Sounds and Stories of the Shawnee Forest

AN ABSTRACT OF THE RESEARCH PAPER OF Kevin E. Boucher, for the Master of Science degree in Professional Media & Media Management Studies , presented on March 9, 2011, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale. TITLE: SOUNDS AND STORIES OF THE SHAWNEE FOREST MAJOR PROFESSOR: Jan Thompson, Radio-TV Department My central thesis is that in today’s highly technological civilization with its constant bombardment of stimuli - especially sounds - people need to regularly get away to natural areas and surround themselves with the peaceful and soothing sounds of nature. Through my research I have found that humans have had this need to get away to nature for literally, as long as people have been around and there are proven emotional benefits to do doing this. I intend to show, through a series of radio documentaries, that the many peaceful natural areas and natural sounds found in the woods and fields of southern Illinois have a positive emotional effect on many people. To do this, my radio documentaries will include many natural sounds and interviews with different people describing their beneficial experiences in the woods of southern Illinois. Possible venues for my documentaries include: WSIU public radio on the campus of SIU/Carbondale, other public radio stations in Illinois, WDBX and other community licensed low-power radio stations in Illinois, visitor centers at the various federal and state natural areas, and the University Museum at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale Illinois

Formalization Effects of Microfinance in Sub-Saharan Africa: Synthesizing Evidence of Potential Transitions from the Informal to Formal Economy

Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region of the world where the number of people living in absolute poverty continues to grow. The region is characterized as having a large informal economy, within which exist a number of negative social and economic circumstances hindering economic growth and development. Recently, microfinance has been suggested as an innovative approach towards poverty alleviation and increasing standards of living. Through comprehensive synthesis of existing literature, in combination with an examination of the relationships between aspects of formal economies, this paper provides evidence that microfinance institutions can serve as an avenue towards formalization. However, incentivization, supporting programs, appropriate regulations, monitoring, and cultural considerations are all necessary in ensuring that microfinance institutions facilitate efficient progression from informal to formal economies. In order to further support the findings of this paper, a potential empirical model is proposed, although data sets for pertinent variables are not yet comprehensive enough to carry-out such a regression. This paper identifies gaps and biases in existing data, and highlights the necessary next steps for research on microfinance and formalization to proceed

Alien Registration- Boucher, Joseph E. (Van Buren, Aroostook County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/33284/thumbnail.jp

Participation in Accelerated Reader programs and reading pursuit in 11th grade

Teachers and researchers continue to seek ways to build positive attitudes about reading and effective ways to promote robust reading interests. Some schools have implemented the reading software Accelerated Reader (AR) with these goals in mind. The purpose of the present study was to analyze the effects of long-term participation in the activities of AR on reading attitude and reading pursuit. Participants were 206 eleventh-grade students from the mid-Atlantic Region. The Estes Attitude Scale (Estes, 1969) and Title Recognition Test (Pavonetti, Brimmer, and Cipielewski, 2000) served as measures of reading attitude and reading pursuit, respectively. Data analyses indicated no effects for AR participation on these measures, regardless of participation duration. Ten percent of the students also participated in a follow-up conversational interview focusing on reading motivation and interests. Comments from AR students suggested that their reading pursuit during AR activities was linked to the program\u27s extrinsic rewards. The AR students were also more likely to rate their reading ability by their AR grade equivalency scores, as they often referred to their scores when describing themselves as readers

Alien Registration- Boucher, Joseph E. (Lewiston, Androscoggin County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/30564/thumbnail.jp

The Influence of Aerosol Hygroscopicity on Precipitation Intensity During a Mesoscale Convective Event

We examine how aerosol composition affects precipitation intensity using the Weather and Research Forecasting Model with Chemistry (version 3.6). By changing the prescribed default hygroscopicity values to updated values from laboratory studies, we test model assumptions about individual component hygroscopicity values of ammonium, sulfate, nitrate, and organic species. We compare a baseline simulation (BASE, using default hygroscopicity values) with four sensitivity simulations (SULF, increasing the sulfate hygroscopicity; ORG, decreasing organic hygroscopicity; SWITCH, using a concentration‐dependent hygroscopicity value for ammonium; and ALL, including all three changes) to understand the role of aerosol composition on precipitation during a mesoscale convective system (MCS). Overall, the hygroscopicity changes influence the spatial patterns of precipitation and the intensity. Focusing on the maximum precipitation in the model domain downwind of an urban area, we find that changing the individual component hygroscopicities leads to bulk hygroscopicity changes, especially in the ORG simulation. Reducing bulk hygroscopicity (e.g., ORG simulation) initially causes fewer activated drops, weakened updrafts in the midtroposphere, and increased precipitation from larger hydrometeors. Increasing bulk hygroscopicity (e.g., SULF simulation) simulates more numerous and smaller cloud drops and increases precipitation. In the ALL simulation, a stronger cold pool and downdrafts lead to precipitation suppression later in the MCS evolution. In this downwind region, the combined changes in hygroscopicity (ALL) reduces the overprediction of intense events (>70 mm d−1) and better captures the range of moderate intensity (30–60 mm d−1) events. The results of this single MCS analysis suggest that aerosol composition can play an important role in simulating high‐intensity precipitation events.Key PointsAerosol composition can affect spatial patterns of precipitationHygroscopicity and hydrometeor vertical distributions are sensitive to aerosol composition and impact precipitation processesAltering speciated aerosol hygroscopicity can influence the simulation of precipitation intensityPeer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141976/1/jgrd54341.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/141976/2/jgrd54341_am.pd

From Skew-Cyclic Codes to Asymmetric Quantum Codes

We introduce an additive but not $\mathbb{F}_4$-linear map $S$ from $\mathbb{F}_4^{n}$ to $\mathbb{F}_4^{2n}$ and exhibit some of its interesting structural properties. If $C$ is a linear $[n,k,d]_4$-code, then $S(C)$ is an additive $(2n,2^{2k},2d)_4$-code. If $C$ is an additive cyclic code then $S(C)$ is an additive quasi-cyclic code of index $2$. Moreover, if $C$ is a module $\theta$-cyclic code, a recently introduced type of code which will be explained below, then $S(C)$ is equivalent to an additive cyclic code if $n$ is odd and to an additive quasi-cyclic code of index $2$ if $n$ is even. Given any $(n,M,d)_4$-code $C$, the code $S(C)$ is self-orthogonal under the trace Hermitian inner product. Since the mapping $S$ preserves nestedness, it can be used as a tool in constructing additive asymmetric quantum codes.Comment: 16 pages, 3 tables, submitted to Advances in Mathematics of Communication

Charge Ordering and Spin Dynamics in NaV2O5

We report high-resolution neutron inelastic scattering experiments on the spin excitations of NaV2O5. Below Tc, two branches associated with distinct energy gaps are identified. From the dispersion and intensity of the spin excitation modes, we deduce the precise zig-zag charge distribution on the ladder rungs and the corresponding charge order (about 0.6). We argue that the spin gaps observed in the low-T phase of this compound are primarily due to the charge transfer.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let