A Review of High School Level Astronomy Student Research Projects over the last two decades

Since the early 1990s with the arrival of a variety of new technologies, the capacity for authentic astronomical research at the high school level has skyrocketed. This potential, however, has not realized the bright-eyed hopes and dreams of the early pioneers who expected to revolutionise science education through the use of telescopes and other astronomical instrumentation in the classroom. In this paper, a general history and analysis of these attempts is presented. We define what we classify as an Astronomy Research in the Classroom (ARiC) project and note the major dimensions on which these projects differ before describing the 22 major student research projects active since the early 1990s. This is followed by a discussion of the major issues identified that affected the success of these projects and provide suggestions for similar attempts in the future.Comment: Accepted for Publication in PASA. 26 page

Methods used in the Lives Saved Tool (LiST)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Choosing an optimum set of child health interventions for maximum mortality impact is important within resource poor policy environments. The Lives Saved Tool (LiST) is a computer model that estimates the mortality and stillbirth impact of scaling up proven maternal and child health interventions. This paper will describe the methods used to estimate the impact of scaling up interventions on neonatal and child mortality.</p> <p>Model structure and assumptions</p> <p>LiST estimates mortality impact via five age bands 0 months, 1-5 months, 6-11 months, 12-23 months and 24 to 59 months. For each of these age bands reductions in cause specific mortality are estimated. Nutrition interventions can impact either nutritional statuses or directly impact mortality. In the former case, LiST acts as a cohort model where current nutritional statuses such as stunting impact the probability of stunting as the cohort ages. LiST links with a demographic projections model (DemProj) to estimate the deaths and deaths averted due to the reductions in mortality rates.</p> <p>Using LiST</p> <p>LiST can be downloaded at <url>http://www.jhsph.edu/dept/ih/IIP/list/</url> where simple instructions are available for installation. LiST includes default values for coverage and effectiveness for many less developed countries obtained from credible sources.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The development of LiST is a continuing process. Via technical inputs from the Child Health Epidemiological Group, effectiveness values are updated, interventions are adopted and new features added.</p

The Formation of the Collisional Family around the Dwarf Planet Haumea

Haumea, a rapidly rotating elongated dwarf planet (~ 1500 km in diameter), has two satellites and is associated with a "family" of several smaller Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) in similar orbits. All members of the Haumea system share a water ice spectral feature that is distinct from all other KBOs. The relative velocities between the Haumea family members are too small to have formed by catastrophic disruption of a large precursor body, which is the process that formed families around much smaller asteroids in the Main Belt. Here we show that all of the unusual characteristics of the Haumea system are explained by a novel type of giant collision: a graze-and-merge impact between two comparably sized bodies. The grazing encounter imparted the high angular momentum that spun off fragments from the icy crust of the elongated merged body. The fragments became satellites and family members. Giant collision outcomes are extremely sensitive to the impact parameters. Compared to the Main Belt, the largest bodies in the Kuiper Belt are more massive and experience slower velocity collisions; hence, outcomes of giant collisions are dramatically different between the inner and outer solar system. The dwarf planets in the Kuiper Belt record an unexpectedly large number of giant collisions, requiring a special dynamical event at the end of solar system formation.Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ, 12 pages, 4 figures, 2 tables

Enhanced emotional response to both negative and positive images in post-traumatic stress disorder: Evidence from pupillometry

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterised by alterations in the function of the autonomic nervous system. However, it is unclear if this dysfunction is threat-related or related to arousing stimuli in general. Pupillometry offers a simple non-invasive measure of ANS activity that can separate parasympathetic and sympathetic arousal. Participants viewed images with emotional or neutral content: 20 met diagnostic criteria for PTSD, 28 were trauma-exposed (but with no PTSD), and 17 were controls. Initial pupil constriction (a marker of parasympathetic function) was reduced for the PTSD group, while dilation due to the emotional content of the image (a marker of sympathetic activity) was greater in the PTSD group. Individuals with PTSD demonstrated enhanced physiological arousal to both threat-related and positive images. The results suggest reduced parasympathetic arousal and increased sympathetic arousal in the autonomic nervous system, which has been linked to a range of adverse health outcomes in PTSD

Classification of a species of Erwinia from the Oconaluftee River, Great Smoky Mountains National Park

As part of the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) project from Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP), stream water was collected from near the Oconaluftee Visitor Center, and bacteria were cultured from it. One of the 30 bacterial isolates was then selected and subjected to a taxonomic investigation using a polyphasic approach of growth-based and DNA-based methods. The isolate was found to be a facultative anaerobe, Gram-negative, rod-shaped in cell morphology, and motile. The species showed a temperature growth range from 4?-30?, pH range of 4-7, and salinity tolerance of up to 3%. Metabolic analysis of the isolate indicated the strain to be catalase positive, oxidase negative, and it had the ability to ferment glucose and arabinose. Analyses using the Ribosomal Database Project (RDP) showed the isolate to have the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with Erwinia aphidicola at 92.7%. Genome sequencing and annotation indicated twelve conserved signature indels (CSIs) present, with 65 drug resistant related genes, eight transposable elements, fifty genes with a phage origin, and one pathogenesis related gene. Maximum likelihood and parsimony models using the 16S rRNA gene were used for phylogenetic analysis of the isolate and its closely related species in the genera Pantoea and Erwinia. Results indicated that the isolate is a strain of Erwinia billingiae, which was corroborated via sequencing of the full genome. Erwinia billingiae is an epiphyte associated with Rosaceous plants, and has been examined as a potential biological control to Erwinia amylovora the species that causes fire blight

The longer and heavier vehicle debate: A review of empirical evidence from Germany

his paper aims to evaluate the likely effects of the adoption of Longer Heavier Vehicles (LHVs) from the perspective of logistics service providers (LSPs). The research consists of six case studies and a survey of companies which were involved LHV trials in Germany. Wider introduction of LHVs is being increasingly demanded so that road freight transport can better serve and support modern supply chains whilst achieving the desired eco-efficiency advancements. Available literature on LHVs puts a particular emphasis on five factors that need to be included in the assessment of their impact: energy efficiency, CO2 emissions, costs, safety and infrastructure. The research provides an original and innovative empirical study refining and validating the current conceptual framework for assessing LHVs demonstrating it is a valuable tool and providing evidence that the vast majority of companies participating in our study, regardless of their size, were interested in the adoption of LHVs. However, it should be noted that a key limitation of the research is that by focusing on a single country case, the nature and scale of the findings may not reflect practice in other countries and sectors. There is also a need to examine the long-term sustainability of the improvements made

The Aggression and Vulnerablility Scale (AVS) for the measurement of inpatient behaviors: A demonstration of reliability

Background: The accurate and consistent recording of problematic incidents for in-patient behaviour is important in monitoring patient’s treatment and needs, and for comparing behaviour across different settings. Methods: The Aggression and Vulnerability Scale (AVS) classifies individual incidents into 10 categories covering aggression (Physical Aggression against Other People, Verbal Aggression, Aggression against Property, Non-Compliant Behaviour) and vulnerabilities (Self-Harm/Suicide Attempt, Self-Neglect, Victimized/Exploited, Sexual Vulnerability, Absconding Behaviour and Accident) and rates severity of the incident. Twenty raters (10 naïve and 10 experienced) rated 28 vignettes drawn from nursing records. Results: The AVS had high reliability for both classification category and severity in both experienced and inexperienced raters. Conclusion: The AVS is a reliable scheme for the coding of problematic behavior in an in-patient setting. The AVS is available free from the authors