Online CPE: Real Estate Professionals’ Reasons For Participation

This study examined the reasons for participation in online learning among real estate professionals. The significance of this study concerns how online continuing professional education (CPE) can be focused to meet the needs of professionals by learning about the motivators to participation. Courses for online CPE geared towards real estate professionals are being introduced daily designed to meet personal needs and to meet state re-licensure requirements. State licensing boards are granting approvals to real estate schools to provide online continuing education courses at a record pace. Industry-wide there are no identifiable reasons as to why real estate professionals participate in online educatio

The Seasonal Cycle and Interannual Variability in Stratospheric Temperatures and Links to the Brewer–Dobson Circulation: An Analysis of MSU and SSU Data

Previous studies have shown that lower-stratosphere temperatures display a near-perfect cancellation between tropical and extratropical latitudes on both annual and interannual time scales. The out-of-phase relationship between tropical and high-latitude lower-stratospheric temperatures is a consequence of variability in the strength of the Brewer–Dobson circulation (BDC). In this study, the signal of the BDC in stratospheric temperature variability is examined throughout the depth of the stratosphere using data from the Stratospheric Sounding Unit (SSU). While the BDC has a seemingly modest signal in the annual cycle in zonal-mean temperatures in the mid- and upper stratosphere, it has a pronounced signal in the month-to-month and interannual variability. Tropical and extratropical temperatures are significantly negatively correlated in all SSU channels on interannual time scales, suggesting that variations in wave driving are a major factor controlling global-scale temperature variability not only in the lower stratosphere (as shown in previous studies), but also in the mid- and upper stratosphere. The out-of-phase relationship between tropical and high latitudes peaks at all levels during the cold-season months: December–March in the Northern Hemisphere and July–October in the Southern Hemisphere. In the upper stratosphere, the out-of-phase relationship with high-latitude temperatures extends beyond the tropics and well into the extratropics of the opposite hemisphere. The seasonal cycle in stratospheric temperatures follows the annual march of insolation at all levels and latitudes except in the mid- to upper tropical stratosphere, where it is dominated by the semiannual oscillation. M

Phonemic awareness activities for first-grade students: A descriptive project

This project examined the use of three practices as means of developing graphophonic awareness in first-grade students. The three practices were: journal writing, in which students used invented spelling in their writing (Goodman, 1989}; phonics charts in which students listed and located words with specific phonemic elements (Routman, 1991}; and Making Words an activity in which students manipulated letters to form various words (Cunningham & Cunningham, 1992}. These practices were taught through the context of whole-word relationships and meaningful experiences. The specific phonemic elements targeted were the th, .s.b., and w digraphs, blends with s., 1, and r, and the s., .ad, and .ing, endings. Writing samples, running records, and anecdotal records were used as evaluative tools to monitor student progress. Results demonstrated student progress in the application of the specific phonemic elements being targeted. The practices of journal writing, phonics charts, and Making Words appear to be beneficial in developing phonemic awareness. Specifically, students exhibited the greatest gains in their use of applying the phonemic elements of the .sh and .ing, ending. However, students showed growth in their ability to represent all of the targeted digraphs, blends, and endings. This improvement was seen in their writing as well as their reading of words that contained these phonemic elements

Seafood Contamination after the BP Gulf Oil Spill and Risks to Vulnerable Populations: A Critique of the FDA Risk Assessment

Background: The BP oil spill of 2010 resulted in contamination of one of the most productive fisheries in the United States by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs, which can accumulate in seafood, are known carcinogens and developmental toxicants. In response to the oil spill, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) developed risk criteria and established thresholds for allowable levels [levels of concern (LOCs)] of PAH contaminants in Gulf Coast seafood

The impact of ozone depleting substances on the circulation, temperature, and salinity of the Southern Ocean: An attribution study with CESM1(WACCM)

Observations show robust changes in the circulation, temperature, and salinity of the Southern Ocean in recent decades. To what extent these changes are related to the formation of the ozone hole in the late twentieth century is an open question. Using a comprehensive chemistry-climate Earth system model, we contrast model runs with varying and with fixed surface concentrations of ozone depleting substances (ODS) from 1955 to 2005. In our model, ODS cause the majority of the summertime changes in surface wind stress which, in turn, induce a clear poleward shift of the ocean's meridional overturning circulation. In addition, more than 30% of the model changes in the temperature and salinity of the Southern Ocean are caused by ODS. These findings offer unambiguous evidence that increased concentrations of ODS in the late twentieth century are likely to have been been an important driver of changes in the Southern Ocean

Seeing red over black and white: popular and media representations of inter-racial relationships as precursors to racial violence

The recent murder in the UK of Anthony Walker attests to the lingering antipathy, indeed hostility, toward intimate inter-racial relationships, especially those involving black men and white women. Seventeen year-old Walker was brutally beaten then fatally assaulted with an axe to his head - the 'provocation' for the attack was this young black man’s relationship with his white girl friend. This paper assesses the historical and contemporary images and mythologies that continue to stigmatize inter-racial relationships. Specifically, we look at the representations disseminated through varied popular media forms. The paper suggests that these mediated constructs condition an environment that facilitates, if not encourages, violence against those in inter-racial relationships

A pilot study of the data demands of different stakeholders for the future Ethiopian dairy sector [version 1; peer review: awaiting peer review]

Background:  This paper describes a pilot study undertaken in 2018, to determine the key data needs of each of the different Ethiopian dairy sector stakeholder groups.  The study aimed to characterise the emerging trends of dairy product production, processing, retailing and consumption in Ethiopia, and to identify and characterise current and future data needs of different stakeholders. Methods:  The study undertook a mapping of the interactions between different stakeholders in the dairy sector, and an interactive evaluation of the institutional data repository and access options.  Focus group discussions and interviews were held in three regions of the country prior to a two-day workshop in the capital Addis Ababa.  Data needs were characterised by type, availability, format, level of detail, methods of dissemination, uptake and use, and the institutional arrangement, including the different roles of public and private sectors in decision making processes. Results:  The study highlighted the main data needs and identified several broader institutional issues constraining the further development of the Ethiopian dairy sector.  The stakeholder groups endorsed the reactivation of a national dairy board, independent of government but closely incorporating government, and with the buy-in and membership of private sector enterprises, including producers, processers, service providers and consumers, to provide clearer facilitative leadership on the dairy industry. Conclusions:  The study workshop provided a timely discussion between diverse stakeholders, including government, and several potential organisations were suggested to host and manage a national dairy database. Importantly, the reactivation of a national dairy board was strongly endorsed.  It was recommended that stakeholder links be established, sector-specific data needs be elevated to higher detail, and a national roll out of herd-specific data recording schemes was called for, to allow for effective evidence-based policies and decision making