The Effects of Gamifying Optional Lessons on Motivation

Adding video-game elements to non-video-game interfaces (“gamification”) has become a common engagement strategy over the past several years in the domain of education. While prior studies have found that adding game elements to mandatory educational materials can increase students’ motivation to complete the materials, there has yet to be a study to investigate if game elements can make users more likely to engage with optional educational materials. In this study, we investigate whether users of a gamified educational interface are more motivated than users of a non-gamified interface to voluntarily complete educational materials. We found users of a gamified interface to spend more time using the system, as well as reporting higher intentions to return to the system, supporting gamification as a method for encouraging independent learning

DATA SELECTION USING GESTURE AND DRAG FUNCTIONALITY

A data selection system and method can be used to facilitate selection of data in a computing application executing on a computing device. Such a data selection system can initiate a selection mode within the application in response to a gesture detected by the computing device. Gestures may include, for example, a long press on a touch-sensitive input device operatively coupled to or included in the computing device, one or more taps or swipes on the touch-sensitive input device, physical shakes of the computing device, touchless gestures detected by the computing device, etc. The data selection system can receive multiple selections of data while the application is in the selection mode. For example, the data selection system can receive a first selection of data at the application and initiate a timer in response to receiving the first selection. The data selection system can cause the selection mode to remain active until the timer has expired. The data selection system can then reset the timer every time the computing device detects a subsequent selection of data while the application is in the selection mode. Once the timer has expired, the data selection system can then highlight the final selections of data

PROJECT STATUS TRACKING VIA INTEGRATED INTERFACE

A technique is proposed for assisting members of a project group in managing a project through a cloud-based content platform. A project synchronization service may detect an action associated with a project group has been performed using an applicable platform application. A status update reflecting the performed action may be generated. The status update may be published to a project feed, where the project feed is accessible to each user of the project group

Genetic sources of population epigenomic variation

The field of epigenomics has rapidly progressed from the study of individual reference epigenomes to surveying epigenomic variation in populations. Recent studies in a number of species, from yeast to humans, have begun to dissect the cis- and trans-regulatory genetic mechanisms that shape patterns of population epigenomic variation at the level of single epigenetic marks, as well as at the level of integrated chromatin state maps. We show that this information is paving the way towards a more complete understanding of the heritable basis underlying population epigenomic variation. We also highlight important conceptual challenges when interpreting results from these genetic studies, particularly in plants, in which epigenomic variation can be determined both by genetic and epigenetic inheritance