Re-Tooling the Factory: Scaffolding for Library Labs in Large First Year Courses

The objectives of this session are two-fold: (1) To share and analyze the effectiveness of tool-based vs. concept-based pedagogical approaches to scaffolding for library labs in a large first year class at the University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM); (2) To elicit a discussion of my results and next steps in the light of the literature on the subject and my audience’s experiences and insights. The quantitative study from which I am presenting data is the effectiveness assessment of two scaffolding pedagogies for a library assignment in PSY100 at UTM. Two groups of students in summer PSY100 labs were given a SAILS-based pre-test of their information literacy (IL) skills. One group received concept-based instruction in IL skills. The second group received tool-based instruction geared towards completing the assignment. Student performance on a SAILS-based post-test served as the basis for comparison of the two groups. The group which received concept-based IL scaffolding appeared to have better post-test scores. The implications of this outcome for IL scaffolding in large first year classes serve as the starting point of our discussion. After this session, the participants may be able to: (a) identify the challenges of providing information literacy (IL) instruction in large classes; (b) reflect, using the PSY100 example, on approaches for assessing the effectiveness of IL instruction in large classes; (c) identify and analyze practical scaffolding pedagogies

Site-Selective, Photocatalytic Vinylogous Amidation of Enones

Despite the broad interest in organic compounds possessing a γ-aminocarbonyl motif, limited strategies for their synthesis have been reported. Herein, we describe a mild and efficient method for the site-selective amidation of unsaturated enones with electrophilic N-centered radicals as a key intermediate. The photocatalytic vinylogous reaction of dienolates with N-amino pyridinium salts affords γ-amido carbonyl compounds. This process is high-yielding, scalable, and tolerates a broad range of unsaturated α,β-unsaturated carbonyls, including biologically relevant compounds, as starting materials.National Science Center: MAESTRO UMO-2020/38/A/ST4/00185 and ETIUDA 7 UMO-2019/32/T/ST4/0030

Cloning and characterization of the first member of the Nudix family from Arabidopsis thaliana.

The sequence motif commonly called a Nudix box, represented by (GX(5)EX(7)REVXEEXGU) is the marker of a widely distributed family of enzymes that catalyze the hydrolysis of a variety of nucleoside diphosphate derivatives. Here we describe the cloning and characterization of an Arabidopsis thaliana cDNA encoding a Nudix hydrolase that degrades NADH. The deduced amino acid sequence of AtNUDT1 contains 147 amino acids. The recombinant AtNUDT1 was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified. In the presence of Mn(2+) and the optimal pH of 7. 0, the recombinant AtNUDT1 catalyzed the hydrolysis of NADH with a K(m) value of 0. 36 mm. A V(max) of 12. 7 units mg (-1) for NADH was determined. The recombinant AtNUDT1 migrated as a dimer on a gel filtration column. Biochemical analysis of recombinant AtNUDT1 indicated that the first characterized member of the Nudix family from A. thaliana is a NADH pyrophosphatase

“I don’t want to go to Med School”: A narrative investigation of the relevance of pivotal moments in discipline selection by undergraduate science students.

We have set out to investigate, through a series of semi-structured interviews with science students, whether key events in their learning arcs, such as explaining a complex process to a classmate or attending a lecture by a leading researcher, played an important part in guiding students towards majoring in the sciences. We call such events “pivotal moments,” and we hypothesize their impact is strong enough to change a student’s initial discipline selection. In our work, we are attempting to relate pivotal moments to threshold concepts, critical moments of irreversible conceptual transformation in the educational experiences of learners (Meyer & Land, 2005, p. 373). Pivotal moments differ from “bottlenecks”, day-to-day procedural barriers which may serve to stall, but perhaps not shift, a student’s academic path (Middendorf & Pace, 2004). Join us to hear what our first set of thirteen interviews told us about the paths science students follow towards their degrees, and what changed their minds about science. While our research brought us closer to formulating insights about pivotal moments, it also suggested new questions. As we share our research outcomes and questions, we would like you to share what brought you to science education. Meyer & Land (2005). Higher Education, 49, 373-388. Middendorf & Pace (2004). New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 98, 1-12

A study of the structural, optical and electrical properties of nitrogen-doped hydrogenated amorphous carbon

grantor: University of TorontoThe first successfully n-doped a-C:H films grown from mixtures of CH\sb4 and N\sb2 using the dc saddle-field deposition method are presented. Film composition (IR, RBS) studies showed evidence of bonded nitrogen. A conductivity increase of two orders of magnitude over the control film conductivity characterized the f(N\sb2) = 0.02 sample; the decrease of activation energy from a midgap level of 0.7 eV to 0.2 eV concurred. The activation energy change may be interpreted as a rise of the Fermi level towards the conduction band. Such a shift would be consistent with the introduction of nitrogen donor states below the conduction band edge. Significant conductivity and activation energy changes occurred only with low N concentration: films with N content above f(N\sb2) = 0.02 showed conductivity saturation and a constant activation energy. The films may thus exhibit a "clean" band gap rarely found in a-C:H but important because of its potential for more efficient doping.M.A.Sc

A study of the structural, optical and electrical properties of nitrogen-doped hydrogenated amorphous carbon

grantor: University of TorontoThe first successfully n-doped a-C:H films grown from mixtures of CH\sb4 and N\sb2 using the dc saddle-field deposition method are presented. Film composition (IR, RBS) studies showed evidence of bonded nitrogen. A conductivity increase of two orders of magnitude over the control film conductivity characterized the f(N\sb2) = 0.02 sample; the decrease of activation energy from a midgap level of 0.7 eV to 0.2 eV concurred. The activation energy change may be interpreted as a rise of the Fermi level towards the conduction band. Such a shift would be consistent with the introduction of nitrogen donor states below the conduction band edge. Significant conductivity and activation energy changes occurred only with low N concentration: films with N content above f(N\sb2) = 0.02 showed conductivity saturation and a constant activation energy. The films may thus exhibit a "clean" band gap rarely found in a-C:H but important because of its potential for more efficient doping.M.A.Sc

Autonomous replication of a wheat DNA sequence in isolated wheat nuclei.

A fragment of wheat nuclear DNA was shown to be able to replicate autonomously in wheat nuclei. The fragment was 637-bp long and contained telomeric repeats at both termini. Its replication was manifested by the appearance of a radioactive reaction product of the same approximate size. Further analyses showed that the linear, double-stranded reaction product was labelled along its entire length and contained the same number of similarly located HaeIII sites as did the fragment tested. Prokaryotic DNA remained unlabelled under the same assay conditions.</jats:p