When the Course Management System Isn\u27t Enough

Many articles have been written extoling the need for interactivity in the online classroom. Zundel (2006) states that not only should interactivity be effectively integrated, but that it is essential for enhancing the learning in online courses just as interactivity is essential for on-campus learners. Mabrito (2004) contends that success is enhanced in online courses by engaging students as active learners rather than passive participants. Mabrito goes on to state that this engagement should include ample opportunities for students to interact with not only the course content, but also with the instructor and fellow classmates

Look! Up in Cyberspace! Is it Web 2.0? Is it Web 3.0? No! It’s SuperWeb – Technologies for the Classroom!

Using the familiar Bloom‟s Taxonomy pyramid, traditionally applied in educational learning objectives, can be useful in helping to choose the right technology to assist in reaching the desired educational outcomes. Many Web technologies provide free or low-cost teaching tools. Some of the many options available for the computer are provided here along with lesson ideas to incorporate these tools into the learning environment

Action Research: Fly in the Cloud then Share the View

There is a growing bifurcation of society into those who are Informed (techno-savvy) versus the increasing number of people who are Uninformed (non-techno-savvy) when it comes to utilization of cloud-based Web 2.0 applications. The authors propose wide-spread participation in a cloud-based application. This action research is designed to gather input about one cloud-based technology that has the potential to move users from Uninformed to Informed by the nature of efficient work flow, collaboration, and shared resources (Charles & Dickens, 2012; Fisher, 2011)

Online Integrity: Student Authentication in an Online Course

Distance education has been around for over 100 years and has progressed from print based or correspondence study to radio, television, audio or video recordings, and on to video conferencing and computer mediated instruction (Wang and Gearhart, 2006). In 2000, Dooley and Murphy stated that delivery via the Internet was relatively new and challenging for higher education institutions. Most would agree that even though delivery via the Internet might no longer be considered “relatively new,” it can still be considered challenging

Explorative study of the sensitivity and specificity of the pronator quadratus fat pad sign as a predictor of subtle wrist fractures

Objective: To investigate the value of post-traumatic pronator quadratus (PQ) fat pad sign as a reliable predictor of subtle wrist fractures. Materials and methods: This was a prospective study of 68 patients undergoing X-ray for traumatic wrist injuries and subsequent MRI. The reliability of a positive PQ fat pad sign on X-ray, defined as either raised, interrupted or obliterated, was evaluated in detection of subtle wrist fractures. Results: Out of 68 patients, 28 had a positive PQ sign without any obvious bony injuries on plain radiographs; of these, the PQ fat pad was obliterated in 11, disrupted in 12, and raised in five cases. Fractures defined as cortical interruption or trabecular fractures were revealed in 13/28 (46 %) patients with a positive PQ sign but only in 7/40 (18 %) patients with a negative sign. With regards to different types of abnormal PQ fat planes, fractures were present in 7/12 patients with a disrupted plane (58 %), 6/11 patients with an obliterated plane (54 %), and none of the patients with a raised plane. The overall sensitivity and specificity of a positive PQ sign in the prediction of occult wrist fractures were 65 and 69 %, respectively. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that a positive pronator quadratus (PQ) fat pad sign is not a reliable predictor of subtle fractures of the wrist, although we believe that it is a useful radiographic sign in justifying MRI for further clarification of possible joint abnormalities including occult fracture and cortex interruption

The equity impacts of bus rapid transit:A review of the evidence and implications for sustainable transport

The paper offers an analysis of empirical evidence on the equity impacts of operational Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) systems in the Global South. The focus is on vertical equity, i.e. whether BRT systems achieve progressive benefits for poorer segments of the population. Findings from Africa, Asia, and Latin America all suggest that BRT does offer significant benefits to low-income groups, in terms of travel time and cost savings, access enhancement, and safety and health benefits. However benefits are often skewed toward medium-income users and thus less progressive than they might be. Two primary reasons for this are insufficient spatial coverage and inappropriate fare policies. While many features of BRT potentially allow it to deliver pro-poor outcomes, such outcomes only materialize if BRT implementers pay specific and sustained attention to equity. The paper identifies key issues that need to be addressed to steer BRT implementation toward more socially sustainable outcomes—including better integration with other transit, paratransit, and nonmotorized transport services, and with the housing sector

HIV and TB co-infection in the ART era: CD4 count distributions and TB case fatality in Cape Town

Background In Cape Town, the roll-out of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has increased over the last decade with an estimated coverage of 63% of HIV- positive patients in 2013. The influence of ART on the characteristics of the population of HIV-positive patients presenting to the primary care TB programme is unknown. In this study, we examined trends in CD4 count distribution, ART usage and treatment outcomes among HIV-positive TB patients in Cape Town from 2009 to 2013. Methods Data from the electronic TB register on all newly registered drug-sensitive TB patients ≥18 years were analyzed retrospectively. Descriptive statistics were used to compare baseline characteristics, the CD4 count distribution and TB treatment outcomes both by year of treatment and ART status at the start of TB treatment. Survival analyses were used to assess the change in mortality risk during TB treatment over time, stratified by ART status at start of TB treatment. Results 118,989 patients were treated over 5 years. HIV prevalence among TB patients decreased from 50.9% in 2009 to 49.0% in 2013. The absolute number of HIV-positive TB cases declined by 13.2% between 2010 and 2013. More patients entered the TB programme on ART in 2013 compared to 2009 (30.0% vs 9.9%). Among these, the CD4 count distribution showed a year by year shift to higher CD4 counts. In 2013, over 75% of ART-naïve TB patients still had a CD4 count < 350 cells/mm3. ART initiation among ART-naive patients increased from 37.0 to 77.7% and TB case fatality declined from 7.4 to 5.2% (p < 0.001). In multivariate analysis a decrease in TB mortality was most strongly associated with CD4 count (Adjusted HR 0.82 per increase of 50 cells/mm3, 95% CI: 0.81–0.83, p < 001) and the initiation of ART during TB treatment (Adjusted HR 0.39, 95% CI: 0.35–0.42, p < 0.001). Conclusion Comprehensive changes in the ART and TB treatment programmes resulted in incremental increases in ART coverage for HIV-positive TB patients and a subsequent decrease in TB case fatality due to increased ART uptake in HIV-positive ART-naïve patients. However TB still remained a major presenting opportunistic infection with the majority of cases occurring at low CD4 counts

No-Boundary Thinking in Bioinformatics Research

Currently there are definitions from many agencies and research societies defining bioinformatics as deriving knowledge from computational analysis of large volumes of biological and biomedical data. Should this be the bioinformatics research focus? We will discuss this issue in this review article. We would like to promote the idea of supporting human-infrastructure (HI) with no-boundary thinking (NT) in bioinformatics (HINT)

Big Data -- A 21st Century Science Maginot Line? No-Boundary Thinking: Shifting from the Big Data Paradigm

Whether your interests lie in scientific arenas, the corporate world, or in government, you have certainly heard the praises of big data: Big data will give you new insights, allow you to become more efficient, and/or will solve your problems. While big data has had some outstanding successes, many are now beginning to see that it is not the Silver Bullet that it has been touted to be. Here our main concern is the overall impact of big data; the current manifestation of big data is constructing a Maginot Line in science in the 21st century. Big data is not lots of data as a phenomena anymore; the big data paradigm is putting the spirit of the Maginot Line into lots of data. Big data overall is disconnecting researchers and science challenges. We propose No-Boundary Thinking (NBT), applying no-boundary thinking in problem defining to address science challenges