Complexities of digital technology use and the teaching and learning of function

Many argue that digital technologies have the potential to enhance the teaching and learning of mathematics. However, the availability of technology is not sufficient to realise this potential. The study reported takes a detailed approach to investigate the utility of the particular offerings of the available technologies in the teaching and learning of a specific area of mathematics, functions. Sixteen affordances identified in the data are described. The complexity of the process involved in resolving a situation where particular affordances would be useful so as they are perceived and enacted is detailed. Finally, a grounded theory framework arising from the data analysis from this study that can be used to explain, predict and guide action in other digital environments is presented.     

面源红外诱饵对抗红外制导导弹干扰策略研究

面源红外诱饵使用的过程中,合理有效的干扰策略是干扰红外制导导弹的关键,针对这一问题,通过理论分析与仿真模拟相结合得到面源红外诱饵对抗红外制导导弹的干扰策略。首先以红外成像制导导弹为例,介绍红外制导导弹的仿真模型,然后将攻击过程分为锁定前与锁定后,以命中率为评价指标,得到两个阶段下的最佳干扰策略,包括诱饵的最佳释放时机、释放间隔以及载机应采取的机动动作等。     

Understanding the differences between how novice and experienced designers approach design tasks

Research was undertaken to understand how to provide the most appropriate support for novice designers in engineering design. However, how designers apply their experience and knowledge is not understood and further research in this area is required. This paper describes an observational study to understand how novice and experienced designers approach design tasks. Electronic Publication     

Micro assembly injection moulding

Injection moulding is established as one of the most common manufacturing processes of thermoplastics due to its high degree of automation and the short cycle times. Micro injection moulding is a rapidly growing technology that allows for the efficient production of very complex micro parts in high series. The “Market Analysis for Microsystems II 2002–2005” of the Nexus Task Force anticipates a yearly growth in the field of micro system technology of about 20% (Wechsung et al. 2002). This study identifies in addition to the continuous miniaturization the growing use of polymers in micro systems (Schneider et al. 2001). No other material group offers this wide range of material properties and permits to choose processing parameters and application properties according to necessities (Gächter 2000). While the production processes of micro technical components are mainly controllable, the assembly of these components to hybrid micro systems is a bottleneck to the industrial large scale production. The assembly itself represents a large fraction of the added product value and gains in importance with growing complexity and miniaturization of the systems.     

Different insights for improving part and system reliability obtained from exactly same DFOM “failure numbers”

Techniques for improving the reliability and maintainability of both nonrepairable and repairable items can be suggested by failure data analysis. It is shown that a given set of failure numbers leads to very different improvement strategies when the numbers are the times-between-successive-failures of one or more repairable items, rather than the times-to-failure of nonrepairable items. Since this should have been obvious more than 50 years ago, at the onset of formal reliability engineering activities, several reasons are proffered for the widespread and protracted misinterpretation of even the most basic—and simple!—conceptual and practical differences between nonrepairable and repairable items.     

论市场营销组合要素与商品包装策略

企业为了实现营销战略目标，必须把各种可控制的营销组合要素，通过商品包装这一特殊的视觉诉求语言充分体现出来，以便综合性地发挥作用，取得良好的市场促销效果。     

Strategies for Coping With Business Trips: A Qualitative Exploratory Study.

This study aimed to better understand the impact of business trips on the traveler, the family, and the organization; to learn about maximizing the positive aspects of business travel; and to suggest measures to prevent and manage travel stress. Thirty-five business travelers (American, Israeli, and Swedish) were interviewed about the costs and benefits of their traveling, with a focus on gaining insight into coping strategies. Content analysis of the interviews showed that trips consist of 4 phases--(a) pretrip, (b) journey, (c) stay, and (d) posttrip--and that each phase is characterized by different coping strategies. Business travelers reported using proactive individual and organizational coping strategies in the pretrip phase and a combination of proactive and reactive coping strategies in the other phases. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The impact of presentation graphics on students’ experience in the classroom

To investigate the benefits and perceived effectiveness of instructional technology, students enrolled in several courses were compared on student evaluations of instruction, grades and an attitudinal questionnaire. The instructors of the courses taught the same course across two successive semesters, using traditional “chalk-and-talk” methods the first semester, and PowerPoint the next; all other techniques (e.g., exams, lecture material) were held constant. Results suggest that organization and clarity, entertainment and interest, professor likeability, and good professor behaviors were enhanced with PowerPoint although final grades were not.     

Object Retrieval in the 1st Year of Life: Learning Effects of Task Exposure and Box Transparency.

Before 12 months of age, infants have difficulties coordinating and sequencing their movements to retrieve an object concealed in a box. This study examined (a) whether young infants can discover effective retrieval solutions and consolidate movement coordination earlier if exposed regularly to such a task and (b) whether different environments, indexed by box transparency, would impact the rate of learning and time of discovery of these solutions. Infants (N=12) were presented with an object retrieval task every week from 6 1/2 months of age until they were able to retrieve the toy from the box using coordinated two-handed patterns for 3 weeks. To reach that criterion, infants tested with an opaque box took 2 1/2 months and infants tested with a semitransparent box took 1 1/2 months. Both groups outperformed age-matched controls who received a one-time exposure to the task. Repeated exposure to the task and vision of the toy significantly enhanced this process of solution discovery. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)