Gender Portrayal in Jewish Children's Literature

Current concerns with equality and equity focus the spotlight on gender, especially in a patriarchal religion and its observances, customs, and literature. When boys and girls read Jewish books they receive an image through word and picture of Jewish girls and women. This image can vary if the subject of the story is religious or cultural, if the time frame is past or present, if the locale is familiar or foreign, or if the plot conflict involves a male or another female. Gender can shift the fulcrum when the world seesaws between unfair and un equal. Books contain implicit and explicit norms about 'what little girls are made of.' This article examines the picture of the Jewish female found on the pages of various types of children's books including biblical, religious, historical, and secular experiences at reading levels from primary through young adult (Kindergarten-High School)

Assessing the Success of Outreach at Preventing the Movement of Aquatic Invasive Species in Illinois

Overland transport of recreational boats is the major vector of dispersal for aquatic invasive species among North American waterbodies. These species have large economic and ecosystem impacts, and understanding their movement is essential to understanding the biodiversity and functioning of aquatic ecosystems across the continent. I surveyed Illinois boaters to determine patterns of recreational boat movement and the consistency with which boaters perform actions to prevent the spread of invasive species. Although most boaters perform these actions, a large minority do not and the network for invasive species spread on recreational boats still connects most waterbodies. Next, I interviewed managers at organizations that conduct outreach aimed at educating boaters about invasive species. I found that outreach can influence boater actions, but that many boaters are not affected by current outreach programs. The results provide guidance for future outreach efforts and for more effective ways to assess the effectiveness of outreach

Open Access compliance and financial report to RCUK 2015-16

This report provides information in support of Northumbria University’s compliance with the third year of RCUK’s Open Access policy within the context of the University’s wider work to support Open Access (OA) as part of its mission to create and apply knowledge for the benefit of individuals and the economy through ground-breaking research. The data underlying this report is available on Figshare: https://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3859023.v

The view from the trenches : satisfaction with eHealth systems by a group of health professionals

The integration and adoption of eHealth systems within the health sector faces challenges. As health care practitioners are the end users of eHealth systems, their perceptions of these systems are critical in order to address the issues surrounding their implementation and application. This paper presents the views that a group of health care professionals hold regarding the eHealth systems that they use as part of their day to day work. These views were analysed according to the perceptions of satisfaction and dissatisfaction with eHealth systems that these professionals expressed. They expressed satisfaction with the information consistency, work efficiency, access to information, quality of information, and availability of technical support associated with their systems use. They expressed dissatisfaction with a lack of communication and compatibility between systems, deficiency in terms of system functionality, a lack of system reliability, a lack of initial and ongoing training, and a need to develop workarounds in order to achieve work goals. Overall this research indicates that satisfaction with eHealth systems is a complex issue, and that the negative aspects of system satisfaction need to be addressed and the positive aspects carefully built upon.<br /

Supersonic aeroelastic instability results for a NASP-like wing model

An experimental study and an analytical study have been conducted to examine static divergence for hypersonic-vehicle wing models at supersonic conditions. A supersonic test in the Langley Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel facility was conducted for two wind-tunnel models. These models were nearly identical with the exception of airfoil shape. One model had a four-percent maximum thickness airfoil and the other model had an eight-percent maximum thickness airfoil. The wing models had low-aspect ratios and highly swept leading edges. The all-movable wing models were supported by a single-pivot mechanism along the wing root. For both of the wind-tunnel models, configuration changes could be made in the wing-pivot location along the wing root and in the wing-pivot pitch stiffness. Three divergence conditions were measured for the four-percent thick airfoil model in the Mach number range of 2.6 to 3.6 and one divergence condition was measured for the eight-percent thick airfoil model at a Mach number of 2.9. Analytical divergence calculations were made for comparison with experimental results and to evaluate the parametric effects of wing-pivot stiffness, wing-pivot location, and airfoil thickness variations. These analyses showed that decreasing airfoil thickness, moving the wing-pivot location upstream, or increasing the pitch-pivot stiffness have the beneficial effect of increasing the divergence dynamic pressures. The calculations predicted the trend of experimental divergence dynamic pressure with Mach number accurately; however, the calculations were approximately 25 percent conservative with respect to dynamic pressure

Birch Bay shoreline enhancement: environmental impact assessment

The objective of the Birch Bay Shoreline Enhancement Project is to enrich the Central and North Birch Bay community by creating better access to the shoreline and beachfront area, constructing a pathway, and widening of the beach to help with flood control, aesthetics, ecosystem function, and sustainability. This will be accomplished by bettering the roadways and creating a pedestrian and bike friendly pathway that will run between the water and Birch Bay Drive. The project will focus on two specific areas--The Central Reach and The Cottonwood Reach. These are separate, as most of the intensive waterside and landside improvements will be made in the Central Reach. Waterside improvements will extend into the Cottonwood Reach to address the very narrow beach and flood risk to residences. The motivation for this project had its beginnings in the late 1970\u27s and early 1980\u27s. Wolf Bauer designed the Birch Bay Shore Resource Analysis that contained detailed sketches of his shoreline plan (consequently these sketches were used in the design of the proposed action for the current Birch Bay Shoreline Enhancement). In 1982 Birch Bay Drive was flooded and this storm event spurred community and governmental review of the current infrastructure on and near the shoreline. In 1986 a test renovation was performed on a portion of the bay. Characteristics of this test will be carried over in the current proposed action such as the installation of the gravel berm and beach nourishment. As a result, this proposal is a culmination of community and Whatcom County involvement over the last 30 years and has the potential to infuse socioeconomic vitality

Optimising Resources to Develop a Strategic Approach to Open Access - final report

Our Open Access (OA) Pathfinder, a collaboration between the University of Northumbria and the University of Sunderland, aimed to develop and share tools and best practice to enable HEIs with limited external resources to effectively and creatively respond to the challenges and opportunities presented by OA. To achieve this we identified four discrete project objectives and a methodology which emphasised engagement locally and with the other HEI’s that comprised the wider programme. Importantly, the wider context of this focus was our recognition of the global movement towards open research and an impact agenda which demonstrates and rewards value for money from public investment. Subsequently, throughout our project activity we aimed to explore and develop extensible models, policies and procedures which go beyond OA compliance to engage with and shape these wider debates. Throughout the programme we disseminated our preliminary findings and ongoing thinking via our project blog (http://oapathfinder.wordpress.com) as well as fora including conferences and workshops. By the end of the two year programme, our project had successfully delivered against the four objectives and in so doing demonstrated tangible impact. Crucially, for each aspect of our project further work is needed to refine and develop solutions and practice to meet the challenges and opportunities presented by OA. We believe that against a background of a rapidly evolving policy and funding landscape JISC are uniquely positioned to facilitate a community of practice to play a pivotal role in making this happen

A critical review of the epidemiology of Agent Orange/TCDD and prostate cancer

To inform risk assessment and regulatory decision-making, the relationship between 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and prostate cancer requires clarification. This article systematically and critically reviews the epidemiologic evidence on the association between exposure to TCDD or Agent Orange, a TCDD-contaminated herbicide used during the Vietnam War, and prostate cancer risk. Articles evaluated include 11 studies of three cohorts, four case–control or cross-sectional studies, and three case-only studies of military veterans with information on estimated Agent Orange or TCDD exposure; 13 studies of seven cohorts, one case–control study, and eight proportionate morbidity or mortality studies of Vietnam veterans without information on Agent Orange exposure; 11 cohort studies of workers with occupational exposure to TCDD; and two studies of one community cohort with environmental exposure to TCDD. The most informative studies, including those of Vietnam veterans involved in Agent Orange spraying or other handling, herbicide manufacturing or spraying workers with occupational TCDD exposure, and community members exposed to TCDD through an industrial accident, consistently reported no significant increase in prostate cancer incidence or mortality. Only some potentially confounded studies of Vietnam veterans compared with the general population, studies with unreliable estimates of Agent Orange exposure, and analyses of selected subgroups of Vietnam veterans reported positive associations. Overall, epidemiologic research offers no consistent or convincing evidence of a causal relationship between exposure to Agent Orange or TCDD and prostate cancer. More accurate exposure assessment is needed in large epidemiologic studies to rule out a causal association more conclusively. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10654-014-9931-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Simultaneous detection of controlled substances in waste water

This study presents a method of simultaneous detection of both traditional and newly emerged drugs of abuse in wastewater. The method is based on solid phase extraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis. This analytical method separates 25 drugs from different classes including amphetamines, cathinones, tropane alkaloids, piperazines plus ketamine, amitriptyline, diazepam and morphine. In addition, newer compounds (methcathinone, mephedrone, butylone), and isomers (1-(2-methoxyphenyl) piperazine, 1-(4-methoxyphenyl) piperazine; 1-(2-flurophenyl) piperazine, 1-(4-flurophenyl) piperazine; 1-(3-trifluoromethylphenyl) piperazine, 1-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl) piperazine) have been separated, with greater sensitivity (×100 order of magnitude). This work reports the detection of butylone, mephedrone, 1-(4-methoxyphenyl) piperazine, 1-(2-flurophenyl) piperazine and 1-methyl-4-benzylpiperazine for the first time in waste water. This suggests that with changes in drug use patterns, constant monitoring of waste water entering treatment plants should be carried out and treatment processes need to be put in place for their removal