Exploring the Features of BCM CAMS Student Portal

Introduction

Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) has introduced a new Curriculum Management System (CMS) known as Leo. Training sessions for faculty, staff, and students on utilizing Leo will be scheduled and announced in the future. This article aims to explore the features and functionalities of a typical student portal within a Curriculum Management System, focusing on how such a system, exemplified by BCM's Leo, can enhance the academic experience.

During aging, several changes occur in the brain that render it more vulnerable to a variety of age-related neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s Disease and Parkinson’s Disease (Mattson and Arumugam, 2018). Aging, defined as a time-related decline in physiological functions (Ebeling et al., 2021; Dorsey and Bloem, 2024), is considered the strongest risk factor for these conditions. While these neurodegenerative diseases share many phenotypic similarities with normal brain aging, we still do not fully understand the mechanisms underlying brain aging, nor how these mechanisms deviate in each of these unique pathologies (Mattson and Arumugam, 2018; Iijima et al., 2004; Drachman, 2006; Moqri et al., 2023). By characterizing the functions and mechanisms responsible for brain aging and establishing a foundational understanding of how “normal” age-related neurodegeneration occurs, we will be far better equipped to develop more targeted interventions moving forward.

Recently, much focus has shifted towards understanding how glial dysfunction may contribute to age-related neurodegeneration. This is largely due to the many crucial roles glial cells play in maintaining healthy brain function, including moderating cell-cell interactions, maintaining homeostasis, facilitating immune responses, etc. (Barres, 2008; Freeman, 2015; Kremer et al., 2017). Cell-cell interactions, which are largely mediated by cell-surface proteins, control many critical aspects of development and physiology (Sperry, 1963; Malenka and Bear, 2004; Jan and Jan, 2010; Zipursky and Sanes, 2010; Kolodkin and Tessier-Lavigne, 2011; Yeh et al., 2017; Li et al., 2020; McAlpine et al., 2021). As dysregulation of glia-neuron interactions is considered a hallmark of normal brain aging (Barres, 2008), glial cell-surface proteins are hypothesized to play important roles in maintaining healthy brain function during aging (Kremer et al., 2017). However, fully characterizing the cell-surface proteomes of glial cells has proven challenging using traditional proteomics methods, such as biochemical fractionation (Cordwell and Thingholm, 2010; Li et al., 2020). This is because biochemical fractionation does not allow for cell-type specificity, includes various contaminants (mitochondrial, ER, and Golgi), and, importantly, omits important secreted and extracellular matrix proteins that form an integral part of the cell-surface proteome (Li et al., 2020).

Recently, in-situ cell-surface proteomics methods were developed to profile spatiotemporally resolved neuronal cell-surface proteomes from intact brains in Drosophila (Li et al., 2020; Xie et al., 2022), as well as in certain mouse brain regions (Shuster et al., 2022). This technique enables complete profiling of cell-surface proteomes in-situ, preserving native cell-cell interactions (Li et al., 2020; Xie et al., 2022). Ultimately, this allows investigators to form a more comprehensive understanding of how glia-neuron interactions evolve during aging (as this method effectively captures both the glial cell-surface proteins themselves, as well as any other endogenous proteins that are in very close proximity) (Li et al., 2020; Xie et al., 2022). Applying this platform to the glial cells of young and old flies, we investigated how glial cell-surface proteomes change as flies age. We identified several candidate proteins predicted to be involved in normal brain aging, including several neural development and synapse wiring molecules not previously thought to be particularly active in glia or in aging (Szklarczyk et al., 2023). We found that one synapse wiring molecule in particular, DIP-β, was associated with significant lifespan increases when overexpressed in adult glial cells (using the glial-GeneSwitch conditional driver). Our single-nucleus RNA-seq data suggest that glial DIP-β overexpression improves cell-cell communication, including glia-neuron and glia-fat cell interactions, contributing to lifespan extension.

Our study is the first to apply in-situ cell-surface proteomics to glial cells in Drosophila, and to fully profile and characterize the glial cell-surface proteomes of aging-model (i.e., young and old) flies. Additionally, while DIP-β’s role in precise neural circuit assembly during development has been studied extensively (Carrillo et al., 2015; Cosmanescu et al., 2018; Sanes and Zipursky, 2020; Sergeeva et al., 2020; Wang et al., 2022; Ma et al., 2023), ours is the first to identify DIP-β as a potential regulator of healthy brain function and synapse maintenance during normal brain aging. Combined, these results further demonstrate the power of in-situ cell-surface proteomics to identify new molecules involved in the maintenance of healthy brain function during aging.

Read also: Queens College CAMS Navigation

Accessing the Student Portal

The primary function of a student portal is to provide a centralized access point for various academic resources and administrative tasks. Students can typically log in using their unique credentials, which ensure secure access to their personal information and academic records.

Course Management

A core feature of any student portal is course management. This includes:

Course Registration: Students can browse available courses, view schedules, and register for classes. The system often includes tools to check for prerequisites and time conflicts.
Course Materials: Instructors can upload syllabi, lecture notes, presentations, and other relevant materials. Students can download these resources for offline access.
Assignments: Submission of assignments through the portal ensures organization and timely delivery. The system may also support various file formats and submission guidelines.
Grades and Feedback: Students can view their grades for assignments and exams, as well as any feedback provided by instructors. This allows students to track their progress and identify areas for improvement.

Communication Tools

Effective communication is crucial in an academic environment. Student portals often include:

Announcements: Important announcements from the institution, departments, or instructors are posted in a central location.
Email Integration: Integration with the student's email account ensures that they receive notifications and updates promptly.
Discussion Forums: These forums facilitate interaction between students and instructors, allowing for questions, discussions, and collaborative learning.

Academic Resources

Student portals provide access to a range of academic resources, such as:

Library Services: Links to the library catalog, databases, and online resources. Students can also request materials and access research guides.
Tutoring Services: Information on available tutoring services, including schedules and contact information.
Writing Center: Access to writing assistance and resources to improve writing skills.
Academic Advising: Appointment scheduling and communication with academic advisors to discuss course selection, degree requirements, and career planning.

Administrative Functions

Student portals also streamline administrative tasks, including:

Read also: Streamlining Education

Financial Aid: Access to financial aid information, including applications, awards, and disbursement schedules.
Billing and Payments: Online bill payment and access to billing statements.
Transcripts: Requesting official transcripts and viewing unofficial transcripts.
Personal Information Updates: Updating contact information, emergency contacts, and other personal details.

Technical Support

Most student portals offer technical support resources to assist students with any issues they may encounter. This may include FAQs, troubleshooting guides, and contact information for the IT help desk.

Customization and Personalization

Many modern student portals allow for some degree of customization. Students may be able to:

Customize the Dashboard: Arrange widgets and modules to display the information that is most relevant to them.
Set Preferences: Configure notification settings, language preferences, and other settings to personalize their experience.

Accessibility

An effective student portal should be accessible to all students, including those with disabilities. This means adhering to accessibility guidelines, such as providing alternative text for images, ensuring keyboard navigation, and offering screen reader compatibility.

Integrating External Tools

Many tools make integrating external content easier by generating an embed code. Users can copy the code and paste it into the CMS. Just look for the share and/or embed icons when using many of these tools. Some ed tech tools don’t have an embed option. To overcome this, a little hack for these situations is provided. Users can copy the code below and replace "paste url here" with the appropriate URL: <iframe src="paste url here” width=”100%” frameborder="0">. Once you have the code, just paste it into Leo, and voila… no more links and no more browser tabs.

The Role of Image Sensors in Vehicle Safety Systems

Dashboard cameras (dash cams) have become an essential tool in promoting road safety. By continuously recording everything from routine commutes to high-speed incidents, dash cams contribute to safer roads by holding drivers accountable, leading to more convictions for dangerous driving. New types of aftermarket cameras are also helping to increase vehicle safety in commercial fleets. For example, driver monitoring systems (DMS) and occupant monitoring systems (OMS) help vehicles ranging from company cars and taxis to delivery vans and large haulage trucks increase safety and accountability by monitoring drivers and their occupants. Consequently, there is now a diverse range of cameras available on the market, addressing the needs of different motorists and businesses alike.

Image sensors play a vital role in today’s vehicle interiors, particularly in systems like dash cams, driver monitoring systems and occupant monitoring systems. While reliability remains crucial for aftermarket camera systems, automotive qualification and associated complexity are not necessary for devices that exist outside of the vehicle’s architecture. Instead, image sensors for aftermarket applications require simple integration, cost-efficient design, and high-quality output under varied conditions.

Enhancing Dash Cam Capabilities

Dash cams must be adaptable, able to capture clear, reliable footage across diverse lighting conditions. Low-light scenes can challenge an image sensor's ability to capture data without introducing excess noise. onsemi’s Hyperlux LH family is designed specifically to meet this demand, offering an advanced triple-exposure embedded High Dynamic Range (eHDR) of up to 120 dB. For dash cams, the ability to maintain image clarity regardless of lighting conditions is crucial for documenting every detail, whether it’s for safety, legal purposes, or personal use.

In addition to its HDR capabilities, onsemi’s high-performance Hyperlux LH sensors also offer excellent low light performance. The Hyperlux LH family includes sensors such as the AR0822 8 MP, featuring an active-pixel array supporting 4K video at 60 frames per second (fps). This high resolution ensures that every detail is captured crisply, while the fast frame rate guarantees smooth video, even during high-speed scenes. In addition, the AR0246 2 MP sensor features an adaptive local tone mapping (ALTM) to support low-cost image signal processing (ISP) and delivers excellent image quality.

Driver Monitoring Systems (DMS)

While some vehicles come factory-equipped with DMS, the majority of cars and trucks on the market lack these features. Consequently, aftermarket solutions are gaining popularity, particularly in fleet management, as a cost-effective means to enhance in-cabin safety. DMS cameras utilize highly responsive image sensors to accurately track driver behaviors, such as head movements, eye gaze, and facial expressions, to detect signs of distraction or drowsiness.

onsemi’s AR0145 1 MP and AR0235 2.3 MP sensors, part of the Hyperlux SG family, are popular choices for DMS applications. These sensors feature an innovative global shutter pixel design optimized for capturing moving scenes with clarity, producing clear, low-noise images even in challenging lighting conditions. In DMS applications, this capability allows for the detection of subtle movements, such as eye movement-a critical indicator of drowsiness.

Occupant Monitoring Systems (OMS)

Aftermarket OMS cameras use image sensors backed with machine vision algorithms to detect and classify objects, including adults, children, and inanimate objects, within the cabin. To ensure accurate detection even in dimly lit cabins, normally, the camera will switch from color to mono with IR-cut. However, during movement, IR-Cut is easily damaged. To overcome this problem, RGB-IR image sensors are widely used for OMS cameras.

To meet this requirement, onsemi’s Hyperlux LP series, including the AR0544 5 MP and AR0830 8 MP sensors, offer RGB-IR variants with exceptional image quality, even at night. The sensors feature a 1.4 µm BSI pixel configuration, providing excellent functionality in low-light and near-infrared (NIR) regions, enabling them to identify occupant traits like presence, positioning, and minor movements. This ensures consistent monitoring across different lighting conditions, from bright daylight to dim cabin lights at night.

Aftermarket cameras are straightforward upgrades that have the potential to significantly increase road safety, but they depend on specialized image sensors such as those from onsemi to operate correctly.

tags: #bcm #cams #student #portal #features