A Study of Optical Observing Techniques for Extra-Galactic Supernova Remnants: Case of NGC 300

We present the results of a study of observational and identification techniques used for surveys and spectroscopy of candidate supernova remnants (SNRs) in the Sculptor Group galaxy NGC 300. The goal of this study was to investigate the reliability of using [Sii]/Halpha > 0.4 in optical SNR surveys and spectra as an identifying feature of extra-galactic SNRs (egSNRs) and also to investigate the effectiveness of the observing techniques (which are hampered by seeing conditions and telescope pointing errors) using this criterion in egSNR surveys and spectrographs. This study is based on original observations of these objects and archival data obtained from the Hubble Space Telescope which contained images of some of the candidate SNRs in NGC 300. We found that the reliability of spectral techniques may be questionable and very high-resolution images may be needed to confirm a valid identification of some egSNRs.Comment: 27 Figures, 10 table

A Study comparing the moisture barrier characteristics of flat liners versus stoppers in continuous thread closures on glass viles

The combination of glass vial, elastomeric stopper, and aluminum crimp seal represents one of the principal packaging systems used to package diagnostic reagents, ophthalmic and veterinary medicines, and pharmaceutical products. This work states that elastomeric flat liners are an alternative to traditional stoppers. To confirm this position, several comparative moisture transmission evaluations are conducted to contrast the barrier performance of glued flat liners against stoppers in continuous thread closures on glass vials. After a review of several standard packaging integrity testing methods, this thesis demonstrates the use of coulometric titration as an alternative package system testing methodology. Coulometric titrators are commercially available, and coulometric titration is well established as a precise moisture determination method for determining the micro-moisture contents in both solid and liquid products. The accuracy of coulometric titration technique is well suited for discerning the slight changes in moisture content of hygroscopic products after being packaged in candidate high moisture barrier packaging systems

Faculty perceptions of the role of foreign language education at West Virginia University

Foreign language education has a long history within higher education. However, since the late 1960s, foreign language enrollment, measured by percentages of students taking language courses, has declined by almost 50% in American colleges and universities. The author contends that much of this decline can be explained by three concomitant forces; including (1) the rise of professional programs that are constrained by an exactness of education that precludes study beyond rather narrowly defined plans of study; (2) the lack of language learning success that foreign language students demonstrate upon completion of language programs; and (3) the failure of language departments to extend the concept of language and culture learning beyond traditional language-for-literature based curricula. When coupled with societal forces that view language learning as an essential tool in the nation\u27s economic/political battles and intra-university notions of accountability that view a department\u27s centrality to the university based on its ability to generate revenue, foreign language departments face internal and external challenges to their long-term survival. The author believes that an in depth understanding of the perspectives of others within higher education can assist foreign language programs recover their own place within universities and establish strategic cross-disciplinary alliances that will secure the long-term success of foreign language programs. The present study, based on the theoretical frameworks provided by Bandura\u27s socio-cognitive theory and Bourdieu\u27s models of Field and Habitus, uses qualitative methods, including semi-structured interviews and document analysis, to explore the perspectives of faculty from three academic colleges (Arts and Sciences, Engineering, and Business) toward the role and purpose of foreign language education within the context of the university. Finally, the author suggests that the findings of the study point to the need to develop an ecology of foreign language learning that allows for a reconceptualization of the modern foreign language department in higher education

Curriculum, Marginalization, and the Professoriate

The author exposes the subtext on which education and particularly curriculum making is based by focusing on the notion that the professoriate has been marginalized within curriculum planning by an educational hegemony that utilizes the sorting and classification mechanisms present in schooling to co-opt the development of educational plans

Concept for a large master/slave-controlled robotic hand

A strategy is presented for the design and construction of a large master/slave-controlled, five-finger robotic hand. Each of the five fingers will possess four independent axes each driven by a brushless DC servomotor and, thus, four degrees-of-freedom. It is proposed that commercially available components be utilized as much as possible to fabricate a working laboratory model of the device with an anticipated overall length of two-to-four feet (0.6 to 1.2 m). The fingers are to be designed so that proximity, tactile, or force/torque sensors can be imbedded in their structure. In order to provide for the simultaneous control of the twenty independent hand joints, a multilevel master/slave control strategy is proposed in which the operator wears a specially instrumented glove which produces control signals corresponding to the finger configurations and which is capable of conveying sensor feedback signals to the operator. Two dexterous hand master devices are currently commercially available for this application with both undergoing continuing development. A third approach to be investigated for the master control mode is the use of real-time image processing of a specially patterned master glove to provide the respective control signals for positioning the multiple finger joints

A Failure of Imagination

In the wake of increased behavioral issues in the peri- and post-COVID environment, schools have resorted to zero-tolerance policies that imposed uniform and predetermined punishments for even the slightest infraction. In this article, the authors argue that these policies represent a failure of imagination that installs punitive policies that do more harm than good. Further, they suggest that restorative justice and/or school-wide positive behavior support systems are better means of creating educational environments in which all students flourish