Groundwater Irrigation System for Sustainable Agriculture

The aim of this project was to develop a prototype that may be a model to help relieve food insecurity in rural Liberia. This was accomplished by designing a groundwater extraction, recharge, and irrigation system to facilitate year-long crop-growth. The project was in partnership with BRAID Africa and a community in Zwedru, located in east Liberia, near the border of Côte D’Ivoire. During 2010 and 2011, a civil war broke out in Côte D’Ivoire and led to the citizens of the country taking refuge in Liberia (Leaf 2015). Many refugees have decided to stay in Liberia and are struggling to maintain food security as most subsist on rice with not even enough to sell. Currently, villagers in Zwedru only grow the rice in swamps during the rainy season and, with climate change, the rainy season is becoming increasingly unreliable (USAID 2012). The irrigation system that was designed for this project has allowed villagers to grow certain crops, such as cassava, okra, chard, and squash, during the dry season which will help alleviate food insecurity with the goal of providing a source of income for the farmers. This project was designed for a one hectare (2.47 acres) plot, which can be scaled up or down depending on land area and available resources

Topics in the theory of invariant subspaces

Summary available: p. [4]

Composite carbon fluid separation membranes

The invention provides carbon membranes for use in fluid separation processes, particularly gas separations, which are treated with a coating that provides a protective barrier which significantly limits permeation of water vapor or other impurities such as hydrocarbons without significantly inhibiting permeation of the faster fluid component or lowering selectivity. The composite membranes retain good fluid separation properties and are resistant to the adverse effects on membrane performance commonly observed in environments having high humidity. The coating is preferably an amorphous polymer of perfluoro-2,2-dimethyl-1,3-dioxole. The membranes can be of a varied configuration: sheet form, hollow fiber, asymmetrical membranes and the like.Board of Regents, University of Texas Syste

The Availability, Adequacy and Improvisation and the Use of Instructional Resources for Teaching Mathematics in Secondary Schools in West Pokot District, Kenya

This study examined the factors that influence the use of instructional resources/materials in the teaching of mathematics in secondary schools. Among the instructional materials that were investigated in their use are: Textbooks and mathematical tables. The study focused on their use in terms of their availability, adequacy and improvisation. The research design that was used in the study is descriptive survey. The research instruments included questionnaire, interview schedules and document analysis. The sampling techniques that were used in this research are stratified, simple random and purposive sampling. The respondents comprised 24 mathematics teachers and 372 form two students. Four teachers were interviewed. Data analysis was done by use of descriptive statistics. The study revealed that the selected instructional materials are not adequate. The main recommendations are that school administrators, teachers, students and parents should be sensitized on the importance of provision of instructional materials adequately. Keywords: Availability, Adequacy, Improvisation, Use and Instructional Resources (textbooks and mathematical tables)

Bridging Gender Disparities in Mathematics Achievement through Computer Based Learning

The purpose of this paper was to establish the influence of computer based learning (CBL) in Mathematics on learners’ achievement level in relation to gender. Specifically, the study sought to find out if there is any significant difference in achievement between boys and girls when exposed to CBL among secondary school students in Bungoma North District, Western Province, Kenya. This study was based on the theory of situated learning which states that learning as it normally occurs is a function of the activity, context and culture in which it occurs (Lave, 1988). The study adopted an experimental design where pre-test and post-test control group was used. The target population of the study was 1,173 form three secondary school students from Bungoma North District, Kenya. Purposive sampling was used to select schools with and without computers after which simple random sampling was used to select nine schools for the study. The study used a sample size of 240 respondents. Purposive sampling was used to select students who were computer literate then simple random sampling was applied to choose the respondents of the study. Mathematics achievement tests were used to collect data from the respondents. In data analysis both descriptive and inferential statistics were used. Descriptive statistics involved means, while inferential statistics utilized independent samples t-test. It was found out that there was no significant difference between boys and girls in Mathematics achievement when exposed to CBL. The paper therefore made the following recommendations: gender digital divide to be addressed, develop and use interactive Mathematics programmes, rural electrification to be continued, teachers to be equipped with the skills and knowledge they need to use the CBL technology, computer studies to be made compulsory in secondary schools. All this recommendations aim at bringing CBL into classroom to give every student, especially girls, a competitive edge in mathematics achievement. Keywords: Achievement, Bridging, Computer Based Learning, Gender Disparit

Factors Inhibiting Acquisition of Mathematical Knowledge in Kenyan Institutions of Higher Learning

Kenya is a developing country which has done fairly well in terms of development. However it has developed a strategy called vision 2030 which will see it get more developed. Before this is achieved a lot has to be done in training the personnel in all areas. One important area that requires a lot of attention is level of mathematical knowledge in Kenya. Mathematics is fundamental to change in all aspects of development. In our paper we identify some factors which inhibit performance in mathematics at the Kenyan institutions of higher learning especially at the universities. Key words: Mathematical Knowledge, Kenyan institutions of higher learning

Processes to condition gas permeable membranes

Glassy-type gas separating membranes are conditioned to a state of enhanced permeability through controlled sorption of a selected conditioning gas such as CO.sub.2. Membranes are swelled to a state of plasticity without being rubberized and maintained in this state to allow their permeabilities to settle to a new, higher steady-state value. Upon depressurization, conditioned membranes exhibit enhanced permeability over untreated membranes, without serious loss of permselectivity. Membranes so conditioned must be maintained with a minimum sorption level of a conditioning or maintaining gas pending use to retain their improved characteristics.Board of Regents, University of Texas Syste

An evaluation of noise and its effects on shuttle crewmembers during STS-50/USML-1

High noise levels can lead to physiological, psychological, and performance effects in man, ranging from irritability, annoyance, and sleep interference to interference with verbal communication and fatigue, and to temporary or permanent threshold shift at more extreme levels. The current study evaluated the acoustic environment of the STS50/USML-1 mission. The major objectives were to gain subjective assessments of the STS-50 noise levels, document impacts of noise upon crewmember performance, collect inflight sound level measurements, compare noise levels across missions, evaluate the current Shuttle acoustic criterion, and to make recommendations regarding noise specifications for SSF and other long-duration manned space missions. Sound measurements indicated that background noise levels were 60, 64, and 61 A-weighted decibels, respectively, on the Orbiter middeck, flight deck, and Space lab. All levels were rated acceptable, with the Spacelab environment rated the most favorably. Sleep stations afforded attenuation from airborne noise sources, although all crewmembers reported being awakened by crew activity on the middeck. Models of distance for acceptable speech communications were generated, identifying situations of compromised verbal communications to be avoided

For(a)ging Jewish spirituality from what is left: problematizing, placing, and practicing

What does it mean to be spiritual but critical of religion? This thesis analyzes spiritual communities who critique structures of power, expounding upon them via Karl Marx’s philosophy. As an integral component of the postmodern landscape, criticalist spiritual communities provide a window into the ways in which people and their communities combine spirituality with critical values. I present many queer Jewish feminists who engage in spiritual practices that do not adhere to restrictive Jewish tenets. For example, writers such as Alicia Ostriker and Vivian Gornick describe a distinctly leftist spiritual position that centers on their group identity. Using a comparative approach, this thesis then parallels the praxis and liturgy of contemporary queer synagogues with a theoretical articulation of Marxist spirituality. These parallels fall under three spiritual themes: integrated temporality, integrated community, and creative labor. Together, these parallels create a flexible framework for understanding communally oriented spirituality that revolves around nontheist spiritual components rather than God. I call this framework, “for(a)ging,” based on the dialectic between spiritually forging new traditions and foraging from old ones. By outlining a framework, this thesis explores a growing form of contemporary spirituality that relies on community rather than individual choice or religious authority

Reducing the cost of conversion projects through design for ship conversion

PhD ThesisThe Thesis develops design and production methods to reduce cost, duration and risks of conversions. It reviews the literature on the nature of conversion and its correlation to ship-repair and shipbuilding. It examines the market, in particular for tanker to bulk carrier conversions. Literature on ship design for production, project management and risk is reviewed to identify potentially valuable ideas to improve the conversion process. The case study conversion was completed in a conversion yard, using conventional techniques and planning. The design of the final bulk carrier was also conventional. The work was completed afloat, creating potential risk of structural damage which required carefully managed actions, e.g. work inside cargo holds to be carried out sequentially. A project completion review identified this and access difficulties as slowing the work. A number of cost inducing conversion bottlenecks had not been obvious at the start. An alternative design is proposed for subsequent projects, moving strength members above deck, minimizing bottlenecks present with the initial design. Indicatively, by providing adequate deck strength early in the conversion, work in the cargo holds could proceed more quickly. A plan for conversion is developed alongside the design. The alternative design shows a significant cost and time saving. The results are developed to offer a general basis for design for conversion, adapting shiprepair and design for production principles and proposes the following: - The need to understand conversions in depth and improve planning. - The need to engage all parties (design and production) in a collaborative project. - Mitigation of risks focusing on production methods. - A dedicated Goal-Based Design for Conversion approach that avoids, where possible, difficult internal structural work. - Evaluating the need for Dry Dock in major conversions; it may not always be necessary or beneficial, contrary to popular belief and current Bibliography