14 research outputs found
Towards a model for teaching distributed computing in a distance-based educational environment
Several technologies and languages exist for the development and implementation of distributed systems. Furthermore, several models for teaching computer programming and teaching programming in a distance-based educational environment exist. Limited literature, however, is available on models for teaching distributed computing in a distance-based educational environment. The focus of this study is to examine how distributed computing should be taught in a distance-based educational environment so as to ensure effective and quality learning for students. The required effectiveness and quality should be comparable to those for students exposed to laboratories, as commonly found in residential universities. This leads to an investigation of the factors that contribute to the success of teaching distributed computing and how these factors can be integrated into a distance-based teaching model. The study consisted of a literature study, followed by a comparative study of available tools to aid in the learning and teaching of distributed computing in a distance-based educational environment. A model to accomplish this teaching and learning is then proposed and implemented. The findings of the study highlight the requirements and challenges that a student of distributed computing in a distance-based educational environment faces and emphasises how the proposed model can address these challenges. This study employed qualitative research, as opposed to quantitative research, as qualitative research methods are designed to help researchers to understand people and the social and cultural contexts within which they live. The research methods employed are design research, since an artefact is created, and a case study, since “how” and “why” questions need to be answered. Data collection was done through a survey. Each method was evaluated via its own well-established evaluation methods, since evaluation is a crucial component of the research process.ComputingM. Sc. (Computer Science
3 years of liraglutide versus placebo for type 2 diabetes risk reduction and weight management in individuals with prediabetes: a randomised, double-blind trial
Background:
Liraglutide 3·0 mg was shown to reduce bodyweight and improve glucose metabolism after the 56-week period of this trial, one of four trials in the SCALE programme. In the 3-year assessment of the SCALE Obesity and Prediabetes trial we aimed to evaluate the proportion of individuals with prediabetes who were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
Methods:
In this randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, adults with prediabetes and a body-mass index of at least 30 kg/m2, or at least 27 kg/m2 with comorbidities, were randomised 2:1, using a telephone or web-based system, to once-daily subcutaneous liraglutide 3·0 mg or matched placebo, as an adjunct to a reduced-calorie diet and increased physical activity. Time to diabetes onset by 160 weeks was the primary outcome, evaluated in all randomised treated individuals with at least one post-baseline assessment. The trial was conducted at 191 clinical research sites in 27 countries and is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01272219.
Findings:
The study ran between June 1, 2011, and March 2, 2015. We randomly assigned 2254 patients to receive liraglutide (n=1505) or placebo (n=749). 1128 (50%) participants completed the study up to week 160, after withdrawal of 714 (47%) participants in the liraglutide group and 412 (55%) participants in the placebo group. By week 160, 26 (2%) of 1472 individuals in the liraglutide group versus 46 (6%) of 738 in the placebo group were diagnosed with diabetes while on treatment. The mean time from randomisation to diagnosis was 99 (SD 47) weeks for the 26 individuals in the liraglutide group versus 87 (47) weeks for the 46 individuals in the placebo group. Taking the different diagnosis frequencies between the treatment groups into account, the time to onset of diabetes over 160 weeks among all randomised individuals was 2·7 times longer with liraglutide than with placebo (95% CI 1·9 to 3·9, p<0·0001), corresponding with a hazard ratio of 0·21 (95% CI 0·13–0·34). Liraglutide induced greater weight loss than placebo at week 160 (–6·1 [SD 7·3] vs −1·9% [6·3]; estimated treatment difference −4·3%, 95% CI −4·9 to −3·7, p<0·0001). Serious adverse events were reported by 227 (15%) of 1501 randomised treated individuals in the liraglutide group versus 96 (13%) of 747 individuals in the placebo group.
Interpretation:
In this trial, we provide results for 3 years of treatment, with the limitation that withdrawn individuals were not followed up after discontinuation. Liraglutide 3·0 mg might provide health benefits in terms of reduced risk of diabetes in individuals with obesity and prediabetes.
Funding:
Novo Nordisk, Denmark
Growth and Neurodevelopment of HIV-Exposed Uninfected Children: a Conceptual Framework
This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in
Current HIV/AIDS Reports. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11904-019-00459-0”
TP53 and KRAS2 mutations in plasma DNA of healthy subjects and subsequent cancer occurrence: A prospective study
In cancer patients, plasma often contains mutant DNA released by cancer
cells. We have assessed the significance of plasma DNA mutations for
subsequent cancer development in healthy subjects in a large
longitudinal prospective study. The European Prospective Investigation
into Cancer and Nutrition study was analyzed with a nested case-control
design. Cases were nonsmokers or ex-smokers for > 10 years and newly
diagnosed with lung, bladder, or upper aerodigestive tract cancers or
leukemia accrued after a median follow-up of 6.3 years. Controls were
matched 2:1 for follow-up, age, sex, area of recruitment, and smoking
status. KRAS2 mutations were detected by mutant-enriched PCR and
sequencing (n = 1,098). TP53 mutations were detected by denaturing
high-performance liquid chromatography, temporal temperature gradient
electrophoresis, and sequencing (n = 550). KRAS2 or TP53 mutations were
detected in 13 of 1,098 (1.2%) and 20 of 550 (3.6%) subjects,
respectively, 16 of whom developed cancer on average after 18.3 months
of follow-up. Among 137 subjects who developed bladder cancer, 5 had
KRAS2 mutations [odds ratio (OR), 4.25; 95% confidence interval (95%
CI), 1.27-14.15] and 7 had TP53 mutations (OR, 1.81; 95% Cl,
0.66-4.97). There was a nonsignificant trend for association between
TP53 mutations and bulky adducts in lymphocyte DNA (OR, 2.78; 95% Cl,
0.64-12.17). This is the first report of TP53 or KRAS2 mutations in the
plasma of healthy subjects in a prospective study, suggesting that KRAS2
mutation is detectable ahead of bladder cancer diagnosis. TP53 mutation
may be associated with environmental exposures. These observations have
implications for monitoring early steps of carcinogenesis
Early dispersal of domestic horses into the Great Plains and northern Rockies
The horse is central to many Indigenous cultures across the American Southwest and the Great Plains. However, when and how horses were first integrated into Indigenous lifeways remain contentious, with extant models derived largely from colonial records. We conducted an interdisciplinary study of an assemblage of historic archaeological horse remains, integrating genomic, isotopic, radiocarbon, and paleopathological evidence. Archaeological and modern North American horses show strong Iberian genetic affinities, with later influx from British sources, but no Viking proximity. Horses rapidly spread from the south into the northern Rockies and central plains by the first half of the 17th century CE, likely through Indigenous exchange networks. They were deeply integrated into Indigenous societies before the arrival of 18th-century European observers, as reflected in herd management, ceremonial practices, and culture.</p