The A﹠P Professor Science & Education Updates - Issue #192

Life Science

Researchers created model embryos from mouse stem cells that form a beating heart, a brain, and the foundation for other organs. The new model provides a novel way for future researchers to create and research the earliest stages of development.

Experts confident in safety, but questions remain about efficacy

Climate change is helping insects and other animals spread infectious diseases to new populations.

Likely not a new virus, but a manifestation of hand, foot, and mouth disease, experts say

People who drank at least two cups of black tea daily had a 9% to 13% lower risk for death than non-tea drinkers over roughly 11 years of follow-up, a new study says.

A mask-free, implanted device for sleep apnea that works by stimulating the tongue was approved by the FDA in 2014 as a second-choice treatment for people who are unable to tolerate a positive airway pressure machine.

Images of food stimulate a newly discovered population of food-responsive neurons in the ventral visual stream. Researchers believe there may be an evolutionary reason for this neural population that may reflect the significance of food in human culture.

Teaching & Learning

I would rather go through the checkout line in Target during freshman move-in weekend or allow myself to get cornered at the department holiday party by that one awkward faculty member who doesn’t understand personal space, or drive to Prince Rupert, Canada, and then ferry to the capital of Alaska while listening to Gary Puckett and the Union Gap on repeat than write the Syllabus for your class.

Principals and other education administrators should even be required to spend time teaching in the classroom, according to teachers responding to an EdWeek query. The focus here is on K-12, but applies also to Higher Ed.

TAPP News & Notes

In The Poop Episode, host Kevin Patton applies stories from his experience monitoring digestive health in zoo and circus animals to human anatomy and physiology. We explore the frequency of defecation, and how to read poop for common health issues. This is the episode that tells you how to get an elephant to poop on command!

Host Kevin Patton discusses the importance of the course syllabus in setting the tone for a course and helping to create a positive course culture. He includes a list of practical, yet artful, steps we can take as we review and update our anatomy and physiology course syllabus.