Can U.S. oil production survive the 20th century?

The plunge in world oil prices has brought further difficulties to U.S. oil production, which has been declining in recent years. At the current low prices, most domestic oil wells are not profitable. This calls into question the long-run viability of oil production in the United States. Whether oil production remains a viable part of the U.S. economy in the next century will depend on how long oil prices remain at their current low levels.> Lamb and Wilkerson show how the recent low prices for oil on world markets reflect a combination of demand and supply effects, with both short-run and long-run forces at work. For example, sluggish demand growth reflects both milder weather in some parts of the world (a short-run phenomenon) and the impacts of the Asian financial crisis, which could persist for some time. Meanwhile, supply has mushroomed, in part due to the short-run effect of Iraq's return to higher levels of oil production. In the main, however, the increase in supply reflects sharp declines in the cost of discovering and extracting oil reserves. On balance, the current low prices appear to be mainly the result of longer run demand and supply forces, suggesting that prices are likely to remain low for some time to come. If world oil prices do remain low, U.S. oil is unlikely to be competitive in world markets. Therefore, the domestic oil sector is likely to continue to lose market share for the foreseeable future.Petroleum industry and trade ; Prices

Multiaxial analyzer detects low-energy electrons

Three curved plate energy analyzers coupled with three electron multiplier tubes detect and measure low energy electron flux in several directions simultaneously

How Sexism Makes the Man: Examining the Relationship Between Masculinity, Ambivalent Sexism, and Gender Stereotyping

Masculinity is a precarious social status, meaning it can be lost through social and gender transgressions (Bosson & Vandello, 2011). Men often act in stereotypically masculine ways to reassert their masculinity and restore their social status after it has been threatened. The current study also examines masculinity in a new way, as a collective gender identity (e.g., Tajfel, 1982). I hypothesized that threatened men and men who identify as more masculine will display masculinity through more polarized attitudes towards traditional and nontraditional groups of men and women, endorsing traditional gender stereotypes, and intensified ambivalently sexist attitudes. Two empirical studies tested these hypotheses. While the gender threat manipulation was unsuccessful, statistical analyses of results revealed relationships between masculine identification, ambivalent sexism, and gender stereotypes. Hostile sexism predicted negative attitudes towards nontraditional men and women, benevolent sexism predicted favorable attitudes toward men and women. Masculine identification predicted favorable attitudes towards masculine men and traditional women, and negative attitudes towards feminine men. Interestingly masculine identification did not predict unfavorable attitudes towards other nontraditional men. These results suggest masculinity is a collective identity, in which attitudes towards other men and women are influenced by in-group/out-group relations

Effects of an Online Training in the Ziggurat Model on the Autism Knowledge of School-Based Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs)

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a low-incidence disorder with high impacts on individuals, families, and society. School-based speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have tremendous responsibilities toward individuals with ASD, but pre-service SLPs are not adequately trained to fulfill these expectations. In order to reduce the widespread financial and social impact of ASD, school-based SLPs need to complete effective training to prepare them for the selection of established social-communication practices. One framework for the selection of individualized intervention is the Ziggurat Model (Aspy & Grossman, 2008). The following study used mixed methods to investigate the research question: “Does the ASD knowledge base of ASHA-certified school-based SLPs change when they complete an online training module based upon Aspy and Grossman’s Ziggurat Model? If so, what are those changes?” A pre-test post-test control group design demonstrated a significant difference in the experimental group’s and the control group’s pre-test post-test change scores, as demonstrated by an independent samples t-test (p=.039, 18df). Qualitative data analysis resulted in six themes. While the online training of Aspy and Grossman’s Ziggurat Model used in this study was an effective method with which to train school-based SLPs in using a comprehensive framework, more rigorous research is needed on this model relative to the selection of intervention

The impact of parenthood on substance use disorder treatment participation and motivation of incarcerated offenders

The impact of parenthood on substance use disorder treatment participation and motivation of incarcerated offender

A prototype system for detecting the radio-frequency pulse associated with cosmic ray air showers

The development of a system to detect the radio-frequency (RF) pulse associated with extensive air showers of cosmic rays is described. This work was performed at the CASA/MIA array in Utah, with the intention of designing equipment that can be used in conjunction with the Auger Giant Array. A small subset of data (less than 40 out of a total of 600 hours of running time), taken under low-noise conditions, permitted upper limits to be placed on the rate for pulses accompanying showers of energies around $10^{17}$ eV.Comment: 53 pages, LaTeX, 19 figures, published in Nuclear Instruments and Methods. Revised version; some references update

Motivation to Read: How Does It Change for Struggling Readers with and without Disabilities?

Lack of reading motivation impedes upper elementary and secondary school students’ willingness to improve critical reading skills and strategies to be successful in school. Struggling readers often show a negative attitude towards reading tasks and manifest low motivation to read. Although the importance of motivation is clear, there is limited research on reading motivation of struggling adolescents with disabilities. This study examined whether reading motivation of struggling readers with and without disabilities significantly changed after an eighteen week period of reading instruction in two elementary schools and one high school in a Midwest state of the United States of America (USA). Findings yielded significant improvement in motivation for adolescents without disabilities while motivation scores declined for students with disabilities. An overview of students’ answers to survey questions is provided and some evidence-based methods that teachers can utilize to improve reading motivation of upper elementary and high school students are summarized

Determination of Unit Hydrograph Parameters for Indiana Watersheds

Regression equations predicting Clark Synthetic Unit Hydrograph (SUH) parameters for time of concentration (tc) and storage coefficient (R) are developed for small watersheds across Indiana [drainage areas = 3-38 square miles (mi2)]. The state is partitioned into three regions: North, Central, and South, with consideration for past regionalization studies of Indiana and geomorphology. The equations are derived using multiple linear regression analysis for 30 watersheds with 90 observed rainfall-runoff events. Clark SUH parameters are optimized using Hec-HMS to match the observed rainfall-runoff events. The optimized Clark SUH parameters are related to geomorphologic parameters estimated using geographic information system (GIS) applications. An extensive list of 29 geomorphologic parameters is considered including parameters related to depression storage, slope, drainage area, basin shape, and stream network. Separate regression equations for tc and R are developed for each region and the entire state. Values for tc and R are predicted using the regression equations and used to model 7 new rainfall-runoff events in HEC-HMS for comparison to the NRCS SUH method