Introducing the Western Wedge

The article looks at the rationale for and potential of planning at the sub-regional scale, particularly in terms of labour and housing markets. This is illustrated by the case of the 'Western Wedge', stretching from central London westwards across the Greater London boundary into the South East region towards Oxford, Basingstoke and Newbury

Yup’ik Language Assistance Tribal Outreach: Report to the Alaska Division of Elections

The Division of Elections contracted with the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Alaska Anchorage to help develop a network of key tribal organization and village representatives in the Bethel census area to work with the division on their Yup’ik language assistance program. The division asked ISER to help them communicate with tribes about the division’s current programs and to document additional ways that the division can improve its language assistance program. The Alaska Division of Elections is required under the Federal Voting Rights Act (VRA) to provide language assistance to voters in areas where more than 5% of the voting age citizens are members of a single-language minority and are limited English proficient. In July 2008, a federal court ordered the division to take the following remedial actions, many of which the division had already taken prior to the court order: 1. Provide mandatory poll worker training. 2. Hire a language assistance coordinator fluent in Yup'ik. 3. Recruit bi-lingual poll workers or translators. 4. Provide sample ballots in written Yup'ik. 5. Provide pre-election publicity in Yup'ik. 6. Ensure the accuracy of translations. 7. Provide a Yup'ik glossary of election terms. 8. Submit pre-election and post-election reports. Although the division has a Yup’ik language assistance program and has been addressing the court order, interviews with Bethel census area residents show that some people are unaware of the elements in the division’s language assistance plan. In addition, some Bethel area residents said they feel the election workers and the division should interpret the meaning of the ballot measures and explain the positions of the various candidates—activities that are forbidden by state statute. ISER agreed to help the division address this lack of awareness and the misconceptions about their programs by contacting tribal organizations and inviting them to attend a meeting in Bethel, Alaska, on May 27, 2009. Part I of this report, issued in July 2009, describes ISER’s contacts with tribal organizations and summarizes the comments and feedback from the participants at the election outreach meeting in Bethel. Part II describes ISER’s post-meeting contacts with tribal organizations and meeting participants and summarizes their responses to the post-meeting survey.Alaska Division of ElectionsIntroduction / Part I: Pre-Meeting Comments and Meeting Summary / Part II: Post-Meeting Feedback / Appendix A: ISER Script for Pre-Meeting Contact / Appendix B: ISER Letter of Invitation to Tribal Organizations / Appendix C: ISER Letter of Invitation to PLaintiff Tribral Organizations / Appendix D. List of Participants - Bethel Election Outreach Meeting / Appendix E: Agenda - Bethel Election Outreach Meeting / Appendix F: Pre-Meeting Interview Responses / Appendix G: Post-Meeting Letter to Tribes / Appendix H: Post Meeting Survey / Appendix I: Post-Meeting Interview Summar

Rêve initiatique à Pompéi : Nerval et le mythe du « dieu qui meurt »

À partir d'un passage d'une nouvelle des Filles du feu, « Octavie », cet article veut montrer la présence et l'importance dans le corpus nervalien d'un mythe latent qu'une lecture attentive permet de déceler : le mythe du « dieu qui meurt ». À la jonction du personnel et du collectif, ce mythe est très représentatif de la renaissance de la mythologie dans la poésie du XIXe siècle

A New Photopolymer Recording Material for Holographic Applications: Photochemical and Holographic Studies Towards an Optimized System

Photopolymer materials are a practical alternative to high resolution silver halide photographic emulsions for the recording of holograms and high spatial frequency holographic gratings. The new holographic recording material reported in this thesis consists of a green sensitive dye (erythrosine B), an electron donor (triethanolamine), and a monomer mixture (acrylamide and methylene bisacrylamide) in a polyvinyl alcohol binder. ON illumination with light of the appropriate wavelength the dye absorbs a photon and the excited triplet state of the dye reacts with the electron donor to produce free radicals. These free radicals may then initiate local polymerization of the monomer. The changes in density and molecular polarizability which accompany polymerization cause a change in local refractive index and the hologram is thereby recorded as a volume phase hologram. After recording no further chemical or physical processing steps are required. The chemical and physical processes leading to the refractive index modulation are investigated in detail. The relative contributions to the refractive index change, of density change through diffusion and decrease in molecular polarizability are discussed. The conclusions drawn lead to a new understanding of the processes of hologram formation in this type of material. An original non-holographic technique for the investigation of the initiation processes and comparison of sensitizing dyes is presented. The comparison of quantum yields of bleaching in the absence and presence of monomer is used to estimate the amount of initiation occurring in monomer containing layers. This, and other more conventional holographic methods are used to optimize the chemical composition of the material for sensitivity, diffraction efficiency, shelf life and layer quality. Thick layers of the optimized material require only 50mJ/cm² for an 80% diffraction efficiency or 80 mJ/cm² for a 96% diffraction efficiency. The optimized material is found to perform well in transmission mode for slanted or unslanted gratings and has a resolution of up to 3000 lines/mm. However the material, in its present formulation, will only record weak reflection gratins (\u3e2% efficiency). A demonstration of the suitability of this self developing material for holographic interferometry is carried out with excellent results

Play in Children with Motor Disabilities

The purpose of this research was to explore and describe the relationship among the child, family, home environment, and pretend play of children with motor disabilities. The environment is a powerful force in early child development. This research is based on Bronfennbrenner’s ecological theory of development and the ubiquitous role of play in all domains of development. Children with motor disabilities may lack exploration of the environment and as a consequence demonstrate deficits in play. Play was measured in 32 children with motor disabilities aged 24.8 to 61.3 months with a mean age of 33.7 (SD 9.3) months. Children demonstrated mild to moderate motor disabilities based on the Gross Motor Function Classification System. The prevalent motor disabilities were cerebral palsy, genetic disorders, delayed development, and myelomeningocele. The questions addressed were what combination of child and family variables will predict play ability in a child with motor disability and do the learning materials in the home or levels of maternal or paternal education affect play ability in children with motor disabilities. Two studies were conducted to establish reliability with the Test of Pretend Play (ToPP) and to determine if children with delayed development would exhibit a delay. One study was done to establish reliability for the Fluharty-2. The results of the main study demonstrated a significant positive correlation between ToPP scores and the learning material subscale (LMS) scores of the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment Inventory and maternal education. The LMS scores were significantly correlated with family income, maternal and paternal education. The ToPP scores were not significantly correlated to income or paternal education. Age of the child was significantly positively correlated with ToPP scores and the LMS scores. Fifty-three percent of the children exhibited delays in play. The child’s age and the maternal level of education accounted for 60% of the variance in ToPP scores. Children with cerebral palsy and myelomeningocele appear to be at greater risk for pretend play delays than children with developmental delay and genetic disorders. More research is needed to further elucidate the role of play in children with motor disabilities

Climate Ready? Exploring the Impacts and Lessons from Recent Extreme Events at Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh for Climate Change Adaptation in the Horticulture Sector

This article explores climate change and its current and potential impacts on botanic gardens. It highlights experiences of recent weather anomalies at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) and its Regional Gardens and discusses how the learning gained from these anomalies is being used to increase the resilience of the Gardens to future climate change. This understanding is set in the context of a wider range of activities being pursued in relation to climate change adaptation in the horticulture sector, highlighting challenges and opportunities, and further sources of information which can be used by the managers of botanic gardens to inspire and inform climate change resilience planning

Imagining the Possibilities: Co-creating School-wide Equity, Belonging, and Success

Abstract This Dissertation in Practice (DiP) seeks to address the growing opportunity gap adversely impacting marginalized students at an Albertan elementary school. Through a critical theoretical lens, this DiP interrogates the various systemic barriers, contextual factors, and educator biases that perpetuate and reinforce socially and academically stratified learning opportunities that restrict holistic student engagement, belonging, and success. Despite teachers’ desire to meet the needs of all students, increasing levels of student diversity and complexity are decreasing the effectiveness of the school’s traditional pedagogical practices and structures. Employing a blended transformative and compassionate leadership approach, critically educative possibilities towards deep cultural change and inclusive pedagogical practices are explored using key tenets of social cognitive theory. A continuous professional development framework is designed to leverage staff efficacy, agency, and responsibility at the individual and collective levels. Defined by a bias towards action, the change framework in this DiP involves the reconceptualization of leadership as an agentic process that prioritizes equity, empowerment, and inclusivity across the school actor spectrum, thus requiring the engagement of school staff, students, parents/guardians, district staff, and community members. In the proposed solution, capacity building for school leaders, teachers, and support staff is designed to span from ongoing professional collaborations to daily educative classroom teaching and learning experiences. Observational and enactive professional learning to redress instructional practices through iterative inquiry cycles will elevate the prioritization of efficacious, affirming, and empowering learning opportunities for all students. Keywords: agency, efficacy, opportunity gap, equity, inclusivity, collective responsibilit