Measuring Learners’ Attitudes Toward Team Projects: Scale Development Through Exploratory And Confirmatory Factor Analyses

Team projects are increasingly used in engineering courses. Students may develop attitudes toward team projects from prior experience, and their attitudinal responses could influence their performance during team project-based learning in the future. Thus, instructors need to measure students’ attitudes toward team projects during their learner analysis to better understand students’ characteristics and be proactive in providing effective strategies to help students succeed in a team project environment. The purpose of our study was to develop a survey instrument that measures students’ attitudes toward team projects to be used as a learner analysis tool, derived from our local practical needs and due to the lack of appropriate existing instruments. The study was conducted at a mid-sized university in the northwestern United States during 2015-2016. After we generated an initial pool of 50 items, we administered the survey to 225 undergraduate engineering students, performed exploratory factor analysis on the data, and arrived at a four-factor solution of 20 items and a three-factor solution of 14 items. We tested the two competing solutions with another set of 330 undergraduate engineering students. Based on our confirmatory factor analysis results, we arrived at a three-factor model of 12 items as the finalized scale, which measures: (a) professional capacity building, (b) learning and problem-solving skills development, and (c) workload challenges. We call the scale, the Attitudes toward Team Projects Scale on Capacity, Learning, and Workload (ATPS-CLW). Suggestions for future research include continuous development, testing, and validation of the scale

On the reliability of the theoretical internal conversion coefficients

Possible sources of uncertainties in the calculations of the internal conversion coefficients are studied. The uncertainties induced by them are estimated.Comment: 16 pages (including 3 figures inserted by 'epsfig' macro

Structural design of the DIII-D radiative divertor

The divertor of the DIII-D tokamak is being modified to operate as a slot type, dissipative divertor. This modification, called the Radiative Divertor Program (RDP) is being carried out in two phases. The design and analysis is complete and hardware is being fabricated for the first phase. This first phase consists of an upper divertor baffle and cryopump to provide some density control for high triangularity, single or double null discharges. Installation of the first phase is scheduled to start in October, 1996. The second phase provides pumping at all four divertor strike points of double null high triangularity discharges and baffling of the neutral particles from transport back to the core plasma. Studies of the effects of varying the slot length and width of the divertor can be easily accomplished with the design of RDP hardware. Static and dynamic analyses of the baffle structures, new cryopumps, and feedlines were performed during the preliminary and final design phases. Disruption loads and differential thermal displacements must be accommodated in the design of these components. With the full RDP hardware installed, the plasma current in DIII-D will be a maximum of 3.0 MA. Plasma disruptions induce toroidal currents in the cryopump, producing complex dynamic loads. Simultaneously, the vacuum vessel vibrations impose a sinusoidal base excitation to the supports for the cryopump. Static and dynamic analyses of the cryopump demonstrate that the stresses due to disruption and thermal loadings satisfy the stress and deflection criteria

Functional Relationship between Protein Disulfide Isomerase Family Members during the Oxidative Folding of Human Secretory Proteins

We systematically depleted PDI family members and show that whereas ERp72 and P5 contributed minimally to oxidative protein folding, PDI and ERp57 were the predominant catalysts. Depletion of PDI or ERp57 alone modestly delayed folding, but depletion of both led to generalized protein misfolding and degradation

The anti-sigma factor RsrA responds to oxidative stress by reburying its hydrophobic core

Redox-regulated effector systems that counteract oxidative stress are essential for all forms of life. Here we uncover a new paradigm for sensing oxidative stress centred on the hydrophobic core of a sensor protein. RsrA is an archetypal zinc-binding anti-sigma factor that responds to disulfide stress in the cytoplasm of Actinobacteria. We show that RsrA utilizes its hydrophobic core to bind the sigma factor σ R preventing its association with RNA polymerase, and that zinc plays a central role in maintaining this high-affinity complex. Oxidation of RsrA is limited by the rate of zinc release, which weakens the RsrA-σ R complex by accelerating its dissociation. The subsequent trigger disulfide, formed between specific combinations of RsrA's three zinc-binding cysteines, precipitates structural collapse to a compact state where all σ R-binding residues are sequestered back into its hydrophobic core, releasing σ R to activate transcription of anti-oxidant genes

Influenza, Winter Olympiad, 2002

Prospective surveillance for influenza was performed during the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics. Oseltamivir was administered to patients with influenzalike illness and confirmed influenza, while their close contacts were given oseltamivir prophylactically. Influenza A/B was diagnosed in 36 of 188 patients, including 13 athletes. Prompt management limited the spread of this outbreak

A Fragment of the LG3 Peptide of Endorepellin Is Present in the Urine of Physically Active Mining Workers: A Potential Marker of Physical Activity

Biomarker analysis has been implemented in sports research in an attempt to monitor the effects of exertion and fatigue in athletes. This study proposed that while such biomarkers may be useful for monitoring injury risk in workers, proteomic approaches might also be utilised to identify novel exertion or injury markers. We found that urinary urea and cortisol levels were significantly elevated in mining workers following a 12 hour overnight shift. These levels failed to return to baseline over 24 h in the more active maintenance crew compared to truck drivers (operators) suggesting a lack of recovery between shifts. Use of a SELDI-TOF MS approach to detect novel exertion or injury markers revealed a spectral feature which was associated with workers in both work categories who were engaged in higher levels of physical activity. This feature was identified as the LG3 peptide, a C-terminal fragment of the anti-angiogenic/anti-tumourigenic protein endorepellin. This finding suggests that urinary LG3 peptide may be a biomarker of physical activity. It is also possible that the activity mediated release of LG3/endorepellin into the circulation may represent a biological mechanism for the known inverse association between physical activity and cancer risk/survival

Augmenter of liver regeneration

‘Augmenter of liver regeneration’ (ALR) (also known as hepatic stimulatory substance or hepatopoietin) was originally found to promote growth of hepatocytes in the regenerating or injured liver. ALR is expressed ubiquitously in all organs, and exclusively in hepatocytes in the liver. ALR, a survival factor for hepatocytes, exhibits significant homology with ERV1 (essential for respiration and viability) protein that is essential for the survival of the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. ALR comprises 198 to 205 amino acids (approximately 22 kDa), but is post-translationally modified to three high molecular weight species (approximately 38 to 42 kDa) found in hepatocytes. ALR is present in mitochondria, cytosol, endoplasmic reticulum, and nucleus. Mitochondrial ALR may be involved in oxidative phosphorylation, but also functions as sulfhydryl oxidase and cytochrome c reductase, and causes Fe/S maturation of proteins. ALR, secreted by hepatocytes, stimulates synthesis of TNF-α, IL-6, and nitric oxide in Kupffer cells via a G-protein coupled receptor. While the 22 kDa rat recombinant ALR does not stimulate DNA synthesis in hepatocytes, the short form (15 kDa) of human recombinant ALR was reported to be equipotent as or even stronger than TGF-α or HGF as a mitogen for hepatocytes. Altered serum ALR levels in certain pathological conditions suggest that it may be a diagnostic marker for liver injury/disease. Although ALR appears to have multiple functions, the knowledge of its role in various organs, including the liver, is extremely inadequate, and it is not known whether different ALR species have distinct functions. Future research should provide better understanding of the expression and functions of this enigmatic molecule