Blending student technology experiences in formal and informal learning

In this article, we discuss the importance of recognizing students' technology-enhanced informal learning experiences and develop pedagogies to connect students' formal and informal learning experiences, in order to meet the demands of the knowledge society. The Mobile-Blended Collaborative Learning model is proposed as a framework to bridge the gap between formal and informal learning and blend them together to form a portable, flexible, collaborative and creative learning environment. Using this model, three categories of mobile application tools, namely tools for collaboration, tools for coordination and tools for communication, have been identified as pertinent in blending formal and informal learning, and they can be connected seamlessly to provide an effective learning mechanism to support the learning process.

Feltability of cashmere and other rare animal fibres and the effects of nutrition and blending with wool on cashmere feltability

Felting is a unique attribute of animal fibres used for the production of a range of industrial and apparel textiles. Felting can be an adverse attribute as a consequence of dimensional shrinkage during laundering. As there is little objective information regarding the feltability of rare animal fibres or the factors which may affect felting three investigations were undertaken. A survey (n = 114) of the feltability of cashmere from different origins of production, cashgora, quivet, camel hair, llama, guanaco, bison wool, cow fibre and yak wool quantified the large variation between and within these fibre types. Cashmere from some origins and cashgora produced higher feltball density than the other fibres. Different nutritional management of cashmere goats (n = 35) showed that cashmere grown by poorly fed goats had a lower propensity to felt compared with cashmere grown by better fed goats. A consequence of the progressive blending of cashmere (n = 27) with a low propensity to felt superfine wool (high fibre curvature) increased the propensity of the blend to felt, but when the same cashmere was blended with low curvature superfine wool, there was little or no effect on feltability. The mechanisms which lead to variance in feltability of these fibres were quantified with multiple regression modelling. The mechanisms were similar to those reported for wools, namely variations in the resistance to compression, fibre curvature and mean fibre diameter, with likely effects of fibre crimp form. It is possible to source cashmere and other animal fibres which have different propensities to felt and therefore to produce textiles which are likely to have different textile properties.

Hillegonda: 3 projector performance

Dirk de Bruyn is one of Australia’s most successful and acclaimed abstract animators. His career spans a significant portion of the history of abstract and experimental animation in Australia and his films are as addictive as they are bold and uncompromising examples of the genre. He displays a remarkable ability to learn the lessons gifted us by earlier greats and yet produce a flowing, beautifully realised river of imagery that is all his own. MIAF’s look at the various iterations of de Bruyn’s work continues with this special one-off live performance in which he will utilise three projectors to create an experience that blends a suite of moving image artwork drawn from his practice with an improvised sound track. Hosted by the VCA, this performance is FREE and will take place in VCA’s Founders Gallery at 234 St Kilda Rd just a few short minutes walk from ACMI.

Material damage: 4 projector film performance

Dirk de Bruyn’s expanded cinema performances engage the æsthetics of process at a number of levels. At the core of these performances are several of three- or four-screen, essentially abstract films of the same duration which comment upon and echo each other in a constant interplay of flicker-like positive and negative imagery. The soundtrack of the films works in a related way: the same or similar words and sound fragments are overlayed, or are repeated in an absurd call-and-answer pattern running from one speaker to another. This overall design or formal system is then set into play and relativised in the live event through a number of treatment-techniques. Reels are placed out of order or interspliced with other short films or fragments of found footage or tests, the bulb of one or more projectors can be occasionally turned off while the soundtrack continues, or the projector can be stopped altogether, extending, stretching out or disrupting completely the apparent synchrony between each screen and soundtrack. The light beam of each projector is filtered, distorted, split and multiplied using hand-held colour gels, plastic bottles, prisms and mirrors, or else silhouetted or blocked completely with the artist’s own hands and body. The projectors themselves can be inverted, turned around or physically transported across the space, mixing and overlaying the imagery, animating different areas of the performance environment and transforming the body of the audience itself into a screen medium.

Customer-focused CRM: a marketing challenge for organizations

The article explains that CRM is all about building longterm business relationships with customers. It is best described as the blending of internal business processes: sales, marketing and customer support with technology. Research indicates that poor project planning, weak and
incomplete business cases, cost and complexity of the technology, lack of.technological skills, lack of system integration and lack of senior management involvement in the CRM process are among the many factors that inhibit the successful adoption ofCRM in companies. The article presents a framework for customer centric CRM.

Politicised pagodas and veiled resistance : contested urban space in Burma.

The urban landscapes of Yangon and Mandalay in Burma (Myanmar) exhibit a rich cultural layering and complex blending of urban forms and architectural styles. But while both cities today are shaped by contemporary economic and political realities, they also clearly reflect
their historical origins—Yangon as the British colonial capital and Mandalay as the last seat of the monarchy. Burma’s ancient religious monuments, monarchical and colonial heritage on the one hand, and new religious edifices, international standard hotels, commercial enterprises, new public buildings and satellite towns on the other hand, represent the two poles of the dialectic of tradition and modernity. The landscapes, as symbolic representations, have been appropriated by
the authoritarian military regime, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) for nation building purposes. But the urban landscapes are also contested and appropriated in symbolic ways and invested with meanings as sites of resistance and struggle by those in opposition, and
are thus contested sites where the power relations of domination and resistance intersect. The paper illustrates these themes with examples drawn from Yangon and Mandalay.

Cultural sustainability of the arts through cross cultural market segmentation

The cultural characteristics attributed to individuals in their country of birth are likely to change through immigration and acculturation processes taking place in the host country. Immigrants are likely to develop their own unique cultural styles through a blending of their old culture and the host culture. With slightly less than half of the population born overseas or with at least one parent born overseas, and with some 200 languages Australia has one of the most cosmopolitan populations in the world, with a relatively small population of 20 million. This paper considers the cross cultural nature of the Australian population and the sustainability of culture through the Arts. This paper also considers the marketing of the arts from a cross cultural segmentation perspective. In so doing the paper identifies segmentation issues associated with cross cultural segmentation.

Chemistry of carbon nanotubes

Judicious application of site-selective reactions to non-aligned and aligned carbon nanotubes has opened a rich field of carbon nanotube chemistry. In order to meet specific requirements demanded by particular applications (e.g. biocompatibility for nanotube biosensors and interfacial strength for blending with polymers), chemical modification of carbon nanotubes is essential. The tips of carbon nanotubes are more reactive than their sidewalls, allowing a variety of chemical reagents to be attached at the nanotube tips. Recently, some interesting reactions have also been devised for chemical modification of both the inner and outer nanotube walls, though the seamless arrangement of hexagon rings renders the sidewalls relatively unreactive. This review provides a brief summary of very recent progress in the research on chemistry of carbon nanotubes.

Exploring the foundations of practicing online collaboration

In collaborative learning, instruction is learner-centered rather than teacher-centered and knowledge is viewed as a social construct, facilitated by peer interaction, evaluation and mutual support [1]. Such computer supported collaborative learning (CSCL) enables and encourages learners to confer, reflect and help to develop meaningful learning in an environment where significant learning can be achieved through interactions supported by electronic communication and discourse [2]. This paper proposes a theory that supports educational collaboration in a peer-to-peer computing environment, thus blending the two disciplines.