Advising Assessment Practices of Advising Professionals at an Accredited United Kingdom Urban Career-Focused Higher Education Institution: A Replicated Quantitative, Descriptive Analysis

The Problem As the world has flattened, the globalization and quality education movement surrounding higher education worldwide has led to the accountability of all stakeholders regarding student success in and beyond the classroom. Student mobility continues to impact tertiary enrollments as families and students consider the proliferated traditional and non-traditional enrollment alternatives along with prospective lower tertiary debt options. Although assessment, an accountability tool, in co-curricular areas such as advising has been overlooked by leaders, advising is not impervious to accountability consequences. The problem is that assessment of advising, if performed, is oftentimes implemented informally, without a well-defined framework or the utilization of sophisticated measures, consequently advancing uninformed decisions that may have adverse effects on student success. This study examined the advising assessment practices (identify SLOs, determine assessment method(s) used, and utilize assessment data) of an accredited urban careerfocused university with a student body comprised of over 30% non-natives representing 65 countries and located in the United Kingdom; a country identified as the second most popular tertiary mobile student enrollment destination, in a time when tertiary student success is under intense scrutiny. Method An online, validated, cross-sectional National Survey on Assessment of Academic Advising instrument was slightly revised and used for this replicated study to gain a fundamental cross-cultural understanding of advising assessment practices from the viewpoint of advising professionals having responsibilities associated with undergraduate advising at one U.K. university. Three of the four research questions focused on advising assessment practices and included: 1. What are the advising student learning outcomes identified at the participating U.K. university? 2. What are the advising methods utilized to conduct assessment of advising SLOs at the participating U.K. university? and 3. How are the advising assessment data used for advising co-curricular improvement(s) at the participating U.K. university? The fourth question focused on the advising professional’s assessment perceptions and included: 4. What elements are viewed as supporting the assessment of advising at the participating U.K. university? All response data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The nominally measured independent variables included the three recognized assessment practices of: 1) identifying advising SLOs, 2) employing assessment method(s), and 3) utilizing advising assessment data. The 26 pre-defined advising student learning outcomes that articulate what students are expected to know (cognitive learning), do (behavioral learning), and value (affective learning) were the nominally measured dependent variables (Powers, 2012, p. 15). Findings The findings indicated that the European university informally assessed advising through the three observed advising assessment practices. The sample reporting described cognitive learning outcomes as the most identified advising learning outcomes; focused on what students should know as a result of advising (Powers, 2012, p. 40). The data also revealed that surveys/questionnaires were the advising assessment method identified with the highest frequency within all the advising student learning outcomes, and the main use for advising assessment data for both cognitive and behavioral advising student learning outcomes was to improve advising process/delivery, whereas the primary assessment data use for affective student learning outcomes was to improve advising curriculum. Furthermore, the results suggested the four main elements perceived as important in supporting advising assessment were: advisors needed to believe that advising assessment was a worthwhile endeavor, advisors need to know how to conduct assessment of advising, advisors need to feel confident in their abilities to properly conduct assessment of advising, and that advisors need more information about what similar universities are doing to assess advising. Whereas, respondents indicated the most neutral view of the element: advisors need to be rewarded for assessment of advising activities, and interestingly, revealed that advisors need to enjoy the assessment of advising process as unimportant in supporting the assessment of advising (Powers, 2012). Conclusions The research data suggests that the university informally exercised the steps identified as best practices in measuring the effect of advising on student learning. Moreover, with approximately 85% of respondents indicating the 7 cognitive, 11 behavioral and 8 affective learning outcomes were informally assessed implying an opportunity to formalize a culture of advising assessment. Additionally, the data suggests the leading perceptions of advisors needing to believe that advising assessment was a worthwhile endeavor, advisors needing to know how to conduct assessment of advising, advisors needing to feel confident in their abilities to properly conduct assessment of advising, and advisors needing more information about what similar universities are doing to assess advising as important factors in supporting advising assessment (Powers, 2012). This would involve a need for an internal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis of administration\u27s current support for advising assessment practices (Hladchenko, 2014). Furthermore, as the first study to examine the advising assessment practices of one European university, this study begins to addresses the current gap in published research regarding co-curricular assessment practices that creates a hindrance in replicating applicable cross-cultural advising assessment practices by seeking to establish commonalities between cultures yet also seeking to identify areas of difference within the global higher education community in support of student success (Newell, 1998, p. 359)

Mice produce ultrasonic vocalizations by intra-laryngeal planar impinging jets

Rodent ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) are a vital tool for linking gene mutations to behavior in mouse models of communication disorders, such as autism [1. However, we currently lack an understanding of how physiological and physical mechanisms combine to generate acoustic features of the vocalizations, and thus cannot meaningfully relate those features to experimental treatments. Here we test and provide evidence against the two leading hypotheses explaining USV production: superficial vocal fold vibrations [2, and a hole-tone whistle [3. Instead, we propose and provide theoretical and experimental evidence for an alternative and novel vocal production mechanism: a glottal jet impinging onto the laryngeal inner planar wall. Our data provide a framework for future research on the neuromuscular control of mouse vocal production and for interpreting mouse vocal behavior phenotypes.National Science Foundation (Grant ID: IOS 1257768), Danish Research Council, Carlsberg Foundatio

Measuring the Effects of Disturbance & Climate on the CO2 & Energy Exchange of Ponderosa Pine Forests in the Pacific Northwest: Integration of Eddy Flux, Plant and Soil Measurements

The goal is to quantify and understand the influence of climate and disturbance on ecosystem processes and thus net carbon uptake by forests. The objective is to combine tower and ground-based observations to quantify the effects of disturbance on processes controlling carbon storage and CO{sub 2} and energy exchange in varying climatic conditions. Specific objectives are: (1) Investigate the effects of logging and fire on carbon storage and carbon dioxide and energy exchange in chronosequences of ponderosa pine, using consistent methodology; (2) Determine key environmental factors controlling carbon storage and carbon dioxide and energy exchange in these forests through a combination of measurements and process modeling; and (3) Assess spatial variation of the concentrations and transport in complex terrain. The eddy covariance method is used for measurements of CO2, water vapor, and energy exchanges in a chronosequence of ponderosa pine forests (burned in 2002 wildfire, 10 year-old stand, 90 year-old mature stand). The mature stand has been an AmeriFlux site since 2000 (following previous flux sites in young and old stands initiated in 1996). In addition to the eddy covariance measurements, a large suite of biological processes and ecosystem properties are determined for the purpose of developing independent forest carbon budgets and NEP estimates; these include photosynthesis, stand respiration, soil CO{sub 2} fluxes, annual litterfall, foliar chemistry, and bole increment, and soil organic matter among other parameters. The measurements are being integrated and evaluated with two ecosystem models (BIOME-BGC and SPA). Such analyses are needed to assess regional terrestrial ecosystem carbon budgets. The results will contribute scientific understanding of carbon processes, and will provide comprehensive data sets for forest managers and those preparing national carbon inventories to use in assessments of carbon sequestration in relation to interannual climate variation and disturbance. Frameworks and methodologies developed by the PI will contribute to AmeriFlux Network facility functions for data acquisition, exchange and modeling of results in a broad spectrum of carbon cycle research

Анализ современных технологий заводнения при разработке нефтяных месторождений

Объектом исследования являются системы заводнения применяемые на месторождениях России Цель работы – анализ современных технологий заводнения при разработке нефтяных месторождений, а также обоснование применения технологий заводнения с целью увеличения темпов отбора, коэффициента нефтеизвлечения, технико-экономических показателей. В выпускной квалификационной работе приведены сведения о современных технологиях заводнения, применяемых на месторождениях России. Проведены расчеты экономической эффективности при внедрении нестационарного метода заводнения. Проанализирован процесс работы методов заводнения в условиях месторождений России. Бакалаврская работа выполнена в текстовом редакторе Microsoft Word, и Microsoft Excel.The object of the study are the waterflooding systems used in the fields of Russia The aim of the work is the analysis of modern flooding technologies in the development of oil fields, as well as the rationale for using flooding technologies to increase the rate of selection, the oil recovery factor, and the technical and economic indicators. In the final qualification work information on modern water flooding technologies used in the fields of Russia is given. Calculations of economic efficiency are implemented in the introduction of the non-stationary flooding method. The process of work of flooding methods in the conditions of Russian deposits is analyzed. Bachelor's work is executed in the text editor Microsoft Word, and Microsoft Excel

Evelopment of the model of diagnosis of the risk of bankruptcy

The article presents an overview of foreign and domestic models for the diagnosis of bankruptcy risk, and gives a brief description of them. Also considered the development of our own model of bankruptcy risk diagnostics for Russian enterprise

Estimating the Bowen ratio over the open and ice-covered ocean

The Bowen ratio, the ratio of the turbulent surface fluxes of sensible (Hₛ) and latent (Hₗ) heat, Bo ≡ Hₛ/Hₗ, occurs throughout micrometeorology. It finds application in the Bowen ratio and energy budget method, where it provides both turbulent heat fluxes when only the available energy at the surface is known. It can yield an estimate of a missing Hₛ or Hₗ if the other flux is known. We also suggest that the Bowen ratio may provide the missing piece needed to infer the surface sensible heat flux from satellite data. For this study, we analyze almost 9000 eddy-covariance measurements of Hₛ and Hₗ. About half were made over sea ice; the other half, over the open ocean. These are saturated surfaces where the surface specific humidity is the saturation value at the surface temperature. Surface temperatures ranged from -44°C to 32°C and predict the Bowen ratio through the Bowen ratio indicator, Bo* ¼ cₚ=/(Lᵥ∂Qₛₐₜ/∂ϴ|ϴₛ . Here cₚ is the specific heat of air at constant pressure, Lᵥ is the latent heat of sublimation or vaporization, and ∂Qₛₐₜ=∂ϴ is the derivative of the saturation specific humidity (Qₛₐₜ) with temperature (ϴ). All quantities are evaluated at the surface temperature, ϴₛ. Although Hₛ and Hₗ can occur in nine possible combinations, in our data set, three combinations represent over 90% of the cases: Hₛ>0 and Hₗ>0, Hₛ0. In each of these three cases, the data suggest Bo ¼ aBo*, where a is 0.40, 3.27, and -0.65, respectively.This is the publisher’s final pdf

Restriction of AID activity and somatic hypermutation by PARP-1

Affinity maturation of the humoral immune response depends on somatic hypermutation (SHM) of immunoglobulin (Ig) genes, which is initiated by targeted lesion introduction by activation-induced deaminase (AID), followed by error-prone DNA repair. Stringent regulation of this process is essential to prevent genetic instability, but no negative feedback control has been identified to date. Here we show that poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) is a key factor restricting AID activity during somatic hypermutation. Poly(ADP-ribose) (PAR) chains formed at DNA breaks trigger AID-PAR association, thus preventing excessive DNA damage induction at sites of AID action. Accordingly, AID activity and somatic hypermutation at the Ig variable region is decreased by PARP-1 activity. In addition, PARP-1 regulates DNA lesion processing by affecting strand biased A:T mutagenesis. Our study establishes a novel function of the ancestral genome maintenance factor PARP-1 as a critical local feedback regulator of both AID activity and DNA repair during Ig gene diversification

The Critical Richardson Number and Limits of Applicability of Local Similarity Theory in the Stable Boundary Layer

Measurements of atmospheric turbulence made over the Arctic pack ice during the Surface Heat Budget of the Arctic Ocean experiment (SHEBA) are used to determine the limits of applicability of Monin-Obukhov similarity theory (in the local scaling formulation) in the stable atmospheric boundary layer. Based on the spectral analysis of wind velocity and air temperature fluctuations, it is shown that, when both of the gradient Richardson number, Ri, and the flux Richardson number, Rf, exceed a 'critical value' of about 0.20 - 0.25, the inertial subrange associated with the Richardson-Kolmogorov cascade dies out and vertical turbulent fluxes become small. Some small-scale turbulence survives even in this supercritical regime, but this is non-Kolmogorov turbulence, and it decays rapidly with further increasing stability. Similarity theory is based on the turbulent fluxes in the high-frequency part of the spectra that are associated with energy-containing/flux-carrying eddies. Spectral densities in this high-frequency band diminish as the Richardson-Kolmogorov energy cascade weakens; therefore, the applicability of local Monin-Obukhov similarity theory in stable conditions is limited by the inequalities Ri < Ri_cr and Rf < Rf_cr. However, it is found that Rf_cr = 0.20 - 0.25 is a primary threshold for applicability. Applying this prerequisite shows that the data follow classical Monin-Obukhov local z-less predictions after the irrelevant cases (turbulence without the Richardson-Kolmogorov cascade) have been filtered out.Comment: Boundary-Layer Meteorology (Manuscript submitted: 16 February 2012; Accepted: 10 September 2012