Global Climate Change: Impact and Remediation

This "clicker case" is a continuation of another case study "Global Climate Change: Evidence and Causes". Students assume the role of an intern working for a U.S. senator to learn about the effects of global climate change as well as technologies and practices available to remediate the impact of climate effects. The case was designed for use in a one-semester introductory biology course taken primarily by freshmen and sophomores to fulfill a general education requirement, but could be used in any introductory biology course or in an ecology or environmental science course. It consists of a PowerPoint presentation (2.2MB) presented in class that is punctuated by multiple-choice questions students respond to using personal responses systems, or "clickers." The case can be adapted for use without these technologies. Educational levels: High school, Undergraduate lower division

Synoptic/planetary-scale interactions and blocking over the North Atlantic Ocean

Work was completed on the height tendency diagnoses of two extratropical cyclones that occurred upstream from the blocking event studied previously. One developed explosively over water 60 to 36 hours before the block first appeared, while the second developed explosively over the southeastern United States during the time of block formation. In both cases, both vorticity and temperature advection were consistently important forcing mechanisms. This is in contrast to the block itself, in which vorticity advection was easily the dominant forcing mechanism. Latent heat release was also significant, accounting for about 50 percent of the total height falls in the cyclone below 850 mb. Estimates of latent heat release were greatly enhanced by coupling parameterized estimates with values derived from GOES IR data using an algorithm developed by Marshall's F. R. Robertson. Among the difficulties encountered in this work was the identification of an appropriate lower boundary condition for the solution of the height tendency equation. The zero value currently used tends to yield underestimates of the lower troposphere height tendencies. To address this problem a new diagnostic technique was developed in cooperation with Dr. Peter Zwack of the University of Quebec at Montreal. Based on an equation Dr. Zwack had previously developed (the Zwack-Okossi development equation), researchers now have a relationship that is completely consistent with the height tendency equation and provides estimates of lower boundary geostrophic vorticity or height tendencies. Finally, comparison of the SAT (satellite data) and NOSAT (no satellite data) analyses is progressing well. The present focus is on both the new diagnostic technique and the SAT/NOSAT comparisons. The former is being tested on the southeastern United States cyclone case previously mentioned and compared with the height tendency diagnoses already completed. The latter are being examined for the blocking case described in the publications cited in this summary. In addition to obtaining statistics that will allow general comparison of the two analyses, it will be possible to determine whether conclusions about the dynamics of the block development are influenced by the analysis set used

Operational Use and Impact of Satellite Remotely Sensed Ocean Surface Vector Winds in the Marine Warning and Forecasting Environment

Rhodesia, Corn MillColorVolume 81, Page

Successful implementation of inquiry-based physiology laboratories in undergraduate major and nonmajor courses. Adv Physiol Educ 32

Casotti G, Rieser-Danner L, Knabb MT. Successful implementation of inquiry-based physiology laboratories in undergraduate major and nonmajor courses. Adv Physiol Educ 32: 286-296, 2008; doi:10.1152/advan.00100.2007.-Recent evidence has demonstrated that inquiry-based physiology laboratories improve students' criticaland analytical-thinking skills. We implemented inquiry-based learning into three physiology courses: Comparative Vertebrate Physiology (majors), Human Physiology (majors), and Human Anatomy and Physiology (nonmajors). The aims of our curricular modifications were to improve the teaching of physiological concepts, teach students the scientific approach, and promote creative and critical thinking. We assessed our modifications using formative (laboratory exams, oral presentations, and laboratory reports) and summative evaluations (surveys, laboratory notebook, and an end of semester project). Students appreciated the freedom offered by the new curriculum and the opportunity to engage in the inquiry process. Results from both forms of evaluation showed a marked improvement due to the curricular revisions. Our analyses indicate an increased confidence in students' ability to formulate questions and hypotheses, design experiments, collect and analyze data, and make conclusions. Thus, we have successfully incorporated inquiry-based laboratories in both major and nonmajor courses. pedagogy; curriculum; evaluation INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING is an alternative pedagogical method of classroom teaching that is characterized by a focus on learning through discovery. It incorporates four approaches to teaching: 1) a focus on ideas and concepts generated by students rather than by instructors, 2) an activity component where students actively participate in performing tasks (experiments) to test their ideas, 3) an emphasis on learning the methods of verifying and testing hypotheses, and 4) an emphasis on the importance of both content and process as components of learning Some individual studies of the effectiveness of an inquirybased approach have been reported. For example, DiPasquale et al. (2) modified the curriculum in an exercise physiology course at San Diego State University. The course was previously taught in a traditional style. Their new approach was to cover core exercise physiology topics in the first third of the course using the traditional teacher-centered style of learning while emphasizing the scientific process. In the last 9 wk of the course, students worked in small groups of three to four and completed independent research projects. In contrast, Myers and Burgess (11) redesigned an organismal physiology course centering on student-designed experiments throughout the course of the semester. Both studies reported an increase in student achievement of learning outcomes using student-designed experiments compared with a teacher-centered approach. Moreover, a recent review (10) published in Advances of Physiology Education summarized the evidence supporting the conclusion that forms of active learning, such as an inquirybased approach, are more effective in enhancing student learning than traditional modes of teaching. Problems With the Existing Curriculum The physiology curriculum using a teacher-centered approach resulted in several problems related to student learning. One of the problems was that students in our nonmajor course failed to connect physiological concepts taught in lecture with the laboratory activities. In addition, the laboratories did not emphasize the scientific approach to problem solving, and students were restricted in the types of experiments they were able to perform (13). Our old curriculum provided students with detailed step-bystep instructions for completing their experiments. As a result, students commented to the laboratory instructors that they lost sight of the educational purpose of the experiments. Furthermore, regimented instructions did not allow our students any flexibility to deviate from the experimental protocol, thereby impeding student creativity Students had no opportunity to develop their own understanding of physiology using the scientific approach. Even though our majors were required to write laboratory reports in prerequisite courses such as Cell Physiology and Organic Chemistry, they did not communicate their ideas effectively in a scientific report. For example, students did not refer to the neural control of respiration when discussing irregular respiratory patterns when solving a math problem. This resulted in low scores on laboratory reports. Clearly, this called for the need to offer students more opportunities using the scientific method, from researching background information to developing a testable hypothesis using appropriate written communication and reporting of scientific findings. Similar problems in understanding the scientific approach were also evident in our nonmajor course (see Precurricula Survey). Verbal comments from students in our physiology courses indicated a dissatisfaction with simply repeating experiments that had already been done by other researchers. Students could not see the purpose of performing some of the experiments, especially those involving animals, and often asked "Why ar

Apixaban versus enoxaparin for thromboprophylaxis in medically ill patients

The efficacy and safety of prolonging prophylaxis for venous thromboembolism in medically ill patients beyond hospital discharge remain uncertain. We hypothesized that extended prophylaxis with apixaban would be safe and more effective than short-term prophylaxis with enoxaparin. METHODS: In this double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled trial, we randomly assigned acutely ill patients who had congestive heart failure or respiratory failure or other medical disorders and at least one additional risk factor for venous thromboembolism and who were hospitalized with an expected stay of at least 3 days to receive apixaban, administered orally at a dose of 2.5 mg twice daily for 30 days, or enoxaparin, administered subcutaneously at a dose of 40 mg once daily for 6 to 14 days. The primary efficacy outcome was the 30-day composite of death related to venous thromboembolism, pulmonary embolism, symptomatic deep-vein thrombosis, or asymptomatic proximal-leg deep-vein thrombosis, as detected with the use of systematic bilateral compression ultrasonography on day 30. The primary safety outcome was bleeding. All efficacy and safety outcomes were independently adjudicated. RESULTS: A total of 6528 subjects underwent randomization, 4495 of whom could be evaluated for the primary efficacy outcome - 2211 in the apixaban group and 2284 in the enoxaparin group. Among the patients who could be evaluated, 2.71% in the apixaban group (60 patients) and 3.06% in the enoxaparin group (70 patients) met the criteria for the primary efficacy outcome (relative risk with apixaban, 0.87; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.62 to 1.23; P = 0.44). By day 30, major bleeding had occurred in 0.47% of the patients in the apixaban group (15 of 3184 patients) and in 0.19% of the patients in the enoxaparin group (6 of 3217 patients) (relative risk, 2.58; 95% CI, 1.02 to 7.24; P = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: In medically ill patients, an extended course of thromboprophylaxis with apixaban was not superior to a shorter course with enoxaparin. Apixaban was associated with significantly more major bleeding events than was enoxaparinSupported by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfize