Modeling Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences: An Agenda for Future Research and Evaluation

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are being championed as scalable ways of involving undergraduates in science research. Studies of CUREs have shown that participating students achieve many of the same outcomes as students who complete research internships. However, CUREs vary widely in their design and implementation, and aspects of CUREs that are necessary and sufficient to achieve desired student outcomes have not been elucidated. To guide future research aimed at understanding the causal mechanisms underlying CURE efficacy, we used a systems approach to generate pathway models representing hypotheses of how CURE outcomes are achieved. We started by reviewing studies of CUREs and research internships to generate a comprehensive set of outcomes of research experiences, determining the level of evidence supporting each outcome. We then used this body of research and drew from learning theory to hypothesize connections between what students do during CUREs and the outcomes that have the best empirical support. We offer these models as hypotheses for the CURE community to test, revise, elaborate, or refute. We also cite instruments that are ready to use in CURE assessment and note gaps for which instruments need to be developed.Howard Hughes Medical InstituteScience and Mathematics Educatio

Post Procedural Care of Patients Receiving Percutaneous Transhepatic Biliary Drainage Catheter Placement

A recent review of patients undergoing transhepatic biliary drainage catheter placement showed a 30-day readmission rate of 28%. New post-procedural processes were created to standardize the care of this patient population to decrease readmission rates and improve patient satisfaction

Personal Digital Archiving

Preserve Your Data in 2 minutes / 2 hours / 2 days / 2 months BASIC PRINCIPLES 1. IDENTIFY what you want to save 2. Decide what is MOST IMPORTANT to you 3. ORGANIZE the content 4. Make COPIES & MANAGE them in different places 5. Manage your archive OVER TIM

Why are childless women childless? Findings from an exploratory study in Victoria, Australia

Childlessness in Australia is increasing yet there is limited research exploring women&rsquo;s reasons for childlessness. Previous research has typically examined&nbsp;childlessness within the context of fertility rather than childlessness itself. The limited&nbsp;research that has moved beyond looking at involuntary childlessness has labelled women with a type of childlessness during recruitment rather than exploring women&rsquo;s reasons for childlessness as a part of the research process.&nbsp;The aim of this&nbsp;mixed methods exploratory study (n = 50) was to describe women&rsquo;s reasons for childlessness. Findings indicate that almost half of the women did not wish to have children. Reasons for childlessness included: having never wanted to have children; having never been in the &lsquo;right&rsquo; relationship; and being in a relationship where the partner did not want to have children. The findings provide insight into women&rsquo;s&nbsp;reasons for childlessness, how they feel about their decision, circumstance and&nbsp;position as a woman in a pronatalist society.</div

The connexin mimetic peptide Gap27 and Cx43-Knockdown reveal differential roles for Connexin43 in wound closure events in skin model systems

In the epidermis, remodelling of Connexin43 is a key event in wound closure. However, controversy between the role of connexin channel and non-channel functions exist. We compared the impact of SiRNA targeted to Connexin43 and the connexin mimetic peptide Gap27 on scrape wound closure rates and hemichannel signalling in adult keratinocytes (AK) and fibroblasts sourced from juvenile foreskin (JFF), human neonatal fibroblasts (HNDF) and adult dermal tissue (ADF). The impact of these agents, following 24 h exposure, on (encoding Connexin43), and gene expression, and Connexin43 and pSmad3 protein expression levels, were examined by qPCR and Western Blot respectively. In all cell types Gap27 (100-100 μM) attenuated hemichannel activity. In AK and JFF cells, Gap27 (100 nM-100 μM) enhanced scrape wound closure rates by ~50% but did not influence movement in HNDF or ADF cells. In both JF and AK cells, exposure to Gap27 for 24 h reduced the level of Cx43 protein expression but did not affect the level in ADF and HNDF cells. Connexin43-SiRNA enhanced scrape wound closure in all the cell types under investigation. In HDNF and ADF, Connexin43-SiRNA enhanced cell proliferation rates, with enhanced proliferation also observed following exposure of HDNF to Gap27. By contrast, in JFF and AK cells no changes in proliferation occurred. In JFF cells, Connexin43-SiRNA enhanced levels and in JFF and ADF cells both Connexin43-SiRNA and Gap27 enhanced pSmad3 protein expression levels. We conclude that Connexin43 signalling plays an important role in cell migration in keratinocytes and foreskin derived fibroblasts, however, different pathways are evoked and in dermal derived adult and neonatal fibroblasts, inhibition of Connexin43 signalling plays a more significant role in regulating cell proliferation than cell migration

#47 - Attractiveness of Individuals Based on Personality and Financial Status

Attractiveness of Individuals Based on Personality and Financial Status A very common saying is “opposites attract.” Some studies suggest that people are more likely to be in relationships with others who are similar to them (Olderbak et al., 2017) whereas other research findings suggest individuals are more attracted to those with dissimilar interests and characteristics to them (Schmitt, 2002). The aim of the current study is to examine how different constellations of a person’s characteristics impact attraction. We hypothesize that the more extroverted, conscientious, and financially stable a person is, the more attractive they will appear. Also, we predict that participants will find individuals with dissimilar characteristics to themselves to be more attractive. In addition, participants that are more (vs. less) satisfied in their relationships are predicted to rate individuals as less attractive. We will create 8- fictitious individuals and create short descriptions of them. We will not provide any photographs or gender information. We will conduct a 2x2x2 within-subjects, experimental-design. The independent variables are extroversion (high, low), conscientiousness (high, low), and financial stability (high, moderate), and the dependent variable is ratings of attractiveness. First, Participants will complete a consent form. Then, they will rate the attractiveness of the 8 fictitious individuals (the order of descriptions will be counterbalanced). Then, participants will rate their own personality traits and basic demographic information. Last, participants will be debriefed. Results of the current study may help individuals better understand why we choose particular mates. It can also aid in narrowing down potential partners when online dating

MODIFIABLE RISK FACTORS FOR OROFACIAL CLEFTS AMONG HISPANIC AND NON-HISPANIC INDIVIDUALS IN THE UNITED STATES

Background: Orofacial clefts (OFC) are a common birth defect in the United States (US) and prevalence varies by Hispanic ethnicity. The effect of several modifiable exposures, like maternal dietary patterns, remain largely unexplored, and recognized risk factors have only been established in primarily non-Hispanic White (NHW) cohorts. We utilized data from the National Birth Defects Prevention Study (NBDPS), a population-based case-control study, to better understand the effect of maternal diet on OFC and the impact of other OFC risk factors on Hispanics in the US.Methods: To assess the impact of maternal diet, we used a Latent Class Analysis to identify unknown dietary patterns among the NBDPS population. We used these patterns in crude and adjusted logistic regression to estimate the odds of OFC for each class. To assess the impact of risk factors specific to Hispanics, we performed crude and adjusted logistic models for 15 established risk factors among Hispanic NBDPS participants. We estimated average adjusted population attributable fractions (aaPAFs) for the 6 most established risk factors. aaPAFs were stratified by acculturation to partially account for cultural heterogeneity within this population. aaPAFs were also created for NHW NBDPS participants to provide context for results. Results: A dietary pattern with a relatively higher intake of fruits, vegetables, fish, and dark bread significantly reduced the odds of all OFC phenotypes, when compared to a diet with a relatively higher intake of white bread, chips, and soda, and lower intake of fruits and vegetables. This comparison was true of patterns derived for both the full (Aim 1) and Hispanic (Aim 2) NBDPS population. Among Hispanic individuals, secondhand smoke was associated with a larger increase in OFC than smoking. Diet was associated with the largest aaPAF for most phenotypes, regardless of Hispanic ethnicity. Most aaPAFs varied by acculturation although estimates were imprecise. Conclusions: The persistent effect of maternal diet in both populations and the unique trends observed in our Hispanic risk factor profile warrants further investigation. Additional focus on modifiable risk factors for OFC, and their specific influence on Hispanics, may inform public health prevention priorities and increase efficacy of current prevention strategies.Doctor of Philosoph

Development of the Eating Habits Questionnaire

The purpose of the studies presented was to develop and examine the psychometric properties of the Eating Habits Questionnaire (EHQ). The author designed the 21-item self-report inventory to assess cognitions, behaviors, and feelings related to an extreme focus on healthy eating as a preliminary step in researching an alleged syndrome that has been labeled "orthorexia nervosa", defined as a pathological fixation on healthy eating. Study 1 examined the factor structure of the EHQ and refined the instrument with exploratory factor analysis. A 3-factor solution was preferred, with subscales labeled: knowledge of healthy eating, problems associated with healthy eating, and feeling positively about healthy eating. In the Study 1 sample (n = 174) the subscales displayed good internal consistency (.87 to .91) and test-retest reliability (.74 to .87). Study 2 examined the fit of the 3-factor model in a new sample (n = 213) with confirmatory factor analysis. Poor initial fit became adequate after eliminating poorly fitting items. Internal consistency (.82 to .90) and test-retest reliability (.72 to .81) of the subscales remained good in the Study 2 sample. Examination of correlations between the EHQ subscales and a variety of other measures provided preliminary evidence for both convergent and discriminant validity in the Study 2 sample. As expected, the EHQ subscales correlated more highly with measures of eating related pathology than with measures of general pathology, personality characteristics, or social desirability