Sticky situations: 'Force' and quantifier domains

When do we judge that someone was forced to do what they did? One relatively well-established finding is that subjects tend to judge that agents were not forced to do actions when those actions violate norms. A surprising discovery of Young & Phillips 2011 is that this effect seems to disappear when we frame the relevant ‘force’-claim in the active rather than passive voice ('X forced Y to φ ' vs. 'Y was forced to φ by X'). Young and Phillips found a similar contrast when the scenario itself shifts attention from Y (the forcee) to X (the forcer). We propose that these effects can be (at least partly) explained by way of the role of attention in the setting of quantifier domains which in turn play a role in the evaluation of ‘force’- claims. We argue for this hypothesis by way of an experiment which shows that sequences of active vs. passive ‘force’-claims display the characteristic “stickiness” of quantifier domain expansion, using a paradigm which we argue provides a useful general paradigm for testing quantifier domain hypotheses. Finally, we sketch a semantics for ‘force’ which we argue is suitable for capturing these effects

Eavesdropping: What is it good for?

Eavesdropping judgments (judgments about truth, retraction, and consistency across contexts) about epistemic modals have been used in recent years to argue for a radical thesis: that truth is assessment-relative. We argue that judgments for 'I think that p' pattern in strikingly similar ways to judgments for 'Might p' and 'Probably p'. We argue for this by replicating three major experiments involving the latter and adding a condition with the form 'I think that p', showing that subjects respond in the same way to 'thinks' as to modals. This poses a serious challenge to relativist treatments of the modal judgments, since a relativist treatment of the corresponding 'thinks' judgments is totally implausible, so if a unified account of the phenomena is to be found, it cannot be a relativist one. We briefly sketch how a unified account might look

An Analysis of the Variables in Implementation of the Marzano Causal Teacher Evaluation System in the State of Florida

This was a non-experimental, mixed methods study to research the different ways in which the Marzano casual teacher evaluation system was implemented in 25 school districts in the state of Florida during the 2012-2013 school year. Based on seven implementation variables, the teacher evaluation systems were compared to the implementation model and research-based best practice. The researcher then sought to determine what relationships may or may not exist in teacher performance ratings between districts that followed the research-based implementation model and districts that did not. Two stated purposes of the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system were to improve the accuracy of teacher performance ratings and to improve the accuracy of feedback provided to teachers. Variation in implementation may possibly occur among school districts. To date no research has been conducted to analyze how variations in implementation may relate to teacher performance ratings. The purpose of this study was to provide data to support best-practice in the implementation of the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system and to guide instructional leaders on the implementation of this evaluation system. The researcher also sought to ensure the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system provides both accurate teacher feedback and accurate teacher evaluations. Data was collected from the Florida Department of Education published reports and information. School district implementation plans were gathered from state submitted documentation. Implementation plans were analyzed and read. Data was collected on a data collection sheet and then analyzed in SPSS using a crosstab Chi square test to determine if a statistically significant relationships existed between districts that followed the research-based implementation model and districts that did not. It was determined that implementation of the Marzano causal evaluation system varies widely. In six out of the seven implementation variables, it was determined that there were statistically significant relationships in teacher evaluation scores between districts that followed the research-based implementation variables and districts that did not. Further research should include validity and reliability studies on the Marzano causal evaluation system. Research should continue to analyze different ways in which the Marzano causal evaluation system is implemented, and what relationship there is between implementation and teacher performance ratings. Research should be conducted to analyze the effectiveness of feedback provided to teachers through the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system. This research indicates that the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system should be used following research based best-practice and how it is intended to be used. The research in this study shows that when implementation variables are altered in the Marzano causal teacher evaluation system, teacher performance ratings may become inaccurate. Based on misunderstandings of the Marzano causal evaluation system, it is recommended school leaders receive additional training on the understanding and implementation of the Marzano casual teacher evaluation system

Rh Glycoprotein as an Ammonia Transport Molecule

Fish use their gills to excrete ammonia in order to eliminate nitrogenous waste. We hypothesize that this mechanism is accomplished by one or more transport proteins in the Rh glycoprotein (RhxG) family. Longhorn sculpin (Myoxocephalus octodecemspinosus) cDNA was amplified using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and then the PCR products were visualized on an agarose gel. The cDNA from the gel bands was then sequenced and the gene sequence fragments were assembled and completed by rapid amplification of the cDNA ends (RACE). By this process we have obtained large portions of the gene sequences of the four known paralogues located in the sculpin gill (RhA, RhB, RhC1, and RhC2). Also, in vivo ammonia-loading experiments were done to determine the effect of increased internal ammonia on protein and mRNA expression. Treatment groups were exposed to a single ammonium bicarbonate, distilled water, or ammonium chloride (5 mM kg-1) infusion; then gill tissue was collected 4 hr postinfusion and analyzed using quantitative PCR to test changes in mRNA levels and dot blots for changes in RhxG protein levels. Preliminary QPCR data showed a trend of increase in response to ammonia loading. A second infusion test, with a chronic (8 hr) double load of ammonium bicarbonate, was completed with QPCR and dot blot analysis done on the gill tissue. Ambient water samples were also collected to determine in vivo ammonia efflux. In conclusion, from this data we have found protein expression changes in response to increased internal ammonia

Delegation Application

Delegation is a cross-platform application to provide smart task distribution to users. In a team environment, the assignment of tasks can be tedious and difficult for management or for users needing to discover a starting place for where to begin with accomplishing tasks. Within a specific team, members possess individual skills within different areas of the team’s responsibilities and specialties, and certain members will be better suited to tackle specific tasks. This project provides a solution, consisting of a smart cross-platform application that allows for teams and individuals to quickly coordinate and delegate tasks assigned to them

“A Metamorphosis of Sorts”: Exploring the Conceptualisation of Women’s Academic Identity in Australian Higher Education

My PhD research project explored how women within the Australian public higher education setting conceptualise their academic identities across three career stages (early, middle, and late). My research has assisted in developing an understanding of how women academics discussed their experiences within academia, the identities that they conceptualised, and how the discourses used by the women, as well as other academics, provided specific subject positions and/or opportunities to conceptualise identity within the academic context

Navigational Strategies and the Role of the Hippocampus in Mouse Escape Behaviour

Executing appropriate defensive actions is vital for survival. In mice, imminent threat elicits fast and accurate escape behaviour that relies on a rapidly formed spatial memory to reach shelter locations. I investigated the navigational strategies used by mice to navigate to safety upon imminent threat, and the role of the hippocampal formation – classically associated with spatial representations – in guiding escape navigation. Through a series of behavioural experiments designed to distinguish between navigational strategies guiding escape, I found that while flight was consistent during the the first 800ms across light and dark conditions, visual cues enabled faster, more efficient escape trajectories later on in flight, suggesting escape has two phases: orienting and accelerating towards the shelter, relying on a memorised vector; and a second phase using vision to refine escape trajectories. Accordingly, I found that path integration was necessary for navigation in the dark, but not in the light. I next investigated the dependency of escape on brain structures associated with spatial representation in the hippocampal formation. An abrupt lesion targeted to the hippocampus using ibotenic acid disrupted escape navigation. A more targeted lesion of the primary hippocampal output - an infusion of muscimol into the subiculum – also led to a disruption of escape navigation and an increased propensity to freeze in response to looming visual stimuli. Finally, while disrupting neural activity in the subiculum by stimulating with channelrhodopsin reduced acceleration, this effect was present with optogenetic stimulation alone, precluding any firm conclusions from these experiments with respect to escape navigation. Together, these data further our knowledge of defensive behaviours in mice by implicating high-level spatial representations of the environment in guiding escape navigation, identifying behavioural signatures of navigational strategies requiring these representations, and showing the dependency of escape navigation on brain regions associated with spatial representations

The Freedom of Information Act Reimagined: Lawmaking, Transparency, and National Security In Twenty-First-Century America

When it was originally passed in the United States in 1966, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was the broadest and most comprehensive freedom of information law in the world. Based on the idea that the American people have a right to know about the inner workings of their government, FOIA allowed anyone in the country to request and obtain access to a wide variety of records held by federal agencies. Over the past half century, the law has been used by journalists and other concerned citizens to expose countless instances of waste, fraud, and mismanagement in government. However, half a century after it was originally created, FOIA no longer seems to be working as intended, as evidence suggests that the government is releasing less information to the public than ever before. This project examines FOIA’s development over the past 50 years, with a particular focus on three recent updates to the law that initially seemed to fix its problems but ultimately appear to have been ineffective. Why is a law that once worked so well to increase transparency no longer doing so? And what are the consequences of a more secretive government? Three explanations for the law’s recent shortcomings are discussed and analyzed

Come together right now over me: The bush doof - an aesthetic experiment in human being and being together

This thesis goes inside the spectacular and problematic world of the bush doof, giving particular focus to the aesthetic experience it imparts. It exposes a tension latent within an individualistic ideology that over-values individual parts at the expense of the wider social whole, and reveals how the doof is both an expression of and challenge to this ideology and its problematics