A blended learning approach in higher education: A case study from surveying education

The development of a blended learning approach to enhance surveying education is discussed in this paper. The need for such learning strategy is first investigated based on a major review of the Surveying course including analysis of its content, benchmarking with key national/international universities, and various surveys to key stake holders and recent graduates. Appropriate blended learning methods and tools that couple learning theoretical principles and developing technical skills are discussed including using learning management systems, flip teaching, collaborative learning, simulation based e-learning, peer- and self-assessment and e-portfolios. Two blended learning tools that have been developed for surveying units are presented as examples. The first is an online interactive virtual simulation tool for levelling, one of the key basic tasks in surveying. The second is an e-assessment digital marking, moderation and feedback module. The e-learning and e-assessment tools have been incorporated for three years into several surveying units at Curtin University. Surveys of students showed that the majority of students found the interactive simulation tool useful and contributes to improving their understanding of the computations. Students also found the digital marking rubric helpful in assisting their understanding of practical task requirements, in improving their performance, and in helping them to focus on the objectives of each activity. The paper concludes with a discussion on developing generic skills through authentic learning in surveying education

Blended learning in higher education: Current and future challenges in surveying education

The development of a blended learning approach to enhance surveying education is discussed. The need for such learning strategy is first investigated based on a major review of the Surveying course including analysis of its content, benchmarking with key national/international universities, and surveys to key stakeholders. Appropriate blended learning methods and tools that couple learning theoretical principles and developing technical skills are discussed including using learning management systems, flip teaching, collaborative learning, simulation based e-learning, and peer-assessment. Two blended-learning tools that have been developed for surveying units are presented as examples. The first is an online interactive virtual simulation tool for levelling, one of the key tasks in surveying. The second is an e-assessment digital marking, moderation and feedback module. Surveys of students showed that they found the interactive simulation tool contributes to improving their understanding of required tasks. Students also found that the developed e-assessment tool helpful in improving their performance and in helping them to focus on the objectives of each activity. In addition, the use of peer e-assessment to improve student learning and as a diagnostic tool for tutors is demonstrated. The paper concludes with a discussion on developing generic skills through authentic learning in surveying education

The First Model-Based Geostatistical Map of Anaemia

Abdisalan Noor discusses new research in <i>PLoS Medicine<I> that used model-based geostatistics to investigate the risks of anemia among preschool-aged children in West Africa that were attributable to malnutrition, malaria, and helminth infections

Creatine transporter (SLC6A8) knockout mice display an increased capacity for in vitro creatine biosynthesis in skeletal muscle.

The present study aimed to investigate whether skeletal muscle from whole body creatine transporter (CrT; SLC6A8) knockout mice (CrT(-/y)) actually contained creatine (Cr) and if so, whether this Cr could result from an up regulation of muscle Cr biosynthesis. Gastrocnemius muscle from CrT(-/y) and wild type (CrT(+/y)) mice were analyzed for ATP, Cr, Cr phosphate (CrP), and total Cr (TCr) content. Muscle protein and gene expression of the enzymes responsible for Cr biosynthesis L-arginine:glycine amidotransferase (AGAT) and guanidinoacetate methyltransferase (GAMT) were also determined as were the rates of in vitro Cr biosynthesis. CrT(-/y) mice muscle contained measurable (22.3 &plusmn; 4.3 mmol.kg(-1) dry mass), but markedly reduced (P &lt; 0.05) TCr levels compared with CrT(+/y) mice (125.0 &plusmn; 3.3 mmol.kg(-1) dry mass). AGAT gene and protein expression were higher (~3 fold; P &lt; 0.05) in CrT(-/y) mice muscle, however GAMT gene and protein expression remained unchanged. The in vitro rate of Cr biosynthesis was elevated 1.5 fold (P &lt; 0.05) in CrT(-/y) mice muscle. These data clearly demonstrate that in the absence of CrT protein, skeletal muscle has reduced, but not absent, levels of Cr. This presence of Cr may be at least partly due to an up regulation of muscle Cr biosynthesis as evidenced by an increased AGAT protein expression and in vitro Cr biosynthesis rates in CrT(-/y) mice. Of note, the up regulation of Cr biosynthesis in CrT(-/y) mice muscle was unable to fully restore Cr levels to that found in wild type muscle

Reproducibility of Facial Soft Tissue Thickness Measurements Using Cone-Beam CT Images According to the Measurement Methods

The purpose of this study was to establish the reproducibility of facial soft tissue (ST) thickness measurements by comparing three different measurement methods applied at 32 landmarks on three-dimensional cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images. Two observers carried out the measurements of facial ST thickness of 20 adult subjects using CBCT scan data, and inter- and intra-observer reproducibilities were evaluated. The measurement method of “perpendicular to bone” resulted in high inter- and intra-observer reproducibility at all 32 landmarks. In contrast, the “perpendicular to skin” method and “direct” method, which measures a distance between one point on bone and the other point on skin, presented low reproducibility. The results indicate that reproducibility could be increased by identifying the landmarks on hard tissue images, rather than on ST images, and the landmark description used in this study can be used in the establishment of reliable tissue depth data using CBCT images

Ozone depletion events observed in the high latitude surface layer during the TOPSE aircraft program

During the Tropospheric Ozone Production about the Spring Equinox (TOPSE) aircraft program, ozone depletion events (ODEs) in the high latitude surface layer were investigated using lidar and in situ instruments. Flight legs of 100 km or longer distance were flown 32 times at 30 m altitude over a variety of regions north of 58° between early February and late May 2000. ODEs were found on each flight over the Arctic Ocean but their occurrence was rare at more southern latitudes. However, large area events with depletion to over 2 km altitude in one case were found as far south as Baffin Bay and Hudson Bay and as late as 22 May. There is good evidence that these more southern events did not form in situ but were the result of export of ozone‐depleted air from the surface layer of the Arctic Ocean. Surprisingly, relatively intact transport of ODEs occurred over distances of 900–2000 km and in some cases over rough terrain. Accumulation of constituents in the frozen surface over the dark winter period cannot be a strong prerequisite of ozone depletion since latitudes south of the Arctic Ocean would also experience a long dark period. Some process unique to the Arctic Ocean surface or its coastal regions remains unidentified for the release of ozone‐depleting halogens. There was no correspondence between coarse surface features such as solid ice/snow, open leads, or polynyas with the occurrence of or intensity of ozone depletion over the Arctic or subarctic regions. Depletion events also occurred in the absence of long‐range transport of relatively fresh “pollution” within the high latitude surface layer, at least in spring 2000. Direct measurements of halogen radicals were not made. However, the flights do provide detailed information on the vertical structure of the surface layer and, during the constant 30 m altitude legs, measurements of a variety of constituents including hydroxyl and peroxy radicals. A summary of the behavior of these constituents is made. The measurements were consistent with a source of formaldehyde from the snow/ice surface. Median NOx in the surface layer was 15 pptv or less, suggesting that surface emissions were substantially converted to reservoir constituents by 30 m altitude and that ozone production rates were small (0.15–1.5 ppbv/d) at this altitude. Peroxyacetylnitrate (PAN) was by far the major constituent of NOy in the surface layer independent of the ozone mixing ratio

Worldwide Incidence of Malaria in 2009: Estimates, Time Trends, and a Critique of Methods

Richard Cibulskis and colleagues present estimates of the worldwide incidence of malaria in 2009, together with a critique of different estimation methods, including those based on risk maps constructed from surveys of parasite prevalence, and those based on routine case reports compiled by health ministries

Malaria-related mortality based on verbal autopsy in an area of low endemicity in a predominantly rural population in Ethiopia

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Although malaria is one of the most important causes of death in Ethiopia, measuring the magnitude of malaria-attributed deaths at community level poses a considerable difficulty. Nevertheless, despite its low sensitivity and specificity, verbal autopsy (VA) has been the most important technique to determine malaria-specific cause of death for community-based studies. The present study was undertaken to assess the magnitude of malaria mortality in a predominantly rural population of Ethiopia using VA technique at Butajira Rural Health Programme (BRHP) Demographic Surveillance Site (DSS).</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A verbal autopsy was carried out for a year from August 2003 to July 2004 for all deaths identified at BRPH-DSS. Two trained physicians independently reviewed each VA questionnaire and indicated the most likely causes of death. Finally, all malaria related deaths were identified and used for analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A verbal autopsy study was successfully conducted in 325 deaths, of which 42 (13%) were attributed to malaria. The majority of malaria deaths (47.6%) were from the rural lowlands compared to those that occurred in the rural highlands (31%) and urban (21.4%) areas. The proportional mortality attributable to malaria was not statistically significant among the specific age groups and ecological zones. Mortality from malaria was reckoned to be seasonal; 57% occurred during a three-month period at the end of the rainy season between September and November. About 71% of the deceased received some form of treatment before death, while 12 (28.6%) of those who died neither sought care from a traditional healer nor were taken to a conventional health facility before death. Of those who sought treatment, 53.3% were first taken to a private clinic, 40% sought care from public health facilities, and the remaining two (6.7%) received traditional medicine. Only 11.9% of the total malaria-related deaths received some sort of treatment within 24h after the onset of illness.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The results of this study suggest that malaria plays a considerable role as a cause of death in the study area. Further data on malaria mortality with a relatively large sample size for at least two years will be needed to substantially describe the burden of malaria mortality in the study area.</p