Positive findings for plasma polymer (meth)acrylate thin films in heritage protective applications

Plasma technology is an innovative environmental friendly process that can be an option to the conventional methods for materials’ processing. Nonequilibrium low pressure plasma found efficiency as a nondestructive method for the treatment of different materials, many of them belonging to the cultural heritage, in some proper operations such as: atomic-level cleaning, decontamination, thin film deposition. In the paper, the low pressure nonequilibrium plasma is applied for the deposition of plasma polymer poly(methyl methacrylate-co-ethyl acrylate) P(MMA-co-EtA) thin films on natural aged paper, with the consolidation and protective aim. To verify the plasma polymer applicability for paper protection and consolidation, the film is aged accelerated by UV radiation and the structural and morphological changes are evaluated by FTIR spectroscopy, color/gloss measurement, contact angle and AFM.     

Responses to the Negative Emotions of Others by Autistic, Mentally Retarded, and Normal Children

Attention, facial affect, and behavioral responses to adults showing distress, fear, and discomfort were compared for autistic, mentally retarded, and normal children. The normal and mentally retarded children were very attentive to adults in all 3 situations. In contrast, many of the autistic children appeared to ignore or not notice the adults showing these negative affects. As a group, the autistic children looked at the adults less and were much more engaged in toy play than the other children during periods when an adult pretended to be hurt. The autistic children were also less attentive to adults showing fear, although their behavior was not different from the normal children. Few of the children in any group showed much facial affect in response to these situations. The results are discussed in terms of the importance of affect in the social learning experiences of the young child.     

Designing a formative e‐assessment: Latent class analysis of early reading skills

Computer‐based testing, or e‐assessment, has the potential to deliver immediate results for the benefit of schools. This paper describes a project that aimed to exploit this potential by designing e‐assessments where the results were intended for use by teachers in planning the next steps in teaching and learning: low‐stakes, formative assessment. A pair of tests assessing early reading was developed, with the test items based on a range of distinct skills, including phonological segmentation, rhyming and word recognition. The tests were administered on a screen with the questions presented aurally and visually. In trials, a total of 1345 test results were obtained from pupils aged 5–7 years from 26 schools. Latent class analysis was used to identify patterns of performance within the data. Four latent classes were distinguished, each characterised by a pattern of responses related to the different test items. The strengths and weaknesses in early reading skills implied by each of these latent classes were described in terms of formative ‘profiles’ provided for teachers in an online reporting package together with indicators for the next steps in teaching. The research resulted in an automated marking and analysis system that can be genuinely formative.     

A Cross-Discipline Modeling Capstone Experience

The Mathematical Association of America (MAA) and the American Statistical Association (ASA) have both updated and revised their curriculum guidelines. The guidelines of both associations recommend that students engage in a “capstone” experience, be exposed to applications, and have opportunities to communicate mathematical and statistical analysis, among other recommendations. In this article, we describe a mathematics and statistics capstone course, implemented at a small liberal arts college. We provide evidence that this course accomplishes the goals set forth by the MAA and ASA. We include guidance for other institutions on implementing a similar course.     

Broadening the search for minority science and engineering doctoral starts

This analysis looked at doctorate completion in science and engineering (S&E) by underrepresented minorities: blacks, Hispanics and Indian Americans. These are the groups we must increasingly depend upon to make up for shortfalls in science and engineering doctorate production among American citizens. These shortfalls derive from truncated birth rates among white people, for the most part. The analysis answered several questions officials will need to know the answers to if we are to plan effectively to develop the talents of these individuals. Specifically, the National Science Foundation asked us to look at the feasibility of involving nontraditional minority science and engineering graduates (baccalaureates at 25+) as doctoral starts, along with minority S&E graduates who had taken jobs with corporations to pay off student loans and military personnel involved in S&E study and S&E work (see NSF report of research under grant SED-9107756). We found that nontraditional minority S&E doctorate recipients matched their traditional counterparts in elapsed time to degree and similar indicators. They had less in the way of support for doctoral study, however. We found that minority S&E graduates who took jobs in corporations were keenly interested in returning to campus to complete degrees. We also found that many bright minority youngsters are studying S&E subjects in the Community College of the Air Force and in U.S. Army SOC colleges. Some have enrolled in baccalaureate programs on university campuses and plan to continue on to the PhD. We concluded that money is important in tapping these talent pools to make up for the demographically driven shortfalls discussed above.     

A Community Designs Its School

Teaching with film is a powerful and meaningful instructional strategy. This article discusses five classroom-tested methods for teaching with film: (1) film as a visual textbook, (2) film as a depicter of atmosphere, (3) film as an analogy, (4) film as a historiography, and (5) film as a springboard. Each of the methods discussed includes examples of a variety of films that could be used, along with suggested focus questions and conversation topics. Furthermore, this article discusses relevant legal issues surrounding the use of film in the classroom.     

I. CHILDREN IN INSTITUTIONAL CARE: DELAYED DEVELOPMENT AND RESILIENCE

Children exposed to institutional care often suffer from “structural neglect” which may include minimum physical resources, unfavorable and unstable staffing patterns, and socially emotionally inadequate caregiver‐child interactions. This chapter is devoted to the analysis of the ill effects of early institutional experiences on resident children's development. Delays in the important areas of physical, hormonal, cognitive, and emotional development are discussed. The evidence for and against the existence of a distinctive set of co‐occurring developmental problems in institutionalized children is weighed and found to not yet convincingly demonstrate a “postinstitutional syndrome.” Finally, shared and nonshared features of the institutional environment and specific genetic, temperamental, and physical characteristics of the individual child are examined that might make a crucial difference in whether early institutional rearing leaves irreversible scars.     

Assessing attachment security with the Attachment Q Sort: meta-analytic evidence for the validity of the observer AQS

The reliability and validity of the Attachment Q Sort (AQS; Waters & Deane, 1985) was tested in a series of meta-analyses on 139 studies with 13,835 children. The observer AQS security score showed convergent validity with Strange Situation procedure (SSP) security (r = .31) and excellent predictive validity with sensitivity measures (r = .39). Its association with temperament was weaker (r = .16), which supports the discriminant validity of the observer AQS. Studies on the stability of the observer AQS are still relatively scarce but they have yielded promising results (mean r = .28; k = 4, n = 162). It is concluded that the observer AQS, but not the self-reported AQS, is a valid measure of attachment.     

Influencing Student Attitudes Toward Older Adults: Results of a Service-Learning Collaboration

This article describes a service-learning collaboration between a research center at a graduate school of social work and a community college. While the goal of the collaboration was to conduct a community needs assessment of the older population of Bermuda, the project offered a unique opportunity to connect community service, teaching, and research. Students' classroom experience prepared them to play a critical role as interviewers of older adults. Participation in this project enabled students to contribute to a vital step in the process of community change. Students reported more positive attitudes toward older adults and greater interest in working with older adults as a result of this experience. Service-learning can be an effective means of teaching students about aging.