Recent Economic Perspectives on Political Economy, Part I*

PubMed Central

Dewan, Torun; Shepsle, Kenneth A.

2013-01-01

In recent years some of the best theoretical work on the political economy of political institutions and processes has begun surfacing outside the political science mainstream in high quality economics journals. This two-part paper surveys these contributions from a recent five-year period. In Part I, the focus is on elections, voting and information aggregation, followed by treatments of parties, candidates, and coalitions. In Part II, papers on economic performance and redistribution, constitutional design, and incentives, institutions, and the quality of political elites are discussed. Part II concludes with a discussion of the methodological bases common to economics and political science, the way economists have used political science research, and some new themes and arbitrage opportunities. PMID:23990686

Perspectives future space on robotics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lavery, Dave

1994-01-01

Last year's flight of the German ROTEX robot flight experiment heralded the start of a new era for space robotics. ROTEX is the first of at least 10 new robotic systems and experiments that will fly before 2000. These robots will augment astronaut on-orbit capabilities and extend virtual human presence to lunar and planetary surfaces. The robotic systems to be flown in the next five years fall into three categories: extravehicular robotic (EVR) servicers, science payload servicers, and planetary surface rovers. A description of the work on these systems is presented.

Venus - 3D Perspective View of Maat Mons

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

Maat Mons is displayed in this computer generated three-dimensional perspective of the surface of Venus. The viewpoint is located 634 kilometers (393 miles) north of Maat Mons at an elevation of 3 kilometers (2 miles) above the terrain. Lava flows extend for hundreds of kilometers across the fractured plains shown in the foreground, to the base of Maat Mons. The view is to the south with the volcano Maat Mons appearing at the center of the image on the horizon and rising to almost 5 kilometers (3 miles) above the surrounding terrain. Maat Mons is located at approximately 0.9 degrees north latitude, 194.5 degrees east longitude with a peak that ascends to 8 kilometers (5 miles) above the mean surface. Maat Mons is named for an Egyptian Goddess of truth and justice. Magellan synthetic aperture radar data is combined with radar altimetry to develop a three-dimensional map of the surface. The vertical scale in this perspective has been exaggerated 10 times. Rays cast in a computer intersect the surface to crate a three-dimensional perspective view. Simulated color and a digital elevation map developed by the U.S. Geological Survey are used to enhance small-scale structure. The simulated hues are based on color images recorded by the Soviet Venera 13 and 14 spacecraft. The image was produced by the Solar System Visualization project and the Magellan Science team at the JPL Multimission Image Processing Laboratory and is a single frame from a video released at the April 22, 1992 news conference.

Scientific misconduct: a perspective from India.

PubMed

Sabir, Husain; Kumbhare, Subhash; Parate, Amit; Kumar, Rajesh; Das, Suroopa

2015-05-01

Misconduct in medical science research is an unfortunate reality. Science, for the most part, operates on the basis of trust. Researchers are expected to carry out their work and report their findings honestly. But, sadly, that is not how science always gets done. Reports keep surfacing from various countries about work being plagiarised, results which were doctored and data fabricated. Scientific misconduct is scourge afflicting the field of science, unfortunately with little impact in developing countries like India especially in health care services. A recent survey and a meta-analysis suggest that the few cases that do float up represents only tip of a large iceberg. This paper therefore highlights reasons for misconduct with steps that can be taken to reduce misconduct. Also the paper throws light on Indian scenario in relation to misconduct.

How can history of science matter to scientists?

PubMed

Maienschein, Jane; Laubichler, Manfred; Loettgers, Andrea

2008-06-01

History of science has developed into a methodologically diverse discipline, adding greatly to our understanding of the interplay between science, society, and culture. Along the way, one original impetus for the then newly emerging discipline--what George Sarton called the perspective "from the point of view of the scientist"--dropped out of fashion. This essay shows, by means of several examples, that reclaiming this interaction between science and history of science yields interesting perspectives and new insights for both science and history of science. The authors consequently suggest that historians of science also adopt this perspective as part of their methodological repertoire.

Holistic Approach Offers Potential to Quantify Mass Fluxes Across Continental Margins

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kuehl, Steven; Carter, Lionel; Gomez, Basil; Trustrum, Noel

Most humans live on and utilize the continental margin, the surface of which changes continually in response to environmental perturbations such as weather, climate change, tectonism, earthquakes, volcanism, sea level, and human settlement and land use. Part of the margin is above sea level and the rest is submarine, but these land and seascape components are contiguous, and material transport from source to sink occurs as a seamless cascade. The margin responds to environmental perturbations by changing the nature and magnitude of a variety of important functions, including the distribution of soil formation and erosion; biogeochemical functioning (especially the storage and release of water, limiting nutrients and contaminants); and the form and behavior of geomorphic components from hill slopes and floodplains through the coastal zone to the continental rise. While some areas of the margin are eroding-for example, hill slopes-others accumulate sediment, such as tectonic basins and continental slope and rise. These areas record the history of surface changes. A major goal of the Earth science community is to provide quantitative explanations and predictions of the effects of environmental perturbations on surface changes and preserved sedimentary strata of continental margins. In past decades, margins have been investigated piecemeal by researchers who have tended to focus on a particular segment from one disciplinary perspective while eschewing the broader perspective of the margin as an interconnected whole. Recognizing this shortcoming, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) has initiated the MARGINS Source-to-Sink (S2S) program, which, for the first time, will attempt to understand the functioning of entire margin systems through dedicated observational and community modeling studies. Following input from the Earth science community, the Waipaoa Sedimentary System (WSS) of the North Island, New Zealand, was chosen as one of the focus sites for possible study (see MARGINS Source-to-Sink science plan for selection criteria and rationale: http://www.ldeo.columbia.edu/margins/S2S/S2Ssciplan02.html).

Perspective view over the Grand Canyon, Arizona

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

This simulated true color perspective view over the Grand Canyon was created from Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) data acquired on May 12, 2000. The Grand Canyon Village is in the lower foreground; the Bright Angel Trail crosses the Tonto Platform, before dropping down to the Colorado Village and then to the Phantom Ranch (green area across the river). Bright Angel Canyon and the North Rim dominate the view. At the top center of the image the dark blue area with light blue haze is an active forest fire.

ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched December 18, 1999, on NASA's Terra satellite. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and the data products.

The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER provides scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping, and monitoring of dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance.

The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Size: 5 km in foreground to 40 km Location: 36.3 degrees north latitude, 112 degrees west longitude Orientation: North-northeast at top Original Data Resolution: ASTER 15 meters Dates Acquired: May 12, 2000

Surface Science and the Advancement of Direct Olefin Epoxidation A Perspective on the Article, ‘‘Partial Oxidation of Higher Olefins on Ag(111) and Ag(110): Conversion of Styrene to Styrene Oxide, Benzene, and Benzoic Acid’’, by Andreas Klust and Robert J. Madix.

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

Barteau, Mark A.

2006-10-04

The research described in this product was performed in part in the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a national scientific user facility sponsored by the Department of Energy's Office of Biological and Environmental Research and located at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Few reactions are as conceptually simple or as devilishly difficult as the epoxidation of ethylene to form ethylene oxide:

Colloid and materials science for the conservation of cultural heritage: cleaning, consolidation, and deacidification.

PubMed

Baglioni, Piero; Chelazzi, David; Giorgi, Rodorico; Poggi, Giovanna

2013-04-30

Serendipity and experiment have been a frequent approach for the development of materials and methodologies used for a long time for either cleaning or consolidation of works of art. Recently, new perspectives have been opened by the application of materials science, colloid science, and interface science frameworks to conservation, generating a breakthrough in the development of innovative tools for the conservation and preservation of cultural heritage. This Article is an overview of the most recent contributions of colloid and materials science to the art conservation field, mainly focusing on the use of amphiphile-based fluids, gels, and alkaline earth metal hydroxide nanoparticles dispersions for the cleaning of pictorial surfaces, the consolidation of artistic substrates, and the deacidification of paper, canvas, and wood. Future possible directions for solving several conservation issues that still need to be faced are also highlighted.

Polyphosphates as inorganic polyelectrolytes interacting with oppositely charged ions, polymers and deposited on surfaces: fundamentals and applications.

PubMed

Cini, N; Ball, V

2014-07-01

Polyphosphates are important but neglected polyelectrolytes that play a major role in biology and in surface science for the stabilization of colloids against flocculation and for the preservation of food. They are also known as "Calgon" ® and intensively used as additives in washing powders. This review aims to review recent developments in which linear polyphosphates are used for the design of new functional coatings using sol-gel processes and layer-by-layer deposition methods. All these methods rely on the high charge density of polyphosphates as inorganic polyelectrolytes, therefore the structure and properties of these molecules are also reviewed. New perspectives will also been given for the design of stimuli responsive coatings at the tiny frontier between biology and materials science. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

How to Help Teachers Develop Inquiry Teaching: Perspectives from Experienced Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tseng, Chung-Hsien; Tuan, Hsiao-Lin; Chin, Chi-Chin

2013-01-01

This study has two purposes: the first is to explore experienced science teachers' perspectives on inquiry teaching, and the second is to categorize these perspectives into patterns. Fifteen junior high school science teachers experienced at inquiry teaching were selected, and a semi-structured interview was conducted to collect the teachers'…

Planetary science. Europa's ocean--the case strengthens.

PubMed

Stevenson, D

2000-08-25

The possibility of a subsurface ocean on Jupiter's moon Europa has been suggested on the basis of theoretical, geological, and spectroscopic arguments. But, as Stevenson explains in his Perspective, none of these arguments were compelling. In contrast, the magnetic field data obtained by the Galileo spacecraft and presented in the report by Kivelson et al., provide persuasive evidence for a conducting layer--most likely a global water ocean--near Europa's surface.

Linguistics from the Perspective of the Theory of Models in Empirical Sciences: From Formal to Corpus Linguistics

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Grabinska, Teresa; Zielinska, Dorota

2010-01-01

The authors examine language from the perspective of models of empirical sciences, which discipline studies the relationship between reality, models, and formalisms. Such a perspective allows one to notice that linguistics approached within the classical framework share a number of problems with other experimental sciences studied initially…

Reporting on Strategic Considerations About the Role of Science in Initial Human Missions to Mars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beaty, David; Bass, Deborah; Thronson, Harley; Hays, Lindsay; Carberry, Chris; Cassady, Joe; Craig, Mark; Duggan, Matt; Drake, Bret; Stern, Jennifer; Zucker, Rick

2016-07-01

In December 2015, the "Third Community Workshop on Affording and Sustaining Human Mars Exploration" (AM III) was held, which was designed to provide community recommendations on the potential human exploration of Mars. To facilitate the workshop, we focused on two key questions: 1) From the dual and interrelated perspectives of affordability and sustainability, what are the strengths/challenges of Mars exploration scenarios?; and 2) From the perspective of prioritized scientific objectives for the martian system (the planet's surface or its moons), what are the most enabling capabilities of the different exploration architecture(s) and why? Group discussion over three days resulted in the following findings and observations: 1. NASA's incremental approach to deep-space exploration defines the so-called "Proving Ground," specifically in cis-lunar space, generally occurring in the 2020s and prior to human journeys to Mars. We concluded that there are capabilities directly related to, and on the critical path to, human exploration of Mars that could be developed in cis-lunar space. However, we also concluded that the Proving Ground should best be viewed as a campaign that occurs within a certain timeframe (including activities at Mars), rather than merely occurring at a specific location. 2. The workshop participants agreed that the most valuable purposes of sending humans to the martian system would be accomplished only by surface operations. We concluded that specific benefits, both technical and cost, of sending humans to the Mars system without landing on the martian surface should be assessed in depth. We discussed - although were unable to conclude - whether Mars orbit or Phobos/Deimos as a destination would make sufficient contributions towards humans landing on the martian surface or to answering high-priority science questions (as identified by the Decadal Survey) to justify their associated costs and possible risks. Further study on the value of an orbital mission prior to a Mars surface mission should be initiated. 3. A well-planned set of science objectives for a future human-landed mission to Mars is essential in order to sustain coordination among the science and human spaceflight communities. In particular, while it is clear how humans on the surface of Mars would significantly accelerate the pace of the search for past life, it is unclear how humans would play a role in (and not serve as a hindrance to) the search for extant life. Further study should be supported. 4. Sustained formal collaboration among Mars scientists, engineers, technologists, and teams developing scenarios for Mars exploration should be supported. The human and robotic sides of the Mars exploration community need to become further engaged with each other, particularly as we enter a potential period of dual-purpose (science + human precursor) missions. Central to this era is generating mutual support for a Mars sample return architecture as a goal that has crucial value to both the human preparatory program and planetary science.

Study for Teaching Behavioral Sciences in Schools of Medicine, Volume III: Behavioral Science Perspectives in Medical Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Sociological Association, Washington, DC. Medical Sociology Council.

Volume III of a study of teaching behavioral sciences in medical school presents perspectives on medical behavioral science from the viewpoints of the several behavioral disciplines (anthropology, psychology, sociology, political science, economics, behavioral biology and medical education). In addition, there is a discussion of translating…

The perspectives of Caribbean high school students' experiences in American science classrooms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferguson, Renae Luenell

The purpose of this study was to describe the perspectives of Caribbean high school students' experiences in American science classrooms. Research suggests that psychological, cultural, and socioeconomic perspectives influence the science experiences of African Americans or Blacks; the result of which is under-representation (Lewis et al., 2000). Nonetheless, what is uncertain is if these and other perspectives are similar to the science experiences of Caribbeans who also are majority black by race and rank as the 3 rd largest immigrant population in America's schools (Suarez-Orozco, 2000). Questions guiding this study were: (1) What are the perspectives of Caribbean high school students' experiences in American science classrooms? (2) What can we learn from the perspectives of Caribbean high school students' science experiences that may address issues of participation and interest; consequently, influencing the overall performance of ethnic minorities in school science? Sociocultural theory provides the framework for the analysis of the study. Four Caribbean born students in an American high school participated in this naturalistic qualitative research. A constant comparative method was used to categorize and analyze the data and uncover meaningful patterns that emerged from the four interviews and written documents. Although there were similarities between African Americans' science experiences as documented in the literature and that of Caribbeans in this study, the Caribbean participants relied on prior native experiences to dictate their perspectives of their science experiences in America. According to Caribbean students, American science high schools classrooms utilize an objective style of assessments; are characterized by a lack of teacher support; allow behavioral problems in the classroom; and function through different communication styles than the native Caribbean science classroom environment. This study implies science educators should be sensitive to the sociocultural nuances of Caribbeans, as well as to all other students. Educators should also understand and value students' individual backgrounds, cultural patterns, and specific influences which impinge students in science and may result in underachievement. In addition, educators should not only discuss issues of under-representation in science but also they should begin to initiate the implementation of strategies addressed in this study in order to bring awareness and resolution to these pressing issues.

Secondary ion mass spectrometry: The application in the analysis of atmospheric particulate matter

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

Huang, Di; Hua, Xin; Xiu, Guang-Li

Currently, considerable attention has been paid to atmospheric particulate matter (PM) investigation due to its importance in human health and global climate change. Surface characterization of PM is important since the chemical heterogeneity between the surface and bulk may vary its impact on the environment and human being. Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a surface technique with high surface sensitivity, capable of high spatial chemical imaging and depth profiling. Recent research shows that SIMS holds great potential in analyzing both surface and bulk chemical information of PM. In this review, we presented the working principal of SIMS in PMmore » characterization, summarized recent applications in PM analysis from different sources, discussed its advantages and limitations, and proposed the future development of this technique with a perspective in environmental sciences.« less

Nanoarchitectonics of molecular aggregates: science and technology.

PubMed

Ramanathan, Muruganathan; Hong, Kunlun; Ji, Qingmin; Yonamine, Yusuke; Hill, Jonathan P; Ariga, Katsuhiko

2014-01-01

The field of making, studying and using molecular aggregates, in which the individual molecules (monomers) are arranged in a regular fashion, has come a long way. Taking control over the aggregation of small molecules and polymers in bulk, on surfaces and at interfaces pose a considerable challenge for their utilization in modern high tech applications. In this review, we provide a detailed insight into recent trends in molecular aggregates from the perspectives of nanoarchitectonics.

Nanoarchitectonics of Molecular Aggregates: Science and Technology

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

Ramanathan, Nathan Muruganathan; Hong, Kunlun; Ji, Dr. Qingmin

2014-01-01

The field of making, studying and using molecular aggregates, in which the individual molecules (monomers) are arranged in a regular fashion, has come a long way. Taking control over the aggregation of small molecules and polymers in bulk, on surfaces and at interfaces pose a considerable challenge for their utilization in modern high tech applications. In this review we provide a detailed insight into recent trends in molecular aggregates from the perspectives of nanoarchitectonics.

Soil Science Education: Philosophy and Perspectives. SSSA Special Publication Number 37.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baveye, Philippe, Ed.; And Others

Soil science provides the educational framework to integrate components of earth science systems, to understand the causes and consequences of spatial variability, and view dynamic processes impacting ecosystems in a holistic perspective. This book, a special publication of the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA), identifies and analyzes…

Digital Archive Issues from the Perspective of an Earth Science Data Producer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Barkstrom, Bruce R.

2004-01-01

Contents include the following: Introduction. A Producer Perspective on Earth Science Data. Data Producers as Members of a Scientific Community. Some Unique Characteristics of Scientific Data. Spatial and Temporal Sampling for Earth (or Space) Science Data. The Influence of the Data Production System Architecture. The Spatial and Temporal Structures Underlying Earth Science Data. Earth Science Data File (or Relation) Schemas. Data Producer Configuration Management Complexities. The Topology of Earth Science Data Inventories. Some Thoughts on the User Perspective. Science Data User Communities. Spatial and Temporal Structure Needs of Different Users. User Spatial Objects. Data Search Services. Inventory Search. Parameter (Keyword) Search. Metadata Searches. Documentation Search. Secondary Index Search. Print Technology and Hypertext. Inter-Data Collection Configuration Management Issues. An Archive View. Producer Data Ingest and Production. User Data Searching and Distribution. Subsetting and Supersetting. Semantic Requirements for Data Interchange. Tentative Conclusions. An Object Oriented View of Archive Information Evolution. Scientific Data Archival Issues. A Perspective on the Future of Digital Archives for Scientific Data. References Index for this paper.

Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives.

PubMed

Murray, Susan F; Bisht, Ramila; Baru, Rama; Pitchforth, Emma

2012-08-31

The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal 'Globalization and Health' over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on 'Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives' is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health.

History of Science Content Analysis of Chinese Science Textbooks from the Perspective of Acculturation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ma, Yongjun; Wan, Yanlan

2017-01-01

Based on previous international studies, a content analysis scheme has been designed and used from the perspective of culture to study the history of science (HOS) in science textbooks. Nineteen sets of Chinese science textbooks have been analyzed. It has been found that there are noticeable changes in the quantity, content, layout, presentation,…

To appreciate variation between scientists: A perspective for seeing science's vitality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, E. David

2002-05-01

At the heart of theoretical and practical ideas about science education is an image of scientific work. This image draws attention to particular features of scientific work, which then guides scholarship and pedagogy in science education. In the field of science education, much discussion in this vein focuses on the question, What is the nature of science? Most images of science found in education, psychology, and philosophy emerge from conceptual and methodological perspectives that emphasize norms, conventions, and broad trends. Some groups are motivated to distinguish science from other activities while some groups work in the opposite direction and blur the lines between science and others ways of knowing. Underlying both perspectives is an implicit focus on general qualities common to groups or subgroups (e.g. believing that ideas are subject to change, explanations demand evidence, science is a complex social activities, etc.). I propose that the vital qualities of science are best illuminated by just the opposite process: by appreciating the uncommon, rather than common, features. By attending to individual variation, we are more likely to understand what makes science a creative, motivating, and deeply personal enterprise. In addition, appreciating these variations reveals judgment, creativity, adaptation - the hallmark of scientific work. Implications of this perspective for science education are discussed.

New concepts of science and medicine in science and technology studies and their relevance to science education.

PubMed

Wang, Hsiu-Yun; Stocker, Joel F; Fu, Daiwie

2012-02-01

Science education often adopts a narrow view of science that assumes the lay public is ignorant, which seemingly justifies a science education limited to a promotional narrative of progress in the form of scientific knowledge void of meaningful social context. We propose that to prepare students as future concerned citizens of a technoscientific society, science education should be informed by science, technology, and society (STS) perspectives. An STS-informed science education, in our view, will include the following curricular elements: science controversy education, gender issues, historical perspective, and a move away from a Eurocentric view by looking into the distinctive patterns of other regional (in this case of Taiwan, East Asian) approaches to science, technology, and medicine. This article outlines the significance of some major STS studies as a means of illustrating the ways in which STS perspectives can, if incorporated into science education, enhance our understanding of science and technology and their relationships with society. Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Developing Teacher Subject Knowledge through Historical and Philosophical Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oversby, John

2009-01-01

The Relevance of Science Education project (ROSE, 2009 and 2004) has indicated a lack of motivation towards schools science. Unfortunately, the questionnaire ROSE used did not include questions on History and Philosophy of Science (HPS). The History and Philosophy in Science Teaching (HIPST) project is dedicated to inserting that perspective into…

Science Education Reform in Confucian Learning Cultures: Teachers' Perspectives on Policy and Practice in Taiwan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Huang, Ying-Syuan; Asghar, Anila

2018-01-01

This empirical study investigates secondary science teachers' perspectives on science education reform in Taiwan and reflects how these teachers have been negotiating constructivist and learner-centered pedagogical approaches in contemporary science education. It also explores the challenges that teachers encounter while shifting their pedagogical…

Revisiting Virtual Field Trips: Perspectives of College Science Instructors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lei, Simon A.

2015-01-01

Field trips are an important component of upper undergraduate and graduate-level science courses, especially in the fields of biology, geoscience, and environmental science. Field trips can provide a new perspective to a course's content and quality. Science field trips can facilitate active student learning, yet often can be constrained by time,…

History, Philosophy, and Science in a Social Perspective: A Pedagogical Project

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guerra, Andreia; Braga, Marco; Reis, Jose Claudio

2013-01-01

Various studies have promoted instruction in the history and philosophy of science (HPS) in science classes, but the best way of putting this perspective into practice remains undetermined. To contribute to this issue, we developed a pedagogical project in some high schools in Brazil that aimed to present science content using an…

Perspectives on bay-delta science and policy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Healey, Michael; Dettinger, Michael; Norgaard, Richard

2016-01-01

The State of Bay–Delta Science 2008 highlighted seven emerging perspectives on science and management of the Delta. These perspectives had important effects on policy and legislation concerning management of the Delta ecosystem and water exports. From the collection of papers that make up the State of Bay–Delta Science 2016, we derive another seven perspectives that augment those published in 2008. The new perspectives address nutrient and contaminant concentrations in Delta waters, the failure of the Delta food web to support native species, the role of multiple stressors in driving species toward extinction, and the emerging importance of extreme events in driving change in the ecosystem and the water supply. The scientific advances that underpin these new perspectives were made possible by new measurement and analytic tools. We briefly discuss some of these, including miniaturized acoustic fish tags, sensors for monitoring of water quality, analytic techniques for disaggregating complex contaminant mixtures, remote sensing to assess levee vulnerability, and multidimensional hydrodynamic modeling. Despite these new tools and scientific insights, species conservation objectives for the Delta are not being met. We believe that this lack of progress stems in part from the fact that science and policy do not incorporate sufficiently long-term perspectives. Looking forward half a century was central to the Delta Visioning process, but science and policy have not embraced this conceptual breadth. We are also concerned that protection and enhancement of the unique cultural, recreational, natural resource, and agricultural values of the Delta as an evolving place, as required by the Delta Reform Act, has received no critical study and analysis. Adopting wider and longer science and policy perspectives immediately encourages recognition of the need for evaluation, analysis, and public discourse on novel conservation approaches. These longer and wider perspectives also encourage more attention to the opportunities provided by heavily invaded ecosystems. It is past time to turn scientific and policy attention to these issues.

Executive Support Systems: An Innovation Decision Perspective

DTIC Science & Technology

1990-01-01

of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science Department of Management Science and Information Systems 1990 0 4 28 071 This thesis for the...Master of Science degree by Vern Edwin Hasenstein has been approved for the Department of Management Science and -formation Systems by James C...Dist Speolal Hasenstein, Vern Edwin (M.S., Management Science and Information Systems) Executive Support Systems: An Innovation-decision Perspective

Perspectives on Transportation. Teacher's Guide. Preparing for Tomorrow's World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iozzi, Louis A.; And Others

"Perspectives on Transportation" is one of the "Preparing for Tomorrow's World" (PTW) program modules. PTW is an interdisciplinary, future-oriented program which incorporates information from the sciences and social sciences and addresses societal concerns which interface science/technology/society. The program promotes…

Pretest predictions of surface strain and fluid pressures in mercury targets undergoing thermal shock

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

Taleyarkhan, R.P.; Kim, S.H.; Haines, J.

The authors provide a perspective overview of pretest modeling and analysis work related to thermal shock effects in spallation neutron source targets that were designed for conducting thermal shock experiments at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE). Data to be derived are to be used for benchmarking computational tools as well as to assess the efficacy of optical gauges for monitoring dynamic fluid pressures and phenomena such as the onset of cavitation.

A Global Perspective: NASA's Prediction of Worldwide Energy Resources (POWER) Project

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhang, Taiping; Stackhouse, Paul W., Jr.; Chandler, William S.; Hoell, James M.; Westberg, David; Whitlock, Charles H.

2007-01-01

The Prediction of the Worldwide Energy Resources (POWER) Project, initiated under the NASA Science Mission Directorate Applied Science Energy Management Program, synthesizes and analyzes data on a global scale that are invaluable to the renewable energy industries, especially to the solar and wind energy sectors. The POWER project derives its data primarily from NASA's World Climate Research Programme (WCRP)/Global Energy and Water cycle Experiment (GEWEX) Surface Radiation Budget (SRB) project (Version 2.9) and the Global Modeling and Assimilation Office (GMAO) Goddard Earth Observing System (GEOS) assimilation model (Version 4). The latest development of the NASA POWER Project and its plans for the future are presented in this paper.

Fieldwork and social science research ethics.

PubMed

Contractor, Qudsiya

2008-01-01

Fieldwork as a part of social science research brings the researcher closest to the subject of research. It is a dynamic process where there is an exchange between the researcher, participants, stakeholders, gatekeepers, the community and the larger sociopolitical context in which the research problem is located. Ethical dilemmas that surface during fieldwork often pose a unique challenge to the researcher. This paper is based on field experiences during an action research study conducted with a human rights perspective. It discusses the role conflict that researchers face during fieldwork in a situation of humanitarian crisis. It raises issues pertaining to the need to extend the ethical decision-making paradigm to address ethical dilemmas arising during the course of fieldwork.

The Status of Physics 12 in BC: Reflections from UBC Science Teacher Candidates.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nashon, Samson Madera

As part of attempts to find out why few high school science students take Physics 12, this case study sought University of British Columbia (UBC) science teacher educators' perspectives on the topic. A survey method employing questionnaires and interviews as part of the study was used to elicit science teacher candidates' perspectives. Forty-five…

Science Education and Religion in the Post-Darwin Era: An Historical Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prince, Tiffany

2009-01-01

This article is part of the author's current research into science teachers' perspectives on the theory of evolution and its teaching in the classroom. Anti-evolutionary views have recently become very prominent in the context of science education, with almost one third of science teachers in the United Kingdom agreeing that creationism should be…

Pathways in Learning to Teach Elementary Science: Navigating Contexts, Roles, Affordances and Constraints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smith, Deborah C.; Jang, Shinho

2011-12-01

This case study of a fifth-year elementary intern's pathway in learning to teach science focused on her science methods course, placement science teaching, and reflections as a first-year teacher. We studied the sociocultural contexts within which the intern learned, their affordances and constraints, and participants' perspectives on their roles and responsibilities, and her learning. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with all participants. Audiotapes of the science methods class, videotapes of her science teaching, and field notes were collected. Data were transcribed and searched for affordances or constraints within contexts, perspectives on roles and responsibilities, and how views of her progress changed. Findings show the intern's substantial progress, the ways in which affordances sometimes became constraints, and participants' sometimes contradictory perspectives.

A conceptual framework for understanding the perspectives on the causes of the science-practice gap in ecology and conservation.

PubMed

Bertuol-Garcia, Diana; Morsello, Carla; N El-Hani, Charbel; Pardini, Renata

2018-05-01

Applying scientific knowledge to confront societal challenges is a difficult task, an issue known as the science-practice gap. In Ecology and Conservation, scientific evidence has been seldom used directly to support decision-making, despite calls for an increasing role of ecological science in developing solutions for a sustainable future. To date, multiple causes of the science-practice gap and diverse approaches to link science and practice in Ecology and Conservation have been proposed. To foster a transparent debate and broaden our understanding of the difficulties of using scientific knowledge, we reviewed the perceived causes of the science-practice gap, aiming to: (i) identify the perspectives of ecologists and conservation scientists on this problem, (ii) evaluate the predominance of these perspectives over time and across journals, and (iii) assess them in light of disciplines studying the role of science in decision-making. We based our review on 1563 sentences describing causes of the science-practice gap extracted from 122 articles and on discussions with eight scientists on how to classify these sentences. The resulting process-based framework describes three distinct perspectives on the relevant processes, knowledge and actors in the science-practice interface. The most common perspective assumes only scientific knowledge should support practice, perceiving a one-way knowledge flow from science to practice and recognizing flaws in knowledge generation, communication, and/or use. The second assumes that both scientists and decision-makers should contribute to support practice, perceiving a two-way knowledge flow between science and practice through joint knowledge-production/integration processes, which, for several reasons, are perceived to occur infrequently. The last perspective was very rare, and assumes scientists should put their results into practice, but they rarely do. Some causes (e.g. cultural differences between scientists and decision-makers) are shared with other disciplines, while others seem specific to Ecology and Conservation (e.g. inadequate research scales). All identified causes require one of three general types of solutions, depending on whether the causal factor can (e.g. inadequate research questions) or cannot (e.g. scientific uncertainty) be changed, or if misconceptions (e.g. undervaluing abstract knowledge) should be solved. The unchanged predominance of the one-way perspective over time may be associated with the prestige of evidence-based conservation and suggests that debates in Ecology and Conservation lag behind trends in other disciplines towards bidirectional views ascribing larger roles to decision-makers. In turn, the two-way perspective seems primarily restricted to research traditions historically isolated from mainstream conservation biology. All perspectives represented superficial views of decision-making by not accounting for limits to human rationality, complexity of decision-making contexts, fuzzy science-practice boundaries, ambiguity brought about by science, and different types of knowledge use. However, joint knowledge-production processes from the two-way perspective can potentially allow for democratic decision-making processes, explicit discussions of values and multiple types of science use. To broaden our understanding of the interface and foster productive science-practice linkages, we argue for dialogue among different research traditions within Ecology and Conservation, joint knowledge-production processes between scientists and decision-makers and interdisciplinarity across Ecology, Conservation and Political Science in both research and education. © 2017 Cambridge Philosophical Society.

Constructing a philosophy of science of cognitive science.

PubMed

Bechtel, William

2009-07-01

Philosophy of science is positioned to make distinctive contributions to cognitive science by providing perspective on its conceptual foundations and by advancing normative recommendations. The philosophy of science I embrace is naturalistic in that it is grounded in the study of actual science. Focusing on explanation, I describe the recent development of a mechanistic philosophy of science from which I draw three normative consequences for cognitive science. First, insofar as cognitive mechanisms are information-processing mechanisms, cognitive science needs an account of how the representations invoked in cognitive mechanisms carry information about contents, and I suggest that control theory offers the needed perspective on the relation of representations to contents. Second, I argue that cognitive science requires, but is still in search of, a catalog of cognitive operations that researchers can draw upon in explaining cognitive mechanisms. Last, I provide a new perspective on the relation of cognitive science to brain sciences, one which embraces both reductive research on neural components that figure in cognitive mechanisms and a concern with recomposing higher-level mechanisms from their components and situating them in their environments. Copyright © 2009 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Understanding the Language Demands on Science Students from an Integrated Science and Language Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Seah, Lay Hoon; Clarke, David John; Hart, Christina Eugene

2014-01-01

This case study of a science lesson, on the topic thermal expansion, examines the language demands on students from an integrated science and language perspective. The data were generated during a sequence of 9 lessons on the topic of "States of Matter" in a Grade 7 classroom (12-13 years old students). We identify the language demands…

Using Our Heads and HARTSS*: Developing Perspective-Taking Skills for Socioscientific Reasoning (*Humanities, ARTS, and Social Sciences)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kahn, Sami; Zeidler, Dana L.

2016-01-01

Functional scientific literacy demands an informed citizenry capable of negotiating controversial socioscientific issues (SSI). Perspective taking is critical to SSI implementation as it enables understanding of the diverse cognitive and emotional perspectives of others. Science teacher educators must therefore facilitate teachers' promotion of…

A Motivational Science Perspective on the Role of Student Motivation in Learning and Teaching Contexts.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pintrich, Paul R.

2003-01-01

Develops a motivational science perspective on student motivation in learning and teaching contexts that highlights 3 general themes for motivational research. The 3 themes include the importance of a general scientific approach for research on student motivation, the utility of multidisciplinary perspectives, and the importance of use-inspired…

A Changing Society: New Perspectives for Science Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hurd, Paul DeHart

Perspectives on the reconstruction of science education in terms of current economic and social conditions and the foreseeable future are presented in this publication. An acceptable science curriculum is described as one that has cultural as well as scientific and technological validity. Elements that have been identified as essential for the…

Promotion of scientific literacy: Bangladeshi teachers' perspectives and practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sarkar, Mahbub; Corrigan, Deborah

2014-05-01

Background: In Bangladesh, a common science curriculum caters for all students at the junior secondary level. Since this curriculum is for all students, its aims are both to build a strong foundation in science while still providing students with the opportunities to use science in everyday life - an aim consistent with the notion of scientific literacy. Purpose: This paper reports Bangladeshi science teachers' perspectives and practices in regard to the promotion of scientific literacy. Sample: Six science teachers representing a range of geographical locations, school types with different class sizes, lengths of teaching experience and educational qualifications. Design and method: This study employed a case study approach. The six teachers and their associated science classes (including students) were considered as six cases. Data were gathered through observing the teachers' science lessons, interviewing them twice - once before and once after the lesson observation, and interviewing their students in focus groups. Results: This study reveals that participating teachers held a range of perspectives on scientific literacy, including some naïve perspectives. In addition, their perspectives were often not seen to be realised in the classroom as for teachers the emphasis of learning science was more traditional in nature. Many of their teaching practices promoted a culture of academic science that resulted in students' difficulty in finding connections between the science they study in school and their everyday lives. This research also identified the tension which teachers encountered between their religious values and science values while they were teaching science in a culture with a religious tradition. Conclusions: The professional development practice for science teachers in Bangladesh with its emphasis on developing science content knowledge may limit the scope for promoting the concepts of scientific literacy. Opportunities for developing pedagogic knowledge is also limited and consequently impacts on teachers' ability to develop the concepts of scientific literacy and learn how to teach for its promotion.

Desert Rats 2011 Mission Simulation: Effects of Microgravity Operational Modes on Fields Geology Capabilities

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bleacher, Jacob E.; Hurtado, J. M., Jr.; Meyer, J. A.

2012-01-01

Desert Research and Technology Studies (DRATS) is a multi-year series of NASA tests that deploy planetary surface hardware and exercise mission and science operations in difficult conditions to advance human and robotic exploration capabilities. DRATS 2011 (Aug. 30-Sept. 9, 2011) tested strategies for human exploration of microgravity targets such as near-Earth asteroids (NEAs). Here we report the crew perspective on the impact of simulated microgravity operations on our capability to conduct field geology.

Big Data in Science and Healthcare: A Review of Recent Literature and Perspectives

PubMed Central

Miron-Shatz, T.; Lau, A. Y. S.; Paton, C.

2014-01-01

Summary Objectives As technology continues to evolve and rise in various industries, such as healthcare, science, education, and gaming, a sophisticated concept known as Big Data is surfacing. The concept of analytics aims to understand data. We set out to portray and discuss perspectives of the evolving use of Big Data in science and healthcare and, to examine some of the opportunities and challenges. Methods A literature review was conducted to highlight the implications associated with the use of Big Data in scientific research and healthcare innovations, both on a large and small scale. Results Scientists and health-care providers may learn from one another when it comes to understanding the value of Big Data and analytics. Small data, derived by patients and consumers, also requires analytics to become actionable. Connectivism provides a framework for the use of Big Data and analytics in the areas of science and healthcare. This theory assists individuals to recognize and synthesize how human connections are driving the increase in data. Despite the volume and velocity of Big Data, it is truly about technology connecting humans and assisting them to construct knowledge in new ways. Concluding Thoughts The concept of Big Data and associated analytics are to be taken seriously when approaching the use of vast volumes of both structured and unstructured data in science and health-care. Future exploration of issues surrounding data privacy, confidentiality, and education are needed. A greater focus on data from social media, the quantified self-movement, and the application of analytics to “small data” would also be useful. PMID:25123717

Big Data in Science and Healthcare: A Review of Recent Literature and Perspectives. Contribution of the IMIA Social Media Working Group.

PubMed

Hansen, M M; Miron-Shatz, T; Lau, A Y S; Paton, C

2014-08-15

As technology continues to evolve and rise in various industries, such as healthcare, science, education, and gaming, a sophisticated concept known as Big Data is surfacing. The concept of analytics aims to understand data. We set out to portray and discuss perspectives of the evolving use of Big Data in science and healthcare and, to examine some of the opportunities and challenges. A literature review was conducted to highlight the implications associated with the use of Big Data in scientific research and healthcare innovations, both on a large and small scale. Scientists and health-care providers may learn from one another when it comes to understanding the value of Big Data and analytics. Small data, derived by patients and consumers, also requires analytics to become actionable. Connectivism provides a framework for the use of Big Data and analytics in the areas of science and healthcare. This theory assists individuals to recognize and synthesize how human connections are driving the increase in data. Despite the volume and velocity of Big Data, it is truly about technology connecting humans and assisting them to construct knowledge in new ways. Concluding Thoughts: The concept of Big Data and associated analytics are to be taken seriously when approaching the use of vast volumes of both structured and unstructured data in science and health-care. Future exploration of issues surrounding data privacy, confidentiality, and education are needed. A greater focus on data from social media, the quantified self-movement, and the application of analytics to "small data" would also be useful.

How can philosophy be a true cognitive science discipline?

PubMed

Bechtel, William

2010-07-01

Although philosophy has been only a minor contributor to cognitive science to date, this paper describes two projects in naturalistic philosophy of mind and one in naturalistic philosophy of science that have been pursued during the past 30 years and that can make theoretical and methodological contributions to cognitive science. First, stances on the mind-body problem (identity theory, functionalism, and heuristic identity theory) are relevant to cognitive science as it negotiates its relation to neuroscience and cognitive neuroscience. Second, analyses of mental representations address both their vehicles and their contents; new approaches to characterizing how representations have content are particularly relevant to understanding the relation of cognitive agents to their environments. Third, the recently formulated accounts of mechanistic explanation in philosophy of science both provide perspective on the explanatory project of cognitive science and may offer normative guidance to cognitive science (e.g., by providing perspective on how multiple disciplinary perspectives can be integrated in understanding a given mechanism). Copyright © 2010 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

History, Philosophy, and Science in a Social Perspective: A Pedagogical Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guerra, Andreia; Braga, Marco; Reis, José Claudio

2013-06-01

Various studies have promoted instruction in the history and philosophy of science (HPS) in science classes, but the best way of putting this perspective into practice remains undetermined. To contribute to this issue, we developed a pedagogical project in some high schools in Brazil that aimed to present science content using an historical-philosophical approach focusing on the HPS from a social perspective. The content was developed broadly, highlighting the dialogues between science and the cultures in which scientific knowledge was accumulated. The results of the first stage of project implementation show that some strategies efficiently encouraged student discussion about science using an historical-philosophical approach. One successful strategy was the use of artistic material, such as movies and plays. The creative language and images in these elements allowed teachers to broaden historical-philosophical discussions without compromising science content. This project shows that a social approach to the HPS stimulates interdisciplinary discussions in science classes, enabling students to reflect on the nature of science.

EDITORIAL: Three decades of scanning tunnelling microscopy that changed the course of surface science Three decades of scanning tunnelling microscopy that changed the course of surface science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ramachandra Rao, M. S.; Margaritondo, Giorgio

2011-11-01

Three decades ago, with a tiny tip of platinum, the scientific world saw the real space imaging of single atoms with unprecedented spatial resolution. This signalled the birth of one of the most versatile surface probes, based on the physics of quantum mechanical tunnelling: the scanning tunnelling microscope (STM). Invented in 1981 by Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer of IBM, Zurich, it led to their award of the 1986 Nobel Prize. Atoms, once speculated to be abstract entities used by theoreticians for mere calculations, can be seen to exist for real with the nano-eye of an STM tip that also gives real-space images of molecules and adsorbed complexes on surfaces. From a very fundamental perspective, the STM changed the course of surface science and engineering. STM also emerged as a powerful tool to study various fundamental phenomena relevant to the properties of surfaces in technological applications such as tribology, medical implants, catalysis, sensors and biology—besides elucidating the importance of local bonding geometries and defects, non-periodic structures and the co-existence of nano-scale phases. Atom-level probing, once considered a dream, has seen the light with the evolution of STM. An important off-shoot of STM was the atomic force microscope (AFM) for surface mapping of insulating samples. Then followed the development of a flurry of techniques under the general name of scanning probe microscopy (SPM). These techniques (STM, AFM, MFM, PFM etc) designed for atomic-scale-resolution imaging and spectroscopy, have led to brand new developments in surface analysis. All of these novel methods enabled researchers in recent years to image and analyse complex surfaces on microscopic and nanoscopic scales. All of them utilize a small probe for sensing the surface. The invention of AFM by Gerd Binnig, Calvin Quate and Christopher Gerber opened up new opportunities for characterization of a variety of materials, and various industrial applications could be envisaged. AFM observations of thin-film surfaces give us a picture of surface topography and morphology and any visible defects. The growing importance of ultra-thin films for magnetic recording in hard disk drive systems requires an in-depth understanding of the fundamental mechanisms occurring during growth. This special issue of Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics covers all of the different aspects of SPM that illustrate the achievements of this methodology: nanoscale imaging and mapping (Chiang, and Douillard and Charra), piezoresponse force microscopy (Soergel) and STM engineering (Okuyama and Hamada, and Huang et al). Chiang takes the reader on a journey along the STM imaging of atoms and molecules on surfaces. Jesse and Kalinin explore the band excitations that occur during the corresponding processes. Jia et al propose STM and molecular beam epitaxy as a winning experimental combination at the interface of science and technology. Douillard and Charra describe the high-resolution mapping of plasmonic modes using photoemission and scanning tunnelling microscopy. Cricenti et al demonstrate the importance of SPM in material science and biology. Wiebe et al have probed atomic scale magnetism, revealed by spin polarized scanning tunnelling microscopy. In addition, Simon et al present Fourier transform scanning tunnelling spectroscopy and the possibility to obtain constant energy maps and band dispersion using local measurements. Lackinger and Heckl give a perspective of the use of STM to study covalent intermolecular coupling reactions on surfaces. Okuyama and Hamada investigated hydrogen bond imaging and engineering with STM. Soergel describes the study of substrate-dependent self-assembled CuPc molecules using piezo force microscope (PFM). We are very grateful to the authors and reviewers for the papers in this special issue of Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics. Their contributions have provided a comprehensive picture of the evolution, status and potential of scanning probe microscopy, conveying to the readers the full excitement of this forefront domain of physics.

Let the social sciences evolve.

PubMed

Smaldino, Paul E; Waring, Timothy M

2014-08-01

We agree that evolutionary perspectives may help us organize many divergent realms of the science of human behavior. Nevertheless, an imperative to unite all social science under an evolutionary framework risks turning off researchers who have their own theoretical perspectives that can be informed by evolutionary theory without being exclusively defined by it. We propose a few considerations for scholars interested in joining the evolutionary and social sciences.

Educational attainment and life expectancy: a perspective from the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research.

PubMed

Spittel, Michael L; Riley, William T; Kaplan, Robert M

2015-02-01

The NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) furthers the mission of the NIH by stimulating behavioral and social sciences research throughout NIH and integrating these areas of research more fully into the NIH health research enterprise, thereby improving our understanding, treatment, and prevention of disease. OBSSR accomplishes this mission through several strategic priorities: (1) supporting the next generation of basic behavioral and social sciences research, (2) facilitating interdisciplinary research, (3) promoting a multi-level systems perspective of health and behavior, and (4) encouraging a problem-focused perspective on population health. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Multiple Perspectives of Conceptual Change in Science and the Challenges Ahead

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Treagust, David F.; Duit, Reinders

2009-01-01

Conceptual change views of teaching and learning processes in science, and also in various other content domains, have played a significant role in research on teaching and learning as well as in instructional design since the late 1970s. Conceptual change can be interpreted from different individual perspectives or from multiple perspectives. In…

Venus - 3D Perspective View of Sapas Mons

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1992-01-01

Sapas Mons is displayed in the center of this computer-generated three-dimensional perspective view of the surface of Venus. The viewpoint is located 527 kilometers (327 miles) northwest of Sapas Mons at an elevation of 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) above the terrain. Lava flows extend for hundreds of kilometers across the fractured plains shown in the foreground to the base of Sapas Mons. The view is to the southeast with Sapas Mons appearing at the center with Maat Mons located in the background on the horizon. Sapas Mons, a volcano 400 kilometers (248 miles) across and 1.5 kilometers (0.9 mile) high is located at approximately 8 degrees north latitude, 188 degrees east longitude, on the western edge of Atla Regio. Its peak sits at an elevation of 4.5 kilometers (2.8 miles) above the planet's mean elevation. Sapas Mons is named for a Phoenician goddess. The vertical scale in this perspective has been exaggerated 10 times. Rays cast in a computer intersect the surface to create a three-dimensional perspective view. Simulated color and a digital elevation map developed by the U.S. Geological Survey are used to enhance small-scale structure. The simulated hues are based on color images recorded by the Soviet Venera 13 and 14 spacecraft. The image was produced by the Solar System Visualization project and the Magellan Science team at the JPL Multimission Image Processing Laboratory and is a single frame from a video released at the April 22, 1992 news conference.

Visitor empowerment and the authority of science: Exploring institutionalized tensions in a science center

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Loomis, Molly

This research explored the relationships among societal, organizational, and visitor assumptions about learning in a science center. The study combined a sociocultural theory of learning with a constructivist theory of organizations to examine empirical links among the history of the Exploratorium (founded in 1969 and located in San Francisco, California), its organizational practices, and family activity at its exhibits. The study focused on three perspectives on science learning in a science center: (1) the societal perspective, which traced assumptions about science learning to the history of science centers; (2) the organizational perspective, which documented the ways that assumptions about science learning were manifested in historic museum exhibits; and (3) the family perspective, which documented the assumptions about science learning that characterized family activity at historic exhibits. All three perspectives uncovered a tension between the goals of supporting public empowerment on the one hand and preserving scientific authority on the other. Findings revealed this tension to be grounded in the social context of the organization's development, where ideas about promoting democracy and preserving the authority of science intersected. The tension was manifested in museum exhibits, which had as their task addressing the dual purposes of supporting all visitors, while also supporting committed visitors. The tension was also evident in the activity of families, who echoed sentiments about potential for their own empowerment but deferred to scientific authority. The study draws on critiques of a hidden curriculum in schools in order to explore the relationship between empowerment and authority in science centers, specifically as they are conveyed in the explicit and underlying missions of the Exploratorium. Findings suggest the need for science centers to engage in ongoing critical reflection and also lend empirical justification to the need for science centers to think in new and critical ways about whom the serve, as well as how and why they serve their audiences.

Plasmonic Films Can Easily Be Better: Rules and Recipes

PubMed Central

2015-01-01

High-quality materials are critical for advances in plasmonics, especially as researchers now investigate quantum effects at the limit of single surface plasmons or exploit ultraviolet- or CMOS-compatible metals such as aluminum or copper. Unfortunately, due to inexperience with deposition methods, many plasmonics researchers deposit metals under the wrong conditions, severely limiting performance unnecessarily. This is then compounded as others follow their published procedures. In this perspective, we describe simple rules collected from the surface-science literature that allow high-quality plasmonic films of aluminum, copper, gold, and silver to be easily deposited with commonly available equipment (a thermal evaporator). Recipes are also provided so that films with optimal optical properties can be routinely obtained. PMID:25950012

Socioscience and Ethics in Science Classrooms: Teacher Perspectives and Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sadler, Troy D.; Amirshokoohi, Aidin; Kazempour, Mahsa; Allspaw, Kathleen M.

2006-01-01

This study explored teacher perspectives on the use of socioscientific issues (SSI) and on dealing with ethics in the context of science instruction. Twenty-two middle and high school science teachers from three US states participated in semi-structured interviews, and researchers employed inductive analyses to explore emergent patterns relative…

Crossing Borders in Literacy and Science Instruction: Perspectives on Theory and Practice

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Saul, E. Wendy

2004-01-01

This collection brings together the best minds in education to explore the literacy-science connection and to reduce the lack of understanding between the science and humanities communities. The articles cover a range of topics and perspectives, from quasitheoretical pieces and literature reviews to case studies and evaluations of particular…

Leon Cooper's Perspective on Teaching Science: An Interview Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niaz, Mansoor; Klassen, Stephen; McMillan, Barbara; Metz, Don

2010-01-01

The authors of this paper portray the perspective of Professor Leon Cooper, a theoretical physicist, Nobel laureate, active researcher, and physics textbook author, on teaching science and on the nature of science (NOS). The views presented emerged from an interview prepared by the authors and responded to in writing by Professor Cooper. Based on…

Improving Engagement in Science: A Biosocial System Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanrahan, Mary U.

The goal of my multi-study research program has been to learn how to engage all students in learning science. Most learning theories applied to science pedagogy take either a psychological or a sociocultural perspective and hence ignore either sociocultural or motivational factors when considering classroom learning. Based on my own research…

Science Teaching Beliefs and Reported Approaches within a Research University: Perspectives from Faculty, Graduate Students, and Undergraduates

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marbach-Ad, Gili; Ziemer, Kathryn Schaefer; Orgler, Michal; Thompson, Katerina V.

2014-01-01

This study explores and compares the perspectives of three populations (faculty members, graduate students, and undergraduates) toward science teaching in the College of Chemical and Life Sciences at a research-intensive university. In particular, we investigate the role of faculty professional development in reforming undergraduate science…

On Teaching the Nature of Science: Perspectives and Resources

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Radloff, Jeffrey

2016-01-01

In this paper, I present a critical review of the recent book, "On Teaching the Nature of Science: Perspectives and Resources," written by Douglas Allchin (2013). This publication presents an in-depth examination of the nature of science construct, as well as instruction for educators about how to teach it effectively utilizing…

Exposure to science, perspectives on science and religion, and religious commitment in young adulthood.

PubMed

Uecker, Jeremy E; Longest, Kyle C

2017-07-01

Social scientists know very little about the consequences of exposure to scientific knowledge and holding different perspectives on science and religion for individuals' religious lives. Drawing on secularization and post-secular theories, we develop and test several hypotheses about the relationships among exposure to scientific knowledge, perspectives on religion and science, and religious commitment using panel data from the National Study of Youth and Religion. Our findings indicate that religious faith is strongest among young adults who: (1) accommodate scientific knowledge into their religious perspective, or (2) reject scientific knowledge that directly contradicts their religious beliefs about the origins of the world. Young adults are also more likely to have lower religious commitment when they view science and religion as independent institutions, lending support to secularization ideas about how social differentiation secularizes individuals. We further find that mere exposure to scientific knowledge, in terms of majoring in biology or acknowledging conflict between the teachings of religion and science, is usually not sufficient to undermine religious commitment. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Atomistic Modeling of Corrosion Events at the Interface between a Metal and Its Environment

DOE PAGES

Taylor, Christopher D.

2012-01-01

Atomistic simulation is a powerful tool for probing the structure and properties of materials and the nature of chemical reactions. Corrosion is a complex process that involves chemical reactions occurring at the interface between a material and its environment and is, therefore, highly suited to study by atomistic modeling techniques. In this paper, the complex nature of corrosion processes and mechanisms is briefly reviewed. Various atomistic methods for exploring corrosion mechanisms are then described, and recent applications in the literature surveyed. Several instances of the application of atomistic modeling to corrosion science are then reviewed in detail, including studies ofmore » the metal-water interface, the reaction of water on electrified metallic interfaces, the dissolution of metal atoms from metallic surfaces, and the role of competitive adsorption in controlling the chemical nature and structure of a metallic surface. Some perspectives are then given concerning the future of atomistic modeling in the field of corrosion science.« less

CTE Teachers' Perspectives on the Process of CTE and Science Content Integration: A Grounded Theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spindler, Matthew Kenneth

The integration of career and technical education (CTE) and academic curricular content that capitalizes on natural and inherent connections represents a challenge for CTE professionals. The research question that was used to guide the current study was: What are CTE teachers' perspectives of and experiences with the process of CTE and science content integration? And more specifically, to generate a grounded theory which explicates the process of CTE and science content integration from the perspective of CTE teachers. The CTE teachers expressed that the process of CTE and science content integration was a process of evolutionizing. From the perspective of the CTE teachers involved integrating CTE and science content resulted in their programs of study being adapted into something different than they were before the process of integration was begun. The CTE teachers revealed that the evolutions in their programs of study and themselves were associated with three other categories within the grounded theory: (a) connecting; (b) enacting; and (c) futuring. The process of CTE and science content integration represents a deep and complex episode for CTE teachers. The process of CTE and science content integration requires connecting to others, putting ideas into action, and an orienting towards the future.

Charge reversal at a planar boundary between two dielectrics.

PubMed

Wang, Zhi-Yong

2016-01-01

Despite the ubiquitous character and relevance of the electric double layer in the entire realm of interface and colloid science, very little is known of the effect that surface heterogeneity exerts on the underlying mechanisms of ion adsorption. Herein, computer simulations offer a perspective that, in sharp contrast to the homogeneously charged surface, discrete groups promote multivalent counterion binding, leading to charge reversal but possibly having not a sign change of the electrophoretic mobility. Counterintuitively, the introduction of dielectric images yields a significantly greater accumulation of counterions, which further facilitates the magnitude of charge reversal. The reported results are very sensitive to both the degree of ion hydration and the representation of surface charges. Our findings shed light on the mechanism for charge reversal over a broad range of coupling regimes operating the adsorption of counterions through surface group bridging attraction with their own images and provide opportunities for experimental studies and theoretical development.

Charge reversal at a planar boundary between two dielectrics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Zhi-Yong

2016-01-01

Despite the ubiquitous character and relevance of the electric double layer in the entire realm of interface and colloid science, very little is known of the effect that surface heterogeneity exerts on the underlying mechanisms of ion adsorption. Herein, computer simulations offer a perspective that, in sharp contrast to the homogeneously charged surface, discrete groups promote multivalent counterion binding, leading to charge reversal but possibly having not a sign change of the electrophoretic mobility. Counterintuitively, the introduction of dielectric images yields a significantly greater accumulation of counterions, which further facilitates the magnitude of charge reversal. The reported results are very sensitive to both the degree of ion hydration and the representation of surface charges. Our findings shed light on the mechanism for charge reversal over a broad range of coupling regimes operating the adsorption of counterions through surface group bridging attraction with their own images and provide opportunities for experimental studies and theoretical development.

New perspective of undeployed rover

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

This image features a different perspective of one of the first pictures taken by the Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) lander shortly after its touchdown at 10:07 AM Pacific Daylight Time on July 4. The image has been transformed to a perspective that would match that of an observer standing at the point the image was taken. Sojourner is seen in the foreground in its stowed position on a solar panel of the lander. Both ramps, the rear of which Sojourner would use on July 5 to safely descend to the Martian surface, were still undeployed when this image was taken. The double hills called 'Twin Peaks' are clearly visible in the background.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, developed and manages the Mars Pathfinder mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). The Imager for Mars Pathfinder (IMP) was developed by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory under contract to JPL. Peter Smith is the Principal Investigator.

Computer Science Education in French Secondary Schools: Historical and Didactical Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baron, Georges-Louis; Drot-Delange, Beatrice; Grandbastien, Monique; Tort, Françoise

2014-01-01

Computer science as a school subject in France is characterized by a succession of promising starts that have not yet been transformed into perennial solutions. The main goal of this article is to analyze this complex situation from a historical perspective, and describe the current rebirth of an optional Computer Science course in the last year…

Social Cultural and Situative Perspective of Studying Emotions in Teaching and Learning: Characteristics, Challenges and Opportunities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tan, Seng-Chee

2013-01-01

In this forum, I take a learning sciences perspective to examine the paper by Bellocchi, Ritchie, Tobin, Sandhu and Sandhu ("Cultural Studies of Science Education," doi:10.1007/s11422-013-9526-3, 2013) titled "Examining emotional climate of preservice science teacher education." I characterize their approach as a social…

Perspectives on the Origins of Life in Science Textbooks from a Christian Publisher: Implications for Teaching Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Santos Baptista, Geilsa Costa; da Silva Santos, Rodrigo; Cobern, William W.

2016-01-01

This paper presents the results of research regarding approaches to the origin of life featured in science textbooks produced by an Evangelical publisher. The research nature was qualitative with document analysis and an interpretive framework based on Epistemological Pluralism. Overall, the results indicate that there are four perspectives on the…

Proceedings of the National Technological Literacy Conference (11th, Arlington, VA, February 8-11, 1996).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cheek, Dennis W., Ed.; Cheek, Kim A., Ed.

The papers in this volume represent a sampling of the perspectives shared at the 1996 National Technological Literacy Conference. The papers are divided into two sections. Section 1, "STS [science, technology, and society]: Philosophical and Sociological Perspectives," includes: (1) "Relevant Science: STS-Oriented Science Courses for All Students"…

Workshop on Friction: Understanding and Addressing Students' Difficulties in Learning Science through a Hermeneutical Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ha, Sangwoo; Lee, Gyoungho; Kalman, Calvin S.

2013-01-01

Hermeneutics is useful in science and science education by emphasizing the process of understanding. The purpose of this study was to construct a workshop based upon hermeneutical principles and to interpret students' learning in the workshop through a hermeneutical perspective. When considering the history of Newtonian mechanics, it could be…

An Analysis of the Model and Enacted Curricula for a History of Science Course in a Nationwide Teacher Education Program

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nouri, Noushin

2017-01-01

The UTeach program, a national model for undergraduate teacher preparation, includes "Perspectives on Science and Mathematics," a class designed to share content about the History of Science (HOS) with preservice teachers. UTeach provides a model curriculum as a sample for instructors teaching "Perspectives." The purpose of…

Promoting Issues-Based STSE Perspectives in Science Teacher Education: Problems of Identity and Ideology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pedretti, Erminia G.; Bencze, Larry; Hewitt, Jim; Romkey, Lisa; Jivraj, Ashifa

2008-01-01

Although science, technology, society and environment (STSE) education has gained considerable force in the past few years, it has made fewer strides in practice. We suggest that "science" teacher identity plays a role in the adoption of STSE perspectives. Simply put, issues-based STSE education challenges traditional images of a science…

A Critique of Science Education as Sociopolitical Action from the Perspective of Liberal Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hadzigeorgiou, Yannis

2015-01-01

This paper outlines the rationale underpinning the conception of science education as sociopolitical action, and then presents a critique of such a conception from the perspective of liberal education. More specifically, the paper discusses the importance of the conception of science education as sociopolitical action (e.g., it can provide…

Science "Coeducation": Viewpoints from Gender, Race and Ethnic Perspectives. NARST Monograph, Number Seven.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baker, Dale R., Ed.; Scantlebury, Kathryn, Ed.

This document is a compilation of viewpoints on gender, race, and ethnic perspectives from scholars in the field as related to science education. Papers include: (1) "Where Feminist Research and Science Education Meet" (D. Baker and K. Scantlebury); (2) "Gender Equity is Still an Issue: Refocusing the Research" (C. Mason); (3) "Developmental…

Gender Differences in Graduate Students' Perspectives on the Culture of Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Maria M.

In this study, gender differences in graduate students' perspectives on the culture of science were examined in two graduate departments (biology and chemistry) at a large research university. Data from a survey questionnaire from 170 students and interviews with 32 of them indicated that the culture of science as experienced by the participants of this study was characterized by competition, a narrow focus, and a belief in objectivity. These perspectives were particularly common among the female students, who also perceived a role conflict between a successful career in science and having a family. The study shows that although women have greater access to careers in science, the culture of the scientific enterprise continues to be based on the masculine ideals of 17th-century England.

Understandings of Nature of Science and Multiple Perspective Evaluation of Science News by Non-science Majors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leung, Jessica Shuk Ching; Wong, Alice Siu Ling; Yung, Benny Hin Wai

2015-10-01

Understandings of nature of science (NOS) are a core component of scientific literacy, and a scientifically literate populace is expected to be able to critically evaluate science in the media. While evidence has remained inconclusive on whether better NOS understandings will lead to critical evaluation of science in the media, this study aimed at examining the correlation therein. Thirty-eight non-science majors, enrolled in a science course for non-specialists held in a local community college, evaluated three health news articles by rating the extent to which they agreed with the reported claims and providing as many justifications as possible. The majority of the participants were able to evaluate and justify their viewpoint from multiple perspectives. Students' evaluation was compared with their NOS conceptions, including the social and cultural embedded NOS, the tentative NOS, the peer review process and the community of practice. Results indicated that participants' understanding of the tentative NOS was significantly correlated with multiple perspective evaluation of science news reports of socioscientific nature (r = 0.434, p < 0.05). This moderate correlation suggested the association between understanding of the tentative NOS and multiple perspective evaluation of science in the media of socioscientific nature. However, the null result for other target NOS aspects in this study suggested a lack of evidence to assume that understanding the social dimensions of science would have significant influence on the evaluation of science in the media. Future research on identifying the reasons for why and why not NOS understandings are applied in the evaluation will move this field forward.

van Eijck and Roth's utilitarian science education: why the recalibration of science and traditional ecological knowledge invokes multiple perspectives to protect science education from being exclusive

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mueller, Michael P.; Tippins, Deborah J.

2010-12-01

This article is a philosophical analysis of van Eijck and Roth's (2007) claim that science and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) should be recalibrated because they are incommensurate, particular to the local contexts in which they are practical. In this view, science maintains an incommensurate status as if it is a "fundamental" basis for the relative comparison of other cultural knowledges, which reduces traditional knowledge to a status of in relation to the prioritized (higher)-status of natural sciences. van Eijck and Roth reject epistemological Truth as a way of thinking about sciences in science education. Rather they adopt a utilitarian perspective of cultural-historical activity theory to demonstrate when traditional knowledge is considered science and when it is not considered science, for the purposes of evaluating what should be included in U.S. science education curricula. There are several challenges for evaluating what should be included in science education when traditional knowledges and sciences are considered in light of a utilitarian analysis. Science as diverse, either practically local or theoretically abstract, is highly uncertain, which provides opportunities for multiple perspectives to enlarge and protect the natural sciences from exclusivity. In this response to van Eijck and Roth, we make the case for considering dialectical relationships between science and TEK in order to ensure cultural diversity in science education, as a paradigm. We also emphasize the need to (re)dissolve the hierarchies and dualisms that may emerge when science is elevated in status in comparison with other knowledges. We conclude with a modification to van Eijck and Roth's perspective by recommending a guiding principle of cultural diversity in science education as a way to make curriculum choices. We envision this principle can be applied when evaluating science curricula worldwide.

Perspectives of methods of laser monitoring of the atmosphere and sea surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pashayev, Arif; Tunaboylu, Bahadir; Usta, Metin; Sadixov, Ilham; Allahverdiyev, Kerim

2016-01-01

Laser monitoring (remote sensing) may be considered as the science of collecting and interpreting information about the atmosphere, earth and sea using sensors on earth, on platforms in our atmosphere (airplanes, balloons) or in space (satellites) without being in direct physical contact with them. Remote sensing by LIDARs (Light Identification Detection and Ranging) has wide applications as technique to probe the Earth's atmosphere, ocean and land surfaces. LIDARs are widely used to get knowledge of spatial and temporal variations in meteorological quantities (e.g. temperature, humidity, clouds and aerosol properties) and to monitor the changes in these quantities on different timescales. Subject of the present work is quite wide. It is rather difficult to perform analysis and to provide full knowledge about existing information. In the present work, in addition to the literature data, the information will be provided also about KA-09 aerosol LIDAR developed at the Marmara Research Centre of TÜBITAK (Turkish Scientific and technological Research Council) and also about KA-14 LIDAR developed at the National Aviation Academy of Azerbaijan for remote sensing of contaminations on water surfaces taking place during oil-gas production. The main goal of this paper is to give students insight in different remote sensing instruments and techniques (including their perspectives) that are used for the derivation of meteorological quantities and obtaining the information about water surface.

Promoting Issues-based STSE Perspectives in Science Teacher Education: Problems of Identity and Ideology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pedretti, Erminia G.; Bencze, Larry; Hewitt, Jim; Romkey, Lisa; Jivraj, Ashifa

2008-09-01

Although science, technology, society and environment (STSE) education has gained considerable force in the past few years, it has made fewer strides in practice. We suggest that science teacher identity plays a role in the adoption of STSE perspectives. Simply put, issues-based STSE education challenges traditional images of a science teacher and science instructional ideologies. In this paper, we briefly describe the development of a multimedia documentary depicting issues-based STSE education in a teacher’s class and its subsequent implementation with 64 secondary student-teachers at a large Canadian university. Specifically, we set out to explore: (1) science teacher candidates’ responses to a case of issues-based STSE teaching, and (2) how science teacher identity intersects with the adoption of STSE perspectives. Findings reveal that although teacher candidates expressed confidence and motivation regarding teaching STSE, they also indicated decreased likelihood to teach these perspectives in their early years of teaching. Particular tensions or problems of practice consistently emerged that helped explain this paradox including issues related to: control and autonomy; support and belonging; expertise and negotiating curriculum; politicization and action; and biases and ideological bents. We conclude our paper with a discussion regarding the lessons learned about STSE education, teacher identity and the role of multimedia case methods.

Systems Science and Childhood Obesity: A Systematic Review and New Directions

PubMed Central

Foster, E. Michael

2013-01-01

As a public health problem, childhood obesity operates at multiple levels, ranging from individual health behaviors to school and community characteristics to public policies. Examining obesity, particularly childhood obesity, from any single perspective is likely to fail, and systems science methods offer a possible solution. We systematically reviewed studies that examined the causes and/or consequences of obesity from a systems science perspective. The 21 included studies addressed four general areas of systems science in obesity: (1) translating interventions to a large scale, (2) the effect of obesity on other health or economic outcomes, (3) the effect of geography on obesity, and (4) the effect of social networks on obesity. In general, little research addresses obesity from a true, integrated systems science perspective, and the available research infrequently focuses on children. This shortcoming limits the ability of that research to inform public policy. However, we believe that the largely incremental approaches used in current systems science lay a foundation for future work and present a model demonstrating the system of childhood obesity. Systems science perspective and related methods are particularly promising in understanding the link between childhood obesity and adult outcomes. Systems models emphasize the evolution of agents and their interactions; such evolution is particularly salient in the context of a developing child. PMID:23710344

Learning as a Members' Phenomenon: Toward an Ethnographically Adequate Science of Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stevens, Reed

2010-01-01

This chapter argues that for the science of learning to become a fully "human" science, it needs to move from viewing learning from an exogenous perspective to an endogenous one. Taken from Latin, the term "endogenous" translates roughly to "from within," and in the meaning the author gives to it here, it refers to a perspective on learning from…

Perspectives on the Contribution of Social Science to Adapted Physical Activity: Looking Forward, Looking Back

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Causgrove Dunn, Janice; Cairney, John; Zimmer, Chantelle

2016-01-01

In this article, we reflect on the contributions of the social sciences to the field of adapted physical activity by examining the theories and methods that have been adopted from the social science disciplines. To broaden our perspective on adapted physical activity and provide new avenues for theoretical and empirical exploration, we discuss and…

Hydrophobic and superhydrophobic surfaces fabricated using atmospheric pressure cold plasma technology: A review.

PubMed

Dimitrakellis, Panagiotis; Gogolides, Evangelos

2018-04-01

Hydrophobic surfaces are often used to reduce wetting of surfaces by water. In particular, superhydrophobic surfaces are highly desired for several applications due to their exceptional properties such as self-cleaning, anti-icing, anti-friction and others. Such surfaces can be prepared via numerous methods including plasma technology, a dry technique with low environmental impact. Atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) has recently attracted significant attention as lower-cost alternative to low-pressure plasmas, and as a candidate for continuous rather than batch processing. Although there are many reviews on water-repellent surfaces, and a few reviews on APP technology, there are hardly any review works on APP processing for hydrophobic and superhydrohobic surface fabrication, a topic of high importance in nanotechnology and interface science. Herein, we critically review the advances on hydrophobic and superhydrophobic surface fabrication using APP technology, trying also to give some perspectives in the field. After a short introduction to superhydrophobicity of nanostructured surfaces and to APPs we focus this review on three different aspects: (1) The atmospheric plasma reactor technology used for fabrication of (super)hydrophobic surfaces. (2) The APP process for hydrophobic surface preparation. The hydrophobic surface preparation processes are categorized methodologically as: a) activation, b) grafting, c) polymerization, d) roughening and hydrophobization. Each category includes subcategories related to different precursors used. (3) One of the most important sections of this review concerns superhydrophobic surfaces fabricated using APP. These are methodologically characterized as follows: a) single step processes where micro-nano textured topography and low surface energy coating are created at the same time, or b) multiple step processes, where these steps occur sequentially in or out of the plasma. We end the review with some perspectives in the field. We aspire to address scientists, who will get involved in the fields of (super)hydrophobicity and/or in atmospheric pressure plasma processing. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

A question of style: method, integrity and the meaning of proper science.

PubMed

Penders, Bart; Vos, Rein; Horstman, Klasien

2009-09-01

Controversies in science often centre on methodology and integrity; these are the gatekeepers of proper science. But what exactly defines proper science as proper is not universal, especially in collaborative fields of enquiry where different perspectives meet. These encounters often result in friction, yet may equally give rise to new perspectives on proper science. A tour of collaborative endeavours like structural biology and nutrigenomics highlights some of those frictions and the controversies that can result from the encounter of 'wet' and 'dry' science. Attuning scientists to the plurality of proper science may safeguard many a scientist's integrity from being questioned unjustly.

Sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (SFG-VS) for complex molecular surfaces and interfaces: Spectral lineshape measurement and analysis plus some controversial issues

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hong-Fei

2016-12-01

Sum-frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (SFG-VS) was first developed in the 1980s and it has been proven a uniquely sensitive and surface/interface selective spectroscopic probe for characterization of the structure, conformation and dynamics of molecular surfaces and interfaces. In recent years, there have been many progresses in the development of methodology and instrumentation in the SFG-VS toolbox that have significantly broadened the application to complex molecular surfaces and interfaces. In this review, after presenting a unified view on the theory and methodology focusing on the SFG-VS spectral lineshape, as well as the new opportunities in SFG-VS applications with such developments, some of the controversial issues that have been puzzling the community are discussed. The aim of this review is to present to the researchers and students interested in molecular surfaces and interfacial sciences up-to-date perspectives complementary to the existing textbooks and reviews on SFG-VS.

Sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (SFG-VS) for complex molecular surfaces and interfaces: Spectral lineshape measurement and analysis plus some controversial issues

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

Wang, Hong-Fei

Sum-frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy (SFG-VS) was first developed in the 1980s and it has been proven a uniquely sensitive and surface/interface selective spectroscopic probe for characterization of the structure, conformation and dynamics of molecular surfaces and interfaces. In recent years, there has been significant progress in the development of methodology and instrumentation in the SFG-VS toolbox that has significantly broadened the application to complex molecular surfaces and interfaces. In this review, after presenting a unified view on the theory and methodology focusing on the SFG-VS spectral lineshape, as well as the new opportunities in SFG-VS applications with such developments, somemore » of the controversial issues that have been puzzling the community are to be discussed. The aim of this review is to present to the researchers and students interested in molecular surfaces and interfacial sciences up-to-date perspectives complementary to the existing textbooks and reviews on SFG-VS.« less

Developments and departures in the philosophy of soil science

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Traditional soil science curriculums provide comprehensive instruction on soil properties, soil classification, and the physical, chemical, and biological processes that occur in soils. This reductionist perspective is sometimes balanced with a more holistic perspective that focuses on soils as natu...

RESOLVE - Starting Point for Partnerships in Lunar and Mars Resource Characterization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sanders, Gerald B.; Rosenbaum, Bernard; Simon, Thomas; Larson, William E.; Luecke, Dale; Captain, Jainine; Sacksteder, Kurt; Johnson, Kenneth R.; Boucher, Dale; Taylor, Jeffrey

2007-01-01

The mystery and controversy surrounding the possibility of finding water/ice at the lunar poles of the Moon based on the interpretation of neutron spectrometer data from Lunar Prospector and radar data from Clementine raises questions that both Science and the Human Exploration proponents want answered. From the Science perspective, the determination of lunar volatiles and in particular the increased hydrogen concentration detected at the lunar poles was identified as an important objectives for lunar exploration and understanding the history of the Moon, Sun, and the solar system. From the Human Exploration perspective, the potential for large concentrations of accessible water opens up possibilities for utilizing in-situ resources, known as In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU), to implement a sustained and affordable human exploration program of the Moon and beyond through production of propellants, fuel cell reagents, and life support consumables for lunar surface operations and mobility, and Earth-Moon transportation. Both the Science and Human Exploration proponents agree that a mission to the lunar poles to obtain ground truth data is the only means to conclusively answer the questions of whether water/ice exists, how much, what form, and where did it come from. In 2005, NASA initiated the Regolith and Environment Science & Oxygen and Lunar Volatiles Extraction (RESOLVE) project, and is currently developing hardware under the NASA Exploration Technology Development Program (ETDP). The purpose of the project was to begin developing technologies and operations that would answer the fundamental science questions, such as What resources are available on the Moon, where are they, what form, and where did they come from? as well as critical engineering questions, such as How will we mine these resources, what chemical extraction processes are the most practical and efficient, and what are the engineering challenges to be faced in this environment? .

Understanding health systems, health economies and globalization: the need for social science perspectives

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

The complex relationship between globalization and health calls for research from many disciplinary and methodological perspectives. This editorial gives an overview of the content trajectory of the interdisciplinary journal ‘Globalization and Health’ over the first six years of production, 2005 to 2010. The findings show that bio-medical and population health perspectives have been dominant but that social science perspectives have become more evident in recent years. The types of paper published have also changed, with a growing proportion of empirical studies. A special issue on ‘Health systems, health economies and globalization: social science perspectives’ is introduced, a collection of contributions written from the vantage points of economics, political science, psychology, sociology, business studies, social policy and research policy. The papers concern a range of issues pertaining to the globalization of healthcare markets and governance and regulation issues. They highlight the important contribution that can be made by the social sciences to this field, and also the practical and methodological challenges implicit in the study of globalization and health. PMID:22938504

From engineering hydrology to Earth system science: milestones in the transformation of hydrologic science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sivapalan, Murugesu

2018-03-01

Hydrology has undergone almost transformative changes over the past 50 years. Huge strides have been made in the transition from early empirical approaches to rigorous approaches based on the fluid mechanics of water movement on and below the land surface. However, progress has been hampered by problems posed by the presence of heterogeneity, including subsurface heterogeneity present at all scales. The inability to measure or map the heterogeneity everywhere prevented the development of balance equations and associated closure relations at the scales of interest, and has led to the virtual impasse we are presently in, in terms of development of physically based models needed for hydrologic predictions. An alternative to the mapping of heterogeneity everywhere is a new Earth system science view, which sees the heterogeneity as the end result of co-evolutionary hydrological, geomorphological, ecological, and pedological processes, each operating at a different rate, which help to shape the landscapes that we find in nature, including the heterogeneity that we do not readily see. The expectation is that instead of specifying exact details of the heterogeneity in our models, we can replace it (without loss of information) with the ecosystem function that they perform. Guided by this new Earth system science perspective, development of hydrologic science is now addressing new questions using novel holistic co-evolutionary approaches as opposed to the physical, fluid mechanics based reductionist approaches that we inherited from the recent past. In the emergent Anthropocene, the co-evolutionary view has expanded further to involve interactions and feedbacks with human-social processes as well. In this paper, I present my own perspective of key milestones in the transformation of hydrologic science from engineering hydrology to Earth system science, drawn from the work of several students and colleagues of mine, and discuss their implication for hydrologic observations, theory development, and predictions.

Strange bedfellows in science teacher preparation: conflicting perspectives on social justice presented in a Teach For America—university partnership

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McNew-Birren, Jill; Hildebrand, Tyra; Belknap, Gabrielle

2017-02-01

Teach For America (TFA), a widespread and well-known route into the teaching profession, frequently partners with university-based education programs to prepare and certify its corps members. However, university-based teacher education programs frequently emphasize very different understandings of socially just education and priorities for training teachers from those of TFA. Accordingly, science teachers trained through TFA-university partnerships encounter conflicting understandings of science education, justice, and urban communities as they are introduced to teaching practice. In this ethnographic case study we explored the experiences and reactions of a cohort of TFA corps members in a science methods course as they engaged with TFA's perspective focused primarily on enhancing students' social mobility and the methods course emphasizing democratic equality through scientific engagement. The study considers intersections between TFA's approach to teacher preparation and sociocultural perspectives on equitable science teaching. The study also lends insight into the contradictions and challenges through which TFA science teachers develop understandings about their role as science teachers, purposes and goals of science education, and identities of the students and communities they serve.

Globalization and Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bencze, J. Lawrence; Carter, Lyn; Chiu, Mei-Hung; Duit, Reinders; Martin, Sonya; Siry, Christina; Krajcik, Joseph; Shin, Namsoo; Choi, Kyunghee; Lee, Hyunju; Kim, Sung-Won

2013-06-01

Processes of globalization have played a major role in economic and cultural change worldwide. More recently, there is a growing literature on rethinking science education research and development from the perspective of globalization. This paper provides a critical overview of the state and future development of science education research from the perspective of globalization. Two facets are given major attention. First, the further development of science education as an international research domain is critically analyzed. It seems that there is a predominance of researchers stemming from countries in which English is the native language or at least a major working language. Second, the significance of rethinking the currently dominant variants of science instruction from the perspectives of economic and cultural globalization is given major attention. On the one hand, it is argued that processes concerning globalization of science education as a research domain need to take into account the richness of the different cultures of science education around the world. At the same time, it is essential to develop ways of science instruction that make students aware of the various advantages, challenges and problems of international economic and cultural globalization.

Globalization and Science Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bencze, J. Lawrence; Carter, Lyn; Chiu, Mei-Hung; Duit, Reinders; Martin, Sonya; Siry, Christina; Krajcik, Joseph; Shin, Namsoo; Choi, Kyunghee; Lee, Hyunju; Kim, Sung-Won

2012-12-01

Processes of globalization have played a major role in economic and cultural change worldwide. More recently, there is a growing literature on rethinking science education research and development from the perspective of globalization. This paper provides a critical overview of the state and future development of science education research from the perspective of globalization. Two facets are given major attention. First, the further development of science education as an international research domain is critically analyzed. It seems that there is a predominance of researchers stemming from countries in which English is the native language or at least a major working language. Second, the significance of rethinking the currently dominant variants of science instruction from the perspectives of economic and cultural globalization is given major attention. On the one hand, it is argued that processes concerning globalization of science education as a research domain need to take into account the richness of the different cultures of science education around the world. At the same time, it is essential to develop ways of science instruction that make students aware of the various advantages, challenges and problems of international economic and cultural globalization.

Salt Lake City, Utah, Perspective View

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2001-01-01

The 2002 Winter Olympics are hosted by Salt Lake City at several venues within the city, in nearby cities, and within the adjacent Wasatch Mountains. This 3-D perspective view, in simulated natural colors, presents a late spring view over Salt Lake City towards the snow-capped Wasatch Mountains to the east. The image was created by draping ASTER image data over digital topography data from the US Geological Survey's National Elevation Data.

This image was acquired on May 28, 2000 by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA's Terra satellite. With its 14 spectral bands from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelength region, and its high spatial resolution of 15 to 90 meters (about 50 to 300 feet), ASTER will image Earth for the next 6 years to map and monitor the changing surface of our planet.

ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched December 18,1999, on NASA's Terra satellite. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and the data products. Dr. Anne Kahle at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, is the U.S. Science team leader; Bjorn Eng of JPL is the project manager. ASTER is the only high resolution imaging sensor on Terra. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise, a long-term research and technology program designed to examine Earth's land, oceans, atmosphere, ice and life as a total integrated system.

The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER will provide scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping, and monitoring dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance.

Size: View width 15 km ( 9.2 miles); view distance 12 km (7.3 miles) Location: 40.7 deg. North lat., 111.9 deg. West long. Orientation: North at top Image Data: ASTER bands 1,2, and 3. Original Data Resolution: 15 m Date Acquired: May 28, 2000

Computer-generated imagery for 4-D meteorological data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hibbard, William L.

1986-01-01

The University of Wisconsin-Madison Space Science and Engineering Center is developing animated stereo display terminals for use with McIDAS (Man-computer Interactive Data Access System). This paper describes image-generation techniques which have been developed to take maximum advantage of these terminals, integrating large quantities of four-dimensional meteorological data from balloon and satellite soundings, satellite images, Doppler and volumetric radar, and conventional surface observations. The images have been designed to use perspective, shading, hidden-surface removal, and transparency to augment the animation and stereo-display geometry. They create an illusion of a moving three-dimensional model of the atmosphere. This paper describes the design of these images and a number of rules of thumb for generating four-dimensional meteorological displays.

Planetary science: A lunar perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Taylor, S. R.

1982-01-01

An interpretative synthesis of current knowledge on the moon and the terrestrial planets is presented, emphasizing the impact of recent lunar research (using Apollo data and samples) on theories of planetary morphology and evolution. Chapters are included on the exploration of the solar system; geology and stratigraphy; meteorite impacts, craters, and multiring basins; planetary surfaces; planetary crusts; basaltic volcanism; planetary interiors; the chemical composition of the planets; the origin and evolution of the moon and planets; and the significance of lunar and planetary exploration. Photographs, drawings, graphs, tables of quantitative data, and a glossary are provided.

From Black and White to Shades of Grey: A Longitudinal Study of Teachers' Perspectives on Teaching Sociocultural and Subjective Aspects of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leden, Lotta; Hansson, Lena; Redfors, Andreas

2017-01-01

Traditional school science has been described as focused on indisputable facts where scientific processes and factors affecting these processes become obscured or left undiscussed. In this article, we report on teachers' perspectives on the teaching of sociocultural and subjective aspects of the nature of science (NOS) as a way to accomplish a…

Pedotransfer Functions in Earth System Science: Challenges and Perspectives: PTFs in Earth system science perspective

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

Van Looy, Kris; Bouma, Johan; Herbst, Michael

Soil, through its various functions, plays a vital role in the Earth's ecosystems and provides multiple ecosystem services to humanity. Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) are simple to complex knowledge rules that relate available soil information to soil properties and variables that are needed to parameterize soil processes. Here in this article, we review the existing PTFs and document the new generation of PTFs developed in the different disciplines of Earth system science. To meet the methodological challenges for a successful application in Earth system modeling, we emphasize that PTF development has to go hand in hand with suitable extrapolation and upscalingmore » techniques such that the PTFs correctly represent the spatial heterogeneity of soils. PTFs should encompass the variability of the estimated soil property or process, in such a way that the estimation of parameters allows for validation and can also confidently provide for extrapolation and upscaling purposes capturing the spatial variation in soils. Most actively pursued recent developments are related to parameterizations of solute transport, heat exchange, soil respiration, and organic carbon content, root density, and vegetation water uptake. Further challenges are to be addressed in parameterization of soil erosivity and land use change impacts at multiple scales. We argue that a comprehensive set of PTFs can be applied throughout a wide range of disciplines of Earth system science, with emphasis on land surface models. Novel sensing techniques provide a true breakthrough for this, yet further improvements are necessary for methods to deal with uncertainty and to validate applications at global scale.« less

Pedotransfer Functions in Earth System Science: Challenges and Perspectives: PTFs in Earth system science perspective

DOE PAGES

Van Looy, Kris; Bouma, Johan; Herbst, Michael; ...

2017-12-28

Soil, through its various functions, plays a vital role in the Earth's ecosystems and provides multiple ecosystem services to humanity. Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) are simple to complex knowledge rules that relate available soil information to soil properties and variables that are needed to parameterize soil processes. Here in this article, we review the existing PTFs and document the new generation of PTFs developed in the different disciplines of Earth system science. To meet the methodological challenges for a successful application in Earth system modeling, we emphasize that PTF development has to go hand in hand with suitable extrapolation and upscalingmore » techniques such that the PTFs correctly represent the spatial heterogeneity of soils. PTFs should encompass the variability of the estimated soil property or process, in such a way that the estimation of parameters allows for validation and can also confidently provide for extrapolation and upscaling purposes capturing the spatial variation in soils. Most actively pursued recent developments are related to parameterizations of solute transport, heat exchange, soil respiration, and organic carbon content, root density, and vegetation water uptake. Further challenges are to be addressed in parameterization of soil erosivity and land use change impacts at multiple scales. We argue that a comprehensive set of PTFs can be applied throughout a wide range of disciplines of Earth system science, with emphasis on land surface models. Novel sensing techniques provide a true breakthrough for this, yet further improvements are necessary for methods to deal with uncertainty and to validate applications at global scale.« less

Explanatory Pluralism and the (Dis)Unity of Science: The Argument from Incompatible Counterfactual Consequences

PubMed Central

Gijsbers, Victor

2016-01-01

What is the relationship between different sciences or research approaches that deal with the same phenomena, for instance, with the phenomena of the human mind? Answers to this question range from a monist perspective according to which one of these approaches is privileged over the others, through an integrationist perspective according to which they must strive to form a unity greater than the sum of its parts, to an isolationist perspective according to which each of them has its own autonomous sphere of validity. In order to assess these perspectives in this article, I discuss the debates about the unity of science and about explanatory pluralism. The most pressing issue turns out to be the choice between the integrative and the isolationist perspective: the question is whether the integrative tendencies in science should be fully indulged in or whether they should be held in check by acknowledging that a certain amount of isolation is necessary. I argue that the issue can be further distilled into the question of whether two true explanations of the same fact can ever fail to be combinable into one single explanation. I show that this can indeed be the case, namely, when the explanations have incompatible counterfactual consequences, something that is often the case when we try to combine explanations from different sciences or research approaches. These approaches thus embody perspectives on the world that are to a certain extent autonomous. This leads to the conclusion that although interdisciplinarity may have many advantages, we should not take the project of integration too far. At the end of the day, the different research approaches with their different perspectives and insights must remain precisely that: different and somewhat disunified. PMID:27014099

Explanatory Pluralism and the (Dis)Unity of Science: The Argument from Incompatible Counterfactual Consequences.

PubMed

Gijsbers, Victor

2016-01-01

What is the relationship between different sciences or research approaches that deal with the same phenomena, for instance, with the phenomena of the human mind? Answers to this question range from a monist perspective according to which one of these approaches is privileged over the others, through an integrationist perspective according to which they must strive to form a unity greater than the sum of its parts, to an isolationist perspective according to which each of them has its own autonomous sphere of validity. In order to assess these perspectives in this article, I discuss the debates about the unity of science and about explanatory pluralism. The most pressing issue turns out to be the choice between the integrative and the isolationist perspective: the question is whether the integrative tendencies in science should be fully indulged in or whether they should be held in check by acknowledging that a certain amount of isolation is necessary. I argue that the issue can be further distilled into the question of whether two true explanations of the same fact can ever fail to be combinable into one single explanation. I show that this can indeed be the case, namely, when the explanations have incompatible counterfactual consequences, something that is often the case when we try to combine explanations from different sciences or research approaches. These approaches thus embody perspectives on the world that are to a certain extent autonomous. This leads to the conclusion that although interdisciplinarity may have many advantages, we should not take the project of integration too far. At the end of the day, the different research approaches with their different perspectives and insights must remain precisely that: different and somewhat disunified.

Defects and Small Polarons on Oxide Surfaces

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Janotti, Anderson

The presence and behavior of defects on the surface of oxides are central in many research areas, including catalysis, photochemistry, solar cells, and surface science in general. Experimental characterization of individual defects and their activities are challenging and often requires special preparations of the surface. First-principles calculations based on density functional theory are a powerful tool to study surfaces and defects, often providing information on properties that are difficult to access experimentally. Here we discuss the behavior of defects on oxide surfaces from the perspective on first-principles calculations. We use the oxygen vacancy on TiO2 surface as example, a system that has been extensively reported in the literature. Using DFT with a hybrid function, we discuss surface states induced by the defect and localization of the excess charge in the form of small polarons. We then discuss the effects of hydrogen and compare the behavior of these defects on the surface with that in the bulk. We also compare our recent results with previous theoretical studies and experiments. Finally, we generalize the findings on TiO2 to the surfaces of other oxides. This work was supported by the NSF.

Outreach for Cassini Huyghens mission and future Saturn and Titan exploration: From the Antikythera Mechanism to the TSSM mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moussas, Xenophon; Bampasidis, Georgios; Coustenis, Athena; Solomonidou, Anezina

2010-05-01

These days Outreach is an activity tightly related to success in science. The public with its great interest to space and astronomy in general, the solar system exploration and Saturn and Titan in particular, loves the scientific outcome of Cassini and Huygens. This love of the public gives a lot, as its known interest to space, persuades politicians and policy makers to support space and future Saturn and Titan explorations. We use the scientific results from Cassini and Huyghens together with a mosaic from ancient science concerning the history of solar system exploration, such as the oldest known complex astronomical device, the Antikyhtera Mechanism, in outreach activities to ensure future missions and continuous support to present ones. A future mission to the Saturnian System focusing on exotic Titan will broaden people's interest not only to Physics and Astronomy, but to Mechanics, Technology and even Philosophy as well, since, obviously, the roots of the vast contribution of Space Science and Astronomy to the contemporary society can be traced back to the first astronomers of Antiquity. As an example we use the Antikythera Mechanism, a favourite astronomical device for the public, which is the first geared astronomical device ever, constructed that combines the spirit of the ancient Astronomy and scientific accuracy. It is common belief that Astronomy and Astrophysics is a perfect tool to easily involve people in Science, as the public is always interested in space subjects, captivated by the beauty and the mystery of the Universe. Years after the successful entry, descent and landing of the Huygens probe on Titan's surface, the outstanding achievements of the Cassini-Huygens mission enhance the outreach potential of Space Science. Titan is an earth-like world, embedded in a dense nitrogen atmospheric envelop and a surface carved by rivers, mountains, dunes and lakes, its exploration will certainly empower the perspective of the society for space activities. We will show the different means of attracting people's interest in a future mission to Titan and the Saturnian system, by projecting from the past into future achievements. Our proposal consists of a worldwide campaign, which uses future space research on Titan and Enceladus to formulate an effective message to the layman public. In this framework, exhibitions, lectures, TV/radio/online broadcasts and publications will take place in schools, as well as social events or conferences, in collaboration with local communities. Outreach activities aim to enhance people's perspective of and participation in the exploration of Titan and the Saturnian System. In particular, future activities are planned to focus on: Education: include an attractive perspective of astronomy and TSSM science in school lessons, Competitions to name and design logos. Publications: Leaflets/fact sheets, Comic Books, articles for public CD/DVD productions, animations, trailers, TV/radio programs, Plastic cards and other constructions, Exhibitions, Participation in major astronomical events.

Burkean Tropes and Kuhnian Science: A Social Constructionist Perspective on Language and Reality.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schiappa, Edward

1993-01-01

Constructs a language-centered perspective toward the social-rhetorical construction of knowledge by juxtaposing Kenneth Burke's philosophy of language with Thomas S. Kuhn's philosophy of science. Discusses rhetoric's epistemic status and the social constructionist account of discourse production. (HB)

Utilizing worldview theory to determine the factors influencing the understanding of evolutionary concepts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hermann, Ronald S.

2007-12-01

The purpose of this study was to identify factors impacting students' ability to develop understanding of evolutionary theory. A novel approach to worldview theory was employed according to which individuals are seen as having one worldview that is comprised of many perspectives. One's worldview is comprised of numerous worldview assumptions, some of which coalesce to form worldview perspectives. Some assumptions are consistent with a scientific perspective while others are more consistent with a religious perspective. Scientific and religious perspectives were quantified based on participants' agreement with assumptions associated with each perspective. Participants completed a 103-item questionnaire addressing several variables: understanding of evolution, understanding of photosynthesis (non-confounding variable), strength of worldview perspectives and exposure to factors influencing the development of worldview perspectives. Increased exposure to factors influencing the development of a strong scientific worldview perspective was hypothesized to cause an increased understanding of evolution. The dependent variable understanding was measured by scores on two Likert-type measures. A causal-comparative study was conducted with 13 high school biology teachers and 67 high school biology students. To determine causation t-tests compared the mean scores on the variables measured. Extreme-group methods were used and data was analyzed for statistical differences between mean scores. Strong scientific worldview perspectives (t=1.003, p=3.19) and exposure to scientific factors (t=2.373, p=.02) were associated with a higher understanding of evolution. Strong religious worldview perspectives (t=-1.991, p=.05) and exposure to religious factors (t=-1.059, p=.31) were associated with a lower understanding of evolution. The results suggest that scientific worldview perspectives play an important role in increasing understanding of evolution; however, religious worldview perspectives play an equally important role in hindering understanding. Furthermore, the strongest interaction between variables (t=-5.247, p=.00) was found between the strength of scientific worldview perspective and strength of religious worldview perspective. A strong religious worldview perspective caused a weak scientific worldview perspective, supporting the conclusion that most participants perceived science and religion as conflicting entities. These findings suggest that science students must be exposed to the nature and methods of science from an early age and that evolution education should acknowledge the perceived conflict between science and religion.

Technology and science in classroom and interview talk with Swiss lower secondary school students: a Marxist sociological approach

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roth, Wolff-Michael

2013-06-01

In much of science education research, the content of talk tends to be attributed to the persons who produce the sound-words in a speech situation. A radically different, sociological perspective on language-in-use grounded in Marxism derives from the work of L. S. Vygotsky and the members of the circle around M. M. Bakhtin. Accordingly, each word belongs to speaker and recipient simultaneously. It represents collective consciousness and, therefore, shared ideology, which can no longer be attributed to the individual. The purpose of this study is to develop a sociological perspective on language in science education, a perspective in which language continuously changes. I articulate this position in the context of classroom and interview talk with 14-year-old Swiss non-academically streamed lower secondary students about technology and science. In this context, science classrooms and interviews are shown to be microcosms of Swiss (German) culture and society reproduced in and through the situated talk about science and technology.

Science education in an urban elementary school: Case studies of teacher beliefs and classroom practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, Ken; Shumow, Lee; Lietz, Stephanie

2001-03-01

Through a case study approach, the state of science education in an urban elementary school was examined in detail. Observations made from the perspective of a science education specialist, an educational psychologist, and an expert elementary teacher were triangulated to provide a set of perspectives from which elementary science instruction could be examined. Findings revealed that teachers were more poorly prepared than had been anticipated, both in terms of science content knowledge and instructional skills, but also with respect to the quality of classroom pedagogical and management skills. Particularly significant, from a science education perspective, was the inconsistency between how they perceived their teaching practice (a hands-on, inquiry-based approach) and the investigator-observed expository nature of the lessons. Lessons were typically expository in nature, with little higher-level interaction of significance. Implications for practice and the associated needs for staff development among urban elementary teachers is discussed within the context of these findings.

MARSCAPE: Exploring the Martian Landscape through PARM (Projected Augmented Relief Model)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sprinks, James; Wardlaw, Jessica; Priestnall, Gary

2017-04-01

In the past decade through the proliferation of digital technologies, citizen science has grown in popularity and is now used as a data analysis tool across a range of disciplines. Due to the abundance of instruments currently collecting data, planetary science has become a prime candidate for, and adaptor of, citizen science platforms (Sprinks et al., 2015). Current projects (planetfour.org, moonzoo.org etc.) take a Virtual Citizen Science (VCS) approach (Reed et al., 2012), gathering scientific analysis from remotely sensed imagery that's presented to the public through a website interface. However, in presenting the data 'on screen' in a 2D form, issues regarding interpretation and context arise - for instance, depending on the angle of the Sun when the picture was taken, images of craters taken from overhead (i.e. from orbit) may appear to be a mountain. In order to address such issues regarding context and interpretation, we present MARSCAPE, an engaging and informative display that communicates key aspects of the Martian landscape to the public, including the nature and scale of landscape forms, using a unique combination of physical landscape models and synchronised 3D perspective views. It combines the proven power of physical relief models for providing overviews of landscape and discerning more subtle spatial forms and relationships, with first person game-like perspectives on the ground. It also includes the capability of projecting data 'overlays' onto the physical model of surface, such as imagery, geological mapping, or comparison examples from Earth to provide context. The aims of the MARSCAPE project are not only to solve the issues regarding context and interpretation when studying the Martian surface, but also to educate the observer in regards to the geophysical processes that occur on Mars and how they relate to those that are happening on Earth. Through using a physical display presented in a public space citizen science can be moved from an individual process conducted in isolation to a public and shared experience, where scientific analysis and understanding can be discussed. Ultimately it is hoped that this can result in a more enriching experience for citizen scientists, who give up their time and effort for free and on whose participation the success of a citizen science project relies on. References: Reed J., Rodriquez W., Rickoff A., (2012). A Framework for Defining and Describing Key Design Features of Virtual Citizen Science Projects, Proceedings of the 2012 iConference, pp. 623-625 Sprinks J., Houghton R., Bamford S., Morley J. G., Wardlaw J., (2015). Is that a Crater? Designing Citizen Science Platforms for the Volunteer and to Improve Results, European Planetary Science Congress 2015, EPSC2015-694, Vol. 10

Disciplinary Perspectives on Archaeoastronomy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McCluskey, Stephen C.

This chapter examines the contributions of major academic disciplines to archaeoastronomy, beginning with a consideration of several indicators of the participation of scholars from various fields. We then consider examples of research from astronomy and the physical sciences; anthropology, archaeology, and the social sciences; and the historical disciplines to see how they reflect their disciplinary perspectives. The questions drawn from these varied disciplinary perspectives stimulate different strands of research, enriching the study of astronomies in cultures.

The utility of human sciences in nursing inquiry.

PubMed

Pratt, Maria

2012-01-01

This paper targets novice nurse researchers to highlight how the perspectives of human sciences are useful in understanding people's experiences. There is a need to address the utility of human sciences or the humanistic philosophy that values the understanding of subjective experiences in nursing, given that the mainstream development of nursing knowledge is still influenced by the positivist and post-positivist research paradigms. Discussion papers on Heideggerian hermeneutic phenomenology, human sciences, and qualitative research were accessed through the databases Cinahl and Medline over the past 30 years. Seminal works on phenomenology were addressed in this paper. Using Heideggerian hermeneutic phenomenology as a commonly referenced human philosophy and methodology, this paper discusses how Heidegger's (1962) perspective may be used in nursing practice and research. Van Manen's (1990) descriptions of phenomenological science are discussed to address the perspective's value in nursing inquiry and to reveal the biases associated with this humanistic approach. The limitations of human sciences should not deter nurse researchers from using this type of nursing inquiry as it can provide an important framework in nursing research, practice and knowledge development. The author's perspective as a graduate student highlights the importance of human sciences in exploring the experiences of people vital in the delivery of nursing practice. However, researchers wishing to undertake humanistic inquiry should learn the philosophical and methodological underpinnings of their chosen humanistic approach.

The Ontology of Science Teaching in the Neoliberal Era

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharma, Ajay

2017-01-01

Because of ever stricter standards of accountability, science teachers are under an increasing and unrelenting pressure to demonstrate the effects of their teaching on student learning. Econometric perspectives of "teacher quality" have become normative in assessment of teachers' work for accountability purposes. These perspectives seek…

Tuning in to Young Viewers: Social Science Perspectives on Television.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

MacBeth, Tannis M., Ed.

Research indicates that children are especially vulnerable to the effects of television viewing. Taking a psychological, social-science perspective, this book explores how television viewing affects children. Chapter 1, "Introduction," (MacBeth) discusses the issues involved, how researchers go about studying media effects, whether television…

A novel method for the photographic recovery of fingermark impressions from ammunition cases using digital imaging.

PubMed

Porter, Glenn; Ebeyan, Robert; Crumlish, Charles; Renshaw, Adrian

2015-03-01

The photographic preservation of fingermark impression evidence found on ammunition cases remains problematic due to the cylindrical shape of the deposition substrate preventing complete capture of the impression in a single image. A novel method was developed for the photographic recovery of fingermarks from curved surfaces using digital imaging. The process involves the digital construction of a complete impression image made from several different images captured from multiple camera perspectives. Fingermark impressions deposited onto 9-mm and 0.22-caliber brass cartridge cases and a plastic 12-gauge shotgun shell were tested using various image parameters, including digital stitching method, number of images per 360° rotation of shell, image cropping, and overlap. The results suggest that this method may be successfully used to recover fingermark impression evidence from the surfaces of ammunition cases or other similar cylindrical surfaces. © 2014 American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Convergent evidence for widespread rock nitrogen sources in Earth's surface environment.

PubMed

Houlton, B Z; Morford, S L; Dahlgren, R A

2018-04-06

Nitrogen availability is a pivotal control on terrestrial carbon sequestration and global climate change. Historical and contemporary views assume that nitrogen enters Earth's land-surface ecosystems from the atmosphere. Here we demonstrate that bedrock is a nitrogen source that rivals atmospheric nitrogen inputs across major sectors of the global terrestrial environment. Evidence drawn from the planet's nitrogen balance, geochemical proxies, and our spatial weathering model reveal that ~19 to 31 teragrams of nitrogen are mobilized from near-surface rocks annually. About 11 to 18 teragrams of this nitrogen are chemically weathered in situ, thereby increasing the unmanaged (preindustrial) terrestrial nitrogen balance from 8 to 26%. These findings provide a global perspective to reconcile Earth's nitrogen budget, with implications for nutrient-driven controls over the terrestrial carbon sink. Copyright © 2018 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of Science. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

Student perceptions of secondary science: A performance technology application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Small, Belinda Rusnak

The primary purpose of this study was to identify influences blocking or promoting science performance from the lived K-12 classroom experience. Human Performance Technology protocols were used to understand factors promoting or hindering science performance. The goal was to gain information from the individual students' perspective to enhance opportunities for stakeholders to improve the current state of performance in science education. Individual perspectives of 10 secondary science students were examined using grounded theory protocols. Findings include students' science learning behaviors are influenced by two major themes, environmental supports and individual learning behaviors. The three environmental support factors identified include the methods students receive instruction, students' opportunities to access informal help apart from formal instruction, and students' feelings of teacher likability. Additionally, findings include three major factors causing individual learners to generate knowledge in science. Factors reported include personalizing information to transform data into knowledge, customizing learning opportunities to maximize peak performance, and tapping motivational opportunities to persevere through complex concepts. The emergent theory postulated is that if a performance problem exists in an educational setting, then integrating student perspectives into the cause analysis opens opportunity to align interventions for influencing student performance outcomes. An adapted version of Gilbert's Behavioral Engineering Model is presented as an organizational tool to display the findings. The boundaries of this Performance Technology application do not extend to the identification, selection, design, or implementation of solutions to improved science performance. However, as stakeholders begin to understand learner perspectives then aligned decisions may be created to support learners of science in a direct, cost effective manner.

[Opportunity for the integration of the gender perspective in health research and innovation in Europe: COST Network genderSTE].

PubMed

Sánchez de Madariaga, Inés; Ruiz Cantero, María Teresa

2014-01-01

The European Commission supports several routes for incorporating the gender perspective. The Commission currently supports the new Horizon 2020 program, and also funds projects such as "gendered innovations", which show how gender innovations increase the quality of research and professional practice for health and welfare. One of the policy instruments is the Recommendation on Gender, Science and Innovation. Against this background, the international European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) network genderSTE (Gender, Science, Technology and Environment) was created, which seeks to: 1) promote structural changes in institutions to increase the number of women researchers; 2) identify the gender dimensions relevant to the environment; and 3) improve the integration of a gender perspective in research and technology. COST GenderSTE supports networking and the dissemination of knowledge with a gender perspective. All these tools provide an opportunity to incorporate a gender perspective in research in Europe. Copyright © 2013 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

Descriptive and Computer Aided Drawing Perspective on an Unfolded Polyhedral Projection Surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dzwierzynska, Jolanta

2017-10-01

The aim of the herby study is to develop a method of direct and practical mapping of perspective on an unfolded prism polyhedral projection surface. The considered perspective representation is a rectilinear central projection onto a surface composed of several flat elements. In the paper two descriptive methods of drawing perspective are presented: direct and indirect. The graphical mapping of the effects of the representation is realized directly on the unfolded flat projection surface. That is due to the projective and graphical connection between points displayed on the polyhedral background and their counterparts received on the unfolded flat surface. For a significant improvement of the construction of line, analytical algorithms are formulated. They draw a perspective image of a segment of line passing through two different points determined by their coordinates in a spatial coordinate system of axis x, y, z. Compared to other perspective construction methods that use information about points, for computer vision and the computer aided design, our algorithms utilize data about lines, which are applied very often in architectural forms. Possibility of drawing lines in the considered perspective enables drawing an edge perspective image of an architectural object. The application of the changeable base elements of perspective as a horizon height and a station point location enable drawing perspective image from different viewing positions. The analytical algorithms for drawing perspective images are formulated in Mathcad software, however, they can be implemented in the majority of computer graphical packages, which can make drawing perspective more efficient and easier. The representation presented in the paper and the way of its direct mapping on the flat unfolded projection surface can find application in presentation of architectural space in advertisement and art.

Two sides of the coin. Part 2. Colloid and surface science meets real biointerfaces.

PubMed

Ninham, Barry W; Larsson, Kåre; Lo Nostro, Pierandrea

2017-11-01

Part 1 revisited developments in lipid and surfactant self assembly over the past 40 years [1]. New concepts emerged. Here we explore how these developments can be used to make sense of and bring order to a range of complex biological phenomena. Together with Part 1, this contribution is a fundamental revision of intuition at the boundaries of Colloid Science and Biological interfaces from a perspective of nearly 50 years. We offer new insights on a unified treatment of self assembly of lipids, surfactants and proteins in the light of developments presented in Part 1. These were in the enabling disciplines in molecular forces, hydration, oil and electrolyte specificity; and in the role of non Euclidean geometries-across the whole gammut of physical, colloid and surface chemistry, biophysics and membrane biology and medicine. It is where the early founders of the cell theory of biology and the physiologists expected advances to occur as D'Arcy Thompson predicted us 100 years ago. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Review: Public perspectives on the utilization of human placentas in scientific research and medicine.

PubMed

Yoshizawa, R S

2013-01-01

Placental tissues are frequently utilized by scientists studying pregnancy and reproduction and in diverse fields including immunology, stem cell research, genetics, cancer research, and tissue engineering, as well as by clinicians in many therapies. Though the utilization of the human placenta in science and medicine has benefitted many people, little is known about public perspectives of this phenomenon. This review addresses placental donation, collection, and utilization in science and medicine, focusing on public perspectives. Cultural values and traditions, ethical paradigms and concerns, public understandings of science and medicine, and political considerations may impact perceptions of the utilization of the placenta in science and medicine, but systematic study is lacking. It is argued that knowledge of public views gained from empirical investigation may underpin the development of collection protocols and research projects that are more responsive to public will, spur more extensive utilization in science and medicine of this unique organ, and/or aid in the realization of the mobilization of knowledge about the placenta for clinical and educational ends. New avenues for research on public perspectives of the placenta are proposed. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A Dramaturgical Perspective on Academic Libraries

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Quinn, Brian

2005-01-01

Although many social sciences theories have been applied to the field of library and information science, one theory that has received relatively little attention is dramaturgy. The dramaturgical perspective posits that social life is inherently theatrical in nature. When applied to the academic library setting, both librarians and library users…

Humanities Perspectives on Technology Program: Science, Technology & Society Program. Lehigh University, 1977-80.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cutcliffe, Stephen H., Ed.

Newsletter issues pertaining to Lehigh University's Humanities Perspectives on Technology (HPT) Program, which was renamed the Science, Technology and Society Program, are presented. Additionally, a newsletter article excerpt entitled "Elements of Technology in a Liberal Education" is included. Two 1977 issues of "HRP News,"…

Science Education, Integral Inquiry, Transformation and Possibility

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stack, Sue

2013-01-01

This paper is written in response to Nancy Davis's article "Integral Methodological Pluralism in Science Education Research: Valuing Multiple Perspectives." I use Integral Theory as a framing for this response to explore how it might offer different perspectives and ways of inquiring into Nancy's paper. This process highlights…

Unintended Learning in Primary School Practical Science Lessons from Polanyi's Perspective of Intellectual Passion

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Park, Jisun; Song, Jinwoong; Abrahams, Ian

2016-01-01

This study explored, from the perspective of intellectual passion developed by Michael Polanyi, the unintended learning that occurred in primary practical science lessons. We use the term "unintended" learning to distinguish it from "intended" learning that appears in teachers' learning objectives. Data were collected using…

Multiple Perspectives on Elementary Teachers' Science Identities: A Case Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madden, Lauren; Wiebe, Eric

2015-01-01

This narrative case study examined the relationship between teacher identity and elementary science teaching. Teacher identity was described using a modification of Gee's framework incorporating three perspectives: the teachers' self-described identity, the researchers' view of teacher identity, and the students' views of teacher identity. Over…

The Concept of Collection from the User's Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Hur-Li

2005-01-01

This study explores the concept and functions of collection from the perspective of the user. In-depth interviews with ten professors from a social science discipline and a natural science department provided descriptions of their information seeking involving material sources and their perceptions of the library collection. Participants used the…

Revising Laboratory Work: Sociological Perspectives on the Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jobér, Anna

2017-01-01

This study uses sociological perspectives to analyse one of the core practices in science education: school children's and students' laboratory work. Applying an ethnographic approach to the laboratory work done by pupils at a Swedish compulsory school, data were generated through observations, field notes, interviews, and a questionnaire. The…

Conical Perspective Image of an Architectural Object Close to Human Perception

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dzwierzynska, Jolanta

2017-10-01

The aim of the study is to develop a method of computer aided constructing conical perspective of an architectural object, which is close to human perception. The conical perspective considered in the paper is a central projection onto a projection surface being a conical rotary surface or a fragment of it. Whereas, the centre of projection is a stationary point or a point moving on a circular path. The graphical mapping results of the perspective representation is realized directly on an unrolled flat projection surface. The projective relation between a range of points on a line and the perspective image of the same range of points received on a cylindrical projection surface permitted to derive formulas for drawing perspective. Next, the analytical algorithms for drawing perspective image of a straight line passing through any two points were formulated. It enabled drawing a perspective wireframe image of a given 3D object. The use of the moving view point as well as the application of the changeable base elements of perspective as the variables in the algorithms enable drawing conical perspective from different viewing positions. Due to this fact, the perspective drawing method is universal. The algorithms are formulated and tested in Mathcad Professional software, but can be implemented in AutoCAD and majority of computer graphical packages, which makes drawing a perspective image more efficient and easier. The presented conical perspective representation, and the convenient method of its mapping directly on the flat unrolled surface can find application for numerous advertisement and art presentations.

Secondary ion mass spectrometry: The application in the analysis of atmospheric particulate matter

DOE PAGES

Huang, Di; Hua, Xin; Xiu, Guang-Li; ...

2017-07-24

Currently, considerable attention has been paid to atmospheric particulate matter (PM) investigation due to its importance in human health and global climate change. Surface characterization, single particle analysis and depth profiling of PM is important for a better understanding of its formation processes and predicting its impact on the environment and human being. Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a surface technique with high surface sensitivity, high spatial resolution chemical imaging and unique depth profiling capabilities. Recent research shows that SIMS has great potential in analyzing both surface and bulk chemical information of PM. In this review, we give amore » brief introduction of SIMS working principle and survey recent applications of SIMS in PM characterization. In particular, analyses from different types of PM sources by various SIMS techniques were discussed concerning their advantages and limitations. Finally, we propose, the future development and needs of SIMS in atmospheric aerosol measurement with a perspective in broader environmental sciences.« less

Secondary ion mass spectrometry: The application in the analysis of atmospheric particulate matter

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

Huang, Di; Hua, Xin; Xiu, Guang-Li

Currently, considerable attention has been paid to atmospheric particulate matter (PM) investigation due to its importance in human health and global climate change. Surface characterization, single particle analysis and depth profiling of PM is important for a better understanding of its formation processes and predicting its impact on the environment and human being. Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a surface technique with high surface sensitivity, high spatial resolution chemical imaging and unique depth profiling capabilities. Recent research shows that SIMS has great potential in analyzing both surface and bulk chemical information of PM. In this review, we give amore » brief introduction of SIMS working principle and survey recent applications of SIMS in PM characterization. In particular, analyses from different types of PM sources by various SIMS techniques were discussed concerning their advantages and limitations. Finally, we propose, the future development and needs of SIMS in atmospheric aerosol measurement with a perspective in broader environmental sciences.« less

Taking the Scientist's Perspective. The Nonfiction Narrative Engages Episodic Memory to Enhance Students' Understanding of Scientists and Their Practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Larison, Karen D.

2018-03-01

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States 2013) mandates that schools provide students an understanding of the skills and knowledge that scientists use to engage in scientific practices. In this article, I argue that one of the best ways to accomplish this goal is to have students take the perspective of the scientist by reading nonfiction narratives written by scientists and science writers. I explore the anthropological and neurological evidence that suggests that perspective-taking is an essential component in the learning process. It has been shown that by around age 4, the human child begins to be able to take the perspective of others—a process that neuroscientists have shown engages episodic memory, a memory type that some neurocognitive scientists believe is central in organizing human cognition. Neuroscientists have shown that the brain regions in which episodic memory resides undergo pronounced anatomical changes during adolescence, suggesting that perspective-taking assumes an even greater role in cognition during adolescence and young adulthood. Moreover, I argue that the practice of science itself is narrative in nature. With each new observation and experiment, the scientist is acting to reveal an emerging story. It is the story-like nature of science that motivates the scientist to push onward with new experiments and new observations. It is also the story-like nature of the practice of science that can potentially engage the student. The classroom studies that I review here confirm the power of the narrative in increasing students' understanding of science.

High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on Mars Express - a decade of PR/EO activities at Freie Universität Berlin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Balthasar, Heike; Dumke, Alexander; van Gasselt, Stephan; Gross, Christoph; Michael, Gregory; Musiol, Stefanie; Neu, Dominik; Platz, Thomas; Rosenberg, Heike; Schreiner, Björn; Walter, Sebastian

2014-05-01

Since 2003 the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) experiment on the Mars Express mission is in orbit around Mars. First images were sent to Earth on January 14th, 2004. The goal-oriented HRSC data dissemination and the transparent representation of the associated work and results are the main aspects that contributed to the success in the public perception of the experiment. The Planetary Sciences and Remote Sensing Group at Freie Universität Berlin (FUB) offers both, an interactive web based data access, and browse/download options for HRSC press products [www.fu-berlin.de/planets]. Close collaborations with exhibitors as well as print and digital media representatives allows for regular and directed dissemination of, e.g., conventional imagery, orbital/synthetic surface epipolar images, video footage, and high-resolution displays. On a monthly basis we prepare press releases in close collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) [http://www.geo.fu-berlin.de/en/geol/fachrichtungen/planet/press/index.html]. A release comprises panchromatic, colour, anaglyph, and perspective views of a scene taken from an HRSC image of the Martian surface. In addition, a context map and descriptive texts in English and German are provided. More sophisticated press releases include elaborate animations and simulated flights over the Martian surface, perspective views of stereo data combined with colour and high resolution, mosaics, and perspective views of data mosaics. Altogether 970 high quality PR products and 15 movies were created at FUB during the last decade and published via FUB/DLR/ESA platforms. We support educational outreach events, as well as permanent and special exhibitions. Examples for that are the yearly "Science Fair", where special programs for kids are offered, and the exhibition "Mars Mission and Vision" which is on tour until 2015 through 20 German towns, showing 3-D movies, surface models, and images of the HRSC camera experiment. Press and media appearances of group members, and talks to school classes and interested communities also contribute to the public outreach. For HRSC data dissemination we use digital platforms. Since 2007 HRSC image data can be viewed and accessed via the online interface HRSCview [http://hrscview.fu-berlin.de] which was built in cooperation with the DLR Institute for Planetary Research. Additionally HRSC ortho images (level 4) are presented in a modern MapServer setup in GIS-read format since 2013 [http://www.geo.fu-berlin.de/en/geol/fachrichtungen/planet/projects/marsexpress/level4downloads/index.html]. All of these offers ensured the accessibility of HRSC data and products to the science community as well as to the general public for the last ten years and will do so also in the future, taking advantage of modern and user-optimized applications and networks.

Socioscience and ethics in science classrooms: Teacher perspectives and strategies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadler, Troy D.; Amirshokoohi, Aidin; Kazempour, Mahsa; Allspaw, Kathleen M.

2006-04-01

This study explored teacher perspectives on the use of socioscientific issues (SSI) and on dealing with ethics in the context of science instruction. Twenty-two middle and high school science teachers from three US states participated in semi-structured interviews, and researchers employed inductive analyses to explore emergent patterns relative to the following two questions. (1) How do science teachers conceptualize the place of ethics in science and science education? (2) How do science teachers handle topics with ethical implications and expression of their own values in their classrooms? Profiles were developed to capture the views and reported practices, relative to the place of ethics in science and science classrooms, of participants. Profile A comprising teachers who embraced the notion of infusing science curricula with SSI and cited examples of using controversial topics in their classes. Profile B participants supported SSI curricula in theory but reported significant constraints which prohibited them from actualizing these goals. Profile C described teachers who were non-committal with respect to focusing instruction on SSI and ethics. Profile D was based on the position that science and science education should be value-free. Profile E transcended the question of ethics in science education; these teachers felt very strongly that all education should contribute to their students' ethical development. Participants also expressed a wide range of perspectives regarding the expression of their own values in the classroom. Implications of this research for science education are discussed.

Computational perspectives in the history of science: to the memory of Peter Damerow.

PubMed

Laubichler, Manfred D; Maienschein, Jane; Renn, Jürgen

2013-03-01

Computational methods and perspectives can transform the history of science by enabling the pursuit of novel types of questions, dramatically expanding the scale of analysis (geographically and temporally), and offering novel forms of publication that greatly enhance access and transparency. This essay presents a brief summary of a computational research system for the history of science, discussing its implications for research, education, and publication practices and its connections to the open-access movement and similar transformations in the natural and social sciences that emphasize big data. It also argues that computational approaches help to reconnect the history of science to individual scientific disciplines.

Planetary geomorphology: Some historical/analytical perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baker, V. R.

2015-07-01

Three broad themes from the history of planetary geomorphology provide lessons in regard to the logic (valid reasoning processes) for the doing of that science. The long controversy over the origin of lunar craters, which was dominated for three centuries by the volcanic hypothesis, provides examples of reasoning on the basis of authority and a priori presumptions. Percival Lowell's controversy with geologists over the nature of linear markings on the surface of Mars illustrates the role of tenacity in regard to the beliefs of some individual scientists. Finally, modern controversies over the role of water in shaping the surface of Mars illustrate how the a priori method, i.e., belief produced according to reason, can seductively cloud the scientific openness to the importance of brute facts that deviate from a prevailing paradigm.

Pedotransfer functions in Earth system science: challenges and perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Looy, K.; Minasny, B.; Nemes, A.; Verhoef, A.; Weihermueller, L.; Vereecken, H.

2017-12-01

We make a stronghold for a new generation of Pedotransfer functions (PTFs) that is currently developed in the different disciplines of Earth system science, offering strong perspectives for improvement of integrated process-based models, from local to global scale applications. PTFs are simple to complex knowledge rules that relate available soil information to soil properties and variables that are needed to parameterize soil processes. To meet the methodological challenges for a successful application in Earth system modeling, we highlight how PTF development needs to go hand in hand with suitable extrapolation and upscaling techniques such that the PTFs correctly capture the spatial heterogeneity of soils. Most actively pursued recent developments are related to parameterizations of solute transport, heat exchange, soil respiration and organic carbon content, root density and vegetation water uptake. We present an outlook and stepwise approach to the development of a comprehensive set of PTFs that can be applied throughout a wide range of disciplines of Earth system science, with emphasis on land surface models. Novel sensing techniques and soil information availability provide a true breakthrough for this, yet further improvements are necessary in three domains: 1) the determining of unknown relationships and dealing with uncertainty in Earth system modeling; 2) the step of spatially deploying this knowledge with PTF validation at regional to global scales; and 3) the integration and linking of the complex model parameterizations (coupled parameterization). Integration is an achievable goal we will show.

Polar Perspectives on Art and Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rennermalm, A. K.; Salzman, H.; Gustafson, D.

2014-12-01

The rapidly changing climate and environment in polar regions in the 20th and 21st centuries are well documented by scientists. Yet, this understanding is not well disseminated to students and the general public because the language of science is often inaccessible to these groups. To increase participation in science about the changing Polar regions, we organized a series of interdisciplinary events at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, in 2013/14 called "Polar Perspectives on Art and Science". This series brought five artist/scholars to Rutgers and reached a broad audience of students, faculty and the general public. Accompanying this series were two high-profile events. First, the Zimmerli Art Museum's academic-year-long exhibit, "Glacial Perspectives," displayed paintings and photographs by Diane Burko documenting rapidly changing glacial, and polar landscapes. Second, the "Let Us Talk About Water" event included a screening of the documentary "Chasing Ice" followed by a panel discussion at the Rutgers Cinema. Financial support was provided by Zimmerli Art Museum's Andrew W. Mellon Endowment Fund, Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrological Sciences, Inc., Rutgers Centers for Global Advancement and International Affairs, GAIA, and many other Rutgers institutes and departments. Student feedback on the "Polar Perspectives on Science and Art" suggest that art was effective in enhancing engagement and understanding of contemporary polar change. Furthermore, the many events created a forum for reoccurring and stimulating discussions among people with their academic home in widely different disciplines, including humanities, and physical and social sciences.

The Effects of Argumentation Implementation on Environmental Education Self Efficacy Beliefs and Perspectives According to Environmental Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fettahlioglu, Pinar

2018-01-01

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of argumentation implementation applied in the environmental science course on science teacher candidates' environmental education self-efficacy beliefs and perspectives according to environmental problems. In this mixed method research study, convergent parallel design was utilized.…

How Do Business and Government Interact? Combining Perspectives from Economics, Political Science, Public Administration, and Practitioners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Neill, Patrick B.; Harsell, Dana Michael

2015-01-01

The authors describe the theoretical preparation provided to students in advance of a limited-duration experiential learning experience in Washington DC in a Master's level course for students in Business or Public Administration. The students consider theoretical perspectives from economics, political science, and public administration with…

Neo-Colonialism in Our Schools: Representations of Indigenous Perspectives in Ontario Science Curricula

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kim, Eun-Ji Amy

2015-01-01

Motivated by the striking under-representation of Indigenous students in the field of science and technology, the Ontario Ministry of Education has attempted to integrate Aboriginal perspectives into their official curricula in hopes of making a more culturally relevant curriculum for Indigenous students. Using hermeneutic content analysis (HCA),…

Puerto Ricans in Science and Biomedicine: Report of a Conference.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

American Association for the Advancement of Science, Washington, DC.

Twelve divisions and institutes of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) cosponsored this conference to examine the barriers to participation of Puerto Ricans in the United States to careers in science and biomedicine. Areas addressed during the conference included: (1) perspectives from the NIH; (2) historical and modern perspectives of…

Perspective of Lecturers in Implementing PISMP Science Curriculum in Malaysia's IPG

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yahya, Fauziah Hj; Bin Hamdan, Abdul Rahim; Jantan, Hafsah Binti; Saleh, Halimatussadiah Binti

2015-01-01

The article aims to identify lecturers' perspectives in implementing PISMP science curriculum in IPG Malaysia based on teaching experience with KIPP model. The respondents consisted of 105 lecturers from 20 IPG Malaysia. The study used a questionnaire consisting of 74 items covering the four dimensions (Context, Input, Process and Product). Data…

Perspectives on Peer-Mentoring from Taiwanese Science and Engineering Master's Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lin, Yii-nii

2014-01-01

The purpose of this study is to describe the peer-mentoring experience from the perspective of 16 master's students majoring in science or engineering at a research-oriented university in Taiwan. Utilizing a qualitative method of phenomenology, these mentees shared their views about their peer-mentors through in-depth interviews. Participants…

Rethinking Environmental Science Education from Indigenous Knowledge Perspectives: An Experience with a Dene First Nation Community

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Datta, Ranjan Kumar

2018-01-01

This auto-ethnographic article explores how land-based education might challenge Western environmental science education (ESE) in an Indigenous community. This learning experience was developed from two perspectives: first, land-based educational stories from Dene First Nation community Elders, knowledge holders, teachers, and students; and…

A Spacefaring People: Perspectives on Early Spaceflight.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roland, Alex

A conference on the history of space activity was convened at Yale University in 1981 and perspectives from history, political science, journalism, politics, science, and literature were exchanged. The essays in this publication serve as the proceedings for that conference. The papers are presented in four major theme areas. These include: (1)…

Content Analysis of Science Books for Upper Primary Stage in Jordan and Intermediate Stage in Saudi Arabia from an Islamic Perspective: Analytical Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Aldossari, Ali Tarad; Al Khaldi, Jamal Khalil; Altarawneh, Mohammad Hasan

2016-01-01

This study aims to identify the current situation of science books in Jordan and Saudi Arabia from an Islamic perspective. For this end, the content analysis approach has been used through the analysis of the unit concept in the science books for the seventh, eighth and ninth grades in the academic year (2015/2016) in Jordan and Saudi Arabia. The…

Geometric, Kinematic and Radiometric Aspects of Image-Based Measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Liu, Tianshu

2002-01-01

This paper discusses theoretical foundations of quantitative image-based measurements for extracting and reconstructing geometric, kinematic and dynamic properties of observed objects. New results are obtained by using a combination of methods in perspective geometry, differential geometry. radiometry, kinematics and dynamics. Specific topics include perspective projection transformation. perspective developable conical surface, perspective projection under surface constraint, perspective invariants, the point correspondence problem. motion fields of curves and surfaces. and motion equations of image intensity. The methods given in this paper arc useful for determining morphology and motion fields of deformable bodies such as elastic bodies. viscoelastic mediums and fluids.

Computer-assisted cartography: an overview.

USGS Publications Warehouse

Guptill, S.C.; Starr, L.E.

1984-01-01

An assessment of the current status of computer-assisted cartography, in part, is biased by one's view of the cartographic process as a whole. From a traditional viewpoint we are concerned about automating the mapping process; from a progressive viewpoint we are concerned about using the tools of computer science to convey spatial information. On the surface these viewpoints appear to be in opposition. However, it is postulated that in the final analysis, they face the same goal. This overview uses the perspectives from two viewpoints to depict the current state of computer-assisted cartography and speculate on future goals, trends, and challenges.-Authors

Interdisciplinary research and education at the biology-engineering-computer science interface: a perspective.

PubMed

Tadmor, Brigitta; Tidor, Bruce

2005-09-01

Progress in the life sciences, including genome sequencing and high-throughput experimentation, offers an opportunity for understanding biology and medicine from a systems perspective. This 'new view', which complements the more traditional component-based approach, involves the integration of biological research with approaches from engineering disciplines and computer science. The result is more than a new set of technologies. Rather, it promises a fundamental reconceptualization of the life sciences based on the development of quantitative and predictive models to describe crucial processes. To achieve this change, learning communities are being formed at the interface of the life sciences, engineering and computer science. Through these communities, research and education will be integrated across disciplines and the challenges associated with multidisciplinary team-based science will be addressed.

Understanding adolescent student perceptions of science education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ebert, Ellen Kress

This study used the Relevance of Science Education (ROSE) survey (Sjoberg & Schreiner, 2004) to examine topics of interest and perspectives of secondary science students in a large school district in the southwestern U.S. A situated learning perspective was used to frame the project. The research questions of this study focused on (a) perceptions students have about themselves and their science classroom and how these beliefs may influence their participation in the community of practice of science; (b) consideration of how a future science classroom where the curriculum is framed by the Next Generation Science Standards might foster students' beliefs and perceptions about science education and their legitimate peripheral participation in the community of practice of science; and (c) reflecting on their school science interests and perspectives, what can be inferred about students' identities as future scientists or STEM field professionals? Data were collected from 515 second year science students during a 4-week period in May of 2012 using a Web-based survey. Data were disaggregated by gender and ethnicity and analyzed descriptively and by statistical comparison between groups. Findings for Research Question 1 indicated that boys and girls showed statistically significant differences in scientific topics of interest. There were no statistical differences between ethnic groups although. For Research Question 2, it was determined that participants reported an increase in their interest when they deemed the context of the content to be personally relevant. Results for Research Question 3 showed that participants do not see themselves as youthful scientists or as becoming scientists. While participants value the importance of science in their lives and think all students should take science, they do not aspire to careers in science. Based on this study, a need for potential future work has been identified in three areas: (a) exploration of the perspectives and interests of non-mainstream students and urban students whose representation in this study was limited; (b) investigation of topics where students expressed low interests topics; and (c) development and design of authentic communities of practice in the science classroom.

A Conceptual Analysis of Perspective Taking in Support of Socioscientific Reasoning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kahn, Sami

Scientific literacy is concerned with the informed citizens' ability to negotiate scientifically-related societal issues. The suite of skills necessary to negotiate these complex issues is referred to as Socioscientific Reasoning (SSR). SSR requires, among other things, perspective-taking abilities in order to consider the multi-faceted nature of these open-ended, debatable socioscientific issues (SSI). Developing interventions and instruments to foster and measure perspective taking in support of SSR is therefore critical to the promotion of functional scientific literacy through both research and practice. Although widely studied in many disciplines, perspective taking is a particularly tangled construct that has been used to describe a range of activities representing different psychological domains and applied interchangeably with related constructs such as role taking, empathy, and theory of mind. This ambiguity makes it difficult to ensure construct validity and prevents science education researchers from honing in on the precise skills they wish to study and promote. To clarify the construct of perspective taking, this study undertook a conceptual analysis to operationalize perspective taking, drawing comparisons and distinctions between it and related constructs. Further, by applying a method known as conception development, perspective taking was positioned in the context of SSR, particularly as it relates to moral development, in order to devise a more precise construct relating perspective taking to SSR called socioscientific perspective taking (SSPT). It is asserted that SSPT requires engagement with others or their circumstances, an etic/emic shift, and a moral context comprised of reflective and reflexive judgment. Finally, in order to identify promising interventions for promoting SSPT in the science classroom, the newly-developed SSPT construct was applied to a series of extensively researched curricular frameworks that promote perspective taking in three non-science disciplines including historical empathy (social studies education), method acting (theater education), and autism intervention (special education). The aim of this theoretical inquiry was to translate successful perspective-taking interventions into SSI contexts, yielding an array of promising approaches for fostering SSPT while assessing the feasibility of each of these fields as potential sources for novel and expansive work in SSI to promote scientific literacy. Implications for science education research and practice are discussed.

Spaceship Earth: A partnership in curriculum writing

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lindstrom, Marilyn M.

1993-01-01

As the Apollo astronauts left Earth to venture onto the surface of another planetary body, they saw their home planet in a new global perspective. Unmanned NASA missions have given us a closer look at all the other planets in our solar system and emphasized the uniqueness of Earth as the only place in our solar system that can sustain life as we know it. Spaceship Earth is a new science curriculum which was developed to help students and teachers to explore the Earth, to see it in the global perspective, and to understand the relationships among life, the planet, and the sun. Astronaut photographs, especially shuttle pictures, are used as groundbased studies to help students to understand global Earth Science and integrate various aspects of physical, life, and social science. The Spaceship Earth curriculum was developed at by a team of JSC scientists working in collaboration with teachers from local school districts. This project was done under the auspices of Partner-In-Space, a local non-profit organization dedicated to improving science education and our general knowledge of space. The team met once a month for a year then assembled the curriculum during the summer. The project is now in the testing stage as the teachers try it out in their classrooms. It was supported by the Texas Education Agency and will be offered by the State of Texas as a supplemental curriculum for statewide use. Because the curriculum was developed by teachers, it is self contained and the lessons are easy to implement and give students concrete experiences. The three sub-units follow in a logical order, but may be used independently. If they are used separately, they may be tied together by the teacher returning to the basic theme of the global Earth as each unit is completed.

Perspectives on modeling in cognitive science.

PubMed

Shiffrin, Richard M

2010-10-01

This commentary gives a personal perspective on modeling and modeling developments in cognitive science, starting in the 1950s, but focusing on the author's personal views of modeling since training in the late 1960s, and particularly focusing on advances since the official founding of the Cognitive Science Society. The range and variety of modeling approaches in use today are remarkable, and for many, bewildering. Yet to come to anything approaching adequate insights into the infinitely complex fields of mind, brain, and intelligent systems, an extremely wide array of modeling approaches is vital and necessary. Copyright © 2010 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

The Health Needs of Young Women: Applying a Feminist Philosophical Lens to Nursing Science and Practice.

PubMed

Burton, Candace W

2016-01-01

Ongoing development of nursing science requires attention to the philosophical and theoretical bases upon which the science is built. A feminist theoretical perspective offers a useful lens for understanding the needs of both nurses and their clients. Adolescent and young adult women are an underserved and understudied population for whom nursing care can be especially beneficial. Considering the needs of this population from a philosophical perspective, through a feminist lens, is one effective means of developing nursing science approaches that contribute to and ultimately improve care for adolescent and young adult women.

A multi-level systems perspective for the science of team science.

PubMed

Börner, Katy; Contractor, Noshir; Falk-Krzesinski, Holly J; Fiore, Stephen M; Hall, Kara L; Keyton, Joann; Spring, Bonnie; Stokols, Daniel; Trochim, William; Uzzi, Brian

2010-09-15

This Commentary describes recent research progress and professional developments in the study of scientific teamwork, an area of inquiry termed the "science of team science" (SciTS, pronounced "sahyts"). It proposes a systems perspective that incorporates a mixed-methods approach to SciTS that is commensurate with the conceptual, methodological, and translational complexities addressed within the SciTS field. The theoretically grounded and practically useful framework is intended to integrate existing and future lines of SciTS research to facilitate the field's evolution as it addresses key challenges spanning macro, meso, and micro levels of analysis.

The Health Needs of Young Women: Applying a feminist philosophical lens to nursing science and practice

PubMed Central

Burton, Candace W.

2016-01-01

Ongoing development of nursing science requires attention to the philosophical and theoretical basis upon which the science is built. A feminist theoretical perspective offers a useful lens for understanding the needs of both nurses and their clients. Adolescent and young adult women are an underserved and understudied population for whom nursing care can be especially beneficial. Considering the needs of this population from a philosophical perspective, through a feminist lens, is one effective means of developing nursing science approaches that contribute to and ultimately improve care for adolescent and young adult women. PMID:27149225

The Role of Science and Technology in the Advancement of Women Worldwide

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

Hays, I.; Farhar, B.

Participants at the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, China, created a Platform for Action focusing on 12 critical areas of concern (poverty, education and training, health, violence, armed conflict, economy, decision-making, institutional mechanisms, human rights, the media, environment, and the girl child) and the serious barriers to women's health and well-being in each area. Subsequently, the Department of Energy funded a study, described here, that shows, in a literature review and in interviews with 15 women experts, how science and technology can be integral to women's advancement in each of the 12 critical areas. Among themore » study's conclusions are that differing perspectives exist (pro-science, relativist, and skeptical) on the role of science and technology in women's lives and that these differing perspectives may explain why communication is difficult among policy makers and with scientists about the role science and technology may play in the advancem ent of women worldwide. Recommendations call for women's involvement in the ethics of science; removal of institutional barriers to advancing women; greater accountability in use of resources; changes in science education; and increased dialogue among those with differing perspectives on the role of science and technology in the advancement of women.« less

Understanding the Language Demands on Science Students from an Integrated Science and Language Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seah, Lay Hoon; Clarke, David John; Hart, Christina Eugene

2014-04-01

This case study of a science lesson, on the topic thermal expansion, examines the language demands on students from an integrated science and language perspective. The data were generated during a sequence of 9 lessons on the topic of 'States of Matter' in a Grade 7 classroom (12-13 years old students). We identify the language demands by comparing students' writings with the scientific account of expansion that the teacher intended the students to learn. The comparison involved both content analysis and lexicogrammatical (LG) analysis. The framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics was adopted for the LG analysis. Our analysis reveals differences in the meaning and the way LG resources were employed between the students' writings and the scientific account. From these differences, we found the notion of condition-of-use for LG resources to be a significant aspect of the language that students need to appropriate in order to employ the language of school science appropriately. This notion potentially provides a means by which teachers could concurrently address the conceptual and representational demands of science learning. Finally, we reflect on how the complementary use of content analysis and LG analysis provides a way for integrating the science and language perspectives in order to understand the demands of learning science through language.

Conceptualising Knowledge for Access in the Sciences: Academic Development from a Social Realist Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ellery, Karen

2017-01-01

Whilst arguing from a social realist perspective that knowledge matters in academic development (AD) curricula, this paper addresses the question of what knowledge types and practices are necessary for enabling epistemological access. It presents a single, in-depth, qualitative case study in which the curriculum of a science AD course is…

The Impacts of the Annual Professional Performance Review in New York State: Science Teachers' and Administrators' Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mintz, Jessica A.

2017-01-01

The goal of this study was to investigate New York State's Annual Professional Performance Review (APPR) from the perspectives of secondary science teachers and their administrators. Examining their perceptions through interviews was insightful due to the subjects' proximity to the teaching and learning processes. Five science…

The Perspectives of Elementary Teachers Regarding the Integration of the JASON Project into the Science Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

George, Belinda Chantelle Richardson

2015-01-01

This phenomenological narrative study was to explore nine elementary teachers' perspectives of the integration of the JASON Project virtual field trip into the science curriculum. Study findings indicated that the teachers saw an increase in student participation when implementing the JASON Project virtual field trip. The most significant findings…

Scientific Literacy: A Freirean Perspective as a Radical View of Humanistic Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dos Santos, Wildson L. P.

2009-01-01

In this article, a rationale for advancing a new idea in humanistic science education is developed from a Paulo Freire perspective. Paulo Freire developed a well-known approach to adult literacy based on his humanistic ideas through the dialogical process. From Freirean educational principles, the idea unfolds that a Freirean humanistic science…

Parental Judgments of Early Childhood Intervention Personnel Practices: Applying a Consumer Science Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bruder, Mary Beth; Dunst, Carl J.

2015-01-01

Parents of young children participating in either Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C early intervention or IDEA Part B-619 preschool special education programs were surveyed to obtain a consumer science perspective of the practitioners who were the children's primary service providers. Parents were asked to make judgments of…

College Students' Opinions of Engaging Approaches in a Physical Science Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gonzalez-Espada, Wilson

2009-01-01

Physical science courses have historically been taught from a variety of perspectives or emphases. In many cases, the instructor decides on the perspective and textbook for nonscience majors, so students rarely have a voice in the decision. This top-down approach and a potential gap between what instructors and students expect from a general…

How Relevant Is R. S. Peters' Conception of Education to Science Education?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hadzigeorgiou, Yannis; Stamatis, Panagiotis

2017-01-01

This paper discusses R. S. Peters' concept of education, particularly his notion of cognitive perspective and its relevance to school science education. In light of the problems inherent in any attempt to define the notion of scientific literacy, it is argued that the development of cognitive perspective can be considered an important, if not the…

Teachers, Technology, and Training. Perspectives on Education and School Reform: A Focus on the Technological Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donlevy, James G.; Donlevy, Tia Rice

1996-01-01

The language of school reform is rooted predominantly in the technological perspective. Reviews technological, psychological, ideological, and sociological (descriptive and prescriptive) perspectives and elaborates on the technological, highlighting the need for competitive education, especially in math and science; efficient programs (physical…

Gray and Green Revisited: A Multidisciplinary Perspective of Gardens, Gardening, and the Aging Process

PubMed Central

Wright, Scott D.; Wadsworth, Amy Maida

2014-01-01

Over fourteen years ago, the concept of “gray and green” was first introduced by Wright and Lund (2000) to represent a new awareness and a call for increased scholarship at the intersection of environmental issues and the aging process. This review paper revisits that concept with a fresh perspective on the specific role of gardens and gardening in the aging experience. As example, gardening is one of the most popular home-based leisure activities in the US and represents an important activity in the lives of older adults in a variety of residential settings. Yet, there has been a lack of any comprehensive and multidisciplinary (science and humanities) examination of the nexus between gardening and the aging experience, and in particular with research connections to stewardship and caring. In this paper, we review contemporary articles demonstrating the multidisciplinarity of gardening and the aging process. First, we will focus on the beneficial psychological effects resulting from the cultivation of caring, including personal contentment and artistic expression. Second, we will focus on stewardship and how gardening increases health, community awareness, and a connection to future generations. On the surface, this may demonstrate a separation between the humanities and science, but we will clarify a symbiotic relationship between the two disciplines in our conclusion. PMID:24734179

Education biographies from the science pipeline: An analysis of Latino/a student perspectives on ethnic and gender identity in higher education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lujan, Vanessa Beth

This study is a qualitative narrative analysis on the importance and relevance of the ethnic and gender identities of 17 Latino/a (Hispanic) college students in the biological sciences. This research study asks the question of how one's higher education experience within the science pipeline shapes an individual's direction of study, attitudes toward science, and cultural/ethnic and gender identity development. By understanding the ideologies of these students, we are able to better comprehend the world-makings that these students bring with them to the learning process in the sciences. Informed by life history narrative analysis, this study examines Latino/as and their persisting involvement within the science pipeline in higher education and is based on qualitative observations and interviews of student perspectives on the importance of the college science experience on their ethnic identity and gender identity. The findings in this study show the multiple interrelationships from both Latino male and Latina female narratives, separate and intersecting, to reveal the complexities of the Latino/a group experience in college science. By understanding from a student perspective how the science pipeline affects one's cultural, ethnic, or gender identity, we can create a thought-provoking discussion on why and how underrepresented student populations persist in the science pipeline in higher education. The conditions created in the science pipeline and how they affect Latino/a undergraduate pathways may further be used to understand and improve the quality of the undergraduate learning experience.

Perspectives of women of color in science-based education and careers. Summary of the conference on diversity in science

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

NONE

1998-12-01

Research on inequality or stratification in science and engineering tends to concentrate on black/white or male/female difference; very few studies have discussions of both race and gender. Consequently, very little is known about the exact course that women of color take in science-based education and employment or about the course that steers them out of science-based careers. Questions abound: What are the environmental factors that affect the choices in education and science-based careers of women of color? What has influenced women of color who currently are in science-based careers? Is critical mass important and, if so, what are the keysmore » to increasing it? What recommendations can be made to colleges and universities, faculty members, employers, the federal government, women of color themselves, and to improve the conditions and numbers of women of color in science-based careers? These questions prompted the National Research Council`s Committee on Women in Science and Engineering (CWSE) to convene a conference on Diversity in Science: Perspectives on the Retention of Minority Women in Science, Engineering, and Health-Care Professions, held on October 21--23, 1995. Confronting the problem of the lack of knowledge about the journey of women of color in science-based education and career, the conference offered opportunities for these women to describe the paths that they have taken and to identify strategies for success. Their perspectives ground this report. For purposes of this document, women of color include women in the following racial or ethnic groups: Hispanics, African-Americans, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and American Indians and Alaskan Natives. Science-based careers include those in the physical sciences and mathematics, life sciences, social sciences, and engineering.« less

Sociocultural Influences on Science Education: Innovation for Contemporary Times

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carter, Lyn

2008-01-01

This paper reviews the significant sociocultural literatures on science studies, cultural diversity, and sustainability science to develop theoretical perspectives for science education more suitable to the challenges of contemporaneity. While the influences of science studies and cultural diversity are not uncommon within the science education…

Weberian perspectives on science, technology and the economy.

PubMed

Schroeder, Ralph; Swedberg, Richard

2002-09-01

Several disciplines have contributed to the understanding of the relationship between science, technology, and economic change. Weber's perspective on this relationship, however, has not been properly explored. In the first part of this paper, we give an account of Weber's perspective. In the second part, we critically assess Weber's ideas, indicating those that are useful and those that deserve to be abandoned. We also confront a revised Weberian perspective with those of the main contemporary competitors, the key ideas of economists and economic historians on one side and social constructivists on the other. We conclude that a Weberian comparative-historical approach compares favourably with these competitors, and suggest where his approach still requires further work.

Interaction of acidic trace gases with ice from a surface science perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waldner, A.; Kong, X.; Ammann, M.; Orlando, F.; Birrer, M.; Artiglia, L.; Bartels-Rausch, T.

2016-12-01

Acidic trace gases, such as HCOOH, HCl and HONO, play important roles in atmospheric chemistry. The presence of ice is known to have the capability to modify this chemistry (Neu et al. 2012). The molecular level processes of the interaction of acidic trace gases with ice are still a matter of debate and a quantification of the uptake is difficult (Dash et al. 2006, Bartels-Rausch et al. 2014, Huthwelker et al. 2006). This hampers a proper inclusion of ice as a substrate in models of various scales as for example in global chemistry climate models that would among others allow predicting large-scale effects of ice clouds. So far, direct observations of the ice surface and of the interaction with trace gases at temperatures and concentrations relevant to the environment are very limited. In this study, we take advantage of the surface and analytical sensitivity as well as the chemical selectivity of photoemission and absorption spectroscopy performed at ambient pressure using the near ambient pressure photoemission endstation (NAPP) at Swiss Light Source to overcome this limitation in environmental science (Orlando et al. 2016). Specifically, ambient pressure X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) allows us to get information about chemical state and concentration depth profiles of dopants. The combination of XPS with auger electron yield Near-Edge X-ray Absorption Fine Structure (NEXAFS) enables us to locate the dopant and analyse wheather the interaction leads to enhanced surface disorder and to what extent different disorders influences the uptake of the trace gas. For the first time, this study looks directly at the interaction of HCOOH, the strongest organic acid, with ice at 2 different temperatures (233 and 253 K) relevant for environmental science by means of electron spectroscopy. XPS depth profiles indicate that the HCOOH basically remains within the topmost ice layers and O K-edge NEXAFS analysis show that the interaction ice-HCOOH does not lead to enhanced surface disorder at environmentally relevant conditions.

Nursing science leaders.

PubMed

Ortiz, Mario R

2015-04-01

This introduces the guest author's column on perspectives on the development of leaders in science. The need for leadership in science is discussed and a model for the development of science leaders in nursing is outlined. © The Author(s) 2015.

Science, religion, and constructivism: constructing and understanding reality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Upadhyay, Bhaskar

2010-03-01

There have been debates about the place of religion in science and in what ways knowledge that is produced through religion can aid in the learning and teaching of science. The discord between science and religion is mainly focused on whose knowledge is better in describing and explaining the reality. Constructivist epistemology seems to give some scholars hope in the possibility that the discord between science and religion can be ameliorated and that their expressions of reality can co-exist. In this forum contribution I present some Hindu perspectives to re-interpret how science and Hinduism explain reality. I have used only few Hindu perspectives based on selected Hindu writings, particularly Vedanta, to expand on objectivity and reality. Finally, I recommend that social constructivism may be a better framework in keeping science and religion discord at bay.

Basic science right, not basic science lite: medical education at a crossroad.

PubMed

Fincher, Ruth-Marie E; Wallach, Paul M; Richardson, W Scott

2009-11-01

This perspective is a counterpoint to Dr. Brass' article, Basic biomedical sciences and the future of medical education: implications for internal medicine. The authors review development of the US medical education system as an introduction to a discussion of Dr. Brass' perspectives. The authors agree that sound scientific foundations and skill in critical thinking are important and that effective educational strategies to improve foundational science education should be implemented. Unfortunately, many students do not perceive the relevance of basic science education to clinical practice.The authors cite areas of disagreement. They believe it is unlikely that the importance of basic sciences will be diminished by contemporary directions in medical education and planned modifications of USMLE. Graduates' diminished interest in internal medicine is unlikely from changes in basic science education.Thoughtful changes in education provide the opportunity to improve understanding of fundamental sciences, the process of scientific inquiry, and translation of that knowledge to clinical practice.

Science diplomacy: Investigating the perspective of scholars on politics-science collaboration in international affairs.

PubMed

Fähnrich, Birte

2017-08-01

Science diplomacy is a widely practiced area of international affairs, but academic research is rather sparse. The role of academia within this field of politics-science interaction has hardly been considered. This article analyzes this scholarly perspective: Based on a literature review, a case study of a German science diplomacy program is used to explore objectives, benefits, and constraints of science diplomacy for participating scholars. While political approaches suggest an ideal world where both sides profit from the collaboration, the findings of the case study point to another conclusion which shows that the interaction of scholars and officials in science diplomacy is far more complex. Thus, the contribution is regarded as both a useful starting point for further research and for a critical reflection of academics and politicians in science diplomacy practice to gauge what can be expected from the collaboration and what cannot.

Teaching Science Is a Sacred Act

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Madden, Lauren

2018-01-01

Science, as enterprise and epistemology, has been politicized. This essay recounts one science teacher educator's perspective and experience on this politicization of science and describes the necessity for preservice and practicing teachers to understand the nature and process of science. The role of teachers in advocating for science is clearly…

Science for Real Life

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hammerman, Elizabeth

2008-01-01

State and national standards identify what students should know and be able to do, including what it means to "do" science, the historical significance of science achievement and its ethical underpinnings, and science from the human perspective. Middle level science programs that address the full range of science standards and connect learning to…

Perspectives of Science Communication Training Held by Lecturers of Biotechnology and Science Communication

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Edmondston, Joanne; Dawson, Vaille

2014-01-01

Science communication training for undergraduate science students has been recommended to improve future scientists' ability to constructively engage with the public. This study examined biotechnology lecturers' and science communication lecturers' views of science communication training and its possible inclusion in a biotechnology degree course…

Health care organizations as complex systems: new perspectives on design and management.

PubMed

McDaniel, Reuben R; Driebe, Dean J; Lanham, Holly Jordan

2013-01-01

We discuss the impact of complexity science on the design and management of health care organizations over the past decade. We provide an overview of complexity science issues and their impact on thinking about health care systems, particularly with the rising importance of information systems. We also present a complexity science perspective on current issues in today's health care organizations and suggest ways that this perspective might help in approaching these issues. We review selected research, focusing on work in which we participated, to identify specific examples of applications of complexity science. We then take a look at information systems in health care organizations from a complexity viewpoint. Complexity science is a fundamentally different way of understanding nature and has influenced the thinking of scholars and practitioners as they have attempted to understand health care organizations. Many scholars study health care organizations as complex adaptive systems and through this perspective develop new management strategies. Most important, perhaps, is the understanding that attention to relationships and interdependencies is critical for developing effective management strategies. Increased understanding of complexity science can enhance the ability of researchers and practitioners to develop new ways of understanding and improving health care organizations. This analysis opens new vistas for scholars and practitioners attempting to understand health care organizations as complex adaptive systems. The analysis holds value for those already familiar with this approach as well as those who may not be as familiar.

Wilderness values: Perspectives from non-economic social science

Treesearch

Daniel R. Williams; Alan E. Watson

2007-01-01

The concept of “values” is one of the most widely used to characterize the human dimensions of natural resources. Yet, clearly it means many different things in different disciplines and in everyday discourse. Background information regarding values from a non-economic social science perspective is provided, with an aim towards stretching the dominant economic paradigm...

Experience, Intersubjectivity, and Reflection: A Human Science Perspective on Preparation of Future Professionals in Adaptive Physical Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Standal, Øyvind F.; Rugseth, Gro

2016-01-01

The aim of this article is to show that and how philosophy and philosophical thinking can be of relevance for the preparation of future professionals in adaptive physical activity. To this end we utilize philosophical insights from the human science perspective on two central issues, namely experience and intersubjectivity, which are weaved…

No Child Left Behind and Outreach to Families and Communities: The Perspectives of Exemplary African-American Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coats, Linda T.; Xu, Jianzhong

2013-01-01

This qualitative study examines the perspectives of eight exemplary African-American science teachers toward No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act and their outreach to families and communities in the context of the USA. Data revealed that whereas these exemplary teachers applauded the general intent of NCLB, they were concerned with its overemphasis on…

Using a 17th-Century Experiment as a Gateway to Critical Assessment of Scientific Reports

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shodell, Michael

2010-01-01

It is certainly widely appreciated that there is much to be gained in the fertile crosstalk between science and history--whether bringing a historical perspective into the science classroom (Wieder, 2006) or a scientific perspective to the study of history (McElvaine, 2002; Smail, 2008). Perhaps the major impetus for using history in teaching…

Re-orienting discussions of scientific explanation: A functional perspective.

PubMed

Woody, Andrea I

2015-08-01

Philosophy of science offers a rich lineage of analysis concerning the nature of scientific explanation, but the vast majority of this work, aiming to provide an analysis of the relation that binds a given explanans to its corresponding explanandum, presumes the proper analytic focus rests at the level of individual explanations. There are, however, other questions we could ask about explanation in science, such as: What role(s) does explanatory practice play in science? Shifting focus away from explanations, as achievements, toward explaining, as a coordinated activity of communities, the functional perspective aims to reveal how the practice of explanatory discourse functions within scientific communities given their more comprehensive aims and practices. In this paper, I outline the functional perspective, argue that taking the functional perspective can reveal important methodological roles for explanation in science, and consequently, that beginning here provides resources for developing more adequate responses to traditional concerns. In particular, through an examination of the ideal gas law, I emphasize the normative status of explanations within scientific communities and discuss how such status underwrites a compelling rationale for explanatory power as a theoretical virtue. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The World Society Perspective: Concepts, Assumptions, and Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramirez, Francisco O.

2012-01-01

For decades the world society perspective has influenced comparative research on a broad range of issues across the social sciences. The perspective emerged to make sense of an empirical puzzle: why did nation-state after nation-state expand mass schooling after World War II? The perspective evolved to address broader issues such as the authority…

Implications of R. S. Peters' Notion of "Cognitive Perspective" for Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hadzigeorgiou, Yannis

2017-01-01

This paper discusses R.S. Peters' notion of "cognitive perspective," which, through careful reading, can be interpreted as a wider perspective resulting from an awareness of the relationships of one's knowledge and understanding to one's own life. This interpretation makes cognitive perspective a holistic notion akin to that of…

Supporting Inquiry in Science Classrooms with the Web

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simons, Krista; Clark, Doug

2005-01-01

This paper focuses on Web-based science inquiry and five representative science learning environments. The discussion centers around features that sustain science inquiry, namely, data-driven investigation, modeling, collaboration, and scaffolding. From the perspective of these features five science learning environments are detailed: Whyville,…

Interactions between groundwater and surface water: The state of the science

USGS Publications Warehouse

Sophocleous, M.

2002-01-01

The interactions between groundwater and surface water are complex. To understand these interactions in relation to climate, landform, geology, and biotic factors, a sound hydrogeoecological framework is needed. All these aspects are synthesized and exemplified in this overview. In addition, the mechanisms of interactions between groundwater and surface water (GW-SW) as they affect recharge-discharge processes are comprehensively outlined, and the ecological significance and the human impacts of such interactions are emphasized. Surface-water and groundwater ecosystems are viewed as linked components of a hydrologic continuum leading to related sustainability issues. This overview concludes with a discussion of research needs and challenges facting this evolving field. The biogeochemical processes within the upper few centimeters of sediments beneath nearly all surface-water bodies (hyporheic zone) have a profound effect on the chemistry of the water interchange, and here is where most of the recent research has been focusing. However, to advance conceptual and other modeling of GW-SW systems, a broader perspective of such interactions across and between surface-water bodies is needed, including multidimensional analyses, interface hydraulic characterization and spatial variability, site-to-region regionalization approaches, as well as cross-disciplinary collaborations.

Science and religion: implications for science educators

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reiss, Michael J.

2010-03-01

A religious perspective on life shapes how and what those with such a perspective learn in science; for some students a religious perspective can hinder learning in science. For such reasons Staver's article is to be welcomed as it proposes a new way of resolving the widely perceived discord between science and religion. Staver notes that Western thinking has traditionally postulated the existence and comprehensibility of a world that is external to and independent of human consciousness. This has led to a conception of truth, truth as correspondence, in which our knowledge corresponds to the facts in this external world. Staver rejects such a conception, preferring the conception of truth as coherence in which the links are between and among independent knowledge claims themselves rather than between a knowledge claim and reality. Staver then proposes constructivism as a vehicle potentially capable of resolving the tension between religion and science. My contention is that the resolution between science and religion that Staver proposes comes at too great a cost—both to science and to religion. Instead I defend a different version of constructivism where humans are seen as capable of generating models of reality that do provide richer and more meaningful understandings of reality, over time and with respect both to science and to religion. I argue that scientific knowledge is a subset of religious knowledge and explore the implications of this for science education in general and when teaching about evolution in particular.

Narratives of silenced critiques and how they inform pedagogy and policy: Conversations with low-income urban parents about education, science, and science education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

St. Prix, Courtney Desmond

This dissertation examines the concerns of fourteen, low-income, urban parents for their children's needs in education in general and science education in particular. A motivation behind this investigation is to resist the top-down dissemination of educational policy and value the perspectives of so-called "culturally deprived" parents. I contrast the parents' vision for science education with those expressed by AAAS and NRC. I collected data through interviews, conversation groups, and participant observation conducted at a homeless shelter in a major American city. Initially, I conducted individual interviews that were coded, and themes of social mobility and issues of pedagogy surfaced as major areas of concern for parents. I developed questions under each theme for discussion with parents in conversation groups comprised of five parents. Additional conversation groups were developed later under emergent themes of parent-school relations and science education reform. As an assistant in both the after-school program and the parent-teachers association, I obtained additional data through field-notes. I analyzed the data using critical theory as my lens. However, it was a critical theory that had been repositioned from a eurocentric viewpoint to encompass the critical elements that emerge through the struggles of people of color and women. The parents considered the educational system to be uncaring and inflexible. They expressed that science is not taught in an engaging manner that is relevant to the lives of poor students. There was a great deal of overlap between the parents' vision and that of the science education reform initiatives. However, while the reform initiatives focused on "what" and "how" science was being taught, the parents' recommendations focused on "who" was being taught. They called for a more flexible, caring educational system that pays attention to the needs of the whole child. Finally, I analyzed the parents' perspectives as reflecting enculturation, resistance, or the "third space." This analytical approach helped emphasize the need for dialogue between parents, administrators, and teachers. It showed the need for them to interact in a zone of struggle, but emerge with a shared and understood vision for the development of all children in education and science education.

Terrorism in Pakistan: a behavioral sciences perspective.

PubMed

Nizami, Asad Tamizuddin; Rana, Mowadat Hussain; Hassan, Tariq Mahmood; Minhas, Fareed Aslam

2014-01-01

This article reviews the behavioral science perspectives of terrorism in Pakistan. It can be argued that Pakistan has gained worldwide attention for "terrorism" and its role in the "war against terrorism". The region is well placed geopolitically for economic successes but has been plagued by terrorism in various shapes and forms. A behavioral sciences perspective of terrorism is an attempt to explain it in this part of the world as a complex interplay of historical, geopolitical, anthropological and psychosocial factors and forces. Drawing from theories by Western scholars to explain the behavioral and cognitive underpinnings of a terrorist mind, the authors highlight the peculiarities of similar operatives at individual and group levels. Thorny issues related to the ethical and human right dimensions of the topic are visited from the unique perspective of a society challenged by schisms and divergence of opinions at individual, family, and community levels. The authors have attempted to minimize the political descriptions, although this cannot be avoided entirely, because of the nature of terrorism. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Social behavior in the "Age of Empathy"?-A social scientist's perspective on current trends in the behavioral sciences.

PubMed

Matusall, Svenja

2013-01-01

Recently, several behavioral sciences became increasingly interested in investigating biological and evolutionary foundations of (human) social behavior. In this light, prosocial behavior is seen as a core element of human nature. A central role within this perspective plays the "social brain" that is not only able to communicate with the environment but rather to interact directly with other brains via neuronal mind reading capacities such as empathy. From the perspective of a sociologist, this paper investigates what "social" means in contemporary behavioral and particularly brain sciences. It will be discussed what "social" means in the light of social neuroscience and a glance into the history of social psychology and the brain sciences will show that two thought traditions come together in social neuroscience, combining an individualistic and an evolutionary notion of the "social." The paper concludes by situating current research on prosocial behavior in broader social discourses about sociality and society, suggesting that to naturalize prosocial aspects in human life is a current trend in today's behavioral sciences and beyond.

Social behavior in the “Age of Empathy”?—A social scientist's perspective on current trends in the behavioral sciences

PubMed Central

Matusall, Svenja

2013-01-01

Recently, several behavioral sciences became increasingly interested in investigating biological and evolutionary foundations of (human) social behavior. In this light, prosocial behavior is seen as a core element of human nature. A central role within this perspective plays the “social brain” that is not only able to communicate with the environment but rather to interact directly with other brains via neuronal mind reading capacities such as empathy. From the perspective of a sociologist, this paper investigates what “social” means in contemporary behavioral and particularly brain sciences. It will be discussed what “social” means in the light of social neuroscience and a glance into the history of social psychology and the brain sciences will show that two thought traditions come together in social neuroscience, combining an individualistic and an evolutionary notion of the “social.” The paper concludes by situating current research on prosocial behavior in broader social discourses about sociality and society, suggesting that to naturalize prosocial aspects in human life is a current trend in today's behavioral sciences and beyond. PMID:23755003

What is science in preschool and what do teachers have to know to empower children?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andersson, Kristina; Gullberg, Annica

2014-06-01

In this article we problematize the purpose of teaching science in preschool and the competences preschool teachers need in order to conduct science activities in the classroom. The empirical data were collected through an action research project with five preschool and primary school teachers (K-6). In the first section of this paper we use one situation, a floating-sinking experiment, as an illustration of how two different epistemological perspectives generate different foci on which kind of science teaching competences can be fruitful in preschool settings. In the first perspective, the central goal of science teaching is the development of the children's conceptual understanding. With this perspective, we found that the science activities with children were unsuccessful, because their thoughts about concepts did not develop as expected, the situation even enhanced a "misconception" concerning density. Moreover, the teacher was unsuccessful in supporting the children's conceptual learning. The second perspective uses a feminist approach that scrutinizes science, where we investigate if the floating-sinking activity contributes to a feeling of participation in a scientific context for the children and if so how the teacher promotes this inclusion. This second perspective showed that the children's scientific proficiency benefited from the situation; they had a positive experience with density which was reinforced by the teacher. The children discovered that they had power over their own learning by using an experimental approach. On the basis of these findings, we conclude that there are competences other than subject matter knowledge that are also important when preschool teachers engage children in scientific activities. Through process-oriented work with the teacher group, we identified four concrete skills: paying attention to and using children's previous experiences; capturing unexpected things that happen at the moment they occur; asking questions that challenge the children and that stimulate further investigation; creating a situated presence, that is, "remaining" in the situation and listening to the children and their explanations. We discuss possible ways to move preschool teachers away from their feelings of inadequacy and poor self-confidence in teaching science by reinforcing this kind of pedagogical content knowledge.

Recent Progress on Stability and Passivation of Black Phosphorus.

PubMed

Abate, Yohannes; Akinwande, Deji; Gamage, Sampath; Wang, Han; Snure, Michael; Poudel, Nirakar; Cronin, Stephen B

2018-05-11

From a fundamental science perspective, black phosphorus (BP) is a canonical example of a material that possesses fascinating surface and electronic properties. It has extraordinary in-plane anisotropic electrical, optical, and vibrational states, as well as a tunable band gap. However, instability of the surface due to chemical degradation in ambient conditions remains a major impediment to its prospective applications. Early studies were limited by the degradation of black phosphorous surfaces in air. Recently, several robust strategies have been developed to mitigate these issues, and these novel developments can potentially allow researchers to exploit the extraordinary properties of this material and devices made out of it. Here, the fundamental chemistry of BP degradation and the tremendous progress made to address this issue are extensively reviewed. Device performances of encapsulated BP are also compared with nonencapsulated BP. In addition, BP possesses sensitive anisotropic photophysical surface properties such as excitons, surface plasmons/phonons, and topologically protected and Dirac semi-metallic surface states. Ambient degradation as well as any passivation method used to protect the surface could affect the intrinsic surface properties of BP. These properties and the extent of their modifications by both the degradation and passivation are reviewed. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Socioscientific Issues and Multidisciplinarity in School Science Textbooks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morris, Helen

2014-05-01

The inclusion of socioscientific issues (SSIs) in the science curriculum is a well-established trend internationally. Apart from claims about its innate value, one of the rationales for this approach is its potential for helping to counter declining interest and participation. SSIs involve the use of science and are of interest to society, also raising ethical and moral dilemmas. Introducing such problems presents a significant and usually cross-disciplinary challenge to curriculum developers and teachers. The aim of this paper is to examine how this challenge has been met when judged against contemporary views of the issues concerned. It first explores how SSIs have been interpreted in an important and innovative science course for students aged 14-16 in England, entitled Twenty First Century Science. This paper analyses the Twenty First Century Science textbooks, focusing in detail on two SSIs, reproductive genetic technology and climate change. For each of these issues, the key ideas present in the social science literature surrounding the problems are outlined. This review is then used as an analytical framework to examine how the issues are presented in the textbooks. It is argued in this paper that the perspectives the textbooks take on these issues largely do not include perspectives from social science disciplines. It goes on to suggest that the development of future SSI-based curricula needs to take account of these wider, often interdisciplinary, perspectives.

Rethinking the Theory and Practice of Continuing Professional Development: Science Teachers' Perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mansour, Nasser; EL-Deghaidy, Heba; Alshamrani, Saeed; Aldahmash, Abdulwali

2014-12-01

The aim of this study was to investigate science teachers' views of continuing professional development (CPD) provision in Saudi Arabia and science teachers' perspectives of the CPD contextual issues that have an impact on putting the learning emerging from the CPD programmes into practice. The study used mixed methods (open-ended questionnaires and interviews) with Saudi Arabian science teachers framed by a socio-cultural perspective. This study argues that science teachers' voices concerning their professional development needs should be the key guide for their CPD. Our study shows the significance of engaging critically with science teachers' voices and views of their CPD programme. One of the unique findings of this study indicated CPD programmes should take place at school where teachers have the opportunity to collaborate with others in an authentic context and where they can participate in the content of the CPD that directly meets their needs within their work context. The study has shown that science teacher development can be effective and successful when science teachers are able to talk with each other as part of the learning activities of the CPD programmes about what they are doing in the classroom, and how they can implement the ideas of the CPD programmes into their classroom and school settings. This might shed light on why teachers were either able or unable to put some aspects of their CPD learning into practice.

Beyond Nature of Science: The Case for Reconceptualising "Science" for Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erduran, Sibel

2014-01-01

In this paper, I argue that contemporary accounts of nature of science (NoS) are limited in their depiction of "science" and that new perspectives are needed to broaden their characterisation and appeal for science education. In particular, I refer to the role of interdisciplinary characterisations of science in informing the theory and…

Designing Science Games and Science Toys from the Perspective of Scientific Creativity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Demir Kaçan, Sibel

2015-01-01

This study was conducted with the participation of 21 pre-service science teachers attending the faculty of education of a university in Turkey. The study aims to evaluate pre-service science teachers' science games and science toy designs in terms of scientific creativity. Participants were given a four-week period to design science games or…

Inservice Science Supervisors' Assessments of a Novice Science Teacher's Videotaped Lesson.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zuckerman, June Trop

The purpose of this paper is to inform novice science teachers and science teacher educators of the pedagogy that science teacher supervisors value. As expert practitioners, supervisors have a perspective quite different from that of both novice teachers and teacher educators. Nine inservice science teacher supervisors assessed a novice teacher's…

Science, technology, and society: a cross-disciplinary perspective. [15 papers

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

Spiegel-Roesing, I.; de Solla Price, D.

1977-01-01

Fifteen chapters (17 contributors from 9 disciplines and 6 different countries) look at the critical interdisciplinary questions that make up the spectrum of contemporary academic, policymaking, and social concern over scientific and technological development in today and tomorrow's world. The contents are: The Study of Science, Technology, and Society (SSTS): Recent Trends and Future Challenges, I. Spiegel-Rosing; Science Policy Studies and the Development of Science Policy, Jean-Jacques Salomon; Criticisms of Science, J. R. Ravetz; Sociology of the Scientific Research Community, M. J. Mulkay; Changing Perspectives in the Social History of Science, Roy MacLeod; Conditions of Technical Development, E. Layton; Economicsmore » of Research and Development, C. Freeman; Psychology of Science, R. Fisch; Models for the Development of Science, Gernot Bohme; Scientists, Technologists, and Political Power, Sanford A. Lakoff; Technology and Public Policy, D. Nelkin; Science, Technology, and Military Policy, Harvey M. Sapolsky; Science, Technology, and Foreign Policy, Brigette Schroeder-Gudehus; Science, Technology, and the International System, Eugene B. Skolnikoff; and Science Policy and Developing Countries, Ziauddin Sardar and Dawud G. Rosser-Owen. (MCW)« less

Superhydrophobic Materials for Biomedical Applications

PubMed Central

Colson, Yolonda L.; Grinstaff, Mark W.

2016-01-01

Superhydrophobic surfaces are actively studied across a wide range of applications and industries, and are now finding increased use in the biomedical arena as substrates to control protein adsorption, cellular interaction, and bacterial growth, as well as platforms for drug delivery devices and for diagnostic tools. The commonality in the design of these materials is to create a stable or metastable air state at the material surface, which lends itself to a number of unique properties. These activities are catalyzing the development of new materials, applications, and fabrication techniques, as well as collaborations across material science, chemistry, engineering, and medicine given the interdisciplinary nature of this work. The review begins with a discussion of superhydrophobicity, and then explores biomedical applications that are utilizing superhydrophobicity in depth including material selection characteristics, in vitro performance, and in vivo performance. General trends are offered for each application in addition to discussion of conflicting data in the literature, and the review concludes with the authors’ future perspectives on the utility of superhydrophobic surfaces for biomedical applications. PMID:27449946

Dopamine-assisted co-deposition: An emerging and promising strategy for surface modification.

PubMed

Qiu, Wen-Ze; Yang, Hao-Cheng; Xu, Zhi-Kang

2018-04-27

Mussel-inspired chemistry based on polydopamine (PDA) deposition has been developed as a facile and universal method for the surface modification of various materials. However, the inherent shortcomings of PDA coatings still impede their practical applications in the development of functional materials. In this review, we introduce the recent progress in the emerging dopamine-assisted co-deposition as a one-step strategy for functionalizing PDA-based coatings, and improving them in the aspects of deposition rate, morphology uniformity, surface wettability and chemical stability. The co-deposition mechanisms are categorized and discussed according to the interactions of dopamine or PDA with the introduced co-component. We also emphasize the influence of these interactions on the properties of the resultant PDA-based coatings. Meanwhile, we conclude the representative potential applications of those dopamine-assisted co-deposited coatings in material science, especially including separation membranes and biomaterials. Finally, some important issues and perspectives for theoretical study and applications are briefly discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Organizing human functioning and rehabilitation research into distinct scientific fields. Part I: Developing a comprehensive structure from the cell to society.

PubMed

Stucki, Gerold; Grimby, Gunnar

2007-05-01

There is a need to organize rehabilitation and related research into distinct scientific fields in order to overcome the current limitations of rehabilitation research. Based on the general distinction in basic, applied and professional sciences applicable to research in general, and the rehabilitation relevant distinction between the comprehensive perspective based on WHO's integrative model of human functioning (ICF) and the partial perspective focusing on the biomedical aspects of functioning, it is possible to identify 5 distinct scientific fields of human functioning and rehabilitation research. These are the emerging human functioning sciences and integrative rehabilitation sciences from the comprehensive perspective, the established biosciences and biomedical rehabilitation sciences and engineering from the partial perspective, and the professional rehabilitation sciences at the cutting edge of research and practice. The human functioning sciences aim to understand human functioning and to identify targets for comprehensive interventions, with the goal of contributing to the minimization of the experience of disability in the population. The biosciences in rehabilitation aim to explain body injury and repair and to identify targets for biomedical interventions. The integrative rehabilitation sciences design and study comprehensive assessments and interventions that integrate biomedical, personal factor and environmental approaches suited to optimize people's performance. The biomedical rehabilitation sciences and engineering study diagnostic measures and interventions suitable to minimize impairment, including symptom control, and to optimize people's capacity. The professional rehabilitation sciences study how to provide best care with the goal of enabling people with health conditions experiencing or likely to experience disability to achieve and maintain optimal functioning in interaction with the environment. The organization of human functioning and rehabilitation research into the 5 distinct scientific fields facilitates the development of academic training programs and career building as well as the development of research structures dedicated to human functioning and rehabilitation research.

Faculty Perceptions Regarding the Infusion of Global Perspectives into the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Curriculum: A Comparative Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Magtoto, Ronaldo Lising

2017-01-01

A comparative study was conducted to explore faculty perceptions regarding the infusion of global perspectives into the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) curriculum at Iowa State University. King (1991) provided the original base for the study which enabled a comparison with data recently collected. This study may fill a void in the…

The perspective of evil in understanding and treating child abuse.

PubMed

Garbarino, J; Hershberger, J K

1981-09-01

This paper places the problem of child abuse in the perspective of evil. In so doing it calls into question the amoral assumptions of social science and human services. The current social science paradigm paradoxically dismisses evil as a real factor in the world, despite its concern for indisputably moral issues such as child abuse. The practical advantages of a perspective incorporating evil are several. Among them are a more realistic appreciation of the need for mechanisms of social control in preventing abuse, the role of confession and conversion, and the role of pastoral care as a support system for families.

Finding Science in Students' Talk

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yeo, Jennifer

2009-01-01

What does it mean to understand science? This commentary extends Brown and Kloser's argument on the role of native language for science learning by exploring the meaning of understanding in school science and discusses the extent that science educators could tolerate adulterated forms of scientific knowledge. Taking the perspective of social…

Science Motivation Questionnaire II: Validation with Science Majors and Nonscience Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Glynn, Shawn M.; Brickman, Peggy; Armstrong, Norris; Taasoobshirazi, Gita

2011-01-01

From the perspective of social cognitive theory, the motivation of students to learn science in college courses was examined. The students--367 science majors and 313 nonscience majors--responded to the Science Motivation Questionnaire II, which assessed five motivation components: intrinsic motivation, self-determination, self-efficacy, career…

Nature of Science or Nature of the Sciences?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schizas, Dimitrios; Psillos, Dimitris; Stamou, George

2016-01-01

The present essay examines the emerging issue of domain-general versus domain-specific nature of science (NOS) understandings from a perspective that illuminates the value of domain-specific philosophies of science for the growth and development of the NOS educational field. Under the assumption that individual sciences do have their own…

What Is "Agency"? Perspectives in Science Education Research

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Arnold, Jenny; Clarke, David John

2014-01-01

The contemporary interest in researching student agency in science education reflects concerns about the relevance of schooling and a shift in science education towards understanding learning in science as a complex social activity. The purpose of this article is to identify problems confronting the science education community in the development…

Imaginary Subjects: School Science, Indigenous Students, and Knowledge-Power Relations

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kidman, Joanna; Abrams, Eleanor; McRae, Hiria

2011-01-01

The perspectives of indigenous science learners in developed nations offer an important but frequently overlooked dimension to debates about the nature of science, the science curriculum, and calls from educators to make school science more culturally responsive or "relevant" to students from indigenous or minority groups. In this paper…

On teaching the nature of science: perspectives and resources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Radloff, Jeffrey

2016-06-01

In this paper, I present a critical review of the recent book, On Teaching the Nature of Science: Perspectives and Resources, written by Douglas Allchin (2013). This publication presents an in-depth examination of the nature of science construct, as well as instruction for educators about how to teach it effectively utilizing historical case studies as vehicles for knowledge. Although several themes in the book merit further attention, a central issue present across all chapters is the largely masculine, monocultural nature of science presented, which is common to a multitude of scientific publications. In this review, I illustrate how culture and gender in science is not addressed throughout the book. I also discuss where we can build on the work of the author to integrate more aspects of gender and culture in teaching the nature of science.

Perspectives on the Indigenous Worldviews in Informal Science Education Conference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Venkatesan, Aparna; Burgasser, Adam

2017-11-01

The chronic underrepresentation of Native and indigenous peoples in STEM fields (Fig. 1) has been a longstanding issue in the United States, despite concentrated efforts by many local and national groups, including the Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) to address it. Here we report on the conference on Indigenous Worldviews in Informal Science Education (I-WISE), convened in Albuquerque, NM, on Sept. 2-5, 2015. We share what we learned on the commonalities and differences in perspectives between indigenous knowledge (IK) and Western science; summarize the role that IK is already playing in scientific fields, ranging from astrophysics to medicine to climate change; and describe how IK can help science education and research be more sustainable, inclusive, and respectful to all peoples.

Factors Influencing Postsecondary STEM Students' Views of the Public Communication of an Emergent Technology: a Cross-National Study from Five Universities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Grant E.; Jones, M. Gail; Albe, Virginie; Blonder, Ron; Laherto, Antti; Macher, Daniel; Paechter, Manuela

2017-10-01

Recent efforts in the science education community have highlighted the need to integrate research and theory from science communication research into more general science education scholarship. These synthesized research perspectives are relatively novel but serve an important need to better understand the impacts that the advent of rapidly emerging technologies will have on a new generation of scientists and engineers including their formal communication with engaged citizenry. This cross-national study examined postsecondary science and engineering students' ( n = 254 from five countries: Austria, Finland, France, Israel, and USA) perspectives on the role of science communication in their own formal science and engineering education. More broadly, we examined participants' understanding of their perceived responsibilities of communicating science and engineering to the general public when an issue contains complex social and ethical implications (SEI). The study is contextualized in the emergent technology of nanotechnology for which SEI are of particular concern and for which the general public often perceives conflicting risks and benefits. Findings indicate that student participants' hold similar views on the need for their own training in communication as future scientists and engineers. When asked about the role that ethics and risk perception plays in research, development, and public communication of nanotechnology, participants demonstrate similar trajectories of perspectives that are, however, often anchored in very different levels of beginning concern. Results are discussed in the context of considerations for science communication training within formal science education curricula globally.

James Clerk Maxwell: Life and science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marston, Philip L.

2016-07-01

Maxwell's life and science are presented with an account of the progression of Maxwell's research on electromagnetic theory. This is appropriate for the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies, 2015. Maxwell's own confidence in his 1865 electromagnetic theory of light is examined, along with some of the difficulties he faced and the difficulties faced by some of his followers. Maxwell's interest in radiation pressure and electromagnetic stress is addressed, as well as subsequent developments. Some of Maxwell's other contributions to physics are discussed with an emphasis on the kinetic and molecular theory of gases. Maxwell's theistic perspective on science is illustrated, accompanied by examples of perspectives on Maxwell and his science provided by his peers and accounts of his interactions with those peers. Appendices examine the peer review of Maxwell's 1865 electromagnetic theory paper and the naming of the Maxwell Garnett effective media approximation and provide various supplemental perspectives. From Maxwell's publications and correspondence there is evidence he had a high regard for Michael Faraday. Examples of Maxwell's contributions to electromagnetic terminology are noted.

Biofeedback in Partial Weight Bearing: Usability of Two Different Devices from a Patient's and Physical Therapist's Perspective.

PubMed

van Lieshout, Remko; Pisters, Martijn F; Vanwanseele, Benedicte; de Bie, Rob A; Wouters, Eveline J; Stukstette, Mirelle J

2016-01-01

Partial weight bearing is frequently instructed by physical therapists in patients after lower-limb trauma or surgery. The use of biofeedback devices seems promising to improve the patient's compliance with weight-bearing instructions. SmartStep and OpenGo-Science are biofeedback devices that provide real-time feedback. For a successful implementation, usability of the devices is a critical aspect and should be tested from a user's perspective. To describe the usability from the physical therapists' and a patients' perspective of Smartstep and OpenGo-Science to provide feedback on partial weight bearing during supervised rehabilitation of patients after lower-limb trauma or surgery. In a convergent mixed-methods design, qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Usability was subdivided into user performance, satisfaction and acceptability. Patients prescribed with partial weight bearing and their physical therapists were asked to use SmartStep and OpenGo-Science during supervised rehabilitation. Usability was qualitatively tested by a think-aloud method and a semi-structured interview and quantitatively tested by the System-Usability-Scale (SUS) and closed questions. For the qualitative data thematic content analyses were used. Nine pairs of physical therapists and their patients participated. The mean SUS scores for patients and physical therapists were for SmartStep 70 and 53, and for OpenGo-Science 79 and 81, respectively. Scores were interpreted with the Curved Grading Scale. The qualitative data showed that there were mixed views and perceptions from patients and physical therapists on satisfaction and acceptability. This study gives insight in the usability of two biofeedback devices from the patient's and physical therapist's perspective. The overall usability from both perspectives seemed to be acceptable for OpenGo-Science. For SmartStep, overall usability seemed only acceptable from the patient's perspective. The study findings could help clinicians to decide which biofeedback device is appropriate for their given situation and provide information for future development of biofeedback devices.

The science of animal behavior and welfare: challenges, opportunities and global perspective

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

Animal welfare science is a relatively new scientific discipline. Originally heavily focused on animal behavior, it has emerged into a truly multi- and inter-disciplinary science, encompassing such sciences as behavior, physiology, pathology, immunology, endocrinology and neuroscience, and influence...

Conceptions of systemic reform: California science education as an investigative example

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sachse, Thomas Paul

This study explored three perspectives of systemic reform in the context of the California state strategies for improving science education. The three perspectives are those of conceptualizers, implementers, and government administrators. The California case study is examined during the ten-year period from 1983 to 1993. This study is of particular significance, because it examines science education reforms during the ten-year period of Bill Honig's state superintendency in the largest and most diverse state. By examining the facets of state science reforms from three rather different perspectives, the study contrasts how systemic reform definitions vary with role. This qualitative study employs document analysis, archival reviews, and participant interviews as the primary data collection methods. Document analysis included key curriculum frameworks, project proposals and reports, relevant legislation, and professional correspondence. Archival reviews included databases (such as the California Basic Educational Data System), assessment reports (such as the California Assessment Program---Rationale and Content), and policy analyses (such as the Policy Analysis for California Education---Conditions of Education). Interviews were conducted for each of the three perspectives across five segments of the reform strategy for a total of fifteen interviews. Data analysis consisted of combining detailed reviews of documents, archives, and interview information with an examination of perspectives, by role group. The study concludes with an analysis of how each role group perceived the facets of systemic reform in the context of the California case study of science education reform. In addition, the research points to "lessons learned", the strengths and weaknesses of systemic reform strategies at the state level. The study offers recommendations to other large-scale (state level) policy reformers interested in creating, sustaining, and maintaining lasting change.

A Science Educator's and a Psychologists' Perspective on Research about Science Anxiety.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westerback, Mary E.; Primavera, Louis H.

This document reviews the research related to students' and teachers' anxiety related to science and the teaching of science in order to better understand the relationships between the variables that can predict this phenomenon. The research reports reviewed used either the Science State Trait Anxiety Inventory or the Science Teaching State Trait…

The Science Gap in Canada: A Post-Secondary Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kennepohl, Dietmar

2009-01-01

Despite having its students score among the top in the world in mathematics and science, the level of science literacy and participation in science-related fields in Canada is relatively low. In the context of the economic and societal benefits afforded by science, this article reviews what is already being done in support of science, technology…

The inseparable role of emotions in the teaching and learning of primary school science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siry, Christina; Brendel, Michelle

2016-09-01

In this paper, we seek to explore the inseparable role of emotions in the teaching and the learning of science at the primary school level, as we elaborate the theoretical underpinnings and personal experiences that lead us to this notion of inseparability. We situate our perspectives on the complexity of science education in primary schools, draw on existing literature on emotions in science, and present arguments for the necessity of working towards positive emotions in our work with young children and their teachers. We layer our own perspectives and experiences as teachers and as researchers onto methodological arguments through narratives to emerge with a reflective essay that seeks to highlight the importance of emotions in our work with children and their teachers in elementary school science.

[INVITED] Recent advances in surface plasmon resonance based fiber optic chemical and biosensors utilizing bulk and nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Banshi D.; Kant, Ravi

2018-05-01

Surface plasmon resonance has established itself as an immensely acclaimed and influential optical sensing tool with quintessential applications in life sciences, environmental monitoring, clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical developments and ensuring food safety. The implementation of sensing principle of surface plasmon resonance employing an optical fiber as a substrate has concomitantly resulted in the evolution of fiber optic surface plasmon resonance as an exceptionally lucrative scaffold for chemical and biosensing applications. This perspective article outlines the contemporary studies on fiber optic sensors founded on the sensing architecture of propagating as well as localized surface plasmon resonance. An in-depth review of the prevalent analytical and surface chemical tactics involved in configuring the sensing layer over an optical fiber for the detection of various chemical and biological entities is presented. The involvement of nanomaterials as a strategic approach to enhance the sensor sensitivity is furnished concurrently providing an insight into the diverse geometrical blueprints for designing fiber optic sensing probes. Representative examples from the literature are discussed to appreciate the latest advancements in this potentially valuable research avenue. The article concludes by identifying some of the key challenges and exploring the opportunities for expanding the scope and impact of surface plasmon resonance based fiber optic sensors.

Science Education: From Separation to Integration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Linn, Marcia C.; Gerard, Libby; Matuk, Camillia; McElhaney, Kevin W.

2016-01-01

Advances in technology, science, and learning sciences research over the past 100 years have reshaped science education. This chapter focuses on how investigators from varied fields of inquiry who initially worked separately began to interact, eventually formed partnerships, and recently integrated their perspectives to strengthen science…

Science Literacy for All Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Peggy, Ed.

1982-01-01

Selected college programs designed to increase students' science literacy are described, and perspectives on science education are addressed in an article by E. James Rutherford, "Sputnik, Halley's Comet, and Science Education." The article suggests that leadership and consensus are needed at the national level to improve science…

A current perspective on medical informatics and health sciences librarianship.

PubMed

Perry, Gerald J; Roderer, Nancy K; Assar, Soraya

2005-04-01

The article offers a current perspective on medical informatics and health sciences librarianship. The authors: (1) discuss how definitions of medical informatics have changed in relation to health sciences librarianship and the broader domain of information science; (2) compare the missions of health sciences librarianship and health sciences informatics, reviewing the characteristics of both disciplines; (3) propose a new definition of health sciences informatics; (4) consider the research agendas of both disciplines and the possibility that they have merged; and (5) conclude with some comments about actions and roles for health sciences librarians to flourish in the biomedical information environment of today and tomorrow. Boundaries are disappearing between the sources and types of and uses for health information managed by informaticians and librarians. Definitions of the professional domains of each have been impacted by these changes in information. Evolving definitions reflect the increasingly overlapping research agendas of both disciplines. Professionals in these disciplines are increasingly functioning collaboratively as "boundary spanners," incorporating human factors that unite technology with health care delivery.

The Feedback Process: Perspectives of First and Second Year Undergraduate Students in the Disciplines of Education, Health Science and Nursing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Douglas, Tracy; Salter, Susan; Iglesias, Miguel; Dowlman, Michele; Eri, Raj

2016-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the current perspectives of feedback from first and second year undergraduate students enrolled in blended units of study which incorporated both face-to-face and online components. Students enrolled in a unit of study taught by the School of Health Sciences at the University of Tasmania were surveyed to…

Visualization of Sources in the Universe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kafatos, M.; Cebral, J. R.

1993-12-01

We have begun to develop a series of visualization tools of importance to the display of astronomical data and have applied these to the visualization of cosmological sources in the recently formed Institute for Computational Sciences and Informatics at GMU. One can use a three-dimensional perspective plot of the density surface for three dimensional data and in this case the iso-level contours are three- dimensional surfaces. Sophisticated rendering algorithms combined with multiple source lighting allow us to look carefully at such density contours and to see fine structure on the surface of the density contours. Stereoscopic and transparent rendering can give an even more sophisticated approach with multi-layered surfaces providing information at different levels. We have applied these methods to looking at density surfaces of 3-D data such as 100 clusters of galaxies and 2500 galaxies in the CfA redshift survey. Our plots presented are based on three variables, right ascension, declination and redshift. We have also obtained density structures in 2-D for the distribution of gamma-ray bursts (where distances are unknown) and the distribution of a variety of sources such as clusters of galaxies. Our techniques allow for correlations to be done visually.

Kid's Eye View of Science: A Conceptual, Integrated Approach to Teaching Science, K-6

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kovalik, Susan J.; Olsen, Karen D.

2010-01-01

This book examines learning science from multiple perspectives--especially a child's. The whimsical character of Mary Froggins guides readers through the steps of igniting students' natural sense of wonder, incorporating brain research, integrating science concepts with other subjects, and applying science to daily life. The authors demonstrate…

Literacy in the National Science and Mathematics Standards: Communication and Reasoning. Report Series 3.14.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kouba, Vicky L.; Champagne, Audrey B.; Piscitelli, Michael; Havasy, Monique; White, Kara; Hurley, Marlene

A study analyzed in detail the perspectives in science and mathematics literacy found in the national standards for science and mathematics. The National Science Education Standards (NSES), the Benchmarks for Science Literacy, the Curriculum and Evaluation Standards for School Mathematics, and the Professional Teaching Standards for School…

A Study of the Competencies Needed of Entry-Level Academic Health Sciences Librarians

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Philbrick, Jodi Lynn

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to identify the professional and personal competencies that entry-level academic health sciences librarians should possess from the perspectives of academic health sciences library directors, library and information sciences (LIS) educators who specialize in educating health sciences librarians, and individuals who…

Beyond Evolution: Addressing Broad Interactions between Science and Religion in Science Teacher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shane, Joseph W.; Binns, Ian C.; Meadows, Lee; Hermann, Ronald S.; Benus, Matthew J.

2016-01-01

Science and religion are two indisputably profound and durable cultural forces with a complex history of interaction. As ASTE members are aware, these interactions often manifest themselves in classrooms and in the surrounding communities. In this essay, we encourage science teacher educators to broaden their perspectives of science-religion…

Extending the Purposes of Science Education: Addressing Violence within Socio-Economic Disadvantaged Communities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Castano, Carolina

2012-01-01

Current discourses about science education show a wide concern towards humanisation and a more socio-cultural perspective of school science. They suggest that science education can serve diverse purposes and be responsive to social and environmental situations we currently face. However, these discourses and social approaches to science education…

Minority Preservice Teachers' Conceptions of Teaching Science: Sources of Science Teaching Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Subramaniam, Karthigeyan

2013-01-01

This study explores five minority preservice teachers' conceptions of teaching science and identifies the sources of their strategies for helping students learn science. Perspectives from the literature on conceptions of teaching science and on the role constructs used to describe and distinguish minority preservice teachers from their mainstream…

Identity Discourse in Preservice Teachers' Science Learning Autobiographies and Science Teaching Philosophies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Pei-Ling; Reis, Giuliano; Monarrez, Angelica

2017-01-01

Research in science education has shown that one's identities as science learner and teacher can mediate their pedagogical practices. Grounded in the perspective that language is a resource for identity (re)construction (Gee, 2000), the present study sought to understand how preservice science teachers' identities were manifested in their…

Mexican immigrant transnational social capital and class transformation: examining the role of peer mediation in insurgent science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Richardson Bruna, Katherine

2010-06-01

In this article, I return to the interactions of Augusto and his teacher in an "English Learner Science" classroom in a demographically-transitioning US Midwest community (Richardson Bruna and Vann in Cult Stud Sci Educ 2:19-59, 2007) and further engage a class-first perspective to achieve two main conceptual objectives. First, I examine Augusto's science education experience as a way of understanding processes Rouse (Towards a transnational perspective on migration: Race, class, ethnicity, and nationalism reconsidered. The New York Academy of Sciences, New York, 1992) refers to as "the disciplinary production of class-specific subjects" (p. 31). Coming from a subsistence farming community in rural Mexico to an industrialized meatpacking community in semi-rural Iowa, I describe how Augusto undergoes a change in his class identity (experiences a Class Transformation) that is not just reflected but, in fact, produced in his science class. Second, I examine the work Augusto does to resist these processes of disciplinary production as he reshapes his teacher's instruction (promotes a class transformation) through specific transnational social capital he leverages as peer mediation. My overall goals in the article are to demonstrate the immediate relevance of a socio-historical, situated perspective to science teaching and learning and to outline domains of action for an insurgent, class-cognizant, science education practice informed by transnational social capital, like Augusto's.

Integrating Western and Indigenous Knowledge Systems: The Basis for Effective Science Education in South Africa?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Le Grange, Lesley

2007-11-01

This article responds to a call for rethinking the science that we teach to school learners in South Africa. Much of the debate on the nature of science and science learning is reflected in a body of literature which analyses the tensions between disparate perspectives on science education. Post-colonialists, feminists, multiculturalists, sociologists of scientific knowledge and those who refer to themselves as indigenous researchers argue that science is not universal but locally and culturally produced. Universalists on the other hand, argue that modern Western science is superior to indigenous perspectives on the natural world because of the former's advanced predictive and explanatory powers. The fact that indigenous knowledge has been included in South Africa's recently developed National Curriculum Statements invites a fresh look at the kind of science that is taught to South African school learners. In this article the author argues for a (dis)position that moves the debate beyond the binary of Western science/indigenous knowledge. Ways in which Western science and indigenous knowledge might be integrated are explored.

Science, Worldviews, and Education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gauch, Hugh G.

2009-06-01

Whether science can reach conclusions with substantial worldview import, such as whether supernatural beings exist or the universe is purposeful, is a significant but unsettled aspect of science. For instance, various scientists, philosophers, and educators have explored the implications of science for a theistic worldview, with opinions spanning the spectrum from positive to neutral to negative. To delineate a mainstream perspective on science, seven key characterizations or “pillars” of science are adopted from position papers from the world’s largest scientific organization, the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Based on those pillars and an examination of scientific method, I argue that the presuppositions and reasoning of science can and should be worldview independent, but empirical and public evidence from the sciences and humanities can support conclusions that are worldview distinctive. I also critique several problematic perspectives: asserting that science can say nothing about worldviews and the opposite extreme of insisting that science decisively supports one particular worldview; weakening science so severely that it lacks truth claims; and burdening science with unnecessary presuppositions. Worldview-distinctive conclusions based on empirical evidence are suitable for individual convictions and public discussions, but not for institutional endorsements and scientific literacy requirements.

NASA Spacecraft Image Shows Location of Iranian Earthquake

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

On April 9, 2013 at 11:52 GMT, a magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit southwestern Iran's Bushehr province near the town of Kaki. Preliminary information is that several villages have been destroyed and many people have died, as reported by BBC News. This perspective view of the region was acquired Nov. 17, 2012, by the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) instrument on NASA's Terra spacecraft. The location of the earthquake's epicenter is marked with a yellow star. Vegetation is displayed in red; the vertical exaggeration of the topography is 2X. The image is centered near 28.5 degrees north latitude, 51.6 degrees east longitude. With its 14 spectral bands from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelength region and its high spatial resolution of 15 to 90 meters (about 50 to 300 feet), ASTER images Earth to map and monitor the changing surface of our planet. ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched Dec. 18, 1999, on Terra. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and data products. The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER provides scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping and monitoring of dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance. The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. More information about ASTER is available at asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/. Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team Image Addition Date: 2013-04-10 NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Region Hit by Large Pakistan Quake as Shown by NASA Spacecraft

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-12-08

On September 24 at 11:29 GMT, a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck in south-central Pakistan at a relatively shallow depth of 20 kilometers. The earthquake occurred as the result of oblique strike-slip motion, consistent with rupture within the Eurasian tectonic plate. Tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi as well as Karachi in Pakistan. Even though the immediate area to the epicenter is sparsely populated, the majority of houses are of mud brick construction and damage is expected to be extensive. The perspective view, looking to the east, shows the location of the epicenter in Pakistan's Makran fold belt. The image is centered near 27 degrees north latitude, 65.5 degrees east longitude, and was acquired December 13, 2012. With its 14 spectral bands from the visible to the thermal infrared wavelength region and its high spatial resolution of 15 to 90 meters (about 50 to 300 feet), ASTER images Earth to map and monitor the changing surface of our planet. ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched Dec. 18, 1999, on Terra. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and data products. The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER provides scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping and monitoring of dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance. The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. More information about ASTER is available at asterweb.jpl.nasa.gov/. Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team Image Addition Date: 2013-09-24 NASA image use policy. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Find us on Instagram

Augustine Volcano, Cook Inlet, Alaska (January 12, 2006)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2006-01-01

Since last spring, the U.S. Geological Survey's Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO) has detected increasing volcanic unrest at Augustine Volcano in Cook Inlet, Alaska near Anchorage. Based on all available monitoring data, AVO regards that an eruption similar to 1976 and 1986 is the most probable outcome. During January, activity has been episodic, and characterized by emission of steam and ash plumes, rising to altitudes in excess of 9,000 m (30,000 ft), and posing hazards to aircraft in the vicinity. An ASTER image was acquired at 12:42 AST on January 12, 2006, during an eruptive phase of Augustine. The perspective rendition shows the eruption plume derived from the ASTER image data. ASTER's stereo viewing capability was used to calculate the 3-dimensional topography of the eruption cloud as it was blown to the south by prevailing winds. From a maximum height of 3060 m (9950 ft), the plume cooled and its top descended to 1900 m (6175 ft). The perspective view shows the ASTER data draped over the plume top topography, combined with a base image acquired in 2000 by the Landsat satellite, that is itself draped over ground elevation data from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. The topographic relief has been increased 1.5 times for this illustration. Comparison of the ASTER plume topography data with ash dispersal models and weather radar data will allow the National Weather Service to validate and improve such models. These models are used to forecast volcanic ash plume trajectories and provide hazard alerts and warnings to aircraft in the Alaska region.

ASTER is one of five Earth-observing instruments launched December 18, 1999, on NASA's Terra satellite. The instrument was built by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. A joint U.S./Japan science team is responsible for validation and calibration of the instrument and the data products.

The broad spectral coverage and high spectral resolution of ASTER provides scientists in numerous disciplines with critical information for surface mapping, and monitoring of dynamic conditions and temporal change. Example applications are: monitoring glacial advances and retreats; monitoring potentially active volcanoes; identifying crop stress; determining cloud morphology and physical properties; wetlands evaluation; thermal pollution monitoring; coral reef degradation; surface temperature mapping of soils and geology; and measuring surface heat balance.

The U.S. science team is located at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The Terra mission is part of NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Size: Roughly 25 km (15 miles) across; scale varies in this perspective view Location: 59.3 deg. North latitude, 153.4 deg. West longitude Orientation: View from southwest towards the northeast Vertical Exaggeration: 2 Eruption plume and Elevation: 30 m ASTER, (1-arcsecond) Image Data: Landsat bands 7, 4 and 2 Ground Topography Data: SRTM 90 m data, acquired January 2000 Date Acquired: ASTER: January 12, 2006; Landsat: September 17, 2000

A spacefaring nation - Perspectives on American space history and policy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Collins, Martin J. (Editor); Fries, Sylvia D. (Editor)

1991-01-01

The present volume on perspectives on American space history and policy discusses decision-making, space science and scientific communities, postwar aeronautical research in the federal laboratory, and civilian and military remote sensing and reconnaissance. Attention is given to the interpenetration of science, technology, and politics; space 'sociology'; and space technology and planetary science from 1950 to 1985. Other topics addressed include the aeronautics infrastructure as it applies to aeronautics history, the Lewis Research Center and its transition to space, the relationship between NASA and the users of earth resources data, and methodology for researching a classified system for space reconnaissance.

Enhancing Public Participation to Improve Natural Resources Science and its Use in Decision Making

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glynn, P. D.; Shapiro, C. D.; Liu, S. B.

2015-12-01

The need for broader understanding and involvement in science coupled with social technology advances enabling crowdsourcing and citizen science have created greater opportunities for public participation in the gathering, interpretation, and use of geospatial information. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is developing guidance for USGS scientists, partners, and interested members of the public on when and how public participation can most effectively be used in the conduct of scientific activities. Public participation can provide important perspectives and knowledge that cannot be obtained through traditional scientific methods alone. Citizen engagement can also provide increased efficiencies to USGS science and additional benefits to society including enhanced understanding, appreciation, and interest in geospatial information and its use in decision making.The USGS guidance addresses several fundamental issues by:1. Developing an operational definition of citizen or participatory science.2. Identifying the circumstances under which citizen science is appropriate for use and when its use is not recommended. 3. Describing structured processes for effective use of citizen science. 4. Defining the successful application of citizen science and identifying useful success metrics.The guidance is coordinated by the USGS Science and Decisions Center and developed by a multidisciplinary team of USGS scientists and managers. External perspectives will also be incorporated, as appropriate to align with other efforts such as the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) Citizen Science and Crowdsourcing Toolkit for the Federal government. The guidance will include the development of an economic framework to assess the benefits and costs of geospatial information developed through participatory processes. This economic framework considers tradeoffs between obtaining additional perspectives through enhanced participation with costs associated from obtaining geospatial information from multiple sources.

An Industry Picture of U. S. Science Policy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

David, Edward E., Jr.

1986-01-01

Offers perspectives on the status and direction of federal science policy. Assesses current efforts dealing with megaprojects, basic research, and cooperative projects. Provides suggestions for improving federal science policy so as to better promote industrial competitiveness. (ML)

Learning about Teaching: A Graduate Student's Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ambers, Rebecca K. R.

2002-01-01

Describes a seminar course on college science teaching that focuses on the importance of quality teaching, learning styles, teaching reading and writing skills, careers in science teaching, and female- and minority-friendly science. (Contains 14 references.) (YDS)

Publication ethics from the perspective of PhD students of health sciences: a limited experience.

PubMed

Arda, Berna

2012-06-01

Publication ethics, an important subtopic of science ethics, deals with determination of the misconducts of science in performing research or in the dissemination of ideas, data and products. Science, the main features of which are secure, reliable and ethically obtained data, plays a major role in shaping the society. As long as science maintains its quality by being based on reliable and ethically obtained data, it will be possible to maintain its role in shaping the society. This article is devoted to the presentation of opinions of PhD candidate students in health sciences in Ankara concerning publication ethics. The data obtained from 143 PhD students from the fields of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and veterinary reveal limited but unique experiences. It also shows that plagiarism is one of the worst issues in the publication ethics from the perspective of these young academics.

Stylistic analysis of headlines in science journalism: A case study of New Scientist.

PubMed

Molek-Kozakowska, Katarzyna

2017-11-01

This article explores science journalism in the context of the media competition for readers' attention. It offers a qualitative stylistic perspective on how popular journalism colonizes science communication. It examines a sample of 400 headlines collected over the period of 15 months from the ranking of five 'most-read' articles on the website of the international magazine New Scientist. Dominant lexical properties of the sample are first identified through frequency and keyness survey and then analysed qualitatively from the perspective of the stylistic projection of newsworthiness. The analysis illustrates various degrees of stylistic 'hybridity' in online popularization of scientific research. Stylistic patterns that celebrate, domesticate or personalize science coverage (characteristic of popular journalism) are intertwined with devices that foreground tentativeness, precision and informativeness (characteristic of science communication). The article reflects on the implications of including various proportions of academic and popular styles in science journalism.

Assessing and Synthesizing the Last Decade of Research on the Major Pools and Fluxes of the Carbon Cycle in the US and North America: An Interagency Governmental Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cavallaro, N.; Shrestha, G.; Stover, D. B.; Zhu, Z.; Ombres, E. H.; Deangelo, B.

2015-12-01

The 2nd State of the Carbon Cycle Report (SOCCR-2) is focused on US and North American carbon stocks and fluxes in managed and unmanaged systems, including relevant carbon management science perspectives and tools for supporting and informing decisions. SOCCR-2 is inspired by the US Carbon Cycle Science Plan (2011) which emphasizes global scale research on long-lived, carbon-based greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide and methane, and the major pools and fluxes of the global carbon cycle. Accordingly, the questions framing the Plan inform this report's topical roadmap, with a focus on US and North America in the global context: 1) How have natural processes and human actions affected the global carbon cycle on land, in the atmosphere, in the oceans and in the ecosystem interfaces (e.g. coastal, wetlands, urban-rural)? 2) How have socio-economic trends affected the levels of the primary carbon-containing gases, carbon dioxide and methane, in the atmosphere? 3) How have species, ecosystems, natural resources and human systems been impacted by increasing greenhouse gas concentrations, the associated changes in climate, and by carbon management decisions and practices? To address these aspects, SOCCR-2 will encompass the following broad assessment framework: 1) Carbon Cycle at Scales (Global Perspective, North American Perspective, US Perspective, Regional Perspective); 2) Role of carbon in systems (Soils; Water, Oceans, Vegetation; Terrestrial-aquatic Interfaces); 3) Interactions/Disturbance/Impacts from/on the carbon cycle. 4) Carbon Management Science Perspective and Decision Support (measurements, observations and monitoring for research and policy relevant decision-support etc.). In this presentation, the Carbon Cycle Interagency Working Group and the U.S. Global Change Research Program's U.S. Carbon Cycle Science Program Office will highlight the scientific context, strategy, structure, team and production process of the report, which is part of the USGCRP's Sustained National Climate Assessment process.

Urban Elementary Teachers' Perspectives on Teaching Science to English Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lee, Okhee; Maerten-Rivera, Jaime; Buxton, Cory; Penfield, Randall; Secada, Walter G.

2009-01-01

This descriptive study examined urban elementary school teachers' perceptions of their science content knowledge, science teaching practices, and support for language development of English language learners. Also examined were teachers' perceptions of organizational supports and barriers associated with teaching science to nonmainstream students.…

Translations of Scientific Practice to "Students' Images of Science"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

van Eijck, Michiel; Hsu, Pei-Ling; Roth, Wolff-Michael

2009-01-01

In the science education research literature, it often appears to be assumed that students "possess" more or less stable "images of science" that directly correspond to their experiences with scientific practice in science curricula. From cultural-historical and sociocultural perspectives, this assumption is problematic because scientific…

Molecular catalysis science: Perspective on unifying the fields of catalysis.

PubMed

Ye, Rong; Hurlburt, Tyler J; Sabyrov, Kairat; Alayoglu, Selim; Somorjai, Gabor A

2016-05-10

Colloidal chemistry is used to control the size, shape, morphology, and composition of metal nanoparticles. Model catalysts as such are applied to catalytic transformations in the three types of catalysts: heterogeneous, homogeneous, and enzymatic. Real-time dynamics of oxidation state, coordination, and bonding of nanoparticle catalysts are put under the microscope using surface techniques such as sum-frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy and ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy under catalytically relevant conditions. It was demonstrated that catalytic behavior and trends are strongly tied to oxidation state, the coordination number and crystallographic orientation of metal sites, and bonding and orientation of surface adsorbates. It was also found that catalytic performance can be tuned by carefully designing and fabricating catalysts from the bottom up. Homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts, and likely enzymes, behave similarly at the molecular level. Unifying the fields of catalysis is the key to achieving the goal of 100% selectivity in catalysis.

Molecular catalysis science: Perspective on unifying the fields of catalysis

PubMed Central

Ye, Rong; Hurlburt, Tyler J.; Sabyrov, Kairat; Alayoglu, Selim; Somorjai, Gabor A.

2016-01-01

Colloidal chemistry is used to control the size, shape, morphology, and composition of metal nanoparticles. Model catalysts as such are applied to catalytic transformations in the three types of catalysts: heterogeneous, homogeneous, and enzymatic. Real-time dynamics of oxidation state, coordination, and bonding of nanoparticle catalysts are put under the microscope using surface techniques such as sum-frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy and ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy under catalytically relevant conditions. It was demonstrated that catalytic behavior and trends are strongly tied to oxidation state, the coordination number and crystallographic orientation of metal sites, and bonding and orientation of surface adsorbates. It was also found that catalytic performance can be tuned by carefully designing and fabricating catalysts from the bottom up. Homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts, and likely enzymes, behave similarly at the molecular level. Unifying the fields of catalysis is the key to achieving the goal of 100% selectivity in catalysis. PMID:27114536

New insights on molecular regulation of biofilm formation in plant-associated bacteria.

PubMed

Castiblanco, Luisa F; Sundin, George W

2016-04-01

Biofilms are complex bacterial assemblages with a defined three-dimensional architecture, attached to solid surfaces, and surrounded by a self-produced matrix generally composed of exopolysaccharides, proteins, lipids and extracellular DNA. Biofilm formation has evolved as an adaptive strategy of bacteria to cope with harsh environmental conditions as well as to establish antagonistic or beneficial interactions with their host. Plant-associated bacteria attach and form biofilms on different tissues including leaves, stems, vasculature, seeds and roots. In this review, we examine the formation of biofilms from the plant-associated bacterial perspective and detail the recently-described mechanisms of genetic regulation used by these organisms to orchestrate biofilm formation on plant surfaces. In addition, we describe plant host signals that bacterial pathogens recognize to activate the transition from a planktonic lifestyle to multicellular behavior. © 2015 Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

What Controls Thermo-osmosis? Molecular Simulations Show the Critical Role of Interfacial Hydrodynamics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Li; Merabia, Samy; Joly, Laurent

2017-11-01

Thermo-osmotic and related thermophoretic phenomena can be found in many situations from biology to colloid science, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unexplored. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we measure the thermo-osmosis coefficient by both mechanocaloric and thermo-osmotic routes, for different solid-liquid interfacial energies. The simulations reveal, in particular, the crucial role of nanoscale interfacial hydrodynamics. For nonwetting surfaces, thermo-osmotic transport is largely amplified by hydrodynamic slip at the interface. For wetting surfaces, the position of the hydrodynamic shear plane plays a key role in determining the amplitude and sign of the thermo-osmosis coefficient. Finally, we measure a giant thermo-osmotic response of the water-graphene interface, which we relate to the very low interfacial friction displayed by this system. These results open new perspectives for the design of efficient functional interfaces for, e.g., waste-heat harvesting.

What Controls Thermo-osmosis? Molecular Simulations Show the Critical Role of Interfacial Hydrodynamics.

PubMed

Fu, Li; Merabia, Samy; Joly, Laurent

2017-11-24

Thermo-osmotic and related thermophoretic phenomena can be found in many situations from biology to colloid science, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unexplored. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we measure the thermo-osmosis coefficient by both mechanocaloric and thermo-osmotic routes, for different solid-liquid interfacial energies. The simulations reveal, in particular, the crucial role of nanoscale interfacial hydrodynamics. For nonwetting surfaces, thermo-osmotic transport is largely amplified by hydrodynamic slip at the interface. For wetting surfaces, the position of the hydrodynamic shear plane plays a key role in determining the amplitude and sign of the thermo-osmosis coefficient. Finally, we measure a giant thermo-osmotic response of the water-graphene interface, which we relate to the very low interfacial friction displayed by this system. These results open new perspectives for the design of efficient functional interfaces for, e.g., waste-heat harvesting.

Online Education: A Science and Technology Studies Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamilton, Edward C.; Friesen, Norm

2013-01-01

This paper argues that research into the pedagogical value and potential of new technologies is limited by the implicit philosophical perspectives on technology that such research adopts. These perspectives either imbue technologies with inalienable qualities (essentialism) or posit technology as a neutral means for realizing goals defined by…

Interdisciplinary Science Courses for College General Education Requirements: Perspectives of Faculty at a State University.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dass, Pradeep Maxwell

Science educators have been advocating a broader role for science education--that of helping all students see the relevance of science to their own lives. Yet the only experience with post-secondary science that non-science majors get is through a couple of science courses which are part of the general education requirements (GERs) for a liberal…

What Kind of Boy Does Science? A Critical Perspective on the Science Trajectories of Four Scientifically Talented Boys

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Carlone, Heidi B.; Webb, Angela W.; Archer, Louise; Taylor, Mandy

2015-01-01

The close association between science and masculinity has been widely discussed, yet few studies have focused on boys' negotiation with, and participation in, school science. This paper seeks to trouble monolithic notions of the link between science and masculinity, arguing that the "ideal science student" is a classed, racialized, and…

Understandings of Nature of Science and Multiple Perspective Evaluation of Science News by Non-Science Majors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leung, Jessica Shuk Ching; Wong, Alice Siu Ling; Yung, Benny Hin Wai

2015-01-01

Understandings of nature of science (NOS) are a core component of scientific literacy, and a scientifically literate populace is expected to be able to critically evaluate science in the media. While evidence has remained inconclusive on whether better NOS understandings will lead to critical evaluation of science in the media, this study aimed at…

Interactions of Economics of Science and Science Education: Investigating the Implications for Science Teaching and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Erduran, Sibel; Mugaloglu, Ebru Z.

2013-01-01

In recent years, there has been upsurge of interest in the applications of interdisciplinary perspectives on science in science education. Within this framework, the implications of the so-called "economics of science" is virtually an uncharted territory. In this paper, we trace a set of arguments that provide a dialectic engagement with…

Science education as an exercise in foreign affairs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cobern, William W.

1995-07-01

In Kuhnian terms, science education has been a process of inducting students into the reigning paradigms of science. In 1985, Duschl noted that science education had not kept pace with developments in the history and philosophy of science. The claim of certainty for scientific knowledge which science educators grounded in positivist philosophy was rendered untenable years ago and it turns out that social and cultural factors surrounding discovery may be at least as important as the justification of knowledge. Capitalizing on these new developments, Duschl, Hamilton, and Grandy (1990) wrote a compelling argument for the need to have a joint research effort in science education involving the philosophy and history of science along with cognitive psychology. However, the issue of discovery compels the research community go one step further. If the science education community has been guilty of neglecting historical and philosophical issues in science, let it not now be guilty of ignoring sociological issues in science. A collaborative view ought also to include the sociological study of cultural milieu in which scientific ideas arise. In other words, an external sociological perspective on science. The logic of discovery from a sociological point of view implies that conceptual change can also be viewed from a sociological perspective.

Co-opting Science: A preliminary study of how students invoke science in value-laden discussions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nielsen, Jan Alexis

2012-01-01

Letting students deliberate on socio-scientific issues is a tricky affair. It is yet unclear how to assess whether, or even support that, students weave science facts into value-laden socio-scientific deliberations without committing the naturalistic fallacy of deducing 'ought' from 'is'. As a preliminary step, this study investigated how Danish upper secondary biology students actually interwove science facts and values in socio-scientific discussions. In particular, the focus was the argumentative effects of different ways of blurring the fact-value distinction. The data consisted of the transcriptions of three 45-60 minute discussions among 4-5 students about whether human gene therapy should be allowed. The data were analysed from a normative pragmatics perspective-with a focus on how the students designed and elicited messages to influence the decisions of others. It was found that the students regularly co-opted science to make it appear that their evaluative claims were more solidly supported than those of their opponents. Further, the students tended to co-opt science content so as to redefine what the issue or object of contention should be. The findings suggest that assessment of whether students properly used correct science facts in socio-scientific learning activities is very difficult. From the perspective of teachers, this means that much more work needs to be done in order to sort out how the fact-value distinction should be addressed appropriately. From the perspective of researchers, it means a continued negotiation of what they mean when they say that students should become able to use science on issues from outside science.

The ISECG Science White Paper - A Scientific Perspective on the Global Exploration Roadmap

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bussey, David B.; Worms, Jean-Claude; Spiero, Francois; Schlutz, Juergen; Ehrenfreund, Pascale

2016-07-01

Future space exploration goals call for sending humans and robots beyond low Earth orbit and establishing sustained access to destinations such as the Moon, asteroids and Mars. Space agencies participating in the International Space Exploration Coordination Group (ISECG) are discussing an international approach for achieving these goals, documented in ISECG's Global Exploration Roadmap (GER). The GER reference scenario reflects a step-wise evolution of critical capabilities from ISS to missions in the lunar vicinity in preparation for the journey of humans to Mars. As an element of this continued road mapping effort, the ISECG agencies are therefore soliciting input and coordinated discussion with the scientific community to better articulate and promote the scientific opportunities of the proposed mission themes. An improved understanding of the scientific drivers and the requirements to address priority science questions associated with the exploration destinations (Moon, Near Earth Asteroids, Mars and its moons) as well as the preparatory activities in cis-lunar space is beneficial to optimize the partnership of robotic assets and human presence beyond low Earth orbit. The interaction has resulted in the development of a Science White Paper to: • Identify and highlight the scientific opportunities in early exploration missions as the GER reference architecture matures, • Communicate overarching science themes and their relevance in the GER destinations, • Ensure international science communities' perspectives inform the future evolution of mission concepts considered in the GER The paper aims to capture the opportunities offered by the missions in the GER for a broad range of scientific disciplines. These include planetary and space sciences, astrobiology, life sciences, physical sciences, astronomy and Earth science. The paper is structured around grand science themes that draw together and connect research in the various disciplines, and it will focus on opportunities created by the near-term mission themes in the GER centred around 1) extended duration crew missions to an exploration habitat in cis-lunar space, 2) crew mission(s) to an asteroid, and 3) crew missions to the lunar surface. The preparation of that Science White Paper has been coordinated and led by an external Science Advisory Group composed of scientists form a variety of nations. The first draft of this White Paper has been discussed on the occasion of a COSPAR-ISECG-ESF workshop organised in Paris on 10-11 February 2016. The recommendations developed at the workshop provide further input that is incorporated in the final version of the ISECG Science White Paper, expected to be published in the fall of 2016. The authors aim to present the rationale and contents of this White Paper on the occasion of the COSPAR Assembly.

Science Curriculum. Kindergarten through Grade Twelve.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitchburg State Coll., MA. Dept. of Special Education.

This science curriculum guide provides a framework for science teachers of grades K-12 in the Leominster Public School System, Massachusetts. It represents the efforts of teachers and higher education faculty. An introductory section provides a philosophical statement on the nature of science and perspectives in the learning and teaching of…

Outcomes for Engineering Students Delivering a STEM Education and Outreach Programme

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fitzallen, Noleine; Brown, Natalie Ruth

2017-01-01

University science outreach programmes are used to encourage more school students to select science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects in further education and pursue science-related careers. The benefits of science outreach programmes are often espoused from the perspective of programme participants. Little attention,…

The Laboratory is Vital in Science Instruction in the Secondary School.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Klein, Sarah E.; And Others

1982-01-01

Presents the National Science Teachers Associations's (NSTA) position statement on the place of the laboratory in science education followed by other statements unique for teaching science in middle, junior, and senior high schools. Statements focus on teaching, research, and curriculum perspectives, laboratory's role, and laboratory's enhancement…

Standards-Based External Exams and Students' Science-Related Career Expectations: An International Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Han, Seong Won

2016-01-01

Students' science-related career expectations are important for predicting their future science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related educational and occupational attainments. This study examines the degree to which standards-based external examinations are associated with a student's propensity for pursuing science-related…

The Nature of Information Science: Changing Models

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Robinson, Lyn; Karamuftuoglu, Murat

2010-01-01

Introduction: This paper considers the nature of information science as a discipline and profession. Method: It is based on conceptual analysis of the information science literature, and consideration of philosophical perspectives, particularly those of Kuhn and Peirce. Results: It is argued that information science may be understood as a field of…

Multiple Influences: Latinas, Middle School Science, and School

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parker, Carolyn

2014-01-01

This paper describes the multiple school and school science experiences of eight Latina students of Central American descent in a tracked, urbanized, middle school setting. Framed by a sociocultural perspective, I describe how eight seventh and eighth grade Latino girls interacted with school science. Implications for the concept "science for…

A Study of Micro-Teaching in the Preservice Education of Science Teachers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldwaite, Daniel Thaddeus

The effectiveness of microteaching techniques for improving presentation of science demonstrations by perspective science teachers was investigated. Three groups of students of ten members each were randomly selected from professional education courses for science teachers. Group A students presented two trials of two different demonstrations.…

Lessons Learned from Citizen Science in the Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gray, Steven A.; Nicosia, Kristina; Jordan, Rebecca C.

2012-01-01

Mueller, Tippins, and Bryan's contrast of the current limitations of science education with the potential virtues of citizen science provides an important theoretical perspective about the future of democratized science and K-12 education. However, the authors fail to adequately address the existing barriers and constraints to moving…

Undergraduate Research-Methods Training in Political Science: A Comparative Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parker, Jonathan

2010-01-01

Unlike other disciplines in the social sciences, there has been relatively little attention paid to the structure of the undergraduate political science curriculum. This article reports the results of a representative survey of 200 political science programs in the United States, examining requirements for quantitative methods, research methods,…

Embedding Indigenous Perspectives in Teaching School Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Appanna, Subhashni Devi

2011-01-01

Some Indigenous students are at risk of academic failure and science teachers have a role in salvaging these equally able students. This article firstly elucidates the research entailed in Indigenous science education in Australia and beyond. Secondly, it reviews the cultural and language barriers when learning science, faced by middle and senior…

FCS Global Perspectives in a General Education Course

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiner, Anne

2010-01-01

General education requirements have long been a component of college and university baccalaureate programs. The courses have traditionally focused on the disciplines in the arts and sciences including mathematics, sciences, humanities, social sciences, and the arts. Family and consumer sciences (FCS) programs also offer courses in areas such as…

Weaving a Tapestry from Threads Spun by Geneticists: The Series Perspectives on Genetics, 1987–2008

PubMed Central

Dove, William F.

2016-01-01

The Perspectives column was initiated in 1987 when Jan Drake, Editor-in-Chief of GENETICS, invited Jim Crow and William Dove to serve as coeditors of “Anecdotal, Historical, and Critical Commentaries.” As the series evolved over 21 years, under the guidance of Crow and Dove, the input of stories told by geneticists from many countries created a panorama of 20th-century genetics. Three recurrent themes are visible: how geneticists have created the science (as solitary investigators, in pairs, or in cooperative groups); how geneticists work hard, but find ways to have fun; and how public and private institutions have sustained the science of genetics, particularly in the United States. This article ends by considering how the Perspectives series and other communication formats can carry forward the core science of genetics from the 20th into the 21st century. PMID:27384024

Special series on "The meaning of behavioral medicine in the psychosomatic field" establishment of a core curriculum for behavioral science in Japan: The importance of such a curriculum from the perspective of psychology.

PubMed

Shimazu, Akihito; Nakao, Mutsuhiro

2016-01-01

This article discusses the core curriculum for behavioral science, from the perspective of psychology, recommended by the Japanese Society of Behavioral Medicine and seeks to explain how the curriculum can be effectively implemented in medical and health-related departments. First, the content of the core curriculum is reviewed from the perspective of psychology. We show that the curriculum features both basic and applied components and that the basic components are closely related to various aspects of psychology. Next, we emphasize two points to aid the effective delivery of the curriculum: 1) It is necessary to explain the purpose and significance of basic components of behavioral science to improve student motivation; and 2) it is important to encourage student self-efficacy to facilitate application of the acquired knowledge and skills in clinical practice.

Weaving a Tapestry from Threads Spun by Geneticists: The Series Perspectives on Genetics, 1987-2008.

PubMed

Dove, William F

2016-07-01

The Perspectives column was initiated in 1987 when Jan Drake, Editor-in-Chief of GENETICS, invited Jim Crow and William Dove to serve as coeditors of "Anecdotal, Historical, and Critical Commentaries." As the series evolved over 21 years, under the guidance of Crow and Dove, the input of stories told by geneticists from many countries created a panorama of 20th-century genetics. Three recurrent themes are visible: how geneticists have created the science (as solitary investigators, in pairs, or in cooperative groups); how geneticists work hard, but find ways to have fun; and how public and private institutions have sustained the science of genetics, particularly in the United States. This article ends by considering how the Perspectives series and other communication formats can carry forward the core science of genetics from the 20th into the 21st century. Copyright © 2016 by the Genetics Society of America.

Biotechnology risks and benefits: Science instructor perspectives and practices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gardner, Grant Ean

Developing scientifically literate students who understand the socially contextualized nature of science and technology is a national focus of science education reform. Understanding teachers' views on this topic is of equal importance. This document focuses on the topic of risks and benefits posed by science and technology as an important topic for which the socially contextualized nature of science and technology readily emerges. Following introduction of a theoretical model and a review of the literature, two research studies are described that examined teachers' perceptions of the risks posed by biotechnology and the role of risk topics in an undergraduate science course. The first research study examines four groups of science educators; pre-service science teachers, in-service science teachers, science graduate teaching assistants, and science professors (n = 91). The participants completed a survey and card sort task to determine their perceptions of the risks of biotechnology. The results show that teacher perceptions were shaped by the risk severity, regulation processes, public acceptance, fear, reciprocal benefits, and whether the applications would impact humans or the environment. Factors determining risk perception included personal worldviews, trust in communicating institutions, and personal experiences with biotechnology. The different types of science teachers were compared and contrasted in light of these factors and the implications of instructor perceptions on science pedagogy are discussed. The second research manuscript describes a case study in which six biology graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) were observed teaching as lesson on the potential risks and benefits of biotechnology. The data sources included classroom observations and semi-structured interviews. Qualitative analysis reveals that GTAs framed the instruction of risk in one of three ways: analytical, focus on perspectives and biases, and promotion of individual reflection. Interview results suggest that GTAs had a much richer understanding of the importance of the teaching of social aspects of science and technology than emerged in their teaching. Results are discussed in the context of the disconnect between the GTA's teaching practice and perspectives.

(Post) Modern Science (Education): Propositions and Alternative Paths. Counterpoints: Studies in the Postmodern Theory of Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weaver, John A., Ed.; Morris, Marla, Ed.; Appelbaum, Peter, Ed.

This collection of essays offers new perspectives for science educators, curriculum theorists, and cultural critics on science education, French post-structural thought, and the science debates. This book contains chapters on the work of Bruno Latour, Michael Serres, and Jean Baudrillard plus chapters on postmodern approaches to science education…

Learning of Core Disciplinary Ideas: Efficacy Comparison of Two Contrasting Modes of Science Instruction

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schuster, David; Cobern, William W.; Adams, Betty A. J.; Undreiu, Adriana; Pleasants, Brandy

2018-01-01

Science curricula and teaching methods vary greatly, depending in part on which facets of science are emphasized, e.g., core disciplinary ideas or science practices and process skills, and perspectives differ considerably on desirable pedagogies. Given the multi-faceted nature of science and the variety of teaching methods found in practice, it is…

Making Science Homework Work: The Perspectives of Exemplary African American Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Xu, Jianzhong; Coats, Linda T.; Davidson, Mary L.

2012-01-01

Background/Context: Despite the best intentions to close the achievement gap, the underachievement of African American students in science is a persistent problem. It is surprising to note, however, that research on science education has often failed to consider students' cultural diversity as it relates to science education. On the few occasions…

Lessons Learned from Citizen Science in the Classroom. A Response to "The Future of Citizen Science."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gray, Steven A.; Nicosia, Kristina; Jordan, Rebecca C.

2012-01-01

Mueller, Tippins, and Bryan's contrast of the current limitations of science education with the potential virtues of citizen science provides an important theoretical perspective about the future of democratized science and K-12 education. However, the authors fail to adequately address the existing barriers and constraints to moving…

Bangladeshi Science Teachers' Perspectives of Scientific Literacy and Teaching Practices

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sarkar, Mahbub; Corrigan, Deborah

2014-01-01

In line with a current global trend, junior secondary science education in Bangladesh aims to provide science education for all students to enable them to use their science learning in everyday life. This aim is consistent with the call for scientific literacy, which argues for engaging students with science in everyday life. This paper…

Grip on health: A complex systems approach to transform health care.

PubMed

van Wietmarschen, Herman A; Wortelboer, Heleen M; van der Greef, Jan

2018-02-01

This article addresses the urgent need for a transition in health care to deal with the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases and associated rapid rise of health care costs. Chronic diseases evolve and are predominantly related to lifestyle and environment. A shift is needed from a reductionist repair mode of thinking, toward a more integrated biopsychosocial way of thinking about health. The aim of this article is to discuss the opportunities that complexity science offer for transforming health care toward optimal treatment and prevention of chronic lifestyle diseases. Health and health care is discussed from a complexity science perspective. The benefits of concepts developed in the field of complexity science for stimulating transitions in health care are explored. Complexity science supports the elucidation of the essence of health processes. It provides a unique perspective on health with a focus on the relationships within networks of dynamically interacting factors and the emergence of health out of the organization of those relationships. Novel types of complexity science-based intervention strategies are being developed. The first application in practice is the integrated obesity treatment program currently piloted in the Netherlands, focusing on health awareness and healing relationships. Complexity science offers various theories and methods to capture the path toward unhealthy and healthy states, facilitating the development of a dynamic integrated biopsychosocial perspective on health. This perspective offers unique insights into health processes for patients and citizens. In addition, dynamic models driven by personal data provide simulations of health processes and the ability to detect transitions between health states. Such models are essential for aligning and reconnecting the many institutions and disciplines involved in the health care sector and evolve toward an integrated health care ecosystem. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Mundane science use in a practice theoretical perspective: Different understandings of the relations between citizen-consumers and public communication initiatives build on scientific claims.

PubMed

Halkier, Bente

2015-08-13

Public communication initiatives play a part in placing complicated scientific claims in citizen-consumers' everyday contexts. Lay reactions to scientific claims framed in public communication, and attempts to engage citizens, have been important subjects of discussion in the literatures of public understanding and public engagement with science. Many of the public communication initiatives, however, address lay people as consumers rather than citizens. This creates specific challenges for understanding public engagement with science and scientific citizenship. The article compares five different understandings of the relations between citizen-consumers and public issue communication involving science, where the first four types are widely represented in the Public Understanding of Science discussions. The fifth understanding is a practice theoretical perspective. The article suggests how the public understanding of and engagement in science literature can benefit from including a practice theoretical approach to research about mundane science use and public engagement. © The Author(s) 2015.

Perspectives of best Practices for Learning Gender-Inclusive Science: Influences of Extracurricular Science for Gifted Girls and Electrical Engineering for Women

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wood, Shaunda L.

Gifted girls in elementary school must follow the set curriculum, but their choices of extracurricular activities may indicate future subject preferences. This study attempted to explore the perceptions of gifted girls regarding how the family, home, and school environments influenced their choices to take extracurricular science classes. A mixed methodology was adopted: qualitative, to understand the girls' perceptions of influence, and quantitative, to measure their attitudes toward science. Influential factors identified in this study highlight fun as occurring with the highest frequency and four emergent factors: doubt, traditional sex roles, boredom, and group work. In addition, findings from a focused case study of a graduate electrical engineer are interwoven with the girls' perspectives of science. The varying ages and experiences with science of the participants provide interesting views. This study adds knowledge to the field of science education, specifically on withingender differences of gifted girls and women in engineering.

Principal Approaches to Understanding Occupation and Occupational Science Found in the Chilean Journal of Occupational Therapy (2001–2012)

PubMed Central

Gómez, Silvia; Tapia, María Jesús; Rueda, Laura

2017-01-01

Background The progression of occupational science in Chile is documented in the main scientific publication of the field, the Chilean Journal of Occupational Therapy (RChTO). Objective Identify approaches to understanding and applying occupation and occupational science as elucidated in the RChTO. Methodology A systematic qualitative review of the journal (2001–2012) identified articles elucidating an approach to understanding and application operationally defined as references to specific authors, theories, models/paradigms, definitions, and other fields that support approaches to O/OS. Results The study identified two main approaches. The first considers occupation/occupational science from a practical perspective or as a means to explain human behavior; the second considers occupation/occupational science as an object of study. Each approach is further divided into categories. Conclusion This study provides a novel perspective on regional use of occupational science concepts. These findings contribute to our understanding of this science in context and to recognition of the cultural relevance of these scientific concepts. PMID:29097971

Principal Approaches to Understanding Occupation and Occupational Science Found in the Chilean Journal of Occupational Therapy (2001-2012).

PubMed

Morrison, Rodolfo; Gómez, Silvia; Henny, Enrique; Tapia, María Jesús; Rueda, Laura

2017-01-01

The progression of occupational science in Chile is documented in the main scientific publication of the field, the Chilean Journal of Occupational Therapy (RChTO). Identify approaches to understanding and applying occupation and occupational science as elucidated in the RChTO. A systematic qualitative review of the journal (2001-2012) identified articles elucidating an approach to understanding and application operationally defined as references to specific authors, theories, models/paradigms, definitions, and other fields that support approaches to O/OS. The study identified two main approaches. The first considers occupation/occupational science from a practical perspective or as a means to explain human behavior; the second considers occupation/occupational science as an object of study. Each approach is further divided into categories. This study provides a novel perspective on regional use of occupational science concepts. These findings contribute to our understanding of this science in context and to recognition of the cultural relevance of these scientific concepts.

Caring Science or Science of Caring.

PubMed

Turkel, Marian C; Watson, Jean; Giovannoni, Joseph

2018-01-01

The concepts caring science and science of caring have different meanings; however, they are often used interchangeably. The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the synthesis of the scholarly literature on the definitions of the science of caring and caring science and to affirm the authors' perspective relating to the language of caring science. Caring science advances the epistemology and ontology of caring. Ideas related to caring science inquiry are presented, and the authors acknowledge the future of caring science as unitary caring science.

Nanoscale surface modifications of medically relevant metals: state-of-the art and perspectives.

PubMed

Variola, Fabio; Brunski, John B; Orsini, Giovanna; Tambasco de Oliveira, Paulo; Wazen, Rima; Nanci, Antonio

2011-02-01

Evidence that nanoscale surface properties stimulate and guide various molecular and biological processes at the implant/tissue interface is fostering a new trend in designing implantable metals. Cutting-edge expertise and techniques drawn from widely separated fields, such as nanotechnology, materials engineering and biology, have been advantageously exploited to nanoengineer surfaces in ways that control and direct these processes in predictable manners. In this review, we present and discuss the state-of-the-art of nanotechnology-based approaches currently adopted to modify the surface of metals used for orthopedic and dental applications, and also briefly consider their use in the cardiovascular field. The effects of nanoengineered surfaces on various in vitro molecular and cellular events are firstly discussed. This review also provides an overview of in vivo and clinical studies with nanostructured metallic implants, and addresses the potential influence of nanotopography on biomechanical events at interfaces. Ultimately, the objective of this work is to give the readership a comprehensive picture of the current advances, future developments and challenges in the application of the infinitesimally small to biomedical surface science. We believe that an integrated understanding of the in vitro and particularly of the in vivo behavior is mandatory for the proper exploitation of nanostructured implantable metals and, indeed, of all biomaterials.

Angle-Dependent Atomic Force Microscopy Single-Chain Pulling of Adsorbed Macromolecules from Planar Surfaces Unveils the Signature of an Adsorption-Desorption Transition.

PubMed

Grebíková, Lucie; Whittington, Stuart G; Vancso, Julius G

2018-05-23

The adsorption-desorption behavior of polymer chains is at the heart of macromolecular surface science and technology. With the current developments in atomic force microscopy (AFM), it has now become possible to address the desorption problem from the perspective of a single macromolecule. Here, we report on desorption of single polymer chains on planar surfaces by AFM-based single molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS) as a function of the pulling angle with respect to the surface-normal direction. SMFS experiments were performed in water with various substrates using different polymers covalently attached to the AFM probe tip. End-grafting at the AFM tip was achieved by surface-initiated polymerization using initiator functionalized tips. We found that the desorption force increases with a decreasing pulling angle, i.e., an enhanced adhesion of the polymer chain was observed. The magnitude of the desorption force shows a weak angular dependence at pulling angles close to the surface normal. A significant increase of the force is observed at shallower pulling from a certain pulling angle. This behavior carries the signature of an adsorption-desorption transition. The angular dependence of the normalized desorption force exhibits a universal behavior. We compared and interpreted our results using theoretical predictions for single-chain adsorption-desorption transitions.

Angle-Dependent Atomic Force Microscopy Single-Chain Pulling of Adsorbed Macromolecules from Planar Surfaces Unveils the Signature of an Adsorption–Desorption Transition

PubMed Central

2018-01-01

The adsorption–desorption behavior of polymer chains is at the heart of macromolecular surface science and technology. With the current developments in atomic force microscopy (AFM), it has now become possible to address the desorption problem from the perspective of a single macromolecule. Here, we report on desorption of single polymer chains on planar surfaces by AFM-based single molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS) as a function of the pulling angle with respect to the surface-normal direction. SMFS experiments were performed in water with various substrates using different polymers covalently attached to the AFM probe tip. End-grafting at the AFM tip was achieved by surface-initiated polymerization using initiator functionalized tips. We found that the desorption force increases with a decreasing pulling angle, i.e., an enhanced adhesion of the polymer chain was observed. The magnitude of the desorption force shows a weak angular dependence at pulling angles close to the surface normal. A significant increase of the force is observed at shallower pulling from a certain pulling angle. This behavior carries the signature of an adsorption–desorption transition. The angular dependence of the normalized desorption force exhibits a universal behavior. We compared and interpreted our results using theoretical predictions for single-chain adsorption–desorption transitions. PMID:29712430

Nanoscale surface modifications of medically-relevant metals: state-of-the art and perspectives

PubMed Central

Variola, Fabio; Brunski, John; Orsini, Giovanna; de Oliveira, Paulo Tambasco; Wazen, Rima; Nanci, Antonio

2011-01-01

Evidence that nanoscale surface properties stimulate and guide various molecular and biological processes at the implant/tissue interface is fostering a new trend in designing implantable metals. Cutting-edge expertise and techniques drawn from widely separated fields, such as nanotechnology, materials engineering and biology, have been advantageously exploited to nanoengineer surfaces in ways that control and direct these processes in predictable manners. In this review, we present and discuss the state-of-the-art of nanotechnology-based approaches currently used to modify the surface of metals used for orthopedic and dental applications, and also briefly consider their use in the cardiovascular field. The effects of nanoengineered surfaces on various in vitro molecular and cellular events are firstly discussed. Importantly, this review also provides an overview of in vivo and clinical studies with nanostructured metallic implants, and addresses the potential influence of nanotopography on biomechanical events at interfaces. Ultimately the objective of this work is to give the readership a comprehensive picture of the current advances, future developments and challenges in the application of the infinitesimally small to biomedical surface science. We believe that an integrated understanding of the in vitro and particularly of the in vivo behavior is mandatory for the proper exploitation of nanostructured implantable metals and, as a matter of fact, all biomaterials. PMID:20976359

Science Education in the Rural United States. Implications for the Twenty-First Century. A Yearbook of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Otto, Paul B., Ed.

This yearbook of the Association for the Education of Teachers in Science (AETS) is designed to give a perspective on rural science education. It is presented in a sequence which leads from the definition and philosophy of rural science education, to the status of rural science education, research implications, the integration of science within…

Historical Perspectives on Games and Education from the Learning Sciences

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shelton, Brett E.; Satwicz, Tom; Caswell, Tom

2011-01-01

This paper reviews three classic theorists' writing on games, learning, and development. Piaget, Vygotsky, and Bruner all wrote about games and play as important to thinking and learning. This review attempts to synthesize their perspectives as a means to revisit underused theoretical perspectives on the role of games in education. The views of…

Visualizing the Structure of Medical Informatics Using Term Co-Occurrence Analysis: II. INSPEC Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morris, Theodore

2001-01-01

Term co-occurrence analysis of INSPEC classification codes and thesaurus terms used to index Medical Informatics literature reveals an information science and technology perspective on the field, to accompany the biomedical perspective previously reported. This study continues the search for a better understanding of the structure of Medical…

Theories on Drug Abuse: Selected Contemporary Perspectives. Research Monograph 30.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lettieri, Dan J., Ed.; And Others

This volume presents various theoretical orientations and perspectives of the drug abuse research field, derived from the social and biomedical sciences. The first section contains a separate theoretical overview for each of the 43 theories or perspectives. The second section contains five chapters which correspond to the five components of a drug…

Workshop on Science and the Human Exploration of Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Duke, M. B. (Editor)

2001-01-01

The exploration of Mars will be a multi-decadal activity. Currently, a scientific program is underway, sponsored by NASA's Office of Space Science in the United States, in collaboration with international partners France, Italy, and the European Space Agency. Plans exist for the continuation of this robotic program through the first automated return of Martian samples in 2014. Mars is also a prime long-term objective for human exploration, and within NASA, efforts are being made to provide the best integration of the robotic program and future human exploration missions. From the perspective of human exploration missions, it is important to understand the scientific objectives of human missions, in order to design the appropriate systems, tools, and operational capabilities to maximize science on those missions. In addition, data from the robotic missions can provide critical environmental data - surface morphology, materials composition, evaluations of potential toxicity of surface materials, radiation, electrical and other physical properties of the Martian environment, and assessments of the probability that humans would encounter Martian life forms. Understanding of the data needs can lead to the definition of experiments that can be done in the near-term that will make the design of human missions more effective. This workshop was convened to begin a dialog between the scientific community that is central to the robotic exploration mission program and a set of experts in systems and technologies that are critical to human exploration missions. The charge to the workshop was to develop an understanding of the types of scientific exploration that would be best suited to the human exploration missions and the capabilities and limitations of human explorers in undertaking science on those missions.

A Multi-Level Systems Perspective for the Science of Team Science

PubMed Central

Börner, Katy; Contractor, Noshir; Falk-Krzesinski, Holly J.; Fiore, Stephen M.; Hall, Kara L.; Keyton, Joann; Spring, Bonnie; Stokols, Daniel; Trochim, William; Uzzi, Brian

2012-01-01

This Commentary describes recent research progress and professional developments in the study of scientific teamwork, an area of inquiry termed the “science of team science” (SciTS, pronounced “sahyts”). It proposes a systems perspective that incorporates a mixed-methods approach to SciTS that is commensurate with the conceptual, methodological, and translational complexities addressed within the SciTS field. The theoretically grounded and practically useful framework is intended to integrate existing and future lines of SciTS research to facilitate the field’s evolution as it addresses key challenges spanning macro, meso, and micro levels of analysis. PMID:20844283

3D construction and repair from welding and material science perspectives

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marya, Surendar; Hascoet, Jean-Yves

2016-10-01

Additive manufacturing, based on layer-by-layer deposition of a feedstock material from a 3D data, can be mechanistically associated to welding. With feedstock fusion based processes, both additive manufacturing and welding implement similar heat sources, feedstock materials and translation mechanisms. From material science perspectives, additive manufacturing can take clue from lessons learned by millennium old welding technology to rapidly advance in its quest to generate fit for service metallic parts. This paper illustrates material science highlights extracted from the fabrication of a 316 L air vent and the functional repair of a Monel K500 (UNS N0500) with Inconel 625.

The Nash equilibrium: A perspective

PubMed Central

Holt, Charles A.; Roth, Alvin E.

2004-01-01

In 1950, John Nash contributed a remarkable one-page PNAS article that defined and characterized a notion of equilibrium for n- person games. This notion, now called the “Nash equilibrium,” has been widely applied and adapted in economics and other behavioral sciences. Indeed, game theory, with the Nash equilibrium as its centerpiece, is becoming the most prominent unifying theory of social science. In this perspective, we summarize the historical context and subsequent impact of Nash's contribution. PMID:15024100

Space Weathering Perspectives on Europa Amidst the Tempest of the Jupiter Magnetospheric System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cooper, J. F.; Hartle, R. E.; Lipatov, A. S.; Sittler, E. C.; Cassidy, T. A.; Ip. W.-H.

2010-01-01

Europa resides within a "perfect storm" tempest of extreme external field, plasma, and energetic particle interactions with the magnetospheric system of Jupiter. Missions to Europa must survive, functionally operate, make useful measurements, and return critical science data, while also providing full context on this ocean moon's response to the extreme environment. Related general perspectives on space weathering in the solar system are applied to mission and instrument science requirements for Europa.

Biofeedback in Partial Weight Bearing: Usability of Two Different Devices from a Patient’s and Physical Therapist’s Perspective

PubMed Central

van Lieshout, Remko; Pisters, Martijn F.; Vanwanseele, Benedicte; de Bie, Rob A.; Wouters, Eveline J.; Stukstette, Mirelle J.

2016-01-01

Background Partial weight bearing is frequently instructed by physical therapists in patients after lower-limb trauma or surgery. The use of biofeedback devices seems promising to improve the patient’s compliance with weight-bearing instructions. SmartStep and OpenGo-Science are biofeedback devices that provide real-time feedback. For a successful implementation, usability of the devices is a critical aspect and should be tested from a user’s perspective. Aim To describe the usability from the physical therapists’ and a patients’ perspective of Smartstep and OpenGo-Science to provide feedback on partial weight bearing during supervised rehabilitation of patients after lower-limb trauma or surgery. Methods In a convergent mixed-methods design, qualitative and quantitative data were collected. Usability was subdivided into user performance, satisfaction and acceptability. Patients prescribed with partial weight bearing and their physical therapists were asked to use SmartStep and OpenGo-Science during supervised rehabilitation. Usability was qualitatively tested by a think-aloud method and a semi-structured interview and quantitatively tested by the System-Usability-Scale (SUS) and closed questions. For the qualitative data thematic content analyses were used. Results Nine pairs of physical therapists and their patients participated. The mean SUS scores for patients and physical therapists were for SmartStep 70 and 53, and for OpenGo-Science 79 and 81, respectively. Scores were interpreted with the Curved Grading Scale. The qualitative data showed that there were mixed views and perceptions from patients and physical therapists on satisfaction and acceptability. Conclusion This study gives insight in the usability of two biofeedback devices from the patient’s and physical therapist’s perspective. The overall usability from both perspectives seemed to be acceptable for OpenGo-Science. For SmartStep, overall usability seemed only acceptable from the patient’s perspective. Implication The study findings could help clinicians to decide which biofeedback device is appropriate for their given situation and provide information for future development of biofeedback devices. PMID:27798674

Early Adolescence: Perspectives and Recommendations to the National Science Foundation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Katzenmeyer, Conrad G., Ed.; Rivkin, Mary S., Ed.

Contained in this publication is the final report of a panel of experts, convened by the Assistant Director for Science Education of the National Science Foundation, interested in science education for early adolescence. The document also contains three appendices. Appendix A lists members of the panel and their professional affiliation. Appendix…

A Cultural Historical Theoretical Perspective of Discourse and Design in the Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Megan

2015-01-01

Flavio Azevedo, Peggy Martalock and Tugba Keser have initiated an important conversation in science education as they use sociocultural theory to introduce design based scenarios into the science classroom. This response seeks to expand Azevedo, Martalock and Keser's article "The discourse of design-based science classroom activities" by…

An Updated Perspective on Emergent Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Russell, Terry; McGuigan, Linda

2017-01-01

Our concern is to offer support to the entire spectrum of staff wishing to nurture the development of early years science, from unqualified personnel through to early years professionals who may hold any one of the plethora of relevant qualifications. We reflect on what form that science might take, bearing in mind criticisms of science education…

Improving the Science and Mathematic Achievement of Mexican American Students Through Culturally Relevant Science. ERIC Digest.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marinez, Diana I.; Ortiz de Montellano, Bernardo R.

There are many ways in which science can be made culturally relevant: archeoastronomy, mathematics, geology, ethnobotany, chemistry, and art can all be taught from a perspective celebrating the accomplishments of Mexican American and American Indian science and encouraging exploration. A culturally relevant curriculum provides teachers with…

Feminist Approaches to Science. The Athene Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bleier, Ruth, Ed.

This collection of papers explores the nature of contemporary science and attempts to further a view of science that is "different, better, feminist, and emancipating." Most of the papers were presented in their original form at a symposium, Feminist Perspectives on Science, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, in April, 1985. Included are: (1)…

Using Educative Assessments to Support Science Teaching for Middle School English-Language Learners

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Buxton, Cory A.; Allexsaht-Snider, Martha; Suriel, Regina; Kayumova, Shakhnoza; Choi, Youn-jeng; Bouton, Bobette; Baker, Melissa

2013-01-01

Grounded in Hallidayan perspectives on academic language, we report on our development of an educative science assessment as one component of the language-rich inquiry science for English-language learners teacher professional learning project for middle school science teachers. The project emphasizes the role of content-area writing to support…

Locating a Space of Criticality as New Scholars in Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Burke, Lydia E. Carol-Ann; Bazzul, Jesse

2017-01-01

As newcomers in the field of science education research we discuss our perspectives on critical scholarship in the academy. Using the metalogue approach we explore our perceptions of science education, our experiences of the barriers to critical science education research, our analyses of why these barriers exist, and imaginings about how these…

Developing a Global Perspective in/for Science Teacher Education: The Case of Pollination

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Reis, Giuliano

2014-01-01

Science educators at all levels continuously struggle to keep pace with the rapidly developing understanding of the causes and potential solutions to current environmental issues while also trying to enthuse a new generation of passionate and knowledgeable scientists. However, how can future science teachers make science education more attractive…

Silencing of Voices in a Swedish Science Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramos de Robles, S. Lizette

2018-01-01

From a sociocultural perspective, I discuss data from a Swedish science classroom presented in María Gómez's article "Student Explanations of their Science Teachers' Assessments, Grading Practices, and How they learn Science". In this discussion, I focus on the need to change existing conceptions of assessment in the teaching and…

Institutionalization in Action: Interactive Science Center Interactivity and Materiality from the Family Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crain, Rhiannon Lorraine

2009-01-01

Interactive science centers are unique players in the science education community, but their positioning as both authorities on science and providers of "free choice" learning presents learning researchers with a problematic contradiction rooted in the complexities of trying to be both "scientific" and "education" organizations. Using insight from…

Argumentation in Science Education: A Model-Based Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bottcher, Florian; Meisert, Anke

2011-01-01

The goal of this article is threefold: First, the theoretical background for a model-based framework of argumentation to describe and evaluate argumentative processes in science education is presented. Based on the general model-based perspective in cognitive science and the philosophy of science, it is proposed to understand arguments as reasons…

Symposium: The Role of Biological Sciences in the Optometric Curriculum.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

And Others; Rapp, Jerry

1980-01-01

Papers from a symposium probing some of the curricular elements of the program in biological sciences at a school or college of optometry are provided. The overall program sequence in the biological sciences, microbiology, pharmacology, and the curriculum in the biological sciences from a clinical perspective are discussed. (Author/MLW)

Igniting and Sustaining Interest among Students Who Have Grown Cold toward Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jack, Brady Michael; Lin, Huann-Shyang

2014-01-01

In the wake of interest-study research in science education over the past 10 years, investigators have published many articles on how to define, measure, and develop students' interest in learning science. This present study approaches empirical investigations on students' interest in learning science from a different perspective. We…

Inside the Science Fair: The Judge's Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rillero, Peter; Zambo, Ron

2011-01-01

Science fair judges provide secrets to a successful science fair. Whether students are competing in science fairs at the high school, local, district, regional, state, or international level, their success is dependent on the judges' interpretation of their work. In this article, the authors present a series of questions and answers from past…

Young African American Boys Narrating Identities in Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kane, Justine M.

2016-01-01

The goal of this study is to bring the voices of African American boys front and center in science education research in an effort to strengthen our understandings of their experiences of school and science. Using an interpretivist perspective within a narrative inquiry approach, I focus on the student and science-student identities two African…

Perspectives on Women and the Sciences.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sloat, Barbara Furin

1990-01-01

Despite gains since 1970, women still make up only 15% of the science and engineering workforce in the United States. Nationally women constitute about 11% of the science faculty in professional ranks. A recent research study's dealing with the issue of women in science found that women's self-concept resulting from few faculty as role models,…

A Personal Polity Introduction to Political Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brazier, James E.

This paper presents an innovative way to teach Introduction to Political Science by breaking with the convention of teaching a survey course of all political science subfields. Each student is invited to be a participant-observer and apply political science perspectives to the data collected from his/her personal polity. Readings, research, and…

Multimodal Teacher Input and Science Learning in a Middle School Sheltered Classroom

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zhang, Ying

2016-01-01

This article reports the results of an ethnographic research about the multimodal science discourse in a sixth-grade sheltered classroom involving English Language Learners (ELLs) only. Drawing from the perspective of multimodality, this study examines how science learning is constructed in science lectures through multiple semiotic resources,…

The Nature of Science: Integrating Historical, Philosophical, and Sociological Perspectives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Espinoza, Fernando

2011-01-01

The role of science in society, along with its nature and development, are commonly misunderstood by students in the social sciences and humanities, and even those studying in the field. Fernando Espinoza shines light on these misconceptions to give readers a deeper understanding of science and its effect and influence upon society, through…

Consciousness and Science: A Non-Dual Perspective on the Theology-Science Dialogue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sriraman, Bharath; Benesch, Walter

2013-01-01

In modern science, the synthesis of "nature/mind" in observation, experiment, and explanation, especially in physics and biology increasingly reveal a non-linear totality in which subject, object, and situation have become inseparable. This raises the interesting ontological question of the true nature of reality? Western science as seen in its…

Students' Representations of Scientific Practice during a Science Internship: Reflections from an Activity-Theoretic Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hsu, Pei-Ling; van Eijck, Michiel; Roth, Wolff-Michael

2010-01-01

Working at scientists' elbows is one suggestion that educators make to improve science education, because such "authentic experiences" provide students with various types of science knowledge. However, there is an ongoing debate in the literature about the assumption that authentic science activities can enhance students' understandings…

Digital Science Notebooks: Perspectives from an Elementary Classroom Teacher

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Paek, Seungoh; Fulton, Lori A.

2017-01-01

This study investigates how tablet-based note-taking applications can be integrated into elementary science classes as digital science notebooks. A teacher with 20 students in Grades 4-5 from a public charter school in Hawaii participated in the study. The participating science teacher introduced a tablet-based note taking application (TNA) to her…

What Science Teaching Looks Like: An International Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Roth, Kathleen; Garnier, Helen

2007-01-01

Using the Trends in International Mathematics and Science (TIMSS) video study, the authors compare science teaching practices in the United States and in four other countries that outperformed the United States: Australia, the Czech Republic, Japan, and the Netherlands. Their observations of videotapes from 100 8th-grade science lessons in each…

A current perspective on medical informatics and health sciences librarianship

PubMed Central

Perry, Gerald J.; Roderer, Nancy K.; Assar, Soraya

2005-01-01

Objective: The article offers a current perspective on medical informatics and health sciences librarianship. Narrative: The authors: (1) discuss how definitions of medical informatics have changed in relation to health sciences librarianship and the broader domain of information science; (2) compare the missions of health sciences librarianship and health sciences informatics, reviewing the characteristics of both disciplines; (3) propose a new definition of health sciences informatics; (4) consider the research agendas of both disciplines and the possibility that they have merged; and (5) conclude with some comments about actions and roles for health sciences librarians to flourish in the biomedical information environment of today and tomorrow. Summary: Boundaries are disappearing between the sources and types of and uses for health information managed by informaticians and librarians. Definitions of the professional domains of each have been impacted by these changes in information. Evolving definitions reflect the increasingly overlapping research agendas of both disciplines. Professionals in these disciplines are increasingly functioning collaboratively as “boundary spanners,” incorporating human factors that unite technology with health care delivery. PMID:15858622

A view of the tip of the iceberg: revisiting conceptual continuities and their implications for science learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Bryan A.; Kloser, Matt

2009-12-01

We respond to Hwang and Kim and Yeo's critiques of the conceptual continuity framework in science education. First, we address the criticism that their analysis fails to recognize the situated perspective of learning by denying the dichotomy of the formal and informal knowledge as a starting point in the learning process. Second, we address the critique that students' descriptions fail to meet the "gold standard" of science education—alignment with an authoritative source and generalizability—by highlighting some student-expert congruence that could serve as the foundation for future learning. Third, we address the critique that a conceptual continuity framework could lead to less rigorous science education goals by arguing that the ultimate goals do not change, but rather that if the pathways that lead to the goals' achievement could recognize existing lexical continuities' science teaching may become more efficient. In sum, we argue that a conceptual continuities framework provides an asset, not deficit lexical perspective from which science teacher educators and science educators can begin to address and build complete science understandings.

Benefits of applying low-temperature plasma treatment to wound care and hemostasis from the viewpoints of physics and pathology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shimizu, Tetsuji; Ikehara, Yuzuru

2017-12-01

Over the last decade, low-temperature plasma (LTP) technology has reached the life sciences and introduced the benefits of using such technology at atmospheric pressure for medical applications. The active elements from LTP, such as reactive molecular species, charged particles and photons, appear to react with biomolecules on wounds and at bleeding points. This action by LTP might be analogous with semiconductor fabrication techniques such as etching and surface modification. From this perspective, we discuss the general aspects and principles of LTP devices used at atmospheric pressure in wound care and hemostasis as an interdisciplinary fusion of applied physics and pathology.

Reforms in pedagogy and the Confucian tradition: looking below the surface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ho, Felix M.

2018-03-01

This Forum article addresses some of the issues raised in the article by Ying-Syuan Huang and Anila Asghar's paper entitled: Science education reform in Confucian learning cultures: teachers' perspectives on policy and practice in Taiwan. An attempt is made to highlight the need for a more nuanced approach in considering the Confucian education tradition and its compatibility with education reforms. In particular, the article discusses issues concerning the historical development of the Confucian education tradition, challenges in reform implementation that are in reality tradition-independent, as well as opportunities and points of convergence that the Confucian education tradition presents that can in fact be favorable to implementation of reform-based pedagogies.

Learning to teach science for social justice in urban schools

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vora, Purvi

This study looks at how beginner teachers learn to teach science for social justice in urban schools. The research questions are: (1) what views do beginner teachers hold about teaching science for social justice in urban schools? (2) How do beginner teachers' views about teaching science for social justice develop as part of their learning? In looking at teacher learning, I take a situative perspective that defines learning as increased participation in a community of practice. I use the case study methodology with five teacher participants as the individual units of analysis. In measuring participation, I draw from mathematics education literature that offers three domains of professional practice: Content, pedagogy and professional identity. In addition, I focus on agency as an important component of increased participation from a social justice perspective. My findings reveal two main tensions that arose as teachers considered what it meant to teach science from a social justice perspective: (1) Culturally responsive teaching vs. "real" science and (2) Teaching science as a political act. In negotiating these tensions, teachers drew on a variety of pedagogical and conceptual tools offered in USE that focused on issues of equity, access, place-based pedagogy, student agency, ownership and culture as a toolkit. Further, in looking at how the five participants negotiated these tensions in practice, I describe four variables that either afforded or constrained teacher agency and consequently the development of their own identity and role as socially just educators. These four variables are: (1) Accessing and activating social, human and cultural capital, (2) reconceptualizing culturally responsive pedagogical tools, (3) views of urban youth and (4) context of participation. This study has implications for understanding the dialectical relationship between agency and social justice identity for beginner teachers who are learning how to teach for social justice. Also, it suggests teacher agency as an important domain of professional practice when measuring teacher learning from a situative perspective.

The Junior High School Integrated Science: The Actual Teaching Process in the Perspective of an Ethnographer

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adu-Gyamfi, Kenneth; Ampiah, Joseph Ghartey

2016-01-01

Science education at the Basic School (Primary and Junior High School) serves as the foundation upon which higher levels of science education are pivoted. This ethnographic study sought to investigate the teaching of Integrated Science at the Junior High School (JHS) level in the classrooms of two science teachers in two schools of differing…

Knowledge about Science in Science Education Research from the Perspective of Ludwik Fleck's Epistemology

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martins, André Ferrer Pinto

2016-01-01

The importance of knowledge about science is well established, and it has a long history in the area of science education. More recently, the specialized literature has highlighted the search for consensus in relation to what should be taught in this regard, that is, what should compose the science curricula of elementary and high school levels.…

The Science Classroom as a Site of Epistemic Talk: A Case Study of a Teacher's Attempts to Teach Science Based on Argument

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Christodoulou, Andri; Osborne, Jonathan

2014-01-01

Current science education research and policy highlight the need to conceptualize scientific disciplines not only based on a view of "science-as-knowledge" but also on a perspective of "science-as-practice," placing an emphasis on practices such as explanation, argumentation, modeling, and communication. However, classroom…

Teacher students' dilemmas when teaching science through inquiry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krämer, Philipp; Nessler, Stefan H.; Schlüter, Kirsten

2015-09-01

Background: Inquiry-based science education (IBSE) is suitable to teach scientific contents as well as to foster scientific skills. Similar conclusions are drawn by studies with respect to scientific literacy, motivational aspects, vocabulary knowledge, conceptual understandings, critical thinking, and attitudes toward science. Nevertheless, IBSE is rarely adopted in schools. Often barriers for teachers account for this lack, with the result that even good teachers struggle to teach science as inquiry. More importantly, studies indicate that several barriers and constraints could be ascribed to problems teacher students have at the university stage. Purpose: The purpose of this explorative investigation is to examine the problems teacher students have when teaching science through inquiry. In order to draw a holistic picture of these problems, we identified problems from three different points of view leading to the research question: What problems regarding IBSE do teacher students have from an objective, a subjective, and a self-reflective perspective? Design & method: Using video analysis and observation tools as well as qualitative content analysis and open questionnaires we identified problems from each perspective. Results: The objectively stated problems comprise the lack of essential features of IBSE especially concerning 'Supporting pupils' own investigations' and 'Guiding analysis and conclusions.' The subjectively perceived problems comprise concerns about 'Teachers' abilities' and 'Pupils' abilities,' 'Differentiated instruction' and institutional frame 'Conditions' while the self-reflectively noticed problems mainly comprise concerns about 'Allowing inquiry,' 'Instructional Aspects,' and 'Pupils' behavior.' Conclusions: Each of the three different perspectives provides plenty of problems, partially overlapping, partially complementing one another, and partially revealing completely new problems. Consequently, teacher educators have to consider these three perspectives.

Russian Bilingual Science Learning: Perspectives from Secondary Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lemberger, Nancy; Vinogradova, Olga

2002-01-01

Describes one secondary Russian/English bilingual science teacher's practice and her literate students' experiences as they learn science and adapt to a new school. Discusses the notion of whether literacy skills in the native language are transferable to a second language. (Author/VWL)

Many Ways of Knowing

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Canipe, Martha; Tolbert, Sara

2016-01-01

As institutions, science and science education alike have rarely included the perspectives and contributions of indigenous peoples pertaining to the natural world. Yet, people worldwide have benefited from the traditional ecological knowledge of indigenous communities. Western science and technology, though broadly worthwhile, have been a source…

Perspective view of north rear and west side, also showing ...

Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

Perspective view of north rear and west side, also showing north hall at far left. - San Bernardino Valley College, Life Science Building, 701 South Mount Vernon Avenue, San Bernardino, San Bernardino County, CA

Science and data science.

PubMed

Blei, David M; Smyth, Padhraic

2017-08-07

Data science has attracted a lot of attention, promising to turn vast amounts of data into useful predictions and insights. In this article, we ask why scientists should care about data science. To answer, we discuss data science from three perspectives: statistical, computational, and human. Although each of the three is a critical component of data science, we argue that the effective combination of all three components is the essence of what data science is about.

Identity: a complex structure for researching students' academic behavior in science and mathematics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aydeniz, Mehmet; Hodge, Lynn Liao

2011-06-01

This article is a response to Pike and Dunne's research. The focus of their analysis is on reflections of studying science post-16. Pike and Dunne draw attention to under enrollments in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, in particular, in the field of physics, chemistry and biology in the United Kingdom. We provide an analysis of how the authors conceptualize the problem of scientific career choices, the theoretical framework through which they study the problem, and the methodology they use to collect and analyze data. In addition, we examine the perspective they provide in light of new developments in the field of students' attitudes towards science and mathematics. More precisely, we draw attention to and explicate the authors' use of identity from the perspective of emerging theories that explore the relationships between the learner and culture in the context of science and mathematics.

Using Theory of Mind to Promote Conceptual Change in Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kyriakopoulou, Natassa; Vosniadou, Stella

2014-07-01

We argue that learning science requires children to move from perceptually based representations to more abstract conceptual representations and to understand that appearance may sometimes deceive us and that the same phenomenon in the world can have more than one representation when seen from different perspectives. We also argue that the beginnings of such an epistemological perspective can be found in young children's ability to think about the difference between their beliefs and the beliefs of others in the social domain, i.e., their Theory of Mind. We present the results of two empirical studies that show significant correlations between children's growing Theory of Mind, developing epistemological thinking, and science learning, and suggest that Theory of Mind tasks can be used to promote conceptual change in science.

The ontology of science teaching in the neoliberal era

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Ajay

2017-12-01

Because of ever stricter standards of accountability, science teachers are under an increasing and unrelenting pressure to demonstrate the effects of their teaching on student learning. Econometric perspectives of teacher quality have become normative in assessment of teachers' work for accountability purposes. These perspectives seek to normalize some key ontological assumptions about teachers and teaching, and thus play an important role in shaping our understanding of the work science teachers do as teachers in their classrooms. In this conceptual paper I examine the ontology of science teaching as embedded in econometric perspectives of teacher quality. Based on Foucault's articulation of neoliberalism as a discourse of governmentality in his `The Birth of Biopolitics' lectures, I suggest that this ontology corresponds well with the strong and substantivist ontology of work under neoliberalism, and thus could potentially be seen as reflection of the influence of neoliberal ideas in education. Implications of the mainstreaming of an ontology of teaching that is compatible with neoliberalism can be seen in increasing marketization of teaching, `teaching evangelism', and impoverished notions of learning and teaching. A shift of focus from teacher quality to quality of teaching and building conceptual models of teaching based on relational ontologies deserve to be explored as important steps in preserving critical and socially just conceptions of science teaching in neoliberal times.

Nasa's Land Remote Sensing Plans for the 1980's

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Higg, H. C.; Butera, K. M.; Settle, M.

1985-01-01

Research since the launch of LANDSAT-1 has been primarily directed to the development of analysis techniques and to the conduct of applications studies designed to address resource information needs in the United States and in many other countries. The current measurement capabilities represented by MSS, TM, and SIR-A and B, coupled with the present level of remote sensing understanding and the state of knowledge in the discipline earth sciences, form the foundation for NASA's Land Processes Program. Science issues to be systematically addressed include: energy balance, hydrologic cycle, biogeochemical cycles, biological productivity, rock cycle, landscape development, geological and botanical associations, and land surface inventory, monitoring, and modeling. A global perspective is required for using remote sensing technology for problem solving or applications context. A successful model for this kind of activity involves joint research with a user entity where the user provides a test site and ground truth and NASA provides the remote sensing techniques to be tested.

The Science Behind the NASA/NOAA Electronic Theater 2002

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hasler, A. Fritz; Starr, David (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

Details of the science stories and scientific results behind the Etheater Earth Science Visualizations from the major remote sensing institutions around the country will be explained. The NASA Electronic Theater presents Earth science observations and visualizations in a historical perspective. Fly in from outer space to Temple Square and the University of Utah Campus. Go back to the early weather satellite images from the 1960s see them contrasted with the latest US/Europe/Japan global weather data. See the latest images and image sequences from NASA & NOAA missions like Terra, GOES, NOAA, TRMM, SeaWiFS, Landsat 7 visualized with state-of-the art tools. A similar retrospective of numerical weather models from the 1960s will be compared with the latest "year 2002" high-resolution models. See the inner workings of a powerful hurricane as it is sliced and dissected using the University of Wisconsin Vis-5D interactive visualization system. The largest super computers are now capable of realistic modeling of the global oceans. See ocean vortexes and currents that bring up the nutrients to feed phitoplankton and zooplankton as well as draw the crill fish, whales and fisherman. See the how the ocean blooms in response to these currents and El Nino/La Nina climate regimes. The Internet and networks have appeared while computers and visualizations have vastly improved over the last 40 years. These advances make it possible to present the broad scope and detailed structure of the huge new observed and simulated datasets in a compelling and instructive manner. New visualization tools allow us to interactively roam & zoom through massive global images larger than 40,000 x 20,000 pixels. Powerful movie players allow us to interactively roam, zoom & loop through 4000 x 4000 pixel bigger than HDTV movies of up to 5000 frames. New 3D tools allow highly interactive manipulation of detailed perspective views of many changing model quantities. See the 1m resolution before and after shots of lower Manhattan and the Pentagon after the September 11 disaster as well as shots of Afghanistan from the Space Imaging IKONOS as well as debris plume images from Terra MODIS and SPOT Image. Shown by the SGI-Octane Graphics-Supercomputer are visualizations of hurricanes Michelle 2001, Floyd, Mitch, Fran and Linda. Our visualizations of these storms have been featured on the covers of the National Geographic, Time, Newsweek and Popular Science. Highlights will be shown from the NASA's large collection of High Definition TV (HDTV) visualizations clips New visualizations of a Los Alamos global ocean model, and high-resolution results of a NASA/JPL Atlantic ocean basin model showing currents, and salinity features will be shown. El Nino/La Nina effects on sea surface temperature and sea surface height of the Pacific Ocean will also be shown. The SST simulations will be compared with GOES Gulf Stream animations and ocean productivity observations. Tours will be given of the entire Earth's land surface at 500 m resolution from recently composited Terra MODIS data, Visualizations will be shown from the Earth Science Etheater 2001 recently presented over the last years in New Zealand, Johannesburg, Tokyo, Paris, Munich, Sydney, Melbourne, Honolulu, Washington, New York City, Pasadena, UCAR/Boulder, and Penn State University. The presentation will use a 2-CPU SGI/CRAY Octane Super Graphics workstation with 4 GB RAM and terabyte disk array at 2048 x 768 resolution plus multimedia laptop with three high resolution projectors. Visualizations will also be featured from museum exhibits and presentations including: the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in Washington, IMAX theater at the Maryland Science Center in Baltimore, the James Lovell Discovery World Science museum in Milwaukee, the American Museum of Natural History (NYC) Hayden Planetarium IMAX theater, etc. The Etheater is sponsored by NASA, NOAA and the American Meteorological Society. This presentation is brought to you by the University of Utah College of Mines and Earth Sciences and, the Utah Museum of Natural History.

An Action Plan for FCS. Putting the Family Perspective into Healthcare

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Riportella, Roberta

2005-01-01

Family and consumer sciences (FCS) professionals often are called upon to work with groups that are seeking to create healthier communities. This article offers an expanded perspective on what it means to include a family focus in these discussions and it answers the question, How does a family perspective lead to different solutions for creating…

Ethiopian Environmental Education from a Utopian Perspective: A Comparative Study of Two Children's Outlooks

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Debele, Meskerem; Plevyak, Linda

2017-01-01

This article focuses on the topic of nature/environment in elementary environmental science textbooks, and the comparison between two third graders at a private Ethiopian school with an antiutopian and a utopian perspective on the environment. The antiutopian perspective is marked by a disconnect in one's cognitive representation of natural…

Engineering Particle Surface Chemistry and Electrochemistry with Atomic Layer Deposition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jackson, David Hyman Kentaro

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a vapor phase thin film coating technique that relies on sequential pulsing of precursors that undergo self-limited surface reactions. The self- limiting reactions and gas phase diffusion of the precursors together enable the conformal coating of microstructured particles with a high degree of thickness and compositional control. ALD may be used to deposit thin films that introduce new functionalities to a particle surface. Examples of new functionalities include: chemical reactivity, a mechanically strong protective coating, and an electrically resistive layer. The coatings properties are often dependent on the bulk properties and microstructure of the particle substrate, though they usually do not affect its bulk properties or microstructure. Particle ALD finds utility in the ability to synthesize well controlled, model systems, though it is expensive due to the need for costly metal precursors that are dangerous and require special handling. Enhanced properties due to ALD coating of particles in various applications are frequently described empirically, while the details of their enhancement mechanisms often remain the focus of ongoing research in the field. This study covers the various types of particle ALD and attempts to describe them from the unifying perspective of surface science.

Perspectives in Marine Citizen Science

PubMed Central

Bear, Michael

2016-01-01

Citizen science can be defined as the process by which any non-scientist collects data or uses the scientific method under the guidance or mentorship of a scientist. This article presents an overview of several marine citizen-science projects as practiced by three non-profit organizations. PMID:27047591

Engaging plant anatomy and local knowledge on the buriti palm ( Mauritia flexuosa L.f.: Arecaceae): the microscopic world meets the golden grass artisan's perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Viana, Rebeca V. R.; Scatena, Vera L.; Eichemberg, Mayra T.; Sano, Paulo T.

2018-03-01

Considering that both Western Science and Local Knowledge Systems share a common ground—observations of the natural world—the dialogue between them should not only be possible, but fruitful. Local communities whose livelihoods depend on traditional uses of the local biodiversity not only develop knowledge about nature, making several uses of such knowledge, but, with that process, several inquiries about nature can be raised. Here we present our experience with the engagement of Western Science with golden grass artisan's knowledge about the buriti palm ( M. flexuosa). We applied 25 semi-directive interviews, combined with field diary and participative observation, in two quilombola communities from Jalapão region (Central-Brazil). One of the inquiries that emerged from the artisan's perspectives was about the differences between male and female buriti palms' fiber. We then engaged both local and scientific perspectives regarding this issue using plant anatomy as a dialogue instrument. Here we describe this experience and resort to Paulo Freire's ideas on dialogue to argue that, to integrate Western Science and Local Knowledge Systems in a collaborative and contextualized perspective, the research should be faced as a mutual learning practice.

Ceres During Opposition Surge.

NASA Image and Video Library

2017-05-16

NASA's Dawn spacecraft successfully observed Ceres at opposition on April 29, 2017, taking images from a position exactly between the sun and Ceres' surface. Mission specialists had carefully maneuvered Dawn into a special orbit so that the spacecraft could view Occator Crater, which contains the brightest area of Ceres, from this new perspective. A movie shows these opposition images, with contrast enhanced to highlight brightness differences. The bright spots of Occator stand out particularly well on an otherwise relatively bland surface. Dawn took these images from an altitude of about 12,000 miles (20,000 kilometers). Based on data from ground-based telescopes and spacecraft that have previously viewed planetary bodies at opposition, scientists predicted that Ceres would appear brighter from this opposition configuration. This increase in brightness, or "surge," relates the size of the grains of material on the surface, as well as how porous those materials are. The science motivation for performing these observations is further explained in the March 2017 issue of the Dawn Journal blog. A movie can be viewed at https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21405

International CPR guidelines - perspectives in CPR.

PubMed

Nolan, Jerry P

2013-09-01

The International Liaison Committee on Resuscitation (ILCOR) co-ordinates regular reviews of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) science and publishes consensus on science statements and treatment recommendations. These outputs are used by international resuscitation organisations to generate clinical guidelines. This review will outline the history behind the development of international CPR guidelines and will provide a detailed description of the current guideline generating process. A perspective is provided on the future of this process and the prospects for completely unified international CPR guidelines. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

What "Ideas-about-Science" Should Be Taught in School Science? A Chemistry Teachers' Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niaz, Mansoor

2008-01-01

The objective of this study is to facilitate in-service chemistry teachers' understanding of nature of science and what "ideas-about-science" can be included in the classroom. The study is based on 17 in-service teachers who had registered for a 11-week course on "Epistemology of Science Teaching" as part of their Master's degree program. The…

Exploring Ivorian Perspectives on the Effectiveness of the Current Ivorian Science Curriculum in Addressing Issues Related to HIV/AIDS

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ado, Gustave Firmin

2014-01-01

School-based HIV/AIDS science education has the potential to impact students when integrated into the science curriculum. However, this mixed method study shows that school-based HIV/AIDS science education is often not infused into career subjects such as science education but integrated into civics education and taught by teachers who lack the…

Defining Science from Multicultural and Universal Perspectives: A Review of Research and Its Implications for Science Education in Africa

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ogunleye, Ayodele O.

2009-01-01

The current move toward "science for all" in all parts of the globe necessitates that consideration be given to how pupils move between their everyday life and the world of school science, how pupils deal with cognitive conflicts between those two worlds, and what this means for effective teaching of science. In recent times,…

Focusing on the Classical or Contemporary? Chinese Science Teacher Educators' Conceptions of Nature of Science Content to Be Taught to Pre-Service Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wan, Zhi Hong; Wong, Siu Ling; Wei, Bing; Zhan, Ying

2013-01-01

Drawing from the phenomenographic perspective, an exploratory study investigated Chinese teacher educators' conceptions of teaching Nature of Science (NOS) to pre-service science teachers through semi-structured interviews. Five key dimensions emerged from the data. This paper focuses on the dimension, "NOS content to be taught to pre-service…

Science as Storytelling for Teaching the Nature of Science and the Science-Religion Interface

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bickmore, Barry R.; Thompson, Kirsten R.; Grandy, David A.; Tomlin, Teagan

2009-01-01

Here we describe a method for teaching the NOS called "Science as Storytelling," which was designed to directly confront narve realist preconceptions about the NOS and replace them with more sophisticated ideas, while retaining a moderate realist perspective. It was also designed to foster a more sophisticated understanding of the…

Students' Views Concerning Worldview Presuppositions Underpinning Science: Is the World Really Ordered, Uniform, and Comprehensible?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hansson, Lena

2014-01-01

That nature and the universe are ordered, uniform, and comprehensible is a starting point in science. However, such worldview presuppositions are often taken for granted, rather than explicitly mentioned, in science and in science class. This article takes a worldview perspective and reports from interviews (N = 26) with upper secondary students…

Innovating Science Teacher Education: A History and Philosophy of Science Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niaz, Mansoor

2010-01-01

How teachers view the nature of scientific knowledge is crucial to their understanding of science content and how it can be taught. This book presents an overview of the dynamics of scientific progress and its relationship to the history and philosophy of science, and then explores their methodological and educational implications and develops…

Who SoTLs Where? Publishing the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Political Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hamann, Kerstin; Pollock, Philip H.; Wilson, Bruce M.

2009-01-01

Political science, as a discipline, is a relative newcomer to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). We examine authorship patterns of SoTL articles in "PS: Political Science & Politics," the "Journal of Political Science Education," and "International Studies Perspectives" from 1998-2008. Our findings indicate more collaborative SoTL…

Transforming Undergraduate Science Teaching: Social Constructivist Perspectives. Counterpoints: Studies in the Postmodern Theory of Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Peter C., Ed.; Gilmer, Penny J., Ed.; Tobin, Kenneth, Ed.

This book comes at a time when epistemological reform is sweeping through the global community of science education. Since the 1970s, the theories of knowing embodied in the teaching activities of school science teachers have been undergoing a major transformation toward more learner-sensitive standpoints. Undergraduate science teaching however,…

Mountain Climbing in the Dark: Introduction to the Special Symposium on the Future Direction of Psychological Science.

PubMed

Sternberg, Robert J

2017-07-01

This special symposium in Perspectives on Psychological Science answers the question, "Do you believe the field of psychological science is headed in the right direction?" Respondents are a sampling of Association for Psychological Science award winners over the past 5 years dating back from publication of this symposium.

A History of Ideas in Science Education: Implications for Practice.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeBoer, George E.

This book offers a perspective on the science education enterprise that individuals can use as they attempt to understand what happens in science classrooms and what should happen. This book is a historical account of ideas in science education that covers the time period from approximately the middle of the nineteenth century to 1991. How science…

A Rationale for Building a Comprehensive Science Program for Inner-City Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Martin, Charles Arthur

The intent of this dissertation was to develop a science curriculum from an inner-city perspective. Five units and a rationale for inner-city education are included. The units include both physical and biological science topics. The units are as follows: (1) Rationale for Building a Comprehensive Science Program for Inner-City Education; (2) With…

Scepticism and Doubt in Science and Science Education: The Complexity of Global Warming as a Socio-Scientific Issue

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bryce, Tom G. K.; Day, Stephen P.

2014-01-01

This article looks critically at the complexity of the debate among climate scientists; the controversies in the science of global temperature measurement; and at the role played by "consensus." It highlights the conflicting perspectives figuring in the mass media concerned with climate change, arguing that science teachers should be…

The 6th International Earth Science Olympiad: A Student Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barlett, Luke; Cathro, Darcy; Mellow, Maddi; Tate, Clara

2014-01-01

In October 2012, two students from the Australian Science and Mathematics School and two from Yankalilla Area School were selected to travel to Olavarria, Argentina in order to compete in the 6th International Earth Science Olympiad (IESO). It was an opportunity for individuals with a passion for Earth science to come together from 17 countries to…

Pathways in Learning to Teach Elementary Science: Navigating Contexts, Roles, Affordances and Constraints

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Smith, Deborah C.; Jang, Shinho

2011-01-01

This case study of a fifth-year elementary intern's pathway in learning to teach science focused on her science methods course, placement science teaching, and reflections as a first-year teacher. We studied the sociocultural contexts within which the intern learned, their affordances and constraints, and participants' perspectives on their roles…

Science Teachers' Views of Science and Religion vs. the Islamic Perspective: Conflicting or Compatible?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mansour, Nasser

2011-01-01

This paper reports a study that explores Egyptian science teachers' views on religion and science within the context of Islam. It also highlights an ontological and epistemological consideration of these views, particularly the ways through which Egyptian Muslim teachers understand such a relationship with reference to the Qur'anic/Islamic…

Autonomy, Competence, and Intrinsic Motivation in Science Education: A Self- Determination Theory Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Painter, Jason

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to examine a proposed motivational model of science achievement based on self-determination theory. The study relied on U.S. eighth-grade science data from the 2007 Third International Mathematics and Science Study to examine a structural model that hypothesized how perceived autonomy support, perceived competence in…

The Construction of a Questionnaire to Evaluate the Science Orientedness of Students' Identities as Learners from a Cognitive Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taconis, Ruurd; de Putter-Smits, Lesley G. M.; Henry, Steven; den Brok, Perry J.; Beijaard, Douwe

2010-01-01

Forming a science-oriented identity is considered a process underlying both interest and achievement in science education. A questionnaire is developed for describing "identities as learners" and evaluating their science orientedness. The instrument (k = 65) focuses on cognitive aspects. An internal coherence of .88 was found. Five…

From Bench to Bedside: A Communal Utility Value Intervention to Enhance Students' Biomedical Science Motivation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Elizabeth R.; Smith, Jessi L.; Thoman, Dustin B.; Allen, Jill M.; Muragishi, Gregg

2015-01-01

Motivating students to pursue science careers is a top priority among many science educators. We add to the growing literature by examining the impact of a utility value intervention to enhance student's perceptions that biomedical science affords important utility work values. Using an expectancy-value perspective, we identified and tested 2…

Putting Sociology First--Reconsidering the Role of the Social in "Nature of Science" Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Zemplen, Gabor A.

2009-01-01

Contrasting two examples from 2005, a creationism-trial and a recent textbook, the article shows two different ways of employing social considerations to demarcate science from non-science. Drawing conclusions from the comparison, and citing some of the leading proponents of science studies, the paper argues for a novel perspective in teaching…

Analysis of an Interactive Technology Supported Problem-Based Learning STEM Project Using Selected Learning Sciences Interest Areas (SLSIA)

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kumar, David Devraj

2017-01-01

This paper reports an analysis of an interactive technology-supported, problem-based learning (PBL) project in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) from a Learning Sciences perspective using the Selected Learning Sciences Interest Areas (SLSIA). The SLSIA was adapted from the "What kinds of topics do ISLS [International…

Editorial: Boxed In or Coming Out? On the Treatment of Science, Technology, and Gender in Educational Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Henwood, Flis; Miller, Katrina

2001-01-01

This theme issue examines the treatment of science, technology, and gender in educational research, presenting perspectives from mainland Europe, the United States, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. Articles focus on mainstreaming gender equality in science, interrogating the masculinist and heteronormative nature of elementary school science,…

STS Education: International Perspectives on Reform. Ways of Knowing Science Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Solomon, Joan, Ed.; Aikenhead, Glen, Ed.

This book is a collection of essays about science-technology-society (STS) education for school science that examines new challenges and new questions in the domain of STS education. The book does not employ a purely academic approach found in science studies, yet almost every chapter shows some reflection on the historical, philosophical, or…

Merging perspectives in the catchment sciences: the US-Japan Joint Seminar on catchment hydrology and forest biogeochemistry

Treesearch

Kevin J. McGuire; Stephen D. Sebestyen; Nobuhito Ohte; Emily M. Elliott; Takashi Gomi; Mark B. Green; Brian L. McGlynn; Naoko Tokuchi

2014-01-01

Japan has strong research programmes in the catchment sciences that overlap with interests in the US catchment science community, particularly in experimental and field-based research. Historically, however, there has been limited interaction between these two hydrologic science communities because of differences in language, culture, and research approaches. These...

Pluralism and Rationality in the Social Sciences. Studies of Higher Education and Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johansson, Ingvar

1990-01-01

This paper looks at science from a sociological perspective while still trying to retain the aim of improving rationality. The paper claims that it is rational to have a methodological division of labor in science, in particular in the social sciences, and concludes that mono-methodological Crusonian rationality should be replaced by…

Pedagogy for the Connected Science Classroom: Computer Supported Collaborative Science and the Next Generation Science Standards

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foley, Brian J.; Reveles, John M.

2014-01-01

The prevalence of computers in the classroom is compelling teachers to develop new instructional skills. This paper provides a theoretical perspective on an innovative pedagogical approach to science teaching that takes advantage of technology to create a connected classroom. In the connected classroom, students collaborate and share ideas in…

Patients' perspectives on the medical primary-secondary care interface: systematic review and synthesis of qualitative research.

PubMed

Sampson, Rod; Cooper, Jamie; Barbour, Rosaline; Polson, Rob; Wilson, Philip

2015-10-15

To synthesise the published literature on the patient experience of the medical primary-secondary care interface and to determine priorities for future work in this field aimed at improving clinical outcomes. Systematic review and metaethnographic synthesis of primary studies that used qualitative methods to explore patients' perspectives of the medical primary-secondary care interface. International primary-secondary care interface. EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus with Full text, PsycINFO, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection, Health Business Elite, Biomedica Reference Collection: Comprehensive Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, eBook Collection, Web of Science Core Collection: Citation Indexes and Social Sciences Citation Index, and grey literature. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they were full research papers employing qualitative methodology to explore patients' perspectives of the medical primary-secondary care interface. The 7-step metaethnographic approach described by Noblit and Hare, which involves cross-interpretation between studies while preserving the context of the primary data. The search identified 690 articles, of which 39 were selected for full-text review. 20 articles were included in the systematic review that encompassed a total of 689 patients from 10 countries. 4 important areas specific to the primary-secondary care interface from the patients' perspective emerged: barriers to care, communication, coordination, and 'relationships and personal value'. Patients should be the focus of any transfer of care between primary and secondary systems. From their perspective, areas for improvement may be classified into four domains that should usefully guide future work aimed at improving quality at this important interface. PROSPERO CRD42014009486. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Patients’ perspectives on the medical primary–secondary care interface: systematic review and synthesis of qualitative research

PubMed Central

Sampson, Rod; Cooper, Jamie; Barbour, Rosaline; Polson, Rob; Wilson, Philip

2015-01-01

Objectives To synthesise the published literature on the patient experience of the medical primary–secondary care interface and to determine priorities for future work in this field aimed at improving clinical outcomes. Design Systematic review and metaethnographic synthesis of primary studies that used qualitative methods to explore patients’ perspectives of the medical primary–secondary care interface. Setting International primary–secondary care interface. Data sources EMBASE, MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus with Full text, PsycINFO, Psychology and Behavioural Sciences Collection, Health Business Elite, Biomedica Reference Collection: Comprehensive Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts, eBook Collection, Web of Science Core Collection: Citation Indexes and Social Sciences Citation Index, and grey literature. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies Studies were eligible for inclusion if they were full research papers employing qualitative methodology to explore patients’ perspectives of the medical primary–secondary care interface. Review methods The 7-step metaethnographic approach described by Noblit and Hare, which involves cross-interpretation between studies while preserving the context of the primary data. Results The search identified 690 articles, of which 39 were selected for full-text review. 20 articles were included in the systematic review that encompassed a total of 689 patients from 10 countries. 4 important areas specific to the primary–secondary care interface from the patients’ perspective emerged: barriers to care, communication, coordination, and ‘relationships and personal value’. Conclusions and implications of key findings Patients should be the focus of any transfer of care between primary and secondary systems. From their perspective, areas for improvement may be classified into four domains that should usefully guide future work aimed at improving quality at this important interface. Trial registration number PROSPERO CRD42014009486. PMID:26474939

Using Grand Challenges to Teach Science: A Biology-Geology Collaboration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyford, M.; Myers, J. D.

2012-12-01

Three science courses at the University of Wyoming explore the inextricable connections between science and society by centering on grand challenges. Two of these courses are introductory integrated science courses for non-majors while the third is an upper level course for majors and non-majors. Through collaboration, the authors have developed these courses to explore the grand challenges of energy, water and climate. Each course focuses on the fundamental STEM principles required for a citizen to understand each grand challenge. However, the courses also emphasize the non-STEM perspectives (e.g., economics, politics, human well-being, externalities) that underlie each grand challenge and argue that creating equitable, sustainable and just solutions to the grand challenges hinges on an understanding of STEM and non-STEM perspectives. Moreover, the authors also consider the multitude of personal perspectives individuals bring to the classroom (e.g., values, beliefs, empathy misconceptions) that influence any stakeholder's ability to engage in fruitful discussions about grand challenge solutions. Discovering Science (LIFE 1002) focuses on the grand challenges of energy and climate. Students attend three one-hour lectures, one two-hour lab and a one-hour discussion each week. Lectures emphasize the STEM and non-STEM principles underlying each grand challenge. Laboratory activities are designed to be interdisciplinary and engage students in inquiry-driven activities to reinforce concepts from lecture and to model how science is conducted. Labs also expose students to the difficulties often associated with scientific studies, the limits of science, and the inherent uncertainties associated with scientific findings. Discussion sessions provide an opportunity for students to explore the complexity of the grand challenges from STEM and non-STEM perspectives, and expose the multitude of personal perspectives an individual might harbor related to each grand challenge. Global Sustainability: Managing Earth's Resources (GEOL 1600) focuses on the energy-water climate nexus with a similar emphasis on STEM and non-STEM perspectives as LIFE 1002. Each week, there are three one hour lectures and a two hour lab. To set the stage for global and systems thinking, the concept of the Anthropocene and planetary boundaries are introduced early in the semester. Lectures focus on a variety of energy-water-climate topics and provide the content background for the labs. Labs are mini-case studies that address a variety of issues set in different global contexts, e.g. groundwater in Bangladesh, coal in China and petroleum in Saudi Arabia. Often the labs cover two weeks with one part covering science and the other economics. Unlike the other two courses, Energy: A Geological Perspective (GEOL 3650), is enrolled with half geology majors and half non-majors, representing almost every college on campus. Its organizational structure is similar to 1600. Labs focus on case studies, each lasting from 3 to 5 weeks, with each week addressing a different aspect of the same issue and social context, e.g. geology, economics, engineering, regulatory and political/social. Students, working in groups, present oral and written reports. Topics range from nuclear power and weapons in Iran to atmospheric emissions and global climate treaties.

What students are saying about science: Student perspectives of meaningful, effective and ineffective learning experiences in science class

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, Thomas John

Statement of the problem. Research studies have rarely incorporated the subjective experience of students as they are engaged in learning. When the students' position is viewed at all in a research study, it is usually viewed from the perspective of the adult educators' interests and ways of seeing. As a result, the most conspicuously absent feature from the research literature is the first person voice of the student. In regards to science education specifically, few studies have focused on the students' perspective of their experience in science. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe and understand student perspectives of meaningful, effective, and ineffective learning experiences in science class. The following served as guiding questions: (1) What do students describe as meaningful and effective learning experiences in science class? (2) What do students describe as obstacles to their effective learning in science class? Methods. An interpretive research methodology was chosen for this study. The nine participants that took part in the study were grouped as self-directed, teacher-guided, and teacher-dependent learners. A variety of data gathering techniques were used including field notes, participant observations, interviews and focus groups. Throughout the study, inductive analysis was employed as a process for making sense out of the data. More specifically, the constant comparative method was used to categorize the data and facilitate the search for meaningful patterns. The analysis included a thick description of the students' experience of science in the first person voice of the student. The results of this study indicate that teachers play the fundamental role in the establishment of an effective learning environment and that students' consider their improved understanding to be a key to their meaningful learning. In addition, the students' improved understanding requires that teachers are actively involved in their progress and are willing to explain concepts on an ongoing basis. The study concludes by asserting that effective teachers must accommodate the needs of both self-directed and instructor-centered learners. Finally, it is argued that student feedback can be used to improve classroom effectiveness.

Tribology. LC Science Tracer Bullet.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Havas, George D., Comp.

Tribology is the science and technology of interacting surfaces in relative motion. It incorporates a number of scientific fields, including friction, wear, lubrication, materials science, and various branches of surface physics and surface chemistry. Tribology forms a vital part of engineering science. The interacting surfaces may be on machinery…

Theoretical Bases of Science Education Research.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Good, Ronald; And Others

This symposium examines the science education research enterprise from multiple theoretical perspectives. The first paper, "Contextual Constructivism; The Impact of Culture on the Learning and Teaching of Science (William Cobern), focuses on broad issues of culture and how constructivism is affected by the context of culture. Culturally based…

Whither Constructivism?--A Chemistry Teachers' Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Niaz, Mansoor

2008-01-01

Constructivism in science education has been the subject of considerable debate in the science education literature. The purpose of this study was to facilitate chemistry teachers' understanding that the tentative nature of scientific knowledge leads to the coexistence and rivalries among different forms of constructivism in science education. The…

Patterns and Perspectives in Environmental Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Science Foundation, Washington, DC. National Science Board.

This report, a supplement to the third annual report of the National Science Board, "Environmental Science, Challenge for the Seventies," contains much of the information and interpretation that formed the basis for the conclusions and recommendations of the annual report. It assembles the views and judgments of leading environmental…

Scientific Literacy and Student Attitudes: Perspectives from PISA 2006 Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bybee, Rodger; McCrae, Barry

2011-01-01

International assessments provide important knowledge about science education and help inform decisions about policies, programmes, and practices in participating countries. In 2006, science was the primary domain for the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), supported by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development…

Young Women, Sports, and Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Sandra L.

2007-01-01

This article examines young women's access to two traditionally male domains, sport and science, from two perspectives. The structural approach suggests that sport and science are stratified by gender and have historically been chilly climates for women. The Critical approach argues that structure and agency are important in understanding sources…

Scientific Literacy and Student Attitudes: Perspectives from PISA 2006 science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bybee, Rodger; McCrae, Barry

2011-01-01

International assessments provide important knowledge about science education and help inform decisions about policies, programmes, and practices in participating countries. In 2006, science was the primary domain for the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), supported by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). Compared to the school curriculum orientation of Trends in International Math and Science Study (TIMSS), PISA provides a perspective that emphasises the application of knowledge to science and technology-related life situations. The orientation of PISA includes both knowledge and attitudes as these contribute to students' competencies that are central to scientific literacy. In addition to students' knowledge and competencies, the 2006 PISA survey gathered data on students' interest in science, support for scientific enquiry, and responsibility towards resources and environments. The survey used both a non-contextualised student questionnaire and contextualised questions. The latter is an innovative approach which embedded attitudinal questions at the conclusion of about two-thirds of the test units. The results presented in this article make connections between students' attitudes and interests in science and scientific literacy.

Combining density functional and incremental post-Hartree-Fock approaches for van der Waals dominated adsorbate-surface interactions: Ag{sub 2}/graphene

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

Lara-Castells, María Pilar de, E-mail: Pilar.deLara.Castells@csic.es; Mitrushchenkov, Alexander O.; Stoll, Hermann

2015-09-14

A combined density functional (DFT) and incremental post-Hartree-Fock (post-HF) approach, proven earlier to calculate He-surface potential energy surfaces [de Lara-Castells et al., J. Chem. Phys. 141, 151102 (2014)], is applied to describe the van der Waals dominated Ag{sub 2}/graphene interaction. It extends the dispersionless density functional theory developed by Pernal et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 263201 (2009)] by including periodic boundary conditions while the dispersion is parametrized via the method of increments [H. Stoll, J. Chem. Phys. 97, 8449 (1992)]. Starting with the elementary cluster unit of the target surface (benzene), continuing through the realistic cluster model (coronene), andmore » ending with the periodic model of the extended system, modern ab initio methodologies for intermolecular interactions as well as state-of-the-art van der Waals-corrected density functional-based approaches are put together both to assess the accuracy of the composite scheme and to better characterize the Ag{sub 2}/graphene interaction. The present work illustrates how the combination of DFT and post-HF perspectives may be efficient to design simple and reliable ab initio-based schemes in extended systems for surface science applications.« less

Lunar Electric Fields: Observations and Implications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Halekas, J. S.; Delory, G. T.; Stubbs, T. J.; Farrell, W. M.; Vondrak, R. R.

2006-12-01

Alhough the Moon is typically thought of as having a relatively dormant environment, it is in fact very electrically active. The lunar surface, not protected by any substantial atmosphere, is directly exposed to solar UV and X-rays as well as solar wind plasma and energetic particles. This creates a complex electrodynamic environment, with the surface typically charging positive in sunlight and negative in shadow, and surface potentials varying over orders of magnitude in response to changing solar illumination and plasma conditions. Observations from the Apollo era and theoretical considerations strongly suggest that surface charging also drives dust electrification and horizontal and vertical dust transport. We present a survey of the lunar electric field environment, utilizing both newly interpreted Lunar Prospector (LP) orbital observations and older Apollo surface observations, and comparing to theoretical predictions. We focus in particular on time periods when the most significant surface charging was observed by LP - namely plasmasheet crossings (when the Moon is in the Earth's magnetosphere) and space weather events. During these time periods, kV-scale potentials are observed, and enhanced surface electric fields can be expected to drive significant horizontal and vertical dust transport. Both dust and electric fields can have serious effects on habitability and operation of machinery, so understanding the coupled dust-plasma-electric field system around the Moon is critically important for planning exploration efforts, in situ resource utilization, and scientific observations on the lunar surface. Furthermore, from a pure science perspective, this represents an excellent opportunity to study fundamental surface-plasma interactions.

Earth Science Informatics Community Requirements for Improving Sustainable Science Software Practices: User Perspectives and Implications for Organizational Action

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Downs, R. R.; Lenhardt, W. C.; Robinson, E.

2014-12-01

Science software is integral to the scientific process and must be developed and managed in a sustainable manner to ensure future access to scientific data and related resources. Organizations that are part of the scientific enterprise, as well as members of the scientific community who work within these entities, can contribute to the sustainability of science software and to practices that improve scientific community capabilities for science software sustainability. As science becomes increasingly digital and therefore, dependent on software, improving community practices for sustainable science software will contribute to the sustainability of science. Members of the Earth science informatics community, including scientific data producers and distributers, end-user scientists, system and application developers, and data center managers, use science software regularly and face the challenges and the opportunities that science software presents for the sustainability of science. To gain insight on practices needed for the sustainability of science software from the science software experiences of the Earth science informatics community, an interdisciplinary group of 300 community members were asked to engage in simultaneous roundtable discussions and report on their answers to questions about the requirements for improving scientific software sustainability. This paper will present an analysis of the issues reported and the conclusions offered by the participants. These results provide perspectives for science software sustainability practices and have implications for actions that organizations and their leadership can initiate to improve the sustainability of science software.

Perspectives on science and art.

PubMed

Conway, Bevil R; Livingstone, Margaret S

2007-08-01

Artists try to understand how we see, sometimes explicitly exploring rules of perspective or color, visual illusions, or iconography, and conversely, scientists who study vision sometimes address the perceptual questions and discoveries raised by the works of art, as we do here.

From Engineering Hydrology to Earth System Science: Milestones in the Transformation of Hydrologic Science (Alfred Wegener Medal Lecture)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sivapalan, Murugesu

2017-04-01

Hydrologic science has undergone almost transformative changes over the past 50 years. Huge strides have been made in the transition from early empirical approaches to rigorous approaches based on the fluid mechanics of water movement on and below the land surface. However, further progress has been hampered by problems posed by the presence of heterogeneity, especially subsurface heterogeneity, at all scales. The inability to measure or map subsurface heterogeneity everywhere prevented further development of balance equations and associated closure relations at the scales of interest, and has led to the virtual impasse we are presently in, in terms of development of physically based models needed for hydrologic predictions. An alternative to the mapping of subsurface heterogeneity everywhere is a new earth system science view, which sees the heterogeneity as the end result of co-evolutionary hydrological, geomorphological, ecological and pedological processes, each operating at a different rate, which have helped to shape the landscapes that we see in nature, including the heterogeneity below that we do not see. The expectation is that instead of specifying exact details of the heterogeneity in our models, we can replace it, without loss of information, with the ecosystem function they perform. Guided by this new earth system science perspective, development of hydrologic science is now guided by altogether new questions and new approaches to address them, compared to the purely physical, fluid mechanics based approaches that we inherited from the past. In the emergent Anthropocene, the co-evolutionary view is expanded further to involve interactions and feedbacks with human-social processes as well. In this lecture, I will present key milestones in the transformation of hydrologic science from Engineering Hydrology to Earth System Science, and what this means for hydrologic observations, theory development and predictions.

Science education reform in Confucian learning cultures: teachers' perspectives on policy and practice in Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Ying-Syuan; Asghar, Anila

2018-03-01

This empirical study investigates secondary science teachers' perspectives on science education reform in Taiwan and reflects how these teachers have been negotiating constructivist and learner-centered pedagogical approaches in contemporary science education. It also explores the challenges that teachers encounter while shifting their pedagogical focus from traditional approaches to teaching science to an active engagement in students' learning. Multiple sources of qualitative data were obtained, including individual interviews with science teachers and teachers' reflective journals about Confucianism in relation to their educational philosophies. Thematic analysis and constant comparative method were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that Confucian traditions play a significant role in shaping educational practices in Taiwan and profoundly influence teachers' epistemological beliefs and their actual classroom practice. Indeed, science teachers' perspectives on Confucian learning traditions played a key role in supporting or obstructing their pedagogical commitments to inquiry-based and learner-centered approaches. This study draws on the literature concerning teachers' professional struggles and identity construction during educational reform. Specifically, we explore the ways in which teachers respond to educational changes and negotiate their professional identities. We employed various theories of identity construction to understand teachers' struggles and challenges while wrestling with competing traditional and reform-based pedagogical approaches. Attending to these struggles and the ways in which they inform the development of a teacher's professional identity is vital for sustaining current and future educational reform in Taiwan as well as in other Eastern cultures. These findings have important implications for teachers' professional development programs in East Asian cultures.

Argumentation in Science Education: A Model-based Framework

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Böttcher, Florian; Meisert, Anke

2011-02-01

The goal of this article is threefold: First, the theoretical background for a model-based framework of argumentation to describe and evaluate argumentative processes in science education is presented. Based on the general model-based perspective in cognitive science and the philosophy of science, it is proposed to understand arguments as reasons for the appropriateness of a theoretical model which explains a certain phenomenon. Argumentation is considered to be the process of the critical evaluation of such a model if necessary in relation to alternative models. Secondly, some methodological details are exemplified for the use of a model-based analysis in the concrete classroom context. Third, the application of the approach in comparison with other analytical models will be presented to demonstrate the explicatory power and depth of the model-based perspective. Primarily, the framework of Toulmin to structurally analyse arguments is contrasted with the approach presented here. It will be demonstrated how common methodological and theoretical problems in the context of Toulmin's framework can be overcome through a model-based perspective. Additionally, a second more complex argumentative sequence will also be analysed according to the invented analytical scheme to give a broader impression of its potential in practical use.

Sex and dark times' strategy: The Dark Triad and time perspective.

PubMed

Moraga, Fernando R G; Nima, Ali A; Garcia, Danilo

2017-03-01

We investigated the effect of sex on associations between dark traits and time perspective dimensions. Responses by participants (N = 338) to the Short Dark Triad Inventory and the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory showed that while sex was involved in different time perspective associations of Machiavellianism, psychopathy, and narcissism, it did not moderate the dark times' strategy. © 2017 The Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.

Listening to middle-school Spanish-speaking English language learners: A qualitative study of their perspectives of science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lopez-Ferrao, Julio E.

The purpose of this study is to contribute to the understanding and explanation of the science achievement gap between Spanish-speaking English language learners (ELLs) and their mainstream peers. The sample of purposefully selected participants (N = 23) included students representing eight Spanish-speaking countries who attended three middle schools (grades 6th-8th), 11 boys and 12 girls, with different years of schooling in the United States, English proficiency levels, and science achievement levels. Data gathering strategies included individual interviews with participants, classroom observations, and analysis of secondary data sources on students' English language proficiency and science achievement. Data interpretation strategies using a critical-interpretive perspective consisted of coding and narrative analysis, including analyses of excerpts and case studies. Two major findings emerge from the study: (1) An inverse relation between participants' number of years of exposure to science learning in an English-only learning environment and their science achievement levels; and (2) specific participant-identified problems, such as learning the science vocabulary, writing in science, the use of mathematics in science, and the lack of sense making in the science classroom. Key recommendations comprise: (1) Acknowledging the value of dual language education; (2) supporting the science-literacy connection; (3) ensuring high-quality science through research-informed instructional strategies; and (4) assessing ELLs' science achievement.

Parent Perspectives on Home-Based Intervention for Young Children with Developmental Disabilities: The Parent-Implemented Communication Strategies (PiCS) Project in Illinois, USA

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meadan, Hedda; Stoner, Julia B.; Angell, Maureen E.

2015-01-01

Parents' perspectives on a home-based, parent-implemented social-pragmatic communication intervention for young children aged 37 to 60 months with limited expressive language are presented in this report. The researchers analyzed the perspectives of seven parent participants in the Institute of Education Sciences-funded Parent-Implemented…

Navigating Windows into Past Human Minds: A Framework of Shifting Selves in Historical Perspective Taking

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nilsen, Adam P.

2016-01-01

This article presents a framework for understanding historical perspective taking (HPT), the effort to use historical material to explore the internal states of past people. It addresses gaps in HPT research by (a) linking HPT to theories and research from the social science disciplines on perspective taking and the self and (b) proposing a way to…

Preface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kövér, László

2014-10-01

This Special Issue of the journal Applied Surface Science contains full papers from a selection of contributions presented in the Applied Surface Science sessions of the 19th International Vacuum Congress (IVC-19) held in the Palais des Congrès, Paris, between September 9 and 13, 2013. The triennial IVC conferences represent major meetings in the field of the vacuum related sciences and are the largest scientific events of the International Union for Vacuum Science, Technique and Applications (IUVSTA). The IVC-19 and partner conferences had altogether 2555 participants. Supported by the Applied Surface Science Division of IUVSTA, the Applied Surface Science part was one of the most attended among the sub-conferences of the IVC-19. This Special Issue - without trying to achieve completeness - intends to provide a cross section of the topics of the Applied Surface Science and joint sessions of the IVC-19, covering important fields such as Surface Analysis, Surface Modifications, Surface Chemistry and Catalysis, Quantitative Surface and Interface Analysis, Coatings, Tribology, Adhesion, Characterization of Nanomaterials, Energy and Sustainable Development, Self Assembly, Nano-instrumentation, SPM and Novel Probe Techniques, New Approaches and Novel Applications of Surface/Interface Analytical Methods.

The student perspective of high school laboratory experiences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lambert, R. Mitch

High school science laboratory experiences are an accepted teaching practice across the nation despite a lack of research evidence to support them. The purpose of this study was to examine the perspective of students---stakeholders often ignored---on these experiences. Insight into the students' perspective was explored progressively using a grounded theory methodology. Field observations of science classrooms led to an open-ended survey of high school science students, garnering 665 responses. Twelve student interviews then focused on the data and questions evolving from the survey. The student perspective on laboratory experiences revealed varied information based on individual experience. Concurrent analysis of the data revealed that although most students like (348/665) or sometimes like (270/665) these experiences, some consistent factors yielded negative experiences and prompted suggestions for improvement. The category of responses that emerged as the core idea focused on student understanding of the experience. Students desire to understand the why do, the how to, and the what it means of laboratory experiences. Lacking any one of these, the experience loses educational value for them. This single recurring theme crossed the boundaries of age, level in school, gender, and even the student view of lab experiences as positive or negative. This study suggests reflection on the current laboratory activities in which science teachers engage their students. Is the activity appropriate (as opposed to being merely a favorite), does it encourage learning, does it fit, does it operate at the appropriate level of inquiry, and finally what can science teachers do to integrate these activities into the classroom curriculum more effectively? Simply stated, what can teachers do so that students understand what to do, what's the point, and how that point fits into what they are learning outside the laboratory?

Living on an Active Earth: Perspectives on Earthquake Science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lay, Thorne

2004-02-01

The annualized long-term loss due to earthquakes in the United States is now estimated at $4.4 billion per year. A repeat of the 1923 Kanto earthquake, near Tokyo, could cause direct losses of $2-3 trillion. With such grim numbers, which are guaranteed to make you take its work seriously, the NRC Committee on the Science of Earthquakes begins its overview of the emerging multidisciplinary field of earthquake science. An up-to-date and forward-looking survey of scientific investigation of earthquake phenomena and engineering response to associated hazards is presented at a suitable level for a general educated audience. Perspectives from the fields of seismology, geodesy, neo-tectonics, paleo-seismology, rock mechanics, earthquake engineering, and computer modeling of complex dynamic systems are integrated into a balanced definition of earthquake science that has never before been adequately articulated.

Sciences of the brain: The long road to scientific maturity and to present-day reductionism.

PubMed

Le Moal, Michel; Swendsen, Joël

2015-01-01

When examined in a long-term perspective, brain sciences demonstrate certain conceptual consistencies as well as theoretical oppositions that have lasted for centuries, ever since Ancient Greece. The neurosciences have progressed more on the basis of technological than conceptual advances, and the constant recuperation of new techniques from other sciences have led to a continually reductionist view of the brain and its functions. In a different perspective, if not opposite to the reductionism, are the psychological constructs and those that constitute the functional unity of individuals, which are still mysterious. In fact, the gap between these two approaches has never been larger than it is now. This chapter discusses the enduring nature of some of these problems and their recent consequences. Copyright © 2015 Académie des sciences. Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

Understanding the earth systems of Malawi: Ecological sustainability, culture, and place-based education

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glasson, George E.; Frykholm, Jeffrey A.; Mhango, Ndalapa A.; Phiri, Absalom D.

2006-07-01

The purpose of this 2-year study was to investigate Malawian teacher educators' perspectives and dispositions toward teaching about ecological sustainability issues in Malawi, a developing country in sub-Sahara Africa. This study was embedded in a larger theoretical framework of investigating earth systems science through the understanding of nature-knowledge-culture systems from local, place-based perspectives. Specifically, we were interested in learning more about eco-justice issues that are related to environmental degradation in Malawi and the potential role of inquiry-oriented pedagogies in addressing these issues. In a science methods course, the African educators' views on deforestation and teaching about ecological sustainability were explored within the context of the local environment and culture. Teachers participated in inquiry pedagogies designed to promote the sharing of perspectives related to the connections between culture and ecological degradation. Strategies encouraging dialogue and reflection included role-playing, class discussions, curriculum development activities, teaching experiences with children, and field trips to a nature preserve. Data were analyzed from postcolonial and critical pedagogy of place theoretical perspectives to better understand the hybridization of viewpoints influenced by both Western and indigenous science and the political hegemonies that impact sustainable living in Malawi. Findings suggested that the colonial legacy of Malawi continues to impact the ecological sustainability issue of deforestation. Inquiry-oriented pedagogies and connections to indigenous science were embraced by the Malawian educators as a means to involve children in investigation, decision making, and ownership of critical environmental issues.

Ecological literacy materials for use in elementary schools: A critical analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chambers, Joan Maureen

My research is a critical examination of environmental science education resources for use in Alberta schools. I examine both the resources and the processes by which these resources are developed by diverse groups. My inquiry is guided by the following question: What is the nature of the discourse of ecological literacy in the promotion and content of teaching materials in elementary schools in Alberta? This critical analysis centres on the discourses, language, and perspectives (both hidden and overt) of these resources and processes; the manifestation of political agendas; existing relations; and the inclusion or exclusion of alternate views. Framed within critical theory and an ecosocial construct, my methodology employs critical discourse analysis and hermeneutic interpretation. I analyse selected environmental science resources produced for the elementary classroom by government and nongovernment organizations. I also interview the producers and/or writers of these instructional resources to provide the perspectives of some of the developers of these materials. The findings illustrate how the discursive management of the view of nature, human-nature relationships, uncertainty, multiple perspectives, and dimensions of ecological literacy in materials for schools offer students a particular perspective. These ecological and science discourses act to shape their personal relationships with nature and notions of environmental responsibility and consciousness. This research is necessary because, particularly in Alberta, corporate interests have the potential to impact school curricula. The study points to a need for a critical appraisal of resources for schools produced by the environmental science community.

God particles in the perspective of The AlQuran Surah Yunus: 61 and modern science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jumini, Sri

2017-01-01

The Qur'an is the book of Allah revealed to guide human beings, settting the rules of life to enable them to achieve happiness in this world and hereafter. The Qur'an has mentioned various scientific nature detailly and accurately so we are able to find new knowledge which is previously unknown by human being. One was about the God particle (Higgs Boson). This article aims to provide a deeper understanding of the concept of the Higgs Boson, the Higgs Boson explained this concept in detail relatated to 1) Perspective of science 2) Perspective of Al-Qur'an 3) Development of technology or science and technology. This study is a qualitative research using library research (library research) that examines and analyzes the books relating directly or indirectly. The results of the analysis states that 1) The concept of the Higgs Boson particle in terms of basic science is also the reason why almost all elementary particles have a greater mass, 2) The concept of the Higgs Boson in the Qur'an is implied from the results of the comparison interpretation of the commentators in Surah Yunus paragraph 61 related to Atom concepts and smaller particles theory of (Higgs Boson), interpretation of Al-Maraghi, and Al-Misbah. 3) The concept of the Higgs Boson in science and technology provide the most advance technology and it is the greatest achievement in the world of science and technology.

African American perspectives: A qualitative study of an informal science enrichment program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simpson, Jamila Rashida

The purposes of this study were to determine what program characteristics African American parents consider when they enroll their children into an informal science education enrichment program, the parents' evaluation of a program called Jordan Academy in which they enrolled their children, and the alignment of the parents' perspectives with Black Cultural Ethos (BCE). BCE refers to nine dimensions posited by Wade Boykin, a psychologist, as comprising African American culture. Participants were parents of students that attended Jordan Academy, an informal science enrichment program designed for third through sixth grade students from underserved populations. Qualitative methodologies were utilized to perform a thorough assessment of parents' perspectives. Data sources included classroom observations, student surveys, academy curriculum, photos and video-taped class sessions. Data included teachers and parents' responses to semi-structured, audio recorded interviews and students' written responses to open-ended items on the program's evaluation instrument. The data were analyzed for themes and the findings compared to Black Cultural Ethos. Findings revealed that the participants believed that informal science education offered their children opportunities not realized in the formal school setting - a means of impacting their children holistically. The parents expressed the academic, cultural, and personal development of their children in their characterizations of the ideal informal science education experience and in their evaluations of Jordan Academy. Overall, the parents' views emphasized the BCE values of harmony, affect, verve, movement, orality and communalism. The study has important implications for practices within and research on informal science education.

Recruitment Campaigns as a Tool for Social and Cultural Reproduction of Scientific Communities: A case study on how scientists invite young people to science

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Andrée, Maria; Hansson, Lena

2014-08-01

Young people's interest in pursuing science and science-intense educations has been expressed as a concern in relation to societal, economic and democratic development by various stakeholders (governments, industry and university). From the perspective of the scientific communities, the issues at stake do not necessarily correspond to the overall societal aims. Rather, initiatives to recruit young people to science are also ways for the scientific community to engage in the social and cultural reproduction of itself. For a community to survive and produce a future, it needs to secure regeneration of itself in succeeding generations. The aim of this study is to, from a perspective of social and cultural production/reproduction, shed light on an initiative from the scientific community to recruit young people to science education. This is a case study of one recruitment campaign called the Chemistry Advent calendar. The calendar consists of 25 webcasted films, produced and published by the science/technology faculty at a university. The analysed data consist of the films and additional published material relating to the campaign such as working reports and articles published about the campaign. The analysis focussed on what messages are communicated to potential newcomers. The messages were categorised by means of a framework of subjective values. The results are discussed both from a perspective of how the messages mirror traditions and habits of the scientific community, and in relation to research on students' educational choices.

Science: Servant or Master?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Morgenthau, Hans J.

In this tenth book of a series entitled "Perspectives in Humanism," analyses are included concerning the meaning of science for modern man and its effects on contemporary politics. Natural, social, and humanistic sciences are discussed in connection with religion, philosophy, and politics to indicate the importance of the scholar who fulfills the…

National Patterns of Science and Technology Resources 1981.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chirichiello, John; Crowley, Michael

An overview of two science and technology resources (financial support and scientific/technical personnel) is presented, based on a series of National Science Foundation (NSF) surveys on research and development (R&D) resources and scientific/technical personnel in the United States. Areas addressed related to national perspectives of R&D…

Students' Conceptions as Dynamically Emergent Structures

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, David E.

2014-01-01

There is wide consensus that learning in science must be considered a process of conceptual change rather than simply information accrual. There are three perspectives on students' conceptions and conceptual change in science that have significant presence in the science education literature: students' ideas as misconceptions, as…

An Ethnomethodological Perspective on How Middle School Students Addressed a Water Quality Problem

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Belland, Brian R.; Gu, Jiangyue; Kim, Nam Ju; Turner, David J.

2016-01-01

Science educators increasingly call for students to address authentic scientific problems in science class. One form of authentic science problem--socioscientific issue--requires that students engage in complex reasoning by considering both scientific and social implications of problems. Computer-based scaffolding can support this process by…

Motivational Factors in Career Decisions Made by Chinese Science Museum Educators

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ji, Jiao; Anderson, David; Wu, Xinchun

2016-01-01

Conceptualized by the self-determination theory, this interpretive study examined 23 museum educators' perspectives from five Chinese science museums to understand their work motivation in relation to their professional practice of working in museums. Research outcomes showed that, Chinese science museum educators' work motivation followed a…

Assessment Processes in Science across the Primary-Secondary Interface: An Australian Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Skamp, Keith

2016-01-01

Assessment guidelines in the "Australian Curriculum: Science" are outlined after the status and practice of science is overviewed. Available, but dated, empirical reports of teachers' assessment processes and procedures across the interface are compared. Current assessment practices are inferred from indirect research data. Two…

The Integration of Science and Mathematics Education: Highlights from the NSF/SSMA Wingspread Conference Plenary Papers.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Berlin, Donna F.

1994-01-01

Summarizes plenary papers presented at the NSF/SSMA Wingspread Conference to explore ways to improve science and mathematics education through integration. Themes included analysis of integration; divergence of mathematics education from science education; technological perspectives; promoting mathematical and scientific inquiry; and school…

The Influence of Bloomfield's Linguistics on Skinner

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Passos, Maria de Lourdes R. da F.; Matos, Maria Amelia

2007-01-01

Bloomfield's "Linguistics as a Science" (1930/1970), "Language" (1933/1961), and "Language or Ideas?" (1936a/1970), and Skinner's "Verbal Behavior" (1957) and "Science and Human Behavior" (1953) were analyzed in regard to their respective perspectives on science and scientific method, the verbal episode, meaning, and subject matter. Similarities…

Feminist Science Education. Athene Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barton, Angela Calabrese

This volume presents a case for science education from a feminist perspective. Feminist science teaching is concerned with questions that emerge from the intersections of the pedagogical, the disciplinary, and the personal with the political, social, and historical dimensions of each of these. It is also concerned with how knowledge of the ways in…

Developing an Alternative Perspective on Coherence Seeking in Science Classrooms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sikorski, Tiffany-Rose J.

2012-01-01

Education research continues to struggle with how to characterize students' engagement in the doing of science. Too often, educators and researchers reduce doing science to learning particular facts and explanations, or participating in narrowly-defined, de-contextualized ways of reasoning and arguing. In this dissertation, I review prominent…

Towards Systematicity: Comparing from the Perspective of Philosophy of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pietraß, Manuela

2017-01-01

As in many other social sciences, in international and comparative education there is an epistemological schism between two main approaches, one of which is traditional whose methodology and methods are historical-hermeneutical, while the other is empirical and oriented towards the natural sciences. In international and comparative education,…

Nutrition and Food Science. Teacher's Instructional Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hays, Tricia

This teaching, guide for a high school nutrition and food science course, includes introductory information about the course, course design, facilities and equipment, Future Homemakers of America, and use of the guide. The course addresses nutrition and food science from the perspective of food habits and wellness; menu planning; special dietary…

High School Students' Implicit Theories of What Facilitates Science Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parsons, Eileen Carlton; Miles, Rhea; Petersen, Michael

2011-01-01

Background: Research has primarily concentrated on adults' implicit theories about high quality science education for all students. Little work has considered the students' perspective. This study investigated high school students' implicit theories about what helped them learn science. Purpose: This study addressed (1) What characterizes high…

Analyzing Inflation and Its Control: A Resource Guide. Economics-Political Science Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salemi, Michael K.; Leak, Sarah

Background information for teachers on inflation and self-contained learning activities to help students view inflation from both economic and political perspectives are provided. The introduction contains economics and political science frameworks for analyzing policy issues. How to integrate economics and political science is also discussed.…

Science Teachers and the Dissection Debate: Perspectives on Animal Dissection and Alternatives

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Oakley, Jan

2012-01-01

This study investigated Ontario science and biology teachers' practices and attitudes toward animal dissection and dissection alternatives. The data was collected through a mixed methods approach involving online surveys (n = 153) and subsequent telephone interviews (n = 9) with secondary school science and biology teachers. The findings indicate…

[Re]Considering Queer Theories and Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Fifield, Steve; Letts, Will

2014-01-01

We take Mattias Lundin's "Inviting queer ideas into the science classroom: studying sexual education from a queer perspective" as a point of departure to explore some enduring issues related to the use of queer theories to interrogate science education and its practices. We consider the uneasy, polygamous relationship between gay…

Higher Education Science Student Perspectives on Classroom Instructional Methods: A Pilot Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bohlscheid, Jeffri C.; Davis, John C.

2012-01-01

Constructivist-based inquiry instruction has been popularized for several decades in primary- and secondary-science education, with overwhelmingly positive results across all sciences. Importantly, higher education faculties have begun to embrace inquiry instruction in many subject areas. In fact, a growing body of literature illustrates the…

Developmental Perspectives on Reflective Practices of Elementary Science Education Students

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Olson, Joanne K.; Finson, Kevin D.

2009-01-01

Instructors of elementary science methods classes have long lamented the significant difficulties their students exhibit when trying to understand the many complexities of teaching science. As noted by some researchers and practicing teachers, preservice teachers often fail to developmentally function at desired levels with respect to…

Promoting Student Interest in Science: The Perspectives of Exemplary African American Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Xu, Jianzhong; Coats, Linda T.; Davidson, Mary L.

2012-01-01

The authors of this article argue both the urgency and the promise of establishing a constructive conversation among different bodies of research, including science interest, sociocultural studies in science education, and culturally relevant teaching. With the instructional practices of eight exemplary African American elementary teachers serving…

Qualitative Research in Counseling Psychology: A Primer on Research Paradigms and Philosophy of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ponterotto, Joseph G.

2005-01-01

This article presents an overview of philosophy of science and research paradigms. The philosophy of science parameters of ontology, epistemology, axiology, rhetorical structure, and methodology are discussed across the research paradigms of positivism, postpositivism, constructivism-interpretivism, and the critical-ideological perspective.…

Perspective: Machine learning potentials for atomistic simulations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Behler, Jörg

2016-11-01

Nowadays, computer simulations have become a standard tool in essentially all fields of chemistry, condensed matter physics, and materials science. In order to keep up with state-of-the-art experiments and the ever growing complexity of the investigated problems, there is a constantly increasing need for simulations of more realistic, i.e., larger, model systems with improved accuracy. In many cases, the availability of sufficiently efficient interatomic potentials providing reliable energies and forces has become a serious bottleneck for performing these simulations. To address this problem, currently a paradigm change is taking place in the development of interatomic potentials. Since the early days of computer simulations simplified potentials have been derived using physical approximations whenever the direct application of electronic structure methods has been too demanding. Recent advances in machine learning (ML) now offer an alternative approach for the representation of potential-energy surfaces by fitting large data sets from electronic structure calculations. In this perspective, the central ideas underlying these ML potentials, solved problems and remaining challenges are reviewed along with a discussion of their current applicability and limitations.

Recent advances in secondary ion mass spectrometry of solid acid catalysts: large zeolite crystals under bombardment.

PubMed

Hofmann, Jan P; Rohnke, Marcus; Weckhuysen, Bert M

2014-03-28

This Perspective aims to inform the heterogeneous catalysis and materials science community about the recent advances in Time-of-Flight-Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) to characterize catalytic solids by taking large model H-ZSM-5 zeolite crystals as a showcase system. SIMS-based techniques have been explored in the 1980-1990's to study porous catalyst materials but, due to their limited spectral and spatiotemporal resolution, there was no real major breakthrough at that time. The technical advancements in SIMS instruments, namely improved ion gun design and new mass analyser concepts, nowadays allow for a much more detailed analysis of surface species relevant to catalytic action. Imaging with high mass and lateral resolution, determination of fragment ion patterns, novel sputter ion concepts as well as new mass analysers (e.g. ToF, FTICR) are just a few novelties, which will lead to new fundamental insight from SIMS analysis of heterogeneous catalysts. The Perspective article ends with an outlook on instrumental innovations and their potential use for catalytic systems other than zeolite crystals.

Multiyear predictability of tropical marine productivity

PubMed Central

Séférian, Roland; Bopp, Laurent; Gehlen, Marion; Swingedouw, Didier; Mignot, Juliette; Guilyardi, Eric; Servonnat, Jérôme

2014-01-01

With the emergence of decadal predictability simulations, research toward forecasting variations of the climate system now covers a large range of timescales. However, assessment of the capacity to predict natural variations of relevant biogeochemical variables like carbon fluxes, pH, or marine primary productivity remains unexplored. Among these, the net primary productivity (NPP) is of particular relevance in a forecasting perspective. Indeed, in regions like the tropical Pacific (30°N–30°S), NPP exhibits natural fluctuations at interannual to decadal timescales that have large impacts on marine ecosystems and fisheries. Here, we investigate predictions of NPP variations over the last decades (i.e., from 1997 to 2011) with an Earth system model within the tropical Pacific. Results suggest a predictive skill for NPP of 3 y, which is higher than that of sea surface temperature (1 y). We attribute the higher predictability of NPP to the poleward advection of nutrient anomalies (nitrate and iron), which sustain fluctuations in phytoplankton productivity over several years. These results open previously unidentified perspectives to the development of science-based management approaches to marine resources relying on integrated physical-biogeochemical forecasting systems. PMID:25071174

van Eijck and Roth's Utilitarian Science Education: Why the Recalibration of Science and Traditional Ecological Knowledge Invokes Multiple Perspectives to Protect Science Education from Being Exclusive

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mueller, Michael P.; Tippins, Deborah J.

2010-01-01

This article is a philosophical analysis of van Eijck and Roth's ("2007") claim that science and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) should be recalibrated because they are incommensurate, particular to the local contexts in which they are practical. In this view, science maintains an incommensurate status as if it is a…

Is Military Science Scientific?

DTIC Science & Technology

2014-01-01

application of military theory, as expressed through strategy, doctrine, and planning, was becoming more of a science and less of an art . This perspective...noting that “no empirical science , consequently also no theory of the art of war, can always cor- roborate its truths by historical proof.”26...84 Commentary / Is Military Science “Scientific”? JFQ 75, 4th Quarter 2014 Is Military Science “Scientific”? By Glenn Voelz T he term military

Finding science in students' talk

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yeo, Jennifer

2009-12-01

What does it mean to understand science? This commentary extends Brown and Kloser's argument on the role of native language for science learning by exploring the meaning of understanding in school science and discusses the extent that science educators could tolerate adulterated forms of scientific knowledge. Taking the perspective of social semiotics, this commentary looks at the extent that school science can be represented with other discourse practices. It also offers an example to illustrate how everyday language can present potential hindrance to school science learning.

The National Cancer Institute's Physical Sciences - Oncology Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espey, Michael Graham

In 2009, the NCI launched the Physical Sciences - Oncology Centers (PS-OC) initiative with 12 Centers (U54) funded through 2014. The current phase of the Program includes U54 funded Centers with the added feature of soliciting new Physical Science - Oncology Projects (PS-OP) U01 grant applications through 2017; see NCI PAR-15-021. The PS-OPs, individually and along with other PS-OPs and the Physical Sciences-Oncology Centers (PS-OCs), comprise the Physical Sciences-Oncology Network (PS-ON). The foundation of the Physical Sciences-Oncology initiative is a high-risk, high-reward program that promotes a `physical sciences perspective' of cancer and fosters the convergence of physical science and cancer research by forming transdisciplinary teams of physical scientists (e.g., physicists, mathematicians, chemists, engineers, computer scientists) and cancer researchers (e.g., cancer biologists, oncologists, pathologists) who work closely together to advance our understanding of cancer. The collaborative PS-ON structure catalyzes transformative science through increased exchange of people, ideas, and approaches. PS-ON resources are leveraged to fund Trans-Network pilot projects to enable synergy and cross-testing of experimental and/or theoretical concepts. This session will include a brief PS-ON overview followed by a strategic discussion with the APS community to exchange perspectives on the progression of trans-disciplinary physical sciences in cancer research.

Distinguishing Science from Non-Science: Preservice Elementary Teachers' Perspectives on Evolution, Creationism, and Intelligent Design

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Binns, Ian C.; Bloom, Mark A.

2017-01-01

Biological evolution stands out as critically important content for K-12 education as it is considered a cornerstone of the biological sciences. Yet, it remains one of the most socially controversial topics related to science education. In this exploratory study, we are seeking to understand the ways elementary preservice teachers (PSTs) use their…

Teachers' Ways of Talking about Nature of Science and Its Teaching

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Leden, Lotta; Hansson, Lena; Redfors, Andreas; Ideland, Malin

2015-01-01

Nature of science (NOS) has for a long time been regarded as a key component in science teaching. Much research has focused on students' and teachers' views of NOS, while less attention has been paid to teachers' perspectives on NOS teaching. This article focuses on in-service science teachers' ways of talking about NOS and NOS teaching, e.g. what…

Indigenous and Western Knowledges in Science Education: An Ethnographic Study of Rural and Urban Secondary Schools and Classrooms in Kenya

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Hern, Darren M.

2010-01-01

In Kenya, indigenous knowledges related to the natural sciences are not considered in the formal science education of secondary students. Despite the prevalence of studies that examine indigenous knowledges in Kenyan school and community contexts, the perspectives of students and teachers concerning indigenous natural science knowledges and their…

Impact of the Knowledge and Beliefs of Egyptian Science Teachers in Integrating a STS Based Curriculum: A Sociocultural Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mansour, Nasser

2010-01-01

The failure of much curriculum innovation has been attributed to the neglect by innovators of teachers' perceptions. The purpose of this study was to investigate inservice science teachers views of integrating Science, Technology and Society (STS) issues into the science curriculum and identify the factors that influence their decisions concerning…

Perspective: Opportunities for ultrafast science at SwissFEL

PubMed Central

Abela, Rafael; Beaud, Paul; van Bokhoven, Jeroen A.; Chergui, Majed; Feurer, Thomas; Haase, Johannes; Ingold, Gerhard; Johnson, Steven L.; Knopp, Gregor; Lemke, Henrik; Milne, Chris J.; Pedrini, Bill; Radi, Peter; Schertler, Gebhard; Standfuss, Jörg; Staub, Urs; Patthey, Luc

2018-01-01

We present the main specifications of the newly constructed Swiss Free Electron Laser, SwissFEL, and explore its potential impact on ultrafast science. In light of recent achievements at current X-ray free electron lasers, we discuss the potential territory for new scientific breakthroughs offered by SwissFEL in Chemistry, Biology, and Materials Science, as well as nonlinear X-ray science. PMID:29376109

Science Education as Public and Social Wealth: The Notion of Citizenship from a European Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Siatras, Anastasios; Koumaras, Panagiotis

2013-01-01

In this paper, (a) we present a framework for developing a science content (i.e., science concepts, scientific methods, scientific mindset, and problem-solving strategies for socio-scientific issues) used to design the new Cypriot science curriculum aiming at ensuring a democratic and human society, (b) we use the previous framework to explore the…

Teachers' Perspectives of the New Western Australian Earth and Environmental Science Course: Lessons for the Australian Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dawson, Vaille; Moore, Leah

2011-01-01

In 2007, a new upper secondary course, Earth and Environmental Science (EES) was introduced in Western Australia. The development and implementation of the course was supported by Earth Science Western Australia (ESWA), a consortium of universities, the CSIRO and other organisations. The role of ESWA is to support the teaching of earth science in…

Using ICT-Based Instructional Technologies to Teach Science: Perspectives from Teachers in Trinidad and Tobago

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maharaj-Sharma, Rawatee; Sharma, Aarti; Sharma, Aditi

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate how science teachers in Trinidad and Tobago use ICT-based instructional technologies in classroom science teaching. The participants were 30 secondary school science teachers who completed their Postgraduate Diploma in Education within the last 2 years from the University of the West Indies in Trinidad…

Becoming allies: Combining social science and technological perspectives to improve energy research and policy making

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

Diamond, Rick; Moezzi, Mithra

Within the energy research community, social sciences tends to be viewed fairly narrowly, often as simply a marketing tool to change the behavior of consumers and decision makers, and to ''attack market barriers''. As we see it, social sciences, which draws on sociology, psychology, political science, business administration, and other academic disciplines, is capable of far more. A social science perspective can re-align questions in ways that can lead to the development of technologies and technology policy that are much stronger and potentially more successful than they would be otherwise. In most energy policies governing commercial buildings, the prevailing Rmore » and D directives are firmly rooted in a technology framework, one that is generally more quantitative and evaluative than that fostered by the social sciences. To illustrate how social science thinking would approach the goal of achieving high energy performance in the commercial building sector, they focus on the US Department of Energy's Roadmap for commercial buildings (DOE 2000) as a starting point. By ''deconstructing'' the four strategies provided by the Roadmap, they set the stage for proposing a closer partnership between advocates of technology-based and social science-based approaches.« less

The Pedometer as a Tool to Enrich Science Learning in a Public Health Context

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rye, James A.; Zizzi, Samuel J.; Vitullo, Elizabeth A.; Tompkins, Nancy O'hara

2005-12-01

The United States is experiencing an obesity epidemic: A science-technology-society public health issue tied to our built environment, which is characterized by heavy dependence on automobiles and reduced opportunities to walk and bicycle for transportation. This presents an informal science education opportunity within "science in personal and social perspectives'' to use pedometer technology for enhancing students' understandings about human energy balance. An exploratory study was conducted with 29 teachers to investigate how pedometers could be used for providing academic enrichment to secondary students participating in after-school Health Sciences and Technology Academy clubs. Frequency analysis revealed that the pedometer activities often investigated kilocalorie expenditure and/or incorporated hypothesis testing/experimenting. Teachers' perspectives on learning outcomes most frequently conveyed that students increased their awareness of the importance of health habits relative to kilocalorie intake and expenditure. Pedometers have considerable merit for the regular science curriculum as they allow for numerous mathematics applications and inquiry learning and target concepts such as energy and equilibrium that cut across the National Science Education Standards. Pedometers and associated resources on human energy balance are important tools that science teachers can employ in helping schools respond to the national call to prevent childhood obesity.

Perspectives on Open Science and scientific data sharing:an interdisciplinary workshop.

PubMed

Destro Bisol, Giovanni; Anagnostou, Paolo; Capocasa, Marco; Bencivelli, Silvia; Cerroni, Andrea; Contreras, Jorge; Enke, Neela; Fantini, Bernardino; Greco, Pietro; Heeney, Catherine; Luzi, Daniela; Manghi, Paolo; Mascalzoni, Deborah; Molloy, Jennifer; Parenti, Fabio; Wicherts, Jelte; Boulton, Geoffrey

2014-01-01

Looking at Open Science and Open Data from a broad perspective. This is the idea behind "Scientific data sharing: an interdisciplinary workshop", an initiative designed to foster dialogue between scholars from different scientific domains which was organized by the Istituto Italiano di Antropologia in Anagni, Italy, 2-4 September 2013.We here report summaries of the presentations and discussions at the meeting. They deal with four sets of issues: (i) setting a common framework, a general discussion of open data principles, values and opportunities; (ii) insights into scientific practices, a view of the way in which the open data movement is developing in a variety of scientific domains (biology, psychology, epidemiology and archaeology); (iii) a case study of human genomics, which was a trail-blazer in data sharing, and which encapsulates the tension that can occur between large-scale data sharing and one of the boundaries of openness, the protection of individual data; (iv) open science and the public, based on a round table discussion about the public communication of science and the societal implications of open science. There were three proposals for the planning of further interdisciplinary initiatives on open science. Firstly, there is a need to integrate top-down initiatives by governments, institutions and journals with bottom-up approaches from the scientific community. Secondly, more should be done to popularize the societal benefits of open science, not only in providing the evidence needed by citizens to draw their own conclusions on scientific issues that are of concern to them, but also explaining the direct benefits of data sharing in areas such as the control of infectious disease. Finally, introducing arguments from social sciences and humanities in the educational dissemination of open data may help students become more profoundly engaged with Open Science and look at science from a broader perspective.

Perspectives on science and art

PubMed Central

Conway, Bevil R; Livingstone, Margaret S

2009-01-01

Artists try to understand how we see, sometimes explicitly exploring rules of perspective or color, visual illusions, or iconography, and conversely, scientists who study vision sometimes address the perceptual questions and discoveries raised by the works of art, as we do here. PMID:17851068

The Value of Science Policy Internships to Interns and Employers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Landau, E. A.

2014-12-01

My interns often look at me wide-eyed when I tell them to approach a Member of Congress at a congressional reception and introduce themselves. I understand their shock, as I once had the same experience. This presentation will look at the internship experience from the perspective of the intern and the employer, describing the value of the internship to each. I will detail my experience as an intern in the American Geosciences Institute Government Affairs Program, and my current position as the creator and hiring manager of the American Geophysical Union Public Affairs Department internship. This perspective will be augmented by information from recent AGU Public Affairs interns. Internships equate to experience, one critical and often underdeveloped component of a student or recent graduate's resume. Each of these internships offers the unique opportunity for students and recent graduates of geophysical science programs to immerse themselves in the science policy field, doing work alongside professionals and serving as an important part of their respective work environment. The networking opportunities and skills learned are highly valuable to those building their resumes and trying to break into the field - or simply figuring out what future career path to take. Scientific societies see value in investing in the next generation of scientific leaders and ensuring their perspective includes an understanding of science policy and the societal impacts of science. These internship experiences are often eye-opening and sometimes career-changing.

Publishing in the Next Few Years: A Commercial Publisher's Perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blom, Harry J. J.

Over the past 15 years, internet technology changed the ways of publishing tremendously. It is truly revolutionary that both fresh and historic science publications are so much easier to search and find. This revolution has not been completed and all parties involved in science publishing are continuously adjusting their activities to the new rules and opportunities. From a commercial publisher's perspective, I will extrapolate what happens today to predict what happens in the next few years with journal subscriptions, book publishing, marketing, production and other steps in the publishing process.

Compatibility between cultural studies and conceptual change in science education: there is more to acknowledge than to fight straw men!

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Treagust, David F.; Duit, Reinders

2008-07-01

In this response, we attempt to clarify our position on conceptual change, state our position on mental models being a viable construct to represent learning, indicate important issues from the social cultural perspective that can inform our work on conceptual change and lastly comment on issues that we consider to be straw men. Above all we argue that there is no best theory of teaching and learning and argue for a multiple perspective approach to understanding science teaching and learning.

The Army and Space: Historic Perspectives on Future Prospects.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-06-06

of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the dsgrecy MASTER OF MILITARY ART AND SCIENCE by...By__________ DDistribution/_ tAAvailnb’ility codes jAvail anId/oIr jDist Ispocial ýý 6R-tW rM.,W-MMM HO E ý- M WMM-7 MASTER OF MILITARY ART AND SCIENCE...PACU: HISTORICAL. PERSPECTIVES ON FUTURE PROSPECTS: An arialy .iy.s ,t thi. Ar ry’s early involvement in space to tind historical lessons to help guide

Role of Physicochemical Properties in Nanoparticle Toxicity

PubMed Central

Shin, Seung Won; Song, In Hyun; Um, Soong Ho

2015-01-01

With the recent rapid growth of technological comprehension in nanoscience, researchers have aimed to adapt this knowledge to various research fields within engineering and applied science. Dramatic advances in nanomaterials marked a new epoch in biomedical engineering with the expectation that they would have huge contributions to healthcare. However, several questions regarding their safety and toxicity have arisen due to numerous novel properties. Here, recent studies of nanomaterial toxicology will be reviewed from several physiochemical perspectives. A variety of physiochemical properties such as size distribution, electrostatics, surface area, general morphology and aggregation may significantly affect physiological interactions between nanomaterials and target biological areas. Accordingly, it is very important to finely tune these properties in order to safely fulfill a bio-user’s purpose. PMID:28347068

Perspective of Fe3O4 Nanoparticles Role in Biomedical Applications

PubMed Central

Kashefi, Mehrdad; Shams, Seyyedeh Fatemeh; Jaafari, Mahmoud Reza

2016-01-01

In recent years, although many review articles have been presented about bioapplications of magnetic nanoparticles by some research groups with different expertise such as chemistry, biology, medicine, pharmacology, and materials science and engineering, the majority of these reviews are insufficiently comprehensive in all related topics like magnetic aspects of process. In the current review, it is attempted to carry out the inclusive surveys on importance of magnetic nanoparticles and especially magnetite ones and their required conditions for appropriate performance in bioapplications. The main attentions of this paper are focused on magnetic features which are less considered. Accordingly, the review contains essential magnetic properties and their measurement methods, synthesis techniques, surface modification processes, and applications of magnetic nanoparticles. PMID:27293893

Bird's eye view of black holes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simien, Clayton

1998-03-01

Black hole theory can be quite complex, and from a mathematical point of view very abstract. However, from a bird's perspective its concepts and theories can be easily understood with the aid of a few fundamental ideas of physics. Black holes are just massive dead stars whose very existence originates from the ideas of the great mathematician and scientific pioneer, Pierre Laplace. These astrological wonders of the universe are currently governed by Einstein's General Theory of Relativity. It must be understood that the laws of the universe in accord with the black hole are only valid to its surface known as the horizon . After the horizon, the laws of physics are no longer valid. Consequently, science is replaced with imaginative ideas that are meaningfully probable through hypothetical assumptions.

Elemental analysis by IBA and NAA — A critical comparison

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watterson, J. I. W.

1988-12-01

In this review neutron activation analysis (NAA) and ion beam analysis (IBA) have been compared in the context of the entire field of analytical science using the discipline of scientometrics, as developed by Braun and Lyon. This perspective on the relative achievements of the two methods is modified by considering and comparing their particular attributes and characteristics, particularly in relation to their differing degree of maturity. This assessment shows that NAA, as the more mature method, is the most widely applied nuclear technique, but the special capabilities of IBA give it the ability to provide information about surface composition and elemental distribution that is unique, while it is still relatively immature and it is not yet possible to define its ultimate role with any confidence.

Trying something new.

PubMed

Condon, Barbara Backer

2013-01-01

Trying something new is a universal living experience of health. Although trying something new frequently occurs in healthcare, its meaning has never explicitly been studied. Parse's humanbecoming school of thought is the theoretical perspective for this study. The research question for this study is: What is the structure of the living experience of trying something new? The purpose of this study was to advance nursing science. Parse's qualitative phenomenological-hermeneutic research method was used to guide this study. Participants were 8 men and 2 women, ages 29 to 65 who utilize an outpatient mental health facility in the Midwest. Data were collected with dialogical engagement. The major finding of the study is the structure: Trying something new is engaging in capricious exploitations with vacillating sentiments, as wistful contemplation surfaces with disparate affiliations.

Halloysite Nanotubes for Cleaning, Consolidation and Protection.

PubMed

Cavallaro, Giuseppe; Lazzara, Giuseppe; Milioto, Stefana; Parisi, Filippo

2018-01-10

Herein, we report our recent research concerning the development of halloysite based protocols for cleaning, consolidation and protection purposes. Surface modification of halloysite cavity by anionic surfactants was explored to fabricate inorganic micelles able to solubilize hydrophobic contaminants. Hybrid dispersions based on halloysite and ecocompatible polymers were tested as consolidants for paper and waterlogged archaeological woods. Encapsulation of deacidifying and flame retardant agents within the halloysite lumen was conducted with aim to obtain nanofiller with a long-term protection ability. The results prove the suitability and versatility of halloysite nanotubes, which are perspective inorganic nanoparticles within materials science, remedation and conservation of cultural heritage fields. © 2018 The Chemical Society of Japan & Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Biomedicine: an ontological dissection.

PubMed

Baronov, David

2008-01-01

Though ubiquitous across the medical social sciences literature, the term "biomedicine" as an analytical concept remains remarkably slippery. It is argued here that this imprecision is due in part to the fact that biomedicine is comprised of three interrelated ontological spheres, each of which frames biomedicine as a distinct subject of investigation. This suggests that, depending upon one's ontological commitment, the meaning of biomedicine will shift. From an empirical perspective, biomedicine takes on the appearance of a scientific enterprise and is defined as a derivative category of Western science more generally. From an interpretive perspective, biomedicine represents a symbolic-cultural expression whose adherence to the principles of scientific objectivity conceals an ideological agenda. From a conceptual perspective, biomedicine represents an expression of social power that reflects structures of power and privilege within capitalist society. No one perspective exists in isolation and so the image of biomedicine from any one presents an incomplete understanding. It is the mutually-conditioning interrelations between these ontological spheres that account for biomedicine's ongoing development. Thus, the ontological dissection of biomedicine that follows, with particular emphasis on the period of its formal crystallization in the latter nineteenth and early twentieth century, is intended to deepen our understanding of biomedicine as an analytical concept across the medical social sciences literature.

Regime, phase and paradigm shifts: making community ecology the basic science for fisheries

PubMed Central

Mangel, Marc; Levin, Phillip S.

2005-01-01

Modern fishery science, which began in 1957 with Beverton and Holt, is ca. 50 years old. At its inception, fishery science was limited by a nineteenth century mechanistic worldview and by computational technology; thus, the relatively simple equations of population ecology became the fundamental ecological science underlying fisheries. The time has come for this to change and for community ecology to become the fundamental ecological science underlying fisheries. This point will be illustrated with two examples. First, when viewed from a community perspective, excess production must be considered in the context of biomass left for predators. We argue that this is a better measure of the effects of fisheries than spawning biomass per recruit. Second, we shall analyse a simple, but still multi-species, model for fishery management that considers the alternatives of harvest regulations, inshore marine protected areas and offshore marine protected areas. Population or community perspectives lead to very different predictions about the efficacy of reserves. PMID:15713590

Science, Science Education and Their Discontents: A Response to Commentaries on the Paper, "Portrait of a Science Teacher as a Bricoleur--A Case Study from India"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sharma, Ajay

2008-01-01

In this response to commentaries by Ali Sammel, Jhumki Basu and Alberto Rodriguez, I present my perspective on three important issues raised by the commentators. These issues relate to the role of a researcher in her field settings and society, the critique of science and science education as oppressive dominant discourses, and co-opting…

Fostering Scientific Literacy: Establishing Social Relevance via the Grand Challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lyford, M. E.; Myers, J. D.; Buss, A.

2010-12-01

Numerous studies and polls suggest the general public’s understanding of science and scientific literacy remain woefully inadequate despite repeated calls for improvement over the last 150 years. This inability to improve scientific literacy significantly is a complex problem likely driven by a number of factors. However, we argue that past calls and efforts for improving scientific literacy have failed to: 1) articulate a truly meaningful justification for society to foster a scientifically literate public; 2) provide a rationale that motivates individuals of diverse backgrounds to become scientifically literate; 3) consider the impact of personal perspective, e.g. values, beliefs, attitudes, etc., on learning; and 4) offer a relevant and manageable framework in which to define scientific literacy. For instance, past calls for improving scientific literacy, e.g. the U.S. is behind the Soviets in the space race, U.S students rank below country X in math and science, etc., have lacked justification, personal motivation and a comprehensive framework for defining scientific literacy. In these cases, the primary justification for improving science education and scientific literacy was to regain international dominance in the space race or to advance global standing according to test results. These types of calls also articulate short-term goals that are rendered moot once they have been achieved. At the same time, teaching practices have commonly failed to consider the perspectives students bring to the classroom. Many STEM faculty do not address issues of personal perspective through ignorance or the desire to avoid controversial subjects, e g. evolution, climate change. We propose that the ‘grand challenges’ (e.g., energy, climate change, antibacterial resistance, water, etc.) humankind currently faces provides a compelling framework for developing courses and curricula well-suited for improving scientific literacy. A grand challenge paradigm offers four distinct advantages. First, it defines an enduring and meaningful rationale for society to invest resources in educational programs that promote scientific literacy. Second, it provides an educational context designed to engage individuals and motivate them to learn. Third, the nature of grand challenges provides mechanisms for addressing other affective barriers to individual learning that are commonly associated with controversial science-societal issues. Fourth, a grand challenge approach provides a framework to identify the concepts and processes of science a scientifically literate person should understand. Based on our experiences, we propose grand challenge science literacy (GCSL) courses or curricula are based on two primary foundations: the nature of science and the unifying concepts of science. Complementing this foundation is the science necessary to understand the grand challenge. To illustrate how science can contribute to crafting a just, equitable and sustainable solution, a GCSL course must also incorporate non-STEM perspectives, e.g. economics, politics. Finally, the personal perspectives learners bring to the classroom must be explicitly considered throughout the course.

Molecular catalysis science: Perspective on unifying the fields of catalysis

DOE PAGES

Ye, Rong; Hurlburt, Tyler J.; Sabyrov, Kairat; ...

2016-04-25

Colloidal chemistry is used to control the size, shape, morphology, and composition of metal nanoparticles. Model catalysts as such are applied to catalytic transformations in the three types of catalysts: heterogeneous, homogeneous, and enzymatic. Real-time dynamics of oxidation state, coordination, and bonding of nanoparticle catalysts are put under the microscope using surface techniques such as sumfrequency generation vibrational spectroscopy and ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy under catalytically relevant conditions. It was demonstrated that catalytic behavior and trends are strongly tied to oxidation state, the coordination number and crystallographic orientation of metal sites, and bonding and orientation of surface adsorbates. Itmore » was also found that catalytic performance can be tuned by carefully designing and fabricating catalysts from the bottom up. Homogeneous and h eterogeneous catalysts, and likely enzymes, behave similarly at the molecular level. Finally, unifying the fields of catalysis is the key to achieving the goal of 100% selectivity in catalysis.« less

Failure mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes in lithium-ion batteries

PubMed Central

Shi, Feifei; Song, Zhichao; Ross, Philip N.; Somorjai, Gabor A.; Ritchie, Robert O.; Komvopoulos, Kyriakos

2016-01-01

Long-term durability is a major obstacle limiting the widespread use of lithium-ion batteries in heavy-duty applications and others demanding extended lifetime. As one of the root causes of the degradation of battery performance, the electrode failure mechanisms are still unknown. In this paper, we reveal the fundamental fracture mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes over extended lithiation/delithiation cycles, using electrochemical testing, microstructure characterization, fracture mechanics and finite element analysis. Anisotropic lithium invasion causes crack initiation perpendicular to the electrode surface, followed by growth through the electrode thickness. The low fracture energy of the lithiated/unlithiated silicon interface provides a weak microstructural path for crack deflection, accounting for the crack patterns and delamination observed after repeated cycling. On the basis of this physical understanding, we demonstrate how electrolyte additives can heal electrode cracks and provide strategies to enhance the fracture resistance in future lithium-ion batteries from surface chemical, electrochemical and material science perspectives. PMID:27297565

Failure mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes in lithium-ion batteries

DOE PAGES

Shi, Feifei; Song, Zhichao; Ross, Philip N.; ...

2016-06-14

Long-term durability is a major obstacle limiting the widespread use of lithium-ion batteries in heavy-duty applications and others demanding extended lifetime. As one of the root causes of the degradation of battery performance, the electrode failure mechanisms are still unknown. In this paper, we reveal the fundamental fracture mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes over extended lithiation/delithiation cycles, using electrochemical testing, microstructure characterization, fracture mechanics and finite element analysis. Anisotropic lithium invasion causes crack initiation perpendicular to the electrode surface, followed by growth through the electrode thickness. The low fracture energy of the lithiated/unlithiated silicon interface provides a weak microstructural pathmore » for crack deflection, accounting for the crack patterns and delamination observed after repeated cycling. On the basis of this physical understanding, we demonstrate how electrolyte additives can heal electrode cracks and provide strategies to enhance the fracture resistance in future lithium-ion batteries from surface chemical, electrochemical and material science perspectives.« less

Failure mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes in lithium-ion batteries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Feifei; Song, Zhichao; Ross, Philip N.; Somorjai, Gabor A.; Ritchie, Robert O.; Komvopoulos, Kyriakos

2016-06-01

Long-term durability is a major obstacle limiting the widespread use of lithium-ion batteries in heavy-duty applications and others demanding extended lifetime. As one of the root causes of the degradation of battery performance, the electrode failure mechanisms are still unknown. In this paper, we reveal the fundamental fracture mechanisms of single-crystal silicon electrodes over extended lithiation/delithiation cycles, using electrochemical testing, microstructure characterization, fracture mechanics and finite element analysis. Anisotropic lithium invasion causes crack initiation perpendicular to the electrode surface, followed by growth through the electrode thickness. The low fracture energy of the lithiated/unlithiated silicon interface provides a weak microstructural path for crack deflection, accounting for the crack patterns and delamination observed after repeated cycling. On the basis of this physical understanding, we demonstrate how electrolyte additives can heal electrode cracks and provide strategies to enhance the fracture resistance in future lithium-ion batteries from surface chemical, electrochemical and material science perspectives.

New Perspectives on Biomedical Applications of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles.

PubMed

Magro, Massimiliano; Baratella, Davide; Bonaiuto, Emanuela; de A Roger, Jessica; Vianello, Fabio

2018-02-12

Iron oxide nanomaterials are considered promising tools for improved therapeutic efficacy and diagnostic applications in biomedicine. Accordingly, engineered iron oxide nanomaterials are increasingly proposed in biomedicine, and the interdisciplinary researches involving physics, chemistry, biology (nanotechnology) and medicine have led to exciting developments in the last decades. The progresses of the development of magnetic nanoparticles with tailored physico-chemical and surface properties produced a variety of clinically relevant applications, spanning from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), drug delivery, magnetic hyperthermia, to in vitro diagnostics. Notwithstanding the wellknown conventional synthetic procedures and their wide use, along with recent advances in the synthetic methods open the door to new generations of naked iron oxide nanoparticles possessing peculiar surface chemistries, suitable for other competitive biomedical applications. New abilities to rationally manipulate iron oxides and their physical, chemical, and biological properties, allow the emersion of additional possibilities for designing novel nanomaterials for theranostic applications. Copyright© Bentham Science Publishers; For any queries, please email at epub@benthamscience.org.

Computer Support for Knowledge Communication in Science Exhibitions: Novel Perspectives from Research on Collaborative Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Knipfer, Kristin; Mayr, Eva; Zahn, Carmen; Schwan, Stephan; Hesse, Friedrich W.

2009-01-01

In this article, the potentials of advanced technologies for learning in science exhibitions are outlined. For this purpose, we conceptualize science exhibitions as "dynamic information space for knowledge building" which includes three pathways of knowledge communication. This article centers on the second pathway, that is, knowledge…

Perezhivanie and Classroom Discourse: A Cultural-Historical Perspective on "Discourse of Design Based Science Classroom Activities"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adams, Megan; March, Sue

2015-01-01

Flavio Azevedo, Peggy Martalock and Tugba Keser challenge the "argumentation focus of science lessons" and propose that through a 'design-based approach' emergent conversations with the teacher offer possibilities for different types of discussions to enhance pedagogical discourse in science classrooms. This important paper offers a…

Life Skills from the Perspectives of Classroom and Science Teachers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kurtdede-Fidan, Nuray; Aydogdu, Bülent

2018-01-01

The aim of this study is to determine classroom and science teachers' views about life skills. The study employed phenomenological method. The participants of the study were 24 teachers; twelve of them were classroom teachers and the remaining were science teachers. They were working at public schools in Turkey. The participants were selected…

Emotional Climate of a Pre-Service Science Teacher Education Class in Bhutan

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rinchen, Sonam; Ritchie, Stephen M.; Bellocchi, Alberto

2016-01-01

This study explored pre-service secondary science teachers' perceptions of classroom emotional climate in the context of the Bhutanese macro-social policy of Gross National Happiness. Drawing upon sociological perspectives of human emotions and using Interaction Ritual Theory this study investigated how pre-service science teachers may be…

Sketching Some Postmodern Alternatives: Beyond Paradigms and Research Programs as Referents for Science Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Geelan, David R.

2000-01-01

Suggests that Kuhn's and Lakatos' schemes for the philosophy of science have been pervasive metaphors for conceptual change approaches to the learning and teaching of science, and have been used both implicitly and explicitly to provide an organizing framework and justification matrix for those perspectives. Describes four alternative perspectives…

Learning through Constructing Representations in Science: A Framework of Representational Construction Affordances

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Prain, Vaughan; Tytler, Russell

2012-01-01

Compared with research on the role of student engagement with expert representations in learning science, investigation of the use and theoretical justification of student-generated representations to learn science is less common. In this paper, we present a framework that aims to integrate three perspectives to explain how and why…

76 FR 15349 - National Science Board; Sunshine Act Meetings; Notice

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-03-21

... National Science Board business and other matters specified, as follows: DATE, TIME AND SUBJECT MATTER..., 2011 8:30 National Science Foundation Perspective 8:45-10:30 Session V: Policy Issues 10:45-11 Public... schedule updates (time, place, subject matter or status of meeting) may be found at http://www.nsf.gov/nsb...

Science and Creation: Geological, Theological & Educational Perspectives.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hanson, Robert W., Ed.

This book provides working examples of how different teachers, scientists, and theologians have dealt with problems of "creation science" versus evolutionary concepts. A 1982 symposia on the topic of science and creation was so well received that the participants were asked to submit formal presentations; this book is a collection of these papers.…

Putting It into Perspective: Mathematics in the Undergraduate Science Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Matthews, Kelly E.; Adams, Peter; Goos, Merrilyn

2009-01-01

Mathematics and science are tightly interwoven, yet they are often treated as distinct disciplines in the educational context. This study details the development, implementation and outcomes of a teaching intervention that highlights the links between mathematics and science, in the form of a first-year interdisciplinary course. A mixed method…

Cultural Emergence: Theorizing Culture in and from the Margins of Science Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wood, Nathan Brent; Erichsen, Elizabeth Anne; Anicha, Cali L.

2013-01-01

This special issue of the Journal of Research in Science Teaching seeks to explore conceptualizations of culture that address contemporary challenges in science education. Toward this end, we unite two theoretical perspectives to advance a conceptualization of culture as a complex system, emerging from iterative processes of cultural bricolage,…

Heterogeneous Performances of Conceptual Dis/continuity: A Dialectic Reading of Brown and Kloser's Article

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hwang, SungWon; Kim, Mijung

2009-01-01

We review Brown and Kloser's article, "Conceptual continuity and the science of baseball: using informal science literacy to promote students science learning" from a Vygotskian cultural-historical and dialectic perspective. Brown and Kloser interpret interview data with student baseball players and claim that students' conceptual understanding…