Daphnis placida, a new species of Sphinx moth for Guam, U.S.A.

I do not have the submitted version any more. If the published PDF version cannot be deposited, then please remove.This item is licensed under a Creative Commons License (Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)). The attached file is the published version of the article

Natural Language Generation as an Intelligent Activity (Proposal for Dissertation Research)

In this proposal, I outline a generator conceived of as part of a general intelligent agent. The generator\u27s task is to provide the overall system with the ability to use communication in language to serve its purposes, rather than to simply encode information in language. This requires that generation be viewed as a kind of goal-directed action that is planned and executed in a dynamically changing environment. In addition, the generator must not be dependent on domain or problem-specific information but rather on a general knowledge base .that it shares with the overall system. These requirements have specific consequences for the design of the generator and the representation it uses. In particular, the text planner and the low-level linguistic component must be able to interact and negotiate over decisions that involve both high-level and low-level constraints. Also, the knowledge representation must allow for the varying perspective that an intelligent agent will have on the things it talks about; the generator must be able to appropriately vary how it describes things as the system\u27s perspective on them changes. The generator described here will demonstrate how these ideas work in practice and develop them further

An Urban Migraine: The Influence of Artificial Light at Night on Aquatic Primary Productivity

Artificial light at night (ALAN), or unnatural lighting produced by anthropogenic sources, has drastically altered the nighttime environment and is anticipated to increase as urban populations grow and electricity expands into previously unlit areas. The prevalence and predicted increases in ALAN have prompted a growing concern over light as an environmental pollutant (i.e., ecological light pollution), yet the effects of this stressor on ecosystem function remain largely unresolved. Here, the response of a common stream diatom (Navicula pelliculosa) to typical urban nighttime light levels was assessed through a 67-day laboratory experiment as measured using ash-free dry mass, gross primary productivity, and net primary productivity. Overall, diatom growth and productivity were significantly different over time and across light treatments. ALAN was associated with a decrease in ash-free dry mass and an increase in gross primary productivity, but was not related to net primary productivity. These patterns suggest that some species of diatoms may experience a physiological shift under ALAN. Since alterations in primary productivity can have strong bottom-up effects in aquatic systems, these results indicate that ALAN may have cascading trophic consequences.A one-year embargo was granted for this item.Academic Major: Environmental Scienc

Reimagining Teacher Education's Response to Disability: From Summer Courses in Auxiliary Education to Disability Studies

Teacher education programs have a responsibility to prepare teachers to support the diverse learning needs of students. However, this rarely includes critical examination of constructions of disability and how these constructions may create barriers to the establishment of inclusive classrooms. This dissertation examines the intersecting histories of special education and teacher education in Ontario in order to understand how current practices developed and to consider the impact that factors like compulsory schooling, immigration, eugenics, intelligence testing, and models of disability had on this development. This dissertation explores the influence of changes in special education and attitudes towards disability on teacher education programs in Ontario, beginning with an examination of the establishment of two special education classes (called Auxiliary classes at the time) in Ontario in 1910. I have identified critical shifts in the education of students with disabilities and whether or not there were corresponding shifts in teacher education. Historical and archival research methods were used to collect data within the framework of a case study approach. Teacher education in Ontario began with the establishment of normal schools that were subsequently renamed teachers colleges and ultimately merged with universities to become faculties of education. This dissertation focuses on the teacher education programs at the University of Toronto, University of Ottawa, University of Western Ontario, and Nipissing University. These four were chosen because their histories can be traced back to normal schools thus providing historical depth. While vestiges of the past are still apparent in current approaches to teacher education, there is some evidence that teacher education programs utilizing a disability studies approach can provide a starting place for engaging teacher candidates in developing the critical consciousness necessary to create inclusive classrooms. Although a disability studies approach has the potential to positively influence teacher practice, it is also important to recognize that teacher education programs should prepare teacher candidates to navigate the cognitive dissonance that they may experience when working in schools that are firmly entrenched in traditional special education practices. The critical analysis provided in this dissertation could provoke new ways of thinking about disability in teacher education.Teacher education programs have a responsibility to prepare teachers to support the diverse learning needs of students. However, this rarely includes critical examination of constructions of disability and how these constructions may create barriers to the establishment of inclusive classrooms. This dissertation examines the intersecting histories of special education and teacher education in Ontario in order to understand how current practices developed and to consider the impact that factors like compulsory schooling, immigration, eugenics, intelligence testing, and models of disability had on this development. This dissertation explores the influence of changes in special education and attitudes towards disability on teacher education programs in Ontario, beginning with an examination of the establishment of two special education classes (called Auxiliary classes at the time) in Ontario in 1910. I have identified critical shifts in the education of students with disabilities and whether or not there were corresponding shifts in teacher education. Historical and archival research methods were used to collect data within the framework of a case study approach. Teacher education in Ontario began with the establishment of normal schools that were subsequently renamed teachers colleges and ultimately merged with universities to become faculties of education. This dissertation focuses on the teacher education programs at the University of Toronto, University of Ottawa, University of Western Ontario, and Nipissing University. These four were chosen because their histories can be traced back to normal schools thus providing historical depth. While vestiges of the past are still apparent in current approaches to teacher education, there is some evidence that teacher education programs utilizing a disability studies approach can provide a starting place for engaging teacher candidates in developing the critical consciousness necessary to create inclusive classrooms. Although a disability studies approach has the potential to positively influence teacher practice, it is also important to recognize that teacher education programs should prepare teacher candidates to navigate the cognitive dissonance that they may experience when working in schools that are firmly entrenched in traditional special education practices. The critical analysis provided in this dissertation could provoke new ways of thinking about disability in teacher education

Maine Campus Student services

Article from the University of Maine student newspaper The Maine Campus regarding University services to support minority students such as the Martin Luther King Scholarship