The Rise of the Alt-Right Movement

The alt-right was once seen an obscure subculture festering on sites like Reddit and 4chan. They were written off as a bunch of trolls and racists too scared to organize, and media outlets saw them as a fringe movement with little hope of growing. However, the 2016 Presidential election of Donald Trump is one of many important events the alt-right rallied behind. They are even leaving their computer screens and beginning to hold ‘free-speech’ rallies across the country. This project asks very important questions about how this has become possible. What are the nuances of this movement? How were they covered by traditional conservative media outlets? Maybe most importantly, how were they able to manipulate the media agenda and enter the discourse of American politics? I delve into these important questions to understand how messages of white-nationalism, isolationism, and anti-globalism are being re-framed to target and re-energize a younger demographic of conservatives. I hope this project is one of many future studies that can be used to analyze the history and importance of a modern counter-culture of Internet trolls, media manipulators, and organizers in a hyper-partisan news and political environment

Evidence and rationale for expanding The Views of Nature of Science Questionnaire

In an attempt to understand nature of science (NOS) conceptions held by learners in greater detail, researchers have steadily become more reliant on open-ended measures. The Views of Science Questionnaire (VNOS) is the most frequently used open-ended instrument. Conceptually grounded in many of the same aspects emphasized in the Next Generation Science Standards, the VNOS-C is appropriate for capturing the views of secondary school students and adults along 10 dimensions related to NOS. However, it has been observed that the 10-item VNOS-C seems to have difficulty uncovering some particular NOS aspects, or rather respondents may need additional prompting. Two new items have been developed and administered to expand the VNOS instrument (VNOS-CE). The present study focuses on evaluating whether these items function as intended, soliciting responses for the target NOS aspects, and whether these contributions add value to the instrument as a whole. Data comes from 37 pre- and in-service elementary, middle and secondary teachers. Results suggest one of the items adds considerable breadth, eliciting responses from multiple NOS aspects, while the other adds much needed depth related to one aspect, social NOS. Implications for the field and assessment of NOS are discussed

A statewide examination of attitudes toward science among Illinois students in grades 5-12

The present study investigated precollege students' perceptions and attitudes about science, as well as their intentions regarding the continued study of science in the future. The central research questions were: "What is the landscape of Illinois students' attitudes toward science across their school experience?" and "To what extent do school characteristics, including the attributes of classroom teachers, influence student attitudes toward science across the state of Illinois?" To address these research questions, the first phase of this study involved the refinement and validation of a self-report student instrument, the US-ASSASS, which assessed student attitudes toward science based on a theoretical framework drawn from the theories of reasoned action and planned behavior. In the second phase of the study, a representative statewide sample of 1,442 students in grades 5-12 were surveyed about their attitudes toward science using a cross-sectional design. Cross-sectional design was ideal because it allowed data to be collected from students of various ages, and over a large geographical area yielding a wide variance among respondents (e.g., in terms of socioeconomic status). In an effort to allow for equal representation of students across the state, participant schools were selected randomly from each of six geographic regions identified in Illinois. Students completed the 59-item US-ASSASS, along with background items, online. Confirmatory factor analysis was computed using the 1,291 responses collected from students in grades 5 through 10. A five factor structure was refined that was consistent with the underlying theoretical model and the finalized 30-item instrument that demonstrated acceptable statistical fit with a RMSEA of 0.04, a CFI of 0.95, and a non-normed index of 0.95. In addition to student data, information was obtained from 65 of a total of 78 classroom sections and respective schools from which student data were collected. Teachers’ responses to the Science Teacher Survey, along with data compiled from the Illinois Report Card and the National Center for Educational Statistics, allowed for the consideration of several group-level variables (e.g., teacher education, school funding, and community type). These variables were systematically explored and used to create a multivariate multilevel model to characterize students' attitudes toward science and related factors. Inferential statistics, coupled with descriptive statistics, revealed that students’ attitudes toward science declined as they went up their grade levels. A final statistical model was computed from responses collected from students in grades 5-10 that portrays significant declines and other effects. However, the students in the sample who persisted in science until grades 11 and 12 reported high attitudes toward science according to the descriptive statistics presented. It is also positive to note that students' who reported high frequency of talking with family about school and/or a high self-perception of science ability, had improved scores on all US-ASSASS factors. Illinois students' decline in attitudes toward science, through grade 10, is consistent with prior literature, and suggests the need for future research to ascertain whether this decline is disproportionate for science, compared to other core subjects (e.g., language arts). Additionally the present study gives some legitimacy to the constructs proposed by the theories of reasoned action and behavior, and it is prudent for future efforts to establish the extent and consistency between students' intention to pursue science in the future and their future decisions to engage in science

Viability of Hunting as a Means of Wild Hog Population Management on Federal Property

The Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area allows hunter to purchase permits and hunt wild hogs on property with the intention of curbing increases in wild hog populations. In order to assess outcomes of the wild hog hunting permit program, researchers collaborated with site managers to develop protocol and solicit information from permit holders regarding number of animals seen and harvested, sex of animals harvested, geographic areas hunted, length and number of hunts, and open qualitative feedback regarding the program. All permit holders agreeing to be contacted during permit registration were called with 37.57% (N=65) of permit holder completing the telephone survey. While more hogs were seen than harvested, the total harvested hogs was 52. Results indicate hunting is not a viable option for population management in and of itself, as the number if wild hogs harvested was minimal. A longitudinal study is necessary to overcome case study (single year) limitations, such as weather, hunter economics, herd movement, herd reproduction and so forth. Salient variables may warrant consideration, including marketing of permit program, number of hunters within acceptable driving distance to hunting location, and much more. Herd management initiatives beyond hunting may be considered when necessary to control wild hog populations

Gene therapy targeting SARM1 blocks pathological axon degeneration in mice

Axonal degeneration (AxD) following nerve injury, chemotherapy, and in several neurological disorders is an active process driven by SARM1, an injury-activated NADase. Axons of SARM1-null mice exhibit greatly delayed AxD after transection and in models of neurological disease, suggesting that inhibiting SARM1 is a promising strategy to reduce pathological AxD. Unfortunately, no drugs exist to target SARM1. We, therefore, developed SARM1 dominant-negatives that potently block AxD in cellular models of axotomy and neuropathy. To assess efficacy in vivo, we used adeno-associated virus-mediated expression of the most potent SARM1 dominant-negative and nerve transection as a model of severe AxD. While axons of vehicle-treated mice degenerate rapidly, axons of mice expressing SARM1 dominant-negative can remain intact for \u3e10 d after transection, similar to the protection observed in SARM1-null mice. We thus developed a novel in vivo gene therapeutic to block pathological axon degeneration by inhibiting SARM1, an approach that may be applied clinically to treat manifold neurodegenerative diseases characterized by axon loss

Comparing Likert Scale Functionality Across Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Groups in Science Education Research: an Illustration Using Qatari Students’ Responses to an Attitude Toward Science Survey

Surveying is a common methodology in science education research, including cross-national and cross-cultural comparisons. The literature surrounding students’ attitudes toward science, in particular, illustrates the prevalence of efforts to translate instruments with the eventual goal of comparing groups. This paper utilizes survey data from a nationally representative cross-sectional study of Qatari students in grades 3 through 12 to frame a discussion around the adequacy and extent to which common adaptations allow comparisons to be made among linguistically or culturally different respondents. The analytic sample contained 2,615 students who responded to a previously validated 32-item instrument, 1,704 of whom completed the survey in Modern Standard Arabic and 911 in English. The purpose of using these data is to scrutinize variation in the performance of the instrument between groups of respondents as determined by language of survey completion and cultural heritage. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis was employed to investigate issues of validity associated with the performance of the survey with each group, and to evaluate the appropriateness of using this instrument to make simultaneous comparisons across the distinct groups. Findings underscore the limitations of group comparability that may persist even when issues of translation and adaptation were heavily attended to during instrument development

The Ecological Recovery of Saguaro National Park after Removal of Cattle Grazing and Associated Succession

In the area that is now Saguaro National Park East, grazing began in the 1880's. Because of the impact to the iconic saguaro cactus as well as all palatable plant species in the area, ecological damage in the park were determined to be so great that anti-grazing conservationists challenged the right of grazing to continue in what was Saguaro National Monument. Ultimately, this group won a court case eliminating grazing in 1978. The Rincon Mountains, located within the park are one of many Madrean Sky Island ecosystems connecting the Rocky Mountains to the Sierra Madre mountain ranges to the south in Mexico. This area is one of the most biodiverse locations on the planet, with over 6,000 plant species (USFS, N.D.). This area is also poorly understood when considering succession and the impacts of disturbance to compositional guilds of plant species. Surveys of ten plots began in 1976 and were replicated in 2007 and 2018 in an effort to understand vegetation changes as affected by grazing management, as well as fire disturbance. The study plots were arranged into intensely grazed and lightly grazed to compare the composition of the plant community through time. Ultimately, little significance was found when considering the composition of paired plots through time, the original aim of the study. However, plant canopy cover, density and diversity continued to increase significantly from 1976 to 2007 and 2018. Major implications of our work identified perennial grasses increasing at a significant rate by 2007 and even more so by 2018, while tree species such as the commonly identified encroacher Prosopis velutina decreased significantly by 2007 and stayed steady by 2018. Grass re-establishment can be directly attributed to increased tropical moisture creating uncommon survivability conditions (speaking from historical precipitation means) in recent years previous to 2007 (1996, 1998, 2000, 2003 & 2006) and dramatically increase in the years prior to 2019 (2014-2016 & 2018). Implications here identified that past fire intensity (1989, 1994 & 1999 fires, see fire history) were likely much more intense than previously thought, and supported the scientific community’s knowledge that fire control woody species and supports perennial grasses re-establishment such as is occurring in our work. Our findings also documented that increasing winter minimums have allowed previously excluded, cold-sensitive species such as Encelia farinosa to move into the area, dominating a post-fire ecosystem. The means of succession when considering disturbance history proved quite interesting particularly when combined with climate change impacts in our research

Cleft Palate Is Caused by CNS Dysfunction in Gad1 and Viaat Knockout Mice

BACKGROUND: Previous studies have shown that disruption of GABA signaling in mice via mutations in the Gad1, Gabrb3 or Viaat genes leads to the development of non-neural developmental defects such as cleft palate. Studies of the Gabrb3 and Gad1 mutant mice have suggested that GABA function could be required either in the central nervous system or in the palate itself for normal palatogenesis. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To further examine the role of GABA signaling in palatogenesis we used three independent experimental approaches to test whether Gad1 or Viaat function is required in the fetal CNS for normal palate development. We used oral explant cultures to demonstrate that the Gad1 and Viaat mutant palates were able to undergo palatogenesis in culture, suggesting that there is no defect in the palate tissue itself in these mice. In a second series of experiments we found that the GABA(A) receptor agonist muscimol could rescue the cleft palate phenotype in Gad1 and Viaat mutant embryos. This suggested that normal multimeric GABA(A) receptors in the CNS were necessary for normal palatogenesis. In addition, we showed that CNS-specific inactivation of Gad1 was sufficient to disrupt palate development. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Our results are consistent with a role for Gad1 and Viaat in the central nervous system for normal development of the palate. We suggest that the alterations in GABA signaling lead to non-neural defects such as cleft palate as a secondary effect due to alterations in or elimination of fetal movements

Multiscale information modelling for heart morphogenesis

Science is made feasible by the adoption of common systems of units. As research has become more data intensive, especially in the biomedical domain, it requires the adoption of a common system of information models, to make explicit the relationship between one set of data and another, regardless of format. This is being realised through the OBO Foundry to develop a suite of reference ontologies, and NCBO Bioportal to provide services to integrate biomedical resources and functionality to visualise and create mappings between ontology terms. Biomedical experts tend to be focused at one level of spatial scale, be it biochemistry, cell biology, or anatomy. Likewise, the ontologies they use tend to be focused at a particular level of scale. There is increasing interest in a multiscale systems approach, which attempts to integrate between different levels of scale to gain understanding of emergent effects. This is a return to physiological medicine with a computational emphasis, exemplified by the worldwide Physiome initiative, and the European Union funded Network of Excellence in the Virtual Physiological Human. However, little work has been done on how information modelling itself may be tailored to a multiscale systems approach. We demonstrate how this can be done for the complex process of heart morphogenesis, which requires multiscale understanding in both time and spatial domains. Such an effort enables the integration of multiscale metrology