Maximizing Accessibility in Online Courses

In their creation of online courses, instructional designers may inadvertently overlook the needs of learners with disabilities. However, creating accessible online courses isn’t merely a nice to do activity; it is required by federal law. Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, for example, specifically prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities by any federal agency receiving federal funds; this includes colleges and universities.

Variabilite et fluctuation de la composition des inflorescences et des grappes chez quelques varietés de Vitis vinifera

Dans un milieu défini, les possibilités de production d'une variété de Vigne sont déterminées par le nombre moyen d'inflorescences par rameau ou fertilité moyenne des bourgeons latents laissés à la taille et par le poids moyen des grappes à la récolte. Cette dernière caractéristique peut se décomposer en plusieurs facteurs:nombre de fleursnombre de baies par grappepoids moyen des baies.Chacun de ces caractères constitue d'ailleurs un problème particulier pour le sélectionneur.La variabilité de la composition des inflorescences et des grappes entre variétés est un fait bien connu. Des données -concernant les cépages cultivés en Alsace se trouvent dans les différents tableaux du texte. La fluctuation de ce caractère a été beaucoup moins étudiée et des observations effectuées en 1959, 1960 et 1968 sur des branches à fruits d'une douzaine de bourgeons, ont permis de dégager les faits suivants: Le nombre de fleurs par inflorescence de même rang augmente considérablement avec le rang des rameaux sur les branches à fruits (exemple 1959 - Gewurztraminer: rameau de la base, N = 65, lOe rameau, N = 137). Dans le processus d'induction florale la détermination du nombre de fleurs semble être plus tardive que celle du nombre d'inflorescences primordiales.Sur un m~me rameau il est possible de trouver 1, 2 ou 3 inflorescences. Le nombre de fleurs N par inflorescence diminue considérablement avec le rang des inflorescences Nl > N2 > N3. (Ex. Riesling 1960: Nl = 271, N2 = 242, N3 = 157).Les inflorescences de rang 1 sont les plus fournies sur des rameaux à 3, puis à 2 inflorescences. (Ex. Silvaner 1968: Nl-3 infl. = 295, Nl-2 infl. = 227, Nl-1 infl. = 108).Chez la majorité des cépages il existe une corrélation négative entre le nombre de fleurs par inflorescence et le pourcentage de nouaison. De ce fait, la fluctuation du nombre de baies est beaucoup plus réduite que celle du nombre de fleurs.L'ablation, avant la floraison, d'une inflorescence sur 2 ou sur 3, est sans influence sur la nouaison des autres.Variabilität und Fluktuation im Aufbau der Infloreszenzen und Trauben einiger Sorten von Vitis viniferaUnter definierten Umweltbedingungen ist der potentielle Ertrag einer Rebsorte abhängig von der durchschnittlichen Anzahl der Infloreszenzen je Trieb oder der durchschnittlichen Fruchtbarkeit der beim Schnitt belassenen Winterknospen und von dem durchschnittlichen Traubengewicht. Das letztere Charakteristikum setzt sich zusammen aus:Anzahl der BlütenAnzahl der Beeren je Traubedurchschnittliches BeerengewichtJedes dieser Merkmale stellt den Züchter vor besondere Aufgaben.Die zwischen den Sorten bestehende Variabilität im Aufbau der Infloreszenzen und der Trauben ist eine bekannte Tatsache. Angaben über die im Elsaß angebauten Sorten finden sich in den Tabellen. Die Modifikation des Traubengewichtes ist sehr viel weniger untersucht worden, und Beobachtungen in den Jahren 1959, 1960 und 1968 an Tragruten mit etwa einem Dutzend Knospen lassen folgende Fakten erkennen: Die Anzahl der Blüten je Infloreszenz gleicher Insertionshöhe erhöht sich beträchtlich mit der Insertionshöhe des Triebes auf der Tragrute (z. B.: 1959 - Gewürztraminer: basaler Trieb n = 65, 10. Trieb n = 137). Im Verlauf der Blüteninduktion scheint die Anzahl der Blütenprimordien später als die der Infloreszenzen determiniert zu werden.An einem Trieb können sich 1, 2 oder 3 Infloreszenzen befinden. Die Blütenzahl je Infloreszenz verringert sich beträchtlich mit der Insertionshöhe der Infloreszenzen, wobei die n1 > n2 > na ist (z. B. Riesling 1960: n1 = 271, n2 = 242, n3 = 157 Blüten).Die basalen Infloreszenzen sind auf den Trieben mit 3, danach auf denen mit 2 Infloreszenzen am umfangreichsten (z. B. Silvaner 1968: bei 3 Infloreszenzen n1 = 295, bei 2 Infloreszenzen n1 = 227 und bei 1 Infloreszenz n1 = 108 Blüten).Bei der Mehrzahl der Sorten besteht eine negative Korrelation zwischen der Blütenzahl je Infloreszenz und dem prozentualen Fruchtansatz. Daher ist die Modifikabilität der Beerenzahl wesentlich geringer als die der Blütenzahl.Die Entfernung einer von 2 und 3 Infloreszensen vor der Blüte hat keinen Einfluß auf den Fruchtansatz der anderen Infloreszenzen

Action de l'Hydrazide Maléique sur la Vigne

Les essais réalisés avec l'hydrazide maléique sous forme de son sel de diéthanolamine montrent que la vigne est extrêmement sensible à ce produit.Ce dernier est en effet capable d'inhiber la croissance des rameaux en voie de développement aussi bien que la sortie de la dormance des bourgeons latents. Cette influence nous semble malheureusement beaucoup trop brutale (phytotoxicité directe, coulure, dérèglements morphologiques, bourgeons totalement inhibés) pour qu'on puisse espérer une utilisation pratique de l' hydrazide maléique dans le domaine de la viticulture

The Arrows in Our Backs: Lessons Learned Trying to Change the Engineering Curriculum

Published research has provided a robust set of documented tools and techniques for transforming individual engineering courses in ways that use evidence-based instructional practices. Many engineering faculty are already aware of these practices and would like to use them. However, they still face significant implementation barriers. The E2R2P effort addresses the question: How can successes in engineering education research translate into widespread instructional practice? This poster session will describe hard-won lessons the E2R2P team has learned as it begins its third year attempting such curricular change. Lesson 1: “Wonder workshops” and visible course redesigns don’t produce curricular change. Lesson 2: Focus on the larger engineering education system, rather than its isolated parts. Lesson 3: Insurmountable time barriers prevent faculty from adopting RBIS. Lesson 4: Universities, industry, and other stakeholders working in isolation can\u27t do much more to help engineering faculty address these problems. Lesson 5: Changing the curriculum requires a larger community of shared concern and practice. Lesson 6: Bring in partners and expertise in cross-boundary, multidisciplinary way. Lesson 7: Work together to address a shared concern: Decreasing ramp up time to competent workplace performance. Lesson 8: Make the effort to grow the contact network to address this opportunity. Lesson 9: Use a common engineering model to create a venue for collaborative problem identification and root cause analysis. Lesson 10: Talk about what fresh out engineers are doing on the job, along with its monetary and nonmonetary consequences. Lesson 11: Collaborate on interpreting the problem identification and root cause analysis data. Lesson 12: Work together to specify corrective actions that remove barriers to RBIS adoption

Ammonia monitoring at trace level using photoacoustic spectroscopy in industrial and environmental applications

An ammonia traces analyser based on photoacoustic spectroscopy is described. The system uses a CO2 laser and a properly designed resonant photoacoustic cell to achieve ammonia detection at sub-parts-per- billion (ppb) level. The instrument features unattended automatic on-line monitoring of ammonia with a detection limit of 0.1 ppb. Interferences from atmospheric CO2 and H2O are efficiently suppressed by a careful selection of the laser wavelength and a compensation of the water vapour signal made with a high-precision hygrometer. The cell design enables continuous measurement at high flow rates (up to 51/min), which guarantees a fast response time of the system for the monitoring of ammonia, a sticky polar molecule that adheres to most surfaces. Various examples of applications of the instrument in the semiconductor industry and for atmospheric pollution monitoring are presented. They demonstrate the excellent performances of the system and its suitability for these applications. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

The Influence of Temperature and Drug Concentrations Prednisolone in NIPAAm Copolymer

Controlled delivery systems would be more beneficial and ideal if the drug could be delivered with respond to external environmental change. It could be used to overcome the shortcomings of conventional dosage forms. Therefore, the correct amount of drug would be released upon the stimulation of such a temperature and concentration change. The purpose of study is to investigate the influence of temperature and drug concentration from poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate and N-isopropylacrylamide)/poly(HEMA-NIPAAm). The macroporous structure 5HEMA15NIPAAm was showed the most rapid responsiveness in swelling ratio, polymer volume fraction, swelling and deswelling kinetics. The high drug loading capacity was achieved at or below ambient temperature, whilst the release profile was revealed sustain release of conventional anti-inflammatory drug; prednisolone 21 hemisuccinate sodium salt. In general, drug loading capacity and drug diffusion kinetics are influence by the porosity of hydrogels, temperature, and drug concentration

Complementary light scattering and synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering studies of the micelle-to-unimer transition of polysulfobetaines

YesAB and ABA di- and triblock copolymers where A is the hydrophilic poly(oligoethylene glycol methacrylate) (POEGMA) block and B is a thermo-responsive sulfobetaine block [2-(methacryloyloxy) ethyl] dimethyl-(3-sulfopropyl) ammonium hydroxide (PDMAPS) were synthesised by aqueous RAFT polymerisation with narrow dispersity (ĐM ≤ 1.22), as judged by aqueous SEC analysis. The di- and triblock copolymers self-assembled in salt-free water to form micelles with a PDMAPS core and the self-assembly of these polymers was explored by SLS and TEM analysis. The micelles were shown, by DLS analysis, to undergo a micelle-to-unimer transition at a critical temperature, which was dependent upon the length of the POEGMA block. Increasing the length of the third, POEGMA, block decreased the temperature at which the micelle-to-unimer transition occurred as a result of the increased hydrophilicity of the polymer. The dissociation of the micelles was further studied by SLS and synchrotron SAXS. SAXS analysis revealed that the micelle dissociation began at temperatures below that indicated by DLS analysis and that both micelles and unimers coexist. This highlights the importance of using multiple complementary techniques in the analysis of self-assembled structures. In addition the micelle-to-unimer morphology transition was employed to encapsulate and release a hydrophobic dye, Nile Red, as shown by fluorescence spectroscopy.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), University of Warwic

Polymer Networks Produced by Marine Diatoms in the Northern Adriatic Sea

Using high resolution molecular technique of atomic force microscopy, we address the extracellular polymer production of Adriatic diatom Cylindrotheca closterium analyzed at the single cell level and the supramolecular organization of gel phase isolated from the Northern Adriatic macroaggregates. Our results revealed that extracellular polysaccharides freshly produced by marine diatoms can self-assemble directly to form gel network characteristics of the macroscopic gel phase in the natural aquatorium. Based on the experiments performed with isolated polysaccharide fractions of C. closterium and of macroaggregates gel phase, we demonstrated that the polysaccharide self-assembly into gel network can proceed independent of any bacterial mediation or interaction with inorganic particles

Binding of the chemokine CXCL12α to its natural extracellular matrix ligand heparan sulfate enables myoblast adhesion and facilitates cell motility

The chemokine CXCL12α is a potent chemoattractant that guides the migration of muscle precursor cells (myoblasts) during myogenesis and muscle regeneration. To study how the molecular presentation of chemokines influences myoblast adhesion and motility, we designed multifunctional biomimetic surfaces as a tuneable signalling platform that enabled the response of myoblasts to selected extracellular cues to be studied in a well-defined environment. Using this platform, we demonstrate that CXCL12α, when presented by its natural extracellular matrix ligand heparan sulfate (HS), enables the adhesion and spreading of myoblasts and facilitates their active migration. In contrast, myoblasts also adhered and spread on CXCL12α that was quasi-irreversibly surface-bound in the absence of HS, but were essentially immotile. Moreover, co-presentation of the cyclic RGD peptide as integrin ligand along with HS-bound CXCL12α led to enhanced spreading and motility, in a way that indicates cooperation between CXCR4 (the CXCL12α receptor) and integrins (the RGD receptors). Our findings reveal the critical role of HS in CXCL12α induced myoblast adhesion and migration. The biomimetic surfaces developed here hold promise for mechanistic studies of cellular responses to different presentations of biomolecules. They may be broadly applicable for dissecting the signalling pathways underlying receptor cross-talks, and thus may guide the development of novel biomaterials that promote highly specific cellular responses