Blended e-learning skeleton of conversation: improving formative assessment in undergraduate dissertation supervision

The supervision of undergraduate student dissertations is an area in need of research. Although some studies have already addressed this, these are primarily based on academic staff responses. This study contributes to knowledge by gathering the responses of students and focusing on formative electronic assessment. Data was collected using a student focus group and student questionnaire. The findings suggest that good supervisor-student communication is crucial to the supervision process and a number of students felt unhappy with this aspect. It is suggested that to improve the undergraduate student dissertation experience, a combination of face-to-face and electronic formative assessment is used. In addition, the Blended E-learning Skeleton of Conversation model provides a sound theoretical framework that could guide supervisors and students in the supervision process. This model is advocated for use in dissertation module design and in supervisor development

Time for Deliberation, not Decision, on the Shape of a New United Ireland : Evidence from the ARINS Survey Focus Groups

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Program ACTIVE: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy to Treat Depression in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes in Rural Appalachia

High rates of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and depression exist in rural Appalachia with limited access to psychotherapeutic treatment. No manualized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) treatment materials exist that are culturally tailored for individuals in this region with T2DM. We describe the development of the Program ACTIVE CBT intervention for use with adults with T2DM and depression by mental health providers in rural Appalachia. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to test the feasibility and acceptability of Program ACTIVE. Intervention materials were rated at the 6th-7th grade reading level. Key informant interviews evaluated materials as culturally sensitive and accessible. Participants indicated high levels of satisfaction with therapy (94%), support from their therapist (86%), and usefulness of therapy and depression improvement (80.3%). Program ACTIVE was found to be a feasible and acceptable culturally tailored manualized CBT treatment for adults with T2DM and depression living in rural Appalachia. Implementation of these materials on a regional scale needs to be assessed

Astrometric Discovery of GJ 164B

We discovered a low-mass companion to the M-dwarf GJ 164 with the CCD-based imaging system of the Stellar Planet Survey (STEPS) astrometric program. The existence of GJ 164B was confirmed with Hubble Space Telescope NICMOS imaging observations. A high-dispersion spectral observation in V sets a lower limit of delta m> 2.2 mag between the two components of the system. Based upon our parallax value of 0.082 +/- 0.008, we derive the following orbital parameters: P = 2.04 +/- 0.03 y, a = 1.03 +/- 0.03 AU, and Mtotal = 0.265 +/- 0.020 MSun. The component masses are MA = 0.170 +/- 0.015 MSun and MB = 0.095 +/- 0.015 MSun. Based on its mass, colors, and spectral properties, GJ 164B has spectral type M6-8 V.Comment: pdf file 14 pages with 6 fig

Intelligent assistance in scientific data preparation

Scientific data preparation is the process of extracting usable scientific data from raw instrument data. This task involves noise detection (and subsequent noise classification and flagging or removal), extracting data from compressed forms, and construction of derivative or aggregate data (e.g. spectral densities or running averages). A software system called PIPE provides intelligent assistance to users developing scientific data preparation plans using a programming language called Master Plumber. PIPE provides this assistance capability by using a process description to create a dependency model of the scientific data preparation plan. This dependency model can then be used to verify syntactic and semantic constraints on processing steps to perform limited plan validation. PIPE also provides capabilities for using this model to assist in debugging faulty data preparation plans. In this case, the process model is used to focus the developer's attention upon those processing steps and data elements that were used in computing the faulty output values. Finally, the dependency model of a plan can be used to perform plan optimization and run time estimation. These capabilities allow scientists to spend less time developing data preparation procedures and more time on scientific analysis tasks

HEMI-SYNC® AND RADIATION ONCOLOGY: A PILOT STUDY

This pilot study is reprinted from the Monroe Institute Hemi-Sync Journal, Vol. XXVI, Nos. 3 & 4, Summer/Fall 2008 Hemi-Sync, a binaural-beat brain-wave entrainment technology and consciousness-modulating tool developed by Robert Monroe and his associates, can be combined with guided meditation to produce a useful tool for behavioral medicine: the field of treating medical problems with behavioral modalities.The authors applied the technology to the problem of side effects of radiation treatment in cancer patients. Patients filled out the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) daily in the course of listening to MIND FOOD Energy Walk. At the end of the study, participants also completed a patient satisfaction questionnaire, which included questions about pain. Only two of the sixteen patients who returned the BFI questionnaire found the tape ineffective for pain and fatigue.The data strongly support the binaural-beat exercise's effectiveness for relieving fatigue associated with radiation treatments. Though this was an open rather than a placebo-controlled study, the effect size is far beyond what one would expect from a placebo effect. This pilot study gives strong encouragement for using the Hemi-Sync technology as an adjunct to radiation oncology. Further investigation with a larger patient population is recommended

HEMI-SYNC® AND RADIATION ONCOLOGY: A PILOT STUDY

This pilot study is reprinted from the Monroe Institute Hemi-Sync Journal, Vol. XXVI, Nos. 3 & 4, Summer/Fall 2008 Hemi-Sync, a binaural-beat brain-wave entrainment technology and consciousness-modulating tool developed by Robert Monroe and his associates, can be combined with guided meditation to produce a useful tool for behavioral medicine: the field of treating medical problems with behavioral modalities.The authors applied the technology to the problem of side effects of radiation treatment in cancer patients. Patients filled out the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) daily in the course of listening to MIND FOOD Energy Walk. At the end of the study, participants also completed a patient satisfaction questionnaire, which included questions about pain. Only two of the sixteen patients who returned the BFI questionnaire found the tape ineffective for pain and fatigue.The data strongly support the binaural-beat exercise's effectiveness for relieving fatigue associated with radiation treatments. Though this was an open rather than a placebo-controlled study, the effect size is far beyond what one would expect from a placebo effect. This pilot study gives strong encouragement for using the Hemi-Sync technology as an adjunct to radiation oncology. Further investigation with a larger patient population is recommended

Returns to Physician Human Capital: Analyzing Patients Randomized to Physician Teams

Patient sorting can confound estimates of the returns to physician human capital. This paper compares nearly 30,000 patients who were randomly assigned to clinical teams from one of two academic institutions. One institution is among the top medical schools in the country, while the other institution is ranked lower in the quality distribution. Patients treated by the two teams have identical observable characteristics and have access to a single set of facilities and ancillary staff. Those treated by physicians from the higher-ranked institution have 10-25% shorter and less expensive stays than patients assigned to the lower-ranked institution. Health outcomes are not related to the physician team assignment, and the estimates are precise. Procedure differences across the teams are consistent with the ability of physicians in the lower-ranked institution to substitute time and diagnostic tests for the faster judgments of physicians from the top-ranked institution.