Goodbye to the Lecture: Embracing Interactive Learning Techniques

This article addresses many factors on the frontier of improved effectiveness in teaching and learning. Although there are no specific references to any aviation-related courses of study, this field could benefit substantially from an interactive approach. Flight training has always been almost entirely pure memorization. Flight students are constantly going over system after system and procedure after procedure. This type of learning has yielded an extremely poor retention rate. The realm of flight-training is now in an era that stresses subjects like cockpit resource management, pilot adaptability, and teamwork. Therefore, it seems odd that those responsible for flight training have not employed more interaction in their teaching on a consistent and widespread basis. Considering the amount of information that pilots need to manage, not only individually, but collectively with the members of their crews, a different approach should be examined. An approach that emphasizes better interpersonal skills, improved knowledge retention, and more acute conclusion-drawing abilities, should at least be analyzed by flight training experts

Farmers Experience with Grass Silage

Considerable interest in the practice of ensiling grasses and legumes as a means of preserving forage has been expressed in recent years. Controlled trials are now being conducted by the Experiment Station to determine the feasibility of this practice and to test various methods of storage. Meanwhile, some farmers have been trying various methods of grass silage storage on their farms. What has been their experience? What are some of the difficulties encountered under farm conditions with these methods of handling grass silage? To answer these questions, a survey was made in the summer of 1954 to determine the experience of farmers with various methods of storage. The questionnaire was designed= to secure information regarding: 1. Differences in methods of storing grass silage in various parts of the state. 2. Actual farm costs in so far as they were known by farmers. 3. Farm results using different methods and practices in feeding silage. Because of the relatively small number of farmers putting up grass silage, it was found that personal interviews were not practicable. Each county agent was contacted for the names of farmers known to be putting up grass silage. A questionnaire was sent to these farmers and they in turn named others who they knew were putting up grass silage. In this way the names of 364 farmers in various parts of the state were obtained2 all of whom were sent questionnaires. Of 190 replies received, 168 were usable. The questionnaire was designed to provide information on the method of putting up silage, type of silo, cost of construction, cost of putting up the forage, keeping quality, and value of feed obtained. In addition comments were solicited on any other aspects or facts which the farmer might deem- noteworthy. These data provide an indication of farmers\u27 impressions and may be of use to provide direction for further research. The information is being made available to farmers interested in putting up grass silage so that they might benefit from the variety of experiences of farmers throughout the state

Positive Predictive Value of Tomosynthesis-guided Biopsies of Architectural Distortions Seen on Digital Breast Tomosynthesis and without an Ultrasound Correlate

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the positive predictive value (PPV) of architectural distortions (AD) observed on digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) and without an ultrasound (US) correlate. Materials and Methods: In this single-institution, retrospective study, patients who underwent DBT-guided biopsies of AD without any associated findings on digital mammography (DM) or DBT, and without a correlate on targeted US exam, over a 14-month period were included in this study. All patients had DM and DBT and targeted US exams. The PPV was computed along with the exact 95% confidence limits (CL) using simple binomial proportions, with histopathology as the reference standard. Results: A total of 45 ADs in 45 patients met the inclusion criteria. Histopathology indicated 6/45 (PPV: 13.3%, CL: 5.1-26.8%), ADs were malignant, including one high-risk lesion that was upgraded at surgery. ADs were appreciated only on DBT in 12/45 (26.7%) patients, and on both DBT and DM in 33/45 (73.3%) patients, and the corresponding PPV was 25% (3/12, CL: 5.5-57.2%) and 9.1% (3/33, CL: 1.9-24.3%), respectively. In all analyses, the observed PPV significantly exceeded the 2% probability of malignancy for Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System-3 diagnostic categories (P \u3c 0.004). Conclusions: The PPV of malignancy in DBT detected AD without an US correlate in our series of 45 cases was 6/45 (13.3%). In the absence of an US correlate, the PPV of AD is lower than that mentioned in prior literature but exceeds the 2% threshold to justify DBT-guided biopsy

Perceptions of Microaggressions and Consequences Differ by Political Orientation

Microaggressions are subtle forms of discriminatory behavior. Women are more likely than men to perceive gender microaggressions (Basford, Offermann, & Behrend, 2014), and political orientation can affect perceptions of microaggressions (Harper, 2018). In this study, we hypothesized that politically liberal women would perceive discriminatory behavior and anticipate negative outcomes for another woman more than politically conservative women, especially when microaggressions were subtler. In a pre-registered experiment, 248 female participants read one of four workplace interaction vignettes depicting microassault, microinsult, microinvalidation, or no microaggression (Basford et al., 2014). Participants rated whether the interaction was discriminatory and if it would result in negative work outcomes for the woman depicted, then completed measures of their personal experiences and characteristics, including four items assessing how liberal/conservative they were (Inbar & Lammers, 2012). As predicted, political orientation and condition affected perceptions of discrimination and predictions of negative work outcomes, though the interaction was not significant. Overall, liberals were more likely than conservatives to perceive microaggressions and to predict negative work outcomes for the woman depicted. However, if the depicted microaggression was subtler, both liberals and conservatives perceived less discrimination and predicted less negative work outcomes. These results suggest that conservative women may discount sexism, rather than liberal women overestimating sexism. Political orientation may decrease perceptions of discrimination against one’s own group for conservatives and liberals in certain situations (cf., Harper, 2018). These findings may aid in understanding political issues such as reactions to Kavanaugh’s hearing

Remote identification of the invasive tunicate Didemnum vexillum using reflectance spectroscopy

Benthic coverage of the invasive tunicate Didemnum vexillum on Georges Bank is largely unknown. Monitoring of D. vexillum coverage is vital to understanding the impact this invasive species will have on the productive fishing grounds of Georges Bank. Here we investigate using reflectance spectroscopy as a method for remote identification of D. vexillum. Using two different systems, a NightSea Dive-Spec and a combination of LED light sources with a hyperspectral radiometer, we collected in-situ measurements of reflectance from D. vexillum colonies. In comparison to reflectance spectra of other common benthic substrates, D. vexillum appears to have a unique spectral signature between 500 and 600 nm. Measuring the slope of the spectrum between these wavelengths appears to be the most robust method for spectral identification. Using derivative analysis or principal component analysis, the reflectance spectra of D. vexillum can be identified among numerous other spectra of common benthic substrates. An optical system consisting of a radiometer, light source, and camera was deployed on a remotely operated vehicle to test the feasibility of using reflectance to assess D. vexillum coverage. Preliminary results, analyzed here, prove the method to be successful for the areas we surveyed and open the way for its use on large-scale surveys