Assessment of Skill and Portability in Regional Marine Biogeochemical Models: Role of Multiple Planktonic Groups

Application of biogeochemical models to the study of marine ecosystems is pervasive, yet objective quantification of these models' performance is rare. Here, 12 lower trophic level models of varying complexity are objectively assessed in two distinct regions (equatorial Pacific and Arabian Sea). Each model was run within an identical one-dimensional physical framework. A consistent variational adjoint implementation assimilating chlorophyll-a, nitrate, export, and primary productivity was applied and the same metrics were used to assess model skill. Experiments were performed in which data were assimilated from each site individually and from both sites simultaneously. A cross-validation experiment was also conducted whereby data were assimilated from one site and the resulting optimal parameters were used to generate a simulation for the second site. When a single pelagic regime is considered, the simplest models fit the data as well as those with multiple phytoplankton functional groups. However, those with multiple phytoplankton functional groups produced lower misfits when the models are required to simulate both regimes using identical parameter values. The cross-validation experiments revealed that as long as only a few key biogeochemical parameters were optimized, the models with greater phytoplankton complexity were generally more portable. Furthermore, models with multiple zooplankton compartments did not necessarily outperform models with single zooplankton compartments, even when zooplankton biomass data are assimilated. Finally, even when different models produced similar least squares model-data misfits, they often did so via very different element flow pathways, highlighting the need for more comprehensive data sets that uniquely constrain these pathways.

Skill sorting, inter-industry skill wage premium, and production chains: evidence from India 1999-2000

This paper proposes a mechanism that links industry’s technological characteristics (i.e. quality of non-labor inputs, which is proxied by the length of industry production chains), industry-specific skill wage premium, and skill sorting across industries. It is hypothesized that high-skilled workers are sorted into industries where they can receive a higher skill wage premium, by working with better quality non-labor input. The quality of non-labor inputs is assumed to be worse in industries with longer production chains due to the increased involvement of low-skilled labor and poor infrastructure over the sequential production. By examining Indian wage and employment data for 1999-2000, empirical evidence to support this mechanism can be obtained: First, the skill wage premium is lower [higher] in industries with longer [shorter] production chains. Second, the skill wage premium is lower [higher] in industries with a higher [lower] proportion of low-skilled workers producing inputs outside their own industry. Third, the proportion of high-skilled workers is larger in industries with shorter production chains and lower ratio of low-skilled labor involved, i.e., a skill sorting trend can be observed.

Skill sorting and production chains : evidence from India

This study proposes a new mechanism that explains skill-sorting patterns and skill wage differentials across industries based on the length of the industry's production chain. A simple simultaneous production model shows that when the quality of intermediate inputs deteriorates rapidly along the production chains, high-skilled individuals choose to work in industries with shorter production chains because of higher returns to skill. I empirically confirm this skill-sorting pattern and these inter-industry skill wage differentials in India, where the quality of intermediate inputs is likely to degrade rapidly because of the high number of unskilled laborers, poor infrastructure, and less-advantaged technology. The results remain robust even when considering selection bias, alternative reasons for inter-industry skill wage differentials, and a different period. The results of this study have important implications when considering countries' industrial development patterns.

A two-year experience teaching computer literacy to first-year medical students using skill-based cohorts

Because it is widely accepted that providing information online will play a major role in both the teaching and practice of medicine in the near future, a short formal course of instruction in computer skills was proposed for the incoming class of students entering medical school at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. The syllabus was developed on the basis of a set of expected outcomes, which was accepted by the dean of medicine and the curriculum committee for classes beginning in the fall of 1997. Prior to their arrival, students were asked to complete a self-assessment survey designed to elucidate their initial skill base; the returned surveys showed students to have computer skills ranging from complete novice to that of a systems engineer. The classes were taught during the first three weeks of the semester to groups of students separated on the basis of their knowledge of and comfort with computers. Areas covered included computer basics, e-mail management, MEDLINE, and Internet search tools. Each student received seven hours of hands-on training followed by a test. The syllabus and emphasis of the classes were tailored to the initial skill base but the final test was given at the same level to all students. Student participation, test scores, and course evaluations indicated that this noncredit program was successful in achieving an acceptable level of comfort in using a computer for almost all of the student body.

"i Went To The Woods Because I Wished To Live Deliberately": How A College-Level Academic Course Can Influence A Lifetime

This study, using the portraiture methodology, provides an analysis of the lifelong significance of an undergraduate program that integrates literature with an outdoor experiential platform. With limited research on long-term effects of an academic outdoor experiential course on one's life, there is space to wonder about the prospect and nature of the long-term significance of an academic course that may offer technical skill, intrapersonal and interpersonal development, and also the delivery of subject matter related to a traditional or mainstream academic area of study. Utilizing an academic skills-oriented lens as well as a character strengths lens, portraits were crafted of four former participants of the University of Michigan's New England Literature Program (NELP) to shed light on the long-term influence of this type of course, crucial participant characteristics that contribute to the program's impact, and specific components of the program that are particularly integral to the course's efficacy. Since 1975, each spring term a small contingent of students and educators has lived in the woods in the New England region as a community of learners, artists and explorers. NELP is an exemplar of a longstanding undergraduate academic English course that integrates the literature of New England writers, exploratory writing and student experiences relating to regional literature and the land. Emergent themes of this course's long-term influence on former participants include increased collaborative skills, increased self-confidence and self-knowledge, a reinforcement of lifelong relationships with the outdoors, and nurtured creativity. For participants to reap benefit from this course, it was important for them to enter with maturity to conduct themselves with openness to new experiences, relationships, and extensive reflection. Findings relating to the integral components of such a program include that of being place-based, oriented towards process, and being an intentional, collaborative community.

Water polo throwing speed and body composition: an analysis by playing positions and opposition level

The aim of this study was to develop an anthropometric profile on highly skilled male water polo players by specific playing positions. Also, to identify significant relationships between these features an overhead throwing speed in highly skilled male Water Polo players by specific playing positions. Methods: A total of 94 male water polo players (24.5±5.3 yrs) who were playing in the Spanish King´s cup were studied. Subjects were grouped according to their specific playing positions: 15 goalkeepers, 45 offensive wings, 20 center backs and 14 center forwards. Anthropometric assessment was made following ISAK protocols. Hand grip and throwing speed in several situations were also assessed. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine if significant differences existed among the four playing positions. Pearson product-moment correlation coefficients (r) were used to determine the relationships of all anthropometric measures with throwing speed and hand grip. The total player’s somatotype was endomorphic-mesomorphic (2.9–5.8–2.3). Center forwards exhibit important anthropometric differences compared with the other specific playing positions in elite male water polo players, but no differences were found in throwing speed by specific playing positions in each throwing conditions. Moreover, a higher number of relationships between anthropometric and throwing speed were found in wings and also in center backs but no relationships were found in center forwards. The data reflects the importance of muscle mass and upper body in the throwing skill. Coaches can use this information in order to select players for the different specific positions.

The Contribution of Structured Activity and Deliberate Play to the Development of Expert Perceptual and Decision-Making Skill

The developmental histories of 32 players in the Australian Football League (AFL), independently classified as either expert or less skilled in their perceptual and decision- making skills, were collected through a structured interview process and their year-on-year involvement in structured and deliberate play activities retrospectively determined. Despite being drawn from the same elite level of competition, the expert decision-makers differed from the less skilled in having accrued, during their developing years, more hours of experience in structured activities of all types, in structured activities in invasion-type sports, in invasion-type deliberate play, and in invasion activities from sports other than Australian football. Accumulated hours invested in invasion-type activities differentiated between the groups, suggesting that it is the amount of invasion-type activity that is experienced and not necessarily intent (skill development or fun) or specificity that facilitates the development of perceptual and decision-making expertise in this team sport.

Skill formation in Britain and Germany: Recent developments in the context of traditional differences. CES Germany & Europe Working Papers, No.06.1, 2006

This paper proposes a comparison of skill formation in Germany and Britain over the last decades. Taking historical trends into account, the two cases can be regarded as representing different types of skill production regimes. Institu-tional features include a relatively low degree of standardization of training and a larger amount of on-the-job training in Britain. In Germany, post-compulsory training has been conducted predominantly within the dual system of vocational training, underlining the vocational specificity of a large part of the labor market. As a consequence, international differences in individual skill investments, transitions from school to work and other life-course patterns can be observed. At least in Britain, however, the situation seems to have changed considerably during the 1990s. The paper argues that the divergence in more recent developments can still be understood as an expression of historical path-dependency given the traditional connections between the post-compulsory training system and the broader societal context in which it is embedded. These concern, in particular, links with the system of general and academic education as the basis for – and also a possible competitor with – vocational training; links with the labor market as they are indicated by specific skill requirements and returns to qualifications; and, links with the order of social stratification in the form of the selective acquisition and the social consequences of these qualifications. The links manifest themselves as typical individual-level consequences and decisions. Founded on the basis of these distinctions, the aim of this paper is to investigate the preceding conditions for recent developments in the qualification systems of Britain and Germany, which have adapted to specific challenges during the last decades.

Neuromuscular adaptation during skill acquisition on a two degree-of-freedom target-acquisition task: Isometric torque production

In this study we attempted to identify the principles that govern the changes in neural control that occur during repeated performance of a multiarticular coordination task. Eight participants produced isometric flexion/extension and pronation/supination torques at the radiohumeral joint, either in isolation (e.g., flexion) or in combination (e.g., flexion - supination), to acquire targets presented by a visual display. A cursor superimposed on the display provided feedback of the applied torques. During pre- and postpractice tests, the participants acquired targets in eight directions located either 3.6 cm (20% maximal voluntary contraction [MVC]) or 7.2 cm (40% MVC) from a neutral cursor position. On each of five consecutive days of practice the participants acquired targets located 5.4 cm (30% MVC) from the neutral position. EMG was recorded from eight muscles contributing to torque production about the radiohumeral joint during the pre- and posttests. Target-acquisition time decreased significantly with practice in most target directions and at both target torque levels. These performance improvements were primarily associated with increases in the peak rate of torque development after practice. At a muscular level, these changes were brought about by increases in the rates of recruitment of all agonist muscles. The spatiotemporal organization of muscle synergies was not significantly altered after practice. The observed adaptations appear to lead to performances that are generalizable to actions that require both greater and smaller joint torques than that practiced, and may be successfully recalled after a substantial period without practice. These results suggest that tasks in which performance is improved by increasing the rate of muscle activation, and thus the rate of joint torque development, may benefit in terms of the extent to which acquired levels of performance are maintained over time.

Grammatical sensitivity: Its origins and potential contribution to early word reading skill

A three-phase longitudinal study examined the origins of grammatical sensitivity and its usefulness as a predictor of early word-level reading. At about 4 years of age, children were given a range of language and cognitive tests. One year later, the children were given a further series of language and cognitive tests, this time including grammatical sensitivity, phonological sensitivity, and nonword repetition. Another year later, word-level reading achievement was assessed. Overall, grammatical sensitivity and phonological sensitivity were more firmly grounded in earlier language ability than in cognitive ability. Phonological sensitivity and nonword repetition showed reliable predictive associations with subsequent word reading skills. Grammatical sensitivity did not. (c) 2005 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A multilevel analysis of BIS sensitivity and negative affect during skill acquisition

This Study examined the muldlevel reladonships among negadve affect Behavioural Inhibidon System (BIS) Sensidvit)' and performance. It also invesdgated whether the reladonship among these variables changed across pracdce. Pardcipants performed muldple trials of a simulated air traffic control task, A single measure of BIS was taken before pracdce, while negadve affect and performance were measured at repeated intervals. As expected, negadve affect was detrimental to performance at both a between-person and withinperson level, BIS was also found to be detrimental to performance. Contrary' to expectadons, the reladonship between BIS and performance was not mediated by overall levels of negadve affect. As predicted, the effects of overall levels of negadve affect and BIS strengthened across pracdce as pardcipants gained task knowledge and skill. The findings of this study are interpreted using resource allocadon theor}' and the implicadons for skiU acquisidon discussed.

E-learning Skill and Use in EU Countries – A Statistical Analysis

The article investigates the division between member states of the European Union considering the aspect of their level of information and communication technology (ICT) development focusing on e-learning. With the help of discriminant analysis the countries are categorized into groups based on their ICT maturity and e-learning literacy level of development. Making a comparison with a benchmarking tool, the ITU (International Telecommunication Union)’s ICT Development Index (IDI) the results are confirmed partly correct. The article tries to find economical explanations for the re-grouping of the countries ranking. Finally the author examines the reliability of Hungary’s ranking results and the factors which may affect this divergence from the real picture.

The effects of using an alternative method for teaching badminton to post secondary level students in Taiwan

The effect of teaching method in physical education is an important issue and has been a concern of the expert teacher. Teachers are expected to create a model of teaching in their field; therefore, it is reasonable to question what is the effect of an alternative teaching method on student performance in physical education. This study explores whether teaching methods with advanced planning, behavior and belief in high enthusiasm, use of instructional strategies and evaluation, together termed a systematic teaching approach, used in a physical education activity would provide an effective environment for learning which supports student achievement in the psychomotor, cognitive, and affective domains. This study also investigated whether there was a difference in performance between students who were taught with a systematic teaching approach and students who were taught with the traditional teaching model. Information was collected using two performance skills, a written test, and one questionnaire. The 68 participants were randomly assigned into either an experimental group or a control group. Two teachers were assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. The teaching experiment took place at Tamsui Oxford University College in Taiwan and lasted eight weeks. ^ Research questions were analyzed using the t-test. Results indicated that a significant difference in students' performance was found between the experimental group and the control group on both the skill tests and the paper test. Analysis of student attitude toward their teacher and their course on the questionnaire indicated a significant difference between the experimental group and the control group. ^ The findings of this study imply that students who were taught with a systematic teaching style were significantly superior to students who were taught with the traditional model on these measures. This finding supports the contention that effective teaching in physical education is related to advanced planning, high enthusiasm, instructional strategy and evaluation and that all physical education teachers should implement these planning elements in the development of the teaching strategies. ^

An analysis of student and instructor perceptions of students' writing skills at the university level

This study examined university students' writing skills as perceived by university students and their English instructors. The goal of the study was to provide English instructors with objective, quantified information about writing perceptions from both the students' and instructors' viewpoints. ^ A survey instrument was developed based on a survey instrument created by Newkirk, Cameron, and Selfe (1977) to identify instructors' perceived knowledge of student writing skills. The present study used a descriptive statistical design. It examined five writing skill areas: attitude, content, grammar and mechanics, literary considerations, and the writing process through a questionnaire completed by a convenience sample of summer and fall admitted freshmen who were enrolled in Essay Writing and Freshman Composition courses and English Department instructors at a large South Florida public university. ^ The study consisted of five phases. The first phase was modifying of the Newkirk, Cameron, and Selfe (1977) questionnaire. Two versions of the revised survey were developed - one for instructors and one for students. The second phase was pilot testing the questionnaire for evaluation of administration and scoring. The third phase was administering the questionnaire to 1,280 students and 48 instructors. The fourth phase was analyzing the data. The study found a significant difference in the perceptions of students and instructors in all areas of writing skills examined by the survey. Responses to 29 of 30 questions showed that students felt they had better attitudes toward writing and better writing skills than instructors thought. ^ The final phase was developing recommendations for practice. Based on findings and theory and empirical evidence drawn from the fields of adult education and composition research, learner-centered, self-directed curriculum guidelines are offered. ^ By objectively quantifying student and instructor perceptions of students' writing skills, this study contributes to a growing body of literature that: (a) encourages instructors to acknowledge the perception disparities between instructors and students; (b) gives instructors a better understanding of how to communicate with students; and (c) recommends the development of new curriculum, placement tests, and courses that meet the needs of students and enables English instructors to provide meaningful instruction. ^

The impact of pre -training interventions on cognitive, skill, and affective learning outcomes: A meta -analytic examination of four decades of research

Technological advancements and the ever-evolving demands of a global marketplace may have changed the way in which training is designed, implemented, and even managed, but the ultimate goal of organizational training programs remains the same: to facilitate learning of a knowledge, skill, or other outcome that will yield improvement in employee performance on the job and within the organization (Colquitt, LePine, & Noe, 2000; Tannenbaum & Yukl, 1992). Studies of organizational training have suggested medium to large effect sizes for the impact of training on employee learning (e.g., Arthur, Bennett, Edens, & Bell, 2003; Burke & Day, 1986). However, learning may be differentially affected by such factors as the (1) level and type of preparation provided prior to training, (2) targeted learning outcome, (3) training methods employed, and (4) content and goals of training (e.g., Baldwin & Ford, 1988). A variety of pre-training interventions have been identified as having the potential to enhance learning from training and practice (Cannon-Bowers, Rhodenizer, Salas, & Bowers, 1998). Numerous individual studies have been conducted examining the impact of one or more of these pre-training interventions on learning. ^ I conducted a meta-analytic examination of the effect of these pre-training interventions on cognitive, skill, and affective learning. Results compiled from 359 independent studies (total N = 37,038) reveal consistent positive effects for the role of pre-training interventions in enhancing learning. In most cases, the provision of a pre-training intervention explained approximately 5–10% of the variance in learning, and in some cases, explained up to 40–50% of variance in learning. Overall attentional advice and meta-cognitive strategies (as compared with advance organizers, goal orientation, and preparatory information) seem to result in the most consistent learning gains. Discussion focuses on the most beneficial match between an intervention and the learning outcome of interest, the most effective format of these interventions, and the most appropriate circumstances under which these interventions should be utilized. Also highlighted are the implications of these results for practice, as well as propositions for important avenues for future research. ^