Historical Space Steps of Turkey: It Is High Time to Establish the Turkish Space Agency

This paper discusses the importance of space in today���s space driven world, the current space activities of Turkey, its space organizations with legislation background information and calls for the necessity for the establishment of the Turkish Space Agency (TSA). Firstly, the importance of space is given which is followed by a brief background and current space activities in Turkey. Then, the answers to why Turkey needs a National Space Agency are outlined by stating its expected role and duties. Additionally, the framework for space policy for Turkey is proposed and the findings are compared with other developing regional space actors. Lastly, it is proposed and demonstrated that Turkey is on the right track with its space policy and it is suggested that the establishment of the TSA is critical both for a coherent space policy and progress as well as the successful development of its national space industry, security and international space relations.

Physical activity in the school setting: cognitive performance is not affected by three different types of acute exercise

Recent studies indicate that a single bout of physical exercise can have immediatepositive effects on cognitive performance of children and adolescents. However, thetype of exercise that affects cognitive performance the most in young adolescents isnot fully understood. Therefore, this controlled study examined the acute effects ofthree types of 12-min classroom-based exercise sessions on information processingspeed and selective attention. The three conditions consisted of aerobic, coordination,and strength exercises, respectively. In particular, this study focused on the feasibilityand efficiency of introducing short bouts of exercise in the classroom. One hundredand ninety five students (5th and 6th grade; 10���13 years old) participated in a doublebaseline within-subjects design, with students acting as their own control. Exercise typewas randomly assigned to each class and acted as between-subject factor. Before andimmediately after both the control and the exercise session, students performed twocognitive tests that measured information processing speed (Letter Digit SubstitutionTest) and selective attention (d2 Test of Attention). The results revealed that exercisingat low to moderate intensity does not have an effect on the cognitive parameters testedin young adolescents. Furthermore, there were no differential effects of exercise type.The results of this study are discussed in terms of the caution which should be takenwhen conducting exercise sessions in a classroom setting aimed at improving cognitive performance.

Sedentary behavior and not physical activity predicts study progress in distance education`

For the official publication, see: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.lindif.2016.06.021

���New��� migrant identities: unravelling opportunities and restrictions

Labour and capital mobility from globalisation has given rise to significant increases in the reliance of migrant labour in established gateways, but also in new migration destinations. Many aspects of migrant incorporation in new migration destinations have received some attention, not least regarding employer and employee relations. Less attention has been focused on the construction of migrant as a marker of identification, although identities, particularly regarding gender and ethnicity, in the workplace have received considerable attention. This article aims to illuminate knowledge on how migration produces social change thereby responding to a call from Batnitzky et al. (2009, p. 1290) for additional attention on what ���the practical and symbolic effects of migration are as people move across different structures and institutions of social control���.��� Mindful of Goffman���s (1969, 1983) emphasis on individual interactions and experiences, it examines what it means to be a migrant in terms of everyday encounters and experiences. It investigates the array and interplay of internal and external processes that create migrant identities and the implications of this for social integration.<br/><br/>The paper argues that one of the paradoxes of globalisation, and of the associated increased levels of migrant labour, is the construction of the migrant identity that ultimately impedes social integration. It shows how the application of migrant identity (internally and externally) bestows a particular status that affects (options for) individual behaviour and subsequent actions and outcomes. The paper argues that while migrants value the migrant identity status because of the benefits that it brings, this status can also cause high levels of dissatisfaction among migrants and it can exclude migrants from wider benefits of full citizenship. Migrants have individual identification processes, but external forces, including social structures and institutions, also affect migrant identity. These forces help to shape individual expectations and standards, contributing to identity interruption and dissonance.<br/> <br/>The paper is structured as follows: it uses social identity theory as a means of understanding what it is to be a ���migrant��� in a new destination, while simultaneously recognising the inevitability of this generic label - migrants are an extremely heterogeneous group, made up of individuals with different experiences, values and so forth. The analysis considers the significance of context and of social interactions, thus paying attention to how identity is constructed and performed by the individual and also assigned by others. Empirical evidence is used to examine how having a migrant status affects individual prospects. The paper evaluates the extent to which patterns and processes of migration present an opportunity for social change, positive or negative.<br/>

Addressing conflict and tolerance through the curriculum

Political, religious and national divisions in Northern Ireland go back many hundreds of years so it is not surprising that the lack of a common national narrative has made the teaching of history in schools difficult. The fact that schools have largely been organized on a denominational basis has added to the challenge. When political violence broke out in the late 1960s many looked to schools to contribute to the promotion of reconciliation and the way history had been taught received significant critical attention. This chapter will outline the evolving nature of the history curriculum and review evidence on the impact of this curriculum on the historical understanding of students and young people. In addition, the chapter will briefly consider other ways in which students engage with historical issues through the teaching of citizenship, and wider family and community influences. Whereas the teaching of history in the past either was largely absent or often took on a partisan character, the development of a statutory curriculum in the 1990s helped promote a more dispassionate, skills-based approach which emphasized critical engagement with evidence and a multiperspectivity. While this represented a significant improvement on what had gone before, evaluation of the impact of this approach has highlighted the need for a consideration of the emotional impact of historical understanding and the need better to connect the lessons of history to contemporary society.

Improving photofermentative hydrogen production through metabolic engineering and DOE (Design of Experiments)

A l���heure actuelle, les biocarburants renouvelables et qui ne nuit pas �� l'environnement sont �� l'��tude intensive en raison de l'augmentation des probl��mes de sant�� et de la diminution des combustibles fossiles. H2 est l'un des candidats les plus prometteurs en raison de ses caract��ristiques uniques, telles que la densit�� d'��nergie ��lev��e et la g��n��ration faible ou inexistante de polluants. Une fa��on attrayante pour produire la H2 est par les bact��ries photosynth��tiques qui peuvent capter l'��nergie lumineuse pour actionner la production H2 avec leur syst��me de nitrog��nase. L'objectif principal de cette ��tude ��tait d'am��liorer le rendement de H2 des bact��ries photosynth��tiques pourpres non sulfureuses utilisant une combinaison de g��nie m��tabolique et le plan des exp��riences. Une hypoth��se est que le rendement en H2 pourrait ��tre am��lior��e par la redirection de flux de cycle du Calvin-Benson-Bassham envers du syst��me de nitrog��nase qui catalyse la r��duction des protons en H2. Ainsi, un PRK, phosphoribulose kinase, mutant �� knock-out �� de Rhodobacter capsulatus JP91 a ��t�� cr����. L���analyse de la croissance sur des diff��rentes sources de carbone a montr�� que ce mutant ne peut cro��tre qu���avec l���ac��tate, sans toutefois produire d' H2. Un mutant spontan��, YL1, a ��t�� r��cup��r�� qui a retenu l'cbbP (codant pour PRK) mutation d'origine, mais qui avait acquis la capacit�� de se d��velopper sur le glucose et produire H2. Une ��tude de la production H2 sous diff��rents niveaux d'��clairage a montr�� que le rendement d���YL1 ��tait de 20-40% sup��rieure �� la souche type sauvage JP91. Cependant, il n'y avait pas d'am��lioration notable du taux de production de H2. Une ��tude cin��tique a montr�� que la croissance et la production d'hydrog��ne sont fortement li��es avec des ��lectrons �� partir du glucose principalement dirig��s vers la production de H2 et la formation de la biomasse. Sous des intensit��s lumineuses faibles �� interm��diaires, la production d'acides organiques est importante, ce qui sugg��re une nouvelle am��lioration additionnel du rendement H2 pourrait ��tre possible gr��ce �� l'optimisation des processus. Dans une s��rie d'exp��riences associ��es, un autre mutant spontan��, YL2, qui a un ph��notype similaire �� YL1, a ��t�� test�� pour la croissance dans un milieu contenant de l'ammonium. Les r��sultats ont montr�� que YL2 ne peut cro��tre que avec de l'ac��tate comme source de carbone, encore une fois, sans produire de H2. Une incubation prolong��e dans les milieux qui ne supportent pas la croissance de YL2 a permis l'isolement de deux mutants spontan��s secondaires int��ressants, YL3 et YL4. L'analyse par empreint du pied Western a montr�� que les deux souches ont, dans une gamme de concentrations d'ammonium, l'expression constitutive de la nitrog��nase. Les g��nomes d���YL2, YL3 et YL4 ont ��t�� s��quenc��s afin de trouver les mutations responsables de ce ph��nom��ne. Fait int��ressant, les mutations de nifA1 et nifA2 ont ��t�� trouv��s dans les deux YL3 et YL4. Il est probable qu'un changement conformationnel de NifA modifie l'interaction prot��ine-prot��ine entre NifA et PII prot��ines (telles que GlnB ou GlnK), lui permettant d'��chapper �� la r��gulation par l'ammonium, et donc d'��tre capable d'activer la transcription de la nitrog��nase en pr��sence d'ammonium. On ignore comment le nitrog��nase synth��tis�� est capable de maintenir son activit�� parce qu���en th��orie, il devrait ��galement ��tre soumis �� une r��gulation post-traductionnelle par ammonium. Une autre preuve pourrait ��tre obtenue par l'��tude du transcriptome d���YL3 et YL4. Une premi��re ��tude sur la production d��� H2 par YL3 et YL4 ont montr�� qu'ils sont capables d���une beaucoup plus grande production d'hydrog��ne que JP91 en milieu d'ammonium, qui ouvre la porte pour les ��tudes futures avec ces souches en utilisant des d��chets contenant de l'ammonium en tant que substrats. Enfin, le reformage biologique de l'��thanol �� H2 avec la bact��rie photosynth��tique, Rhodopseudomonas palustris CGA009 a ��t�� examin��. La production d'��thanol avec fermentation utilisant des ressources renouvelables microbiennes a ��t�� trait��e comme une technique mature. Cependant, la plupart des ��tudes du reformage de l'��thanol �� H2 se sont concentr��s sur le reformage chimique �� la vapeur, ce qui n��cessite g��n��ralement une haute charge ��nergetique et r��sultats dans les ��missions de gaz toxiques. Ainsi le reformage biologique de l'��thanol �� H2 avec des bact��ries photosynth��tiques, qui peuvent capturer la lumi��re pour r��pondre aux besoins ��nerg��tiques de cette r��action, semble d�����tre plus prometteuse. Une ��tude pr��c��dente a d��montr�� la production d'hydrog��ne �� partir d'��thanol, toutefois, le rendement ou la dur��e de cette r��action n'a pas ��t�� examin��. Une analyse RSM (m��thode de surface de r��ponse) a ��t�� r��alis��e dans laquelle les concentrations de trois facteurs principaux, l'intensit�� lumineuse, de l'��thanol et du glutamate ont ��t�� vari��s. Nos r��sultats ont montr�� que pr��s de 2 moles de H2 peuvent ��tre obtenus �� partir d'une mole d'��thanol, 33% de ce qui est th��oriquement possible.

Upper Secondary Students��� Beliefs About Learning English as a Foreign Language : A contrast between the students��� beliefs and the Swedish curriculum

Learning English as a foreign language (EFL) entails different factors. Language learners use different strategies in order to make their language acquisition successful. Motivation and self-regulated learning are other factors that influence how successful the EFL learner is. This paper aims to analyze the beliefs of upper secondary students in a Swedish school about learning EFL, as well as how their beliefs relate to what is specified in the Swedish curriculum. An analysis of the differences between students��� beliefs and what is stated in the curriculum was done. A survey was conducted on a total of 54 students who were enrolled in the social sciences program. The results showed that students believed that motivation and self-regulated learning were important factors for a successful learning. For them, the language skill of reception is more important than production, which does not correspond with what it is stated in the national curriculum. First and second year students��� beliefs were similar in most of the cases, but not all of them.

IT Adoption and Usage in Non-Profit Organizations: a Cross-generational Case Study

A gulf has tended to develop between the adoption and usage of information technology by different generations, at the heart of which is different ways of experiencing and relating to the world around us. This research idea is currently being developed following data collection and feedback is sought on ways forward to enable impact. The research focuses on information technology in the form of multimedia. Multimedia meaning ���media��� and ���content��� that uses a combination of different content forms; or electronically integrated communication engaging all or most of the senses (e.g. graphic art, sound, animation and full-motion video presented by way of computer or other electronic means) mainly through presentational technologies. Although multimedia is not new, some organization���s particularly those in the non-profit sector do not always have the technical or financial resources to support such systems and consequently may struggle to adopt and support its usage amongst different generations. However non-profit organizations are being forced to pay more attention to the way they communicate with markets and the public due to the professionalism of communication everywhere in society. The case study used for this study is a church circuit comprising of 15 churches in the Midlands region of the United Kingdom which was selected due to the diverse age groups catered for within this type of non-profit organization. Participants in the study also had a range of skills, experiences and backgrounds which adds to the diversity of the population studied. Data gathered focused on the attitudes and opinions of the adoption and use of multimedia amongst different age groups. 395 questionnaires were distributed, comprising of 11 opinion questions and 4 demographic questions. 83% of the questionnaires were returned, representing 35% of the total circuit membership. Three people from each of the following age categories were also interviewed: 1920 ��� 1946 (Matures); 1947-1964 (Baby Boomers); 1965-1982 (Generation X); 1983-2004 (Net Generation). Results of the questionnaire and comments from the interviews were found not to tally with the widespread assumption that the younger generation is attracted by the use of multimedia in comparison to the older generation. The highest proportion of those who said that they gain more from a service enhanced by multimedia was from the Baby Boomers. Comments from interviews suggested that: ���we need to embrace multimedia if we are to attract and retain the younger generation���; ���multimedia often helps children to remain focused and clarifies the objective of the service���. However, because the younger generations��� world tends to be dominated by computer technology the questionnaire showed that they are more likely to have higher standards when it comes to the use of multimedia, such as identifying higher levels of equipment failing to work and annoying use of sounds compared to older age groups. In comparison problems experienced with multimedia for the Matures age group had the highest percentage of difficulty with the size of letters; the colour of letters and background and the sound not loud enough which is to be expected. Since every organization is unique any type of multimedia adopted and used should be specific to their needs, its stakeholders and the physical building in order to enhance that uniqueness and its needs. Giving thought to whether the type of multimedia is the best method for communicating the message to the particular audience alongside how technical and financial resources are best used can assist in accommodating different age groups that need to be catered for.

Persons : their identity and individuation

This study is about the nature of persons and personal identity. It belongs to a tradition that maintains that in order to understand what it is to be a person we must clarify what personal identity consists in. In this pursuit, I differentiate between the problems (i) How do persons persist? and (ii) What facts, if any, does personal identity consist in? Concerning the first question, I argue that persons persist three-dimensionally (the endurance view), and not four-dimensionally (the perdurarne view), on the ground that objects must always fall under some substance sortal concept S (the sortal dependency of individuation), and that the concept person entails that objects falling under it are three-dimensional. Concerning the second question, I differentiate between Criterianists, who maintain that it is possible to specify a non-circular and informative criterion for personal identity, and Non-Criterianists, who deny that such a specification is possible. I argue against Criterianist accounts of personal identity on the ground that they are either (i) circular, (ii) violate the intrinsicality of identity or (iii) do not adequately represent what we are essentially. I further criticise three Psychological Non-Criterianist accounts of personal identity on the ground that they wrongly assume that 'person' refers to mental entities. Instead I formulate the Revised Animal Attribute View where person is understood as a basic sortal concept which picks out a biological sort of enduring animals. In this, I claim that the real essence of a person is determined by the real essence of the kind of animal he is, without thereby denying that persons have a real essence as persons.

Designing and Developing Digital and Blended Learning Solutions

Chapter 6 concerns ���Designing and developing digital and blended learning solutions���, however, despite its title, it is not aimed at developing L&D professionals to be technologists (in so much as how Chapter 3 is not aimed at developing L&D professionals to be accounting and financial experts). Chapter 6 is about developing L&D professionals to be technology savvy. In doing so, I adopt a culinary analogy in presenting this chapter, where the most important factors in creating a dish (e.g. blended learning), are the ingredients and the flavour each of it brings. The chapter first explores the typical technologies and technology products that are available for learning and development i.e. the ingredients. I then introduce the data Format, Interactivity/ Immersion, Timing, Content (creation and curation), Connectivity and Administration (FITCCA) framework, that helps L&D professionals to look beyond the labels of technologies in identifying what the technology offers, its functions and features, which is analogous to the ���flavours��� of the ingredients. The next section discusses some multimedia principles that are important for L&D professionals to consider in designing and developing digital learning solutions. Finally, whilst there are innumerable permutations of blended learning, this section focuses on the typical emphasis in blended learning and how technology may support such blends.

Designing for User-facing Uncertainty in Everyday Sensing and Prediction

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-07

���It���s the People That Drive It���: Motivating and Supporting Collaborative Data Use Practices in Three Teacher Education Programs

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Greece, global fault-lines and the disintegrative logics of Germany���s primacy in Europe

Post-Keynesian, heterodox and Marxist political economists have rightly argued that the eurozone crisis is not a fiscal crisis but a balance of payments crisis, mainly caused by the pivotal position of Germany in the European Monetary Union (EMU) and its neo-mercantilist model of growth (low wage, low inflation and export-led). This view, however, sees the split between core and periphery in the European Union as something created with the introduction of the EMU in 1999. This chapter contends that this is not the case. By putting forth a global fault-lines historical perspective and focusing on the case of Greece, it is argued that the problem is not the introduction of the EMU but the geopolitical and macroeconomic asymmetries between core and periphery in Europe since the inception of what vaguely ��� and even inaccurately ��� can be defined as ���European modernity���. Global fault-lines offer a macro-historical and macroeconomic understanding of crises seen as structural events generated by the evolving and contradictory tendencies of capitalism as a world system. It is not just a political economy perspective but a perspective that encompasses many instances of the social, especially geopolitical and geocultural structures.

Credible or not : A study on the factors influencing consumers' credibility assessment of product placements on Instagram

Background: To align with the new trend of using social media in the marketing mix, product placement has been adapted to social media platforms as one strategy to create attention. Especially on Instagram, product placements have gained popularity among companies. While scholars have focused on measuring the effectiveness of the strategy, suggesting that credibility is one component necessary for success, a gap in the research is illuminated when focusing on what makes a product placement on Instagram credible. Previous studies regarding credibility and its relation to traditional media have concluded that there are some factors essential in consumers��� credibility evaluation process. Since social media differs from traditional media, there was a need to investigate the applicability of credibility to the social media platform Instagram. Purpose: The purpose of this thesis was to examine key factors of product placement on Instagram that influence credibility. Method: To meet the purpose of this thesis a study with a mixed method research design was conducted. The qualitative data was collected through semi-structured interviews with the intention to discover how consumers evaluate credibility. The scales and items developed from the findings of the qualitative study were tested using a questionnaire to identify which factors that have the most influence on consumers��� credibility assessment. Conclusions: The overall findings indicate that consumers evaluate credibility based upon source, message and receiver characteristics. The empirical evidence suggests that the Expertise of influencer, Professionalism of picture, Trustworthiness of influencer, Connection to influencer and Causes of irritation are the factors that have the most influence on consumers��� credibility assessment of product placement on Instagram. The findings further implies that it is not only the factor itself that influence, credibility can additionally be transferred from one factor to another.

SOCIAL AND ECOLOGICAL FACTORS INFLUENCING COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR IN GIANT DANIO

A fundamental problem in biology is understanding how and why things group together. Collective behavior is observed on all organismic levels - from cells and slime molds, to swarms of insects, flocks of birds, and schooling fish, and in mammals, including humans. The <i>long-term goal</i> of this research is to understand the functions and mechanisms underlying collective behavior in groups. This dissertation focuses on shoaling (aggregating) fish. Shoaling behaviors in fish confer foraging and anti-predator benefits through social cues from other individuals in the group. However, it is not fully understood what information individuals receive from one another or how this information is propagated throughout a group. It is also not fully understood how the environmental conditions and perturbations affect group behaviors. The <i>specific research objective</i> of this dissertation is to gain a better understanding of how certain social and environmental factors affect group behaviors in fish. I focus on two ecologically relevant decision-making behaviors: (i) rheotaxis, or orientation with respect to a flow, and (ii) startle response, a rapid response to a perceived threat. By integrating behavioral and engineering paradigms, I detail specifics of behavior in giant danio <i>Devario aequipinnatus</i> (McClelland 1893), and numerically analyze mathematical models that may be extended to group behavior for fish in general, and potentially other groups of animals as well. These models that predict behavior data, as well as generate additional, testable hypotheses. One of the primary goals of neuroethology is to study an organism's behavior in the context of evolution and ecology. Here, I focus on studying ecologically relevant behaviors in giant danio in order to better understand collective behavior in fish. The experiments in this dissertation provide contributions to fish ecology, collective behavior, and biologically-inspired robotics.