Appalachian Coalfield Delegation Position Paper on Sustainable Energy

Appalachian grassroots groups(with support provided by the DataCenter) release a scathing report on the impact of coal mining to the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development. The Delegation created an historic moment with its powerful stories and diverse outreach. Alliances were forged and the civil society discourse on energy, particularly what is sustainable energy and who gets to define it, has been challenged. Their answer---"it comes from the people!" As most government officials continue to ignore the atrocities of mountain top removal, coal sludge impoundments, and underground injections of sludge, it is up to the people of the Appalachian coal fields to let the world know the harsh realities of an economy built on seemingly cheap electricity

The biology of crayfish plague (Aphanomyces Astaci: Schikora) in Great Britain

Aspects of the biology of the crayfish plague fungus (Aphanomyces astaci : Schikora) were studied and a chronology of the spread of crayfish plague in the rivers of Europe was constructed. A study of the spread of crayfish plague in the River Lea and its tributaries indicated a decline in crayfish populations throughout the system with residual populations of Austropotamobius pallipes remaining in the Mimram and in the Stort. Populations may also exist in the Ash and at two sites in the Lea. The occurrence of five Pacifastacus leniusculus introductions in the system may explain the occurrence of the disease in these waterways. Six tested invertebrate species (including: Gammarus Pulex) did not appear to be suitable alternative hosts for the fungus and fish did not appear to act as transport hosts, growth and sporulation of the fungus occurred on plant substrates but could not be demonstrated under non-sterile conditions. Putative sexual stages were noted both on sterile hemp seeds and during a laboratory infection of Astacus leptodactylus. polyplanetIsm was demonstrated In culture and a maximum of five generations of zoospores occurred at 15*C. Histopathological examinations of infected animals showed the spread of the fungus within the host to be limited. Locally cuticle, epidermis and connective tissue showed most involvement. Although nervous tissue was infected, gross involvement of the nerve chord was not seen and nervous involvement was not believed to be the major cause of death. The infection of certain tissues may explain exhibited behaviour patterns. Attempts to demonstrate an effect of infection on urine production were unsuccessful. Infection of the proximal leg joints could be enhanced by wiping with a mixture of chloroform and methanol in Ast. leptodactylus but not in P. leniusculus. Solvent extracts of both crayfish species and of G. pulex prevented termination of Aph. astaci zoospores and affected the growth of sporelings. Calcium chloride extracts of crayfish enhanced termination and increased sporeling growth. The Ast. leptodactylus extract appeared to kill motile zoospores, whilst its effect on encysted spores could be reversed by replacing the medium. None of the effects demonstrated appeared to account for the differential susceptibility of the two species to Aph. astaci

Comparing students\u27 solutions to an open-ended problem in an introductory programming course with and without explicit modeling interventions

Engineers must understand how to build, apply, and adapt various types of models in order to be successful. Throughout undergraduate engineering education, modeling is fundamental for many core concepts, though it is rarely explicitly taught. There are many benefits to explicitly teaching modeling, particularly in the first years of an engineering program. The research questions that drove this study are: (1) How do students\u27 solutions to a complex, open-ended problem (both written and coded solutions) develop over the course of multiple submissions? and (2) How do these developments compare across groups of students that did and did not participate in a course centered around modeling?. Students\u27 solutions to an open-ended problem across multiple sections of an introductory programming course were explored. These sections were all divided across two groups: (1) experimental group - these sections discussed and utilized mathematical and computational models explicitly throughout the course, and (2) comparison group - these sections focused on developing algorithms and writing code with a more traditional approach. All sections required students to complete a common open-ended problem that consisted of two versions of the problem (the first version with smaller data set and the other a larger data set). Each version had two submissions - (1) a mathematical model or algorithm (i.e. students\u27 written solution potentially with tables and figures) and (2) a computational model or program (i.e. students\u27 MATLAB code). The students\u27 solutions were graded by student graders after completing two required training sessions that consisted of assessing multiple sample student solutions using the rubrics to ensure consistency across grading. The resulting assessments of students\u27 works based on the rubrics were analyzed to identify patterns students\u27 submissions and comparisons across sections. The results identified differences existing in the mathematical and computational model development between students from the experimental and comparison groups. The students in the experimental group were able to better address the complexity of the problem. Most groups demonstrated similar levels and types of change across the submissions for the other dimensions related to the purpose of model components, addressing the users\u27 anticipated needs, and communicating their solutions. These findings help inform other researchers and instructors how to help students develop mathematical and computational modeling skills, especially in a programming course. This work is part of a larger NSF study about the impact of varying levels of modeling interventions related to different types of models on students\u27 awareness of different types of models and their applications, as well as their ability to apply and develop different types of models

Change in student understanding of modeling during first year engineering courses

All engineers must be able to apply and create models to be effective problem solvers, critical thinkers, and innovative designers. To be more successful in their studies and careers, students need a foundational knowledge about models. An adaptable approach can help students develop their modeling skills across a variety of modeling types, including physical models, mathematical models, logical models, and computational models. Physical models (e.g., prototypes) are the most common type of models that engineering students identify and discuss during the design process. There is a need to explicitly focus on varying types of models, model application, and model development in the engineering curriculum, especially on mathematical and computational models. This NSF project proposes two approaches to creating a holistic modeling environment for learning at two universities. These universities require different levels of revision to the existing first-year engineering courses or programs. The proposed approaches change to a unified language and discussion around modeling with the intent of contextualizing modeling as a fundamental tool within engineering. To evaluate student learning on modeling in engineering, we conducted pre and post surveys across three different first-year engineering courses at these two universities with different student demographics. The comparison between the pre and post surveys highlighted student learning on engineering modeling based on different teaching and curriculum change approaches

Exculpatory Patent Opinions and Special Problems Regarding Waiver of Privilege, 6 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 313 (2007)

When a patent owner alleges another infringed the patent, the owner inevitably also alleges that such infringement is willful. An accused infringer often defends a claim of willful infringement by asserting evidence that the accused infringer reasonably relied on the opinion of counsel. This article discusses the concept of willful infringement and the criteria necessary for an opinion of counsel to be deemed competent. Moreover, this article analyzes issues that arise as a consequence of using such patent opinions, with a special focus on attorney-client privilege and work-product immunity waiver. Finally the practical ways to minimize the problematic aspects of such patent opinions are addressed, with a focus on post KnorrBremse Systeme Fuer Nutzfahrzeuge GmbH v. Dana Cp. and In re Echostar Communications Corp. considerations

Leveraging Use‐by‐Publication‐Age Data in Serials Collection Decisions

Traditionally, usage figures for electronic serials have lumped all years of publication together. New tools give librarians information about usage according to the year of publication. They allow us to analyze the usage of current material separately from usage of content published in prior years. The relative value of current subscriptions and backfiles has important collection development implications. For example, many libraries subscribe directly to titles that are offered in aggregated databases, but with embargoes. The relative value of current content distinguished from prior years may be useful in reevaluating such subscription decisions. This paper discusses tools and techniques for analyzing usage by year of publication according to several measures—including COUNTER’s JR5 report, Google Analytics, ILL reports, and token reports, and discusses how librarians can use these tools to aid in decision‐making about serials collection development decisions

Selecting Effective Examples to Train Students for Peer Review of Open‐Ended Problem Solutions

Background Students conducting peer review on authentic artifacts require training. In the training studied here, individual students reviewed (score and provide feedback on) a randomly selected prototypical solution to a problem. Afterwards, they are shown a side-by-side comparison of their review and an expert’s review, along with prompts to reflect on the differences and similarities. Individuals were then assigned a peer team’s solution to review. Purpose This paper explores how the characteristics of five different prototypical solutions used in training (and their associated expert evaluations) impacted students’ abilities to score peer teams’ solutions. Design/Method An expert rater scored the prototypical solutions and 147 student teams’ solutions that were peer reviewed using an eight item rubric. Differences between the scores assigned by the expert and a student to a prototypical solution and an actual team solution were used to compute a measure of the student’s improvement as a peer reviewer from training to actual peer review. ANOVA testing with Tukey’s post-hoc analysis was done to identify statistical differences in improvement based on the prototypical solutions students saw during the training phase. Results Statistically significant differences were found in the amount of error a student made during peer review between high and low quality prototypical solutions seen by students during training. Specifically, a lower quality training solution (and associated expert evaluation) resulted in more accurate scoring during peer review. Conclusions While students typically ask to see exemplars of “good solutions”, this research suggests that there is likely greater value, for the purpose of preparing students to score peers’ solutions, in students seeing a low-quality solution and its corresponding expert review

First Year Engineering Students’ Identification of Models in Engineering

Background To succeed in engineering careers, students must be able to create and apply models to certain problems. The different types of models include physical, mathematical, computational, graphical, and financial, which are used both in academics, research, and industry. However, many students struggle to define, create, and apply relevant models in their engineering courses. Purpose (Research Questions) The research questions investigated in this study are: (1) What types of models do engineering students identify before and after completing a first-year engineering course? (2) How do students’ responses compare across different courses (a graphical communications course - EGR 120 and a programming course - EGR 115), and sections? Design/Methods The data used for this study were collected in two introductory first-year engineering courses offered during Fall 2019, EGR 115 and EGR 120. Students’ responses to a survey about modeling were qualitatively analyzed. The survey was given at the beginning and the end of the courses. The data analyzed consisted of 560 pre and post surveys for EGR 115 and 384 pre and post surveys for EGR 120. Results Once the analysis is complete, we are hoping to find that the students can better define and apply models in their engineering courses after they have completed the EGR 115 and/or EGR 120 courses