Quantitative pulsed phase thermography applied to steel plates

Pulsed Phase Thermography (PPT) has been proven effective on depth retrieval of flat-bottomed holes in different materials such as plastics and aluminum. In PPT, amplitude and phase delay signatures are available following data acquisition (carried out in a similar way as in classical Pulsed Thermography), by applying a transformation algorithm such as the Fourier Transform (FT) on thermal profiles. The authors have recently presented an extended review on PPT theory, including a new inversion technique for depth retrieval by correlating the depth with the blind frequency fb (frequency at which a defect produce enough phase contrast to be detected). An automatic defect depth retrieval algorithm had also been proposed, evidencing PPT capabilities as a practical inversion technique. In addition, the use of normalized parameters to account for defect size variation as well as depth retrieval from complex shape composites (GFRP and CFRP) are currently under investigation. In this paper, steel plates containing flat-bottomed holes at different depths (from 1 to 4.5 mm) are tested by quantitative PPT. Least squares regression results show excellent agreement between depth and the inverse square root blind frequency, which can be used for depth inversion. Experimental results on steel plates with simulated corrosion are presented as well. It is worth noting that results are improved by performing PPT on reconstructed (synthetic) rather than on raw thermal data.

'What with your grades?': Students motivation for and experience of vocational courses in further education

In this article we seek to explore the motivations for studying a vocational qualification of 40 students currently in further education. We consider student decision making, in terms of the support and guidance received, and examine the value these students place on their training, particularly with respect to their future employment. Drawing on qualitative data from 40 students we argue that a student’s sense of their educational identity is important in understanding their motivations for vocational training in the first instance as well as a lack of good careers information and guidance.

To what extent are EU steel companies susceptible to competitive loss due to climate policy?

In recognition of their competitive vulnerability, a set of special rules have been devised for managing sectors such as steel and cement within the EU ETS. These rules basically seek to set sector specific performance benchmarks and reward top performers. However, the steel sector as a whole will receive the vast majority of its allowances for free in Phase III. Perceptions of competitive vulnerability have been largely based on inherently hypothetical analyses which rely heavily on counterfactual scenario and abatement cost estimates often provided by firms themselves. This paper diverges from these approaches by providing a qualitative assessment of the two key reasons underpinning the competitive vulnerability argument of the EU Steel Companies based on interviews and case study involving the three largest producers of steel within the EU – AcerlorMittal, Corus, and ThyssenKrupp. We find that these arguments provide only partial and weak justifications for competitive loss and discriminatory treatment in the EUETS. This strategy is difficult to counter by governments due to information asymmetry; and it appears to have proved very successful insofar as it has helped the industry to achieve free allocation in Phases I-III of EU ETS by playing up the risk of carbon leakage.

The accuracy of students' predictions of their GCSE grades

The paper reports a study that investigated the relationship between students’ self-predicted and actual General Certificate of Secondary Education results in order to establish the extent of over- and under-prediction and whether this varies by subject and across genders and socio-economic groupings. It also considered the relationship between actual and predicted attainment and attitudes towards going to university. The sample consisted of 109 young people in two schools being followed up from an earlier study. Just over 50% of predictions were accurate and students were much more likely to over-predict than to under-predict. Most errors of prediction were only one grade out and may reflect examination unreliability as well as student misperceptions. Girls were slightly less likely than boys to over-predict but there were no differences associated with social background. Higher levels of attainment, both actual and predicted, were strongly associated with positive attitudes to university. Differences between predictions and results are likely to reflect examination errors as well as pupil errors. There is no evidence that students from more advantaged social backgrounds over-estimate themselves compared with other students, although boys over-estimate themselves compared with girls.

Long-term positive effects of repeating a year in school: Six-year longitudinal study of self-beliefs, anxiety, social relations, school grades, and test scores

Consistently with a priori predictions, school retention (repeating a year in school) had largely positive effects for a diverse range of 10 outcomes (e.g., math self-concept, self-efficacy, anxiety, relations with teachers, parents and peers, school grades, and standardized achievement test scores). The design, based on a large, representative sample of German students (N = 1,325, M age = 11.75 years) measured each year during the first five years of secondary school, was particularly strong. It featured four independent retention groups (different groups of students, each repeating one of the four first years of secondary school, total N = 103), with multiple post-test waves to evaluate short- and long-term effects, controlling for covariates (gender, age, SES, primary school grades, IQ) and one or more sets of 10 outcomes realised prior to retention. Tests of developmental invariance demonstrated that the effects of retention (controlling for covariates and pre-retention outcomes) were highly consistent across this potentially volatile early-to-middle adolescent period; largely positive effects in the first year following retention were maintained in subsequent school years following retention. Particularly considering that these results are contrary to at least some of the accepted wisdom about school retention, the findings have important implications for educational researchers, policymakers and parents.