Paid Sick Days Legislation: A Legislator's Guide

Unlike most of the nations of the world, the U.S. has no national paid sick days policy. But lawmakers are starting to address the issue at the local and state levels. This guide, a joint publication of CLASP and the Women Legislators' Lobby, is intended to help legislators think through the provisions that make up paid sick days legislation. It identifies ten primary issues to consider when moving from a hypothetical idea to concrete legislation, and it offers several possible options for addressing each. 15 pages

WECOF: A new project developing enhanced weed control through improved crop and plant architecture

A primary objective of the EU-funded WECOF project is to optimise the natural competitiveness of winter wheat in reducing weed growth, and thus reduce the need for direct weed control interventions. Crops are characterised by ranking the relative importance of key plant and crop factors in shading weed growth. A series of core trials have been established in Germany, Scotland, Poland and Spain comparing plant structure by the use of different varieties and crop architectural factors by the use of different sowing row widths and direction. Variety trials have also been established in Scotland with constant row width and sowing direction to give more detailed varietal comparisons. Results from the first set of trials in Scotland are described. There are clear varietal differences in weed suppression; row-width has a bigger effect than sowing direction. Results will be used to develop models to assist breeders in producing improved crop ideotypes for organic production, and in production of a decision support system to assist farmers and advisers in variety selection and management for improved weed suppression. WECOF also includes work on allelopathy and photocontrol, and on the related economic factors

The Archaeology of World War II Japanese Stragglers on the Island of Guam and the Bushido Code

The U.S. invasion of the Micronesian island of Guam in July of 1944 ended the three-year Japanese occupation of this American possession, and by August 10 all formal resistance was over. However, two companies of approximately 60 Japanese infantry still under military command were ordered by their officers to conduct guerilla warfare against American forces, while smaller groups of stragglers escaped into the rugged interior of the island to avoid combat. Recent archaeological surveys of the U.S. Naval Ordnance Annex revealed evidence of occupation of limestone rockshelters and caverns by one of these companies, who often utilized or modified items of American manufacture recovered from U.S. military dumps for their daily survival. The company’s military commander eventually surrendered upon orders of the Emperor of Japan on September 4, 1945, but other stragglers on Guam survived for decades after World War II, the last being captured in 1972. The disciplined survival of organized World War II Japanese soldiers across the Pacific reflected the spirit of Bushido or Way of the Warrior, a feudal code of conduct embracing not only military behavior during battle, but the conduct of soldiers in all aspects of life

Kindergarten Readiness: The Impact of Sensory Integration on Preschool Children\u27s Readiness for the Transition to Kindergarten

The goal of this quantitative, descriptive pilot study was to identify the frequency of sensory processing disorders (SPD) in preschool students who are preparing for the transition into kindergarten. The research also explored the relationship between preschool teachers\u27 perspectives of challenging classroom behavior and parents\u27 reports of sensory processing in the home. Researchers distributed the Sensory Processing Measure for Preschoolers (SPM-P) assessment to parents and a behavioral questionnaire to teachers in three northern California preschools. Thirty-two SPM-P assessments were distributed to parents and 15 (47%) were accurately completed and returned. Of this sample, 2 (13%) student scores on the SPM-P reflected SPD. The SPM-P assessments not returned by parents were categorized as non- SPD students. Based on this assumption, 6.2% of the children within the greater population of 32 demonstrated sensory processing disorder. Results of the behavioral questionnaire found that teachers identified 3 or more maladaptive classroom behaviors for students who met the criteria for SPD. The research suggests that there may be a relationship between maladaptive classroom behavior and a child’s ability to process sensory information. Thus, further education on sensory processing and environmental adaptations that encourage positive participation in school may benefit teachers, parents, and children

Alumni Engaging Students from Under-Served Groups in Southern Appalachia

The study explores how alumni can help community colleges in Southern Appalachia to create greater access for people in groups which are traditionally under-served by higher education. Semi-structured interviews conducted with alumni program directors and admissions officers at seven community colleges in the Southern Appalachian Region explore how they use alumni to recruit and retain students from non-dominant groups as well as students from generationally poor families. Examples of best practices illustrate ways alumni can help recruit, motivate, and retain students from historically under-served groups

Characterisation of a position sensitive thermal neutron detector

New types of position sensitive thermal neutron detectors for use in neutron imaging are in high demand due to the rising cost of 3He used in most existing thermal neutron counters. A novel 6Li doped scintillation glass sheet (GS20) coupled to a multi-anode photomultiplier tube with a portable data acquisition system, known as the Solid State Neutron Detector (SoNDe), is one possible solution. This study focuses on the characterisation and understanding of the Solid State Neutron Detector for application at the European Spallation Source (ESS), where the Small Angle Neutron Scattering instrument requires approximately 400 of these modular detectors. Therefore, understanding the efficiency, crosstalk, gain non-uniformities, and response to radiation of the SoNDe module is crucial. Radiation from a number of sources were used to establish the main characteristics of the detector and the results compared. Sources included a 404 nm laser, 241Am producing alpha particles, AmBe producing fast and moderated neutrons as well as gamma-rays, 60Co and 137Cs producing gamma-rays, and a pelletron accelerator producing protons. A simulation written using the Geant4 toolkit, verified through comparison to measured data, was used to study the details of the detector construction and to predict the response of the detector to possible sources of background radiation at ESS. The gains and gain stability of the photomultiplier pixels are important for operation at ESS. The relative pixel gains of the photomultiplier tube were provided by Hamamatsu for each individual photomultiplier. However, given the importance of these numbers to determining detector response and setting readout thresholds, they were also measured using various methods. These methods included the use of a collimated alpha source and a laser spot centred on each pixel separately, a uniform square diffuse laser beam simultaneously illuminating all pixels, and a moderated neutron source illuminating all pixels. The alpha, neutron, and diffuse laser results are similar to the Hamamatsu measurement and give potential methods of detector calibration. The laser spot data shows a slightly different gain, and is less directly comparable to the production measurement. The gain stability of the detector system and its drift characteristics were measured using the collimated laser and alpha-particle sources. The 404 nm laser was close in wavelength to the peak in the scintillation emission spectrum of the GS20 glass. Drifts of 10−4 %/hr were found. This indicated a minute shift in gain in the detector over an extended period of time (34 - 67 hours). The stability studies also highlighted the importance of a sufficient warm-up period, 1 hour in duration, prior to operation. Various sources were scanned across the detector face to provide an in-depth look at the position dependence of the pulse-height response of the detector. Fine scans over the entire detector area were performed with a collimated laser beam at single and 60 photoelectron light intensity levels. The results revealed areas of higher/lower response (dead spaces) some of which is due to the presence of photomultiplier tube structures, such as focusing electrodes between the cathode and first dynode. The crosstalk between pixels was measured using both the collimated alpha source and the laser. The percentage of signal in the neighbouring pixels surrounding the target pixel was measured. A range of 0.0 - 3.0 % was measured for the laser data, and 2.5 - 9.8 % for the alpha data. Both data sets were greater than the Hamamatsu results of 0.0 - 2.1 %. While the laser light was highly directional the scintillation light was emitted isotropically and gave rise to the increased crosstalk percentages in the surrounding pixels. The spreading of scintillation light from its point of origin was investigated in more detail with the Geant4 simulation. Cross-pixel scans in the horizontal, vertical, and diagonal directions were carried out with collimated alpha particle and proton beam sources. The alpha beam spot on target was ∼ 1 mm diameter, while the proton beam spot was ∼ 0.1 mm diameter permitting finer scanning steps. The measured results revealed the variation in signal amplitude as the source was scanned across the detector face with the proton data presenting an especially stringent test for the predictions of the Geant4 based model of the detector. The Solid State Neutron Detector’s ability to successfully detect thermal neutrons is highly important. A moderated AmBe source was used to irradiate the detector. A clear neutron peak was distinguished. A Geant4 simulation was used to compare with the measured data, and simulate possible neutron/gamma backgrounds with energies ranging from 0.025 eV - 100.0 MeV. The Solid State Neutron Detector has been thoroughly characterised in stability, relative gain, and response to various forms of radiation. The detector optimisation revealed a number of possible alternative se tups, with the originally proposed setup proving the most effective

Living and Learning With New Media: Summary of Findings From the Digital Youth Project

Summarizes findings from a three-year study of how new media have been integrated into youth behaviors and have changed the dynamics of media literacy, learning, and authoritative knowledge. Outlines implications for educators, parents, and policy makers