16144 research outputs found
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Noble Knight or Menacing Pirate? Sir Francis Drake and His Controversial Reputation
No full textTo compete with Spain’s flourishing fortune in an empire stretching across the globe, nations in Europe, most notably England, turned to employing skilled naval men in legal piracy. These jealous leaders recruited skilled seaman to captain armed ships and attack enemy merchant shipping. The warm waters of the Caribbean off the coast of the New World teemed with treasure and the potential to make ordinary men into legends. This was the case of Sir Francis Drake, one of the most famous privateers to have sailed the seven seas. During the last half of the sixteenth century, Sir Francis Drake plundered numerous Spanish port towns, pillaged countless ships, and became the first man to circumnavigate the globe and return alive. Described as daring, greedy, patriotic, savage, and heroic, Drake has perplexed contemporaries and historians alike as to the true nature of his character and his motives. Over the last 419 years, Drake’s historical image has continued to evolve and undergo revision. This project sought to explore the man behind the myth and to reanalyze the character and existence of a bygone figure as the progression of time can lead to historical misinterpretation. An analysis of primary sources led to the conclusion that Sir Francis Drake earned an unwarranted portrayal as a devilish pirate due to his audacious personality and the nature of his exploits as a privateer. However, his reputation as the heroic knight of English legend was limited by his self-seeking motives and vengeful behavior
Portuñol: Portuguese-Spanish Contact in Uruguay
No full textIn the same way that our daily encounters with one another influence us over time, languages in contact contribute to the ever-changing languages that reflect us as people. The border between southern Brazil and northern Uruguay demonstrates this idea through widespread bilingualism and the combination of Portuguese and Spanish, commonly referred to as Portuñol. History, geography, economic motives, and social and national identity affect the use and perception of Portuñol in both countries. Linguistically, despite the fact that Portuguese and Spanish share many lexical and syntactic similarities, the phonological differences are notable. It is debated as to whether these two languages in contact create a new language, or merely a Hispanicized dialect of Portuguese. The history, shared border, and linguistic similarities have contributed to a present and controversial Portuñol in southern Brazil and northern Uruguay
Preparing for Harvesting Rare Isotopes at FRIB: Production and Separation of Vanadium-48
No full textThe Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) will be a new national user facility for nuclear science. FRIB will generate many long-lived radioisotopes, by-products of heavy-ion fragmentation, not currently available or for which no reliable source exists. These isotopes could be synergistically harvested without interference to the primary user. Potential applications of these isotopes include nuclear medicine, stockpile stewardship, and environmental tracers. One radioisotope, 48V, was selected from a list of priority isotopes with potential to be harvested at FRIB. 48V (t1/2=16 days) is of interest as a positron emission tomography (PET) isotope and radiotracer. The National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory (NSCL) located at Michigan State University was chosen as the experimental site for its ability to best simulate conditions at FRIB for production and collection of 48V. In preparation for an experiment at the NSCL in the fall of 2016, a successful separation method was developed at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Washington University was an ideal location because they have an on-site low-energy cyclotron and the facilities to work with radioisotopes. 48V was successfully separated from all potential metal contaminants (with the exception of silicon) by Cation-Exchange Chromatography with a conditioned DOWEX 50W-X8 100-200 Mesh resin. More than 90% of the 48V could be eluted with 10 mL of 0.01 M sulfuric acid containing 1% H2O2. Silicon also partially elutes in this 10 mL fraction while the rest of the metals can be removed from the column using a stronger acid, such as 6 M HCl. Further research is being done to optimize 48V separation and to investigate the silicon contamination
Teachers and Children Together, Better Prepared to Teach and Learn: The Impact of the 2015 Summer Enrichment Program
No full textThe present study collected anonymous data, using questionnaires, from Hope students and parents of child attendees to the Summer Enrichment Program (SEP). The 2014 and 2015 SEP sessions were funded by a PNC Bank Grow Up Great grant. The 2015 SEP incorporated changes in response to data collected during the 2014 SEP. The 2015 SEP included eight Hope Early Childhood Education (ECE) students. Hope students planned, implemented and assessed developmentally appropriate activities to meet the needs of a diverse group of 3- to 5-year-old children, with the support of the Director of the ECE program. Recruitment for the SEP intentionally targeted children who attend local Head Start and Great Start to Readiness programs, in order to insure diversity and include children who typically would not have educational/enrichment opportunities during the summer. The program benefitted Hope student teachers by providing the opportunity for them to apply what they learned through ECE coursework and the opportunity to participate in a co-investigation with faculty. The program benefitted child attendees and their families by providing opportunities for children to interact with well-qualified educators, experience low student-teacher ratios and participate in developmentally appropriate activities. Questionnaire responses included quantitative data from responses to a Likert scale and qualitative data drawn from responses to follow-up, open-ended questions. Responses from Hope students and parents were overwhelmingly positive. Preliminary qualitative data analysis was focused by question and analyzed across all respondents to identify consistencies and differences. Major themes from Hope student questionnaires included that they benefitted from the real-world experience. Students specifically identified benefits from guiding children, planning lessons, differentiating instruction and interacting with families. Major themes from parent questionnaires included that their children made academic progress in areas including writing, reading, math, language and creative arts. Several parents reported the SEP experience supported their children’s school readiness
The Durational Effect of Self-Myofascial Release Using a Foam Roller on Range of Motion and Flexibility
No full textResearch has demonstrated that foam rolling is effective at improving lower extremity flexibility and range of motion in the short term. However, there is limited research on the use of foam rolling and the lasting effects on the upper body. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the durational effect of foam rolling compared to two different acute warm-up conditions on upper body flexibility and range of motion. Approximately 30 insufficiently active college students, (18 to 22 years), were recruited for this study. Participants were randomly assigned their testing condition order and served as their own control. Participants underwent a familiarization session prior to beginning the study. All sessions were separated by one week. The warm-up conditions included static stretching, foam rolling, and arm cycling. Each condition lasted 2.5 minutes. Following the condition, the participants’ flexibility and range of motion was assessed via sit-and-reach, latissimus dorsi flexion, and shoulder extension tests. These tests were administered at various time points (10, 20, 30 minutes) following the warm-up. During the 10-minute time periods in between tests, the participants remained inactive and were seated at a computer. They were also asked to report their level of physical relaxation on a visual analogue scale. Significant improvements in flexibility and range of motion over time would suggest that foam rolling could be a more viable option to increase flexibility, range of motion, and overall comfort among sedentary individuals. These findings could provide a novel method of improving quality of life among individuals who spend many hours at a computer. This study is ongoing, and results will be available during the poster celebration
The Physiology of Positivity: Implications of Mindfulness, Hope, and Gratitude in Alleviating Worry
No full textPeople experience worry in a variety of intensities throughout daily life. Although a moderate amount of worry is associated with improved performance in certain activities, studies have shown that long-term worry, such as generalized anxiety disorder, leads to decreased quality of life and has a negative impact on human flourishing (Porensky, Dew, & Karp, 2009). Worries may be expressed over past, present, or future events. Previous research supports the induction of time-oriented, positive constructs as treatments for worry (Cheng, Tsui, & Lam, 2015; Delgado, Guerra, Perakakis, Vera, Paso & Vila, 2010; Sears & Kraus, 2009). Therefore, we are investigating gratitude, mindfulness, and hope as three coping strategies used to attenuate the physiological symptoms of worry. Subjects (N=91) participated in mental imagery exercises with short inductions of worry, followed by immediate worry ratings. Then, a coping strategy is introduced, briefly implemented, and worry is rated once more. Physiology (heart rate, cardiac impedance, heart rate variability, blood pressure, skin conductance as well as trapezius and facial electromyography) is monitored during both worry and coping intervention (gratitude, mindfulness, and hope). We hypothesize that the brief inductions of gratitude, mindfulness, and hope will mitigate some of the physiological responses to worry. Of these inductions, we expect mindfulness will be most effective in its reduction of the physiological changes resulting from worry. In previous studies, mindfulness was found to be successful in the treatment of worry (Tacon, McComb, Caldera et. al., 2003). The outcomes of this study will determine the overall effectiveness of coping mechanisms (gratitude, mindfulness, and hope) in managing the physiological consequences of worry. Implications of this study include possible use in clinical settings, personal use in high worriers, and an increase in the general understanding of how worry impacts the various processes essential to normative bodily functions
Unlocking Literacy: Key Strategies for ELLs with Disabilities
No full textThe percentage of English language learners (ELLs) in American schools continues to boom. Although the population of students continues to shift in our nation, schools are not changing rapidly enough to keep up with the changing demographics. Research reports that approximately 56 percent of ELLs who receive special education services have reading deficits (Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Offices of English Language Acquisition, & National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, 2003). It is necessary to identify reading interventions that are effective in helping ELLs with disabilities and ELLs at risk for disabilities to improve in their reading abilities. The purpose of this current study was to conduct a meta-analytic review of the literature to identify interventions that were successful in teaching reading to at-risk ELLs and ELLs with disabilities. The findings of the meta-analysis revealed that the majority of research has centered on reading instruction at the primary and elementary level, and few studies address the needs of older, at-risk readers. The interventions with the highest effects focused on teaching basic reading skills such as phonemic awareness and phonological awareness, and fewer studies addressed reading comprehension. There is a need for more research on interventions that teach reading skills to ELLs with disabilities
Does H202 Regulate the Ubiquitination of System Xc-
No full textThe cystine/glutamate exchanger, System xc-, plays a critical role in maintaining oxidative balance and regulating extracellular glutamate levels in the brain. Dysregulation of the transporter can be disastrous, leading to excitotoxic cell death or the development of oxidative stress, processes which are the hallmark of most neurodegenerative diseases. Unfortunately, little is known about the factors which acutely regulate System xc- activity. We recently demonstrated that oxidants acutely upregulate System xc- activity by triggering the rapid redistribution of the transporter from intracellular compartments to the cell surface. Our current work suggests that the trafficking of the transporter may be regulated by ubiquitination and that oxidant exposure directly influences the ubiquitination of the transporter. Specifically, we hypothesize that oxidant exposure leads to a reduction in ubiquitination of the transporter, slowing the internalization of the transporter from the plasma membrane. Therefore, we are testing this hypothesis directly by transfecting Cos-7 cells with a myc-tagged xCT (the primary component of the System xc- transporter) and histidine-tagged ubiquitin. These cells are then exposed to oxidants or vehicle. Ubiquitinated proteins are purified on a nickle-column and the presence of xCT is detected by western blot analysis. When completed, this project will allow us to better understand the role that ubiquitination plays in the trafficking of System xc-
Case Studies of Students\u27 Experiences in a Project-Based Learning Environment
No full textStudents’ lack of motivation for school is a concern in K12 education. Almost 50% of dropouts list lack of interest as one of their primary reasons for leaving school (Bridgeland, Dilulio, & Morison, 2006). In response, some programs have been developed in recent years to engage students in authentic learning. STREAM is an innovative middle school program in western Michigan that uses the outdoors and projectbased learning to engage and educate students in science, technology, reading, engineering, art and mathematics. Using crosscase comparisons and survey data, this study investigated students’ attitudes about the program. Quantitative survey data were collected from 57 students, and 19 students participated in semistructured interviews. Overall, the majority of students from the sample had positive attitudes toward the program. Cross-case comparisons revealed that students had positive attitudes about the program for different reasons, and specific aspects of the program affected student attitudes differently
Assessing Course-Based Research Experiences in Hope College Biology Courses
No full textWhile literature indicates authentic research experiences benefit undergraduates, many students do not get the opportunity to participate in small-group research experiences with mentor professors. In an effort to provide more students with these opportunities, course-based research experiences (CREs) were designed to integrate research into whole class settings. CREs allow students to gain research exposure that prepares them for graduate programs and future careers in science. CREs also serve as transitions from traditional “cookie cutter labs” to real research experiences increasing students’ laboratory and cognitive skills. This study analyzed the outcomes of CREs for students in Biology 107 (introductory course) and Biology 301 (microbiology) at Hope College. Using grounded theory methodology (Strauss & Corbin, 1990), researchers analyzed pre-post interviews and focus group transcripts of students enrolled in both courses. During interviews, students were asked about their ideas on the nature of science, how scientific research is conducted, and the criteria for authentic research. Matrix analysis (Miles, Huberman, & Saldaña, 2014) was used to investigate the differences and similarities within and between students in the two courses. Our findings revealed that student ideas about research and science did change slightly from the beginning to the end of each course. In addition, differences were noted in how students in the two courses viewed science and scientific research. These results will inform future efforts to refine the CREs at Hope College to be more authentic and beneficial for students