Reflecting on Improving our Practice: Using Collaboration as an Approach to Enhance First Year Transition in Higher Education

This paper is concerned with teacher collaboration in Higher Education. Specifically, it focuses on how a ‘community of practice’ emerged and developed during the process of enhancing first year transition for pre-service teachers. It is written from the perspective of five teacher educators and is situated within the literature of the first year in higher education and teacher collaboration. In this paper we describe how the process of conceptualising an innovative first year teacher education program, designed to facilitate student retention and engagement, increased our own engagement, motivation and teaching practice. Our experiences suggest that collaboration in Higher Education is not only beneficial to those involved in a community of practice, but also enhances student engagement and transition

Internalization as a mediator of the relationship between conformity to masculine norms and body image attitudes and behaviors among young men in Sweden, US, UK, and Australia

© 2015 Elsevier Ltd. We examined whether internalization of sociocultural body ideals mediated the relationship between conformity to masculine norms and drive for muscularity, leanness, and thinness in a sample of males from Sweden, US, UK, and Australia. Over six hundred young men [n= 142 (Sweden); n= 192 (US); n= 141 (UK); n= 160 (Australia)] completed an online survey that included assessments of masculine role norms, body image, and internalization of sociocultural body ideals. Path analyses confirmed internalization as a mediator between greater conformity to masculine norms and body image measures (drive for thinness, desire for leanness, and desire for muscularity) across the sample. However, significant cross-country differences in the strength of these mediation effects were found. Mediation effects among US, Australian, and Swedish males were comparable, whereas these effects were weaker in the UK sample. Findings confirmed the importance of internalization of sociocultural body ideals in the tested models

Media internalization and conformity to traditional masculine norms in relation to body image concerns among men

Previous studies have separately examined conformity to masculine norms and internalization of body ideals in the media in relation to the drive for muscularity (DM). This study was designed to examine these factors together in relation to DM, and further examine how they may differ in relation to drive for thinness (DT) and drive for leanness (DL). Participants were 284 Australian males between ages 18 to 42. They completed validated measures that assessed DM, DT, DL, male gender role norms, and internalization of body ideals. The findings showed that internalization of body ideals mediated the relationship between masculine role norms and body image in the case of both DM and DL. However, masculine norms and internalization were independent predictors of DT. Our findings contribute to further understanding of the roles that the media and masculine norms have in shaping men’s drive for muscularity, leanness, and thinness. Longitudinal research is needed to confirm the nature and direction of these relationships

Substrate-targeting gamma-secretase modulators

Selective lowering of Abeta42 levels (the 42-residue isoform of the amyloid-beta peptide) with small-molecule gamma-secretase modulators (GSMs), such as some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, is a promising therapeutic approach for Alzheimer's disease. To identify the target of these agents we developed biotinylated photoactivatable GSMs. GSM photoprobes did not label the core proteins of the gamma-secretase complex, but instead labelled the beta-amyloid precursor protein (APP), APP carboxy-terminal fragments and amyloid-beta peptide in human neuroglioma H4 cells. Substrate labelling was competed by other GSMs, and labelling of an APP gamma-secretase substrate was more efficient than a Notch substrate. GSM interaction was localized to residues 28-36 of amyloid-beta, a region critical for aggregation. We also demonstrate that compounds known to interact with this region of amyloid-beta act as GSMs, and some GSMs alter the production of cell-derived amyloid-beta oligomers. Furthermore, mutation of the GSM binding site in the APP alters the sensitivity of the substrate to GSMs. These findings indicate that substrate targeting by GSMs mechanistically links two therapeutic actions: alteration in Abeta42 production and inhibition of amyloid-beta aggregation, which may synergistically reduce amyloid-beta deposition in Alzheimer's disease. These data also demonstrate the existence and feasibility of 'substrate targeting' by small-molecule effectors of proteolytic enzymes, which if generally applicable may significantly broaden the current notion of 'druggable' targets

Case Study Report: Business Case for Implementing Battery-Powered Tools for Direct-Bury Line Workers at an Electric Power Utility

Cutting cable and crimping compression connections are the two most commonly performed tasks by direct-bury line workers who repair and bury underground cable for electric power utilities. Battery-powered tools, rather than manual (Figure 1), do the demanding work of cutting cable and crimping connectors while the worker holds the tool in place. The focus of this study is whether the cost of battery-powered tools for direct-bury line workers can be justified on injury and illness data and other factors

Case Study for Underground Workers at an Electric Utility: How a Research Institution, University, and Industry Collaboration Improved Occupational Health Through Ergonomics

This article describes a collaboration between a research institution, a university, and a medium-sized electric power utility. Two ergonomics teams were created at the host utility to identify tasks with risk factors for musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and propose ergonomic interventions for these tasks. Both ergonomics teams focused on tasks performed by underground workers: one team focused on manhole-vault tasks, and the other team focused on direct-buried cable job tasks. Several of the ergonomic interventions were tested in the ergonomics laboratory at the university. The results of one of the laboratory experiments indicated that a 2nd class lever tool reduced muscle forces required to remove and replace a manhole cover as compared with a T-handle attached to a hook and chain. The results of another laboratory experiment demonstrated that a battery-powered cutter reduced muscle forces to cut cable as compared to a manual cutting tool. A collaborative ergonomics effort is an effective method for identifying problematic tasks for workers in a particular industry, evaluating those tasks, and developing best work practices for that type of industry. This approach could be used by other industries in their effort to reduce the incidence, cost, and severity of MSDs in th

Cardiometabolic Disease Results in Sex‐ and Age‐Dependent Cerebrovascular Degeneration and Arteriolar Morphological Changes

ABSTRACT In the past 20 years, no drug therapies have been successfully translated into human use for intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), the most devastating stroke subset. One likely factor is lack of effective animal models of human disease including common comorbidities, such as hypertension and diabetes. We evaluated the cardiometabolic rodent model, (mRen2)27, where overexpression of Ren2 results in extreme hypertension, glucose intolerance and obesity, as an appropriate ICH model. Methods: Sprague Dawley (SD) and (mRen2)27 rats were sacrificed at 14‐, 32‐, and 52‐weeks. Brains were sectioned sagittally at 5 μm. Whole‐brain sections were stained using Hematoxylin & Eosin (H&E) and Van Geison (VG) collagen staining to visualize the pial blood vessels. Wall‐to‐lumen ratios for vessels were calculated and compared using a student t‐test to determine significance. Results: There was no significant difference in arteriolar morphology at 14‐weeks between male SD and mRen animals (SD, n=16 and mRen, n=16). At 32‐weeks, there was a significant difference in mRen male rats (SD, n=13 and mRen, n=17; p<0.0001), with significantly increased wall thickness and decreased Lumen size in the mRen animals (increased W:L ratio). However, at this timeframe, there was no significant difference between the female SD and mRen cohorts (SD, n=6 and mRen, n=8). At 52‐weeks, there was a significant increase in W:L ratios in both male (SD, n=4 and mRen, n=7; p<0.01) and female (SD, n=9 and mRen, n=8; p<0.05) mRen animals compared to control. Conclusion: The (mRen2)27 cardiometabolic animal model demonstrates age‐related sex changes in the wall:lumen ratio of cerebral vasculature consistent with cerebrovascular disease seen in ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke patients. Males develop these vascular changes earlier than females, but both sexes in this model develop cerebral vascular changes by 1 year of age. The (mRen2)27 model appears to recapitulate human disease and sex differences, and may serve as an appropriate translational model of ICH

How is men’s conformity to masculine norms related to their body image? Masculinity and muscularity across Western countries

Previous research has suggested that men\u27s conformity to masculine norms (CMN) is an important correlate of men\u27s drive for muscularity. The present study aimed to further delineate the relationship between masculinity and men\u27s body image by examining various dimensions of CMN in relation to various dimensions of men\u27s body image (muscularity, leanness, and fitness) in a cross-national sample. Participants comprised young men from the United States (n = 192), the United Kingdom (n = 141), Australia (n = 160), and Sweden (n = 142). Multigroup path analyses showed that CMN was related to drive for muscularity, leanness, and fitness in all 4 countries, but there were differences across countries in which dimensions of CMN predicted men\u27s body image. Whereas conformity to the masculine norm of winning was a salient predictor across the 4 countries, conformity to the norm of risk-taking was linked to Australian men\u27s body image, and conformity to the norm of violence to British men\u27s body image. The findings support previous research suggesting that men\u27s endorsement of the male gender role plays a significant role in their desire for an ideal body, but the results uniquely document that this relationship may differ across countries

Researching the outcomes of the Bendigo education plan

For many reasons educators in this century are increasingly concerned about how to imagine and enact successful secondary education (Fullen, 2007; Good, Brophy, Good, Brophy, 2008). This is partly due to broad recognition that education systems play a key role in enabling or constraining individual, subgroup and national capabilities (Hallinger, 2009; OECD, 2009, 2012). Another contributor to this concern is the rise of comparative accounts of educational success within and between nations in high stakes subjects such as science and mathematics, leading to calls for new approaches for under-performing cohorts (PISA, 2012; Tienken, 2013). At the same time, multiple uncertainties and contested views about what knowledge, skills and values might count as evidence of success now and in the future influence curricular prescriptions. This is evident in debates about appropriate topics and sequences in national curriculum documents on compulsory subjects, such as mathematics and literacy (Green; Oates, 2011)