A Comparative Study of High-Linoleic Acid Vegetable Oils for the Production of Conjugated Linoleic Acid

Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) has anti-carcinogenic, anti-diabetic, and anti-atherogenic properties and is present in very small quantities in dairy and beef products. Obtaining optimum dietary CLA levels from these sources requires an undesirable increased intake of saturated fat A 20% CLA soy oil has been produced by UV photoisomerization of linoleic acid (LA) in soy oill, which is naturally low in saturated fat. However, no other high LA vegetable oils have been studied for their potential as CLA-rich oils. The objectives of this research were to: 1) commpare flax, sunflower, corn, soy and high LA safflower oils as sources of CLA-rich vegetable oils using laboratory-scale UV photoirradiation processing equipment, and 2) compare the oxidative stabilities of laboratory-scale processed oils. Seven hundred g of each oil was irradiated with 0.15% iodine catalyst on a laboratory-scale for 168 hours. Oil fatty acid analysis was done before and after processing as fatty acid analysis was done before and after processing as fatty acid methyl esters by gas chromatography-flame ionization detection (GC-FID) analysis. Oxidative stabilities of laboratory-scale processed oils were measured gravimetrically for up to 24 days at 64 degrees Celcius. High LA safflower oil produced the most CLA; soy oil produced slightly less followed by corn, with flax producing very little and sunflower none at all. Low CLA yieidls were due to carotenoids and lipid oxidation in flax oil and carotenoids and turbidity in sunflower oil. The results show that high LA oils should be highly refined before they are used for CLA production. There was no significant difference between the oxidative stabilities of high LA safflower oil and soy oil before or after irradiation, indicating that these oils are the most suitable for high-CLA production, although high LA safflower oil is more expensive

Implementing Computer Networking Skills in the MIS Program

This workshop will provide activities that can be implemented into the MIS curriculum to prepare students for the computer networking architectures found in many of today\u27s organizations. A curriculum model based on Bloom\u27s Taxonomy consisting of objectives, prerequisite skills, and resource allocation will be the foundation for the variety of activities designed to prepare MIS students for general networking knowledge, internships, or employment in the computer networking field. This model presents activities that range from identification to analysis and evaluation. The activity media include written and hands-on exercises and a Request For Proposal (RFP) project. Copies of these activities will be available to workshop participants. Discussion will include student s\u27 knowledge and skill sets being developed, upgrading of activities, alternate directions that could be taken, etc

Online Professional Development: The Experiences of a First-Time Facilitator

Donmoyer (1990) suggested that knowledge gained from our own experiences or that of others may be applied to the improvement of practice. The purpose of this study was to provide insight into the experiences of a first-time online facilitator. The research question for this study was: How does a first-time facilitator understand the process of delivering instruction in an online environment? A case study design was applied to this research. The researcher/participant was the case under study in the context of the delivery of online instruction. The researcher who was also the online instructional facilitator experienced the process of delivering online instruction for the first time. The use of this method provided a first-hand perspective of the experiences of an online facilitator. The study was conducted in two phases. During Phase I, the researcher/participant participated in a train-the-trainer program that was delivered using the Blackboard® learning management system. During Phase II, the researcher/participant facilitated an online professional development session created during the training. Data were collected from a variety of sources, including journaling, interviews with a master trainer and other online facilitators, and analysis of course materials and completed assignments. Three themes emerged from the data. The themes were: (a) time, (b) adherence to standards, and (c) absence of physical presence. Recommendations included: (a) alignment of training and evaluation with professional development and content standards, (b) awarding of credit based on demonstrations of learning and student achievement, (c) facilitator awareness of non-instructional responsibilities, (d) training and support for the efficient use of technology to manage administrative and support tasks, (e) enforcement of completion deadlines, (f) provision of feedback on assignments, (g) implementation of additional opportunities for collaboration, (h) participant and facilitator awareness of time and paper needed for learning and record-keeping tasks, (i) training for participants without demonstrated technology proficiency, (j) implementation of a blended training approach, and (k) investigation of web-based publications for use in the delivery of online professional development

Parkinson\u27s Disease, the Amygdala, and Non-motor Symptoms

This study sought to explore the relationship between Parkinson’s Disease (PD), the amygdala, and the plethora of non-motor symptoms that plague individuals with PD. Previous research gave insights about the amygdala’s function as the emotional center of the brain, its role in depression, and its participation in the non-motor symptoms of PD. The research proved to still be inconclusive on its own because of a variety of limitations. The methods of this study consist of the analysis of Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) scans from 93 individuals with PD and 18 individuals without PD while in a resting state. The analysis showed that the amygdalae experienced decreased functional connectivity (FC) to the right posterior areas of the superior frontal gyrus (SFG). Because this depletion of FC is similar to the neurological effects of Major Depression Disorder (MDD), it is suggested that depression in PD is caused by the amygdala’s inability to communicate effectively with the right posterior SFG

Guidance of trunk neural crest migration requires neuropilin 2/semaphorin 3F signaling

In vertebrate embryos, neural crest cells migrate only through the anterior half of each somite while avoiding the posterior half. We demonstrate that neural crest cells express the receptor neuropilin 2 (Npn2), while its repulsive ligand semaphorin 3F (Sema3f) is restricted to the posterior-half somite. In Npn2 and Sema3f mutant mice, neural crest cells lose their segmental migration pattern and instead migrate as a uniform sheet, although somite polarity itself remains unchanged. Furthermore, Npn2 is cell autonomously required for neural crest cells to avoid Sema3f in vitro. These data show that Npn2/Sema3f signaling guides neural crest migration through the somite. Interestingly, neural crest cells still condense into segmentally arranged dorsal root ganglia in Npn2 nulls, suggesting that segmental neural crest migration and segmentation of the peripheral nervous system are separable processes

Perspectives on Professional Learning: A Study of the Beliefs and Attitudes of Mathematics Teachers in High Performing Schools

How do mathematics teachers in high performing schools perceive professional learning? Although mathematics teachers often find themselves in a variety of professional learning opportunities offered by their schools or school systems, research has narrowly focused on mathematics teachers’ behaviors, feedback, or professional learning outcomes within specific contexts. The present study explored mathematics teachers’ beliefs and attitudes toward professional learning through a multi-site case study. The researcher selected seven mathematics teachers from two high performing high school settings and captured their perspectives of professional learning through photographs that were later discussed during Photo Elicitation Interviews. The researcher also elicited participants’ reflections of professional learning though Professional Learning Journals and postings on a Professional Learning Discussion Board. Participants’ attitudes towards professional learning and positions of intellectual development were explored for common themes throughout the study. The researcher presented Professional Learning Profiles for each participant that detailed the participant’s unique views of the following: (a) perspectives of teaching and learning mathematics, (b) career goals and professional learning goals, (c) processes by which they learn to teach mathematics, and (d) positive and negative professional learning experiences. Commonalities among the participants’ learning processes were connected to a Professional Learning Sequence, and themes of relevance, professional learning contexts, participants’ valuation of time, and professional learning resources were also discussed. The findings suggest that teachers’ interactions with others throughout the professional learning process are influenced by their intellectual development stage and their philosophies of teaching mathematics. Additionally, professional learning structures that frame how, when, and where mathematics teachers learn substantially contributed to how teachers collaborated with one another. Further implications for research and practice are also discussed

Adult Learning in a K-12 Setting; Job-Embedded Professional Development: Teacher Identity and Self-Efficacy

This two-phase sequential mixed methods study examined the relationship between professional development, whether in the form of traditional professional development, a professional learning community and/or lesson study, and teacher self-efficacy and self-directed learning in order to gain a greater understanding of the role professional development plays in teacher identity and efficacy as they relate to adult learning theory. The qualitative case study method was used to interview 22 teachers, half of whom participated in a professional learning community known as lesson study. The interview data indicated that collaboration was simply one of the variables that influenced teacher efficacy and identity. Each teacher expressed high levels of conscious self-directed learning tendencies, a hallmark of adult learning theory, indicating a relationship between self-directed learning and identity, efficacy, and collaboration; however, analysis of the data did not provide enough information to determine which variables were the cause and which were the effect. A modified version of the Personal Learning Orientation to Self Direction in Learning Scale (PRO-SDLS) (Stockdale & Brockett, 2011) was sent to approximately 600 teachers in two school districts. The research hypotheses stated that high self-efficacy scores and self-directed learning scores were the result of participation in a professional learning community and that participation in lesson study would result in higher self -efficacy and higher self-directed learning scores than participation in a professional learning community. The hypotheses were answered by running t-tests and a one-way MANOVA. Results suggest that participation in a professional learning community did not affect teacher self-efficacy; however, participation in a professional learning community affected self-directed learning as measured by motivation but not initiative or control. Results from a one-way MANOVA indicate that participation in lesson study affects self-directed learning as measured by initiative, control and motivation, but not self-efficacy. Collaboration is an important factor in promoting teacher-efficacy, but that collaboration may take many forms, including a professional learning community. Future research studies examining collective teacher efficacy and other types of teacher collaboration may be useful in determining the role these variables play in how teachers learn and develop self-efficacy and identity

An Historical Study of Teaching Biology to Science-Illiterate Students in Eighteenth-Century France: Instructional Strategies Employed by Madame du Coudray - Royal Midwifery Educator

In August 1767 King Louis XV of France appointed Madame du Coudray, a 52-year-old midwife, to teach midwifery “throughout the whole extent of the Realm.” In so doing he acknowledged the “science and experience” and “high degree of perfection” that she had obtained in midwifery. Over the next 20 years Madame du Coudray traveled throughout France teaching midwifery to illiterate peasant women. It is estimated that she taught over 4,000 students. How did she teach midwifery to these women who had no previous experience with science? Could modern biology educators learn from her methods? This case study addressed these questions by studying her tools: a set of 26 teaching illustrations, a mannequin which served as an obstetric simulator, and a manual which contained her lectures. The illustrations were analyzed using Tufte’s theory of graphic design. This analysis revealed that they are excellent examples of Tufte-style graphic illustrations. They minimize chartjunk while maximizing data ink. They use color appropriately. They are surprisingly truthful according to modern medical standards, and they use the principle of small multiples to teach the process of childbirth. The features of the mannequin were studied for their potential use for active learning and brain-based learning. This study revealed that the mannequin has a good fidelity, particularly for the eighteenth-century, and could have easily been used for active learning and brain-based learning. The manual was content analyzed for teaching methods. This study revealed that Madame du Coudray’s method of teaching relied heavily on applications to real-world situations. It also showed that she taught her students their social and cultural responsibilities. In Vision and Change: A Call for Action , the AAAS recommends that biology students in the twenty-first century should have experience with simulation and understand the role of science in society. It appears that modern biology instructors could learn much from Madame du Coudray