Gender effects in orientation on primary students' performance on items rich in graphics.

This study investigated the longitudinal performance of 378 students who completed mathematics items rich in graphics. Specifically, this study explored student performance across axis (e.g., numbers lines), opposed-position (e.g., line and column graphs) and circular (e.g., pie charts) items over a three-year period (ages 9-11 years). The results of the study revealed significant performance differences in the favour of boys on graphics items that were represented in horizontal and vertical displays. There were no gender differences on items that were represented in a circular manner

A Mechanized Theory of Communication Analysis in CML

For this master\u27s thesis, I have developed a formal semantics of a language with concurrent processes (or threads), an initial formal analysis, along with related theorems and formal proofs. The language under analysis is a very simplified version of Concurrent ML. The formal analysis recasts an analysis with informal proofs developed by Reppy and Xiao. It categorizes communication described by programs into simple topologies. One description of topologies is static; that is, it describes all static topologies of a program in a finite number of steps. Another description is dynamic; that is, it describes topologies in terms of running a program for an arbitrary number of steps. The main formal theorem states that the static analysis is sound with respect to the dynamic analysis. Two versions of the static analysis have been developed so far; one with lower precision, and one with higher precision. The higher precision analysis is closer to the work by Reppy and Xiao, but contains many more details making it more challenging to prove formally than the lower precision analysis. The proofs for the soundness theorems of the lower precision analysis have been mechanically verified using Isabelle/HOL, while the higher precision analysis is currently under development. Indeed, one of the motivations for implementing the analysis in a mechanical setting is to enable gradual extension of analysis and language without introducing uncaught bugs in the definitions or proofs. The definitions used in this formal theory differ significantly from that of Reppy and Xiao, in order to aid formal reasoning. Thus, recasting Reppy and Xiao\u27s work was far more nuanced than a straightforward syntactic transliteration. Although the definitions are structurally quite different, their philosophical equivalence is hopefully apparent. In this formal theory, the dynamic semantics of Concurrent ML consists of a CEK machine. The static semantics consists of a control flow analysis (0CFA), defined in terms of constraints

The Impact of Epilepsy and the Evolution of a Nonprofit: The Epilepsy Connection

This thesis examines the diagnosis, symptoms, and consequences of epilepsy along with the author’s personal journey that promoted the creation of a successful epilepsy service club on the University of Mississippi campus, later evolving to a nonprofit organization off campus. Epilepsy is defined as having at least two seizures without a known trigger that are recurring and may include uncontrollable jerking of muscles or staring blankly with significant risk for short-and long-term consequences. These consequences include social isolation, problems at school, reduced physical activity, increased risk for injuries, social stigma, anxiety, depression, attention issues, and other consequences. An independent online search by the author sought to discover epilepsy-based organizations among universities that had 10,000 or more students enrolled among eleven Southern states. Out of 105 universities found in the eleven states, three universities, the University of Mississippi, the University of Central Florida and the University of South Florida, published information about epilepsy-based service clubs on their campuses. This search accounted for 2.9% prevalence of epilepsy-based college service club organizations across eleven Southern states. Based on these findings, additional follow up is necessary to search in other U.S. regions to see if the results are similar and to identify prevalence of epilepsy service organizations in a wider population. The prevalence of epilepsy service club organizations nationwide is not known

A Shattered General: The Impact of Defeat on James Longstreet in East Tennessee, 1863-1864

Confederate General James Longstreet watched his dawn attack on Fort Sanders in Knoxville, Tennessee, fail through the frigid morning air on November 29, 1863. Fort Sanders would only be the beginning of Longstreet\u27s personal descent from confidence he would be a perfect independent army commander to an individual mired in depression and regret. For the previous two years of the war, Longstreet’s star was on the rise, and he certainly gained supreme confidence in his abilities to lead the Confederacy to victory. After being separated from his favorite commander, Joseph Johnston, early in the war, Longstreet often thought he had the best ideas to claim victory and famously reacted poorly during the Pennsylvania Campaign to the orders of his superior officer, Robert E. Lee. Since he believed he knew best how to command an army, Longstreet believed he could make a major difference when he was transferred to the West for a temporary assignment to reverse the Union advances there. With the eyes of the nation on his performance in East Tennessee, Longstreet floundered and could not achieve the victory he sought when he had finally achieved an independent command. To save his reputation after Fort Sanders, he sought retribution in the courts-martial of his subordinates. The First Corps under Longstreet in East Tennessee suffered greatly in the following winter, struggling to find supplies while attempting unsuccessfully to gain a victory over the Union forces in the region. As his belief in his own abilities dissipated and his enemies within the Confederacy multiplied, Longstreet asked to be relieved of command, but the request was denied. East Tennessee became a personal reckoning for Longstreet when he was faced with his limitations as an officer. He returned to the Army of Northern Virginia a changed commander who realized being a corps commander was his best destiny

An Invincible Army?: Reading 1 Samuel 4-6 and 2 Samuel 6 as a Deuteronomistic Corrective to Exilic Misconceptions of the Ark

The surprising nature of the events which surround the ark in 1 Samuel 4-6 and 2 Samuel 6 raises significant questions about the conflicting concepts of this central Israelite object. This study will consider these narratives in light of their wider contexts, silhouetting the presentation of the ark in these chapters against the understanding of the ark in the Deuteronomistic History and of divine statues in the ancient Near East. It will argue that the Deuteronomistic author used the events within these narratives are a means of dispelling and correcting the views surrounding the ark and the temple which were held by both the people of Israel and their enemies during the time of the Babylonian exile. The narratives of the ark offer a microcosm of the exile, providing both an explanation for Israel’s fate and a hope for their return