Biomes

Students should be able to identify food webs, as well as all the other biotic and abiotic features in their assigned biome and organize their informational facts and visual aids into a classroom Pinterest board that all can access and learn from one another

Teaching philosophies revalued:beyond personal development to academic and institutional capacity building

This research investigates the value of teaching philosophies (TP) for today’s academics and their institutions. It offers a new framework to enhance academic development, personal resilience, and institutional capacity building. Since the 1990s, TPs have been formalised as personally constructed and reflectively written statements of educational values, beliefs, and practices. Whereas within universities, TPs have been institutionalised for academic performance reviews, awards, and promotions. In-depth personal interviews on TPs and their value on personal journeys and institutional experiences were conducted with academics from Australia and Canada. The findings highlight the value and future potential of TPs beyond a formulaic role

Document for Commonwealth Countries on Copyright Matters in Education

This document discusses copyright issues and provides guidelines on copyright limitations and exceptions for education in Commonwealth countries

A robotic honeycomb for interaction with a honeybee colony

Abstract: Robotic technologies have shown the capability to interact with living organisms and even to form integrated mixed societies comprised of living and artificial agents. Bio-compatible robots, incorporating sensing and actuation capable of generating and responding to relevant stimuli, can be a tool to study collective behaviors previously unattainable with traditional techniques. To investigate collective behaviors of the western honeybee (Apis mellifera), we designed a robotic system capable of observing and modulating the bee cluster using an array of thermal sensors and actuators. We initially integrated the system into a beehive populated with approximately 4,000 bees for several months. The robotic system was able to observe the colony by continuously collecting spatio- temporal thermal profiles of the winter cluster. Furthermore, we found that our robotic device reliably modulated the superorganism’s response to dynamic thermal stimulation, influencing its spatiotemporal re-organization. In addition, after identifying the thermal collapse of a colony, we used the robotic system in a “life-support” mode via its thermal actuators. Ultimately, we demonstrated a robotic device capable of autonomous closed-loop interaction with a cluster comprising thousands of individual bees. Such biohybrid societies open the door to investigation of collective behaviors that necessitate observing and interacting with the animals within a complete social context, as well as for potential applications in augmenting the survivability of these pollinators crucial to our ecosystems and our food supply. This is the author’s version of the work. It is posted here by permission of the AAAS for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Science Robotics, Vol. 8, 76, Mar 2023, DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.add7385 https://doi.org/10.1126/scirobotics.add738

Effect of Allergic Rhinitis on the Use and Cost of Health Services by Children with Asthma

Purpose: Allergic rhinitis (AR) is common among children with asthma and exacerbates asthma symptoms. To assess the incremental utilization and cost of asthma-related health services due to concomitant AR among asthmatic children. Materials and Methods: Asthma-related claims were extracted from the Korean National Health Insurance (NHI) claims database, which covers 97 % of the population. Per-capita utilization and costs of asthma-related services were determined from the societal perspective. Results: Of 319,714 children (1- 14 years old) with chronic asthma in 2003, 195,026 had concomitant AR (prevalence 610 per 1,000 asthmatic children). Children with AR had 1.14 times more outpatient visits, 1.30 times more emergency department (ED) visits, and 1.49 times more hospitalizations than children without AR. More children with AR used general hospitals (7.17%) than children without AR (3.23%). The ratios of unit pharmaceutical costs per outpatient visit, ED visit, and admission between children with and without AR were 1.27, 1.20, and 1.14. Total annual expenditure combining direct health care, transportation, and caregivers ' costs, were $273 and$217 for children with and without AR, respectively. Conclusion: Health service utilization and costs for asthma were greater for asthmatic children with AR. More frequent ED visits and admissions among asthmatic children with AR suggest poorer control and more frequent exacerbations. Higher unit cost of pharmaceuticals during visits, tendency to receive asthma care from a higher-level facility, and greater risk of ED visit or admission all contributed to the additional economic burden of AR

Treatment trends in allergic rhinitis and asthma: a British ENT survey

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Allergic Rhinitis is a common Ear, Nose and Throat disorder. Asthma and Allergic Rhinitis are diseases with similar underlying mechanism and pathogenesis. The aim of this survey was to highlight current treatment trends for Allergic Rhinitis and Asthma.</p> <p>Method</p> <p>A questionnaire was emailed to all registered consultant members of the British Association of Otorhinolaryngologists - Head and Neck Surgeons regarding the management of patients with Allergic Rhinitis and related disorders.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Survey response rate was 56%. The results indicate a various approach in the investigation and management of Allergic Rhinitis compatible with recommendations from the Allergic Rhinitis and Its Impact on Asthma guidelines in collaboration with the World Health Organisation.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>A combined management approach for patients with Allergic Rhinitis and concomitant Asthma may reduce medical treatment costs for these conditions and improve symptom control and quality of life.</p

Catching allergy by a simple questionnaire

Background: Identifying allergic rhinitis requires allergy testing, but the first-line referral for rhinitis are usually primary care physicians (PCP), who are not familiar with such tests. The availability of easy and simple tests to be used by PCP to suggest allergy should be very useful. Methods: The Respiratory Allergy Prediction (RAP) test, based on 9 questions and previously validated by a panel of experts, was evaluated in this study. Results: An overall number of 401 patients (48.6% males, age range 14-62 years) with respiratory symptoms was included. Of them, 89 (22.2%) showed negative results to SPT, while 312 (77.8%) had at least one positive result to SPT. Cohen's kappa coefficient showed that all questions had an almost perfect excellent agreement between pre and post-test. The algorithm of decision-tree growth Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detector showed that answering yes to the question 4 (Your nasal/ocular complains do usually start or worsen during the spring?), 6 (Did you ever had cough or shortness of breath, even during exercise?) and 8 (Do you use nasal sprays frequently?) gave a probability to have a positive SPT of 85%. Conclusions: These findings show that RAP test can be proposed as an useful tool to be used by physician other than allergists when evaluating patients with rhinitis, suggesting the need of allergy testing