Interdisciplinary research may lead to increased visibility but also depresses scholarly productivity

Interdisciplinarity has grown in recent years. But how does interdisciplinary research influence scholarship and scholarly careers? Erin Leahey‘s research has found that while interdisciplinary research has its benefits, such as increased visibility as indicated by citations, it also comes at a cost, as it depresses scholarly productivity. Although peer review of interdisciplinary work is less of a problem than anticipated, the learning of new concepts, literatures, and techniques, and communication difficulties within interdisciplinary teams, all contribute to the ‘productivity penalty.

ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED, AND UNREGULATED FISHING IN OCEANIA

Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing (IUUF) is a prevalent issue in Oceania, a vital region to the United States from a military, economic, and diplomatic perspective. IUUF activity is threatening to erode U.S. influence and poses significant homeland defense and security challenges. This thesis addresses the question of how the United States and its partnering nations can better address the IUUF threat in Oceania. A variety of academic research, journal articles, scientific studies, laws and treaties, domestic and international government documents, and non-government reports were analyzed to answer this question. The analysis explored counter-IUUF mitigation efforts underway in Oceania and, in doing so, outlined the region’s counter-IUUF strategy. A six-step strategic analysis tool was applied to evaluate Oceania’s counter-IUUF strategy and identify actions that the United States and its partnering nations can take to strengthen its effectiveness.Lieutenant Commander, United States Coast GuardApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited

Collaborative Markup of Library and Research Data: Examples from OCUL

Presentation at the North American Data Documentation Conference (NADDI) 2013This presentation will focus on collaborative efforts to capture, store, and disseminate social science survey data & researcher data across all of Ontario's University Libraries. Together through shared platforms and practices, collaborative markup of data using the Data Documentation Initiative (DDI) standard is possible in order to effectively deliver rich discovery services to users of library and researcher data. An overview of Scholars Portal's data services including the Ontario Data Documentation, Extraction Service and Infrastructure (ODESI), and Dataverse will highlight effective collaborative markup strategies for data.Institute for Policy & Social Research, University of Kansas; University of Kansas Libraries; Alfred P. Sloan Foundation; Data Documentation Initiative Allianc

Soil and Agricultural Problems in Subarctic and Arctic Canada

Contains account of pedological research conducted by the Canadian government for the past 11 years, mainly in the Northwest; the experimental stations (two) north of 60 degrees North, their lands, staff, problems, future research needed: soil surveys, formation and fertility; micro-organisms; permafrost; agro-meteorology; crop production, selection and breeding; animal husbandry, etc

Archaeology as Advocacy: Celebrating Cultural Heritage and Promoting Sustainability in Transylvania Mining Communities: How to Preserve and Promote the Cultural Heritage of Rural Transylvania?

This past summer I worked with two other students and Colin Quinn to research community museums, identity, and the cultural heritage of Translyvania. Each of us focused on a different topic for our research. I worked on researching community museums worldwide and how we can take their practices and apply it to a community museum we plan to build at the Rametz site. Most of these museums I researched were under the control of the communities themselves and the exhibits and design were made to emphasize the identity and cultural heritage of that community. Museums in Japan, Canada, Italy, Greece, etc. were my main case studies. The ideas showcased by these museums helped me and my fellow students to better organize and start to design the community museum at Rametz. Sense of place, identification of heritage resources, cultural touchstones, empowering the local communities, and having room to expand the museum are the main points I gathered that made a strong, and prosperous community museum. So basing my ideas for our community museum on those points, I outlined a plan for the museum. Some include a rotating exhibit schedule where the “cultural touchstones” or important exhibits are rotated so that there is room for the community to add new things they deem important in their culture. Community volunteers, tour guides, and monthly meetings with the community to take ideas to improve the museum are other ideas. Lastly, building the museum at the site of Rametz will accomplish a sense of place and allow visitors to experience the past and get a good sense of Romania and its rich culture. My work this summer was the first step in a long journey to build a museum that will benefit everyone in Translyvania

Alien Registration- Leahey, Bridget (Lewiston, Androscoggin County)

https://digitalmaine.com/alien_docs/28981/thumbnail.jp

Genetically Modified Organisms and Southern African Food Policy

This paper examines why it is that Zambia and Zimbabwe, two states with similar background conditions and initial positions, arrived at differing policy decisions with regards to genetically modified organisms (GMO). The two neighboring Southern African states are economically dependent on their agricultural sector, share a common colonial legacy, rely heavily on maize as a subsistence crop and have struggled with issues of food security. Their decisions were shaped by their post-colonial legacy and differing conceptions of modernity. In the years following independence, Zambia sought to subsidize their agricultural sector through inputs and credit. Zimbabwe instead focused on land reform and reapportionment, and in so doing hampered their agricultural sector enough to necessitate GMO acceptance. An understanding of the motivations for rejection of GMO in Southern Africa has implications for future food relief programs within Africa and elsewhere

An interdisciplinary approach to integrated curriculum

The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of the interdisciplinary approach to teaching mathematics and science, specifically Geometry and Biology. The study used an action research design in which two teachers participated in a planned interdisciplinary activity that involved 160 high school students. The site of this study was a high school located in a middle-class, rural-suburban community. Data was gathered using a concept map to measure the amount of conceptual understanding students have of the relationship between Geometry and Biology. Data of those students who were enrolled in both Geometry and Biology were compared to those students who were only enrolled in Geometry. This data was analyzed using histograms and a nonparametric signs test. The histograms showed an increase in the number of associations students were able to make between Geometry and Biology. The number of associations increased 35% for interdisciplinary students and 25% for non-interdisciplinary students. The signs test supported the findings of the histogram analysis: interdisciplinary curriculum gave students a better understanding of the relationship between subjects

Ocean acidification and the loss of phenolic substances in marine plants.

Rising atmospheric CO(2) often triggers the production of plant phenolics, including many that serve as herbivore deterrents, digestion reducers, antimicrobials, or ultraviolet sunscreens. Such responses are predicted by popular models of plant defense, especially resource availability models which link carbon availability to phenolic biosynthesis. CO(2) availability is also increasing in the oceans, where anthropogenic emissions cause ocean acidification, decreasing seawater pH and shifting the carbonate system towards further CO(2) enrichment. Such conditions tend to increase seagrass productivity but may also increase rates of grazing on these marine plants. Here we show that high CO(2) / low pH conditions of OA decrease, rather than increase, concentrations of phenolic protective substances in seagrasses and eurysaline marine plants. We observed a loss of simple and polymeric phenolics in the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa near a volcanic CO(2) vent on the Island of Vulcano, Italy, where pH values decreased from 8.1 to 7.3 and pCO(2) concentrations increased ten-fold. We observed similar responses in two estuarine species, Ruppia maritima and Potamogeton perfoliatus, in in situ Free-Ocean-Carbon-Enrichment experiments conducted in tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay, USA. These responses are strikingly different than those exhibited by terrestrial plants. The loss of phenolic substances may explain the higher-than-usual rates of grazing observed near undersea CO(2) vents and suggests that ocean acidification may alter coastal carbon fluxes by affecting rates of decomposition, grazing, and disease. Our observations temper recent predictions that seagrasses would necessarily be "winners" in a high CO(2) world