Creating a Virtual Leader Development Course Using the Design Thinking Process for Innovation

[EN] This paper examines how a U.S. Air Force (USAF) faculty team reimagined and redesigned an in-person Leader Development Course (LDC) to a virtual version (vLDC). Using the Design Thinking Process for Innovation (DTPI) and action research methods, a new, virtual course was imagined, designed, tested, and improved over a six-cycle-process. Data was collected via multiple sources from 121 participants (19 faculty/staff and 102 students) and analyzed using manual coding and NVivo Software. Results are organized into 22 categories under four themes (general course design, student experience, instructor experience and faculty development, and technology experience) showing a progressive refinement with key lessons learned that led to the final creation of the new virtual course. Of the five key features in action research (actions matter, context-specific research, multiple cycles and phases, inclusion of people as research target, and reflections), participants reported that multiple cycles and reflections were most important in relation to the DTPI so that change could be enacted that reflected participant voices in the design process of the virtual course. The application of the DTPI using action research methods produced results and lessons learned in the design process that contribute to the theory and practice on developing and teaching in a virtual learning environment. The study fills a gap in the scholarly field and informs other institutions on the process, failures, and successes of course redesign to a virtual version.Hinck, J.; Davis, S.; Longmire, J.; Byrnes, J. (2021). Creating a Virtual Leader Development Course Using the Design Thinking Process for Innovation. En 7th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'21). Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. 1323-1331. https://doi.org/10.4995/HEAd21.2021.13004OCS1323133

The Management and Use of Social Network Sites in a Government Department

In this paper we report findings from a study of social network site use in a UK Government department. We have investigated this from a managerial, organisational perspective. We found at the study site that there are already several social network technologies in use, and that these: misalign with and problematize organisational boundaries; blur boundaries between working and social lives; present differing opportunities for control; have different visibilities; have overlapping functionality with each other and with other information technologies; that they evolve and change over time; and that their uptake is conditioned by existing infrastructure and availability. We find the organisational complexity that social technologies are often hoped to cut across is, in reality, something that shapes their uptake and use. We argue the idea of a single, central social network site for supporting cooperative work within an organisation will hit the same problems as any effort of centralisation in organisations. We argue that while there is still plenty of scope for design and innovation in this area, an important challenge now is in supporting organisations in managing what can best be referred to as a social network site 'ecosystem'.Comment: Accepted for publication in JCSCW (The Journal of Computer Supported Cooperative Work

Millennial storage of near-Moho magma.

The lower crust plays a critical role in the processing of mantle melts and the triggering of volcanic eruptions by supply of magma from greater depth. Our understanding of the deeper parts of magmatic systems is obscured by overprinting of deep signals by shallow processes. We provide a direct estimate of magma residence time in basaltic systems of the deep crust by studying ultramafic nodules from the Borgarhraun eruption in Iceland. Modeling of chromium-aluminum interdiffusion in spinel crystals provides a record of long-term magmatic storage on the order of 1000 years. This places firm constraints on the total crustal residence time of mantle-derived magmas and has important implications for modeling the growth and evolution of transcrustal magmatic systems

Country differences in the diagnosis and management of coronary heart disease : a comparison between the US, the UK and Germany

Background The way patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) are treated is partly determined by non-medical factors. There is a solid body of evidence that patient and physician characteristics influence doctors' management decisions. Relatively little is known about the role of structural issues in the decision making process. This study focuses on the question whether doctors' diagnostic and therapeutic decisions are influenced by the health care system in which they take place. This non-medical determinant of medical decision-making was investigated in an international research project in the US, the UK and Germany. Methods Videotaped patients within an experimental study design were used. Experienced actors played the role of patients with symptoms of CHD. Several alternative versions were taped featuring the same script with patients of different sex, age and social status. The videotapes were shown to 384 randomly selected primary care physicians in the three countries under study. The sample was stratified on gender and duration of professional experience. Physicians were asked how they would diagnose and manage the patient after watching the video vignette using a questionnaire with standardised and open-ended questions. Results Results show only small differences in decision making between British and American physicians in essential aspects of care. About 90% of the UK and US doctors identified CHD as one of the possible diagnoses. Further similarities were found in test ordering and lifestyle advice. Some differences between the US and UK were found in the certainty of the diagnoses, prescribed medications and referral behaviour. There are numerous significant differences between Germany and the other two countries. German physicians would ask fewer questions, they would order fewer tests, prescribe fewer medications and give less lifestyle advice. Conclusion Although all physicians in the three countries under study were presented exactly the same patient, some disparities in the diagnostic and patient management decisions were evident. Since other possible influences on doctors treatment decisions are controlled within the experimental design, characteristics of the health care system seem to be a crucial factor within the decision making process

Biocide exposure induces changes in susceptibility, pathogenicity and biofilm formation in Uropathogenic Escherichia coli

Background: Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) are a frequent cause of catheter associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI). Biocides have been incorporated into catheter-coatings to inhibit bacterial colonisation whilst ideally exhibiting low cytotoxicity and mitigating the selection of resistant bacterial populations. We compared the effects of long-term biocide exposure on susceptibility, biofilm-formation and relative-pathogenicity in eight UPEC isolates.Methods: Minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC), minimum bactericidal concentrations (MBC), minimum biofilm eradication concentrations (MBEC) and antibiotic susceptibilities were determined before and after long-term exposure to triclosan, polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB), benzalkonium chloride (BAC) and silver nitrate. Biofilm-formation was quantified using a crystal violet assay and relative-pathogenicity was assessed via a Galleria mellonella waxworm model. Cytotoxicity and resulting biocompatability index values were determined against an L929 murine fibroblast cell line.Results: Biocide exposure resulted in multiple decreases in biocide susceptibility in planktonic and biofilm associated UPEC. Triclosan exposure induced the largest frequency and magnitude of susceptibility decreases at MIC, MBC and MBEC, which correlated to an increase in biofilm biomass in all isolates. Induction of antibiotic-cross-resistance occurred in 6/84 possible combinations of bacteria, biocide and antibiotic. Relative-pathogenicity significantly decreased after triclosan exposure (5/8 isolates), increased after silver nitrate exposure (2/8 isolates) and varied between isolates for PHMB and BAC. Biocompatibility index ranked antiseptic potential as PHMB>triclosan>BAC>silver nitrate.Conclusion: Biocide exposure in UPEC may lead to reductions in biocide and antibiotic susceptibility, changes in biofilm-formation and alterations relative-pathogenicity. These data indicate the multiple consequences of biocide adaptation that should be considered when selecting an anti-infective catheter-coating agent

Maternal care boosted by paternal imprinting in mammals.

In mammals, mothers are the primary caregiver, programmed, in part, by hormones produced during pregnancy. High-quality maternal care is essential for the survival and lifelong health of offspring. We previously showed that the paternally silenced imprinted gene pleckstrin homology-like domain family A member 2 (Phlda2) functions to negatively regulate a single lineage in the mouse placenta called the spongiotrophoblast, a major source of hormones in pregnancy. Consequently, the offspring's Phlda2 gene dosage may influence the quality of care provided by the mother. Here, we show that wild-type (WT) female mice exposed to offspring with three different doses of the maternally expressed Phlda2 gene-two active alleles, one active allele (the extant state), and loss of function-show changes in the maternal hypothalamus and hippocampus during pregnancy, regions important for maternal-care behaviour. After birth, WT dams exposed in utero to offspring with the highest Phlda2 dose exhibit decreased nursing and grooming of pups and increased focus on nest building. Conversely, 'paternalised' dams, exposed to the lowest Phlda2 dose, showed increased nurturing of their pups, increased self-directed behaviour, and a decreased focus on nest building, behaviour that was robustly maintained in the absence of genetically modified pups. This work raises the intriguing possibility that imprinting of Phlda2 contributed to increased maternal care during the evolution of mammals