GLAST: physics goals and instrument status

The Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) is a space-based observatory scheduled to launch in October 2007 with two instruments: (1) the GLAST Burst Monitor (GBM), sensitive to photon energies between 8 keV and 25 MeV and optimized to detect gamma-ray bursts, and (2) the Large Area Telescope (LAT), sensitive to gamma rays between ~20 MeV and 300 GeV and designed to survey the gamma-ray sky with unprecedented sensitivity. We describe the LAT and the GBM. We then focus on the LAT's capabilities for studying active galactic nuclei.Comment: to appear in Proceedings of TeV Particle Astrophysics II, 28-31 August 2006, Madison, WI, US

Middle School Common Grading Expectations and Teacher Perceptions of Grading Pedagogy

Grades in schools can be subjective in nature. Yet, grading remains a key piece in the American education system. Beliefs around grading practices are deeply held and can vary from teacher to teacher. This study aims to explore how teachers arrive at their own grading practices and to analyze teachers’ perceptions of implementing common grading expectations at one middle school in the Midwest. The implementation was grounded in research surrounding ethical change leadership. In year two of implementation, certified staff responded to a survey of Likert scale and open-ended questions providing feedback on implementing common grading expectations. The medians of responses were analyzed and compared to subgroups of grade level taught, core teachers, exploratory teachers, other certificated staff, years of experience, content area, leadership experience, and experience teaching in more than one district. Then the open-ended qualitative responses were used to explain or justify the quantitative data. Overall findings indicated no significant differences in perceptions of the subgroups. However, qualitative data showed concerns with retakes and how authentic conversations and relationships are at the core of effective change in schools. Though this study is not intended to be replicated across other schools, it may serve as a learning opportunity when considering a change initiative in grading practices

THE CRIMINAL CONDUCT OF RADICAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND ANIMAL RIGHTS GROUPS: A RATIONAL CHOICE PERSPECTIVE

In this dissertation, I examine whether members of radical environmental and animal rights groups are deterred by legal sanctions, morality, both, or neither. From a rational choice framework, I hypothesize that members of these groups weigh costs and benefits and act based on expected utility. I measure an increase in costs through three federal sentencing acts targeted at reducing the criminal behavior of these groups and hypothesize that this legislation decreased the total, serious, and ideologically-specific activity of extremists. I also contend that two terrorist events, the nearly fatal tree-spiking of George Alexander and the assassination of Hyram Kitchen, also increased the costs of criminal conduct for members of radical eco-groups. I evaluate interviews with twenty-five activists and analyze a database of 1056 incidents through both time-series and series hazard modeling. The interviews yield support for the rational choice perspective, particularly in regards to micro-level considerations of legal sanctions and morality. My quantitative findings indicate that the legislation was influential, albeit varying in direction by the method employed. Specifically, the time-series models yield significant increases in the frequency of criminal conduct after the legislation, while the series hazard analyses demonstrate a decrease in the hazard of an attack. I also find that the two major terrorist events did not significantly impact the criminal conduct of these groups. I conclude that members of radical environmental and animal rights groups are rational actors whom consider the moral evaluation of a given act and are susceptible to an increase in costs as measured through legislative efforts, but not as operationalized as a response to high profile attacks

Adoption of evidenced-based teaching strategies in STEM and non-STEM courses after a common faculty development experience

North Carolina State University undertook a faculty development initiative, TH!NK, beginning summer 2014. TH!NK is a campus-wide initiative designed to develop faculty members’ abilities in cultivating students’ higher-order skills in critical and creative thinking and self-reflection. Faculty and courses in a wide variety of disciplines were involved in the initiative, with the ultimate goal being an institutional transformation in the way that teaching is approached across campus. This paper shares early outcomes of five years of the program, which engaged approximately 130 faculty members. We assess the adoption of teaching strategies and how adoption varied between STEM and non-STEM courses based on a 2019 survey of TH!NK-trained faculty (n=72). We observed that an intensive, multi-day, interdisciplinary faculty development institute, paired with long-term peer mentoring and accountability, led to a high rate of adoption of the strategies. While non-STEM faculty utilized a wider array of teaching strategies prior to training, both groups made gains post-training, with the greatest gains among STEM faculty. There were notable outcomes observed in faculty use of the strategies in other courses and sharing activities and assignments with colleagues inside and outside of their home departments.Stanigar, J.; Carson, S. (2020). Adoption of evidenced-based teaching strategies in STEM and non-STEM courses after a common faculty development experience. En 6th International Conference on Higher Education Advances (HEAd'20). Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. (30-05-2020):173-181. https://doi.org/10.4995/HEAd20.2020.11009OCS17318130-05-202

External inverse-Compton emission from blazar jets

According to leptonic models for the high-energy emission from blazars, relativistic electrons in the inner jets inverse-Compton scatter photons from a variety of sources. Seed photons are certainly introduced via the synchrotron process from the electrons themselves, but external sources of seed photons may also be present. In this paper, we present detailed derivations of the equations describing external inverse-Compton scattering from two sources of seed photons: direct emission from the accretion disk, and accretion disk photons that have scattered off the broad line region. For each source, we derive the seed photon spectrum incident on the jet, the single electron energy loss rate, and the emitted photon spectrum. Subject headings: BL Lacertae Objects: general — galaxies: jets — radiation mechanisms: non-thermal–3– 1

Wolf Disease Summary 2004-2014

Canine distemper virus (CDV), canine parvovirus (CPV), canine adenovirus (CAV), canine herpesvirus (CHV), neosporosis, leptospirosis, Brucella abortus and B. canis are diseases that have wolf health or wildlife management implications. Blood serum samples from wolves captured and collared for management purposes between 2004-2014 were screened for these pathogens. Serologic tests for leptospirosis, B. abortus, and B. canis were completed by the Montana Department of Livestock Diagnostic Laboratory with the remaining tests performed by Cornell University Animal Health Diagnostic Center (Cornell University, AHDC).  Samples were assigned as being collected in the Northwest or Southwest region of the state based on capture location and the region designation provided by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wolf specialists. We evaluated and compared pathogen presence and prevalence within Northwest and Southwest Montana.  Each disease and its potential implications in the Northwest and Southwest region is discussed

Histone methylation is critical in monocyte to macrophage differentiation

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136760/1/febs14074_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136760/2/febs14074.pd

2015 Wildlife Disease Retrospective

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks is developing a Wildlife Health Program.  One of the functions of the program is to integrate disease surveillance, population health monitoring, and wildlife health diagnostic services to provide information to the public and wildlife professionals on the dynamics, risk, and impacts of disease in Montana’s wildlife.   The knowledge gained from this program is aimed at improving conservation efforts and the safety of both humans and domestic animals.  The Wildlife Health Laboratory is a statewide lab that receives hundreds to thousands of biological samples each year for disease surveillance projects, epidemiologic and morbidity investigations, and forensics.  An overview of notable zoonotic and non-zoonotic diseases detected from 2015 laboratory submissions will be discussed, providing relevance, repercussions and general background or recent history of the diseases in Montana

Hemorrhagic Disease in Montana

Hemorrhagic Disease (HD) is caused by two groups of orbiviruses, bluetongue (BT) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD).   Both BT and EHD are capable of causing large scale mortalities in white-tailed deer.   Although both are capable of causing disease in other species, BT typically causes clinical symptoms and mortality in a larger range of species, including pronghorn and domestic sheep.   Three subtypes of EHD and five subtypes of BT are known to exist in North America.  Only EHD subtype 2 and BT subtype 17 have been identified in Montana.  Both BT and EHD are transmitted by a biting midge and the onset of disease typically occurring in late summer/early fall with mortality cases decreasing rapidly after the first killing frost.  HD was first documented in Montana in 1961.  Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has participated in a national survey documenting HD occurrence since that time.  Outbreaks within Montana appear to be becoming more frequent and the area affected has increased.  Until 2013 HD had been limited to the east side of the Rocky Mountain front.  However, in 2013 several counties in western Montana experience their first recorded EHD die-off in white-tailed deer.  The history and potential future ramifications of HD outbreaks in MT are discussed

Hemorrhagic Disease in Montana’s Wild Ruminants

Epizootic hemorrhagic disease and bluetongue virus have been documented in Montana for decades.  Montana has experienced localized and variable population declines in wild cervids when these outbreaks occur.  Transmission is seasonal in North America, with infection occurring in the late summer and fall.  In northern states, transmission ends once adult vectors cease activity with the onset of winter.  Montana is in an epidemic zone where outbreaks appear periodically and mortality events can be significant.  Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks wildlife health lab has tested samples from suspected outbreak events, research captures and opportunistically for detection of EHD and BTV.  Environmental factors and virus-vector-host interactions are knowledge gaps that need to be addressed to improve our understanding of these orbivirus dynamics.  Enhanced reporting, surveillance, and research efforts are potential tools that may improve our understanding of the role these viruses play in wild ruminant populations across the state