An understanding of Algebra I and the role that this foundational course plays as an entry to the college preparatory pathway in secondary education and its influence on mathematical achievement is an integral component for the education of American youth in the global world of science and technology. Achievements in high school curricula are cumulative; each course completed determines which paths will be open to the student and which postsecondary education options will be available. In today's world, these options are necessary for the competitive world market. Algebra I is the prerequisite course for subsequent high school math pathways. Students exposed to higher level math and science pathways in high school score higher on college entrance exams such as the American College Test (ACT), and they are more likely to be successful in college due to greater competence in math (Conley, 2006). This research examined the effect of early Algebra I exposure in the 8th grade on students in 2 city school systems in Northeast Tennessee. More specifically, this study explored the correlation between Algebra I completion in the 8th grade and subsequent student achievement. The number of math classes attempted by high school seniors and ACT achievement scores, suggested that early exposure to algebra yields more math class participation and higher levels of mathematic achievement. This study found that students who successfully completed Algebra I in the 8th grade were able to earn more higher level high school math course credits than students who did not successfully complete Algebra I in grade 8. Successful completion of Algebra I in middle school allowed students to enroll in more varied and higher level math courses throughout their high school career.

Although there is general agreement that feedback plays an important role in student performance, the majority of the studies found in the research literature explore the impact of different types of feedback in a traditional and university-level setting. In order to explore the impact of different feedback types in a non-traditional distance learning setting, 352 high school students enrolled in courses offered through BYU's Independent Study (IS) department received either delayed feedback or immediate feedback generated by Speedback™, BYU's automated grading and feedback program, depending on whether they had opted to submit end of unit assignments by mail or computer. Results of a comparison of final exam scores indicated that those students receiving immediate feedback performed significantly better on course final exams, but surprisingly those who received delayed feedback completed course in significantly less time.

This study examined the brain electrical activity of normal speakers in a non-delayed auditory feedback (DAF) condition and when experiencing DAF to determine the effect DAF would have on the Bereitschaftspotential (BP). The BP reflects the preparatory state of a person prior to motor execution of an act and can be observed 1500 to 500 ms prior to voluntary movement. The participants in the study included 10 adults with normal speech. Each read a series of 30 sentences, both without DAF and with DAF, while the BP was measured. Results indicate that the BP is present across the scalp in both the control condition and the DAF condition; however, the BP is reduced in the DAF condition. The scalp distribution maps indicate an increased negativity in the left frontal lobe in the DAF condition. These findings suggest that while the brain is engaged in processing current information that has already been initiated, the motor system may not be able to be primed for the next sequential motor event. There is still a need for more research to explore the motor control of speech and the ways altered feedback may disrupt the speech motor control.

Syftet var att beskriva faktorer som kan påverka patientsäkerheten vid crowding på akutmottagningar. Designen som använts är en allmän litteraturöversikt med systematisk metod där data har samlats in genom sökningar i vetenskapliga databaser. Artiklar som har inkluderats har varit publicerade mellan år 2017–2022, skrivna på engelska och granskade av oberoende forskare. Resultatet visade att crowding på akutmottagningar får konsekvenser på flera plan och att orsakerna till crowding är flera. Dödligheten, vårdskador och missnöjdheten hos patienterna ökade. Orsaken till detta var blanda annat att inflödet av patienter var större än utflödet. Lokalerna var inte dimensionerade och anpassade för den ökad mängd patienter som vistades samtidigt på akutmottagningarna, vilket fick konsekvensen att korridorer och tillfälliga utrymmen användes till patientvård. Sjuksköterskorna som arbetade på akutmottagningarna hade då inte möjlighet att bedöma och reevaluera alla patienter de ansvarar för vilket ledde till att försämringar missas och orsakar lidande. Slutsatsen var att patientsäkerheten är hotad av crowding på akutmottagningar. Sjukvårdspersonal gavs inte möjligheten att bedriva patientsäker och personcentrerad vård när akutmottagningarna var högt belastade vilket kunde leda till att sjukvårdpersonalen upplevde stress och en negativinställning till sin arbetsplats. Genom att belysa riskerna kan sjukvårdspersonal och arbetsledningar arbeta proaktivt för att förebygga crowding och minska riskerna för vårdskada. / The aim was to describe factors that can affect patient safety in crowded emergency departments. The design used was a general literature review with a systematic method where data has been collected through searches in scientific databases. Articles that have been included was published between year 2017–2022, written in English and reviewed by independent researchers. The results showed that overcrowding in emergency departments had consequences on numerous levels and that the causes of overcrowding was various. Mortality, healthcare injuries, and patient dissatisfaction was increasing. The reason for this was, among other things, that the inflow of patients was greater than the outflow. The premises was not dimensioned and adapted to the increased number of patients staying at the same time in the emergency departments, which had the consequence that corridors and temporary spaces was used for patient care. The nurses who worked in the emergency departments did not have the possibility to assess and re-evaluate all the patients they were responsible for, which leads to deterioration being missed and causing suffering. The conclusion was that patient safety was jeopardized by crowding in the emergency departments. Healthcare staff were not given the opportunity to provide patient-safe and person-centred care when the emergency departments was crowded, which could lead to the healthcare staff experiencing stress and a negative attitude towards their workplace. By emphasising the risks, healthcare staff and work management can work proactively to prevent crowding and reduce the risks of healthcare injury.

No description available.

Traumatic diaphragmatic hernia (TDH) is a known complication in patients with abdominal injuries. Delayed TDH, which presents long after the traumatic event, is a rare subset and is often missed upon initial presentation. We discuss a case involving a 15-year-old female who presented with persistent nausea, vomiting, and epigastric pain and was subsequently diagnosed with TDH via chest x-ray, later confirmed by CT scan. Further investigation of the patient's history revealed a motor vehicle accident one year prior in which the patient sustained an injury to the left chest. A chest x-ray at that time did not show signs of a diaphragmatic hernia. Surgical evaluation of the diaphragmatic defect further supported previous trauma as the mechanism of injury. Our patient's presentation is particularly interesting considering the lack of TDH reported in the pediatric population, as well as the presenting complaints being primarily gastrointestinal rather than respiratory.

An After Action Review (AAR) is the Army training system's performance feedback mechanism. The purpose of the AAR is to improve team (unit) and individual performance in order to increase organizational readiness. While a large body of knowledge exists that discusses instructional strategies, feedback and training systems, neither the AAR process nor the AAR systems have been examined in terms of learning effectiveness and efficiency for embedded trainers as part of a holistic training system. In this thesis, different feedback methods for embedded training are evaluated based on the timing and type of feedback used during and after training exercises. Those feedback methodologies include: providing Immediate Directive Feedback (IDF) only, the IDF Only feedback condition group; using Immediate Direct Feedback and delayed feedback with open ended prompts to elicit self-elaboration during the AAR, the IDF with AAR feedback condition group; and delaying feedback using opened ended prompts without any IDF, the AAR Only feedback condition group. The results of the experiment support the hypothesis that feedback timing and type do effect skill acquisition, retention and transfer in different ways. Immediate directive feedback has a significant effect in reducing the number of errors committed while acquiring new procedural skills during training. Delayed feedback, in the form of an AAR, has a significant effect on the acquisition, retention and transfer of higher order conceptual knowledge as well as procedural knowledge about a task. The combination of Immediate Directive Feedback with an After Action Review demonstrated the greatest degree of transfer on a transfer task.

We investigate the implementation of nontraditional open-loop and closed-loop control techniques to systems at the micro and macro scales. At the macro level, we consider a quay-side container crane. It is known that the United States relies on ocean transportation for 95% of cargo tonnage that moves in and out of the country. Each year over six million loaded marine containers enter U.S. ports. Current growth predictions indicate that container cargo will quadruple in the next twenty years. To cope with this rapid growth, we develop a novel open-loop input-shaping control technique to mitigate payload oscillations on quay-side container cranes. The proposed approach is suitable for automated crane operations, does not require any alterations to the existing crane structure, uses the maximum crane capabilities, and is based on an accurate two-dimensional four-bar-mechanism model of a container crane. The shaped commands are based on a nonlinear approximation of the two-dimensional model frequency and, unlike traditional input-shaping techniques, our approach can account for large hoisting operations. For operator-in-the-loop crane operations, we develop a closed-loop nonlinear delayed-position feedback controller. Key features of this controller are that it: does not require major modifications to the existing crane structure, accounts for motion inversion delays, rejects external disturbances, and is superimposed on the crane operator commands. To validate the controllers, we construct a 1:10 scale model of a 65-ton quay-side container crane. The facility consists of a 7-meter track, 3.5-meter hoisting cables, a trolley, a traverse motor, two hoisting motors, and a 50-pound payload. Using this setup, we demonstrated the effectiveness of the controllers in mitigating payload oscillations in both of the open-loop and closed-loop modes of operation. At the micro level, we consider a micro optical device known as the torsional micromirror. This device has a tremendous number of industrial and consumer market applications including optical switching, light scanning, digital displays, etc. To analyze this device, we develop a comprehensive model of an electrically actuated torsional mirror. Using a Galerkin expansion, we develop a reduced-order model of the mirror and verify it against experimental data. We investigate the accuracy of representing the mirror using a two-degrees-of-freedom lumped-mass model. We conclude that, under normal operating conditions, the statics and dynamics of the mirror can be accurately represented by the simplified lumped-mass system. We utilize the lumped-mass model to study and analyze the nonlinear dynamics of torsional micromirrors subjected to combined DC and resonant AC excitations. The analysis is aimed at enhancing the performance of micromirrors used for scanning applications by providing better insight into the effects of system parameters on the microscanner's optimal design and performance. Examining the characteristics of the mirror response, we found that, for a certain DC voltage range, a two-to-one internal resonance might be activated between the first two modes. Due to this internal resonance, the mirror exhibits complex dynamic behavior. This behavior results in undesirable vibrations that can be detrimental to the scanner performance. Torsional micromirrors are currently being implemented to provide all-optical switching in fiber optic networks. Traditional switching techniques are based on converting the optical signal into electrical signal and back into optical signal before it can be switched into another fiber. This reduces the rate of data transfer substantially. To realize fast all-optical switching, we enhance the transient dynamic characteristics and performance of torsional micromirrors by developing a novel technique for preshaping the voltage commands applied to activate the mirror. This new approach is the first to effectively account for inherent nonlinearities, damping effects, and the energy of the significant higher modes. Using this technique, we are able to realize very fast switching operations with minimal settling time and almost zero overshoot. / Ph. D.

The main objective of this work is to design robust, fast, and practical controllers for gantry and tower cranes. The controllers are designed to transfer the load from point to point as fast as possible and, at the same time, the load swing is kept small during the transfer process and completely vanishes at the load destination. Moreover, variations of the system parameters, such as the cable length and the load weight, are also included. Practical considerations, such as the control action power, and the maximum acceleration and velocity, are taken into account. In addition, friction effects are included in the design using a friction-compensation technique. The designed controllers are based on two approaches. In the first approach, a gain-scheduling feedback controller is designed to move the load from point to point within one oscillation cycle without inducing large swings. The settling time of the system is taken to be equal to the period of oscillation of the load. This criterion enables calculation of the controller feedback gains for varying load weight and cable length. The position references for this controller are step functions. Moreover, the position and swing controllers are treated in a unified way. In the second approach, the transfer process and the swing control are separated in the controller design. This approach requires designing two controllers independently: an anti-swing controller and a tracking controller. The objective of the anti-swing controller is to reduce the load swing. The tracking controller is responsible for making the trolley follow a reference position trajectory. We use a PD-controller for tracking, while the anti-swing controller is designed using three different methods: (a) a classical PD controller, (b) two controllers based on a delayed-feedback technique, and (c) a fuzzy logic controller that maps the delayed-feedback controller performance. To validate the designed controllers, an experimental setup was built. Although the designed controllers work perfectly in the computer simulations, the experimental results are unacceptable due to the high friction in the system. This friction deteriorates the system response by introducing time delay, high steady-state error in the trolley and tower positions, and high residual load swings. To overcome friction in the tower-crane model, we estimate the friction, then we apply an opposite control action to cancel it. To estimate the friction force, we assume a mathematical model and estimate the model coefficients using an off-line identification technique using the method of least squares. With friction compensation, the experimental results are in good agreement with the computer simulations. The gain-scheduling controllers transfer the load smoothly without inducing an overshoot in the trolley position. Moreover, the load can be transferred in a time near to the optimal time with small swing angles during the transfer process. With full-state feedback, the crane can reach any position in the working environment without exceeding the system power capability by controlling the forward gain in the feedback loop. For large distances, we have to decrease this gain, which in turn slows the transfer process. Therefore, this approach is more suitable for short distances. The tracking-anti-swing control approach is usually associated with overshoots in the translational and rotational motions. These overshoots increase with an increase in the maximum acceleration of the trajectories . The transfer time is longer than that obtained with the first approach. However, the crane can follow any trajectory, which makes the controller cope with obstacles in the working environment. Also, we do not need to recalculate the feedback gains for each transfer distance as in the gain-scheduling feedback controller. / Ph. D.

<p>The energy threshold of liquid xenon detectors is driven by the requirements of observing a scintillation signal as well as a large ionization signal. Observing both allows powerful background rejection, but limits the sensitivity below O(10 GeV/c²). Removing the requirement of having a scintillation signal, the threshold for light dark matter can be pushed lower. One limitation to the light dark matter search in XENON1T was single- and few-electron backgrounds that were not well understood. A dedicated analysis was performed to understand these backgrounds and event selections were developed to mitigate them.  This thesis presents details of the characterization and results from a search for light dark matter using only the single- and few-electron ionization signals in the XENON1T detector.</p> <p><br></p> <p>These liquid xenon detectors are leading in sensitivity to search for rare events. With various detector upgrades, XENONnT has improved sensitivity to low-energy interactions with signals as low as a single detected electron. This allows XENONnT to be able to detect neutrinos of all flavors from potential Galactic supernovae via coherent elastic neutrino-nucleus scattering (CEvNS). This thesis presents an overview of the capability of XENONnT to detect supernova neutrinos via CEvNS. This allows XENONnT to be the first direct detection dark matter experiment to directly participate in the SuperNova Early Warning System.</p>