This thesis addresses a research programme that aimed to provide an open standard methodology for publishing Brazilian local primary school atlases on the World Wide Web. It also aims to contribute to the use of computer laboratories provided to Brazilian primary schools by the Brazilian government. Using a local school atlas as the source of information, a Web-based prototype of the School Atlas of Rio Claro (SP) was developed in SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics). SVG is a vector-based standard for publishing interactive graphics on the Web validated by the Web Consortium. This prototype was tested with a group of Brazilian primary school teachers. The test was conducted with fourteen teachers, all of them were familiar with the paper version of the School Atlas. During weekly meetings, the participants took notes to discuss and reflect about the practices held in school with local maps. The main test carried out with teachers was to prepare a paper activity based on the atlas content. The idea behind this activity was to foster teachers to leave a passive role as mere users and interact with the product in a more active fashion. In order to enable them to take full advantage of simple digital tools they were briefly trained to capture screen, use image editing software (they were instructed on the use of Paint, an image editing application available in Windows), and to copy text from the atlas. The results demonstrated that the teachers were keen to interact with the product and, although reproducing some common practices of paper atlas use, they revealed a deep interest on the use of the Internet as a medium for education and the prototype itself. A second test was carried out with a group of atlas developers. They were given a time frame of two weeks to develop an SVG-based atlas using the methodology proposed in this research. They completed the task within the time frame proposed however they indicated that more specific training should be desirable; this finding indicates the need to introduce digital map publishing as a subject to be taught in geosciences undergraduate courses in Brazil. It is believed that open standard methodology proposed here can be applied to other cities also developing local atlases for early geographical education.

Thesis (M. Phil.)--University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Title proper from title frame. Also available in printed format.

To examine the potential for exercise to build bone mass during growth, objectives of this dissertation included: 1) determine the effects of 7 months of jumping followed by 7 months of detraining on hip and spine bone mass in the prepubertal children; 2) determine variables that best predict bone mineral content (BMC;g) of the hip and spine in order to develop prediction equations for healthy, Caucasian children, specific to Hologic fan-beam DXA machines; and 3) to examine the potential synergy between calcium intake and the bone response to jump training in prepubertal children. Results/Conclusions Objective 1 (Chapters 2, 3 and 4): children who performed 300 jumps/week at a load magnitude of 8 body weights had significantly greater 7-month changes for BMC at the femoral neck and lumbar spine than controls (4.5% and 3.1%, respectively), and significantly greater 7-month changes for bone area (BA; cm��) at the femoral neck than controls (2.9%). After 7- months of detraining (no box jumping exercises) the jumping group maintained 4% greater BMC and 4% greater BA at the femoral neck than controls. By contrast, at the spine, gains in BMC from the intervention were not retained after an equivalent period of detraining. These data indicate that high-impact jumping enhances growth at the hip. Results/Conclusions Objective 2 (Chapter 5): Age, height, and weight were entered as predictor variables in order to create regression models for healthy, young Caucasian boys and girls. Of these, height and weight independently predicted femoral neck and total hip BMC in both boys (femoral neck: R��=.48, total hip: R��=.63) and girls (femoral neck: R��=.49, total hip R��=.65). Height best predicted spine BMC in boys (R��=.58), but both height and weight independently predicted spine BMC in girls (R��=.54). We report that height and weight not age, best predict bone mineral content at the hip and spine. Results/Conclusions Objective 3 (Chapter 6): Children responded similarly to the jumping program regardless of calcium intake. 73% of our population had dietary intakes of calcium that met the recommended values for their age group. / Graduation date: 2002

The primary purpose of this study was to determine the effects of an interdependent group-oriented contingency on the MVPA levels of middle school students during the fitness portion of physical education lessons. Participants were randomly selected target students from three intact eighth grade classes. A combination of a delayed multiple baseline and changing criterion design was implemented to determine the effects of the intervention on students' MVPA levels (dependent variable). MVPA levels were measured using momentary time sampling with definitions from the System for Observing Fitness Instruction Time. The independent variable consisted of an interdependent group-oriented contingency program. When target students reached a physical activity level criterion, for a specified number of days, the whole group was rewarded with a choice of activities. Inter-observer agreement, using the scored-interval method (during 20% of the lessons), for students' MVPA levels was 95% (range 91-100%) and 86% (range 74-94%) for the teacher's instructional behaviors. Visual analysis of graphic data was used to demonstrate the functional relationship between the intervention and MVPA levels. The overlap of data points, mean level changes, trends, variability within and between conditions, and number of days that the criteria were attained by the target students were used to establish the experimental effects. A higher level of student MVPA was demonstrated in all classes, during all three units when the initial criterion level of the intervention was implemented. During the second level of intervention, higher MVPA levels were demonstrated in one of three units. Across all three units, when the intervention was in effect, target students attained the MVPA criteria 21 of the 27 days (78%). Post-checks, conducted three weeks after the withdrawal of the contingency program, revealed that MVPA levels decreased slightly while remaining above the level observed during baseline. / Graduation date: 1998

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Illinois State University, 2006. / Title from title page screen, viewed on April 27, 2007. Dissertation Committee: Kenneth Jerich (chair), Adel AL-Bataineh, Fabiola Ehlers-Zavala, Heidi Harbers. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 93-98) and abstract. Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--McMaster University, 2005. / Supervisor: Oded Bar-Or. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 1982. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 259-268). Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center.

Thesis (M.A. Ed.)--Georgia State University, 2008. / Title from file title page. Melody Milbrandt, committee chair; Melanie Davenport, Juane Heflin, committee members. Electronic text (103 p.) : digital, PDF file. Description based on contents viewed Sept. 23, 2008. Includes bibliographical references (p. 67-71).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ball State University, 2009. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Nov. 12, 2009). "July 16, 2008." Includes bibliographical references (p. 143-152).

Thesis (M.A.)--California State University, Chico. / Includes abstract. "Located in the chico Digital Repository." Includes bibliographical references (p. 117-119).