AFFIRMING RESPECT AND KINDNESS WITHIN A CLASSROOM COMMUNITY THROUGH DISCUSSION AND MULTICULTURAL LITERATURE

The purpose of this research was to investigate how students in a third-grade classroom can engage with multicultural texts and learn about cultures that are different from their own. Furthermore, it investigated the impact of multicultural literature on respect and kindness in a classroom community. Throughout the four-week study, students read twelve different multicultural texts and engaged in classroom discussions during Morning Meeting. Students participated in group discussions expressing their ideas, thoughts, feelings, and beliefs related to the context of the books read. The strategies used for this qualitative research were questionnaires, teacher observations, and whole group and small group discussions. Finally, analysis of the data revealed several themes related to kindness and respect. Students fostered connections with other students and showed acceptance of diverse cultures. Other revealed themes included, cultural identity, empathy, bridging school and home life through the use of the Funds of Knowledge survey (Gonzalez, Moll, and Amantito, 2005) to gain a deeper understanding of student cultural background and the need to integrate multicultural literature into established curriculum across content areas. The implications for educators include exposing students to multicultural literature combined with a scaffolded discussion to further students\u27 knowledge and understanding of the diversity within the world around them

New approaches to optimize freeze-drying of monoclonal antibodies

Over the last years, serious interest in emerging next-generation freeze-drying technologies raised. One promising technology that stands out due to its proven benefits in food technology is microwave-assisted freeze-drying (MFD). As briefly outlined in section I.3.2, MFD has the potential to overcome drawbacks like long drying-times due to its volumetric heating of the entire sample. However, little is known of its feasibility for pharmaceutical applications, particularly in the field of sensitive biologicals. For this reason, the first part of this thesis, Chapter II and Chapter III, is dealing with the investigation of vial-based microwave-assisted freeze-drying concerning the applicability to standard lyophilization formulations and effects on protein stability. In Chapter II, the applicability and feasibility of this technology to different monoclonal antibody formulations and the influence on the resulting product properties are subject to investigation. Moreover, the potential for drying time savings is examined. The product quality of four different pharmaceutically relevant monoclonal antibody formulations over storage and the influence of the microwave generator on batch homogeneity are studied in Chapter III. The second part of this work, Chapter IV – Chapter VI, is dedicated to detailed investigations on open questions in controlled ice nucleation (CN) in the field of freeze-drying of biologicals. Although there have been multiple publications, reports, and case studies about CN over the last two decades, experts in the freeze-drying community are still lacking essential information on aspects of comparability of different controlled ice nucleation techniques, general good practice of process design, and how to monitor the nucleation success of a whole batch non-destructively. In Chapter IV, a case study of three relevant model formulations is presented which aims to investigate if mechanistically different controlled ice nucleation techniques in freeze-drying are comparable to each other concerning drying process performance and product quality attributes. A study analyzing factors that affect the success of CN and questions of process design are studied and discussed in Chapter V. In Chapter VI a new technological solution for control of the nucleation success using a camera-based approach is presented in a proof of concept study. Chapter VII summarizes and concludes the results of the present thesis and gives an outlook

Assessment of potential operating benefits incurred by implementing ISO 14001 : five case studies from the New Jersey Chemical Industry

Environmental management is an important aspect of strategic planning and competitiveness for many businesses. Environmental management systems (EMS) are operating policies that are established to help a company measure progress towards goals set forth in a strategic environmental plan. A growing number of EMS models are being used by countries and industry groups, so the International Standards Organization (ISO) developed one model to prevent duplicate efforts which can result when companies try to meet the import requirements of different countries. The ISO-EMS model is a series of standards, and ISO 14001 is the first to be published. Companies will be driven to implement the standard by two factors. One is external, such as meeting customer demand or import requirements. The other factor is acknowledgment of internal benefits reaped, such as cost reductions, increased understanding of the environmental impacts, reduced hazardous emissions, implementation of pollution prevention activities, better regulatory compliance record, and an improved relationship with community members. The purpose of this study was to determine if the study population would benefit from implementing an ISO-EMS, and the findings were that these companies would not

New approaches to optimize freeze-drying of monoclonal antibodies

Over the last years, serious interest in emerging next-generation freeze-drying technologies raised. One promising technology that stands out due to its proven benefits in food technology is microwave-assisted freeze-drying (MFD). As briefly outlined in section I.3.2, MFD has the potential to overcome drawbacks like long drying-times due to its volumetric heating of the entire sample. However, little is known of its feasibility for pharmaceutical applications, particularly in the field of sensitive biologicals. For this reason, the first part of this thesis, Chapter II and Chapter III, is dealing with the investigation of vial-based microwave-assisted freeze-drying concerning the applicability to standard lyophilization formulations and effects on protein stability. In Chapter II, the applicability and feasibility of this technology to different monoclonal antibody formulations and the influence on the resulting product properties are subject to investigation. Moreover, the potential for drying time savings is examined. The product quality of four different pharmaceutically relevant monoclonal antibody formulations over storage and the influence of the microwave generator on batch homogeneity are studied in Chapter III. The second part of this work, Chapter IV – Chapter VI, is dedicated to detailed investigations on open questions in controlled ice nucleation (CN) in the field of freeze-drying of biologicals. Although there have been multiple publications, reports, and case studies about CN over the last two decades, experts in the freeze-drying community are still lacking essential information on aspects of comparability of different controlled ice nucleation techniques, general good practice of process design, and how to monitor the nucleation success of a whole batch non-destructively. In Chapter IV, a case study of three relevant model formulations is presented which aims to investigate if mechanistically different controlled ice nucleation techniques in freeze-drying are comparable to each other concerning drying process performance and product quality attributes. A study analyzing factors that affect the success of CN and questions of process design are studied and discussed in Chapter V. In Chapter VI a new technological solution for control of the nucleation success using a camera-based approach is presented in a proof of concept study. Chapter VII summarizes and concludes the results of the present thesis and gives an outlook

Should the United States Designate Specialist Patent Trial Judges? An Empirical Analysis of H.R. 628 in Light of the English Experience and the Work of Professor Moore

The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit currently reverses from one-third to nearly one-half of all U.S. district court patent claim construction decisions. Because claim construction often determines the outcome of patent litigation, the high appellate claim construction reversal rate contributes to significant uncertainty among inventors and investors. Congress is currently considering legislation, H.R. 628, which will designate specialist district court patent judges to reduce this unacceptably high reversal rate.This Article concludes that designation of specialist patent trial judges among the federal district court judiciary is likely to reduce the high appellate claim construction reversal rate, based upon an empirical analysis of the appellate claim construction reversal rate in England, which has specialized patent tribunals. Part I of the Article examines proposed U.S. legislation that would designate specialized patent trial judges. Part II analyzes the patent claim construction process in the United States, enumerating the challenges faced by generalist U.S. district court judges charged with deciding highly complex patent litigation actions. Part III then examines the English patent claim construction process, drawing numerous parallels between patent litigation in the United States and England that render the English system a valid comparator when considering the respective appellate claim construction reversal rates in the two jurisdictions. Part IV presents empirical results that strongly support the notion that designation of specialist patent trial judges in the United States could indeed decrease the appellate claim construction reversal rate, thereby affording certainty to patent litigants and investors. Part V then explains why the approach proposed in H.R. 628 is superior to the current English system of specialized patent trial courts