364,824 research outputs found
ALT-MEMBER Responses to Jisc Private Consultation on Code of Practice for Learning Analytics
No full textThe recent ALT Annual Survey (http://repository.alt.ac.uk/2358) highlight the increasing importance of data and analytics in learning technology. As the use of data used to support learning and teaching becomes more commonplace in learning technology it raises important questions around privacy and ethics. A welcome development in this area is the Jisc draft Code of Practice for Learning Analytics which aims to provide a focus for institutions to deal with the many legal and ethical hurdles in this area. The Code has been developed as part of Jisc’s ongoing ‘Effective Learning Analytics’ project.
In April ALT Members were asked by Jisc to provide a response to the draft code
ALT-C 2011 Abstracts
No full textThis is a PDF of the abstracts for all the sessions at the 2011 ALT conference. It is designed to be used alongside the online version of the conference programme. It was made public on 1 September, with a "topped and tailed" made live on 2 September
Effects of BRCA2 deficiency on telomere recombination in non-ALT and ALT cells
No full textThis article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund - Copyright @ 2011 Sapir et al.Background: Recent studies suggest that BRCA2 affects telomere maintenance. Interestingly, anti cancer treatments that involve BRCA2 and telomerase individually are currently being explored. In the light of the above recent studies their combinatorial targeting may be justified in the development of future treatments. In order to investigate effects of BRCA2 that can be explored for this combinatorial targeting we focused on the analysis of recombination rates at telomeres by monitoring T-SCEs (Telomere Sister Chromatid Exchanges). Results: We observed a significant increase in T-SCE frequencies in four BRCA2 defective human cell lines thus suggesting that BRCA2 suppresses recombination at telomeres. To test this hypothesis further we analyzed T-SCE frequencies in a set of Chinese hamster cell lines with or without functional BRCA2. Our results indicate that introduction of functional BRCA2 normalizes frequencies of T-SCEs thus supporting the notion that BRCA2 suppresses recombination at telomeres. Given that ALT (Alternative Lengthening of Telomeres) positive cells maintain telomeres by recombination we investigated the effect of BRCA2 depletion in these cells. Our results show that this depletion causes a dramatic reduction in T-SCE frequencies in ALT positive cells, but not in non-ALT cells. Conclusion: BRCA2 suppresses recombination at telomeres in cells that maintain them by conventional mechanisms. Furthermore, BRCA2 depletion in ALT positive cells reduces high levels of T-SCEs normally found in these cells. Our results could be potentially important for refining telomerase-based anti-cancer therapies.This work is supported in part by grants from European Commission RISC-RAD contract FI6RCT2003-508842 and British Counci
Joint response to the Royal Society’s call for views: Vision for science and mathematics education 5-19
No full textThis response has been prepared by a consortium of the leading Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) research labs in the UK, in collaboration with the UK’s Technology Enhanced Learning research programme and the Association for Learning Technology (ALT)
On the Benthic Invertebrate Megafauna at the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, in the Vicinity of the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone
No full textLittle is known about the fauna that inhabits non-chemosynthetic environments associated with mid-ocean ridges. This thesis investigates a ridge and fracture zone system to assess its influence as a barrier to faunal dispersal, and as a unique bathyal habitat. It also describes the ecology of megabenthic communities inhabiting a ridge. Sites were chosen on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge in the vicinity of the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone, at a target depth of 2,500 m. Four superstations were chosen north and south of the Fracture Zone, on either side of the ridge. Different productivity levels and hydrographic features were characteristic for the northern and southern sites. In order to characterise the benthic megafauna 50 ha were trawled and 32,000 m2 of seafloor were sampled with HD video footage, targeting both flat and 10 ? sloped habitats. Holothurians were the most abundant megafauna. In order to assess their evolutionary relationship 43 holothurian specimens were genetically studied by modelling five of their genes (16S, 18S, 28S, COI, H3) in a phylogenetic analysis. All four sites exhibited noticeably different faunal characteristics. The biomass was highest at the SE, and lowest at the NW site. Body sizes differed between sites for most taxa, that were sufficient in numbers to be compared between sites, most likely as a result of different adaptations to food supply. Differences in species richness were observed between the sampling methods, with the highest richness at the SE site in trawl samples, and highest at the NW and SW sites in the video survey. Species densities were highest at the northern sites with both methods. Differences in diversity were also observed, with trawl samples providing a higher taxonomic resolution than the video survey and showing highest diversity at the SE site and lowest at the NE site. Community composition was significantly different between sites. Variations in the composition of megabenthic assemblages were observed between flat and 10 ? sloped habitats, although the effect of slope appears to be site dependent. The genetic analyses revealed a close relationship between individuals from different families. The extent to which the Ridge acts as a faunal barrier was unclear as the southern sites lacked an obvious difference in community composition. Faunal differences to the north and south of the Fracture Zone, however, suggest that this feature is a barrier to dispersal. The contrasting megafaunal assemblages of the sites probably reflect a combination of environmental drivers including sediment type, phytodetrital quality, hydrography, and habitat complexity
Alt-A: the forgotten segment of the mortgage market
No full textThis study presents a brief overview of the Alt-A mortgage market with the goal of outlining broad trends in the different borrower and mortgage characteristics of Alt-A market originations between 2000 and 2006. The paper also documents the default patterns of Alt-A mortgages in terms of the various borrower and mortgage characteristics over this period.Mortgages ; Subprime mortgage
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