Merits of Creating a Revised CTE National Research Agenda for 2020

This article promotes the idea that clearly focused scholarly inquiry needs direction developed through a collaborative and informative process. The authors propose that the National CTE Research Agenda adopted in 2008 should be revised and updated to reflect the contemporary issues and policies of the career and technical education profession. The aim of this discussion is to propose a systematic research approach with the potential to influence policy for career and technical education. The challenge for our profession will be to create a united and informed agenda that will transform policy, promote innovation in scholarly endeavors, and foster improved outcomes for all CTE stakeholders

Cytochrome P450 Ontogeny and Drug Reactions in Children

From the Washington University Office of Undergraduate Research Digest (WUURD), Vol. 13, 05-01-2018. Published by the Office of Undergraduate Research. Joy Zalis Kiefer, Director of Undergraduate Research and Associate Dean in the College of Arts & Sciences; Lindsey Paunovich, Editor; Helen Human, Programs Manager and Assistant Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences Mentor(s): S. Joshua Swamidas

SUPERMAN, a regulator of floral homeotic genes in Arabidopsis

We describe a locus, SUPERMAN, mutations in which result in extra stamens developing at the expense of the central carpels in the Arabidopsis thaliana flower. The development of superman flowers, from initial primordium to mature flower, is described by scanning electron microscopy. The development of doubly and triply mutant strains, constructed with superman alleles and previously identified homeotic mutations that cause alterations in floral organ identity, is also described. Essentially additive phenotypes are observed in superman agamous and superman apetala2 double mutants. The epistatic relationships observed between either apetala3 or pistillata and superman alleles suggest that the SUPERMAN gene product could be a regulator of these floral homeotic genes. To test this, the expression patterns of AGAMOUS and APETALA3 were examined in superman flowers. In wild-type flowers, APETALA3 expression is restricted to the second and third whorls where it is required for the specification of petals and stamens. In contrast, in superman flowers, APETALA3 expression expands to include most of the cells that would normally constitute the fourth whorl. This ectopic APETALA3 expression is proposed to be one of the causes of the development of the extra stamens in superman flowers. The spatial pattern of AGAMOUS expression remains unaltered in superman flowers as compared to wild-type flowers. Taken together these data indicate that one of the functions of the wild-type SUPERMAN gene product is to negatively regulate APETALA3 in the fourth whorl of the flower. In addition, superman mutants exhibit a loss of determinacy of the floral meristem, an effect that appears to be mediated by the APETALA3 and PISTILLATA gene products

Integrating Psychodynamic, Cognitive, and Interpersonal Therapies: A Biophysical Role Theory

A biopsychosocial role theory has been developed to integrate the mam findings of psychodynamic, cognitive, and interpersonal therapies. To function in a society, you must achieve a balance between your self-expectations and your performances, and your expectations of others and their performances. These expectations of self and others fall roughly into 16 biopsychosocial areas, or life vectors Imbalance between expectations and performance creates stress. When experiencing stress, you must either modify and negotiate expectations and performances with others, or through defense mechanisms and patterns of reaction, further compound your problems. Interview schedules structured according to this theory have been used to interview patients, parents, and spouses. Social summaries allow the respondents to identify their problems and provide them with a common structure, methodology, and language to resolve their differences of opinion, restructure their roles, and achieve their personal and interpersonal goals

Readership Survey of the FFA New Horizons Magazine

The study surveyed readers of the FFA New Horizons magazine to determine reader opinions about magazine usefulness

Going the Distance: Examining the Impact of a Long-Term International Fellowship

AgriCorps, an American organization, created a fellowship program to connect agricultural professionals to school-based agricultural education in developing countries. Previous scholars researched the impacts of international experiences on learners, usually through the lens of short-term study abroad. This study seeks to examine the impact of long-term international fellowship experiences in education and provide recommendations for future like-programs by analyzing the experiences of previous AgriCorps fellows. Fellows lived and taught school-based agricultural education in a community in Ghana or Liberia. Eighteen previous AgriCorps fellows participated in a semi-structured interview through a virtual meeting platform. The interviews were used to collect data on fellows’ experiences and perceptions. Through our analysis, 12 themes and 64 sub themes emerged. The initial themes include 1) growth after fellowship, 2) thoughts on AgriCorps post experience, 3) challenges, 4) AgriCorps responsibility, 5) discrimination, 6) enjoyed the culture, 7) reflection, 8) developed development philosophy, 9) adjusting to fellowship life, 10) engaging community, 11), language and 12) relationships built. With recommendations to provide language training, have established protocols for sexual harassment and health emergencies, ensure access to mental health and reflection resources, and assist participants in adapting back into home country culture

Live confocal imaging of Arabidopsis flower buds

Recent advances in confocal microscopy, coupled with the development of numerous fluorescent reporters, provide us with a powerful tool to study the development of plants. Live confocal imaging has been used extensively to further our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the formation of roots, shoots and leaves. However, it has not been widely applied to flowers, partly because of specific challenges associated with the imaging of flower buds. Here, we describe how to prepare and grow shoot apices of Arabidopsis in vitro, to perform both single-point and time-lapse imaging of live, developing flower buds with either an upright or an inverted confocal microscope

The Effects of Oxidized Biodiesel Fuel on Fatty Acid Methyl Ester Composition and Particulate Matter Emissions from a Light-Duty Diesel Engine

Diesel particulate matter (PM) is classified by the EPA as carcinogenic, with the transportation sector largely responsible these emissions within the United States. Biodiesel (B100) is derived from renewable sources, providing similar chemical composition to diesel fuel and is in the current diesel supply up to 5% across the nation. However, biodiesel has an inherent oxidation issue due to the unique mixture of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) molecules present in the biodiesel that are not in diesel. Biodiesel oxidation can only be delayed, and the inevitable process results in changes to the original fuel composition that may alter emissions profiles. There have been limited studies on the effect of oxidized biodiesel fuel on PM emissions, and with increasing biodiesel production volumes, it is important to assess due to possible adverse human health effects. In this study, it was hypothesized that the change in fuel composition due to oxidation would lead to lower PM emissions because the presence of more fuel oxygen molecules and secondary oxidation products would enhance self-combustion characteristics. In this study, PM mass generated from a light-duty diesel engine running on three different fuel types—pure (“neat”) B100 biodiesel, pure B0 diesel, and B20 (20% v/v biodiesel blend with diesel)—was quantified and compared to the PM mass (and concentrations) from repeated emissions testing using artificially oxidized B100 and B20 biodiesel as the fuel source. B100 fuel was heated at 110oC for 5, 10, and 20 hours (“oxidation states” 3, 2, and 1, respectively), verifying the extent of fuel oxidation by building an apparatus (Biodiesel Oxidation Stability Surveyor, BOSS) that quantified the biodiesel fuel’s oxidative stability using a method equivalent to standard methods for determining the biofuel’s induction period. Induction period increased linearly with time spent under the artificial oxidation conditions. A custom, load-based steady-state modal drive cycle was specially developed for emissions testing each neat and oxidized B100 and B20 fuel type in a light-duty diesel engine dynamometer. Observed changes in PM mass with increased fuel oxidation time occurred only for B20 fuel with a 51 ±13% decrease. Fuel properties such as cetane number, biodiesel content, density, and total aromatics were compared between neat and oxidized B20 and B100 samples. Cetane number increased 7% from 66.8 to 71.7 from B100 neat to B100 OX1 (20hrs) and density increased from 0.709g/cm3 to 0.723g/cm3. Chemical analysis of the biodiesel fuels by gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GCMS) quantified individual FAME compounds to determine key species involved in fuel oxidation. B100 FAME concentration widely varied, however, the B20 fuel blend showed that 20 hour artificial oxidation treatment decreased concentrations of the unsaturated FAMEs for C18:3n3, C18:2 cis-9,12, C18:1 (both cis- and trans- isomers) by 41.7 ±3.5%, 33.25 ±8.8%, and 21.9 ±6.9% relative to their initial concentration in the unoxidized fuel, respectively, in general agreement with literature values. The findings of this study help contribute a better understanding of oxidation effects on biodiesel fuel and link together fuel properties, chemical composition, and particulate emissions whereas most literature excludes detailed analysis of biodiesel fuel composition and associated emissions effects