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Teaching Deep Time Concepts in a Time of Climate Change:: College and University Faculty Experiences Conveying Geologic Principles
No full textA fundamental principle of geology is the idea of deep time (McPhee,1981). Teaching deep time concepts, geologic time, plate tectonics, and evolution can help instructors impart an understanding of the big ideas in geology and the biography of the Earth to their students (Dodick, 2003a; Ervin-Blankenheim, 2021; Guffey et al., 2016; Libarkin & Kurziel, 2004; Zen, 2001). These tenets also can equip students with a means to reorient themselves to Earth-wide shifts in which climate change impacts are rapidly becoming a sober reality (Cervato & Frodeman, 2012). Geology instructors have a vital role in introducing deep time concepts to their students. The questions are how are these instructors teaching the topics, how did they come to learn them, and how do they value them and convey the ideas to their students? An additional query is what are instructors’ reflections on teaching these concepts if given new tools in the form of experiential laboratories? This study is grounded in the pragmatic, progressivist, and constructivist paradigms (Dewey, 1938, Piaget, 1964, Vygotsky, 1978) and conceptual change theory (Dewey, 1938; Posner et al., 1982; Strike & Posner, 1992), with a post-positivist lens. The research was conducted through a case study mixed-methods approach (Guetterman & Fetters, 2016; Stake, 2005) and examines instructor practices through a quantitative instructor survey, qualitative semi-structured interviews, and instructors’ experiences in the Deweyan sense of reflections on teaching deep time concepts. Descriptive statistics were employed to analyze the quantitative survey data, followed by grounded theory (Glaser & Strauss, 1967, 2017; Strauss, 1987) for the qualitative data. Situational analysis (Clarke, 2005; Clarke et al., 2018) was then used to examine study results from a broader vantage. Findings include instructor confidence and efficacy in teaching deep time principles are impacted by instructor background and experience, strategies they used to teach deep time ideas, instructor situatedness in learning the topic, and student circumstances (background and situatedness). The literature indicates positive experiences, role models, and practice build teaching skills (Bandura, 1977; Kaya et al., 2021; Posnanski, 2007). Innovative strategies and tools through the three experiential laboratories developed in this study were offered to instructors to enhance confidence and efficacy in teaching deep time topics. The new teaching resources were embraced by the study participants and improved and enhanced the teaching of deep time, a significant outcome of the study. Among these are adopting techniques of learner-based teaching. The data from the study indicate that fully embracing active learning enhances teaching geologic time, plate tectonics, and evolution. Further, learner-based pedagogies emphasizing deep time topics will enhance student understanding of the Nature of Science (NOS), Science, Technology, Society and Environment (STSE) precepts, and socio-scientific issues (SSI), in the context of deep time, all critical pieces of scientific literacy to provide a more profound knowledge of geology and prepare students for a world where climate change will impact most areas of life
Catalase mRNA abundance in the spring field cricket, Gryllus veletis
No full textOxidative stress is a challenge that all aerobic organisms can face. However, antioxidants (such as catalase) can mitigate oxidative stress. Freezing and thawing can cause oxidative stress and many freeze-tolerant organisms upregulate their antioxidant activity after exposure to freezing temperatures. This raises the question: do freeze- tolerant organisms use antioxidants to mitigate the oxidative stress associated with being frozen? Gryllus veletis, the spring field cricket, is an emerging freeze-tolerant model organism and can become fully freeze-tolerant after 6 weeks of a fall-like acclimation. Gryllus veletis has also previously been found to upregulate catalase mRNA in their fat body during fall-like acclimation. I hypothesized that catalase is an important antioxidant enzyme in the oxidative defense system of freeze-tolerant G. veletis and would be upregulated in multiple tissues as acclimation time increased. To test this, I performed qPCR on catalase mRNA in the fat body, midgut, and Malpighian tubules of crickets exposed to 0, 3, or 6 weeks of acclimation. My results did not support the hypothesis. I found no significant difference in catalase mRNA abundance over acclimation time in the fat body. Surprisingly, the midgut and Malpighian tubules both showed a significant decrease in catalase mRNA abundance over acclimation time. This finding may indicate that catalase is not the primary antioxidant used in the midgut and Malpighian tubule tissues to mitigate oxidative stress. To elucidate the role of antioxidants in freeze tolerance, a broader study of multiple antioxidants should be completed
“Starting In Last Place": International Black Women's Transition from University to Employment at St. Francis Xavier University
No full textThe transition from university to employment is a daunting task full of the unknown. However, the transition is not the same for everyone. Centring the experiences of Black International Women at St. Francis Xavier University, the research suggests that considering positionality is essential to understanding and supporting the needs of such marginalized students. Black feminist theory, critical race theory, and intersectional frameworks are used to answer the question: What are the experiences of International Black Women in their transition from St. Francis Xavier University to employment in relation to (the intersection of) race and gender? The results illuminate that race and gender-based discrimination within Canadian society possess barriers and impact their transition. Furthermore, unexpected factors like location, ageism, colorism and more, create nuanced experiences in barriers due to varying nationalities
Does Lactate Oxidation Consume Heat in Mammals?
No full textThe reduction of pyruvate to lactate via lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) releases heat. According to the Law of Lavoisier and Laplace (1780), the reverse reaction (lactate oxidation to pyruvate) should absorb an equivalent amount of heat. If true in vivo, lactate may serve a thermoregulatory function whereby heat produced by lactate formation in one area of the body (e.g., skeletal muscle) could be consumed by lactate oxidation elsewhere (e.g., brain). The purpose of this study was to determine whether lactate oxidation consumes heat in brain mitochondria. Permeabilized rat frontal cortex samples (n = 3) were fed either lactate or pyruvate. Direct and indirect calorimetry were completed simultaneously to determine heat (dQ/dt) and oxygen consumption (JO2) rates, respectively. Dividing dQ/dt by JO2 gives the calorespirometric (CR) ratio (kJ∙mol-1 O2), which was hypothesized to significantly differ between lactate and pyruvate. It was found that the lactate trials produced significantly less heat than the pyruvate trials (lactate: 283.7 ± 25.3 kJ∙mol-1 O2; pyruvate: 564.1 ± 59.6 kJ∙mol-1 O2; p = 0.012). These results suggest that in mammalian brain, lactate oxidation consumes heat. Surprisingly, not only were the CR ratios significantly different between lactate and pyruvate, but the lactate condition yielded CR ratios even lower than the lowest theoretical oxycaloric equivalent described by Thornton (1917). These results suggest that (1) lactate was incompletely oxidized, and (2) may thereby serve a thermoregulatory function in the mammalian brain
Development of Nanoparticle/ Metal Oxide Supported Metal Organic Framework Composites for Light Induced Photocatalytic Organic Coupling
No full textThe strategy of ‘greener’ chemical substitutions is of high priority in industrial practices. As a result, the popularity of photocatalytic or light-activated chemical routes has improved due to their known environmental benefits. At earlier stages, many photocatalytic reactions were accomplished with homogeneous catalysis, but they often met with one main disadvantage: recovery and reusability inefficiency. Therefore, the evolution of photocatalysis has been built around heterogeneous catalysis, one of the most significant criteria in modern chemical industry because of its straightforward separation and recycling. Metal Organic Frameworks (MOF) are considered beneficial to photocatalyst design due to the well-ordered and porous crystalline backbone with high surface area and chemical tunability. In addition, the inclusion of metal nanoparticles (NPs) like Au, Pt, and Pd and metal oxide semiconductors may be beneficial for further extending the tunability of these materials. The synergetic connection between the NP and metal oxide interface allows for the construction of a very effective photoactive state that is dependent on complimentary energies of the NP and the metal oxide surface. Merging the porous MOF structure and high catalytic activities of nanoparticle/metal oxide hybrids may overcome previous shortfalls and offer advantages such as excellent recyclability and shorter reaction times. In this study, the light-driven activity of a three-component NP/metal oxide/MOF material will be examined in two separate studies: 1) Ullmann homocoupling of aryl halides and 2) Photoreforming of CH3OH for H2 generation
The Argument of the (digital) Tragedye: A Digital Approach to Early Modern Manuscript Drama
No full textHSP70 upregulation during fall-like acclimation of Gryllus veletis
No full textThe spring field cricket, Gryllus veletis, becomes freeze-tolerant during the fall season, and is a good laboratory model system to study the natural mechanisms underlying freeze tolerance. During exposure to fall-like conditions (acclimation) in the lab, G. veletis decreases or increases expression of many different genes that may contribute to freeze tolerance in its fat body tissue. Previous transcriptomic data has shown that one gene that is upregulated in the fat body tissue after fall-like acclimation is Heat shock protein 70 (HSP70). HSPs can be upregulated in association with cold stress, likely functioning as a molecular chaperone protein that helps refold damaged proteins. However, the expression of HSP70 in multiple tissues has not been characterized, limiting our understanding of its role in freeze tolerance. I used RT-PCR to measure relative mRNA abundance of HSP70 in three tissues from freeze-tolerant and freeze- intolerant G. veletis. As expected, the HSP70 gene was upregulated at the mRNA level in the acclimated fat body tissue. However, the HSP70 gene was not differentially expressed at the mRNA level in Malpighian tubules or midgut. Further research is required to determine whether HSP70 is important for freeze tolerance in crickets
‘So what if I can't touch fruit?’: Neuroqueer AFAB experiences with identity formation
No full textResearch into queer and autistic conceptions of identity that are non-stigmatizing is lacking. Most of the research in this area focuses on the narratives of non-autistic people and often positions queerness as a symptom of people’s autism. This thesis will examine how queer and autistic people assigned female at birth (AFAB) understand their identity and how the relationship between their autism and queerness influences their identity. This research utilizes the researcher’s positionality as queer and autistic, centers queer autistic voices in research and contributes to ongoing discussions within critical disability studies and queer theory. It follows a mixed-methods approach to research by using interviews, surveys, and TikToks. This approach bridges the gap between scholarly research in academia and non-academic conversations in community spaces that utilize the broad reach of social media. The research examines ways of being thrust upon queer autistic people and how the trauma from them influences people’s understanding of their identity. This research has found that people’s gender identity and queerness influence their masking and unmasking process. The language they learn from understanding their autism and queerness helps them create a better sense of their identity. It challenges stereotypes about queer autistic people and analyzes how patterned thinking reliant on societal bias negatively impacts understandings of queerness and autism. This thesis develops new language to describe normative society. It acts as a stepping stone in the ongoing discourse about queerness and autism in academic and non-academic spaces and contributes to queer and autistic community building
Fostering successes in schools: Foster parents' perspectives of education for children and youth in foster care in Nova Scotia
No full textThrough participatory and collaborative research methods, this study investigated the question “how do foster parents perceive school success for children and youth in foster care?” Working with the Federation of Foster Families of Nova Scotia (FFFNS), the research was undertaken in three phases. In the first phase, participatory workshops were facilitated with the FFFNS Board of Directors (BoD) to act as a working description of school success for children and youth in foster care. In the second phase, a co-developed survey was distributed to all active Nova Scotian foster parents to better understand the level of importance as well as frequency of each factor of success, and the perceived frequency or availability of those supports. The third phase included collaborative survey analysis with the FFFNS BoD. Results indicate that foster parents perceive school success holistically, placing higher emphasis on social and emotional factors than grades. Specific people, programs, and policies that support these factors are explored and include educators who understand the impacts of trauma and the foster care system, but also see students as individuals with strengths who are not defined by their involvement in foster care
Analysis of Time-Dependent Data: An Introduction
No full textThis is a beta version of this textbook. Individuals may download a copy of the book for their own, personal, use only. Distribution, directly or indirectly including reposting in electronic or other media, of this work, in part or whole, is prohibited. Use of information in this book is at the user’s risk. Errors in the text may be reported to [email protected]