Dilemmas in Framing Research Studies in Engineering Education

There has been considerable debate about the need for more empirical, evidence based studies of the impact of various interventions and practices in engineering education. A number of resources including workshops to guide engineering faculty in the conduct of such studies have emerged over recent years. This paper presents a critique of the evolution of engineering education research and its underlying assumptions in the context of the systemic reform currently underway in engineering education. This critique leads to an analysis of the ways in which our current understanding of engineering, engineering education and research in engineering education is shaped by the traditions and cultural characteristics of the profession and grounded, albeit implicitly, in a particular suite of epistemological assumptions. It is argued that the whole enterprise of engineering education needs to be radically reconceptualized. A pluralistic approach to framing scholarship in engineering education is then proposed based on the principles of demonstrable practicality, critical interdisciplinarity and holistic reflexivity. This new framework has implications for engaging and developing faculty in the context of new teaching and learning paradigms, for the evaluation of the scholarship of teaching and for the research-teaching nexus.

Hydraulic engineering in the 21st century: Where to?

For centuries, hydraulic engineers were at the forefront of science. The last forty years marked a change of perception in our society with a focus on environmental sustainability and management, particularly in developed countries. Herein, the writer illustrates his strong belief that the future of hydraulic engineering lies upon a combination of innovative engineering, research excellence and higher education of quality. This drive continues a long tradition established by eminent scholars like Arthur Thomas IPPEN, John Fisher KENNEDY and Hunter ROUSE.

How can and do Australian doctors promote physical activity?

Background. Physical inactivity is recognized as an important public health issue. Yet little is known about doctors' knowledge, attitude, skills, and resources specifically relating to the promotion of physical activity. Our survey assessed the current practice, perceived desirable practice, confidence, and barriers related to the promotion of physical activity in family practice, Methods. A questionnaire was developed and distributed to all 1,228 family practitioners in Perth, Western Australia. Results. We received a 71% response (n = 789). Family practitioners are most likely to recommend walking to sedentary adults to improve fitness and they are aware of the major barriers to patients participating in physical activity. Doctors are less confident at providing specific advice on exercise and may require further skills, knowledge, and experience, Although they promote exercise to patients through verbal advice in the consultation, few use written materials or referral systems, Conclusions. There are significant differences between self-reports of current practice and perceived desirable practice in the promotion of physical activity by doctors, Future strategies need to address the self-efficacy of family physicians and involve resources of proven effectiveness. The potential of referral systems for supporting efforts to increase physical activity by Australians should be explored. (C) 1997 Academic Press.

Earth pressure on cantilever walls at design retained heights

There are many methods for the analysis and design of embedded cantilever retaining walls. They involve various different simplifications of the pressure distribution to allow calculation of the limiting equilibrium retained height and the bending moment when the retained height is less than the limiting equilibrium value, i.e. the serviceability case. Recently, a new method for determining the serviceability earth pressure and bending moment has been proposed. This method makes an assumption defining the point of zero net pressure. This assumption implies that the passive pressure is not fully mobilised immediately below the excavation level. The finite element analyses presented in this paper examine the net pressure distribution on walls in which the retained height is less, than the limiting equilibrium value. The study shows that for all practical walls, the earth pressure distributions on the front and back of the wall are at their limit values, Kp and K-a respectively, when the lumped factor of safety F-r is less than or equal to2.0. A rectilinear net pressure distribution is proposed that is intuitively logical. It produces good predictions of the complete bending moment diagram for walls in the service configuration and the proposed method gives results that have excellent agreement with centrifuge model tests. The study shows that the method for determining the serviceability bending moment suggested by Padfield and Mair(1) in the CIRIA Report 104 gives excellent predictions of the maximum bending moment in practical cantilever walls. It provides the missing data that have been needed to verify and justify the CIRIA 104 method.

Finding gold in our shadow: psychotherapy and the shadow syndrome

Drawing on the work of Carl Jung and Robert Bly, Yaro Starak explores how 'shadow work' can be used within a Gestalt group therapy environment to uncover the 'gold in our shadow bags' - hidden inner strengths and resources that we were previously unaware of that may lead to healing and transformation. (editor abstract)

Micro-mechanical approximation to the stress field around an inclined fiber of FRCC

Matrix spalling or crushing is one of the important mechanisms of fiber-matrix interaction of fiber reinforced cementitious composites (FRCC). The fiber pullout mechanisms have been extensively studied for an aligned fiber but matrix failure is rarely investigated since it is thought not to be a major affect. However, for an inclined fiber, the matrix failure should not be neglected. Due to the complex process of matrix spalling, experimental investigation and analytical study of this mechanism are rarely found in literature. In this paper, it is assumed that the load transfer is concentrated within the short length of the inclined fiber from the exit point towards anchored end and follows the exponential law. The Mindlin formulation is employed to calculate the 3D stress field. The simulation gives much information about this field. The 3D approximation of the stress state around an inclined fiber helps to qualitatively understand the mechanism of matrix failure. Finally, a spalling criterion is proposed by which matrix spalling occurs only when the stress in a certain volume, rather than the stress at a small point, exceeds the material strength. This implies some local stress redistribution after first yield. The stress redistribution results in more energy input and higher load bearing capacity of the matrix. In accordance with this hypothesis, the evolution of matrix spalling is demonstrated. The accurate prediction of matrix spalling needs the careful determination of the parameters in this model. This is the work of further study. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Tissue engineering for bone regeneration using differentiated alveolar bone cells in collagen scaffolds

Regeneration of osseous defects by a tissue-engineering approach provides a novel means of treatment utilizing cell biology, materials science, and molecular biology. In this study the concept of tissue engineering was tested with collagen type I matrices seeded with cells with osteogenic potential and implanted into sites where osseous damage had occurred. Explant cultures of cells from human alveolar bone and gingiva were established. When seeded into a three-dimensional type I collagen-based scaffold, the bone-derived cells maintained their osteoblastic phenotype as monitored by mRNA and protein levels of the bone-related proteins including bone sialoprotein, osteocalcin, osteopontin, bone morphogenetic proteins 2 and 4, and alkaline phosphatase. These in vitro-developed matrices were implanted into critical-size bone defects in skulls of immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Wound healing was monitored for up to 4 weeks. When measured by microdensitometry the bone density within defects filled with osteoblast-derived matrix was significantly higher compared with defects filled with either collagen scaffold alone or collagen scaffold impregnated with gingival fibroblasts. New bone formation was found at all the sites treated with the osteoblast-derived matrix at 28 days, whereas no obvious new bone formation was identified at the same time point in the control groups. In situ hybridization for the human-specific Alu gene sequence indicated that the newly formed bone tissue resulted from both transplanted human osteoblasts and endogenous mesenchymal stem cells. The results indicate that cells derived from human alveolar bone can be incorporated into bioengineered scaffolds and synthesize a matrix, which on implantation can induce new bone formation.

Blast design using measurement while drilling parameters

Measurement while drilling (MWD) techniques can provide a useful tool to aid drill and blast engineers in open cut mining. By avoiding time consuming tasks such as scan-lines and rock sample collection for laboratory tests, MWD techniques can not only save time but also improve the reliability of the blast design by providing the drill and blast engineer with the information specially tailored for use. While most mines use a standard blast pattern and charge per blasthole, based on a single rock factor for the entire bench or blast region, information derived from the MWD parameters can improve the blast design by providing more accurate rock properties for each individual blasthole. From this, decisions can be made on the most appropriate type and amount of explosive charge to place in a per blasthole or to optimise the inter-hole timing detonation time of different decks and blastholes. Where real-time calculations are feasible, the system could extend the present blast design even be used to determine the placement of subsequent holes towards a more appropriate blasthole pattern design like asymmetrical blasting.