ALBANIAN LAW ON CITY PLANNING: CRITICAL SUMMARY OF ITS MAJOR PROVISIONS

This paper includes, as an annex, Law No. 7693, "On Urban Planning," from the People's Assembly of the Republic of Albania. Conceptually, this law has five major parts: (1) planning generally, (2) getting construction permission, (3) special provisions for tourist zones, (4) special provisions for military zones and zones with singular (that is, archaeological, historical, or cultural) value, and (5) penalties for violations. These parts are described and discussed.Cities and towns--Planning--Law and legislation--Albania, City planning and redevelopment law--Albania, Land use, Urban--Government policy--Albania, Land administration--Albania, Community/Rural/Urban Development,

The Effects of Professional Development Programs on Educational Outcomes in Mathematics and Sciences

Professional development programs are widely acknowledged for their success in determining outcomes in a variety of fields. These programs are particularly useful in education where new processes, methodologies, and curriculum need to be disseminated to vast numbers of administrators, educators, parents, and program analysts. Education is considered one of the top priorities for American policymakers, agencies, companies, and the general public. This fact has made educational outcomes progressively more important over time as larger expenditures are dedicated to providing positive educational effects. There has been a large body of research performed on what effects educational outcomes in the United States. Simultaneously, research has been performed on the outcomes of economic status, race, gender, and technological variance among schools on educational outcomes. However, little empirical research given all these variables has been performed, and even less research involving the effect of the National Science Foundation’s Math and Science Partnership (a professional development program) on educational outcomes. This project is dedicated to an empirical analysis on the effect of this program in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Its primary goal is to discern the effect, if any, of the Appalachian Math and Science Partnership (AMSP) on educational outcomes among its fifty one member districts

Mesoscale monitoring of the soil freeze/thaw boundary from orbital microwave radiometry

The fundamental objectives are to test the feasibility of delineating the lateral boundary between frozen and thawed condition in the surface layer of soil from orbital microwave radiometry and secondly to examine the sensitivity of general circulation models to an explicit parameterization of the boundary condition. Physical models were developed to relate emissivity to scene properties and a simulation package was developed to predict brightness temperature as a function of emissivity and physical temperature in order to address issues of heterogeneity, scaling, and scene dynamics. Radiative transfer models were develped for both bare soil surfaces and those obscured by an intervening layer of vegetation or snow. These models relate the emissivity to the physical properties of the soil and to those of the snow or vegetation cover. A SMMR simulation package was developed to evaluate the adequacy of the emission models and the limiting effects of scaling for realistic scenarios incorporating spatially heterogeneous scenes with dynamic moisture and temperature gradients at the pixel scale

Indoor Waterpark: An Examination of Physical Activity Levels and Use Patterns of Youth Participants

This study examined patterns and levels of physical activity of youth participants at an indoor waterpark in rural southern Indiana. The System for Observing Play and Recreation (SOPARC) was the instrument used to guide data collection for the study to determine youth physical activity postures coded as sedentary, walking, or vigorous. Subjects consisted of youths, ages 4 to18, who attended the park during the period of data collection. Results converged into seven main target areas representing data for age groupings, gender and physical activity postures. Frequencies were calculated for variables involving counts and moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). A series of one-way analyses of variance (ANOVA) were performed using total metabolic equivalents (METs). Physical activity in the waterpark was shown to have the capability to produce moderate and vigorous levels of physical activity overall and to also generate a variety of differences among individuals and activity areas at the facility

Contraction and polymerization cooperate to assemble and close actomyosin rings around Xenopus oocyte wounds

Xenopus oocytes assemble an array of F-actin and myosin 2 around plasma membrane wounds. We analyzed this process in living oocytes using confocal time-lapse (four-dimensional) microscopy. Closure of wounds requires assembly and contraction of a classic “contractile ring” composed of F-actin and myosin 2. However, this ring works in concert with a 5–10-μm wide “zone” of localized actin and myosin 2 assembly. The zone forms before the ring and can be uncoupled from the ring by inhibition of cortical flow and contractility. However, contractility and the contractile ring are required for the stability and forward movement of the zone, as revealed by changes in zone dynamics after disruption of contractility and flow, or experimentally induced breakage of the contractile ring. We conclude that wound-induced contractile arrays are provided with their characteristic flexibility, speed, and strength by the combined input of two distinct components: a highly dynamic zone in which myosin 2 and actin preferentially assemble, and a stable contractile actomyosin ring