Showing papers by "University of Haifa published in 1975"

Evolutionary genetics of insular adriatic lizards.

Abstract: eters of populations. In this paper we employ this technique in an analysis of the evolutionary genetics of the genus Lacerta in the Adriatic region. We compare genetic similarity among populations and species to obtain a quantitative estimate of related

The Concept of Curriculum Potential

Abstract: Though implementers and evaluators tend to view any curriculum as the embodiment of its developers' intentions, curriculum materials may be viewed as expressing more than the fixed intentions of their developers. Once materials have left the originators' hands they may be interpreted and used in many ways. Curriculum may be seen as the embodiment of a potential, independent of its developers' intentions, that can be discovered and revealed by careful analysis. In such a view different interpretations of curricula would be made available to teachers for implementation as well as to evaluators for the judging of programs. At present we are bound by the notion of intended learning outcomes (Johnson 1967), but a different notion of possible learning outcomes, as implied by the concept of curriculum potential, could be profitable in curriculum theory and practice. This paper explores the concept of curriculum potential.1 After examining some of the limitations inherent in viewing curricular implementation as the transmission of developers' intentions, the paper goes on to consider the relationship between developer intentions and curriculum evaluation. The second section describes and illustrates the notion of curriculum potential and argues for its usefulness as a construct in curriculum theory. Curriculum potential as a result of implementation is dealt with in the last section, where acknowledgment of "curriculum potential" is seen as an alternative approach to curriculum implementation and evaluation.

The Hebraica Veritas and Jewish-Christian Intellectual Relations in the Twelfth Century

Abstract: MANY scholars in the last generation have studied the role of the Bible in the intellectual history of medieval Western Europe and the development of particular scholarly activities based on the study of the Bible in this period.' It is now a commonplace that the Bible, a legacy of Judaism, was an important factor in the emergence of Western civilization, having an influence no less than that of the classical legacy.2 Moreover, the diversity of topics included in the Bible was a source of inspiration in many fields of medieval activity, not only for theologians, canonists and political thinkers, but also for teachers, artists, historians and men of letters. This inspiration may be observed throughout the Middle Ages and may permit us to speak of the existence of a \"biblical mind\" in the medieval world, manifested both in the ecclesiastical realm and in secular society. The spiritual and ideological awakening which was at once both the inspiration and creation of the Gregorian reform originated in the interpretation of biblical precepts.3 To take another example, the propaganda for the Crusades was entirely inspired by the Bible. \"Frankish\" knighthood was invited to deliver the country of Christ from the infidel, and the Holy Land was presented to the Western public as the land of Israel, attacked not by contemporary Seljuk Turks, but by \"a new advent of the biblical Medes and Persians,\" as expressed by Urban II in his famous speech at Clermont.4 If the Bible was the legacy of Judaism, the text of the Bible familiar to the

High genetic variability in an ecologically variable vertebrate, Bufo viridis.

Abstract: Allozymic variation in proteins encoded by 26 loci was analyzed electrophoretically in 517 specimens of green toads from 11 populations from Israel and one population from Vis Island in the Adriatic Sea. Genetic variation in this toad is the highest yet reported in any vertebrate. All three genetic parameters, mean number of alleles per locus (Ā), mean proportion of loci polymorphic per population ( $$\bar P$$ ), and mean number of heterozygous loci per individual ( $$\bar H$$ ), are very high (Ā=1.65, range 1.38–2.04; $$\bar P$$ =0.423, range .346–0.615; $$\bar H$$ =0.133, range 0.108–0.159). Central and marginal mainland populations are only slightly more variable than desert isolates, but much more variable than the Vis Island population. Genetic similarity is very high between mainland populations ( $$\bar S$$ =0.951, range 0.93–0.97). Frequencies of two alleles (Icd-1 c and Tf a ) are correlated with an ecological gradient of increasing aridity. Regulatory enzymes appeared to contribute more to overall polymorphism than non-regulatory enzymes. The genetic variation observed suggests that selection for heterozygosity as an adaptive strategy is operating in the ecologically variable environment in which green toads live.

Consumer behavior in different areas

Abstract: Some facets of the evolution of consumer food shopping behavior are examined by a comparison of revealed preference studies in regions of differing economic development: Aguascalientes, Mexico (1968); Iowa (1934); Iowa (1960); and Michigan (1966–1968). The majority of rural Mexicans obey the Christallerian nearest neighbor axiom, but a few patronize the capital and regional centers regardless of distance. This behavioral variance is a function of household income. Comparison of the four study areas reveals that food shopping behavior may be universally subject to a dual assignment rule: households within a limited range of an opportunity exhibit a high probability of patronizing the closest place, whereas households at some distance from the nearest opportunity prefer shopping in larger places at greater distances. The absolute range within which the Christallerian axiom is applicable increases considerably (from two to thirteen miles) with level of economic development.

Institutionalization and Political Development: A Conceptual and Theoretical Analysis

Abstract: In recent years, institutionalization has become one of the key concepts in comparative politics in general, and in the study of political development in particular. This elegant and almost geometrically tidy theory of political order best articulated by Huntington has been acclaimed as a major new school, one that will be able perhaps to narrow what La Palombara called the ‘widening chasm’ between ‘macrotheories and microapplications in comparative politics’. Indeed, Huntington in his book attempted to apply his theoretical tenets to the analysis of such important phenomena as military intervention in politics, corruption and violence, all this via the usage of a few major variables. In the notoriously slippery field of theorizing in comparative politics, this constituted a welcome influx of fresh air. No wonder, then, that Huntington's theory and concepts have been widely prevalent and frequently referred to—again a relative innovation in the easy-come-easy-go world of theories in the study of political development.

The Politics of Canonization in the Thirteenth Century: Lay and Mendicant Saints

Abstract: In the thirteenth century the Roman papacy, despite an outward appearance of strength, faced a severe struggle for survival. Within Catholic Europe itself, the Hohenstaufen and their allies questioned clerical prerogatives and, as a result, often suffered excommunication and anathema. In southern France and northern Italy the alarming growth of heresy threatened to detach a significant area of Europe from allegiance to Rome. Simultaneously, a Mongol army menaced Europe's eastern flank, while the Crusader states were soon to fall again into Moslem hands. In Italy papal involvement in communal politics fanned suspicion and distrust of clerical motives. Within the church itself, debate raged between conservatives and radicals, contemplative and active orders, concerning the best means of combatting these threats while fulfilling the Christian Gospel.

Religion and Suicidal Behavior

Abstract: While the predominance of a religious denomination may help determine the size and trend of nationwide suicide rates, religious affiliation seems to be of limited usefulness in predicting individual suicidal behavior. All the clinical studies reviewed below conclude that neither affiliation nor degree of religious involvement seems related in any significant way to suicide attempts. This conclusion appears to fit the general trend of secularization in Western society (Wilson, 1966), which signifies a reduction in the relative importance of religious factors in individual motivation.

Hunteracarus womersleyi gen. n., sp. n., a laelapid mite (acari) associated with cephalodesmius armiger westwood (coleoptera: scarabaeidae)*

Abstract: The female, male, deutonymph and protonymph of Hunteracarus womersleyi gen. n., sp. n. are figured and described.

Voluntary forgetting before and after learning has been accomplished

Abstract: Two experiments, in which voluntary forgetting was measured, are reported. In both experiments, lists of randomly mixed syllables and numbers were projected on a screen, and Ss were instructed before projection which part of the lists to remember or to forget. In the first experiment, the syllables were cued as items to be forgotten in one group, and to be remembered in the other one. At the end of the projection, Ss were instructed to recall freely only the syllables. For the former group, this was an unexpected test. The same list was projected for different groups: one, three, five, seven, and fourteen times, with new randomly mixed items each time. Syllable recall increased with an increase of times of projection of the list in the second group, but not in the first one. Recall of syllables in the first group was, however, above the chance level. These results were best interpreted by assuming a voluntary forgetting mechanism, which operates after the verbal items leave the short term store. The second experiment, a variation of the first, was designed to find the locus of voluntary forgetting mechanisms. The question is whether Ss can voluntarily forget syllables only before they are learned, or also after learning has already taken place. Voluntary forgetting after learning has been achieved was found to be ineffective. These results tend to support the hypothesis that voluntary forgetting processes do not operate in the long-term store and that Ss can block the transmission of to be forgotten items from the short-term store to the long-term store.

Concept differentiation by semantic and visual mediation.

Abstract: The assumption of distance in interconcept space as an inverse function of similarity among concept profiles was supported by a technique of direct visual differentiation. 28 students of education each generated two matrices of interconcept distances, one by the well-known semantic differential technique and one by the manipulation of tokens on a checkered board. Configurations in the semantic and visual modes were isomorphous, that is, significantly and substantially correlated. This further suggests that visual differentiation implied by token manipulation may sometimes be substituted for semantic differentiation. There also appeared a generalized tendency toward extent of differentiation in the semantic and visual modes.

The elementary school principalship in israel

Abstract: This study seeks to examine the status, role and authority of the elementary school principalship. A short theoretical discussion of the central topics is followed by a presentation of research findings based on an attitudes questionnaire that was administered to a sample of school system personnel and elementary school inspectors. The school principal is perceived as determining the character of the institution more than any other factor in the system, and must be autonomous to a large extent in performing his tasks. He is expected to devote much of his time to organization and administration, but must not allow his occupation with questions of finance and maintenance to come at the expense of his other activities. Guiding teachers in their work, keeping informed of both teachers' and pupils' performance, and maintaining discipline in the school are perceived, in this order, and the most important pedagogical functions of the principal. The principal's most important source of authority is his intimate knowledge of his school, and his successful experience as a teacher. An extension of his authority at “the expense” of the Ministry is supported by respondents, while its extension at the expense of his subordinates is not. A principal is regarded suitable for his position as long as he generally gets along with his staff. He should be given greater authority in the adaptation of the curriculum to the needs of his school, in the flexibility he can exercise in the allocation of class hours and budget, and in the interpretation of Ministry of Education instructions to suit his school's special requirements.

Modification and generalization of verbal behavior as a function of direct verbal intervention.

Abstract: The generalization of verbal conditioning within a personal interview context for 24 male and 24 female college students was studied. During training, subjects were reinforced and directed to produce positive self-references in one group and negative self-references in another. The latter showed generalization but positive self-references did not change. These data suggest that this positive affect resists transfer and may account for the poor to mixed results of conventional psychotherapeutic situations where talking prevails.

Changes in the structure of the minority villages in israel‐outlines and reasons

Abstract: Summary The objective of this article is to describe the type of changes taking place in the structure of the minority villages in Israel7 and the reasons for these changes. The villages are tuning from traditional villages with the structure of a closed core, into an open settlements where the built-up area is continuously growing creating new residential areas. The structural changes are followed by technological changes within the village. Infrastructure systems are being built - water, electricity, roads, telephone, sewerage, etc. and the standard of the public services is rising. Because of the changes - in the employment division, the involvement with the Jewish population, the rise in the standard of living, the new expectations of the population, and primarily the rapid increase, but still remaining within the framework of the village - it is possible to change the function of the village from a traditional agricultural village into an urban settlement which provides services on a high standard, and, to a certain extent, independent of the cities nearly. The progress made is a result of the struggle between these encouraging development and those who delay it. It is assumed that as time passes, the barriers will be lowered and will not prevent the needed development, and additional villages will become settlements bearing a special urban character. Zusammenfassung Das Ziel dieser Arbeit besteht darin, die Veranderungen in der Struktur der von Minderheiten bewohnten Dorfer in Israel und deren Grunde zu kategorisieren. Die Dorfer wandeln sich von traditionellen Dorfern mit der Struktur eines geschlossenen Kerns in offenere Siedlungen bei denen die Neubaugebiete standig wachsen und neue Wohngebiete entstehen. Den Strukturveranderungen folgen technologische Veranderungen innerhalb der Dorfer. Es werden Infrastruktunysteme erstellt, - z. B. Wasser, Elektrizitat, Strassen, Telephon, Kanalisation - und das Niveau der offentlichen Dienstleistungen steigt. Aufgrund dieser Veranderungen - in der Beschaftigung, dem Kontakt mit der judischen Bevolkerung, der Steigerung des Lebensstandards, der neuen Erwartungshaltung der Bevolkerung und in erster Linie des schnellen Wachstums innerhalb des Dorfes - ist es moglich, die Funktion des Dorfes von einem traditonellen, von der Landwirtschaft bestimmten Dorf in eine stadtische Siedlung mit einem hohen Dienstleistungsstandard und einer gewissen Unabhangigkeit von den nahen Stadten zu verandern. Das Ausmass des Fortschritts, der gemacht wird, ist das Ergebnis des Konflikts zwischen denen, die die Entwicklungen fordern und denen, die sie hemmen. Es wird angenommen, dass im Verlaufe der Zeit die Hindernisse abgebaut werden und sie nicht langer die benotigte Entwicklung aufhalten so dass immer mehr Dorfer zu Siedlungen mit einem spezifisch urbanen Charakter werden.

Perceived similarity versus contrast between kibbutz parents and their preadolescent children's adjustment.

Abstract: Parents' characteristics and the behavioral manifestations of 100 two-parented, 10- to 13-year-old kibbutz children were analyzed in a 2×2 factorial design (boys versus girls×parents similar versus different) to assess the effect of parental degree of socially perceived similarity on their children's adjustment. It was found that children of similar parents had more positive interpersonal relationships but more fears, especially the boys, while children of contrasting parents had more negative interpersonal relationships, with the boys exhibiting fewer fears. It seems that a unified family structure reinforces a normative social behavior, but it fosters dependency and restricts breadth of perception and possibilities for exercising diversity in behavior. It leaves boys, even within the kibbutz egalitarian education, less confident in acting independently.

Inhibitory effect of a second stimulus on reaction time to a primary stimulus: a partial successful replication.

Abstract: Summary.-A second visual stimulus, to which no response was required, following a primary one lengthened the ,reaction time to the first stimulus for 25 college students. Reaction time rose as a function of the increase in the interstimulus interval. Duration time of the second stimulus did not affect this response. These results were found under a condition of stimulus-response certainty. Helson and Steger (1962) have first reported experimental results which show that simple reaction time (RT) of a primary visual stimulus (S1) increased if a second visual stimulus (S2) followed the first one. This lengthening in RT was found to be an inverted U-shaped curve of the interstimulus interval ranging from 10 ro 180 msec. The inhibitory effect of S- and/or the inverted U-shaped curve were successfully replicated by Kitterle and Helson (1972), but not by others (Lappin & Eriksen, 1964; Koplin, Fox, & Dozier, 1966; Herman, 1969; Herman & Kantowitz, 1969; Herman & McCauley, 1969). There were at least two differences between Helson and Steger's original study and the subsequent attempts to replicate this research, which might differentially influence the results of these experiments. (a) Stimulus-Response Uncertainty. After reviewing the studies on the effect of Ss on RT to S1, Herman and Kantowitz (1970) pointed out that except for rhe Helson and Steger study no experiment showed the S2 inhibition effect under a condition of certainty, e.g., when in a two-lights, one-response key task Ss were informed prior to each trial as to which light was S1. They concluded that not knowing in advance which of the cwo lights would be S1 and which would be the right response (in the case of more than one response), that is, a stimulus-response uncertainty, is a crucial condition for obtaining this inhibitory effect. (b) Spatial Distance. Kitterle and Helson (1972) replicated the S? inhibition effect and the inverted U-shaped curve results when the interlight distance separation was 1.90 cm but not when it was 3.81 cm. They proposed that the failures to replicate Helson and Steger's study (e.g., Herman, 1969) might be due to S1-S? separation over a critical distance. Kantowitz (1973), however, pointed out that Herman (1969) failed to obtain the inverted U-shaped curve although rhe visual angle subtended by the stimuli was less than that of Kitterle and Helson ( 1972). 'This research was funded through the Ben-Gurion University in Beer-Sheva, while the first author was teaching there. Special thanks to B. Beit-Hallahmi and J. Norman who read the manuscript and offered helpful suggestions.