research and development

Here are five topics for research in education. The perfect gift for the college student wondering what to select as a topic, or the educational professional seeking to enlighten us with a breakthrough or two.

What nutritional elements elevate learning abilities?

Are there foods that aid in the educational process? Certainly there are foods to be avoided, such as an excess of sugar and the caffeine laden drinks that send my fourth grade students bouncing off the walls. There are the “New Age,” well intentioned, but ill informed folks, who would have us eat nothing but dandelion leaves. There are the hucksters promoting their “overnight weight loss/increased sex drive/mind calming/IQ enhancing wonder diets,” each bearing the disclaimer, “these findings are not substantiated by scientific research.” But is there any real scientific data out there? I’d be fascinated to learn.

What methods most greatly encourage elementary school students to read for pleasure?

What is the psychology behind the impetus some students feel, and some students will never experience? Is there a proven existent paradigm for greater success? What are the latest and most promising approaches? How do I break down the reluctant reader and infuse them with a least a cursory desire to read? All of these questions spark my intense interest.

Are newly arriving freshmen college students better or more ill prepared academically than 1966’s freshmen?

Educators decry the state of affairs of all things educational, and routinely proclaim a crisis is coming or already upon us. But just as every generation in America has resisted and maligned the favored music of their offspring, I suspect this educational outrage is equally ongoing and unending. Is there data supporting the claims that today’s freshmen are more ill equipped to deal with college life?

How does physical movement benefit brain development in elementary students?

I was amazed to learn of the correlation between regular physical movement and brain development in young children. What programs exist that would aid in my bringing movement - and by extension, greater brain development – to my students? What are the latest research findings on physical education’s impact on other areas of learning? What is the physiology involved?

How does art instruction influence other academic progress?

I infuse all my courses with art, and have found it tremendously helpful in capturing the attention of my students. I want to learn more about how art impacts student development, both to make myself better able to utilize this tool and to give myself greater justification for using it. I want to glean all the latest and most well documented research that supports my view that art instruction compliments all other subject lesson planning, captures the attention of a segment of students who would otherwise remain apathetic, and broadens the academic universe of all students.

As this is one of my own personal favorite topics, I'll throw in a thesis, free of charge.   “Art instruction in elementary school curriculums – often among the first targets of politicians seeking to balance budgets – is a powerful and practical educational tool, with far reaching and often underappreciated benefits.”

Possible subtopics include art as a means to reach at-risk and otherwise educationally challenged students; how art instruction gives students a welcome respite from more difficult subjects, re-energizes and makes them better able to focus; how art education compliments and augments standard educationally required subjects; statistical data suggesting (or proving) that students who receive instruction in art have higher grades and do better on standardized tests (assuming this is demonstrable). 

Let's see some data collecting out there!




Reference research: finance research and law research and general research and my bookmark page




Top Web Directories

market research

Almost every fellow teacher I know holds a part-time job to help make ends meet. They work at corporate retail giants, or tending bar (yes, a first-grade teacher I know told me she makes more in two nights of tending bar than in one week of teaching), or working the register at the supermarket. Little Miss Bartender is the exception to the low-paid, slightly-embarrassing, part-time work rule for most teachers.

It's a problem, especially considering the brutal work schedule most teachers are faced with on a daily basis. (If you doubt it, ask a teacher you know; the profession is not what it looked like from your desk in the 3rd Grade.)

One solution is online income for teachers. The market force trend lines are unmistakable: the internet is becoming the preferred first stop for information, especially of the "how-to" variety. Money spent online increases about 25% a year, according to bizreport.com, which predicts Europeans alone will spend more than $407 Billion in 2011.

A demand for "how-to" information coupled with a supply of how-to lessons written and produced by teachers equals opportunity. Teachers should naturally own the how-to online market.

They don't, right now.

One obstacle is a lack of ecommerce marketing knowledge among teachers.

They often need some "how-to" on taking advantage of the opportunity. This article is the first in a series of articles designed to serve as a source of helpful information for teachers who would like to earn money in a more creative, interesting and profitable way than working for a big box store, or delivering pizza, or even tending bar. Because those late nights at the bar can get really old.

Teachers who want an online income should learn basic marketing research first of all -- it takes ten minutes

Teachers who have some ideas for online how-to articles, ebooks or videos should first of all divine whether there is a searching, paying market for the product. Suppose I wondered if origami video lessons had any interest on the internet. How would I determine whether there really were an interest?

Using a simple, online keyword research tool, teachers who want an online income can discover about how many searches per day are made for a particular keyword. That tool is at http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-tools/seobook/

Open the keyword generator tool linked above in a separate browser window.

In the search field, type "origami." Or use your own search term. Perhaps "crayon resist art," or "how to draw anything," or any other potential topic for which you may consider creating and marketing an online, downloadable, how-to product (ebook, audio, video, etc.) for a mid-sized (or larger) online income.

The results will return a lot of information. I want you to focus on only one piece right now: the overall daily estimate. That number shows you, obviously, a (good) estimate of the total number of searches (at the main search engines) performed with that keyword in one day. For "origami," my research today (it will vary over time of course) showed about 2,418 "origami" searches are performed every day.

That tells me there's a high level of interest in origami.

It's an indication there could be a paying market for good, downloadable, online origami instruction at the right price.

This isn't the end of your market research, necessarily. But it does tell you whether the topic for which you are considering producing an ebook, audio or video for online income has any "buzz" online.

Try other keywords associated with the topic for which you are considering making a downloadable product. "Origami" has few related terms. But let's try "paper crane." I just ran it through the seobook tool. The number of daily searches is estimated at about 26. Not as good at 2,418. But, over time, it's not a bad number of searches. Twenty-six multiplied by 365 equals more than 9,400 searches per year.

Clearly, trying to market an ebook or video on "origami" in general is far preferable to "paper crane." That's a fact we couldn't have known without the valuable tool at seobook.com.

So teachers: here's your homework. Come up with a list of five to 10 how-to topics on which you could write or produce an ebook or video. Then run related keywords through the seobook keyword research tool. Choose two or three topics which are shown by the tool to have a high degree of interest. Then come back to this article and follow up with more information on how to market them.

Some of the lessons will include:
-How to make a .pdf book.
-How to choose a website host
-How to design a simple, one-page website to sell your product.
-How to keep your expectations realistic. You won't get rich quick. But you'll do better than working at a big box store. And maybe even better than tending bar.
-And much, much more.





Reference research: business research and computer research and sport research and my bookmark page




Opera

research triangle park

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. To draw more awareness to the cause and help raise funds to continue the research and treatment of breast cancer, there are companies that sell products bearing the color pink and donating portions of sale proceeds to certain charities that support the cause.

With the Holidays fast approaching, you can start early to buy gifts for the important women in your life.

Here are some products that you can buy to support the Breast Cancer Awareness Month:

Courage Affirmawrap and 'Chicken Soup for the Breast Cancer Survivor's Soul'- $39.95

You can cuddle up with this warm blanket in the colder months to come and enjoy reading this book. The book is not only good for you but good for the cause. The cozy fleece blanket is silk-screened with positive affirmations, and 20 percent of the purchase price of each bundle will be donated to cancer charities. This bundle is available online at www.affirmagy.com.

Cuisinart Pink Food Chopper- $14.95

This kitchen gadget can make a great gift to a female cook. It shops, dices, and minces. There is no mess when you use it. A portion of the sale proceeds will go to the American Cancer Society. This product is available at Bed Bath & Beyond and online at www.bedbathandbeyond.com.

Special-edition Santoku Knife, $70.00

Another great gift idea for the female cook, this knife has a pink handle and sharp blade. Kyocera's special edition 5.5-inch Santoku ceramic knife is perfect for cutting fruits, vegetables, and meats. $5.00 from each sale will go to the Susan G. Komen Cancer Foundation. This product is available at Williams-Sonoma and online at www.amazon.com.

Onetouch Pink Can Opener, $19.99

This automatic, one-touch can opener allows for hands-free operation. This can open cans in seconds without too much effort. Five percent of the proceeds go to the memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. This product is available at Bed Bath & Beyond and online at www.bedbathandbeyond.com.

Think Pink T-Shirt, $28.00

This comfortable, soft , pink baseball t-shirt has three quarter raglan sleeves and a fuchsia-pink ribbon silk-screened on the upper left chest. Ten percent of the sale proceeds will go to the Entertainment Industry foundation's Women's Cancer Research Fund. This product is available online at www.redenvelope.com.

Pink Master Lock, $8.99 for two

The Pink Master Lock wants to help protect and unlock the cure for breast cancer. This padlock has the pink ribbon logo. In conjunction with the launch of the new padlock, the company made $10,000 donation to the Breast Cancer research Foundation. This product is available at select WalMart stores nationwide and online at www.amazon.com.

Pink-Ribbon Pajamas, $74.00

These pink polka dot pajamas are released in limited-edition by Karen Neuberger, a company which for 10 years has been involved in the fight against cancer. The sale will benefit the Breast Cancer Research Foundation. This product is available at Macy's and online at www.karenneuberger.com.

Dreamaid Pillow Covers, $24.00

These pretty pillowcases have more than 30 inspirational messages imprints to choose from live "Dream a Big Dream" and "Peace, Love, and Rest". Five percent of the profit from their sale goes to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. It is available online at www.dreamaidproducts.com.

Whether it is for your mother, sisters, friends, female relatives, or female co-workers, these gifts are well worth the thought that show that you care, at the same time, supporting the cause that is important to all the women all over the world.





Reference research: finance research and health research and shopping research and recent update




Seo Directory

research methods in the social sciences

The Seattle Biomedical Research Institute is doing research on malaria vaccines. They are wanting to find out if the vaccines work. Since they do not know if the vaccines work, they are looking for volunteers who will try the vaccines and then hold a cup of mosquitoes that are infected with the most deadly form of malaria to their arm so they are bitten. This study is a continuation of a study that start at Walter Reed Army Institute of Maryland is is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Since people are being asked to be infected with malaria, this brings up all kinds of ethical questions. First of all, would these people get seriously ill and even die? According to the researchers this would not happen and people would only have flu like symptoms for about a single day.

However, while the researchers may be able to try to control the mosquitoes to the best of their abilities, it is uncertain that these people may not have some type of allergic reaction or end up getting some type of disease or other infection from the mosquitoes.

Also, would malaria spread if these people are out in the community? Researchers say that the malaria will not get to a point where it is infectious from person to person. Most likely this is true since they know the research that has already been happening.

Of course, the volunteers are given $2,000 for participating. The researchers have said that this is mainly compensation for missing work or replacing funds used to get to the site and any other costs volunteers may incur.

While this sounds a little bit on the dangerous sides, there are benefits as a whole. People really do care about others in third world country who are often infected with malaria and do not survive because vaccines do not exist and they cannot afford the medication. Thus, people who want to make sure that vaccines will be available to these people may have an urge to volunteer for this program.

While I like the idea of getting vaccines to people in third world countries, no amount of money would make me go get a vaccine that may or may not work and be infected with a possibly deadly disease. While I know that only flu like symptoms should occur, I would be scared that something would go wrong.

I want to live my life and not be willingly infected with a disease. I would be scared that I'd have something in my body or have some type of reaction either to the vaccine or to the disease that would end my life suddenly.

While I know that I can't control the length of my own life, I can try to take care of myself so I have a good life. I want to be able to spend time with my friends, my family, and my dog. If anything were to happen because of this, the money, no matter how much of an amount, would not do me any good. While it could help my family, it would not ease the pain of the loss.

I'd rather earn my money honestly than making myself into a medical guinea pig.





Reference research: business research and health research and shopping research and my social page




Delicious Asp

research groups

July 24, 2006: In May 2006, the American Diabetes Association publicly urged the United States Senate to lift restrictions on stem cell research, and to pass the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act of 2005. It had been stalled in the Senate for over a year, despite strong bi-partisan support.

The bill is no longer stalled. This past Tuesday, the bill was passed by a 67-37 vote, again, with strong support from both parties. The next day, President George W. Bush vetoed the bill.

In the first ever veto issued by the President, after 5½ years in office, embryonic stem cell researchers and patients living with myriad diseases and debilitating conditions were disappointed in their quest for better federal funding for research.

Hours after the veto was issued, the House of Representatives convened to hold a vote to override. They fell 51 votes short of the 286 required to override the veto.

Surrounding himself with adopted babies born from frozen embryos, Bush announced his veto of the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act from the East Room of the White House. “These boys and girls are not spare parts,” he said. “They remind us of that is lost when embryos are destroyed in the name of research.”

“This bill would support the taking of innocent human life in the hope of finding medical benefits for others,” said President Bush.

Advocates for the bill ranging from patients and researchers to politicians on both sides of the political fence cried “foul,” Republican California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and former first lady Nancy Reagan among them, both of whom urged the president to reconsider his position.

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the day after the veto, Governor Schwarzenegger authorized $150 million in loans to California’s stem cell agency, a move that quadrupled the amount of money the agency had previously had access to for their embryonic stem cell research.

Nationally, however, the sting has been deeply felt by those invested in embryonic stem cell research and the potential outcomes of better funding for it. “We're just profoundly disappointed with the president's decision,” said pathologist Leo Furcht of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, president of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. “The fact that legitimate prospects are there for treating terrible diseases with these cells makes it very troubling.” (USA Today: July 20, 2006)

In a 2005 survey of 2,200 people conducted by the Genetics and Public Policy Center, 67% of people polled responded that they “approved” or “strongly approved” of embryonic stem cell research, according to USA Today. 

President Bush remained unmoved by public and political support for the issue. “It crosses a moral boundary that our decent society needs to respect,” said the President. “So, I vetoed it.”




Reference research: business research and home research and travel research and recent update




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