Shallow Reading Research Articles

THE EMERGENCE OF PRAGMATIC PHILOSOPHY’S INFLUENCE ON LITERARY THEORY: MAKING MEANING WITH TEXTS FROM A TRANSACTIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Abstract In this review essay, Jeanne Connell examines the influence of pragmatic philosophy on the scholarly works of twentieth‐century literary theorist and English educator Louise Rosenblatt through the lens of a recent collection of her essays originally published between 1936 and 1999. Rosenblatt grounded her transactional theory of literature in pragmatic philosophy, particularly the epistemological constructs of John Dewey. While influential as a pioneer in the early development of reader‐response theory, Rosenblatt’s theory has only recently been given attention by philosophers of education. Making Meaning with Texts: Selected Essays is an important collection of articles and book chapters that highlights the evolution of her thinking in literary theory, pedagogy, and literary criticism. Rosenblatt positioned the construction of meaning in the personal lived‐through quality of the literary experience, making central the generative relation between the text and the reader. Connell argues that the educational relevance of Rosenblatt’s theory for contemporary education is that it provides a powerful critique of classroom approaches that promote shallow readings with little opportunity for critical reflection.

Innovative Remedial Cementing Solution Provides Annular Isolation in Duyong B-4

SummaryWhether a cement-squeeze operation results in an annular seal depends heavily on how far the cement can penetrate and disperse in the fine channels of a partially cemented annulus. In many cases, a conventional- or microfine-cement slurry will dehydrate and bridge off before it can achieve its objectives (Nelson et al. 1990). This paper describes the use of an engineered, optimized slurry for a squeeze operation in the Duyong B-4 well, which had a perforated zone that demonstrated a low rate of seawater injectivity. This paper also presents the slurry design and properties, execution procedure, and prejob and post-job log evaluations.After several years of production, gas bubbles appeared in various locations throughout the Duyong field. Shallow seismic readings showed gas charging in several shallow gas layers throughout the Duyong field. Several wells were investigated as possible contributors to the charging of the shallow sandstone layers, and Duyong B-4 was selected as a probable contributor. Duyong B-4 is a gas well that was completed in November 1983 with four producing zones. In September 2003, this well was selected as a test well to evaluate the cement quality behind the casing. Both cement-bond logs and ultrasonic-imaging logs showed gas and fluid channels behind the casing. An optimized cement slurry (OCS) was engineered and tested in the laboratory under well conditions. Results showed excellent penetration in narrow gaps, optimum fluid-loss control, and low rheology, both at surface and downhole conditions.The slurry was used in the squeeze operation; post-job logs demonstrated the success of the treatment. The slurry penetrated the narrow gaps without dehydrating, and good mechanical properties were achieved in short setting times (Moulin et al. 1997). These properties are especially important in gas-producing wells, and they met all the objectives set forth by the client.

Mensuração da condutividade elétrica do solo por indução e sua correlação com fatores de produção

A condutividade elétrica (CE) do solo, obtida por contato ou por indução eletromagnética, tem sido utilizada como uma variável que se correlaciona com características do solo. Investigaram-se as relações existentes entre a CE medida com um sensor de indução eletromagnética, a granulometria do solo, umidade e fatores da fertilidade, a topografia do terreno e a produtividade de milho e soja, em uma lavoura de 19 ha, conduzida sob semeadura direta, entre 2000 e 2002. A produtividade das culturas foi obtida com monitor comercial, e a CE e os demais parâmetros foram obtidos por amostragem em grade regular. Os dados foram espacializados para a produção dos mapas que serviram para a análise de correlações entre os fatores. O sensor de condutividade elétrica mostrou-se limitado para a leitura na ausência de um coletor de dados, dificultando a coleta de dados com maior freqüência e densidade, além de exigir freqüentes calibrações. A CE apresentou forte dependência espacial, porém com correlação inversa entre as duas profundidades monitoradas. Os teores de argila e umidade do solo tiveram correlações positivas, porém abaixo do esperado, somente para as leituras superficiais de CE.

Feasibility of Site-Specific Management of Corn Hybrids and Plant Densities in the Great Plains

The goal of this research was to determine the potential for use of site-specific management of corn hybrids and plant densities in dryland landscapes of the Great Plains by determining (1) within-field yield variation, (2) yield response of different hybrids and plant densities to variability, and (3) landscape attributes associated with yield variation. This work was conducted on three adjacent fields in eastern Colorado during the 1997, -98, and -99 seasons. Treatments consisted of a combination of two hybrids (early and late maturity) and four plant densities (24,692, 37,037, 49,382 and 61,727 plants ha-1) seeded in replicated long strips. At maturity, yield was measured with a yield-mapping combine. Nine landscape attributes including elevation, slope, soil brightness (SB) (red, green, and blue bands of image), ECa (shallow and deep readings), pH, and soil organic matter (SOM) were also assessed. An analysis of treatment yields and landscape data, to assess for spatial dependency, along with semi variance analysis, and block kriging were used to produce kriged layers (10 m grids). Linear correlation and multiple linear regression analysis were used to determine associations between kriged average yields and landscape attributes. Yield monitor data revealed considerable variability in the three fields, with average yields ranging from 5.43 to 6.39 Mg ha-1 and CVs ranging from 20% to 29%. Hybrids responded similarly to field variation while plant densities responded differentially. Economically optimum plant densities changed by around 5000 plants ha-1 between high and low-yielding field areas, producing a potential savings in seed costs of $6.25 ha-1. Variability in yield across the three landscapes was highly associated with landscape attributes, especially elevation and SB, with various combinations of landscape attributes accounting for 47%, 95%, and 76% of the spatial variability in grain yields for the 1997, -98, and -99 sites, respectively. Our results suggest site-specific management of plant densities may be feasible.

Putting the Community into Organizational Science: Exploring the Construction of Knowledge Claims

Like Weiss, I too dislike some of the postmodern writings on organizations. I too worry that shallow works given even more shallow and opportunistic readings can have negative social consequences. But I also recognize that most of Weiss's concerns are not unique to postmodern writings. Many of the problems he discusses could also be descriptive of work from different conceptual and methodological stances. Statistics are often contrived and misleading. Ethnography has at times aided colonization. Both social and physical sciences have at times produced bad theories and been put to very negative uses. Some early postmodernist theorists, Christians, and scientists, were Nazis, and elements of each of their fundamental conceptions could be co-opted to support this particular form of barbarism. This potential utilization, however, does not lead for me to a blanket condemnation of postmodernism, science, ethnography, religion, or statistics. Devotees of each have used their special understandings to fight tyranny. Both postmodernism and science also draw on fundamental conceptions that are productive, enable open choices, and help us see through the masters and ideologies of a particular time and place. I am less interested in blame than in finding what each can contribute. I look to an ongoing community discussion that helps us to do the best we can to sort out the good from the bad, and I hope that the current set of essays helps stimulate a positive dialogue.

Legitimacy and Authority in International Politics

What motivates states to follow international norms, rules, and commitments? All social systems must confront what we might call the problem of social control—that is, how to get actors to comply with society's rules—but the problem is particularly acute for international relations, because the international social system does not possess an overarching center of political power to enforce rules. Yet, taken in balance with other values, a measure of order is a valued good. Some take this absence of centralized power to mean that the international system is like a Hobbesian state of nature, where only material power matters; others see it as evidence that international rules have force only when they are in the self-interest of each state. I show that these two conclusions are premature because of their shallow reading of international society and misinterpretation of the ways in which authority works in domestic society.

Locating regions of high probablility for groundwater in the Wadi EI-Arish Basin, Sinai, Egypt

A method which incorporates satellite imagery and a geographic information system (GIS) to detect areas of likely groundwater has been applied to the northern Sinai Penisula. The technique involves integration of bifurcation ratio, drainage density, stream frequency, slope and precipitation. The unique aspect of this research is both the use of Landsat satellite imagery and the study area itself. Aerial photography is normally used for delineation of the variables, but the unique desert environment of northern Sinai gave sufficient detail from satellite images. These physical features when combined in a GIS yield a highly reliable prediction of occurrence of groundwater sources. The results of the prediction map were compared with ground measurements based on vertical electrical sounding (VES) and the Shallow Seismic techniques. It was found that all of the areas predicted to yield groundwater had positive VES and Shallow Seismic readings. These results demonstrate that satellite remote sensing when used in a GIS can be a useful tool in detecting and mapping groundwater in a desert environment.