A retrospective evaluation of the Governor's School of North Carolina

Data were evaluated to give the researcher sound bases for recommendations to the Board of Directors of the Governor's School of North Carolina and the Division of Exceptional Children of the North Carolina State Department of Public Instruction so that they can make reasoned decisions on continuing or revising the present Governor's School program and the policies, standards, or organization of the Governor's School of North Carolina. This study attempted to determine the accomplishments (e.g., honors, awards, occupations, etc.) of former Governor's School students, how these students perceive the effects of their participation in the Governor's School, what changes they would recommend for the Governor's School, and the impact that graduates have had on the• state of North Carolina since attending the Governor's School. This summative evaluation utilized a mail survey of 1,200 former Governor's School students selected so as to represent the total population .of former Governor's School students from 1963 through 1981. In addition to surveying the former students of. the Governor's School, the superintendents of the public schools of North Carolina were surveyed to determine their perceptions of, and their suggestions for changes in the Governor's School of North Carolina

The Multiple Meanings of “Hybrid”: Studying Adult Student Experiences in Hybrid (Web-Enhanced) Classes While Learning How to do Qualitative Research

This paper has a two-fold or “hybrid” purpose: (1) to discuss the results of a qualitative study of adult students experiences of web-enhanced or hybrid classes, and (2) to briefly discuss the process of learning to do qualitative research while conducting this study in a qualitative research methods class

Observations on acoustic emissions from a line contact compressed into the plastic region

Some observations from acoustic emissions recorded during a yield test of a bearing raceway compressed into plasticity using a rolling element are presented. The general objective of the study is to establish whether there is enough evidence of the onset of sub-surface plasticity in the acoustic emissions signature. It is discussed here how acoustic emissions monitoring during compression could indicate the onset of subsurface plasticity as a precursor to damage propagation to the surface. Some comparisons are drawn between the acoustic emissions activity levels and time-frequency response during elastic deformation and at yield loads

Recent developments of SOLEROO: Australia's first high energy radioactive Ion Beam capability

The first measurements of the Australian National University's new radioactive ion beam capability were carried out using elastic scattering of a 8Li radioactive beam from a 197Au target. The purpose of this experiment was to test the radioactive ion beam capability as a complete system, which uses a pair of twin position-sensitive parallel plate avalanche counters as tracking detectors along with a highly pixelated double sided Si detector array. The tracking detector system allows us to have extremely high purity secondary radioactive ion beams by electronically tagging the reaction products of interest, thus allowing complete separation from the unwanted contaminant beam species of similar mass and charge. Here, some recent developments and characteristics of this system are presented

Bayesian analysis of weak gravitational lensing and Sunyaev-Zel'dovich data for six galaxy clusters

We present an analysis of observations made with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager (AMI) and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) of six galaxy clusters in a redshift range of 0.16--0.41. The cluster gas is modelled using the Sunyaev--Zel'dovich (SZ) data provided by AMI, while the total mass is modelled using the lensing data from the CFHT. In this paper, we: i) find very good agreement between SZ measurements (assuming large-scale virialisation and a gas-fraction prior) and lensing measurements of the total cluster masses out to r_200; ii) perform the first multiple-component weak-lensing analysis of A115; iii) confirm the unusual separation between the gas and mass components in A1914; iv) jointly analyse the SZ and lensing data for the relaxed cluster A611, confirming our use of a simulation-derived mass-temperature relation for parameterizing measurements of the SZ effect.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figures, 12 tables, published by MNRA

Conservation organizations need to consider adaptive capacity: why local input matters

Conservation organizations are increasingly applying adaptive capacity assessments in response to escalating climate change impacts. These assessments are essential to identify climate risks to ecosystems, prioritize management interventions, maximize the effectiveness of conservation actions, and ensure conservation resources are allocated appropriately. Despite an extensive literature on the topic, there is little agreement on the most relevant factors needed to support local scale initiatives, and additional guidance is needed to clarify how adaptive capacity should be assessed. This article discusses why adaptive capacity assessment represents a critical tool supporting conservation planning and management. It also evaluates key factors guiding conservation NGOs conducting these assessments in tropical island communities, and explores alternative priorities based on input from academic experts and key local stakeholders. Our results demonstrate that important differences exist between local stakeholders and nonlocal academic experts on key factors affecting adaptation and coping mechanisms. The exclusion of local community input affects the validity of adaptive capacity assessment findings, and has significant implications for the prioritization and effectiveness of conservation strategies and funding allocation

Further Sunyaev-Zel'dovich observations of two Planck ERCSC clusters with the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager

We present follow-up observations of two galaxy clusters detected blindly via the Sunyaev-Zel'dovich (SZ) effect and released in the Planck Early Release Compact Source Catalogue. We use the Arcminute Microkelvin Imager, a dual-array 14-18 GHz radio interferometer. After radio source subtraction, we find a SZ decrement of integrated flux density -1.08+/-0.10 mJy toward PLCKESZ G121.11+57.01, and improve the position measurement of the cluster, finding the centre to be RA 12 59 36.4, Dec +60 04 46.8, to an accuracy of 20 arcseconds. The region of PLCKESZ G115.71+17.52 contains strong extended emission, so we are unable to confirm the presence of this cluster via the SZ effect.Comment: 4 tables, 3 figures, revised after referee's comments and resubmitted to MNRA