25 research outputs found

    Variations in Implementation of Specifications Grading in STEM Courses

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    Specifications grading is an assessment strategy based on mastery learning, clear learning objectives, and frequent evaluations and feedback. Twelve instructors at a southeastern four-year public college implemented the specifications grading method across eight discrete courses in four STEM areas. In this modified assessment strategy, the students controlled their grades through multiple attempts, with limitations, on assessments of course objectives. The instructors designed and executed specifications grading in unique ways that aligned with their content areas, teaching beliefs, and individual teaching styles. Preliminary observations suggest that, regardless of subject area, specifications grading can be used as an alternative to traditional assessment methodologies in STEM courses, regardless of the content area. In general, three major variations of implementation arose from this initial trial. Major differences and commonalities among these types are discussed as they relate to the course subject area in which they are used. The results of this work add a unique set of assessment practices to the current body of knowledge in that other practitioners may gain insight on variations of the specifications grading method that may be practical and applicable in their own classrooms

    Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

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    Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

    Correlates of circulating androgens in mid-life women: the study of women\u27s health across the nation

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    CONTEXT: Androgens influence sexual differentiation and behavior, body composition, and physical functioning in men, but their role in women is less well understood. Because circulating androgens decline with age, the use of androgen supplementation for women to improve health and well-being has been increasing. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the association between androgens and a variety of end points thought to be affected by androgens. DESIGN: In a community-based baseline cohort of women aged 42-52 yr from the Study of Women\u27s Health Across the Nation, we measured circulating testosterone (T), dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate, and SHBG, and calculated a free androgen index (FAI) in 2961 women. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Correlations of androgen measures with each other and with body mass index, waist circumference, and waist-hip ratio were computed, and odds ratios (OR) were estimated for the categorical outcomes of functional limitations, functional status, self-reported health, scores indicative of depressed mood, quality of life, sexual desire and arousal, and the presence of the metabolic syndrome. RESULTS: Androgens, and particularly SHBG, were associated most strongly with body mass index, waist circumference, and waist-hip ratio. SHBG was associated prominently inversely with the metabolic syndrome (OR = 0.32; 95% confidence interval = 0.26-0.39), which was present in 17% of women at baseline. Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate was associated modestly with functional status and self-reported health. T was associated minimally with increased sexual desire (OR = 1.09; 95% confidence interval = 1.00-1.18). The association of FAI with self-reported health and depressive symptomatology based on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale score was explained more by T than by SHBG, whereas the association of FAI with sexual arousal and metabolic syndrome was due more to SHBG than to T. CONCLUSIONS: Circulating SHBG and androgens are most strongly associated with physical characteristics and the metabolic syndrome in women in this community-based cohort. Androgens are related weakly to physical functioning and other symptoms to which they commonly are attributed, such as sexual desire, sexual arousal, and well-being

    Form and Structure in Recent Film

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    Through texts and interviews, nine filmmakers discuss individual film works and the medium of film. Michelson's introduction provides an historical background for the questions posed in experimental film. Biographical notes. Bibl. 5 p

    Body size and ethnicity are associated with menstrual cycle alterations in women in the early menopausal transition: The Study of Women\u27s Health across the Nation (SWAN) Daily Hormone Study

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    The dynamics of reproductive hormones that characterize the menopausal transition (perimenopause) are incompletely understood, particularly in non-Caucasian women. The Study of Women\u27s Health across the Nation (SWAN) is a multiethnic cohort study of 3302 women at seven sites who were aged 42-52 yr at baseline. All participants are seen annually to assess a variety of endpoints. A subcohort of 848 women undergoes further investigation of their daily patterns of reproductive hormones in the Daily Hormone Study (DHS). DHS enrollees annually complete a daily collection of first morning voided urine for an entire menstrual cycle or up to 50 d (whichever comes first). Chemiluminescent assays measured urinary LH and FSH, as well as metabolites of estradiol [estrone conjugates (E1c)] and progesterone [pregnanediol glucuronide (Pdg)]. Cycles were assessed for evidence of luteal activity and day of luteal transition using previously developed algorithms. Midreproductive-aged women who underwent similar daily urinary analyses served as historical controls. Correlates of cycle features were identified. Eight hundred thirty-three cycles were evaluable and had complete data on covariates. Six hundred seventy-four (80.9%) cycles had evidence of luteal activity, and 159 (19.1%) did not. Women who were at least 49 yr old were less likely to have cycles with luteal activity and had more variable cycle length, higher total-cycle FSH, and lower total-cycle Pdg. Compared with heavier women, those with body mass index less than 25 kg/m2 had shorter cycles and higher total-cycle LH, FSH, and Pdg but not E1c. Chinese- and Japanese-American women had overall lower adjusted total-cycle E1c excretion. Smoking was not significantly associated with cycle length or hormones. When compared with cycles of younger control women, the cycles of the SWAN DHS participants had higher gonadotropins, lower total integrated Pdg, and E1c levels that were not different, which suggests that the ovary retains sensitivity to elevated FSH in the early menopausal transition. In this cross-sectional study of women over age 42 who are premenopausal or in the early menopausal transition, there were important differences in the characteristics of cycles related to age, body mass index, and ethnicity. Comparisons to younger women indirectly support the inhibin hypothesis, which proposes that the initiating event in the menopausal transition is the loss of inhibin negative feedback on FSH secondary to a diminished follicular reserve

    How lichens impact on terrestrial community and ecosystem properties

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