Secondary Teachers\u27 Perceptions of Professional Development\u27s Role for Instruction in Inclusive Settings

Students with disabilities (SWDs) are being placed in inclusive settings. The problem is that in many cases, teachers who are assigned to these students may not have necessary training in special education. Lack of such teacher training can lead to deficits in learning for SWDs. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify secondary general education teachers\u27 perspectives on professional development (PD) regarding teaching SWDs in inclusion classroom settings. The conceptual framework for this study was Bandura\u27s self-efficacy construct as presented in social cognitive theory. For teachers, self-efficacy may influence instructional practices, classroom climate, and attitudes toward educational processes. In this phenomenological study, data were gathered from 12 high school general education teachers with experience in teaching SWDs in inclusive settings using one-on-one interviews and a short demographic questionnaire. The first research question concerned whether general education teachers believed that PD could improve teachers- performance with SWDs in inclusion settings. Results indicated that respondents generally believed that PD inclusion training was needed. The second research question concerned how PD should influence coteaching in inclusion settings. Results indicated that respondents generally believed that PD inclusion training should provide skills to allow teachers to assist special education students in inclusion settings without making them feel differentiated or singled out. In future studies, it is recommended that the sample be segmented into groups of general education teachers and special education teachers, with an equal number of each. It is also recommended that a quantitative study be initiated to examine whether the findings are confirmed with a larger population

A Report on Drosophila Collections in Nebraska

Until rather recently little has been known of the Drosophila species of Nebraska. Sturtevant (1921) lists Nebraska as one of seven states from which no Drosophila had been reported. Patterson and Wagner (1943) show that collections of Drosophila pseudoobscura had been made in the vicinities of Scottsbluff and Kearney, but no other Drosophila species are reported from Nebraska in their publication

A Process Model to Characterize Airborne Radionuclide Emissions and Transport using Radiological and Meteorological Measurements

The radionuclide analysis model developed and validated in this study is the first one ever to integrate human judgment throughout the analytical process. Therefore, besides relating the generation, transport, and measurement of anomalous anthropogenic radionuclides, this model enables many associated tasks to be achieved that could not be performed using existing models. These tasks include thoroughly characterizing radionuclide detection sites, effectively processing qualitative data, and correcting data during processing. The study outlines the model as a highly detailed itemized procedure and validates the model through four case studies. Each case study is able to demonstrate a specific novelty of the model, although multiple novel and useful qualities of the model can be found in all of the case studies. Case Study 1 shows the model's ability to perform site characterizations by determining the presence of 50 radionuclides at a site where only seven had been identified previously. In Case Study 2, the model is shown to be able to isolate a specific emission location through the effective incorporation of qualitative data. Case Study 3 demonstrates the model's ability to perform complicated radionuclide analysis completely independent of computational models. Through Case Study 4, the model is shown to be capable of processing errant data that could not be analyzed computationally. Besides the usefulness of each of the novelties, the model offers many practical values, including its ability to normalize analysis amongst radionuclide analysts with varied levels of experience -- effectively enabling junior level analysts to perform senior level analysis

Ghost center and representations of the diagonal reduction algebra of osp(1∣2)\mathfrak{osp}(1|2)

Reduction algebras are known by many names in the literature, including step algebras, Mickelsson algebras, Zhelobenko algebras, and transvector algebras, to name a few. These algebras, realized by raising and lowering operators, allow for the calculation of Clebsch-Gordan coefficients, branching rules, and intertwining operators; and have connections to extremal equations and dynamical R-matrices in integrable face models. In this paper we continue the study of the diagonal reduction superalgebra $A$ of the orthosymplectic Lie superalgebra $\mathfrak{osp}(1|2)$. We construct a Harish-Chandra homomorphism, Verma modules, and study the Shapovalov form on each Verma module. Using these results, we prove that the ghost center (center plus anti-center) of $A$ is generated by two central elements and one anti-central element (analogous to the Scasimir due to Le\'{s}niewski for $\mathfrak{osp}(1|2)$). As another application, we classify all finite-dimensional irreducible representations of $A$. Lastly, we calculate an infinite-dimensional tensor product decomposition explicitly.Comment: 27 pages; updated introduction: references and motivation; readability; comments welcomed

Modification of the International Space Station USOS to Support Installation and Activation of the Node 3 Element

The International Space Station (ISS) program is nearing an assembly complete configuration with the addition of the final resource node module in early 2010. The Node 3 module will provide critical functionality in support of permanent long duration crews aboard ISS. The new module will permanently house the regenerative Environment Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) and will also provide important habitability functions such as waste management and exercise facilities. The ISS program has selected the Port side of the Node 1 "Unity" module as the permanent location for Node 3 which will necessitate architecture changes to provide the required interfaces. The USOS ECLSS fluid and ventilation systems, Internal Thermal Control Systems, and Avionics Systems require significant modifications in order to support Node 3 interfaces at the Node 1 Port location since it was not initially designed for that configuration. This paper outlines the design, development, certification, and implementation of these changes in support of ISS assembly complete

Oviposition of Psorophora Columbiae (Dyar and Knab) in Louisiana Pastureland.

Cattle hoofprint samples from a permanent pasture in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana during 1980 yielded an average of 9.2 eggs and capsules of Psorophora columbiae (Dyar and Knab)/hoofprint. Pasture sections differed significantly (P \u3c .0001) in number of eggs and capsules/hoofprint. Sections ranged from 2.7 to 20.6 eggs and capsules/hoofprint. The number of eggs and capsules collected/date also differed significantly (P \u3c .01), but peaks in numbers did not always correspond with peaks in rainfall or adult mosquito collections. Hoofprint densities and herd movement did not influence egg distribution. Estimates of numbers of eggs and capsules on the 30 ha permanent pasture range from 2,633,621 in late February to 16,913,025 on June 2, 1980. Mosquito oviposition was compared in hoofprint samples taken from a permanent pasture and a fallow rice field in Vermilion Parish, Louisiana during 1981. Hoofprints from the permanent pasture contained significantly (P \u3c .001) more Ps. columbiae eggs than did hoofprints from the fallow rice field, averaging 3.3 and 1.9 eggs/hoofprint respectively. However, estimates of egg density in the 2 sites did not differ significantly (P \u3e .05) since hoofprint density was greater in the fallow rice field. Egg density estimates were 15.2/m(\u272) for the fallow rice field and 13.3/m(\u272) for the permanent pasture. Hoofprint depth, hoofprint location, and cattle movement did not influence egg distribution. Results of studies with caged Ps. columbiae exposed to natural lighting conditions indicated that the oviposition cycle was bimodal with the main peak occurring in the 2 h period following sunset. This period coincides with peaks in flight activity, feeding activity, and swarming reported for this species in earlier studies. Caged Ps. columbiae were exposed to soil that contained various percentages of moisture by weight. Average numbers of eggs deposited per cage in soil at 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80% moisture and in water differed significantly (P \u3c .004) with 2.2, 30.2, 89.8, 28.3, 14.0, and 43.2 eggs/moisture level respectively. Cages of mosquitoes exposed to soil at 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, and 80% moisture by weight deposited 125.8, 188.6, 176.9, 39.6, 46.3, and 31.5 eggs/moisture level respectively. These averages were significantly different (P \u3c .008)

Direct Immunosensor Design Based on the Electrochemical Reduction of 4-((4-Nitrophenyl) ethynyl) benzenethiol Monolayers

The synthesis and characterization of novel N-arylhydroxylamine-based molecular wires are described for use in the site-directed covalent immobilization of whole IgG antibodies onto gold electrode surfaces. The hydroxylamine, electrochemically generated in situ from reduction of the corresponding nitrobenzene, is stable under a wide range of solution conditions and reacts selectively with carbohydrate away from the antibody-binding site to allow the development of immunosensors with maximal activity. Cyclic voltammetric responses have shown a direct correlation between the structure and length of the molecular wire and its stability and concentration at the electrode surface

Risk prediction in patients with heart failure: A systematic review and analysis

Objectives This study sought to review the literature for risk prediction models in patients with heart failure and to identify the most consistently reported independent predictors of risk across models. Background Risk assessment provides information about patient prognosis, guides decision making about the type and intensity of care, and enables better understanding of provider performance. Methods MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched from January 1995 to March 2013, followed by hand searches of the retrieved reference lists. Studies were eligible if they reported at least 1 multivariable model for risk prediction of death, hospitalization, or both in patients with heart failure and reported model performance. We ranked reported individual risk predictors by their strength of association with the outcome and assessed the association of model performance with study characteristics. Results Sixty-four main models and 50 modifications from 48 studies met the inclusion criteria. Of the 64 main models, 43 models predicted death, 10 hospitalization, and 11 death or hospitalization. The discriminatory ability of the models for prediction of death appeared to be higher than that for prediction of death or hospitalization or prediction of hospitalization alone (p = 0.0003). A wide variation between studies in clinical settings, population characteristics, sample size, and variables used for model development was observed, but these features were not significantly associated with the discriminatory performance of the models. A few strong predictors emerged for prediction of death; the most consistently reported predictors were age, renal function, blood pressure, blood sodium level, left ventricular ejection fraction, sex, brain natriuretic peptide level, New York Heart Association functional class, diabetes, weight or body mass index, and exercise capacity. Conclusions There are several clinically useful and well-validated death prediction models in patients with heart failure. Although the studies differed in many respects, the models largely included a few common markers of risk