Using an Open Software System (Sakai) to Develop Student Portfolios

E-portfolios are digital collections of artifacts that represent the achievements and reflections of individuals. They offer a unique view into student learning and allow educators and external accreditors to assess student progress towards established standards as well as reviewing their program’s performance in supporting that progress. Students benefit from assembling their e-portfolios through the process of reviewing their own work with a critical eye, choosing pieces of their work that best represent their abilities, and reflecting on the transformative nature of their University experience, both in class and through extra-curricular, service learning, internships and international activities. An e-portfolio provides a holistic view of a student’s personal growth and abilities that will serve them well in their career search or graduate school application. The challenge for an institution is to provide this learning and assessment resource in an accessible and affordable vehicle that is manageable for both faculty and students. Roger Williams University has crafted a strategy to utilize the Sakai open source course management system with its integrated e-portfolio tool set and a linked website to provide both e-portfolios and program assessment. This strategy will also be employed to propose a virtual accreditation of a professional program that will serve as a model throughout the University and the broader higher education community

Partial Character And The Language Of Thought

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/138224/1/papq00111.pd

On the Absence of an Interface: Putnam, Direct Perception, and Frege\u27s Constraint

Hilary Putnam and John McDowell have each argued against representational realist theories of perception and in favor of direct realist (or “common-sense realist”) alternatives. I claim that in both cases they beg the question against their representational realist opponents. Moreover, in neither case has any alternative been offered to the representational realist position where the solution to perceptual or demonstrative versions of Frege’s problem is concerned. In this paper I present a transcendental argument that some of our perceptions of external objects must be direct in the sense that we perceive them and there is nothing else we perceive in virtue of which we do so. I also present a reply to standard objections to the claim that transcendental arguments can be used to support conclusions about the world and not simply about our own use of concepts. Finally, I present a theory in terms of which the relevant Frege problems can be solved without appeal to any of the sorts of representations in terms of which representational realism is defined

Fertility control as a means of controlling bovine tuberculosis in badger (Meles meles) populations in south-west England: predictions from a spatial stochastic simulation model

A spatial stochastic simulation model was used to assess the potential of fertility control, based on a yet-to-be-developed oral bait-delivered contraceptive directed at females, for the control of bovine tuberculosis in badger populations in south-west England. The contraceptive had a lifelong effect so that females rendered sterile in any particular year remained so for the rest of their lives. The efficacy of fertility control alone repeated annually for varying periods of time was compared with a single culling operation and integrated control involving an initial single cull followed by annually repeated fertility control. With fertility control alone, in no instance was the disease eradicated completely while a viable badger population (mean group size of at least one individual) was still maintained. Near eradication of the disease (less than 1% prevalence) combined with the survival of a minimum viable badger population was only achieved under a very limited set of conditions, either with high efficiency of control (95%) over a short time period (1-3 years) or a low efficiency of control (20%) over an intermediate time period (10-20 years). Under these conditions, it took more than 20 years for the disease to decline to such low levels. A single cull of 80% efficiency succeeded in near eradication of the disease (below 1% prevalence) after a period of 6-8 years, while still maintaining a viable badger population. Integrated strategies reduced disease prevalence more rapidly and to lower levels than culling alone, although the mean badger group size following the onset of control was smaller. Under certain integrated strategies, principally where a high initial cull (80%) was followed by fertility control over a short (1-3 year) time period, the disease could be completely eradicated while a viable badger population was maintained. However, even under the most favourable conditions of integrated control, it took on average more than 12 years following the onset of control for the disease to disappear completely from the badger population. These results show that whilst fertility control would not be a successful strategy for the control of bovine tuberculosis in badgers if used alone, it could be effective if used with culling as part of an integrated strategy. This type of integrated strategy is likely to be more effective in terms of disease eradication than a strategy employing culling alone. However, the high cost of developing a suitable fertility control agent, combined with the welfare and conservation implications, are significant factors which should be taken into account when considering its possible use as a means of controlling bovine tuberculosis in badger populations in the UK

Developing an acceptance test for non-hydrographic airborne bathymetric lidar data application to NOAA charts in shallow waters

Hydrographic data of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are typically acquired using sonar systems, with a small percent acquired via airborne lidar bathymetry for nearshore areas. This study investigates an integrated approach to meeting NOAA’s hydrographic survey requirements for nearshore areas of NOAA charts using existing U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) National Coastal Mapping Program (NCMP) topographic-bathymetric lidar (TBL) data. Because these existing NCMP bathymetric lidar datasets were not collected to NOAA hydrographic surveying standards, it is unclear if, and under what circumstances, they might aid in meeting certain hydrographic surveying requirements. The NCMP bathymetric lidar data were evaluated through a comparison against NOAA’s hydrographic Services Division (HSD) data derived from acoustic surveys. Key goals included assessing whether NCMP bathymetry can be used to fill in the data gap shoreward of the navigable area limit line (0 to 4 m depth) and if there is potential for applying NCMP TBL data to nearshore areas deeper than 10 m. The study results were used to make recommendations for future use of the data in NOAA. Additionally, this work may allow the development of future operating procedures and workflows using other topographicbathymetric lidar datasets to help update nearshore areas of the NOAA charts

INCREASING PATIENT DEMAND FOR HOME MEDICINES REVIEWS: A MARKETING PLAN RESEARCH STUDY

Objectives: 1. To deliver a marketing plan which proposes strategies to increase consumer uptake of HMRs. Sub -objectives were to assess the: Awareness levels of eligible non-recipients prior to participation in this study Perceived potential benefits and barriers of having an HMR Perceived HMR facilitators Satisfaction levels of HMR recipients Intention to have an (another) HMR if the GP suggested it Intention to ask the GP for an (another) HMR and to recommend the service to others Drivers of perceived benefits, barriers and facilitators; drivers of satisfaction, intention to have and to ask GP for an (another) HMR Medicine information sources Differences across specific low incidence consumer groups vs. the broad HMR target population. 2. To investigate the extent to which pharmacists could cope with an increased demand for HMR services due to a possible increas e in consumer awareness and demand for HMRs. Key findings 1. Very low HMR awareness among eligible non-recipients 2. Extremely high HMR satisfaction levels among HMR recipients 3. Very positive HMR perceptions among eligible nonrecipients after being informed about the service Further research Focus on patients/carers of non-English speaking backgrounds, patients with cognitive disabilities, those who have recently been discharged from hospital and those who have refused to have an HMR Longitudinal studies for investigation of HMR effects on an individual’s attitudes/long-term behaviours Very strong latent demand for HMR service Immense opportunity to increase HMR uptake through direct-to-consumer promotion (For marketing strategies see poster 1 “Marketing Plan”)Pharmacy Guild of Australi

Cenozoic evolution of the eastern Black Sea: a test of depth-dependent stretching models

Subsidence analysis of the eastern Black Sea basin suggests that the stratigraphy of this deep, extensional basin can be explained by a predominantly pure-shear stretching history. A strain-rate inversion method that assumes pure-shear extension obtains good fits between observed and predicted stratigraphy. A relatively pure-shear strain distribution is also obtained when a strain-rate inversion algorithm is applied that allows extension to vary with depth without assuming its existence or form. The timing of opening of the eastern Black Sea, which occupied a back-arc position during the closure of the Tethys Ocean, has also been a subject of intense debate; competing theories called for basin opening during the Jurassic, Cretaceous or Paleocene/Eocene. Our work suggests that extension likely continued into the early Cenozoic, in agreement with stratigraphic relationships onshore and with estimates for the timing of arc magmatism. Further basin deepening also appears to have occurred in the last 20 myr. This anomalous subsidence event is focused in the northern part of the basin and reaches its peak at 15–10 Ma. We suggest that this comparatively localized shortening is associated with the northward movement of the Arabian plate. We also explore the effects of paleowater depth and elastic thickness on the results. These parameters are controversial, particularly for deep-water basins and margins, but their estimation is a necessary step in any analysis of the tectonic subsidence record stored in stratigraphy. <br/

Are steroid injections effective for tenosynovitis of the hand?

Yes. Steroid injections are an effective first-line therapy for flexor tenosynovitis of the hand, with a number needed to treat [NNT] of 2.3 for injection of steroids and lidocaine (strength of recommendation [SOR]: B, based on 1 prospective RCT and low- quality studies). Injection into the tendon sheath may not be critical to a successful outcome (SOR: B, based on 1 prospective uncontrolled trial)