A photon phreak digs the LDEF happening

A year ago at the First Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) Post-Retrieval Symposium, detailed measurements on trunnion sections, as well as results from 'intentional' samples (Co, Ni, In, Ta, and V) and spacecraft parts were reported. For this year's Symposium, some of these findings are re-evaluated in combination with more recent results, to cast a longer perspective on the LDEF experience, and to sketch some promising avenues toward more effective participation in future missions. The LDEF analysis effort has been a superb training exercise, from which lessons learned need to be applied to future missions - right back to the early phases of mission planning

Maintaining Hope/ Encouraging Perspective in Special Education

Having a child with moderate to severe disabilities is a life-altering experience for many families. This study is an exploration of the relationship that exists between the parents of children with moderate to severe disabilities and special education professionals. It is an attempt to gain a deeper understanding of the parental perspective on the complexities of that relationship, and to investigate how that relationship is negotiated through stories told by eight parents about their experiences with the professionals in the schools their children attend. This study is also focused on how parents, school systems, and societal understandings of disability and difference intersect in the realm of providing educational opportunities and care for children with disabilities. This is a Narrative Inquiry study, and it is influenced by feminist methodological considerations. Interviews conducted with participants generated a collection of life-story case studies. Findings were analyzed for commonality and seven themes emerged from the data. They include the impact of having a child with a disability on the family, expectations, special education placement issues, communication, the quality of interactions between parents and professionals, systemic barriers to relationships, and the process of accepting or making peace with having a child with disabilities. The conceptual framework for analysis involves the ethics of care, power relationships in school and the phenomenon of ambiguous loss. Results suggest that conflict is inevitable because parents and professionals view children through different lenses, but that thoughtful and compassionate efforts on the part of educators can develop into relationships that provide welcome support and understanding to families during difficult periods of adjustment and transition

The Effect of Social Skills Instruction on Seventh-Grade Students Taking a Language Arts Class

mplementing programs in social skills development will affect academic achievement among children who are Grade 7 students. A quantitative study was conducted using a quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest, nonequivalent control-group design to determine if direct instruction in social skills has an impact upon academic achievement and social skills development. Participants were 128 students drawn from six intact classes of seventh grade students from a rural middle school in West Georgia. Participants completed a pretest and posttests, the Social Skills Improvement System- Rating Scale. During the treatment period, the treatment group received social skills instruction through stories from William J. Bennett’s The Book of Virtues. The control group did not receive any social skills instruction. Data from both pretests and posttests were analyzed statistically using ANCOVA methods. Along with recommendations for further research are the results and interpretations

Trends in the AMS Education Symposium and Highlights from 2012

The Department of Meteorology (now Atmospheric Sciences) at the University of Utah faced reductions in state funding in 2008 that reduced support for nontenured instructors at the same time that the faculty were becoming increasingly successful obtaining federally supported research grants. A faculty retreat and subsequent discussions led to substantive curriculum changes to modernize the curriculum, enhance course offerings for undergraduate and graduate students, and improve the overall efficiency of the academic program. Maintaining discipline standards and existing teaching loads were important constraints on these changes. Key features of the curriculum revisions for undergraduate majors included eliminating a very rigid course progression; shifting the emphasis from required courses to elective courses; offering many courses only every other year; and relying on half-semester short courses to survey subject areas rather than focusing in depth on fewer ones. The curriculum changes were evaluated through surveys and individual and focus group discussions of students and faculty. While the feedback suggests that the changes overall were beneficial, the transitional period during which the changes were implemented was difficult for faculty and students alike. Faculty members have opportunities now to adjust courses based on their experiences gained teaching these courses in their new format. The feedback from students and faculty suggests that building improved relationships and interactions among co-enrolled undergraduate and graduate students is the greatest need in order to improve the classroom learning environment

“REDOX PUMPING” IN THE NEAR SURFACE MISSOULA AQUIFER ON THE FLOODPLAIN OF THE CLARK FORK RIVER: SURFACE WATER AND GROUNDWATERINTERACTIONS AND ARSENIC RELATED CHEMISTRY AT A COMPOST FACILITYNEAR A WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT

Arsenic transport in groundwater is evaluated at Eko Compost, a site with measurable levels of arsenic, organic carbon and nutrients in the ground water. The compost facility is located adjacent to the Missoula wastewater treatment plant on a contaminated floodplain of the Clark Fork River in the Missoula Valley, Montana, USA. This site was evaluated over two years for hydrological and chemical characteristics. A series of potentiometric surface maps was created over time and hydraulic conductivity and ground water movement were characterized. Water samples were also collected monthly and results from chemical analyses of the waters were contoured over the site map to evaluate chemical and hydrologic transport. Arsenic, organic carbon, iron and sulfate increased across the site in summer after water table elevations rose in spring. ‘Redox pump’ mechanisms were characterized in two locations, where reducing conditions with high levels of iron and organic carbon liberated anomalously high concentrations (60 to150 ug/L) of dissolved arsenic in spring. The source of arsenic appeared to be buried contaminated flood sediments at the site. A conceptual model is presented where the chemical character of the water was influenced vertically by the layer of the sediment that contained the top of the water table, and laterally by the chemical character induced by the path of the groundwater. Hydraulic conductivities (K) of around 1100 ft/day were estimated for sections of the uppermost layer of the aquifer, K values were higher near the river, and lower in wells finished in the organically enriched zones. During spring and early summer a local flow pattern was described that is seasonally different from the established regional pattern. Two distinct hydrogeologic occurrences were observed during runoff season while the aquifer was recharging 1) A direct connection developed between the aquifer and the river at the Eko Compost backwater, and 2) potentiometric maps showed flow direction in the aquifer through backfilled channels of organically enriched areas that had been used as sludge ponds for the nearby water treatment plant. Our findings indicate that both hydrogeology and chemical transport at this site were heavily influenced by the human altered landscape

Mixed Messages for Our Next Generation of Scientists

Scientists have been in the media ever since Frankenstein in 1931. Today’s youth may not have seen the original movie or read the book, but they have seen cartoon reiterations of the famous classic as the work has inspired numerous films, television programs, video games, characters in books and movies. The concept of the “mad scientist” creating a creature, monster, or weapon that eventually falls out of his control, leading to the scientist\u27s eventual defeat or ruin, is a common theme in science-fiction and comic books. Draw-A-Scientist protocols have been utilized by science education researchers to investigate learners’ perceptions of scientists. This chapter discusses historical perspectives of scientists in the media, the methods for analyzing students’ perceptions of scientists and how aspects of their illustrations relate students’ perceptions of scientists. The discussion presented here is framed in the context in which young children hold a range of perceptions that are based on cultural influences, and sometimes these images are limited, and sometimes they compete within the individual. The position of this author is that each of these three are interconnected with the others, support each other, and must be considered along with students’ cultural background and science identity if these illustrations are to fulfill any promise of its utility for research or instructional purposes

The Changing Representation of Gay Politicians in the UK Press

The changing representation of gay politicians in UK newspapers is an area which is underrepresented in political and media studies. It is an important subject because press representation of gay politicians has personal and public consequences; not only can the ‘politicians concerned have their political and personal lives negatively affected, democracy can be compromised. Indeed, gay politicians may be less inclined to speak out on gay issues and free expression may be constrained. The thesis demonstrates: 1. How gay MPs in the UK are represented in newspapers 2. How representation has changed 3. An overarching frame of representation. Newspaper articles are analysed and politicians and campaigners interviewed. A literature/historical review contextualises analysis, taking into account socio-political factors. The thesis demonstrates that the press representation of gay politicians is governed by three interconnected frames: 1. The move towards recognition According to the premise of ‘recognition,’ marginalised groups are entitled to equal rights and respect, rather than a grudging tolerance, alongside recognition of their particularity. This thesis suggests society has moved from intolerance, to tolerance, to partial recognition of homosexuality; this process has been a halting one, although it is generally unidirectional. 2. Acceptability over time (in relation to heterosexual public space) Sexuality/sexual acts can be rated in terms of public acceptability (as in the acceptance of society) and heterosexual public space. Generally, public homosexuality has become more acceptable over the last fifty years (again, this has been a halting process), although still has some way to go to reach full acceptability. 3. Mediated personas as ‘constructed reality’ Gay politicians are represented in the media through the use of binary themes; using these themes, their personas (gradients of negative and positive) are created by and mediated through newspapers. The third frame helps to maintain negative and stereotypical representations of gay politicians

Developing Young Scientists: The Importance of Addressing Stereotypes in Early Childhood Education

Children are born natural scientists. Research has shown they draw less stereotypical images of scientists the younger they are and less school experience they have. This chapter explores stereotypes young children hold of scientists and engineers and how teachers might recognize, address, and combat these stereotypes in the early childhood classroom. From an early age, children receive messages directly and indirectly about scientists, from their parents, media, television, books, and school. The messages they receive help them shape their science identity and test ideas about who can be scientists and what stereotypes exist. Evidence has demonstrated that students are aware of stereotypes and they are able to recognize and discuss stereotypes in a way that broaden their perception of scientists and engineers. To begin the discussion of pedagogical methodologies, the history of drawings of scientists (and engineers) will be discussed. Likewise, these discussions of stereotypes and new awareness can increase career choices including these two fields: science and engineering. Explicit instruction about the stereotypes the stereotypes and implications that follow for early childhood science classrooms will be discussed