bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Qualitative Study of a Course Trilogy in Biosystems Engineering Design
Authors: Friesen Marcia , Taylor K. Lynn , Britton M.G. (Ron)
Published: January 2013

Engineering design encompasses professional competencies that complement a solid understanding of engineering science fundamentals, theories, and methods. Engineering schools are increasing their efforts to integrate design into the curriculum, and this paper critically analyses one initiative at a research‐intensive Canadian university, where a three‐course sequence (Design Trilogy) forms the design education backbone in the undergraduate Biosystems Engineering program. Data collection consisted of focus groups with students and one‐on‐one interviews with instructors and industry cooperators. The findings yielded authentic understandings of teaching and learning engineering design, many areas of common perceptions between participant groups, congruence with design concepts in the literature, and areas where students' perceptions and experiences did not correspond to instructors' intentions. Teaching implications include the importance of instructors' transparency and integration in teaching and the need to explicitly prepare students for a different kind of learning experience in the Design Trilogy.
Undergraduate Student Competitions
Authors: Wankat Phillip C.
Published: January 2013

This study explored student competitions for undergraduate engineering and engineering technology students to determine which institutions consistently win and what factors support their winning, and to obtain some insights into the benefits for students. Forty‐four student competitions for engineering and technology students were identified, and the first, second, and third place institutions from 2001 to 2003 were tabulated. Although one institution would often win a particular competition, no institution was a consistent winner for all competitions. Advisers of winning institutions reported that their institutions won consistently because of a dedicated faculty advisor and/or the close alignment of the competition with the institution's curriculum. Also important are a tradition of winning, the quality of the students, and (for hands‐on competitions) the availability of resources. Additional research is needed to determine if student competitions increase student learning.
Experiential Learning Environments: Do They Prepare Our Students to be Self‐Directed, Life‐Long Learners?
Authors: Jiusto S. , DiBiasio D.
Published: January 2013

Recent research indicates that traditional academic structures may not effectively promote self‐directed learning. We investigated whether an experiential interdisciplinary projects program, called the Global Studies Program, increased readiness for self‐directed learning (SDL) and life‐long learning (LLL) using three methods: a nationally recognized course evaluation system called the Individual Development and Educational Assessment system (IDEA); an internal student project quality assessment protocol; and the Self‐Directed Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS).

Student self‐assessments through the IDEA system showed Global Studies Program students reported much greater progress in LLL‐related skills than did national and local comparison groups. Similarly, review of student projects by independent faculty teams found Global Studies Program students consistently outscored on‐campus project students in LLL‐related measures by wide margins. The SDLRS also showed a positive, but less emphatic increase in SDL readiness among a Global Studies Program cohort. The research demonstrates the success of one experiential learning environment in promoting SDL/LLL, while raising interesting issues regarding alternative methods of measuring potential benefits.
Civil Engineering Education in a Visualization Environment: Experiences with VizClass
Authors: Grimes Douglas , Warschauer Mark , Hutchinson Tara , Kuester Falko
Published: January 2013

VizClass, a university classroom visualization environment, was developed to bridge the gap between high‐tech engineering practice and low‐tech engineering pedagogy. It contains a suite of digital whiteboards, a three‐dimensional stereoscopic display, and specialized software for engineering visualization. Through observations, interviews, surveys, and examination of student work, we investigated student and teacher attitudes toward VizClass and its effect on teaching and learning processes. Observed benefits of teaching in the new environment include increased ability of faculty to visually explain complex problems, increased ability of students to conceptualize engineering problems, and increased engagement of students in after‐class collaboration.
Using Theory to Inform Capacity‐Building: Bootstrapping Communities of Practice in Computer Science Education Research
Authors: Fincher Sally , Tenenberg Josh
Published: January 2013

In this paper, we describe our efforts in the deliberate creation of a community of practice of researchers in computer science education (CSEd). We understand community of practice in the sense in which Wenger describes it, whereby the community is characterized by mutual engagement in a joint enterprise that gives rise to a shared repertoire of knowledge, artefacts, and practices.

We first identify CSEd as a research field in which no shared paradigm exists, and then we describe the Bootstrapping project, its metaphor, structure, rationale, and delivery, as designed to create a community of practice of CSEd researchers. Features of other projects are also outlined that have similar aims of capacity building in disciplinary‐specific pedagogic enquiry. A theoretically derived framework for evaluating the success of endeavours of this type is then presented, and we report the results from an empirical study. We conclude with four open questions for our project and others like it: Where is the locus of a community of practice? Who are the core members? Do capacity‐building models transfer to other disciplines? Can our theoretically motivated measures of success apply to other projects of the same nature?
The Effects of Engineering Modules on Student Learning in Middle School Science Classrooms
Authors: Cantrell Pamela , Pekcan Gokhan , Itani Ahmad , Velasquez‐Bryant Norma
Published: January 2013

The Teachers Integrating Engineering into Science (TIES) Program is a collaborative project among faculty from the College of Education and the College of Engineering at the University of Nevada, Reno. The TIES project paired university faculty with middle school science teachers to create three units that included engineering design using a variety of interactive learning activities in order to engage a wide range of students. The units included a Web‐based simulation activity, lesson plans, a design project, and three types of assessments that were standardized across schools. Results of assessments were disaggregated by gender, ethnicity, special education, and socio‐economic level. Mean scores for these student population groups were compared to mean scores for the same groups on the 2004 Nevada eighth grade science criterion referenced test. These results indicate that engaging students in engineering curriculum activities may diminish achievement gaps in science for some student populations.
Using Discourse Analysis to Study a Cross‐Disciplinary Learning Community: Insights from an IGERT Training Program
Authors: Anthony Linda J. , Palius Marjory F. , Maher Carolyn A. , Moghe Prabhas V.
Published: January 2013

A major challenge for fostering integrative cross‐disciplinary collaborations at the graduate level arises from the divergent exposure and training of students from uni‐disciplinary graduate programs. In this report, we present the design and preliminary analysis of an experimental forum to facilitate cross‐disciplinary discourse within a NSF‐sponsored Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship Program (IGERT) at Rutgers. This forum brings together IGERT Graduate Training Fellows and faculty from four diverse graduate programs in the engineering area and four related programs in life sciences and physical sciences for structured seminars and interchanges. Our report offers methodological and analytical tools grounded within a conceptual framework for promoting discourse that integrates content across diverse disciplines as well as across levels of inquiry. Both the theoretical framework and the research tools may be valuable to others seeking to develop integrative training environments for coalescing learning communities between engineers and their collaborators.
Investigating the Teaching Concerns of Engineering Educators
Authors: Turns Jennifer , Eliot Matt , Neal Roxane , Linse Angela
Published: January 2013

The teaching concerns of engineering educators offer one lens for thinking about how to support engineering educators' efforts to improve their teaching. In this study, we collected narrative accounts of teaching consultations between engineering educators and an instructional consultant. Transcripts of these accounts were coded for individual teaching concerns, which were then interpreted from the perspective of existing models and also aggregated into themes. We discuss our findings by using them to highlight ways in which engineering educators are already thinking effectively, to suggest how the adoption of innovation and professional problem‐solving can serve as promising frameworks for thinking about teaching activity, and to suggest that additional research on engineering teaching take advantage of distributed cognition models to truly understand how our students are taught.
Enhancing the Learning of Fluid Mechanics Using Computer Simulations
Authors: Fraser D. M. , Pillay R. , Tjatindi L. , Case J. M.
Published: January 2013

This paper reports the results of a study into the impact of computer simulations on the understanding of fluid mechanics by engineering students. A “lesson study” approach was taken, using constructivist educational theory combined with the variation theory of learning from phenomenography to inform the design of learning activities and to assess their impact. Student difficulties with fluid mechanics concepts were assessed using questions from the Fluid Mechanics Concept Inventory (FMCI). Students had the greatest difficulties with pressure measurement, fluid flow through pipes with changing diameter, and velocity profiles for fluid between flat plates. We developed a set of three simulations to address these difficulties. The impact of the simulations was gauged by a second administration of the FMCI. Most of the students in the sophomore fluid mechanics class participated in the whole of this exercise. Students showed significant improvement in two of the three areas of difficulty. Student feedback on this as an additional learning exercise was very positive.
Faculty as a Critical Juncture in Student Retention and Performance in Engineering Programs
Authors: Vogt Christina M.
Published: January 2013

Large numbers of students depart from engineering programs before graduation. For example, in fields such as engineering and computer science, students have commented on the inaccessible or unapproachable nature of faculty. To evaluate this problem, this study gathered data across four research universities. Using structural equation modeling, it measured environmental effects, i.e., academic integration or faculty distance on (a) self‐efficacy, (b) academic confidence and (c) self‐regulated learning behaviors effort, critical thinking, help‐seeking and peer learning, and (d) GPA. Results showed that faculty distance lowered self‐efficacy, academic confidence and GPA. Conversely, academic integration had a positive effect on self‐efficacy, which in turn had strong positive effects on effort and critical thinking. Consequently, ongoing educational reform efforts must encourage engineering faculty to understand the significance of their student/professor relationships and seriously undertake measures to become personally available to students.
Improving Learning in First‐Year Engineering Courses through Interdisciplinary Collaborative Assessment
Authors: Qualters Donna M. , Sheahan Thomas C. , Mason Emanuel J. , Navick David S. , Dixon Matthew
Published: January 2013

This paper describes a feedback process that assessed first‐year engineering student learning using a mastery exam. The results were used to improve learning and teaching in first‐year courses. To design the initial exam, basic knowledge and concepts were identified by instructors from each of the host departments (Chemistry, Math, Physics and Computer Science). In 2004, the 45‐item exam was administered to 191 second‐year engineering students, and in September 2005, the revised exam was administered to the next class of second‐year engineering students. The exam was analyzed using Item Response Theory (IRT) to determine student abilities in each subject area tested. Between exam administrations, workshops were conducted with the four department instructor groups to present exam results and discuss teaching issues. The exam provided a learning assessment mechanism that can be used to engage faculty in science, mathematics, and engineering in productive linkages for continual improvement to curriculum.
Impacts of Teaching Approaches on Learning Approaches of Construction Engineering Students: A Comparative Study between Hong Kong and Mainland China
Authors: Leung Mei‐yung , Lu Xinhong , Chen Dongyu , Lu Mei
Published: January 2013

Teaching and learning contexts influence the learning process and determine the learning outcome or product. Teaching approaches may vary across different engineering and science courses and students. This study was aimed at understanding the differences in teaching approaches between two regions (Hong Kong and mainland China) and their relevant impacts on the learning process in construction engineering education. An exploratory survey was conducted on construction engineering students in China to investigate relationships between teaching approaches, learning approaches, and teaching satisfaction. Results indicate that the “transferring” and “shaping” teaching approaches are commonly used in the first and second class universities in the mainland, while the “transferring” and “traveling” approaches are commonly applied in Hong Kong. Teacher‐centered teaching is correlated to a “surface” learning approach among students at Hong Kong universities but it is correlated to a “deep” learning approach for students in the mainland. Students at universities in mainland China are satisfied with all four teaching approaches, “transferring,” “shaping,” “traveling,” and “growing;” while students in Hong Kong are only significantly satisfied with the “growing” teaching approach.
Conceptualizing Engagement: Contributions of Faculty to Student Engagement in Engineering
Authors: Chen Helen L. , Lattuca Lisa R. , Hamilton Eric R.
Published: January 2013

The concept of student engagement, now prominent in the engineering education and higher education communities, has a long intellectual history. Yet only recently has attention focused on the role that faculty play as designers of educational environments to support student engagement. Drawing from examples and data from the Engineering Change study (which evaluated the impact of the new EC2000 accreditation standards on engineering programs and student learning), the Academic Pathways Study of the Center for the Advancement of Engineering Education, and studies underway at the United States Air Force Academy, we explore the role of faculty, as the institutional agents who are most proximal to the student experience, in developing, facilitating, and sustaining high levels of student engagement.
Assessing Pedagogy in Bioengineering Classrooms: Quantifying Elements of the “How People Learn” Model Using the VaNTH Observation System (VOS)
Authors: Cox Monica F. , Cordray David S.
Published: January 2013

One goal of the VaNTH Engineering Research Center is to estimate the effects of the “value added” to bioengineering student learning as a result of “How People Learn” (HPL) framework interventions. A necessary step in that process is to assess pedagogical differences in both lecture‐based and HPL‐oriented courses. Data from 28 bioengineering courses, over five semesters, were analyzed using a newly developed HPL Index. This index, developed from the Classroom Interaction Observation portion of the VaNTH Observation System, reports levels of HPL‐inspired pedagogy, traditional pedagogy, and classroom organization within a class using codes for different types of faculty and student interactions assigned by an observer in real time. Results confirm the HPL Index's ability to distinguish pedagogical practices based on HPL principles and pedagogical practices based on traditional, non‐HPL pedagogy.
Assessing General Creativity and Creative Engineering Design in First Year Engineering Students
Authors: Charyton Christine , Merrill John A.
Published: January 2013

Creativity is a vital tool for innovation in engineering. Psychology and engineering faculty developed the Creative Engineering Design Assessment (CEDA) because existing tools are limited. This measure was administered with general creativity measures in 63 engineering (57 males, six females) and 21 non‐engineering (six males, 15 females) students in five week intervals. Inter‐rater reliability showed high consistency overall and between the test and retest administrations. Only engineering males and females significantly differed on the retest. Engineering students with low, medium, and high creative engineering design did not statistically differ in their general creativity, not domain specific to engineering; however, only high scorers were significantly higher on the retest from the other groups. Future research is needed with larger samples.
Applied Ethics in the Engineering, Health, Business, and Law Professions: A Comparison
Authors: Barry Brock E. , Ohland Matthew W.
Published: January 2013

Background

Applied ethics plays a critical role in engineering, health, business, and law. Applied ethics is currently a required component of the pre‐practice education for these professions, yet the literature suggests that challenges remain in how we define, instruct, and assess professions‐based ethics education.

Purpose

Based on the on going debate associated with the instruction and assessment of applied engineering ethics, an exploratory investigation was performed to determine what could be learned by looking across professions.

Scope/Method

Ethics, as an educational topic, can be very broad in scope. This study was limited to literature at the intersection of ethics terminology, historical development, instruction, and assessment within engineering, health, business, and law. Many references associated with each profession and the input of profession‐specific content experts informed the literature survey.

Conclusions

Ethics within the engineering, health, business, and law professions have historically developed in isolation. Even case studies, which the engineering profession seems to have adopted from law, are framed differently within engineering. There are common lines of debate related to instructional methods, curricular methods, and instructor qualifications, but no profession has resolved these debates. A common trend in applied ethics research is a focus on assessment of student learning, rather than evaluation of instructional methods and/or curriculum incorporation methods. Assessment tools have been developed and applied widely for many years in several of the health care sub‐disciplines, business and law. An engineering‐specific applied‐ethics assessment tool has recently been developed, but has yet to see extensive application.
The National Effective Teaching Institute: Assessment of Impact and Implications for Faculty Development
Authors: Felder Richard M. , Brent Rebecca
Published: January 2013

Background

The National Effective Teaching Institute (NETI) is a three‐day teaching workshop that has been given annually since 1991 in conjunction with the Annual ASEE Conference. Its goals are to improve the participants' teaching effectiveness, promote their engagement in scholarly teaching and educational scholarship, and motivate them to engage in instructional development on their campuses. To evaluate the impact of the NETI on its participants, a Web‐based survey was administered to alumni of NETI offerings from 1993 to 2006.

Purpose (Hypothesis)

The study was designed to test the hypothesis that the NETI met its stated goals, and to the extent that it did, to identify factors in the workshop's structure and delivery that might have contributed to its success.

Design/Method

An online survey collected information regarding the participants' awareness and use of selected teaching strategies, their students' and their own ratings of their teaching, and their engagement in scholarly teaching, educational research, and giving their own teaching workshops and seminars. The validity of the survey structure is supported by several published studies that compared self‐assessments of teaching with external evaluations by trained observers.

Results

The NETI has motivated many of its participants to adopt or increase their use of proven teaching strategies known to correlate with improved student learning; made them more student‐centered, scholarly, and reflective in their teaching practice; and induced many of them to engage in instructional development and educational scholarship.

Conclusions

The NETI has satisfactorily met its goals. When interpreted in the light of a theory of adult motivation, the results support the effectiveness of discipline‐specific faculty development for engineering educators.
Engineering Competence? An Interpretive Investigation of Engineering Students' Professional Formation
Authors: Walther Joachim , Kellam Nadia , Sochacka Nicola , Radcliffe David
Published: January 2013

Background

There is growing evidence that engineering students' professional formation is shaped by the interplay of explicit learning activities and various influences from the wider educational context. The unintended outcomes of these processes, or Accidental Competencies, formed the lens for an empirical investigation of this social learning system.

Purpose (Hypothesis)

The exploratory inquiry addressed the following research questions. What are influences that contribute to engineering students' professional formation? How does it occur and what are resulting competencies and incompetencies

Design/Mscethod

Data was collected internationally in focus groups with 67 students in their transition from university into professional practice. The students' accounts were analyzed qualitatively using the software NVivo7. From the iterative analysis based on a grounded theory approach, categories and subordinate clusters of influences, mechanisms, and outcomes emerged.

Results

The following three forms of representation provide an authentic view of the social learning system under investigation: (i) a contextual model of competency formation illustrates the complex nature of the learning processes; (ii) an overview of the coding structure presents seven competence clusters (Flexibility, Interaction, Plan, Professional Realities, Self, Social Context and Technical); and (iii) thick descriptions from the students' accounts trace three characteristics of the complex learning processes (compound influences, ambiguity of outcomes, context‐dependent nature of learning outcomes).

Conclusions

Engineering education is a complex system where a range of influences outside the realm of explicit instruction contribute to the development of students as professional engineers. This study provides an evidence‐based framework to consider this complexity in reflective teaching practice and innovative curriculum design.
The Motivational and Transfer Potential of Disassemble/Analyze/Assemble Activities
Authors: Dalrymple Odesma O. , Sears David A. , Evangelou Demetra
Published: January 2013

Background

Reverse engineering and product dissection, more broadly termed Disassemble/Analyze/Assemble (DAA) activities, have been a regular practice in industry. The systematic analysis of the benefits of these activities for learning and instruction is, however, a relatively recent phenomenon. A number of studies have provided highly descriptive accounts of curricula and possible learning outcomes of DAA activities, but relatively few have compared participants performing DAA activities to a control group doing more traditional activities.

Purpose (Hypothesis)

A study was designed to investigate the relative potential of DAA activities to motivate students and promote transfer, the ability for students to apply or adapt their knowledge to develop novel solutions. It was hypothesized that students who engaged in the DAA activity would be more motivated and would demonstrate greater transfer of knowledge.

Design/Mscethod

A within‐subjects experiment, counterbalanced for order of treatment, was conducted with 290 first‐year engineering students to compare a DAA activity to a more traditional step‐by‐step laboratory activity for potential effects on learning and motivation.

Results

The DAA activity elicited significantly higher ratings of learning, enjoyment, and perceived helpfulness than traditional instruction. On a redesign task, a significantly higher frequency of students showed transfer from the DAA activity than from the traditional instructional activity.

Conclusions

DAA activities may offer a potential solution to the challenge of poor instruction, a cited cause of discontentment among undergraduates in STEM. They have the potential to motivate and to facilitate the transfer of knowledge.
TargetATPsite: A template‐free method for ATP‐binding sites prediction with residue evolution image sparse representation and classifier ensemble
Authors: Yu Dong‐Jun , Hu Jun , Huang Yan , Shen Hong‐Bin , Qi Yong , Tang Zhen‐Min , Yang Jing‐Yu
Published: January 2013

Understanding the interactions between proteins and ligands is critical for protein function annotations and drug discovery. We report a new sequence‐based template‐free predictor (TargetATPsite) to identify the Adenosine‐5′‐triphosphate (ATP) binding sites with machine‐learning approaches. Two steps are implemented in TargetATPsite: binding residues and pockets predictions, respectively. To predict the binding residues, a novel image sparse representation technique is proposed to encode residue evolution information treated as the input features. An ensemble classifier constructed based on support vector machines (SVM) from multiple random under‐samplings is used as the prediction model, which is effective for dealing with imbalance phenomenon between the positive and negative training samples. Compared with the existing ATP‐specific sequence‐based predictors, TargetATPsite is featured by the second step of possessing the capability of further identifying the binding pockets from the predicted binding residues through a spatial clustering algorithm. Experimental results on three benchmark datasets demonstrate the efficacy of TargetATPsite. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Physicochemical analysis of wheat flour fortified with vitamin A and three types of iron source and sensory analysis of bread using these flours
Authors: Crandall Philip G , Seo Han‐Seok , O'Bryan Corliss A , Meullenet Jean F , Hettiarachchy Navam S , Washburn Anna M , Ranhotra Gur S
Published: January 2013

Background

Wheat flour is increasingly being fortified worldwide with vitamin A and iron. Research on high levels of fortification is limited; therefore, in this study, wheat flour was made under controlled conditions fortified with vitamin A at 30 000 or 70 000 retinol equivalents (RE) kg−1 and three types of iron source at 66 mg kg−1.

Results

Milling produced a uniform distribution of fortificants with no significant separation during packaging or transportation. Chemical and physical analyses demonstrated that the dual fortified flours had acceptable physicochemical properties of mixing tolerance, pasting curves, damaged starch and falling numbers. The level of vitamin A fortification compensated for initial loss caused during wheat processing. Overall, white breads baked from seven treatments of fortified flour had only 22% (eight out of 36) of the sensory attributes as being significantly different. However, the type of iron source may play a key role in modulating the sensory attributes of bread baked from the dual fortified flour with vitamin A and iron.

Conclusion

The findings suggest that dual fortified flour with high or even lower levels of vitamin A and iron could be considered for food fortification programmes to reduce the prevalence of micronutrient undernutrition of vitamin A and iron in developing countries. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry
A disease activity score for ENT involvement in granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener's)
Authors: Martinez Del Pero Marcos , Chaudhry Afzal , Rasmussen Niels , Jani Piyush , Jayne David
Published: January 2013

Objectives/Hypothesis:

Accurate assessment of disease activity in patients with otorhinolaryngological manifestations of granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener's) (ENT/GPA) is necessary for treatment decisions and clinical trials. We have designed a disease activity score (ENT/GPA DAS) for this purpose.

Study Design:

A prospective cross‐sectional study.

Methods:

GPA patients seen in a tertiary center were systematically assessed for disease activity and/or infection in the ear, nose, and throat region using European Vasculitis Study Group guidelines. An ENT disease activity score was developed and validated, and compared to the ENT domain of the Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (ENT/BVAS).

Results:

One hundred forty‐four patients were studied, of whom 87% (125/144) had ENT involvement. ENT items of disease activity were correlated with expert clinical assessment. Discriminant correlation tests were performed to control for infection. Six items were retained to form the ENT/GPA DAS: reported bloody rhinorrhoea, granulation, ulcers and/or friable mucosa in the upper airway on endoscopic evaluation, objective stridor, sudden sensorineural hearing loss, and inflamed tympanic membrane/middle ear without infection. Nasal crusting was excluded. Individual items of ENT/GPA DAS had higher sensitivities and comparable specificities in predicting disease activity than ENT/BVAS items. Overall ENT/GPA DAS demonstrated higher sensitivity and lower specificity for disease activity in ENT/GPA when compared to overall ENT/BVAS.

Conclusions:

A tool to assess ENT disease activity in GPA has been developed. It is potentially superior to existing tools but requires further testing for intra‐ and interobserver reliability. Laryngoscope, 2013
Surgical techniques and treatment outcomes of transoral robotic supraglottic partial laryngectomy
Authors: Park Young Min , Kim Won Shik , Byeon Hyung Kwon , Lee Sei Young , Kim Se‐Heon
Published: January 2013

Objectives/Hypothesis:

The objective of this prospective study was to confirm the validity of transoral robotic supraglottic partial laryngectomy as a conservation surgery for treating supraglottic cancer.

Study design:

Prospective case study.

Methods:

Between December 2009 and November 2011, 16 patients were enrolled in this study. Acoustic waveform analysis was conducted and Voice Handicap Index 10 was measured to assess voice status. Videopharyngogram study and the functional outcome swallowing scale were administered to evaluate swallowing function. Overall survival and disease‐free survival were analyzed using the Kaplan‐Meier method.

Results:

A negative margin was reported in 88% patients. During the follow‐up period, distant metastasis occurred in one patient at 6 months. The Kaplan‐Meier disease‐free survival at 1 year was 91%. Patients exhibited complete recovery of swallowing ability after an average of 8.3 days. Videopharyngogram study showed aspiration in one patient. The cannula could be removed at an average 11.2 days. The average hospital stay was 13.5 days. Concerning the results of the functional outcome swallowing scale and Voice Handicap Index 10, most patients (90.9%) subjectively reported favorable swallowing and voice function.

Conclusions:

Transoral robotic surgery was a safe and feasible modality of treating supraglottic cancer. According to our data, transoral robotic surgery demonstrated oncologically and functionally acceptable results in supraglottic cancer patients. Laryngoscope, 2013
The relationship of external and internal sidewall dimensions in the adult Caucasian nose
Authors: Setabutr Dhave , Sohrabi Sohrab , Kalaria Shana , Gordon Kimberly , Fedok Fred G.
Published: January 2013

Objectives/hypotheses:

Nasal bone length is commonly referenced in the rhinoplasty literature. It has been suggested that short nasal bone length may predispose one to a greater risk of middle vault collapse after rhinoplasty. However, there are limited data available on what constitutes the normal dimensions of these pertinent structures of the nasal sidewall. In addition, no data exist on the gender and ethnic variability of such dimensions. This article reports on measurements of nasal bones and associated structures in adult Caucasian cadavers and their relationships to the nasal sidewall. Furthermore, this study assesses the validity of using surface measurements to approximate the true dimensions of the nasal sidewall structures.

Methods:

Using 37 adult cadavers, stable, external, nasal landmarks were identified and measured to approximate the dimensions of the nasal bones and upper lateral cartilages. These clinically relevant surface landmarks were then evaluated relative to the direct measurements of dissected nasal bones and upper lateral cartilages in a subgroup of 14 cadavers.

Results:

For the subgroup, the average length Ainternal(nasal bone) was 24.57 mm; the average measured length Binternal(upper lateral cartilage) was 12.43 mm. Measurements for the subgroup obtained via external landmarks were 20.21 mm (Aexternal) and 15.67 mm (Bexternal), respectively. The relationship of the nasal bone internal length to the external measurement (A) was a ratio of 1.22:1, whereas the internal length of the upper lateral cartilage to the corresponding external measurement (B) was 0.79:1. Average external measurements for the total group were 20.43 mm for the nasal bone and 14.30 mm for the upper lateral cartilage.

Conclusions:

These data provide useful information to guide the surgeon in avoiding middle vault collapse postoperatively and when evaluating those patients with presurgical middle vault concerns. With less ability to support the upper lateral cartilages, short nasal bones can predispose an individual to middle vault collapse postoperatively.
Teaching and assessing endoscopic sinus surgery skills on a validated low‐cost task trainer
Authors: Steehler Matthew K. , Chu Eugenia E. , Na Hana , Pfisterer Michael J. , Hesham Hosai N. , Malekzadeh Sonya
Published: January 2013

Objectives/Hypothesis:

To evaluate a previously validated low‐cost sinus surgery task trainer as a means of acquiring basic endoscopic sinus surgery skills and as an objective structured assessment of technical skills (OSATS) to determine procedural competency.

Study Design:

Prospective blinded study.

Methods:

Medical students (N = 52) with no sinus surgery experience learned to perform nasal endoscopy and five specific sinus surgery tasks using the validated task trainer. Training included regimented expert instruction, peer instruction/observation, and experienced‐based learning. Pre‐ and post‐training video recordings of nasal endoscopy and five sinus surgery skills were obtained. Two blinded expert otolaryngologists compared pre‐ and post‐training performance using a checklist and global rating scale.

Results:

Medical student post‐training performance was significantly better than pre‐training performance for each checklist item and global rating scale as calculated by paired t test (P < .001). Interrater reliability and internal consistency were confirmed by Kendall's coefficient of concordance and Cronbach's α calculations, respectively.

Conclusions:

The sinus surgery task trainer provides an effective means of teaching and evaluating nasal endoscopy and basic sinus surgery skills for novice surgeons. With repeated practice, there was significant improvement in performance. An OSATS using the sinus surgery task trainer suggests that we can effectively measure endoscopic sinus surgery ability with the potential to reliably determine competency outside the operating room.
Computing links and accessing arcs
Authors: McNicholl Timothy H.
Published: January 2013

Sufficient conditions are given for the computation of an arc that accesses a point on the boundary of an open subset of the plane from a point within the set. The existence of a not‐computably‐accessible but computable point on a computably compact arc is also demonstrated.
The Impact of CEO Tenure on Cooperative Governance
Authors: Cook Michael L. , Burress Molly J.
Published: January 2013

This paper investigates whether long‐tenured cooperative chief executive officers (CEOs) are successful in negotiating less monitoring, resulting in the cooperative being agent driven. Utilizing a sample of the 1000 largest US agricultural cooperatives, we examine whether boards of long‐tenured CEOs exhibit differences in composition, formal committees, or procedures that may indicate these boards are more lenient monitors. We find long‐tenured CEOs experience less board monitoring. This result is primarily due to a difference in procedural mechanisms, rather than board composition. However, it is unclear whether monitoring leniency is an indication of the CEO's ability to negotiate less monitoring. It remains a possibility that CEOs with shorter tenures also influence the board; but their recommendations may be heavily influenced by non‐compulsory conformance with stricter corporate governance regulations. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Environmental Pressures and Technical Efficiency of Pig Farms in Hungary
Authors: Latruffe Laure , Desjeux Yann , Bakucs Zoltán , Fertő Imre , Fogarasi József
Published: January 2013

Pig farming is one of the strongest polluters of water due to its intensive production and slurry rejection. Several European countries have introduced environmental regulations aiming at reducing the pollution caused by nitrates from agriculture, but not yet Hungary. We investigate how Hungarian pig farms' output and technical efficiency would be affected if such regulations are to be fully implemented in this country. Results indicate that the pollution could be reduced with no impact on the output level, and that pig farmers have incentives to reduce nitrogen pollution in order to increase their efficiency even in the absence of regulation. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Sensory tricks in primary cervical dystonia depend on visuotactile temporal discrimination
Authors: Kägi Georg , Katschnig Petra , Fiorio Mirta , Tinazzi Michele , Ruge Diane , Rothwell John , Bhatia Kailash P.
Published: January 2013

A characteristic feature of primary cervical dystonia is the presence of “sensory tricks” as well as the impairment of temporal and spatial sensory discrimination on formal testing. The aim of the present study was to test whether the amount of improvement of abnormal head deviation due to a sensory trick is associated with different performance of temporal sensory discrimination in patients with cervical dystonia. We recruited 32 patients with cervical dystonia. Dystonia severity was assessed using the Toronto Western Spasmodic Torticollis Rating Scale. Patients were rated according to clinical improvement to a sensory trick and assigned to 1 of the following groups: (1) no improvement (n = 6), (2) partial improvement (n = 17), (3) complete improvement (n = 9). Temporal discrimination thresholds were assessed for visual, tactile, and visuotactile modalities. Disease duration was shorter (P = .026) and dystonia severity lower (P = .033) in the group with complete improvement to sensory tricks compared with the group with partial improvement to sensory tricks. A significant effect for group and modality and a significant interaction between group × modality were found, with lower visuotactile discrimination thresholds in the group with complete improvement to sensory tricks compared with the other groups. In primary cervical dystonia, a complete resolution of dystonia during a sensory trick is associated with better visuotactile discrimination and shorter disease duration compared with patients with less effective sensory tricks, which may reflect progressive loss of adaptive mechanisms to basal ganglia dysfunction. © 2013 Movement Disorder Society
Sanfte Festkörperchemie
Authors: Groh Matthias F. , Heise Martin , Kaiser Martin , Ruck Michael
Published: January 2013

Festkörperchemische Synthesen umfassen nicht ausschließlich Reaktionen bei hohen Temperaturen. Niedertemperatursynthesen erschließen neue Stoffsysteme und optimieren die Darstellung bekannter Verbindungen in Hinblick auf Reinheit, Ausbeute und Energieeffizienz.
Empfindlich, automatisch und ohne Lösungsmittel
Authors: Laaks Jens , Jochmann Maik A. , Schmidt Torsten C.
Published: January 2013

Mikroextraktionstechniken bereiten Proben effizient und weitgehend automatisiert für die Gaschromatographie vor. Die Einsatzfelder reichen von der Umwelt‐ und Lebensmittelanalytik bis hin zu biologischen und medizinischen Anwendungen.
Review of the ordered and proportionate flow shop scheduling research
Authors: Panwalkar S.S. , Smith Milton L. , Koulamas Christos
Published: January 2013

Ordered flow shop models have appeared in the literature since the mid‐1970s and proportionate flow shop models have appeared since the early 1980s. We provide a detailed review of these models along with some analysis and potential topics for future research. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2013
The knapsack problem with a minimum filling constraint
Authors: Xu Zhou
Published: January 2013

We study a knapsack problem with an additional minimum filling constraint, such that the total weight of selected items cannot be less than a given threshold. The problem has several applications in shipping, e‐commerce, and transportation service procurement. When the threshold equals the knapsack capacity, even finding a feasible solution to the problem is NP‐hard. Therefore, we consider the case when the ratio α of threshold to capacity is less than 1. For this case, we develop an approximation scheme that returns a feasible solution with a total profit not less than (1 ‐ ε) times the total profit of an optimal solution for any ε > 0, and with a running time polynomial in the number of items, 1/ε, and 1/(1‐α). © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2013
Body composition determinants of metabolic phenotypes of obesity in nonobese and obese postmenopausal women
Authors: Peppa Melpomeni , Koliaki Chrysi , Papaefstathiou Athanasios , Garoflos Efstathios , Katsilambros Nicholas , Raptis Sotirios A. , Hadjidakis Dimitrios I. , Dimitriadis George D.
Published: January 2013

Objective: Although obesity is typically associated with increased cardiovascular risk, a subset of obese individuals display a normal metabolic profile (“metabolically healthy obese,” MHO) and conversely, a subset of nonobese subjects present with obesity‐associated cardiometabolic abnormalities (“metabolically obese nonobese,” MONO). The aim of this cross‐sectional study was to identify the most important body composition determinants of metabolic phenotypes of obesity in nonobese and obese healthy postmenopausal women.

Design and Methods: We studied a total of 150 postmenopausal women (age 54 ± 7 years, mean ± 1 SD). Based on a cardiometabolic risk score, nonobese (body mass index [BMI] ≤ 27) and obese women (BMI > 27) were classified into “metabolically healthy” and “unhealthy” phenotypes. Total and regional body composition was assessed with dual‐energy X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA).

Results: In both obese and nonobese groups, the “unhealthy” phenotypes were characterized by frequent bodyweight fluctuations, higher biochemical markers of insulin resistance, hepatic steatosis and inflammation, and higher anthropometric and DXA‐derived indices of central adiposity, compared with “healthy” phenotypes. Indices of total adiposity, peripheral fat distribution and lean body mass were not significantly different between “healthy” and “unhealthy” phenotypes. Despite having increased fat mass, MHO women exhibited comparable cardiometabolic parameters with healthy nonobese, and better glucose and lipid levels than MONO. Two DXA‐derived indices, trunk‐to‐legs and abdominal‐to‐gluteofemoral fat ratio were the major independent determinants of the “unhealthy” phenotypes in our cohort.

Conclusions: The “metabolically obese phenotype” is associated with bodyweight variability, multiple cardiometabolic abnormalities and an excess of central relative to peripheral fat in postmenopausal women. DXA‐derived centrality ratios can discriminate effectively between metabolic subtypes of obesity in menopause.
Variations between obese latinos and whites in weight‐related counseling during preventive clinical visits in the United States
Authors: Ma Jun , Xiao Lan , Yank Veronica
Published: January 2013

Objective

To examine rate differences and explanatory factors for lifestyle counseling to obese Latinos versus non‐Hispanic whites (NHWs) in U.S. outpatient settings.

Design and Methods

The 2009 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey data assessed the provision of weight‐related lifestyle counseling during general medical exam visits (n = 688) by obese Latino and NHW adults. The Blinder‐Oaxaca decomposition technique to identify the fraction of the overall ethnic difference in counseling rate explained by a selection of measured variables based on the Anderson‐Newman‐Aday behavioral model were used.

Results

Although weight‐related lifestyle counseling rates were low in both ethnic groups, the rate among obese Latinos (51.3%) was significantly higher than among NHWs (35.8%) (P = 0.03), with 60% of the difference explained by observed factors. Enabling factors such as provider specialty, metropolitan statistical area, practice type, and provider employment type contributed the most to higher counseling rates among Latinos, whereas geographic region, continuity of care, and health insurance were enabling factors that, along with the predisposing factor of sex, contributed the most in the opposite direction.

Conclusions

Obese Latinos are more likely to receive weight‐related counseling during general medical exams than do NHWs, which is partly explained by physician practice and patient factors.