The Riddle nickel enterprise : a study of resource geography

This thesis presents a mineral geography study of the Riddle nickel development, which is the largest known nickel deposit, and the only nickel producing mine in the United States. The study appraises conditions for development, including character of the deposit, spatial relationships to the market, and the influence of government in establishment o the industry. The economic impact of the project on the national, state, and local level is appraised. IOreIt on Nickel Mountain was recognized in 1864, but its identity as nickel was not confirmed until 1882. Early development attempts all failed chiefly because of the unfavorable location of the deposit and the difficulty of smelting the complex ore. Following World War II, the Hanna Development Company carried out extensive geological and metallurgical testing to determine the possibility of economically exploiting the Riddle nickel depesit. On January 16, 1953, the Government and Hanna negotiated a contract whereby the Government supplied the needed capital to construct the smelter, and agreed to purchase the ferronickel produced by Hanna. The contract was partially terminated on April 20, 1962, at which time Hanna purchased the smelter, and sales of ferronickel to the Government were terminated. Hanna now sells ferronickel in competition with other nickel producers. Hanna production at Riddle supplies 13% of the United Statest demand, resulting in decrease of United States dependence on imports. Company purchases of raw materials, payrolls, and employee influx has stimulated the local, state, and national economy. However, distance to the market has been and continues to be a major problem. The Riddle nickel enterprise demonstrates the importance of government activity in mineral geography, and exemplifies results that can be obtained through cooperation between government and private industry

Developing an online direct-assessment competency-based Masters of Healthcare Administration: Insights, challenges, and lessons learned

In response to the increasing complexity in healthcare delivery environments, there is evidence from literature and the healthcare industry to indicate healthcare employers are seeking graduates in healthcare administration programs who have strong core competencies and proven problem solving skills. The purpose of this article is to describe the unique challenges and opportunities related to developing a direct-assessment, competency-based online Master’s in Healthcare Administration program. The United States Department of Education (2013) provided general guidelines for direct-assessment programs noting that, instead of measuring student learning via credit hours, learning is measured via direct assessment measures like “projects, papers, examinations, presentations, performances, and portfolios” (para. 4). In this model, credit hour or seat-time measurements are no longer used as proxies for learning. Instead, a single proxy is used: demonstration of competence through direct assessments. Direct assessments are not directly linked with course material or credit hour. Instead, learners demonstrate competency or mastery at their own pace, and progress through the academic program when they have demonstrated the ability to do so. The authors collaborated with employers, university faculty, and subject matter experts to develop a direct-assessment, competency-based Master’s in Healthcare Administration program for an online university that utilizes direct-assessment—allowing students to learn at their own pace and progress forward upon demonstrated mastery. The new program is aligned with healthcare employers’ need for graduates who have core professional competencies in the healthcare field, the educational requirements of the Association of University Programs in Health Administration (AUPHA) and the National Center for Healthcare Leadership (NCHL), and core professional competencies promoted by the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE). This program will seek accreditation from the Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education (CAHME) once all criteria for accrediting online programs are evaluated and assessed by Walden University. Within this article, the authors have summarized the history of competency-based education in healthcare administration and shared their insights regarding the future of this direct-assessment model

Greek Life Application Project

The goal of this project is to implement and deploy a mobile application for Valparaiso University Greek Life organizations. Several frameworks were considered for the project, including Xamarin, React Native, and Ionic. Ultimately, Ionic was chosen for its similarity to previous programming languages such as Ruby on Rails. The application is built on the Ionic platform using a combination of implemented HTML and Javascript, alongside an extension to Firebase services and Google calendar API. The Google calendar API has been implemented to allow only Valparaiso University emails to view personal and Greek Life’s public calendars. Other features include a message board alert system, event notifications, and application tabs for ease of navigation through the applications menus. A major request, and basis for the project was for an ease of use and convenient localization for Greek Life related document, which have been organized into a table sorted by category. By inclusion of the former mentioned functions, the consumer’s requests are met

Greek Life Application Project

The goal of this project is to implement and deploy a mobile application for Valparaiso University Greek Life organizations. Several frameworks were considered for the project, including Xamarin, React Native, and Ionic. Ultimately, Ionic was chosen for its similarity to previous programming languages such as Ruby on Rails. The application is built on the Ionic platform using a combination of implemented HTML and Javascript, alongside an extension to Firebase services and Google calendar API. The Google calendar API has been implemented to allow only Valparaiso University emails to view personal and Greek Life’s public calendars. Other features include a message board alert system, event notifications, and application tabs for ease of navigation through the applications menus. A major request, and basis for the project was for an ease of use and convenient localization for Greek Life related document, which have been organized into a table sorted by category. By inclusion of the former mentioned functions, the consumer’s requests are met

Ozone loss derived from balloon-borne tracer measurements and the SLIMCAT CTM

Balloon-borne measurements of CFC-11 (on flights of the DIRAC in situ gas chromatograph and the DESCARTES grab sampler), ClO and O3 were made during the 1999/2000 winter as part of the SOLVE-THESEO 2000 campaign. Here we present the CFC-11 data from nine flights and compare them first with data from other instruments which flew during the campaign and then with the vertical distributions calculated by the SLIMCAT 3-D CTM. We calculate ozone loss inside the Arctic vortex between late January and early March using the relation between CFC-11 and O3 measured on the flights, the peak ozone loss (1200 ppbv) occurs in the 440–470 K region in early March in reasonable agreement with other published empirical estimates. There is also a good agreement between ozone losses derived from three independent balloon tracer data sets used here. The magnitude and vertical distribution of the loss derived from the measurements is in good agreement with the loss calculated from SLIMCAT over Kiruna for the same days

Sedentary behaviour, physical activity, and their associations with health outcomes at the time of diagnosis in people with inoperable lung cancer

This study aimed to examine sedentary behaviour (SB), physical activity (PA) and their associations with health-related measures at the time of diagnosis in people with inoperable lung cancer. People newly diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer were invited to participate in the study and asked to wear an accelerometer for seven consecutive days. Variables analysed included time spent in SB, light intensity PA (LIPA) and moderate-to-vigorous intensity PA (MVPA). Daily steps were also recorded. Data on symptoms, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), hand grip force, comorbidities and lung function were collected. Of the 120 patients referred to the study, 89 (74 %) consented to participate, and SB/PA data were available for 79 (age 71 ± 11 years; 29 females). Participants spent 71 % of their waking time in SB, 28 % in LIPA and 1% in MVPA. Regression models demonstrated that increased SB was associated with more symptoms of fatigue and dyspnoea (p ≤ 0.02 for both), poorer HRQoL (general health and physical component score; p ≤ 0.02 for all) and lower hand grip force. For PA variables, higher daily step count was associated with better scores in all health-related measures (p \u3c 0.05 for all). LIPA was associated with more health-related outcomes than MVPA. These findings may guide future interventions in this population

A Comparison of Wood Density between Classical Cremonese and Modern Violins

Classical violins created by Cremonese masters, such as Antonio Stradivari and Giuseppe Guarneri Del Gesu, have become the benchmark to which the sound of all violins are compared in terms of their abilities of expressiveness and projection. By general consensus, no luthier since that time has been able to replicate the sound quality of these classical instruments. The vibration and sound radiation characteristics of a violin are determined by an instrument's geometry and the material properties of the wood. New test methods allow the non-destructive examination of one of the key material properties, the wood density, at the growth ring level of detail. The densities of five classical and eight modern violins were compared, using computed tomography and specially developed image-processing software. No significant differences were found between the median densities of the modern and the antique violins, however the density difference between wood grains of early and late growth was significantly smaller in the classical Cremonese violins compared with modern violins, in both the top (Spruce) and back (Maple) plates (p = 0.028 and 0.008, respectively). The mean density differential (SE) of the top plates of the modern and classical violins was 274 (26.6) and 183 (11.7) gram/liter. For the back plates, the values were 128 (2.6) and 115 (2.0) gram/liter. These differences in density differentials may reflect similar changes in stiffness distributions, which could directly impact vibrational efficacy or indirectly modify sound radiation via altered damping characteristics. Either of these mechanisms may help explain the acoustical differences between the classical and modern violins

The impact of an exercise physiologist coordinated resistance exercise program on the physical function of people receiving hemodialysis: a stepped wedge randomised control study

Background:Exercise during hemodialysis treatments improves physical function, markers of cardiovascular disease and quality of life. However, exercise programs are not a part of standard therapy in the vast majority of hemodialysis clinics internationally. Hemodialysis unit-based accredited exercise physiologists may contribute to an increased intradialytic exercise uptake and improved physical function.Methods and design: This is a stepped wedge cluster randomised controlled trial design. A total of 180 participants will be recruited from 15 community satellite hemodialysis clinics in a large metropolitan Australian city. Each clinic will represent a cluster unit. The stepped wedge design will consist of three groups each containing five randomly allocated cluster units, allocated to either 12, 24 or 36 weeks of the intervention. The intervention will consist of an accredited exercise physiologist-coordinated program consisting of six lower body resistance exercises using resistance elastic bands and tubing. The resistance exercises will include leg abduction, plantar flexion, dorsi flexion, straight-leg/bent-knee raise, knee extension and knee flexion. The resistance training will incorporate the principle of progressive overload and completed in a seated position during the first hour of hemodialysis treatment. The primary outcome measure is objective physical function measured by the 30-second sit to stand test. Secondary outcome measures include the 8-foot timed-up-and-go test, the four square step test, quality of life, cost-utility analysis, uptake and involvement in community activity, self-reported falls, fall\u27s confidence, medication use, blood pressure and morbidity (hospital admissions). Discussion: The results of this study are expected to determine the efficacy of an accredited exercise physiologist supervised resistance training on the physical function of people receiving hemodialysis and the cost-utility of exercise physiologists in hemodialysis centres. This may contribute to intradialytic exercise as standard therapy using an exercise physiologist workforce model.</div

A globally relevant change taxonomy and evidence-based change framework for land monitoring

A globally relevant and standardized taxonomy and framework for consistently describing land cover change based on evidence is presented, which makes use of structured land cover taxonomies and is underpinned by the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework. The Global Change Taxonomy currently lists 246 classes based on the notation 'impact (pressure)', with this encompassing the consequence of observed change and associated reason(s), and uses scale-independent terms that factor in time. Evidence for different impacts is gathered through temporal comparison (e.g., days, decades apart) of land cover classes constructed and described from Environmental Descriptors (EDs; state indicators) with pre-defined measurement units (e.g., m, %) or categories (e.g., species type). Evidence for pressures, whether abiotic, biotic or human-influenced, is similarly accumulated, but EDs often differ from those used to determine impacts. Each impact and pressure term is defined separately, allowing flexible combination into 'impact (pressure)' categories, and all are listed in an openly accessible glossary to ensure consistent use and common understanding. The taxonomy and framework are globally relevant and can reference EDs quantified on the ground, retrieved/classified remotely (from ground-based, airborne or spaceborne sensors) or predicted through modelling. By providing capacity to more consistently describe change processes-including land degradation, desertification and ecosystem restoration-the overall framework addresses a wide and diverse range of local to international needs including those relevant to policy, socioeconomics and land management. Actions in response to impacts and pressures and monitoring towards targets are also supported to assist future planning, including impact mitigation actions

A globally relevant change taxonomy and evidence-based change framework for land monitoring

A globally relevant and standardized taxonomy and framework for consistently describing land cover change based on evidence is presented, which makes use of structured land cover taxonomies and is underpinned by the Driver-Pressure-State�Impact-Response (DPSIR) framework. The Global Change Taxonomy currently lists 246 classes based on the notation ‘impact (pressure)’, with this encompassing the consequence of observed change and associated reason(s), and uses scale-independent terms that factor in time. Evidence for different impacts is gathered through temporal comparison (e.g., days, decades apart) of land cover classes constructed and described from Environmental Descriptors (EDs; state indicators) with pre-defined measurement units (e.g., m, %) or categories (e.g., species type). Evidence for pressures, whether abiotic, biotic or human-influenced, is similarly accumulated, but EDs often differ from those used to determine impacts. Each impact and pressure term is defined separately, allowing flexible combination into ‘impact (pressure)’ categories, and all are listed in an openly accessible glossary to ensure consistent use and common understanding. The taxonomy and framework are globally relevant and can reference EDs quantified on the ground, retrieved/classified remotely (from groundbased, airborne or spaceborne sensors) or predicted through modelling. By providing capacity to more consistently describe change processes—including land degradation, desertification and ecosystem restoration—the overall framework addresses a wide and diverse range of local to international needs including those relevant to policy, socioeconomics and land management. Actions in response to impacts and pressures and monitoring towards targets are also supported to assist future planning, including impact mitigation actions