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Contingency as a Barrier to Decolonial Engagement: Listening to Multilingual Writers
Get PDFBased on the concept of transformative listening by García (2017) that views listening as a form of decolonial work that must take place in writing centers, the article examines colonial thinking and contingency as toxic preexisting conditions of writing center ecology that hinder our ability to listen to marginalized multilingual voices. Recognizing the commonality between multilingualism and contingency, both as ignored marginalized intersecting identities in the hierarchy of the racialized and corporatized university system, the article describes the complexity of engaging contingent workers in decolonial work and listening. Further, it argues that contingency creates significant barriers to the type of antiracist and decolonial work that García calls for that cultivates transformative listening. The article proposes specific types of collaborative training and partnerships that writing centers should invest in to foster decolonial listening and work while addressing the material constraints faced by contingent faculty and staff
Determining Optimal Traffic Opening Time Through Concrete Strength Monitoring: Wireless Sensing
Get PDFConstruction and concrete production are time-sensitive and fast-paced; as such, it is crucial to monitor the in-place strength development of concrete structures in real-time. Existing concrete strength testing methods, such as the traditional hydraulic compression method specified by ASTM C 39 and the maturity method specified by ASTM C 1074, are labor-intensive, time consuming, and difficult to implement in the field. INDOT’s previous research (SPR-4210) on the electromechanical impedance (EMI) technique has established its feasibility for monitoring in-situ concrete strength to determine the optimal traffic opening time. However, limitations of the data acquisition and communication systems have significantly hindered the technology’s adoption for practical applications. Furthermore, the packaging of piezoelectric sensor needs to be improved to enable robust performance and better signal quality.
In this project, a wireless concrete sensor with a data transmission system was developed. It was comprised of an innovated EMI sensor and miniaturized datalogger with both wireless transmission and USB module. A cloud-based platform for data storage and computation was established, which provides the real time data visualization access to general users and data access to machine learning and data mining developers. Furthermore, field implementations were performed to prove the functionality of the innovated EMI sensor and wireless sensing system for real-time and in-place concrete strength monitoring. This project will benefit the DOTs in areas like construction, operation, and maintenance scheduling and asset management by delivering applicable concrete strength monitoring solutions
Transport of nitrite from large arteries modulates regional blood flow during stress and exercise
Get PDFBackground: Acute cardiovascular stress increases systemic wall shear stress (WSS)–a frictional force exerted by the flow of blood on vessel walls–which raises plasma nitrite concentration due to enhanced endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) activity. Upstream eNOS inhibition modulates distal perfusion, and autonomic stress increases both the consumption and vasodilatory effects of endogenous nitrite. Plasma nitrite maintains vascular homeostasis during exercise and disruption of nitrite bioavailability can lead to intermittent claudication. Hypothesis: During acute cardiovascular stress or strenuous exercise, we hypothesize enhanced production of nitric oxide (NO) by vascular endothelial cells raises nitrite concentrations in near-wall layers of flowing blood, resulting in cumulative NO concentrations in downstream arterioles sufficient for vasodilation. Confirmation and implications: Utilizing a multiscale model of nitrite transport in bifurcating arteries, we tested the hypothesis for femoral artery flow under resting and exercised states of cardiovascular stress. Results indicate intravascular transport of nitrite from upstream endothelium could result in vasodilator-active levels of nitrite in downstream resistance vessels. The hypothesis could be confirmed utilizing artery-on-a-chip technology to measure NO production rates directly and help validate numerical model predictions. Further characterization of this mechanism may improve our understanding of symptomatic peripheral artery occlusive disease and exercise physiology
TOURISTS’ MEANING OF SUSTAINABILITY AS A TOOL FOR SEGMENTATION. A BIOSPHERE RESERVE CASE STUDY
Get PDFThis paper provides empirical evidence on the potential use of the meaning of sustainability for the tourist in segmentation studies. The analysis has been applied to a nature destination, specifically, in the “Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas” Biosphere Reserve. In the first place, this research identifies, through a cluster analysis, three segments of tourists based on what the tourist considers sustainability to be (level of knowledge and commitment, as well as its implications for the destination), analyzing for each segment their sociodemographic and socioeconomic variables and their willingness to pay to improve the sustainability of destinations.
The results show that it is possible to identify one or several segments of demand that show different levels of commitment, attitude, knowledge and/or behavior towards sustainability and calculate the amount of money that each segment is willing to pay to visit a more sustainable destination.
This research shows, however, that more than 70% of those surveyed are not willing to pay more to achieve a more sustainable destination, the reasons being very diverse, but, in any case, no significant differences being identified between the segments with respect to this question. The study concludes by discussing the potential of using the meaning of sustainability for the tourist as an important segmentation tool, aimed at facilitating the change towards a more sustainable tourism behavior, and allowing the design of pro-sustainable strategies and policies in tourist destinations
Implementing IPM in crop management simultaneously improves the health of managed bees and enhances the diversity of wild pollinator communities
Get PDFImpacts of insecticide use on the health of wild and managed pollinators have been difficult to accurately quantify in the field. Existing designs tend to focus on single crops, even though highly mobile bees routinely forage across crop boundaries. We created fields of pollinator-dependent watermelon surrounded by corn, regionally important crops in the Midwestern US. These fields were paired at multiple sites in 2017–2020 with the only difference being pest management regimes: a standard set of conventional management (CM) practices vs. an integrated pest management (IPM) system that uses scouting and pest thresholds to determine if/when insecticides are used. Between these two systems we compared the performance (e.g., growth, survival) of managed pollinators—honey bees (Apis mellifera), bumble bees (Bombus impatiens)—along with the abundance and diversity of wild pollinators. Compared to CM fields, IPM led to higher growth and lower mortality of managed bees, while also increasing the abundance (+ 147%) and richness (+ 128%) of wild pollinator species, and lower concentrations of neonicotinoids in the hive material of both managed bees. By replicating realistic changes to pest management, this experiment provides one of the first demonstrations whereby tangible improvements to pollinator health and crop visitation result from IPM implementation in agriculture
Work-Life Flexibility Policies From a Boundary Control and Implementation Perspective: A Review and Research Framework
Get PDFAlthough management research on work-life flexibility policies has occurred for over 40 years, it is underdeveloped with inconsistent results. We argue that this is due to theorizing that—but not measuring whether—policy use increases boundary control; a fragmented literature examining a range of policies (either individually or bundled) without comprehensive integration; and an under-examination of policy implementation effectiveness. Drawing on boundary theory, we inductively review 338 studies to organize the work–life flexibility policy literature around a boundary control and implementation framework. Our framework derives a taxonomy of types of boundary control, identifies implementation stages, considers the importance of policy bundling, and incorporates multi-level (individual, group, organizational, societal) and multi-domain (family, work) dynamics. Our review shows that the current literature often assesses the availability of single policies and individual outcomes; but under-assesses boundary control, extent of use, bundling, implementation, and multi-level outcomes. Our results provide a springboard for future research and practice by offering new insights for understanding work–life flexibility policies, encouraging scholars to: (1) recognize the crucial role of different types of employee boundary control (spatial, size, temporal, permeability, continuity) as an inherent element of policy experiences that must be measured rather than merely assumed; (2) examine how work–life flexibility policy implementation involves four implementation stages—availability, access experiences (including enablers and barriers), use, and outcomes—with multiple stakeholders (e.g., individual employees, supervisors, coworkers, family) and contextual factors (i.e., societal forces); and (3) innovate ways to examine emergent policy issues such as equality, home implementation, and hybrid forms
Engineering Technology Programs and Technical Standards: Investigating Library Access and Course Integration
Get PDFDue to ABET accreditation requirements and industry expectations, integrating technical standards into Engineering Technology (ET) curricula is crucial for student success. However, previous studies have shown that faculty report access and knowledge challenges in working to integrate standards into ET course content. Additionally, academic librarians have long acknowledged there are many issues with providing access to standards to campus users, such as high costs and extensive digital rights management (DRM) restrictions. The purpose of this study is to conduct an environmental scan of library websites at institutions with ET programs to investigate library-provided access to standards and to survey ET faculty members about their contemporary standards education approaches and practices. A key finding is that ET students at larger schools are much more likely to have access to standards online, with 82% of libraries at institutions with over 15,000 students subscribing to standards online versus only 46% of libraries at institutions under 10,000 students. Additionally, the results show there is a disconnect between library-provided access to standards (58% of libraries provide online access) and ET faculty members’ use of academic libraries for standards access (28% report using standards through the library). More education about technical standards is needed for ET faculty members working to integrate standards into curricula. Standards developing organizations (SDOs) should consider investigating ways they can offer educational opportunities for faculty, provide specific case studies and examples of how standards could be implemented into various ET courses, and if they are not already doing so, offer free or low-cost solutions for faculty to obtain standards for use within a course
Two-Dimensional Suborbital Slosh Experiment
No full textThe aim of the project is to collect empirical data on contact line motion in vibrating tanks under zero-gravity (zero-g) conditions. This study is particularly focused on the behavior of current green propellants, which have a high contact angle compared to traditional stores like water. As a result, the non-linear contact line and angle is expected to have a significant impact on zero-g behavior. The thesis focuses on the dynamic experiment of developing an experimental payload designed to fly on Blue Origin\u27s New Shepherd suborbital flight. The data collected from this experiment will provide a benchmark case for developers of zero-g fluid dynamics simulations to compare or improve their simulation results. The results will also be useful for testing non-linear hysteresis contact line simulations.The design of the experiment mainly focuses on conducting oscillatory motion in zero gravity to observe the contact line at varying speeds. Two different liquids are intended to be tested on the same payload. The liquid is to be filled so that the free surface has a height of 1 inch, and the vibration amplitude is to be 0.1 inches. The liquid chosen closely simulates the current green propellants under development or other poorly-wetting liquids. The purpose of each of the components used in the experiment is justified with respect to the given flight design constraints, along with how the constraints impacted the experiment. The experiment is designed to sustain the forces in case of hard landing during the flight and autonomous control of motion. The experiment is staged to be ready for flight on the New Shepherd, and any future works are mentioned.To meet these constraints, the experimental payload is designed with a variety of components, each chosen for its ability to perform under the given conditions. The payload includes a custom-built system, which generates the oscillatory motion necessary to observe the contact line behavior. The system is designed to be compact and lightweight, yet robust enough to withstand the forces of launch and landing. In addition, the payload includes a custom-built tank designed to hold the liquids being tested. The study of contact line motion in vibrating tanks under zero-g conditions is important in understanding the behavior of liquids in space. This study will provide crucial data that will help in the development of more accurate fluid dynamic simulations for future space missions
Extending Synthetic Data and Data Masking Procedures Using Information Theory
No full textThe introduction of Industry 4.0 is accompanied by further integration of powerful AI/ML tools that allow researchers to perform large-scale analyses such as condition monitoring, data mining, anomaly detection, automated controls, etc. However, the size and complexity of these tools often renders them a ‘double-edged sword’ since they require high volumes of training data, robust algorithms, and optimized parameters that are often expensive/infeasible to procure on a large scale; these limitations typically impose a lack of model validation in underlying methodologies, e.g., detrending, parameter selection, etc., thereby limiting the utility of AI/ML. At the same time, the growing power of these tools presents a threat to industrial systems given a knowledgeable adversary; the risk of network intrusion is only magnified by the power and scope of these tools, and intrusion detection and/or data security tools must adapt in response to this unique and growing threat.This thesis focuses its discussion on two vulnerabilities of the modern paradigm: the lack of algorithmic validation in synthetic data algorithms and the growing vulnerability of industrial data. The well-known mathematical tools introduced by Shannon’s Information Theory, and extensions thereof, provide powerful model-agnostic hedges that can be applied to address either problem. For instance, a typical challenge for synthetic data methodologies is the idea of overfit, which is difficult to consistently avoid, leading to subpar analyses. The NEST algorithm proposed hereinafter circumvents this issue by utilizing an extension of entropy to avoid overfit via the proposed SER metric and generate synthetic data that outperform state-of-the-art methods such as GAN-based algorithms.Information Theory can also be utilized to safeguard data from powerful AI/ML tools by virtue of inferential evaluation, which allows us to identify a safe and efficient obfuscation of the given data. State-of-the-art data masking techniques illicit compromises in efficiency, data utility, and privacy guarantees that are impractical for industrial-scale proprietary systems; the proposed DIOD paradigm overcomes each of these issues by masking the data in an informationpreserving manner well-suited to various industrial tasks, datatypes, and downstream analyses that has shown a significant advantage over similar techniques
The Challenges of Minoritized Contingent Faculty in Higher Education
Get PDFThe Challenges of Minoritized Contingent Faculty in Higher Education offers a probing and unvarnished look at the employment challenges of these faculty members in four-year institutions. With dramatic shifts in the faculty workforce and nearly three-quarters of instructional positions in United States institutions now off the tenure track, contingent faculty have become the essential, frontline workers of higher education. Remarkably little research attention has focused on the experiences of minoritized contingent faculty in this new academic underclass. Based on in-depth interviews coupled with extensive research, the book highlights the double marginalization that can occur due to secondary employment status in the academic hierarchy, and the exclusion resulting from the intersectionality of nondominant social identities including race and ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability. As the first-person narratives reveal, these faculty often struggle for acceptance, recognition, and rewards in the day-to-day academic environment, and they can face devaluation of their contributions. As a pragmatic and concrete resource, this book offers proactive workforce strategies and key structural and policy recommendations that will assist academic and administrative leaders, including presidents, provosts, department chairs, and chief diversity officers, in building more inclusive working conditions for contingent faculty.https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/navigatingcareershighered/1002/thumbnail.jp