A diagnostic assessment for introductory molecular and cell biology

We have developed and validated a tool for assessing understanding of a selection of fundamental concepts and basic knowledge in undergraduate introductory molecular and cell biology, focusing on areas in which students often have misconceptions. This multiple-choice Introductory Molecular and Cell Biology Assessment (IMCA) instrument is designed for use as a pre- and posttest to measure student learning gains. To develop the assessment, we first worked with faculty to create a set of learning goals that targeted important concepts in the field and seemed likely to be emphasized by most instructors teaching these subjects. We interviewed students using open-ended questions to identify commonly held misconceptions, formulated multiple-choice questions that included these ideas as distracters, and reinterviewed students to establish validity of the instrument. The assessment was then evaluated by 25 biology experts and modified based on their suggestions. The complete revised assessment was administered to more than 1300 students at three institutions. Analysis of statistical parameters including item difficulty, item discrimination, and reliability provides evidence that the IMCA is a valid and reliable instrument with several potential uses in gauging student learning of key concepts in molecular and cell biology.     

The weight of expectation: Cathy Freeman,Legacy, Reconciliation and the Sydney Olympics – A Canadian Perspective

This paper compares French- and English-language Canadian television coverage of Australian Aboriginal athlete Cathy Freeman during the 2000 Olympics using a narrative framework. The specific focus of the analysis is the representation of Freeman's political identity as an agent and symbol of Aboriginal reconciliation – the struggle for apology, reparatio, and social justice in the light of the history and legacy of colonial oppression and exclusion. Freeman has used her sporting success to signify visibly and with some controversy her identification with political Aboriginality and reconciliation, and she went into the 2000 games bearing an unusual weight of expectation, intensified by being chosen to light the Olympic cauldron, that a victory in the 400 metres would mark symbolically reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Australians. The analysis generally conforms the hypothesis that the normative dimension of these expectations would be accentuated more in the French- than English-language coverage, and this resulted in a more consistently affirmative portrayal of Freeman and her performance. The English-language coverage emphasized the ambivalent nature of her role. The corollary of this was that the English-language coverage paid greater attention to the substance of Aboriginal grievances and struggle. Nonetheless, neither network saw Freeman's identity in openly critical terms: in Freeman's Olympic narrative sport and politics were allowed to mix in a relatively unproblematic way.     

Meeting the challenge of HIV and AIDS in the classroom

Contemporary early childhood teachers are facing new challenges as children who test HIV positive or who have AIDS enter the classroom. Providing appropriate health care and educational programs for these children is a major concern of teachers. This article presents a brief discussion of guidelines and issues that might be addressed in an in-service for teachers in general education to prepare them for a student with HIV or AIDS in their classrooms.     

Interlibrary Loan Meets Six Sigma: The University of Arizona Library's Success Applying Process Improvement

In 2004, the University of Arizona Library Document Delivery Team embarked on a strategic project to assess the service quality and cost of filling interlibrary loan journal article borrowing requests. The Document Delivery Team utilized a Six Sigma Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control process improvement method. Improvements that were implemented as a result of this study led to increased satisfaction, decreased turnaround time, and lower cost per delivered article. Customer satisfaction surveys were utilized to discover customer expectations and requirements and to evaluate the effect of improvements on the customer experience. Measurement of internal business processes and cost analysis tools were used to determine cost savings.     

Urban Youth's Perspectives on Flash Mobs

Flash mobs are new, emerging, and evolving social phenomena that have recently been associated with youth violence in the US cities. The current study explores how youth understand flash mobs through focus groups conducted in Kansas City, Missouri (a site of violent youth flash mobs). Results indicate that youth have varying familiarity with flash mobs and define them in different ways; that youth perceive youth boredom to be the most frequent cause of problems with flash mobs; that youth connect ongoing social disorder with the violence associated with flash mobs; and that while social media are facilitators of flash mobs, flash mobs have their roots in youth activities that have been going on for generations (e.g., hanging out in groups and cruising). Results illustrate the importance of conducting formative research with youth, particularly about emergent phenomena, when developing interventions and communication campaigns aimed at reducing youth violence.     

Cultural interpretations of the visual meaning of icons and images used in North American web design

This study examines cross‐cultural interpretations of icons and images drawn from US academic websites. Participants from Morocco, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and the USA responded to an online questionnaire containing 18 icons and images representing online functions and information types common on US academic websites. Participants supplied meanings for icons and images and selected a preferred image to represent each of four specific online functions. From three images of professors, participants chose one with whom they would prefer to study. Data were collected at the University of New Mexico, USA; in Internet cafes in the Middle Atlas region and at Al‐Akhawayn University, Morocco; the Open University of Sri Lanka in Nawala, Nugegoda; and at Anadolu University, Turkey. A qualitative analysis examines participants' perspectives and preferences for specific representations and identifies cultural themes in relation to Hofstede's dimensions. Implications for the design of images for cross‐cultural users are discussed.

L'interprétation culturelle de la signification visuelle des icônes et images utilisées dans la conception de sites Web en Amérique du Nord

La présente étude porte sur les interprétations transculturelles des icônes et des images extraites de sites universitaires américains. Des participants venus du Maroc,du Sri Lanka, de Turquie et des Etats Unis, ont répondu à un questionnaire en ligne contenant 18 icônes et images représentant des fonctions en ligne et des modes d'information que l'on trouve couramment sur les sites universitaires américains. Ces participants ont attribué des significations aux icônes et images et sélectionné l'image qu'ils (elles) préféraient pour représenter chacune des quatre fonctions en ligne proposées. A partir de trois images de professeurs,les participants en ont choisi une, celle avec qui ils (elles) préféreraient étudier. Une étude quantitative examine les perspectives des participants et leurs préférences pour une représentation donnée et elle identifie les thèmes culturels par rapport aux dimensions de Hofstede. On étudie les conséquences que cela peut avoir pour la conception d'images destinées à des utilisateurs interculturels.

Kulturelle Interpretationen der visuellen Bedeutung der Symbole und Bilder, die in Nordamerika Web‐Design benutzt werden

Diese Studie untersucht cross‐kulturelle Interpretationen von Symbolen und Bildern, die in akademischen US‐Websites benutzt werden. Teilnehmer aus Marokko, Sri Lanka, der Türkei und den USA bearbeiteten einen Online‐Fragebogen mit 18 Ikonen und Bildern, die Online‐Funktionen und – Informationen auf akademischen US‐Websites gemeinsamen sind. Die Teilnehmer benannten angenommene Bedeutungen der Symbole und Bilder und wählten ein bevorzugtes Bild für jede der vier spezifischen Online‐Funktionen aus. Aus drei Bildern von Professoren wählten die Teilnehmer eines aus, das denjenigen zeigen sollte, mit dem sie es vorziehen würden zu studieren. Eine qualitative Analyse untersucht Perspektiven und Präferenzen der Teilnehmer für bestimmte Vertretungen und Identitäten kultureller Themen in Bezug auf die von Hofstede aufgestellten Dimensionen. Auswirkungen auf die Gestaltung von Bildern für cross‐kulturelle Nutzer werden diskutiert.

La interpretación cultural del significado visual de iconos y imagenes utilizados en el diseño de sitios Web en América del Norte

Este artículo examina las interpretaciones transculturales de iconos y imágenes procedentes de sitios académicos de los Estados Unidos. Participantes de Marruecos, Sri Lanka, Turquía y los EUA respondierón a un cuestionario en línea conteniendo 18 iconos y imágenes que representan funciones en línea y tipos de información que se encuentran frecuentemente en los sitios académicos de los EUA. Los participantes propusieron significados para los iconos y imágenes y seleccionarón la imágen que les parecía más idónea para representar cada una de cuatros funciones en línea específicas. Entre tres imágenes de profesores, los participantes seleccionarón una, la de la persona con quien les gustaría estudiar. Un análisis cualitativo examina las perspectivas y preferencias de los participantes para tal o tal representación específica y al mismo tiempo se analiza temas culturales en relación con las dimensiones de Hofstede. Se analizan también las consecuencias que esto conlleva para el diseño de imágenes destinadas a usuarios transculturales.     

Creating atmosphere for radio drama

PRACTICAL REASONING IN HUMAN AFFAIRS: STUDIES IN HONOR OF CHAIM PERELMAN. Edited by James L. Golden and Joseph J. Pilotta. Dordrecht: Reidel, 1987; pp. x + 404. $79.00.

INVENTING THE PEOPLE: THE RISE OF POPULAR SOVEREIGNTY IN ENGLAND AND AMERICA. By Edmund S. Morgan. New York: W. W. Norton &; Company, 1988; pp. 318. $18.95.

AMERICAN SILHOUETTES: RHETORICAL IDENTITIES OF THE FOUNDERS. By Albert Furtwangler. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987; pp. vii + 168. $17.50; paper $10.95.

ORATORICAL ENCOUNTERS: SELECTED STUDIES AND SOURCES OF TWENTIETH‐CENTURY POLITICAL ACCUSATIONS AND APOLOGIES. Edited by Halford Ross Ryan. Forward by Edward P.J. Corbett. New York: Greenwood Press, 1988; pp. xxv + 329. $39.95.

CONSTRUCTING THE POLITICAL SPECTACLE. By Murray Edelman. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988; pp. vi + 137. paper $7.95.

HANDBOOK OF DISCOURSE ANALYSIS, VOLUME 1: DISCIPLINES OF DISCOURSE. Edited by Teun A. van Dijk. London: Academic Press, 1985, pp. xvii + 302. $58.00.

HANDBOOK OF DISCOURSE ANALYSIS, VOLUME 2: DIMENSIONS OF DISCOURSE. Edited by Teun A. van Dijk. London: Academic Press, 1985, pp. xvii + 279. $58.00.

HANDBOOK OF DISCOURSE ANALYSIS, VOLUME 3: DISCOURSE AND DIALOGUE. Edited by Teun A. van Dijk. London: Academic Press, 1985, pp. xix + 251. $58.00.

HANDBOOK OF DISCOURSE ANALYSIS, VOLUME 4: DISCOURSE ANALYSIS IN SOCIETY. Edited by Teun A. van Dijk. London: Academic Press, 1985, pp. xvii + 228. $58.00.

COMMUNICATING WITH YOUR DOCTOR: RX FOR GOOD MEDICAL CARE. By J. Alfred Jones, M.D. and Gerald M. Phillips. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press, 1988; pp. viii + 184. $19.95.

GROUP PROCESSES. Edited by Clyde Hendrick. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1987; pp. 294. Paper $14.95.

GROUP PROCESSES AND INTERGROUP RELATIONS. Edited by Clyde Hendrick. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage, 1987; pp. 256. Paper $14.95.

A.J. GREIMAS AND THE NATURE OF MEANING: LINGUISTICS, SEMIOTICS, AND DISCOURSE THEORY. By Ronald Schleifer. Forward by Christopher Norris. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1987; pp. xxvi and 223. $28.95; paper $10.95.

THE ABUSE OF CASUISTRY: A HISTORY OF MORAL REASONING. By Albert R. Jonsen and Stephen Toulmin. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988; pp. ix + 420. $45.00.

KENNETH BURKE AND MARTIN HEIDEGGER: WITH A NOTE AGAINST DECON‐STRUCTIONISM. By Samuel B. Southwell. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, 1987; pp. ix+ 156. $15.00.

TIME AND NARRATIVE, Vol. 3. By Paul Ricoeur. Translated by Kathleen Blarney and David Pellauer. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988; pp. 355. $29.95.

RHETORIC AND HISTORY IN REVOLUTIONARY NEW ENGLAND. By Donald Weber. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988; pp. xii + 207. $22.50.

THE PAPERS OF DANIEL WEBSTER: SPEECHES AND FORMAL WRITINGS, Two Volumes. Edited by Charles M. Wiltse and Alan R. Berolzheimer, Associate Editor. Hanover: University Press of New England. Volume 1 (1987), pp. xx + 641. $70.00; Volume 2 (1988), pp. xvii + 700. $75.00.

HERMOGENES’ ON TYPES OF STYLE. Translated by Cecil W. Wooten. Chapel Hill and London: The University of North Carolina Press, 1987; pp. xviii + 159. $19.95.

TRIALS OF CHARACTER: THE ELOQUENCE OF CICERONIAN ETHOS. By James M. May. Chapel Hill and London: The University of North Carolina Press, 1988; pp. viii + 215. $27.50.

THE SOPHISTS. By Harold Barrett. Novato, CA: Chandler &; Sharp, 1987; pp. v + 85. Paper $6.95.

POLITICAL ETHICS AND PUBLIC OFFICE. By Dennis F. Thompson. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1987; pp. viii + 263. $25.00.

TELEDEMOCRACY: CAN TECHNOLOGY PROTECT DEMOCRACY? By F. Christopher Arterton. Beverly Hills: Sage, 1987; pp. 224. $29.95; paper $14.95.

SELLING SCIENCE: HOW THE PRESS COVERS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY. By Dorothy Nelkin. New York: W. H. Freeman, 1987; pp. 224. $16.95.

THE SOCIAL MEANING OF CIVIC SPACE: STUDYING POLITICAL AUTHORITY THROUGH ARCHITECTURE. By Charles T. Goodsell. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1988; pp. xv + 229. $25.00.