bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Observations of nitric oxide in the Antarctic middle atmosphere during recurrent geomagnetic storms
Authors: Newnham David A. , Espy Patrick J. , Clilverd Mark A. , Rodger Craig J. , Seppälä Annika , Maxfield David J. , Hartogh Paul , Straub Corinne , Holmén Kim , Horne Richard B. 
Published: November 2013

AbstractWe report ground‐based measurements of the polar middle atmosphere made using a 230–250 GHz passive microwave radiometer deployed at Troll station (72°01′S 02°32′E, L shell of L = 4.8), Antarctica. Our observations show enhanced mesospheric nitric oxide (NO) volume mixing ratio (VMR) during a series of small recurrent geomagnetic storms in the 2008 austral winter, reaching 1.2 ppmv on day 200 (18 July). The Lomb normalized periodogram of the NO VMR time series averaged over 65‐80 km for days 130 to 220 of 2008 (9 May to 7 August) shows a peak exceeding the 95% confidence limit at 25.8 days, close to the synodic rotation period for low‐latitude solar coronal holes. The highest correlations between the radiometer NO VMR data and trapped and quasi‐trapped electron count rates for L = 3.5‐5.5 from the Polar Orbiting Environment Satellites 90° telescope are for the >30 keV (90e1) channel (rmax = 0.56, lag time of 5.1 days) and >100 keV (90e2) channel (rmax = 0.57, lag time of 4.4 days). Maximum correlation between NO VMR and the >700 keV (90P6) channel data is lower but lag times are close to zero. Superposed epoch analyses for the eight most significant geomagnetic storm periods and three Carrington rotations (2070‐2072) within the 90 day observation period indicate that significant NO abundance observed at 65‐80 km in the Antarctic mesosphere may be produced directly by >200 keV electron precipitation or originate from a source at higher altitudes, e.g., production by >30 keV electrons followed by downward transport.
Saturn's magnetospheric planetary period oscillations, neutral atmosphere circulation, and thunderstorm activity: Implications, or otherwise, for physical links
Authors: Cowley S. W. H. , Provan G. 
Published: November 2013

AbstractSuggestions that the planetary period oscillations (PPOs) observed in Saturn's magnetosphere may be driven or influenced by neutral atmospheric perturbations motivate an exploratory comparison of PPO rotation periods with available tropospheric and stratospheric determinations. Nonpolar atmospheric rotation periods occupy the range ~10.2–10.7 h associated with the latitudinal jet structure, are similar north and south, and are independent of season, while PPO periods lie in a narrower partly overlapping range ~10.6–10.8 h, are persistently shorter north than south, and undergo a seasonal cycle. In this cycle, widely separated north‐south PPO periods during southern summer converge across equinox to values lying within the atmospheric west jet band, remaining well‐separated from east jet periods. Closest convergence occurred 1 year post equinox, contemporaneously with the switch in seasonal thunderstorm activity from Southern to Northern Hemispheres. Since most large‐scale atmospheric phenomena are related to the west jets, rotating with closely similar periods, they also rotate with periods close to the PPOs under post equinoctial conditions but not otherwise. Specifically, post equinox northern PPOs rotate with a period close to the southern thunderstorms, as well as the north polar spot and hexagon features, while the post equinox southern PPOs rotate with a period close to the pre‐equinox northern “string of pearls” and the first colocated post equinox northern thunderstorm, the Great White Spot event. However, even under these conditions, no consistent correspondences in period are found at a detailed level, which taken together with the lack of correspondence at other times does not suggest a direct physical link exists between these phenomena.
Characteristics of positive cloud‐to‐ground lightning in Da Hinggan Ling forest region at relatively high latitude, northeastern China
Authors: Qie Xiushu , Wang Zhichao , Wang Dongfang , Liu Mingyuan 
Published: November 2013

AbstractIn 2009 and 2010, a multistation network of fast and slow antennas was installed on the edge of a relatively high latitude forest region in Da Hinggan Ling (50.4°N, 124.1°E) of northeastern China. The documented 185 positive cloud‐to‐ground (CG) flashes containing 196 return strokes were analyzed in the paper. It was found that 71.89% of the positive CG flashes contained continuing current. The average duration of continuing current was short with an arithmetic mean value of 33.29 ms and a geometric mean value of 16.74 ms; only one continuing current lasted longer than 150 ms, probably because of the small size of the storm cell in this relatively high latitude region. The vast majority (94.59%) of positive CG flashes was characterized by a single stroke, and the average number of stroke per flash is 1.06. The average charge transferred by positive stroke and continuing current, based upon the analysis of five flashes with well‐documented simultaneous measurements of more than five stations, was +5.2 C from a height of 6.0 km (above ground) and +10.2 C from a height of 6.4 km, respectively. The charge moment for +CG strokes ranged from +13.7 C km to +55.9 C km, while that for continuing current ranged from +29.0 C km to +96.9 C km, respectively. The preliminary breakdown process in positive CG flashes can be classified into three types, namely type S (same), type D (different), and type C (chaotic) according to the disparities in the initial polarity of bipolar pulses from the return stroke, which account for 62.92%, 23.60%, and 13.48%, respectively. According to the electric field waveforms indicative (or not indicative) of intracloud (IC) discharge, positive CG flashes are classified into four types, i.e., ordinary positive CG flash (63.78%), hybrid +CG‐IC flash (21.08%), hybrid IC‐+CG flash (5.41%), and hybrid IC‐+CG‐IC flash (9.73%). About 15.14% of the recorded positive CG flashes were byproduct of IC lightning discharge.
The expected performance of cloud optical and microphysical properties derived from Suomi NPP VIIRS day/night band lunar reflectance
Authors: Walther Andi , Heidinger Andrew K. , Miller Steven 
Published: November 2013

AbstractThe day/night band channel of the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) instrument on board Suomi‐National Polar Partnership (S‐NPP) is a visible/near‐infrared sensor (500–900 nm band pass) capable of measuring extremely low magnitudes of light, down to the levels of reflected moonlight and beyond. Whereas similar measurement capabilities have existed on predecessor sensors (principally, the Defense Meteorological Satellite Program), the day/night band offers the first calibrated radiance measurements, and as a result, it is the first opportunity to apply moonlight measurements to the problem of retrieving nocturnal cloud optical properties. Daytime retrievals of cloud properties such as top height, optical thickness, cloud top particle size, and water content, have been conducted routinely from an assortment of operational and research grade optical sensors for decades. These observations are providing a satellite‐based global data record of increasing relevance to climate change monitoring (where clouds are thought to play an integral feedback role). The lack of a complete diurnal record of such key parameters presents an important shortfall of these records. Here we present the adaption of the daytime cloud optical and microphysical properties algorithm, which derives cloud optical thickness and effective radius from reflected sunlight to lunar reflectance. The new algorithm is referred to nighttime lunar cloud optical and microphysical properties. Day/night consistency of optical depth is shown through global analysis for one complete day of VIIRS data. Limitations of the retrieval of effective radius are discussed.
Spoken Discourse
Authors: Lazaraton Anne 
Published: November 2013

When second or foreign language (L2) learners take a speaking proficiency test, their scores are really the only outcome in which they are interested, especially in high stakes assessment contexts—where a sufficient score is necessary for university admission, citizenship, or employment. So it has been with language testers: the emphasis on test scores (or ratings, as they are likely to be in speaking assessment) leads to the primary concern about score as well as rater reliability—the degree to which a rater is consistent over time, across language samples, and with other raters. More recently, however, attention has shifted to issues of test validity, which considers the processes by which test scores lead to inferences about their meaning. This is increasingly the case for L2 speaking tests, where investigation of the process of speaking assessment has become almost as important as questions about outcome scores. Two primary questions underlie the emphasis on test process: first, how can the language that is produced in a speaking test be characterized? Second, how can careful analyses of that language lead to improvements in test design and rating processes? To answer these questions, the analysis of spoken discourse has become a key strand of research in the language assessment community.The chapter begins with a definition of discourse and discourse analysis; subsequent sections present facts about the nature of spoken discourse in both monologic and interactive contexts and empirical findings on the co‐construction of discourse in the speaking assessment process involving test takers, interviewers, and peers. The chapter concludes with a look at the challenges facing spoken discourse analysts and future directions in L2 speaking assessment, including the impact of digital technologies and large‐scale language corpora, the systematic development of rating scales, and the importance of formative, classroom‐based assessment in understanding the nature of L2 speaking proficiency.
AssessingPortuguese
Authors: Back Michele 
Published: November 2013

This chapter reviews the assessment of Portuguese as a foreign, second, and heritage language, emphasizing its role as a growing world language and the characteristics of its two standard varieties (European and Brazilian) and nonstandard varieties (regional Brazilian, African, and Asian).After a brief linguistic history and description, the methods and content of the most popular standardized tests for Portuguese—the Portuguese government's CAPLE and the Brazilian government's CELPE‐Bras are compared and contrasted. This analysis incorporates the learning environments provided by the Instituto Camões and the Centros de Estudos Brasileiros—who administer the CAPLE and CELPE‐Bras, respectively—as well as the different proficiency levels determined by performance on these exams. US‐based learning environments and methods of assessment are also addressed.The second part of the chapter looks at special assessment issues in Portuguese, taking as a point of departure the CAPLE and CELPE‐Bras to examine the challenges of assessing a language with two distinct standard varieties against the backdrop of distinct learner goals and the sociolinguistics of nonstandard Portuguese. Finally, two unique and growing populations of Portuguese learners—Spanish speakers and heritage speakers—are discussed, particularly regarding what types of assessment might be relevant for these learners.
Administration, Scoring, and Reporting Scores
Authors: Huhta Ari 
Published: November 2013

This chapter covers administration, scoring, and reporting scores from language tests and examinations. Procedures typically used in major language examinations and small‐scale classroom testing and assessment are both covered. It is argued that the administration, scoring, and reporting procedures are highly dependent on the purpose and stakes of the assessment. Selected national and international guidelines of good practice are reviewed to see what they have to say about these phases of the assessment process, and examples are given on how, for example, high stakes certification and achievement tests differ from teacher‐based formative and diagnostic tests.The review considers how the skill tested impacts on how a test is administered and scored: In particular, testing of speaking and writing differ in many ways from testing comprehension. Also, the medium of assessment has a considerable effect, as modern information and communications technology (ICT) can radically change not only test administration but also scoring and reporting. ICT enables immediate reporting of results, more detailed feedback, and even automated scoring of performances.An account is given of the research pertaining to administering, scoring, and reporting scores of language tests. Studies on test administration are not common except for types of testing where it is intertwined with the test format, such as in computerized testing, which is often compared with paper‐based testing, and in oral testing, where factors related to the setting, participants, and so forth have been studied. Scoring procedures have received considerable attention from researchers, especially when speaking and writing are concerned, and an outline and selected finding from these studies are presented. Reporting scores appears to be the least studied area, but even there some research into, for example, the meaningfulness of different reporting formats exists, and this is briefly described.
Assessing
Māori
Indigenous Language Learners
Authors: Rau Cath 
Published: November 2013

In Aotearoa/New Zealand, educational policy and ensuing initiatives have increasingly focused on accelerating student achievement in literacy and numeracy, particularly for Māori learners in both English medium and Māori medium settings, creating a tension with broader expectations on how (Māori) linguistic and cultural regeneration should be achieved. In 2010, national standards were introduced for year 1 to 8 students in English medium amidst (lingering) controversy and in 2011 for students in Māori medium classrooms. Unlike international examples where national standards exist, the Aotearoa/New Zealand example requires teachers to make judgments about student achievement in relation to national expectations based on multiple sources of information (as opposed to performance on a single test). This creates both challenge and opportunity for educators in Māori medium settings where, to date, the development and promulgation of assessments (and assessment practices) has been largely ad hoc and spasmodic.
This chapter describes and comments on the various Māori language schooling options catering for year 1 to 8 students in Aotearoa/New Zealand's educational landscape; how the Māori medium sector has responded to the increasing need for standardized assessments; Ministry of Education policy that emphasizes and gives expression to the right of Māori to enjoy educational success as Māori; the development of national standards for Māori medium settings; challenges and opportunities created for Māori medium education by the current environment; and onsiderations for continuing improvement to meet achievement expectations and challenge pervading deficit theorizing about Māori learners. The chapter also profiles two well‐established Māori language schools whose students are experiencing success as Māori in their second language (i.e., Māori) as well as in the English language, despite the fact that, compared to their counterparts in English medium classrooms, formal English language instruction occurs in the later years of schooling.
Defining Constructs and Assessment Design
Authors: Jamieson Joan 
Published: November 2013

This chapter describes the evolution of constructs and illustrates current construct issues that affect the design of second language assessments. To understand the termconstructbetter, the chapter begins with historical overviews presented from two perspectives. First, educational and psychological measurement ideas are reviewed in terms of theStandards for Educational and Psychological Testing(theStandards). TheStandardshave represented a consensus among American scholars and practitioners on what information is most helpful and important for guiding the development and use of tests. Second, language testing ideas are reviewed using theStandardsas a backdrop. In both overviews, we can see shifts in meaning that have led to our current state.The second part of the chapter discusses four inter‐related issues that affect current and future designs of second language assessments: the relationship among measure, construct, and theory; a move away from the 1999Standardsview of construct validity and toward an argument‐based approach; the way one's worldview affects the construct definition; and the way the inferences we want to make from test scores are influenced by the test developer's view both of the world and of validity.By better understanding the various meanings ofconstructin second language assessment, test score users, students, and researchers alike should be alerted to look beyond the term itself, and examine the nuances of its use. As test developers adopt an argument‐based approach to validity, they should be aware thatconstructsare not always necessary in assessment design, but if they are included there is a responsibility to define them in relation to a model or a theory, and to examine the predicted relations.
Classroom‐Based Assessment Issues for Language Teacher Education
Authors: Leung Constant 
Published: November 2013

In recent years there has been an increasing professional and policy interest in classroom‐based assessment. This chapter focuses on some of the key conceptual and professional issues associated with classroom‐based assessment from the point of view of language teacher knowledge and practice, with particular reference to the teaching of English to speakers of other languages.The discussion will,inter alia, cover the following issues: assessment for different purposes; validity and reliability; perspectives on language and language learning in relation to assessment; and curriculum content in language assessment. These issues will be addressed with language teacher education in mind. Specific considerations related to classroom‐based assessment will be foregrounded where appropriate. The discussion will draw on relevant work in language education and educational assessment, in addition to the research literature in second language assessment.
Introspective Methods
Authors: Sasaki Miyuki 
Published: November 2013

The chapter introduces three typical introspective measures (think‐aloud reports, immediate recalls, and stimulated recalls) that have been used in language assessment (LA) research mainly to elicit test takers' and test raters' thinking processes. First, it briefly touches upon how and why introspection became a legitimate research target in the humanities in general, then in applied linguistics, and later in the LA field. Because of the combined influences of behaviorism and structuralism after World War II, the LA field had long viewed the use of qualitative data such as introspection in research as somewhat suspicious. However, under the influence of information processing perspectives and the sociocultural orientation in applied linguistics, and most importantly through the redefinition of “test validity” in language testing itself, some recent LA studies have begun using introspection measures for the purpose of investigating how the test products (e.g., scores) are actually brought about. This evolution can also be related to the epistemological changes advocated by some researchers in the concept of assessment itself (e.g., dynamic assessment).The three measures listed above are operationally defined, and some possible advantages and disadvantages of each method when applied to LA research are discussed. Selected studies illustrate how these methods have been adopted in past research. The dos and don'ts that prospective researchers should bear in mind when planning to use these methods in their studies are also presented. The chapter concludes by mentioning several possible directions that future studies could take and that might benefit not only those involved in test development and administration but also those concerned with language education in general.
Assessing the Oral English Abilities of International Teaching Assistants in the
USA
Authors: Farnsworth Timothy 
Published: November 2013

This chapter focuses on an important problem at many US research universities: ensuring that the oral English skills of potential graduate teaching assistants can support the effective teaching of undergraduates. The chapter begins with a description of the problem, drawing from the author's experiences at a large public research university. This is followed by a review of available literature on the type and level of proficiency required of international teaching assistants (ITAs), which is quite different from that required of a typical university graduate student. The chapter briefly reviews some commonly used assessments for this purpose, and concludes with an in‐depth discussion of the development and implementation of an authentic mock‐teaching exam developed by the author and currently in use at two major American research universities.
The aspects discussed include the scope of the problem; the type and level of language proficiency required for successful undergraduate teaching; the assessments or decision‐making processes commonly used in this context; and common situational constraints that affect ITA assessment decisions and decision‐making procedures. The chapter ends by considering how one large institution improved its assessment system and what the primary challenges were, and recommending best practices for institutions, based on the author's experiences.
This chapter will be a useful reference and overview of the topic for those involved in ITA education and assessment programs at all levels, but particularly at large research institutions with many international graduate students. It will also be useful to those involved in other language for specific purposes (LSP) testing situations such as the assessment of health‐care professionals’ English abilities.
AssessingItalian
Authors: Bolli Giuliana Grego 
Published: November 2013

The aim of this chapter is to present an outline of national policies and institutional experiences in relation to the assessment of Italian, both as L1 and L2, dealing with different aspects and raising some issues. The synthetic description of Italian, its history, and its main features presented at the beginning of the work will introduce both the Italian language and the academic tradition of Italian linguistics. This will help to explain the lack of interest shown so far by scholars and researchers in language assessment and particularly in empirical research.The chapter then distinguishes between the assessment of Italian as L1, within the Italian educational system, and as L2 in Italy (as a second language) and abroad (as a foreign language).The assessment of Italian as a second language has become an increasing area of interest during the last decade, particularly in relation to the immigration context and, more recently, to the new Italian regulation that introduced formal language assessment for long‐term residency. The risk of using formal testing in such a context, examining some areas of weakness of the new regulation in test production and administration, is discussed.The assessment of Italian as a foreign language is focused on the certification experience. It examines the contribution to the promotion of a more systematic approach to language assessment by the four Italian institutions working in this area.Finally, consideration is given to the future challenges that language assessment will face. In relation to this, more research and empirical studies are needed, particularly on the impact that language assessment has on education, individuals, and society in general.