Aspects of regeneration in tropical secondary forests of Northeast Borneo affected by selective logging, El Niño-induced drought and fire

A large proportion of the world´s tropical rainforests are today secondary forests, a term encompassing forests in various degrees of degeneration. For the main traits of old-growth forests´ structures, species composition and ecosystem functions to recover, regeneration of non-pioneer tree species is essential. In the studies this thesis is based upon I addressed various aspects of regeneration, both natural and artificial, mainly in secondary forests of northeast Borneo subjected to selective logging in the early 1980´s followed by prolonged El Niño-induced drought and forest fires in 1982-83. The field studies underlying this thesis included one survey of natural regeneration in transects and two experiments with artificial regeneration; gap creation with under-planting nursery raised tree seedlings and direct seeding. Forest floor light conditions in created gaps were measured as photosynthetic photon flux density and proportion canopy openness. Methods applied to analyze data were ordinations (NMS and MRPP), ANCOVA and general linear model ANOVA. Based upon these results some general conclusions and implications for forest management are addressed for secondary forests with this type of disturbance history: Forest patches with remnant potential seed trees and a more intact canopy structure had more diversified tree species recruits and are therefore less demanding of artificial regeneration. In artificial gap creation a sub-canopy reduction would be the preferable method compared to girdling or felling pioneer canopy trees since the positive effect of sub-canopy treatments is longer lasting. Under-planted dipterocarp seedlings increase height growth in high-light environments while their survival appeared unaffected by light conditions, therefore a medium shade reduction would be preferable as this leads to only moderate release of competing vegetation. Direct seeding must be evaluated further before large scale application, especially the timing and species choice merits special attention

Wireless Sensor Networks And Data Fusion For Structural Health Monitoring Of Aircraft

This thesis discusses an architecture and design of a sensor web to be used for structural health monitoring of an aircraft. Also presented are several prototypes of critical parts of the sensor web. The proposed sensor web will utilize sensor nodes situated throughout the structure. These nodes and one or more workstations will support agents that communicate and collaborate to monitor the health of the structure. Agents can be any internal or external autonomous entity that has direct access to affect a given system. For the purposes of this document, an agent will be defined as an autonomous software resource that has the ability to make decisions for itself based on given tasks and abilities while also collaborating with others to find a feasible answer to a given problem regarding the structural health monitoring system. Once the agents have received relevant data from nodes, they will utilize applications that perform data fusion techniques to classify events and further improve the functionality of the system for more accurate future classifications. Agents will also pass alerts up a self-configuring hierarchy of monitor agents and make them available for review by personnel. This thesis makes use of previous results from applying the Gaia methodology for analysis and design of the multiagent system

Reasonable Fee and Professional Discipline

The question propounded by this article is - what exactly is the reasonable fee, and conversely under what conditions may a fee be adjudged so unreasonable that the legal profession may administer justifiable discipline to the attorney charging such a fee

Wireless Sensor Networks And Data Fusion For Structural Health Monitoring Of Aircraft

This thesis discusses an architecture and design of a sensor web to be used for structural health monitoring of an aircraft. Also presented are several prototypes of critical parts of the sensor web. The proposed sensor web will utilize sensor nodes situated throughout the structure. These nodes and one or more workstations will support agents that communicate and collaborate to monitor the health of the structure. Agents can be any internal or external autonomous entity that has direct access to affect a given system. For the purposes of this document, an agent will be defined as an autonomous software resource that has the ability to make decisions for itself based on given tasks and abilities while also collaborating with others to find a feasible answer to a given problem regarding the structural health monitoring system. Once the agents have received relevant data from nodes, they will utilize applications that perform data fusion techniques to classify events and further improve the functionality of the system for more accurate future classifications. Agents will also pass alerts up a self-configuring hierarchy of monitor agents and make them available for review by personnel. This thesis makes use of previous results from applying the Gaia methodology for analysis and design of the multiagent system

Beginning Teachers\u27 Job Satisfaction and Intention to Remain in Teaching: A Comparison of Traditionally Prepared Teachers and Teachers Prepared by Alternative Methods

The teaching profession has been concerned within the past several years, with the preparation of traditional and alternative route teachers. Urban districts have been trying to address how effective teachers are in regards to their training and educational preparation. The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in beginning teachers (those who have taught between one and three years) who chose the traditional route of teacher education and teachers who pursued an alternative route of teacher preparation in terms of educational background. personal characteristics, school characteristics, mentoring experience, and career adaptability and the relationship to job satisfaction and intention to leave their current job. A correlational research design was implemented in this investigation. Using a purposive sampling procedure, the sample was accessed from a list of 1-3 years beginning teachers in an urban school district in New Jersey. Participants (N = 89) completed self-reporting questionnaires developed by the researcher about their educational backgrounds, personal characteristics, school characteristics, job satisfaction, and intent to leave their current jobs. The Career Mastery Inventory (CMAS) (Crites, 1978) and the Alleman Mentoring Activities Questionnaire (AMAQ) (Alleman & Clarke, 2000) ascertained information about participants\u27 career adaptability and mentoring experiences. One research question was answered and two related hypotheses were tested. Data analyses consisted of descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis, chi-square, t-tests for independent samples, and multiple regression. The researcher-developed scales of school characteristics, job satisfaction, and intention to leave were determined to have good reliability and construct validity. The standardized instrument, the Alleman Mentoring Activities Questionnaire was also determined to be highly reliable and valid for the sample of beginning teachers, who also had average mentoring experiences. Findings indicated that the teachers in this study had significantly higher levels of career adaptability as measured on the Career Mastery Inventory than the average adult. There were no significant differences in educational background, personal characteristics, school characteristics, mentoring experience, career adaptability, job satisfaction, and intention to leave in beginning teachers relative to teacher preparation. Highest educational level achieved and school characteristics were significant explanatory variables of job satisfaction accounting for 14% of the variance. Specifically, as educational achievement increased, job satisfaction decreased. Favorable school characteristics were associated with increased job satisfaction. School characteristics were a significant explanatory variable of intention to leave the current job accounting for 11% of the variance. Favorable school characteristics were related to decreased intentions to leave the current job. Among all the variables of interest in this study, the common denominator influencing teacher job satisfaction and retention was school characteristics. Themes assessed by the school characteristics instrument included degree of support teachers perceived for staff development programs, feeling appreciated, administrative support of innovative teaching and learning ideas, teamwork, and maintaining discipline. Based upon the current study, if school administrators can focus their efforts on improving these key areas, they will improve teacher job satisfaction and retention rates. Recommendations for future studies include replicating the study with a larger sample size. This study might be expanded to other school districts within the state of New Jersey and to other states. Future studies should also incorporate the additional variable of pay to increase the explanatory power of the models tested, which seek to explain teacher job satisfaction and retention rates within the context of teacher preparation

Development of the Parenting Style and Practice Scale (PSPS) in examining parenting practices and children\u27s academic performance

What roles do parents play in fostering children\u27s academic success in school? There is a general consensus that confirms the importance of parenting styles and practices on children\u27s academic performance (e.g., Pinquart, 2015). However, there is a lack of up-to-date systematic parenting scales with acceptable validity and reliability. For this reason, it limits our understanding of parenting related studies in the current context. Developing a questionnaire is critical to conduct cross diverse comparisons which would broaden the generalizability of the related research. Adopting the review of literature research approach, the purpose of this study was to develop a scale that contains essential elements of parenting styles and practices. Using this instrument tool, the goal would be to examine the relationship between parenting practices and children\u27s academic performance. Through a thorough literature review, the Parenting Styles and Practices Scale (PSPS) was developed. The PSPS includes four factors: (a) parental expectations, (b) autonomy, (c) discipline, and (d) parental involvement in education. Each factor includes 10 variables. The next step would be to examine the psychometric properties of the PSPS on a sample. The ultimate goal is to implement the PSPS to a wider population and make the scale available for adoption in the parenting research community.https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/u_poster_2017/1003/thumbnail.jp

Say it in Polish! : The Role of Heritage Language in preserving culture among families of Eastern European Origin

This project is part of a larger qualitative research study exploring the relationship between Eastern European American parenting styles and children\u27s academic achievement. Seven mothers who were either first- or second-generation Eastern European American participated in semi-structured individual interviews. This project focuses on heritage language preservation. It revealed motivations, strategies, and outcomes of parents\u27 desire to transmit their heritage language to the next generation. All participants had at least one child between ages five and eighteen. Based on our findings, four themes have emerged: 1) Motivations for heritage language preservation; 2) Resources and strategies to foster heritage language learning; 3) Family factors affecting heritage language transmission and fluency; and 4) Children\u27s evolving attitudes to heritage language.https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/u_poster_2016/1001/thumbnail.jp