Real world contexts in PISA science : implications for context-based science education

The PISA assessment instruments for students’ scientific literacy in 2000, 2003 and 2006 have each consisted of units made up of a real world context involving Science and Technology, about which students are asked a number of cognitive and affective questions. This paper discusses a number of issues from this use of S&T contexts in PISA and the implications they have for the current renewed interest in context-based science education. Suitably chosen contexts can engage both boys and girls. Secondary analyses of the students’ responses using the contextual sets of items as the unit of analysis provides new information about the levels of performance in PISA 2006 Science. .Embedding affective items in the achievement test did not lead to gender/context interactions of significance, and context interactions were less than competency ones. A number of implications for context-based science teaching and learning are outlined and the PISA 2006 Science test is suggested as a model for its assessment.

The measurement of broadband ultrasonic attenuation in cancellous bone-a review of the science and technology

The measurement of broadband ultrasonic attenuation (BUA) in cancellous bone at the calcaneus was first described in 1984. The assessment of osteoporosis by BUA has recently been recognized by Universities UK, within its EurekaUK book, as being one of the “100 discoveries and developments in UK Universities that have changed the world” over the past 50 years, covering the whole academic spectrum from the arts and humanities to science and technology. Indeed, BUA technique has been clinically validated and is utilized worldwide, with at least seven commercial systems providing calcaneal BUA measurement. However, a fundamental understanding of the dependence of BUA upon the material and structural properties of cancellous bone is still lacking. This review aims to provide a science- and technology-orientated perspective on the application of BUA to the medical disease of osteoporosis.

Measuring the effect of patient comfort rounds on practice environment and patient satisfaction : A pilot study

Hourly rounding in the acute hospital setting has been proposed as an intervention to increase patient satisfaction and safety, and improve the nursing practice environment, but the innovation has not been adequately tested. A quasiexperimental pretest post-test non-randomized parallel group trial design was used to test the effect of hourly patient comfort rounds on patient satisfaction and nursing perceptions of the practice environment, and to evaluate research processes and instruments for a proposed larger study. A Patient Satisfaction Survey instrument was developed and used in conjunction with the Practice Environment Scale of the Nursing Work Index. Results on patient satisfaction showed no significant changes. Significant changes were found for three of the five practice environment subscales. Consistent with the aim of a pilot study, this research has provided important information related to design, instruments and process that will inform a larger sufficiently powered study.

Peace education

There are various understandings of peace education. What might be called maximalist peace education refers to educating students towards personal fulfilment and the creation of a just and co-operative society. What might be called minimalist peace education refers to educating students to avoid war, militarism and arms races. Peace education is only now being formally accepted as an integral part of educational endeavour, and an important part of this acceptance is recognition in international pronouncements and instruments, emphasizing the importance of a culture of peace and the right to peace. In terms of methodology, peace education includes curriculum, structures and process, and personal leadership. This last element is clearly the most challenging of all.

X-ray your data with Rasch

By using the Rasch model, much detailed diagnostic information is available to developers of survey and assessment instruments and to the researchers who use them. We outline an approach to the analysis of data obtained from the administration of survey instruments that can enable researchers to recognise and diagnose difficulties with those instruments and then to suggest remedial actions that can improve the measurement properties of the scales included in questionnaires. We illustrate the approach using examples drawn from recent research and demonstrate how the approach can be used to generate figures that make the results of Rasch analyses accessible to non-specialists.

Higher Order Thinking through ICT: What do middle years teachers think really matters?

The middle years of schooling has emerged as an important focus in Australian education. Student disengagement and alienation, the negative effects of non-completion of the senior years of schooling and underachievement have raised concerns about the quality of education during the middle years. For many schools, reshaping the middle years has involved incorporating Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to motivate students. However, simultaneously there is a need to ensure that programs are academically rigorous. There is little doubt that there are potential benefits to integrating ICT into programs for middle years’ students. However, little is known about how middle years’ teachers perceive higher order thinking, which is a component of academic rigour. This paper investigates the question of What are teachers’ perceptions of higher order thinking in an ICT environment? The study is underpinned by socio-cultural theory which is based on the belief that learning occurs through social interaction and that individuals are shaped by the social and cultural tools and instruments they engage with. This investigation used a collective case study design. Two methods were used for data collection. These methods are semi-structured interviews with individual teachers and a class and a focus group discussion with teachers. Findings indicate that teachers hold various perceptions of higher order thinking that lead to productive approaches to integrating ICT in middle years’ classrooms. The paper highlights that there may be a continuum of perceptions of higher order thinking with ICT. This continuum may inform professional developers who are guiding and supporting teachers to integrate ICT into middle years’ classrooms.

Development and scientific validation of a neonatal ultrasound axial bone scanner

Preterm infants have an increased risk of low bone mass and subsequent fracture due to limited bone mass accretion in utero and a greater need for bone nutrients. The diagnosis of ostepeonia of prematurity remains difficult as there is no sctreening test which is both sensitive and specific.

Prediction of adjacent vertebral fracture risk associated with vertebroplasty : a computer-based simulation study

Vertebrplasty involved injecting cement into a fractured vertebra to provide stabilisation. There is clinical evidence to suggest however that vertebroplasty may be assocated with a higher risk of adjacent vertebral fracture; which may be due to the change in material properties of the post-procedure vertebra modifying the transmission of mechanical stresses to adjacent vertebrae.

Comparison of 3D finite element analysis derived stiffness and BMD to determine the failure load of the excised proximal femur

Bone mineral density (BMD) is currently the preferred surrogate for bone strength in clinical practice. Finite element analysis (FEA) is a computer simulation technique that can predict the deformation of a structure when a load is applied, providing a measure of stiffness (N mm− 1). Finite element analysis of X-ray images (3D-FEXI) is a FEA technique whose analysis is derived from a single 2D radiographic image. This ex-vivo study demonstrates that 3D-FEXI derived from a conventional 2D radiographic image has the potential to significantly increase the accuracy of failure load assessment of the proximal femur compared with that currently achieved with BMD.

Intercomparison study of six HTDMAs: results and recommendations

We report on an inter-comparison of six different hygroscopicity tandem differential mobility analysers (HTDMAs). These HTDMAs are used worldwide in laboratories and in field campaigns to measure the water uptake of aerosol particles and were never intercompared. After an investigation of the different design of the instruments with their advantages and inconveniencies, the methods for calibration, validation and analysis are presented. Measurements of nebulised ammonium sulphate as well as of secondary organic aerosol generated from a smog chamber were performed. Agreement and discrepancies between the instrument and to the theory are discussed, and final recommendations for a standard instrument are given, as a benchmark for laboratory or field experiments to ensure a high quality of HTDMA data.

The susceptibility of digital signatures to fraud in the National Electronic Conveyancing System : an analysis

Public key cryptography, and with it,the ability to compute digital signatures, have made it possible for electronic commerce to flourish. It is thus unsurprising that the proposed Australian NECS will also utilise digital signatures in its system so as to provide a fully automated process from the creation of electronic land title instrument to the digital signing, and electronic lodgment of these instruments. This necessitates an analysis of the fraud risks raised by the usage of digital signatures because a compromise of the integrity of digital signatures will lead to a compromise of the Torrens system itself. This article will show that digital signatures may in fact offer greater security against fraud than handwritten signatures; but to achieve this, digital signatures require an infrastructure whereby each component is properly implemented and managed.

Dislodgement of commercial property public debt markets : the case of U.S. and Australia

The paper investigates if there are any discernible trends in the U.S. and Australian commercial property public debt markets with the onset of the global financial crisis (GFC). Commercial mortgage-backed securities and unsecured bonds issued by real estate investment trusts for the period 2000 to Q3:2009 are reviewed. It is shown that events in the equity markets have an impact on the pricing of these two instruments. Furthermore, the impact of subdued activity in these financing instruments on the commercial property market is discussed.

Corneal topography with Scheimpflug imaging and videokeratography : comparative study of normal eyes

PURPOSE: To compare the repeatability within anterior corneal topography measurements and agreement between measurements with the Pentacam HR rotating Scheimpflug camera and with a previously validated Placido disk–based videokeratoscope (Medmont E300). ------ SETTING: Contact Lens and Visual Optics Laboratory, School of Optometry, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. ----- METHODS: Normal eyes in 101 young adult subjects had corneal topography measured using the Scheimpflug camera (6 repeated measurements) and videokeratoscope (4 repeated measurements). The best-fitting axial power corneal spherocylinder was calculated and converted into power vectors. Corneal higher-order aberrations (HOAs) (up to the 8th Zernike order) were calculated using the corneal elevation data from each instrument. ----- RESULTS: Both instruments showed excellent repeatability for axial power spherocylinder measurements (repeatability coefficients <0.25 diopter; intraclass correlation coefficients >0.9) and good agreement for all power vectors. Agreement between the 2 instruments was closest when the mean of multiple measurements was used in analysis. For corneal HOAs, both instruments showed reasonable repeatability for most aberration terms and good correlation and agreement for many aberrations (eg, spherical aberration, coma, higher-order root mean square). For other aberrations (eg, trefoil and tetrafoil), the 2 instruments showed relatively poor agreement. ----- CONCLUSIONS: For normal corneas, the Scheimpflug system showed excellent repeatability and reasonable agreement with a previously validated videokeratoscope for the anterior corneal axial curvature best-fitting spherocylinder and several corneal HOAs. However, for certain aberrations with higher azimuthal frequencies, the Scheimpflug system had poor agreement with the videokeratoscope; thus, caution should be used when interpreting these corneal aberrations with the Scheimpflug system.

Resilience in chronic disease : the relationships among risk factors, protective factors, adaptive outcomes, and the level of resilience in adults with diabetes

Background: There are innumerable diabetes studies that have investigated associations between risk factors, protective factors, and health outcomes; however, these individual predictors are part of a complex network of interacting forces. Moreover, there is little awareness about resilience or its importance in chronic disease in adulthood, especially diabetes. Thus, this is the first study to: (1) extensively investigate the relationships among a host of predictors and multiple adaptive outcomes; and (2) conceptualise a resilience model among people with diabetes. Methods: This cross-sectional study was divided into two research studies. Study One was to translate two diabetes-specific instruments (Problem Areas In Diabetes, PAID; Diabetes Coping Measure, DCM) into a Chinese version and to examine their psychometric properties for use in Study Two in a convenience sample of 205 outpatients with type 2 diabetes. In Study Two, an integrated theoretical model is developed and evaluated using the structural equation modelling (SEM) technique. A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 345 people with type 2 diabetes from the endocrine outpatient departments of three hospitals in Taiwan. Results: Confirmatory factor analyses confirmed a one-factor structure of the PAID-C which was similar to the original version of the PAID. Strong content validity of the PAID-C was demonstrated. The PAID-C was associated with HbA1c and diabetes self-care behaviours, confirming satisfactory criterion validity. There was a moderate relationship between the PAID-C and the Perceived Stress Scale, supporting satisfactory convergent validity. The PAID-C also demonstrated satisfactory stability and high internal consistency. A four-factor structure and strong content validity of the DCM-C was confirmed. Criterion validity demonstrated that the DCM-C was significantly associated with HbA1c and diabetes self-care behaviours. There was a statistical correlation between the DCM-C and the Revised Ways of Coping Checklist, suggesting satisfactory convergent validity. Test-retest reliability demonstrated satisfactory stability of the DCM-C. The total scale of the DCM-C showed adequate internal consistency. Age, duration of diabetes, diabetes symptoms, diabetes distress, physical activity, coping strategies, and social support were the most consistent factors associated with adaptive outcomes in adults with diabetes. Resilience was positively associated with coping strategies, social support, health-related quality of life, and diabetes self-care behaviours. Results of the structural equation modelling revealed protective factors had a significant direct effect on adaptive outcomes; however, the construct of risk factors was not significantly related to adaptive outcomes. Moreover, resilience can moderate the relationships among protective factors and adaptive outcomes, but there were no interaction effects of risk factors and resilience on adaptive outcomes. Conclusion: This study contributes to an understanding of how risk factors and protective factors work together to influence adaptive outcomes in blood sugar control, health-related quality of life, and diabetes self-care behaviours. Additionally, resilience is a positive personality characteristic and may be importantly involved in the adjustment process among people living with type 2 diabetes.

Enhancing the standard operating range of a placido disk videokeratoscope for corneal surface estimation

Abstract—Corneal topography estimation that is based on the Placido disk principle relies on good quality of precorneal tear film and sufficiently wide eyelid (palpebral) aperture to avoid reflections from eyelashes. However, in practice, these conditions are not always fulfilled resulting in missing regions, smaller corneal coverage, and subsequently poorer estimates of corneal topography. Our aim was to enhance the standard operating range of a Placido disk videokeratoscope to obtain reliable corneal topography estimates in patients with poor tear film quality, such as encountered in those diagnosed with dry eye, and with narrower palpebral apertures as in the case of Asian subjects. This was achieved by incorporating in the instrument’s own topography estimation algorithm an image processing technique that comprises a polar-domain adaptive filter and amorphological closing operator. The experimental results from measurements of test surfaces and real corneas showed that the incorporation of the proposed technique results in better estimates of corneal topography, and, in many cases, to a significant increase in the estimated coverage area making such an enhanced videokeratoscope a better tool for clinicians.