This article describes the findings of a qualitative study on knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and practices towards children with spina bifida and hydrocephalus in four regions of Uganda. Focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews were held with parents of children with spina bifida and hydrocephalus, policy-makers, and service…

After completion of formal education, the mass media represent people's primary source of scientific information. Besides the traditional attention to scientific knowledge, national curricula are therefore increasingly emphasizing critical and reflexive engagement with media content as a key objective of science education. Despite this curricular…

Several authors consider high and frequent conflicts between friends during childhood as a serious risk for subsequent conduct problems such as generalized physical aggression toward others (e.g., Kupersmidt, Burchinal, & Patterson, 1995; Sebanc, 2003). Although it seems logical to assume that friendship conflict could have some negative…

This study tests the hypothesis that undergraduates who peer teach genetics will have greater understanding of genetic and molecular biology concepts as a result of their teaching experiences. Undergraduates enrolled in a non-majors biology course participated in a service-learning program in which they led middle school (MS) or high school (HS)…

Early research experiences must be made available to all undergraduate students, including those at 2-yr institutions who account for nearly half of America's college students. We report on barriers unique to 2-yr institutions that preclude the success of an early course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE). Using a randomized study…

Caspi et al. (2002, 2003), Guo et al. (2008a), and Pescosolido et al. (2008) all claim to have demonstrated allele-by-environment interactions, but in all cases environmental influences are potentially endogenous to the unmeasured genetic characteristics of the subjects and their families. Thus, gene-gene interactions cannot be ruled out as an…

A method to purify genomic DNA from "Escherichia coli" is presented. The method is an amalgam of published methods but has been modified and optimized for use in the undergraduate biochemistry laboratory. Specifically, the method uses Tide Free 2x Ultra laundry detergent, which contains unspecified proteases and lipases, "n"-butanol, 2-propanol,…

A recent study [Keri, S., & Benedek, G. (2009). Visual pathway deficit in female fragile x premutation carriers: A potential endophenotype. "Brain and Cognition", 69, 291-295] has found Vernier acuity deficiencies together with contrast sensitivity defects consistent with a magnocellular deficit in female fragile x premutation carriers. This may…

B6-Tg/Thy1APP23Sdz (APP23) mutant mice exhibit neurohistological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease but show intact basal hippocampal neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. Here, we examine whether spatial learning differently modifies the structural and electrophysiological properties of hippocampal synapses in APP23 and wild-type mice. While…

Early life events can exert a powerful influence on both the pattern of brain architecture and behavioral development. In this study a conceptual framework is provided for considering how the structure of early experience gets "under the skin." The study begins with a description of the genetic framework that lays the foundation for brain…

An alternative models framework was used to test three confirmatory factor analytic models for the Short Leyton Obsessional Inventory-Children's Version (Short LOI-CV) in a general population sample of 517 young adolescent twins (11-16 years). A one-factor model as implicit in current classification systems of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD),…

When a self-report instrument includes a balanced number of positively and negatively worded items, factor analysts often use method effect factors to aid model fitting. One of the most widely investigated sources of method effects stems from the respondent tendencies to agree with an item regardless of its content. The nature of these effects,…

Mitofusin 2, a large transmembrane GTPase located in the outer mitochondrial membrane, promotes membrane fusion and is involved in the maintenance of the morphology of axonal mitochondria. Mutations of the gene encoding mitofusin 2 ("MFN2") have recently been identified as the cause of approximately one-third of dominantly inherited cases of the…

Phylogenetic trees, such as the "Tree of Life," are commonly found in biology textbooks and are often used in teaching. Because students often struggle to understand these diagrams, I developed a simple, inexpensive classroom model. Made of pipe cleaners, it is easily manipulated to rotate branches, compare topologies, map complete lineages,…

Do our genes exclusively control us, or are other factors at play? Epigenetics can provide a means for students to use inquiry-based methods to understand a complex biological concept. Students research and design an experiment testing whether dietary supplements affect the lifespan of Drosophila melanogaster over multiple generations.