Future Climate of the Continental United States

Environmental Economics and Policy, Q54,

Climate Fluctuations and Climate Sensitivity

Some evidence is presented that the main part of the atmospheric climate system is such that small forcings in the heat balance lead to linear responses in the surface temperature field. By examining first a noise forced energy-balance climate model and then comparing it with a long run of a highly symmetrical general circulation model, one finds a remarkable connection between spatial autocorrelation statistics and the thermal influence function for a point heat source. These findings are brought together to indicate that this particular climatological field may be largely governed by linear processes

Orbit and sampling requirements: TRMM experience

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) concept originated in 1984. Its overall goal is to produce datasets that can be used in the improvement of general circulation models. A primary objective is a multi-year data stream of monthly averages of rain rate over 500 km boxes over the tropical oceans. Vertical distributions of the hydrometers, related to latent heat profiles, and the diurnal cycle of rainrates are secondary products believed to be accessible. The mission is sponsored jointly by the U.S. and Japan. TRMM is an approved mission with launch set for 1997. There are many retrieval and ground truth issues still being studied for TRMM, but here we concentrate on sampling since it is the single largest term in the error budget. The TRMM orbit plane is inclined by 35 degrees to the equator, which leads to a precession of the visits to a given grid box through the local hours of the day, requiring three to six weeks to complete the diurnal cycle, depending on latitude. For sampling studies we can consider the swath width to be about 700 km

Analytical investigation of the atmospheric radiation limits in semigray atmospheres in radiative equilibrium

We model the wavelength-dependent absorption of atmospheric gases by assuming constant mass absorption coefficients in finite-width spectral bands. Such a semigray atmosphere is analytically solved by a discrete ordinate method. The general solution is analyzed for a water vapor saturated atmosphere that also contains a carbon dioxide-like absorbing gas in the infrared. A multiple stable equilibrium with a relative upper limit in the outgoing long-wave radiation is found. Differing from previous radiative–convective models, we find that the amount of carbon dioxide strongly modifies the value of this relative upper limit. This result is also obtained in a gray (i.e., equal absorption of radiation at all infrared wavelengths) water vapor saturated atmosphere. The destabilizing effect of carbon dioxide implies that massive carbon dioxide atmospheres are more likely to reach a runaway greenhouse state than thin carbon dioxide one

Design and pedagogical practices of an Inuit-focused Bachelor of Education program in Labrador

Footnotes [1] Level V is the normal certification level for graduates entering the profession; higher certification levels (Level VI and VII) are acquired through advanced study, such as graduate certificates or degrees.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Critical thinking and intrinsic motivation in secondary science

Research was conducted on the impact of critical thinking (CRT) on student academic intrinsic motivation (IM) in science using a pre/post-test evaluation. Sixty-three students from four different southeastern North Carolina high school earth/environmental science classes were given the Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal-Short Form (WGCTA-S) and the Children's Academic Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (CAIMI) before and after a weeklong period of instruction on critical thinking. CRT skills were taught through a variety of methods to three treatment classes using earth/environmental science content. A control group not participating in the CRT instruction received regular earth/environmental science instruction. Gender, treatment group, and motivational levels were analyzed. Results indicated that students’ receiving the CRT instruction showed statistically significant increases in critical thinking ability and academic motivation toward science. Findings further supported continued research into the relationship between acquisition of CRT skills and increased student academic IM toward science

Overcoming the Anxieties of a Computerized World

The use of computers in our society has been one of the largest technological changes that has occurred over the last several years. More and more, we as hi-technology nation are being urged to learn to use, and become competent with, computers. As. we move into the latter stages of the twentieth century, and then into the ultra-technical twenty-first century, it is clear that if an individual is going to prosper in this setting he or she will need to have a basic understanding of how to use computers. This pertains not only to computer science majors or data processors, but also prospective writers, accountants, business owners, and many other careers

Sight-Singing Instruction in the Undergraduate Choral Ensembles of Colleges and Universities in the Southern Division of the American Choral Directors Association: Teacher Preparation, Pedagogical Practices and Assessed Results

The purpose of this research project was to address questions of teacher preparation, pedagogical practices and student outcomes related to the instruction of sight singing in the choral rehearsal by means of a survey of collegiate conductors. Subjects included college or university choral conductors who were active members in the Southern Division of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). A survey was developed for data collection and featured thirty-nine questions categorized by demographics about the conductor, demographics about the college or university, frequency with which a sight-singing method is used, attitudes about sight-singing instruction, and methods of sight-singing assessment. Five purposes served as the basis for creation of this survey and a discussion of the results. The first purpose was to consider if a conductor instructed a choral ensemble in sight singing and the second was to consider the method of sight singing used in a conductor's undergraduate music courses. The third purpose was to consider a conductor's self-rating of sight-singing ability, the rating of ability to teach sight singing and the rating of college preparation to teach sight singing and the fourth was to consider the materials a conductor used to teach sight singing in the choral rehearsal. Finally, the fifth purpose was to consider if a conductor has a method to measure if a choral ensemble's sight-singing skills were improving. Participants were E-Mailed a letter of invitation describing the research project and a link to complete the online survey. Respondents to this survey were distributed quite evenly over eleven States. Most (83.9%) teach in a 4-year college or university. Two-thirds of respondents hold a doctoral degree in music. Overall, 87.2% of respondents indicated excellent or good when asked to rate their ability to teach sight singing. When asked to rate their ability to sight sing, 97.2% chose excellent or good. The responses of excellent and good, however, were indicated by only 46.1% of conductors when asked to rate their college preparation to teach sight singing in the choral rehearsal. An impressive 93.4% of respondents indicated that they believe sight-singing instruction should be a part of the collegiate choral rehearsal, but only 64.5% currently teach the skill with one or more of their ensembles. A group of 40.9% disagree that rehearsal time should be spent preparing repertoire for performance rather than instructing an ensemble in sight singing; 88.6% believe that choirs who sight sing regularly learn music faster. Despite these impressive numbers, 61.8% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed with the statement that they have difficulty finding enough class time to teach sight singing. A large 72.9% of respondents do not have a method to measure if their ensemble's sight-singing skills are improving. Of those who evaluate their ensemble's improvement as a result of sight-singing instruction, 80.5% strongly agree or agree that such instruction has improved their ensemble's ability to sight sing. A larger 88.6% strongly agreed or agreed that such instruction has improved their ensemble's ability to learn new repertoire faster

North Carolina Law Enforcement Officers' Perceptions Regarding the CSI Effect

The phenomenon called the CSI effect has recently occupied a central place in the media. The media and scholars alike have taken an interest in the effect that forensic television shows are having on the public, particularly its effect on American juries. There have been several anecdotal accounts documenting how the CSI effect has impacted the legal system. There have been far fewer scholarly inquiries into the CSI effect.The evidence from both academic and anecdotal accounts is mixed. While there is some research on the CSI effect and juries, there are no existing studies examining how the CSI effect has influenced the perceptions of law enforcement officers. This is surprising given that police officers are the first to arrive crime scenes and are tasked with the responsibility of solving crime. The aims of this exploratory study were twofold: first, to examine the attitudes and beliefs about the existence of a CSI effect among law enforcement officers in North Carolina, and secondly, to examine professional, institutional, and procedural changes, if any, these same officers have made as a result of any perceived CSI effect. This study utilized a self-administered web survey which was distributed to 455 law enforcement agencies in North Carolina, including Federal, State, County, Local, Campus, and special law enforcement jurisdictions. The survey was administered in such a way that each agency could respond only once. Two hundred sixty four agencies returned the survey, a 58% response rate. The results of the study reveal that law enforcement perceive a CSI effect exist among the public. Those law enforcement officers in North Carolina who were surveyed, reported a concern in the lack of evidence in criminal investigations over the past five years. Respondents also reported that attorneys are addressing the forensic science issues in their trial arguments more often now than in the past five years. The results of this study also revealed that law enforcement officers over the past five years have made changes in the ways they handle criminal investigations. These results reveal support for the existence of a CSI effect, as perceived by law enforcement officers. Open-ended questions allowed respondents to offer more detail of cases where respondents believed a CSI effect changed the outcome of a criminal investigation. Many of the responses to the open ended questions indicated law enforcement were being questioned more frequently than in the past about what kinds of evidence were collected and what types of training the respondents had received. The results of this study constitute the first scholarly based research demonstrating support that law enforcement officers believe in the existence of a CSI effect