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Birds have unusually high plasma glucose concentrations compared to mammals of similar size despite their high metabolic rate. While birds use lipids as their main source of energy, it is still unclear how and why they maintain high plasma glucose concentrations. To investigate a potential underlying mechanism, this study looks

Birds have unusually high plasma glucose concentrations compared to mammals of similar size despite their high metabolic rate. While birds use lipids as their main source of energy, it is still unclear how and why they maintain high plasma glucose concentrations. To investigate a potential underlying mechanism, this study looks at the role of lipolysis in glucose homeostasis. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of decreased glycerol availability (through inhibition of lipolysis) on plasma glucose concentrations in mourning doves. The hypothesis is that decreased availability of glycerol will result in decreased production of glucose through gluconeogenesis leading to reduced plasma glucose concentrations. In the morning of each experiment, mourning doves were collected at the Arizona State University Tempe campus, and randomized into either a control group (0.9% saline) or experimental group (acipimox, 50mg/kg BM). Blood samples were collected prior to treatment, and at 1, 2, and 3 hours post-treatment. At 3 hours, doves were euthanized, and tissue samples were collected for analysis. Acipimox treatment resulted in significant increases in blood glucose concentrations at 1 and 2 hours post- treatment as well as renal triglyceride concentrations at 3 hours post-treatment. Change in plasma free glycerol between 0h and 3h followed an increasing trend for the acipimox treated animals, and a decreasing trend in the saline treated animals. These results do not support the hypothesis that inhibition of lipolysis should decrease blood glycerol and blood glucose levels. Rather, the effects of acipimox in glucose homeostasis appear to differ significantly between birds and mammals suggesting differing mechanisms for glucose homeostasis.
ContributorsKouteib, Soukaina (Author) / Sweazea, Karen (Thesis director) / Deviche, Pierre (Committee member) / Chandler, Douglas (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of Life Sciences (Contributor)
Created2015-05
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Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a well-known non-remedial academic support program for high-risk courses, not students. The program offers regular SI study sessions open to all students, and attendance is voluntary. SI has been shown to decrease the number of failure and withdrawals and to increase students' grades by one half

Supplemental Instruction (SI) is a well-known non-remedial academic support program for high-risk courses, not students. The program offers regular SI study sessions open to all students, and attendance is voluntary. SI has been shown to decrease the number of failure and withdrawals and to increase students' grades by one half to a full letter grade. A recent study has shown that SI bridges the gap in achievement between students who enrolled in college with low prior achievement and students with high prior achievement. Another study has shown that students of different academic abilities can all benefit from SI. It is well established in the education literature that perceived self-efficacy is an accurate predictor of academic performance and retention in college. Many of these studies have defined perceived self-efficacy as the belief in one's ability to excel in a task or achieve a goal. While many studies tackle the effectiveness of SI and its benefits to SI attendees and SI leaders, no prior study has examined the role of SI in fostering self-efficacy. The purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between perceived self-efficacy, attendance to SI sessions and academic performance. The hypothesis of this study is that attendance to SI sessions will increase students' self-efficacy. The SI participants in the high attendance group had marginally significant changes in self-efficacy while the SI participants in the low attendance group and the non-SI participants did not have significant changes in self-efficacy. The results from this study showed promising outlook that SI might be fostering self-efficacy and enhancing students' academic achievement. Additional studies are required to provide deeper insights into the role of supplemental instruction in fostering self-efficacy.
ContributorsKouteib, Soukaina (Author) / Vanmali, Binaben (Thesis director) / Giannetto, Michael (Committee member) / Van de Sande, Carla (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2015-05
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Description
The college textbook is the most commonly required component of almost any college course, regardless of a student's academic discipline. Professors often expect students to have access to the textbook and to use it to complete assigned readings. Textbooks often contain features that are designed to facilitate active reading, or

The college textbook is the most commonly required component of almost any college course, regardless of a student's academic discipline. Professors often expect students to have access to the textbook and to use it to complete assigned readings. Textbooks often contain features that are designed to facilitate active reading, or critical engagement with the information being read, to enhance learning of the material. However, students often do not read or prioritize reading the textbook. Students who do read, tend not to read the textbook as intended or use many of the features designed to promote active reading and enhanced learning of the material. Educational studies of textbooks tend to focus on aspects related to topics more relevant to publishers or professors with less research on aspects of the textbook applicable to students at the college level. The purpose of this study is to evaluate students' textbook use and their attitudes toward the textbook in an introductory biology course. Results of this study indicate students hold positive attitudes toward their textbook in an introductory biology course and majority of students do not use components meant to facilitate active learning. Although students report completing assigned readings, students may actually be reading select portions of what is assigned in using the textbook to prepare for exams. These results suggest that students may only be using their textbook to enhance their understanding of materials they expect to be tested on. The findings of this study help to understand the role of the textbook from the perspective of the student and provide insight for improving textbook design and use in science courses at the college level.
ContributorsRudolph, Alexia Marion (Author) / Vanmali, Binaben (Thesis director) / Chen, Ying-Chih (Committee member) / Yoho, Rachel (Committee member) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / School of Molecular Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
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Description

The biological sciences encompass topics considered controversial by the American public, such as evolution and climate change. We believe that the development of climate change education in the biology classroom is better informed by an understanding of the history of the teaching of evolution. A common goal for science educators

The biological sciences encompass topics considered controversial by the American public, such as evolution and climate change. We believe that the development of climate change education in the biology classroom is better informed by an understanding of the history of the teaching of evolution. A common goal for science educators should be to engender a greater respect for and appreciation of science among students while teaching specific content knowledge. Citizen science has emerged as a viable yet underdeveloped method for engaging students of all ages in key scientific issues that impact society through authentic data-driven scientific research. Where successful, citizen science may open avenues of communication and engagement with the scientific process that would otherwise be more difficult to achieve. Citizen science projects demonstrate versatility in education and the ability to test hypotheses by collecting large amounts of often publishable data. We find a great possibility for science education research in the incorporation of citizen science projects in curriculum, especially with respect to “hot topics” of socioscientific debate based on our review of the findings of other authors. Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education.

ContributorsYoho, Rachel (Author) / Vanmali, Binaben (Author) / Biodesign Institute (Contributor)
Created2016-03