Stephen Asunka

The dichapetalins—A new class of triterpenoids☆

Further to our recent report on dichapetalin A, we describe the isolation and structure elucidation by spectroscopic methods of dichapetalins B-H from the roots of Dichapetalum madagascariense. These compounds constitute a novel class of triterpenoids. Dichapetalin A shows a strong and selective cytotoxic activity.

Dichapetalin A, A Novel Plant Constituent from Dichapetalum madagascariense With Potential Antineoplastic Activity

Abstract From the roots of Dichapetalum madagascariense (Dichapetalaceae) dichapetalin A, a plant constituent with a new basic skeleton, has been isolated. Its structure was elucidated by spectroscopic methods. In-vitro experiments revealed a strong and selective cytotoxicity.

Early returns on an institutional repository: an exploration of the validity and functionality of pocketknowledge

This poster presentation will reflect qualitatively on the challenges and opportunities of PocketKnowledge (http://pocketknowledge.tc.columbia.edu/home.php) as an institutional repository. The main question explored is whether such repositories are best understood as new competitors in the academic publishing world or as on-going documentations of the larger intellectual life of the institution. The early experience of one such repository, PocketKnowledge - a social archive developed and implemented by EdLab, a research unit of the Gottesman Libraries, Teachers College Columbia University - reveals that users are motivated not only to participate in an institutional repository, but also to document their intellectual life understood more broadly than publication. This suggests that the latter understanding of an institutional repository is a more reasonable, incremental expectation in what is surely an uphill battle against the long-established prestige of publishing in printed academic journals, and that institutional repositories such as PocketKnowledge should consider the strategic addition of functionalities that can highlight the intellectual life of the institution, not simply the intellectual production of its members.

Collaborative Online Learning in Non-Formal Education Settings in the Developing World: A Best Practice Framework

In the present knowledge economy, individuals, particularly working adults, need to continuously acquire purposeful knowledge and skills so they can better contribute towards addressing society’s ever-changing developmental challenges. In the developing world however, few opportunities exist for working adults to acquire such new learning experiences through the formal education sector, and this makes it imperative for organizations to develop non-formal education and training programs to help address this need. With the proliferation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) worldwide, this article recommends the adoption of Collaborative Online Learning (COL) by non-formal learning organizations as a means of helping address the education and training needs of working adults. The article thus provides an overview of COL, and then draws on the research literature on relevant theories to recommend best-practice strategies for designing and delivering effective and workable COL initiatives within non-formal education settings, particularly in the developing world.