Developing a culture fair cognitive estimation test

Objective: Cognitive Estimation Tests (CETs) are used to assess decision-making. Previous versions include culturally- biased questions likely to disadvantage certain sections of the population. This study aimed to develop a new culture fair questionnaire and assess its reliability and validity. Method: A 30-item questionnaire was developed and assessed for culture fairness. A normative range of answers was gathered, and a scale developed to define level of deviation from typical responses. Performance in a group of people with brain injury was compared to a matched group of healthy controls. Those with brain injury deemed able to make significant life decisions were compared with a group considered to lack this capacity, to determine whether this test may be useful when assessing decision-making capacity. Correlational analyses were conducted to determine whether there was a relationship between the test and performance on the Dysexecutive Questionnaire (DEX), a measure of everyday executive functioning. Test-retest reliability was examined with 30 of the normative sample. Results: Results confirm previous literature showing that those with brain injury perform significantly worse than healthy controls. The test did not discriminate between patients with and without capacity to make important decisions, did not significantly correlate with the total score on the DEX and demonstrated relatively poor consistency. Conclusions: Based on these results, CETs do not appear to be reliable or valid enough for use in clinical assessments. A sub-set of the most sensitive items may prove useful, but further work is required to examine the reliability and validity of this item subset in new samples

Classrooms & Curriculum

Panel Chair: Lisa Roy-Davis Papers Presented: Should the State of Texas Allow Public Universities and Colleges to Permit Guns on Campuses? By Devin Walz Pets in the Elementary Classroom by Anh Doan Technology Case Study of K-12 Students by Cathy Tran Abstract: Technology is an exponentially revolutionizing tool that has pushed all aspects of society to adapt and grow in the time known as the “Information Age”. The way that humans process information, and the speed at which humans can process information, with technology allows humans to grow more efficiently and effectively. Technology is continually designed to become more optimal in business environments where the amount of money and resources are dependent on the efficiently and effectiveness of product development. Similar methods of innovation using technology can be applied to public education teaching to optimize learning in the traditional grade levels of kindergarten to grade 12 (K-12). Unlike business environments, traditional education environments have been slower to adapt to the usage of technology and innovation-centered teaching. As such, a fundamental weakness of traditional education has been the inability for students to retain information learned past the duration of an academic career in K-12, as well as using standardized examinations as an only means of testing knowledge retention and comprehension of information learned through one’s academic career. The structural weakness of a traditional education environment is that it does not have the resources and the means to implement wide spread individual based teaching, whereas, technological innovations can provide individualized curriculum using artificial intelligence and machine learning. The ability for technology to learn how a user best processes information and then adapt this to the user allows for optimization of knowledge retention and eliminates the need for less efficient and effective means of measuring knowledge and performance through standardized testing. This paper presents a case study on groups of K-12 students who are taught using innovation-centered teaching where curriculum is based on optimizing individual creative inclinations to create a simulation of product development to learn subjects that are taught in traditional classrooms. The aim of this paper is to showcase methods that teach students to communicate their ideas effectively, formulate designs, and execute ideas by tailoring curriculum to a student’s natural aptitudes; students can find more fulfillment and develop critical skills for success after their academic career. Millenial: Learn a Thing or Two by Loraina Galarz

Applying Motivation Theories to the Design of Educational Technology

Although there has been a wealth of research exploring motivation within technological environments, few of these studies employ frameworks that are grounded in well-established theories of motivation. This paper brings rigorous theoretical frameworks of motivation to the study and design of educational technology. First, we outline key motivation constructs that compose Eccles and Wigfield’s Expectancy-Value theory and the Self-Determination theory and discuss their implications for education. Through a case study, we then illustrate how motivational theories informed the recent development of a virtual learning environment designed to promote students’ interest in and motivation to pursue science, technology, engineering, and mathematics careers. Finally, looking toward the future of mobile learning, we discuss the motivational affordances of personal and portable features of mobile handhelds

Social Media: Effect, Affect, Teens, and Possible Addiction

Panel Chair: Lisa Nevans, Montgomery College Rockville Maryland Papers Presented: The iGen Gap: Teenagers viewpoints on social media\u27s power over body image, mental health and brain development The Effects of Technology on K-12 Students This paper presents a case study on groups of K-12 students who are taught using innovation-centered teaching where curriculum is based on optimizing individual creative inclinations to create a simulation of product development to learn subjects that are taught in traditional classrooms. The groups consist of students from a diverse set of cultural backgrounds to gain a more well-rounded sample of how students learn using technology. The aim of this paper is to showcase methods that teach students to communicate their ideas effectively, formulate designs, and execute ideas by tailoring curriculum to a student’s natural aptitudes; students can find more fulfillment and develop critical skills for success after their academic career. Followers of the Facade: The Rising Addiction of Social Media This research will focus on the psychological effects contributing and resulting from the growing addiction to social media. Social media allows the ability to connect with friends, family and provides a place where ideas and memories can be shared. However, when the content shared is filtered, it creates a false persona established solely to be deemed valued and relevant by followers. The other portion of the research will focus on the inadequacy followers are left with when the content of their reality is not as intriguing as the realities they view online. Social media is a space that allows people to express, influence, and share aspects of their lives, but when these aspects are filtered, it creates a distorted perception of reality

The effect of 3D-stereogram mobile AR on engineering drawing course outcomes among first-year vocational high schoolers with different spatial abilities: a Bloom�s taxonomy perspective

ABSTRACT Engineering drawing is valuable in capturing geometric features, conveying engineering ideas, and creating a blueprint of the intended product. Engineering students usually perform orthographic projections, imagining a 3D situation and sketching its 2D representation. That requires imagination and mental visualization, determined by the learner�s spatial ability. This study proposes the infusion of an AR stereogram mobile application into an engineering drawing course to establish how it influences learning outcomes among students with different spatial abilities. The quantitative experimental study involved two mechanical engineering classes in northern Taiwan, N = 69 first-year vocational high schoolers. Statistical analysis revealed that the experimental group with high spatial ability recorded better results and excellent drawing skills. Bloom�s taxonomy categorization reported that spatial ability influenced �understanding� and �applying� levels, with the strongest effect on �understanding.� Although no significant interaction existed, learning outcomes were highly affected by spatial ability in �understanding� and �applying� levels and AR in the overall performance. The findings and discussions show AR holds great potential to enhance students� spatial ability for real-time visualization and enables better concept comprehension by improving their understanding of engineering topics. Future studies should consider these implications in creating effective and immersive learning environments for different courses in engineering education

Astrocytic glutamate transport regulates a Drosophila CNS synapse that lacks astrocyte ensheathment.

Anatomical, molecular, and physiological interactions between astrocytes and neuronal synapses regulate information processing in the brain. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has become a valuable experimental system for genetic manipulation of the nervous system and has enormous potential for elucidating mechanisms that mediate neuron-glia interactions. Here, we show the first electrophysiological recordings from Drosophila astrocytes and characterize their spatial and physiological relationship with particular synapses. Astrocyte intrinsic properties were found to be strongly analogous to those of vertebrate astrocytes, including a passive current-voltage relationship, low membrane resistance, high capacitance, and dye-coupling to local astrocytes. Responses to optogenetic stimulation of glutamatergic premotor neurons were correlated directly with anatomy using serial electron microscopy reconstructions of homologous identified neurons and surrounding astrocytic processes. Robust bidirectional communication was present: neuronal activation triggered astrocytic glutamate transport via excitatory amino acid transporter 1 (Eaat1), and blocking Eaat1 extended glutamatergic interneuron-evoked inhibitory postsynaptic currents in motor neurons. The neuronal synapses were always located within 1 μm of an astrocytic process, but none were ensheathed by those processes. Thus, fly astrocytes can modulate fast synaptic transmission via neurotransmitter transport within these anatomical parameters. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:1979-1998, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/cne.2401

Corneal perforation in ocular graft-versus-host disease

PURPOSE: Corneal perforation is a rare, vision-threatening complication of ocular graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and is not well understood. Our objective was to examine the clinical disease course and histopathologic correlation in patients who progressed to this outcome. METHODS: This study is a retrospective case series from four academic centers in the United States. All patients received a hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) prior to developing ocular GVHD. Variables of interest included patient demographics, time interval between HSCT and ocular events, visual acuity throughout clinical course, corticosteroid and infection prophylaxis regimens at time of corneal perforation, medical/surgical interventions, and histopathology. RESULTS: Fourteen eyes from 14 patients were analyzed. Most patients were male (86%) and Caucasian (86%), and average age at time of hematopoietic stem cell transplant was 47 years. The mean interval between hematopoietic stem cell transplant and diagnosis of ocular graft-versus-host disease was 9.5 months, and between hematopoietic stem cell transplant and corneal perforation was 37 months. Initial best-corrected visual acuity was 20/40 or better in 9 eyes, and all eyes had moderate or poor visual outcomes despite aggressive management, including corneal gluing in all patients followed by keratoplasty in 8 patients. The mean follow-up after perforation was 34 months (range 2-140 months). Oral prednisone was used prior to perforation in 11 patients (79%). On histopathology, representative specimens in the acute phase demonstrated ulcerative keratitis with perforation but minimal inflammatory cells and no microorganisms, consistent with sterile corneal melt in the setting of immunosuppression; and in the healed phase, filling in of the perforation site with fibrous scar. CONCLUSIONS: In these patients, an extended time interval was identified between the diagnosis of ocular graft-versus-host disease and corneal perforation. This represents a critical window to potentially prevent this devastating outcome. Further study is required to identify those patients at greatest risk as well as to optimize prevention strategies

Unravelling the Difference Between Men and Women in Post-CABG Survival

OBJECTIVES: Women have a worse prognosis after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery compared to men. We sought to quantify to what extent this difference in post-CABG survival could be attributed to sex itself, or whether this was mediated by difference between men and women at the time of intervention. Additionally, we explored to what extent these effects were homogenous across patient subgroups. METHODS: Time to all-cause mortality was available for 102,263 CABG patients, including 20,988 (21%) women, sourced through an individual participant data meta-analysis of five cohort studies. Difference between men and women in survival duration was assessed using Kaplan–Meier estimates, and Cox’s proportional hazards model. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 5 years, 13,598 (13%) patients died, with women more likely to die than men: female HR 1.20 (95%CI 1.16; 1.25). We found that differences in patient characteristics at the time of CABG procedure mediated this sex effect, and accounting for these resulted in a neutral female HR 0.98 (95%CI 0.94; 1.02). Next we performed a priori defined subgroup analyses of the five most prominent mediators: age, creatinine, peripheral vascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and heart failure. We found that women without peripheral vascular disease (PVD) or women aged 70+, survived longer than men (interaction p-values 0.04 and 6 × 10–5, respectively), with an effect reversal in younger women. CONCLUSIONS: Sex differences in post-CABG survival were readily explained by difference in patient characteristics and comorbidities. Pre-planned analyses revealed patient subgroups (aged 70+, or without PVD) of women that survived longer than men, and a subgroup of younger women with comparatively poorer survival

Unravelling the Difference Between Men and Women in Post-CABG Survival

OBJECTIVES: Women have a worse prognosis after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery compared to men. We sought to quantify to what extent this difference in post-CABG survival could be attributed to sex itself, or whether this was mediated by difference between men and women at the time of intervention. Additionally, we explored to what extent these effects were homogenous across patient subgroups. METHODS: Time to all-cause mortality was available for 102,263 CABG patients, including 20,988 (21%) women, sourced through an individual participant data meta-analysis of five cohort studies. Difference between men and women in survival duration was assessed using Kaplan–Meier estimates, and Cox’s proportional hazards model. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 5 years, 13,598 (13%) patients died, with women more likely to die than men: female HR 1.20 (95%CI 1.16; 1.25). We found that differences in patient characteristics at the time of CABG procedure mediated this sex effect, and accounting for these resulted in a neutral female HR 0.98 (95%CI 0.94; 1.02). Next we performed a priori defined subgroup analyses of the five most prominent mediators: age, creatinine, peripheral vascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and heart failure. We found that women without peripheral vascular disease (PVD) or women aged 70+, survived longer than men (interaction p-values 0.04 and 6 × 10(–5), respectively), with an effect reversal in younger women. CONCLUSION: Sex differences in post-CABG survival were readily explained by difference in patient characteristics and comorbidities. Pre-planned analyses revealed patient subgroups (aged 70+, or without PVD) of women that survived longer than men, and a subgroup of younger women with comparatively poorer survival