The Impact of Digital Tools on Student Writing and How Writing is Taught in Schools

In a survey of Advanced Placement and National Writing Project teachers, a majority say digital tools encourage students to be more invested in their writing by encouraging personal expression and providing a wider audience for their work. Most also say digital tools make teaching writing easier, despite an increasingly ambiguous line between formal and informal writing and students' poor understanding of issues such as plagiarism and fair use

How Teachers Are Using Technology at Home and in Their Classrooms

A survey of Advanced Placement and National Writing Project teachers shows that digital tools are widely used in their classrooms and professional lives. Yet, many of these high school and middle school teachers worry about digital divides when it comes to their students' access to technology and those who teach low-income students face obstacles in bringing technology into their teaching

Entwicklung von Material und Strategien für eine nachhaltige Qualitätszüchtung von Winter-Emmer (Triticum diccoccum) für den ökologischen Landbau in Deutschland

47 Emmersorten wurden gemeinsam mit den im ökologischen Landbau wichtigsten Weizen- und Dinkelsorten an 8 Öko- und 7 konventionellen Standorten getestet. In den Projektversuchen wurden 10 Merkmale genauer bestimmt. Für alle Merkmale konnten signifikante genetische Varianzen festgestellt werden. Die Heritabilität der Merkmale Wuchshöhe, Ährenschieben, Gelbrost, Frost und Sedimentationsvolumen waren sehr hoch. Dahingegen wurden geringere Heritabilitäten für Ertrag, Proteingehalt sowie Resistenz gegenüber Blattflecken festgestellt. Es bietet sich also an, in den frühen Züchtungsgenerationen vor allem auf Standfestigkeit und Frosttoleranz zu selektieren. Ertrag und Proteingehalt sollten erst anhand mehrortiger Parzellenversuche bestimmt und selektiert werden. Es wurde eine hohe Korrelation bei allen Merkmalen zwischen den beiden Anbaualternativen ökologisch und extensiv konventionell festgestellt. Somit bietet sich an, das Emmerzuchtprogramm nur unter einer Anbaualternative zu führen und dabei indirekt auf die andere mit zu selektieren. Die besten Emmersorten sind vom Ertragsniveau, der Standfestigkeit sowie der Krankheitsresistenzen vergleichbar mit der alten aber sehr populären Dinkelsorte Oberkulmer Rotkorn. In der Qualitätsanalytik fielen insbesondere die Verfahren, die auf der Analyse der Glutenstruktur bzw. -qualität und dessen Kohäsivität zielen als schwierig bei Emmer-Mehlen auf. Diese Eigenschaften können möglicherweise auf die Abwesenheit der Puroindoline in dieser Art zurückgeführt werden. Zur weitergehenden Charakterisierung konnte ein Mikro-Backversuch speziell für Emmer-Mehle entwickelt werden. Anhand der Ergebnisse wurden 10 Emmer-Sorten mit guten bis sehr guten Backeigenschaften identifiziert. Alle Sorten sprechen auf eine eher schonende Teigbereitung positiv an. Die Teigbereitung sollte daher empfehlenswert bei Temperaturen um +20°C mit geringem mechanischem Energieeintrag erfolgen. Durch ein gering ausgeprägtes Gashaltevermögen und die vorliegende geringe Kohäsivität des Emmer-Glutens sollte auch die Gärzeit kurz gewählt werden

Ein Blick auf und in die Magdeburger Weiterbildungsforschung. Forschungsbasierte Projektarchitekturen

Das Projekt „Weiterbildungscampus Magdeburg“ hat es sich zur Aufgabe gemacht, bedarfsgerechte und nachfrageorientierte wissenschaftliche Weiterbildungsstudiengänge anhand der fünf forschungsleitenden Fragestellungen Studierfähigkeit, Teilnehmergewinnung, Curriculaübertragung, Formatentwicklung und Organisationsentwicklung zu er- und beforschen sowie die Erkenntnisse für die (Weiter-) Entwicklung dieser wissenschaftlichen Weiterbildungsangebote zu nutzen. Der Artikel beschreibt die Projektarchitektur unter Einbezug der aktuellen Forschungsarbeiten im Projekt. (DIPF/Orig.

The New Zealand Kauri (Agathis Australis) Research Project: A Radiocarbon Dating Intercomparison of Younger Dryas Wood and Implications for IntCal13

We describe here the New Zealand kauri (Agathis australis) Younger Dryas (YD) research project, which aims to undertake Δ14C analysis of ~140 decadal floating wood samples spanning the time interval ~13.1–11.7 kyr cal BP. We report 14C intercomparison measurements being undertaken by the carbon dating laboratories at University of Waikato (Wk), University of California at Irvine (UCI), and University of Oxford (OxA). The Wk, UCI, and OxA laboratories show very good agreement with an interlaboratory comparison of 12 successive decadal kauri samples (average offsets from consensus values of –7 to +4 14C yr). A University of Waikato/University of Heidelberg (HD) intercomparison involving measurement of the YD-age Swiss larch tree Ollon505, shows a HD/Wk offset of ~10–20 14C yr (HD younger), and strong evidence that the positioning of the Ollon505 series is incorrect, with a recommendation that the 14C analyses be removed from the IntCal calibration database

Ceramide remodeling and risk of cardiovascular events and mortality

BackgroundRecent studies suggest that circulating concentrations of specific ceramide species may be associated with coronary risk and mortality. We sought to determine the relations between the most abundant plasma ceramide species of differing acyl chain lengths and the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) and mortality in community‐based samples. Methods and ResultsWe developed a liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry assay to quantify plasma C24:0, C22:0, and C16:0 ceramides and ratios of these very–long‐chain/long‐chain ceramides in 2642 FHS (Framingham Heart Study) participants and in 3134 SHIP (Study of Health in Pomerania) participants. Over a mean follow‐up of 6 years in FHS, there were 88 CHD and 90 heart failure (HF) events and 239 deaths. Over a median follow‐up time in SHIP of 5.75 years for CHD and HF and 8.24 years for mortality, there were 209 CHD and 146 HF events and 377 deaths. In meta‐analysis of the 2 cohorts and adjusting for standard CHD risk factors, C24:0/C16:0 ceramide ratios were inversely associated with incident CHD (hazard ratio per average SD increment, 0.79; 95% confidence interval, 0.71–0.89; P<0.0001) and inversely associated with incident HF (hazard ratio, 0.78; 95% confidence interval, 0.61–1.00; P=0.046). Moreover, the C24:0/C16:0 and C22:0/C16:0 ceramide ratios were inversely associated with all‐cause mortality (C24:0/C16:0: hazard ratio, 0.60; 95% confidence interval, 0.56–0.65; P<0.0001; C22:0/C16:0: hazard ratio, 0.65; 95% confidence interval, 0.60–0.70; P<0.0001). ConclusionsThe ratio of C24:0/C16:0 ceramides in blood may be a valuable new biomarker of CHD risk, HF risk, and all‐cause mortality in the community

Isolation and in vitro cultivation of adrenal cells from mice

The adrenal gland consists of two tissues, cortex and medulla, united under one capsule. Adrenal stem/progenitor cells play a key role in development and homeostasis. Here, we describe a protocol for generating primary cultures of adrenal cells from mice. We describe techniques for separating the cortex and medulla, generating spheroid cultures containing stem- and progenitor cells, and for the differentiation into steroidogenic and chromaffin cells, respectively. This protocol enables analysis of various treatments before, during, or after differentiation. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Rubin de Celis et al. (2015), Steenblock et al. (2018), and Werdermann et al. (2021)

Engineered Nanomaterials and Human Health: Part 2. Applications and Nanotoxicology (IUPAC Technical Report) (Review)

Research on engineered nanomaterials (ENM) has progressed rapidly from the very early stages of studying their unique, size-dependent physicochemical properties and commercial exploration to the development of products that influence our everyday lives. We have previously reviewed various methods for synthesis, surface functionalization, and analytical characterization of ENM in a publication titled \u27Engineered Nanomaterials: Preparation, Functionalization and Characterization\u27. In this second, inter-linked document, we first provide an overview of important applications of ENM in products relevant to human healthcare and consumer goods, such as food, textiles, and cosmetics. We then highlight the challenges for the design and development of new ENM for bio-applications, particularly in the rapidly developing nanomedicine sector. The second part of this document is dedicated to nanotoxicology studies of ENM in consumer products. We describe the various biological targets where toxicity may occur, summarize the four nanotoxicology principles, and discuss the need for careful consideration of the biodistribution, degradation, and elimination routes of nanosized materials before they can be safely used. Finally, we review expert opinions on the risk, regulation, and ethical aspects of using engineered nanomaterials in applications that may have direct or indirect impact on human health or our environment

Kaskadennutzung von Lignocellulose : LX-Verfahren trifft auf B. coagulans

Investigating alternatives for petrobased substrates, lignocellulose is an interesting yet complex feedstock that offers various possibilities for the design of new and sustainable chemical routes. The novel energy-saving LX-pretreatment was combined with thermophilic Bacillus coagulans. By this, corn straw was used in an innovative cascade obtaining biogas, lignin as well as polymerisable L-(+)-lactic acid of over 99 percents optical purity. © 2020, Die Autoren

Coastal Wetland Restoration through the lens of Odum\u27s theory of ecosystem development

Advancing ecological restoration assessments requires a more detailed consideration of species interactions and ecosystem processes. Most restoration projects rely on a few metrics not always directly linked with ecological theory. Here, we used Odum\u27s theory of ecosystem development to assess and compare the ecosystem structure and services of created marshes (4–6 years old) with preexisting, reference marshes in a brackish water region of the Mississippi River Delta. We built ecosystem models for created and reference marshes that integrated large datasets of stomach contents, stable isotopes, and taxa abundances. Despite strong resemblance in community structure, created marshes were at an earlier succession stage compared to the reference marshes, having lower biomass (including exploited species), higher biomass turnover and production, less dependence on detritus, lower material cycling, and less energy flowing through specialist pathways. Although preserving preexisting marshes should be a priority, created marshes may still be an important tool for the restoration of coastal areas and their ecosystem services. In addition, our results show that comparisons of species biodiversity alone may fail to capture essential differences in ecosystem processes between habitats, which reinforces the importance of ecosystem modeling approaches to assess restoration projects