Test well exploration in the Myakka River Basin area, Florida

In recent years, difficulties encountered in obtaining ground-water supplies with acceptable chemical characteristics in the Myakka River basin area led to the implementation of a test drilling program. Under this program, well drilling and data collection were executed in such a manner that all water-producing zones of the local aquifers, together with the quality and quantity of the water available, were effectively identified. A step-drilling method was utilized which allowed the collection of formation cuttings, water samples, and water-level data, from isolated zones in the well as drilling proceeded. The step drilling procedure is described. The driller's logs, geophysical logs, and chemical quality of water tables are presented.(Document has 66 pages.

Bridging the Knowing/Doing Gap to Create High Engagement Work cultures

The magnitude of investment made by U.S. organizations in the training and development of individuals is significant, as business leaders strive to implement strategies to create high engagement work cultures. Most initiatives are training-based and aimed at managers, and enjoy limited success. The question then arises, are the managers failing to grasp what they are taught, or are they failing to implement it? Through a qualitative analysis of both student/employee and management/employer responses regarding actions and behaviors linked to high engagement work cultures, I establish strong support for the argument that managers do in fact know what factors create high engagement environments, as do their employees; lack of training is not the culprit. Hence, I explore management perceptions in order to discover what barriers prevent them from implementing what they know is necessary. By comparing perceived barriers to known qualities of a high engagement work cultures, I suggest strategies for reducing barriers and increasing success. These strategies can then be used to identify the optimal arenas in which organizations can direct investments in order to provide appropriate resources and support to managers responsible for creating high engagement work cultures. This small yet disciplined qualitative research study sets the stage for future research studies

Developing Emotional Intelligence In MBA Students: A Case Study Of One Programs Success

Over the past two decades an escalating interest in the construct of emotional intelligence (EI) has made its way into the popular press, professional press, and peer reviewed journals.Not surprisingly, an interest in EI is also gaining ground in academic settings (Parker, Duffy, Wood, Bond & Hogan, 2002; Parker, Hogan, Eastabrook, Oke & Wood, 2006; Parker, Saklofske, Wood & Eastabrook, 2005). Several major longitudinal studies have laid a sound theoretical foundation supporting the development of EI competencies as a component of the MBA curriculum (Boyatzis, Stubbs & Taylor, 2002; Boyatzis & Saatcioglu, 2008). This paper will describe why and how one MBA program took theory to practice and piloted the integration of content designed to develop competencies related to emotional intelligence into its curriculum.It will also review the results of an applied multi-year study that measured the results of the curriculum pilot.The study was conducted using one of the most widely used instruments for measuring emotional intelligence, the Bar-On Emotional Quotient Inventory (Bar-On, 1997), to identify significant changes between the beginning and the end of the program in the aggregate measures of emotional intelligence competencies

Engineering As A Social Activity: Preparing Engineers To Thrive In The Changing World Of Work

Key macro-trends are combining to create a new work context for the practice of engineering. Telecommuting and virtual teams create myriad possibilities and challenges related to managing work and workers. Social network technology tools allow for unprecedented global, 24/7 collaboration. Globalization has created hyper-diverse organizations, magnifying the possibility for both generative creativity and destructive conflict. A growing body of research makes it clear that effectiveness in the changing world of work requires thinking differently and working differently. There is an emerging consensus that socio-cultural competence is an essential addition to the technical competence that has traditionally been identified as critical for engineers. Related to this, the value added to the work of engineering by the development of emotional intelligence (EI) competencies is gaining attention in the professional and the educational engineering literature. This paper describes a program for integrating emotional intelligence content into the curriculum in order to better prepare graduates to add value to their organizations and experience personal success working in the new normal. It also discusses the findings from a multi-year research study that measured the results of the program.

Plasmodium knowlesi: a superb in vivo nonhuman primate model of antigenic variation in malaria.

Antigenic variation in malaria was discovered in Plasmodium knowlesi studies involving longitudinal infections of rhesus macaques (M. mulatta). The variant proteins, known as the P. knowlesi Schizont Infected Cell Agglutination (SICA) antigens and the P. falciparum Erythrocyte Membrane Protein 1 (PfEMP1) antigens, expressed by the SICAvar and var multigene families, respectively, have been studied for over 30 years. Expression of the SICA antigens in P. knowlesi requires a splenic component, and specific antibodies are necessary for variant antigen switch events in vivo. Outstanding questions revolve around the role of the spleen and the mechanisms by which the expression of these variant antigen families are regulated. Importantly, the longitudinal dynamics and molecular mechanisms that govern variant antigen expression can be studied with P. knowlesi infection of its mammalian and vector hosts. Synchronous infections can be initiated with established clones and studied at multi-omic levels, with the benefit of computational tools from systems biology that permit the integration of datasets and the design of explanatory, predictive mathematical models. Here we provide an historical account of this topic, while highlighting the potential for maximizing the use of P. knowlesi - macaque model systems and summarizing exciting new progress in this area of research

CHEMICAL CONTROL OF DEPREDATING BLACKBIRDS IN ONTARIO FIELD CORN

Corn depredation by red·winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) has been an agricultural problem in southwestern Ontario for many years. Large marsh areas along the shoreline of Lakes Erie and St. Clair provide ideal habitat for breeding and roosting. Concurrently, the vast monocultural field corn acreages in Kent and Essex Counties have over the years been the centers for blackbird depredation in the province. The expansion of corn production into other areas of Ontario has, however, resulted in a province·wide distribution of damage, and substantial crop losses for specific individual farmers (Tyler and Kannenberg, 1980). The Ontario Ministry of the Environment (OME) provided funding for a four·year research program on the importance, ecology and control of blackbirds in 1976 following mounting concern by Ontario corn producers. Dyer (1968) completed a major study on red-winged blackbirds in Dover Township, Kent County during the period 1964-68; however, the evaluation of 4-AP efficacy was a minor component of the project (Dyer, 1976). Thus, the OME required efficacy data on 4-AP for current Ontario conditions for registration purposes, regardless of the 1972 registration in the U.S.A. Methiocarb (3,5-dimethyl-4(methylthio) phenol methylcarbamate) (Mesurol®, Mobay Chemical Corp.) was also a candidate compound because of the known taste aversion properties (Rcigers, 1974; Crase and Dehaven, 1976). Again, the OME required data on the efficacy of methiocarb as a bird repellent in ripening field corn. Research on the potential for lethal roost control was an initial objective; however, this component of chemical control was not pursued. Conversely, lethal control at foraging sites was not an initial objective, however, ecological studies completed (Somers et aI., 1981b) suggested that the use of toxicants in a corn field may have potential. Pilot studies using Starlicide® (Ralston-Purina Co.) and a-chloralose at foraging sites were completed to evaluate this hypothesis

Ecology and Management of Depredating Blackbirds in Ontario Field Corn

Blackbird damage to field corn in southwestern Ontario has been a problem for farmers for many years (Whitney 1954; Dyer 1968). Historically, Kent and Essex counties were the major corn-growing regions in Ontario, and the most significant centers of corn depredation by blackbirds were in these counties. However, the development of new short-season cultivars has afforded the expansion of field corn production and corn depredation problems throughout southern Ontario. The Ontario Ministry of the Environment (OME) provided funding commencing in 1976 in response to these increased instances of corn depredation for a 4-year research program on the importance, ecology and control of blackbirds

Spectral Statistics of "Cellular" Billiards

For a bounded planar domain $\Omega^0$ whose boundary contains a number of flat pieces $\Gamma_i$ we consider a family of non-symmetric billiards $\Omega$ constructed by patching several copies of $\Omega^0$ along $\Gamma_i$'s. It is demonstrated that the length spectrum of the periodic orbits in $\Omega$ is degenerate with the multiplicities determined by a matrix group $G$. We study the energy spectrum of the corresponding quantum billiard problem in $\Omega$ and show that it can be split in a number of uncorrelated subspectra corresponding to a set of irreducible representations $\alpha$ of $G$. Assuming that the classical dynamics in $\Omega^0$ are chaotic, we derive a semiclassical trace formula for each spectral component and show that their energy level statistics are the same as in standard Random Matrix ensembles. Depending on whether ${\alpha}$ is real, pseudo-real or complex, the spectrum has either Gaussian Orthogonal, Gaussian Symplectic or Gaussian Unitary types of statistics, respectively.Comment: 18 pages, 4 figure