College readiness: The disconnect between high school and community college

The proportion of students attending college continues to increase and college remediation rates remain considerably high, particularly at community colleges. This study explored high school teachers and community college perceptions of college readiness in the area of English. An explanatory sequential mixed methods approach was employed to develop a better understanding of teachers\u27 perceptions of students\u27 preparedness for the academics rigors of college English. This study was motivated by three research questions. How do community college professors describe college-readiness in the area of English? How do high school teachers describe college-readiness in the area of English? What aspects of college-readiness are identified by educators as current priorities for remedies? To examine these questions, quantitative data were obtained from (N=38) educators through the use of a survey seeking to pinpoint areas of strength and weakness. To further examine the issue of college-readiness and to further explain the data from the quantitative phase, interviews were conducted with (N=10) educators from the original group. The results revealed a disconnect between high school and community colleges particularly in the areas of articulation, remediation, and deficiencies. Participant narratives highlighted specific areas where students are unprepared for credit-bearing college English. Implications for policy, practice, and research were discussed

Possibility to realize spin-orbit-induced correlated physics in iridium fluorides

Recent theoretical predictions of "unprecedented proximity" of the electronic ground state of iridium fluorides to the SU(2) symmetric $j_{\mathrm{eff}}=1/2$ limit, relevant for superconductivity in iridates, motivated us to investigate their crystal and electronic structure. To this aim, we performed high-resolution x-ray powder diffraction, Ir L$_3$-edge resonant inelastic x-ray scattering, and quantum chemical calculations on Rb$_2$[IrF$_6$] and other iridium fluorides. Our results are consistent with the Mott insulating scenario predicted by Birol and Haule [Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 096403 (2015)], but we observe a sizable deviation of the $j_{\mathrm{eff}}=1/2$ state from the SU(2) symmetric limit. Interactions beyond the first coordination shell of iridium are negligible, hence the iridium fluorides do not show any magnetic ordering down to at least 20 K. A larger spin-orbit coupling in iridium fluorides compared to oxides is ascribed to a reduction of the degree of covalency, with consequences on the possibility to realize spin-orbit-induced strongly correlated physics in iridium fluorides

KURT ERICH SUCKERT E LA RUSSIA. NUOVE PROSPETTIVE DI STUDI MALAPARTIANI

Curzio Malaparte is a representative author of a complex era of the Italian culture. The style, the main contents, and the features of his production give voice to many of the contradictions that have characterized the first half of the twentieth century in which he lived. Moreover his same charismatic and peculiar personality was rich in contradictions by which he often tried to shock his reading public. The aim of this doctoral dissertation is to analyze some aspects of the malapartian work that have not yet been an object of detailed study and which could suggest new approaches to Malaparte\u2019s production, from a new, original, and wide perspective. Dealing with the very recurring theme of Russia in the author\u2019s work, we have highlighted in it topoi that are also identifiable in the production of contemporary authors concerning same subject. Our purpose has also been to circumscribe a part of Malaparte\u2019s production including works sharing some contents and stylistic features. We then analyzed the novel that constituted the core of our studies and research, The Kremlin Ball, trying to explain the phases of its creative elaboration, narrate the main facts that have inspired its incomplete plot, identify external literary influences and stylistic elements which are typical of the author\u2019s literary production. This research then introduces detailed considerations about the presence of the figure of Bulgakov in Malaparte\u2019s novel, a presence that has not yet been an object of study. Indeed some information should be dealt with and integrated in biographical and critical studies about Malaparte. The biographical contacts between Malaparte and Bulgakov and the similar literary atmospheres of some of their works have been discussed by some Russian researchers: we faced the results of their research with our personal critical approach. We believe that comparative studies could provide further possibilities for the our research. We aim to: integrate missing and pertinent information about the latest edition of The Kremlin Ball; present some documentary material concerning Malaparte\u2019s journey to the Soviet Union that has not been examined yet and a list of Russian translations of the author\u2019s works, in order to add them to the malapartian bibliography currently known. The purpose of this dissertation is highlighting the importance of the cultural relation between Malaparte and Russia, often considered simply as a stage in the author\u2019s ideological evolution overlooking its real and significant value. Finally, the present study analyzes the reception of Malaparte\u2019s literary production in Russia, dealing with the selection and the modes and the moments of publication of works by Malaparte, as well as the main reasons of the Russian readers and publishers\u2019 interest in Malaparte\u2019s work. Our analysis of the Russian Malaparte and the malapartian Russia is meant to understand something more about both. Most of all, as the title of the dissertation testifies, we want to offer new perspectives on Malaparte\u2019s studies, since we believe that much still deserves to be investigated about the author

Model checking the evolution of gene regulatory networks

The behaviour of gene regulatory networks (GRNs) is typically analysed using simulation-based statistical testing-like methods. In this paper, we demonstrate that we can replace this approach by a formal verification-like method that gives higher assurance and scalability. We focus on Wagner’s weighted GRN model with varying weights, which is used in evolutionary biology. In the model, weight parameters represent the gene interaction strength that may change due to genetic mutations. For a property of interest, we synthesise the constraints over the parameter space that represent the set of GRNs satisfying the property. We experimentally show that our parameter synthesis procedure computes the mutational robustness of GRNs—an important problem of interest in evolutionary biology—more efficiently than the classical simulation method. We specify the property in linear temporal logic. We employ symbolic bounded model checking and SMT solving to compute the space of GRNs that satisfy the property, which amounts to synthesizing a set of linear constraints on the weights

Puente sobre el río Quequen Salado

This bridge has a single span, 60 m in length, and has a maximum rise of 9 m. It is made of reinforced concrete. In this project the authors tested in practice a number of theoretical investigations which they had previously carried out on the influence which the shape of a structure has on its strength and stability. They finally arrived at a solution consisting of a single reinforced concrete arch, of polygonal outline, which thereby has an increased moment of inertia, and is more similar to a hollow section. It has less weight, and is very slender. Due to the reduction in weight, the formwork is cheaper, and the stiffness is considerably improved by the addition of a series of suitably spaced diaphragms. Another feature of this project is that the arch has two hinges, one at each springer, and this causes part of the structure to be hyperstatic.El puente sobre el río Quequen Salado, de hormigón armado, tiene 60 m de luz en su tramo único y 9 m de flecha máxima. Los autores del proyecto, que estudiaron con anterioridad la influencia que la forma de una estructura puede tener en la estabilidad y resistencia de la obra, aprovecharon la oportunidad que ahora se les brindaba para comprobar experimentalmente las ideas instituidas en los estudios de orden teórico realizados. De todos estos ensayos resultó la solución adoptada, que consiste en un solo arco, de hormigón armado, con sección transversal de forma poligonal o quebrada, que por un lado gana inercia y por otro se asemeja a las secciones huecas; es de reducido peso y gran esbeltez. Como consecuencia del aligeramiento de peso propio, la cimbra resulta más económica; y la. rigidez se ve considerablemente aumentada con la introducción de unos diafragmas convenientemente espaciados. Otra particularidad de esta obra la constituye la presencia de dos articulaciones, una para arranque, lo que introduce un estado hiperestático en estas partes de la obra

Closing the knowledge gap on the composition of the asbestos bodies

Asbestos bodies (AB) form in the lungs as a result of a biomineralization process initiated by the alveolar macrophages in the attempt to remove asbestos. During this process, organic and inorganic material deposit on the foreign fibers forming a Fe-rich coating. The AB start to form in months, thus quickly becoming the actual interface between asbestos and the lung tissue. Therefore, revealing their composition, and, in particular, the chemical form of Fe, which is the major component of the AB, is essential to assess their possible role in the pathogenesis of asbestos-related diseases. In this work we report the result of the first x-ray diffraction measurements performed on single AB embedded in the lung tissue samples of former asbestos plant workers. The combination with x-ray absorption spectroscopy data allowed to unambiguously reveal that Fe is present in the AB in the form of two Fe-oxy(hydroxides): ferrihydrite and goethite. The presence of goethite, which can be explained in terms of the transformation of ferrihydrite (a metastable phase) due to the acidic conditions induced by the alveolar macrophages in their attempt to phagocytose the fibers, has toxicological implications that are discussed in the paper

Cubic or Not Cubic? Combined Experimental and Computational Investigation of the Short-Range Order of Tin Halide Perovskites

Tin-based metal halide perovskites with a composition of ASnX3 (where A= MA or FA and X = I or Br) have been investigated by means of X-ray total scattering techniques coupled to pair distribution function (PDF) analysis. These studies revealed that that none of the four perovskites has a cubic symmetry at the local scale and that a degree of increasing distortion is always present, in particular when the cation size is increased, i.e., from MA to FA, and the hardness of the anion is increased, i.e., from Br- to I-. Electronic structure calculations provided good agreement with experimental band gaps for the four perovskites when local dynamical distortions were included in the calculations. The averaged structure obtained from molecular dynamics simulations was consistent with experimental local structures determined via X-ray PDF, thus highlighting the robustness of computational modeling and strengthening the correlation between experimental and computational results

Mycobacterium tuberculosis Surgical Site Infection after Cardiac Surgery in the COVID-19 Era: A Case Report

Infection of surgical wounds with acid-fast bacilli, including tubercle bacilli, is rare, and is poorly described in the literature. We present the case of a 74-year-old male who developed a sternal wound infection after cardiac surgery due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex, diagnosed post-mortem. SARS-CoV-2 infection contributed to worsened clinical conditions and surgical site infection. A high degree of suspicion to avoid unnecessary treatments and progression to severe disease with dismal prognosis is necessary in these types of infections