WorldWideScience

Sample records for represent scientific practice

  1. Preservice Elementary Teachers' Ideas About Scientific Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ricketts, Amy

    2014-10-01

    With the goal of producing scientifically literate citizens who are able to make informed decisions and reason critically when science intersects with their everyday lives, the National Research Council (NRC) has produced two recent documents that call for a new approach to K-12 science education that is based on scientific practices, crosscutting concepts, and disciplinary core ideas. These documents will potentially influence future state standards and K-12 curricula. Teachers will need support in order to teach science using a practices based approach, particularly if they do not have strong science backgrounds, which is often the case with elementary teachers. This study investigates one cohort (n = 19) of preservice elementary teachers' ideas about scientific practices, as developed in a one-semester elementary science teaching methods course. The course focused on eight particular scientific practices, as defined by the National Research Council's A Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts, and Core Ideas (2012). Participants' written reflections, lesson plans and annotated teaching videos were analyzed in fine detail to better understand their ideas about what it means to engage in each of the practices. The findings suggest that preservice elementary teachers hold promising ideas about scientific practices (such as an emphasis on argumentation and communication between scientists, critical thinking, and answering and asking questions as the goal of science) as well as problematic ideas (including confusion over the purpose of modeling and the process of analysis, and conflating argumentation and explanation building). These results highlight the strengths and limitations of using the Framework (NRC 2012) as an instructional text and the difficulties of differentiating between preservice teachers' content knowledge about doing the practices and their pedagogical knowledge about teaching the practices.

  2. HONESTY AND GOOD PRACTICE IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jože Trontelj

    2008-01-01

    Full Text Available In the field of science, we see cases of misconduct ranging from relatively minor departurefrom good manners and practice to more severe dishonesty and even criminal behaviour.Unethical experiments on human beings are among the worst abuses in scientific researchin medicine. Unethical research is usually also worthless from the scientific point of view.The commonest types of offence, however, include mismanagement of data, conscious misinterpretation,wrongful authorship, biased citation of work by others, plagiarism, misquotationor suppression of findings for the interests or upon the request of the sponsor or In the field of science, we see cases of misconduct ranging from relatively minor departurefrom good manners and practice to more severe dishonesty and even criminal behaviour.Unethical experiments on human beings are among the worst abuses in scientific researchin medicine. Unethical research is usually also worthless from the scientific point of view.The commonest types of offence, however, include mismanagement of data, conscious misinterpretation,wrongful authorship, biased citation of work by others, plagiarism, misquotationor suppression of findings for the interests or upon the request of the sponsor or In the field of science, we see cases of misconduct ranging from relatively minor departurefrom good manners and practice to more severe dishonesty and even criminal behaviour.Unethical experiments on human beings are among the worst abuses in scientific researchin medicine. Unethical research is usually also worthless from the scientific point of view.The commonest types of offence, however, include mismanagement of data, conscious misinterpretation,wrongful authorship, biased citation of work by others, plagiarism, misquotationor suppression of findings for the interests or upon the request of the sponsor or even a senior scientist in the team. Every case of misconduct and fraud may causedamage: it may undermine confidence of the

  3. Promotion of scientific literacy: Bangladeshi teachers' perspectives and practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sarkar, Mahbub; Corrigan, Deborah

    2014-05-01

    Background: In Bangladesh, a common science curriculum caters for all students at the junior secondary level. Since this curriculum is for all students, its aims are both to build a strong foundation in science while still providing students with the opportunities to use science in everyday life - an aim consistent with the notion of scientific literacy. Purpose: This paper reports Bangladeshi science teachers' perspectives and practices in regard to the promotion of scientific literacy. Sample: Six science teachers representing a range of geographical locations, school types with different class sizes, lengths of teaching experience and educational qualifications. Design and method: This study employed a case study approach. The six teachers and their associated science classes (including students) were considered as six cases. Data were gathered through observing the teachers' science lessons, interviewing them twice - once before and once after the lesson observation, and interviewing their students in focus groups. Results: This study reveals that participating teachers held a range of perspectives on scientific literacy, including some naïve perspectives. In addition, their perspectives were often not seen to be realised in the classroom as for teachers the emphasis of learning science was more traditional in nature. Many of their teaching practices promoted a culture of academic science that resulted in students' difficulty in finding connections between the science they study in school and their everyday lives. This research also identified the tension which teachers encountered between their religious values and science values while they were teaching science in a culture with a religious tradition. Conclusions: The professional development practice for science teachers in Bangladesh with its emphasis on developing science content knowledge may limit the scope for promoting the concepts of scientific literacy. Opportunities for developing pedagogic

  4. Routines, roles, and responsibilities for aligning scientific and classroom practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ford, Michael J.; Wargo, Brian M.

    2007-01-01

    Reform efforts in science education have focused on engaging students in authentic scientific practices. For these efforts to succeed, detailed articulations of scientific practice need to be linked to understandings of classroom practice. Here we characterize engagement in practice generally in terms of 3Rs: routines, roles, and responsibilities. We argue that there is a misalignment between the 3Rs of scientific practice and the practices common in classrooms, and that this misalignment poses a considerable obstacle for beginning teachers who attempt to implement reform pedagogy. As part of a secondary methods course, 16 preservice teachers (PSTs) participated in two exemplar activities designed to engage them in scientific practices. The PST performances suggest that at least initially, they did not consider authentic scientific practices appropriate for classroom activities, implying a pedagogical repertoire dominated by the 3Rs of traditional classrooms. PST performances, however, evidenced a shift in the 3Rs from those common in classrooms to those required by these activities, suggesting that their visions for classrooms are malleable and underlining the importance of aligning the 3Rs of scientific and classroom practices during teacher preparation.

  5. Practical Realism: Against Standard Scientific Realism and Anti-Realism

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    Rein Vihalemm

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, the elaboration of the concept of practical realist philosophy of science which began in the author's previous papers is continued. It is argued that practical realism is opposed to standard scientific realism, on the one hand, and antirealism, on the other. Standard scientific realism is challengeable due to its abstract character, as being isolated from practice. It is based on a metaphysical-ontological presupposition which raises the problem of the God's Eye point of view (as it was called by Hilary Putnam. Joseph Rouse's conception of science as practice, Sami Pihlström's pragmatic realism, and even Ilkka Niiniluoto's critical scientific realism are interpreted as practical realist conceptions. Pihlström suggests that the contemporary scientific realist should be prepared to accept the pragmatically naturalized Kantian transcendental perspective on realism. It is argued, however, that this realistically naturalized Kantianism can be nothing more than practical realism, as originated by Karl Marx.

  6. Modern Scientific Literacy: A Case Study of Multiliteracies and Scientific Practices in a Fifth Grade Classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allison, Elizabeth; Goldston, M. Jenice

    2018-01-01

    This study investigates the convergence of multiliteracies and scientific practices in a fifth grade classroom. As students' lives become increasingly multimodal, diverse, and globalized, the traditional notions of literacy must be revisited (New London Group 1996). With the adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS Lead States 2013a) in many states, either in their entirety or in adapted forms, it becomes useful to explore the interconnectedness multiliteracies and scientific practices and the resulting implications for scientific literacy. The case study included a fifth grade classroom, including the students and teacher. In order to create a rich description of the cases involved, data were collected and triangulated through teacher interviews, student interviews and focus groups, and classroom observations. Findings reveal that as science activities were enriched with multiliteracies and scientific practices, students were engaged in developing skills and knowledge central to being scientifically literate. Furthermore, this study establishes that characteristics of scientific literacy, by its intent and purpose, are a form of multiliteracies in elementary classrooms. Therefore, the teaching and learning of science and its practices for scientific literacy are in turn reinforcing the development of broader multiliteracies.

  7. Academic Training Lectures | Representing Scientific Communities by Data Visualization | 14-15 March

    CERN Multimedia

    2016-01-01

    Please note that the next series of Academic Training Lectures will take place from 14 to 15 March 2016 and will be given by Dario Rodighiero (EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland).   Representing Scientific Communities by Data Visualisation (1/2)​ Monday, 14 March 2016 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. https://indico.cern.ch/event/465533/ Representing Scientific Communities by Data Visualisation (2/2)​ Tuesday, 15 March 2016 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. https://indico.cern.ch/event/465534/ at CERN, IT Amphitheatre (31-3-004)  Description: These lectures present research that investigates the representation of communities, and the way to foster their understanding by different audiences. Communities are complex multidimensional entities intrinsically difficult to represent synthetically. The way to represent them is likely to differ depending on the audience considered: governi...

  8. A practical guide to scientific data analysis

    CERN Document Server

    Livingstone, David J

    2009-01-01

    Inspired by the author's need for practical guidance in the processes of data analysis, A Practical Guide to Scientific Data Analysis has been written as a statistical companion for the working scientist.  This handbook of data analysis with worked examples focuses on the application of mathematical and statistical techniques and the interpretation of their results. Covering the most common statistical methods for examining and exploring relationships in data, the text includes extensive examples from a variety of scientific disciplines. The chapters are organised logically, from pl

  9. Agile Scientists? : Investigating Agile Practices in Scientific Software Development

    OpenAIRE

    Sletholt, Magnus Thorstein

    2011-01-01

    The topic of this master thesis is development of scientific software. The research questions put forth are oriented towards specific agile practices and whether these are present in the development processes of scientific software projects. Moreover, the effects of applying such agile practices, particularly pertaining to the handling of requirements and testing, in scientific software projects are addressed in the thesis. In order to answer the proposed research questions a table consisting...

  10. Open Science: Dimensions to a new scientific practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Adriana Carla Silva de Oliveira

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available Introduction:The practices of e-science and the use and reuse of scientific data have constituted a new scientific work that leads to the reflection on new regulatory, legal, institutional and technological frameworks for open science. Objective: This study shows the following research question: which dimensions provide sustainability for the formulation of a policy geared to open science and its practices in the Brazilian context? The aim of this study is to discuss the dimensions that support transversely the formulation of a policy for open science and its scientific practices. Methodology:Theoretically, the study is guided by the fourth scientific paradigm grounded in the e-Science. The methodology is supported by Bufrem’s studies (2013, which propose an alternative and multidimensional model for analysis and discussion of scientific research. Technically, the literature review and documentary survey were the methods used on the Data Lifecycle scientific model, laws and international agreements.For this study purpose, five dimensions were proposed, namely: epistemological, political, ethical-legal-cultural, morphological, and technological. Results: This studyunderstands that these dimensions substantiate an information policy or the development of minimum guidelines for the open science agenda in Brazil. Conclusions: The dimensions put away the reductionist perspective on survey data and they conducted the study for the multi-dimensional and multi-relational vision of open science.

  11. Representing Scientific Communities by Data Visualization (1/2)

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2016-01-01

    These lectures present a research that investigates the representation of communities, and the way to foster their understanding by different audiences. Communities are complex multidimensional entities intrinsically difficult to represent synthetically. The way to represent them is likely to differ depending on the audience considered: governing entities trying to make decision for the future of the community, general public trying to understand the nature of the community and the members of the community themselves. This work considers two types of communities as example: a scientific organization and an arising domain: the EPFL institutional community composed of faculty members and researchers and, at a world wide level, the emerging community of Digital Humanities researchers. For both cases, the research is organised as a process going from graphical research to actual materialization as physical artefacts (posters, maps, etc.), possibly extended using digital devices (augmented reality applications). T...

  12. Can scientific medicine incorporate alternative medicine?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Federspil, G; Vettor, R

    2000-06-01

    The authors examine the problem of defining alternative medicine, and after a brief analysis conclude that a satisfactory unifying definition of the different practices is not possible. Scientific knowledge is a function of scientific method. In turn the principle of falsifiability proposed by Karl Popper is used as a demarcation line between science and pseudoscience. They assert that the various alternative modalities do not represent authentic scientific disciplines, as they lack many of the minimum requirements of scientific discourse and, above all, because they violate the principle of falsifiability. Until they overcome these methodological shortcomings, alternative medical practices cannot become authentic scientific disciplines.

  13. Scientific literacy and academic identity: Creating a community of practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reveles, John Michael

    2005-07-01

    This one-year ethnographic study of a third grade classroom examined the construction of elementary school science. The research focused on the co-development of scientific literacy and academic identity. Unlike much research in science education that views literacy as merely supportive of science; this dissertation research considers how students learned both disciplinary knowledge in science as well as about themselves as learners through language use. The study documented and analyzed how students came to engage with scientific knowledge and the impact this engagement had upon their academic identities over time. Ethnographic and discourse analytic methods were employed to investigate three research questions: (a) How were the students in a third grade classroom afforded opportunities to acquire scientific literate practices through the spoken/written discourse and science activities? (b) In what ways did students develop and maintain academic identities taken-up over time as they discursively appropriated scientific literate practices via classroom discourse? and (c) How did students collectively and individually inscribe their academic identities and scientific knowledge into classroom artifacts across the school year? Through multiple forms of analyses, I identified how students' communication and participation in science investigations provided opportunities for them to learn specific scientific literate practices. The findings of this empirical research indicate that students' communication and participation in science influenced the ways they perceived themselves as active participants within the classroom community. More specifically, students were observed to appropriate particular discourse practices introduced by the teacher to frame scientific disciplinary knowledge and investigations. Thus, emerging academic identities and developing literate practices were documented via analysis of discursive (spoken, written, and enacted) classroom interactions. A

  14. Developing good scientific publishing practices: one pharmaceutical company's perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dowsett, Sherie A; Van Campen, Luann E; Bednar, Lisa A

    2010-06-01

    The scientific publishing practices of the pharmaceutical industry have been heavily criticized in recent years due to the inherent conflict of interest that arises when a pharmaceutical company publishes findings around its own drugs. Eli Lilly and Company ('Lilly') strives for transparency in its day-to-day activities, and, here, shares its principles, policies and practices on publishing "Lilly-sponsored" research. A conflict of interest does not necessarily equate to biased presentation of research findings, and operating a successful, for-profit business and maintaining a focus on improving the health of patients are not mutually exclusive goals. There is, however, potential for bias, and it is incumbent upon a for-profit to develop publication principles, policies and practices to address this. To this end, Lilly's Principles of Medical Research states that 'Lilly discloses publicly all medical research results that are important to patients, healthcare providers or payers--whether favorable or unfavorable to a Lilly product--in an accurate, objective, and balanced manner ...' The preparation of publications of Lilly-sponsored research involves close collaboration between external (i.e., academic or otherwise non-industry employees) and Lilly scientific researchers (including scientific writers), with both serving as authors. Lilly does not support 'ghost' or 'guest' authorship. Authorship is not just recognition of contribution but also public acknowledgement of responsibility for content, and all authors are expected to take an active role in developing the manuscript in line with the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors-based authorship requirements. This is agreed to by authors before the manuscript is started. Lilly provides external authors with access to the trial data for manuscript development. Lilly does not pay external authors for their involvement in manuscript development. Scientific writers at Lilly, often with advanced scientific

  15. Socio-scientific controversies and beginning teachers’ pedagogical practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pedro Reis

    2005-08-01

    Full Text Available The current investigation aimed to study the impact of recent socio-scientific controversies, made public through the media, on the concepts and practices of a group of Natural Science teachers at the start of their careers. This study is particularly relevant at a time that is heavily marked by much debate regarding the social and environmental impact of several scientific and technological innovations and by the implementation of new science curricula, that stress the importance of discussing socio-scientific controversies in the context of students’ scientific alphabetisation (namely in their understanding of the nature of science and its relation to society and culture (McComas, 2000. This investigation followed an interpretative approach of a qualitative nature. Through the construction of case studies, it sought to analyse the possible impact of socio-scientific controversies on the teachers’ concepts (about the nature, teaching and learning of science and pedagogic practice. For data collection semi-structured interviews were conducted and classes observed.The controversial issues raised by certain recent technological innovations – namely the environmental, social and cultural impact they may have – did have an impact on the teachers’ concepts about the nature, teaching and learning of science. Besides reinforcing the duality of feelings as regards science and technology, as a source of both progress and concern, they triggered in these teachers the idea of the need for a widespread scientific alphabetisation that empowers the population for understanding and deciding and acting upon these issues. However, the concept of scientific alphabetisation and the best way to achieve it vary among the teachers participating in this study.

  16. Guiding students towards sensemaking: teacher questions focused on integrating scientific practices with science content

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benedict-Chambers, Amanda; Kademian, Sylvie M.; Davis, Elizabeth A.; Palincsar, Annemarie Sullivan

    2017-10-01

    Science education reforms articulate a vision of ambitious science teaching where teachers engage students in sensemaking discussions and emphasise the integration of scientific practices with science content. Learning to teach in this way is complex, and there are few examples of sensemaking discussions in schools where textbook lessons and teacher-directed discussions are the norm. The purpose of this study was to characterise the questioning practices of an experienced teacher who taught a curricular unit enhanced with educative features that emphasised students' engagement in scientific practices integrated with science content. Analyses indicated the teacher asked four types of questions: explication questions, explanation questions, science concept questions, and scientific practice questions, and she used three questioning patterns including: (1) focusing students on scientific practices, which involved a sequence of questions to turn students back to the scientific practice; (2) supporting students in naming observed phenomena, which involved a sequence of questions to help students use scientific language; and (3) guiding students in sensemaking, which involved a sequence of questions to help students learn about scientific practices, describe evidence, and develop explanations. Although many of the discussions in this study were not yet student-centred, they provide an image of a teacher asking specific questions that move students towards reform-oriented instruction. Implications for classroom practice are discussed and recommendations for future research are provided.

  17. Health Psychology Bulletin : Improving Publication Practices to Accelerate Scientific Progress

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Peters, Gjalt-jorn Ygram; Kok, Gerjo; Crutzen, Rik; Sanderman, Robbert

    2017-01-01

    The instrument of scientific publishing, originally a necessary tool to enable development of a global science, has evolved relatively little in response to technological advances. Current scientific publishing practices incentivize a number of harmful approaches to research. Health Psychology

  18. Towards a comprehensive model of scientific research and professional practice in psychology

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    Jerzy Marian Brzeziński

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available In this article I present a model of associations between two social domains: the scientific research domain (here psychology and the professional practice domain. In the former case, its quality is determined by social and individual methodological awareness (MA. I introduce my own definition of MA. What determines the validity and usefulness of practical actions undertaken by professionals (e.g., assessment, therapy in the practice domain is the accurately constructed empirical theory high in descriptive power, explanatory power and predictive power. I propose a model (my own conceptualization in which I analyze information flow between the domains of scientific research (psychology as a science and professional practice (psychology as a profession. In the subsequent and final part I discuss my own model which links theory and practice: Scientific Research and Professional Practice in Psychology (SRPPP. The article ends with a presentation of three contexts in which the interrelationship between theory and practice is immersed: the ethical, psychological and cultural contexts.

  19. A social epistemology of research groups collaboration in scientific practice

    CERN Document Server

    Wagenknecht, Susann

    2016-01-01

    This book investigates how collaborative scientific practice yields scientific knowledge. At a time when most of today’s scientific knowledge is created in research groups, the author reconsiders the social character of science to address the question of whether collaboratively created knowledge should be considered as collective achievement, and if so, in which sense. Combining philosophical analysis with qualitative empirical inquiry, this book provides a comparative case study of mono- and interdisciplinary research groups, offering insight into the day-to-day practice of scientists. The book includes field observations and interviews with scientists to present an empirically-grounded perspective on much-debated questions concerning research groups’ division of labor, relations of epistemic dependence and trust.

  20. Examining Data Processing Work as Part of the Scientific Data Lifecycle Comparing Practices Across Four Scientific Research Groups

    OpenAIRE

    Paine, Drew; Lee, Charlotte

    2015-01-01

    Slides from Charlotte P. Lee's presentation at the 2015 iConference on our paper "Examining Data Processing Work as Part of the Scientific Data Lifecycle: Comparing Practices Across Four Scientific Research Groups".

  1. Utilizing Professional Vision in Supporting Preservice Teachers' Learning About Contextualized Scientific Practices. Collaborative Discourse Practices Between Teachers and Scientists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sezen-Barrie, Asli

    2018-03-01

    Drawn from the cultural-historical theories of knowing and doing science, this article uses the concept of professional vision to explore what scientists and experienced teachers see and articulate as important aspects of climate science practices. The study takes an abductive reasoning approach to analyze scientists' videotaped lectures to recognize what scientists pay attention to in their explanations of climate science practices. It then analyzes how ideas scientists attended align with experienced teachers' sense-making of scientific practices to teach climate change. The findings show that experienced teachers' and scientists' explanations showed alignment in the focus on scientific practices, but indicated variations in the temporal and spatial reasoning of climate data. Furthermore, the interdisciplinarity of climate science was emphasized in climate scientists' lectures, but was not apparent once scientists and teachers shared the same culture in meetings to provide feedback to preservice teachers. Given the importance of teaching through scientific practices in classrooms, this study provides suggestions to capture the epistemic diversity of scientific disciplines.

  2. Utilizing Professional Vision in Supporting Preservice Teachers' Learning About Contextualized Scientific Practices - Collaborative Discourse Practices Between Teachers and Scientists

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sezen-Barrie, Asli

    2018-03-01

    Drawn from the cultural-historical theories of knowing and doing science, this article uses the concept of professional vision to explore what scientists and experienced teachers see and articulate as important aspects of climate science practices. The study takes an abductive reasoning approach to analyze scientists' videotaped lectures to recognize what scientists pay attention to in their explanations of climate science practices. It then analyzes how ideas scientists attended align with experienced teachers' sense-making of scientific practices to teach climate change. The findings show that experienced teachers' and scientists' explanations showed alignment in the focus on scientific practices, but indicated variations in the temporal and spatial reasoning of climate data. Furthermore, the interdisciplinarity of climate science was emphasized in climate scientists' lectures, but was not apparent once scientists and teachers shared the same culture in meetings to provide feedback to preservice teachers. Given the importance of teaching through scientific practices in classrooms, this study provides suggestions to capture the epistemic diversity of scientific disciplines.

  3. Is it all in the game? Flow experience and scientific practices during an INPLACE mobile game

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bressler, Denise M.

    Mobile science learning games show promise for promoting scientific practices and high engagement. Researchers have quantified this engagement according to flow theory. Using an embedded mixed methods design, this study investigated whether an INPLACE mobile game promotes flow experience, scientific practices, and effective team collaboration. Students playing the game (n=59) were compared with students in a business-as-usual control activity (n=120). Using an open-ended instrument designed to measure scientific practices and a self-report flow survey, this study empirically assessed flow and learner's scientific practices. The game players had significantly higher levels of flow and scientific practices. Using a multiple case study approach, collaboration among game teams (n=3 teams) were qualitatively compared with control teams (n=3 teams). Game teams revealed not only higher levels of scientific practices but also higher levels of engaged responses and communal language. Control teams revealed lower levels of scientific practice along with higher levels of rejecting responses and command language. Implications for these findings are discussed.

  4. The translations and the organizing of scientific practices in R&D biotechnology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lorena Bezerra de Souza Matos

    Full Text Available Abstract Considering the scientific practices related to Research & Development in biotechnology and, based on the assumptions of Actor Network Theory (ANT, this study aimed to describe the main translations that influenced the composition of an actor-networks, reflecting on the organizing practices in a scientific laboratory Research & Development of Northeast Biotechnology Network (Brazil. The methodological procedures were based on the historical approach of biotechnology under study from an ethnographic posture. The composition of the corpus was organized in the form of reports, observing the historical passages. The history of biotechnology has been reported between the plots of design, patenting and commercialization practices, highlighting the creation of heterogeneous actors’ networks. Finally, he emphasized the influence of laboratory scientist's leadership in the way of organizing of scientific practices.

  5. Pharmaceutical representatives' beliefs and practices about their professional practice: a study in Sudan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Idris, K M; Mustafa, A F; Yousif, M A

    2012-08-01

    Pharmaceutical representatives are an important promotional tool for pharmaceutical companies. This cross-sectional, exploratory study aimed to determine pharmaceutical representatives' beliefs and practices about their professional practice in Sudan. A random sample of 160 pharmaceutical representatives were interviewed using a pretested questionnaire. The majority were male (84.4%) and had received training in professional sales skills (86.3%) and about the products being promoted (82.5%). Only 65.6% agreed that they provided full and balanced information about products. Not providing balanced information was attributed by 23.1% to doctors' lack of time. However, 28.1% confessed they sometimes felt like hiding unfavourable information, 21.9% were sometimes or always inclined to give untrue information to make sales and 66.9% considered free gifts as ethically acceptable. More attention is needed to dissemination of ethical codes of conduct and training about the ethics of drug promotion for pharmaceutical representatives in Sudan.

  6. What can scientific practice look like in a classroom? Insights from scientists' critique of high school students' climate change argumentation practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, E.; McGowan, V. C.

    2015-12-01

    The Next Generation Science Standards promote a vision in which learners engage in authentic knowledge in practice to tackle personally consequential science problems in the classroom. However, there is not yet a clear understanding amongst researchers and educators of what authentic practice looks like in a classroom and how this can be accomplished. This study explores these questions by examining interactions between scientists and students on a social media platform during two pilot enactments of a project-based curriculum focusing on the ecological impacts of climate change. During this unit, scientists provided feedback to students on infographics, visual representations of scientific information meant to communicate to an audience about climate change. We conceptualize the feedback and student work as boundary objects co-created by students and scientists moving between the school and scientific contexts, and analyze the structure and content of the scientists' feedback. We find that when giving feedback on a particular practice (e.g. argumentation), scientists would provide avenues, critiques and questions that incorporated many other practices (e.g. data analysis, visual communication); thus, scientists encouraged students to participate systemically in practices instead of isolating one particular practice. In addition, scientists drew attention to particular habits of mind that are valued in the scientific community and noted when students' work aligned with scientific values. In this way, scientists positioned students as capable of participating "scientifically." While traditionally, incorporating scientific inquiry in a classroom has emphasized student experimentation and data generation, in this work, we found that engaging with scientists around established scientific texts and data sets provided students with a platform for developing expertise in other important scientific practices during argment construction.

  7. The Virtues of Scientific Practice: MacIntyre,

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    Hicks, Daniel J; Stapleford, Thomas A

    2016-09-01

    “Practice” has become a ubiquitous term in the history of science, and yet historians have not always reflected on its philosophical import and in particular on its potential connections with ethics. This essay draws on the work of the virtue ethicist Alasdair MacIntyre to develop a theory of “communal practices” and explore how such an approach can inform the history of science, including allegations about the corruption of science by wealth or power, consideration of scientific ethics or “moral economies,” the role of values in science, the ethical distinctiveness (or not) of scientific vocations, and the relationship between history of science and the practice of science itself.

  8. Introductory Biology Textbooks Under-Represent Scientific Process

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    Dara B. Duncan

    2011-08-01

    Full Text Available Attrition of undergraduates from Biology majors is a long-standing problem. Introductory courses that fail to engage students or spark their curiosity by emphasizing the open-ended and creative nature of biological investigation and discovery could contribute to student detachment from the field. Our hypothesis was that introductory biology books devote relatively few figures to illustration of the design and interpretation of experiments or field studies, thereby de-emphasizing the scientific process.To investigate this possibility, we examined figures in six Introductory Biology textbooks published in 2008. On average, multistep scientific investigations were presented in fewer than 5% of the hundreds of figures in each book. Devoting such a small percentage of figures to the processes by which discoveries are made discourages an emphasis on scientific thinking. We suggest that by increasing significantly the illustration of scientific investigations, textbooks could support undergraduates’ early interest in biology, stimulate the development of design and analytical skills, and inspire some students to participate in investigations of their own.

  9. Frames of scientific evidence: How journalists represent the (un)certainty of molecular medicine in science television programs.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruhrmann, Georg; Guenther, Lars; Kessler, Sabrina Heike; Milde, Jutta

    2015-08-01

    For laypeople, media coverage of science on television is a gateway to scientific issues. Defining scientific evidence is central to the field of science, but there are still questions if news coverage of science represents scientific research findings as certain or uncertain. The framing approach is a suitable framework to classify different media representations; it is applied here to investigate the frames of scientific evidence in film clips (n=207) taken from science television programs. Molecular medicine is the domain of interest for this analysis, due to its high proportion of uncertain and conflicting research findings and risks. The results indicate that television clips vary in their coverage of scientific evidence of molecular medicine. Four frames were found: Scientific Uncertainty and Controversy, Scientifically Certain Data, Everyday Medical Risks, and Conflicting Scientific Evidence. They differ in their way of framing scientific evidence and risks of molecular medicine. © The Author(s) 2013.

  10. Striving for Scientific Integrity and Ethical Practices in Higher Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Geissman, J. W.

    2017-12-01

    The need for the highest levels of scientific integrity and ethical principles in higher education, globally, is obvious. This is the setting where faculty scientists practice and future scientists, as entering science majors, those who change course and switch to science, and graduate students, are nurtured and mentored. Institutions of higher education across the globe are devoting increasing attention to scientific integrity and ethical practices, often as mandated by specific (funding) agencies, and this certainly is a step in the right direction. One approach has involved graduate students, particularly PhD students, in formal classes/seminars on the subjects. Another, more institution-specific, is to require freshman science majors to take one or more classes designed to assist students, in many ways, to succeed in whatever science path they choose. For the past five years I have "taught" such a class, which I like to refer to as "Science is the Rest of Your Life 101". My section is very heavy on scientific integrity and ethical practices; most students have never been exposed to nor have considered such subjects. Their interest level is exceedingly keen. So, steps are being taken, but rectifying existing concerns will take time. Here are some (potential/real) problems. One facing all of higher education is the ever decreasing number, certainly in the United States, of tenured/tenure track faculty in all disciplines together with the generational "gap" or "double gap" (some colleagues of mine are in their 80s) between those who never for all intents and purposes received any "formal" exposure to scientific integrity and ethical practices issues and those fresh in the academy for which these subjects are recently and better engrained. At most institutions, those faculty never involved in such formal training because of, well, their age, are required to pass some form of on-line "certification" class in research ethics among other subjects on an annual or bi

  11. Modelling Scientific Argumentation in the Classroom : Teachers perception and practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Probosari, R. M.; Sajidan; Suranto; Prayitno, B. A.; Widyastuti, F.

    2017-02-01

    The purposes of this study were to investigate teacher’s perception about scientific argumentation and how they practice it in their classroom. Thirty biology teachers in high school participated in this study and illustrated their perception of scientific argumentation through a questionnaire. This survey research was developed to measure teachers’ understanding of scientific argumentation, what they know about scientific argumentation, the differentiation between argument and reasoning, how they plan teaching strategies in order to make students’ scientific argumentation better and the obstacles in teaching scientific argumentation. The result conclude that generally, teachers modified various representation to accommodate student’s active participation, but most of them assume that argument and reasoning are similar. Less motivation, tools and limited science’s knowledge were considered as obstacles in teaching argumentation. The findings can be helpful to improving students’ abilities of doing scientific argumentation as a part of inquiry.

  12. Scientific Software - the role of best practices and recommendations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fritzsch, Bernadette; Bernstein, Erik; Castell, Wolfgang zu; Diesmann, Markus; Haas, Holger; Hammitzsch, Martin; Konrad, Uwe; Lähnemann, David; McHardy, Alice; Pampel, Heinz; Scheliga, Kaja; Schreiber, Andreas; Steglich, Dirk

    2017-04-01

    In Geosciences - like in most other communities - scientific work strongly depends on software. For big data analysis, existing (closed or open source) program packages are often mixed with newly developed codes. Different versions of software components and varying configurations can influence the result of data analysis. This often makes reproducibility of results and reuse of codes very difficult. Policies for publication and documentation of used and newly developed software, along with best practices, can help tackle this problem. Within the Helmholtz Association a Task Group "Access to and Re-use of scientific software" was implemented by the Open Science Working Group in 2016. The aim of the Task Group is to foster the discussion about scientific software in the Open Science context and to formulate recommendations for the production and publication of scientific software, ensuring open access to it. As a first step, a workshop gathered interested scientists from institutions across Germany. The workshop brought together various existing initiatives from different scientific communities to analyse current problems, share established best practices and come up with possible solutions. The subjects in the working groups covered a broad range of themes, including technical infrastructures, standards and quality assurance, citation of software and reproducibility. Initial recommendations are presented and discussed in the talk. They are the foundation for further discussions in the Helmholtz Association and the Priority Initiative "Digital Information" of the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany. The talk aims to inform about the activities and to link with other initiatives on the national or international level.

  13. SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF NATURE AND SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF CULTURE: INTE-GRATION TREND, PRACTICAL VALUE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fokina Zoya Titovna

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available This article deals with a topic of interest : studying the expanding and deepening trend of integration of natural, technical, social and humanities fields of scientific knowledge. The point of absolute opposition between the sciences dealing with nature and those dealing with culture is subjected to criticism, the forms of integration of scientific knowledge are identified: mathematization, formalization, computerization of knowledge; philosophization/dialectization and environmentalization of the scientific knowledge. It is noted that such areas of scientific knowledge as synergetics, cybernetics, system theory, information technology, sociosynergetics, historical informatics, cliometrics, informatics for economics, evolutionary economics, human ecology, etc. Many scientific fields appear on the border between the science, technology and mathematics, and social and humanities studies, while the sharp borders between the natural sciences and cultural sciences tend to disappear, although specifics of studying the social reality still exists. Within the context of integration of sciences, comprehensive approach, synergetics, cybernetics, and mathematical model approach are analyzed. The philosophy of technology, and environmental problems, which are caused by the development of technological civilization, are studied. Practical value of integration processes in science is identified. The studied data is addressed to the specialists who are interested in the modern processes of integration of sciences, and modern issues of scientific and technical development of humanity, survival of humanity under the conditions of increasing technological understanding of the nature.

  14. A Sample Practical Report to Facilitate Writing in the Scientific Style

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corradi, Hazel Ruth

    2012-01-01

    The ability to write concise and accurate scientific reports is highly valued in university level science. From reflection on marking student final year reports, it was apparent that many students have had insufficient practice at writing complete "scientific paper" style reports by that time, although some do it very well. This is a previously…

  15. Implementing the Netherlands Code of Conduct for Scientific Practice : A Case Study

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Schuurbiers, D.; Osseweijer, P.; Kinderlerer, J.

    2009-01-01

    Widespread enthusiasm for establishing scientific codes of conduct notwithstanding, the utility of such codes in influencing scientific practice is not self-evident. It largely depends on the implementation phase following their establishment—a phase which often receives little attention. The aim of

  16. Analyzing Data Citations to Assess the Scientific and Societal Value of Scientific Data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, R. S.; Downs, R. R.

    2012-12-01

    Stakeholders in the creation, distribution, support, funding, and use of scientific data can benefit by understanding the value that the data have for society and science. For decades, the scientific community has been using citations of articles in the published scientific literature as one of the primary measures used for evaluating the performance of scientists, departments, institutions, and scientific disciplines. Similarly, citations in the published literature of scientific data may be useful for measuring and assessing the value of the scientific data and the performance of the individuals, projects, programs, and organizations that have contributed to the data and their use. The results of citation analysis and other assessments of the value of data also can contribute to planning for future data collection, development, distribution, and preservation efforts. The planned release of new data citation indexes and the more widespread adoption of unique data identifiers and automated attribution mechanisms have the potential to improve significantly the capabilities for analyzing citations of scientific data. In addition, rapid developments in the systems and capabilities for disseminating data, along with education and workforce development on the importance of data attribution and on techniques for data citation, can improve practices for citing scientific data. Such practices need to lead not only to better aggregate statistics about data citation, but also to improved characterization and understanding of the impact of data use in terms of the benefits for science and society. Analyses of citations in the scientific literature were conducted for data that were distributed by an interdisciplinary scientific data center during a five-year period (1997 - 2011), to identify the scientific fields represented by the journals and books in which the data were cited. Secondary citation analysis also was conducted for a sample of scientific publications that used

  17. Exploring multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices in two elementary classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allison, Elizabeth Rowland

    This study explored the voices of children in a changing world with evolving needs and new opportunities. The workplaces of rapidly moving capitalist societies value creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking skills which are of growing importance and manifesting themselves in modern K-12 science classroom cultures (Gee, 2000; New London Group, 2000). This study explored issues of multiliteracies and student voice set within the context of teaching and learning in 4th and 5th grade science classrooms. The purpose of the study was to ascertain what and how multiliteracies and scientific practices (NGSS Lead States, 2013c) are implemented, explore how multiliteracies influence students' voices, and investigate teacher and student perceptions of multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices. Grounded in a constructivist framework, a multiple case study was employed in two elementary classrooms. Through observations, student focus groups and interviews, and teacher interviews, a detailed narrative was created to describe a range of multiliteracies, student voice, and scientific practices that occurred with the science classroom context. Using grounded theory analysis, data were coded and analyzed to reveal emergent themes. Data analysis revealed that these two classrooms were enriched with multiliteracies that serve metaphorically as breeding grounds for student voice. In the modern classroom, defined as a space where information is instantly accessible through the Internet, multiliteracies can be developed through inquiry-based, collaborative, and technology-rich experiences. Scientific literacy, cultivated through student communication and collaboration, is arguably a multiliteracy that has not been considered in the literature, and should be, as an integral component of overall individual literacy in the 21st century. Findings revealed four themes. Three themes suggest that teachers address several modes of multiliteracies in science, but identify

  18. Scientific-practical and legal problems of implementation of the personalized medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bezdieniezhnykh, N O; Reznikova, V V; Rossylna, O V

    2017-09-01

    The article is devoted to the comprehensive analysis of scientific, practical and legal issues of personalized medicine that is a rapidly developing science-driven approach to healthcare. It is concluded that there is lack of general legal framework for the encouragement of scientific researches and practical implementation in this field. The article shows foreign experience and prospects for the introduction of personalized medicine as a key concept of healthcare system, which is based on a selection of diagnostic, therapeutic and preventive measures that would be the most effective for a particular person in view of individual characteristics. The conclusions and proposals to improve the current legislation and development of personalized medicine in Ukraine are suggested.

  19. Mundane science use in a practice theoretical perspective: Different understandings of the relations between citizen-consumers and public communication initiatives build on scientific claims.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Halkier, Bente

    2015-08-13

    Public communication initiatives play a part in placing complicated scientific claims in citizen-consumers' everyday contexts. Lay reactions to scientific claims framed in public communication, and attempts to engage citizens, have been important subjects of discussion in the literatures of public understanding and public engagement with science. Many of the public communication initiatives, however, address lay people as consumers rather than citizens. This creates specific challenges for understanding public engagement with science and scientific citizenship. The article compares five different understandings of the relations between citizen-consumers and public issue communication involving science, where the first four types are widely represented in the Public Understanding of Science discussions. The fifth understanding is a practice theoretical perspective. The article suggests how the public understanding of and engagement in science literature can benefit from including a practice theoretical approach to research about mundane science use and public engagement. © The Author(s) 2015.

  20. The NASA Ames Research Center Institutional Scientific Collection: History, Best Practices and Scientific Opportunities

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rask, Jon C.; Chakravarty, Kaushik; French, Alison; Choi, Sungshin; Stewart, Helen

    2017-01-01

    The NASA Ames Life Sciences Institutional Scientific Collection (ISC), which is composed of the Ames Life Sciences Data Archive (ALSDA) and the Biospecimen Storage Facility (BSF), is managed by the Space Biosciences Division and has been operational since 1993. The ALSDA is responsible for archiving information and animal biospecimens collected from life science spaceflight experiments and matching ground control experiments. Both fixed and frozen spaceflight and ground tissues are stored in the BSF within the ISC. The ALSDA also manages a Biospecimen Sharing Program, performs curation and long-term storage operations, and makes biospecimens available to the scientific community for research purposes via the Life Science Data Archive public website (https:lsda.jsc.nasa.gov). As part of our best practices, a viability testing plan has been developed for the ISC, which will assess the quality of archived samples. We expect that results from the viability testing will catalyze sample use, enable broader science community interest, and improve operational efficiency of the ISC. The current viability test plan focuses on generating disposition recommendations and is based on using ribonucleic acid (RNA) integrity number (RIN) scores as a criteria for measurement of biospecimen viablity for downstream functional analysis. The plan includes (1) sorting and identification of candidate samples, (2) conducting a statiscally-based power analysis to generate representaive cohorts from the population of stored biospecimens, (3) completion of RIN analysis on select samples, and (4) development of disposition recommendations based on the RIN scores. Results of this work will also support NASA open science initiatives and guides development of the NASA Scientific Collections Directive (a policy on best practices for curation of biological collections). Our RIN-based methodology for characterizing the quality of tissues stored in the ISC since the 1980s also creates unique

  1. Writing practices: scientific diffusion texts in a portuguese course book

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Regina Braz da Silva Santos Rocha

    2012-12-01

    Full Text Available The objective of this article is to show how the production of scientific diffusion texts from a Portuguese textbook used in high schools is taught. The research questions are: (1 how is the scientific diffusion sphere presented to the student? (2 Which is the linguistic-discursive treatment that the authors offer to lead the student to the production of scientific diffusion texts? (3 How do these procedures help improve writing in the most varied genres in the scientific sphere? A didactic activity involving written production of a text for scientific diffusion from the textbook series Português: contexto, interlocução e sentido was chosen. The analysis is based on the concept of text as postulated by Bakhtin and the Circle, for whom the text is a real unit of discursive communication. The result shows that the activity does not materialize the Bakhtinian theoretical bases adopted in the teacher’s manual. In the dialogic perspective, in order to insert the student in the writing practices of scientific texts, it is necessary to make him/her take on the role of reader of journals and specialized magazines, as well as the role of scientist/researcher.

  2. Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in the Development of National Science' Proceedings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2015-01-01

    Present collection comprises of materials of Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in the Development of National Science'. Present collection is intended for scientific and technical staff, postgraduates, and students of institutes of higher education.

  3. Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Shuo Gu

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM, the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. With the development of orthodox medicine and science during the last centuries, CHM also seized the opportunity to change from traditional health practice to scientific drug discovery illustrated in the famous story of the herb-derived drug artemisinin. However, hindered by its culture and founding principles, CHM faces the questions of the research paradigm posed by the convention of science. To address these questions, we discussed two essential questions concerning the relationship of CHM and science, and then upheld the paradigm of methodological reductionism in scientific research. Finally, the contemporary narrative of CHM in the 21st century was discussed in the hope to preserve this medical tradition in tandem with scientific research.

  4. Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gu, Shuo; Pei, Jianfeng

    2017-01-01

    As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. With the development of orthodox medicine and science during the last centuries, CHM also seized the opportunity to change from traditional health practice to scientific drug discovery illustrated in the famous story of the herb-derived drug artemisinin. However, hindered by its culture and founding principles, CHM faces the questions of the research paradigm posed by the convention of science. To address these questions, we discussed two essential questions concerning the relationship of CHM and science, and then upheld the paradigm of methodological reductionism in scientific research. Finally, the contemporary narrative of CHM in the 21st century was discussed in the hope to preserve this medical tradition in tandem with scientific research.

  5. Representing scientific knowledge the role of uncertainty

    CERN Document Server

    Chen, Chaomei

    2017-01-01

    This book is written for anyone who is interested in how a field of research evolves and the fundamental role of understanding uncertainties involved in different levels of analysis, ranging from macroscopic views to meso- and microscopic ones. We introduce a series of computational and visual analytic techniques, from research areas such as text mining, deep learning, information visualization and science mapping, such that readers can apply these tools to the study of a subject matter of their choice. In addition, we set the diverse set of methods in an integrative context, that draws upon insights from philosophical, sociological, and evolutionary theories of what drives the advances of science, such that the readers of the book can guide their own research with their enriched theoretical foundations. Scientific knowledge is complex. A subject matter is typically built on its own set of concepts, theories, methodologies and findings, discovered by generations of researchers and practitioners. Scientific ...

  6. Teaching for Scientific Literacy? An Examination of Instructional Practices in Secondary Schools in Barbados

    Science.gov (United States)

    Archer-Bradshaw, Ramona E.

    2017-01-01

    This study examined the extent to which the instructional practices of science teachers in Barbados are congruent with best practices for teaching for scientific literacy. Additionally, through observation of practice, it sought to determine the teachers' demonstrated role in the classroom, their demonstration of learning through discourse,…

  7. The Realist Paradigm Of Energy Diplomacy In The Russian Scientific Tradition And Its Practical Applicability

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    R. О. Reinhardt

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available Nowadays energy diplomacy tends to be one of most relevant and important fields of applied research in International Relations. It is characterized by an interdisciplinary approach being an intersection of political and economic theory, international law, energetics, theory of diplomacy, as well as other fields. Still, numerous research works in the given area both in Russia and abroad are characterized by a number of controversies, such as absence of a common theoretical, methodological basis and conventional terminology, as well as lack of consistency in the choice of scientific paradigms, which leads to divergence of research results and hinders the comparability of the latter. Along with that, in terms of scientific policy it is worth mentioning the absence of a common scientific space in the above field of research, which tends to be shaped by national research cultures and traditions. Throughout the 2000-2010s representatives of the MGIMO scientific school have accumulated experience in dealing with problems of energy diplomacy. However, most of the existing works do not specify the selected political theory paradigms, such as, for instance, realism, liberalism or constructivism. With no intention to conduct a comparative analysis of the aforementioned concepts, the authors of the article outline the key theoretical findings of political realism as the most suitable paradigm for explaining, analyzing and eventually forecasting the recent trends and phenomena given the current geopolitical and economical juncture. They prove the applicability of the proposed model to the OPEC case study and demonstrate its potential practical usefulness for policy-makers in foreign affairs and international energy relations.

  8. Representing space in the scientific revolution

    CERN Document Server

    Miller, David Marshall

    2014-01-01

    The novel understanding of the physical world that characterized the Scientific Revolution depended on a fundamental shift in the way its protagonists understood and described space. At the beginning of the seventeenth century, spatial phenomena were described in relation to a presupposed central point; by its end, space had become a centerless void in which phenomena could only be described by reference to arbitrary orientations. David Marshall Miller examines both the historical and philosophical aspects of this far-reaching development, including the rejection of the idea of heavenly sphere

  9. Scientists in the making: An ethnographic investigation of scientific processes as literate practice in an elementary classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crawford, Teresa Jo

    This study explored the issue of literacy in science by examining how the social and academic literate practices in an elementary classroom formed the basis for learning across the curriculum, with a specific focus on the disciplinary field of science. Through the study of classroom interaction, issues related to student knowledge and ability were addressed as they pertain to scientific literacy in the context of science education reform. The theoretical framework guiding this study was drawn from sociocultural studies of scientific communities and interactional ethnography in education. To investigate the literate practices of science in a school setting, data were collected over a two-year period with the same teacher in her third grade and then her fourth/fifth grade classroom. Data were collected through participant observation in the form of fieldnotes, video data, interviews, and various artifacts (e.g., writings, drawings, teaching protocols). Using ethnographic and sociolinguistic methods of analysis this work examined classroom members' discursive practices to illustrate the role that discourse plays in creating opportunities for engagement in, and access to, scientific knowledge. These analyses revealed that the discursive actions and practices among members of this classroom shaped a particular type of learning environment that was process-oriented and inquiry based. It was shown that this learning environment afforded opportunities for students to engage in the processes of science outside the official, planned curriculum, often leading to whole class scientific investigations and discussions. Additionally, within this classroom community students were able to draw on multiple discourses to display their knowledge of scientific concepts and practices. Overall, this study found that the literate practices of this classroom community, as they were socially constructed among members, contributed to opportunities for students to practice science and

  10. Understanding and Representing Changing Work Structures and Practices through Art

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wieland, Stacey M. B.

    2018-01-01

    Courses: Organizational Communication, Advanced Organizational Communication, Organizing Work, Management/Organizational History. Objectives: This activity will help students to understand major shifts in the organization of work and creatively represent changing work structures and practices. An optional follow-up assignment is included. A…

  11. Teachers' Integration of Scientific and Engineering Practices in Primary Classrooms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Merritt, Eileen G.; Chiu, Jennie; Peters-Burton, Erin; Bell, Randy

    2017-06-01

    The Next-Generation Science Standards (NGSS) challenge primary teachers and students to work and think like scientists and engineers as they strive to understand complex concepts. Teachers and teacher educators can leverage what is already known about inquiry teaching as they plan instruction to help students meet the new standards. This cross-case analysis of a multiple case study examined teacher practices in the context of a semester-long professional development course for elementary teachers. We reviewed lessons and teacher reflections, examining how kindergarten and first grade teachers incorporated NGSS scientific and engineering practices during inquiry-based instruction. We found that most of the teachers worked with their students on asking questions; planning and carrying out investigations; analyzing and interpreting data, using mathematics and computational thinking; and obtaining, evaluating and communicating information. Teachers faced challenges in supporting students in developing their own questions that could be investigated and using data collection strategies that aligned with students' development of number sense concepts. Also, some teachers overemphasized the scientific method and lacked clarity in how they elicited and responded to student predictions. Discussion focuses on teacher supports that will be needed as states transition to NGSS.

  12. Meaningful Engagement in Scientific Practices: How Classroom Communities Develop Authentic Epistemologies for Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krist, Christina Rae

    Recent reforms in science education, based on decades of learning research, emphasize engaging students in science and engineering practices as the means to develop and refine disciplinary ideas. These reforms advocate an epistemic shift in how school science is done: from students learning about science ideas to students figuring out core science ideas. This shift is challenging to implement: how do we bring the goals and practices of a discipline into classroom communities in meaningful ways that go beyond simply following rote scientific procedures? In this dissertation, I investigate how classroom communities learn to engage meaningfully in scientific practices, characterizing their engagement as a process of epistemic learning. I take a situated perspective that defines learning as shifts in how members engage in communities of practice. I examine students' epistemic learning as a function of their participation in a classroom community of scientific practice along two dimensions: what they do, or the practical epistemic heuristics they use to guide how they build knowledge; and who they are, or how ownership and authorship of ideas is negotiated and affectively marked through interaction. I focus on a cohort of students as they move from 6th to 8 th grade. I analyze three science units, one from each grade level, to look at the epistemic heuristics implicit in student and teacher talk and how the use of those heuristics shifts over time. In addition, I examine one anomalous 8th grade class to look at how students and the teacher position themselves and each other with respect to the ideas in their classroom and how that positioning supports epistemic learning. Taken together, these analyses demonstrate how students' engagement in scientific practices evolves in terms of what they do and who they are in relation to the knowledge and ideas in their classroom over time. I propose a model for epistemic learning that articulates how classroom communities develop

  13. Theoretical and practical fundamentals of scientific and educational projects: a case of Ukraine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Olena Bilovodska

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Development of educational and scientific spheres in general and project activity of universities in particular, acquire foreground importance in the modern world. In the article approaches to rendering a term “project” and its basic characteristics are analyzed. Scientific and educational projects are a special type: although they represent a subsidiary activity, they are vital to the image, rankings, prosperity and at some point to competitiveness. The major funding opportunities for scientific and educational projects are generalized. The authors have analyzed the official figures of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine which show the levels of cost funding of scientific and educational projects and describe its main sources in 2010-2015. A study of impact factors on the funding levels of Ukrainian scientific and educational projects by foreign sources was conducted using the method of correlation analysis. According to the results of the conducted analysis, it was determined that activity of international mobility of Ukrainian scientists doesn’t influence the levels of international funding. It was also established that there is a strong inverse relationship between such factors as a share of expenditures on scientific and scientific-technical activities in GDP, a number of organizations involved in scientific and scientific-technical activities and a number of grants for scientific research received from international funds.

  14. An investigation of the practice of scientific inquiry in secondary science and agriculture courses

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grady, Julie R.

    The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to investigate the practice of scientific inquiry in two secondary biology classes and one agriculture class from different schools in different communities. The focus was on teachers' interests and intentions for the students' participation in inquiry, the voices contributing to the inquiry, and students' opportunities to confront their conceptions of the nature of science (NOS). The Partnership for Research and Education in Plants (PREP) served as the context by providing students with opportunities to design and conduct original experiments to help elucidate the function(s) of a disabled gene in Arabidopsis thaliana . Transcripts of teacher and student semi-structured interviews, field notes of classroom observations and classroom conversations, and documents (e.g., student work, teacher handouts, school websites, PREP materials) were analyzed for evidence of the practice of scientific inquiry. Teachers were interested in implementing inquiry because of potential student learning about scientific research and because PREP supports course content and is connected to a larger scientific project outside of the school. Teachers' intentions regarding the implementation of inquiry reflected the complexity of their courses and the students' previous experiences. All inquiries were student-directed. The biology students' participation more closely mirrored the practice of scientists, while the agriculture students were more involved with the procedural display of scientific inquiry. All experiences could have been enhanced from additional knowledge-centered activities regarding scientific reasoning. No activities brought explicit attention to NOS. Biology activities tended to implicitly support NOS while the agriculture class activities tended to implicitly contradict NOS. Scientists' interactions contributed to implied support of the NOS. There were missed opportunities for explicit attention to NOS in all classes

  15. Declaration of input sources in scientific research: should this practice be incorporated to organizational information management?

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    José Osvaldo De Sordi

    Full Text Available This research studies the declaration of input sources for research in scientific communications, more specifically, whether this practice of the academy may be considered a good example to be followed by organizations. Seven hypotheses address two dimensions of input sources: origin (primary or secondary and nature (data or information. It appears that the declaration of research inputs in the academy is problematic, mostly incomplete or inaccurate. This does not reduce the importance of this practice; it simply indicates that the academy should not be considered a privileged space, with wide dominance and practice excellence. Nevertheless, the information environment of organizations can learn and benefit from the experience of the scientific academy. From the analyses of the research sample, a set of procedures has been developed, which allowed organizational analysts and researchers to elaborate a complete and accurate analysis of the input sources to be declared in organizational or scientific communication.

  16. [Scientific collaboration and article citations: practices in medical journals].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bador, Pascal; Lafouge, Thierry

    2012-01-01

    In order to characterize scientific collaboration the best way is to study co-signature of articles. Two indicators are interesting: number of authors and international character. The objective is to study correlation between these two indicators and citation number. We selected two pharmacy and medicine journals in order to compare practices. We used a sample of about 800 articles published in 2002-2005 for which we collected citations up to 2010. We transformed numeric variables, authors number and citation number, into qualitative variables. "Authors" and "Citations" variables are not independent. Less cited articles are often published by one author or a very small team while international character of articles generally increases citation number. This micro-analysis also allowed us to better understand publication practices. © 2012 Société Française de Pharmacologie et de Thérapeutique.

  17. Brazilian law for scientific use of animals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Marques, Ruy Garcia; Morales, Marcelo Marcos; Petroianu, Andy

    2009-01-01

    The Brazilian scientific community claimed for a definitive systematization and for comprehensive and realistic national rules, to provide guidance and regulation, instead of sanctions, so that the question of scientific research involving animals could be better contemplated. This is beginning to occur now with Law no. 11.794, sanctioned by the President of the Republic on November 8, 2008. To describe the evolution of Brazilian regimentation for scientific use of animals and to analyze Law no. 11.794. The legislation about the use of animals in teaching and in scientific research in Brazil and in Rio de Janeiro State was identified and discussed. Until now, there was no updated general and systematizing rule regarding animal vivisection and experimentation for didactic or scientific purposes. The only specific law dates back to 1979 and was not regimented. More recent laws equated the practice of scientific experiments to acts of abuse and mistreatment of animals, when alternative technology was available. Municipal laws that restricted the scientific practice of vivisection and experimentation with animals were created in the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Florianopolis. With the claim and collaboration of the scientific community, the sanction of Law no. 11.794 regarding the scientific use of animals represented an invaluable advance in spite of the presence of some points that eventually may require another type of treatment. The new Law states that it will be regimented within 180 (one-hundred-and-eighty) days, when some of these points could be better elucidated.

  18. Collaboration in scientific practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wagenknecht, Susann

    2014-01-01

    This monograph investigates the collaborative creation of scientific knowledge in research groups. To do so, I combine philosophical analysis with a first-hand comparative case study of two research groups in experimental science. Qualitative data are gained through observation and interviews......, and I combine empirical insights with existing approaches to knowledge creation in philosophy of science and social epistemology. On the basis of my empirically-grounded analysis I make several conceptual contributions. I study scientific collaboration as the interaction of scientists within research...... to their publication. Specifically, I suggest epistemic difference and the porosity of social structure as two conceptual leitmotifs in the study of group collaboration. With epistemic difference, I emphasize the value of socio-cognitive heterogeneity in group collaboration. With porosity, I underline the fact...

  19. Learning in a Community of Practice: Factors Impacting English-Learning Students' Engagement in Scientific Argumentation

    Science.gov (United States)

    González-Howard, María; McNeill, Katherine L.

    2016-01-01

    Recent education reform efforts have included an increasing push for school science to better mirror authentic scientific endeavor, including a focus on science practices. However, despite expectations that all students engage in these language-rich practices, little prior research has focused on how such opportunities will be created for…

  20. Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in solving the most important issues of globalization process' Proceedings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2015-01-01

    Present collection comprises of materials of Republic Scientific-practical Conference 'The Youth Role in solving the most important issues of globalization process'. Present collection is intended for scientific and technical staff, postgraduates, and students of institutes of higher education.

  1. Scientific knowledge dissemination in Danish seed communities of practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Tveden-Nyborg, Svend; Misfeldt, Morten; Boelt, Birte

    2012-01-01

    Danish agriculture and seed science have a history of successful collaboration spanning more than a hundred years. In this study, we interviewed 26 growers, consultants, and scientists from the Danish seed community focusing on their current knowledge status and on their views on improving scient......, as only the innovative growers prioritized time allocation for additional knowledge search. To improve scientific knowledge dissemination and interdisciplinary collaboration among Danish seed-CoP we recommend a combination of face-to-face and online communication processes.......Danish agriculture and seed science have a history of successful collaboration spanning more than a hundred years. In this study, we interviewed 26 growers, consultants, and scientists from the Danish seed community focusing on their current knowledge status and on their views on improving...... scientific knowledge communication. Theoretically, we consider these actors participants in different communities of practice relating to the production of seeds (Seed-CoP), and we conclude that strong network collaboration is present among Danish seed-CoP effectuated by the valuable work undertaken...

  2. Scientific Teaching: Defining a Taxonomy of Observable Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Couch, Brian A.; Brown, Tanya L.; Schelpat, Tyler J.; Graham, Mark J.; Knight, Jennifer K.

    2015-01-01

    Over the past several decades, numerous reports have been published advocating for changes to undergraduate science education. These national calls inspired the formation of the National Academies Summer Institutes on Undergraduate Education in Biology (SI), a group of regional workshops to help faculty members learn and implement interactive teaching methods. The SI curriculum promotes a pedagogical framework called Scientific Teaching (ST), which aims to bring the vitality of modern research into the classroom by engaging students in the scientific discovery process and using student data to inform the ongoing development of teaching methods. With the spread of ST, the need emerges to systematically define its components in order to establish a common description for education researchers and practitioners. We describe the development of a taxonomy detailing ST’s core elements and provide data from classroom observations and faculty surveys in support of its applicability within undergraduate science courses. The final taxonomy consists of 15 pedagogical goals and 37 supporting practices, specifying observable behaviors, artifacts, and features associated with ST. This taxonomy will support future educational efforts by providing a framework for researchers studying the processes and outcomes of ST-based course transformations as well as a concise guide for faculty members developing classes. PMID:25713097

  3. Problems of Chernobyl. Materials of International scientific and practical conference 'Shelter-98'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Klyuchnikov, O.O.

    1999-01-01

    These transactions contain materials of International Scientific and Practical Conference 'Shelter-98', which was held 27-30 November 1998 in Slavutich. They describe the results of the research work of the specialists from Ukraine, neighborhood and far foreign counties. The results, targeted at solving the problems of converting the Shelter Object into oncologically safe state

  4. Promoting Science Learning and Scientific Identification through Contemporary Scientific Investigations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Van Horne, Katie

    This dissertation investigates the implementation issues and the educational opportunities associated with "taking the practice turn" in science education. This pedagogical shift focuses instructional experiences on engaging students in the epistemic practices of science both to learn the core ideas of the disciplines, as well as to gain an understanding of and personal connection to the scientific enterprise. In Chapter 2, I examine the teacher-researcher co-design collaboration that supported the classroom implementation of a year-long, project-based biology curriculum that was under development. This study explores the dilemmas that arose when teachers implemented a new intervention and how the dilemmas arose and were managed throughout the collaboration of researchers and teachers and between the teachers. In the design-based research of Chapter 3, I demonstrate how students' engagement in epistemic practices in contemporary science investigations supported their conceptual development about genetics. The analysis shows how this involved a complex interaction between the scientific, school and community practices in students' lives and how through varied participation in the practices students come to write about and recognize how contemporary investigations can give them leverage for science-based action outside of the school setting. Finally, Chapter 4 explores the characteristics of learning environments for supporting the development of scientific practice-linked identities. Specific features of the learning environment---access to the intellectual work of the domain, authentic roles and accountability, space to make meaningful contributions in relation to personal interests, and practice-linked identity resources that arose from interactions in the learning setting---supported learners in stabilizing practice-linked science identities through their engagement in contemporary scientific practices. This set of studies shows that providing students with the

  5. Representing Scientific Communities by Data Visualization (2/2)

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2016-01-01

    This work considers two types of communities as example: a scientific organization and an arising domain: the EPFL institutional community composed of faculty members and researchers and, at a world wide level, the emerging community of Digital Humanities researchers. For both cases, the research is organised as a process going from graphical research to actual materialization as physical artefacts (posters, maps, etc.), possibly extended using digital devices (augmented reality applications). T...

  6. Developing the critical thinking skills of astrobiology students through creative and scientific inquiry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foster, Jamie S; Lemus, Judith D

    2015-01-01

    Scientific inquiry represents a multifaceted approach to explore and understand the natural world. Training students in the principles of scientific inquiry can help promote the scientific learning process as well as help students enhance their understanding of scientific research. Here, we report on the development and implementation of a learning module that introduces astrobiology students to the concepts of creative and scientific inquiry, as well as provide practical exercises to build critical thinking skills. The module contained three distinct components: (1) a creative inquiry activity designed to introduce concepts regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry; (2) guidelines to help astrobiology students formulate and self-assess questions regarding various scientific content and imagery; and (3) a practical exercise where students were allowed to watch a scientific presentation and practice their analytical skills. Pre- and post-course surveys were used to assess the students' perceptions regarding creative and scientific inquiry and whether this activity impacted their understanding of the scientific process. Survey results indicate that the exercise helped improve students' science skills by promoting awareness regarding the role of creativity in scientific inquiry and building their confidence in formulating and assessing scientific questions. Together, the module and survey results confirm the need to include such inquiry-based activities into the higher education classroom, thereby helping students hone their critical thinking and question asking skill set and facilitating their professional development in astrobiology.

  7. Scientific events of the Turner Scientific And Research Institute for children’s orthopedics as a form of continuous medical education for pediatric traumatologists

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Karina S. Solovyova

    2017-03-01

    Full Text Available The experience of the Turner Scientific and Research Institute for Children's Orthopedics in educational activities for improvement of the professional knowledge of pediatric physicians was represented. The target audience of the continuous medical education include traumatologists, pediatric surgeons, and doctors of related specialties of Russia that are involved in diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of children with injuries, congenital and acquired diseases of the musculoskeletal system. Since 1986, the Institute has organized 28 all-Russian scientific and practical conferences on topical issues of traumatology and orthopedics of pediatric age in 22 different cities across the country. In the interest of the institute, the school of pediatric orthopedists is constantly working for district orthopedists of children's polyclinics of St. Petersburg, and regular monothematic seminars are performed with the participation of leading Russian experts and visiting lecturers from abroad. These scientific and practical activities improve the professional skills of doctors and help them improve the provision of specialized care to children.

  8. Scientific Utopia: An agenda for improving scientific communication (Invited)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nosek, B.

    2013-12-01

    The scientist's primary incentive is publication. In the present culture, open practices do not increase chances of publication, and they often require additional work. Practicing the abstract scientific values of openness and reproducibility thus requires behaviors in addition to those relevant for the primary, concrete rewards. When in conflict, concrete rewards are likely to dominate over abstract ones. As a consequence, the reward structure for scientists does not encourage openness and reproducibility. This can be changed by nudging incentives to align scientific practices with scientific values. Science will benefit by creating and connecting technologies that nudge incentives while supporting and improving the scientific workflow. For example, it should be as easy to search the research literature for my topic as it is to search the Internet to find hilarious videos of cats falling off of furniture. I will introduce the Center for Open Science (http://centerforopenscience.org/) and efforts to improve openness and reproducibility such as http://openscienceframework.org/. There will be no cats.

  9. Practical scientific computing

    CERN Document Server

    Muhammad, A

    2011-01-01

    Scientific computing is about developing mathematical models, numerical methods and computer implementations to study and solve real problems in science, engineering, business and even social sciences. Mathematical modelling requires deep understanding of classical numerical methods. This essential guide provides the reader with sufficient foundations in these areas to venture into more advanced texts. The first section of the book presents numEclipse, an open source tool for numerical computing based on the notion of MATLAB®. numEclipse is implemented as a plug-in for Eclipse, a leading integ

  10. Investigating Assessment Bias for Constructed Response Explanation Tasks: Implications for Evaluating Performance Expectations for Scientific Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Federer, Meghan Rector

    Assessment is a key element in the process of science education teaching and research. Understanding sources of performance bias in science assessment is a major challenge for science education reforms. Prior research has documented several limitations of instrument types on the measurement of students' scientific knowledge (Liu et al., 2011; Messick, 1995; Popham, 2010). Furthermore, a large body of work has been devoted to reducing assessment biases that distort inferences about students' science understanding, particularly in multiple-choice [MC] instruments. Despite the above documented biases, much has yet to be determined for constructed response [CR] assessments in biology and their use for evaluating students' conceptual understanding of scientific practices (such as explanation). Understanding differences in science achievement provides important insights into whether science curricula and/or assessments are valid representations of student abilities. Using the integrative framework put forth by the National Research Council (2012), this dissertation aimed to explore whether assessment biases occur for assessment practices intended to measure students' conceptual understanding and proficiency in scientific practices. Using a large corpus of undergraduate biology students' explanations, three studies were conducted to examine whether known biases of MC instruments were also apparent in a CR instrument designed to assess students' explanatory practice and understanding of evolutionary change (ACORNS: Assessment of COntextual Reasoning about Natural Selection). The first study investigated the challenge of interpreting and scoring lexically ambiguous language in CR answers. The incorporation of 'multivalent' terms into scientific discourse practices often results in statements or explanations that are difficult to interpret and can produce faulty inferences about student knowledge. The results of this study indicate that many undergraduate biology majors

  11. Using Learning Analytics to Understand Scientific Modeling in the Classroom

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    David Quigley

    2017-11-01

    Full Text Available Scientific models represent ideas, processes, and phenomena by describing important components, characteristics, and interactions. Models are constructed across various scientific disciplines, such as the food web in biology, the water cycle in Earth science, or the structure of the solar system in astronomy. Models are central for scientists to understand phenomena, construct explanations, and communicate theories. Constructing and using models to explain scientific phenomena is also an essential practice in contemporary science classrooms. Our research explores new techniques for understanding scientific modeling and engagement with modeling practices. We work with students in secondary biology classrooms as they use a web-based software tool—EcoSurvey—to characterize organisms and their interrelationships found in their local ecosystem. We use learning analytics and machine learning techniques to answer the following questions: (1 How can we automatically measure the extent to which students’ scientific models support complete explanations of phenomena? (2 How does the design of student modeling tools influence the complexity and completeness of students’ models? (3 How do clickstreams reflect and differentiate student engagement with modeling practices? We analyzed EcoSurvey usage data collected from two different deployments with over 1,000 secondary students across a large urban school district. We observe large variations in the completeness and complexity of student models, and large variations in their iterative refinement processes. These differences reveal that certain key model features are highly predictive of other aspects of the model. We also observe large differences in student modeling practices across different classrooms and teachers. We can predict a student’s teacher based on the observed modeling practices with a high degree of accuracy without significant tuning of the predictive model. These results highlight

  12. MOLECULAR GASTRONOMY IN FUNCTION OF SCIENTIFIC IMPLEMENTATION IN PRACTICE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivanovic Slobodan

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Modern culinary direction - molecular gastronomy is very complex, and the relative youth of that direction affects the ignorance of the matter by a large number of professionals and the general public. It is precisely this lack of matter which causes a number of disagreements between chefs and scientists, while there is a number of related debates about aspects of molecular gastronomy, especially in connection with a change in its gastronomic cuisine. The main focus of disagreement lies in the name of ''molecular'', which mostly leads to a misunderstanding, because of the identification with something microscopic. A very common mistake is to address this branch of gastronomy as a style of cooking, which she doesn't represent. The second mistake is naming its practical application of molecular cooking, molecular cuisine. Molecular gastronomy is a scientific discipline that studies food and asks questions and gives answers so far unanswered questions about gastronomy. Simply put, molecular gastronomy can be understood as a process of application of science in everyday cooking, and the application of molecular gastronomy in the kitchen. Modern man with his awareness made some chefs to reconsider the adoption of these radical ideas to accomplish the fusion of science and gastronomy. This idea is established as a full hit, because today the best restaurants in the world, the vast majority of those who have seen the benefits of these two joints before incompatible branches of human activity. As a culinary direction it quickly spread to Western Europe and North America, and it later spread to other parts of the world, but Croatia and neighboring countries are not one of them. Molecular gastronomy shows the trends of further progress, and in the future molecular gastronomy will be more prevalent and popular.

  13. Introduction to four papers on Curt Richter and analysis of his scientific practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Smith, Gerard P

    2007-09-01

    Curt Richter was one of the founders of our field. He did outstanding research for over 60 years. Richter did fundamental work in appetite for food and minerals in the 1930s and discovered the homeostatic functions of ingestive behavior. This paper introduces four papers on specific topics of his work by contemporaneous experts. Each of the papers reviews Richter's experiments and then shows how the problem developed since he left it. The papers demonstrate that providing the historical basis for contemporary science is not only instructive, it is also heuristic for the science waiting to be done. In addition to introducing the four papers, I analyze the scientific ideas, values, and men that influenced Richter's scientific practice. I conclude that Claude Bernard, Walter Cannon, Francois Magendie, and Maurice Arthus were important for Richter's scientific ideas and values, but it was the joy of research that explains his experimental success for over 60 years.

  14. Developing Students’ Reflections about the Function and Status of Mathematical Modeling in Different Scientific Practices

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjeldsen, Tinne Hoff; Blomhøj, Morten

    2013-01-01

    position held by the modeler(s) and the practitioners in the extra-mathematical domain. For students to experience the significance of different scientific practices and cultures for the function and status of mathematical modeling in other sciences, students need to be placed in didactical situations......Mathematical models and mathematical modeling play different roles in the different areas and problems in which they are used. The function and status of mathematical modeling and models in the different areas depend on the scientific practice as well as the underlying philosophical and theoretical...... where such differences are exposed and made into explicit objects of their reflections. It can be difficult to create such situations in the teaching of contemporary science in which modeling is part of the culture. In this paper we show how history can serve as a means for students to be engaged...

  15. Innovating Chinese Herbal Medicine: From Traditional Health Practice to Scientific Drug Discovery

    OpenAIRE

    Gu, Shuo; Pei, Jianfeng

    2017-01-01

    As one of the major contemporary alternative medicines, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) continues its influence in Chinese communities and has begun to attract the academic attention in the world of western medicine. This paper aims to examine Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), the essential branch of TCM, from both narrative and scientific perspectives. CHM is a traditional health practice originated from Chinese philosophy and religion, holding the belief of holism and balance in the body. W...

  16. Improving Student Achievement and Teacher Effectiveness through Scientifically Based Practices. NCREL Viewpoints, Number 11

    Science.gov (United States)

    Schuch, Linda, Ed.

    2004-01-01

    "Viewpoints" is a multimedia package containing two audio CDs and a short, informative booklet. This volume of "Viewpoints" focuses on using scientifically based practices to improve student achievement and teacher effectiveness. The audio CDs provide the voices, or viewpoints, of various leaders from the education field who have worked closely…

  17. Representative process sampling - in practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Esbensen, Kim; Friis-Pedersen, Hans Henrik; Julius, Lars Petersen

    2007-01-01

    Didactic data sets representing a range of real-world processes are used to illustrate "how to do" representative process sampling and process characterisation. The selected process data lead to diverse variogram expressions with different systematics (no range vs. important ranges; trends and....../or periodicity; different nugget effects and process variations ranging from less than one lag to full variogram lag). Variogram data analysis leads to a fundamental decomposition into 0-D sampling vs. 1-D process variances, based on the three principal variogram parameters: range, sill and nugget effect...

  18. Didactical-Scientific Modeling: integrating experimental activities and the process of scientific modeling in the teaching of Physics

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leonardo Albuquerque Heidemann

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The dissociated way with which the theory and practice are often treated in Physics teaching contributes to students' difficulties in using scientific knowledge to represent real events, which are not idealized situations as the events presented in most textbook problems. Considering that the process of scientific modeling is of fundamental importance for students to learn Science, about Science and how to do Science, Brandão, Araujo and Veit, supported by Vergnaud's Theory of Conceptual Fields and by Bunge's concept of scientific modeling, propose a theoretical-methodological framework for modeling in Physics Education named Didactical-Scientific Modeling (DSM. The authors defend the thesis that it is possible to consider the process of scientific modeling as a conceptual field underlying the specific conceptual fields of Physics. They elucidate knowledge associated to the facing of problems that involve the use, exploration and validation of didactical versions of scientific models. However, the goal of this framework is not to explain how the concepts related to empirical testability are connected to scientific modeling concepts. In order to fill this gap, we present in this article an expansion of this theoretical-methodological framework based on Bunge's concepts on contrasting scientific ideas. In this regard, we insert experimental work concepts in the conceptual field associated to the process of didactical-scientific modeling. Lastly, we exemplify its use in order to support the design and execution of experimental activities focused on the scientific-didactical process, and we also discuss some implications for future research in Physics Education.

  19. The analysis of scientific-practical tools of the company creditworthiness evaluation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sokolova Lyudmila

    2016-04-01

    Full Text Available The article examines methodical approaches of evaluation of industrial companies’ credit ability. On the bases of critical analysis of professional literature on the subject of the study, the definition of basic concepts was determined; the existing scientific and methodological tools of creditworthiness evaluation of the company were examined. The solution scheme of the company credit rating calculating algorithm was done. It’s implementation is based on the author's mathematical software. The authors performed an experimental testing of the proposed methodological approach, which allowed to establish appropriate recommendations of practical orientation.

  20. Careful science? Bodywork and care practices in randomised clinical trials

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Jespersen, Astrid Pernille; Bønnelycke, Julie; Eriksen, Hanne Hellerup

    2013-01-01

    Concern about obesity has prompted numerous public health campaigns that urge people to be more physically active. The campaigns often include normative statements and attempt to impose restrictions on individuals' lives without considering the complexities of daily life. We suggest that broadening...... into different exercise groups. In this article we analyse the scientific work of the trial as representing entangled processes of bodywork, where data are extracted and objectified bodies are manipulated and care practices address the emotional, social and mundane aspects of the participants' everyday lives....... Care practices are an inherent part of producing scientific facts but they are removed from the recognised results of scientific practice and thus from common public health recommendations. However, knowledge about the strategic use of care practices in lifestyle interventions is important for public...

  1. Teacher formation related to socio-scientific issues: complexity, contributions and limitations of an educational practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mariuce Campos de Moraes

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available This reflection refers to teacher formation related to socio-scientific issues. Whereas such matters take into account the impact of scientific development in society, including ethical aspects and encompass dilemmas involving a wide range of prospects for its resolution, we propose analysis of the complexity that is inherent in their teaching. Thus, we aimed to analyze different spaces and teaching time that produce and are produced in close linkage between theory and practice, as well as their contributions and limitations. The study required a dynamic conversation system that led to the analysis indicators. The issue of sustainability was shown to be feasible for educational planning as cover technical and scientific knowledge, ethical, social and economic pressures. The collective production allowed understand arguments and reflective-creative processes. The lived relations in schools has accompanied and limited the ideas expressed on the socio-scientific issues. We understand that the simultaneity of research and reflection in the sociocultural context has strengthened teacher formation.

  2. Proceedings of scientific, practical and methodical conference devoted to 30-years anniversary of the institute

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kulazhanova, K.S.

    1996-01-01

    Collection consists of materials of scientific, practical and methodological conference devoted to 30-year anniversary of the Almaty Technological Inst., which considered following items: actual problems of food and light industry, equipment of food and grain-processing productions, chemistry of foodstuffs and materials etc. (author)

  3. The Role of Student-Advisor Interactions in Apprenticing Undergraduate Researchers into a Scientific Community of Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thiry, Heather; Laursen, Sandra L.

    2011-12-01

    Among science educators, current interest in undergraduate research (UR) is influenced both by the traditional role of the research apprenticeship in scientists' preparation and by concerns about replacing the current scientific workforce. Recent research has begun to demonstrate the range of personal, professional, and intellectual benefits for STEM students from participating in UR, yet the processes by which student-advisor interactions contribute to these benefits are little understood. We employ situated learning theory (Lave and Wenger, Situated learning: legitimate peripheral participation, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge in 1991) to examine the role of student-advisor interactions in apprenticing undergraduate researchers, particularly in terms of acculturating students to the norms, values, and professional practice of science. This qualitative study examines interviews with a diverse sample of 73 undergraduate research students from two research-extensive institutions. From these interviews, we articulate a continuum of practices that research mentors employed in three domains to support undergraduate scientists-in-training: professional socialization, intellectual support, and personal/emotional support. The needs of novice students differed from those of experienced students in each of these areas. Novice students needed clear expectations, guidelines, and orientation to their specific research project, while experienced students needed broader socialization in adopting the traits, habits, and temperament of scientific researchers. Underrepresented minority students, and to a lesser extent, women, gained confidence from their interactions with their research mentors and broadened their future career and educational possibilities. Undergraduate research at research-extensive universities exemplifies a cycle of scientific learning and practice where undergraduate researchers are mentored by graduate students and postdoctoral researchers, who are

  4. The present and future of cardiac CT in research and clinical practice. Moderated discussion and scientific debate with representatives from the four main vendors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dewey, M.; Vries, H. de; Vries, L. de; Haas, D.; Leidecker, C.

    2010-01-01

    Noninvasive imaging of the heart using computed tomography (CT) is an increasingly important diagnostic approach for patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease. Coronary CT angiography has recently received great attention because it provides imaging of the coronary arteries and quantification of the coronary plaque burden with a spatial and temporal resolution not available with any other noninvasive imaging test. In this moderated scientific debate we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different technical solutions to CT imaging of the fast moving heart including its small and tortuous coronary arteries. Our discussion goes into the details of developments regarding larger Z-axis coverage (320-row volume CT, high pitch spiral acquisition), improved temporal resolution (dual-source CT, adaptive multi-segment reconstruction, and shorter gantry rotation times with air-bearing gantries), improved spatial resolution (high-definition detectors), and improved reconstruction algorithms (iterative reconstruction, cone beam reconstruction). The discussion also touches on the future technological developments that will be necessary to further improve the acceptance and widespread clinical use of cardiac CT, focusing on radiation exposure reduction and independence from heart rate. Finally, the representatives of the four main vendors explain the most important research projects regarding cardiac CT that they plan to pursue in the near future.

  5. The present and future of cardiac CT in research and clinical practice. Moderated discussion and scientific debate with representatives from the four main vendors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Dewey, M. [Charite Berlin (Germany). Radiology; Vries, H. de [Toshiba Medical Systems Europe, Zoetermeer (Netherlands). CT; Vries, L. de [Philips Medical Systems Europe (Netherlands). CT; Haas, D. [GE Healthcare (Germany). CT; Leidecker, C. [Siemens Medical Solutions (Germany). CT

    2010-04-15

    Noninvasive imaging of the heart using computed tomography (CT) is an increasingly important diagnostic approach for patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease. Coronary CT angiography has recently received great attention because it provides imaging of the coronary arteries and quantification of the coronary plaque burden with a spatial and temporal resolution not available with any other noninvasive imaging test. In this moderated scientific debate we discuss the advantages and disadvantages of different technical solutions to CT imaging of the fast moving heart including its small and tortuous coronary arteries. Our discussion goes into the details of developments regarding larger Z-axis coverage (320-row volume CT, high pitch spiral acquisition), improved temporal resolution (dual-source CT, adaptive multi-segment reconstruction, and shorter gantry rotation times with air-bearing gantries), improved spatial resolution (high-definition detectors), and improved reconstruction algorithms (iterative reconstruction, cone beam reconstruction). The discussion also touches on the future technological developments that will be necessary to further improve the acceptance and widespread clinical use of cardiac CT, focusing on radiation exposure reduction and independence from heart rate. Finally, the representatives of the four main vendors explain the most important research projects regarding cardiac CT that they plan to pursue in the near future.

  6. Fluid dynamics practices as a scientific divulgation tool in high school education

    OpenAIRE

    Fabiano Tavares da Silva; Lamon Benevides de Souza; Leôncio Diógenes Tavares Câmara

    2016-01-01

    http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1807-0221.2016v13n24p94 This extension project was designed to bring together students from high schools in Nova Friburgo-RJ region with the Instituto Politécnico IPRJ / UERJ, providing an experience within the university with scientific incentive practices to the area of sciences and earth. Introducing the universe and diversity in the mathematics and science area with a short course aimed to studies of particles analysis, viscosity and permeability, this initia...

  7. A STUDY ON THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING PRACTICE

    OpenAIRE

    Ana Paula Batista da Silva; Ernani Ott

    2012-01-01

    The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between scientific research and professional accounting practice. In this exploratory study, as it examines a theme that has been little explored in Brazil, a quantitative approach was adopted and a survey was used as the data collection technique, supported by a research instrument with questions on aspects like: interest in and use of research; study and development of themes; means to disseminate the research; and causes of the gap betwe...

  8. Collaborative Learning in the Scientific Community of Practice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jesionkowska, J.

    2016-01-01

    Full text: The paper describes research done in the scope of doctoral project. The aim of the study is to discover how to improve the process of collaborative learning in the community of scientists by the development of a community of practice. A mixed methods approach was used combining data from content analysis, interviews and questionnaires. Results show that such community helps to build relationships and network with others, it motivates to share work-related knowledge, represents an area of common interest for organization, but also that it is mainly driven by the willingness of members and is lacking instruments to share ideas. (author

  9. Scientific teaching: defining a taxonomy of observable practices.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Couch, Brian A; Brown, Tanya L; Schelpat, Tyler J; Graham, Mark J; Knight, Jennifer K

    2015-03-02

    Over the past several decades, numerous reports have been published advocating for changes to undergraduate science education. These national calls inspired the formation of the National Academies Summer Institutes on Undergraduate Education in Biology (SI), a group of regional workshops to help faculty members learn and implement interactive teaching methods. The SI curriculum promotes a pedagogical framework called Scientific Teaching (ST), which aims to bring the vitality of modern research into the classroom by engaging students in the scientific discovery process and using student data to inform the ongoing development of teaching methods. With the spread of ST, the need emerges to systematically define its components in order to establish a common description for education researchers and practitioners. We describe the development of a taxonomy detailing ST's core elements and provide data from classroom observations and faculty surveys in support of its applicability within undergraduate science courses. The final taxonomy consists of 15 pedagogical goals and 37 supporting practices, specifying observable behaviors, artifacts, and features associated with ST. This taxonomy will support future educational efforts by providing a framework for researchers studying the processes and outcomes of ST-based course transformations as well as a concise guide for faculty members developing classes. © 2015 B. A. Couch et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2015 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

  10. Radiation protection. Scientific fundamentals, legal regulations, practical applications. Compendium

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Buchert, Guido; Gay, Juergen; Kirchner, Gerald; Michel, Rolf; Niggemann, Guenter; Schumann, Joerg; Wust, Peter; Jaehnert, Susanne; Strilek, Ralf; Martini, Ekkehard

    2011-06-01

    The compendium on radiation protection, scientific fundamentals, legal regulations and practical applications includes contributions to the following issues: (1) Effects and risk of ionizing radiation: fundamentals on effects and risk of ionizing radiation, news in radiation biology, advantages and disadvantages of screening investigations; (2) trends and legal regulations concerning radiation protection: development of European and national radiation protection laws, new regulations concerning X-rays, culture and ethics of radiation protection; (3) dosimetry and radiation measuring techniques: personal scanning using GHz radiation, new ''dose characteristics'' in practice, measuring techniques for the nuclear danger prevention and emergency hazard control; (4) radiation exposure in medicine: radiation exposure of modern medical techniques, heavy ion radiotherapy, deterministic and stochastic risks of the high-conformal photon radiotherapy, STEMO project - mobile CT for apoplectic stroke patients; (5) radiation exposure in technology: legal control of high-level radioactive sources, technical and public safety using enclosed radioactive sources for materials testing, radiation exposure in aviation, radon in Bavaria, NPP Fukushima-Daiichi - a status report; (6) radiation exposure in nuclear engineering: The Chernobyl accident - historical experiences or sustaining problem? European standards for radioactive waste disposal, radioactive material disposal in Germany risk assessment of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation (7) Case studies.

  11. Fuzzy pictures as philosophical problem and scientific practice a study of visual vagueness

    CERN Document Server

    Cat, Jordi

    2017-01-01

    This book presents a comprehensive discussion on the characterization of vagueness in pictures. It reports on how the problem of representation of images has been approached in scientific practice, highlighting the role of mathematical methods and the philosophical background relevant for issues such as representation, categorization and reasoning. Without delving too much into the technical details, the book examines and defends different kinds of values of fuzziness based on a complex approach to categorization as a practice, adopting conceptual and empirical suggestions from different fields including the arts. It subsequently advances criticisms and provides suggestions for interpretation and application. By describing a cognitive framework based on fuzzy, rough and near sets, and discussing all of the relevant mathematical and philosophical theories for the representation and processing of vagueness in images, the book offers a practice-oriented guide to fuzzy visual reasoning, along with novel insights ...

  12. Academic Writing in Reflexive Professional Writing: Citations of Scientific Literature in Supervised Pre-Service Training Reports

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lívia Chaves de Melo

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available In this paper we investigate citation practices of scientific literature in reflexive writing from the genre of supervised pre-service training report produced by pre-service teachers enrolled in the mandatory pre-service training subject of English Language Teaching, at an undergraduate language teaching course. The aim of this research is to analyze how these pre-services teacher represent themselves based on citation practices of scientific literature, and characterize some of the functions deployed by the citations in the reflexive writing emerging in the academic sphere. We use the dialogic approach to language from Bakhtinian studies as a theoretical base, as well as theoretical and methodological contributions regarding types of sequences and of discourse proposed by Adam and Bronckart. The results of this research show that the practice of citation of scientific literature is an invocation of authority as a form of erudition, amplification and ornamentation of the discourse produced. This practice can also guide pedagogical action developed by pre-service teachers in their supervised training.

  13. Supporting students' scientific explanations: A case study investigating the synergy focusing on a teacher's practices when providing instruction and using mobile devices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Delen, Ibrahim

    Engage students in constructing scientific practices is a critical component of science instruction. Therefore a number of researchers have developed software programs to help students and teachers in this hard task. The Zydeco group, designed a mobile application called Zydeco, which enables students to collect data inside and outside the classroom, and then use the data to create scientific explanations by using claim-evidence-reasoning framework. Previous technologies designed to support scientific explanations focused on how these programs improve students' scientific explanations, but these programs ignored how scientific explanation technologies can support teacher practices. Thus, to increase our knowledge how different scaffolds can work together, this study aimed to portray the synergy between a teacher's instructional practices (part 1) and using supports within a mobile devices (part 2) to support students in constructing explanations. Synergy can be thought of as generic and content-specific scaffolds working together to enable students to accomplish challenging tasks, such as creating explanations that they would not normally be able to do without the scaffolds working together. Providing instruction (part 1) focused on understanding how the teacher scaffolds students' initial understanding of the claim-evidence-reasoning (CER) framework. The second component of examining synergy (part 2: using mobile devices) investigated how this teacher used mobile devices to provide feedback when students created explanations. The synergy between providing instruction and using mobile devices was investigated by analyzing a middle school teacher's practices in two different units (plants and water quality). Next, this study focused on describing how the level of synergy influenced the quality of students' scientific explanations. Finally, I investigated the role of focused teaching intervention sessions to inform teacher in relation to students' performance. In

  14. Characteristics of Spanish articles of "scientific quality" cited in clinical practice guidelines on mental health.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Permanyer-Miralda, Gaietà; Adam, Paula; Guillamón, Imma; Solans-Domènech, Maite; Pons, Joan M V

    2013-01-01

    The study aims to illustrate the impact of Spanish research in clinical decision making. To this end, we analysed the characteristics of the most significant Spanish publications cited in clinical practice guidelines (CPG) on mental health. We conducted a descriptive qualitative study on the characteristics of ten articles cited in Spanish CPG on mental health, and selected for their "scientific quality". We analysed the content of the articles on the basis of the following characteristics: topics, study design, research centres, scientific and practical relevance, type of funding, and area or influence of the reference to the content of the guidelines. Among the noteworthy studies, some basic science studies, which have examined the establishment of genetic associations in the pathogenesis of mental illness are included, and others on the effectiveness of educational interventions. The content of those latter had more influence on the GPC, because they were cited in the summary of the scientific evidence or in the recommendations. Some of the outstanding features in the selected articles are the sophisticated designs (experimental or analytical), and the number of study centres, especially in international collaborations. Debate or refutation of previous findings on controversial issues may have also contributed to the extensive citation of work. The inclusion of studies in the CPG is not a sufficient condition of "quality", but their description can be instructive for the design of future research or publications. Copyright © 2012 SEP y SEPB. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  15. Do patients discharged from advanced practice physiotherapy-led clinics re-present to specialist medical services?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Angela T; Gavaghan, Belinda; O'Leary, Shaun; McBride, Liza-Jane; Raymer, Maree

    2017-05-15

    Objective The aim of the present study was to determine the rates of re-referral to specialist out-patient clinics for patients previously managed and discharged from an advanced practice physiotherapy-led service in three metropolitan hospitals. Methods A retrospective audit was undertaken of 462 patient cases with non-urgent musculoskeletal conditions discharged between 1 April 2014 and 30 March 2015 from three metropolitan hospitals. These patients had been discharged from the physiotherapy-led service without requiring specialist medical review. Rates and patterns of re-referral to specialist orthopaedic, neurosurgical, chronic pain, or rheumatology services within 12 months of discharge were investigated. Results Forty-six of the 462 patients (10.0%) who were managed by the physiotherapy-led service were re-referred to specialist medical orthopaedic, neurosurgical, chronic pain or rheumatology departments within 12 months of discharge. Only 22 of these patients (4.8%) were re-referred for the same condition as managed previously and discharged. Conclusions Ninety-five per cent of patients with non-urgent musculoskeletal conditions managed by an advanced practice physiotherapy-led service at three metropolitan hospitals did not re-present to access public specialist medical services for the same condition within 12 months of discharge. This is the first time that re-presentation rates have been reported for patients managed in advanced practice physiotherapy services and the findings support the effectiveness of these models of care in managing demand for speciality out-patient services. What is known about the topic? Advanced practice physiotherapy-led services have been implemented to address the needs of patients referred with non-urgent musculoskeletal conditions to hospital specialist out-patient services. Although this model is widely used in Australia, there has been very little information about whether patients managed in these services subsequently re-present

  16. Fluid dynamics practices as a scientific divulgation tool in high school education

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fabiano Tavares da Silva

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available http://dx.doi.org/10.5007/1807-0221.2016v13n24p94 This extension project was designed to bring together students from high schools in Nova Friburgo-RJ region with the Instituto Politécnico IPRJ / UERJ, providing an experience within the university with scientific incentive practices to the area of sciences and earth. Introducing the universe and diversity in the mathematics and science area with a short course aimed to studies of particles analysis, viscosity and permeability, this initiative encompasses more than knowledge of these activities, but also restore the link between school and university, inserting the high school students in the university environment and scientific activities. The importance of providing a "north" for teens, due to the great difficulty of choosing their profession, makes this Extension Project a potential tool that will certainly contribute to the professional future of these young citizens. Therefore, the students had a laboratory experience and also it was possible to motivate them to go further in the superior education through the awareness that university is accessible to all of people.

  17. Lessons Learned about Best Practices for Communicating Earthquake Forecasting and Early Warning to Non-Scientific Publics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sellnow, D. D.; Sellnow, T. L.

    2017-12-01

    Earthquake scientists are without doubt experts in understanding earthquake probabilities, magnitudes, and intensities, as well as the potential consequences of them to community infrastructures and inhabitants. One critical challenge these scientific experts face, however, rests with communicating what they know to the people they want to help. Helping scientists translate scientific information to non-scientists is something Drs. Tim and Deanna Sellnow have been committed to for decades. As such, they have compiled a host of data-driven best practices for communicating effectively to non-scientific publics about earthquake forecasting, probabilities, and warnings. In this session, they will summarize what they have learned as it may help earthquake scientists, emergency managers, and other key spokespersons share these important messages to disparate publics in ways that result in positive outcomes, the most important of which is saving lives.

  18. Recording Scientific Knowledge

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bowker, Geof

    2006-01-01

    The way we record knowledge, and the web of technical, formal, and social practices that surrounds it, inevitably affects the knowledge that we record. The ways we hold knowledge about the past - in handwritten manuscripts, in printed books, in file folders, in databases - shape the kind of stories we tell about that past. In this talk, I look at how over the past two hundred years, information technology has affected the nature and production of scientific knowledge. Further, I explore ways in which the emergent new cyberinfrastructure is changing our relationship to scientific practice.

  19. Affordances and Challenges of Using Argument as a Connective Discourse for Scientific Practices to Teach Climate Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sezen-Barrie, A.; Wolfson, J.

    2015-12-01

    An important goal of science education is to support development of citizens to participate in public debate and make informed decisions relevant to their lives and their worlds. The NGSS (Next Generation Science Standards) suggest engaging students in science classrooms in argumentation as a practice to help enhance the quality of evidence based decision making. In this multi-case study, we explored the use of written argumentation in eight secondary school science classrooms during a lesson on the relationship between ocean temperature and its CO2 holding capacity. All teachers of these classrooms were trained during a day long NSF funded Climate Literacy Workshop on the basic concepts of climate science, scientific practices and implementation of an activity called "It's a Gassy World". The data of the current study involved students' written arguments, teachers' written reflections on the implementation of the activity as well as field notes from the Climate Literacy Workshop. A qualitative discourse analysis of the data was used to find common themes around affordances and challenges of argument as a connective discourse for scientific practices to teach climate change. The findings show that participating in written argumentation process encouraged students to discuss their experimental design and use data interpretation for their evidences. However, the results also indicated the following challenges: a) teachers themselves need support in connecting their evidence to their claims, b) arguing a socioscientific issue creates a sensitive environment c) conceptual quality of an argument needs to be strengthen through background in courses other than science, and d) graphing skills (or lack of) can interfere with constructing scientifically accurate claims. This study has implications in effectively teaching climate change through argumentation, and thus creating opportunities for practicing authentic climate science research in K-12 classrooms.

  20. Phosphorus Supply Chain—Scientific, Technical, and Economic Foundations: A Transdisciplinary Orientation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Michael C. Mew

    2018-04-01

    Full Text Available Natural mineral resources, such as phosphates, represent global assets of tremendous economic value to stakeholders. Given its special characteristics and its essentiality for all life on Earth, phosphorus (P bears additional value to society as it is both indispensable and not substitutable. Most peers in the field, as well as those coming to phosphorus research, are aware of the complex underlying system dynamics of the P supply chain. In view of the manifold problems involved, scientists from various disciplines as well as practice need to find (new ways to generate, utilize, transfer, and integrate knowledge. This manuscript serves as a best-practice example as it originates from a long-lasting science/practice collaboration and is the result of a mutual learning process. As a cornerstone of the special issue on “Phosphorus Circular Economy: Closing Loops through Sustainable Innovation” we provide state-of-the-art scientific knowledge as well as practical expert insights from the perspectives of geology, technology, economics, and policy making. This manuscript shall help scientific peers, the public, respective companies, and policymakers to address the issue of sustainable phosphorus management.

  1. Articulating Scientific Practice: Understanding Dean Hamer's "Gay Gene" Study as Overlapping Material, Social and Rhetorical Registers

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lynch, John A.

    2009-01-01

    Rhetoricians have tried to develop a better understanding of the connection between words and things, but these attempts often employ a logic of representation that undermines a full examination of materiality and the complexity of scientific practice. A logic of articulation offers a viable alternative by focusing attention on the linkages…

  2. Third International Scientific and Practical Conference «Space Travel is Approaching Reality» (Successful Event in Difficult Times

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Matusevych Tetiana

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The article analyzes the presentations of participants of III International Scientific and Practical Conference «Space Travel – approaching reality», held on 6–7 November 2014 in Kharkiv, Ukraine

  3. [Scientific and practical activity of the Department of Muscle Biochemistry of the Palladin Institute of Biochemistry of NAS of Ukraine].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vynogradova, R P; Danilova, V M; Yurasova, S P

    2017-01-01

    The article focuses on scientific and practical activity of the Department of Muscle Biochemistry of the Palladin Institute of Biochemistry of NAS of Ukraine in the context of its foundation and development. Main findings and practical achievements in the area of muscle biochemistry are summarized and discussed.

  4. Abstracts of 3. International scientific-practical conference 'Semipalatinsk Test Site. Radiation Legacy and Non-proliferation Issues'

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2008-01-01

    The Conference gathered representatives of more than 25 countries and international organizations. In the Conference among with actual problems of current environment conditions in Kazakhstan, perspective trends in the field of radiation protection, radio-ecological and radiobiological research and issues of international co-operation in support of non-proliferation regime, other advanced scientific projects were considered [ru

  5. Vacuum technology Practice for scientific instruments

    CERN Document Server

    Yoshimura, Nagamitsu

    2008-01-01

    Nanotechnology has reached a level where almost every new development and even every new product uses features of nanoscopic properties of materials. As a consequence, an enormous amount of scientific instruments is used in order to synthesize and analyze new structures and materials. Due to the surface sensitivity of such materials, many of these instruments require ultrahigh vacuum that has to be provided under extreme conditions like very high voltages. In this book, Yoshimura provides a review of the UHV related development during the last decades. His very broad experience in the design enables him to present us this detailed reference. After a general description how to design UHV systems, he covers all important issue in detail, like pumps, outgasing, Gauges, and Electrodes for high voltages. Thus, this book serves as reference for everybody using UVH in his scientific equipment

  6. Practical guidance on representing the heteroscedasticity of residual errors of hydrological predictions

    Science.gov (United States)

    McInerney, David; Thyer, Mark; Kavetski, Dmitri; Kuczera, George

    2016-04-01

    Appropriate representation of residual errors in hydrological modelling is essential for accurate and reliable probabilistic streamflow predictions. In particular, residual errors of hydrological predictions are often heteroscedastic, with large errors associated with high runoff events. Although multiple approaches exist for representing this heteroscedasticity, few if any studies have undertaken a comprehensive evaluation and comparison of these approaches. This study fills this research gap by evaluating a range of approaches for representing heteroscedasticity in residual errors. These approaches include the 'direct' weighted least squares approach and 'transformational' approaches, such as logarithmic, Box-Cox (with and without fitting the transformation parameter), logsinh and the inverse transformation. The study reports (1) theoretical comparison of heteroscedasticity approaches, (2) empirical evaluation of heteroscedasticity approaches using a range of multiple catchments / hydrological models / performance metrics and (3) interpretation of empirical results using theory to provide practical guidance on the selection of heteroscedasticity approaches. Importantly, for hydrological practitioners, the results will simplify the choice of approaches to represent heteroscedasticity. This will enhance their ability to provide hydrological probabilistic predictions with the best reliability and precision for different catchment types (e.g. high/low degree of ephemerality).

  7. Discovering the Significance of Scientific Design Practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Pries-Heje, Jan; Baskerville, Richard

    2016-01-01

    This paper discusses and defines the achievement of significance in design science research. We review the values and processes of old-science and how this mode of science attacks the complexity of scientific knowledge production through analysis. We then explain how new-science attacks...... the complexity of scientific knowledge production through synthesis. The work argues that significance of the new-science contribution in design science can be obfuscated when wrapped in old-science. This understanding helps reveal how new-science, such as design science research, constitutes its significance...

  8. A STUDY ON THE INTERACTION BETWEEN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL ACCOUNTING PRACTICE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ana Paula Batista da Silva

    2012-06-01

    Full Text Available The aim of this study was to analyze the interaction between scientific research and professional accounting practice. In this exploratory study, as it examines a theme that has been little explored in Brazil, a quantitative approach was adopted and a survey was used as the data collection technique, supported by a research instrument with questions on aspects like: interest in and use of research; study and development of themes; means to disseminate the research; and causes of the gap between research and practice. Considering the objectives, it is classified as descriptive, since it was described how this interaction occurs. Data were analyze through factor analysis in R, resuming them in factors for further analysis, validated through the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO test and Bartlett’s sphericity yet. In conclusion, due to their different characteristics, it is natural that some distancing exists between research and accounting practice. This can be minimized though, among other factors, through professionals’ great interest in knowing and applying the research results in practice, and also by confirming that the most researched themes in accountancy are the themes of greatest interest in accounting professionals’ opinion. These results suggest that greater attention is due to the interaction and communication between the academy and accounting professionals, with a view to greater efficacy.

  9. Lakatos' Scientific Research Programmes as a Framework for Analysing Informal Argumentation about Socio-Scientific Issues

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chang, Shu-Nu; Chiu, Mei-Hung

    2008-01-01

    The purpose of this study is to explore how Lakatos' scientific research programmes might serve as a theoretical framework for representing and evaluating informal argumentation about socio-scientific issues. Seventy undergraduate science and non-science majors were asked to make written arguments about four socio-scientific issues. Our analysis…

  10. Peer Review Practices for Evaluating Biomedical Research Grants: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liaw, Lucy; Freedman, Jane E; Becker, Lance B; Mehta, Nehal N; Liscum, Laura

    2017-08-04

    The biomedical research enterprise depends on the fair and objective peer review of research grants, leading to the distribution of resources through efficient and robust competitive methods. In the United States, federal funding agencies and foundations collectively distribute billions of dollars annually to support biomedical research. For the American Heart Association, a Peer Review Subcommittee is charged with establishing the highest standards for peer review. This scientific statement reviews the current literature on peer review practices, describes the current American Heart Association peer review process and those of other agencies, analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of American Heart Association peer review practices, and recommends best practices for the future. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

  11. Human-scientific Planning Theory

    OpenAIRE

    Hagen, Aksel

    1998-01-01

    This working report is a paper written to XII AESOP Congress 22 – 25 July 1998, Aveiro, Portugal. It is a presentation of human-scientific action theory and its linkage to planning, both planning theory and planning practice. Human-scientific action theory is created by professor Gunnar Olsson and professor José Luis Ramírez, Nordic School of Planning, Stockholm. Planning is primarily a practical and reflective activity. The notion ”Planning” may, therefore, describe the activi...

  12. The Power of Balance: Transforming Self, Society, and Scientific Inquiry

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    William R. Torbert

    2010-03-01

    Full Text Available The “power of balance” as conceived by Torbert represents an integral paradigm of principles, theory, and praxis. Deployed, the paradigm is one that can indeed inform and shape the development of self, society, and scientific inquiry. To explicate that fulsome vision, the book’s fifteen chapters develop the themes of three sections: Theory and Strategy, Heart and Practice, and Vision and Method. Here, we have excerpted from several chapters in Theory and Strategy, and from one chapter in Vision and Method. This means, of course, that we present but a small fraction of this integral classic, leaving out all of the rich, in-depth illustrations, including the author’s learning practice as he first attempted to enact the principles. Yet, we hope even this abbreviated form of The Power of Balance supports at least two goals: to offer deployable insights and practices for developing politics and the political; and to take root as part of a foundational canon for integral political thought, research, and praxis. How we readers deploy these principles in our own actions will determine the degree to which self, society, and scientific inquiry transform.

  13. Rediscovering the scientific ethos

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Djørup, Stine

    The doctoral dissertation discusses some of the moral standards of good scientific practice that areunderexposed in the literature. In particular, attempts are made to correct the conceptual confusionsurrounding the norm of 'disinterestedness' in science (‘uhildethed’), and the norm of scientific...

  14. Assessing Scientific Practices Using Machine-Learning Methods: How Closely Do They Match Clinical Interview Performance?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beggrow, Elizabeth P.; Ha, Minsu; Nehm, Ross H.; Pearl, Dennis; Boone, William J.

    2014-02-01

    The landscape of science education is being transformed by the new Framework for Science Education (National Research Council, A framework for K-12 science education: practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas. The National Academies Press, Washington, DC, 2012), which emphasizes the centrality of scientific practices—such as explanation, argumentation, and communication—in science teaching, learning, and assessment. A major challenge facing the field of science education is developing assessment tools that are capable of validly and efficiently evaluating these practices. Our study examined the efficacy of a free, open-source machine-learning tool for evaluating the quality of students' written explanations of the causes of evolutionary change relative to three other approaches: (1) human-scored written explanations, (2) a multiple-choice test, and (3) clinical oral interviews. A large sample of undergraduates (n = 104) exposed to varying amounts of evolution content completed all three assessments: a clinical oral interview, a written open-response assessment, and a multiple-choice test. Rasch analysis was used to compute linear person measures and linear item measures on a single logit scale. We found that the multiple-choice test displayed poor person and item fit (mean square outfit >1.3), while both oral interview measures and computer-generated written response measures exhibited acceptable fit (average mean square outfit for interview: person 0.97, item 0.97; computer: person 1.03, item 1.06). Multiple-choice test measures were more weakly associated with interview measures (r = 0.35) than the computer-scored explanation measures (r = 0.63). Overall, Rasch analysis indicated that computer-scored written explanation measures (1) have the strongest correspondence to oral interview measures; (2) are capable of capturing students' normative scientific and naive ideas as accurately as human-scored explanations, and (3) more validly detect understanding

  15. Who Justifies Questionable Reporting Practices? Answers from a Representative Survey of Journalists in Germany

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Philip Baugut

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available Based on a secondary analysis of representative survey data of journalists in Germany (n= 1536, this paper draws attention to two variables that are important when it comes to explain whether journalists accept questionable reporting practices, such as paying people to obtain information or using confidential government documents without permission. First, perceived role achievement is important, as journalists who do not feel able to achieve an active role tend to accept questionable reporting practices more often. Second, however, this relationship is only true for journalists having a moderate tendency to the political left. Findings are explained by means of the theory of cognitive dissonance.

  16. Emerging scientific advances: how do they enter dental curricula and the profession?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shuler, Charles F

    2005-10-01

    What is meant by emerging scientific advances? In brief, this terminology is equivalent to new research findings, however, the term "research" is often associated with scientific investigations that have very limited direct clinical relevance. Unfortunately, basic dental research and dental clinical practice have, in many instances, been considered to have nonoverlapping spheres of existence. The existence of mutually exclusive domains is rapidly changing with considerable translational activities between basic research investigation and clinical application developing. There is a growing emphasis at a national level for the importance of moving basic biomedical research laboratory findings into clinical patient-related applications to realize improvements in health based on the research findings. Ultimately, new approaches to diagnose, treat, and prevent disease will be available and represent the translation of the best scientific evidence into clinical applications. It is critical at this time to prepare our dental graduates to be members of the dental profession who will understand the implications that new scientific advances will have on their approach to patient care. The patterns and practices of oral health care delivery will undergo major changes during the careers of our new dental graduates. They need to be prepared to respond to these changes to the benefit of their patients.

  17. From the EEL to the EGO: psychoanalysis and the remnants of Freud's early scientific practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wieser, Martin

    2013-01-01

    While numerous historiographical works have been written to shed light on Freud's early theoretical education in biology, physiology, and medicine and on the influence of that education on psychoanalysis, this paper approaches Freud's basic comprehension of science and methodology by focusing on his early research practice in physiology and neuranatomy. This practice, taking place in the specific context of Ernst Brücke's physiological laboratory in Vienna, was deeply concerned with problems of visuality and the revelation of hidden organic structures by use of proper preparation techniques and optical instruments. The paper explores the connection between such visualizing practices, shaped by a physiological context as they were, and Freud's later convictions of the scientific status of psychoanalysis and the function of its method as means to unveil the concealed structure of the "psychical apparatus". © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

  18. Arctic indigenous peoples as representations and representatives of climate change.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martello, Marybeth Long

    2008-06-01

    Recent scientific findings, as presented in the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA), indicate that climate change in the Arctic is happening now, at a faster rate than elsewhere in the world, and with major implications for peoples of the Arctic (especially indigenous peoples) and the rest of the planet. This paper examines scientific and political representations of Arctic indigenous peoples that have been central to the production and articulation of these claims. ACIA employs novel forms and strategies of representation that reflect changing conceptual models and practices of global change science and depict indigenous peoples as expert, exotic, and at-risk. These portrayals emerge alongside the growing political activism of Arctic indigenous peoples who present themselves as representatives or embodiments of climate change itself as they advocate for climate change mitigation policies. These mutually constitutive forms of representation suggest that scientific ways of seeing the global environment shape and are shaped by the public image and voice of global citizens. Likewise, the authority, credibility, and visibility of Arctic indigenous activists derive, in part, from their status as at-risk experts, a status buttressed by new scientific frameworks and methods that recognize and rely on the local experiences and knowledges of indigenous peoples. Analyses of these relationships linking scientific and political representations of Arctic climate change build upon science and technology studies (STS) scholarship on visualization, challenge conventional notions of globalization, and raise questions about power and accountability in global climate change research.

  19. Creativity, Scientific Practice, and Knowledge Production

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fryer, Marilyn

    2010-01-01

    In this interesting article, Hisham Ghassib (2010) describes the transformation of science from its craft status in a pre-modern era to the major knowledge industry it is today. He then compares the production of scientific knowledge with industrial production, but makes the important distinction between the process of developing scientific…

  20. Scientists' conceptions of scientific inquiry: Revealing a private side of science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Reiff, Rebecca R.

    in inquiry investigations, the relationship of scientific inquiry to the nature of science, whether the process of scientific inquiry follows the traditional scientific method, and the similarities and differences in conceptualizations of scientific inquiry across science disciplines. These findings represent a private side of science, which can be useful in characterizing key features of scientific inquiry to be incorporated into K--16 teaching practices.

  1. Computer simulations and the changing face of scientific experimentation

    CERN Document Server

    Duran, Juan M

    2013-01-01

    Computer simulations have become a central tool for scientific practice. Their use has replaced, in many cases, standard experimental procedures. This goes without mentioning cases where the target system is empirical but there are no techniques for direct manipulation of the system, such as astronomical observation. To these cases, computer simulations have proved to be of central importance. The question about their use and implementation, therefore, is not only a technical one but represents a challenge for the humanities as well. In this volume, scientists, historians, and philosophers joi

  2. Using Social Media to Promote Pre-Service Science Teachers' Practices of Socio-Scientific Issue (SSI) - Based Teaching

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pitiporntapin, Sasithep; Lankford, Deanna Marie

    2015-01-01

    This paper addresses using social media to promote pre-service science teachers' practices of Socio-Scientific Issue (SSI) based teaching in a science classroom setting. We designed our research in two phases. The first phase examined pre-service science teachers' perceptions about using social media to promote their SSI-based teaching. The…

  3. Keynote address: the scientific basis of the present and future practice of clinical radiotherapy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fletcher, G.H.

    1983-01-01

    At mid-century radiotherapy was more an art than a science, but is presently based on radiobiological parameters and cell kinetics. This close interaction between basic scientific principles and clinical practice has been made possible because one can correlate quantitatively doses of irradiation with observed responses. First, a short historical review will be made because it gives a perspective for the understanding both of progress made and prevailing misconceptions. The important radiobiological parameters and cell kinetics will then be discussed in some detail to demonstrate that they should be thoroughly understood in their relationship to radiotherapy. The overall treatment planning must be based on the clinical applications of the main radiobiological parameters. The combined treatment with surgery, either pre- or postoperatively, and multiple daily fractionations will be used as examples. The teaching of radiobiology should be considerably expanded, not only for its own scientific merit but also to show how it applies to clinical situations. This should be reflected in the expansion of the board examination

  4. Scientific Strategies and practices in Latin American Scientific Communication Reviews. An approach to their structural features

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dr. Gustavo A. León Duarte

    2007-01-01

    Full Text Available The scientific production of the magazines here analyzed emphasizes the existence of a specializing and dominant perspective of study in the field of the Latin-American research in communication in the last years. This perspective of study has clearly two trends of practical boarding. A trend is the one that is debated in the research applied to the communication in means, where there exists the predominance of two particular lines of study and today probably turned into both principal slopes of study inside the Latin-American research of the communication. On the other hand, there is emphasized the research of the properly academic communication, where, in general lines, his idea of construction it develops from a particular perspective of study of the communication that no doubt is analogous to what they raise and demand separately and with different shades two of the principal institutional initiatives and collective academic that generate nowadays the Latin-American Thought of the Communication (PLC: The called Latin-American School of the Communication (ELACOM and the Researcher Latin-American Association of the Communication (ALAIC.

  5. Associations among School Characteristics and Foodservice Practices in a Nationally Representative Sample of United States Schools

    Science.gov (United States)

    Thomson, Jessica L.; Tussing-Humphreys, Lisa M.; Martin, Corby K.; LeBlanc, Monique M.; Onufrak, Stephen J.

    2012-01-01

    Objective: Determine school characteristics associated with healthy/unhealthy food service offerings or healthy food preparation practices. Design: Secondary analysis of cross-sectional data. Setting: Nationally representative sample of public and private elementary, middle, and high schools. Participants: Data from the 2006 School Health Policies…

  6. Software support for students engaging in scientific activity and scientific controversy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cavalli-Sforza, Violetta; Weiner, Arlene W.; Lesgold, Alan M.

    Computer environments could support students in engaging in cognitive activities that are essential to scientific practice and to the understanding of the nature of scientific knowledge, but that are difficult to manage in science classrooms. The authors describe a design for a computer-based environment to assist students in conducting dialectical activities of constructing, comparing, and evaluating arguments for competing scientific theories. Their choice of activities and their design respond to educators' and theorists' criticisms of current science curricula. They give detailed specifications of portions of the environment.

  7. The influence of authentic scientific research experiences on teachers' conceptions of the nature of science (NOS) and their NOS teaching practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moriarty, Meghan A.

    This study explored the influence of teachers' authentic scientific research experiences (ASREs) on teachers' conceptions of the nature of science (NOS) and teachers' NOS instruction. Twelve high school biology teachers participated in this study. Six of the participants had authentic scientific research experience (ASRE) and six had not participated in authentic scientific research. Data included background surveys, modified Views of the Nature of Science (VNOS) questionnaires, interviews, and teaching observations. Data was coded based on the eight NOS understandings outlined in 2013 in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). Evidence from this study indicates participating in authentic scientific research as a member of a scientific community has dual benefits of enabling high school science teachers with informed understandings of the NOS and positioning them to teach with the NOS. However, these benefits do not always result from an ASRE. If the nature of the ASRE is limited, then it may limit teachers' NOS understandings and their NOS teaching practices. The results of this study suggest that participation in ASREs may be one way to improve teachers' NOS understandings and teaching practices if the experiences themselves offer a comprehensive view of the NOS. Because ASREs and other science learning experiences do not always offer such experiences, pre-service teacher education and professional development opportunities may engage science teachers in two ways: (1) becoming part of a scientific community may enable them to teach with NOS and (2) being reflective about what being a scientist means may improve teachers' NOS understandings and better position them to teach about NOS.. Keywords: nature of science, authentic scientific research experiences, Next Generation Science Standards, teaching about NOS, teaching with NOS.

  8. Scientific Progress in Strategic Management

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Foss, Nicolai Juul

    Does the RBV represent a case of scientific progress? And has it emerged as the dominant approach to the analysis of competitive advantage for this reason? Conventional criteria for scientific progress, notably those of the growth of knowledge literature, are not particularly helpful for understa...

  9. Why Students May not Learn to Interpret Scientific Inscriptions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bowen, G. Michael; Roth, Wolff-Michael

    2002-06-01

    Recent research in scientific laboratories shows that inscriptions - graphs, diagrams, photographs, tables, mathematical formulae, and so forth - are central to scientific practice. Research also shows that inscriptions are pervasive elements in science textbooks. This study examines inscriptions in texts usually available to students in high school and undergraduate science courses: course textbooks and journal articles. Four complementary analyses of the content of these resources are presented: (i) an enumeration of the types of inscriptions in those resources; (ii) a semiotic analyses of the content of representative inscriptions; (iii) an interpretation by graduates of a science program of an inscription common to all three resources; and (iv) a comparison of an inscription found in textbooks and lectures with its original presentation in a scientific journal. Differences exist in frequency of different types of inscriptions; these frequencies appear unrelated to interpretive competencies of the students for whom they are intended. We suggest alterations made in inscriptions as they are moved from professional journals to textbooks contributed to confounding their interpretation. Implications for both science education and the use of inscriptions in textbooks are discussed.

  10. Fifth Anniversary youth scientifically-practical conference Nuclear-industrial complex of Ural: problems and prospects. Theses of reports

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2009-01-01

    Theses of reports of the Fifth Anniversary youth scientifically-practical conference Nuclear-industrial complex of Ural: problems and prospects (21-23 April 2009, Ozersk) are presented. The book contains abstracts of papers of fourth thematic sections: SNF reprocessing: science and industry; Radioecology and radiobiology; Advanced science-intensive technologies and materials; Education and training for NFC plants

  11. Organizing of medical ensurance of human population under extreme conditions. Summaries of reports of scientific-practical conference

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1994-01-01

    Summary of reports are presented of Scientific-Practical conference on the organizing of medical ensurance of human population under extreme conditions including radiation accidents. The conference held in Moscow in October, 1994. It covered problems of organizing medical ensurance of population, medical surveillance problems, sanitary-hygienic and epidemiological problems (including radiation protection), and medical provision problems under extreme conditions

  12. How are scientific thinking skills best developed? Direct instruction vs. inquiry practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dean, David Worth, Jr.

    Despite its support and adoption by most major scientific and educational organizations, some researchers have questioned whether inquiry learning is indeed the best method for acquiring the skills of inquiry. Klahr and colleagues have investigated the development of the control of variables strategy, or controlled comparison (CC), and claim that a brief session of direct instruction, characterized by explicit training of CC, as opposed to allowing children to discover CC through inquiry learning, is sufficient for acquisition, maintenance, and transfer of this core aspect of inquiry. Kuhn and colleagues, however, argue that direct instruction may be insufficient for development of the metastrategic level of understanding necessary to adequately maintain and transfer inquiry skills. In the present study, I attempt to identify the intervention most effective in supporting acquisition, maintenance, and transfer of these skills. Three groups of students received either a direct instruction session followed by standard classroom instruction (DI-only), an introductory session (without direct instruction) followed by practice sessions only (PR-only), or a direct instruction session followed by practice sessions (DI+PR). Practice sessions involved the use of a computer-based inquiry task requiring students to investigate the effects of five potential causal variables on an outcome. The two practice groups worked with this program during 12 sessions over nine weeks. They worked with structurally identical software programs during five weekly maintenance sessions. During this time, the DI-only group received standard classroom instruction. All groups were assessed on familiar and unfamiliar computer-based inquiry tasks at the conclusion of intervention (immediate assessment) and maintenance sessions (delayed assessment). Students in the two practice groups demonstrated improvement in an integrative measure of inquiry skill (valid intent, valid strategy, valid inference, and

  13. Ethics Teaching in Higher Education for Principled Reasoning: A Gateway for Reconciling Scientific Practice with Ethical Deliberation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Aközer, Mehmet; Aközer, Emel

    2017-06-01

    This paper proposes laying the groundwork for principled moral reasoning as a seminal goal of ethics interventions in higher education, and on this basis, makes a case for educating future specialists and professionals with a foundation in philosophical ethics. Identification of such a seminal goal is warranted by (1) the progressive dissociation of scientific practice and ethical deliberation since the onset of a problematic relationship between science and ethics around the mid-19th century, and (2) the extensive mistrust of integrating ethics in science and engineering curricula beyond its "applied," "practical," or "professional" implications. Although calls by international scientific and educational bodies to strengthen ethics teaching in scientific education over the past quarter century have brought about a notion of combining competence in a certain field with competence in ethics, this is neither entrenched in the academic community, nor fleshed out as regards its core or instruments to realize it. The legitimate goals of ethics teaching in higher education, almost settled since the 1980s, can be subsumed under the proposed seminal goal, and the latter also would safeguard content and methods of ethics interventions against the intrusion of indoctrinative approaches. In this paper, derivation of the proposed seminal goal rests on an interpretation of the Kohlbergian cognitive-developmental conception of moral adulthood consisting in autonomous principled moral reasoning. This interpretation involves, based on Kant's conception of the virtuous person, integrating questions about the "good life" into the domain of principled reasoning.

  14. ANALYSIS OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCHES IN PHARMACEUTICAL PROMOTION GLOBALLY: TOWARDS INTERNATIONALLY DEVELOPING PRACTICALLY-ORIENTED GUIDELINES FOR PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. M. Bahlol

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. Pharmaceutical industry is transnational and globally important. Many pharmaceutical companies operate their business in multinational and international forms in different countries. Diverse researches from different countries indicated and confirmed marketing promotion importance in pharmaceutical field. Therefore, marketing promotion and its effects are a very important issue that should be globally investigated in real life and evidence context. We oriented our research according to these scientific and practical values.Methodology. We reviewed pharmaceutical marketing promotion researches from more than 25 different countries, e.g., USA, Canada, Italy, France, Russia, India, Egypt and Syria where we employed our knowledge of three widely spread languages, i.e., English, Russian and Arabic. Such language variation supports us with large and variable amount of scientific knowledge, deep understanding and ability of analysis. Some studies investigated average response to pharmaceutical marketing promotion and few studies took into consideration heterogeneity in their effects with respect to advertising medium or drug characteristics.Originality. We investigated empirical evidences of pharmaceutical marketing promotion that can be directed to either consumer or healthcare professionals.Findings. We extracted, gathered and associated information of pharmaceutical promotion globally which oriented us to several evidence and practical facts with regard to employing promotion tools in different definite situations pertinent to main directions; their welfare and health enhancing effects and adverse effects. Practical Implications- Consequently, we developed practically-oriented guidelines for companies concerning pharmaceutical promotion globally ate the end of this paper.

  15. Making better scientific figures

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hawkins, Ed; McNeall, Doug

    2016-04-01

    In the words of the UK government chief scientific adviser "Science is not finished until it's communicated" (Walport 2013). The tools to produce good visual communication have never been so easily accessible to scientists as at the present. Correspondingly, it has never been easier to produce and disseminate poor graphics. In this presentation, we highlight some good practice and offer some practical advice in preparing scientific figures for presentation to peers or to the public. We identify common mistakes in visualisation, including some made by the authors, and offer some good reasons not to trust defaults in graphics software. In particular, we discuss the use of colour scales and share our experiences in running a social media campaign (http://tiny.cc/endrainbow) to replace the "rainbow" (also "jet", or "spectral") colour scale as the default in (climate) scientific visualisation.

  16. Compatibility of scientific research and specialty training in general practice. A cross-sectional study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kötter, Thomas; Carmienke, Solveig; Herrmann, Wolfram J

    2014-01-01

    In many departments of General Practice (GP) in Germany, young doctors who are trainees also work as researchers. Often these trainees work part time at the university and part time as a trainee in clinical practice. However, little is known about the situation of the actors involved. The aim of the study was to investigate the perspectives of GP trainees, heads of departments and GP trainers regarding the combination of research and GP training. We conducted a web-based survey with the heads of all German departments of General Practice, GP trainees who also conduct research and their GP trainers. The questionnaires consisted of open and closed questions. The results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and qualitative methods. 28 heads of GP departments and 20 GP trainees responded. The trainees were mostly very satisfied with their situation as a trainee. However, the trainees considered the combination of research and GP training as difficult. The respondents name as problems the coordination of multiple jobs and the lack of credibility given to research in General Practice. They name as solutions research-enabling training programs and uniform requirements in training regarding research. The combination of GP training and scientific research activity is perceived as difficult. However, well-organized and designed programs can improve the quality of the combination.

  17. Interacting with audiences social influences on the production of scientific writing

    CERN Document Server

    Blakeslee, Ann M

    2000-01-01

    This distinctive monograph examines the dynamic rhetorical processes by which scientists shape, negotiate, and position their work within an interdisciplinary community. Author Ann M. Blakeslee studies the everyday rhetorical practices of a group of condensed matter theoretical physicists, and presents here the first substantial qualitative study of the planning and implementation of discursive practices by a group of scientists. This volume also represents one of the first studies to use situated cognition and learning theory to study how knowledge of a domain's discursive practices is acquired by newcomers. Unlike previous studies of scientists' rhetorical practices, which have focused primarily on the finished or published texts, Blakeslee's involvement with the physicists as they engaged in the composing processes--from jotting down planning notes through publishing a scientific paper--suggests an alternative view of audience based on cooperative interaction between authors and their interlocutors. From t...

  18. Japanese practicing physicians' relationships with pharmaceutical representatives: a national survey.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sayaka Saito

    Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Previous surveys on the relationship between physicians and pharmaceutical representatives (PRs have been of limited quality. The purpose of our survey of practicing physicians in Japan was to assess the extent of their involvement in pharmaceutical promotional activities, physician characteristics that predict such involvement, attitudes toward relationships with PRs, correlations between the extent of involvement and attitudes, and differences in the extent of involvement according to self-reported prescribing behaviors. METHODS AND FINDINGS: From January to March 2008, we conducted a national survey of 2621 practicing physicians in seven specialties: internal medicine, general surgery, orthopedic surgery, pediatrics, obstetrics-gynecology, psychiatry, and ophthalmology. The response rate was 54%. Most physicians met with PRs (98%, received drug samples (85% and stationery (96%, and participated in industry-sponsored continuing medical education (CME events at the workplace (80% and outside the workplace (93%. Half accepted meals outside the workplace (49% and financial subsidies to attend CME events (49%. Rules at the workplace banning both meetings with PRs and gifts predicted less involvement of physicians in promotional activities. Physicians valued information from PRs. They believed that they were unlikely to be influenced by promotional activities, but that their colleagues were more susceptible to such influence than themselves. They were divided about the appropriateness of low-value gifts. The extent of physician involvement in promotional activities was positively correlated with the attitudes that PRs are a valuable source of information and that gifts are appropriate. The extent of such involvement was higher among physicians who prefer to ask PRs for information when a new medication becomes available, physicians who are not satisfied with patient encounters ending only with advice, and physicians who prefer to

  19. The measurement of the effect on citation inequality of differences in citation practices across scientific fields.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crespo, Juan A; Li, Yunrong; Li, Yungrong; Ruiz-Castillo, Javier

    2013-01-01

    This paper has two aims: (i) to introduce a novel method for measuring which part of overall citation inequality can be attributed to differences in citation practices across scientific fields, and (ii) to implement an empirical strategy for making meaningful comparisons between the number of citations received by articles in 22 broad fields. The number of citations received by any article is seen as a function of the article's scientific influence, and the field to which it belongs. A key assumption is that articles in the same quantile of any field citation distribution have the same degree of citation impact in their respective field. Using a dataset of 4.4 million articles published in 1998-2003 with a five-year citation window, we estimate that differences in citation practices between the 22 fields account for 14% of overall citation inequality. Our empirical strategy is based on the strong similarities found in the behavior of citation distributions. We obtain three main results. Firstly, we estimate a set of average-based indicators, called exchange rates, to express the citations received by any article in a large interval in terms of the citations received in a reference situation. Secondly, using our exchange rates as normalization factors of the raw citation data reduces the effect of differences in citation practices to, approximately, 2% of overall citation inequality in the normalized citation distributions. Thirdly, we provide an empirical explanation of why the usual normalization procedure based on the fields' mean citation rates is found to be equally successful.

  20. Mastering scientific computing with R

    CERN Document Server

    Gerrard, Paul

    2015-01-01

    If you want to learn how to quantitatively answer scientific questions for practical purposes using the powerful R language and the open source R tool ecosystem, this book is ideal for you. It is ideally suited for scientists who understand scientific concepts, know a little R, and want to be able to start applying R to be able to answer empirical scientific questions. Some R exposure is helpful, but not compulsory.

  1. Relations between views of nature and practices in Danish organic farming

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kaltoft, Pernille

    1996-01-01

    research in organic farming: The organic farming in practice represents a variety of views of nature. So does scientific work, but especially the natural scientifical and agrotechnical sciences has no tradition for reflecting that kind of matters. If the scientific approaches do not try to make......The paper presents and discusses empirical results from my ph.d. study concerning environmental ethics as a concept of practice. The theoretical approach to the study of environmental ethics is not purely philosophical. It questions what guides professionals in action with nature (farmers....... These findings are related to the actual manuring strategies, diversity in crops and products and ways of treating the herd at the same farms. The empirical study is methodologically based on qualitative methods inspired by phenomenology, ethnography and narrativity.The outcome is four distinct groups of organic...

  2. The Scientific Competitiveness of Nations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cimini, Giulio; Gabrielli, Andrea; Sylos Labini, Francesco

    2014-01-01

    We use citation data of scientific articles produced by individual nations in different scientific domains to determine the structure and efficiency of national research systems. We characterize the scientific fitness of each nation-that is, the competitiveness of its research system-and the complexity of each scientific domain by means of a non-linear iterative algorithm able to assess quantitatively the advantage of scientific diversification. We find that technological leading nations, beyond having the largest production of scientific papers and the largest number of citations, do not specialize in a few scientific domains. Rather, they diversify as much as possible their research system. On the other side, less developed nations are competitive only in scientific domains where also many other nations are present. Diversification thus represents the key element that correlates with scientific and technological competitiveness. A remarkable implication of this structure of the scientific competition is that the scientific domains playing the role of "markers" of national scientific competitiveness are those not necessarily of high technological requirements, but rather addressing the most "sophisticated" needs of the society.

  3. Analysing Scientific Collaborations of New Zealand Institutions using Scopus Bibliometric Data

    OpenAIRE

    Aref, Samin; Friggens, David; Hendy, Shaun

    2017-01-01

    Scientific collaborations are among the main enablers of development in small national science systems. Although analysing scientific collaborations is a well-established subject in scientometrics, evaluations of scientific collaborations within a country remain speculative with studies based on a limited number of fields or using data too inadequate to be representative of collaborations at a national level. This study represents a unique view on the collaborative aspect of scientific activi...

  4. A set of vertically integrated inquiry-based practical curricula that develop scientific thinking skills for large cohorts of undergraduate students.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zimbardi, Kirsten; Bugarcic, Andrea; Colthorpe, Kay; Good, Jonathan P; Lluka, Lesley J

    2013-12-01

    Science graduates require critical thinking skills to deal with the complex problems they will face in their 21st century workplaces. Inquiry-based curricula can provide students with the opportunities to develop such critical thinking skills; however, evidence suggests that an inappropriate level of autonomy provided to underprepared students may not only be daunting to students but also detrimental to their learning. After a major review of the Bachelor of Science, we developed, implemented, and evaluated a series of three vertically integrated courses with inquiry-style laboratory practicals for early-stage undergraduate students in biomedical science. These practical curricula were designed so that students would work with increasing autonomy and ownership of their research projects to develop increasingly advanced scientific thinking and communication skills. Students undertaking the first iteration of these three vertically integrated courses reported learning gains in course content as well as skills in scientific writing, hypothesis construction, experimental design, data analysis, and interpreting results. Students also demonstrated increasing skills in both hypothesis formulation and communication of findings as a result of participating in the inquiry-based curricula and completing the associated practical assessment tasks. Here, we report the specific aspects of the curricula that students reported as having the greatest impact on their learning and the particular elements of hypothesis formulation and communication of findings that were more challenging for students to master. These findings provide important implications for science educators concerned with designing curricula to promote scientific thinking and communication skills alongside content acquisition.

  5. XSIM Final Report: Modelling the Past and Future of Identity Management for Scientific Collaborations

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cowles, Robert; Jackson, Craig; Welch, Von

    2016-08-31

    The eXtreme Science Identity Management (XSIM1) research project: collected and analyzed real world data on virtual organization (VO) identity management (IdM) representing the last 15+ years of collaborative DOE science; constructed a descriptive VO IdM model based on that data; used the model and existing trends to project the direction for IdM in the 2020 timeframe; and provided guidance to scientific collaborations and resource providers that are implementing or seeking to improve IdM functionality. XSIM conducted over 20 semi­structured interviews of representatives from scientific collaborations and resource providers, both in the US and Europe; the interviewees supported diverse set of scientific collaborations and disciplines. We developed a definition of “trust,” a key concept in IdM, to understand how varying trust models affect where IdM functions are performed. The model identifies how key IdM data elements are utilized in collaborative scientific workflows, and it has the flexibility to describe past, present and future trust relationships and IdM implementations. During the funding period, we gave more than two dozen presentations to socialize our work, encourage feedback, and improve the model; we also published four refereed papers. Additionally, we developed, presented, and received favorable feedback on three white papers providing practical advice to collaborations and/or resource providers.

  6. Agriscience Student Engagement in Scientific Inquiry: Representations of Scientific Processes and Nature of Science.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Grady, Julie R; Dolan, Erin L; Glasson, George E

    2010-01-01

    Students' experiences with science integrated into agriscience courses contribute to their developing epistemologies of science. The purpose of this case study was to gain insight into the implementation of scientific inquiry in an agriscience classroom. Also of interest was how the tenets of the nature of science were reflected in the students' experiments. Participants included an agriscience teacher and her fifteen students who were conducting plant experiments to gain insight into the role of a gene disabled by scientists. Data sources included classroom observations, conversations with students, face-to-face interviews with the teacher, and students' work. Analysis of the data indicated that the teacher viewed scientific inquiry as a mechanical process with little emphasis on the reasoning that typifies scientific inquiry. Students' participation in their experiments also centered on the procedural aspects of inquiry with little attention to scientific reasoning. There was no explicit attention to the nature of science during the experiments, but the practice implied correct, incorrect, and underdeveloped conceptions of the nature of science. Evidence from the study suggests a need for collaboration between agriscience and science teacher educators to design and conduct professional development focused on scientific inquiry and nature of science for preservice and practicing teachers.

  7. Scientific Communication and the Nature of Science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nielsen, Kristian H.

    2013-01-01

    Communication is an important part of scientific practice and, arguably, may be seen as constitutive to scientific knowledge. Yet, often scientific communication gets cursory treatment in science studies as well as in science education. In Nature of Science (NOS), for example, communication is rarely mentioned explicitly, even though, as will be…

  8. Engaging Pre-Service Teachers to Teach Science Contextually with Scientific Approach Instructional Video

    Science.gov (United States)

    Susantini, E.; Kurniasari, I.; Fauziah, A. N. M.; Prastowo, T.; Kholiq, A.; Rosdiana, L.

    2018-01-01

    Contextual teaching and learning/CTL presents new concepts in real-life experiences and situations where students can find out the meaningful relationship between abstract ideas and practical applications. Implementing contextual teaching by using scientific approach will foster teachers to find the constructive ways of delivering and organizing science content. This research developed an instructional video that represented a modeling of using a scientific approach in CTL. The aim of this research are to engage pre-service teachers in learning how to teach CTL and to show how pre-service teachers’ responses about learning how to teach CTL using an instructional video. The subjects of this research were ten pre-service teachers in Department of Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Indonesia. All subjects observed the instructional video which demonstrated contextual teaching and learning combined with the scientific approach as they completed a worksheet to analyze the video content. The results showed that pre-service teachers could learn to teach contextually as well as applying the scientific approach in science classroom through a modeling in the instructional video. They also responded that the instructional video could help them to learn to teach each component contextual teaching as well as scientific approach.

  9. Scientific and non-scientific information in the uptake of health information: The case of Ebola

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bankole A. Falade

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available The Ebola virus disease outbreak in West Africa (2013–2016 claimed over 10 000 lives in less than 18 months. Low levels of familiarity with the disease, ease of transmission, scale of infection, gruesomeness of symptoms, lack of cure and high fatality rate created a global panic. From the perspective of the social psychology of communication and content analysis, this study examines media coverage of the crisis in Africa with a view to unpacking the scientific and non-scientific information that may have framed public understanding of the disease. Findings show that accepting scientific advice was not unproblematic, because of the similarity of early symptoms with known diseases such as Lassa, dengue and malaria fevers. Cultural and religious actors and beliefs posed a paradox for believers as the public assimilated disease prevention information into existing norms and practices. Rumours and conspiracy theories about Western governments and pharmaceuticals also contributed to the rejection of the scientific explanation of its origin. Fear of the devastating effects of the disease and the lack of a cure led to the stigmatisation of the infected and treatment centres and ultimately to public revolts. Findings show the importance of non-scientific information and actors in matters of health and illness in Africa. Significance: Scientific knowledge is not enough to change health behaviour. Non-scientific knowledge and actors, traditional and religious practices, rumours and conspiracy theories must all be factored into efforts to address behavioural change.

  10. Plagiarism in scientific publishing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet

    2012-12-01

    Scientific publishing is the ultimate product of scientist work. Number of publications and their quoting are measures of scientist success while unpublished researches are invisible to the scientific community, and as such nonexistent. Researchers in their work rely on their predecessors, while the extent of use of one scientist work, as a source for the work of other authors is the verification of its contributions to the growth of human knowledge. If the author has published an article in a scientific journal it cannot publish the article in any other journal h with a few minor adjustments or without quoting parts of the first article, which are used in another article. Copyright infringement occurs when the author of a new article with or without the mentioning the author used substantial portions of previously published articles, including tables and figures. Scientific institutions and universities should,in accordance with the principles of Good Scientific Practice (GSP) and Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) have a center for monitoring,security, promotion and development of quality research. Establish rules and compliance to rules of good scientific practice are the obligations of each research institutions,universities and every individual-researchers,regardless of which area of science is investigated. In this way, internal quality control ensures that a research institution such as a university, assume responsibility for creating an environment that promotes standards of excellence, intellectual honesty and legality. Although the truth should be the aim of scientific research, it is not guiding fact for all scientists. The best way to reach the truth in its study and to avoid the methodological and ethical mistakes is to consistently apply scientific methods and ethical standards in research. Although variously defined plagiarism is basically intended to deceive the reader's own scientific contribution. There is no general regulation of control of

  11. Clustering of scientific citations in Wikipedia

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Nielsen, Finn Årup

    The instances of templates in Wikipedia form an interesting data set of structured information. Here I focus on the cite journal template that is primarily used for citation to articles in scientific journals. These citations can be extracted and analyzed: Non-negative matrix factorization...... is performed on a (article x journal) matrix resulting in a soft clustering of Wikipedia articles and scientific journals, each cluster more or less representing a scientific topic....

  12. [Normative dimensions of nursing practice--the ethical relevance of the body].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Remmers, H

    1997-10-01

    A combination of preliminary considerations concerning a theory of action and a philosophy of science illustrates the determining influence of the scientific preconception of the subject matter, and of the approach which is presupposed by this preconception, on the normative orientation of nursing practice. The specific physical nearness involved in nursing practice ("body to body") holds problems with regard to an appropriate theoretical frame of reference and corresponding practical convictions. This background provides the context for a concluding critical examination of several representative nursing theories with regard to their implicit, normative premises.

  13. Molecular biology in a distributed world. A Kantian perspective on scientific practices and the human mind

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Mariagrazia Portera

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available In recent years the number of scholarly publications devoted to Kant's theory of biology has rapidly growing, with particular attention being given to Kant's thoughts about the concepts of teleology, function, organism, and their respective roles in scientific practice. Moving from these recent studies, and distancing itself from their mostly evolutionary background, the main aim of the present paper is to suggest an original "cognitive turn" in the interpretation of Kant's theory of biology. More specifically, the Authors will trace a connection between some Kantian theses about the “peculiar” or special nature of the human mind (intellectus ectypus, advanced in the Critique of the Power of Judgement (§ 76, 77, and some specific epistemological issues pertaining to the research practice of contemporary molecular biology.

  14. Scientific review of psychophysiological detection of deceit

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Igor Areh

    2016-10-01

    Full Text Available Psychophysiological detection of deceit has been in the centre of attention in the recent decade, which correlates with heightened security challenges of a modern world. The article provides scientific discussion about polygraph that is used in criminal investigation. Two most employed polygraph techniques are critically presented, examined and compared: the Comparison Question Test (CQT and the Concealed Information Test (CIT. Theoretical foundations, objectivity and standardization of testing procedures, ethical and practical issues are analysed. Proponents of the Comparison Question Test have not been successful in their efforts to resolve fundamental problems and limitations with which the technique is challenged. It remains unstandardized and unscientific, separated from science and mainly without attempts to escape from the dead-end. The most influential theoretical backgrounds of CQT technique are examined; however, none of them represents a satisfactory scientific foundation of the technique. Without being scientifically grounded in a verifiable theory, it remains controversial and caught into self-sufficiency, mostly supported by methodologically questionable research findings gained by proponents. To the contrary, the Concealed Information Test is associated with fast development, particularly in the field of neurology, and is considered to be less disputed and to be partly supported by a sound scientific ground. Applying the Concealed Question Test, somewhat naïve and disputable detection of lies typical of the Comparison Question Test is replaced by a search for information that lies concealed in the suspects’ memory. However, the Concealed Information Test also has been challenged by serious deficiencies, which bring forward a question about justification of the use of the polygraph.

  15. On the history of fluid dynamics: Russian scientific schools in the 20th century

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Betyaev, Stanislav K

    2003-01-01

    The history of designing wind tunnels, an isolated wing, as well as both flying and non-flying machines, is reviewed. An analysis is made of those remarkable aerodynamic ideas which have been practically implemented, as well as of those, no less remarkable, ideas which have - so far - remained unfulfilled. The history of theoretical fluid dynamics in Russia is represented as the history of four scientific schools: those of Zhukovsky, Friedmann, Kolmogorov, and TsAGI. (from the history of physics)

  16. Influence of Medical Representatives on Prescribing Practices in Mekelle, Northern Ethiopia.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Birhanu Demeke Workneh

    Full Text Available Drug promotion by medical representatives is one of the factors that influence physicians' prescribing decisions and choice of drugs.To assess the influence of medical representatives on prescribing practice of physicians in health facilities, Mekelle, Northern Ethiopia.Facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted enrolling all physicians working in public and private health facilities. All public and private health facilities were included and similarly, all physicians rendering services in these facilities were sampled in the study. The data were collected from February to March, 2015. Data were then entered into Epidata Version 3.1 and transferred to STATA version 12 for analysis. Both bivariable and multivariable logistic regressions were used to determine predictors.Of the ninety physicians approached in this study, 40 (48.2% of the physicians believed that their prescribing decisions were influenced by visits of medical representatives (MRs. The odds of physicians who received gifts from MRs being influenced to prescribe their respective products was six times higher than those who reported not accepting any gifts [AOR = 6.56, 95% CI: 2.25, 19.13]. Stationery materials 23(35.4% and drug samples 20(54.2% were the commonest kinds of gifts given to physicians and face to face talking 45(54.2% was the most frequent promotional methods. The finding of this study showed that around thirty-nine percent of MRs have had negative attitude toward competitors' product. Moreover, working in private health facility was also another predictor of influence of prescribing decision in the study area [AOR = 12.78, 95% CI: 1.31, 124.56].Nearly half of the physicians working in Mekelle reported that their prescribing decisions were influenced by MRs in the last 12 months. Accepting gifts and working in private health facilities were predictors of influencing prescribing decisions. However, most MRs fails to provide adequate and accurate information

  17. Biomedical ontologies: toward scientific debate.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Maojo, V; Crespo, J; García-Remesal, M; de la Iglesia, D; Perez-Rey, D; Kulikowski, C

    2011-01-01

    Biomedical ontologies have been very successful in structuring knowledge for many different applications, receiving widespread praise for their utility and potential. Yet, the role of computational ontologies in scientific research, as opposed to knowledge management applications, has not been extensively discussed. We aim to stimulate further discussion on the advantages and challenges presented by biomedical ontologies from a scientific perspective. We review various aspects of biomedical ontologies going beyond their practical successes, and focus on some key scientific questions in two ways. First, we analyze and discuss current approaches to improve biomedical ontologies that are based largely on classical, Aristotelian ontological models of reality. Second, we raise various open questions about biomedical ontologies that require further research, analyzing in more detail those related to visual reasoning and spatial ontologies. We outline significant scientific issues that biomedical ontologies should consider, beyond current efforts of building practical consensus between them. For spatial ontologies, we suggest an approach for building "morphospatial" taxonomies, as an example that could stimulate research on fundamental open issues for biomedical ontologies. Analysis of a large number of problems with biomedical ontologies suggests that the field is very much open to alternative interpretations of current work, and in need of scientific debate and discussion that can lead to new ideas and research directions.

  18. Development of clinical practice guidelines.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hollon, Steven D; Areán, Patricia A; Craske, Michelle G; Crawford, Kermit A; Kivlahan, Daniel R; Magnavita, Jeffrey J; Ollendick, Thomas H; Sexton, Thomas L; Spring, Bonnie; Bufka, Lynn F; Galper, Daniel I; Kurtzman, Howard

    2014-01-01

    Clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) are intended to improve mental, behavioral, and physical health by promoting clinical practices that are based on the best available evidence. The American Psychological Association (APA) is committed to generating patient-focused CPGs that are scientifically sound, clinically useful, and informative for psychologists, other health professionals, training programs, policy makers, and the public. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) 2011 standards for generating CPGs represent current best practices in the field. These standards involve multidisciplinary guideline development panels charged with generating recommendations based on comprehensive systematic reviews of the evidence. The IOM standards will guide the APA as it generates CPGs that can be used to inform the general public and the practice community regarding the benefits and harms of various treatment options. CPG recommendations are advisory rather than compulsory. When used appropriately, high-quality guidelines can facilitate shared decision making and identify gaps in knowledge.

  19. The economic scientific research, a production neo-factor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Elena Ciucur

    2007-12-01

    Full Text Available The scientific research represents a modern production neo-factor that implies two groups of coordinates: preparation and scientific research. The scientific research represents a complex of elements that confer a new orientation of high performance and is materialized in resources and new availabilities brought in active shape by the contribution of the creators and by the attraction in a specific way in the economic circuit. It is the creator of new ideas, lifting the performance and understanding to the highest international standards of competitive economic efficiency. In the present, the role of the scientific research stands before some new challenges generated by the stage of society. It.s propose a unitary, coherent scientific research and educational system, created in corresponding proportions, based on the type, level and utility of the system, by the state, the economic-social environment and the citizen himself.

  20. Using Communication Technology to Facilitate Scientific Literacy: A Framework for Engaged Learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    VanBuskirk, Shireen Adele

    The purpose of this research project is to describe how existing communication technologies are used to foster scientific literacy for secondary students. This study develops a new framework as an analytic tool to categorize the activities of teachers and students involved in scientific literacy to describe what elements of scientific literacy are facilitated by such technologies. Four case studies are analyzed using the framework to describe the scientific literacy initiatives. Data collection at each site included interviews with the teacher, student focus groups, student surveys, and classroom observations. Qualitative analysis of the data provided insight into the learning activities and student experiences in the four cases. This study intentionally provides a platform for student voice. Very few previous empirical studies in the area of scientific literacy include the student experience. This represents a significant gap in the current literature on scientific literacy. An interpretation of scientific literacy that promotes student engagement, interaction, and initiative corresponds to a need to listen to students' perspectives on these experiences. Findings of the study indicated that the classroom activities depended on the teacher's philosophy regarding scientific literacy. Communication technology was ubiquitous; where the teacher did not initiate the use of social media in the classroom, the students did. The goal of supporting scientific literacy in students is an objective that extends beyond the boundaries of classroom walls, and it can be facilitated by technologies that seem both abundant and underutilized. Technology-enhanced pedagogy altered the classroom practices and resulted in more student participation and engagement.

  1. Measurement Instrument for Scientific Teaching (MIST): A Tool to Measure the Frequencies of Research-Based Teaching Practices in Undergraduate Science Courses.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Durham, Mary F; Knight, Jennifer K; Couch, Brian A

    2017-01-01

    The Scientific Teaching (ST) pedagogical framework provides various approaches for science instructors to teach in a way that more closely emulates how science is practiced by actively and inclusively engaging students in their own learning and by making instructional decisions based on student performance data. Fully understanding the impact of ST requires having mechanisms to quantify its implementation. While many useful instruments exist to document teaching practices, these instruments only partially align with the range of practices specified by ST, as described in a recently published taxonomy. Here, we describe the development, validation, and implementation of the Measurement Instrument for Scientific Teaching (MIST), a survey derived from the ST taxonomy and designed to gauge the frequencies of ST practices in undergraduate science courses. MIST showed acceptable validity and reliability based on results from 7767 students in 87 courses at nine institutions. We used factor analyses to identify eight subcategories of ST practices and used these categories to develop a short version of the instrument amenable to joint administration with other research instruments. We further discuss how MIST can be used by instructors, departments, researchers, and professional development programs to quantify and track changes in ST practices. © 2017 M. F. Durham et al. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2017 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

  2. Exploring the Impacts of Cognitive and Metacognitive Prompting on Students' Scientific Inquiry Practices Within an E-Learning Environment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Wen-Xin; Hsu, Ying-Shao; Wang, Chia-Yu; Ho, Yu-Ting

    2015-02-01

    This study explores the effects of metacognitive and cognitive prompting on the scientific inquiry practices of students with various levels of initial metacognition. Two junior high school classes participated in this study. One class, the experimental group (n = 26), which received an inquiry-based curriculum with a combination of cognitive and metacognitive prompts, was compared to the other class, the comparison group (n = 25), which received only cognitive prompts in the same curriculum. Data sources included a test of inquiry practices, a questionnaire of metacognition, and worksheets. The results showed that the mixed cognitive and metacognitive prompts had significant impacts on the students' inquiry practices, especially their planning and analyzing abilities. Furthermore, the mixed prompts appeared to have a differential effect on those students with lower level metacognition, who showed significant improvement in their inquiry abilities. A combination of cognitive and metacognitive prompts during an inquiry cycle was found to promote students' inquiry practices.

  3. Result of some valuable scientific searches

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sergiu VLĂDICĂ

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available Annually, the Editorial Activity division of the Academy of Public Administration edits the proceedings of the scientific-practical conferences with international participation „Theory and Practice of Public Administration”, in a separate volume. This year collection contains 120 articles signed by the researchers of the Academy, of other national higher education institutions and from the similar institutions abroad, of central and local public authorities. The most relevant scientific researches presented in the plenary session of the Conference as well as within six workshops are emphasized in the article.

  4. Analyzing Ocean Tracks: A model for student engagement in authentic scientific practices using data

    Science.gov (United States)

    Krumhansl, K.; Krumhansl, R.; Brown, C.; DeLisi, J.; Kochevar, R.; Sickler, J.; Busey, A.; Mueller-Northcott, J.; Block, B.

    2013-12-01

    The collection of large quantities of scientific data has not only transformed science, but holds the potential to transform teaching and learning by engaging students in authentic scientific work. Furthermore, it has become imperative in a data-rich world that students gain competency in working with and interpreting data. The Next Generation Science Standards reflect both the opportunity and need for greater integration of data in science education, and emphasize that both scientific knowledge and practice are essential elements of science learning. The process of enabling access by novice learners to data collected and used by experts poses significant challenges, however, recent research has demonstrated that barriers to student learning with data can be overcome by the careful design of data access and analysis tools that are specifically tailored to students. A group of educators at Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC) and scientists at Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station are collaborating to develop and test a model for student engagement with scientific data using a web-based platform. This model, called Ocean Tracks: Investigating Marine Migrations in a Changing Ocean, provides students with the ability to plot and analyze tracks of migrating marine animals collected through the Tagging of Pacific Predators program. The interface and associated curriculum support students in identifying relationships between animal behavior and physical oceanographic variables (e.g. SST, chlorophyll, currents), making linkages between the living world and climate. Students are also supported in investigating possible sources of human impact to important biodiversity hotspots in the Pacific Ocean. The first round of classroom testing revealed that students were able to easily access and display data on the interface, and collect measurements from the animal tracks and oceanographic data layers. They were able to link multiple types of data to draw powerful

  5. Parenting Styles and Practices in Children's Obesogenic Behaviors: Scientific Gaps and Future Research Directions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hennessy, Erin; McSpadden, Kate; Oh, April

    2013-01-01

    Abstract Given the emerging global childhood obesity epidemic and the specter of a generation of children who will have a shorter life expectancy than that of their parents, recent research has focused on factors that influence children's weight status and obesogenic behaviors (i.e., eating, physical activity, and screen media use). Parents act as primary socializing agents for children, and thus growing evidence supports the role of parenting styles and practices in children's obesity-related behaviors and weight. Studying these processes in children and adolescents is important for several reasons. First, diet and physical activity behaviors and weight status track from childhood and adolescence into adulthood. Furthermore, diet and physical activity behaviors and weight status confer significant risk for cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other chronic diseases. The purpose of this article is to describe the scientific gaps that need to be addressed to develop a more informed literature on parenting styles and practices in the domains of weight status and obesogenic behaviors, as identified by an expert panel assembled by the National Cancer Institute. PMID:23944926

  6. Bibliometric analysis about the scientific production on the Social Skills Field

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eliane Colepicolo

    2015-05-01

    Full Text Available Objective. This research consisted to contribute to the systematization of the theoretical and practical field of Social Skills, here called Social Skills Field (SSF. Method. A survey of a representative sample of CHS publications metadata extracted from the 15 scientific and technical literature databases in Psychology available in the CAPES Journals Portal was conducted. After treatment and refinement, this sample resulted in a corpus of metadata 25,409 scientific articles, which is a set of metadata publications, from fields such as author, title, subject, abstract, among others. The corpus of metadata stored in a database allowed the creation of a series of data crossing, resulting in bibliometric indicators. Results. As a result, we have: the SS Corpus, published on the Internet, which enables the inclusion of new metadata and the recovery of almost all scientific articles of the field; 2 bibliometric indicators in CHS, which may offer subsidies for the development and expansion of the field. Conclusions. Bibliometric indicators of the CHS show a representative production growth of social skills in the 1970s. Research on SS is mainly conducted by researchers from the United States, Brazil, United Kingdon and Denmark. The main subject studied are "social skills", "interpersonal relations", "social competence", "empathy", "assertividade", "assertiveness", "children", "adult", "college students"; and the major journals are: Journal of Personality and Social Psychology; Psychological Reports; Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders and Child Development.

  7. Nuclear energy: technology, safety, ecology, economy, management. The I All-Russian scientific-practical conference of young nuclear scientists of Siberia. Collection of scientific papers

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2010-01-01

    Collection of research papers I All-Russian scientific-practical conference of young nuclear scientists in Siberia, held 19-25 September 2010 in Tomsk, is presented. The edition contains material on a wide range of research scientists-economists, professors, graduate students and young scientists, and school children of Tomsk, Seversk, and several other Russian cities on the technology, security, ecology, economics, management in the nuclear power industry. Discussion of the presented research was conducted on sections: 1. Technological support for the nuclear fuel cycle, 2. Nuclear non-proliferation and environmental safety of the nuclear fuel cycle, 3. Energy: Present and Future 4. It all starts with an idea [ru

  8. "To Be a Scientist Sometimes You Have to Break Down Stuff about Animals": Examining the Normative Scientific Practices of a Summer Herpetological Program for Children

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Catherine Marie

    2016-01-01

    When studying informal science programs, researchers often overlook the opportunities enabled and constrained in each program and the practices reinforced for participants. In this case study, I examined the normative scientific practices reinforced in one-week-long "Herpetology" (the study of reptiles and amphibians) program for…

  9. THE SCIENTIFIC SCHOOL OF THE ACADEMICIAN G. M. ROMANTSEV: THE HISTORY AND PROSPECTS OF DEVELOPMENT

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    N. V. Ronzhina

    2018-01-01

    ; its logical processes and vectors for further development are denoted. Scientific achievements of the scholars of G. M. Romantsev’s school in the field of the higher vocational education are presented; possible ways of advancement of vocational training for workers and handicraftsmen in Russia are presented.Practical significance. The output of the work undertaken by the representatives of the scientific school of G. M. Romantsev continue to be the basis for correction and development of education and vocational standards, the conceptual framework, regulatory background of vocational education, including legal support for occupational guidance among young people. Continued innovative activity of the research team and application in practice of the outcomes obtained will enable to narrow the gap between the theory and practice of vocational education, to enhance the competitiveness of the Russian higher school, and to meet the demands from the manufacturing sector and economy for qualified specialists. Furthermore, the research outcomes can provide substantial assistance to design the modern structure of the pedagogical scientific research organization and build an effective process management workflow. 

  10. PLAGIARISM IN SCIENTIFIC PUBLISHING

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet

    2012-01-01

    Scientific publishing is the ultimate product of scientist work. Number of publications and their quoting are measures of scientist success while unpublished researches are invisible to the scientific community, and as such nonexistent. Researchers in their work rely on their predecessors, while the extent of use of one scientist work, as a source for the work of other authors is the verification of its contributions to the growth of human knowledge. If the author has published an article in a scientific journal it cannot publish the article in any other journal h with a few minor adjustments or without quoting parts of the first article, which are used in another article. Copyright infringement occurs when the author of a new article with or without the mentioning the author used substantial portions of previously published articles, including tables and figures. Scientific institutions and universities should,in accordance with the principles of Good Scientific Practice (GSP) and Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) have a center for monitoring,security, promotion and development of quality research. Establish rules and compliance to rules of good scientific practice are the obligations of each research institutions,universities and every individual-researchers,regardless of which area of science is investigated. In this way, internal quality control ensures that a research institution such as a university, assume responsibility for creating an environment that promotes standards of excellence, intellectual honesty and legality. Although the truth should be the aim of scientific research, it is not guiding fact for all scientists. The best way to reach the truth in its study and to avoid the methodological and ethical mistakes is to consistently apply scientific methods and ethical standards in research. Although variously defined plagiarism is basically intended to deceive the reader’s own scientific contribution. There is no general regulation of control of

  11. Good enough practices in scientific computing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Greg; Bryan, Jennifer; Cranston, Karen; Kitzes, Justin; Nederbragt, Lex; Teal, Tracy K

    2017-06-01

    Computers are now essential in all branches of science, but most researchers are never taught the equivalent of basic lab skills for research computing. As a result, data can get lost, analyses can take much longer than necessary, and researchers are limited in how effectively they can work with software and data. Computing workflows need to follow the same practices as lab projects and notebooks, with organized data, documented steps, and the project structured for reproducibility, but researchers new to computing often don't know where to start. This paper presents a set of good computing practices that every researcher can adopt, regardless of their current level of computational skill. These practices, which encompass data management, programming, collaborating with colleagues, organizing projects, tracking work, and writing manuscripts, are drawn from a wide variety of published sources from our daily lives and from our work with volunteer organizations that have delivered workshops to over 11,000 people since 2010.

  12. Fourth youth scientifically-practical conference Nuclear-industrial complex of Ural: problems and prospects. Theses of reports

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2007-01-01

    Theses of reports of the Fourth youth scientifically-practical conference Nuclear-industrial complex of Ural: problems and prospects (18-20 April 2007, Ozersk) are presented. The book contains theses of reports of the seventh subject sections: NFC: science and industry; Ecological problems in NFC development: radiation safety, radioecology and radiobiology; Nuclear power engineering: economics, safety, field experience; Atomic branch: history, today and future; New technologies in education. Education and training for NFC plants, public opinion; Information technologies and telecommunications; Long-term science intensive technologies and new materials [ru

  13. Understanding scientific practices: The role of robustness notions

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boon, Mieke; Soler, Lena

    2012-01-01

    This article explores the role of `robustness-notions¿ in an account of the engineering sciences. The engineering sciences aim at technological production of, and intervention with phenomena relevant to the (dis-)functioning of materials and technological devices, by means of scientific

  14. Managing scientific information and research data

    CERN Document Server

    Baykoucheva, Svetla

    2015-01-01

    Innovative technologies are changing the way research is performed, preserved, and communicated. Managing Scientific Information and Research Data explores how these technologies are used and provides detailed analysis of the approaches and tools developed to manage scientific information and data. Following an introduction, the book is then divided into 15 chapters discussing the changes in scientific communication; new models of publishing and peer review; ethics in scientific communication; preservation of data; discovery tools; discipline-specific practices of researchers for gathering and using scientific information; academic social networks; bibliographic management tools; information literacy and the information needs of students and researchers; the involvement of academic libraries in eScience and the new opportunities it presents to librarians; and interviews with experts in scientific information and publishing.

  15. 21 October 2008 - LHC Inauguration - IHEP Beijing representative Prof. Chen, People's Republic of China, welcomed by CERN Director-General R. Aymar, CERN Chief Scientific Officer J. Engelen and CERN Financial Officer S. Lettow.

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN Photo Service

    2008-01-01

    21 October 2008 - LHC Inauguration - IHEP Beijing representative Prof. Chen, People's Republic of China, welcomed by CERN Director-General R. Aymar, CERN Chief Scientific Officer J. Engelen and CERN Financial Officer S. Lettow.

  16. Specimens as records: scientific practice and recordkeeping in natural history research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ilerbaig, Juan

    2010-01-01

    For the past two decades, scholars in archival science have begun to question traditional assumptions about the nature of the record. Drawing on theories from fields such as sociology, organization theory, and science studies, and on their own ethnographic studies, they propose more inclusive definitions and widening the contexts of analysis of record making and recordkeeping. This paper continues this critical consideration of the concept of record by examining the nature of nonprototypical records in the scientific world. The paper focuses on the system of specimens and field notes established by biologist Joseph Grinnell at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (University of California, Berkeley) as a means of examining several aspects of the nature of the scientific record: materiality, representation, and the triad evidence/memory/accountability. Focusing on the creation and management of these scientific records, the paper argues that further analyses of scientific record making and recordkeeping are bound to benefit both scientific work, which depends more and more on databases and archives, as well as archival science, which is becoming more relevant beyond its traditional realm of the legal/business/administrative world.

  17. Workplace Interventions to Prevent Disability from Both the Scientific and Practice Perspectives: A Comparison of Scientific Literature, Grey Literature and Stakeholder Observations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Williams-Whitt, Kelly; Bültmann, Ute; Amick, Benjamin; Munir, Fehmidah; Tveito, Torill H; Anema, Johannes R

    2016-12-01

    Purpose The significant individual and societal burden of work disability could be reduced if supportive workplace strategies could be added to evidence-based clinical treatment and rehabilitation to improve return-to-work (RTW) and other disability outcomes. The goal of this article is to summarize existing research on workplace interventions to prevent disability, relate these to employer disability management practices, and recommend future research priorities. Methods The authors participated in a year-long collaboration that ultimately led to an invited 3-day conference, Improving Research of Employer Practices to Prevent Disability, held October 14-16, 2015, in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, USA. The collaboration included a topical review of the literature, group conference calls to identify key areas and challenges, drafting of initial documents, review of industry publications, and a conference presentation that included feedback from peer researchers and a question/answer session with an expert panel with direct employer experience. Results Evidence from randomized trials and other research designs has shown general support for job modification, RTW coordination, and organizational support, but evidence is still lacking for interventions at a more granular level. Grey literature reports focused mainly on job re-design and work organization. Panel feedback focused on organizational readiness and the beliefs and values of senior managers as critical factors in facilitating changes to disability management practices. While the scientific literature is focused on facilitating improved coping and reducing discomforts for individual workers, the employer-directed grey literature is focused on making group-level changes to policies and procedures. Conclusions Future research might better target employer practices by tying interventions to positive workplace influences and determinants, by developing more participatory interventions and research designs, and by

  18. Internet Discourse: Metalanguage Models of Practice

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Aleksandr Arkadyevich Barkovich

    2015-12-01

    Full Text Available The article is devoted to the identification and systematization of generalized prototypical traits of online communication in linguistic context. The identification of these traits and their presentation in the form of models is an important issue of objective metadescription of modern speech practice. The involvement of discursive paradigm for the characterization of speech practice is relevant in the context of dynamic development of communication: discourse is speech activity, extended in time and space, and is due to wide extra-linguistic context and communicational specifics. Paradigmatic flexibility of discourse is in demand in different methodological perspectives: humanistic, cognitive-semiotic, metalinguistic, phenomenological, etc. Internet as a phenomenon of communication is a modern representative object of interdisciplinary scientific development. The key concept in this regard is the Internet-discourse – speech practice in the field of computer-mediated communication that is due to the format of the Internet. In the context of metalanguage modeling of Internet discourse phenomenological, structural and functional types of models can be highlighted; the typology of, for example, phenomenological models suggests differentiation of their pragmatic, social, and personal integrities. Characteristics of metalanguage models, including Internet surfing, trolling, liking, etc., meets the challenges of modeling of speech practice of the Internet, expounds scientific knowledge about peculiarities and regularities of communication and extends the object base of language research.

  19. The importance of professional skills alongside scientific and technical excellence to underpin ethical geoscience practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Allington, Ruth; Fernandez-Fuentes, Isabel

    2013-04-01

    There is consensus that reliable ground models, based on a sound understanding of the geology and surface processes are vital as a basis for natural hazard identification and risk assessment, and there is a great deal of skill and experience in the geoscience community with mapping, modelling and predicting natural hazards and their likely impacts. This presentation will highlight the contributions of geology and geomorphology in the identification of natural hazards and mitigation of their impacts. It will then consider a range of "professional skills" that are needed by geoscientists working with other specialists and non-specialists (e.g. engineers, emergency services, land-use planners, architects responsible for building codes, politicians, regulators, the public etc) alongside technical and scientific excellence. It will argue that development and application of both scientific/technical and professional skills is essential to ensure that the maps, models and other data relevant to natural hazards and environmental change are used to provide effective public protection through communication, land-use planning and planning for resilience. The professional skills of particular importance include interdisciplinary collaboration; project management; cost-benefit analysis; effective communication with specialists and non specialists (especially the public); and facilitative skills. All the technical, scientific and professional skills need to be applied competently and with the highest standards of ethical underpinning. The contribution will consider how this can be achieved (or at least facilitated) through professional training, award of professional titles, licensure etc, drawing on international examples of best practice in professional codes of conduct and regulation directed to the protection of the public.

  20. Therapy by electromagnetic wave of millimeter energy range (EFH-therapy, MRT, IWT). Scientific and practical materials on the use of physical factors in clinical and health resort practice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Samosyuk, I.Z.; Chukhraev, N.V.; Shimkov, G.E.; Bitson, A.V.

    1999-01-01

    EHF-therapy method is a principally new method of treatment which is based on the peculiarities in perception by human organism the magnetic radiation of millimeter energy range. Practical use of this method has shown its high therapeutic efficiency at influencing on acupuncture points. This monography is completely devoted to description of EHF-therapy effects on acupuncture points with account of the Chinese reflexotherapy. Apparats of 'MIT' and 'Eleknronika-EHF' series do not provoke any damages in biological structures and refer to the safe class. The proposed scientific and practical materials on the use of physical factors in clinical and health resort practice are edited in addition to the previous monograph under the same title. These materials are of use for physicians of different specializations and listeners of medical advanced courses

  1. The Second Annual Student Scientific-Practical Conference in memory of M.Y. Kondratyev “Social Psychology: Issues of Theory and Practice”

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Babanin P.A.

    2017-07-01

    Full Text Available The present report contains the report on the work of the Second Annual Student Scientific-Practical Conference in Memory of M.Y. Kondratyev «Social Psychology: Issues of Theory and Practice». The conference was attended by the undergraduate and graduate students of MSUPE who submitted the reports, which reflected modern trends in the study of socialization of the individual, optimization of motivation in learning and professional activity, harmonization of interpersonal and intergroup relations in various spheres of life of a modern man.

  2. Marc Treib: Representing Landscape Architecture

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Braae, Ellen Marie

    2008-01-01

    The editor of Representing Landscape Architecture, Marc Treib, argues that there is good reason to evaluate the standard practices of representation that landscape architects have been using for so long. In the rush to the promised land of computer design these practices are now in danger of being...

  3. Developing Students' Reflections on the Function and Status of Mathematical Modeling in Different Scientific Practices: History as a Provider of Cases

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kjeldsen, Tinne Hoff; Blomhøj, Morten

    2013-01-01

    Mathematical models and mathematical modeling play different roles in the different areas and problems in which they are used. The function and status of mathematical modeling and models in the different areas depend on the scientific practice as well as the underlying philosophical and theoretical position held by the modeler(s) and the…

  4. Using Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) Practices to Address Scientific Misunderstandings Around Complex Environmental Issues

    Science.gov (United States)

    Turrin, M.; Kenna, T. C.

    2014-12-01

    The new NGSS provide an important opportunity for scientists to develop curriculum that links the practice of science to research-based data in order to improve understanding in areas of science that are both complex and confusing. Our curriculum focuses in particular on the fate and transport of anthropogenic radionuclides. Radioactivity, both naturally occurring and anthropogenic, is highly debated and largely misunderstood, and for large sections of the population is a source of scientific misunderstanding. Developed as part of the international GEOTRACES project which focuses on identifying ocean processes and quantifying fluxes that control the distributions of selected trace elements and isotopes in the ocean, and on establishing the sensitivity of these distributions to changing environmental conditions, the curriculum topic fits nicely into the applied focus of NGSS with both environmental and topical relevance. Our curriculum design focuses on small group discussion driven by questions, yet unlike more traditional curriculum pieces these are not questions posed to the students, rather they are questions posed by the students to facilitate their deeper understanding. Our curriculum design challenges the traditional question/answer memorization approach to instruction as we strive to develop an educational approach that supports the practice of science as well as the NGSS Cross Cutting Concepts and the Science & Engineering Practices. Our goal is for students to develop a methodology they can employ when faced with a complex scientific issue. Through background readings and team discussions they identify what type of information is important for them to know and where to find a reliable source for that information. Framing their discovery around key questions such as "What type of radioactive decay are we dealing with?", "What is the potential half-life of the isotope?", and "What are the pathways of transport of radioactivity?" allows students to evaluate a

  5. Topological data analysis for scientific visualization

    CERN Document Server

    Tierny, Julien

    2017-01-01

    Combining theoretical and practical aspects of topology, this book delivers a comprehensive and self-contained introduction to topological methods for the analysis and visualization of scientific data. Theoretical concepts are presented in a thorough but intuitive manner, with many high-quality color illustrations. Key algorithms for the computation and simplification of topological data representations are described in details, and their application is carefully illustrated in a chapter dedicated to concrete use cases. With its fine balance between theory and practice, "Topological Data Analysis for Scientific Visualization" constitutes an appealing introduction to the increasingly important topic of topological data analysis, for lecturers, students and researchers.

  6. Science communication at scientific societies.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Braha, Jeanne

    2017-10-01

    Scientific societies can play a key role in bridging the research and practice of scientists' engagement of public audiences. Societies are beginning to support translation of science communication research, connections between scientists and audiences, and the creation of opportunities for scientists to engage publics without extensive customization. This article suggests roles, strategies, and mechanisms for scientific societies to promote and enhance their member's engagement of public audiences. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Physicians' perceptions of medical representative visits in Yemen: a qualitative study.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Al-Areefi, Mahmoud Abdullah; Hassali, Mohamed Azmi; Ibrahim, Mohamed Izham b Mohamed

    2013-08-20

    The pharmaceutical industry invests heavily in promotion, and it uses a variety of promotional strategies to influence physicians' prescribing decisions. Within this context, medical representatives (MRs) are the key personnel employed in promoting their products. One significant consequence of the interactions between physicians and medical representatives is a conflict of interests which may contribute to the over prescribing of medications and thus negative effects on patients' health and economics. There is limited detailed information published on the reasons why physicians interact with pharmaceutical representatives. This study aims to qualitatively explore physicians' attitudes about interactions with medical representatives and their reasons for accepting the medical representatives' visits. In-depth interviews were used to gain a better understanding of physicians' perceptions of medical representative visits. A total of 32 physicians from both private and public hospitals were interviewed. The recordings of the interviews were transcribed verbatim and subject to thematic analysis using a framework analysis approach. The present qualitative study found that the majority of the physicians had positive interactions with medical representatives. The physicians' main reasons stated for allowing medical representatives' visits are the social contacts and mutual benefits they will gain from these representatives. They also emphasized that the meeting with representatives provides educational and scientific benefits. A few physicians stated that the main reasons behind refusing the meeting with medical representatives were lack of conviction about the product and obligation to prescribe medicine from the representative company. Most of the physicians believed that they were under marketing pressure to prescribe certain medicines. Although physicians are aware that the medical representatives could influence their prescribing decision, they welcome

  8. Software and the Scientist: Coding and Citation Practices in Geodynamics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hwang, Lorraine; Fish, Allison; Soito, Laura; Smith, MacKenzie; Kellogg, Louise H.

    2017-11-01

    In geodynamics as in other scientific areas, computation has become a core component of research, complementing field observation, laboratory analysis, experiment, and theory. Computational tools for data analysis, mapping, visualization, modeling, and simulation are essential for all aspects of the scientific workflow. Specialized scientific software is often developed by geodynamicists for their own use, and this effort represents a distinctive intellectual contribution. Drawing on a geodynamics community that focuses on developing and disseminating scientific software, we assess the current practices of software development and attribution, as well as attitudes about the need and best practices for software citation. We analyzed publications by participants in the Computational Infrastructure for Geodynamics and conducted mixed method surveys of the solid earth geophysics community. From this we learned that coding skills are typically learned informally. Participants considered good code as trusted, reusable, readable, and not overly complex and considered a good coder as one that participates in the community in an open and reasonable manor contributing to both long- and short-term community projects. Participants strongly supported citing software reflected by the high rate a software package was named in the literature and the high rate of citations in the references. However, lacking are clear instructions from developers on how to cite and education of users on what to cite. In addition, citations did not always lead to discoverability of the resource. A unique identifier to the software package itself, community education, and citation tools would contribute to better attribution practices.

  9. Mundane science use in a practice theoretical perspective

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Halkier, Bente

    2017-01-01

    understanding and public engagement with science. Many of the public communication initiatives, however, address lay people as consumers rather than citizens. This creates specific challenges for understanding public engagement with science and scientific citizenship. The article compares five different...... understandings of the relations between citizen-consumers and public issue communication involving science, where the first four types are widely represented in the Public Understanding of Science discussions. The fifth understanding is a practice theoretical perspective. The article suggests how the public...... understanding of and engagement in science literature can benefit from including a practice theoretical approach to research about mundane science use and public engagement....

  10. Geographic trends of scientific output and citation practices in psychiatry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Igoumenou, Artemis; Ebmeier, Klaus; Roberts, Nia; Fazel, Seena

    2014-12-06

    Measures of research productivity are increasingly used to determine how research should be evaluated and funding decisions made. In psychiatry, citation patterns within and between countries are not known, and whether these differ by choice of citation metric. In this study, we examined publication characteristics and citation practices in articles published in 50 Web of Science indexed psychiatric and relevant clinical neurosciences journals, between January 2004 and December 2009 comprising 51,072 records that produced 375,962 citations. We compared citation patterns, including self-citations, between countries using standard x(2) tests. We found that most publications came from the USA, with Germany being second and UK third in productivity. USA articles received most citations and the highest citation rate with an average 11.5 citations per article. The UK received the second highest absolute number of citations, but came fourth by citation rate (9.7 citations/article), after the Netherlands (11.4 citations/article) and Canada (9.8 citations/article). Within the USA, Harvard University published most articles and these articles were the most cited, on average 20.0 citations per paper. In Europe, UK institutions published and were cited most often. The Institute of Psychiatry/Kings College London was the leading institution in terms of number of published records and overall citations, while Oxford University had the highest citation rate (18.5 citations/record). There were no differences between the self-citation practices of American and European researchers. Articles that examined some aspect of treatment in psychiatry were the most published. In terms of diagnosis, papers about schizophrenia-spectrum disorders were the most published and the most cited. We found large differences between and within countries in terms of their research productivity in psychiatry and clinical neuroscience. In addition, the ranking of countries and institutions differed widely

  11. Reorienting Esthetic Knowing as an Appropriate "Object" of Scientific Inquiry to Advance Understanding of a Critical Pattern of Nursing Knowledge in Practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bender, Miriam; Elias, Dina

    The esthetic pattern of knowing is critical for nursing practice, yet remains weakly defined and understood. This gap has arguably relegated esthetic knowing to an "ineffable" creativity that resists transparency and understanding, which is a barrier to articulating its value for nursing and its importance in producing beneficial health outcomes. Current philosophy of science developments are synthesized to argue that esthetic knowing is an appropriate "object" of scientific inquiry. Examples of empirical scholarship that can be conceived as scientific inquiry into manifestations of esthetic knowing are highlighted. A program of research is outlined to advance a science of esthetic knowing.

  12. Learners' Epistemic Criteria for Good Scientific Models

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pluta, William J.; Chinn, Clark A.; Duncan, Ravit Golan

    2011-01-01

    Epistemic criteria are the standards used to evaluate scientific products (e.g., models, evidence, arguments). In this study, we analyzed epistemic criteria for good models generated by 324 middle-school students. After evaluating a range of scientific models, but before extensive instruction or experience with model-based reasoning practices,…

  13. Problems of Chernobyl. Materials of International scientific and practical conference 'Shelter-98'; Problemi Chornobilya. Materyiali Myizhnarodnoyi Naukovo-Praktichnoyi Konferentsyiyi 'Ukrittya-98'

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Klyuchnikov, O O [eds.

    1999-07-01

    These transactions contain materials of International Scientific and Practical Conference 'Shelter-98', which was held 27-30 November 1998 in Slavutich. They describe the results of the research work of the specialists from Ukraine, neighborhood and far foreign counties. The results, targeted at solving the problems of converting the Shelter Object into oncologically safe state.

  14. Writing Case Reports: Contributing to Practice and Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bavdekar, Sandeep B; Save, Sushma

    2015-04-01

    Case reports describe a patient with unusual or unexpected features. They represent the oldest type of medical publication. They are about generating a new hypothesis and not about proving a hypothesis. Hence, despite being considered as the lowest level of evidence; they continue to be relevant for clinical practice, research and medical education. This article intends to provide guidance regarding writing a case report to those wishing to make a foray in scientific writing through reporting an interesting case.

  15. 27 CFR 71.31 - Attorneys and other representatives.

    Science.gov (United States)

    2010-04-01

    ... representatives. 71.31 Section 71.31 Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms ALCOHOL AND TOBACCO TAX AND TRADE... applicant may be represented by an attorney, certified public accountant, or other person enrolled to practice before the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau under 31 CFR part 8—Practice before the...

  16. Mapping the evolution of scientific fields.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herrera, Mark; Roberts, David C; Gulbahce, Natali

    2010-05-04

    Despite the apparent cross-disciplinary interactions among scientific fields, a formal description of their evolution is lacking. Here we describe a novel approach to study the dynamics and evolution of scientific fields using a network-based analysis. We build an idea network consisting of American Physical Society Physics and Astronomy Classification Scheme (PACS) numbers as nodes representing scientific concepts. Two PACS numbers are linked if there exist publications that reference them simultaneously. We locate scientific fields using a community finding algorithm, and describe the time evolution of these fields over the course of 1985-2006. The communities we identify map to known scientific fields, and their age depends on their size and activity. We expect our approach to quantifying the evolution of ideas to be relevant for making predictions about the future of science and thus help to guide its development.

  17. CERN Scientific Book Fair 2013

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN Library

    2013-01-01

    The CERN Bookshop and CERN Library invite you to attend the 2013 CERN Book Fair, a two-day scientific event offering you the opportunity to meet key publishers and to browse and purchase books at significant discounts.   Key publishers will present a selection of titles in physics, technology, mathematics, engineering, computing and popular science. You are welcome to come along and meet the publishers’ representatives or simply have a look at the books on sale. The fair will take place in the Main Building (Bldg. 500) on the ground floor near Restaurant 1 on Monday 9 and Tuesday 10 September. Participating or represented publishers include: Oxford University Press, Princeton University Press, Springer, Wiley, and World Scientific-Imperial College Press. Fair opening times:  - Monday 9 September 9:00 - 18:00  - Tuesday 10 September 9:00 - 18:00

  18. Statistics and analysis of scientific data

    CERN Document Server

    Bonamente, Massimiliano

    2013-01-01

    Statistics and Analysis of Scientific Data covers the foundations of probability theory and statistics, and a number of numerical and analytical methods that are essential for the present-day analyst of scientific data. Topics covered include probability theory, distribution functions of statistics, fits to two-dimensional datasheets and parameter estimation, Monte Carlo methods and Markov chains. Equal attention is paid to the theory and its practical application, and results from classic experiments in various fields are used to illustrate the importance of statistics in the analysis of scientific data. The main pedagogical method is a theory-then-application approach, where emphasis is placed first on a sound understanding of the underlying theory of a topic, which becomes the basis for an efficient and proactive use of the material for practical applications. The level is appropriate for undergraduates and beginning graduate students, and as a reference for the experienced researcher. Basic calculus is us...

  19. 3D Scientific Visualization with Blender

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kent, Brian R.

    2015-03-01

    This is the first book written on using Blender for scientific visualization. It is a practical and interesting introduction to Blender for understanding key parts of 3D rendering and animation that pertain to the sciences via step-by-step guided tutorials. 3D Scientific Visualization with Blender takes you through an understanding of 3D graphics and modelling for different visualization scenarios in the physical sciences.

  20. The emergence of scientific management in America

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Sorin-George Toma

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available A scientific approach to management was initiated for the first time in America in the late 19th century. Scientific management arose mainly from the need to increase efficiency in America, but other key factors were the spread of big businesses and the expanding application of science in industry. The aims of our paper are to present the emergence of scientific management in America and to emphasize the contribution of some of the most representatives American authors to its development. The methodological approach is literature review. Our paper shows that scientific management was essentially an American achievement that provided useful lessons for the whole human society.

  1. Merits and Demerits of Teaching Method Using Case Studies of Scientific Management

    OpenAIRE

    工藤, 市兵衛; 尾藤, 信

    1981-01-01

    The practical aspects of scientific management were neglected in management education although its theory and knowledge have been taught. Knowledge and practice are not mutually exclusive. It is important that both of them, which are well-balanced, should be taught in management class. Academic societies are tend to neglect the practical aspects while business societies slack off the theory. This study pursed a well-balanced course by introducing the practical aspects of scientific management...

  2. Recent activities of the Seismology Division Early Career Representative(s)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Agius, Matthew; Van Noten, Koen; Ermert, Laura; Mai, P. Martin; Krawczyk, CharLotte

    2016-04-01

    The European Geosciences Union is a bottom-up-organisation, in which its members are represented by their respective scientific divisions, committees and council. In recent years, EGU has embarked on a mission to reach out for its numerous 'younger' members by giving awards to outstanding young scientists and the setting up of Early Career Scientists (ECS) representatives. The division representative's role is to engage in discussions that concern students and early career scientists. Several meetings between all the division representatives are held throughout the year to discuss ideas and Union-wide issues. One important impact ECS representatives have had on EGU is the increased number of short courses and workshops run by ECS during the annual General Assembly. Another important contribution of ECS representatives was redefining 'Young Scientist' to 'Early Career Scientist', which avoids discrimination due to age. Since 2014, the Seismology Division has its own ECS representative. In an effort to more effectively reach out for young seismologists, a blog and a social media page dedicated to seismology have been set up online. With this dedicated blog, we'd like to give more depth to the average browsing experience by enabling young researchers to explore various seismology topics in one place while making the field more exciting and accessible to the broader community. These pages are used to promote the latest research especially of young seismologists and to share interesting seismo-news. Over the months the pages proved to be popular, with hundreds of views every week and an increased number of followers. An online survey was conducted to learn more about the activities and needs of early career seismologists. We present the results from this survey, and the work that has been carried out over the last two years, including detail of what has been achieved so far, and what we would like the ECS representation for Seismology to achieve. Young seismologists are

  3. Objects prompt authentic scientific activities among learners in a museum programme

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Achiam, Marianne; Simony, Leonora; Lindow, Bent Erik Kramer

    2016-01-01

    Although the scientific disciplines conduct practical work in different ways, all consider practical work as the essential way of connecting objects and phenomena with ideas and the abstract. Accordingly, practical work is regarded as central to science education as well. We investigate a practical......, object-based palaeontology programme at a natural history museum to identify how palaeontological objects prompt scientific activity among upper secondary school students. We first construct a theoretical framework based on an analysis of the programme’s palaeontological content. From this, we build our...

  4. Benefits and harms of general health checks- lifelong learning in general practice: how to read and use scientific literature

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Arreskov, Anne Beiter; Graungaard, Anette Hauskov; Nielsen, Kirsten Lykke

    the paper using the method of critical appraisal. Session content The didactic method used in the workshop is mostly small group activities with eight participants and two tutors in each group. The participants will receive two scientific papers: the BMJ-version of the Cochrane review about general health......Abstract title: Benefits and harms of general health checks - lifelong learning in general practice: how to read and use scientific literature Objectives After this workshop the participants will know the basics of how to read a systematic literature review and interpret a meta-analysis and be able......, assesses, and implements methods of diagnosis and treatment on the basis of the best available current research, clinical expertise, and combines this with the needs and preferences of the patient, is termed evidence-based medicine. By learning and practising the principles of evidence-based medicine, GPs...

  5. INTEGRATION OF UKRAINIAN INDUSTRY SCIENTIFIC PERIODACLS INTO WORLD SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION SPACE: PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    T. O. Kolesnykova

    2013-11-01

    Full Text Available Purpose. Problem of representation lack of scientists’ publications, including transport scientists, in the international scientometric databases is the urgent one for Ukrainian science. To solve the problem one should study the structure and quality of the information flow of scientific periodicals of railway universities in Ukraine and to determine the integration algorithm of scientific publications of Ukrainian scientists into the world scientific information space. Methodology. Applying the methods of scientific analysis, synthesis, analogy, comparison and prediction the author has investigated the problem of scientific knowledge distribution using formal communications. The readiness of Ukrainian railway periodicals to registration procedure in the international scientometric systems was analyzed. The level of representation of articles and authors of Ukrainian railway universities in scientometric database Scopus was studied. Findings. Monitoring of the portals of railway industry universities of Ukraine and the sites of their scientific periodicals and analysis of obtained data prove insufficient readiness of most scientific publications for submission to scientometric database. The ways providing sufficient "visibility" of industry periodicals of Ukrainian universities in the global scientific information space were proposed. Originality. The structure and quality of documentary flow of scientific periodicals in railway transport universities of Ukraine and its reflection in scientometric DB Scopus were first investigated. The basic directions of university activities to integrate the results of transport scientists research into the global scientific digital environment were outlined. It was determined the leading role of university libraries in the integration processes of scientific documentary resources of universities into the global scientific and information communicative space. Practical value. Implementation of the proposed

  6. Values and the Scientific Culture of Behavior Analysis

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ruiz, Maria R; Roche, Bryan

    2007-01-01

    As scientists and practitioners, behavior analysts must make frequent decisions that affect many lives. Scientific principles have been our guide as we work to promote effective action across a broad spectrum of cultural practices. Yet scientific principles alone may not be sufficient to guide our decision making in cases with potentially conflicting outcomes. In such cases, values function as guides to work through ethical conflicts. We will examine two ethical systems, radical behaviorism and functional contextualism, from which to consider the role of values in behavior analysis, and discuss potential concerns. Finally, we propose philosophical pragmatism, focusing on John Dewey's notions of community and dialogue, as a tradition that can help behavior analysts to integrate talk about values and scientific practices in ethical decision making. PMID:22478484

  7. Making graduate research in science education more scientific

    Science.gov (United States)

    Firman, Harry

    2016-02-01

    It is expected that research conducted by graduate students in science education provide research findings which can be utilized as evidence based foundations for making decisions to improve science education practices in schools. However, lack of credibility of research become one of the factors cause idleness of thesis and dissertation in the context of education improvement. Credibility of a research is constructed by its scientificness. As a result, enhancement of scientific characters of graduate research needs to be done to close the gap between research and practice. A number of guiding principles underlie educational researchs as a scientific inquiry are explored and applied in this paper to identify common shortages of some thesis and dissertation manuscripts on science education reviewed in last two years.

  8. Research on Evaluation of Chinese Students' Competence in Written Scientific Argumentation in the Context of Chemistry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Deng, Yang; Wang, Houxiong

    2017-01-01

    Attending to practice has become a significant topic in science education today. As scientific argumentation is a typical form of scientific practice as well as an important educational practice, more and more attention has been paid to it by science education researchers. Evaluating students' competence in scientific argumentation is one of the…

  9. Social Network and Content Analysis of the North American Carbon Program as a Scientific Community of Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Brown, Molly E.; Ihli, Monica; Hendrick, Oscar; Delgado-Arias, Sabrina; Escobar, Vanessa M.; Griffith, Peter

    2015-01-01

    The North American Carbon Program (NACP) was formed to further the scientific understanding of sources, sinks, and stocks of carbon in Earth's environment. Carbon cycle science integrates multidisciplinary research, providing decision-support information for managing climate and carbon-related change across multiple sectors of society. This investigation uses the conceptual framework of com-munities of practice (CoP) to explore the role that the NACP has played in connecting researchers into a carbon cycle knowledge network, and in enabling them to conduct physical science that includes ideas from social science. A CoP describes the communities formed when people consistently engage in shared communication and activities toward a common passion or learning goal. We apply the CoP model by using keyword analysis of abstracts from scientific publications to analyze the research outputs of the NACP in terms of its knowledge domain. We also construct a co-authorship network from the publications of core NACP members, describe the structure and social pathways within the community. Results of the content analysis indicate that the NACP community of practice has substantially expanded its research on human and social impacts on the carbon cycle, contributing to a better understanding of how human and physical processes interact with one another. Results of the co-authorship social network analysis demonstrate that the NACP has formed a tightly connected community with many social pathways through which knowledge may flow, and that it has also expanded its network of institutions involved in carbon cycle research over the past seven years.

  10. Scientific impact: opportunity and necessity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cohen, Marlene Z; Alexander, Gregory L; Wyman, Jean F; Fahrenwald, Nancy L; Porock, Davina; Wurzbach, Mary E; Rawl, Susan M; Conn, Vicki S

    2010-08-01

    Recent National Institutes of Health changes have focused attention on the potential scientific impact of research projects. Research with the excellent potential to change subsequent science or health care practice may have high scientific impact. Only rigorous studies that address highly significant problems can generate change. Studies with high impact may stimulate new research approaches by changing understanding of a phenomenon, informing theory development, or creating new research methods that allow a field of science to move forward. Research with high impact can transition health care to more effective and efficient approaches. Studies with high impact may propel new policy developments. Research with high scientific impact typically has both immediate and sustained influence on the field of study. The article includes ideas to articulate potential scientific impact in grant applications as well as possible dissemination strategies to enlarge the impact of completed projects.

  11. The committee of scientific expertise coordination

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2003-01-01

    Placed under the MIES control, the Committee of scientific expertise coordination defines the needs, the contain and the planing of expertises realized in function of Climate national and international decisions and negotiations calendars. The Committee verifies the different expertises and offers the administrations, scientific tools and techniques useful for the negotiations. It can also define long-dated research needs which require the scientific community mobilization. This paper provides some document of the Committee: objectives, operating and priorities of the Committee, scenarios ''Factor 4'' and ''crack technology'', perceptions and practices, developing countries (China, India...), Euromed. (A.L.B.)

  12. Things to see and do: how scientific images work

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Kjærgaard, Rikke Schmidt

    2011-01-01

    Visual representations are an important and integral part of understanding and developing new scientific concepts – both in the laboratory and when engaging a public audience. Images often serve as the primary evidence supporting the claims of the scientific publication (Goodsell & Johnson, 2007...... a broad range of scientific areas, visual approaches and imaging technologies. It explores the way we look at scientific data, why some representations are better than others, and what you can do to achieve clarity, accuracy and aesthetic appearance in a visual representation that will represent your...... scientific data in the best possible way....

  13. How to write a good scientific paper

    CERN Document Server

    Mack, Chris A

    2018-01-01

    Many scientists and engineers consider themselves poor writers or find the writing process difficult. The good news is that you do not have to be a talented writer to produce a good scientific paper, but you do have to be a careful writer. In particular, writing for a peer-reviewed scientific or engineering journal requires learning and executing a specific formula for presenting scientific work. This book is all about teaching the style and conventions of writing for a peer-reviewed scientific journal. From structure to style, titles to tables, abstracts to author lists, this book gives practical advice about the process of writing a paper and getting it published.

  14. Pre-Service Science Teachers in Xinjiang "Scientific Inquiry" - Pedagogical Content Knowledge Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Yufeng; Xiong, Jianwen

    2012-01-01

    Scientific inquiry is one of the science curriculum content, "Scientific inquiry" - Pedagogical Content Knowledge is the face of scientific inquiry and teachers - of course pedagogical content knowledge and scientific inquiry a teaching practice with more direct expertise. Pre-service teacher training phase of acquisition of knowledge is…

  15. "One hundred percent efficiency": Technology and the pursuit of scientific literacy

    Science.gov (United States)

    King, Kenneth Paul

    This dissertation examined the role of technology in science education during the twentieth century. A historical approach was taken to examine teacher practices in the use of technology. The three technologies considered in this study were the motion picture, the television, and the computer. As an organizing principle, historical definitions of "scientific literacy" were used to examine the goals of using technology within science education. The evolution of the concept of science literacy is traced from the early part of the twentieth century to the late 1990s. Documentation examined revealed the "best practices" associated with the use of technology. The use of the motion picture was traced from the silent film through film loops, videotape, videodisc and the advent of the digital video disc, and the means by which teachers used this technology were considered. The instructional use of television was examined from several different approaches: commercial broadcasts, educational and instructional programming, closed circuit approaches and the use of cable and satellite programming. The manner in which these approaches were used to achieve goals of scientific literacy was considered. The use of the computer was examined in terms of the purpose of the software involved. Teaching practice to achieve scientific literacy, using computers as a means of accessing information, as an analytical tool, as a creativity tool, and as a means of communication were addressed. In each of these technologies, similar implementation trends were present within each one. The literature supporting the use of the technology described first the focus on the hardware, followed by the development of appropriate pedagogy, and then by the proliferation of software supporting the use of the technology. Suggestions for additional study were offered as well as speculation as to future practices with technology in science teaching. Investigations using expectation-value theory suggest

  16. Software Defects, Scientific Computation and the Scientific Method

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN. Geneva

    2011-01-01

    Computation has rapidly grown in the last 50 years so that in many scientific areas it is the dominant partner in the practice of science. Unfortunately, unlike the experimental sciences, it does not adhere well to the principles of the scientific method as espoused by, for example, the philosopher Karl Popper. Such principles are built around the notions of deniability and reproducibility. Although much research effort has been spent on measuring the density of software defects, much less has been spent on the more difficult problem of measuring their effect on the output of a program. This talk explores these issues with numerous examples suggesting how this situation might be improved to match the demands of modern science. Finally it develops a theoretical model based on an amalgam of statistical mechanics and Hartley/Shannon information theory which suggests that software systems have strong implementation independent behaviour and supports the widely observed phenomenon that defects clust...

  17. A method to mine workflows from provenance for assisting scientific workflow composition

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zeng, R.; He, X.; Aalst, van der W.M.P.

    2011-01-01

    Scientific workflows have recently emerged as a new paradigm for representing and managing complex distributed scientific computations and are used to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery. In many disciplines, individual workflows are large and complicated due to the large quantities of data

  18. Scientific practices and social behaviors in managing landslide risks: comparing experiences between developing and developed countries

    Science.gov (United States)

    Devoli, G.

    2012-04-01

    A successful landslide risk reduction program requires that the society is aware and understand the landslide problems within the geographic area involved. Central organizations that manage national landslide risks should: a) create and systematically applied natural hazard laws/national landslide strategies, where roles and limits of responsibilities of federal, state, provincial, municipal and private entities are well defined; c) establish fruitful multidisciplinary and interinstitutional collaboration among scientists; d) provide good risk assessments in which landslide experts report transparently what is really known and the limitations of methods and tools used; e) share and systematically communicate their knowledge more effectively with all private and public stakeholders involved, paying attention to providing balanced information about risks and addressing inevitable uncertainties; f) support the mass-media in spreading correct scientific information; g) perform serious risk and cost-benefit analyses before mitigation measures are realized; h) assist local authorities in the application of land-use planning policies and g) built trust and confidence by means of a continuous contact and communication with the public and local authorities. However, this is not yet achieved, not even in developed countries where, in theory, more economical resources are available and people are better educated then in developing countries. Herein I make some observations on how national landslide prevention efforts are being organized in two countries (Nicaragua and Norway), where I have been worked at governmental agencies as landslide expert in the last 10 years. I start describing similarities and differences between the countries and try to compare practices and experiences. The analysis was motivated by the following questions: Why after so many years of landslide mapping and investigations, landslide prevention is not good and effective as it should be? Is this

  19. Authorship for scientific papers: the new challenges.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Garcia, Carla Costa; Martrucelli, Cristina Ribeiro Nabuco; Rossilho, Marilisa de Melo Freire; Denardin, Odilon Victor Porto

    2010-01-01

    The dissemination of the practice of collaborative authorship (coauthorship) in Brazil and in the international scientific community has been accompanied by an increasing occurrence of frauds, manipulations and other deviations in the assignment of responsibility for a scientific paper. This article discusses the criteria for authorship attribution, the reasons for the growing indices of coauthorship and the challenges to determine authorship in electronic journals. Through literature review and case study (bibliographic search in scientific database), it shows ways to avoid that "misbehaviors" related to the authorship attribution affect the credibility of science.

  20. I Wonder…Scientific Exploration and Experimentation as a Practice of Christian Faith

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shaver, Ruth E.

    2016-01-01

    "I Wonder...Gaining Wisdom and Growing Faith Through Scientific Exploration" is an intergenerational science curriculum designed to be used in congregations. The goal of this curriculum and the theoretical work underpinning it is to counter the perception that people of faith cannot also be people who possess a scientific understanding…

  1. CERN scientific book fair 2010

    CERN Document Server

    CERN Library

    2010-01-01

    The CERN Bookshop and CERN Library invite you to attend the 2010 CERN Book Fair, a two-day scientific event offering you the opportunity to meet key publishers and to browse and purchase books at significant discounts.   Some twelve companies will be present and will bring with them a selection of titles in physics, technology, mathematics, engineering, computing and popular science. You are welcome to come along and meet the publishers’ representatives or simply have a look to the books on offer. The Fair will take place in the Main Building (bldg. 500) on the ground floor near the Restaurant 1 on Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th September. Participating or represented publishers include: Cambridge University Press, EPFL Press – PPUR, Oxford University Press, Imperial College Press, McGraw-Hill, Oxford University Press, Pearson Education, Princeton University Press, Springer, Taylor and Francis, Wiley, World Scientific. Fair opening times: Tuesday 7 September 9:00 &ndash...

  2. Practical epistemology: the role of peer review in organizing scientific research

    OpenAIRE

    Alexei V. Shestopal; Vladimir I. Konnov

    2014-01-01

    The article considers peer review as the main procedure for demarcating scientific knowledge from other kinds thereof, which do not meet the criteria set for research results. The authors examine the history of peer review, which has first been used in early scientific journals and then has become one of the key approaches to distributing funds for research in science foundations, such as the U.S. National Science Foundation. The article also considers the role of peer review in the legal pro...

  3. SCIENTIFIC BASIS OF DENTISTRY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yegane GÜVEN

    2017-10-01

    Full Text Available Technological and scientific innovations have increased exponentially over the past years in the dentistry profession. In this article, these developments are evaluated both in terms of clinical practice and their place in the educational program. The effect of the biologic and digital revolutions on dental education and daily clinical practice are also reviewed. Biomimetics, personalized dental medicine regenerative dentistry, nanotechnology, high-end simulations providing virtual reality, genomic information, and stem cell studies will gain more importance in the coming years, moving dentistry to a different dimension.

  4. Teaching scientific integrity through statistics

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    van Duijn, Marijtje A.J.; Post, Wendy J.; Makar, Katie; de Sousa, Bruno; Gould, Robert1

    In the past years, Dutch academia was confronted with several cases of fraud. The Stapel investigation revealed that the prevailing research culture allowed questionable research practices (QRP). As a consequence, there is an ongoing debate on how to prevent academic misconduct. Teaching scientific

  5. Communicating with scientific graphics: A descriptive inquiry into non-ideal normativity.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sheredos, Benjamin

    2017-06-01

    Scientists' graphical practices have recently become a target of inquiry in the philosophy of science, and in the cognitive sciences. Here I supplement our understanding of graphical practices via a case study of how researchers crafted the graphics for scientific publication in the field of circadian biology. The case highlights social aspects of graphical production which have gone understudied - especially concerning the negotiation of publication. I argue that it also supports a challenge to the claim that empirically-informed "cognitive design principles" offer an apt understanding of the norms of success which govern good scientific graphic design to communicate data and hypotheses to other experts. In this respect, the case-study also illustrates how "descriptive" studies of scientific practice can connect with normative issues in philosophy of science, thereby addressing a central concern in recent discussions of practice-oriented philosophy of science. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. On the potential cost effectiveness of scientific audits.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Click, J L

    1989-09-01

    The rationale for the routine performance of scientific audits has been previously discussed, and it has been proposed that independent professionals audit scientific data just as certified public accountants in independent public accounting firms audit financial data (1-4). Scientific audits would typically require the examination of data in laboratory notebooks and other work sheets, upon which research publications are based. Examples of such audits have been publicized recently, although these represent audits which have been conducted relatively inefficiently, over periods of several years per audit, and which have only been conducted due to the persistence of whistleblowers suspecting scientific fraud (5, 6). A detailed report has also appeared on the results of an audit of the research activities of a particular individual, where the audit was limited solely to an examination of the research publications themselves for errors and discrepancies (7). It should be emphasized that the purpose of conducting scientific audits is not only to detect fabrication of experimental results but also to monitor presumably more prevalent, non-fraudulent, inappropriate practices, such as misrepresentation of data, inaccurate reporting, and departure from institutional guidelines for handling hazardous materials, working with human subjects, etc. Two concerns which have been raised concerning the performance of scientific audits relate to cost. What would they cost, and who would pay for them? These questions, however, may be turned around. What does it cost not to conduct such audits, and who pays for that? An assumption often made is that science is self-correcting, that sooner or later the truth will be revealed because of the need to replicate experiments of others for independent verification of novel findings (8). Testimony recently presented at a U.S. congressional hearing suggests that the self-correcting manner in which science advances represents a very slow and

  7. Scientific-theoretical research approach to practical theology in ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    All of them work with practical theological hermeneutics. The basic hermeneutic approach of Daniël Louw is widened with an integrated approach by Richard R. Osmer in which practical theology as a hermeneutic discipline also includes the empirical aspect which the action theory approach has contributed to the ...

  8. Science Teaching as Educational Interrogation of Scientific Research

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ginev, Dimitri

    2013-01-01

    The main argument of this article is that science teaching based on a pedagogy of questions is to be modeled on a hermeneutic conception of scientific research as a process of the constitution of texts. This process is spelled out in terms of hermeneutic phenomenology. A text constituted by scientific practices is at once united by a hermeneutic…

  9. Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring – Clinical Practice Recommendations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Katalin Mako

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM became a subject of considerable scientific interest. Due to the increasing use of the ABPM in everyday clinical practice it is important that all the users have a correct knowledge on the clinical indications, the methodology of using the device including some technical issues and the interpretation of results. In the last years several guidelines and position papers have been published with recommendations for the monitoring process, reference values, for clinical practice and research. This paper represents a summary of the most important aspects related to the use of ABPM in daily practice, being a synthesis of recommendations from the recent published guidelines and position papers. This reference article presents the practical and technical issues of ABPM, the use of this method in special situations, the clinical interpretation of measured values including the presentation of different ABPM patterns, derived parameters, the prognostic significance and the limitations of this method.

  10. Scientific biography, cognitive deficits, and laboratory practice. James McKeen Cattell and early American experimental psychology, 1880-1904.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sokal, Michael M

    2010-09-01

    Despite widespread interest in individual life histories, few biographies of scientists make use of insights derived from psychology, another discipline that studies people, their thoughts, and their actions. This essay argues that recent theoretical work in psychology and tools developed for clinical psychological practice can help biographical historians of science create and present fuller portraits of their subjects' characters and temperaments and more nuanced analyses of how these traits helped shape their subjects' scientific work. To illustrate this thesis, the essay examines the early career of James McKeen Cattell--an influential late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century experimental psychologist--through a lens offered by psychology and argues that Cattell's actual laboratory practices derived from an "accommodation" to a long-standing "cognitive deficit." These practices in turn enabled Cattell to achieve more precise experimental results than could any of his contemporaries; and their students readily adopted them, along with their behavioral implications. The essay concludes that, in some ways, American psychology's early twentieth-century move toward a behavioral understanding of psychological phenomena can be traced to Cattell's personal cognitive deficit. It closes by reviewing several "remaining general questions" that this thesis suggests.

  11. A methodology for semiautomatic taxonomy of concepts extraction from nuclear scientific documents using text mining techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Braga, Fabiane dos Reis

    2013-01-01

    This thesis presents a text mining method for semi-automatic extraction of taxonomy of concepts, from a textual corpus composed of scientific papers related to nuclear area. The text classification is a natural human practice and a crucial task for work with large repositories. The document clustering technique provides a logical and understandable framework that facilitates the organization, browsing and searching. Most clustering algorithms using the bag of words model to represent the content of a document. This model generates a high dimensionality of the data, ignores the fact that different words can have the same meaning and does not consider the relationship between them, assuming that words are independent of each other. The methodology presents a combination of a model for document representation by concepts with a hierarchical document clustering method using frequency of co-occurrence concepts and a technique for clusters labeling more representatives, with the objective of producing a taxonomy of concepts which may reflect a structure of the knowledge domain. It is hoped that this work will contribute to the conceptual mapping of scientific production of nuclear area and thus support the management of research activities in this area. (author)

  12. Meta-analysis of scientific publications hei with brazilian environmental management system

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexandre André Feil

    2015-02-01

    Full Text Available The Higher Education Institutions (HEIs are being pressured by changes towards sustainability and thus awakening to environmental management, they are considered as a leader in promoting sustainability through actions and environmental management practices. Following this logic, this study aims to identify the environmental management practices used in Brazilian HEIs and correlations exist that influence the implementation of Environmental Management Systems (EMS. The quantitative approach is applied through documentary research with secondary data published in proceedings, journals, books and portal Scientific Electronic Library (SciELO. The data analysis occurred through meta-analysis using descriptive statistics and Spearman correlation. The results of 34 scientific studies 23 IES referencing models and practices of waste management published from 2001 to 2012 were identified. The Spearman correlation analysis expressed that HEIs with programs in environmental education performed better ranking General Index of Courses. It is recommended that HEIs that have a waste management deployed, share your experience through scientific publications to disseminate their adaptation practices regarding the SGA.

  13. Evaluating Scientific Work by Means of Diffusion

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dan Ophir

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available There are two approaches for evaluating scientific papers. The classic way is to choose well established representatives of the specific scientific community and have them evaluate their colleague's work. The other method of evaluation, the so called peer-evaluation method, is where peers (famous or otherwise of the author evaluate the paper. Peer-evaluation resembles the diffusion process in which a new substance spreads out to the whole solution. Similarly the new author and article are diffused among the scientific community, smoothing the level for accepting scientific papers. Using the classic-evaluation system of accepting new papers, the average starting scientists writes their first number of articles as collaborators with a renowned scientist, thus gradually building up their image. Only afterwards do these authors dare to independently publish. What are the pros and cons of both these types of scientific article evaluations?

  14. Institutional initiatives in professional scientific ethics: three case studies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nickless, Edmund; Bilham, Nic

    2015-04-01

    Learned and professional scientific bodies can play a vital role in promoting ethical behaviours, giving practical substance to theoretical consideration of geoethical principles and complementing the efforts of individual scientists and practitioners to behave in a professional and ethical manner. Institutions may do this through mandatory professional codes of conduct, by developing guidelines and initiatives to codify and stimulate the uptake of best practice, and through wider initiatives to engender a culture conducive to such behaviours. This presentation will outline three current institutional initiatives which directly or indirectly address scientific ethics: i. The UK Science Council's Declaration on Diversity, Equality and Inclusion. ii. Development and promulgation of the American Geosciences Institute's (AGI) Guidelines for Ethical Professional Conduct. iii. The American Geophysical Union's (AGU) Scientific Code of Conduct and Professional Ethics. The focus of the Science Council and its member bodies (including the Geological Society of London) on diversity is of central importance when considering ethical behaviours in science. First, improving equality and diversity in the science workforce is at the heart of ethical practice, as well as being essential to meeting current and future skills needs. Second, in addition to demographic diversity (whether in terms of gender, race, economic status, sexuality or gender identity, etc), an important dimension of diversity in science is to allow space for a plurality of scientific views, and to nurture dissenting voices - essential both to the development of scientific knowledge and to its effective communication to non-technical audiences.

  15. Refining Current Scientific Priorities and Identifying New Scientific Gaps in HIV-Related Heart, Lung, Blood, and Sleep Research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Twigg, Homer L; Crystal, Ronald; Currier, Judith; Ridker, Paul; Berliner, Nancy; Kiem, Hans-Peter; Rutherford, George; Zou, Shimian; Glynn, Simone; Wong, Renee; Peprah, Emmanuel; Engelgau, Michael; Creazzo, Tony; Colombini-Hatch, Sandra; Caler, Elisabet

    2017-09-01

    The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) AIDS Program's goal is to provide direction and support for research and training programs in areas of HIV-related heart, lung, blood, and sleep (HLBS) diseases. To better define NHLBI current HIV-related scientific priorities and with the goal of identifying new scientific priorities and gaps in HIV-related HLBS research, a wide group of investigators gathered for a scientific NHLBI HIV Working Group on December 14-15, 2015, in Bethesda, MD. The core objectives of the Working Group included discussions on: (1) HIV-related HLBS comorbidities in the antiretroviral era; (2) HIV cure; (3) HIV prevention; and (4) mechanisms to implement new scientific discoveries in an efficient and timely manner so as to have the most impact on people living with HIV. The 2015 Working Group represented an opportunity for the NHLBI to obtain expert advice on HIV/AIDS scientific priorities and approaches over the next decade.

  16. 3D Scientific Visualization with Blender

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kent, Brian R.

    2015-03-01

    This is the first book written on using Blender (an open source visualization suite widely used in the entertainment and gaming industries) for scientific visualization. It is a practical and interesting introduction to Blender for understanding key parts of 3D rendering and animation that pertain to the sciences via step-by-step guided tutorials. 3D Scientific Visualization with Blender takes you through an understanding of 3D graphics and modelling for different visualization scenarios in the physical sciences.

  17. Interactive Forms of Open Scientific and Educational Workshop

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naumova Galina Alekseevna

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The article discusses the innovative chain of the Russian economy which consists of three stages: “Idea” (academic science, “Technology” (applied science, and “Production”. The authors describe the innovative system of Russia in terms of infrastructure devices, the functioning of the financial system and human resources. Special attention is paid to the problem of staff training for the innovation economy in Russia. The authors propose the use of scientific and educational public workshop as a form of interactive courses in training staff for the “economy of knowledge”. The article describes the experience of holding open seminars at the Department of Innovation Studies of Volgograd State University. The members of project teams of scientific and Interdisciplinary Innovative Design educational center take part in these discussions. Four scenarios of public workshops are suggested. The first one refers to the joint research work of students, undergraduates and graduate students. The activity includes the presentation of research projects, collective work of students in the creation of business models, innovative projects, debates in the format of a talk show on current topics in the field of innovation and business. The participants also discuss the latest technological and scientific advances in the field of innovations with practical application in business by means of webinars. The second scenario implies an open workshop in the form of presentation of research results based on the technology of group project-based learning as an interactive method which is widely used in the leading universities of the world, and is the organization of educational process in the form of implementation of group projects, from the stage of their development to practical implementation. Team work (“brainstorming” open workshop consists in the creation of business models, innovative projects based on the use of techniques of prominent

  18. The role of data in scientific progress

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Glaeser, P.S.

    1985-01-01

    This book contains 109 papers presented at the 9th Int. CODATA Conference and illustrates two main themes (1) new computer-based methods for storing, manipulating and disseminating scientific and technical data, and (2) the use of such computerized data files to give new scientific insights. The broad range of scientific disciplines covered includes geology and geochemistry, oceanography and ecology, molecular biology and biotechnology, chemical engineering, materials properties, energy systems, data base design and management - theory and practice, and finally, a last section on data retrieval and library systems. 12 items are included in Atomindex separately. (Auth.)

  19. Biology, Philosophy, and Scientific Method.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, L.

    1985-01-01

    The limits of falsification are discussed and the historically based models of science described by Lakatos and Kuhn are shown to offer greater insights into the practice of science. The theory of natural selection is used to relate biology to philosophy and scientific method. (Author/JN)

  20. [Scientific concepts in clinical medicine].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rogler, G

    2003-11-28

    The understanding of the scientific basis and the theory of knowledge are surprisingly heterogeneous in practical and clinical medicine. It is frequently influenced or based on the philosophical theory of critical rationalism founded by Sir Karl Popper. Because the theory of knowledge and the understanding of scientific truth is the central basis for cautious and good clinical practise it is necessary to discuss both points to avoid unscientific auto-immunisation against critique in a type of medicine that regards herself as science-based. Evidence-based medicine would not be possible without interpretation and explanation of existing data into the individual treatment context. Besides an inductive or deductive logic the historical and situative side-conditions of the gathering of knowledge and of experiments are of central importance for their interpretation and their relevance in clinical practice. This historical and situative context warrants reflection but must also be paid attention to in the reflections on medical ethics.

  1. Representing Uncertainty by Probability and Possibility

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    of uncertain parameters. Monte Carlo simulation is readily used for practical calculations. However, an alternative approach is offered by possibility theory making use of possibility distributions such as intervals and fuzzy intervals. This approach is well suited to represent lack of knowledge or imprecision......Uncertain parameters in modeling are usually represented by probability distributions reflecting either the objective uncertainty of the parameters or the subjective belief held by the model builder. This approach is particularly suited for representing the statistical nature or variance...

  2. Scientific knowledge and modern prospecting

    Science.gov (United States)

    Neuerburg, G.J.

    1985-01-01

    Modern prospecting is the systematic search for specified and generally ill-exposed components of the Earth's crust known as ore. This prospecting depends entirely on reliable, or scientific knowledge for guidance and for recognition of the search objects. Improvement in prospecting results from additions and refinements to scientific knowledge. Scientific knowledge is an ordered distillation of observations too numerous and too complex in themselves for easy understanding and for effective management. The ordering of these observations is accomplished by an evolutionary hierarchy of abstractions. These abstractions employ simplified descriptions consisting of characterization by selected properties, sampling to represent much larger parts of a phenomenon, generalized mappings of patterns of geometrical and numerical relations among properties, and explanation (theory) of these patterns as functional relations among the selected properties. Each abstraction is predicated on the mode of abstraction anticipated for the next higher level, so that research is a deductive process in which the highest level, theory, is indispensible for the growth and refinement of scientific knowledge, and therefore of prospecting methodology. ?? 1985 Springer-Verlag.

  3. Strategies of Engagement with Scientific Fact-Finding in International Adjudication

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    d' Aspremont, J.; Mbengue, M.M.

    2013-01-01

    The following contribution zeroes in on the diverging responses that permeate international adjudicative practice pertaining to international disputes arising out of scientific controversies. Drawing on the idea that scientific fact-finding is as much a struggle for argumentative persuasiveness as

  4. Strategies of engagement with scientific fact-finding in international adjudication

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    d' Aspremont, J.; Mbengue, M.M.

    2014-01-01

    The following contribution zeroes in on the diverging responses that permeate international adjudicative practice pertaining to international disputes arising out of scientific controversies. Drawing on the idea that scientific fact-finding is as much a struggle for argumentative persuasiveness as

  5. Mapping the evolution of scientific ideas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Roberts, David C [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Herrera, Mark [UNIV OF MARYLAND; Gulbahce, Natali [NORTHEASTERN UNIV

    2008-01-01

    The importance of interdisciplinary research is ever increasing as challenging world problems require expertise across diverse fields. Despite the apparent conceptual boundaries of scientific fields, a formal description for their evolution is lacking. Here we describe a novel approach to study the dynamics and evolution of scientific ideas and fields using a network-based analysis. We build a idea network consisting of American Physical Society Pacs numbers as nodes representing scientific concepts. Two Pacs numbers are linked in the network if there exist publications that reference them simultaneously. We locate scientific fields using an overlapping community finding algorithm and describe the time evolution of these fields using a community evolution method over the course of 1985-2006. We find that the communities we find map to scientific fields, the lifetime of these fields strongly depends on their size, impact and activity, and longest living communities are least volatile. The described approach to quantify the evolution of ideas is expected to be relevant in making predictions about the future of science and how to guide its development.

  6. NASA's Scientific Visualization Studio

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mitchell, Horace G.

    2003-01-01

    Since 1988, the Scientific Visualization Studio(SVS) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center has produced scientific visualizations of NASA s scientific research and remote sensing data for public outreach. These visualizations take the form of images, animations, and end-to-end systems and have been used in many venues: from the network news to science programs such as NOVA, from museum exhibits at the Smithsonian to White House briefings. This presentation will give an overview of the major activities and accomplishments of the SVS, and some of the most interesting projects and systems developed at the SVS will be described. Particular emphasis will be given to the practices and procedures by which the SVS creates visualizations, from the hardware and software used to the structures and collaborations by which products are designed, developed, and delivered to customers. The web-based archival and delivery system for SVS visualizations at svs.gsfc.nasa.gov will also be described.

  7. A method to build and analyze scientific workflows from provenance through process mining

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Zeng, R.; He, X.; Li, Jiafei; Liu, Zheng; Aalst, van der W.M.P.

    2011-01-01

    Scientific workflows have recently emerged as a new paradigm for representing and managing complex distributed scientific computations and are used to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery. In many disciplines, individual workflows are large due to the large quantities of data used. As

  8. Teaching Scientific Communication Skills in Science Studies: Does It Make a Difference?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Spektor-Levy, Ornit; Eylon, Bat-Sheva; Scherz, Zahava

    2009-01-01

    This study explores the impact of "Scientific Communication" (SC) skills instruction on students' performances in scientific literacy assessment tasks. We present a general model for skills instruction, characterized by explicit and spiral instruction, integration into content learning, practice in several scientific topics, and application of…

  9. How to write a scientific paper.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gemayel, Rita

    2016-11-01

    In the first instalment of the Words of Advice series, we feature the essentials of good manuscript writing with practical tips on how to plan, organise and write a standout scientific paper. © 2016 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.

  10. Captain America, Tuskegee, Belmont, and Righteous Guinea Pigs: Considering Scientific Ethics through Official and Subaltern Perspectives

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinstein, Matthew

    2008-09-01

    With an eye towards a potential scientific ethics curriculum, this paper examines four contrasting discourses regarding the ethics of using human subjects in science. The first two represent official statements regarding ethics. These include the U.S.’s National Science Education Standards, that identify ethics with a professional code, and the Belmont Report, that conceptualizes ethics in three principles to guide research oversight boards. Contrasting this view of ethics as decorum and practice in line with a priori principles is the conception of ethics from unofficial sources representing populations who have been human subjects. The first counter-discourse examined comes from Guinea Pig Zero, an underground magazine for professional human subjects. Here ethics emerges as a question of politics over principle. The good behavior of the doctors and researchers is an effect of the politics and agency of the communities that supply science with subjects. The second counter-discourse is a comic book called Truth, which tells the story of Black soldiers who were used as guinea pigs in World War II. Ethics is both more political and more uncertain in this narrative. Science is portrayed as complicit with the racism of NAZI Germany; at the same time, and in contrast to the professional guinea pigs, neither agency nor politics are presented as effective tools for forcing the ethical conduct of the scientific establishment. The conclusion examines the value of presenting all of these views of scientific ethics in science education.

  11. Practical epistemology: the role of peer review in organizing scientific research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alexei V. Shestopal

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The article considers peer review as the main procedure for demarcating scientific knowledge from other kinds thereof, which do not meet the criteria set for research results. The authors examine the history of peer review, which has first been used in early scientific journals and then has become one of the key approaches to distributing funds for research in science foundations, such as the U.S. National Science Foundation. The article also considers the role of peer review in the legal process, wherein observance of this procedure can be seen as the main criteria, which separates scientific evidence from mere testimony. The description of the main elements of the peer review procedure is based on the "Statement of principles for scientific merit review" the summary of the results of the Global Summit on Merit Review, which brought together heads of science funding organizations from more than 50 countries. The Statement listed the following principles: expert assessment, transparency, impartiality, appropriateness, confidentiality, integrity and ethical considerations. Although these principles are seen as a way to guarantee efficient peer review one has to consider the peculiarities of a particular research area, first of all the differences between social and natural sciences. Accordingly the article gives an overview of key traits of peer review in the social sciences and humanities. The authors also consider the main procedural elements - preparation of individual reviews, consideration by panels, anonymity of reviewers. Finally the article addresses the problems of peer review such as non-transparent process, elitism in selecting reviewers, conservativeness of decisions, and possible ways of handling these problems.

  12. "What is Authorship, and What Should it Be? A Survey of Prominent Guidelines for Determining Authorship in Scientific Publications"

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jason W. Osborne

    2009-07-01

    Full Text Available Before the mid 20th century most scientific writing was solely authored (Claxton, 2005; Greene, 2007 and thus it is only relatively recently, as science has grown more complex, that the ethical and procedural issues around authorship have arisen. Fields as diverse as medicine (International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, 2008, mathematics (e.g., American Statistical Association, 1999, the physical sciences (e.g., American Chemical Society, 2006, and the social sciences (e.g., American Psychological Association, 2002 have, in recent years, wrestled with what constitutes authorship and how to eliminate problematic practices such as honorary authorship and ghost authorship (e.g., Anonymous, 2004; Claxton, 2005; Manton & English, 2008. As authorship is the coin of the realm in academia (Louis, Holdsworth, Anderson, & Campbell, 2008, it is an ethical issue of singular importance. The goal of this paper is to review prominent and diverse guidelines concerning scientific authorship and to attempt to synthesize existing guidelines into recommendations that represent ethical practices for ensuring credit where (and only where credit is due.

  13. THE ANALYTICAL SURVEY OF THE MODERN UKRAINIAN SCIENTIFIC-PEDAGOGICAL ONLINE PERIODICALS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Nataliia A. Khmil

    2010-08-01

    Full Text Available The analysis of the modern native scientific-pedagogical online periodicals (there are concurrent, integrated and original are represented in this article. Their structure and their informational renewal, advantages and disadvantages as the manner of scientific-pedagogical communication are observed.

  14. Representing the Earth's shape: the polemics surrounding Maupertuis's expedition to Lapland.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Terrall, M.

    1992-06-01

    Historical accounts of quantification in the physical sciences in the eighteenth century have often been described as a straightforward series of steps in a process of maturation, as instruments and standards advanced in precision. This paper calls into question the self-evidence nature of precision by investigating the production and uses of measurements. In the case of the dispute over the shape of the Earth, centered in Paris in the 1730s, the precision of measurements was a matter to be interpreted, attacked, defended, and represented. The whole messy business, undertaken by the participants to win consensus from their contemporaries, took place in the context of academic politics and the intellectual fashions of the salons and the court. All parties to the dispute claimed to be drawing on precision measurements; evaluating precision turned out to require the use of a range of intellectual, mathematical, instrumental, political, and textual resources. The alleged precision was then used to construct and defend rival scientific programs and practices.

  15. SCIENTIFIC COMMUNICATION WITH A FOCUS ON SESAME

    CERN Document Server

    ahmad, sameem

    2017-01-01

    Scientific communication, the representation of CERN and raising awareness about science to a wide range of audiences is very important for the CERN communication teams. Having a physics background and an interest in science administration, communication and research, I was based in the International Relations sector, working in various groups and focusing on written communication. I gained experience in many aspects of scientific communications by finding out how CERN in represented in the press and media, other online forums and in outreach.

  16. Learning Disabilities: Implications for Policy regarding Research and Practice--A Report by the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities, March 2011

    Science.gov (United States)

    Learning Disabilities: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 2012

    2012-01-01

    The National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities (NJCLD) affirms that the construct of learning disabilities represents a valid, unique, and heterogeneous group of disorders, and that recognition of this construct is essential for sound policy and practice. An extensive body of scientific research on learning disabilities continues to support…

  17. Scientific Playworlds: a Model of Teaching Science in Play-Based Settings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fleer, Marilyn

    2017-09-01

    Eminent scientists, like Einstein, worked with theoretical contradiction, thought experiments, mental models and visualisation—all characteristics of children's play. Supporting children's play is a strength of early childhood teachers. Promising research shows a link between imagination in science and imagination in play. A case study of 3 preschool teachers and 26 children (3.6-5.9 years; mean age of 4.6 years) over 6 weeks was undertaken, generating 59.6 h of digital observations and 788 photographs of play practices. The research sought to understand (1) how imaginative play promotes scientific learning and (2) examined how teachers engaged children in scientific play. Although play pedagogy is a strength of early childhood teachers, it was found that transforming imaginary situations into scientific narratives requires different pedagogical characteristics. The study found that the building of collective scientific narratives alongside of discourses of wondering were key determinants of science learning in play-based settings. Specifically, the pedagogical principles of using a cultural device that mirrors the science experiences, creating imaginary scientific situations, collectively building scientific problem situations, and imagining the relations between observable contexts and non-observable concepts, changed everyday practices into a scientific narrative and engagement. It is argued that these unique pedagogical characteristics promote scientific narratives in play-based settings. An approach, named as Scientific Playworlds, is presented as a possible model for teaching science in play-based settings.

  18. PREFACE: XVII International Scientific Conference ''RESHETNEV READINGS''

    Science.gov (United States)

    2015-01-01

    The International Scientific Conference ''RESHETNEV READINGS'' is dedicated to the memory of Mikhail Reshetnev, an outstanding scientist, chief-constructor of space-rocket systems and communication satellites. The current volume represents selected proceedings of the main conference materials which were published by XVII International Scientific Conference ''RESHETNEV READINGS'' held on November 12 - 14, 2013. Plenary sessions, round tables and forums will be attended by famous scientists, developers and designers representing the space technology sector, as well as professionals and experts in the IT industry. A number of outstanding academic figures expressed their interest in an event of such a level including Jaures Alferov, Vice-president of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Academician of RAS, Nobel laureate, Dirk Bochar, General Secretary of the European Federation of National Engineering Associates (FEANI), Prof. Yuri Gulyaev, Academician of RAS, Member of the Presidium of RAS, President of the International Union of Scientific and Engineering Associations, Director of the Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics of RAS, as well as rectors of the largest universities in Russia, chief executives of well-known research enterprises and representatives of big businesses. We would like to thank our main sponsors such as JSC ''Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems'', JSC ''Krasnoyarsk Engineering Plant'', Central Design Bureau ''Geophysics'', Krasnoyarsk Region Authorities. These enterprises and companies are leading ones in the aerospace branch. It is a great pleasure to cooperate and train specialists for them.

  19. Guiding Development Based Approach Practicum Vertebrates Taxonomy Scientific Study Program for Students of Biology Education

    Science.gov (United States)

    Arieska, M.; Syamsurizal, S.; Sumarmin, R.

    2018-04-01

    Students having difficulty in identifying and describing the vertebrate animals as well as less skilled in science process as practical. Increased expertise in scientific skills, one of which is through practical activities using practical guidance based on scientific approach. This study aims to produce practical guidance vertebrate taxonomy for biology education students PGRI STKIP West Sumatra valid. This study uses a model of Plomp development consisting of three phases: the initial investigation, floating or prototype stage, and the stage of assessment. Data collection instruments used in this study is a validation sheet guiding practicum. Data were analyzed descriptively based on data obtained from the field. The result of the development of practical guidance vertebrate taxonomic validity value of 3.22 is obtained with very valid category. Research and development has produced a practical guide based vertebrate taxonomic scientific approach very valid.

  20. How to write and publish a scientific paper

    CERN Document Server

    Day, Robert A

    2011-01-01

    Writing and publishing journal articles are crucial to scientific careers. Unfortunately, many young scientists find the process of communicating scientific information effectively a complete mystery. By providing practical, readable, and sometimes humorous guidance, this book helps researchers gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to succeed in communicating about their work. This seventh edition of "How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper" contains 41 chapters focused upon two separate tasks: how to write the respective sections of a scientific paper and how to publish the paper. Other related topics include approaching a writing project, following ethical principles in scientific publishing, preparing oral presentations and poster presentations, writing grant proposals, and working with the popular media. The authors provide considerable guidance on appropriate scientific writing style as well as an extensive list of words and expressions to avoid - and supply the language to substitute for them.

  1. Identification of good practices for teachers and students training activity in the ENVRIPLUS project

    Science.gov (United States)

    D'Addezio, Giuliana; Marsili, Antonella; Beranzoli, Laura

    2016-04-01

    We elaborated basic guiding principles that will be used to improve the content of the ENVRIPLUS e-Training Platform for multimedia education of Secondary School level teachers and students. The purpose is to favour teacher training and consequently students training on selected scientific themes faced within the ENVRIPLUS Research Infrastructures. "Best practices" could positively impacts on students by providing motivation on promoting scientific research and to increase the awareness of the Earth System complexity and Environmental challenges for its preservation and sustainability. Best practice teaching strategies represent an inherent part of a curriculum that exemplifies the connection and relevance identified in education research. The actions are designed to develop thinking and problem-solving skill through integration and active learning. Relationships are built though opportunities for communication and teamwork. Best practices motivate, engage and prompt student to learn and achieve. A starting list of principles is discussed in respect of the following main Best Practices pillars: • Identify the conceptual framework of the subject of the dissemination • Increase personal awareness of the individual potential • Easy personal elaboration and the connection of the subject with the school curriculum.

  2. A Review on the research and practice of city sustainable development indicators and indices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xiang, Ning

    2017-10-01

    City sustainable development indicators and indices have become a hot issue in academic research and practical application, alongside the high-speed worldwide urbanization and driven by the actual managing demand. This article is aimed at a clear understanding of the progress in relevant research and practice. This is done by collecting common indicators and indices for city sustainable development and making comparison of the assessment process and contents, so as to find out main obstacles for the development of this research field and explore the direction for efforts to be made next step. The article divides these indicators and indices into two categories: ① indicators serving as single index which can provide an explicit description on the relationship between economic activities and environmental carrying capacity, but have a narrow scope of assessment and use complicated methods to collect and calculate data; ② indices based on indicator systems which can represent multiple processes, could reflect the view of strong sustainability and are easy to use, but can hardly depict the responding relationship between social, environmental and economic changes for city sustainable development or assure the scientific rigor of weight setting. Practices on indicators and indices for city sustainable development was summarized, and its problems were reviewed with China being representative of transitioning countries. According to the review, great progress has been achieved in the research and practice of indicators and indices for city sustainable development, but consistency of theories, rationality of indicators and scientific rigor of methodology are to be improved significantly.

  3. Development of Scientific Approach Based on Discovery Learning Module

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ellizar, E.; Hardeli, H.; Beltris, S.; Suharni, R.

    2018-04-01

    Scientific Approach is a learning process, designed to make the students actively construct their own knowledge through stages of scientific method. The scientific approach in learning process can be done by using learning modules. One of the learning model is discovery based learning. Discovery learning is a learning model for the valuable things in learning through various activities, such as observation, experience, and reasoning. In fact, the students’ activity to construct their own knowledge were not optimal. It’s because the available learning modules were not in line with the scientific approach. The purpose of this study was to develop a scientific approach discovery based learning module on Acid Based, also on electrolyte and non-electrolyte solution. The developing process of this chemistry modules use the Plomp Model with three main stages. The stages are preliminary research, prototyping stage, and the assessment stage. The subject of this research was the 10th and 11th Grade of Senior High School students (SMAN 2 Padang). Validation were tested by the experts of Chemistry lecturers and teachers. Practicality of these modules had been tested through questionnaire. The effectiveness had been tested through experimental procedure by comparing student achievement between experiment and control groups. Based on the findings, it can be concluded that the developed scientific approach discovery based learning module significantly improve the students’ learning in Acid-based and Electrolyte solution. The result of the data analysis indicated that the chemistry module was valid in content, construct, and presentation. Chemistry module also has a good practicality level and also accordance with the available time. This chemistry module was also effective, because it can help the students to understand the content of the learning material. That’s proved by the result of learning student. Based on the result can conclude that chemistry module based on

  4. The Two Nursing Disciplinary Scientific Revolutions: Florence Nightingale and Martha E. Rogers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Koffi, Kan; Fawcett, Jacqueline

    2016-07-01

    The purpose of this essay is to share Kan Koffi's ideas about scientific revolutions in the discipline of nursing. Koffi has proposed that the works of Florence Nightingale and Martha E. Rogers represent two scientific revolutions in nursing as a learned discipline. The outcome of these two scientific revolutions is a catalyst for critical disciplinary and paradigmatic debate about the universal conceptualization of nursing's distinctive professional and scientific knowledge. © The Author(s) 2016.

  5. Mapping the evolution of scientific ideas

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Roberts, David [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Herrera, Mark [UNIV OF MARYLAND; Gulbahce, Natali [UNIV OF BOSTON

    2009-01-01

    Despite the apparent conceptual boundaries of scientific fields, a formal description for their evolution is lacking. Here we describe a novel approach to study the dynamics and evolution of scientific fields using a network-based analysis. We build an idea network consisting of American Physical Society PACS numbers as nodes representing scientific concepts. Two PACS numbers are linked if there exist publications that reference them simultaneously. We locate scientific fields using Cfinder, an overlapping community finding algorithm, and describe the time evolution of these fields using a community evolution method over the course of 1985-2006. The communities we identify map to known scientific fields, and their age strongly depends on t.heir size, impact and activity. Our analysis further suggests that communities that redefine themselves by merging and creating new groups of ideas tend to have more fitness as measured by the impact per paper, and hence communities with a higher fitness tend to be short-lived. The described approach to quantify the evolution of ideas may be relevant in making predictions about the future of science and how to guide its development.

  6. Innovative infrastructure of scientific-industrial cluster

    OpenAIRE

    SHEBEKO KONSTANTIN K

    2016-01-01

    Based on the analysis of problems of creation and functioning of innovation infrastructure in Belarus conclusions on the lack of its effectiveness are made. Main focus is given to the analysis of the practice of innovation infrastructure functioning, created on the basis of Polessky State University as a research university in order to perform technological modernization of the economy and the dissemination of effective business practices in Pripyat Polesye region in the form of scientific an...

  7. Best Practices in NASA's Astrophysics Education and Public Outreach Projects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hasan, H.; Smith, D.

    2015-11-01

    NASA's Astrophysics Education and Public Outreach (EPO) program has partnered scientists and educators since its inception almost twenty years ago, leading to authentic STEM experiences and products widely used by the education and outreach community. We present examples of best practices and representative projects. Keys to success include effective use of unique mission science/technology, attention to audience needs, coordination of effort, robust partnerships and publicly accessible repositories of EPO products. Projects are broadly targeted towards audiences in formal education, informal education, and community engagement. All NASA programs are evaluated for quality and impact. New technology is incorporated to engage young students being raised in the digital age. All projects focus on conveying the excitement of scientific discoveries from NASA's Astrophysics missions, advancing scientific literacy, and engaging students in science and technology careers.

  8. Scientific Workflows and the Sensor Web for Virtual Environmental Observatories

    Science.gov (United States)

    Simonis, I.; Vahed, A.

    2008-12-01

    Virtual observatories mature from their original domain and become common practice for earth observation research and policy building. The term Virtual Observatory originally came from the astronomical research community. Here, virtual observatories provide universal access to the available astronomical data archives of space and ground-based observatories. Further on, as those virtual observatories aim at integrating heterogeneous ressources provided by a number of participating organizations, the virtual observatory acts as a coordinating entity that strives for common data analysis techniques and tools based on common standards. The Sensor Web is on its way to become one of the major virtual observatories outside of the astronomical research community. Like the original observatory that consists of a number of telescopes, each observing a specific part of the wave spectrum and with a collection of astronomical instruments, the Sensor Web provides a multi-eyes perspective on the current, past, as well as future situation of our planet and its surrounding spheres. The current view of the Sensor Web is that of a single worldwide collaborative, coherent, consistent and consolidated sensor data collection, fusion and distribution system. The Sensor Web can perform as an extensive monitoring and sensing system that provides timely, comprehensive, continuous and multi-mode observations. This technology is key to monitoring and understanding our natural environment, including key areas such as climate change, biodiversity, or natural disasters on local, regional, and global scales. The Sensor Web concept has been well established with ongoing global research and deployment of Sensor Web middleware and standards and represents the foundation layer of systems like the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS). The Sensor Web consists of a huge variety of physical and virtual sensors as well as observational data, made available on the Internet at standardized

  9. Digital Media for STEM Learning: Developing scientific practice skills in the K-12 STEM classroom with resources from WGBH and PBS LearningMedia

    Science.gov (United States)

    Foster, J.; Connolly, R.

    2017-12-01

    WGBH's "Bringing the Universe to America's Classrooms" project is a 5-year effort to design, produce and evaluate digital media tools and resources that support scientific practice skills in diverse K-12 learners. Resources leverage data and content from NASA and WGBH signature programs, like NOVA, into sound instructional experiences that provide K-12 STEM teachers with free, quality resources for teaching topics in the Earth and Space Sciences. Resources address the content and practices in the new K-12 Framework for Science Education and are aligned with the NGSS. Participants will learn about design strategies, findings from our evaluation efforts, and how to access free resources on PBS LearningMedia.

  10. The scientific use of technological instruments

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Boon, Mieke; Hansson, Sven Ove

    2015-01-01

    One of the most obvious ways in which the natural sciences depend on technology is through the use of instruments. This chapter presents a philosophical analysis of the role of technological instruments in science. Two roles of technological instruments in scientific practices are distinguished:

  11. Toward best practice framing of uncertainty in scientific publications: A review of Water Resources Research abstracts

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guillaume, Joseph H. A.; Helgeson, Casey; Elsawah, Sondoss; Jakeman, Anthony J.; Kummu, Matti

    2017-08-01

    Uncertainty is recognized as a key issue in water resources research, among other sciences. Discussions of uncertainty typically focus on tools and techniques applied within an analysis, e.g., uncertainty quantification and model validation. But uncertainty is also addressed outside the analysis, in writing scientific publications. The language that authors use conveys their perspective of the role of uncertainty when interpreting a claim—what we call here "framing" the uncertainty. This article promotes awareness of uncertainty framing in four ways. (1) It proposes a typology of eighteen uncertainty frames, addressing five questions about uncertainty. (2) It describes the context in which uncertainty framing occurs. This is an interdisciplinary topic, involving philosophy of science, science studies, linguistics, rhetoric, and argumentation. (3) We analyze the use of uncertainty frames in a sample of 177 abstracts from the Water Resources Research journal in 2015. This helped develop and tentatively verify the typology, and provides a snapshot of current practice. (4) We make provocative recommendations to achieve a more influential, dynamic science. Current practice in uncertainty framing might be described as carefully considered incremental science. In addition to uncertainty quantification and degree of belief (present in ˜5% of abstracts), uncertainty is addressed by a combination of limiting scope, deferring to further work (˜25%) and indicating evidence is sufficient (˜40%)—or uncertainty is completely ignored (˜8%). There is a need for public debate within our discipline to decide in what context different uncertainty frames are appropriate. Uncertainty framing cannot remain a hidden practice evaluated only by lone reviewers.

  12. Design and Assessment of an Assignment-Based Curriculum to Teach Scientific Writing and Scientific Peer Review

    Science.gov (United States)

    Glaser, Rainer E.

    2014-01-01

    A writing-intensive, upper-level undergraduate course which integrates content, context, collaboration, and communication in a unique fashion, is described. The topic of the seminar is "Scientific Writing in Chemistry" and an assignment-based curriculum was developed to instruct students on best practices in all aspects of science…

  13. Learning SciPy for numerical and scientific computing

    CERN Document Server

    Silva

    2013-01-01

    A step-by-step practical tutorial with plenty of examples on research-based problems from various areas of science, that prove how simple, yet effective, it is to provide solutions based on SciPy. This book is targeted at anyone with basic knowledge of Python, a somewhat advanced command of mathematics/physics, and an interest in engineering or scientific applications---this is broadly what we refer to as scientific computing.This book will be of critical importance to programmers and scientists who have basic Python knowledge and would like to be able to do scientific and numerical computatio

  14. Construction of scientific knowledge in motor learning: history and perspectives

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Cláudio Márcio Oliveira

    2008-06-01

    Full Text Available The present work aims to inquire the construction of scientific knowledge in the motor learning area. A necessary historical retrospective on this study field considers the epistemology of Francis Bacon, Karl Popper, Paul Feyerabend and Thomas Kuhn. Bacon and Popper’s conceptions show to be inadequate to explain the scientific progress of motor learning. Feyerabend’s ideas are also inadequate as they lack coherency, even though in some aspects they are adequate. The Kuhnian approach, however, seems more satisfactory, particularly with regard to the notion of “crisis of paradigm” between the ecological approach and the information-processing approach. A critique is offered from human and social sciences perspective. This leads us to reflect on the possible growth of a new paradigm and consider scientific practice as a social practice.

  15. Towards a General Scientific Reasoning Engine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Carbonell, Jaime G.; And Others

    Expert reasoning in the natural sciences appears to make extensive use of a relatively small number of general principles and reasoning strategies, each associated with a larger number of more specific inference patterns. Using a dual declarative hierarchy to represent strategic and factual knowledge, a framework for a robust scientific reasoning…

  16. Re-orienting discussions of scientific explanation: A functional perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Woody, Andrea I

    2015-08-01

    Philosophy of science offers a rich lineage of analysis concerning the nature of scientific explanation, but the vast majority of this work, aiming to provide an analysis of the relation that binds a given explanans to its corresponding explanandum, presumes the proper analytic focus rests at the level of individual explanations. There are, however, other questions we could ask about explanation in science, such as: What role(s) does explanatory practice play in science? Shifting focus away from explanations, as achievements, toward explaining, as a coordinated activity of communities, the functional perspective aims to reveal how the practice of explanatory discourse functions within scientific communities given their more comprehensive aims and practices. In this paper, I outline the functional perspective, argue that taking the functional perspective can reveal important methodological roles for explanation in science, and consequently, that beginning here provides resources for developing more adequate responses to traditional concerns. In particular, through an examination of the ideal gas law, I emphasize the normative status of explanations within scientific communities and discuss how such status underwrites a compelling rationale for explanatory power as a theoretical virtue. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  17. Representing and intervening introductory topics in the philosophy of natural science

    CERN Document Server

    Hacking, Ian

    1983-01-01

    This 1983 book is a lively and clearly written introduction to the philosophy of natural science, organized around the central theme of scientific realism. It has two parts. 'Representing' deals with the different philosophical accounts of scientific objectivity and the reality of scientific entities. The views of Kuhn, Feyerabend, Lakatos, Putnam, van Fraassen, and others, are all considered. 'Intervening' presents the first sustained treatment of experimental science for many years and uses it to give a new direction to debates about realism. Hacking illustrates how experimentation often has a life independent of theory. He argues that although the philosophical problems of scientific realism can not be resolved when put in terms of theory alone, a sound philosophy of experiment provides compelling grounds for a realistic attitude. A great many scientific examples are described in both parts of the book, which also includes lucid expositions of recent high energy physics and a remarkable chapter on the micr...

  18. Biomedical Scientific and Professional Social Networks in the Service of the Development of Modern Scientific Publishing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet; Begic, Edin

    2016-12-01

    Information technologies have found their application in virtually every branch of health care. In recent years they have demonstrated their potential in the development of online library, where scientists and researchers can share their latest findings. Academia.edu, ResearchGate, Mendeley, Kudos, with the support of platform GoogleScholar, have indeed increased the visibility of scientific work of one author, and enable a much greater availability of the scientific work to the broader audience. Online libraries have allowed free access to the scientific content to the countries that could not follow the economic costs of getting access to certain scientific bases. Especially great benefit occurred in countries in transition and developing countries. Online libraries have great potential in terms of expanding knowledge, but they also present a major problem for many publishers, because their rights can be violated, which are signed by the author when publishing the paper. In the future it will lead to a major conflict of the author, the editorial board and online database, about the right to scientific content This question certainly represents one of the most pressing issues of publishing, whose future in printed form is already in the past, and the future of the online editions will be a problem of large-scale.

  19. Constructing a Scientific Explanation—A Narrative Account

    Science.gov (United States)

    Yeo, Jennifer; Gilbert, John K.

    2014-07-01

    Studies analyzing explanations that have been constructed by science students have found that they were generally weak and lack necessary features. The goal of this study was to establish the competencies that one needs to construct a scientific explanation. Scientific explanations can be looked at in three ways, in terms of their function, form and level, as being essentially sign-making processes. Taking a case study approach and using Lemke's multimodal framework, we analyzed the scientific explanation of an electromagnetic induction phenomenon constructed by one high school student. We found that such a construction involves the complex coordination of different types of signs, not only to represent the entities in the phenomenon, but also to support thinking and reasoning about it at abstract levels. Scientific conventions and rules, and everyday material and social tools were found to be crucial in shifting from one level of abstraction to another. The findings highlight the importance of developing the skillful use of schemes of scientific representation by students and familiarizing them with commonly encountered contexts.

  20. A science confidence gap: Education, trust in scientific methods, and trust in scientific institutions in the United States, 2014.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Achterberg, Peter; de Koster, Willem; van der Waal, Jeroen

    2017-08-01

    Following up on suggestions that attitudes toward science are multi-dimensional, we analyze nationally representative survey data collected in the United States in 2014 ( N = 2006), and demonstrate the existence of a science confidence gap: some people place great trust in scientific methods and principles, but simultaneously distrust scientific institutions. This science confidence gap is strongly associated with level of education: it is larger among the less educated than among the more educated. We investigate explanations for these educational differences. Whereas hypotheses deduced from reflexive-modernization theory do not pass the test, those derived from theorizing on the role of anomie are corroborated. The less educated are more anomic (they have more modernity-induced cultural discontents), which not only underlies their distrust in scientific institutions, but also fuels their trust in scientific methods and principles. This explains why this science confidence gap is most pronounced among the less educated.

  1. Best Practices for Making Scientific Data Discoverable and Accessible through Integrated, Standards-Based Data Portals

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lucido, J. M.

    2013-12-01

    Organization (ISO) metadata records to enhance data discovery for both human and machine interpretation. Lastly, the Water Quality Portal (http://www.waterqualitydata.us/) achieves interoperable dissemination of water quality data by referencing a vocabulary service for mapping constituents and methods between the USGS and USEPA. The NGWMN Data Portal, Geo Data Portal and Water Quality Portal are three examples of best practices when implementing data portals that provide distributed scientific data in an integrated, standards-based approach.

  2. The Circulation of Scientific Articles in the Sphere of Web-Based Media: Citation Practices, Communities of Interests and Local Ties.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lefebvre, Muriel; Renard, Julie

    2016-01-01

    On 5th December 2012, a scientific article reviewing a change in the feeding behaviour of the European catfish, one of the largest freshwater fish, was published in the American scientific journal, PLOS ONE, an open access journal, which also allows the mass publication of pictures and videos. Within a few days following the publication of this article, it was relayed by numerous web sites and generated a media craze. In this paper, we analyse the circulation of this scientific information in the sphere of Web-based media during the two months following its publication, by revealing the citation mechanisms of the original article and the logic of the Internet users participating in its diffusion. In addition, since the circulation of its informational content travelled beyond linguistic and geographical boundaries, we chose to compare the citation modalities and intertextual relationships of documents in the three countries where the article spread the most widely, namely: France, the United States and Great Britain. Even though our study shows that the media circulation of scientific papers operates in a traditional way, the intertextual analysis underlines the grand variety of participants (such as journalists, non-scientists, fishermen, technology enthusiasts and Internet users) involved in the diffusion of this information, each of them mobilizing different intertextual strategies, according to their various targets. They all transformed, reformulated and appropriated the scientific information according to their own, unique interests. This study also emphasizes the importance of journalistic websites as opinion relays. They were the first diffusers involved in spreading the information but this role was rarely acknowledged by the Internet users - through citations, for example. In contrast, we observed that amateurs' communities (communities of practices and communities of interest of fishermen or of buzz fans), which only became involved in a second temporal

  3. 13th Scientific and Technical Conference on Transport Systems : Theory and Practice 2016

    CERN Document Server

    Sierpiński, Grzegorz; v.1 Intelligent transport systems and travel behaviour; v.2 Contemporary challenges of transport systems and traffic engineering

    2017-01-01

    The publication contains numerous valuable guidelines one will find particularly useful while making decisions concerning development and improvement of transport systems. It provides a multitude of case studies connected with diverse problems of both technical and organisational nature. The knowledge displayed while discussing practical examples as well as the decision making support systems described in the publication will certainly attract interest of those who face the challenge of seeking solutions to problems of contemporary transport systems on a daily basis. Consequently, this publication is dedicated to local authorities involved in planning and preparation of development strategies for specific transport related areas (in both urban and regional dimension) as well as to representatives of business and industry, being those who participate directly in the implementation of traffic engineering solutions. The guidelines provided in individual chapters of the publication will make it possible to addres...

  4. The scientific framing of forestry decentralization in Nepal

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Rutt, Rebecca Leigh; Chhetri, Bir Bahadur Khanal; Pokharel, Ridish

    2015-01-01

    these functions, the plans must be informed by accurate information about the forest and be actively used by local communities. Based on studies in Nepal, this paper seeks to further our understanding of the role of so-called scientific planning in community-level management through time series analyses of remote......, community-level managers appear well-informed about forest condition and their practices contribute to sustainable forest development. We suggest the need to further scrutinize the regime of scientific management planning as its practical relevance appears questionable....... sensing images, detailed forest inventories and interviews with community forest managers and public forest authorities. Results indicate that technical forest management plans have been elaborated haphazardly and that local communities base their management on other sources of knowledge. Further...

  5. Turning Crisis into Opportunity: Nature of Science and Scientific Inquiry as Illustrated in the Scientific Research on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wong, Siu Ling; Kwan, Jenny; Hodson, Derek; Yung, Benny Hin Wai

    2009-01-01

    Interviews with key scientists who had conducted research on Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), together with analysis of media reports, documentaries and other literature published during and after the SARS epidemic, revealed many interesting aspects of the nature of science (NOS) and scientific inquiry in contemporary scientific research in the rapidly growing field of molecular biology. The story of SARS illustrates vividly some NOS features advocated in the school science curriculum, including the tentative nature of scientific knowledge, theory-laden observation and interpretation, multiplicity of approaches adopted in scientific inquiry, the inter-relationship between science and technology, and the nexus of science, politics, social and cultural practices. The story also provided some insights into a number of NOS features less emphasised in the school curriculum—for example, the need to combine and coordinate expertise in a number of scientific fields, the intense competition between research groups (suspended during the SARS crisis), the significance of affective issues relating to intellectual honesty and the courage to challenge authority, the pressure of funding issues on the conduct of research and the ‘peace of mind’ of researchers, These less emphasised elements provided empirical evidence that NOS knowledge, like scientific knowledge itself, changes over time. They reflected the need for teachers and curriculum planners to revisit and reconsider whether the features of NOS currently included in the school science curriculum are fully reflective of the practice of science in the 21st century. In this paper, we also report on how we made use of extracts from the news reports and documentaries on SARS, together with episodes from the scientists’ interviews, to develop a multimedia instructional package for explicitly teaching the prominent features of NOS and scientific inquiry identified in the SARS research.

  6. Fostering Scientific and Numerate Practices in Journalism to Support Rapid Public Learning

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Louise Yarnall

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available Journalism has the potential––and arguably the mandate––to expand public understanding of societally important phenomena. However, some methods for more effectively educating the public have been persistently underutilized: in particular, embedding informative numerical rates and efficient scientific explanations in news reports. In the current era of disrupting and downsizing the news business, the challenges to using such methods have only increased. To address this problem, this article seeks to (a raise awareness about the psychological reasons that help explain why it is crucial to use such elements in news reports, and (b exhibit some methods for doing so that require modest effort. Building on a review of relevant psychological literatures, principles, and existing reporting methods, we describe findings from a series of cognitive-scientific studies that demonstrate how using key––and relatively minimal––scientific and numerical elements can enhance public learning from news reports. We conclude by also describing curricula and resources designed to help journalists and bloggers use these methods.

  7. Can homeopathy withstand scientific testing?

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Sluijs, F.J. van

    2004-01-01

    What is the importance of homeopathy in veterinary practice? The television appearance of E.L. Ellinger (DVM) during the Foot and Mouth (FMD) crisis in 2001 gave an insight into the views held by veterinarians practicing homeopathy. And we can be confident these views were representative because

  8. Scientific Process Flowchart Assessment (SPFA): A Method for Evaluating Changes in Understanding and Visualization of the Scientific Process in a Multidisciplinary Student Population.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wilson, Kristy J; Rigakos, Bessie

    The scientific process is nonlinear, unpredictable, and ongoing. Assessing the nature of science is difficult with methods that rely on Likert-scale or multiple-choice questions. This study evaluated conceptions about the scientific process using student-created visual representations that we term "flowcharts." The methodology, Scientific Process Flowchart Assessment (SPFA), consisted of a prompt and rubric that was designed to assess students' understanding of the scientific process. Forty flowcharts representing a multidisciplinary group without intervention and 26 flowcharts representing pre- and postinstruction were evaluated over five dimensions: connections, experimental design, reasons for doing science, nature of science, and interconnectivity. Pre to post flowcharts showed a statistically significant improvement in the number of items and ratings for the dimensions. Comparison of the terms used and connections between terms on student flowcharts revealed an enhanced and more nuanced understanding of the scientific process, especially in the areas of application to society and communication within the scientific community. We propose that SPFA can be used in a variety of circumstances, including in the determination of what curricula or interventions would be useful in a course or program, in the assessment of curriculum, or in the evaluation of students performing research projects. © 2016 K. J. Wilson and B. Rigakos. CBE—Life Sciences Education © 2016 The American Society for Cell Biology. This article is distributed by The American Society for Cell Biology under license from the author(s). It is available to the public under an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 3.0 Unported Creative Commons License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0).

  9. Guiding Students to Develop an Understanding of Scientific Inquiry: A Science Skills Approach to Instruction and Assessment

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stone, Elisa M.

    2014-01-01

    New approaches for teaching and assessing scientific inquiry and practices are essential for guiding students to make the informed decisions required of an increasingly complex and global society. The Science Skills approach described here guides students to develop an understanding of the experimental skills required to perform a scientific investigation. An individual teacher's investigation of the strategies and tools she designed to promote scientific inquiry in her classroom is outlined. This teacher-driven action research in the high school biology classroom presents a simple study design that allowed for reciprocal testing of two simultaneous treatments, one that aimed to guide students to use vocabulary to identify and describe different scientific practices they were using in their investigations—for example, hypothesizing, data analysis, or use of controls—and another that focused on scientific collaboration. A knowledge integration (KI) rubric was designed to measure how students integrated their ideas about the skills and practices necessary for scientific inquiry. KI scores revealed that student understanding of scientific inquiry increased significantly after receiving instruction and using assessment tools aimed at promoting development of specific inquiry skills. General strategies for doing classroom-based action research in a straightforward and practical way are discussed, as are implications for teaching and evaluating introductory life sciences courses at the undergraduate level. PMID:24591508

  10. Guiding students to develop an understanding of scientific inquiry: a science skills approach to instruction and assessment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stone, Elisa M

    2014-01-01

    New approaches for teaching and assessing scientific inquiry and practices are essential for guiding students to make the informed decisions required of an increasingly complex and global society. The Science Skills approach described here guides students to develop an understanding of the experimental skills required to perform a scientific investigation. An individual teacher's investigation of the strategies and tools she designed to promote scientific inquiry in her classroom is outlined. This teacher-driven action research in the high school biology classroom presents a simple study design that allowed for reciprocal testing of two simultaneous treatments, one that aimed to guide students to use vocabulary to identify and describe different scientific practices they were using in their investigations-for example, hypothesizing, data analysis, or use of controls-and another that focused on scientific collaboration. A knowledge integration (KI) rubric was designed to measure how students integrated their ideas about the skills and practices necessary for scientific inquiry. KI scores revealed that student understanding of scientific inquiry increased significantly after receiving instruction and using assessment tools aimed at promoting development of specific inquiry skills. General strategies for doing classroom-based action research in a straightforward and practical way are discussed, as are implications for teaching and evaluating introductory life sciences courses at the undergraduate level.

  11. Environmental Science and Engineering Merit Badges: An Exploratory Case Study of a Non-Formal Science Education Program and the U.S. Scientific and Engineering Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vick, Matthew E.; Garvey, Michael P.

    2016-01-01

    The Boy Scouts of America's Environmental Science and Engineering merit badges are two of their over 120 merit badges offered as a part of a non-formal educational program to U.S. boys. The Scientific and Engineering Practices of the U.S. Next Generation Science Standards provide a vision of science education that includes integrating eight…

  12. [Dangerous liaisons--physicians and pharmaceutical sales representatives].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Granja, Mónica

    2005-01-01

    Interactions between physicians and detailers (even when legitimate ones) raise scientific and ethical questions. In Portugal little thinking and discussion has been done on the subject and the blames for bribery have monopolized the media. This work intended to review what has been said in medical literature about these interactions. How do physicians see themselves when interacting with pharmaceutical companies and their representatives? Do these companies in fact change their prescriptive behaviour, and, if so, how do they change it? How can physicians interact with detailers and still keep their best practice? A Medline research, from 1966 till 2002, was performed using the key-words as follows. A database similar to Medline but concerning medical journals published in Portugal, Index das Revistas Médicas Portuguesas, was also researched from 1992 to 2002. Pharmaceutical companies are profit bound and they allot promoting activities, and detailing in particular, huge amounts of money. Most physicians hold firmly to the belief that they are able to resist and not be influenced by drug companies promotion activities. Nevertheless, all previous works on literature tell us the opposite. Market research also indicates that detailers effectively promote drug sales. Various works also suggest that the information detailers provide to physicians may be largely incorrect, even comparing it to the written information provided by the pharmaceutical companies they work for. The frequency at which portuguese physicians (especially family physicians) contact with pharmaceutical sales representatives is higher than the frequency reported in countries where the available studies come from (namely, Canada and the United States of America). This may put portuguese physicians at a higher risk, making it imperative that work and wide debate are initiated among the class.

  13. Scientific decision-making and stakeholder consultations: the case of salt recommendations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Timotijevic, Lada; Barnett, Julie; Brown, Kerry; Raats, Monique M; Shepherd, Richard

    2013-05-01

    Scientific advisory committees (SACs) are seen as "boundary organisations" working at the interface between science, policy and society. Although their narrowly defined remit of risk assessment is anchored in notions of rationality, objectivity, and reason, in reality, their sources for developing recommendations are not limited to scientific evidence. There is a growing expectation to involve non-scientific sources of information in the formation of knowledge, including the expectation of stakeholder consultation in forming recommendations. Such a move towards "democratisation" of scientific processes of decision-making within SACs has been described and often studied as "post-normal science" (PNS) (Funtowicz & Ravetz, 1993). In the current paper we examine the application of PNS in practice through a study of stakeholder consultations within the workings of the UK Scientific Advisory Committee for Nutrition (SACN). We use the theoretical insights from PNS-related studies to structure the analysis and examine the way in which PNS tenets resonate with the practices of SACN. We have selected a particular case of the SACN UK recommendations for salt as it is characterized by scientific controversy, uncertainty, vested interests and value conflict. We apply the tenets of PNS through documentary analysis of the SACN Salt Subgroup (SSG) consultation documents published in 2002/2003: the minutes of the 5 SACN SSG's meetings which included summary of the SACN SSG's stakeholder consultation and the SSG's responses to the consultation. The analysis suggests that the SACN consultation can be construed as a process of managing sources of risk to its organisation. Thus, rather than being an evidence of post-normal scientific practice, engagement became a mechanism for confirming the specific framing of science that is resonant with technocratic models of science holding authority over the facts. The implications for PNS theory are discussed. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All

  14. Deja vu: a database of highly similar citations in the scientific literature.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Errami, Mounir; Sun, Zhaohui; Long, Tara C; George, Angela C; Garner, Harold R

    2009-01-01

    In the scientific research community, plagiarism and covert multiple publications of the same data are considered unacceptable because they undermine the public confidence in the scientific integrity. Yet, little has been done to help authors and editors to identify highly similar citations, which sometimes may represent cases of unethical duplication. For this reason, we have made available Déjà vu, a publicly available database of highly similar Medline citations identified by the text similarity search engine eTBLAST. Following manual verification, highly similar citation pairs are classified into various categories ranging from duplicates with different authors to sanctioned duplicates. Déjà vu records also contain user-provided commentary and supporting information to substantiate each document's categorization. Déjà vu and eTBLAST are available to authors, editors, reviewers, ethicists and sociologists to study, intercept, annotate and deter questionable publication practices. These tools are part of a sustained effort to enhance the quality of Medline as 'the' biomedical corpus. The Déjà vu database is freely accessible at http://spore.swmed.edu/dejavu. The tool eTBLAST is also freely available at http://etblast.org.

  15. A science confidence gap : Education, trust in scientific methods, and trust in scientific institutions in the United States, 2014

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Achterberg, P.H.J.; De Koster, W.; van der Waal, J.

    2017-01-01

    Following up on suggestions that attitudes toward science are multi-dimensional, we analyze nationally representative survey data collected in the United States in 2014 (N = 2006), and demonstrate the existence of a science confidence gap: some people place great trust in scientific methods and

  16. Scientific literacy and the social constructivist perspective

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Antić Slobodanka

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available The term scientific literacy is already common in our educational rhetoric. Although the term is widely used, there are no papers that analyse the definition of the term and the rangeitencompasses in Serbia. If scientific literacy is a necessary outcome of education, this analysis is an important base for designing the teaching/learning process which is intended to develop such an outcome. Therefore, this paper provides an analysis of the concept of scientific literacy (SL, the different viewpoints on SL and the nature of the concept. Furthermore, five key lines as courses of action in the teaching/learning process, necessary for the development of these competencies, are defined: appreciation ofstudents' previous knowledge, encouragement of students' basic functional literacy and reading comprehension skills, the development of students' understanding of the socio-cultural perspective on the origin and use of scientific knowledge and technological products, and practicing of scientific research, either through school science or science applied in the context of cooperation between school and the local community, i.e. in the socio-cultural background where students live.

  17. Pedagogical Practices to Support Classroom Cultures of Scientific Inquiry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herrenkohl, Leslie Rupert; Tasker, Tammy; White, Barbara

    2011-01-01

    This article examines the pedagogical practices of two science inquiry teachers and their students using a Web-based system called Web of Inquiry (WOI). There is a need to build a collective repertoire of pedagogical practices that can assist elementary and middle school teachers as they support students to develop a complex model of inquiry based…

  18. The philosophy of scientific experimentation: a review

    Science.gov (United States)

    2009-01-01

    Practicing and studying automated experimentation may benefit from philosophical reflection on experimental science in general. This paper reviews the relevant literature and discusses central issues in the philosophy of scientific experimentation. The first two sections present brief accounts of the rise of experimental science and of its philosophical study. The next sections discuss three central issues of scientific experimentation: the scientific and philosophical significance of intervention and production, the relationship between experimental science and technology, and the interactions between experimental and theoretical work. The concluding section identifies three issues for further research: the role of computing and, more specifically, automating, in experimental research, the nature of experimentation in the social and human sciences, and the significance of normative, including ethical, problems in experimental science. PMID:20098589

  19. Students’ Scientific Circle of Obstetrics and Gynaecology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ivan Polishchuk

    2017-06-01

    Full Text Available The students’ scientific circle is the kind of teaching obstetrics and gynaecology in a higher medical institution. The circle is an elective form of learning that allows the students to get deeper knowledge of a subject and to perfect themselves in the issues of diagnostics in obstetrics and gynaecology as well as to acquaint themselves with basic medical techniques. It helps identify students who are capable of scientific research and allows the students to improve their ability to analytical perception of professional information, the ability to present it to the audience, ask and answer the questions publicly. The article presents the results of practical and research activities of obstetric and gynaecologic section of the students’ scientific circle of Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University.

  20. Scientific Literacy in Food Education: Gardening and Cooking in School

    Science.gov (United States)

    Strohl, Carrie A.

    Recent attention to socio-scientific issues such as sustainable agriculture, environmental responsibility and nutritional health has spurred a resurgence of public interest in gardening and cooking. Seen as contexts for fostering scientific literacy---the knowledge domains, methodological approaches, habits of mind and discourse practices that reflect one's understanding of the role of science in society, gardening and cooking are under-examined fields in science education, in part, because they are under-utilized pedagogies in school settings. Although learning gardens were used historically to foster many aspects of scientific literacy (e.g., cognitive knowledge, norms and methods of science, attitudes toward science and discourse of science), analysis of contemporary studies suggests that science learning in gardens focuses mainly on science knowledge alone. Using multiple conceptions of scientific literacy, I analyzed qualitative data to demonstrate how exploration, talk and text fostered scientific literacy in a school garden. Exploration prompted students to engage in scientific practices such as making observations and constructing explanations from evidence. Talk and text provided background knowledge and accurate information about agricultural, environmental and nutritional topics under study. Using a similar qualitative approach, I present a case study of a third grade teacher who explicitly taught food literacy through culinary arts instruction. Drawing on numerous contextual resources, this teacher created a classroom community of food practice through hands-on cooking lessons, guest chef demonstrations, and school-wide tasting events. As a result, she promoted six different types of knowledge (conceptual, procedural, dispositional, sensory, social, and communal) through leveraging contextual resources. This case study highlights how food literacy is largely contingent on often-overlooked mediators of food literacy: the relationships between

  1. Social responsibility of business and government as the basic scientific and practical position of regional studies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Efim Mikhaylovich Kozakov

    2012-03-01

    Full Text Available This paper describes social responsibility in regional studies as a base of scientific and practical position has an interdisciplinary character and is a key in economic theory topic, referred to as «behavioral economics». The strategic aspect of social behavior should eventually become a daily norm at all levels of administration and corporate governance in all spheres of human activity. Tactical objective of regional and municipal authorities is development and implementation of research-based socially responsible policy. The level of social responsibility cannot be measured using a single universal (integral indicator. The idea that «The economics has as much science inside, as much as it has mathematics», as formulated in the XIX century, in the beginning of the XXI century should be rephrased the following way: «The economics has as much science inside, as much as it has humanity».

  2. Addressing Unconscious Bias: Steps toward an Inclusive Scientific Culture

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stewart, Abigail

    2011-01-01

    In this talk I will outline the nature of unconscious bias, as it operates to exclude or marginalize some participants in the scientific community. I will show how bias results from non-conscious expectations about certain groups of people, including scientists and astronomers. I will outline scientific research in psychology, sociology and economics that has identified the impact these expectations have on interpersonal judgments that are at the heart of assessment of individuals' qualifications. This research helps us understand not only how bias operates within a single instance of evaluation, but how evaluation bias can accumulate over a career if not checked, creating an appearance of confirmation of biased expectations. Some research has focused on how best to interrupt and mitigate unconscious bias, and many institutions--including the University of Michigan--have identified strategic interventions at key points of institutional decision-making (particularly hiring, annual review, and promotion) that can make a difference. The NSF ADVANCE Institutional Transformation program encouraged institutions to draw on the social science literature to create experimental approaches to addressing unconscious bias. I will outline four approaches to intervention that have arisen through the ADVANCE program: (1) systematic education that increases awareness among decisionmakers of how evaluation bias operates; (2) development of practices that mitigate the operation of bias even when it is out of conscious awareness; (3) creation of institutional policies that routinize and sanction these practices; and (4) holding leaders accountable for these implementation of these new practices and policies. Although I will focus on ways to address unconscious bias within scientific institutions (colleges and universities, laboratories and research centers, etc.), I will close by considering how scientific organizations can address unconscious bias and contribute to creating an

  3. Amplify scientific discovery with artificial intelligence

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gil, Yolanda; Greaves, Mark T.; Hendler, James; Hirsch, Hyam

    2014-10-10

    Computing innovations have fundamentally changed many aspects of scientific inquiry. For example, advances in robotics, high-end computing, networking, and databases now underlie much of what we do in science such as gene sequencing, general number crunching, sharing information between scientists, and analyzing large amounts of data. As computing has evolved at a rapid pace, so too has its impact in science, with the most recent computing innovations repeatedly being brought to bear to facilitate new forms of inquiry. Recently, advances in Artificial Intelligence (AI) have deeply penetrated many consumer sectors, including for example Apple’s Siri™ speech recognition system, real-time automated language translation services, and a new generation of self-driving cars and self-navigating drones. However, AI has yet to achieve comparable levels of penetration in scientific inquiry, despite its tremendous potential in aiding computers to help scientists tackle tasks that require scientific reasoning. We contend that advances in AI will transform the practice of science as we are increasingly able to effectively and jointly harness human and machine intelligence in the pursuit of major scientific challenges.

  4. [Summary: Scientific evaluation of EMDR psychotherapy].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Haour, F; de Beaurepaire, C

    2016-06-01

    The evaluation of psychotherapy methods is made difficult by their practical and theoretical diversities as well as the increasing number of available therapies. Evaluation based on scientific criteria in randomized control trials is providing the highest level of proof and recognition by Health Agencies. A recently described integrative psychotherapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), developed by F. Shapiro since 1989, has been confronted with the validation procedure used in pharmacological treatment. It was of interest to review the scientific validation steps carried out for this EMDR psychotherapy and for its mechanisms of action. The practical and methodological protocol of the EMDR psychotherapy for trauma integration is reviewed as well as clinical results and mechanisms. This EMDR therapy, focused on the resolutions of traumas, was started by treating patients with post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). The integrative EMDR protocol obtained the highest level of efficiency, for PTSD treatment, twenty years after its first publication. The efficiency of the protocol is now under study and scientific evaluation for troubles in which the trauma experiences are triggers or factors of maintenance of the troubles: anxiety, depression, phobia, sexual troubles, schizophrenia, etc. This new integrative psychotherapy follows the pathways and the timing observed for the evaluation and the validation of other therapies. Copyright © 2016 L'Encéphale, Paris. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  5. Slash Writers and Guinea Pigs as Models for a Scientific Multiliteracy

    Science.gov (United States)

    Weinstein, Matthew

    2006-01-01

    This paper explores alternative approaches to the conception of scientific literacy, drawing on cultural studies and emerging practices in language arts as its framework. The paper reviews historic tensions in the understanding of scientific literacy and then draws on the multiliteracies movement in language arts to suggest a scientific…

  6. A Unified Framework for Measuring Stewardship Practices Applied to Digital Environmental Datasets

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ge Peng

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper presents a stewardship maturity assessment model in the form of a matrix for digital environmental datasets. Nine key components are identified based on requirements imposed on digital environmental data and information that are cared for and disseminated by U.S. Federal agencies by U.S. law, i.e., Information Quality Act of 2001, agencies’ guidance, expert bodies’ recommendations, and users. These components include: preservability, accessibility, usability, production sustainability, data quality assurance, data quality control/monitoring, data quality assessment, transparency/traceability, and data integrity. A five-level progressive maturity scale is then defined for each component associated with measurable practices applied to individual datasets, representing Ad Hoc, Minimal, Intermediate, Advanced, and Optimal stages. The rationale for each key component and its maturity levels is described. This maturity model, leveraging community best practices and standards, provides a unified framework for assessing scientific data stewardship. It can be used to create a stewardship maturity scoreboard of dataset(s and a roadmap for scientific data stewardship improvement or to provide data quality and usability information to users, stakeholders, and decision makers.

  7. Dealing with scientific integrity issues: the Spanish experience.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Puigdomènech, Pere

    2014-02-01

    Integrity has been an important matter of concern for the scientific community as it affects the basis of its activities. Most countries having a significant scientific activity have dealt with this problem by different means, including drafting specific legal or soft law regulations and the appointment of stable or ad hoc committees that take care of these questions. This has also been the case in Spain. After the period of transition between dictatorship to a democratic regime, and, particularly, after the entrance in the European Union, scientific activity has increased in the country. As it could be expected, problems of misconduct have appeared and different institutions have been dealing with these matters. One of the best examples is that of Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CSIC), the largest institution devoted to scientific research belonging to the Spanish Government. The experience of the CSIC’s Ethics Committee in dealing with conflicts related to scientific practices is discussed here.

  8. Fostering and Measuring General Scientific Reasoning Expertise at the Second Year Level

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jones, F. M.; Jellinek, M.; Bostock, M. G.

    2010-12-01

    Geoscience faculty members often debate about the definition and development of scientific expertise. Some will argue it emerges at the graduate level, others that novice students can develop relevant skills. The debate hinges on definitions of “expertise”, “scientific skills” and how these abilities are assessed. We present data from a second year geoscience course specifically designed to help research scientists foster generic skills associated with critical scientific thinking, presentation, and framing of scientific arguments and questions. To develop the course, key characteristics that professional scientists exhibit were identified from the literature and our experience. These are the abilities to: a) read critically; b) succinctly summarize and communicate; c) pose insightful questions; d) use and discuss models, data and their relationships; and e) work effectively as part of a team. To help with learning and assessment of these skills in students who do not yet have significant discipline-specific background, classroom practices were chosen so that students must think and act more like professional scientists. These include use of some team-based learning strategies, replacing exams with quizzes and projects, mixing team-teaching with solo-teaching, discursive rather than didactic instruction, and use of diverse topics representative of research in our Department. Specific strategies employed which enable “master geoscientists” to actively guide and assess novices as they practice desired skills are: homework involving reading, writing abstracts and posing questions for one or two articles each week, pre-post testing of model based reasoning abilities, interaction with guest scientists, and oral and poster presentations on topics chosen by students. Results of collecting data over two terms of using these general and specific strategies include: 1. Abstract writing skills improved during the first two thirds of the course, then leveled off in

  9. Expanding our perspectives on research in musculoskeletal science and practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kerry, Roger

    2017-12-01

    The quantity and quality of scientific research within physiotherapy has unquestionably grown and matured over the last few decades, especially since the "formal" onset of evidence-based physiotherapy in the 1990s. The urgent need to evaluate our practice for effectiveness and efficiency has been responded to with thought and respect to both scientific integrity and shop-floor clinical needs. However, after thirty years or more of a professionally-governed and strategic approach to research activity, it is now timely to reflect, review, and consider the next chapter in the relationship between scientific research and clinical practice. This masterclass aims to develop a research vision for the future of physiotherapy. It is proposed that a crisis is evident within evidence-based physiotherapy, particular so given the assumed complexity and context-sensitivity of our clinical practice. This crisis period has highlighted fundamental limitations within the way research and practice are currently related. These limitations are presented and framed within the problematisation of empirical and philosophical concerns. As research becomes increasingly aligned to traditional scientific principles, examination of the real world context in which its outcomes are intended expose critical challenges for both research and clinical practice. A reconceptualisation of fundamental elements of scientific research may allow more meaningful relationships between research and clinical practice. A proposed research vision encourages scientific activity to embrace real-world complexity in a way that it is presently unable to. An enhanced person-centered, scientifically-informed world of effective musculoskeletal practice is envisaged. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Scientific Community in Algeria: Adopting Traditions and Developing Identity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Tatyana I. Tyukaeva

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The history of scientific development in Algeria, which has not been long, represents a series of continual rises and falls. The Algerian leadership and researchers have been making efforts to create Algeria's national science through protection from the western scientific tradition, which is reminiscent of the colonial period of the country, and at the same time adoption of scientific knowledge and scientific institutions functioning principles from abroad, with no organizational or scientific experience of their own. Since the time the independent Algerian state was established, its scientific development has been inevitably coupled with active support of European countries, especially France, and other western and non-western states. Today the Algerian leadership is highly devoted to the modernization of the national scientific and research potential in strong cooperation with its foreign partners. The article concentrates on examining the present period (the 2000s of the scientific development in Algeria. The main conclusion is that there still is a number of problems - for Algeria until now lacks an integral scientific community with the state preserving its dominating role in science and research activities. Despite these difficulties, the Algerian science has made an outstanding progress. The efficiently built organizational scientific structure, the growing science and technology cooperation with foreign countries as well as the increasing state expenses in science allow to hope for further success of the Algerian scientific development.

  11. Scientific inference learning from data

    CERN Document Server

    Vaughan, Simon

    2013-01-01

    Providing the knowledge and practical experience to begin analysing scientific data, this book is ideal for physical sciences students wishing to improve their data handling skills. The book focuses on explaining and developing the practice and understanding of basic statistical analysis, concentrating on a few core ideas, such as the visual display of information, modelling using the likelihood function, and simulating random data. Key concepts are developed through a combination of graphical explanations, worked examples, example computer code and case studies using real data. Students will develop an understanding of the ideas behind statistical methods and gain experience in applying them in practice. Further resources are available at www.cambridge.org/9781107607590, including data files for the case studies so students can practise analysing data, and exercises to test students' understanding.

  12. A Guide to Scientific Crowdfunding.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vachelard, Julien; Gambarra-Soares, Thaise; Augustini, Gabriela; Riul, Pablo; Maracaja-Coutinho, Vinicius

    2016-02-01

    Crowdfunding represents an attractive new option for funding research projects, especially for students and early-career scientists or in the absence of governmental aid in some countries. The number of successful science-related crowdfunding campaigns is growing, which demonstrates the public's willingness to support and participate in scientific projects. Putting together a crowdfunding campaign is not trivial, however, so here is a guide to help you make yours a success.

  13. Understanding and Affecting Science Teacher Candidates' Scientific Reasoning in Introductory Astrophysics

    Science.gov (United States)

    Steinberg, Richard; Cormier, Sebastien

    2013-01-01

    This study reports on a content course for science immersion teacher candidates that emphasized authentic practice of science and thinking scientifically in the context of introductory astrophysics. We explore how 122 science teacher candidates spanning three cohorts did and did not reason scientifically and how this evolved in our program. Our…

  14. Specification of Scientific Tasks in Collaboration between Science, Industry and State, and Impact of Political Factors on Managerial Levers and Economy

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bondarenko Tetiana M.

    2016-11-01

    Full Text Available The issue of collaboration between science, industry and state is of relevance in domestic and international practice. In leading countries of the world and in Ukraine compatible production and scientific complexes are created; collaboration between research institutions and state is established, in particular the theory and practice of collaboration between science, industry and state on the basis of Triple Helix Model is widespread in the world; in scientific papers objects of research of economic processes, subjects of research of the economic theory are considered. However, there are no works where the objects and tasks of economic researches are studied on the basis of macroeconomic environment, and a distinct principle to distinguish research objects relating to different economies and types of production is laid out; scientific and practical problems of economy in the field of collaboration between state, science and industry are clearly defined. According to the purpose of the article (to specify scientific and practical tasks to rationalize scientific research, the experience gained is systematized and a scheme-matrix of scientific and practical problems is proposed. In scientific practice there are works highlighting principles of scientific research work, research tasks in the field of economy, scientific problems of economy but there are no works considering both principles and tasks of collaboration of academic economists with state and industry in order to provide scientists with recommendations on optimization of economic processes to improve the economic efficiency. Taking into account the experience gained, principles of collaboration of academic economists with the state and industry are identified. On the basis of the developed matrix of scientific and practical tasks, the principle of impact of political factors on managerial levers, the level of Gross Domestic Product and Gross Social Product is demonstrated.

  15. Scientific Management as part of the curriculum of Pedagogical Sciences.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Martha Margarita López Ruiz

    2013-07-01

    Full Text Available The Psychology and Pedagogy carer is developed in pedagogical sciences Cuban universities and the plan of the teaching learning process is organized on disciplines, subjects and activities from the working practice are distributed during the five years of the career which guarantee the fulfilment of the objectives in the professional qualification degree. Scientific educational management is included as part of the curriculum of this specialty in Pedagogical Universities. Scientific educational management has a great importance in the existence of state who is worried for the preparation and training of pedagogical specialists to whom ethics becomes a daily practice in their jobs in a society in which the formation and development of Cuban citizens is carried out by social programs encouraged by the government. The growing of this specialist is supported on the existence of a government that is interested on teaching, innovate and develop human beings by means of putting into practice social and cultural activities. The main goal of this article is to exemplify how to organize the contents of scientific educational management and the way of planning the teaching learning process to better future Cuban teacher trainers and managers.

  16. The need for scientific software engineering in the pharmaceutical industry.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luty, Brock; Rose, Peter W

    2017-03-01

    Scientific software engineering is a distinct discipline from both computational chemistry project support and research informatics. A scientific software engineer not only has a deep understanding of the science of drug discovery but also the desire, skills and time to apply good software engineering practices. A good team of scientific software engineers can create a software foundation that is maintainable, validated and robust. If done correctly, this foundation enable the organization to investigate new and novel computational ideas with a very high level of efficiency.

  17. The need for scientific software engineering in the pharmaceutical industry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Luty, Brock; Rose, Peter W.

    2017-03-01

    Scientific software engineering is a distinct discipline from both computational chemistry project support and research informatics. A scientific software engineer not only has a deep understanding of the science of drug discovery but also the desire, skills and time to apply good software engineering practices. A good team of scientific software engineers can create a software foundation that is maintainable, validated and robust. If done correctly, this foundation enable the organization to investigate new and novel computational ideas with a very high level of efficiency.

  18. Radiation protection. Scientific fundamentals, legal regulations, practical applications. Compendium; Strahlenschutz. Wissenschaftliche Grundlagen, Rechtliche Regelungen, Praktische Anwendungen. Kompendium

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Buchert, Guido; Gay, Juergen; Kirchner, Gerald; Michel, Rolf; Niggemann, Guenter; Schumann, Joerg; Wust, Peter; Jaehnert, Susanne; Strilek, Ralf; Martini, Ekkehard (eds.)

    2011-06-15

    The compendium on radiation protection, scientific fundamentals, legal regulations and practical applications includes contributions to the following issues: (1) Effects and risk of ionizing radiation: fundamentals on effects and risk of ionizing radiation, news in radiation biology, advantages and disadvantages of screening investigations; (2) trends and legal regulations concerning radiation protection: development of European and national radiation protection laws, new regulations concerning X-rays, culture and ethics of radiation protection; (3) dosimetry and radiation measuring techniques: personal scanning using GHz radiation, new ''dose characteristics'' in practice, measuring techniques for the nuclear danger prevention and emergency hazard control; (4) radiation exposure in medicine: radiation exposure of modern medical techniques, heavy ion radiotherapy, deterministic and stochastic risks of the high-conformal photon radiotherapy, STEMO project - mobile CT for apoplectic stroke patients; (5) radiation exposure in technology: legal control of high-level radioactive sources, technical and public safety using enclosed radioactive sources for materials testing, radiation exposure in aviation, radon in Bavaria, NPP Fukushima-Daiichi - a status report; (6) radiation exposure in nuclear engineering: The Chernobyl accident - historical experiences or sustaining problem? European standards for radioactive waste disposal, radioactive material disposal in Germany risk assessment of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation (7) Case studies.

  19. The pedagogical possibilities in the education of scientific research methodology in information science and the scientific objects of this field: durkheim approaches

    OpenAIRE

    Francisco das Chagas de Souza

    2003-01-01

    This article results of bibliographical, exploratory and qualitative research. Its argues that three approaches are gifts in the educational process of discipline of the Scientific Research Methodology in Information Science. They are the social facts of the Information Science, the types of the research and the social theory. It sees that the pedagogical possibilities of the education of Scientific Methodology in Information Science are related with the practical one of the writing which dep...

  20. The dialysis outcomes and practice patterns study phase 5 in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries: Design and study methods

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ronald L Pisoni

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available The Dialysis Outcomes and Practice Patterns Study (DOPPS is an international prospective cohort study of the relationships between hemodialysis (HD care practices and HD patient outcomes. The DOPPS began in 1996, in the United States, and has since expanded to 21 countries, collecting detailed data from >75,000 HD patients, with >200 scientific publications, focused on describing HD practices associated with improved HD patient outcomes. The goal of DOPPS is to help HD patients "live better and live longer." Starting in 2012, the DOPPS was able to expand to all six of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC countries, namely, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The DOPPS study design consists of selecting HD facilities for study participation in each country to represent the different types of HD facilities and geographic regions within each GCC country. Within each study site, HD patients were randomly selected for detailed data collection to represent the HD practices within each participating HD facility. Altogether, 41 HD facilities have participated in the GCC-DOPPS Phase 5 study including 20 facilities from Saudi Arabia, nine from the United Arab Emirates, four each from Kuwait and Oman, two from Qatar, and one from Bahrain. Herein, we provide a detailed description of the study design and methods, data collection, study management, scientific investigator oversight and guidance, and study governance and support for the GCCDOPPS Phase 5 study.

  1. Scientific and technical aspects of Chernobyl

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gligalo, V.M.; Nosovs'kij, A.V.

    2002-01-01

    The collection contains the presentations and scientific articles prepared for and discussed during the Conference titled '2001: International Cooperation For Chernobyl'. The materials outline the outcomes achieved while implementing Chernobyl site scientific-technical researches and projects, as well as activities aimed at enhancing the ChNPP safety, decommissioning and radwaste management. It also highlights the issues related to transforming the Unit Shelter into an ecologically safe system, represents the results of ecological researches in the Exclusion Zone, medical effects of the 1986 accident at Chernobyl NPP, together with social and economic problems the city of Slavutich faces now due to the early ChNPP Units decommissioning, and Slavutich business development opportunities under the circumstances of Special Economic Zone 'Slavutich'

  2. Psychometrics in action, science as practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pearce, Jacob

    2017-07-27

    Practitioners in health sciences education and assessment regularly use a range of psychometric techniques to analyse data, evaluate models, and make crucial progression decisions regarding student learning. However, a recent editorial entitled "Is Psychometrics Science?" highlighted some core epistemological and practical problems in psychometrics, and brought its legitimacy into question. This paper attempts to address these issues by applying some key ideas from history and philosophy of science (HPS) discourse. I present some of the conceptual developments in HPS that have bearing on the psychometrics debate. Next, by shifting the focus onto what constitutes the practice of science, I discuss psychometrics in action. Some incorrectly conceptualize science as an assemblage of truths, rather than an assemblage of tools and goals. Psychometrics, however, seems to be an assemblage of methods and techniques. Psychometrics in action represents a range of practices using specific tools in specific contexts. This does not render the practice of psychometrics meaningless or futile. Engaging in debates about whether or not we should regard psychometrics as 'scientific' is, however, a fruitless enterprise. The key question and focus should be whether, on what grounds, and in what contexts, the existing methods and techniques used by psychometricians can be justified or criticized.

  3. Semantic Data Integration and Knowledge Management to Represent Biological Network Associations.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Losko, Sascha; Heumann, Klaus

    2017-01-01

    The vast quantities of information generated by academic and industrial research groups are reflected in a rapidly growing body of scientific literature and exponentially expanding resources of formalized data, including experimental data, originating from a multitude of "-omics" platforms, phenotype information, and clinical data. For bioinformatics, the challenge remains to structure this information so that scientists can identify relevant information, to integrate this information as specific "knowledge bases," and to formalize this knowledge across multiple scientific domains to facilitate hypothesis generation and validation. Here we report on progress made in building a generic knowledge management environment capable of representing and mining both explicit and implicit knowledge and, thus, generating new knowledge. Risk management in drug discovery and clinical research is used as a typical example to illustrate this approach. In this chapter we introduce techniques and concepts (such as ontologies, semantic objects, typed relationships, contexts, graphs, and information layers) that are used to represent complex biomedical networks. The BioXM™ Knowledge Management Environment is used as an example to demonstrate how a domain such as oncology is represented and how this representation is utilized for research.

  4. Students’ scientific production: a proposal to encourage it.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Corrales-Reyes, Ibraín Enrique; Dorta-Contreras, Alberto Juan

    2018-01-31

    The scientific production of medical students in Latin America, is poor and below their potential. The reason for this is the low theoretical and practical knowledge of scientific writing, a low margin for new knowledge generation, a heavy academic and clinical load, and the expected profile of the medical school graduate. In the present short communication, we propose teaching courses in research methodology, scientific writing in English and Spanish, a personalized search for students and mentors with research aptitudes. Also, we propose academic and material stimuli for publishing, rewards for the best papers made by students and the development and support of scientific student journals. Other proposals are the requirement to publish a paper for graduation, and sharing the most outstanding experiences.

  5. Strengthening the management of scientific and technological achievements and serving the work of uranium geology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tian Hua

    2009-01-01

    Through summarizing the experiences in the management of scientific and technological achievements uranium geology, combined with the scientific research and operation practices, the author tries to find some problems and puts forward suggestion for the management of scientific and technological achievements. (authors)

  6. Research governance and scientific knowledge production in The Gambia

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Frederick U. Ozor

    2014-09-01

    Full Text Available Public research institutions and scientists are principal actors in the production and transfer of scientific knowledge, technologies and innovations for application in industry as well for social and economic development. Based on the relevance of science and technology actors, the aim of this study was to identify and explain factors in research governance that influence scientific knowledge production and to contribute to empirical discussions on the impact levels of different governance models and structures. These discussions appear limited and mixed in the literature, although still are ongoing. No previous study has examined the possible contribution of the scientific committee model of research governance to scientific performance at the individual level of the scientist. In this context, this study contributes to these discussions, firstly, by suggesting that scientific committee structures with significant research steering autonomy could contribute not only directly to scientific output but also indirectly through moderating effects on research practices. Secondly, it is argued that autonomous scientific committee structures tend to play a better steering role than do management-centric models and structures of research governance.

  7. Implementation of Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) in basic scientific research: Translating the concept beyond regulatory compliance.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Jena, G B; Chavan, Sapana

    2017-10-01

    The principles of Good Laboratory Practices (GLPs) are mainly intended for the laboratories performing studies for regulatory compliances. However, today GLP can be applied to broad disciplines of science to cater to the needs of the experimental objectives, generation of quality data and assay reproducibility. Considering its significance, it can now be applied in academics; industries as well as government set ups throughout the world. GLP is the best way to promote the reliability, reproducibility of the test data and hence facilitates the international acceptability. Now it is high time to translate and implement the concept of GLP beyond regulatory studies. Thus, it can pave the way for better understanding of scientific problems and help to maintain a good human and environmental health. Through this review, we have made an attempt to explore the uses of GLP principles in different fields of science and its acceptability as well as looking for its future perspectives. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  8. Complexity-Based Modeling of Scientific Capital: An Outline of Mathematical Theory

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Yurij L. Katchanov

    2014-01-01

    measuring and assessing the accumulated recognition and the specific scientific power. The concept of scientific capital developed by Bourdieu is used in international social science research to explain a set of scholarly properties and practices. Mathematical modeling is applied as a lens through which the scientific capital is addressed. The principal contribution of this paper is an axiomatic characterization of scientific capital in terms of natural axioms. The application of the axiomatic method to scientific capital reveals novel insights into problem still not covered by mathematical modeling. Proposed model embraces the interrelations between separate sociological variables, providing a unified sociological view of science. Suggested microvariational principle is based upon postulate, which affirms that (under suitable conditions the observed state of the agent in scientific field maximizes scientific capital. Its value can be roughly imagined as a volume of social differences. According to the considered macrovariational principle, the actual state of scientific field makes so-called energy functional (which is associated with the distribution of scientific capital minimal.

  9. Developing a Scientific Virtue-Based Approach to Science Ethics Training.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pennock, Robert T; O'Rourke, Michael

    2017-02-01

    Responsible conduct of research training typically includes only a subset of the issues that ought to be included in science ethics and sometimes makes ethics appear to be a set of externally imposed rules rather than something intrinsic to scientific practice. A new approach to science ethics training based upon Pennock's notion of the scientific virtues may help avoid such problems. This paper motivates and describes three implementations-theory-centered, exemplar-centered, and concept-centered-that we have developed in courses and workshops to introduce students to this scientific virtue-based approach.

  10. Ethics of reviewing scientific publications.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Napolitani, Federica; Petrini, Carlo; Garattini, Silvio

    2017-05-01

    The approval or rejection of scientific publications can have important consequences for scientific knowledge, so considerable responsibility lies on those who have to assess or review them. Today it seems that the peer review process, far from being considered an outdated system to be abandoned, is experiencing a new upturn. This article proposes criteria for the conduct of reviewers and of those who select them. While commenting on new emerging models, it provides practical recommendations for improving the peer-review system, like strengthening the role of guidelines and training and supporting reviewers. The process of peer review is changing, it is getting more open and collaborative, but those same ethical principles which guided it from its very origin should remain untouched and be firmly consolidated. The paper highlights how the ethics of reviewing scientific publications is needed now more than ever, in particular with regard to competence, conflict of interest, willingness to discuss decisions, complete transparency and integrity. Copyright © 2016 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Introducing the JMBE Themed Issue on Scientific Citizenship

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jack A. Gilbert

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available In this Editorial, the three Guest Editors for JMBE's first standalone themed issue introduce the topic of scientific citizenship and provide an overview of the current ideas and best practices contained within the issue. 

  12. Data mining a small molecule drug screening representative subset from NIH PubChem.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Xie, Xiang-Qun; Chen, Jian-Zhong

    2008-03-01

    PubChem is a scientific showcase of the NIH Roadmap Initiatives. It is a compound repository created to facilitate information exchange and data sharing among the NIH Roadmap-funded Molecular Library Screening Center Network (MLSCN) and the scientific community. However, PubChem has more than 10 million records of compound information. It will be challenging to conduct a drug screening of the whole database of millions of compounds. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to develop a data mining cheminformatics approach in order to construct a representative and structure-diverse sublibrary from the large PubChem database. In this study, a new chemical diverse representative subset, rePubChem, was selected by whole-molecule chemistry-space matrix calculation using the cell-based partition algorithm. The representative subset was generated and was then subjected to evaluations by compound property analyses based on 1D and 2D molecular descriptors. The new subset was also examined and assessed for self-similarity analysis based on 2D molecular fingerprints in comparing with the source compound library. The new subset has a much smaller library size (540K compounds) with minimum similarity and redundancy without loss of the structural diversity and basic molecular properties of its parent library (5.3 million compounds). The new representative subset library generated could be a valuable structure-diverse compound resource for in silico virtual screening and in vitro HTS drug screening. In addition, the established subset generation method of using the combined cell-based chemistry-space partition metrics with pairwised 2D fingerprint-based similarity search approaches will also be important to a broad scientific community interested in acquiring structurally diverse compounds for efficient drug screening, building representative virtual combinatorial chemistry libraries for syntheses, and data mining large compound databases like the PubChem library in general.

  13. A Guide to Scientific Crowdfunding.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Julien Vachelard

    2016-02-01

    Full Text Available Crowdfunding represents an attractive new option for funding research projects, especially for students and early-career scientists or in the absence of governmental aid in some countries. The number of successful science-related crowdfunding campaigns is growing, which demonstrates the public's willingness to support and participate in scientific projects. Putting together a crowdfunding campaign is not trivial, however, so here is a guide to help you make yours a success.

  14. Sex in Australia: autoerotic, esoteric and other sexual practices engaged in by a representative sample of adults.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Richters, Juliet; Grulich, Andrew E; de Visser, Richard O; Smith, Anthony M A; Rissel, Chris E

    2003-01-01

    To describe the prevalence of a range of autoerotic and other non-coital sexual practices among Australians. Computer-assisted telephone interviews were completed by a representative sample of 10,173 men and 9,134 women aged 16-59 years (response rate 73.1%). Respondents were asked whether in the past year they had: masturbated, engaged in various other autoerotic activities, or engaged in any of six other non-coital or esoteric practices. Half of the respondents (65% men, 35% women) had masturbated in the past year. Nearly half (48%) of the men and 25% of the women had masturbated in the past four weeks, among whom men had done so a mean of 5.8 times and women 3.3 times. About a quarter of all respondents had watched an X-rated film (37% men, 16% women), 12% of men and 14% of women had used a sex toy, and 17% of men and 2% of women had visited an Internet sex site. 17% of men and 14% of women had engaged in digital-anal stimulation with a partner. Phone sex, role play or dressing up, bondage and discipline, sadomasochism or dominance and submission (BDSM-DS), fisting (rectal or vaginal, insertive or receptive) and rimming (oral-anal stimulation) were all engaged in by less than 5% of the sample. Most of the practices studied were engaged in by more men than women. A range of autoerotic activities are both substitutes for partnered sex and additional sources of pleasure for people with sexual partners.

  15. Embedding Scientific Integrity and Ethics into the Scientific Process and Research Data Lifecycle

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gundersen, L. C.

    2016-12-01

    Predicting climate change, developing resources sustainably, and mitigating natural hazard risk are complex interdisciplinary challenges in the geosciences that require the integration of data and knowledge from disparate disciplines and scales. This kind of interdisciplinary science can only thrive if scientific communities work together and adhere to common standards of scientific integrity, ethics, data management, curation, and sharing. Science and data without integrity and ethics can erode the very fabric of the scientific enterprise and potentially harm society and the planet. Inaccurate risk analyses of natural hazards can lead to poor choices in construction, insurance, and emergency response. Incorrect assessment of mineral resources can bankrupt a company, destroy a local economy, and contaminate an ecosystem. This paper presents key ethics and integrity questions paired with the major components of the research data life cycle. The questions can be used by the researcher during the scientific process to help ensure the integrity and ethics of their research and adherence to sound data management practice. Questions include considerations for open, collaborative science, which is fundamentally changing the responsibility of scientists regarding data sharing and reproducibility. The publication of primary data, methods, models, software, and workflows must become a norm of science. There are also questions that prompt the scientist to think about the benefit of their work to society; ensuring equity, respect, and fairness in working with others; and always striving for honesty, excellence, and transparency.

  16. Public scientific communication: reflections on the public and its participation forms

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Peter Sekloča

    2009-09-01

    Full Text Available Scientific communication also pertains to the domain of society, where the formation of public opinion about science and technology is taking place. Concerning this process, two main points are exposed in the commentary. The first is a proposition on how the public as a social category may be conceptualized, and the second is the extent of the participation of members of the public in strengthening socialization and democratization practices in new, highly complex, contexts of scientific research. The public is conceptualized to include all citizens no matter their professional origin, including scientists, which promotes the idea of openness and equality of the public sphere where scientific issues are discussed. To be democratic in its practical-political setting, such a conception needs to deal with the problems of participation in a highly mediatized world, where not every member of the public could be included into scientific research. The author thus reflects on the mechanisms which would enable the formation of public forums where the trust of influential public actors as stakeholders of research can be tested.

  17. Science games and the development of scientific possible selves

    Science.gov (United States)

    Beier, Margaret E.; Miller, Leslie M.; Wang, Shu

    2012-12-01

    Serious scientific games, especially those that include a virtual apprenticeship component, provide players with realistic experiences in science. This article discusses how science games can influence learning about science and the development of science-oriented possible selves through repeated practice in professional play and through social influences (e.g., peer groups). We first review the theory of possible selves (Markus and Nurius 1986) and discuss the potential of serious scientific games for influencing the development of scientific possible selves. As part of our review, we present a forensic game that inspired our work. Next we present a measure of scientific possible selves and assess its reliability and validity with a sample of middle-school students ( N = 374). We conclude by discussing the promise of science games and the development of scientific possible selves on both the individual and group levels as a means of inspiring STEM careers among adolescents.

  18. Expanding the use of Scientific Data through Maps and Apps

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shrestha, S. R.; Zimble, D. A.; Herring, D.; Halpert, M.

    2014-12-01

    The importance of making scientific data more available can't be overstated. There is a wealth of useful scientific data available and demand for this data is only increasing; however, applying scientific data towards practical uses poses several technical challenges. These challenges can arise from difficulty in handling the data due largely to 1) the complexity, variety and volume of scientific data and 2) applying and operating the techniques and tools needed to visualize and analyze the data. As a result, the combined knowledge required to take advantage of these data requires highly specialized skill sets that in total, limit the ability of scientific data from being used in more practical day-to-day decision making activities. While these challenges are daunting, information technologies do exist that can help mitigate some of these issues. Many organizations for years have already been enjoying the benefits of modern service oriented architectures (SOAs) for everyday enterprise tasks. We can use this approach to modernize how we share and access our scientific data where much of the specialized tools and techniques needed to handle and present scientific data can be automated and executed by servers and done so in an appropriate way. We will discuss and show an approach for preparing file based scientific data (e.g. GRIB, netCDF) for use in standard based scientific web services. These scientific web services are able to encapsulate the logic needed to handle and describe scientific data through a variety of service types including, image, map, feature, geoprocessing, and their respective service methods. By combining these types of services and leveraging well-documented and modern web development APIs, we can afford to focus our attention on the design and development of user-friendly maps and apps. Our scenario will include developing online maps through these services by integrating various forecast data from the Climate Forecast System (CFSv2). This

  19. Verified scientific findings

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bullinger, M.G.

    1982-01-01

    In this essay, the author attempts to enlighten the reader as to the meaning of the term ''verified scientific findings'' in section 13, sub-section 1, sentence 2 of the new Chemicals Control Law. The examples given here are the generally accepted regulations in regards to technology (that is sections 7a and 18b of the WHG (law on water economy), section 3, sub-section 1 of the machine- and engine protection laws) and to the status of technology (section 3, sub-section 6 of the BImSchG (Fed. law on prevention of air-borne pollution)), and to the status of science (section 5, sub-section 2 of the AMG (drug legislation). The ''status of science and technology'' as defined in sections 4 ff of the Atomic Energy Law (AtomG) and in sections 3, 4, 12, 2) of the First Radiation Protection Ordinance (1.StrlSch. VO), is also being discussed. The author defines the in his opinion ''dynamic term'' as the generally recognized result of scientific research, and the respective possibilities of practical utilization of technology. (orig.) [de

  20. Scientific Foundations of the Demining by Fusion of Techniques Project

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Larsen, Jan

    The Nordic Demining Research Forum (NDRF) has initiated a pilot project Demining by Fusion of Techniques (DeFuse), which will investigate the correlation between different methods used in mine action. While the ultimate purpose is to suggest new mine clearance operation practices, DeFuse will foc...... on achieving scientific and general knowledge about the coherence between different methods. This talk provides the scientific foundations for the project....

  1. The Internet of Scientific Research Things

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chandler, Cynthia; Shepherd, Adam; Arko, Robert; Leadbetter, Adam; Groman, Robert; Kinkade, Danie; Rauch, Shannon; Allison, Molly; Copley, Nancy; Gegg, Stephen; Wiebe, Peter; Glover, David

    2016-04-01

    The sum of the parts is greater than the whole, but for scientific research how do we identify the parts when they are curated at distributed locations? Results from environmental research represent an enormous investment and constitute essential knowledge required to understand our planet in this time of rapid change. The Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO) curates data from US NSF Ocean Sciences funded research awards, but BCO-DMO is only one repository in a landscape that includes many other sites that carefully curate results of scientific research. Recent efforts to use persistent identifiers (PIDs), most notably Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCiD) for person, Digital Object Identifier (DOI) for publications including data sets, and Open Funder Registry (FundRef) codes for research grants and awards are realizing success in unambiguously identifying the pieces that represent results of environmental research. This presentation uses BCO-DMO as a test case for adding PIDs to the locally-curated information published out as standards compliant metadata records. We present a summary of progress made thus far; what has worked and why, and thoughts on logical next steps.

  2. Tracing Young Children's Scientific Reasoning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tytler, Russell; Peterson, Suzanne

    2003-08-01

    This paper explores the scientific reasoning of 14 children across their first two years of primary school. Children's view of experimentation, their approach to exploration, and their negotiation of competing knowledge claims, are interpreted in terms of categories of epistemological reasoning. Children's epistemological reasoning is distinguished from their ability to control variables. While individual children differ substantially, they show a relatively steady growth in their reasoning, with some contextual variation. A number of these children are reasoning at a level well in advance of curriculum expectations, and it is argued that current recommended practice in primary science needs to be rethought. The data is used to explore the relationship between reasoning and knowledge, and to argue that the generation and exploration of ideas must be the key driver of scientific activity in the primary school.

  3. 5th International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing

    CERN Document Server

    Hoang, Xuan; Rannacher, Rolf; Schlöder, Johannes

    2014-01-01

    This proceedings volume gathers a selection of papers presented at the Fifth International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing, which took place in Hanoi on March 5-9, 2012. The conference was organized by the Institute of Mathematics of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), the Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR) of Heidelberg University, Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, and the Vietnam Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics. The contributions cover the broad interdisciplinary spectrum of scientific computing and present recent advances in theory, development of methods, and practical applications. Subjects covered include mathematical modeling; numerical simulation; methods for optimization and control; parallel computing; software development; and applications of scientific computing in physics, mechanics and biomechanics, material science, hydrology, chemistry, biology, biotechnology, medicine, sports, psychology, transport, logistics, com...

  4. 3rd International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing

    CERN Document Server

    Kostina, Ekaterina; Phu, Hoang; Rannacher, Rolf

    2008-01-01

    This proceedings volume contains a selection of papers presented at the Third International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing held at the Hanoi Institute of Mathematics, Vietnamese Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), March 6-10, 2006. The conference has been organized by the Hanoi Institute of Mathematics, Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR), Heidelberg, and its International PhD Program ``Complex Processes: Modeling, Simulation and Optimization'', and Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology. The contributions cover the broad interdisciplinary spectrum of scientific computing and present recent advances in theory, development of methods, and applications in practice. Subjects covered are mathematical modelling, numerical simulation, methods for optimization and control, parallel computing, software development, applications of scientific computing in physics, chemistry, biology and mechanics, environmental and hydrology problems, transport, logistics and site loca...

  5. 6th International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing

    CERN Document Server

    Phu, Hoang; Rannacher, Rolf; Schlöder, Johannes

    2017-01-01

    This proceedings volume highlights a selection of papers presented at the Sixth International Conference on High Performance Scientific Computing, which took place in Hanoi, Vietnam on March 16-20, 2015. The conference was jointly organized by the Heidelberg Institute of Theoretical Studies (HITS), the Institute of Mathematics of the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology (VAST), the Interdisciplinary Center for Scientific Computing (IWR) at Heidelberg University, and the Vietnam Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics, Ministry of Education The contributions cover a broad, interdisciplinary spectrum of scientific computing and showcase recent advances in theory, methods, and practical applications. Subjects covered numerical simulation, methods for optimization and control, parallel computing, and software development, as well as the applications of scientific computing in physics, mechanics, biomechanics and robotics, material science, hydrology, biotechnology, medicine, transport, scheduling, and in...

  6. Space Exploration as a Human Enterprise: The Scientific Interest

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sagan, Carl

    1973-01-01

    Presents examples which illustrate the importance of space exploration in diverse aspects of scientific knowledge. Indicates that human beings are today not wise enough to anticipate the practical benefits of planetary studies. (CC)

  7. International Symposium: “Scientific School of L.S. Vygotsky: Traditions and Innovations” and International ISCAR Summer University for PhD Students

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Baykovskaya N.A.,

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available The article represents a brief report on the work of the International Symposium: «Scientific School of L.S. Vygotsky: Traditions and Innovations» and VI th International ISCAR Summer University for PhD Students and young scholars, that were held in Moscow State University of Psychology & Education on June, 28 — July, 3 in 2016 in commemoration of the 120th anniversary of the great Russian psychologist L.S. Vygotsky. The main goals of the events organised by MSUPE include: analysis of the basic principles and the system of concepts of L.S. Vygotsky’s scientific school, discussion of the current state and the prospect for the development of the cultural-historical theory in Russia and abroad, integration of the ideas of the cultural-historical psychology and activity approach in various kinds of social and educational practices, as well as conducting research in the international scientific space. Symposium gathered the world’s leading experts and young scholars in the field of cultural-historical theory and activity approach from 19 countries, including United Kingdom, Australia, Switzerland, Greece, Brasil and USA.

  8. The Scientific Theory Profile: A Philosophy of Science Model for Science Teachers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loving, Cathleen

    The model developed for use with science teachers--called the Scientific Theory Profile--consists of placing three well-known philosophers of science on a grid, with the x-axis being their methods for judging theories (rational vs. natural) and the y-axis being their views on scientific theories representing the Truth versus mere models of what…

  9. Representing electrons a biographical approach to theoretical entities

    CERN Document Server

    Arabatzis, Theodore

    2006-01-01

    Both a history and a metahistory, Representing Electrons focuses on the development of various theoretical representations of electrons from the late 1890s to 1925 and the methodological problems associated with writing about unobservable scientific entities. Using the electron-or rather its representation-as a historical actor, Theodore Arabatzis illustrates the emergence and gradual consolidation of its representation in physics, its career throughout old quantum theory, and its appropriation and reinterpretation by chemists. As Arabatzis develops this novel biographical

  10. Mapping the Power of Law Professors: The Role of Scientific and Social Capital

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bühlmann, Felix; Benz, Pierre; Mach, André; Rossier, Thierry

    2017-01-01

    As a scientific discipline and profession, law has been for centuries at the heart of social and political power of many Western societies. Professors of law, as influential representatives of the profession, are important powerbrokers between academia, politics and the corporate world. Their influence is based on scientific reputation,…

  11. Putting a spin on circulating reference, or how to rediscover the scientific subject.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kochan, Jeff

    2015-02-01

    Bruno Latour claims to have shown that a Kantian model of knowledge, which he describes as seeking to unite a disembodied transcendental subject with an inaccessible thing-in-itself, is dramatically falsified by empirical studies of science in action. Instead, Latour puts central emphasis on scientific practice, and replaces this Kantian model with a model of "circulating reference." Unfortunately, Latour's alternative schematic leaves out the scientific subject. I repair this oversight through a simple mechanical procedure. By putting a slight spin on Latour's diagrammatic representation of his theory, I discover a new space for a post-Kantian scientific subject, a subject brilliantly described by Ludwik Fleck. The neglected subjectivities and ceaseless practices of science are thus re-united. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  12. Scientific production on indoor air quality of environments used for physical exercise and sports practice: Bibliometric analysis.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Andrade, Alexandro; Dominski, Fábio Hech; Coimbra, Danilo Reis

    2017-07-01

    In order to minimize adverse health effects and increase the benefits of physical activity, it is important to systematize indoor air quality study in environments used for physical exercise and sports. To investigate and analyze the scientific production related to indoor air quality of environments used for physical exercise and sports practice through a bibliometric analysis. The databases Scielo, Science Direct, Scopus, Lilacs, Medline via Pubmed, and SportDiscus were searched from their inception to March 2016. Bibliometric analysis was performed for authors, institutions, countries, and collaborative networks, in relation to publication year, theme, citation network, funding agency, and analysis of titles and keywords of publications. Country, area, and impact factor of the journals were analyzed. Of 1281 studies screened, 34 satisfied the inclusion criteria. The first publication occurred in 1975. An increase in publications was observed in the last 15 years. Most of the studies were performed by researchers in the USA, followed by Portugal and Italy. Seventeen different scientific journals have published studies on the subject, and most are in the area of Environmental Sciences. It was noted that the categories of author keywords associated with "Pollutants," "Sport Environment," and "Physical Exercise" were the most commonly used in most studies. A total of 68% of the studies had at least one funding agency, and 81% of studies published in the last decade had funding. Our results demonstrate that there is recent exponential growth, driven in the last decade by researchers in environmental science from European institutions. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. The development of scientific reasoning in medical education: a psychological perspective.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Barz, Daniela Luminita; Achimaş-Cadariu, Andrei

    2016-01-01

    Scientific reasoning has been studied from a variety of theoretical perspectives, which have tried to identify the underlying mechanisms responsible for the development of this particular cognitive process. Scientific reasoning has been defined as a problem-solving process that involves critical thinking in relation to content, procedural, and epistemic knowledge. The development of scientific reasoning in medical education was influenced by current paradigmatic trends, it could be traced along educational curriculum and followed cognitive processes. The purpose of the present review is to discuss the role of scientific reasoning in medical education and outline educational methods for its development. Current evidence suggests that medical education should foster a new ways of development of scientific reasoning, which include exploration of the complexity of scientific inquiry, and also take into consideration the heterogeneity of clinical cases found in practice.

  14. Engaging Fifth Graders in Scientific Modeling to Learn about Evaporation and Condensation

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hokayem, Hayat; Schwarz, Christina

    2014-01-01

    Reform efforts in science education have aimed at fostering scientific literacy by helping learners meaningfully engage in scientific practices to make sense of the world. In this paper, we report on our second year of unit implementation that has investigated 34 fifth grade students' (10-year-olds) learning about evaporation and condensation…

  15. Sudden Cardiac Risk Stratification with Electrocardiographic Indices - A Review on Computational Processing, Technology Transfer, and Scientific Evidence

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Francisco Javier eGimeno-Blanes

    2016-03-01

    Full Text Available Great effort has been devoted in recent years to the development of sudden cardiac risk predictors as a function of electric cardiac signals, mainly obtained from the electrocardiogram (ECG analysis. But these prediction techniques are still seldom used in clinical practice, partly due to its limited diagnostic accuracy and to the lack of consensus about the appropriate computational signal processing implementation. This paper addresses a three-fold approach, based on ECG indexes, to structure this review on sudden cardiac risk stratification. First, throughout the computational techniques that had been widely proposed for obtaining these indexes in technical literature. Second, over the scientific evidence, that although is supported by observational clinical studies, they are not always representative enough. And third, via the limited technology transfer of academy-accepted algorithms, requiring further meditation for future systems. We focus on three families of ECG derived indexes which are tackled from the aforementioned viewpoints, namely, heart rate turbulence, heart rate variability, and T-wave alternans. In terms of computational algorithms, we still need clearer scientific evidence, standardizing, and benchmarking, siting on advanced algorithms applied over large and representative datasets. New scenarios like electronic health recordings, big data, long-term monitoring, and cloud databases, will eventually open new frameworks to foresee suitable new paradigms in the near future.

  16. Doing laboratory ethnography: reflections on method in scientific workplaces.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Stephens, Neil; Lewis, Jamie

    2017-04-01

    Laboratory ethnography extended the social scientist's gaze into the day-to-day accomplishment of scientific practice. Here we reflect upon our own ethnographies of biomedical scientific workspaces to provoke methodological discussion on the doing of laboratory ethnography. What we provide is less a 'how to' guide and more a commentary on what to look for and what to look at. We draw upon our empirical research with stem cell laboratories and animal houses, teams producing robotic surgical tools, musicians sonifying data science, a psychiatric genetics laboratory, and scientists developing laboratory grown meat. We use these cases to example a set of potential ethnographic themes worthy of pursuit: science epistemics and the extended laboratory, the interaction order of scientific work, sensory realms and the rending of science as sensible, conferences as performative sites, and the spaces, places and temporalities of scientific work.

  17. Math Garden: A new educational and scientific instrument

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Straatemeier, M.

    2014-01-01

    This dissertation describes the research concerning the construction of a new educational and scientific instrument. This instrument, Math Garden, is a web application in which children can practice arithmetic by playing math games in which items are tailored to their ability level. At the same

  18. Gender-fair assessment of young gifted students' scientific thinking skills

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dori, Y. J.; Zohar, A.; Fischer-Shachor, D.; Kohan-Mass, J.; Carmi, M.

    2018-04-01

    This paper describes an Israeli national-level research examining the extent to which admissions of elementary school students to the gifted programmes based on standardised tests are gender-fair. In the research, the gifted students consisted of 275 boys, 128 girls, and additional 80 girls who were admitted to the gifted programme through affirmative action (AA). To assess these young students' scientific thinking skills, also referred to as science practices, open-ended questions of case-based questionnaires were developed. The investigated scientific thinking skills were question posing, explanation, graphing, inquiry, and metacognition. Analysis of the students' responses revealed that gifted girls who entered the programmes through AA performed at the same level as the other gifted students. We found significant differences between the three research groups in question posing and graphing skills. We suggest increasing gender-fairness by revising the standard national testing system to include case-based narratives followed by open-ended questions that assess gifted students' scientific thinking skills. This may diminish the gender inequity expressed by the different number of girls and boys accepted to the gifted programmes. We show that open-ended tools for analysing students' scientific thinking might better serve both research and practice by identifying gifted girls and boys equally well.

  19. Genealogical Trees of Scientific Papers.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Waumans, Michaël Charles; Bersini, Hugues

    2016-01-01

    Many results have been obtained when studying scientific papers citations databases in a network perspective. Articles can be ranked according to their current in-degree and their future popularity or citation counts can even be predicted. The dynamical properties of such networks and the observation of the time evolution of their nodes started more recently. This work adopts an evolutionary perspective and proposes an original algorithm for the construction of genealogical trees of scientific papers on the basis of their citation count evolution in time. The fitness of a paper now amounts to its in-degree growing trend and a "dying" paper will suddenly see this trend declining in time. It will give birth and be taken over by some of its most prevalent citing "offspring". Practically, this might be used to trace the successive published milestones of a research field.

  20. Writing a scientific publication for a management journal.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Øvretveit, John

    2008-01-01

    The aim of this paper is to stimulate debate about criteria for assessing the scientific contribution of a piece of management research and to guide and encourage researchers in writing papers for publication. The paper also seeks to reduce the number of papers submitted to journals and reviewers which are really unfinished early drafts or which do provide knowledge which could contribute to reducing suffering. The paper draws on and discusses the difference between practical research for a manager and scientific research, as well as the author's experience as researcher, writer, reviewer, editor, research methods course leader and director of research. The discussion highlights that the author should draft the paper under the suggested headings and fulfil criteria of validity, reliability, supported conclusions, generalisability, ensuring that each section follows on from the other, and that the findings are related to previous research. This is the author's personal view about how to carry out and write research to get published, without discussions of other views. The findings in this paper may provoke more debate about management science and the role of this journal. The guidance may help many researchers publish their management research. The paper links practical guidance with discussion of criteria for scientific contribution in a readable way.

  1. Strategic Reading, Ontologies, and the Future of Scientific Publishing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Renear, Allen H.; Palmer, Carole L.

    2009-08-01

    The revolution in scientific publishing that has been promised since the 1980s is about to take place. Scientists have always read strategically, working with many articles simultaneously to search, filter, scan, link, annotate, and analyze fragments of content. An observed recent increase in strategic reading in the online environment will soon be further intensified by two current trends: (i) the widespread use of digital indexing, retrieval, and navigation resources and (ii) the emergence within many scientific disciplines of interoperable ontologies. Accelerated and enhanced by reading tools that take advantage of ontologies, reading practices will become even more rapid and indirect, transforming the ways in which scientists engage the literature and shaping the evolution of scientific publishing.

  2. Playing science? Environmentally focused think tanks and the new scientific paradigm

    OpenAIRE

    Douglass, Kimberly L.; Tanner, Sarah

    2012-01-01

    Although research published by think tanks is generally studied for its contributions to policy discourses, this study finds that think tank–authored studies also affect scientific scholarly communications. Think tanks clearly represent political interests. However, this study shows that their exclusion from scientific rhetoric is not a matter of their failing to meet the community’s standards; it is a matter of ideology, which helps maintain a socially constructed boundary betwee...

  3. Secondary school physics teachers' conceptions of scientific evidence: A collective case study

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Joseph A.

    Engaging secondary school students in inquiry-oriented tasks that more closely simulate the scholarly activities of scientists has been recommended as a way to improve scientific literacy. Two tasks that are frequently recommended include students' design of original experiments, and students' evaluation of scientific evidence and conclusions. Yet, little is known about teachers' conceptions of experimentation. The principal aim of this study, therefore, was to describe the nature of prospective and practicing physics teachers' conceptions of scientific evidence. More specifically, the following research questions guided this study: (1) What types of issues related to the measurement reliability and experimental validity of scientific evidence do practicing and prospective physics teachers think about when designing experiments? (2) When presented with hypothetical scenarios that describe unsound experimental procedures or poorly supported conclusions (or both), what concerns will prospective and practicing physics teachers raise? And (3) When the participants' responses to parallel research prompts are compared across protocols, what similarities and differences exist? The nature of the teacher-participants' conceptions was described from an analysis of data collected from research prompts such as interviews and hand written artifacts. In these research prompts, the teachers "thought aloud" while designing experiments and critically evaluated student-collected evidence presented in hypothetical classroom scenarios. The data from this study suggested that the three teachers, while contemplating the reliability and validity of scientific evidence, frequently used their conceptions of evidence in conjunction with specific subject matter conceptions. The data also indicated that the relationship between subject matter knowledge and conceptions of evidence was more pronounced for some conceptions of evidence than for others. Suggestions for future research included

  4. Learning scientific programming with Python

    CERN Document Server

    Hill, Christian

    2015-01-01

    Learn to master basic programming tasks from scratch with real-life scientifically relevant examples and solutions drawn from both science and engineering. Students and researchers at all levels are increasingly turning to the powerful Python programming language as an alternative to commercial packages and this fast-paced introduction moves from the basics to advanced concepts in one complete volume, enabling readers to quickly gain proficiency. Beginning with general programming concepts such as loops and functions within the core Python 3 language, and moving onto the NumPy, SciPy and Matplotlib libraries for numerical programming and data visualisation, this textbook also discusses the use of IPython notebooks to build rich-media, shareable documents for scientific analysis. Including a final chapter introducing challenging topics such as floating-point precision and algorithm stability, and with extensive online resources to support advanced study, this textbook represents a targeted package for students...

  5. Transcending disciplines: Scientific styles in studies of the brain in mid-twentieth century America.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Abraham, Tara H

    2012-06-01

    Much scholarship in the history of cybernetics has focused on the far-reaching cultural dimensions of the movement. What has garnered less attention are efforts by cyberneticians such as Warren McCulloch and Norbert Wiener to transform scientific practice in an array of disciplines in the biomedical sciences, and the complex ways these efforts were received by members of traditional disciplines. In a quest for scientific unity that had a decidedly imperialistic flavour, cyberneticians sought to apply practices common in the exact sciences-mainly theoretical modeling-to problems in disciplines that were traditionally defined by highly empirical practices, such as neurophysiology and neuroanatomy. Their efforts were met with mixed, often critical responses. This paper attempts to make sense of such dynamics by exploring the notion of a scientific style and its usefulness in accounting for the contrasts in scientific practice in brain research and in cybernetics during the 1940s. Focusing on two key institutional contexts of brain research and the role of the Rockefeller and Macy Foundations in directing brain research and cybernetics, the paper argues that the conflicts between these fields were not simply about experiment vs. theory but turned more closely on the questions that defined each area and the language used to elaborate answers. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  6. A participative model for undertaking and evaluating scientific communication in Earth Observation

    Science.gov (United States)

    L'Astorina, Alba; Tomasoni, Irene

    2015-04-01

    Public communication of Science and Technology (PCST) is an integral part of the mission of the Italian National Research Council (CNR) and widely carried out among the scientific community. Recently it has also become a research field investigating practices, channels, tools and models of public engagement and their impact on the relation between Science and Society. Understanding such aspects is increasingly considered relevant for an effective and aware outreach. Within this context, CNR has adopted some innovative communication approaches addressed to different publics, such as stakeholders, users, media, young people and the general public, using participative methodologies. Besides being practices of communication promoting the scientific culture, such initiatives aim at understanding the models at the basis of the relationship between the scientific community and the public. To what extent do scientists put their communication and involvement strategies in discussion? Do they use to have a real exchange with their publics in order to evaluate the effectiveness of the participatory techniques they adopt in communicating and disseminating their activities? In this paper we present a case study of a communication and educational proposal recently developed by CNR in order to promote a mutual exchange between Education/School and Research, that are the most important actors in the production and the revision of the scientific knowledge. The proposal brings an ongoing CNR research project (its steps, subjects, tools, activities, costs etc) in classrooms, making use of interactive Earth Sciences workshops conducted directly by researchers. The ongoing CNR project shared with students studies Innovative Methodologies of Earth Observation supporting the Agricultural sector in Lombardy. It aims at exploiting the Aerospace Earth Observation (EO) tools to develop dedicated agricultural downstream services that will bring added economic value and benefits for Lombardy

  7. News from the Library: CERN Scientific Book Fair 2011

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN Library

    2011-01-01

      The CERN Bookshop and CERN Library invite you to attend the 2011 CERN Book Fair, a two-day scientific event offering you the opportunity to meet key publishers and to browse and purchase books at significant discounts.   Key publishers will present a selection of titles in physics, technology, mathematics, engineering, computing and popular science.  You are welcome to come along and meet the publishers’ representatives or simply have a look to the books on sale. The Fair will take place in the Main Building (bldg. 500) on the ground  floor near the Restaurant 1 on Wednesday 14th and Thursday 15th September. Participating or represented publishers include: Cambridge University Press, Elsevier, EPFL Press – PPUR, Oxford University Press, Princeton University Press, Springer, Taylor & Francis, Wiley, World Scientific-Imperial College Press. Fair opening times...

  8. Examining elementary teachers' knowledge and instruction of scientific explanations for fostering children's explanations in science

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wiebke, Heidi Lynn

    This study employed an embedded mixed methods multi-case study design (Creswell, 2014) with six early childhood (grades K-2) teachers to examine a) what changes occurred to their subject matter knowledge (SMK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) for teaching scientific explanations while participating in a professional development program, b) how they planned for and implemented scientific explanation instruction within a teacher developed unit on properties of matter, and c) what affordances their instruction of scientific explanations had on fostering their students' abilities to generate explanations in science. Several quantitative and qualitative measures were collected and analyzed in accordance to this studies conceptual framework, which consisted of ten instructional practices teachers should consider assimilating or accommodating into their knowledge base (i.e., SMK & PCK) for teaching scientific explanations. Results of this study indicate there was little to no positive change in the teachers' substantive and syntactic SMK. However, all six teachers did make significant changes to all five components of their PCK for teaching explanations in science. While planning for scientific explanation instruction, all six teachers' contributed some ideas for how to incorporate seven of the ten instructional practices for scientific explanations within the properties of matter unit they co-developed. When enacting the unit, the six teachers' employed seven to nine of the instructional practices to varying levels of effectiveness, as measured by researcher developed rubrics. Given the six teachers' scientific explanation instruction, many students did show improvement in their ability to formulate a scientific explanation, particularly their ability to provide multiple pieces of evidence. Implications for professional developers, teacher educators, researchers, policy makers, and elementary teachers regarding how to prepare teachers for and support students

  9. Plagiarism in Scientific Research and Publications and How to Prevent It

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet

    2014-01-01

    Quality is assessed on the basis of adequate evidence, while best results of the research are accomplished through scientific knowledge. Information contained in a scientific work must always be based on scientific evidence. Guidelines for genuine scientific research should be designed based on real results. Dynamic research and use correct methods of scientific work must originate from everyday practice and the fundamentals of the research. The original work should have the proper data sources with clearly defined research goals, methods of operation which are acceptable for questions included in the study. When selecting the methods it is necessary to obtain the consent of the patients/respondents to provide data for execution of the project or so called informed consent. Only by the own efforts can be reached true results, from which can be drawn conclusions and which finally can give a valid scholarly commentary. Text may be copied from other sources, either in whole or in part and marked as a result of the other studies. For high-quality scientific work necessary are expertise and relevant scientific literature, mostly taken from publications that are stored in biomedical databases. These are scientific, professional and review articles, case reports of disease in physician practices, but the knowledge can also be acquired on scientific and expert lectures by renowned scientists. Form of text publications must meet standards on writing a paper. If the article has already been published in a scientific journal, the same article cannot be published in any other journal with a few minor adjustments, or without specifying the parts of the first article which is used in another article. Copyright infringement occurs when the author of a new article, with or without mentioning the author, uses a substantial portion of previously published articles, including past contributions in the first article. With the permission of the publisher and the author, another journal

  10. Communication of geo-scientific safety arguments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Flavelle, P.; Goodwin, B.; Jensen, M.; Linden, R.; Mazurek, M.; Srivastave, M.; Strom, A.; Sudicky, E.; Voinis, S.

    2007-01-01

    Working Group B addressed the communication of geo-scientific safety arguments through a discussion of practical experience as it related to the methods, types of information and specific arguments found to best communicate geo-scientific concepts and notions of safety with broad audiences including, colleagues, authorities and regulators, political decision makers, academics, and the general public. The following questions were suggested by the programme committee of the AMIGO-2 workshop for discussion by Working Group B with respect to the communication of geo-scientific information and safety arguments: - What is the place of geo-scientific arguments in relation to quantitative and qualitative topics like scenario and FEPs (features, events, processes) assessment, simulated repository evolution, calculated dose or risk impacts, engineering tests of materials, etc., when presenting a safety case to different audiences and with respect to the various stages of the repository programme? (see section 3). - Would we be better off focusing messages to the public on time scales of a few hundred years or a few generations? (see section 4). - How do you handle the fact that geoscience interpretations seldom are unique and data often are open to various interpretations? (see section 5). - How do you handle expert controversy on a specific topic? (see section 6). (authors)

  11. Modeling framework for representing long-term effectiveness of best management practices in addressing hydrology and water quality problems: Framework development and demonstraton using a Bayesian method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Best management practices (BMPs) are popular approaches used to improve hydrology and water quality. Uncertainties in BMP effectiveness over time may result in overestimating long-term efficiency in watershed planning strategies. To represent varying long-term BMP effectiveness in hydrologic/water q...

  12. The ethics of improving African traditional medical practice: scientific or African traditional research methods?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nyika, Aceme

    2009-11-01

    The disease burden in Africa, which is relatively very large compared with developed countries, has been attributed to various factors that include poverty, food shortages, inadequate access to health care and unaffordability of Western medicines to the majority of African populations. Although for 'old diseases' knowledge about the right African traditional medicines to treat or cure the diseases has been passed from generation to generation, knowledge about traditional medicines to treat newly emerging diseases has to be generated in one way or another. In addition, the existing traditional medicines have to be continuously improved, which is also the case with Western scientific medicines. Whereas one school of thought supports the idea of improving medicines, be they traditional or Western, through scientific research, an opposing school of thought argues that subjecting African traditional medicines to scientific research would be tantamount to some form of colonization and imperialism. This paper argues that continuing to use African traditional medicines for old and new diseases without making concerted efforts to improve their efficacy and safety is unethical since the disease burden affecting Africa may continue to rise in spite of the availability and accessibility of the traditional medicines. Most importantly, the paper commends efforts being made in some African countries to improve African traditional medicine through a combination of different mechanisms that include the controversial approach of scientific research on traditional medicines.

  13. Scientific and technical challenges of radioactive waste management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vira, J.

    1996-01-01

    In spite of considerable spending on research and technical development, the management of nuclear wastes continues to be a difficult issue in public decision making. The nuclear industry says that it has safe solutions for the ultimate disposal of nuclear wastes, but the message has not really got through to the public at large. Although communications problems reflect the general stigmatization of nuclear power, there are obvious issues in safety and performance assessment of nuclear waste disposal which evade scientific resolution. Any scientist is concerned for his personal credibility must respect the rules and limits of scientific practice, but the intriguing question is whether he would not do better to address the layman's worries about radioactive substances? The discussion in this paper points out the intricacies of the distinction between scientific proof and judgement, with emphasis on safety assessment for nuclear waste disposal. Who are the final arbitrators? In a democratic society it is probably those who vote.Building confidence in expert judgements is a challenge for waste managers and scientists. The media may create their own 'experts', whose only necessary credential is the trust of their audience, but scientific judgements must stand the test of time.'Confidence building' is currently a key word on the whole nuclear waste management scene, and confidence in science and scientists is certainly needed for any progress towards practical implementation of plans. The means for building confidence in the decision-making process are probably different from those applied for science and scientists. (author)

  14. Systems Engineering and Safety Issues in Scientific Facilities Subject to Ionizing Radiations

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Pierre Bonnal

    2013-10-01

    Full Text Available The conception and development of large-scale scientific facilities emitting ionizing radiations rely more on project management practices in use in the process industry than on systems engineering practices. This paper aims to highlight possible reasons for this present situation and to propose some ways to enhance systems engineering so that the specific radiation safety requirements are considered and integrated in the approach. To do so, we have reviewed lessons learned from the management of large-scale scientific projects and more specifically that of the Large Hadron Collider project at CERN. It is shown that project management and systems engineering practices are complementary and can beneficially be assembled in an integrated and lean managerial framework that grants the appropriate amount of focus to safety and radiation safety aspects.

  15. An assessment system for rating scientific journals in the field of ergonomics and human factors

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    J. Dul (Jan); W. Karwowski

    2003-01-01

    textabstractA method for selecting and rating scientific and professional journals representing the discipline of ergonomics and human factors is proposed. The method is based upon the journal list, impact factors and citations provided by the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI), and the

  16. Collaborating with consumer and community representatives in health and medical research in Australia: results from an evaluation

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bartu Anne E

    2011-05-01

    Full Text Available Abstract Objective To collaborate with consumer and community representatives in the Alcohol and Pregnancy Project from 2006-2008 http://www.ichr.uwa.edu.au/alcoholandpregnancy and evaluate researchers' and consumer and community representatives' perceptions of the process, context and impact of consumer and community participation in the project. Methods We formed two reference groups and sought consumer and community representatives' perspectives on all aspects of the project over a three year period. We developed an evaluation framework and asked consumer and community representatives and researchers to complete a self-administered questionnaire at the end of the project. Results Fifteen researchers (93.8% and seven (53.8% consumer and community representatives completed a questionnaire. Most consumer and community representatives agreed that the process and context measures of their participation had been achieved. Both researchers and consumer and community representatives identified areas for improvement and offered suggestions how these could be improved for future research. Researchers thought consumer and community participation contributed to project outputs and outcomes by enhancing scientific and ethical standards, providing legitimacy and authority, and increasing the project's credibility and participation. They saw it was fundamental to the research process and acknowledged consumer and community representatives for their excellent contribution. Consumer and community representatives were able to directly influence decisions about the research. They thought that consumer and community participation had significant influence on the success of project outputs and outcomes. Conclusions Consumer and community participation is an essential component of good research practice and contributed to the Alcohol and Pregnancy Project by enhancing research processes, outputs and outcomes, and this participation was valued by community and

  17. Collaborating with consumer and community representatives in health and medical research in Australia: results from an evaluation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Payne, Janet M; D'Antoine, Heather A; France, Kathryn E; McKenzie, Anne E; Henley, Nadine; Bartu, Anne E; Elliott, Elizabeth J; Bower, Carol

    2011-05-14

    To collaborate with consumer and community representatives in the Alcohol and Pregnancy Project from 2006-2008 http://www.ichr.uwa.edu.au/alcoholandpregnancy and evaluate researchers' and consumer and community representatives' perceptions of the process, context and impact of consumer and community participation in the project. We formed two reference groups and sought consumer and community representatives' perspectives on all aspects of the project over a three year period. We developed an evaluation framework and asked consumer and community representatives and researchers to complete a self-administered questionnaire at the end of the project. Fifteen researchers (93.8%) and seven (53.8%) consumer and community representatives completed a questionnaire. Most consumer and community representatives agreed that the process and context measures of their participation had been achieved. Both researchers and consumer and community representatives identified areas for improvement and offered suggestions how these could be improved for future research. Researchers thought consumer and community participation contributed to project outputs and outcomes by enhancing scientific and ethical standards, providing legitimacy and authority, and increasing the project's credibility and participation. They saw it was fundamental to the research process and acknowledged consumer and community representatives for their excellent contribution. Consumer and community representatives were able to directly influence decisions about the research. They thought that consumer and community participation had significant influence on the success of project outputs and outcomes. Consumer and community participation is an essential component of good research practice and contributed to the Alcohol and Pregnancy Project by enhancing research processes, outputs and outcomes, and this participation was valued by community and consumer representatives and researchers. The National Health and

  18. Some non-scientific influences on radiation protection standards and practice

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Taylor, L.S.

    1980-01-01

    The influence of philosophy, politics, the media, morality, laws and economics on standards of radiation protection are discussed. While it is known that the dose-effect relationship for low-LET radiations is not linear over the whole dose range, it has been assumed to be linear in the interest of caution. This assumption has resulted in widespread controversy concerning radioprotection standards. Possible corrective actions include better communication within the scientific community and with the general public and much broader education of and dissemination of information to the public. (H.K.)

  19. Strategic Integration: The Practical Politics of Integrated Research in Context

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Lorrae van Kerkhoff

    2005-01-01

    Full Text Available Designing an integrative research program requires that research leaders negotiate a balance between the scientific interest of research and the practical interests of non-scientific partners. This paper examines the ways integrated research is formally categorised, and analyses the tangible expressions of the practical politics involved in reconciling scientific and practical interests. Drawing on a comparative study of two Australian Cooperative Research Centres, I argue that categories used by the research leaders to describe the research programs embody three different strategies for structuring the relationships between researchers and their partners. These include matching research program categories to partners’ implementation program categories, reproducing existing integrative partnership models, and filling gaps in understanding with new technical approaches. These strategies offer different advantages and disadvantages. The cases suggest that the integrative approach favoured by each Centre depended on issues such as the geographic scope of policy arenas, sources of scientific credibility, and the political risks facing partners. The practical politics of research organisation offers a new lens for understanding both the practice and theory of integrated research.

  20. Ethnographic notes on visualization practices in tissue engineering research

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Vyas, Dhaval; Cacciabue, P.C.

    2013-01-01

    Visual information is central to several of the scientific disciplines. This paper studies how scientists working in a multidisciplinary field produce scientific evidence through building and manipulating scientific visualizations. Using ethnographic methods, we studied visualization practices of

  1. 9 May 2008 - Signature of the Protocol to the co-operation agreement dated 21 January 2006 between King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by M. I. Al-Suwaiyel and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), represented by R. Aymar, concerning the further development of scientific and technical co-operation in high-energy physics

    CERN Multimedia

    Maximilien Brice

    2008-01-01

    9 May 2008 - Signature of the Protocol to the co-operation agreement dated 21 January 2006 between King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) on behalf of the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, represented by M. I. Al-Suwaiyel and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), represented by R. Aymar, concerning the further development of scientific and technical co-operation in high-energy physics

  2. Translanguaging in a middle school science classroom: Constructing scientific arguments in English and Spanish

    Science.gov (United States)

    Licona, Peter R.

    This dissertation investigates translanguaging in an English/Spanish dual language middle school science classroom as the teacher and students worked through a curriculum unit focusing on socioscientific issues and implementing a scientific argumentation framework. Translanguaging is the process in which bilingual speakers fluidly and dynamically draw from their full linguistic repertoire to perform a communicative act. Using ethnographically informed data collection in conjunction with discourse analysis, teacher translanguaging was examined for its related functions in the science classroom and how teacher translanguaging afforded opportunities for framing and supporting scientific argumentation. Results suggest that the functions of teacher translanguaging fell into three main themes: maintaining classroom culture, facilitating the academic task, and framing epistemic practices. Of the three categories of translanguaging, framing epistemic practices proved to be of paramount importance in the teacher presenting and supporting the practice of scientific argumentation. Implications from this study are relevant for pre-service science teacher preparation and in-service science teacher professional development for teachers working with emergent bilingual students.

  3. Making expert knowledge through the image: connections between antiquarian and early modern scientific illustration.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Moser, Stephanie

    2014-03-01

    This essay examines drawings of antiquities in the context of the history of early modern scientific illustration. The role of illustrations in the establishment of archaeology as a discipline is assessed, and the emergence of a graphic style for representing artifacts is shown to be closely connected to the development of scientific illustration in the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. The essay argues that the production of conventionalized drawings of antiquities during this period represents a fundamental shift in the approach to ancient material culture, signifying the recognition of objects as evidence. As has been demonstrated in other scientific fields, the creation of a visual system for recording objects was central to the acceptance of artifacts as "data" that could be organized into groups, classified as types, and analyzed to gain knowledge of the past.

  4. Artificial Intelligence to Win the Nobel Prize and Beyond: Creating the Engine for Scientific Discovery

    OpenAIRE

    Kitano, Hiroaki

    2016-01-01

    This article proposes a new grand challenge for AI reasearch: to develop AI system to make major scientific discoveries in biomedical sciences that worth Nobel Prize. There are a series of human cognitive limitations that prevents us from making accerlated scientific discoveries, particularity in biomedical sciences. As a result, scientific discoveries are left behind at the level of cottage industry. AI systems can transform scientific discoveries into highly efficient practice, thereby enab...

  5. SCIENTIFIC AND INNOVATION ACTIVITIES OF HIGHER EDUCATION INSTITUTION: THE ESSENCE AND INTERACTION OF THE COMPONENTS

    OpenAIRE

    Meniailo, Viktorija

    2017-01-01

    One of the main directions of state policy in education is the development of scientific and innovation activities at institutions of higher education. It imposes on them additional features related to the inclusion of scientific activities in universities united innovative process for the creating and practical application of new knowledge. The purpose of the article is to establish the relationship between scientific and innovation activities and clarify the essence of scientific and innova...

  6. The epistemic integrity of scientific research.

    Science.gov (United States)

    De Winter, Jan; Kosolosky, Laszlo

    2013-09-01

    We live in a world in which scientific expertise and its epistemic authority become more important. On the other hand, the financial interests in research, which could potentially corrupt science, are increasing. Due to these two tendencies, a concern for the integrity of scientific research becomes increasingly vital. This concern is, however, hollow if we do not have a clear account of research integrity. Therefore, it is important that we explicate this concept. Following Rudolf Carnap's characterization of the task of explication, this means that we should develop a concept that is (1) similar to our common sense notion of research integrity, (2) exact, (3) fruitful, and (4) as simple as possible. Since existing concepts do not meet these four requirements, we develop a new concept in this article. We describe a concept of epistemic integrity that is based on the property of deceptiveness, and argue that this concept does meet Carnap's four requirements of explication. To illustrate and support our claims we use several examples from scientific practice, mainly from biomedical research.

  7. Pop Rocks! Engaging first-year geology students by deconstructing and correcting scientific misconceptions in popular culture. A Practice Report

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Leslie Almberg

    2011-07-01

    Full Text Available Popular culture abounds with ill-conceived notions about Earth’s processes.  Movies, books, music, television and even video games frequently misrepresent fundamental scientific principles, warping viewers’ perceptions of the world around them.  First year geoscience students are not immune to pop culture’s portrayal of earth science and the misconceptions they bring to Geology 101 cloud their ability to differentiate between fact and fiction.  Working within an action research context, a semester-long assessment was designed with the intent to highlight and subsequently challenge students’ misconceptions using examples of “bad geoscience” from pop culture.  Students were required to practice and refine generic skills within this context.  This project succeeded in engaging students, but requires refinement to become more effective in enhancing their geoscience literacy. 

  8. Representing Voices from the Life-World in Evidence-Based Practice

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kovarsky, Dana

    2008-01-01

    Background: Current models of evidence-based practice marginalize and even silence the voices of those who are the potential beneficiaries of assessment and intervention. These missing voices can be found in the reflections of clients on their own life-world experiences. Aims: This paper examines how voices from the life-world are silenced in…

  9. Behavioral and Social Sciences at the National Institutes of Health: adoption of research findings in health research and practice as a scientific priority.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Riley, William T

    2017-06-01

    The National Institutes of Health's Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) recently released its Strategic Plan for 2017 to 2021. This plan highlights three scientific priorities: (1) improve the synergy of basic and applied behavioral and social sciences research, (2) enhance and promote the research infrastructure, methods, and measures needed to support a more cumulative and integrated approach to behavioral and social sciences research, and (3) facilitate the adoption of behavioral and social sciences research findings in health research and in practice. This commentary focuses on the challenges and opportunities to facilitate the adoption of research findings in health research and in practice. In addition to the ongoing NIH support for dissemination and implementation (D&I) research, we must address transformative challenges and opportunities such as better disseminating and implementing D&I research, merging research and practice, adopting more rigorous and diverse methods and measures for both D&I and clinical trials research, evaluating technological-based delivery of interventions, and transitioning from minimally adaptable intervention packages to planned adaptations rooted in behavior change principles. Beyond translation into practice and policy, the OBSSR Strategic Plan also highlights the need for translation of behavioral and social science findings into the broader biomedical research enterprise.

  10. Nectar for the taking: the popularization of scientific bee culture in England, 1609-1809.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ebert, Adam

    2011-01-01

    This essay expands and refines academic knowledge of English beekeeping during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Scientific beekeeping focused on improvement, which, in turn, depended on the dissemination of ideas and practices. This analysis, therefore, encompasses the mentalities and tactics of popularizers. The article also identifies two neglected concepts in the popularization campaign. First, popularizers saw scientific beekeeping as a way to end the tradition of killing the bees in order to safely harvest. Second, they sought to promote a rural industry for the economic welfare of the nation. The case study of Exeter's Western Apiarian Society reveals precisely how popularization functioned in reality. The result is a more thorough history of scientific beekeeping and how the rhetoric of improvement related to the culture of practice.

  11. Modeling framework for representing long-term effectiveness of best management practices in addressing hydrology and water quality problems: Framework development and demonstration using a Bayesian method

    Science.gov (United States)

    Liu, Yaoze; Engel, Bernard A.; Flanagan, Dennis C.; Gitau, Margaret W.; McMillan, Sara K.; Chaubey, Indrajeet; Singh, Shweta

    2018-05-01

    Best management practices (BMPs) are popular approaches used to improve hydrology and water quality. Uncertainties in BMP effectiveness over time may result in overestimating long-term efficiency in watershed planning strategies. To represent varying long-term BMP effectiveness in hydrologic/water quality models, a high level and forward-looking modeling framework was developed. The components in the framework consist of establishment period efficiency, starting efficiency, efficiency for each storm event, efficiency between maintenance, and efficiency over the life cycle. Combined, they represent long-term efficiency for a specific type of practice and specific environmental concern (runoff/pollutant). An approach for possible implementation of the framework was discussed. The long-term impacts of grass buffer strips (agricultural BMP) and bioretention systems (urban BMP) in reducing total phosphorus were simulated to demonstrate the framework. Data gaps were captured in estimating the long-term performance of the BMPs. A Bayesian method was used to match the simulated distribution of long-term BMP efficiencies with the observed distribution with the assumption that the observed data represented long-term BMP efficiencies. The simulated distribution matched the observed distribution well with only small total predictive uncertainties. With additional data, the same method can be used to further improve the simulation results. The modeling framework and results of this study, which can be adopted in hydrologic/water quality models to better represent long-term BMP effectiveness, can help improve decision support systems for creating long-term stormwater management strategies for watershed management projects.

  12. [Variations on the "scientific culture" in four Brazilian authors].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Fonseca, Marina Assis; Oliveira, Bernardo Jefferson de

    2015-01-01

    The concept of "scientific culture" varies historically, and the examination of its continuities and transformations can help us understand the relationship between the scientific community and society. The views on the role of science in society go far beyond the advancement of a particular form of knowledge and its possible or promising fruit. They involve values, postures and practices to be disseminated and reveal expectations of social and cultural advancement. This article discusses four expressive visions of different moments in Brazilian history. The formulations of four influential authors in scientific and educational policies of the country at different times are presented and analyzed: Miguel Ozorio de Almeida, Anísio Teixeira, Maurício Rocha e Silva and Carlos Vogt.

  13. Feminism, theory and practice of a scientific archaeology

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Berrocal, María Cruz

    2009-12-01

    Full Text Available The paper reviews American feminist archaeology and its emphasis on the scientific character of the discipline. It is a synthesis of the origin and development of feminist archaeology, its links to gender archaeology and postprocessual archaeology, and its value as an epistemological critique of the discipline. The paper also considers the development of feminist archaeology in Spain, and its link to historical materialist archaeology.

    Este artículo revisa la arqueología feminista, fundamentalmente norteamericana, y su contribución a la comprensión de la arqueología como ciencia. Se sintetiza brevemente el origen y desarrollo de la arqueología feminista, su relación con la arqueología de género y la arqueología posprocesual, y su valor como crítica epistemológica de la disciplina. Se observa también el desarrollo de la arqueología feminista en España y su relación con la arqueología materialista histórica.

  14. Scientific instruments, scientific progress and the cyclotron

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Baird, David; Faust, Thomas

    1990-01-01

    Philosophers speak of science in terms of theory and experiment, yet when they speak of the progress of scientific knowledge they speak in terms of theory alone. In this article it is claimed that scientific knowledge consists of, among other things, scientific instruments and instrumental techniques and not simply of some kind of justified beliefs. It is argued that one aspect of scientific progress can be characterized relatively straightforwardly - the accumulation of new scientific instruments. The development of the cyclotron is taken to illustrate this point. Eight different activities which promoted the successful completion of the cyclotron are recognised. The importance is in the machine rather than the experiments which could be run on it and the focus is on how the cyclotron came into being, not how it was subsequently used. The completed instrument is seen as a useful unit of scientific progress in its own right. (UK)

  15. News from the Library: CERN Scientific Book Fair 2012

    CERN Multimedia

    CERN Library

    2012-01-01

    The CERN Bookshop and CERN Library invite you to attend the 2012 CERN Book Fair, a two-day scientific event offering you the opportunity to meet key publishers and to browse and purchase books at significant discounts.   Key publishers will present a selection of titles in physics, technology, mathematics, engineering, computing and popular science. You are welcome to come along and meet the publishers’ representatives or simply have a look at the books on sale. The Fair will take place in the Main Building (Bldg. 500) on the ground floor near Restaurant 1 on Monday 10 and Tuesday 11 September. Participating or represented publishers include: Cambridge University Press, Elsevier, EPFL Press-PPUR, Oxford University Press, Princeton University Press, Springer, Taylor & Francis, Wiley, and World Scientific-Imperial College Press. Fair opening times:     Monday 10 September 9:00 - 18:00     Tuesday 11 September 9:00&a...

  16. Implementing digital preservation in repositories: Knowledge and practices

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Caterina Groposo Pavão

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available Digital preservation has to be undertaken by institutional repositories, which are responsible for the preservation of the scientific output from academic institutions. However, due to the constant evolution of the field, to gain domain knowledge and recognise best practices is a complex task for people responsible for digital preservation in those institutions. Digital preservation research, practices and solutions address specific problems, such as formats, curation, reference models, authenticity, policies and preservation plans, tools, etc., while stakeholders need an integrated, contextualized and applicable overview. This paper focuses on the implementation of digital preservation in repositories, from the perspective of the team responsible for the project, regarding the necessary knowledge and best practices. Initially, it defines and contextualizes digital preservation repositories. The following section presents a conceptual model of digital preservation, synthesized from conceptual models developed in influential projects in the field, which allows us to identify the domain knowledge in digital preservation. Finally, aspects represented in the model are discussed in the light of the performance of teams implementing digital preservation repositories. It provides recommendations, guides and examples that may be useful for the implementation of digital preservation. It points to the need to strengthen the relationship between domain knowledge in digital preservation repositories with practices developed in numerous projects developed worldwide.

  17. CONCEPTIONS AND PRACTICES OF ASSESSMENT: A CASE OF TEACHERS REPRESENTING IMPROVEMENT CONCEPTION

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Astuti Azis

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available Despite numerous quantitative studies on teachers’ conceptions and practices of assessment, little research exists regarding the unique assessment environment of Indonesia. This study uses both quantitative and qualitative data to examine how Indonesian junior high school teachers understand assessment and how their conceptions of assessment relate to their assessment practices. This mixed methods study adopted a participant selection model in which quantitative data was analysed to select participants for the qualitative phase. Participants of this study believed that the purpose of assessment was to improve teaching and learning and also to demonstrate the accountability of students and school. They tended to disagree with the view that assessment is irrelevant. Further analysis of the data revealed that teachers’ conceptions of assessment were conflicted. They were keen to use assessment practices to improve their classroom teaching, but felt that the state-wide examination policy requirements constrained their efforts. This suggests that government, policy makers, and curriculum developers must work to build a strong synergy among themselves in order to share consistent goals with teachers. If cultural expectations of school assessment and government policy were aligned, Indonesian teachers may be better able to resolve conflict between their beliefs and assessment practices.

  18. Mastery of Scientific Argumentation on the Concept of Neutralization in Chemistry: A Malaysian Perspective

    Science.gov (United States)

    Heng, Lee Ling; Surif, Johari; Seng, Cher Hau; Ibrahim, Nor Hasniza

    2015-01-01

    Purpose: Argumentative practices are central to science education, and have recently been emphasised to promote students' reasoning skills and to develop student's understanding of scientific concepts. This study examines the mastery of scientific argumentation, based on the concept of neutralisation, among secondary level science students, when…

  19. Social justice pedagogies and scientific knowledge: Remaking citizenship in the non-science classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lehr, Jane L.

    This dissertation contributes to efforts to rethink the meanings of democracy, scientific literacy, and non-scientist citizenship in the United States. Beginning with questions that emerged from action research and exploring the socio-political forces that shape educational practices, it shows why non-science educators who teach for social justice must first recognize formal science education as a primary site of training for (future) non-scientist citizens and then prepare to intervene in the dominant model of scientifically literate citizenship offered by formal science education. This model of citizenship defines (and limits) appropriate behavior for non-scientist citizens as acquiescing to the authority of science and the state by actively demarcating science from non-science, experts from non-experts, and the rational from the irrational. To question scientific authority is to be scientifically illiterate. This vision of 'acquiescent democracy' seeks to end challenges to the authority of science and the state by ensuring that scientific knowledge is privileged in all personal and public decision-making practices, producing a situation in which it becomes natural for non-scientist citizens to enroll scientific knowledge to naturalize oppression within our schools and society. It suggests that feminist and equity-oriented science educators, by themselves, are unable or unwilling to challenge certain assumptions in the dominant model of scientifically literate citizenship. Therefore, it is the responsibility of non-science educators who teach for social justice to articulate oppositional models of non-scientist citizenship and democracy in their classrooms and to challenge the naturalized authority of scientific knowledge in all aspects of our lives. It demonstrates how research in the field of Science & Technology Studies can serve as one resource in our efforts to intervene in the dominant model of scientifically literate citizenship and to support a model of

  20. Scientific Skills as Core Competences in Medical Education: What do medical students think?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ribeiro, Laura; Severo, Milton; Pereira, Margarida; Amélia Ferreira, Maria

    2015-08-01

    Background: Scientific excellence is one of the most fundamental underpinnings of medical education and its relevance is unquestionable. To be involved in research activities enhances students' critical thinking and problem-solving capacities, which are mandatory competences for new achievements in patient care and consequently to the improvement of clinical practice. Purposes: This work aimed to study the relevance given by Portuguese medical students to a core of scientific skills, and their judgment about their own ability to execute those skills. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on students attending the first, fourth and sixth years of medical course in the same period. An assessment istrument, exploring the importance given by Portuguese medical students to scientific skills in high school, to clinical practice and to their own ability to execute them, was designed, adapted and applied specifically to this study. Results: Students' perceptions were associated with gender, academic year, previous participation in research activities, positive and negative attitudes toward science, research integration into the curriculum and motivation to undertake research. The viewpoint of medical students about the relevance of scientific skills overall, and the ability to execute them, was independently associated with motivation to be enrolled in research. Conclusions: These findings have meaningful implications in medical education regarding the inclusion of a structural research program in the medical curriculum. Students should be aware that clinical practice would greatly benefit from the enrollment in research activities. By developing a solid scientific literacy future physicians will be able to apply new knowledge in patient care.

  1. Experiential Interface Design for the Transference of Scientific Publications from University to SMEs

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Lykke, Marianne; Løkkegaard, Sarai; Jantzen, Christian

    2017-01-01

    to develop suggestions for the interface design of a generic knowledge pathway. The interface design is based on principles from experience design with the aim to draw attention to the scientific knowledge and make it desirable and understandable. The study used practice theory as its conceptual framework......Transferring knowledge between universities and industry is known to be problematic. The paper addresses the situation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in order to understand their use of scientific knowledge. We use our understanding of SME situations and information practices...... to interface design. Generally, the SMEs look for knowledge in two situations: when they have a pressing problem to solve and when they want inspiration for new business opportunities. The SMEs consult many different channels and scientific knowledge from universities is not their first choice. SMEs see...

  2. The effect of scientific evidence on conservation practitioners' management decisions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walsh, Jessica C; Dicks, Lynn V; Sutherland, William J

    2015-02-01

    A major justification of environmental management research is that it helps practitioners, yet previous studies show it is rarely used to inform their decisions. We tested whether conservation practitioners focusing on bird management were willing to use a synopsis of relevant scientific literature to inform their management decisions. This allowed us to examine whether the limited use of scientific information in management is due to a lack of access to the scientific literature or whether it is because practitioners are either not interested or unable to incorporate the research into their decisions. In on-line surveys, we asked 92 conservation managers, predominantly from Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, to provide opinions on 28 management techniques that could be applied to reduce predation on birds. We asked their opinions before and after giving them a summary of the literature about the interventions' effectiveness. We scored the overall effectiveness and certainty of evidence for each intervention through an expert elicitation process-the Delphi method. We used the effectiveness scores to assess the practitioners' level of understanding and awareness of the literature. On average, each survey participant changed their likelihood of using 45.7% of the interventions after reading the synopsis of the evidence. They were more likely to implement effective interventions and avoid ineffective actions, suggesting that their intended future management strategies may be more successful than current practice. More experienced practitioners were less likely to change their management practices than those with less experience, even though they were not more aware of the existing scientific information than less experienced practitioners. The practitioners' willingness to change their management choices when provided with summarized scientific evidence suggests that improved accessibility to scientific information would benefit conservation management

  3. Methods of Scientific Research: Teaching Scientific Creativity at Scale

    Science.gov (United States)

    Robbins, Dennis; Ford, K. E. Saavik

    2016-01-01

    We present a scaling-up plan for AstroComNYC's Methods of Scientific Research (MSR), a course designed to improve undergraduate students' understanding of science practices. The course format and goals, notably the open-ended, hands-on, investigative nature of the curriculum are reviewed. We discuss how the course's interactive pedagogical techniques empower students to learn creativity within the context of experimental design and control of variables thinking. To date the course has been offered to a limited numbers of students in specific programs. The goals of broadly implementing MSR is to reach more students and early in their education—with the specific purpose of supporting and improving retention of students pursuing STEM careers. However, we also discuss challenges in preserving the effectiveness of the teaching and learning experience at scale.

  4. Urology and the scientific method in ancient Egypt.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gordetsky, Jennifer; O'Brien, Jeanne

    2009-03-01

    To examine the practice of urology in ancient Egypt using various sources, including the Edwin Smith and Ebers Papyri. The sources of knowledge of ancient Egyptian medicine include medical papyri, paleopathology, art, and hieroglyphic carvings. A brief overview of the medical system in ancient Egypt was completed, in addition to an examination of the training and specialization of the physician in the ancient world. Urologic diseases treated in ancient Egypt and some of the first documented urologic surgeries are presented. Finally, we studied the role of the physician-priest and the intertwined use of religion and magic in ancient Egyptian medicine. The same medical conditions urologists treat in the office today were methodically documented thousands of years ago. Medical papyri show evidence that the ancient Egyptians practiced medicine using a scientific method based on the clinical observation of disease. This has been exemplified by the Edwin Smith Surgical Papyrus, a collection of surgical cases that gives a diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis for each ailment, and the discovery of medical specialization in ancient Egypt, giving us perhaps the world's first urologists. Intertwined with the scientific method was also the rich mysticism and religion of ancient Egypt, which were integral components of the healing process. We present an overview of the practice of urology in ancient Egypt, in terms of both pharmacologic and surgical intervention, as well as with a look into the religion of medicine practiced at that time.

  5. Stephen Hawking's Community-Bound Voice A Functional Investigation of Self-Mentions in Stephen Hawking's Scientific Prose

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Davud Kuhi

    2015-11-01

    Full Text Available Thanks to the development of the concept of metadiscourse, it is now widely acknowledged that academic/scientific writing is not only concerned with communicating purely propositional meanings: what is communicated through academic/scientific communication is seen to be intertwined with the negotiation of social and interpersonal meanings. While a large number of so called metadiscoursal resources contribute to the simultaneous negotiation of propositional and interpersonal meanings, the present study aimed at investigating the functions self-mention forms can fulfill in academic/scientific communication. Two of Stephen Hawking's scientific books were selected as the corpus of the research, and based on Tang and John's (1999 model, the constructed corpus was analyzed in terms of the functions self-mention forms can fulfill in academic/scientific writing. The findings revealed that from among the different roles identified by Tang and John, the representative role constituted the most frequent self-mention function in the corpus. The remarkably heavy presence of representative role in Hawking's scientific prose was interpreted as a further evidence for the claim that scientists are more likely to persuade readers of their ideas if they frame their messages in ways which appeal to appropriate community-recognized relationships.

  6. Distinguishing science from pseudoscience in school psychology: science and scientific thinking as safeguards against human error.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lilienfeld, Scott O; Ammirati, Rachel; David, Michal

    2012-02-01

    Like many domains of professional psychology, school psychology continues to struggle with the problem of distinguishing scientific from pseudoscientific and otherwise questionable clinical practices. We review evidence for the scientist-practitioner gap in school psychology and provide a user-friendly primer on science and scientific thinking for school psychologists. Specifically, we (a) outline basic principles of scientific thinking, (b) delineate widespread cognitive errors that can contribute to belief in pseudoscientific practices within school psychology and allied professions, (c) provide a list of 10 key warning signs of pseudoscience, illustrated by contemporary examples from school psychology and allied disciplines, and (d) offer 10 user-friendly prescriptions designed to encourage scientific thinking among school psychology practitioners and researchers. We argue that scientific thinking, although fallible, is ultimately school psychologists' best safeguard against a host of errors in thinking. Copyright © 2011 Society for the Study of School Psychology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. [The treatment of scientific knowledge in the framework of CITES].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lanfranchi, Marie-Pierre

    2014-03-01

    Access to scientific knowledge in the context of CITES is a crucial issue. The effectiveness of the text is indeed largely based on adequate scientific knowledge of CITES species. This is a major challenge: more than 30,000 species and 178 member states are involved. The issue of expertise, however, is not really addressed by the Convention. The question was left to the consideration of the COP. Therefore, the COP has created two ad hoc scientific committees: the Plants Committee and the Animals Committee, conferring upon them an ambitious mandate. The article addresses some important issues at stake which are linked to institutional questions, as well as the mixed record after twenty-five years of practice.

  8. SALTON SEA SCIENTIFIC DRILLING PROJECT: SCIENTIFIC PROGRAM.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sass, J.H.; Elders, W.A.

    1986-01-01

    The Salton Sea Scientific Drilling Project, was spudded on 24 October 1985, and reached a total depth of 10,564 ft. (3. 2 km) on 17 March 1986. There followed a period of logging, a flow test, and downhole scientific measurements. The scientific goals were integrated smoothly with the engineering and economic objectives of the program and the ideal of 'science driving the drill' in continental scientific drilling projects was achieved in large measure. The principal scientific goals of the project were to study the physical and chemical processes involved in an active, magmatically driven hydrothermal system. To facilitate these studies, high priority was attached to four areas of sample and data collection, namely: (1) core and cuttings, (2) formation fluids, (3) geophysical logging, and (4) downhole physical measurements, particularly temperatures and pressures.

  9. Scientific rigour in qualitative research--examples from a study of women's health in family practice.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hamberg, K; Johansson, E; Lindgren, G; Westman, G

    1994-06-01

    The increase in qualitative research in family medicine raises a demand for critical discussions about design, methods and conclusions. This article shows how scientific claims for truthful findings and neutrality can be assessed. Established concepts such as validity, reliability, objectivity and generalization cannot be used in qualitative research. Alternative criteria for scientific rigour, initially introduced by Lincoln and Guba, are presented: credibility, dependability, confirmability and transferability. These criteria have been applied to a research project, a qualitative study with in-depth interviews with female patients suffering from chronic pain in the locomotor system. The interview data were analysed on the basis of grounded theory. The proposed indicators for scientific rigour were shown to be useful when applied to the research project. Several examples are given. Difficulties in the use of the alternative criteria are also discussed.

  10. European Society of Hypertension practice guidelines for ambulatory blood pressure monitoring.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Parati, Gianfranco; Stergiou, George; O'Brien, Eoin; Asmar, Roland; Beilin, Lawrence; Bilo, Grzegorz; Clement, Denis; de la Sierra, Alejandro; de Leeuw, Peter; Dolan, Eamon; Fagard, Robert; Graves, John; Head, Geoffrey A; Imai, Yutaka; Kario, Kazuomi; Lurbe, Empar; Mallion, Jean-Michel; Mancia, Giuseppe; Mengden, Thomas; Myers, Martin; Ogedegbe, Gbenga; Ohkubo, Takayoshi; Omboni, Stefano; Palatini, Paolo; Redon, Josep; Ruilope, Luis M; Shennan, Andrew; Staessen, Jan A; vanMontfrans, Gert; Verdecchia, Paolo; Waeber, Bernard; Wang, Jiguang; Zanchetti, Alberto; Zhang, Yuqing

    2014-07-01

    Given the increasing use of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) in both clinical practice and hypertension research, a group of scientists, participating in the European Society of Hypertension Working Group on blood pressure monitoring and cardiovascular variability, in year 2013 published a comprehensive position paper dealing with all aspects of the technique, based on the available scientific evidence for ABPM. The present work represents an updated schematic summary of the most important aspects related to the use of ABPM in daily practice, and is aimed at providing recommendations for proper use of this technique in a clinical setting by both specialists and practicing physicians. The present article details the requirements and the methodological issues to be addressed for using ABPM in clinical practice, The clinical indications for ABPM suggested by the available studies, among which white-coat phenomena, masked hypertension, and nocturnal hypertension, are outlined in detail, and the place of home measurement of blood pressure in relation to ABPM is discussed. The role of ABPM in pharmacological, epidemiological, and clinical research is also briefly mentioned. Finally, the implementation of ABPM in practice is considered in relation to the situation of different countries with regard to the reimbursement and the availability of ABPM in primary care practices, hospital clinics, and pharmacies.

  11. Revealing a paradox in scientific advice to governments: the struggle between modernist and reflexive logics within the PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Kunseler, E.M.

    While governmental scientific advisers attempt to innovate their practices to become more reflexive and interactive, they cannot escape the modernist fundaments that constitute these practices. How do governmental scientific advisers make sense of this paradoxical situation? Using the transition

  12. The relative importance of relational and scientific characteristics of psychotherapy: Perceptions of community members vs. therapists.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrell, Nicholas R; Deacon, Brett J

    2016-03-01

    Although client preferences are an integral component of evidence-based practice in psychology (American Psychological Association, 2006), relatively little research has examined what potential mental health consumers value in the psychotherapy they may receive. The present study was conducted to examine community members' preferences for the scientific and relational aspects of psychotherapy for different types of presenting problems, and how accurately therapists perceive these preferences. Community members (n = 200) were surveyed about the importance of scientific (e.g., demonstrated efficacy in clinical trials) and relational (e.g., therapist empathy) characteristics of psychotherapy both for anxiety disorders (e.g., obsessive-compulsive disorder) and disorder-nonspecific issues (e.g., relationship difficulties). Therapists (n = 199) completed the same survey and responded how they expected the average mental health consumer would. Results showed that although community members valued relational characteristics significantly more than scientific characteristics, the gap between these two was large for disorder-nonspecific issues (d = 1.24) but small for anxiety disorders (d = .27). Community members rated scientific credibility as important across problem types. Therapists significantly underestimated the importance of scientific characteristics to community members, particularly in the treatment of disorder-nonspecific issues (d = .74). Therapists who valued research less in their own practice were more likely to underestimate the importance of scientific credibility to community members. The implications of the present findings for understanding the nature of client preferences in evidence-based psychological practice are discussed. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  13. XVII International Scientific Conference ''RESHETNEV READINGS''

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2015-01-01

    The International Scientific Conference 'RESHETNEV READINGS' is dedicated to the memory of Mikhail Reshetnev, an outstanding scientist, chief-constructor of space-rocket systems and communication satellites. The current volume represents selected proceedings of the main conference materials which were published by XVII International Scientific Conference 'RESHETNEV READINGS' held on November 12 – 14, 2013. Plenary sessions, round tables and forums will be attended by famous scientists, developers and designers representing the space technology sector, as well as professionals and experts in the IT industry. A number of outstanding academic figures expressed their interest in an event of such a level including Jaures Alferov, Vice-president of the Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS), Academician of RAS, Nobel laureate, Dirk Bochar, General Secretary of the European Federation of National Engineering Associates (FEANI), Prof. Yuri Gulyaev, Academician of RAS, Member of the Presidium of RAS, President of the International Union of Scientific and Engineering Associations, Director of the Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics of RAS, as well as rectors of the largest universities in Russia, chief executives of well-known research enterprises and representatives of big businesses. We would like to thank our main sponsors such as JSC ''Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems'', JSC ''Krasnoyarsk Engineering Plant'', Central Design Bureau ''Geophysics'', Krasnoyarsk Region Authorities. These enterprises and companies are leading ones in the aerospace branch. It is a great pleasure to cooperate and train specialists for them. (preface)

  14. Evaluation of medical research performance--position paper of the Association of the Scientific Medical Societies in Germany (AWMF).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Herrmann-Lingen, Christoph; Brunner, Edgar; Hildenbrand, Sibylle; Loew, Thomas H; Raupach, Tobias; Spies, Claudia; Treede, Rolf-Detlef; Vahl, Christian-Friedrich; Wenz, Hans-Jürgen

    2014-01-01

    The evaluation of medical research performance is a key prerequisite for the systematic advancement of medical faculties, research foci, academic departments, and individual scientists' careers. However, it is often based on vaguely defined aims and questionable methods and can thereby lead to unwanted regulatory effects. The current paper aims at defining the position of German academic medicine toward the aims, methods, and consequences of its evaluation. During the Berlin Forum of the Association of the Scientific Medical Societies in Germany (AWMF) held on 18 October 2013, international experts presented data on methods for evaluating medical research performance. Subsequent discussions among representatives of relevant scientific organizations and within three ad-hoc writing groups led to a first draft of this article. Further discussions within the AWMF Committee for Evaluation of Performance in Research and Teaching and the AWMF Executive Board resulted in the final consented version presented here. The AWMF recommends modifications to the current system of evaluating medical research performance. Evaluations should follow clearly defined and communicated aims and consist of both summative and formative components. Informed peer reviews are valuable but feasible in longer time intervals only. They can be complemented by objective indicators. However, the Journal Impact Factor is not an appropriate measure for evaluating individual publications or their authors. The scientific "impact" rather requires multidimensional evaluation. Indicators of potential relevance in this context may include, e.g., normalized citation rates of scientific publications, other forms of reception by the scientific community and the public, and activities in scientific organizations, research synthesis and science communication. In addition, differentiated recommendations are made for evaluating the acquisition of third-party funds and the promotion of junior scientists. With the

  15. Environmentalmarketing: An Analysis of National Scientific Production

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Weslei Maique Oliveira Lopes

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available This research aims to identify the trends and directions of environmental marketing in Brazil, from a survey of national scientific production, the last ten years period (2006-2015 in order to identify possible evolutionary changes in the orientation and implementation of marketing. As methodology, the research adopted an exploratory character with a qualitative approach and the literature as collection instrument. In scientific journals of Directors of Brazil (Qualis A1 to B3 were searched all items with the subject matter "marketing". The results showed that the green marketing publications correspond to 6.88% of articles over the last ten years. With existing publications may be noted that many companies make use of green marketing only as another business strategy to gain market share or practice environmental management only when necessary as in the case of regulatory laws. Thus, based on Brazilian studies, it appears that environmental marketing is a source of competitive advantage, but is not yet part of the organizational culture. Therefoen, it presents a research agenda with some propositions in the feeling of contributing to the advancement of environmental marketing practice in companies.

  16. Scientific production on the applicability of phenytoin in wound healing

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Flávia Firmino

    2014-02-01

    Full Text Available Phenytoin is an anticonvulsant that has been used in wound healing. The objectives of this study were to describe how the scientific production presents the use ofphenytoinas a healing agent and to discuss its applicability in wounds. A literature review and hierarchy analysis of evidence-based practices was performed. Eighteen articles were analyzed that tested the intervention in wounds such as leprosy ulcers, leg ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers, pressure ulcers, trophic ulcers, war wounds, burns, preparation of recipient graft area, radiodermatitis and post-extraction of melanocytic nevi. Systemic use ofphenytoinin the treatment of fistulas and the hypothesis of topical use in the treatment of vitiligo were found. In conclusion, topical use ofphenytoinis scientifically evidenced. However robust research is needed that supports a protocol for the use ofphenytoinas another option of a healing agent in clinical practice.

  17. 2005 Annual Scientific Conference. Program and Abstracts

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Barborica, Andrei; Bulinski, Mircea; Stefan, Sabina

    2005-01-01

    Every year the Physics Department of the University of Bucharest organizes the 'Annual Scientific Conference' to present the most interesting scientific results, obtained within the department. This scientific session is opened also to the interested physics researchers from other institutes and universities in the country. This scientific event represents a recognition and a continuation of the prestigious tradition of physics research performed within University. The scientific research in the Physics Department is performed in groups and research centers, the terminal year undergraduate students and graduate students being involved in a high extent in the research works. There are 5 research centers with the status of Center of excellence in research. The long-term strategy adopted by the faculty was focused on developing the scientific research in modern topics of theoretical, experimental and applied physics, as well as in inter-disciplinary fields as biophysics, medical physics, physics and protection of the environment, physics - computer science. Following this strategy, the Faculty of Physics has diversified the research activity, developing new research laboratories and encouraging the academic community to perform modern and competitive research projects. The Faculty of Physics is a partner in many common research programs with prestigious foreign universities and institutes. The 2005 session covered the following 8 topics: 1. Atmosphere and Earth Science; Environment Protection (21 papers); 2. Atomic and Molecular Physics; Astrophysics (12 papers); 3. Electricity and Biophysics (19 papers); 4. Nuclear and Elementary Particles Physics (17 papers); 5. Optics, Spectroscopy, Plasma and Lasers (19 papers); 6. Polymer Physics (10 papers); 7. Solid State Physics and Materials Science (10 papers); 8. Theoretical Physics and Applied Mathematics Seminar (12 papers)

  18. Scientific Research & Subsistence: Protocols to Ensure Co-Existence

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nachman, C.; Holman, A.; DeMaster, D.

    2017-12-01

    Commercial, industrial, and research interests in the Arctic are expanding rapidly. Potentials are numerous and exciting, giving rise to the need for guidelines to ensure interactions among waterway users do not conflict. Of particular concern is the potential for adverse impacts to U.S. Arctic coastal communities that rely on living marine resources for nutritional and cultural health, through subsistence hunts from small craft, ice edges, and shore. Recent events raised concerns over research surveys potentially interfering with subsistence hunts in the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas. Incidents led to calls by Native Alaskan communities to restrict science activities with a mixed response from the scientific community (i.e., some sympathetic, some defensive). With a common goal of wanting to mitigate this potential interaction, Federal agencies made a commitment in the National Strategy for the Arctic Region to coordinate and consult with Alaska Natives and also to pursue responsible Arctic stewardship, with understanding through scientific research and traditional knowledge. The effort to create a "Standard of Care" for research surveys incorporates years of experience by subsistence hunters working to mitigate impacts of other anthropogenic activities in the region, as well as best practices by many in the research community. The protocols are designed to ensure potential conflicts between the scientific research community and subsistence hunters are avoided and to encourage mutual assistance and collaboration between researchers and hunters. The guidelines focus on enhancing communication between researchers and subsistence hunters before, during, and after research occurs. The best management practices outlined in the Standard of Care assist those overseeing and funding scientific research in making decisions about how best to accomplish the goals of the research while ensuring protection of the Alaska subsistence lifestyle. These protocols could also be

  19. Building a local community of practice in scientific programming for Life Scientists

    OpenAIRE

    Stevens, Sarah; Kuzak, Mateusz; Martinez, Carlos; Moser, Aurelia; Bleeker, Petra; Galland, Marc

    2018-01-01

    For most experimental biologists, handling the avalanche of data generated is similar to self-learn how to drive. Although that might be doable, it is preferable and safer to learn good practices. One way to achieve this is to build local communities of practice by bringing together scientists that perform code-intensive research to spread know-how and good practices. Here, we indicate important challenges and issues that stand in the way of establishing these local communities of practice. F...

  20. Ethics in Scientific Publishing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sage, Leslie J.

    2012-08-01

    We all learn in elementary school not turn in other people's writing as if it were our own (plagiarism), and in high school science labs not to fake our data. But there are many other practices in scientific publishing that are depressingly common and almost as unethical. At about the 20 percent level authors are deliberately hiding recent work -- by themselves as well as by others -- so as to enhance the apparent novelty of their most recent paper. Some people lie about the dates the data were obtained, to cover up conflicts of interest, or inappropriate use of privileged information. Others will publish the same conference proceeding in multiple volumes, or publish the same result in multiple journals with only trivial additions of data or analysis (self-plagiarism). These shady practices should be roundly condemned and stopped. I will discuss these and other unethical actions I have seen over the years, and steps editors are taking to stop them.

  1. The Woes of Scientific Realism | Okeke | AFRREV STECH: An ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This paper investigated the disagreement between Realists and Anti-realists on the observable and unobservable distinction in scientific practice. Whilethe realists maintain that machines and gadgets can simulate the human act of perception there-by making all realities under the screen of science observable, the ...

  2. The scientific conferences organized during war time (1992-1995) in sarajevo.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Masic, Izet

    2011-01-01

    to the "survival" of B&H and its people. Some of the published articles, especially in the Medical Archives journal, which even in difficult war conditions did not break the continuity of its publication, and then it was the only scientific journal indexed in B&H, having been consequently cited in the major biomedical data bases in the world. Many scientists abroad have had the opportunity to learn about some of the wonders of Sarajevo "war medicine", thanks to this journal. Finally, despite the fact that it is another way of expressing its resistance to the aggression on B&H, the organized symposia in the war represented the continuity of the scientific research activities. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Sarajevo under siege, in this way, kept in touch with the civilized world and modern achievements, despite the fact that they were victims of medieval barbarism. In addition, these meetings sent a powerful message to the world about the willingness to register and systematize all the war experiences, especially those related to medicine and medical practice, in terms of what Europe has not known, since the Second World War. Partially, we succeeded in that. The total number of 286 presentations were presented in seven war Conferences, as quantitative and qualitative contribution to the scientific activities, despite the inhuman conditions, in which these articles emerged. These presentations and Conferences testify to the enthusiasm of B&H community and academic institutions that have collaborated with it. Authors and co-authors presented the "war" articles that deserve to be mentioned in the monograph "1479 days of the siege of Sarajevo". Unfortunately, many of these brave authors are not alive and cannot read this. The task for us remains to remember them by their own good. Old Persian proverb says; "The event which is not recorded is as like it had never happened". Sapienti sat.

  3. [Evaluation of scientific activity from the view point of medical librarians].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Vasas, L; Hercsel, I

    2000-08-13

    The authors try to sum up briefly the rather complex topic of scientometry, with special regards to medical science. They discuss the role of medical librarians in the preparation of an analysis on scientific publications of individuals and/or institutions, because these can be considered as a measure of the scientific output. In a separate part the authors give a critical review of the tools and methods of bibliometrics, delineate the main problems of them. They discuss the Hungarian practice of scientometry and present some examples. For comparison they describe some examples from abroad as well. As a conclusion, the authors emphasise the importance of the presence of Hungarian publications in international scientific periodicals, at the same time the necessity of objective home measuring of the scientific output as well.

  4. Learning Environments and the Scientific Dimension of Didactical Endeavor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marius Costel EŞI

    2013-06-01

    Full Text Available Axiological and pragmatic valences of the teaching/pedagogical dimension express the important role that communication strategies have in the educational management. For this purpose, the organization of specific skills into the practical dimension of the educational process utterly indicates the relevance that didactical innovation has within a learning environment. Such an innovation falls within the professionalism, experience and originality of the socio-educational actor. Moreover, the scientific basis of education involves a rational recovery in the teleological dimension of scientific knowledge. It is about assuming, practically and theoretically, the axiological approaches in the simplicity-complexity relation. No doubt, this kind of understanding reflects the fact that, in social terms, the development and the acceptance of educational standards imply discursive forms of pragmatic explanation. Thus, the instrumental value of the social act refers to specific arrangements of particular forms of knowledge, like the knowledge of teaching. Therefore, optimizing a process of socialization involves learning and accepting a well established system of values.

  5. Membership nominations in international scientific assessments

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leifeld, Philip; Fisher, Dana R.

    2017-10-01

    International scientific assessments are transnational knowledge-based expert networks with a mandate to advise policymakers. A well-known example is the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), which synthesized research on ecosystem services between 2001 and 2005, utilizing the knowledge of 1,360 expert members. Little, however, is known about the membership composition and the driving forces behind membership nominations in the MA and similar organizations. Here we introduce a survey data set on recruitment in the MA and analyse nomination patterns among experts as a complex network. The results indicate that membership recruitment was governed by prior contacts in other transnational elite organizations and a range of other factors related to personal affinity. Network analysis demonstrates how some core individuals were particularly influential in shaping the overall membership composition of the group. These findings add to recently noted concerns about the lack of diversity of views represented in international scientific assessments.

  6. Metadata in Scientific Dialects

    Science.gov (United States)

    Habermann, T.

    2011-12-01

    Discussions of standards in the scientific community have been compared to religious wars for many years. The only things scientists agree on in these battles are either "standards are not useful" or "everyone can benefit from using my standard". Instead of achieving the goal of facilitating interoperable communities, in many cases the standards have served to build yet another barrier between communities. Some important progress towards diminishing these obstacles has been made in the data layer with the merger of the NetCDF and HDF scientific data formats. The universal adoption of XML as the standard for representing metadata and the recent adoption of ISO metadata standards by many groups around the world suggests that similar convergence is underway in the metadata layer. At the same time, scientists and tools will likely need support for native tongues for some time. I will describe an approach that combines re-usable metadata "components" and restful web services that provide those components in many dialects. This approach uses advanced XML concepts of referencing and linking to construct complete records that include reusable components and builds on the ISO Standards as the "unabridged dictionary" that encompasses the content of many other dialects.

  7. [Animal experimentation, animal welfare and scientific research].

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tal, H

    2013-10-01

    Hundreds of thousands of laboratory animals are being used every year for scientific experiments held in Israel, mostly mice, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, and a few sheep, cattle, pigs, cats, dogs, and even a few dozen monkeys. In addition to the animals sacrificed to promote scientific research, millions of animals slain every year for other purposes such as meat and fine leather fashion industries. While opening a front against all is an impossible and perhaps an unjustified task, the state of Israel enacted the Animal Welfare (Animal Experimentation) Law (1994). The law aims to regulate scientific animal experiments and to find the appropriate balance between the need to continue to perform animal experiments for the advancement of research and medicine, and at the same time to avoid unnecessary trials and minimize animal suffering. Among other issues the law deals with the phylogenetic scale according to which experimental animals should be selected, experiments for teaching and practicing, and experiments for the cosmetic industry. This article discusses bioethics considerations in animal experiments as well as the criticism on the scientific validity of such experiments. It further deals with the vitality of animal studies and the moral and legal obligation to prevent suffering from laboratory animals.

  8. Redressing the inverted pyramid of scientific publishing

    Science.gov (United States)

    Caux, Jean-Sébastien

    2017-11-01

    Scientific publishing is currently undergoing a progressively rapid transformation away from the traditional subscription model. With the Open Access movement in full swing, existing business practices and future plans are coming under increasing scrutiny, while new "big deals" are being made at breakneck speed. Scientists can rightfully ask themselves if all these changes are going the right way, and if not, what can be done about it.

  9. EFSA Scientific Committee; Scientific Opinion on Risk Assessment Terminology

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hald, Tine

    of improving the expression and communication of risk and/or uncertainties in the selected opinions. The Scientific Committee concluded that risk assessment terminology is not fully harmonised within EFSA. In part this is caused by sectoral legislation defining specific terminology and international standards......The Scientific Committee of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reviewed the use of risk assessment terminology within its Scientific Panels. An external report, commissioned by EFSA, analysed 219 opinions published by the Scientific Committee and Panels to recommend possible ways......, the Scientific Committee concludes that particular care must be taken that the principles of CAC, OIE or IPPC are followed strictly. EFSA Scientific Panels should identify which specific approach is most useful in dealing with their individual mandates. The Scientific Committee considered detailed aspects...

  10. Publishing scientifically sound papers in Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Isidoro, Ciro; Huang, Chia-Chi; Sheen, Lee-Yan

    2016-01-01

    Non-conventional medical practices that make use of dietary supplements, herbal extracts, physical manipulations, and other practices typically associated with folk and Traditional Medicine are increasingly becoming popular in Western Countries. These practices are commonly referred to by the generic, all-inclusive term "Complementary and Alternative Medicine." Scientists, practitioners, and medical institutions bear the responsibility of testing and proving the effectiveness of these non-conventional medical practices in the interest of patients. In this context, the number of peer-reviewed journals and published articles on this topic has greatly increased in the recent decades. In this editorial article, we illustrate the policy of the Journal of Traditional and Complementary Medicine for publishing solid and scientifically sound papers in the field of Traditional and Complementary Medicine.

  11. SIMULATION AS PART OF INDUSTRIAL PRACTICE

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Miriam Pekarčíková

    2015-06-01

    Full Text Available Article discusses the simulation as an efficient scientific method of problem solving in industrial practice. It creates an overview of the simulation program means used in industrial practice and creates an overview of tools for discrete, continuous, and combined.

  12. Improving imbalanced scientific text classification using sampling strategies and dictionaries

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Borrajo L.

    2011-12-01

    Full Text Available Many real applications have the imbalanced class distribution problem, where one of the classes is represented by a very small number of cases compared to the other classes. One of the systems affected are those related to the recovery and classification of scientific documentation.

  13. Are there ways to improve the citations of a scientific paper?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Bartoli, E

    2018-04-01

    The expansion of scientific publications makes more difficult the mining of relevant information necessary for a productive appraisal of authors' work, scientific interaction and exchange. Papers over-citation is unproductive, under-citation of innovative research generates delay and inefficiency. The extraction of information from the literature is mostly based on keywords (KWs). I computed the chances of citation of one paper as 1/number of papers retrieved by the KWs published in that paper, and compared them with the chances obtained by selecting different KWs. Using generic KWs the chances are smaller, at times practically nil, as compared to those calculated with more specific KWs and their association. Selecting scientifically-analyzed KWs, specific for the message conveyed by a paper and computing beforehand the theoretical chances of citation, might increase the citations obtained, the retrieval of important scientific and innovative information, optimize scientific exchange and qualitative productivity. LEARNING POINTS. Copyright © 2018 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. 6 Tips: IBS and Complementary Health Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    ... health practice for IBS, here are 6 tips: Hypnotherapy (hypnosis). This practice involves the power of suggestion by ... IBS. According to reviews of the scientific literature, hypnotherapy may be a helpful treatment for managing IBS ...

  15. A pedagogia científica de Bachelard: uma reflexão a favor da qualidade da prática e da pesquisa docente Bachelard's scientific pedagogy: a reflection in favor of the quality of teacher practice and research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dirce Mendes da Fonseca

    2008-08-01

    new constructions. It proposes the notion of rupture to specify a more scientific way to produce science, the notion of dialectic process in the production of scientific knowledge, and the concept of knowledge as a continual process of rectification. It seeks to correlate the scientific pedagogy with pedagogical practice, and shows the possibilities of transformation in the field of teacher education and research based on a particular view of epistemology and of a critical and reflective scientific practice. A scientific pedagogy that must have its eyes on developing formative actions and on having a double perspective: education understood as a social and historical practice. These reflections lead us to articulate theory and practice, and to understand research as a creative practice. From such process should come forth our understanding of what it means to do science, of interdisciplinary practice, of the articulation between theory and practice, and of the integrated learning of research and teaching.

  16. Partnerships Generating a Workforce Pipeline: Empowering Young People, from Diverse Backgrounds, to Become Tomorrow's Scientific Leaders

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nguyen, T.; Goodwin, L.; Talley, D. M.

    2011-12-01

    There is a critical need to build students' scientific understanding and prepare them to fill the roles of future decision-makers and the scientific workforce. In particular, efforts are needed to reach the underserved communities, which represent the greatest untapped talent pool in the sciences. In order to build future leadership in this arena, we must employ innovative approaches that generate young peoples' interest and develop their capabilities early in their education so that an increased number will enter college interested in and prepared to pursue careers in scientific fields. Partnerships between early and informal education providers and scientists from academia, industry, and government agencies are essential to generate a pipeline of students able to and interested in making this transition. Ocean Discovery Institute's partnership model uses authentic scientific discovery to generate the spark that makes young people, from the most urban and diverse backgrounds, eager to learn. As these young people work alongside science mentors to discover the world around them, they discover themselves and their future as scientific leaders. The success of this model includes increasing students' science performance, attendance in college, selection of science and conservation majors, and contributions directly to the field of geoscience. Content assessments, surveys, interviews, and tracking data demonstrate 73% of student graduates declaring majors in science and conservation fields, higher scores on standardized tests relative to their peers, and contributions to science research including 10 publications and more than 30 scientific presentations. In addition, robust and long-term partnerships have been established with institutions including the University of San Diego, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, Sempra Energy, and the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration. We will share lessons learned from over ten years of experience in partnering with

  17. New techniques for the scientific visualization of three-dimensional multi-variate and vector fields

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Crawfis, Roger A. [Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States)

    1995-10-01

    Volume rendering allows us to represent a density cloud with ideal properties (single scattering, no self-shadowing, etc.). Scientific visualization utilizes this technique by mapping an abstract variable or property in a computer simulation to a synthetic density cloud. This thesis extends volume rendering from its limitation of isotropic density clouds to anisotropic and/or noisy density clouds. Design aspects of these techniques are discussed that aid in the comprehension of scientific information. Anisotropic volume rendering is used to represent vector based quantities in scientific visualization. Velocity and vorticity in a fluid flow, electric and magnetic waves in an electromagnetic simulation, and blood flow within the body are examples of vector based information within a computer simulation or gathered from instrumentation. Understand these fields can be crucial to understanding the overall physics or physiology. Three techniques for representing three-dimensional vector fields are presented: Line Bundles, Textured Splats and Hair Splats. These techniques are aimed at providing a high-level (qualitative) overview of the flows, offering the user a substantial amount of information with a single image or animation. Non-homogenous volume rendering is used to represent multiple variables. Computer simulations can typically have over thirty variables, which describe properties whose understanding are useful to the scientist. Trying to understand each of these separately can be time consuming. Trying to understand any cause and effect relationships between different variables can be impossible. NoiseSplats is introduced to represent two or more properties in a single volume rendering of the data. This technique is also aimed at providing a qualitative overview of the flows.

  18. About training of Kazakh students of not language specialties basis of scientific speech

    OpenAIRE

    Ospanova D.

    2016-01-01

    The article discusses the process of written scientific speech training should include two components: teaching understanding and evaluating texts that make the scientific speech in all its substantive and problematic species and learning the rules of creating texts in the chosen specialty. The idea about functional languages develops in the theory vernaculars among which numerous languages of science take essentially important place; studying of these languages represents the theory and prac...

  19. Reconciling evidence-based practice and cultural competence in mental health services: introduction to a special issue.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gone, Joseph P

    2015-04-01

    The calls for evidence-based practice (EBP) and cultural competence (CC) represent two increasingly influential mandates within the mental health professions. Advocates of EBP seek to standardize clinical practice by ensuring that only treatment techniques that have demonstrated therapeutic outcomes under scientifically controlled conditions would be adopted and promoted in mental health services. Advocates of CC seek to diversify clinical practice by ensuring that treatment approaches are designed and refined for a multicultural clientele that reflects a wide variety of psychological orientations and life experiences. As these two powerful mandates collide, the fundamental challenge becomes how to accommodate substantive cultural divergences in psychosocial experience using narrowly prescriptive clinical practices and approaches, without trivializing either professional knowledge or cultural difference. In this Introduction to a special issue of Transcultural Psychiatry, the virtue of an interdisciplinary conversation between and among anthropologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and social work researchers in addressing these tensions is extolled. © The Author(s) 2015.

  20. Scientific computing an introduction using Maple and Matlab

    CERN Document Server

    Gander, Walter; Kwok, Felix

    2014-01-01

    Scientific computing is the study of how to use computers effectively to solve problems that arise from the mathematical modeling of phenomena in science and engineering. It is based on mathematics, numerical and symbolic/algebraic computations and visualization. This book serves as an introduction to both the theory and practice of scientific computing, with each chapter presenting the basic algorithms that serve as the workhorses of many scientific codes; we explain both the theory behind these algorithms and how they must be implemented in order to work reliably in finite-precision arithmetic. The book includes many programs written in Matlab and Maple – Maple is often used to derive numerical algorithms, whereas Matlab is used to implement them. The theory is developed in such a way that students can learn by themselves as they work through the text. Each chapter contains numerous examples and problems to help readers understand the material “hands-on”.

  1. Teachers' instructional goals for science practice: Identifying knowledge gaps using cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT)

    Science.gov (United States)

    Farrar, Cynthia Hamen

    In AP Biology, the course goal, with respect to scientific acts and reasoning, has recently shifted toward a reform goal of science practice, where the goal is for students to have a scientific perspective that views science as a practice of a community rather than a body of knowledge. Given this recent shift, this study is interested in the gaps that may exist between an individual teacher's instructional goal and the goals of the AP Biology course. A Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) methodology and perspective is used to analyze four teachers' knowledge, practice, and learning. Teachers have content knowledge for teaching, a form of knowledge that is unique for teaching called specialized content knowledge. This specialized content knowledge (SCK) defines their instructional goals, the student outcomes they ultimately aim to achieve with their students. The study employs a cultural-historical continuum of scientific acts and reasoning, which represents the development of the AP Biology goal over time, to study gaps in their instructional goal. The study also analyzes the contradictions within their teaching practice and how teachers address those contradictions to shift their instructional practice and learn. The findings suggest that teachers have different interpretations of the AP Biology goals of science practice, placing their instructional goal at different points along the continuum. Based on the location of their instructional goal, different micro-communities of teachers exist along the continuum, comprised of teachers with a shared goal, language, and culture of their AP Biology teaching. The in-depth study of one teacher's AP Biology teaching, using a CHAT perspective, provides a means for studying the mechanisms that connect SCK to classroom actions and ultimately to instructional practice. CHAT also reveals the nature and importance of contradictions or cognitive dissonance in teacher learning and the types of support teachers need to

  2. The Art of Memory and the Growth of the Scientific Method

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Gopal P. Sarma

    2015-07-01

    Full Text Available I argue that European schools of thought on memory and memorization were critical in enabling growth of the scientific method. After giving a historical overview of the development of the memory arts from ancient Greece through 17th century Europe, I describe how the Baconian viewpoint on the scientific method was fundamentally part of a culture and a broader dialogue that conceived of memorization as a foundational methodology for structuring knowledge and for developing symbolic means for representing scientific concepts. The principal figures of this intense and rapidly evolving intellectual milieu included some of the leading thinkers traditionally associated with the scientific revolution; among others, Francis Bacon, Renes Descartes, and Gottfried Leibniz. I close by examining the acceleration of mathematical thought in light of the art of memory and its role in 17th century philosophy, and in particular, Leibniz’s project to develop a universal calculus.

  3. Developments in the Value Chain of Scientific Information [Powerpoint Presentation

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Roosendaal, Hans E.

    The values in scientific information relevant for the individual researcher can be represented in the value chain for this process. IT is a strong engine for change, in particular as IT has the potential not only to innovate the research information system but also the educational information system

  4. The Effectiveness of Scientific Inquiry With/Without Integration of Scientific Reasoning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chen, Chun-Ting; She, Hsiao-Ching

    2015-01-01

    This study examines the difference in effectiveness between two scientific inquiry programs-one with an emphasis on scientific reasoning and one without a scientific reasoning component-on students' scientific concepts, scientific concept-dependent reasoning, and scientific inquiry. A mixed-method approach was used in which 115 grade 5…

  5. Generalizing on best practices in image processing: a model for promoting research integrity: Commentary on: Avoiding twisted pixels: ethical guidelines for the appropriate use and manipulation of scientific digital images.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Benos, Dale J; Vollmer, Sara H

    2010-12-01

    Modifying images for scientific publication is now quick and easy due to changes in technology. This has created a need for new image processing guidelines and attitudes, such as those offered to the research community by Doug Cromey (Cromey 2010). We suggest that related changes in technology have simplified the task of detecting misconduct for journal editors as well as researchers, and that this simplification has caused a shift in the responsibility for reporting misconduct. We also argue that the concept of best practices in image processing can serve as a general model for education in best practices in research.

  6. Analysis of the production of scientific literature in clinical research areas in Physiotherapy between 2005 and 2009

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Torres-Narváez Martha

    2012-04-01

    Full Text Available Objective: characterize the behavior of clinical research in Physiotherapy, through the analysis of theproduction of scientific literature in a period of five years in order to identify areas of concentrationand dispersion, collaborative research and types of clinical studies have conducted. Methods andmaterials: descriptive study on the papers in Medline/PubMed from 2005-2009. Were considereda total 404 publications, clinical trials and epidemiological studies side, analyzed according to thepercentage distribution of articles by clinical area, year of publication, and institutional affiliation ofresearchers. Results: It found a greater number of trials (93% systematic reviews represented thegreatest number of epidemiological studies side. The clinical areas pulmonary and cardiovascularaccount for 65% of scientific publications in the studies analyzed. The year with highest numberof publications was 2008. Half of the clinical research produced in this five-year have affiliationwith academic institutions, and secondly, studies conducted in hospitals. Conclusions: the clinicalresearch publications in Physiotherapy in Medline/PubMed registered show sustained activity ofscientific production in the pulmonary and cardiovascular areas, consistent with the major healthconcerns in the world. The findings suggest that the ability of physiotherapists to develop qualityresearch, use and transfer of results into clinical practice should achieve greater development.

  7. Knowledge environments representing molecular entities for the virtual physiological human.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hofmann-Apitius, Martin; Fluck, Juliane; Furlong, Laura; Fornes, Oriol; Kolárik, Corinna; Hanser, Susanne; Boeker, Martin; Schulz, Stefan; Sanz, Ferran; Klinger, Roman; Mevissen, Theo; Gattermayer, Tobias; Oliva, Baldo; Friedrich, Christoph M

    2008-09-13

    In essence, the virtual physiological human (VPH) is a multiscale representation of human physiology spanning from the molecular level via cellular processes and multicellular organization of tissues to complex organ function. The different scales of the VPH deal with different entities, relationships and processes, and in consequence the models used to describe and simulate biological functions vary significantly. Here, we describe methods and strategies to generate knowledge environments representing molecular entities that can be used for modelling the molecular scale of the VPH. Our strategy to generate knowledge environments representing molecular entities is based on the combination of information extraction from scientific text and the integration of information from biomolecular databases. We introduce @neuLink, a first prototype of an automatically generated, disease-specific knowledge environment combining biomolecular, chemical, genetic and medical information. Finally, we provide a perspective for the future implementation and use of knowledge environments representing molecular entities for the VPH.

  8. Scientific Eminence: Where Are the Women?

    Science.gov (United States)

    Eagly, Alice H; Miller, David I

    2016-11-01

    Women are sparsely represented among psychologists honored for scientific eminence. However, most currently eminent psychologists started their careers when far fewer women pursued training in psychological science. Now that women earn the majority of psychology Ph.D.'s, will they predominate in the next generation's cadre of eminent psychologists? Comparing currently active female and male psychology professors on publication metrics such as the h index provides clues for answering this question. Men outperform women on the h index and its two components: scientific productivity and citations of contributions. To interpret these gender gaps, we first evaluate whether publication metrics are affected by gender bias in obtaining grant support, publishing papers, or gaining citations of published papers. We also consider whether women's chances of attaining eminence are compromised by two intertwined sets of influences: (a) gender bias stemming from social norms pertaining to gender and to science and (b) the choices that individual psychologists make in pursuing their careers. © The Author(s) 2016.

  9. Pengembangan Bahan Ajar Mata Kuliah IPA Berbasis Pendekatan Scientific Approach

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Fitroh Setyo Putro Pribowo

    2017-05-01

    Full Text Available Scientific Approach is one instructional approach used in the curriculum of 2013. That prompted LPTK to generate prospective teachers who understand the essence of the curriculum of 2013. Based on observations activity and low student motivation to learn science. LKS assumed teaching materials can enhance the activity and motivation of students in the learning process. Research conducted by the method of research and development (research and development. Development of research methods used in this study adapt the model ADDIE. This model consists of five main phases or stages: 1 analyze, 2 design, 3 develop, 4 implement, 5 Evaluate. LKS development results-oriented IPA 1 aprroach by expert scientific learning technology obtained a score of V = 87.5 (very valid, while the practicality of the product gained a score of V = 71.5 with practicality criteria quite well. The effectiveness of the product was assessed by increased activity and student motivation. Activities students obtain a score of 73.21 with the active category as well as the motivation to study obtained a score of 63.94 with a category quite well. student worksheets produced meet the elements of a valid, practical, and effective.

  10. Facts, theories and ideologies: Viola Klein and Sociology of Scientific Knowledge

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Eulalia Pérez Sedeño

    2012-07-01

    Full Text Available Several studies on history, philosophy and sociology of science have demonstrated that science is not autonomous and value-neutral and its selfless search of truth is an ideal theoretical myth far from the real practice of science, which is an aggregate of social practices. Viola Klein was a pioneer in studying science using the same instruments and categories utilized in any other social practice. The aim of this work is to highlight her contributions to Sociology of Scientific Knowledge at a moment when this discipline was, at the most, incipient.

  11. Struggles with learning about scientific models in a middle school science classroom

    Science.gov (United States)

    Loper, Suzanna Jane

    Two important goals in science education are teaching students about the nature of science and teaching students to do scientific inquiry. Learning about scientific models is central to both of these endeavors, but studies have shown that students have very flawed and limited understandings of the nature and purposes of scientific models (Carey & Smith, 1993; Grosslight, Unger, & Jay, 1991; Lederman, 1992). In this dissertation I investigate the processes of teaching and learning about scientific models in an 8th grade classroom in an urban middle school. In order to do so, I examine recordings of student and teacher talk about models across a period of two months in which students completed two independent inquiry projects, using the Inquiry Island software and curriculum (Eslinger, 2004; Shimoda, White, & Frederiksen, 2002; White, Shimoda, & Frederiksen, 2000). My analysis draws on video records of small-group work and whole-class interactions, as well as on students' written work. I find that in this classroom, students struggled to understand the nature and purpose of scientific models. I analyze episodes in the classroom talk in which models appeared to be a source of trouble or confusion, and describe the ways in which the teacher attempted to respond to these troubles. I find that in many cases students appeared to be able to produce scientific models of the proper form, yet still struggled with displaying an understanding of what a model was, or of the functions of models in scientific research. I propose directions for further research and curriculum development in order to build on these findings. In particular, I argue, we need to design ways to help students engage in scientific modeling as a social and communicative practice, and to find ways to build from their everyday reasoning and argumentation practices. My research also reinforces the importance of looking at classroom talk, not just pre- and post-assessments, in order to understand teaching and

  12. Scientific and Computational Challenges of the Fusion Simulation Program (FSP)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang, William M.

    2011-01-01

    This paper highlights the scientific and computational challenges facing the Fusion Simulation Program (FSP) a major national initiative in the United States with the primary objective being to enable scientific discovery of important new plasma phenomena with associated understanding that emerges only upon integration. This requires developing a predictive integrated simulation capability for magnetically-confined fusion plasmas that are properly validated against experiments in regimes relevant for producing practical fusion energy. It is expected to provide a suite of advanced modeling tools for reliably predicting fusion device behavior with comprehensive and targeted science-based simulations of nonlinearly-coupled phenomena in the core plasma, edge plasma, and wall region on time and space scales required for fusion energy production. As such, it will strive to embody the most current theoretical and experimental understanding of magnetic fusion plasmas and to provide a living framework for the simulation of such plasmas as the associated physics understanding continues to advance over the next several decades. Substantive progress on answering the outstanding scientific questions in the field will drive the FSP toward its ultimate goal of developing the ability to predict the behavior of plasma discharges in toroidal magnetic fusion devices with high physics fidelity on all relevant time and space scales. From a computational perspective, this will demand computing resources in the petascale range and beyond together with the associated multi-core algorithmic formulation needed to address burning plasma issues relevant to ITER - a multibillion dollar collaborative experiment involving seven international partners representing over half the world's population. Even more powerful exascale platforms will be needed to meet the future challenges of designing a demonstration fusion reactor (DEMO). Analogous to other major applied physics modeling projects (e

  13. Scientific and computational challenges of the fusion simulation program (FSP)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tang, William M.

    2011-01-01

    This paper highlights the scientific and computational challenges facing the Fusion Simulation Program (FSP) - a major national initiative in the United States with the primary objective being to enable scientific discovery of important new plasma phenomena with associated understanding that emerges only upon integration. This requires developing a predictive integrated simulation capability for magnetically-confined fusion plasmas that are properly validated against experiments in regimes relevant for producing practical fusion energy. It is expected to provide a suite of advanced modeling tools for reliably predicting fusion device behavior with comprehensive and targeted science-based simulations of nonlinearly-coupled phenomena in the core plasma, edge plasma, and wall region on time and space scales required for fusion energy production. As such, it will strive to embody the most current theoretical and experimental understanding of magnetic fusion plasmas and to provide a living framework for the simulation of such plasmas as the associated physics understanding continues to advance over the next several decades. Substantive progress on answering the outstanding scientific questions in the field will drive the FSP toward its ultimate goal of developing the ability to predict the behavior of plasma discharges in toroidal magnetic fusion devices with high physics fidelity on all relevant time and space scales. From a computational perspective, this will demand computing resources in the petascale range and beyond together with the associated multi-core algorithmic formulation needed to address burning plasma issues relevant to ITER - a multibillion dollar collaborative experiment involving seven international partners representing over half the world's population. Even more powerful exascale platforms will be needed to meet the future challenges of designing a demonstration fusion reactor (DEMO). Analogous to other major applied physics modeling projects (e

  14. Science in the Wild: Technology Needs and Opportunities in Scientific Fieldwork

    Science.gov (United States)

    Guice, Jon; Hoffower, Heidi; Norvig, Peter (Technical Monitor)

    1999-01-01

    Considering that much contemporary natural science involves field expeditions, fieldwork is an under-studied topic. There is also little information technology specifically designed to support scientific fieldwork, aside from portable scientific instruments. This article describes a variety of fieldwork practices in an interdisciplinary research area, proposes a framework linking types of fieldwork to types of needs in information technology, and identifies promising opportunities for technology development. Technologies that are designed to support the integration of field observations and samples with laboratory work are likely to aid nearly all research teams who conduct fieldwork. However, technologies that support highly detailed representations of field sites will likely trigger the deepest changes in work practice. By way of illustration, we present brief case studies of how fieldwork is done today and how it might be conducted with the introduction of new information technologies.

  15. Exploring Institutional Mechanisms for Scientific Input into the Management Cycle of the National Protected Area Network of Peru: Gaps and Opportunities.

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-Rodríguez, M D; Castro, H; Arenas, M; Requena-Mullor, J M; Cano, A; Valenzuela, E; Cabello, J

    2017-12-01

    Understanding how to improve decision makers' use of scientific information across their different scales of management is a core challenge for narrowing the gap between science and conservation practice. Here, we present a study conducted in collaboration with decision makers that aims to explore the functionality of the mechanisms for scientific input within the institutional setting of the National Protected Area Network of Peru. First, we analyzed institutional mechanisms to assess the scientific information recorded by decision makers. Second, we developed two workshops involving scientists, decision makers and social actors to identify barriers to evidence-based conservation practice. Third, we administered 482 questionnaires to stakeholders to explore social perceptions of the role of science and the willingness to collaborate in the governance of protected areas. The results revealed that (1) the institutional mechanisms did not effectively promote the compilation and application of scientific knowledge for conservation practice; (2) six important barriers hindered scientific input in management decisions; and (3) stakeholders showed positive perceptions about the involvement of scientists in protected areas and expressed their willingness to collaborate in conservation practice. This collaborative research helped to (1) identify gaps and opportunities that should be addressed for increasing the effectiveness of the institutional mechanisms and (2) support institutional changes integrating science-based strategies for strengthening scientific input in decision-making. These insights provide a useful contextual orientation for scholars and decision makers interested in conducting empirical research to connect scientific inputs with operational aspects of the management cycle in other institutional settings around the world.

  16. Exploring Institutional Mechanisms for Scientific Input into the Management Cycle of the National Protected Area Network of Peru: Gaps and Opportunities

    Science.gov (United States)

    López-Rodríguez, M. D.; Castro, H.; Arenas, M.; Requena-Mullor, J. M.; Cano, A.; Valenzuela, E.; Cabello, J.

    2017-12-01

    Understanding how to improve decision makers' use of scientific information across their different scales of management is a core challenge for narrowing the gap between science and conservation practice. Here, we present a study conducted in collaboration with decision makers that aims to explore the functionality of the mechanisms for scientific input within the institutional setting of the National Protected Area Network of Peru. First, we analyzed institutional mechanisms to assess the scientific information recorded by decision makers. Second, we developed two workshops involving scientists, decision makers and social actors to identify barriers to evidence-based conservation practice. Third, we administered 482 questionnaires to stakeholders to explore social perceptions of the role of science and the willingness to collaborate in the governance of protected areas. The results revealed that (1) the institutional mechanisms did not effectively promote the compilation and application of scientific knowledge for conservation practice; (2) six important barriers hindered scientific input in management decisions; and (3) stakeholders showed positive perceptions about the involvement of scientists in protected areas and expressed their willingness to collaborate in conservation practice. This collaborative research helped to (1) identify gaps and opportunities that should be addressed for increasing the effectiveness of the institutional mechanisms and (2) support institutional changes integrating science-based strategies for strengthening scientific input in decision-making. These insights provide a useful contextual orientation for scholars and decision makers interested in conducting empirical research to connect scientific inputs with operational aspects of the management cycle in other institutional settings around the world.

  17. Scientific and technical aspects of international cooperation in Chernobyl

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gligalo, V.M.; Nosovs'kij, A.V.

    2001-01-01

    The collection contains the presentations and scientific articles prepared for and discussed during the Conference titled '2000: International Cooperation For Chernobyl'. The materials outline the outcomes achieved while implementing Chernobyl site scientific-technical researches and projects, as well as activities aimed at enhancing the ChNPP safety, decommissioning and radwaste management. It also highlights the issues related to transforming the Unit Shelter into an ecologically safe system, represents the results of ecological researches in the Exclusion Zone, medical effects of the 1986 accident at Chernobyl NPP, together with social and economic problems the city of Slavutich faces now due to the early ChNPP Units decommissioning, and Slavutich business development opportunities under the circumstances of Special Economic Zone 'Slavutich'

  18. Determining the relative importance of figures in journal articles to find representative images

    Science.gov (United States)

    Müller, Henning; Foncubierta-Rodríguez, Antonio; Lin, Chang; Eggel, Ivan

    2013-03-01

    When physicians are searching for articles in the medical literature, images of the articles can help determining relevance of the article content for a specific information need. The visual image representation can be an advantage in effectiveness (quality of found articles) and also in efficiency (speed of determining relevance or irrelevance) as many articles can likely be excluded much quicker by looking at a few representative images. In domains such as medical information retrieval, allowing to determine relevance quickly and accurately is an important criterion. This becomes even more important when small interfaces are used as it is frequently the case on mobile phones and tablets to access scientific data whenever information needs arise. In scientific articles many figures are used and particularly in the biomedical literature only a subset may be relevant for determining the relevance of a specific article to an information need. In many cases clinical images can be seen as more important for visual appearance than graphs or histograms that require looking at the context for interpretation. To get a clearer idea of image relevance in articles, a user test with a physician was performed who classified images of biomedical research articles into categories of importance that can subsequently be used to evaluate algorithms that automatically select images as representative examples. The manual sorting of images of 50 journal articles of BioMedCentral with each containing more than 8 figures by importance also allows to derive several rules that determine how to choose images and how to develop algorithms for choosing the most representative images of specific texts. This article describes the user tests and can be a first important step to evaluate automatic tools to select representative images for representing articles and potentially also images in other contexts, for example when representing patient records or other medical concepts when selecting

  19. Practical Biostatistics A Friendly Step-by-Step Approach for Evidence-based Medicine

    CERN Document Server

    Suchmacher, Mendel

    2012-01-01

    Evidence-based medicine aims to apply the best available evidence gained from the scientific method to medical decision making. It is a practice that uses statistical analysis of scientific methods and outcomes to drive further experimentation and diagnosis. The profusion of evidence-based medicine in medical practice and clinical research has produced a need for life scientists and clinical researchers to assimilate biostatistics into their work to meet efficacy and practical standards. Practical Biostatistics provides researchers, medical professionals, and students with a friendly, practica

  20. The committee of scientific expertise coordination; Le comite de coordination d'expertise scientifique

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2003-07-01

    Placed under the MIES control, the Committee of scientific expertise coordination defines the needs, the contain and the planing of expertises realized in function of Climate national and international decisions and negotiations calendars. The Committee verifies the different expertises and offers the administrations, scientific tools and techniques useful for the negotiations. It can also define long-dated research needs which require the scientific community mobilization. This paper provides some document of the Committee: objectives, operating and priorities of the Committee, scenarios ''Factor 4'' and ''crack technology'', perceptions and practices, developing countries (China, India...), Euromed. (A.L.B.)

  1. 'I'm a consumer, I'm not a scientist': Cultivating Student Domain Identification, Agency, and Affect through Engagement in Scientific Practices

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scalone, Giovanna

    This study investigates the potential benefits of redesigning hands-on, commercial inquiry science kits for fifth grade that afford agency and the development of science identities by leveraging youth's interests, personal or shared concerns, challenges or desires. Science identification is considered in relation to learning processes of being, becoming, knowing and doing. As identities are constructed dialogically through engagement, emotion, intentionality, innovation, and solidarity, students' agency is mediated and conceptualized as it develops in practice. The study is introduced in Chapter 1 by acknowledging how agency and identity are constructed from an ideological frame, thus problematizing the current neo-liberal policies undergirding educational reform. The conceptual argument in Chapter 2 outlines a theoretical synthesis of agency and learning. Subsequently, I leveraged a theory of semiosis to highlight how these perspectives on agency and identity contribute to the meaning-making processes of language, culture, and mind. Finally, conceptualizations of agency and identity are mapped to the sociology of scientific knowledge perspective. Chapter 3 situates the study context within a design-based implementation research model where the existing science curriculum units serve as comparisons (Inquiry group) to the experimental units (Agency group). The findings first demonstrate how student and teacher positioning are revealed during the turns of exchange by using functional grammar as a method to analyze how discourse works to construe experience and enact social relationships. Secondly, I analyze youth positioning across conditions highlighting the importance of raising student consciousness to the variegated ways scientists practice science and inducts students into how scientists intentionally and purposefully employ genres to engage in scientific ways of communicating. Student's perspectives, positioning, and emotional investments are then analyzed

  2. Scientific Data Management (SDM) Center for Enabling Technologies. 2007-2012

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ludascher, Bertram [Univ. of California, Davis, CA (United States); Altintas, Ilkay [Univ. of California, San Diego, CA (United States)

    2013-09-06

    Over the past five years, our activities have both established Kepler as a viable scientific workflow environment and demonstrated its value across multiple science applications. We have published numerous peer-reviewed papers on the technologies highlighted in this short paper and have given Kepler tutorials at SC06,SC07,SC08,and SciDAC 2007. Our outreach activities have allowed scientists to learn best practices and better utilize Kepler to address their individual workflow problems. Our contributions to advancing the state-of-the-art in scientific workflows have focused on the following areas. Progress in each of these areas is described in subsequent sections. Workflow development. The development of a deeper understanding of scientific workflows "in the wild" and of the requirements for support tools that allow easy construction of complex scientific workflows; Generic workflow components and templates. The development of generic actors (i.e.workflow components and processes) which can be broadly applied to scientific problems; Provenance collection and analysis. The design of a flexible provenance collection and analysis infrastructure within the workflow environment; and, Workflow reliability and fault tolerance. The improvement of the reliability and fault-tolerance of workflow environments.

  3. Scholarly literature and the press: scientific impact and social perception of physics computing

    CERN Document Server

    Pia, Maria Grazia; Bell, Zane W; Dressendorfer, Paul V

    2014-01-01

    The broad coverage of the search for the Higgs boson in the mainstream media is a relative novelty for high energy physics (HEP) research, whose achievements have traditionally been limited to scholarly literature. This paper illustrates the results of a scientometric analysis of HEP computing in scientific literature, institutional media and the press, and a comparative overview of similar metrics concerning representative particle physics measurements. The picture emerging from these scientometric data documents the scientific impact and social perception of HEP computing. The results of this analysis suggest that improved communication of the scientific and social role of HEP computing would be beneficial to the high energy physics community.

  4. Accelerating the scientific exploration process with scientific workflows

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Altintas, Ilkay; Barney, Oscar; Cheng, Zhengang; Critchlow, Terence; Ludaescher, Bertram; Parker, Steve; Shoshani, Arie; Vouk, Mladen

    2006-01-01

    Although an increasing amount of middleware has emerged in the last few years to achieve remote data access, distributed job execution, and data management, orchestrating these technologies with minimal overhead still remains a difficult task for scientists. Scientific workflow systems improve this situation by creating interfaces to a variety of technologies and automating the execution and monitoring of the workflows. Workflow systems provide domain-independent customizable interfaces and tools that combine different tools and technologies along with efficient methods for using them. As simulations and experiments move into the petascale regime, the orchestration of long running data and compute intensive tasks is becoming a major requirement for the successful steering and completion of scientific investigations. A scientific workflow is the process of combining data and processes into a configurable, structured set of steps that implement semi-automated computational solutions of a scientific problem. Kepler is a cross-project collaboration, co-founded by the SciDAC Scientific Data Management (SDM) Center, whose purpose is to develop a domain-independent scientific workflow system. It provides a workflow environment in which scientists design and execute scientific workflows by specifying the desired sequence of computational actions and the appropriate data flow, including required data transformations, between these steps. Currently deployed workflows range from local analytical pipelines to distributed, high-performance and high-throughput applications, which can be both data- and compute-intensive. The scientific workflow approach offers a number of advantages over traditional scripting-based approaches, including ease of configuration, improved reusability and maintenance of workflows and components (called actors), automated provenance management, 'smart' re-running of different versions of workflow instances, on-the-fly updateable parameters, monitoring

  5. Representativeness, legitimacy and power in public involvement in health-service management.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Martin, Graham P

    2008-12-01

    Public participation in health-service management is an increasingly prominent policy internationally. Frequently, though, academic studies have found it marginalized by health professionals who, keen to retain control over decision-making, undermine the legitimacy of involved members of the public, in particular by questioning their representativeness. This paper examines this negotiation of representative legitimacy between staff and involved users by drawing on a qualitative study of service-user involvement in pilot cancer-genetics services recently introduced in England, using interviews, participant observation and documentary analysis. In contrast to the findings of much of the literature, health professionals identified some degree of representative legitimacy in the contributions made by users. However, the ways in which staff and users constructed representativeness diverged significantly. Where staff valued the identities of users as biomedical and lay subjects, users themselves described the legitimacy of their contribution in more expansive terms of knowledge and citizenship. My analysis seeks to show how disputes over representativeness relate not just to a struggle for power according to contrasting group interests, but also to a substantive divergence in understanding of the nature of representativeness in the context of state-orchestrated efforts to increase public participation. This divergence might suggest problems with the enactment of such aspirations in practice; alternatively, however, contestation of representative legitimacy might be understood as reflecting ambiguities in policy-level objectives for participation, which secure implementation by accommodating the divergent constructions of those charged with putting initiatives into practice.

  6. Implementation of Scientific Computing Applications on the Cell Broadband Engine

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Guochun Shi

    2009-01-01

    Full Text Available The Cell Broadband Engine architecture is a revolutionary processor architecture well suited for many scientific codes. This paper reports on an effort to implement several traditional high-performance scientific computing applications on the Cell Broadband Engine processor, including molecular dynamics, quantum chromodynamics and quantum chemistry codes. The paper discusses data and code restructuring strategies necessary to adapt the applications to the intrinsic properties of the Cell processor and demonstrates performance improvements achieved on the Cell architecture. It concludes with the lessons learned and provides practical recommendations on optimization techniques that are believed to be most appropriate.

  7. Decreased management of genital warts in young women in Australian general practice post introduction of national HPV vaccination program: results from a nationally representative cross-sectional general practice study.

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Christopher Harrison

    Full Text Available OBJECTIVES: Since the introduction of Australia's human papillomavirus vaccination program, the management rate of genital warts in sexual health clinics and private hospitals has decreased in women of vaccine-eligible age. However, most genital warts in Australia are managed in general practice. This study examines whether a similar decrease occurred in Australian general practice after the introduction of the program. METHODS: Analysis of a nationally representative cross-sectional database of Australian general practice activity (1,175,879 patient encounters with 11,780 general practitioners. Genital warts management rates were estimated for the periods before and after introduction of the program (Pre-program, July 2002-June 2006; Post-program, July 2008-June 2012. Control conditions included genital herpes and gardnerella/bacterial vaginosis in female patients and genital herpes and urethritis in male patients. Trends in management rates by year, pre-vaccine (July 2000-June 2007 and post-vaccine (July 2007-June 2012 were also calculated. RESULTS: Management rate of genital warts among women potentially covered by program (aged 15-27 years decreased by 61% from 4.33 per 1,000 encounters in the Pre-program period to 1.67 in the Post-program period. Trend analysis of the post-vaccine period showed, among women of vaccine eligible age, a significant year-on-year reduction in the rate of genital warts management (p<0.0001 and a significant increase in the management rate of control conditions per year (p<0.0001. For all other age-sex groups there was no significant change in the management rate of genital warts between the Pre- and Post-program periods. CONCLUSION: The large decrease in general practice management of genital warts in women of vaccine-eligible age highlights the success of the program in the wider community.

  8. 3 July 2007 - Ambassador A. Navarro Llanos, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Bolivia to the United Nations Office and other international organisations in Geneva signing a Co-operation Agreement concerning Scientific and Technical Co-operation in High-Energy Physics with CERN Director General R. Aymar.

    CERN Multimedia

    Maximilien Brice

    2007-01-01

    3 July 2007 - Ambassador A. Navarro Llanos, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Bolivia to the United Nations Office and other international organisations in Geneva signing a Co-operation Agreement concerning Scientific and Technical Co-operation in High-Energy Physics with CERN Director General R. Aymar.

  9. Extensional scientific realism vs. intensional scientific realism.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Park, Seungbae

    2016-10-01

    Extensional scientific realism is the view that each believable scientific theory is supported by the unique first-order evidence for it and that if we want to believe that it is true, we should rely on its unique first-order evidence. In contrast, intensional scientific realism is the view that all believable scientific theories have a common feature and that we should rely on it to determine whether a theory is believable or not. Fitzpatrick argues that extensional realism is immune, while intensional realism is not, to the pessimistic induction. I reply that if extensional realism overcomes the pessimistic induction at all, that is because it implicitly relies on the theoretical resource of intensional realism. I also argue that extensional realism, by nature, cannot embed a criterion for distinguishing between believable and unbelievable theories. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. [Practice guideline 'Prostate cancer: diagnosis and treatment'

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Reijke, T.M. de; Battermann, J.J.; Moorselaar, R.J.A. van; Jong, I.J. de; Visser, A.P.; Burgers, J.S.

    2008-01-01

    --A national, multidisciplinary practice guideline was developed concerning diagnosis and treatment of patients with prostate cancer. Because of the lack of sufficient scientific evidence at this moment no practice guideline on screening is included. --The diagnosis of prostate cancer is made by

  11. Developing an interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral community of practice in the domain of forests and livelihoods.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Watkins, Cristy; Zavaleta, Jennifer; Wilson, Sarah; Francisco, Scott

    2018-02-01

    Although significant resources are being spent researching and fostering the relationship between forests and livelihoods to promote mutually beneficial outcomes, critical gaps in understanding persist. A core reason for such gaps is that researchers, practitioners, and policy makers lack the structured space to interact and collaborate, which is essential for effective, interdisciplinary research, practice, and evaluation. Thus, scientific findings, policy recommendations, and measured outcomes have not always been synthesized into deep, systemic understanding; learning from practice and implementation does not easily find its way into scientific analyses, and science often fails to influence policy. Communities of practice (CofPs) are dynamic sociocultural systems that bring people together to share and create knowledge around a common topic of interest. They offer participants a space and structure within which to develop new, systemic approaches to multidimensional problems on a common theme. Uniquely informed by a systems-thinking perspective and drawing from the scientific and gray literatures and in-depth interviews with representatives of established CofPs in the natural resource management and development domain, we argue that a well-designed and adequately funded CofP can facilitate interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral relationships and knowledge exchange. Well-designed CofPs integrate a set of core features and processes to enhance individual, collective, and domain outcomes; they set out an initial but evolving purpose, encourage diverse leadership, and promote collective-identity development. Funding facilitates effective communication strategies (e.g., in person meetings). We urge our colleagues across sectors and disciplines to take advantage of CofPs to advance the domain of forests and livelihoods. © 2017 Society for Conservation Biology.

  12. Culture of Scientific Information in Mass Media on the Internet

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Arwa 'Isa al-Yasiry

    2006-12-01

    Full Text Available This research aims at evaluating the quality of scientific information culture that introduce it the Arabic mass media in the internet and how it covering the reality of Arabic scientific information by using analysis content method for these websites then we most be know how these websites treating with information culture considering information systems has input, output and mutual relations between the elements of this system that include the following three components: 1- External relations that connecting between the culture and the reality. 2- Internal elements for this system. 3- Infrastructures for this system that represented in the cultural policy, informational , information resources and human resources

  13. Presenting Fake Figures: A Tool to Teach Effective Scientific Figure Design

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Veronica A. Segarra

    2013-08-01

    Full Text Available As trained scientists, we become adept not only at analyzing and understanding figures in the scientific literature, but also at designing figures to effectively represent our own data and findings. As educators, we strive to pass on these skills to our students, some of whom will ultimately become scientists themselves. Conveying the principles of effective figure design can be challenging, particularly when students have had little exposure to the process of reading scientific literature, much less writing a piece of scientific literature. Improvisational activities in the classroom reinforce teaching goals such as spontaneity, risk-taking, creativity, communication skills, team-building, and critical thinking (2. Indeed, improv training for scientists is becoming more common, helping scientists to communicate more spontaneously about their work and connect with their audience (1. In this article, we present an improvisational game that can aid in the teaching of effective scientific figure design. This “Present-a-Fake-Figure Exercise” is applicable to both the classroom and laboratory settings. In this learning activity, students improvise presenting fake scientific figures to an audience of their peers. These fake figures are prepared beforehand by the instructor and exemplify the do’s and don’ts of scientific figure design. Some of the learning outcomes of the activity include (1 identifying what makes a scientific figure cohesive, easy to analyze, and reader-friendly, and (2 identifying strategies that are useful in the design of a multi-panel figure to convey a scientific story.

  14. Teaching-learning of psychology: reflections from interbehavioral scientific matrix

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Winter Edgar Reyna Cruz

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available In previous works it has been pointed out that the exercise of Psychology is not limited to a single type of practice; On the contrary, psychologists perform philosophical, theoretical, technological, professional and transdisciplinary practices. Derived from the above in the present work, it is argued that teaching-learning Psychology demands that the aforementioned practices be taught-learn, to a greater or lesser extent. Based on this, (a the specific characteristics of each practice are described roughly; (b there is an aroused presentation of the main interbehavioral theoretical contributions regarding the teaching-learning of Psychology, the didactic interaction and the teacher's performance, which have focused on the learning of the practice of scientific investigation and its teaching; and, derived from the previous points, (c some reflections are presented regarding the teaching practice of psychology, as well as the learning of it, taking into account the different practices that are carried out in this discipline and not only with respect to the research practice. In the final comments, the benefits of the distinction of psychological practices in the training of apprentices of the discipline are indicated

  15. The Scientific Attitude (The Scientific Temper in Eastern and Western societies

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    SN Arseculeratne

    2014-03-01

    Full Text Available The Scientific Attitude, different from the attitude to science, is discussed in relation to Eastern and Western modes of thinking; it is also differentiated from Scientism. The literature from western as well as Indian authors, and the comments of Joseph Needham on China, are included. The topics considered are the history of science, the importance of science, its methodologies, determinants of the growth of modern science, internal and external factors in the growth of science, education in science, documentation of science and technology, and determinants of the modes of thinking about science and its practice: these determinants include religion, tradition, utilitarianism, and administration in science. The major point of contrast between the attitudes of East versus West is argued to be religious versus secular. A relevant bibliography is provided.

  16. Scientific perspectives on greenhouse problem. Part 2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jastrow, R.; Nierenberg, W.; Seitz, F.

    1992-01-01

    The spectre of major climate change caused by the greenhouse effect has generated intensive research, heated scientific debate and a concerted international effort to draft agreements for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. This report of Scientific Perspectives on the greenhouse problem explains the technical issues in the debate in language readily understandable to the non-specialist. The inherent complexities of attempts to simulate the earth's climate are explained, particularly with regard to the effects of clouds and the circulation of the oceans, which together represent the largest factors of uncertainty in current global warming forecasts. Results of the search for the 'greenhouse signal' in existing climate records aredescribed in chapter 3 (part two). Chapter 5 (part two) develops a projection of 21st-century warming based on relatively firm evidence of the earth's actual response to known increases in greenhouse gas emissions during the last 100 years

  17. Journal of Ethiopian Medical Practice

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    Journal Home · ABOUT THIS JOURNAL · Advanced Search · Current Issue · Archives. Journal Homepage Image. A biannual scientific journal published by the Ethiopian Society of General Medical Practice ...

  18. Facing the Incompleteness of Epistemic Trust: Managing Dependence in Scientific Practice

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Wagenknecht, Susann

    2014-01-01

    Based on an empirical study of a research team in natural science, the author argues that collaborating scientists do not trust each other completely. Due to the inherent incompleteness of trust, epistemic trust among scientists is not sufficient to manage epistemic dependency in research teams....... To mitigate the limitations of epistemic trust, scientists resort to specific strategies of indirect assessment such as dialoguing practices and the probing of explanatory responsiveness. Furthermore, they rely upon impersonal trust and deploy practices of hierarchical authorship....

  19. Environmental risk, precaution, and scientific rationality in the context of WTO/NAFTA trade rules.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Crawford-Brown, Douglas; Pauwelyn, Joost; Smith, Kelly

    2004-04-01

    This article considers the role of scientific rationality in understanding statements of risk produced by a scientific community. An argument is advanced that, while scientific rationality does impose constraints on valid scientific justifications for restrictions on products and practices, it also provides flexibility in the judgments needed to both develop and apply characterizations of risk. The implications of this flexibility for the understanding of risk estimates in WTO and NAFTA deliberations are explored, with the goal of finding an intermediate ground between the view that science unambiguously justifies or rejects a policy, and the view that science is yet another cultural tool that can be manipulated in support of any decision. The result is a proposal for a dialogical view of scientific rationality in which risk estimates are depicted as confidence distributions that follow from a structured dialogue of scientific panels focused on judgments of evidence, evidential reasoning, and epistemic analysis.

  20. Сonceptual fundamentals of a pedagogical university’s scientific research work development in the contemporary stages of society development

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Alla Kolomiets

    2017-04-01

    Full Text Available Basic conceptual fundamentals of a Pedagogical University’s scientific research work organization as well as corresponding problems and assignments have been determined in the article. It’s been ascertained that some important problems remain unsettled, for instance, implementation of current scientific achievements in the contents of subject teachers’ training; popularization and marketing of scientific pedagogical achievements; intensification of scientific cooperation with foreign educational institutions; expansion of participation in joint scientific projects etc. Cardinal principals and priority directions of scientific maintenance of high-skilled teachers’ training have been defined. Practical results of a Pedagogical University’s scientific research work organization taking into consideration the determined conceptual fundamentals have been also analyzed.Key words: scientific research work monitoring, scientific activity, scientific productivity, scientific cooperation, scientific work organization, Pedagogical University.

  1. Realism, instrumentalism, and scientific symbiosis: psychological theory as a search for truth and the discovery of solutions.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cacioppo, John T; Semin, Gün R; Berntson, Gary G

    2004-01-01

    Scientific realism holds that scientific theories are approximations of universal truths about reality, whereas scientific instrumentalism posits that scientific theories are intellectual structures that provide adequate predictions of what is observed and useful frameworks for answering questions and solving problems in a given domain. These philosophical perspectives have different strengths and weaknesses and have been regarded as incommensurate: Scientific realism fosters theoretical rigor, verifiability, parsimony, and debate, whereas scientific instrumentalism fosters theoretical innovation, synthesis, generativeness, and scope. The authors review the evolution of scientific realism and instrumentalism in psychology and propose that the categorical distinction between the 2 is overstated as a prescription for scientific practice. The authors propose that the iterative deployment of these 2 perspectives, just as the iterative application of inductive and deductive reasoning in science, may promote more rigorous, integrative, cumulative, and useful scientific theories.

  2. EFFECT SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY TEACHING MODELS AND SCIENTIFIC ATTITUDE TO PHYSICS STUDENT OUTCOMES

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Dian Clara Natalia Sihotang

    2014-12-01

    Full Text Available The objectives of this study were to determine whether: (1 the student’s achievement taught by using Scientific Inquiry Teaching Models is better than that of taught by using Direct Instruction; (2 the student’s achievement who have a high scientific attitude is better than student who have low scientific attitude; and (3 there is interaction between Scientific Inquiry Teaching Models and scientific attitude for the student’s achievement. The results of research are: (1 the student’s achievement given learning through Scientific Inquiry Teaching Models better than Direct Instruction; (2 the student’s achievement who have a high scientific attitude better than student who have low scientific attitude; and (3 there was interaction between Scientific Inquiry Teaching Models and scientific attitude for student’s achievement which this models is better to apply for student who have a high scientific attitude.

  3. Crayfish Behavior: Observing Arthropods to Learn about Science & Scientific Inquiry

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rop, Charles J.

    2010-01-01

    This is a set of animal behavior investigations in which students will practice scientific inquiry as they observe crayfish, ask questions, and discuss territoriality, social interactions, and other behaviors. In doing this, they hone their skills of observation, learn to record and analyze data, control for variables, write hypotheses, make…

  4. Towards Energy Transition. Scientific workshop of 4 and 6 October 2016. Scientific synthesis of the 4 specialized sessions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2016-10-01

    University Paris-Saclay and the R and D of EDF Group organized on 4 and 5 October 2016, at EDF Lab Paris-Saclay, a scientific workshop with prospective vision and exchanges with companies: 'The University Paris-Saclay engine of the Energy Transition'. The workshop was preceded by a forum for students on the energy theme. For two days, major scientific topics were discussed in connection with the energy transition, through three types of exchanges between academics, researchers and students of the University Paris-Saclay and experts from the companies involved. The topics of the workshop were: Solar photovoltaic energy, Nuclear energy, Energy efficiency and flexibility, Electric mobility, Energy systems (including storage) and Energy control, interactions between Energy and Human and social sciences and between Energy and Digital. Scientific presentations and round tables involving researchers from the University Paris-Saclay and experts from companies were organised on prospective themes in order to compare the academic vision and the vision and needs of companies. A poster session that represents the research and innovation skills of the University Paris-Saclay, was highlighting the PhD students and young researchers. A forum for students aimed at presenting the training offer of the University Paris-Saclay on the energy theme. It offered facilitated meetings with companies for the training, orientation and professional integration of students. This document summarizes the scientific content of the four sessions: 1 - means and needs of photovoltaic solar energy, 2 - role of nuclear energy in the energy transition, 3 - new levers for industrial energy efficiency, 4 - electric-powered vehicles for what use?

  5. "Thinking like a Neuroscientist": Using Scaffolded Grant Proposals to Foster Scientific Thinking in a Freshman Neuroscience Course.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Köver, Hania; Wirt, Stacey E; Owens, Melinda T; Dosmann, Andrew J

    2014-01-01

    Learning and practicing scientific inquiry is an essential component of a STEM education, but it is often difficult to teach to novices or those outside of a laboratory setting. To promote scientific thinking in a freshmen introductory neuroscience course without a lab component, we developed a series of learning activities and assignments designed to foster scientific thinking through the use of scientific grant proposals. Students wrote three short grant proposals on topics ranging from molecular to cognitive neuroscience during a 10-week class (one quarter). We made this challenging and advanced task feasible for novice learners through extensive instructional scaffolding, opportunity for practice, and frequent peer and instructor feedback. Student and instructor reports indicate that the assignments were highly intellectually engaging and that they promoted critical thinking, a deeper understanding of neuroscience material, and effective written communication skills. Here we outline the mechanics of the assignment, student and instructor impressions of learning outcomes, and the advantages and disadvantages of implementing this approach.

  6. Scientific, statistical, practical, and regulatory considerations in design space development.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Debevec, Veronika; Srčič, Stanko; Horvat, Matej

    2018-03-01

    The quality by design (QbD) paradigm guides the pharmaceutical industry towards improved understanding of products and processes, and at the same time facilitates a high degree of manufacturing and regulatory flexibility throughout the establishment of the design space. This review article presents scientific, statistical and regulatory considerations in design space development. All key development milestones, starting with planning, selection of factors, experimental execution, data analysis, model development and assessment, verification, and validation, and ending with design space submission, are presented and discussed. The focus is especially on frequently ignored topics, like management of factors and CQAs that will not be included in experimental design, evaluation of risk of failure on design space edges, or modeling scale-up strategy. Moreover, development of a design space that is independent of manufacturing scale is proposed as the preferred approach.

  7. Science Teachers' Views and Stereotypes of Religion, Scientists and Scientific Research: A call for scientist-science teacher partnerships to promote inquiry-based learning

    Science.gov (United States)

    Mansour, Nasser

    2015-07-01

    Despite a growing consensus regarding the value of inquiry-based learning (IBL) for students' learning and engagement in the science classroom, the implementation of such practices continues to be a challenge. If science teachers are to use IBL to develop students' inquiry practices and encourage them to think and act as scientists, a better understanding of factors that influence their attitudes towards scientific research and scientists' practices is very much needed. Within this context there is a need to re-examine the science teachers' views of scientists and the cultural factors that might have an impact on teachers' views and pedagogical practices. A diverse group of Egyptian science teachers took part in a quantitative-qualitative study using a questionnaire and in-depth interviews to explore their views of scientists and scientific research, and to understand how they negotiated their views of scientists and scientific research in the classroom, and how these views informed their practices of using inquiry in the classroom. The findings highlighted how the teachers' cultural beliefs and views of scientists and scientific research had constructed idiosyncratic pedagogical views and practices. The study suggested implications for further research and argued for teacher professional development based on partnerships with scientists.

  8. The importance of scientific papers publication: An approach to Animal Science Area

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Bruno do Amaral Crispim

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The scientific production, among the various university activities, deserve outstanding importance because it is through them that the knowledge produced in the university is diffused and democratized to the community/society. Thus, information and/or alternatives for many problems solution are raised, discussed and put into practice within the university that are to be used as future basis for the integrated and sustainable development of a community or region. Scientific writing is also the mirror of teacher and student performance in the inseparable activities of teaching, research and extension, translating the institutional force of own production. Increasingly, academic institutions understand the importance of their scientific production. And to the same disclosure is necessary to practice the scientific writing, which enables academic growth, professional development and growing within a institution. The activities in research fulfill the basic function of the University, such as knowledge generating institution, to meet the everyday demands of the society. According to the Brazilian Society for the Advancement of Science (SBPC in 2013, Brazil is responsible for 2,7% of world scientific output, but still occupies the 58th place among the most innovative countries in the world. Demonstrating that we must strive so we can achieve the best places in the world rankings for the production of knowledge and Science The scientific production in the field of Animal Science is of great importance for improvement in logistics, efficiency and quality of local animal production. Based on this, research related to the area provide meaningful informations to management and production, genetic characterization of native and exotic breeds, thereby contributing significantly to increase production efficiency to farmers. Therefore, scientific production within the academic environment is essential and the existence of efficient dissemination teams so that

  9. [Eating, nourishment and nutrition: instrumental analytic categories in the scientific research field].

    Science.gov (United States)

    da Veiga Soares Carvalho, Maria Cláudia; Luz, Madel Therezinha; Prado, Shirley Donizete

    2011-01-01

    Eating, nourishment or nutrition circulate in our culture as synonyms and thus do not account for the changes that occur in nourishment, which intended or unintended, have a hybridization pattern that represents a change of rules and food preferences. This paper aims to take these common sense conceptions as analytic categories for analyzing and interpreting research for the Humanities and Health Sciences in a theoretical perspective, through conceptualization. The food is associated with a natural function (biological), a concept in which nature is opposed to culture, and nourishment takes cultural meanings (symbolic), expressing the division of labor, wealth, and a historical and cultural creation through which one can study a society. One attributes to Nutrition a sense of rational action, derived from the constitution of this science in modernity, inserted in a historical process of scientific rationalization of eating and nourishing. We believe that through the practice of conceptualization in interdisciplinary research, which involves a shared space of knowledge, we can be less constrained by a unified theoretical model of learning and be freer to think about life issues.

  10. Linking the Scales of Scientific inquiry and Watershed Management: A Focus on Green Infrastructure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Golden, H. E.; Hoghooghi, N.

    2017-12-01

    Urbanization modifies the hydrologic cycle, resulting in potentially deleterious downstream water quality and quantity effects. However, the cumulative interacting effects of water storage, transport, and biogeochemical processes occurring within other land cover and use types of the same watershed can render management explicitly targeted to limit the negative outcomes from urbanization ineffective. For example, evidence indicates that green infrastructure, or low impact development (LID), practices can attenuate the adverse water quality and quantity effects of urbanizing systems. However, the research providing this evidence has been conducted at local scales (e.g., plots, small homogeneous urban catchments) that isolate the measurable effects of such approaches. Hence, a distinct disconnect exists between the scale of scientific inquiry and the scale of management and decision-making practices. Here we explore the oft-discussed yet rarely directly addressed scientific and management conundrum: How do we scale our well-documented scientific knowledge of the water quantity and quality responses to LID practices measured and modeled at local scales to that of "actual" management scales? We begin by focusing on LID practices in mixed land cover watersheds. We present key concepts that have emerged from LID research at the local scale, considerations for scaling this research to watersheds, recent advances and findings in scaling the effects of LID practices on water quality and quantity at watershed scales, and the use of combined novel measurements and models for these scaling efforts. We underscore these concepts with a case study that evaluates the effects of three LID practices using simulation modeling across a mixed land cover watershed. This synthesis and case study highlight that scientists are making progress toward successfully tailoring fundamental research questions with decision-making goals in mind, yet we still have a long road ahead.

  11. Mapping a Space for a Rhetorical-Cultural Analysis: A Case of a Scientific Proposal

    Science.gov (United States)

    Dorpenyo, Isidore Kafui

    2015-01-01

    This article analyzes a proposal submitted to a funding unit in Michigan Technological University by a PhD Forestry student. A rhetorical-cultural approach of the text provides evidence to argue that scientific writing is rooted in a cultural practice that valorizes certain kinds of thought, practices, rituals, and symbols; that a scientist's work…

  12. EIROStaff serving the staff of the European scientific organizations

    CERN Multimedia

    Association du personnel

    2009-01-01

    By analogy with the EIROforum meetings, where the administrations of seven European scientific organizations (CERN, EFDA, EMBL, ESA, ESO, ESRF, ILL) have been meeting since 2002, the staff associations of these same organizations grouped under the name “EIROStaff” met on Thursday 27 and Friday 28 May 2009 at CERN. Staff representatives of GSI, which is not a member of EIROforum at present, also attended.

  13. FORECAST FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT IN PEDIATRY FOR 2006–2010

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V.Yu. Al'bitskiy

    2006-01-01

    Full Text Available This publication contains the predictions of the scientific studies in pediatric patients. The forecast is developed by leading pediatricians of the country. It was based on the analysis of pediatrics developement and pediatric practice in the Russian Federation in recent decades.

  14. General Critical Properties of the Dynamics of Scientific Discovery

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Bettencourt, L. M. A. (LANL); Kaiser, D. I. (MIT)

    2011-05-31

    Scientific fields are difficult to define and compare, yet there is a general sense that they undergo similar stages of development. From this point of view it becomes important to determine if these superficial similarities can be translated into a general framework that would quantify the general advent and subsequent dynamics of scientific ideas. Such a framework would have important practical applications of allowing us to compare fields that superficially may appear different, in terms of their subject matter, research techniques, typical collaboration size, etc. Particularh' important in a field's history is the moment at which conceptual and technical unification allows widespread exchange of ideas and collaboration, at which point networks of collaboration show the analog of a percolation phenomenon, developing a giant connected component containing most authors. Here we investigate the generality of this topological transition in the collaboration structure of scientific fields as they grow and become denser. We develop a general theoretical framework in which each scientific field is an instantiation of the same large-scale topological critical phenomenon. We consider whether the evidence from a variety of specific fields is consistent with this picture, and estimate critical exponents associated with the transition. We then discuss the generality of the phenomenon and to what extent we may expect other scientific fields — including very large ones — to follow the same dynamics.

  15. Pedagogical Affordances of Multiple External Representations in Scientific Processes

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wu, Hsin-Kai; Puntambekar, Sadhana

    2012-12-01

    Multiple external representations (MERs) have been widely used in science teaching and learning. Theories such as dual coding theory and cognitive flexibility theory have been developed to explain why the use of MERs is beneficial to learning, but they do not provide much information on pedagogical issues such as how and in what conditions MERs could be introduced and used to support students' engagement in scientific processes and develop competent scientific practices (e.g., asking questions, planning investigations, and analyzing data). Additionally, little is understood about complex interactions among scientific processes and affordances of MERs. Therefore, this article focuses on pedagogical affordances of MERs in learning environments that engage students in various scientific processes. By reviewing literature in science education and cognitive psychology and integrating multiple perspectives, this article aims at exploring (1) how MERs can be integrated with science processes due to their different affordances, and (2) how student learning with MERs can be scaffolded, especially in a classroom situation. We argue that pairing representations and scientific processes in a principled way based on the affordances of the representations and the goals of the activities is a powerful way to use MERs in science education. Finally, we outline types of scaffolding that could help effective use of MERs including dynamic linking, model progression, support in instructional materials, teacher support, and active engagement.

  16. Conceptual Demand of Practical Work in Science Curricula. A Methodological Approach

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ferreira, Sílvia; Morais, Ana M.

    2014-02-01

    This article addresses the issue of the level of complexity of practical work in science curricula and is focused on the discipline of Biology and Geology at high school. The level of complexity is seen in terms of the emphasis on and types of practical work and, most importantly, in terms of its level of conceptual demand as given by the complexity of scientific knowledge, the degree of inter-relation between knowledges, and the complexity of cognitive skills. The study also analyzes recontextualizing processes that may occur within the official recontextualizing field. The study is psychologically and sociologically grounded, particularly on Bernstein's theory of pedagogic discourse. It uses a mixed methodology. The results show that practical work is poorly represented in the curriculum, particularly in the case of laboratory work. The level of conceptual demand of practical work varies according to the text under analysis, between the two subjects Biology and Geology, and, within each of them, between general and specific guidelines. Aspects studied are not clearly explicated to curriculum receivers (teachers and textbooks authors). The meaning of these findings is discussed in the article. In methodological terms, the study explores assumptions used in the analysis of the level of conceptual demand and presents innovative instruments constructed for developing this analysis.

  17. PHILOSOPHICAL-CULTURAL CONCEPTION OF TELEVISION AS A VISUAL PRACTICES OF XX-XXI CENTURY

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. M. Tormakhova

    2016-12-01

    Full Text Available Purpose of the article is to analyze the philosophical and cultural ideas about television, which is a leading visual practice of XX century. It does not lose its relevance in the beginning of the XXI. The role of television lies in visual presentation and formation of the basic norms of taste and traditions of different social groups. Television is the leading communicative practice, which consideration is represented differently in modern science. Research methodology involves an appeal to the philosophical and cultural concepts, representing different approaches to the understanding of television. The paper considers the views of Western scholars, such as R. Arnheim, M. Wolff, A. Kroker, G. Lipovetsky, M. McLuhan, D. Mulvin, J. Mittell, N. Postman, L. Saffhil, J. Sterne, E. Thompson, J. Fiske, S. Shapiro. During analysis of the issue of the specific nature of television content the works of Russian scientists – T. Savitskaya, N. Samutina and Polish contemporary author – R. Sapenko were used. Originality lies in the depiction of the main approaches to the study of television as a visual communicative practice. Deployment of the author's position within the designated issues is presented as a historical digression – from the first attempts at understanding the phenomenon of television to the newest scientific theories that have found expression in contemporary American philosophical and cultural thought. Results of the study can be used in the training course "Visual communication and practices." Conclusions indicated that the majority of contemporary visual practices based on certain patterns, embedded TV. Despite the emergence of new media practices, TV does not lose relevance, everywhere present in the culture, which means that his research will allow a better understanding of the specificity of cultural creativity process.

  18. Information-Psychological Security and Near-Scientific Activity

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    A. I. Afonin

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available In accordance with the new version of the “Information Security Doctrine of the Russian Federation (adopted in December 2016, in information security agenda its information-psychological component was selected for further study. Attention is drawn to the need to ensure the information-psychological security of certain categories of citizens, social groups and society in general, taking into account a differentiated approach to assessing threats that arise in the course of their life. The article briefly considers the science rank among the forms of the human activities and notes that when involving in science-based and science-applied activities the near-scientific activity, which is often briefly referred to as pseudoscience, shows up as one of the threats.The article presents main forms to show of the near-scientific (pseudoscientific activity, namely parascience, quasi-science, pseudoscience, and monetary scientism.Drawing on the example of one of the near-scientific activity products, called "psychotronic weapon", the article clearly shows the emergence and evolution of this pseudoscientific product, the attempts of its implementation in practice, and the subsequent negative consequences of these attempts for society.Taking into account the survivability of the near-scientific activity, it is proposed to include lectures in the curricula of technical universities to introduce threats from pseudoscience to graduates of higher educational institutions who may face them both in their employment activity and in everyday life.

  19. Lab notebooks as scientific communication: Investigating development from undergraduate courses to graduate research

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jacob T. Stanley

    2016-09-01

    Full Text Available In experimental physics, lab notebooks play an essential role in the research process. For all of the ubiquity of lab notebooks, little formal attention has been paid to addressing what is considered “best practice” for scientific documentation and how researchers come to learn these practices in experimental physics. Using interviews with practicing researchers, namely, physics graduate students, we explore the different experiences researchers had in learning how to effectively use a notebook for scientific documentation. We find that very few of those interviewed thought that their undergraduate lab classes successfully taught them the benefit of maintaining a lab notebook. Most described training in lab notebook use as either ineffective or outright missing from their undergraduate lab course experience. Furthermore, a large majority of those interviewed explained that they did not receive any formal training in maintaining a lab notebook during their graduate school experience and received little to no feedback from their advisors on these records. Many of the interviewees describe learning the purpose of, and how to maintain, these kinds of lab records only after having a period of trial and error, having already started doing research in their graduate program. Despite the central role of scientific documentation in the research enterprise, these physics graduate students did not gain skills in documentation through formal instruction, but rather through informal hands-on practice.

  20. Science as a Matter of Honour: How Accused Scientists Deal with Scientific Fraud in Japan.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pellegrini, Pablo A

    2017-06-26

    Practices related to research misconduct seem to have been multiplied in recent years. Many cases of scientific fraud have been exposed publicly, and journals and academic institutions have deployed different measures worldwide in this regard. However, the influence of specific social and cultural environments on scientific fraud may vary from society to society. This article analyzes how scientists in Japan deal with accusations of scientific fraud. For such a purpose, a series of scientific fraud cases that took place in Japan has been reconstructed through diverse sources. Thus, by analyzing those cases, the social basis of scientific fraud and the most relevant aspects of Japanese cultural values and traditions, as well as the concept of honour which is deeply involved in the way Japanese scientists react when they are accused of and publicly exposed in scientific fraud situations is examined.