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The global climate is in crisis, and change through disruptive technological innovation is the only option for humanity to avoid catastrophic collapses of ecosystems, economies, and, ultimately, the ability of our planet to support human life on its current magnitude. Replacing unsustainable industrial practices with novel and green processes is one area of technology that could help mitigate petroleum dependence and, by extension, damage to the biosphere. Biorefineries use synthetic biology to achieve chemical production from renewable feedstocks. Of these, lignocellulosic biorefineries that convert plant cell walls into valuable chemicals are one especially attractive concept, as lignocellulose is the most abundant renewable carbon pool in the biosphere. A central technical challenge of the lignocellulosic biorefinery concept is depolymerizing recalcitrant polymers so they can be upgraded using complementary biological and abiotic processes. Lignin is the most recalcitrant faction of plant cell walls, and this polymer is chemically distinct from the polysaccharides it protects. The aromaticity of lignin presents both a challenge and opportunity since this chemistry imparts essential properties to plant cell walls, such as hydrophobicity and resistance to degradation, that are also desirable in important consumer products like plastics. Innovation in lignin deconstruction is a current focus of lignocellulosic biorefinery research, and novel ways to degrade this polymer that are inspired by biology could help address this challenge. Large herbivores and their microbial gut communities convert lignocellulose into other chemicals at a rate and yield that eclipses our current best lignocellulosic biorefineries. My work seeks to discover the unknown aspects of biological lignin degradation as it occurs in herbivore gut microbiomes by focusing on a group of highly specialized lignocellulose degraders, The anaerobic gut fungi or Neocallimastigomycetes are some of the most

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who wish to gain a better understanding of advisory councils. The material provides a framework for advisory councils in community education. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook explores the background and reasons for councils; looks at council roles; and discusses council organization and relationships, by-laws, and functions. It also discusses council inservice, meetings, maintaining council growth, and the ongoing process of serving the community. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community education advisory council member who wants to improve the effectiveness of the council. The material is designed to improve the atmosphere of the council to allow the members to participate and express their ideas and opinions. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook covers leadership, communication, and group cohesion skills. It defines leadership, communication, and group cohesion; describes two functions and roles of leadership; describes the skills needed to communicate effectively; and describes the factors of group cohesiveness. The material includes practice exercises to evaluate the council in relation to leadership, communication, and group cohesion and discusses these areas in relationship to each other in building the effectiveness of the council. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who want to discover ways in which community education can carry its message to the people in the school district community. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook discusses the importance of public relations, describes how the public relations process works, and outlines methods and techniques for communicating with the public. The first part of the guidebook takes a philosophical approach and provides an overview of the public relations process. The second part deals with specific tools used in communication, including how to develop writing and speaking skills and how to improve publications. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. A glossary is provided. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who want to assure themselves that their community education program is truly meeting community needs. The material explains how to identify the interests and problems in a community and how to identify community resources to serve the interests and solve the problems. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook covers both components of the community assessment: needs assessment and resource assessment. It describes different methods of needs assessment, lists guidelines for survey instruments, and takes the reader through the community assessment process from planning to developing and conducting needs and resource assessments and finally through organizing the information for program planning. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. Appendixes include suggested sources for additional help and information in community assessment, a planning schedule for needs assessment, guideline criteria for a survey procedure, a community facility inventory chart, and survey form for community residents. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who want to implement programs in their community. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. This practical how-to guide stresses a philosophical approach in which programs are developed with major input from needs assessments and advisory councils. Purposes and benefits directly related to the philosophy of community education are then discussed. A section on planning community education programs covers getting program ideas, deciding what to offer, the importance of balanced programs, and making decisions. Suggestions are then made for implementing community education programs; topics considered are location, scheduling, financing, hiring instructors, selecting instructors, instructor inservice, and publicity. The next section suggests programs for special populations, special programs, and general interest programs. Evaluations is briefly addressed. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. A short list of resources is included. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who would like to learn how effective and careful planning can improve their community education program. The material explains both why planning is important and how to plan. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook covers the components of planning and shows the steps that must be taken for thorough planning. Planning techniques and tools are discussed and samples of planning charts and graphs are included. In addition, organizational aids for planning the involved individual's personal professional time are presented in the guidebook. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. A brief list of suggested readings is included. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who want to learn about the importance of community involvement to the quality of life in the community. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook presents a general discussion of community involvement and its historical antecedents and outlines the importance of involvement to the school, the community education program, and the community. A model of different levels of involvement is offered, and various vehicles for involvement are described. A final section provides information on how to make the political process work. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator who is responsible for working with the community education program staff--both paid and volunteer. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The guidebook covers the four important aspects of staff development--recruitment, inservice, supervision, and recognition. Many specific suggestions and ideas for developing a well-trained, fully functioning staff are provided. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. A brief list of resources is included. (YLB)

This guidebook is one in the Target Topic Series developed to highlight issues and concerns related to effective community education operation. It is intended for the community educator and community education advisory council member who want to learn how to evaluate all aspects of their community education program. A pretest covers material discussed in the guidebook. The material explains why evaluation is important and presents a number of evaluation models. It then provides a program planning model of evaluation that encompasses needs assessment, program planning, program implementation, and program conclusion. A nine-step plan for conducting an evaluation follows and an example of the nine-step process is presented. A posttest repeats the pretest questions. Appendixes include a checklist for institutionalizing evaluation; standards for evaluations of educational programs, projects, and materials; and the Minnesota Local Program Review Self-Appraisal instrument. (YLB)

As a result of declining enrollments and the associated need for budget reductions, many school districts are confronting the issue of school closure. This guidebook presents an alternative to closing schools, namely, the option of transforming them into community centers and addresses the issues involved in cooperative planning with the community for such a move. The first section discusses the challenges presented by school closure and provides guidelines for conducting a needs assessment and a study to determine other possible uses for the facility. The next section discusses the specific issues that arise in developing a community center: determining how to use the building, redefining the school district's role, operating a community center, community involvement, allocation of space, and expenses and revenue. The final section addresses legal and practical issues that arise in any decision of a school district to lease its space: finding tenants, negotiating leases, and creating a climate. The final section discusses long-term factors that will affect the success and evolution of the community center. (TE)

A 'noise instruction' procedure designed to produce anticipatory autonomic response in subjects during deception was examined. Sixty college students were randomly assigned to a 'no instruction' group or a 'noise instruction' group; after all had participated in a mock theft and all were instructed to lie. All subjects were tested twice. In Phase I, none of them received the noise instruction. In Phase II, the experimental subjects were told he would hear 1 or 2 very intense blasts of sound sometime during testing; if they lied. A Lafayette field polygraph and CODAS hardware/software was used with computer to record electrodermal responses. Independent t-tests were used to assess group differences, and paired t-tests were computed for within group comparisons. There were no significant differences between Phase I and Phase II measured responses of either the relevant or control questions for the control group. Here were significant differences between responses to relevant questions for the noise Instruction group and the control group during Phase II. The noise instruction could contribute little to the detection of deception during initial testing because other groups exhibited differential responding to control and relevant questions during phase I testing. During Phase II the GSR of subjects exposed to the noise instruction remained high for the relevant questions while that of control subjects showed a substantial decrease.

The article discusses why the English press favors the Democratic ticket. Other topics discussed on this page include "Navy Plank Struck Out," "'Artful' Judge Parker," "Judge Parker Against Palmer and Buckner," "Democratic Lightning Change Artists," "The Irish World on Protection," and "Chairman Cortelyou's Alleged Prophecy."

T. St. John Gaffney describes to William Loeb the preparations he and other district officers had made for a demonstration of support for President Roosevelt when he returned from Oyster Bay. Unfortunately, due to a change in Roosevelt's travel schedule, the plans were canceled.

Thomas St. John Gaffney writes to President Roosevelt about several enclosed documents that he wrote: campaign articles and a pamphlet about the Irish that John Gardner Coolidge thought was particularly helpful during the campaign. Gaffney also requests consideration for a consular appointment to a European country. Since he is a Catholic who has contacts in the Vatican, Gaffney mentions Belgium, Portugal, or any Catholic European court.

T. St. John Gaffney would like to visit President Roosevelt soon along with John Roche and Reverend Francis H. Wall. Gaffney heard support for Roosevelt expressed by the Irish Catholic priests of his acquaintance. Gaffney also mentions a pamphlet he is working on consisting of extracts from Roosevelt's writings and speeches.

Thomas St. John Gaffney reports to William Loeb on his campaign efforts and tells Loeb that he is sending one hundred copies of two pamphlets that he created. He finds much enthusiasm for President Roosevelt's campaign and little for the campaign of Alton B. Parker, and he will increase his efforts with the Catholic Club. Lastly, he encloses a letter from "a very able Irishman" whom he says will support Roosevelt.

T. St. John Gaffney discusses scheduling lunch with President Roosevelt, noting that he will be busy working on the campaign with Jeffrey Roche for the next few days. He believes that the "Italian Element in New York is most important" and that Consul-General DeCastro should return from Rome to speak. Although he believes that Patrick Egan made a good minister to Chili, he argues that Egan is "without character," without influence among the Irish, and "a danger." He discusses how Egan sought a position at Tammany Hall.

Thomas St. John Gaffney writes to President Roosevelt about an enclosure regarding the Consul General of Italy. Gaffney spoke with Collier's Weekly owner, P. F. Collier, about Norman Hapgood's editorials. Collier reassured Gaffney that the paper supports Roosevelt and Collier will speak with Hapgood about supporting the President in his editorials so there is no doubt as to how the newspaper stands. Gaffney also mentions a reception for Cardinal Satolli; his plans for the Chicago convention; and Archbishop Ireland meeting him before the event. Gaffney reminds the President to speak with Monsignor O'Connell.

T. St. John Gaffney praises the work of Consul General Castro, the American consul in Rome for the last seven years. He recommends that Castro retain his office.

Thomas St. John Gaffney, recently returned from England, writes to William Loeb to express his support for President Roosevelt's handling of the "Lipton matter" and his frustration of the efforts made to appease Sir Thomas Lipton's supposedly slighted honor.

Thomas St. John Gaffney assures President Roosevelt that any unofficial suggestion regarding Colonel Arthur Lynch given to Sir Michael Henry Herbert will be conveyed to Lord Lansdowne.

Thomas St. John Gaffney urges President Roosevelt to appoint Joseph M. Dickey as commissioner of immigration. Should Roosevelt do so, Gaffney is interested in Dickey's current position as United States Shipping Commissioner.