Holiday Inn at the Bellingham International Airport: environmental impact assessment

The Bellingham International Airport located in Bellingham, Washington in Whatcom County, has a history dating back to 1941 and is currently owned by the Port of Bellingham. The Port of Bellingham is currently looking to expand its property and is opening up to commercial users in order to create jobs and economic growth within the community. They have a current project underway with the Hotel Services Group, LLC to implement the construction of a hotel. The main objective is to construct a Holiday Inn Brand hotel next to the Bellingham International Airport in order to provide convenient lodging for travelers. The proposed full-service hotel will have 153 rooms, a full-service restaurant, an indoor pool, 7,000 square feet of conference room space, as well as 300 stalls of underground and surface parking

Variation in metabolic responses to meal challenges differing in glycemic index in healthy women: Is it meaningful?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Established clinical tests are commonly used in disease diagnosis, but tools that enhance identification of metabolic dysfunctions are needed. This study was conducted to identify typical and atypical metabolite temporal patterns in response to paired meal challenge tests.</p> <p>Design</p> <p>Metabolic responses to high and low glycemic index (GI) meals were tested in 24 healthy pre-menopausal women, aged 20-50 y, with BMI of 25-30 kg/m²using a cross-over design. On test days, blood glucose, insulin, leptin and non-esterified fatty acids were measured after an overnight fasting, and for 8 h following test meal consumption. The data were range scaled, and multivariate statistics were used to assess the presence of distinct response groups to the meal challenge tests.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>As expected, participants showed higher circulating glucose and insulin in response to the high GI compared to the low GI meal challenge. However, using range-scaling and Principal Component Analysis, three distinct groups were identified based on differential responses to the paired challenges. Members of the most populated group (n = 18) displayed little deviation from the expected response to the two meal challenges. Two minor groups (n = 3/group) with distinct responses were observed, one suggestive of sub-clinical insulin resistance, and the other suggestive of hyperleptinemia.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The differential responses of glucose, insulin and leptin to low and high glycemic test meals revealed three response groups. Dietary intervention studies traditionally evaluate group responses, and aim to identify the overall effect in the population studied. In contrast, our study analyzed the variance in the meal challenge responses, using an integrated physiological approach, rather than a reductionist approach. This phenotyping approach may be useful for detecting subclinical metabolic dysfunctions, and it could contribute to improved personalized nutrition management. This study is registered in ClinicalTrials.gov, record #200210295</p

Social interaction as a contributor to significant learning outcomes in online instruction

There has been a dramatic increase in online coursework in higher education over the past decade. According to Allen and Seaman (2010), there was a 17% growth in online enrollments between 2007 and 2008. While many institutions offer only single courses online, others offer entire degrees and students at all educational levels (from primary school through graduate school) are choosing to participate in courses through a distance format, including hybrid and fully online options

Year of the Rabbit

A review of the 2020 book by Tian Veasna, "Year of the Rabbit," for inclusion in ARLIS/NA's 2020 Notable Graphic Novels Review

Moving towards inclusive learning and teaching: A synthesis of recent literature

The need for inclusive and equitable approaches to teaching and learning is a persistent theme in recent literature. In spite of relatively widespread agreement about this objective, inclusion remains elusive, and opinions about how best to achieve it proliferate. To provide a landscape view of the field and offer recommendations for research and practice, this article provides a focussed review of literature connected to inclusive teaching and learning published since 2010. Drawing from a framework advanced by Hockings (2010), we synthesize key findings from recent scholarship and argue for the value of a whole-of-institution approach that considers the activities and interactions of educational actors operating at different institutional levels. We also extend this argument to consider the need for greater attention to factors that move beyond the individual institution and to advocate for further international research in particular

Breaking the Chain – The role of intersexual genetic correlations in sexual dimorphism and the consequences and limits of their evolution

In many sexually reproducing species, males and females often differ in countless ways beyond their primary sexual organs. This phenomenon is known as sexual dimorphism, and it is generally considered to be an adaptive response to differences in the selection pressures experienced by males and females. Despite the advantages associated with sexual dimorphism, it does not evolve completely unhindered – there are plenty of biological effects that can limit the extent and rate of divergence between the sexes. This research project focusses on the potential role of the intersexual genetic correlation (rmf­) – which describes the degree to which brothers and sisters are phenotypically similar to each other – as a limiter on the evolution of sexual dimorphism, a topic of considerable recent debate. We examined the extent to which the intersexual genetic correlation for body size (a sexually dimorphic trait) could be experimentally evolved in replicate populations of fruit flies, Drosophila melanogaster, via selection acting at the family level over the course of five generations. We observed a dramatic (but short-lived) response in rmf­ to selection, which suggests that under the right circumstances that the intersexual genetic correlation is more evolvable than previously thought. A follow-up fitness assay conducted at the end of the experimental evolution period also revealed that some of the intersexual conflict over fitness could be overcome given the right kind of mating patterns. This project provides fresh insight into the relative evolvability of intersexual genetic correlations, as well as empirical evidence on ways in which selection can facilitate the adaptive evolution of sexual dimorphism

Becoming a female leader in higher education: investigations from a regional university

Issues of gender imbalance in leadership have long been a significant issue in universities, as is the case across most industries. This paper explores the experiences of seven females who have successfully achieved senior leadership positions at a regional university in Australia. While the experiences of these women differ in many ways, there are certainly similarities in the challenges and adversities that they have faced, and their perceptions of what has allowed them to experience success in their leadership roles. This paper provides a number of recommendations for women aspiring to be leaders in higher education, such as committing to ongoing development, taking opportunities when presented, developing resilience, developing a track record, and seeking support, and also recommendations for institutions

Leading institutional change through learning and teaching communities

The potential for Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) initiatives to influence practice has been an important issue explored throughout the literature since Boyer’s early discussions on scholarship. While it is now generally accepted that individual inquiry and reflection into teaching and learning issues can positively impact one’s practice, the interest in SoTL has shifted from individual scholarship to wider contexts. In recent years, academic developers and leaders have expressed a desire to better understand how SoTL initiatives can be successfully implemented and embedded at the institutional level as a strategy to not only influence individuals’ practice, but contribute to a broader shift in cultural perspectives on teaching and learning. This paper will discuss recent research on an institutional initiative utilising SoTL as a strategy to simultaneously address staff professional development needs and quality enhancement of learning and teaching. The Learning and Teaching Community Grant Initiative was developed to promote/support learning and teaching initiatives, while investigating and resolving specific educational issues of particular importance to the institution. Key aims of the initiative include: • the formation of academic communities focused on enhanced Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (Cox, 2004; Wenger, 2014); • improved educational practice; • the identification and support of emerging scholars at the institution; and • broad impact on institutional value of SoTL activities. In early 2015, three Learning and Teaching Communities were established to enable the University’s academic and professional staff to collaborate on learning and teaching issues. The research focus is on the ‘lived experience’ (VanManen,1990) of participants, using observation, interviews and focus group methodology. The project will conclude with a Most Significant Change (MSC) analysis in which participants will be asked to identify significant change the project made in their lives. They will then share those reflections, and decide as a group on what they count as most significant (Davies & Dart, 2005). This articulation of the process and outcomes to participants provides feedback and builds transformative knowledge, in line with the philosophy of Learning Communities that underpins the initiative (Cox, 2004; Wenger 2014). Data collected is being analysed to provide formative and summative evaluation of the project to determine the implications for future Learning and Teaching Communities as institutional SoTL initiatives. Preliminary findings of the investigation into the impact of this initiative will be shared. Evidence will be reported regarding: • effective practices identified for using a SoTL community model as a professional development strategy; and • indicators of change in the attitudes and behaviors of participants collectively and individually. These findings will build upon previous work about the potential for learning communities. It is expected that the findings will have practical significance for those striving to enhance practice and promote an institutional culture that recognizes and values SoTL (Furco & Moely, 2012; Schwartz & Haynie, 2013). To promote audience engagement, participants will have time to: • reflect on their perspectives in small groups; • share previous experiences with institutional SoTL initiatives (whole group); and • participate in a Q&A session with presenters and other participants