OER Adoption in Higher Education: A Case Study of Stakeholders’ Perceptions at a Florida State College

The purpose of this case study was to document stakeholders’ perceptions of adopting and integrating OER materials in higher education. Specifically, this study sought to understand the perceptions of institutional faculty, librarians, instructional designers, and students with the adoption and use of OER at a state college in east Florida. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with institutional faculty, librarians, and instructional designers. A survey was distributed to students enrolled in OER integrated courses during the Spring semester. Theoretical perspectives on the adoption and diffusion of OER as an innovation were grounded in Roger’s Diffusion of Innovation theory. An analysis of the data revealed that stakeholder perceptions are a key factor in the rate of adoption and diffusion within the institution. Faculty perceptions of resource quality and time involved to curate the resources proved challenging for OER adoption and integration. Instructional designers perceived the resources as time consuming yet highly accessible. Librarians perceived the resources as beneficial, but a lack of awareness and understanding of licensing rules made adoption and integration challenging. Students perceived the resources as advantageous, above average in quality, and just as effective as traditional textbooks. Despite the challenges presented, stakeholders agreed that access to the resources and the cost savings for students were significant enough to outweigh the time involved to locate, adapt, implement, and utilize the resources

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead

Effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor and angiotensin receptor blocker initiation on organ support-free days in patients hospitalized with COVID-19

IMPORTANCE Overactivation of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) may contribute to poor clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19. Objective To determine whether angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) initiation improves outcomes in patients hospitalized for COVID-19. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In an ongoing, adaptive platform randomized clinical trial, 721 critically ill and 58 non–critically ill hospitalized adults were randomized to receive an RAS inhibitor or control between March 16, 2021, and February 25, 2022, at 69 sites in 7 countries (final follow-up on June 1, 2022). INTERVENTIONS Patients were randomized to receive open-label initiation of an ACE inhibitor (n = 257), ARB (n = 248), ARB in combination with DMX-200 (a chemokine receptor-2 inhibitor; n = 10), or no RAS inhibitor (control; n = 264) for up to 10 days. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The primary outcome was organ support–free days, a composite of hospital survival and days alive without cardiovascular or respiratory organ support through 21 days. The primary analysis was a bayesian cumulative logistic model. Odds ratios (ORs) greater than 1 represent improved outcomes. RESULTS On February 25, 2022, enrollment was discontinued due to safety concerns. Among 679 critically ill patients with available primary outcome data, the median age was 56 years and 239 participants (35.2%) were women. Median (IQR) organ support–free days among critically ill patients was 10 (–1 to 16) in the ACE inhibitor group (n = 231), 8 (–1 to 17) in the ARB group (n = 217), and 12 (0 to 17) in the control group (n = 231) (median adjusted odds ratios of 0.77 [95% bayesian credible interval, 0.58-1.06] for improvement for ACE inhibitor and 0.76 [95% credible interval, 0.56-1.05] for ARB compared with control). The posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitors and ARBs worsened organ support–free days compared with control were 94.9% and 95.4%, respectively. Hospital survival occurred in 166 of 231 critically ill participants (71.9%) in the ACE inhibitor group, 152 of 217 (70.0%) in the ARB group, and 182 of 231 (78.8%) in the control group (posterior probabilities that ACE inhibitor and ARB worsened hospital survival compared with control were 95.3% and 98.1%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this trial, among critically ill adults with COVID-19, initiation of an ACE inhibitor or ARB did not improve, and likely worsened, clinical outcomes. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT0273570

OER Adoption in Higher Education: Examining Perspectives from Institutional Stakeholders.

The costs associated with education, including tuition and learning resources, continue to rise causing affordability issues for learners. It has been reported that the cost of traditional textbooks and materials has risen by as much as 103% over the past decade (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2018). Due to this increase, many students have opted out of purchasing required textbooks for classes. A study conducted in Florida found that 67% of students did not purchase the required textbooks (Florida Virtual Campus, 2016). Institutions are becoming increasingly concerned with textbook affordability and the impact on academic performance, achievement, and completion (Jhangiani, Dastur, LeGrand, & Penner, 2018). OERs are being examined as cost-effective substitutions to traditional textbooks and literature suggests that OERs are equally effective and are comparable in quality to traditional textbooks (Hilton, n.d.). Reflecting on 14 interviews conducted with faculty, instructional designers, and librarians, as well as quantitative data collected from a survey distributed to students as a part of an ongoing OER initiative at a state college in east Florida, this session will discuss the challenges and advantages associated with OER adoption and integration at the institution, from the perspective of institutional stakeholders. This session will also inform educational professionals about how these views may influence OERs’ rate of adoption, the effect of OERs on the course design process, how librarian advocacy helps in the OER adoption process, and the potential impact of OERs on learners. Understanding the experiences of stakeholders may help to advise the practices of other institutions who wish to adopt OERs and provide further reflection on how OER adoption and integration impacts the overall success of learners. The core principle of open learning is to provide equal access to education on a global level irrespective of economic or social limitations. The implementation of OERs in higher education, including distance learning courses, seeks to fulfill this mission by expanding the possibilities of affordable and quality resources to all learners worldwide. References Florida Virtual Campus. (2016). 2016 Florida student textbook survey. Retrieved from https://florida.theorangegrove.org/og/file/3a65c507-2510-42d7-814c-ffdefd394b6c/1/2016%20Student%20Textbook%20Survey.pdf Hilton, J. L. III. (n.d.). The Review Project. [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://openedgroup.org/review Jhangiani, R. S., Dastur, F. N., Le Grand, R., & Penner, K. (2018). As good or better than commercial textbooks: Students’ perceptions and outcomes from using open digital and open print textbooks. The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 9(1). Retrieved from https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cjsotl_rcacea/vol9/iss1/5 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2018). Consumer price index – All urban consumers: College textbooks. Retrieved from https://beta.bls.go

TOI-4562b: A Highly Eccentric Temperate Jupiter Analog Orbiting a Young Field Star

We report the discovery of TOI-4562b (TIC-349576261), a Jovian planet orbiting a young F7V-type star, younger than the Praesepe/Hyades clusters (<700 Myr). This planet stands out because of its unusually long orbital period for transiting planets with known masses ( P _orb = 225.11781 ${}_{-0.00022}^{+0.00025}$ days) and because it has a substantial eccentricity ( e = 0.76 ${}_{-0.02}^{+0.02}$ ). The location of TOI-4562 near the southern continuous viewing zone of TESS allowed observations throughout 25 sectors, enabling an unambiguous period measurement from TESS alone. Alongside the four available TESS transits, we performed follow-up photometry using the South African Astronomical Observatory node of the Las Cumbres Observatory and spectroscopy with the CHIRON spectrograph on the 1.5 m SMARTS telescope. We measure a radius of ${1.118}_{+0.013}^{-0.014}$ R _J and a mass of 2.30 ${}_{-0.47}^{+0.48}$ M _J for TOI-4562b. The radius of the planet is consistent with contraction models describing the early evolution of the size of giant planets. We detect tentative transit timing variations at the ∼20 minutes level from five transit events, favoring the presence of a companion that could explain the dynamical history of this system if confirmed by future follow-up observations. With its current orbital configuration, tidal timescales are too long for TOI-4562b to become a hot Jupiter via high-eccentricity migration though it is not excluded that interactions with the possible companion could modify TOI-4562b’s eccentricity and trigger circularization. The characterization of more such young systems is essential to set constraints on models describing giant-planet evolution

Oxygen targets and 6-month outcome after out of hospital cardiac arrest: a pre-planned sub-analysis of the targeted hypothermia versus targeted normothermia after Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest (TTM2) trial

International audienceAbstract Background Optimal oxygen targets in patients resuscitated after cardiac arrest are uncertain. The primary aim of this study was to describe the values of partial pressure of oxygen values (PaO 2 ) and the episodes of hypoxemia and hyperoxemia occurring within the first 72 h of mechanical ventilation in out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) patients. The secondary aim was to evaluate the association of PaO 2 with patients’ outcome. Methods Preplanned secondary analysis of the targeted hypothermia versus targeted normothermia after OHCA (TTM2) trial. Arterial blood gases values were collected from randomization every 4 h for the first 32 h, and then, every 8 h until day 3. Hypoxemia was defined as PaO 2  300 mmHg. Mortality and poor neurological outcome (defined according to modified Rankin scale) were collected at 6 months. Results 1418 patients were included in the analysis. The mean age was 64 ± 14 years, and 292 patients (20.6%) were female. 24.9% of patients had at least one episode of hypoxemia, and 7.6% of patients had at least one episode of severe hyperoxemia. Both hypoxemia and hyperoxemia were independently associated with 6-month mortality, but not with poor neurological outcome. The best cutoff point associated with 6-month mortality for hypoxemia was 69 mmHg (Risk Ratio, RR = 1.009, 95% CI 0.93–1.09), and for hyperoxemia was 195 mmHg (RR = 1.006, 95% CI 0.95–1.06). The time exposure, i.e., the area under the curve (PaO 2 -AUC), for hyperoxemia was significantly associated with mortality ( p = 0.003). Conclusions In OHCA patients, both hypoxemia and hyperoxemia are associated with 6-months mortality, with an effect mediated by the timing exposure to high values of oxygen. Precise titration of oxygen levels should be considered in this group of patients. Trial registration : clinicaltrials.gov NCT02908308 , Registered September 20, 2016

Ventilatory settings in the initial 72 h and their association with outcome in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients: a preplanned secondary analysis of the targeted hypothermia versus targeted normothermia after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (TTM2) trial

International audienc

Students' participation in collaborative research should be recognised

Letter to the editor