Bostonia. Volume 28

Founded in 1900, Bostonia magazine is Boston University's main alumni publication, which covers alumni and student life, as well as university activities, events, and programs

Perceived Random Leader Selection in Work Groups

Different methods of selecting a leader for work groups have been shown to have significant effects on the group\u27s overall performance (Henningsen, et al., 2004). It has been suggested that systematic selection of leadership is detrimental to a group\u27s performance and cohesiveness in certain cases (Haslam et al., 1998). This has been supported by many studies (Haslam et al., 1998; Henningsen et. al., 2004). In such cases it may be more beneficial to pick a leader in a random fashion instead of picking one due to leadership abilities. It was hypothesized that it is even more beneficial in these cases if the leader is picked due to credentials (systematically selected) but the leader is perceived by the rest of the group as being randomly selected. The hypothesis was tested with four groups creating a building model out of drinking straws. No significant effects were found in terms of group performance or group cohesiveness

Leadership for Policy Change

Provides options for utilizing foundation and government support to create and enhance community-based leadership development programs in communities of color

The Distribution of Cane, Arundinaria gigante (Poaceae: Bambusoideae)

The distribution of cane in the United States was compiled on a county basis from previous records, correspondence, and field work. Ecological correlations were considered. The range appears to be limited primarily by temperature and precipitation. Two geographic populations correlate with major drainage divisions. The broad ecologic amplitude of cane is indicated by its occurrence in many different community types

Application of the electrostatic separation of recoil atoms to the²²⁵Ac-²²¹Fr-²¹⁷At-²¹³Bi decay series

The focus of this research was to develop a novel approach for the separation of 221Fr and 213Bi from 225Ac. First a method was developed to electrodeposit the actinium onto a cathode from a pH = 2 nitric acid solution. Yields for the electrodeposition approached 99% for a one hour deposition. The Joliot Equation was used to quantitate the process. A linear velocity constant of 0.23 cm/min was measured for the electrodeposition of 225Ac on a Pt electrode. To separate the 221Fr and 213Bi, the atoms were caught in an electrostatic field as they recoiled from the cathode. The collection yield was found to be dependent on the electrostatic field strength with a critical voltage of about 2000 volts, above which the yield leveled off. The maximum yields for 221Fr were found to occur after 40 minutes of collection. The yield for 221Fr approached 50% while that for 213Bi approached 99%. It was found that the activity of 221Fr on the collector plate could be calculated by multiplying the chain decay equation by a geometry correction factor of the form: f= 0.5(1 - cosΘ) where Θ = tan-1(R/d) and R = the radius of the collector and d is the distance between the plates. If secular equilibrium is assumed, then the equation reduces to simply: AFR = AAc*f- The collection of the recoil atoms of 221Fr and 213Bi in an electrostatic field has been shown an effective and efficient means of their separation from 225Ac

Keys of the Kingdom of the Mind

Mens Regum Bona Possidet, said Seneca, a Roman Phil­osopher of nineteen hundred years ago. Translated into English, this is what he said: A good mind possesses a kingdom. A sim­ilar sentiment was expressed by Francis Quarles, an English poet of three hundred years ago: My mind\u27s my kingdom

Experimental gas-solid reaction kinetics of lime sulfation

The kinetics of the reaction between SO(,2) and calcium oxide were studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). A thin layer of reagent grade Ca(OH)(,2) was deposited on quartz plates, calcined to form CaO, and then sulfated to obtain kinetic data under chemical reaction control. Reaction rate constants were determined directly from the initial rate data. Pellets pressed from Ca(OH)(,2) powder were calcined and sulfated to study the effects of diffusonal resistance on the overall reaction;Results from the TGA confirmed that sulfation of CaO produces different products at different reaction conditions. In the presence of oxygen, above 740(DEGREES)C, the product is all CaSO(,4) and the reaction is first order in SO(,2) concentration. At 836(DEGREES)C, the reaction rate constant was calculated to be 0.076 cm/sec with an activation energy of 19.1 kcal/mole. Below 450(DEGREES)C, the major product is CaSO(,3) and the reaction is zero order. The zero order reaction rate constant at 450(DEGREES)C was calculated to be 4.2 x 10(\u27-8) cm/sec with an activation energy of 15.4 kcal/mole;The grains of CaO obtained by calcining Ca(OH)(,2) were found to contain micropores, with a large number of them around 22 (ANGSTROM) in radius. The effect of sintering and sulfation on the micropores was studied using mercury porosimetry. The solid-state diffusivity was measured by using two simple diffusion models and rate data from the reaction of highly sintered CaO. At 932(DEGREES)C, the solid-state diffusivity was found to be 40 x 10(\u27-8) cm(\u272)/sec with an activation energy of 35.6 kcal/mole;Reaction measurements made on CaO pellets, sintered and unsintered, showed that the temperature for maximum conversion increased with either increasing initial porosity or increasing initial grain size. A one-dimensional expanding grain model was developed and applied to the lime pellet sulfation data. The model fit the data from highly sintered pellets quite well, but it generally did less well as pellet presintering time decreased. The inclusion of a grain size distribution in the model was found to be less important than improving the estimates of the average grain size and the diffusion coefficients. In addition, the effect of temperature changes during reaction was measured experimentally and explained by the model

Studies of Arundinaria: Experimental Induction of Flowering and Additional Observation in the Field

Arundinaria has been observed for three successive seasons at a site near Amity, Arkansas. In advance of the 1971 flowering period rhizomes were taken from the field, pruned, and placed either in an environmental chamber or in the greenhouse in water or in sandy soil. Flowering occurred under each condition, but was most rapid and profuse in transplants growing in sandy soil in the greenhouse. Observations point to the possibility of induction of flowering or to the possible existence of an annually flowering race. Possible economic uses are considered

Interoperability enhancement of IoT devices using open web standards in a smart farming use case

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial TechnologiesSince its rst appearance the Internet of Things has been subject to constant evolution, development and change. Now it has stepped out of its infancy with billions of devices embedded in the world wide web. However, IoT providers mostly de ne their own data formats and protocols and there is still a lack of a common standard that connects these devices in an interoperable manner. There are several organisations dedicated to developing common standards for IoT devices and research is focusing on de ning an e ective standard to be used by embedded devices. Unsurprisingly, IoT has also found its way into the spatial web and into environmental monitoring and sensing platforms connected over the web by wireless sensor networks are now a common way to monitor natural phenomena. This study compares three open Web Standards in the use case of SEnviro for Agriculture, a full stack IoT for monitoring vineyards. The interoperability potential of the OGC's Sensor Observation Service and SensorThings API are evaluated by integrating Web Standard implementations for each standard and contrasting their qualitative and quantitative traits. In a further step the Mozilla Corporation's Web Thing API was implemented and evaluated in an environmental monitoring and Smart Farming context. The results of the study show that the SensorThings API proves to be the most adequate Web Standard for SEnviro and IoT applications for environmental monitoring and Smart Farming in terms of interoperability. It outperforms the contesting Web Standards in terms of exibility and scalability, which strongly impacts on developer and user experience