The Cliff

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Languages and Literature of Bard College

How observational material might be used in a collaborative consultation with teachers to further their understanding of their pupils

The project was a feasibility study into the usefulness of a collaborative consideration of observational material in an early years special education provision. Children were referred, often for only two terms before returning to their mainstream schools where there was an expectation that the concerns would have been improved or resolved. A Child Psychotherapist observed the classes from behind a screen. These were filmed and then written up later in the tradition of Tavistock young child observation. This material was discussed with the teachers in an exploratory session and then a month later there was a review of this process to see if it had been helpful to the teacher’s thinking about the children. The whole process was repeated to allow for some learning from the first phase to be carried forward. A secondary aim of the study was to explore the aspects of the teacher-pupil relationship that promote learning. This study encompasses the use of observation and video along with consultation in schools to assist work with teachers in early years settings. The themes drawn from the data revealed a passive and active interaction between conscious and unconscious processes as they occurred in the classroom as well as in the discussion of the observations. These themes describe the progression of learning as it was observed. There emerged a preference among the teachers for the filmed material which yielded a rich data set. It highlighted the importance of the relationship between teacher and child and the extent of the non-verbal nature of this communication. The written observations worked as a foil to the acceptability of video and provoked discussion in post observation sessions. Whilst technically and ethically demanding the use of video here revealed an increasing desire and orientation toward visual media and its application in work with vulnerable children

How observational material might be used in a collaborative consultation with teachers to further their understanding of their pupils

The project was a feasibility study into the usefulness of a collaborative consideration of observational material in an early years special education provision. Children were referred, often for only two terms before returning to their mainstream schools where there was an expectation that the concerns would have been improved or resolved. A Child Psychotherapist observed the classes from behind a screen. These were filmed and then written up later in the tradition of Tavistock young child observation. This material was discussed with the teachers in an exploratory session and then a month later there was a review of this process to see if it had been helpful to the teacher’s thinking about the children. The whole process was repeated to allow for some learning from the first phase to be carried forward. A secondary aim of the study was to explore the aspects of the teacher-pupil relationship that promote learning. This study encompasses the use of observation and video along with consultation in schools to assist work with teachers in early years settings. The themes drawn from the data revealed a passive and active interaction between conscious and unconscious processes as they occurred in the classroom as well as in the discussion of the observations. These themes describe the progression of learning as it was observed. There emerged a preference among the teachers for the filmed material which yielded a rich data set. It highlighted the importance of the relationship between teacher and child and the extent of the non-verbal nature of this communication. The written observations worked as a foil to the acceptability of video and provoked discussion in post observation sessions. Whilst technically and ethically demanding the use of video here revealed an increasing desire and orientation toward visual media and its application in work with vulnerable children

The New York City Trans-Fat Ban: Agenda-Setting, Policy Diffusion, and Public Health

New York City has often prided itself on being at the forefront of public health policy and reform. This is certainly the case in its recent action to ban trans fats in food sold in the food service industry. The purpose of this master's paper is to analyze the politics of the enactment of the trans-fat ban. I hypothesize that symbolic politics trumped scientific evidence in the course of legitimating a ban the measurable public health outcomes of which would not be straightforward to measure. I used a triangulation of methods, including review of primary documents, media coverage, and in-depth telephone and e-mail interviews with key stakeholders and observers to elucidate the critical shaping factors influencing the ban's passage. I found that significant political factors came into play in the passage of the ban, although the scientific evidence also weighed heavily. For example, the direction of the Office of the Mayor and the Health Commissioner, as well as the overall political environment of New York City itself, made such a ban much easier to pass than would have been true in many other environments, even with a stronger evidence base. Schattschneider's classic observation that only losers broaden the scope of conflict is illustrated by food service interests' argument that they did not have an adequate opportunity to raise objections to the ban. Stakeholders acknowledged that measuring health outcomes post-ban would likely be impossible, but nonetheless felt that the ban would be in the best interests of New Yorkers' health. My secondary hypothesis, that New York City would be interested in influencing the national agenda, was partially supported: stakeholders felt that trans-fat bans were probably on the national horizon in any case, and were not averse to taking credit for what was going to happen anyway, but also seemed sincerely interested in improving the general health of New Yorkers.Master of Public Healt

Gavelkind and the Land Market in Somerden Hundred, Kent, 1550-1700

Gavelkind was the default system of land-holding in Kent from the early middle ages until the reform of property law in 1925-26. The research examines how far it still influenced the lives of landowners in the late sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, whether it was avoided using wills and settlements, its impact on the market in land, and the ability of yeomen to raise capital. It looks at land ownership, and whether the consequences of gavelkind were small plots and family decline as often suggested. The difficulty of sources has led in the past to a bias in the historiography in favour of customary tenants, and the research shows how far a community of freeholders can be reconstructed from the available sources, in particular title deeds. Chapter 1: Research and Sources describes the research objectives, the area studied, the sources available and their limitations. The historiography of Kent and gavelkind is introduced. Chapter 2: Gavelkind in Practice illustrates through the experience of reconstructed families the principles of gavelkind: freehold tenure, partible inheritance of sons, no escheat for felony, dower of a half, inheritance at 15, and wardship. The role of manor and royal courts in its administration is described, deductions made on the extent of gavelkind and disgavelling Acts. Chapter 3: Social, Economic, and Political Context sets out the impact on the Somerden area of demographic change, urbanisation, the rural economy, trade and industry, and political events. Chapter 4: Gavelkind Partition and Inheritance Practice analyses wills, settlements and deeds of partition to establish the extent to which the rules of inheritance and dower were set aside. Chapter 5 : Gavelkind and the Land Market analyses conveyances to establish the nature of the market, and whether the influence of outsiders and commercial attitudes can be identified. Chapter 6: Finance looks at the role of mortgages in providing capital, whether this was available to rural landowners, and the consequences for family land. Chapter 7: Land Ownership maps land ownership on a sample area of 2,800 acres, comparing 1600 with 1700, to identify engrossment or fragmentation, family continuity or decline. Chapter 8: Conclusions summarises the findings, and the implications for the historiography of agrarian change, with an explanatory paradigm and suggestions for further research. The research finds that gavelkind was still influential in family outcomes. Although the ability to devise was established, only a minority of yeomen directed their land to an eldest son. Most tried to provide land for all their sons, or a money portion of equal or nearly equal value. Daughters' portions were more generous than other areas. However, widows' rights were commonly over-ridden through a settlement, although where dower applied by default they were more favourable than elsewhere. It finds no association between partition and the loss of property, a disadvantage of which it was often accused. While the market was active it was notable for its local nature. Yeomen and local gentry were overall purchasers at the expense of aristocracy and tradesmen, but yeomen prospered more in the late sixteenth century, and were losing ground to gentry at the end of the seventeenth. There was a rise in mortgage transactions after 1630, coinciding with legal changes. Except for the largest loans the market was local. Yeomen were net lenders before 1670. Although borrowing could lead to loss of property, through re-mortgages and assignments loans could be kept rolling for many years. Some borrowing was a response to financial stress or family demands, but capital could be used for investment. Mapping land ownership shows continuity of families between 1600 and 1700, although there is evidence of coming change. Freehold tenure and partible inheritance stimulated leasing. Social stratification was already evident by 1600. Successive subdivision of holdings is not found, but yeomen were being eclipsed by the gentry by the end of the period, although the gentry families of 1700 were drawn from the yeomen families of 1600

Redox sulfur chemistry of the copper chaperone Atox1 is regulated by the enzyme glutaredoxin 1, the reduction potential of the glutathione couple GSSG/2GSH and the availability of Cu(I)

Glutaredoxins have been characterised as enzymes regulating the redox status of protein thiols via cofactors GSSG/GSH. However, such a function has not been demonstrated with physiologically relevant protein substrates in in vitro experiments. Their active sites frequently feature a Cys-xx-Cys motif that is predicted not to bind metal ions. Such motifs are also present in copper-transporting proteins such as Atox1, a human cytosolic copper metallo-chaperone. In this work, we present the first demonstration that: (i) human glutaredoxin 1 (hGrx1) efficiently catalyses interchange of the dithiol and disulfide forms of the Cys(12)-xx-Cys(15) fragment in Atox1 but does not act upon the isolated single residue Cys(41); (ii) the direction of catalysis is regulated by the GSSG/2GSH ratio and the availability of Cu(I); (iii) the active site Cys(23)-xx-Cys(26) in hGrx1 can bind Cu(I) tightly with femtomolar affinity (K(D) = 10(-15.5) M) and possesses a reduction potential of E(o)\u27 = -118 mV at pH 7.0. In contrast, the Cys(12)-xx-Cys(15) motif in Atox1 has a higher affinity for Cu(I) (K(D) = 10(-17.4) M) and a more negative potential (E(o)\u27 = -188 mV). These differences may be attributed primarily to the very low pKa of Cys23 in hGrx1 and allow rationalisation of conclusion (ii) above: hGrx1 may catalyse the oxidation of Atox1(dithiol) by GSSG, but not the complementary reduction of the oxidised Atox1(disulfide) by GSH unless Cu(aq)(+) is present at a concentration that allows binding of Cu(I) to reduced Atox1 but not to hGrx1. In fact, in the latter case, the catalytic preferences are reversed. Both Cys residues in the active site of hGrx1 are essential for the high affinity Cu(I) binding but the single Cys(23) residue only is required for the redox catalytic function. The molecular properties of both Atox1 and hGrx1 are consistent with a correlation between copper homeostasis and redox sulfur chemistry, as suggested by recent cell experiments. These proteins appear to have evolved the features necessary to fill multiple roles in redox regulation, Cu(I) buffering and Cu(I) transport

DNA methylation, epialleles and gene regulation: Insights from the honey bee

The development of a multicellular organism is dependent upon interactions between the underlying genetic sequence, epigenomic processes and environmental cues. These interactions are complex, and understanding the exact role that each plays in directing transcription remains difficult. One of the more well studied epigenomic modifications, cytosine DNA methylation, plays a fundamental role in modulating gene activity. This modification has primarily been associated with gene repression, but recent evidence has highlighted that DNA methylation also correlates with gene activation, and that variation in methylation patterning occurs across species. In the honey bee DNA methylation predominately occurs intragenically, and is associated with active transcription. The discovery that DNA methylation is critical to caste determination in the bee and additional correlations between DNA methylation, behaviour and phenotype, has made the honey bee an interesting model organism from which we can gain insight into the role of DNA methylation. Whilst it has been shown extensively in plants and mammals that DNA methylation patterns are frequently dependent on genotype, few studies of the honey bee have interpreted differential DNA methylation patterns in the context of the underlying genetic sequence. Here, we show that differences in the underlying genetic sequence correlate with differential methylation of the gene coding for lysosomal α-mannosidase (LAM), demonstrating that several LAM epialleles exist in the honey bee population. These epialleles correlate with context-dependent transcriptional changes, with significant effects on LAM expression observed during larval development. To understand how such changes might affect larval growth and phenotype we used a knockdown approach, inhibiting LAM activity during early larval stages using the indolizidine alkaloid swainsonine. We show that such treatment causes sub-lethal effects during larval and pupal stages, and causes loco-like symptoms and death in newly emerged bees. Our findings suggest that LAM function in the honey bee is conserved, and we propose that the LAM epialleles might affect larval metabolism and growth. By influencing metabolism in the bee the LAM epialleles could generate substantial variation in complex traits, which would be beneficial to a colony whose stability is dependent upon high levels of phenotypic variation

Potensi Bakteri Endofit Dalam Meningkatkan Pertumbuhan Tanaman Tembakau Yang Terinfeksi Nematoda Puru Akar (Meloidogyne Spp.)

Potensi Bakteri Endofit dalam Meningkatkan Pertumbuhan Tanaman Tembakau yang Terinfeksi Nematoda Puru Akar (Meloidogyne spp.). Nematoda puru akar (Meloidogyne spp.) pada tanaman tembakau merupakan penyakit penting yang dihadapi oleh perkebunan tembakau di Indonesia. Beberapa teknik pengendalian telah dilakukan, seperti penggunaan nematisida, kultur teknis dan penambahan bahan organik namun belum efektif mengendalikan patogen ini. Pengendalian biologi dengan bakteri endofit merupakan alternatif pengendalian Meloidogyne spp. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendapatkan bakteri endofit asal akar nilam meningkatkan pertumbuhan tanaman tembakau yang terinfeksi nematoda puru akar (Meloidogyne spp.). Penelitian ini dilaksanakan di Laboratorium Penyakit Tumbuhan Fakultas Pertanian Universitas Sumatera Utara pada bulan Juli – Desember 2014. Penelitian ini menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap nonfaktorial dengan perlakuan pemberian beberapa jenis bakteri endofit yaitu: Kontrol (diaplikasikan nematoda 500ekor/pot), Bacillus spp.1, Pseudomonas spp. dan Bacillus spp.2. Hasil penelitian menunjukan laju pertumbuhan dan pertambahan jumlah daun terbaik terdapat pada perlakuan Pseudomonas spp. sedangkan berat basah dan kering akar tertinggi terdapat pada tanaman yang diaplikasikan Bacillus spp 1

Phylogenetics of Archerfishes (Toxotidae) and Evolution of the Toxotid Shooting Apparatus

A grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.Archerfishes (Toxotidae) are variously found in the fresh- and brackish-water environments of Asia Pacific and are well known for their ability to shoot water at terrestrial prey. These shots of water are intended to strike their prey and cause it to fall into the water for capture and consumption. While this behavior is well known, there are competing hypotheses (blowpipe vs. pressure tank hypothesis) of how archerfishes shoot and which oral structures are involved. Current understanding of archerfish shooting structures is largely based on two species, Toxotes chatareus and T. jaculatrix. We do not know if all archerfishes possess the same oral structures to shoot water, if anatomical variation is present within these oral structures, or how these features have evolved. Additionally, there is little information on the evolution of the Toxotidae as a whole, with all previous systematic works focusing on the interrelationships of the family. We first investigate the limits of archerfish species using new and previously published genetic data. Our analyses highlight that the current taxonomy of archerfishes does not conform to the relationships we recover. Toxotes mekongensis and T. siamensis are placed in the synonymy of T. chatareus, Toxotes carpentariensis is recognized as a species and removed from the synonymy of T. chatareus, and the genus Protoxotes is recognized for T. lorentzi based on the results of our analyses. We then take an integrative approach, using a combined analysis of discrete hard- and soft-tissue morphological characters with genetic data, to construct a phylogeny of the Toxotidae. Using the resulting phylogenetic hypothesis, we then characterize the evolutionary history and anatomical variation within the archerfishes. We discuss variation in the oral structures and the evolution of the mechanism with respect to the interrelationships of archerfishes, and find that the oral structures of archerfishes support the blowpipe hypothesis but soft-tissue oral structures may also play a role in shooting. Finally, by comparing the morphology of archerfishes to their sister group, we find that the Leptobramidae has relevant shooting features in the oral cavity, suggesting that some components of the archerfish shooting mechanism are examples of co-opted or exapted traits