The university’s initial response to the spectre of artificial intelligence nullifying the efficacy of traditional academic performance assessments may present us with, if the reader will indulge an old chestnut, a case of ‘c’est vouloir prendre des li`evres au son du tambour’. That is to say, the unexpected 2022 arrival of ChatGPT (to say nothing of the progeny rapidly evolving AI systems will likely spawn next) is at this very moment spreading like an intellectual pandemic – whether professors wish to acknowledge its presence or not. As a community dedicated to thoughtful education, this new technology compels us to choose between three entirely distinct strategies: Ignore the impact of large language models on learning and assessment altogether and watch our students’ skills erode – the default non-response if we fail to act; or Fight against the inevitable incursion of cut-and-paste technologies such as ChatGPT by categorising them as forms of plagiarism, banning their use in academia, and trying to identify their offspring so we can apply largely feckless punishments as imagined remedies; or Embrace the new technologies and harness them in ways that radically recast core international educational and assessment practises, making them more suitable for the world in which we actually live. Ignore the impact of large language models on learning and assessment altogether and watch our students’ skills erode – the default non-response if we fail to act; or Fight against the inevitable incursion of cut-and-paste technologies such as ChatGPT by categorising them as forms of plagiarism, banning their use in academia, and trying to identify their offspring so we can apply largely feckless punishments as imagined remedies; or Embrace the new technologies and harness them in ways that radically recast core international educational and assessment practises, making them more suitable for the world in which we actually live. This paper imagines just such a third way. By contextualising technological advances as useful tools that can decolonise ailing education systems, the author imagines new evidence-based teaching and assessment strategies that can challenge students to achieve higher academic standards, making higher education increasingly impactful on the real world. The opportunity, this paper argues, is for international educational systems to ‘go beyond the unknown to meet the known’.
对于人工智能使传统学业成绩评估失效的幽灵，大学的最初反应可能是 "c'est vouloir prendre des li`evres au son du tambour"。也就是说，ChatGPT 在 2022 年的不期而至（更不用说迅速发展的人工智能系统接下来可能催生的后代），此刻正像一场知识界的大流行病一样蔓延开来--无论教授们是否愿意承认它的存在。 作为一个致力于思想教育的群体，这项新技术迫使我们在三种完全不同的策略中做出选择： 完全忽视大型语言模型对学习和评估的影响，眼睁睁地看着学生的技能受到侵蚀--如果我们不采取行动，这就是默认的无奈之举；或者通过将 ChatGPT 等剪切粘贴技术归类为剽窃形式、禁止在学术界使用这些技术并试图找出它们的后代来抵御它们不可避免的入侵，这样我们就可以将基本无用的惩罚作为想象中的补救措施；或拥抱新技术，利用新技术从根本上改变国际教育和评估的核心做法，使其更适合我们实际生活的世界。 完全忽视大型语言模型对学习和评估的影响，眼睁睁地看着我们学生的技能受到侵蚀--如果我们不采取行动，就只能采取默认的非应对措施；或者通过将 ChatGPT 等剪切粘贴技术归类为剽窃形式、禁止在学术界使用这些技术并试图识别其后代来抵御它们不可避免的入侵，这样我们就可以将基本无用的惩罚作为想象中的补救措施；或者，拥抱新技术，利用新技术从根本上改变国际教育和评估的核心做法，使其更适合我们实际生活的世界。 本文设想的正是这样的第三种方式。 作者将技术进步视为有用的工具，可以使病入膏肓的教育系统去殖民化，从而想象出新的循证教学和评估策略，可以挑战学生达到更高的学术标准，使高等教育对现实世界产生越来越大的影响。 本文认为，国际教育体系面临着 "超越未知，迎接已知 "的机遇。
{"title":"Reimagining Academic Performance Management in the Age of AI","authors":"Richard Dare","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e129562","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e129562","url":null,"abstract":"The university’s initial response to the spectre of artificial intelligence nullifying the efficacy of traditional academic performance assessments may present us with, if the reader will indulge an old chestnut, a case of ‘c’est vouloir prendre des li`evres au son du tambour’. That is to say, the unexpected 2022 arrival of ChatGPT (to say nothing of the progeny rapidly evolving AI systems will likely spawn next) is at this very moment spreading like an intellectual pandemic – whether professors wish to acknowledge its presence or not. \u0000 As a community dedicated to thoughtful education, this new technology compels us to choose between three entirely distinct strategies: \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Ignore the impact of large language models on learning and assessment altogether and watch our students’ skills erode – the default non-response if we fail to act; or \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Fight against the inevitable incursion of cut-and-paste technologies such as ChatGPT by categorising them as forms of plagiarism, banning their use in academia, and trying to identify their offspring so we can apply largely feckless punishments as imagined remedies; or \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Embrace the new technologies and harness them in ways that radically recast core international educational and assessment practises, making them more suitable for the world in which we actually live. \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Ignore the impact of large language models on learning and assessment altogether and watch our students’ skills erode – the default non-response if we fail to act; or \u0000 Fight against the inevitable incursion of cut-and-paste technologies such as ChatGPT by categorising them as forms of plagiarism, banning their use in academia, and trying to identify their offspring so we can apply largely feckless punishments as imagined remedies; or \u0000 Embrace the new technologies and harness them in ways that radically recast core international educational and assessment practises, making them more suitable for the world in which we actually live. \u0000 This paper imagines just such a third way. \u0000 By contextualising technological advances as useful tools that can decolonise ailing education systems, the author imagines new evidence-based teaching and assessment strategies that can challenge students to achieve higher academic standards, making higher education increasingly impactful on the real world. \u0000 The opportunity, this paper argues, is for international educational systems to ‘go beyond the unknown to meet the known’.","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 11","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141680227","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Organizational culture is understood to emanate from the management philosophy & leadership vision, along with workforce national culture, individual member’s background, beliefs, aspirations, perceptions & external interactions (Žarkić-Joksimović and Marinković 2018). The workforce composition seen across the Middle East presents a unique scenario deviating from the assumption of a singular core national culture in organizations. Figures available on the public domain indicate 99% expatriate employment in UAE private sector (Kapiszewski 2004) bringing about an amalgamation of cultural traits. The researcher, an HR practitioner, has made observations that expat national groups tend to respond differently on organizational stimuli, leading to investigation of nationality-based affiliation among workforce as well as existence of parallel cultural groups within the organization, focusing on healthcare sector. The research objectives are to review if majority expat national groups deviate from established country specific identifiers, the assessment of majority group behaviour on organizational cultural markers, review of the moderating effect of expat tenure & professional identity on the national cultural values, and to review whether large organizations in the UAE succeed in maintaining a unique organizational cultural identity across facilities, irrespective of employing varied expatriate majorities. Hofstede's Culture Onion Model (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005) is assumed as the base for investigating the research problem. This model ties together the concepts of National & Organizational Culture by linking the Cultural Dimensions Theory (Hofstede 1980) & the Multi-Focus Model on Organizational Culture (Hofstede 1997). Following a quantitative research design undertaken as a cross-sectional study, data collected is analysed for causal relationships. An adapted questionnaire is used, merging the elements of Hofstede's Values Survey Module (Hofstede and Minkov 2013) & the organizational cultural values questionnaire (Hofstede et al. 1990). A pilot study testing internal validity & reliability of the survey tool returned a score of 0.736 establishing acceptable range of internal consistency. The target population of around 2400 employees are considered from two tertiary care hospitals in Abu Dhabi, with different majority expat nationality mix. Sample size of 331 at 95% confidence is assumed using the Krejcie & Morgan table (Krejcie and Morgan 1970). Probability sampling is used to select the sample, with stratified random sampling method to ensure nationality representation proportional to the percentage strength in target population. Survey data generated an aggregate reliability score of 0.836. Hypotheses testing is performed & results further substantiated using Hofstede’s formulae for national cultural dimensions (Hofstede and Minkov 2013). A follow-up study on an independent sample from an acquired business of the entity, is conducted to exal
{"title":"Influence of Majority Expatriate National Cultures on the Organizational Culture in the UAE Healthcare Sector","authors":"Jophy Devasia","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e129721","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e129721","url":null,"abstract":"Organizational culture is understood to emanate from the management philosophy & leadership vision, along with workforce national culture, individual member’s background, beliefs, aspirations, perceptions & external interactions (Žarkić-Joksimović and Marinković 2018). The workforce composition seen across the Middle East presents a unique scenario deviating from the assumption of a singular core national culture in organizations. Figures available on the public domain indicate 99% expatriate employment in UAE private sector (Kapiszewski 2004) bringing about an amalgamation of cultural traits. The researcher, an HR practitioner, has made observations that expat national groups tend to respond differently on organizational stimuli, leading to investigation of nationality-based affiliation among workforce as well as existence of parallel cultural groups within the organization, focusing on healthcare sector.\u0000 The research objectives are to review if majority expat national groups deviate from established country specific identifiers, the assessment of majority group behaviour on organizational cultural markers, review of the moderating effect of expat tenure & professional identity on the national cultural values, and to review whether large organizations in the UAE succeed in maintaining a unique organizational cultural identity across facilities, irrespective of employing varied expatriate majorities. Hofstede's Culture Onion Model (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005) is assumed as the base for investigating the research problem. This model ties together the concepts of National & Organizational Culture by linking the Cultural Dimensions Theory (Hofstede 1980) & the Multi-Focus Model on Organizational Culture (Hofstede 1997). Following a quantitative research design undertaken as a cross-sectional study, data collected is analysed for causal relationships. An adapted questionnaire is used, merging the elements of Hofstede's Values Survey Module (Hofstede and Minkov 2013) & the organizational cultural values questionnaire (Hofstede et al. 1990). A pilot study testing internal validity & reliability of the survey tool returned a score of 0.736 establishing acceptable range of internal consistency. \u0000 The target population of around 2400 employees are considered from two tertiary care hospitals in Abu Dhabi, with different majority expat nationality mix. Sample size of 331 at 95% confidence is assumed using the Krejcie & Morgan table (Krejcie and Morgan 1970). Probability sampling is used to select the sample, with stratified random sampling method to ensure nationality representation proportional to the percentage strength in target population. Survey data generated an aggregate reliability score of 0.836. Hypotheses testing is performed & results further substantiated using Hofstede’s formulae for national cultural dimensions (Hofstede and Minkov 2013). A follow-up study on an independent sample from an acquired business of the entity, is conducted to exal","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141677196","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
"We are leaving the risk society to enter the society of shocks, ruptures and catastrophes, systemic phenomena". As early as the 5th century BC, the recognition of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (a VUCA world) served as a paradigm guiding the governance of the Chinese Emperors. What has changed since then is the speed at which progress accelerates, and the ability to adapt to it. Today, the organization of work aims to reduce time to immediate results that the market or technology will disrupt. In an ever-changing world, to remain competitive and attractive, companies must constantly reinvent themselves and adapt at breakneck speed, learning to play the balancing act like real acrobats in the face of paradoxical demands (Panczuk and Point 2008). In The Innovator's Dilemma, Christensen and Raynor (2003) asks: Why do well-managed companies fail? His conclusion is that they often fail because the management practices that have enabled them to become industry leaders also make it extremely difficult to innovate and develop the disruptive behaviors that ultimately lose them their markets in a volatile and fragile world. For an organization, the question is how to reinforce its anti-fragility. The crises we have experienced have made us aware of our vulnerability, and have shown us that we need to keep readjusting in order to make anti-fragility our own. But referring back to our pre-VUCA experiences, we believe that it's simply a matter of trusting our intelligence to learn how to overcome obstacles and make these paths practicable by harnessing a capacity for individual resilience capable of building a path of collective intelligence in the face of the storms of a VUCA world. By adopting an attitude of calculated risk-taking, a culture of resilience and using disruption to innovate (Frimousse and Peretti 2021), companies believe they can become stronger and more resilient in the face of future challenges, i.e. survive shocks and quickly return to their previous state (Cyrulnik and Jorland 2012). And yet, we find that, conversely, the more mature, multifaceted and successful a company becomes, the more complicated it becomes for employees to engage collectively in innovation. So how can neuroscience enlighten managers to build the anti-fragility necessary for survival in a VUCA business world? We will demonstrate: That it is inevitable that companies will be unable to manage uncertainty if they rely solely on human rationality, It's the very workings of our brains that mislead us (Kahneman et al. 1991). Our rationality has been challenged by neuroscientists studying decision-making, who have focused on the biases affecting our choices (Sacre 2018). There is therefore a significant risk that our prediction, based on biased information or reasoning, will not come true, and that the strategy will collapse like a house of cards. That by conforming to this approach, we necessarily experience the unpredictability of the business as a s
{"title":"\"Uncertainty and fragility, I love you\" artists' words","authors":"Stephane Ginocchio","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e129234","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e129234","url":null,"abstract":"\"We are leaving the risk society to enter the society of shocks, ruptures and catastrophes, systemic phenomena\". As early as the 5th century BC, the recognition of Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (a VUCA world) served as a paradigm guiding the governance of the Chinese Emperors. What has changed since then is the speed at which progress accelerates, and the ability to adapt to it. Today, the organization of work aims to reduce time to immediate results that the market or technology will disrupt. In an ever-changing world, to remain competitive and attractive, companies must constantly reinvent themselves and adapt at breakneck speed, learning to play the balancing act like real acrobats in the face of paradoxical demands (Panczuk and Point 2008). In The Innovator's Dilemma, Christensen and Raynor (2003) asks: Why do well-managed companies fail? His conclusion is that they often fail because the management practices that have enabled them to become industry leaders also make it extremely difficult to innovate and develop the disruptive behaviors that ultimately lose them their markets in a volatile and fragile world. For an organization, the question is how to reinforce its anti-fragility. The crises we have experienced have made us aware of our vulnerability, and have shown us that we need to keep readjusting in order to make anti-fragility our own. But referring back to our pre-VUCA experiences, we believe that it's simply a matter of trusting our intelligence to learn how to overcome obstacles and make these paths practicable by harnessing a capacity for individual resilience capable of building a path of collective intelligence in the face of the storms of a VUCA world. By adopting an attitude of calculated risk-taking, a culture of resilience and using disruption to innovate (Frimousse and Peretti 2021), companies believe they can become stronger and more resilient in the face of future challenges, i.e. survive shocks and quickly return to their previous state (Cyrulnik and Jorland 2012). And yet, we find that, conversely, the more mature, multifaceted and successful a company becomes, the more complicated it becomes for employees to engage collectively in innovation. So how can neuroscience enlighten managers to build the anti-fragility necessary for survival in a VUCA business world?\u0000 We will demonstrate:\u0000 That it is inevitable that companies will be unable to manage uncertainty if they rely solely on human rationality, It's the very workings of our brains that mislead us (Kahneman et al. 1991). Our rationality has been challenged by neuroscientists studying decision-making, who have focused on the biases affecting our choices (Sacre 2018). There is therefore a significant risk that our prediction, based on biased information or reasoning, will not come true, and that the strategy will collapse like a house of cards.\u0000 That by conforming to this approach, we necessarily experience the unpredictability of the business as a s","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 47","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141678636","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Introduction Malaysia has always struggled with graduate unemployment. Department of Statistics (2023) reports that 71.9% of graduate students are awaiting employment opportunities six months after graduation as of Dec 2022. Basir et al. (2022) says, that employability remains a major concern for all stakeholders, including graduates, higher education providers, industry representatives, and policymakers. He also, says that according to Economic Outlook 2021 of Malaysia, the unemployment rate among graduates has remained stable from 2001 to 2019, with fluctuations ranging from 3.1% to 4.0%. In February 2020, Malaysia had a 3.3% unemployment rate, slightly higher than the previous month's 3.2% Department of Statistics Malaysia (2020, cited in Basir et al. (2022)) Significance / Rational of the Study The acquisition of non-technical skills holds immense significance in augmenting the employability prowess of post-millennial graduate students. The current cohort of students demonstrates high levels of engagement and attachment to various social media and online platforms. Consequently, this phenomenon bears consequences for the development of their non-technical skills in a dynamic work setting. The present research seeks to address the existing gaps in previous studies while simultaneously bolstering the current body of knowledge by assimilating the alterations observed in the contemporary educational landscape and the advancements in information and communication technology. The findings of this study will serve as valuable input for policymakers, students, and educators alike, as they work towards enhancing the incorporation of non-technical skills into the existing curriculum. Study Objective Do cognitive skills, and Socio communication skills increase the employability of graduate students? Are graduates aware of the soft skills required for employability? Do the graduate students fulfil employability skills as perceived by employers and Human capital consultants? Do cognitive skills, and Socio communication skills increase the employability of graduate students? Are graduates aware of the soft skills required for employability? Do the graduate students fulfil employability skills as perceived by employers and Human capital consultants? Research Question Are students ready to embark on their journey in the Human Capital market with the required Skills and Competency? Hypothesis H1 A relationship exists between Social Communication skills and Graduate Employability. H0 There is no relationship between Social Communication skills and Graduate Employability. Research Methodology A mixed-method approach with a Convergent Parallel design as depicted below shall be used. The research process can be symbolized as qualitative and quantitative QUAL+QUAN Morse (1991, as cited in Demir and Pismek (2018)). A convergent parallel design involves the simultaneous execution of quantitative and qual
{"title":"A study on the Malaysian Education system’s Employability skills","authors":"Gandhimathi Krishnappan","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e130049","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e130049","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 Introduction\u0000 \u0000 Malaysia has always struggled with graduate unemployment. Department of Statistics (2023) reports that 71.9% of graduate students are awaiting employment opportunities six months after graduation as of Dec 2022. Basir et al. (2022) says, that employability remains a major concern for all stakeholders, including graduates, higher education providers, industry representatives, and policymakers. He also, says that according to Economic Outlook 2021 of Malaysia, the unemployment rate among graduates has remained stable from 2001 to 2019, with fluctuations ranging from 3.1% to 4.0%. In February 2020, Malaysia had a 3.3% unemployment rate, slightly higher than the previous month's 3.2% Department of Statistics Malaysia (2020, cited in Basir et al. (2022)) \u0000 \u0000 Significance / Rational of the Study\u0000 \u0000 The acquisition of non-technical skills holds immense significance in augmenting the employability prowess of post-millennial graduate students. The current cohort of students demonstrates high levels of engagement and attachment to various social media and online platforms. Consequently, this phenomenon bears consequences for the development of their non-technical skills in a dynamic work setting. The present research seeks to address the existing gaps in previous studies while simultaneously bolstering the current body of knowledge by assimilating the alterations observed in the contemporary educational landscape and the advancements in information and communication technology. The findings of this study will serve as valuable input for policymakers, students, and educators alike, as they work towards enhancing the incorporation of non-technical skills into the existing curriculum.\u0000 \u0000 Study Objective\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Do cognitive skills, and Socio communication skills increase the employability of graduate students?\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Are graduates aware of the soft skills required for employability?\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Do the graduate students fulfil employability skills as perceived by employers and Human capital consultants?\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 \u0000 Do cognitive skills, and Socio communication skills increase the employability of graduate students?\u0000 Are graduates aware of the soft skills required for employability?\u0000 Do the graduate students fulfil employability skills as perceived by employers and Human capital consultants?\u0000 \u0000 Research Question\u0000 \u0000 Are students ready to embark on their journey in the Human Capital market with the required Skills and Competency?\u0000 \u0000 Hypothesis\u0000 \u0000 H1 A relationship exists between Social Communication skills and Graduate Employability.\u0000 H0 There is no relationship between Social Communication skills and Graduate Employability.\u0000 \u0000 Research Methodology\u0000 \u0000 A mixed-method approach with a Convergent Parallel design as depicted below shall be used. The research process can be symbolized as qualitative and quantitative QUAL+QUAN Morse (1991, as cited in Demir and Pismek (2018)).\u0000 A convergent parallel design involves the simultaneous execution of quantitative and qual","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141679068","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In the present era, environmental sustainability is a transformative concept that is rapidly penetrating all facets of our lives and professional environments. Belgium focuses on environmental sustainability offers a wide range of green initiatives to sustain its environmental performance. However, the previous research has failed to determine the extent to which Green R & D Investment, Green Transformational Leadership, Green Cross Culture perspective impact the Belgium manufacturing organizations. The main rationale for performing this research was to determine the above green initiative's impact on the Belgium manufacturing organization. For this, a mixed-method approach has been utilized. Data from 254 respondents have been collected. This data was further analyzed through the analyzed the SPSS to perform the quantitative analysis. The results of the quantitative analysis show the Green R & D Investment. Green Transformational Leadership significantly influence green performance management (GPM) since its significance value is less than 0.5. At the same time, the Green Cross Culture Perspective does not pose any impact on GPM since it has a p-value of 0.48. On the other hand, qualitative data was gathered through the focus group interviews. Nine managers have been included in to focus group interview. In the focus group interview, managers depict the all the considered initiatives are vital for their green sustainability. However, green cross-cultural perceptive strategies should be enhanced more and consider both collectivism, and individualism elements for green sustainability. In spite of positive research results, this research also implies that the manufacturing organization in Belgium need to continuously change R&D investment strategies, focus on leader tanning, and increase employee engagement to ensure the successful implementation of green performance management.
{"title":"Investigating the Impact of Green R&D, Transformational Leadership, and Cross-Cultural Approaches on Performance Management in the Manufacturing Sector","authors":"Abdullah Hemmet","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e129588","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e129588","url":null,"abstract":"In the present era, environmental sustainability is a transformative concept that is rapidly penetrating all facets of our lives and professional environments. Belgium focuses on environmental sustainability offers a wide range of green initiatives to sustain its environmental performance. However, the previous research has failed to determine the extent to which Green R & D Investment, Green Transformational Leadership, Green Cross Culture perspective impact the Belgium manufacturing organizations. The main rationale for performing this research was to determine the above green initiative's impact on the Belgium manufacturing organization. For this, a mixed-method approach has been utilized. Data from 254 respondents have been collected. This data was further analyzed through the analyzed the SPSS to perform the quantitative analysis. The results of the quantitative analysis show the Green R & D Investment. Green Transformational Leadership significantly influence green performance management (GPM) since its significance value is less than 0.5. At the same time, the Green Cross Culture Perspective does not pose any impact on GPM since it has a p-value of 0.48. On the other hand, qualitative data was gathered through the focus group interviews. Nine managers have been included in to focus group interview. In the focus group interview, managers depict the all the considered initiatives are vital for their green sustainability. However, green cross-cultural perceptive strategies should be enhanced more and consider both collectivism, and individualism elements for green sustainability. In spite of positive research results, this research also implies that the manufacturing organization in Belgium need to continuously change R&D investment strategies, focus on leader tanning, and increase employee engagement to ensure the successful implementation of green performance management.","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 42","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141679175","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
The convergence of neuroscience and pedagogy, known as neuroeducation, has sparked significant interest in the field of education since US President George Bush declared the 1990s to be ’The Decade of the Brain'. The purpose of this study is to look into worldwide higher education educators' and administrators' opinions, needs, and potential performance consequences for neuroeducation. The study goes into the complex link between neuroscience research and educational practices. The education community is keen to acquire the neuroscience findings transfer into neuro-methodologies and neuro-didactics that promises to improve learning outcomes. There are several challenges that the education community must be mindful of in pursuing effective evidence-based practices. One is neuromyths, which are misrepresentations or misunderstandings about scientific findings. Second, having a common language that educators, parents, administrators, and policymakers can use to discuss neuroeducation in a meaningful way is necessary. Several keywords are used interchangably such as; neuroeducation, neuropedagogy, educational neuroscience among others which can be confusing. Third, policy decisions must be made based on clear goals and grounded in evidence. Lots of resources are wasted on prescriptive methods that have no connection to any sound research. Fourth, There is evidence of strong interest in how the brain learns and processes information which means that access to evidence-based research findings must be accessible to help decrease misleading and misinformation. Fragkaki et al. 2022 However, the growing interest in the education–brain relationship does not match the proper use of research findings. The research questions attempt to provide answers to the perspectives on neuroeducation and understand the interest and awareness of neuro-methodologies and neuro-didactics in the higher education community. Objectives: 1. Perception Analysis: The goal is to identify and analyze worldwide perceptions of neuroeducation among higher education educators, with an emphasis on understanding how these perceptions influence teaching approaches. 2. Performance-Oriented Training Needs: To investigate the perceived training needs and wants of higher education instructors and administrators in terms of neuroeducation-based strategies for improving performance outcomes, such as engagement and commitment. 3. Neuromyth Impact: This study will look into the knowledge and prevalence of neuromyths among educators, as well as their possible impact on performance-oriented pedagogical practices. Methodology: This study takes a mixed-methods approach, including surveys with Likert scale questions disseminated between May and December 2023. The questionnaire covers five major performance-related areas: communication and emotions, concentration and engagement, didactic methodologies, creativity and critical thinking, and neuroscience and neuropedagogy. Quantitative da
{"title":"Neuropedagogy in Higher Education","authors":"Anthony Moss-Zobel","doi":"10.3897/aca.7.e129736","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.7.e129736","url":null,"abstract":"The convergence of neuroscience and pedagogy, known as neuroeducation, has sparked significant interest in the field of education since US President George Bush declared the 1990s to be ’The Decade of the Brain'. The purpose of this study is to look into worldwide higher education educators' and administrators' opinions, needs, and potential performance consequences for neuroeducation. The study goes into the complex link between neuroscience research and educational practices.\u0000 The education community is keen to acquire the neuroscience findings transfer into neuro-methodologies and neuro-didactics that promises to improve learning outcomes. There are several challenges that the education community must be mindful of in pursuing effective evidence-based practices. One is neuromyths, which are misrepresentations or misunderstandings about scientific findings. Second, having a common language that educators, parents, administrators, and policymakers can use to discuss neuroeducation in a meaningful way is necessary. Several keywords are used interchangably such as; neuroeducation, neuropedagogy, educational neuroscience among others which can be confusing. Third, policy decisions must be made based on clear goals and grounded in evidence. Lots of resources are wasted on prescriptive methods that have no connection to any sound research. Fourth, There is evidence of strong interest in how the brain learns and processes information which means that access to evidence-based research findings must be accessible to help decrease misleading and misinformation. Fragkaki et al. 2022 However, the growing interest in the education–brain relationship does not match the proper use of research findings.\u0000 The research questions attempt to provide answers to the perspectives on neuroeducation and understand the interest and awareness of neuro-methodologies and neuro-didactics in the higher education community. \u0000 \u0000 Objectives:\u0000 \u0000 1. Perception Analysis: The goal is to identify and analyze worldwide perceptions of neuroeducation among higher education educators, with an emphasis on understanding how these perceptions influence teaching approaches.\u0000 2. Performance-Oriented Training Needs: To investigate the perceived training needs and wants of higher education instructors and administrators in terms of neuroeducation-based strategies for improving performance outcomes, such as engagement and commitment.\u0000 3. Neuromyth Impact: This study will look into the knowledge and prevalence of neuromyths among educators, as well as their possible impact on performance-oriented pedagogical practices.\u0000 \u0000 Methodology:\u0000 \u0000 This study takes a mixed-methods approach, including surveys with Likert scale questions disseminated between May and December 2023. The questionnaire covers five major performance-related areas: communication and emotions, concentration and engagement, didactic methodologies, creativity and critical thinking, and neuroscience and neuropedagogy.\u0000 Quantitative da","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":" 38","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-07-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141679255","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Louise Weaver, Judith Webber, Phil Abraham, Annette Bolton, Panan Sitthirit, Murray Close
Groundwater is home to a diverse range of organisms, both small and large, which form a complex ecosystem that helps to purify the water and keep it flowing smoothly. However, much of the processes that occur in this ecosystem are still a mystery and there are many important services that we have yet to fully understand. Our goal is to create a groundwater health index that can be used to monitor the health of groundwater, similar to the macroinvertebrate community index used for surface water systems. We are investigating both the macroinvertebrates and microbial diversity in our research. To gather data, we are collecting groundwater environmental (e)DNA samples and biofilm samples using in-situ biofilm bags from various sites in New Zealand across multiple seasons. We then analyze the water chemistry and sequence data for bacteria, archaea, eukaryotes, and fungi to determine the status of the groundwater source. Our findings show that there is a complex diversity present in both the groundwater itself (e.g., Fig. 1) and the attached microbial biofilm. We have also discovered variations between the attached and groundwater across all sites studied, with significant differences in the Shannon richness indicator in Canterbury. Additionally, we have observed differences in microbial populations depending on the lithology and water chemistry present. Our research aims to identify key species, both micro and macro, that can potentially act as a tool for predicting the health of groundwater. Furthermore, understanding the biological processes occurring in our groundwater may lead to the discovery of beneficial organisms capable of remediation.
{"title":"Groundwater Diversity across New Zealand: From micro to macro-scale","authors":"Louise Weaver, Judith Webber, Phil Abraham, Annette Bolton, Panan Sitthirit, Murray Close","doi":"10.3897/aca.6.e108433","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.6.e108433","url":null,"abstract":"Groundwater is home to a diverse range of organisms, both small and large, which form a complex ecosystem that helps to purify the water and keep it flowing smoothly. However, much of the processes that occur in this ecosystem are still a mystery and there are many important services that we have yet to fully understand. Our goal is to create a groundwater health index that can be used to monitor the health of groundwater, similar to the macroinvertebrate community index used for surface water systems. We are investigating both the macroinvertebrates and microbial diversity in our research. To gather data, we are collecting groundwater environmental (e)DNA samples and biofilm samples using in-situ biofilm bags from various sites in New Zealand across multiple seasons. We then analyze the water chemistry and sequence data for bacteria, archaea, eukaryotes, and fungi to determine the status of the groundwater source. Our findings show that there is a complex diversity present in both the groundwater itself (e.g., Fig. 1) and the attached microbial biofilm. We have also discovered variations between the attached and groundwater across all sites studied, with significant differences in the Shannon richness indicator in Canterbury. Additionally, we have observed differences in microbial populations depending on the lithology and water chemistry present. Our research aims to identify key species, both micro and macro, that can potentially act as a tool for predicting the health of groundwater. Furthermore, understanding the biological processes occurring in our groundwater may lead to the discovery of beneficial organisms capable of remediation.","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135366743","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Louise Weaver, Erin McGill, Panan Sitthirit, Judith Webber, Phil Abraham, Murray Close
Microbial pathogen survival within the environment can be variable and can depend on many criteria, including environmental conditions e.g. oxygen concentration, temperature, pH, sunlight, etc. (e.g., Horswell et al. (2010)). Groundwater has been shown to enable the prolonged survival of pathogenic organisms due to the absence of sunlight and relatively stable temperatures (Cook and Bolster 2007). In other studies, however, survival has been lower in groundwater when compared with a sterile environment (e.g. sterilised groundwater or artificial groundwater) due to the presence of competing organisms and adverse conditions of pH and redox. To elucidate these discrepancies two experiments were designed: The first, hypothesised that, due to Campylobacters' low tolerance to high oxygen levels, survival in oxic (dissolved oxygen (DO) levels over 5 mg per L) would be less than in anoxic groundwater (DO levels below 2 mg per L). The second hypothesised that the survival of the pathogen Salmonella typhimurium , in groundwater, will be enhanced by organic carbon. METHODS Campylobacter experiment: Campylobacter jejuni isolated from the Havelock North drinking water source was used (designated HN16) (Gilpin et al. 2020). To compare the survival of the outbreak strain with type strain Campylobacter , NCTC 11351 was used. Salmonella experiment: For this experiment, environmental isolates were used rather than laboratory strains. Salmonella, isolated from a stream in Wellington, New Zealand, was identified as Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium . The Escherichia coli used was a phylogroup A, isolated from stream sediment in Whangarei Falls, New Zealand. Mesocosm experiments were established containing groundwater (oxic and anoxic for Campylobacter experiment and ultrafiltered, groundwater, groundwater amended with 1% or 10% dissolved organic carbon (DOC). pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), and temperature were monitored over the experimental period. The temperature was maintained at 12-14°C during both experiments. Samples (5 mL) of the groundwater from each jar were taken aseptically at set time points over the experimental period. Samples were then serially diluted in sterile peptone water to give a dilution series from 10 -1 to 10 -4 . Samples were analysed by plating onto selective media. RESULTS Campylobacter experiment: The results presented demonstrated differences in the survival of the two Campylobacter strains tested and differences in survival of Campylobacter HN16 depending on groundwater type. Fig. 1 shows the average concentration of Campylobacter strains in groundwater types over time. The results presented are average of three replicates. Over the whole experimental period survival of Campylobacter HN16 was greatest in anoxic groundwater, and only a 1 log reduction was observed (Fig. 1), equating to a 79.6% survival after 16 days. The die-off rate of Campylobacter HN16 in anoxic groundwater was calculated to be 0.0873 days and T90 6.85 days. Salmon
{"title":"Pathogen survival in groundwater: Influence of redox and organic matter","authors":"Louise Weaver, Erin McGill, Panan Sitthirit, Judith Webber, Phil Abraham, Murray Close","doi":"10.3897/aca.6.e108697","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.6.e108697","url":null,"abstract":"Microbial pathogen survival within the environment can be variable and can depend on many criteria, including environmental conditions e.g. oxygen concentration, temperature, pH, sunlight, etc. (e.g., Horswell et al. (2010)). Groundwater has been shown to enable the prolonged survival of pathogenic organisms due to the absence of sunlight and relatively stable temperatures (Cook and Bolster 2007). In other studies, however, survival has been lower in groundwater when compared with a sterile environment (e.g. sterilised groundwater or artificial groundwater) due to the presence of competing organisms and adverse conditions of pH and redox. To elucidate these discrepancies two experiments were designed: The first, hypothesised that, due to Campylobacters' low tolerance to high oxygen levels, survival in oxic (dissolved oxygen (DO) levels over 5 mg per L) would be less than in anoxic groundwater (DO levels below 2 mg per L). The second hypothesised that the survival of the pathogen Salmonella typhimurium , in groundwater, will be enhanced by organic carbon. METHODS Campylobacter experiment: Campylobacter jejuni isolated from the Havelock North drinking water source was used (designated HN16) (Gilpin et al. 2020). To compare the survival of the outbreak strain with type strain Campylobacter , NCTC 11351 was used. Salmonella experiment: For this experiment, environmental isolates were used rather than laboratory strains. Salmonella, isolated from a stream in Wellington, New Zealand, was identified as Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium . The Escherichia coli used was a phylogroup A, isolated from stream sediment in Whangarei Falls, New Zealand. Mesocosm experiments were established containing groundwater (oxic and anoxic for Campylobacter experiment and ultrafiltered, groundwater, groundwater amended with 1% or 10% dissolved organic carbon (DOC). pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), and temperature were monitored over the experimental period. The temperature was maintained at 12-14°C during both experiments. Samples (5 mL) of the groundwater from each jar were taken aseptically at set time points over the experimental period. Samples were then serially diluted in sterile peptone water to give a dilution series from 10 -1 to 10 -4 . Samples were analysed by plating onto selective media. RESULTS Campylobacter experiment: The results presented demonstrated differences in the survival of the two Campylobacter strains tested and differences in survival of Campylobacter HN16 depending on groundwater type. Fig. 1 shows the average concentration of Campylobacter strains in groundwater types over time. The results presented are average of three replicates. Over the whole experimental period survival of Campylobacter HN16 was greatest in anoxic groundwater, and only a 1 log reduction was observed (Fig. 1), equating to a 79.6% survival after 16 days. The die-off rate of Campylobacter HN16 in anoxic groundwater was calculated to be 0.0873 days and T90 6.85 days. Salmon","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":"105 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135413213","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zhuo Zhou, Cuijing Zhang, Pengfei Liu, Lin Fu, Rafael Laso-Pérez, Lu Yang, Liping Bai, Jiang Li, Min Yang, Junzhang Lin, Weidong Wang, Gunter Wegener, Meng Li, Lei Cheng
Methanogenic hydrocarbon biodegradation alters the composition of many subsurface oil reservoirs (Jones et al. 2007). This process reduced the crude oil quality by removing alkanes and thus increasing the oil viscosity. The process has been described for syntrophic associations of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria and methanogenic archaea (Zengler et al. 1999, Dolfing et al. 2007). However, recent culture-independent studies suggest that the archaeon ‘ Candidatus Methanoliparum’ may combine alkane degradation and methanogenesis (Laso-Pérez et al. 2019, Borrel et al. 2019). Here we cultured Ca . Methanoliparum from a subsurface oil reservoir. To study this culture, situ hybridization, metagenomics and metatranscriptomics were combined with stable isotope probing and metabolite analyses for describing its functioning and assessing its potential role in reservoir chemistry. Incubated an anoxic oily sludge of the Shengli oilfield with sulfate-free medium, we established a methanogenic culture. This culture consumed various different long-chain alkanes, but also alkyl-benzenes and alkyl-cycloalkanes, and produced methane and CO 2 as products (Fig. 1a-b). Our analyses revealed that our culture is dominated by a single archaeon, Ca. Methanoliparia (green). To study the specific turnover of n -alkanes, the cultures were supplemented with 1,2- 13 C-labelled or unlabelled n -hexadecane (Fig. 2). Within 100 days of incubation, both compounds were quantitatively converted into methane and carbon dioxide. In the 13 C-labelling experiment, around 0.46 mmol of 13 CH 4 and around 0.15 mmol of 13 CO 2 were produced, which was equal to 85% to 92% of the stoichiometric conversion of the supplemented labelled hexadecane according to 4C 16 H 34 + 30H 2 O -- 49CH 4 + 15CO 2 (Fig. 2a-d) . We examined the functioning of Ca. Methanoliparum in the hexadecane-degrading culture using amplicon sequencing, metagenomics and metatranscriptomics. In the archaeal domain, the relative abundance of Ca. Methanoliparum in the hexadecane-degrading cultures comprised up to 75% of the total abundance according to analysis of archaeal 16S rRNA genes. Furthermore, Ca. Methanoliparum accounted for approximately 34–40% of the total microbial community as determined by metagenomic read recruitment estimation (Fig. 2e-f). We analysed the gene expression patterns of Ca. Methanoliparum during methanogenic hexadecane degradation (Fig. 3). The genes encoding the methanogenic hexadecane degradation pathway ranked among the top 10% to 25% of all Ca . M. thermophilum transcribed genes. Moreover, genes of Ca . M. thermophilum encoding ACR and MCR ranked among the top 2% of all transcribed genes within the whole community (Fig. 3b). The MAGs of Ca . M. thermophilum also showed the highest transcription among all described MAGs (Fig. 3c). These analyses indicate that Ca . M. thermophilum performs both the degradation of hexadecane and the formation of methane. We searched the cell extracts of the hexadeca
{"title":"Non-syntrophic Methanogenic Hydrocarbon Degradation by an Archaeal Species","authors":"Zhuo Zhou, Cuijing Zhang, Pengfei Liu, Lin Fu, Rafael Laso-Pérez, Lu Yang, Liping Bai, Jiang Li, Min Yang, Junzhang Lin, Weidong Wang, Gunter Wegener, Meng Li, Lei Cheng","doi":"10.3897/aca.6.e111614","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.6.e111614","url":null,"abstract":"Methanogenic hydrocarbon biodegradation alters the composition of many subsurface oil reservoirs (Jones et al. 2007). This process reduced the crude oil quality by removing alkanes and thus increasing the oil viscosity. The process has been described for syntrophic associations of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria and methanogenic archaea (Zengler et al. 1999, Dolfing et al. 2007). However, recent culture-independent studies suggest that the archaeon ‘ Candidatus Methanoliparum’ may combine alkane degradation and methanogenesis (Laso-Pérez et al. 2019, Borrel et al. 2019). Here we cultured Ca . Methanoliparum from a subsurface oil reservoir. To study this culture, situ hybridization, metagenomics and metatranscriptomics were combined with stable isotope probing and metabolite analyses for describing its functioning and assessing its potential role in reservoir chemistry. Incubated an anoxic oily sludge of the Shengli oilfield with sulfate-free medium, we established a methanogenic culture. This culture consumed various different long-chain alkanes, but also alkyl-benzenes and alkyl-cycloalkanes, and produced methane and CO 2 as products (Fig. 1a-b). Our analyses revealed that our culture is dominated by a single archaeon, Ca. Methanoliparia (green). To study the specific turnover of n -alkanes, the cultures were supplemented with 1,2- 13 C-labelled or unlabelled n -hexadecane (Fig. 2). Within 100 days of incubation, both compounds were quantitatively converted into methane and carbon dioxide. In the 13 C-labelling experiment, around 0.46 mmol of 13 CH 4 and around 0.15 mmol of 13 CO 2 were produced, which was equal to 85% to 92% of the stoichiometric conversion of the supplemented labelled hexadecane according to 4C 16 H 34 + 30H 2 O -- 49CH 4 + 15CO 2 (Fig. 2a-d) . We examined the functioning of Ca. Methanoliparum in the hexadecane-degrading culture using amplicon sequencing, metagenomics and metatranscriptomics. In the archaeal domain, the relative abundance of Ca. Methanoliparum in the hexadecane-degrading cultures comprised up to 75% of the total abundance according to analysis of archaeal 16S rRNA genes. Furthermore, Ca. Methanoliparum accounted for approximately 34–40% of the total microbial community as determined by metagenomic read recruitment estimation (Fig. 2e-f). We analysed the gene expression patterns of Ca. Methanoliparum during methanogenic hexadecane degradation (Fig. 3). The genes encoding the methanogenic hexadecane degradation pathway ranked among the top 10% to 25% of all Ca . M. thermophilum transcribed genes. Moreover, genes of Ca . M. thermophilum encoding ACR and MCR ranked among the top 2% of all transcribed genes within the whole community (Fig. 3b). The MAGs of Ca . M. thermophilum also showed the highest transcription among all described MAGs (Fig. 3c). These analyses indicate that Ca . M. thermophilum performs both the degradation of hexadecane and the formation of methane. We searched the cell extracts of the hexadeca","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":"20 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135885152","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Glaciers, once dismissed as inhospitable environments, have been overlooked in scientific investigations. Previous studies have primarily focused on the supraglacial (cryoconite holes, snow, and meltwater) and subglacial (bedrock and soils, among others) environments, neglecting the englacial (inside ice) realm. Despite evidence demonstrating the survival of cells in glacial/sea ice (Christner 2000, Junge et al. 2002, Miteva et al. 2004, Miteva and Brenchley 2005) and theoretical predictions and indirect evidence hinting at active microbial communities within glacial ice (Krembs et al. 2002, Junge et al. 2004, Price and Sowers 2004, Tung et al. 2005, Tung et al. 2006, Rohde et al. 2008), the englacial environment has remained largely unexplored. Recognizing that englacial ice hosts potentially active microbial communities carries significant implications for the future of these habitats in the face of escalating global warming and glacial retreat. As glaciers rapidly melt due to the effects of global warming, the liberation of these microbial communities will undoubtedly exert profound effects on local ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles, presenting an array of unknown consequences. Furthermore, considering the ability of microbial communities to persist in such extreme conditions on Earth, they become intriguing subjects for the search for life on celestial bodies such as Mars, Europa, Enceladus, and Titan, all of which house vast ice deposits. However, several fundamental questions persist. The extent of metabolic activity in glacial ice remains uncertain, as does the identification of microorganisms capable of sustaining metabolic processes. Most importantly, understanding the survival strategies employed by these organisms in such an extreme environment remains unknown. To answer these questions, we present metagenomes and what we believe to be the first metatranscriptomes ever analyzed from glacial ice. We have developed a method which allows us to melt ice cores without altering the mRNA profile of the microorganisms within, allowing us to directly determine how microorganisms are able to survive in such a hostile environment. One-to-two-meter cores were taken from the surface of White Glacier, Axel Heiberg Island and from the Devon Island ice cap, both in the Canadian High Arctic. A depth of 70 – 90 cm and 131 – 151 cm was chosen for analysis from White Glacier and Devon Island respectively. In the lab, to remove surface contamination from the cores, the outer 0.5 cm of the cores was removed, and the inner cores were sprayed with 70% ethanol. The decontaminated core subsections were melted at 4°C directly into DNA/RNA Shield (1:1 ratio) which preserved the microbial communities on contact, preventing changes to the metagenome or metatranscriptome during melt. Melted samples were filtered and nucleic acids extracted before DNA and RNA sequenced on an Illumina NovaSeq 6000 sequencer. Sequencing yield from Devon ice cap was low, resulting in
{"title":"Glacial secrets uncovered: Revealing the modes of survival of metabolically active microbial communities entrapped in polar glacial ice","authors":"Brady O'Connor, Lyle Whyte","doi":"10.3897/aca.6.e108883","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.3897/aca.6.e108883","url":null,"abstract":"Glaciers, once dismissed as inhospitable environments, have been overlooked in scientific investigations. Previous studies have primarily focused on the supraglacial (cryoconite holes, snow, and meltwater) and subglacial (bedrock and soils, among others) environments, neglecting the englacial (inside ice) realm. Despite evidence demonstrating the survival of cells in glacial/sea ice (Christner 2000, Junge et al. 2002, Miteva et al. 2004, Miteva and Brenchley 2005) and theoretical predictions and indirect evidence hinting at active microbial communities within glacial ice (Krembs et al. 2002, Junge et al. 2004, Price and Sowers 2004, Tung et al. 2005, Tung et al. 2006, Rohde et al. 2008), the englacial environment has remained largely unexplored. Recognizing that englacial ice hosts potentially active microbial communities carries significant implications for the future of these habitats in the face of escalating global warming and glacial retreat. As glaciers rapidly melt due to the effects of global warming, the liberation of these microbial communities will undoubtedly exert profound effects on local ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles, presenting an array of unknown consequences. Furthermore, considering the ability of microbial communities to persist in such extreme conditions on Earth, they become intriguing subjects for the search for life on celestial bodies such as Mars, Europa, Enceladus, and Titan, all of which house vast ice deposits. However, several fundamental questions persist. The extent of metabolic activity in glacial ice remains uncertain, as does the identification of microorganisms capable of sustaining metabolic processes. Most importantly, understanding the survival strategies employed by these organisms in such an extreme environment remains unknown. To answer these questions, we present metagenomes and what we believe to be the first metatranscriptomes ever analyzed from glacial ice. We have developed a method which allows us to melt ice cores without altering the mRNA profile of the microorganisms within, allowing us to directly determine how microorganisms are able to survive in such a hostile environment. One-to-two-meter cores were taken from the surface of White Glacier, Axel Heiberg Island and from the Devon Island ice cap, both in the Canadian High Arctic. A depth of 70 – 90 cm and 131 – 151 cm was chosen for analysis from White Glacier and Devon Island respectively. In the lab, to remove surface contamination from the cores, the outer 0.5 cm of the cores was removed, and the inner cores were sprayed with 70% ethanol. The decontaminated core subsections were melted at 4°C directly into DNA/RNA Shield (1:1 ratio) which preserved the microbial communities on contact, preventing changes to the metagenome or metatranscriptome during melt. Melted samples were filtered and nucleic acids extracted before DNA and RNA sequenced on an Illumina NovaSeq 6000 sequencer. Sequencing yield from Devon ice cap was low, resulting in","PeriodicalId":101714,"journal":{"name":"ARPHA Conference Abstracts","volume":"22 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135884539","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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