GWU Alumnus Speaks About Career Opportunities For Math Majors

To educate undergraduates about the benefits of majoring in mathematics, a Gardner-Webb alumnus returned to campus on Thursday, September 22nd.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gwu-today/1372/thumbnail.jp

GWU Hosts Fundraiser To Help The Heathy Backpack Program

To raise funds for the Healthy Bulldog Backpack Program, Gardner-Webb faculty and staff hosted a banquet for sponsors in Stewart Hall on Friday, September 30.https://digitalcommons.gardner-webb.edu/gwu-today/1386/thumbnail.jp

A cognitive exploration of the “non-visual” nature of geometric proofs

Why are Geometric Proofs (Usually) “Non-Visual”? We asked this question as a way to explore the similarities and differences between diagrams and text (visual thinking versus language thinking). Traditional text-based proofs are considered (by many to be) more rigorous than diagrams alone. In this paper we focus on human perceptual-cognitive characteristics that may encourage textual modes for proofs because of the ergonomic affordances of text relative to diagrams. We suggest that visual-spatial perception of physical objects, where an object is perceived with greater acuity through foveal vision rather than peripheral vision, is similar to attention navigating a conceptual visual-spatial structure. We suggest that attention has foveal-like and peripheral-like characteristics and that textual modes appeal to what we refer to here as foveal-focal attention, an extension of prior work in focused attention

Making and doing: critical and cross-disciplinary engagement within interdisciplinary iSchools

Introduction: Like many iSchools, the Faculty of Information at the University of Toronto integrates a variety of disciplinary fields (LIS, Records Management, Information Systems and Design, Critical and Cultural theory, Policy, Technology Studies, etc.) and a diversity of institutional foci (libraries, archives, museums, universities, government, corporate contexts, etc.) Such diversity is both an asset and a challenge for the Faculty as we seek to provide professional and academic training for our masters and PhD students and look to engage in collaborative work among faculty members. Importantly, the types of skills and experiences that we collectively bring to bear and the kinds of issues and questions addressed by faculty and graduate students transgress more than just standard disciplinary barriers. In order to address the important social, cultural, and political questions posed by the continuing transformation of information practices, the boundary between material and technical work and reflexive, critical, social scholarship must be bridged. This is a crucial challenge for iSchools ??? how do we bring various perspectives, interests, and backgrounds to bear while staying connected through an emphasis on common theoretical concerns

Induction of PEP Carboxylase and Crassulacean Acid Metabolism by Gibberellic Acid in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum

The induction of Crassulacean acid metabolism in Mesembryanthemum crystallinum was investigated in response to foliar application of gibberellic acid (GA). After 5 weeks of treatment, GA-treated plants showed 1.7- to almost a 4-fold increase of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPcase) activity with a concomitant increase in acid metabolism when compared to control plants. Immunoblot analysis indicated an increase in the PEPcase protein similar to that of salt treatment while Rubisco did not show a similar rise. The results indicate that exogenously applied GA accelerates plant developmental expression of PEPcase and Crassulacean acid metabolism in M. crystallinum

The influence of children's exposure to language from two to six years: the case of nonword repetition

Nonword repetition (NWR) is highly predictive of vocabulary size, has strong links to language and reading ability, and is a clinical marker of language impairment. However, it is unclear what processes provide major contributions to NWR performance. This paper presents a computational model of NWR based on Chunking Lexical and Sub-lexical Sequences in Children (CLASSIC) that focuses on the child’s exposure to language when learning lexical phonological knowledge. Based on language input aimed at 2–6 year old children, CLASSIC shows a substantial fit to children’s NWR performance for 6 different types of NWR test across 6 different NWR studies that use children of various ages from 2;1 to 6;1. Furthermore, CLASSIC’s repetitions of individual nonwords correlate significantly with children’s repetitions of the same nonwords, NWR performance shows strong correlations to vocabulary size, and interaction effects seen in the model are consistent with those found in children. Such a fit to the data is achieved without any need for developmental parameters, suggesting that between the ages of two and six years, NWR performance measures the child’s current level of linguistic knowledge that arises from their exposure to language over time and their ability to extract lexical phonological knowledge from that exposure

Guidelines for Designing Social Robots as Second Language Tutors

In recent years, it has been suggested that social robots have potential as tutors and educators for both children and adults. While robots have been shown to be effective in teaching knowledge and skill-based topics, we wish to explore how social robots can be used to tutor a second language to young children. As language learning relies on situated, grounded and social learning, in which interaction and repeated practice are central, social robots hold promise as educational tools for supporting second language learning. This paper surveys the developmental psychology of second language learning and suggests an agenda to study how core concepts of second language learning can be taught by a social robot. It suggests guidelines for designing robot tutors based on observations of second language learning in human–human scenarios, various technical aspects and early studies regarding the effectiveness of social robots as second language tutors

Letter, 1935 Oct. 16, to Mrs. R.D. Canan, Lafayette, Ind.

Letter from F. C. Hockema to R. D. Canan stating that it is impossible for Amelia Earhart to meet with the Parent-Teachers Association, but Dr. [Lillian] Gilbreth will be available, October 16, 193