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GoalThe goal of this Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) project was to evaluate the feasibility of adapting an advanced technology employed in biomedical research and practice)—volumetric image processing and analysis (VIPA)—for science and mathematics education in formal secondary school settings.VIPA is used in biomedicine to display, model, and analyze volumetric data—typically, imaging data that has been created by making two dimensional digital “slices” of an object of interest—such as in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), functional MRI (fMRI), computed tomography (CT), and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). VIPA is also employed in non-biomedical disciplines where volumetric analyses are of interest, for instance, Earth science, engineering, hydrology, oceanography, and oil and gas exploration. Modules Noodling NeuronsThe lesson was based on neuron microanatomy visualization research being conducted by Dr. Joseph Szurszewski, Department of Physiology, Mayo Clinic, in collaboration with the Biomedical Imaging Resource department of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota (BIR). Dr. Szurszewski is creating surface models of neuron structure using confocal microscope volumetric images of a small section of neuronal tissue and made his data available to the lesson developers through BIR. The students explore, measure, and compare two enteric neurons in three dimensions, then apply what they have observed by making inferences about the role of neurons in the digestive system. They then self-assess what they have learned by re-doing the original pre-conceptions quiz and noting progress. Finally, they submit an assessment for grading by the instructor. Nine possible assessment assignments are included in the Teaching Notes. The module included seven sections: (1) Introduction; (2) Teaching Notes (consisting of Overview, Science Objectives, Preparation, Background, Science Standards, Installation, Career Links, Student Assessment, and References); (3) “Noodling Neurons” Student Lesson (consisting of Introduction: Your Second Brain; Neurons on the Move; The Making of These Images; Examining the Gut: Home of ENS Neurons; and Comparing Two Enteric Neurons: Further Exploration); (4) Appendix; (5) Glossary; (6) Student Data Sheet; and (7) Answer Sheet. The project also created a supplementary section designed to provide an overview of the digestive system, “From Ingestion to Egestion.” External evaluation of the lesson showed that
Software A key innovation of the VISION materials is the inclusion of Analyze software in a desktop application designed for K-12 education. So that users will not need to master the complexity of the complete standalone Analyze software, its functions have been distilled into the image analysis, manipulation, and modeling tasks that are required for "Noodling Neurons," the prototype module.A single setup.exe file that includes the images, as well as the the code for the viewer, is provided on the CD-ROM. Double-clicking the file initiates the installer, which extracts the viewer code and installs it plus the images on the hard drive. When the viewer is run, it lists those images and movies that have been installed with the program. As the lesson begins, students mentally shrink themselves to one ten-thousandth of their real size and “travel” through the enteric nervous system as they view a movie of neurons in three dimensions. The next section introduces the imaging technology (the Noodling Neurons viewer) and allows the students to investigate, compare, and measure two actual enteric neurons (inferior mesenteric ganglion and pancreatic ganglion) in much the same way as the collaborating scientists in Dr. Szurszewski’s laboratory. |
VISION (Volumetric Imaging for Science Instruction of an Open Nature) was a Phase I Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) project funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (EKSNICHHD) Grant Number NIH/NICHD 1 R41 HD049973-01.