A Policy Analysis of the Minnesota Family Investment Program - Statewide: The Employment and Training Component

Minnesota has just began one of its biggest welfare overhauls ever through the state\u27s new policy: The Minnesota Family Investment-statewide (MFIP-S). The Federal welfare policy reform, Temporary Assistance for Needy families (TANF), initiated this revamp and has shifted focus to temporary assistance and mandatory work requirements for welfare participants. The employment and training component of the MFIP-S policy is currently being implemented and has proven to play an important role in this major effort that will affect thousands of people. This paper analyzes the employment and training component of MFIP-S, specifically concentrating on how it will affect single-mothers. The following research question is posed: Will the employment and training component of MFIP-S effectively meet the intended goals of welfare reform for single-mothers? The analysis found strengths in this policy, including intense job search assistance and a needy job market for workers, but also found weakness\u27, such as unrealistic time limits and lack of a safety net for children. The findings indicate that there will be several intended policy goals achieved, but that poverty will increase and many will be unable to find and maintain suitable employment. Implications for the future and social work practice are discussed

Correlating Infall with Deuterium Fractionation in Dense Cores

We present a survey of HCO+ (3-2) observations pointed towards dense cores with previous measurements of N(N2D+)/N(N2H+). Of the 26 cores in this survey, five show the spectroscopic signature of outward motion, nine exhibit neither inward nor outward motion, eleven appear to be infalling, and one is not detected. We compare the degree of deuterium fractionation with infall velocities calculated from the HCO+ spectra and find that those cores with [D]/[H] > 0.1 are more likely to have the signature of inward motions than cores with smaller [D]/[H] ratios. Infall motions are also much more common in cores with masses exceeding their thermal Jeans masses. The fastest infall velocity measured belongs to one of the two protostellar cores in our survey, L1521F, and the observed motions are typically on the order of the sound speed.Comment: Accepted to Ap

Reuse as heuristic : from transmission to nurture in learning activity design

In recent years a combination of ever more flexible and sophisticated Web technologies and an explosion in the quantity of online content has sparked learning technologists around the world to pursue the promise of the 'reusable learning object' or RLO with the idea that RLOs could be reused in different educational contexts, thereby providing greater overall flexibility and return on investment. In 2002 the ACETS Project undertook a three-year study in the UK to investigate whether RLOs worked in practice and how the pursuit of reuse affected the teacher and their teaching. Teachers working in healthcare-related subjects in Higher and Further Education were asked to create an original learning design or activity from third-party digital resources and to reflect both on the process and its outcomes. The expectation was that teachers would be the ones selecting and reusing third-party materials. This paper describes how one of the ACETS exemplifiers reinterpreted this remit, challenged the anticipated transmissive model of learning, and instead, gave their students an opportunity to create their own original learning designs and learning activities from third-party digital resources. By describing the educational enhancements, the resulting heightened levels of critical thinking, and sensitivity to patient needs, 'reuse' will be shown to be an effective heuristic for student self-direction and professional development

Infall/Expansion Velocities in the Low-Mass Dense Cores L492, L694-2, and L1521F: Dependence on Position and Molecular Tracer

Although surveys of infall motions in dense cores have been carried out for years, few surveys have focused on mapping infall across cores using multiple spectral line observations. To fill this gap, we present IRAM 30-m Telescope maps of N2H+(1-0), DCO+(2-1), DCO+(3-2), and HCO+(3-2) emission towards two prestellar cores (L492 and L694-2) and one protostellar core (L1521F). We find that the measured infall velocity varies with position across each core and choice of molecular line, likely as a result of radial variations in core chemistry and dynamics. Line-of-sight infall speeds estimated from DCO+(2-1) line profiles can decrease by 40-50 m/s when observing at a radial offset >= 0.04 pc from the core's dust continuum emission peak. Median infall speeds calculated from all observed positions across a core can also vary by as much as 65 m/s depending on the transition. These results show that while single-pointing, single-transition surveys of core infall velocities may be good indicators of whether a core is either contracting or expanding, the magnitude of the velocities they measure are significantly impacted by the choice of molecular line, proximity to the core center, and core evolutionary state.Comment: Accepted for publication in Ap

Resolved Depletion Zones and Spatial Differentiation of N2H+ and N2D+

We present a study on the spatial distribution of N2D+ and N2H+ in thirteen protostellar systems. Eight of thirteen objects observed with the IRAM 30m telescope show relative offsets between the peak N2D+ (J=2-1) and N2H+ (J=1-0) emission. We highlight the case of L1157 using interferometric observations from the Submillimeter Array and Plateau de Bure Interferometer of the N2D+ (J=3-2) and N2H+ (J=1-0) transitions respectively. Depletion of N2D+ in L1157 is clearly observed inside a radius of ~2000 AU (7") and the N2H+ emission is resolved into two peaks at radii of ~1000 AU (3.5"), inside the depletion region of N2D+. Chemical models predict a depletion zone in N2H+ and N2D+ due to destruction of H2D+ at T ~ 20 K and the evaporation of CO off dust grains at the same temperature. However, the abundance offsets of 1000 AU between the two species are not reproduced by chemical models, including a model that follows the infall of the protostellar envelope. The average abundance ratios of N2D+ to N2H+ have been shown to decrease as protostars evolve by Emprechtinger et al., but this is the first time depletion zones of N2D+ have been spatially resolved. We suggest that the difference in depletion zone radii for N2H+ and N2D+ is caused by either the CO evaporation temperature being above 20 K or an H2 ortho-to-para ratio gradient in the inner envelope.Comment: Accepted to ApJ. 44 pages 13 Figure