Inexpensive Digital-to-Analog Converter for Curve Plotting with Small Digital Computers

The use of the digital computer in engineering schools, with its ability to produce huge tables of results, soon causes the user to wonder if these results cannot be reduced to graphical form automatically. The equipment described here takes the numerical output of a digital computer on punched paper tape, converts the information on the tape to analog voltages, and uses these voltages to plot a point either on a common camera-equipped oscilloscope or on an available plotting table. Since the converter makes use of existing display equipment which every school has, uses low-cost relays, and works at a low speed, its cost is about $200, not including the tape reader. Complete details on design and construction are given

Developing and evaluating interventions to reduce inappropriate prescribing by general practitioners of antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infections: a randomised controlled trial to compare paper-based and web-based modelling experiments

Background: Much implementation research is focused on full-scale trials with little evidence of preceding modelling work. The Medical Research Council Framework for developing and evaluating complex interventions has argued for more and better theoretical and exploratory work prior to a trial as a means of improving intervention development. Intervention modelling experiments (IMEs) are a way of exploring and refining an intervention before moving to a full-scale trial. They do this by delivering key elements of the intervention in a simulation that approximates clinical practice by, for example, presenting general practitioners (GPs) with a clinical scenario about making a treatment decision. Methods: The current proposal will run a full, web-based IME involving 250 GPs that will advance the methodology of IMEs by directly comparing results with an earlier paper-based IME. Moreover, the web-based IME will evaluate an intervention that can be put into a full-scale trial that aims to reduce antibiotic prescribing for upper respiratory tract infections in primary care. The study will also include a trial of email versus postal invitations to participate. Discussion: More effective behaviour change interventions are needed and this study will develop one such intervention and a system to model and test future interventions. This system will be applicable to any situation in the National Health Service where behaviour needs to be modified, including interventions aimed directly at the public. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials (NCT): NCT0120673

Monitoring attitude toward Christianity among year 5 and year 6 students attending Church in Wales primary schools

This study argues that assessment of student attitudes provides insight into the culture and climate of schools. The Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity was employed to explore the Christian culture and climate of Anglican church primary schools within the state-maintained sector across Wales. The analysis drew on responses from 1,899 students from year 5 and year 6. The data demonstrated that the majority of students held a positive attitude toward Christianity, that female students held a more positive attitude than did male students, and that a significant decline in positive attitude toward Christianity took place over the two year groups

The internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity among 8- to 11-year-old students in Wales

The Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity was designed in the mid-1970s to assess individual differences in attitude through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood from the age of 8 years upwards. This study examines the internal consistency reliability, factor structure, and construct validity of the instrument 40 years later among 1511 year 4 students (8–9 years), 1544 year 5 students (9–10 years), and 1526 year 6 students (10–11 years) in Wales attending Church in Wales voluntary aided and voluntary controlled primary schools. The data support the internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the instrument among the age range and commend the instrument for continued use in research

Mechanisms underlying the prereversal enhancement of the vertical plasma drift in the low-latitude ionosphere

The evening prereversal enhancement (PRE) of the vertical plasma drift has important consequences for the Appleton density anomaly and the stability of the nighttime ionosphere. Simplified simulations were used to review the three competing theories of the PRE origin, to explore their relative importance, and to indentify their interdependence. The mechanisms involved in the generation and climatology of the PRE are, first, a curl-free electric field response to rapid changes in the vertical electric field associated with the nighttime F region dynamo; second, a divergence of Hall currents in the E region away from the magnetic equator; and, third, the moderating effect of the large Cowling conductivities in the equatorial E region. The simulations indicate that the equatorial Cowling conductivity creates an important current path that limits the other two mechanisms prior to equatorial sunset and releases them after equatorial sunset. The curl-free mechanism is the dominant mechanism when the terminator and magnetic meridian are aligned in part due to the accelerating F region zonal wind. When the solar terminator is not aligned with the magnetic meridian, there is an interaction involving all three mechanisms contributing to the magnitude and timing of the PRE. Finally, the altitude profile of the PRE decays more quickly with altitude when the curl-free mechanism dominates as compared to when the Hall current mechanism dominates. ©2015. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved

Assessing student attitude toward Christianity in Church in Wales primary schools : does aided status make a difference?

As a consequence of the 1944 Education Act church schools were given the choice of opting for voluntary controlled status or for voluntary aided status. In voluntary aided status the Church had more control but carried greater costs. Within England and Wales this distinction is still maintained. This study measures the attitude toward Christianity of 4,581 year 4, 5 and 6 students (8- to 11-years of age) attending 87 Church in Wales primary schools, and compares the responses of 1,678 students attending controlled schools with the responses of 2,903 students attending aided schools. After controlling for sex, age and frequency of church attendance, voluntary aided status is associated with a more positive attitude toward Christianity. In other words, aided status does make a difference to the attitudinal dimension of students’ religiosity

Modelling the effect of worship attendance and personal prayer on spiritual wellbeing among 9- to 11-year-old students attending Anglican church schools in Wales

This study employs a modified form of the Fisher 16-item Feeling Good, Living Life measure of spiritual wellbeing (assessing quality of relationships across four domains: self, family, nature, and God) among a sample of 1,328 students drawn from year five and year six classes within Church in Wales primary schools, alongside measures of frequency of worship attendance and frequency of personal prayer. The data demonstrate frequency of personal prayer is a much stronger predictor than frequency of worship attendance in respect of spiritual wellbeing. This finding is consistent with the view that personal prayer is a key factor in the formation of individual spirituality

Academic Functioning and Mental Health in Adolescence

The current study examines patterns of academic functioning and mental health in 184 middle school children and the relation of such patterns to their prior and subsequent functioning. Data were collected from children during their second, third, fourth, eighth, and ninth grade school years. Cluster analyses were used to delineate patterns of academic functioning and mental health during eighth grade. The authors examined the relation of these patterns to academic functioning and mental health 1 year later the transition to high school, and then examined the long-term developmental roots of the eighth grade patterns using data collected during elementary school years. Results indicated variegated patterns of academic and emotional functioning at eighth grade and stability in these patterns across the high school transition. Some long-term continuity was found among children showing uniformly positive or negative functioning at eighth grade. Studying child functioning across multiple domains and time periods is discussed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68127/2/10.1177_0743558499142002.pd

Change in First Graders’ Science-Related Competence Beliefs During Digitally Intensive Science Workshops

The aim of this research was to examine if a set of three science and technology workshops would promote first-grade pupils’ science-related competence beliefs. The first workshop dealt with electric circuits and related handicraft tasks. The second workshop involved programming with Lego Mindstorms robots. The third workshop was related to computer-based data logging. Fifty-nine Finnish first graders (age 7–8 years) participated in the digitally intensive science workshops, and 38 pupils served as a control group. The data were analysed using a paired samples t-test. The analysis results reveal that the set of three workshops increased the pupils’ science and technology-related competence beliefs.Peer reviewe

Correlation of structural and spectroscopic properties of a photosynthetic reaction center

Polarized spectra of absorption and light-induced absorbance changes are presented for the crystallized reaction centers of Rhodopseudomonas viridis. We find that a model based on extended dipole interaction between all six pigments is capable of interpreting detailed features such as the contributions from the individual pigments to the various absorption peaks. Even though the pigments are arranged in approximate C2 symmetry, the optical spectra together with the calculations reflect deviations from this symmetry, which may be important in understanding the electron pathway