Digital Government II: Information Technology and Democratic Administration, Winter 2007
This seven-week course is the second in a two-part sequence exploring contemporary practices, challenges, and opportunities at the intersection of information technology and democratic governance. This second half of the course takes on emerging directions in democratic administration – and the shifting role of information technologies in supporting, transforming, and understanding these. The course locates recent and emerging digital or e-government initiatives in historical, institutional, a
Earth Processes in the Critical Zone
EARTH 530 will introduce you to the basic information necessary for understanding Earth surface processes in the Critical Zone through an integration of various scientific disciplines. Those who successfully complete EARTH 530 will be able to apply their knowledge of fundamental concepts of Earth surface processes to understanding outstanding fundamental questions in Critical Zone science and how their lives are intimately linked to Critical Zone health.
Resolution of Satellite Images and Applications to Tropical Meteorology
Penn State's weather forecasting sample lesson - In this tutorial you will learn about the resolution of satellite images and test your understanding of the concepts presented. After answering a question at the end, you'll find out how well you learned the material.
Nature of Geographic Information
This course will orient you to the properties of geographic data and the practice of distance learning. Some of the overall goals are to: 1) Promote understanding of the geopgraphic information science and technology (GIS&T) enterprise and 2) Promote geographic information literacy - the ability to identify the kind(s) of geographic information needed for a particular task; to determine whether needed data are available; to acquire and assess the quality of the data if available, or specify the
GIS Mashups for Geospatial Professionals
This course cultivates a working knowledge of how geospatial professionals can develop web mapping applications that bring together data from multiple sources. GEOG 863 will provide students with an understanding of the technology that makes building mashups possible and teaches them how to build their own mashups.
Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection
This course will covers a basic understanding and appreciation of energy efficiency and environmental concepts, basic operating principles of day-to-day energy conversion devices, various options to increase energy efficiency, ways to save energy and money, and ways to save the environment.
Corporate Finance for Health Care Administrators, Fall 2008
HMP 607 is the third in a three-course sequence intended to impart to generalist administrators the knowledge of finance and accounting necessary to manage health care organizations. The first course, HMP 608, covers financial accounting. The second course, HMP 606, focuses on managerial accounting topics. This third course concentrates on corporate finance topics. It aims to impart an understanding of how finance theory and practice can inform the decision-making of the health care firm. A
"The Flood Disaster in Pakistan: Socio-economic Consequences and Potential Geopolitical Ramification
Imtiaz Gul is the Executive Director of the Centre for Research and Security Studies in Islamabad. He is the author of three books on the ongoing security concerns in South Asia: The Unholy Nexus, The Al-Qaeda Connection, and The Most Dangerous Place. Gul addresses the longer term political and social consequences of the floods in Pakistan of July of this
Information Economics, Winter 2007
This course is a half-semester module, Information Economics. In the second half-semester I teach a companion module, Incentive-Centered Design: Contracting and Signaling. My goal is to give you a strong grounding in the economics of information goods and services. We will analyze strategic issues faced by for-profit and not-for-port organizations: pricing, bundling, versioning, network externalities and rights management. My teaching objectives are: To provide you with a framework for understan
Professional Practice in Libraries and Information Centers, Winter 2009
Builds on the conceptual framework of information needs and the use of information provided in SI 501. In that course the focus is on techniques that information professionals use to understand the needs of people who employ a wide variety of information systems.Emphasis is on professional practice. Professional practice occurs both in institutional settings (including public, academic, special, and school libraries and information centers) and directly between information professionals and clie
Outcome-based Evaluation of Programs and Services, Winter 2009
Course provides an overview of the purposes and uses of outcome-based evaluation approaches and methods, and provides an opportunity to conduct a focused outcome evaluation of a user-focused service in a library, a nonprofit organization, an archive, a museum or other service-focused organization.
Objectives are to:
* Learn about approaches to outcome-based evaluation
* Identify and use context-centered methods for evaluating public information services
* Examine the role of evaluat
Digital Libraries, Winter 2008
This is a special topics seminar focusing on the current state of “digital libraries” broadly defined. The seminar is multi-disciplinary in focus and in method, covering the history of the idea, its manifestation as projects and programs in academic, non-profit, and research settings, and the suite of policy issues that influence their development and growth. The concept of the digital library will serve as an intellectual construct within which to explore the related concepts of scholarly c
Understanding Records and Archives: Principles and Practices, Winter 2009
Provides an understanding of why societies, cultures, organizations, and individuals create and keep records. Presents cornerstone terminology, concepts, and practices used in records management and archival administration. Examines the evolution of methods and technologies used to create, store, organize, and preserve records and the ways in which organizations and individuals use archives and records for ongoing operations, accountability, research, litigation, and organizational memory. Parti
Digital Government 2: Information Technology and Democratic Administration, Winter 2009
Course is the second of a two-part sequence exploring contemporary practices, challenges, and opportunities at the intersection of information technology and democratic governance. Whereas the first course (SI 532) focuses on tensions and innovations in democratic politics, this course takes on emerging directions in democratic administration and the shifting role of information technologies in supporting, transforming, and understanding these. The first part of the course sets contemporary disc
Endocrine, Winter 2008
The Endocrine Sequence is a two-week unit designed to teach the basic principles of hormone secretion and action and the clinical disorders which result from abnormalities of hormonal activities. Students are expected to be familiar with the functions of the endocrine glands, the structure, secretion and action of the important hormones, and the major clinical endocrine disorders. Emphasis will be placed on understanding pathophysiology and being able to use general principles in endocrine physi
Lecture 18 - 11/30/2010
Lecture 18
The reason for the seasons
Understanding why the earth has seasons is one of the most difficult concepts for middle school students to understand. This publication provides resources to help teachers uncover their students misconceptions about the seasons.
Light, optics and lenses
Physical Science Content Standard B of the National Science Education Standards encompasses transfer of energy and specifically states, Light interacts with matter by transmission (including refraction), absorption, or scattering (including reflection). We begin with early investigations into the nature of light that culminated in the current understanding of the nature of light, both visible and invisible as the same physical laws apply to the entire electromagnetic spectrum. From there student
Geologic time: Eons, eras, and epochs
Not a geology major or mathematician? No worries! This publication contains resources designed to do three things. The first is to complement teacher content knowledge and its relationship to the nature of geologic science. Geology is not a laboratory-based science lending itself to traditional notions of controlled experiments; rather it is a historical science requiring different methods. Second, we supply teachers with hands-on/minds-on lessons to develop student understanding, and third, we
Science and Society: Preventing the Spread of Disease
Students are introduced to vocabulary, and their prior knowledge about infectious diseases is assessed. They conduct a liquid exchange activity that models the spread of an infectious disease. An activity summary discussion helps students extend and apply their understanding of how an infectious disease may spread. Students work in small groups to examine real-life cases of infectious diseases from different countries and diverse approaches in solving the health problems caused by infectious dis
