Chasing a Gendered Agenda: Collaboration and Team Teaching in Higher Education

This case study sought to characterize and give voice to women faculty working in collaboration and team teaching with male faculty in a higher education setting. The experiences of the women, as well as how they made sense of their experiences are presented. Then, cast against the framework of Feminist Phase Theory, particular attention is paid to the structure, climate, and culture of the work experience. The significance of the study is found in the multiple realities of women faculty members\u27 experiences, and in the suggestions provided for improving the chances of success for female and male faculty to collaboratively work and teach together

Chasing a Gendered Agenda: Collaboration and Team Teaching in Higher Education

This case study sought to characterize and give voice to women faculty working in collaboration and team teaching with male faculty in a higher education setting. The experiences of the women, as well as how they made sense of their experiences are presented. Then, cast against the framework of Feminist Phase Theory, particular attention is paid to the structure, climate, and culture of the work experience. The significance of the study is found in the multiple realities of women faculty members\u27 experiences, and in the suggestions provided for improving the chances of success for female and male faculty to collaboratively work and teach together

Computational Methods for the Analysis of Array Comparative Genomic Hybridization

Array comparative genomic hybridization (array CGH) is a technique for assaying the copy number status of cancer genomes. The widespread use of this technology has lead to a rapid accumulation of high throughput data, which in turn has prompted the development of computational strategies for the analysis of array CGH data. Here we explain the principles behind array image processing, data visualization and genomic profile analysis, review currently available software packages, and raise considerations for future software development

SIGMA: A System for Integrative Genomic Microarray Analysis of Cancer Genomes

BACKGROUND: The prevalence of high resolution profiling of genomes has created a need for the integrative analysis of information generated from multiple methodologies and platforms. Although the majority of data in the public domain are gene expression profiles, and expression analysis software are available, the increase of array CGH studies has enabled integration of high throughput genomic and gene expression datasets. However, tools for direct mining and analysis of array CGH data are limited. Hence, there is a great need for analytical and display software tailored to cross platform integrative analysis of cancer genomes. RESULTS: We have created a user-friendly java application to facilitate sophisticated visualization and analysis such as cross-tumor and cross-platform comparisons. To demonstrate the utility of this software, we assembled array CGH data representing Affymetrix SNP chip, Stanford cDNA arrays and whole genome tiling path array platforms for cross comparison. This cancer genome database contains 267 profiles from commonly used cancer cell lines representing 14 different tissue types. CONCLUSION: In this study we have developed an application for the visualization and analysis of data from high resolution array CGH platforms that can be adapted for analysis of multiple types of high throughput genomic datasets. Furthermore, we invite researchers using array CGH technology to deposit both their raw and processed data, as this will be a continually expanding database of cancer genomes. This publicly available resource, the System for Integrative Genomic Microarray Analysis (SIGMA) of cancer genomes, can be accessed at

Kepler Mission Stellar and Instrument Noise Properties

Kepler Mission results are rapidly contributing to fundamentally new discoveries in both the exoplanet and asteroseismology fields. The data returned from Kepler are unique in terms of the number of stars observed, precision of photometry for time series observations, and the temporal extent of high duty cycle observations. As the first mission to provide extensive time series measurements on thousands of stars over months to years at a level hitherto possible only for the Sun, the results from Kepler will vastly increase our knowledge of stellar variability for quiet solar-type stars. Here we report on the stellar noise inferred on the timescale of a few hours of most interest for detection of exoplanets via transits. By design the data from moderately bright Kepler stars are expected to have roughly comparable levels of noise intrinsic to the stars and arising from a combination of fundamental limitations such as Poisson statistics and any instrument noise. The noise levels attained by Kepler on-orbit exceed by some 50% the target levels for solar-type, quiet stars. We provide a decomposition of observed noise for an ensemble of 12th magnitude stars arising from fundamental terms (Poisson and readout noise), added noise due to the instrument and that intrinsic to the stars. The largest factor in the modestly higher than anticipated noise follows from intrinsic stellar noise. We show that using stellar parameters from galactic stellar synthesis models, and projections to stellar rotation, activity and hence noise levels reproduces the primary intrinsic stellar noise features.Comment: Accepted by ApJ; 26 pages, 20 figure

Preventing Nerve Function Impairment in Leprosy: Validation and Updating of a Prediction Rule

Leprosy is caused by a bacterium that attacks the peripheral nerves. This may cause nerve function impairment (NFI), resulting in handicaps and disabilities. Therefore, prediction and prevention of NFI is extremely important in the management of leprosy. In 2000, a prediction rule for NFI was published, but circumstances have changed since the study was performed in the 1990s: the leprosy detection delay has shortened and the definition of NFI has changed. The original rule used ‘leprosy classification’ and ‘NFI present at diagnosis’ to predict future NFI. In the current patient population we studied an adjusted rule based on ‘leprosy classification’ and ‘presence of antibodies’. This adjusted rule predicted NFI more often than the original rule. With the adjusted rule it is now also possible to assess NFI risk before the first nerve damage event takes place. This may help doctors and health workers to improve surveillance for people at high risk. Early detection and treatment can then prevent permanent disabilities

‘Caution! The Bread is Poisoned’: The Hong Kong Mass Poisoning of January 1857

This article examines the Hong Kong mass poisoning of 15 January 1857, in which bread from a Chinese bakery that supplied the colonial community was adulterated with arsenic. Even though there is a wealth of printed and manuscript documentation available many vital aspects of the poisoning remain unclear. What kind of incident was it: an act of terrorism and attempted mass murder, a war crime, a criminal conspiracy, an act of commercial sabotage, an accident or even an imagined or imaginary event? Throughout, our focus remains firmly fixed on the central act of the poisoning itself and on what it reveals about the precarious nature of early colonial Hong Kong. Interpretations have swarmed over the available ‘facts'. Equally ironic is what happened to the afterlife of how the event was understood. This article seeks to rescue the Hong Kong poisoning from being a freakish and isolated footnote of only local interest. Accepting this historical verdict would be a mistake as it is of significance not only at a local level, but geopolitically in Britain and across the empire

An integrative multi-dimensional genetic and epigenetic strategy to identify aberrant genes and pathways in cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Genomics has substantially changed our approach to cancer research. Gene expression profiling, for example, has been utilized to delineate subtypes of cancer, and facilitated derivation of predictive and prognostic signatures. The emergence of technologies for the high resolution and genome-wide description of genetic and epigenetic features has enabled the identification of a multitude of causal DNA events in tumors. This has afforded the potential for large scale integration of genome and transcriptome data generated from a variety of technology platforms to acquire a better understanding of cancer.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here we show how multi-dimensional genomics data analysis would enable the deciphering of mechanisms that disrupt regulatory/signaling cascades and downstream effects. Since not all gene expression changes observed in a tumor are causal to cancer development, we demonstrate an approach based on multiple concerted disruption (MCD) analysis of genes that facilitates the rational deduction of aberrant genes and pathways, which otherwise would be overlooked in single genomic dimension investigations.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Notably, this is the first comprehensive study of breast cancer cells by parallel integrative genome wide analyses of DNA copy number, LOH, and DNA methylation status to interpret changes in gene expression pattern. Our findings demonstrate the power of a multi-dimensional approach to elucidate events which would escape conventional single dimensional analysis and as such, reduce the cohort sample size for cancer gene discovery.</p

Integrative Genomic Analyses Identify BRF2 as a Novel Lineage-Specific Oncogene in Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma

William Lockwood and colleagues show that the focal amplification of a gene, BRF2, on Chromosome 8p12 plays a key role in squamous cell carcinoma of the lung

Lung Adenocarcinoma of Never Smokers and Smokers Harbor Differential Regions of Genetic Alteration and Exhibit Different Levels of Genomic Instability

Recent evidence suggests that the observed clinical distinctions between lung tumors in smokers and never smokers (NS) extend beyond specific gene mutations, such as EGFR, EML4-ALK, and KRAS, some of which have been translated into targeted therapies. However, the molecular alterations identified thus far cannot explain all of the clinical and biological disparities observed in lung tumors of NS and smokers. To this end, we performed an unbiased genome-wide, comparative study to identify novel genomic aberrations that differ between smokers and NS