Vision & Change: Why It Matters

The 2011 AAAS Vision and Change report has been inspiring undergraduate biology educators nationwide to rethink their educational approach, favoring active learning strategies to better prepare today\u27s students for a complex, data-rich future. Here, we consider the history of the movement, its place in the greater arena of STEM education. and the reasons why this new approach has never been more critical. We encourage all biology educators to consider becoming agents of change, and focus on helpful resources and practical suggestions to help ABT readers take the plunge (or at least get their feet wet) into the welcoming waters of Vision and Change

Can Random Mutation Mimic Design?: A Guided Inquiry Laboratory for Undergraduate Students

Complex biological structures, such as the human eye, have been interpreted as evidence for a creator for over three centuries. This raises the question of whether random mutation can create such adaptations. In this article, we present an inquiry-based laboratory experiment that explores this question using paper airplanes as a model organism. The main task for students in this investigation is to figure out how to simulate paper airplane evolution (including reproduction, inheritance, mutation, and selection). In addition, the lab requires students to practice analytic thinking and to carefully delineate the implications of their results

How Are Humans Related to Other Primates?: A Guided Inquiry Laboratory for Undergraduate Students

Understanding that phylogenies depict the evolutionary history of species is a critical concept for undergraduate biology students. We present an inquiry-based laboratory exercise exploring this concept in the context of the human phylogeny. This activity reinforces several important biological concepts and skills. Bolstered concepts include that evolution is descent with modification, that evolution is a genetic process, and that humans are closely related to apes. In terms of thinking skills, the lab gives students practice with hypothetical-deductive thinking, quantifying patterns from complex data, and evaluating evidence

Can neonatal sepsis be predicted in late preterm premature rupture of membranes? Development of a prediction model

Women with late preterm premature rupture of membranes (PROM) have an increased risk that their child will develop neonatal sepsis. We evaluated whether neonatal sepsis can be predicted from antepartum parameters in these women. We used multivariable logistic regression to develop a prediction model. Data were obtained from two recent randomized controlled trials on induction of labor versus expectant management in late preterm PROM (PPROMEXIL trials, (ISRCTN29313500 and ISRCTN05689407). Data from randomized as well as non-randomized women, who consented to the use of their medical data, were used. We evaluated 13 potential antepartum predictors for neonatal sepsis. Missing data were imputed. Discriminative ability of the model was expressed as the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve and a calibration with both a calibration plot and the Hosmer and Lemeshow goodness-of-fit test. Overall performance of the prediction model was quantified as the scaled Brier score. We studied 970 women. Thirty-three (3.4%) neonates suffered neonatal sepsis. Maternal age (OR 1.09 per year), maternal CRP level (OR 1.01 per mmol/l), maternal temperature (OR 1.80 per °C) and positive GBS culture (OR 2.20) were associated with an increased risk of neonatal sepsis. The model had an area under the ROC-curve of 0.71. The model had both a good calibration and accuracy. Antepartum parameters aid in the more precise prediction of the risk of neonatal sepsis in women with late preterm PPRO