Medical Center, U of M

Founded in 1869, this facility was America's first "University Hospital." The 1,000-bed general hospital, with its 200-bed children's hospital (C.S. Mott Hospital), is the heart of a vast health complex which includes School of Medicine, Nursing and Public Health...plus research facilities. The Mary Markley dormitory building may be seen in the foreground.

Publications available from Northern Prairie Science Center.

"September 1994."

Meningsskapande i utställningen : En komparativ etnografisk fallstudie av förskolegruppers multimodala kommunikation vid ett Naturhistoriskt museum och ett Science center

Som övergripande syfte vill denna studie undersöka hur två förskolegrupper kan meningsskapa i två olika utställningar genom att beskriva, analysera och jämföra dessa två förskolegruppers multimodala kommunikation vid utställningsbesök. Genom syftet vill denna studie ge ökad kunskap om multimodal kommunikation hos två förskolegrupper i två olika utställningar. I syftet ingår att studien önskar öka kunskapen om hur semiotiska resurser kan användas och vad som fokuseras genom språkbruk, som kommunikativa villkor för lärande i utställningar. Studien har en design av en komparativ etnografisk fallstudie. Videoinspelningar, MP-3 ljudinspelningar, deltagande observation och fältanteckningar har använts som instrument för datainsamling. Genom strategiska urval valdes 11 stycken treåriga förskolebarn och tre pedagoger för att besöka en utställning vid Naturhistoriska Museet och nio femåriga förskolebarn med två pedagoger for att besöka en utställning vid Tom Tits Experiment (science center). Det insamlade materialet transkriberades multimodalt och kunde därefter analyseras som text. Multimodal interaktionsanalys (Norris 2004, 2014) och ett språkbruksraster (Rostvall & West 2001) användes för analys. Resultatet visade markanta skillnader mellan utställningarna. Av den multimodala interaktionsanalysen visade utställningen vid ett science center en bredare användning av semiotiska resurser, då alla artefakters meningserbjudanden var både visuella och taktila, en del artefakter erbjöd även auditiva meningserbjudanden. Språkbruket i samma utställning var mycket varierat och barnen anmodade varandra. Slutsatsen blir av detta att förskolegruppernas a) meningsskapande villkoras av språkbruk och att b) om meningsskapandet ska ske i samarbete ökas den möjligheten dess mer symmetriska de sociala relationerna är.

Strong connections, loose coupling: the influence of the Bering Sea ecosystem on commercial fisheries and subsistence harvests in Alaska

Human-environment connections are the subject of much study, and the details of those connections are crucial factors in effective environmental management. In a large, interdisciplinary study of the eastern Bering Sea ecosystem involving disciplines from physical oceanography to anthropology, one of the research teams examined commercial fisheries and another looked at subsistence harvests by Alaska Natives. Commercial fisheries and subsistence harvests are extensive, demonstrating strong connections between the ecosystem and the humans who use it. At the same time, however, both research teams concluded that the influence of ecosystem conditions on the outcomes of human activities was weaker than anticipated. Likely explanations of this apparently loose coupling include the ability of fishers and hunters to adjust to variable conditions, and the role of social systems and management in moderating the direct effects of changes in the ecosystem. We propose a new conceptual model for future studies that incorporates a greater range of social factors and their dynamics, in addition to similarly detailed examinations of the ecosystem itself.

Changing times, changing stories: generational differences in climate change perspectives from four remote indigenous communities in Subarctic Alaska

Indigenous Arctic and Subarctic communities currently are facing a myriad of social and environmental changes. In response to these changes, studies concerning indigenous knowledge (IK) and climate change vulnerability, resiliency, and adaptation have increased dramatically in recent years. Risks to lives and livelihoods are often the focus of adaptation research; however, the cultural dimensions of climate change are equally important because cultural dimensions inform perceptions of risk. Furthermore, many Arctic and Subarctic IK climate change studies document observations of change and knowledge of the elders and older generations in a community, but few include the perspectives of the younger population. These observations by elders and older generations form a historical baseline record of weather and climate observations in these regions. However, many indigenous Arctic and Subarctic communities are composed of primarily younger residents. We focused on the differences in the cultural dimensions of climate change found between young adults and elders. We outlined the findings from interviews conducted in four indigenous communities in Subarctic Alaska. The findings revealed that (1) intergenerational observations of change were common among interview participants in all four communities, (2) older generations observed more overall change than younger generations interviewed by us, and (3) how change was perceived varied between generations. We defined “observations” as the specific examples of environmental and weather change that were described, whereas “perceptions” referred to the manner in which these observations of change were understood and contextualized by the interview participants. Understanding the differences in generational observations and perceptions of change are key issues in the development of climate change adaptation strategies.

Southeast Fisheries Center

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Northwest and Alaska Fisheries Center.

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Stakeholder-led science: engaging resource managers to identify science needs for long-term management of floodplain conservation lands

Floodplains pose challenges to managers of conservation lands because of constantly changing interactions with their rivers. Although scientific knowledge and understanding of the dynamics and drivers of river-floodplain systems can provide guidance to floodplain managers, the scientific process often occurs in isolation from management. Further, communication barriers between scientists and managers can be obstacles to appropriate application of scientific knowledge. With the coproduction of science in mind, our objectives were the following: (1) to document management priorities of floodplain conservation lands, and (2) identify science needs required to better manage the identified management priorities under nonstationary conditions, i.e., climate change, through stakeholder queries and interactions. We conducted an online survey with 80 resource managers of floodplain conservation lands along the Upper and Middle Mississippi River and Lower Missouri River, USA, to evaluate management priority, management intensity, and available scientific information for management objectives and conservation targets. Management objectives with the least information available relative to priority included controlling invasive species, maintaining respectful relationships with neighbors, and managing native, nongame species. Conservation targets with the least information available to manage relative to management priority included pollinators, marsh birds, reptiles, and shore birds. A follow-up workshop and survey focused on clarifying science needs to achieve management objectives under nonstationary conditions. Managers agreed that metrics of inundation, including depth and extent of inundation, and frequency, duration, and timing of inundation would be the most useful metrics for management of floodplain conservation lands with multiple objectives. This assessment provides guidance for developing relevant and accessible science products to inform management of highly dynamic floodplain environments. Although the problems facing managers of these lands are complex, products focused on a small suite of inundation metrics were determined to be the most useful to guide the decision making process.