Classroom 4.0

Artificial intelligence, once the stuff of futuristic books and films, is finding its way onto college campuses. How is American higher education adapting to the digital age

Too Much Weed: Invasive Species in Chitwan National Park

Invasive plant species threaten jungle eco-systems in Chitwan National Park. Mikania micrantha is the most destructive invasive plant in the park and has been named one of the world’s 100 worst invaders. It is an exceptionally fastgrowing and aggressive perennial plant that is quickly spreading throughout Chitwan and ousting native plant species that comprise the diets of rhinos and other important wildlife species. M. micrantha poses both immediate ecological concerns to wildlife and threatens rural subsistence farming populations by destroying cropland. In Nepal, no policy or program exists to contain invasive plant species, and large-scale management of M. micrantha is needed in place of current arbitrary management. Before a management program is launched, there is need for increased awareness among park visitors and local people about M. micrantha. There is a gap in literature and resources directed at park visitors, so I created educational posters in both English and Nepali to raise awareness about the effects of M. micrantha. I distributed the posters to guide services, a hotel, and an orphanage in Sauraha. The aim of my project was to spur a broader awareness campaign about invasives for world travelers and locals in Chitwan as well as discussion about the need for effective invasive plant species management

Life and Debt for ETSU Graduate Students.

Through in-depth interviews with 21 participants, this thesis investigates how graduate students at East Tennessee State University feel about their finances. Although all adults, by necessity, have everyday money concerns, this study explores the unique experiences that post-baccalaureate students have with debt, how they talk about it, and what meanings they attach to student loans in their daily lives. This study is novel in that little research to date has examined how graduate students\u27 perceptions of adulthood are connected to their financial situations and their stage in life. For example, saving money is important to this population mainly because it signifies the achievement of adulthood. Debt, on the other hand, signifies dependence and questionable adult status. Although graduate students\u27 future incomes will vary, they share similar strategies for managing the stigma of debt

X-ray Emission from an Asymmetric Blast Wave and a Massive White Dwarf in the Gamma-ray Emitting Nova V407 Cyg

Classical nova events in symbiotic stars, although rare, offer a unique opportunity to probe the interaction between ejecta and a dense environment in stellar explosions. In this work, we use X-ray data obtained with Swift and Suzaku during the recent classical nova outburst in V407 Cyg to explore such an interaction. We find evidence of both equilibrium and non-equilibrium ionization plasmas at the time of peak X-ray brightness, indicating a strong asymmetry in the density of the emitting region. Comparing a simple model to the data, we find that the X-ray evolution is broadly consistent with nova ejecta driving a forward shock into the dense wind of the Mira companion. We detect a highly absorbed soft X-ray component in the spectrum during the first 50 days of the outburst that is consistent with supersoft emission from the nuclear burning white dwarf. The high temperature and short turn off time of this emission component, in addition to the observed breaks in the optical and UV lightcurves, indicate that the white dwarf in the binary is extremely massive. Finally, we explore the connections between the X-ray and GeV gamma-ray evolution, and propose that the gamma ray turn-off is due to the stalling of the forward shock as the ejecta reach the red giant surface.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ. 17 pages, 9 figure

Growing a local organic movement: The Mexican Network of Organic Markets

Over the past several years, in response to the rapid growth in global demand for organic goods, the amount of organic production in Mexico has increased dramatically. Indeed, while Mexican agriculture as a whole has suffered severe crises, the organic sector has boomed, and today more than 83 000 producers farm organically on over 300 000 hectares of land. Of these producers, 98 percent are small scale, farming an average of three hectares, and over 50 percent are indigenous people. Unfortunately, as is the case in many developing countries, the vast majority of organic production remains focused on export crops – particularly coffee, but also cocoa, coconut, and other fruit and vegetables – with 85 percent of organic goods being sent to foreign markets. From an environmental point of view, exportoriented production is extremely damaging because of the amounts of fossil fuels required for transportation. In addition, packaging for export consumes precious resources and creates mountains of waste. Moreover, an export-oriented focus constrains the degree to which domestic markets are developed, and it leaves Mexican producers highly vulnerable to international market fluctuations

Barriers to Relational Continuity of Care for Undergraduate College Students in Southeastern South Dakota

In health care, the patient’s relationship with his or her provider serves as a foundation upon which health care decisions are guided and health outcomes are addressed. Relational continuity of care refers to the presence of a sustained (long-term) relationship between a primary care provider (PCP) and a patient. Such continuity of care has been linked with improved health outcomes, reduced mortality, lower health care costs, increased patient satisfaction, and increased delivery of preventative services. Relational continuity of care tends to be low amongst young adults, especially college students. The reasons for this – and the salient barriers to relational continuity of care within the college student population – are as yet incompletely understood. This research project investigates why, focusing specifically on decision making processes, the role of parents, and the relative importance of different barriers to relational continuity of care amongst undergraduate college students in southeastern South Dakota. I conducted preliminary interviews with area health experts to better understand barriers to continuity of care in the southeast South Dakota region. Following this, fourteen interviews regarding relational continuity of care were conducted, with seven junior and senior undergraduate students attending the University of South Dakota, as well as separate interviews with the mother of each student. Since mothers have been found to play a strong role in young peoples’ health-related decision making, they may in some cases be better able to speak to the influence of some relevant factors. The undergraduate student population at a four-year university in southeastern South Dakota, the University of South Dakota (USD), was also surveyed to better understand what barriers students faced. Through interviews with and a survey of undergraduate students attending USD, it was found that main barriers to relational continuity of care in this population were: 1) PCP location and a long distance to travel to see PCPs; 2) college students’ perception of having good health and the related lack of emphasis that they place on routine preventative care; 3) college students’ lack of preparedness and comfort in assuming responsibility for their own health care; 4) college students’ lack of familiarity with and knowledge of USD Student Health Services; 5) the absence of a facilitated transition from a pediatric PCP to an adult PCP; and 6) college students’ schedules, which limit their amount of time available to receive routine health care. By using the University of South Dakota as a case study, I seek to advance our knowledge of barriers to relational continuity of care that are faced by undergraduate college students in general. It is hoped that, by improving our understanding of the barriers to relational continuity of care amongst undergraduate college students in southeastern South Dakota, this study will contribute to efforts to both reduce these barriers and provide quality health care for this population

Tobacco Cessation Support in New Milford, CT

Smoking tobacco is one of the most significant risk factors for several deadly diseases; nevertheless, roughly 13% of Connecticut residents smoke cigarettes. Most people who smoke cigarettes realize that it is bad for their health, but many don\u27t understand why it is unhealthy, or just how unhealthy it truly is. Furthermore, quitting smoking is often extraordinarily difficult, due to the addictive nature of nicotine, and the increasing content of nicotine inside cigarettes over time. This project created supportive and educational pamphlets about tobacco use and cessation, and proposes that primary care doctors can help their patients quit smoking by providing pamphlets to patients who are tobacco users.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/fmclerk/1574/thumbnail.jp

Why Firefighting Is Never Enough: Preserving High-Quality Product

In this paper, we add to insights already developed in single-project models about insufficient resource allocation and the "firefighting" and last-minute rework that often result by asking why dysfunctional resource allocation persists from project to project. We draw on data collected from a field site concerned about its new product development process and its quality of output to construct a simple model that portrays resource allocation in a multi-project development environment. The main insight of the analysis is that under-allocating resources to the early phases of a given project in a multi-project environment can create a vicious cycle of increasing error rates, overworked engineers, and declining performance in all future projects. Policy analysis begins with those that were under consideration by the organization described in our data set. Those policies turn out to offer relatively low leverage in offsetting the problem. We then test a sequence of new policies, each designed to reveal a different feature of the system's structure and conclude with a strategy that we believe can significantly offset the dysfunctional dynamics we discuss. The paper concludes with a discussion of the challenges managers may face in implementing the strategy that can prevent persistent under-allocation of resources to projects.MIT Center for Innovation in Product Development under NSF Cooperative Agreement Number EEC-952914