Educator Preparedness to Teach Environmental Science in Secondary Schools

This study assesses the environmental proficiency of Texas life science educators certified from 2003 to 2011 by analyzing their TExES 138 8-12 exam results in domains V and VI. The sample consisted of all the individuals that took and passed the TExES 138 life science 8-12 exam. During this period, approximately 41% of the individuals who took the exam actually passed it. This study employed non-experimental, quantitative statistical methods to evaluate educators that passed the exam for proficiency in environmental science content knowledge and how to teach and assess science learning. Because this study focuses on improving environmental science literacy, the TExES 138 exam was selected. This exam contained a domain dedicated solely to environmental science and comprised a larger portion of the exam than other certification tests. Data were provided by the Texas Education Agency in response to an open records request. The variables of interest were year, total test score and scores in domains V and VI. Data were analyzed using t-tests. Analysis of data revealed a significant difference in educator proficiency in environmental science content knowledge and how to teach and assess science learning at the 95% confidence level. Mean scores for the individuals that passed the exam are significantly different from mean scores in domains V and VI. The educators certified from 2003-2011 demonstrated weaknesses in the environmental science content and the content of how to teach and assess science learning. Educators certified during this time period may struggle with teaching environmental science and assessing student learning in science.Environmental Sciences Progra

Using Language to Extend to Unseen Domains

It is expensive to collect training data for every possible domain that a vision model may encounter when deployed. We instead consider how simply verbalizing the training domain (e.g. "photos of birds") as well as domains we want to extend to but do not have data for (e.g. "paintings of birds") can improve robustness. Using a multimodal model with a joint image and language embedding space, our method LADS learns a transformation of the image embeddings from the training domain to each unseen test domain, while preserving task relevant information. Without using any images from the unseen test domain, we show that over the extended domain containing both training and unseen test domains, LADS outperforms standard fine-tuning and ensemble approaches over a suite of four benchmarks targeting domain adaptation and dataset bias

Supersymmetric dS/CFT

We put forward new explicit realisations of dS/CFT that relate ${\cal N}=2$ supersymmetric Euclidean vector models with reversed spin-statistics in three dimensions to specific supersymmetric Vasiliev theories in four-dimensional de Sitter space. The partition function of the free supersymmetric vector model deformed by a range of low spin deformations that preserve supersymmetry appears to specify a well-defined wave function with asymptotic de Sitter boundary conditions in the bulk. In particular we find the wave function is globally peaked at undeformed de Sitter space, with a low amplitude for strong deformations. This suggests that supersymmetric de Sitter space is stable in higher-spin gravity and in particular free from ghosts. We speculate this is a limiting case of the de Sitter realizations in exotic string theories.Comment: V2: references and comments added, typos corrected, version published in JHEP; 27 pages, 3 figures, 1 tabl

Oncogenic ERBB3 Mutations in Human Cancers

SummaryThe human epidermal growth factor receptor (HER) family of tyrosine kinases is deregulated in multiple cancers either through amplification, overexpression, or mutation. ERBB3/HER3, the only member with an impaired kinase domain, although amplified or overexpressed in some cancers, has not been reported to carry oncogenic mutations. Here, we report the identification of ERBB3 somatic mutations in ∼11% of colon and gastric cancers. We found that the ERBB3 mutants transformed colonic and breast epithelial cells in a ligand-independent manner. However, the mutant ERBB3 oncogenic activity was dependent on kinase-active ERBB2. Furthermore, we found that anti-ERBB antibodies and small molecule inhibitors effectively blocked mutant ERBB3-mediated oncogenic signaling and disease progression in vivo

Sensory reactivity symptoms are a core feature of ADNP syndrome irrespective of autism diagnosis

Background: Activity dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) syndrome is one of the most common single-gene causes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability, however, the phenotypes remain poorly described. Here we examine the sensory reactivity phenotype in children and adolescents with ADNP syndrome. Methods: Twenty-two individuals with ADNP syndrome received comprehensive clinical evaluations including standardized observations, caregiver interviews, and questionnaires to assess sensory reactivity symptoms. Relationships between sensory symptoms and age, sex, ASD, IQ, and adaptive behavior were examined. Genotype-phenotype correlations with the recurrent p.Tyr719* variant were also explored. Results: Sensory reactivity symptoms were observed and reported in all participants. A syndrome-specific phenotype was identified, characterized by high levels of sensory seeking across tactile, auditory, and visual domains. Tactile hyporeactivity, characterized by pain insensitivity, was reported in the majority of participants. Sensory symptoms were identified across individuals regardless of age, sex, IQ, adaptive ability, genetic variant, and most importantly, ASD status. No significant differences were identified between participants with and without the recurrent p.Tyr719* variant on any sensory measure. Conclusions: Sensory reactivity symptoms are a common clinical feature of ADNP syndrome. Quantifying sensory reactivity using existing standardized measures will enhance understanding of sensory reactivity in individuals with ADNP syndrome and will aid in clinical care. The sensory domain may also represent a promising target for treatment in clinical trials

Social visual attentional engagement and memory in Phelan-McDermid syndrome and autism spectrum disorder: a pilot eye tracking study

Background The current study used eye tracking to investigate attention and recognition memory in Phelan-McDermid syndrome (PMS), a rare genetic disorder characterized by intellectual disability, motor delays, and a high likelihood of comorbid autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Social deficits represent a core feature of ASD, including decreased propensity to orient to or show preference for social stimuli. Methods We used a visual paired-comparison task with both social and non-social images, assessing looking behavior to a novel image versus a previously viewed familiar image to characterize social attention and recognition memory in PMS (n = 22), idiopathic ASD (iASD, n = 38), and typically developing (TD) controls (n = 26). The idiopathic ASD cohort was divided into subgroups with intellectual disabilities (ID; developmental quotient 70) and the PMS group into those with and without a co-morbid ASD diagnosis. Results On measures of attention, the PMS group with a comorbid ASD diagnosis spent less time viewing the social images compared to non-social images; the rate of looking back and forth between images was lowest in the iASD with ID group. Furthermore, while all groups demonstrated intact recognition memory when novel non-social stimuli were initially presented (pre-switch), participants with PMS showed no preference during the post-switch memory presentation. In iASD, the group without ID, but not the group with ID, showed a novelty preference for social stimuli. Across indices, individuals with PMS and ASD performed more similarly to PMS without ASD and less similarly to the iASD group. Conclusion These findings demonstrate further evidence of differences in attention and memory for social stimuli in ASD and provide contrasts between iASD and PMS

Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo

Meeting Abstracts: Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN) Conference and Expo Clearwater Beach, FL, USA. 9-11 June 201

Kinetic Studies of Thiosemicarbazone Inhibitors of Cruzain, a Validated Target of Cruzain

Chagas’ disease is caused by the flagellate protozoan Trypanosoma cruzi. As determined by the World Health Organization, effective therapeutic medications are needed for the treatment of Chagas’ disease. Cruzain, a powerful cysteine protease involved in cell invasion, immune evasion, and metabolism of the T. cruzi parasite, is a validated target for the disease. A number of thiosemicarbazone derivatives are inhibitors of cruzain. In this study, the kinetic mechanism of a potent thiosemicarbazone inhibitor of cruzain was investigated. A microplate reader using a 96-well plate format was used to perform fluorometric assays. Progress curves provided evidence that this thiosemicarbazone compound is a time-dependent inhibitor of cruzain. This was a collaborative study between the Trawick and Pinney groups at Baylor University