Shaping the Preferred Future of Faculty, Instructional, and Organizational Development

Visions: Images of the Future Visioning and Strategic Planning Types of Futures: The 3 Ps Questions to Consider Possible Outcomes References Scenario I: Range of Institutional Initiatives and Reprioritization Scenario II: Institutions Devoted to A Learning and Development Culture Scenario III: Virtual Educational Development, Faculty Development, and Organizational Developmen

The Department Chair:New Roles, Responsibilities and Challenges

This monograph explores the changing role of the academic department chair in the areas of leadership, influence, and faculty development. The paper uses research insights to explore the situation of an academic chair who is squeezed between the demands of upper administration and the expectations of faculty, staff, and students. Studies of the roles and responsibilities of chairs consistently show that the role is ambiguous, unclear in authority,and difficult to classify as faculty or administrator. The tradition of faculty ownership dictates that chair leadership must emphasize empowering activities. The most effective use of political influence and power understands the political forces and processes of the institution and maneuvers groups and coalitions to achieve the autonomy and control necessary to a strong department. Faculty evaluation provides a chair with a powerful opportunity for developing quality. In addition, the chair must recognize how institutional type, history, and culture, model of governance, and discipline can influence what is expected. In the coming years chairs will need a program of professional development on many fronts to acquire the skills to address the complex challenges they will face. (Contains over 200 references.

Development and Field Testing of the FootFall Planning System for the ATHLETE Robots

The FootFall Planning System is a ground-based planning and decision support system designed to facilitate the control of walking activities for the ATHLETE (All-Terrain Hex-Limbed Extra-Terrestrial Explorer) family of robots. ATHLETE was developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and is a large six-legged robot designed to serve multiple roles during manned and unmanned missions to the Moon; its roles include transportation, construction and exploration. Over the four years from 2006 through 2010 the FootFall Planning System was developed and adapted to two generations of the ATHLETE robots and tested at two analog field sites (the Human Robotic Systems Project's Integrated Field Test at Moses Lake, Washington, June 2008, and the Desert Research and Technology Studies (D-RATS), held at Black Point Lava Flow in Arizona, September 2010). Having 42 degrees of kinematic freedom, standing to a maximum height of just over 4 meters, and having a payload capacity of 450 kg in Earth gravity, the current version of the ATHLETE robot is a uniquely complex system. A central challenge to this work was the compliance of the high-DOF (Degree Of Freedom) robot, especially the compliance of the wheels, which affected many aspects of statically-stable walking. This paper will review the history of the development of the FootFall system, sharing design decisions, field test experiences, and the lessons learned concerning compliance and self-awareness

Low Resources in a High Stakes Game: Identifying Viable Rural Community Partners

Extension resources are shrinking, yet community leadership needs are great, and, the consequences of neglecting them are dire. It is difficult to respond to all the requests that are made of Extension faculty and even more difficult to decide which of the communities will benefit the most from programming. This article illuminates these issues by examining contributions from related research. First, a link is forged between community capital theory and community survival indicators. Next, 111 signs are provided that identify community viability. Finally, a guide is proposed for use in Extension to help determine where to concentrate scant resources

Functional Evidence for Complement-activating Immune Complexes in the Skin of Patients with Bullous Pemphigoid

Previous immunofluorescent studies showing deposits of immunoglobulin and complement at the cutaneous basement membrane zone have provided evidence supporting a role for immune complexes in the pathogenesis of bullous pemphigoid. In this study the functional activity of the deposits has been examined using leukocyte attachment, a method for detecting and quantitating the biological activity of complement-activating immune complexes in tissues. When peripheral blood leukocytes suspended in serum complement were incubated with cryostat sections of lesional and adjacent normal-appearing skin from 9 patients with pemphigoid, skin from 11 normal controls and lesional skin from 14 nonpemphigoid disease controls there was significantly greater attachment of leukocytes to the basement membrane zone of lesional bullous pemphigoid skin compared to normal-appearing pemphigoid skin and skin of both control groups. A significant reduction in attachment in the absence of serum complement suggested the reaction was dependent on activation of complement by tissue-deposited complexes. Although leukocyte attachment was greater in lesional than normal-appearing pemphigoid skin, a comparison of the incidence and intensity of cutaneous IgG and complement immunofluorescence between the 2 groups showed no significant differences. Furthermore, no correlation between leukocyte attachment and serum titers of immunoglobulin G or complement-binding anti-basement membrane zone antibodies was observed. These results suggest that immune reactants in lesional pemphigoid skin are functional complement-activating immune complexes, that differences exist between the activity of complexes in lesional and normal-appearing pemphigoid skin and may explain why lesions develop at some sites and not others

Shortcomings in the Understanding of Why Cosmological Perturbations Look Classical

There is a persistent state of confusion regarding the account of the quantum origin of the seeds of cosmological structure during inflation. In fact, a recent article (C. Kiefer & D. Polarski, ArXiv: 0810.0087 [astro-ph]) addresses the question "Why do the Cosmological Perturbations look Classical?" and offers an answer based on unitary quantum mechanics (i.e., without reference to the projection postulate) relying on the decoherence type of analysis. The argument is, thus, implicitly assuming that decoherence offers a satisfactory solution to the measurement problem in quantum mechanics. We will review here, why do we, together with various other researchers in the field, consider that this is not the case, in general, and particularly not at all in the situation at hand. In fact, as has been previously discussed (A. Perez, H. Sahlmann, and D. Sudarsky, CQG 23, 2317, (2006);[arXiv: gr-qc/0508100]), we will argue that the cosmological situation is one where the measurement problem of quantum mechanics appears in a particular exacerbated form, and that, it is this, even sharper conondrum, the one that should be addressed when dealing with the inflationary account of the origin of the seeds of cosmic structure in the early universe.Comment: New version: In press in International Journal of Modern Physics

Regenerated sciatic nerve axons stimulated through a chronically implanted macro-sieve electrode

Sieve electrodes provide a chronic interface for stimulating peripheral nerve axons. Yet, successful utilization requires robust axonal regeneration through the implanted electrode. The present study determined the effect of large transit zones in enhancing axonal regeneration and revealed an intimate neural interface with an implanted sieve electrode. Fabrication of the polyimide sieve electrodes employed sacrificial photolithography. The manufactured macro-sieve electrode (MSE) contained nine large transit zones with areas of ~0.285 mm2 surrounded by eight Pt-Ir metallized electrode sites. Prior to implantation, saline or glial derived neurotropic factor (GDNF) was injected into nerve guidance silicone-conduits with or without a MSE. The MSE assembly or a nerve guidance conduit was implanted between transected ends of the sciatic nerve in adult male Lewis rats. At 3 months’ post-operation, fiber counts were similar through both implant types. Likewise, stimulation of nerves regenerated through a MSE or an open silicone conduit evoked comparable muscle forces. These results showed that nerve regeneration was comparable through MSE transit zones and an open conduit. GDNF had a minimal positive effect on the quality and morphology of fibers regenerating through the MSE; thus, the MSE may reduce reliance on GDNF to augment axonal regeneration. Selective stimulation of several individual muscles was achieved through monopolar stimulation of individual electrodes sites suggesting that the MSE might be an optimal platform for functional neuromuscular stimulation

Apparent horizons in simplicial Brill wave initial data

We construct initial data for a particular class of Brill wave metrics using Regge calculus, and compare the results to a corresponding continuum solution, finding excellent agreement. We then search for trapped surfaces in both sets of initial data, and provide an independent verification of the existence of an apparent horizon once a critical gravitational wave amplitude is passed. Our estimate of this critical value, using both the Regge and continuum solutions, supports other recent findings.Comment: 7 pages, 6 EPS figures, LaTeX 2e. Submitted to Class. Quant. Gra

Assessment of post-operative pain in children: who knows best?

Pain assessment in children can be extremely challenging. Most professional bodies recommend that parents or carers should be involved with their child's pain assessment; but the evidence that parents can accurately report pain on behalf of their children is mixed. Our objective was to examine whether there were differences in post-operative pain score ratings between the child, nurse and parent or carer after surgery. Cognitively intact children aged four upwards, undergoing all surgical procedures, whose parents were present in the post-anaesthetic recovery unit (PACU), were studied. Thirty-three children were included in the study. The numerical rating scale was used to rate the child's pain by the child, nurse and parent on arrival to the PACU and prior to discharge. We found strong correlations between children's, nurses' and parent's pain scores on admission and discharge from PACU. The intraclass correlation coefficient of pain scores reported by children, nurses and parents was 0.94 (95% confidence intervals 0.91-0.96, P<0.0001). In cognitively intact children, it is adequate to manage pain based upon the assessment of children's and nurses' pain scores alone. The numerical rating scale appeared to be suitable for younger children. Whilst there are benefits of parents being present in recovery, it is not essential for optimizing the assessment of pain

Summer 1969

Massachusetts Turf and Lawn Grass Council Better Turf Through Research and Education Contents: New Lawn Seeds Ready to Sprout Profits by Robert W. Schery (page 3) Potash Experiments on Turf Grasses by Edward G. Konieczny (4) Understanding the Basis... Fertilizer Spreader: Spreading Relationships (9) TVA Shows Sulpher Coated Urea (13) Salinity Tolerance of Turfgrass by Jeff Wheeler (19) Poa Annua by William H. Daniel (23) Turf Management by Elwin E. Deal (26) The Art and Science of Greenskeeping by James W. Timmerman (27