Summit Institutional Repository @ PSU (Plymouth State University)
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411 research outputs found
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A comparison between gender and years of experience on school principal's job autonomy and social support
No full textEfforts to address high levels of principal turnover in the United States have been largely focused on indicators of principal dissatisfaction as reported by those principals who left the position. Using a subset of the National Center for Education Statistics' (NCES) 2011-2012 School and Staffing Survey (SASS) and 2012-2013 Principal Follow-up Survey (PFS) dataset, this study provides an examination of indicators of principal satisfaction as reported by those principals who chose to remain in the position. Descriptive statistics and multiple independent samples t-tests are used to compare the mean levels of job autonomy and social support reported by principals in gender and experience groups. The results of the study can be used by state agencies and local school districts when predicting and examining principal turnover and retention.Electronic Thesis or Dissertatio
Writing mathematical proofs
Get PDFThis text is intended to serve as an IBL style workbook to be used in an undergraduate introductory proof writing course. It covers direct, contrapositive, contradiction, biconditional, existence, uniqueness, induction, and set equality proofs while also covering fundamental topics from number theory, elementary real analysis, functions, and sets with infinite cardinality. It is assumed that the audience has attained a degree of mathematical maturity and has had some exposure to sets and logic, but knowledge of calculus or linear algebra is not required
The effect of facial familiarity on change detection ability in a 'flicker task'
No full textEvidence from a previously conducted study regarding change blindness appears to show that changes are more accurately detected in gradually changed images if those image contain a famous face as opposed to ones with a novel face. The current study seeks to expand upon this finding using a ‘flicker change detection task' and recording the accuracy and reaction times of subjects in detecting changes in faces or the colors of objects while either a famous or novel face is present. It is expected that detection of both faces and object colors will show a shorter reaction time when a famous face is the subject of an image.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
Choreographic process and performance
No full text"Nerves" (choreographed by Kendra Fox) is an original dance composition created for five dancers that explores musicality, partnering and the artistry of each dancer. Created for an open space, the work can be performed on a stage or in a site-specific location. The piece formed as an investigation of space, shape and time, and was propelled forward to performance with the support of the Baroni Family Dance Entrepreneurship Grant. "Nerves" was first showcased at the American College Dance Association's regional festival at Boston University in February 2018 as a culmination and synthesis of movement principles and concepts in choreographic form. Through continued investigation and exploration of physicality and relationships between the dancers, the piece has taken on its current form. The newest version of the work will be performed under a new title at the Spring 2018 Contemporary Dance Ensemble with PSU Choirs Collaborative Showcase.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
High times: social media audience engagement analysis
Get PDFThe first edition of High Times Magazine was published in 1974 by Tom Forcade, and since then has been informing everyone between novice to expert marijuana enthusiasts on all things cannabis related. Whether it be fascinating articles on new growing techniques, updates on legislation, or exciting findings in medical research, High Times Magazine is covering it all. Since the first edition of the magazine, High Times has created a name for itself that entails much more than just a magazine publication. Included in their "about us" section on their webpage; High Times states the following about their brand, "High Times is much more than a magazine. Today, High Times transcends the print, digital and physical worlds through magazines, websites, apps, and live events." (About High Times). After reviewing the presence of High Times Magazine on multiple social media sites including Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, it is clear they are highly advanced in recognizing how to reach their customers through each platform that is anticipated to have the most target audience engagement, by optimizing their posts High Times earns itself a large fan base with high ratings of customer loyalty and brand trust.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
Vernal pool project: local action to preserve biodiversity
No full textBiodiversity declines are a major environmental concern. The current rate of species loss is comparable to that of previous mass extinctions (Cunningham, W.). Amphibians are suffering the highest rates of diversity loss, with nearly half of all amphibian species in decline (Johnson, P). Stressors and threats to amphibians include habitat fragmentation, disease, climate change and pollution. These threats are difficult to address due to the significant variation of impact specific threats pose at specific sites. This implies that local scale action is necessary to preserve populations. New Hampshire lacks sufficient presence/absence data of amphibian species which furthers hinders informed management and conservation strategies. In collaboration with Plymouth municipal leadership, Plymouth Elementary School, Mountain Village Charter School, and private landowners; PSU faculty and students are working to identify critical amphibian habitats, migration corridors and document the presence/absence of amphibians in ‘Greatest Need of Conservation' as identified by 2015 New Hampshire Wildlife Actin Plan. Through education, outreach and community engagement this project aims to document critical aquatic resources, preserve wildlife habitat, inform management practices and cultivate active community stewardship.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
Large-scale regime transitions and atmospheric river landfalls across western North America
Get PDFRecent studies suggest a potential relationship between flow patterns described by the Pacific North American (PNA) teleconnection pattern and landfalling atmospheric rivers (ARs) over western North America. This relationship illustrates an on average positive to negative trend in the PNA in the days leading up to and after a landfalling AR along the California coastline. The goal of this study is to extend prior research by specifically investigating large-scale regime transitions over the Northeast Pacific as described by transitions in the PNA and their relation to AR landfall events. Regime transitions are defined as a change of at least one standard deviation in the PNA index value in seven days. The methodology cross-references archived daily PNA values with NCEP-NCAR Reanalysis-derived sub-daily IVT magnitudes and AR landfalls for locations along the western North American coast between Alaska and the California Baja from 1950 to 2015. Analysis of a time-lagged composite time series of all transitioning PNA events for a +0.5 to -0.5 (-0.5 to +0.5) transition illustrates a statistically significant increased (decreased) likelihood of landfalling ARs at the British Columbia coast between Day -4 and Day -0 and a statistically significant decreased (increased) likelihood from Day +5 to Day +10.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
Veteran focused equine facilitated mental health
Get PDFThis dissertation reports on explanatory sequential mixed methods study that sought to understand the effectiveness of a veteran focused equine facilitated mental health (VF-EFMH) program. Forty-nine exit surveys from one specific VF-EFMH program that was offered ten separate times between 2013 and 2017 were analyzed using SPSS software. Results from this analysis suggest that VF-EFMH is effective for reducing depression and anxiety and is of value for participants. Interviews were then conducted with six former participants of the program offerings. Results from analyses of interviews support the quantitative results that VF-EFMH is effective for reducing depression and anxiety and is of value for participants. Further analysis revealed the themes of social connection, internal processing, and the horse are vital to the success of this type of programming.Electronic Thesis or Dissertatio
What influences New Hampshire's master plans?
No full textLand use and development are shaped by the plans and decisions made at the local level by the municipal and county Planning Boards. Master Plans are created and adopted by these boards and serve as a comprehensive, forward looking policy statement to guide the overall character, physical form, growth, and development of a community. This study provides an analysis of Master Plan development from sample communities around New Hampshire in order to determine how these communities are addressing climate change and what influences their decisions to include certain material. This research provides information that will be useful to researchers, state agencies, and planners to help them align future research, applied projects, and training with the land use issues and plans identified by our communities.Student Showcase of Research & Engagement 201
Newly digitized data for the great New England Hurricane of 1938
Get PDFThe Great New England Hurricane of 1938 (H1938) struck New England and the surrounding areas on 21 September 1938 shortly after a 4-day event of significant precipitation and flooding. During the entire period there were 754 stations recording precipitation observations, published by the U.S. Geological Survey in 1940. This information is now improved and added to in several important ways, including digitization of the dataset and mapping with ArcGIS tools, providing new comparisons to commonly cited sources from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA's) National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). The Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model is initialized with 20th Century Reanalysis data to provide radar reflectivity estimates that resolved a prior problem in the estimated time interval for the break in precipitation between the major flooding event and the hurricane. The model results support the possibility that the preceding rain event may not have been a traditional Predecessor Rain Event, therefore making this a completely separate system unassociated with H1938 that ultimately should not be included in xii hurricane-specific precipitation estimates. This project serves as a valuable first step for further analysis of the precipitation and flooding associated with H1938.Electronic Thesis or Dissertatio