A Hybrid Approach to Case Teaching

We structure case based teaching using a combination of computer-support echnology and in-class activities. We create and design an on-line learning tool, Case Study On-line (CSOL) that enables instructor to structure the delivery of teaching resources and set up assignment tasks in the system. The tool enables tasks to be set in a way that they can be completed sequentially, and learning resources can be accessed only when required by students. Upon submission of their assignments, students can promptly receive instructor’s explanations to the tasks. Follow up activities take place in class, with the objective to promote active learning. The tool was adopted over two semesters in an undergraduate economics course and surveys were conducted among the students to evaluate the effectiveness of the tool. The results of the survey were very positive, providing support to our belief that a system of well-designed case teaching delivery tool, together with classroom activities, is able to increase the level of students’ engagement and interest. The paper helps to address some concerns about teaching methods in undergraduate economics courses.Technologies-based Instruction, In-class Activities, Scaffolding, Active-based Learning

A Hybrid Approach to Case Teaching

We structure case based teaching using a combination of computer-support technology and in-class activities. We create and design an on-line learning tool, Case Study On-line (CSOL) that enables instructor to structure the delivery of teaching resources and set up assignment tasks in the system. The tool enables tasks to be set in a way that they can be completed sequentially, and learning resources can be accessed only when required by students. Upon submission of their assignments, students can promptly receive instructors explanations to the tasks. Follow up activities take place in class, with the objective to promote active learning. The tool was adopted over two semesters in an undergraduate economics course and surveys were conducted among the students to evaluate the effectiveness of the tool. The results of the survey were very positive, providing support to our belief that a system of well-designed case teaching delivery tool, together with classroom activities, is able to increase the level of students engagement and interest. The paper helps to address some concerns about teaching methods in undergraduate economics courses.Technologies-based Instruction, In-class Activities, Scaffolding, Active-based Learning

Dichlorido[(4E,11E)-5,7,12,14-tetra­benzyl-7,14-dimethyl-1,4,8,11-tetra­aza­cyclo­tetra­deca-4,11-diene]cobalt(III) perchlorate

The CoIII atom in the title complex, [CoCl2(C40H48N4)]ClO4, is octa­hedrally coordinated within a trans-Cl2N4 donor set provided by the tetra­dentate macrocylic ligand and two chloride ions. The N—H atoms, which are orientated to one side of the N4 plane, form hydrogen bonds with chloride ions and perchlorate-O atoms. These along with C—H⋯O inter­actions consolidate the three-dimensional crystal structure. One of the benzene rings was disordered. This was resolved over two positions with the major component of the disorder having a site-occupancy factor of 0.672 (4)

Distance Dependence in the Solar Neighborhood Age-Metallicity Relation

The age-metallicity relation for F and G dwarf stars in the solar neighborhood, based on the stellar metallicity data of Edvardsson et al. (1993), shows an apparent scatter that is larger than expected considering the uncertainties in metallicities and ages. A number of theoretical models have been put forward to explain the large scatter. However, we present evidence, based on Edvardsson et al. (1993) data, along with Hipparcos parallaxes and new age estimates, that the scatter in the age-metallicity relation depends on the distance to the stars in the sample, such that stars within 30 pc of the Sun show significantly less scatter in [Fe/H]. Stars of intermediate age from the Edvardsson et al. sample at distances 30-80 pc from the Sun are systematically more metal-poor than those more nearby. We also find that the slope of the apparent age-metallicity relation is different for stars within 30 pc than for those stars more distant. These results are most likely an artifact of selection biases in the Edvardsson et al. star sample. We conclude that the intrinsic dispersion in metallicity at fixed age is < 0.15 dex, consistent with the < 0.1 dex scatter for Galactic open star clusters and the interstellar medium.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figures, uses AASTex aaspp4 style; accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

The effect of support surface and footwear condition on postural sway and lower limb muscle action of the older women

Background: Diminished somatosensory function is a critical age-related change which is related to postural instability in the older population. Footwear is a cost-effective way to modulate the postural stability by altering sensorimotor inputs via mechanoreceptors on the plantar surface of the feet. Compared to insoles with indentions in the entire surface, we innovatively developed a textured insole with site-specific nodulous protrudous. This study thus aimed to investigate the immediate effect of the nodulous insole and supporting surface condition on static postural stability and lower limb muscle activation for healthy older women. Methods: This is a single-session study with repeated measurements. Twenty-three healthy older women stood on the firm (i.e., concrete floor) and foam surfaces with their eyes open in the three footwear conditions, namely barefoot, plain shoes and shoes with an innovative textured insole, for 30 seconds. Static postural sway and muscle activation of biceps femoris (BF), vastus lateralis (VL), tibialis anterior (TA), and lateral gastrocnemius (LG) of the dominant leg were measured during each testing condition. Results: Compared to a firm surface, standing on the foam could significantly increase the body sway and lower limb muscle activation (p<0.05). When standing on the foam, compared to barefoot, wearing footwear significantly decreased the VL and TA muscle activation and minimize the postural sway in medial-lateral and anterior-posterior direction, while the influence is larger for the shoes with nodulous insloe compared to the plain shoes. No significant differences between the footwear conditions for static stability and muscle activation were observed on firm surface condition. Conclusions:For older women, footwear could improve the postural stability in the unstable surface, particularly the footwear with nodulous insole, with the underlying mechanism as enhancing the mechanoreceptors on the plantar surface of the feet

trans-(5,7,7,12,14,14-Hexamethyl-1,4,8,11-tetra­aza­cyclo­tetra­deca-4,11-diene-κ4 N,N′,N′′,N′′′)bis­(nitrito-κN)cobalt(III) perchlorate hemihydrate

The asymmetric unit of the title CoIII complex, [Co(NO2)2(C16H32N4)]ClO4·0.5H2O, comprises two complex cations, two perchlorate anions and a water mol­ecule of crystallization. The CoIII atoms exist within distorted octa­hedral N6 geometries defined by four N atoms of the macrocycle ligand and trans-N atoms derived from the nitrite anions. Systematic variations in the Co—N bond lengths are correlated with the presence of intra­molecular N—H⋯O(nitrite) hydrogen bonds. In the crystal, water-O—H⋯O(perchlorate) hydrogen bonds, involving one of the independent perchlorate anions only, lead to supra­molecular chains along the b-axis direction. The three-dimensional architecture is consolidated by numerous C—H⋯O inter­actions. The crystal studied was a non-merohedral, racemic twin

pyPcazip: A PCA-based toolkit for compression and analysis of molecular simulation data

AbstractThe biomolecular simulation community is currently in need of novel and optimised software tools that can analyse and process, in reasonable timescales, the large generated amounts of molecular simulation data. In light of this, we have developed and present here pyPcazip: a suite of software tools for compression and analysis of molecular dynamics (MD) simulation data. The software is compatible with trajectory file formats generated by most contemporary MD engines such as AMBER, CHARMM, GROMACS and NAMD, and is MPI parallelised to permit the efficient processing of very large datasets. pyPcazip is a Unix based open-source software (BSD licenced) written in Python

Not just how much you know: Interactional effect of cultural knowledge and metacognition on creativity in a global context

ABSTRACTThe ability to think and solve problems creatively in a multicultural environment is critical for success in the 21stcentury. Integrating research on creative cognition and cultural intelligence, we examine the interactional effects of two cognitive capabilities – cultural knowledge and cultural metacognition – on individuals’ creativity in multicultural teams. We propose that although cultural knowledge is useful for creativity, too much knowledge can be detrimental because of cognitive overload and entrenchment. This inverted U-shaped relationship however, is moderated by cultural metacognition. Results of our study support our hypothesis of an inverted U-shape relationship between cultural knowledge and creativity. As expected, we found that the curvilinear effect of cultural knowledge occurs only for individuals with low metacognition. For high cultural metacognition individuals, cultural knowledge has no effect on creativity. These findings offer new insights and practical implications for creativity in today's global environment.</jats:p