An infra-red finger tracking system used in the assessment and remediation of “graph-as-picture” misconceptions

The workshop presentation will describe a specialized ap- plication of Lee’s “Wiimote Whiteboard” [7] an infra-red camera based tracking system which uses the Nintendo Wii wireless remote control unit and Bluetooth. Young students wear a very small infra-red LED on their index finger with a forefinger/thumb operated micro-switch for produ- cing “mouse clicks”. This system is combined with a vertically mounted data projector or a horizontally mounted regular computer LCD display, creating a cost-effective large interactive touch surface. The system has a fast response time and has been used with primary school students in diagrammatic knowledge (graphicacy) assessment [4] and in interactive dynalinked diagrammatic applications [5]. These applications were de- signed to investigate the “graph-as-picture” misconception and they will be described and demonstrated at the workshop

The demand for local services and infrastructure created by an aging population

Upstate New York, with a growing senior population, is seeing an increase in the number of frail and disabled elderly who rely on local services and infrastructure and are concentrated in the inner cities and older suburbs. While local governments and institutions will face greater pressure to provide services and infrastructure to this expanding segment, the challenge may prove especially difficult for many upstate communities, given their environment of slow economic growth and fiscal stress.

Study of the Outcomes and Impacts of the Global Forum on Migration and Development and Civil Society Days

In November 2011, the Global Forum on Migration and Development (GFMD) and accompanying Civil Society Days (CSD) completed their fifth year of operation, with the aim of improving migration policy coherence and enhancing the benefits of migration to sending and receiving countries, and to migrants themselves. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the largest non-governmental donor to this process, commissioned this study to retrospectively assess the outcomes and impact of the CSD and GFMD on policies, practices, issue framing, and government-civil society cooperation; and to prospectively draw lessons learned for the future of the GFMD and CSD. The evaluation took place from November 2011 through September 2012, allowing the team to observe the CSD and GFMD in Geneva, conduct an in-depth case study in Mexico, distribute online surveys to participants, conduct interviews at the UN offices in New York, and conduct key informant interviews by phone. Using a mixed method approach, combining quantitative survey data with qualitative key informant interviews and an extensive document review, the team has worked to triangulate data and strengthen the validity of findings. This study is geared towards the main stakeholders of the GFMD and CSD, including governments, civil society representatives, and donors. It is hoped that the aforementioned stakeholders will be able to utilize the findings, conclusions, and recommendations within this report to better inform their work in migration and development moving forward -- both within and outside of the GFMD and CSD processes

Re-introduction of the Mallorcan midwife toad, Mallorca, Spain

The Mallorcan midwife toad (Alytes muletensis, Sanchíz & Alcover, 1977) or ferreret was first described in the 1970s as Baleaphryne muletensis from upper Pleistocene fossils, and was considered extinct. The discovery of live tadpoles in 1980 led to further research which confirmed the species as extant and endemic to Mallorca (Mayol & Alcover, 1981). Subfossils suggest that the species was once widespread across the island, but today it is confined to a few gorges within the Serra de Tramuntana mountains in the north-west part of the island. There are currently about 34 populations within the mountains and adjacent areas (16 original wild populations plus 18 re-introductions). These are largely isolated from each other by physiographic barriers, but there is little evidence of any inbreeding depression. Re-introduction of captive bred toads started in 1989 and it is estimated that about 25% of the wild toads stem from captive bred stock. The successful re-introduction program contributed to the downgrading of the species from ‘Critically Endangered’ to ‘Vulnerable’ in the Global Amphibian Assessment of 2004. There is little evidence that wild populations are continuing to decline, but the recent discovery of chytridiomycosis in four populations gives cause for concern

High resolution imaging of NGC 2346 with GSAOI/GeMS: disentangling the planetary nebula molecular structure to understand its origin and evolution

We present high spatial resolution ($\approx$ 60--90 milliarcseconds) images of the molecular hydrogen emission in the Planetary Nebula (PN) NGC 2346. The data were acquired during the System Verification of the Gemini Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics System + Gemini South Adaptive Optics Imager. At the distance of NGC 2346, 700 pc, the physical resolution corresponds to $\approx$ 56 AU, which is slightly higher than that an [N II] image of NGC 2346 obtained with HST/WFPC2. With this unprecedented resolution we were able to study in detail the structure of the H$_2$ gas within the nebula for the first time. We found it to be composed of knots and filaments, which at lower resolution had appeared to be a uniform torus of material. We explain how the formation of the clumps and filaments in this PN is consistent with a mechanism in which a central hot bubble of nebular gas surrounding the central star has been depressurized, and the thermal pressure of the photoionized region drives the fragmentation of the swept-up shell.Comment: accepted in ApJ (17 pages, 7 figures, 1 Table