Lawrence University Political Scientist Sees “Generational” Matchup in U.S. Senate Race

Lawrence University political scientist Arnold Shober sees a “generational” political matchup this November in the race for Wisconsin’s U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring four-term Democrat Sen. Herb Kohl. Shober says Tommy Thompson, a former four-term Republican governor, and Democrat Tammy Baldwin, who has represented Wisconsin’s 2nd Congressional District since 1999, not only represent different political “cultures,” but also face different challenges in this election

Legal Impediments to Service: Women in the Military and the Rule of Law

Some of those who served did so by disguising themselves as men.6 A number of women had served as spies, as was the case of Rose O\u27Neal Greenhow, who was arrested and imprisoned for supplying the Confederate Army with information, and Pauline Cushman, who was sentenced to be executed as a Union spy during the War Between the States.7 The first woman to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor, Dr. Mary Walker, provided her services as a doctor free of charge to Union forces in Virginia and Tennessee.8 She had asked the Union Army to hire her as a doctor, but it refused.9 Despite its refusal to hire her, Dr. Walker continued to provide medical services to Union soldiers.10 Eventually, she was captured by Confederate soldiers.11 After her release from Confederate prison as part of a prisoner exchange, she was given an official position of Acting Assistant Surgeon, the first woman to be given such a title.12 Dr. Walker received the Congressional Medal of Honor after the war.13 In 1917, however, the U.S. Congress attempted to remove the honor from her, stating that only those who fought in combat were entitled to the award.14 When the Congress decided that the Medal had been awarded in error, Walker refused to return the medal.15 Even after her death, Dr Walker\u27s family continued to battle to resolve her status as a Medal of Honor recipient. [...] women were not afforded the right to vote in any state in any election before achieving the right to vote in school board elections in Kentucky in 1838.18 Passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920 gave women the right to vote in national elections across the country.19 Similarly, women were not entitled to administer estates, own property, or enter into contract in their personal capacity.\n Perhaps it is unsurprising that, more than forty years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, members of the legislative branch, as well as those in positions to engender policy for and within the U.S. military, continue to limit opportunities for women in fields in which they have a proven competence

Public Perceptions of Wisconsin’s Pavements and Tradeoffs in Pavement Improvement

Findings are reported from Phase II of a three-phase pooled-fund project in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Minnesota to determine perceptions of drivers regarding pavement of rural two-lane highways. Among the survey topics were drivers\u27 trust in the state department of transportation (DOT), pavement improvement trade-offs, and pavement evaluation. Results of the Wisconsin portion of the survey data are the focus of this study. The survey questionnaire was based in part on Phase I focus groups conducted to gauge beliefs about pavements as well as the language describing ruts, tining, and other pavement characteristics. Phase II entailed a statewide telephone survey of at least 400 randomly selected drivers in each of the three states. Although the focus here is on Wisconsin results, survey responses across the three states were very consistent. Included in the findings discussed are perceptions of pavement and the state DOT and pavement improvement options relating to construction, travel time, and delays. Results disclose key public perceptions of priorities with regard to spending limited funds. Also discussed are statistically significant relationships providing additional insights into public perceptions and pavement improvement on rural two-lane highways

A Sum Greater Than the Parts: What States Can Teach Each Other About Charter Schooling

States with a significant charter sector know firsthand that the success or failure of a charter school is not a matter of chance, but subject to variances in state laws and a state's educational, political, and regulatory climate. In this report, Sara Mead and Andrew J. Rotherham draw on the experiences of 12 states, proposing those lessons that are necessary for charter school quality and growth

Meteoroid Orbital Analysis: Connecting Meteorites and Asteroids

Since people started studying meteorites, scientists have attempted to better understand the parent bodies they originated from. Although, this is difficult because, unlike a terrestrial rock, you do not have access to the outcrop. The Near-Earth Object (NEO) population is the source of all meteorites found on Earth. Using the orbital data collected from the Desert Fireball Network, my work clarified the connections between meteorites and their source NEOs. I primarily did this analysis by employing rigorous numerical modeling techniques to constrain the dynamical and physical properties of asteroidal debris

Montana Kaimin, March 1, 2013

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.https://scholarworks.umt.edu/studentnewspaper/6661/thumbnail.jp

Public Perceptions of the Midwest’s Pavements: Policies and Tradeoffs in Pavement Improvement

With the budget crisis plaguing so many states, pavement management will compete more vigorously for limited funds. Findings reported from a tri-state pooled-fund research project provide insights and guidelines for pavement improvement derived from the perceptions of the driving public. The Phase II responses from statewide surveys in Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin address the topics of perceptions of the State Departments of Transportation (DOTs), pavement repair tradeoffs, and pavement evaluation. The results disclose specific public perceptions of priorities for spending limited highway funds. Implications for pavement management, policy, planning, as well as for marketing to garner additional funds are explored