Multi-mode question pretesting: Using traditional cognitive interviews and online testing as complementary methods

Questionnaire development, evaluation, and pretesting research is critical for ensuring that survey questions, materials, and data collection procedures produce the highest quality data possible. Interviewer-administered cognitive interviews is a common pretesting method used to collect rich, qualitative data. As technology has advanced, researchers can conduct similar research online in self-administered modes (Behr 2016), allowing for pretesting with larger samples. Each approach has strengths and limitations that researchers can leverage to address their pretesting goals. This research presents a multi-study, iterative project using traditional and online pretesting to evaluate new confidentiality language. Study 1 used traditional cognitive interviews to collect information on respondents’ qualitative reactions to, and comprehension of, the new language, but was limited by a small sample of prior survey respondents. Study 2 used online testing to help verify the previous findings with a larger sample, but was limited to hypothetical respondent behaviour. Study 3 used online testing over two waves of data collection to evaluate actual behaviour over time and expanded on the previous two studies by using an experimental design. We discuss the utility of using multiple pretesting methods to complement each other, providing research findings that would not be possible when using one alone

Optimal cerebral perfusion pressure in patients with intracerebral hemorrhage: an observational case series

Introduction: Current guidelines for spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) recommend maintaining cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) between 50 and 70 mmHg, depending on the state of autoregulation. We continuously assessed dynamic cerebral autoregulation and the possibility of determination of an optimal CPP (CPPopt) in ICH patients. Associations between autoregulation, CPPopt and functional outcome were explored. Methods: Intracranial pressure (ICP), mean arterial pressure (MAP) and CPP were continuously recorded in 55 patients, with 38 patients included in the analysis. The pressure reactivity index (PRx) was calculated as moving correlation between MAP and ICP. CPPopt was defined as the CPP associated with the lowest PRx values. CPPopt was calculated using hourly updated of 4 hour windows. The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was assessed at 3 months and associations between PRx, CPPopt and outcomes were explored using Pearson correlation and Fisher’s exact test. Multivariate stepwise logistic regression models were calculated including standard outcome predictors along with percentage of time with PRx >0.2 and percentage of time within the CPPopt range. Results: An overall PRx indicating impairment of pressure reactivity was found in 47% of patients (n = 18). The mean PRx and the time spent with a PRx > 0.2 significantly correlated with mRS at 3 months (r = 0.50, P = 0.002; r = 0.46, P = 0.004). CPPopt was calculable during 57% of the monitoring time. The median CPP was 78 mmHg, the median CPPopt 83 mmHg. Mortality was lowest in the group of patients with a CPP close to their CPPopt. However, for none of the CPPopt variables a significant association to outcome was found. The percentage of time with impaired autoregulation and hemorrhage volume were independent predictors for acceptable outcome (mRS 1 to 4) at three months. Conclusions: Failure of pressure reactivity seems common following severe ICH and is associated with unfavorable outcome. Real-time assessment of CPPopt is feasible in ICH and might provide a tool for an autoregulation-oriented CPP management. A larger trial is needed to explore if a CPPopt management results in better functional outcomes

Wandering With/In the University of Alberta: Teaching Subjects & Place-based Truth & Reconciliation Education

This manuscript unfolds in the context of a Faculty of Education course that was designed in response to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s call to post-secondary institutions to identify and meet teacher-training needs relating to the history and legacy of Canada’s Indian residential school system. The course instructor (Madden) begins by tracing how she is theorizing truth and reconciliation education through engagement with literature produced by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and those who respond to their efforts. The pedagogical activity Wandering With/In the University of Alberta animates how she attempted to mobilize these emerging understandings through course design. We then introduce the collective processes we carried out as co-authors (i.e., course instructor and three graduate students who completed the course): creating, analyzing, and representing data, as well as generating the knowledge claims offered throughout. Next, data fragments that weave photographs of and narrative writing about campus sites anchor exploration of three central themes: wandering in relation to (a) evolving understandings of self, (b) a situated and significant historical moment (i.e., Canada 150), and (c) the (imagined) classroom as a site of reconciliation. We conclude with a discussion that explores the relationship between Faculty of Education coursework, identity, and place-based pedagogies for truth and reconciliation education. Keywords: truth and reconciliation education, higher education, decolonizing, place-based education, teacher identity Cette étude s’est déroulée dans le contexte d’un cours offert par la Faculty of Education et développé en réponse à l’appel de la Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada aux établissements postsecondaires pour qu’ils identifient les besoins en formation des enseignants quant à l’histoire et les séquelles du système des pensionnats indiens au Canada et qu’ils répondent à ces besoins. La chargée de cours (Madden) débute en expliquant ses démarches pour théoriser l’éducation de vérité et réconciliation en se penchant sur la littérature produite par la Commission de vérité et réconciliation du Canada et sur la réaction des gens aux efforts de la commission. L’activité pédagogique Wandering With/In the University of Alberta est une animation de ses efforts pour mobiliser ces nouvelles connaissances par la conception de son cours. Ensuite, nous présentons les processus collectifs que nous avons entrepris comme co-auteurs (c’est-à-dire, la chargée de cours et les trois étudiants aux études supérieures ayant complété le cours): la création, l’analyse et la représentation des données, ainsi que l’élaboration des déclarations présentées dans l’ensemble du cours. Par la suite, des fragments de données tissent des photos et des récits narratifs portant sur des sites sur le campus et offrent des balises pour l’exploration de trois thèmes centraux: errer par rapport à: (a) une compréhension en évolution de soi-même, (b) un moment historique significatif (par ex., Canada 150) et (c) la salle de classe (imaginée) comme site de réconciliation. Une discussion portant sur le rapport entre les cours de la Faculty of Education, l’identité et les pédagogies reposant axées les lieux au service de l’éducation de vérité et réconciliation vient terminer l’article. Mots clés: éducation de vérité et réconciliation, études supérieures, décolonisation, identité des enseignant

Illustrations and supporting texts for sound standing waves of air columns in pipes in introductory physics textbooks

In our pilot studies, we found that many introductory physics textbook illustrations with supporting text for sound standing waves of air columns in open-open, open-closed, and closed-closed pipes inhibit student understanding of sound standing wave phenomena due to student misunderstanding of how air molecules move within these pipes. Based on the construct of meaningful learning from cognitive psychology and semiotics, a quasiexperimental study was conducted to investigate the comparative effectiveness of two alternative approaches to student understanding: a traditional textbook illustration approach versus a newly designed air molecule motion illustration approach. Thirty volunteer students from introductory physics classes were randomly assigned to two groups of 15 each. Both groups were administered a presurvey. Then, group A read the air molecule motion illustration handout, and group B read a traditional textbook illustration handout; both groups were administered postsurveys. Subsequently, the procedure was reversed: group B read the air molecule motion illustration handout and group A read the traditional textbook illustration handout. This was followed by a second postsurvey along with an exit research questionnaire. The study found that the majority of students experienced meaningful learning and stated that they understood sound standing wave phenomena significantly better using the air molecule motion illustration approach. This finding provides a method for physics education researchers to design illustrations for abstract sound standing wave concepts, for publishers to improve their illustrations with supporting text, and for instructors to facilitate deeper learning in their students on sound standing waves

Comparison of Routable Control System Security Approaches

This document is an supplement to the 'Secure and Efficient Routable Control Systems.' It addressed security in routable control system communication. The control system environment that monitors and manages the power grid historically has utilized serial communication mechanisms. Leased-line serial communication environments operating at 1200 to 9600 baud rates are common. However, recent trends show that communication media such as fiber, optical carrier 3 (OC-3) speeds, mesh-based high-speed wireless, and the Internet are becoming the media of choice. In addition, a dichotomy has developed between the electrical transmission and distribution environments, with more modern communication infrastructures deployed by transmission utilities. The preceding diagram represents a typical control system. The Communication Links cloud supports all of the communication mechanisms a utility might deploy between the control center and devices in the field. Current methodologies used for security implementations are primarily led by single vendors or standards bodies. However, these entities tend to focus on individual protocols. The result is an environment that contains a mixture of security solutions that may only address some communication protocols at an increasing operational burden for the utility. A single approach is needed that meets operational requirements, is simple to operate, and provides the necessary level of security for all control system communication. The solution should be application independent (e.g., Distributed Network Protocol/Internet Protocol [DNP/IP], International Electrotechnical Commission [IEC] C37.118, Object Linking and Embedding for Process Control [OPC], etc.) and focus on the transport layer. In an ideal setting, a well-designed suite of standards for control system communication will be used for vendor implementation and compliance testing. An expected outcome of this effort is an international standard

Fractionation profiling: a fast and versatile approach for mapping vesicle proteomes and protein-protein interactions.

We developed "fractionation profiling," a method for rapid proteomic analysis of membrane vesicles and protein particles. The approach combines quantitative proteomics with subcellular fractionation to generate signature protein abundance distribution profiles. Functionally associated groups of proteins are revealed through cluster analysis. To validate the method, we first profiled >3500 proteins from HeLa cells and identified known clathrin-coated vesicle proteins with >90% accuracy. We then profiled >2400 proteins from Drosophila S2 cells, and we report the first comprehensive insect clathrin-coated vesicle proteome. Of importance, the cluster analysis extends to all profiled proteins and thus identifies a diverse range of known and novel cytosolic and membrane-associated protein complexes. We show that it also allows the detailed compositional characterization of complexes, including the delineation of subcomplexes and subunit stoichiometry. Our predictions are presented in an interactive database. Fractionation profiling is a universal method for defining the clathrin-coated vesicle proteome and may be adapted for the analysis of other types of vesicles and particles. In addition, it provides a versatile tool for the rapid generation of large-scale protein interaction maps

Estimación de la corrosión atmosférica mediante la técnica de “alambre sobre tornillo” en el noreste de la ciudad de Barranquilla

Currently in Colombia, there are few investigations that allow determining the atmospheric corrosion rates, the problems generated by corrosion are increasingly common since the use of metallic structures is more and more daily in engineering projects. The objective of this research is to classify the atmospheric corrosion rates of the Northeast area of the city of Barranquilla, likewise, to study the different meteorological factors that affect the corrosion process; For this, three “wires on screws” devices (PVC-Al, Fe-Al, Cu-Al) were installed within the facilities of the Universidad de la Costa. The results obtained indicated that despite the incidence of the pollutants produced by the factories near Via 40 and the salinity from the Caribbean Sea, the industrial and marine atmospheric corrosion indices showed low results, whose meaning would show that the area of study is habitable and the classification for these indices is negligible or moderate. Allowing to conclude that, despite obtaining low atmospheric classifications, the accumulation of pollutants that generate the corrosion process are notorious in the long term, so it is advisable to use protection mechanisms such as materials or coatings that make the corrosion processes minimal and the useful life of certain metallic materials such as steel is extended whose useful life when unprotected can be an average of two years before their function is affected.Actualmente en Colombia, son pocas las investigaciones que permiten determinar los índices de corrosión atmosférica, los problemas generados por la corrosión son cada vez más habituales pues el uso de estructuras metálicas es cada vez más cotidiano en los proyectos de ingeniería. El objetivo de esta investigación es clasificar los índices de corrosión atmosférica de la zona Nor-este de la ciudad de Barranquilla, así mismo, estudiar los diferentes factores meteorológicos que inciden en el proceso de corrosión; para ello se instalaron tres dispositivos de “alambres sobre tornillos” (PVC-Al, Fe-Al, Cu-Al) dentro de las instalaciones de la Universidad de la Costa. Los resultados obtenidos indicaron que a pesar de haber incidencia de los contaminantes producidos por las fábricas cercanas a la vía 40 y la salinidad proveniente del Mar Caribe, los índices de corrosión atmosférica industrial y marina, arrojaron resultados bajos, cuyo significado demostraría que la zona de estudio es habitable y la clasificación para dichos índices es despreciable o moderada. Permitiendo concluir que, a pesar de obtener clasificaciones atmosféricas bajas, la acumulación de contaminantes que generan el proceso de corrosión son notorios a largo plazo, por lo que es recomendable utilizar mecanismos de protección como materiales o recubrimientos que hagan que los procesos de corrosión sean mínimos y se extienda la vida útil de ciertos materiales metálicos como el acero, cuya vida útil al estar desprotegido puede ser en promedio de dos años antes de que se afecte su funcionalidad