Rasch Model Based Analysis of the Force Concept Inventory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Planinic, Maja; Ivanjek, Lana; Susac, Ana

2010-01-01

The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) is an important diagnostic instrument which is widely used in the field of physics education research. It is therefore very important to evaluate and monitor its functioning using different tools for statistical analysis. One of such tools is the stochastic Rasch model, which enables construction of linear…

Stochastic and Historical Resonances of the Unit in Physics and Psychometrics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fisher, William P., Jr.

2011-01-01

Humphry's article, "The Role of the Unit in Physics and Psychometrics," offers fundamental clarifications of measurement concepts that Fisher hopes will find a wide audience. In particular, parameterizing discrimination while preserving statistical sufficiency will indeed provide greater flexibility in accounting "for the effects of empirical…

The Physics of Kicking a Football.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brancazio, Peter J.

1985-01-01

A physicist's view of the problems involved in kicking a football is described through the principles of projectile motion and aerodynamics. Sample equations, statistical summaries of kickoffs and punts, and calculation of launch parameters are presented along with discussion to clarify concepts of physics illustrated by kicking a football. (JN)

Physical concepts in the development of constitutive equations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cassenti, B. N.

1985-01-01

Proposed viscoplastic material models include in their formulation observed material response but do not generally incorporate principles from thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, and quantum mechanics. Numerous hypotheses were made for material response based on first principles. Many of these hypotheses were tested experimentally. The proposed viscoplastic theories and the experimental basis of these hypotheses must be checked against the hypotheses. The physics of thermodynamics, statistical mechanics and quantum mechanics, and the effects of defects, are reviewed for their application to the development of constitutive laws.

A pedagogical derivation of the matrix element method in particle physics data analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sumowidagdo, Suharyo

2018-03-01

The matrix element method provides a direct connection between the underlying theory of particle physics processes and detector-level physical observables. I am presenting a pedagogically-oriented derivation of the matrix element method, drawing from elementary concepts in probability theory, statistics, and the process of experimental measurements. The level of treatment should be suitable for beginning research student in phenomenology and experimental high energy physics.

Non-equilibrium statistical mechanics theory for the large scales of geophysical flows

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eric, S.; Bouchet, F.

2010-12-01

The aim of any theory of turbulence is to understand the statistical properties of the velocity field. As a huge number of degrees of freedom is involved, statistical mechanics is a natural approach. The self-organization of two-dimensional and geophysical turbulent flows is addressed based on statistical mechanics methods. We discuss classical and recent works on this subject; from the statistical mechanics basis of the theory up to applications to Jupiter’s troposphere and ocean vortices and jets. The equilibrium microcanonical measure is built from the Liouville theorem. Important statistical mechanics concepts (large deviations, mean field approach) and thermodynamic concepts (ensemble inequivalence, negative heat capacity) are briefly explained and used to predict statistical equilibria for turbulent flows. This is applied to make quantitative models of two-dimensional turbulence, the Great Red Spot and other Jovian vortices, ocean jets like the Gulf-Stream, and ocean vortices. A detailed comparison between these statistical equilibria and real flow observations will be discussed. We also present recent results for non-equilibrium situations, for which forces and dissipation are in a statistical balance. As an example, the concept of phase transition allows us to describe drastic changes of the whole system when a few external parameters are changed. F. Bouchet and E. Simonnet, Random Changes of Flow Topology in Two-Dimensional and Geophysical Turbulence, Physical Review Letters 102 (2009), no. 9, 094504-+. F. Bouchet and J. Sommeria, Emergence of intense jets and Jupiter's Great Red Spot as maximum-entropy structures, Journal of Fluid Mechanics 464 (2002), 165-207. A. Venaille and F. Bouchet, Ocean rings and jets as statistical equilibrium states, submitted to JPO F. Bouchet and A. Venaille, Statistical mechanics of two-dimensional and geophysical flows, submitted to Physics Reports Non-equilibrium phase transitions for the 2D Navier-Stokes equations with stochastic forces (time series and probability density functions (PDFs) of the modulus of the largest scale Fourrier component, showing bistability between dipole and unidirectional flows). This bistability is predicted by statistical mechanics.

Interdisciplinary applications of statistical physics to complex systems: Seismic physics, econophysics, and sociophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tenenbaum, Joel

This thesis applies statistical physics concepts and methods to quantitatively analyze complex systems. This thesis is separated into four parts: (i) characteristics of earthquake systems (ii) memory and volatility in data time series (iii) the application of part (ii) to world financial markets, and (iv) statistical observations on the evolution of word usage. In Part I, we observe statistical patterns in the occurrence of earthquakes. We select a 14-year earthquake catalog covering the archipelago of Japan. We find that regions traditionally thought of as being too distant from one another for causal contact display remarkably high correlations, and the networks that result have a tendency to link highly connected areas with other highly connected areas. In Part II, we introduce and apply the concept of "volatility asymmetry", the primary use of which is in financial data. We explain the relation between memory and "volatility asymmetry" in terms of an asymmetry parameter lambda. We define a litmus test for determining whether lambda is statistically significant and propose a stochastic model based on this parameter and use the model to further explain empirical data. In Part III, we expand on volatility asymmetry. Importing the concepts of time dependence and universality from physics, we explore the aspects of emerging (or "transition") economies in Eastern Europe as they relate to asymmetry. We find that these emerging markets in some instances behave like developed markets and in other instances do not, and that the distinction is a matter both of country and a matter of time period, crisis periods showing different asymmetry characteristics than "healthy" periods. In Part IV, we take note of a series of findings in econophysics, showing statistical growth similarities between a variety of different areas that all have in common the fact of taking place in areas that are both (i) competing and (ii) dynamic. We show that this same growth distribution can be reproduced in observing the growth rates of the usage of individual words, that just as companies compete for sales in a zero sum marketing game, so do words compete for usage within a limited amount of reader man-hours.

The long and winding road

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pomeau, Yves

2016-03-01

For a problem as complex as turbulence, combining universal concepts from statistical physics with ideas from fluid mechanics has proven indispensable. Three decades since this link was formed, it is still providing food for new thought.

The Quantum and Fluid Mechanics of Global Warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marston, Brad

2008-03-01

Quantum physics and fluid mechanics are the foundation of any understanding of the Earth's climate. In this talk I invoke three well-known aspects of quantum mechanics to explore what will happen as the concentrations of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide continue to increase. Fluid dynamical models of the Earth's atmosphere, demonstrated here in live simulations, yield further insight into past, present, and future climates. Statistics of geophysical flows can, however, be ascertained directly without recourse to numerical simulation, using concepts borrowed from nonequilibrium statistical mechanicsootnotetextJ. B. Marston, E. Conover, and Tapio Schneider, ``Statistics of an Unstable Barotropic Jet from a Cumulant Expansion,'' arXiv:0705.0011, J. Atmos. Sci. (in press).. I discuss several other ways that theoretical physics may be able to contribute to a deeper understanding of climate changeootnotetextJ. Carlson, J. Harte, G. Falkovich, J. B. Marston, and R. Pierrehumbert, ``Physics of Climate Change'' 2008 Program of the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics..

Teaching Emergence and Collective Behavior in Physics and Biology to Non-majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Manhart, Michael

2014-03-01

Emergence and collective behavior form one of the most fertile intersections of physics and biology in current research. Unfortunately, modern and interdisciplinary concepts such as these are often neglected in physics courses for non-majors. A team of four graduate students and a faculty advisor recently redesigned our department's course for non-majors (Concepts of Physics for Humanities and Social Science Students) to focus on emergence and collective behavior along with three other major themes in modern physics. In the course we developed basic concepts of statistical physics and thermodynamics to understand a variety of emergent phenomena in physics and biology, including bird flocking, superconductivity, and protein folding. We discussed the notion of life itself as an inherently emergent phenomenon arising from the collective behavior of molecules. The students also wrote their own blog posts on emergent phenomena and interactively explored emergence through workshops on Foldit (the protein folding game) and Conway's Game of Life. We believe our course demonstrates some possibilities and challenges for teaching non-majors at the intersection of physics and biology. I gratefully acknowledge my collaboration with Aatish Bhatia, Deepak Iyer, Simon Knapen, and Saurabh Jha.

University Students' Conceptions of an Excellent Physical Education Teacher in China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Song, Lihua; Chen, Junjun

2013-01-01

This study investigated how university students perceive an excellent physical education (PE) teacher at the university level. A sample of 2000 university students at four universities in China responded to a 53-item questionnaire. A 6-factor, 28-item model of an excellent teacher in PE was subsequently generated with a statistical good fit, using…

Revision by means of computer-mediated peer discussions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soong, Benson; Mercer, Neil; Er, Siew Shin

2010-05-01

In this article, we provide a discussion on our revision method (termed prescriptive tutoring) aimed at revealing students' misconceptions and misunderstandings by getting them to solve physics problems with an anonymous partner via the computer. It is currently being implemented and evaluated in a public secondary school in Singapore, and statistical analysis of our initial small-scale study shows that students in the experimental group significantly outperformed students in both the control and alternative intervention groups. In addition, students in the experimental group perceived that they had gained improved understanding of the physics concepts covered during the intervention, and reported that they would like to continue revising physics concepts using the intervention methods.

Evidence of non-extensivity and complexity in the seismicity observed during 2011-2012 at the Santorini volcanic complex, Greece

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vallianatos, F.; Tzanis, A.; Michas, G.; Papadakis, G.

2012-04-01

Since the middle of summer 2011, an increase in the seismicity rates of the volcanic complex system of Santorini Island, Greece, was observed. In the present work, the temporal distribution of seismicity, as well as the magnitude distribution of earthquakes, have been studied using the concept of Non-Extensive Statistical Physics (NESP; Tsallis, 2009) along with the evolution of Shanon entropy H (also called information entropy). The analysis is based on the earthquake catalogue of the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens for the period July 2011-January 2012 (http://www.gein.noa.gr/). Non-Extensive Statistical Physics, which is a generalization of Boltzmann-Gibbs statistical physics, seems a suitable framework for studying complex systems. The observed distributions of seismicity rates at Santorini can be described (fitted) with NESP models to exceptionally well. This implies the inherent complexity of the Santorini volcanic seismicity, the applicability of NESP concepts to volcanic earthquake activity and the usefulness of NESP in investigating phenomena exhibiting multifractality and long-range coupling effects. Acknowledgments. This work was supported in part by the THALES Program of the Ministry of Education of Greece and the European Union in the framework of the project entitled "Integrated understanding of Seismicity, using innovative Methodologies of Fracture mechanics along with Earthquake and non extensive statistical physics - Application to the geodynamic system of the Hellenic Arc. SEISMO FEAR HELLARC". GM and GP wish to acknowledge the partial support of the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (ΙΚΥ).

Conceptual developments of non-equilibrium statistical mechanics in the early days of Japan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ichiyanagi, Masakazu

1995-11-01

This paper reviews the research in nonequilibrium statistical mechanics made in Japan in the period between 1930 and 1960. Nearly thirty years have passed since the discovery of the exact formula for the electrical conductivity. With the rise of the linear response theory, the methods and results of which are quickly grasped by anyone, its rationale was pushed aside and even at the stage where the formulation was still incomplete some authors hurried to make physical applications. Such an attitude robbed it of most of its interest for the average physicist, who would approach an understanding of some basic concept, not through abstract and logical analysis but by simply increasing his technical experiences with the concept. The purpose of this review is to rescue the linear response theory from being labeled a mathematical tool and to show that it has considerable physical content. Many key papers, originally written in Japanese, are reproduced.

Effects of an exercise programme on self-esteem, self-concept and quality of life in women with fibromyalgia: a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

García-Martínez, Aida M; De Paz, José A; Márquez, Sara

2012-07-01

This study was aimed to investigate the effects of an exercise trial on self-esteem, self-concept and quality of life in patients with fibromyalgia and to evaluate whether improvements in psychological distress were related to changes in physical functioning. Twenty-eight women with a primary diagnosis of fibromyalgia were randomized to a usual care control group or to a 12-week supervised training programme consisting of 3 weekly sessions of aerobic, strengthening and flexibility exercises. Outcomes were physical functioning (Fibromyalgia Impact Questionnaire (FIQ), lower-body strength and flexibility) and psychological functioning (SF-36, Rosenberg self-esteem scale and Erdmann self-concept scale). Outcomes were measured at study entry and at the end of the intervention. Compared to the control group, statistically significant improvements in self-esteem, self-concept, FIQ, physical functioning, role physical, bodily pain, vitality, role emotional, social functioning, mental health, isometric strength, muscular endurance and flexibility were evident in the exercise group at the end of treatment. Self-esteem and self-concept scores were correlated positively with role emotional, mental health and the mental component summary of SF-36 and were negatively correlated to FIQ scores. No significant correlation existed between self-esteem or self-concept and isometric strength, muscular endurance or flexibility. Our results highlight the need for a broader array of physical and mental outcomes and the importance of examining patient's perceptions in future research therapies.

Examining the impact of the Guided Constructivist teaching method on students' misconceptions about concepts of Newtonian physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Hyatt Abdelhaleem

The effect of Guided Constructivism (Interactivity-Based Learning Environment) and Traditional Expository instructional methods on students' misconceptions about concepts of Newtonian Physics was investigated. Four groups of 79 of University of Central Florida students enrolled in Physics 2048 participated in the study. A quasi-experimental design of nonrandomized, nonequivalent control and experimental groups was employed. The experimental group was exposed to the Guided Constructivist teaching method, while the control group was taught using the Traditional Expository teaching approach. The data collection instruments included the Force Concept Inventory Test (FCI), the Mechanics Baseline Test (MBT), and the Maryland Physics Expectation Survey (MPEX). The Guided Constructivist group had significantly higher means than the Traditional Expository group on the criterion variables of: (1) conceptions of Newtonian Physics, (2) achievement in Newtonian Physics, and (3) beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge, beliefs about the role of Mathematics in learning Physics, and overall beliefs about learning/teaching/appropriate roles of learners and teachers/nature of Physics. Further, significant relationships were found between (1) achievement, conceptual structures, beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge, and beliefs about the role of Mathematics in learning Physics; (2) changes in misconceptions about the physical phenomena, and changes in beliefs about the content of Physics knowledge. No statistically significant difference was found between the two teaching methods on achievement of males and females. These findings suggest that differences in conceptual learning due to the nature of the teaching method used exist. Furthermore, greater conceptual learning is fostered when teachers use interactivity-based teaching strategies to train students to link everyday experience in the real physical world to formal school concepts. The moderate effect size and power of the study suggest that the effect may not be subtle, but reliable. Physics teachers can use these results to inform their decisions about structuring learning environment when conceptual learning is important.

Accelerated battery-life testing - A concept

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mccallum, J.; Thomas, R. E.

1971-01-01

Test program, employing empirical, statistical and physical methods, determines service life and failure probabilities of electrochemical cells and batteries, and is applicable to testing mechanical, electrical, and chemical devices. Data obtained aids long-term performance prediction of battery or cell.

Gambling as a teaching aid in the introductory physics laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Horodynski-Matsushigue, L. B.; Pascholati, P. R.; Vanin, V. R.; Dias, J. F.; Yoneama, M.-L.; Siqueira, P. T. D.; Amaku, M.; Duarte, J. L. M.

1998-07-01

Dice throwing is used to illustrate relevant concepts of the statistical theory of uncertainties, in particular the meaning of a limiting distribution, the standard deviation, and the standard deviation of the mean. It is an important part in a sequence of especially programmed laboratory activities, developed for freshmen, at the Institute of Physics of the University of São Paulo. It is shown how this activity is employed within a constructive teaching approach, which aims at a growing understanding of the measuring processes and of the fundamentals of correct statistical handling of experimental data.

Examining nonextensive statistics in relativistic heavy-ion collisions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simon, A.; Wolschin, G.

2018-04-01

We show in detailed numerical solutions of the nonlinear Fokker-Planck equation (FPE), which has been associated with nonextensive q statistics, that the available data on rapidity distributions for stopping in relativistic heavy-ion collisions cannot be reproduced with any permitted value of the nonextensivity parameter (1

Reflections on Gibbs: From Critical Phenomena to the Amistad

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kadanoff, Leo P.

2003-03-01

J. Willard Gibbs, the younger was the first American theorist. He was one of the inventors of statistical physics. His introduction and development of the concepts of phase space, phase transitions, and thermodynamic surfaces was remarkably correct and elegant. These three concepts form the basis of different but related areas of physics. The connection among these areas has been a subject of deep reflection from Gibbs' time to our own. I shall talk about these connections by using concepts suggested by the work of Michael Berry and explicitly put forward by the philosopher Robert Batterman. This viewpoint relates theory-connection to the applied mathematics concepts of asymptotic analysis and singular perturbations. J. Willard Gibbs, the younger, had all his achievements concentrated in science. His father, also J. Willard Gibbs, also a Professor at Yale, had one great achievement that remains unmatched in our day. I shall describe it.

Second Law based definition of passivity/activity of devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sundqvist, Kyle M.; Ferry, David K.; Kish, Laszlo B.

2017-10-01

Recently, our efforts to clarify the old question, if a memristor is a passive or active device [1], triggered debates between engineers, who have had advanced definitions of passivity/activity of devices, and physicists with significantly different views about this seemingly simple question. This debate triggered our efforts to test the well-known engineering concepts about passivity/activity in a deeper way, challenging them by statistical physics. It is shown that the advanced engineering definition of passivity/activity of devices is self-contradictory when a thermodynamical system executing Johnson-Nyquist noise is present. A new, statistical physical, self-consistent definition based on the Second Law of Thermodynamics is introduced. It is also shown that, in a system with uniform temperature distribution, any rectifier circuitry that can rectify thermal noise must contain an active circuit element, according to both the engineering and statistical physical definitions.

Validating two questions in the Force Concept Inventory with subquestions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yasuda, Jun-ichiro; Taniguchi, Masa-aki

2013-06-01

In this study, we evaluate the structural validity of Q.16 and Q.7 in the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). We address whether respondents who answer Q.16 and Q.7 correctly actually have an understanding of the concepts of physics tested in the questions. To examine respondents’ levels of understanding, we use subquestions that test them on concepts believed to be required to answer the actual FCI questions. Our sample size comprises 111 respondents; we derive false-positive ratios for prelearners and postlearners and then statistically test the difference between them. We find a difference at the 0.05 significance level for both Q.16 and Q.7, implying that it is possible for postlearners to answer both questions without an understanding of the concepts of physics tested in the questions; therefore, the structures of Q.16 and Q.7 are invalid. In this study, we only evaluate the validity of these two FCI questions; we do not assess the validity of previous studies that have compared total FCI scores.

On the Correct Analysis of the Foundations of Theoretical Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalanov, Temur Z.

2007-04-01

The problem of truth in science -- the most urgent problem of our time -- is discussed. The correct theoretical analysis of the foundations of theoretical physics is proposed. The principle of the unity of formal logic and rational dialectics is a methodological basis of the analysis. The main result is as follows: the generally accepted foundations of theoretical physics (i.e. Newtonian mechanics, Maxwell electrodynamics, thermodynamics, statistical physics and physical kinetics, the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics) contain the set of logical errors. These errors are explained by existence of the global cause: the errors are a collateral and inevitable result of the inductive way of cognition of the Nature, i.e. result of movement from formation of separate concepts to formation of the system of concepts. Consequently, theoretical physics enters the greatest crisis. It means that physics as a science of phenomenon leaves the progress stage for a science of essence (information). Acknowledgment: The books ``Surprises in Theoretical Physics'' (1979) and ``More Surprises in Theoretical Physics'' (1991) by Sir Rudolf Peierls stimulated my 25-year work.

Learning physical descriptors for materials science by compressed sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghiringhelli, Luca M.; Vybiral, Jan; Ahmetcik, Emre; Ouyang, Runhai; Levchenko, Sergey V.; Draxl, Claudia; Scheffler, Matthias

2017-02-01

The availability of big data in materials science offers new routes for analyzing materials properties and functions and achieving scientific understanding. Finding structure in these data that is not directly visible by standard tools and exploitation of the scientific information requires new and dedicated methodology based on approaches from statistical learning, compressed sensing, and other recent methods from applied mathematics, computer science, statistics, signal processing, and information science. In this paper, we explain and demonstrate a compressed-sensing based methodology for feature selection, specifically for discovering physical descriptors, i.e., physical parameters that describe the material and its properties of interest, and associated equations that explicitly and quantitatively describe those relevant properties. As showcase application and proof of concept, we describe how to build a physical model for the quantitative prediction of the crystal structure of binary compound semiconductors.

The Self-Concept of Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing and Hearing Students.

PubMed

Mekonnen, Mulat; Hannu, Savolainen; Elina, Lehtomäki; Matti, Kuorelahti

2016-10-01

The present study investigated the self-concept of deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) students in different educational settings compared with those of hearing students in Ethiopia. The research involved a sample of 103 Grade 4 students selected from 7 towns in Ethiopia. They were selected from a special school for the deaf, a special class for the deaf, and a regular school. The Self-Description Questionnaire I (Marsh, 1990) was used to measure the children's self-concept. The study results indicated that, in comparison with their hearing peers, DHH students had a lower self-concept in the areas of general self, general school, reading, and parental relations. The DHH students in the special school showed a higher self-concept in regard to their physical appearance than the hearing and DHH students in the special class. There were no statistically significant differences between the groups in the self-concept dimensions of peer relations, mathematics, and physical abilities. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Operational health physics training

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

1992-06-01

The initial four sections treat basic information concerning atomic structure and other useful physical quantities, natural radioactivity, the properties of {alpha}, {beta}, {gamma}, x rays and neutrons, and the concepts and units of radiation dosimetry (including SI units). Section 5 deals with biological effects and the risks associated with radiation exposure. Background radiation and man-made sources are discussed next. The basic recommendations of the ICRP concerning dose limitations: justification, optimization (ALARA concepts and applications) and dose limits are covered in Section seven. Section eight is an expanded version of shielding, and the internal dosimetry discussion has been extensively revised tomore » reflect the concepts contained in the MIRD methodology and ICRP 30. The remaining sections discuss the operational health physics approach to monitoring radiation. Individual sections include radiation detection principles, instrument operation and counting statistics, health physics instruments and personnel monitoring devices. The last five sections deal with the nature of, operation principles of, health physics aspects of, and monitoring approaches to air sampling, reactors, nuclear safety, gloveboxes and hot cells, accelerators and x ray sources. Decontamination, waste disposal and transportation of radionuclides are added topics. Several appendices containing constants, symbols, selected mathematical topics, and the Chart of the Nuclides, and an index have been included.« less

Synthetic Earthquake Statistics From Physical Fault Models for the Lower Rhine Embayment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brietzke, G. B.; Hainzl, S.; Zöller, G.

2012-04-01

As of today, seismic risk and hazard estimates mostly use pure empirical, stochastic models of earthquake fault systems tuned specifically to the vulnerable areas of interest. Although such models allow for reasonable risk estimates they fail to provide a link between the observed seismicity and the underlying physical processes. Solving a state-of-the-art fully dynamic description set of all relevant physical processes related to earthquake fault systems is likely not useful since it comes with a large number of degrees of freedom, poor constraints on its model parameters and a huge computational effort. Here, quasi-static and quasi-dynamic physical fault simulators provide a compromise between physical completeness and computational affordability and aim at providing a link between basic physical concepts and statistics of seismicity. Within the framework of quasi-static and quasi-dynamic earthquake simulators we investigate a model of the Lower Rhine Embayment (LRE) that is based upon seismological and geological data. We present and discuss statistics of the spatio-temporal behavior of generated synthetic earthquake catalogs with respect to simplification (e.g. simple two-fault cases) as well as to complication (e.g. hidden faults, geometric complexity, heterogeneities of constitutive parameters).

The Relationship Between Self-Esteem and Sexual Self-Concept in People With Physical-Motor Disabilities

PubMed Central

Salehi, Mehrdad; Kharaz Tavakol, Hooman; Shabani, Maede; Ziaei, Tayebe

2015-01-01

Background: Self-esteem is the value that the individuals give themselves, and sexual self-concept is also a part of individuality or sexual-self. Impairment or disability exists not only in the physical body of disabled people but also in their attitudes. Negative attitudes affect the mental health of disabled people, causing them to have lower self-esteem. Objectives: This study aimed to examine the relationship between self-esteem and sexual self-concept in people with physical-motor disabilities. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 random samples with physical-motor disabilities covered by Isfahan Welfare Organization in 2013. Data collection instruments were the Persian Eysenck self-esteem questionnaire, and five domains (sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression) of the Persian multidimensional sexual self-concept questionnaire. Because of incomplete filling of the questionnaires, the data of 183 people were analyzed by the SPSS 16.0 software. Data were analyzed using the t-test, Man-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests and Spearman correlation coefficient. Results: The mean age was 36.88 ± 8.94 years for women and 37.80 ± 10.13 for men. The mean scores of self-esteem among women and men were 15.80 ± 3.08 and 16.2 ± 2.90, respectively and there was no statistically significance difference. Comparison of the mean scores of sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression among men and women showed that women scored higher than men in all domains. This difference was statistically significant in other domains except the sexual self-esteem (14.92 ± 3.61 vs. 13.56 ± 4.52) (P < 0.05). The Kruskal-Wallis test showed that except for sexual anxiety and sexual self-esteem, there was a statistical difference between other domains of people’s sexual self-concept and degree of disability (P < 0.05). Moreover, Spearman coefficient showed that there was only a correlation between men’s sexual anxiety, sexual self-esteem and sexual self-efficacy with their self-esteem. This correlation was positive in sexual anxiety and negative in two other domains. Conclusions: Lack of difference in self-esteem of disabled people in different degrees of disability and in both men and women suggests that disabled people should not be presumed to have low self-esteem, and their different aspects of life should be attended to, just like others. Furthermore, studies should be designed and implemented based on psychological, social and environmental factors that can help disabled people to promote their positive sexual self-concept through marriage, and reduce their negative self-concept. PMID:25763279

The relationship between self-esteem and sexual self-concept in people with physical-motor disabilities.

PubMed

Salehi, Mehrdad; Kharaz Tavakol, Hooman; Shabani, Maede; Ziaei, Tayebe

2015-01-01

Self-esteem is the value that the individuals give themselves, and sexual self-concept is also a part of individuality or sexual-self. Impairment or disability exists not only in the physical body of disabled people but also in their attitudes. Negative attitudes affect the mental health of disabled people, causing them to have lower self-esteem. This study aimed to examine the relationship between self-esteem and sexual self-concept in people with physical-motor disabilities. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 200 random samples with physical-motor disabilities covered by Isfahan Welfare Organization in 2013. Data collection instruments were the Persian Eysenck self-esteem questionnaire, and five domains (sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression) of the Persian multidimensional sexual self-concept questionnaire. Because of incomplete filling of the questionnaires, the data of 183 people were analyzed by the SPSS 16.0 software. Data were analyzed using the t-test, Man-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests and Spearman correlation coefficient. The mean age was 36.88 ± 8.94 years for women and 37.80 ± 10.13 for men. The mean scores of self-esteem among women and men were 15.80 ± 3.08 and 16.2 ± 2.90, respectively and there was no statistically significance difference. Comparison of the mean scores of sexual anxiety, sexual self-efficacy, sexual self-esteem, sexual fear and sexual depression among men and women showed that women scored higher than men in all domains. This difference was statistically significant in other domains except the sexual self-esteem (14.92 ± 3.61 vs. 13.56 ± 4.52) (P < 0.05). The Kruskal-Wallis test showed that except for sexual anxiety and sexual self-esteem, there was a statistical difference between other domains of people's sexual self-concept and degree of disability (P < 0.05). Moreover, Spearman coefficient showed that there was only a correlation between men's sexual anxiety, sexual self-esteem and sexual self-efficacy with their self-esteem. This correlation was positive in sexual anxiety and negative in two other domains. Lack of difference in self-esteem of disabled people in different degrees of disability and in both men and women suggests that disabled people should not be presumed to have low self-esteem, and their different aspects of life should be attended to, just like others. Furthermore, studies should be designed and implemented based on psychological, social and environmental factors that can help disabled people to promote their positive sexual self-concept through marriage, and reduce their negative self-concept.

On the relationship between income, fertility rates and the state of democracy in society

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hutzler, S.; Sommer, C.; Richmond, P.

2016-06-01

Empirical data for 145 countries shows a strong correlation between the gross national income per capita and the political form of their governance, as specified by the so-called democracy index. We interpret this relationship in analogy to phase transitions between different states of matter, using concepts of statistical physics. Fertility rates play the role of binding energy in solid state physics.

Treatment of Chemical Equilibrium without Using Thermodynamics or Statistical Mechanics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, P. G.

1986-01-01

Discusses the conventional approaches to teaching about chemical equilibrium in advanced physical chemistry courses. Presents an alternative approach to the treatment of this concept by using Boltzmann's distribution law. Lists five advantages to using this method as compared with the other approaches. (TW)

Decrease of Fisher information and the information geometry of evolution equations for quantum mechanical probability amplitudes.

PubMed

Cafaro, Carlo; Alsing, Paul M

2018-04-01

The relevance of the concept of Fisher information is increasing in both statistical physics and quantum computing. From a statistical mechanical standpoint, the application of Fisher information in the kinetic theory of gases is characterized by its decrease along the solutions of the Boltzmann equation for Maxwellian molecules in the two-dimensional case. From a quantum mechanical standpoint, the output state in Grover's quantum search algorithm follows a geodesic path obtained from the Fubini-Study metric on the manifold of Hilbert-space rays. Additionally, Grover's algorithm is specified by constant Fisher information. In this paper, we present an information geometric characterization of the oscillatory or monotonic behavior of statistically parametrized squared probability amplitudes originating from special functional forms of the Fisher information function: constant, exponential decay, and power-law decay. Furthermore, for each case, we compute both the computational speed and the availability loss of the corresponding physical processes by exploiting a convenient Riemannian geometrization of useful thermodynamical concepts. Finally, we briefly comment on the possibility of using the proposed methods of information geometry to help identify a suitable trade-off between speed and thermodynamic efficiency in quantum search algorithms.

Decrease of Fisher information and the information geometry of evolution equations for quantum mechanical probability amplitudes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cafaro, Carlo; Alsing, Paul M.

2018-04-01

The relevance of the concept of Fisher information is increasing in both statistical physics and quantum computing. From a statistical mechanical standpoint, the application of Fisher information in the kinetic theory of gases is characterized by its decrease along the solutions of the Boltzmann equation for Maxwellian molecules in the two-dimensional case. From a quantum mechanical standpoint, the output state in Grover's quantum search algorithm follows a geodesic path obtained from the Fubini-Study metric on the manifold of Hilbert-space rays. Additionally, Grover's algorithm is specified by constant Fisher information. In this paper, we present an information geometric characterization of the oscillatory or monotonic behavior of statistically parametrized squared probability amplitudes originating from special functional forms of the Fisher information function: constant, exponential decay, and power-law decay. Furthermore, for each case, we compute both the computational speed and the availability loss of the corresponding physical processes by exploiting a convenient Riemannian geometrization of useful thermodynamical concepts. Finally, we briefly comment on the possibility of using the proposed methods of information geometry to help identify a suitable trade-off between speed and thermodynamic efficiency in quantum search algorithms.

Maxwell's color statistics: from reduction of visible errors to reduction to invisible molecules.

PubMed

Cat, Jordi

2014-12-01

This paper presents a cross-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary account of Maxwell's introduction of statistical models of molecules for the composition of gases. The account focuses on Maxwell's deployment of statistical models of data in his contemporaneous color researches as established in Cambridge mathematical physics, especially by Maxwell's seniors and mentors. The paper also argues that the cross-disciplinary, or cross-domain, transfer of resources from the natural and social sciences took place in both directions and relied on the complex intra-disciplinary, or intra-domain, dynamics of Maxwell's researches in natural sciences, in color theory, physical astronomy, electromagnetism and dynamical theory of gases, as well as involving a variety of types of communicating and mediating media, from material objects to concepts, techniques and institutions.

Physics of negative absolute temperatures.

PubMed

Abraham, Eitan; Penrose, Oliver

2017-01-01

Negative absolute temperatures were introduced into experimental physics by Purcell and Pound, who successfully applied this concept to nuclear spins; nevertheless, the concept has proved controversial: a recent article aroused considerable interest by its claim, based on a classical entropy formula (the "volume entropy") due to Gibbs, that negative temperatures violated basic principles of statistical thermodynamics. Here we give a thermodynamic analysis that confirms the negative-temperature interpretation of the Purcell-Pound experiments. We also examine the principal arguments that have been advanced against the negative temperature concept; we find that these arguments are not logically compelling, and moreover that the underlying "volume" entropy formula leads to predictions inconsistent with existing experimental results on nuclear spins. We conclude that, despite the counterarguments, negative absolute temperatures make good theoretical sense and did occur in the experiments designed to produce them.

Entropy and econophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rosser, J. Barkley

2016-12-01

Entropy is a central concept of statistical mechanics, which is the main branch of physics that underlies econophysics, the application of physics concepts to understand economic phenomena. It enters into econophysics both in an ontological way through the Second Law of Thermodynamics as this drives the world economy from its ecological foundations as solar energy passes through food chains in dissipative process of entropy rising and production fundamentally involving the replacement of lower entropy energy states with higher entropy ones. In contrast the mathematics of entropy as appearing in information theory becomes the basis for modeling financial market dynamics as well as income and wealth distribution dynamics. It also provides the basis for an alternative view of stochastic price equilibria in economics, as well providing a crucial link between econophysics and sociophysics, keeping in mind the essential unity of the various concepts of entropy.

Statistical Modeling for Radiation Hardness Assurance

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ladbury, Raymond L.

2014-01-01

We cover the models and statistics associated with single event effects (and total ionizing dose), why we need them, and how to use them: What models are used, what errors exist in real test data, and what the model allows us to say about the DUT will be discussed. In addition, how to use other sources of data such as historical, heritage, and similar part and how to apply experience, physics, and expert opinion to the analysis will be covered. Also included will be concepts of Bayesian statistics, data fitting, and bounding rates.

Applicability of the Newtonian gravity concept inventory to introductory college physics classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williamson, Kathryn; Prather, Edward E.; Willoughby, Shannon

2016-06-01

The study described here extends the applicability of the Newtonian Gravity Concept Inventory (NGCI) to college algebra-based physics classes, beyond the general education astronomy courses for which it was originally developed. The four conceptual domains probed by the NGCI (Directionality, Force Law, Independence of Other Forces, and Threshold) are well suited for investigating students' reasoning about gravity in both populations, making the NGCI a highly versatile instrument. Classical test theory statistical analysis with physics student responses pre-instruction (N = 1,392) and post-instruction (N = 929) from eight colleges and universities across the United States indicate that the NGCI is composed of items with appropriate difficulty and discrimination and is reliable for this population. Also, expert review and student interviews support the NGCI's validity for the physics population. Emergent similarities and differences in how physics students reason about gravity compared to astronomy students are discussed, as well as future directions for analyzing the instrument's item parameters across both populations.

Instructional strategies for online introductory college physics based on learning styles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ekwue, Eleazer U.

The practical nature of physics and its reliance on mathematical presentations and problem solving pose a challenge toward presentation of the course in an online environment for effective learning experience. Most first-time introductory college physics students fail to grasp the basic concepts of the course and the problem solving skills if the instructional strategy used to deliver the course is not compatible with the learners' preferred learning styles. This study investigates the effect of four instructional strategies based on four learning styles (listening, reading, iconic, and direct-experience) to improve learning for introductory college physics in an online environment. Learning styles of 146 participants were determined with Canfield Learning Style inventory. Of the 85 learners who completed the study, research results showed a statistically significant increase in learning performance following the online instruction in all four learning style groups. No statistically significant differences in learning were found among the four groups. However, greater significant academic improvement was found among learners with iconic and direct-experience modes of learning. Learners in all four groups expressed that the design of the unit presentation to match their individual learning styles contributed most to their learning experience. They were satisfied with learning a new physics concept online that, in their opinion, is either comparable or better than an instructor-led classroom experience. Findings from this study suggest that learners' performance and satisfaction in an online introductory physics course could be improved by using instructional designs that are tailored to learners' preferred ways of learning. It could contribute toward the challenge of providing viable online physics instruction in colleges and universities.

Avalanches, loading and finite size effects in 2D amorphous plasticity: results from a finite element model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandfeld, Stefan; Budrikis, Zoe; Zapperi, Stefano; Fernandez Castellanos, David

2015-02-01

Crystalline plasticity is strongly interlinked with dislocation mechanics and nowadays is relatively well understood. Concepts and physical models of plastic deformation in amorphous materials on the other hand—where the concept of linear lattice defects is not applicable—still are lagging behind. We introduce an eigenstrain-based finite element lattice model for simulations of shear band formation and strain avalanches. Our model allows us to study the influence of surfaces and finite size effects on the statistics of avalanches. We find that even with relatively complex loading conditions and open boundary conditions, critical exponents describing avalanche statistics are unchanged, which validates the use of simpler scalar lattice-based models to study these phenomena.

Self-concept and the perception of facial appearance in children and adolescents seeking orthodontic treatment.

PubMed

Phillips, Ceib; Beal, Kimberly N Edwards

2009-01-01

To examine, in adolescents with mild to moderate malocclusion, the relationship between self-concept and demographic characteristics, a clinical assessment of malocclusion, self-perception of malocclusion, and self-perception of facial attractiveness. Fifty-nine consecutive patients ages 9 to 15 years scheduled for initial records in a graduate orthodontic clinic consented to participate. Each subject independently completed the Multidimensional Self-Concept Scale (MSCS), the Facial Image Scale, and the Index of Treatment Need-Aesthetic Component (IOTN-AC). Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) scores were obtained from the patients' diagnostic dental casts. Forward multiple-regression analysis with a backward overlook was used to analyze the effect of the demographic, clinical, and self-perception measures on each of the six self-concept (MSCS) domains. Self-perception of the dentofacial region was the only statistically significant predictor (P < .05) for the Global, Competence, Affect, Academic, and Physical domains of self-concept, while age, parental marital status, and the adolescent's self-perception of the dentofacial region were statistically significant predictors (P < .05) of Social Self-Concept. The self-perceived level of the attractiveness or "positive" feelings toward the dentofacial region is more strongly related to self-concept than the severity of the malocclusion as indicated by the PAR score or by the adolescent's perception of their malocclusion.

Quantum Social Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haven, Emmanuel; Khrennikov, Andrei

2013-01-01

Preface; Part I. Physics Concepts in Social Science? A Discussion: 1. Classical, statistical and quantum mechanics: all in one; 2. Econophysics: statistical physics and social science; 3. Quantum social science: a non-mathematical motivation; Part II. Mathematics and Physics Preliminaries: 4. Vector calculus and other mathematical preliminaries; 5. Basic elements of quantum mechanics; 6. Basic elements of Bohmian mechanics; Part III. Quantum Probabilistic Effects in Psychology: Basic Questions and Answers: 7. A brief overview; 8. Interference effects in psychology - an introduction; 9. A quantum-like model of decision making; Part IV. Other Quantum Probabilistic Effects in Economics, Finance and Brain Sciences: 10. Financial/economic theory in crisis; 11. Bohmian mechanics in finance and economics; 12. The Bohm-Vigier Model and path simulation; 13. Other applications to economic/financial theory; 14. The neurophysiological sources of quantum-like processing in the brain; Conclusion; Glossary; Index.

Koszul information geometry and Souriau Lie group thermodynamics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Barbaresco, Frédéric, E-mail: frederic.barbaresco@thalesgroup.com

The François Massieu 1869 idea to derive some mechanical and thermal properties of physical systems from 'Characteristic Functions', was developed by Gibbs and Duhem in thermodynamics with the concept of potentials, and introduced by Poincaré in probability. This paper deals with generalization of this Characteristic Function concept by Jean-Louis Koszul in Mathematics and by Jean-Marie Souriau in Statistical Physics. The Koszul-Vinberg Characteristic Function (KVCF) on convex cones will be presented as cornerstone of 'Information Geometry' theory, defining Koszul Entropy as Legendre transform of minus the logarithm of KVCF, and Fisher Information Metrics as hessian of these dual functions, invariant bymore » their automorphisms. In parallel, Souriau has extended the Characteristic Function in Statistical Physics looking for other kinds of invariances through co-adjoint action of a group on its momentum space, defining physical observables like energy, heat and momentum as pure geometrical objects. In covariant Souriau model, Gibbs equilibriums states are indexed by a geometric parameter, the Geometric (Planck) Temperature, with values in the Lie algebra of the dynamical Galileo/Poincaré groups, interpreted as a space-time vector, giving to the metric tensor a null Lie derivative. Fisher Information metric appears as the opposite of the derivative of Mean 'Moment map' by geometric temperature, equivalent to a Geometric Capacity or Specific Heat. These elements has been developed by author in [10][11].« less

Both psychological factors and physical performance are associated with fall-related concerns.

PubMed

Pauelsen, Mascha; Nyberg, Lars; Röijezon, Ulrik; Vikman, Irene

2017-12-20

Fall-related concern strongly correlates to activity avoidance in older people. In this complex phenomenon, different terminology and instruments are often used interchangeably. Three main concepts make up fall-related concerns: fear of falling, consequence concern, and falls self-efficacy. It is suggested that fall-related concerns are mediated by psychological and physical factors. Our aims were to describe the prevalence of fall-related concerns and find explanatory factors for its most studied concept-falls self-efficacy-in an older population. We executed a cross-sectional study on a random sample of 153 community-dwelling older people (70 years or older). We used validated and reliable instruments as well as structured interviews to gather data on the three concepts of fall-related concerns and possible mediating factors. We then calculated descriptive statistics on prevalence and regression models for the total group, and men and women, separately. 70% of the total sample (80% of women and 53% of men) reported at least one of the three concepts of fall-related concern. For the total sample, fear of falling, morale, and physical performance were associated factors with falls self-efficacy. For women, the number of prescription medications was added. For men, physical performance and concerns for injury were associated. Fall-related concern is prevalent in large proportions with higher prevalence for women than for men. Important factors are fear of falling, morale, and physical performance. Gender differences in the emergence and variance of fall-related concern and the relation between physical performance and fall-related concern should be targeted in future research endeavors.

The Role of Probability in Developing Learners' Models of Simulation Approaches to Inference

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Hollylynne S.; Doerr, Helen M.; Tran, Dung; Lovett, Jennifer N.

2016-01-01

Repeated sampling approaches to inference that rely on simulations have recently gained prominence in statistics education, and probabilistic concepts are at the core of this approach. In this approach, learners need to develop a mapping among the problem situation, a physical enactment, computer representations, and the underlying randomization…

Self-Concept and the Perception of Facial Appearance in Children and Adolescents Seeking Orthodontic Treatment

PubMed Central

Phillips, Ceib; Beal, Kimberly N. Edwards

2009-01-01

Objective To examine, in adolescents with mild to moderate malocclusion, the relationship between self-concept and demographic characteristics, a clinical assessment of malocclusion, self-perception of malocclusion, and self-perception of facial attractiveness. Methods and Materials Fifty-nine consecutive patients ages 9 to 15 years scheduled for initial records in a graduate orthodontic clinic consented to participate. Each subject independently completed the Multidimensional Self-Concept Scale (MSCS), the Facial Image Scale, and the Index of Treatment Need–Aesthetic Component (IOTN-AC). Peer Assessment Rating (PAR) scores were obtained from the patients’ diagnostic dental casts. Forward multiple-regression analysis with a backward overlook was used to analyze the effect of the demographic, clinical, and self-perception measures on each of the six self-concept (MSCS) domains. Results Self-perception of the dentofacial region was the only statistically significant predictor (P < .05) for the Global, Competence, Affect, Academic, and Physical domains of self-concept, while age, parental marital status, and the adolescent's self-perception of the dentofacial region were statistically significant predictors (P < .05) of Social Self-Concept. Conclusion The self-perceived level of the attractiveness or “positive” feelings toward the dentofacial region is more strongly related to self-concept than the severity of the malocclusion as indicated by the PAR score or by the adolescent's perception of their malocclusion. PMID:19123700

Modeling forest scenic beauty: Concepts and application to ponderosa pine

Treesearch

Thomas C. Brown; Terry C. Daniel

1984-01-01

Statistical models are presented which relate near-view scenic beauty of ponderosa pine stands in the Southwest to variables describing physical characteristics. The models suggest that herbage and large ponderosa pine contribute to scenic beauty, while numbers of small and intermediate-sized pine trees and downed wood, especially as slash, detract from scenic beauty....

Techniques of Differentiation and Integration, Mathematics (Experimental): 5297.27.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Forrester, Gary B.

This guidebook on minimum course content was designed for students who have mastered the skills and concepts of analytic geometry. It is a short course in the basic techniques of calculus recommended for the student who has need of these skills in other courses such as beginning physics, economics or statistics. The course does not intend to teach…

Development of a representational conceptual evaluation in the first law of thermodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sriyansyah, S. P.; Suhandi, A.

2016-08-01

As part of an ongoing research to investigate student consistency in understanding the first law of thermodynamics, a representational conceptual evaluation (RCET) has been developed to assess student conceptual understanding, representational consistency, and scientific consistency in the introductory physics course. Previous physics education research findings were used to develop the test. RCET items were 30 items which designed as an isomorphic multiple-choice test with three different representations concerning the concept of work, heat, first law of thermodynamics, and its application in the thermodynamic processes. Here, we present preliminary measures of the validity and reliability of the instrument, including the classical test statistics. This instrument can be used to measure the intended concept in the first law of thermodynamics and it will give the consistent results with the ability to differentiate well between high-achieving students and low-achieving students and also students at different level. As well as measuring the effectiveness of the learning process in the concept of the first law of thermodynamics.

What physicists should know about finance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmidt, Anatoly B.

2005-05-01

There has been growing interest in Econophysics, i.e. analysis and modeling of financial time series using the theoretical Physics concepts (scaling, fractals, chaos). Besides the scientific stimuli, this interest is backed by perception that the financial industry is a viable alternative for those physicists who are not able or are not willing to pursue an academic career. However, the times when any Ph.D. in Physics had a chance to find a job on the Wall Street are gone (if they ever existed). Indeed, not every physicist wields the stochastic calculus, non-normal statistical distributions, and the methods of time series analysis. Moreover, now that many universities offer courses in mathematical finance, the applicants for quantitative positions in finance are expected to know such concepts as option pricing, portfolio management, and risk measurement. Here I describe a synthetic course based on my book [1] that outlines both worlds: Econophysics and Mathematical Finance. The course may be offered as elective for senior undergraduate or graduate Physics majors.

Immunology for physicists

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Perelson, A.S.; Weisbuch, G.

1997-10-01

The immune system is a complex system of cells and molecules that can provide us with a basic defense against pathogenic organisms. Like the nervous system, the immune system performs pattern recognition tasks, learns, and retains a memory of the antigens that it has fought. The immune system contains more than 10{sup 7} different clones of cells that communicate via cell-cell contact and the secretion of molecules. Performing complex tasks such as learning and memory involves cooperation among large numbers of components of the immune system and hence there is interest in using methods and concepts from statistical physics. Furthermore,more » the immune response develops in time and the description of its time evolution is an interesting problem in dynamical systems. In this paper, the authors provide a brief introduction to the biology of the immune system and discuss a number of immunological problems in which the use of physical concepts and mathematical methods has increased our understanding. {copyright} {ital 1997} {ital The American Physical Society}« less

Macro-Econophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aoyama, Hideaki; Fujiwara, Yoshi; Ikeda, Yuichi; Iyetomi, Hiroshi; Souma, Wataru; Yoshikawa, Hiroshi

2017-07-01

Preface; Foreword, Acknowledgements, List of tables; List of figures, prologue, 1. Introduction: reconstructing macroeconomics; 2. Basic concepts in statistical physics and stochastic models; 3. Income and firm-size distributions; 4. Productivity distribution and related topics; 5. Multivariate time-series analysis; 6. Business cycles; 7. Price dynamics and inflation/deflation; 8. Complex network, community analysis, visualization; 9. Systemic risks; Appendix A: computer program for beginners; Epilogue; Bibliography; Index.

Watersheds in disordered media

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrade, Joséi, Jr.; Araújo, Nuno; Herrmann, Hans; Schrenk, Julian

2015-02-01

What is the best way to divide a rugged landscape? Since ancient times, watersheds separating adjacent water systems that flow, for example, toward different seas, have been used to delimit boundaries. Interestingly, serious and even tense border disputes between countries have relied on the subtle geometrical properties of these tortuous lines. For instance, slight and even anthropogenic modifications of landscapes can produce large changes in a watershed, and the effects can be highly nonlocal. Although the watershed concept arises naturally in geomorphology, where it plays a fundamental role in water management, landslide, and flood prevention, it also has important applications in seemingly unrelated fields such as image processing and medicine. Despite the far-reaching consequences of the scaling properties on watershed-related hydrological and political issues, it was only recently that a more profound and revealing connection has been disclosed between the concept of watershed and statistical physics of disordered systems. This review initially surveys the origin and definition of a watershed line in a geomorphological framework to subsequently introduce its basic geometrical and physical properties. Results on statistical properties of watersheds obtained from artificial model landscapes generated with long-range correlations are presented and shown to be in good qualitative and quantitative agreement with real landscapes.

The influence of HOPE VI neighborhood revitalization on neighborhood-based physical activity: A mixed-methods approach.

PubMed

Dulin-Keita, Akilah; Clay, Olivio; Whittaker, Shannon; Hannon, Lonnie; Adams, Ingrid K; Rogers, Michelle; Gans, Kim

2015-08-01

This study uses a mixed methods approach to 1) identify surrounding residents' perceived expectations for Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere (HOPE VI) policy on physical activity outcomes and to 2) quantitatively examine the odds of neighborhood-based physical activity pre-/post-HOPE VI in a low socioeconomic status, predominantly African American community in Birmingham, Alabama. To address aim one, we used group concept mapping which is a structured approach for data collection and analyses that produces pictures/maps of ideas. Fifty-eight residents developed statements about potential influences of HOPE VI on neighborhood-based physical activity. In the quantitative study, we examined whether these potential influences increased the odds of neighborhood walking/jogging. We computed block entry logistic regression models with a larger cohort of residents at baseline (n = 184) and six-months (n = 142, 77% retention; n = 120 for all informative variables). We examined perceived neighborhood disorder (perceived neighborhood disorder scale), walkability and aesthetics (Neighborhood Environment Walkability Scale) and HOPE VI-related community safety and safety for physical activity as predictors. During concept mapping, residents generated statements that clustered into three distinct concepts, "Increased Leisure Physical Activity," "Safe Play Areas," and "Generating Health Promoting Resources." The quantitative analyses indicated that changes in neighborhood walkability increased the odds of neighborhood-based physical activity (p = 0.04). When HOPE VI-related safety for physical activity was entered into the model, it was associated with increased odds of physical activity (p = 0.04). Walkability was no longer statistically significant. These results suggest that housing policies that create walkable neighborhoods and that improve perceptions of safety for physical activity may increase neighborhood-based physical activity. However, the longer term impacts of neighborhood-level policies on physical activity require more longitudinal evidence to determine whether increased participation in physical activity is sustained. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Nutrition intake and physical activity in a middle school in New York City.

PubMed

Gonzalez, Marisol; Feinstein, Ronald; Iezzi, Carina; Fisher, Martin

2015-08-01

The threat of childhood obesity has never been greater. Behavior changes implemented during childhood and adolescence are believed to be the most successful means of thwarting the progression of this epidemic. The American Academy of Pediatrics has developed a public health campaign that promotes awareness of clinical guidelines for nutrition and physical activity. The campaign is based on a concept developed by the Maine Center for Public Health referred to as "5-2-1-0 Healthy". The simple clear message of this concept outlines steps families can take to help prevent and treat childhood obesity. The purpose of the present study is to determine the current level of compliance and health education needs of a middle school population related to the "5-2-1-0" concept. A modified version of the 2010 National Youth Physical Activity and Nutrition Survey (developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) was distributed to students at a private, nonsectarian, middle school in New York City. The school is located in the borough of Manhattan, but includes youngsters from all five boroughs of the city. The questions were grouped and analyzed according to "5-2-1-0" categories. Surveys were scored, and the association between targeted questionnaire items and demographic variables (i.e., sex and grade) was examined. All 140 students completed the survey, and there was great variability in their responses to both the nutrition and physical activity questions. Of all students, 65% reported eating one cup or more of fruit daily, and 38% reported eating one cup or more of vegetables daily. There was no statistically significant difference reported in consumption of fruits or vegetables by gender or grade. Over 60% of students indicated <2 h of DVD/video or computer/video game time per day, while 10% indicated more than 3 h per day for each. A significant difference existed in the screen time reported between grades (more screen time by the older students) and a statistically significant difference also existed in the amount of physical activity reported by gender and grade (more physical activity by males and younger students). There was no difference in the reported consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages by gender or grade. In a cohort of middle school students in New York City, there was great variability in compliance with the principles represented by the "5-2-1-0" concept. Changes in health behaviors were noted as students went from 6th to 7th to 8th grade, with physical activity decreasing and screen time increasing. Consequently, health curriculum topics for middle school students should focus on physical activity and screen time, while continuing to emphasize the need for proper nutrition.

Spatio-temporal analysis of aftershock sequences in terms of Non Extensive Statistical Physics.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chochlaki, Kalliopi; Vallianatos, Filippos

2017-04-01

Earth's seismicity is considered as an extremely complicated process where long-range interactions and fracturing exist (Vallianatos et al., 2016). For this reason, in order to analyze it, we use an innovative methodological approach, introduced by Tsallis (Tsallis, 1988; 2009), named Non Extensive Statistical Physics. This approach introduce a generalization of the Boltzmann-Gibbs statistical mechanics and it is based on the definition of Tsallis entropy Sq, which maximized leads the the so-called q-exponential function that expresses the probability distribution function that maximizes the Sq. In the present work, we utilize the concept of Non Extensive Statistical Physics in order to analyze the spatiotemporal properties of several aftershock series. Marekova (Marekova, 2014) suggested that the probability densities of the inter-event distances between successive aftershocks follow a beta distribution. Using the same data set we analyze the inter-event distance distribution of several aftershocks sequences in different geographic regions by calculating non extensive parameters that determine the behavior of the system and by fitting the q-exponential function, which expresses the degree of non-extentivity of the investigated system. Furthermore, the inter-event times distribution of the aftershocks as well as the frequency-magnitude distribution has been analyzed. The results supports the applicability of Non Extensive Statistical Physics ideas in aftershock sequences where a strong correlation exists along with memory effects. References C. Tsallis, Possible generalization of Boltzmann-Gibbs statistics, J. Stat. Phys. 52 (1988) 479-487. doi:10.1007/BF01016429 C. Tsallis, Introduction to nonextensive statistical mechanics: Approaching a complex world, 2009. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-85359-8. E. Marekova, Analysis of the spatial distribution between successive earthquakes in aftershocks series, Annals of Geophysics, 57, 5, doi:10.4401/ag-6556, 2014 F. Vallianatos, G. Papadakis, G. Michas, Generalized statistical mechanics approaches to earthquakes and tectonics. Proc. R. Soc. A, 472, 20160497, 2016.

Understanding the relationship between student attitudes and student learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cahill, Michael J.; McDaniel, Mark A.; Frey, Regina F.; Hynes, K. Mairin; Repice, Michelle; Zhao, Jiuqing; Trousil, Rebecca

2018-02-01

Student attitudes, defined as the extent to which one holds expertlike beliefs about and approaches to physics, are a major research topic in physics education research. An implicit but rarely tested assumption underlying much of this research is that student attitudes play a significant part in student learning and performance. The current study directly tested this attitude-learning link by measuring the association between incoming attitudes (Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey) and student learning during the semester after statistically controlling for the effects of prior knowledge [early-semester Force Concept Inventory (FCI) or Brief Electricity and Magnetism Assessment (BEMA)]. This study spanned four different courses and included two complementary measures of student knowledge: late-semester concept inventory scores (FCI or BEMA) and exam averages. In three of the four courses, after controlling for prior knowledge, attitudes significantly predicted both late-semester concept inventory scores and exam averages, but in all cases these attitudes explained only a small amount of variance in concept-inventory and exam scores. Results indicate that after accounting for students' incoming knowledge, attitudes may uniquely but modestly relate to how much students learn and how well they perform in the course.

Menzerath-Altmann Law: Statistical Mechanical Interpretation as Applied to a Linguistic Organization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eroglu, Sertac

2014-10-01

The distribution behavior described by the empirical Menzerath-Altmann law is frequently encountered during the self-organization of linguistic and non-linguistic natural organizations at various structural levels. This study presents a statistical mechanical derivation of the law based on the analogy between the classical particles of a statistical mechanical organization and the distinct words of a textual organization. The derived model, a transformed (generalized) form of the Menzerath-Altmann model, was termed as the statistical mechanical Menzerath-Altmann model. The derived model allows interpreting the model parameters in terms of physical concepts. We also propose that many organizations presenting the Menzerath-Altmann law behavior, whether linguistic or not, can be methodically examined by the transformed distribution model through the properly defined structure-dependent parameter and the energy associated states.

Space-time-modulated stochastic processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giona, Massimiliano

2017-10-01

Starting from the physical problem associated with the Lorentzian transformation of a Poisson-Kac process in inertial frames, the concept of space-time-modulated stochastic processes is introduced for processes possessing finite propagation velocity. This class of stochastic processes provides a two-way coupling between the stochastic perturbation acting on a physical observable and the evolution of the physical observable itself, which in turn influences the statistical properties of the stochastic perturbation during its evolution. The definition of space-time-modulated processes requires the introduction of two functions: a nonlinear amplitude modulation, controlling the intensity of the stochastic perturbation, and a time-horizon function, which modulates its statistical properties, providing irreducible feedback between the stochastic perturbation and the physical observable influenced by it. The latter property is the peculiar fingerprint of this class of models that makes them suitable for extension to generic curved-space times. Considering Poisson-Kac processes as prototypical examples of stochastic processes possessing finite propagation velocity, the balance equations for the probability density functions associated with their space-time modulations are derived. Several examples highlighting the peculiarities of space-time-modulated processes are thoroughly analyzed.

A non extensive statistical physics analysis of the Hellenic subduction zone seismicity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vallianatos, F.; Papadakis, G.; Michas, G.; Sammonds, P.

2012-04-01

The Hellenic subduction zone is the most seismically active region in Europe [Becker & Meier, 2010]. The spatial and temporal distribution of seismicity as well as the analysis of the magnitude distribution of earthquakes concerning the Hellenic subduction zone, has been studied using the concept of Non-Extensive Statistical Physics (NESP) [Tsallis, 1988 ; Tsallis, 2009]. Non-Extensive Statistical Physics, which is a generalization of Boltzmann-Gibbs statistical physics, seems a suitable framework for studying complex systems (Vallianatos, 2011). Using this concept, Abe & Suzuki (2003;2005) investigated the spatial and temporal properties of the seismicity in California and Japan and recently Darooneh & Dadashinia (2008) in Iran. Furthermore, Telesca (2011) calculated the thermodynamic parameter q of the magnitude distribution of earthquakes of the southern California earthquake catalogue. Using the external seismic zones of 36 seismic sources of shallow earthquakes in the Aegean and the surrounding area [Papazachos, 1990], we formed a dataset concerning the seismicity of shallow earthquakes (focal depth ≤ 60km) of the subduction zone, which is based on the instrumental data of the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens (http://www.gein.noa.gr/, period 1990-2011). The catalogue consists of 12800 seismic events which correspond to 15 polygons of the aforementioned external seismic zones. These polygons define the subduction zone, as they are associated with the compressional stress field which characterizes a subducting regime. For each event, moment magnitude was calculated from ML according to the suggestions of Papazachos et al. (1997). The cumulative distribution functions of the inter-event times and the inter-event distances as well as the magnitude distribution for each seismic zone have been estimated, presenting a variation in the q-triplet along the Hellenic subduction zone. The models used, fit rather well to the observed distributions, implying the complexity of the spatiotemporal properties of seismicity and the usefulness of NESP in investigating such phenomena, exhibiting scale-free nature and long range memory effects. Acknowledgments. This work was supported in part by the THALES Program of the Ministry of Education of Greece and the European Union in the framework of the project entitled "Integrated understanding of Seismicity, using innovative Methodologies of Fracture mechanics along with Earthquake and non extensive statistical physics - Application to the geodynamic system of the Hellenic Arc. SEISMO FEAR HELLARC". GM and GP wish to acknowledge the partial support of the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (ΙΚΥ).

Stochastic Spatial Models in Ecology: A Statistical Physics Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pigolotti, Simone; Cencini, Massimo; Molina, Daniel; Muñoz, Miguel A.

2018-07-01

Ecosystems display a complex spatial organization. Ecologists have long tried to characterize them by looking at how different measures of biodiversity change across spatial scales. Ecological neutral theory has provided simple predictions accounting for general empirical patterns in communities of competing species. However, while neutral theory in well-mixed ecosystems is mathematically well understood, spatial models still present several open problems, limiting the quantitative understanding of spatial biodiversity. In this review, we discuss the state of the art in spatial neutral theory. We emphasize the connection between spatial ecological models and the physics of non-equilibrium phase transitions and how concepts developed in statistical physics translate in population dynamics, and vice versa. We focus on non-trivial scaling laws arising at the critical dimension D = 2 of spatial neutral models, and their relevance for biological populations inhabiting two-dimensional environments. We conclude by discussing models incorporating non-neutral effects in the form of spatial and temporal disorder, and analyze how their predictions deviate from those of purely neutral theories.

Stochastic Spatial Models in Ecology: A Statistical Physics Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pigolotti, Simone; Cencini, Massimo; Molina, Daniel; Muñoz, Miguel A.

2017-11-01

Ecosystems display a complex spatial organization. Ecologists have long tried to characterize them by looking at how different measures of biodiversity change across spatial scales. Ecological neutral theory has provided simple predictions accounting for general empirical patterns in communities of competing species. However, while neutral theory in well-mixed ecosystems is mathematically well understood, spatial models still present several open problems, limiting the quantitative understanding of spatial biodiversity. In this review, we discuss the state of the art in spatial neutral theory. We emphasize the connection between spatial ecological models and the physics of non-equilibrium phase transitions and how concepts developed in statistical physics translate in population dynamics, and vice versa. We focus on non-trivial scaling laws arising at the critical dimension D = 2 of spatial neutral models, and their relevance for biological populations inhabiting two-dimensional environments. We conclude by discussing models incorporating non-neutral effects in the form of spatial and temporal disorder, and analyze how their predictions deviate from those of purely neutral theories.

An application of synthetic seismicity in earthquake statistics - The Middle America Trench

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ward, Steven N.

1992-01-01

The way in which seismicity calculations which are based on the concept of fault segmentation incorporate the physics of faulting through static dislocation theory can improve earthquake recurrence statistics and hone the probabilities of hazard is shown. For the Middle America Trench, the spread parameters of the best-fitting lognormal or Weibull distributions (about 0.75) are much larger than the 0.21 intrinsic spread proposed in the Nishenko Buland (1987) hypothesis. Stress interaction between fault segments disrupts time or slip predictability and causes earthquake recurrence to be far more aperiodic than has been suggested.

Between disorder and order: A case study of power law

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Yong; Zhao, Youjie; Yue, Xiaoguang; Xiong, Fei; Sun, Yongke; He, Xin; Wang, Lichao

2016-08-01

Power law is an important feature of phenomena in long memory behaviors. Zipf ever found power law in the distribution of the word frequencies. In physics, the terms order and disorder are Thermodynamic or statistical physics concepts originally and a lot of research work has focused on self-organization of the disorder ingredients of simple physical systems. It is interesting what make disorder-order transition. We devise an experiment-based method about random symbolic sequences to research regular pattern between disorder and order. The experiment results reveal power law is indeed an important regularity in transition from disorder to order. About these results the preliminary study and analysis has been done to explain the reasons.

An Investigation of Adolescent Girls' Global Self-Concept, Physical Self-Concept, Identified Regulation, and Leisure-Time Physical Activity in Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beasley, Emily Kristin; Garn, Alex C.

2013-01-01

This study examined the relationships among identified regulation, physical self-concept, global self-concept, and leisure-time physical activity with a sample of middle and high school girls (N = 319) enrolled in physical education. Based on Marsh's theory of self-concept, it was hypothesized that a) physical self-concept would mediate the…

Evidence of nonextensive statistical physics behavior in the watershed distribution in active tectonic areas: examples from Greece

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vallianatos, Filippos; Kouli, Maria

2013-08-01

The Digital Elevation Model (DEM) for the Crete Island with a resolution of approximately 20 meters was used in order to delineate watersheds by computing the flow direction and using it in the Watershed function. The Watershed function uses a raster of flow direction to determine contributing area. The Geographic Information Systems routine procedure was applied and the watersheds as well as the streams network (using a threshold of 2000 cells, i.e. the minimum number of cells that constitute a stream) were extracted from the hydrologically corrected (free of sinks) DEM. A number of a few thousand watersheds were delineated, and their areal extent was calculated. From these watersheds a number of 300 was finally selected for further analysis as the watersheds of extremely small area were excluded in order to avoid possible artifacts. Our analysis approach is based on the basic principles of Complexity theory and Tsallis Entropy introduces in the frame of non-extensive statistical physics. This concept has been successfully used for the analysis of a variety of complex dynamic systems including natural hazards, where fractality and long-range interactions are important. The analysis indicates that the statistical distribution of watersheds can be successfully described with the theoretical estimations of non-extensive statistical physics implying the complexity that characterizes the occurrences of them.

Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Indonesian Pre-Service Teachers' Conceptions of Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Idris, Khairiani; Yang, Kai-Lin

2017-01-01

This article reports the results of a mixed-methods approach to develop and validate an instrument to measure Indonesian pre-service teachers' conceptions of statistics. First, a phenomenographic study involving a sample of 44 participants uncovered six categories of conceptions of statistics. Second, an instrument of conceptions of statistics was…

BOOK REVIEW: Critical Phenomena in Natural Sciences: Chaos, Fractals, Selforganization and Disorder: Concepts and Tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franz, S.

2004-10-01

Since the discovery of the renormalization group theory in statistical physics, the realm of applications of the concepts of scale invariance and criticality has pervaded several fields of natural and social sciences. This is the leitmotiv of Didier Sornette's book, who in Critical Phenomena in Natural Sciences reviews three decades of developments and applications of the concepts of criticality, scale invariance and power law behaviour from statistical physics, to earthquake prediction, ruptures, plate tectonics, modelling biological and economic systems and so on. This strongly interdisciplinary book addresses students and researchers in disciplines where concepts of criticality and scale invariance are appropriate: mainly geology from which most of the examples are taken, but also engineering, biology, medicine, economics, etc. A good preparation in quantitative science is assumed but the presentation of statistical physics principles, tools and models is self-contained, so that little background in this field is needed. The book is written in a simple informal style encouraging intuitive comprehension rather than stressing formal derivations. Together with the discussion of the main conceptual results of the discipline, great effort is devoted to providing applied scientists with the tools of data analysis and modelling necessary to analyse, understand, make predictions and simulate systems undergoing complex collective behaviour. The book starts from a purely descriptive approach, explaining basic probabilistic and geometrical tools to characterize power law behaviour and scale invariant sets. Probability theory is introduced by a detailed discussion of interpretative issues warning the reader on the use and misuse of probabilistic concepts when the emphasis is on prediction of low probability rare---and often catastrophic---events. Then, concepts that have proved useful in risk evaluation, extreme value statistics, large limit theorems for sums of independent variables with power law distribution, random walks, fractals and multifractal formalisms, etc, are discussed in an immediate and direct way so as to provide ready-to-use tools for analysing and representing power law behaviour in natural phenomena. The exposition then continues discussing the main developments, allowing the reader to understand theoretically and model strongly correlated behaviour. After a concise, but useful, introduction to the fundamentals of statistical physics a discussion of equilibrium critical phenomena and the renormalization group is proposed to the reader. With the centrality of the problem of non-equilibrium behaviour in mind, a discussion is devoted to tentative applications of the concept of temperature in the off-equilibrium context. Particular emphasis is given to the development of long range correlation and of precursors of phase transitions, and their role in the prediction of catastrophic events. Then, basic models such as percolation and rupture models are described. A central position in the book is occupied by a chapter on mechanisms for power laws and a subsequent one on self-organized criticality as a general paradigm for critical behaviour as proposed by P Bak and collaborators. The book concludes with a chapter on the prediction of fields generated by a random distribution of sources. The book maintains the promise of the title of providing concepts and tools to tackle criticality and self-organization. The second edition, while retaining the structure of the first edition, considerably extends the scope with new examples and applications of a research field which is constantly growing. Any scientific book has to solve the dichotomy between the depth of discussion, the pedagogical character of exposition and the quantity of material discussed. In general the book, which evolved from a graduate student course, favours these last two aspects at the expense of the first one. This makes the book very readable and means that, while complicated concepts are always explained by means of simple examples, important results are often mentioned but not derived or discussed in depth. Most of the time this style of exposition manages to successfully convey the essential information, other times unfortunately, e.g. in the case of the chapter on disordered systems, the presentation appears rather superficial. This is the price we pay for a book covering an impressively vast subject area and the huge bibliography (more than 1000 references) furnishes a necessary guide for acquiring the working knowledge of the subject covered. I would recommend it to teachers planning introductory courses on the field of complex systems and to researchers wanting to learn about an area of great contemporary interest.

Nonequilibrium thermodynamics and information theory: basic concepts and relaxing dynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Altaner, Bernhard

2017-11-01

Thermodynamics is based on the notions of energy and entropy. While energy is the elementary quantity governing physical dynamics, entropy is the fundamental concept in information theory. In this work, starting from first principles, we give a detailed didactic account on the relations between energy and entropy and thus physics and information theory. We show that thermodynamic process inequalities, like the second law, are equivalent to the requirement that an effective description for physical dynamics is strongly relaxing. From the perspective of information theory, strongly relaxing dynamics govern the irreversible convergence of a statistical ensemble towards the maximally non-commital probability distribution that is compatible with thermodynamic equilibrium parameters. In particular, Markov processes that converge to a thermodynamic equilibrium state are strongly relaxing. Our framework generalizes previous results to arbitrary open and driven systems, yielding novel thermodynamic bounds for idealized and real processes. , which features invited work from the best early-career researchers working within the scope of J. Phys. A. This project is part of the Journal of Physics series’ 50th anniversary celebrations in 2017. Bernhard Altaner was selected by the Editorial Board of J. Phys. A as an Emerging Talent.

Transnational Quantum: Quantum Physics in India through the Lens of Satyendranath Bose

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Banerjee, Somaditya

2016-08-01

This paper traces the social and cultural dimensions of quantum physics in colonial India where Satyendranath Bose worked. By focusing on Bose's approach towards the quantum and his collaboration with Albert Einstein, I argue that his physics displayed both the localities of doing science in early twentieth century India as well as a cosmopolitan dimension. He transformed the fundamental new concept of the light quantum developed by Einstein in 1905 within the social and political context of colonial India. This cross-pollination of the local with the global is termed here as the locally rooted cosmopolitan nature of Bose's science. The production of new knowledge through quantum statistics by Bose show the co-constructed nature of physics and the transnational nature of the quantum.

Reasoning, Attitudes, and Learning: What matters in Introductory Physics?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bateman, Melissa; Pyper, Brian

2009-05-01

Recent research has been revealing a connection between epistemological beliefs, reasoning ability and conceptual understanding. Our project has been taking data collected from the Fall `08 and Winter `09 semesters to supplement existing data in strengthening the statistical value of our sample size. We administered four tests to selected introductory physics courses: the Epistemological Beliefs Assessment for Physical Science, the Lawson Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning, The Force Concept Inventory, and the Conceptual Survey in Electricity and Magnetism. With these data we have been comparing test results to demographics to answer questions such as: Does gender affect how we learn physics? Does past physics experience affect how we learn physics? Does past math experience affect how we learn physics? And how do math background successes compare to physics background successes? As we answer these questions, we will be better prepared in the Physics classroom and better identify the struggles of our students and solutions to help them better succeed.

Walking Clinic in ambulatory surgery--A patient based concept: A Portuguese pioneer project.

PubMed

Vinagreiro, M; Valverde, J N; Alves, D; Costa, M; Gouveia, P; Guerreiro, E

2015-06-01

Walking Clinic is an innovative, efficient and easily reproducible concept adapted to ambulatory surgery. It consists of a preoperative single day work-up, with a surgeon, an anesthetist and a nurse. The aim of this study was to evaluate patient satisfaction and its determinants. A survey was applied to 171 patients (101 of the Walking Clinic group and 70 not engaged in this new concept). Patient satisfaction was assessed evaluating five major questionnaire items: secretariat (quality of the information and support given), physical space (overall comfort and cleanliness), nurses and medical staff (willingness and expertise), and patients (waiting time until pre-operative consults and exams, waiting time until being scheduled for surgery, surgery day waiting time and postoperative pain control). Furthermore, overall assessment of the received treatment, and probability of patient recommending or returning to our ambulatory unit were also analyzed. Walking Clinic group had overall better results in the five major questionnaire items assessed, with statistical significance, except for the physical space. It also showed better results regarding the sub-items postoperative pain control, waiting time until being scheduled for surgery and surgery day waiting time. The results confirm better patient satisfaction with this new concept. The Walking Clinic concept complements all the tenets of ambulatory surgery, in a more efficient manner. Copyright © 2015 IJS Publishing Group Limited. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Statistical Physics Approaches to RNA Editing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bundschuh, Ralf

2012-02-01

The central dogma of molecular Biology states that DNA is transcribed base by base into RNA which is in turn translated into proteins. However, some organisms edit their RNA before translation by inserting, deleting, or substituting individual or short stretches of bases. In many instances the mechanisms by which an organism recognizes the positions at which to edit or by which it performs the actual editing are unknown. One model system that stands out by its very high rate of on average one out of 25 bases being edited are the Myxomycetes, a class of slime molds. In this talk we will show how the computational methods and concepts from statistical Physics can be used to analyze DNA and protein sequence data to predict editing sites in these slime molds and to guide experiments that identified previously unknown types of editing as well as the complete set of editing events in the slime mold Physarum polycephalum.

Integrating Condensed Matter Physics into a Liberal Arts Physics Curriculum

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Collett, Jeffrey

2008-03-01

The emergence of nanoscale science into the popular consciousness presents an opportunity to attract and retain future condensed matter scientists. We inject nanoscale physics into recruiting activities and into the introductory and the core portions of the curriculum. Laboratory involvement and research opportunity play important roles in maintaining student engagement. We use inexpensive scanning tunneling (STM) and atomic force (AFM) microscopes to introduce students to nanoscale structure early in their college careers. Although the physics of tip-surface interactions is sophisticated, the resulting images can be interpreted intuitively. We use the STM in introductory modern physics to explore quantum tunneling and the properties of electrons at surfaces. An interdisciplinary course in nanoscience and nanotechnology course team-taught with chemists looks at nanoscale phenomena in physics, chemistry, and biology. Core quantum and statistical physics courses look at effects of quantum mechanics and quantum statistics in degenerate systems. An upper level solid-state physics course takes up traditional condensed matter topics from a structural perspective by beginning with a study of both elastic and inelastic scattering of x-rays from crystalline solids and liquid crystals. Students encounter reciprocal space concepts through the analysis of laboratory scattering data and by the development of the scattering theory. The course then examines the importance of scattering processes in band structure and in electrical and thermal conduction. A segment of the course is devoted to surface physics and nanostructures where we explore the effects of restricting particles to two-dimensional surfaces, one-dimensional wires, and zero-dimensional quantum dots.

Exploring the Self through Songwriting: An Analysis of Songs Composed by People with Acquired Neurodisability in an Inpatient Rehabilitation Program.

PubMed

Baker, Felicity A; Tamplin, Jeanette; MacDonald, Raymond A R; Ponsford, Jennie; Roddy, Chantal; Lee, Claire; Rickard, Nikki

2017-03-01

Neurological trauma is associated with significant damage to people's pre-injury self-concept. Therapeutic songwriting has been linked with changes in self-concept and improved psychological well-being. This study analyzed the lyrics of songs composed by inpatients with neurological injuries who participated in a targeted songwriting program. The aim of this study was to understand which of the subdomains of the self-concept were the most frequently expressed in songs. An independent, deductive content analysis of 36 songs composed by 12 adults with spinal cord injury or brain injury (11 males, mean age 41 years +/- 13) were undertaken by authors 1 and 2. Deductive analysis indicated that when writing about the past self, people created songs that reflected a strong focus on family and descriptions of their personality. In contrast, there is a clear preoccupation with the physical self, on the personal self, and a tendency for spiritual and moral reflections to emerge during the active phase of rehabilitation (song about the present self). Statistical analyses confirmed a significant self-concept subdomain by song interaction, F(10, 110) = 5.98, p < .001, ηp2 = .35), which was primarily due to an increased focus on physical self-concept and a reduced focus on family self-concept in the present song, more than in either past or future songs. The analysis process confirmed that songwriting is a vehicle that allows for exploration of self-concept in individuals with neurological impairments. Songwriting may serve as a therapeutic tool to target the most prevalent areas of self-concept challenges for clients undergoing inpatient neurological rehabilitation programs. © the American Music Therapy Association 2017. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com

Entropy, a Unifying Concept: from Physics to Cognitive Psychology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsallis, Constantino; Tsallis, Alexandra C.

Together with classical, relativistic and quantum mechanics, as well as Maxwell electromagnetism, Boltzmann-Gibbs (BG) statistical mechanics constitutes one of the main theories of contemporary physics. This theory primarily concerns inanimate matter, and at its generic foundation we find nonlinear dynamical systems satisfying the ergodic hypothesis. This hypothesis is typically guaranteed for systems whose maximal Lyapunov exponent is positive. What happens when this crucial quantity is zero instead? We suggest here that, in what concerns thermostatistical properties, we typically enter what in some sense may be considered as a new world — the world of living systems — . The need emerges, at least for many systems, for generalizing the basis of BG statistical mechanics, namely the Boltzmann-Gibbs-von Neumann-Shannon en-tropic functional form, which connects the oscopic, thermodynamic quantity, with the occurrence probabilities of microscopic configurations. This unifying approach is briefly reviewed here, and its widespread applications — from physics to cognitive psychology — are overviewed. Special attention is dedicated to the learning/memorizing process in humans and computers. The present observations might be related to the gestalt theory of visual perceptions and the actor-network theory.

Introductory physics going soft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Langbeheim, Elon; Livne, Shelly; Safran, Samuel A.; Yerushalmi, Edit

2012-01-01

We describe an elective course on soft matter at the level of introductory physics. Soft matter physics serves as a context that motivates the presentation of basic ideas in statistical thermodynamics and their applications. It also is an example of a contemporary field that is interdisciplinary and touches on chemistry, biology, and physics. We outline a curriculum that uses the lattice gas model as a quantitative and visual tool, initially to introduce entropy, and later to facilitate the calculation of interactions. We demonstrate how free energy minimization can be used to teach students to understand the properties of soft matter systems such as the phases of fluid mixtures, wetting of interfaces, self-assembly of surfactants, and polymers. We discuss several suggested activities in the form of inquiry projects which allow students to apply the concepts they have learned to experimental systems.

A Reciprocal Effects Model of Children's Body Fat Self-Concept: Relations With Physical Self-Concept and Physical Activity.

PubMed

Garn, Alex C; Morin, Alexandre J S; Martin, Jeffrey; Centeio, Erin; Shen, Bo; Kulik, Noel; Somers, Cheryl; McCaughtry, Nate

2016-06-01

This study investigated a reciprocal effects model (REM) of children's body fat self-concept and physical self-concept, and objectively measured school physical activity at different intensities. Grade four students (N = 376; M age = 9.07, SD = .61; 55% boys) from the midwest region of the United States completed measures of physical self-concept and body fat self-concept, and wore accelerometers for three consecutive school days at the beginning and end of one school year. Findings from structural equation modeling analyses did not support reciprocal effects. However, children's body fat self-concept predicted future physical self-concept and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Multigroup analyses explored the moderating role of weight status, sex, ethnicity, and sex*ethnicity within the REM. Findings supported invariance, suggesting that the observed relations were generalizable for these children across demographic groups. Links between body fat self-concept and future physical self-concept and MVPA highlight self-enhancing effects that can promote children's health and well-being.

Microbial composition analyses by 16S rRNA sequencing: A proof of concept approach to provenance determination of archaeological ochre.

PubMed

Lenehan, Claire E; Tobe, Shanan S; Smith, Renee J; Popelka-Filcoff, Rachel S

2017-01-01

Many archaeological science studies use the concept of "provenance", where the origins of cultural material can be determined through physical or chemical properties that relate back to the origins of the material. Recent studies using DNA profiling of bacteria have been used for the forensic determination of soils, towards determination of geographic origin. This manuscript presents a novel approach to the provenance of archaeological minerals and related materials through the use of 16S rRNA sequencing analysis of microbial DNA. Through the microbial DNA characterization from ochre and multivariate statistics, we have demonstrated the clear discrimination between four distinct Australian cultural ochre sites.

A Self-Critique of Self-Organized Criticality in Astrophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aschwanden, Markus J.

2015-08-01

The concept of ``self-organized criticality'' (SOC) was originally proposed as an explanation of 1/f-noise by Bak, Tang, and Wiesenfeld (1987), but turned out to have a far broader significance for scale-free nonlinear energy dissipation processes occurring in the entire universe. Over the last 30 years, an inspiring cross-fertilization from complexity theory to solar and astrophysics took place, where the SOC concept was initially applied to solar flares, stellar flares, and magnetospheric substorms, and later extended to the radiation belt, the heliosphere, lunar craters, the asteroid belt, the Saturn ring, pulsar glitches, soft X-ray repeaters, blazars, black-hole objects, cosmic rays, and boson clouds. The application of SOC concepts has been performed by numerical cellular automaton simulations, by analytical calculations of statistical (powerlaw-like) distributions based on physical scaling laws, and by observational tests of theoretically predicted size distributions and waiting time distributions. Attempts have been undertaken to import physical models into numerical SOC toy models. The novel applications stimulated also vigorous debates about the discrimination between SOC-related and non-SOC processes, such as phase transitions, turbulence, random-walk diffusion, percolation, branching processes, network theory, chaos theory, fractality, multi-scale, and other complexity phenomena. We review SOC models applied to astrophysical observations, attempt to describe what physics can be captured by SOC models, and offer a critique of weaknesses and strengths in existing SOC models.

A Self-Critique of Self-Organized Criticality in Astrophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aschwanden, Markus J.

The concept of ``self-organized criticality'' (SOC) was originally proposed as an explanation of 1/f-noise by Bak, Tang, and Wiesenfeld (1987), but turned out to have a far broader significance for scale-free nonlinear energy dissipation processes occurring in the entire universe. Over the last 30 years, an inspiring cross-fertilization from complexity theory to solar and astrophysics took place, where the SOC concept was initially applied to solar flares, stellar flares, and magnetospheric substorms, and later extended to the radiation belt, the heliosphere, lunar craters, the asteroid belt, the Saturn ring, pulsar glitches, soft X-ray repeaters, blazars, black-hole objects, cosmic rays, and boson clouds. The application of SOC concepts has been performed by numerical cellular automaton simulations, by analytical calculations of statistical (powerlaw-like) distributions based on physical scaling laws, and by observational tests of theoretically predicted size distributions and waiting time distributions. Attempts have been undertaken to import physical models into numerical SOC toy models. The novel applications stimulated also vigorous debates about the discrimination between SOC-related and non-SOC processes, such as phase transitions, turbulence, random-walk diffusion, percolation, branching processes, network theory, chaos theory, fractality, multi-scale, and other complexity phenomena. We review SOC models applied to astrophysical observations, attempt to describe what physics can be captured by SOC models, and offer a critique of weaknesses and strengths in existing SOC models.

A Holoinformational Model of the Physical Observer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

di Biase, Francisco

2013-09-01

The author proposes a holoinformational view of the observer based, on the holonomic theory of brain/mind function and quantum brain dynamics developed by Karl Pribram, Sir John Eccles, R.L. Amoroso, Hameroff, Jibu and Yasue, and in the quantumholographic and holomovement theory of David Bohm. This conceptual framework is integrated with nonlocal information properties of the Quantum Field Theory of Umesawa, with the concept of negentropy, order, and organization developed by Shannon, Wiener, Szilard and Brillouin, and to the theories of self-organization and complexity of Prigogine, Atlan, Jantsch and Kauffman. Wheeler's "it from bit" concept of a participatory universe, and the developments of the physics of information made by Zureck and others with the concepts of statistical entropy and algorithmic entropy, related to the number of bits being processed in the mind of the observer are also considered. This new synthesis gives a self-organizing quantum nonlocal informational basis for a new model of awareness in a participatory universe. In this synthesis, awareness is conceived as meaningful quantum nonlocal information interconnecting the brain and the cosmos, by a holoinformational unified field (integrating nonlocal holistic (quantum) and local (Newtonian). We propose that the cosmology of the physical observer is this unified nonlocal quantum-holographic cosmos manifesting itself through awareness, interconnected in a participatory holistic and indivisible way the human mind-brain to all levels of the self-organizing holographic anthropic multiverse.

Facilitating Student Experimentation with Statistical Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Patricia K.

2002-01-01

Offers a Web page with seven Java applets allowing students to experiment with key concepts in an introductory statistics course. Indicates the applets can be used in three ways: to place links to the applets, to create in-class demonstrations of statistical concepts, and to lead students through experiments and discover statistical relationships.…

Relationship of perceived physical self-concept and physical activity level and sex among young children.

PubMed

Planinsec, Jurij; Fosnaric, Samo

2005-04-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between level of physical activity and perceived physical self-concept of young children. The sample comprised 364 children from Slovenia, aged 6.4 yr. (SD = 0.3), of which 179 were boys and 185 girls. Parents and teachers reported children's physical activity using the Harro questionnaire. We divided children into Low and High Activity groups based on their mean scores. The children completed Stein's Children's Physical Self-concept Scale, which assesses Global Physical Self-concept and the subdomains of Physical Performance, Physical Appearance, and Weight Control behavior. Two-way analysis of variance with both sex and physical activity levels, and their interaction were used to examine differences in Physical Self-concept. There were significant differences between the Low and High Activity groups on scores for global Physical Self-concept Scale, Physical Performance, and Weight Control, on which children from the High Activity group scored higher; whereas on the subscale Physical Appearance, there were no significant differences. There were no significant sex differences on the Physical Self-concept Scale. The most important conclusion of this research indicates the theoretical assumptions that Physical Activity and perceived Physical Self-concept are related. Direction of the relationship remains unclarified.

Exploring physics concepts among novice teachers through CMAP tools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suprapto, N.; Suliyanah; Prahani, B. K.; Jauhariyah, M. N. R.; Admoko, S.

2018-03-01

Concept maps are graphical tools for organising, elaborating and representing knowledge. Through Cmap tools software, it can be explored the understanding and the hierarchical structuring of physics concepts among novice teachers. The software helps physics teachers indicated a physics context, focus questions, parking lots, cross-links, branching, hierarchy, and propositions. By using an exploratory quantitative study, a total 13-concept maps with different physics topics created by novice physics teachers were analysed. The main differences of scoring between lecturer and peer-teachers’ scoring were also illustrated. The study offered some implications, especially for physics educators to determine the hierarchical structure of the physics concepts, to construct a physics focus question, and to see how a concept in one domain of knowledge represented on the map is related to a concept in another domain shown on the map.

Applications of statistical physics to the social and economic sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petersen, Alexander M.

2011-12-01

This thesis applies statistical physics concepts and methods to quantitatively analyze socioeconomic systems. For each system we combine theoretical models and empirical data analysis in order to better understand the real-world system in relation to the complex interactions between the underlying human agents. This thesis is separated into three parts: (i) response dynamics in financial markets, (ii) dynamics of career trajectories, and (iii) a stochastic opinion model with quenched disorder. In Part I we quantify the response of U.S. markets to financial shocks, which perturb markets and trigger "herding behavior" among traders. We use concepts from earthquake physics to quantify the decay of volatility shocks after the "main shock." We also find, surprisingly, that we can make quantitative statements even before the main shock. In order to analyze market behavior before as well as after "anticipated news" we use Federal Reserve interest-rate announcements, which are regular events that are also scheduled in advance. In Part II we analyze the statistical physics of career longevity. We construct a stochastic model for career progress which has two main ingredients: (a) random forward progress in the career and (b) random termination of the career. We incorporate the rich-get-richer (Matthew) effect into ingredient (a), meaning that it is easier to move forward in the career the farther along one is in the career. We verify the model predictions analyzing data on 400,000 scientific careers and 20,000 professional sports careers. Our model highlights the importance of early career development, showing that many careers are stunted by the relative disadvantage associated with inexperience. In Part III we analyze a stochastic two-state spin model which represents a system of voters embedded on a network. We investigate the role in consensus formation of "zealots", which are agents with time-independent opinion. Our main result is the unexpected finding that it is the number and not the density of zealots which deter- mines the steady-state opinion polarization. We compare our findings with results for United States Presidential elections.

The Interplay between Spoken Language and Informal Definitions of Statistical Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lavy, Ilana; Mashiach-Eizenberg, Michal

2009-01-01

Various terms are used to describe mathematical concepts, in general, and statistical concepts, in particular. Regarding statistical concepts in the Hebrew language, some of these terms have the same meaning both in their everyday use and in mathematics, such as Mode; some of them have a different meaning, such as Expected value and Life…

Physical activity and physical self-concept in youth: systematic review and meta-analysis.

PubMed

Babic, Mark J; Morgan, Philip J; Plotnikoff, Ronald C; Lonsdale, Chris; White, Rhiannon L; Lubans, David R

2014-11-01

Evidence suggests that physical self-concept is associated with physical activity in children and adolescents, but no systematic review of this literature has been conducted. The primary aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to determine the strength of associations between physical activity and physical self-concept (general and sub-domains) in children and adolescents. The secondary aim was to examine potential moderators of the association between physical activity and physical self-concept. A systematic search of six electronic databases (MEDLINE, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, ERIC, Web of Science and Scopus) with no date restrictions was conducted. Random effects meta-analyses with correction for measurement were employed. The associations between physical activity and general physical self-concept and sub-domains were explored. A risk of bias assessment was conducted by two reviewers. The search identified 64 studies to be included in the meta-analysis. Thirty-three studies addressed multiple outcomes of general physical self-concept: 28 studies examined general physical self-concept, 59 examined perceived competence, 25 examined perceived fitness, and 55 examined perceived appearance. Perceived competence was most strongly associated with physical activity (r = 0.30, 95% CI 0.24-0.35, p < 0.001), followed by perceived fitness (r = 0.26, 95% CI 0.20-0.32, p < 0.001), general physical self-concept (r = 0.25, 95% CI 0.16-0.34, p < 0.001) and perceived physical appearance (r = 0.12, 95% CI 0.08-0.16, p < 0.001). Sex was a significant moderator for general physical self-concept (p < 0.05), and age was a significant moderator for perceived appearance (p ≤ 0.01) and perceived competence (p < 0.05). No significant moderators were found for perceived fitness. Overall, a significant association has been consistently demonstrated between physical activity and physical self-concept and its various sub-domains in children and adolescents. Age and sex are key moderators of the association between physical activity and physical self-concept.

Statistical physics of vaccination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhen; Bauch, Chris T.; Bhattacharyya, Samit; d'Onofrio, Alberto; Manfredi, Piero; Perc, Matjaž; Perra, Nicola; Salathé, Marcel; Zhao, Dawei

2016-12-01

Historically, infectious diseases caused considerable damage to human societies, and they continue to do so today. To help reduce their impact, mathematical models of disease transmission have been studied to help understand disease dynamics and inform prevention strategies. Vaccination-one of the most important preventive measures of modern times-is of great interest both theoretically and empirically. And in contrast to traditional approaches, recent research increasingly explores the pivotal implications of individual behavior and heterogeneous contact patterns in populations. Our report reviews the developmental arc of theoretical epidemiology with emphasis on vaccination, as it led from classical models assuming homogeneously mixing (mean-field) populations and ignoring human behavior, to recent models that account for behavioral feedback and/or population spatial/social structure. Many of the methods used originated in statistical physics, such as lattice and network models, and their associated analytical frameworks. Similarly, the feedback loop between vaccinating behavior and disease propagation forms a coupled nonlinear system with analogs in physics. We also review the new paradigm of digital epidemiology, wherein sources of digital data such as online social media are mined for high-resolution information on epidemiologically relevant individual behavior. Armed with the tools and concepts of statistical physics, and further assisted by new sources of digital data, models that capture nonlinear interactions between behavior and disease dynamics offer a novel way of modeling real-world phenomena, and can help improve health outcomes. We conclude the review by discussing open problems in the field and promising directions for future research.

A pedestrian approach to the measurement problem in quantum mechanics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Boughn, Stephen; Reginatto, Marcel

2013-09-01

The quantum theory of measurement has been a matter of debate for over eighty years. Most of the discussion has focused on theoretical issues with the consequence that other aspects (such as the operational prescriptions that are an integral part of experimental physics) have been largely ignored. This has undoubtedly exacerbated attempts to find a solution to the "measurement problem". How the measurement problem is defined depends to some extent on how the theoretical concepts introduced by the theory are interpreted. In this paper, we fully embrace the minimalist statistical (ensemble) interpretation of quantum mechanics espoused by Einstein, Ballentine, and others. According to this interpretation, the quantum state description applies only to a statistical ensemble of similarly prepared systems rather than representing an individual system. Thus, the statistical interpretation obviates the need to entertain reduction of the state vector, one of the primary dilemmas of the measurement problem. The other major aspect of the measurement problem, the necessity of describing measurements in terms of classical concepts that lay outside of quantum theory, remains. A consistent formalism for interacting quantum and classical systems, like the one based on ensembles on configuration space that we refer to in this paper, might seem to eliminate this facet of the measurement problem; however, we argue that the ultimate interface with experiments is described by operational prescriptions and not in terms of the concepts of classical theory. There is no doubt that attempts to address the measurement problem have yielded important advances in fundamental physics; however, it is also very clear that the measurement problem is still far from being resolved. The pedestrian approach presented here suggests that this state of affairs is in part the result of searching for a theoretical/mathematical solution to what is fundamentally an experimental/observational question. It suggests also that the measurement problem is, in some sense, ill-posed and might never be resolved. This point of view is tenable so long as one is willing to view physical theories as providing models of nature rather than complete descriptions of reality. Among other things, these considerations lead us to suggest that the Copenhagen interpretation's insistence on the classicality of the measurement apparatus should be replaced by the requirement that a measurement, which is specified operationally, should simply be of sufficient precision.

Development of a Hands-On Survey Course in the Physics of Living Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Matthews, Megan; Goldman, Daniel I.

Due to the widespread availability and technological capabilities of modern smartphones, many biophysical systems can be investigated using easily accessible, low-cost, and/or ``homemade'' equipment. Our survey course is structured to provide students with an overview of research in the physics of living systems, emphasizing the interplay between measurement, mechanism, and modeling required to understand principles at the intersection of physics and biology. The course proceeds through seven modules each consisting of one week of lectures and one week of hands-on experiments, called ``microlabs''. Using smartphones, Arduinos, and 3D printed materials students create their own laboratory equipment, including a 150X van Leeuwenhoek microscope, a shaking incubator, and an oscilloscope, and then use them to study biological systems ranging in length scales from nanometers to meters. These systems include population dynamics of rotifer/algae cultures, experimental evolution of multicellularity in budding yeast, and the bio- & neuromechanics involved in animal locomotion, among others. In each module, students are introduced to fundamental biological and physical concepts as well as theoretical and computational tools (nonlinear dynamics, molecular dynamics simulation, and statistical mechanics). At the end of the course, students apply these concepts and tools to the creation of their own microlab that integrates hands-on experimentation and modeling in the study of their chosen biophysical system.

The efficacy of World Wide Web-mediated microcomputer-based laboratory activities in the high school physics classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slykhuis, David A.

This research project examined the efficacy of an online microcomputer-based laboratory based (MBL) physics unit. One hundred and fifty physics students from five high schools in North Carolina were divided into online and classroom groups. The classroom group completed the MBL unit in small groups with assistance from their teachers. The online groups completed the MBL unit in small groups using a website designed for this project for guidance. Pre- and post-unit content specific tests and surveys were given. Statistical analysis of the content tests showed significant development of conceptual understanding by the online group over the course of the unit. There was not a significant difference between the classroom and online group with relation to the amount of conceptual understanding developed. Correlations with post-test achievement showed that pre-test scores and math background were the most significant correlates with success. Computer related variables, such as computer comfort and online access, were only mildly correlated with the online group. Students' views about the nature of physics were not well developed prior to the unit and did not significantly change over the course of the unit. Examination of the students' physics conceptions after instruction revealed common alternative conceptions such as confusing position and velocity variables and incorrect interpretations of graphical features such as slope.

Improving Students' Revision of Physics Concepts through ICT-Based Co-construction and Prescriptive Tutoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Soong, Benson; Mercer, Neil

2011-05-01

In this paper, we describe and discuss an information and communication technology (ICT)-based intervention designed to improve secondary school students' revision (in contrast to learning) of physics concepts. We show that students' engagement in joint activities via our ICT-based intervention can provide them (and their teachers) with insights into their knowledge base and thought processes, thereby aiding a remedial process we call prescriptive tutoring. Utilising a design-based research methodology, our intervention is currently being implemented and evaluated in a public secondary school in Singapore. Statistical analysis of pre- and post-intervention test scores from the first iteration of our design experiment show that students in the experimental group significantly out-performed students in both the control and alternate intervention groups. In addition, qualitative data obtained from the students from a focus group session, individual interviews and responses to our survey questions reveal that they became more comfortable with the intervention only after they appreciated how the intervention was designed to help them.

Entropy and convexity for nonlinear partial differential equations

PubMed Central

Ball, John M.; Chen, Gui-Qiang G.

2013-01-01

Partial differential equations are ubiquitous in almost all applications of mathematics, where they provide a natural mathematical description of many phenomena involving change in physical, chemical, biological and social processes. The concept of entropy originated in thermodynamics and statistical physics during the nineteenth century to describe the heat exchanges that occur in the thermal processes in a thermodynamic system, while the original notion of convexity is for sets and functions in mathematics. Since then, entropy and convexity have become two of the most important concepts in mathematics. In particular, nonlinear methods via entropy and convexity have been playing an increasingly important role in the analysis of nonlinear partial differential equations in recent decades. This opening article of the Theme Issue is intended to provide an introduction to entropy, convexity and related nonlinear methods for the analysis of nonlinear partial differential equations. We also provide a brief discussion about the content and contributions of the papers that make up this Theme Issue. PMID:24249768

Entropy and convexity for nonlinear partial differential equations.

PubMed

Ball, John M; Chen, Gui-Qiang G

2013-12-28

Partial differential equations are ubiquitous in almost all applications of mathematics, where they provide a natural mathematical description of many phenomena involving change in physical, chemical, biological and social processes. The concept of entropy originated in thermodynamics and statistical physics during the nineteenth century to describe the heat exchanges that occur in the thermal processes in a thermodynamic system, while the original notion of convexity is for sets and functions in mathematics. Since then, entropy and convexity have become two of the most important concepts in mathematics. In particular, nonlinear methods via entropy and convexity have been playing an increasingly important role in the analysis of nonlinear partial differential equations in recent decades. This opening article of the Theme Issue is intended to provide an introduction to entropy, convexity and related nonlinear methods for the analysis of nonlinear partial differential equations. We also provide a brief discussion about the content and contributions of the papers that make up this Theme Issue.

[Different explanatory models for addictive behavior in Turkish and German youths in Germany: significance for prevention and treatment].

PubMed

Penka, S; Krieg, S; Hunner, Ch; Heinz, A

2003-07-01

Due to cultural and social barriers, immigrants seldom frequent centers for information, counseling, and treatment of addictive disorders. We examine cultural differences in the explanatory models of addictive behavior among Turkish and German youths in Germany with statistical devices that map the concepts associated with problems of addiction. Relevant differences were found between the disorder concepts of Turkish and German youth. German but not Turkish youths classified eating disorders among severe addictive disorders and associated them with embarrassment and shame. Concerning substance abuse, German but not Turkish youths clearly differentiated between illegal drug abuse and the abuse of alcohol and nicotine. Nearly half of all Turkish youths rejected central medical concepts such as "physical dependence" or "reduced control of substance intake" as completely inadequate to characterize problems of addictive behavior. Preventive information programs must consider these differences and use concepts that are accepted and clearly associated with addictive behavior by immigrant populations.

Soil Erosion as a stochastic process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Casper, Markus C.

2015-04-01

The main tools to provide estimations concerning risk and amount of erosion are different types of soil erosion models: on the one hand, there are empirically based model concepts on the other hand there are more physically based or process based models. However, both types of models have substantial weak points. All empirical model concepts are only capable of providing rough estimates over larger temporal and spatial scales, they do not account for many driving factors that are in the scope of scenario related analysis. In addition, the physically based models contain important empirical parts and hence, the demand for universality and transferability is not given. As a common feature, we find, that all models rely on parameters and input variables, which are to certain, extend spatially and temporally averaged. A central question is whether the apparent heterogeneity of soil properties or the random nature of driving forces needs to be better considered in our modelling concepts. Traditionally, researchers have attempted to remove spatial and temporal variability through homogenization. However, homogenization has been achieved through physical manipulation of the system, or by statistical averaging procedures. The price for obtaining this homogenized (average) model concepts of soils and soil related processes has often been a failure to recognize the profound importance of heterogeneity in many of the properties and processes that we study. Especially soil infiltrability and the resistance (also called "critical shear stress" or "critical stream power") are the most important empirical factors of physically based erosion models. The erosion resistance is theoretically a substrate specific parameter, but in reality, the threshold where soil erosion begins is determined experimentally. The soil infiltrability is often calculated with empirical relationships (e.g. based on grain size distribution). Consequently, to better fit reality, this value needs to be corrected experimentally. To overcome this disadvantage of our actual models, soil erosion models are needed that are able to use stochastic directly variables and parameter distributions. There are only some minor approaches in this direction. The most advanced is the model "STOSEM" proposed by Sidorchuk in 2005. In this model, only a small part of the soil erosion processes is described, the aggregate detachment and the aggregate transport by flowing water. The concept is highly simplified, for example, many parameters are temporally invariant. Nevertheless, the main problem is that our existing measurements and experiments are not geared to provide stochastic parameters (e.g. as probability density functions); in the best case they deliver a statistical validation of the mean values. Again, we get effective parameters, spatially and temporally averaged. There is an urgent need for laboratory and field experiments on overland flow structure, raindrop effects and erosion rate, which deliver information on spatial and temporal structure of soil and surface properties and processes.

What Do Pre-Service Physics Teachers Know and Think about Concept Mapping?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Didis, Nilüfer; Özcan, Özgür; Azar, Ali

2014-01-01

In order to use concept maps in physics classes effectively, teachers' knowledge and ideas about concept mapping are as important as the physics knowledge used in mapping. For this reason, we aimed to examine pre-service physics teachers' knowledge on concept mapping, their ideas about the implementation of concept mapping in physics…

Equilibrium statistical-thermal models in high-energy physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tawfik, Abdel Nasser

2014-05-01

We review some recent highlights from the applications of statistical-thermal models to different experimental measurements and lattice QCD thermodynamics that have been made during the last decade. We start with a short review of the historical milestones on the path of constructing statistical-thermal models for heavy-ion physics. We discovered that Heinz Koppe formulated in 1948, an almost complete recipe for the statistical-thermal models. In 1950, Enrico Fermi generalized this statistical approach, in which he started with a general cross-section formula and inserted into it, the simplifying assumptions about the matrix element of the interaction process that likely reflects many features of the high-energy reactions dominated by density in the phase space of final states. In 1964, Hagedorn systematically analyzed the high-energy phenomena using all tools of statistical physics and introduced the concept of limiting temperature based on the statistical bootstrap model. It turns to be quite often that many-particle systems can be studied with the help of statistical-thermal methods. The analysis of yield multiplicities in high-energy collisions gives an overwhelming evidence for the chemical equilibrium in the final state. The strange particles might be an exception, as they are suppressed at lower beam energies. However, their relative yields fulfill statistical equilibrium, as well. We review the equilibrium statistical-thermal models for particle production, fluctuations and collective flow in heavy-ion experiments. We also review their reproduction of the lattice QCD thermodynamics at vanishing and finite chemical potential. During the last decade, five conditions have been suggested to describe the universal behavior of the chemical freeze-out parameters. The higher order moments of multiplicity have been discussed. They offer deep insights about particle production and to critical fluctuations. Therefore, we use them to describe the freeze-out parameters and suggest the location of the QCD critical endpoint. Various extensions have been proposed in order to take into consideration the possible deviations of the ideal hadron gas. We highlight various types of interactions, dissipative properties and location-dependences (spatial rapidity). Furthermore, we review three models combining hadronic with partonic phases; quasi-particle model, linear sigma model with Polyakov potentials and compressible bag model.

Analyzing force concept inventory with item response theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jing; Bao, Lei

2010-10-01

Item response theory is a popular assessment method used in education. It rests on the assumption of a probability framework that relates students' innate ability and their performance on test questions. Item response theory transforms students' raw test scores into a scaled proficiency score, which can be used to compare results obtained with different test questions. The scaled score also addresses the issues of ceiling effects and guessing, which commonly exist in quantitative assessment. We used item response theory to analyze the force concept inventory (FCI). Our results show that item response theory can be useful for analyzing physics concept surveys such as the FCI and produces results about the individual questions and student performance that are beyond the capability of classical statistics. The theory yields detailed measurement parameters regarding the difficulty, discrimination features, and probability of correct guess for each of the FCI questions.

Mutual information, neural networks and the renormalization group

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koch-Janusz, Maciej; Ringel, Zohar

2018-06-01

Physical systems differing in their microscopic details often display strikingly similar behaviour when probed at macroscopic scales. Those universal properties, largely determining their physical characteristics, are revealed by the powerful renormalization group (RG) procedure, which systematically retains `slow' degrees of freedom and integrates out the rest. However, the important degrees of freedom may be difficult to identify. Here we demonstrate a machine-learning algorithm capable of identifying the relevant degrees of freedom and executing RG steps iteratively without any prior knowledge about the system. We introduce an artificial neural network based on a model-independent, information-theoretic characterization of a real-space RG procedure, which performs this task. We apply the algorithm to classical statistical physics problems in one and two dimensions. We demonstrate RG flow and extract the Ising critical exponent. Our results demonstrate that machine-learning techniques can extract abstract physical concepts and consequently become an integral part of theory- and model-building.

The association between global self-esteem, physical self-concept and actual vs ideal body size rating in Chinese primary school children.

PubMed

Lau, P W C; Lee, A; Ransdell, L; Yu, C W; Sung, R Y T

2004-02-01

To investigate whether the discrepancy between actual and ideal body size rating is related to Chinese children's global self-esteem and global physical self-concept. A cross-sectional study of school children who completed questionnaires related to global self-esteem, global physical self-concept, and actual vs ideal body size. A total of 386 Chinese children (44% girls and 56% boys) aged 7-13 y from a primary school in Hong Kong, China. Global self-esteem and physical self-concept were measured using the physical self-descriptive questionnaire. Actual vs ideal body size discrepancy was established using the silhouette matching task. No significant relationship was found between global self-esteem and actual-ideal body size discrepancy of children. Global physical self-concept had a moderate negative correlation (r=-0.12) with the body size discrepancy score and the discrepancy score explained very limited variance (R(2)=0.015; F(1, 296)=4.51; P<0.05) in global physical self-concept. Three body size discrepancy groups (none, positive, and negative) were examined to see if there were any significant differences in global self-esteem, global physical self-concept, and specific dimensions of physical self-concept. A significant overall difference was found between groups for global physical self-concept (F=3.73, P<0.05) and the physical self-concept subscales of physical activity (F=3.25, P<0.05), body fat (F=61.26, P<0.001), and strength (F=5.26, P<0.01). Boys scored significantly higher than girls on global physical self-concept-especially in the sport competence, strength, and endurance subscales. This study revealed that the actual-ideal body size discrepancy rating of Chinese children was not predictive of global physical self-concept and global self-esteem. These findings are contrary to those reported in Western children, which may mean that culture plays a role in the formation of body attitude.

A Study on Contingency Learning in Introductory Physics Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Scaife, Thomas M.

Instructors of physics often use examples to illustrate new or complex physical concepts to students. For any particular concept, there are an infinite number of examples, thus presenting instructors with a difficult question whenever they wish to use one in their teaching: which example will most effectively illustrate the concept so that student learning is maximized? The choice is typically made by an intuitive assumption about which exact example will result in the most lucid illustration and the greatest student improvement. By questioning 583 students in four experiments, I examined a more principled approach to example selection. By controlling the manner in which physical dimensions vary, the parameter space of each concept can be divided into a discrete number of example categories. The effects of training with members of each of category was explored in two different physical contexts: projectile motion and torque. In the first context, students were shown two trajectories and asked to determine which represented the longer time of flight. Height, range, and time of flight were the physical dimensions that were used to categorize the examples. In the second context, students were shown a balance-scale with loads of differing masses placed at differing positions along either side of the balance-arm. Mass, lever-arm length, and torque were the physical dimensions used to categorize these examples. For both contexts, examples were chosen so that one or two independent dimensions were varied. After receiving training with examples from specific categories, students were tested with questions from all question categories. Successful training or instruction can be measured either as producing correct, expert-like behavior (as observed through answers to the questions) or as explicitly instilling an understanding of the underlying rule that governs a physical phenomenon. A student's behavior might not be consistent with their explicit rule, so following the investigation of their behavior, students were asked what rule they used when answering questions. Although the self-reported rules might not be congruent with their behavior, training with specific examples might affect how students explicitly think about physics problems. In addition to exploring the effectiveness of various training examples, the results were also compared to a cognitive theory of causality: the contingency model. Physical concepts can often be expressed in terms of causal relations (e.g., a net force causes an object to accelerate), and a large body of work has found that people make many decisions that are consistent with causal reasoning. The contingency model, in particular, explains how certain statistical regularities in the co-occurrence of two events can be interpreted by individuals as causal relations, and was chosen primarily because it of its robust results and simple, parsimonious form. The empirical results demonstrate that different categories of training examples did affect student answers differently. Furthermore, these effects were mostly consistent with the predictions made by the contingency model. When rule use was explored, the self-reported rules were consistent with contingency model predictions, but indicated that examples alone were insufficient to teach complex functional relationships between physical dimensions, such as torque.

An Exploratory Study of Taiwanese Mathematics Teachers' Conceptions of School Mathematics, School Statistics, and Their Differences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Kai-Lin

2014-01-01

This study used phenomenography, a qualitative method, to investigate Taiwanese mathematics teachers' conceptions of school mathematics, school statistics, and their differences. To collect data, we interviewed five mathematics teachers by open questions. They also responded to statements drawn on mathematical/statistical conceptions and…

Physical self-concept of adolescents in Western Balkan countries: a pilot study.

PubMed

Janić, Snežana Radisavljević; Jurak, Gregor; Milanović, Ivana; Lazarević, Dušanka; Kovač, Marjeta; Novak, Dario

2014-10-01

The aim of this study was to explore physical self-concept of adolescents of the Western Balkans (Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina) according to sex and country. The participants were 2,606 students, ages 13 and 14 years (M = 13.5, SD = 0.9). The Physical Self-Description Questionnaire (PSDQ) was used to assess multidimensional physical self-concept. The results show the interaction of sex and country for three dimensions of physical self-concept (Appearance, Global Physical Self-Concept, and Self-Esteem). It was shown that female and male adolescents' perception of physical appearance, self-esteem, and global physical self-concept is more susceptible to influences of socio-cultural factors in the monitored countries. In all other dimensions of Physical self-concept, sex differences were consistently manifested in favour of male adolescents, except in Flexibility. Regardless of adolescents' sex, under the increasing influence of Western culture in the Western Balkan countries, adolescents more critically evaluate their body and motor abilities.

Understanding nanocellulose chirality and structure–properties relationship at the single fibril level

PubMed Central

Usov, Ivan; Nyström, Gustav; Adamcik, Jozef; Handschin, Stephan; Schütz, Christina; Fall, Andreas; Bergström, Lennart; Mezzenga, Raffaele

2015-01-01

Nanocellulose fibrils are ubiquitous in nature and nanotechnologies but their mesoscopic structural assembly is not yet fully understood. Here we study the structural features of rod-like cellulose nanoparticles on a single particle level, by applying statistical polymer physics concepts on electron and atomic force microscopy images, and we assess their physical properties via quantitative nanomechanical mapping. We show evidence of right-handed chirality, observed on both bundles and on single fibrils. Statistical analysis of contours from microscopy images shows a non-Gaussian kink angle distribution. This is inconsistent with a structure consisting of alternating amorphous and crystalline domains along the contour and supports process-induced kink formation. The intrinsic mechanical properties of nanocellulose are extracted from nanoindentation and persistence length method for transversal and longitudinal directions, respectively. The structural analysis is pushed to the level of single cellulose polymer chains, and their smallest associated unit with a proposed 2 × 2 chain-packing arrangement. PMID:26108282

Range of interaction in an opinion evolution model of ideological self-positioning: Contagion, hesitance and polarization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gimenez, M. Cecilia; Paz García, Ana Pamela; Burgos Paci, Maxi A.; Reinaudi, Luis

2016-04-01

The evolution of public opinion using tools and concepts borrowed from Statistical Physics is an emerging area within the field of Sociophysics. In the present paper, a Statistical Physics model was developed to study the evolution of the ideological self-positioning of an ensemble of agents. The model consists of an array of L components, each one of which represents the ideology of an agent. The proposed mechanism is based on the ;voter model;, in which one agent can adopt the opinion of another one if the difference of their opinions lies within a certain range. The existence of ;undecided; agents (i.e. agents with no definite opinion) was implemented in the model. The possibility of radicalization of an agent's opinion upon interaction with another one was also implemented. The results of our simulations are compared to statistical data taken from the Latinobarómetro databank for the cases of Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Uruguay in the last decade. Among other results, the effect of taking into account the undecided agents is the formation of a single peak at the middle of the ideological spectrum (which corresponds to a centrist ideological position), in agreement with the real cases studied.

Multidimensional Physical Self-Concept of Athletes with Physical Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shapiro, Deborah R.; Martin, Jeffrey J.

2010-01-01

The purposes of this investigation were first to predict reported PA (physical activity) behavior and self-esteem using a multidimensional physical self-concept model and second to describe perceptions of multidimensional physical self-concept (e.g., strength, endurance, sport competence) among athletes with physical disabilities. Athletes (N =…

Physics holo.lab learning experience: using smartglasses for augmented reality labwork to foster the concepts of heat conduction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strzys, M. P.; Kapp, S.; Thees, M.; Klein, P.; Lukowicz, P.; Knierim, P.; Schmidt, A.; Kuhn, J.

2018-05-01

Fundamental concepts of thermodynamics rely on abstract physical quantities such as energy, heat and entropy, which play an important role in the process of interpreting thermal phenomena and statistical mechanics. However, these quantities are not covered by human visual perception, and since heat sensation is purely qualitative and easy to deceive, an intuitive understanding often is lacking. Today immersive technologies like head-mounted displays of the newest generation, especially HoloLens, allow for high-quality augmented reality learning experiences, which can overcome this gap in human perception by presenting different representations of otherwise invisible quantities directly in the field of view of the user on the experimental apparatus, which simultaneously avoids a split-attention effect. In a mixed reality (MR) scenario as presented in this paper—which we call a holo.lab—human perception can be extended to the thermal regime by presenting false-color representations of the temperature of objects as a virtual augmentation directly on the real object itself in real-time. Direct feedback to experimental actions of the users in the form of different representations allows for immediate comparison to theoretical principles and predictions and therefore is supposed to intensify the theory–experiment interactions and to increase students’ conceptual understanding. We tested this technology for an experiment on thermal conduction of metals in the framework of undergraduate laboratories. A pilot study with treatment and control groups (N = 59) showed a small positive effect of MR on students’ performance measured with a standardized concept test for thermodynamics, pointing to an improvement of the understanding of the underlying physical concepts. These findings indicate that complex experiments could benefit even more from augmentation. This motivates us to enrich further experiments with MR.

Phase Transitions in a Model for Social Learning via the Internet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bordogna, Clelia M.; Albano, Ezequiel V.

Based on the concepts of educational psychology, sociology and statistical physics, a mathematical model for a new type of social learning process that takes place when individuals interact via the Internet is proposed and studied. The noise of the interaction (misunderstandings, lack of well organized participative activities, etc.) dramatically restricts the number of individuals that can be efficiently in mutual contact and drives phase transitions between ``ordered states'' such as the achievements of the individuals are satisfactory and ``disordered states'' with negligible achievements.

Counterfactual entanglement and nonlocal correlations in separable states

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cohen, Oliver

1999-07-01

It is shown that the outcomes of measurements on systems in separable mixed states can be partitioned, via subsequent measurements on a disentangled extraneous system, into subensembles that display the statistics of entangled states. This motivates the introduction of the concept of ``counterfactual'' entanglement, which can be associated with all separable mixed states, including those that are factorable. This type of entanglement gives rise to a kind of postselection-induced Bell inequality violation. The significance of counterfactual entanglement, and its physical implications, are assessed.

Brain Representations of Basic Physics Concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Just, Marcel Adam

2017-09-01

The findings concerning physics concepts build on the remarkable new ability to determine the neural signature (or activation pattern) corresponding to an individual concept using fMRI brain imaging. Moreover, the neural signatures can be decomposed into meaningful underlying dimensions, identifying the individual, interpretable components of the neural representation of a concept. The investigation of physics concepts representations reveals how relatively recent physics concepts (formalized only in the last few centuries) are stored in the millenia-old information system of the human brain.

Development of the Statistical Reasoning in Biology Concept Inventory (SRBCI)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Deane, Thomas; Nomme, Kathy; Jeffery, Erica; Pollock, Carol; Birol, Gülnur

2016-01-01

We followed established best practices in concept inventory design and developed a 12-item inventory to assess student ability in statistical reasoning in biology (Statistical Reasoning in Biology Concept Inventory [SRBCI]). It is important to assess student thinking in this conceptual area, because it is a fundamental requirement of being…

Promoting a Functional Physical Self-Concept in Physical Education: Evaluation of a 10-Week Intervention

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmidt, Mirko; Valkanover, Stefan; Roebers, Claudia; Conzelmann, Achim

2013-01-01

Most physical education intervention studies on the positive effect of sports on self-concept development have attempted to "increase" schoolchildren's self-concept without taking the "veridicality" of the self-concept into account. The present study investigated whether a 10-week intervention in physical education would lead…

Patients With Very Mild Dementia May Confuse Objective Cognitive Impairments With Subjective Physical Health of Quality of Life: The Tome City Project in Japan.

PubMed

Kasai, Mari; Meguro, Kenichi

2018-01-01

Many elderly people with cognitive dysfunction may observe a decrease in their health levels and quality of life (QOL). The basic concept of QOL consists of several categories including physical functions and mental health. The QOL domain that is most important for elderly people is physical health and, to a lesser extent, psychological health, social relationships, and/ or the environment. Our aim was to explore the relationships between the subjective measure of QOL, an abbreviated version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) scale, and the objective measure of impairment, Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), among elderly people in a community. Totally, 178 community dwellers aged 75 years and above agreed to participate and completed the WHOQOL-BREF; 66 (32 males, 34 females) scored a CDR of 0 (healthy), 86 (33, 53) scored a CDR of 0.5 (questionable dementia or very mild dementia), and 26 (12, 14) scored a CDR of 1 and above (dementia). According to Pearson's correlation coefficient analysis (significance level, p < 0.05), the physical domain of the WHOQOL-BREF had significant statistical negative correlations with all CDR subscales. The CDR subscale of memory impairment had a significant statistical negative correlation with the WHOQOL-BREF subscales of the physical ( r = -0.151, p = 0.044) and psychological ( r = -0.232, p < 0.002) domains. The CDR subscale of home and hobbies impairment had significant statistical negative correlations with all WHOQOL-BREF subscales including the physical ( r = -0.226, p = 0.002), psychological ( r = -0.226, p = 0.002), social ( r = -0.167, p = 0.026), and environmental ( r = -0.204, p = 0.006) domains. Patients with very mild dementia may confuse cognitive impairment and physical disabilities. In the future, we need to systematically combine memory clinics and all departments related to the elderly for the successful early detection and rehabilitation of, and long-term care for, dementia.

Patients With Very Mild Dementia May Confuse Objective Cognitive Impairments With Subjective Physical Health of Quality of Life: The Tome City Project in Japan

PubMed Central

Kasai, Mari; Meguro, Kenichi

2018-01-01

Many elderly people with cognitive dysfunction may observe a decrease in their health levels and quality of life (QOL). The basic concept of QOL consists of several categories including physical functions and mental health. The QOL domain that is most important for elderly people is physical health and, to a lesser extent, psychological health, social relationships, and/ or the environment. Our aim was to explore the relationships between the subjective measure of QOL, an abbreviated version of the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF) scale, and the objective measure of impairment, Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), among elderly people in a community. Totally, 178 community dwellers aged 75 years and above agreed to participate and completed the WHOQOL-BREF; 66 (32 males, 34 females) scored a CDR of 0 (healthy), 86 (33, 53) scored a CDR of 0.5 (questionable dementia or very mild dementia), and 26 (12, 14) scored a CDR of 1 and above (dementia). According to Pearson’s correlation coefficient analysis (significance level, p < 0.05), the physical domain of the WHOQOL-BREF had significant statistical negative correlations with all CDR subscales. The CDR subscale of memory impairment had a significant statistical negative correlation with the WHOQOL-BREF subscales of the physical (r = -0.151, p = 0.044) and psychological (r = -0.232, p < 0.002) domains. The CDR subscale of home and hobbies impairment had significant statistical negative correlations with all WHOQOL-BREF subscales including the physical (r = -0.226, p = 0.002), psychological (r = -0.226, p = 0.002), social (r = -0.167, p = 0.026), and environmental (r = -0.204, p = 0.006) domains. Patients with very mild dementia may confuse cognitive impairment and physical disabilities. In the future, we need to systematically combine memory clinics and all departments related to the elderly for the successful early detection and rehabilitation of, and long-term care for, dementia. PMID:29706921

Impact of Teacher Value Orientations on Student Learning in Physical Education

PubMed Central

Chen, Ang; Zhang, Tan; Wells, Stephanie L.; Schweighardt, Ray; Ennis, Catherine D.

2017-01-01

Based on the value orientation theory, the purpose of this study was to determine the impact of value orientation incongruence between physical education teachers and an externally designed curriculum on student learning in a concept-based fitness-centered physical education curriculum. Physical education teachers (n = 15) with different value orientations taught an externally designed, standards-based fitness/healthful living curriculum to their middle school students (n = 3,827) in 155 sixth, seventh, and eighth grade intact classes. A pre-post assessment design was used to determine whether student fitness/healthful living knowledge gains differed in terms of teachers’ value orientations. An ANOVA on class means of residual-adjusted knowledge gain scores revealed no statistically significant differences based on value orientations. The evidence suggests that teacher value orientation impact may be mediated by curriculum impact. This finding supports the observation that a well-designed physical education curriculum may minimize the impact of teachers’ diverse value orientations on the curriculum implementation and student learning. PMID:29200587

Impact of Teacher Value Orientations on Student Learning in Physical Education.

PubMed

Chen, Ang; Zhang, Tan; Wells, Stephanie L; Schweighardt, Ray; Ennis, Catherine D

2017-04-01

Based on the value orientation theory, the purpose of this study was to determine the impact of value orientation incongruence between physical education teachers and an externally designed curriculum on student learning in a concept-based fitness-centered physical education curriculum. Physical education teachers ( n = 15) with different value orientations taught an externally designed, standards-based fitness/healthful living curriculum to their middle school students ( n = 3,827) in 155 sixth, seventh, and eighth grade intact classes. A pre-post assessment design was used to determine whether student fitness/healthful living knowledge gains differed in terms of teachers' value orientations. An ANOVA on class means of residual-adjusted knowledge gain scores revealed no statistically significant differences based on value orientations. The evidence suggests that teacher value orientation impact may be mediated by curriculum impact. This finding supports the observation that a well-designed physical education curriculum may minimize the impact of teachers' diverse value orientations on the curriculum implementation and student learning.

General self-concept and life satisfaction for boys with differing levels of physical coordination: the role of goal orientations and leisure participation.

PubMed

Poulsen, Anne A; Ziviani, Jenny M; Cuskelly, Monica

2006-12-01

Participation in leisure-time activities, self-concept perceptions and individual dispositional goal orientations were examined as mediators of relationships between physical coordination and self-evaluations of life satisfaction and general self-concept for 173 boys aged 10-13 years. Participants completed seven-day activity diaries and 12-month retrospective recall questionnaires recording participation in leisure-time activities. Self-report measures of self-concept, global life satisfaction and dispositional goal orientations were also completed. Results showed that boys with moderate to severe physical coordination difficulties had significantly lower self-concept perceptions of physical ability and appearance, peer and parent relations and general self-concept, as well as lower life satisfaction than boys with medium to high levels of physical coordination. The relationships between boys' physical coordination and their self-perceptions of life satisfaction and general self-concept were significantly influenced by individual self-concept appraisals of physical ability and appearance, peer and parent relations. Adopting task-oriented goals was found to positively change the relationship between physical coordination and both general self-concept and life satisfaction. Team sport participation positively mediated the relationship between physical coordination and life satisfaction. The potential for team sport participation and adoption of task-oriented goals to influence life satisfaction for boys with differing levels of physical coordination was discussed.

Three faces of entropy for complex systems: Information, thermodynamics, and the maximum entropy principle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thurner, Stefan; Corominas-Murtra, Bernat; Hanel, Rudolf

2017-09-01

There are at least three distinct ways to conceptualize entropy: entropy as an extensive thermodynamic quantity of physical systems (Clausius, Boltzmann, Gibbs), entropy as a measure for information production of ergodic sources (Shannon), and entropy as a means for statistical inference on multinomial processes (Jaynes maximum entropy principle). Even though these notions represent fundamentally different concepts, the functional form of the entropy for thermodynamic systems in equilibrium, for ergodic sources in information theory, and for independent sampling processes in statistical systems, is degenerate, H (p ) =-∑ipilogpi . For many complex systems, which are typically history-dependent, nonergodic, and nonmultinomial, this is no longer the case. Here we show that for such processes, the three entropy concepts lead to different functional forms of entropy, which we will refer to as SEXT for extensive entropy, SIT for the source information rate in information theory, and SMEP for the entropy functional that appears in the so-called maximum entropy principle, which characterizes the most likely observable distribution functions of a system. We explicitly compute these three entropy functionals for three concrete examples: for Pólya urn processes, which are simple self-reinforcing processes, for sample-space-reducing (SSR) processes, which are simple history dependent processes that are associated with power-law statistics, and finally for multinomial mixture processes.

The Analysis of High School Students' Conceptions of Learning in Different Domains

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sadi, Özlem

2015-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether or not conceptions of learning diverge in different science domains by identifying high school students' conceptions of learning in physics, chemistry and biology. The Conceptions of Learning Science (COLS) questionnaire was adapted for physics (Conceptions of Learning Physics, COLP), chemistry…

Does Physical Self-Concept Mediate the Relationship between Motor Abilities and Physical Activity in Adolescents and Young Adults?

PubMed Central

Jekauc, Darko; Wagner, Matthias Oliver; Herrmann, Christian; Hegazy, Khaled; Woll, Alexander

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the reciprocal relationship between motor abilities and physical activity and the mediation effects of physical self-concept in this relationship using longitudinal data. We expect that the effects of motor abilities on physical activity are rather indirect via physical self-concept and that the effects of physical activity on motor abilities are rather direct without involvement of the motor ability self-concept. Data was obtained from the Motorik-Modul (MoMo) Longitudinal Study in which 335 boys and 363 girls aged 11–17 years old at Baseline were examined twice in a period of six years. Physical activity was assessed by the MoMo Physical Activity Questionnaire for adolescents, physical self-concept by Physical Self-Description Questionnaire and motor abilities by MoMo Motor Test which comprised of the dimensions strength, endurance, coordination and flexibility. Multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the direct and indirect effects. The results of the multiple regression analyses show that the effects of motor abilities on physical activity were only indirect for the dimensions strength, coordination, and flexibility. For the dimension endurance, neither direct nor indirect effects were significant. In the opposite direction, the effects of physical activity on motor abilities were partially mediated by the self-concept of strength. For the dimensions endurance, coordination and flexibility, only indirect were significant. The results of this study support the assumption that the relationship between motor abilities and physical activity is mediated by physical self-concept in both directions. Physical self-concept seems to be an important determinant of adolescents´ physical activity. PMID:28045914

Does Physical Self-Concept Mediate the Relationship between Motor Abilities and Physical Activity in Adolescents and Young Adults?

PubMed

Jekauc, Darko; Wagner, Matthias Oliver; Herrmann, Christian; Hegazy, Khaled; Woll, Alexander

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine the reciprocal relationship between motor abilities and physical activity and the mediation effects of physical self-concept in this relationship using longitudinal data. We expect that the effects of motor abilities on physical activity are rather indirect via physical self-concept and that the effects of physical activity on motor abilities are rather direct without involvement of the motor ability self-concept. Data was obtained from the Motorik-Modul (MoMo) Longitudinal Study in which 335 boys and 363 girls aged 11-17 years old at Baseline were examined twice in a period of six years. Physical activity was assessed by the MoMo Physical Activity Questionnaire for adolescents, physical self-concept by Physical Self-Description Questionnaire and motor abilities by MoMo Motor Test which comprised of the dimensions strength, endurance, coordination and flexibility. Multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the direct and indirect effects. The results of the multiple regression analyses show that the effects of motor abilities on physical activity were only indirect for the dimensions strength, coordination, and flexibility. For the dimension endurance, neither direct nor indirect effects were significant. In the opposite direction, the effects of physical activity on motor abilities were partially mediated by the self-concept of strength. For the dimensions endurance, coordination and flexibility, only indirect were significant. The results of this study support the assumption that the relationship between motor abilities and physical activity is mediated by physical self-concept in both directions. Physical self-concept seems to be an important determinant of adolescents´ physical activity.

Student's Conceptions in Statistical Graph's Interpretation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kukliansky, Ida

2016-01-01

Histograms, box plots and cumulative distribution graphs are popular graphic representations for statistical distributions. The main research question that this study focuses on is how college students deal with interpretation of these statistical graphs when translating graphical representations into analytical concepts in descriptive statistics.…

Fostering Self-Concept and Interest for Statistics through Specific Learning Environments

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sproesser, Ute; Engel, Joachim; Kuntze, Sebastian

2016-01-01

Supporting motivational variables such as self-concept or interest is an important goal of schooling as they relate to learning and achievement. In this study, we investigated whether specific interest and self-concept related to the domains of statistics and mathematics can be fostered through a four-lesson intervention focusing on statistics.…

The causal meaning of Fisher’s average effect

PubMed Central

LEE, JAMES J.; CHOW, CARSON C.

2013-01-01

Summary In order to formulate the Fundamental Theorem of Natural Selection, Fisher defined the average excess and average effect of a gene substitution. Finding these notions to be somewhat opaque, some authors have recommended reformulating Fisher’s ideas in terms of covariance and regression, which are classical concepts of statistics. We argue that Fisher intended his two averages to express a distinction between correlation and causation. On this view, the average effect is a specific weighted average of the actual phenotypic changes that result from physically changing the allelic states of homologous genes. We show that the statistical and causal conceptions of the average effect, perceived as inconsistent by Falconer, can be reconciled if certain relationships between the genotype frequencies and non-additive residuals are conserved. There are certain theory-internal considerations favouring Fisher’s original formulation in terms of causality; for example, the frequency-weighted mean of the average effects equaling zero at each locus becomes a derivable consequence rather than an arbitrary constraint. More broadly, Fisher’s distinction between correlation and causation is of critical importance to gene-trait mapping studies and the foundations of evolutionary biology. PMID:23938113

Statistical mechanics of competitive resource allocation using agent-based models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chakraborti, Anirban; Challet, Damien; Chatterjee, Arnab; Marsili, Matteo; Zhang, Yi-Cheng; Chakrabarti, Bikas K.

2015-01-01

Demand outstrips available resources in most situations, which gives rise to competition, interaction and learning. In this article, we review a broad spectrum of multi-agent models of competition (El Farol Bar problem, Minority Game, Kolkata Paise Restaurant problem, Stable marriage problem, Parking space problem and others) and the methods used to understand them analytically. We emphasize the power of concepts and tools from statistical mechanics to understand and explain fully collective phenomena such as phase transitions and long memory, and the mapping between agent heterogeneity and physical disorder. As these methods can be applied to any large-scale model of competitive resource allocation made up of heterogeneous adaptive agent with non-linear interaction, they provide a prospective unifying paradigm for many scientific disciplines.

Understanding Statistical Concepts and Terms in Context: The GovStat Ontology and the Statistical Interactive Glossary.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haas, Stephanie W.; Pattuelli, Maria Cristina; Brown, Ron T.

2003-01-01

Describes the Statistical Interactive Glossary (SIG), an enhanced glossary of statistical terms supported by the GovStat ontology of statistical concepts. Presents a conceptual framework whose components articulate different aspects of a term's basic explanation that can be manipulated to produce a variety of presentations. The overarching…

Can a Syllabus Change Impact on Students' Perceptions of Science? Fragmented and Cohesive Conceptions of Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharma, Manjula Devi; Stewart, Chris; Wilson, Rachel; Gokalp, Muhammed Sait

2013-01-01

In recent decades, the literature paid attention to students' conceptions of the nature of disciplines. This study aimed to investigate how students' cohesive and fragment conceptions of physics changed with a major change in senior high school physics syllabus. We obtained measures of conceptions of physics by utilizing a 20-item questionnaire…

Can We Feel Physics Concepts?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Su, Yucheng

2010-01-01

There are many ways to improve students' understanding of physics concepts. This article focused on drawing students' attention with picture-embedded questions. Pictures give students a direct impression or feeling about the corresponding concepts, which really makes a difference. However, the effects are limited. Some physics concepts are…

The Learning Reconstruction of Particle System and Linear Momentum Conservation in Introductory Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karim, S.; Saepuzaman, D.; Sriyansyah, S. P.

2016-08-01

This study is initiated by low achievement of prospective teachers in understanding concepts in introductory physics course. In this case, a problem has been identified that students cannot develop their thinking skills required for building physics concepts. Therefore, this study will reconstruct a learning process, emphasizing a physics concept building. The outcome will design physics lesson plans for the concepts of particle system as well as linear momentum conservation. A descriptive analysis method will be used in order to investigate the process of learning reconstruction carried out by students. In this process, the students’ conceptual understanding will be evaluated using essay tests for concepts of particle system and linear momentum conservation. The result shows that the learning reconstruction has successfully supported the students’ understanding of physics concept.

Youth physical activity self-efficacy: a concept analysis.

PubMed

Voskuil, Vicki R; Robbins, Lorraine B

2015-09-01

To report an analysis of the concept of youth physical activity self-efficacy. Physical activity self-efficacy is a concept that has been frequently examined as a key variable in research aimed at increasing physical activity among youth. Different conceptual definitions and empirical measures indicate the need for concept analysis to advance knowledge of the concept. Rodger's evolutionary method of concept analysis was used to collect and analyse the data. Social cognitive theory guided the analysis. The PubMed, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PsychInfo, Educational Resources Information Center and Sociological Abstracts databases were searched for publications from 1990-2013. Search terms included self-efficacy, physical activity, youth, children, adolescent and teen. A total of 276 articles were identified. Fifty-five articles meeting inclusion criteria were included in the review. Data were analysed with particular focus on the attributes, antecedents and consequences of the concept. Defining attributes of physical activity self-efficacy were identified as personal cognition/perception, self-appraisal process, related action, power to choose physical activity, dynamic state and bi-dimensional nature. Antecedents and consequences were consistent with social cognitive theory. Youth physical activity self-efficacy is defined as a youth's belief in his/her capability to participate in physical activity and to choose physical activity despite existing barriers. This concept analysis provided an in-depth analysis and clarification of youth physical activity self-efficacy. Future research should be aimed at establishing consistency in conceptual definitions and empirical measurement to further develop the concept across disciplines. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Pre-Service Physics Teachers’ Concept Mastery and the Challenges of Game Development on Physics Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saprudin, S.; Liliasari, L.; Prihatmanto, A. S.

2017-09-01

This study is a survey that aims to describe pre-service physics teachers’ concept mastery at a university in Ternate. Data were collected through test standard instrument for physics which used in the teacher certification program. Data were analyzed by using quantitative descriptive technique. Based on the results of data analysis, it was concluded that generally pre-service physics teachers’ concept mastery can be categorized on low category (25.4%). The map of concept mastery will be used as a reference to developing game design in the physics learning context for pre-service physics teachers.

Prospective Physics Teachers' Views on Their Knowledge about the New Concepts in Turkish High School Physics Curricula

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapucu, Serkan; Yildirim, Ufuk

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to a) investigate prospective physics teachers' views on their knowledge about new physics concepts introduced in Turkish High School Physics Curricula; b) investigate the sources of their acquired knowledge about these new physics concepts; and c) explore if there were differences in views on knowledge about these…

Developing iPad-Based Physics Simulations That Can Help People Learn Newtonian Physics Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Young-Jin

2015-01-01

The aims of this study are: (1) to develop iPad-based computer simulations called iSimPhysics that can help people learn Newtonian physics concepts; and (2) to assess its educational benefits and pedagogical usefulness. To facilitate learning, iSimPhysics visualizes abstract physics concepts, and allows for conducting a series of computer…

Using Guided Reinvention to Develop Teachers' Understanding of Hypothesis Testing Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dolor, Jason; Noll, Jennifer

2015-01-01

Statistics education reform efforts emphasize the importance of informal inference in the learning of statistics. Research suggests statistics teachers experience similar difficulties understanding statistical inference concepts as students and how teacher knowledge can impact student learning. This study investigates how teachers reinvented an…

Pre-Service Physics Teachers' Understanding of the Relational Structure of Physics Concepts: Organising Subject Contents for Purposes of Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koponen, Ismo; Nousiainen, Maija

2013-01-01

Good conceptual understanding of physics is based on understanding what the key concepts are and how they are related. This kind of understanding is especially important for physics teachers in planning how and in what order to introduce concepts in teaching; connections which tie concepts to each other give direction of progress--there is "flux…

Development and Validation of the Conceptual Assessment of Natural Selection (CANS)

PubMed Central

Kalinowski, Steven T.; Leonard, Mary J.; Taper, Mark L.

2016-01-01

We developed and validated the Conceptual Assessment of Natural Selection (CANS), a multiple-choice test designed to assess how well college students understand the central principles of natural selection. The expert panel that reviewed the CANS concluded its questions were relevant to natural selection and generally did a good job sampling the specific concepts they were intended to assess. Student interviews confirmed questions on the CANS provided accurate reflections of how students think about natural selection. And, finally, statistical analysis of student responses using item response theory showed that the CANS did a very good job of estimating how well students understood natural selection. The empirical reliability of the CANS was substantially higher than the Force Concept Inventory, a highly regarded test in physics that has a similar purpose. PMID:27856552

QR-STEM: Energy and Environment as a Context for Improving QR and STEM Understandings of 6-12 Grade Teachers II. The Quantitative Reasoning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mayes, R.; Lyford, M. E.; Myers, J. D.

2009-12-01

The Quantitative Reasoning in STEM (QR STEM) project is a state level Mathematics and Science Partnership Project (MSP) with a focus on the mathematics and statistics that underlies the understanding of complex global scientific issues. This session is a companion session to the QR STEM: The Science presentation. The focus of this session is the quantitative reasoning aspects of the project. As students move from understandings that range from local to global in perspective on issues of energy and environment, there is a significant increase in the need for mathematical and statistical conceptual understanding. These understandings must be accessible to the students within the scientific context, requiring the special understandings that are endemic within quantitative reasoning. The QR STEM project brings together interdisciplinary teams of higher education faculty and middle/high school teachers to explore complex problems in energy and environment. The disciplines include life sciences, physics, chemistry, earth science, statistics, and mathematics. These interdisciplinary teams develop open ended performance tasks to implement in the classroom, based on scientific concepts that underpin energy and environment. Quantitative reasoning is broken down into three components: Quantitative Literacy, Quantitative Interpretation, and Quantitative Modeling. Quantitative Literacy is composed of arithmetic concepts such as proportional reasoning, numeracy, and descriptive statistics. Quantitative Interpretation includes algebraic and geometric concepts that underlie the ability to interpret a model of natural phenomena which is provided for the student. This model may be a table, graph, or equation from which the student is to make predictions or identify trends, or from which they would use statistics to explore correlations or patterns in data. Quantitative modeling is the ability to develop the model from data, including the ability to test hypothesis using statistical procedures. We use the term model very broadly, so it includes visual models such as box models, as well as best fit equation models and hypothesis testing. One of the powerful outcomes of the project is the conversation which takes place between science teachers and mathematics teachers. First they realize that though they are teaching concepts that cross their disciplines, the barrier of scientific language within their subjects restricts students from applying the concepts across subjects. Second the mathematics teachers discover the context of science as a means of providing real world situations that engage students in the utility of mathematics as a tool for solving problems. Third the science teachers discover the barrier to understanding science that is presented by poor quantitative reasoning ability. Finally the students are engaged in exploring energy and environment in a manner which exposes the importance of seeing a problem from multiple interdisciplinary perspectives. The outcome is a democratic citizen capable of making informed decisions, and perhaps a future scientist.

Two-Year College Mathematics Instructors' Conceptions of Variation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dabos, Monica Graciela Gandhini

2011-01-01

Statistics education researchers are urging teachers of statistics to help students develop a more sophisticated understanding of variation, since variation is the core of statistics. However, little research has been done into the conceptions of variation held by instructors of statistics. This is of particular importance at the community college…

Modern morphometry: new perspectives in physical anthropology.

PubMed

Mantini, Simone; Ripani, Maurizio

2009-06-01

In the past one hundred years physical anthropology has recourse to more and more efficient methods, which provide several new information regarding, human evolution and biology. Apart from the molecular approach, the introduction of new computed assisted techniques gave rise to a new concept of morphometry. Computed tomography and 3D-imaging, allowed providing anatomical description of the external and inner structures exceeding the problems encountered with the traditional morphometric methods. Furthermore, the support of geometric morphometrics, allowed creating geometric models to investigate morphological variation in terms of evolution, ontogeny and variability. The integration of these new tools gave rise to the virtual anthropology and to a new image of the anthropologist in which anatomical, biological, mathematical statistical and data processing information are fused in a multidisciplinary approach.

The Mediating Role of Physical Self-Concept on Relations between Biological Maturity Status and Physical Activity in Adolescent Females

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cumming, Sean P.; Standage, Martyn; Loney, Tom; Gammon, Catherine; Neville, Helen; Sherar, Lauren B.; Malina, Robert M.

2011-01-01

The current study examined the mediating role of physical self-concept on relations between biological maturity status and self-reported physical activity in adolescent British females. Biological maturity status, physical self-concept and physical activity were assessed in 407 female British year 7-9 pupils (M age = 13.2 years, SD = 1.0).…

Quantum Mechanics and the Principle of Least Radix Economy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garcia-Morales, Vladimir

2015-03-01

A new variational method, the principle of least radix economy, is formulated. The mathematical and physical relevance of the radix economy, also called digit capacity, is established, showing how physical laws can be derived from this concept in a unified way. The principle reinterprets and generalizes the principle of least action yielding two classes of physical solutions: least action paths and quantum wavefunctions. A new physical foundation of the Hilbert space of quantum mechanics is then accomplished and it is used to derive the Schrödinger and Dirac equations and the breaking of the commutativity of spacetime geometry. The formulation provides an explanation of how determinism and random statistical behavior coexist in spacetime and a framework is developed that allows dynamical processes to be formulated in terms of chains of digits. These methods lead to a new (pre-geometrical) foundation for Lorentz transformations and special relativity. The Parker-Rhodes combinatorial hierarchy is encompassed within our approach and this leads to an estimate of the interaction strength of the electromagnetic and gravitational forces that agrees with the experimental values to an error of less than one thousandth. Finally, it is shown how the principle of least-radix economy naturally gives rise to Boltzmann's principle of classical statistical thermodynamics. A new expression for a general (path-dependent) nonequilibrium entropy is proposed satisfying the Second Law of Thermodynamics.

Concept Maps in Introductory Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Witmer, Jeffrey A.

2016-01-01

Concept maps are tools for organizing thoughts on the main ideas in a course. I present an example of a concept map that was created through the work of students in an introductory class and discuss major topics in statistics and relationships among them.

Statistics for Radiology Research.

PubMed

Obuchowski, Nancy A; Subhas, Naveen; Polster, Joshua

2017-02-01

Biostatistics is an essential component in most original research studies in imaging. In this article we discuss five key statistical concepts for study design and analyses in modern imaging research: statistical hypothesis testing, particularly focusing on noninferiority studies; imaging outcomes especially when there is no reference standard; dealing with the multiplicity problem without spending all your study power; relevance of confidence intervals in reporting and interpreting study results; and finally tools for assessing quantitative imaging biomarkers. These concepts are presented first as examples of conversations between investigator and biostatistician, and then more detailed discussions of the statistical concepts follow. Three skeletal radiology examples are used to illustrate the concepts. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

The Implementation of Physics Problem Solving Strategy Combined with Concept Map in General Physics Course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hidayati, H.; Ramli, R.

2018-04-01

This paper aims to provide a description of the implementation of Physic Problem Solving strategy combined with concept maps in General Physics learning at Department of Physics, Universitas Negeri Padang. Action research has been conducted in two cycles where each end of the cycle is reflected and improved for the next cycle. Implementation of Physics Problem Solving strategy combined with concept map can increase student activity in solving general physics problem with an average increase of 15% and can improve student learning outcomes from 42,7 in the cycle I become 62,7 in cycle II in general physics at the Universitas Negeri Padang. In the future, the implementation of Physic Problem Solving strategy combined with concept maps will need to be considered in Physics courses.

A Study on Contingency Learning in Introductory Physics Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scaife, Thomas M.

2010-01-01

Instructors of physics often use examples to illustrate new or complex physical concepts to students. For any particular concept, there are an infinite number of examples, thus presenting instructors with a difficult question whenever they wish to use one in their teaching: which example will most effectively illustrate the concept so that student…

Effect of Scaffolding on Helping Introductory Physics Students Solve Quantitative Problems Involving Strong Alternative Conceptions

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Shih-Yin; Singh, Chandralekha

2015-01-01

It is well known that introductory physics students often have alternative conceptions that are inconsistent with established physical principles and concepts. Invoking alternative conceptions in the quantitative problem-solving process can derail the entire process. In order to help students solve quantitative problems involving strong…

The effect of the flipped model on achievement in an introductory college physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winter, Joshua Brian

The flipped or inverted classroom model is one in which the time and place for traditional lecture and homework are reversed. Traditional lecture is replaced by online videos assigned as homework. This frees up time in class to be spent with more student centered activities such as discussion based concept questions and group problem solving. While growing in popularity, research on the effectiveness of this format is sparse. In this quasi-experimental study, two sections of an introductory algebra-based college physics course were examined over a five week period. Each section was taught with either the traditional or flipped model and physics knowledge achieved was compared using independent samples t-tests on both the instructor's unit exam and the Mechanics Baseline Test pre/posttest normalized gain. Results indicated that there was no statistically significant difference between the flipped model and the traditional lecture format. Avenues for further research are discussed.

Effects of Concept Mapping Strategy on Learning Performance in Business and Economics Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiou, Chei-Chang

2009-01-01

A concept map (CM) is a hierarchically arranged, graphic representation of the relationships among concepts. Concept mapping (CMING) is the process of constructing a CM. This paper examines whether a CMING strategy can be useful in helping students to improve their learning performance in a business and economics statistics course. A single…

Toward "Constructing" the Concept of Statistical Power: An Optical Analogy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rogers, Bruce G.

This paper presents a visual analogy that may be used by instructors to teach the concept of statistical power in statistical courses. Statistical power is mathematically defined as the probability of rejecting a null hypothesis when that null is false, or, equivalently, the probability of detecting a relationship when it exists. The analogy…

John H. Dillon Medal Talk: Protein Fibrils, Polymer Physics: Encounter at the Nanoscale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mezzenga, Raffaele

2011-03-01

Aggregation of proteins is central to many aspects of daily life, ranging from blood coagulation, to eye cataract formation disease, food processing, or neurodegenerative infections. In particular, the physical mechanisms responsible for amyloidosis, the irreversible fibril formation of various proteins implicated in protein misfolding disorders such as Alzheimer, Creutzfeldt-Jakob or Huntington's diseases, have not yet been fully elucidated. In this talk I will discuss how polymer physics and colloidal science concepts can be used to reveal very useful information on the formation, structure and properties of amyloid protein fibrils. I will discuss their physical properties at various length scales, from their collective liquid crystalline behavior in solution to their structural features at the single molecule length scale and show how polymer science notions can shed a new light on these interesting systems. 1) ``Understanding amyloid aggregation by statistical analysis of atomic force microscopy images'' J. Adamcik, J.-M. Jung, J. Flakowski, P. De Los Rios, G. Dietler and R. Mezzenga, Nature nanotechnology, 5, 423 (2010)

A Mixed-Methods Study of the Recovery Concept, "A Meaningful Day," in Community Mental Health Services for Individuals with Serious Mental Illnesses.

PubMed

Myers, Neely A L; Smith, Kelly; Pope, Alicia; Alolayan, Yazeed; Broussard, Beth; Haynes, Nora; Compton, Michael T

2016-10-01

The recovery concept encompasses overcoming or managing one's illness, being physically and emotionally healthy, and finding meaningful purpose through work, school, or volunteering, which connects one to others in mutually fulfilling ways. Using a mixed-methods approach, we studied the emphasis on "a meaningful day" in the new Opening Doors to Recovery (ODR) program in southeast Georgia. Among 100 participants, we measured the meaningful day construct using three quantitative items at baseline (hospital discharge) and at 4-, 8-, and 12-month follow-up, finding statistically significant linear trends over time for all three measures. Complementary qualitative interviews with 30 individuals (ODR participants, family members, and ODR's Community Navigation Specialists and program leaders) revealed themes pertaining to companionship, productivity, achieving stability, and autonomy, as well as the concern about insufficient resources. The concept of "a meaningful day" can be a focus of clinical attention and measured as a person-centered outcome for clients served by recovery-oriented community mental health services.

The relationship of self-concept and perceived athletic competence to physical activity level and gender among Turkish early adolescents.

PubMed

Aşçi, F H; Koşar, S N; Işler, A K

2001-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine the self-concept and perceived athletic competence of Turkish early adolescents in relation to physical activity level and gender. Self-concept was assessed using the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale, and perceived athletic competence was assessed by means of the Athletic Competence subscale of Harter's Self-Perception Profile for Children. In addition, the Weekly Activity Checklist was used for assessing physical activity level. Males and females were assigned to low and high physical activity level groups based on their mean scores. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed significant main effects for gender and physical activity level, but there was no significant gender by physical activity interaction. Univariate analysis demonstrated a significant main effect for physical activity level on perceived athletic competence but not global self-concept. In addition, univariate analysis did not reveal a significant difference in either global self-concept or perceived athletic competence with respect to gender.

Time for paradigmatic substitution in psychology. What are the alternatives?

PubMed

Kolstad, Arnulf

2010-03-01

This article focuses on the "machine paradigm" in psychology and its consequences for (mis)understanding of human beings. It discusses causes of the mainstream epistemology in Western societies, referring to philosophical traditions, the prestige of some natural sciences and mathematical statistics. It emphasizes how the higher psychological functions develop dialectically from a biological basis and how the brain due to its plasticity changes with mental and physical activity. This makes a causal machine paradigm unfit to describe and explain human psychology and human development. Some concepts for an alternative paradigm are suggested.

Globalizing Air Pollution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lin, J.

2017-12-01

Recent studies have revealed the issue of globalizing air pollution through complex coupling of atmospheric transport (physical route) and economic trade (socioeconomic route). Recognition of such globalizing air pollution has important implications for understanding the impacts of regional and global consumption (of goods and services) on air quality, public health, climate and the ecosystems. And addressing these questions often requires improved modeling, measurements and economic-emission statistics. This talk will introduce the concept and mechanism of globalizing air pollution, with following demonstrations based on recent works on modeling, satellite measurement and multi-disciplinary assessment.

An Investigation of Age and Gender Differences in Physical Self-Concept among Turkish Late Adolescents.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asci, F. Hulya

2002-01-01

Evaluates age and gender differences in physical self-concept of Turkish university students. The Physical Self-Perception Profile was administered to participants for assessing physical self-concept. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed a significant main effect for gender, but no significant main effect for year in school. Univariate…

The Theoretical Problem of Partial Coherence and Partial Polarization in PolSAR and PolInSAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alvarez-Perez, J. L.

2013-08-01

Coherence is a key concept in all aspects related to SAR, and it is also an essential ingredient not only of its signal processing and image formation but also of the data postprocessing stages of SAR data. Coherence is however a non-trivial concept that has been the subject of much debate in the last sixty years, even if its definition in the context of PolInSAR has been almost univocal. Nevertheless, the mutual relationships between coherence, polarization and statistical independence in PolSAR has recently been the subject of discussion in [1]. Some of these questions affect the eigenanalysis-based approach to PolInSAR, as developed by Cloude and Papathanassiou's foundational work. Coherence involves the behaviour of electromagnetic waves in at least a pair of points and in this sense it plays an important role in interferometry that is not present in non-interferometric radar polarimetry. PolInSAR inherits some of the difficulties found in [1], which stem from the controversial confusion between coherence and polarization as present in PolSAR, as well as the ability of separating different physical contributors to the scattering phenomenon through the use of eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Although these are also issues present in eigenanalysis-based PolInSAR, it is still possible to analyze a scene in terms of coherence and this very concept of coherence is the subject of this paper. A new analysis of the concept of coherence for interferometry is proposed, including multiple observation point configurations that bring about statistical moments whose order is higher than two.

Coherent instability in wall-bounded turbulence

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hack, M. J. Philipp

2017-11-01

Hairpin vortices are commonly considered one of the major classes of coherent fluid motions in shear layers, even as their significance in the grand scheme of turbulence has remained an openly debated question. The statistical prevalence of the dynamic process that gives rise to the hairpins across different types of flows suggests an origin in a robust common mechanism triggered by conditions widespread in wall-bounded shear layers. This study seeks to shed light on the physical process which drives the generation of hairpin vortices. It is primarily facilitated through an algorithm based on concepts developed in the field of computer vision which allows the topological identification and analysis of coherent flow processes across multiple scales. Application to direct numerical simulations of boundary layers enables the time-resolved sampling and exploration of the hairpin process in natural flow. The analysis yields rich statistical results which lead to a refined characterization of the hairpin process. Linear stability theory offers further insight into the flow physics and especially into the connection between the hairpin and exponential amplification mechanisms. The results also provide a sharpened understanding of the underlying causality of events.

The Incoming Statistical Knowledge of Undergraduate Majors in a Department of Mathematics and Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cook, Samuel A.; Fukawa-Connelly, Timothy

2016-01-01

Studies have shown that at the end of an introductory statistics course, students struggle with building block concepts, such as mean and standard deviation, and rely on procedural understandings of the concepts. This study aims to investigate the understandings entering freshman of a department of mathematics and statistics (including mathematics…

Physics of the Mind.

PubMed

Perlovsky, Leonid I

2016-01-01

Is it possible to turn psychology into "hard science"? Physics of the mind follows the fundamental methodology of physics in all areas where physics have been developed. What is common among Newtonian mechanics, statistical physics, quantum physics, thermodynamics, theory of relativity, astrophysics… and a theory of superstrings? The common among all areas of physics is a methodology of physics discussed in the first few lines of the paper. Is physics of the mind possible? Is it possible to describe the mind based on the few first principles as physics does? The mind with its variabilities and uncertainties, the mind from perception and elementary cognition to emotions and abstract ideas, to high cognition. Is it possible to turn psychology and neuroscience into "hard" sciences? The paper discusses established first principles of the mind, their mathematical formulations, and a mathematical model of the mind derived from these first principles, mechanisms of concepts, emotions, instincts, behavior, language, cognition, intuitions, conscious and unconscious, abilities for symbols, functions of the beautiful and musical emotions in cognition and evolution. Some of the theoretical predictions have been experimentally confirmed. This research won national and international awards. In addition to summarizing existing results the paper describes new development theoretical and experimental. The paper discusses unsolved theoretical problems as well as experimental challenges for future research.

Physics of the Mind

PubMed Central

Perlovsky, Leonid I.

2016-01-01

Is it possible to turn psychology into “hard science”? Physics of the mind follows the fundamental methodology of physics in all areas where physics have been developed. What is common among Newtonian mechanics, statistical physics, quantum physics, thermodynamics, theory of relativity, astrophysics… and a theory of superstrings? The common among all areas of physics is a methodology of physics discussed in the first few lines of the paper. Is physics of the mind possible? Is it possible to describe the mind based on the few first principles as physics does? The mind with its variabilities and uncertainties, the mind from perception and elementary cognition to emotions and abstract ideas, to high cognition. Is it possible to turn psychology and neuroscience into “hard” sciences? The paper discusses established first principles of the mind, their mathematical formulations, and a mathematical model of the mind derived from these first principles, mechanisms of concepts, emotions, instincts, behavior, language, cognition, intuitions, conscious and unconscious, abilities for symbols, functions of the beautiful and musical emotions in cognition and evolution. Some of the theoretical predictions have been experimentally confirmed. This research won national and international awards. In addition to summarizing existing results the paper describes new development theoretical and experimental. The paper discusses unsolved theoretical problems as well as experimental challenges for future research. PMID:27895558

Non-extensivity and complexity in the earthquake activity at the West Corinth rift (Greece)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Michas, Georgios; Vallianatos, Filippos; Sammonds, Peter

2013-04-01

Earthquakes exhibit complex phenomenology that is revealed from the fractal structure in space, time and magnitude. For that reason other tools rather than the simple Poissonian statistics seem more appropriate to describe the statistical properties of the phenomenon. Here we use Non-Extensive Statistical Physics [NESP] to investigate the inter-event time distribution of the earthquake activity at the west Corinth rift (central Greece). This area is one of the most seismotectonically active areas in Europe, with an important continental N-S extension and high seismicity rates. NESP concept refers to the non-additive Tsallis entropy Sq that includes Boltzmann-Gibbs entropy as a particular case. This concept has been successfully used for the analysis of a variety of complex dynamic systems including earthquakes, where fractality and long-range interactions are important. The analysis indicates that the cumulative inter-event time distribution can be successfully described with NESP, implying the complexity that characterizes the temporal occurrences of earthquakes. Further on, we use the Tsallis entropy (Sq) and the Fischer Information Measure (FIM) to investigate the complexity that characterizes the inter-event time distribution through different time windows along the evolution of the seismic activity at the West Corinth rift. The results of this analysis reveal a different level of organization and clusterization of the seismic activity in time. Acknowledgments. GM wish to acknowledge the partial support of the Greek State Scholarships Foundation (IKY).

Women, Physical Activity, and Quality of Life: Self-concept as a Mediator.

PubMed

Gonzalo Silvestre, Tamara; Ubillos Landa, Silvia

2016-02-22

The objectives of this research are: (a) analyze the incremental validity of physical activity's (PA) influence on perceived quality of life (PQL); (b) determine if PA's predictive power is mediated by self-concept; and (c) study if results vary according to a unidimensional or multidimensional approach to self-concept measurement. The sample comprised 160 women from Burgos, Spain aged 18 to 45 years old. Non-probability sampling was used. Two three-step hierarchical regression analyses were applied to forecast PQL. The hedonic quality-of-life indicators, self-concept, self-esteem, and PA were included as independent variables. The first regression analysis included global self-concept as predictor variable, while the second included its five dimensions. Two mediation analyses were conducted to see if PA's ability to predict PQL was mediated by global and physical self-concept. Results from the first regression shows that self-concept, satisfaction with life, and PA were significant predictors. PA slightly but significantly increased explained variance in PQL (2.1%). In the second regression, substituting global self-concept with its five constituent factors, only the physical dimension and satisfaction with life predicted PQL, while PA ceased to be a significant predictor. Mediation analysis revealed that only physical self-concept mediates the relationship between PA and PQL (z = 1.97, p < .050), and not global self-concept. Physical self-concept was the strongest predictor and approximately 32.45 % of PA's effect on PQL was mediated by it. This study's findings support a multidimensional view of self-concept, and represent a more accurate image of the relationship between PQL, PA, and self-concept.

Physics teacher use of the history of science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winrich, Charles

The School of Education and the Department of Physics at Boston University offer a sequence of 10 two-credit professional development courses through the Improving the Teaching of Physics (ITOP) project. The ITOP courses combine physics content, readings from the physics education research (PER) literature, and the conceptual history of physics (CHOP). ITOP participants self-report changes to their teaching practices as a result of their participation in ITOP. The purpose of this study was to verify and characterize those changes in the specific area of the participants' use of history after their study of CHOP. Ten recent ITOP participants were observed, interviewed, and asked to provide lesson plans and samples of student work from their classes. Case studies of each participant's teaching were constructed from the data. The individual cases were synthesized to characterize the impact of CHOP on the ITOP participants. The results show that the participants integrate CHOP into their pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) to inform their understanding of: (1) the relationship between physics and other disciplines, (2) the relationship between specific physics concepts, (3) student understanding of physics concepts, (4) student difficulties in learning physics concepts, and (5) methods for teaching physics concepts. The participants use history to teach a variety of topics, although the most common were mechanics and electromagnetism. All of the participants used history to teach aspects of the nature of science (NOS) and to increase student interest in physics, while eight participants taught physics concepts through history. The predominant mode of incorporating history was through adding anecdotes about the scientists who worked on the concepts, but seven participants had their students study the historical development of physical concepts. All the participants discussed a lack of time as a factor that inhibits a greater use of history in their courses. Eight participants discussed a lack of appropriate resources for using history in high school physics classes. Two participants said they did not feel that explicit study of the history of physics would benefit their students until they had better mastery of physics concepts.

Maximizing information exchange between complex networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

West, Bruce J.; Geneston, Elvis L.; Grigolini, Paolo

2008-10-01

Science is not merely the smooth progressive interaction of hypothesis, experiment and theory, although it sometimes has that form. More realistically the scientific study of any given complex phenomenon generates a number of explanations, from a variety of perspectives, that eventually requires synthesis to achieve a deep level of insight and understanding. One such synthesis has created the field of out-of-equilibrium statistical physics as applied to the understanding of complex dynamic networks. Over the past forty years the concept of complexity has undergone a metamorphosis. Complexity was originally seen as a consequence of memory in individual particle trajectories, in full agreement with a Hamiltonian picture of microscopic dynamics and, in principle, macroscopic dynamics could be derived from the microscopic Hamiltonian picture. The main difficulty in deriving macroscopic dynamics from microscopic dynamics is the need to take into account the actions of a very large number of components. The existence of events such as abrupt jumps, considered by the conventional continuous time random walk approach to describing complexity was never perceived as conflicting with the Hamiltonian view. Herein we review many of the reasons why this traditional Hamiltonian view of complexity is unsatisfactory. We show that as a result of technological advances, which make the observation of single elementary events possible, the definition of complexity has shifted from the conventional memory concept towards the action of non-Poisson renewal events. We show that the observation of crucial processes, such as the intermittent fluorescence of blinking quantum dots as well as the brain’s response to music, as monitored by a set of electrodes attached to the scalp, has forced investigators to go beyond the traditional concept of complexity and to establish closer contact with the nascent field of complex networks. Complex networks form one of the most challenging areas of modern research overarching all of the traditional scientific disciplines. The transportation networks of planes, highways and railroads; the economic networks of global finance and stock markets; the social networks of terrorism, governments, businesses and churches; the physical networks of telephones, the Internet, earthquakes and global warming and the biological networks of gene regulation, the human body, clusters of neurons and food webs, share a number of apparently universal properties as the networks become increasingly complex. Ubiquitous aspects of such complex networks are the appearance of non-stationary and non-ergodic statistical processes and inverse power-law statistical distributions. Herein we review the traditional dynamical and phase-space methods for modeling such networks as their complexity increases and focus on the limitations of these procedures in explaining complex networks. Of course we will not be able to review the entire nascent field of network science, so we limit ourselves to a review of how certain complexity barriers have been surmounted using newly applied theoretical concepts such as aging, renewal, non-ergodic statistics and the fractional calculus. One emphasis of this review is information transport between complex networks, which requires a fundamental change in perception that we express as a transition from the familiar stochastic resonance to the new concept of complexity matching.

Theory of the Decoherence Effect in Finite and Infinite Open Quantum Systems Using the Algebraic Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blanchard, Philippe; Hellmich, Mario; Ługiewicz, Piotr; Olkiewicz, Robert

Quantum mechanics is the greatest revision of our conception of the character of the physical world since Newton. Consequently, David Hilbert was very interested in quantum mechanics. He and John von Neumann discussed it frequently during von Neumann's residence in Göttingen. He published in 1932 his book Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics. In Hilbert's opinion it was the first exposition of quantum mechanics in a mathematically rigorous way. The pioneers of quantum mechanics, Heisenberg and Dirac, neither had use for rigorous mathematics nor much interest in it. Conceptually, quantum theory as developed by Bohr and Heisenberg is based on the positivism of Mach as it describes only observable quantities. It first emerged as a result of experimental data in the form of statistical observations of quantum noise, the basic concept of quantum probability.

Development of the Solar System Concept Inventory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hornstein, S.; Prather, E.

2009-12-01

Concept inventories can provide useful insight into students’ understanding of key physical concepts. Knowing what your students have learned during a course is a valuable tool for improving your own teaching. Unfortunately, current astronomy concept inventories are not suitable for an introductory solar system course because they either cover too broad of a range of topics (e.g. Astronomy Diagnostic Test) or are too narrowly focused (e.g. Greenhouse Effect Concept Inventory, Lunar Phase Concept Inventory). We have developed the Solar System Concept Inventory (SSCI) to cover those topics commonly taught in an introductory solar system course. The topics included on the SSCI were selected by having faculty identify the key concepts they address when teaching about the solar system. SSCI topics include formation mechanisms, planetary interiors, atmospheric effects, and small solar system bodies. Student interviews were conducted to identify common naive ideas and reasoning difficulties relating to these key topics. The SSCI has been through two semesters of national, multi-institutional field-testing, involving over 1500 students. After the first semester of testing, question statistics were used to flag ineffective questions and flagged questions were revised or eliminated. We will present an overall outline of the SSCI development as well as our question-flagging criteria and question analyses from the latest round of field-testing. We would like to thank the NSF for funding under Grant No. 0715517, a CCLI Phase III Grant for the Collaboration of Astronomy Teaching Scholars (CATS) Program.

Understanding Summary Statistics and Graphical Techniques to Compare Michael Jordan versus LeBron James

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Immanuel James; Williams, Kelley Kim

2016-01-01

Understanding summary statistics and graphical techniques are building blocks to comprehending concepts beyond basic statistics. It's known that motivated students perform better in school. Using examples that students find engaging allows them to understand the concepts at a deeper level.

Environmental Data-Driven Inquiry and Exploration (EDDIE)- Water Focused Modules for interacting with Big Hydrologic Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meixner, T.; Gougis, R.; O'Reilly, C.; Klug, J.; Richardson, D.; Castendyk, D.; Carey, C.; Bader, N.; Stomberg, J.; Soule, D. C.

2016-12-01

High-frequency sensor data are driving a shift in the Earth and environmental sciences. The availability of high-frequency data creates an engagement opportunity for undergraduate students in primary research by using large, long-term, and sensor-based, data directly in the scientific curriculum. Project EDDIE (Environmental Data-Driven Inquiry & Exploration) has developed flexible classroom activity modules designed to meet a series of pedagogical goals that include (1) developing skills required to manipulate large datasets at different scales to conduct inquiry-based investigations; (2) developing students' reasoning about statistical variation; and (3) fostering accurate student conceptions about the nature of environmental science. The modules cover a wide range of topics, including lake physics and metabolism, stream discharge, water quality, soil respiration, seismology, and climate change. In this presentation we will focus on a sequence of modules of particular interest to hydrologists - stream discharge, water quality and nutrient loading. Assessment results show that our modules are effective at making students more comfortable analyzing data, improved understanding of statistical concepts, and stronger data analysis capability. This project is funded by an NSF TUES grant (NSF DEB 1245707).

Teach for Fitness: A Manual for Teaching Fitness Concepts in K-12 Physical Education. Current Issues.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Priest, Laurie

This book is designed to aid and to encourage physical education teachers to incorporate the concepts of physical fitness into the physical education curriculum. The activities are written in an outline format using the following headings: (1) concept; (2) activity and/or knowledge level; (3) location (school or home); (4) time needed; (5)…

Learning about a Level Physics Students' Understandings of Particle Physics Using Concept Mapping

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gourlay, H.

2017-01-01

This paper describes a small-scale piece of research using concept mapping to elicit A level students' understandings of particle physics. Fifty-nine year 12 (16- and 17 year-old) students from two London schools participated. The exercise took place during school physics lessons. Students were instructed how to make a concept map and were…

The Development and Validation of the Physical Self-Concept Scale for Older Adults

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Ya-Wen; Lu, Frank Jing-Horng

2013-01-01

Physical self-concept plays a central role in older adults' physical health, mental health and psychological well-being; however, little attention has been paid to the underlying dimensions of physical self-concept in the elderly. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a new measurement for older adults. First, a qualitative study…

[Study of quality of life in adults with common variable immunodeficiency by using the Questionnaire SF-36].

PubMed

López-Pérez, Patricia; Miranda-Novales, Guadalupe; Segura-Méndez, Nora Hilda; Del Rivero-Hernández, Leonel; Cambray-Gutiérrez, Cesar; Chávez-García, Aurora

2014-01-01

Quality of life is a multidimensional concept that includes physical, emotional and social components associated with the disease. The use of tools to assess the Quality of Life Health Related (HRQOL) has increased in recent decades. Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is the most commonly diagnosed primary immunodeficiency. To evaluate the quality of life in patients with CVID using the questionnaire SF -36. A descriptive cross-sectional survey included 23 patients diagnosed with CVID, belonging to the Immunodeficiency Clinic Service of Allergology and Clinical Immunology in CMN Siglo XXI, IMSS. The questionnaire SF- 36 validated in Spanish was applied. descriptive statistics with simple frequencies and percentages, inferential statistics: Fisher exact test and ANOVA to compare means. The study involved 23 patients, 14 women (60%) and 9 men (40%), mean age 38.6 ± 14.7 years. The highest score was obtained in 83% emotional role. Dimensions with further deterioration in both genders were: 54% general health, vitality 59% and physical performance 72%. No differences were found regarding gender. The only issue in which statistically significant differences were found in patients with more than 3 comorbidities was change in health status in the past year (p=0.007). Patients with severe comorbidities, such as haematologicaloncological (leukemias, lymphomas, neoplasms), and pulmonary (severe bronchiectasis) showed further deterioration in the aspects of physical performance 73% and 64% emotional role. 65% of patients reported an improvement in health status in 74% in the last year. Adult patients with CVID show deterioration in different dimensions, particularly in the areas of general health, vitality and physical performance. Patients with severe comorbidities such as leukemia, lymphomas, malignancies and severe bronchiectasis show further deterioration in some aspects of quality of life, especially in physical performance and emotional role. A higher number of comorbidities was significantly associated with a lower score in changing health. The questionnaire SF-36 is useful for evaluating the quality of life of our patients with CVID.

A Virtual Study of Grid Resolution on Experiments of a Highly-Resolved Turbulent Plume

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maisto, Pietro M. F.; Marshall, Andre W.; Gollner, Michael J.; Fire Protection Engineering Department Collaboration

2017-11-01

An accurate representation of sub-grid scale turbulent mixing is critical for modeling fire plumes and smoke transport. In this study, PLIF and PIV diagnostics are used with the saltwater modeling technique to provide highly-resolved instantaneous field measurements in unconfined turbulent plumes useful for statistical analysis, physical insight, and model validation. The effect of resolution was investigated employing a virtual interrogation window (of varying size) applied to the high-resolution field measurements. Motivated by LES low-pass filtering concepts, the high-resolution experimental data in this study can be analyzed within the interrogation windows (i.e. statistics at the sub-grid scale) and on interrogation windows (i.e. statistics at the resolved scale). A dimensionless resolution threshold (L/D*) criterion was determined to achieve converged statistics on the filtered measurements. Such a criterion was then used to establish the relative importance between large and small-scale turbulence phenomena while investigating specific scales for the turbulent flow. First order data sets start to collapse at a resolution of 0.3D*, while for second and higher order statistical moments the interrogation window size drops down to 0.2D*.

Illustrating Sampling Distribution of a Statistic: Minitab Revisited

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, H. Dean; Evans, Marc A.

2008-01-01

Understanding the concept of the sampling distribution of a statistic is essential for the understanding of inferential procedures. Unfortunately, this topic proves to be a stumbling block for students in introductory statistics classes. In efforts to aid students in their understanding of this concept, alternatives to a lecture-based mode of…

Exploring the practicing-connections hypothesis: using gesture to support coordination of ideas in understanding a complex statistical concept.

PubMed

Son, Ji Y; Ramos, Priscilla; DeWolf, Melissa; Loftus, William; Stigler, James W

2018-01-01

In this article, we begin to lay out a framework and approach for studying how students come to understand complex concepts in rich domains. Grounded in theories of embodied cognition, we advance the view that understanding of complex concepts requires students to practice, over time, the coordination of multiple concepts, and the connection of this system of concepts to situations in the world. Specifically, we explore the role that a teacher's gesture might play in supporting students' coordination of two concepts central to understanding in the domain of statistics: mean and standard deviation. In Study 1 we show that university students who have just taken a statistics course nevertheless have difficulty taking both mean and standard deviation into account when thinking about a statistical scenario. In Study 2 we show that presenting the same scenario with an accompanying gesture to represent variation significantly impacts students' interpretation of the scenario. Finally, in Study 3 we present evidence that instructional videos on the internet fail to leverage gesture as a means of facilitating understanding of complex concepts. Taken together, these studies illustrate an approach to translating current theories of cognition into principles that can guide instructional design.

Experimental Determination of Dynamical Lee-Yang Zeros

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brandner, Kay; Maisi, Ville F.; Pekola, Jukka P.; Garrahan, Juan P.; Flindt, Christian

2017-05-01

Statistical physics provides the concepts and methods to explain the phase behavior of interacting many-body systems. Investigations of Lee-Yang zeros—complex singularities of the free energy in systems of finite size—have led to a unified understanding of equilibrium phase transitions. The ideas of Lee and Yang, however, are not restricted to equilibrium phenomena. Recently, Lee-Yang zeros have been used to characterize nonequilibrium processes such as dynamical phase transitions in quantum systems after a quench or dynamic order-disorder transitions in glasses. Here, we experimentally realize a scheme for determining Lee-Yang zeros in such nonequilibrium settings. We extract the dynamical Lee-Yang zeros of a stochastic process involving Andreev tunneling between a normal-state island and two superconducting leads from measurements of the dynamical activity along a trajectory. From the short-time behavior of the Lee-Yang zeros, we predict the large-deviation statistics of the activity which is typically difficult to measure. Our method paves the way for further experiments on the statistical mechanics of many-body systems out of equilibrium.

Fundamental movement skills proficiency in children with developmental coordination disorder: does physical self-concept matter?

PubMed

Yu, Jie; Sit, Cindy H P; Capio, Catherine M; Burnett, Angus; Ha, Amy S C; Huang, Wendy Y J

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to (1) examine differences in fundamental movement skills (FMS) proficiency, physical self-concept, and physical activity in children with and without developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and (2) determine the association of FMS proficiency with physical self-concept while considering key confounding factors. Participants included 43 children with DCD and 87 age-matched typically developing (TD) children. FMS proficiency was assessed using the Test of Gross Motor Development - second edition. Physical self-concept and physical activity were assessed using self-report questionnaires. A two-way (group by gender) ANCOVA was used to determine whether between-group differences existed in FMS proficiency, physical self-concept, and physical activity after controlling for age and BMI. Partial correlations and hierarchical multiple regression models were used to examine the relationship between FMS proficiency and physical self-concept. Compared with their TD peers, children with DCD displayed less proficiency in various components of FMS and viewed themselves as being less competent in physical coordination, sporting ability, and physical health. Physical coordination was a significant predictor of ability in object control skills. DCD status and gender were significant predictors of FMS proficiency. Future FMS interventions should target children with DCD and girls, and should emphasize improving object control skills proficiency and physical coordination. Children with DCD tend to have not only lower FMS proficiency than age-matched typically developing children but also lower physical self-concept. Self-perceptions of physical coordination by children with DCD are likely to be valuable contributors to development of object control skills. This may then help to develop their confidence in performing motor skills. Children with DCD need supportive programs that facilitate the development of object control skills. Efficacy of training programs may be improved if children experience a greater sense of control and success when performing object control skills.

An Exploration of Preference for Numerical Information in Relation to Math Self-Concept and Statistics Anxiety in a Graduate Statistics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Amanda

2014-01-01

The purpose of the current research was to investigate the relationship between preference for numerical information (PNI), math self-concept, and six types of statistics anxiety in an attempt to establish support for the nomological validity of the PNI. Correlations indicate that four types of statistics anxiety were strongly related to PNI, and…

25 Years of Self-Organized Criticality: Solar and Astrophysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aschwanden, Markus J.; Crosby, Norma B.; Dimitropoulou, Michaila; Georgoulis, Manolis K.; Hergarten, Stefan; McAteer, James; Milovanov, Alexander V.; Mineshige, Shin; Morales, Laura; Nishizuka, Naoto; Pruessner, Gunnar; Sanchez, Raul; Sharma, A. Surja; Strugarek, Antoine; Uritsky, Vadim

2016-01-01

Shortly after the seminal paper "Self-Organized Criticality: An explanation of 1/ f noise" by Bak et al. (1987), the idea has been applied to solar physics, in "Avalanches and the Distribution of Solar Flares" by Lu and Hamilton (1991). In the following years, an inspiring cross-fertilization from complexity theory to solar and astrophysics took place, where the SOC concept was initially applied to solar flares, stellar flares, and magnetospheric substorms, and later extended to the radiation belt, the heliosphere, lunar craters, the asteroid belt, the Saturn ring, pulsar glitches, soft X-ray repeaters, blazars, black-hole objects, cosmic rays, and boson clouds. The application of SOC concepts has been performed by numerical cellular automaton simulations, by analytical calculations of statistical (powerlaw-like) distributions based on physical scaling laws, and by observational tests of theoretically predicted size distributions and waiting time distributions. Attempts have been undertaken to import physical models into the numerical SOC toy models, such as the discretization of magneto-hydrodynamics (MHD) processes. The novel applications stimulated also vigorous debates about the discrimination between SOC models, SOC-like, and non-SOC processes, such as phase transitions, turbulence, random-walk diffusion, percolation, branching processes, network theory, chaos theory, fractality, multi-scale, and other complexity phenomena. We review SOC studies from the last 25 years and highlight new trends, open questions, and future challenges, as discussed during two recent ISSI workshops on this theme.

Flow and clogging of a sheep herd passing through a bottleneck.

PubMed

Garcimartín, A; Pastor, J M; Ferrer, L M; Ramos, J J; Martín-Gómez, C; Zuriguel, I

2015-02-01

We present an experimental study of a flock passing through a narrow door. Video monitoring of daily routines in a farm has enabled us to collect a sizable amount of data. By measuring the time lapse between the passage of consecutive animals, some features of the flow regime can be assessed. A quantitative definition of clogging is demonstrated based on the passage time statistics. These display broad tails, which can be fitted by power laws with a relatively large exponent. On the other hand, the distribution of burst sizes robustly evidences exponential behavior. Finally, borrowing concepts from granular physics and statistical mechanics, we evaluate the effect of increasing the door size and the performance of an obstacle placed in front of it. The success of these techniques opens new possibilities regarding their eventual extension to the management of human crowds.

Entropy production in mesoscopic stochastic thermodynamics: nonequilibrium kinetic cycles driven by chemical potentials, temperatures, and mechanical forces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qian, Hong; Kjelstrup, Signe; Kolomeisky, Anatoly B.; Bedeaux, Dick

2016-04-01

Nonequilibrium thermodynamics (NET) investigates processes in systems out of global equilibrium. On a mesoscopic level, it provides a statistical dynamic description of various complex phenomena such as chemical reactions, ion transport, diffusion, thermochemical, thermomechanical and mechanochemical fluxes. In the present review, we introduce a mesoscopic stochastic formulation of NET by analyzing entropy production in several simple examples. The fundamental role of nonequilibrium steady-state cycle kinetics is emphasized. The statistical mechanics of Onsager’s reciprocal relations in this context is elucidated. Chemomechanical, thermomechanical, and enzyme-catalyzed thermochemical energy transduction processes are discussed. It is argued that mesoscopic stochastic NET in phase space provides a rigorous mathematical basis of fundamental concepts needed for understanding complex processes in chemistry, physics and biology. This theory is also relevant for nanoscale technological advances.

Flow and clogging of a sheep herd passing through a bottleneck

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Garcimartín, A.; Pastor, J. M.; Ferrer, L. M.; Ramos, J. J.; Martín-Gómez, C.; Zuriguel, I.

2015-02-01

We present an experimental study of a flock passing through a narrow door. Video monitoring of daily routines in a farm has enabled us to collect a sizable amount of data. By measuring the time lapse between the passage of consecutive animals, some features of the flow regime can be assessed. A quantitative definition of clogging is demonstrated based on the passage time statistics. These display broad tails, which can be fitted by power laws with a relatively large exponent. On the other hand, the distribution of burst sizes robustly evidences exponential behavior. Finally, borrowing concepts from granular physics and statistical mechanics, we evaluate the effect of increasing the door size and the performance of an obstacle placed in front of it. The success of these techniques opens new possibilities regarding their eventual extension to the management of human crowds.

The Law of Entropy Increase - A Lab Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dittrich, William; Drosd, Robert; Minkin, Leonid; Shapovalov, Alexander S.

2016-09-01

The second law of thermodynamics has various formulations. There is the "Clausius formulation," which can be stated in a very intuitive way: "No process is possible whose sole result is the transfer of heat from a cooler to a hotter body." There is also the "Kelvin-Plank principle," which states that "no cyclic process exists whose sole result is the absorption of heat from a reservoir and the conversion of all this heat into work" [emphasis added] (since this would require perfect energy conversion efficiency). Both these statements can be presented to physics students in a conceptual manner, and students' "everyday" experiences will support either statement of the second law of thermodynamics. However, when the second law of thermodynamics is expressed using the concept of entropy (ΔS ≥ 0, for a closed system), most first-year physics students lack any direct experimental experience with this parameter. This paper describes a calculation of the increase in entropy that can be performed while completing three traditional thermodynamics experiments. These simple and quick calculations help students become familiar and comfortable with the concept of entropy. This paper is complementary to prior work where classroom activities were developed to provide insight into the statistical nature of entropy.

Assessing psychological well-being: self-report instruments for the NIH Toolbox.

PubMed

Salsman, John M; Lai, Jin-Shei; Hendrie, Hugh C; Butt, Zeeshan; Zill, Nicholas; Pilkonis, Paul A; Peterson, Christopher; Stoney, Catherine M; Brouwers, Pim; Cella, David

2014-02-01

Psychological well-being (PWB) has a significant relationship with physical and mental health. As a part of the NIH Toolbox for the Assessment of Neurological and Behavioral Function, we developed self-report item banks and short forms to assess PWB. Expert feedback and literature review informed the selection of PWB concepts and the development of item pools for positive affect, life satisfaction, and meaning and purpose. Items were tested with a community-dwelling US Internet panel sample of adults aged 18 and above (N = 552). Classical and item response theory (IRT) approaches were used to evaluate unidimensionality, fit of items to the overall measure, and calibrations of those items, including differential item function (DIF). IRT-calibrated item banks were produced for positive affect (34 items), life satisfaction (16 items), and meaning and purpose (18 items). Their psychometric properties were supported based on the results of factor analysis, fit statistics, and DIF evaluation. All banks measured the concepts precisely (reliability ≥0.90) for more than 98% of participants. These adult scales and item banks for PWB provide the flexibility, efficiency, and precision necessary to promote future epidemiological, observational, and intervention research on the relationship of PWB with physical and mental health.

A.V. Usova's Contribution to the Field of Concept Learning in Physics Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yavoruk, Oleg

2015-01-01

A.V. Usova (1921-2014) has always been one of the leading figures in Russian physics education. Her theory of physics concept formation was formulated during the 1970s and the 1980s and directly influenced the process of physics education in the 20th and the 21st century. Over the years there have been a lot of theories of concept formation. Her…

Physical self-concept and physical fitness in elderly individuals.

PubMed

Amesberger, G; Finkenzeller, T; Würth, S; Müller, E

2011-08-01

This investigation examined the relations between physical self-concept and physical fitness (endurance, balance, muscle strength, muscle power) for gaining knowledge about the interrelationship between subjective ratings and objective fitness scores in the elderly in three steps: (1) detecting correlations and changes in time, (2) clarifying the influence of gender, and (3) of a skiing intervention lasting 12 weeks. Physical self-concept was assessed using a modified version of the Physical Self-Concepts (PSK) scales (Stiller et al., 2004) reflecting three first-order factors (endurance, strength, general sportiness) and one second-order factor (global fitness). Objective fitness scores were obtained by VO(2 max), counter movement jump, concentric muscle strength, and static balance. The results reveal that elderly individuals' global physical self and general sportiness are mainly linked to VO(2 max) and concentric muscle strength. Global physical self is predicted by VO(2 max) in females and by physical strength (concentric muscle strength) in males, indicating gender differences. Over time, correlations between subjective ratings and objective fitness scores become stronger in the sense of convergent validity in the skiing intervention group, whereas convergent and divergent validity cannot be supported by data of the control group. In sum, physical self-concept is an important factor in the context of physical intervention programs in the elderly. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Biomechanical Concepts for the Physical Educator

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Strohmeyer, H. Scott

2004-01-01

The concepts and principles of biomechanics are familiar to the teacher of physical science as well as to the physical educator. The difference between the two instructors, however, is that one knows the language of science and the other provides an experientially rich environment to support acquisition of these concepts and principles. Use of…

Effect of Physical Attractiveness on Therapists' Initial Judgments of a Person's Self-concept

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hobfoll, Stevan E.; Penner, Louis A.

1978-01-01

Investigated effect of a person's physical attractiveness on a therapist's initial judgment of that person's self-concept. Videotapes and audiotapes were made of interviews with attractive and unattractive males and females. Physically attractive persons of both sexes were rated as having better self-concepts than unattractive persons. (Author)

Physics Structure Analysis of Parallel Waves Concept of Physics Teacher Candidate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarwi, S.; Supardi, K. I.; Linuwih, S.

2017-04-01

The aim of this research was to find a parallel structure concept of wave physics and the factors that influence on the formation of parallel conceptions of physics teacher candidates. The method used qualitative research which types of cross-sectional design. These subjects were five of the third semester of basic physics and six of the fifth semester of wave course students. Data collection techniques used think aloud and written tests. Quantitative data were analysed with descriptive technique-percentage. The data analysis technique for belief and be aware of answers uses an explanatory analysis. Results of the research include: 1) the structure of the concept can be displayed through the illustration of a map containing the theoretical core, supplements the theory and phenomena that occur daily; 2) the trend of parallel conception of wave physics have been identified on the stationary waves, resonance of the sound and the propagation of transverse electromagnetic waves; 3) the influence on the parallel conception that reading textbooks less comprehensive and knowledge is partial understanding as forming the structure of the theory.

The "Core Concepts Plus" Paradigm for Creating an Electronic Textbook for Introductory Business and Economic Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Haley, M. Ryan

2013-01-01

This paper describes a flexible paradigm for creating an electronic "Core Concepts Plus" textbook (CCP-text) for a course in Introductory Business and Economic Statistics (IBES). In general terms, "core concepts" constitute the intersection of IBES course material taught by all IBES professors at the author's university. The…

Students' Views on Physical Development and Physical Self-Concept in Adventure-Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gehris, Jeffrey; Kress, Jeff; Swalm, Ricky

2010-01-01

This study investigated 10th-grade students' views concerning the physical effects of an adventure-physical education curriculum and the potential of such a curriculum to enhance components of a multidimensional model of physical self-concept. Semistructured interviews were used to obtain students' views and participant observations were conducted…

Galton's legacy to research on intelligence.

PubMed

Jensen, Arthur R

2002-04-01

In the 1999 Galton Lecture for the annual conference of The Galton Institute, the author summarizes the main elements of Galton's ideas about human mental ability and the research paradigm they generated, including the concept of 'general' mental ability, its hereditary component, its physical basis, racial differences, and methods for measuring individual differences in general ability. Although the conclusions Galton drew from his empirical studies were seldom compelling for lack of the needed technology and methods of statistical inference in his day, contemporary research has generally borne out most of Galton's original and largely intuitive ideas, which still inspire mainstream scientific research on intelligence.

Pathways from fear of falling to quality of life: the mediating effect of the self-concept of health and physical independence.

PubMed

Hsu, Yawen; Alfermann, Dorothee; Lu, Frank J H; Lin, Linda L

2013-01-01

Fear of falling leads to many adverse consequences and may compromise the quality of life of older adults. Psychological factors are potential mediators between the fear of falling and quality of life, but have yet to be explored in detail. This study presents results from examining the mediating effect of the self-concept of health and physical independence. Data from Western and Eastern countries were compared. Concerns about falling, the level of participation in physical activities, the self-concept of health and physical independence, and health-related quality of life were measured using samples from Taiwan (n = 193) and Germany (n = 182). Multiple regression models were used to test the mediating effects. The relationship between fear of falling and quality of life was partially mediated through participation in physical activities and the self-concept of health and physical independence in both the Taiwanese and German samples. In particular, the self-concept of health and physical independence of the Taiwanese sample resulted in the strongest mediating effect. Potential mediating mechanisms through both participation in physical activities and the self-concept of health and physical independence provide useful information for understanding related theories and for explicating interventions. Cultural factors should also be accounted for when conducting research and programs related to the fear of falling.

Physical Self-Concept and Physical Activity Enjoyment in Elementary School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lohbeck, Annette; Tietjens, Maike; Bund, Andreas

2016-01-01

The present study examined gender differences and relationships of seven specific domains of physical self-concept (PSC) ("Strength," "Endurance," "Speed," "Flexibility," "Coordination," "Global Sport Competence," and "Appearance") and physical activity enjoyment (PAE) in 447…

More is the Same; Phase Transitions and Mean Field Theories

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kadanoff, Leo P.

2009-12-01

This paper is the first in a series that will look at the theory of phase transitions from the perspectives of physics and the philosophy of science. The series will consider a group of related concepts derived from condensed matter and statistical physics. The key technical ideas go under the names of "singularity", "order parameter", "mean field theory", "variational method", "correlation length", "universality class", "scale changes", and "renormalization". The first four of these will be considered here. In a less technical vein, the question here is how can matter, ordinary matter, support a diversity of forms. We see this diversity each time we observe ice in contact with liquid water or see water vapor (steam) come up from a pot of heated water. Different phases can be qualitatively different in that walking on ice is well within human capacity, but walking on liquid water is proverbially forbidden to ordinary humans. These differences have been apparent to humankind for millennia, but only brought within the domain of scientific understanding since the 1880s. A phase transition is a change from one behavior to another. A first order phase transition involves a discontinuous jump in some statistical variable. The discontinuous property is called the order parameter. Each phase transition has its own order parameter. The possible order parameters range over a tremendous variety of physical properties. These properties include the density of a liquid-gas transition, the magnetization in a ferromagnet, the size of a connected cluster in a percolation transition, and a condensate wave function in a superfluid or superconductor. A continuous transition occurs when the discontinuity in the jump approaches zero. This article is about statistical mechanics and the development of mean field theory as a basis for a partial understanding of phase transition phenomena. Much of the material in this review was first prepared for the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2006. It has appeared in draft form on the authors' web site (http://jfi.uchicago.edu/~leop/) since then. The title of this article is a hommage to Philip Anderson and his essay "More is Different" (Sci. New Ser. 177(4047):393-396, 1972; N.-P. Ong and R. Bhatt (eds.) More is Different: Fifty Years of Condensed Matter Physics, Princeton Series in Physics, Princeton University Press, 2001) which describes how new concepts, not applicable in ordinary classical or quantum mechanics, can arise from the consideration of aggregates of large numbers of particles. Since phase transitions only occur in systems with an infinite number of degrees of freedom, such transitions are a prime example of Anderson's thesis.

Physical Activity and Physical Self-Concept among Sedentary Adolescent Females; An Intervention Study

PubMed Central

Schneider, Margaret; Dunton, Genevieve Fridlund; Cooper, Dan M.

2008-01-01

Problem Physical activity has been promoted as a means of enhancing self-concept, yet the evidence for this connection is far from compelling. In particular, experimental research investigating this association during adolescence, a period during which many youth struggle to maintain a positive self-image, is noticeably lacking. This study investigates the impact on self-concept of a 9-month physical activity intervention among sedentary adolescent females. Method Female adolescents who were sedentary at baseline were assigned either to an exercise intervention or a comparison group as part of the controlled trial. The intervention was school-based, and assignment to groups was based on school attended. Intervention participants engaged in supervised activity 4 times per week and received didactic instruction promoting activity outside of school 1 day per week. Self-concept, physical activity participation, and cardiovascular fitness were assessed before, mid-way through, and after the 9-month intervention. Results The intervention had a significant positive impact on participation in vigorous activity and cardiovascular fitness. The intervention did not significantly influence any of the self-concept dimensions overall. There was, however, a three-way interaction such that there was an increase in global physical self-concept among those intervention participants who increased cardiovascular fitness. Conclusions These findings indicate that a physical activity intervention among sedentary adolescent females enhanced global physical self-concept for a subset of intervention participants who manifested positive changes in fitness. PMID:18443656

Physical self-concept and its link to cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance among adolescents with mild congenital heart disease.

PubMed

Chen, Chi-Wen; Su, Wen-Jen; Wang, Jou-Kou; Yang, Hsiao-Ling; Chiang, Yueh-Tao; Moons, Philip

2015-06-01

Due to medical advances, most children with congenital heart disease (CHD) are expected to survive into adulthood. Establishing adequate physical self-concept and cardiopulmonary tolerance during the adolescent period can primarily enhance overall well-being. The purpose of this study was to undertake a gender-specific evaluation of the domain of physical self-concept among adolescents with mild CHD, and to examine the relationships between physical self-concept and cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance among adolescents with mild CHD. Four hundred and thirteen adolescents 12-20 years of age, whose cardiologists had not recommended any limitation of exercise, completed Physical Self-Description Questionnaires and three-minute step tests in two outpatient cardiology departments. The male participants had significantly greater scores in measures of overall physical self-concept, competence in sports, physical appearance, body fat, physical activity, endurance, and strength than did the female participants. More than 80% of the participants had at least an average cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance index. The perception of not being 'too fat' and being more physically active were significant correlates of better cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance for adolescents with mild CHD. The results provided evidence for gender-specific evaluation of domains of physical self-concept among adolescents with mild CHD. The three-minute step test to measure cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance in adolescents with mild CHD may be an appropriate objective measure for use in future research. Continued efforts are needed in early intervention to promote cardiopulmonary exercise tolerance. © The European Society of Cardiology 2014.

Registered nurses' constructed meaning of concepts of solution and their use in clinical practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wilkes, Lesley M.; Batts, Judith E.

1991-12-01

Since the introduction of nursing into tertiary institutions in Australia in 1975, there has been increasing interest in the teaching of physical science to nurses. Various courses in physical science for nurse students have been developed. They vary in length and content but there is agreement that concepts taught should be closely related to nursing applications. The choice of relevant concepts tends to be made by individual curriculum developers. This paper reports an examination of the use of physical science concepts and their relevance from the perspective of registered nurses practising in general ward areas. Inherent in this study is the premise that for registered nurses to have ideas of the physical science underlying their practice they must have constructed meaning first for these concepts. Specific chemical concepts related to solutions are discussed in these terms.

Understanding physical (in-) activity, overweight, and obesity in childhood: Effects of congruence between physical self-concept and motor competence.

PubMed

Utesch, T; Dreiskämper, D; Naul, R; Geukes, K

2018-04-12

Both the physical self-concept and actual motor competence are important for healthy future physical activity levels and consequently decrease overweight and obesity in childhood. However, children scoring high on motor competence do not necessarily report high levels of physical self-concept and vice versa, resulting in respective (in-) accuracy also referred to as (non-) veridicality. This study examines whether children's accuracy of physical self-concept is a meaningful predictive factor for their future physical activity. Motor competence, physical self-concept and physical activity were assessed in 3 rd grade and one year later in 4 th grade. Children's weight status was categorized based on WHO recommendations. Polynomial regression with Response surface analyses were conducted with a quasi-DIF approach examining moderating weight status effects. Analyses revealed that children with higher motor competence levels and higher self-perceptions show greater physical activity. Importantly, children who perceive their motor competence more accurately (compared to less) show more future physical activity. This effect is strong for underweight and overweight/obese children, but weak for normal weight children. This study indicates that an accurate self-perception of motor competence fosters future physical activity beyond single main effects, respectively. Hence, the promotion of actual motor competence should be linked with the respective development of accurate self-knowledge.

Essential concepts and underlying theories from physics, chemistry, and mathematics for "biochemistry and molecular biology" majors.

PubMed

Wright, Ann; Provost, Joseph; Roecklein-Canfield, Jennifer A; Bell, Ellis

2013-01-01

Over the past two years, through an NSF RCN UBE grant, the ASBMB has held regional workshops for faculty members from around the country. The workshops have focused on developing lists of Core Principles or Foundational Concepts in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, a list of foundational skills, and foundational concepts from Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics that all Biochemistry or Molecular Biology majors must understand to complete their major coursework. The allied fields working group created a survey to validate foundational concepts from Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics identified from participant feedback at various workshops. One-hundred twenty participants responded to the survey and 68% of the respondents answered yes to the question: "We have identified the following as the core concepts and underlying theories from Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics that Biochemistry majors or Molecular Biology majors need to understand after they complete their major courses: 1) mechanical concepts from Physics, 2) energy and thermodynamic concepts from Physics, 3) critical concepts of structure from chemistry, 4) critical concepts of reactions from Chemistry, and 5) essential Mathematics. In your opinion, is the above list complete?" Respondents also delineated subcategories they felt should be included in these broad categories. From the results of the survey and this analysis the allied fields working group constructed a consensus list of allied fields concepts, which will help inform Biochemistry and Molecular Biology educators when considering the ASBMB recommended curriculum for Biochemistry or Molecular Biology majors and in the development of appropriate assessment tools to gauge student understanding of how these concepts relate to biochemistry and molecular biology. © 2013 by The International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

Enhancing an Undergraduate Business Statistics Course: Linking Teaching and Learning with Assessment Issues

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fairfield-Sonn, James W.; Kolluri, Bharat; Rogers, Annette; Singamsetti, Rao

2009-01-01

This paper examines several ways in which teaching effectiveness and student learning in an undergraduate Business Statistics course can be enhanced. First, we review some key concepts in Business Statistics that are often challenging to teach and show how using real data sets assist students in developing deeper understanding of the concepts.…

Simulation-Based Performance Assessment: An Innovative Approach to Exploring Understanding of Physical Science Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gale, Jessica; Wind, Stefanie; Koval, Jayma; Dagosta, Joseph; Ryan, Mike; Usselman, Marion

2016-01-01

This paper illustrates the use of simulation-based performance assessment (PA) methodology in a recent study of eighth-grade students' understanding of physical science concepts. A set of four simulation-based PA tasks were iteratively developed to assess student understanding of an array of physical science concepts, including net force,…

Prospective Physics Teachers' Level of Understanding Energy, Power and Force Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saglam-Arslan, Aysegul; Kurnaz, Mehmet Altan

2009-01-01

The aim of this study is to determine prospective physics teachers' level of understanding of the concepts of energy and the related concepts of force and power. The study was carried out with the participation of 56 physics education department students at a university in Karadeniz region. All participants had previously taken an introductory…

Interdisciplinary Mathematics-Physics Approaches to Teaching the Concept of Angle in Elementary School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Munier, Valerie; Merle, Helene

2009-01-01

The present study takes an interdisciplinary mathematics-physics approach to the acquisition of the concept of angle by children in Grades 3-5. This paper first presents the theoretical framework we developed, then we analyse the concept of angle and the difficulties pupils have with it. Finally, we report three experimental physics-based teaching…

Influence of culture and language sensitive physics on science attitude enhancement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morales, Marie Paz E.

2015-12-01

The study critically explored how culture and language sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude towards science. Their cultural dimensions, epistemological beliefs, and views on integration of culture and language in the teaching and learning process determined their cultural preference or profile. Design and development of culture and language sensitive curriculum materials in physics were heavily influenced by these learners' cultural preference or profile. Pilot-study using interviews and focus group discussions with natives of Pangasinan and document analysis were conducted to identify the culture, practices, and traditions integrated in the lesson development. Comparison of experimental participants' pretest and posttest results on science attitude measure showed significant statistical difference. Appraisal of science attitude enhancement favored the experimental group over the control group. Qualitative data deduced from post implementation interviews, focus group discussions, and journal log entries showed the same trend in favor of the experimental participants. The study revealed that culture and language integration in the teaching and learning process of physics concepts enabled students to develop positive attitude to science, their culture, and native language.

Physical and geotechnical properties and assessment of sediment stability on the continental slope and basin of the Bransfield Basin (Antarctica Peninsula)

USGS Publications Warehouse

Casas, D.; Ercilla, G.; Estrada, F.; Alonso, B.; Baraza, J.; Lee, H.; Kayen, R.; Chiocci, F.

2004-01-01

Our investigation is centred on the continental slope of the Antarctic Peninsula and adjacent basin. Type of sediments, sedimentary stratigraphy, and physical and geotechnical characterization of the sediments have been integrated. Four different types of sediments have been defined: diamictons, silty and muddy turbidites, muddy, silty and muddy matrix embedded clast contourites. There is a close correspondence between the physical properties (density, magnetic susceptibility and p-wave velocity) and the texture and/or fabric as laminations and stratification. From a quantitative point of view, only a few statistical correlations between textural and physical properties have been found. Within the geotechnical properties, only water content is most influenced by texture. This slope, with a maximum gradient observed (20??), is stable, according to the stability under gravitational loading concepts, and the maximum stable slope that would range from 22?? to 29??. Nevertheless, different instability features have been observed. Volcanic activity, bottom currents, glacial loading-unloading or earthquakes can be considered as potential mechanisms to induce instability in this area. Copyright ?? Taylor & Francis Inc.

Exploring the Impact of Culture- and Language-Influenced Physics on Science Attitude Enhancement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morales, Marie Paz E.

2016-02-01

"Culture," a set of principles that trace and familiarize human beings within their existential realities, may provide an invisible lens through which reality could be discerned. Critically explored in this study is how culture- and language-sensitive curriculum materials in physics improve Pangasinan learners' attitude toward science. Their cultural preference or profile defined their cultural dimensions, epistemological beliefs, and views on integration of culture and language in the teaching and learning processes. The culture- and language-influenced curriculum materials in physics were heavily influenced by Pangasinan learners' cultural preference or profile. Results of the experimental participants' pretest and posttest on science attitude measure, when compared, showed significant statistical difference. Assessment of science attitude enhancement favored the experimental group over the control group. Qualitative data gathered from postimplementation interviews, focus group discussions, and journal log entries indicated the same trend in favor of the experimental participants. The study yielded that culture and language integration in the teaching and learning processes of physics concepts allowed students to develop positive attitude to science, their culture, and native language.

On the Formal-Logical Analysis of the Foundations of Mathematics Applied to Problems in Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalanov, Temur Z.

2016-03-01

Analysis of the foundations of mathematics applied to problems in physics was proposed. The unity of formal logic and of rational dialectics is methodological basis of the analysis. It is shown that critical analysis of the concept of mathematical quantity - central concept of mathematics - leads to the following conclusion: (1) The concept of ``mathematical quantity'' is the result of the following mental operations: (a) abstraction of the ``quantitative determinacy of physical quantity'' from the ``physical quantity'' at that the ``quantitative determinacy of physical quantity'' is an independent object of thought; (b) abstraction of the ``amount (i.e., abstract number)'' from the ``quantitative determinacy of physical quantity'' at that the ``amount (i.e., abstract number)'' is an independent object of thought. In this case, unnamed, abstract numbers are the only sign of the ``mathematical quantity''. This sign is not an essential sign of the material objects. (2) The concept of mathematical quantity is meaningless, erroneous, and inadmissible concept in science because it represents the following formal-logical and dialectical-materialistic error: negation of the existence of the essential sign of the concept (i.e., negation of the existence of the essence of the concept) and negation of the existence of measure of material object.

SDE decomposition and A-type stochastic interpretation in nonequilibrium processes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuan, Ruoshi; Tang, Ying; Ao, Ping

2017-12-01

An innovative theoretical framework for stochastic dynamics based on the decomposition of a stochastic differential equation (SDE) into a dissipative component, a detailed-balance-breaking component, and a dual-role potential landscape has been developed, which has fruitful applications in physics, engineering, chemistry, and biology. It introduces the A-type stochastic interpretation of the SDE beyond the traditional Ito or Stratonovich interpretation or even the α-type interpretation for multidimensional systems. The potential landscape serves as a Hamiltonian-like function in nonequilibrium processes without detailed balance, which extends this important concept from equilibrium statistical physics to the nonequilibrium region. A question on the uniqueness of the SDE decomposition was recently raised. Our review of both the mathematical and physical aspects shows that uniqueness is guaranteed. The demonstration leads to a better understanding of the robustness of the novel framework. In addition, we discuss related issues including the limitations of an approach to obtaining the potential function from a steady-state distribution.

An intelligent tutoring system for teaching fundamental physics concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Albacete, Patricia Lucia

1999-12-01

Students in traditional elementary mechanics classes can master problem solving of a quantitative nature but not those of a qualitative type. Moreover, students' naive conceptions of physics remain unchanged after completing their class. A few approaches have been implemented to improve this situation however none have met with great success. Since elementary mechanics is the foundation for all of physics and it is a required course for most science majors there is a clear need to improve the instruction of the subject. To address this problem I developed a intelligent tutoring system, called the Conceptual Helper, which coaches students during homework problem solving. The tutor uses a unique cognitive based approach to teaching physics, which presents innovations in three areas. (1) The teaching strategy, which focuses on teaching those links among the concepts of the domain that are essential for conceptual understanding yet are seldom learned by the students. (2) The manner in which the knowledge is taught, which is based on a combination of effective human tutoring techniques (e.g., hinting), effective pedagogical methods (e.g., a microscopic view of matter), and less cognitively demanding approaches (e.g., anthropomorphism). (3) The way in which misconceptions are handled which uses the underlying scientific correct line of reasoning to describe to the student the phenomenon that is the basis for the misconception. From a technological point of view the Conceptual Helper was implemented as a model-tracing tutor which intervenes when students make errors and after completion of each problem, at which time the tutor scaffolds the students on post-problem reflection. The remediation is guided by probabilistic assessment of mastery and the interventions are adapted to the errors. The thesis also presents the results of the evaluation of the system which revealed that the gain scores of the experimental group were statistically significantly higher than those of the control group, suggesting that the Conceptual Helper was indeed capable of effectively teaching the conceptual aspects of physics as well as helped students abandon common misconceptions. Furthermore, the evaluation showed that the students' performance on a standardized test was comparable to those of other more complex approaches.

Statistical Physics of Adaptation

DTIC Science & Technology

2016-08-23

Statistical Physics of Adaptation Nikolay Perunov, Robert A. Marsland, and Jeremy L. England Department of Physics , Physics of Living Systems Group...Subject Areas: Biological Physics , Complex Systems, Statistical Physics I. INTRODUCTION It has long been understood that nonequilibrium driving can...equilibrium may appear to have been specially selected for physical properties connected to their ability to absorb work from the particular driving environment

The influence of intuition and communication language in generating student conceptions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handhika, J.; Cari, C.; Suparmi, A.; Sunarno, W.

2017-11-01

This research aims to describe the influence of intuition and communication language in generating student conceptions. The conception diagnostic test is used to reveal student conception. The diagnostic test results described and communication language profiled by giving instruction to students to make sentences using physics quantities. Sentences expressed by students are reduced and profiled potential effects. Obtained information that (1) Students generalize non-scientific experience (based on feeling) into the physics problem. This process caused misconception. Communication language can make the students difficult to understand the concept because of the difference meaning of communication and physics language.

Agent-based modeling of physical activity behavior and environmental correlations: an introduction and illustration.

PubMed

Zhu, Weimo; Nedovic-Budic, Zorica; Olshansky, Robert B; Marti, Jed; Gao, Yong; Park, Youngsik; McAuley, Edward; Chodzko-Zajko, Wojciech

2013-03-01

To introduce Agent-Based Model (ABM) to physical activity (PA) research and, using data from a study of neighborhood walkability and walking behavior, to illustrate parameters for an ABM of walking behavior. The concept, brief history, mechanism, major components, key steps, advantages, and limitations of ABM were first introduced. For illustration, 10 participants (age in years: mean = 68, SD = 8) were recruited from a walkable and a nonwalkable neighborhood. They wore AMP 331 triaxial accelerometers and GeoLogger GPA tracking devices for 21 days. Data were analyzed using conventional statistics and highresolution geographic image analysis, which focused on a) path length, b) path duration, c) number of GPS reporting points, and d) interaction between distances and time. Average steps by subjects ranged from 1810-10,453 steps per day (mean = 6899, SD = 3823). No statistical difference in walking behavior was found between neighborhoods (Walkable = 6710 ± 2781, Nonwalkable = 7096 ± 4674). Three environment parameters (ie, sidewalk, crosswalk, and path) were identified for future ABM simulation. ABM should provide a better understanding of PA behavior's interaction with the environment, as illustrated using a real-life example. PA field should take advantage of ABM in future research.

Universality of clone dynamics during tissue development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rulands, Steffen; Lescroart, Fabienne; Chabab, Samira; Hindley, Christopher J.; Prior, Nicole; Sznurkowska, Magdalena K.; Huch, Meritxell; Philpott, Anna; Blanpain, Cedric; Simons, Benjamin D.

2018-05-01

The emergence of complex organs is driven by the coordinated proliferation, migration and differentiation of precursor cells. The fate behaviour of these cells is reflected in the time evolution of their progeny, termed clones, which serve as a key experimental observable. In adult tissues, where cell dynamics is constrained by the condition of homeostasis, clonal tracing studies based on transgenic animal models have advanced our understanding of cell fate behaviour and its dysregulation in disease1,2. But what can be learnt from clonal dynamics in development, where the spatial cohesiveness of clones is impaired by tissue deformations during tissue growth? Drawing on the results of clonal tracing studies, we show that, despite the complexity of organ development, clonal dynamics may converge to a critical state characterized by universal scaling behaviour of clone sizes. By mapping clonal dynamics onto a generalization of the classical theory of aerosols, we elucidate the origin and range of scaling behaviours and show how the identification of universal scaling dependences may allow lineage-specific information to be distilled from experiments. Our study shows the emergence of core concepts of statistical physics in an unexpected context, identifying cellular systems as a laboratory to study non-equilibrium statistical physics.

Topological supersymmetry breaking: The definition and stochastic generalization of chaos and the limit of applicability of statistics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ovchinnikov, Igor V.; Schwartz, Robert N.; Wang, Kang L.

2016-03-01

The concept of deterministic dynamical chaos has a long history and is well established by now. Nevertheless, its field theoretic essence and its stochastic generalization have been revealed only very recently. Within the newly found supersymmetric theory of stochastics (STS), all stochastic differential equations (SDEs) possess topological or de Rahm supersymmetry and stochastic chaos is the phenomenon of its spontaneous breakdown. Even though the STS is free of approximations and thus is technically solid, it is still missing a firm interpretational basis in order to be physically sound. Here, we make a few important steps toward the construction of the interpretational foundation for the STS. In particular, we discuss that one way to understand why the ground states of chaotic SDEs are conditional (not total) probability distributions, is that some of the variables have infinite memory of initial conditions and thus are not “thermalized”, i.e., cannot be described by the initial-conditions-independent probability distributions. As a result, the definitive assumption of physical statistics that the ground state is a steady-state total probability distribution is not valid for chaotic SDEs.

Exploring Explanations of Subglacial Bedform Sizes Using Statistical Models.

PubMed

Hillier, John K; Kougioumtzoglou, Ioannis A; Stokes, Chris R; Smith, Michael J; Clark, Chris D; Spagnolo, Matteo S

2016-01-01

Sediments beneath modern ice sheets exert a key control on their flow, but are largely inaccessible except through geophysics or boreholes. In contrast, palaeo-ice sheet beds are accessible, and typically characterised by numerous bedforms. However, the interaction between bedforms and ice flow is poorly constrained and it is not clear how bedform sizes might reflect ice flow conditions. To better understand this link we present a first exploration of a variety of statistical models to explain the size distribution of some common subglacial bedforms (i.e., drumlins, ribbed moraine, MSGL). By considering a range of models, constructed to reflect key aspects of the physical processes, it is possible to infer that the size distributions are most effectively explained when the dynamics of ice-water-sediment interaction associated with bedform growth is fundamentally random. A 'stochastic instability' (SI) model, which integrates random bedform growth and shrinking through time with exponential growth, is preferred and is consistent with other observations of palaeo-bedforms and geophysical surveys of active ice sheets. Furthermore, we give a proof-of-concept demonstration that our statistical approach can bridge the gap between geomorphological observations and physical models, directly linking measurable size-frequency parameters to properties of ice sheet flow (e.g., ice velocity). Moreover, statistically developing existing models as proposed allows quantitative predictions to be made about sizes, making the models testable; a first illustration of this is given for a hypothesised repeat geophysical survey of bedforms under active ice. Thus, we further demonstrate the potential of size-frequency distributions of subglacial bedforms to assist the elucidation of subglacial processes and better constrain ice sheet models.

Developing Skills versus Reinforcing Concepts in Physics Labs: Insight from a Survey of Students' Beliefs about Experimental Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilcox, Bethany R.; Lewandowski, H. J.

2017-01-01

Physics laboratory courses have been generally acknowledged as an important component of the undergraduate curriculum, particularly with respect to developing students' interest in, and understanding of, experimental physics. There are a number of possible learning goals for these courses including reinforcing physics concepts, developing…

Emergence and Phase Transitions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sikkema, Arnold

2006-05-01

Phase transitions are well defined in physics through concepts such as spontaneous symmetry breaking, order parameter, entropy, and critical exponents. But emergence --- also exhibiting whole-part relations (such as top-down influence), unpredictability, and insensitivity to microscopic detail --- is a loosely-defined concept being used in many disciplines, particularly in psychology, biology, philosophy, as well as in physics[1,2]. I will review the concepts of emergence as used in the various fields and consider the extent to which the methods of phase transitions can clarify the usefulness of the concept of emergence both within the discipline of physics and beyond.1. Robert B. Laughlin, A Different Universe: Reinventing Physics from the Bottom Down (New York: Basic Books, 2005). 2. George F.R. Ellis, ``Physics and the Real World'', Physics Today, vol. 58, no. 7 (July 2005) pp. 49-54.

Pre-Service Physics Teachers' Content Knowledge of Electric and Magnetic Field Concepts: Conceptual Facets and Their Balance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nousiainen, Maija; Koponen, Ismo T.

2017-01-01

The concepts of electricity and magnetism in physics are complex and demanding to learn because their meaning builds through several different phenomenological areas. Each of the phenomenological areas adds a certain facet of the meaning of the concept. All standard physics textbooks discuss at least 1) force, 2) energy and work, and 3) electric…

The Electromagnetic Conception of Nature at the Root of the Special and General Relativity Theories and Its Revolutionary Meaning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giannetto, Enrico R. A.

2009-01-01

The revolution in XX century physics, induced by relativity theories, had its roots within the electromagnetic conception of Nature. It was developed through a tradition related to Brunian and Leibnizian physics, to the German "Naturphilosophie" and English XIXth physics. The electromagnetic conception of Nature was in some way realized by the…

Evaluating High School Students' Conceptions of the Relationship between Mathematics and Physics: Development of a Questionnaire

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapucu, S.; Öçal, M. F.; Simsek, M.

2016-01-01

The purposes of this study were (1) to develop a questionnaire measuring high school students' conceptions of the relationship between mathematics and physics, (2) and to determine the students' conceptions of the relationship between mathematics and physics. A total of 718 high school students (343 male, 375 female) participated in this study.…

Fun with Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McGrath, Susan

This book shows how physics relates to daily life. Chapters included are: (1) "Physics of Fun" (dealing with the concepts of friction, Bernoulli's principle, lift, buoyancy, adhesion, cohesion, surface tension, gas expansion, waves, light, mirror images, and solar cells); (2) "Physics of Nature" (illustrating the concepts of inertia, static…

Using Interactive Simulations in Assessment: The Use of Computer-Based Interactive Simulations in the Assessment of Statistical Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Neumann, David L.

2010-01-01

Interactive computer-based simulations have been applied in several contexts to teach statistical concepts in university level courses. In this report, the use of interactive simulations as part of summative assessment in a statistics course is described. Students accessed the simulations via the web and completed questions relating to the…

Using Pooled Data and Data Visualization to Introduce Statistical Concepts in the General Chemistry Laboratory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olsen, Robert J.

2008-01-01

I describe how data pooling and data visualization can be employed in the first-semester general chemistry laboratory to introduce core statistical concepts such as central tendency and dispersion of a data set. The pooled data are plotted as a 1-D scatterplot, a purpose-designed number line through which statistical features of the data are…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 10: Transducers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on transducers is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system.…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 13: Radiation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on radiation is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system.…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 5: Resistance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on resistance is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system.…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 12: Time Constants.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on time constants is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 11: Vibrations and Waves.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on vibrations and waves is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 9: Energy Convertors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on energy convertors is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 8: Force Transformers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on force transformers is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 1: Force.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on force is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system. This…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 6: Power.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on power is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system. In this…

Energy: Between Physics and Metaphysics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bunge, Mario

2000-01-01

The general concept of energy is somewhat unclear as long as it is confined to physics since every chapter of it defines its own particular concept of energy. The general concept can be elucidated in terms of the hypergeneral concepts of concrete things and changeability. Concludes that physicists and philosophers can learn from one another.…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 7: Potential and Kinetic Energy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on potential and kinetic energy is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 2: Work.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on work is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system. In this…

Unified Technical Concepts. Module 3: Rate.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Technical Education Research Center, Waco, TX.

This concept module on rate is one of thirteen modules that provide a flexible, laboratory-based physics instructional package designed to meet the specialized needs of students in two-year, postsecondary technical schools. Each of the thirteen concept modules discusses a single physics concept and how it is applied to each energy system. This…

25 Years of Self-organized Criticality: Concepts and Controversies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watkins, Nicholas W.; Pruessner, Gunnar; Chapman, Sandra C.; Crosby, Norma B.; Jensen, Henrik J.

2016-01-01

Introduced by the late Per Bak and his colleagues, self-organized criticality (SOC) has been one of the most stimulating concepts to come out of statistical mechanics and condensed matter theory in the last few decades, and has played a significant role in the development of complexity science. SOC, and more generally fractals and power laws, have attracted much comment, ranging from the very positive to the polemical. The other papers (Aschwanden et al. in Space Sci. Rev., 2014, this issue; McAteer et al. in Space Sci. Rev., 2015, this issue; Sharma et al. in Space Sci. Rev. 2015, in preparation) in this special issue showcase the considerable body of observations in solar, magnetospheric and fusion plasma inspired by the SOC idea, and expose the fertile role the new paradigm has played in approaches to modeling and understanding multiscale plasma instabilities. This very broad impact, and the necessary process of adapting a scientific hypothesis to the conditions of a given physical system, has meant that SOC as studied in these fields has sometimes differed significantly from the definition originally given by its creators. In Bak's own field of theoretical physics there are significant observational and theoretical open questions, even 25 years on (Pruessner 2012). One aim of the present review is to address the dichotomy between the great reception SOC has received in some areas, and its shortcomings, as they became manifest in the controversies it triggered. Our article tries to clear up what we think are misunderstandings of SOC in fields more remote from its origins in statistical mechanics, condensed matter and dynamical systems by revisiting Bak, Tang and Wiesenfeld's original papers.

Analysis of the most common concept inventories in physics: What are we assessing?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Laverty, James T.; Caballero, Marcos D.

2018-06-01

Assessing student learning is a cornerstone of educational practice. Standardized assessments have played a significant role in the development of instruction, curricula, and educational spaces in college physics. However, the use of these assessments to evaluate student learning is only productive if they continue to align with our learning goals. Recently, there have been calls to elevate the process of science ("scientific practices") to the same level of importance and emphasis as the concepts of physics ("core ideas" and "crosscutting concepts"). We use the recently developed Three-Dimensional Learning Assessment Protocol to investigate how well the most commonly used standardized assessments in introductory physics (i.e., concept inventories) align with this modern understanding of physics education's learning goals. We find that many of the questions on concept inventories do elicit evidence of student understanding of core ideas, but do not have the potential to elicit evidence of scientific practices or crosscutting concepts. Furthermore, we find that the individual scientific practices and crosscutting concepts that are assessed using these tools are limited to a select few. We discuss the implications that these findings have on designing and testing curricula and instruction both in the past and for the future.

Statistical issues in quality control of proteomic analyses: good experimental design and planning.

PubMed

Cairns, David A

2011-03-01

Quality control is becoming increasingly important in proteomic investigations as experiments become more multivariate and quantitative. Quality control applies to all stages of an investigation and statistics can play a key role. In this review, the role of statistical ideas in the design and planning of an investigation is described. This involves the design of unbiased experiments using key concepts from statistical experimental design, the understanding of the biological and analytical variation in a system using variance components analysis and the determination of a required sample size to perform a statistically powerful investigation. These concepts are described through simple examples and an example data set from a 2-D DIGE pilot experiment. Each of these concepts can prove useful in producing better and more reproducible data. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Alternative Conceptions: Turning Adversity into Advantage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Annalize; Lemmer, Miriam; Gunstone, Richard

2017-08-01

While a vast body of research has identified difficulties in students' understanding about forces and acceleration and their related alternative conceptions, far less research suggests ways to use students' alternative conceptions to enhance conceptual understanding of a specific fundamental concept. This study focused on distinguishing between students' conceptual understanding of the Newtonian concept of gravitational acceleration being the same for all objects and students' alternative conception that heavy objects fall faster. A multiple choice questionnaire was distributed to first year physics students for three consecutive years at a university in South Africa. The results indicate that changing the direction of motion and the physics quantity asked in paired questions revealed practically significant inconsistencies in students' reasoning and conceptions. This research contributes to the body of knowledge in proposing how the alternative conception of mass-related gravitational acceleration can be used in instruction to enhance conceptual understanding of the force-mass-acceleration relationship. Understanding of this relationship not only promotes conceptual understanding of the basic Newtonian concepts of the laws of motion which forms the critical foundation on which more advanced physics courses are built, but also contributes towards students' perception of physics as a set of coherent ideas applicable in all contexts.

Theory of the Sea Ice Thickness Distribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Toppaladoddi, Srikanth; Wettlaufer, J. S.

2015-10-01

We use concepts from statistical physics to transform the original evolution equation for the sea ice thickness distribution g (h ) from Thorndike et al. into a Fokker-Planck-like conservation law. The steady solution is g (h )=N (q )hqe-h /H, where q and H are expressible in terms of moments over the transition probabilities between thickness categories. The solution exhibits the functional form used in observational fits and shows that for h ≪1 , g (h ) is controlled by both thermodynamics and mechanics, whereas for h ≫1 only mechanics controls g (h ). Finally, we derive the underlying Langevin equation governing the dynamics of the ice thickness h , from which we predict the observed g (h ). The genericity of our approach provides a framework for studying the geophysical-scale structure of the ice pack using methods of broad relevance in statistical mechanics.

A pedagogical approach to the Boltzmann factor through experiments and simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Battaglia, O. R.; Bonura, A.; Sperandeo-Mineo, R. M.

2009-09-01

The Boltzmann factor is the basis of a huge amount of thermodynamic and statistical physics, both classical and quantum. It governs the behaviour of all systems in nature that are exchanging energy with their environment. To understand why the expression has this specific form involves a deep mathematical analysis, whose flow of logic is hard to see and is not at the level of high school or college students' preparation. We here present some experiments and simulations aimed at directly deriving its mathematical expression and illustrating the fundamental concepts on which it is grounded. Experiments use easily available apparatuses, and simulations are developed in the Net-Logo environment that, besides having a user-friendly interface, allows an easy interaction with the algorithm. The approach supplies pedagogical support for the introduction of the Boltzmann factor at the undergraduate level to students without a background in statistical mechanics.

Theory of the Sea Ice Thickness Distribution.

PubMed

Toppaladoddi, Srikanth; Wettlaufer, J S

2015-10-02

We use concepts from statistical physics to transform the original evolution equation for the sea ice thickness distribution g(h) from Thorndike et al. into a Fokker-Planck-like conservation law. The steady solution is g(h)=N(q)h(q)e(-h/H), where q and H are expressible in terms of moments over the transition probabilities between thickness categories. The solution exhibits the functional form used in observational fits and shows that for h≪1, g(h) is controlled by both thermodynamics and mechanics, whereas for h≫1 only mechanics controls g(h). Finally, we derive the underlying Langevin equation governing the dynamics of the ice thickness h, from which we predict the observed g(h). The genericity of our approach provides a framework for studying the geophysical-scale structure of the ice pack using methods of broad relevance in statistical mechanics.

Universal properties of mythological networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mac Carron, Pádraig; Kenna, Ralph

2012-07-01

As in statistical physics, the concept of universality plays an important, albeit qualitative, role in the field of comparative mythology. Here we apply statistical mechanical tools to analyse the networks underlying three iconic mythological narratives with a view to identifying common and distinguishing quantitative features. Of the three narratives, an Anglo-Saxon and a Greek text are mostly believed by antiquarians to be partly historically based while the third, an Irish epic, is often considered to be fictional. Here we use network analysis in an attempt to discriminate real from imaginary social networks and place mythological narratives on the spectrum between them. This suggests that the perceived artificiality of the Irish narrative can be traced back to anomalous features associated with six characters. Speculating that these are amalgams of several entities or proxies, renders the plausibility of the Irish text comparable to the others from a network-theoretic point of view.

Toward Global Comparability of Sexual Orientation Data in Official Statistics: A Conceptual Framework of Sexual Orientation for Health Data Collection in New Zealand's Official Statistics System

PubMed Central

Gray, Alistair; Veale, Jaimie F.; Binson, Diane; Sell, Randell L.

2013-01-01

Objective. Effectively addressing health disparities experienced by sexual minority populations requires high-quality official data on sexual orientation. We developed a conceptual framework of sexual orientation to improve the quality of sexual orientation data in New Zealand's Official Statistics System. Methods. We reviewed conceptual and methodological literature, culminating in a draft framework. To improve the framework, we held focus groups and key-informant interviews with sexual minority stakeholders and producers and consumers of official statistics. An advisory board of experts provided additional guidance. Results. The framework proposes working definitions of the sexual orientation topic and measurement concepts, describes dimensions of the measurement concepts, discusses variables framing the measurement concepts, and outlines conceptual grey areas. Conclusion. The framework proposes standard definitions and concepts for the collection of official sexual orientation data in New Zealand. It presents a model for producers of official statistics in other countries, who wish to improve the quality of health data on their citizens. PMID:23840231

Childhood obesity, gender, actual-ideal body image discrepancies, and physical self-concept in Hong Kong children: cultural differences in the value of moderation.

PubMed

Marsh, Herbert W; Hau, K T; Sung, R Y T; Yu, C W

2007-05-01

Childhood obesity is increasingly prevalent in Western and non-Western societies. The authors related multiple dimensions of physical self-concept to body composition for 763 Chinese children aged 8 to 15 and compared the results with Western research. Compared with Western research, gender differences favoring boys were generally much smaller for physical self-concept and body image. Objective and subjective indexes of body fat were negatively related to many components of physical self-concept, but--in contrast to Western research--were unrelated to global self-esteem and slightly positively related to health self-concept. In support of discrepancy theory, actual-ideal discrepancies in body image were related to physical self-concept. However, consistent with the Chinese cultural value of moderation, and in contrast to Western results, being too thin relative to personal ideals was almost as detrimental as being too fat. The results reflect stronger Chinese cultural values of moderation and acceptance of obesity than in Western culture and have implications for social and educational policy in China. Copyright (c) 2007 APA, all rights reserved.

Invited Article: Visualisation of extreme value events in optical communications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Derevyanko, Stanislav; Redyuk, Alexey; Vergeles, Sergey; Turitsyn, Sergei

2018-06-01

Fluctuations of a temporal signal propagating along long-haul transoceanic scale fiber links can be visualised in the spatio-temporal domain drawing visual analogy with ocean waves. Substantial overlapping of information symbols or use of multi-frequency signals leads to strong statistical deviations of local peak power from an average signal power level. We consider long-haul optical communication systems from this unusual angle, treating them as physical systems with a huge number of random statistical events, including extreme value fluctuations that potentially might affect the quality of data transmission. We apply the well-established concepts of adaptive wavefront shaping used in imaging through turbid medium to detect the detrimental phase modulated sequences in optical communications that can cause extreme power outages (rare optical waves of ultra-high amplitude) during propagation down the ultra-long fiber line. We illustrate the concept by a theoretical analysis of rare events of high-intensity fluctuations—optical freak waves, taking as an example an increasingly popular optical frequency division multiplexing data format where the problem of high peak to average power ratio is the most acute. We also show how such short living extreme value spikes in the optical data streams are affected by nonlinearity and demonstrate the negative impact of such events on the system performance.

EFFICIENTLY ESTABLISHING CONCEPTS OF INFERENTIAL STATISTICS AND HYPOTHESIS DECISION MAKING THROUGH CONTEXTUALLY CONTROLLED EQUIVALENCE CLASSES

PubMed Central

Fienup, Daniel M; Critchfield, Thomas S

2010-01-01

Computerized lessons that reflect stimulus equivalence principles were used to teach college students concepts related to inferential statistics and hypothesis decision making. Lesson 1 taught participants concepts related to inferential statistics, and Lesson 2 taught them to base hypothesis decisions on a scientific hypothesis and the direction of an effect. Lesson 3 taught the conditional influence of inferential statistics over decisions regarding the scientific and null hypotheses. Participants entered the study with low scores on the targeted skills and left the study demonstrating a high level of accuracy on these skills, which involved mastering more relations than were taught formally. This study illustrates the efficiency of equivalence-based instruction in establishing academic skills in sophisticated learners. PMID:21358904

``Physics with a Smile''-Explaining Phenomena with a Qualitative Problem-Solving Strategy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mualem, Roni; Eylon, Bat-Sheva

2007-03-01

Various studies indicate that high school physics students and even college students majoring in physics have difficulties in qualitative understanding of basic concepts and principles of physics.1-5 For example, studies carried out with the Force Concept Inventory (FCI)1,6 illustrate that qualitative tasks are not easy to solve even at the college level. Consequently, "conceptual physics" courses have been designed to foster qualitative understanding, and advanced high school physics courses as well as introductory college-level courses strive to develop qualitative understanding. Many physics education researchers emphasize the importance of acquiring some qualitative understanding of basic concepts in physics as early as middle school or in the context of courses that offer "Physics First" in the ninth grade before biology or chemistry.7 This trend is consistent with the call to focus the science curriculum on a small number of basic concepts and ideas, and to instruct students in a more "meaningful way" leading to better understanding. Studies7-10 suggest that familiar everyday contexts (see Fig. 1) are useful in fostering qualitative understanding.

How can we enhance girls' interest in scientific topics?

PubMed

Kerger, Sylvie; Martin, Romain; Brunner, Martin

2011-12-01

Girls are considerably less interested in scientific subjects than boys. One reason may be that scientific subjects are considered to be genuinely masculine. Thus, being interested in science may threaten the self-perception of girls as well as the femininity of their self-image. If scientific topics that are considered to be stereotypically feminine were chosen, however, this potential threat might be overcome which, in turn, might lead to an increase in girls' interest in science. This hypothesis was empirically tested by means of two studies. Participants were 294 (Study 1) and 190 (Study 2) Grade 8 to Grade 9 students. Gender differences in students' interest in masculine and feminine topics were investigated for a range of scientific concepts (Study 1) as well as for a given scientific concept (Study 2) for four scientific subjects (i.e., biology, physics, information technology, and statistics), respectively. Both studies indicated that the mean level of girls' scientific interest was higher when scientific concepts were presented in the context of feminine topics and boys' level of scientific interests was higher when scientific concepts were presented in the context of masculine topics. Girls' interest in science could be substantially increased by presenting scientific concepts in the context of feminine topics. Gender differences as well as individual differences in the level of interest in scientific topics may be taken into account by creating learning environments in which students could select the context in which a certain scientific concept is embedded. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Humanizing Physics through Its History.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Ronald A.

1991-01-01

A nonmajors course entitled Ideas and Concepts in Physics that surveys the conception and development of ideas in classical and modern physics is described. Details of the syllabus and suggestions for incorporating an historical approach into the physics curriculum on both the precollege and college levels are provided. A bibliography of materials…

Advanced Level Physics Students' Conceptions of Quantum Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mashhadi, Azam

This study addresses questions about particle physics that focus on the nature of electrons. Speculations as to whether they are more like particles or waves or like neither illustrate the difficulties with which students are confronted when trying to incorporate the concepts of quantum physics into their overall conceptual framework. Such…

Physics Teachers' Views on Teaching the Concept of Energy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bezen, Sevim; Bayrak, Celal; Aykutlu, Isil

2016-01-01

Problem Statement: With the advancement of technology, energy as a concept has become part of the every aspects of life, and it becomes more and more important day by day. Since 2013, the concept of energy has become part of the updated physics education program in Turkey. Teaching the concept of energy is a significant undertaking; most students…

Development and analysis of spectroscopic learning tools and the light and spectroscopy concept inventory for introductory college astronomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bardar, Erin M.

Electromagnetic radiation is the fundamental carrier of astronomical information. Spectral features serve as the fingerprints of the universe, revealing many important properties of objects in the cosmos such as temperature, elemental compositions, and relative motion. Because of its importance to astronomical research, the nature of light and the electromagnetic spectrum is by far the most universally covered topic in astronomy education. Yet, to the surprise and disappointment of instructors, many students struggle to understand underlying fundamental concepts related to light and spectroscopic phenomena. This dissertation describes research into introductory college astronomy students' understanding of light and spectroscopy concepts, through the development and analysis of both instructional materials and an assessment instrument. The purpose of this research was two-fold: (1) to develop a novel suite of spectroscopic learning tools that enhance student understanding of light and spectroscopy and (2) to design and validate a Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI) with the sensitivity to distinguish the relative effectiveness of various teaching interventions within the context of introductory college astronomy. Through a systematic investigation that included multiple rounds of clinical interviews, open-ended written surveys, and multiple-choice testing, introductory college astronomy students' commonly held misconceptions and reasoning difficulties were explored for concepts relating to: (1) The nature of the electromagnetic spectrum, including the interrelationships of wavelength, frequency, energy, and speed; (2) interpretation of Doppler shift; (3) properties of blackbody radiation; and (4) the connection between spectral features and underlying physical processes. These difficulties guided the development of instructional materials including six unique "homelab" exercises, a binocular spectrometer, a spectral analysis software tool, and the 26-question Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI). In the fall of 2005, a multi-institution field-test of the LSCI was conducted with student examinees from 14 course sections at 11 colleges and universities employing various instructional techniques. Through statistical analysis, the inventory was proven to be a reliable (Cronbach's alpha = 0.77) and valid assessment instrument that was able to illustrate statistically significant learning gains (p < 0.05) for most course sections, with students utilizing our suite of instructional materials exhibiting among the highest performance gains (Effect Size = 1.31).

Attitudes about high school physics in relationship to gender and ethnicity: A mixed method analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hafza, Rabieh Jamal

There is an achievement gap and lack of participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) by minority females. The number of minority females majoring in STEM related fields and earning advanced degrees in these fields has not significantly increased over the past 40 years. Previous research has evaluated the relationship between self-identity concept and factors that promote the academic achievement as well the motivation of students to study different subject areas. This study examined the interaction between gender and ethnicity in terms of physics attitudes in the context of real world connections, personal interest, sense making/effort, problem solving confidence, and problem solving sophistication. The Colorado Learning Attitudes about Science Survey (CLASS) was given to 131 students enrolled in physics classes. There was a statistically significant Gender*Ethnicity interaction for attitude in the context of Real World Connections, Personal Interest, Sense Making/Effort, Problem Solving Confidence, and Problem Solving Sophistication as a whole. There was also a statistically significant Gender*Ethnicity interaction for attitude in the context of Real World Connections, Personal Interest, and Sense Making/Effort individually. Five Black females were interviewed to triangulate the quantitative results and to describe the experiences of minority females taking physics classes. There were four themes that emerged from the interviews and supported the findings from the quantitative results. The data supported previous research done on attitudes about STEM. The results reported that Real World Connections and Personal Interest could be possible factors that explain the lack of participation and achievement gaps that exists among minority females.

A UNIFYING CONCEPT FOR ASSESSING TOXICOLOGICAL INTERACTIONS: CHANGES IN SLOPE

EPA Science Inventory

Robust statistical methods are important to the evaluation of interactions among chemicals in a mixture. However, different concepts of interaction as applied to the statistical analysis of chemical mixture toxicology data or as used in environmental risk assessment often can ap...

Statistical characteristics of MST radar echoes and its interpretation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Woodman, Ronald F.

1989-01-01

Two concepts of fundamental importance are reviewed: the autocorrelation function and the frequency power spectrum. In addition, some turbulence concepts, the relationship between radar signals and atmospheric medium statistics, partial reflection, and the characteristics of noise and clutter interference are discussed.

An information-theoretic approach to the modeling and analysis of whole-genome bisulfite sequencing data.

PubMed

Jenkinson, Garrett; Abante, Jordi; Feinberg, Andrew P; Goutsias, John

2018-03-07

DNA methylation is a stable form of epigenetic memory used by cells to control gene expression. Whole genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS) has emerged as a gold-standard experimental technique for studying DNA methylation by producing high resolution genome-wide methylation profiles. Statistical modeling and analysis is employed to computationally extract and quantify information from these profiles in an effort to identify regions of the genome that demonstrate crucial or aberrant epigenetic behavior. However, the performance of most currently available methods for methylation analysis is hampered by their inability to directly account for statistical dependencies between neighboring methylation sites, thus ignoring significant information available in WGBS reads. We present a powerful information-theoretic approach for genome-wide modeling and analysis of WGBS data based on the 1D Ising model of statistical physics. This approach takes into account correlations in methylation by utilizing a joint probability model that encapsulates all information available in WGBS methylation reads and produces accurate results even when applied on single WGBS samples with low coverage. Using the Shannon entropy, our approach provides a rigorous quantification of methylation stochasticity in individual WGBS samples genome-wide. Furthermore, it utilizes the Jensen-Shannon distance to evaluate differences in methylation distributions between a test and a reference sample. Differential performance assessment using simulated and real human lung normal/cancer data demonstrate a clear superiority of our approach over DSS, a recently proposed method for WGBS data analysis. Critically, these results demonstrate that marginal methods become statistically invalid when correlations are present in the data. This contribution demonstrates clear benefits and the necessity of modeling joint probability distributions of methylation using the 1D Ising model of statistical physics and of quantifying methylation stochasticity using concepts from information theory. By employing this methodology, substantial improvement of DNA methylation analysis can be achieved by effectively taking into account the massive amount of statistical information available in WGBS data, which is largely ignored by existing methods.

Children's Concepts of the Shape and Size of the Earth, Sun and Moon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bryce, T. G. K.; Blown, E. J.

2013-02-01

Children's understandings of the shape and relative sizes of the Earth, Sun and Moon have been extensively researched and in a variety of ways. Much is known about the confusions which arise as young people try to grasp ideas about the world and our neighbouring celestial bodies. Despite this, there remain uncertainties about the conceptual models which young people use and how they theorise in the process of acquiring more scientific conceptions. In this article, the relevant published research is reviewed critically and in-depth in order to frame a series of investigations using semi-structured interviews carried out with 248 participants aged 3-18 years from China and New Zealand. Analysis of qualitative and quantitative data concerning the reasoning of these subjects (involving cognitive categorisations and their rank ordering) confirmed that (a) concepts of Earth shape and size are embedded in a 'super-concept' or 'Earth notion' embracing ideas of physical shape, 'ground' and 'sky', habitation of and identity with Earth; (b) conceptual development is similar in cultures where teachers hold a scientific world view and (c) children's concepts of shape and size of the Earth, Sun and Moon can be usefully explored within an ethnological approach using multi-media interviews combined with observational astronomy. For these young people, concepts of the shape and size of the Moon and Sun were closely correlated with their Earth notion concepts and there were few differences between the cultures despite their contrasts. Analysis of the statistical data used Kolmogorov-Smirnov Two-Sample Tests with hypotheses confirmed at K-S alpha level 0.05; rs : p < 0.01.

The Africa Yoga Project and Well-Being: A Concept Map of Students' Perceptions.

PubMed

Giambrone, Carla A; Cook-Cottone, Catherine P; Klein, Jessalyn E

2018-03-01

Concept mapping methodology was used to explore the perceived impact of practicing yoga with the Africa Yoga Project (AYP)-an organisation created to increase health and well-being by providing community-based yoga classes throughout Kenya. AYP's mission fit with theoretical models of well-being is discussed. Anecdotal evidence and initial qualitative research suggested the AYP meaningfully impacted adult students. Of the hundreds of AYP's adult students, 56 and 82 students participated in Phases I and II, respectively. Phase I brainstorming resulted in 94 student-generated statements about their perceived change. Phase II participants sorted and rated statements in terms of importance. Multidimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis of sort data was utilised to map and group statements into clusters. Based on statistical and interpretive criteria, a five-cluster solution with the following concepts was identified as the best model of students' change: Personal Growth; Interpersonal Effectiveness (lowest importance); Physical and Social Benefits; Emotional Resiliency; and Improved Self-Concept (highest importance). Overall, students reported positive perceptions of the AYP. Additional research is needed to quantify students' change, and to compare the AYP outcomes to those of other programs aimed at poverty-related stress reduction and well-being. © 2018 The International Association of Applied Psychology.

When being a girl matters less: accessibility of gender-related self-knowledge in single-sex and coeducational classes and its impact on students' physics-related self-concept of ability.

PubMed

Kessels, Ursula; Hannover, Bettina

2008-06-01

Establishing or preserving single-sex schooling has been widely discussed as a way of bringing more girls into the natural sciences. We test the assumption that the beneficial effects of single-sex education on girls' self-concept of ability in masculine subjects such as physics are due to the lower accessibility of gender-related self-knowledge in single-sex classes. N=401 eighth-graders (mean age 14.0 years) from coeducational comprehensive schools. Random assignment of students to single-sex vs. coeducational physics classes throughout the eighth grade. At the end of the year, students' physics-related self-concept of ability was measured using a questionnaire. In a subsample of N=134 students, the accessibility of gender-related self-knowledge during physics classes was assessed by measuring latencies and endorsement of sex-typed trait adjectives. Girls from single-sex physics classes reported a better physics-related self-concept of ability than girls from coeducational classes, while boys' self-concept of ability did not vary according to class composition. For both boys and girls, gender-related self-knowledge was less accessible in single-sex classes than in mixed-sex classes. To the extent that girls' feminine self-knowledge was relatively less accessible than their masculine self-knowledge, their physics-related self-concept of ability improved at the end of the school year. By revealing the importance of the differential accessibility of gender-related self-knowledge in single- and mixed-sex settings, our study clarifies why single-sex schooling helps adolescents to gain a better self-concept of ability in school subjects that are considered inappropriate for their own sex.

Neural Representations of Physics Concepts.

PubMed

Mason, Robert A; Just, Marcel Adam

2016-06-01

We used functional MRI (fMRI) to assess neural representations of physics concepts (momentum, energy, etc.) in juniors, seniors, and graduate students majoring in physics or engineering. Our goal was to identify the underlying neural dimensions of these representations. Using factor analysis to reduce the number of dimensions of activation, we obtained four physics-related factors that were mapped to sets of voxels. The four factors were interpretable as causal motion visualization, periodicity, algebraic form, and energy flow. The individual concepts were identifiable from their fMRI signatures with a mean rank accuracy of .75 using a machine-learning (multivoxel) classifier. Furthermore, there was commonality in participants' neural representation of physics; a classifier trained on data from all but one participant identified the concepts in the left-out participant (mean accuracy = .71 across all nine participant samples). The findings indicate that abstract scientific concepts acquired in an educational setting evoke activation patterns that are identifiable and common, indicating that science education builds abstract knowledge using inherent, repurposed brain systems. © The Author(s) 2016.

High School Students' Approaches to Learning Physics with Relationship to Epistemic Views on Physics and Conceptions of Learning Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chiou, Guo-Li; Lee, Min-Hsien; Tsai, Chin-Chung

2013-01-01

Background and purpose: Knowing how students learn physics is a central goal of physics education. The major purpose of this study is to examine the strength of the predictive power of students' epistemic views and conceptions of learning in terms of their approaches to learning in physics. Sample, design and method: A total of 279 Taiwanese high…

Middle school students' learning of mechanics concepts through engagement in different sequences of physical and virtual experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sullivan, Sarah; Gnesdilow, Dana; Puntambekar, Sadhana; Kim, Jee-Seon

2017-08-01

Physical and virtual experimentation are thought to have different affordances for supporting students' learning. Research investigating the use of physical and virtual experiments to support students' learning has identified a variety of, sometimes conflicting, outcomes. Unanswered questions remain about how physical and virtual experiments may impact students' learning and for which contexts and content areas they may be most effective. Using a quasi-experimental design, we examined eighth grade students' (N = 100) learning of physics concepts related to pulleys depending on the sequence of physical and virtual labs they engaged in. Five classes of students were assigned to either the: physical first condition (PF) (n = 55), where students performed a physical pulley experiment and then performed the same experiment virtually, or virtual first condition (VF) (n = 45), with the opposite sequence. Repeated measures ANOVA's were conducted to examine how physical and virtual labs impacted students' learning of specific physics concepts. While we did not find clear-cut support that one sequence was better, we did find evidence that participating in virtual experiments may be more beneficial for learning certain physics concepts, such as work and mechanical advantage. Our findings support the idea that if time or physical materials are limited, using virtual experiments may help students understand work and mechanical advantage.

Erzwingt die Quantenmechanik eine drastische Änderung unseres Weltbilds? Gedanken und Experimente nach Einstein, Podolsky und Rosen

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frodl, Peter

Von den Anfängen der Quantenmechanik bis heute gibt es Versuche, sie als statistische Theorie über Ensembles individueller klassischer Systeme zu interpretieren. Die Bedingungen, unter denen Theorien verborgener Parameter zu deterministischen Beschreibungen dieser individuellen Systeme als klassisch angesehen werden können, wurden von Einstein, Podolsky und Rosen 1935 formuliert: 1. Physikalische Systeme sind im Prinzip separierbar. 2. Zu jeder physikalischen Größe, deren Wert man ohne Störung des betrachteten Systems mit Sicherheit voraussagen kann, existiert ein ihr entsprechendes Element der physikalischen Realität.Zusammen sind sie, wie Bell 1964 gezeigt hat, prinzipiell unverträglich mit der Quantenmechanik und unhaltbar angesichts neuerer Experimente. Diese erweisen einmal mehr die Quantenmechanik als richtige Theorie. Um ihre Ergebnisse zu verstehen, müssen wir entweder die in der klassischen Physik als selbstverständlich angesehene Annahme der Separierbarkeit physikalischer Systeme aufgeben oder unseren Begriff der physikalischen Realität revidieren. Eine Untersuchung des Begriffs der Separabilität und einige Überlegungen zum Problem der Messung von Observablen zeigen, daß eine Änderung des Begriffs der physikalischen Realität unumgänglich ist. Der revidierte Realitätsbegriff sollte mit klassischer Physik und Quantenmechanik verträglich sein, um ein einheitliches Weltbild zu ermöglichen.Translated AbstractDo Quantum Mechanics Force us to Drastically Change our View of the World? Thoughts and Experiments after Einstein, Podolsky and RosenSince the advent of quantum mechanics there have been attempts of its interpretation in terms of statistical theory concerning individual classical systems. The very conditions necessary to consider hidden variable theories describing these individual systems as classical had been pointed out by Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen in 1935: 1. Physical systems are in principle separable. 2. If it is possible to predict with certainty the value of a physical quantity without disturbing the system under consideration, then there exists an element of physical reality corresponding to this physical quantity.Together they are, as was shown by Bell in 1964, incompatible in principle with quantum mechanics and no more tenable in view of recent experiments. These experiments once more corroborate quantum theory. In order to understand their results we are forced either to drop the assumption of separability of physical systems (taken for self-evident in classical physics) or to change our concept of physical reality. After investigating the notion of separability and connecting the EPR-correlations to the measurement problem we, conclude that a change of the concept of physical reality is indispensable. The revised concept should be compatible with both classical and quantum physics in order to allow a uniform view of the physical world.

Feature Statistics Modulate the Activation of Meaning during Spoken Word Processing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Devereux, Barry J.; Taylor, Kirsten I.; Randall, Billi; Geertzen, Jeroen; Tyler, Lorraine K.

2016-01-01

Understanding spoken words involves a rapid mapping from speech to conceptual representations. One distributed feature-based conceptual account assumes that the statistical characteristics of concepts' features--the number of concepts they occur in ("distinctiveness/sharedness") and likelihood of co-occurrence ("correlational…

Elaborating Selected Statistical Concepts with Common Experience.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weaver, Kenneth A.

1992-01-01

Presents ways of elaborating statistical concepts so as to make course material more meaningful for students. Describes examples using exclamations, circus and cartoon characters, and falling leaves to illustrate variability, null hypothesis testing, and confidence interval. Concludes that the exercises increase student comprehension of the text…

The Effects of Integrating Computer-Based Concept Mapping for Physics Learning in Junior High School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chang, Cheng-Chieh; Yeh, Ting-Kuang; Shih, Chang-Ming

2016-01-01

It generally is accepted that concept mapping has a noticeable impact on learning. But literatures show the use of concept mapping is not benefit all learners. The present study explored the effects of incorporating computer-based concept mapping in physics instruction. A total of 61 9th-grade students participated in this study. By using a…

The Viewpoints of Physics Teacher Candidates towards the Concepts in Special Theory of Relativity and Their Evaluation Designs

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Turgut, Umit; Gurbuz, Fatih; Salar, Riza; Toman, Ufuk

2013-01-01

In this study, the viewpoints of physics teacher candidates at undergraduate level towards the concepts in special theory of relativity and the interpretations they made about these concepts were investigated. The viewpoints of the teacher candidates towards the concepts in the subject of special theory of relativity were revealed with six open…

Concepts in Physical Education with Laboratories and Experiments. Second Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Corbin, Charles B.; And Others

This text is designed for student use in introductory course of physical education at the college level and deals with the specific areas of physical activity, exercise, health, physical fitness, skill learning, and body mechanics. Twenty concepts and thirty accompanying laboratory exercises suitable for both men and women are presented. Two…

Energy and the Confused Student I: Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jewett, John W., Jr.

2008-01-01

Energy is a critical concept that is used in analyzing physical phenomena and is often an essential starting point in physics problem-solving. It is a global concept that appears throughout the physics curriculum in mechanics, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, and modern physics. Energy is also at the heart of descriptions of processes in biology,…

Finnish Cooperating Physics Teachers' Conceptions of Physics Teachers' Teacher Knowledge

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asikainen, Mervi A.; Hirvonen, Pekka E.

2010-01-01

This article examines Finnish cooperating physics teachers' conceptions of teacher knowledge in physics. Six experienced teachers were interviewed. The data was analyzed to form categories concerning the basis of teacher knowledge, and the tradition of German Didaktik and Shulman's theory of teacher knowledge were used in order to understand the…

Applying Newton's Apple to Elementary Physical Education: An Interdisciplinary Approach

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gagen, Linda; Getchell, Nancy

2008-01-01

The NASPE standards for physical education programs stress that students should not only achieve competence in physical skills but also acquire and integrate the underlying concepts that can lead to effective movement. Physical educators can successfully embed these underlying concepts into the daily skill instruction and guided practice in their…

Imagery, Intuition and Imagination in Quantum Physics Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stapleton, Andrew J.

2018-01-01

In response to the authors, I demonstrate how threshold concepts offer a means to both contextualise teaching and learning of quantum physics and help transform students into the culture of physics, and as a way to identify particularly troublesome concepts within quantum physics. By drawing parallels from my own doctoral research in another area…

Concepts first: A course with improved educational outcomes and parity for underrepresented minority groups

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Webb, D. J.

2017-08-01

Two active learning physics courses were taught and compared. The "concepts first" course was organized to teach only concepts in the first part of the class, the ultimate goal being to increase students' problem-solving abilities much later in the class. The other course was taught in the same quarter by the same instructor using the same curricular materials, but covered material in the standard (chapter-by-chapter) order. After accounting for incoming student characteristics, students from the concepts-first course scored significantly better in two outcome measures: their grade on the final exam and the grade received in their subsequent physics course. Moreover, in the concepts-first class course, students from groups underrepresented in physics had final exam scores and class grades that were indistinguishable from other students. Finally, students who took at least one concepts-first course in introductory physics were found to have significantly higher rates of graduation with a STEM major than students from this cohort who did not.

Effects of Muslims praying (Salat) on EEG gamma activity.

PubMed

Doufesh, Hazem; Ibrahim, Fatimah; Safari, Mohammad

2016-08-01

This study investigates the difference of mean gamma EEG power between actual and mimic Salat practices in twenty healthy Muslim subjects. In the actual Salat practice, the participants were asked to recite and performing the physical steps in all four stages of Salat; whereas in the mimic Salat practice, they were instructed to perform only the physical steps without recitation. The gamma power during actual Salat was statistically higher than during mimic Salat in the frontal and parietal regions in all stages. In the actual Salat practice, the left hemisphere exhibited significantly higher mean gamma power in all cerebral regions and all stages, except the central-parietal region in the sitting position, and the frontal area in the bowing position. Increased gamma power during Salat, possibly related to an increase in cognitive and attentional processing, supports the concept of Salat as a focus attention meditation. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Application of a faith-based integration tool to assess mental and physical health interventions.

PubMed

Saunders, Donna M; Leak, Jean; Carver, Monique E; Smith, Selina A

2017-01-01

To build on current research involving faith-based interventions (FBIs) for addressing mental and physical health, this study a) reviewed the extent to which relevant publications integrate faith concepts with health and b) initiated analysis of the degree of FBI integration with intervention outcomes. Derived from a systematic search of articles published between 2007 and 2017, 36 studies were assessed with a Faith-Based Integration Assessment Tool (FIAT) to quantify faith-health integration. Basic statistical procedures were employed to determine the association of faith-based integration with intervention outcomes. The assessed studies possessed (on average) moderate, inconsistent integration because of poor use of faith measures, and moderate, inconsistent use of faith practices. Analysis procedures for determining the effect of FBI integration on intervention outcomes were inadequate for formulating practical conclusions. Regardless of integration, interventions were associated with beneficial outcomes. To determine the link between FBI integration and intervention outcomes, additional analyses are needed.

Influence of family communication structure and vanity trait on consumption behavior: a case study of adolescent students in Taiwan.

PubMed

Chang, Wei-Lung; Liu, Hsiang-Te; Lin, Tai-An; Wen, Yung-Sung

2008-01-01

The purpose of this research was to study the relationship between family communication structure, vanity trait, and related consumption behavior. The study used an empirical method with adolescent students from the northern part of Taiwan as the subjects. Multiple statistical methods and the SEM model were used for testing the hypotheses. The major findings were: (1) Socio-orientation has a significant effect on how physical appearance is viewed, and concept-orientation has a significant positive effect on achievement vanity. (2) how physical appearance is viewed has a significant positive effect on all dimensions of materialism, concerns about clothing, and use of cosmetics. (3) Achievement vanity has a significant positive relationship with price-based prestige sensitivity and concerns regarding clothing. The findings have implications for marketing theory as well as for practical applications in marketing.

Inquiry learning: Students' perception of light wave phenomena in an informal environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ford, Ken

This study involved identifying students' perception of light phenomena and determined if they learned the scientific concepts of light that were presented to them by an interactive science exhibit. The participants in this study made scientific inquiry about light by using a powerful white light source, a prism, converging lenses, diverging lenses, concave and convex mirrors in an informal science setting. The sample used in the study consisted of 40 subjects (15 males and 25 females) in a college program at a University located in the Southern region of the United States. The participants were selected using a convenient sampling process from a population enrolled in a pre-calculus class and a physics class. The participants were engaged in pretest on light wave phenomena using the Inquiry Laboratory Light Island exhibit. After the pretest, the participants were engaged in activities, where they reflected white light off the surface of concave and convex mirrors, refracted white light through converging and diverging lens, and passed white light through a prism. They also made observations of the behavior and characteristics of light from the patterns that it created. After three weeks, the participants were given the Inquiry Laboratory Light Island exhibit posttest. The findings of the study indicated that the means yielded a higher average for the participants' posttest scores. The t-Test results were statistically significant, which confirmed that the concepts of light wave phenomena were perceived and learned by the participants. The Inquiry Laboratory survey questions analyzed using the chi-square test suggested that participants were in agreement with the concepts about light. In addition, Cramer's phi and Cramer's V suggested a moderate relationship and association between the genders of the participants on the concepts of light wave phenomena. Furthermore, the interview and observation protocol processes confirmed that students perceived and learned the science concepts of light wave phenomena by the way they responded to the researcher's interview questions. Implications from the study suggested that further study be carried out on the learning process in an informal science setting and should be supported by corporations, businesses, educational institutions, and organizations. Although the findings from this study aided in the development of a structured approach that enhanced student motivation, interest, and learning about light waves in physics/physical science there is still a need to do more research in this area.

Some Student Conceptions of Electromagnetic Induction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thong, Wai Meng; Gunstone, Richard

2008-01-01

Introductory electromagnetism is a central part of undergraduate physics. Although there has been some research into student conceptions of electromagnetism, studies have been sparse and separated. This study sought to explore second year physics students' conceptions of electromagnetism, to investigate to what extent the results from the present…

Learning Essential Terms and Concepts in Statistics and Accounting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peters, Pam; Smith, Adam; Middledorp, Jenny; Karpin, Anne; Sin, Samantha; Kilgore, Alan

2014-01-01

This paper describes a terminological approach to the teaching and learning of fundamental concepts in foundation tertiary units in Statistics and Accounting, using an online dictionary-style resource (TermFinder) with customised "termbanks" for each discipline. Designed for independent learning, the termbanks support inquiring students…

A Case Study of the Impact of a Reformed Science Curriculum on Student Attitudes and Learning in a Secondary Physics Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Molotsky, Gregg Jeremy

2011-01-01

This case study examined the impact of the application of an inquiry-based concept related physics curriculum on student attitudes and learning in a secondary physics classroom in southern New Jersey. Students who had previously used a traditional physics curriculum were presented with a 10 week inquiry-based concept related physics curriculum on…

Physical Activity and Physical Self-Concept in Adolescence: A Comparison of Girls at the Extremes of the Biological Maturation Continuum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cumming, Sean P.; Sherar, Lauren B.; Gammon, Catherine; Standage, Martyn; Malina, Robert M.

2012-01-01

This study examined differences in physical activity and physical self-concept between the least and most biologically mature female adolescents within chronological age and academic year groups. A total of 252 British female adolescents (M age = 12.9 years; SD = 0.7) in Years 7-9 completed self-report measures to assess physical activity and…

An Exploration of Indigenous Knowledge Related to Physics Concepts Held by Senior Citizens in Chókwé, Mozambique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muambalane Baquete, Aguiar; Grayson, Diane; Vasco Mutimucuio, Inocente

2016-01-01

Indigenous knowledge is at risk of being lost in many parts of the world. It is important to find ways to preserve it for both cultural and practical reasons, since it is often well-suited to addressing local needs using available resources. If indigenous knowledge can be incorporated into school science curricula, it can also provide familiar contexts within which to learn scientific concepts, as well as helping the younger generation to recognise its value. The purpose of this study was to identify indigenous knowledge that could be related to physics concepts, with a view to integrating it into school curricula. Twenty-nine senior citizens from Chókwé, a rural village in Mozambique, volunteered to participate in two sets of in-depth interviews. The first set of interviews was individual and unstructured in order to explore which aspects of indigenous knowledge might be related to physics concepts. The second set was semi-structured and conducted in small groups in order to probe participants' understanding and application of the identified physics concepts. The results showed that participants had indigenous knowledge that was useful to them in their daily lives and that were applications of thermal physics, static electricity and mechanics concepts. In some cases participants' explanations were aligned to physics explanations, in some cases they were similar to students' alternative conceptions identified in the literature, and in other cases they referred to supernatural phenomena.

The Effectiveness of Concept Maps in Teaching Physics Concepts Applied to Engineering Education: Experimental Comparison of the Amount of Learning Achieved with and without Concept Maps

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martinez, Guadalupe; Perez, Angel Luis; Suero, Maria Isabel; Pardo, Pedro J.

2013-01-01

A study was conducted to quantify the effectiveness of concept maps in learning physics in engineering degrees. The following research question was posed: What was the difference in learning results from the use of concept maps to study a particular topic in an engineering course? The study design was quasi-experimental and used a post-test as a…

Probing students’ conceptions at the classical-quantum interface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chhabra, Mahima; Das, Ritwick

2018-03-01

Quantum mechanics (QM) is one of the core subject areas in the undergraduate physics curriculum and many of the advanced level physics courses involve direct or indirect application of the concepts and ideas taught in QM. On the other hand, proper understanding of QM interpretations requires an optimum level of understanding of fundamental concepts in classical physics such as energy, momentum, force and their role in determining motion of the particle. This study is an attempt to explore a group of undergraduate students’ mental models regarding fundamental concepts in classical physics which are actually the stepping stone for understanding and visualisation of QM. The data and analysis presented here elucidate the challenges students face to understand the classical ideas and how that affects their understanding of QM.

Reviewing and comparing self-concept in patients undergoing hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis

PubMed Central

Shahgholian, Nahid; Tajdari, Setareh; Nasiri, Mahmoud

2012-01-01

Background: Chronic renal disease is a health problem in today’s world. In the end-stages of renal disease patients depend upon alternative therapies including dialysis for their survival. However, dialysis causes several stressors on physical, mental and social performance of patients. The present study aimed to review and compare the self-concept in patients undergoing hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Materials and Methods: This was a case-control study including two groups of patients, undergoing hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis, who referred to Al-Zahra and Ali Asghar Hospitals, which are affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. These groups were compared to the control group. Data were collected through completing the form of demographic characteristics and a questionnaire, written by the researcher, pertaining to the self-concept which was collected by the samples. The data were analyzed by the Software SPSS version 18. Findings: ANOVA (analysis of variance) showed that statistically there was a significant difference between mean score of self-concept in the three physical (body-image), psychological, and social self aspects in the two groups of hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis with the control group; however, Duncan’s post-hoc analysis showed no significant difference between mean score of self-concept in the three mentioned aspects in the two groups of hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Furthermore, ANOVA (analysis of variance) showed that there was no significant difference between mean score of the spiritual aspect of the self-concept in the two groups of hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis with the control group. Duncan’s post-hoc analysis also showed no significant difference in this aspect between the two groups of hemodialysis and peritoneal dialysis. Conclusions: Patients undergoing dialysis have many psychological disorders and the type of dialysis is not of much importance in this regard; therefore, adequate education and information for clients in order to use appropriate methods of adaptation as well as appropriate social relationship, continuing social support and developing health policies seem necessary in order to prevent mental disorders and providing required services and supports for patients. PMID:23833607

Measurement theory in local quantum physics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Okamura, Kazuya, E-mail: okamura@math.cm.is.nagoya-u.ac.jp; Ozawa, Masanao, E-mail: ozawa@is.nagoya-u.ac.jp

In this paper, we aim to establish foundations of measurement theory in local quantum physics. For this purpose, we discuss a representation theory of completely positive (CP) instruments on arbitrary von Neumann algebras. We introduce a condition called the normal extension property (NEP) and establish a one-to-one correspondence between CP instruments with the NEP and statistical equivalence classes of measuring processes. We show that every CP instrument on an atomic von Neumann algebra has the NEP, extending the well-known result for type I factors. Moreover, we show that every CP instrument on an injective von Neumann algebra is approximated bymore » CP instruments with the NEP. The concept of posterior states is also discussed to show that the NEP is equivalent to the existence of a strongly measurable family of posterior states for every normal state. Two examples of CP instruments without the NEP are obtained from this result. It is thus concluded that in local quantum physics not every CP instrument represents a measuring process, but in most of physically relevant cases every CP instrument can be realized by a measuring process within arbitrary error limits, as every approximately finite dimensional von Neumann algebra on a separable Hilbert space is injective. To conclude the paper, the concept of local measurement in algebraic quantum field theory is examined in our framework. In the setting of the Doplicher-Haag-Roberts and Doplicher-Roberts theory describing local excitations, we show that an instrument on a local algebra can be extended to a local instrument on the global algebra if and only if it is a CP instrument with the NEP, provided that the split property holds for the net of local algebras.« less

Amotivation in Physical Education: Relationships with Physical Self-Concept and Teacher Ratings of Attainment

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jackson-Kersey, Rachel; Spray, Christopher

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to assess the reliability and validity of the Amotivation Inventory in Physical Education (AI-PE). In addition, the study sought to identify the relationships between students' amotivation, physical self-concept, and teacher ratings of National Curriculum attainment levels in PE. Students ("N" = 510) from a…

The Relationship of Self-Concept and Perceived Athletic Competence to Physical Activity Level and Gender among Turkish Early Adolescents.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kosar, F. Hulya Asci S. Nazan; Isler, Ayse Kin

2001-01-01

Examined self-concept and perceived athletic competence of Turkish early adolescents in relation to physical activity level and gender. Multivariate analysis of variance revealed significant main effects for gender and physical activity level but no significant gender by physical activity interaction. Univariate analysis demonstrated significant…

Children's Concepts of How People Get Babies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bernstein, Anne C.; Cowan, Philip A.

1975-01-01

Twenty children, 3-12 years old, were given a newly constructed interview on their concepts of human reproduction (social causality), in conjunction with Piaget-type tasks assessing physical conservation-identity, physical causality, and a new social identity task. The children's concepts of human reproduction appeared to proceed through a…

Unified Technical Concepts. Application Modules Volume II.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

Unified Technical Concepts (UTC) is a modular system for teaching applied physics in two-year postsecondary technician programs. This UTC laboratory textbook, the second of two volumes, consists of 45 learning modules dealing with basic concepts of physics. Addressed in the individual chapters of the guide are the following topics: force…

Future Science Teachers' Understandings of Diffusion and Osmosis Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tomazic, Iztok; Vidic, Tatjana

2012-01-01

The concepts of diffusion and osmosis cross the disciplinary boundaries of physics, chemistry and biology. They are important for understanding how biological systems function. Since future (pre-service) science teachers in Slovenia encounter both concepts at physics, chemistry and biology courses during their studies, we assessed the first-,…

Unified Technical Concepts. Math for Technicians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

Unified Technical Concepts (UTC) is a modular system for teaching applied physics in two-year postsecondary technician programs. This UTC classroom textbook, consisting of 10 chapters, deals with mathematical concepts as they apply to the study of physics. Addressed in the individual chapters of the text are the following topics: angles and…

Assessing Conceptual Knowledge for the Physics of Semiconductors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ene, Emanuela

2013-01-01

Following the trend in science and engineering education generated by the visible impact created by the Force Concept Inventory (FCI), the investigator developed a Physics of Semiconductors Concept Inventory (PSCI). PSCI fills the need of standardized concept tests for undergraduate education in photonics and electrical engineering. The structure…

Preliminary Design of ICI-based Multimedia for Reconceptualizing Electric Conceptions at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samsudin, A.; Suhandi, A.; Rusdiana, D.; Kaniawati, I.

2016-08-01

Interactive Conceptual Instruction (ICI) based Multimedia has been developed to represent the electric concepts turn into more real and meaningful learning. The initial design of ICI based multimedia is a multimedia computer that allows users to explore the entire electric concepts in terms of the existing conceptual and practical. Pre-service physics teachers should be provided with the learning that could optimize the conceptions held by re-conceptualizing concepts in Basic Physics II, especially the concepts about electricity. To collect and to analyze the data genuinely and comprehensively, researchers utilized a developing method of ADDIE which has comprehensive steps: analyzing, design, development, implementation, and evaluation. The ADDIE developing steps has been utilized to describe comprehensively from the phase of analysis program up until the evaluation program. Based on data analysis, it can be concluded that ICI-based multimedia could effectively increase the pre-service physics teachers’ understanding on electric conceptions for re-conceptualizing electric conceptions at Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia.

First Results from the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bardar, Erin M.

2008-01-01

This article presents results from a two-semester field test of the Light and Spectroscopy Concept Inventory (LSCI). Statistical analysis indicates that the LSCI has the sensitivity to measure statistically significant changes in students' understanding of light-related topics due to instruction in introductory astronomy courses and to distinguish…

Statistical Process Control: Going to the Limit for Quality.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Training, 1987

1987-01-01

Defines the concept of statistical process control, a quality control method used especially in manufacturing. Generally, concept users set specific standard levels that must be met. Makes the point that although employees work directly with the method, management is responsible for its success within the plant. (CH)

Farkle Fundamentals and Fun. Activities for Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hooley, Donald E.

2014-01-01

The dice game Farkle provides an excellent basis for four activities that reinforce probability and expected value concepts for students in an introductory statistics class. These concepts appear in the increasingly popular AP statistics course (Peck 2011) and are used in analyzing ethical issues from insurance and gambling (COMAP 2009; Woodward…

Electromagnetic Concepts in Mathematical Representation of Physics.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Albe, Virginie; Venturini, Patrice; Lascours, Jean

2001-01-01

Addresses the use of mathematics when studying the physics of electromagnetism. Focuses on common electromagnetic concepts and their associated mathematical representation and arithmetical tools. Concludes that most students do not understand the significant aspects of physical situations and have difficulty using relationships and models specific…

Exploring Explanations of Subglacial Bedform Sizes Using Statistical Models

PubMed Central

Kougioumtzoglou, Ioannis A.; Stokes, Chris R.; Smith, Michael J.; Clark, Chris D.; Spagnolo, Matteo S.

2016-01-01

Sediments beneath modern ice sheets exert a key control on their flow, but are largely inaccessible except through geophysics or boreholes. In contrast, palaeo-ice sheet beds are accessible, and typically characterised by numerous bedforms. However, the interaction between bedforms and ice flow is poorly constrained and it is not clear how bedform sizes might reflect ice flow conditions. To better understand this link we present a first exploration of a variety of statistical models to explain the size distribution of some common subglacial bedforms (i.e., drumlins, ribbed moraine, MSGL). By considering a range of models, constructed to reflect key aspects of the physical processes, it is possible to infer that the size distributions are most effectively explained when the dynamics of ice-water-sediment interaction associated with bedform growth is fundamentally random. A ‘stochastic instability’ (SI) model, which integrates random bedform growth and shrinking through time with exponential growth, is preferred and is consistent with other observations of palaeo-bedforms and geophysical surveys of active ice sheets. Furthermore, we give a proof-of-concept demonstration that our statistical approach can bridge the gap between geomorphological observations and physical models, directly linking measurable size-frequency parameters to properties of ice sheet flow (e.g., ice velocity). Moreover, statistically developing existing models as proposed allows quantitative predictions to be made about sizes, making the models testable; a first illustration of this is given for a hypothesised repeat geophysical survey of bedforms under active ice. Thus, we further demonstrate the potential of size-frequency distributions of subglacial bedforms to assist the elucidation of subglacial processes and better constrain ice sheet models. PMID:27458921

The Effectiveness of Contextual Learning on Physics Achievement in Career Technical Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arcand, Scott Andrew

The purpose of this casual-comparative study was to determine if students being taught the Minnesota Science Physics Standards via contextual learning methods in Project Lead the Way (PLTW) Principles of Engineering or the PLTW Aerospace Engineering courses, taught by a Career Technical Education (CTE) teacher, achieve at the same rate as students in a physics course taught by a science teacher. The PLTW courses only cover the standards taught in the first trimester of physics. The PLTW courses are two periods long for one trimester. Students who successfully pass the PLTW Principles of Engineering course or the PLTW Engineering Aerospace course earn one-half credit in physics and one-half elective credit. The instrument used to measure student achievement was the district common summative assessment for physics. The Common Summative Assessment scores were pulled from the data warehouse from the first trimester of the 2013-2014 school year. Implications of the research address concepts of contextual learning especially in the Career Technical Education space. The mean score for Physics students (30.916) and PLTW Principles of Engineering students (32.333) was not statistically significantly different. Students in PLTW Principles of Engineering achieved at the same rate as students in physics. Due to the low rate of students participating in the Common Summative Assessment in PTLW Aerospace (four out of seven students), there is not enough data to determine if there is a significant difference in the Physics A scores and PLTW Aerospace Engineering scores.

Self-Concept in Adolescents—Relationship between Sport Participation, Motor Performance and Personality Traits

PubMed Central

Klein, Markus; Fröhlich, Michael; Emrich, Eike

2017-01-01

The relationship between sport participation, personality development, self-concept and self-esteem has been discussed repeatedly. In this research, a standardized written survey together with tests on motor performance were carried out with 1399 students (707 male; 692 female) in school years 7 (12.9 ± 0.6 years) and 10 (15.8 ± 0.6 years) to measure the extent of a relationship between physical self-concept (self-developed short scale) and sporting activity, measured motor performance (German motor performance test DMT (Deutscher Motorik-Test) 6–18) and report mark in physical education. Relationships were also analyzed between physical self-concept and general personality traits (neuroticism, extraversion, openness to experiences, compatibility, and conscientiousness, measured with NEO Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI)). The assessment of own physical attractiveness and own athleticism differs by sex (F(1, 962) = 35.21; p < 0.001), whereby girls assess themselves more critically. Weak significant relationships are displayed between motor performance and the assessment of own physical attractiveness (r(395) = 0.31; p < 0.01). Motor performance is given a higher predictive value with regard to a subject’s own self-concept, (physical attractiveness β = 0.37; t(249) = 5.24; p < 0.001; athleticism β = 0.40; t(248) = 6.81; p < 0.001) than the mark achieved in physical education (physical attractiveness β = −0.01; n.s.; athleticism β = −0.30; t(248) = 5.10; p < 0.001). Relationships were found overall between personality traits and physical self-concept. The influence of the ‘neuroticism’ trait is particularly strong (physical attractiveness β = −0.44; t(947) = −13.58; p < 0.001; athleticism β = −0.27; t(948) = −7.84; p < 0.001). The more pronounced this trait, the lower the assessment of own physical attractiveness and own athleticism. PMID:29910382

Microscopic Virtual Media (MVM) in Physics Learning: Case Study on Students Understanding of Heat Transfer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wibowo, F. C.; Suhandi, A.; Rusdiana, D.; Darman, D. R.; Ruhiat, Y.; Denny, Y. R.; Suherman; Fatah, A.

2016-08-01

A Study area in physics learning is purposeful on the effects of various types of learning interventions to help students construct the basic of scientific conception about physics. Microscopic Virtual Media (MVM) are applications for physics learning to support powerful modelling microscopic involving physics concepts and processes. In this study groups (experimental) of 18±20 years old, students were studied to determine the role of MVM in the development of functional understanding of the concepts of thermal expansion in heat transfer. The experimental group used MVM in learning process. The results show that students who learned with virtual media exhibited significantly higher scores in the research tasks. Our findings proved that the MVM may be used as an alternative instructional tool, in order to help students to confront and constructed their basic of scientific conception and developed their understanding.

Pre-service teachers' metaphorical perceptions of "physics" as a concept

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aykutlu, Isil; Bayrak, Celal; Bezen, Sevim

2018-02-01

In this study, the aim is to reveal pre-service biology, chemistry and mathematics teachers' metaphorical perceptions for physics. This study was patterned by employing phenomenology, which is one of the qualitative research methods. Sampling of the study consists of 90 pre-service teachers enrolled at the departments of biology, chemistry, and mathematics education at the faculty of education of a state university in Ankara. A metaphor form was prepared to determine pre-service teachers' mental metaphors for the physics concept. Then, it was determined that a total of 80 pre-service teachers generated 34 different metaphors for physics concept. As a result of the study, 34 metaphors generated by pre-service teachers for "physics" concept were gathered under seven different categories. Also, it was determined that pre-service teachers express most frequently "life" (26,25%) and "a difficult to solve problem"(21,25%) which take place in conceptual categories.

Chemical and Physical Signatures for Microbial Forensics

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Cliff, John B.; Kreuzer, Helen W.; Ehrhardt, Christopher J.

Chemical and physical signatures for microbial forensics John Cliff and Helen Kreuzer-Martin, eds. Humana Press Chapter 1. Introduction: Review of history and statement of need. Randy Murch, Virginia Tech Chapter 2. The Microbe: Structure, morphology, and physiology of the microbe as they relate to potential signatures of growth conditions. Joany Jackman, Johns Hopkins University Chapter 3. Science for Forensics: Special considerations for the forensic arena - quality control, sample integrity, etc. Mark Wilson (retired FBI): Western Carolina University Chapter 4. Physical signatures: Light and electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, gravimetry etc. Joseph Michael, Sandia National Laboratory Chapter 5. Lipids: FAME,more » PLFA, steroids, LPS, etc. James Robertson, Federal Bureau of Investigation Chapter 6. Carbohydrates: Cell wall components, cytoplasm components, methods Alvin Fox, University of South Carolina School of Medicine David Wunschel, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Chapter 7. Peptides: Peptides, proteins, lipoproteins David Wunschel, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Chapter 8. Elemental content: CNOHPS (treated in passing), metals, prospective cell types John Cliff, International Atomic Energy Agency Chapter 9. Isotopic signatures: Stable isotopes C,N,H,O,S, 14C dating, potential for heavy elements. Helen Kreuzer-Martin, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Michaele Kashgarian, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Chapter 10. Extracellular signatures: Cellular debris, heme, agar, headspace, spent media, etc Karen Wahl, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Chapter 11. Data Reduction and Integrated Microbial Forensics: Statistical concepts, parametric and multivariate statistics, integrating signatures Kristin Jarman, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory« less

Prolegomenon to patterns in evolution.

PubMed

Kauffman, Stuart A

2014-09-01

Despite Darwin, we remain children of Newton and dream of a grand theory that is epistemologically complete and would allow prediction of the evolution of the biosphere. The main purpose of this article is to show that this dream is false, and bears on studying patterns of evolution. To do so, I must justify the use of the word "function" in biology, when physics has only happenings. The concept of "function" lifts biology irreducibly above physics, for as we shall see, we cannot prestate the ever new biological functions that arise and constitute the very phase space of evolution. Hence, we cannot mathematize the detailed becoming of the biosphere, nor write differential equations for functional variables we do not know ahead of time, nor integrate those equations, so no laws "entail" evolution. The dream of a grand theory fails. In place of entailing laws, I propose a post-entailing law explanatory framework in which Actuals arise in evolution that constitute new boundary conditions that are enabling constraints that create new, typically unprestatable, adjacent possible opportunities for further evolution, in which new Actuals arise, in a persistent becoming. Evolution flows into a typically unprestatable succession of adjacent possibles. Given the concept of function, the concept of functional closure of an organism making a living in its world becomes central. Implications for patterns in evolution include historical reconstruction, and statistical laws such as the distribution of extinction events, or species per genus, and the use of formal cause, not efficient cause, laws. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The human early-life exposome (HELIX): project rationale and design.

PubMed

Vrijheid, Martine; Slama, Rémy; Robinson, Oliver; Chatzi, Leda; Coen, Muireann; van den Hazel, Peter; Thomsen, Cathrine; Wright, John; Athersuch, Toby J; Avellana, Narcis; Basagaña, Xavier; Brochot, Celine; Bucchini, Luca; Bustamante, Mariona; Carracedo, Angel; Casas, Maribel; Estivill, Xavier; Fairley, Lesley; van Gent, Diana; Gonzalez, Juan R; Granum, Berit; Gražulevičienė, Regina; Gutzkow, Kristine B; Julvez, Jordi; Keun, Hector C; Kogevinas, Manolis; McEachan, Rosemary R C; Meltzer, Helle Margrete; Sabidó, Eduard; Schwarze, Per E; Siroux, Valérie; Sunyer, Jordi; Want, Elizabeth J; Zeman, Florence; Nieuwenhuijsen, Mark J

2014-06-01

Developmental periods in early life may be particularly vulnerable to impacts of environmental exposures. Human research on this topic has generally focused on single exposure-health effect relationships. The "exposome" concept encompasses the totality of exposures from conception onward, complementing the genome. The Human Early-Life Exposome (HELIX) project is a new collaborative research project that aims to implement novel exposure assessment and biomarker methods to characterize early-life exposure to multiple environmental factors and associate these with omics biomarkers and child health outcomes, thus characterizing the "early-life exposome." Here we describe the general design of the project. In six existing birth cohort studies in Europe, HELIX will estimate prenatal and postnatal exposure to a broad range of chemical and physical exposures. Exposure models will be developed for the full cohorts totaling 32,000 mother-child pairs, and biomarkers will be measured in a subset of 1,200 mother-child pairs. Nested repeat-sampling panel studies (n = 150) will collect data on biomarker variability, use smartphones to assess mobility and physical activity, and perform personal exposure monitoring. Omics techniques will determine molecular profiles (metabolome, proteome, transcriptome, epigenome) associated with exposures. Statistical methods for multiple exposures will provide exposure-response estimates for fetal and child growth, obesity, neurodevelopment, and respiratory outcomes. A health impact assessment exercise will evaluate risks and benefits of combined exposures. HELIX is one of the first attempts to describe the early-life exposome of European populations and unravel its relation to omics markers and health in childhood. As proof of concept, it will form an important first step toward the life-course exposome.

Physical perceptions and self-concept in athletes with muscle dysmorphia symptoms.

PubMed

González-Martí, Irene; Fernández Bustos, Juan Gregorio; Hernández-Martínez, Andrea; Contreras Jordán, Onofre Ricardo

2014-01-01

Individuals affected by Muscle Dysmorphia (MD; body image disorder based on the sub estimation of muscle size), practice weightlifting in order to alleviate their muscular dissatisfaction. Although physical activity is associated with increased physical self-perception, we assume that this was not reproduced in full in people with MD. The study sample consisted of 734 weightlifters and bodybuilders, 562 men and 172 women, who completed the Escala de Satisfacción Muscular, the Physical Self-Concept Questionnaire, and from whom measures of body fat and Fat -Free Mass Index (FFMI) were obtained. The results showed that people suffering from MD symptoms, overall, have poorer physical self-concept perceptions (F = 18.46 - 34.77, p < .01).

An investigation of the relationship between physical fitness, self-concept, and sexual functioning.

PubMed

Jiannine, Lia M

2018-01-01

Obesity and inactivity have led to an increasing number of individuals with sexual dysfunctions (43% of women; 31% of men). Small bouts of exercise can drastically improve sexual functioning. Thus, the present study is designed to examine the effects of physical fitness and self-concept on sexual functioning. Fitness assessments and questionnaires were administered to 133 participants between the ages of 18 and 50 years. Physical fitness was assessed through body composition, cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, and muscular endurance. Self-concept was presented as a total self-concept score and as six individual concepts of self. Sexual function was presented as both an aggregate score and five separate constructs of sexual functioning - fantasy/cognition, arousal, orgasm, behavior/experience, and drive/desire. The results indicated that sexual behavior/experience was predicted by body fat percentage. In men, fantasy was related to total self-concept; sexual behavior/experience was related to likeability. In women, arousal was predicted by cardiovascular endurance. Total self-concept was related to both orgasm and sex drive/desire. Power and muscular strength were significantly related to number of sexual partners in women but not men. The present study adds to the growing body of evidence indicating a positive relationship between physical fitness and sexual health. Individuals with sexual dysfunctions, particularly women, who are not persuaded by the currently publicized benefits of physical activity, may be inclined to exercise to improve sexual functioning.

Physical Education as "Means without Ends:" Towards a New Concept of Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Vlieghe, Joris

2013-01-01

This article is concerned with the educational value of raising the human body at school. Drawing inspiration from the work of Giorgio Agamben, I develop a new perspective that explores the possibility of taking the concept of physical education in a literal sense. This is to say that the specific educational content of physical education (in…

Definitions of Physical Concepts: A Study of Physics Teachers' Knowledge and Views. Research Report

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Galili, Igal; Lehavi, Yaron

2006-01-01

A study was made of the ability of a population of high-school physics teachers to define physics concepts and of their views regarding the importance of such definitions. It was found possible to arrange the definitions accumulated in categories, and the classification so obtained was consonant with that of the philosophy of science. Although the…

Influence of perceived sport competence and body attractiveness on physical activity and other healthy lifestyle habits in adolescents.

PubMed

Moreno-Murcia, Juan Antonio; Hellín, Pedro; González-Cutre, David; Martínez-Galindo, Celestina

2011-05-01

The purpose of this study was to test an explanatory model of the relationships between physical self-concept and some healthy habits. A sample of 472 adolescents aged 16 to 20 answered different questionnaires assessing physical self-concept, physical activity, intention to be physically active and consumption of alcohol and tobacco. The results of the structural equation model showed that perceived sport competence positively correlated with current physical activity. Body attractiveness positively correlated with physical activity in boys and negatively in girls. Current physical activity positively correlated with the intention to be physically active in the future and negatively with the consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Nevertheless, this last relationship was only significant in boys. The results are discussed in connection with the promotion of healthy lifestyle guidelines among adolescents. This model shows the importance of physical self-concept for engaging in physical activity in adolescence. It also suggests that physical activity is associated with the intention to continue being physically active and with healthy lifestyle habits.

An intervention study to enhance girls' interest, self-concept, and achievement in physics classes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Häussler, Peter; Hoffmann, Lore

2002-11-01

Many interest studies have shown the decline of students' interest in physics during secondary education, particularly among girls. Research into physics-related interests of students suggests applying different measures to reduce or reverse that trend such as: (a) suggesting curricular changes that do justice to the specific interests and experiences of girls, (b) improving the ability of teachers to support girls in the development of a positive physics related self-concept, and (c) changing to an organizational setting that gives girls a better chance to improve their self-concept about physics. The purpose of this study was to examine whether these hypothetically effective measures lead to an improvement of the situation for girls when implemented in the physics classroom. The intervention took a whole school year of some 60 one-hour lessons and comprised 12 experimental and 7 control classes of seventh graders (age about 13). Their immediate and long-term achievements, as well as their change of interest in physics, their subjectively experienced competence, and their physics-related self-concept were assessed by written tests at various stages of the intervention. The intervention proved successful and significantly improved most of these indicators for girls (and boys) in the experimental group.

Statistical physics and physiology: monofractal and multifractal approaches

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stanley, H. E.; Amaral, L. A.; Goldberger, A. L.; Havlin, S.; Peng, C. K.

1999-01-01

Even under healthy, basal conditions, physiologic systems show erratic fluctuations resembling those found in dynamical systems driven away from a single equilibrium state. Do such "nonequilibrium" fluctuations simply reflect the fact that physiologic systems are being constantly perturbed by external and intrinsic noise? Or, do these fluctuations actually, contain useful, "hidden" information about the underlying nonequilibrium control mechanisms? We report some recent attempts to understand the dynamics of complex physiologic fluctuations by adapting and extending concepts and methods developed very recently in statistical physics. Specifically, we focus on interbeat interval variability as an important quantity to help elucidate possibly non-homeostatic physiologic variability because (i) the heart rate is under direct neuroautonomic control, (ii) interbeat interval variability is readily measured by noninvasive means, and (iii) analysis of these heart rate dynamics may provide important practical diagnostic and prognostic information not obtainable with current approaches. The analytic tools we discuss may be used on a wider range of physiologic signals. We first review recent progress using two analysis methods--detrended fluctuation analysis and wavelets--sufficient for quantifying monofractual structures. We then describe recent work that quantifies multifractal features of interbeat interval series, and the discovery that the multifractal structure of healthy subjects is different than that of diseased subjects.

Unified Technical Concepts. Application Modules Volume I.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

Unified Technical Concepts (UTC) is a modular system for teaching applied physics in two-year postsecondary technician programs. This UTC laboratory textbook, the first of two volumes, consists of 56 learning modules dealing with basic concepts of physics. Addressed in the individual chapters of the guide are the following topics: force, work,…

A Demonstration of the Analysis of Variance Using Physical Movement and Space

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Owen, William J.; Siakaluk, Paul D.

2011-01-01

Classroom demonstrations help students better understand challenging concepts. This article introduces an activity that demonstrates the basic concepts involved in analysis of variance (ANOVA). Students who physically participated in the activity had a better understanding of ANOVA concepts (i.e., higher scores on an exam question answered 2…

Conceptual Integration of Chemical Equilibrium by Prospective Physical Sciences Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ganaras, Kostas; Dumon, Alain; Larcher, Claudine

2008-01-01

This article describes an empirical study concerning the mastering of the chemical equilibrium concept by prospective physical sciences teachers. The main objective was to check whether the concept of chemical equilibrium had become an integrating and unifying concept for them, that is to say an operational and functional knowledge to explain and…

Gravity, Magnetism, and "Down": Non-Physics College Students' Conceptions of Gravity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Asghar, Anila; Libarkin, Julie C.

2010-01-01

This study investigates how students enrolled in entry-level geology, most of whom would graduate from college without university-level physics courses, thought about and applied the concept of gravity while solving problems concerning gravity. The repercussions of students' gravity concepts are then considered in the context of non-physics…

How Do We Present the Concept of Energy in Physics?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pujol, O.; Perez, J. P.

2007-01-01

Scientific and pedagogical comments about the fundamental physical concept of energy are made. In particular, we argue for an historical presentation of this concept because its essential justification is the research, conscious or not, of a characteristic quantity of a system whose fundamental property is to be conservative. Some delicate issues…

An investigation into the effectiveness of problem-based learning in a physical chemistry laboratory course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürses, Ahmet; Açıkyıldız, Metin; Doğar, Çetin; Sözbilir, Mustafa

2007-04-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a problem-based learning (PBL) approach in a physical chemistry laboratory course. The parameters investigated were students’ attitudes towards a chemistry laboratory course, scientific process skills of students and their academic achievement. The design of the study was one group pre-test post-test. Four experiments, covering the topics adsorption, viscosity, surface tension and conductivity were performed using a PBL approach in the fall semester of the 2003/04 academic year at Kazim Karabekir Education Faculty of Atatürk University. Each experiment was done over a three week period. A total of 40 students, 18 male and 22 female, participated in the study. Students took the Physical Chemistry Laboratory Concept Test (PCLCT), Attitudes towards Chemistry Laboratory (ATCL) questionnaire and Science Process Skills Test (SPST) as pre and post-tests. In addition, the effectiveness of the PBL approach was also determined through four different scales; Scales Specific to Students’ Views of PBL. A statistically significant difference between the students’ academic achievement and scientific process skills at p

Benoit B. Mandelbrot (1924-2010)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barton, Christopher C.; Lovejoy, Shaun; Schertzer, Daniel J.; Turcotte, Donald L.

2012-01-01

Benoit B. Mandelbrot, who advanced the concept of power law scaling as a fundamental property of a broad range of natural processes and patterns in geophysics, economics, mathematics, and virtually all of science, died on 14 October 2010 in Cambridge, Mass., at the age of 85. Mandelbrot, known as the "father of fractal geometry," was a mathematician who developed the scaling concepts of self-similarity and self-affinity and found examples in spatial, temporal, and size patterns across a broad spectrum of disciplines. He coined the term "fractal" (from the Latin noun "fractus," meaning fragmented) for shapes and patterns that exhibit self-similarity, meaning that they are statistically scale independent. Such shapes are characterized by fractional power law exponents, between the integer (Euclidean) dimensions. He is best known through his books, including Les Objets Fractals: Forme, Hasard et Dimension; Fractals: Form, Chance and Dimension; The Fractal Geometry of Nature; andMultifractals and 1/f Noise: Wild Self-Affinity in Physics [Mandelbrot, 1975, Mandelbrot 1977, Mandelbrot 1982, Mandelbrot 1999].

Modulation Doping of Silicon using Aluminium-induced Acceptor States in Silicon Dioxide

PubMed Central

König, Dirk; Hiller, Daniel; Gutsch, Sebastian; Zacharias, Margit; Smith, Sean

2017-01-01

All electronic, optoelectronic or photovoltaic applications of silicon depend on controlling majority charge carriers via doping with impurity atoms. Nanoscale silicon is omnipresent in fundamental research (quantum dots, nanowires) but also approached in future technology nodes of the microelectronics industry. In general, silicon nanovolumes, irrespective of their intended purpose, suffer from effects that impede conventional doping due to fundamental physical principles such as out-diffusion, statistics of small numbers, quantum- or dielectric confinement. In analogy to the concept of modulation doping, originally invented for III-V semiconductors, we demonstrate a heterostructure modulation doping method for silicon. Our approach utilizes a specific acceptor state of aluminium atoms in silicon dioxide to generate holes as majority carriers in adjacent silicon. By relocating the dopants from silicon to silicon dioxide, Si nanoscale doping problems are circumvented. In addition, the concept of aluminium-induced acceptor states for passivating hole selective tunnelling contacts as required for high-efficiency photovoltaics is presented and corroborated by first carrier lifetime and tunnelling current measurements. PMID:28425460

Pre-Service Physics Teachers' Comprehension of Quantum Mechanical Concepts

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Didis, Nilufer; Eryilmaz, Ali; Erkoc, Sakir

2010-01-01

When quantum theory caused a paradigm shift in physics, it introduced difficulties in both learning and teaching of physics. Because of its abstract, counter-intuitive and mathematical structure, students have difficulty in learning this theory, and instructors have difficulty in teaching the concepts of the theory. This case study investigates…

Fostering Critical Thinking through Interdisciplinary Cooperation: Integrating Secondary Level Physics into a Weight Training Unit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Downing, John H.; Lander, Jeffrey E.

1997-01-01

Integrating physical training with physics concepts gives teachers increased opportunities for exploration, problem solving, and concept application, while providing an additional medium for cooperative learning and mutual understanding of each others' goals and objectives. An interdisciplinary model requires alternative planning and preparation…

Unified Technical Concepts. Physics for Technicians.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

Unified Technical Concepts (UTC) is a modular system for teaching applied physics in two-year postsecondary programs. This UTC classroom textbook, consisting of 14 chapters, deals with physics for technicians. Addressed in the individual chapters of the guide are the following topics: force, work, rate, momentum, resistance, power, potential and…

Active Learning Strategies for Introductory Light and Optics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sokoloff, David R.

2016-01-01

There is considerable evidence that traditional approaches are ineffective in teaching physics concepts, including light and optics concepts. A major focus of the work of the Activity Based Physics Group has been on the development of active learning curricula like RealTime Physics (RTP) labs and Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs). Among…

On P values and effect modification.

PubMed

Mayer, Martin

2017-12-01

A crucial element of evidence-based healthcare is the sound understanding and use of statistics. As part of instilling sound statistical knowledge and practice, it seems useful to highlight instances of unsound statistical reasoning or practice, not merely in captious or vitriolic spirit, but rather, to use such error as a springboard for edification by giving tangibility to the concepts at hand and highlighting the importance of avoiding such error. This article aims to provide an instructive overview of two key statistical concepts: effect modification and P values. A recent article published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology on side effects related to statin therapy offers a notable example of errors in understanding effect modification and P values, and although not so critical as to entirely invalidate the article, the errors still demand considerable scrutiny and correction. In doing so, this article serves as an instructive overview of the statistical concepts of effect modification and P values. Judicious handling of statistics is imperative to avoid muddying their utility. This article contributes to the body of literature aiming to improve the use of statistics, which in turn will help facilitate evidence appraisal, synthesis, translation, and application.

The questioned p value: clinical, practical and statistical significance.

PubMed

Jiménez-Paneque, Rosa

2016-09-09

The use of p-value and statistical significance have been questioned since the early 80s in the last century until today. Much has been discussed about it in the field of statistics and its applications, especially in Epidemiology and Public Health. As a matter of fact, the p-value and its equivalent, statistical significance, are difficult concepts to grasp for the many health professionals some way involved in research applied to their work areas. However, its meaning should be clear in intuitive terms although it is based on theoretical concepts of the field of Statistics. This paper attempts to present the p-value as a concept that applies to everyday life and therefore intuitively simple but whose proper use cannot be separated from theoretical and methodological elements of inherent complexity. The reasons behind the criticism received by the p-value and its isolated use are intuitively explained, mainly the need to demarcate statistical significance from clinical significance and some of the recommended remedies for these problems are approached as well. It finally refers to the current trend to vindicate the p-value appealing to the convenience of its use in certain situations and the recent statement of the American Statistical Association in this regard.

United States Middle School Students' Perspectives on Learning Statistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dwyer, Jerry; Moorhouse, Kim; Colwell, Malinda J.

2009-01-01

This paper describes an intervention at the 8th grade level where university mathematics researchers presented a series of lessons on introductory concepts in probability and statistics. Pre- and post-tests, and interviews were conducted to examine whether or not students at this grade level can understand these concepts. Students showed a…

Statistics and Data Interpretation for Social Work

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rosenthal, James A.

2011-01-01

Written by a social worker for social work students, this is a nuts and bolts guide to statistics that presents complex calculations and concepts in clear, easy-to-understand language. It includes numerous examples, data sets, and issues that students will encounter in social work practice. The first section introduces basic concepts and terms to…

Using Informal Inferential Reasoning to Develop Formal Concepts: Analyzing an Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weinberg, Aaron; Wiesner, Emilie; Pfaff, Thomas J.

2010-01-01

Inferential reasoning is a central component of statistics. Researchers have suggested that students should develop an informal understanding of the ideas that underlie inference before learning the concepts formally. This paper presents a hands-on activity that is designed to help students in an introductory statistics course draw informal…

WE-G-BRA-02: Visual Demonstrations of Medical Physics Concepts of Transmission Imaging for Resident Education.

PubMed

Sechopoulos, I

2012-06-01

To improve the radiology residents' understanding of medical physics concepts through visualization of physical phenomena. Several medical physics concepts in x-ray transmission imaging are relevant to many radiographic modalities, not only to planar radiography. Therefore, it is important that the diagnostic radiology residents obtain a good understanding of these concepts. However, standard PowerPoint slides or blackboard-based graphical representations are not always effective ways to communicate these novel concepts to the residents. To improve upon the understanding of these concepts, the computer, projector and screen in the lecture room are used as surrogates of an x-ray imaging system. The projector is the source of light (x-rays) with PowerPoint slides defining the pattern emitted (x-ray field) on to the projector screen (detector/monitor). Several different transparencies and acrylic objects are used to demonstrate varied medical physics phenomena relevant to transmission imaging, such as: straight-line travel of electromagnetic radiation; tissue superimposition; object, subject, image and display contrast; linear systems; point spread functions; frequency domain; contrast and modulation transfer functions; quantum and image noise; noise frequency and noise power spectrum; anatomical noise; magnification and geometric unsharpness; inverse square distance relationship; sampling and aliasing; and x-ray scatter. The residents' comprehension and ability to explain these concepts has substantially improved, in addition to their interest in these topics. This was reflected on improved test scores and on anonymous feedback surveys post- lectures. The use of demonstrations that mimic the conditions and physical phenomena found in transmission imaging by taking advantage of the projector and screen together with transparencies and other objects improves the residents' grasp of basic radiographic concepts and promotes live interactions between the residents and the medical physicist. Additional concepts that can be demonstrated in this manner are being sought. © 2012 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

How do Students Conceptualise Health and its Risk Factors? A Study among Iranian Schoolchildren

PubMed Central

Haghdoost, Ali-Akbar; Ashrafi Asgar-Abad, Ahad; Shokoohi, Mostafa; Alam, Mahin; Esmaeili, Maryam; Hojabri, Neda

2013-01-01

Background: To assess the concept of children concerning their health and its risk factors, a group of primary and middle school students were asked to draw a few relevant pictures in order to deeply explore the comprehension of this key group. Methods: In this cross-sectional study 1165 students, aged 7-15 years old, selected through random stratified sampling, were asked to draw a number of eight paintings, four paintings on health concepts, and the other four on health risk factors. The paintings were then assessed by two independent observers, and their themes and contents were abstracted and analysed. Results: The students drew a total of 2330 paintings, 1165 paintings on the concept of health, and 1165 paintings on health risk factors. The most and least expressed health concepts concerned “mental health” and “healthy diet” (73.3% and 4.8%, respectively). Considering health risk factors, “unhealthy diet” and the two concepts of “environmental hazards” and “neglected personal hygiene” had the most (95%) and least (1.4% each) frequencies. Students in public schools, primary level and girls drew more pictures about health concept or/and its risk factors (P<0.05). The association between parents’ education level and the numbers of pictures were not statistically significant. Conclusion: Although students had a broad view about health and its risk factors, generally little attention had been paid to some of the main aspects such as physical activity, healthy diet, mental and oral health, and environmental hazards. In addition, it seems that parents’ educational level, as one of the main socio-economic factors, did not have any significant impact on their concepts. PMID:24596834

Concept mapping: Impact on content and organization of technical writing in science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Conklin, Elaine

The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to compare the relationship between concept mapping and the content and organization of technical writing of ninth grade biology students. All students in the study completed a prewriting assessment. The experimental group received concept map instruction while the control group performed alternate tasks. After instruction, both groups completed the postwriting assessment and mean differences were compared using the t statistic for independent measures. Additionally, scores on the concept map were correlated to the scores on the postwriting assessment using the Pearson correlation coefficient. Finally, attitudes toward using concept mapping as a prewriting strategy were analyzed using the t statistic for repeated measures. Concept mapping significantly improved the depth of content; however, no statistical significance was detected for organization. Students had a significantly positive change in attitude toward using concept mapping to plan a writing assessment, organize information, and think creatively. The findings indicated concept mapping had a positive effect on the students' abilities to select concepts appropriate to respond to a writing prompt, integrate facts into complete thoughts and ideas, and apply it in novel situations. Concept maps appeared to facilitate learning how to process information and transform it into expository writing. Sustained practice in designing concept maps may influence organization as well as content. Developing a systematic approach to synthesize well-organized and coherent arguments in response to a writing task is an invaluable communication skill that has implications for the learner across disciplines and prepares them for higher education and the workforce.

Relationship of weight-based teasing and adolescents' psychological well-being and physical health.

PubMed

Greenleaf, Christy; Petrie, Trent A; Martin, Scott B

2014-01-01

To date, research has focused primarily on psychological correlates of weight-based teasing. In this study, we extended previous work by also examining physical health-related variables (eg, physical self-concept and physical fitness [PF]). Participants included 1419 middle school students (637 boys and 782 girls). Of these, 245 (17.3%) reported being teased about being overweight. Participants completed measures of self-esteem, depression, physical self-concept, physical activity (PA) self-efficacy, and self-report physical and sedentary activities. Participants also completed PF testing. After controlling for demographic characteristics, participants who were teased about being overweight had higher scores on depression and lower scores on self-esteem, physical self-concept, PA self-efficacy, and health-related measures of PF in comparison to participants who were not teased. The results of this study support previous research indicating relationships between teasing and low levels of psychological well-being, physical self-concept, and PA self-efficacy, and establishes one between weight-based teasing and different types of PF. Research is needed to determine the potential causal nature of the relationships between teasing and fitness and evidence-based interventions are needed to reduce weight-based teasing and its potential effects on health and well-being. © 2013, American School Health Association.

Effect of Modeling Instruction on Concept Knowledge Among Ninth Grade Physics Students

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ditmore, Devin Alan

A basic knowledge of physics concepts is the gateway to success through high-paying careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Many students show little understanding of concepts following traditional physics instruction. As an alternative to current lecture-based approaches for high school physics instruction, Piaget's theory of cognitive development supports using real scientific experiences to lead learners from concrete to formal understanding of complex concepts. Modeling instruction (MI) is a pedagogy that guides learners through genuine scientific experiences. This project study analyzed the effects of MI on 9th grade physics students' gains on the test measuring mastery of physics concepts, Force Concept Inventory (FCI). A quasi-experimental design was used to compare the FCI scores of a traditional lecture-taught control group to a treatment group taught using MI. A t test t(-.201) = 180.26, p = .841 comparing the groups and an analysis of variance F(2,181) = 5.20 comparing female to male students indicated MI had no significant positive effect on students. A partial eta squared of the effect size showed that 5.4% of the variance in FCI gains was accounted for by gender, favoring female participants for both groups. The significant relationship between content and gender bears further inquiry. A lesson plan guide was designed to help teachers use computer simulation technology within the MI curriculum. The project promotes positive social change by exploring further ways to help adolescents experience success in physics at the beginning of high school, leading to future success in all STEM areas.

Prospective elementary teachers' conceptions of multidigit number: exemplifying a replication framework for mathematics education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jacobson, Erik; Simpson, Amber

2018-04-01

Replication studies play a critical role in scientific accumulation of knowledge, yet replication studies in mathematics education are rare. In this study, the authors replicated Thanheiser's (Educational Studies in Mathematics 75:241-251, 2010) study of prospective elementary teachers' conceptions of multidigit number and examined the main claim that most elementary pre-service teachers think about digits incorrectly at least some of the time. Results indicated no statistically significant difference in the distribution of conceptions between the original and replication samples and, moreover, no statistically significant differences in the distribution of sub-conceptions among prospective teachers with the most common conception. These results suggest confidence is warranted both in the generality of the main claim and in the utility of the conceptions framework for describing prospective elementary teachers' conceptions of multidigit number. The report further contributes a framework for replication of mathematics education research adapted from the field of psychology.

Development of the Statistical Reasoning in Biology Concept Inventory (SRBCI)

PubMed Central

Deane, Thomas; Nomme, Kathy; Jeffery, Erica; Pollock, Carol; Birol, Gülnur

2016-01-01

We followed established best practices in concept inventory design and developed a 12-item inventory to assess student ability in statistical reasoning in biology (Statistical Reasoning in Biology Concept Inventory [SRBCI]). It is important to assess student thinking in this conceptual area, because it is a fundamental requirement of being statistically literate and associated skills are needed in almost all walks of life. Despite this, previous work shows that non–expert-like thinking in statistical reasoning is common, even after instruction. As science educators, our goal should be to move students along a novice-to-expert spectrum, which could be achieved with growing experience in statistical reasoning. We used item response theory analyses (the one-parameter Rasch model and associated analyses) to assess responses gathered from biology students in two populations at a large research university in Canada in order to test SRBCI’s robustness and sensitivity in capturing useful data relating to the students’ conceptual ability in statistical reasoning. Our analyses indicated that SRBCI is a unidimensional construct, with items that vary widely in difficulty and provide useful information about such student ability. SRBCI should be useful as a diagnostic tool in a variety of biology settings and as a means of measuring the success of teaching interventions designed to improve statistical reasoning skills. PMID:26903497

Quantifying fluctuations in economic systems by adapting methods of statistical physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stanley, H. E.; Gopikrishnan, P.; Plerou, V.; Amaral, L. A. N.

2000-12-01

The emerging subfield of econophysics explores the degree to which certain concepts and methods from statistical physics can be appropriately modified and adapted to provide new insights into questions that have been the focus of interest in the economics community. Here we give a brief overview of two examples of research topics that are receiving recent attention. A first topic is the characterization of the dynamics of stock price fluctuations. For example, we investigate the relation between trading activity - measured by the number of transactions NΔ t - and the price change GΔ t for a given stock, over a time interval [t, t+ Δt] . We relate the time-dependent standard deviation of price fluctuations - volatility - to two microscopic quantities: the number of transactions NΔ t in Δ t and the variance WΔ t2 of the price changes for all transactions in Δ t. Our work indicates that while the pronounced tails in the distribution of price fluctuations arise from WΔ t, the long-range correlations found in ∣ GΔ t∣ are largely due to NΔ t. We also investigate the relation between price fluctuations and the number of shares QΔ t traded in Δ t. We find that the distribution of QΔ t is consistent with a stable Lévy distribution, suggesting a Lévy scaling relationship between QΔ t and NΔ t, which would provide one explanation for volume-volatility co-movement. A second topic concerns cross-correlations between the price fluctuations of different stocks. We adapt a conceptual framework, random matrix theory (RMT), first used in physics to interpret statistical properties of nuclear energy spectra. RMT makes predictions for the statistical properties of matrices that are universal, that is, do not depend on the interactions between the elements comprising the system. In physics systems, deviations from the predictions of RMT provide clues regarding the mechanisms controlling the dynamics of a given system, so this framework can be of potential value if applied to economic systems. We discuss a systematic comparison between the statistics of the cross-correlation matrix C - whose elements Cij are the correlation-coefficients between the returns of stock i and j - and that of a random matrix having the same symmetry properties. Our work suggests that RMT can be used to distinguish random and non-random parts of C; the non-random part of C, which deviates from RMT results provides information regarding genuine cross-correlations between stocks.

Derivation of the Statistical Distribution of the Mass Peak Centroids of Mass Spectrometers Employing Analog-to-Digital Converters and Electron Multipliers

DOE PAGES

Ipsen, Andreas

2017-02-03

Here, the mass peak centroid is a quantity that is at the core of mass spectrometry (MS). However, despite its central status in the field, models of its statistical distribution are often chosen quite arbitrarily and without attempts at establishing a proper theoretical justification for their use. Recent work has demonstrated that for mass spectrometers employing analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) and electron multipliers, the statistical distribution of the mass peak intensity can be described via a relatively simple model derived essentially from first principles. Building on this result, the following article derives the corresponding statistical distribution for the mass peak centroidsmore » of such instruments. It is found that for increasing signal strength, the centroid distribution converges to a Gaussian distribution whose mean and variance are determined by physically meaningful parameters and which in turn determine bias and variability of the m/z measurements of the instrument. Through the introduction of the concept of “pulse-peak correlation”, the model also elucidates the complicated relationship between the shape of the voltage pulses produced by the preamplifier and the mean and variance of the centroid distribution. The predictions of the model are validated with empirical data and with Monte Carlo simulations.« less

Statistical analysis and interpolation of compositional data in materials science.

PubMed

Pesenson, Misha Z; Suram, Santosh K; Gregoire, John M

2015-02-09

Compositional data are ubiquitous in chemistry and materials science: analysis of elements in multicomponent systems, combinatorial problems, etc., lead to data that are non-negative and sum to a constant (for example, atomic concentrations). The constant sum constraint restricts the sampling space to a simplex instead of the usual Euclidean space. Since statistical measures such as mean and standard deviation are defined for the Euclidean space, traditional correlation studies, multivariate analysis, and hypothesis testing may lead to erroneous dependencies and incorrect inferences when applied to compositional data. Furthermore, composition measurements that are used for data analytics may not include all of the elements contained in the material; that is, the measurements may be subcompositions of a higher-dimensional parent composition. Physically meaningful statistical analysis must yield results that are invariant under the number of composition elements, requiring the application of specialized statistical tools. We present specifics and subtleties of compositional data processing through discussion of illustrative examples. We introduce basic concepts, terminology, and methods required for the analysis of compositional data and utilize them for the spatial interpolation of composition in a sputtered thin film. The results demonstrate the importance of this mathematical framework for compositional data analysis (CDA) in the fields of materials science and chemistry.

Appplication of statistical mechanical methods to the modeling of social networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Strathman, Anthony Robert

With the recent availability of large-scale social data sets, social networks have become open to quantitative analysis via the methods of statistical physics. We examine the statistical properties of a real large-scale social network, generated from cellular phone call-trace logs. We find this network, like many other social networks to be assortative (r = 0.31) and clustered (i.e., strongly transitive, C = 0.21). We measure fluctuation scaling to identify the presence of internal structure in the network and find that structural inhomogeneity effectively disappears at the scale of a few hundred nodes, though there is no sharp cutoff. We introduce an agent-based model of social behavior, designed to model the formation and dissolution of social ties. The model is a modified Metropolis algorithm containing agents operating under the basic sociological constraints of reciprocity, communication need and transitivity. The model introduces the concept of a social temperature. We go on to show that this simple model reproduces the global statistical network features (incl. assortativity, connected fraction, mean degree, clustering, and mean shortest path length) of the real network data and undergoes two phase transitions, one being from a "gas" to a "liquid" state and the second from a liquid to a glassy state as function of this social temperature.

Derivation of the Statistical Distribution of the Mass Peak Centroids of Mass Spectrometers Employing Analog-to-Digital Converters and Electron Multipliers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ipsen, Andreas

Here, the mass peak centroid is a quantity that is at the core of mass spectrometry (MS). However, despite its central status in the field, models of its statistical distribution are often chosen quite arbitrarily and without attempts at establishing a proper theoretical justification for their use. Recent work has demonstrated that for mass spectrometers employing analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) and electron multipliers, the statistical distribution of the mass peak intensity can be described via a relatively simple model derived essentially from first principles. Building on this result, the following article derives the corresponding statistical distribution for the mass peak centroidsmore » of such instruments. It is found that for increasing signal strength, the centroid distribution converges to a Gaussian distribution whose mean and variance are determined by physically meaningful parameters and which in turn determine bias and variability of the m/z measurements of the instrument. Through the introduction of the concept of “pulse-peak correlation”, the model also elucidates the complicated relationship between the shape of the voltage pulses produced by the preamplifier and the mean and variance of the centroid distribution. The predictions of the model are validated with empirical data and with Monte Carlo simulations.« less

A cross-cultural, multilevel study of inquiry-based instruction effects on conceptual understanding and motivation in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Negishi, Meiko

Student achievement and motivation to learn physics is highly valued in many industrialized countries including the United States and Japan. Science education curricula in these countries emphasize the importance and encourage classroom teachers to use an inquiry approach. This dissertation investigated high school students' motivational orientations and their understanding of physics concepts in a context of inquiry-based instruction. The goals were to explore the patterns of instructional effects on motivation and learning in each country and to examine cultural differences and similarities. Participants consisted of 108 students (55 females, 53 males) and 9 physics teachers in the United States and 616 students (203 females and 413 males) and 11 physics teachers in Japan. Students were administered (a) Force Concept Inventory measuring physics conceptual understanding and (b) Attitudes about Science Questionnaire measuring student motivational orientations. Teachers were given a survey regarding their use of inquiry teaching practices and background information. Additionally, three teachers in each country were interviewed and observed in their classrooms. For the data analysis, two-level hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) methods were used to examine individual student differences (i.e., learning, motivation, and gender) within each classroom (i.e., inquiry-based teaching, teaching experience, and class size) in the U.S. and Japan, separately. Descriptive statistical analyses were also conducted. The results indicated that there was a cultural similarity in that current teaching practices had minimal influence on conceptual understanding as well as motivation of high school students between the U.S. and Japan. In contrast, cultural differences were observed in classroom structures and instructional approaches. Furthermore, this study revealed gender inequity in Japanese students' conceptual understanding and self-efficacy. Limitations of the study, as well as implications for high school physics teachers are discussed. Future research in this line could explore students' use of cognitive strategies to overcome misconceptions in Western and Eastern cultures. Also, exploring the best practices in changing student misconceptions and promoting motivation across cultures would enrich our understanding and current teaching practices.

Developing and validating a conceptual survey to assess introductory physics students’ understanding of magnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Singh, Chandralekha

2017-03-01

Development of validated physics surveys on various topics is important for investigating the extent to which students master those concepts after traditional instruction and for assessing innovative curricula and pedagogies that can improve student understanding significantly. Here, we discuss the development and validation of a conceptual multiple-choice survey related to magnetism suitable for introductory physics courses. The survey was developed taking into account common students’ difficulties with magnetism concepts covered in introductory physics courses found in our investigation and the incorrect choices to the multiple-choice questions were designed based upon those common student difficulties. After the development and validation of the survey, it was administered to introductory physics students in various classes in paper-pencil format before and after traditional lecture-based instruction in relevant concepts. We compared the performance of students on the survey in the algebra-based and calculus-based introductory physics courses before and after traditional lecture-based instruction in relevant magnetism concepts. We discuss the common difficulties of introductory physics students with magnetism concepts we found via the survey. We also administered the survey to upper-level undergraduates majoring in physics and PhD students to benchmark the survey and compared their performance with those of traditionally taught introductory physics students for whom the survey is intended. A comparison with the base line data on the validated magnetism survey from traditionally taught introductory physics courses and upper-level undergraduate and PhD students discussed in this paper can help instructors assess the effectiveness of curricula and pedagogies which is especially designed to help students integrate conceptual and quantitative understanding and develop a good grasp of the concepts. In particular, if introductory physics students’ average performance in a class is significantly better than those of students in traditionally taught courses described here (and particularly when it is comparable to that of physics PhD students’ average performance discussed here), the curriculum or pedagogy used in that introductory class can be deemed effective. Moreover, we discuss the use of the survey to investigate gender differences in student performance.

Students’ profile of heat and temperature using HTCE in undergraduate physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arya Nugraha, Dewanta; Suparmi, A.; Winarni, Retno; Suciati

2017-11-01

Understanding heat and temperature are important to make strong fundamental of physics before understanding the other subject materials. This research aims to describe the students’ conception of heat and temperature using Heat and Temperature Conceptual Evaluation (HTCE) developed by Thornton and Sokoloff. This research subjects are 10 students of 3rd semester and 24 students of 5th semester Bachelor of Physics. The data collection methods are test and interview. The result are the students’ conception of heat and temperature, rate of cooling, calorimetry, rate of heat transfer, perception of hotness, specific heat capacity, change of phase, thermal conductivity. Students are getting difficult on understanding the concept of heat and temperature especially the concept of rate of cooling, change of phase, and rate of heat transfer. The average students’ correct answer is 44.88% of 34 students. The lowest mean score is the concept of RHT with the percentage of 17.65%. This research could be used to develop learning media on basic physics course.

Beyond Classical Information Theory: Advancing the Fundamentals for Improved Geophysical Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perdigão, R. A. P.; Pires, C. L.; Hall, J.; Bloeschl, G.

2016-12-01

Information Theory, in its original and quantum forms, has gradually made its way into various fields of science and engineering. From the very basic concepts of Information Entropy and Mutual Information to Transit Information, Interaction Information and respective partitioning into statistical synergy, redundancy and exclusivity, the overall theoretical foundations have matured as early as the mid XX century. In the Earth Sciences various interesting applications have been devised over the last few decades, such as the design of complex process networks of descriptive and/or inferential nature, wherein earth system processes are "nodes" and statistical relationships between them designed as information-theoretical "interactions". However, most applications still take the very early concepts along with their many caveats, especially in heavily non-Normal, non-linear and structurally changing scenarios. In order to overcome the traditional limitations of information theory and tackle elusive Earth System phenomena, we introduce a new suite of information dynamic methodologies towards a more physically consistent and information comprehensive framework. The methodological developments are then illustrated on a set of practical examples from geophysical fluid dynamics, where high-order nonlinear relationships elusive to the current non-linear information measures are aptly captured. In doing so, these advances increase the predictability of critical events such as the emergence of hyper-chaotic regimes in ocean-atmospheric dynamics and the occurrence of hydro-meteorological extremes.

Physical Activity and Different Concepts of Fall Risk Estimation in Older People–Results of the ActiFE-Ulm Study

PubMed Central

Klenk, Jochen; Kerse, Ngaire; Rapp, Kilian; Becker, Clemens; Rothenbacher, Dietrich; Peter, Richard; Denkinger, Michael Dieter

2015-01-01

Objectives To investigate the relationship between physical activity and two measures of fall incidence in an elderly population using person-years as well as hours walked as denominators and to compare these two approaches. Design Prospective cohort study with one-year follow-up of falls using fall calendars. Physical activity was defined as walking duration and recorded at baseline over one week using a thigh-worn uni-axial accelerometer (activPAL; PAL Technologies, Glasgow, Scotland). Average daily physical activity was extracted from these data and categorized in low (0–59 min), medium (60–119 min) and high (120 min and more) activity. Setting The ActiFE Ulm study located in Ulm and adjacent regions in Southern Germany. Participants 1,214 community-dwelling older people (≥65 years, 56.4% men). Measurements Negative-binomial regression models were used to calculate fall rates and incidence rate ratios for each activity category each with using (1) person-years and (2) hours walked as denominators stratified by gender, age group, fall history, and walking speed. All analyses were adjusted either for gender, age, or both. Results No statistically significant association was seen between falls per person-year and average daily physical activity. However, when looking at falls per 100 hours walked, those who were low active sustained more falls per hours walked. The highest incidence rates of falls were seen in low-active persons with slow walking speed (0.57 (95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.33 to 0.98) falls per 100 hours walked) or history of falls (0.60 (95% CI: 0.36 to 0.99) falls per 100 hours walked). Conclusion Falls per hours walked is a relevant and sensitive outcome measure. It complements the concept of incidence per person years, and gives an additional perspective on falls in community-dwelling older people. PMID:26058056

Comparison of Neural Network and Linear Regression Models in Statistically Predicting Mental and Physical Health Status of Breast Cancer Survivors

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-07-15

Long-term effects on cancer survivors’ quality of life of physical training versus physical training combined with cognitive-behavioral therapy ...COMPARISON OF NEURAL NETWORK AND LINEAR REGRESSION MODELS IN STATISTICALLY PREDICTING MENTAL AND PHYSICAL HEALTH STATUS OF BREAST...34Comparison of Neural Network and Linear Regression Models in Statistically Predicting Mental and Physical Health Status of Breast Cancer Survivors

Tsallis non-extensive statistics and solar wind plasma complexity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pavlos, G. P.; Iliopoulos, A. C.; Zastenker, G. N.; Zelenyi, L. M.; Karakatsanis, L. P.; Riazantseva, M. O.; Xenakis, M. N.; Pavlos, E. G.

2015-03-01

This article presents novel results revealing non-equilibrium phase transition processes in the solar wind plasma during a strong shock event, which took place on 26th September 2011. Solar wind plasma is a typical case of stochastic spatiotemporal distribution of physical state variables such as force fields (B → , E →) and matter fields (particle and current densities or bulk plasma distributions). This study shows clearly the non-extensive and non-Gaussian character of the solar wind plasma and the existence of multi-scale strong correlations from the microscopic to the macroscopic level. It also underlines the inefficiency of classical magneto-hydro-dynamic (MHD) or plasma statistical theories, based on the classical central limit theorem (CLT), to explain the complexity of the solar wind dynamics, since these theories include smooth and differentiable spatial-temporal functions (MHD theory) or Gaussian statistics (Boltzmann-Maxwell statistical mechanics). On the contrary, the results of this study indicate the presence of non-Gaussian non-extensive statistics with heavy tails probability distribution functions, which are related to the q-extension of CLT. Finally, the results of this study can be understood in the framework of modern theoretical concepts such as non-extensive statistical mechanics (Tsallis, 2009), fractal topology (Zelenyi and Milovanov, 2004), turbulence theory (Frisch, 1996), strange dynamics (Zaslavsky, 2002), percolation theory (Milovanov, 1997), anomalous diffusion theory and anomalous transport theory (Milovanov, 2001), fractional dynamics (Tarasov, 2013) and non-equilibrium phase transition theory (Chang, 1992).

Shadows constructing a relationship between light and color pigments by physical and mathematical perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yurumezoglu, Kemal; Karabey, Burak; Yigit Koyunkaya, Melike

2017-03-01

Full shadows, partial shadows and multilayer shadows are explained based on the phenomenon of the linear dispersion of light. This paper focuses on progressing the understanding of shadows from physical and mathematical perspectives. A significant relationship between light and color pigments is demonstrated with the help of the concept of sets. This integration of physical and mathematical reasoning not only manages an operational approach to the concept of shadows, it also outputs a model that can be used in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) curricula by providing a concrete and physical example for abstract concept of the empty set.

The Effect of Weight Training on the Self-Concept of Male Undergraduates.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

James, Richard; And Others

From ancient times, physical exercise has been linked to good mental health and positive self-concepts. To investigate the effects of weight training on self-concept, 62 college males participated in a one semester (40 hours) weight training, physical education course. Subjects were pre- and post-tested on subscales of the Tennessee Self Concept…

Concept Development in Learning Physics: The Case of Electric Current and Voltage Revisited

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koponen, Ismo T.; Huttunen, Laura

2013-01-01

In learning conceptual knowledge in physics, a common problem is the development and differentiation of concepts in the learning process. An important part of this development process is the re-organisation or re-structuring process in which students' conceptual knowledge and concepts change. This study proposes a new view of concept…

Modern Concepts of Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boyer, John L.

1972-01-01

The author calls for a whole new concept of physical education in the nation's schools. A change of lifestyle is needed, but also necessary are school programs that develop cardiovascular endurance fitness, not muscular fitness. (Editor)

Yoga Training in Junior Primary School-Aged Children Has an Impact on Physical Self-Perceptions and Problem-Related Behavior

PubMed Central

Richter, Stefanie; Tietjens, Maike; Ziereis, Susanne; Querfurth, Sydney; Jansen, Petra

2016-01-01

The present pilot study investigated the effects of yoga training, as compared to physical skill training, on motor and executive function, physical self-concept, and anxiety-related behavior in junior primary school-aged children. Twenty-four participants with a mean age of 8.4 (±1.4) years completed either yoga or physical skill training twice a week for 6 weeks outside of regular school class time. Both forms of training were delivered in an individualized and child-oriented manner. The type of training did not result in any significant differences in movement and executive function outcomes. In terms of physical self-concept, significant group differences were revealed only for perceived movement speed such that yoga training resulted in perceptions of being slower while physical skill training resulted in perceptions of moving faster. Analysis of anxiety related outcomes revealed significant group effects only for avoidance behavior and coping strategies. Avoidance behavior increased following yoga training, but decreased following physical skill training. In addition, following yoga training, children showed an increased use of divergent coping strategies when facing problematic situations while after physical skill training children demonstrated a decrease in use of divergent coping strategies. Changes in overall physical self-concept scores were not significantly correlated with changes in avoidance behavior following yoga training. In contrast, following physical skill training increased physical self-concept was significantly correlated with decreases in avoidance behavior. In sum, exposure to yoga or physical skill training appears to result in distinct effects for specific domains of physical self-concept and anxiety-related behavior. Further studies with larger samples and more rigorous methodologies are required to further investigate the effects reported here. With respect to future studies, we address potential research questions and specific features associated with the investigation of the effects of yoga in a sample of school-aged children. PMID:26941676

Pima College Students' Knowledge of Selected Basic Physical Science Concepts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iadevaia, David G.

In 1989 a study was conducted at Pima Community College (PCC) to assess students' knowledge of basic physical science concepts. A three-part survey instrument was administered to students in a second semester sociology class, a first semester astronomy class, a second semester Spanish class, and a first semester physics class. The survey…

Learning to Play: A "Hedgehog Concept" for Physical Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Tyler

2014-01-01

What is physical education and why does it exist? Despite its relatively long and storied history, consensus about the main purpose of physical education remains minimal. This article explores three questions, developed by Jim Collins in his best-selling book Good to Great, to help organizations identify a hedgehog concept, or primary reason for…

Student Use of Energy Concepts from Physics in Chemistry Courses

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nagel, Megan L.; Lindsey, Beth A.

2015-01-01

This paper describes an interdisciplinary investigation of students' usage of ideas about energy from physics in the context of introductory chemistry. We focus on student understanding of the idea that potential energy is a function of distance between interacting objects, a concept relevant to understanding potential energy in both physical and…

Educacao Fisica Escolar: A Construcao de um Conceito (School Physical Education: The Construction of a Concept).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Colpas, Ricardo Ducatti

2000-01-01

Seeks to understand school physical education praxis in light of the human development theories of Lev Vygotsky. Develops a methodology of teaching and a conception of learning that enables students to recognize physical education as a school discipline connected to a dynamic curriculum. (BT)

Self-Concept and Role Modeling: Their Relationships to Secondary School Physical Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robbins, Stephen B.

Theories of Piaget, Erickson, Freud, and other behavioral psychologists are reviewed in an examination of the development of adolescent self-concept. The implications, for the physical education teacher or athletic coach, of the adolescent's self-consciousness and egocentricity are discussed. It is suggested that the physical education teacher is…

Correlating student interest and high school preparation with learning and performance in an introductory university physics course

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Harlow, Jason J. B.; Harrison, David M.; Meyertholen, Andrew

2014-06-01

We have studied the correlation of student performance in a large first year university physics course with their reasons for taking the course and whether or not the student took a senior-level high school physics course. Performance was measured both by the Force Concept Inventory and by the grade on the final examination. Students who took the course primarily for their own interest outperformed students who took the course primarily because it was required, both on the Force Concept Inventory and on the final examination; students who took a senior-level high school physics course outperformed students who did not, also both on the Force Concept Inventory and on the final exam. Students who took the course for their own interest and took high school physics outperformed students who took the course because it was required and did not take high school physics by a wide margin. However, the normalized gain on the Force Concept Inventory was the same within uncertainties for all groups and subgroups of students.

Korean immigrant women's physical activity experience: a situation-specific theory.

PubMed

Im, Eun-Ok; Chang, Sun Ju; Nguyen, Giang; Stringer, Lynn; Chee, Wonshik; Chee, Eunice

2015-01-01

To develop successful physical activity promotion programs for midlife immigrant women, especially for Korean immigrant midlife women, concrete theoretical bases are needed. However, virtually no theoretical frameworks and/or theories exist that can explain the influences of immigration transition on the physical activity experience of midlife immigrant women in general or Korean immigrant midlife women in specific. The purpose of this article is to present a situation-specific theory on physical activity experience of Korean immigrant midlife women (SPAKIM) with its development process. An integrative approach was used to develop the theory based on the midlife women's attitudes toward physical activity (MAPA) theory, the transitions theory, a review of the relevant literature, and two studies on midlife women's attitudes toward physical activity. The proposed theory includes nature of transitions, nonmodifiable and modifiable transition conditions, contexts of daily life, patterns of response, and nursing therapeutics as major concepts, and each major concept includes several related subconcepts. Because several concepts of the theory were developed mainly based on the literature review, the major concepts and related subconcepts need to be further developed and evaluated in future studies.

Motivational interviewing skills are positively associated with nutritionist self-efficacy.

PubMed

Marley, Scott C; Carbonneau, Kira; Lockner, Donna; Kibbe, Debra; Trowbridge, Frederick

2011-01-01

To examine the relationships between physical and social self-concepts, motivational interviewing (MI), and nutrition assessment skills with dimensions of counseling self-efficacy. Cross-sectional survey. Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) clinics. Sixty-five WIC nutritionists. Counseling self-efficacy on topics related to physical activity and nutritional behaviors and in the presence of language and cultural differences. Multiple linear regression. Nutritionists' perception of their own MI skills was positively associated with their self-efficacy for counseling clients of a culture different than their own, when counseling about physical activity, and when counseling about nutrition behavior. Hispanic ethnicity and social self-concept were positively associated with counseling self-efficacy when culture differences were present. Physical self-concept was positively associated with self-efficacy related to physical activity topics. Nutrition assessment skill was negatively associated with self-efficacy for working with non-English-speaking clients. Development of MI skills and strategies to improve social and physical self-concept may increase WIC nutritionists' counseling self-efficacy, particularly when counseling clients from diverse backgrounds. Copyright © 2011 Society for Nutrition Education. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Primer of statistics in dental research: part I.

PubMed

Shintani, Ayumi

2014-01-01

Statistics play essential roles in evidence-based dentistry (EBD) practice and research. It ranges widely from formulating scientific questions, designing studies, collecting and analyzing data to interpreting, reporting, and presenting study findings. Mastering statistical concepts appears to be an unreachable goal among many dental researchers in part due to statistical authorities' limitations of explaining statistical principles to health researchers without elaborating complex mathematical concepts. This series of 2 articles aim to introduce dental researchers to 9 essential topics in statistics to conduct EBD with intuitive examples. The part I of the series includes the first 5 topics (1) statistical graph, (2) how to deal with outliers, (3) p-value and confidence interval, (4) testing equivalence, and (5) multiplicity adjustment. Part II will follow to cover the remaining topics including (6) selecting the proper statistical tests, (7) repeated measures analysis, (8) epidemiological consideration for causal association, and (9) analysis of agreement. Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

The Development of Bayesian Theory and Its Applications in Business and Bioinformatics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yifei

2018-03-01

Bayesian Theory originated from an Essay of a British mathematician named Thomas Bayes in 1763, and after its development in 20th century, Bayesian Statistics has been taking a significant part in statistical study of all fields. Due to the recent breakthrough of high-dimensional integral, Bayesian Statistics has been improved and perfected, and now it can be used to solve problems that Classical Statistics failed to solve. This paper summarizes Bayesian Statistics’ history, concepts and applications, which are illustrated in five parts: the history of Bayesian Statistics, the weakness of Classical Statistics, Bayesian Theory and its development and applications. The first two parts make a comparison between Bayesian Statistics and Classical Statistics in a macroscopic aspect. And the last three parts focus on Bayesian Theory in specific -- from introducing some particular Bayesian Statistics’ concepts to listing their development and finally their applications.

Possible Origin of Efficient Navigation in Small Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hu, Yanqing; Wang, Yougui; Li, Daqing; Havlin, Shlomo; di, Zengru

2011-03-01

The small-world phenomenon is one of the most important properties found in social networks. It includes both short path lengths and efficient navigation between two individuals. It is found by Kleinberg that navigation is efficient only if the probability density distribution of an individual to have a friend at distance r scales as P(r)˜r-1. Although this spatial scaling is found in many empirical studies, the origin of how this scaling emerges is still missing. In this Letter, we propose the origin of this scaling law using the concept of entropy from statistical physics and show that this scaling is the result of optimization of collecting information in social networks.

Handbook Of X-ray Astronomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnaud, Keith A.; Smith, R. K.; Siemiginowska, A.; Edgar, R. J.; Grant, C. E.; Kuntz, K. D.; Schwartz, D. A.

2011-09-01

This poster advertises a book to be published in September 2011 by Cambridge University Press. Written for graduate students, professional astronomers and researchers who want to start working in this field, this book is a practical guide to x-ray astronomy. The handbook begins with x-ray optics, basic detector physics and CCDs, before focussing on data analysis. It introduces the reduction and calibration of x-ray data, scientific analysis, archives, statistical issues and the particular problems of highly extended sources. The book describes the main hardware used in x-ray astronomy, emphasizing the implications for data analysis. The concepts behind common x-ray astronomy data analysis software are explained. The appendices present reference material often required during data analysis.

Developing a magnetism conceptual survey and assessing gender differences in student understanding of magnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Singh, Chandralekha

2012-02-01

We discuss the development of a research-based conceptual multiple-choice survey of magnetism. We also discuss the use of the survey to investigate gender differences in students' difficulties with concepts related to magnetism. We find that while there was no gender difference on the pre-test. However, female students performed significantly worse than male students when the survey was given as a post-test in traditionally taught calculus-based introductory physics courses with similar results in both the regular and honors versions of the course. In the algebra-based courses, the performance of female and male students has no statistical difference on the pre-test or the post-test.

Let's Get Physical: Teaching Physics Through Gymnastics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sojourner, Elena J.; Burgasser, Adam J.; Weise, Eric D.

2018-01-01

The concept of embodied learning—that we can learn with our bodies and with our minds—is a well-established concept in physics and math education research, and includes symbolic understanding (e.g., gestures that track how students think or facilitate learning to model complex systems of energy flow) as well as the literal experience of exploring physical phenomena through body movements. Sport has long served as a guide for both illustrating and experiencing physical concepts and phenomena, with a particularly relevant example being the sport of gymnastics. Here, the practitioner is subjected to a wide range of forces and torques, and experiences translational and rotational motions, all guided by control of body positioning, shape, strength, and leverage. Smith provides a comprehensive study of the mechanics used to analyze gymnastic movements, which includes core concepts such as force balance, leverage and torque, center of mass and stability, moment of inertia, ballistic motion, pendulum motion, and circular motion. For life science majors, gymnastics also provides relevant physical examples of biomechanics and the physical limits of biological materials (skin, bones, ligaments). The popularity of gymnastics—consider the phenomenon of Simone Biles—makes it broadly accessible and engaging, particularly across genders.

Advanced Concepts: Enabling Future AF Missions Through the Discovery and Demonstration of Emerging Revolutionary Technologies

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-10-03

µmeteoroids, weather, vibrations... Asteroid Mining Breakthrough Physics No known feasible concepts. --- Concept NTF NMS NCA Primary Challenges for Launch...weather, vibrations... Asteroid Mining Breakthrough Physics No known feasible concepts. --- 8 2.2 Microwave Augmentation of Solid Rocket Motors16,17 As...Astronautica, Vol. 52, 1, pp. 49-75, 30 May, 2002. 7. Sonter, M.J., “The Technical and Economic Feasibility of Mining the Near-Earth Asteroids ,” Acta

Proper and Paradigmatic Metonymy as a Lens for Characterizing Student Conceptions of Distributions and Sampling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Noll, Jennifer; Hancock, Stacey

2015-01-01

This research investigates what students' use of statistical language can tell us about their conceptions of distribution and sampling in relation to informal inference. Prior research documents students' challenges in understanding ideas of distribution and sampling as tools for making informal statistical inferences. We know that these…

What Form of Mathematics Are Assessments Assessing? The Case of Multiplication and Division in Fourth Grade NAEP Items

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kosko Karl W.; Singh, Rashmi

2018-01-01

Multiplicative reasoning is a key concept in elementary school mathematics. Item statistics reported by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) assessment provide the best current indicator for how well elementary students across the U.S. understand this, and other concepts. However, beyond expert reviews and statistical analysis,…

Infusion of Quantitative and Statistical Concepts into Biology Courses Does Not Improve Quantitative Literacy

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beck, Christopher W.

2018-01-01

Multiple national reports have pushed for the integration of quantitative concepts into the context of disciplinary science courses. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quantitative and statistical literacy of biology students and explore learning gains when those skills were taught implicitly in the context of biology. I examined gains in…

Sets, Probability and Statistics: The Mathematics of Life Insurance.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Clifford, Paul C.; And Others

The practical use of such concepts as sets, probability and statistics are considered by many to be vital and necessary to our everyday life. This student manual is intended to familiarize students with these concepts and to provide practice using real life examples. It also attempts to illustrate how the insurance industry uses such mathematic…

Redesigning a Statistical Concepts Course to Improve Retention, Satisfaction, and Success Rates of Non-Traditional Undergraduate Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Alpay, Nimet; Ratvasky, Pamela; Koehler, Natalya; LeVally, Carolyn; Washington, Tawana

2017-01-01

This case study investigated the impact of the Statistical Concepts course redesign on the retention, performance, and satisfaction of non-traditional undergraduate students. The redesign used a systematic approach and has been yielding positive impacts over 5 trimesters. Student attrition rates on average decreased by 12% and the number of…

A statistical study on consumer's perception of sustainable products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pater, Liana; Izvercian, Monica; Ivaşcu, Larisa

2017-07-01

Sustainability and sustainable concepts are quite often but not always used correctly. The statistical research on consumer's perception of sustainable products has tried to identify the level of knowledge regarding the concept of sustainability and sustainable products, the selected criteria concerning the buying decision, the intention of purchasing a sustainable product, main sustainable products preferred by consumers.

Computer-Assisted Instruction in Statistics. Technical Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cooley, William W.

A paper given at a conference on statistical computation discussed teaching statistics with computers. It concluded that computer-assisted instruction is most appropriately employed in the numerical demonstration of statistical concepts, and for statistical laboratory instruction. The student thus learns simultaneously about the use of computers…

[Aerobic capacity, weight status and self-concept in schoolchildren].

PubMed

Gálvez Casas, Arancha; Rodríguez García, Pedro Luis; Rosa Guillamón, Andrés; García-Cantó, Eliseo; Pérez Soto, Juan José; Tárraga López, Pedro; Tárraga Marcos, Loreto

2016-01-01

To analyze the relationship between self-concept, aerobic capacity and weight status in schoolchildren. Relational descriptive design in which was assessed the weight status and aerobic capacity of 256 schoolchildren among 8-11 years. Aerobic capacity (low vs high) and the body mass index (normal-weight vs overweight-obesity) were categorized using standard criteria. The self-concept was assessed through the Piers Harris self-concept scale for children. Schoolchildren with normal-weight and high fitness level showed better levels of conductual self-concept (P=.030), physical (P<.001), lack of anxiety (P=.048), and global self-concept (P=.002). The schoolchildren with normal-weight show higher levels of conductual self-concpt (P=.016), intellectual (P=.050), physical (P<.001), life satisfaction (P=.036), and global self-concept (P=.001). The schoolchildren with a higher fitness level showed better conductual self-concept (P=.024), physical (P=.004), lack of anxiety (P=.011), social (P=.024), and global (P=.003). The results of the study strengthen the importance to transmit to the educative community the knowledge of the relationship between the variables analyzed aiming to improve the schoolchildren self-concept. Copyright © 2015 Sociedad Española de Arteriosclerosis. Published by Elsevier España. All rights reserved.

Physical Self-Concept, Trait Depression and Readiness for Physical Activity of Obese Patients

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boros, Szilvia; Halmy, Laszlo

2009-01-01

Study aim: To assess the physical self-concept, trait depression and readiness for physical activity in relation to the degree of obesity. Material and methods: Obese (Grade I and II; n = 59) and morbidly obese (Grade III; n = 42) patients aged 30-66 years, as well as 83 non-obese college students aged 30 [plus or minus] 7.3 years were studied.…

Physical Activity, Physical Self-Concept, and Health-Related Quality of Life of Extreme Early and Late Maturing Adolescent Girls

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cumming, Sean P.; Sherar, Lauren B.; Smart, Joanna E. Hunter; Rodrigues, Aristides M. M.; Standage, Martyn; Gillison, Fiona B.; Malina, Robert M.

2012-01-01

In this study we tested for differences in physical activity (PA), physical self-concept, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) between the least and most biologically mature adolescent females within their respective chronological and academic year groups. A total of 222 British female adolescents aged 10 to 14 years (X[bar] age = 12.7…

What can we learn from noise? — Mesoscopic nonequilibrium statistical physics —

PubMed Central

KOBAYASHI, Kensuke

2016-01-01

Mesoscopic systems — small electric circuits working in quantum regime — offer us a unique experimental stage to explorer quantum transport in a tunable and precise way. The purpose of this Review is to show how they can contribute to statistical physics. We introduce the significance of fluctuation, or equivalently noise, as noise measurement enables us to address the fundamental aspects of a physical system. The significance of the fluctuation theorem (FT) in statistical physics is noted. We explain what information can be deduced from the current noise measurement in mesoscopic systems. As an important application of the noise measurement to statistical physics, we describe our experimental work on the current and current noise in an electron interferometer, which is the first experimental test of FT in quantum regime. Our attempt will shed new light in the research field of mesoscopic quantum statistical physics. PMID:27477456

What can we learn from noise? - Mesoscopic nonequilibrium statistical physics.

PubMed

Kobayashi, Kensuke

2016-01-01

Mesoscopic systems - small electric circuits working in quantum regime - offer us a unique experimental stage to explorer quantum transport in a tunable and precise way. The purpose of this Review is to show how they can contribute to statistical physics. We introduce the significance of fluctuation, or equivalently noise, as noise measurement enables us to address the fundamental aspects of a physical system. The significance of the fluctuation theorem (FT) in statistical physics is noted. We explain what information can be deduced from the current noise measurement in mesoscopic systems. As an important application of the noise measurement to statistical physics, we describe our experimental work on the current and current noise in an electron interferometer, which is the first experimental test of FT in quantum regime. Our attempt will shed new light in the research field of mesoscopic quantum statistical physics.

Self-esteem mediates associations of physical activity with anxiety in college women.

PubMed

Herring, Matthew P; O'Connor, Patrick J; Dishman, Rodney K

2014-10-01

Why physically active people report lower anxiety than those who are inactive is not well understood. This study examined whether physical self-concept and self-esteem would mediate associations of self-reported physical activity with anxiety disorder symptoms in young women, a population with elevated risk for developing an anxiety disorder. College women (N = 1036, mean ± SD = 19.7 ± 2.9 yr) completed a physical activity recall, the Psychiatric Diagnostic Screening Questionnaire, and the Physical Self-Description Questionnaire. Structural equation modeling was used to test hypotheses. Physical activity had inverse, indirect associations with symptoms of social phobia, generalized anxiety disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder that were expressed through its positive association with specific and global physical self-concept and self-esteem. The results were independent of similar relations with symptoms of major depressive disorder as well as the estimates of body fatness and use of psychotropic medications. These correlational findings provide initial evidence to warrant experimental efficacy trials of whether physical activity will reduce the risk of anxiety disorders in young women by positive influences on physical self-concept and self-esteem.

A Psychometric Evaluation of the Digital Logic Concept Inventory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Herman, Geoffrey L.; Zilles, Craig; Loui, Michael C.

2014-01-01

Concept inventories hold tremendous promise for promoting the rigorous evaluation of teaching methods that might remedy common student misconceptions and promote deep learning. The measurements from concept inventories can be trusted only if the concept inventories are evaluated both by expert feedback and statistical scrutiny (psychometric…

The Stability of Self-Concept between Elementary and Junior High School in Catholic School Children

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Scott, Amy; Santos de Barona, Maryann

2011-01-01

Researchers have found that self-concept in students fluctuates during times of change, such as the physical transition between elementary school and junior high. Since Catholic school students typically do not have the physical transition or social network changes in junior high, it was hypothesized that their self-concepts would not fluctuate.…

The Soccer Ball Model: A Useful Visualization Protocol for Scaling Concepts in Continua

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arce, Pedro E.; Pascal, Jennifer; Torres, Cynthia

2010-01-01

When studying the physics of transport, it is necessary to develop conservation equations, and the concept of a continuum scale must be introduced. Most textbooks do not address this issue, assuming that the mathematical steps are familiar to the learner. In fact, students are introduced to physical concepts, such as mass, momentum, and energy for…

Essential Concepts and Underlying Theories from Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics for "Biochemistry and Molecular Biology" Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wright, Ann; Provost, Joseph; Roecklein-Canfield, Jennifer A.; Bell, Ellis

2013-01-01

Over the past two years, through an NSF RCN UBE grant, the ASBMB has held regional workshops for faculty members from around the country. The workshops have focused on developing lists of Core Principles or Foundational Concepts in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, a list of foundational skills, and foundational concepts from Physics, Chemistry,…

Development of 3-D Mechanical Models of Electric Circuits and Their Effect on Students' Understanding of Electric Potential Difference

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balta, Nuri

2015-01-01

Visualizing physical concepts through models is an essential method in many sciences. While students are mostly proficient in handling mathematical aspects of problems, they frequently lack the ability to visualize and interpret abstract physical concepts in a meaningful way. In this paper, initially the electric circuits and related concepts were…

Physical fitness modulates incidental but not intentional statistical learning of simultaneous auditory sequences during concurrent physical exercise.

PubMed

Daikoku, Tatsuya; Takahashi, Yuji; Futagami, Hiroko; Tarumoto, Nagayoshi; Yasuda, Hideki

2017-02-01

In real-world auditory environments, humans are exposed to overlapping auditory information such as those made by human voices and musical instruments even during routine physical activities such as walking and cycling. The present study investigated how concurrent physical exercise affects performance of incidental and intentional learning of overlapping auditory streams, and whether physical fitness modulates the performances of learning. Participants were grouped with 11 participants with lower and higher fitness each, based on their Vo 2 max value. They were presented simultaneous auditory sequences with a distinct statistical regularity each other (i.e. statistical learning), while they were pedaling on the bike and seating on a bike at rest. In experiment 1, they were instructed to attend to one of the two sequences and ignore to the other sequence. In experiment 2, they were instructed to attend to both of the two sequences. After exposure to the sequences, learning effects were evaluated by familiarity test. In the experiment 1, performance of statistical learning of ignored sequences during concurrent pedaling could be higher in the participants with high than low physical fitness, whereas in attended sequence, there was no significant difference in performance of statistical learning between high than low physical fitness. Furthermore, there was no significant effect of physical fitness on learning while resting. In the experiment 2, the both participants with high and low physical fitness could perform intentional statistical learning of two simultaneous sequences in the both exercise and rest sessions. The improvement in physical fitness might facilitate incidental but not intentional statistical learning of simultaneous auditory sequences during concurrent physical exercise.

Applications of statistics to medical science (1) Fundamental concepts.

PubMed

Watanabe, Hiroshi

2011-01-01

The conceptual framework of statistical tests and statistical inferences are discussed, and the epidemiological background of statistics is briefly reviewed. This study is one of a series in which we survey the basics of statistics and practical methods used in medical statistics. Arguments related to actual statistical analysis procedures will be made in subsequent papers.

Examining the Influences of Epistemic Beliefs and Knowledge Representations on Cognitive Processing and Conceptual Change When Learning Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Franco, Gina M.; Muis, Krista R.; Kendeou, Panayiota; Ranellucci, John; Sampasivam, Lavanya; Wang, Xihui

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of epistemic beliefs and knowledge representations in cognitive and metacognitive processing when learning about physics concepts through text. Specifically, we manipulated the representation of physics concepts in texts about Newtonian mechanics and explored how these texts interacted with…

Let's Get Physical: Teaching Physics through Gymnastics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sojourner, Elena J.; Burgasser, Adam J.; Weise, Eric D.

2018-01-01

The concept of embodied learning--that we can learn with our bodies and with our minds--is a well-established concept in physics and math education research, and includes symbolic understanding (e.g., gestures that track how students think or facilitate learning to model complex systems of energy flow) as well as the literal experience of…

The Use of Energizers to Reinforce Nutrition Concepts and Encourage Physical Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lovett, Kathleen; Johnson, Betsy; Caskey, Mary; Pleasants, Christopher; Hurtado, G. Ali

2014-01-01

Given the importance of including daily physical activity as a part of a healthy lifestyle, Extension educators should do as much as they can to incorporate physical activity into their educational programming. A University of Minnesota Extension team has created a set of activities that incorporate motion to reinforce nutrition concepts, which…

Locating the Center of Gravity: The Dance of Normal and Frictional Forces

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Balta, Nuri

2012-01-01

Teaching physics concepts with the basic materials that are around us is one of the beauties of physics. Without expensive lab materials and long experiments, many physics concepts can be taught to students using simple tools. Demonstrations with these tools can be presented as discrepant events that surprise, amaze, or puzzle students. Greenslade…

Opinions of Physical Education Teachers on the Concept of Sportsmanship

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Koç, Yakup; Esentürk, Oguz Kaan

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the opinions of physical education teachers on the concept of sportsmanship. This study, which has been based on the qualitative research paradigm, involves opinions of 13 physical education teachers (9 males and 4 females) which serve in public schools of Turkey and which have been specified through a…

Examining the Conceptual Organization of Students in an Integrated Algebra and Physical Science Class.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westbrook, Susan L.

1998-01-01

Compares the conceptual organization of students in an integrated algebra and physical science class (SAM 9) with that of students in a discipline-specific physical science class (PSO). Analysis of students' concept maps indicates that the SAM9 students used a greater number of procedural linkages to connect mathematics and science concepts than…

Making a Low Cost Candy Floss Kit Gets Students Excited about Learning Physics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Amir, Nazir; Subramaniam, R.

2009-01-01

An activity to excite kinaesthetically inclined students about learning physics is described in this article. Using only commonly available materials, a low cost candy floss kit is fabricated by students. A number of physics concepts are embedded contextually in the activity so that students get to learn these concepts in a real world setting…

Physical Self-Concept in Adolescence: Generalizability of a Multidimensional, Hierarchical Model Across Gender and Grade

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hagger, Martin S.; Biddle, Stuart J. H.; John Wang, C. K.

2005-01-01

This study tests the generalizability of the factor pattern, structural parameters, and latent mean structure of a multidimensional, hierarchical model of physical self-concept in adolescents across gender and grade. A children's version of the Physical Self-Perception Profile (C-PSPP) was administered to seventh-, eighth- and ninth-grade high…

Energy: Between Physics and Metaphysics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bunge, Mario

The general concept of energy is somewhat unclear as long as it is confined to physics, since every chapter of it defines its own particular concept of energy. The general concept can be elucidated in terms of the hypergeneral (philosophical) concepts of concrete thing and changeability. In this way one succeeds in crafting a minitheory that identifies energy with mutability, and that regards it, as well as its conservation, as a universal property of concrete things. The moral is that physicists and philosophers can learn from one another.

Non-equilibrium Statistical Mechanics and the Sea Ice Thickness Distribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wettlaufer, John; Toppaladoddi, Srikanth

We use concepts from non-equilibrium statistical physics to transform the original evolution equation for the sea ice thickness distribution g (h) due to Thorndike et al., (1975) into a Fokker-Planck like conservation law. The steady solution is g (h) = calN (q) hqe - h / H , where q and H are expressible in terms of moments over the transition probabilities between thickness categories. The solution exhibits the functional form used in observational fits and shows that for h << 1 , g (h) is controlled by both thermodynamics and mechanics, whereas for h >> 1 only mechanics controls g (h) . Finally, we derive the underlying Langevin equation governing the dynamics of the ice thickness h, from which we predict the observed g (h) . This allows us to demonstrate that the ice thickness field is ergodic. The genericity of our approach provides a framework for studying the geophysical scale structure of the ice pack using methods of broad relevance in statistical mechanics. Swedish Research Council Grant No. 638-2013-9243, NASA Grant NNH13ZDA001N-CRYO and the National Science Foundation and the Office of Naval Research under OCE-1332750 for support.

Do placebo expectations influence perceived exertion during physical exercise?

PubMed

Mothes, Hendrik; Leukel, Christian; Seelig, Harald; Fuchs, Reinhard

2017-01-01

This study investigates the role of placebo expectations in individuals' perception of exertion during acute physical exercise. Building upon findings from placebo and marketing research, we examined how perceived exertion is affected by expectations regarding a) the effects of exercise and b) the effects of the exercise product worn during the exercise. We also investigated whether these effects are moderated by physical self-concept. Seventy-eight participants conducted a moderate 30 min cycling exercise on an ergometer, with perceived exertion (RPE) measured every 5 minutes. Beforehand, each participant was randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions and watched a corresponding film clip presenting "scientific evidence" that the exercise would or would not result in health benefits and that the exercise product they were wearing (compression garment) would additionally enhance exercise benefits or would only be worn for control purposes. Participants' physical self-concept was assessed via questionnaire. Results partially demonstrated that participants with more positive expectations experienced reduced perceived exertion during the exercise. Furthermore, our results indicate a moderator effect of physical self-concept: Individuals with a high physical self-concept benefited (in terms of reduced perceived exertion levels) in particular from an induction of generally positive expectations. In contrast, individuals with a low physical self-concept benefited when positive expectations were related to the exercise product they were wearing. In sum, these results suggest that placebo expectations may be a further, previously neglected class of psychological factors that influence the perception of exertion.

Do placebo expectations influence perceived exertion during physical exercise?

PubMed Central

Leukel, Christian; Seelig, Harald; Fuchs, Reinhard

2017-01-01

This study investigates the role of placebo expectations in individuals’ perception of exertion during acute physical exercise. Building upon findings from placebo and marketing research, we examined how perceived exertion is affected by expectations regarding a) the effects of exercise and b) the effects of the exercise product worn during the exercise. We also investigated whether these effects are moderated by physical self-concept. Seventy-eight participants conducted a moderate 30 min cycling exercise on an ergometer, with perceived exertion (RPE) measured every 5 minutes. Beforehand, each participant was randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions and watched a corresponding film clip presenting “scientific evidence” that the exercise would or would not result in health benefits and that the exercise product they were wearing (compression garment) would additionally enhance exercise benefits or would only be worn for control purposes. Participants’ physical self-concept was assessed via questionnaire. Results partially demonstrated that participants with more positive expectations experienced reduced perceived exertion during the exercise. Furthermore, our results indicate a moderator effect of physical self-concept: Individuals with a high physical self-concept benefited (in terms of reduced perceived exertion levels) in particular from an induction of generally positive expectations. In contrast, individuals with a low physical self-concept benefited when positive expectations were related to the exercise product they were wearing. In sum, these results suggest that placebo expectations may be a further, previously neglected class of psychological factors that influence the perception of exertion. PMID:28662168

The Practicality of Statistical Physics Handout Based on KKNI and the Constructivist Approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sari, S. Y.; Afrizon, R.

2018-04-01

Statistical physics lecture shows that: 1) the performance of lecturers, social climate, students’ competence and soft skills needed at work are in enough category, 2) students feel difficulties in following the lectures of statistical physics because it is abstract, 3) 40.72% of students needs more understanding in the form of repetition, practice questions and structured tasks, and 4) the depth of statistical physics material needs to be improved gradually and structured. This indicates that learning materials in accordance of The Indonesian National Qualification Framework or Kerangka Kualifikasi Nasional Indonesia (KKNI) with the appropriate learning approach are needed to help lecturers and students in lectures. The author has designed statistical physics handouts which have very valid criteria (90.89%) according to expert judgment. In addition, the practical level of handouts designed also needs to be considered in order to be easy to use, interesting and efficient in lectures. The purpose of this research is to know the practical level of statistical physics handout based on KKNI and a constructivist approach. This research is a part of research and development with 4-D model developed by Thiagarajan. This research activity has reached part of development test at Development stage. Data collection took place by using a questionnaire distributed to lecturers and students. Data analysis using descriptive data analysis techniques in the form of percentage. The analysis of the questionnaire shows that the handout of statistical physics has very practical criteria. The conclusion of this study is statistical physics handouts based on the KKNI and constructivist approach have been practically used in lectures.

The Mathematics of High School Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanderakis, Nikos

2016-10-01

In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, mathematicians and physical philosophers managed to study, via mathematics, various physical systems of the sublunar world through idealized and simplified models of these systems, constructed with the help of geometry. By analyzing these models, they were able to formulate new concepts, laws and theories of physics and then through models again, to apply these concepts and theories to new physical phenomena and check the results by means of experiment. Students' difficulties with the mathematics of high school physics are well known. Science education research attributes them to inadequately deep understanding of mathematics and mainly to inadequate understanding of the meaning of symbolic mathematical expressions. There seem to be, however, more causes of these difficulties. One of them, not independent from the previous ones, is the complex meaning of the algebraic concepts used in school physics (e.g. variables, parameters, functions), as well as the complexities added by physics itself (e.g. that equations' symbols represent magnitudes with empirical meaning and units instead of pure numbers). Another source of difficulties is that the theories and laws of physics are often applied, via mathematics, to simplified, and idealized physical models of the world and not to the world itself. This concerns not only the applications of basic theories but also all authentic end-of-the-chapter problems. Hence, students have to understand and participate in a complex interplay between physics concepts and theories, physical and mathematical models, and the real world, often without being aware that they are working with models and not directly with the real world.

Assessing student understanding of measurement and uncertainty

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abbott, David Scot

A test to assess student understanding of measurement and uncertainty has been developed and administered to more than 500 students at two large research universities. The aim is two-fold: (1) to assess what students learn in the first semester of introductory physics labs and (2) to uncover patterns in student reasoning and practice. The forty minute, eleven item test focuses on direct measurement and student attitudes toward multiple measurements. After one revision cycle using think-aloud interviews, the test was administered to students to three groups: students enrolled in traditional laboratory lab sections of first semester physics at North Carolina State University (NCSU), students in an experimental (SCALE-UP) section of first semester physics at NCSU, and students in first semester physics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The results were analyzed using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods. In the traditional NCSU labs, where students receive no instruction in uncertainty and measurement, students show no improvement on any of the areas examined by the test. In SCALE-UP and at UNC, students show statistically significant gains in most areas of the test. Gains on specific test items in SCALE-UP and at UNC correspond to areas of instructional emphasis. Test items were grouped into four main aspects of performance: "point/set" reasoning, meaning of spread, ruler reading and "stacking." Student performance on the pretest was examined to identify links between these aspects. Items within each aspect are correlated to one another, sometimes quite strongly, but items from different aspects rarely show statistically significant correlation. Taken together, these results suggest that student difficulties may not be linked to a single underlying cause. The study shows that current instruction techniques improve student understanding, but that many students exit the introductory physics lab course without appreciation or coherent understanding for the concept of measurement uncertainty.

Relationships between Self-Concept and Resilience Profiles in Young People with Disabilities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Suriá Martínez, Raquel

2016-01-01

Introduction: The present study aims to identify different profiles in self-concept and resilience. In addition, statistically significant differences in self-concept domains among the profiles previously identified are analyzed. Method: The AF5 Self-Concept Questionnaire ("Cuestionario de Autoconcepto AF5") and the Resilience Scale were…

Modeling of the dielectric permittivity of porous soil media with water using statistical-physical models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Usowicz, Boguslaw; Marczewski, Wojciech; Usowicz, Jerzy B.; Łukowski, Mateusz; Lipiec, Jerzy; Stankiewicz, Krystyna

2013-04-01

Radiometric observations with SMOS rely on the Radiation Transfer Equations (RTE) determining the Brightness Temperature (BT) in two linear polarization components (H, V) satisfying Fresnel principle of propagation in horizontally layered target media on the ground. RTE involve variables which bound the equations expressed in Electro-Magnetic (EM) terms of the intensity BT to the physical reality expressed by non-EM variables (Soil Moisture (SM), vegetation indexes, fractional coverage with many different properties, and the boundary conditions like optical thickness, layer definitions, roughness, etc.) bridging the EM domain to other physical aspects by means of the so called tau-omega methods. This method enables joining variety of different valuable models, including specific empirical estimation of physical properties in relation to the volumetric water content. The equations of RTE are in fact expressed by propagation, reflection and losses or attenuation existing on a considered propagation path. The electromagnetic propagation is expressed in the propagation constant. For target media on the ground the dielectric constant is a decisive part for effects of propagation. Therefore, despite of many various physical parameters involved, one must effectively and dominantly rely on the dielectric constant meant as a complex variable. The real part of the dielectric constant represents effect of apparent shortening the propagation path and the refraction, while the imaginary part is responsible for the attenuation or losses. This work engages statistical-physical modeling of soil properties considering the media as a mixture of solid grains, and gas or liquid filling of pores and contact bridges between compounds treated statistically. The method of this modeling provides an opportunity of characterizing the porosity by general statistical means, and is applicable to various physical properties (thermal, electrical conductivity and dielectric properties) which depend on composition of compounds. The method was developed beyond the SMOS method, but they meet just in RTE, at the dielectric constant. The dielectric constant is observed or measured (retrieved) by SMOS, regardless other properties like the soil porosity and without a direct relation to thermal properties of soils. Relations between thermal properties of soil to the water content are very consistent. Therefore, we took a concept of introducing effects of the soil porosity, and thermal properties of soils into the representation of the dielectric constant in complex measures, and thus gaining new abilities for capturing effects of the porosity by the method of SMOS observations. Currently we are able presenting few effects of relations between thermal properties and the soil moisture content, on examples from wetlands Biebrza and Polesie in Poland, and only search for correlations between SM from SMOS to the moisture content known from the ground. The correlations are poor for SMOS L2 data processed with the version of retrievals using the model of Dobson (501), but we expect more correlation for the version using the model of Mironov (551). If the supposition is confirmed, then we may gain encouragement to employing the statistical-physical modeling of the dielectric constant and thermal properties for the purposes of using this model in RTE and tau-omega method. Treating the soil porosity for a target of research directly is not enough strongly motivated like the use of effects on SM observable in SMOS.

Development and Initial Validation of a Scale to Measure Instructors' Attitudes toward Concept-Based Teaching of Introductory Statistics in the Health and Behavioral Sciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hassad, Rossi; Coxon, APM

2007-01-01

Despite more than a decade of reform efforts, students continue to experience difficulty understanding and applying statistical concepts. The predominant focus of reform has been on content, pedagogy, technology and assessment, with little attention to instructor characteristics. However, there is strong theoretical and empirical evidence that…

Cultural factors in the origin and remediation of alternative conceptions in physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thijs, Gerard D.; van den Berg, Ed

1995-10-01

Over a wide range of subject areas students exhibit persistent conceptions contrary to the prevailing scientific concepts. The same alternative conceptions in physics are reported to exist across many countries, within a variety of cultural and environmental contexts. Also, many alternative conceptions show striking similarities with difficulties encountered in the historical development of physics. What is the reason for these similarities? Is intuitive science learned or triggered? And, if similar brain structures are responsible for common-sense theories, in what way then are cultural factors still important in the teaching-learning process? The influence of cultural factors will be discussed on the basis of literature available on this topic. Data collected by the authors in the Netherlands, Indonesia and countries in Africa are also taken into consideration. A distinction is proposed between alternative conceptions some of which may be universal and some dependent on culture. The same distinction is made regarding ways of reasoning and epistemology. It is suggested that the effectiveness of methods for the remediation of alternative conceptions is strongly influenced by cultural aspects of the teaching-learning process.

PEOPLE IN PHYSICS: Nobel prize winners in physics from 1901 to 1990: simple statistics for physics teachers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Weijia; Fuller, Robert G.

1998-05-01

A demographic database for the 139 Nobel prize winners in physics from 1901 to 1990 has been created from a variety of sources. The results of our statistical study are discussed in the light of the implications for physics teaching.

Learning physics concepts as a function of colloquial language usage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maier, Steven J.

Data from two sections of college introductory, algebra-based physics courses (n1 = 139, n2 = 91) were collected using three separate instruments to investigate the relationships between reasoning ability, conceptual gain and colloquial language usage. To obtain a measure of reasoning ability, Lawson's Classroom Test of Scientific Reasoning Ability (TSR) was administered once near mid-term for each sample. The Force Concept Inventory (FCI) was administered at the beginning and at the end of the term for pre- and post-test measures. Pre- and post-test data from the Mechanics Language Usage instrument were also collected in conjunction with FCI data collection at the beginning and end of the term. The MLU was developed specifically for this study prior to data collection, and results of a pilot test to establish validity and reliability are reported. T-tests were performed on the data collected to compare the means from each sample. In addition, correlations among the measures were investigated between the samples separately and combined. Results from these investigations served as justification for combining the samples into a single sample of 230 for performing further statistical analyses. The primary objective of this study was to determine if scientific reasoning ability (a function of developmental stage) and conceptual gains in Newtonian mechanics predict students' usages of "force" as measured by the MLU. Regression analyses were performed to evaluate these mediated relationships among TSR and FCI performance as a predictor of MLU performance. Statistically significant correlations and relationships existed among several of the measures, which are discussed at length in the body of the narrative. The findings of this research are that although there exists a discernable relationship between reasoning ability and conceptual change, more work needs to be done to establish improved quantitative measures of the role language usage has in developing understandings of course content.

Physical Concepts and Mathematical Symbols

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grelland, Hans Herlof

2007-12-01

According to traditional empiricist philosophy of science, concepts and meaning grow out of sense experience, and the mathematical structure of a physical theory is nothing but a formalisation of a given meaning-content. This view seems to work well in classical mechanics. But it breaks down in quantum physics, where we have a self-supported mathematical structure which resists any conceptual or pictorial interpretation in the traditional sense. Thus, traditional empiricism is flawed. Quantum physics teaches us that mathematics is a language in itself which extends beyond ordinary language. To understand the meaning of this extended language, we have to explore how new concepts and intuitions grow out of mathematics, not the other way around. The symbolic structure is prior to its meaning. This point of view is called linguistic empiricism, to stress that the connection with experience is still crucial. As cases, I compare the concept of stiffness in classical mechanics and the concept of electron density in quantum mechanics. The last case demonstrates that the wave function has a richer interpretation than the probabilistic one concerning measurement of position.

The Effect of Using Concept Mapping on Student's Attitude and Achievement When Learning the Physics Topic of Circular and Rotational Motion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Luchembe, Dennis; Chinyama, Kaumba; Jumbe, Jack

2014-01-01

The study was conducted to show the effectiveness of concept mapping as a teaching strategy to undergraduate students taking introductory physics course. A number of researchers have investigated the effectiveness of concept mapping on student academic achievement. The main focus of these studies have been on comparing the effectiveness of concept…

Effects of Model-Based Teaching on Pre-Service Physics Teachers' Conceptions of the Moon, Moon Phases, and Other Lunar Phenomena

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ogan-Bekiroglu, Feral

2007-01-01

The purpose of this study was twofold. First, it was aimed to identify Turkish pre-service physics teachers' knowledge and understanding of the Moon, Moon phases, and other lunar phenomena. Second, the effects of model-based teaching on pre-service teachers' conceptions were examined. Conceptions were proposed as mental models in this study. Four…

The Effect of Physical Activity on Science Competence and Attitude towards Science Content

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klinkenborg, Ann Maria

This study examines the effect of physical activity on science instruction. To combat the implications of physical inactivity, schools need to be willing to consider all possible opportunities for students to engage in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). Integrating physical activity with traditional classroom content is one instructional method to consider. Researchers have typically focused on integration with English/language arts (ELA) and mathematics. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of physical activity on science competence and attitude towards science. Fifty-three third grade children participated in this investigation; one group received science instruction with a physical activity intervention while the other group received traditional science instruction. Participants in both groups completed a modified version of What I Really Think of Science attitude scale (Pell & Jarvis, 2001) and a physical science test of competence prior to and following the intervention. Children were videotaped during science instruction and their movement coded to measure the proportion of time spent in MVPA. Results revealed that children in the intervention group demonstrated greater MVPA during the instructional period. A moderate to large effect size (partial eta squared = .091) was seen in the intervention group science competence post-test indicating greater understanding of force, motion, work, and simple machines concepts than that of the control group who were less physically active. There was no statistically significant attitude difference between the intervention and control groups post-test, (F(1,51) = .375, p = .543). These results provide evidence that integration can effectively present physical science content and have a positive impact on the number of minutes of health-enhancing physical activity in a school day.

Introducing the Notion of Bare and Effective Mass via Newton's Second Law of Motion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pinto, Marcus Benghi

2007-01-01

The concepts of bare and effective mass are widely used within modern physics. Their meaning is discussed in advanced undergraduate and graduate courses such as solid state physics, nuclear physics and quantum field theory. Here I discuss how these concepts may be introduced together with the discussion of Newton's second law of motion. The…

Can Grade-6 Students Understand Quarks? Probing Acceptance of the Subatomic Structure of Matter with 12-Year-Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiener, Gerfried J.; Schmeling, Sascha M.; Hopf, Martin

2015-01-01

This study introduces a teaching concept based on the Standard Model of particle physics. It comprises two consecutive chapters--elementary particles and fundamental interactions. The rationale of this concept is that the fundamental principles of particle physics can run as the golden thread through the whole physics curriculum. The design…

Students' Understanding and Application of the Area under the Curve Concept in Physics Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nguyen, Dong-Hai; Rebello, N. Sanjay

2011-01-01

This study investigates how students understand and apply the area under the curve concept and the integral-area relation in solving introductory physics problems. We interviewed 20 students in the first semester and 15 students from the same cohort in the second semester of a calculus-based physics course sequence on several problems involving…

Zero-gravity cloud physics laboratory: Experiment program definition and preliminary laboratory concept studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Eaton, L. R.; Greco, E. V.

1973-01-01

The experiment program definition and preliminary laboratory concept studies on the zero G cloud physics laboratory are reported. This program involves the definition and development of an atmospheric cloud physics laboratory and the selection and delineations of a set of candidate experiments that must utilize the unique environment of zero gravity or near zero gravity.

The understanding of the concept of 'rest' in the management of a sports concussion by physical therapy students: a descriptive study.

PubMed

Sullivan, S John; Alla, Sridhar; Lee, Hopin; Schneiders, Anthony G; Ahmed, Osman Hassan; McCrory, Paul R

2012-11-01

To investigate physical therapy students' understanding of the concept of rest following a sport concussion and to ascertain if this understanding changes following a lecture based on current best practice concussion knowledge. Pre-post observational survey. University classroom setting. A cohort of 118 (40 male, 78 female) physical therapy students participating in volunteer sports medic training. Participants provided 320 (pre) and 350 (post) responses depicting activities which should be restricted following a concussion. The responses were classified into three rest-related categories: 'Physical rest', 'Cognitive rest' and 'Mixed' (a combination of physical and cognitive rest). Pre-lecture, approximately 74% of the student's responses were categorized as Physical rest, and 25% under Mixed. There was a shift in the response pattern post-lecture, with 96% of the responses falling in the Mixed category. The results of the study highlight a lack of understanding of the concept of cognitive rest in concussion management among trainee sport medics. The need for wider dissemination of this concept as recommended by the recent consensus statement on sports concussion is indicated. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preseismic Lithosphere-Atmosphere-Ionosphere Coupling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kamogawa, Masashi

Preseismic atmospheric and ionospheric disturbances besides preseismic geo-electric potential anomalies and ultra-low-frequency (ULF) geomagnetic variations observed on the ground have been reported. Both the phenomena have been found since the 1980s and a number of papers have been published. Since most of the reported phenomena transiently appear with accompanying quiescence before the mainshock, this prevents us to intuitively recognize a correlation between the anomaly appearance and the earthquake occurrence. Some of them, however, showed that anomalies monotonically grew into the mainshock, of which a variation supports the concept of seismic nucleation process under the pre-earthquake state. For example, Heki [GRL, 2011] reported that ionospheric electron density monotonically enhanced tens of minutes prior to the subduction mega-earthquake. However, this preseismic enhancement is apparent variation attributed to tsunamigenic ionospheric hole [Kakinami and Kamogawa et al, GRL, 2012], namely wide and long-duration depression of ionospheric electron after tsunami-excited acoustic waves reach the ionosphere. Since the tsunamigenic ionospheric hole could be simulated [Shinagawa et al., GRL, 2013], the reported variations are high-possibly pseudo phenomena [Kamogawa and Kakinami, JGR, 2013]. Thus, there are barely a few reports which show the preseismic monotonic variation supported by the concept of the seismic nucleation process. As far as we discuss the preseismic geoelectromagnetical and atmospheric-ionospheric anomalies, preseismic transient events from a few weeks to a few hours prior to the mainshock are paid attention to for the precursor study. In order to identify precursors from a number of anomalies, one has to show a statistical significance of correlation between the earthquake and the anomalies, to elucidate the physical mechanism, or to conduct both statistical and physical approach. Since many speculation of the physical mechanism have been hardly verified so far, a statistical approach has been unique way to promote the research. After the 2000s, several papers showing robust statistical results have arisen. In this paper, we focus on publications satisfying the following identification criteria: 1) A candidate of precursor, namely anomaly, is quantitatively defied. 2) Two time-series of anomalies and earthquake are constructed within the fixed thresholds such as a minimum magnitude, a region, and a lead-time. 3) To obtain a statistical correlation, a statistical process which includes four relations considering all combination among earthquake - no earthquake versus anomaly and no anomalies is applied, e. g., phi correlation. 4) For correlations under various thresholds the results keep consistency. 5) Large anomalies appear before large earthquakes. One of papers based on the identification criteria, which concerns preseismic geoelectrically anomalies, is introduced as an educative example. VAN method in Greece, i. e., Geo-electric potential difference measurement for precursor study in Greece, has been often discussed in the point of view of success and failure performance for practical prediction [Varotsos et al, Springer, 2011] to show a correlation and then less number of papers shows the statistical correlation with satisfying the identification criteria [Geller (ed.), GRL, 1996], so that the phenomena had been controversial. However, recent related study in Kozu-Island, Japan which satisfied the criteria showed the robust correlation [Orihara and Kamogawa et al., PNAS, 2012]. Therefore, the preseismic geoelectric anomalies are expected to be a precursor. Preseismic lithosphere-atmosphere-ionosphere coupling has been intensively discussed [Kamogawa, Eos, 2006]. According to review based on the identification criteria with considering recent publications, plausible precursors have been found, which are tropospheric anomaly [Fujiwara and Kamogawa, GRL, 2004], daytime electron depletion in F region [Liu et al, JGR, 2006], nighttime decrease of background intensity of VLF electromagnetic waves possibly attributed to ionospheric disturbance in D region [Nemec et al., GRL, 2008; Nemec et al., JGR, 2009; Pisa et al, JGR, 2013]. Although these reported anomalies are plausible from a statistical correlation mostly satisfying the above criteria. In this presentation, I review recent studies of preseismic atmospheric-ionospheric coupling and introduce the plausible mechanisms.

Application of a faith-based integration tool to assess mental and physical health interventions

PubMed Central

Saunders, Donna M.; Leak, Jean; Carver, Monique E.; Smith, Selina A.

2017-01-01

Background To build on current research involving faith-based interventions (FBIs) for addressing mental and physical health, this study a) reviewed the extent to which relevant publications integrate faith concepts with health and b) initiated analysis of the degree of FBI integration with intervention outcomes. Methods Derived from a systematic search of articles published between 2007 and 2017, 36 studies were assessed with a Faith-Based Integration Assessment Tool (FIAT) to quantify faith-health integration. Basic statistical procedures were employed to determine the association of faith-based integration with intervention outcomes. Results The assessed studies possessed (on average) moderate, inconsistent integration because of poor use of faith measures, and moderate, inconsistent use of faith practices. Analysis procedures for determining the effect of FBI integration on intervention outcomes were inadequate for formulating practical conclusions. Conclusions Regardless of integration, interventions were associated with beneficial outcomes. To determine the link between FBI integration and intervention outcomes, additional analyses are needed. PMID:29354795

Having students create short video clips to help transition from naïve conceptions about mechanics to true Newtonian physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Corten-Gualtieri, Pascale; Ritter, Christian; Plumat, Jim; Keunings, Roland; Lebrun, Marcel; Raucent, Benoit

2016-07-01

Most students enter their first university physics course with a system of beliefs and intuitions which are often inconsistent with the Newtonian frame of reference. This article presents an experiment of collaborative learning aiming at helping first-year students in an engineering programme to transition from their naïve intuition about dynamics to the Newtonian way of thinking. In a first activity, students were asked to critically analyse the contents of two video clips from the point of view of Newtonian mechanics. In a second activity, students had to design and realise their own video clip to illustrate a given aspect of Newtonian mechanics. The preparation of the scenario for the second activity required looking up and assimilating scientific knowledge. The efficiency of the activity was assessed on an enhanced version of the statistical analysis method proposed by Hestenes and Halloun, which relies on a pre-test and a post-test to measure individual learning.

Methodology Development for Passive Component Reliability Modeling in a Multi-Physics Simulation Environment

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aldemir, Tunc; Denning, Richard; Catalyurek, Umit

Reduction in safety margin can be expected as passive structures and components undergo degradation with time. Limitations in the traditional probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) methodology constrain its value as an effective tool to address the impact of aging effects on risk and for quantifying the impact of aging management strategies in maintaining safety margins. A methodology has been developed to address multiple aging mechanisms involving large numbers of components (with possibly statistically dependent failures) within the PRA framework in a computationally feasible manner when the sequencing of events is conditioned on the physical conditions predicted in a simulation environment, suchmore » as the New Generation System Code (NGSC) concept. Both epistemic and aleatory uncertainties can be accounted for within the same phenomenological framework and maintenance can be accounted for in a coherent fashion. The framework accommodates the prospective impacts of various intervention strategies such as testing, maintenance, and refurbishment. The methodology is illustrated with several examples.« less

Max Planck and the birth of the quantum hypothesis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nauenberg, Michael

2016-09-01

Based on the functional dependence of entropy on energy, and on Wien's distribution for black-body radiation, Max Planck obtained a formula for this radiation by an interpolation relation that fitted the experimental measurements of thermal radiation at the Physikalisch Technishe Reichanstalt (PTR) in Berlin in the late 19th century. Surprisingly, his purely phenomenological result turned out to be not just an approximation, as would have been expected, but an exact relation. To obtain a physical interpretation for his formula, Planck then turned to Boltzmann's 1877 paper on the statistical interpretation of entropy, which led him to introduce the fundamental concept of energy discreteness into physics. A novel aspect of our account that has been missed in previous historical studies of Planck's discovery is to show that Planck could have found his phenomenological formula partially derived in Boltzmann's paper in terms of a variational parameter. But the dependence of this parameter on temperature is not contained in this paper, and it was first derived by Planck.

On the continuing relevance of Mandelbrot's non-ergodic fractional renewal models of 1963 to 1967

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watkins, Nicholas W.

2017-12-01

The problem of "1/f" noise has been with us for about a century. Because it is so often framed in Fourier spectral language, the most famous solutions have tended to be the stationary long range dependent (LRD) models such as Mandelbrot's fractional Gaussian noise. In view of the increasing importance to physics of non-ergodic fractional renewal models, and their links to the CTRW, I present preliminary results of my research into the history of Mandelbrot's very little known work in that area from 1963 to 1967. I speculate about how the lack of awareness of this work in the physics and statistics communities may have affected the development of complexity science, and I discuss the differences between the Hurst effect, "1/f" noise and LRD, concepts which are often treated as equivalent. Contribution to the "Topical Issue: Continuous Time Random Walk Still Trendy: Fifty-year History, Current State and Outlook", edited by Ryszard Kutner and Jaume Masoliver.

Measuring Social Studies Concept Attainment: Boys and Girls. Report from the Project on A Structure of Concept Attainment Abilities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Harris, Margaret L.; Tabachnick, B. Robert

This paper describes test development efforts for measuring achievement of selected concepts in social studies. It includes descriptive item and test statistics for the tests developed. Twelve items were developed for each of 30 concepts. Subject specialists categorized the concepts into three major areas: Geographic Region, Man and Society, and…

Statistical Literacy as a Function of Online versus Hybrid Course Delivery Format for an Introductory Graduate Statistics Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hahs-Vaughn, Debbie L.; Acquaye, Hannah; Griffith, Matthew D.; Jo, Hang; Matthews, Ken; Acharya, Parul

2017-01-01

Statistical literacy refers to understanding fundamental statistical concepts. Assessment of statistical literacy can take the forms of tasks that require students to identify, translate, compute, read, and interpret data. In addition, statistical instruction can take many forms encompassing course delivery format such as face-to-face, hybrid,…

Exploration of factors that affect the comparative effectiveness of physical and virtual manipulatives in an undergraduate laboratory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chini, Jacquelyn J.; Madsen, Adrian; Gire, Elizabeth; Rebello, N. Sanjay; Puntambekar, Sadhana

2012-06-01

Recent research results have failed to support the conventionally held belief that students learn physics best from hands-on experiences with physical equipment. Rather, studies have found that students who perform similar experiments with computer simulations perform as well or better on measures of conceptual understanding than their peers who used physical equipment. In this study, we explored how university-level nonscience majors’ understanding of the physics concepts related to pulleys was supported by experimentation with real pulleys and a computer simulation of pulleys. We report that when students use one type of manipulative (physical or virtual), the comparison is influenced both by the concept studied and the timing of the post-test. Students performed similarly on questions related to force and mechanical advantage regardless of the type of equipment used. On the other hand, students who used the computer simulation performed better on questions related to work immediately after completing the activities; however, the two groups performed similarly on the work questions on a test given one week later. Additionally, both sequences of experimentation (physical-virtual and virtual-physical) equally supported students’ understanding of all of the concepts. These results suggest that both the concept learned and the stability of learning gains should continue to be explored to improve educators’ ability to select the best learning experience for a given topic.

Interpreting Bodies. Elena Castellani (ed.) Interpreting Bodies: Classical and Quantum Objects in Modern Physics (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1998), viii+329 pp., ISBN 0-691-01725-5, paperback, 19.95 US, ISBN 0-691-01724-7, cloth, 65.00 US.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ruetsche, Laura

The objects of the empirical science known as particle physics are not like objects ordinarily conceived. Physicists' particles can enter states strangely entangled with those of other particles; they can obey statistics which suggest that they lack genidentity; their properties (some think) are created in measurement, or (others think) can only be limned from the symmetries of the theory describing them. 'The implications of contemporary physical theories for the debate on the nature of objects' provides 'the central theme' (p. 4) of Interpreting Bodies, editor Elena Castellani's new collection of essays. Contributions to the volume vary dramatically in vintage (Born's and Reichenbach's are well into middle age; others appear here for the first time); in approach (the collection includes Giuliano Toraldo diFrancia's nine-page history of the object concept from Democritus to d'Espagnat, Peter Mittelstaedt's discussion of the Kantian constitution of quantum objects, and Giulo Peruzzi's explication of the scattering cross section and its role in experimental particle physics); and in intended audience. Lacking the space to treat each contribution in turn, I will focus on those dealing with the problem of the One and the Many.

Pragmatic information in biology and physics.

PubMed

Roederer, Juan G

2016-03-13

I will show how an objective definition of the concept of information and the consideration of recent results about information processing in the human brain help clarify some fundamental aspects of physics and biology. Rather than attempting to define information ab initio, I introduce the concept of interaction between material bodies as a primary concept. Two distinct categories can be identified: (i) interactions which can always be reduced to a superposition of physical interactions (forces) between elementary constituents; and (ii) interactions between complex bodies which cannot be expressed as a superposition of interactions between parts, and in which patterns and forms (in space and/or time) play the determining role. Pragmatic information is then defined as the link between a given pattern and the ensuing pattern-specific change. I will show that pragmatic information is a biological concept; it plays no active role in the purely physical domain-it only does so when a living organism intervenes. The consequences for physics (including foundations of quantum mechanics) and biology (including brain function) will be discussed. This will include speculations about three fundamental transitions, from the quantum to the classical domain, from natural inanimate to living systems, and from subhuman to human brain information-processing operations, introduced here in their direct connection with the concept of pragmatic information. © 2016 The Author(s).

Is physics worth teaching?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machold, Dolf K.

1992-09-01

The paper points out that many students and adults are accustomed to solving problems in physics on the basis of everyday concepts; believing that these concepts are very successful, those students are not interested in concepts offered by science teaching. Furthermore, the teaching physics in terms of mathematical descriptions of problems is too early — students don't see the original problem, so they are not interested in solutions. One way to avoid these difficulties is M. Wagenschein's proposal of the ‘Exemplary-genetic Method’. This method and its principles are presented and illustrated with examples taken from history. On the basis of this method educational and pedagogical functions of teaching physics are developed. P.S.: Martin Wagenschein (1896 1989), Professor of physics education at the University of Tübingen, was concerned with finding new methods for successfully teaching science.

The semantic richness of abstract concepts

PubMed Central

Recchia, Gabriel; Jones, Michael N.

2012-01-01

We contrasted the predictive power of three measures of semantic richness—number of features (NFs), contextual dispersion (CD), and a novel measure of number of semantic neighbors (NSN)—for a large set of concrete and abstract concepts on lexical decision and naming tasks. NSN (but not NF) facilitated processing for abstract concepts, while NF (but not NSN) facilitated processing for the most concrete concepts, consistent with claims that linguistic information is more relevant for abstract concepts in early processing. Additionally, converging evidence from two datasets suggests that when NSN and CD are controlled for, the features that most facilitate processing are those associated with a concept's physical characteristics and real-world contexts. These results suggest that rich linguistic contexts (many semantic neighbors) facilitate early activation of abstract concepts, whereas concrete concepts benefit more from rich physical contexts (many associated objects and locations). PMID:23205008

The role of hypothetico-deductive reasoning and physical analogues of molecular interactions in conceptual change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lawson, Anton E.; Baker, William P.; Didonato, Lisa; Verdi, Michael P.; Johnson, Margaret A.

Two hypotheses about theoretical concept acquisition, application, and change were tested. College biology students classified as intuitive, transitional, or reflective (hypothetico-deductive) reasoners were first taught two theoretical concepts (molecular polarity and bonding) to explain the mixing of dye with water, but not with oil, when all three were shaken in a container. The students were then tested in a context in which they misapplied the concepts in an attempt to explain the gradual spread of blue dye in standing water. Next students were taught another theoretical concept (diffusion), with and without the use of physical analogues. They were retested to see which students acquired the concept of diffusion and which students changed from use of the incorrect polarity and bonding concepts (i.e., the misconceptions) to use of the diffusion concept to correctly explain the dye's gradual spread. As predicted, the experimental/analogy group scored significantly higher than the control group on a posttest question that required the definition of diffusion. Also as predicted, hypothetico-deductive reasoning skill was significantly related to correct application of the diffusion concept and to a change from the misapplication of the polarity and bonding concepts to the correct application of the diffusion concept to explain the gradual spread of the blue dye. Thus, the results support the hypotheses that physical analogues are helpful in theoretical concept acquisition and that hypothetico-deductive reasoning is needed for successful concept application and change. Educational implications are drawn.

Physics and financial economics (1776-2014): puzzles, Ising and agent-based models.

PubMed

Sornette, Didier

2014-06-01

This short review presents a selected history of the mutual fertilization between physics and economics--from Isaac Newton and Adam Smith to the present. The fundamentally different perspectives embraced in theories developed in financial economics compared with physics are dissected with the examples of the volatility smile and of the excess volatility puzzle. The role of the Ising model of phase transitions to model social and financial systems is reviewed, with the concepts of random utilities and the logit model as the analog of the Boltzmann factor in statistical physics. Recent extensions in terms of quantum decision theory are also covered. A wealth of models are discussed briefly that build on the Ising model and generalize it to account for the many stylized facts of financial markets. A summary of the relevance of the Ising model and its extensions is provided to account for financial bubbles and crashes. The review would be incomplete if it did not cover the dynamical field of agent-based models (ABMs), also known as computational economic models, of which the Ising-type models are just special ABM implementations. We formulate the 'Emerging Intelligence Market Hypothesis' to reconcile the pervasive presence of 'noise traders' with the near efficiency of financial markets. Finally, we note that evolutionary biology, more than physics, is now playing a growing role to inspire models of financial markets.

Rogue waves: a unique approach to multidisciplinary physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Residori, S.; Onorato, M.; Bortolozzo, U.; Arecchi, F. T.

2017-01-01

Rogue waves are giant waves appearing erratically and unexpectedly on the ocean surfaces. Their existence, considered as mythical in the ancient times, has recently been recognised by the scientific community and, since then, rogue waves have become the object of numerous theoretical and experimental studies. Their relevance is not restricted to oceanography, but it extends in a wide spectrum of physical contexts. General models and mathematical tools have been developed on a interdisciplinary ground and many experiments have been specifically conceived for the observation of rogue waves in a variety of different physical systems. Rogue wave phenomena are, nowadays, studied, for instance, in hydrodynamics, optics, plasmas, complex media, Bose-Einstein condensation and acoustics. We can, therefore, consider rogue waves as a paradigmatic description, able to account for the manifestation of extreme events in multidisciplinary physics. In this review, we present the main physical concepts and mathematical tools for the description of rogue waves. We will refer mostly to examples from water waves and optics, the two domains having in common the non-linear Schrödinger equation from which prototype rogue wave solutions can be derived. We will highlight the most common features of the rogue wave phenomena, as the large deviations from the Gaussian statistics of the amplitude, the existence of many uncorrelated 'grains' of activity and their clustering in inhomogeneous spatial domains via large-scale symmetry breaking.

Physics and financial economics (1776-2014): puzzles, Ising and agent-based models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sornette, Didier

2014-06-01

This short review presents a selected history of the mutual fertilization between physics and economics—from Isaac Newton and Adam Smith to the present. The fundamentally different perspectives embraced in theories developed in financial economics compared with physics are dissected with the examples of the volatility smile and of the excess volatility puzzle. The role of the Ising model of phase transitions to model social and financial systems is reviewed, with the concepts of random utilities and the logit model as the analog of the Boltzmann factor in statistical physics. Recent extensions in terms of quantum decision theory are also covered. A wealth of models are discussed briefly that build on the Ising model and generalize it to account for the many stylized facts of financial markets. A summary of the relevance of the Ising model and its extensions is provided to account for financial bubbles and crashes. The review would be incomplete if it did not cover the dynamical field of agent-based models (ABMs), also known as computational economic models, of which the Ising-type models are just special ABM implementations. We formulate the ‘Emerging Intelligence Market Hypothesis’ to reconcile the pervasive presence of ‘noise traders’ with the near efficiency of financial markets. Finally, we note that evolutionary biology, more than physics, is now playing a growing role to inspire models of financial markets.

Bringing Javanesse Traditional Dance into Basic Physics Class: Exemplifying Projectile Motion through Video Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Handayani, Langlang; Prasetya Aji, Mahardika; Susilo; Marwoto, Putut

2016-08-01

An alternative approach of an arts-based instruction for Basic Physics class has been developed through the implementation of video analysis of a Javanesse traditional dance: Bambangan Cakil. A particular movement of the dance -weapon throwing- was analyzed by employing the LoggerPro software package to exemplify projectile motion. The results of analysis indicated that the movement of the thrown weapon in Bambangan Cakil dance provides some helping explanations of several physics concepts of projectile motion: object's path, velocity, and acceleration, in a form of picture, graph and also table. Such kind of weapon path and velocity can be shown via a picture or graph, while such concepts of decreasing velocity in y direction (weapon moving downward and upward) due to acceleration g can be represented through the use of a table. It was concluded that in a Javanesse traditional dance there are many physics concepts which can be explored. The study recommends to bring the traditional dance into a science class which will enable students to get more understanding of both physics concepts and Indonesia cultural heritage.

Screen time, weight status and the self-concept of physical attractiveness in adolescents.

PubMed

Suchert, Vivien; Hanewinkel, Reiner; Isensee, Barbara

2016-04-01

Adolescents in modern societies spend about 3 h per day in front of small recreational screens. The present study aims at investigating the relationships between screen time and different indicators of overweight. In addition, associations with the self-concept of physical attractiveness and perceived weight status will be examined. In a total sample of 1228 students (47.5% girls) aged 12-17 years (M = 13.74, SD = 0.68) cross-sectional associations were determined by conducting multiple linear regression analyses. Screen time showed a significant positive dose-response relationship with body mass index percentile, waist circumference, body fat, waist-to-height-ratio, and a negative association with self-concept of physical attractiveness independent of age, gender and moderate to vigorous physical activity. Thus, screen time seems to be associated with adolescent overweight, abdominal obesity, and body dissatisfaction. Reducing adolescents' screen time could be a promising approach for primary prevention of obesity and for the promotion of a positive physical self-concept. Copyright © 2016 The Foundation for Professionals in Services for Adolescents. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mathematics Objectives and Measurement Specifications 1986-1990. Exit Level. Texas Educational Assessment of Minimum Skills (TEAMS).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Texas Education Agency, Austin. Div. of Educational Assessment.

This document lists the objectives for the Texas educational assessment program in mathematics. Eighteen objectives for exit level mathematics are listed, by category: number concepts (4); computation (3); applied computation (5); statistical concepts (3); geometric concepts (2); and algebraic concepts (1). Then general specifications are listed…

Passage relevance models for genomics search.

PubMed

Urbain, Jay; Frieder, Ophir; Goharian, Nazli

2009-03-19

We present a passage relevance model for integrating syntactic and semantic evidence of biomedical concepts and topics using a probabilistic graphical model. Component models of topics, concepts, terms, and document are represented as potential functions within a Markov Random Field. The probability of a passage being relevant to a biologist's information need is represented as the joint distribution across all potential functions. Relevance model feedback of top ranked passages is used to improve distributional estimates of query concepts and topics in context, and a dimensional indexing strategy is used for efficient aggregation of concept and term statistics. By integrating multiple sources of evidence including dependencies between topics, concepts, and terms, we seek to improve genomics literature passage retrieval precision. Using this model, we are able to demonstrate statistically significant improvements in retrieval precision using a large genomics literature corpus.

Probability of identification: a statistical model for the validation of qualitative botanical identification methods.

PubMed

LaBudde, Robert A; Harnly, James M

2012-01-01

A qualitative botanical identification method (BIM) is an analytical procedure that returns a binary result (1 = Identified, 0 = Not Identified). A BIM may be used by a buyer, manufacturer, or regulator to determine whether a botanical material being tested is the same as the target (desired) material, or whether it contains excessive nontarget (undesirable) material. The report describes the development and validation of studies for a BIM based on the proportion of replicates identified, or probability of identification (POI), as the basic observed statistic. The statistical procedures proposed for data analysis follow closely those of the probability of detection, and harmonize the statistical concepts and parameters between quantitative and qualitative method validation. Use of POI statistics also harmonizes statistical concepts for botanical, microbiological, toxin, and other analyte identification methods that produce binary results. The POI statistical model provides a tool for graphical representation of response curves for qualitative methods, reporting of descriptive statistics, and application of performance requirements. Single collaborator and multicollaborative study examples are given.

POSTACTIVATION POTENTIATION: AN INTRODUCTION

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Improving strength and power in the athlete who is being rehabilitated is a central focus of the sports physical therapist, particularly in the terminal phases of rehabilitation where the emphasis shifts to readiness to return to sport and sports performance enhancement. High load strength training and power training through plyometric exercises are two key components of performance enhancement programs. A current concept in the strength and conditioning literature that is relatively unknown in sports physical therapy is postactivation potentiation (PAP). Even though we have limited data and there may be limited application of the concept of PAP for the sports physical therapist, awareness of this phenomenon is important nonetheless. The purpose of this clinical commentary is to introduce the sports physical therapist to the concept of PAP. PMID:21904700

The Effectiveness of CPS-ALM Model in Enhancing Statistical Literacy Ability and Self Concept of Elementary School Student Teacher

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Takaria, J.; Rumahlatu, D.

2016-01-01

The focus of this study is to examine comprehensively statistical literacy and self-concept enhancement of elementary school student teacher through CPS-BML model in which this enhancement is measured through N-gain. The result of study indicate that the use of Collaborative Problem Solving Model assisted by literacy media (CPS-ALM) model…

An Open Task to Promote Students to Create Statistical Concepts through Modelling

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Albarracín, Lluís; Aymerich, Àngels; Gorgorió, Núria

2017-01-01

This article reports on the solutions of a group of 22 students, aged 15/16 years old, when facing a statistical modelling activity. They were given the salary lists of 5 companies and were asked what could be said about their salary structure; no hint was given. The results show that students not only used a wide range of data concepts and…

What is complementarity?: Niels Bohr and the architecture of quantum theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plotnitsky, Arkady

2014-12-01

This article explores Bohr’s argument, advanced under the heading of ‘complementarity,’ concerning quantum phenomena and quantum mechanics, and its physical and philosophical implications. In Bohr, the term complementarity designates both a particular concept and an overall interpretation of quantum phenomena and quantum mechanics, in part grounded in this concept. While the argument of this article is primarily philosophical, it will also address, historically, the development and transformations of Bohr’s thinking, under the impact of the development of quantum theory and Bohr’s confrontation with Einstein, especially their exchange concerning the EPR experiment, proposed by Einstein, Podolsky and Rosen in 1935. Bohr’s interpretation was progressively characterized by a more radical epistemology, in its ultimate form, which was developed in the 1930s and with which I shall be especially concerned here, defined by his new concepts of phenomenon and atomicity. According to this epistemology, quantum objects are seen as indescribable and possibly even as inconceivable, and as manifesting their existence only in the effects of their interactions with measuring instruments upon those instruments, effects that define phenomena in Bohr’s sense. The absence of causality is an automatic consequence of this epistemology. I shall also consider how probability and statistics work under these epistemological conditions.

The irreducible photon

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrews, David L.

2009-08-01

In recent years it has become evident that the primary concept of the photon has multiple interpretations, with widely differing secondary connotations. Despite the all-pervasive nature of this concept in science, some of the ancillary properties with which the photon is attributed in certain areas of application sit uneasily alongside those invoked in other areas. Certainly the range of applications extends far beyond what was envisaged in the original conception, now entering subjects extending from elementary particle physics and cosmology through to spectroscopy, statistical mechanics and photochemistry. Addressing this diverse context invites the question: What is there, that it is possible to assert as incontrovertibly true about the photon? Which properties are non-controversial, if others are the subject of debate? This paper describes an attempt to answer these questions, establishing as far as possible an irreducible core of what can rightly be asserted about the photon, and setting aside some of what often is, but should never be so asserted. Some of the more bewildering difficulties and differences of interpretation owe their origin to careless descriptions, highlighting a need to guard semantic precision; although simplifications are frequently and naturally expedient for didactic purposes, they carry the risk of becoming indelible. Focusing on such issues, the aim is to identify how much or how little about the photon can be regarded as truly non-controversial.

The concept of community poverty reduction in coastal area of Surabaya based on sustainable livelihood approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gai, A. M.; Soewarni, I.; M, M., Sir

2018-04-01

Multidimensional poverty becomes a trademark of fisherman community including the community in Surabaya. The fishermen in Surabaya belong to a society with quite apprehensive welfare in all aspects covering economy, social, and environment. Therefore, this research aims to organize poverty reduction concept in coastal area of Surabaya based on sustainable livelihood which assesses poverty through 5 (five) livelihood assets i.e. human asset, natural asset, social asset, physical asset, and financial asset. This research is a qualitative research using rationalistic approach with explorative, descriptive, and perspective nature. Primary data collected using Participatory Poverty Assessment (PPA) and secondary data collected through agency and literature survey. Purposive sampling was employed in getting the sample. Then, the data were analyzed using content analysis, statistics descriptive analysis, and delphi analysis. The results show that sustainable livelihood level in coastal area of Surabaya indicates the human asset is 65% at the SLA level and the lowest is social asset which is 20%, and financial asset is the most affecting factors of poverty in coastal area of Surabaya since the expense for fuel cannot be compared to the fish catched. Community empowerment is the concept proposed to overcome the poverty problems in coastal area of Surabaya.

Teaching ``The Physics of Energy'' at MIT

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jaffe, Robert

2009-05-01

New physics courses on energy are popping up at colleges and universities across the country. Many require little or no previous physics background, aiming to introduce a broad audience to this complex and critical problem, often augmenting the scientific message with economic and policy discussions. Others are advanced courses, focussing on highly specialized subjects like solar voltaics, nuclear physics, or thermal fluids, for example. About two years ago Washington Taylor and I undertook to develop a course on the ``Physics of Energy'' open to all MIT students who had taken MIT's common core of university level calculus, physics, and chemistry. By avoiding higher level prerequisites, we aimed to attract and make the subject relevant to students in the life sciences, economics, etc. --- as well as physical scientists and engineers --- who want to approach energy issues in a sophisticated and analytical fashion, exploiting their background in calculus, mechanics, and E & M, but without having to take advanced courses in thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, or nuclear physics beforehand. Our object was to interweave teaching the fundamental physics principles at the foundations of energy science with the applications of those principles to energy systems. We envisioned a course that would present the basics of statistical, quantum, and fluid mechanics at a fairly sophisticated level and apply those concepts to the study of energy sources, conversion, transport, losses, storage, conservation, and end use. In the end we developed almost all of the material for the course from scratch. The course debuted this past fall. I will describe what we learned and what general lessons our experience might have for others who contemplate teaching energy physics broadly to a technically sophisticated audience.

Is math anxiety in the secondary classroom limiting physics mastery? A study of math anxiety and physics performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mercer, Gary J.

This quantitative study examined the relationship between secondary students with math anxiety and physics performance in an inquiry-based constructivist classroom. The Revised Math Anxiety Rating Scale was used to evaluate math anxiety levels. The results were then compared to the performance on a physics standardized final examination. A simple correlation was performed, followed by a multivariate regression analysis to examine effects based on gender and prior math background. The correlation showed statistical significance between math anxiety and physics performance. The regression analysis showed statistical significance for math anxiety, physics performance, and prior math background, but did not show statistical significance for math anxiety, physics performance, and gender.

Like Beauty, Complexity is Hard to Define

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsallis, Constantino

Like beauty, complexity is hard to define and rather easy to identify: nonlinear dynamics, strongly interconnected simple elements, some sort of divisoria aquorum between order and disorder. Before focusing on complexity, let us remember that the theoretical pillars of contemporary physics are mechanics (Newtonian, relativistic, quantum), Maxwell electromagnetism, and (Boltzmann-Gibbs, BG) statistical mechanics - obligatory basic disciplines in any advanced course in physics. The firstprinciple statistical-mechanical approach starts from (microscopic) electro-mechanics and theory of probabilities, and, through a variety of possible mesoscopic descriptions, arrives to (oscopic) thermodynamics. In the middle of this trip, we cross energy and entropy. Energy is related to the possible microscopic configurations of the system, whereas entropy is related to the corresponding probabilities. Therefore, in some sense, entropy represents a concept which, epistemologically speaking, is one step further with regard to energy. The fact that energy is not parameter-independent is very familiar: the kinetic energy of a truck is very different from that of a fly, and the relativistic energy of a fast electron is very different from its classical value, and so on. What about entropy? One hundred and forty years of tradition, and hundreds - we may even say thousands - of impressive theoretical successes of the parameter-free BG entropy have sedimented, in the mind of many scientists, the conviction that it is unique. However, it can be straightforwardly argued that, in general, this is not the case...

Coupled disease-behavior dynamics on complex networks: A review

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhen; Andrews, Michael A.; Wu, Zhi-Xi; Wang, Lin; Bauch, Chris T.

2015-12-01

It is increasingly recognized that a key component of successful infection control efforts is understanding the complex, two-way interaction between disease dynamics and human behavioral and social dynamics. Human behavior such as contact precautions and social distancing clearly influence disease prevalence, but disease prevalence can in turn alter human behavior, forming a coupled, nonlinear system. Moreover, in many cases, the spatial structure of the population cannot be ignored, such that social and behavioral processes and/or transmission of infection must be represented with complex networks. Research on studying coupled disease-behavior dynamics in complex networks in particular is growing rapidly, and frequently makes use of analysis methods and concepts from statistical physics. Here, we review some of the growing literature in this area. We contrast network-based approaches to homogeneous-mixing approaches, point out how their predictions differ, and describe the rich and often surprising behavior of disease-behavior dynamics on complex networks, and compare them to processes in statistical physics. We discuss how these models can capture the dynamics that characterize many real-world scenarios, thereby suggesting ways that policy makers can better design effective prevention strategies. We also describe the growing sources of digital data that are facilitating research in this area. Finally, we suggest pitfalls which might be faced by researchers in the field, and we suggest several ways in which the field could move forward in the coming years.

Learning Quantitative Sequence-Function Relationships from Massively Parallel Experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atwal, Gurinder S.; Kinney, Justin B.

2016-03-01

A fundamental aspect of biological information processing is the ubiquity of sequence-function relationships—functions that map the sequence of DNA, RNA, or protein to a biochemically relevant activity. Most sequence-function relationships in biology are quantitative, but only recently have experimental techniques for effectively measuring these relationships been developed. The advent of such "massively parallel" experiments presents an exciting opportunity for the concepts and methods of statistical physics to inform the study of biological systems. After reviewing these recent experimental advances, we focus on the problem of how to infer parametric models of sequence-function relationships from the data produced by these experiments. Specifically, we retrace and extend recent theoretical work showing that inference based on mutual information, not the standard likelihood-based approach, is often necessary for accurately learning the parameters of these models. Closely connected with this result is the emergence of "diffeomorphic modes"—directions in parameter space that are far less constrained by data than likelihood-based inference would suggest. Analogous to Goldstone modes in physics, diffeomorphic modes arise from an arbitrarily broken symmetry of the inference problem. An analytically tractable model of a massively parallel experiment is then described, providing an explicit demonstration of these fundamental aspects of statistical inference. This paper concludes with an outlook on the theoretical and computational challenges currently facing studies of quantitative sequence-function relationships.

Consciousness and values in the quantum universe

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stapp, H.P.

1985-01-01

Application of quantum mechanical description to neurophysiological processes appears to provide for a natural unification of the physical and humanistic sciences. The categories of thought used to represent physical and psychical processes become united, and the mechanical conception of man created by classical physics is replaced by a profoundly different quantum conception. This revised image of man allows human values to be rooted in contemporary science.

The Link between Competitive Sport Participation and Self-Concept in Early Adolescence: A Consideration of Gender and Sport Orientation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Findlay, Leanne C.; Bowker, Anne

2009-01-01

The current study explored specific aspects of sports and individuals on 4 domains of the self-system (physical competence and physical appearance self-concept, global physical and general self-esteem). Participants were 351 adolescents (M[subscript age] = 13.45, SD = 1.25 years, males n = 132) recruited from elite sports and regular school…

A Taxonomy of Introductory Physics Concepts.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mokaya, Fridah; Savkar, Amit; Valente, Diego

We have designed and implemented a hierarchical taxonomic classification of physics concepts for our introductory physics for engineers course sequence taught at the University of Connecticut. This classification can be used to provide a mechanism to measure student progress in learning at the level of individual concepts or clusters of concepts, and also as part of a tool to measure effectiveness of teaching pedagogy. We examine our pre- and post-test FCI results broken down by topics using Hestenes et al.'s taxonomy classification for the FCI, and compare these results with those found using our own taxonomy classification. In addition, we expand this taxonomic classification to measure performance in our other course exams, investigating possible correlations in results achieved across different assessments at the individual topic level. UCONN CLAS(College of Liberal Arts and Science).

Student's preconception and anxiety when they solve multi representation concepts in Newton laws and it's application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cari, C.; Suparmi, A.; Handhika, J.

2016-11-01

The purpose of this study was to describe of preconceptions and anxieties students in solving the representation concepts in newton laws and it's application. This research was conducted for junior undergraduate student's in physics department (36 Students) and physics education (31 Students). The method used in this study is a qualitative descriptive. The data was collection using test for multirepresentation concept, questionnaires for anxiety, and interviews. Based on the analysis it can be concluded that (1) the higher is anxiety, the higher is unconsistency (67,16%), (2) the higher is anxiety, the higher is consistency but wrong answer (29,85%), (3) the lower is anxiety, the higher is consistency of right answer (2,98%). Mostly students have understood fewer physics concept in newtons laws.

Social-class differences in self-concept clarity and their implications for well-being.

PubMed

Na, Jinkyung; Chan, Micaela Y; Lodi-Smith, Jennifer; Park, Denise C

2018-06-01

A consistent/stable sense of the self is more valued in middle-class contexts than working-class contexts; hence, we predicted that middle-class individuals would have higher self-concept clarity than working-class individuals. It is further expected that self-concept clarity would be more important to one's well-being among middle-class individuals than among working-class individuals. Supporting these predictions, self-concept clarity was positively associated with higher social class. Moreover, although self-concept clarity was associated with higher life satisfaction and better mental health, the association significantly attenuated among working-class individuals. In addition, self-concept clarity was not associated with physical health and its association with physical health did not interact with social class.

Physics of mind: Experimental confirmations of theoretical predictions.

PubMed

Schoeller, Félix; Perlovsky, Leonid; Arseniev, Dmitry

2018-02-02

What is common among Newtonian mechanics, statistical physics, thermodynamics, quantum physics, the theory of relativity, astrophysics and the theory of superstrings? All these areas of physics have in common a methodology, which is discussed in the first few lines of the review. Is a physics of the mind possible? Is it possible to describe how a mind adapts in real time to changes in the physical world through a theory based on a few basic laws? From perception and elementary cognition to emotions and abstract ideas allowing high-level cognition and executive functioning, at nearly all levels of study, the mind shows variability and uncertainties. Is it possible to turn psychology and neuroscience into so-called "hard" sciences? This review discusses several established first principles for the description of mind and their mathematical formulations. A mathematical model of mind is derived from these principles. This model includes mechanisms of instincts, emotions, behavior, cognition, concepts, language, intuitions, and imagination. We clarify fundamental notions such as the opposition between the conscious and the unconscious, the knowledge instinct and aesthetic emotions, as well as humans' universal abilities for symbols and meaning. In particular, the review discusses in length evolutionary and cognitive functions of aesthetic emotions and musical emotions. Several theoretical predictions are derived from the model, some of which have been experimentally confirmed. These empirical results are summarized and we introduce new theoretical developments. Several unsolved theoretical problems are proposed, as well as new experimental challenges for future research. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Growth of a Species, an Association, a Science: 80 Years of Growth and Development Research

PubMed Central

Sherwood, Richard J.; Duren, Dana L.

2014-01-01

Physical anthropological research was codified in the United States with the creation of the American Association of Physical Anthropology (AAPA) in 1929. That same year, a study began in yellow springs, Ohio, with a goal of identifying “what makes people different.” The approach used to answer that question was to study the growth and development of Homo sapiens. The resulting study, the Fels Longitudinal Study, is currently the longest continuous study of human growth and development in the world. Although the AAPA and the Fels Longitudinal Study have existed as separate entities for more than 80 years now, it is not surprising, given the relationship between anatomical and developmental research, there has been considerable overlap between the two. As the field of physical anthropology has blossomed to include subdisciplines such as forensics, genetics, primatology, as well as sophisticated statistical methodologies, the importance of growth and development research has escalated. Although current Fels Longitudinal Study research is largely directed at biomedical questions, virtually all findings are relevant to physical anthropology, providing insights into basic biological processes and life history parameters. Some key milestones from the early years of the AAPA and the Fels Longitudinal Study are highlighted here that address growth and development research in physical anthropology. These are still held as fundamental concepts that underscore the importance of this line of inquiry, not only across the subdisciplines of physical anthropology, but also among anthropological, biological, and biomedical inquiries. PMID:23283658

Growth of a species, an association, a science: 80 years of growth and development research.

PubMed

Sherwood, Richard J; Duren, Dana L

2013-01-01

Physical anthropological research was codified in the United States with the creation of the American Association of Physical Anthropology (AAPA) in 1929. That same year, a study began in yellow springs, Ohio, with a goal of identifying "what makes people different." The approach used to answer that question was to study the growth and development of Homo sapiens. The resulting study, the Fels Longitudinal Study, is currently the longest continuous study of human growth and development in the world. Although the AAPA and the Fels Longitudinal Study have existed as separate entities for more than 80 years now, it is not surprising, given the relationship between anatomical and developmental research, there has been considerable overlap between the two. As the field of physical anthropology has blossomed to include subdisciplines such as forensics, genetics, primatology, as well as sophisticated statistical methodologies, the importance of growth and development research has escalated. Although current Fels Longitudinal Study research is largely directed at biomedical questions, virtually all findings are relevant to physical anthropology, providing insights into basic biological processes and life history parameters. Some key milestones from the early years of the AAPA and the Fels Longitudinal Study are highlighted here that address growth and development research in physical anthropology. These are still held as fundamental concepts that underscore the importance of this line of inquiry, not only across the subdisciplines of physical anthropology, but also among anthropological, biological, and biomedical inquiries. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Teaching Statistics Online Using "Excel"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jerome, Lawrence

2011-01-01

As anyone who has taught or taken a statistics course knows, statistical calculations can be tedious and error-prone, with the details of a calculation sometimes distracting students from understanding the larger concepts. Traditional statistics courses typically use scientific calculators, which can relieve some of the tedium and errors but…

Fish: A New Computer Program for Friendly Introductory Statistics Help

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brooks, Gordon P.; Raffle, Holly

2005-01-01

All introductory statistics students must master certain basic descriptive statistics, including means, standard deviations and correlations. Students must also gain insight into such complex concepts as the central limit theorem and standard error. This article introduces and describes the Friendly Introductory Statistics Help (FISH) computer…

Reconstructing Macroeconomics Based on Statistical Physics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aoki, Masanao; Yoshikawa, Hiroshi

We believe that time has come to integrate the new approach based on statistical physics or econophysics into macroeconomics. Toward this goal, there must be more dialogues between physicists and economists. In this paper, we argue that there is no reason why the methods of statistical physics so successful in many fields of natural sciences cannot be usefully applied to macroeconomics that is meant to analyze the macroeconomy comprising a large number of economic agents. It is, in fact, weird to regard the macroeconomy as a homothetic enlargement of the representative micro agent. We trust the bright future of the new approach to macroeconomies based on statistical physics.

Statistics-related and reliability-physics-related failure processes in electronics devices and products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suhir, E.

2014-05-01

The well known and widely used experimental reliability "passport" of a mass manufactured electronic or a photonic product — the bathtub curve — reflects the combined contribution of the statistics-related and reliability-physics (physics-of-failure)-related processes. When time progresses, the first process results in a decreasing failure rate, while the second process associated with the material aging and degradation leads to an increased failure rate. An attempt has been made in this analysis to assess the level of the reliability physics-related aging process from the available bathtub curve (diagram). It is assumed that the products of interest underwent the burn-in testing and therefore the obtained bathtub curve does not contain the infant mortality portion. It has been also assumed that the two random processes in question are statistically independent, and that the failure rate of the physical process can be obtained by deducting the theoretically assessed statistical failure rate from the bathtub curve ordinates. In the carried out numerical example, the Raleigh distribution for the statistical failure rate was used, for the sake of a relatively simple illustration. The developed methodology can be used in reliability physics evaluations, when there is a need to better understand the roles of the statistics-related and reliability-physics-related irreversible random processes in reliability evaluations. The future work should include investigations on how powerful and flexible methods and approaches of the statistical mechanics can be effectively employed, in addition to reliability physics techniques, to model the operational reliability of electronic and photonic products.

Credit risk and the instability of the financial system: An ensemble approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schmitt, Thilo A.; Chetalova, Desislava; Schäfer, Rudi; Guhr, Thomas

2014-02-01

The instability of the financial system as experienced in recent years and in previous periods is often linked to credit defaults, i.e., to the failure of obligors to make promised payments. Given the large number of credit contracts, this problem is amenable to be treated with approaches developed in statistical physics. We introduce the idea of ensemble averaging and thereby uncover generic features of credit risk. We then show that the often advertised concept of diversification, i.e., reducing the risk by distributing it, is deeply flawed when it comes to credit risk. The risk of extreme losses remains due to the ever present correlations, implying a substantial and persistent intrinsic danger to the financial system.

Climate Literacy: Progress in Climate and Global Change Undergraduate Courses in Meteorology and Earth System Science Programs at Jackson State University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reddy, S. R.; Tuluri, F.; Fadavi, M.

2017-12-01

JSU Meteorology Program will be offering AMS Climate Studies undergraduate course under MET 210: Climatology in spring 2013. AMS Climate Studies is offered as a 3 credit hour laboratory course with 2 lectures and 1 lab sessions per week. Although this course places strong intellectual demands upon each student, the instructors' objective is to help each student to pass the course with an adequate understanding of the fundamentals and advanced and advanced courses. AMS Climate Studies is an introductory college-level course developed by the American Meteorological Society for implementation at undergraduate institutions nationwide. The course places students in a dynamic and highly motivational educational environment where they investigate Earth's climate system using real-world environmental data. The AMS Climate Studies course package consists of a textbook, investigations manual, course website, and course management system-compatible files. Instructors can use these resources in combinations that make for an exciting learning experience for their students. This is a content course in Earth Science. It introduces a new concept that views Earth as a synergistic physical system applied concepts of climatology, for him/her to understand basic atmospheric/climate processes, physical and dynamical climatology, regional climatology, past and future climates and statistical analysis using climate data and to be prepared to profit from studying more of interrelated phenomenon governed by complex processes involving the atmosphere, the hydrosphere, the biosphere, and the solid Earth. The course emphasizes that the events that shape the physical, chemical, and biological processes of the Earth do not occur in isolation. Rather, there is a delicate relationship between the events that occur in the ocean, atmosphere, and the solid Earth. The course provides a multidimensional approach in solving scientific issues related to Earth-related sciences,

Discussion on water resources value accounting and its application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Biying; Huang, Xiaorong; Ma, Kai; Gao, Linyun; Wang, Yanqiu

2018-06-01

The exploration of the compilation of natural resources balance sheet has been proposed since 2013. Several elements of water resources balance sheet have been discussed positively in China, including basic concept, framework and accounting methods, which focused on calculating the amount of water resources with statistical methods but lacked the analysis of the interrelationship between physical volume and magnitude of value. Based on the study of physical accounting of water resources balance sheet, the connotation of water resources value is analyzed in combination with research on the value of water resources in the world. What's more, the theoretical framework, form of measurement and research methods of water resources value accounting are further explored. Taking Chengdu, China as an example, the index system of water resources balance sheet in Chengdu which includes both physical and valuable volume is established to account the depletion of water resources, environmental damage and ecological water occupation caused by economic and social water use. Moreover, the water resources balance sheet in this region which reflects the negative impact of the economy on the environment is established. It provides a reference for advancing water resources management, improving government and social investment, realizing scientific and rational allocation of water resources.

Rigorous Proof of the Boltzmann-Gibbs Distribution of Money on Connected Graphs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lanchier, Nicolas

2017-04-01

Models in econophysics, i.e., the emerging field of statistical physics that applies the main concepts of traditional physics to economics, typically consist of large systems of economic agents who are characterized by the amount of money they have. In the simplest model, at each time step, one agent gives one dollar to another agent, with both agents being chosen independently and uniformly at random from the system. Numerical simulations of this model suggest that, at least when the number of agents and the average amount of money per agent are large, the distribution of money converges to an exponential distribution reminiscent of the Boltzmann-Gibbs distribution of energy in physics. The main objective of this paper is to give a rigorous proof of this result and show that the convergence to the exponential distribution holds more generally when the economic agents are located on the vertices of a connected graph and interact locally with their neighbors rather than globally with all the other agents. We also study a closely related model where, at each time step, agents buy with a probability proportional to the amount of money they have, and prove that in this case the limiting distribution of money is Poissonian.

Tactile Evaluation Feedback System for Multi-Layered Structure Inspired by Human Tactile Perception Mechanism.

PubMed

Hashim, Iza Husna Mohamad; Kumamoto, Shogo; Takemura, Kenjiro; Maeno, Takashi; Okuda, Shin; Mori, Yukio

2017-11-11

Tactile sensation is one type of valuable feedback in evaluating a product. Conventionally, sensory evaluation is used to get direct subjective responses from the consumers, in order to improve the product's quality. However, this method is a time-consuming and costly process. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel tactile evaluation system that can give tactile feedback from a sensor's output. The main concept of this system is hierarchically layering the tactile sensation, which is inspired by the flow of human perception. The tactile sensation is classified from low-order of tactile sensation (LTS) to high-order of tactile sensation (HTS), and also to preference. Here, LTS will be correlated with physical measures. Furthermore, the physical measures that are used to correlate with LTS are selected based on four main aspects of haptic information (roughness, compliance, coldness, and slipperiness), which are perceived through human tactile sensors. By using statistical analysis, the correlation between each hierarchy was obtained, and the preference was derived in terms of physical measures. A verification test was conducted by using unknown samples to determine the reliability of the system. The results showed that the system developed was capable of estimating preference with an accuracy of approximately 80%.

Ash'arite's atomistic conception of the physical world: A restatement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pozi, Firdaus; Othman, Mohd Yusof; Mohamed, Faizal

2013-11-27

Atomism plays an important role in the history of human thought. It can be traced back from Democritus atomos in the 500 BC to particle physics and quantum theory in the 21{sup st} century. However, as it being rejected and developed in the course of history of science, it still brings the fundamental question that perplexes physicists. It gives the views that the world is eternal; that the laws of nature is immutable and eternal therefore all phenomena can be determined through the laws and that there is no reality behind the quantum world. In this paper, we shall brieflymore » describe all these three views on the nature of the physical world or universe and this include on the nature of matter. Then, we shall explain our stand on those conceptions based on the Ash'arites atomistic conception of the physical world. We hope this paper can shed a light on several fundamental issues in the conception of the universe and gives the proper response to them.« less

Effects of the use of thematic organizers in conjunction with concept mapping on learning, misconceptions, and retention in middle school science class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Keown, Sandra L.

This study was devised to determine effects of the use of interactive thematic organizers and concept maps in middle school science classes during a unit study on minerals. The design, a pretest-posttest control group, consisted of matched groups (three experimental groups and one comparison group). It also included a student survey assessing qualitative aspects of the investigation. The 67 6th-grade students and one science teacher who participated in the study were from an independent K-12 school. Students represented a normal, well-distributed range of abilities. Group I (control) proceeded with their usual method of studying a unit---reading aloud the text and answering workbook questions. Group II worked with interactive thematic organizers, designed to activate prior knowledge and help students make inferences about target concepts in three treatments. Group III created three interactive concept maps, which represented both understandings and misconceptions. Concept maps were reviewed and repaired as students completed each treatment. Group IV participated in both thematic organizer and concept map treatments. Statistical analyses were determined through a pretest and a delayed recall posttest essay for all four groups. Two scores were assigned---one quantitative raw score of correct explicit answers and one rubric score based on the quality of interpretive responses. Group II also received scores for thematic organizer responses. Group III received rubric scores for concept maps. Group IV received all possible scores. Paired t-tests reported comparisons of scores across the treatment groups. A linear regression indicated whether or not concept map misconceptions affected posttest scores. Finally, an ANCOVA reported statistical significance across the four treatment groups. Findings of data analysis indicated statistically significant improvement in posttest scores among students in the three experimental groups. Students who participated in both treatments represented the highest scores among the four groups. Results of the ANCOVA indicated there was statistically significant difference in scores among the four treatments. Recommendations were made to further investigate development of interactive thematic organizers with student-chosen hyperlinks to concepts, as well as a recommendation that researchers investigate teacher understandings of interpretive purpose and form in the creation of thematic organizers.

Exploring the relationship between social class, mental illness stigma and mental health literacy using British national survey data.

PubMed

Holman, Daniel

2015-07-01

The relationship between social class and mental illness stigma has received little attention in recent years. At the same time, the concept of mental health literacy has become an increasingly popular way of framing knowledge and understanding of mental health issues. British Social Attitudes survey data present an opportunity to unpack the relationships between these concepts and social class, an important task given continuing mental health inequalities. Regression analyses were undertaken which centred on depression and schizophrenia vignettes, with an asthma vignette used for comparison. The National Statistics Socio-economic Classification, education and income were used as indicators of class. A number of interesting findings emerged. Overall, class variables showed a stronger relationship with mental health literacy than stigma. The relationship was gendered such that women with higher levels of education, especially those with a degree, had the lowest levels of stigma and highest levels of mental health literacy. Interestingly, class showed more of an association with stigma for the asthma vignette than it did for both the depression and schizophrenia vignettes, suggesting that mental illness stigma needs to be contextualised alongside physical illness stigma. Education emerged as the key indicator of class, followed by the National Statistics Socio-economic Classification, with income effects being marginal. These findings have implications for targeting health promotion campaigns and increasing service use in order to reduce mental health inequalities. © The Author(s) 2014.

Using computer simulation to improve high order thinking skills of physics teacher candidate students in Compton effect

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Supurwoko; Cari; Sarwanto; Sukarmin; Fauzi, Ahmad; Faradilla, Lisa; Summa Dewi, Tiarasita

2017-11-01

The process of learning and teaching in Physics is often confronted with abstract concepts. It makes difficulty for students to understand and teachers to teach the concept. One of the materials that has an abstract concept is Compton Effect. The purpose of this research is to evaluate computer simulation model on Compton Effect material which is used to improve high thinking ability of Physics teacher candidate students. This research is a case study. The subject is students at physics educations who have attended Modern Physics lectures. Data were obtained through essay test for measuring students’ high-order thinking skills and quisioners for measuring students’ responses. The results obtained indicate that computer simulation model can be used to improve students’ high order thinking skill and can be used to improve students’ responses. With this result it is suggested that the audiences use the simulation media in learning

Sensor-Augmented Virtual Labs: Using Physical Interactions with Science Simulations to Promote Understanding of Gas Behavior

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chao, Jie; Chiu, Jennifer L.; DeJaegher, Crystal J.; Pan, Edward A.

2016-02-01

Deep learning of science involves integration of existing knowledge and normative science concepts. Past research demonstrates that combining physical and virtual labs sequentially or side by side can take advantage of the unique affordances each provides for helping students learn science concepts. However, providing simultaneously connected physical and virtual experiences has the potential to promote connections among ideas. This paper explores the effect of augmenting a virtual lab with physical controls on high school chemistry students' understanding of gas laws. We compared students using the augmented virtual lab to students using a similar sensor-based physical lab with teacher-led discussions. Results demonstrate that students in the augmented virtual lab condition made significant gains from pretest and posttest and outperformed traditional students on some but not all concepts. Results provide insight into incorporating mixed-reality technologies into authentic classroom settings.

Book Review: Dolores Knipp’s Understanding Space Weather and the Physics Behind It

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moldwin, Mark

2012-08-01

Delores Knipp's textbook Understanding Space Weather and the Physics Behind It provides a comprehensive resource for space physicists teaching in a variety of academic departments to introduce space weather to advanced undergraduates. The book benefits from Knipp's extensive experience teaching introductory and advanced undergraduate physics courses at the U.S. Air Force Academy. The fundamental physics concepts are clearly explained and are connected directly to the space physics concepts being discussed. To expand upon the relevant basic physics, current research areas and new observations are highlighted, with many of the chapters including contributions from a number of leading space physicists.