1,446 research outputs found
Modernizing the Integrated Approach: A Dynamic Teaching Method Using Podcasts and Multimedia Content
This project explores ways to create a curriculum in which multimedia and technology such as podcasts, streaming video, and online articles are utilized effectively in order to develop academic skills for adult international students, specifically those with the goal of attending an American university. Through this integrated approach that combines all of the essential language skills (listening, reading, speaking, and writing), students will build confidence and thus become empowered and individualized learners. They will be able to attain mastery of an essential academic skill set that will assist them in attaining their goals in many different realms.
This project engages various learning types and activate students’ interest by creating a flexible and individualized curriculum in which students can draw upon their own interests in order to solidify not only academic writing and reading skills similar to those used in a university but also argumentative abilities, critical thinking skills, and content-based knowledge. Moreover, students will be deeply engaged because the content is modern and relevant and the approach is dynamic
Defect filtering for thermal expansion induced dislocations in III-V lasers on silicon
Epitaxially integrated III-V semiconductor lasers for silicon photonics have
the potential to dramatically transform information networks, but currently,
dislocations limit performance and reliability even in defect tolerant InAs
quantum dot (QD) based lasers. Despite being below critical thickness, QD
layers in these devices contain previously unexplained misfit dislocations,
which facilitate non-radiative recombination. We demonstrate here that these
misfit dislocations form during post-growth cooldown due to the combined
effects of (1) thermal-expansion mismatch between the III-V layers and silicon
and (2) precipitate and alloy hardening in the active region. By incorporating
an additional sub-critical thickness, indium-alloyed misfit dislocation
trapping layer, we leverage these mechanical hardening effects to our
advantage, successfully displacing 95% of misfit dislocations from the QD layer
in model structures. Unlike conventional dislocation mitigation strategies, the
trapping layer reduces neither the number of threading dislocations nor the
number of misfit dislocations. It simply shifts the position of misfit
dislocations away from the QD layer, reducing the defects' impact on
luminescence. In full lasers, adding a misfit dislocation trapping layer both
above and below the QD active region displaces misfit dislocations and
substantially improves performance: we measure a twofold reduction in lasing
threshold currents and a greater than threefold increase in output power. Our
results suggest that devices employing both traditional threading dislocation
reduction techniques and optimized misfit dislocation trapping layers may
finally lead to fully integrated, commercially viable silicon-based photonic
integrated circuits.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
Professionalism and the Millbank Tendency: The Political Sociology of New Labour's employees
This article analyses party employees, one of the most under-researched subjects in the study of British political parties. We draw on a blend of quantitative and qualitative data in order to shed light on the social and political profiles of Labour Party staff, and on the question of their professionalisation. The latter theme is developed through a model derived from the sociology of professions. While a relatively limited proportion of party employees conform to the pure ideal-type of professionalism, a considerably greater number manifest enough of the core characteristics of specialisation, commitment, mobility, autonomy and self-regulation to be reasonably described as 'professionals in pursuit of political outcomes'
Dislocation-induced structural and luminescence degradation in InAs quantum dot emitters on silicon
We probe the extent to which dislocations reduce carrier lifetimes and alter
luminescence and growth morphology in InAs quantum dots (QD) grown on silicon.
These heterostructures are key ingredients to achieving a highly reliable
monolithically integrated light source on silicon necessary for photonic
integrated circuits. We find up to 20-30% shorter carrier lifetimes at
spatially resolved individual dislocations from both the QD ground and excited
states at room temperature using time-resolved cathodoluminescence
spectroscopy. These lifetimes are consistent with differences in the intensity
measured under steady-state excitation suggesting that trap-assisted
recombination limits the minority carrier lifetime, even away from
dislocations. Our techniques also reveal the dramatic growth of misfit
dislocations in these structures under carrier injection fueled by
recombination-enhanced dislocation glide and III-V/Si residual strain. Beyond
these direct effects of increased nonradiative recombination, we find the
long-range strain field of misfit dislocations deeper in the defect filter
layers employed during III-V/Si growth alter the QD growth environment and
introduce a crosshatch-like variation in the QD emission color and intensity
when the filter layer is positioned close to the QD emitter layer. Sessile
threading dislocations generate even more egregious hillock defects that also
reduce emission intensities by altering layer thicknesses, as measured by
transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography. Our work presents a
more complete picture of the impacts of dislocations relevant for the
development of light sources for scalable silicon photonic integrated circuits.Comment: 15 pages, 6 figure
Pore directionality and correlation lengths of mesoporous silica channels aligned by physical epitaxy
Herein we report on the alignment of mesoporous silica, a potential host for sub-10 nm nanostructures, by controlling its deposition within patterned substrates. In-depth characterization of the correlation lengths (length of a linear porous channel), defects of the porous network (delamination), and how the silica mesopores register to the micrometer-sized substrate pattern was achieved by means of novel focused ion beam (FIB) sectioning and in situ SEM imaging, which to our knowledge has not previously been reported for such a system. Our findings establish that, under confinement, directed deposition of the sol within channeled substrates, where the cross-sectional aspect ratio of the channels approaches unity, induces alignment of the mesopores along the length of the channels. The pore correlation length was found to extend beyond the micrometer scale, with high pore uniformity from channel to channel observed with infrequent delamination defects. Such information on pore correlation lengths and defect densities is critical for subsequent nanowire growth within the mesoporous channels, contact layout (electrode deposition etc.), and possible device architectures
Adolescent tuberculosis.
Adolescence is characterised by a substantial increase in the incidence of tuberculosis, a known fact since the early 20th century. Most of the world's adolescents live in low-income and middle-income countries where tuberculosis remains common, and where they comprise a quarter of the population. Despite this, adolescents have not yet been addressed as a distinct population in tuberculosis policy or within tuberculosis treatment services, and emerging evidence suggests that current models of care do not meet their needs. This Review discusses up-to-date information about tuberculosis in adolescence, with a focus on the management of infection and disease, including HIV co-infection and rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis. We outline the progress in vaccine development and highlight important directions for future research
Anomalous dimensions of operators in polarized deep inelastic scattering at O(1/N_f)
Critical exponents are computed for a variety of twist-2 composite operators,
which occur in polarized and unpolarized deep inelastic scattering, at leading
order in the 1/N_f expansion. The resulting d-dimensional expressions, which
depend on the moment of the operator, are in agreement with recent explicit two
and three loop perturbative calculations. An interesting aspect of the critical
point approach which is used, is that the anomalous dimensions of the flavour
singlet eigenoperators, which diagonalize the perturbative mixing matrix, are
computed directly. We also elucidate the treatment of gamma^5 at the fixed
point which is important in simplifying the calculation for polarized
operators. Finally, the anomalous dimension of the singlet axial current is
determined at O(1/N_f) by considering the renormalization of the anomaly in
operator form.Comment: 22 latex pages plus 7 figure
The Vehicle, Fall 2008
Table of Contents
DwIFoFErREINdTPhilip Gallagherpage 17
LeftoversAmanda Vealepage 18
the bogGrace Lawrencepage 19
Visitor\u27s Morning on EarthSteven T. Coxpage 20
The Moon Man Philip Gallagherpage 21
SearchingsAmanda Vealepage 23
Becoming WiseAmanda Vealepage 24
PerennialsAmanda Vealepage 26
SoldierMary Lieskepage 27
Desecration of a RelicAmanda Vealepage 29
New LifeJennifer O\u27Neilpage 30
GardenerKrystina Levyapage 43
The Reasons WhyMary Lieskepage 44
Dining at the MortuaryAmanda Vealepage 45
Poetry
Hop Scotch BehopJake Dawsonpage 1
Empty RoomAmanda Vealepage 2
Mantis (from memory) Muddy ShoesGina Marie LoBiancopage 3
MEMOSamuel Clowardpage 5
MathMary Lieskepage 7
To a Little Black GirlJustin Sudkamppage 8
Government OfficeSamuel Clowardpage 9
FirstKellen Fasnachtpage 10
Seeing Artichoke, Call MeAmanda Vealepage 11
TrumpetSarah Fairchildpage 12
That\u27s the StuffJake Dawsonpage 13
Your Hair is ThinningAmanda Vealepage 15
UnableDonica Millerpage 16
Dance PartnersSamantha Sauerpage 32
I StillMegan Mathypage 33
IncandescenceSarah Fairchildpage 34
Stone CraneBrendan Hughespage 35
The Road TakenSamantha Sauerpage 36
YouMegan Mathypage 37
Zhangjiajie National Forest Park, Zhangjiajie, ChinaBrendan Hughespage 38
Spotlight on 2008 Chapbook
LessonsGlen Davispage 62
Interview with Glen DavisRebecca Griffithpage 64
Contributorspage 69
Submission Guidelines/Reading Event
Blues Mad FoolJake Dawsonpage 47
Good WomanJake Dawsonpage 49
Good ManJake Dawsonpage 51
And I Miss YouDonica Millerpage 53
Entropy of Your ShirtAmanda Vealepage 56
Mavericks Philip Gallagherpage 57
Untitled [It\u27s 10:15 p.m....]Philip Gallagherpage 59
Prose
A Birdhouse for GrandpaLeslie Hancockpage 39
MotivationMary Lieskepage 55
Art
Forgotten GardenBrendan Hughescovers
BeMegan Mathypage 31https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1088/thumbnail.jp
Exact Renormalization Group Equations. An Introductory Review
We critically review the use of the exact renormalization group equations
(ERGE) in the framework of the scalar theory. We lay emphasis on the existence
of different versions of the ERGE and on an approximation method to solve it:
the derivative expansion. The leading order of this expansion appears as an
excellent textbook example to underline the nonperturbative features of the
Wilson renormalization group theory. We limit ourselves to the consideration of
the scalar field (this is why it is an introductory review) but the reader will
find (at the end of the review) a set of references to existing studies on more
complex systems.Comment: Final version to appear in Phys. Rep.; Many references added, section
4.2 added, minor corrections. 65 pages, 6 fig
Glycoprotein Acetyls : A Novel Inflammatory Biomarker of Early Cardiovascular Risk in the Young
Background Low-grade inflammation in the young may contribute to the early development of cardiovascular disease. We assessed whether circulating levels of glycoprotein acetyls (GlycA) were better able to predict the development of adverse cardiovascular disease risk profiles compared with the more commonly used biomarker high-sensitivity CRP (C-reactive protein). Methods and Results A total of 3306 adolescents and young adults from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (mean age, 15.4 +/- 0.3; n=1750) and Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study (mean age, 32.1 +/- 5.0; n=1556) were included. Baseline associations between inflammatory biomarkers, body composition, cardiovascular risk factors, and subclinical measures of vascular dysfunction were assessed cross-sectionally in both cohorts. Prospective risk of developing hypertension and metabolic syndrome during 9-to-10-year follow-up were also assessed as surrogate markers for future cardiovascular risk. GlycA showed greater within-subject correlation over 9-to-10-year follow-up in both cohorts compared with CRP, particularly in the younger adolescent group (r=0.36 versus 0.07). In multivariable analyses, GlycA was found to associate with multiple lifestyle-related cardiovascular disease risk factors, cardiometabolic risk factor burden, and vascular dysfunction (eg, mean difference in flow-mediated dilation=-1.2 [-1.8, -0.7]% per z-score increase). In contrast, CRP levels appeared predominantly driven by body mass index and showed little relationship to any measured cardiovascular risk factors or phenotypes. In both cohorts, only GlycA predicted future risk of both hypertension (risk ratio [RR], approximate to 1.1 per z-score increase for both cohorts) and metabolic syndrome (RR, approximate to 1.2-1.3 per z-score increase for both cohorts) in 9-to-10-year follow-up. Conclusions Low-grade inflammation captured by the novel biomarker GlycA is associated with adverse cardiovascular risk profiles from as early as adolescence and predicts future risk of hypertension and metabolic syndrome in up to 10-year follow-up. GlycA is a stable inflammatory biomarker which may capture distinct sources of inflammation in the young and may provide a more sensitive measure than CRP for detecting early cardiovascular risk.Peer reviewe
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