Cooperative dynamics in doped manganite films: phonon anomalies in the ferromagnetic state

We present optical measurements of phononic excitations in La$_{2/3}$Ca$_{1/3}$MnO$_{3}$ (LCMO) and La$_{2/3}$Sr$_{1/3}$MnO$_{3}$ (LSMO) thin films covering the full temperature range from the metallic ferromagnetic to the insulating paramagnetic phase. All eight phonons expected for the R$\bar{3}$c symmetry in LSMO and 17 out of the expected 25 phonons for the Pnma symmetry in LCMO have been determined. Close to the ferromagnetic-to-paramagnetic transition both compounds reveal an anomalous behavior but with different characteristics. Anomalies in the phononic spectra are a manifestation of the coupling of lattice degrees of freedom (DOF) to electronic DOF. Specifically, the low-frequency external group proves to be an indicator for lattice modifications induced by electronic correlations. The enhanced electron-phonon coupling in LCMO is responsible for Fano-like interference effects of distinct phonon modes with electronic continuum excitations: we observe asymmetric phonon line shapes, mode splitting and spectral weight transfer between modes.Comment: 10 pages, 10 figure

Interesse durch Öffnung des Unterrichts - wodurch?

Aus motivationspsychologischer Forschungstradition ist bekannt, dass das Empfinden von Autonomie oder Selbstbestimmung unabdingbar für Aufbau und Erhalt von intrinsischer Motivation und Interesse ist. Für verschiedene Formen der Öffnung von Unterricht konnte auch gezeigt werden, dass sie dazu beitragen, das Interesse von Schüler/innen zu unterstützen. Nicht geklärt ist bislang jedoch, ob dieser Zusammenhang zwischen Öffnung von Unterricht und Interesse tatsächlich über das Empfinden von Selbstbestimmung geschieht oder ob andere Einflussfaktoren hier zum Tragen kommen. Die Daten einer Studie mit 1091 Grundschüler/innen aus 45 Klassen zeigen, dass in den untersuchten Klassen die Kinder mehr Interesse am Unterricht angaben, wenn dieser Unterricht durch Mitbestimmungsmöglichkeiten für sie geprägt war und sie sich dadurch als selbstbestimmt empfanden. Neben diesem Pfad über das Selbstbestimmungsempfinden gibt es jedoch keine weiteren positiven Zusammenhänge zwischen Öffnung von Unterricht und Interesse. Zugleich weisen die Schüler/innen, die sich trotz vorhandener Freiräume im Unterricht als wenig selbstbestimmt empfinden, das geringste Interesse auf. (DIPF/Orig.)Numerous results from research in motivation psychology show that the feeling of autonomy and self-determination is indispensable for constitution and maintenance of intrinsic motivation and interest. In addition it has been shown that different forms of open education contribute to support student\u27s interest. It is ambiguous however whether this correlation between open education and interest is actually linked to the feeling of self-determination or if it is effected by other psychological factors. Our own studies with 1091 students from 45 classes at elementary schools show that children have more interest in instruction contents if this teaching is affected by opportunities of participation which gives them a feeling of self-determination. Beside this path there was no positive correlation between open education and interest, however. At the same time the students showed a minimum interest, who felt less self-determined despite obviously existing open forms of education. (DIPF/Orig.

Of the silmarils and the ring: J. R. R. Tolkien\u27s fiction and the importance of creation and art

J. R. R. Tolkien embodies the opposing ideals of Enchantment and the Machine in the Silmarils and the One Ring respectively. These created objects oppose each other just as Tolkien’s ideals of art do. Enchantment is art’s ideal, it\u27s purpose is to glorify and enrich the beauty of reality through subcreation. The Silmarils exhibit the delight of making and perceiving beauty. Whereas the Machine is art’s shadowy reflection that utilizes apparatuses or devices rather than personal talent in order to coerce others and reality itself. Overall Tolkien\u27s aesthetic theories reflect many fears surrounding modern attitudes toward weaponizing art. Tolkien supplies Enchantment as the solution to these problems surrounding art and creativity in an oppressively technological world

Large and Small Polaron Excitations in La2/3(Sr/Ca)1/3MnO3 Films

We present detailed optical measurements of the mid-infrared (MIR) excitations in thin films of La2/3Sr1/3MnO3 (LSMO) and La2/3Ca1/3MnO3 (LCMO) across the magnetic transition. The shape of the excitation at about 0.2 eV in both samples is analyzed in terms of polaron models. We propose to identify the MIR resonance in LSMO as the excitation of large polarons and that in LCMO as a small polaron excitation. A scaling behavior for the low-energy side of the polaronic MIR resonance in LSMO is established

Fred Hayden Carruth : Author and Journalist, 1862-1932

This study was undertaken to compile information about Fred Hayden Carruth during the period of his life-time, 1862-1932, his activity as author and journalist forming the guidelines. Carruth\u27s success as a western humorist and local journalist on two Dakota Territory weeklies, the Estelline Bell and the Dakota Bell, was probably the factor which helped him obtain a position as a humorous editorial witer with the New York Tribune, foremost paper in the country in 1888. He went on his own in 1892 and after free-lancing his way onto the pages of more than nineteen popular periodicals, Carruth began a thirty-four year career with the Woman\u27s Home Companion (1905-1932). In 1915 he established the Postscript page, the Companion feature which formed the focal point of his later fame. Carruth authored four books for boys: The Adventures of Jones (1895), The Voyage of the Rattletrap (1897), Mr. Milo Busch and Other Worthies (1899), and Track\u27s End (1911). “South Dakota: State Without End, an essay which appears in E. H. Gruening\u27s These United States, is his best known short article. The absurd exaggeration of the tall tale combined with droll western wit to recapture the lighter aspects of frontier life earmark Carruth’s writing

Reducing childhood illness - fostering growth : an integrated home-based intervention package (IHIP) to improve indoor-air pollution, drinking water quality and child nutrition

Child mortality attributable to pneumonia, diarrhoea and malnutrition accounts globally for the majority of 8.8 million annual deaths. More than half of these deaths are preventable. Available and effective interventions include safe water supply, household water treatment, improved chimney stoves and personal- and home-hygiene and -health messages. In Peru, the current health services reform is focused on shifting responsibilities to peripheral levels; thus, empowering community organisations to manage primary health care services, including health promotion and preventive measures at household level. The current political situation and policy framework to integrate effective preventive interventions that can be delivered at family level, prompted us to test the efficacy of a package of health interventions to reduce childhood illness burden at rural household level. The goal of this PhD thesis was to assess the efficacy of an Integrated Environmental Home-based-Intervention Package (IHIP), comprised of an improved chimney stoves, access to safe drinking water from solar radiation household water treatment (SODIS), and hygiene education interventions, to reduce morbidity of acute respiratory infections, diarrhoea and poor growth of rural Peruvian children under three years of age. We implemented a community-randomised control field trial (cRCT) in 51 community’s clusters of the San Marcos Province, Cajamarca Region, Peru. The cRCT was divided as follows: * Set-up, community selection and participatory intervention development: A pilot study was carried out for the selection of the interventions. These were adapted to local customs. The participatory phase is described in detail in Chapters 4 & 5. * Randomization, enrolment and baseline data collection: Chapter 6 describes the randomisation, enrolment and baseline in detail. * Carbon monoxide (CO) and Particulate Matter (PM2.5) household air quality assessment: Chapter 7 & 8 describe the efficacy of the OPTIMA-improved stove in improving household air quality in comparison to traditional open fire stoves. * Morbidity surveillance and field data acquisition: Morbidity data on the daily occurrence of signs and symptoms diarrhoea and respiratory illnesses of children was collected weekly. Anthropometric every two months and microbial data every 6 months. Chapter 9 describes the IHIP impact on morbidity reduction. * Workshops for a community-driven sustainable dessimination: Chapter 10 describes the community workshops and dissemination processes and dynamics within a socio-ecological framework. Our community-randomised control trial demonstrated that IHIP reduced 22% per year of child diarrhoea (RR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.49-1.05) and found an odds ratio of 0.71 for diarrhoea prevalence (OR 0.71, 95%, CI: 0.47, 1.06). No effects on the frequency of acute lower respiratory infections (RR 0.99, 95% CI: 0.59, 1.65) or child’s growth rates were found when comparing study arms. We identified three reasons for this moderate diarrhoea reduction: i) hand-washing promotion was universally found in our setting, since it is being promoted by the health care centre; ii) SODIS compliance was moderate: only one third of the beneficiaries were using the method regularly; and iii) the increased awareness for the child’s needs linked to the control intervention, could induce improved child care behaviour. The lack of effect on ALRI, could be linked to insufficient reduction in exposure to household air pollutants and high health service utilisation due to cultural beliefs and health seeking behavoiur. The household air pollution assessment study revealed only moderate reductions of 45% and 27% reduction of PM2.5 and CO, respectively for mothers’ personal exposure. This result was achieved in the best working stoves only. This may most likely not be sufficient to reduce impact on physician-diagnosed pneumonia. Community participatory meetings and surveys revealed that people’s decisions on adopting household-level environmental and hygiene interventions, was not only based on individual perceptions of their potential gains, but also depended on peer pressure and social network relations. Individual perceptions regarding pollution levels of water and household air (transparent, odourless water vs dirty air environments) influenced perceived gains and the adoption of certain interventions. Access to information and encouragement from health-care providers and programme implementers also increased adoption. The IHIP had several additional benefits beyond health outcomes. Mother’s expressed that the stoves could reduce cooking time and wood consumption, which translated into cost saving. They also could perform other task while cooking. Regarding the kitchen sink, the mothers expressed it facilitated handwashing, and washing of utensils with detergent, generating a cleaner kitchen environment that fostered home and food hygiene. We believe that the IHIP package motivated families to improve the kitchen living area in general. The high acceptance and sustained use was not only observed in the IHIP families but also in non-participating families that had copied the OPTIMA-improved stove after the community engagement in the desimination activities. We can also conclude that the IHIP package added to the family status, improved quality of life and impacted on their livelihoods, by empowering the beneficiary families. In conclusion, through this project we envisaged to demonstrate how an integrated package could be implemented at the household level in rural areas of Peru and its effect on health, quality of life and livelihoods. However, behaviour change for keeping maintanence of the interventions and use is necessary to achieve compliance, replication and sustainability

The History of Defining Youth: Current Implications for Identifying and Treating Delinquent Youth

This article presents a historical overview of how legally and socially constructed definitions of childhood and youth have, and continue to, shape the identification, treatment and research surrounding delinquent youth. Even though we age biologically along a continuum, formal social systems, most notably the courts and our system of rights, are based on specific chronological age parameters which impose a rigid element to something that is otherwise fluid. This often results in subjective decision making regarding sanctions and treatment options among family and criminal court systems as well as other professionals who work closely with delinquent youth. This article highlights the importance of considering more than the specific delinquent act in determining the fate of youth. Consideration of individual characteristics and environmental factors will bring us closer to a more comprehensive strategy including intervention efforts to the family and community/ neighborhood level to stimulate long term change