Using policy network analysis to understand ideological convergence and change in educational subsystems

In recent years, education policy scholars have begun to utilize social network concepts and methods to describe contemporary policy changes across P-16 levels. While many insights have emerged from this growing literature base, we argue that a more formal network approach rooted in policy network analysis (PNA) is needed to fulfill its conceptual and analytical ambitions. Policy network analysis integrates concepts from social network analysis with theoretical assumptions developed in the field of political science. Toward this end, we first argue that a more rigorous treatment of policy beliefs is needed to analyze the impact of ideas on the policy agenda. Existing literature on the ideological dimensions of market-based reform movements tends to define them largely within the bounds of neo-liberalism and thus far has failed to systematically explain how policy beliefs emerge and converge in this context. Second, we contend that previous work has generally lacked theoretical grounding in formal policy network analysis (PNA). Although there are clear links between the concepts and findings in traditional PNA literature and educational research – particularly the use of networked governance as a concept for understanding the interconnectedness of educational reform networks – a more diligent application of PNA theory and methods would enable educational policy scholars to gain deeper insights into the explanatory processes of policy change. We pay particular attention to the usefulness of these approaches for examining two-mode network data and for modeling ideological policy change.En los últimos años, los académicos de las políticas educativas han comenzado a utilizar conceptos y métodos de redes sociales para describir los cambios políticos contemporáneos en los niveles P-16, pero se necesita un enfoque de red más formal arraigado en el análisis de redes de políticas (ANP). El análisis de redes de políticas integra conceptos del análisis de redes sociales con supuestos teóricos desarrollados en el campo de las ciencias políticas. A pesar de los vínculos entre los conceptos y los hallazgos en la literatura tradicional de la ANP y la investigación educativa, en particular el uso de la gobernanza en red como concepto para comprender la interconexión de las redes de reforma educativa, una aplicación más diligente de la teoría y los métodos de la ANP permitiría a los académicos de la política educativa profundizar conocimientos sobre los procesos explicativos del cambio de políticas. Prestamos especial atención a la utilidad de estos enfoques para examinar datos de red de dos modos y para modelar cambios de políticas ideológicas.Nos últimos anos, estudiosos de políticas educacionais começaram a utilizar conceitos e métodos de redes sociais para descrever mudanças políticas contemporâneas em todos os níveis P-16, embora seja necessária uma abordagem de rede mais formal enraizada na análise de redes políticas (PNA). A análise de redes políticas integra conceitos da análise de redes sociais com pressupostos teóricos desenvolvidos no campo da ciência política. Apesar das ligações entre os conceitos e descobertas na literatura tradicional de PNA e a pesquisa educacional - particularmente o uso de governança em rede como um conceito para compreender a interconexão das redes de reforma educacional - uma aplicação mais diligente da teoria e dos métodos de PNA permitiria que estudiosos de políticas educacionais se aprofundassem percepções sobre os processos explicativos de mudança de política. Prestamos atenção especial à utilidade dessas abordagens para examinar dados de rede de dois modos e para modelar mudanças ideológicas nas políticas

Étude de la production des ions bromate lors de l'ozonation des eaux de la Banlieue de Paris : choix du mode d'ozonation et variation des param tres physico-chimiques

Cette étude a permis d'évaluer l'importance de la concentration en ions bromure, de la température et de la nature de la Matière Organique Naturelle (MON) sur la production des ions bromate en s'appuyant sur des expériences conduites en laboratoire et sur pilote semi-industriel (Centre d'Essais de Méry-sur-Oise).Trois campagnes d'ozonation effectuées en parallèle à Méry-sur-Oise et au LCEE (Laboratoire de Chimie de l'Eau et de l'Environnement) sur des eaux filtrées sable, ont montré que les expériences conduites en laboratoire et sur pilote semi-industriel mènent à des résultats similaires, soit une relation linéaire [BrO3-]=f (C∙τ) vérifiant une pente identique pour des conditions expérimentales données (teneur en ions bromure, température, origine de l'eau). Ces travaux ont montré de façon nouvelle qu'une faible variation de la concentration en ions bromure (± 15 à 20 µg.L-1) suffisait à modifier significativement la formation des ions bromate. A C∙τ=10 et T=21°C, la production des ions bromate est passée de 16 à 27 µg.L-1 pour une augmentation de la concentration en ions bromure de 80 à 95 µg.L-1. Les résultats obtenus ont montré de plus que la température est un facteur important puisqu'une différence de 8°C (13 à 21°C) a entraîné, pour la même eau (80 µg.L-1 d'ions bromure, C∙τ=10), une augmentation de la concentration en ions bromate de 10 à 16 µg.L-1. Pour d'autres eaux (Seine, Marne et Oise), trois autres campagnes conduites avec des eaux clarifiées ont été effectuées après ajustement de la teneur en ions bromure et régulation de la température, ces trois eaux présentant par ailleurs des caractéristiques similaires en ce qui concerne le pH et l'alcalinité. A C∙τ équivalent, la production d'ions bromate s'est avérée significativement plus faible pour l'eau de l'Oise que pour les deux autres eaux. La nature de la MON pourrait donc avoir une influence notable sur la formation des ions bromate.The publication of Kurokawa et al. in 1990 confirming the toxicity of bromate of rats and mice, initiated the research effort that was internationally conducted during the last seven years to better understand the reaction mechanisms of bromate formation during the ozonation of natural waters. Based on the research findings regarding the effect of a number of parameters (bromide, ozone dose, pH, temperature, alkalinity, DOC content, ammonia, ...), predictive models (empirical and reaction kinetic based models), including molecular and/or radical pathways, have been developed with more or less success. Complementary results are still needed to better understand this complex mechanism.The main objective of our work was to evaluate how the seasonal variation of the physical chemical characteristics of Paris-area source waters (i.e. bromide content, temperature, natural organic matter) can affect the production of bromate during ozonation. In order to confirm that lab-scale experiments could be proposed to develop such research program, parallel tests were first conducted at the bench- and pilot-scale based on comparable C∙τ conditions. The lab-scale reactor was a 380 ml glass column (internal diameter: 0.02 m; height: 1.2 m) equipped with a water jacket to allow temperature to be varied and maintained. These reactor was used as a continuous flow reactor with recirculation. The pilot-scale ozonation contactor installed at the Méry sur Oise water treatment plant was comprised of four 30-liter columns in series (diameter: 0.1m ; height: 4m). The first column is used as the application column while the three others are used as residence column. The results have shown that lab-scale ozonation experiments conducted on Méry sur Oise sand filtered water led to similar results compared to pilot ozonation conducted on the same water and at the same temperature (sampled the same day) using the Méry sur Oise pilot-scale reactor. For applied C∙τ that ranged from 4 to 20 mg O3/L.min, similar linear relationship between bromate formation and applied C∙τ was obtained with the two reactors.A survey conducted on the Oise River has shown that the bromide concentration ranged from 40 µg/L (winter period) to 80 µg/L (summer period). If it is already well known that higher the bromide content, higher the bromate formation, our work has also pointed out that even a small increase of the bromide concentration from 80 to 95 µg/L (15 µg/L of bromide spiked as KBr) can significantly impact the bromate formation (same experimental conditions) that, as an example, increased from 16 to 27 µg/L for C.t of 10 at 21 °C.The temperature of the Oise river can vary from 5 °C up to 25 °C. Using carefully controlled temperature conditions, one can observed that the slope of the bromate production versus applied C∙τ increased with increasing temperature (same water). For example, the production of bromate during the ozonation (applied C∙τ=10) of the Méry sur Oise sand filtered water was 7, 10 and 16 µg/L for 5, 13 and 21 °C, respectively. Complementary experiments, have shown that the impact of the variation of the initial bromide concentration was proportionally more important for low-temperature water (5 to 13 °C) than for moderate-temperature water (20 °C).The origin and nature of the water is considered to play a significant role on the formation of bromate during ozonation, however few studies have evaluated the importance of these parameters using carefully controlled experimental conditions. In order to better define how important is the change in bromate production with the modification of the quality of the Paris suburbs water sources, especially the organic content (nature and concentration of the NOM), two sets of experiments were conducted.In the first part of the work, the Méry sur Oise sand filtered water was sampled at three different periods of the year 1996 (June, July and December), and the ozonation experiments were conducted at the same temperature (21 °C) after bromide concentration was adjust to 80 µg/L. The three water samples had the same pH and did not contain ammonia. Significant differences were observed in the bromate production, showing a larger production with the winter water as compared to the summer water. The fact that the winter water was enriched in DOC (3.7 mg/L of DOC) as compared to the two others (2.6 - 2.7 mg/L of DOC) may explain this difference since a larger ozone dose was probably necessary (ozone transfert not controlled because of the small size of the lab-scale reactor) to reach the same applied C∙τ due to a higher ozone consumption from the natural organic matter. The slightly lower alkalinity of the winter sample (200 mg/L as CaCO3 as compared to 250 mg/L CaCO3 for the summer samples) could have led to a less pronounced scavenger effect, condition that favors the radical pathway which is generally predominant. However, it is also known that carbonate species can also promote the formation of bromate due to the production of carbonate radicals. Comparing the results obtained with the water samples collected during the summer period, more bromate was produced in July than in June. The higher hydrophobic character (more aromatic in character) of the NOM of the water sampled in July (SUVA=2.15) as compared to the June sample (SUVA=1.88), characteristic that favor the ozone consumption and consequently the OH radical production, may justify this finding.In the second part of the work, the bromate formation obtained during the ozonation of the three major water sources of the Paris suburbs (sampled after clarification), Oise River, Marne River and Seine River, was compared (same temperature) after the bromide content was adjust to 80 µg/L. Similar results were obtained with the clarified Marne river and Seine River, the two waters showing the same physical chemical characteristics (2.2 and 2.5 mg/L of DOC; pH 7.9 and 7.8; Alkalinity: 225 and 210 mg/L as CaCO3). A lower production of bromate as a function of the applied C∙τ was observed with the clarified Oise river, result that is in contradiction with our previous hypotheses since this water source showed the highest DOC content, the highest SUVA and the lowest alkalinity among the three waters studied.More work needs to be done to better understand the impact of the origin and nature of the NOM on the bromate formation mechanisms. As a general conclusion, this work also confirmed that the physical chemical characteristics of source water (DOC, temperature, alkalinity, bromide content,…) are more important factors as compared to the hydraulic characteristics of the reactor.Keywords

Mapping Review of Fieldwork Education Literature

Fieldwork is an integral phase of occupational therapy education, bolstered by a small but growing evidence base. A broad understanding of the state of that evidence base is necessary to inform the directions for future growth. The purpose of this work was to establish the current state of occupational therapy fieldwork literature, map that literature to recognized criteria for educational research, and identify gaps in the existing literature. Authors followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines to conduct a mapping review of articles with a primary focus on fieldwork education of occupational therapy (OT) or occupational therapy assistant (OTA) students in United States (Accreditation for Occupational Therapy Education)-based programs. Mapping criteria included level of education [OT, OTA], level of fieldwork [Level I, Level II], and categories of the AOTA Education Research Agenda - Revised (2018). Sources included four databases (Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, ERIC, PubMed) and one additional journal (Journal of Occupational Therapy Education). A total of 1,619 articles were identified, with 67 articles meeting inclusion criteria. The 67 included articles disproportionately focused on Level II OT fieldwork (53%, n=36), with sparse representation of Level I OTA fieldwork (1.5%, n=1), and addressed only two categories of the Education Research Agenda (2018; 80%, n=54). Level I fieldwork, occupational therapy assistant programs, and large swaths of the association’s Education Research Agenda (2018) were dramatically (or completely) underrepresented in fieldwork education research, suggesting important priorities for the immediate future of occupational therapy fieldwork education

Ecosystem-bedrock interaction changes nutrient compartmentalization during early oxidative weathering

Ecosystem-bedrock interactions power the biogeochemical cycles of Earth's shallow crust, supporting life, stimulating substrate transformation, and spurring evolutionary innovation. While oxidative processes have dominated half of terrestrial history, the relative contribution of the biosphere and its chemical fingerprints on Earth's developing regolith are still poorly constrained. Here, we report results from a two-year incipient weathering experiment. We found that the mass release and compartmentalization of major elements during weathering of granite, rhyolite, schist and basalt was rock-specific and regulated by ecosystem components. A tight interplay between physiological needs of different biota, mineral dissolution rates, and substrate nutrient availability resulted in intricate elemental distribution patterns. Biota accelerated CO2 mineralization over abiotic controls as ecosystem complexity increased, and significantly modified stoichiometry of mobilized elements. Microbial and fungal components inhibited element leaching (23.4% and 7%), while plants increased leaching and biomass retention by 63.4%. All biota left comparable biosignatures in the dissolved weathering products. Nevertheless, the magnitude and allocation of weathered fractions under abiotic and biotic treatments provide quantitative evidence for the role of major biosphere components in the evolution of upper continental crust, presenting critical information for large-scale biogeochemical models and for the search for stable in situ biosignatures beyond Earth.Comment: 41 pages (MS, SI and Data), 16 figures (MS and SI), 6 tables (SI and Data). Journal article manuscrip

Influence of Gamma-Ray Emission on the Isotopic Composition of Clouds in the Interstellar Medium

We investigate one mechanism of the change in the isotopic composition of cosmologically distant clouds of interstellar gas whose matter was subjected only slightly to star formation processes. According to the standard cosmological model, the isotopic composition of the gas in such clouds was formed at the epoch of Big Bang nucleosynthesis and is determined only by the baryon density in the Universe. The dispersion in the available cloud composition observations exceeds the errors of individual measurements. This may indicate that there are mechanisms of the change in the composition of matter in the Universe after the completion of Big Bang nucleosynthesis. We have calculated the destruction and production rates of light isotopes (D, 3He, 4He) under the influence of photonuclear reactions triggered by the gamma-ray emission from active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We investigate the destruction and production of light elements depending on the spectral characteristics of the gamma-ray emission. We show that in comparison with previous works, taking into account the influence of spectral hardness on the photonuclear reaction rates can increase the characteristic radii of influence of the gamma-ray emission from AGNs by a factor of 2-8. The high gamma-ray luminosities of AGNs observed in recent years increase the previous estimates of the characteristic radii by two orders of magnitude. This may suggest that the influence of the emission from AGNs on the change in the composition of the medium in the immediate neighborhood (the host galaxy) has been underestimated.Comment: 13 pages, 13 figures, 3 table

The Vehicle, 1964, Vol. 6

Vol. 6 Table of Contents Milepostspage 2 John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial Pagepage 4 Sadness No. 4 (Sorgen)Sherry S. Frypage 5 Christian BurialRoger J. Barrypage 7 The World of BeautyDavid Helmpage 9 The Song of the LarksDon Kapraunpage 10 ContrastKeith Haierpage 13 PanoramaDaun Alan Leggpage 13 A Child\u27s View of DeathCherie Brondellpage 14 RegretLiz Puckettpage 16 Brutal WarMary H. Soukuppage 17 aloneLiz Puckettpage 18 MadgeLinda Galeypage 19 Moon WatchingJoel E. Hendrickspage 20 AnalysisLiz Puckettpage 21 UniverseRick Talleypage 21 Anyone Can Be A LuniticRick Towsonpage 22 I, Too, Have A Rendezvous with DeathElaine Lancepage 23 The ReturnRobert D. Thomaspage 24 NamesLarry Gatespage 25 Eternal MomentsDavid Helmpage 25 The Last DaysPauline B. Smithpage 26 BeliefRichard J. Wiesepage 27 StormPauline B. Smithpage 28 ExplosionLiz Puckettpage 29 Autumn EveJoel E. Hendrickspage 29 The Girl On the White PonyLarry Gatespage 31 HoffnungTerry Michael Salempage 33 Stone WallsDaun Alan Leggpage 34 AdorationGail M. Barenfangerpage 37 MirageRoy L. Carlsonpage 38 Nature and NonsenseRick Talleypage 39 A Step Through A Looking GlassMarilyn Henrypage 40 Thoughts of a Summer PastPauline B Smithpage 42 Indiana GrassLarry Gatespage 43 RedondillaRoberta Matthewspage 44 Summer LoveDaun Alan Leggpage 45 To Youth Reaching For MaturityDavid Helmpage 45 Thanksgiving DayJoel E. Hendrickspage 46 Sadness No. 6 (Schatten)Sherry S. Frypage 48https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1012/thumbnail.jp

Opera and poison : a secret and enjoyable approach to teaching and learning chemistry

The storyline of operas, with historical or fictional characters, often include potions and poisons. This has prompted a study of the chemistry behind some operatic plots. The results were originally presented as a lecture given at the University of Minho in Portugal, within the context of the International Year of Chemistry. The same lecture was subsequently repeated at other universities as an invited lecture for science students and in public theaters for wider audiences. The lecture included a multimedia and interactive content that allowed the audience to listen to arias and to watch video clips with selected scenes extracted from operas. The present article, based on the lecture, demonstrates how chemistry and opera can be related and may also serve as a source of motivation and inspiration for chemistry teachers looking for alternative pedagogical approaches. Moreover, the lecture constitutes a vehicle that transports chemistry knowledge to wider audiences through examples of everyday molecules, with particular emphasis on natural products.The author is pleased to express his gratitude to Jorge Calado and Michael John Smith for useful discussions. The author also thanks the reviewers of the manuscript for their helpful comments and suggestions. Thanks are due to the Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT,Portugal), QREN and FEDER/EU for financial support through the research centers, CQ/UM PEst-C/QUI/UI0686/2011. Ciencia Viva, Portugal, is also acknowledged for financial support of the activities organized by the University of Minho during the International Year of Chemistry. The author also expresses his gratitude to Ana Paula Ferreira and Andre Cunha Leal from RTP Antena 2 who contributed immensely to the popularization of the lecture on which this paper is based on

\u3ci\u3eSenecio Conrathii\u3c/i\u3e N.E.Br. (Asteraceae), a New Hyperaccumulator of Nickel from Serpentinite Outcrops of the Barberton Greenstone Belt, South Africa

Five nickel hyperaccumulators belonging to the Asteraceae are known from ultramafic outcrops in South Africa. Phytoremediation applications of the known hyperaccumulators in the Asteraceae, such as the indigenous Berkheya coddii Roessler, are well reported and necessitate further exploration to find additional species with such traits. This study targeted the most frequently occurring species of the Asteraceae on eight randomly selected serpentinite outcrops of the Barberton Greenstone Belt. Twenty species were sampled, including 12 that were tested for nickel accumulation for the first time. Although the majority of the species were excluders, the known hyperaccumulators Berkheya nivea N.E.Br. and B. zeyheri (Sond. & Harv.) Oliv. & Hiern subsp. rehmannii (Thell.) Roessler var. rogersiana (Thell.) Roessler hyperaccumulated nickel in the leaves at expected levels. A new hyperaccumulator of nickel was discovered, Senecio conrathii N.E.Br., which accumulated the element in its leaves at 1695 ± 637 µg g−1 on soil with a total and exchangeable nickel content of 503 mg kg−1 and 0.095 µg g−1, respectively. This makes it the third known species in the Senecioneae of South Africa to hyperaccumulate nickel after Senecio anomalochrous Hilliard and Senecio coronatus (Thunb.) Harv., albeit it being a weak accumulator compared with the latter. Seven tribes in the Asteraceae have now been screened for hyperaccumulation in South Africa, with hyperaccumulators only recorded for the Arctoteae and Senecioneae. This suggests that further exploration for hyperaccumulators should focus on these tribes as they comprise all six species (of 68 Asteraceae taxa screened thus far) to hyperaccumulate nickel