Phonemic Awareness: One Approach To Individualized Instruction

This study examined the effectiveness of a recently developed set of individualized lessons for kindergarten children at-risk for reading problems because of limited phonemic awareness skills. Four participants were selected via teacher referral and a score below the 25th percentile on the Test of Phonological Awareness. Sixteen lessons (focusing on six phonemes) and weekly assessments followed the selection of the participants. Each child was individually instructed in two 10-15 minute sessions each week for eight weeks and then given an assessment at the end of each week. Single case design was utilized to document the effectiveness of the lessons. Results indicated that the lessons were effective for three of the four children. Possible explanations are discussed as to why the fourth child did not progress as well as the other three children. Implications for the use of individualized instruction on phonemic awareness for phonologically at-risk children are discussed

Coordinated Activation of Candidate Proto-Oncogenes and Cancer Testes Antigens via Promoter Demethylation in Head and Neck Cancer and Lung Cancer

Background: Epigenetic alterations have been implicated in the pathogenesis of solid tumors, however, proto-oncogenes activated by promoter demethylation have been sporadically reported. We used an integrative method to analyze expression in primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and pharmacologically demethylated cell lines to identify aberrantly demethylated and expressed candidate proto-oncogenes and cancer testes antigens in HNSCC. Methodology/Principal Findings: We noted coordinated promoter demethylation and simultaneous transcriptional upregulation of proto-oncogene candidates with promoter homology, and phylogenetic footprinting of these promoters demonstrated potential recognition sites for the transcription factor BORIS. Aberrant BORIS expression correlated with upregulation of candidate proto-oncogenes in multiple human malignancies including primary non-small cell lung cancers and HNSCC, induced coordinated proto-oncogene specific promoter demethylation and expression in non-tumorigenic cells, and transformed NIH3T3 cells. Conclusions/Significance: Coordinated, epigenetic unmasking of multiple genes with growth promoting activity occurs i

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

The Science Performance of JWST as Characterized in Commissioning

This paper characterizes the actual science performance of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), as determined from the six month commissioning period. We summarize the performance of the spacecraft, telescope, science instruments, and ground system, with an emphasis on differences from pre-launch expectations. Commissioning has made clear that JWST is fully capable of achieving the discoveries for which it was built. Moreover, almost across the board, the science performance of JWST is better than expected; in most cases, JWST will go deeper faster than expected. The telescope and instrument suite have demonstrated the sensitivity, stability, image quality, and spectral range that are necessary to transform our understanding of the cosmos through observations spanning from near-earth asteroids to the most distant galaxies.Comment: 5th version as accepted to PASP; 31 pages, 18 figures; https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1538-3873/acb29

Mesostructured Block Copolymer Nanoparticles: Versatile Templates for Hybrid Inorganic/Organic Nanostructures

We present a versatile strategy to prepare a range of nanostructured poly(styrene)-block-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) copolymer particles with tunable interior morphology and controlled size by a simple solvent exchange procedure. A key feature of this strategy is the use of functional block copolymers incorporating reactive pyridyl moieties which allow the absorption of metal salts and other inorganic precursors to be directed. Upon reduction of the metal salts, well-defined hybrid metal nanoparticle arrays could be prepared, whereas the use of oxide precursors followed by calcination permits the synthesis of silica and titania particles. In both cases, ordered morphologies templated by the original block copolymer domains were obtained

Phonemic Awareness: One Approach To Individualized Instruction

This study examined the effectiveness of a recently developed set of individualized lessons for kindergarten children at-risk for reading problems because of limited phonemic awareness skills. Four participants were selected via teacher referral and a score below the 25th percentile on the Test of Phonological Awareness. Sixteen lessons (focusing on six phonemes) and weekly assessments followed the selection of the participants. Each child was individually instructed in two 10-15 minute sessions each week for eight weeks and then given an assessment at the end of each week. Single case design was utilized to document the effectiveness of the lessons. Results indicated that the lessons were effective for three of the four children. Possible explanations are discussed as to why the fourth child did not progress as well as the other three children. Implications for the use of individualized instruction on phonemic awareness for phonologically at-risk children are discussed