Creating Environmental Education for Children: Focusing on the Vigo County/Terre Haute Community

This study is an attempt to create an action plan to improve environmental education for children within a community. It evaluates the reach and sophistication of this type of education that currently exists in the Vigo County/Terre Haute community, diagnoses weaknesses in the system, and finds ways to develop it. Data was collected through surveys given to elementary school teachers in Vigo County Public schools, interviewing community educators, making on-site visits to educational locations, online research, and speaking with political figures. Environmental education lacks sophistication in schools and can be improved through hands-on, sustainability standards and resources. Community sources outside of schools are limited to university organizations, city and county parks, and museums. The reach of these entities can be improved through advertisement, accessibility, and collaboration. Lastly, initiatives to change legislation can improve the reach and sophistication of environmental education through government-funded environmental programming.Kayla SiddellHonors DiplomHonors CollegeCunningham Memorial Library, Terre Haute, Indiana State UniversityUndergraduateTitle from document title page. Document formatted into pages: 35

Initial '80s Development of Inflated Antennas

State of the art technology was considered in the definition and documentation of a membrane surface suitable for use in a space reflector system for long durations in orbit. Requirements for a metal foil-plastic laminate structural element were determined and a laboratory model of a rigidized element to test for strength characteristics was constructed. Characteristics of antennas ranging from 10 meters to 1000 meters were determined. The basic antenna configuration studied consists of (1) a thin film reflector, (2) a thin film cone, (3) a self-rigidizing structural torus at the interface of the cone and reflector; and (4) an inflation system. The reflector is metallized and, when inflated, has a parabolic shape. The cone not only completes the enclosure of the inflatant, but also holds the antenna feed at its apex. The torus keeps the inflated cone-reflector from collapsing inward. Laser test equipment determined the accuracy of the inflated paraboloids

The Impact Of The Perceptions Of Fathering On Adult Children\u27s Emotional Well-Being And Satisfaction With Life

The purpose of the present study was to examine how perceptions of one\u27s father figure impacted reported levels of depression, anxiety, stress, alexithymia, and satisfaction with life. Participants reported that as negative perceptions of their father figure increased so did reported levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. Further, negative perceptions of one\u27s father figure were negatively correlated with life satisfaction, such that as negative perceptions of father increased ones reported satisfaction with life decreased. Participant age was also positively correlated with perceptions of their father, whereas age increased, so did a positive view of one\u27s father figure. When the Attitude Toward Father Scale (ATFS; Copenhaver, Eisler, 2000) was broken down into its three basic constructs, the fear of father\u27s negative evaluation was most highly correlated with levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and satisfaction with life. This also accounted for the highest percentage of variance among these variables, suggesting that a stand alone scale of fear of father\u27s negative evaluation may be relevant in clinical and research work. Such a shorter and potentially more powerful scale may allow psychologists to understand this phenomenon in a timelier manner, supporting both clinical interventions and research that is more conducive to data collection while diminishing participant fatigue

Smooth Representation of Functions on Non-Periodic Domains by Means of the Fourier Continuation Method

This report examines a new methodology in solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) numerically. The report also studies the accuracy of this new method as a PDE solver. This new Fourier Continuation (FC) method is one of a few that avoids the well-known Gibbs Phenomenon, which is the overestimation or underestimation of a function. These estimations are oscillations around a “jump” when a non-periodic function is expressed in terms of sines and cosines. Instead, the FC algorithm creates a smooth, periodic extension of a function over a general domain, as demonstrated by the many examples presented here. The FC algorithm was applied to a multitude of different functions, a majority of which were non-periodic; some were periodic. All functions were evaluated on at least two different domains, [0,1] and [0,10]. Some of the periodic functions were evaluated on a periodic domain. They demonstrate that FC algorithm produces a solution similar to that of the Fourier Series and Transform without the Gibbs Phenomenon. Among the functions where the FC method was applied, the errors for the data of the derivative converged at a 4th order rate. The data collected for the interpolation of the original function did not converge at all and remains inconclusive at this time. These examples indicate that the Fourier Continuation method is a viable PDE solver

New sources of soybean seed meal and oil composition traits identified through TILLING

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Several techniques are available to study gene function, but many are less than ideal for soybean. Reverse genetics, a relatively new approach, can be utilized to identify novel mutations in candidate genes; this technique has not produced an allelic variant with a confirmed phenotype in soybean. Soybean raffinose synthase genes and microsomal omega-6 fatty acid desaturase genes were screened for novel alleles in mutagenized soybean populations.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Four mutations in independent lines were identified in the raffinose synthase gene <it>RS2</it>; two mutations resulted in amino acid mutations and one resulted in an altered seed oligosaccharide phenotype. The resulting phenotype was an increase in seed sucrose levels as well as a decrease in both raffinose and stachyose seed oligosaccharide levels. Three mutations in independent lines were identified in the omega-6 fatty acid desaturase gene <it>FAD2-1A</it>; all three mutations resulted in missense amino acid mutations and one resulted in an altered seed fatty acid profile that led to an increase in oleic acid and a decrease in linoleic acid in the seed oil.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The oligosaccharide phenotype controlled by the novel <it>RS2 </it>allele is similar to previously observed seed oligosaccharide phenotypes in <it>RS2 </it>mutant (PI 200508) allele-containing lines. Due to the anti-nutritional characteristics of raffinose and stachyose, this represents a positive change in seed composition. The fatty acid phenotype controlled by the novel <it>FAD2-1A </it>allele controls an increase in oleic acid in the seed oil, a phenotype also observed in a line previously characterized to have a null allele of the <it>FAD2-1A </it>gene. Molecular marker assays were developed to reliably detect the inheritance of the mutant alleles and can be used in efficient breeding for these desired seed phenotypes. Our results serve as the first demonstration of the identification of soybean mutants controlling seed phenotypes discovered through the reverse genetics technique TILLING.</p