585 research outputs found
Exploration of a Collaborative Non-Formal Science Education Program in Australian Secondary Schools
Declining student enrolment in post-compulsory science has
prompted increasing use of non-formal science education programs
to help motivate students to continue with post-compulsory STEM
study. Non-formal programs are well acknowledged to have
potential for engaging students in ways that schools cannot but
there is a scarcity of data demonstrating this, particularly in
Australia. As non-formal programs become more commonly used in
schools it is important to understand the roles that they can
have in schools and the opportunities within these roles for
encouraging students to continue with post-compulsory STEM
education. This research explores the perspectives of
stakeholders regarding the ongoing implementation of a non-formal
science education program in a specific local partnership. Over a
year, non-formal staff, year seven and eight students and their
teachers from two secondary schools were interviewed and observed
during biannual visits to the centre. Students also completed a
reflective survey at the yearâs end. Results indicate that
there is considerable potential for a non-formal program to help
students develop post-compulsory STEM trajectories by providing a
flexible, well-resourced and engaging learning environment. This
environment was observed to support student participation and
offered potential to extend studentsâ learning and increase
their awareness and interest in STEM careers. Through these roles
many students became more interested and confident in doing
science and several developed interest in science careers. The
program also affected teachers, prompting science teachers to
reflect on their pedagogy and enthusing non-science teachers who
attended as helpers. However full realisation of the potential of
the non-formal programs was limited by studentsâ unrealistic
expectations of the experience and a lack of efficient
incorporation into their school learning. Most students were
unaffected by their non-formal experiences as they were brief and
scheduling limitations meant that they were not effectively
linked to what students were learning at school. Often the
non-formal program was seen as a day off school and studentsâ
expectations centred around personal enjoyment and not learning.
Difficulties in collaboration also occasionally disrupted
studentsâ experiences which further diminished student
expectations for their visits. As a result, some students
developed a perception of the non-formal program as irrelevant to
them or only worthwhile for people already interested in science
which made it difficult for teachers to maintain student
enthusiasm in the non-formal programs. This perception was
exacerbated over time and amongst students who had poor
pre-existing attitudes to science and who perceived limited
support for their science learning. A further challenge to
realising the potential roles of the non-formal programs lay in
the collaboration between the centre and the schools which were
each different communities with different agendas. Over time
however, teachers and non-formal educators were able to develop
relationships and it was their collaboration that was the key to
resolving issues and refining the programs. Going forward,
realising the potential of ongoing non-formal programs in
secondary science education requires attention to the challenges
in stakeholder collaboration, maintaining student enthusiasm over
time and incorporating studentsâ experience into their school
learning
Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance: Design Implications of an Urban Case Demonstration in Baltimore, Maryland
This research-design thesis explores the implementation of Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance (RSC) as a retrofit of an existing impervious drainage system in a small catchment in the degraded Jones Falls watershed in Baltimore City. An introduction to RSC is provided, placing its development within a theoretical context of novel ecosystems, biomimicry and Nassauer and Opdamâs (2008) model of landscape innovation. The case site is in Baltimoreâs Hampden neighborhood on City-owned land adjacent to rowhomes, open space and an access point to a popular wooded trail along a local stream. The design proposal employs RSC to retrofit an ill-performing stormwater system, simultaneously providing a range of ecological, social and economic services; water quantity, water quality and economic performance of the proposed RSC are quantified. While the proposed design is site-specific the model is adaptable for retrofitting other small-scale impervious drainage systems, providing a strategic tool in addressing Baltimore Cityâs stormwater challenges
Rapport de l'immoralisme sadien au matérialisme des LumiÚres
Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal
Résurgence et transformation du cynisme au XVIIIe siÚcle : la réception de DiogÚne dans les LumiÚres françaises
De nos jours omniprĂ©sent sur la scĂšne politique, le cynisme fut depuis son origine lâobjet de polĂ©miques. Le mode de vie scandaleux auquel il est associĂ© pose la question de lâappartenance ou non de DiogĂšne et des Cyniques Ă la philosophie. Par ailleurs, quâa Ă voir le cynisme des sociĂ©tĂ©s actuelles avec celui que pratiquait DiogĂšne ? Si des analystes situent au siĂšcle des LumiĂšres lâĂ©mergence dâune nouvelle conception du cynisme propre Ă la modernitĂ©, peu dâĂ©tudes historiques ont Ă©tĂ© menĂ©es sur la question. Il importe donc de retourner aux sources et de mesurer la validitĂ© de cette hypothĂšse.
Par une Ă©tude de lâhistoire du cynisme et de sa transmission, nous retraçons lâĂ©volution des enjeux au cĆur du mouvement cynique et de sa postĂ©ritĂ©, et prĂ©sentons une synthĂšse des significations du cynisme ainsi que des tensions quâelles comportent. De nombreuses rĂ©fĂ©rences permettent de dĂ©finir la place quâoccupe le cynisme au XVIIIe siĂšcle. Les auteurs des LumiĂšres se sont rĂ©appropriĂ©s lâantique sagesse de DiogĂšne et ont voulu concilier son impudique franchise aux exigences de la sociabilitĂ©. Ainsi, lâĂ©tude de la rĂ©ception du cynisme au siĂšcle des LumiĂšres doit tenir compte des dĂ©bats moraux de lâĂ©poque. Visant lâĂ©laboration dâune morale matĂ©rialiste sur un fondement naturel, les Philosophes ont tĂąchĂ© de contourner les problĂšmes de lâamoralisme rĂ©vĂ©lĂ©s par le constat de La Mettrie selon lequel il y a inadĂ©quation entre bonheur et vertu. Pour ce faire, HelvĂ©tius rĂ©duit la portĂ©e des dĂ©terminismes liĂ©s Ă lâorganisation, en soulignant lâimportance des facteurs externes dans la gestion des comportements ; Diderot et DâHolbach mettent lâaccent sur la sociabilitĂ© afin dâassurer lâinhĂ©rence dâun fondement moral chez lâĂȘtre humain, renforçant un dĂ©saccord dĂ©jĂ profond entre le cynisme et les idĂ©aux des LumiĂšres. Or, cette approche est-elle gĂ©nĂ©ralisĂ©e ? Ou le cynisme des LumiĂšres est-il sujet Ă des variantes selon les auteurs ? Cette thĂšse se propose dâĂ©tudier, par lâanalyse des occurrences du cynisme dans les textes de la France des LumiĂšres, les diffĂ©rentes acceptions du cynisme, pour cerner les enjeux auxquels elles sâattachent. Des textes tels quâAihcrappih de Godart de Beauchamps, Le DiogĂšne dĂ©cent de PrĂ©montval, le Socrate en dĂ©lire de Wieland, Le cynique moderne de CĆtlogon, Le dĂ©sapprobateur de Castilhon, Le cosmopolite de Fougeret de Monbron, Le paysan perverti de Restif de la Bretonne et Arlequin DiogĂšne de Saint-Just seront pris en considĂ©ration. Ils sâajouteront Ă une Ă©tude du cynisme chez Diderot, chez qui la thĂ©matique parcourt lâensemble de lâĆuvre et atteint son expression la plus achevĂ©e dans Le neveu de Rameau. Par ses doutes, Diderot trouve Ă©galement sa place dans lâĂ©tude des critiques des LumiĂšres quâont formulĂ©es Rousseau et Sade, chez qui lâon Ă©value la pertinence de lâenjeu cynique.
Il ressort de cette thĂšse que les acceptions moderne et contemporaine du cynisme comportent des distinctions conceptuelles qui nous interdisent de les amalgamer. Notre analyse du cynisme dans le contexte français des LumiĂšres montre que lâon est, jusquâĂ la fin du XVIIIe siĂšcle, en prĂ©sence dâune conception typiquement moderne du cynisme, laquelle met lâaccent sur la redĂ©couverte de lâimpudeur de DiogĂšne. Plus prĂ©cisĂ©ment, le cynisme se caractĂ©rise, au XVIIIe siĂšcle, par un repli misanthrope et solitaire, lequel sâoppose Ă lâoptimisme humaniste des Philosophes. Il est lâexpression dâun rejet de la sociabilitĂ© mise de lâavant par ces derniers, en rĂ©ponse au constat de corruption de la sociĂ©tĂ©. Sâil est possible dây situer lâĂ©mergence dâune nouvelle conception du cynisme, câest donc seulement dans la mesure oĂč les dĂ©bats liĂ©s Ă lâĂ©laboration dâune morale matĂ©rialiste, fondĂ©e en intĂ©rĂȘt ou en sentiment, montrent que chacun de ces fondements comportent des failles, et non parce que certains auteurs des LumiĂšres auraient entendu par cynisme ce que nous entendons aujourdâhui. Tout se passe comme si lâhomme dĂ©sabusĂ©, qui tient pour acquis lâincorrigibilitĂ© de sa nature et de la sociĂ©tĂ©, choisissant dâen tirer profit malgrĂ© lâimmoralisme que cela comporte, avait forgĂ© le statut de cynique postmoderne. Cela rompt avec la tradition qui, jusquâĂ la fin de lâĂ©poque moderne, tient le Cynique pour une figure dâun dire vrai fondamentalement dĂ©sapprobateur du genre humain. Si lâimpudeur poussĂ©e dans ses derniers retranchements conduit le cynique Ă nâĂ©prouver aucune honte Ă mentir, il poursuit en cela la devise dâaltĂ©ration des valeurs initiĂ©e par DiogĂšne, mais contribue dĂ©sormais au maintien dâun statu quo sur lâĂ©tat de corruption de la sociĂ©tĂ© quâaucun cynique, ancien ou moderne, nâaurait acceptĂ© de taire.Now pervasive on the political scene, cynicism has been contentious from its beginnings. The scandalous way of living to which it is linked raise the issue of whether or not Diogenes and the Cynics must be considered as part of the history of philosophy. Besides, what do todayâs cynical practices share with those of Diogenes? Some interprets situate the emergence of a new conception of cynicism peculiar to modernity during the Enlightenment, but few historical studies have been centered on this question. It is consequently important to return to the sources of cynicism to measure this hypothesisâ validity.
Through a study of cynicismâs history and its transmission we trace the evolution of the major issues at the core of cynic movement and its posterity, and present a synthesis of its significations and their internal tensions. Many references allow us to define the place that cynicism occupies within the XVIIIth century. Philosophers have tried to reclaim Diogenesâ antique wisdom while also accommodating his shameless frankness to the requirements of sociability. The study of the reception of cynicism in the XVIIIth century french Enlightenment must therefore be seen within the scope of the moral debates of that time. Those debates aim to elaborate a materialist moral on a natural basis, trying in doing so to tackle the problem of amoralism revealed by La Mettrieâs statement of the inadequacy between happiness and virtue. To do that, Helvetius reduces the scope of natural determinisms by underlining the importance of exterior factors when managing behaviors. Diderot and DâHolbach, on their part, emphasize the notion of sociability to make sure thereâs a moral sense within human nature itself; this belief reinforces an already profound disagreement between the ideals of Enlightenment and cynicism. But is this approach that widespread? Or is cynicism subject to vary according to authors? This thesis proposes, by studying the occurrences of cynicism in French Enlightenmentâs texts, to give an account of its different meanings in order to identify the issues that are put forward. Therefore, texts such as Aihcrappih by Godart de Beauchamps, Le DiogĂšne dĂ©cent by PrĂ©montval, Le Socrate en dĂ©lire by Wieland, Le cynique moderne by CĆtlogon, Le dĂ©sapprobateur by Castilhon, Le cosmopolite by Fougeret de Monbron, Le paysan perverti by Restif de la Bretonne, and Arlequin DiogĂšne by Saint-Just will be taken into account, as will be cynicism in Diderotâs texts; this thematic is present in his whole work, Le neveu de Rameau being the most achieved expression of it. Exposing his doubts, Diderot also finds its place in our exposition of the Enlightenmentâs critics as they have been formulated by Rousseau and Sade; weâll also analyze the relevance of their cynical stakes.
The conclusion of this thesis is that the modern and contemporary meanings of cynicism entail important conceptual distinctions that forbid us to amalgamate them. Our analysis of cynicism in French Enlightenmentâs texts shows that up until the end of the XVIIIth century, we are faced with a modern conception of cynicism that rests to a considerable extent upon the rediscovery of Diogeneâs immodesty. More precisely, the XVIIIth century cynicism can be characterized by a solitary and misanthropic withdrawal, which opposes the Philosophersâ humanist optimism. Cynicism is therefore a rejection of sociability, a value put forward by Philosophers in response to the general state of corruption of society. In other words, if one can locate the emergence of a new form of cynicism in the Enlightenment, itâs not that some authors understood cynicism as we do now: it is because the debates linked with the construction of a materialist conception of morality, be it be founded on interests or sentiments, show that these fundaments carry some weaknesses. It is as though the disillusioned man who takes for granted the incorrigibility of nature and society and chooses to take advantage of it despite the immorality of doing so has given birth to the postmodern cynic. This is he who breaks with a tradition which, up to the modern era, considered the cynic as the figure of a blunt truth teller, disapproving of mankind. If immodesty, driven into a corner, leads the postmodern cynic to shamelessness in lying, he in a sense pursues the motto of the alteration of values initiated by Diogenes, but now contributes to maintain the corruption of society, which no cynic, may he be ancient or modern, would have accepted to silence
Tat RNA silencing suppressor activity contributes to perturbation of lymphocyte miRNA by HIV-1
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>MicroRNA (miRNA)-mediated RNA silencing is integral to virtually every cellular process including cell cycle progression and response to virus infection. The interplay between RNA silencing and HIV-1 is multifaceted, and accumulating evidence posits a strike-counterstrike interface that alters the cellular environment to favor virus replication. For instance, miRNA-mediated RNA silencing of HIV-1 translation is antagonized by HIV-1 Tat RNA silencing suppressor activity. The activity of HIV-1 accessory proteins Vpr/Vif delays cell cycle progression, which is a process prominently modulated by miRNA. The expression profile of cellular miRNA is altered by HIV-1 infection in both cultured cells and clinical samples. The open question stands of what, if any, is the contribution of Tat RNA silencing suppressor activity or Vpr/Vif activity to the perturbation of cellular miRNA by HIV-1.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Herein, we compared the perturbation of miRNA expression profiles of lymphocytes infected with HIV-1<sup>NL4-3 </sup>or derivative strains that are deficient in Tat RNA silencing suppressor activity (Tat K51A substitution) or ablated of the vpr/vif open reading frames. Microarrays recapitulated the perturbation of the cellular miRNA profile by HIV-1 infection. The miRNA expression trends overlapped ~50% with published microarray results on clinical samples from HIV-1 infected patients. Moreover, the number of miRNA perturbed by HIV-1 was largely similar despite ablation of Tat RSS activity and Vpr/Vif; however, the Tat RSS mutation lessened HIV-1 downregulation of twenty-two miRNAs.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our study identified miRNA expression changes attributable to Tat RSS activity in HIV-1<sup>NL4-3</sup>. The results accomplish a necessary step in the process to understand the interface of HIV-1 with host RNA silencing activity. The overlap in miRNA expression trends observed between HIV-1 infected CEMx174 lymphocytes and primary cells supports the utility of cultured lymphocytes as a tractable model to investigate interplay between HIV-1 and host RNA silencing. The subset of miRNA determined to be perturbed by Tat RSS in HIV-1 infection provides a focal point to define the gene networks that shape the cellular environment for HIV-1 replication.</p
Validation of a Scale to Measure Patient-Perceived Barriers to Medication Use
AIMS: Medication adherence may explain why patients show very different clinical outcomes. Previous assessments of adherence have used refill rates and pill counts. Few studies have investigated patient-identified barriers to using medications as prescribed. This is particularly true for persons with diabetes, most of whom are using poly-pharmacy regimens. We created a questionnaire to measure patient perceptions of barriers to medication adherence (PBMA) targeting a predominately low income, inner-city minority population.
METHODS: Twenty items (Likert scale) leading with "I sometimes don't take my diabetes medicines because..." were developed from 5 focus groups (N=48). A questionnaire including these items was mailed to 1000 patients who have diabetes.
RESULTS: Using data from 267 respondents (Mean age=58, 74%female, 43% non-Hispanic Caucasian, 77% income<$15,000), exploratory factor analyses with varimax rotation identified 5 factors, that may contribute to poor medication adherence: personal access to medications (F1); communication with providers (F2); understanding or appropriately following the prescribed regimen (F3); side effects (F4) and system factors that inhibited access to medication (F5). Cronbach alphas ranged from .73 to .83 for the five factors and was .92 for total scale score. No relationships were found between total scores and gender, race, or income. Greater perception of barriers was significantly (p<0.01) associated with being younger (r= -0.21), being bothered more by physical (r= -0.40) and emotional side effects (r= 0.43), and less satisfaction with control of blood sugar by diabetes medications (r= 0.45).
CONCLUSIONS: This instrument is reliable, factorially valid, and consistent with clinical observation regarding factors known to be associated with patient medication adherence. Although study participants were patients with diabetes, the PBMA may be applicable to other therapeutic areas
Non-native contrasts in Tongan loans
We present three case studies of marginal contrasts in Tongan loans from English, working with data from three speakers. Although Tongan lacks contrasts in stress or in CC vs. CVC sequences, secondary stress in loans is contrastive, and is sensitive to whether a vowel has a correspondent in the English source word; vowel deletion is also sensitive to whether a vowel is epenthetic as compared to the English source; and final vowel length is sensitive to whether the penultimate vowel is epenthetic, and if not, whether it corresponds to a stressed or unstressed vowel in the English source. We provide an analysis in the multilevel model of Boersma (1998) and Boersma & Hamann (2009), and show that the loan patterns can be captured using only constraints that plausibly are needed for native-word phonology, including constraints that reflect perceptual strategies
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