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PubMed2004

A workshop report on wheat genome sequencing: International Genome Research on Wheat Consortium.

Sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a wheat genome sequencing workshop was held November 10-11, 2003, in Washington, DC. It brought together 63 scientists of diverse research interests and institutions, including 45 from the United States and 18 from a dozen foreign countries (see list of participants at http://www.ksu.edu/igrow). The objectives of the workshop were to discuss the status of wheat genomics, obtain feedback from ongoing genome sequencing projects, and develop strategies for sequencing the wheat genome. The purpose of this report is to convey the information discussed at the workshop and provide the basis for an ongoing dialogue, bringing forth comments and suggestions from the genetics community.

Chromosome Mapping↗
PubMed2004

Strategies for avoiding reinventing the precollege education and outreach wheel.

The National Science Foundation's recent mandate that all Principal Investigators address the broader impacts of their research has prompted an unprecedented number of scientists to seek opportunities to participate in precollege education and outreach. To help interested geneticists avoid duplicating efforts and make use of existing resources, we examined several precollege genetics, genomics, and biotechnology education efforts and noted the elements that contributed to their success, indicated by program expansion, participant satisfaction, or participant learning. Identifying a specific audience and their needs and resources, involving K-12 teachers in program development, and evaluating program efforts are integral to program success. We highlighted a few innovative programs to illustrate these findings. Challenges that may compromise further development and dissemination of these programs include absence of reward systems for participation in outreach as well as lack of training for scientists doing outreach. Several programs and institutions are tackling these issues in ways that will help sustain outreach efforts while allowing them to be modified to meet the changing needs of their participants, including scientists, teachers, and students. Most importantly, resources and personnel are available to facilitate greater and deeper involvement of scientists in precollege and public education.

Biotechnology↗
PubMed2000

Injuries to avian researchers at Palmer Station, Antarctica from penguins, giant petrels, and skuas.

This paper describes 5 cases of injury to seabird researchers between 1996 and 1999 at Palmer Station, Antarctica. The injuries were inflicted by 3 seabird species: the Adelie penguin (Pygoscelis adeliae); the southern giant petrel (Macronectes giganteus); and the brown skua (Catharacta lonnbergi). All injured parties were biologic researchers with previous field experience working under National Science Foundation research grants; all sought medical evaluation and treatment voluntarily. The nature and frequency of such injuries seems not to have been greatly reported in the medical literature. Although these cases were largely soft tissue injuries that healed without serious complications, the possibility of exotic infections is considered. We have dubbed this constellation of injuries AVES (Antarctic Vogel [German for bird] Encounter Syndrome).

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Science, society and science centres.

The present article analyzes the relation between technological changes and the advance of science, as well as the attitude of individuals in relation to science nowadays. According to researches carried out by the National Science Foundation in the United States, a large number of Americans and Europeans accept the benefits of science and technology, but have complex attitudes in relation to this topic. Contemporary cultures display this contradiction in many different ways. An evidence of this ambiguity is the prevailing image of scientists in popular culture: that of the mad scientist. Interpreting science and technology to a large and diversified audience is the main mission for most science centres. The changes that take place in society demand new approaches in the relationship with visitors. The present article analyzes the economic and intellectual sustainability of science centres and the continuously reinvented ways through which each one of them tires to shape its relationship with the community and with its identity as a science centre in the twenty-first century.

Education↗
PubMed2002

The watershed years of 1958-1962 in the Harvard Pigeon Lab.

During the years 1958-1962, the final years of support by the National Science Foundation for B. F. Skinner's Pigeon Lab in Memorial Hall at Harvard University, 20 or so pigeon experiments (plus some with other organisms) ran concurrently 7 days a week. The research style emphasized experimental analyses, exploratory procedures, and the parametric exploration of variables. This reminiscence describes some features of the laboratory, the context within which it operated, and the activities of some of those who participated in it.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Productivity of medical research in Switzerland.

BACKGROUND: Little evidence exists about what contributes to successful medical research, an increasingly important issue in an era of limited research budgets. This study examined predictors of productivity of Swiss medical research. METHODS: Principal investigators of clinical research projects funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation between 1990 and 1994 were surveyed by mail. They provided information about the research question, whether changes were made to the protocol and why, their assessment of the importance of results for science and for public health, and additional funding of the project. The amount of the grant and the project priority score were obtained from the Foundation. Indicators of scientific productivity were the number of peer-reviewed articles and the summed impact factor per grant. RESULTS: The size of the grant predicted scientific output (number of articles and summed impact factor), but the marginal return decreased with the total sum awarded. The award of a continuation grant by the same agency and additional funding from other sources were also positively linked with productivity. In addition, the initial priority rating of the project by the funding agency's scientific committee and the assessment of scientific importance of the results by the principal investigator were also independently associated with productivity. Finally, modifications of the initial research plan in response to new scientific opportunities were linked with greater productivity, whereas modifications induced by technical or other difficulties were associated with lower productivity. CONCLUSIONS: Productivity in medical research, measured by peer-reviewed articles produced, requires adequate resources and ability to respond to new scientific challenges, and it can be anticipated by peer-review.

Efficiency↗
PubMed2001

MERLOT: a faculty-focused Web site of educational resources.

The Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching (MERLOT) is a community of academic institutions, professional discipline organizations, and individual people building a collection of Web-based teaching and learning resources where faculty can easily find peer-reviewed materials for use in their classes. The MERLOT project is currently supported by 23 systems and institutions of higher education and by the National Science Foundation. MERLOT is developing collections of learning materials from many academic disciplines, including psychology.

Humans↗
PubMed2001

STEP--a System for Teaching Experimental Psychology using E-Prime.

Students in psychology need to learn to design and analyze their own experiments. However, software that allows students to build experiments on their own has been limited in a variety of ways. The shipping of the first full release of the E-Prime system later this year will open up a new opportunity for addressing this problem. Because E-Prime promises to become the standard for building experiments in psychology, it is now possible to construct a Web-based resource that uses E-Prime as the delivery engine for a wide variety of instructional materials. This new system, funded by the National Science Foundation, is called STEP (System for the Teaching of Experimental Psychology). The goal of the STEP Project is to provide instructional materials that will facilitate the use of E-Prime in various learning contexts. We are now compiling a large set of classic experiments implemented in E-Prime and available over the Internet from http://step.psy.cmu.edu. The Web site also distributes instructional materials for building courses in experimental psychology based on E-Prime.

Humans↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Self-managed work teams: what works?

Case studies have shown that under the right circumstances, employees within self-managed work teams (SMWTs) produce more at work than employees organized in a more hierarchical, traditional structure because they perform not only technical skills, but management skills as well. The purpose of this article is to clarify the specific factors most important to an SMWT's success. The information shared here comes from three sources. The primary source is a research project funded by a 3-year grant (1994-1997) from the National Science Foundation. The primary factors found to affect the success of SMWTs formed five groups. Work process factors include those that are needed when actually performing the work, such as the appropriate resources, talent, procedures, and effort. Interpersonal process factors include communication and both positive and negative conflict. Environmental factors include those within the SMWT'S organization, such as management support and the reward system, as well as factors outside the organization, such as suppliers and the market. Team design factors and team member characteristics were found to be equally important to the high performance of the SMWT.

Consumer Behavior↗
PubMed2000

Use of timelines in senior design--an efficient project management tool for faculty.

An important part of any multi-tasked project or undertaking is a work plan. Large contractors with multi-year design projects use a work plan to schedule resources and identify critical design decisions; a smaller company may map out the course and order of work as well as schedule resources. Either way, the work plan is an indispensable tool that assists the project manager in the planning and timely execution of the project. Introduced is the concept of the timeline (or work plan) and its utilization in an Undergraduate Senior Design Course by both Faculty and Student as a Project Management Tool and device from which to chart student progress towards completion of course requirements. Discussed are examples of student project planning and comments with regards to the effectiveness of project planning for the student as well as a discussion of how this device has assisted faculty in charting student progress towards project completion, meeting course requirements, and grading. Project and Time Management issues described in this paper are through the Senior Design Program at the University of Connecticut (UCONN) with National Science Foundation Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons with Disabilities and industry-sponsored projects [1].

Management Information Systems↗
PubMed2000

Using a multidisciplinary team approach in biomedical engineering senior design.

Under Criterion 4, the Professional Component of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) Engineering Criteria 2000, a curriculum culminating in a major design experience is required. In addition, under Criterion 3, program graduates must demonstrate an ability to function on multidisciplinary teams. This paper describes some team related issues in senior design at University of Connecticut (UConn) with National Science Foundation (NSF) Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons with Disabilities and industry-sponsored projects. While these Criteria can both be satisfied in a senior design course sequence, it is not the most desirable method to achieve satisfactory results. Effective teamwork involves skills that may be learned in classes and training sessions. It is best achieved through team experiences in a series of courses, ideally beginning the freshman year.

Biomedical Engineering↗
PubMed1999

First year experience at the University of Connecticut with NSF design projects to aid persons with disabilities.

This paper provides an overview of the first year experience at University of Connecticut (UConn) with National Science Foundation (NSF) Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons with Disabilities. Devices and software to aid persons with disabilities often need custom modification, are prohibitively expensive, or even nonexistent. Much of the disabled community does not have access to custom modification of available devices, and other benefits of current technology. Moreover, when available, engineering and support salaries make the cost of any custom modifications beyond the reach of most disabled individuals. The NSF in 1988 started to provide a mechanism whereby student engineers at universities throughout the United States designed and constructed devices for persons with disabilities. This program combined the academic requirement of a design experience with enhanced educational opportunities for students, and improved the quality of life for disabled individuals. Students and university faculty provided, through their normal ABET accredited senior design class, engineering time to design and build the device or software, and the NSF provided funds, competitively awarded to universities, for supplies, equipment and fabrication costs for the design projects. Described in this report are first year experiences at UConn with this NSF program including lecture topics, site visits to clients and project selection, required reports and the WWW, course structure and organization.

Biomedical Engineering↗
PubMed2001

[Transplantation medicine: a social debate].

Twenty-eight randomly chosen citizens originating from the three linguistic areas of Switzerland discussed transplantation medicine in November 2000. This PubliForum was organised by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, the Swiss National Science Foundation and the Swiss Centre for Technology Assessment. The aim was to explore the hopes, fears and emotions raised in the population by this highly sophisticated therapy. After a 2-day hearing of specialists and concerned persons, the citizens wrote a report dealing with the definition of death, the consent for organ harvesting, the criteria for the allocation of donated organs and xenotransplantation research. The panel made a plea for a thorough public debate on these topics. They also stressed that information and transparency are key issues to guarantee that the social and individual needs of the donors, the recipients and their involved relatives will be met.

Attitude to Health↗
PubMed2001

Improving design project experiences through improved assessment practices.

This paper is offered as an introduction to the ways in which improved foci on educational outcomes associated with engineering design project experiences may lead to: (a) improvements in the learning of engineering students and consequently, (b) improved knowledge, design and technology to benefit individuals in need. Strategies to improve learning outcomes of design experiences include clearly articulating what it is that we want students to know and achieve, having detailed means of assessing each of the learning outcomes we target, communicating about the assessment process with students from the start of their design experiences, and providing thorough evaluative feedback to students to foster learning while we still have access to them. This paper is based on ongoing work within the National Science Foundation (NSF) Senior Design Projects to Aid Persons with Disabilities program. Readers are invited to collaborate in further efforts in this area.

Biomedical Engineering↗
PubMed2001

Physician-system alignment: introductory overview.

The papers in this Special Supplement are based on research funded by the participating members of the joint Center for Health Management Research (CHMR) and Center for Organized Delivery Systems (CODS), and supported by the National Science Foundation under its Industry-University Cooperative Research Center Program. This 3-year research initiative from 1996 through 1999 involved 69 physician organizations (primarily organized medical groups as opposed to IPAs) associated with 14 organized delivery systems. The groups ranged in size from three to 958 with an average size of 76.4 and a median size of 25.0. Comparisons of the study groups with United States physician groups overall are shown in Table 1. The study groups are larger and more likely to be multispecialty than all groups in the United States. The organized delivery systems range in size from one hospital to 80 hospitals with an average of 21 hospitals per system and a median of 11 hospitals per system. They average 4.6 affiliated medical groups with a range from one to 23. The organized delivery systems range in total revenues in 1998 from $340 million to $6.2 billion with an average of $2.1 billion. All the study systems are not-for-profit. Most are located in single market areas, but several are located in multiple markets. For the most part, they represent some of the larger most experienced organized delivery systems in the country. Among the primary objectives of the study was to identify the factors most strongly associated with physician alignment with the health care system and the consequences for the implementation of evidence-based care management practices. The study was also designed to identify the barriers and facilitators to achieving such alignment and its consequences.

Delivery of Health Care, Integrated↗
PubMed2002

Challenges and opportunities in the psychological sciences.

In this commentary, the author draws on his experiences at the National Science Foundation to reveal that threats to the value and autonomy of social science research are more common than most psychologists suspect. To reduce the likelihood of these threats in the future, it is necessary to improve the public's understanding and confidence in the psychological sciences. The key is to focus on the results and accomplishments of the research and to avoid caveats and qualifications. It is also important to motivate the interest of the public by helping them to understand why and how psychological research is improving the quality of their lives. The author concludes with some practical suggestions regarding how psychologists can become more proactive in their education of the public, the media, and congressional representatives.

Humans↗
PubMed1983

Gonococcal pilus vaccine development project by Bactex.

Gonococcal pilus vaccine development project by Bactex includes a recently completed clinical trial involving approximately 3500 US army volunteers in Korea. Results of the double-blind, placebo controlled study, conducted during the 1st 8 weeks of 1983, are currently being analyzed. The findings will be confirmed by further testing and if the vaccine proves effective, Bactex plans to apply for a biological license. Bactex was founded in 1974 with the assistance of loans from the Center for Entrepreneurial Development at Carnegie Mellon University. The center at Carnegie, set up and funded by the National Science Foundation, serves to stimulate the transfer of technology from the academic community to industry. Similar centers have been established at MIT and the University of Washington, Bactex President and University of Pittsburgh microbiologist Charles Brinton told "The Blue Sheet" the company is developing additional human vaccines based on pilus technology. He noted that the firm also has a joint agreement with Schering's Animal Health Division for the production of animal vaccines. Under this agreement, Bactex developed a vaccine for neonatal diarrhea in piglets, which Schering began marketing about a month ago. In addition to the study in Korea, Brinton has tested the gonorrhea vaccine in approximately 230 volunteers at the University of Pittsburgh. The Korean trial was partially funded by the US Army Medical Research and Development Command.

Asia↗
PubMed2003

Life's a switch. Experiences in NSF undergraduate design projects.

During the summer of 2002 Stephanie Popp and Jennifer Barnes developed a manual, "Life's a Switch," through a project funded by the National Science Foundation. This manual teaches people how to build their own cost effective assistive switches. Assistive switches are a form of assistive technology which includes any device that enhances a person's quality of life by improving the individual's mobility, ability to perform daily activities, enhancing communication, or allowing participation in education, vocational activities and recreation. One main goal of assistive technology is to provide opportunities for children with disabilities to explore, play, learn, and communicate with others. Switches are essential tools used to provide these opportunities. When a child with developmental disabilities understands the connection between the activation of a switch and the resulting action it triggers, the knowledge of cause and effect is gained. Therefore, the basis for all future learning is established [1]. One of the current problems facing assistive switch users is the cost of available items. This project provides more affordable solutions for switch users by teaching the families and educators of switch users how to make their own switches and adaptors in the "Life's a Switch" manual. For example, some assistive technology vendors sell large button switches from $25.00 to $45.00, tread switches for $40.00, and pillow switches for $35.00 [2]. Amazingly, all parts and tools used to make these assistive switches can be bought and made into personally designed assistive devices averaging a cost of around $10.00 [3]. A workshop to teach this manual was also developed. This workshop will spread awareness of the more affordable options this project sets forth. In September of 2002, the first workshop was held in a laboratory classroom at the University of Wyoming's College of Engineering. Each attendant was provided with a kit that included all essential tools and components needed to make an assistive switch. Workshops scheduled into 2003 will provide educational opportunities for participants as well as opportunities for improvement of the manual.

Biomedical Engineering↗