More than Words: The Impact of Memory on How Undergraduates with Dyslexia Interact with Information

Despite the prevalence of dyslexia and the challenges it poses for seeking, assessing and using information, there has been relatively little research on the challenges people with dyslexia face when interacting with information. What existing research there is has mostly focused on the impact on information comprehension and spelling. However, people with dyslexia often face considerable memory impairment that can affect their learning. This paper reports findings from retrospective think-aloud (RTA) observations with 13 undergraduates with dyslexia, focusing on the memory-related barriers they face and the workarounds they use to overcome these barriers. An enhanced understanding of the full range of barriers faced by information-seekers with dyslexia can inform the design of dyslexia-aware digital information environments and information literacy programs. These can ‘level the information playing field’ by helping to break down barriers to information and, in turn, to knowledge creation

AlN/GaN-based MOS-HEMT technology: processing and device results

Process development of AlN/GaN MOS-HEMTs is presented, along with issues and problems concerning the fabrication processes. The developed technology uses thermally grown Al<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> as a gate dielectric and surface passivation for devices. Significant improvement in device performance was observed using the following techniques: (1) Ohmic contact optimisation using Al wet etch prior to Ohmic metal deposition and (2) mesa sidewall passivation. DC and RF performance of the fabricated devices will be presented and discussed in this paper

Results of post-test psychological examinations of the crewmen from the 90-day manned test of an advanced regenerative life support system

The following material presents the results of two temporally remote administrations of an identical projective personality assessment device (Rorschach Inkblot) using crew members aboard the 90-day test. The first administration took place during preselection crew psychodiagnostic testing in the period extending from mid-December 1969 through mid-January 1970. Second administration took place in late May and early June, 1971, approximately one year after termination of the test. During the 90-day program duration, the subjects participated in the crew training program, were selected and served as onboard crew during the 90-day test. The testing was undertaken in order to determine the character and extent of change (if any) in basic personality dynamics accompanying or caused by participation in the 90-day test program. Results indicate that significant personality changes occurred in three of the four onboard crew members. A detailed discussion of the results is provided. Objective scores which served as the basis for the discussion are presented in the Appendix

Dismantling the signposts to public health? NHS data under the Health and Social Care Act 2012

The Health and Social Care Act 2012 will replace the administrative structure of the NHS in England, currently based on the resident populations of defined geographical areas, with one that relates instead to the shifting populations of individuals registered with specific general practices at given points in time.1 This will radically change the longstanding basis for collecting data routinely about the health needs of local populations, making it difficult to monitor the effect of new legislation on the health of the population locally or nationally.2 3 We discuss some of the implications of the act for existing routine data systems and the production of routine statistics that underpin essential NHS functions, including monitoring healthcare provision and ensuring equity of access, allocation of resources, and measurement of outcomes

Observationally-Motivated Analysis of Simulated Galaxies

The spatial and temporal relationships between stellar age, kinematics, and chemistry are a fundamental tool for uncovering the physics driving galaxy formation and evolution. Observationally, these trends are derived using carefully selected samples isolated via the application of appropriate magnitude, colour, and gravity selection functions of individual stars; conversely, the analysis of chemodynamical simulations of galaxies has traditionally been restricted to the age, metallicity, and kinematics of `composite' stellar particles comprised of open cluster-mass simple stellar populations. As we enter the Gaia era, it is crucial that this approach changes, with simulations confronting data in a manner which better mimics the methodology employed by observers. Here, we use the \textsc{SynCMD} synthetic stellar populations tool to analyse the metallicity distribution function of a Milky Way-like simulated galaxy, employing an apparent magnitude plus gravity selection function similar to that employed by the RAdial Velocity Experiment (RAVE); we compare such an observationally-motivated approach with that traditionally adopted - i.e., spatial cuts alone - in order to illustrate the point that how one analyses a simulation can be, in some cases, just as important as the underlying sub-grid physics employed.Comment: Accepted for publication in PoS (Proceedings of Science): Nuclei in the Cosmos XIII (Debrecen, Jul 2014); 6 pages; 3 figure

Optimally defined Racah-Casimir operators for su(n) and their eigenvalues for various classes of representations

This paper deals with the striking fact that there is an essentially canonical path from the $i$-th Lie algebra cohomology cocycle, $i=1,2,... l$, of a simple compact Lie algebra \g of rank $l$ to the definition of its primitive Casimir operators $C^{(i)}$ of order $m_i$. Thus one obtains a complete set of Racah-Casimir operators $C^{(i)}$ for each \g and nothing else. The paper then goes on to develop a general formula for the eigenvalue $c^{(i)}$ of each $C^{(i)}$ valid for any representation of \g, and thereby to relate $c^{(i)}$ to a suitably defined generalised Dynkin index. The form of the formula for $c^{(i)}$ for $su(n)$ is known sufficiently explicitly to make clear some interesting and important features. For the purposes of illustration, detailed results are displayed for some classes of representation of $su(n)$, including all the fundamental ones and the adjoint representation.Comment: Latex, 16 page

Direct measurement of penetration length in ultra-thin and/or mesoscopic superconducting structures

We describe a method for direct measurement of the magnetic penetration length in thin (10 - 100 nm) superconducting structures having overall dimensions in the range 1 to 100 micrometers. The method is applicable for broadband magnetic fields from dc to MHz frequencies.Comment: Accepted by Journal of Applied P:hysics (Jun 2006).5 pages, 5 figure

One-dimensional radiation-hydrodynamic simulations of imploding spherical plasma liners with detailed equation-of-state modeling

This work extends the one-dimensional radiation-hydrodynamic imploding spherical argon plasma liner simulations of T. J. Awe et al. [Phys. Plasmas 18, 072705 (2011)] by using a detailed tabular equation-of-state (EOS) model, whereas Awe et al. used a polytropic EOS model. Results using the tabular EOS model give lower stagnation pressures by a factor of 3.9-8.6 and lower peak ion temperatures compared to the polytropic EOS results. Both local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE) and non-LTE EOS models were used in this work, giving similar results on stagnation pressure. The lower stagnation pressures using a tabular EOS model are attributed to a reduction in the liner's ability to compress arising from the energy sink introduced by ionization and electron excitation, which are not accounted for in a polytropic EOS model. Variation of the plasma liner species for the same initial liner geometry, mass density, and velocity was also explored using the LTE tabular EOS model, showing that the highest stagnation pressure is achieved with the highest atomic mass species for the constraints imposed.Comment: 21 pages, 3 tables, 7 figures, accepted for publication by Phys. Plasmas (9/24/2012