3,088 research outputs found
Notes on the Alluvial History of the Lampasas River, Texas
Excavations made in connection with the Stillhouse Hollow Dam construction in Bell County, Texas, offered an excellent view of almost complete sections of the floodplain and the two terraces developed in the valley at this point. In the process of work sponsored by the National Park Service, these sections were measured and their lithology recorded. A molluscan fauna was recovered from approximately two tons of sediments quarried from a shallow zone near the base of the T-1 terrace. A radio-carbon date from shells higher in the same terrace indicates an age of 4970 ± 250 B.P., according to the determination of Dr. Meyer Rubin of the U.S. Geological Survey. The tests were run on valves of Tritogonia verrucosa (Barnes), Quadrula pustulosa Lea, and Amblema perplicata (Conrad)
Earth orbital teleoperator systems evaluation
The mechanical extension of the human operator to remote and specialized environments poses a series of complex operational questions. A technical and scientific team was organized to investigate these questions through conducting specific laboratory and analytical studies. The intent of the studies was to determine the human operator requirements for remotely manned systems and to determine the particular effects that various system parameters have on human operator performance. In so doing, certain design criteria based on empirically derived data concerning the ultimate control system, the human operator, were added to the Teleoperator Development Program
Research and investigation of geology, mineral, and water resources of Maryland
The authors have identified the following significant results. Field work in Baltimore County revealed that the signature returns of serpentinitic and nonserpentinitic rocks correlates with the vegetation cover and land use pattern. In Maryland Piedmont, bedrock lithology and structure are enhanced only to the extent that land use is geologically dictated. Two prominent sets of linear features are detected on ERTS-1 imagery at N 45 deg E and N 20 deg E. Beaches of Chesapeake Bay are classified as broad and narrow beaches based on the width of the backshore zone. It is shown by comparing historical shorelines of Ocean City, from the inlet to the Maryland-Delaware line that reversal zones of erosion and accretion occur at different locations for different periods. High reflectance levels (high marsh-high topographic areas) for the lower Eastern Shore are found to be distributed as two distinct trending linear ridge systems. Observations of MSS band 5 dated 9 April 1974 exhibited an unique sedimentation pattern for Chesapeake Bay. Following a 1.5 inch rainfall, heavy concentration of suspended sediments is observed on the imagery, particularly in the area of the turbidity maximum
Influences on academics' approaches to development: voices from below
The purpose of this qualitative case study research was to explore faculty-based academicsâ views on what influences their behaviours and attitudes towards their development. Informed by critical realist ontology, the data collection was carried out through narrative interviews with academics in two contrasting English Universities. Findings, or areas for reflection, have emerged about the constraints and enablements academics perceive in respect of their professional development. In particular, themes such as the significance of professional status; misaligned initiatives and priorities; the influence of supportive networks; and emergent personal, individual concerns have surfaced. The conclusion is drawn that the significance of agency raises the importance of responding to the âvoices from belowâ
The impact of marketisation on postgraduate career preparedness in a high skills economy
This study focuses on the consequences for high skills development of the erosion of the once clear demarcation between higher education and business. It contributes to the broader debate about the relevance of higher education for thewell-being of the society of the future. The research explores the effects of marketisation on the postgraduate curriculum and studentsâ preparedness for careers in public relations and marketing communications. Interviews with lecturers and students in two universities in the UK and Australia indicate that a tension exists between academic rigour and corporate relevancy. The consequences are a diminution of academic attachment to critique and wider social/cultural engagement, with a resulting impoverishment of studentsâ creative abilities and critical consciences. Subsequently, graduates of public relations and marketing communications, and to some extent those from other profession-related disciplines, are insufficiently prepared for careers as knowledge workers in a future high-skills economy
Transforming teacher education, an activity theory analysis
This paper explores the work of teacher education in England and Scotland. It seeks to locate this work within conflicting socio-cultural views of professional practice and academic work. Drawing on an activity theory framework that integrates the analysis of these contradictory discourses with a study of teacher educatorsâ practical activities, including the material artefacts that mediate the work, the paper offers a critical perspective on the social organisation of university-based teacher education. Informed by Engeströmâs activity theory concept of transformation, the paper extends the discussion of contradictions in teacher education to consider the wider socio-cultural relations of the work. The findings raise important questions about the way in which teacher education work within universities is organised and the division of labour between schools and universities
Patenting and licensing of university research: promoting innovation or undermining academic values?
Since the 1980s in the US and the 1990s in Europe, patenting and licensing activities by universities have massively increased. This is strongly encouraged by governments throughout the Western world. Many regard academic patenting as essential to achieve 'knowledge transfer' from academia to industry. This trend has far-reaching consequences for access to the fruits of academic research and so the question arises whether the current policies are indeed promoting innovation or whether they are instead a symptom of a pro-intellectual property (IP) culture which is blind to adverse effects. Addressing this question requires both empirical analysis (how real is the link between academic patenting and licensing and 'development' of academic research by industry?) and normative assessment (which justifications are given for the current policies and to what extent do they threaten important academic values?). After illustrating the major rise of academic patenting and licensing in the US and Europe and commenting on the increasing trend of 'upstream' patenting and the focus on exclusive as opposed to non-exclusive licences, this paper will discuss five negative effects of these trends. Subsequently, the question as to why policymakers seem to ignore these adverse effects will be addressed. Finally, a number of proposals for improving university policies will be made
Driving calmodulin protein towards conformational shift by changing ionization states of select residues
Proteins are complex systems made up of many conformational sub-states which are mainly determined by the folded structure. External factors such as solvent type, temperature, pH and ionic strength play a very important role in the conformations sampled by proteins. Here we study the conformational multiplicity of calmodulin (CaM) which is a protein that plays an important role in calcium signaling pathways in the eukaryotic cells. CaM can bind to a variety of other proteins or small organic compounds, and mediates different physiological processes by activating various enzymes. Binding of calcium ions and proteins or small organic molecules to CaM induces large conformational changes that are distinct to each interacting partner. In particular, we discuss the effect of pH variation on the conformations of CaM. By using the pKa values of the charged residues as a basis to assign protonation states, the conformational changes induced in CaM by reducing the pH are studied by molecular dynamics simulations. Our current view suggests that at high pH, barrier crossing to the compact form is prevented by repulsive electrostatic interactions between the two lobes. At reduced pH, not only is barrier crossing facilitated by protonation of residues, but also conformations which are on average more compact are attained. The latter are in accordance with the fluorescence resonance energy transfer experiment results of other workers. The key events leading to the conformational change from the open to the compact conformation are (i) formation of a salt bridge between the N-lobe and the linker, stabilizing their relative motions, (ii) bending of the C-lobe towards the N-lobe, leading to a lowering of the interaction energy between the two-lobes, (iii) formation of a hydrophobic patch between the two lobes, further stabilizing the bent conformation by reducing the entropic cost of the compact form, (iv) sharing of a Ca+2 ion between the two lobes
Non-Equilibrium Dynamics in Two-Color, Few-Photon Dissociative Excitation and Ionization of D
D molecules, excited by linearly cross-polarized femtosecond extreme
ultraviolet (XUV) and near-infrared (NIR) light pulses, reveal highly
structured D ion fragment momenta and angular distributions that originate
from two different 4-step dissociative ionization pathways after four photon
absorption (1 XUV + 3 NIR). We show that, even for very low dissociation
kinetic energy release ~240~meV, specific electronic excitation pathways
can be identified and isolated in the final ion momentum distributions. With
the aid of {\it ab initio} electronic structure and time-dependent
Schr\"odinger equation calculations, angular momentum, energy, and parity
conservation are used to identify the excited neutral molecular states and
molecular orientations relative to the polarization vectors in these different
photoexcitation and dissociation sequences of the neutral D molecule and
its D cation. In one sequential photodissociation pathway, molecules
aligned along either of the two light polarization vectors are excluded, while
another pathway selects molecules aligned parallel to the light propagation
direction. The evolution of the nuclear wave packet on the intermediate \Bstate
electronic state of the neutral D molecule is also probed in real time.Comment: 11 pages including 6 figure
Antideuteron yield at the AGS and coalescence implications
We present Experiment 864's measurement of invariant antideuteron yields in
11.5A GeV/c Au + Pt collisions. The analysis includes 250 million triggers
representing 14 billion 10% central interactions sampled for events with high
mass candidates. We find (1/2 pi pt) d^(2)N/dydpt = 3.5 +/- 1.5 (stat.)
+0.9,-0.5 (sys.) x 10^(-8) GeV^(-2)c^(2) for 1.8=0.35 GeV/c
(y(cm)=1.6) and 3.7 +/- 2.7 (stat.) +1.4,-1.5 (sys.) x 10^(-8) GeV^(-2)c^(2)
for 1.4=0.26 GeV/c, and a coalescence parameter B2-bar of 4.1 +/-
2.9 (stat.) +2.3,-2.4 (sys.) x 10^(-3) GeV^(2)c^(-3). Implications for the
coalescence model and antimatter annihilation are discussed.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures, Latex, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
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