Second Biennial Watershed Management Workshop for the James, Vermillion, and Big Sioux Rivers

Watershed management means managing the South Dakota landscape. Many stakeholders are responsible for the landscape; therefore, cooperation, communication, knowledge, and a good sprinkling of wisdom must bring the various issues together for comprehensive watershed management. This watershed management workshop was a continuation of the first workshop held in Huron, S.D. in February of 1995. As with the first, the goals were to bring people together to discuss principles related to earth processes, natural resources, agronomy, range science, fish and wildlife, and human uses. A third of the workshop was devoted to learning about the diverse programs, projects, people, and funding that are already available. A series of • case histories of watershed management from South Dakota and other states was followed by a panel discussion

Using data analytics for collaboration patterns in distributed software team simulations: the role of dashboards in visualizing global software development patterns

This paper discusses how previous work on global software development learning teams is extended with the introduction of data analytics. The work is based on several years of studying student teams working in distributed software team simulations. The scope of this paper is twofold. First it demonstrates how data analytics can be used for the analysis of collaboration between members of distributed software teams. Second it describes the development of a dashboard to be used for the visualization of various types of information in relation to Global Software Development (GSD). Due to the nature of this work, and the need for continuous pilot studies, simulations of distributed software teams have been created with the participation of learners from a number of institutions. This paper discusses two pilot studies with the participation of six institutions from two different countries

Superform formulation for vector-tensor multiplets in conformal supergravity

The recent papers arXiv:1110.0971 and arXiv:1201.5431 have provided a superfield description for vector-tensor multiplets and their Chern-Simons couplings in 4D N = 2 conformal supergravity. Here we develop a superform formulation for these theories. Furthermore an alternative means of gauging the central charge is given, making use of a deformed vector multiplet, which may be thought of as a variant vector-tensor multiplet. Its Chern-Simons couplings to additional vector multiplets are also constructed. This multiplet together with its Chern-Simons couplings are new results not considered by de Wit et al. in hep-th/9710212.Comment: 28 pages. V2: Typos corrected and references updated; V3: References updated and typo correcte

Sampling a Littoral Fish Assemblage: Comparison of Small-Mesh Fyke Netting and Boat Electrofishing

We compared small-mesh (4-mm) fyke netting and boat electrofishing for sampling a littoral fish assemblage in Muskegon Lake, Michigan. We hypothesized that fyke netting selects for small-bodied fishes and electrofishing selects for large-bodied fishes. Three sites were sampled during May (2004 and 2005), July (2005 only), and September (2004 and 2005). We found that the species composition of captured fish differed considerably between fyke netting and electrofishing based on nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). Species strongly associated with fyke netting (based on NMDS and relative abundance) included the brook silverside Labidesthes sicculus, banded killifish Fundulus diaphanus, round goby Neogobius melanostomus, mimic shiner Notropis volucellus, and bluntnose minnow Pimephales notatus, whereas species associated with electrofishing included the Chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, catostomids (Moxostoma spp. and Catostomus spp.), freshwater drum Aplodinotus grunniens, walleye Sander vitreus, gizzard shad Dorosoma cepedianum, and common carp Cyprinus carpio. The total length of fish captured by electrofishing was 12.8 cm (95% confidence interval ¼ 5.5– 17.2 cm) greater than that of fish captured by fyke netting. Size selectivity of the gears contributed to differences in species composition of the fish captured, supporting our initial hypothesis. Thus, small-mesh fyke nets and boat electrofishers provided complementary information on a littoral fish assemblage. Our results support use of multiple gear types in monitoring and research surveys of fish assemblages. Copyright by the American Fisheries Society 2007, Originally published in the North American Journal of Fisheries Management 27: 825-831, 2007

An inertia 'paradox' for incompressible stratified Euler fluids

The interplay between incompressibility and stratification can lead to non-conservation of horizontal momentum in the dynamics of a stably stratified incompressible Euler fluid filling an infinite horizontal channel between rigid upper and lower plates. Lack of conservation occurs even though in this configuration only vertical external forces act on the system. This apparent paradox was seemingly first noticed by Benjamin (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 165, 1986, pp. 445-474) in his classification of the invariants by symmetry groups with the Hamiltonian structure of the Euler equations in two dimensional settings, but it appears to have been largely ignored since. By working directly with the motion equations, the paradox is shown here to be a consequence of the rigid lid constraint coupling through incompressibility with the infinite inertia of the far ends of the channel, assumed to be at rest in hydrostatic equilibrium. Accordingly, when inertia is removed by eliminating the stratification, or, remarkably, by using the Boussinesq approximation of uniform density for the inertia terms, horizontal momentum conservation is recovered. This interplay between constraints,action at a distance by incompressibility, and inertia is illustrated by layer-averaged exact results, two-layer long-wave models, and direct numerical simulations of the incompressible Euler equations with smooth stratification

Creating smarter teaching and training environments: innovative set-up for collaborative hybrid learning

This paper brings together previous work from a number of research projects and teaching initiatives in an effort to introduce good practice in setting up supportive environments for collaborative learning. The paper discusses prior use of social media in learning support, the role of dashboards for learning analytics in Global Software Development training, the use of optical head-mounted displays for feedback and the use of NodeXl visualization in managing distributed teams. The scope of the paper is to provide a structured approach in organizing the creation of smarter teaching and training environments and explore ways to coordinate learning scenarios with the use of various techniques. The paper also discusses challenges from integrating multiple innovative features in educational contexts. Finally the paper attempts to investigate the use of smart laboratories in establishing additional learning support and gather primary data from blended and hybrid learning pilot studies

Watershed Management Workshop for the James, Vermillion, and Big Sioux Rivers

Rivers have become prominent subjects for natural resource personnel and the public. There are new riparian and wetland programs, controversial flooding and water quality issues, proposed water development projects, and innovative thinking about ecosystem management. The Watershed Management Workshop for the James, Vermillion, and Big Sioux rivers was developed to bring people, projects, problems, and programs together from the watersheds to discuss current and future needs for management, research, and cooperative efforts. The workshop opened with a discussion of basic principles of terrestrial, riparian, and aquatic components of a watershed and was followed by a case history of a watershed management program in Minnesota. This set the stage for a discussion of specific projects and programs that are underway on the James, Vermillion, and Big Sioux River watersheds

Symplectic structure of N=1 supergravity with anomalies and Chern-Simons terms

The general actions of matter-coupled N=1 supergravity have Peccei-Quinn terms that may violate gauge and supersymmetry invariance. In addition, N=1 supergravity with vector multiplets may also contain generalized Chern-Simons terms. These have often been neglected in the literature despite their importance for gauge and supersymmetry invariance. We clarify the interplay of Peccei-Quinn terms, generalized Chern-Simons terms and quantum anomalies in the context of N=1 supergravity and exhibit conditions that have to be satisfied for their mutual consistency. This extension of the previously known N=1 matter-coupled supergravity actions follows naturally from the embedding of the gauge group into the group of symplectic duality transformations. Our results regarding this extension provide the supersymmetric framework for studies of string compactifications with axionic shift symmetries, generalized Chern-Simons terms and quantum anomalies.Comment: 27 pages; v2: typos corrected; version to be published in Class.Quantum Gra

Effective supergravity descriptions of superstring cosmology

This text is a review of aspects of supergravity theories that are relevant in superstring cosmology. In particular, it considers the possibilities and restrictions for `uplifting terms', i.e. methods to produce de Sitter vacua. We concentrate on N=1 and N=2 supergravities, and the tools of superconformal methods, which clarify the structure of these theories. Cosmic strings and embeddings of target manifolds of supergravity theories in others are discussed in short at the end.Comment: 12 pages, contribution to the proceedings of the 2nd international conference on Quantum Theories and Renormalization Group in Gravity and Cosmology, Barcelona, July 11-15, 2006, Journal of Physics