Moving Forward by Looking Backward: Embracing Pedagogical Principles to Develop an Innovative MSIS Program

Program design is a challenging task that requires significant effort and resources. When a proposed program is being designed for both face-to-face and online delivery, the challenges are compounded. If done right, this task offers an opportunity to leverage pedagogical theory and principles in designinga curriculum for the program. Our research shares findings from program development effort at a Midwestern university using the Backward Design approach. The Backward Design approach entails working in reverse and involves identification of objectives, creating assessments, and learning activities. This approachwas used to design a graduate Masters of Science program in Information Systems (MSIS). Alignment of objectives, faculty involvement, mutual accountability, and developing a learning Global Positioning Systems (GPS) for students emerged as keylessons that can be used by other institutions as they undergo efforts to developor revise curriculum. Further, using Backward Design helped to integrate Assurance of Learning (AOL) processes recommended by AACSB into the curriculum design

Intelligent Controller Based on Artificial Neural Network and INC Based MPPT for Grid Integrated Solar PV System

Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have become an integral part of today's advanced energy infrastructure due to its low kinetic energy, its abundance availability, and its freedom from human interference. Solar PV systems have the potential to greatly reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, but their intermittent nature means they cannot provide a constant source of electricity. The system's security should be well thought out, and it should be able to withstand a lot of abuse. The current energy system faces a significant difficulty in ensuring continuous supply. In this study, a three-phase, two-stage photovoltaic system that is managed by artificial neural networks (ANN). A DC-DC boost converter with maximum power point tracking (MPPT) based on the incremental conductance (INC) method is incorporated in the first stage. In the next step, an ANN-based controller optimizes the performance of a three-phase switching PWM inverter that is connected to the grid by controlling currents along the d-q axis. Comprehensive simulations were carried out using MATLAB or Simulink to evaluate the system's performance under various illumination and temperature conditions. Results show that the suggested approach outperforms the baseline in a number of areas. Better dynamic reactions, accurate tracking of reference currents within permissible bounds, and quick settling periods after startup are all displayed by it. These findings show that our method has the potential to greatly improve the efficiency and dependability of solar PV systems. The results of this study have implications for renewable energy in general and present a viable path toward enhancing the resilience and sustainability of energy infrastructure

Integrating AI into Business Schools: An Inquiry-Based Approach

Given the current and anticipated use of artificial intelligence (AI) in business (Wagner, 2018), one would expect relevant coverage in business school curriculum. After all, AI promises to impact fields as diverse as human resources, accounting, and logistics (Webb, 2020). Graduating students will confront AI and how to integrate it with their work throughout their careers. Yet AI concepts do not seem to have permeated general business curricula, as evidenced in several ways: 1) most business textbooks address AI only at the surface level, 2) an internal search of master course syllabi of a business school at a medium-sized R2 university revealed little to no explicit addressing of AI); and 3) AI content is not prominent in a survey of business school curriculum. Information systems as a discipline is in a unique position to support the integration of AI into business curricula. Unlike computer science, IS maintains an intellectual and practical connection to all other business functions. And, unlike these individual business functions and their disciplines, IS offers a strong technical base, combined with systems thinking and practical application. But how can AI be better integrated into curricula at colleges of businesses? We would argue against simply adding a standalone course here or there, as that would ignore the overall terrain into which graduate students will be stepping. Instead, we propose that business schools integrate the following questions throughout the business curricula, which can help both students and faculty understand how AI impacts individual disciplines as well as specific organizations and society: 1. Why should I learn about AI?; 2. What is AI?; 3. What are specific skills I need to develop to understand AI?; 4. How does AI create new possibilities for me in my professional career?; 5. How does AI impact society and what can I do to make a meaningful contribution? In this talk, we explore the approach of posing questions to help students develop the practice of inquiry, which is essential as AI and its applications continue to evolve. In doing so, students can come to understand AI in theory and practice (Smith, 2018), including exploring ethical questions (McGrath & Gupta, 2018). We recommend general pedagogical strategies that can be followed in posing these questions and describe possibilities for future research

Clinico biochemical profile of birth asphyxia in neonates of western Odisha

Background: Perinatal asphyxia contributes to almost 29% of neonatal deaths in developing countries as most of the deliveries occur inrural areas and are unattended. The outcome of most of the deliveries is not encouraging in spite of standard guidelines. Objectives: To studythe different spectrum of clinical presentation of birth asphyxia and its biochemical derangements. Materials and Methods: This was aprospective, hospital-based study conducted from September 2005 to March 2008 comprising of 58 term neonates admitted to neonatalintensive care unit with definite history suggestive of perinatal hypoxic insult. Compilation of history, clinical features, and relevantinvestigations (random blood sugar, serum creatinine, blood urea and serum electrolytes) were done, and the results were analyzed byusing Medcalc software version 12. Results: Vaginal delivery was more common across all the stages. Abnormal neonatal reflex was acommon feature in all babies except hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE) I. Convulsion, mostly multifocal seizures was present in allHIE II babies where as only 22.2% babies had seizure in HIE III. Congestive heart failure (55.17%) and Oliguria was present in HIE III(77.8%) and 22 cases (37.9%) developed acute kidney injury. Hypoglycemia was observed with increasing severity of asphyxia (HIE III26.67 ± 2.78). Serum urea, creatinine and potassium increased significantly in HIE III whereas calcium and sodium were decreased.Conclusion: The combination of clinical and supportive laboratory parameters can be used for monitoring of patients to guide earlyintervention to decreases morbidity and mortality

Characterization Of Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacteria From Honey And Assessment Of Their Effects On Consumption By Type-2- Diabetes Using Wistar Rat

The relevance of probiotic, especially lactic acid bacteria cannot be over emphasized. In this present study three honey sources were serially diluted and cultured on De Man, Rogosa and Sharpe (MRS) agar among which only one of this sources grew on MRS agar. The pure Lactobacilli isolate were subjected to gram staining, biochemical tests, physiological test, molecular analysis using Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) techniques and Deoxyribonucleotide (DNA) sequencing. Only one isolate was obtained known as Enterococcus fecalis. The isolate was subjected to probiotic selection and was found fit for consumption, however their effect when consumed by type-2 diabetic are alarming and based on the outcome of this study, diabetic patient are advised not consume honey

Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) as Sustainable Technology — Challenges and Perspectives

In sustainable treatment of wastewater, in addition to treatment performance, other aspects viz. energy utilization, recycling of wastewater and social issues also play vital role in evaluation of the sustainability. It is useful for achieving zero liquid discharge from industries. Soil biotechnology (SBT) is a type of biological treatment that plays major part in zero liquid discharge (ZLD) technology. ZLD is used for conversion of organic matter present in wastes into various grades of products for soil application and turns wastewater to cleaner water in the presence of selective geophagus earthworms, bacterial culture and formulated soil. SBT reduces the level of various pollutants in industrial wastewater viz. biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, ammonium nitrate, phosphates, nitrogen, suspended solids, odour, colour and other undesired organisms. This review briefly discusses the need for sustainable development in treatment of wastewater. It also provides an updated scientific literature on zero liquid discharge systems in industries including challenges and perspective

Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) as Sustainable Technology — Challenges and Perspectives

508-514In sustainable treatment of wastewater, in addition to treatment performance, other aspects viz. energy utilization, recycling of wastewater and social issues also play vital role in evaluation of the sustainability. It is useful for achieving zero liquid discharge from industries. Soil biotechnology (SBT) is a type of biological treatment that plays major part in zero liquid discharge (ZLD) technology. ZLD is used for conversion of organic matter present in wastes into various grades of products for soil application and turns wastewater to cleaner water in the presence of selective geophagus earthworms, bacterial culture and formulated soil. SBT reduces the level of various pollutants in industrial wastewater viz. biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, ammonium nitrate, phosphates, nitrogen, suspended solids, odour, colour and other undesired organisms. This review briefly discusses the need for sustainable development in treatment of wastewater. It also provides an updated scientific literature on zero liquid discharge systems in industries including challenges and perspectives

Involvement of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5, AKT/PI3K Signaling and NF-kappaB pathway in methamphetamine-mediated increase in IL-6 and IL-8 expression in astrocytes

Abstract Methamphetamine (MA) is one of the commonly used illicit drugs and the central nervous system toxicity of MA is well documented. The mechanisms contributing to this toxicity have not been fully elucidated. In this study, we investigated the effect of MA on the expression levels of the proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines, IL-6 and IL-8 in an astrocytic cell line. The IL-6 and IL-8 RNA levels were found to increase by 4.6 ± 0.2 fold and 3.5 ± 0.2 fold, respectively, after exposure to MA for three days. Exposure of astrocytes to MA for 24 hours also caused increased expression of IL-6 and IL-8 at the level of both RNA and protein. The potential involvement of the nuclear factor-Kappa B (NF-κB) pathway was explored as one of the possible mechanism(s) responsible for the increased induction of IL-6 and IL-8 by MA. The MA-mediated increases in IL-6 and IL-8 were significantly abrogated by SC514. We also found that exposure of astrocytes to MA results in activation of NF-κB through the phosphorylation of IκB-α, followed by translocation of active NF-κB from the cytoplasm to the nucleus. In addition, treatment of cells with a specific inhibitor of metabotropic glutamate receptor-5 (mGluR5) revealed that MA-mediated expression levels of IL-6 and IL-8 were abrogated by this treatment by 42.6 ± 5.8% and 65.5 ± 3.5%, respectively. Also, LY294002, an inhibitor of the Akt/PI3K pathway, abrogated the MA-mediated induction of IL-6 and IL-8 by 77.9 ± 6.6% and 81.4 ± 2.6%, respectively. Thus, our study demonstrates the involvement of an NF-κB-mediated signaling mechanism in the induction of IL-6 and IL-8 by MA. Furthermore, we showed that blockade of mGluR5 can protect astrocytes from MA-mediated increases of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines suggesting mGluR5 as a potential therapeutic target in treating MA-mediated neurotoxicity.Peer Reviewe

Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 viral protein R (Vpr) induces CCL5 expression in astrocytes via PI3K and MAPK signaling pathways

Abstract Background Neurocognitive impairments remain prevalent in HIV-1 infected individuals despite current antiretroviral therapies. It is increasingly becoming evident that astrocytes play a critical role in HIV-1 neuropathogenesis through the production of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines. HIV-1 viral protein R (Vpr) plays an important role in neuronal dysfunction; however, its role in neuroinflammation is not well characterized. The major objective of this study was to determine the effect of Vpr in induction of proinflammatory chemokine CCL5 in astrocytes and to define the underlying mechanism(s). Methods SVGA astrocytes were either mock transfected or were transfected with a plasmid encoding HIV-1 Vpr, and the cells were harvested at different time intervals. The mRNA level of CCL5 expression was quantified using real-time RT-PCR, and cell culture supernatants were assayed for CCL5 protein concentration. Immunocytochemistry was performed on HIV-1 Vpr transfected astrocytes to check CCL5 expression. Various signaling mechanisms such as p38 MAPK, PI3K/Akt, NF-κB and AP-1 were explored using specific chemical inhibitors and siRNAs. Results HIV-1 Vpr transfected astrocytes exhibited time-dependent induction of CCL5 as compared to mock-transfected astrocytes at both the mRNA and protein level. Immunostained images of astrocytes transfected with HIV-1 Vpr also showed much higher accumulation of CCL5 in comparison to untransfected and mock-transfected astrocytes. Pre-treatment with NF-κB (SC514) and PI3K/Akt (LY294002) inhibitor partially abrogated CCL5 mRNA and protein expression levels as opposed to untreated controls after HIV-1 Vpr transfection. Specific siRNAs against p50 and p65 subunits of NF-κB, p38δ MAPK, Akt-2 and Akt-3, and AP-1 transcription factor substantially inhibited the production of CCL5 in HIV-1 Vpr transfected astrocytes. Conclusion These results demonstrate the ability of HIV-1 Vpr to induce CCL5 in astrocytes in a time-dependent manner. Furthermore, this effect was observed to be mediated by transcription factors NF-κB and AP-1 and involved the p38-MAPK and PI3K/Akt pathway.Peer Reviewe