Multihead measuring tape

By using multihead measuring tape, procedure to obtain length and angle measurement on either wood or metal stock is reduced to one step. Length and angle of measurement can be locked in on measuring device for repetitive measurements. Measuring tape can be used for layout work or to duplicate length and angle of existing stock

A Novel Application: Using Mobile Technology to Connect Physical and Virtual Reference Collections

This chapter describes an innovative implementation of the use of iPad kiosks to blur the lines between physical and virtual library collections. Providence College’s Phillips Memorial Library + Commons began lending iPads to students, faculty, and staff in 2012. In addition to lending the devices, library staff dedicated time to learning about both task-based and subject-based mobile applications that would be of use to our community. A small group of library staff tested, discussed, and vetted a variety of apps that would be deployed on the iPads to be lent out. Efforts were made to promote the use and discovery of various apps on the devices through thoughtful organization of the apps on the devices themselves, programming around applications, and the creation of an online research guide designed to teach more about the apps. Despite these initiatives, assessment data from the iPad lending program collected over the course of five semesters suggests that patrons borrowing the iPads are using them primarily for accessing the Internet (Safari, Chrome, etc.), social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), and consuming media (YouTube, Netflix, Pandora, Spotify, etc.). With this data in mind, library staff began to think of alternative ways to connect our patrons with useful, content-based, mobile applications. Drawing on research around the Internet of Things and the integration of digital technologies with our physical lives, the Digital Publishing Services Coordinator suggested positioning iPad kiosks strategically within the library’s physical book collection as a means to connect patrons browsing a given area of the stacks with the library’s online resources related to that subject area. The library’s Commons Technology Specialist had experience with iPad kiosks and programming the iPads as he had managed the logistics of the iPad lending program since its inception. Working collaboratively, these colleagues devised a way to image the iPads for public use and load them with subject-specific apps as well as links to library databases and open web resources. The team chose to use Scalar as the primary content management tool for kiosk content. This chapter provides details about the selection and deployment of content for the Theology Kiosk, signage and communications created to attract patrons to the kiosk, and initial data about kiosk use. The piece concludes with a review of the kiosk project and an outline of future planning related to the project (staff time, hardware and software requirements, usability testing, scaling the project, etc.)

The Cauchy-Schlomilch transformation

The Cauchy-Schl\"omilch transformation states that for a function $f$ and $a, \, b > 0$, the integral of $f(x^{2})$ and $af((ax-bx^{-1})^{2}$ over the interval $[0, \infty)$ are the same. This elementary result is used to evaluate many non-elementary definite integrals, most of which cannot be obtained by symbolic packages. Applications to probability distributions is also given

A critical perspective on the concept of biocultural diversity and its emerging role in nature and heritage conservation

The continuing losses of biodiversity around the world remain problematic for nature conservation. A fundamental issue that has triggered debates in nature conservation is the relationship between human culture, heritage and history, and nature expressed as ecology or biodiversity. Traditionally, nature conservation has been pursued separately from aspects of cultural heritage; a situation which seems perplexing when we consider the importance of traditional management in the maintenance of biodiversity in many areas now “protected” for nature. To address these broad issues, fundamental to future landscape sustainability, we need to have clear definitions of concepts and terms. This paper considers the historical development of the key concepts that frame biocultural diversity and the paradigms relating to biocultural assets or eco-cultural landscapes. This is pertinent to both researchers and to practitioners or policymakers, and we suggest ways biocultural diversity can improve global conservation efforts

Revised Status of Rare and Endangered Unionaea (Mollusca: Margaritiferidae, Unionidae) in Arkansas

Harris and Gordon (1987) reviewed the distribution and status of 18 rare and /or endangered unionacean bivalve species (commonly referred to as clams, mussels, freshwater mussels, naiads) that occur or have occurred in Arkansas. They discussed four species that were federally listed as endangered, four species that were considered endangered or extirpated within Arkansas, four species considered threatened within Arkansas, four species of special concern within Arkansas, and two species for which the conservation status was considered uncertain due to questions regarding taxonomic validity. Numerous unionacean field surveys have been performed during 1986 1996, and a substantial database of new distributional and relative abundance information has been accumulated. Two additional unionacean species have been listed as federally endangered, one additional species has been listed as federally threatened, and one endangered species has been newly discovered within Arkansas bringing the total number of federally protected unionacean species occurring within Arkansas to eight. The conservation status of 16 additional unionacean species occurring in Arkansas is discussed also

Growth Curves of Four Species of Commercially Valuable Freshwater Mussels (Bivalva: Unionidae)

North American freshwater mussels (Bivalvia: Unionidae) have been exploited commercially for over 100 years and have been regulated using shell size limits and/or harvest seasons. Presently, freshwater mussels are considered a threatened faunal group in North America due to the large numbers of endangered, threatened or special concern species. Therefore, management of this fauna should emphasize their long-term sustainability. The objectives of this study were 1) to construct von Bertalanffy growth curves for selected commercially-most-valuable species, Fusconaia ebena, Megalonaias nervosa, Amblema plicata and Quadrula quadrula, from five rivers and two reservoirs, 2) to compare species-specific von Bertalanffy growth curves from different rivers and reservoirs, and 3) to provide information on size at onset of sexual maturity in F. ebena and A. plicata. Von Bertalanffy growth curves of four commercially valuable Ambleminae species were used in this study to compare drainage-specific growth. Growth curves for all four species investigated were significantly different between pairs of drainages. Approximate size at onset of sexual maturity was determined for Arkansas F. ebena and A. plicata. Von Bertalanffy growth curves, coupled with life history and population dynamics information, could be useful in assessing and determining national/state harvest sizes and/or drainage specific harvest sizes once annual growth line formation is confirmed

Theology Collections Portal: First Iteration 2016

This document presents an archive of the first iteration of the Theology Collections Portal, a tool designed to connect library patrons doing theology research with electronic resources available through the library. The Theology Collections portal was built using Scalar. To view the Portal in its current form visit: http://scalar.usc.edu/works/theology-collections/inde

Towards a synthesized critique of neoliberal biodiversity conservation

During the last three decades, the arena of biodiversity conservation has largely aligned itself with the globally dominant political ideology of neoliberalism and associated governmentalities. Schemes such as payments for ecological services are promoted to reach the multiple ‘wins’ so desired: improved biodiversity conservation, economic development, (international) cooperation and poverty alleviation, amongst others. While critical scholarship with respect to understanding the linkages between neoliberalism, capitalism and the environment has a long tradition, a synthesized critique of neoliberal conservation - the ideology (and related practices) that the salvation of nature requires capitalist expansion - remains lacking. This paper aims to provide such a critique. We commence with the assertion that there has been a conflation between ‘economics’ and neoliberal ideology in conservation thinking and implementation. As a result, we argue, it becomes easier to distinguish the main problems that neoliberal win-win models pose for biodiversity conservation. These are framed around three points: the stimulation of contradictions; appropriation and misrepresentation and the disciplining of dissent. Inspired by Bruno Latour’s recent ‘compositionist manifesto’, the conclusion outlines some ideas for moving beyond critique

Characterizing College Science Assessments: The Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol

Citation: Laverty, J. T., Underwood, S. M., Matz, R. L., Posey, L. A., Carmel, J. H., Caballero, M. D., . . . Cooper, M. M. (2016). Characterizing College Science Assessments: The Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol. Plos One, 11(9), 21. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0162333Many calls to improve science education in college and university settings have focused on improving instructor pedagogy. Meanwhile, science education at the K-12 level is undergoing significant changes as a result of the emphasis on scientific and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas. This framework of "three-dimensional learning" is based on the literature about how people learn science and how we can help students put their knowledge to use. Recently, similar changes are underway in higher education by incorporating three-dimensional learning into college science courses. As these transformations move forward, it will become important to assess three-dimensional learning both to align assessments with the learning environment, and to assess the extent of the transformations. In this paper we introduce the Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol (3D-LAP), which is designed to characterize and support the development of assessment tasks in biology, chemistry, and physics that align with transformation efforts. We describe the development process used by our interdisciplinary team, discuss the validity and reliability of the protocol, and provide evidence that the protocol can distinguish between assessments that have the potential to elicit evidence of three-dimensional learning and those that do not

Independent large scale duplications in multiple M. tuberculosis lineages overlapping the same genomic region

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of most human tuberculosis, infects one third of the world's population and kills an estimated 1.7 million people a year. With the world-wide emergence of drug resistance, and the finding of more functional genetic diversity than previously expected, there is a renewed interest in understanding the forces driving genome evolution of this important pathogen. Genetic diversity in M. tuberculosis is dominated by single nucleotide polymorphisms and small scale gene deletion, with little or no evidence for large scale genome rearrangements seen in other bacteria. Recently, a single report described a large scale genome duplication that was suggested to be specific to the Beijing lineage. We report here multiple independent large-scale duplications of the same genomic region of M. tuberculosis detected through whole-genome sequencing. The duplications occur in strains belonging to both M. tuberculosis lineage 2 and 4, and are thus not limited to Beijing strains. The duplications occur in both drug-resistant and drug susceptible strains. The duplicated regions also have substantially different boundaries in different strains, indicating different originating duplication events. We further identify a smaller segmental duplication of a different genomic region of a lab strain of H37Rv. The presence of multiple independent duplications of the same genomic region suggests either instability in this region, a selective advantage conferred by the duplication, or both. The identified duplications suggest that large-scale gene duplication may be more common in M. tuberculosis than previously considere