Digital Commons Network^™

Mathematics As Thinking. A Response To “Democracy And School Math”, Kasi C. Allen

Democracy & Education

Math education in the United States remains resistant to systemic change, and our country pays the price. Stemhagen's article "Democracy and School Math" further confirms this trend. Despite repeated calls for reform, decades of research on how people learn, millions of dollars invested in teacher professional development, and years of politicized debate, the math wars rage on—between those who believe students have the capacity to construct their own mathematical ideas and others who insist mastery of the traditional canon must come first. Meanwhile, algebra failure among secondary students remains rampant and elementary education majors report the greatest rates of math …

Accountability To Whom? Testing And Social Justice. A Response To "Imagining No Child Left Behind Freed From Neoliberal Hijackers", David W. Kritt

Democracy & Education

In response to Eugene Matusov’s article in this journal, Kritt addresses assumptions of the large-scale testing central to NCLB. Discussion of studies of urban kindergarten children that examine cognitive variability, including the assertion of ability, focuses on how this affects the student as a learner, as well as as a teacher. In contrast, Matusov questions root assumptions of schooling, casting engagement in socially valued activities as an issue of human rights. This view is criticized as overly socialized. It is argued that surface-level functioning in a cultural context is not sufficient for full participation in a democracy.

Race To The Top: An Example Of Belief-Dependent Reality. A Response To "Race To The Top Leaves Children And Future Citizens Behind", William J. Mathis

Democracy & Education

Although the federal government claims otherwise, Race to the Top is not research based. Rather, its foundation is in ideology and belief-based realism. The overall effort is fundamentally antiscientific and distracts valuable and needed attention, resources, and focus from the nation's real problems of social, economic, and educational deprivation.

Democracy And School Math: Teacher Belief-Practice Tensions And The Problem Of Empirical Research On Educational Aims, Kurt Stemhagen

Democracy & Education

This article describes an empirical project that studied fourth-through-eighth-grade math teachers’ beliefs about teaching and learning and about the role of teaching and learning in broader society. Specifically, it examined relationships between teachers’ reported beliefs and their use of transmittal, constructivist, and democratic classroom practices. The article concludes with consideration about the difficulties inherent in attempting to use empirical research to study our broad educational aims, particularly our democratic ones.

Imagining No Child Left Behind Freed From Neoliberal Hijackers, Eugene Matusov

Democracy & Education

As a sociocultural educator and scholar, I have always been ambivalent about No Child Left Behind's slogan. I like its democratic ideal of “education without failure,” but I do not like the current educational policies guided by a neoliberal ideology. This article begins a discussion about what a No Student Left Behind educational practice might look like from a sociocultural democratic education perspective.

Race To The Top Leaves Children And Future Citizens Behind: The Devastating Effects Of Centralization, Standardization, And High Stakes Accountability, Joe Onosko

Democracy & Education

President Barack Obama’s Race to the Top (RTT) is a profoundly flawed educational reform plan that increases standardization, centralization, and test-based accountability in our nation’s schools. Following a brief summary of the interest groups supporting the plan, who is currently participating in this race, why so many states voluntarily submitted proposals, and what features of the plan that are most problematic, eight arguments are offered as to why RTT is highly detrimental to our nation.

Three-Dimensional Folding Of The Triangular Lattice, Mark Bowick, P Di Francesco, Oliver Golinelli, Emmanuel Guitter

Physics - All Scholarship

We study the folding of the regular triangular lattice in three dimensional embedding space, a model for the crumpling of polymerised membranes. We consider a discrete model, where folds are either planar or form the angles of a regular octahedron. These "octahedral" folding rules correspond simply to a discretisation of the 3d embedding space as a Face Centred Cubic lattice. The model is shown to be equivalent to a 96--vertex model on the triangular lattice. The folding entropy per triangle ${\rm ln} q_{3d}$ is evaluated numerically to be $q_{3d}=1.43(1)$. Various exact bounds on $q_{3d}$ are derived.

Search For Lepton-Number Violating Processes In B+ -> H- L+ L+ Decays, Raymond Mountain, Marina Artuso, S. Blusk, Alessandra Borgia

Physics - All Scholarship

A search is performed for the lepton number violating decay B^{+}\rightarrow h^- \mu^+ \mu^+, where h^- represents a K^- or a \pi^-, using data from the LHCb detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36pb^{-1}. The decay is forbidden in the Standard Model but allowed in models with a Majorana neutrino. No signal is observed in either channel and limits of B(B^{+} \rightarrow K^- \mu^+ \mu^+) < 5.4\times 10^{-8} and B(B^{+} \rightarrow \pi^- \mu^+ \mu^+) < 5.8\times 10^{-8} are set at the 95% confidence level. These improve the previous best limits by factors of 40 and 30, respectively.

$22.9 Million Renovation Project Begins At Gsu, Office Of Public Affairs

E & F Building Renovation

No abstract provided.

$22.9 Million Renovation Project Begins At Gsu, Office Of Public Affairs

Press Releases

Governors State University will kick off a new era in science education on October 18 with the groundbreaking ceremony celebrating the start of the renovation of the university’s science facilities. Government, business, and community leaders will join university administrators, students, faculty, and staff at 10:30 a.m., in the F building atrium to mark the beginning of this long-awaited project.

The $22.6 million, three year renovation project will create state-of-the-art education facilities while providing more than 130 construction jobs. In addition to the positive impact the renovation project will have on the region’s economy, the building renovation will better equip GSU …

Diversity Week 2011 - From Combat To Classroom—Students Who Serve, Multicultural Center

Multicultural Student Services Center

From Combat to Classroom—Students Who Serve.

Christine Dolan, Education Specialist II, Education; Nancy Kelley, Assistant Dean, College of Human Science and Services; and Daniel Ustick, Advisor, Career Services. Accustomed to a strict, rule-bound system, student veterans face unusual challenges in their transition from the rigorous regimen of a soldier to the more self-directed environment of a college student. The transition to college is often complicated when student veterans have experienced the trauma of war, or acculturation to another country. In this workshop, a panel of student veterans discusses the challenges faced when re-integrating themselves into civilian and campus life. …

Diversity Week 2011 - The Lgbt Community In The Workplace: Status Of Legal And Organizational Policies, Joseph A. Santiago, Multicultural Center

Multicultural Student Services Center

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Community in the Workplace: The Current Status of Legal and Organizational Policies. Atty. Martha Holt, Privacy and Security Officer, Blue Cross and Blue Shield; Bryan Schneidmuller, Manager, Human Resources, Raytheon; and Joe Santiago, Coordinator, LGBT Programs and Services. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT) face many challenges in having their sexual orientation respected in the workplace. Although President Bill Clinton, in 1998, issued Executive Order 13087, prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation for most civilian workers in the federal legislation, protecting LGBT workers has not been successfully enacted by the U.S. Congress. The …

Insight Into Volatile Behavior At Nyamuragira Volcano (D.R. Congo, Africa) Through Olivine-Hosted Melt Inclusions, Elisabet M. Head, Alison M. Shaw, Paul J. Wallace, Kenneth W. W. Sims, Simon A. Carn

Faculty Research and Creative Activity

[1] We present new olivine-hosted melt inclusion volatile (H20, C02, S, Cl, F) and major element data from five historic eruptions ofNyamuragira volcano (1912, 1938, 1948, 1986, 2006). Host-olivine Mg#'s range from 71 to 84, with the exception of the 1912 sample (Mg# = 90}.lnclusion compositions extend from alkali basalts to basanite-tephritcs. Our results indicate inclusion entrapment over depths ranging from 3 to 5 km, which agree with independent estimates of magma storage depths (3-7 km) based on geophysical methods. Melt compositions derived from the 1986 and 2006 Nyamuragira tephra samples best represent pre-eruptive volatile compositions because these samples contain …

Florida Sentinel Bulletin, October 4, 2011, Gwen Hayes

Florida Sentinel Bulletin Collection

The October 4, 2011, issue of the Florida Sentinel Bulletin.

Search For The Lepton Number Violating Decays B+ → Π- Μ+Μ+ And B+→ K-Μ+ Μ+, Raymond Mountain, Marina Artuso, S. Blusk, Alessandra Borgia

Physics - All Scholarship

A search is performed for the lepton number violating decay B^{+}\rightarrow h^- \mu^+ \mu^+, where h^- represents a K^- or a \pi^-, using data from the LHCb detector corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36pb^{-1}. The decay is forbidden in the Standard Model but allowed in models with a Majorana neutrino. No signal is observed in either channel and limits of B(B^{+} \rightarrow K^- \mu^+ \mu^+) < 5.4\times 10^{-8} and B(B^{+} \rightarrow \pi^- \mu^+ \mu^+) < 5.8\times 10^{-8} are set at the 95% confidence level. These improve the previous best limits by factors of 40 and 30, respectively.

The Sun Star, Vol. 31 No. 05 (October 04, 2011), N/A N/A

Sun Star

No abstract provided.

2011 October 4, Faculty Senate Minutes, State University Of New York At Cortland

Minutes

Faculty Senate Minutes No. 3, October 4, 2011

Approach To Accurately Measuring The Speed Of Optical Precursors, Chuan-Feng Li, Zong-Quan Zhou, Heejeong Jeong, Guang-Can Guo

Dartmouth Scholarship

Precursors can serve as a bound on the speed of information with dispersive medium. We propose a method to identify the speed of optical wavefronts using polarization-based interference in a solid-state device, which can bound the accuracy of the speed of wavefronts to less than 10−4 with conventional experimental conditions. Our proposal may have important implications for optical communications and fast information processing.

Substrate Binding Modulates The Activity Of Mycobacterium Smegmatis G, A Flavin-Dependent Monooxygenase Involved In The Biosynthesis Of Hydroxamate-Containing Siderophores, Reeder Robinson, Pablo Sobrado

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Mycobacterium smegmatis G (MbsG) is a flavin-dependent monooxygenase that catalyzes the NAD(P)H- and oxygen-dependent hydroxylation of the terminal amino group on the side chain of l-lysine in the biosynthetic pathway of the siderophore mycobactin. Mycobactins are essential for mycobacterium growth under iron-limiting conditions encountered during infection in mammals. Thus, enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of mycobactin represent potential drug targets. MbsG was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified using metal affinity and ionic exchange chromatographies. Recombinant MbsG represents the first member of this class of enzymes isolated in the active form, with a tightly bound FAD cofactor. The k cat …

Polycyclic Aromatic Compounds As Anticancer Agents: Evaluation Of Synthesis And In Vitro Cytotoxicity, Debasish Bandyopadhyay, Jose C. Granados, John D. Short, Bimal K. Banik

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

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are considered to be significant environmental carcinogens. Additionally, various planar ring systems are capable of intercalating with DNA, leading to a number of drugs that possess chemotherapeutic activity. In this study, three new polyaromatic compounds with a side chain were synthesized, and spectroscopic as well as elemental analyses were performed. The addition of the long chains to either chrysene or pyrene caused a red-shift in the spectral emission when compared to the corresponding polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons itself. Furthermore, the cytotoxicity of the three novel polyaromatic compounds was evaluated in vitro in a panel of cultured mammalian …

Study Of Tau-Pair Production At Hera, Aharon Levy, H. Abramowicz, L. Adamczyk, M. Adamus, R. Aggarwal, S. Antonelli, P. Antonioli, A. Antonov, M. Arneodo, V. Aushev, Y. Aushev, O. Bachynska, A. Bamberger, A. N. Barakbaev, G. Barbagli, G. Bari, F. Barreiro, N. Bartosik, D. Bartsch, M. Basile, O. Behnke, J. Behr, U. Behrens, L. Bellagamba, A. Bertolin, S. Bhadra, M. Bindi, C. Blohm, V. Bokhonov, T. Bold, O. Bolilyi, Margarita C. K. Mattingly

Faculty Publications

A study of events containing two tau leptons with high transverse momentum has been performed with the ZEUS detector at HERA, using a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 0.33 fb-1. The tau candidates were identified from their decays into electrons, muons or hadronic jets. The number of tau-pair candidates has been compared with the prediction from the Standard Model, where the largest contribution is expected from Bethe-Heitler processes. The total visible cross section was extracted. Standard Model expectations agree well with the measured distributions, also at high invariant mass of the tau pair.

Gsu View, 2011-10-03, Office Of Public Affairs

GSU View

Newsletter published by Governors State University 2007-current.

Characteristics Of Optimal Solutions To The Sensor Location Problem, David R. Morrison '08, Susan E. Martonosi

All HMC Faculty Publications and Research

In Bianco et al. (2001), the authors present the Sensor Location Problem: that of locating the minimum number of traffic sensors at intersections of a road network such that the traffic ow on the entire network can be determined. They offer a necessary and sufficient condition on the set of monitored nodes in order for the ow everywhere to be determined. In this paper, we present a counterexample that demonstrates that the condition is not actually sufficient (though it is still necessary). We present a stronger necessary condition for ow calculability, and show that it is a sufficient condition in …

Spartan Daily October 3, 2011, San Jose State University, School Of Journalism And Mass Communications

Spartan Daily (School of Journalism and Mass Communications)

Volume 137, Issue 19

Current, October 03, 2011, University Of Missouri-St. Louis

Current (2010s)

No abstract provided.

Grand Valley Forum, Volume 036, Number 06, October 3, 2011, Grand Valley State University

2011-2012, Volume 36

Grand Valley Forum is Grand Valley State's faculty and staff newsletter, published from 1976 to the present.

The Insider Threat, Jacinda L. Wunderlich

Regis University Student Publications (comprehensive collection)

The Insider threat is defined similarly by experts in the information technology world for businesses, but addressing the threat has not been of great focus for most organizations. Technology and the Internet have grown exponentially over the past decade leading to changes in how business is conducted. Some basic business practices remain the same; protect the organization and its customers from breach of privacy. How data is gathered, stored, and retrieved has changed. Protecting the perimeter is still important, but these changes in technology now open the doors to a new threat; one that is known but not commonly protected …

Medicine Of The Future Facilitated By Dr. Michio Kaku, Multicultural Center

Multicultural Student Services Center

Dr. Michio Kaku, Henry Semat Professor, Theoretical Physics, City University of New York. During the 21st century, dramatic advances in science and technology will expand the capacity of health care to extend the human life span and improve the medical quality of life. Genomic medicine will enable physicians of the future to apply computer algorithms in organizing and analyzing genomic data to predict susceptibility to disease. Regenerative medicine will utilize stem cells to facilitate the repair, replacement, and re-growth of aging, damaged, or diseased organs, such as the heart, liver, lungs, pancreas, bladder, and ovaries, in patients suffering from cardiovascular …

Breeding Ecology Of The Pileated Woodpecker, Brandon Lennon Noel

Student Theses and Dissertations

The purported rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge in 2004 was a monumental moment in conservation biology. Although controversy surrounds this and other sightings of ivory-billed woodpeckers within bottomland hardwood forests, the rediscovery of a species thought to have gone extinct revitalized optimism focused on its conservation. What knowledge we possess about ivory-billed woodpeckers comes from research done by James Tanner in the 1930s and his data are pseudo-replicated from just a few pairs. Tanner suggested that sweetgum-oak forest cover types were better quality habitats for ivory-billed woodpeckers and other woodpecker species …

Melting Of Major Glaciers In Himalayas: Role Of Desert Dust And Anthropogenic Aerosols, Anup K. Prasad, Hesham El-Askary, Ghassem R. Asrar, Menas Kafatos, Ashok Jaswal

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Books and Book Chapters

The Himalayan and Tibet Glaciers, that are among the largest bodies of ice and fresh water resource outside of the polar ice caps, face a significant threat of accelerated meltdown in coming decades due to climate variability and change. The rate of retreat of these glaciers and changes in their terminus (frontal dynamics) is highly variable across the Himalayan range. These large freshwater sources are critical to human activities for food production, human consumption and a whole host of other applications, especially over the Indo-Gangetic (IG) plains. They are also situated in a geo-politically sensitive area surrounded by China, India, …