Diagnostic Performance-Based Assessmentl: A Tool for the Kindergarten and Primary Grade Teacher

Most elementary educators agree that assessment is a necessary preparation for instructional planning. Teachers can use one of several standardized instruments or an informal reading inventory to assess the abilities of their reading students. A problem occurs for the teacher of non-readers or the teacher of beginning readers. These students cannot be assessed with instruments requiring reading ability. They need to be evaluated with instruments that sample their ability to perform with psycho-motor, auditory, oral, and visual skill areas. These areas are the foundation of beginning reading instruction and should be measured and evaluated prior to instructional planning for each kindergarten and primary school child

Developments in relativistic nonlinear optics

We report recent results of experiments and simulations in the regime of peak laser intensities above 1019 W/cm2,1019W/cm2, including the following topics: (1) electron and proton acceleration to energies in excess of 10 MeV in well collimated beams; (2) use of laser chirp to control the growth of plasma waves and acceleration of electrons by the Raman instability; (3) all optical injection and acceleration of electrons; (4) relativistic self-focusing by means of the mutual index of refraction of two overlapping laser pulses; (5) creation of a radioisotope by the reaction 10B(d,n)11C;10B(d,n)11C; (6) high-order harmonic generation from relativistic free electrons in an underdense plasma. © 2002 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/87924/2/95_1.pd

Business ethics : practical proposals

While most people agree that the inculcation of ethical awareness is desirable, the means of stimulating this awareness vary among companies, industries and cultures. The fundamental question surrounding the difference between social responsibility and ethics is addressed. Guidelines for establishing ethical priorities from both the individual, group and organisational perspectives are provided. <br /

Extensive pleiotropism and allelic heterogeneity mediate metabolic effects of IRX3 and IRX5

While coding variants often have pleiotropic effects across multiple tissues, non-coding variants are thought to mediate their phenotypic effects by specific tissue and temporal regulation of gene expression. Here, we dissected the genetic and functional architecture of a genomic region within the FTO gene that is strongly associated with obesity risk. We show that multiple variants on a common haplotype modify the regulatory properties of several enhancers targeting IRX3 and IRX5 from megabase distances. We demonstrate that these enhancers impact gene expression in multiple tissues, including adipose and brain, and impart regulatory effects during a restricted temporal window. Our data indicate that the genetic architecture of disease-associated loci may involve extensive pleiotropy, allelic heterogeneity, shared allelic effects across tissues, and temporally-restricted effects

From Driving Simulation to Virtual Reality

Driving simulation from the very beginning of the advent of VR technology uses the very same technology for visualization and similar technology for head movement tracking and high end 3D vision. They also share the same or similar difficulties in rendering movements of the observer in the virtual environments. The visual-vestibular conflict, due to the discrepancies perceived by the human visual and vestibular systems, induce the so-called simulation sickness, when driving or displacing using a control device (ex. Joystick). Another cause for simulation sickness is the transport delay, the delay between the action and the corresponding rendering cues. Another similarity between driving simulation and VR is need for correct scale 1:1 perception. Correct perception of speed and acceleration in driving simulation is crucial for automotive experiments for Advances Driver Aid System (ADAS) as vehicle behavior has to be simulated correctly and anywhere where the correct mental workload is an issue as real immersion and driver attention is depending on it. Correct perception of distances and object size is crucial using HMDs or CAVEs, especially as their use is frequently involving digital mockup validation for design, architecture or interior and exterior lighting. Today, the advents of high resolution 4K digital display technology allows near eye resolution stereoscopic 3D walls and integrate them in high performance CAVEs. High performance CAVEs now can be used for vehicle ergonomics, styling, interior lighting and perceived quality. The first CAVE in France, built in 2001 at Arts et Metiers ParisTech, is a 4 sided CAVE with a modifiable geometry with now traditional display technology. The latest one is Renault’s 70M 3D pixel 5 sides CAVE with 4K x 4K walls and floor and with a cluster of 20 PCs. Another equipment recently designed at Renault is the motion based CARDS driving simulator with CAVE like 4 sides display system providing full 3D immersion for the driver. The separation between driving simulation and digital mockup design review is now fading though different uses will require different simulation configurations. New application domains, such as automotive AR design, will bring combined features of VR and driving simulation technics, including CAVE like display system equipped driving simulators

Lawson criterion for ignition exceeded in an inertial fusion experiment

For more than half a century, researchers around the world have been engaged in attempts to achieve fusion ignition as a proof of principle of various fusion concepts. Following the Lawson criterion, an ignited plasma is one where the fusion heating power is high enough to overcome all the physical processes that cool the fusion plasma, creating a positive thermodynamic feedback loop with rapidly increasing temperature. In inertially confined fusion, ignition is a state where the fusion plasma can begin "burn propagation" into surrounding cold fuel, enabling the possibility of high energy gain. While "scientific breakeven" (i.e., unity target gain) has not yet been achieved (here target gain is 0.72, 1.37 MJ of fusion for 1.92 MJ of laser energy), this Letter reports the first controlled fusion experiment, using laser indirect drive, on the National Ignition Facility to produce capsule gain (here 5.8) and reach ignition by nine different formulations of the Lawson criterion