Teaching with archaeology : grade 6 science and grade 9 social studies

Pre-collegiate teachers in Saskatchewan recognize the value of integrating archaeological content into natural and social science curricula. However, there is currently a lack of curriculum-relevant resources available to teachers who are interested in teaching with archaeology. In addition to meeting Saskatchewan Core Curriculum standards and objectives, the holistic, multi-disciplinary, activities-based approach inherent in archaeology education provides students with opportunities to inquire, investigate, connect, cooperate and collaborate as they develop higher-level understanding and cognition independently and as members of a community of learners (Short and Burke 1991). Thus, the integration of archaeology into existing curricula complements contemporary cognitive development and social constructivist theories of knowledge of scholars Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. Furthermore, learning through archaeology increases students’ awareness and appreciation of other cultures, and promotes understanding of the need to protect and conserve cultural resources. There were two aims in the research: 1) To answer the question: What do teachers require to integrate archaeology concepts, themes and activities into Grade 6 Science and Grade 9 Social Studies curricula; and, 2) To assess the validity of the two assumptions that were taken after the review of the literature: i) If successful archaeology education programs in North America employed the use of hands-on, active learning, then the inclusion of hands-on, active learning in the archaeology education resources developed for the research will also prove effective ; and ii) If successful archaeology education programs in North America incorporated constructivist theories of learning, including the cognitive development theory of Jean Piaget and the sociocultural theory of Lev Vygotsky in their designs, then reference to constructivist theories of learning, including Piaget’s cognitive development theory and Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, will result in the development of appropriate archaeology education materials.The research occurred between January 2003 and June 2005, and involved the collaboration of nine teachers, a First Nations Elder, 689 Grade 6 and Grade 9 students, and 13 archaeologists. The research design followed a qualitative, action research approach, with the collection of data occurring through semi-structured interviews using McCracken’s (1988) long interview method, as well as questionnaires, a survey, and participant observation. An open-coding approach was used to code data collected during the research.In addition to providing answers to the research question and assessments of the validity of the two assumptions taken in the research, the results indicate that the benefits of integrating archaeological content into pre-collegiate curricula transcend professional jurisdictions. Outcomes include the development of Grade 6 Science and Grade 9 Social Studies archaeology units that can serve as templates and resources for teachers, curriculum developers, and archaeologists. Also, participants learned about: Saskatchewan’s human and environmental histories; how archaeology can be used to reveal these histories; and why it is necessary to protect and conserve cultural resources—all goals of avocational and professional archaeological associations across North America

Spectral decomposition of real circulant matrices

AbstractThis paper presents spectral decompositions, i.e., eigendecompositions and singular value decompositions of four types of real circulant matrices. Right and left circulants (whose elements topple from right to left or from left to right, respectively) as well as skew right and skew left circulants (whose elements change their sign when toppling) are analyzed.The inherent periodicity of circulant matrices means that they are closely related to Fourier analysis and group theory. This relationship is utilized in the spectral decompositions of this paper

Critical Evaluation of Organic Thin-Film Transistor Models

Thin-film transistors (TFTs) represent a wide-spread tool to determine the charge-carrier mobility of materials. Mobilities and further transistor parameters like contact resistances are commonly extracted from the electrical characteristics. However, the trust in such extracted parameters is limited, because their values depend on the extraction technique and on the underlying transistor model. We propose a technique to establish whether a chosen model is adequate to represent the transistor operation. This two-step technique analyzes the electrical measurements of a series of TFTs with different channel lengths. The first step extracts the parameters for each individual transistor by fitting the full output and transfer characteristics to the transistor model. The second step checks whether the channel-length dependence of the extracted parameters is consistent with the model. We demonstrate the merit of the technique for distinct sets of organic TFTs that differ in the semiconductor, the contacts, and the geometry. Independent of the transistor set, our technique consistently reveals that state-of-the-art transistor models fail to reproduce the correct channel-length dependence. Our technique suggests that contemporary transistor models require improvements in terms of charge-carrier-density dependence of the mobility and/or the consideration of uncompensated charges in the transistor channel.Comment: 20 pages, 10 figure

A decade of energy and mass balance investigations on the glacier Kongsvegen, Svalbard

Kongsvegen is an Arctic glacier located in northwest Spitzbergen. We use meteorological observations made near the average equilibrium line of Kongsvegen during the decade 2001 to 2010 to drive a glacier energy and mass balance model. Average daily and seasonal cycles are analyzed over the course of a full decade, as well as the interannual variations of the meteorological parameters and of the mass and energy balance components. The calculated average of net radiation is close to zero and the sensible heat flux is the most important and continuous source of energy at the surface. The latent heat flux is a weak source of energy as well. The resultant flux constellation yields a surplus of energy accumulating throughout the decade (9.5 W m-2) and fosters a negative specific surface mass balance throughout the investigated decade (-1.8 m w. eq.). The most significant mass loss occurred during the middle of the decade (2004 until 2006), with positive surface mass balances observed afterward when significant amounts of superimposed ice were formed. This development is well correlated to the total surface mass balance of the glacier. Application of monthly temperature and precipitation perturbations corroborates earlier studies indicating a high sensitivity of the mass balance to energy fluxes depending on temperature conditions during summer. Key PointsEvaluation of a decadal meteorological record of an Arctic glacierUse of SOMARS, validation of results, investigations of climate sensitiviyAnnual, monthly, daily consideration ©2012. American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved

Extensional Tectonics in the Jeanne d'Arc Basin, Offshore Newfoundland: Implications for the Timing of Break-Up between Grand Banks and Iberia

Using seismic reflection and exploratory well data from the Jeanne d’Arc basin, offshore Newfoundland, we examined the link between unconformity generation and the onset of seafloor spreading between the central Grand Banks and Iberia. A prominent unconformity developed across the entire basin, previously interpreted as a ‘break-up’ unconformity, is reinterpreted as a late Barremian/early Aptian rift-onset unconformity on the basis of the stratal geometry and lithofacies. The rotation and divergence of seismic reflectors above this unconformity attest to differential subsidence documenting an episode of extension and block rotation within the basin at this time. Our seismic sequence analysis suggests that rifting and block rotation continued in the Jeanne d’Arc basin until at least late Aptian/early Albian time. The onset of seafloor spreading between the central Grand Banks and Iberia is uncertain because of limited marine magnetic and drilling data (ODP and DSDP), and the existence of the Cretaceous magnetic quiet zone along the margin. However, recent studies indicate that magnetic anomaly M0 (118 Ma) is not well resolved north of the Newfoundland Seamounts within the Newfoundland basin and is not present north of the Figueiro fracture zone along the conjugate Iberian margin. This suggests that seafloor spreading between the northern portion of the Newfoundland basin and the northern Iberian margin began after the early Aptian. Given that the cessation of rifting marks the onset of seafloor spreading our seismic sequence analysis indicates that the onset of seafloor spreading in the northern Newfoundland basin, north of the Newfoundland Seamounts, began after late Aptian time

Targeting prominin2 transcription to overcome ferroptosis resistance in cancer

Understanding how cancer cells resist ferroptosis is a significant problem that impacts ongoing efforts to stimulate ferroptosis as a therapeutic strategy. We reported that prominin2 is induced by ferroptotic stimuli and functions to resist ferroptotic death. Although this finding has significant implications for therapy, specific prominin2 inhibitors are not available. We rationalized that the mechanism by which prominin2 expression is induced by ferroptotic stress could be targeted, expanding the range of options to overcome ferroptosis resistance. Here, we show that that 4-hydroxynonenal (4HNE), a specific lipid metabolite formed from the products of lipid peroxidation stimulates PROM2 transcription by a mechanism that involves p38 MAP kinase-mediated activation of HSF1 and HSF1-dependent transcription of PROM2. HSF1 inhibitors sensitize a wide variety of resistant cancer cells to drugs that induce ferroptosis. Importantly, the combination of a ferroptosis-inducing drug and an HSF1 inhibitor causes the cytostasis of established tumors in mice, although neither treatment alone is effective. These data reveal a novel approach for the therapeutic induction of ferroptosis in cancer