Computer Based Learning - Dealing with Increasing Knowledge Volume and Declining Teaching Resources

Expanding knowledge in all disciplines, declining resources and staff for traditional lecture and practical or tutorial format in Australian Universities, and demands for knowledge construction and acquisition by students provides impetus for the development of new educational strategies. Computer assisted learning, (CAL) integrates large amounts of information and data in an active learning environment. CAL is an especially effective facility, through exercises that explore underlying processes and their interactions for students to develop knowledge and understanding. This paper recounts 15 years experience within agriculture and related disciplines, and addresses the sources of software and hardware, the special roles of dynamic simulation models, likely future developments and student responses to CAL. The paper shows that CAL is an effective means of teaching agriculturally oriented subjects that involve complex interactions, with student performance comparable to performance with other teaching strategies. Analysis of student surveys of acceptance of CAL shows both positive and negative responses, with resistance mostly related to low levels of computer literacy and perceived unfriendliness of some packages used

Dynamics Of Internode And Stem Elongation In Three Cultivars Of Maize

The kinetics of elongation of individual internodes, the peduncle and panicle of maize were studied in field experiments in Gatton (Australia) using two tropical cultivars, and compared to similar data previously collected in Grignon (France) on a temperate cultivar. Data for phytomer initiation and organ extension and appearance were related to thermal time calculated from the temperature in the growing zone. Extension of internodes was analysed using a four stage framework:- an initial exponential stage, transition to rapid extension, rapid (linear) extension and transition to final length. The kinetics of internode extension were similar in Gatton and Grignon, though the rates of processes differed. Transition from stage 1 to stage 2 coincided with collar emergence. The commencement of rapid extension of the peduncle coincided with a transient reduction in the rates of extension of vegetative internodes. Further work is needed to assess whether they are effects of genotype only, or genotype and environment

Assessment of Waste for Use on Agricultural Land

The disposal of waste to agricultural land requires a systematic and transparent assessment procedure to ensure environmental and production sustainability. A hybrid model of risk assessment used in the general risk, environmental management and the mining industries was developed and tested using the waste from a yeast factory. The model is systematic and cybernetic and develops a succession of decisions that have the capacity to focus the environmental and agronomic considerations down to individual crops, land and management systems. The process directly links environmental risk assessment and development of management plans to agronomic development of the use waste products

Modelling broccoli development, yield and quality

Broccoli is a vegetable crop of increasing importance in Australia, particularly in south-east Queensland and farmers need to maintain a regular supply of good quality broccoli to meet the expanding market. A predictive model of ontogeny, incorporating climatic data including frost risk, would enable farmers to predict harvest maturity date and select appropriate cultivar - sowing date combinations. To develop procedures for predicting ontogeny, yield and quality, field studies using three cultivars, 'Fiesta', 'Greenbelt' and 'Marathon', were sown on eight dates from 11 March to 22 May 1997, and grown under natural and extended (16 h) photoperiods at the University of Queensland, Gatton Campus. Cultivar, rather than the environment, mainly determined head quality attributes of head shape and branching angle. Yield and quality were not influenced by photoperiod. A better understanding of genotype and environmental interactions will help farmers optimise yield and quality, by matching cultivars with time of sowing. The estimated base and optimum temperature for broccoli development were 0 degrees C and 20 degrees C, respectively, and were consistent across cultivars, but thermal time requirements for phenological intervals were cultivar specific. Differences in thermal time requirement from floral initiation to harvest maturity between cultivars were small and of little importance, but differences in thermal time requirement from emergence to floral initiation were large. Sensitivity to photoperiod and solar radiation was low in the three cultivars used. This research has produced models to assist broccoli farmers in crop scheduling and cultivar selection in south-east Queensland

Spatial distribution of the active surveillance of sheep scrapie in Great Britain: an exploratory analysis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>This paper explores the spatial distribution of sampling within the active surveillance of sheep scrapie in Great Britain. We investigated the geographic distribution of the birth holdings of sheep sampled for scrapie during 2002 – 2005, including samples taken in abattoir surveys (c. 83,100) and from sheep that died in the field ("fallen stock", c. 14,600). We mapped the birth holdings by county and calculated the sampling rate, defined as the proportion of the holdings in each county sampled by the surveys. The Moran index was used to estimate the global spatial autocorrelation across Great Britain. The contributions of each county to the global Moran index were analysed by a local indicator of spatial autocorrelation (LISA).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The sampling rate differed among counties in both surveys, which affected the distribution of detected cases of scrapie. Within each survey, the county sampling rates in different years were positively correlated during 2002–2005, with the abattoir survey being more strongly autocorrelated through time than the fallen stock survey. In the abattoir survey, spatial indices indicated that sampling rates in neighbouring counties tended to be similar, with few significant contrasts. Sampling rates were strongly correlated with sheep density, being highest in Wales, Southwest England and Northern England. This relationship with sheep density accounted for over 80% of the variation in sampling rate among counties. In the fallen stock survey, sampling rates in neighbouring counties tended to be different, with more statistically significant contrasts. The fallen stock survey also included a larger proportion of holdings providing many samples.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Sampling will continue to be uneven unless action is taken to make it more uniform, if more uniform sampling becomes a target. Alternatively, analyses of scrapie occurrence in these datasets can take account of the distribution of sampling. Combining the surveys only partially reduces uneven sampling. Adjusting the distribution of sampling between abattoirs to reduce the bias in favour of regions with high sheep densities could probably achieve more even sampling. However, any adjustment of sampling should take account of the current understanding of the distribution of scrapie cases, which will be improved by further analysis of this dataset.</p

The initiator methionine tRNA drives secretion of type II collagen from stromal fibroblasts to promote tumor growth and angiogenesis

Summary: Expression of the initiator methionine tRNA (tRNAi Met) is deregulated in cancer. Despite this fact, it is not currently known how tRNAi Met expression levels influence tumor progression. We have found that tRNAi Met expression is increased in carcinoma-associated fibroblasts, implicating deregulated expression of tRNAi Met in the tumor stroma as a possible contributor to tumor progression. To investigate how elevated stromal tRNAi Met contributes to tumor progression, we generated a mouse expressing additional copies of the tRNAi Met gene (2+tRNAi Met mouse). Growth and vascularization of subcutaneous tumor allografts was enhanced in 2+tRNAi Met mice compared with wild-type littermate controls. Extracellular matrix (ECM) deposited by fibroblasts from 2+tRNAi Met mice supported enhanced endothelial cell and fibroblast migration. SILAC mass spectrometry indicated that elevated expression of tRNAi Met significantly increased synthesis and secretion of certain types of collagen, in particular type II collagen. Suppression of type II collagen opposed the ability of tRNAi Metoverexpressing fibroblasts to deposit pro-migratory ECM. We used the prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor ethyl- 3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (DHB) to determine whether collagen synthesis contributes to the tRNAi Met-driven pro-tumorigenic stroma in vivo. DHB had no effect on the growth of syngeneic allografts in wild-type mice but opposed the ability of 2+tRNAi Met mice to support increased angiogenesis and tumor growth. Finally, collagen II expression predicts poor prognosis in high-grade serous ovarian carcinoma. Taken together, these data indicate that increased tRNAi Met levels contribute to tumor progression by enhancing the ability of stromal fibroblasts to synthesize and secrete a type II collagen-rich ECM that supports endothelial cell migration and angiogenesis

The Effectiveness of Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention in Emergency Departments: A Multicentre Pragmatic Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND: Alcohol misuse is common in people attending emergency departments (EDs) and there is some evidence of efficacy of alcohol screening and brief interventions (SBI). This study investigated the effectiveness of SBI approaches of different intensities delivered by ED staff in nine typical EDs in England: the SIPS ED trial. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Pragmatic multicentre cluster randomized controlled trial of SBI for hazardous and harmful drinkers presenting to ED. Nine EDs were randomized to three conditions: a patient information leaflet (PIL), 5 minutes of brief advice (BA), and referral to an alcohol health worker who provided 20 minutes of brief lifestyle counseling (BLC). The primary outcome measure was the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) status at 6 months. Of 5899 patients aged 18 or more presenting to EDs, 3737 (63·3%) were eligible to participate and 1497 (40·1%) screened positive for hazardous or harmful drinking, of whom 1204 (80·4%) gave consent to participate in the trial. Follow up rates were 72% (n?=?863) at six, and 67% (n?=?810) at 12 months. There was no evidence of any differences between intervention conditions for AUDIT status or any other outcome measures at months 6 or 12 in an intention to treat analysis. At month 6, compared to the PIL group, the odds ratio of being AUDIT negative for brief advice was 1·103 (95% CI 0·328 to 3·715). The odds ratio comparing BLC to PIL was 1·247 (95% CI 0·315 to 4·939). A per protocol analysis confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS: SBI is difficult to implement in typical EDs. The results do not support widespread implementation of alcohol SBI in ED beyond screening followed by simple clinical feedback and alcohol information, which is likely to be easier and less expensive to implement than more complex interventions

Who Invited You? The Complex Story Of Aquatic Invasive Species

Invasive species represent a global threat to ecosystems, human health, and the economy. A basic knowledge of invasive species biology is crucial to understand current and future impacts and implications. The purpose of this book is to provide a broad background on invasive species, and also details on specific examples through case studies. The students in the course Aquatic Invasive Species (MAR 442) at the University of New England in Biddeford, Maine, have researched and reviewed scientific literature to educate readers about these issues. The class, comprised of fifteen junior and senior Marine Science, Marine Affairs, Animal Behavior, and Environmental Sciences students, selected the different topics, presented the material, wrote the chapters, and assembled the final versions into this book. This book cannot be all inclusive, but we think this book will provide an excellent broad overview of the most important aspects of Invasive Species Biology and might stimulate the reader to dive deeper into the material.https://dune.une.edu/marinesci_studproj/1003/thumbnail.jp