Utilizing Building Usage Assessment: Determining Deployment of Student Workers in an Academic Library

Generating, collecting, and analyzing building usage statistics can greatly increase the ability of an access services unit to meet the changing dynamic of patron needs in an academic library. By analyzing three different data points, the Access Services Unit in Malpass Library at Western Illinois University was able to determine the most effective and efficient way to deploy the student workforce to meet the demonstrated needs of the patron population throughout the day. This article will examine those data points and how they were analyzed in order to improve the services provided by the Access Services Unit

Lending Video Game Consoles in an Academic Library

This paper will outline the process and discussions undertaken at the University of Denver’s University Libraries to implement a lending service providing video game consoles. Faculty and staff at the University Libraries decided to pursue the new lending service, though not a traditional library offering, to support the needs of a video game design curriculum in the Emergent Digital Practices program. By rethinking the role and scope of the library collection, the library met the demonstrated needs of an emerging program and reinforced its usefulness to the campus community

\u27Transforming’ the Conversation: Rethinking Fair Use in Academic Course Reserves

The Association of Research Libraries\u27 2012 publication, Code of Best Practices in Fair Use for Academic and Research Libraries, focuses heavily on the concept of transformative use within the fair use analysis. In some cases, the Association of Research Libraries advocates for using the entire work in an electronic format for course reserves. However, current approaches to electronic course reserves and fair use/transformative use arguments are not conducive to utilizing the Association of Research Libraries\u27 recommendations. This article attempts to reframe the conversation by examining fair use in a broad context and the role of the class in the fair use analysis

The Relationship between Grit and Academic, Military and Physical Performance at the United States Military Academy

Perseverance (persistence) is a personality trait that has been historically measured through the presentation of difficult or impossible tasks and then observations made as to how long an individual continues to attempt to solve the problem or complete the task. The determination of perseverance was then made after the attempt but there were few reliable methods to predict the level of perseverance before the effort was given. This study seeks to assess whether perseverance can be discerned during the admissions process and utilizes the recently developed and validated Grit Scale, a 12-question instrument that measures trait-level perseverance and passion for long-term goals. The Grit Scale was given to the United States Military Academy class of 2008 (N= 968) during initial summer training and the graduation outcomes were collected four years later. Controlling for gender and ethnicity, Grit demonstrated a statistically significant relationship with academic achievement, as measured by cumulative grade point average at graduation. In comparison with other traditional admissions predictors (SAT scores and High School Rank), Grit's impact on the variability of grade point averages was again significant, however, not as powerful a predictor as the traditional predictors. Grit was, however, better at predicting higher achievement in the Academy-specific outcomes of military and physical performance scores. Thus, Grit should be considered a complementary predicator of academic achievement with the traditional predictors of SAT scores and high school rank to provide a more detailed profile of admissions candidates

Evaluating Foundational Components of Research Consultations in an Academic Library Research Center

As our society continues to evolve at an ever-increasing rate, our higher education institutions, and the services they provide, must keep pace with societal changes in order to ensure that those services stay current and relevant. This program evaluation examines one such service, the research consultation model in University Libraries at the University of Denver. This evaluation was situated within the Human Ecological Theory Framework, to help understand how different environments can impact the recognition and value placed upon the foundational components of the service. An exploratory sequential mixed methods approach was used to determine what the foundational components of the research consultation were through an interactive focus group activity with faculty librarians and relevant stakeholders. A survey was then sent to patrons who used the service during the Fall 2020 academic quarter. The results of the survey highlight that the foundational components are recognized and valued by the research consultation patrons, that there are certain environments which can impact the value and recognition of certain foundational components, and that patrons recognize and value other aspects of the service that they deem important to the consultation

Detection and diversity of a putative novel heterogeneous polymorphic proline-glycine repeat (Pgr) protein in the footrot pathogen Dichelobacter nodosus

Dichelobacter nodosus, a Gram-negative anaerobic bacterium, is the essential causative agent of footrot in sheep. Currently, depending on the clinical presentation in the field, footrot is described as benign or virulent; D. nodosus strains have also been classified as benign or virulent, but this designation is not always consistent with clinical disease. The aim of this study was to determine the diversity of the pgr gene, which encodes a putative proline-glycine repeat protein (Pgr). The pgr gene was present in all 100 isolates of D. nodosus that were examined and, based on sequence analysis had two variants, pgrA and pgrB. In pgrA, there were two coding tandem repeat regions, R1 and R2: different strains had variable numbers of repeats within these regions. The R1 and R2 were absent from pgrB. Both variants were present in strains from Australia, Sweden and the UK, however, only pgrB was detected in isolates from Western Australia. The pgrA gene was detected in D. nodosus from tissue samples from two flocks in the UK with virulent footrot and only pgrB from a flock with no virulent or benign footrot for >10 years. Bioinformatic analysis of the putative PgrA protein indicated that it contained a collagen-like cell surface anchor motif. These results suggest that the pgr gene may be a useful molecular marker for epidemiological studies

Deception and self-awareness

This paper presents a study conducted for the Shades of Grey EPSRC research project (EP/H02302X/1), which aims to develop a suite of interventions for identifying terrorist activities. The study investigated the body movements demonstrated by participants while waiting to be interviewed, in one of two conditions: preparing to lie or preparing to tell the truth. The effect of self-awareness was also investigated, with half of the participants sitting in front of a full length mirror during the waiting period. The other half faced a blank wall. A significant interaction was found for the duration of hand/arm movements between the deception and self-awareness conditions (F=4.335, df=1;76, p<0.05). Without a mirror, participants expecting to lie spent less time moving their hands than those expecting to tell the truth; the opposite was seen in the presence of a mirror. This finding indicates a new research area worth further investigation

About stability of emulsion explosive compositions

Представлені результати дослідження стабільності емульсійних ВР. Отримано термограми аміачної селітри у вигляді кристалів, водного розчину, водної суспензії і емульсійної ВР. Приведені кінетичні результати втрати води при нагріванні емульсійної ВР україніта різних марок. Запропонований загальний підхід до розрахунку термінів зберігання емульсійних ВР.Results of research of stability of emulsion explosives are presented. Thermograms of ammoniacal saltpeter in the form of crystals, water solution, an aqueous slurry and emulsion explosive are received. Kinetic results of loss of water at heating of emulsion explosive ukrainit various marks are brought. The general approach to calculation of shelf-lifes of emulsion explosives is offered.Представлены результаты исследования стабильности эмульсионных ВВ. Получены термограммы аммиачной селитры в виде кристаллов, водного раствора, водной суспензии и эмульсионного ВВ. Приведены кинетические результаты потери воды при нагревании эмульсионного ВВ украинита различных марок. Предложен общий подход к расчету сроков хранения эмульсионных ВВ

Enhancing the fill-factor of CMOS SPAD arrays using microlens integration

Arrays of single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) detectors were fabricated, using a 0.35 μm CMOS technology process, for use in applications such as time-of-flight 3D ranging and microscopy. Each 150 x 150 μm pixel comprises a 30 μm active area diameter SPAD and its associated circuitry for counting, timing and quenching, resulting in a fill-factor of 3.14%. This paper reports how a higher effective fill-factor was achieved as a result of integrating microlens arrays on top of the 32 x 32 SPAD arrays. Diffractive and refractive microlens arrays were designed to concentrate the incoming light onto the active area of each pixel. A telecentric imaging system was used to measure the improvement factor (IF) resulting from microlens integration, whilst varying the f-number of incident light from f/2 to f/22 in one-stop increments across a spectral range of 500-900 nm. These measurements have demonstrated an increasing IF with fnumber, and a maximum of ~16 at the peak wavelength, showing a good agreement with theoretical values. An IF of 16 represents the highest value reported in the literature for microlenses integrated onto a SPAD detector array. The results from statistical analysis indicated the variation of detector efficiency was between 3-10% across the whole f-number range, demonstrating excellent uniformity across the detector plane with and without microlenses

Addendum to “on the measurability of a function which occurs in a paper by A. C. Zaanen”

Current guidelines discourage combined oral contraceptive (COC) use in women with hereditary thrombophilic defects. However, qualifying all hereditary thrombophilic defects as similarly strong risk factors might be questioned. Recent studies indicate the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE) of a factor V Leiden mutation as considerably lower than a deficiency of protein C, protein S, or antithrombin. In a retrospective family cohort, the VTE risk during COC use and pregnancy (including postpartum) was assessed in 798 female relatives with or without a heterozygous, double heterozygous, or homozygous factor V Leiden or prothrombin G20210A mutation. Overall, absolute VTE risk in women with no, single, or combined defects was 0.13 (95% confidence interval 0.08-0.21), 0.35 (0.22-0.53), and 0.94 (0.47-1.67) per 100 person-years, while these were 0.19 (0.07-0.41), 0.49 (0.18-1.07), and 0.86 (0.10-3.11) during COC use, and 0.73 (0.30-1.51), 1.97 (0.94-3.63), and 7.65 (3.08-15.76) during pregnancy. COC use and pregnancy were independent risk factors for VTE, with highest risk during pregnancy postpartum, as demonstrated by adjusted hazard ratios of 16.0 (8.0-32.2) versus 2.2 (1.1-4.0) during COC use. Rather than strictly contraindicating COC use, we advocate that detailed counseling on all contraceptive options, including COCs, addressing the associated risks of both VTE and unintended pregnancy, enabling these women to make an informed choice. (Blood. 2011;118(8):2055-2061