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Reproducibility is a defining feature of science, but the extent to which it characterizes current research is unknown. We conducted replications of 100 experimental and correlational studies published in three psychology journals using high-powered designs and original materials when available. Replication effects were half the magnitude of original effects, representing a substantial decline. Ninety-seven percent of original studies had statistically significant results. Thirty-six percent of replications had statistically significant results; 47% of original effect sizes were in the 95% confidence interval of the replication effect size; 39% of effects were subjectively rated to have replicated the original result; and if no bias in original results is assumed, combining original and replication results left 68% with statistically significant effects. Correlational tests suggest that replication success was better predicted by the strength of original evidence than by characteristics of the original and replication teams.
A catalog of genetic loci associated with kidney function from analyses of a million individuals
(2019)
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is responsible for a public health burden with multi-systemic complications. Through transancestry meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and independent replication (n = 1,046,070), we identified 264 associated loci (166 new). Of these,147 were likely to be relevant for kidney function on the basis of associations with the alternative kidney function marker blood urea nitrogen (n = 416,178). Pathway and enrichment analyses, including mouse models with renal phenotypes, support the kidney as the main target organ. A genetic risk score for lower eGFR was associated with clinically diagnosed CKD in 452,264 independent individuals. Colocalization analyses of associations with eGFR among 783,978 European-ancestry individuals and gene expression across 46 human tissues, including tubulo-interstitial and glomerular kidney compartments, identified 17 genes differentially expressed in kidney. Fine-mapping highlighted missense driver variants in 11 genes and kidney-specific regulatory variants. These results provide a comprehensive priority list of molecular targets for translational research.
The great auk was once abundant and distributed across the North Atlantic. It is now extinct, having been heavily exploited for its eggs, meat, and feathers. We investigated the impact of human hunting on its demise by integrating genetic data, GPS-based ocean current data, and analyses of population viability. We sequenced complete mitochondrial genomes of 41 individuals from across the species' geographic range and reconstructed population structure and population dynamics throughout the Holocene. Taken together, our data do not provide any evidence that great auks were at risk of extinction prior to the onset of intensive human hunting in the early 16th century. In addition, our population viability analyses reveal that even if the great auk had not been under threat by environmental change, human hunting alone could have been sufficient to cause its extinction. Our results emphasise the vulnerability of even abundant and widespread species to intense and localised exploitation.
Birth weight variation is influenced by fetal and maternal genetic and non-genetic factors, and has been reproducibly associated with future cardio-metabolic health outcomes. In expanded genome-wide association analyses of own birth weight (n = 321,223) and offspring birth weight (n = 230,069 mothers), we identified 190 independent association signals (129 of which are novel). We used structural equation modeling to decompose the contributions of direct fetal and indirect maternal genetic effects, then applied Mendelian randomization to illuminate causal pathways. For example, both indirect maternal and direct fetal genetic effects drive the observational relationship between lower birth weight and higher later blood pressure: maternal blood pressure-raising alleles reduce offspring birth weight, but only direct fetal effects of these alleles, once inherited, increase later offspring blood pressure. Using maternal birth weight-lowering genotypes to proxy for an adverse intrauterine environment provided no evidence that it causally raises offspring blood pressure, indicating that the inverse birth weight-blood pressure association is attributable to genetic effects, and not to intrauterine programming.
An ‛Aukward’ tale
(2017)
One hundred and seventy-three years ago, the last two Great Auks, Pinguinus impennis, ever reliably seen were killed. Their internal organs can be found in the collections of the Natural History Museum of Denmark, but the location of their skins has remained a mystery. In 1999, Great Auk expert Errol Fuller proposed a list of five potential candidate skins in museums around the world. Here we take a palaeogenomic approach to test which—if any—of Fuller’s candidate skins likely belong to either of the two birds. Using mitochondrial genomes from the five candidate birds (housed in museums in Bremen, Brussels, Kiel, Los Angeles, and Oldenburg) and the organs of the last two known individuals, we partially solve the mystery that has been on Great Auk scholars’ minds for generations and make new suggestions as to the whereabouts of the still-missing skin from these two birds.
KEYCIT 2014
(2015)
In our rapidly changing world it is increasingly important not only to be an expert in a chosen field of study but also to be able to respond to developments, master new approaches to solving problems, and fulfil changing requirements in the modern world and in the job market. In response to these needs key competencies in understanding, developing and using new digital technologies are being brought into focus in school and university programmes. The IFIP TC3 conference "KEYCIT – Key Competences in Informatics and ICT (KEYCIT 2014)" was held at the University of Potsdam in Germany from July 1st to 4th, 2014 and addressed the combination of key competencies, Informatics and ICT in detail. The conference was organized into strands focusing on secondary education, university education and teacher education (organized by IFIP WGs 3.1 and 3.3) and provided a forum to present and to discuss research, case studies, positions, and national perspectives in this field.
Gilbert et al. conclude that evidence from the Open Science Collaboration’s Reproducibility Project: Psychology indicates high reproducibility, given the study methodology. Their very optimistic assessment is limited by statistical misconceptions and by causal inferences from selectively interpreted, correlational data. Using the Reproducibility Project: Psychology data, both optimistic and pessimistic conclusions about reproducibility are possible, and neither are yet warranted.
Eine verbesserte Zusammenarbeit und Abstimmung von Fachwissenschaft, Fachdidaktik, Bildungswissenschaften und schulpraktischen Lernorten ist einer der Förderbereiche der „Qualitätsoffensive Lehrerbildung“. Zahlreiche der geförderten Projekte haben für dieses Handlungsfeld im Bereich Vernetzung von Fachwissenschaft, Fachdidaktik und Bildungswissenschaften hochschulspezifische Maßnahmen konzipiert und umgesetzt.
Der vorliegende Tagungsband beinhaltet Beiträge von 15 entsprechenden Projekten, von denen sieben anlässlich von zwei standortübergreifenden Projekt-Tagungen in Hannover und Potsdam vorgestellt und in Workshops diskutiert wurden. Insgesamt geben die Beiträge einen theoretisch fundierten und gleichzeitig praxisorientierten Überblick über aktuelle Ansätze und Konzepte zur besseren Vernetzung fachwissenschaftlicher, fachdidaktischer und bildungswissenschaftlicher Studienanteile im Lehramtsstudium. Dargestellt werden Projektarbeiten der Hochschulen, die auf verschiedenen Ebenen wirksam werden (curricular-inhaltliche Ebene, kollegiale Ebene, hochschul-strukturelle Ebene). Die Maßnahmen sind so beschrieben, dass sie als Grundlage für einen Transfer auf andere Fächer bzw. andere Standorte genutzt werden können.
Die Beiträge richten sich an alle Lehrenden im Bereich der Lehramtsbildung sowie sonstige Akteure im Bereich der Lehr- und Qualitätsentwicklung an den Universitäten. Sie alle können den beschriebenen Konzepten und Umsetzungsformaten transferierbare Ideen und Impulse entnehmen.
Aqueous mixtures of a dye-labeled non-ionic thermoresponsive copolymer and a conjugated cationic polyelectrolyte are shown to exhibit characteristic changes in fluorescence properties in response to temperature and to the presence of salts, enabling a double-stimuli responsiveness. In such mixtures at room temperature, i.e., well below the lower critical solution temperature (LCST), the emission of the dye is strongly quenched due to energy transfer to the polycation, pointing to supramolecular interactions between the two macromolecules. Increasing the concentration of salts weakens the interpolymer interactions, the extent of which is simultaneously monitored from the change in the relative emission intensity of the components. When the mixture is heated above its LCST, the transfer efficiency is significantly reduced, signaling a structural reorganization process, however, surprisingly only if the mixture contains salt ions. To elucidate the reasons behind such thermo- and ion-sensitive fluorescence characteristics, we investigate the effect of salts of alkali chlorides, in particular of NaCl, on the association behavior of these macromolecules before and after the polymer phase transition by a combination of UV-vis, fluorescence, and H-1 NMR spectroscopy with light scattering and small-angle neutron scattering measurements.
Mit der 4. Tagung zur Hochschuldidaktik Informatik wird eine Reihe fortgesetzt, die ihren Anfang 1998 in Stuttgart unter der Überschrift „Informatik und Ausbildung“ genommen hat. Seither dienen diese Tagungen den Lehrenden im Bereich der Hochschulinformatik als Forum der Information und des Diskurses über aktuelle didaktische und bildungspolitische Entwicklungen im Bereich der Informatikausbildung. Aktuell zählen dazu insbesondere Fragen der Bildungsrelevanz informatischer Inhalte und der Herausforderung durch eine stärkere Kompetenzorientierung in der Informatik. Die eingereichten Beiträge zur HDI 2010 in Paderborn veranschaulichen unterschiedliche Bemühungen, sich mit relevanten Problemen der Informatikdidaktik an Hochschulen in Deutschland (und z. T. auch im Ausland) auseinanderzusetzen. Aus der Breite des Spektrums der Einreichungen ergaben sich zugleich Probleme bei der Begutachtung. Letztlich konnten von den zahlreichen Einreichungen nur drei die Gutachter so überzeugen, dass sie uneingeschränkt in ihrer Langfassung akzeptiert wurden. Neun weitere Einreichungen waren trotz Kritik überwiegend positiv begutachtet worden, so dass wir diese als Kurzfassung bzw. Diskussionspapier in die Tagung aufgenommen haben.
Specialized glial subtypes provide support to developing and functioning neural networks. Astrocytes modulate information processing by neurotransmitter recycling and release of neuromodulatory substances, whereas ensheathing glial cells have not been associated with neuromodulatory functions yet. To decipher a possible role of ensheathing glia in neuronal information processing, we screened for glial genes required in the Drosophila central nervous system for normal locomotor behavior. Shopper encodes a mitochondrial sulfite oxidase that is specifically required in ensheathing glia to regulate head bending and peristalsis. shopper mutants show elevated sulfite levels affecting the glutamate homeostasis which then act on neuronal network function. Interestingly, human patients lacking the Shopper homolog SUOX develop neurological symptoms, including seizures. Given an enhanced expression of SUOX by oligodendrocytes, our findings might indicate that in both invertebrates and vertebrates more than one glial cell type may be involved in modulating neuronal activity.
Savannas are globally important ecosystems of great significance to human economies. In these biomes, which are characterized by the co-dominance of trees and grasses, woody cover is a chief determinant of ecosystem properties(1-3). The availability of resources ( water, nutrients) and disturbance regimes ( fire, herbivory) are thought to be important in regulating woody cover(1,2,4,5), but perceptions differ on which of these are the primary drivers of savanna structure. Here we show, using data from 854 sites across Africa, that maximum woody cover in savannas receiving a mean annual precipitation (MAP) of less than similar to 650 mm is constrained by, and increases linearly with, MAP. These arid and semi-arid savannas may be considered 'stable' systems in which water constrains woody cover and permits grasses to coexist, while fire, herbivory and soil properties interact to reduce woody cover below the MAP- controlled upper bound. Above a MAP of similar to 650 mm, savannas are 'unstable' systems in which MAP is sufficient for woody canopy closure, and disturbances ( fire, herbivory) are required for the coexistence of trees and grass. These results provide insights into the nature of African savannas and suggest that future changes in precipitation(6) may considerably affect their distribution and dynamics
Specialized glial subtypes provide support to developing and functioning neural networks. Astrocytes modulate information processing by neurotransmitter recycling and release of neuromodulatory substances, whereas ensheathing glial cells have not been associated with neuromodulatory functions yet. To decipher a possible role of ensheathing glia in neuronal information processing, we screened for glial genes required in the Drosophila central nervous system for normal locomotor behavior. Shopper encodes a mitochondrial sulfite oxidase that is specifically required in ensheathing glia to regulate head bending and peristalsis. shopper mutants show elevated sulfite levels affecting the glutamate homeostasis which then act on neuronal network function. Interestingly, human patients lacking the Shopper homolog SUOX develop neurological symptoms, including seizures. Given an enhanced expression of SUOX by oligodendrocytes, our findings might indicate that in both invertebrates and vertebrates more than one glial cell type may be involved in modulating neuronal activity.
We show that coadsorbed oxygen atoms have a dramatic influence on the CO desorption dynamics from Ru(0001). In contrast to the precursor-mediated desorption mechanism on Ru(0001), the presence of surface oxygen modifies the electronic structure of Ru atoms such that CO desorption occurs predominantly via the direct pathway. This phenomenon is directly observed in an ultrafast pump-probe experiment using a soft x-ray free-electron laser to monitor the dynamic evolution of the valence electronic structure of the surface species. This is supported with the potential of mean force along the CO desorption path obtained from density-functional theory calculations. Charge density distribution and frozen-orbital analysis suggest that the oxygen-induced reduction of the Pauli repulsion, and consequent increase of the dative interaction between the CO 5 sigma and the charged Ru atom, is the electronic origin of the distinct desorption dynamics. Ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of CO desorption from Ru(0001) and oxygen-coadsorbed Ru(0001) provide further insights into the surface bond-breaking process.
Neisseria gonorrhoeae is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted diseases worldwide with more than 100 million new infections per year. A lack of intense research over the last decades and increasing resistances to the recommended antibiotics call for a better understanding of gonococcal infection, fast diagnostics and therapeutic measures against N. gonorrhoeae. Therefore, the aim of this work was to identify novel immunogenic proteins as a first step to advance those unresolved problems. For the identification of immunogenic proteins, pHORF oligopeptide phage display libraries of the entire N. gonorrhoeae genome were constructed. Several immunogenic oligopeptides were identified using polyclonal rabbit antibodies against N. gonorrhoeae. Corresponding full-length proteins of the identified oligopeptides were expressed and their immunogenic character was verified by ELISA. The immunogenic character of six proteins was identified for the first time. Additional 13 proteins were verified as immunogenic proteins in N. gonorrhoeae.
Neisseria gonorrhoeae is one of the most prevalent sexually transmitted diseases worldwide with more than 100 million new infections per year. A lack of intense research over the last decades and increasing resistances to the recommended antibiotics call for a better understanding of gonococcal infection, fast diagnostics and therapeutic measures against N. gonorrhoeae. Therefore, the aim of this work was to identify novel immunogenic proteins as a first step to advance those unresolved problems. For the identification of immunogenic proteins, pHORF oligopeptide phage display libraries of the entire N. gonorrhoeae genome were constructed. Several immunogenic oligopeptides were identified using polyclonal rabbit antibodies against N. gonorrhoeae. Corresponding full-length proteins of the identified oligopeptides were expressed and their immunogenic character was verified by ELISA. The immunogenic character of six proteins was identified for the first time. Additional 13 proteins were verified as immunogenic proteins in N. gonorrhoeae.
The concept of bonding and antibonding orbitals is fundamental in chemistry. The population of those orbitals and the energetic difference between the two reflect the strength of the bonding interaction. Weakening the bond is expected to reduce this energetic splitting, but the transient character of bond-activation has so far prohibited direct experimental access. Here we apply time-resolved soft X-ray spectroscopy at a free electron laser to directly observe the decreased bonding antibonding splitting following bond-activation using an ultrashort optical laser pulse.