An Annotated Bibliography of String Method Books and Theory Books for Pre-College String Students, with a Focus on Music Theory Concepts and Sequence Analysis

The Hattiesburg Public School District (HPSD) Strings program, one of the largest public school string programs in the state of Mississippi, has been utilizing a method book series titled Essential Elements for Strings (EES) in their curriculum since the early 2000s. After almost two decades of use, the HPSD Strings staff has noticed that a majority of intermediate and advanced strings students struggle with fundamental music theory concepts. The current music theory deficiencies necessitate an improvement in the HPSD Strings curriculum\u27s choice of instructional materials. Referencing established music curricula and music theory textbooks, the instruction of fundamental music theory concepts of rhythm and pitch mostly follow a “Conventional Sequence.” These concepts introduced in any given book can be categorized accordingly, and a correlation percentage can be calculated showing how well the publication places music theory concepts in a sequenced instruction. The sequences of eight string method book series and seven music theory books were analyzed and each book received a ranking according to their rhythm correlation, pitch correlation, and the correlation average. HPSD string teachers or any teacher who is considering improving their curriculum to utilize in the most time-efficient way may refer to the findings from this research to select materials for their string program

POSITION CLASS PRECLUSION: A COMPUTATIONAL RESOLUTION OF MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE AFFIX POSITIONS

In Paradigm Function Morphology, it is usual to model affix position classes with an ordered sequence of inflectional rule blocks. Each rule block determines how (or whether) a particular affix position is filled. In this model, competition among inflectional rules is assumed to be limited to members of the same rule block; thus, the appearance of an affix in one position cannot be precluded by the appearance of an affix in another position. I present evidence that apparently disconfirms this restriction and suggests that a more general conception of rule competition is necessary. The data appear to imply that an affixation rule may in some cases override a rule introducing an affix occupying another, distinct position. I propose that each inflectional rule R carry two indices — the first, as usual, specifying the position of the affix introduced by R. The second, however, specifies the position(s) that R satisfies. By default, these two indices identify the same position. However, where one affix precludes another, the second index of the appearing affix specifies two affix positions: the one in which it appears and the one which it precludes. With both blocks satisfied, no other rules which fill either may be applied

History of nutrient inputs to the northeastern United States, 1930–2000

Humans have dramatically altered nutrient cycles at local to global scales. We examined changes in anthropogenic nutrient inputs to the northeastern United States (NE) from 1930 to 2000. We created a comprehensive time series of anthropogenic N and P inputs to 437 counties in the NE at 5 year intervals. Inputs included atmospheric N deposition, biological N2 fixation, fertilizer, detergent P, livestock feed, and human food. Exports included exports of feed and food and volatilization of ammonia. N inputs to the NE increased throughout the study period, primarily due to increases in atmospheric deposition and fertilizer. P inputs increased until 1970 and then declined due to decreased fertilizer and detergent inputs. Livestock consistently consumed the majority of nutrient inputs over time and space. The area of crop agriculture declined during the study period but consumed more nutrients as fertilizer. We found that stoichiometry (N:P) of inputs and absolute amounts of N matched nutritional needs (livestock, humans, crops) when atmospheric components (N deposition, N2 fixation) were not included. Differences between N and P led to major changes in N:P stoichiometry over time, consistent with global trends. N:P decreased from 1930 to 1970 due to increased inputs of P, and increased from 1970 to 2000 due to increased N deposition and fertilizer and decreases in P fertilizer and detergent use. We found that nutrient use is a dynamic product of social, economic, political, and environmental interactions. Therefore, future nutrient management must take into account these factors to design successful and effective nutrient reduction measures

Theory of Mind: A Neural Prediction Problem

Predictive coding posits that neural systems make forward-looking predictions about incoming information. Neural signals contain information not about the currently perceived stimulus, but about the difference between the observed and the predicted stimulus. We propose to extend the predictive coding framework from high-level sensory processing to the more abstract domain of theory of mind; that is, to inferences about others’ goals, thoughts, and personalities. We review evidence that, across brain regions, neural responses to depictions of human behavior, from biological motion to trait descriptions, exhibit a key signature of predictive coding: reduced activity to predictable stimuli. We discuss how future experiments could distinguish predictive coding from alternative explanations of this response profile. This framework may provide an important new window on the neural computations underlying theory of mind

Theory of Mind: A Neural Prediction Problem

Predictive coding posits that neural systems make forward-looking predictions about incoming information. Neural signals contain information not about the currently perceived stimulus, but about the difference between the observed and the predicted stimulus. We propose to extend the predictive coding framework from high-level sensory processing to the more abstract domain of theory of mind; that is, to inferences about others' goals, thoughts, and personalities. We review evidence that, across brain regions, neural responses to depictions of human behavior, from biological motion to trait descriptions, exhibit a key signature of predictive coding: reduced activity to predictable stimuli. We discuss how future experiments could distinguish predictive coding from alternative explanations of this response profile. This framework may provide an important new window on the neural computations underlying theory of mind.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award 0645960)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award 095518)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant 1R01 MH096914-01A1

Preliminary steps towards a more preventative approach to eliminating violence against women in Europe

This article discusses findings from a project funded by the European Commission’s DAPHNE III programme that sought to enhance the provision of relationship education and domestic abuse prevention in European schools and other educational facilities: the REaDAPt (Relationship Education and Domestic Abuse Prevention tuition) project. It summarizes what is known about effective prevention from the research literature before explaining what the REaDAPt project revealed about changing attitudes, about implementing and evaluating domestic abuse prevention programmes in educational settings, and about being responsive to young people’s perspectives in the delivery of interventions. The article concludes by highlighting the iterative nature of the research needed to help develop relationship education and domestic abuse prevention tuition on a Europe-wide scale. </jats:p

Instream vegetation survey of Marsh Creek

Agriculture can have a vast impact on stream ecosystems through increasing erosion and nutrient inputs. Vegetation influences an array of ecosystem characteristics in streams, including concentrations of dissolved oxygen and nutrients. Physical characteristics can be influenced as well, including flow velocity, turbidity, light penetration, and turbulence. Using the Braun-Blanquet cover scale we measured instream vegetation cover at six sites along Marsh Creek, a stream in southeastern Idaho that has seen strong anthropomorphic influences through the development of agriculture, both croplands and pastures. We found that in stream vegetation cover was high overall, but varied across sites. Mean vegetation cover across all sites was 25-50%. The highest cover observed was 75-100% and the lowest was 5-25%. From this data we can see variations from site to site as you move downstream but no discernible patterns are evident. Surveys will be continued through the summer to assess temporal trends across sites, and vegetation cover will be compared with dissolved oxygen and turbidity data to assess relationships between vegetation and water quality. This study will yield important information about stream ecosystem responses to agriculture and the role of instream vegetation

Thinking about seeing: Perceptual sources of knowledge are encoded in the theory of mind brain regions of sighted and blind adults

Blind people's inferences about how other people see provide a window into fundamental questions about the human capacity to think about one another's thoughts. By working with blind individuals, we can ask both what kinds of representations people form about others' minds, and how much these representations depend on the observer having had similar mental states themselves. Thinking about others' mental states depends on a specific group of brain regions, including the right temporo-parietal junction (RTPJ). We investigated the representations of others' mental states in these brain regions, using multivoxel pattern analyses (MVPA). We found that, first, in the RTPJ of sighted adults, the pattern of neural response distinguished the source of the mental state (did the protagonist see or hear something?) but not the valence (did the protagonist feel good or bad?). Second, these neural representations were preserved in congenitally blind adults. These results suggest that the temporo-parietal junction contains explicit, abstract representations of features of others' mental states, including the perceptual source. The persistence of these representations in congenitally blind adults, who have no first-person experience with sight, provides evidence that these representations emerge even in the absence of relevant first-person perceptual experiences.National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award 0645960)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Award 095518)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grant 1R01 MH096914-01A1

Does postcoital voiding prevent urinary tract infections in young women?

Healthy women who urinate within 15 minutes of sexual intercourse may be slightly less likely to develop a urinary tract infection (UTI) than women who do not urinate afterward (grade of recommendation: D, extrapolation of single case-control study with nonsignificant findings)

Impact of Road Salt on Stormwater Wetlands

It has been widely shown that urbanization increases macronutrient loads that enter freshwater systems. Best management practices (BMPs), such as constructed stormwater wetlands (CSWs), aim to reduce nutrient loads by acting as nutrient sinks. Road salt is heavily used to deice roads in high snowfall areas of the United States and the negative ecological consequences on freshwater systems have been widely noted. Additionally, salt water flushes nutrients from soils and BMPs designed as a sink could potentially become a source once this salt is added. In a semiarid climate where most precipitation occurs as snowfall, the highest demand on stormwater infrastructure likely coincides with the highest concentrations of salt. Our study examines how road salt effects functioning of two CSWs in a semiarid, snowmelt-driven climate in Pocatello, Idaho. Soil cores were collected and water with various salt concentrations was added. After 24 hours, this water was analyzed for macronutrients to quantify nutrient leaching from CSW soils. We expect that, at higher salt concentrations, nutrient leaching from soils will increase, elevating the macronutrient loads entering local streams and rivers. This study will inform decision-makers on the implications of adding road salt to CSW function and could inform future BMP use