Pharmacokinetics of recombinant human erythropoietin applied subcutaneously to children with chronic renal failure

The single-dose pharmacokinetics of recombinant human erythropoietin (rHuEPO) given SC was investigated in 20 patients aged 7-20 years at different stages of chronic renal failure. In a pilot study we confirmed the lower bioavailability of the drug in 2 children when given SC compared with the IV route (24% and 43%, respectively). Following administration of 4,000 units/m2, rHuEPO SC effective serum erythropoietin concentrations increased from a mean baseline level (+/- SD) of 23 +/- 13 units/l to a mean peak concentration of 265 +/- 123 units/l, which was reached after 14.3 +/- 9.4 h, followed by a slow decline until baseline values were attained at 72 h. Mean residence time was 30 +/- 9 h and mean elimination half-time 14.3 +/- 7 h. The single-dose kinetics of SC rHuEPO in children with different degrees of renal failure are comparable to those in adult patients. Possibly, the higher efficacy of SC rHuEPO in patients with renal anaemia compared with IV rHuEPO is related to its prolonged action

A New Long-tailed Weasel County Record in Shenandoah National Park

Though abundant throughout much of its range, the ecology and local geographic distribution of Mustela frenata (Long-tailed Weasel) is not well-known, especially in the central Appalachian Mountains. In 2015, we conducted a camera study in rock outcrop habitats within Shenandoah National Park, Virginia. Our objective was to determine the presence of mammals considered uncommon in these habitats. After 2,016 trap nights, we report eleven photographic captures of Long-tailed Weasels at eight sites. Two of these sites represent the first record of this species in Rappahannock County, Virginia. These detections represent the first record of Long-tailed Weasels in Shenandoah National Park in 60 years and extend their known range within the Park

The Use of Polls to Enhance Formative Assessment Processes in Mathematics Classroom Discussions

This contribution addresses the theme of technology for formative assessment in the mathematics classroom and in particular the ways connected classroom technology may support formative assessment strategies in whole class activities. Design experiments have been developed through the use of a connected classroom technology by which students may share their productions, opinions, and reflections with their classmates and the teacher during or at the end of a mathematical activity. With this technology the teacher may create polls, submit them to the students, gather their answers and show the results in real time. The paper discusses how polls can be used during classroom activities to foster the activation of formative assessment strategies. As a result of the design-based research, a classification of polls according to their contents and aims is proposed. Different ways of structuring classroom discussions and patterns of formative assessment strategies, which are developed from the different types of polls, are discussed

Mobile phone voting for participation and engagement in a large compulsory law course

This article reports on an action-research project designed to investigate the effect of a technological intervention on the complex interactions between student engagement, participation, attendance and preparation in a large lecture delivered as part of a compulsory first-year law course, a discipline which has not been the focus of any previous study. The technology used was VotApedia, a form of mobile phone voting, and it was implemented in tandem with constructivist pedagogies such as explicit pre-reading and a prior context of interactive lecturing. Data were collected through observation, via mobile phone voting in class and by an online survey designed to specifically explore the relationship between attendance at VotApedia lectures and factors such as self-reported engagement, attendance and preparation. The findings indicated that student response systems (SRSs) are just as applicable to more Humanities-style disciplines which require divergent questioning, and supported complex interactions between engagement, attendance and preparation. Preliminary findings indicated that, although more work needs to be done, especially on the types of students who prefer to use these systems, there is a clear potential to increase student engagement in large law lectures through the use of SRSs.Chad Habel, Matthew Stubb

Examining the effects of social media in co-located classrooms: A case study based on SpeakUp

The broad availability of mobile computing devices has prompted the apparition of social media applications that support teaching and learning. However, so far, there is conflicting evidence as to whether the benefits such applications provide in terms of engagement and interaction, outweigh their potential cost as a source of distraction. To help in clarifying these issues, the present paper presents a case study on the impact of using SpeakUp (an app aimed at promoting student participation through anonymous chatrooms) in an authentic face-to-face learning scenario. Concretely, we focus on the connection between SpeakUp and the student engagement, distraction, social interaction, and the influence of the teachers' style. Our findings highlight that SpeakUp favored students' engagement and social interaction, but they also point towards its limitations in keeping students communicating about content relevant to the course