Picturing evaporation : learning science literacy through a particle representation

Evaporation is mostly taught in primary schools through a water cycle representation. This has its limitations in explaining mechanisms and local effects such as drops drying in a closed room, condensation on cold surfaces, or how we smell liquids. In this paper the authors describe a classroom sequence of activities for Grade 5 students that explored the use of a particle model in conjunction with a range of representational modes, to explain evaporation phenomena. In interviews the authors explored with students their visual and verbal accounts of particles, modelling a process of teacher-mediated negotiation of multiple representations. From the evidence, the authors argue that difficulties in understanding evaporation are inherently representational, and that by engaging with the multiple literacies of science teachers can support significant advances in conceptual learning.

The influence of sensitivity to reward on reactivity to alcohol-related cues

Aims. To investigate the role of sensitivity to reward in mediating social drinkers' reactivity to alcohol cues. Design. A standard cue-reactivity paradigm was employed. Two groups of social drinkers (heavy and ight) were assessed after exposure to the sight, smell and taste of a neutral cue (water) and then an alcohol cue (glass of beer). Setting. Sessions were conducted in a laboratory based environment. Participants. Twenty heavy (12 males, eight females) and 18 light social drinkers (seven males, 11 females) were recruited; mean age was 23.6 years. Measurements. The Card Arranging Reward Responsivity Objective Test (CARROT), assessing behavioural responsiveness to a monetary incentive; urge to drink; positive affect; and the BAS scales, assessing sensitivity to reward. Findings. Heavy drinkers displayed a significant increase in responsivity to rewards (i.e. CARROT) and self-reported urge to drink, bur not positive affect, after exposure to alcohol. For the heavy drinkers, heightened sensitivity to reward (i.e. BAS scales) was significantly related to cue-elicited urge to drink and positive affect. Conclusion. The results are consistent with a conditioned appetitive motivational model of alcohol use and suggest that Gray's theory of personality may be of some benefit in explaining variation in reactivity responses.

Knowing from where?

Exploring western philosophies which have shifted down through time but have also held firm on key features that dominate, separate and shatter at the core I realised this was not us as I tried to "develop the right orientation to ourselves and our place first" (Meyer2003 : 60) as an Arabana udyurla. Thus, despite there being some opportunity here and there within these philosophic positions I turned to the Ularaka -- the Arabana worldview -- to consider methodology and method drawing from our ancient knowledge. The sun shone brightly. I was able to 'See...hear...feel and smell (take it in)' -- think. My approach shifted from a marking out of an Indigenous space within or being an addendum to western philosophies to understanding and therefore doing from an embodiment and embodying within the ontologies and cultural knowledge of the Ularaka. From here while in dialogue with and being 'grown' or mentored by key Elders, I could powerfully experience, engage and interpret 'data' from an Indigenous knowledge position.

Modification of the bitterness of caffeine

Caffeine is the worlds most consumed psychoactive chemical and as such is a valuable commodity to the food and beverage industry. Caffeine also activates the bitter taste system causing a potential problem for manufacturers wanting to develop products containing caffeine. In the present study both oral peripheral and central cognitive strategies were used in an attempt to suppress the bitterness of caffeine. Subjects (n = 33) assessed the influence of sodium gluconate (100 mM), zinc lactate (5 mM), sucrose (125 mM and 250 mM), milk (0%, 2% and 4% milk fat), and aromas (coffee, chocolate, mocha) on the bitterness of caffeine (1.5, 3 and 4.5 mM). The oral peripheral strategies proved most effective at suppressing the bitterness of caffeine: zinc lactate (−71%, p < 0.05), non-fat milk (−49%, p < 0.05), and sodium gluconate (−31%). Central cognitive strategies were partially effective: 250 mM sucrose (−47%, p < 0.05) and mocha aroma (−10%) decreased bitterness, while chocolate (+32%) and coffee (+17%) aromas increased perceived bitterness. Overall, zinc lactate was the most effective bitterness inhibitor, however the utility of zinc in foods is negated by its ability to inhibit sweetness.

Cue reward salience predicts craving in response to alcohol cues

Many studies have shown that regular drinkers react to alcohol-related stimuli (i.e., cue reactivity) with a variety of appetitive responses, in particular, increased urge to drink. Recent research has focused on accounting for variability in responses to alcohol-related stimuli by examining drinking histories and personality. The aim of the current study was to extend this line of work by investigating the role of reinforcement expectancies (‘cue reward salience’) in alcohol cue reactivity research. In this study, ‘cue reward salience’ refers to the notion that appetitive responses will only ensue if the individual finds the stimulus to be equal to or more rewarding than initial expectations. Sixty-one regular drinkers completed a standard cue reactivity assessment whereby reactions (i.e., urge to drink and affect) to the sight, smell and taste of alcohol are measured and compared to a control condition. Results indicated significant increases in positive urge to drink but no changes in affect. Analyses revealed that drinking level and trait reward sensitivity were significant predictors of the urge to drink response. In addition, ‘cue reward salience’ accounted for significant additional variance in predicting urge to drink alcohol. Discussion focuses on the importance of measuring reinforcement expectancies when conducting cue reactivity studies.

Spatial memory in a food storing corvid I. Near tall landmarks are primarily used

This work suggests how food storing corvids use spatial memory to relocate caches, and how they can do this after some landmarks surrounding caches have become hidden due to leaf fall, snow fall or plant growth. Experiments involved training European jays (Garrulus glandarius) to find buried food, the location of which was specified by an array of 12 landmarks. Tests were then performed with the array rotated, or with certain landmarks removed from the array. The.main findings were: (1) birds primarily remembered the position of the goal using the near tall landmarks (15-30 cm from the goal and 20 cm high); (2) birds obtained a sense of direction both from the landmark array and something external to the array; (3) birds did not use smell or marks in the surface of the ground to find the goal. Memory of near tall landmarks is likely to be functional for these birds since (a) nearer landmarks provide a more accurate fix, and (b) taller landmarks are less likely to be completely obscured by snow fall, leaf fall or intervening vegetation. The work also demonstrates the use of G.I.S. software for the analysis and representation of animal search patterns.

Ecology of fish inhabiting the inter-tidal zone of Swan Bay, Victoria, Australia

Swan Bay is a shallow marine embayment of Port Phillip Bay, just north of Queenscliff, Victoria. It has been part of the Harold Holt Marine Reserves since 1977 and is a seagrass habitat. This study investigated the species of fish present in the inter-tidal zone of Swan Bay, collected information on their ecology, investigated the importance of Swan Bay compared to Port Phillip Bay as a nursery and/or breeding area and compared these results with those of similar seagrsss habitats. Field work was carried out monthly over a two year period, from April 1981 to April 1983, using beach seine nets at Swan Bay and Portarlington. Forty four species of fish were identified from Swan Bay and nineteen from Portarlington. Fish were most abundant during the summer and autumn months when seagrass growth was at a maximum and least abundant during winter due to the absence of seasonal residents and decreased numbers of permanent residents. Swan Bay was found to be an important nursery ground for two commercially-caught species: the Yellow-eye Mullet and the King George Whiting. Juvenile Yellow-eye Mullet were more numerous in Swan Bay than at Portarlington. Smell juvenile King George Whiting were more abundant at Portarlington than in Swan Bay where older juveniles were more numerous. The fish fauna of Swan Bay was found to be similar to western Port but the abundance of species varied. Atherinosome microstoma was the dominant species in terms of abundance and biomass. Diet was found to be different from that reported by Robertson (1979) at Western Port due to the different range of prey items.

Do male guppies distinguish virgin females from recently mated ones?

In some mating systems males should benefit from mating with virgin females because of their higher reproductive value. We determined experimentally whether and how males distinguish between virgin and recently mated females in the guppy, Poecilia reticulata, a promiscuous livebearer. In a free-swimming experiment, males showed flexible mating behaviour by adjusting their tactics according to the mating status of the female they encountered, virgin or mated. Males followed, nipped and copulated with virgins more than with mated females, but they performed more sneaky copulations with mated females, possibly because the latter were more reluctant to mate than virgin females. When, in another set of experiments, males received only the visual cues of both virgins and mated females they showed no preference for either, but when they were exposed only to the female olfactory cues, they associated considerably more with the smell of virgin females. These results suggest that male guppies assess female behavioural and olfactory cues to determine female virginity and then use different mating tactics depending on the female's status. It is possible that the changes in male mating behaviour increase male reproductive success.

Sensing the story: structure and improvisation in writing for performance.

This article discusses the process of writing through devising in performance. It takes as a case study Apart of and A Part From in which muscle and sense memory – touch, smell, taste, sound and sight – were the points of departure for a contemporary performance piece on migration and identity. This was a practice-as-research project aimed to better understand the artist’s body (myself) in improvisation with memory fragments. Working from a non-verbal frame the writing experience began as actions in space, then new memories in my body, to maps on paper, to key word and some staging patterns, to systematic capturing of the textual, rhythmic and spatial structures in the emerging 30-minute performance. Various objects were incorporated to give aesthetic coherence of the piece. The article reports on the processes of writing in action, the writing and performing as lived experience and how the writing emerged from the spaces in between – self and other, self and object, self and space, present self and past self.

Chemosensory science in the context of cancer treatment: implications for patient care

Introduction: This collaborative commentary brings together both clinical and sensory science perspectives in an effort to explain the mechanisms of cancer treatment and the ensuing implications for the sensorium. Strategy: This paper makes the distinction between food hedonics and true chemosensory effects in the cancer context and describes the adverse effects cancer and its treatment have on the eating and drinking experience, including gastronomic, nutritional and emotional implications. Results from a prospective breast cancer cohort study, conducted by an interdisciplinary team of nurses, medical oncologists, dietitians and sensory science researchers shed new light on specific sensory symptomatology associated with chemotherapy treatment and the implications this has for informing reliable pre-treatment patient education. Findings: Two conceptual models are posed as frameworks for better understanding the determinants and consequences of altered eating and drinking experiences during chemotherapy, as well as the link between patient-reported symptoms and chemosensory or hedonic disturbances. Discussion: Application of evidence of cancer treatment and its sensory effects in the patient treatment context continues to be a challenge for cancer clinicians, especially where standardised testing of taste and smell function are not able to be practically administered. Conclusions: Recommendations are made for further research and practice pursuits to underpin improved food enjoyment and dietary quality throughout the cancer trajectory. Clinician education of sensory science is also encouraged.

Sensory and consumer research update : Eating with our ears

Sound is a less thought-about flavour sense; taste, smell, texture and even vision have a higher profile. But is sound an important flavour sense, or is the lack of research in the area a reflection that sound has limited importance?

Quality evaluation and safety assessment of different cooking oils available in Pakistan

The present study was conducted to evaluate the quality of cooking oils available in Pakistani market. The physicochemical qualities of 35 commercially available cooking oil brands were investigated for free fatty acid, peroxide value, smell, weight, color, rancidity, foreign matter, appearance and cold point. Analysis showed that free fatty acid, peroxide, smell, weight and rancidity value significantly deviate from standards set by Pakistan standard quality control authority (PSQCA). However, color, foreign matter, appearance and cloud point values were in limits set by PSQCA. In terms of vitamin only 71.43±2.32% brands contain vitamins. These results confirm the presence of adulteration and deviation of product development from quality limits sets by Pakistan standard quality control authority.