Genome-Wide Population-Based Association Study of Extremely Overweight Young Adults – The GOYA Study

Background: Thirty-two common variants associated with body mass index (BMI) have been identified in genome-wide association studies, explaining ~1.45% of BMI variation in general population cohorts. We performed a genome-wide association study in a sample of young adults enriched for extremely overweight individuals. We aimed to identify new loci associated with BMI and to ascertain whether using an extreme sampling design would identify the variants known to be associated with BMI in general populations. Methodology/Principal Findings: From two large Danish cohorts we selected all extremely overweight young men and women (n = 2,633), and equal numbers of population-based controls (n = 2,740, drawn randomly from the same populations as the extremes, representing ~212,000 individuals). We followed up novel (at the time of the study) association signals (

Change management for learning analytics : Sustainable innovation in productive higher education environments

Learning analytics draw on an eclectic set of methodologies and data to provide summative, real-time, and predictive insights for improving learning, teaching, organisational efficiency, and decision-making. The implementation of learning analytics at higher education institutions may have broad implications for the organisation and its stakeholders (e.g. students, academic staff, administrators) including changes in learning culture and educational decision-making. Hence, change management seems to be an essential prerequisite when implementing learning analytics, while change management includes approaches to prepare and support organisations and its stakeholders in making sustainable and beneficial organisational change. This chapter presents two case studies which exemplify the process of staff and technological change management processes required for successful implementation of learning analytics. Implications of the case study include insights into functioning implementation strategies highlighting the importance of open communication structures, transparency of decision-making, and the importance of systems thinking approaches