The Influence of the CSU Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program on Undergraduates\u27 Teaching Plans

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program offers academic and financial support for students pursuing secondary teaching certificates in STEM fields. In return, students commit to teaching in high-need K-12 school districts. The Noyce Program has had uneven results in increasing the number of teachers in high needs schools. Large scale studies of its impact indicate the program is not likely to influence decisions to teach but may persuade participants to initially teach in high needs schools. To better understand the influence of the Noyce Program, we offer case studies of two Noyce scholarship recipients at different stages: (1) a former scholarship recipient who has graduated and is currently teaching, and (2) a second-year recipient who is currently pursuing a teaching certificate. This qualitative analysis provides insights that may have implications for optimizing scholarship programs for recruiting and retaining highly qualified STEM teachers

The conductivity of dense molecular gas

We evaluate the conductivity tensor for molecular gas at densities ranging from 10^4 to 10^15 cm^-3 for a variety of grain models. The Hall contribution to the conductivity has generally been neglected in treatments of the dynamics of molecular gas. We find that it is not important if only 0.1 micron grains are considered, but for a Mathis-Rumpl-Nordsieck grain-size distribution (with or without PAHs) it becomes important for densities between 10^7 and 10^11 cm^-3. If PAHs are included, this range is reduced to 10^9 -- 10^10 cm^-3. The consequences for the magnetic field evolution and dynamics of dense molecular gas are profound. To illustrate this, we consider the propagation of Alfven waves under these conditions. A linear analysis yields a dispersion relation valid for frequencies below the neutral collision frequencies of the charged species. The dispersion relation shows that there is a pair of circularly polarised modes with distinct propagation speeds and damping rates. We note that the gravitational collapse of dense cloud cores may be substantially modified by the Hall term.Comment: MNRAS accepted; 9 pp incl 8 figs, LaTeX, uses epsf.sty mn.st

The Rat Genome Database (RGD): developments towards a phenome database

The Rat Genome Database (RGD) (http://rgd.mcw.edu) aims to meet the needs of its community by providing genetic and genomic infrastructure while also annotating the strengths of rat research: biochemistry, nutrition, pharmacology and physiology. Here, we report on RGD's development towards creating a phenome database. Recent developments can be categorized into three groups. (i) Improved data collection and integration to match increased volume and biological scope of research. (ii) Knowledge representation augmented by the implementation of a new ontology and annotation system. (iii) The addition of quantitative trait loci data, from rat, mouse and human to our advanced comparative genomics tools, as well as the creation of new, and enhancement of existing, tools to enable users to efficiently browse and survey research data. The emphasis is on helping researchers find genes responsible for disease through the use of rat models. These improvements, combined with the genomic sequence of the rat, have led to a successful year at RGD with over two million page accesses that represent an over 4-fold increase in a year. Future plans call for increased annotation of biological information on the rat elucidated through its use as a model for human pathobiology. The continued development of toolsets will facilitate integration of these data into the context of rat genomic sequence, as well as allow comparisons of biological and genomic data with the human genomic sequence and of an increasing number of organisms

A Second-Generation Device for Automated Training and Quantitative Behavior Analyses of Molecularly-Tractable Model Organisms

A deep understanding of cognitive processes requires functional, quantitative analyses of the steps leading from genetics and the development of nervous system structure to behavior. Molecularly-tractable model systems such as Xenopus laevis and planaria offer an unprecedented opportunity to dissect the mechanisms determining the complex structure of the brain and CNS. A standardized platform that facilitated quantitative analysis of behavior would make a significant impact on evolutionary ethology, neuropharmacology, and cognitive science. While some animal tracking systems exist, the available systems do not allow automated training (feedback to individual subjects in real time, which is necessary for operant conditioning assays). The lack of standardization in the field, and the numerous technical challenges that face the development of a versatile system with the necessary capabilities, comprise a significant barrier keeping molecular developmental biology labs from integrating behavior analysis endpoints into their pharmacological and genetic perturbations. Here we report the development of a second-generation system that is a highly flexible, powerful machine vision and environmental control platform. In order to enable multidisciplinary studies aimed at understanding the roles of genes in brain function and behavior, and aid other laboratories that do not have the facilities to undergo complex engineering development, we describe the device and the problems that it overcomes. We also present sample data using frog tadpoles and flatworms to illustrate its use. Having solved significant engineering challenges in its construction, the resulting design is a relatively inexpensive instrument of wide relevance for several fields, and will accelerate interdisciplinary discovery in pharmacology, neurobiology, regenerative medicine, and cognitive science

The Influence of the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program on Undergraduates\u27 Teaching Plans

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program offers academic and financial support for students pursuing secondary teaching certificates in STEM fields. In return, students commit to teaching in high-need K-12 school districts. In this completed research study, we examined factors that influence Noyce Scholars in their decisions about STEM as a major and teaching as a possible career. Through a thematic analysis of nine scholarship applications and a questionnaire, two participants at different stages in the program were selected to participate in a case study: (1) a former scholarship recipient who had graduated and was teaching, and (2) a second-year recipient enrolled in a teacher preparation program. Data were collected from these two participants through scholarship applications, questionnaires and a 45-minute interview. Findings indicated that informal or formal teaching experiences and socialization influences were highly motivating factors in participants’ decision to major in a STEM field and to pursue teaching as a career. The Noyce Scholarship was not a major factor in their decision to teach. These findings may have implications for optimizing scholarship programs to strengthen recruitment and retention in STEM teaching careers

The Influence of the CSU Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program on Undergraduates' Teaching Plans

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program offers academic and financial support for students pursuing secondary teaching certificates in STEM fields. In return, students commit to teaching in high-need K-12 school districts. The Noyce Program has had uneven results in increasing the number of teachers in high needs schools. Large scale studies of its impact indicate the program is not likely to influence decisions to teach but may persuade participants to initially teach in high needs schools. To better understand the influence of the Noyce Program, we offer case studies of two Noyce scholarship recipients at different stages: (1) a former scholarship recipient who has graduated and is currently teaching, and (2) a second-year recipient who is currently pursuing a teaching certificate. This qualitative analysis provides insights that may have implications for optimizing scholarship programs for recruiting and retaining highly qualified STEM teachers

Investigating the Influence of the CSU Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program on College Students\u27 Teaching Plans

The Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (CRAFT-STEM) at Columbus State University offers academic and financial support for students pursuing secondary teaching certificates in STEM fields. In return, students commit to teaching in high-need K-12 school districts in Georgia. Here we provide preliminary results regarding influences on students’ reasoning as they select teaching as a career, STEM as a content focus, and high-needs schools as future employment. With the support of a literature review, we plan to offer a preliminary qualitative analysis of case studies representing three Noyce scholarship recipients with a range of experiences: (1) a former scholarship recipient who has graduated and is currently teaching, (2) a second-year recipient who is currently pursuing their certificate, and (3) a recipient who subsequently decided not to pursue a secondary teaching certificate. Our goal is to offer insight to University STEM Professors on strengthening recruitment and retention in their areas of interest

Social Cognition and Functional Outcome in Schizophrenia: The Moderating Role of Cardiac Vagal Tone

Individuals with schizophrenia face significant challenges in daily functioning, and although social cognition predicts how well patients respond to these challenges, associated physiological mechanisms remain unspecified. The present study draws from polyvagal theory and tested the hypothesis that respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), an established indicator of the capacity to self-regulate and adapt to environmental demands, combines with social cognition to predict functional outcome. Using data from 41 schizophrenia patients and 36 healthy comparison subjects, we replicated group differences in RSA and social cognition and also demonstrated that RSA and social cognition interact to predict how effectively patients manage work and independent living activities. Specifically, RSA did not enhance functional outcomes when social cognition was already strong, but higher levels of RSA enabled effective role functioning when social-cognitive performance was impaired. Jointly, RSA and social cognition accounted for 40% of the variance in outcome success, compared with 21% when evaluating social cognition alone. As polyvagal theory suggests, physiological flexibility and self-regulatory capacity may compensate for poorer social-cognitive skills among schizophrenia patients