Frameworking CRAAP: How We\u27re Correlating the ACRL Framework to Content Evaluation with the CRAAP Test in Our Instruction Practices

For years, we have used the CRAAP Test as an information evaluation mechanism in our instruction sessions. We apply it to everyday, real-life stories, and to complex research as needed. Currently, we are adapting our practices of CRAAP Test instruction by expanding the evaluation to include the ACRL Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education. Specifically, we have given each CRAAP letter a frame for discussion when evaluating. This presentation will cover what frames we have assigned to each letter, why, and the assessment of the instruction using these concepts

A groundwater vulnerability screening methodology for Northern Ireland

A requirement of the EU Water Framework Directive is the assessment of the risk of groundwater contamination within those groundwater bodies identified in each Member State. In order to carry out the risk assessments, knowledge of the vulnerability of groundwater is necessary. The report is in two parts: first, a description of the groundwater screening methodology is made. This methodology was originally developed for use in Scotland, but has now been adapted for use in Northern Ireland, taking into account local data availability. Second, the creation of the GIS-based 1:250 000 scale groundwater vulnerability map using suitable data is described. Groundwater vulnerability is defined as the tendency and likelihood for general contaminants to reach the water table after introduction at the ground surface. All groundwater is to some degree vulnerable and the screening tool produced for the current project is designed to reflect the ability of contaminants to reach the water table surface across Northern Ireland. It is not intended as a complete solution to risk assessment and should be used as a regional guide to the possible degree of specific site investigation required at any locality. The screening methodology applies to the situation where contamination from the land surface leaches vertically downwards to the water table within the uppermost aquifer at a particular locality. The groundwater vulnerability assessment is, therefore, influenced by several factors that relate to the pathway element of a typical hazard – pathway – receptor risk assessment. In this case, the pathway is characterised by the geological and hydrogeological characteristics of the soil layer, the underlying superficial deposits and bedrock. The pathway between the ground surface and the water table can affect the degree of attenuation of contaminants. Factors that can influence attenuation include: • The permeability and clay content of the superficial deposits. • The thickness of the superficial deposits. • The mode of groundwater flow in bedrock aquifers (fracture or intergranular flow). • The permeability and clay content of intergranular bedrock aquifers. • The depth to the water table in both superficial and intergranular bedrock aquifers. It is the above factors that determine the vulnerability classification. Vulnerability has been divided into five categories, with Class 1 areas having the lowest risk of groundwater pollution and Class 5 the highest. One of the main principles adopted for the current methodology was how attenuation could be affected by the nature of groundwater flow. It is assumed that only in geological deposits where there is significant or total unsaturated intergranular groundwater flow that attenuation can occur. Where contaminants move to the water table through unsaturated fractured bedrock, the methodology assumes that no attenuation of pollutants can take place. It is the recognition of the hydrogeological characteristics within the pathway instead of the ‘importance’ of a particular aquifer that results in the final vulnerability map of Northern Ireland showing significant areas of Classes 4 and 5 within upland and certain other regions. This reflects the common occurrence of igneous and metamorphic rocks within these areas where the potential for attenuation of contaminants in the pathway is very limited

Peripheral Ulcerative Keratitis and Necrotizing Scleritis Initiated by Trauma in the Setting of Mixed Cryoglobulinemia

Purpose: To report a case of peripheral ulcerative keratitis and necrotizing scleritis precipitated by trauma in a patient with mixed cryoglobulinemia due to hepatitis C viral infection. Methods: Case report and literature review. Results: A 62-year-old man with a history of mixed cryoglobulinemia developed an episode of necrotizing scleritis and peripheral ulcerative keratitis one month after repair of a traumatic scleral defect with patch grafting. This episode resolved following treatment with high-dose corticosteroids and the patient underwent successful repeat patch grafting along with a free conjunctival autograft. This is the second reported case of necrotizing scleritis and peripheral ulcerative keratitis associated with mixed cryoglobulinemia. Conclusion: Ophthalmologists should be aware of the association between mixed cryoglobulinemia and necrotizing scleritis/peripheral ulcerative keratitis. Patients with this condition experiencing ocular trauma or undergoing ocular surgery should be monitored closely

A model for predicting dissolved organic carbon distribution in a reservoir water using fluorescence spectroscopy

A number of water treatment works (WTW) in the north of England (UK) have experienced problems in reducing the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) present in the water to a sufficiently low level. The problems are experienced in autumn/ winter when the colour increases and the coagulant dose at the WTW needs to be increased in order to achieve sufficient colour removal. However, the DOC content of the water varies little throughout the year. To investigate this further, the water was fractionated using resin adsorption techniques into its hydrophobic (fulvic and humic acid fractions) and hydrophilic (acid and non-acid fractions) components. The fractionation process yields useful information on the changing concentration of each fraction but is time consuming and labour intensive. Here, a method of rapidly determining fraction concentration was developed using fluorescence spectroscopy. The model created used synchronous spectra of fractionated material compared against bulk water spectra and predicted the fraction concentrations to within 10% for a specific water. The model was unable to predict fraction concentrations for waters from a different watershed

Environmental and genetic factors associated with Solanesol accumulation in potato leaves

Solanesol is a high value 45-carbon, unsaturated, all-trans-nonaprenol isoprenoid. Recently solanesol has received particular attention because of its utility, both in its own right and as a precursor in the production of numerous compounds used in the treatment of disease states. Solanesol is found mainly in solanaceous crops such as potato, tomato, tobacco and pepper where it accumulates in the foliage. There is considerable potential to explore the extraction of solanesol from these sources as a valuable co-product. In this study we have characterised the genetic variation in leaf solanesol content in a biparental, segregating diploid potato population. We demonstrate that potato leaf solanesol content is genetically controlled and identify several quantitative trait loci associated with leaf solanesol content. Transient over-expression of genes from the methylerythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) and mevalonic acid (MVA) pathways, either singly or in combination, resulted in enhanced accumulation of solanesol in leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana, providing insights for genetically engineering the pathway. We also demonstrate that in potato, leaf solanesol content is enhanced by up to six-fold on exposure to moderately elevated temperature and show corresponding changes in expression patterns of MEP and MVA genes. Our combined approaches offer new insights into solanesol accumulation and strategies for developing a bio-refinery approach to potato production

A Powerful Place Of Pictland : Interdisciplinary Perspectives On A Power Centre of the 4th to 6th Centuries AD

Many thanks to the students, staff and volunteers who have made Rhynie 2011–17 possible and to Rhynie Woman who have brought so much to the community element of the project. Fieldwork at Rhynie has been funded by the University of Aberdeen Development Trust, British Academy, Historic Environment Scotland, Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Carnegie Trust for the Universities of Scotland and Aberdeenshire Council Archaeology Service. The writing of this article was also supported by a Leverhulme Trust Research Leadership Award (RL-2016-069).Peer reviewedPostprin

Exploratory Learning Using Consistency Problems: Activity Type Matters

Studies have shown that exploration before instruction can improve learning. Students (N= 197) from the psychology participant pool were taught the concept and procedure of standard deviation in one of four conditions. Students were given both direct instruction and a problem to solve in one of two orders: instruction-first, or exploration-first. During the problem-solving activity, students were asked to determine the consistency of a set of numbers. This dataset was set up as a rich dataset, or to highlight contrasting cases. Students then completed a posttest. We compared mean posttest scores to find that exploration before instruction led to better understanding when using contrasting cases, but not a rich dataset. Exploring before instruction is benefited when students are helped to discern the key features of the problems, using contrasting cases.https://ir.library.louisville.edu/uars/1018/thumbnail.jp