Expanding Learning Opportunities with Transmedia Practices: Inanimate Alice as an Exemplar

The proliferation of digital and networking technologies enables us to rethink, restructure, and redefine teaching and learning. Transmedia storytelling takes advantage of the rapid convergence of media and allows teachers and learners to participate in rich virtual (and physical) environments that have been shown to foster students’ real emotional engagement with the process of learning. Transmedia learning applies storytelling techniques across multiple platforms to create immersive educational experiences that enable manifold entry and exit points for learning and teaching. By utilizing constructivist and connectivist precepts in the application of these techniques, we can create pedagogies that are transformative on many levels. Encapsulating these notions in the concept of the Transmedia LearningWorld (TLW) allows educators to combine the exciting affordances of the digital technologies with real-life experiences and truly learner-focused pedagogies to produce profoundly productive and powerful learning experiences. In the US, the advent of Common Core State Standards is pushing schools and districts across the country to consider carefully the requirements for digital learning, including aspects of personalization, interoperability, taking our understanding of eLearning beyond a narrow focus on digital content, and encouraging significant shifts in pedagogical thinking and practice. The application of transmedia techniques and, in particular, the recognition of the power of the TLW give teachers tools that allow them to reach every child, including otherwise “reluctant” learners, and indeed that allow children themselves to drive their own learning. The digital novel Inanimate Alice is a proven example of a transmedia resource that can immerse students in an intense and motivating learning experience over time. Transmedia techniques leverage the power of collective intelligence in learners, and they enable educators to weave the narrative of curricula through media in a seamless and wholly interactive and participative fashion

Preserving Dignity in Care: Nursing Student Perspectives

This paper presents findings from a study exploring nursing students’ perspectives on ‘people’ and ‘place’ influences on the preservation of dignity in care. Participants identified more ‘people’ factors than ‘place’ ones and ranked the former as being more important than the latter. A total of 31 participants were recruited from a three-year undergraduate preregistration adult nursing programme in the West of Scotland. Nominal Group Technique (NGT) and content analysis were used, and each participant attended one of five nominal groups. Following the NGT process of scoring and ranking, each group concluded with the identification of the group’s ‘Top 5’ most important influences on dignity in care. Findings raise questions around the extent to which behaviour and relationships are explicit in curricula, and how effectively students are enabled to consider the context which influences that behaviour

Karen Organization of San Diego Bylaws Paper

The Karen Organization of San Diego was established in 2009 to meet the needs of the Karen and other ethnic minority groups from Burma that reside in San Diego. According to the organization’s mission statement, the Karen Organization of San Diego is committed toeducationaland social enhancement of various ethnic minority groups from Burma who reside in San Diego, California. The primary purpose of the organization is to provide social services and opportunities for culture preservation for the Karen and other ethnic minority groups from Burma whoresidein San Diego to improve their quality of life. Upon undertaking a review and revision of the Karen Organizations bylaws, we as consultants, had to examine on a cultural, organizational, legal and practical level how the organization works to achieve its mission.https://digital.sandiego.edu/npi-bpl-governance/1008/thumbnail.jp

A goal-setting intervention with motocross racers : a case study investigating the effects of an intervention on perceived motivation, confidence, and self-efficacy

This study aimed to investigate the effects that a specifically tailored goal-setting program would have on two motocross racers in terms of their self-efficacy and motivation, as well as the process of designing this intervention. This case-study approach involved a mixed methods approach, consisting of pre-intervention and post-intervention assessments, interviews, and performance profiles. The tools used include Vealey’s (1986) Competitive Orientation Inventory (COI), Gill and Deeter’s (1988) Sport Orientation Questionnaire (SOQ), performance profiles, and semi-structured interviews. The goal-setting intervention lasted a total of five weeks. The results from the preintervention and post-intervention assessments were compared to determine whether any changes in motivation or self-efficacy occurred during the intervention. For the first participant, significant changes in both motivation and self-efficacy were present in addition to significant changes in competitive orientation. For the second participant, there were no significant changes in either motivation or self-efficacy. However, for the second participant there was also no change in competitive orientation. Findings suggest that the focus and competitive orientation of an athlete have a significant influence on the types of goals set, and consequently on positive changes in motivation, confidence, and self-efficacy. The influence of the competitive orientation in athletes also highlighted the importance of attaining a balance between performance and outcome goal-related activities. It was also discovered through qualitative assessment that this program is suitable for particular groups of athletes such as those who are injured, display an external locus of causality or are otherwise not performing at their prime

The influence of heat transport on Arctic amplification

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution February 2019.The Arctic surface air temperature has warmed nearly twice as much as the global mean since the mid-20th century. Arctic sea ice has also been declining rapidly in recent decades. There is still discussion about how much of this Arctic amplification is caused by local factors, such as changes in surface albedo, versus remote factors, such as changes in heat transport from the midlatitudes. This thesis focuses mainly on the role of poleward heat transport on Arctic amplification. Most of the previous studies on this topic have defined ocean heat transport as the zonally averaged ocean heat transport at 65∘N or 70∘N, which ignores the physical pathways of heat into the Arctic and may include recirculation of heat in the North Atlantic. In this thesis, we define the ocean heat transport as the heat transport across five sections surrounding the Arctic, to create a closed domain in the Arctic. Previous studies on Arctic amplification have used either a single model run or have compared results from a multi-model ensemble. While the multi-model ensemble approach may potentially average out biases in individual models, the ensemble spread confounds the model differences and the internal climate variability. In this thesis, we investigate the Arctic amplification in the Community Earth System Model version 1 (CESM1) Large Ensemble. The CESM1 Large Ensemble includes 40 members that use the same model and external forcing, but different initializations. This simulates different climate trajectories that can occur in a given atmosphere-ocean-land-cryosphere system. We find that CESM1 Large Ensemble projects a large increase towards the end of the 21st century in ocean heat transport into the Arctic, and that the increase in ocean heat transport is significantly correlated with Arctic amplification. The main contributor to the increase in ocean heat transport is the increase across the Barents Sea Opening. The increase in Barents Sea Opening ocean heat transport is highly correlated with the decrease in sea ice in the Barents-Kara Sea region. We propose that this is because the increase in ocean heat transport melts the ice at the sea ice margin, which results in increased surface heat flux from the ocean and further local feedback through decreased surface albedo and increased cloud coverage. We also find that while the changes in atmosphere heat transport into the Arctic circle at 66.5∘N are on the same order as the changes in ocean heat transport, they are not correlated with Arctic amplification

Identificación de factores de riesgo que contribuyen a la presencia de Stenotrophomonas maltophilia en secreción bronquial en pacientes de unidad de cuidados intensivos (UCI-7B) del Hospital Nacional Edgardo Rebagliati Martins en el periodo de enero 2008 a diciembre 2009

Stenotrophomonas maltophilia antiguamente perteneciente a los géneros Pseudomonas y Xanthomonas, es un bacilo aeróbico, Gram (-) que ha sido aislado en suelo, agua, vegetales y animales, así como en diferentes ambientes. La importancia de S. maltophilia radica en que se ha convertido en un patógeno nosocomial emergente en las últimas décadas en los pacientes de la Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos (UCI) , principalmente en aquellos pacientes que presentan un mayor riesgo por estar inmunocomprometidos o debilitados clínicamente por enfermedades subyacentes. La evaluación de los factores de riesgo para la aparición de la infección así como la susceptibilidad y resistencia a los distintos antibióticos va a ayudar a una mejor selección de la terapia antibiótica contra S. maltophilia. La presente investigación constituyó un estudio de tipo observacional, analítico, retrospectivo de casos y controles, el cual, tuvo el objetivo de determinar los factores de riesgo que contribuyen a la presencia de Stenotrophomonas maltophilia en secreción bronquial en pacientes de UCI-7B del Hospital Nacional Edgardo Rebagliati Martins durante el periodo 2008 al 2009. Los factores determinados fueron: traqueostomía (OR: 5.359), terapia con vancomicina (OR: 3.578), enfermedad pulmonar obstructiva crónica (EPOC) (OR:3.400), terapia con carbapenems (OR:3.235), neutropenia (OR:3.214) y sepsis (OR:3.085). Se evaluaron 60 historias clínicas de pacientes (28 casos y 32 controles) admitidos en la UCI-7B en el periodo comprendido entre enero de 2008 y diciembre de 2009. El tratamiento de la infección causada por S. maltophilia es dificultoso debido a la resistencia a los diversos antibióticos usados para las infecciones nosocomiales adquiridas; sin embargo los resultados del presente estudio apoyan el uso como antibiótico de elección a trimetropim/sulfametoxazol 800 mg + 160 mg / 3 ml contra infecciones por S. maltophilia debido a la alta susceptibilidad in vitro encontrada.Tesi

Marginalisation, discrimination and the health of Latino immigrant day labourers in a central North Carolina community

The morbidity and mortality of Latino immigrants in the United States (US) stem from a complex mix of policy, culture, discrimination, and economics. Immigrants working as day labourers may be particularly vulnerable to the negative influences of these social factors due to limited access to social, financial, and legal resources. We aimed to understand how the health of male Latino day labourers in North Carolina, US is influenced by their experiences interacting with their community and perceptions of their social environment. To respond to our research questions, we conducted three focus groups (n=9, n =10, n=10) and a photovoice project (n=5) with Latino male immigrants between October 2013 and March 2014. We conducted a thematic analysis of transcripts from the discussions in the focus groups and the group of Photovoice participants. We found that men's health and well-being were primarily shaped by their experiences and feelings of discrimination and marginalization. We identified three main links between discrimination/marginalization and poor health: (1) dangerous work resulted in workplace injuries or illnesses, (2) unsteady employment caused stress, anxiety and insufficient funds for health care, and (3) exclusionary policies and treatment resulted in limited healthcare accessibility. Health promotion with Latino immigrant men in new settlement areas could benefit from community-building activities, addressing discrimination, augmenting the reach of formal health care, and building upon the informal mechanisms that immigrants rely on to meet their health needs. Reforms to immigration and labour policies are also essential to addressing these structural barriers to health for these men

Impact of Porcine Arterivirus, Influenza B, and Their Coinfection on Antiviral Response in the Porcine Lung

Interferon (IFN) cytokines induce an autonomous antiviral state in cells of the infected site to restrict virus spreading and critically regulate overall antiviral response. The antiviral state leads to host protection through expression of hundreds of IFN-stimulated genes that restrict viral infection through multiple mechanisms, for example, directly in viral genome degradation and indirectly through cellular metabolic inhibition. Young pigs were split into four treatment groups: control, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV, also known as porcine arterivirus) infected, influenza B virus (IBV) infected, and IBV/PRRSV coinfection. Lung tissue was collected at 3, 5, and 7 days post infection (dpi) for control, PRRSV and IBV/PRRSV coinfection, and at 3 and 5 dpi for IBV. Transcriptomic analysis, using usegalaxy.org tools, was performed against the S.scrofa 11.1 reference genome. Differentially expressed gene (DEG) analysis was carried out using DeSeq2 based on the model treatment + dpi + treatment:dpi + E. Downstream analysis examined the interaction of DEG at each dpi for over-enriched gene ontology (G.O.) terms and pathways. Comparisons of the infected groups vs. the controls yielded a total of (n = 1412) DEGs for the PRRSV group and (n = 1578) for the IBV/PRRSV group across all timepoints. The IBV group had (n = 64) total DEGs across 3 and 5 dpi. Expression data were considered statistically significant based on false discovery rate (FDR) ⫹ 0.1. Venn diagram comparisons of the DEGs across dpi showed that groups shared only 16 DEGs at 3 dpi, no DEGs were shared at 5 dpi, and for 7 dpi, only the PRRSV and IBV/PRRSV groups were compared and shared a total of 43 DEGs. Across the comparisons, differential expression was observed in antiviral genes such as IRF1, MX1, and OAS2. The IBV and IBV/PRRSV groups showed higher expression of antiviral genes at earlier dpi than the PRRSV group. Additionally, downregulated genes from the comparisons clustered around Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways effecting lung development and cellular integrity. Early expression of host IFN and antiviral genes may lead to viral RNA degradation, and assembly and transcription inhibition in the IBV infections. In comparison, expression of antiviral genes in the PRRSV group decreased across time. The decrease may explain why PRRSV infections persist, while IBV clears. Moreover, all infected groups showed prolonged upregulation in neutrophil degranulation pathway activity, possibly exacerbating symptomatic lung lesion pathology seen in these respiratory infections

The Role of Maternal Gesture Use in Speech Use by Children with Fragile X Syndrome

Purpose--The purpose of this study was to investigate how maternal gesture relates to speech production by children with fragile X syndrome (FXS). Method--Participants were 27 young children with FXS (23 boys, 4 girls) and their mothers. Videotaped home observations were conducted between the ages of 25 and 37 months (toddler period), and again between the ages of 60 and 71 months (child period). The videos were later coded for types of maternal utterances and maternal gestures that preceded child speech productions. Children were also assessed with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning at both ages Results--Maternal gesture use in the toddler period was positively related to expressive language scores at both age periods, and was related to receptive language scores in the child period. Maternal proximal pointing, in comparison to other gestures, evoked more speech responses from children during the mother-child interactions particularly when combined with wh-questions. Conclusion-- This study adds to the growing body of research on the importance of contextual variables, such as maternal gestures, in child language development. Parental gesture use may be an easily added ingredient to parent-focused early language intervention programs

Glycoside Hydrolases Degrade Polymicrobial Bacterial Biofilms in Wounds

The persistent nature of chronic wounds leaves them highly susceptible to invasion by a variety of pathogens that have the ability to construct an extracellular polymeric substance (EPS). This EPS makes the bacterial population, or biofilm, up to 1,000-fold more antibiotic tolerant than planktonic cells and makes wound healing extremely difficult. Thus, compounds which have the ability to degrade biofilms, but not host tissue components, are highly sought after for clinical applications. In this study, we examined the efficacy of two glycoside hydrolases, alpha-amylase and cellulase, which break down complex polysaccharides, to effectively disrupt Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa monoculture and coculture biofilms. We hypothesized that glycoside hydrolase therapy would significantly reduce EPS biomass and convert bacteria to their planktonic state, leaving them more susceptible to conventional antimicrobials. Treatment of S. aureus and P. aeruginosa biofilms, grown in vitro and in vivo, with solutions of alpha-amylase and cellulase resulted in significant reductions in biomass, dissolution of the biofilm, and an increase in the effectiveness of subsequent antibiotic treatments. These data suggest that glycoside hydrolase therapy represents a potential safe, effective, and new avenue of treatment for biofilm-related infections