THE EFFECT OF PURPOSEFUL MATHEMATICS DISCOURSE IN THE CLASSROOM ON STUDENTS’ MATHEMATICS LANGUAGE IN THE CONTEXT OF PROBLEM SOLVING

This study examines how one secondary school teacher’s use of purposeful oral mathematics language impacted her students’ language use and overall communication in written solutions while working with word problems in a grade nine academic mathematics class. Mathematics is often described as a distinct language. As with all languages, students must develop a sense for oral language before developing social practices such as listening, respecting others ideas, and writing. Effective writing is often seen by students that have strong oral language skills. Classroom observations, teacher and student interviews, and collected student work served as evidence to demonstrate the nature of both the teacher’s and the students’ use of oral mathematical language in the classroom, as well as the effect the discourse and language use had on students’ individual written solutions while working on word problems. Inductive coding for themes revealed that the teacher’s purposeful use of oral mathematical language had a positive impact on students’ written solutions. The teacher’s development of a mathematical discourse community created a space for the students to explore mathematical language and concepts that facilitated a deeper level of conceptual understanding of the learned material. The teacher’s oral language appeared to transfer into students written work albeit not with the same complexity of use of the teacher’s oral expression of the mathematical register. Students that learn mathematical language and concepts better appear to have a growth mindset, feel they have ownership over their learning, use reorganizational strategies, and help develop a discourse community.

Technical metaphor in Spanish-English translation of the fields of blindness, fatigue, and the spiritual world

The correspondence in the Spanish-English translation is analyzed of three different fields of technical metaphors based upon blindness, fatigue, and the spiritual world. Some terms have been left aside that under the appearance of metaphors were mere samples of no-deviated language or cases of homonymy. The study reveals a higher presence of the metaphor in the Spanish language in the three fields of study, although the English language also shows a high index of metaphors. In between metaphors and non-metaphors, we find a lack of metaphorical equilibrium between Spanish and English in certain cases, which is a sign of the different perception of the reality. Finally, the conclusions shed light on the meaning of these words: blind, annoyance, fatigue, antifading, core, angels, espectrum, phantom, ghost, magic, postmortem, dead, etc.

The Meanings of New Money: Social Constructions of Value in the Rise of Digital Currencies

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-07

Rethinking the STEM fields: the importance of definitions in examining women's participation and success in the sciences

This study uses longitudinal data of undergraduate students from five public land-grant universities to better understand undergraduate students’ persistence in and switching of majors, with particular attention given to women’s participation in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) fields. Specifically, the study examines patterns of behavior of women and minorities in relation to initial choice of college major and major field persistence, as well as what majors students switched to upon changing majors. Factors that impact major field persistence are also examined, as well as how switching majors affects students’ time-to-degree. Using a broad definition of STEM, data from nearly 17,000 undergraduate students was analyzed with descriptive statistics, cross tabulations, and binary logistic regressions. The results highlight women’s high levels of participation and success in the sciences, challenging common notions of underrepresentation in the STEM fields. The study calls for researchers to use a comprehensive definition of STEM and broad measurements of persistence when investigating students’ participation in the STEM fields.

Study and comparison on freshwater snail fauna in the paddy fields and related river and lake (Babolroad & Parishan) water supply in Mazandaran & Frace provinces of Iran

As a result of this investigation, for the first time from Babolroud river in Iran is 15 species identified, which they belong to 8 genera, from 7 families. The most and least distribution, 13 and 5 species, belong to Miandasht and Rostaye Anarestane Babol stations respectively, which they are 50 kilometers away from each other. Also 20 species belong to 10 genera from 6 families were identified in Parishan lake. The most the distribution belong to stations 1 and 5 with 6 and 18 species respectively. The most commonly distributed family is Lymnaeidae with 6 species: Lyamnaea truncatula, L. auricularia, L. palustris, L. pereger, L. stagnalis and L. gedrosiana, which L. trancatula is identified as the most frequent and has medical importance. L. stagnalis is identified to be the most important to agriculture. Planorbis planorhis, Physa acuta, Lymnaea pereger, Bithynia tenculata and Vavata piscinalis are reported for the first time from this region.

Coupling of magnetic, strain and electric polarization fields in the structure of multiferroic material

The comprehensive study on the coupling of magnetism, electrical polarization and the crystalline lattice with the off-stoichiometric effects in self-doped multiferroic hexagonal h-LuMnxO3±δ (0.92≤x≤1.12) ceramic oxides was carried out for the PhD work. There is a complex coupling of the three ferroic degrees. The cancelation of the magnetic moments of ions in the antiferromagnetic order, electric polarization with specific vortex/antivortex topology and lattice properties have pushed researchers to find out ways to disclose the underlying physics and chemistry of magneto-electric and magneto-elastic couplings of h-RMnO3 multiferroic materials. In this research work, self-doping of Lu-sites or Mn-sites of h-LuMnxO3±δ ceramics prepared via solid state route was done to pave a way for deeper understanding of the antiferromagnetic transition, the weak ferromagnetism often reported in the same crystalline lattices and the ferroelectric properties coupled to the imposed lattice changes. Accordingly to the aim of the PhD thesis, the objectives set for the sintering study in the first chapter on experimental results were two. First, study of sintering off-stoichiometric samples within conditions reported in the bibliography and also extracted from the phase diagrams of the LuMnxO3±δ, with a multiple firings ending with a last high temperature step at 1300ºC for 24 hours. Second, explore longer annealing times of up to 240 hours at the fixed temperature of 1300 ºC in a search for improving the properties of the solid solution under study. All series of LuMnxO3±δ ceramics for each annealing time were characterized to tentatively build a framework enabling comparison of measured properties with results of others available in literature. XRD and Rietveld refinement of data give the evolution the lattice parameters as a function to x. Shrinkage of the lattice parameters with increasing x values was observed, the stability limit of the solid solution being determined by analysis of lattice parameters. The evolution of grain size and presence of secondary phases have been investigated by means of TEM, SEM, EDS and EBSD techniques. The dependencies of grain growth and regression of secondary phases on composition x and time were further characterized. Magnetic susceptibility of samples and magnetic irreversibility were extensively examined in the present work. The dependency of magnetic susceptibility, Neel ordering transition and important magnetic parameters are determined and compared to observation in other multiferroics in the following chapter of the thesis. As a tool of high sensitivity to detect minor traces of the secondary phase hausmannite, magnetic measurements are suggested for cross-checking of phase diagrams. Difficulty of previous studies on interpreting the magnetic anomaly below 43 K in h-RMnO3 oxides was discussed and assigned to the Mn3O4 phase, with supported of the electron microscopy. Magneto-electric coupling where AFM ordering is coupled to dielectric polarization is investigated as a function of x and of sintering condition via frequency and temperature dependent complex dielectric constant measurements in the final chapter of the thesis. Within the limits of solid solubility, the crystalline lattice of off-stoichiometric ceramics was shown to preserve the magneto-electric coupling at TN. It represents the first research work on magneto-electric coupling modified by vacancy doping to author’s knowledge. Studied lattices would reveal distortions at the atomic scale imposed by local changes of x dependent on sintering conditions which were widely inspected by using TEM/STEM methods, complemented with EDS and EELS spectroscopy all together to provide comprehensive information on cross coupling of distortions, inhomogeneity and electronic structure assembled and discussed in a specific chapter. Internal interfaces inside crystalline grains were examined. Qualitative explanations of the measured magnetic and ferroelectric properties were established in relation to observed nanoscale features of h-LuMnxO3±δ ceramics. Ferroelectric domains and topological defects are displayed both in TEM and AFM/PFM images, the later technique being used to look at size, distribution and switching of ferroelectric domains influenced by vacancy doping at the micron scale bridging to complementary TEM studies on the atomic structure of ferroelectric domains. In support to experimental study, DFT simulations using Wien2K code have been carried out in order to interpret the results of EELS spectra of O K-edge and to obtain information on the cation hybridization to oxygen ions. The L3,2 edges of Mn is used to access the oxidation state of the Mn ions inside crystalline grains. In addition, rehybridization driven ferroelectricity is also evaluated by comparing the partial density of states of the orbitals of all ions of the samples, also the polarization was calculated and correlated to the off-stoichiometric effect.

PCA-ANFIS based prediction for water Injection effectiveness cycle in oil fields.

By proposing a numerical based method on PCA-ANFIS(Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System), this paper is focusing on solving the problem of uncertain cycle of water injection in the oilfield. As the dimension of original data is reduced by PCA, ANFIS can be applied for training and testing the new data proposed by this paper. The correctness of PCA-ANFIS models are verified by the injection statistics data collected from 116 wells inside an oilfield, the average absolute error of testing is 1.80 months. With comparison by non-PCA based models which average error is 4.33 months largely ahead of PCA-ANFIS based models, it shows that the testing accuracy has been greatly enhanced by our approach. With the conclusion of the above testing, the PCA-ANFIS method is robust in predicting the effectiveness cycle of water injection which helps oilfield developers to design the water injection scheme.

Nuclear relaxation in low fields and the study of ultraslow atomic motions in solids

U of I Only

Magnetic Theory and Applications in the Naples Bay (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy): Magnetic Anomaly Fields and Relationships with Morpho-Structural Lineaments

Magnetic theory and application to a complex volcanic area located in Southern Italy are here discussed showing the example of the Gulf of Naples, located at Southern Italy Tyrrhenian margin. A magnetic anomaly map of the Gulf of Naples has been constructed aimed at highlighting new knowledge on geophysics and volcanology of this area of the Eastern Tyrrhenian margin, characterized by a complex geophysical setting, strongly depending on sea bottom topography. The theoretical aspects of marine magnetometry and multibeam bathymetry have been discussed. Magnetic data processing included the correction of the data for the diurnal variation, the correction of the data for the offset and the leveling of the data as a function of the correction at the cross-points of the navigation lines. Multibeam and single-beam bathymetric data processing has been considered. Magnetic anomaly fields in the Naples Bay have been discussed through a detailed geological interpretation and correlated with main morpho-structural features recognized through morphobathymetric interpretation. Details of magnetic anomalies have been selected, represented and correlated with significant seismic profiles, recorded on the same navigation lines of magnetometry. They include the continental shelf offshore the Somma-Vesuvius volcanic complex, the outer shelf of the Gulf of Pozzuoli offshore the Phlegrean Fields volcanic complex, the relict volcanic banks of Pentapalummo, Nisida and Miseno, the Gaia volcanic bank on the Naples slope, the western slope of the Dohrn canyon, the Magnaghi canyon’s head and the magnetic anomalies among the Ischia and Procida islands.

Numerical methods for solar tomography in the STEREO era

In this thesis, we propose several advances in the numerical and computational algorithms that are used to determine tomographic estimates of physical parameters in the solar corona. We focus on methods for both global dynamic estimation of the coronal electron density and estimation of local transient phenomena, such as coronal mass ejections, from empirical observations acquired by instruments onboard the STEREO spacecraft. We present a first look at tomographic reconstructions of the solar corona from multiple points-of-view, which motivates the developments in this thesis. In particular, we propose a method for linear equality constrained state estimation that leads toward more physical global dynamic solar tomography estimates. We also present a formulation of the local static estimation problem, i.e., the tomographic estimation of local events and structures like coronal mass ejections, that couples the tomographic imaging problem to a phase field based level set method. This formulation will render feasible the 3D tomography of coronal mass ejections from limited observations. Finally, we develop a scalable algorithm for ray tracing dense meshes, which allows efficient computation of many of the tomographic projection matrices needed for the applications in this thesis.

The problem posed by exam choice on the comparability of results in the Finnish matriculation examination

The article focuses on the upper secondary matriculation examination in Finland as a school leaving and university entrance examination. The presented research addresses the question of whether increased choice of the subject-specific examinations has the potential to undermine the comparability of examination results and to direct students’ choices not only in the examination but already beforehand at school. The authors refer to Finland’s tradition of more than 160 years of a national examination connecting the academic track of upper secondary schools with universities. The authors explain the Finnish system by describing the adoption of a course-based (vs. class- or year-based) curriculum for the three-year upper secondary education and the subsequent reforms in the matriculation examination. This increases students’ choices considerably with regard to the subject-specific exams included in the examination (a minimum of four). As a result, high-achieving students compete against each other in the more demanding subjects while the less able share the same normal distribution of grades in the less demanding subjects. As a consequence, students tend to strategic exam-planning, which in turn affects their study choices at school, often to the detriment of the more demanding subjects and, subsequently, of students’ career opportunities, endangering the traditional national objective of an all-round pre-academic upper secondary education. This contribution provides an overview of Finnish upper secondary education and of the matriculation examination (cf. Klein, 2013) while studying three separate but related issues by using data from several years of Finnish matriculation results: the relation of the matriculation examination and the curriculum; the problems of comparability vis-à-vis university entry due to the increased choice within the examination; the relations between students’ examination choices and their course selection and achievement during upper secondary school. (DIPF/Orig.)

Genetic Diversity of Oilseed Rape Fields and Feral Populations in the Context of Coexistence with GM Crops

Despite growing concern about transgenes escaping from fields, few studies have analysed the genetic diversity of crops in an agroecosystem over several years. Accurate information about the dynamics and relationship of the genetic diversity of crops in an agroecosystem is essential for risk assessment and policies concerning the containment of genetically modified crops and their coexistence with crops grown by conventional practices. Here, we analysed the genetic diversity of oilseed rape plants from fields and feral populations over 4 years in an agricultural landscape of 41 km2. We used exact compatibility and maximum likelihood assignment methods to assign these plants to cultivars. Even pure lines and hybrid cultivar seed lots contained several genotypes. The cultivar diversity in fields reflected the conventional view of agroecosystems quite well: that is, there was a succession of cultivars, some grown for longer than others because of their good performance, some used for one year and then abandoned, and others gradually adopted. Three types of field emerged: fields sown with a single cultivar, fields sown with two cultivars, and unassigned fields (too many cultivars or unassigned plants to reliably assign the field). Field plant diversity was higher than expected, indicating the persistence of cultivars that were grown for only one year. The cultivar composition of feral populations was similar to that of field plants, with an increasing number of cultivars each year. By using genetic tools, we found a link between the cultivars of field plants in a particular year and the cultivars of feral population plants in the following year. Feral populations on road verges were more diverse than those on path verges. All of these findings are discussed in terms of their consequences in the context of coexistence with genetically modified crops.

Visualization of flow fields in the web platform

Visualization of vector fields plays an important role in research activities nowadays -- Web applications allow a fast, multi-platform and multi-device access to data, which results in the need of optimized applications to be implemented in both high-performance and low-performance devices -- Point trajectory calculation procedures usually perform repeated calculations due to the fact that several points might lie over the same trajectory -- This paper presents a new methodology to calculate point trajectories over highly-dense and uniformly-distributed grid of points in which the trajectories are forced to lie over the points in the grid -- Its advantages rely on a highly parallel computing architecture implementation and in the reduction of the computational effort to calculate the stream paths since unnecessary calculations are avoided, reusing data through iterations -- As case study, the visualization of oceanic currents through in the web platform is presented and analyzed, using WebGL as the parallel computing architecture and the rendering Application Programming Interface

Oral Anticoagulation in the Elderly: New Oral Anticoagulants-Innovative Solution for an Old Problem?

Direct oral anticoagulants emerge as the most innovative and promising drug toward preventing and treating cardiovascular disease, raising great interest among the scientific community. Numerous studies and meta-analysis generated much data clarifying clinicians' doubts; however, uncertainties remain regarding their use in particular groups such as patients with prosthetic valves, in valvular atrial fibrillation (defined as atrial fibrillation related to mitral rheumatic heart disease or prosthetic heart valves), among the elderly, in paraneoplastic thromboembolism, in pulmonary embolism with hemodynamic compromise, and scarcity of specific antidotes. This review article intends to condense the vast scientific production addressing new oral anticoagulants by focusing on their advantages and disadvantages when used on the elderly.