Scientist Training Program Research Articles

Rapid Mobilization of Medical Student Volunteers to Administer Vaccines During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

In December 2020, the first COVID-19 vaccines were approved for emergency use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and vaccination efforts rapidly launched across the country. Concurrently, New York City experienced an increase in COVID-19 hospitalizations. This created an immediate need to inoculate frontline workers in a strained health system that lacked sufficient personnel to meet the demand. In response, New York State permitted medical students with appropriate clinical experience to administer vaccinations. Albert Einstein College of Medicine students rapidly stepped in to administer vaccines and serve as clinic navigators.Student leaders at Einstein collaborated with Montefiore Medical Center to rapidly implement a student vaccination initiative. Medical students underwent virtual and on-site training regarding COVID-19 vaccines and their administration. In January 2021, students began to staff vaccine clinics across the Bronx. By July 2021, 291 out of 830 eligible medical and Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) students (35.1%) had volunteered >2400 h. Of the 291 volunteers, 77 (26.5%) worked as vaccinators and administered approximately 2929 COVID-19 vaccines from January to May 2021.We demonstrate success using the concept of Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) in the context of training medical students in a specific clinical skill. Our framework resulted in the administration of approximately 2929 COVID-19 vaccines from January to May 2021. The authors believe that this framework can be implemented at peer institutions to alleviate the burden on hospital systems and outpatient clinics vaccinating their communities against COVID-19, or to meet future clinical needs.

Advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion within clinical and translational science training programs: A qualitative content analysis of the training breakout session at the national CTSA program meeting.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in clinical and translational science (CTS) are paramount to driving innovation and increasing health equity. One important area for improving diversity is among trainees in CTS programs. This paper reports on findings from a special session at the November 2020 Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) national program meeting that focused on advancing diversity and inclusion within CTS training programs. Using qualitative content analysis, we identified approaches brought forth to increase DEI in KL2 career development and other training programs aimed at early-stage CTS investigators, beyond the six strategies put forth to guide the breakout session (prioritizing representation, building partnerships, making it personal, designing program structure, improving through feedback, and winning endorsement). We used an inductive qualitative content analysis approach to identify themes from a transcript of the panel of KL2 program leaders centered on DEI in training programs. We identified four themes for advancing DEI within CTS training programs: 1) institutional buy-in; 2) proactive recruitment efforts; 3) an equitable application process; and 4) high-quality, diverse mentorship. Implementing these strategies in CTS and other training programs will be an important step for advancing DEI. However, processes need to be established to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of these strategies through continuous quality improvement, a key component of the CTSA program. Training programs within the CTSA are well-positioned to be leaders in this critical effort to increase the diversity of the scientific workforce.

تأسيس الشركات بين الجامعات السودانية و مؤسسات المجتمع خاصة الشركات الخاصة

تأسيس الشركات بين الجامعات السودانية و مؤسسات المجتمع خاصة الشركات الخاصة
 This research tackles the way in which Sudanese universities establish partnerships with community institutions especially private sector companies in order to spare universities needs materially and physically which helps in achieving the economical job of the universities by benefiting from Peculiarities Of knowledge economics.
 The research also handles how Sudanese universities translates their developing efforts in academic process and scientific research through encouraging and adopting innovations and Excellent Research Ideas.
 In addition, The research aimed at identifying the important role of Innovations and Excellent Research Ideas Centers in universities in transforming Excellent Research Ideas into successful projects which enables universities in developing their Learning Inputs in order to obtain developed outputs, then accordingly, universities will find the way paved to Establish successful partnerships with community institutions especially private sector companies, in doing so, universities will spare the needed finance for scientific programmes, training, academic, and research programmes.
 The research confirms that transforming Excellent Research Ideas into successful projects attains good beneficial income for universities in especial* and thereafter for the economy of the country in general

JUNIOR STUDENTS’ INTEREST IN SCIENCE COURSES BASED ON HOTS LITERACY PROGRAM: MODELING OF SCIENTIFIC INTEREST AND ITS RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHER COMPONENTS

This study aims to describe the pattern of relationships between several factors supporting interest (interest) in science subjects. Students get an Exercise Program to improve scientific literacy. This training program aims to improve students' scientific literacy skills. The training program is carried out after the teachers receive the training program. The study of students' interest in science was revealed by conducting a survey related to several factors supporting interest in science. Several factors in the study of supporting scientific interests include the role of teachers, parental support, school roles, peer support, physics, chemistry and biology materials. Research participants were taken using random sampling technique, totaling 39 students. The developed scientific literacy assistance program seeks to improve the quality of learning outcomes. The success of the scientific literacy training program is related to students' scientific interest. The results showed that the multiple linear regression model provides a descriptive numerical description of the empirical relationship between the value of interest in science and its supporting components. Likewise, interest has a role in learning achievement.

Impact of Research Training on Performance in General Surgery Residency

It is common for North American surgical trainees to interrupt clinical training to complete 2 or more years of research training. The impact of this practice on surgical aptitudes is unknown. The University of Toronto has large general surgery and surgeon scientist training programs. We compared the examination scores of general surgery residents in continuous clinical training with those of residents whose training was interrupted by research. We collected anonymized scores obtained at written and oral annual in-training examinations by general surgery residents at the University of Toronto from 2011 to 2016, inclusive. The written exam assessed knowledge, while the oral exam assessed judgment. Residents were dichotomized into continuous versus non-continuous clinical training streams. We compared performance prior to, during, and following divergence for research training both within and between the 2 groups. At the junior resident level, future enrollment in research training was associated with higher examination performance (Pwritten = .003). Annual scores plateaued during research training, while scores of residents who continued in continuous clinical training improved year over year (Pwritten = .009). Non-continuous stream resident exam scores remained stagnant after 1 year then improved in the second year after return to clinical training (Pwritten = .00007). Scores obtained in the final year of residency training did not significantly differ between residents who underwent continuous versus non-continuous clinical training. Results from written and oral exams trended concordantly. We demonstrate that interruption of clinical training for 2 or more years of research is associated with a stagnation of performance on annual in-training examinations assessing both knowledge and judgment. This phenomenon is followed by an eventual catching-up after at least 2 years return to full-time clinical training. This may inform residency program curriculum design.

Helping older adults vote safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Journal of the American Geriatrics SocietyVolume 69, Issue 12 p. 3401-3404 Letter to the Editor Helping older adults vote safely during the COVID-19 pandemic Yoonhee P. Ha MSc, MPhil, Yoonhee P. Ha MSc, MPhil Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Center for Public Health Initiatives, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorSonia Gupta Pandit MPH, MBA, Sonia Gupta Pandit MPH, MBA College of Liberal & Professional Studies, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorLesley S. Carson MD, Lesley S. Carson MD Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorZonía R. Moore AB, Zonía R. Moore AB Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorLisa M. Walke MD, MSHA, AGSF, Corresponding Author Lisa M. Walke MD, MSHA, AGSF lisa.walke@pennmedicine.upenn.edu @walke_the_talk Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Correspondence Lisa M. Walke, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Ralston-Penn Center, 3615 Chestnut Street, Room 208, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Email: lisa.walke@pennmedicine.upenn.eduSearch for more papers by this author Yoonhee P. Ha MSc, MPhil, Yoonhee P. Ha MSc, MPhil Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Center for Public Health Initiatives, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorSonia Gupta Pandit MPH, MBA, Sonia Gupta Pandit MPH, MBA College of Liberal & Professional Studies, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorLesley S. Carson MD, Lesley S. Carson MD Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorZonía R. Moore AB, Zonía R. Moore AB Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USASearch for more papers by this authorLisa M. Walke MD, MSHA, AGSF, Corresponding Author Lisa M. Walke MD, MSHA, AGSF lisa.walke@pennmedicine.upenn.edu @walke_the_talk Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Division of Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA Correspondence Lisa M. Walke, Division of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Ralston-Penn Center, 3615 Chestnut Street, Room 208, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Email: lisa.walke@pennmedicine.upenn.eduSearch for more papers by this author First published: 09 October 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17514 Yoonhee P. Ha and Sonia Gupta Pandit are co-first authors. Funding information: Medical Scientist Training Program, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume69, Issue12December 2021Pages 3401-3404 This article also appears in:COVID-19 Collection RelatedInformation

Influence of Research Continuity on Physician-Scientists' Career Success.

To determine if maintaining continuity in research topic and method from early to late career yields a greater likelihood of physician-scientists' research career success; that is, achieving research independence and producing impactful publications. To explore the effect of maintaining continuity in research, 108 neurology residency graduates (2000-2010) from former medical scientist training programs at the highest National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke- and NIH-funded institutions were identified. Through comparison of PhD dissertations with postgraduate work, research continuity was deemed present if there was evidence of continuity in research topic and method. With publicly available SCOPUS, PubMed, and NIH RePORT data, the correlation that degree of continuity had with h-indices, number of grants awarded, and R01 acquisition was examined. Nearly half of the graduates were classified as noncontinuous (45%), fewer than a quarter as somewhat continuous (22%), and roughly a third as very continuous (32%). The data demonstrated that research continuity increased the ability to acquire a R01, with 83% of R01 or R21 recipients having very continuous research. Very continuous graduates also had higher median number of grants received (2 [interquartile range (IQR) 1-3]) and a higher median h-index (17 [IQR 10.5-20]) compared to the somewhat continuous and noncontinuous groups. This study highlights research continuity as an important and modifiable variable during the training period of physician-scientists and one that may improve their career success and promote greater retention within the workforce.

Interdisciplinary Psychosocial Support for Refugees: Recommendations for Policy Makers in Europe

The scientific report presents policy recommendations for the interdisciplinary psychosocial support of refugees that were developed by "InterAct - Interdisciplinary cooperation in psychosocial interventions", a European Erasmus+ project between higher education institutions in Germany, Greece, Spain, and Sweden. The InterAct interdisciplinary team conducted interviews and focus groups with 28 refugees in various stages of resettlement, 30 students from health care and social science training programs and 23 practitioners from the fields of mental health, education, community-based practices, employment, higher education, and asylum services in different European countries. An iterative qualitative approach was applied considering already existing policy recommendations at a global level regarding psychosocial support for refugees. The policy recommendations that emerged are categorized in six key areas: a) human rights, b) participation, inclusive communities and citizenship, c) well-being, d) education, e) access to meaningful occupations, and f) sustainable approaches and solutions. The policy recommendations are illustrated by Current Situations, which describe the current challenges in the psychosocial support for refugees that stemmed from the interviews. In addition, the policy recommendations emphasize the interdisciplinary collaboration in the psychosocial support and address the life trajectory of refugees in a comprehensive sense. The aim is to create inclusive communities with equal opportunities for all to develop, learn, work as well participate in the local communities.

Content and Quality of Science Training Programs Matter: Longitudinal Study of the Biology Scholars Program.

Many science training programs are successful at supporting students in completing their degree programs. However, it is not clear which aspects of these programs meaningfully contribute toward achieving this goal. The current longitudinal study examined a well-established science training program, the Biology Scholars Program (BSP) at the University of California, Berkeley, to see whether social connections formed in BSP and/or enthusiasm about the BSP activities are key components in contributing to students’ greater integration into their professional communities at 12 months and intentions to persist at 18 months into the program. Results indicated social connections and program enthusiasm at 6 months were unassociated with science efficacy, identity, and community values. However, social connections and program enthusiasm at 12 months were generally associated with higher levels of all these variables, with science identity and community values uniquely related to greater integration. Together, results show that students’ connection to faculty, staff, and peers and enthusiasm for the program activities are both key components of successful, multiyear science training programs. Our results also suggest that, while connections and enthusiasm might develop quickly, their downstream consequences might only be observed after students build stronger social relations and enthusiasm for program activities in ways that foster greater integration.

To train the qualified physician-scientists

As advances in medicine have progressed, the development of medical science faces the challenge of significant separation between basic medical research and medical clinical practice. As the bridge between medicine and science, physicians-scientists have a unique potential to combine clinical perspectives with scientific insights. They are defined as doctors with professional degrees who have training in clinical care and are engaged in independent biomedical research. Physician-scientists continue the great pace of recent biomedical research, translate scientific findings to clinical applications and play a vital role in promoting the development of medical science. Without supporting efforts of physician-scientists who have been systematically trained in medicine and science, pressing challenges cannot be met at the forefront of biomedicine. Given the importance of developing the physician-scientist workforce, well-known MD-PhD training programs started in the 1950s. These programs expanded significantly when the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP) was launched in 1964 by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) at the National Institutes of Health. MSTP has supported over 10000 students who have successfully trained outstanding biomedical scientists and top talents for the United States. In China, the era of health promotion driven by innovation is upon us, and a large number of physician-scientists are needed to meet the development of medical science. Some practices provide preliminary exploration for training physician-scientists, such as MD-PhD programs supported by famous medical schools and the inception of a research hospital. However, physician-scientists have become an “endangered species”. It has been reported that physician-scientists are less likely to play a major role in biomedical research than they were in the past in the United States. This article examines the barriers of physician-scientists with regard to participation in clinical research, such as physician-, research subject-, and institution- and research hospital-related barriers. The future viability and vitality of the physician-scientist workforce pose unique challenges. To encourage physician-scientist participation, strategies are proposed to provide a new path for cultivating excellent physician-scientists. These strategies include proper understanding of the role of physician-scientists in medical innovation, scientific training systems at critical stages of career development, adequate research support from institutions and hospitals, reasonable evaluation and incentive systems, encouraging innovative academic culture, and personal active participation and effort. The great potential of translating scientific achievements into clinical practice and the complex challenges facing the development of medical science suggest the importance and necessity of physician-scientists. A variety of potential approaches should be taken to ensure physicians-scientists’ participation in clinical trials and basic research as well as the sustainable development of the physician-scientist team.

SCIENTIFIC PHYSICAL EXERCISE TO PREVENT MUSCLE INJURY IN COMPETITIVE SPORTS

ABSTRACT Introduction: Various factors cause many sports traumas in groups engaged in mass sports activities, amateur sports training, and professional sports training in China that must be called to our attention. Objective: Scientific Sports Therapy is a scientific and reasonable systemic sports training program formulated for competitive athletes based on their physical and disease characteristics. Methods: This article conducted scientific sports therapy interventions on tennis elbow patients and analyzed multiple physiological indicators such as muscle endurance before and after the intervention. Results: There are significant differences in the athletes’ muscle strength and muscle endurance data after physical exercise therapy. Conclusion: We analyzed the causes of muscle damage and adopted scientific and practical sports therapy. In this way, coaches and athletes can find effective ways to prevent and manage muscle injuries, thereby improving competitive sports training. Level of evidence II; Therapeutic studies - investigation of treatment results.

Evaluating an Implementation Science Training Program: Impact on Professional Research and Practice.

Real-world application and implementation of evidence-based practice continue to be a challenge across multiple sectors, including behavioral health settings. Providing the opportunity for future researchers and practitioners to gain capacity and knowledge through structured experiential learning in implementation science is critical to closing the research to practice gap. The Institute for Translational Research Education in Adolescent Drug Abuse (ITRE) is a graduate certificate program that offers specific coursework, a large-scale service-learning project based in the community, and mentorship related to implementation science research and practice. The purpose of this evaluation was to examine, from the perspective of ITRE scholars, the perceived impact on the development of professional research and practice skills once graduated from the ITRE program. Fifty-eight semi-structured interviews across five cohorts were selected randomly for in-depth thematic analysis (n = 58). Results suggest that the ITRE provides a unique approach grounded in implementation science for building robust and transferable skills for future researchers and practitioners working in a variety of behavioral healthcare settings.

중간볼기근 강화운동 프로그램에 참가한 폐경기 중년여성들의 건강관련체력요소에 대한 연구

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of 16-week Gluteus Medius Strengthening Exercise program on the Health-related Physical Fitness of menopause middle-aged women and to provide basic data on the development of scientific and systematic Functional Training(FT) programs to improve performance. For this, a total of 20 menopause middle-aged women living in S city were recruited, Adopting the Gluteus Medius Strengthening and Gluteus Medius Endurance required by the target, the FT group(EG), the General Training group(CG) is formed during the training period (before training, 8 weeks, 16 weeks), and the changes of each factor according to the training period to the group, according to the Two-Way repeated measure ANOVA. After analyzing with the statistics program, Window spss 26.0, the following results were obtained: the Gluteus Medius Strengthening and Gluteus Medius Endurance according to the training period of EG and CG was increased (p<.001) after 16 weeks of training, and EG group showed improved measurements compared to CG group. It is believed that the application of FT to middle-aged women in menopause is necessary for natural movements and Health-related Physical Fitness in daily life, For the better life of middle-aged women in menopause, it is believed that FT specific and scientific research will be necessary.

The assessment of researchers' competence in experimental procedures with laboratory animals: A three-step methodology to develop a global rating scale.

To conduct animal experiments, researchers must be competent to handle and perform interventions on living animals in compliance with regulations. Laboratory animal science training programmes and licensing bodies therefore need to be able to reliably ensure and certify the professional competence of researchers and technicians. This requires access to assessment strategies which can verify knowledge as well as capturing performative and behavioural dimensions of assessment. In this paper, we describe the process of developing different global rating scales measuring candidates' competence in a performative assessment. We set out the following sequence, with three crucial phases, in the process of scale development: (a) Item Development, (b) Scale Development and (c) Piloting of the Scale. We note each phase's different sub-steps. Despite the emergent need to ensure the competence of researchers using animals in scientific procedures, to our best knowledge there are very few species and procedure/skill specific assessment tools for this purpose, and the assessment methodology literature in the field is very limited. This paper provides guidance for those who need to develop and assess proficiency in laboratory animal procedures by setting out a method that can be used to create the required tools and illustrating how competence assessment strategies can be implemented.

Understanding the reliability of citizen science observational data using item response models

Abstract Citizen science projects have become increasingly popular in many fields, including ecology. However, the quality of this information is frequently debated within the scientific community. Modern citizen science implementations therefore require measures of the users' proficiency. We introduce a new methodological framework of item response that quantifies a citizen scientist's ability, taking into account the difficulty of the task. We focus on citizen science programs involving the classification of images. Our approach accommodates spatial autocorrelation within the item difficulties, and provides deeper insights and relevant ecological measures of species and site‐related difficulties, discriminatory power and guessing behaviour. The identification of very capable versus less skilled participants can facilitate selective use of data in analyses and more targeted training programs for citizen scientists. This paper also addresses challenges in fitting such models to very large datasets. We found that the suggested methods outperform the traditional item response models in terms of RMSE, accuracy and WAIC, based on leave‐one‐out cross‐validation on simulated and empirical data. We present a comprehensive implementation using a case study of species identification in the Serengeti, Tanzania. The R and Stan codes are provided for full reproducibility. Multiple statistical illustrations and visualizations are given, which allow extrapolation to a wide range of citizen science ecological problems.

Machine Vision and Big Data-Driven Sports Athletes Action Training Intervention Model

In recent years, athlete action recognition has become an important research field for showing and recognition of athlete actions. Generally speaking, movement recognition of athletes can be performed through a variety of modes, such as motion sensors, machine vision, and big data analysis. Among them, machine vision and big data analysis usually contain significant information which can be used for various purposes. Machine vision can be expressed as the recognition of the time sequence of a series of athlete actions captured through camera, so that it can intervene in the training of athletes by visual methods and approaches. Big data contains a large number of athletes’ historical training and competition data which need exploration. In-depth analysis and feature mining of big data will help coach teams to develop training plans and devise new suggestions. On the basis of the above observations, this paper proposes a novel spatiotemporal attention map convolutional network to identify athletes’ actions, and through the auxiliary analysis of big data, gives reasonable action intervention suggestions, and provides coaches and decision-making teams to formulate scientific training programs. Results of the study show the effectiveness of the proposed research.

Creating a Resident Research Track in Synergy With the Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program.

Physician scientists play an important role in the translation of research findings to patient care; however, their training faces numerous challenges. Residency research track programs represent an opportunity to facilitate the training of future physician scientists in physical medicine and rehabilitation, although optimal program organization and long-term outcomes remain unknown. The Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program is a National Institutes of Health-funded program aimed at addressing the shortage of physician researchers in the field of physical medicine and rehabilitation by providing instruction, mentorship, and networking opportunities for a successful research career. While the opportunities provided through the Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program provide critical education and guidance at a national level, trainees are most successful with availability of strong local support and mentorship. The purpose of this article was to present a realistic and easily applicable structure for a physical medicine and rehabilitation residency research track that can be used in concert with the Rehabilitation Medicine Scientist Training Program.

Transitioning in‐person Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Research‐based Educational Outreach Programs to Virtual Settings

Scripps Research Education Outreach and Community Engagement (EOCE)programs comprise initiatives for people of all ages including K-12 students and teachers, undergraduates, and the public. Our overarching goals are to promote careers in biomedical research, raise awareness about the importance of scientific research,train the next generation of scientists, and increase diversity in the biomedical research workforce. The Covid-19 pandemic immediately haltedour in-person eventsand presented a new set ofchallenges to reaching our goals. It became necessaryto create a strong online presence to keep connected with our audience and stakeholders. As a leading research institute, Scripps Research is keenly aware of the importance of technology, and we quickly leveraged the use of Zoom and our learning management system (LMS) to facilitate the implementation of online outreach programs. Here we describe three programs that were implemented online. 1) Junior Scientist Training Program (JSTP) is a series of one-week virtual science camps with hands-on science experiments and/or data analysis. What makes JSTP different from other science ‘box’ clubs is that students learn scientific concepts in bioinformatics, microbiology, and biochemistry, and design their own experiments based on the tools provided and their home environment. Results are not ‘pre-determined’ as with traditional laboratory class protocols. This is particularly important because one of the first epiphanies students have with real research is the notion that there is no ‘correct’ answer. 2) Fully Interactive Resources for Students and Teachers (FIRST) is a webinar series featuring scientists discussing their research and career path, advising on how to develop scientific creativity, and giving science demonstrations. This program has been fundamental in supporting thousands of undergraduate students who have been affected by the lack of research opportunities due to the pandemic! 3) SciMet Competition is a Spanish-English bilingual science competition where K-12 students nationwide are invited to demonstrate their scientific curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking skills via drawings (K-5), videos (6-8), and essays (9-12). Projects exceeded our expectations and the bilingual component allowed us to reach into Hispanics and LatinX communities. Gains of moving programs online included increased engagement; increased reach across the USA and the world; higher efficacy in collecting pre- and post-data using integrated surveys and digital applications; successful implementation of inclusive and equitable virtual educational environments; and a significant rise in the number of volunteers due to convenient and accessible online tools for the scientist community. Despite the apprehension of virtual science programs, the benefits prove that some of these elements should be kept in future programming whether in person or not, as we believe that this demonstrates our commitment to our community partners and scientific accessibility for all.

The time is now: Student-driven implementation of social justice and anti-racism focused curricula in medical scientist training program education.

There exists a dearth of supplementary programs to educate physician–scientist trainees on anti‐racism and topics surrounding social justice in medicine and science. Education on these topics is critical to prevent the perpetuation of systemic racism within the institutions of academia and medicine. Students in the Washington University School of Medicine Medical Scientist Training Program and the Tri‐Institutional MD‐PhD Program developed journal clubs with curricula focused on social justice and anti‐racism for the summer of 2020. In this article, we describe the impact of the Washington University journal club on the education of first year MD‐PhD students and summarize the progress to date. The role of the journal club in the midst of the “double pandemic” of COVID‐19 and generational systemic racism is discussed, highlighting the need for such supplemental curricula in MD‐PhD programs nation‐wide.

Prediction of cognitive function based on structural MRI images using a 3D convolutional neural net among cognitively normal older adults

<h3>Introduction</h3> It is projected that 30 years from now, more than 12 million US adults may be affected by neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease. With no cure on the market and the looming societal pressure to care for the burgeoning numbers of elderly patients, the goal of modern medicine should be to identify patients at risk for dementia and intervene early on. Machine learning algorithms have been successful at classifying which patients have Alzheimer's Disease and which patients do not based off an MRI and/or PET image. Although neurodegenerative diseases are quite prevalent in elderly individuals, no machine learning algorithm has been developed to predict which healthy adults are at heightened risk for developing neurodegenerative diseases. Here, we take the first step towards this goal by predicting an individual's current cognitive function based off of a singular MRI. We drew inspiration from 3D convolutional neural nets (CNNs) to predict a cognitive test score at present based on a raw MRI image among cognitively normal older adults. <h3>Methods</h3> We analyzed data from 159 community dwelling cognitively normal individuals (mean age = 76.3 yo ± 6.5, 34% male). A neural net was designed to include four convolutional layers that used 3x3x3 filters. Each layer generated eight, 16, 32, and 64 feature maps respectively and each layer was normalized and followed by a max pooling layer. The convolutional layers were followed by two fully connected layers with 128 and 64 neurons respectively and the final output involved one output neuron that used a rectilinear activation function. Mean squared error loss was used to adjust the weights of the neural net, and the learning rate was set to 0.001. The inputs to the CNN were 159 skull stripped MPRAGE MR-T1 weighted images registered to MNI space and randomly rotated and translated (probability = 0.3). 20% of the data was held out for validation. The outcome variables were composite cognitive score and subdomain scores (i.e., memory-retrieval, memory-learning, language, visuospatial, and executive attention) which were derived from 21 different neuropsychological tests grouped according to the literature to reflect cognitive function across five different cognitive domains. The cognitive scores computed amongst all five subdomains were normally distributed. A cross-validated linear regression to predict cognitive function from age served as a comparative model since it is a clinically popular model. <h3>Results</h3> The 3D CNN demonstrated that when age was a statistically significant predictor of cognitive subdomain score or composite cognitive score (p < 0.001), the ratio of the mean squared error loss of a simple linear regression to the mean squared error loss from the CNN ranged from 1.10 to 1.47. This was true for the composite cognitive score as well as the executive attention and visuospatial subdomain scores. However, when age was not a statistically significant predictor of cognition, as was the case for memory-learning, memory-retrieval and language subdomain scores, the range of the ratio increased to 1.59 to 2.23. The most relevant areas of the brain that predicted cognition were cortical areas of the brain that are most sensitive to neurodegeneration with age including the cerebellum, frontal, and temporal lobes. <h3>Conclusions</h3> When age is not a statistically significant correlate of cognitive function, machine learning is at least 1.5 times better than a linear regression model at predicting cognitive function based on a single MRI. Furthermore, the areas of the brain that are most significant in predicting cognition in cognitively normal older adults provide both validation of our methodology as well as new insights. The 3D CNN gained the most amount of insight from the mid frontal lobe and inferior temporal lobe, brain regions known to be susceptible to neurodegeneration associated with aging. The 3D CNN, without any such foresight, replicated what we know to be already true. Additionally, the 3D CNN gained considerable insight from the cerebellum as well. Perhaps the significance was given to the frontal portion of the cerebellum as it could foreshadow future frontal cortex degeneration. Overall, the 3D CNN developed here was successful at predicting cognition off a singular MRI, outperforms current linear regression models, affirms the current state of knowledge regarding brain regions correlated with cognition, and provides novel insight into which brain regions are predictive of cognitive function. The model provides hope that it can be used as a tool to predict future cognitive decline in an elderly individual. The ability to predict future cognition would allow clinicians to identify those patients who are at considerable risk for abnormally steep changes in cognitive function and provide preemptive care to individuals more at risk for neurodegenerative diseases. <h3>Funding</h3> University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine Physician Scientist Training Program