embed the idea. Based on the approach, we can measure not only a user’s sociality and interest diversity but also a social media’s user diversity. An efficient top-k diversity ranking algorithm is developed for computation on dynamic networks. Experiments on both synthetic and real social media datasets give interesting results, where individual nodes identified with high diversities are intuitive

Inducible Expression of Spo0A as a Universal Tool for Studying Sporulation in Clostridium difficile

Clostridium difficile remains a leading nosocomial pathogen, putting considerable strain on the healthcare system. The ability to form endospores, highly resistant to environmental insults, is key to its persistence and transmission. However, important differences exist between the sporulation pathways of C. difficile and the model Gram-positive organism Bacillus subtilis. Amongst the challenges in studying sporulation in C. difficile is the relatively poor levels of sporulation and high heterogeneity in the sporulation process. To overcome these limitations we placed Ptet regulatory elements upstream of the master regulator of sporulation, spo0A, generating a new strain that can be artificially induced to sporulate by addition of anhydrotetracycline (ATc). We demonstrate that this strain is asporogenous in the absence of ATc, and that ATc can be used to drive faster and more efficient sporulation. Induction of Spo0A is titratable and this can be used in the study of the spo0A regulon both in vitro and in vivo, as demonstrated using a mouse model of C. difficile infection (CDI). Insights into differences between the sporulation pathways in B. subtilis and C. difficile gained by study of the inducible strain are discussed, further highlighting the universal interest of this tool. The Ptet-spo0A strain provides a useful background in which to generate mutations in genes involved in sporulation, therefore providing an exciting new tool to unravel key aspects of sporulation in C. difficile

Formation of Complex and Unstable Chromosomal Translocations in Yeast

Genome instability, associated with chromosome breakage syndromes and most human cancers, is still poorly understood. In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, numerous genes with roles in the preservation of genome integrity have been identified. DNA-damage-checkpoint-deficient yeast cells that lack Sgs1, a RecQ-like DNA helicase related to the human Bloom's-syndrome-associated helicase BLM, show an increased rate of genome instability, and we have previously shown that they accumulate recurring chromosomal translocations between three similar genes, CAN1, LYP1 and ALP1. Here, the chromosomal location, copy number and sequence similarity of the translocation targets ALP1 and LYP1 were altered to gain insight into the formation of complex translocations. Among 844 clones with chromosomal rearrangements, 93 with various types of simple and complex translocations involving CAN1, LYP1 and ALP1 were identified. Breakpoint sequencing and mapping showed that the formation of complex translocation types is strictly dependent on the location of the initiating DNA break and revealed that complex translocations arise via a combination of interchromosomal translocation and template-switching, as well as from unstable dicentric intermediates. Template-switching occurred between sequences on the same chromosome, but was inhibited if the genes were transferred to different chromosomes. Unstable dicentric translocations continuously gave rise to clones with multiple translocations in various combinations, reminiscent of intratumor heterogeneity in human cancers. Base substitutions and evidence of DNA slippage near rearrangement breakpoints revealed that translocation formation can be accompanied by point mutations, and their presence in different translocation types within the same clone provides evidence that some of the different translocation types are derived from each other rather than being formed de novo. These findings provide insight into eukaryotic genome instability, especially the formation of translocations and the sources of intraclonal heterogeneity, both of which are often associated with human cancers

Identification and Classification of Conserved RNA Secondary Structures in the Human Genome

The discoveries of microRNAs and riboswitches, among others, have shown functional RNAs to be biologically more important and genomically more prevalent than previously anticipated. We have developed a general comparative genomics method based on phylogenetic stochastic context-free grammars for identifying functional RNAs encoded in the human genome and used it to survey an eight-way genome-wide alignment of the human, chimpanzee, mouse, rat, dog, chicken, zebra-fish, and puffer-fish genomes for deeply conserved functional RNAs. At a loose threshold for acceptance, this search resulted in a set of 48,479 candidate RNA structures. This screen finds a large number of known functional RNAs, including 195 miRNAs, 62 histone 3′UTR stem loops, and various types of known genetic recoding elements. Among the highest-scoring new predictions are 169 new miRNA candidates, as well as new candidate selenocysteine insertion sites, RNA editing hairpins, RNAs involved in transcript auto regulation, and many folds that form singletons or small functional RNA families of completely unknown function. While the rate of false positives in the overall set is difficult to estimate and is likely to be substantial, the results nevertheless provide evidence for many new human functional RNAs and present specific predictions to facilitate their further characterization

Learners' decisions for attending Pediatric Grand Rounds: a qualitative and quantitative study

BACKGROUND: Although grand rounds plays a major educational role at academic medical centers, there has been little investigation into the factors influencing the learners' decision to attend. Greater awareness of attendees' expectations may allow grand rounds planners to better accommodate the learners' perspective, potentially making continuing education activities more attractive and inviting. METHODS: We used both qualitative (part A) and quantitative (part B) techniques to investigate the motivators and barriers to grand rounds attendance. Part A investigated contextual factors influencing attendance as expressed through attendee interviews. Transcripts of the interviews were analyzed using grounded theory techniques. We created a concept map linking key factors and their relationships. In part B we quantified the motivators and barriers identified during the initial interviews through a survey of the grand rounds audience. RESULTS: Sixteen persons voluntarily took part in the qualitative study (part A) by participating in one of seven group interview sessions. Of the 14 themes that emerged from these sessions, the most frequent factors motivating attendance involved competent practice and the need to know. All sessions discussed intellectual stimulation, social interaction, time constraints and convenience, licensure, content and format, and absence of cost for attending sessions. The 59 respondents to the survey (part B) identified clinically-useful topics (85%), continuing education credit (46%), cutting-edge research (27%), networking (22%), and refreshments (8%) as motivators and non-relevant topics (44%) and too busy to attend (56%) as barriers. CONCLUSION: Greater understanding of the consumers' perspective can allow planners to tailor the style, content, and logistics to make grand rounds more attractive and inviting

Constitutivism

A brief explanation and overview of constitutivism

Institutional trust and alcohol consumption in Sweden: The Swedish National Public Health Survey 2006

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Trust as a measure of social capital has been documented to be associated with health. Mediating factors for this association are not well investigated. Harmful alcohol consumption is believed to be one of the mediating factors. We hypothesized that low social capital defined as low institutional trust is associated with harmful alcohol consumption.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Data from the 2006 Swedish National Survey of Public Health were used for analyses. The total study population comprised a randomly selected representative sample of 26.305 men and 30.584 women aged 16–84 years. Harmful alcohol consumption was measured using a short version the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), developed and recommended by the World Health Organisation. Low institutional trust was defined based on trust in ten main welfare institutions in Sweden.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Independent of age, country of birth and socioeconomic circumstances, low institutional trust was associated with increased likelihood of harmful alcohol consumption (OR (men) = 1.52, 95% CI 1.34–1.70) and (OR (women) = 1.50, 95% CI 1.35–1.66). This association was marginally altered after adjustment for interpersonal trust.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Findings of the present study show that lack of trust in institutions is associated with increased likelihood of harmful alcohol consumption. We hope that findings in the present study will inspire similar studies in other contexts and contribute to more knowledge on the association between institutional trust and lifestyle patterns. This evidence may contribute to policies and strategies related to alcohol consumption.</p