IntroductionWe describe herein a large-scale, multidisciplinary course-based undergraduate research experience program (CRE) developed at Lawrence Technological University (LTU). In our program, all students enrolled in CRE classes participate in authentic research experiences within the framework of the curriculum, eliminating self-selection processes and other barriers to traditional extracurricular research experiences.MethodsSince 2014, we have designed and implemented more than 40 CRE courses in our College of Arts and Sciences involving more than 30 instructors from computer science, mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry, English composition, literature, philosophy, media communication, nursing, and psychology.ResultsAssessment survey data indicates that students who participate in CRE courses have an enhanced attitude towards research and discovery, as well as increased self-efficacy. This intervention is particularly relevant for non-traditional students, such as students who commute and/or have significant work or childcare commitments, who often experience limited access to research activities.DiscussionHerein we highlight the importance of a systemic institutional change that has made this intervention sustainable and likely to outlast the external funding phase. Systemic change can emerge from a combination of conditions, including: (1) developing a critical mass of CRE courses by providing instructors with both incentives and training; (2) developing general principles on which instructors can base their CRE activities; (3) securing and maintaining institutional support to promote policy changes towards a more inclusive institution; and (4) diversifying the range of the intervention, both in terms of initiatives and disciplines involved.

The objective of the current study was to develop a lumbar motion segment FE model that predicts disc herniation risk. The posterolateral nucleus extrusion force and disc pressure increased as the amount of flexion and magnitude of compression was increased in all loading scenarios. The nucleus extrusion force and posterior stress in the annulus both increased when exposed to a combination of compression and flexion. Results of the current study confirmed the authors hypothesis that the model would accurately predict herniation risk when exposed to a biomechanical environment known to cause herniations.

Forensic Engineering is a multidisciplinary field which focuses on the art and science of engineering in the jurisprudence system [1]. The responsibilities include not only an investigation into the physical and technical causes of an accident but also the gathering of evidence, summarizing opinions in a report and providing testimony related to the case. The nature of the profession lends itself to instruction through projects and case studies. A quick survey of forensic engineering courses shows that most are taught at the graduate level in civil engineering departments with an emphasis on failure mode of facilities and transportation infrastructure [2]. Faculty at XXXXXXX University, in collaboration with a forensic engineer have co-taught an upper-level undergraduate forensic engineering course biennially through the biomedical engineering department. The course is unique because it does not specifically deal with a particular area of practice but rather focuses on the investigation and litigation process that forensic engineers follow in their profession. The involvement from a forensic engineer as the adjunct faculty allows for scheduling of various other forensic engineers from different areas of practice, as speakers during the course. The results is a multidisciplinary course that covers a range of topics such as biomechanics of accident injury, failure of implants, human factors, accident reconstruction, fire/explosions and civil structures. Case studies are presented in each lecture and students learn how these investigations contribute to the law, engineering design, safety, and economics. The activities and course structure is specifically designed to develop skills that are necessary for careers beyond forensic engineering, which include the application of the scientific method, deductive and inductive reasoning, organization of facts, forming of opinions and specifying bases for opinions. A key component is to practice the effective oral and written communication, manage client relations, and project management. Each lecture includes a presentation which is followed by a hands-on activity pertaining to the area of discussion. Students have three main projects that include the investigation of a crashed car and an the claimed injury, summarizing the evidence of an actual forensic case and a final project that requires the complete investigation and litigation process of a mock accident situation. Student feedback from the previous first offering was extremely positive. The exact activities have also been modified to encourage student participation and engagement in classroom. References [1] Carper, K. L. (Ed.). (2000). Forensic engineering. CRC Press. [2] Delatte, N. J., & Rens, K. L. (2002). Forensics and case studies in civil engineering education: State of the art. Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, 16(3), 98-109.

CONTEXT:Ground reaction force (GRF) and tibiofemoral force magnitudes and directions have been shown to affect anterior cruciate ligament loading during landing. However, the kinematic and kinetic factors modifying these 2 forces during landing are unknown.OBJECTIVE:To clarify the intersegmental kinematic and kinetic links underlying the alteration of the GRF and tibiofemoral force vectors secondary to changes in the sagittal-plane body position during single-legged landing.DESIGN:Crossover study.SETTING:Laboratory.PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS:Twenty recreationally active participants (age = 23.4 ± 3.6 years, height = 171.0 ± 9.4 cm, mass = 73.3 ± 12.7 kg).INTERVENTION(S):Participants performed single-legged landings using 3 landing styles: self-selected landing (SSL), body leaning forward and landing on the toes (LFL), and body upright with flat-footed landing (URL). Three-dimensional kinetics and kinematics were recorded.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S):Sagittal-plane tibial inclination and knee-flexion angles, GRF magnitude and inclination angles relative to the tibia, and proximal tibial forces at peak tibial axial forces.RESULTS:The URL resulted in less time to peak tibial axial forces, smaller knee-flexion angles, and greater magnitude and a more anteriorly inclined GRF vector relative to the tibia than did the SSL. These changes led to the greatest peak tibial axial and anterior shear forces in the URL among the 3 landing styles. Conversely, the LFL resulted in longer time to peak tibial axial forces, greater knee-flexion angles, and reduced magnitude and a more posteriorly inclined GRF vector relative to the tibia than the SSL. These changes in LFL resulted in the lowest peak tibial axial and largest posterior shear forces among the 3 landing styles.CONCLUSIONS:Sagittal-plane intersegmental kinematic and kinetic links strongly affected the magnitude and direction of GRF and tibiofemoral forces during the impact phase of single-legged landing. Therefore, improving sagittal-plane landing mechanics is important in reducing harmful magnitudes and directions of impact forces on the anterior cruciate ligament.

PURPOSE It is essential to have sufficient bone bulk and density at the implant site in order to achieve good bone-to-implant contact and primary stability, which are crucial for osseointegration. A new osteotomy preparation technique was recently introduced that uses a bone preservation method that creates a layer of compacted bone along the surface of the osteotomy. The hypothesis of this study was that this novel technique would increase primary implant stability, bone mineral density, and the percentage of bone at the implant surface compared with drilling technique. MATERIALS AND METHODS A total of 72 osteotomies were created in porcine tibial plateau bone samples using three preparation techniques: standard drilling; osseous extraction drilling with a new tapered, multi-fluted bur design; and osseous densification with the same multi-fluted bur rotating in a reversed direction that preserved and created a compacted layer of bone. The surgical process (temperature increase, drilling force, and torque), mechanical stability during the insertion and removal of 4.1-mm and 6.0- mm diameter implants (implant torque and stability quotient), and bone imaging (scanning electron microscopy, microcomputed tomography measurement of bone mineral density, and histomorphology) were compared among the three preparation techniques. RESULTS Osseous densification significantly increased insertion and removal torques compared to standard drilling or extraction drilling. No significant differences in implant stability quotient readings or temperature increases were demonstrated among the three groups. Although the same bur was used for extraction drilling and osseous densification techniques, the osseous densification osteotomy diameters were smaller than both the extraction drilling and standard drilling osteotomies due to the spring-back effect of bone elastic strain created. Imaging methods documented a layer of increased bone mineral density around the periphery of osseous densification osteotomies. The percentage of bone at the implant surface was increased by approximately three times for implants prepared with osseous densification compared with standard drilling. CONCLUSION This study confirmed the hypothesis that the osseous densification technique would increase primary stability, bone mineral density, and the percentage of bone at the implant surface compared with drilling. By preserving bulk bone, it is hypothesized that the healing process will be accelerated due to the bone matrix, cells, and biochemicals that are maintained in situ and autografted along the surface of the osteotomy site. The healing response requires further study in vivo.

This paper focuses on two initiatives: fostering the entrepreneurial mindset in the first year introduction to engineering course and successfully combining discipline-specific courses into a multi-discipline course.While most first year introduction to engineering courses focus on design and problem solving, at the same time familiarizing the student with basic technical content, very few also focus on the entrepreneurial mindset - a way of thinking increasingly required of engineers entering the workforce. Skills associated with the entrepreneurial mindset such as effective communication (written, verbal, and graphical), teamwork, ethics and ethical decision-making, customer awareness, persistence, creativity, innovation, time management, critical thinking, global awareness, self-directed research, life-long learning, learning through failure, tolerance for ambiguity, and estimation are as important in the workforce as technical aptitude. In fact, employer feedback has indicated that graduates with these skills are more highly sought than those with an overly technical education since technical engineering skills can be readily obtained on the job; the entrepreneurial mindset takes years of practice/refinement. Although students may eventually begin practicing many entrepreneurial mindset skills in the curriculum especially during a senior project sequence, it is paramount that the importance of the entrepreneurial mindset is stressed in the first year. This paper will include details of how to integrate all of the skills listed here into well-established design projects, homework, and active learning classroom modules in a first year engineering course using entrepreneurially minded learning. Informal interviews with students reveals successful implementation.As the lines between engineering disciplines are becoming more blurry, employers also covet engineering graduates whose technical skills span a variety of disciplines. Engineers must work on teams that are diverse, and being able to understand and communicate the broad field of engineering is vital to success. Therefore, while completing an engineering degree, students need to become familiar with a multitude of engineering disciplines and work with students from many departments. This is not a new concept and many introduction to engineering courses are interdisciplinary. On the other hand, many colleges still contain only discipline-specific introduction to engineering courses. Over the past year and a half, Lawrence Technological University underwent a successful college-wide transition from many discipline-specific introduction to engineering courses to a multi-discipline course. This paper will outline keys to a successful transition including pitfalls to avoid and working with university administrators, faculty, and staff during the transition.

Summer camps provide many high school students their first opportunity to learn about various disciplines in the engineering profession. A week-long summer camp in Biomedical Engineering (BME) was used to introduce students to many of the topics that make up this discipline, and to engage them in learning through hands-on activities, discussions and lab tours. The BME topic areas that were covered in this summer camp were biomechanics, bioMEMS, medical imaging and medical sensors. Of the students that responded in the exit surveys, 71% of student rated the summer camp as good and 57% said that they will probably recommend the camp to others. Summer camps and outreach days for high school students can be an effective means for introducing young people to BME through tailored activities that used the resources available at the host academic institution.

The use of computational modeling to predict injury mechanisms and severity has recently been investigated, but few models report failure level ligament strains. The hypothesis of the study was that models built off neutral ankle experimental studies would generate the highest ligament strain at failure in the anterior deltoid ligament, comprised of the anterior tibiotalar ligament (ATiTL) and tibionavicular ligament (TiNL). For models built off everted ankle experimental studies the highest strain at failure would be developed in the anterior tibiofibular ligament (ATiFL). An additional objective of the study was to show that in these computational models ligament strain would be lower when modeling a partial versus complete ligament rupture experiment. To simulate a prior cadaver study in which six pairs of cadaver ankles underwent external rotation until gross failure, six specimen-specific models were built based on computed tomography (CT) scans from each specimen. The models were initially positioned with 20 deg dorsiflexion and either everted 20 deg or maintained at neutral to simulate the cadaver experiments. Then each model underwent dynamic external rotation up to the maximum angle at failure in the experiments, at which point the peak strains in the ligaments were calculated. Neutral ankle models predicted the average of highest strain in the ATiTL (29.1 ± 5.3%), correlating with the medial ankle sprains in the neutral cadaver experiments. Everted ankle models predicted the average of highest strain in the ATiFL (31.2 ± 4.3%) correlating with the high ankle sprains documented in everted experiments. Strains predicted for ligaments that suffered gross injuries were significantly higher than the strains in ligaments suffering only a partial tear. The correlation between strain and ligament damage demonstrates the potential for modeling to provide important information for the study of injury mechanisms and for aiding in treatment procedure.

Purpose To examine the effects of different sagittal plane body positions during single-leg landings on biomechanics and muscle activation parameters associated with risk for anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Methods Twenty participants performed single-leg drop landings onto a force plate using the following landing styles: self-selected, leaning forward (LFL) and upright (URL). Lower extremity and trunk 3D biomechanics and lower extremity muscle activities were recorded using motion analysis and surface electromyography, respectively. Differences in landing styles were examined using 2-way Repeated-measures ANOVAs (sex × landing conditions) followed by Bonferroni pairwise comparisons. Results Participants demonstrated greater peak vertical ground reaction force, greater peak knee extensor moment, lesser plantar flexion, lesser or no hip extensor moments, and lesser medial and lateral gastrocnemius and lateral quadriceps muscle activations during URL than during LFL. These modifications of lower extremity biomechanics across landing conditions were similar between men and women. Conclusions Leaning forward while landing appears to protect the ACL by increasing the shock absorption capacity and knee flexion angles and decreasing anterior shear force due to the knee joint compression force and quadriceps muscle activation. Conversely, landing upright appears to be ACL harmful by increasing the post-impact force of landing and quadriceps muscle activity while decreasing knee flexion angles, all of which lead to a greater tibial anterior shear force and ACL loading. ACL injury prevention programmes should include exercise regimens to improve sagittal plane body position control during landing motions.

Ankle sprain is a common occurrence in sports, accounting for 10–30% of injuries [1]. While approximately 85% of ankle sprains are lateral ankle injuries, syndesmotic (high) and medial injuries typically result in more time off the field. In order to help limit or mitigate ankle injuries, it is important to understand the mechanisms of injury. While numerous biomechanical studies have been conducted to investigate ankle injuries, most of them are designed to study ankle fractures rather than sprains. Ankle sprains have been graded in the clinical literature and associated with the degree of damage to a ligament resulting from excessive strains [2]. Recently, there have been studies of lateral ankle sprain in laboratory settings [3,4] and based on investigation of game films [5], providing considerable insight into the mechanism of lateral ankle sprain. On the other hand, few biomechanical studies have been conducted on high and medial ankle sprains. A more recent study from our laboratory used human cadaver limbs to investigate such injuries [6]. The study showed that the type of ankle injury, whether medial or high, under excessive levels of external foot rotation depends on the extent of foot eversion [6]. Everted limbs showed isolated anterior tibiofibular ligament injuries (high ankle sprain) only, while neutral limbs mostly demonstrated deltoid ligament failures (medial ankle sprain). Additionally, the study documented grade II (partial tears) and grade III (ruptures) ligament injuries. While a computational ankle model has also been developed and validated to help understand the mechanisms of injury [7], it is a generic model. The objective of the current study was to develop computational, subject-specific models from those cadaver limbs and determine the levels of ligament strain generated in the medial and high ankle injury cases, as well as correlate the grades of injury with ligament strains from the computational model.

Shoe-surface interface characteristics have been implicated in the high incidence of ankle injuries suffered by athletes. Yet, the differences in rotational stiffness among shoes may also influence injury risk. It was hypothesized that shoes with different rotational stiffness will generate different patterns of ankle ligament strain. Four football shoe designs were tested and compared in terms of rotational stiffness. Twelve (six pairs) male cadaveric lower extremity limbs were externally rotated 30 deg using two selected football shoe designs, i.e., a flexible shoe and a rigid shoe. Motion capture was performed to track the movement of the talus with a reflective marker array screwed into the bone. A computational ankle model was utilized to input talus motions for the estimation of ankle ligament strains. At 30 deg of rotation, the rigid shoe generated higher ankle joint torque at 46.2 ± 9.3 Nm than the flexible shoe at 35.4 ± 5.7 Nm. While talus rotation was greater in the rigid shoe (15.9 ± 1.6 deg versus 12.1 ± 1.0 deg), the flexible shoe generated more talus eversion (5.6 ± 1.5 deg versus 1.2± 0.8 deg). While these talus motions resulted in the same level of anterior deltoid ligament strain (approxiamtely 5%) between shoes, there was a significant increase of anterior tibiofibular ligament strain (4.5± 0.4% versus 2.3 ± 0.3%) for the flexible versus more rigid shoe design. The flexible shoe may provide less restraint to the subtalar and transverse tarsal joints, resulting in more eversion but less axial rotation of the talus during foot∕shoe rotation. The increase of strain in the anterior tibiofibular ligament may have been largely due to the increased level of talus eversion documented for the flexible shoe. There may be a direct correlation of ankle joint torque with axial talus rotation, and an inverse relationship between torque and talus eversion. The study may provide some insight into relationships between shoe design and ankle ligament strain patterns. In future studies, these data may be useful in characterizing shoe design parameters and balancing potential ankle injury risks with player performance.

While high ankle sprains are often clinically ascribed to excessive external foot rotation, no experimental study documents isolated anterior tibiofibular ligament (ATiFL) injury under this loading. We hypothesized that external rotation of a highly everted foot would generate ATiFL injury, in contrast to deltoid ligament injury from external rotation of a neutral foot. Twelve (six pairs) male cadaveric lower extremity limbs underwent external foot rotation until gross failure. All limbs were positioned in 20° of dorsiflexion and restrained with elastic athletic tape. Right limbs were in neutral while left limbs were everted 20°. Talus motion relative to the tibia was measured using motion capture. Rotation at failure for everted limbs (46.8 ± 6.1°) was significantly greater than for neutral limbs (37.7 ± 5.4°). Everted limbs showed ATiFL injury only, while neutral limbs mostly demonstrated deltoid ligament failure. This is the first biomechanical study to produce isolated ATiFL injury under external foot rotation. Eversion of the axially loaded foot predisposes the ATiFL to injury, forming a basis for high ankle sprain. The study helps clarify a mechanism of high ankle sprain and may heighten clinical awareness of isolated ATiFL injury in cases of foot eversion prior to external rotation. It may also provide guidance to investigate the effect of prophylactic measures for this injury. © 2012 Orthopaedic Research Society. Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Orthop Res 30:1423–1429, 2012

In young athletes, acute ankle trauma is responsibl e for 10% to 30% of all sports-related injuries [1]. While medial and high ankle sprains are less common than lateral ankle sprains, they represent a more disabling problem requiring longer recovery and different treatment [2]. The mechanism of injury in medial (anterior deltoid ligament or ADL) and high (anterior tibiofibular ligament or ATiFL) ankle sprains is commonly ascribed to excessive internal rotation of the upper body, while the foot is planted on the playing surface [3]. A recent study by our laboratory showed further that ADL injury occurs during external rotation of the neutral foot , while the ATiFL is typically the site of injury for external rotation of the everted foot [4].

Hydrostatic pressure (HP) is a key component of the in vivo joint environment and has been shown to enhance chondrogenesis of stem cells.The objective of this study was to investigate the interaction between HP and TGF-β3 on both the initiation and maintenance of a chondrogenic phenotype for joint tissue derived stem cells.Pellets generated from porcine chondrocytes (CCs), synovial membrane derived stem cells (SDSCs) and infrapatellar fat pad derived stem cells (FPSCs) were subjected to 10 MPa of cyclic HP (4 h/day) and different concentrations of TGF-β3 (0, 1 and 10 ng/mL) for 14 days.CCs and stem cells were observed to respond differentially to both HP and TGF-β3 stimulation.HP in the absence of TGF-β3 did not induce robust chondrogenic differentiation of stem cells.At low concentrations of TGF-β3 (1 ng/mL), HP acted to enhance chondrogenesis of both SDSCs and FPSCs, as evident by a 3-fold increase in Sox9 expression and a signifi cant increase in glycosaminoglycan accumulation.In contrast, HP had no effect on cartilage-specifi c matrix synthesis at higher concentrations of TGF-β3 (10 ng/mL).Critically, HP appears to play a key role in the maintenance of a chondrogenic phenotype, as evident by a downregulation of the hypertrophic markers type X collagen and Indian hedgehog in SDSCs irrespective of the cytokine concentration.In the context of stem cell based therapies for cartilage repair, this study demonstrates the importance of considering how joint specifi c environmental factors interact to regulate not only the initiation of chondrogenesis, but also the development of a stable hyaline-like repair tissue.

High ankle sprains represent a severe injury in sports. External foot rotation is suspected in these cases, but the mechanism of injury remains unclear. The objective of the current study was to integrate in vitro and in vivo experiments along with computational models based on rigid bone surfaces and deformable ligaments of the ankle to investigate the external foot rotation injury mechanism with different shoe constraints and ankle positioning. Injuries and the highest strains occurred in the anterior deltoid ligament (ADL) when the foot was held in neutral with athletic tape. Similarly, ADL strains were highest when a football shoe design with a high rotational stiffness was used to constrain the foot. For a flexible shoe, the anterior tibiofibular ligament (ATiFL) strain was increased and ATiFL injury occurred due to increased talar eversion. In human subjects performing a similar movement, the highest strains also occurred in the ATiFL and ADL. The models showed that ATiFL strain was positively correlated with ankle eversion, but eversion decreased strain in the ADL. Finally, the consequence of eversion on ATiFL strain was confirmed in the first cadaver study that consistently generated high ankle sprains in the laboratory.

Engineering cartilaginous tissue of a scale necessary to treat defects observed clinically is a well-documented challenge in the field of cartilage tissue engineering. The objective of this study was to determine how the composition and mechanical properties of cartilaginous tissues that are engineered by using bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) depend on the scale of the construct. Porcine bone marrow-derived MSCs were encapsulated in agarose hydrogels, and constructs of different cylindrical geometries (Ø4×1.5 mm; Ø5×3 mm; Ø6×4.5 mm; Ø8×4.5 mm) were fabricated and maintained in a chemically defined serum-free medium supplemented with transforming growth factor-β3 for 42 days. Total sulfated glycosaminoglycan (sGAG) accumulation by day 42 increased from 0.14% w/w to 0.88% w/w as the construct geometry increased from Ø4×1.5 to Ø8×4.5 mm, with collagen accumulation increasing from 0.31% w/w to 1.62% w/w. This led to an increase in the dynamic modulus from 90.81 to 327.51 kPa as the engineered tissue increased in scale from Ø4×1.5 to Ø8×4.5 mm. By decreasing the external oxygen tension from 20% to 5%, it was possible to achieve these higher levels of mechanical functionality in the smaller engineered tissues. Constructs were then sectioned into smaller subregions to quantify the spatial accumulation of extracellular matrix components, and a model of oxygen diffusion and consumption was used to predict spatial gradients in oxygen concentration throughout the construct. sGAG accumulation was always highest in regions where oxygen concentration was predicted to be lowest. In addition, as the size of the engineered construct increased, different regions of the construct preferentially supported either sGAG or collagen accumulation, thus suggesting that gradients in regulatory factors other than oxygen were playing a role in determining levels of collagen synthesis. The identification of such factors and the means to control their spatial concentration within developing tissues represents a central challenge in engineering large cartilaginous grafts.

Injury to the tibiofibular syndesmosis ligaments, which bind together the distal ends of the tibia and fibula, is commonly referred to as a high ankle sprain [8]. While lateral ankle sprains are the most common injury, high ankle sprains represent a more disabling problem and require a longer recovery period [1] and different treatment [4]. The mechanism associated with a high ankle sprain is primarily thought to involve external rotation of the foot [1,7]. However, both a cadaver study [6] and a simulation study [5] show that tibiofibular syndesmosis ligaments are not stretched the most during an excessive, pure external foot rotation.