Serum lipid profile in diabetics with and without retinopathy

Diabetics showed significantly raised levels of total and LDL cholesterol, (257.0±68.88 mg% 173.5±67.7mg% respectively) compared to controls matched with age, sex and socioeconomic status. No significant difference was observed in these parameters in diabetics with and without retinopathy.     

Diurnal variation in serum glucose,pyruvate, lactate and lactate dehydrogenase levels under different environmental temperatures

Circadian rhythm of serum glucose, pyruvate, lactate and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) was studied in normal healthy young volunteers at the onset (I Group, 7 cases) and peak (II Group, 8 cases) of winters in India with highly varied temperature. There was a significant difference, in the circadian rhythm of glucose, pyruvate and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) of the two groups. A clockwise shift was observed in acrophase except in serum lactate, which is related to the energy demand in association with time qualified changes in diurnal activity of the individuals and change in photoperiod.     

Non-Science Majors’ Critical Evaluation of Websites in a Biotechnology Course

Helping students develop criteria for judgment and apply examination skills is essential for promoting scientific literacy. With the increasing availability of the Internet, it is even more essential that students learn how to evaluate the science they gather from online resources. This is particularly true because publishing information on the web is not restricted to experts, and content quality can vary greatly across websites. The responsibility of evaluating websites falls upon the user. Little research has examined undergraduates’ evaluation of web sites in science classes. The purpose of this study was to investigate on which websites college students selected and how they evaluated the websites used when developing individual positions about stem-cell research. We used a qualitative approach in search of patterns in undergraduates’ website selection and evaluation criteria. We found that students used a variety of web resources from eleven types of websites to complete their independent research report. Students also used eleven evaluation criteria to evaluate these sources, some useful (e.g., credibility) and some not useful (e.g., readability). We found that university students struggled with critically evaluating online resources. Undergraduates need prompts to learn how to critically evaluate the science content provided within websites. This type of scaffold can facilitate useful evaluation and promote critical thinking required for becoming scientifically literate.     

A comparison of students who delay kindergarten entry and those who are retained in grades K−5

Retention has been one way that school personnel have dealt with the problem of school failure. Some authors have proposed delayed school entry as an alternative to retention, especially since there are concerns about the effects of retention on students' self-esteem. It is unclear from the literature whether retention and delayed entry have differential outcomes on measures of school success. This study explored whether there were differences in IQ and achievement (at grades 2, 5, and 7) between students who delayed school entry and those who were retained in later elementary grades, as well as any interactions with gender. There was a significant 6-point difference in IQ, favoring the delayed-entry group. Furthermore, when the achievement test scores were analyzed using an ANCOVA with IQ as a covariate, no significant differences were identified for either group or gender. Implications for school practices are provided.     

Diagnostic and prognostic value of the urinary excretion of beta-aminoisobutyric acid in patients with urinary bladder cancer

Urinary excretion of beta-aminoisobutyric acid (BAIB), was determined in 28 active and 12 inactive bladder cancer patients. Mean excretion of BAIB was higher in active cancer patients-187.8 mg/24 hours whereas it was 120.4 mg/24 hours in inactive cancer patients. The increased BAIB excretion in both disease groups was independent of tumour stage. BAIB appears to be a useful diagnositic aid in the assessment of bladder cancer patients.     

Drug-induced renal Fanconi syndrome: A case report

The renal Fanconi syndrome which results from renal tubular dysfunction can be either associated with various inbom errors of metabolism or acquired from various etiology. We report a case of gentamycin-induced Fanconi syndrome in a 4-month old infant who presented with aminoaciduria, glucosuria, phosphaturia and compensated metabolic acidosis.     

Independent force and position control for cooperating manipulators

The problem of independent force and position control of multitask cooperating manipulators is studied. Each manipulator is in a non-singular configuration and the object can be driven by the contact forces exerted by the end effectors of the manipulators. The design requirement is to control each coordinate of the position of the object as well as each component of the “rest” forces, except the moving forces that are determined uniquely from the object's position. The present design requirement has been proved to be always satisfied together with asymptotic and BIBO stability. A class of controllers solving the above simultaneous problem is analytically determined. The proposed state feedback controller does not depend upon the specific object dynamics and thus the resulting closed-loop multimanipulator system performs as required, not only when handling various objects but also when the dynamics of the objects are unknown or hard to compute or disturbed by external forces.     

Combined updating on science and pedagogy for experienced teachers

This paper describes the structure and unique features of an inservice training course for science teachers (Pädagogik und Fachdidaktik für Lehrer, PFL). The course is based on the view that most issues of classroom practice are at the same time issues of pedagogy, methodology and subject knowledge. Therefore, the close connection between the participants' work required during the course and their teaching situation is most important: the teachers selected issues of direct concern to their daily work, performed research on these issues by methods of action research, analysed their findings, took appropriate action and documented the process in written form. They were supported by a team of mentors. A preliminary evaluation indicates a high degree of satisfaction of the participants and provides suggestions for the improvement of initial teacher education. In the PFL-project inservice science teacher education is considered not only an opportunity for professional development of individual teachers, but also a contribution to the development of science education and—in a larger context—school development.