„Die sind doch nicht ähnlich zueinander!“: Lehramtsstudierende philosophieren über den Begriff der Ähnlichkeit

An der Justus-Liebig-Universität in Gießen ist in einer Veranstaltung zur Didaktik der Geometrie aufgefallen, dass Lehramtsstudierende Probleme mit dem mathematischen Schulwissen haben. Aus dieser Problemlage ist im Zuge eines geförderten Projekts (HessenHub) das Lernmodul Basiswissen Geometrie digital entstanden, bei dem Lehramtsstudierende das mathematische Wissen der Schulgeometrie wiederholen können (Scholl & Lengnink, 2021). Zu diesem Lernmodul wurden unter anderem Seiten zum Philosophieren entwickelt, bei denen das Philosophieren als tool (Jankvist & Iversen, 2014) genutzt wird, um eine vertiefende Auseinandersetzung mit mathematischen Begriffen bei den Lehramtsstudierenden anzustoßen. So wird im Themengebiet Strahlensätze und Ähnlichkeit das Ziel verfolgt, die alltagssprachliche und die fachsprachliche Verwendung des Begriffs ähnlich zu diskutieren (Abb. 1)

Basiswissen Geometrie digital-Ein digitales Lernmodul für Lehramtsstudierende

An der Justus-Liebig-Universität in Gießen zeigt sich in Hausaufgabenbearbeitungen und Klausuren, dass viele Lehramtsstudierende an Haupt- und Realschulen, Gymnasien und Förderschulen Wiederholungsbedarf im Schulwissen im Bereich der Geometrie haben. Um dieses fachbezogene Wissen der Studierenden für den Bereich der Schulgeometrie aufzufrischen, entstand das Lernmodul Basiswissen Geometrie digital. In diesem Lernmodul werden schulische Inhalte zu den Themen Kongruenz, Haus der Vierecke, besondere Linien im Dreieck und Strahlensätze und Ähnlichkeit wiederholt. Die einzelnen Kapitel des Lernmoduls sind nach mathematischen Prozessen strukturiert. Das Lernmodul ist veröffentlicht und ist für Studierende aller Universitäten und auch für interessierte Lehrkräfte und Schülerinnen und Schüler ohne Anmeldung in ILIAS zugänglich. Das Lernmodul Basiswissen Geometrie digital wurde im Sommersemester 2020 zum ersten Mal in einer Veranstaltung zur Didaktik der Geometrie eingesetzt, dort zeigten sich einige gravierende Schwierigkeiten der Studierenden

Ethnic Differences in Maternal Adipokines During Normal Pregnancy

Two adipokines (adiponectin and resistin) have opposite relations with insulin resistance and inflammation. Our major focus was to determine whether there were detectable ethnic differences in maternal adipokines during pregnancy. We also explored the correlation of the adipokines with maternal glucose homeostasis, blood pressure and anthropometric parameters. Pregnant women (n = 1634) were from a large prospective cohort study in Camden NJ (African-American 36.8%; Hispanic 47.6%; Caucasian 15.6%). Serum adiponectin and resistin were measured at entry (week 16.8) and the 3rd trimester (week 30.7) using the Luminex xMapTechnology. Significant differences were observed among ethnic groups, controlling for confounding variables. African American women were exceptional in that they had decreased adiponectin and increased resistin throughout the course of pregnancy (p \u3c 0.05 to p \u3c 0.0001) and a greater than two fold risk of simultaneously exhibiting low adiponectin (lowest tertile) and high resistin (highest tertile) compared to Caucasians and/or Hispanics. The cohort as a whole and each ethnic group showed similar negative correlations between adiponectin, and glucose homeostasis, blood pressure and anthropometric parameters but there was lesser correspondence with resistin. Our data underscore the need for further research on ethnic variation in adipokines and other physiologic biomarkers during complicated and uncomplicated pregnancy

Maternal Vitamin D Status and Delivery by Cesarean

We examined the association of vitamin D deficiency to risk of cesarean delivery using prospective data in a cohort of 1153 low income and minority gravidae. Circulating maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D and intact parathyroid hormone were measured at entry to care 13.73 ± 5.6 weeks (mean ± SD). Intake of vitamin D and calcium was assessed at three time points during pregnancy. Using recent Institute of Medicine guidelines, 10.8% of the gravidae were at risk of vitamin D deficiency, and 23.8% at risk of insufficiency. Maternal 25-hydroxyvitamin D was related positively to vitamin D and calcium intakes and negatively to circulating concentrations of parathyroid hormone. Risk for cesarean delivery was increased significantly for vitamin D deficient women; there was no increased risk for gravidae at risk of insufficiency. When specific indications were examined, vitamin D deficiency was linked to a 2-fold increased risk of cesarean for prolonged labor. Results were the similar when prior guidelines for vitamin D deficiency (25(OH)D < 37.5nmol/L) and insufficiency (37.5–80 nmol/L) were utilized

Associations of Maternal Plasma Free Fatty Acid Profiles with Markers of Inflammation in Healthy Pregnant Women

We investigated the relationship between maternal fasting plasma free fatty acid (FFA) profiles and markers of inflammation (MOI) (IL-6, 8, 10, TNF-α, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GMCSF) and resistin) in healthy pregnant women during early gestation (week 16). These data suggested that maternal functional long-chain FFAs influence inflammatory response during normal pregnancy. Changes in specific FFA composition may reduce low-grade inflammation and inflammation related poor pregnancy outcomes and complications

Fetal brain magnetic resonance imaging findings predict neurodevelopment in children with tuberous sclerosis complex

Objective: To correlate fetal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings with epilepsy characteristics and neurodevelopment at 2 years of age in children with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) to improve prenatal counseling. Study design: This retrospective cohort study was performed in a collaboration between centers of the EPISTOP consortium. We included children with definite TSC, fetal MRIs, and available follow-up data at 2 years of age. A pediatric neuroradiologist masked to the patient's clinical characteristics evaluated all fetal MRIs. MRIs were categorized for each of the 10 brain lobes as score 0: no (sub)cortical lesions or doubt; score 1: a single small lesion; score 2: more than one small lesion or at least one large lesion (&gt;5 mm). Neurologic manifestations were correlated to lesion sum scores. Results: Forty-one children were included. Median gestational age at MRI was 33.3 weeks; (sub)cortical lesions were detected in 97.6%. Mean lesion sum score was 4.5. At 2 years, 58.5% of patients had epilepsy and 22% had drug-resistant epilepsy. Cognitive, language, and motor development were delayed in 38%, 81%, and 50% of patients, respectively. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) was diagnosed in 20.5%. Fetal MRI lesion sum scores were significantly associated with cognitive and motor development, and with ASD diagnosis, but not with epilepsy characteristics. Conclusions: Fetal cerebral lesion scores correlate with neurodevelopment and ASD at 2 years in children with TSC.</p

Smart cities and service integration

E-government advancements have not fully resolved the challenge of providing citizens with a single entry point for services that involve different government entities. The Smart Cities and Service Integration project (hereafter, SmartCities) aims to establish a framework for smart city service integration that would assist in the management of large scale projects related to the integration of services across governments. By using comparative case studies of six cities (New York City, Seattle, Quebec City, Mexico City, Macao, and Shanghai), the project aims to develop a theoretical framework to guide smart cities service integration. The project will highlight integration of public services and cross-boundary information sharing by focusing on specific policy domains. An additional goal of this project is to develop research capabilities of graduate students who participate in the research. The research project is funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

Distinct DNA Methylation Patterns of Subependymal Giant Cell Astrocytomas in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a monogenic disorder caused by mutations in either the TSC1 or TSC2 gene, two key regulators of the mechanistic target of the rapamycin complex pathway. Phenotypically, this leads to growth and formation of hamartomas in several organs, including the brain. Subependymal giant cell astrocytomas (SEGAs) are low-grade brain tumors commonly associated with TSC. Recently, gene expression studies provided evidence that the immune system, the MAPK pathway and extracellular matrix organization play an important role in SEGA development. However, the precise mechanisms behind the gene expression changes in SEGA are still largely unknown, providing a potential role for DNA methylation. We investigated the methylation profile of SEGAs using the Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 BeadChip (SEGAs n = 42, periventricular control n = 8). The SEGA methylation profile was enriched for the adaptive immune system, T cell activation, leukocyte mediated immunity, extracellular structure organization and the ERK1 & ERK2 cascade. More interestingly, we identified two subgroups in the SEGA methylation data and show that the differentially expressed genes between the two subgroups are related to the MAPK cascade and adaptive immune response. Overall, this study shows that the immune system, the MAPK pathway and extracellular matrix organization are also affected on DNA methylation level, suggesting that therapeutic intervention on DNA level could be useful for these specific pathways in SEGA. Moreover, we identified two subgroups in SEGA that seem to be driven by changes in the adaptive immune response and MAPK pathway and could potentially hold predictive information on target treatment response