Digital Commons Network^™

A Study Of Doubling Class Time For Low Achieving High School English And Math Students And The Impact On State Tests Required Under Nclb, Richard J. Ney

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The re-authorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 2002, commonly known as the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), increased the accountability of public schools throughout the United States, holding them individually responsible for the education levels attained by their students as measured by high stakes tests developed and administered at the state level. Administrators responded by developing programs targeted at increasing students' test scores. One program considered by administrators is the doubling of class time in math and English for students that are at risk of not succeeding. This study analyzes the viability of such a program …

Cardiomyocyte-Derived Adiponectin Is Biologically Active In Protecting Against Myocardial Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury., Yajing Wang, Wayne Bond Lau, Erhe Gao, Ling Tao, Yuexing Yuan, Rong Li, Xiaoliang Wang, Walter J. Koch, Xin-Liang Ma

Department of Emergency Medicine Faculty Papers

Adiponectin (APN) has traditionally been viewed as an adipocyte-specific endocrine molecule with cardioprotective effects. Recent studies suggest that APN is also expressed in cardiomyocytes. However, biological significances of this locally produced APN remain completely unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the pathological and pharmacological significance of cardiac-derived APN in cardiomyocyte pathology. Adult cardiomyocytes from wild-type littermates (WT) or gene-deficient mice were pretreated with vehicle (V) or rosiglitazone (RSG) for 6 h followed by simulated ischemia-reperfusion (SI/R, 3 h/12 h). Compared with WT cardiomyocytes, myocytes from APN knockout (APN-KO) mice sustained greater SI/R injury, evidenced by greater oxidative/nitrative …

Quasispecies-Like Behavior Observed In Catalytic Rna Populations Evolving In A Test Tube, Carolina Diaz Arenas, Niles Lehman

Chemistry Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: During the RNA World, molecular populations were probably very small and highly susceptible to the force of strong random drift. In conjunction with Muller's Ratchet, this would have imposed difficulties for the preservation of the genetic information and the survival of the populations. Mechanisms that allowed these nascent populations to overcome this problem must have been advantageous.

Results: Using continuous in vitro evolution experimentation with an increased mutation rate imposed by MnCl2, it was found that clonal 100-molecule populations of ribozymes clearly exhibit certain characteristics of a quasispecies. This is the first time this has been seen …

Transgenic Rat Model Of Neurodegeneration Caused By Mutation In The Tdp Gene., Hongxia Zhou, Cao Huang, Han Chen, Dian Wang, Carlisle P Landel, Pedro Yuxing Xia, Robert Bowser, Yong-Jian Liu, Xu Gang Xia

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

TDP-43 proteinopathies have been observed in a wide range of neurodegenerative diseases. Mutations in the gene encoding TDP-43 (i.e., TDP) have been identified in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and in frontotemporal lobe degeneration associated with motor neuron disease. To study the consequences of TDP mutation in an intact system, we created transgenic rats expressing normal human TDP or a mutant form of human TDP with a M337V substitution. Overexpression of mutant, but not normal, TDP caused widespread neurodegeneration that predominantly affected the motor system. TDP mutation reproduced ALS phenotypes in transgenic rats, as seen by progressive degeneration of motor neurons …

Bioarchaeological Analysis Of Historic Kormantse, Ghana, William C. Schaffer, E. Kofi Agorsah

Black Studies Faculty Publications and Presentations

Human skeletal remains associated with 17th century artifacts were recovered during the latest excavations at Kormantse, Central Region, Ghana. The following is a preliminary bioarchaeological analysis, and in particular, it concerns data pertinent to demographics, dental and skeletal health, and human behavior extracted from the population sample. All three study areas of the site contain evidence of at least seven individuals and as many as nine. In Study Area 1 at least two adult individuals are represented from leg bones within this feature or area. One may have been a female with a body mass of 59.0 kg. Two teeth …

Conserving Migratory Land Birds In The New World: Do We Know Enough?, John Faaborg, Richard T. Holmes, Angela D. Anders, Keith L. Bildstein

Dartmouth Scholarship

Migratory bird needs must be met during four phases of the year: breeding season, fall migration, wintering, and spring migration; thus, management may be needed during all four phases. The bulk of research and management has focused on the breeding season, although several issues remain unsettled, including the spatial extent of habitat influences on fitness and the importance of habitat on the breeding grounds used after breeding. Although detailed investigations have shed light on the ecology and population dynamics of a few avian species, knowledge is sketchy for most species. Replication of comprehensive studies is needed for multiple species across …

Raps Sheet, March 2010, Retirement Association Of Portland State

RAPS Sheet: Monthly Newsletter

No abstract provided.

Reconstructability Analysis As A Tool For Identifying Gene-Gene Interactions In Studies Of Human Diseases, Stephen Shervais, Patricia L. Kramer, Shawn K. Westaway, Nancy J. Cox, Martin Zwick

Complex Systems Faculty Publications and Presentations

There are a number of common human diseases for which the genetic component may include an epistatic interaction of multiple genes. Detecting these interactions with standard statistical tools is difficult because there may be an interaction effect, but minimal or no main effect. Reconstructability analysis (RA) uses Shannon’s information theory to detect relationships between variables in categorical datasets. We applied RA to simulated data for five different models of gene-gene interaction, and find that even with heritability levels as low as 0.008, and with the inclusion of 50 non-associated genes in the dataset, we can identify the interacting gene pairs …

Forest Restoration In A Mixed-Ownership Landscape Under Climate Change, Catherine Ravenscroft, Robert M. Scheller, David J. Mladenoff, Mark A. White

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

The article presents a study regarding forest management associated with climate change. It mentions that preservation endeavors and restoration schemes should diminish current threats like unsuited forest management and development while integrating possible effects of climate change. It also stresses that an adaptive approach to management can be the most efficient strategy of forest restoration given the doubts of climate change impacts.

Multiharmonic Frequency Tracking Method Using The Sigma-Point Kalman Smoother, Sunghan Kim, Anindya S. Paul, Eric A. Wan, James Mcnames

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Several groups have proposed the state-space approach to tracking time-varying frequencies of multiharmonic quasiperiodic signals. The extended Kalman filter/smoother (EKF/EKS) is one of the common frequency tracking approaches seen in the literature. We introduce a multiharmonic frequency tracker based on the forward-backward statistical linearized Sigma-Point Kalman smoother (FBSL-SPKS) and compare its performance to that of the extended Kalman smoother (EKS). In all cases the FBSL-SPKS tracker outperformed the EKS tracker over a wide range of signal-to-noise (SNR) ratios. We also demonstrate its superior performance on real signals.

Mathimatics & Natural Sciences Website, Nader Green

Masters Theses & Doctoral Dissertations

In an environment like a university seekers of information are many. Most of which are students looking for material regarding their courses. This project uses Visual studio 2005 in addition to SQL Server 2005 to enable those information seekers to obtain it, easily and efficient.

Using Mathematics & Natural Sciences Department website will enable students to acquire information regarding core courses. In addition, each faculty member is able to modify his/her profile using database. This can be done using SQL Server to add, delete, modify own information on respective website.

Are Beaches' Suitability As Sand Crab Habitat Affected By Human Recreation?, Jessica H. Murph, Zen Faulkes

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

METHODS We compared the populations of sand crabs (Lepidopa benedicti, family Albuneidae) at two locations on the popular tourist destination South Padre Island: one which is reasonably developed, having many hotels and restaurants and one which is not so developed, at a more northern point on the island. At each site, 10 m transects were dug starting at the top of the swash zone (parallel to the surf). Each shovel of sand were carefully sifted. The carapace length, sex, color, and reproductive status of each sand crab found were recorded on site. Samples were collected regularly from August 2009 to …

Molecular Cloning And Characterization Of Cdnas Encoding Metalloproteinases From Snake Venom Glands, Ying Jia, John C. Perez

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

Snake venom metalloproteinases (SVMPs) are a superfamily of zinc-dependent proteases and participate in a number of important biological, physiological and pathophysiological processes. In this work, we simultaneously amplified 9 cDNAs encoding different classes of metalloproteinases from glands of four different snake species (Agkistrodon contortrix laticinctus, Crotalus atrox, Crotalus viridis viridis and Agkistrodon piscivorus leucostoma) by RT-PCR with a pair of primers. Among the encoded metalloproteinases, two enzymes (AclVMP-I and AplVMP-I), three enzymes (CaVMP-II, CvvVMP-II and AplVMP-II) and four enzymes (AclVMP-III, CaVMP-III, CvvVMP-III and AplVMP-III) …

Septo-Hippocampal Networks In Chronic Epilepsy, Antonio García-Hernández, Brian H. Bland, Julio Facelli, Luis V. Colom

Health & Biomedical Sciences Faculty Publications

The medial septum inhibits the appearance of interictal spikes and seizures through theta rhythm generation. We have determined that medial septal neurons increase their firing rates during chronic epilepsy and that the GABAergic neurons from both medial and lateral septal regions are highly and selectively vulnerable to the epilepsy process. Since the lateral septal region receives a strong projection from the hippocampus and its neurons are vulnerable to epilepsy, their functional properties are probably altered by this disorder. Using the pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy we examined the pilocarpine-induced functional alterations of lateral septal neurons and provided additional observations …

Missouri S&T Magazine Spring 2010, Missouri S&T Marketing And Communications Department, Miner Alumni Association

Missouri S&T Magazine

No abstract provided.

Where Are We Now? Statistics On Capstone Courses Nationwide, Susannah Howe

Engineering: Faculty Publications

Capstone design courses are an increasingly common component of engineering curricula nationwide, but how much do we really know about the current practices? How do capstone courses differ across departments and institutions? How have capstone courses changed in the past 10 years? This paper highlights data from a survey of engineering capstone design courses conducted in 2005, based on responses from 444 programs at 232 institutions. Particular focus areas include respondent profile, course/project logistics, faculty involvement, funding details, industry sponsorship, and success. The 2005 data are also compared with results from the comparable survey by Todd and Magleby et al. …

Documentation, Documentary, And The Law: What Should Be Made Of Victim Impact Videos?, Regina Austin

Cardozo Law Review

No abstract provided.

Foraging-Related Activity Of Bald Eagles At A Washington Seabird Colony And Seal Rookery, James L. Hayward, Joseph G. Galusha, Shandelle M. Henson

Faculty Publications

From 1980 to 1998, Washington's Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) population increased at an annual rate of 10. Over the same time period, foraging activity of Bald Eagles at marine bird breeding colonies also increased. From 1993 to 2008, we observed foraging-related behavior of Bald Eagles on Violet Point, Protection Island. This island hosts more than 70 of the breeding seabirds in Washington's inner seaways and serves as an important rookery for harbor seals (Phoca vitulina). We found that (1) eagles landed more frequently in seal haul-out (beach) areas than in gull-nesting (non-beach) areas of Violet Point, and that subadult eagles …

Night Operation, By Owen Barfield. Reviewed By Jason Fisher., Jason Fisher

Mythprint Book Reviews

Mythprint is the quarterly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society, a nonprofit educational organization devoted to the study, discussion, and enjoyment of myth and fantasy literature, especially the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams. To promote these interests, the Society publishes three magazines, maintains a World Wide Web site, and sponsors the annual Mythopoeic Conference and awards for fiction and scholarship, as well as local discussion groups.

Attributable Costs Of Surgical Site Infection And Endometritis After Low Transverse Cesarean Delivery, Margaret A. Olsen, Anne M. Butler, Denise M. Willers, Gilad A. Gross, Barton H. Hamilton, Victoria J. Fraser

Infectious Diseases Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Risk Factors For Endometritis After Low Transverse Cesarean Delivery, Margaret A. Olsen, Anne M. Butler, Denise M. Willers, Gilad A. Gross, Preetishma Devkota, Victoria J. Fraser

Infectious Diseases Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Selective Regulation Of Aromatase Expression For Drug Discovery, Robert W. Brueggemeier, Bin Su, Michael V. Darby, Yasuro Sugimoto

Chemistry Faculty Publications

Aromatase is a particularly attractive drug target in the treatment of hormone-responsive breast cancer, and aromatase activity in breast cancer patients is greater in or near the tumor tissue compared with the normal breast tissue. Complex regulation of aromatase expression in human tissues involves alternative promoter sites that provide tissue-specific control. Previous studies in our laboratories suggested a strong association between aromatase (CYP19) gene expression and the expression of cyclooxygenase (COX) genes. Additionally, COX selective inhibitors can suppress CYP19 gene expression and decrease aromatase activity. Our current hypothesis is that pharmacological regulation of aromatase can act locally to decrease the …

The Electrochemical Characteristics Of Cpo-Pll/Gc Electrode, Wen Zhao, Xia-Qin Wu, Zhong-Qing Lu, Wen-Jing Hou, He-Xing Li

Journal of Electrochemistry

Poly-L-lysine(PLL) was electropolymerized onto the surface of glassy carbon(GC) electrode.1[(3-dimethylamino)propyl]-3-ethylcarbodiimide hydrochloride(EDC) was used as a Cross-linking agent to immobilized Chloroperoxidase(CPO) onto the PLL/GC electrode.A pair of well-defined redox peaks was observed at CPO-PLL/GC electrode,which clearly suggested that PLL can promote the direct electron transfer between the CPO and the GC electrodes.The cyclic voltammetry results also showed that the electron transfer at CPO-PLL/GC is a surface adsorption-controlled quasi-reversible process,which is accompanied with proton transfer.The CPO-PLL/GC electrode exhibited a good electrochemical stability and excellently electrocatalytic activity for electrochemical reduction of O₂.

Electrochemistry Calendar, Editorial Office Of J.Electrochem.

Journal of Electrochemistry

No abstract provided.

The Synthesise Of Electron-Conducting Redox Hydrogel And Its Application In Microbial Fuel Cell, Kai-Peng Wang, Sheng-Li Chen

Journal of Electrochemistry

Efficient electron transfer between the microbe and the anode is key for the electricity generation in Microbial fuel cell(MFC).Through the modification of anode,the rate of electron transfer can be accelerated,therefore the performance of MFC can be enhanced.In this paper,we report the synthesis of a type of electronconducting and bio-compatible redox hydrogel and its application.The hydrogel consists of poly(4-vinylpyridine) as backbone and neutral red as the redox center.By immobiliazing neutral red on the backbone through covalent bond,the secondary contamination due to the soluble redox mediator to external environment can be prevented.MFCs using the hydrogel-modified carbon anode significantly exhibit shorter acclimation period,and …

Interview With Jacquin Dole, Riverside Farms, 2010 (Audio), Jacquin Dole

All Sustainability History Project Oral Histories

Interview of Jacquin Dole by Paul Hopper at Riverside Farm McMinnville, Oregon on February 28th, 2010.

The interview index is available for download.

40th Annual Wku Student Research Conference, Student Research Council, Western Kentucky University

Student Research Conference Select Presentations

No abstract provided.

Interview With Katy Kolker, Portland Fruit Tree Project, 2010 (Audio), Katy Kolker

All Sustainability History Project Oral Histories

Interview of Katy Kolker by Dan Stillinger in Portland, Oregon on February 27th, 2010.

The interview index is available for download.

The Daily Egyptian, February 26, 2010, Daily Egyptian Staff

February 2010

No abstract provided.

Variation In The Heat Shock Response And Its Implication For Predicting The Effect Of Global Climate Change On Species' Biogeographical Distribution Ranges And Metabolic Costs, Lars Tomanek

Biological Sciences

The preferential synthesis of heat shock proteins (Hsps) in response to thermal stress [the heat shock response (HSR)] has been shown to vary in species that occupy different thermal environments. A survey of case studies of aquatic (mostly marine) organisms occupying stable thermal environments at all latitudes, from polar to tropical, shows that they do not in general respond to heat stress with an inducible HSR. Organisms that occupy highly variable thermal environments (variations up to >20°C), like the intertidal zone, induce the HSR frequently and within the range of body temperatures they normally experience, suggesting that the response is …