Determining the Ecological and Physiological Factors Contributing to the Competitive Success of Prochlorococcus in the Oligotrophic Ocean

Prochlorococcus is a genus of extremely successful marine cyanobacteria. This success is realized through its pervasive biogeographical range and presence in almost all open ocean environments where it usually it the dominant phytoplankton. Limited capabilities of culturing and genetic manipulation of this organism have resulted in assumptions about this success overwhelmingly based on field observations. These studies have assumed adaptations for resource uptake and utilization in nutrient limited environments to cause dominance of Prochlorococcus over other photosynthetic microbes. In an attempt to definitively explain this through laboratory culture, we developed a culturing system to assay questions of nutrient limitation effects upon Prochlorococcus and its competitive ability based on nitrogen limited populations within the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. We determined that competition for nitrogen did explain the population dynamics of Prochlorococcus and another cyanobacterium, Synechococcus, and were able to recreate their observed abundances in nitrogen limited laboratory culture. Interestingly this outcome could only be achieved through the inclusion of a heterotrophic bacterium, which facilitated the success of Prochlorococcus through complex crossfeeding interactions. In an effort to further explore the important microbial interactions influencing this dominant cyanobacterium, we developed an additional culturing system to determine if rival phytoplankton (Synechococcus and picoeukaryotes), with whom Prochlorococcus competes for nutrients, could protect Prochlorococcus from oxidative stress from hydrogen peroxide. These rivals successfully protected Prochlorococcus from mortality when cocultured at ecologically relevant abundances. Lastly we determined the affect of seasonal change on Prochlorococcus ecotypes and potential relationships between high-light and low-light adapted ecotypes and between ecotypes and abundant microbial phyla that varied seasonally. Herein we speculate on the overall importance of microbial interactions based on nutrient transformation and environmental conditioning to the ecology and biogeography of Prochlorococcus

Building a Better Reading-Writing Assessment: Bridging Cognitive Theory, Instruction, and Assessment

Based upon our work at the district, state, and national levels, we address the following issues: how to improve large-scale writing assessments, and how to create bridges between effective reading and writing instruction and writing assessment

Making Thinking Visible: A Method to Encourage Science Writing in Upper Elementary Grades

In order to make a dramatic change in the way teachers approach science writing, the authors found it necessary to address both science instruction as a whole and the use of writing during various stages. To guide them in this endeavor and communicate a concrete idea of an ideal foundation for highly effective science writing to teachers, the authors turned to the CORE Model of Instruction. The CORE Model on instruction, which was originally developed as a representation of the manner in which reading and writing can be linked and reinforcing to each other, is described in this article. The CORE Model incorporates four elements: Connect, Organize, Reflect, and Extend

Multi-Agent Simulation of Human Behavior in Naval Air Defense

This paper appeared in the Naval Engineers' Journal, 116 (4), Fall 2004, 53-64.The AEGIS Cruiser Air-Defense Simulation is a program that models the operations of a Combat Information Center team performing air defense for a U.S. Navy battle group. It uses multi-agent system technology and is implemented in Java. Conceived primarily to assist personnel in air-defense training and doctrine formulation, the simulation provides insight into the factors (skills, experience, fatigue, aircraft numbers, weather, etc.) that influence performance, especially under intense or stressful situations, and the task bottlenecks. It simulates air contacts (aircraft and missiles) as well as the actions and mental processes of the watchstanders. All simulated events are logged, to permit performance analysis and reconstruction for post-scenario training. Validation of the simulation was done with the help of expert practitioners of air defense at the AEGIS Training & Readiness Center (ATRC), San Diego, California, USA.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Best Practices in Writing Assessment

Our assignment in this chapter is to discuss best practices in writing assessment, a task that poses a twofold challenge for teachers-first, the task of providing authentic opportunities for students to acquire skill in writing while covering an ever-increasing array of other curriculum demands; second, the overriding pressures to ensure that students perform well on the standardized tests that have become the primary accountability index. As we complete this chapter, few state testing systems rely to any significant degree on performance tests for measuring student achievement. Multiple-choice tests dominate, and on-demand writing tests (including the SAT) generally contravene the counsel provided by the College Board. Our purpose is to survey assessment concepts and techniques supported by research and practical experience and to suggest ways to fit these ideas into the realities of policies that, although well intended, often conflict with best practices. The advice from the College Board illustrates this point; it captures many facets of best practices, but the real SAT assessment permits none of these elements. We have limited space for presenting how-to details, but we will provide selected references to help apply the ideas. The chapter is organized around three topics. First, we describe the concept of embedded classroom writing assessments designed to inform instruction and provide evidence about learning. The bottom line here is the recommendation that writing tasks (instruction and assessment) be designed to support the learning of significant academic topics (Urquhart & Mclver, 2005). Next, we present several contrasts that emerge from this perspective: process versus product, formative versus summative evaluation, and assessment versus testing. Finally, we review a set of building blocks that is essential to all writing assessments, especially those that are classroom-based: the prompt, the procedures, and the rubrics. As you have probably realized from the scenarios and the discussion thus far, our focus will be on composing more than mechanics. Attention to spelling and grammar is eventually important, but it helps if the writer has something to say and has learned how to organize his or her ideas.https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_books/1002/thumbnail.jp

Best Practices in Writing Assessment for Instruction

Our assignment in this chapter is to discuss best practices in writing assessment, a task that poses a twofold challenge for teachers-first, the task of providing authentic opportunities for students to acquire skill in writing while covering an ever-increasing array of other curriculum demands; second, the overriding pressures to ensure that students perform well on the standardized tests that have become the primary accountability index. As we complete this chapter, few state testing systems rely to any significant degree on performance tests for measuring student achievement. Multiple-choice tests dominate, and on-demand writing tests (including the SAT) generally contravene the counsel provided by the College Board. Our purpose is to survey assessment concepts and techniques supported by research and practical experience and to suggest ways to fit these ideas into the realities of policies that, although well intended, often conflict with best practices. The advice from the College Board illustrates this point; it captures many facets of best practices, but the real SAT assessment permits none of these elements. We have limited space for presenting how-to details, but we will provide selected references to help apply the ideas. The chapter is organized around three topics. First, we describe the concept of embedded classroom writing assessments designed to inform instruction and provide evidence about learning. The bottom line here is the recommendation that writing tasks (instruction and assessment) be designed to support the learning of significant academic topics (Urquhart & Mclver, 2005). Next, we present several contrasts that emerge from this perspective: process versus product, formative versus summative evaluation, and assessment versus testing. Finally, we review a set of building blocks that is essential to all writing assessments, especially those that are classroom-based: the prompt, the procedures, and the rubrics. As you have probably realized from the scenarios and the discussion thus far, our focus will be on composing more than mechanics. Attention to spelling and grammar is eventually important, but it helps if the writer has something to say and has learned how to organize his or her ideas.https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_books/1004/thumbnail.jp

Manned Mars mission schedule report

The schedules for hardware for the initial manned Mars mission are provided. The mission is determined to be a 1999 opposition mission and the vehicle hardware configuration for the mission is depicted

Long-term outcomes following a single corticosteroid injection for trigger finger

BACKGROUND: The outcomes of corticosteroid injection for trigger finger are well documented only with short-term follow-up. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the long-term effectiveness of a single injection and to examine predictors of success up to ten years after injection. METHODS: This case series analyzed 366 first-time corticosteroid injections in flexor tendon sheaths from January 2000 to December 2007 with a minimum follow-up duration of five years. Two hundred and forty patients (66%) were female, 161 patients (44%) had multiple trigger fingers, and eighty-eight patients (24%) had diabetes at the time of injection. The primary outcome of treatment failure was defined as subsequent injection or surgical trigger finger release of the affected digit. Medical records were reviewed, and any patients without documented failure or a return office visit in 2012 to 2013 were contacted by telephone regarding symptom recurrence and the need for additional treatment. Kaplan-Meier analyses with log-rank test and Cox regression analysis assessed the effect of baseline patient and disease characteristics on injection success. RESULTS: Forty-five percent of patients demonstrated long-term treatment success after a single injection. In the final regression model, the interaction of sex and the number of trigger fingers was the single predictor of treatment success. Exploring this association revealed a ten-year success rate of 56% for female patients presenting for the first time with a trigger finger compared with 35% in male patients presenting for the first time with a trigger finger, 39% in female patients with multiple trigger fingers, and 37% in male patients with multiple trigger fingers. Eighty-four percent of treatment failures occurred within the first two years following injection. Patient age, symptom type, and undifferentiated diabetes status were not predictive of treatment success. CONCLUSIONS: Female patients presenting with their first trigger finger have the highest rate of long-term treatment success after a single corticosteroid injection. Patients who continue to experience symptom relief two years after injection are likely to maintain long-term success. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic Level IV. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence

Increasing Teachers\u27 Metacognition Develops Students\u27 Higher Learning during Content Area Literacy Instruction: Findings from the Read-Write Cycle Project

Success in the 21st century, for individuals and societies, requires competence in comprehending and communicating in the academic disciplines--the natural sciences, history, geography, and more. The Read-Write Cycle (RWC) Project, a three year longitudinal research study conducted from 2005-2008 in ten public elementary schools in southern California, explored the effectiveness of curriculum and instructional strategies that integrate literacy with disciplinary knowledge with the simultaneous goals of: (1) enhancing students\u27 literacy outcomes; and (2) broadening and deepening knowledge of the content area. Funded by the U.S. Institute of Education Sciences, the RWC Project concentrated over years one and two on 1,024 students in grades three through six and the ongoing professional development of 18 classroom teachers. This documentary account focuses on one aspect of the larger project, specifically the RWC Project\u27s effect on teachers\u27 metacognition about their own practice leading to upper elementary grade students\u27 higher learning by developing students\u27: (1) metacognition and reflection; (2) exploration and depth in content domains; and (3) integration of literacy in content areas