7,840 research outputs found

    Implementing the Last Planner System into Cal Poly San Luis Obispo\u27s Construction Management Curriculum

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    The Last Planner System (LPS) is a method of scheduling created by the Lean Construction Institute. The purpose of this project is to introduce the LPS to current students by implementing this lean technique into a construction management lab at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Through discussions with construction professionals and college construction management professors as well as an in depth understanding of the Last Planner System, Forster has successfully created a lesson plan, complete with the necessary materials required in order to properly navigate students through the LPS. Forster is confident this exercise, when applied throughout the course of an entire quarter amid current assignments in a specialized construction lab, will positively influence students’ perception of scheduling and will serve as a mechanism to introduce students to the prevalent lean techniques currently seen throughout the construction industry

    Evidence for glutamate-mediated excitotoxic mechanisms during photoreceptor degeneration in the rd1 mouse retina

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    PURPOSE: Kinetic studies of photoreceptor cell death in the retinal degeneration (rd1) mouse model suggest that photoreceptor degeneration could result from cumulative damage. Since alterations in glutamate metabolism have been described in different models of retinitis pigmentosa, we investigated in the present work whether changes in glutamate turnover occur in the degenerating rd1 retina and whether glutamate-mediated excitotoxic mechanisms may contribute to rod photoreceptor death in this model. METHODS: Free amino acid levels were quantified in rd1 and wild-type retinas using an amino acid analyzer selecting times corresponding to early, intermediate, and terminal phases of rod photoreceptor degeneration. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to compare the mRNA expression levels of the glial L-glutamate/L-aspartate transporter GLAST, glutamine synthetase (GS), and vimentin, a marker for retinal glia, between rd1 and wild-type mouse retinas. 6-cyano-7-nitroquinoxaline-2,3-dione (CNQX), an antagonist of both AMPA and kainate subtypes of ionotropic glutamate receptors, was then daily administered from postnatal day 3 (PN3) to PN21 to rd1 mice while control rd1 mice received only physiological saline solution (7 per treatment). At PN22, the respective numbers of surviving rods i

    Global contrail radiative forcing and the impact of diurnal variations of air the impact of diurnal variations of air

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    International audienceWe combined high resolution aircraft flight data from the EU Fifth Framework Programme project AERO2k with analysis data from the ECMWF's integrated forecast system to calculate diurnally resolved 3-D contrail cover. Calibrating for the 1992 contrail cover in the Bakan area (eastern-Atlantic/western-Europe), we obtained a global, annual mean contrail cover due to persistent, line-shaped contrails of 0.04%. Adopting a contrail visible optical depth of 0.1, this contrail cover results in a global, annual mean radiative forcing of 2.0 mW/m2 for all-sky and 2.1 mW/m2 for clear sky conditions. Less than 40% of the global distance travelled by aircraft is due to flights during local night time. Yet, due to the cancellation of shortwave and longwave effects during daytime, night-flights contribute a disproportional 60 to 76% to the annual mean forcing. In general, regions with a significant local contrail radiative forcing are also regions for which night time flights amount to less than half of the daily total of flights. Neglecting diurnal variations in air traffic/contrail cover by assuming a diurnal mean contrail cover can therefore increase the global mean radiative forcing by up to 30%. Scaling the 1992 forcing for the year 2000 fuel usage and accounting for differences in contrail optical depth, our forcing estimate is at the lower end but within the range of the most recent results. This reinforces the finding that some earlier published estimates of contrail radiative forcing are likely to be too large. Our study builds confidence in the calculation of contrail radiative forcing. Once the amount and optical properties of contrails are known there is relatively little uncertainty about their radiative effects. However, global model calculations of contrail radiative forcing crucially rely on scaling their contrail cover with observations. We therefore see the urgent need for an update of area mean contrail cover values derived from multi-year analyses of observational data

    The Physical Properties of LBGs at z>5: Outflows and the "pre-enrichment problem"

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    We discuss the properties of Lyman Break galaxies (LBGs) at z>5 as determined from disparate fields covering approximately 500 sq. arcmin. While the broad characteristics of the LBG population has been discussed extensively in the literature, such as luminosity functions and clustering amplitude, we focus on the detailed physical properties of the sources in this large survey (>100 with spectroscopic redshifts). Specifically, we discuss ensemble mass estimates, stellar mass surface densities, core phase space densities, star-formation intensities, characteristics of their stellar populations, etc as obtained from multi-wavelength data (rest-frame UV through optical) for a subsample of these galaxies. In particular, we focus on evidence that these galaxies drive vigorous outflows and speculate that this population may solve the so-called ``pre-enrichment problem''. The general picture that emerges from these studies is that these galaxies, observed about 1 Gyr after the Big Bang, have properties consistent with being the progenitors of the densest stellar systems in the local Universe -- the centers of old bulges and early type galaxies.Comment: 4 pages, to appear in "Pathways Through an Eclectic Universe", J. H. Knappen, T. J. Mahoney, and A. Vazedekis (Eds.), ASP Conf. Ser., 200

    Progress maps: Assessment Resource Kit

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    A progress map describes the nature of development in an area of learning and so provides a frame of reference for monitoring individual growth. An essential feature of a progress map is that it describes and illustrates developing competence. This issue in the Assessment Resource Kit (ARK) magazine series discusses how to construct a progress map and check against student achievement for revision of progress, elaborating, and refining descriptions of typical progress through an area of learning, and setting benchmarks. It comprises five articles on different aspects progress maps: 1. What is a progress map; 2. Drafting a progress map; 3. Revising a progress map; 4. Enriching a progress map; 5. Setting benchmarks.https://research.acer.edu.au/ark/1006/thumbnail.jp

    Portfolios: Assessment Resource Kit

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    Portfolios are sources of evidence for judgements of student achievement in a range of contexts, from classroom monitoring of student performance to high-stakes summative assessment. All portfolios, whatever their purpose, contain \u27pieces of evidence\u27. The more relevant the evidence, the more useful it is for inferring a student\u27s level of achievement in a learning area. This issue on portfolios in the Assessment Resource Kit (ARK) magazine series contains five articles: 1. Different portfolios for different purposes; 2. Working portfolios; 3. Documentary portfolios; 4. Show portfolios; 5. Designing portfolio assessments.https://research.acer.edu.au/ark/1004/thumbnail.jp

    Projects: Assessment Resource Kit

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    Projects are extended pieces of work completed over a period of time. They are investigations which involve the collection, organisation, evaluation, and presentation of material or data. Projects are usually completed by individuals or small groups of students with the teacher acting as supervisor. This issue of the Assessment Resource Kit (ARK) magazine series is intended to give teachers a deeper understanding of how to assess student projects. Topics covered in the five articles include: what is project assessment, ways of assessing the process of project work, ways of assessing the end products of project work, comparing student projects and finally designing student assessments.https://research.acer.edu.au/ark/1007/thumbnail.jp

    Workshop manual: Implementing developmental assessment.

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    This workshop manual has been developed as a resource for curriculum coordinators in schools, staff in curriculum and assessment support roles in regional and central offices, and others interested in the professional development of teachers in the areas of assessment and reporting. The manual provides resources for a single workshop Implementing developmental assessment. It is part of the Assessment Resource Kit (ARK), a series of magazines on assessment and reporting issues and methods. Workshop contents: Implementing developmental assessment: workshop overview. Section 1: Progress maps Section 2: Assessment methods Section 3: Judging and recording Section 4: Estimating attainment Section 5: Reporting.https://research.acer.edu.au/ark/1008/thumbnail.jp
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