Comparison of a Computer Assisted Instructional Unit and a Programmed Text Format for Teaching Latin and Greek Derivatives to Conditionally Enrolled University Students

vii, 112 leaves. Advisor: Joseph A. FisherThe Problem. The purpose of this study was to compare a computer assisted instruction mode with a programed text mode for teaching Latin and Greek derivatives to conditionally enrolled university students. Procedures. The eighty three students of Drake University's fall 1982 Transitional Services Program were the subjects for this investigation. Students were randomly assigned to the two treatment groups. Treatment One learned Latin roots and prefixes by the programmed mode and the Greek portion of the unit by the computer mode. Treatment Two studied the Latin roots and prefixes by the computer mode and the Greek portion of the unit by the programmed mode. The content of instruction was identical for these two groups; they differed only in sequence of mode. Student characteristics relating to personality types and learning styles were examined in relationship to both achievement and attitude toward mode of instruction. Data was collected from six measurement instruments: the Slosson Intelligence Test, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Learning Styles Inventory, a semantic differential and Latin and Greek pre-posttests. Findings. The data reveal no differences in achievement between the two treatments. Subjects using both CAI and PT did not achieve higher posttest scores in either mode. There was a significant difference beyond the .0l level in attitude toward CAI, favoring the CAI mode, but this did not result in significantly greater achievement. Analyzing differences in learning style and personality type did not reveal differences in either achievement or attitude. Conclusions. The results of this research suggest that CAI is at least as effective as PT for teaching Latin and Greek derivatives. When both instructional modes are available, student attitude should be considered in planning learning strategies. Recommendations. Further research should be conducted with these modes of instruction, specifically regarding the use of an audio component to enhance the learning strategies. The relationship between visual and audio media would provide additional information concerning the effectiveness of electronical devices. Additional investigation of personality types and learning styles is needed to examine how these student characteristics relate to learning

Panther Initiative for Environmental Equity and Resilience, PIEER

PIEER began in the Spring of 2014 as a partnership project in environmental resilience and equity, ERE issues with the Colleges of Humanities, Arts, and Sciences, CHAS RRTTC and the UNI Provost’s Office. It has continued since as a student internship and community engagement effort designed to offer PIEER interns the opportunity to explore the social/cultural, racial ethnic, technological, and equity aspects of environmental sustainability challenges. It’s goals are to expand knowledge and understand about and across ERE issues, to allow students to examine their understanding of differences and build bridges across difference, and to meaningfully engage the campus and broader community around ERE issues

Volume, Heat and Salt Transport in the North-Eastern Bering Sea During 2007-2010 Derived Through the 4dvar Data Assimilation of In-Situ and Satellite Observations

The rich collection of BEST-BSIERP observations and other sources of data provide an excellent opportunity for synthesis through modeling and data assimilation to improve our understanding of changes in physical forcings of the Bering ecosystem in response to climate change. Assimilating data of different origins, which may be sparse in space and time, is difficult using simple algorithms (traditional optimal interpolation, correlation analysis etc.). The 4Dvar approach is effective for performing spatiotemporal interpolation of sparse data via interpolation (covariance) functions with scales based on ocean dynamics (Bennett, 2002).NSF Arctic Progra

Osteoarticular allografts in paediatric bone tumor reconstruction of the knee

Osteoarticular allografts represent a reconstructive option after bone tumor resection around the knee in growing children. The major advantage is the chance to preserve the growth plate of the remaining bone, but the disadvantage is the high failure rate eventually requiring definitive prosthetic replacement at skeletal maturity. We retrospectively reviewed 22 patients who underwent osteoarticular allograft reconstructions of the distal femur (16) or proximal tibia (6). There were 12 females and 10 males with an average age at surgery of 11 years (7-15). The diagnosis was osteosarcoma in 19 cases and Ewing sarcoma in 3. All patients underwent pre- and post-operative chemotherapy. At an average follow-up of 103 months (12-167), 18 patients (82%) were alive and 4 had died (18%). We observed 10 allograft failures requiring prosthetic replacement, 6 in distal femur and 4 in proximal tibia reconstructions. At last follow-up 8 allografts (36%) were still in place. Overall allograft survival was 79.6% at five and 45.8% at ten years. In distal femur, allograft survival was 86.2% at five and 59.1% at ten years. In proximal tibia, allograft survival was 62.5% at 5 years and 31.2% at 67 months. Average limb shortening was 3 cm (0- 5) in 8 patients with the allograft still in situ and 2 cm (0-4) in 10 patients after prosthetic replacement. Average MSTS functional score of the whole series was 25 (83.7%). The MSTS score of patients after revision with prosthetic replacement was 24 (80%) while patients who still had the allograft retained had an average MSTS scores of 26.8 (89.3%). In conclusion, osteoarticular allograft reconstruction of the knee after bone tumor resection in pediatric age can be considered a temporary solution with the aim to limit limb length discrepancy before definitive prosthetic replacement after skeletal maturity

Joining of the historical research and future prediction as a support tool for the assessment of management strategy for European beech-dominated forests in protected areas

European beech-dominated forests are crucial for maintaining biodiversity in forested mountain landscapes of the European temperate zone. This paper presents the results of research and assessment of management strategy for mountain beech-dominated forests in the Jeseníky Mountains (Czech Republic). Our approach is based on combining research on historical development of the forest ecosystem, assessment of its current state, and predictions of future dynamics using a forest growth simulation model. Using such a method makes it possible to understand the current state of the mountain beech-dominated forest ecosystem and predict its future development as a response to specific management strategies. The application of this method is therefore appropriate for assessing the suitability of selected management strategies in mountain protected areas. Our results show that a non-intervention management for mountain beech forest in the next 80 years complies with the Natura 2000 requirement to maintain the existing character of the forest habitat. Thus, the current management plan for the beech-dominated forests in the Jeseníky Mountains does not require significant corrections in the context of its conservation targets (i.e. maintaining biodiversity and current character of the forest ecosystem dominated by beech). The results of this study suggest that combining the knowledge on historical development with forest growth simulation can be used as a suitable support tool to assess management strategies for forest habitats in protected areas