Selected Private Sources of Funding for Adult Basic Education

The purpose of this project was to conduct a limited search for support of adult basic education proposals among 35 private foundations. Questionnaires were sent, seeking information about foundations\u27 attitudes toward adult basic education, target populations, and potential proposals. The results showed a wide range of attitudes, from indifference to cautious interest to enthusiasm. Suggestions for researching potential sources of support are presented along with the responses of the 35 foundations

Periodic Cooling of Bird Eggs Reduces Embryonic Growth Efficiency

For many bird embryos, periodic cooling occurs when the incubating adult leaves the nest to forage, but the effects of periodic cooling on embryo growth, yolk use, and metabolism are poorly known. To address this question, we conducted incubation experiments on eggs of zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) that were frequently cooled and then rewarmed or were allowed to develop at a constant temperature. After 12 d of incubation, embryo mass and yolk reserves were less in eggs that experienced periodic cooling than in controls incubated constantly at 37.5C. Embryos that regularly cooled to 20C had higher mass-specific metabolic rates than embryos incubated constantly at 37.5C. Periodic cooling delayed development and increased metabolic costs, reducing the efficiency with which egg nutrients were converted into embryo tissue. Avian embryos can tolerate periodic cooling, possibly by adjusting their physiology to variable thermal conditions, but at a cost to growth efficiency as well as rate of development. This reduction in embryo growth efficiency adds a new dimension to the fitness consequences of variation in adult nest attentiveness

G1600 Freeze Concentration of Fruit Juices

This publication describes research conducted to examine the feasibility of freeze concentration with small-scale, simple equipment; and research results on juice extraction and concentration from fruit held in frozen storage. When Grandmother made jelly the wonderful aroma of cooking fruit filled the house. That wonderful aroma was the delicate fruit flavors being evaporated and lost from the jelly. When volatile flavors are retained food has a much better flavor. Freeze concentration of fruit juices is a method of removing water from juices without heating and changing juice flavor. Freeze concentration is effective because a solute in solution has a lower melting point than pure ice, and can be separated from the water component (ice) as the temperature approaches the melting point of pure ice. To easily confirm this, remove a plastic jug of cider from the freezer, invert the jug in a suitable container, place the jug and container in a refrigerator and allow it to approach thawing temperature. Concentrated apple juice will collect in the container, leaving ice in the jug. Freeze concentration has many practical applications in food processing. It is effective in adding fruit solids to wine musts; in reducing the amount of cooking necessary to produce jellies, jams and, preserves; and in improving flavor and characteristics in many food products. Freeze concentration has been practiced in the food industry for over 30 years, but the equipment is too expensive for most small enterprises

Factors contributing to the preponderance of males in learning disabilities: A follow-up study

The present study was designed to assess the utility of specific variables for differentiating LO males and LO females and LO students from RE students. Variables were selected based on previous research findings indicating their utility for differentiating the relevant samples and the availability of pertinent data in existing files. Data regarding the 21 pre-selected variables were obtained for all LO students (50 males and 30 females) and a control group of RE students matched with them by sex, grade, and age. Discriminant Analysis procedures were used to determine the intercorrelated grouping of variables which best differentiated sex within LO placement, LO placement from RE placement, and LD placement from placement for each sex. Results of the current study clearly indicate a preponderance of males within the LO sample. This finding, while consistent with male/female ratios generally reported in the literature, contradicts those of the study that served as an impetus for the present investigation, suggesting that the prior sample may not have been representative of the usual LD population. Factors not accounted for in the current study, teacher practices, teacher expectations, and referral and placement biases, may contribute to the usually found disproportion. Of the 16 variables contributing to the discrimination of males and females within the LO group, nine were associated with maleness and seven with femaleness . Those associated with maleness included SCAT Quantitative, SCAT Total, WISC-R Verbal IQ, STEP Math Computation, STEP Math Concepts, retention, SCAT Verbal, STEP Writing, and STEP Reading. Speech referral; both parents working; reading standard score; one or no natural parents residing in the home; divorced, separa:ed, or divorced and remarried parents; STEP Vocabulary; and health problem/injury were associated with femaleness. Of the 14 variables contributing to the discrimination of LO and RE, five were associated with LO and nine with RE. The variables associated with LD were speech referral; health problem/injury; divorced, separated, or divorced and remarried parents; retention; and one or no natural parents living in the home. All achievement measures were associated with RE, as well as both parents working. The results of analyses by sex suggest that females who receive LO services differ more from RE females than LO males from RE males. Overall males and females in LD are highly similar, with the female manifesting more symptoms of stress and health impairment. The major conclusions of this study were as follows: 1. The efficacy of pre-existing data to predict need for LD placement as suggested by Piwowarski (1981) was again demonstrated. 2. Inclusion of medical, familial, and group achievement and ability data may produce more effective and efficient early identification batteries than batteries relying solely on newly generated test results. 3. Males and females within LD possess similar characteristics-- early health problems/injury, familial stress, low ability and achievement scores, retention, and speech referral. 4. The high risk female is more deviant from RE females than the high risk male is from RE males. 5. An interactionary explanation, with its emphasis on male vulnerability, male slower rate of maturation, societal expectations, and possible biases in the referral and placement process probably best accounts for the preponderance of males in the current study

Effect of Government on the Distribution of Income: Evaluations and Explanations

This study is concerned with analyzing the role of government in the distribution of aggregate income in the United States from 1947 to the present. The objectives are twofold: (1) to test the effect of social welfare expenditures, taxation and tax expenditures, and inflation and anti-inflation policies in effecting a change in the overall distribution of income; and (2) to develop a theoretical model which explains the static distribution of income that has prevailed in the United States for three decades.Sociolog

Huron-to-Erie Water Quality Data Platform

To address the challenges of environmental degradation, creation of a sustainable urban environment, and increased public engagement and awareness, a mass-oriented, user-friendly and cloud-based data platform has been developed and deployed to provide integrative water quality data in one of the most critical urban corridors of the Laurentian Great Lakes system. In this paper, we describe the data platform developed for the watershed and connecting channels between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, including the St. Clair River, Lake St. Chair, and the Detroit River. This data platform greatly facilitates the access of data across data providers and agencies. Several example applications are provided of platform use for temporal and spatial characterization of intake water source quality and urban beach health through consideration of Escherichia coli, Dissolved Oxygen, pH, and blue-green algae detections along the Huron-to-Erie corridor. Although data collection for each of these parameters was designed for unique purposes and supported through varied agencies, this paper shows the collective advantages of applying the data beyond the original scope of collection

A Unified Approach for the Integration of Distributed Heterogeneous Software Components

Proceedings of the 2001 Monterey Workshop (Sponsored by DARPA, ONR, ARO and AFOSR), pp: 109-119, Monterey, CA, 2001Distributed systems are omnipresent these days. Creating efficient and robust software for such systems is a highly complex task. One possible approach to developing distributed software is based on the integration of heterogeneous sofwtare components that are scattered across many machines. In this paper, a comprehensive framework that will allow a seamless integration of distributed heterogeneous software components is proposed. This framework involves: a) a metamodel for components and associated hierarchical setup for indicating the contracts and constraints of the components. b) an automatic generation of glues and wrappers, based on a designer's specifications, for achieving interoperability, c) a formal mechanism for precisely describing the meta-model, and d) a formalization of quality of service (QoS) offered by each component and ensemble of components. A case study from the domain of distributed information filtering is described in the context of this framework.This material is based upon work supported by, or in part by, the U.S. Office of Naval Research under award number N00014-01-1-0746. This material is based upon work supported by, or in part by, the U.S. Army Research Laboratory and the U.S. Army Research Office under contract/grant number 40473-MA

Children's Responses to Group-Based Inequalities: Perpetuation and Rectification

The current studies investigate whether, and under what conditions, children engage in system-perpetuating and system-attenuating behaviors when allocating resources to different social groups. In three studies, we presented young children with evidence of social group inequalities and assessed whether they chose to perpetuate or rectify these inequalities. Children (aged 3.5–11.5 years) heard about two social groups (i.e., racial or novel groups) whose members received resources unequally (two cookies versus one). Participants were then given the opportunity to distribute additional resources to new members of the same groups. In Experiment 1, when children were presented with inequalities involving groups of Blacks and Whites, older children (aged 7.5–11.5 years) rejected the status quo, providing more resources to members of groups with fewer resources (White or Black), whereas younger children (aged 3.5–7.5 years) perpetuated the status quo. In Experiments 2 and 3, the inequalities involved Asians and Whites and novel groups. Children of all ages perpetuated inequality, with rectification strategies applied only by older children and only when Black targets were involved in the inequality. Equal sharing occasionally occurred in older children but was never a common response. These findings provide evidence that system-perpetuating tendencies may be predominant in children and suggest that socialization may be necessary to counter them.Psycholog

Reducing Uncertainties in Managing in British Columbia Waters: Applying an Adaptive Management Mindset on the South, Central and North Coasts

British Columbia’s vast coastline is characterized by ecologically rich, rugged, and remote regions where there are many uncertainties about the way that ecosystems function. This translates into a challenge for environmental managers, as it creates considerable uncertainty about which management actions will be most effective for achieving management goals and objectives. Adaptive management can offer a way forward by providing systematic, rigorous approach for designing and implementing management actions to maximize learning about critical uncertainties affecting decisions on environmental management policy and practice. It typically follows a six-step cycle focusing on the implementation and monitoring of management actions that are deliberately designed to reduce critical uncertainty, and adjusting management based on what is learned. In most cases, this approach relies heavily on interdisciplinary collaboration among scientists, managers, resource users, and the broader community. We showcase the application of an adaptive management mindset through three cases along the BC coast. The first is from the south coast, where stakeholders are working to assess options in the process of developing a strategic integrated management plan for Chinook salmon. The second is from the Kemano River on the central coast, where eulachon management is being informed by the evaluation of previous monitoring activities. The third is from the Skeena Estuary on the north coast, where recommendations for future data collection have been designed to address key uncertainties in the management of Pacific salmon. These stories showcase recent successes of applying an adaptive management way of thinking in the region and highlight how this approach can help to reduce critical uncertainties often cited as a barrier to the effective management of our coastal marine resources