Socratic Questioning in the Paideia Method to Encourage Dialogical Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davies, Maree; Sinclair, Anne

2014-01-01

This study focused on the impact of using Socratic questioning, based on the Paideia Method, on the nature of middle-schools students' patterns of interaction and on the cognitive complexity of their discussions. The hypothesis is that an experimental group will increase in both interaction focus and complexity at T3, which is the face-to-face…

Discussion of David Thissen's Bad Questions: An Essay Involving Item Response Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wainer, Howard

2016-01-01

The usual role of a discussant is to clarify and correct the paper being discussed, but in this case, the author, Howard Wainer, generally agrees with everything David Thissen says in his essay, "Bad Questions: An Essay Involving Item Response Theory." This essay expands on David Thissen's statement that there are typically two principal…

Identifying key features of effective active learning: the effects of writing and peer discussion.

PubMed

Linton, Debra L; Pangle, Wiline M; Wyatt, Kevin H; Powell, Karli N; Sherwood, Rachel E

2014-01-01

We investigated some of the key features of effective active learning by comparing the outcomes of three different methods of implementing active-learning exercises in a majors introductory biology course. Students completed activities in one of three treatments: discussion, writing, and discussion + writing. Treatments were rotated weekly between three sections taught by three different instructors in a full factorial design. The data set was analyzed by generalized linear mixed-effect models with three independent variables: student aptitude, treatment, and instructor, and three dependent (assessment) variables: change in score on pre- and postactivity clicker questions, and coding scores on in-class writing and exam essays. All independent variables had significant effects on student performance for at least one of the dependent variables. Students with higher aptitude scored higher on all assessments. Student scores were higher on exam essay questions when the activity was implemented with a writing component compared with peer discussion only. There was a significant effect of instructor, with instructors showing different degrees of effectiveness with active-learning techniques. We suggest that individual writing should be implemented as part of active learning whenever possible and that instructors may need training and practice to become effective with active learning. © 2014 D. L. Linton et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2014 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Enhancing Cognitive Presence in Online Case Discussions with Questions Based on the Practical Inquiry Model

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sadaf, Ayesha; Olesova, Larisa

2017-01-01

The researchers in this study examined the influence of questions designed with the Practical Inquiry Model (PIM), compared with the regular (playground) questions, on students' levels of cognitive presence in online discussions. Students' discussion postings were collected and categorized according to the four levels of cognitive presence:…

MycoKey Round Table Discussions of Future Directions in Research on Chemical Detection Methods, Genetics and Biodiversity of Mycotoxins.

PubMed

Leslie, John F; Lattanzio, Veronica; Audenaert, Kris; Battilani, Paola; Cary, Jeffrey; Chulze, Sofia N; De Saeger, Sarah; Gerardino, Annamaria; Karlovsky, Petr; Liao, Yu-Cai; Maragos, Chris M; Meca, Giuseppe; Medina, Angel; Moretti, Antonio; Munkvold, Gary; Mulè, Giuseppina; Njobeh, Patrick; Pecorelli, Ivan; Perrone, Giancarlo; Pietri, Amedeo; Palazzini, Juan M; Proctor, Robert H; Rahayu, Endang S; Ramírez, Maria L; Samson, Robert; Stroka, Jörg; Sulyok, Michael; Sumarah, Mark; Waalwijk, Cees; Zhang, Qi; Zhang, Hao; Logrieco, Antonio F

2018-03-01

MycoKey, an EU-funded Horizon 2020 project, includes a series of "Roundtable Discussions" to gather information on trending research areas in the field of mycotoxicology. This paper includes summaries of the Roundtable Discussions on Chemical Detection and Monitoring of mycotoxins and on the role of genetics and biodiversity in mycotoxin production. Discussions were managed by using the nominal group discussion technique, which generates numerous ideas and provides a ranking for those identified as the most important. Four questions were posed for each research area, as well as two questions that were common to both discussions. Test kits, usually antibody based, were one major focus of the discussions at the Chemical Detection and Monitoring roundtable because of their many favorable features, e.g., cost, speed and ease of use. The second area of focus for this roundtable was multi-mycotoxin detection protocols and the challenges still to be met to enable these protocols to become methods of choice for regulated mycotoxins. For the genetic and biodiversity group, both the depth and the breadth of trending research areas were notable. For some areas, e.g., microbiome studies, the suggested research questions were primarily of a descriptive nature. In other areas, multiple experimental approaches, e.g., transcriptomics, proteomics, RNAi and gene deletions, are needed to understand the regulation of toxin production and mechanisms underlying successful biological controls. Answers to the research questions will provide starting points for developing acceptable prevention and remediation processes. Forging a partnership between scientists and appropriately-placed communications experts was recognized by both groups as an essential step to communicating risks, while retaining overall confidence in the safety of the food supply and the integrity of the food production chain.

MycoKey Round Table Discussions of Future Directions in Research on Chemical Detection Methods, Genetics and Biodiversity of Mycotoxins

PubMed Central

Lattanzio, Veronica; Cary, Jeffrey; Chulze, Sofia N.; Gerardino, Annamaria; Liao, Yu-Cai; Maragos, Chris M.; Meca, Giuseppe; Moretti, Antonio; Munkvold, Gary; Mulè, Giuseppina; Njobeh, Patrick; Pecorelli, Ivan; Pietri, Amedeo; Proctor, Robert H.; Rahayu, Endang S.; Ramírez, Maria L.; Samson, Robert; Stroka, Jörg; Sumarah, Mark; Zhang, Qi; Zhang, Hao; Logrieco, Antonio F.

2018-01-01

MycoKey, an EU-funded Horizon 2020 project, includes a series of “Roundtable Discussions” to gather information on trending research areas in the field of mycotoxicology. This paper includes summaries of the Roundtable Discussions on Chemical Detection and Monitoring of mycotoxins and on the role of genetics and biodiversity in mycotoxin production. Discussions were managed by using the nominal group discussion technique, which generates numerous ideas and provides a ranking for those identified as the most important. Four questions were posed for each research area, as well as two questions that were common to both discussions. Test kits, usually antibody based, were one major focus of the discussions at the Chemical Detection and Monitoring roundtable because of their many favorable features, e.g., cost, speed and ease of use. The second area of focus for this roundtable was multi-mycotoxin detection protocols and the challenges still to be met to enable these protocols to become methods of choice for regulated mycotoxins. For the genetic and biodiversity group, both the depth and the breadth of trending research areas were notable. For some areas, e.g., microbiome studies, the suggested research questions were primarily of a descriptive nature. In other areas, multiple experimental approaches, e.g., transcriptomics, proteomics, RNAi and gene deletions, are needed to understand the regulation of toxin production and mechanisms underlying successful biological controls. Answers to the research questions will provide starting points for developing acceptable prevention and remediation processes. Forging a partnership between scientists and appropriately-placed communications experts was recognized by both groups as an essential step to communicating risks, while retaining overall confidence in the safety of the food supply and the integrity of the food production chain. PMID:29494529

Evaluating Digital Health Interventions: Key Questions and Approaches.

PubMed

Murray, Elizabeth; Hekler, Eric B; Andersson, Gerhard; Collins, Linda M; Doherty, Aiden; Hollis, Chris; Rivera, Daniel E; West, Robert; Wyatt, Jeremy C

2016-11-01

Digital health interventions have enormous potential as scalable tools to improve health and healthcare delivery by improving effectiveness, efficiency, accessibility, safety, and personalization. Achieving these improvements requires a cumulative knowledge base to inform development and deployment of digital health interventions. However, evaluations of digital health interventions present special challenges. This paper aims to examine these challenges and outline an evaluation strategy in terms of the research questions needed to appraise such interventions. As they are at the intersection of biomedical, behavioral, computing, and engineering research, methods drawn from all of these disciplines are required. Relevant research questions include defining the problem and the likely benefit of the digital health intervention, which in turn requires establishing the likely reach and uptake of the intervention, the causal model describing how the intervention will achieve its intended benefit, key components, and how they interact with one another, and estimating overall benefit in terms of effectiveness, cost effectiveness, and harms. Although RCTs are important for evaluation of effectiveness and cost effectiveness, they are best undertaken only when: (1) the intervention and its delivery package are stable; (2) these can be implemented with high fidelity; and (3) there is a reasonable likelihood that the overall benefits will be clinically meaningful (improved outcomes or equivalent outcomes at lower cost). Broadening the portfolio of research questions and evaluation methods will help with developing the necessary knowledge base to inform decisions on policy, practice, and research. Copyright © 2016 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Lunar Geoscience: Key Questions for Future Lunar Exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Head, James

2014-05-01

Lunar Geoscience: Key Questions for Future Lunar Exploration James W. Head, Department of Geological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912 USA. (Invited paper/solicited talk for EGU 2014 PS2.3 Lunar session, Bernard H. Foing, Convener EGU PS2.3) The last several decades of intensive robotic exploration of the Moon has built on early Apollo and Luna exploration to provide fundamental knowledge of Earth's satellite and an excellent perspective on the most well-documented planetary body other than Earth. This new planetological perspective has raised substantial new questions about the nature of the origin of the Moon, its early differentiation and bombardment history, its internal thermal evolution, the production of its secondary crust as exemplified by the lunar maria, and tertiary crust as potentially seen in steep-sided domes and impact melt differentiates, the abundance of interior volatiles and their role in volcanic eruptions, and the abundance of surface volatiles and their concentration in polar regions. On the basis of this new information, a series of specific outstanding geoscience questions can be identified that can serve as guides for future human and robotic exploration. These include: 1) What is the nature and abundance of impact melt seas and what rock types do they produce upon differentiation and solidification? 2) Where are lunar mantle samples located on the lunar surface and what processes are responsible for placing them there? 3) What processes are responsible for producing the silica-rich viscous domes, such as those seen at Gruithuisen? 4) What are the volatile species involved in the emplacement of lunar pyroclastic deposits and what clues do they provide about deep magmatic volatiles and shallow volatile formation processes? 5) How do we account for the differing characteristics of regional dark mantling pyroclastic deposits? 6) When did mare basalt volcanism begin (earliest cryptmaria) and how and where is it manifested? 7

Asking Questions as a Key Strategy in Guiding a Novice Teacher: A Self-Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olsher, Gila; Kantor, Itay-Danny

2012-01-01

This self-study explores the instruction of a novice teacher by an expert mentor teacher, while applying the strategy of asking questions instead of the more common pattern of giving advice and guidance in the form of telling. The study examines the educational potential embedded in the question-asking strategy as a key mentoring resource when…

Key Questions on the Obama Administration's 2014 Education Budget Request. Issue Brief

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

New America Foundation, 2013

2013-01-01

President Obama sent his fiscal year 2014 budget request to Congress on April 10, 2013. The New America Foundation's Education Policy Program released this subsequent issue brief, "Key Questions on the Obama Administration's 2014 Budget Request." Obama's budget request totals $71.2 billion in appropriations funding for the U.S.…

Using peer discussion facilitated by clicker questions in an informal education setting: enhancing farmer learning of science.

PubMed

Smith, Michelle K; Annis, Seanna L; Kaplan, Jennifer J; Drummond, Frank

2012-01-01

Blueberry growers in Maine attend annual Cooperative Extension presentations given by university faculty members. These presentations cover topics, such as, how to prevent plant disease and monitor for insect pests. In 2012, in order to make the sessions more interactive and promote learning, clicker questions and peer discussion were incorporated into the presentations. Similar to what has been shown at the undergraduate level, after peer discussion, more blueberry growers gave correct answers to multiple-choice questions than when answering independently. Furthermore, because blueberry growers are characterized by diverse levels of education, experience in the field etc., we were able to determine whether demographic factors were associated with changes in performance after peer discussion. Taken together, our results suggest that clicker questions and peer discussion work equally well with adults from a variety of demographic backgrounds without disadvantaging a subset of the population and provide an important learning opportunity to the least formally educated members. Our results also indicate that clicker questions with peer discussion were viewed as a positive addition to university-related informal science education sessions.

Using Peer Discussion Facilitated by Clicker Questions in an Informal Education Setting: Enhancing Farmer Learning of Science

PubMed Central

Smith, Michelle K.; Annis, Seanna L.; Kaplan, Jennifer J.; Drummond, Frank

2012-01-01

Blueberry growers in Maine attend annual Cooperative Extension presentations given by university faculty members. These presentations cover topics, such as, how to prevent plant disease and monitor for insect pests. In 2012, in order to make the sessions more interactive and promote learning, clicker questions and peer discussion were incorporated into the presentations. Similar to what has been shown at the undergraduate level, after peer discussion, more blueberry growers gave correct answers to multiple-choice questions than when answering independently. Furthermore, because blueberry growers are characterized by diverse levels of education, experience in the field etc., we were able to determine whether demographic factors were associated with changes in performance after peer discussion. Taken together, our results suggest that clicker questions and peer discussion work equally well with adults from a variety of demographic backgrounds without disadvantaging a subset of the population and provide an important learning opportunity to the least formally educated members. Our results also indicate that clicker questions with peer discussion were viewed as a positive addition to university-related informal science education sessions. PMID:23077638

Health literacy-listening skill and patient questions following cancer prevention and screening discussions.

PubMed

Mazor, Kathleen M; Rubin, Donald L; Roblin, Douglas W; Williams, Andrew E; Han, Paul K J; Gaglio, Bridget; Cutrona, Sarah L; Costanza, Mary E; Wagner, Joann L

2016-08-01

Patient question-asking is essential to shared decision making. We sought to describe patients' questions when faced with cancer prevention and screening decisions, and to explore differences in question-asking as a function of health literacy with respect to spoken information (health literacy-listening). Four-hundred and thirty-three (433) adults listened to simulated physician-patient interactions discussing (i) prophylactic tamoxifen for breast cancer prevention, (ii) PSA testing for prostate cancer and (iii) colorectal cancer screening, and identified questions they would have. Health literacy-listening was assessed using the Cancer Message Literacy Test-Listening (CMLT-Listening). Two authors developed a coding scheme, which was applied to all questions. Analyses examined whether participants scoring above or below the median on the CMLT-Listening asked a similar variety of questions. Questions were coded into six major function categories: risks/benefits, procedure details, personalizing information, additional information, decision making and credibility. Participants who scored higher on the CMLT-Listening asked a greater variety of risks/benefits questions; those who scored lower asked a greater variety of questions seeking to personalize information. This difference persisted after adjusting for education. Patients' health literacy-listening is associated with distinctive patterns of question utilization following cancer screening and prevention counselling. Providers should not only be responsive to the question functions the patient favours, but also seek to ensure that the patient is exposed to the full range of information needed for shared decision making. © 2015 The Authors. Health Expectations Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Three Key Questions on Measuring Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McTighe, Jay

2018-01-01

The author examines three essential questions on educational assessment: What really matters in a contemporary education? How should we assess those things that matter? How might our assessments enhance learning that matters, not just measure it? In answering these question, he argues that schools need a broader collection of measures, with a…

Thorium and Molten Salt Reactors: Essential Questions for Classroom Discussions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DiLisi, Gregory A.; Hirsch, Allison; Murray, Meredith; Rarick, Richard

2018-04-01

A little-known type of nuclear reactor called the "molten salt reactor" (MSR), in which nuclear fuel is dissolved in a liquid carrier salt, was proposed in the 1940s and developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in the 1960s. Recently, the MSR has generated renewed interest as a remedy for the drawbacks associated with conventional uranium-fueled light-water reactors (LWRs) in use today. Particular attention has been given to the "thorium molten salt reactor" (TMSR), an MSR engineered specifically to use thorium as its fuel. The purpose of this article is to encourage the TPT community to incorporate discussions of MSRs and the thorium fuel cycle into courses such as "Physics and Society" or "Frontiers of Physics." With this in mind, we piloted a pedagogical approach with 27 teachers in which we described the underlying physics of the TMSR and posed five essential questions for classroom discussions. We assumed teachers had some preexisting knowledge of nuclear reactions, but such prior knowledge was not necessary for inclusion in the classroom discussions. Overall, our material was perceived as a real-world example of physics, fit into a standards-based curriculum, and filled a need in the teaching community for providing unbiased references of alternative energy technologies.

Twenty-six key research questions in urban stream ecology: an assessment of the state of the science

EPA Science Inventory

Although urban streams have been the focus of much research activity in recent years, there remain many unanswered questions about the mechanisms driving the “urban stream syndrome.” Identification of these key research questions is an important step toward effective, efficient ...

Getting Ready for the "School of the Future": Key Questions and Tentative Answers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ott, Michela; Pozzi, Francesca

This paper explores some key aspects of "today's school", as opposed to those that have characterized "yesterday's school", with the final aim of shedding light on "tomorrow's school". In this direction, the paper puts forward tentative answers to some key questions related to the new characteristics and roles of teachers and students (main actors of the learning process) and the new features/ potentialities of contemporary educational tools which, in turn, require the enactment of innovative pedagogical approaches and educational methods. The emerging picture of the present learning landscape helps in figuring out a future situation where learning possibilities are substantially increased.

A Discussion of Future Time Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McInerney, Dennis M.

2004-01-01

A growing area of research in educational psychology is future time perspective and its relationship to desired educational outcomes. This article discusses and critiques five reviews of current research on future time perspective. Key questions addressed are when do individuals begin to articulate a future, how far into the future does this…

Planetary Ions at Mercury: Unanswered Questions After MESSENGER

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Raines, J. M.

2018-05-01

We will discuss the key open questions relating to planetary ions, including the behavior of recently created photoions, the near absence of Ca+ / K+ in MESSENGER ion measurements, and the role of ion sputtering in the system.

Questioning our Questions: Do frequently asked questions adequately cover the aspects of women's lives most affected by abnormal uterine bleeding? Opinions of women with abnormal uterine bleeding participating in focus group discussions

PubMed Central

Matteson, Kristen A.; Clark, Melissa A.

2010-01-01

Objectives: (1) To explore the effects on women's lives by heavy or irregular menstrual bleeding; (2) To examine whether aspects of women's lives most affected by heavy or irregular menstrual bleeding were adequately addressed by questions that are frequently used in clinical encounters and available questionnaires. Methods: We conducted four focus group sessions with a total of 25 English-speaking women who had reported abnormal uterine bleeding. Discussions included open-ended questions that pertained to bleeding, aspects of life affected by bleeding, and questions frequently used in clinical settings about bleeding and quality of life. Results: We identified five themes that reflected how women's lives were affected by heavy or irregular menstrual bleeding: irritation/inconvenience, bleeding-associated pain, self-consciousness about odor, social embarrassment, and ritual like behavior. Although women responded that the frequently used questions about bleeding and quality of life were important, they felt that the questions failed to go into enough depth to adequately characterize their experiences. Conclusions: Based on the themes identified in our focus group sessions, clinicians and researchers may need to change the questions used to capture “patient experience” with abnormal uterine bleeding more accurately. PMID:20437305

Questions as Indicators of Ocean Literacy: Students' Online Asynchronous Discussion with a Marine Scientist

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fauville, Géraldine

2017-01-01

In this article, 61 high-school students learned about ocean acidification through a virtual laboratory followed by a virtual lecture and an asynchronous discussion with a marine scientist on an online platform: VoiceThread. This study focuses on the students' development of ocean literacy when prompted to ask questions to the scientist. The…

Key Competencies, Assessment and Learning Stories

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Davis, Keryn; Wright, Jocelyn; Carr, Margaret; Peters, Sally

2013-01-01

Developed in response to a strong interest in the use of Learning Stories in schools, this resource is designed to answer some common questions asked by teachers. The assessment of Key Competencies is a topic that deserves a lot of discussion. A Key Competency is complex: it includes social, emotional, cognitive and cultural aspects, and is…

Discussion and group work design in O2O teaching of applied optics: questions, strategies and extending

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Xiaotong; Cen, Zhaofeng; Liu, Xiangdong; Zheng, Zhenrong

2017-08-01

Applied optics course in Zhejiang University is a National Excellent Resource Sharing Course in China, and the online to offline teaching strategies have been implemented and shared with dozens of universities and colleges in China. Discussion is an important activity in teaching. In this paper our main consideration is designing the discussion questions and group works so as to develop the students' critical thinking, cooperative and sharing spirits, and communication abilities in the cosmopolitan era. Typical questions that connect different chapters and help the students to understand the relationship between each sub-system in both field of view and aperture are given for discussion. We inspire the students to complete group works such as ray trace programming by cooperation and then make presentations. All of these create a circumstance for sharing thoughts and developing intelligence and knowledge. A poll shows that the students pay more attention to optical design than before and have made progress in conversation and cooperation.

Students' Questions and Discursive Interaction: Their Impact on Argumentation during Collaborative Group Discussions in Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Christine; Osborne, Jonathan

2010-01-01

This study investigated the potential of students' written and oral questions both as an epistemic probe and heuristic for initiating collaborative argumentation in science. Four classes of students, aged 12-14 years from two countries, were asked to discuss which of two graphs best represented the change in temperature as ice was heated to steam.…

Importance of Broken Gauge Symmetry in Addressing Three, Key, Unanswered Questions Posed by Low Nuclear Reactions (LENR's)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chubb, Scott

2003-03-01

Three, Key, Unanswered Questions posed by LENR's are: 1. How do we explain the lack of high energy particles (HEP's)? 2. Can we understand and prioritize the way coupling can occur between nuclear- and atomic- lengthscales, and 3. What are the roles of Surface-Like (SL), as opposed to Bulk-Like (BL), processes in triggering nuclear phenomena. One important source of confusion associated with each of these questions is the common perception that the quantum mechanical phases of different particles are not correlated with each other. When the momenta p of interacting particles is large, and reactions occur rapidly (between HEP's, for example), this is a valid assumption. But when the relative difference in p becomes vanishingly small, between one charge, and many others, as a result of implicit electromagnetic coupling, each charge can share a common phase, relative to the others, modulo 2nπ, where n is an integer, even when outside forces are introduced. The associated forms of broken gauge symmetry, distinguish BL from SL phenomena, at room temperature, also explain super- and normal- conductivity in solids, and can be used to address the Three, Key, Unanswered Questions posed by LENR's.

Questions as indicators of ocean literacy: students' online asynchronous discussion with a marine scientist

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fauville, Géraldine

2017-11-01

In this article, 61 high-school students learned about ocean acidification through a virtual laboratory followed by a virtual lecture and an asynchronous discussion with a marine scientist on an online platform: VoiceThread. This study focuses on the students' development of ocean literacy when prompted to ask questions to the scientist. The students' questions were thematically analysed to assess (1) the kind of reasoning that can be discerned as premises of the students' questions and (2) what possibilities for enhancing ocean literacy emerge in this instructional activity. The results show how interacting with a scientist gives the students an entry point to the world of natural sciences with its complexity, uncertainty and choices that go beyond the idealised form in which natural sciences often are presented in school. This activity offers an affordable way of bringing marine science to school by providing extensive expertise from a marine scientist. Students get a chance to mobilise their pre-existing knowledge in the field of marine science. The holistic expertise of the marine scientist allows students to explore and reason around a very wide range of ideas and aspect of natural sciences that goes beyond the range offered by the school settings.

Computer-Aided Assessment Questions in Engineering Mathematics Using "MapleTA"[R

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, I. S.

2008-01-01

The use of "MapleTA"[R] in the assessment of engineering mathematics at Liverpool John Moores University (JMU) is discussed with particular reference to the design of questions. Key aspects in the formulation and coding of questions are considered. Problems associated with the submission of symbolic answers, the use of randomly generated numbers…

Continental Drift: A Discussion Strategy for Secondary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paixao, Isabel; Calado, Silvia; Ferreira, Silvia; Salves, Vanda; Smorais, Ana M.

2004-01-01

The paper describes a discussion strategy for secondary school students. The strategy focus the various dimensions of Science, especially the internal sociological and philosophical dimensions. Students are expected to learn more about Science, namely the role of controversy for scientific progress. The article contains key questions for the…

6th international conference on Mars polar science and exploration: Conference summary and five top questions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Isaac B.; Diniega, Serina; Beaty, David W.; Thorsteinsson, Thorsteinn; Becerra, Patricio; Bramson, Ali M.; Clifford, Stephen M.; Hvidberg, Christine S.; Portyankina, Ganna; Piqueux, Sylvain; Spiga, Aymeric; Titus, Timothy N.

2018-07-01

We provide a historical context of the International Conference on Mars Polar Science and Exploration and summarize the proceedings from the 6th iteration of this meeting. In particular, we identify five key Mars polar science questions based primarily on presentations and discussions at the conference and discuss the overlap between some of those questions. We briefly describe the seven scientific field trips that were offered at the conference, which greatly supplemented conference discussion of Mars polar processes and landforms. We end with suggestions for measurements, modeling, and laboratory and field work that were highlighted during conference discussion as necessary steps to address key knowledge gaps.

6th international conference on Mars polar science and exploration: Conference summary and five top questions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Smith, Isaac B.; Diniega, Serina; Beaty, David W.; Thorsteinsson, Thorsteinn; Becerra, Patricio; Bramson, Ali; Clifford, Stephen M.; Hvidberg, Christine S.; Portyankina, Ganna; Piqueux, Sylvain; Spiga, Aymeric; Titus, Timothy N.

2018-01-01

We provide a historical context of the International Conference on Mars Polar Science and Exploration and summarize the proceedings from the 6th iteration of this meeting. In particular, we identify five key Mars polar science questions based primarily on presentations and discussions at the conference and discuss the overlap between some of those questions. We briefly describe the seven scientific field trips that were offered at the conference, which greatly supplemented conference discussion of Mars polar processes and landforms. We end with suggestions for measurements, modeling, and laboratory and field work that were highlighted during conference discussion as necessary steps to address key knowledge gaps.

Individual and Collaborative Technology-Mediated Learning Using Question & Answer Online Discussion Forums--Perceptions of Public Health Learners in Dubai, UAE

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Awofeso, Niyi; Hassan, Moustafa; Hamidi, Samer

2016-01-01

This case study provides evidence-based suggestions for the use of Question and Answer discussion forums for improving quality and assessment of online learning. General online discussion forums are accessible at any time to all subscribers, making it possible for some learners to update, concur with or paraphrase discussions posted earlier by…

Keys to Success: School Facilities Primer, Questions & Answers 101.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brady, Jim

This publication provides answers to basic questions to help school board members more fully address the complexities of the planning, design, and construction process in order to maximize the goal of student success. The 101 questions and answers are in the areas of: facility planning; learning environment; information technology; safe schools;…

[Question discussion on Theories of Different Schools of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, "the twelfth five-year plan" teaching material].

PubMed

Yin, Zhen-Jin

2014-02-01

The several questions in Theories of Acupuncture and Moxibustion of Different Schools, "the twelfth five-year plan" teaching material, are analyzed and discussed. The expression of DOU Han-qing on "playing a role of meridians, collaterals, qi and blood" is not so accurate, which is suggested to modify as "attaching the importance to needles". "Theory of heaven, human being and earth" "theory of acupuncture on qi regulation" and "the eight therapeutic methods in treatment of disease" in Jinzhenfu (Ode to Golden Needles) are valuable academically and suggested to be supplemented. The expression of XI Hong on "reinforcing and reducing technique by following or against the running course of meridian" and the expression of XU Feng on "the magic turtle eight techniques" are not concrete. It is required to elaborate them in detail. These questions are put forward and needed to discuss with the editors so as to perfect the teaching material.

Keys to Transition: The California Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kearly, Patt

This publication addresses basic issues related to the concept of transition as it is applied to students with disabilities in California. Following a pretest (and its answer key), the document uses a question and answer format to discuss common concerns about transition, normalization, the school role, the "Bridges" model developed by…

ASIME 2016 White Paper: Answers to Questions from the Asteroid Miners

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galache, Jl; Graps, A. L.; Asime 2016 Contributors, 30

2017-09-01

The aim of the Asteroid Science Intersections with In-Space Mine Engineering (ASIME) 2016 conference on September 21-22, 2016 in Luxembourg City was to provide an environment for the detailed discussion of the specific properties of asteroids, with the engineering needs of space missions that utilise asteroids. The ASIME 2016 Conference produced a layered record of discussions from the asteroid scientists and the asteroid miners to understand each other's key concerns and to address key scientific questions from the asteroid mining companies: Planetary Resources, Deep Space Industries and TransAstra. These Questions were the focus of the two-day conference, were addressed by scientists inside and outside of the ASIME 2016 Conference and were the focus of this White Paper. The answers in this White Paper point to the Science Knowledge Gaps (SKGs) for advancing the asteroid in-space resource utilisation domain.

Discussion of papers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Discussion times were lively and highly fruitful. The Editors have organised questions and answers for each paper alphabetically by the speaker's surname. Although the discussion was recorded, only those questions and answers for which written versions were submitted have been included here. We are deeply indebted to Bev Lynds for transcribing the hand-written questions and answers.

Discussion of David Thissen's Bad Questions: An Essay Involving Item Response Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ackerman, Terry

2016-01-01

In this commentary, University of North Carolina's associate dean of research and assessment at the School of Education Terry Ackerman poses questions and shares his thoughts on David Thissen's essay, "Bad Questions: An Essay Involving Item Response Theory" (this issue). Ackerman begins by considering the two purposes of Item Response…

Reflections on Documentation: A Discussion with Thought Leaders from Reggio Emilia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Turner, Terri; Wilson, Daniel Gray

2010-01-01

This article presents the voices of three central thinkers in the documentation movement in a round-table discussion that explores the key questions regarding the definition of documentation, common misunderstandings of the strategy, lessons that have emerged over decades of documenting in various contexts, and puzzles that are emerging for the…

Posing Einstein's Question: Questioning Einstein's Pose.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Topper, David; Vincent, Dwight E.

2000-01-01

Discusses the events surrounding a famous picture of Albert Einstein in which he poses near a blackboard containing a tensor form of his 10 field equations for pure gravity with a question mark after it. Speculates as to the content of Einstein's lecture and the questions he might have had about the equation. (Contains over 30 references.) (WRM)

A Nominal Balloon Instrument Payload to Address Questions from the Planetary Decadal Survey

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Young, Eliot; Kremic, Tibor; Dankanich, John

The Planetary Science Decadal Survey (entitled "Visions and Voyages for Planetary Science in the Decade 2013 - 2022", available online at https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/2013decadal/) serves as a roadmap for activities to be pursued by the Planetary Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate. This document outlines roughly 200 key research areas and questions in chapters covering different parts of the solar system (e.g., Mars, Small Bodies, etc.). We have reviewed the Decadal Survey to assess whether any of the key questions can be addressed by high altitude balloon-borne payloads. Although some questions can only be answered by in situ experiments, we found that approximately one quarter of the key questions were well suited to balloon payloads. In many of those cases, balloons were competitive or superior to other existing facilities, including HST, SOFIA or Keck telescopes. We will present specific telescope and instrument bench designs that are capable of addressing key questions in the Decadal Survey. The instrument bench takes advantage of two of the main benefits of high-altitude observations: diffraction-limited imaging in visible and UV wavelengths and unobstructed spectroscopy in near-IR (1 - 5 microns) wavelengths. Our optical prescription produces diffraction-limited PSFs in both visible and IR beams. We will discuss pointing and thermal stability, two of the main challenges facing a balloon-borne telescope.

Introductory Biology Students’ Use of Enhanced Answer Keys and Reflection Questions to Engage in Metacognition and Enhance Understanding

PubMed Central

Sabel, Jaime L.; Dauer, Joseph T.; Forbes, Cory T.

2017-01-01

Providing feedback to students as they learn to integrate individual concepts into complex systems is an important way to help them to develop robust understanding, but it is challenging in large, undergraduate classes for instructors to provide feedback that is frequent and directed enough to help individual students. Various scaffolds can be used to help students engage in self-regulated learning and generate internal feedback to improve their learning. This study examined the use of enhanced answer keys with added reflection questions and instruction as scaffolds for engaging undergraduate students in self-regulated learning within an introductory biology course. Study findings show that both the enhanced answer keys and reflection questions helped students to engage in metacognition and develop greater understanding of biological concepts. Further, students who received additional instruction on the use of the scaffolds changed how they used them and, by the end of the semester, were using the scaffolds in significantly different ways and showed significantly higher learning gains than students who did not receive the instruction. These findings provide evidence for the benefit of designing scaffolds within biology courses that will support students in engaging in metacognition and enhancing their understanding of biological concepts. PMID:28645893

Flower development: open questions and future directions.

PubMed

Wellmer, Frank; Bowman, John L; Davies, Brendan; Ferrándiz, Cristina; Fletcher, Jennifer C; Franks, Robert G; Graciet, Emmanuelle; Gregis, Veronica; Ito, Toshiro; Jack, Thomas P; Jiao, Yuling; Kater, Martin M; Ma, Hong; Meyerowitz, Elliot M; Prunet, Nathanaël; Riechmann, José Luis

2014-01-01

Almost three decades of genetic and molecular analyses have resulted in detailed insights into many of the processes that take place during flower development and in the identification of a large number of key regulatory genes that control these processes. Despite this impressive progress, many questions about how flower development is controlled in different angiosperm species remain unanswered. In this chapter, we discuss some of these open questions and the experimental strategies with which they could be addressed. Specifically, we focus on the areas of floral meristem development and patterning, floral organ specification and differentiation, as well as on the molecular mechanisms underlying the evolutionary changes that have led to the astounding variations in flower size and architecture among extant and extinct angiosperms.

Viscosupplementation for Osteoarthritis of the Knee: A Key Opinion Leader Panel Discussion.

PubMed

Bert, Jack; Kenney, Jim; Sgaglione, Nicholas A; McClelland, Scott; Brophy, Robert; Toth, John; Ruane, Joseph; Ali, Yousaf; Arquette, Sheila; Dasa, Vinod; Lopes, Maria

2018-06-01

With a sharp rise in the prevalence of osteoarthritis of the knee (OAK) in a younger population, new management strategies are needed to preserve mobility, improve patients' quality of life, and reduce the effects of potential disease-related comorbidities. Viscosupplementation with the use of hyaluronic acid (HA) injection is a treatment option for OAK that can provide lubrication and elastic shock absorption, leading to potential pain relief, improved function, and reduced stiffness. A key opinion leader (KOL) panel discussion was held December 3, 2016, with the objective of sharing opinions, ideas, information, and trends regarding OAK and the potential treatment and management offered by viscosupplementation. The panel concluded that viscosupplementation with HA injections presents a viable, cost-effective, and safe alternative for the treatment of OAK. This panel discussion and report was facilitated by Magellan Rx Manage-ment and funded by Sanofi. Bert and Ruane report fees from Sanofi outside of this project. Sgaglione reports royalty payments from Zimmer Biomet and Wolters Kluwer. Dasa has received fees from Bioventus and Myoscience. All the authors received an honorarium for work on this project. Lopes is employed by Magellan Rx Management.

Student Participation Patterns in Online Discussion: Incorporating Constructivist Discussion into Online Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Hoe Kyeung; Bateman, Betzi

2010-01-01

The purpose of this article was to explore student participation patterns in online discussion boards related to their characteristics and question types. The characteristics of students enrolled in an online course and the impact of types of discussion questions on student posts were examined. During the 16 weeks of a course, the participation…

Automatic Classification of Question & Answer Discourse Segments from Teacher's Speech in Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blanchard, Nathaniel; D'Mello, Sidney; Olney, Andrew M.; Nystrand, Martin

2015-01-01

Question-answer (Q&A) is fundamental for dialogic instruction, an important pedagogical technique based on the free exchange of ideas and open-ended discussion. Automatically detecting Q&A is key to providing teachers with feedback on appropriate use of dialogic instructional strategies. In line with this, this paper studies the…

Biosimilars and market access: a question of comparability and costs?

PubMed

Simoens, Steven; Verbeken, Gilbert; Huys, Isabelle

2012-12-01

This article discusses specific issues related to the market access of biosimilars. Biopharmaceuticals are complex molecules produced by living cells. Copies of these medicines, called biosimilars, are not identical to their reference medicine and therefore specific regulatory requirements apply. When considering the use of biosimilars, the question of the degree of comparability between a biosimilar and the reference biopharmaceutical needs to be considered for registration, pricing and reimbursement purposes in addition to the cost issue. To date, many key concepts (like clinically meaningful differences) remain undefined and the question of the degree of comparability is not yet resolved.

Quantum key distribution with an unknown and untrusted source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Yi; Qi, Bing; Lo, Hoi-Kwong

2008-05-01

The security of a standard bidirectional “plug-and-play” quantum key distribution (QKD) system has been an open question for a long time. This is mainly because its source is equivalently controlled by an eavesdropper, which means the source is unknown and untrusted. Qualitative discussion on this subject has been made previously. In this paper, we solve this question directly by presenting the quantitative security analysis on a general class of QKD protocols whose sources are unknown and untrusted. The securities of standard Bennett-Brassard 1984 protocol, weak+vacuum decoy state protocol, and one-decoy state protocol, with unknown and untrusted sources are rigorously proved. We derive rigorous lower bounds to the secure key generation rates of the above three protocols. Our numerical simulation results show that QKD with an untrusted source gives a key generation rate that is close to that with a trusted source.

Making Practical Work Work: Using Discussion to Enhance Pupils' Understanding of Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harrison, Mark

2016-01-01

Background: Practical work is widely seen as a necessary part of a good physics education, but convincing evidence that it impacts positively on pupils' learning is scarce. Recent work suggests the use of talk and discussion might hold the key to making practical work more educationally productive. Purpose: The research question that this study…

Rift Valley fever virus: Unanswered questions.

PubMed

Bird, Brian H; McElroy, Anita K

2016-08-01

This mosquito-borne pathogen of humans and animals respects no international or geographic boundaries. It is currently found in parts of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula where periodic outbreaks of severe and fatal disease occur, and threatens to spread into other geographic regions. In recent years, modern molecular techniques have led to many breakthroughs deepening our understanding of the mechanisms of RVFV virulence, phylogenetics, and the creation of several next-generation vaccine candidates. Despite tremendous progress in these areas, other challenges remain in RVF disease pathogenesis, the virus life-cycle, and outbreak response preparedness that deserve our attention. Here we discuss and highlight ten key knowledge gaps and challenges in RVFV research. Answers to these key questions may lead to the development of new effective therapeutics and enhanced control strategies for this serious human and veterinary health threat. Published by Elsevier B.V.

[Discussion on appraisal methods and key technologies of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and medicinal plant symbiosis system].

PubMed

Chen, Meilan; Guo, Lanping; Yang, Guang; Chen, Min; Yang, Li; Huang, Luqi

2011-11-01

Applications of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in research of medicinal plant cultivation are increased in recent years. Medicinal plants habitat is complicated and many inclusions are in root, however crop habitat is simple and few inclusions in root. So appraisal methods and key technologies about the symbiotic system of crop and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can't completely suitable for the symbiotic system of medicinal plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. This article discuss the appraisal methods and key technologies about the symbiotic system of medicinal plant and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi from the isolation and identification of arbuscular mycorrhiza, and the appraisal of colonization intensity. This article provides guidance for application research of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in cultivation of medicinal plants.

Viral metagenomics, protein structure, and reverse genetics: Key strategies for investigating coronaviruses.

PubMed

Johnson, Bryan A; Graham, Rachel L; Menachery, Vineet D

2018-04-01

Viral metagenomics, modeling of protein structure, and manipulation of viral genetics are key approaches that have laid the foundations of our understanding of coronavirus biology. In this review, we discuss the major advances each method has provided and discuss how future studies should leverage these strategies synergistically to answer novel questions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A practical guide to assessing clinical decision-making skills using the key features approach.

PubMed

Farmer, Elizabeth A; Page, Gordon

2005-12-01

This paper in the series on professional assessment provides a practical guide to writing key features problems (KFPs). Key features problems test clinical decision-making skills in written or computer-based formats. They are based on the concept of critical steps or 'key features' in decision making and represent an advance on the older, less reliable patient management problem (PMP) formats. The practical steps in writing these problems are discussed and illustrated by examples. Steps include assembling problem-writing groups, selecting a suitable clinical scenario or problem and defining its key features, writing the questions, selecting question response formats, preparing scoring keys, reviewing item quality and item banking. The KFP format provides educators with a flexible approach to testing clinical decision-making skills with demonstrated validity and reliability when constructed according to the guidelines provided.

Introduction strategies raise key questions.

PubMed

Finger, W R; Keller, S

1995-09-01

Key issues that must be considered before a new contraceptive is introduced center on the need for a trained provider to begin or terminate the method, its side effects, duration of use, method's ability to meet users' needs and preferences, and extra training or staff requirements. Logistics and economic issues to consider are identifying a dependable way of effectively supplying commodities, planning extra services needed for the method, and cost of providing the method. Each contraceptive method presents a different side effect pattern and burdens the service delivery setting differently. The strategy developed to introduce or expand the 3-month injectable Depo-Provera (DMPA) can be used for any method. It includes a needs assessment and addresses regulatory issues, service delivery policies and procedures, information and training, evaluation, and other concerns. Viet Nam's needs assessment showed that Norplant should not be introduced until the service delivery system becomes stronger. Any needs assessment for expansion of contraceptive services should cover sexually transmitted disease/HIV issues. A World Health Organization strategy helps officials identify the best method mix for local situations. Introductory strategies must aim to improve the quality of family planning programs and expand choices. Many begin by examining existing data and conducting interviews with policymakers, users, providers, and women's health advocates. Introductory programs for Norplant focus on provider training, adequate counseling and informed consent for users, and ready access to removal. They need a well-prepared service delivery infrastructure. The first phase of the DMPA introductory strategy for the Philippines comprised a social marketing campaign and DMPA introduction at public clinics in 10 pilot areas with strong service delivery. Successful AIDS prevention programs show that people tend to use barrier methods when they are available. USAID is currently studying

Making "Community" an Authentic Part of School and Community Partnerships. Chapin Hall Discussion Paper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Walker, Lisa; Smithgall, Cheryl; Cusick, Gretchen Ruth

2012-01-01

With the idea that schools in low-income urban areas require stronger communities to improve educational outcomes, this discussion paper examines questions related to the authentic engagement of communities in school and community partnerships. It presents three key ideas for considering authentic engagement: place-based policy, community-based…

Introductory Biology Students' Use of Enhanced Answer Keys and Reflection Questions to Engage in Metacognition and Enhance Understanding.

PubMed

Sabel, Jaime L; Dauer, Joseph T; Forbes, Cory T

2017-01-01

Providing feedback to students as they learn to integrate individual concepts into complex systems is an important way to help them to develop robust understanding, but it is challenging in large, undergraduate classes for instructors to provide feedback that is frequent and directed enough to help individual students. Various scaffolds can be used to help students engage in self-regulated learning and generate internal feedback to improve their learning. This study examined the use of enhanced answer keys with added reflection questions and instruction as scaffolds for engaging undergraduate students in self-regulated learning within an introductory biology course. Study findings show that both the enhanced answer keys and reflection questions helped students to engage in metacognition and develop greater understanding of biological concepts. Further, students who received additional instruction on the use of the scaffolds changed how they used them and, by the end of the semester, were using the scaffolds in significantly different ways and showed significantly higher learning gains than students who did not receive the instruction. These findings provide evidence for the benefit of designing scaffolds within biology courses that will support students in engaging in metacognition and enhancing their understanding of biological concepts. © 2017 J. L. Sabel et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2017 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Task-Based Pronunciation Teaching and Research: Key Issues and Future Directions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mora, Joan C.; Levkina, Mayya

2017-01-01

This article synthesizes the conclusions of the empirical studies in this special issue and outlines key questions in future research. The research reported in this volume has identified several fundamental issues in pronunciation-focused task design that are discussed in detail and on which suggestions for further research are outlined. One…

Strategies of Educational Decentralization: Key Questions and Core Issues.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, E. Mark

1998-01-01

Explains key issues and forces that shape organization and management strategies of educational decentralization, using examples from Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina, Nicaragua, and Spain. Core decentralization issues include national and regional goals, planning, political stress, resource distribution, infrastructure development, and job…

Reflective questions in health counseling.

PubMed

Poskiparta, M; Kettunen, T; Liimatainen, L

1998-09-01

This study explores questions that nurses ask patients in order to awaken reflection on their health behavior in health counseling. Thirty-eight counseling situations were videotaped in a hospital. The data were analyzed using conversation analysis which was adapted for the purpose of this study. Nonverbal communication supported speech and was interpreted alongside it. This study found that nurses used only a few reflective questions, most of which were future-oriented or introduced hypotheses. In a nonreflective discussion, nurses used only check-up and alternative questions to get information about patients' illnesses and health care measures. Findings indicated that reflective conversation began with check-up questions about patients' immediate situation, followed by questions about patients' feelings in the past, present, or future. On the third level of questioning, the structure might vary between embedded questions, check-up, alternative, or feeling questions. Nonverbal communication supported the discussion. Reflective questions tended to ensure patient-centered conversation and might improve the effectiveness of health counselling.

Doing Science and Asking Questions II: An Exercise That Generates Questions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurt Middlecamp, Catherine; Nickel, Anne-Marie L.

2005-08-01

Given the importance of questions in science, it is critical that students learn to ask questions as well as learning to answer them. This paper describes a classroom exercise to help students better ask their own questions. It has been classroom-tested in multiple formats and has also been used for curriculum development workshops for faculty. This exercise in creating questions can be easily customized to suit different instructional contexts; some variations are outlined. More broadly, this paper also discusses the pedagogical significance of questioning, raising four salient points: (1) learners are more likely to have a personal interest in the questions they raise; (2) questions can serve as entry points for issues relating to ethnicity and gender; (3) questions give control to the person who asks them; and (4) questions can challenge existing structures, categories, and norms.

Promoting Discussion in Peer Instruction: Discussion Partner Assignment and Accountability Scoring Mechanisms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chou, Chih-Yueh; Lin, Pin-Hsun

2015-01-01

Peer instruction (PI) involves students answering questions and peer discussion learning activities. PI can enhance student performance and engagement in classroom instruction. However, some students do not engage in the discussions. This study proposes two mechanisms, discussion partner assignment and accountability scoring mechanisms, to form…

Provocative Questions in Cancer: NCI Seminar

Cancer.gov

science writers' seminar to discuss various aspects of one of NCI’s signature efforts -- the Provocative Questions project. Discussion will focus on the scientific research that surrounds some of these questions.

A Discussion with Sandy O'Sullivan about Key Issues for the Australian Indigenous Studies Learning and Teaching Network

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barney, Katelyn

2014-01-01

This article takes the form of an interview with Sandy O'Sullivan, who is a partner on the Australian Indigenous Studies Learning and Teaching Network, about key issues that have arisen through Network discussions. She is a Wiradjuri woman and a Senior Aboriginal researcher at the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education. O'Sullivan…

Anthropological contributions to historical ecology: 50 questions, infinite prospects

PubMed Central

McKechnie, Iain; Ekblom, Anneli; Szabó, Péter; Lane, Paul J.; McAlvay, Alex C.; Boles, Oliver J.; Walshaw, Sarah; Petek, Nik; Gibbons, Kevin S.; Quintana Morales, Erendira; Anderson, Eugene N.; Ibragimow, Aleksandra; Podruczny, Grzegorz; Vamosi, Jana C.; Marks-Block, Tony; LeCompte, Joyce K.; Awâsis, Sākihitowin; Nabess, Carly; Sinclair, Paul; Crumley, Carole L.

2017-01-01

This paper presents the results of a consensus-driven process identifying 50 priority research questions for historical ecology obtained through crowdsourcing, literature reviews, and in-person workshopping. A deliberative approach was designed to maximize discussion and debate with defined outcomes. Two in-person workshops (in Sweden and Canada) over the course of two years and online discussions were peer facilitated to define specific key questions for historical ecology from anthropological and archaeological perspectives. The aim of this research is to showcase the variety of questions that reflect the broad scope for historical-ecological research trajectories across scientific disciplines. Historical ecology encompasses research concerned with decadal, centennial, and millennial human-environmental interactions, and the consequences that those relationships have in the formation of contemporary landscapes. Six interrelated themes arose from our consensus-building workshop model: (1) climate and environmental change and variability; (2) multi-scalar, multi-disciplinary; (3) biodiversity and community ecology; (4) resource and environmental management and governance; (5) methods and applications; and (6) communication and policy. The 50 questions represented by these themes highlight meaningful trends in historical ecology that distill the field down to three explicit findings. First, historical ecology is fundamentally an applied research program. Second, this program seeks to understand long-term human-environment interactions with a focus on avoiding, mitigating, and reversing adverse ecological effects. Third, historical ecology is part of convergent trends toward transdisciplinary research science, which erodes scientific boundaries between the cultural and natural. PMID:28235093

Anthropological contributions to historical ecology: 50 questions, infinite prospects.

PubMed

Armstrong, Chelsey Geralda; Shoemaker, Anna C; McKechnie, Iain; Ekblom, Anneli; Szabó, Péter; Lane, Paul J; McAlvay, Alex C; Boles, Oliver J; Walshaw, Sarah; Petek, Nik; Gibbons, Kevin S; Quintana Morales, Erendira; Anderson, Eugene N; Ibragimow, Aleksandra; Podruczny, Grzegorz; Vamosi, Jana C; Marks-Block, Tony; LeCompte, Joyce K; Awâsis, Sākihitowin; Nabess, Carly; Sinclair, Paul; Crumley, Carole L

2017-01-01

This paper presents the results of a consensus-driven process identifying 50 priority research questions for historical ecology obtained through crowdsourcing, literature reviews, and in-person workshopping. A deliberative approach was designed to maximize discussion and debate with defined outcomes. Two in-person workshops (in Sweden and Canada) over the course of two years and online discussions were peer facilitated to define specific key questions for historical ecology from anthropological and archaeological perspectives. The aim of this research is to showcase the variety of questions that reflect the broad scope for historical-ecological research trajectories across scientific disciplines. Historical ecology encompasses research concerned with decadal, centennial, and millennial human-environmental interactions, and the consequences that those relationships have in the formation of contemporary landscapes. Six interrelated themes arose from our consensus-building workshop model: (1) climate and environmental change and variability; (2) multi-scalar, multi-disciplinary; (3) biodiversity and community ecology; (4) resource and environmental management and governance; (5) methods and applications; and (6) communication and policy. The 50 questions represented by these themes highlight meaningful trends in historical ecology that distill the field down to three explicit findings. First, historical ecology is fundamentally an applied research program. Second, this program seeks to understand long-term human-environment interactions with a focus on avoiding, mitigating, and reversing adverse ecological effects. Third, historical ecology is part of convergent trends toward transdisciplinary research science, which erodes scientific boundaries between the cultural and natural.

MycoKey round table discussions of future directions in research on chemical detection methods, genetics and biodiversity of mycotoxins

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

MycoKey, an EU-funded Horizon 2020 project, includes a series of “Roundtable Discussions” to gather information on trending research areas in the field of mycotoxicology. This presentation includes summaries of the Roundtable Discussions on the role of Genetics and Biodiversity in mycotoxin product...

Framing Classroom Discussion of Same-Sex Marriage

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hand, Michael

2013-01-01

Assuming that the issue of same-sex marriage should be discussed in schools, how should the discussion be framed? Michael Hand first distinguishes this question from the related but distinct question of whether discussion on this topic should be steered. He then examines three possible frames for discussion of same-sex marriage: the perfectionist…

Vitamin D and the brain: key questions for future research.

PubMed

Cui, Xiaoying; Gooch, Helen; Groves, Natalie J; Sah, Pankaj; Burne, Thomas H; Eyles, Darryl W; McGrath, John J

2015-04-01

Over the last decade a convergent body of evidence has emerged from epidemiology, animal experiments and clinical trials which links low vitamin D status with a range of adverse neuropsychiatric outcomes. This research demonstrates that the timing of exposure to low vitamin D influences the nature of brain phenotypes, as exposures during gestation versus adulthood result in different phenotypes. With respect to early life exposures, there is robust evidence from rodent experiments indicating that transient developmental vitamin D (DVD) deficiency is associated with changes in brain structure, neurochemistry, gene and protein expression and behavior. In particular, DVD deficiency is associated with alterations in the dopaminergic neurotransmitter systems. In contrast, recently published animal experiments indicate that adult vitamin D (AVD) deficiency is associated with more subtle neurochemical and behavioral phenotypes. This paper explores key issues that need to be addressed in future research. There is a need to define the timing and duration of the 'critical window' during which low vitamin D status is associated with differential and adverse brain outcomes. We discuss the role for 'two-hit hypotheses', which propose that adult vitamin D deficiency leaves the brain more vulnerable to secondary adverse exposures, and thus may exacerbate disease progression. Finally, we explore the evidence implicating a role for vitamin D in rapid, non-genomic mechanisms that may involve L-type calcium channels and brain function. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled '17th Vitamin D Workshop'. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment: What Are the Big Questions?

PubMed Central

Rudd, Murray A.; Brooks, Bryan W.; Caldwell, Daniel J.; Choi, Kyungho; Hickmann, Silke; Innes, Elizabeth; Ostapyk, Kim; Staveley, Jane P.; Verslycke, Tim; Ankley, Gerald T.; Beazley, Karen F.; Belanger, Scott E.; Berninger, Jason P.; Carriquiriborde, Pedro; Coors, Anja; DeLeo, Paul C.; Dyer, Scott D.; Ericson, Jon F.; Gagné, François; Giesy, John P.; Gouin, Todd; Hallstrom, Lars; Karlsson, Maja V.; Larsson, D. G. Joakim; Lazorchak, James M.; Mastrocco, Frank; McLaughlin, Alison; McMaster, Mark E.; Meyerhoff, Roger D.; Moore, Roberta; Parrott, Joanne L.; Snape, Jason R.; Murray-Smith, Richard; Servos, Mark R.; Sibley, Paul K.; Straub, Jürg Oliver; Szabo, Nora D.; Topp, Edward; Tetreault, Gerald R.; Trudeau, Vance L.; Van Der Kraak, Glen

2012-01-01

Background: Over the past 10–15 years, a substantial amount of work has been done by the scientific, regulatory, and business communities to elucidate the effects and risks of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the environment. Objective: This review was undertaken to identify key outstanding issues regarding the effects of PPCPs on human and ecological health in order to ensure that future resources will be focused on the most important areas. Data sources: To better understand and manage the risks of PPCPs in the environment, we used the “key question” approach to identify the principle issues that need to be addressed. Initially, questions were solicited from academic, government, and business communities around the world. A list of 101 questions was then discussed at an international expert workshop, and a top-20 list was developed. Following the workshop, workshop attendees ranked the 20 questions by importance. Data synthesis: The top 20 priority questions fell into seven categories: a) prioritization of substances for assessment, b) pathways of exposure, c) bioavailability and uptake, d) effects characterization, e) risk and relative risk, f ) antibiotic resistance, and g) risk management. Conclusions: A large body of information is now available on PPCPs in the environment. This exercise prioritized the most critical questions to aid in development of future research programs on the topic. PMID:22647657

Discussion-Based Instruction in Drug Metabolism.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ruenitz, Peter C.

1995-01-01

A flexible strategy for large-group pharmacy instruction in drug metabolism has students prepare and discuss answers to fact-oriented study questions, addressing fundamentals covered in a textbook, with regular evaluation of in-class student responses to higher-order review questions. This discussion-based approach has brought sustained…

Key papers in prostate cancer.

PubMed

Rodney, Simon; Shah, Taimur Tariq; Patel, Hitendra R H; Arya, Manit

2014-11-01

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer and second leading cause of death in men. The evidence base for the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer is continually changing. We aim to review and discuss past and contemporary papers on these topics to provoke debate and highlight key dilemmas faced by the urological community. We review key papers on prostate-specific antigen screening, radical prostatectomy versus surveillance strategies, targeted therapies, timing of radiotherapy and alternative anti-androgen therapeutics. Previously, the majority of patients, irrespective of risk, underwent radical open surgical procedures associated with considerable morbidity and mortality. Evidence is emerging that not all prostate cancers are alike and that low-grade disease can be safely managed by surveillance strategies and localized treatment to the prostate. The question remains as to how to accurately stage the disease and ultimately choose which treatment pathway to follow.

Key science questions from the second conference on early Mars: geologic, hydrologic, and climatic evolution and the implications for life.

PubMed

Beaty, David W; Clifford, Stephen M; Borg, Lars E; Catling, David C; Craddock, Robert A; Des Marais, David J; Farmer, Jack D; Frey, Herbert V; Haberle, Robert M; McKay, Christopher P; Newsom, Horton E; Parker, Timothy J; Segura, Teresa; Tanaka, Kenneth L

2005-12-01

In October 2004, more than 130 terrestrial and planetary scientists met in Jackson Hole, WY, to discuss early Mars. The first billion years of martian geologic history is of particular interest because it is a period during which the planet was most active, after which a less dynamic period ensued that extends to the present day. The early activity left a fascinating geological record, which we are only beginning to unravel through direct observation and modeling. In considering this time period, questions outnumber answers, and one of the purposes of the meeting was to gather some of the best experts in the field to consider the current state of knowledge, ascertain which questions remain to be addressed, and identify the most promising approaches to addressing those questions. The purpose of this report is to document that discussion. Throughout the planet's first billion years, planetary-scale processes-including differentiation, hydrodynamic escape, volcanism, large impacts, erosion, and sedimentation-rapidly modified the atmosphere and crust. How did these processes operate, and what were their rates and interdependencies? The early environment was also characterized by both abundant liquid water and plentiful sources of energy, two of the most important conditions considered necessary for the origin of life. Where and when did the most habitable environments occur? Did life actually occupy them, and if so, has life persisted on Mars to the present? Our understanding of early Mars is critical to understanding how the planet we see today came to be.

Literacy Discussions in Low-Income Families: The Effect of Parent Questions on Fourth Graders' Retellings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Capotosto, Lauren; Kim, James S.

2016-01-01

This study examines the effects of four types of reading comprehension questions--immediate, non-immediate, summary, and unanswerable questions--that linguistically diverse and predominantly low-income parents asked their fourth graders on children's text retellings. One-hundred-twenty (N = 120) parent and child dyads participated in a home visit…

The Distortion of Discussion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Backer, David

2018-01-01

Classroom discussion is an essential pedagogy for teachers across grade levels and age groups. But what is a discussion, exactly? Are teachers really using discussion when they say they are? Recent research has examined this question and the results are unsettling. Martin Nystrand et al's (2001) massive study of classroom discourse (hereafter…

Suprathermal and Solar Energetic Particles - Key questions for the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desai, M. I.; McComas, D. J.; Christian, E. R.; Mewaldt, R. A.; Schwadron, N.

2014-12-01

Solar energetic particles or SEPs from suprathermal (few keV) up to relativistic (~few GeV) speeds are accelerated near the Sun in at least two ways, namely, (1) by magnetic reconnection-driven processes during solar flares resulting in impulsive SEPs and (2) at fast coronal-mass-ejection-driven shock waves that produce large gradual SEP events. Large gradual SEP events are of particular interest because the accompanying high-energy (>10s MeV) protons pose serious radiation threats to human explorers living and working outside low-Earth orbit and to technological assets such as communications and scientific satellites in space. However, a complete understanding of SEP events has eluded us primarily because their properties, as observed near Earth orbit, are smeared due to mixing and contributions from many important physical effects. Thus, despite being studied for decades, several key questions regarding SEP events remain unanswered. These include (1) What are the contributions of co-temporal flares, jets, and CME shocks to impulsive and gradual SEP events?; (2) Do flares contribute to large SEP events directly by providing high-energy particles and/or by providing the suprathermal seed population?; (3) What are the roles of ambient turbulence/waves and self-generated waves?; (4) What are the origins of the source populations and how do their temporal and spatial variations affect SEP properties?; and (5) How do diffusion and scattering during acceleration and propagation through the interplanetary medium affect SEP properties observed out in the heliosphere? This talk describes how during the next decade, inner heliospheric measurements from the Solar Probe Plus and Solar Orbiter in conjunction with high sensitivity measurements from the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe will provide the ground-truth for various models of particle acceleration and transport and address these questions.

Cancer-promoting tumor-associated macrophages: new vistas and open questions.

PubMed

Mantovani, Alberto; Germano, Giovanni; Marchesi, Federica; Locatelli, Marco; Biswas, Subhra K

2011-09-01

Tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) are key components of the tumor macroenvironment. Cancer- and host cell-derived signals generally drive the functions of TAMs towards an M2-like polarized, tumor-propelling mode; however, when appropriately re-educated. TAMs also have the potential to elicit tumor destructive reactions. Here, we discuss recent advances regarding the immunobiology of TAMs and highlight open questions including the mechanisms of their accumulation (recruitment versus proliferation), their diversity and how to best therapeutically target these cells. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

The Key Practice, Discuss and Debate Ideas: Conceptual Framework, Literature Review, and Provisional Learning Progressions for Argumentation. Research Report. ETS RR-15-33

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deane, Paul; Song, Yi

2015-01-01

In this paper, we provide a comprehensive literature review on the development of key argumentation skills to lay a foundation for a framework of the key practice, discuss and debate ideas, which is centrally involved in the expectations for academic reading and writing. Specifically, the framework includes 5 phases of core activities and related…

Teaching with Cases: Learning to Question.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boehrer, John; Linsky, Marty

1990-01-01

This chapter discusses the origins of the case method, looks at the question of what is a case, gives ideas about learning in case teaching, the purposes it can serve in the classroom, the ground rules for case discussion, including the role of questions, and new directions for case teaching. (MLW)

EPA's Reanalysis of Key Issues Related to Dioxin Toxicity and Response to NAS Comments (Volume 1) (Interagency Science Discussion Draft)

EPA Science Inventory

EPA is releasing the draft report, EPA's Reanalysis of Key Issues Related to Dioxin Toxicity and Response to NAS Comments (Volume 1), that was distributed to Federal agencies and White House Offices for comment during the Science Discussion step of the Negotiating the question: using science-manager communication to develop management-relevant science products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beechie, T. J.; Snover, A. K.

2014-12-01

Natural resource managers often ask scientists to answer questions that cannot be answered, and scientists commonly offer research that is not useful to managers. To produce management-relevant science, managers and scientists must communicate clearly to identify research that is scientifically doable and will produce results that managers find useful. Scientists might also consider that journals with high impact scores are rarely used by managers, while managers might consider that publishing in top tier journals is important to maintain scientific credentials. We offer examples from climate change and river restoration research, in which agency scientists and managers worked together to identify key management questions that scientists could answer and which could inform management. In our first example, we describe how climate scientists worked with agency staff to develop guidance for selecting appropriate climate change scenarios for use in ecological impacts assessments and Endangered Species Act decision making. Within NOAA Fisheries, agency researchers provide science to guide agency managers, and a key question has been how to adapt river restoration efforts for climate change. Based on discussions with restoration practitioners and agency staff, we developed adaptation guidance that summarizes current science to lead managers to develop climate-resilient restoration plans, as well as maps of population vulnerability for endangered steelhead. From these experiences we have learned that collaborative definition of relevant and producible knowledge requires (1) iterative discussions that go beyond simply asking managers what they need or scientists what they can produce, and (2) candid conversation about the intended applications and potential limitations of the knowledge.

Difficult Questions of Difficult Questions: The Role of The Researcher and Transcription Styles

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henderson, Holly

2018-01-01

This paper refracts a comparison of three distinct transcription styles through questions of researcher reflexivity. It uses the data from a single question asked by the researcher in multiple interviews for a small empirical project. These data are transcribed in three ways, and the resulting transcripts are discussed in relation to the analysis…

Small Group Discussion as a Key Component in Online Assessment Training for Enhanced Student Learning in Web-Based Peer Assessment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Xiongyi; Li, Lan; Zhang, Zhihong

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of online assessment training, with synchronous group discussion as a key component, on subsequent web-based peer assessment results. Participants included 81 college students, mostly women, taking a business writing class. After initial submission of a draft counter-offer letter, they completed…

Query2Question: Translating Visualization Interaction into Natural Language.

PubMed

Nafari, Maryam; Weaver, Chris

2015-06-01

Richly interactive visualization tools are increasingly popular for data exploration and analysis in a wide variety of domains. Existing systems and techniques for recording provenance of interaction focus either on comprehensive automated recording of low-level interaction events or on idiosyncratic manual transcription of high-level analysis activities. In this paper, we present the architecture and translation design of a query-to-question (Q2Q) system that automatically records user interactions and presents them semantically using natural language (written English). Q2Q takes advantage of domain knowledge and uses natural language generation (NLG) techniques to translate and transcribe a progression of interactive visualization states into a visual log of styled text that complements and effectively extends the functionality of visualization tools. We present Q2Q as a means to support a cross-examination process in which questions rather than interactions are the focus of analytic reasoning and action. We describe the architecture and implementation of the Q2Q system, discuss key design factors and variations that effect question generation, and present several visualizations that incorporate Q2Q for analysis in a variety of knowledge domains.

Incorporating café design principles into End-of-Life discussions: an innovative method for continuing education.

PubMed

Kanaskie, Mary Louise

2011-04-01

Café design provides an innovative method for conducting continuing education activities. This method was chosen to elicit meaningful conversation based on issues related to End-of-Life care. Café design principles incorporate the following: setting the context, creating hospitable space, exploring questions that matter, encouraging everyone's contributions, connecting diverse perspectives, listening together for insights, and sharing collective discoveries. Key discussion questions were identified from the End-of Life Nursing Education Consortium Core Curriculum. Questions were revised to incorporate the principles of appreciative inquiry, which encourage a shift from traditional methods of problem identification to creation of a positive vision. Participants rated the café design method as an effective way to share their ideas and to stimulate conversation.

Variational neuroethology: Answering further questions. Reply to comments on "Answering Schrödinger's question: A free-energy formulation"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramstead, Maxwell J. D.; Badcock, Paul B.; Friston, Karl J.

2018-03-01

First and foremost, we sincerely thank our commentators for their incisive and thought-provoking responses [1-14] to our metatheory of living systems; namely, variational neuroethology (VNE) [15]. We appreciated the critical insights, questions, suggestions, and proposals for future research. We were also pleased to see signs of a fruitful dialectic between different perspectives - unexpectedly, some of our commentators addressed others' questions and concerns; suggesting that VNE might enable productive scientific discourse and inspire new, multidisciplinary research questions. There were also friendly critics, who helpfully questioned the coherence and validity of VNE, and motivated us to revisit key issues.

Background and Discussion Questions for Identifying Priority Chemicals for Review and Assessment

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This discussion guide is intended to be used to help structure public input during the September 2011 webinar and discussion forum addressing the prioritization factors and data sources EPA plans to use to identify priority chemicals for review.

Discussion Technique: The Twice-Around

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Andersen, Kent

2013-01-01

In this article, the author offers a discussion technique: the twice-around. A variant on the circular response discussion, the twice-around engages students by beginning with students' questions, ensuring equal time for all participants and inviting discussants to build on previous contributions. In the twice-around, participants sit in a circle,…

Compilation of Agricultural Research, Education, and Extension Questions for Discussion. 104th Congress, 1st Session.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Congress of the U.S., Washington, DC. House Committee on Agriculture.

This volume compiles and reprints the responses of 37 organizations to a series of questions issued by the House Committee on Agriculture in anticipation of debates concerning the Research Title of the 1995 Farm Bill due for updating and revision. The questions address some of the following topics: the role of the federal government in…

Discussing disease progression and end-of-life decisions.

PubMed

Baile, W F; Glober, G A; Lenzi, R; Beale, E A; Kudelka, A P

1999-07-01

Because most patients now want to know the truth about their diagnosis and prognosis, the ability to discuss the cancer diagnosis, disease recurrence, or treatment failure, and to solicit patients' views about resuscitation or hospice care, are important verbal skills for oncologists and other oncology health care providers. Moreover, the ability to clearly articulate a treatment plan or elicit patient preferences for treatment are a prerequisite to informed consent. Despite these imperatives, clinicians do not routinely receive training in key communication skills that could enable them to accomplish these tasks. A body of literature is available, however, that identifies communication strategies that can (1) facilitate the establishment of a close rapport with the patient, (2) identify the patient's information preferences, (3) ensure comprehension of key knowledge and information, (4) address the patient's emotions in a supportive fashion, (5) elicit the patient's key concerns, and (6) involve the patient in the treatment plan. In this article, we use dialogues between a physician and a hypothetical patient with advanced ovarian cancer to illustrate how communication techniques can be applied to accomplish these goals. We identify important benefits of the use of these techniques for both the physician and patient, and pose several questions regarding the training of physicians in this area.

Comprehension of wh-questions precedes their production in typical development and autism spectrum disorders

PubMed Central

Goodwin, Anthony; Fein, Deborah; Naigles, Letitia R.

2011-01-01

Lay Abstract Children with autism produce few wh-questions, compared to their typically developing peers. It is unclear if this is because of social-pragmatic difficulties, or if they have not yet learned the grammar for asking wh-questions. If children do not know how to use grammatical rules to produce questions, they might simply repeat sentences that they have heard without completely understanding them first. We visited the homes of 15 children with autism and 18 typically developing children with similar language abilities, across a three-year period. At each visit, children watched a video that depicted an apple hitting a flower and keys hitting a book. The children were then shown the items side-by-side on the screen and the audio asked “what hit the flower?” and “what did the keys hit?” We filmed the children’s eye movements and analyzed how long they looked at the named item, compared to when they heard “where is the flower/keys?” At each visit, we also filmed a 30-minute mother-child play session and analyzed the types of questions that the children asked. Children with autism showed comprehension of wh-questions at a later age than typically developing children, but at a similar level of overall language development. Neither group produced wh-questions before they had demonstrated that they understood the underlying grammatical rules. Therefore, children with autism seem to process wh-questions in the same way as their typically developing peers, just at a later age. This paper discusses the implications of our findings for the language development of children with autism. Scientific Abstract Children with autism (ASD) rarely produce wh-questions (e.g., “What hit the book?”) in naturalistic speech. It is unclear if this is due to social-pragmatic difficulties, or if grammatical deficits are also involved. If grammar is impaired, production of wh-questions by rote memorization might precede comprehension of similar forms. In a

Posing the research question: not so simple.

PubMed

Thabane, Lehana; Thomas, Tara; Ye, Chenglin; Paul, James

2009-01-01

The success of any research process relies, in part, on how well investigators are able to translate a clinical problem into a research question-a task that is not so simple for novice investigators. The PICOT approach requires that the framing of the research question specify the target Population, the Intervention of interest, the Comparator intervention, key Outcomes, and the Time frame over which the outcomes are assessed. This paper describes the use of the PICOT structure in framing research questions and examines PICOT criteria as applied to the anesthesia literature. We also provide a roadmap for applying the PICOT format in identifying and framing clear research questions. In addition to searching MEDLINE for the literature on framing research questions, we performed a systematic review of articles published in four key anesthesia journals in 2006, including Anesthesiology, Anesthesia & Analgesia, the British Journal of Anaesthesia, and the Canadian Journal of Anesthesia. Three hundred thirteen articles (n = 313) were included in this review, with the following distribution by study design: 139 (44%) randomized controlled trials, 129 (41%) cohort studies, and 45 (15%) case-controlled, cross-sectional studies or systematic reviews. Overall, 96% (95% confidence interval: 91,100) of articles did not apply the PICOT approach in reporting the research question. The PICOT approach may be helpful in defining and clearly stating the research question. It remains to be determined whether or not compliance with the PICOT style, or any other format for framing research questions, is associated with a higher quality of research reporting.

Reviewing the regulatory barriers for nanomedicine: global questions and challenges.

PubMed

Bowman, Diana M; Gatof, Jake

2015-01-01

Nanomedicine will play an increasing role in prevention and treatment across the entire healthcare spectrum. However, their precise market size, economic value and areas of application remain unclear. This opacity, including the question of what constitutes nanomedicine matters, especially when considered alongside the key regulatory questions and concerns. This article begins by placing these key questions into context in relation to the current scientific state of the art, focusing particular attention on the human health and safety context. In exploring these central questions surrounding the regulation of nanomedicine, this perspective also explores existing and suggested frameworks that aim to deal with emerging technologies more generally. It then outlines priority areas for action and general conclusions specific to nanomedicine.

Answering Your Questions about AIDS.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kalichman, Seth C.

This book focuses on AIDS education and answers 350 commonly asked questions about Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) taken from questions addressed to two major urban AIDS hotlines (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Houston, Texas). Chapter 1, "HIV - The Virus That Causes AIDS," discusses: the HIV…

Starting a hospital-based home health agency: Part II--Key success factors.

PubMed

Montgomery, P

1993-09-01

In Part II of a three-part series, the financial, technological and legislative issues of a hospital-based home health-agency are discussed. Beginning a home healthcare service requires intensive research to answer key environmental and operational questions--need, competition, financial projections, initial start-up costs and the impact of delayed depreciation. Assessments involving technology, staffing, legislative and regulatory issues can help project service volume, productivity and cost-control.

Chapter 06: Identification key

Treesearch

Alex Wiedenhoeft

2011-01-01

The key is written to guide you through the identification process in the most efficient and accurate way possible. It presents you with a numbered series of questions and asks you to answer them. The answers you provide will be based on your interpretations of the anatomical characters in your unknown specimen and will lead you to a new set of questions. Each time you...

The Birth of a Faith School in the Post-Dearing Era: Asking Questions and Consultation, and Getting Things Done

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Worsley, Howard

2005-01-01

The article is an historical account of the establishment of a new voluntary aided secondary school, named Nottingham Emmanuel School. The national and local contexts are established and discussed in practical and theological reflective ways by examining four key questions; (1) will the church take risks in education; (2) can the church deliver in…

Formative student-authored question bank: perceptions, question quality and association with summative performance

PubMed Central

Walsh, Jason L; Harris, Benjamin H L; Denny, Paul; Smith, Phil

2018-01-01

Purpose of the study There are few studies on the value of authoring questions as a study method, the quality of the questions produced by students and student perceptions of student-authored question banks. Here we evaluate PeerWise, a widely used and free online resource that allows students to author, answer and discuss multiple-choice questions. Study design We introduced two undergraduate medical student cohorts to PeerWise (n=603). We looked at their patterns of PeerWise usage; identified associations between student engagement and summative exam performance; and used focus groups to assess student perceptions of the value of PeerWise for learning. We undertook item analysis to assess question difficulty and quality. Results Over two academic years, the two cohorts wrote 4671 questions, answered questions 606 658 times and posted 7735 comments. Question writing frequency correlated most strongly with summative performance (Spearman’s rank: 0.24, p=<0.001). Student focus groups found that: (1) students valued curriculum specificity; and (2) students were concerned about student-authored question quality. Only two questions of the 300 ’most-answered' questions analysed had an unacceptable discriminatory value (point-biserial correlation <0.2). Conclusions Item analysis suggested acceptable question quality despite student concerns. Quantitative and qualitative methods indicated that PeerWise is a valuable study tool. PMID:28866607

Quantum key distribution with an unknown and untrusted source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Yi; Qi, Bing; Lo, Hoi-Kwong

2009-03-01

The security of a standard bi-directional ``plug & play'' quantum key distribution (QKD) system has been an open question for a long time. This is mainly because its source is equivalently controlled by an eavesdropper, which means the source is unknown and untrusted. Qualitative discussion on this subject has been made previously. In this paper, we present the first quantitative security analysis on a general class of QKD protocols whose sources are unknown and untrusted. The securities of standard BB84 protocol, weak+vacuum decoy state protocol, and one-decoy decoy state protocol, with unknown and untrusted sources are rigorously proved. We derive rigorous lower bounds to the secure key generation rates of the above three protocols. Our numerical simulation results show that QKD with an untrusted source gives a key generation rate that is close to that with a trusted source. Our work is published in [1]. [4pt] [1] Y. Zhao, B. Qi, and H.-K. Lo, Phys. Rev. A, 77:052327 (2008).

International and cross-cultural issues: six key challenges for our professions.

PubMed

Marshall, Julie

2003-01-01

This paper discusses a number of key challenges facing professionals who work with people who have communication disabilities. The challenges are related to working internationally and in a cross-culturally competent way. Each challenge is discussed, drawing on material from a range of sources, including the papers in the final 2003 edition of FOLIA PHONIATRICA ET LOGOPAEDICA ('International and Cross-Cultural Issues'). The challenges discussed cover how experiences from majority world countries can be used to benefit services elsewhere, 'mainstreaming' commitment to cross-cultural competence, learning from relationships with other professionals, influencing research practice, responding to requests to work internationally and finally, dealing with cultural differences that challenge working practices. Some solutions are suggested and additional questions posed. Copyright 2003 S. Karger AG, Basel

Mathematics, Questions, and "Schools Without Failure"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Perl, Teri

1974-01-01

Most questions in the mathematics classroom deal with memorization and learning, and have one correct answer. Suggestions for using three other types of questions identified by Glasser (SCHOOLS WITHOUT FAILURE) are provided. Activities discussed include tangrams, attribute blocks, pattern recognition, and games. (SD)

Promoting Discussions in ESL Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Navarro, Ann

2010-01-01

Background: Teachers who work with English as a Second Language (ESL) students, struggle with promoting discussion during guided reading. When ESL students are asked comprehension questions during group discussions and throughout the reading of a book, often teachers receive minimal feedback. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to identify…

Living and Learning in EcCoWell Cities: Discussion Paper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kearns, Peter

2012-01-01

These notes and questions have been prepared to promote discussion of the ideas set out in the Clarifying paper, "Living and learning in EcCoWell cities" to be found on the PASCAL International Exchanges (PIE) website. This Discussion Paper sets ten questions for discussion. We are hoping to encourage discussions of these issues around the world.

Formative student-authored question bank: perceptions, question quality and association with summative performance.

PubMed

Walsh, Jason L; Harris, Benjamin H L; Denny, Paul; Smith, Phil

2018-02-01

There are few studies on the value of authoring questions as a study method, the quality of the questions produced by students and student perceptions of student-authored question banks. Here we evaluate PeerWise, a widely used and free online resource that allows students to author, answer and discuss multiple-choice questions. We introduced two undergraduate medical student cohorts to PeerWise (n=603). We looked at their patterns of PeerWise usage; identified associations between student engagement and summative exam performance; and used focus groups to assess student perceptions of the value of PeerWise for learning. We undertook item analysis to assess question difficulty and quality. Over two academic years, the two cohorts wrote 4671 questions, answered questions 606 658 times and posted 7735 comments. Question writing frequency correlated most strongly with summative performance (Spearman's rank: 0.24, p=<0.001). Student focus groups found that: (1) students valued curriculum specificity; and (2) students were concerned about student-authored question quality. Only two questions of the 300 'most-answered' questions analysed had an unacceptable discriminatory value (point-biserial correlation <0.2). Item analysis suggested acceptable question quality despite student concerns. Quantitative and qualitative methods indicated that PeerWise is a valuable study tool. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

[Understanding questions: a specific difficulty in children with pragmatic communication and language disorders].

PubMed

Monfort, I; Monfort, M

2010-03-03

The question-answer schema is the basis for communicative interaction and is therefore a fundamental aim of the work carried out with children with severe communication and language impairment. Answering questions requires basic skills that enable the listener to identify intonation and facial expression, as well as skills in interpreting intentions and in understanding linguistic content. Some questions can rest on contextual-social keys and others may be based on lexical or structural keys. Some questions, however, call for a more complex understanding, such as 'what' and 'who' questions. Here, we propose an analysis of the skills involved in understanding questions and the consequences on intervention strategies. Intervention in understanding questions should combine different approaches (cognitive, social, linguistic) depending on the type of question, the specific difficulties the child has and the context.

Questionable Methods in Alcoholism Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koocher, Gerald P.

1991-01-01

Alcoholism research paradigms that use substantial cash incentives to attract participants and that call for alcoholics to consume ethanol in laboratory raise ethical questions. When using such methods, investigators should be obligated to discuss risk-benefit rationales and detail precautionary behaviors to protect participants. Discussion of…

The Top 10 Questions for Active Debris Removal

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liou, J. -C.

2010-01-01

This slide presentation reviews the requirement and issues around removal of debris from the earth orbital environment. The 10 questions discussed are: 1. Which region (LEO/MEO/GEO) has the fastest projected growth rate and the highest collision activities? 2. Can the commonly-adopted mitigation measures stabilize the future environment? 3. What are the objectives of active debris removal (ADR)? 4. How can effective ADR target selection criteria to stabilize the future LEO environment be defined? 5. What are the keys to remediate the future LEO environment? 6. What is the timeframe for ADR implementation? 7. What is the effect of practical/operational constraints? 8. What are the collision probabilities and masses of the current objects? 9. What are the benefits of collision avoidance maneuvers? 10. What is the next step?

Protein Electrochemistry: Questions and Answers.

PubMed

Fourmond, V; Léger, C

This chapter presents the fundamentals of electrochemistry in the context of protein electrochemistry. We discuss redox proteins and enzymes that are not photoactive. Of course, the principles described herein also apply to photobioelectrochemistry, as discussed in later chapters of this book. Depending on which experiment is considered, electron transfer between proteins and electrodes can be either direct or mediated, and achieved in a variety of configurations: with the protein and/or the mediator free to diffuse in solution, immobilized in a thick, hydrated film, or adsorbed as a sub-monolayer on the electrode. The experiments can be performed with the goal to study the protein or to use it. Here emphasis is on mechanistic studies, which are easier in the configuration where the protein is adsorbed and electron transfer is direct, but we also explain the interpretation of signals obtained when diffusion processes affect the response.This chapter is organized as a series of responses to questions. Questions 1-5 are related to the basics of electrochemistry: what does "potential" or "current" mean, what does an electrochemical set-up look like? Questions 6-9 are related to the distinction between adsorbed and diffusive redox species. The answers to questions 10-13 explain the interpretation of slow and fast scan voltammetry with redox proteins. Questions 14-19 deal with catalytic electrochemistry, when the protein studied is actually an enzyme. Questions 20, 21 and 22 are general.

The 150 most important questions in cancer research and clinical oncology series: questions 50-56.

PubMed

2017-08-29

Since the beginning of 2017, Chinese Journal of Cancer has published a series of important questions in cancer research and clinical oncology, which sparkle diverse thoughts, interesting communications, and potential collaborations among researchers all over the world. In this article, seven more questions are presented as followed. Question 50. When tumor cells spread from primary site to distant sites, are they required to be "trained" or "armed" in the bone marrow niche prior to colonizing soft tissues? Question 51. Are there tipping points during cancer progression which can be identified for manipulation? Question 52. Can we replace molecular biomarkers by network biomarkers? Question 53. Are conventional inhibitors of key cellular processes such as cell proliferation and differentiation more effective than targeted chemotherapeutics that antagonize the downstream cell signaling network via cell-surface receptors such as epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) and c-Met, or intracellular receptors such as androgen receptor (AR) and estrogen receptor (ER), by drugs like erlotinib, sunitinib and cabozantinib, or enzalutamide and tomoxifen? Question 54. How can we robustly identify the candidate causal event of somatic genome alteration (SGA) by using computational approach? Question 55. How can we systematically reveal the immune evasion mechanism exploited by each tumor and utilize such information to guide targeted therapy to restore immune sensitivity? Question 56. Can the nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) patients with sarcomatoid carcinoma (SC) subtype benefit from more specific targeted therapy?

Open-Ended Questions and the Process Standards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sanchez, Wendy B.

2013-01-01

Open-ended questions, as discussed in this article, are questions that can be solved or explained in a variety of ways, that focus on conceptual aspects of mathematics, and that have the potential to expose students' understanding and misconceptions. When working with teachers who are using open-ended questions with their students for the…

What Questions Should I Ask My Doctor?

MedlinePlus

... Trials Database Supporting Research Raising Awareness Our Blog Patient Education Pancreas News Basics of Pancreatic Cancer FAQs The ... Detection- Goggins Lab Sol Goldman Center Discussion Board Patient Education / Basics of Pancreatic Cancer Questions What questions should ...

Preceptor questioning and student critical thinking.

PubMed

Myrick, Florence; Yonge, Olive

2002-01-01

Questioning is fundamental to student learning. Not only does it enable students to elevate their level of thinking, but in the process it also affords them the opportunity to deal with their world intelligently. The practice setting is an environment rich in opportunity for enabling critical thinking through the use of questioning. In the preceptorship experience, preceptors are in a prime position to use questioning behaviors that can challenge the way preceptees think, encourage them to justify or clarify their assertions, promote the generation of original ideas, explanations, or solutions to patient problems, provide mental and emotional tools to help resolve dilemmas, promote discussion, and evaluate learning. This article discusses the importance of preceptor questioning for the development and promotion of student critical thinking. Contextually, the authors draw on the findings of a recent study in which preceptor questioning of the knowledge base, decision making, and actions of the preceptee were found to directly bring about or trigger their critical thinking. This article allows for some further reflection on that process and its contribution to the enhancement of the preceptorship experience. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.

Conceptual Questions and Challenge Problems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nurrenbern, Susan C.; Robinson, William R.

1998-11-01

The JCE Internet Conceptual Question and Challenge Problem Web site is a source of questions and problems that can be used in teaching and assessing conceptual understanding and problem solving in chemistry. Here you can find a library of free-response and multiple-choice conceptual questions and challenge problems, tips for writing these questions and problems, and a discussion of types of conceptual questions. This site is intended to be a means of sharing conceptual questions and challenge problems among chemical educators. This is a living site that will grow as you share conceptual questions and challenge problems and as we find new sources of information. We would like to make this site as inclusive as possible. Please share your questions and problems with us and alert us to references or Web sites that could be included on the site. You can use email, fax, or regular mail. Email: nurrenbern@purdue.edu or wrrobin@purdue.edu Fax: 765/494-0239 Mailing address: Susan C. Nurrenbern or William R. Robinson; Department of Chemistry; Purdue University; 1393 Brown Building; West Lafayette, IN 47907-1393. The Conceptual Questions and Challenge Problems Web site can be found here.

"Wh"-Questions in the English Language

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mowarin, Macaulay

2011-01-01

This paper analyzes "wh"-questions in the English Language based mainly on Chomsky's Minimalist Programme of transformational grammar as the theoretical model. The four main objectives of this paper are as follows: first, it undertakes a cross linguistic typological analysis of "wh"-questions and it then discusses the derivation of…

Barriers and decisions when answering clinical questions at the point of care: a grounded theory study.

PubMed

Cook, David A; Sorensen, Kristi J; Wilkinson, John M; Berger, Richard A

2013-11-25

Answering clinical questions affects patient-care decisions and is important to continuous professional development. The process of point-of-care learning is incompletely understood. To understand what barriers and enabling factors influence physician point-of-care learning and what decisions physicians face during this process. Focus groups with grounded theory analysis. Focus group discussions were transcribed and then analyzed using a constant comparative approach to identify barriers, enabling factors, and key decisions related to physician information-seeking activities. Academic medical center and outlying community sites. Purposive sample of 50 primary care and subspecialist internal medicine and family medicine physicians, interviewed in 11 focus groups. Insufficient time was the main barrier to point-of-care learning. Other barriers included the patient comorbidities and contexts, the volume of available information, not knowing which resource to search, doubt that the search would yield an answer, difficulty remembering questions for later study, and inconvenient access to computers. Key decisions were whether to search (reasons to search included infrequently seen conditions, practice updates, complex questions, and patient education), when to search (before, during, or after the clinical encounter), where to search (with the patient present or in a separate room), what type of resource to use (colleague or computer), what specific resource to use (influenced first by efficiency and second by credibility), and when to stop. Participants noted that key features of efficiency (completeness, brevity, and searchability) are often in conflict. Physicians perceive that insufficient time is the greatest barrier to point-of-care learning, and efficiency is the most important determinant in selecting an information source. Designing knowledge resources and systems to target key decisions may improve learning and patient care.

Summary of small group discussions: Monitoring objectives and thresholds

Treesearch

Patricia Manley

2013-01-01

Workshop participants were asked to address sets of questions in small group discussions, which were subsequently brought to the entire group for discussion. The second set of questions was directed at identifying a set of degradation activities that could be a primary focus for developing or refining methods and techniques for monitoring:

[Key ethic discussions in hospice/palliative care].

PubMed

Jusić, Anica

2008-12-01

The goal of palliative care is to provide the best possible quality of life for patients and their families in the process of dying as well as before, during the course of illness. Emphasis is on the role of team approach in every aspect of patient care. The moral principles of sacredness of life and the right of personal autonomy may occasionally come in conflict. The basic principle of the respect of life prohibits killing, which has been accepted in one way or another by all societies - for the reasons of survival. Similar to this, modern morality supports the principle of respecting autonomy and self-management based on informed, conscious personality of an individual. Still, if the needs of another person appear to be more important or desirable than reaching certain individual goals, then the right of an individual regarding autonomy may be legitimately limited. Decisions on not applying or terminating certain procedures must be based on thorough discussion and consideration of the nature and expected result of treatment. If the patient is not competent, then the discussion should involve a team providing care for the patient and a representative of the patient. When the physician and the team can clearly see that unfavorable effects of treatment will outweigh therapeutic benefits, then, according to medical ethics of the respecting beneficiary, the team is not obliged to provide that form of treatment. Except for palliative care, there is no medical treatment that is always obligatory. A physician that does not accept the patient's request to be killed does not limit the patient's autonomy. Autonomy is self-management and capability of the patient to kill him/herself is not limited by the physician's refusal to do so. Even in those cases when patients for various reasons say that death will be a relief, it does not mean that the physician is obliged to terminate life. The superior obligation of physicians is to alleviate pain. If euthanasia would be legal

Questioning the Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tienken, Christopher H.; Goldberg, Stephanie; DiRocco, Dominic

2010-01-01

Historical accounts of questioning used in the education process trace back to Socrates. One of the best examples of his use of questioning is found in Plato's "The Republic." Socrates used a series of strategic questions to help his student Glaucon come to understand the concept of justice. Socrates purposefully posed a series of…

The Influence of Socratic Questioning in Online Discussions on the Critical Thinking Skills of Undergraduate Students: An Exploratory Study Based on a Business Course at a Proprietary University

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boulter, Marla Lynn

2010-01-01

This study examined the influence of instructor-facilitated Socratic questioning in online discussions on the critical thinking skills of undergraduate students enrolled in a proprietary institution with nonselective admissions criteria. A sample of students was purposively selected from two sections of an online introductory business course, with…

The 5 key questions coping with risks due to natural hazards, answered by a case study

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hardegger, P.; Sausgruber, J. T.; Schiegg, H. O.

2009-04-01

Based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs, human endeavours concern primarily existential needs, consequently, to be safeguarded against both natural as well as man made threads. The subsequent needs are to realize chances in a variety of fields, as economics and many others. Independently, the 5 crucial questions are the same as for coping with risks due to natural hazards specifically. These 5 key questions are I) What is the impact in function of space and time ? II) What protection measures comply with the general opinion and how much do they mitigate the threat? III) How can the loss be adequately quantified and monetized ? IV) What budget for prevention and reserves for restoration and compensation are to be planned ? V) Which mix of measures and allocation of resources is sustainable, thus, optimal ? The 5 answers, exemplified by a case study, concerning the sustainable management of risk due to the debris flows by the Enterbach / Inzing / Tirol / Austria, are as follows : I) The impact, created by both the propagation of flooding and sedimentation, has been forecasted by modeling (numerical simulation) the 30, 50, 100, 150, 300 and 1000 year debris flow. The input was specified by detailed studies in meteorology, precipitation and runoff, in geology, hydrogeology, geomorphology and slope stability, in hydraulics, sediment transport and debris flow, in forestry, agriculture and development of communal settlement and infrastructure. All investigations were performed according to the method of ETAlp (Erosion and Transport in Alpine systems). ETAlp has been developed in order to achieve a sustainable development in alpine areas and has been evaluated by the research project "nab", within the context of the EU-Interreg IIIb projects. II) The risk mitigation measures of concern are in hydraulics at the one hand and in forestry at the other hand. Such risk management is evaluated according to sustainability, which means economic, ecologic and social, in short, "triple

Six questions about translational due diligence.

PubMed

Selinger, Evan

2010-04-28

To maintain stable respect and support, translational research must be guided by appropriate ethical, social, legal, and political concerns and carry out culturally competent practices. Considering six key questions concerning due diligence will enable the translational research community to examine critically how it approaches these endeavors.

Children's Exhaustive Readings of Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cremers, Alexandre; Tieu, Lyn; Chemla, Emmanuel

2017-01-01

Questions, just like plain declarative sentences, can give rise to multiple interpretations. As discussed by Spector & Egré (2015), among others, questions embedded under know are ambiguous between "weakly exhaustive" (WE), "intermediate exhaustive" (IE), and "strongly exhaustive" (SE) interpretations (for…

26 CFR 1.416-1 - Questions and answers on top-heavy plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

..., employers under common control or affiliated service group. A partner of a partnership will not be treated... employees, former key employees, and non-key employees. (b) All employers that are aggregated under section... as key employees, as former key employees, or as non-key employees. See Question and Answer T-12 for...

26 CFR 1.416-1 - Questions and answers on top-heavy plans.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

..., employers under common control or affiliated service group. A partner of a partnership will not be treated... employees, former key employees, and non-key employees. (b) All employers that are aggregated under section... as key employees, as former key employees, or as non-key employees. See Question and Answer T-12 for...

Does Displaying the Class Results Affect Student Discussion during Peer Instruction?

PubMed Central

Strauss, Eric A.; Downey, Nicholas; Galbraith, Anne; Jeanne, Robert; Cooper, Scott

2010-01-01

The use of personal response systems, or clickers, is increasingly common in college classrooms. Although clickers can increase student engagement and discussion, their benefits also can be overstated. A common practice is to ask the class a question, display the responses, allow the students to discuss the question, and then collect the responses a second time. In an introductory biology course, we asked whether showing students the class responses to a question biased their second response. Some sections of the course displayed a bar graph of the student responses and others served as a control group in which discussion occurred without seeing the most common answer chosen by the class. If students saw the bar graph, they were 30% more likely to switch from a less common to the most common response. This trend was more pronounced in true/false questions (38%) than multiple-choice questions (28%). These results suggest that observing the most common response can bias a student's second vote on a question and may be misinterpreted as an increase in performance due to student discussion alone. PMID:20516358

Understanding Clicker Discussions: Student Reasoning and the Impact of Instructional Cues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knight, Jennifer K.; Wise, Sarah B.; Southard, Katelyn M.

2013-01-01

Previous research has shown that undergraduate science students learn from peer discussions of in-class clicker questions. However, the features that characterize such discussions are largely unknown, as are the instructional factors that may lead students into productive discussions. To explore these questions, we recorded and transcribed 83…

Working with Second Language Learners: Answers to Teachers' Top Ten Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cary, Stephen

This book aims to provide practical, research-informed answers to the questions most frequently asked by teachers of second language learners. Every question targets one of the key instructional issues teachers must address to ensure success for their second language students. Included among the questions are: How do I assess a student's English?…

Phasehood of Wh-Questions in Modern Standard Arabic

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alsager, Haroon Nasser

2017-01-01

Wh-questions have been widely discussed in different languages such as English, Mandarin Chinese, Italian, and Russian, but little attention has been paid to the structure of wh-questions in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA). Thus, this dissertation attempts to analyze the structure of wh-questions using the current frameworks: "Minimalism and…

Questioning Mechanisms During Complex Learning

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-03-11

1989; Kass & Finin, 1988). It is the "given" information from the perspective of the given-new contract in discourse processing theories (Clark 6...versus 43%. Graesser 15 Another way of cutting the pie is to segregate deep questions (i.e., why, why not, how, what-if) from shallow questions...regulate their own learning. As discussed earlier, however, it is widely acknowledged that students need some guidance in this process if deep knowledge

The RNA world in the 21st century-a systems approach to finding non-coding keys to clinical questions.

PubMed

Schmitz, Ulf; Naderi-Meshkin, Hojjat; Gupta, Shailendra K; Wolkenhauer, Olaf; Vera, Julio

2016-05-01

There was evidence that RNAs are a functionally rich class of molecules not only since the arrival of the next-generation sequencing technology. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNA) could be the key to accelerated diagnosis and enhanced prediction of disease and therapy outcomes as well as the design of advanced therapeutic strategies to overcome yet unsatisfactory approaches.In this review, we discuss the state of the art in RNA systems biology with focus on the application in the systems biomedicine field. We propose guidelines for analysing the role of microRNAs and long non-coding RNAs in human pathologies. We introduce RNA expression profiling and network approaches for the identification of stable and effective RNomics-based biomarkers, providing insights into the role of ncRNAs in disease regulation. Towards this, we discuss ways to model the dynamics of gene regulatory networks and signalling pathways that involve ncRNAs. We also describe data resources and computational methods for finding putative mechanisms of action of ncRNAs. Finally, we discuss avenues for the computer-aided design of novel RNA-based therapeutics. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Does a Discussion by Any Other Name Sound the Same? Teaching Discussion in Three ELA Methods Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alston, Chandra L.; Danielson, Katie A.; Dutro, Elizabeth; Cartun, Ashley

2018-01-01

Facilitating discussions in English Language Arts can develop students' skills as speakers and listeners and their ability to engage with diverse perspectives. However, classroom observations often demonstrate a lack of student talk, raising questions about the complexity of facilitating discussion and teachers' opportunities to learn and hone the…

Is University Education a Golden Key for a Happy Life?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Jeong-Kyu

2008-01-01

This article explores what the ultimate purpose of university education is, and whether a university is indeed a golden key for a happy life. Two research questions are addressed as follows: for what the young study in a university?; and a university, is it a golden key for happiness? To defend the research questions systematically, the author…

How much flower-rich habitat is enough for wild pollinators? Answering a key policy question with incomplete knowledge.

PubMed

Dicks, Lynn V; Baude, Mathilde; Roberts, Stuart P M; Phillips, James; Green, Mike; Carvell, Claire

2015-09-01

In 2013, an opportunity arose in England to develop an agri-environment package for wild pollinators, as part of the new Countryside Stewardship scheme launched in 2015. It can be understood as a 'policy window', a rare and time-limited opportunity to change policy, supported by a narrative about pollinator decline and widely supported mitigating actions. An agri-environment package is a bundle of management options that together supply sufficient resources to support a target group of species. This paper documents information that was available at the time to develop such a package for wild pollinators. Four questions needed answering: (1) Which pollinator species should be targeted? (2) Which resources limit these species in farmland? (3) Which management options provide these resources? (4) What area of each option is needed to support populations of the target species? Focussing on wild bees, we provide tentative answers that were used to inform development of the package. There is strong evidence that floral resources can limit wild bee populations, and several sources of evidence identify a set of agri-environment options that provide flowers and other resources for pollinators. The final question could only be answered for floral resources, with a wide range of uncertainty. We show that the areas of some floral resource options in the basic Wild Pollinator and Farmland Wildlife Package (2% flower-rich habitat and 1 km flowering hedgerow), are sufficient to supply a set of six common pollinator species with enough pollen to feed their larvae at lowest estimates, using minimum values for estimated parameters where a range was available. We identify key sources of uncertainty, and stress the importance of keeping the Package flexible, so it can be revised as new evidence emerges about how to achieve the policy aim of supporting pollinators on farmland.

Understanding Clicker Discussions: Student Reasoning and the Impact of Instructional Cues

PubMed Central

Knight, Jennifer K.; Wise, Sarah B.; Southard, Katelyn M.

2013-01-01

Previous research has shown that undergraduate science students learn from peer discussions of in-class clicker questions. However, the features that characterize such discussions are largely unknown, as are the instructional factors that may lead students into productive discussions. To explore these questions, we recorded and transcribed 83 discussions among groups of students discussing 34 different clicker questions in an upper-level developmental biology class. Discussion transcripts were analyzed for features such as making claims, questioning, and explaining reasoning. In addition, transcripts were categorized by the quality of reasoning students used and for performance features, such as percent correct on initial vote, percent correct on revote, and normalized learning change. We found that the majority of student discussions included exchanges of reasoning that used evidence and that many such exchanges resulted in students achieving the correct answer. Students also had discussions in which ideas were exchanged, but the correct answer not achieved. Importantly, instructor prompts that asked students to use reasoning resulted in significantly more discussions containing reasoning connected to evidence than without such prompts. Overall, these results suggest that these upper-level biology students readily employ reasoning in their discussions and are positively influenced by instructor cues. PMID:24297291

Questions Students Ask: Beta Decay.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koss, Jordan; Hartt, Kenneth

1988-01-01

Answers a student's question about the emission of a positron from a nucleus. Discusses the problem from the aspects of the uncertainty principle, beta decay, the Fermi Theory, and modern physics. (YP)

Fire and aquatic ecosystems of the Western USA: current knowledge and key questions.

Treesearch

P.A. Bisson; B.E. Rieman; C. Luce; P.F. Hessburg; D.C. Lee; J.L. Kershner; G.H. Reeves; R.E. Gresswell

2003-01-01

Understanding of the effects of wildland fire and fire management on aquatic and riparian ecosystems is an evolving field, with many questions still to be resolved. Limitations of current knowledge, and the certainty that fire management will continue, underscore the need to summarize available information. Integrating fire and fuels management with aquatic ecosystem...

Domain and Intelligence Based Multimedia Question Answering System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kumar, K. Magesh; Valarmathie, P.

2016-01-01

Multimedia question answering systems have become very popular over the past few years. It allows users to share their thoughts by answering a given question or obtain information from a set of answered questions. However, existing QA systems support only textual answer which is not so instructive for many users. The user's discussion can be…

Index to the monthly hotline report questions (June 1982 to December 1991)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1992-12-01

The document provides four indices to the question and answer sections of the RCRA/Superfund/Oust Monthly Hotline Reports from June 1982 through December 1991. The first index is an alphabetical listing of question titles by year and month. The second index organizes the questions by regulatory citation, beginning with 40 CFR 257. The third index organizes the questions by statuatory citation. Finally, the fourth index references the questions by key word or subject heading.

Group Random Call Can Positively Affect Student In-Class Clicker Discussions

PubMed Central

Knight, Jennifer K.; Wise, Sarah B.; Sieke, Scott

2016-01-01

Understanding how instructional techniques and classroom norms influence in-class student interactions has the potential to positively impact student learning. Many previous studies have shown that students benefit from discussing their ideas with one another in class. In this study of introductory biology students, we explored how using an in-class accountability system might affect the nature of clicker-question discussions. Clicker-question discussions in which student groups were asked to report their ideas voluntarily (volunteer call) were compared with discussions in which student groups were randomly selected to report their ideas (random call). We hypothesized that the higher-accountability condition (random call) would impress upon students the importance of their discussions and thus positively influence how they interacted. Our results suggest that a higher proportion of discussions in the random call condition contained exchanges of reasoning, some forms of questioning, and both on- and off-topic comments compared with discussion in the volunteer call condition. Although group random call does not impact student performance on clicker questions, the positive impact of this instructional approach on exchanges of reasoning and other features suggests it may encourage some types of student interactions that support learning. PMID:27856544

What is a Question?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Knuth, Kevin H.; Clancy, Daniel (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

A given question can be defined in terms of the set of statements or assertions that answer it. Application of the logic of inference to this set of assertions allows one to derive the logic of inquiry among questions. There are interesting symmetries between the logics of inference and inquiry; where probability describes the degree to which a premise implies an assertion, there exists an analogous quantity that describes the bearing or relevance that a question has on an outstanding issue. These have been extended to suggest that the logic of inquiry results in functional relationships analogous to, although more general than, those found in information theory. Employing lattice theory, I examine in greater detail the structure of the space of assertions and questions demonstrating that the symmetries between the logical relations in each of the spaces derive directly from the lattice structure. Furthermore, I show that while symmetries between the spaces exist, the two lattices are not isomorphic. The lattice of assertions is described by a Boolean lattice 2(sup N) whereas the lattice of real questions is shown to be a sublattice of the free distributive lattice FD(N) = 2(sup 2(sup N)). Thus there does not exist a one-to-one mapping of assertions to questions, there is no reflection symmetry between the two spaces, and questions in general do not possess unique complements. Last, with these lattice structures in mind, I discuss the relationship between probability, relevance and entropy.

Connecting the Dots: A Discussion on Key Concepts in Contemporary Entrepreneurship Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hägg, Gustav; Kurczewska, Agnieszka

2016-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to justify, elaborate and elucidate the concepts of action, experience and reflection, and how they are intertwined when discussing contemporary entrepreneurship education. These concepts have been given a meaning in entrepreneurship education, but have not been discussed in-depth, and by that have been…

Summary of small group discussions: Detection of forest degradation drivers

Treesearch

Patricia Manley

2013-01-01

Workshop participants were asked to address sets of questions in small group discussions, which were subsequently brought to the entire group for discussion. The first set of questions was directed at identifying a set of degradation activities that could be a primary focus for developing or refining methods and techniques for monitoring:

Questions, Curiosity and the Inquiry Cycle

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Casey, Leo

2014-01-01

This article discusses the conceptual relationship between questions, curiosity and learning as inquiry elaborated in the work of Chip Bruce and others as the Inquiry Cycle. The Inquiry Cycle describes learning in terms of a continuous dynamic of ask, investigate, create, discuss and reflect. Of these elements "ask" has a privileged…

Dog Bite Reflections--Socratic Questioning Revisited

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Toledo, Cheri A.

2015-01-01

In the online environment, the asynchronous discussion is an important tool for creating community, developing critical thinking skills, and checking for understanding. As students learn how to use Socratic questions for effective interactions, the discussion boards can become the most exciting part of the course. This sequel to the article…

Text Dependent Questions and the CCSS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aspen Institute, 2012

2012-01-01

An effective text dependent question first and foremost embraces the key principle of close reading embedded in the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) Anchor Reading Standards by asking students to provide evidence from complex text and draw inferences based on what the text explicitly says (Standards 1 and 10). A close look at the intervening…

Birds: Old Questions and New.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flannery, Maura C.

2002-01-01

Discusses questions such as how birds fly and the meaning of bird songs. Explains the relationship between birds and ecological activism and points out the excitement in research and observation of birds. (Contains 34 references.) (YDS)

Quiet or Questioning? Students' Discussion Behaviors in Student-Centered Education across Cultures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frambach, Janneke M.; Driessen, Erik W.; Beh, Philip; van der Vleuten, Cees P. M.

2014-01-01

A tool used in student-centered education is discussion among students in small learning groups. The Western origin of student-centered education, coupled with cross-cultural differences in communication styles, may detract from its cross-cultural applicability. This study investigates how in student-centered education, students' cultural…

Social Risk Takers: Understanding Bilingualism in Mathematical Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dominguez, Higinio

2017-01-01

The teaching and research communities in mathematics education agree that mathematical discussions pose challenges in elementary classrooms. These challenges continue to motivate research on mathematical discussions, with a focus on how students use talk in discussions. This study addresses the question, "What can teachers and researchers…

Holistic Speaker Evaluation--A Review and Discussion.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shelton, Karen; Shelton, Michael W.

The question of what variables affect success in debate has long been an area of interest and concern in the forensic community. For many years, it was thought that traditional performance variables--delivery, reasoning, organization, analysis, refutation and use of evidence--were the key factors influencing evaluations of debaters. Some…

Towards a Pedagogy of Science Teaching: An Exploration of the Impact of Students-Led Questioning and Feedback on the Attainment of Key Stage 3 Science Students in a UK School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magaji, A.; Ade-Ojo, G.; Betteney, M.

2018-01-01

This mixed method study investigated the extent to which the use of a model built around student-led questioning and feedback improved the learner engagement and attainment of a cohort of students. It compared outcomes from an experimental with a control group of students in Key-Stage 3 using a set of parameters. It found that the experimental…

Ten key questions about the management of water in the Yellow River basin.

PubMed

Barnett, Jon; Webber, Michael; Wang, Mark; Finlayson, Brian; Dickinson, Debbie

2006-08-01

Water is scarce in many regions of the world, clean water is difficult to find in most developing countries, there are conflicts between irrigation needs and urban demands, and there is wide debate over appropriate means of resolving these problems. Similarly, in China, there is limited understanding of the ways in which people, groups, and institutions contribute to, are affected by, and respond to changes in water quantity and quality. We use the example of the Yellow River basin to argue that these social, managerial, and policy dimensions of the present water problems are significant and overshadow the physical ones. Despite this, they receive relatively little attention in the research agenda, particularly of the lead agencies in the management of the Yellow River basin. To this end, we ask ten research questions needed to address the policy needs of water management in the basin, split into two groups of five. The first five relate to the importance of water in this basin and the changes that have affected water problems and will continue to do so. The second five questions represent an attempt to explore possible solutions to these problems.

Fermilab | Tritium at Fermilab | Frequently asked questions

Science.gov Websites

computing Quantum initiatives Research and development Key discoveries Benefits of particle physics Particle Accelerators Leading accelerator technology Accelerator complex Illinois Accelerator Research Center Fermilab questions about tritium Tritium in surface water Indian Creek Kress Creek Ferry Creek Tritium in sanitary

Limitations on quantum key repeaters.

PubMed

Bäuml, Stefan; Christandl, Matthias; Horodecki, Karol; Winter, Andreas

2015-04-23

A major application of quantum communication is the distribution of entangled particles for use in quantum key distribution. Owing to noise in the communication line, quantum key distribution is, in practice, limited to a distance of a few hundred kilometres, and can only be extended to longer distances by use of a quantum repeater, a device that performs entanglement distillation and quantum teleportation. The existence of noisy entangled states that are undistillable but nevertheless useful for quantum key distribution raises the question of the feasibility of a quantum key repeater, which would work beyond the limits of entanglement distillation, hence possibly tolerating higher noise levels than existing protocols. Here we exhibit fundamental limits on such a device in the form of bounds on the rate at which it may extract secure key. As a consequence, we give examples of states suitable for quantum key distribution but unsuitable for the most general quantum key repeater protocol.

Some Questions on Accountability.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Follett, Robert J. R.

An educational publisher poses several questions that are related to accountability for the purpose of stimulating discussion on this topic at a national convention of social studies teachers. Is it appropriate to insist upon the verification or validation of instructional materials? Is it possible to make more money available for the purchase of…

Occurrence of Children's Echoic Responses According to Interlocutory Question Types.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fay, Warren H.

Dialogues with 22 echoic 3-year-old children were analyzed according to question type to determine whether some questions are more likely than others to trigger echoic responses. The children were asked to identify and manipulate toy objects such as a car, to identify a group of familiar objects such as a key or scissors, and to respond to…

"We Have about Seven Minutes for Questions": The Discussion Sessions from a Specialized Conference

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wulff, Stefanie; Swales, John M.; Keller, Kristen

2009-01-01

This paper discusses the "John Swales Conference Corpus" (JSCC), which contains the lectures and discussion sessions from an applied linguistics conference held in 2006 at the University of Michigan. This corpus constitutes a useful resource in that it provides insights into the language of a narrowly defined academic community.…

Questions to Ask Your Liability Insurance Broker

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neugebauer, Roger

2006-01-01

This paper discusses some important questions to ask an insurance broker regarding liability insurance. The author based these questions on his interviews with Kathryn Hammerback, Craig Hammer, and Mike North: (1) Are centers covered when...?; (2) How can a center director cut costs on this policy?; (3) Is this an "occurrence" or a "claims-made"…

Guiding students towards sensemaking: teacher questions focused on integrating scientific practices with science content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benedict-Chambers, Amanda; Kademian, Sylvie M.; Davis, Elizabeth A.; Palincsar, Annemarie Sullivan

2017-10-01

Science education reforms articulate a vision of ambitious science teaching where teachers engage students in sensemaking discussions and emphasise the integration of scientific practices with science content. Learning to teach in this way is complex, and there are few examples of sensemaking discussions in schools where textbook lessons and teacher-directed discussions are the norm. The purpose of this study was to characterise the questioning practices of an experienced teacher who taught a curricular unit enhanced with educative features that emphasised students' engagement in scientific practices integrated with science content. Analyses indicated the teacher asked four types of questions: explication questions, explanation questions, science concept questions, and scientific practice questions, and she used three questioning patterns including: (1) focusing students on scientific practices, which involved a sequence of questions to turn students back to the scientific practice; (2) supporting students in naming observed phenomena, which involved a sequence of questions to help students use scientific language; and (3) guiding students in sensemaking, which involved a sequence of questions to help students learn about scientific practices, describe evidence, and develop explanations. Although many of the discussions in this study were not yet student-centred, they provide an image of a teacher asking specific questions that move students towards reform-oriented instruction. Implications for classroom practice are discussed and recommendations for future research are provided.

The relevance of α-KLOTHO to the central nervous system: Some key questions.

PubMed

Cararo-Lopes, Marina Minto; Mazucanti, Caio Henrique Yokoyama; Scavone, Cristoforo; Kawamoto, Elisa Mitiko; Berwick, Daniel Charles

2017-07-01

α-Klotho is well described as an anti-aging protein, with critical roles in kidney function as a transmembrane co-receptor for FGF23, and as a soluble factor in serum. α-Klotho is also expressed in the choroid plexus, where it is released into the cerebrospinal fluid. Nonetheless, α-Klotho is also expressed in the brain parenchyma. Accumulating evidence indicates that this pool of α-Klotho, which we define as brain α-Klotho, may play important roles as a neuroprotective factor and in promoting myelination, thereby supporting healthy brain aging. Here we summarize what is known about brain α-Klotho before focusing on the outstanding scientific questions related to its function. We believe there is a need for in vitro studies designed to distinguish between brain α-Klotho and other pools of α-Klotho, and for a greater understanding of the basic function of soluble α-Klotho. The mechanism by which the human KL-VS variant affects cognition also requires further elucidation. To help address these questions we suggest some experimental approaches that other laboratories might consider. In short, we hope to stimulate fresh ideas and encourage new research approaches that will allow the importance of α-Klotho for the aging brain to become clear. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

[Qualitative research in health services research - discussion paper, Part 1: What is the idea?].

PubMed

Meyer, T; Karbach, U; Holmberg, C; Güthlin, C; Patzelt, C; Stamer, M

2012-08-01

In this first part of a 3-part discussion paper the working group "Qualitative Methods" in the German Network of Health Services Research (DNVF) identifies the potentials and opportunities qualitative research methods provide for health services research. Many research questions relevant for health services research require the use of qualitative methods. However, the potential of and need for qualitative research in health services research has not yet received sufficient attention from funding bodies. We discuss the applicability and importance of qualitative research for the field of health services research. We then move on to describe the key characteristics of qualitative research that need to be taken into account in health services research. We discuss characteristics such as open-ended (qualitative) data, interpretation of meanings, the search for contradictions, closeness to everyday life, openness towards change or modification of the research question and processes in the context of health services research. To ensure a high-quality approach in qualitative methods for the health services research, sufficient competency in methods and appropriate settings that account for the peculiarities of qualitative methods need to be developed. These include an appropriate time frame and sufficient and qualified personnel to conduct qualitative research. Qualitative research is not a research paradigm in itself rather it comprises of many different and diverging approaches. The goal of this paper is to show the diversity of qualitative research methods, its importance for health services research, and to open up the discussion on strategies for integrating qualitative methods into health services research. © Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

On Robust Key Agreement Based on Public Key Authentication

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hao, Feng

We describe two new attacks on the HMQV protocol. The first attack raises a serious question on the basic definition of "authentication" in HMQV, while the second attack is generally applicable to many other protocols. In addition, we present a new authenticated key agreement protocol called YAK. Our approach is to depend on well-established techniques such as Schnorr's signature. Among all the related protocols, YAK appears to be the simplest so far. We believe simplicity is an important engineering principle.

Discussion Guide for Film Clip Series--"The Team Approach in Education: Twenty Questions on Film."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bowman, Garda W.; And Others

This discussion guide is part of a multi-media package of audiovisual and written materials designed to assist trainers of teams in a school setting, particularly for use with teams of teachers and auxiliaries (paraprofessionals). The purpose of the film clip series--to stimulate discussion that is geared to problem solving--is discussed, and the…

Key findings and remaining questions in the areas of core-concrete interaction and debris coolability

DOE PAGES

Farmer, M. T.; Gerardi, C.; Bremer, N.; ...

2016-10-31

The reactor accidents at Fukushima-Dai-ichi have rekindled interest in late phase severe accident behavior involving reactor pressure vessel breach and discharge of molten core melt into the containment. Two technical issues of interest in this area include core-concrete interaction and the extent to which the core debris may be quenched and rendered coolable by top flooding. The OECD-sponsored Melt Coolability and Concrete Interaction (MCCI) programs at Argonne National Laboratory included the conduct of large scale reactor material experiments and associated analysis with the objectives of resolving the ex-vessel debris coolability issue, and to address remaining uncertainties related to long-term two-dimensionalmore » molten core-concrete interactions under both wet and dry cavity conditions. These tests provided a broad database to support accident management planning, as well as the development and validation of models and codes that can be used to extrapolate the experiment results to plant conditions. This paper provides a high level overview of the key experiment results obtained during the program. Finally, a discussion is also provided that describes technical gaps that remain in this area, several of which have arisen based on the sequence of events and operator actions during Fukushima.« less

Key findings and remaining questions in the areas of core-concrete interaction and debris coolability

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Farmer, M. T.; Gerardi, C.; Bremer, N.

The reactor accidents at Fukushima-Dai-ichi have rekindled interest in late phase severe accident behavior involving reactor pressure vessel breach and discharge of molten core melt into the containment. Two technical issues of interest in this area include core-concrete interaction and the extent to which the core debris may be quenched and rendered coolable by top flooding. The OECD-sponsored Melt Coolability and Concrete Interaction (MCCI) programs at Argonne National Laboratory included the conduct of large scale reactor material experiments and associated analysis with the objectives of resolving the ex-vessel debris coolability issue, and to address remaining uncertainties related to long-term two-dimensionalmore » molten core-concrete interactions under both wet and dry cavity conditions. These tests provided a broad database to support accident management planning, as well as the development and validation of models and codes that can be used to extrapolate the experiment results to plant conditions. This paper provides a high level overview of the key experiment results obtained during the program. Finally, a discussion is also provided that describes technical gaps that remain in this area, several of which have arisen based on the sequence of events and operator actions during Fukushima.« less

Can Questions Facilitate Learning from Illustrated Science Texts?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iding, Marie K.

1997-01-01

Examines the effectiveness of using questions to facilitate processing of diagrams in science texts. Investigates three different elements in experiments on college students. Finds that questions about illustrations do not facilitate learning. Discusses findings with reference to cognitive load theory, the dual coding perspective, and the…

99 Facts about the FBI: Questions and Answers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Federal Bureau of Investigation, Quantico, VA.

This booklet on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) attempts to provide an overview of the FBI's functions. Presented in a question and answer format, the 99 questions and answers discuss the federal government agency's history, administrative matters, jurisdiction, criminal investigations, security matters, foreign counter-intelligence, and…

Worksite health promotion: some important questions.

PubMed

Matteson, M T; Ivancevich, J M

1988-01-01

Recent years have seen a rapid growth in the number of worksite health promotion programs being offered. While the potential benefits to employers of such programs are many, a variety of issues influence to what extent these benefits are obtained. This article identifies several such issues in the form of questions which need to be addressed by organizations engaged in health promotion activities. Questions relating to program needs and objectives identification, program introduction strategies, costs, legal issues, and ethical considerations are discussed. It is suggested that continued growth and success in worksite health promotion activities is in part dependent upon thoughtful consideration of such questions.

Questions of wisdom.

PubMed

Schmidt Bunkers, Sandra

2009-04-01

In this column questions concerning wisdom are addressed, such as, what is wisdom? Can wisdom be taught in the academy? Several perspectives on wisdom from philosophy, education, business, and psychology are presented. Wisdom with creativity-creativity with wisdom is then explored through discussion of Parse's humanbecoming teaching-learning model and Laird Hamilton's life lessons learned from surfing, which he termed wisdom of the wave. The column concludes with consideration of the wise person.

Reducing Our Ignorance: Finding Answers to Certain Epistemic Questions for Software Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holloway, C. Michael; Johnson, Christopher W.

2011-01-01

In previous papers, we asserted that software system safety is primarily concerned with epistemic questions, that is, questions concerning knowledge and the degree of confidence that can be placed in that knowledge. We also enumerated a set of 21 foundational epistemic questions, discussed some of the difficulties that exist in answering these questions adequately today, and speculated briefly on possible research that may provide improved confidence in the sufficiency of answers in the future. This paper focuses on three of the foundational questions. For each of these questions, current answers are discussed and potential research is proposed to help increase the justifiable level of confidence.

Interteaching: Discussion Group Size and Course Performance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Truelove, Jacob C.; Saville, Bryan K.; Van Patten, Ryan

2013-01-01

Researchers have yet to examine whether discussion group size affects student performance in an interteaching-based course. In the current study, we addressed this question by manipulating discussion group size (smaller groups of 2 students vs. larger groups of 4 students) across 2 sections of an undergraduate psychology course. We found no…

The Basic Epistemological Questions--Are There Also Valid Answers?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oderman, Dale B.

Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that seeks answers to two main questions: How do we know? and How do we know we know? This paper is concerned with how four major schools of thought have addressed these questions and the implications that their answers to these questions have for education. The paper begins by discussing how four major…

Mitochondria and Iron: Current Questions

PubMed Central

Paul, Bibbin T.; Manz, David H.; Torti, Frank M.; Torti, Suzy V.

2017-01-01

Introduction Mitochondria are cellular organelles that perform numerous bioenergetic, biosynthetic, and regulatory functions and play a central role in iron metabolism. Extracellular iron is taken up by cells and transported to the mitochondria, where it is utilized for synthesis of cofactors essential to the function of enzymes involved in oxidation-reduction reactions, DNA synthesis and repair, and a variety of other cellular processes. Areas Covered This article reviews the trafficking of iron to the mitochondria and normal mitochondrial iron metabolism, including heme synthesis and iron-sulfur cluster biogenesis. Much of our understanding of mitochondrial iron metabolism has been revealed by pathologies that disrupt normal iron metabolism. These conditions affect not only iron metabolism but mitochondrial function and systemic health. Therefore, this article also discusses these pathologies, including conditions of systemic and mitochondrial iron dysregulation as well as cancer. Literature covering these areas was identified via PubMed searches using keywords: Iron, mitochondria, Heme Synthesis, Iron-sulfur Cluster, and Cancer. References cited by publications retrieved using this search strategy were also consulted. Expert Commentary While much has been learned about mitochondrial iron, key questions remain. Developing a better understanding of mitochondrial iron regulation will be paramount in developing therapies for syndromes that affect mitochondrial iron. PMID:27911100

Analysis of the Possibilities for Discussing Questions of Global Justice in Geography Classes on the Use of Methods of Empirical Social Research When Analyzing the Teaching of Geography in Class

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Applis, Stefan

2015-01-01

This study examines students' orientations with regard to questions on the implementation of justice in production structures of the global textile industry. The students worked with the Mystery Method from the Thinking Through Geography approach by David Leat and with Lawrence Kohlberg's Method of Dilemma Discussion. During this process, the…

What Are the "Right" Questions and the "Right" Answers in Teaching Practice Supervision?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jyrhama, Riitta

This paper links the problem of questioning and answering in student teacher supervision with teachers' pedagogical thinking. The first section discusses whether asking the right questions or giving the right answers is more important and what is actually involved when the questions and answers are correct. The second section discusses the…

Questioning Questions: Elementary Teachers' Adaptations of Investigation Questions Across the Inquiry Continuum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Biggers, Mandy

2018-02-01

Questioning is a central practice in science classrooms. However, not every question translates into a "good" science investigation. Questions that drive science investigations can be provided by many sources including the teacher, the curriculum, or the student. The variations in the source of investigation questions were explored in this study. A dataset of 120 elementary science classroom videos and associated lesson plans from 40 elementary teachers (K-5) across 21 elementary school campuses were scored on an instrument measuring the amount of teacher-direction or student-direction of the lessons' investigation questions. Results indicated that the investigation questions were overwhelmingly teacher directed in nature, with no opportunities for students to develop their own questions for investigation. This study has implications for researchers and practitioners alike, calling attention to the teacher-directed nature of investigation questions in existing science curriculum materials, and the need for teacher training in instructional strategies to adapt their existing curriculum materials across the continuum of teacher-directed and student-directed investigation questions. Teachers need strategies for adapting the teacher-directed questions provided in their existing curriculum materials in order to allow students the opportunity to engage in this essential scientific practice.

"State of the Nation": A Discussion of Some of the Project's Key Findings

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Earley, Peter

2010-01-01

This paper considers several of the key findings of the State of the Nation research. Specific reference is made to three areas--impact evaluation, strategic leadership of professional development, and barriers and constraints to effective CPD practice--which are considered with reference to findings from the other TDA-funded projects conducted at…

Quasicrystal structure and growth models: discussion of the status quo and the still open questions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steurer, Walter

2017-02-01

Where are we now in quasicrystal (QC) research more than three decades after Dan Shechtman’s discovery? Do we fully understand the origin of quasiperiodicity, the formation, growth, thermodynamic stability, structure and properties of quasicrystals? First, I will shortly present the status quo, then I will address the still open questions, and identify potential focus areas for future research. Because of the limited space, I will focus on decagonal quasicrystals (DQCs); the status quo for research on icosahedral quasicrystals (IQCs) is comparable.

Promoting End-of-Life Discussions in Advanced Cancer: Effects of Patient Coaching and Question Prompt Lists.

PubMed

Rodenbach, Rachel A; Brandes, Kim; Fiscella, Kevin; Kravitz, Richard L; Butow, Phyllis N; Walczak, Adam; Duberstein, Paul R; Sullivan, Peter; Hoh, Beth; Xing, Guibo; Plumb, Sandy; Epstein, Ronald M

2017-03-10

Purpose To build on results of a cluster randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a combined patient-oncologist intervention to improve communication in advanced cancer, we conducted a post hoc analysis of the patient intervention component, a previsit patient coaching session that used a question prompt list (QPL). We hypothesized that intervention-group participants would bring up more QPL-related topics, particularly prognosis-related topics, during the subsequent oncologist visit. Patients and Methods This cluster RCT with 170 patients who had advanced nonhematologic cancer (and their caregivers) recruited from practices of 24 participating oncologists in western New York. Intervention-group oncologists (n = 12) received individualized communication training; up to 10 of their patients (n = 84) received a previsit individualized communication coaching session that incorporated a QPL. Control-group oncologists (n = 12) and patients (n = 86) received no interventions. Topics of interest identified by patients during the coaching session were summarized from coaching notes; one office visit after the coaching session was audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed by using linear regression modeling for group differences. Results Compared with controls, more than twice as many intervention-group participants brought up QPL-related topics during their office visits (70.2% v 32.6%; P < .001). Patients in the intervention group were nearly three times more likely to ask about prognosis (16.7% v 5.8%; P =.03). Of 262 topics of interest identified during coaching, 158 (60.3%) were QPL related; 20 (12.7%) addressed prognosis. Overall, patients in the intervention group brought up 82.4% of topics of interest during the office visit. Conclusion A combined coaching and QPL intervention was effective to help patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers identify and bring up topics of concern, including prognosis, during their subsequent oncologist visits. Considering that

10 Questions to Answer for Technology to Succeed in Your School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gosmire, Doreen; Grady, Marilyn L.

2007-01-01

Few principals claim to be technology experts. Most aspire to design a map that leads their schools to success with educational technology. However, the key to success on the journey is not knowing everything or becoming a technology expert. It is about asking the right questions, exploring the answers to those questions, and creating a road map…

Using Notable Children's Literature and Questioning Techniques to Enhance Comprehension.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poole, Gary; Poole, Scott

Intended for language arts teachers of the upper elementary grades, this guide suggests vocabulary and discussion questions for teaching novels. The questions are on an inferential level of interpretation, rather than literal, and address such topics as style, technique, and plot development. Novels for which questions are provided are: (1)…

Helping Mothers Discuss Sexuality and AIDS with Adolescents.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lefkowitz, Eva S.; Sigman, Marian; Au, Terry Kit-fong

2000-01-01

Examined impact of experimentally altering mothers' style when discussing sexuality and AIDS with adolescent children. Found that intervention group mothers reduced their amount of speaking, asked more open-ended questions, acted less judgmental, and discussed dating and sexuality more than did control group mothers. Intervention group adolescents…

Biology Question Generation from a Semantic Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Lishan

Science instructors need questions for use in exams, homework assignments, class discussions, reviews, and other instructional activities. Textbooks never have enough questions, so instructors must find them from other sources or generate their own questions. In order to supply instructors with biology questions, a semantic network approach was developed for generating open response biology questions. The generated questions were compared to professional authorized questions. To boost students' learning experience, adaptive selection was built on the generated questions. Bayesian Knowledge Tracing was used as embedded assessment of the student's current competence so that a suitable question could be selected based on the student's previous performance. A between-subjects experiment with 42 participants was performed, where half of the participants studied with adaptive selected questions and the rest studied with mal-adaptive order of questions. Both groups significantly improved their test scores, and the participants in adaptive group registered larger learning gains than participants in the control group. To explore the possibility of generating rich instructional feedback for machine-generated questions, a question-paragraph mapping task was identified. Given a set of questions and a list of paragraphs for a textbook, the goal of the task was to map the related paragraphs to each question. An algorithm was developed whose performance was comparable to human annotators. A multiple-choice question with high quality distractors (incorrect answers) can be pedagogically valuable as well as being much easier to grade than open-response questions. Thus, an algorithm was developed to generate good distractors for multiple-choice questions. The machine-generated multiple-choice questions were compared to human-generated questions in terms of three measures: question difficulty, question discrimination and distractor usefulness. By recruiting 200 participants from

Ask These Key Questions When You Review Child Abuse Reporting Policies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers, Joy J.

1988-01-01

Urges policymakers to examine and update their school system's child abuse reporting policy. Such policies must be adequate to help endangered children, protect their right to privacy, and avoid overprotection. Advises on ways to protect staff against unnecessary accusations and develop inservice training programs discussing child abuse, state…

Using Socratic Questioning in the Classroom.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, Lori; Rudd, Rick

2002-01-01

Describes the Socratic questioning method and discusses its use in the agricultural education classroom. Presents a four-step model: origin and source of point of view; support, reasons, evidence, and assumptions; conflicting views; and implications and consequences. (JOW)

CO2 studies remain key to understanding a future world.

PubMed

Becklin, Katie M; Walker, S Michael; Way, Danielle A; Ward, Joy K

2017-04-01

Contents 34 I. 34 II. 36 III. 37 IV. 37 V. 38 38 References 38 SUMMARY: Characterizing plant responses to past, present and future changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration ([CO 2 ]) is critical for understanding and predicting the consequences of global change over evolutionary and ecological timescales. Previous CO 2 studies have provided great insights into the effects of rising [CO 2 ] on leaf-level gas exchange, carbohydrate dynamics and plant growth. However, scaling CO 2 effects across biological levels, especially in field settings, has proved challenging. Moreover, many questions remain about the fundamental molecular mechanisms driving plant responses to [CO 2 ] and other global change factors. Here we discuss three examples of topics in which significant questions in CO 2 research remain unresolved: (1) mechanisms of CO 2 effects on plant developmental transitions; (2) implications of rising [CO 2 ] for integrated plant-water dynamics and drought tolerance; and (3) CO 2 effects on symbiotic interactions and eco-evolutionary feedbacks. Addressing these and other key questions in CO 2 research will require collaborations across scientific disciplines and new approaches that link molecular mechanisms to complex physiological and ecological interactions across spatiotemporal scales. © 2016 The Authors. New Phytologist © 2016 New Phytologist Trust.

Framing Higher Education: Questions and Responses in the British Social Attitudes Survey, 1983-2010

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mountford-Zimdars, Anna; Jones, Steven; Sullivan, Alice; Heath, Anthony

2013-01-01

This article focuses on questions and attitudes towards higher education in the British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey series. First, we analyse the changing BSA questions (1983-2010) in the context of key policy reports. Our results show that changes in the framing of higher education questions correspond with changes in the macro-discourse of…

Fundamental rate-loss tradeoff for optical quantum key distribution.

PubMed

Takeoka, Masahiro; Guha, Saikat; Wilde, Mark M

2014-10-24

Since 1984, various optical quantum key distribution (QKD) protocols have been proposed and examined. In all of them, the rate of secret key generation decays exponentially with distance. A natural and fundamental question is then whether there are yet-to-be discovered optical QKD protocols (without quantum repeaters) that could circumvent this rate-distance tradeoff. This paper provides a major step towards answering this question. Here we show that the secret key agreement capacity of a lossy and noisy optical channel assisted by unlimited two-way public classical communication is limited by an upper bound that is solely a function of the channel loss, regardless of how much optical power the protocol may use. Our result has major implications for understanding the secret key agreement capacity of optical channels-a long-standing open problem in optical quantum information theory-and strongly suggests a real need for quantum repeaters to perform QKD at high rates over long distances.

Evidence-informed primary health care workforce policy: are we asking the right questions?

PubMed

Naccarella, Lucio; Buchan, Jim; Brooks, Peter

2010-01-01

Australia is facing a primary health care workforce shortage. To inform primary health care (PHC) workforce policy reforms, reflection is required on ways to strengthen the evidence base and its uptake into policy making. In 2008 the Australian Primary Health Care Research Institute funded the Australian Health Workforce Institute to host Professor James Buchan, Queen Margaret University, UK, an expert in health services policy research and health workforce planning. Professor Buchan's visit enabled over forty Australian PHC workforce mid-career and senior researchers and policy stakeholders to be involved in roundtable policy dialogue on issues influencing PHC workforce policy making. Six key thematic questions emerged. (1) What makes PHC workforce planning different? (2) Why does the PHC workforce need to be viewed in a global context? (3) What is the capacity of PHC workforce research? (4) What policy levers exist for PHC workforce planning? (5) What principles can guide PHC workforce planning? (6) What incentives exist to optimise the use of evidence in policy making? The emerging themes need to be discussed within the context of current PHC workforce policy reforms, which are focussed on increasing workforce supply (via education/training programs), changing the skill mix and extending the roles of health workers to meet patient needs. With the Australian government seeking to reform and strengthen the PHC workforce, key questions remain about ways to strengthen the PHC workforce evidence base and its uptake into PHC workforce policy making.

Synchronous computer mediated group discussion.

PubMed

Gallagher, Peter

2005-01-01

Over the past 20 years, focus groups have become increasingly popular with nursing researchers as a data collection method, as has the use of computer-based technologies to support all forms of nursing research. This article describes the conduct of a series of focus groups in which the participants were in the same room as part of a "real-time" discussion during which they also used personal computers as an interface between each other and the moderator. Synchronous Computer Mediated Group Discussion differed from other forms of focus group discussion in that participants used personal computers rather than verbal expressions to respond to specific questions, engage in communication with other participants, and to record their thoughts. This form of focus group maintained many of the features of spoken exchanges, a cornerstone of the focus group, while capturing the advantages of online discussion.

Group Random Call Can Positively Affect Student In-Class Clicker Discussions.

PubMed

Knight, Jennifer K; Wise, Sarah B; Sieke, Scott

2016-01-01

Understanding how instructional techniques and classroom norms influence in-class student interactions has the potential to positively impact student learning. Many previous studies have shown that students benefit from discussing their ideas with one another in class. In this study of introductory biology students, we explored how using an in-class accountability system might affect the nature of clicker-question discussions. Clicker-question discussions in which student groups were asked to report their ideas voluntarily (volunteer call) were compared with discussions in which student groups were randomly selected to report their ideas (random call). We hypothesized that the higher-accountability condition (random call) would impress upon students the importance of their discussions and thus positively influence how they interacted. Our results suggest that a higher proportion of discussions in the random call condition contained exchanges of reasoning, some forms of questioning, and both on- and off-topic comments compared with discussion in the volunteer call condition. Although group random call does not impact student performance on clicker questions, the positive impact of this instructional approach on exchanges of reasoning and other features suggests it may encourage some types of student interactions that support learning. © 2016 J. K. Knight et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2016 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Solutions to the Problem of Disproportionality: A Discussion of the Models.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Newman, Isadore; Oravecz, Michael T.

The major concern for any research model, whether disproportionate or not, is the research question and how well that question is reflected by the model. Three "exact solutions" for disproportional situations, the hierarchial, unadjusted main effects, and fitting constant methods, are discussed in terms of the research question that each…

Providing Adequate Interactions in Online Discussion Forums Using Few Teaching Assistants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Chih-Kai; Chen, Gwo-Dong; Hsu, Ching-Kun

2011-01-01

In order to encourage students to participate in online learning forums, prompt responses to their questions are essential. To answer students' online questions, teaching assistants are assigned to manage discussions and answer questions in online learning forums. To minimize the response time, many teaching assistants may be needed to interact…

Addressing Parental Vaccination Questions in the School Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luthy, Karlen E.; Burningham, Jana; Eden, Lacey M.; Macintosh, Janelle L. B.; Beckstrand, Renea L.

2016-01-01

School nurses work in a unique environment with key opportunities to address parental concerns and questions regarding their child's health. A common concern for parents during school enrollment is childhood vaccination safety and efficacy. As public health leaders, school nurses are well respected among parents, therefore school nurses are in a…

Question analysis for Indonesian comparative question

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saelan, A.; Purwarianti, A.; Widyantoro, D. H.

2017-01-01

Information seeking is one of human needs today. Comparing things using search engine surely take more times than search only one thing. In this paper, we analyzed comparative questions for comparative question answering system. Comparative question is a question that comparing two or more entities. We grouped comparative questions into 5 types: selection between mentioned entities, selection between unmentioned entities, selection between any entity, comparison, and yes or no question. Then we extracted 4 types of information from comparative questions: entity, aspect, comparison, and constraint. We built classifiers for classification task and information extraction task. Features used for classification task are bag of words, whether for information extraction, we used lexical, 2 previous and following words lexical, and previous label as features. We tried 2 scenarios: classification first and extraction first. For classification first, we used classification result as a feature for extraction. Otherwise, for extraction first, we used extraction result as features for classification. We found that the result would be better if we do extraction first before classification. For the extraction task, classification using SMO gave the best result (88.78%), while for classification, it is better to use naïve bayes (82.35%).

Water-energy-food nexus: concepts, questions and methodologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Y.; Chen, X.; Ding, W.; Zhang, C.; Fu, G.

2017-12-01

The term of water-energy -food nexus has gained increasing attention in the research and policy making communities as the security of water, energy and food becomes severe under changing environment. Ignorance of their closely interlinkages accompanied by their availability and service may result in unforeseeable, adverse consequences. This paper comprehensively reviews the state-of-the-art in the field of water-energy-food, with a focus on concepts, research questions and methodologies. First, two types of nexus definition are compared and discussed to understand the essence of nexus research issues. Then, three kinds of nexus research questions are presented, including internal relationship analysis, external impact analysis, and evaluation of the nexus system. Five nexus modelling approaches are discussed in terms of their advantages, disadvantages and application, with an aim to identify research gaps in current nexus methods. Finally, future research areas and challenges are discussed, including system boundary, data uncertainty and modelling, underlying mechanism of nexus issues and system performance evaluation. This study helps bring research efforts together to address the challenging questions in the nexus and develop the consensus on building resilient water, energy and food systems.

Exploring Pre-Service Science Teacher Methods and Strategies for the Driving Questions in Research Inquiry: From Consulting an Instructor to Group Discussion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aydin, Miraç

2016-01-01

An important stage in any research inquiry is the development of research questions that need to be answered. The strategies to develop research questions should be defined and described, but few studies have considered this process in greater detail. This study explores pre-service science teachers' research questions and the strategies they can…

Management of Adult Syphilis: Key Questions to Inform the 2015 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines.

PubMed

Ghanem, Khalil G

2015-12-15

A panel of experts generated 8 "key questions" in the management of adult syphilis. A systematic literature review was conducted and tables of evidence were constructed to answer these important questions. Penicillin is the drug of choice to treat syphilis. Doxycycline to treat early and late latent syphilis is an acceptable alternate option if penicillin cannot be used. There is no added benefit to enhanced antimicrobial therapy when treating human immunodeficiency virus-infected persons with syphilis. If a patient misses a dose of penicillin in a course of weekly therapy for late syphilis, clinical experience suggests that an interval of 10-14 days between doses might be acceptable before restarting the sequence of injections. Pharmacologic considerations suggest that an interval of 7-9 days between doses, if feasible, may be more optimal. Missed doses are not acceptable for pregnant women. A cerebrospinal fluid examination to diagnose neurosyphilis is recommended in persons diagnosed with tertiary syphilis (eg, cardiovascular syphilis or late benign syphilis), persons with neurological signs or symptoms consistent with neurosyphilis, and asymptomatic persons whose serological titers do not decline appropriately following recommended therapy and in whom reinfection is ruled out. Infection and reinfection rates, particularly among men who have sex with men, are high. Frequent serological screening of this population appears to be the most cost-efficient intervention. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to recommend the use of the traditional rapid plasma reagin-based screening algorithm. The positive predictive value for syphilis associated with an isolated unconfirmed reactive treponemal chemiluminescence assay or enzyme immunoassay is low if the epidemiological risk and clinical probability for syphilis are low. Among pregnant women with serodiscordant serologies (positive treponemal tests and a negative nontreponemal test), the risk of

Genetic data and electronic health records: a discussion of ethical, logistical and technological considerations

PubMed Central

Shoenbill, Kimberly; Fost, Norman; Tachinardi, Umberto; Mendonca, Eneida A

2014-01-01

Objective The completion of sequencing the human genome in 2003 has spurred the production and collection of genetic data at ever increasing rates. Genetic data obtained for clinical purposes, as is true for all results of clinical tests, are expected to be included in patients’ medical records. With this explosion of information, questions of what, when, where and how to incorporate genetic data into electronic health records (EHRs) have reached a critical point. In order to answer these questions fully, this paper addresses the ethical, logistical and technological issues involved in incorporating these data into EHRs. Materials and methods This paper reviews journal articles, government documents and websites relevant to the ethics, genetics and informatics domains as they pertain to EHRs. Results and discussion The authors explore concerns and tasks facing health information technology (HIT) developers at the intersection of ethics, genetics, and technology as applied to EHR development. Conclusions By ensuring the efficient and effective incorporation of genetic data into EHRs, HIT developers will play a key role in facilitating the delivery of personalized medicine. PMID:23771953

Questioning Questions: Elementary Teachers' Adaptations of Investigation Questions across the Inquiry Continuum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Biggers, Mandy

2018-01-01

Questioning is a central practice in science classrooms. However, not every question translates into a "good" science investigation. Questions that drive science investigations can be provided by many sources including the teacher, the curriculum, or the student. The variations in the source of investigation questions were explored in…

The six most essential questions in psychiatric diagnosis: a pluralogue. Part 4: general conclusion

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

In the conclusion to this multi-part article I first review the discussions carried out around the six essential questions in psychiatric diagnosis – the position taken by Allen Frances on each question, the commentaries on the respective question along with Frances’ responses to the commentaries, and my own view of the multiple discussions. In this review I emphasize that the core question is the first – what is the nature of psychiatric illness – and that in some manner all further questions follow from the first. Following this review I attempt to move the discussion forward, addressing the first question from the perspectives of natural kind analysis and complexity analysis. This reflection leads toward a view of psychiatric disorders – and future nosologies – as far more complex and uncertain than we have imagined. PMID:23249629

Questions, Questioning Techniques, and Effective Teaching.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilen, William W., Ed.

This book focuses on questioning techniques and strategies teachers may employ to make the difference between active and passive learning in the classroom. There are nine chapters: (1) Why Questions? (Ambrose A. Clegg, Jr.); (2) Review of Research on Questioning Techniques (Meredith D. Gall and Tom Rhody); (3) The Multidisciplinary World of…

Graded Multiple Choice Questions: Rewarding Understanding and Preventing Plagiarism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Denyer, G. S.; Hancock, D.

2002-08-01

This paper describes an easily implemented method that allows the generation and analysis of graded multiple-choice examinations. The technique, which uses standard functions in user-end software (Microsoft Excel 5+), can also produce several different versions of an examination that can be employed to prevent the reward of plagarism. The manuscript also discusses the advantages of having a graded marking system for the elimination of ambiguities, use in multi-step calculation questions, and questions that require extrapolation or reasoning. The advantages of the scrambling strategy, which maintains the same question order, is discussed with reference to student equity. The system provides a non-confrontational mechanism for dealing with cheating in large-class multiple-choice examinations, as well as providing a reward for problem solving over surface learning.

Classroom Thought, Teacher Questions, and Student Analysis

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilen, William W.; Hogg, James

1976-01-01

Discussed is the need for teachers to improve their effectiveness in classroom skills such as questioning techniques. An instructor cognitive operation index is presented. For journal availability, see SO 505 192. (Author/DB)

Some Questions about Feature Re-Assembly

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Lydia

2009-01-01

In this commentary, differences between feature re-assembly and feature selection are discussed. Lardiere's proposals are compared to existing approaches to grammatical features in second language (L2) acquisition. Questions are raised about the predictive power of the feature re-assembly approach. (Contains 1 footnote.)

Questions of Brain Hemispheric Specialization and Gender Difference in Spatial Tests.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McWhinnie, Harold J.

This paper presents a review of selected literature relevant to a general question of hemispheric specialization (right or left brain) and questions of gender differences in spatial abilities among a group of art students. Three basic questions for discussion are proposed: (1) is there a relationship between hemispheric dominance and spatial…

An interactive online approach to small-group student presentations and discussions.

PubMed

Thor, Der; Xiao, Nan; Zheng, Meixun; Ma, Ruidan; Yu, Xiao Xi

2017-12-01

Student presentations had been widely implemented across content areas, including health sciences education. However, due to various limitations, small-group student presentations in the classroom may not reach their full potential for student learning. To address challenges with presentations in the classroom, we redesigned the assignment by having students present and discuss online using VoiceThread, a cloud-based presentation and discussion tool. First-year students pursuing a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree were assigned into small groups to present physiology content and to discuss that content online. This assignment was similar to traditional student classroom presentations, with the exception that the entire assignment was conducted online. The primary purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate the impact of the online format on the discussion quality. Another purpose of the study was to examine students' perceptions of using VoiceThread for presenting and learning, as well as the online interactions between the presenter and audience. Students posted a higher number of questions and comments than required by the assignment. The questions from students were also higher level questions, and the answers to these questions were more thorough compared with what we had previously observed in classroom presentations. The survey results showed that students preferred using VoiceThread for presenting, learning from other presentations, and discussing presentation content over performing this process in the classroom. Preliminary findings suggested that having dental students make presentations and hold discussions online might help address the challenges of student presentations in the classroom. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

Discussion boards: boring no more!

PubMed

Adelman, Deborah S; Nogueras, Debra J

2013-01-01

Creating discussion boards (DBs) that capture student imaginations and contain meaningful interactions can be a difficult process. Traditional DBs use a question-and-answer format that often is boring for both the student and instructor. The authors present creative approaches to DBs that result in lively debates and student-to-student and student-to-faculty interactions, including role playing, blogging, wikis, and the use of voice.

Survey questions about party competence: Insights from cognitive interviews☆

PubMed Central

Wagner, Markus; Zeglovits, Eva

2014-01-01

Voter assessments of party competence have become a key explanation of electoral decision-making. However, there are at least three important aspects to understanding responses to questions on issue-specific party competence: comprehension difficulties; a lack of well-formed attitudes and relevant information; and the use of response heuristics. We used 20 cognitive interviews carried out in Austria in 2011 to test competence questions. The interviews show us how respondents explain their responses. We find evidence that many people (1) may hold only weak opinions and have little information on issue-specific party competence and (2) may make use of distinct but related concepts, particularly salience and position, when answering questions about competence. We provide recommendations for researchers and survey designers based on our findings. PMID:25844005

Advances in Intelligence Research: What Should be Expected in the XXI Century (Questions & Answers).

PubMed

Colom, Roberto

2016-12-06

Here I briefly delineate my view about the main question of this International Seminar, namely, what should we expecting from the XXI Century regarding the advancements in intelligence research. This view can be summarized as 'The Brain Connection' (TBC), meaning that neuroscience will be of paramount relevance for increasing our current knowledge related to the key question: why are some people smarter than others? We need answers to the issue of what happens in our brains when the genotype and the environment are integrated. The scientific community has devoted great research efforts, ranging from observable behavior to hidden genetics, but we are still far from having a clear general picture of what it means to be more or less intelligent. After the discussion held with the panel of experts participating in the seminar, it is concluded that advancements will be more solid and safe increasing the collaboration of scientists with shared research interests worldwide. Paralleling current sophisticated analyses of how the brain computes, nowadays science may embrace a network approach.

Productive whole-class discussions: A qualitative analysis of peer leader behaviors in general chemistry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eckart, Teresa Mcclain

The intention of this research was to describe behaviors and characteristics of General Chemistry I peer leaders using a pedagogical reform method referred to as Peer-led Guided Inquiry (PLGI), and to discuss the ways in which these peer leaders created productive whole-class discussions. This reform technique engaged students to work on guided inquiry activities while working cooperatively in small groups, led by undergraduate peer leaders. These sessions were video recorded and transcribed. The data was evaluated using grounded theory methods of analysis. This study examined the dialog between students and peer leaders, paying specific attention to question types and observed patterns of interactions. The research took shape by examining the kinds of questions asked by peer leaders and the purposes these questions served. In addition to looking at questions, different kinds of behaviors displayed by peer leaders during their small group sessions were also observed. A close examination of peer leader questions and behaviors aided in developing an answer to the overall research question regarding what factors are associated with productive whole-class discussions. Five major categories of peer leader behaviors evolved from the data and provided a means to compare and contrast productive whole-class discussions. While no category single-handedly determined if a discussion was good or bad, there was a tendency for peer leaders who exhibited positive traits in at least three of the following categories to have consistently better whole-class discussions: Procedural Practices, Supervisory Qualities, Questioning Techniques, Feedback/Responses, and Interpersonal Skills. Furthermore, each of the major categories is tied directly to Interpersonal, Communication, and Leadership skills and their interactions with each other. This study also addressed applications that each of these categories has on instructional practices and their need in peer leader training. In addition

Qualitative Differences Between Learning Environments Using Videos in Small Groups and Whole Class Discussions: A Preliminary Study in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayo, Ashleigh; Sharma, Manjula D.; Muller, Derek A.

2009-08-01

Interactivity, group learning and student engagement are accepted as key features of social constructivist learning theories. The challenge is to understand the interplay between such features in different learning environments. This study focused on the qualitative differences between two interventions—small-groups and whole-class discussions. In both interventions, three short video slices on the abstract topic ‘the physics of superconductivity’ were interspersed with the different discussion styles. The video slices are based on the Bruner stages. Twenty-nine first year university physics students completed a pre-test, underwent the intervention and completed a post-test. The remainder of the data were collected from student drawings, video recordings, observer notes and facilitator feedback. Results indicate that the use of the video slices in both interventions were successful in changing students’ understandings of superconductivity. However, the small groups treatment tended to facilitate questioning, meaning-making and subsequent changes of ideas more so than the whole class discussions. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Backward Dependencies and in-Situ wh-Questions as Test Cases on How to Approach Experimental Linguistics Research That Pursues Theoretical Linguistics Questions

PubMed Central

Pablos, Leticia; Doetjes, Jenny; Cheng, Lisa L.-S.

2018-01-01

The empirical study of language is a young field in contemporary linguistics. This being the case, and following a natural development process, the field is currently at a stage where different research methods and experimental approaches are being put into question in terms of their validity. Without pretending to provide an answer with respect to the best way to conduct linguistics related experimental research, in this article we aim at examining the process that researchers follow in the design and implementation of experimental linguistics research with a goal to validate specific theoretical linguistic analyses. First, we discuss the general challenges that experimental work faces in finding a compromise between addressing theoretically relevant questions and being able to implement these questions in a specific controlled experimental paradigm. We discuss the Granularity Mismatch Problem (Poeppel and Embick, 2005) which addresses the challenges that research that is trying to bridge the representations and computations of language and their psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic evidence faces, and the basic assumptions that interdisciplinary research needs to consider due to the different conceptual granularity of the objects under study. To illustrate the practical implications of the points addressed, we compare two approaches to perform linguistic experimental research by reviewing a number of our own studies strongly grounded on theoretically informed questions. First, we show how linguistic phenomena similar at a conceptual level can be tested within the same language using measurement of event-related potentials (ERP) by discussing results from two ERP experiments on the processing of long-distance backward dependencies that involve coreference and negative polarity items respectively in Dutch. Second, we examine how the same linguistic phenomenon can be tested in different languages using reading time measures by discussing the outcome of four self

Backward Dependencies and in-Situ wh-Questions as Test Cases on How to Approach Experimental Linguistics Research That Pursues Theoretical Linguistics Questions.

PubMed

Pablos, Leticia; Doetjes, Jenny; Cheng, Lisa L-S

2017-01-01

The empirical study of language is a young field in contemporary linguistics. This being the case, and following a natural development process, the field is currently at a stage where different research methods and experimental approaches are being put into question in terms of their validity. Without pretending to provide an answer with respect to the best way to conduct linguistics related experimental research, in this article we aim at examining the process that researchers follow in the design and implementation of experimental linguistics research with a goal to validate specific theoretical linguistic analyses. First, we discuss the general challenges that experimental work faces in finding a compromise between addressing theoretically relevant questions and being able to implement these questions in a specific controlled experimental paradigm. We discuss the Granularity Mismatch Problem (Poeppel and Embick, 2005) which addresses the challenges that research that is trying to bridge the representations and computations of language and their psycholinguistic/neurolinguistic evidence faces, and the basic assumptions that interdisciplinary research needs to consider due to the different conceptual granularity of the objects under study. To illustrate the practical implications of the points addressed, we compare two approaches to perform linguistic experimental research by reviewing a number of our own studies strongly grounded on theoretically informed questions. First, we show how linguistic phenomena similar at a conceptual level can be tested within the same language using measurement of event-related potentials (ERP) by discussing results from two ERP experiments on the processing of long-distance backward dependencies that involve coreference and negative polarity items respectively in Dutch. Second, we examine how the same linguistic phenomenon can be tested in different languages using reading time measures by discussing the outcome of four self

Key Gaps for Enabling Plant Growth in Future Missions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anderson, Molly; Motil, Brian; Barta, Dan; Fritsche, Ralph; Massa, Gioia; Quincy, Charlie; Romeyn, Matthew; Wheeler, Ray; Hanford, Anthony

2017-01-01

Growing plants to provide food or psychological benefits to crewmembers is a common vision for the future of human spaceflight, often represented in media and in serious concept studies. The complexity of controlled environment agriculture, and plant growth in microgravity have and continue to be the subject of dedicated scientific research. However, actually implementing these systems in a way that will be cost effective, efficient, and sustainable for future space missions is a complex, multi-disciplinary problem. Key questions exist in many areas: human medical research in nutrition and psychology, horticulture, plant physiology and microbiology, multi-phase microgravity fluid physics, hardware design and technology development, and system design, operations and mission planning. This paper describes key knowledge gaps identified by a multi-disciplinary working group within the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). It also begins to identify solutions to the simpler questions identified by the group based on work initiated in 2017. Growing plants to provide food or psychological benefits to crewmembers is a common vision for the future of human spaceflight, often represented in media and in serious concept studies. The complexity of controlled environment agriculture, and plant growth in microgravity have and continue to be the subject of dedicated scientific research. However, actually implementing these systems in a way that will be cost effective, efficient, and sustainable for future space missions is a complex, multi-disciplinary problem. Key questions exist in many areas: human medical research in nutrition and psychology, horticulture, plant physiology and microbiology, multi-phase microgravity fluid physics, hardware design and technology development, and system design, operations and mission planning. This paper describes key knowledge gaps identified by a multi-disciplinary working group within the National Aeronautics and Space

Beauty from the beast: Avoiding errors in responding to client questions.

PubMed

Waehler, Charles A; Grandy, Natalie M

2016-09-01

Those rare moments when clients ask direct questions of their therapists likely represent a point when they are particularly open to new considerations, thereby representing an opportunity for substantial therapeutic gains. However, clinical errors abound in this area because clients' questions often engender apprehension in therapists, causing therapists to respond with too little or too much information or shutting down the discussion prematurely. These response types can damage the therapeutic relationship, the psychotherapy process, or both. We explore the nature of these clinical errors in response to client questions by providing examples from our own clinical work, suggesting potential reasons why clinicians may not make optimal use of client questions, and discussing how the mixed psychological literature further complicates the issue. We also present four guidelines designed to help therapists, trainers, and supervisors respond constructively to clinical questions in order to create constructive interactions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

A Public-Key Based Authentication and Key Establishment Protocol Coupled with a Client Puzzle.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, M. C.; Fung, Chun-Kan

2003-01-01

Discusses network denial-of-service attacks which have become a security threat to the Internet community and suggests the need for reliable authentication protocols in client-server applications. Presents a public-key based authentication and key establishment protocol coupled with a client puzzle protocol and validates it through formal logic…

Using Wikipedia and Conceptual Graph Structures to Generate Questions for Academic Writing Support

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Liu, Ming; Calvo, R. A.; Aditomo, A.; Pizzato, L. A.

2012-01-01

In this paper, we present a novel approach for semiautomatic question generation to support academic writing. Our system first extracts key phrases from students' literature review papers. Each key phrase is matched with a Wikipedia article and classified into one of five abstract concept categories: Research Field, Technology, System, Term, and…

The power of the patient question: A secret shopper study.

PubMed

Peters, Joanne; Desai, Karishma; Ricci, Daniel; Chen, Dan; Singh, Monny; Chewning, Betty

2016-09-01

To examine the effect of one standardized patient question on the length, number and type of new topics pharmacists addressed. To explore how community pharmacists counsel secret shoppers on two types of over-the-counter (OTC) medications-ibuprofen (IB) and emergency contraceptives (EC). 25 pharmacists from 7 independent, midwestern community pharmacies consented to have secret shoppers purchase an OTC medication and to have their consultations audio-recorded. Following standardized scenarios, 5 secret shoppers audio-recorded 73 encounters. At the end of 36 encounters secret shoppers asked one standard question, "What else should I know before taking this product?" Role Theory informed the study design with apriori hypotheses that topics assessed, topics discussed, and consultation length would vary by the OTC medication (IB or EC) and whether secret shoppers asked a question. Audio-recording coding had high inter-rater reliability (kappa=0.94). Length of encounter was significantly associated with patients asking the question (p<0.05), but not type of OTC medication. On average 1.22 new topics were discussed with a patient question. New topics included information about safe and efficacious use of the OTC's. Results highlight the importance of encouraging patients to ask pharmacists their questions about OTC products for safe use and thorough consultations. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

A Discussion of Oxygen Recovery Definitions and Key Performance Parameters for Closed-Loop Atmosphere Revitalization Life Support Technology Development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abney, Morgan B.; Perry, Jay L.

2016-01-01

Over the last 55 years, NASA has evolved life support for crewed space exploration vehicles from simple resupply during Project Mercury to the complex and highly integrated system of systems aboard the International Space Station. As NASA targets exploration destinations farther from low Earth orbit and mission durations of 500 to 1000 days, life support systems must evolve to meet new requirements. In addition to having more robust, reliable, and maintainable hardware, limiting resupply becomes critical for managing mission logistics and cost. Supplying a crew with the basics of food, water, and oxygen become more challenging as the destination ventures further from Earth. Aboard ISS the Atmosphere Revitalization Subsystem (ARS) supplies the crew's oxygen demand by electrolyzing water. This approach makes water a primary logistics commodity that must be managed carefully. Chemical reduction of metabolic carbon dioxide (CO2) provides a method of recycling oxygen thereby reducing the net ARS water demand and therefore minimizing logistics needs. Multiple methods have been proposed to achieve this recovery and have been reported in the literature. However, depending on the architecture and the technology approach, "oxygen recovery" can be defined in various ways. This discontinuity makes it difficult to compare technologies directly. In an effort to clarify community discussions of Oxygen Recovery, we propose specific definitions and describe the methodology used to arrive at those definitions. Additionally, we discuss key performance parameters for Oxygen Recovery technology development including challenges with comparisons to state-of-the-art.

Neoliberal ideology, global capitalism, and science education: engaging the question of subjectivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bazzul, Jesse

2012-12-01

This paper attempts to add to the multifaceted discussion concerning neoliberalism and globalization out of two Cultural Studies of Science Education journal issues along with the recent Journal of Research in Science Teaching devoted to these topics. However, confronting the phenomena of globalization and neoliberalism will demand greater engagement with relevant sociopolitical thought in fields typically outside the purview of science education. Drawing from thinkers Michel Foucault, Jean Baudrillard, Judith Butler, and Louis Althusser this paper attempts to extend some key ideas coming from Ken Tobin, Larry Bencze, and Lyn Carter and advocates science educators taking up notions of ideology, discourse, and subjectivity to engage globalization and neoliberalism. Subjectivity (and its constitution in science education) is considered alongside two relevant textbook examples and also in terms of its importance in formulating political and culturally relevant questions in science education.

Strategic management and organizational behavior in dental education: reflections on key issues in an environment of change.

PubMed

Dunning, David G; Durham, Timothy M; Lange, Brian M; Aksu, Mert N

2009-06-01

With issues such as shrinking revenue, access to care, faculty workloads, and graying faculty, dental schools are faced with difficult challenges that fall to dental school deans to manage. Do dental school deans have the organizational skill sets and ethical frameworks necessary to address the challenges now facing dental schools? The purpose of this article is to pose questions and suggestions regarding some of the key issues in dental colleges today and to stimulate discussion in the dental community about needed changes in dental education.

Can we share questions? Performance of questions from different question banks in a single medical school.

PubMed

Freeman, Adrian; Nicholls, Anthony; Ricketts, Chris; Coombes, Lee

2010-01-01

To use progress testing, a large bank of questions is required, particularly when planning to deliver tests over a long period of time. The questions need not only to be of good quality but also balanced in subject coverage across the curriculum to allow appropriate sampling. Hence as well as creating its own questions, an institution could share questions. Both methods allow ownership and structuring of the test appropriate to the educational requirements of the institution. Peninsula Medical School (PMS) has developed a mechanism to validate questions written in house. That mechanism can be adapted to utilise questions from an International question bank International Digital Electronic Access Library (IDEAL) and another UK-based question bank Universities Medical Assessment Partnership (UMAP). These questions have been used in our progress tests and analysed for relative performance. Data are presented to show that questions from differing sources can have comparable performance in a progress testing format. There are difficulties in transferring questions from one institution to another. These include problems of curricula and cultural differences. Whilst many of these difficulties exist, our experience suggests that it only requires a relatively small amount of work to adapt questions from external question banks for effective use. The longitudinal aspect of progress testing (albeit summatively) may allow more flexibility in question usage than single high stakes exams.

Two Preferences in Question-Answer Sequences in Language Classroom Context

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hosoda, Yuri; Aline, David

2013-01-01

Discussing two preferences associated with question-answer sequences, this study examines student responses to teacher questions in primary school English-as-a-foreign-language classes. The paper starts out with a reconsideration of institutional context, with a focus on classroom context from a conversation analysis perspective. We then introduce…

Have the Answers to Common Legal Questions Concerning Nutrition Support Changed Over the Past Decade? 10 Questions for 10 Years.

PubMed

Barrocas, Albert; Cohen, Michael L

2016-06-01

Clinical nutrition specialists (CNSs) are often confronted with technological, ethical, and legal questions, that is, what can be done technologically, what should be done ethically, and what must be done legally, which conflict at times. The conflict represents a "troubling trichotomy" as discussed in the lead article of this issue of Nutrition in Clinical Practice (NCP). During Clinical Nutrition Week in 2006, a symposium covering these 3 topics was presented, and later that year, an article covering the same topic was published in NCP In this article, we revisit several legal questions/issues that were raised 10 years ago and discuss current answers and approaches. Some of the answers remain unchanged. Other answers have been modified by additional legislation, court decisions, or regulations. In addition, new questions/issues have arisen. Some of the most common questions regarding nutrition support involve the following: liability, informed consent, medical decisional incapacity vs legal competence, advance directive specificity, surrogate decision making, physician orders for life-sustaining treatment and electronic medical orders for life-sustaining treatment, legal definition of death, patient vs family decision making, the noncompliant patient, and elder abuse obligations. In the current healthcare environment, these questions and issues are best addressed via a transdisciplinary team that focuses on function rather than form. The CNS can play a pivotal role in dealing with these challenges by applying the acronym ACT: being Accountable and Communicating with all stakeholders while actively participating as an integral part of the transdisciplinary Team. © 2016 American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition.

Reframing the Question of Whether Education Can Change Society

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Apple, Michael W.

2015-01-01

Among the most important questions critical educators can ask today are the following: Can schools play a role in making a more just society possible? If not, why not? If so, what can they do? These questions provide the basis for this article by Michael Apple, as well as for the books under discussion here. The books by David Blacker, John Marsh,…

In-office discussions of migraine: results from the American Migraine Communication Study.

PubMed

Lipton, Richard B; Hahn, Steven R; Cady, Roger K; Brandes, Jan Lewis; Simons, Suzanne E; Bain, Philip A; Nelson, Meaghan R

2008-08-01

Research indicates that successful migraine assessment and treatment depends on information obtained during patient and healthcare professional (HCP) discussions. However, no studies outline how migraine is actually discussed during clinical encounters. Record naturally occurring HCP-migraineur interactions, analyzing frequency and impairment assessment, and preventive treatment discussions. HCPs seeing high volumes of migraineurs were recruited for a communication study. Patients likely to discuss migraine were recruited immediately before their normally scheduled appointment and, once consented, were audio- and video-recorded without a researcher present. Separate post-visit interviews were conducted with patients and HCPs. All interactions were transcribed. Sixty patients (83% female; mean age 41.7) were analyzed. Patients were diagnosed with migraine 14 years and experienced 5 per month, on average. Transcripts were analyzed using sociolinguistic techniques such as number and type of questions asked and post-visit alignment on migraine frequency and impairment. American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study guidelines were utilized. Ninety-one percent of HCP-initiated, migraine-specific questions were closed-ended/short answer; assessments focused on frequency and did not focus on attention on impairment. Open-ended questions in patient post-visit interviews yielded robust impairment-related information. Post-visit, 55% of HCP-patient pairs were misaligned regarding frequency; 51% on impairment. Of the 20 (33%) patients who were preventive medication candidates, 80% did not receive it and 50% of their visits lacked discussion of prevention. Sociolinguistic analysis revealed that HCPs often used narrowly focused, closed-ended questions and were often unaware of how migraine affected patients' lives as a result. It is recommended that HCPs assess impairment using open-ended questions in combination with the ask-tell-ask technique.

Peer discussions in lecture-based tutorials in introductory physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leinonen, Risto; Asikainen, Mervi A.; Hirvonen, Pekka E.

2017-06-01

This study analyzes the types of peer discussion that occur during lecture-based tutorial sessions. It focuses in particular on whether discussions of this kind have certain characteristics that might indicate success in the post-testing phase. The data were collected during an introductory physics course. The main data set was gathered with the aid of audio recordings. Data-driven content analysis was applied in the analysis to facilitate the placement of students' discussions in particular categories related to different types of discussions. Four major discussion types were found: discussions related to the content knowledge, metalevel discussions including metaconceptual and metacognitive elements, discussions related to practical issues, and creating a base for discussion, seen here in the order of their prevalence. These categories were found to possess individual substructures that involved, for example, asking and answering questions, participating in a dialogue, or disagreeing with a peer. Analyzing the substructures of the categories revealed that there were evident differences between the groups, some of them related to the group size. With regard to the characteristics of discussions considered to be connected to a better learning outcome, it was observed that a great number of lines uttered related to the physics content or metalevel discussions seemed to have a direct bearing on success in the post test at the group level. For individual students, answering content-related questions posed by their peers might also indicate success in the post test. We would encourage researchers to continue this type of research in order to discover the essential characteristics of students' discussions that facilitate learning.

The Question of Elitism: Some Movement to the Left?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haack, Paul

1987-01-01

Calls for a synthesis of beneficial elitism and beneficial populism to ensure excellence for all. Suggests that Robert Penn Warren's views on how to collapse dualisms between these two philosophies provides the key to their synthesis. Concludes by comparing differences between elitism and populism and examining questions raised by Ralph Smith's…

Numerical approach for unstructured quantum key distribution

PubMed Central

Coles, Patrick J.; Metodiev, Eric M.; Lütkenhaus, Norbert

2016-01-01

Quantum key distribution (QKD) allows for communication with security guaranteed by quantum theory. The main theoretical problem in QKD is to calculate the secret key rate for a given protocol. Analytical formulas are known for protocols with symmetries, since symmetry simplifies the analysis. However, experimental imperfections break symmetries, hence the effect of imperfections on key rates is difficult to estimate. Furthermore, it is an interesting question whether (intentionally) asymmetric protocols could outperform symmetric ones. Here we develop a robust numerical approach for calculating the key rate for arbitrary discrete-variable QKD protocols. Ultimately this will allow researchers to study ‘unstructured' protocols, that is, those that lack symmetry. Our approach relies on transforming the key rate calculation to the dual optimization problem, which markedly reduces the number of parameters and hence the calculation time. We illustrate our method by investigating some unstructured protocols for which the key rate was previously unknown. PMID:27198739

Questioning Our Questions: Assessing Question Asking Practices to Evaluate a yPAR Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grace, Sarah; Langhout, Regina Day

2014-01-01

The purpose of this research was to examine question asking practices in a youth participatory action research (yPAR) after school program housed at an elementary school. The research question was: In which ways did the adult question asking practices in a yPAR setting challenge and/or reproduce conventional models of power in educational…

Key Nutrients.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Federal Extension Service (USDA), Washington, DC.

Lessons written to help trainer agents prepare aides for work with families in the Food and Nutrition Program are presented in this booklet. The key nutrients discussed in the 10 lessons are protein, carbohydrates, fat, calcium, iron, iodine, and Vitamins A, B, C, and D. the format of each lesson is as follows: Purpose, Presentation, Application…

Three critical questions for future research on lesbian relationships.

PubMed

Diamond, Lisa M

2017-01-02

In this article I discuss three questions that should be priorities for future research on lesbian love and relationships. The first question concerns the very definition of "lesbian relationship," given how many women may be engaged in same-sex relationships without identifying as lesbian. The second question concerns the potential influence of childhood neglect and abuse on adult women's same-sex relationships, a topic that has important implications for both psychological well-being and relationship functioning. The third question concerns the potential downsides of legal marriage for women's same-sex relationships, a topic that is particularly important in light of the newfound legal recognition of same-sex marriage in all 50 states. Although there are many understudied questions in the domain of women's same-sex relationships, research on these three questions has particularly strong potential to advance our understanding of lesbian love and relationships in important ways.

A Flexible Question-and-Answer Task for Measuring Speech Understanding

PubMed Central

Streeter, Timothy; Roverud, Elin; Mason, Christine R.; Kidd, Gerald

2016-01-01

This report introduces a new speech task based on simple questions and answers. The task differs from a traditional sentence recall task in that it involves an element of comprehension and can be implemented in an ongoing fashion. It also contains two target items (the question and the answer) that may be associated with different voices and locations to create dynamic listening scenarios. A set of 227 questions was created, covering six broad categories (days of the week, months of the year, numbers, colors, opposites, and sizes). All questions and their one-word answers were spoken by 11 female and 11 male talkers. In this study, listeners were presented with question-answer pairs and asked to indicate whether the answer was true or false. Responses were given as simple button or key presses, which are quick to make and easy to score. Two preliminary experiments are presented that illustrate different ways of implementing the basic task. In the first experiment, question-answer pairs were presented in speech-shaped noise, and performance was compared across subjects, question categories, and time, to examine the different sources of variability. In the second experiment, sequences of question-answer pairs were presented amidst competing conversations in an ongoing, spatially dynamic listening scenario. Overall, the question-and-answer task appears to be feasible and could be implemented flexibly in a number of different ways. PMID:27888257

Asking good clinical research questions and choosing the right study design.

PubMed

Bragge, P

2010-07-01

Clinicians and researchers seek answers to clinical research questions, primarily by accessing the results of clinical research studies. This paper moves the focus of research enquiry from getting answers to developing good clinical research questions. Using worked examples, the steps involved in refining questions drawn from various sources to create 'answerable' clinical research questions using the 'PICO' principle are described. Issues to consider in prioritising clinical research questions are also identified. Theoretical and practical considerations involved in choosing the right study design for a clinical research question are then discussed using the worked examples. These include: Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Epistemic Questions and Answers for Software System Safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holloway, C. M.; Johnson, Chris W.

2010-01-01

System safety is primarily concerned with epistemic questions, that is, questions concerning knowledge and the degree of confidence that can be placed in that knowledge. For systems with which human experience is long, such as roads, bridges, and mechanical devices, knowledge about what is required to make the systems safe is deep and detailed. High confidence can be placed in the validity of that knowledge. For other systems, however, with which human experience is comparatively short, such as those that rely in part or in whole on software, knowledge about what is required to ensure safety tends to be shallow and general. The confidence that can be placed in the validity of that knowledge is consequently low. In a previous paper, we enumerated a collection of foundational epistemic questions concerning software system safety. In this paper, we review and refine the questions, discuss some difficulties that attend to answering the questions today, and speculate on possible research to improve the situation.

Does attitude hinder or help selecting evaluation questions?

PubMed

Shams, Behzad; Dehghani, Mostafa

2015-06-01

Positive attitude leads to a more successfully implementation of a change. We investigated the effect of attitudes of stakeholders toward a program on their prioritization of the program components for selecting the key question of a theory-driven evaluation with concept mapping method. During a brainstorming session, stated statements defined the program components. Then they were sorted and rated regarding the importance and feasibility of them. In addition, the attitudes of participants were assessed by a 30 items questionnaire extracted from a pool named as "50 reasons not to change." We determined and compared the consensus points of participants both with and without of considering their attitudes toward the program. The participants were divided into two groups of high (45% - above the mean) and low (55% - below the mean) attitude. Brainstorming discussions generated a pool of almost 120 statements which were subsequently refined to 44 statements. Matching the rating scores between two attitude groups yielded a consensus at a higher priority than the other method. In the concept mapping procedure, it is crucial to reach the consensus with respect to the participants' attitude, rather than the similarity of mean scores of feasibility and importance.

Notochord Morphogenesis in Mice: Current Understanding & Open Questions

PubMed Central

Balmer, Sophie; Nowotschin, Sonja; Hadjantonakis, Anna-Katerina

2016-01-01

The notochord is the structure which defines chordates. It is a rod-like mesodermal structure that runs the anterior-posterior length of the embryo, adjacent to the ventral neural tube. The notochord plays a critical role in embryonic tissue patterning, for example the dorsal-ventral patterning of the neural tube. The cells that will come to form the notochord are specified at gastrulation. Axial mesodermal cells arising at the anterior primitive streak migrate anteriorly as the precursors of the notochord and populate the notochordal plate. Interestingly, even though a lot of interest has centered on investigating the functional and structural roles of the notochord, we still have a very rudimentary understanding of notochord morphogenesis. The events driving the formation of the notochord are rapid, taking place over the period of approximately a day in mice. In this commentary we provide an overview of our current understanding of mouse notochord morphogenesis, from the initial specification of axial mesendodermal cells at the primitive streak, the emergence of these cells at the midline on the surface of the embryo, to their submergence and organization of the stereotypically positioned notochord. We will also discuss some key open questions. PMID:26845388

A Maximum Likelihood Based Offline Estimation of Student Capabilities and Question Difficulties with Guessing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moothedath, Shana; Chaporkar, Prasanna; Belur, Madhu N.

2016-01-01

In recent years, the computerised adaptive test (CAT) has gained popularity over conventional exams in evaluating student capabilities with desired accuracy. However, the key limitation of CAT is that it requires a large pool of pre-calibrated questions. In the absence of such a pre-calibrated question bank, offline exams with uncalibrated…

When is a research question not a research question?

PubMed

Mayo, Nancy E; Asano, Miho; Barbic, Skye Pamela

2013-06-01

Research is undertaken to answer important questions yet often the question is poorly expressed and lacks information on the population, the exposure or intervention, the comparison, and the outcome. An optimal research question sets out what the investigator wants to know, not what the investigator might do, nor what the results of the study might ultimately contribute. The purpose of this paper is to estimate the extent to which rehabilitation scientists optimally define their research questions. A cross-sectional survey of the rehabilitation research articles published during 2008. Two raters independently rated each question according to pre-specified criteria; a third rater adjudicated all discrepant ratings. The proportion of the 258 articles with a question formulated as methods or expected contribution and not as what knowledge was being sought was 65%; 30% of questions required reworking. The designs which most often had poorly formulated research questions were randomized trials, cross-sectional and measurement studies. Formulating the research question is not purely a semantic concern. When the question is poorly formulated, the design, analysis, sample size calculations, and presentation of results may not be optimal. The gap between research and clinical practice could be bridged by a clear, complete, and informative research question.

Predictors of Quality Verbal Engagement in Third-Grade Literature Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Young, Chase

2014-01-01

This study investigates how reading ability and personality traits predict the quality of verbal discussions in peer-led literature circles. Third grade literature discussions were recorded, transcribed, and coded. The coded statements and questions were quantified into a quality of engagement score. Through multiple linear regression, the…

Emerging Model of Questioning through the Process of Teaching and Learning Electrochemistry

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iksan, Zanaton Haji; Daniel, Esther

2015-01-01

Verbal questioning is a technique used by teachers in the teaching and learning process. Research in Malaysia related to teachers' questioning in the chemistry teaching and learning process is more focused on the level of the questions asked rather than the content to ensure that students understand. Thus, the research discussed in this paper is…

Dependencies between Questions and Responses during Small-Group Instruction in Two Preschool Programs.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fowell, Nancy; Lawton, Joseph T.

1992-01-01

Examined the language used by teachers and children during small group discussion in two preschools. Found associations between teachers' questions and children's verbal responses, children's questions to classmates and peers' immediate responses, and teachers' questions about learning processes and children's verbal references to their mental…

What Makes a Scientific Research Question Worth Investigating? Students' Epistemic Criteria and Considerations of Contribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berson, Eric Bruckner

This dissertation introduces the construct of worthwhileness as an important aspect of students' practical epistemologies of science (Sandoval, 2005). Specifically, it examines how students conceptualize what makes a scientific research question worthwhile, through a close analysis of the criteria they use for evaluating scientific research questions. Elementary (n=21) and high school students (n=21) participated in this study. As part of semi-structured interviews, students engaged in three novel tasks designed to elicit the epistemic criteria they use to evaluate scientific research questions in a variety of contexts. Findings indicate that elementary and high school students alike could engage in the practice of evaluating the worth of scientific questions. The criteria they employed included degree of interest, difficulty, and the contribution of questions to knowledge or to solving a problem. The criteria students considered varied by context. Several key differences emerged between the reasoning of the two grade cohorts. High school students tended to place more weight on the contribution of the research question. Also, the criteria reflected in the high school students' judgments of the scientific value of individual questions more closely accorded with the criteria they identified retrospectively as the basis of their judgments. Furthermore, the older cohort more often rationalized the selection and sequence of research questions within a single domain on the basis of epistemic contingency between questions. How students conceptualize what makes a scientific research question worthwhile constitutes a key aspect of students' epistemic reasoning. It is particularly important to understand how students judge the worthwhilness of scientific research questions given the central epistemic role of research questions in scientific inquiry.

Answering Young Children's Questions about Sex.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hansen, Gladys

Intended for use by parents and teachers of preschool age children, this short booklet provides some guidelines to follow when introducing sex education to young children. It discusses issues such as where to begin, how to encourage the child to ask questions about sex, how to handle sex-related problems, child molestation, nudity and the family,…

Supporting Argumentation through Students' Questions: Case Studies in Science Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chin, Christine; Osborne, Jonathan

2010-01-01

This study explores how student-generated questions can support argumentation in science. Students were asked to discuss which of two graphs showing the change in temperature with time when ice is heated to steam was correct. Four classes of students, aged 12-14 years, from two countries, first wrote questions about the phenomenon. Then, working…

In-office Discussions of Migraine: Results from the American Migraine Communication Study

PubMed Central

Hahn, Steven R.; Cady, Roger K.; Brandes, Jan Lewis; Simons, Suzanne E.; Bain, Philip A.; Nelson, Meaghan R.

2008-01-01

Background Research indicates that successful migraine assessment and treatment depends on information obtained during patient and healthcare professional (HCP) discussions. However, no studies outline how migraine is actually discussed during clinical encounters. Objective Record naturally occurring HCP–migraineur interactions, analyzing frequency and impairment assessment, and preventive treatment discussions. Design HCPs seeing high volumes of migraineurs were recruited for a communication study. Patients likely to discuss migraine were recruited immediately before their normally scheduled appointment and, once consented, were audio- and video-recorded without a researcher present. Separate post-visit interviews were conducted with patients and HCPs. All interactions were transcribed. Participants Sixty patients (83% female; mean age 41.7) were analyzed. Patients were diagnosed with migraine 14 years and experienced 5 per month, on average. Approach Transcripts were analyzed using sociolinguistic techniques such as number and type of questions asked and post-visit alignment on migraine frequency and impairment. American Migraine Prevalence and Prevention Study guidelines were utilized. Results Ninety-one percent of HCP-initiated, migraine-specific questions were closed-ended/short answer; assessments focused on frequency and did not focus on attention on impairment. Open-ended questions in patient post-visit interviews yielded robust impairment-related information. Post-visit, 55% of HCP–patient pairs were misaligned regarding frequency; 51% on impairment. Of the 20 (33%) patients who were preventive medication candidates, 80% did not receive it and 50% of their visits lacked discussion of prevention. Conclusions Sociolinguistic analysis revealed that HCPs often used narrowly focused, closed-ended questions and were often unaware of how migraine affected patients’ lives as a result. It is recommended that HCPs assess impairment using open-ended questions

Why Can't We Discuss Intelligent Design?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Turner, J. Scott

2007-01-01

While giving a presentation on his book about living things and the functions they perform ("The Tinkerer's Accomplice"), this author was faced with a heckler who asked intrusive "questions" and demanded "clarifications" that were intended not to illuminate the discussion, but rather to disrupt and distract from the presentation. The author…

Election 2000: The Keys Point to Gore.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lichtman, Allan J.

2000-01-01

Asserts that Vice President Al Gore will be elected in 2000 based on the performance of the Clinton administration. Utilizes the key to the White House, 13 true-or-false diagnostic questions stated as propositions. If five or less are false then the party in power wins. (CMK)

Label-indicator morpheme growth on LSTM for Chinese healthcare question department classification.

PubMed

Hu, Yang; Wen, Guihua; Ma, Jiajiong; Li, Danyang; Wang, Changjun; Li, Huihui; Huan, Eryang

2018-04-26

Current Chinese medicine has an urgent demand for convenient medical services. When facing a large number of patients, understanding patients' questions automatically and precisely is useful. Different from the high professional medical text, patients' questions contain only a small amount of descriptions regarding the symptoms, and the questions are slightly professional and colloquial. The aim of this paper is to implement a department classification system for patient questions. Patients' questions will be classified into 11 departments, such as surgery and others. This paper presents a morpheme growth model that enhances the memories of key elements in questions, and later extracts the "label-indicators" and germinates the expansion vectors around them. Finally, the model inputs the expansion vectors into a neural network to assign department labels for patients' questions. All compared methods are validated by experiments on three datasets that are composed of real patient questions. The proposed method has some ability to improve the performance of the classification. The proposed method is effective for the departments classification of patients questions and serves as a useful system for the automatic understanding of patient questions. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

[Research progress on standards of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica and discussion on several key problems].

PubMed

Yang, Guang; Zeng, Yan; Guo, Lan-Ping; Huang, Lu-Qi; Jin, Yan; Zheng, Yu-Guang; Wang, Yong-Yan

2014-05-01

Standards of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica is an important way to solve the "Lemons Problem" of traditional Chinese medicine market. Standards of commodity classes are also helpful to rebuild market mechanisms for "high price for good quality". The previous edition of commodity classes standards of Chinese materia medica was made 30 years ago. It is no longer adapted to the market demand. This article researched progress on standards of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica. It considered that biological activity is a better choice than chemical constituents for standards of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica. It is also considered that the key point to set standards of commodity classes is finding the influencing factors between "good quality" and "bad quality". The article also discussed the range of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica, and how to coordinate standards of pharmacopoeia and commodity classes. According to different demands, diversiform standards can be used in commodity classes of Chinese materia medica, but efficacy is considered the most important index of commodity standard. Decoction pieces can be included in standards of commodity classes of Chinese materia medica. The authors also formulated the standards of commodity classes of Notoginseng Radix as an example, and hope this study can make a positive and promotion effect on traditional Chinese medicine market related research.

Toward automated consumer question answering: automatically separating consumer questions from professional questions in the healthcare domain.

PubMed

Liu, Feifan; Antieau, Lamont D; Yu, Hong

2011-12-01

Both healthcare professionals and healthcare consumers have information needs that can be met through the use of computers, specifically via medical question answering systems. However, the information needs of both groups are different in terms of literacy levels and technical expertise, and an effective question answering system must be able to account for these differences if it is to formulate the most relevant responses for users from each group. In this paper, we propose that a first step toward answering the queries of different users is automatically classifying questions according to whether they were asked by healthcare professionals or consumers. We obtained two sets of consumer questions (~10,000 questions in total) from Yahoo answers. The professional questions consist of two question collections: 4654 point-of-care questions (denoted as PointCare) obtained from interviews of a group of family doctors following patient visits and 5378 questions from physician practices through professional online services (denoted as OnlinePractice). With more than 20,000 questions combined, we developed supervised machine-learning models for automatic classification between consumer questions and professional questions. To evaluate the robustness of our models, we tested the model that was trained on the Consumer-PointCare dataset on the Consumer-OnlinePractice dataset. We evaluated both linguistic features and statistical features and examined how the characteristics in two different types of professional questions (PointCare vs. OnlinePractice) may affect the classification performance. We explored information gain for feature reduction and the back-off linguistic category features. The 10-fold cross-validation results showed the best F1-measure of 0.936 and 0.946 on Consumer-PointCare and Consumer-OnlinePractice respectively, and the best F1-measure of 0.891 when testing the Consumer-PointCare model on the Consumer-OnlinePractice dataset. Healthcare consumer

A Key Telegram and a Key Press Release on the Recognition of the State of Israel

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Byers, CeCe; Alexander, Mary

1978-01-01

Reviews the course of events leading to the founding of Israel in 1947. Presents primary source materials, activities, and discussion questions to help students analyze reasons for the Arab-Israeli conflict. (Author/DB)

Ask Questions to Encourage Questions Asked

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

belcastro, sarah-marie

2017-01-01

We delineate some types of structured practice (modeling, requests, feedback, and space-making) that help students learn to pose appropriate questions and to initiate exploration of those questions. Developing skills requires practice, so we suggest ways to embed structured practice into existing class sessions. Including structured practice is…

Panel discussion: The future of IR astronomy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Caroff, Lawrence J.

1995-01-01

A panel discussion was held on the future of IR astronomy. The chairman gave a brief introduction to current planned programs for NASA and other space agencies, followed by short contributions from the six panel members on a variety of special topics. After that, a short question and answer session was held.

Employee Spotlight: Baris Key

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Key, Baris

2014-05-29

Baris Key, an employee at Argonne National Laboratory, discusses the importance of national lab researchers and how they merge basic science, analyze and process in a way that the industry can benefit from.

Employee Spotlight: Baris Key

ScienceCinema

Key, Baris

2018-04-16

Baris Key, an employee at Argonne National Laboratory, discusses the importance of national lab researchers and how they merge basic science, analyze and process in a way that the industry can benefit from.

Comparing comprehension measured by multiple-choice and open-ended questions.

PubMed

Ozuru, Yasuhiro; Briner, Stephen; Kurby, Christopher A; McNamara, Danielle S

2013-09-01

This study compared the nature of text comprehension as measured by multiple-choice format and open-ended format questions. Participants read a short text while explaining preselected sentences. After reading the text, participants answered open-ended and multiple-choice versions of the same questions based on their memory of the text content. The results indicated that performance on open-ended questions was correlated with the quality of self-explanations, but performance on multiple-choice questions was correlated with the level of prior knowledge related to the text. These results suggest that open-ended and multiple-choice format questions measure different aspects of comprehension processes. The results are discussed in terms of dual process theories of text comprehension. PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA, all rights reserved

The influence of question type, reasoning level, and wait time on student participation rates when using clicker questions with large classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartman, K.; Koh, J.; Murty, S. A.; Ramos, R. D. P.; Goodkin, N.

2017-12-01

"Wait time" is defined as the length of the pause between an instructor initiating a question and either the student answering it or the instructor interjecting (Rowe, 1974). However, the nature of the question-answer dynamic changes with student response systems that allow hundreds of students to answer the same question simultaneously before displaying the results to the class. In this study, we looked at 129 student response questions asked across 240 minutes of class lectures to determine if longer wait times were associated with higher student response rates. We also examined whether the type and reasoning level of the questions were diagnostic of their response rates. 644 undergraduate science students enrolled in an interdisciplinary environmental science course. During each of the course's lessons, the instructor presented a mix of lecture content, short student response activities (clicker questions), and small group discussion opportunities. Using the recorded videos, we coded each student response question for its question type and reasoning level. We divided the question types into three categories: yes/no questions, yes/no/maybe questions, and other questions. To code for the reasoning level necessary to answer each question, we used a collapsed version of Bloom's Revised Taxonomy (Krathwohl, 2002). Questions that had a definite answer and relied on recalling facts or paraphrasing the lecture content were coded as "knowledge" questions. Questions that required students to apply what they had learned to analyze a new scenario, or come to a judgement were coded as "higher order" questions. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) using the question type and reasoning level as fixed factors and wait time as a covariate to predict student response rate indicated a strong interaction between question type and reasoning level F(6, 94) = 4.53, p<.01. In general, knowledge questions were answered by a higher percentage (M=91%) of students than higher order questions (M

A Flexible Question-and-Answer Task for Measuring Speech Understanding.

PubMed

Best, Virginia; Streeter, Timothy; Roverud, Elin; Mason, Christine R; Kidd, Gerald

2016-11-24

This report introduces a new speech task based on simple questions and answers. The task differs from a traditional sentence recall task in that it involves an element of comprehension and can be implemented in an ongoing fashion. It also contains two target items (the question and the answer) that may be associated with different voices and locations to create dynamic listening scenarios. A set of 227 questions was created, covering six broad categories (days of the week, months of the year, numbers, colors, opposites, and sizes). All questions and their one-word answers were spoken by 11 female and 11 male talkers. In this study, listeners were presented with question-answer pairs and asked to indicate whether the answer was true or false. Responses were given as simple button or key presses, which are quick to make and easy to score. Two preliminary experiments are presented that illustrate different ways of implementing the basic task. In the first experiment, question-answer pairs were presented in speech-shaped noise, and performance was compared across subjects, question categories, and time, to examine the different sources of variability. In the second experiment, sequences of question-answer pairs were presented amidst competing conversations in an ongoing, spatially dynamic listening scenario. Overall, the question-and-answer task appears to be feasible and could be implemented flexibly in a number of different ways. © The Author(s) 2016.

A Thesaurus-Linked Science Question-Banking System.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Sandra; Maher, Brian

1984-01-01

Outlines implementation and uses of the computerized question-banking system of the thesaurus-linked browse procedure used by APU National Assessment in Science Programme. The ROOT Thesaurus, a comprehensive indexing and searching tool for technological applications, is described and its modifications are discussed as the basis for the…

Feasibility of satellite quantum key distribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bonato, C.; Tomaello, A.; Da Deppo, V.; Naletto, G.; Villoresi, P.

2009-04-01

In this paper, we present a novel analysis of the feasibility of quantum key distribution between a LEO satellite and a ground station. First of all, we study signal propagation through a turbulent atmosphere for uplinks and downlinks, discussing the contribution of beam spreading and beam wandering. Then we introduce a model for the background noise of the channel during night-time and day-time, calculating the signal-to-noise ratio for different configurations. We also discuss the expected error-rate due to imperfect polarization compensation in the channel. Finally, we calculate the expected key generation rate of a secure key for different configurations (uplink, downlink) and for different protocols (BB84 with and without decoy states, entanglement-based Ekert91 protocol).

Analytic methods for questions pertaining to a randomized pretest, posttest, follow-up design.

PubMed

Rausch, Joseph R; Maxwell, Scott E; Kelley, Ken

2003-09-01

Delineates 5 questions regarding group differences that are likely to be of interest to researchers within the framework of a randomized pretest, posttest, follow-up (PPF) design. These 5 questions are examined from a methodological perspective by comparing and discussing analysis of variance (ANOVA) and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) methods and briefly discussing hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) for these questions. This article demonstrates that the pretest should be utilized as a covariate in the model rather than as a level of the time factor or as part of the dependent variable within the analysis of group differences. It is also demonstrated that how the posttest and the follow-up are utilized in the analysis of group differences is determined by the specific question asked by the researcher.

Simple Texts, Complex Questions: Helping Young Children Generate Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ness, Molly

2017-01-01

As they are naturally curious about the world around them, young children ask lots and lots of questions. In classrooms today, however, there seems to be little space for these student-generated questions as teachers are more likely to pose the questions. Research indicates that question generation is an effective strategy to motivate young…

Toward sustainable environmental quality: Identifying priority research questions for Latin America.

PubMed

Furley, Tatiana Heid; Brodeur, Julie; Silva de Assis, Helena C; Carriquiriborde, Pedro; Chagas, Katia R; Corrales, Jone; Denadai, Marina; Fuchs, Julio; Mascarenhas, Renata; Miglioranza, Karina Sb; Miguez Caramés, Diana Margarita; Navas, José Maria; Nugegoda, Dayanthi; Planes, Estela; Rodriguez-Jorquera, Ignacio Alejandro; Orozco-Medina, Martha; Boxall, Alistair Ba; Rudd, Murray A; Brooks, Bryan W

2018-05-01

The Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) is an innovative initiative that aims to identify important global environmental quality research needs. Here we report 20 key research questions from Latin America (LA). Members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) LA and other scientists from LA were asked to submit research questions that would represent priority needs to address in the region. One hundred questions were received, then partitioned among categories, examined, and some rearranged during a workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Twenty priority research questions were subsequently identified. These research questions included developing, improving, and harmonizing across LA countries methods for 1) identifying contaminants and degradation products in complex matrices (including biota); 2) advancing prediction of contaminant risks and effects in ecosystems, addressing lab-to-field extrapolation challenges, and understanding complexities of multiple stressors (including chemicals and climate change); and 3) improving management and regulatory tools toward achieving sustainable development. Whereas environmental contaminants frequently identified in these key questions were pesticides, pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptors or modulators, plastics, and nanomaterials, commonly identified environmental challenges were related to agriculture, urban effluents, solid wastes, pulp and paper mills, and natural extraction activities. Several interesting research topics included assessing and preventing pollution impacts on conservation protected areas, integrating environment and health assessments, and developing strategies for identification, substitution, and design of less hazardous chemicals (e.g., green chemistry). Finally, a recurrent research need included developing an understanding of differential sensitivity of regional species and ecosystems to environmental contaminants and other stressors. Addressing these critical questions will

Toward sustainable environmental quality: Identifying priority research questions for Latin America

PubMed Central

Furley, Tatiana Heid; Brodeur, Julie; Silva de Assis, Helena C; Carriquiriborde, Pedro; Chagas, Katia R; Corrales, Jone; Denadai, Marina; Fuchs, Julio; Mascarenhas, Renata; Miglioranza, Karina SB; Miguez Caramés, Diana Margarita; Navas, José Maria; Nugegoda, Dayanthi; Planes, Estela; Rodriguez‐Jorquera, Ignacio Alejandro; Orozco‐Medina, Martha; Boxall, Alistair BA; Rudd, Murray A

2018-01-01

ABSTRACT The Global Horizon Scanning Project (GHSP) is an innovative initiative that aims to identify important global environmental quality research needs. Here we report 20 key research questions from Latin America (LA). Members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) LA and other scientists from LA were asked to submit research questions that would represent priority needs to address in the region. One hundred questions were received, then partitioned among categories, examined, and some rearranged during a workshop in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Twenty priority research questions were subsequently identified. These research questions included developing, improving, and harmonizing across LA countries methods for 1) identifying contaminants and degradation products in complex matrices (including biota); 2) advancing prediction of contaminant risks and effects in ecosystems, addressing lab‐to‐field extrapolation challenges, and understanding complexities of multiple stressors (including chemicals and climate change); and 3) improving management and regulatory tools toward achieving sustainable development. Whereas environmental contaminants frequently identified in these key questions were pesticides, pharmaceuticals, endocrine disruptors or modulators, plastics, and nanomaterials, commonly identified environmental challenges were related to agriculture, urban effluents, solid wastes, pulp and paper mills, and natural extraction activities. Several interesting research topics included assessing and preventing pollution impacts on conservation protected areas, integrating environment and health assessments, and developing strategies for identification, substitution, and design of less hazardous chemicals (e.g., green chemistry). Finally, a recurrent research need included developing an understanding of differential sensitivity of regional species and ecosystems to environmental contaminants and other stressors. Addressing these critical

Interactive use of online health resources: a comparison of consumer and professional questions

PubMed Central

Demner-Fushman, Dina

2016-01-01

Objective To understand how consumer questions on online resources differ from questions asked by professionals, and how such consumer questions differ across resources. Materials and Methods Ten online question corpora, 5 consumer and 5 professional, with a combined total of over 40 000 questions, were analyzed using a variety of natural language processing techniques. These techniques analyze questions at the lexical, syntactic, and semantic levels, exposing differences in both form and content. Results Consumer questions tend to be longer than professional questions, more closely resemble open-domain language, and focus far more on medical problems. Consumers ask more sub-questions, provide far more background information, and ask different types of questions than professionals. Furthermore, there is substantial variance of these factors between the different consumer corpora. Discussion The form of consumer questions is highly dependent upon the individual online resource, especially in the amount of background information provided. Professionals, on the other hand, provide very little background information and often ask much shorter questions. The content of consumer questions is also highly dependent upon the resource. While professional questions commonly discuss treatments and tests, consumer questions focus disproportionately on symptoms and diseases. Further, consumers place far more emphasis on certain types of health problems (eg, sexual health). Conclusion Websites for consumers to submit health questions are a popular online resource filling important gaps in consumer health information. By analyzing how consumers write questions on these resources, we can better understand these gaps and create solutions for improving information access. This article is part of the Special Focus on Person-Generated Health and Wellness Data, which published in the May 2016 issue, Volume 23, Issue 3. PMID:27147494

Students' Questions: Building a Bridge between Kolb's Learning Styles and Approaches to Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

de Jesus, Helena T. Pedrosa; Almeida, Patricia Albergaria; Teixeira-Dias, Jose Joaquim; Watts, Mike

2006-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify the types of questions that students ask during the learning of chemistry; discuss the role of students' questions in the process of constructing knowledge, and investigate the relationship between students' questions, approaches to learning, and learning styles. Design/methodology/approach: The…

Question Popularity Analysis and Prediction in Community Question Answering Services

PubMed Central

Liu, Ting; Zhang, Wei-Nan; Cao, Liujuan; Zhang, Yu

2014-01-01

With the blooming of online social media applications, Community Question Answering (CQA) services have become one of the most important online resources for information and knowledge seekers. A large number of high quality question and answer pairs have been accumulated, which allow users to not only share their knowledge with others, but also interact with each other. Accordingly, volumes of efforts have been taken to explore the questions and answers retrieval in CQA services so as to help users to finding the similar questions or the right answers. However, to our knowledge, less attention has been paid so far to question popularity in CQA. Question popularity can reflect the attention and interest of users. Hence, predicting question popularity can better capture the users’ interest so as to improve the users’ experience. Meanwhile, it can also promote the development of the community. In this paper, we investigate the problem of predicting question popularity in CQA. We first explore the factors that have impact on question popularity by employing statistical analysis. We then propose a supervised machine learning approach to model these factors for question popularity prediction. The experimental results show that our proposed approach can effectively distinguish the popular questions from unpopular ones in the Yahoo! Answers question and answer repository. PMID:24837851

Question popularity analysis and prediction in community question answering services.

PubMed

Liu, Ting; Zhang, Wei-Nan; Cao, Liujuan; Zhang, Yu

2014-01-01

With the blooming of online social media applications, Community Question Answering (CQA) services have become one of the most important online resources for information and knowledge seekers. A large number of high quality question and answer pairs have been accumulated, which allow users to not only share their knowledge with others, but also interact with each other. Accordingly, volumes of efforts have been taken to explore the questions and answers retrieval in CQA services so as to help users to finding the similar questions or the right answers. However, to our knowledge, less attention has been paid so far to question popularity in CQA. Question popularity can reflect the attention and interest of users. Hence, predicting question popularity can better capture the users' interest so as to improve the users' experience. Meanwhile, it can also promote the development of the community. In this paper, we investigate the problem of predicting question popularity in CQA. We first explore the factors that have impact on question popularity by employing statistical analysis. We then propose a supervised machine learning approach to model these factors for question popularity prediction. The experimental results show that our proposed approach can effectively distinguish the popular questions from unpopular ones in the Yahoo! Answers question and answer repository.

Which Clinician Questions Elicit Accurate Disclosure of Antiretroviral Non-adherence When Talking to Patients?

PubMed

Callon, Wynne; Saha, Somnath; Korthuis, P Todd; Wilson, Ira B; Moore, Richard D; Cohn, Jonathan; Beach, Mary Catherine

2016-05-01

This study evaluated how clinicians assess antiretroviral (ARV) adherence in clinical encounters, and which questions elicit accurate responses. We conducted conversation analysis of audio-recorded encounters between 34 providers and 58 patients reporting ARV non-adherence in post-encounter interviews. Among 42 visits where adherence status was unknown by providers, 4 providers did not discuss ARVs (10 %), 6 discussed ARVs but did not elicit non-adherence disclosure (14 %), and 32 discussed ARVs which prompted disclosure (76 %). Questions were classified as: (1) clarification of medication ("Are you still taking the Combivir?"); (2) broad ("How's it going with your meds?"); (3) positively-framed ("Are you taking your medications regularly?"); (4) negatively-framed ("Have you missed any doses?"). Clinicians asked 75 ARV-related questions: 23 clarification, 12 broad, 17 positively-framed, and 23 negatively-framed. Negatively-framed questions were 3.8 times more likely to elicit accurate disclosure than all other question types (p < 0.0001). Providers can improve disclosure probability by asking directly about missed doses.

Comparison is key.

PubMed

Stone, Mark H; Stenner, A Jackson

2014-01-01

Several concepts from Georg Rasch's last papers are discussed. The key one is comparison because Rasch considered the method of comparison fundamental to science. From the role of comparison stems scientific inference made operational by a properly developed frame of reference producing specific objectivity. The exact specifications Rasch outlined for making comparisons are explicated from quotes, and the role of causality derived from making comparisons is also examined. Understanding causality has implications for what can and cannot be produced via Rasch measurement. His simple examples were instructive, but the implications are far reaching upon first establishing the key role of comparison.

Two-Year-Old Children Differentiate Test Questions from Genuine Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grosse, Gerlind; Tomasello, Michael

2012-01-01

Children are frequently confronted with so-called "test questions". While genuine questions are requests for missing information, test questions ask for information obviously already known to the questioner. In this study we explored whether two-year-old children respond differentially to one and the same question used as either a genuine question…

Compressed Secret Key Agreement:Maximizing Multivariate Mutual Information per Bit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chan, Chung

2017-10-01

The multiterminal secret key agreement problem by public discussion is formulated with an additional source compression step where, prior to the public discussion phase, users independently compress their private sources to filter out strongly correlated components for generating a common secret key. The objective is to maximize the achievable key rate as a function of the joint entropy of the compressed sources. Since the maximum achievable key rate captures the total amount of information mutual to the compressed sources, an optimal compression scheme essentially maximizes the multivariate mutual information per bit of randomness of the private sources, and can therefore be viewed more generally as a dimension reduction technique. Single-letter lower and upper bounds on the maximum achievable key rate are derived for the general source model, and an explicit polynomial-time computable formula is obtained for the pairwise independent network model. In particular, the converse results and the upper bounds are obtained from those of the related secret key agreement problem with rate-limited discussion. A precise duality is shown for the two-user case with one-way discussion, and such duality is extended to obtain the desired converse results in the multi-user case. In addition to posing new challenges in information processing and dimension reduction, the compressed secret key agreement problem helps shed new light on resolving the difficult problem of secret key agreement with rate-limited discussion, by offering a more structured achieving scheme and some simpler conjectures to prove.

Public Opinion Poll Question Databases: An Evaluation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Woods, Stephen

2007-01-01

This paper evaluates five polling resource: iPOLL, Polling the Nations, Gallup Brain, Public Opinion Poll Question Database, and Polls and Surveys. Content was evaluated on disclosure standards from major polling organizations, scope on a model for public opinion polls, and presentation on a flow chart discussing search limitations and usability.

Questions Students Ask: The Red-Eye Effect.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Physics Teacher, 1985

1985-01-01

Addresses the question of why a dog's eyes appear red and glow when a flash photograph is taken. Conditions for the red-eye effect, light paths involved, structure of the eye, and typical cameras and lenses are discussed. Also notes differences between the eyes of nocturnal animals and humans. (JN)

Analyzing arguments in science classroom discourse: Can teachers' questions distort scientific authority?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Russell, Thomas L.

Teaching commonly involves asking questions, in sequences that enable a teacher to control the direction and duration of subject-matter discussion, while also maintaining attention and order. The form of questions and their role as means of instruction have received more study and discussion than the function of questions and their role in achieving particular ends of instruction. This study examines qualitatively the function of questions in developing arguments that establish scientific knowledge claims on the basis of reasons and evidence, and thereby suggest a rational attitude toward authority. Peters' (1966) distinction between a teacher's (rational) authority of knowledge and (traditional) authority of position is linked with Toulmin's (1958) pattern for rational arguments to establish a qualitative framework for judging the function of questions in arguments. Episodes from three science lessons are presented in verbatim transcription and analyzed to reveal three different ways in which teachers did not achieve the standard of suggesting a rational attitude toward authority. Question sequences such as these have a clear potential for distorting student understanding of the nature of scientific authority, with possible negative consequences for students' attitudes toward science.Received: 30 November 1981;

Education for Judgment: The Artistry of Discussion Leadership.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Christensen, C. Roland, Ed.; And Others

This book offers a collection of essays on teaching, written by teachers who, though they represent high school to professional school levels and diverse fields of interest, favor teaching by discussion. Part I introduces key principles in "Barriers and Gateways to Learning" (David A. Garvin) and "Premises and Practices of Discussion Teaching" (C.…

Fifty important research questions in microbial ecology.

PubMed

Antwis, Rachael E; Griffiths, Sarah M; Harrison, Xavier A; Aranega-Bou, Paz; Arce, Andres; Bettridge, Aimee S; Brailsford, Francesca L; de Menezes, Alexandre; Devaynes, Andrew; Forbes, Kristian M; Fry, Ellen L; Goodhead, Ian; Haskell, Erin; Heys, Chloe; James, Chloe; Johnston, Sarah R; Lewis, Gillian R; Lewis, Zenobia; Macey, Michael C; McCarthy, Alan; McDonald, James E; Mejia-Florez, Nasmille L; O'Brien, David; Orland, Chloé; Pautasso, Marco; Reid, William D K; Robinson, Heather A; Wilson, Kenneth; Sutherland, William J

2017-05-01

Microbial ecology provides insights into the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of microbial communities underpinning every ecosystem on Earth. Microbial communities can now be investigated in unprecedented detail, although there is still a wealth of open questions to be tackled. Here we identify 50 research questions of fundamental importance to the science or application of microbial ecology, with the intention of summarising the field and bringing focus to new research avenues. Questions are categorised into seven themes: host-microbiome interactions; health and infectious diseases; human health and food security; microbial ecology in a changing world; environmental processes; functional diversity; and evolutionary processes. Many questions recognise that microbes provide an extraordinary array of functional diversity that can be harnessed to solve real-world problems. Our limited knowledge of spatial and temporal variation in microbial diversity and function is also reflected, as is the need to integrate micro- and macro-ecological concepts, and knowledge derived from studies with humans and other diverse organisms. Although not exhaustive, the questions presented are intended to stimulate discussion and provide focus for researchers, funders and policy makers, informing the future research agenda in microbial ecology. © FEMS 2017. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Discussion on ``Frontiers of the Second Law''

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lloyd, Seth; Bejan, Adrian; Bennett, Charles; Beretta, Gian Paolo; Butler, Howard; Gordon, Lyndsay; Grmela, Miroslav; Gyftopoulos, Elias P.; Hatsopoulos, George N.; Jou, David; Kjelstrup, Signe; Lior, Noam; Miller, Sam; Rubi, Miguel; Schneider, Eric D.; Sekulic, Dusan P.; Zhang, Zhuomin

2008-08-01

This article reports an open discussion that took place during the Keenan Symposium "Meeting the Entropy Challenge" (held in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on October 4, 2007) following the short presentations—each reported as a separate article in the present volume—by Adrian Bejan, Bjarne Andresen, Miguel Rubi, Signe Kjelstrup, David Jou, Miroslav Grmela, Lyndsay Gordon, and Eric Schneider. All panelists and the audience were asked to address the following questions • Is the second law relevant when we trap single ions, prepare, manipulate and measure single photons, excite single atoms, induce spin echoes, measure quantum entanglement? Is it possible or impossible to build Maxwell demons that beat the second law by exploiting fluctuations? • Is the maximum entropy generation principle capable of unifying nonequilibrium molecular dynamics, chemical kinetics, nonlocal and nonequilibrium rheology, biological systems, natural structures, and cosmological evolution? • Research in quantum computation and quantum information has raised many fundamental questions about the foundations of quantum theory. Are any of these questions related to the second law?

Key Questions for Translation of FFA Receptors: From Pharmacology to Medicines.

PubMed

Suckow, Arthur T; Briscoe, Celia P

2017-01-01

The identification of fatty acids as ligands for the G-protein coupled free fatty acid (FFA) receptor family over 10 years ago led to intensive chemistry efforts to find small-molecule ligands for this class of receptors. Identification of potent, selective modulators of the FFA receptors and their utility in medicine has proven challenging, in part due to their complex pharmacology. Nevertheless, ligands have been identified that are sufficient for exploring the therapeutic potential of this class of receptors in rodents and, in the case of FFA1, FFA2, FFA4, and GPR84, also in humans. Expression profiling, the phenotyping of FFA receptor knockout mice, and the results of studies exploring the effects of these ligands in rodents have uncovered a number of indications where engagement of one or a combination of FFA receptors might provide some clinical benefit in areas including diabetes, inflammatory bowel syndrome, Alzheimer's, pain, and cancer. In this chapter, we will review the clinical potential of modulating FFA receptors based on preclinical and in some cases clinical studies with synthetic ligands. In particular, key aspects and challenges associated with small-molecule ligand identification and FFA receptor pharmacology will be addressed with a view of the hurdles that need to be overcome to fully understand the potential of the receptors as therapeutic targets.

Designing Online Quiz Questions To Assess a Range of Cognitive Skills.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reid, Nick; McLoughlin, Catherine

This paper discusses the design and pedagogy underpinning the use of online quiz items in which students are presented with a range of questions designed to enhance understanding of complex linguistic constructions. It explores the design of different types of quiz questions from the perspective of pedagogy and cognitive demand. The particular…

A Campus-Wide Investigation of Clicker Implementation: The Status of Peer Discussion in STEM Classes

PubMed Central

Lewin, Justin D.; Vinson, Erin L.; Stetzer, MacKenzie R.; Smith, Michelle K.

2016-01-01

At the University of Maine, middle and high school teachers observed more than 250 university science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classes and collected information on the nature of instruction, including how clickers were being used. Comparisons of classes taught with (n = 80) and without (n = 184) clickers show that, while instructional behaviors differ, the use of clickers alone does not significantly impact the time instructors spend lecturing. One possible explanation stems from the observation of three distinct modes of clicker use: peer discussion, in which students had the opportunity to talk with one another during clicker questions; individual thinking, in which no peer discussion was observed; and alternative collaboration, in which students had time for discussion, but it was not paired with clicker questions. Investigation of these modes revealed differences in the range of behaviors, the amount of time instructors lecture, and how challenging the clicker questions were to answer. Because instructors can vary their instructional style from one clicker question to the next, we also explored differences in how individual instructors incorporated peer discussion during clicker questions. These findings provide new insights into the range of clicker implementation at a campus-wide level and how such findings can be used to inform targeted professional development for faculty. PMID:26931397

Logical Aspects of Question-Answering by Computer.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuhns, J. L.

The problem of computerized question-answering is discussed in this paper from the point of view of certain technical, although elementary, notions of logic. Although the work reported herein has general application to the design of information systems, it is specifically motivated by the RAND Relational Data File. This system, for which a…

Service-Learning Projects Developed from Institutional Research Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zack, Maria; Crow, Greg

2013-01-01

Institutional research questions provide an excellent source of interesting problems for service-learning projects for undergraduates in mathematics. This paper discusses how this model has been implemented at Point Loma Nazarene University and provides both examples and practical details. (Contains 6 figures.)

How should we question young children's understanding of aspectuality?

PubMed

Waters, Gillian M; Beck, Sarah R

2012-09-01

In two experiments, we investigated whether 4- to 5-year-old children's ability to demonstrate their understanding of aspectuality was influenced by how the test question was phrased. In Experiment 1, 60 children chose whether to look or feel to gain information about a hidden object (identifiable by sight or touch). Test questions referred either to the perceptual aspect of the hidden object (e.g., whether it was red or blue), the modality dimension (e.g., what colour it was), or the object's identity (e.g., which one it was). Children who heard the identity question performed worse than those who heard the aspect or dimension question. Further investigation in Experiment 2 (N= 23) established that children's difficulty with the identity question was not due to a problem recalling the objects. We discuss how the results of these methodological investigations impact on researchers' assessment of the development of aspectuality understanding. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Do electronic mail discussion lists act as virtual colleagues?

PubMed Central

Worth, E. R.; Patrick, T. B.

1997-01-01

Anesthesiology Discussion Group (ADG), an electronic mail (email) discussion list, has previously been shown to be a clinically oriented, cost-effective form of telemedicine. ADG is composed of an international collection of anesthesia providers. Discussions with colleagues are generally informal in nature and are examples of types of information-seeking behavior which frequently occur in hallways or lounges of a hospital or clinic. Information-seeking occurs when a health care provider searches for information which will be used to solve or satisfy a patient's problem or need. We surveyed practitioners who had previously submitted non-rhetorical, clinical questions to the group. After analysis of the questionnaire results, we conclude that ADG is a valuable resource used for information-seeking and is a clinically effective form of telemedicine. Many of the respondents indicated that they used ADG to obtain second opinions from the collective expertise of group members. Respondents also indicated that they were generally satisfied with the quality of responses and would not hesitate to use ADG for future clinical questions. PMID:9357641

Questions for Surveys

PubMed Central

Schaeffer, Nora Cate; Dykema, Jennifer

2011-01-01

We begin with a look back at the field to identify themes of recent research that we expect to continue to occupy researchers in the future. As part of this overview, we characterize the themes and topics examined in research about measurement and survey questions published in Public Opinion Quarterly in the past decade. We then characterize the field more broadly by highlighting topics that we expect to continue or to grow in importance, including the relationship between survey questions and the total survey error perspective, cognitive versus interactional approaches, interviewing practices, mode and technology, visual aspects of question design, and culture. Considering avenues for future research, we advocate for a decision-oriented framework for thinking about survey questions and their characteristics. The approach we propose distinguishes among various aspects of question characteristics, including question topic, question type and response dimension, conceptualization and operationalization of the target object, question structure, question form, response categories, question implementation, and question wording. Thinking about question characteristics more systematically would allow study designs to take into account relationships among these characteristics and identify gaps in current knowledge. PMID:24970951

Measuring the Impact of the Quality Matters Rubric™: A Discussion of Possibilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Legon, Ron

2015-01-01

In countless discussions over the past ten years with educators considering the adoption of the Quality Matters (QM) Rubric™, the most common question asked is, "Can you prove that applying the QM Rubric to an online course improves outcomes--retention, grades, learner satisfaction?" This question seems necessary, reasonable, and even…

Legal Challenges and Pitfalls for Start-up Companies - 48 Common Questions and Answers.

PubMed

Staehelin, Matthias

2014-12-01

Transforming a business idea into reality requires a legal implementation plan. The following 48 questions and answers address key issues that typically arise in start-up situations. Early planning can help avoid costly mistakes.

So Much More than Just a List: Exploring the Nature of Critical Questioning in Undergraduate Sciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pedrosa-de-Jesus, Helena; Moreira, Aurora; Lopes, Betina; Watts, Mike

2014-01-01

Background: Critical thinking is one of the very highest orders of cognitive abilities and a key competency in higher education. Asking questions is an important component of rich learning experiences, structurally embedded in the operations of critical thinking. Our clear sense is that critical thinking and, within that, critical questioning, is…

Big questions, big science: meeting the challenges of global ecology

Treesearch

David Schimel; Michael Keller

2015-01-01

Ecologists are increasingly tackling questions that require significant infrastucture, large experiments, networks of observations, and complex data and computation. Key hypotheses in ecology increasingly require more investment, and larger data sets to be tested than can be collected by a single investigator’s or s group of investigator’s labs, sustained for longer...

Effects of Critical Discussions on Middle School Students' Written Historical Arguments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wissinger, Daniel R.; De La Paz, Susan

2016-01-01

In this experimental study, 151 middle school students explored 3 historical controversies, first reading and discussing primary source documents in groups, then writing arguments on their own. Students were either randomly assigned to an experimental condition, using argumentative schemes and critical questions as guides during discussions, or to…

[Discussion on the key points of building modern theory of acupuncture treatment].

PubMed

Yang, Guang

2013-10-01

Acupuncture treatment is different from treatment of materia medica. However, syndrome differentiation system of internal medicine is adopted all the time for the present acupuncture textbooks. It is held that the characteristics of acupuncture can not be fully reflexed, and advantages of acupuncture can not be brought into full play. Therefore, it's urgent to build up a modem theory on acupuncture treatment which is fit for the clinical practice of acupuncture and can give a better play for the treatment of acupuncture. A clear target is one of the characteristics of acupuncture treatment. And it is based on the understanding of the location of disease, therefore, disease differentiation is held as the basis of acupuncture treatment. The aim of meridian differentiation is to select distal effective points on the base of diseases differentiation, which is also taken as the characteristics of acupuncture treatment. Syndrome differentiation is a process of understanding the general pathological states of the human body, it is an important process to enhance the therapeutic effect of acupuncture. Thus, the key point for establishing the modern acupuncture theory is clarifying the values of disease differentiation, meridian differentiation and syndrome differentiation.

SLAR image interpretation keys for geographic analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coiner, J. C.

1972-01-01

A means for side-looking airborne radar (SLAR) imagery to become a more widely used data source in geoscience and agriculture is suggested by providing interpretation keys as an easily implemented interpretation model. Interpretation problems faced by the researcher wishing to employ SLAR are specifically described, and the use of various types of image interpretation keys to overcome these problems is suggested. With examples drawn from agriculture and vegetation mapping, direct and associate dichotomous image interpretation keys are discussed and methods of constructing keys are outlined. Initial testing of the keys, key-based automated decision rules, and the role of the keys in an information system for agriculture are developed.

Reflective Questions, Self-Questioning and Managing Professionally Situated Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malthouse, Richard; Watts, Mike; Roffey-Barentsen, Jodi

2015-01-01

Reflective self-questioning arises within the workplace when people are confronted with professional problems and situations. This paper focuses on reflective and "situated reflective" questions in terms of self-questioning and professional workplace problem solving. In our view, the situational context, entailed by the setting, social…

Question asking by family caregivers in hospice interdisciplinary team meetings

PubMed Central

Wittenberg-Lyles, Elaine; Oliver, Debra Parker; Demiris, George; Washington, Karla; Regehr, Kelly; Wilder, Heidi M.

2009-01-01

This paper reports findings from a pilot study that enabled family caregivers to use videophone technology to participate in hospice interdisciplinary team meetings. The goal of the study was to ascertain which issues were important to caregivers and the hospice team. A qualitative content analysis of video-recorded team meetings between team members and caregivers was conducted. In a sample of 12 caregivers in 36 discussions, caregivers asked a total of 137 questions, with the majority as Yes/No questions (45.5%) mainly used to seek clarification (19.7%). Hospice staff asked 396 questions, with the majority of questions consisting of Yes/No questions (66.6%) mainly used to ask about the overall condition of the patient (17.2%). Data from this study suggest that when given the opportunity to participate in hospice team meetings caregivers will ask questions of hospice staff. Additionally, in light of prior research, this study’s findings suggest that caregivers may have questions that go unaddressed, specifically in regards to pain and medication. PMID:20415357

Teachers' Professional Practice Conducting Mathematical Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

da Ponte, João Pedro; Quaresma, Marisa

2016-01-01

This paper seeks to identify actions that can be regarded as building elements of teachers' classroom practice in mathematical discussion and how these actions may be combined to provide fruitful learning opportunities for students. It stands on a framework that focuses on two key elements of teaching practice: the tasks that teachers propose to…

Four Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hark-Weber, Amara G., Ed.

2013-01-01

The author is pleased to introduce a new section in "TAJ," Four Questions. The structure is simple: four questions are asked to teaching artists working in various media and locations. The questions are always the same, but because each teaching artist's approach is unique, their answers will provide an insight into particular methodologies that…

Questioning for Controversial and Critical Thinking Dialogues in the Social Studies Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lennon, Sean

2017-01-01

The design and implementation of questioning, specifically in regards towards a higher level of thinking, is a common practice in many secondary social science classrooms (Bickmore & Parker, 2012). Questioning can help the teacher develop critical thinking concepts, scaffold discussions, and prod students towards an elevated level of cognition…

Family, Environment, and Value Questions in Today's World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Engberg, Lila E.

1989-01-01

Discusses how the values of the larger society are reflected in life-styles of families and individual decisions. Questions the cause and effect connection of dominant value systems, economy, and policy as being appropriate and relevant to an environmentally healthy symbiosis between man and the ecosystem. (Author)

Health Advice from Internet Discussion Forums: How Bad Is Dangerous?

PubMed

Cole, Jennifer; Watkins, Chris; Kleine, Dorothea

2016-01-06

Concerns over online health information-seeking behavior point to the potential harm incorrect, incomplete, or biased information may cause. However, systematic reviews of health information have found few examples of documented harm that can be directly attributed to poor quality information found online. The aim of this study was to improve our understanding of the quality and quality characteristics of information found in online discussion forum websites so that their likely value as a peer-to-peer health information-sharing platform could be assessed. A total of 25 health discussion threads were selected across 3 websites (Reddit, Mumsnet, and Patient) covering 3 health conditions (human immunodeficiency virus [HIV], diabetes, and chickenpox). Assessors were asked to rate information found in the discussion threads according to 5 criteria: accuracy, completeness, how sensible the replies were, how they thought the questioner would act, and how useful they thought the questioner would find the replies. In all, 78 fully completed assessments were returned by 17 individuals (8 were qualified medical doctors, 9 were not). When the ratings awarded in the assessments were analyzed, 25 of the assessments placed the discussion threads in the highest possible score band rating them between 5 and 10 overall, 38 rated them between 11 and 15, 12 rated them between 16 and 20, and 3 placed the discussion thread they assessed in the lowest rating band (21-25). This suggests that health threads on Internet discussion forum websites are more likely than not (by a factor of 4:1) to contain information of high or reasonably high quality. Extremely poor information is rare; the lowest available assessment rating was awarded only 11 times out of a possible 353, whereas the highest was awarded 54 times. Only 3 of 78 fully completed assessments rated a discussion thread in the lowest possible overall band of 21 to 25, whereas 25 of 78 rated it in the highest of 5 to 10. Quality

Health Advice from Internet Discussion Forums: How Bad Is Dangerous?

PubMed Central

Watkins, Chris; Kleine, Dorothea

2016-01-01

Background Concerns over online health information–seeking behavior point to the potential harm incorrect, incomplete, or biased information may cause. However, systematic reviews of health information have found few examples of documented harm that can be directly attributed to poor quality information found online. Objective The aim of this study was to improve our understanding of the quality and quality characteristics of information found in online discussion forum websites so that their likely value as a peer-to-peer health information–sharing platform could be assessed. Methods A total of 25 health discussion threads were selected across 3 websites (Reddit, Mumsnet, and Patient) covering 3 health conditions (human immunodeficiency virus [HIV], diabetes, and chickenpox). Assessors were asked to rate information found in the discussion threads according to 5 criteria: accuracy, completeness, how sensible the replies were, how they thought the questioner would act, and how useful they thought the questioner would find the replies. Results In all, 78 fully completed assessments were returned by 17 individuals (8 were qualified medical doctors, 9 were not). When the ratings awarded in the assessments were analyzed, 25 of the assessments placed the discussion threads in the highest possible score band rating them between 5 and 10 overall, 38 rated them between 11 and 15, 12 rated them between 16 and 20, and 3 placed the discussion thread they assessed in the lowest rating band (21-25). This suggests that health threads on Internet discussion forum websites are more likely than not (by a factor of 4:1) to contain information of high or reasonably high quality. Extremely poor information is rare; the lowest available assessment rating was awarded only 11 times out of a possible 353, whereas the highest was awarded 54 times. Only 3 of 78 fully completed assessments rated a discussion thread in the lowest possible overall band of 21 to 25, whereas 25 of 78 rated

Examining student-generated questions in an elementary science classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Diaz, Juan Francisco, Jr.

This study was conducted to better understand how teachers use an argument-based inquiry technique known as the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) approach to address issues on teaching, learning, negotiation, argumentation, and elaboration in an elementary science classroom. Within the SWH framework, this study traced the progress of promoting argumentation and negotiation (which led to student-generated questions) during a discussion in an elementary science classroom. Speech patterns during various classroom scenarios were analyzed to understand how teacher--student interactions influence learning. This study uses a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods. The qualitative aspect of the study is an analysis of teacher--student interactions in the classroom using video recordings. The quantitative aspect uses descriptive statistics, tables, and plots to analyze the data. The subjects in this study were fifth grade students and teachers from an elementary school in the Midwest, during the academic years 2007/2008 and 2008/2009. The three teachers selected for this study teach at the same Midwestern elementary school. These teachers were purposely selected because they were using the SWH approach during the two years of the study. The results of this study suggest that all three teachers moved from using teacher-generated questions to student-generated questions as they became more familiar with the SWH approach. In addition, all three promoted the use of the components of arguments in their dialogs and discussions and encouraged students to elaborate, challenge, and rebut each other's ideas in a non-threatening environment. This research suggests that even young students, when actively participating in class discussions, are capable of connecting their claims and evidence and generating questions of a higher-order cognitive level. These findings demand the implementation of more professional development programs and the improvement in teacher education to help

Best Practice Strategies for Effective Use of Questions as a Teaching Tool

PubMed Central

Elsner, Jamie; Haines, Stuart T.

2013-01-01

Questions have long been used as a teaching tool by teachers and preceptors to assess students’ knowledge, promote comprehension, and stimulate critical thinking. Well-crafted questions lead to new insights, generate discussion, and promote the comprehensive exploration of subject matter. Poorly constructed questions can stifle learning by creating confusion, intimidating students, and limiting creative thinking. Teachers most often ask lower-order, convergent questions that rely on students’ factual recall of prior knowledge rather than asking higher-order, divergent questions that promote deep thinking, requiring students to analyze and evaluate concepts. This review summarizes the taxonomy of questions, provides strategies for formulating effective questions, and explores practical considerations to enhance student engagement and promote critical thinking. These concepts can be applied in the classroom and in experiential learning environments. PMID:24052658

Best practice strategies for effective use of questions as a teaching tool.

PubMed

Tofade, Toyin; Elsner, Jamie; Haines, Stuart T

2013-09-12

Questions have long been used as a teaching tool by teachers and preceptors to assess students' knowledge, promote comprehension, and stimulate critical thinking. Well-crafted questions lead to new insights, generate discussion, and promote the comprehensive exploration of subject matter. Poorly constructed questions can stifle learning by creating confusion, intimidating students, and limiting creative thinking. Teachers most often ask lower-order, convergent questions that rely on students' factual recall of prior knowledge rather than asking higher-order, divergent questions that promote deep thinking, requiring students to analyze and evaluate concepts. This review summarizes the taxonomy of questions, provides strategies for formulating effective questions, and explores practical considerations to enhance student engagement and promote critical thinking. These concepts can be applied in the classroom and in experiential learning environments.

Problem-based learning: Using students' questions to drive knowledge construction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chin, Christine; Chia, Li-Gek

2004-09-01

This study employed problem-based learning for project work in a year 9 biology class. The purpose of the study was to investigate (a) students' inspirations for their self-generated problems and questions, (b) the kinds of questions that students asked individually and collaboratively, and (c) how students' questions guided them in knowledge construction. Data sources included observation and field notes, students' written documents, audiotapes and videotapes of students working in groups, and student interviews. Sources of inspiration for students' problems and questions included cultural beliefs and folklore; wonderment about information propagated by advertisements and the media; curiosity arising from personal encounters, family members' concerns, or observations of others; and issues arising from previous lessons in the school curriculum. Questions asked individually pertained to validation of common beliefs and misconceptions, basic information, explanations, and imagined scenarios. The findings regarding questions asked collaboratively are presented as two assertions. Assertion 1 maintained that students' course of learning were driven by their questions. Assertion 2 was that the ability to ask the right'' questions and the extent to which these could be answered, were important in sustaining students' interest in the project. Implications of the findings for instructional practice are discussed.

Towards a pedagogy of science teaching: an exploration of the impact of students-led questioning and feedback on the attainment of Key Stage 3 Science students in a UK school

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Magaji, A.; Ade-Ojo, G.; Betteney, M.

2018-06-01

This mixed method study investigated the extent to which the use of a model built around student-led questioning and feedback improved the learner engagement and attainment of a cohort of students. It compared outcomes from an experimental with a control group of students in Key-Stage 3 using a set of parameters. It found that the experimental group, who were taught using this model, showed improvements in engagement and attainment when compared to the control group. A model of discourse was proposed to help students take ownership of their learning and offered as a means of helping to transform science teachers' classroom pedagogy.

Using Positive Visual Stimuli to Lighten the Online Learning Experience through in Class Questioning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lai, Chia-Hung; Liu, Ming-Chi; Liu, Chia-Ju; Huang, Yueh-Min

2016-01-01

Using in-class questions is an efficient instructional strategy to keep abreast of the state of student learning in a class. Some studies have found that discussing in-class questions in synchronous learning is helpful. These studies demonstrated that synchronous questions not only provide students with timely feedback, but also allow teachers to…

Library Networking: Current Problems and Future Prospects! Panel Discussion.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Resource Sharing and Information Networks, 1983

1983-01-01

Presents questions and answers from information networking panel discussion involving symposium speakers Barbara Markuson (Indiana Cooperative Library Services Authority), Frank Grisham (Southeastern Library Network), Laima Mockus (New England Library Information Network), Richard McCoy (Research Libraries Group), Rowland Brown (OCLC), and Toni…

Collaborative Reasoning: Language-Rich Discussions for English Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Jie; Dougherty Stahl, Katherine A.

2012-01-01

Collaborative Reasoning (CR) is a peer-led, small group discussion approach that aims to promote intellectual and personal engagement in elementary school classrooms. In CR, students read a text that raises an unresolved issue with multiple and competing points of view. Students are expected to take positions on a big question, support the…

A Cognitive Developmental Approach to Question Asking: A Learning Cycle-Distancing Model.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sigel, Irving E.; Kelley, Todd D.

The role of questioning techniques in the classroom is discussed, with particular emphasis on the cyclical nature of teacher-student dialogues. Excerpts from transcripts of actual dialogues are also analyzed. According to the model, based on Piaget's theory of cognitive development, the questioning strategies are designed to enhance the student's…

Evaluating Impact of Small-Group Discussion on Learning Utilizing a Classroom Response System

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flosason, Thorhallur O.; McGee, Heather M.; Diener-Ludwig, Lori

2015-01-01

Classroom response systems (also referred to as clickers) can enhance learning outcomes and are generally viewed favorably by students and instructors alike. The current study used an alternating treatments design to examine whether discussing questions in small groups before responding to clicker questions during lecture improved accurate…

Allocation of Playing Time within Team Sports--A Problem for Discussion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lorentzen, Torbjørn

2017-01-01

The background of the article is the recurrent discussion about allocation of playing time in team sports involving children and young athletes. The objective is to analyse "why" playing time is a topic for discussion among parents, coaches and athletes. The following question is addressed: Under which condition is it "fair" to…

Discontinuities in University Student Experiences of Learning through Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellis, Robert A.; Calvo, Rafael A.

2006-01-01

This article reports on research into the student experience of learning through discussions in a third-year undergraduate engineering subject. Information engineering students studying e-commerce were required to engage in face-to-face and online discussions as a key aspect of their learning experience. This study investigates the quality of the…

Questions from Afar: The Influence of Outsideness on Web-Based Conversation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deed, Craig; Edwards, Anthony; Gomez, Viviana

2015-01-01

This paper defines the metaphor of outsideness in relation to web-based interaction. Outsideness is conceived of as a key influence in online academic conversation. In particular, through the sharing of cultural perspectives, asking questions to resolve doubt, and collaborative writing and re-writing as a basis for shaping ideas through reasoning.…

Response. To Replicate or Not To Replicate: Is that Schuman's Question?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rau, William

2001-01-01

Responds to the article "Students' Effort and Reward in College Settings" by Howard Schuman. States that there were two reasons why the author and Ann Durand did not copy Schuman et al.'s research design: (1) key questions on study hours contains serious flaws; and (2) the research lacks a theory. (CMK)

Why Don't You Ask Comprehension Questions? (When the Principal Asks).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harp, Bill

1989-01-01

Discusses literature and research concerning comprehension questions, particularly in the context of the Whole Language Movement. Notes that there are other ways for students to demonstrate their text comprehension, such as literature logs, small group discussion, and individual or group projects. Suggests several implications for the classroom.…

[Docimologic analysis of 4th-year preclinical exam questions].

PubMed

Gnagne-Agnero, Koffi N; Zinsou, E M; Assoumou, N M; Adiko, E F

2003-12-01

Operative Dentistry and Endodontics' Department of the School of Dentistry of Abidjan experienced pre-clinical exam in fourth year of dentistry with MCQ following guided courses which aim was to lead student to be correctly in charge of the patients when they start their first clinical performance. The objective off his this work is to show how one's can analyse exams questions efficiently. In this work the authors present et discuss the results of the evaluation of this preclinical exam performed through calculation of index of success (Ir) which gives us information on the difficulty of a question for all the students who answered, the discriminative index (Id) which allow to determine when a question is selective enough to distinguish weak to strong students in a group. The mean to evaluate is well chosen because the questions asked has a Ir between 46% et 80% (satisfying Ir) and the average Id is between 0.30 and 0.53 (Id discriminates well among 0.30 et 1). This methodology allows an evaluation of a high number of students by stocked questions.

Seventy-one important questions for the conservation of marine biodiversity.

PubMed

Parsons, E C M; Favaro, Brett; Aguirre, A Alonso; Bauer, Amy L; Blight, Louise K; Cigliano, John A; Coleman, Melinda A; Côté, Isabelle M; Draheim, Megan; Fletcher, Stephen; Foley, Melissa M; Jefferson, Rebecca; Jones, Miranda C; Kelaher, Brendan P; Lundquist, Carolyn J; McCarthy, Julie-Beth; Nelson, Anne; Patterson, Katheryn; Walsh, Leslie; Wright, Andrew J; Sutherland, William J

2014-10-01

The ocean provides food, economic activity, and cultural value for a large proportion of humanity. Our knowledge of marine ecosystems lags behind that of terrestrial ecosystems, limiting effective protection of marine resources. We describe the outcome of 2 workshops in 2011 and 2012 to establish a list of important questions, which, if answered, would substantially improve our ability to conserve and manage the world's marine resources. Participants included individuals from academia, government, and nongovernment organizations with broad experience across disciplines, marine ecosystems, and countries that vary in levels of development. Contributors from the fields of science, conservation, industry, and government submitted questions to our workshops, which we distilled into a list of priority research questions. Through this process, we identified 71 key questions. We grouped these into 8 subject categories, each pertaining to a broad component of marine conservation: fisheries, climate change, other anthropogenic threats, ecosystems, marine citizenship, policy, societal and cultural considerations, and scientific enterprise. Our questions address many issues that are specific to marine conservation, and will serve as a road map to funders and researchers to develop programs that can greatly benefit marine conservation. © 2014 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Key Words in Instruction. Sift and Sort: The Answers Are in the Questions!

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kramer, Kym; Largent, Connie

2005-01-01

Providing time and guidance to students as they "sift and sort" background information on a potential inquiry topic is important at any level of investigation, from grade school to graduate school. As the inquiring student moves through new information, discusses ideas with teachers and peers and, most of all, has time to reflect on the initial…

Does Feedback Influence Student Postings to Online Discussions?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyer, Katrina A.

2007-01-01

Feedback theory proposes that feedback influences the behavior of a system and its parts and that is governed by rules. This exploratory study attempts to test this theory in a graduate-level class on leadership theory. Twelve students were asked to participate in five online discussions, each lasting one week. The questions for each discussion…

Patient perspectives on answering questions about sexual orientation and gender identity: an integrative review.

PubMed

Bjarnadottir, Ragnhildur I; Bockting, Walter; Dowding, Dawn W

2017-07-01

To examine patients' perceptions of being asked about their sexual orientation and gender identity in the healthcare setting. Health disparities exist in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population, but further research is needed to better understand these disparities. To address this issue, experts recommend the routine collection of sexual orientation and gender identity data in health care. Nurses on the front line of patient care play a key role in the collection of these data. However, to enable nurses to conduct such assessments it is important to understand the perspective of the patients on being asked about their sexual orientation and gender identity in a healthcare setting. An integrative review was conducted using the methodology proposed by Whittemore and Knafl (Journal of Advanced Nursing, 2005, 52, 546). Six electronic databases were searched, and two reviewers independently reviewed papers for inclusion. Papers were included if they were empirical studies, peer-reviewed papers or reports, assessing patient perspectives on discussing sexual orientation and gender identity in the healthcare setting. Twenty-one relevant studies that met the inclusion criteria were identified. A majority of the studies indicated patients' willingness to respond to, and a perceived importance of, questions about sexual orientation and gender identity. However, fears of homophobia and negative consequences hindered willingness to disclose this information. This review indicates that in most cases patients are willing to answer routine questions about their sexual orientation in the healthcare setting and perceive them as important questions to ask. The findings of this review have implications for nurses looking to incorporate questions about sexual orientation into their routine patient assessment. The findings indicate that care providers need to be mindful of heteronormative assumptions and take steps to ensure they are knowledgeable about lesbian, gay

Fire and aquatic ecosystems of the western USA: Current knowledge and key questions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bisson, P.A.; Rieman, B.; Luce, C.; Hessburg, Paul F.; Lee, D.; Kershner, J.; Reeves, G.H.; Gresswell, Robert E.

2003-01-01

Understanding of the effects of wildland fire and fire management on aquatic and riparian ecosystems is an evolving field, with many questions still to be resolved. Limitations of current knowledge, and the certainty that fire management will continue, underscore the need to summarize available information. Integrating fire and fuels management with aquatic ecosystem conservation begins with recognizing that terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems are linked and dynamic, and that fire can play a critical role in maintaining aquatic ecological diversity. To protect aquatic ecosystems we argue that it will be important to: (1) accommodate fire-related and other ecological processes that maintain aquatic habitats and biodiversity, and not simply control fires or fuels; (2) prioritize projects according to risks and opportunities for fire control and the protection of aquatic ecosystems; and (3) develop new consistency in the management and regulatory process. Ultimately, all natural resource management is uncertain; the role of science is to apply experimental design and hypothesis testing to management applications that affect fire and aquatic ecosystems. Policy-makers and the public will benefit from an expanded appreciation of fire ecology that enables them to implement watershed management projects as experiments with hypothesized outcomes, adequate controls, and replication.

Personal Growth During Internship: A Qualitative Analysis of Interns' Responses to Key Questions

PubMed Central

Levine, Rachel B; Haidet, Paul; Kern, David E; Beasley, Brent W; Bensinger, Lisa; Brady, Donald W; Gress, Todd; Hughes, Jennifer; Marwaha, Ajay; Nelson, Jennifer; Wright, Scott M

2006-01-01

BACKGROUND During clinical training, house officers frequently encounter intense experiences that may affect their personal growth. The purpose of this study was to explore processes related to personal growth during internship. DESIGN Prospective qualitative study conducted over the course of internship. PARTICIPANTS Thirty-two postgraduate year (PGY)-1 residents from 9 U.S. internal medicine training programs. APPROACH Every 8 weeks, interns responded by e-mail to an open-ended question related to personal growth. Content analysis methods were used to analyze the interns' writings to identify triggers, facilitators, and barriers related to personal growth. RESULTS Triggers for personal growth included caring for critically ill or dying patients, receiving feedback, witnessing unprofessional behavior, experiencing personal problems, and dealing with the increased responsibility of internship. Facilitators of personal growth included supportive relationships, reflection, and commitment to core values. Fatigue, lack of personal time, and overwhelming work were barriers to personal growth. The balance between facilitators and barriers may dictate the extent to which personal growth occurs. CONCLUSIONS Efforts to support personal growth during residency training include fostering supportive relationships, encouraging reflection, and recognizing interns' core values especially in association with powerful triggers. PMID:16808737

76 FR 10810 - Public Workshop to Discuss Low-Level Radioactive Waste Management

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-02-28

... the environment. Development of the part 61 regulation in the early 1980s was based on several... there have been a number of developments that have called into question some of the key assumptions...-level radioactive wastes that did not exist at the time part 61 was promulgated. The developments...

National GAP Conference 2007-Discussion Groups Report

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ratz, Joan M.; Lamb, Berton Lee

2010-01-01

We led two discussion groups during the 2007 National GAP Conference. These discussion groups provided information to help develop a survey of National Gap Analysis Program (GAP) data users. One group discussed technical issues, and the second group discussed the use of GAP data for decisionmaking. Themes emerging from the technical issues group included concerns about data quality, need for information on how to use data, and passive data distribution. The decisionmaking discussion included a wide range of topics including the need to understand presentation of information, the need to connect with and understand users of data, the revision of GAP's mission, and the adaptability of products and data. The decisionmaking group also raised concerns regarding technical issues. One conclusion is that a deep commitment to ongoing information transfer and support is a key component of success for the GAP program.

When Socratic Dialogue Is Flagging: Questions and Strategies for Engaging Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gose, Michael

2009-01-01

The author studied the pedagogy of Socrates looking for teaching techniques that help maintain students' interest in an ongoing discussion. Socrates' use of such strategies as asking probing questions, expanding the discussion into its relationship to other ideas, assuming the role of the devil's advocate, and spending time on group maintenance…

Complexity Theory, School Leadership and Management: Questions for Theory and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morrison, Keith

2010-01-01

Complexity theory (CT) has had a meteoric rise in management literature and the social sciences. Its fledgling importation into school leadership and management raises several questions and concerns. This article takes one view of CT and argues that, though its key elements have much to offer school leadership and management, caution has to be…

Student teachers’ mathematical questioning and courage in metaphorical thinking learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hendriana, H.; Hidayat, W.; Ristiana, M. G.

2018-01-01

This study was designed in the form of experiments with control group design and post-test only which aimed to examine the role of metaphorical thinking learning in the mathematical questioning ability of student teachers based on the level of mathematical courage. The population of this study was student teachers of mathematics education study program in West Java Province, while the sample of this study was 152 student teachers which were set purposively and then randomly to be included in the experimental class and control class. Based on the results and discussion, it was concluded that: (a) the mathematical questioning ability of student teachers who received Metaphorical Thinking learning was better than those who received conventional learning seen from mathematical courage level; (b) learning and mathematical courage level factors affected the achievement of student teachers’ mathematical questioning ability. In addition, there was no interaction effect between learning and mathematical courage level (high, medium, and low) simultaneously in developing student teachers’ mathematical questioning ability; (c) achievement of mastering mathematical questioning ability of student teacher was still not well achieved on indicator of problem posing in the form of non-routine question and open question.

Creating Discussions with Classroom Voting in Linear Algebra

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cline, Kelly; Zullo, Holly; Duncan, Jonathan; Stewart, Ann; Snipes, Marie

2013-01-01

We present a study of classroom voting in linear algebra, in which the instructors posed multiple-choice questions to the class and then allowed a few minutes for consideration and small-group discussion. After each student in the class voted on the correct answer using a classroom response system, a set of clickers, the instructor then guided a…

Assessing the Relationship Between Questioning and Understanding to Improve Learning and Thinking (QUILT) and Student Achievement in Mathematics: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Craig, Jim; Cairo, III, Leslie

2005-01-01

Good questions, effectively delivered are a key feature of learning and teaching. QUILT is a research-based, field-tested professional development program designed to assist teachers in developing and implementing effective questioning skills to facilitate student learning. The QUILT framework presents classroom questioning as a five-stage…

41 CFR Appendix A to Subpart C of... - 3-Key Points and Principles

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Principles A Appendix A to Subpart C of Part 102 Public Contracts and Property Management Federal Property... 102-3—Key Points and Principles This appendix provides additional guidance in the form of answers to frequently asked questions and identifies key points and principles that may be applied to situations not...

Reconceptualising Moderation in Asynchronous Online Discussions Using Grounded Theory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vlachopoulos, Panos; Cowan, John

2010-01-01

This article reports a grounded theory study of the moderation of asynchronous online discussions, to explore the processes by which tutors in higher education decide when and how to moderate. It aims to construct a theory of e-moderation based on some key factors which appear to influence e-moderation. It discusses previous research on the…

Talking about War in the Persian Gulf: A Discussion Guide for Parents.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Susan; Berman, Sheldon

This guide offers answers to questions parents may have about discussing the Persian Gulf War with their children. The following questions are among those chosen: Should children watch programs about the War in the Persian Gulf? Won't it just scare children more if we talk about it? How can I listen to my children in the most effective and helpful…

Childhood Ataxia: Clinical Features, Pathogenesis, Key Unanswered Questions, and Future Directions

PubMed Central

Ashley, Claire N.; Hoang, Kelly D.; Lynch, David R.; Perlman, Susan L.; Maria, Bernard L.

2013-01-01

Childhood ataxia is characterized by impaired balance and coordination primarily due to cerebellar dysfunction. Friedreich ataxia, a form of childhood ataxia, is the most common multisystem autosomal recessive disease. Most of these patients are homozygous for the GAA repeat expansion located on the first intron of the frataxin gene on chromosome 9. Mutations in the frataxin gene impair mitochondrial function, increase reactive oxygen species, and trigger redistribution of iron in the mitochondria and cytosol. Targeted therapies for Friedreich ataxia are undergoing testing. In addition, a centralized database, patient registry, and natural history study have been launched to support clinical trials in Friedreich ataxia. The 2011 Neurobiology of Disease in Children symposium, held in conjunction with the 40th annual Child Neurology Society meeting, aimed to (1) describe clinical features surrounding Friedreich ataxia, including cardiomyopathy and genetics; (2) discuss recent advances in the understanding of the pathogenesis of Friedreich ataxia and developments of clinical trials; (3) review new investigations of characteristic symptoms; (4) establish clinical and biochemical overlaps in neurodegenerative diseases and possible directions for future basic, translational, and clinical studies. PMID:22859693

Physics 30 Program Machine-Scorable Open-Ended Questions: Unit 2: Electric and Magnetic Forces. Diploma Examinations Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alberta Dept. of Education, Edmonton.

This document outlines the use of machine-scorable open-ended questions for the evaluation of Physics 30 in Alberta. Contents include: (1) an introduction to the questions; (2) sample instruction sheet; (3) fifteen sample items; (4) item information including the key, difficulty, and source of each item; (5) solutions to items having multiple…

Nuclear Power and the Environment--Questions and Answers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campana, Robert J.; Langer, Sidney

This booklet has been developed to help the layman understand and evaluate the various efforts being undertaken to utilize nuclear power for the benefit of mankind. The question and answer format is utilized. Among the topics discussed are: Our Needs for Electricity; Sources of Radiation; Radiation from Nuclear Power Plants; Biological Effects of…

Increasing Accessibility to Advanced Education for Under-Represented Albertans. A Discussion Document

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Online Submission, 2005

2005-01-01

In 2005, Alberta's Minister of Advanced Education initiated a comprehensive exercise to establish a new vision for the province's advanced education system. Through the A Learning Alberta initiative, a revised vision and new policy outcomes for Alberta's advanced education system will be articulated. A key question of A Learning Alberta is how to…

Beyond Questioning: Inquiry Strategies and Cognitive and Affective Elements of Jewish Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sigel, Irving E.; Kress, Jeffrey S.; Elias, Maurice J.

2007-01-01

Questioning-asking has not only long been seen as a central component of Jewish educational practice but has also been thought to be part of a broader culture of Judaism. In this article, we apply cognitive-developmental theories to advance the discussion of the use of questioning in Jewish education. Such theories allow Jewish educators to more…

Evaluating a Bedside Tool for Neuroanatomical Localization with Extended-Matching Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Kevin; Chin, Han Xin; Yau, Christine W. L.; Lim, Erle C. H.; Samarasekera, Dujeepa; Ponnamperuma, Gominda; Tan, Nigel C. K.

2018-01-01

Neuroanatomical localization (NL) is a key skill in neurology, but learners often have difficulty with it. This study aims to evaluate a concise NL tool (NLT) developed to help teach and learn NL. To evaluate the NLT, an extended-matching questions (EMQ) test to assess NL was designed and validated. The EMQ was validated with fourth-year medical…

Discussions in a Socrates Café: Implications for Critical Thinking in Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piro, Jody; Anderson, Gina

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study was to benchmark the types of Socratic questioning that were occurring in a Socrates Café, an online discussion forum, in a graduate-level diversity course in teacher education. The Universal Intellectual Standards were used to analyze Socratic questioning. Results suggested that the nine Universal Intellectual Standards…

The evaluation of a peer-led question-writing task.

PubMed

Nwosu, Amara; Mason, Stephen; Roberts, Anita; Hugel, Heino

2013-06-01

  Novel studies have previously highlighted the educational benefits of peer-led learning and peer marking of examinations. Limited data exist about the educational value of students writing their own exam questions and sharing these with other students.   To evaluate the potential for medical students to learn about palliative care through the process of writing examination questions. methods:  Fourth-year medical students on a palliative medicine rotation were invited to write a short-answer exam question in a similar format to the official examination run by the medical school. The questions were checked for accuracy and applicability by the coordinator, and were then distributed to students. The answers to the student-generated questions were discussed in a feedback forum at the end of the rotation.   Twenty students took part in the exercise. All agreed the exercise was beneficial to their learning. Eighteen (90%) students did not feel the task was too much additional work. Eight (40%) students felt more confident in passing the official medical school exams. Students enjoyed the exercise, with 19 (95%) indicating that they were keen to repeat this in the future.   Peer-led examination question writing could complement the delivery of palliative care teaching for medical students. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

41 CFR Appendix A to Subpart D of... - 3-Key Points and Principles

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Principles A Appendix A to Subpart D of Part 102 Public Contracts and Property Management Federal Property... Subpart D of Part 102-3—Key Points and Principles This appendix provides additional guidance in the form of answers to frequently asked questions and identifies key points and principles that may be applied...

Automatically Generating Questions to Support the Acquisition of Particle Verbs: Evaluating via Crowdsourcing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chinkina, Maria; Ruiz, Simón; Meurers, Detmar

2017-01-01

We integrate insights from research in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) and Computational Linguistics (CL) to generate text-based questions. We discuss the generation of wh- questions as functionally-driven input enhancement facilitating the acquisition of particle verbs and report the results of two crowdsourcing studies. The first study shows…

[Key informers. When and How?].

PubMed

Martín González, R

2009-03-01

When information obtained through duly designed and developed studies is not available, the solution to certain problems that affect the population or that respond to certain questions may be approached by using the information and experience provided by the so-called key informer. The key informer is defined as a person who is in contact with the community or with the problem to be studied, who is considered to have good knowledge of the situation and therefore who is considered an expert. The search for consensus is the basis to obtain information through the key informers. The techniques used have different characteristics based on whether the experts chosen meet together or not, whether they are guided or not, whether they interact with each other or not. These techniques include the survey, the Delphi technique, the nominal group technique, brainwriting, brainstorming, the Phillips 66 technique, the 6-3-5 technique, the community forum and the community impressions technique. Information provided by key informers through the search for consensus is relevant when this is not available or cannot be obtained by other methods. It has permitted the analysis of the existing neurological care model, elaboration of recommendations on visit times for the out-patient neurological care, and the elaboration of guidelines and recommendations for the management of prevalent neurological problems.

Frequently Asked Questions

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The Local Government Solar Project Portal's Frequently Asked Questions page provides a forum for cities and towns to ask specific questions of experts and for EPA to share answers to commonly asked questions.

Notochord morphogenesis in mice: Current understanding & open questions.

PubMed

Balmer, Sophie; Nowotschin, Sonja; Hadjantonakis, Anna-Katerina

2016-05-01

The notochord is a structure common to all chordates, and the feature that the phylum Chordata has been named after. It is a rod-like mesodermal structure that runs the anterior-posterior length of the embryo, adjacent to the ventral neural tube. The notochord plays a critical role in embryonic tissue patterning, for example the dorsal-ventral patterning of the neural tube. The cells that will come to form the notochord are specified at gastrulation. Axial mesodermal cells arising at the anterior primitive streak migrate anteriorly as the precursors of the notochord and populate the notochordal plate. Yet, even though a lot of interest has centered on investigating the functional and structural roles of the notochord, we still have a very rudimentary understanding of notochord morphogenesis. The events driving the formation of the notochord are rapid, taking place over the period of approximately a day in mice. In this commentary, we provide an overview of our current understanding of mouse notochord morphogenesis, from the initial specification of axial mesendodermal cells at the primitive streak, the emergence of these cells at the midline on the surface of the embryo, to their submergence and organization of the stereotypically positioned notochord. We will also discuss some key open questions. Developmental Dynamics 245:547-557, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

From Prejudice to Reasonable Judgement: Integrating (Moral) Value Discussions in University Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aalberts, Joyce; Koster, Edwin; Boschhuizen, Robert

2012-01-01

The central question addressed in this article is how (moral) values discussions in university courses can be integrated in a systematic way. Discussion of (moral) values is fundamental to the Dublin descriptor about judgement formation in use in European universities. To integrate this descriptor and its (moral) values aspects in university…

Research and Teaching: Correlations between Students' Written Responses to Lecture-Tutorial Questions and Their Understandings of Key Astrophysics Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eckenrode, Jeffrey; Prather, Edward E.; Wallace, Colin S.

2016-01-01

This article reports on an investigation into the correlations between students' understandings of introductory astronomy concepts and the correctness and coherency of their written responses to targeted Lecture-Tutorial questions.

Space Station Crew Member Discusses Life in Space with Educators

NASA Image and Video Library

2018-02-01

Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 54 Flight Engineer Joe Acaba discussed life and research on the orbital outpost with several hundred educators gathered at Space Center, Houston during an in-flight question and answer session Feb. 1. The Space Educators Conference was designed to bring teachers together from around the nation to discuss topics of mutual interest. Acaba is in the final month of a five and a half month mission on the complex.

When Is a Question a Question for Children and Adults?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saindon, Mathieu R.; Trehub, Sandra E.; Schellenberg, E. Glenn; van Lieshout, Pascal H. H. M.

2017-01-01

Terminal changes in fundamental frequency provide the most salient acoustic cues to declarative questions, but adults sometimes identify such questions from pre-terminal cues. In the present study, adults and 7- to 10-year-old children judged a single speaker's adult- and child-directed utterances as questions or statements in a gating task with…

Essential Questions on Suicide Bereavement and Postvention

PubMed Central

Andriessen, Karl; Krysinska, Karolina

2011-01-01

During the past decades public and research interest in postvention, i.e., support for families and communities after a suicide, has increased. However, the postvention field is still facing a number of important challenges and questions. This article aims to discuss a series of essential issues on suicide bereavement and postvention, regarding the current state of the art and future developments. Who is a suicide survivor and how many suicide survivors are there? Is suicide bereavement different from other types of bereavement? What are the needs of suicide survivors and what is postvention from a clinical perspective and from a public health perspective? Can postvention be prevention? With this last question, the article concludes with a series of recommendations in order to strengthen the potential of postvention as prevention. PMID:22470275

Outstanding questions: physics beyond the Standard Model.

PubMed

Ellis, John

2012-02-28

The Standard Model of particle physics agrees very well with experiment, but many important questions remain unanswered, among them are the following. What is the origin of particle masses and are they due to a Higgs boson? How does one understand the number of species of matter particles and how do they mix? What is the origin of the difference between matter and antimatter, and is it related to the origin of the matter in the Universe? What is the nature of the astrophysical dark matter? How does one unify the fundamental interactions? How does one quantize gravity? In this article, I introduce these questions and discuss how they may be addressed by experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, with particular attention to the search for the Higgs boson and supersymmetry.

Discussions That "Tickle Our Brains": Constructing Interpretations through Multiple Ethnographic Data-Sets

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lahelma, Elina; Lappalainen, Sirpa; Mietola, Reetta; Palmu, Tarja

2014-01-01

In this article, we discuss the usefulness of collaborative, multi-sited and cross-cultural ethnography. Giving three examples from our work, we suggest that it is possible to find new kinds of interpretations by joint reflections that draw from several studies with their own research questions. The cases presented discuss teachers' embodiment and…

A Question of Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fenwick, John; McMillan, Rod

In a conventional teaching situation, a lecturer may use a wide range of questioning techniques aimed at helping students to become active learners. In distance learning, students are often isolated and have limited opportunities for interaction in a social learning environment. Hence, learning strategies in distance learning need to be structured…

Exam Question Exchange.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alexander, John J., Ed.

1983-01-01

Acceptable answers are provided for two chemistry questions. The first question is related to the prediction of the appearance of non-first-order proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra. The second question is related to extraterrestrial kinetic theory of gases. (JN)

Asking the Right Questions: A Critique of Facebook, Social Media, and Libraries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bodnar, Jonathan; Doshi, Ameet

2011-01-01

Reflecting on the library literature on Facebook, our experience using Facebook and other social networking sites professionally, and our discussions with librarians about these tools, we question the use of social networking sites in academic libraries and note opportunities for discussion and research. Ultimately, we encourage librarians and…

Hard Religious Questions in "Knee-Knock Rise" and "Tuck Everlasting."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Milner, Joseph O.

1995-01-01

Discusses the way Natalie Babbitt brings up issues of religious conflict and questions about religious certainty and skepticism in her young adult novels. Pays particular attention to two of her novels: "Knee-Knock Rise" and "Tuck Everlasting." (HB)

Delta's Key to the TOEFL iBT[R]: Advanced Skill Practice. Revised Edition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gallagher, Nancy

2012-01-01

Delta's Key to the TOEFL iBT: Advanced Skill Practice is a revised and updated edition of Delta's Key to the Next Generation TOEFL Test. Since the introduction of the TOEFL iBT in 2005, there have been significant changes to some of the test questions, particularly the integrated writing and integrated speaking tasks. The new 2011 edition of…

Checklists change communication about key elements of patient care.

PubMed

Newkirk, Michelle; Pamplin, Jeremy C; Kuwamoto, Roderick; Allen, David A; Chung, Kevin K

2012-08-01

Combat casualty care is distributed across professions and echelons of care. Communication within it is fragmented, inconsistent, and prone to failure. Daily checklists used during intensive care unit (ICU) rounds have been shown to improve compliance with evidence-based practices, enhance communication, promote consistency of care, and improve outcomes. Checklists are criticized because it is difficult to establish a causal link between them and their effect on outcomes. We investigated how checklists used during ICU rounds affect communication. We conducted this project in two military ICUs (burn and surgical/trauma). Checklists contained up to 21 questions grouped according to patient population. We recorded which checklist items were discussed during rounds before and after implementation of a "must address" checklist and compared the frequency of discussing items before checklist prompting. Patient discussions addressed more checklist items before prompting at the end of the 2-week evaluation compared with the 2-week preimplementation period (surgical trauma ICU, 36% vs. 77%, p < 0.0001; burn ICU, 47% vs. 72 %, p < 0.001). Most items were addressed more frequently in both ICUs after implementation. Key items such as central line removal, reduction of laboratory testing, medication reconciliation, medication interactions, bowel movements, sedation holidays, breathing trials, and lung protective ventilation showed significant improvements. Checklists modify communication patterns. Improved communication facilitated by checklists may be one mechanism behind their effectiveness. Checklists are powerful tools that can rapidly alter patient care delivery. Implementing checklists could facilitate the rapid dissemination of clinical practice changes, improve communication between echelons of care and between individuals involved in patient care, and reduce missed information.

On the complexity of search for keys in quantum cryptography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Molotkov, S. N.

2016-03-01

The trace distance is used as a security criterion in proofs of security of keys in quantum cryptography. Some authors doubted that this criterion can be reduced to criteria used in classical cryptography. The following question has been answered in this work. Let a quantum cryptography system provide an ɛ-secure key such that ½‖ρ XE - ρ U ⊗ ρ E ‖1 < ɛ, which will be repeatedly used in classical encryption algorithms. To what extent does the ɛ-secure key reduce the number of search steps (guesswork) as compared to the use of ideal keys? A direct relation has been demonstrated between the complexity of the complete consideration of keys, which is one of the main security criteria in classical systems, and the trace distance used in quantum cryptography. Bounds for the minimum and maximum numbers of search steps for the determination of the actual key have been presented.

Teacher-Student Sexual Relations: Key Risks and Ethical Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sikes, Pat

2010-01-01

Researching actual or purported sexual contact between teachers and students raises many difficult ethical issues, questions and dilemmas, which may help to explain why few have ventured into the field. This experientially based paper addresses key problem areas under the headings of: the ethics of researching a sensitive taboo topic; the ethics…

One hundred questions of importance to the conservation of global biological diversity.

PubMed

Sutherland, W J; Adams, W M; Aronson, R B; Aveling, R; Blackburn, T M; Broad, S; Ceballos, G; Côté, I M; Cowling, R M; Da Fonseca, G A B; Dinerstein, E; Ferraro, P J; Fleishman, E; Gascon, C; Hunter, M; Hutton, J; Kareiva, P; Kuria, A; Macdonald, D W; Mackinnon, K; Madgwick, F J; Mascia, M B; McNeely, J; Milner-Gulland, E J; Moon, S; Morley, C G; Nelson, S; Osborn, D; Pai, M; Parsons, E C M; Peck, L S; Possingham, H; Prior, S V; Pullin, A S; Rands, M R W; Ranganathan, J; Redford, K H; Rodriguez, J P; Seymour, F; Sobel, J; Sodhi, N S; Stott, A; Vance-Borland, K; Watkinson, A R

2009-06-01

We identified 100 scientific questions that, if answered, would have the greatest impact on conservation practice and policy. Representatives from 21 international organizations, regional sections and working groups of the Society for Conservation Biology, and 12 academics, from all continents except Antarctica, compiled 2291 questions of relevance to conservation of biological diversity worldwide. The questions were gathered from 761 individuals through workshops, email requests, and discussions. Voting by email to short-list questions, followed by a 2-day workshop, was used to derive the final list of 100 questions. Most of the final questions were derived through a process of modification and combination as the workshop progressed. The questions are divided into 12 sections: ecosystem functions and services, climate change, technological change, protected areas, ecosystem management and restoration, terrestrial ecosystems, marine ecosystems, freshwater ecosystems, species management, organizational systems and processes, societal context and change, and impacts of conservation interventions. We anticipate that these questions will help identify new directions for researchers and assist funders in directing funds. ©2009 Society for Conservation Biology.

Acoustic Neuroma: Questions to Discuss with Your Doctor

MedlinePlus

... products will be searched. Shopping Cart Description Qty Price The Harvard Medical School 6-Week Plan for ... Memory: Understanding Age-Related Memory Loss (PDF - Lowest Price!) $18.00 Harvard Health Letter (Print & Online Access ( ...

Colonic Polyps: Questions to Discuss with Your Doctor

MedlinePlus

... products will be searched. Shopping Cart Description Qty Price The Harvard Medical School 6-Week Plan for ... Memory: Understanding Age-Related Memory Loss (PDF - Lowest Price!) $18.00 Harvard Health Letter (Print & Online Access ( ...

Opportunities and questions for the fundamental biological sciences in space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sharp, Joseph C.; Vernikos, Joan

1993-01-01

With the advent of sophisticated space facilities we discuss the overall nature of some biological questions that can be addressed. We point out the need for broad participation by the biological community, the necessary facilities, and some unique requirements.

Key issues review: evolution on rugged adaptive landscapes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Obolski, Uri; Ram, Yoav; Hadany, Lilach

2018-01-01

Adaptive landscapes represent a mapping between genotype and fitness. Rugged adaptive landscapes contain two or more adaptive peaks: allele combinations with higher fitness than any of their neighbors in the genetic space. How do populations evolve on such rugged landscapes? Evolutionary biologists have struggled with this question since it was first introduced in the 1930s by Sewall Wright. Discoveries in the fields of genetics and biochemistry inspired various mathematical models of adaptive landscapes. The development of landscape models led to numerous theoretical studies analyzing evolution on rugged landscapes under different biological conditions. The large body of theoretical work suggests that adaptive landscapes are major determinants of the progress and outcome of evolutionary processes. Recent technological advances in molecular biology and microbiology allow experimenters to measure adaptive values of large sets of allele combinations and construct empirical adaptive landscapes for the first time. Such empirical landscapes have already been generated in bacteria, yeast, viruses, and fungi, and are contributing to new insights about evolution on adaptive landscapes. In this Key Issues Review we will: (i) introduce the concept of adaptive landscapes; (ii) review the major theoretical studies of evolution on rugged landscapes; (iii) review some of the recently obtained empirical adaptive landscapes; (iv) discuss recent mathematical and statistical analyses motivated by empirical adaptive landscapes, as well as provide the reader with instructions and source code to implement simulations of evolution on adaptive landscapes; and (v) discuss possible future directions for this exciting field.

Video-Based Test Questions: A Novel Means of Evaluation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hertenstein, Matthew J.; Wayand, Joseph F.

2008-01-01

Many psychology instructors present videotaped examples of behavior at least occasionally during their courses. However, few include video clips during examinations. We provide examples of video-based questions, offer guidelines for their use, and discuss their benefits and drawbacks. In addition, we provide empirical evidence to support the use…

Exploring the relation between online case-based discussions and learning outcomes in dental education.

PubMed

Koole, Sebastiaan; Vervaeke, Stijn; Cosyn, Jan; De Bruyn, Hugo

2014-11-01

Online case-based discussions, parallel to theoretical dental education, have been highly valued by students and supervisors. This study investigated the relation between variables of online group discussions and learning outcomes. At Ghent University in Belgium, undergraduate dental students (years two and three) are required to participate in online case-based discussion groups (five students/group) in conjunction with two theoretical courses on basic periodontics and related therapy. Each week, a patient case is discussed under supervision of a periodontist, who authored the case and performed the treatment. Each case includes treatment history and demand, intra- and extraoral images, and full diagnostic information with periodontal and radiographic status. For this retrospective study, data were obtained for all 252 students in forty-three discussion groups between 2009 and 2012. Spearman's rank correlations were calculated to investigate the relation among group dynamics (number of group posts and views), individual student contributions (number of individual posts, newly introduced elements, questions, and reactions to other posts), supervisors' interventions (number of posts and posed questions), and learning outcomes (examination result). The results showed that learning outcomes were significantly related to the number of student posts (Spearman's rho (ρ)=0.19), newly introduced elements (ρ=0.21), reactions to other posts (ρ=0.14), number of supervisors' interventions (ρ=0.12), and supervisors' questions (ρ=0.20). These results suggest that individual student contributions during online case-based discussions and the provided supervision were related to learning outcomes.

Key on demand (KoD) for software-defined optical networks secured by quantum key distribution (QKD).

PubMed

Cao, Yuan; Zhao, Yongli; Colman-Meixner, Carlos; Yu, Xiaosong; Zhang, Jie

2017-10-30

Software-defined optical networking (SDON) will become the next generation optical network architecture. However, the optical layer and control layer of SDON are vulnerable to cyberattacks. While, data encryption is an effective method to minimize the negative effects of cyberattacks, secure key interchange is its major challenge which can be addressed by the quantum key distribution (QKD) technique. Hence, in this paper we discuss the integration of QKD with WDM optical networks to secure the SDON architecture by introducing a novel key on demand (KoD) scheme which is enabled by a novel routing, wavelength and key assignment (RWKA) algorithm. The QKD over SDON with KoD model follows two steps to provide security: i) quantum key pools (QKPs) construction for securing the control channels (CChs) and data channels (DChs); ii) the KoD scheme uses RWKA algorithm to allocate and update secret keys for different security requirements. To test our model, we define a security probability index which measures the security gain in CChs and DChs. Simulation results indicate that the security performance of CChs and DChs can be enhanced by provisioning sufficient secret keys in QKPs and performing key-updating considering potential cyberattacks. Also, KoD is beneficial to achieve a positive balance between security requirements and key resource usage.

Comparison of didactic lectures and open-group discussions in surgical teaching.

PubMed

Sirikumpiboon, Siripong

2014-11-01

The teaching of medicine has varied and has continued to develop until today. Most courses rely on the lecture although it may bring less benefit to students. Another teaching technique, the open group discussion, may not be the most effective, but is widely accepted as a teaching development especially for its overall improvement of student skills. Basically, the teaching of surgery has more limitations than other subjects because patients with critical conditions are required. The present study was designed to compare the effectiveness of these two teaching methods, the lecture and the open group discussion, in the Department of Surgery, Rajavithi Hospital. Fifth year medical students enrolled from 2554-2555 BE (AD 2011-2012) were recruited in the study and randomly divided in groups by the Office of Administration, College of Medicine, Rangsit University. A colorectal surgeon taught the subject, common anorectal disease, throughout the study year. The drawing method was used to randomize the members grouped by teaching methods. The assessment comprised multiple choice questions (MCQ) and multiple essay questions (MEQ). Seventy-three students (39 females, 34 males) were recruited. Students' basic characteristic showed no association between groups of teaching methods. Higher mean MEQ scores were found in the open discussion group (55.83%) compared with those taught by lecture (31.23%), exhibiting significant difference (p<0.001). With respect to MCQ1 and MCQ4, students in the open discussion group had higher scores than those in the lecture group), was also with statistical significance (p = 0.02). Teaching medicine differs from other disciplines. To achieve the most effective teaching performance, teaching methods may be limited in some subjects. This study was a partial project for teaching in the Department of Surgery. It was shown that students in the open discussion group had better MCQ and MEQ scores than those in the lecture group. In developing student

How Do Question Writers Compose External Examination Questions? Question Writing as a Socio-Cognitive Process

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Martin; Constantinou, Filio; Crisp, Victoria

2017-01-01

The focus of this research is on the practice of education examination question writing. Educational examinations are tests that are taken by candidates in schools or colleges but that are externally developed, administered and marked by an assessment organisation. Whilst the practice of writing external examination questions is ubiquitous,…

Gay-Straight Alliances as Settings to Discuss Health Topics: Individual and Group Factors Associated with Substance Use, Mental Health, and Sexual Health Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Poteat, V. P.; Heck, N. C.; Yoshikawa, H.; Calzo, J. P.

2017-01-01

Sexual minority (e.g. lesbian, gay, bisexual, questioning; LGBQ) and gender minority (e.g. transgender) youth experience myriad health risks. Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs) are school-based settings where they may have opportunities to discuss substance use, mental health, and sexual health issues in ways that are safe and tailored to their…

Twelve tips on writing a discussion case that facilitates teaching and engages learners.

PubMed

Cohen, David A; Newman, Lori R; Fishman, Laurie N

2017-02-01

The authors share twelve practical tips on writing a case that engages learners in active learning and discussion. They first advise that, during the initial preparation of the case, authors should (1) identify the case goals and objectives, and (2) identify the level of the learners. When writing the case, authors should (3) use active and colorful language; (4) use patients' own descriptions rather than medical language; (5) allow the learners to interpret data themselves; (6) allow for natural discovery rather than presenting information chronologically; and (7) be realistic about interruptions in patient care. In addition, case authors should pay attention to methods that enhance discussion by (8) creating barriers to diagnostic or treatment options; (9) promoting questions and discussion over answers; (10) using cues to assure discussion flow and knowledge exploration; and (11) omitting details or inserting informational distractors. Finally, well-crafted questions are essential during the case presentation to engage learners in higher-order thinking; and to (12) stimulate curiosity and reflection.

Students discussing their mathematical ideas: the role of the teacher

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pijls, Monique; Dekker, Rijkje

2011-12-01

This article adds to current research on enhancing student discourse in mathematics teaching specifically in secondary schools but with equal relevance to elementary schools. Three mathematics teachers in secondary education were confronted with the question of how to encourage students to discuss their work with each other in the daily practice of their mathematical lessons. In response to this question the teachers devised three different approaches to encourage student discourse. One of the teachers chose to experiment with another setting to perform mathematical tasks that involved students working together on a group test. The second teacher experimented with a new kind of help when students were working on their maths tasks and asked for assistance. The third created a new setting in which the teacher (temporarily) did not provide mathematical hints and the students had to solve their own problems. The three teachers were very motivated, but they all had difficulties in not giving explanations themselves when supporting their students in their collaborative mathematical learning. They found that temporarily diminishing their product help stimulated discussion between students. It also became clear that the process of teacher reflection and follow-up discussions with the researcher/observers promoted changes of practice.

Pretest online discussion groups to augment teaching and learning.

PubMed

Kuhn, Jonathan; Hasbargen, Barbara; Miziniak, Halina

2010-01-01

Tests and final examination scores of three semesters of control students in a nursing foundation course were compared with tests and final examination scores of three semesters of participating students. Participating students were offered access to an asynchronous pretest online discussion activity with a faculty e-moderator. While the simplified Bloom's revised taxonomy assisted in creating appropriate preparatory test and final examination questions for pretest online discussion, Salmon's five-stage online method provided direction to the e-moderator on how to encourage students to achieve Bloom's higher-order thinking skills during the pretest online discussions. Statistical analysis showed the pretest online discussion activity had a generally positive impact on tests and final examination scores, when controlling for a number of possible confounding variables, including instructor, cumulative grade point average, age, and credit hours.

What Is the Difference between a Puzzle and a Maths Question?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Eastaway, Robert

1997-01-01

Discusses the differences between puzzles and mathematics questions. Argues that mathematics teachers need to be thoroughly grounded in the well-documented recreational side of mathematics and be encouraged to use it. (JRH)

Dynamics of list-server discussion on genetically modified foods.

PubMed

Triunfol, Marcia L; Hines, Pamela J

2004-04-01

Computer-mediated discussion lists, or list-servers, are popular tools in settings ranging from professional to personal to educational. A discussion list on genetically modified food (GMF) was created in September 2000 as part of the Forum on Genetically Modified Food developed by Science Controversies: Online Partnerships in Education (SCOPE), an educational project that uses computer resources to aid research and learning around unresolved scientific questions. The discussion list "GMF-Science" was actively supported from January 2001 to May 2002. The GMF-Science list welcomed anyone interested in discussing the controversies surrounding GMF. Here, we analyze the dynamics of the discussions and how the GMF-Science list may contribute to learning. Activity on the GMF-Science discussion list reflected some but not all the controversies that were appearing in more traditional publication formats, broached other topics not well represented in the published literature, and tended to leave undiscussed the more technical research developments.

Worker Learning and Worktime Flexibility. A Policy Discussion Paper.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meier, Gretl S.

A study explored the feasibility of research on the impact of flexible work patterns on the educational and training opportunities available to women in low-status jobs. Intended to provide a basis for a more informed discussion of policy questions pertaining to flexible worktime, the study involved a review of related literature, a series of…

A question prompt list for patients with advanced cancer in the final year of life: development and cross-cultural evaluation.

PubMed

Walczak, Adam; Mazer, Benjamin; Butow, Phyllis N; Tattersall, Martin H N; Clayton, Josephine M; Davidson, Patricia M; Young, Jane; Ladwig, Susan; Epstein, Ronald M

2013-09-01

Clinicians and patients find prognosis and end-of-life care discussions challenging. Misunderstanding one's prognosis can contribute to poor decision-making and end-of-life quality of life. A question prompt list (booklet of questions patients can ask clinicians) targeting these issues may help overcome communication barriers. None exists for end-of-life discussions outside the palliative care setting. To develop/pilot a question prompt list facilitating discussion/planning of end-of-life care for oncology patients with advanced cancer from Australia and the United States and to explore acceptability, perceived benefits/challenges of using the question prompt list, suggestions for improvements and the necessity of country-specific adaptations. An expert panel developed a question prompt list targeting prognosis and end-of-life issues. Australian/US semi-structured interviews and one focus group elicited feedback about the question prompt list. Transcribed data were analysed using qualitative methods. Thirty-four patients with advanced cancer (15 Australian/19 US) and 13 health professionals treating such patients (7 Australian/6 US) from two Australian and one US cancer centre participated. Most endorsed the entire question prompt list, though a minority queried the utility/appropriateness of some questions. Analysis identified four global themes: (1) reinforcement of known benefits of question prompt lists, (2) appraisal of content and suggestions for further developments, (3) perceived benefits and challenges in using the question prompt list and (4) contrasts in Australian/US feedback. These contrasts necessitated distinct Australian/US final versions of the question prompt list. Participants endorsed the question prompt list as acceptable and useful. Feedback resulted in two distinct versions of the question prompt list, accommodating differences between Australian and US approaches to end-of-life discussions, highlighting the appropriateness of tailoring

Formative questioning in computer learning environments: a course for pre-service mathematics teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akkoç, Hatice

2015-11-01

This paper focuses on a specific aspect of formative assessment, namely questioning. Given that computers have gained widespread use in learning and teaching, specific attention should be made when organizing formative assessment in computer learning environments (CLEs). A course including various workshops was designed to develop knowledge and skills of questioning in CLEs. This study investigates how pre-service mathematics teachers used formative questioning with technological tools such as Geogebra and Graphic Calculus software. Participants are 35 pre-service mathematics teachers. To analyse formative questioning, two types of questions are investigated: mathematical questions and technical questions. Data were collected through lesson plans, teaching notes, interviews and observations. Descriptive statistics of the number of questions in the lesson plans before and after the workshops are presented. Examples of two types of questions are discussed using the theoretical framework. One pre-service teacher was selected and a deeper analysis of the way he used questioning during his three lessons was also investigated. The findings indicated an improvement in using technical questions for formative purposes and that the course provided a guideline in planning and using mathematical and technical questions in CLEs.

Exam Question Exchange.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alexander, John J., Ed.

1987-01-01

Contains two articles relating to chemistry examination questions. One provides examples of how to sequence multiple choice questions so that partial credit may be given for some responses. The second includes a question and solution dealing with stereoisomerism as a result of free radical chlorination of a nonstereoisometic substance. (TW)

A Hybrid Approach to Clinical Question Answering

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-11-01

participation in TREC, we submitted a single run using a hybrid Natural Language Processing ( NLP )-driven approach to accomplish the given task. Evaluation re...for the CDS track uses a variety of NLP - based techniques to address the clinical questions provided. We present a description of our approach, and...discuss our experimental setup, results and eval- uation in the subsequent sections. 2 Description of Our Approach Our hybrid NLP -driven method presents a

YouEDU: Addressing Confusion in MOOC Discussion Forums by Recommending Instructional Video Clips

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Agrawal, Akshay; Venkatraman, Jagadish; Leonard, Shane; Paepcke, Andreas

2015-01-01

In Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs), struggling learners often seek help by posting questions in discussion forums. Unfortunately, given the large volume of discussion in MOOCs, instructors may overlook these learners' posts, detrimentally impacting the learning process and exacerbating attrition. In this paper, we present YouEDU, an…

The Use of Electronic Question and Answer Forums in Mathematics Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuck, Sandra

2003-01-01

Many mathematics educators share a view of mathematics as a social and cultural phenomenon and believe that the learning of mathematics concepts is developed and enhanced through the use of learning communities. Electronic discussion boards provide one avenue for supporting such social learning. This paper discusses the use of a Question and…

Brain plasticity, memory, and aging: a discussion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bennett, E.L.; Rosenzweig, M.R.

1977-12-01

It is generally assumed that memory faculties decline with age. A discussion of the relationship of memory and aging and the possibility of retarding the potential decline is hampered by the fact that no satisfactory explanation of memory is available in either molecular or anatomical terms. However, this lack of description of memory does not mean that there is a lack of suggested mechanisms for long-term memory storage. Present theories of memory usually include first, neurophysiological or electrical events, followed by a series of chemical events which ultimately lead to long-lasting anatomical changes in the brain. Evidence is increasing formore » the biochemical and anatomical plasticity of the nervous system and its importance in the normal functioning of the brain. Modification of this plasticity may be an important factor in senescence. This discussion reports experiments which indicate that protein synthesis and anatomical changes may be involved in long-term memory storage. Environmental influences can produce quantitative differences in brain anatomy and in behavior. In experimental animals, enriched environments lead to more complex anatomical patterns than do colony or impoverished environments. This raises fundamental questions about the adequacy of the isolated animal which is frequently being used as a model for aging research. A more important applied question is the role of social and intellectual stimulation in influencing aging of the human brain.« less

A Campus-Wide Investigation of Clicker Implementation: The Status of Peer Discussion in STEM Classes.

PubMed

Lewin, Justin D; Vinson, Erin L; Stetzer, MacKenzie R; Smith, Michelle K

2016-01-01

At the University of Maine, middle and high school teachers observed more than 250 university science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classes and collected information on the nature of instruction, including how clickers were being used. Comparisons of classes taught with (n = 80) and without (n = 184) clickers show that, while instructional behaviors differ, the use of clickers alone does not significantly impact the time instructors spend lecturing. One possible explanation stems from the observation of three distinct modes of clicker use: peer discussion, in which students had the opportunity to talk with one another during clicker questions; individual thinking, in which no peer discussion was observed; and alternative collaboration, in which students had time for discussion, but it was not paired with clicker questions. Investigation of these modes revealed differences in the range of behaviors, the amount of time instructors lecture, and how challenging the clicker questions were to answer. Because instructors can vary their instructional style from one clicker question to the next, we also explored differences in how individual instructors incorporated peer discussion during clicker questions. These findings provide new insights into the range of clicker implementation at a campus-wide level and how such findings can be used to inform targeted professional development for faculty. © 2016 J. D. Lewin et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2016 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

Does Question Structure Affect Exam Performance in the Geosciences?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Day, E. A.; D'Arcy, M. K.; Craig, L.; Streule, M. J.; Passmore, E.; Irving, J. C. E.

2015-12-01

The jump to university level exams can be challenging for some students, often resulting in poor marks, which may be detrimental to their confidence and ultimately affect their overall degree class. Previous studies have found that question structure can have a strong impact on the performance of students in college level exams (see Gibson et al., 2015, for a discussion of its impact on physics undergraduates). Here, we investigate the effect of question structure on the exam results of geology and geophysics undergraduate students. Specifically, we analyse the performance of students in questions that have a 'scaffolded' framework and compare them to their performance in open-ended questions and coursework. We also investigate if observed differences in exam performance are correlated with the educational background and gender of students, amongst other factors. It is important for all students to be able to access their degree courses, no matter what their backgrounds may be. Broadening participation in the geosciences relies on removing systematic barriers to achievement. Therefore we recommend that exams are either structured with scaffolding in questions at lower levels, or students are explicitly prepared for this transition. We also recommend that longitudinal studies of exam performance are conducted within individual departments, and this work outlines one approach to analysing performance data.

INDUSTRIAL CONTROL SYSTEM CYBER SECURITY: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS RELEVANT TO NUCLEAR FACILITIES, SAFEGUARDS AND SECURITY

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Robert S. Anderson; Mark Schanfein; Trond Bjornard

2011-07-01

Typical questions surrounding industrial control system (ICS) cyber security always lead back to: What could a cyber attack do to my system(s) and; how much should I worry about it? These two leading questions represent only a fraction of questions asked when discussing cyber security as it applies to any program, company, business, or organization. The intent of this paper is to open a dialog of important pertinent questions and answers that managers of nuclear facilities engaged in nuclear facility security and safeguards should examine, i.e., what questions should be asked; and how do the answers affect an organization's abilitymore » to effectively safeguard and secure nuclear material. When a cyber intrusion is reported, what does that mean? Can an intrusion be detected or go un-noticed? Are nuclear security or safeguards systems potentially vulnerable? What about the digital systems employed in process monitoring, and international safeguards? Organizations expend considerable efforts to ensure that their facilities can maintain continuity of operations against physical threats. However, cyber threats particularly on ICSs may not be well known or understood, and often do not receive adequate attention. With the disclosure of the Stuxnet virus that has recently attacked nuclear infrastructure, many organizations have recognized the need for an urgent interest in cyber attacks and defenses against them. Several questions arise including discussions about the insider threat, adequate cyber protections, program readiness, encryption, and many more. These questions, among others, are discussed so as to raise the awareness and shed light on ways to protect nuclear facilities and materials against such attacks.« less

The Inquiry Acts of Bilingual Children in Literature Discussions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martinez-Roldan, Carmen M.

2005-01-01

In this article, the author examines the inquiry talk of a small group of bilingual children discussing the text "Oliver Button Is a Sissy". The children raised many questions about the story and about issues of gender. The major focus of this article is on the participants' inquiry talk and the context that mediated their talk. The author uses…

What are Middle School Students Talking About During Clicker Questions? Characterizing Small-Group Conversations Mediated by Classroom Response Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barth-Cohen, Lauren A.; Smith, Michelle K.; Capps, Daniel K.; Lewin, Justin D.; Shemwell, Jonathan T.; Stetzer, MacKenzie R.

2016-02-01

There is a growing interest in using classroom response systems or clickers in science classrooms at both the university and K-12 levels. Typically, when instructors use this technology, students are asked to answer and discuss clicker questions with their peers. The existing literature on using clickers at the K-12 level has largely focused on the efficacy of clicker implementation, with few studies investigating collaboration and discourse among students. To expand on this work, we investigated the question: Does clicker use promote productive peer discussion among middle school science students? Specifically, we collected data from middle school students in a physical science course. Students were asked to answer a clicker question individually, discuss the question with their peers, answer the same question again, and then subsequently answer a new matched-pair question individually. We audio recorded the peer conversations to characterize the nature of the student discourse. To analyze these conversations, we used a grounded analysis approach and drew on literature about collaborative knowledge co-construction. The analysis of the conversations revealed that middle school students talked about science content and collaboratively discussed ideas. Furthermore, the majority of conversations, both ones that positively and negatively impacted student performance, contained evidence of collaborative knowledge co-construction.

Beginning EFL Teachers' Beliefs about Quality Questions and Their Questioning Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pham, Ly Ngoc Khanh; Hamid, M. Obaidul

2013-01-01

Motivated by the scarcity of research that examines the impact of teacher beliefs on their actual practices in Vietnam, this study investigated the relationship between teachers' beliefs about quality questions and their questioning behaviours in terms of questioning purposes, content focus, students' cognitive level, wording and syntax. Thirteen…

The artful dodger: answering the wrong question the right way.

PubMed

Rogers, Todd; Norton, Michael I

2011-06-01

What happens when speakers try to "dodge" a question they would rather not answer by answering a different question? In 4 studies, we show that listeners can fail to detect dodges when speakers answer similar-but objectively incorrect-questions (the "artful dodge"), a detection failure that goes hand-in-hand with a failure to rate dodgers more negatively. We propose that dodges go undetected because listeners' attention is not usually directed toward a goal of dodge detection (i.e., Is this person answering the question?) but rather toward a goal of social evaluation (i.e., Do I like this person?). Listeners were not blind to all dodge attempts, however. Dodge detection increased when listeners' attention was diverted from social goals toward determining the relevance of the speaker's answers (Study 1), when speakers answered a question egregiously dissimilar to the one asked (Study 2), and when listeners' attention was directed to the question asked by keeping it visible during speakers' answers (Study 4). We also examined the interpersonal consequences of dodge attempts: When listeners were guided to detect dodges, they rated speakers more negatively (Study 2), and listeners rated speakers who answered a similar question in a fluent manner more positively than speakers who answered the actual question but disfluently (Study 3). These results add to the literatures on both Gricean conversational norms and goal-directed attention. We discuss the practical implications of our findings in the contexts of interpersonal communication and public debates.

Panel Discussion on Multi-Disciplinary Analysis

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Garcia, Robert

2002-01-01

The Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is hosting the Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop (TFAWS) during the week of September 10, 2001. Included in this year's TFAWS is a panel session on Multidisciplinary Analysis techniques. The intent is to provide an opportunity for the users to gain information as to what product may be best suited for their applications environment and to provide feedback to you, the developers, on future desired developments. Potential users of multidisciplinary analysis (MDA) techniques are often overwhelmed by the number of choices available to them via commercial products and by the pace of new developments in this area. The purpose of this panel session is to provide a forum wherein MDA tools available and under development can be discussed, compared, and contrasted. The intent of this panel is to provide the end-user with the information necessary to make educated decisions on how to proceed with selecting their MDA tool. It is anticipated that the discussions this year will focus on MDA techniques that couple discipline codes or algorithms (as opposed to monolithic, unified MDA approaches). The MDA developers will be asked to prepare a product overview presentation addressing specific questions provided by the panel organizers. The purpose of these questions will be to establish the method employed by the particular MDA technique for communication between the discipline codes, to establish the similarities and differences amongst the various approaches, and to establish the range of experience and applications for each particular MDA approach.

A question module for assessing community stigma towards HIV in rural India.

PubMed

Vlassoff, Carol; Weiss, Mitchell G; Rao, Shobha

2013-05-01

This paper describes a simple question module to assess community stigma in rural India. Fear of stigma is known to prevent people from seeking HIV testing and to contribute to further disease transmission, yet relatively little attention has been paid to community stigma and ways of measuring it. The module, based on a vignette of a fictional HIV-positive woman, was administered to 494 married women and 186 unmarried male and female adolescents in a village in rural Maharashtra, India. To consider the usefulness of the question module, a series of hypotheses were developed based on the correlations found in other studies between HIV-related stigma and socio-demographic characteristics (age, education, discussion of HIV with others, knowing someone living with HIV, knowledge about its transmission and whether respondents acknowledged stigmatizing attitudes as their own or attributed them to others). Many of the study's hypotheses were confirmed. Among married women, correlates of stigma included older age, lack of discussion of HIV and lack of knowledge about transmission; among adolescents, lower education and lack of discussion of HIV were the most significant correlates. The paper concludes that the question module is a useful tool for investigating the impact of interventions to reduce stigma and augment social support for people living with HIV in rural India.

How Are You Doing? Key Performance Indicators and Benchmarking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fahey, John P.

2011-01-01

School business officials need to "know and show" that their operations are well managed. To do so, they ask themselves questions, such as "How are they doing? How do they compare with others? Are they making progress fast enough? Are they using the best practices?" Using key performance indicators (KPIs) and benchmarking as regular parts of their…

Identity, Discourse, and Safety in a High School Discussion of Same-Sex Marriage

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beck, Terence A.

2013-01-01

Scholars have called for discussions of same-sex marriage in schools as one way of ending the curricular silence around lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) people. Yet, concerns about how students might talk about LGBTQ people can contribute to teachers' reluctance to initiate such discussions. Queer theory suggests that…

Improve Your Marketing Results by Asking Peter F. Drucker's "Five Most Important Questions."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rossum, Constance; Baum, Geoffrey

2001-01-01

This case study demonstrates how the Office of Marketing & Public Relations at Claremont McKenna College used five "Drucker Tool" questions to improve marketing's image on campus and awareness of the college among key constituencies. It concludes with a reevaluation of the initial marketing strategy based on the growing importance of…

Effect of Using Assist Devices on Exam Completion Questions among Thai College Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneider, Arthur E.

2017-01-01

Action research was undertaken to begin to explore the possibility of improving second-language Thai college student performance on completion questions by using bolded and underscored words in test item stems, called "assist devices." This intervention was designed to focus student attention on key terms. Twenty-one students, in an…

Assessing Multiple Choice Question (MCQ) Tests--A Mathematical Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scharf, Eric M.; Baldwin, Lynne P.

2007-01-01

The reasoning behind popular methods for analysing the raw data generated by multiple choice question (MCQ) tests is not always appreciated, occasionally with disastrous results. This article discusses and analyses three options for processing the raw data produced by MCQ tests. The article shows that one extreme option is not to penalize a…

Long-Term Follow-Up of Echolalia and Question Answering.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foxx, R. M.; Faw, Gerald D.

1990-01-01

A long-term followup (from 26 to 57 months) of echolalia and correct question-answering was conducted with six mentally retarded adult subjects identified from three previously published studies. Echolalia was lower than in baseline in 80.6 percent of the followups. Issues related to the study of maintenance are discussed. (Author/DB)

Risky Business - Questions To Ask Your Liability Insurance Agent and Attorney.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strickland, James

2000-01-01

Discusses the unique vulnerabilities of the child care industry related to liability insurance. Presents questions for beginning liability- and coverage-related dialogue between the caregiver or center director and the attorney and insurance agent. (KB)

Six Questions for Well-Child Care Redesign.

PubMed

Freeman, Brandi K; Coker, Tumaini R

2018-05-29

In the United States, well-child care has the goal of providing comprehensive care to children by addressing developmental, behavioral, psychosocial, and health issues through visits at recommended intervals. The preventive care needs of families can outpace the capacity of clinics and practices to provide it, thus necessitating a redesign of our well-child care system that aligns the structure of preventive care delivery with the needs of families. In this Perspectives article, we focus on six questions (the what, when, who, why, how, and where) for well-child care redesign for infants and young children; by addressing these key questions and providing recommendations for advancing well-child care redesign in the clinical and research arenas, we hope to accelerate the process of well-child care redesign. In the current political and socio-economic environment, continuing with well-child care "as usual" will mean that many families will find that their well-child care visits do not fully address the most pressing needs impacting child health and well-being. It's time to stop tinkering around the edges, and implement and sustain real change in our system for preventive care. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Teaching Strategies in Online Discussion Board: A Framework in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chou, Pao-Nan

2012-01-01

In order to promote meaningful learning in the online discussion board, this study attempted to identify key factors that affect the online discussion by a literature review and propose an innovative instructional framework to deal with those factors. Through the literature review, five factors were identified. An innovative instructional…

The maximum entropy production principle: two basic questions.

PubMed

Martyushev, Leonid M

2010-05-12

The overwhelming majority of maximum entropy production applications to ecological and environmental systems are based on thermodynamics and statistical physics. Here, we discuss briefly maximum entropy production principle and raises two questions: (i) can this principle be used as the basis for non-equilibrium thermodynamics and statistical mechanics and (ii) is it possible to 'prove' the principle? We adduce one more proof which is most concise today.

Essential Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilhelm, Jeffrey D.

2012-01-01

The secret to teaching may be as simple as asking students good questions--and then giving them the opportunity to find the answers. The author shares how he uses essential questions that set the class off on an inquiry. Rather than consuming information that he distributes and then repeating it on a test, students carry out their own…

Panel Discussion Vi: Cosmology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, E.; Dolgov, A.; Crothers, S.; Mitra, A.; Rubakov, V.; Zakharov, A.

2014-03-01

Questions to discuss: * To what extent are Dark Matter and Dark Energy necessary to explain the observed properties of the Universe? * Why are the Dark matter profiles so universal at the galactic scales? * Are there viable candidates of modified gravitational dynamics to exclude the dark components of Universe? * Do we have any perspectives to distinguish the Dark Energy from the cosmological constant? * Are there any certain indications for sterile neutrinos in the cosmos? * How does the Planck data change the view of inflation in the early Universe? What could be the origin of the inflaton plateau? So far, what else is interesting about the Planck data? * What are the nearest crucial points in cosmological observations? * Can we be more decisive discriminating between the anthropic principle, the superstringy landscape, fine tuning or dynamics as reasons for the cosmological coincidences?

How the Visual Rhetoric of Online Discussions Enables and Constrains Students' Participation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sherry, Michael B.

2017-01-01

Whole-class discussions, in which students share and refine ideas with others, can now take place in online forums. In face-to-face classrooms, previous research has identified conversational techniques, such as open-ended questions and uptake of what others have said, that can promote dialogic, whole-class discussions. However, few studies have…

Ten-year assessment of the 100 priority questions for global biodiversity conservation.

PubMed

Jucker, Tommaso; Wintle, Bonnie; Shackelford, Gorm; Bocquillon, Pierre; Geffert, Jan Laurens; Kasoar, Tim; Kovacs, Eszter; Mumby, Hannah S; Orland, Chloé; Schleicher, Judith; Tew, Eleanor R; Zabala, Aiora; Amano, Tatsuya; Bell, Alexandra; Bongalov, Boris; Chambers, Josephine M; Corrigan, Colleen; Durán, América P; Duvic-Paoli, Leslie-Anne; Emilson, Caroline; da Silva, Jéssica Fonseca; Garnett, Emma E; Green, Elizabeth J; Guth, Miriam K; Hacket-Pain, Andrew; Hinsley, Amy; Igea, Javier; Kunz, Martina; Luke, Sarah H; Lynam, William; Martin, Philip A; Nunes, Matheus H; Ockendon, Nancy; Pavitt, Aly; Payne, Charlotte L R; Plutshack, Victoria; Rademacher, Tim T; Robertson, Rebecca J; Rose, David C; Serban, Anca; Simmons, Benno I; Emilson, Erik J S; Tayleur, Catherine; Wordley, Claire F R; Mukherjee, Nibedita

2018-06-20

In 2008, a group of conservation scientists compiled a list of 100 priority questions for the conservation of the world's biodiversity [Sutherland et al. (2009) Conservation Biology, 23, 557-567]. However, now almost a decade later, no one has yet published a study gauging how much progress has been made in addressing these 100 high-priority questions in the peer-reviewed literature. Here we take a first step toward re-examining the 100 questions and identify key knowledge gaps that still remain. Through a combination of a questionnaire and a literature review, we evaluated each of the 100 questions on the basis of two criteria: relevance and effort. We defined highly-relevant questions as those which - if answered - would have the greatest impact on global biodiversity conservation, while effort was quantified based on the number of review publications addressing a particular question, which we used as a proxy for research effort. Using this approach we identified a set of questions that, despite being perceived as highly relevant, have been the focus of relatively few review publications over the past ten years. These questions covered a broad range of topics but predominantly tackled three major themes: the conservation and management of freshwater ecosystems, the role of societal structures in shaping interactions between people and the environment, and the impacts of conservation interventions. We see these questions as important knowledge gaps that have so far received insufficient attention and may need to be prioritised in future research. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Questioning ORACLE: An Assessment of ORACLE's Analysis of Teachers' Questions and [A Comment on "Questioning ORACLE"].

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scarth, John; And Others

1986-01-01

Analysis of teachers' questions, part of the ORACLE (Observation Research and Classroom Learning Evaluation) project research, is examined in detail. Scarth and Hammersley argue that the rules ORACLE uses for identifying different types of questions involve levels of ambiguity and inference that threaten reliability and validity of the study's…

Writing Multiple Choice Outcome Questions to Assess Knowledge and Competence.

PubMed

Brady, Erik D

2015-11-01

Few articles contemplate the need for good guidance in question item-writing in the continuing education (CE) space. Although many of the core principles of sound item design translate to the CE health education team, the need exists for specific examples for nurse educators that clearly describe how to measure changes in competence and knowledge using multiple choice items. In this article, some keys points and specific examples for nursing CE providers are shared. Copyright 2015, SLACK Incorporated.

Women's Healthcare, Censorship, and the Library: Problems, Issues, Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kuhl, Nancy

The goal of this paper is to explore a number of examples of the censorship of women's healthcare issues and to investigate issues and questions related to those examples. The paper looks primarily at censorship in the United States; however, the problems and issues discussed are international in scope, and some international examples are…

Unpark Those Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ness, Molly

2013-01-01

Whenever Mr. Henderson's 3rd grade students had a question that he couldn't immediately answer or that seemed off-topic, he asked them to write the question on a sticky note and place it on a poster dubbed the "Parking Lot." His intention was to find time later to answer those questions, but too often, he said, the parking lot…

Biochemistry and Biology of GDF11 and Myostatin: Similarities, Differences, and Questions for Future Investigation.

PubMed

Walker, Ryan G; Poggioli, Tommaso; Katsimpardi, Lida; Buchanan, Sean M; Oh, Juhyun; Wattrus, Sam; Heidecker, Bettina; Fong, Yick W; Rubin, Lee L; Ganz, Peter; Thompson, Thomas B; Wagers, Amy J; Lee, Richard T

2016-04-01

Growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) and myostatin (or GDF8) are closely related members of the transforming growth factor β superfamily and are often perceived to serve similar or overlapping roles. Yet, despite commonalities in protein sequence, receptor utilization and signaling, accumulating evidence suggests that these 2 ligands can have distinct functions in many situations. GDF11 is essential for mammalian development and has been suggested to regulate aging of multiple tissues, whereas myostatin is a well-described negative regulator of postnatal skeletal and cardiac muscle mass and modulates metabolic processes. In this review, we discuss the biochemical regulation of GDF11 and myostatin and their functions in the heart, skeletal muscle, and brain. We also highlight recent clinical findings with respect to a potential role for GDF11 and/or myostatin in humans with heart disease. Finally, we address key outstanding questions related to GDF11 and myostatin dynamics and signaling during development, growth, and aging. © 2016 American Heart Association, Inc.

Somewhere through Time: A Discussion with George and Annemarie Roeper

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultz, Robert A.

2016-01-01

The discussion herein is guided by questions "asked" and responses "given" seemingly in one sitting. However, this is a façade. All responses are direct quotations from the published scholarly writings and unpublished archives of George and Annemarie Roeper. This is a conversation taking place somewhere in time, prompted by…

The Middle Years, Development and Adjustment; A Study-Discussion Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kleinsasser, L.D., Comp.; Harris, Dale B., Comp.

Based largely on research in adult development and aging, these readings and discussion questions pertain to such aspects of development and adjustment in middle life as the following: individual differences in aging; biological changes through the adult years; changes in the physical senses (vision, hearing, taste, smell, touch, and pain)…

Curiosity Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelsen, Jane; DeLorenzo, Chip

2010-01-01

Have you ever found yourself lecturing a child, with the best of intentions, in an attempt to help him or her learn a lesson or process a situation in a manner that you feel will be productive? Curiosity questions, which the authors also call What and How questions, help children process an experience, event, or natural consequence so that they…

Secondary Data Analysis: An Important Tool for Addressing Developmental Questions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greenhoot, Andrea Follmer; Dowsett, Chantelle J.

2012-01-01

Existing data sets can be an efficient, powerful, and readily available resource for addressing questions about developmental science. Many of the available databases contain hundreds of variables of interest to developmental psychologists, track participants longitudinally, and have representative samples. In this article, the authors discuss the…

Questions and Answers on Disciplining Students with Disabilities. OSEP Memorandum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Heumann, Judith E.; Hehir, Thomas

This document, presented in question and answer format, provides guidance about legal requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) concerning the misconduct of students with disabilities and corrects the misunderstanding that students with disabilities are exempt from discipline under current law. It discusses recent…

Questions for the Study and Teaching of Shakespeare and Milton.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeVito, Angela, Ed.; Medine, Peter, Ed.

The discussion questions and essay prompts in this collection were compiled from contributions made by participants in the 1991 Arizona Shakespeare-Milton Institute. After an introduction which presents some general guidelines for teachers and students, the collection addresses the following works: "As You Like It"; "The…

Bruton's Tyrosine Kinase: An Emerging Key Player in Innate Immunity.

PubMed

Weber, Alexander N R; Bittner, Zsofia; Liu, Xiao; Dang, Truong-Minh; Radsak, Markus Philipp; Brunner, Cornelia

2017-01-01

Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) was initially discovered as a critical mediator of B cell receptor signaling in the development and functioning of adaptive immunity. Growing evidence also suggests multiple roles for BTK in mononuclear cells of the innate immune system, especially in dendritic cells and macrophages. For example, BTK has been shown to function in Toll-like receptor-mediated recognition of infectious agents, cellular maturation and recruitment processes, and Fc receptor signaling. Most recently, BTK was additionally identified as a direct regulator of a key innate inflammatory machinery, the NLRP3 inflammasome. BTK has thus attracted interest not only for gaining a more thorough basic understanding of the human innate immune system but also as a target to therapeutically modulate innate immunity. We here review the latest developments on the role of BTK in mononuclear innate immune cells in mouse versus man, with specific emphasis on the sensing of infectious agents and the induction of inflammation. Therapeutic implications for modulating innate immunity and critical open questions are also discussed.

Question Classification Taxonomies as Guides to Formulating Questions for Use in Chemistry Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Festo, Kayima

2016-01-01

Teacher questions play an important role in facilitating classroom discourse. Using appropriate question types and proper questioning techniques help to create reflective-active learners. Teacher questions can elicit students' explanations, elaboration of their ideas and thinking, and they can be used to disclose students' misconceptions. Despite…

Question-Asking and Question-Exploring

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sands, Lorraine; Carr, Margaret; Lee, Wendy

2012-01-01

The Centre of Innovation Research at Greerton Early Childhood Centre was characterised as a dispositional milieu where working theories were explored through a narrative research methodology. As the research progressed, the teachers at Greerton strengthened the way we were listening to, and watching out for young children's questions to enable…

Finite-size analysis of a continuous-variable quantum key distribution

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Leverrier, Anthony; Grosshans, Frederic; Grangier, Philippe

2010-06-15

The goal of this paper is to extend the framework of finite-size analysis recently developed for quantum key distribution to continuous-variable protocols. We do not solve this problem completely here, and we mainly consider the finite-size effects on the parameter estimation procedure. Despite the fact that some questions are left open, we are able to give an estimation of the secret key rate for protocols which do not contain a postselection procedure. As expected, these results are significantly more pessimistic than those obtained in the asymptotic regime. However, we show that recent continuous-variable protocols are able to provide fully securemore » secret keys in the finite-size scenario, over distances larger than 50 km.« less

Maintaining live discussion in two-stage open peer review.

PubMed

Sandewall, Erik

2012-01-01

Open peer review has been proposed for a number of reasons, in particular, for increasing the transparency of the article selection process for a journal, and for obtaining a broader basis for feedback to the authors and for the acceptance decision. The review discussion may also in itself have a value for the research community. These goals rely on the existence of a lively review discussion, but several experiments with open-process peer review in recent years have encountered the problem of faltering review discussions. The present article addresses the question of how lively review discussion may be fostered by relating the experience of the journal Electronic Transactions on Artificial Intelligence (ETAI) which was an early experiment with open peer review. Factors influencing the discussion activity are identified. It is observed that it is more difficult to obtain lively discussion when the number of contributed articles increases, which implies difficulties for scaling up the open peer review model. Suggestions are made for how this difficulty may be overcome.

Maintaining Live Discussion in Two-Stage Open Peer Review

PubMed Central

Sandewall, Erik

2011-01-01

Open peer review has been proposed for a number of reasons, in particular, for increasing the transparency of the article selection process for a journal, and for obtaining a broader basis for feedback to the authors and for the acceptance decision. The review discussion may also in itself have a value for the research community. These goals rely on the existence of a lively review discussion, but several experiments with open-process peer review in recent years have encountered the problem of faltering review discussions. The present article addresses the question of how lively review discussion may be fostered by relating the experience of the journal Electronic Transactions on Artificial Intelligence (ETAI) which was an early experiment with open peer review. Factors influencing the discussion activity are identified. It is observed that it is more difficult to obtain lively discussion when the number of contributed articles increases, which implies difficulties for scaling up the open peer review model. Suggestions are made for how this difficulty may be overcome. PMID:22363282

Bidirectional private key exchange using delay-coupled semiconductor lasers.

PubMed

Porte, Xavier; Soriano, Miguel C; Brunner, Daniel; Fischer, Ingo

2016-06-15

We experimentally demonstrate a key exchange cryptosystem based on the phenomenon of identical chaos synchronization. In our protocol, the private key is symmetrically generated by the two communicating partners. It is built up from the synchronized bits occurring between two current-modulated bidirectionally coupled semiconductor lasers with additional self-feedback. We analyze the security of the exchanged key and discuss the amplification of its privacy. We demonstrate private key generation rates up to 11  Mbit/s over a public channel.

Measuring Patients' Experience of Rehabilitation Services Across the Care Continuum. Part II: Key Dimensions.

PubMed

McMurray, Josephine; McNeil, Heather; Lafortune, Claire; Black, Samantha; Prorok, Jeanette; Stolee, Paul

2016-01-01

To identify key dimensions of patients' experience across the rehabilitative care system and to recommend a framework to develop survey items that measure the rehabilitative care experience. Data were sourced from a literature review that searched MEDLINE (PubMed), CINAHL (Ebsco), and PsycINFO (APA PsycNET) databases from 2004 to 2014, the reference lists of the final accepted articles, and hand searches of relevant journals. Four reviewers performed the screening process on 2472 articles; 33 were included for analysis. Interrater reliability was confirmed through 2 rounds of title review and 1 round of abstract review, with an average κ score of .69. The final sample of 33 accepted articles was imported into a qualitative data analysis software application. Multiple levels of coding and a constant comparative methodology generated 6 themes. There were 502 discreet survey questions measuring patient experience that were categorized using the following dimensions: rehabilitative care ecosystem, client and informal caregiver engagement, patient and health care provider relation, pain and functional status, group and individual identity, and open ended. The most common survey questions examine the care delivery ecosystem (37%), the engagement of clients and their informal caregivers (24.9%), and the quality of relations between providers and patients (21.7%). Examination of patient's functional status and management of pain yielded (15.3%) of the instruments' questions. Currently available instruments and questions that measure patients' experience in rehabilitative care are unable to assess the performance of rehabilitative delivery systems that aspire to integrate care across the continuum. However, question panels derived from our 6 key themes may measure the key concepts that define rehabilitative care and facilitate measurement of patient experience at the system level. Copyright © 2016 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc

Correlation between Question Intonation and Focus of Interrogation--Evidence from French Dislocated Questions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shen, Xiao-nan

This study explores the relationship between question intonation patterns in French using dislocated questions and question-focus (Q- focus). A dislocated question is defined as an interrogative sentence whose sequence is interrupted by the topicalization of a constituent at the left ("Toi, tu viens?"), at the right (Tu viens,…

How to buy a medical home? Policy options and practical questions.

PubMed

Berenson, Robert A; Rich, Eugene C

2010-06-01

In this paper, we describe a range of payment options to support the PCMH, identifying their conceptual strengths and weaknesses. These include enhanced FFS payment for office visits to the PCMH; paying additional FFS for "new" PCMH services; variations of traditional FFS combined with new PCMH-oriented per patient per month capitation; and combined capitation payments for traditional primary care medical services as well as new medical home services. In discussing options for PCMH payment reform we consider issues in patient severity adjustment, performance payment, and the role of payments to community service organizations to collaborate with the PCMH. We also highlight some of the practical challenges that can complicate reimbursement reform for primary care and the PCMH. Through this discussion we identify key dimensions to provider payment reform relevant to promoting enhanced primary care through the patient centered medical home. These consist of paying for the basic medical home services, rewarding excellent performance of medical homes, incentivizing medical home connections to other community health care resources, and overcoming implementation challenges to medical home payments. Each of these overarching policy issues invokes a substantial subset of policy relevant research questions that collectively comprise a robust research agenda. We conclude that the conceptual strengths and weaknesses of available payment models for medical home functions invoke a complex array of options with varying levels of real-world feasibility. The different needs of patients and communities, and varying characteristics of practices must also be factors guiding PCMH payment reform. Indeed, it may be that different circumstances will require different payment approaches in various combinations.

A Question of Gender-Sensitive Pedagogy: Discourses in Pedagogical Guidelines

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Karlson, Ingrid; Simonsson, Maria

2011-01-01

In this article, some of the discourses concerning "gender-sensitive pedagogy" that circulate in Swedish preschools are discussed. Two guideline documents that circulate in gender- and equity-sensitive projects in preschool are investigated, and the question is asked: What gender-related messages can possibly reach preschools from the…

Poor commissioning discussed in depth.

PubMed

Towse, Bob; Whitby, Robin; Wignall, Stephen; Barrass, Chris; Newman, Alan; Shaw, Christopher; Johnston-Stuart, Chris; James, Chris

2014-05-01

Last October's Healthcare Estates 2013 conference saw one of the first day's 'Engineering' sessions debate the topic, 'Why do so many buildings disappoint their owners and occupants?' Much of the discussion centered on the problems caused by 'inadequate management of the commissioning process'. A roundtable debate jointly staged recently in London by IHEEM and the B&ES, the leading U.K. trade association for building services engineering contractors, took the debate forward. As HEJ editor, Jonathan Baillie reports, the discussions confirmed that one of the key contributors to poor commissioning is a failure to involve specialist building services contractors sufficiently early. It was also agreed that finding a really effective 'client-side' project manager, with the panoply of skills and experience the role requires, can be 'a tough ask'. In this issue of HEJ we report on the debate's first 'half'; in June's edition, we will cover 'part two' of a lively, forthright, and positive debate.

Redescription of four species of Mehdiella from Testudinidae, with a key to the species and discussion on the relationships among the species of this genus.

PubMed

Bouamer, S; Morand, S; Kara, M

2003-12-01

Four species of the genus Mehdiella Seurat, 1918 are redescribed: M. cristata Petter, 1966 and M. stylosa dollfusi Petter, 1966, parasite of Pyxix arachnoides Bell, 1827 from Madagascar, M. s. stylosa (Thapar, 1925) and M. uncinata (Drasche, 1884), parasite of Testudo graeca Linneaus, 1758, Testudo hermanni Gmelin, 1789 and Testudo horsfieldii (Gray, 1844) from Palaearctic region. Light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies revealed new informations on the morphology of these species. On the basis of this morphological study, the sub-species Mehdiella stylosa dollfusi and M. s. stylosa are raised to level of species. The position of Mehdiella cristata among the species of the genus Mehdiella and the relationships among the species of the genus Mehdiella are discussed. A key to the eight valid species Mehdiella is given.

Bound entangled states with a private key and their classical counterpart.

PubMed

Ozols, Maris; Smith, Graeme; Smolin, John A

2014-03-21

Entanglement is a fundamental resource for quantum information processing. In its pure form, it allows quantum teleportation and sharing classical secrets. Realistic quantum states are noisy and their usefulness is only partially understood. Bound-entangled states are central to this question--they have no distillable entanglement, yet sometimes still have a private classical key. We present a construction of bound-entangled states with a private key based on classical probability distributions. From this emerge states possessing a new classical analogue of bound entanglement, distinct from the long-sought bound information. We also find states of smaller dimensions and higher key rates than previously known. Our construction has implications for classical cryptography: we show that existing protocols are insufficient for extracting private key from our distributions due to their "bound-entangled" nature. We propose a simple extension of existing protocols that can extract a key from them.

[The alcohol problem in former East Germany--suggestions for necessary discussion].

PubMed

Brieler, P; Rühle, R; Jänisch, C

1993-05-01

Based on publications from the GDR about alcohol-problems and respecting experiences of medical and psychological examinations alcoholism, the abuse of alcohol and its effects will be analysed and discussed. The following aspects will have main attention: meaning of alcohol as a drug, consumption of alcohol and its conditions, alcohol and its consequences in traffic, employment, criminal law and leisure time. Finally open questions will be discussed and recommendation for further research work will be explained.

Information Theoretic Secret Key Generation: Structured Codes and Tree Packing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nitinawarat, Sirin

2010-01-01

This dissertation deals with a multiterminal source model for secret key generation by multiple network terminals with prior and privileged access to a set of correlated signals complemented by public discussion among themselves. Emphasis is placed on a characterization of secret key capacity, i.e., the largest rate of an achievable secret key,…

Gender differences in response to questions on the australian national chemistry quiz

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Walding, Richard; Fogliani, Charles; Over, Ray; Bain, John D.

In contrast to the attention given to the relative levels of achievement of boys and girls in mathematics, the question of whether there are sex differences in the solution of chemistry questions has not attracted much attention. This study compares the performance of boys and girls in the Australian National Chemistry Quiz (Chem Quiz), a multiple-choice test conducted by the Royal Australian Chemical Institute. The analyses were based on results from 27,000 students in Years 11 and 12 and 16,000 students in Year 10 who completed the Chem Quiz in 1991. Although some questions in the Chem Quiz were solved equally well by boys and girls, on many questions boys outperformed girls. The extreme case was a question answered correctly by 67% of Year 10 boys in contrast to 48% of Year 10 girls. Several reasons why boys and girls might differ in the rates they solve at least some chemistry questions are discussed, and directions for identifying the nature, extent, and basis for sex differences are outlined.

The effect of Tomm's therapeutic questioning styles on therapeutic alliance: a clinical analog study.

PubMed

Dozier, R M; Hicks, M W; Cornille, T A; Peterson, G W

1998-01-01

Tomm (1988) suggests that circular and reflexive questions tend to elicit feelings of freedom/acceptance whereas lineal and strategic questions usually trigger feelings of judgment/constraint. Employing an analog methodology, each of Tomm's four questioning styles was portrayed in the form of a 5-minute videotaped intake scenario. Forty family triads with a mother, father, and adolescent son were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions with ten families each. Each condition involved viewing one of four questioning style scenarios. All participants (N = 120 individuals--40 mothers, 40 fathers, and 40 adolescent sons) completed the Family Therapy Alliance Scale (FTAS; Pinsof & Catherall, 1986) and a validity-check instrument. The results indicated that circular and reflexive questioning styles elicited significantly higher (p < 0.001) alliance scores on the FTAS than did either lineal or strategic questions. Implications for the use of different types of questions in family therapy are discussed.

Conceptual question response times in Peer Instruction classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miller, Kelly; Lasry, Nathaniel; Lukoff, Brian; Schell, Julie; Mazur, Eric

2014-12-01

Classroom response systems are widely used in interactive teaching environments as a way to engage students by asking them questions. Previous research on the time taken by students to respond to conceptual questions has yielded insights on how students think and change conceptions. We measure the amount of time students take to respond to in-class, conceptual questions [ConcepTests (CTs)] in two introductory physics courses taught using Peer Instruction and use item response theory to determine the difficulty of the CTs. We examine response time differences between correct and incorrect answers both before and after the peer discussion for CTs of varying difficulty. We also determine the relationship between response time and student performance on a standardized test of incoming physics knowledge, precourse self-efficacy, and gender. Our data reveal three results of interest. First, response time for correct answers is significantly faster than for incorrect answers, both before and after peer discussion, especially for easy CTs. Second, students with greater incoming physics knowledge and higher self-efficacy respond faster in both rounds. Third, there is no gender difference in response rate after controlling for incoming physics knowledge scores, although males register significantly more attempts before committing to a final answer than do female students. These results provide insight into effective CT pacing during Peer Instruction. In particular, in order to maintain a pace that keeps everyone engaged, students should not be given too much time to respond. When around 80% of the answers are in, the ratio of correct to incorrect responses rapidly approaches levels indicating random guessing and instructors should close the poll.

When a drought event unfolds the question comes "Is this climate change?"

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stahl, Kerstin

2017-04-01

Is this what climate change looks like? This was the first question from most journalists who interviewed me during the drought of 2015 in Germany, once impacts started to hit hard. Likely, the same question is asked during other extreme events. I'll provide some examples of how the conversations and articles during the drought event developed. Then, let's discuss how to communicate what one particular event can mean in the context of long-term changes.

Drivers 55 Plus: Test Your Own Performance. A Self-Rating Form of Questions, Facts and Suggestions for Safe Driving.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Malfetti, James L.; Winter, Darlene J.

This booklet contains a 15-question rating form that provides some guidance to older drivers in beginning to assess their driving skills. The pages following the self-rating form discuss the various questions on the form. After a general introduction, the discussion is divided into five areas that traffic safety authorities have judged critical to…

Evaluation of the Plastic Surgery In-Service Training Exam: Lower Extremity Questions.

PubMed

Silvestre, Jason; Basta, Marten N; Serletti, Joseph M; Chang, Benjamin

2015-01-01

To facilitate the training of plastic surgery residents, we analyzed a knowledge-based curriculum for plastic and reconstructive surgery of the lower extremity. The Plastic Surgery In-Service Training Exam (PSITE) is a commonly used tool to assess medical knowledge in plastic surgery. We reviewed the lower extremity content on 6 consecutive score keys (2008-2013). Questions were classified by taxonomy, anatomy, and subject. Answer references were quantified by source and relative year of publication. Totally, 107 questions related to the lower extremity (9.1% of all questions) and 14 questions had an associated image (13.1%). Questions required decision making (49%) over interpretation (36%) and direct recall (15%) skills (p < 0.001). Conditions of the leg (42.1%) and thigh (24.3%) constituted most of the questions. Subject matter focused on flap reconstruction (38.3%), nerve injury (8.4%), and congenital deformity (6.5%). Analysis of 263 citations to 66 unique journals showed that Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (54.9%) was the highest yield primary source. The median year of publication relative to PSITE administration was 6 (range: 1-58) with a mode of 2 years. Plastic Surgery by Mathes et al. was the most referenced textbook (21.9%). These data establish a benchmark for lower extremity training during plastic surgery residency. Study efforts focused on the most common topics and references will enhance trainee preparation for lower extremity PSITE questions. Copyright © 2015 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

29 CFR 2509.75-8 - Questions and answers relating to fiduciary responsibility under the Employee Retirement Income...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... answers, relating them to the appropriate sections of the Act, is also provided. Index Key to question... reason to doubt the competence, integrity or responsibility of such persons. FR-12 Q: How many...

29 CFR 2509.75-8 - Questions and answers relating to fiduciary responsibility under the Employee Retirement Income...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... answers, relating them to the appropriate sections of the Act, is also provided. Index Key to question... reason to doubt the competence, integrity or responsibility of such persons. FR-12 Q: How many...

29 CFR 2509.75-8 - Questions and answers relating to fiduciary responsibility under the Employee Retirement Income...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... answers, relating them to the appropriate sections of the Act, is also provided. Index Key to question... reason to doubt the competence, integrity or responsibility of such persons. FR-12 Q: How many...

Designing Your Community-Based Learning Project: Five Questions To Ask about Your Pedagogical and Participatory Goals.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, Marion; Cadge, Wendy; Rivero, Estela; Curran, Sara

2002-01-01

Presents a set of five questions to be considered in the preliminary planning of a community-based learning (CBL) project. Discusses each question and outlines advantages and disadvantages of decisions, focusing on competing interests of students, instructors, and partner organizations. (Author/KDR)

Online research article discussion board to increase knowledge translation during emergency medicine residency.

PubMed

Stoneking, Lisa R; Grall, Kristi H; Min, Alice A; Panchal, Ashish R

2013-01-01

Many clinicians have difficulties reading current best practice journal articles on a regular basis. Discussion boards are one method of online asynchronous learning that facilitates active learning and participation. We hypothesized that an online repository of best practice articles with a discussion board would increase journal article reading by emergency medicine residents. PARTICIPANTS ANSWERED THREE QUESTIONS WEEKLY ON A DISCUSSION BOARD: What question does this study address? What does this study add to our knowledge? How might this change clinical practice? A survey regarding perceived barriers to participating was then distributed. Most participants completed an article summary once or twice in total (23/32, 71.9%). Only three were involved most weeks (3/32, 9.4%) whereas 5/32 (15.6%) participated monthly. The most common barriers were lack of time (20/32, 62.5%), difficulty logging on (7/32, 21.9%), and forgetting (6/32, 18.8%). Although subjects were provided weekly with an article link, email, and feedback, journal article reading frequency did not increase.

Learner Agency: A Dynamic Element of the New Zealand Key Competencies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Charteris, Jennifer

2013-01-01

Seven years ago The New Zealand Curriculum (NZC) was launched with its emphasis on key competencies as "the capabilities that young people need for growing, working, and participating in their communities" ("Ministry of Education," 2007, p. 38). This raises the question of what dispositions are required for students to…

A topic clustering approach to finding similar questions from large question and answer archives.

PubMed

Zhang, Wei-Nan; Liu, Ting; Yang, Yang; Cao, Liujuan; Zhang, Yu; Ji, Rongrong

2014-01-01

With the blooming of Web 2.0, Community Question Answering (CQA) services such as Yahoo! Answers (http://answers.yahoo.com), WikiAnswer (http://wiki.answers.com), and Baidu Zhidao (http://zhidao.baidu.com), etc., have emerged as alternatives for knowledge and information acquisition. Over time, a large number of question and answer (Q&A) pairs with high quality devoted by human intelligence have been accumulated as a comprehensive knowledge base. Unlike the search engines, which return long lists of results, searching in the CQA services can obtain the correct answers to the question queries by automatically finding similar questions that have already been answered by other users. Hence, it greatly improves the efficiency of the online information retrieval. However, given a question query, finding the similar and well-answered questions is a non-trivial task. The main challenge is the word mismatch between question query (query) and candidate question for retrieval (question). To investigate this problem, in this study, we capture the word semantic similarity between query and question by introducing the topic modeling approach. We then propose an unsupervised machine-learning approach to finding similar questions on CQA Q&A archives. The experimental results show that our proposed approach significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art methods.

Unproven (questionable) cancer therapies.

PubMed Central

Brigden, M L

1995-01-01

More than half of all cancer patients use some form of alternative treatment during the course of their illness. Alternative therapies are often started early in patients' illness, and their use is frequently not acknowledged to health care professionals. Some alternative therapies are harmful, and their promoters may be fraudulent. Persons who try alternative cancer therapies may not be poorly educated but may ultimately abandon conventional treatment. Recent attention has focused on aspects of questionable therapies that make these treatments attractive to patients and that may be perceived as being deficient in the practice of conventional health care professionals. Physicians with patients with cancer should always make sure that unproven therapies are discussed early in the therapeutic relationship. They should also attempt to be aware of alternative therapies that are in vogue in their particular geographic area. PMID:8533410

Public-key encryption with chaos.

PubMed

Kocarev, Ljupco; Sterjev, Marjan; Fekete, Attila; Vattay, Gabor

2004-12-01

We propose public-key encryption algorithms based on chaotic maps, which are generalization of well-known and commercially used algorithms: Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA), ElGamal, and Rabin. For the case of generalized RSA algorithm we discuss in detail its software implementation and properties. We show that our algorithm is as secure as RSA algorithm.

Public-key encryption with chaos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kocarev, Ljupco; Sterjev, Marjan; Fekete, Attila; Vattay, Gabor

2004-12-01

We propose public-key encryption algorithms based on chaotic maps, which are generalization of well-known and commercially used algorithms: Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA), ElGamal, and Rabin. For the case of generalized RSA algorithm we discuss in detail its software implementation and properties. We show that our algorithm is as secure as RSA algorithm.

A Machine Learning-based Method for Question Type Classification in Biomedical Question Answering.

PubMed

Sarrouti, Mourad; Ouatik El Alaoui, Said

2017-05-18

Biomedical question type classification is one of the important components of an automatic biomedical question answering system. The performance of the latter depends directly on the performance of its biomedical question type classification system, which consists of assigning a category to each question in order to determine the appropriate answer extraction algorithm. This study aims to automatically classify biomedical questions into one of the four categories: (1) yes/no, (2) factoid, (3) list, and (4) summary. In this paper, we propose a biomedical question type classification method based on machine learning approaches to automatically assign a category to a biomedical question. First, we extract features from biomedical questions using the proposed handcrafted lexico-syntactic patterns. Then, we feed these features for machine-learning algorithms. Finally, the class label is predicted using the trained classifiers. Experimental evaluations performed on large standard annotated datasets of biomedical questions, provided by the BioASQ challenge, demonstrated that our method exhibits significant improved performance when compared to four baseline systems. The proposed method achieves a roughly 10-point increase over the best baseline in terms of accuracy. Moreover, the obtained results show that using handcrafted lexico-syntactic patterns as features' provider of support vector machine (SVM) lead to the highest accuracy of 89.40 %. The proposed method can automatically classify BioASQ questions into one of the four categories: yes/no, factoid, list, and summary. Furthermore, the results demonstrated that our method produced the best classification performance compared to four baseline systems.

The difference a word makes: responding to questions on 'disability' and 'difficulty' in South Africa.

PubMed

Schneider, Marguerite

2009-01-01

This article discusses the current efforts to measure disability in a comparable manner internationally, the effects of using different types of wording in questions, and the implications of the approach of asking about 'difficulties' rather than 'disability' on the use of disability statistics. The study design was qualitative. Twenty-one focus groups were run with adults responding for themselves. Nine groups were classified a priori by the author as 'disabled', six as 'unsure', and the last six as 'non-disabled'. The participants completed a questionnaire using the Washington Group on Disability Statistics (WG) Short Set, the South African Census 2001 question, and the question 'Are you disabled?'. This was followed by group discussion on these questions and on how the concept of disability is understood by group participants. Participants understand disability as being a permanent, unchangeable state, mostly physical, and where a person is unable to do anything. The participants in the three groups of allocated disability status (disabled, unsure and non-disabled) provided quite different responses on the three questions. All participants in the 'disabled' and 'unsure' groups reported having 'difficulty' on the WG questions, but the 'unsure' groups did not identify as being 'disabled' on either of the two other questions. Using questions that ask about 'difficulty' rather than 'disability' provides a more comprehensive and inclusive measure of disability with a clearer understanding of what is being measured. Asking about 'difficulty' provides an improved measure of disability status for effective data collection and analysis to promote development, implementation and monitoring of disability-inclusive policies.

The Effects of Question Generation, Question Answering and Reading on Prose Learning.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owens, Anthony Mathew