Water infiltration in Different Soil Types on Santa Rosa Island

Research on the Cloud Forest Restoration Project at Soledad Ridge, Santa Rosa Island in Channel Islands National Park, aims to understand the properties of soil water infiltration, specifically field‚Äêsaturated soil hydraulic conductivity (Kfs). Measuring the soil water infiltration rate allows us to calculate potential water reaching plant root systems, the amount of water remaining on the surface, and potential water runoff. The soil types on Soledad Ridge have different organic matter origins including: Island oak trees (Quercus tomentella), annual grasses (eg. Bromus spp., Avena spp), and coyote brush (Baccharis pilularis). In some areas historic non-native herbivore overgrazing resulted in erosion of upper organic layers, exposing large sections of bedrock. We hypothesized that the hydraulic conductivity will be lower in bedrock sections as compared to the other soil types present on site. We used a modified bottomless bucket method (Mirus 2012) consisting of a small bucket approximately 20 centimeters in diameter with the bottom removed. The bucket was secured to each of the soil types to make a watertight seal: bedrock required caulking; the other soil types required grooving and twisting into the ground. The amount of time required for one liter of water to infiltrate was measured which yielded the hydraulic conductivity (Kfs). We found that bedrock had the lowest infiltration rate of approximately 1 Kfs whereas the other soils had a rate of approximately 100 Kfs. These results support our hypothesis that bedrock hydraulic conductivity is significantly slower than infiltration of the other soil types. These results can be used to design suitable planting and irrigation treatments in future restoration efforts at the cloud forest

Becoming Lyrical: Poems That Depict Our Reflective Journeys In Online Teaching

Online and blended learning over the years have brought great challenges and opportunities. At the beginning of this project, we asked: How do educators reflect on teaching online in particular? And how do we articulate our reflections in creative ways? With these questions in mind, the authors took on the challenge of the artistic expression of writing and reading poetry to reflect critically and creatively on our experiences of teaching online in higher education. By drawing connections between theory and our poetry we provide insight into our lessons learned from teaching online. We conclude with encouragement to use creative writing to foster a collective and reflective environment in higher education and for personal awareness and growth

Retarded Postimplantation Development of X0 Mouse Embryos: Impact of the Parental Origin of the Monosomic X Chromosome

AbstractAbout 12–17% of the embryos obtained by mating mice carrying the In(X)1H orPafmutations are of the 39,X (X0) genotype. Depending on the mutant mice used for mating, the monosomic X chromosome can be inherited from the paternal (XP) or the maternal (XM) parent. The XP0 embryos display developmental retardation at gastrulation and early organogenesis. XP0 embryos also display poor development of the ectoplacental cone, which is significantly smaller in size and contains fewer trophoblasts than XX siblings. In contrast, XM0 embryos develop normally and are indistinguishable from XX littermates. In both types of X0 embryos, an X-linkedlacZtransgene is expressed in nearly all cells in both the embryonic and the extraembryonic tissues, suggesting that X inactivation does not occur when only one X is present. Of particular significance is the maintenance of an active XPchromosome in the extraembryonic tissues where normally the paternal X chromosome is preferentially inactivated in XX embryos. The differential impact of the inheritance of X chromosomes from different parents on the development of the X0 embryos raises the possibility that the XPis less capable than the XMin providing the appropriate dosage of X-linked activity that is necessary to support normal development of the embryo and the ectoplacental cone. Alternatively, the development of the XP0 embryo may be compromised by the lack of activity of one or several X-linked genes which are expressed only from the maternal X chromosome. Without the activity of these genes, embryonic development may be curtailed even though all other loci on the XPchromosome are actively transcribed

Learning Task Inventories (LTIs) in Introductory Organic Chemistry

University students who are capable of more accurate self-monitoring and self-assessment usually outperform less accurate students. Instructional support is an important tool that can be provided for learners to help them to understand that they should self-monitor and self-assess as well as how they should do this. To assist students in an introductory organic chemistry course in developing or improving self-monitoring and self-assessment skills, we offered scaffolding support through nine Learning Task Inventories (LTIs), completed weekly throughout one term. A class of 289 students were randomly assigned to one of 5 conditions (1 control = C1, and 4 experimental = E2-E5). Each group experienced a set of LTI conditions that differed with respect to feedback received and cognitive load. Specifically, participants in C1 received the LTIs. Condition E2 received LTIs and a metacognitive prompt. Conditions E3-E5 completed a learning quiz with different types of feedback: E3 received no feedback, E4 received brief feedback (i.e. The correct answer is A), and E5 received full feedback explaining specific answers. Participants also completed an introductory survey gathering important demographic information and an end-of-term survey assessing student reactions to the LTIs. Consistent with expectations, preliminary data support improved learning gains for reported test scores (F(2.86) = 4.48 value, p \u3c .02 ), such that students who received full feedback on their quizzes outperformed students who only completed the quiz. This presentation will present the results pertaining to student attitudes and the effects of treatment conditions on final exam grades

Incorporating development of a patient-reported outcome instrument in a clinical drug development program: examples from a heart failure program.

BackgroundPatient-reported outcome (PRO) measures can be used to support label claims if they adhere to US Food & Drug Administration guidance. The process of developing a new PRO measure is expensive and time-consuming. We report the results of qualitative studies to develop new PRO measures for use in clinical trials of omecamtiv mecarbil (a selective, small molecule activator of cardiac myosin) for patients with heart failure (HF), as well as the lessons learned from the development process.MethodsConcept elicitation focus groups and individual interviews were conducted with patients with HF to identify concepts for the instrument. Cognitive interviews with HF patients were used to confirm that no essential concepts were missing and to assess patient comprehension of the instrument and items.ResultsDuring concept elicitation, the most frequently reported HF symptoms were shortness of breath, tiredness, fluid retention, fatigue, dizziness/light-headedness, swelling, weight fluctuation, and trouble sleeping. Two measures were developed based on the concepts: the Heart Failure Symptom Diary (HF-SD) and the Heart Failure Impact Scale (HFIS). Findings from cognitive interviews suggested that the items in the HF-SD and HFIS were relevant and well understood by patients. Multiple iterations of concept elicitation and cognitive interviews were needed based on FDA request for a broader patient population in the qualitative study. Lessons learned from the omecamtiv mecarbil PRO/clinical development program are discussed, including challenges of qualitative studies, patient recruitment, expected and actual timelines, cost, and engagement with various stakeholders.ConclusionDevelopment of a new PRO measure to support a label claim requires significant investment and early planning, as demonstrated by the omecamtiv mecarbil program

Composing for the interactive medium

We present a discussion of the role of the composer when developing content for the composer when developing content for the interactive, participatory medium. We describe compositional tensions which emerged during the creation and enactment of our interactive performance, humanaquarium, and discuss how the intertwined nature of interactive and aesthetic concerns inspired our creative innovation in the composition process

Capture and decay of electroweak WIMPonium

The spectrum of Weakly-Interacting-Massive-Particle (WIMP) dark matter generically possesses bound states when the WIMP mass becomes sufficiently large relative to the mass of the electroweak gauge bosons. The presence of these bound states enhances the annihilation rate via resonances in the Sommerfeld enhancement, but they can also be produced directly with the emission of a low-energy photon. In this work we compute the rate for SU(2) triplet dark matter (the wino) to bind into WIMPonium - which is possible via single-photon emission for wino masses above 5 TeV for relative velocity v < O(10-2) - and study the subsequent decays of these bound states. We present results with applications beyond the wino case, e.g. for dark matter inhabiting a nonabelian dark sector; these include analytic capture and transition rates for general dark sectors in the limit of vanishing force carrier mass, efficient numerical routines for calculating positive and negative-energy eigenstates of a Hamiltonian containing interactions with both massive and massless force carriers, and a study of the scaling of bound state formation in the short-range Hulth&apos;{e}n potential. In the specific case of the wino, we find that the rate for bound state formation is suppressed relative to direct annihilation, and so provides only a small correction to the overall annihilation rate. The soft photons radiated by the capture process and by bound state transitions could permit measurement of the dark matter's quantum numbers; for wino-like dark matter, such photons are rare, but might be observable by a future ground-based gamma-ray telescope combining large effective area and a low energy threshold

Estimating Contrail Climate Effects from Satellite Data

An automated contrail detection algorithm (CDA) is developed to exploit six of the infrared channels on the 1-km MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on the Terra and Aqua satellites. The CDA is refined and balanced using visual error analysis. It is applied to MODIS data taken by Terra and Aqua over the United States during 2006 and 2008. The results are consistent with flight track data, but differ markedly from earlier analyses. Contrail coverage is a factor of 4 less than other retrievals and the retrieved contrail optical depths and radiative forcing are smaller by approx.30%. The discrepancies appear to be due to the inability to detect wider, older contrails that comprise a significant amount of the contrail coverage. An example of applying the algorithm to MODIS data over the entire Northern Hemisphere is also presented. Overestimates of contrail coverage are apparent in some tropical regions. Methods for improving the algorithm are discussed and are to be implemented before analyzing large amounts of Northern Hemisphere data. The results should be valuable for guiding and validating climate models seeking to account for aviation effects on climate

Experienced teacher educators hunting assumptions to examine their pedagogy: An international collaborative study

The research presented in this article focuses on an international collaboration conducted by four experienced teacher educators who used assumption identification and examination to advance pedagogical practice. It describes and examines how teacher educators deliberately undertook reflective practices to inform and enhance teaching. Four vignettes are described and analyzed—Practica woes and Modelling practice—and examined using the simple, complicated, and complex teaching framework. The key outcomes include the impact and role of assumption definition, identification, and examination as powerful reflective tools. Researching practice in teacher education is an effective way to advance pedagogical knowledge and practice and a disposition of inquiry is necessary to enhance knowledge at all stages of teacher educator experience. This international collaboration highlights the importance of problematizing teaching, continually inquiring into and interrogating practice and grasping the teachable moments