Description: To make time in class for group activities devoted to critical thinking, we integrated a series of short online lectures into the homework assignments of a large, introductory biology course at a research university. The majority of students viewed the online lectures before coming to class and reported that the online lectures helped them to complete the in-class activity and did not increase the amount of time they devoted to the course. In addition, students who viewed the online lecture performed better on clicker questions designed to test lower-order cognitive skills. The in-class activities then gave the students practice analyzing the information in groups and provided the instructor with feedback about the students’ understanding of the material. On the basis of the results of this study, we support creating hybrid course models that allow students to learn the fundamental information outside of class time, thereby creating time during the class period to be dedicated toward the conceptual understanding of the material.

Description: Exposure to nerve agents induces prolonged status epilepticus (SE), causing brain damage or death. Diazepam (DZP) is the current US Food and Drug Administration–approved drug for the cessation of nerve agent–induced SE. Here, we compared the efficacy of DZP with that of UBP302 [( S )-3-(2-carboxybenzyl)willardiine; an antagonist of the kainate receptors that contain the GluK1 subunit] against seizures, neuropathology, and behavioral deficits induced by soman in rats. DZP, administered 1 hour or 2 hours postexposure, terminated the SE, but seizures returned; thus, the total duration of SE within 24 hours after soman exposure was similar to (DZP at 1 hour) or longer than (DZP at 2 hours) that in the soman-exposed rats that did not receive the anticonvulsant. Compared with DZP, UBP302 stopped SE with a slower time course, but dramatically reduced the total duration of SE within 24 hours. Neuropathology and behavior were assessed in the groups that received anticonvulsant treatment 1 hour after exposure. UBP302, but not DZP, reduced neuronal degeneration in a number of brain regions, as well as neuronal loss in the basolateral amygdala and the CA1 hippocampal area, and prevented interneuronal loss in the basolateral amygdala. Anxiety-like behavior was assessed in the open field and by the acoustic startle response 30 days after soman exposure. The results showed that anxiety-like behavior was increased in the DZP-treated group and in the group that did not receive anticonvulsant treatment, but not in the UBP302-treated group. The results argue against the use of DZP for the treatment of nerve agent–induced seizures and brain damage and suggest that targeting GluK1-containing receptors is a more effective approach.

Description: : Gum Hollow Delta is a small microtidal, aggradational to slightly progradational, hyperpycnal, tropical-cyclone-dominated delta in Nueces Bay (Texas). The delta formed over the past 80 years following anthropogenically diverted, high sediment-laden stream runoff through Gum Hollow Creek into Nueces Bay. Gum Hollow Delta formed episodically due to high runoff and increased discharge in Gum Hollow Creek and temporarily elevated sea level during Gulf of Mexico tropical cyclones. The delta is 600 m long, 1000 m wide, and 1.6 m thick. Fifty-one vibracores were taken along four dip transects and two strike transects to delineate the internal sedimentology, architecture, and geochronology of the delta. The delta consists of nine bedsets (tempestites) representing deltaic growth events. Internal stratigraphic correlations were constrained by the identification of significant widespread flooding surfaces and by 137 Cs geochronology. Flooding surfaces formed as storm surges produced short-term base-level rises in Nueces Bay, which were followed by rapid hyperpycnal sedimentation events. Tropical cyclones such as the 1933 Hurricane (Hurricane Eleven), 1945 Hurricane (Hurricane Five), and the 1949 Hurricane (Hurricane Ten) and named hurricanes Alice (1954), Carla (1961), Beulah (1967), Celia (1970), Allen (1980), and Bret (1999) produced significant base-level rises and deltaic depositional events. Distributary-channel avulsions are also associated with the landfall of these tropical cyclones. Comparison of the timing of the deposition of these hyperpycnal tempestites, constrained by 137 Cs geochronology, historical aerial photographs, and the historical record of Gulf of Mexico tropical cyclones indicate that the Gum Hollow Delta preserves an 80-year record of storminess.