Examination of a cooperative learning supervision training and development model

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a Cooperative Learning Supervision Training and Development Model (CLSTD) on the skills, confidence levels, and sense of efficacy of principals supervising cooperative learning. A non-equivalent pretest-posttest control group design with matching was used. Principals in the experimental (CLSTD) group attended two, one day training sessions learning how to collect data, analyze data, and provide feedback about the three major parts of a cooperative lesson. CLSTD principals practiced their new skills on the job as peer coaching teams;Data for this study were gathered from (1) thirteen Iowa principals in the experimental group and the teachers they supervised; and (2) thirteen Iowa principals in the control group who received no training and the teachers they supervised. Three instruments were used to collect the pretest and posttest data: (1) Teacher Evaluation Inventory and Profile; (2) Supervisor Conference Effectiveness Survey; and (3) Supervisor Attitude Survey;The study yielded these important findings: (1) Teachers and principals in the CLSTD group reported a significant increase in principals\u27 effectiveness in providing feedback to teachers about cooperative learning lesson plans. Teachers and principals in the control group reported no increase in effectiveness. (2) Teachers and principals in the CLSTD group reported a significant increase in principals\u27 effectiveness in providing specific feedback about the three major parts of the cooperative learning lesson. Control group teachers and principals reported no significant increase in effectiveness. (3) CLSTD teachers and principals reported a significant increase in principals\u27 knowledge and effectiveness of usage of cooperative learning concepts. Teachers and principals in the control group reported no significant increase. (4) CLSTD group principals reported a significant increase in self-perceptions of levels of confidence in selected cooperative learning supervision skills after training. Control principals reported a decrease in self-perceptions of confidence levels in their supervision of cooperative learning. (5) Principals in the CLSTD group reported a significant increase in self-perceptions of sense of efficacy in supervising cooperative learning at the end of the study. Control group principals reported a decrease in self-perceptions of sense of efficacy in their supervision of cooperative learning at the end of the study

Cerian nanomateriaalit CVOC-yhdisteiden hapetuksessa

Tiivistelmä. Cerium (Ce) kuuluu harvinaisiin maametalleihin (REE), jotka ovat seitsemäntoista alkuaineen skandiumin, yttriumin ja viidentoista lantanoidin ryhmä. Ceriumdioksidi (CeO2) eli ceria on paljon tutkittu katalyyttimateriaali, jonka erityinen elektronikonfiguraatio ja rakenteelliset ominaisuudet antavat sille paljon sovelluksia katalyysissä. Ceriaa voidaan käyttää puhtaana oksidina katalyysin aktiivisena komponenttina, esim. hiilimonoksidin hapettamisessa hiilidioksidiksi, mutta usein sitä käytetään tukiaineena ceriapohjaisissa komposiittikatalyyteissä, kuten jalometalli-ceria komposiittikatalyyteissä. Cerian käyttö tukiaineena mahdollistaa sen käytön useissa katalyyttisissä reaktioissa ja usein ceriapohjaisten materiaalien katalyyttiset ominaisuudet ovat parempia kuin yksittäisten aktiivisten tukiaineiden. Nanomateriaalit ovat kemiallisia yhdisteitä tai materiaaleja, joiden vähintään yksi ulkomitta on nanomitassa (<100 nm). Nanomateriaalien on havaittu omaavan erityisiä kemiallisia ominaisuuksia verrattuna bulkkimateriaaleihin. Usein erimuotoiset nanorakenteet omaavat erilaisen ulkopinnan rakenteen, mistä johtuen niiden pintojen katalyyttinen aktiivisuus vaihtelee. Nanomateriaalien synteesissä on tärkeä huomioida muodostuvien nanomateriaalien koko, pinnanrakenne ja samaan rakenteeseen kuuluvien hiukkasten väliset vuorovaikutukset, koska nämä ominaisuudet voivat antaa nanomateriaaleille erityisiä ominaisuuksia ja parantaa niiden katalyyttistä tehokkuutta. Näiden ominaisuuksien vuoksi on hallitun nanomateriaalien synteesin tutkimus tärkeää. Tässä tutkielmassa käsitellään cerian nanomateriaalien synteesin vaiheita ja synteesimenetelmiä keskittyen cerian ulkopintoihin ja morfologiaan. Lopuksi esitellään viimeaikaisia tutkimuksia cerian käytöstä yleisimpien kloorattujen haihtuvien orgaanisten hiilivetyjen (CVOC) katalyyttisessä hapetuksessa

Infering Air Quality from Traffic Data using Transferable Neural Network Models

This work presents a neural network based model for inferring air quality from traffic measurements. It is important to obtain information on air quality in urban environments in order to meet legislative and policy requirements. Measurement equipment tends to be expensive to purchase and maintain. Therefore, a model based approach capable of accurate determination of pollution levels is highly beneficial. The objective of this study was to develop a neural network model to accurately infer pollution levels from existing data sources in Leicester, UK. Neural Networks are models made of several highly interconnected processing elements. These elements process information by their dynamic state response to inputs. Problems which were not solvable by traditional algorithmic approaches frequently can be solved using neural networks. This paper shows that using a simple neural network with traffic and meteorological data as inputs, the air quality can be estimated with a good level of generalisation and in near real-time. By applying these models to links rather than nodes, this methodology can directly be used to inform traffic engineers and direct traffic management decisions towards enhancing local air quality and traffic management simultaneously.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Hospital Performance Trends on National Quality Measures and the Association With Joint Commission Accreditation

BackgroundEvaluations of the impact of hospital accreditation have been previously hampered by the lack of nationally standardized data. One way to assess this impact is to compare accreditation status with other evidence-based measures of quality, such as the process measures now publicly reported by The Joint Commission and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).ObjectivesTo examine the association between Joint Commission accreditation status and both absolute measures of, and trends in, hospital performance on publicly reported quality measures for common diseases.Design, setting, and patientsPerformance data for 2004 and 2008 from U.S. acute care and critical access hospitals were obtained using publicly available CMS Hospital Compare data augmented with Joint Commission performance data.MeasurementsChanges in hospital performance between 2004 and 2008, and percent of hospitals with 2008 performance exceeding 90% for 16 measures of quality-of-care and 4 summary scores.ResultsHospitals accredited by The Joint Commission tended to have better baseline performance in 2004 than non-accredited hospitals. Accredited hospitals had larger gains over time, and were significantly more likely to have high performance in 2008 on 13 out of 16 standardized clinical performance measures and all summary scores.ConclusionsWhile Joint Commission-accredited hospitals already outperformed non-accredited hospitals on publicly reported quality measures in the early days of public reporting, these differences became significantly more pronounced over 5 years of observation. Future research should examine whether accreditation actually promotes improved performance or is a marker for other hospital characteristics associated with such performance. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2011;6:458-465. © 2011 Society of Hospital Medicine

Understanding Infection: A Primer on Animal Models of Periprosthetic Joint Infection

Periprosthetic joint infections are devastating complications for patients and for our health system. With growing demand for arthroplasty, the incidence of these infections is projected to increase exponentially. This paper is a review of existing animal models to study periprosthetic infection aimed at providing scientists with a succinct presentation of strengths and weaknesses of available in vivo systems. These systems represent the tools available to investigate novel antimicrobial therapies and reduce the clinical and economic impact of implant infections

A demonstration of monitoring and measuring data centers for energy efficiency using opensource tools

Data centers are complex systems that require sophisticated operational management approaches to provide the availability of digital services against the backdrop of cost and energy efficiency. To achieve this, data center telemetry data is required since, as is commonly said it is not possible to manage what cannot be measured. This paper details how it is possible to construct the key data center infrastructure management (DCIM) elements of monitoring and measuring by a combination of available opensource software tools that permit both scalability and an environment where analytics can be employed on the data center operation, which can offer relevant insight into energy efficient operational practices

Browsers, grazers or mix-feeders? Study of the diet of extinct Pleistocene Eurasian forest rhinoceros Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis (J¨ager, 1839) and woolly rhinoceros Coelodonta antiquitatis (Blumenbach, 1799)

The wooly rhinoceros (Coelodonta antiquitatis) and forest rhinoceros (Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis) were prominent representatives of the Middle and Late Pleistocene glacial and interglacial faunas of Eurasia. Their diet has traditionally been inferred on functional morphology of the dentition and skull. In rare cases, food remains are preserved in the fossas of the teeth or as gut content. New approaches to infer diet include the study of isotopes and mesowear. Here we apply all four methods to infer the diet of these emblematic rhinoceros’ species and compare the food actually taken with the food available, as indicated by independent botanical data from the localities where the rhinoceros’ fossils were found: Gorz´ow Wielkopolski (Eemian) and Starunia (Middle Vistulian) as well as analysis of literature data. We also made inferences on the season of death of these individuals. Our results indicate that the woolly rhino in both Europe and Asia (Siberia) was mainly a grazer, although at different times of the year and depending on the region its diet was also supplemented by leaves of shrubs and trees. According to the results of isotope studies, there were important individual variations. The data show a clear seasonal variation in the isotope composition of this rhino’s diet. In contrast, Stephanorhinus kirchbergensis was a browser, though its diet included low-growing vegetation. Its habitat consisted of various types of forests, from riparian to deciduous and mixed forests, and open areas. The diet of this species consisted of selected items of vegetation, also including plants growing near both flowing and standing waters. The food remains from the fossae of the teeth indicated flexible browsing, confirming the previous interpretations based on functional morphology and stable isotopes. Long-term data from mesowear and microwear across a wider range of S. kirchbergensis fossils indicate a more mixed diet with a browsing component. The different diets of both of rhinoceros reflect not only the different habitats, but also climate changes that occurred during the Late Pleistocene

Breathlessness and presentation to the emergency department : a survey and clinical record review

BACKGROUND: Breathlessness is a frequently occurring symptom of cardiorespiratory conditions and is a common cause of emergency department presentation. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of acute-on-chronic breathlessness as a cause for presentation to the major emergencies area of the emergency department. METHODS: A prospective patient self-report survey and clinical record review of consecutive attendees to the major emergencies area of the emergency department in a single tertiary hospital between 12/5/14 and 29/5/14 was conducted. Eligible patients were clinically stable and had mental capacity to provide data. RESULTS: There were 2,041 presentations during the study period, of whom 1,345 (66%) were eligible. There was a 90% survey response rate (1,212/1,345); 424/1,212 (35%) self-reported breathlessness most days over the past month of whom 245 gave breathlessness as a reason for this presentation. Therefore, the prevalence of acute-on-chronic breathlessness as a reason to present to the major emergencies area was 20.2% (245/1,212, 95% CI 17.9% to 22.5%). During this period there were 4,692 major and minor presentations; breathlessness was therefore a cause of at least 5.2% (245/4,692, 95% CI 4.6 to 5.9%) of all emergency department presentations. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that one in five ambulance presentations to the ED were due to acute-on-chronic breathlessness. Most patients had non-malignant underlying conditions, had experienced considerable breathlessness for an extended period, had discussed breathlessness with their GP and presented out of daytime hours. Others were often involved in their decision to present. This represents clinically significant burden for patients, their family carers and the emergency health services