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Orphan crops are crops that are of substantial importance to food security and economic growth at a local or regional scale, yet lacking investment in crop improvement and seed systems development. Tef is an example of such an orphan crop. It is vital to economy and food systems in the Horn of Africa, yet investment in breeding and agronomy is very limited. Since almost 20 years, the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture has invested in tef, supporting work to both develop and disseminate improved varieties to farmers in Ethiopia. To date, this has led to the release of four improved varieties. As the project also invested in the development of seed systems for improved tef varieties, it allowed us to monitor seed production and variety adoption over time. The data obtained from seed production monitoring over 7 years and 4 varieties from both formal and informal seed systems shows a total of 1227 tons of tef seed from improved varieties delivered to farmers in Ethiopia. Assuming an average genetic gain of 0.4 tons per hectare, this suggests that the value generated to farmers and local value chains from tef breeding and seed systems development exceeds the investment by an order of at least 2.5. With this paper, we want to make a case for more long-term investment in breeding and seed systems development and stimulate replication of the approach to other orphan crops. We further want to call for a continued investment in tef crop improvement and seed systems development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, Spanish and US secondary science teacher data is used to address the relationship between what science teachers teach and the science and technology based environmental problems/threats faced by the world. The results of a two part questionnaire indicated that teachers of both countries are worried about the problem of pollution of the planet. The US teachers showed greater sensitivity to the problems related to sustainable development and the limited resources of the planet. The Spanish were more concerned about problems regarding unjust distribution of the natural resources and possible ways to equitably distribute them. However, the majority of both teacher groups recognized that they do not dedicate much time to the treatment of these subjects in class. (Contains 9 tables.) [This article has been published by Gokkusagi Ltd.]

By helping create a shared, supportive, learning community, the creative use of custom-designed spaces outside the classroom has a major impact on student engagement. The intention is to create spaces that promote peer interaction within and across year groups, encourage closer working relationships between staff and students and support specific coursework activities--particularly group work. Such spaces make better use of time since students are motivated to stay and work during long gaps in their timetable, can provide a sense of "home" within the institution and can lead to a cohesive community of practice. In this paper, we describe how this has been achieved and currently delivered in Mathematics at Sheffield Hallam University and provide some detailed analysis of the student usage of the space.

The purpose of this study was to identify the extent to which exercise-induced hypoalgesia (EIH) is induced by a specific intensity of aerobic exercise and its association with psychological factors. Twenty healthy subjects were randomly assigned to five separate training sessions. Pain sensitivity (thermal threshold, suprathreshold heat, temporal Summation, and pressure pain threshold) was assessed before and after the intervention. The ANOVA analysis revealed no significant differences in the pain sensitivity based on the various aerobic exercise intensities. Also, the ANCOVA analysis demonstrated that none of the psychological factors examined were found to be associated with the magnitude of Exercise-Induced Hypoalgesia (EIH) when used as a covariate. Aerobic exercise does not elicit a hypoalgesic effect, which is not consistent with the concept of exercise-induced hypoalgesia, regardless of the intensity of aerobic exercise. None of the psychological factors exerted any influence on the magnitude of hypoalgesia experienced after exercise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although feedback is a very important component of assessment in higher education, there is substantial evidence that students view traditional methods of feedback as deficient in a number of respects. In this paper we explore how students perceive generic feedback on a mathematics assignment provided via screencasts. Our study is based on a Differential Equations module taught to first and second year students at a United Kingdom university. Our analysis of a student survey of this novel approach to feedback indicates that some students prefer screencast feedback to written feedback for a number of reasons: it is perceived to be more personal, it provides a richer experience than handwritten comments, it can be accessed anytime and replayed and paused as needed, it assists with learning how to communicate mathematics and it helps develop mathematical thinking skills. In fact, we show that this form of feedback is effective according to Sadler's ("Instructional Science" 18:119-144, 1989) definition of effective feedback.