The 2020+ Project: Using WordPress to Organize, Evaluate, & Discuss the College of the Future

The provost of Providence College asked the Library+Commons to compile scholarly materials on the future of higher education in order for the Academic Affairs Committee to prepare for the college of 2020. The committee needed an easily accessible, annotated bibliography that would allow for commenting and more. The research and education librarians focused on topics like teaching and learning, accountability, and student and faculty characteristics. The research end was challenging, and the librarians continue to explore avenues to find appropriate resources online. They experimented with many platforms before choosing WordPress as the best open-source vehicle to organize and present the multimodal scholarship

Polyfunctional T-Cell Responses Are Disrupted by the Ovarian Cancer Ascites Environment and Only Partially Restored by Clinically Relevant Cytokines

Host T-cell responses are associated with favorable outcomes in epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), but it remains unclear how best to promote these responses in patients. Toward this goal, we evaluated a panel of clinically relevant cytokines for the ability to enhance multiple T-cell effector functions (polyfunctionality) in the native tumor environment.Experiments were performed with resident CD8+ and CD4+ T cells in bulk ascites cell preparations from high-grade serous EOC patients. T cells were stimulated with α-CD3 in the presence of 100% autologous ascites fluid with or without exogenous IL-2, IL-12, IL-18 or IL-21, alone or in combination. T-cell proliferation (Ki-67) and function (IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-2, CCL4, and CD107a expression) were assessed by multi-parameter flow cytometry. In parallel, 27 cytokines were measured in culture supernatants. While ascites fluid had variable effects on CD8+ and CD4+ T-cell proliferation, it inhibited T-cell function in most patient samples, with CD107a, IFN-γ, and CCL4 showing the greatest inhibition. This was accompanied by reduced levels of IL-1β, IL-1ra, IL-9, IL-17, G-CSF, GM-CSF, Mip-1α, PDGF-bb, and bFGF in culture supernatants. T-cell proliferation was enhanced by exogenous IL-2, but other T-cell functions were largely unaffected by single cytokines. The combination of IL-2 with cytokines engaging complementary signaling pathways, in particular IL-12 and IL-18, enhanced expression of IFN-γ, TNF-α, and CCL4 in all patient samples by promoting polyfunctional T-cell responses. Despite this, other functional parameters generally remained inhibited.The EOC ascites environment disrupts multiple T-cell functions, and exogenous cytokines engaging diverse signaling pathways only partially reverse these effects. Our results may explain the limited efficacy of cytokine therapies for EOC to date. Full restoration of T-cell function will require activation of signaling pathways beyond those engaged by IL-2, IL-12, IL-18, and IL-21

Streaming Video Resources for Teaching, Learning, and Research

In less than 10 years the availability of digitally converted or born digital video, has grown exponentially. Libraries and librarians are constantly navigating, and helping their patrons navigate, this shift from analog to digital. For access to video, our libraries are challenged by an individual consumer marketplace, where institutional access is often limited and expensive. Due to limitations of streaming content, licensing and copyright issues for use in learning management systems and public performance screenings, and time and budgetary issues surrounding the conversion of analog to digital formats, public and educational institutions are still very reliant on physical formats. Patron demand is changing and we have to look elsewhere than our collections to find the online video resources they need. For individuals, online and streaming video has saturated the consumer market for popular television shows, movies, but the market is very fragmented and competitive. This report will cover many resources available for free and fee with a focus on online resources available for library instruction, research education and assistance, and curriculum use. In addition to providing a substantial list of resources, I will also cover tips and tricks to navigating the Internet for visual resources. The scope of this report will be mostly on consumption; the search, viewing, sharing, and embedment of using online video in teaching, learning, and research activities. The report will be very limited on the creation of online video, copyright and licensing issues, but some suggested best practices and resources will be included in the report to lead readers to the appropriate experts

The Expanding Role of Online Video in Teaching, Learning, and Research.

Chapter 1 of Library Technology Reports (vol. 50, no. 2), “Streaming Video Resources for Teaching, Learning, and Research,” will explain who is using online video and why it is important for information professionals to know how to find and use it in library instruction and research education. Recent surveys and research about online video, as well as some literature on the literacies surrounding video, will be covered. The chapter also includes some tips and tricks for viewing online video and best practices for using popular search engines in the search for online video

Navigating Multimedia – Streaming Video Beyond YouTube: Pop Culture Edition

The Internet has quickly become a resource for multimedia and video content, especially in popular culture research. Search engines have tools to help mine for visual content, but finding videos content creates different challenges in comparison to text. This presentation will provide tips on searching for multimedia content, as well as, a showcase of some innovative video collections, initiatives, and resources important to popular culture research