A Teacher\u27s Guide to PISA Mathematical Literacy

This report focuses on mathematical literacy and is one of a series of three reports on Australian students\u27 performance in PISA. The report provides an overview of the PISA mathematics framework and Australia\u27s results in the PISA 2003 international assessment. Also included are mathematics items released for public viewing after the PISA 2003 assessment and examples of responses, marking guides and comparisons of results with other countries. The context behind achievement, e.g. attitudes, engagement and learning strategies, is also presented

Comparison of medical and surgical treatment for acute cervical compressive hydrated nucleus pulposus extrusion in dogs

Although successful outcomes have been reported after medical and surgical treatment for dogs with cervical hydrated nucleus pulposus extrusion (HNPE), it is unknown which treatment option is preferred. Thirty-four dogs treated medically (n=18) or surgically (n=16) for cervical HNPE were retrospectively identified. Signalment, clinical presentation and imaging findings were compared between medically and surgically treated dogs. Medical management consisted of restricted exercise in combination with physiotherapy. Surgical treatment consisted of a ventral slot procedure. Short-term follow-up information was retrieved from re-examination visits. Long-term outcome was obtained via telephone interviews. More dogs in the surgical group demonstrated cervical hyperaesthesia on initial clinical presentation (P=0.045), otherwise there was no significant difference in signalment, clinical presentation or imaging findings between both groups. Two dogs in the medically managed group underwent surgical decompression due to an unsatisfactory response to medical management. All cases for which long-term information was available (n=30) were neurologically normal at the time of data collection. There were no significant differences for any of the short-term or long-term outcome variables between both treatment groups. This study demonstrated successful outcomes after medical or surgical treatment and suggests that both treatment modalities can be considered for dogs with cervical HNPE

Estudo de tratamento de água residuária com meio suporte de bambu

Artigo submetido ao Curso de Engenharia Civil, da Universidade do Extremo Sul Catarinense – UNESC, como requisito parcial para obtenção do Título de Engenheira Civil.O principal objetivo deste trabalho é estudar e desenvolver um método ecológico e econômico para o tratamento de água residuária, tendo o bambu como principal meio para a limpeza e retirada de micro-organismos do fluido. Para este estudo, foram coletadas amostras de água de um rio contaminado com esgoto doméstico, e para seu tratamento, foi desenvolvido um tanque preenchido com bambu cortados, onde a água contaminada ficará em contato com o mesmo durante um período de tempo, o qual será determinado no decorrer do estudo

Minimal entropy and geometric decompositions in dimension four

We show vanishing results about the infimum of the topological entropy of the geodesic flow of homogeneous smooth four manifolds. We prove that any closed oriented geometric four manifold has zero minimal entropy if and only if it has zero simplicial volume. We also show that if a four manifold M admits a geometric decomposition, in the sense of Thurston, and does not have geometric pieces modelled on hyperbolic four-space, the complex hyperbolic plane or the product of two hyperbolic planes, then M admits an F-structure. It follows that M has zero minimal entropy and collapses with curvature bounded from below. We then analyse whether or not M admits a metric whose topological entropy coincides with the minimal entropy of M and provide new examples of manifolds for which the minimal entropy problem cannot be solved.Comment: 38 pages, corrected flat case; Theorem A is now in terms of F-structures, improved exposition; new final section collects all results needed for the proofs of the main theorem

Narrado por un mito: Felix Krull, de Thomas Mann

This article proposes an approach to the novel Bekenntnisse des Hochstaplers Felix Krull by Thomas Mann from the point of view of the imaginal psychology of James Hillman. From this perspective the novel seems to illustrate the most innovative thesis of that psychology, which is especially relevant for having been written prior to the formulation of Hillman’s theories. The unplanned correspondence between both ways of thinking furnishes a valuable argument that supports the new conception of human psyche introduced by Carl Gustav Jung and developed in this way by James Hillman.El presente artículo propone una lectura de la novela de Thomas Mann desde la óptica de la psicología imaginal de James Hillman. En esta perspectiva la novela parece ofrecer una ilustración de las tesis más innovadoras de dicha psicología, lo que resulta especialmente relevante por haber sido escrita con antelación a la formulación de las teorías del pensador estadounidense. La impremeditada correspondencia entre ambos pensamientos suministra un argumento digno de tenerse en cuenta a favor de la innovadora concepción de la psique humana inaugurada por Carl Gustav Jung y desarrollada en esta línea por James Hillman

Physical activity and cognitive function in a cross-section of younger and older community-dwelling individuals.

Previous reports have indicated a small, positive relationship between physical activity and cognition. However, the majority of research has focused on older adults, with few studies examining this relationship during earlier periods of the life span. This study examined the relationship of physical activity to cognition in a cross-section of 241 community-dwelling individuals 15-71 years of age with a task requiring variable amounts of executive control. Data were analyzed with multiple regression, which controlled for age, sex, and IQ. Participants reported their physical activity behavior and were tested for reaction time (RT) and response accuracy on congruent and incongruent conditions of a flanker task, which manipulates interference control. After controlling for confounding variables, an age-related slowing of RT was observed during both congruent and incongruent flanker conditions. However, physical activity was associated with faster RT during these conditions, regardless of age. Response accuracy findings indicated that increased physical activity was associated with better performance only during the incongruent condition for the older cohort. Findings suggest that physical activity may be beneficial to both general and selective aspects of cognition, particularly among older adults. © 2006 APA, all rights reserved

The Impact of Environmental Factors on Emergency Medicine Resident Career Choice

Objective: To evaluate the impact of environmental factors on emergency medicine (EM) resident career choice. Methods: Program directors of all U.S. EM residencies were surveyed in November 1997. A 22-item questionnaire assessed resources allocated to research, fellowship availability, academic productivity of faculty and residents, and career choices of residency graduates. Results: The response rate was 83%. The program director (mean ± SD) estimates of resident career choice were as follows: 27.8 ± 19.1% pursued academic positions with emphasis on teaching, 5.4 ± 9.8% pursued academic positions with emphasis on research, and 66.8 ± 23.1%, pursued private practice positions. In addition, 5.70 ± 6.13% of the residency graduates were estimated to seek felloship training. Univariate analyses demonstrated that increasing departmental funding for research, having substantial resource availability (defined as having at least two of the following: dedicated laboratory space; support for a laboratory research technician/assistant, a clinical research nurse or study coordinator, a statistician, or an assistant with a PhD degree), a greater number of peer-reviewed publications by residents (r = 0.22; p = 0.08), and a greater number of peer-reviewed publications by faculty (r = 0.26; p = 0.04) positively correlated with the percentage of graduates who pursue academic research careers. Using multiple regression, however, increasing intramural funding and the presence of substantial resource availability were the only variables predictive of resident pursuit of an academic research career. Conclusion: Modification of the EM training environment may influence the career choices of graduates. Specifically, greater commitment of departmental funds and support of resources for research may enhance the likelihood of a trainee's choosing an academic research career.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72940/1/j.1553-2712.1999.tb00387.x.pd