A Comparison of Approaches and Instruments for Evaluating a Geological Sciences Research Experiences Program

This article describes a study in which changes in knowledge of science and attitudes regarding science among participants in a summer Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program were examined. It was discovered that existing survey instruments could not detect changes in participants' attitudes over the course of the program and also failed to detect differences between geoscience faculty and a group of college students with limited exposure to college level science. In response to this, researchers developed a new survey instrument based on clusters of statements representing a variety of philosophical positions, from which respondents must pick one statement. It was discovered that open-ended questions about the nature of science provide a potentially richer source of information and that a survey instrument designed to probe more subtle aspects of one's beliefs about science can be used to assess adults who have had a variety of different kinds of exposure to science. The pilot survey instrument may also be able, with modifications, to assess attitude and knowledge changes caused by participation in a scientific research experience. Educational levels: Graduate or professional

The Burley Tobacco Buyout Program and Its Impact on Farmers in Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina.

This thesis addresses the Burley Tobacco Buyout Program and its impact on three local economies. Data collection involved obtaining information from government reports, internet sources, public documents, agriculture offices, federal agriculture officials, and books. Personal interviews were conducted with 32 farmers in Sullivan County, Tennessee; Washington County, Virginia; and Watauga County, North Carolina. This study is significant because it addresses not only the decline of an agricultural product but also changes in a way of life in Southern Appalachia. The future of burley tobacco growing in this region appears to be bleak because of foreign market competition and decreasing domestic demand. From the personal interviews, many farmers had already abandoned tobacco production and older respondents were often planning to stop all farming practices. Specifics of the federal government-mandated Buyout Program to compensate quota holders and growers are presented, as well as the experiences and opinions of farmers regarding this program

Preaching in the postmodern matrix : the role of biblical narrative preaching and symbolic communication in the formation of Christian identity

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/1312/thumbnail.jp

Home Weather Station

This senior project implements a mobile weather station that can relay weather data to an indoor module with an LCD display. The outdoor module utilizes a temperature, humidity, and pressure sensor to collect atmospheric weather data and a radio transceiver to transmit the data to a display station via radio frequency communications. The indoor station displays the temperature, humidity and time with an LCD display. The indoor station has a settings menu which allows the user to configure the unit of measurement for the temperature and time where the device is located

Applications of Solid State Deuterium NMR Spectroscopy.

Solid-state deuterium NMR spectroscopic techniques have been applied to a series of organic and organometallic systems. The construction and operation of an ADLF (adiabatic demagnetization in the laboratory frame) spectrometer is described in detail. The instrument has been used to obtain high-field solid-state deuterium NMR spectra for a series of para-substituted phenyl acetic acids which have been deuteriated at the methylene site, as well as d\sb1-napthalene, triphenylphosphonium-(methyl-d\sb3) bromide, and barium chlorate monohydrate (25% deuteriated). The data for the para-substituted phenyl acetic acids show that the two methylene deuterons are inequivalent. This inequivalency is due to the difference in the \sp2H-C\sb1-C\sb2-O torsion angle for the deuterium sites; here C\sb1 refers to the methylene carbon, C\sb2 refers to the carboxylic acid carbon, and O refers to the hydroxyl oxygen. In addition, static values of the deuterium quadrupolar coupling constant and asymmetry parameter have been obtained for (C\sp2H\sb3)(C\sb6H\sb5)\sb3PBr and Ba(ClO\sb3){\cdot}\sp1H\sp2HO, two systems where motional averaging of these two parameter have been previously observed. Conventional high-field solid-state deuterium NMR spectroscopy has been applied to three organometallic hydride systems. The spectrum of ((\eta\sp5-C\sb5H\sb5)\sb2Zr(\sp2H)\sb2) \sb{\rm x} is reported; both the terminal and bridging site are observed and have been identified. Variable temperature solid-state deuterium NMR spectra have been acquired for (PPN) \sp+ (\sp2HFe(CO)\sb4) \sp-. The data have been analyzed by lineshape simulations and interpreted in terms of a libration of the Fe-\sp2H bond about the C\sb3 molecular axis of the anion. From an Arrhenius plot, the activation energy of the process is calculated to be 18(2) kJoules/mole. Preliminary results of a solid-state deuterium NMR spectroscopic study of two bridging chromium carbonyl complexes and one terminally bonded chromium carbonyl complex are also reported

A Survey of the Influences on Water Conservation Behavior in Pickens and Oconee Counties

Most of the research on water demand management has occurred in the Western U.S, where there has been a serious and extended water crisis. This study examined the relevance of past influences on water conservation behavior in Pickens and Oconee counties, which are politically conservative and have not yet experienced a set of prolonged and sufficiently severe droughts. The survey results demonstrated that variables such as environmental beliefs, local water concern, and local place attachment could result in water conservation behavior in the Southeastern context. Based on this information, the researcher recommends that planners in the region engage their communities and water purveyors in public education efforts focused on the local environmental benefits of conservation, followed by a process of creating new regulations to reduce water consumption

San Joaquin Air Quality and Active Transportation Specific Plan

The focus of this project is to improve the overall air quality in San Joaquin. It will specifically focus on the PM2.5 pollutant, as this pollutant has the highest potential for change. Additionally, the PM2.5 pollutant poses major health risks to the community when there are high levels of it. The primary contributors of PM2.5 are automobiles, geography, and weather. This project will discuss methods that can reduce the reliance on single occupancy vehicles. These methods include the development of pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure as well as the improvement of the area’s regional transport services

A computational tool for symbolic derivation of the small angle scattering from complex composite structures

Analysis of small angle scattering (SAS) data requires intensive modelling to infer and characterize the structures present in a sample. This iterative improvement of models is a time consuming process. Here we present the Scattering Equation Builder (SEB), a C++ library that derives exact analytic expressions for the form factor of complex composite structures. The user writes a small program that specifies how sub-units should be linked to form a composite structure and calls SEB to obtain an expression for the form factor. SEB supports e.g. Gaussian polymer chains and loops, thin rods and circles, solid spheres, spherical shells and cylinders, and many different options for how these can be linked together. In the present paper, we present the formalism behind SEB, and give simple case studies such as block-copolymers with different types of linkage and more complex examples such as a random walk model of $100$ linked sub-units, dendrimers, polymers and rods attached to surfaces of geometric objects, and finally the scattering from a linear chain of 5 stars, where each star is build by four diblock copolymers. These examples illustrate how SEB can be used to develop complex models and hence reduce the cost of analyzing SAS data.Comment: 18 pages, 13 figure

The Current Role of Lymph Node Dissection in the Management of Renal Cell Carcinoma

The role of lymph node dissection remains controversial in the surgical management of renal cell carcinoma. Incidental renal masses are being diagnosed at increasing rates due to the routine use of CT scans. Despite the increase in incidental diagnosis of renal masses, 20% to 30% of patients present with metastatic disease. Currently, surgeons do not routinely perform lymph node dissection unless there is gross evidence of lymphadenopathy, as patients without clinical evidence of lymphadenopathy rarely have positive nodes at the time of surgery. Patients with metastatic disease to the regional lymph nodes have a poor overall prognosis. However, some evidence supports a therapeutic benefit of lymphadenectomy in these patients. Further, the staging information gained from diagnosing lymph node involvement may allow for the use of new agents to treat metastatic disease and effect outcomes