Difference in Excitement While Watching Male vs. Female Athletes

This study explores the difference between male and female sports. We aim to understand whether the reception of women’s teams is due to a significant difference in attention and excitement levels of the viewer or if the difference in excitement between men’s and women’s sports is influenced by misogyny or other societal factors. This study was IRB-approved, and data was collected in the UX & Biometrics Lab at Quinlan. Attention, engagement, and excitement were measured using eye-tracking technology (measuring attention), facial recognition software (measuring engagement), and Galvanic Skin Response data (measuring arousal)

Quantifying the Rise and Fall of Complexity in Closed Systems: The Coffee Automaton

In contrast to entropy, which increases monotonically, the "complexity" or "interestingness" of closed systems seems intuitively to increase at first and then decrease as equilibrium is approached. For example, our universe lacked complex structures at the Big Bang and will also lack them after black holes evaporate and particles are dispersed. This paper makes an initial attempt to quantify this pattern. As a model system, we use a simple, two-dimensional cellular automaton that simulates the mixing of two liquids ("coffee" and "cream"). A plausible complexity measure is then the Kolmogorov complexity of a coarse-grained approximation of the automaton's state, which we dub the "apparent complexity." We study this complexity measure, and show analytically that it never becomes large when the liquid particles are non-interacting. By contrast, when the particles do interact, we give numerical evidence that the complexity reaches a maximum comparable to the "coffee cup's" horizontal dimension. We raise the problem of proving this behavior analytically

Elevating the Voices for All Learners through Shared Stories of Science Learning

This study examines the science learning experiences across the lifespan of two groups of college students: adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in a post-secondary inclusive program, and adults in a preservice secondary education teacher candidate program. Data, in the form of personal narrative science stories were collected using a paired-interview approach in which students from each group interviewed one another about their science learning across their lifespans, and recorded responses using an online form. Across the stories, several clear themes emerged. Similarities and differences were found across and within the groups and are shared in a narrative format. Trends that emerged both across and within groups are shared, and recommendations are made for current and future teachers for best practices in teaching science to all students, including those with a variety of disabilities

Helheten är större än summan av delarna- En kvalitativ studie om det drogförebyggande arbetet inom grundskolan samt inställningar och attityder till införandet av slumpmässiga, frivilliga drogtester

Denna studie syftar till att undersöka vilket drogförebyggande arbete som görs inom grundskolan idag samt vilka attityder skolsköterskor, kuratorer och drogsamordnare har till införandet av slumpmässiga, frivilliga drogtester i skolan. Med studiens syfte som utgångspunkt valdes kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer som metod för insamling av empiriskt material. Teorier som vi har valt att använda oss av för att förklara det fenomen vi undersökt är primär och sekundär prevention, teorin om risk- och skyddsfaktorer samt systemteori. Resultatet visar att det idag saknas en ”röd tråd” i det drogförebyggande arbetet inom skolan. Det drogförebyggande arbetet på skolorna bygger främst på engagemang och intresse hos enskilda lärare eller elevvårdspersonal som arbetar på skolan. Det finns idag någon form av ANT-undervisning (alkohol, narkotika, tobak) på alla de skolor vi varit i kontakt med. Andra metoder som nämnts under intervjuerna är SET (Social och Emotionell Träning), ÖPP (Örebro Preventions Program) och Livskunskap. Samtliga intervjupersoner är negativa till ett eventuellt införande av slumpmässiga, frivilliga drogtester i skolan. Flera av intervjupersonerna uttrycker en oro över vilka konsekvenser ett sådant beslut kan medföra. Oro över att eleverna och i vissa fall även föräldrarnas förtroende för skolan minskar när man inför drogtester. Det råder även tveksamhet kring hur pass reell frivilligheten i drogtesterna verkligen är. Trots att det drogförebyggande arbetet på skolorna ser olika ut så har samtliga intervjupersoner en enhetlig syn på hur skolans arbete med alkohol, narkotika och tobak bör se ut. Samtliga intervjupersoner menade att fokus inte bör ligga på drogförebyggande arbete i sig utan fokus bör ligga på att förebygga problembeteenden i allmänhet. Nyckelord: förebyggande arbete, drogförebyggande arbete, skolan förebygger, preventiv, drogtester, drogtester i skolan, evidens, evidensbaserad, primär och sekundär prevention, risk- och skyddsfaktorer, Systemteori, Landskrona kommun drogtester.This study aims at examining which type of drug prevention programs exist in compulsory schools today and what school nurses, counsellors and drug coordinators attitudes are towards Landskrona Kommuns decision to introduce random voluntary drug testing in schools. With the aim of this study as a starting point we chose to take a qualitative approach to gathering empirical data through semi structured interviews. Theories we have used to give a better account of the phenomenon we have studied are: Primary and Secondary Prevention Theory, Risk and Protective Factors Theory and Systems Theory. The study shows that drug prevention programs used in compulsory schools today vary both within schools and between schools. The drug prevention programs in the schools we examined are mainly based on the degree of interest and commitment individual teachers, school nurses and counsellors have to drug prevention. All the schools we examined have some form of time set aside in their curriculum intended to supply factual information in regards to the uses of alcohol, narcotics and tobacco. Other programs that were mentioned during the interviews were SET (Social and Emotional Training), ÖPP (Örebro Prevention Program) and Livskunskap (also a form of social and emotional training). All of the respondents are opposed to introducing random voluntary drug tests in schools. Several of the respondents express a certain degree of concern about the consequences a decision like that might have. Concerns that the trust between pupils, and in some cases, even their parents and the school might decrease if drug tests are introduced in schools. Another concern is to what real extent the drug tests will be voluntary. Despite the fact that the drug prevention programs vary within and between these schools all of the respondents had a uniform view on what drug prevention programs should focus on. Drug prevention in schools should not focus on drugs as the main problem but on problem behavior in general. Keywords: drug prevention, drug testing schools, evidence based practice, Primary and Secondary Prevention Theory, Risk and Protective Factors Theory and System Theory

The Virtual Beta: An Interactive Fish Using Java Script and CSS

My first version of the fish was written in C, because it was the language I was studying at the time. I wanted something that more people could view easily, however and one that could manage images more simply than C. I ended up choosing ]avaScript. At first I tried to translate my C program directly to ]avaScript, but I soon found this was too complex a task

Identification of Regulatory Elements in the Untranslated Regions of Streptolysin S Associated Gene A Messenger RNA from Group A Streptococcus

Streptococcus pyogenes, also known as group A Streptococcus (GAS), is a human pathogen associated with a variety of diseases such as strep throat, scarlet fever, toxic shock syndrome, and necrotizing fasciitis. One of the virulence factors released by GAS during an invasive infection is a cytotoxic peptide, streptolysin S (SLS), which inhibits the immune response to necrotizing fasciitis. The streptolysin S associated gene A product, SagA, is modified to produce SLS. Thesag operon includes sagA and the genes required for enzyme-mediated post-translational modifications of SagA and the export of SLS. The sagA gene is contained within the pleiotropic effect locus (pel), which produces a small RNA (sRNA) that regulates the expression of other virulence factors. Potential mRNA interactions with the Pel sRNA have been mapped to the 5\u27 and 3\u27 untranslated regions (UTRs) of sagA. Our studies aim to identify and characterize RNA structural motifs in Pel/sagA that regulate the expression of sagA and other virulence factors. Several RNA constructs of Pel/sagA were designed to include regions predicted to contain secondary structure. The corresponding sequences were isolated by PCR from genomic DNA to create templates for in vitro transcription. After purification, the RNA constructs were analyzed by gel electrophoresis to verify size, and by RNase T1 digestion to assay for secondary structure. Three-dimensional models were generated using the FARFAR algorithm in Rosetta in order to identify regions of Pel/sagA that may be involved in regulatory interactions. Differential scanning fluorimetry provided evidence that the 5\u27 and 3\u27 UTRs of Pel/sagA contain stable structural regions. It is expected that the identification of structural motifs necessary for the regulation of gene expression will aid in the design of therapeutic strategies to inhibit the production of streptolysin S and other virulence factors

Development and pilot evaluation of a personalized decision support intervention for low risk prostate cancer patients.

ObjectivesDevelopment and pilot evaluation of a personalized decision support intervention to help men with early-stage prostate cancer choose among active surveillance, surgery, and radiation.MethodsWe developed a decision aid featuring long-term survival and side effects data, based on focus group input and stakeholder endorsement. We trained premedical students to administer the intervention to newly diagnosed men with low-risk prostate cancer seen at the University of California, San Francisco. Before the intervention, and after the consultation with a urologist, we administered the Decision Quality Instrument for Prostate Cancer (DQI-PC). We hypothesized increases in two knowledge items from the DQI-PC: How many men diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer will eventually die of prostate cancer? How much would waiting 3 months to make a treatment decision affect chances of survival? Correct answers were: "Most will die of something else" and "A little or not at all."ResultsThe development phase involved 6 patients, 1 family member, 2 physicians, and 5 other health care providers. In our pilot test, 57 men consented, and 44 received the decision support intervention and completed knowledge surveys at both timepoints. Regarding the two knowledge items of interest, before the intervention, 35/56 (63%) answered both correctly, compared to 36/44 (82%) after the medical consultation (P = .04 by chi-square test).ConclusionsThe intervention was associated with increased patient knowledge. Data from this pilot have guided the development of a larger scale randomized clinical trial to improve decision quality in men with prostate cancer being treated in community settings