Impact of Children\u27s Literature on Family Structures and Children\u27s Perceptions of Family

This study asks, what is the impact of children’s literature on children’s perceptions of family structures? Literature teaches young children a great deal about the world in which they live; therefore, literature plays a large role in children’s perceptions of others. This study uses triangulation with three forms of qualitative data collected by children’s drawings of families, interviews, questionnaires, and discussions. The study found that young children can understand differences of others. Teachers hold a great deal of responsibility for shaping the minds of the future and literature has a large impact on how children learn about others and perceive the world they live in

Culturally Appropriate Authentic Assessments: Exploring the Use of Authentic Assessments for African American Children at Risk for Special Education in Urban Settings

Authentic assessments provide an alternative to informal and formal assessments which may reduce the number of African Americans in special education programs. This literature review will explore the use of authentic assessment for at risk students in special education programs in urban settings

Utilizing Emergency Departments as Learning Spaces through a Post-Occupancy Evaluation.

This case study describes the use of an emergency department as a learning space for interior design students. Kolb’s (1984; 2005) framework identifies the characteristics of experiential learning and learning spaces, serving as the bridge to unify learning styles and the learning environment. A post-occupancy evaluation was conducted with interior design students to engage them in a concrete learning experience, reflection on these experiences from a variety of viewpoints, and building theories or generalizations that are applied to actively solving practical problems. Learning is explored as a never-ending cyclical process within all environments, which will serve to inform future decision-making

Nested Gausslet Basis Sets

We introduce nested gausslet (NG) bases, an improvement on previous gausslet bases which can treat systems containing atoms with much larger atomic number. We also introduce pure Gaussian distorted gausslet bases, which allow the Hamiltonian integrals to be performed analytically, as well as hybrid bases in which the gausslets are combined with standard Gaussian-type bases. All these bases feature the diagonal approximation for the electron-electron interactions, so that the Hamiltonian is completely defined by two $N_b\times N_b$ matrices, where $N_b \approx 10^4$ is small enough to permit fast calculations at the Hartree-Fock level. In constructing these bases we have gained new mathematical insight into the construction of one-dimensional diagonal bases. In particular we have proved an important theorem relating four key basis set properties: completeness, orthogonality, zero-moment conditions, and diagonalization of the coordinate operator matrix. We test our basis sets on small systems with a focus on high accuracy, obtaining, for example, an accuracy of $2\times10^{-5}$ Ha for the total Hartree-Fock energy of the neon atom in the complete basis set limit.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figure

Autonomous Integrated Receive System (AIRS) requirements definition. Volume 2: Design and development

Functional requirements and specifications are defined for an autonomous integrated receive system (AIRS) to be used as an improvement in the current tracking and data relay satellite system (TDRSS), and as a receiving system in the future tracking and data acquisition system (TDAS). The AIRS provides improved acquisition, tracking, bit error rate (BER), RFI mitigation techniques, and data operations performance compared to the current TDRSS ground segment receive system. A computer model of the AIRS is used to provide simulation results predicting the performance of AIRS. Cost and technology assessments are included

Growth regulation of human B lymphocyte progenitor cells

This thesis describes an investigation into the growth characteristics of a human pre-B cell acute lymphocytic leukaemia cell line, SMS-SB. Most lymphocytic tumours are difficult to adapt to tissue culture and enter a crisis after a few rounds of cell division where the majority of cells die. To sustain proliferation of the remaining cells, addition of exogenous mitogens is usually required. SMS-SB was an unusual leukaemia because the cells did not go through a crisis phase and grew indefinitely, in the absence of exogenous mitogens. This sustained proliferation in tissue culture appears to reflect the synthesis and secretion of an autocrine growth factor (s); the cells are density-dependent for growth, and proliferation can occur in media completely devoid of protein. The original aim of this work was to identify and characterise the autocrine growth factor, termed SB-AF. During investigations to identify cytokines with the ability to substitute for the autocrine growth factor activity, platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) was shown to stimulate the growth of SMS-SB cells under low cell density conditions; SMS-SB cells are known to secrete PDGF and express PDGF receptors. However, antibody inhibition experiments suggest that PDGF cannot account for all the autocrine activity of SB-AF, thus other cytokine components of SB-AF were sought. CD23 is a 45kDa type-II transmembrane glycoprotein and a member of the C-type lectin superfamily. There is a soluble form of CD23 (sCD23) which is released by cleavage from the surface of cells into the extracellular fluid, and this form has been attributed multiple cytokine activities. It was discovered that sCD23 dramatically promotes thymidine incorporation by SMS-SB cells. The work of this thesis has shown that SMS-SB cells undergo apoptosis when cultured at low cell density; sCD23 is the only cytokine tested with the ability to prevent SMS-SB cell apoptosis. Apoptotic SMS-SB cells have low levels of the proto-oncogene bcl-2 but sCD23 can sustain bcl-2 levels in the cells. The investigations have shown that SMS-SB cells do not express CD23, negating the hypothesis that CD23 is acting in an autocrine fashion. The most interesting discovery made during these investigations was that SMS-SB cells bind CD23-containing liposomes specifically but they do not express the known receptors for CD23, namely CD21, CD11a and CD11b; SMS-SB cells express a novel CD23 receptor. Thus, SMS-SB cells express a novel receptor for CD23 and signalling via this receptor prevent apoptosis of the cells. Preliminary data is presented from CD23 affinity columns used to isolate and characterise the novel CD23 receptor. A protein of 85kDa has been identified as a candidate receptor, but further characterisation is required. SMS-SB cells will provide a good model to examine the role of autocrine growth factors in early B cell development, moreover, the discovery of a novel CD23 receptor on pre-B cells, implies a role for sCD23 in early B cell development. Since sCD23 has previously been shown to promote the growth and maturation of early T cells and myeloid progenitors, it will be interesting to investigate the role of CD23, and the novel receptor, in all aspects of haematopoiesis

Satellite Data Transmission (SDT) requirement

An 85 Mb/s modem/codec to operate in a 34 MHz C-band domestic satellite transponder at a system carrier to noise power ratio of 19.5 dB is discussed. Characteristics of a satellite channel and the approach adopted for the satellite data transmission modem/codec selection are discussed. Measured data and simulation results of the existing 50 Mbps link are compared and used to verify the simulation techniques. Various modulation schemes that were screened for the SDT are discussed and the simulated performance of two prime candidates, the 8 PSK and the SMSK/2 are given. The selection process that leads to the candidate codec techniques are documented and the technology of the modem/codec candidates is assessed. Costs of the modems and codecs are estimated

The State of Soil Health in Vermont: Summary statistics from Vermont agriculture in 2021

This report shares the summary statistics of the soil health indicators evaluated in the 2021 State of Soil Health project on farms in Vermont. The aim of this report is to share the data in a simple format that can be accessed by farmers, advisors and policy makers. The State of Soil Health in Vermont is an initiative to measure soil health and soil carbon on farms across the state of Vermont. This project is coordinated by UVM Extension and has relied on field support, in kind- donations and data sharing from partnering organizations. The project has five primary objectives: Establish a baseline of soil health indicators, carbon stocks, and associated ecosystem services in Vermont’s agricultural landscapes Create soil health soil sampling standards across management types Provide farmers with contextualized information about soil health on their participating fields Support collaboration among the many organizations that work with farmers towards shared goals around soil health Build skills and capacity for measuring soil health and soil carbon stocks Collaborators include UVM Extension, UVM Department of Plant & Soil Science, the Gund Institute for Environment, Dartmouth College, the Vermont Environmental Stewardship Program of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, the White River Conservation District, Vermont Association of Conservation Districts, Ben & Jerry’s Caring Dairy Program and The Nature Conservancy Vermont

Investigating the effects of form-focused activities on the Acquisition of articles and pronouns in English amongst Grade 11 Xhosa learners

The main purpose of this dissertation is to investigate if a teaching method called Focus on Form (FonF) in an English as a Second Language (ESL) class is effective in the acquisition of two grammatical forms namely articles ("a", "an" and "the") and a selection of pronouns. In order to test this hypothesis, quantitative research was performed. The analysis of a series of tests was done quantitatively to prove the hypothesis. The dissertation includes a theory section on Social Capital (SC) and discusses why it might play an important part in South Africa and in offering some help to the communities to enable them to help in the education of their children within South Africa. This dissertation is divided into five chapters. The first chapter introduces the problem and explains how South African education, historically, had devastating effects in the past and continues having a far reaching effect on today‟s learners. It discusses why this dissertation focuses on English and highlights how extensively English has spread throughout the world. It contains an explanation of the value of being competent in the English language. The chapter continues with a depiction of the poor pass rates of the end of year high school examinations, The National Senior Certificate (NSC). It explains the significance of the research, the purpose of the study, its theoretical framework and finally what this study proposes. Chapter two is a literature review of the available literature discussing second language acquisition (SLA) and the difference between English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and English as a Second Language (ESL). The chapter continues with a detailed description of how English was taught historically with an explanation of the approach being used in this study. Chapter two continues with details of the historical "Bantu Education Act No 47 of 1953" and the racist policies of the government of the time with an exploration of the effect these policies had on the education of learners. It also specifies the grammatical forms being used in this study. A summary of Black South African English (BSAE) is included accompanied by a description of language transfer. The chapter contains a section on SC, with an explanation of how this term came about historically and what it means. The chapter includes social problems that South Africa is facing today and how these problems tie in with diminished SC. It explains the importance of SC in Education. The chapter concludes with an explanation of how SC can be utilized in communities and why it is important in a democratic country. Chapter three explains the methodology used in this study as that of positivism and that this study in one sense is purely an empirical study and the reasons behind the choice of methodology. It also explains how a section of this study is pragmatic. Although the testing and analysis is purely statistical, the lessons that took place in the classroom, the interpersonal communication combined with the interaction between the learners and the researcher was not quantitative in nature. This interaction had no outright bearing on the results, but allowed the researcher the opportunity to observe and take notes on the experiences of the learners and the researcher in the classroom. These observations included incidents within the lessons and external problems the learners face which are linked to social issues within the literature. The chapter also contains an explanation of the testing instruments used in this study and how they were developed along with the ethical considerations of the study. Chapter four details the statistical results of this study. It also contains the write up of the field notes of the researcher who took note of incidents that happened within the classes. There are some examples of family and personal problems related to the learners and details the environment of the school. Some of these issues tie in with the theory included; illustrating the ideas and concerns associated with SC and demonstrates how these social problems are truly part of each learner‟s life in a township school. Chapter five offers recommendations to English teachers, the Department of Education (DoE) and to future researchers based on the results of Chapter four. It contains a discussion on how the community can increase SC within their own areas and within the schools. This study argues that the Education system is in dire need of help as evidenced by the dismal exam results. It also argues that South Africa has a variety of social problems that are contributing to the overall failure and dropout rate in schools. It offers some general suggestions on how the community can work together to build systems within the community, to help themselves and their children to become educated, productive members of society. The only way for the children of South Africa to succeed is with a good education as their starting point