Architecture and Education in India

Literary giant Rabindranath Tagore shaped both his homeland of India and the world with his poetry, art, music, and philosophy during his lifetime of 1861-1941. His legacy continues to influence modern society as young writers observe his words, philosophers observe his life, and Indians observe his face on street corners and hear his music in their ears. Perhaps his greatest contribution, however, is carved into walls and plaster, eventually etching themselves into the minds of students. Tagore had deep convictions about the marriage between nature and education; these convictions took root in the foundation of his school in Santiniketan. Because nature was essential for introspection, understanding, and learning, Tagore developed concrete notions of how architecture should lend itself to nature, and therefore to education. This summer I was funded to visit Jorasanko in Calcutta, FLAME University in Pune, and Shantiniketan in West Bengal, India, with Professor Maria Claudia Andre. Here I encountered Tagore’s philosophies carved into the buildings that surrounded his life. Drawing from my experiences in India, as well as investigating Tagore’s philosophies of education, space, and nature through works like Samit Das’s Architecture of Santiniketan, my research explores Tagore’s ideas of architecture for education, as well as his influences on modern institutions in India today, pursuing an answer to the question: how does physical space influence learning

New women, new opportunities : the new women of Chicago's World's Fairs, 1893-1934.

World's fairs, also referred to as international expositions, offer historians insight into a nation's society, populace, economy, and industry. Yet, literature in the field has made little effort to fully analyze the specific roles individuals or groups held within the expositions. The neglected groups are occasionally mentioned in articles, research papers, master's theses, doctoral dissertations, and monographs only when such information either supports their arguments or adds to the narrative. Specifically, historians have halfheartedly analyzed women's roles in world's fairs, with few exceptions. This thesis fills those gaps observed in its first chapter and examines the women who managed, exhibited, and performed at world's fairs in Chicago, Illinois, between 1893 and 1934. An analysis of the World's Columbian Exposition (1893), the Woman's World's Fairs (1925-1928), and the Century of Progress Exposition (1933-1934), produces a correlation between women's representation within the fairs and the evolution of the new woman in the United States. This correlation materializes within the second, third, and fourth chapters of New Women, New Opportunities. An examination of the new woman, women's rights, and the Woman's World's Fairs (1925-1928) presents a timeline that guides chapters three and four in their analysis of women's roles in the World's Columbian Exposition and the Century of Progress Exposition, respectively. Within the 1893 Columbian Exposition, the Board of Lady Managers regulated the image of the new woman and stifled other representations through control of women's sole exhibition space, the Woman's Building. Without such a governing body, women involved in management, exhibition, and performance at the Century of Progress Exposition freely expressed and enforced their personal ideal new woman. This thesis proclaims that the central factor contributing to the evolution of the new woman between 1893 and 1933 was autonomy, both from the government and from one another. This narrative revolutionizes the study of women's rights and further emphasizes the important role that international expositions, specifically those within Chicago, played in the history of the United States. Furthermore, it claims that an examination of women within these international expositions produces a complementary or supplemental narrative for the women's rights movement. It concludes with the assertion that both women's and world's fair scholarship require at least a basic analysis of the correlation between the new woman and world's fairs in Chicago between 1893 and 1934 in order to fully comprehend the influence the expositions had on one of the most significant social and political reform movements in the United States

Factors affecting mercury concentrations in Iowa fishes

Mercury contamination in aquatic ecosystems is a global concern due to the health risks of consuming contaminated aquatic organisms, particularly fishes. Mercury concentrations in fishes are highly variable and influenced by a range of biotic and abiotic variables. Currently, factors influencing mercury accumulation in Iowa fishes are not well understood. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) has issued fish consumption advisories for various lakes and river reaches throughout the state. However, relatively few systems, species, and individuals are sampled each year and little is known regarding factors affecting mercury concentrations in Iowa fishes. An understanding of factors regulating mercury concentrations in Iowa fishes would improve mercury monitoring programs and consumption guidelines. The objectives of this study were to (I) evaluate seasonal variation in mercury concentrations in largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) from two reservoirs to assess the need for temporally standardized mercury sampling and (II) evaluate the influence of a suite of biotic and abiotic factors on fish mercury concentrations in both river and lake systems. Largemouth bass were intensively sampled from Red Haw and Twelve Mile lakes to evaluate temporal variation in largemouth bass mercury concentrations. Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus, n = 275), white and black crappie (Pomoxis annularis, n = 112; P. nigromaculatus, n = 203), largemouth bass (n = 502), walleye (Sander vitreus, n = 248), muskellunge (Esox masquinongy, n = 30), and northern pike (E. lucius, n = 45) were collected between April and October, 2013-2015, from natural lakes (n = 6), shallow natural lakes (n = 2), constructed lakes (n = 18), and reservoirs (n = 4) throughout Iowa. Additionally, channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus, n = 205), flathead catfish (Pylodictis olivaris, n = 123), northern pike (Esox lucius, n = 60), smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu, n = 176), and walleye (Sander vitreus, n = 176) were collected between March and October, 2014-2015, from ten Iowa interior rivers and tested for mercury contamination. Fish were collected from an upstream and a downstream location on six of the rivers to test for intra-river differences in fish mercury concentrations. Various land use, water chemistry, and fish characteristics were gathered and used to explain differences in mercury concentrations within and across lake and river systems. Largemouth bass mercury concentrations varied across months in Red Haw Lake, with the highest concentrations observed during July, and the lowest concentrations observed during October. In contrast, largemouth bass mercury concentrations were similar across months in Twelve Mile Lake. Fish mercury concentrations in Iowa lakes are generally low, with mercury concentrations \u3c0.30 mg/kg for ~90% of fishes collected and mercury concentrations below detectable levels (\u3c0.05 mg/kg) for ~40% of fishes. Multiple linear regression models, sorted by AICc, were used to evaluate factors related to fish mercury concentrations in lakes and rivers. Detected mercury concentrations were highest in muskellunge, northern pike, walleye and largemouth bass, lowest in black and white crappie and bluegill, and positively related to fish length and age. Although not significantly different across all species, females generally had higher mercury concentrations than males. Additionally, pH, lake mean depth, watershed area to lake area ratio, and percent of watershed as forested land, grasslands and open water were positively related to fish mercury concentrations, whereas lake area and percent of watershed as agriculture and developed land were negatively related to mercury concentrations. Finally, detected mercury concentrations were on average 28% higher in shallow natural lakes compared to other lake types. Combined, these factors explained 74% of the variation in detectable fish mercury concentrations. Fish mercury concentrations in Iowa rivers were also generally low (mean = 0.17 mg/kg, N = 740). Mercury concentrations were highest in flathead catfish, northern pike, smallmouth bass, and walleye but lowest in channel catfish. Fish mercury concentrations were positively related to length, age, trophic position and δ13C signatures. Human Threat Index and percent of watershed as open water were negatively related to fish mercury concentrations, whereas percent of watershed as forested land was positively related to fish mercury concentrations. Additionally, phosphorous (mg/L), nitrogen-ammonia (mg/L), and sulfate (mg/L) were weakly negatively related to mercury concentrations, whereas water hardness (as CaCO3, mg/L) was weakly positively related to fish mercury concentrations. Additionally, fishes collected from the Paleozoic Plateau ecoregion had the highest mercury concentrations compared to those collected from other ecoregions across Iowa. Together, these factors explained 70% of the variation in river fish mercury concentrations. Results of this study suggest less impacted watersheds, particularly watersheds with less agricultural impacts, tend to have higher fish mercury concentrations compared to watersheds that have a high proportion of agriculture. This study provides a comprehensive analysis of abiotic and biotic factors influencing fish mercury concentrations in Iowa and may have implications for refining consumption advisories

Adapting the International System of Units to the twenty-first century

We review the proposal of the International Committee for Weights and Measures (Comité International des Poids et Mesures, CIPM), currently being considered by the General Conference on Weights and Measures (Conférences Générales des Poids et Mesures, CGPM), to revise the International System of Units (Le Système International d’Unitès, SI). The proposal includes new definitions for four of the seven base units of the SI, and a new form of words to present the definitions of all the units. The objective of the proposed changes is to adopt definitions referenced to constants of nature, taken in the widest sense, so that the definitions may be based on what are believed to be true invariants. In particular, whereas in the current SI the kilogram, ampere, kelvin and mole are linked to exact numerical values of the mass of the international prototype of the kilogram, the magnetic constant (permeability of vacuum), the triple-point temperature of water and the molar mass of carbon-12, respectively, in the new SI these units are linked to exact numerical values of the Planck constant, the elementary charge, the Boltzmann constant and the Avogadro constant, respectively. The new wording used expresses the definitions in a simple and unambiguous manner without the need for the distinction between base and derived units. The importance of relations among the fundamental constants to the definitions, and the importance of establishing a mise en pratique for the realization of each definition, are also discussed

Teachers' orientations to educational research and data in England and Australia: implications for teacher professionalism

Teachers’ engagement with and understanding of educational research and data is an increasing concern for policy-makers around the globe. With unprecedented access to, and new forms of, ‘data’ in schools, concerns for its ‘best practice’ use in classroom decision-making have come to the fore. In academic spaces, these developments have also been of concern due to what such pushes for ‘evidence-based practice’ may elide in terms of teacher knowledge and professionalism. In this article, we present findings from two national contexts, England and Australia, in order to explore how teachers understand themselves and their work in relation to educational data and research. We find that, despite highly engaged samples across contexts who place considerable importance on such research and data, respondents do not report an equal sense of capacity across the various forms which they may take. Particular limitations are identified in relation to action research. We argue that these results have consequences for the development of a ‘mature’ profession that goes beyond performative forms of professionalism and towards those of a ‘research-rich’ culture of trust

Evidence-based commissioning in the English NHS : who uses which sources of evidence? A survey 2010/2011

Objectives: To investigate types of evidence used by healthcare commissioners when making decisions and whether decisions were influenced by commissioners’ experience, personal characteristics or role at work. Design: Cross-sectional survey of 345 National Health Service (NHS) staff members. Setting: The study was conducted across 11 English Primary Care Trusts between 2010 and 2011. Participants: A total of 440 staff involved in commissioning decisions and employed at NHS band 7 or above were invited to participate in the study. Of those, 345 (78%) completed all or a part of the survey. Main outcome measures: Participants were asked to rate how important different sources of evidence (empirical or practical) were in a recent decision that had been made. Backwards stepwise logistic regression analyses were undertaken to assess the contributions of age, gender and professional background, as well as the years of experience in NHS commissioning, pay grade and work role. Results: The extent to which empirical evidence was used for commissioning decisions in the NHS varied according to the professional background. Only 50% of respondents stated that clinical guidelines and cost-effectiveness evidence were important for healthcare decisions. Respondents were more likely to report use of empirical evidence if they worked in Public Health in comparison to other departments (p<0.0005, commissioning and contracts OR 0.32, 95%CI 0.18 to 0.57, finance OR 0.19, 95%CI 0.05 to 0.78, other departments OR 0.35, 95%CI 0.17 to 0.71) or if they were female (OR 1.8 95% CI 1.01 to 3.1) rather than male. Respondents were more likely to report use of practical evidence if they were more senior within the organisation (pay grade 8b or higher OR 2.7, 95%CI 1.4 to 5.3, p=0.004 in comparison to lower pay grades). Conclusions: Those trained in Public Health appeared more likely to use external empirical evidence while those at higher pay scales were more likely to use practical evidence when making commissioning decisions. Clearly, National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance and government publications (eg, National Service Frameworks) are important for decision-making, but practical sources of evidence such as local intelligence, benchmarking data and expert advice are also influential

National Crystallography Service (NCS) Grid Service

Conference poster about the NCS Grid Service.The EPSRC funded National Crystallography Service (NCS) is a facility available to the entire UK academic Chemistry community. The EPSRC funds a team of experts and 'state of the art' instrumentation, based in Southampton University School of Chemistry, to provide this service. This is an exceptionally important service as crystal structure determination is easily the most information rich method of characterisation of a compound and many research papers cannot be published without confirmation of identity by crystal structure analysis