The objectives of the study were to provide a documented record of the vegetation of the grassland vegetation of the Red River Valley. The native prairies of this Valley are dominated by various combinations of Andropogon gerardi, Andropogon scoparius, Agropyron smithii, Bouteloua curtipendula, Calamagrostis inexpansa, Calamovilfa longifolia, Koeleria cristata, Muhlenbergia richardsonis, Sorghastrum nutans, Spartina pectinata, Sporobolus heterolepis, Stipa comata, Stipa spartea and Stipa viridula. At present only relicts of these grasslands remain. One hundred and fifty-one stands including 299 species, encompassing a wide range of floristic and habitat variability, were selected for study. The species composition frequency) of each stand was sampled by the use of thirty 0.5 X 0.5 m quadrats. A presence list was prepared for each stand and the dominant graminoid species determined by an estimate of cover contribution to the upper strata. The standing crop of green herbage of .34 stands was sampled by clipping five 0.5 X 0.5 m quadrats, and the material oven dried for weight determination. Environmental measurements were taken to determine physiographic position and soil profile characteristics. Soil samples were collected from the "A" horizon of each stand for textural analysis, field capacity, salinity and pH determinations. An analysis based on indicator species determined by physiographic association, indicated that the various species responded in a continuous manner to a moisture gradient. This was suggested by a gradation of importance from one physiographic habitat to another, with its position of peak performance in association with a specific drainage position. Vegetational types were also associated with physiographic position, but the dominant species and to a lesser degree secondary species showed modification of behavior by soil texture. The total number of species and their levels of importance (frequency) within the various vegetational types was used as a measure of diversity. The mid prairie dominance types with high numbers of species, many with high importance, were the most diverse of all types examined. It was further indicated that mid prairie stands in the northern portion of the area studied had higher diversity than all others. Geographic differences in diversity were related to historical development of the grasslands. The yield of green herbage varied according to prairie division, leading dominant, soil texture and geographic location. A high positive correlation between green herbage yield and length of growing season suggested that geographic location was the most effective determinant in production, with southern stands producing about 100% more green herbage than comparable stands in the north. The species comprising the grasslands of the Red River Valley suggest an amalgamation of species of eastern and western origin. The dominant graminoids, however, are most closely associated with the grasslands to the east and suggest the placement of the Red River Valley grasslands within the True Prairie.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1967. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Wisconsin, 1962. / Typescript. Vita. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 231-232).

This is a case study analyzing the program officers of the Biological Instrumentation Program at the National Science Foundation. It was conducted in order to fill a lacuna in the literature concerning the program officers of science funding agencies. The current literature places the program officer in a black box, implying an autonomous professional. In contrast this study portrays the Program Officer as embedded in a web of relationships extending within and without the Foundation. Constructivist and relativist approaches to science studies argue for the significance of the influence of these 'non-scientific' relationships on all contemporary scientific activity. The study describes the web of resource relationships surrounding the program officer and how the program officer wields power that may affect the content and submission of proposals for scientific research grants. / Master of Science

Dynamic Ionosphere Cubesat Experiment (DICE) is a satellite project funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study the ionosphere, more particularly Storm Enhanced Densities (SED) with a payload consisting of plasma diagnostic instrumentation. Three instruments onboard DICE include an Electric Field Probe (EFP), Ion Langmuir Probe (ILP), and Three Axis Magnetometer (TAM). The EFP measures electric elds from 8V and consists of three channels a DC to 40Hz channel, a Floating Potential Probe (FPP), and an spectrographic channel with four bands from 16Hz to 512Hz. The ILP measures plasma densities from 1x104 cm�3 to 2x107 cm�3. The TAM measures magnetic field strength with a range 0.5 Gauss with a sensitivity of 2nT. To achieve desired mission requirements careful selection of instrument requirements and planning of the instrumentation design to achieve mission success. The analog design of each instrument is described in addition to the digital framework required to sample the science data at a 70Hz rate and prepare the data for the Command and Data Handing (C&DH) system. Calibration results are also presented and show fulllment of the mission and instrumentation requirements.

Title from title page of PDF (University of Missouri--St. Louis, viewed March 2, 2010). Includes bibliographical references (p. 265-274).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2006. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Montana State University--Bozeman, 2005. / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on June 10, 2006). Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Larry Baker. Includes bibliographical references (p. 219-224).

The purpose of this study is to describe and evaluate selected characteristics of the National Science Foundation-sponsored science curricular programs developed in the United States for use at the secondary school level, and to determine some curricular and instructional implications for Kuwaiti secondary school science programs. The study is designed to include a description and an evaluation of selected characteristics of four NSF-sponsored science curricular programs, namely Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS), Chemical Education Materials Study (CHEM Study), Earth Science Curriculum Project (ESCP), and Harvard Project Physics (HPP) programs. The study also includes a description and evaluation of selected characteristics of all Kuwaiti secondary school science programs in biology, chemistry, geology (earth science), and physics. The characteristics of science programs of both countries are described and evaluated, individually and collectively, by using Zorn's Criteria. Based on the results obtained, certain implications for Kuwaiti secondary school science programs are drawn, both individually and collectively. Recommendations to be considered in future revision and improvement of Kuwaiti science programs are presented. The results of the study reveal that the NSF-sponsored science programs are superior to Kuwaiti science programs in a variety of characteristics, such as the emphasis on active student involvement in inquiry-oriented activities, the inclusion of related information sources (bibliographies) in student textbooks, and the provision of extensive supplementary reading materials.

This dissertation investigates the adaptation of a research-based professional development approach, Innovating Instruction, for special education teachers. This adapted approach uses assistive technology (AT) as a catalyst for helping teachers acquire design skills needed to include more inquiry-based practices. The adapted approach introduces effective teaching practices based on the learning sciences and demonstrates multiple ways to use AT to meet the needs of students. To address the “unexamined link between the use of design practices and the introduction of technology within a learning science framework,” (Meier, 2018, p.142), the Innovating Instruction© professional development framework (2018) at the Center for Technology and School Change provides a three-part approach to implement these changes: design, situate, lead. Two recent National Science Foundation grants have established the model’s positive impact on teachers’ ability to design projects, to shift from disciplinary to transdisciplinary project design, and to shift instructional thinking to include inquiry-based approaches. This dissertation responds to an important challenge in special education: the limited opportunities to prepare special education teachers to provide high-quality instruction to support all students. It uses technology as a catalyst to help special education teachers learn about design practices that engage students in inquiry practices that are culturally relevant and build on student strengths. The intervention introduced teachers to inquiry-driven design practices and used technology that supported new ways of understanding the capacity of special needs students through a six-month professional development program. The research design used was a convergent parallel mixed methods approach to analyze both qualitative and qualitative data to capture how special education teachers used AT to design inquiry-based learning. The analysis revealed a statistically significant shift over the period of the professional development, implementation, and reflection phases in terms of teachers’ ability to design inquiry-based projects that integrated AT. Also, the findings showed the importance of “situating” teachers’ needs, encouraging collaborative learning with colleagues, and developing a shared knowledge base of inquiry-based teaching strategies in special education classrooms. Findings from teacher questionnaires and interviews showed emerging leadership activities: teachers took more initiative to design projects and collaborate with other teachers in the school community.