A Social Rehabilitation Program Implementation and Analysis: A Demonstration-Experimental Proposal

The intent of this proposal is to institute a social rehabilitation program on a ward of approximately 40-50 patients and then to assess and analyze the results of the program. Evaluation is to be undertaken through the utilization of a control group of approximately the same size, composition, and general philosophy located within the same hospital. In designing a research proposal for such a hospital, three important issues must be addressed as the effects of the program have ramifications that radiate throughout the hospital structure. The three issues, in the order of the manner they will be outlined, are operational problems, administrative problems, and finally methodological issues

African American Studies Collections and the American Season of Redemption

In a Journal of Academic Librarianship article that appeared in 2000, Susan A. Vega García writes about the “dearth of empirical research that has examined multicultural diversity in terms of actual collecting patterns of academic and research libraries [...].” (Vega García, 2000) This article, nearly 20 years old, is one of the few that actually address the topic of African American Studies collections specifically in the LIS literature. Though there is, in fact, a literature of “diversity” in library collections, it lumps together an array of groups whose only commonality is having been labelled Other in the U.S. This lumping is a morally blinkered, intellectually lazy move that both ignores the specificity of different groups’ experiences and perspectives and centers whiteness and the West. With the non–African American Studies librarian in mind, this paper highlights African American Studies collections’ importance to both the U.S. educational institutions’ intellectual life and the larger society in which they are located; encourages creative and critical thinking; and helps to conceptualize collaborations with African American Studies specialist or liaison colleagues and techniques for promoting these collections to internal and external audiences

Complex population dynamics in microbial systems

The study of spatial and temporal population dynamics has a long history in ecology, going back to the beginning of the 1900´s. Both intrinsic and extrinsic mechanisms are involved in determining the temporal and spatial occurrences of populations and species. Different dynamic patterns result from the strength and the interplay of the two mechanisms. The fact that in-trinsic driven population dynamics are woven together with extrinsic, often stochastic dynamics makes analyses of intrinsic mechanisms difficult and led to a controversial discussion about the relevance in nature. However, there is a gap between results from mathematical modelling showing the occurrence and meaning of intrinsically driven dynamics, and empirical proves. Recently, laboratory experiments under clearly defined and controlled conditions were shown to be a suitable tool to study intrinsic, deterministic population dynam-ics. Deterministic chaos is one type of dynamic behaviour exhibited by a change in one or more intrinsic parameters beside extinction, damped oscil-lations, and stable limit cycle. Most discussed is the relevance of chaotic be-haviour in population dynamics, due to the fact that empirical evidence is lim-ited to a simple one-species system. Furthermore, chaotic fluctuations are thought to lead to extinction of a population, because chaotic dynamics can obtain very small population sizes, even more vulnerable when mixed together with stochastic events. The question, if chaos occurs in the real world and under which circumstances chaos may be found in nature, is still open. Clearly defined laboratory experiments were established to analyse intrinsically driven dynamics in a multi-species system. Different dynamic behaviours were found in chemostat experiments with a two-prey-one-predator system of a bacterivorous ciliate as the predator and two bacteria strains as the prey organisms. The different population dynamics - extinction, damped oscillations, stable limit cycles and chaos - were triggered by a change in the dilution rate of the chemostat system and verified by calculations of the corresponding Lyapunov exponents. Therewith, chaos was shown in an experimental three-species system for the first time. The different dynamics in the microbial food web revealed a surprisingly short transition (4-7 days) to a different dynamic behaviour when the dilution rate as the control parameter was changed. All dynamics persisted in experiments when different local populations with different dynamics (chemostats with different dilution rates) were coupled. Experiments showed that the dynamic behaviours of the coupled populations were only triggered by the demographic parameter � in this case the dilution rate - and reacted independent of the constant inflow of organisms from populations with different dynamics. Here, we were able to shed more light on the question about the relevance of chaos in the real world. In conclusion spatio-temporal chaos might be more common in nature than generally assumed. Microbial communities with fast reproduction rates might be favoured candidates to show chaos and other complex dynamics in nature. Intrinsically driven dynamics might be persistent when perturbated by a constant fluctuating inflow of organisms and might lead to the establishment of chaos in habitats with constant flows (e.g. aquatic organisms in rivers and oceanic currents, and water drainage to groundwater). The fast transition to a different dynamic behaviour after a change in a control parameter shows how distinct intrinsic driven processes might be. A reason why chaotic dynamics in nature are not observed might be due too the large sampling intervals in most field studies

First experiences with the ATLAS Pixel Detector Control System at the Combined Test Beam 2004

Detector control systems (DCS) include the read out, control and supervision of hardware devices as well as the monitoring of external systems like cooling system and the processing of control data. The implementation of such a system in the final experiment has also to provide the communication with the trigger and data acquisition system (TDAQ). In addition, conditions data which describe the status of the pixel detector modules and their environment must be logged and stored in a common LHC wide database system. At the combined test beam all ATLAS subdetectors were operated together for the first time over a longer period. To ensure the functionality of the pixel detector a control system was set up. We describe the architecture chosen for the pixel detector control system, the interfaces to hardware devices, the interfaces to the users and the performance of our system. The embedding of the DCS in the common infrastructure of the combined test beam and also its communication with surrounding systems will be discussed in some detail.Comment: 6 pages, 9 figures, Pixel 2005 proceedings preprin

The challenge of hybridization

Hybridization of pixel detector systems has to satisfy tight requirements: high yield, long term reliability, mechanical stability, thermal compliance and robustness have to go together with low passive mass added to the system, radiation hardness, flexibility in the technology end eventually low cost. The current technologies for the interconnection of the front-end chips and the sensor are reviewed and compared, together with the solutions for the interface to the far-end electronics.Comment: 7 pages, no figure, presented at PIXEL2000, International Workshop on semiconductor pixel detectors for particles and X rays, 5-8 June 2000, Genova, Italy. Proceedings to be published in Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Researc

The Security Situation for Central Asia: Afghanistan, Water, and Uzbek Stability

Central Asia has emerged on the global stage after spending decades in isolation. As developing nations, most of Central Asia possesses the resources to spur rapid development. Things would seem to be in the region\u27s favor. There are, however, a few events that could derail the region. Afghanistan is on the periphery of the region and presents a series of difficult dilemmas such as creating a functioning government from a country that has been at war for nearly 30 years, the problem of the insurgency in the south, and narcotics trafficking. Water is scarce in the region, the leaders cannot agree on a water sharing treaty, and the downstream and upstream nations have different water usage needs and patterns. Lastly, Uzbekistan presents some challenges due to its centrality in the region, clan infighting, the unresolved issue of succession, and the tenuous stability in the country

Test Beam Results of Geometry Optimized Hybrid Pixel Detectors

The Multi-Chip-Module-Deposited (MCM-D) technique has been used to build hybrid pixel detector assemblies. This paper summarises the results of an analysis of data obtained in a test beam campaign at CERN. Here, single chip hybrids made of ATLAS pixel prototype read-out electronics and special sensor tiles were used. They were prepared by the Fraunhofer Institut fuer Zuverlaessigkeit und Mikrointegration, IZM, Berlin, Germany. The sensors feature an optimized sensor geometry called equal sized bricked. This design enhances the spatial resolution for double hits in the long direction of the sensor cells.Comment: Contribution to Proceedings of Pixel2005 Workshop, Bonn Germany 200

African American women administrators in higher education: exploring the challenges and experiences at Louisiana public colleges and universities

This study explores the challenges that African American women administrators experience as professionals in public institutions of higher education and the strategies they employ to cope with the resulting conflicts. It uses Black Feminism and the five dimensions as a framework for understanding the challenges and experiences. The five dimensions that characterize Black Feminist Thought are: 1) core themes of a Black woman\u27s standpoint; 2) variation of responses to core themes; 3) interdependence of experience and consciousness; 4) consciousness and the struggle for a self-defined standpoint; and 5) interdependence of thought and action. Interviews and participant observations were conducted with 10 African American women administrators at public institutions in Louisiana. Interviews included two presidents, four vice-presidents, and four deans. During open-ended interviews, participants were asked to talk about their challenges and experiences related to their personal and professional experiences as administrators. Ten themes emerged from the research data: spirituality; family support systems; balancing career and family; racism and sexism; lack of respect by colleagues and subordinates; mentoring and networking; isolation and underrepresentation; competency and confidence; professional satisfaction and community consciousness. This study highlights the 10 African American women administrators\u27 challenges and experiences in order to help institutions of higher learning become more supportive and reduce the challenges that promote a chilly work environment

Drive System Enhancement in the NASA Lewis Research Center Supersonic Wind Tunnels

An overview of NASA Lewis' Aeropropulsion Wind Tunnel Productivity Improvements was presented at the 19th AIAA Advanced Measurement & Ground Testing Technology Conference. Since that time Lewis has implemented subsonic operation in their 10- by 10-Foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel as had been proven viable in the 8- by 6 and 9- by 15-Foot Wind Tunnel Complex and discussed at the aforementioned conference. In addition, two more years of data have been gathered to help quantify the true productivity increases in these facilities attributable to the drive system and operational improvements. This paper was invited for presentation at the 20th Advanced Measurement and Ground Testing Conference to discuss and quantify the productivity improvements in the 10- by 10 SWT since the implementation of less than full complement motor operation. An update on the increased productivity at the 8- by 6 and 9- by 15-Foot facility due to drive system enhancements will also be presented