Teaching and learning science and mathematics through technology practice

In this chapter we review studies of the engagement of students in design projects that emphasise integration of technology practice and the enabling sciences, which include physics and mathematics. We give special attention to affective and conceptual outcomes from innovative interventions of design projects. This is important work because of growing international concern that demand for professionals with technological expertise is increasing rapidly, while the supply of students willing to undertake the rigors of study in the enabling sciences is proportionally reducing (e.g., Barringtion, 2006; Hannover & Kessels, 2004; Yurtseven, 2002). The net effect is that the shortage in qualified workers is having a detrimental effect upon economic and social potential in Westernised countries (e.g., Department of Education, Science and Training [DEST], 2003; National Numeracy Review Panel and National Numeracy Review Secretarial, 2007; Yurtseven, 2002). Interestingly, this trend is reversed in developing economies including China and India (Anderson & Gilbride, 2003).

Uncertainty budget in the measurement of typical airborne number, surface area and mass particle distributions

The effects of particulate matter on environment and public health have been widely studied in recent years. A number of studies in the medical field have tried to identify the specific effect on human health of particulate exposure, but agreement amongst these studies on the relative importance of the particles’ size and its origin with respect to health effects is still lacking. Nevertheless, air quality standards are moving, as the epidemiological attention, towards greater focus on the smaller particles. Current air quality standards only regulate the mass of particulate matter less than 10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM10) and less than 2.5 μm (PM2.5). The most reliable method used in measuring Total Suspended Particles (TSP), PM10, PM2.5 and PM1 is the gravimetric method since it directly measures PM concentration, guaranteeing an effective traceability to international standards. This technique however, neglects the possibility to correlate short term intra-day variations of atmospheric parameters that can influence ambient particle concentration and size distribution (emission strengths of particle sources, temperature, relative humidity, wind direction and speed and mixing height) as well as human activity patterns that may also vary over time periods considerably shorter than 24 hours. A continuous method to measure the number size distribution and total number concentration in the range 0.014 – 20 μm is the tandem system constituted by a Scanning Mobility Particle Sizer (SMPS) and an Aerodynamic Particle Sizer (APS). In this paper, an uncertainty budget model of the measurement of airborne particle number, surface area and mass size distributions is proposed and applied for several typical aerosol size distributions. The estimation of such an uncertainty budget presents several difficulties due to i) the complexity of the measurement chain, ii) the fact that SMPS and APS can properly guarantee the traceability to the International System of Measurements only in terms of number concentration. In fact, the surface area and mass concentration must be estimated on the basis of separately determined average density and particle morphology. Keywords: SMPS-APS tandem system, gravimetric reference method, uncertainty budget, ultrafine particles.

Spatial Science News from QUT, Urban Development, November 2009.

Brief overview of topics/issues of interest end of 2009, including Spatial Science Students undertake Variety of Research Projects; labs and offices on the move again); Congratulations to Surveying Student Project- QSEA awards.

Science and subjectivity

Science has been under attack in the last thirty years, and recently a number of prominent scientists have been busy fighting back. Here, an argument is presented that the `science wars' stem from an unreasonably strict adherence to the reductive method on the part of science, but that weakening this stance need not imply a lapse into subjectivity. One possible method for formalising the description of non-separable, contextually dependent complex systems is presented. This is based upon a quantum-like approach.

Addressing Challenges for Internationalisation and Mobility in Engineering Through CDIO Standards

There is a growing need for international transparency of engineering qualifications, and mechanisms to support and facilitate student mobility. In response, there are a number of global initiatives attempting to address these needs, particularly in Europe, North America and Australia. The Conceive-Design-Implement-Operate (CDIO) Initiative has a set of standards, competencies, and proficiency levels developed through a global community of practice. It is a well-structured framework in which best-practice internationalisation and student mobility can be embedded. However, the current 12 CDIO Standards do not address international qualifications or student mobility. Based on an environmental scan of global activities, the underpinning principles of best practice are identified and form the basis of the proposed 13th CDIO Standard — “Internationalization and Mobility”.

Sunglasses, traffic signals, and color vision deficiencies

Purpose: To determine (a) the effect of different sunglass tint colorations on traffic signal detection and recognition for color normal and color deficient observers, and (b) the adequacy of coloration requirements in current sunglass standards. Methods: Twenty color-normals and 49 color-deficient males performed a tracking task while wearing sunglasses of different colorations (clear, gray, green, yellow-green, yellow-brown, red-brown). At random intervals, simulated traffic light signals were presented against a white background at 5° to the right or left and observers were instructed to identify signal color (red/yellow/green) by pressing a response button as quickly as possible; response times and response errors were recorded. Results: Signal color and sunglass tint had significant effects on response times and error rates (p < 0.05), with significant between-color group differences and interaction effects. Response times for color deficient people were considerably slower than color normals for both red and yellow signals for all sunglass tints, but for green signals they were only noticeably slower with the green and yellow-green lenses. For most of the color deficient groups, there were recognition errors for yellow signals combined with the yellow-green and green tints. In addition, deuteranopes had problems for red signals combined with red-brown and yellow-brown tints, and protanopes had problems for green signals combined with the green tint and for red signals combined with the red-brown tint. Conclusions: Many sunglass tints currently permitted for drivers and riders cause a measurable decrement in the ability of color deficient observers to detect and recognize traffic signals. In general, combinations of signals and sunglasses of similar colors are of particular concern. This is prima facie evidence of a risk in the use of these tints for driving and cautions against the relaxation of coloration limits in sunglasses beyond those represented in the study.

From cultural studies to cultural science

This paper, first presented at a symposium on the 'past, present and future of cultural studies,' traces disciplinary changes in the study of culture from the perspective of 'cultural science', a term that was used by some of the earliest practitioners of cultural studies, including Raymond Williams. The paper goes on to describe some of the present moment, including work on the creative industries, show that a new version of cultural science is needed, based on evolutionary principles, in dialogue with the evolutionary approach in economics that was called for a century ago by Thorstein Veblen. This evolutionary turn, or 'cultural science 2.0,' it is argued, offers a radical and challenging future for cultural studies.

Creating an asset registry for railway electrical traction equipment with open standards

An asset registry arguably forms the core system that needs to be in place before other systems can operate or interoperate. Most systems have rudimentary asset registry functionality that store assets, relationships, or characteristics, and this leads to different asset management systems storing similar sets of data in multiple locations in an organisation. As organisations have been slowly moving their information architecture toward a service-oriented architecture, they have also been consolidating their multiple data stores, to form a “single point of truth”. As part of a strategy to integrate several asset management systems in an Australian railway organisation, a case study for developing a consolidated asset registry was conducted. A decision was made to use the MIMOSA OSA-EAI CRIS data model as well as the OSA-EAI Reference Data in building the platform due to the standard’s relative maturity and completeness. A pilot study of electrical traction equipment was selected, and the data sources feeding into the asset registry were primarily diagrammatic based. This paper presents the pitfalls encountered, approaches taken, and lessons learned during the development of the asset registry.

A comparison of international occupational therapy competencies : implications for Australian standards in the new millennium

Background/aim: A timely evaluation of the Australian Competency Standards for Entry-Level Occupational Therapists© (1994) was conducted. This thorough investigation comprised a literature review exploring the concept of competence and the applications of competency standards; systematic benchmarking of the Australian Occupational Therapy Competency Standards (OT AUSTRALIA, 1994) against other national and international competency standards and other affiliated documents, from occupational therapy and other cognate disciplines; and extensive nationwide consultation with the professional community. This paper explores and examines the similarities and disparities between occupational therapy competency standards documents available in English from Australia and other countries.----- Methods: An online search for national occupational therapy competency standards located 10 documents, including the Australian competencies.----- Results: Four 'frameworks' were created to categorise the documents according to their conceptual underpinnings: Technical-Prescriptive, Enabling, Educational and Meta-Cognitive. Other characteristics that appeared to impact the design, content and implementation of competency standards, including definitions of key concepts, authorship, national and cultural priorities, scope of services, intended use and review mechanisms, were revealed.----- Conclusion: The proposed 'frameworks' and identification of influential characteristics provided a 'lens' through which to understand and evaluate competency standards. While consistent application of and attention to some of these characteristics appear to consolidate and affirm the authority of competency standards, it is suggested that the national context should be a critical determinant of the design and content of the final document. The Australian Occupational Therapy Competency Standards (OT AUSTRALIA, 1994) are critiqued accordingly, and preliminary recommendations for revision are proposed.

A Cultural Science Manifesto (in Mandarin)

We propose that a general analytic framework for cultural science can be constructed as a generalization of the generic micro meso macro framework proposed by Dopfer and Potts (2008). This paper outlines this argument along with some implications for the creative industries research agenda.

Translation of addictions science into practice : update and future directions.

Recent advances in the understanding of the genetic, neurochemical, behavioral and cultural underpinnings of addiction have led to rapid advances in the understanding of addiction as a disease. In fact, advances in basic science and the development of new pharmacological and behavioral therapies associated with them are appearing faster than can be assimilated not only by clinical researchers but practitioners and policy makers as well. Translation of science-based addictions knowledge into improved prevention, assessment and treatment, and communication of these changes to researchers and practitioners are significant challenges to the field. The general aim of this book is to summarize current and potential linkages between advances in addiction science and innovations in clinical practice. Whilst this book is primarily focused on translation, it also encompasses some scientific advances that are relevant to dissemination, and the book is itself a tool for disseminating innovative thinking. The goal is to generate interest in application opportunities from both recent research and theoretical advances.

Moving towards open standards

Standards are designed to promote the interoperability of products and systems by enabling different parties to develop technologies that can be used together. There is an increasing expectation in many technical communities, including open source communities, that standards will be ‘open’. However, standards are subject to legal rights which impact upon, not only their development, but also their implementation. Of central importance are intellectual property rights: technical standards may incorporate patented technologies, while the specification documents of standards are protected by copyright. This article provides an overview of the processes by which standards are developed and considers the concept of ‘interoperability’, the meaning of the term ‘open standard’ and how open standards contribute to interoperability. It explains how intellectual property rights operate in relation to standards and how they can be managed to create standards that are open, not only during their development, but also in implementation.

Development of a particle number and particle mass emissions inventory for an urban fleet : a study in South-East Queensland

Motor vehicles are a major source of gaseous and particulate matter pollution in urban areas, particularly of ultrafine sized particles (diameters < 0.1 µm). Exposure to particulate matter has been found to be associated with serious health effects, including respiratory and cardiovascular disease, and mortality. Particle emissions generated by motor vehicles span a very broad size range (from around 0.003-10 µm) and are measured as different subsets of particle mass concentrations or particle number count. However, there exist scientific challenges in analysing and interpreting the large data sets on motor vehicle emission factors, and no understanding is available of the application of different particle metrics as a basis for air quality regulation. To date a comprehensive inventory covering the broad size range of particles emitted by motor vehicles, and which includes particle number, does not exist anywhere in the world. This thesis covers research related to four important and interrelated aspects pertaining to particulate matter generated by motor vehicle fleets. These include the derivation of suitable particle emission factors for use in transport modelling and health impact assessments; quantification of motor vehicle particle emission inventories; investigation of the particle characteristic modality within particle size distributions as a potential for developing air quality regulation; and review and synthesis of current knowledge on ultrafine particles as it relates to motor vehicles; and the application of these aspects to the quantification, control and management of motor vehicle particle emissions. In order to quantify emissions in terms of a comprehensive inventory, which covers the full size range of particles emitted by motor vehicle fleets, it was necessary to derive a suitable set of particle emission factors for different vehicle and road type combinations for particle number, particle volume, PM1, PM2.5 and PM1 (mass concentration of particles with aerodynamic diameters < 1 µm, < 2.5 µm and < 10 µm respectively). The very large data set of emission factors analysed in this study were sourced from measurement studies conducted in developed countries, and hence the derived set of emission factors are suitable for preparing inventories in other urban regions of the developed world. These emission factors are particularly useful for regions with a lack of measurement data to derive emission factors, or where experimental data are available but are of insufficient scope. The comprehensive particle emissions inventory presented in this thesis is the first published inventory of tailpipe particle emissions prepared for a motor vehicle fleet, and included the quantification of particle emissions covering the full size range of particles emitted by vehicles, based on measurement data. The inventory quantified particle emissions measured in terms of particle number and different particle mass size fractions. It was developed for the urban South-East Queensland fleet in Australia, and included testing the particle emission implications of future scenarios for different passenger and freight travel demand. The thesis also presents evidence of the usefulness of examining modality within particle size distributions as a basis for developing air quality regulations; and finds evidence to support the relevance of introducing a new PM1 mass ambient air quality standard for the majority of environments worldwide. The study found that a combination of PM1 and PM10 standards are likely to be a more discerning and suitable set of ambient air quality standards for controlling particles emitted from combustion and mechanically-generated sources, such as motor vehicles, than the current mass standards of PM2.5 and PM10. The study also reviewed and synthesized existing knowledge on ultrafine particles, with a specific focus on those originating from motor vehicles. It found that motor vehicles are significant contributors to both air pollution and ultrafine particles in urban areas, and that a standardized measurement procedure is not currently available for ultrafine particles. The review found discrepancies exist between outcomes of instrumentation used to measure ultrafine particles; that few data is available on ultrafine particle chemistry and composition, long term monitoring; characterization of their spatial and temporal distribution in urban areas; and that no inventories for particle number are available for motor vehicle fleets. This knowledge is critical for epidemiological studies and exposure-response assessment. Conclusions from this review included the recommendation that ultrafine particles in populated urban areas be considered a likely target for future air quality regulation based on particle number, due to their potential impacts on the environment. The research in this PhD thesis successfully integrated the elements needed to quantify and manage motor vehicle fleet emissions, and its novelty relates to the combining of expertise from two distinctly separate disciplines - from aerosol science and transport modelling. The new knowledge and concepts developed in this PhD research provide never before available data and methods which can be used to develop comprehensive, size-resolved inventories of motor vehicle particle emissions, and air quality regulations to control particle emissions to protect the health and well-being of current and future generations.