A Proposal to UMass Amherst for an Electronic Time Reporting System

This proposal to UMass Amherst is for all campus offices to switch their employee time reporting operations to a universal electronic system in the interest of reducing paper and saving time. Waste reduction, including paper consumption, is a top priority for the administration and the campus, as it is for college campuses across the nation. As a Green Office Fellow in the Green Office Program within Sustainable UMass at UMass Amherst I conducted an electronic survey for my fellowship project during the Fall 2018 semester. This survey asked campus offices for information about their time reporting operations

Construire des compétences d’adaptation aux changements climatiques, grâce à l’éducation relative à l’environnement

Depuis le début des temps, les humains se sont adaptés aux modifications de leur environnement, réagissant par ajustement corporel, par acclimatation ou par des pratiques culturelles et technologiques. Les humains peuvent ainsi transformer leur alimentation, leurs vêtements, leurs habitations… La qualité des mesures d’adaptation choisies dépend de la compréhension du contexte par les acteurs, de leurs compétences et de leur intention d’agir. L’éducation relative à l’environnement (ERE) peut renforcer la résilience et l’adaptation des citoyens aux changements climatiques. Certaines pratiques pédagogiques propres à l’ERE peuvent être mises à profit pour accompagner les citoyens pendant qu’ils analysent les problèmes locaux, prédisent les impacts des changements climatiques et proposent des mesures d’adaptation. Ces pratiques encouragent le développement de compétences telles que l’analyse du milieu, la résolution de problèmes et la pensée prospective. Des adultes en alphabétisation ont été observés pendant qu’ils cheminaient dans la proposition de mesures d’adaptation aux impacts des inondations en agriculture. Des idées d’adaptation efficaces ont été proposées par ces adultes grâce aux compétences et pratiques particulières du groupe (connaissance endogène du terrain, façon expérientielle de résoudre un problème, pensée prospective large, attitude de persévérance face aux situations complexes…), de même que grâce à un accompagnement qui favorise le renforcement de compétences en matière de résolution de problèmes.Since the beginning of time, people have adapted to changes in their environment, reacting with physical adjustments, acclimatization or cultural and technological practices. Humans thus transform their food, clothing and dwellings… Environmental education can strengthen the resilience and adaptation of citizens facing climate change. Certain EE teaching practices can be used to accompany citizens while they analyze local problems, predict the impacts of climate change and propose adaptation measures. These practices encourage the development of skills such as environmental analysis, problem solving and prospective thinking. This article presents the results of a research-intervention during which adult literacy students suggested measures for adapting to the impacts of agricultural floods. These adults proposed effective adaptation ideas thanks to the group’s skills and practices (knowledge of the land, an experiential method of problem solving, broad prospective thinking, an attitude of perseverance faced with complex situations…), and coaching that favoured the reinforcement of problem solving skills.Desde hace siglos, los humanos se han adaptado a las modificaciones de su medio ambiente, reaccionando con ajustes corporales, aclimataciones o prácticas culturales y tecnológicas. Los humanos pueden así transformar su alimentación, vestimenta, habitaciones… La educación relativa al entorno ecológico puede reforzar la resiliencia y la adaptación de los ciudadanos a los cambios climáticos. Ciertas prácticas pedagógicas de la ERE pueden aprovecharse para acompañar a los ciudadanos durante el análisis de los problemas locales, la predicción de los impactos de los cambios climáticos y la proposición de mediadas de adaptación. Esas prácticas favorecen el desarrollo de habilidades tales que el análisis del entorno, la resolución de problemas y el pensamiento prospectivo. Este artículo presenta los resultados de una investigación-intervención durante la cual los adultos en alfabetización deseaban proponen medidas de adaptación a los impactos de las inundaciones en agricultura. Los adultos propusieron ideas de adaptación eficaces gracias a las habilidades y a las prácticas específicas del grupo (conocimiento endógeno del campo, manera práctica de resolver un problema, pensamiento prospectivo amplio, actitud de perseverancia ante situaciones complejas…) y gracias a un acompañamiento que favorecía el reforzamiento de habilidades de resolución de problemas

Interactive E-Texts and Students: A Scoping Review

The purpose of this article is to explore the scope of available evidence regarding the use of interactive e-texts and their relationship to student learning experiences in post-secondary education. Following the framework of Arksey and O’Malley, this scoping review identified and reported on 33 articles. Study characteristics are presented alongside four themes that were found across the included articles: (1) the effect of interactive e-texts on student learning experiences; (2) the relationship between interactive e-texts and academic performance; (3) factors influencing student adoption and experience of interactive e-texts; and (4) roles, responsibilities, and recommendations. While the adoption of interactive e-texts is becoming increasingly common in post-secondary education, their effect on student learning experiences remains complex. This review emphasizes the importance of user-friendliness, affordability, accessibility, portability, and the role of educators. Using interactive e-texts shows promise, though future research should explore how barriers might be minimized and benefits might be maximized to have the strongest impact on student learning experiences. Keywords: interactive e-text, student experience, scoping review, post-secondary educationL’objectif de cet article était d’explorer l’étendue des connaissances disponibles sur l’utilisation des documents numériques interactifs et leur relation avec les expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants à l’enseignement supérieur. Suivant le cadre de l’étude d’Arksey et O’Malley (2005), cet examen de l’étendue des connaissances nous a permis de repérer et d’analyser 33 articles. Les caractéristiques de l’étude sont présentées selon quatre thèmes retrouvés dans les articles consultés : (1) l’impact des documents numériques interactifs sur les expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants; (2) la relation entre les documents numériques interactifs et les résultats scolaires; (3) les facteurs influençant l’adoption des documents numériques interactifs et les expériences d’utilisation par les étudiants; et (4) les rôles, les responsabilités et les recommandations. Tandis que l’utilisation des documents numériques interactifs devient de plus en plus fréquente au postsecondaire, leur impact sur les expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants demeure complexe. Cet article souligne l’importance de la convivialité, du coût, de l’accessibilité, de la portabilité et du rôle des enseignants. Puisque l’utilisation de documents numériques interactifs est prometteuse, de futures recherches devraient explorer comment les obstacles pourraient être réduits au minimum et les avantages maximisés pour permettre le meilleur impact possible sur les expériences d’apprentissage des étudiants. Mots-clés : documents numériques interactifs, expérience étudiante, étendue des connaissances, éducation postsecondair

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin is released by human epithelial cells in response to microbes, trauma, or inflammation and potently activates mast cells

Compelling evidence suggests that the epithelial cell–derived cytokine thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) may initiate asthma or atopic dermatitis through a dendritic cell–mediated T helper (Th)2 response. Here, we describe how TSLP might initiate and aggravate allergic inflammation in the absence of T lymphocytes and immunoglobulin E antibodies via the innate immune system. We show that TSLP, synergistically with interleukin 1 and tumor necrosis factor, stimulates the production of high levels of Th2 cytokines by human mast cells (MCs). We next report that TSLP is released by primary epithelial cells in response to certain microbial products, physical injury, or inflammatory cytokines. Direct epithelial cell–mediated, TSLP-dependent activation of MCs may play a central role in “intrinsic” forms of atopic diseases and explain the aggravating role of infection and scratching in these diseases

Severe Neonatal Cholestasis as an Early Presentation of McCune- Albright Syndrome

McCune-Albright syndrome (MAS) is a rare genetic disorder characterized by café-au-lait macules, polyostotic fibrous dysplasia and multiple endocrinopathies. Liver involvement, although described, is a rare complication. We review the case of a child with MAS whose initial presentation was characterized by severe neonatal cholestasis. The case demonstrates a severe phenotype of persistent cholestasis in MAS requiring liver transplantation. This phenotype has been previously considered to be a more benign feature. This case highlights the importance of consideration of MAS as an uncommon but important cause of neonatal cholestasis. Early diagnosis may allow for prompt recognition and treatment of other endocrinopathies

Overview of the interactive task in BioCreative V

Fully automated text mining (TM) systems promote efficient literature searching, retrieval, and review but are not sufficient to produce ready-to-consume curated documents. These systems are not meant to replace biocurators, but instead to assist them in one or more literature curation steps. To do so, the user interface is an important aspect that needs to be considered for tool adoption. The BioCreative Interactive task (IAT) is a track designed for exploring user-system interactions, promoting development of useful TM tools, and providing a communication channel between the biocuration and the TM communities. In BioCreative V, the IAT track followed a format similar to previous interactive tracks, where the utility and usability of TM tools, as well as the generation of use cases, have been the focal points. The proposed curation tasks are user-centric and formally evaluated by biocurators. In BioCreative V IAT, seven TM systems and 43 biocurators participated. Two levels of user participation were offered to broaden curator involvement and obtain more feedback on usability aspects. The full level participation involved training on the system, curation of a set of documents with and without TM assistance, tracking of time-on-task, and completion of a user survey. The partial level participation was designed to focus on usability aspects of the interface and not the performance per se. In this case, biocurators navigated the system by performing pre-designed tasks and then were asked whether they were able to achieve the task and the level of difficulty in completing the task. In this manuscript, we describe the development of the interactive task, from planning to execution and discuss major findings for the systems tested

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

The relationship between calcium, protein, and bone loss in early postmenopausal women

We investigated the relationship between calcium and protein intake and bone loss over a one-year period in 99 early postmenopausal women (1-36 months) aged 51.3 ± 0.31 years. Bone mineral density (g/cm²) of the left hip (total hip, femoral neck, greater trochanter) and lumbar spine (L1-L4) as well as body composition were assessed using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry. Dietary intake of calcium and protein was assessed using a 100-item Block Food Frequency Questionnaire. A physical activity questionnaire was also completed by the subjects to estimate energy expenditure. Paired t-tests revealed that there were no significant differences between baseline and month 12 physical characteristics except for percent fat which increased from 31.99 ± 0.60% to 32.44 ± 0.61% (p=.009). At month 12, bone mineral density decreased significantly at the femoral neck (-0.97 ± 0.31%) and total hip (-0.55 ± 0.24%). The average calcium, protein and calcium to protein ratio intake for the group was 1129.88 ± 46.22mg/day, 57.88 ± 1.93g/day and 20.10 ± 0.71m/g, respectively. Partial correlation analyses showed no significant relationships between change in bone mineral density and average intakes for calcium, protein, or the calcium to protein ratio. After adjusting for hormone replacement status, lean body mass and months post menopause, analysis of covariance revealed that there were no significant differences between groups when intakes of calcium, protein and the calcium to protein ratio were separated into "above recommended" and "below recommended" categories (above or below 1000/1500mg/day, 50g/day, 20:1 mg/g/day, respectively). Our results suggest that consuming adequate amounts of calcium and protein does not appear to significantly slow bone loss after 12 months in early postmenopausal women

The Effectiveness of Mindfulness Training on the Experience of Music Performance Anxiety in Young Adult Musicians. A Preliminary Investigation

Research has shown that music performance anxiety (mpa) is experienced by individuals of all ages and skill levels. Due to the need for effective management of performance anxiety in musicians, researchers have begun to investigate the viability of mindfulness, which has been proven as an effective treatment in populations with generalized anxiety. This study assessed the effects of a two-week mindfulness intervention on musicians before and after a performance, using the State component of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (stai) and the Revised Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory (kmpai-r). Results from this study suggest that mindfulness has a significantly positive effect on state anxiety in music performance, and that a two-week mindfulness training intervention model should be investigated further as a potential intervention to reduce mpa.La recherche a montré que l’anxiété liée aux performances musicales (apm) est ressentie par des individus de tous les groupes d’âge et de tous les niveaux de compétence. En raison de la nécessité d’une gestion efficace de l’anxiété de performance chez les musicien·ne·s, les chercheur·euse·s ont commencé à étudier la viabilité de la pleine conscience. Cette approche s’est avérée être un traitement efficace chez les populations souffrant d’anxiété généralisée. Notre étude a évalué les effets d’une intervention de pleine conscience de deux semaines sur des musicien·ne·s, avant et après une performance, en utilisant les mesures du State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (stai) et le Revised Kenny Music Performance Anxiety Inventory (kmpai-r). Les résultats de cette étude suggèrent que la pleine conscience a un effet positif significatif sur l’anxiété de la performance musicale, et qu’un modèle d’intervention de formation à la pleine conscience de deux semaines devrait être étudié plus avant comme une intervention potentielle pour réduire l’amp

TwitchCLIP: A Train of Four Monitoring Device

Before procedures on organs between the head and abdomen are conducted, subjects are administered Neuromuscular Blocking Agents (NMBAs) to induce muscle paralysis. Accurate assessment of the depth of neuromuscular block is important to prevent complications caused by improper administration of NMBAs. The Train of Four Method (TOF) is used to complete this assessment; however, current objective measuring devices are limited. The goal of this project was to re-design and re-develop a pre-existing MQP device that utilizes mechanomyography, the gold standard technology for determining Train of Four values. This resulted in the development of the ‘TwitchCLIP’ that was tested alongside a competing device