The Disproportionate Impact of Fear of Negative Evaluation on First-Generation College Students, LGBTQ+ Students, and Students with Disabilities in College Science Courses.

Fear of negative evaluation (FNE), defined as a sense of dread associated with being negatively judged in a social situation, has been identified as the primary factor underlying undergraduate anxiety in active-learning science courses. However, no quantitative studies have examined the extent to which science undergraduates experience FNE and how they are impacted by FNE in college science courses. To address this gap, we surveyed 566 undergraduates from one university in the U.S. Southwest who were enrolled in life sciences courses where they had opportunities to speak in front of the whole class. Participants were asked a suite of questions regarding their experiences with FNE in large-enrollment college science courses. We found that first-generation college students, LGBTQ+ students, and students with disabilities reported disproportionately high levels of FNE compared with their counterparts. Additionally, students reported that FNE can cause them to overthink their responses and participate less in class. Participants rated being cold called and presenting alone as forms of whole-class participation that elicit the highest levels of FNE. This research highlights the impact of FNE on undergraduates and provides student-generated recommendations to reduce FNE in active-learning science courses.

Workplace Violence Training Using Simulation.

: Workplace violence in health care settings is increasing dramatically nationwide. In response, an interdisciplinary team at an Ohio health system developed and piloted a model of training to address workplace violence. The model included classroom learning, a code silver (person with a weapon or a hostage situation) simulation training, and hands-on self-defense techniques. Based on data collected in the pilot, the team revised the model to offer a more comprehensive approach; the new, revised training program is known as Violence: enABLE Yourself to Respond. The team designed four distinct five-minute simulation scenarios depicting a range of threats from "escalating behavior" to "active shooter" and enacted them with standardized participants (health care personnel trained to perform specific behaviors in educational scenarios). Immediately after each simulation, the instructors facilitated a debriefing of the participants. Participants' pre- and post-training program self-evaluations of how prepared they felt to react to violent situations, as well as experts' evaluations of the participants' performance in simulations, provided evidence of the effectiveness of the model. Analysis of the data demonstrated a statistically significant positive difference in both participants' perception of their preparedness and experts' evaluation of their performance. The combination of classroom learning and simulation training is an effective, evidence-based method to prepare employees to respond when a situation escalates to violence, including the use of a weapon. This approach was designed for acute care but can be adapted to other settings. Skills learned can be used in both personal and professional life.

Direct Measurement of the Thermodynamics of Chiral Recognition in Bile Salt Micelles.

Isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is shown to be a sensitive reporter of bile salt micellization and chiral recognition. Detailed ITC characterization of bile micelle formation as well as the chiral recognition capabilities of sodium cholate (NaC), deoxycholate (NaDC), and taurodeoxycholate (NaTDC) micelle systems are reported. The ΔH(demic) of these bile salt micelle systems is directly observable and is strongly temperature-dependent, allowing also for the determination of ΔCp(demic). Using the pseudo-phase separation model, ΔG(demic) and TΔS(demic) were also calculated. Chirally selective guest-host binding of model racemic compounds 1,1'-bi-2-napthol (BN) and 1,1'-binaphthyl-2,2'-diylhydrogenphosphate (BNDHP) to bile salt micelles was then investigated. The S-isomer was shown to bind more tightly to the bile salt micelles in all cases. A model was developed that allows for the quantitative determination of the enthalpic difference in binding affinity that corresponds to chiral selectivity, which is on the order of 1 kJ mol(-1).