Distributed ontology building as practical work

Ontologies – a form of structured and logically related knowledge or classification hierarchy embedded in a computer system – are regarded by many scientists as having enormous promise for the consistent use and re-use of data. To realise this promise, however, is not straightforward. In this paper, based on ethnographic observation, we argue that the challenges for ontology building are ‘social’ as much as they are technical. By this we mean the routine work undertaken in the building process and the problems and difficulties entailed can be understood in terms of the practices of knowledge workers and the practical nature of ‘sorting things out’. Getting a better sense of how, in practise, this work gets done gives a sense of the main challenges of building successful ontologies and how this impacts on the design of tool support. In considering the practices of one group in particular, we try to show how, for members, the technical problems of determining what classification structure is appropriate, and what its boundaries might be, depend substantially on assumptions about the ‘community’ and its interests and purposes. This ‘turn to the social’ has ramifications for the understanding of ontology building and use. Specifically, ‘modelling’ approaches to ontology building tell us little about the practical organisation of the work and how this relates to the prospect of successful sharing. Ethnographic enquiry may reveal important issues that are otherwise missed.     

A high school program in computer science

A team of researchers and educators has introduced a computer science curriculum into Israeli high schools. This curriculum combines conceptual and practical issues in a zipper-like fashion. Its emphasis is on the basics of algorithmics, and it teaches programming as a way to get a computer to execute an algorithm. It has been proposed by a committee formed in 1990 by the Israel Ministry of Education     

高中信息技术教学中的渗透计算机科学研究

随着时代的飞速发展,信息技术成为时代进步绕不开的话题,在进行高中信息技术教学中渗透计算机科学史的教育时,需要培养学生的学科意识,树立学科精神,提高学科素养﹐为计算机信息技术的长远发展奠定基础。文章针对目前高中阶段的信息技术教学现状进行分析、探究,提出了相关策略,希望以促进计算机科学在高中信息技术教学中的渗透,提高教学效率,促进我国信息技术的长远发展。     

Alternatives in evaluating multimedia in secondary school science teaching

While different approaches to evaluation will yield different results, depending on the purpose of the evaluation this article describes an evaluation approach that was aimed at investigation the mental models of users of the programme. The study was driven by questions about the differences in mental models of the instructional designers and the learners, the time learners spent working through the program and the observable changes in their mental models. In this design experiment, a program was developed to teach basic principles of electricity. Three boys and three girls one each of high, medium and low achievement in science were selected from an advantaged urban school, and a similar sample was taken from a disadvantaged rural school. They were asked to draw their impressions of various concepts of electricity and then allowed free access to the program, where they could visit any section even if they had not completed a previous one. Afterwards they were asked to draw sketches again. Other instruments included an opinion questionnaire and observation of the learners working with a “think aloud” protocol. It was found that there were considerable differences in the mental models of the learners and designers about what to expect from computer-based learning. While navigational freedom allowed fast learners to move through work that they knew already, weaker learners tended to get lost. The sketches that learners made before and after exposure to the program provided valuable insights into the growth of their understanding of the concepts.     

Timelink—A practical work study management system

The principal function of industrial engineering is to determine and optimise, implement, measure and maintain the procedures to be followed in manufacturing. Major problems arise in handling the volume of information originated in executing this function, resulting in skilled industrial engineers being involved in low-grade clerical activities and being subjected to interruption from lay enquirers.Building on experience of discrete computer-aided industrial engineering applications software, TIMELINK was introduced in 1980 and greatly expanded in 1981 to give a computer-aided Integrated Industrial Engineering System which is commercially available and can be implemented on a wide range of mini and mainframe computers.TIMELINK Integrated Industrial Engineering System is a fully interactive system composed of interconnected application software modules, each applying a conventional industrial engineering technique or function including compiling and applying work measurement standard data, analytical work study (MTM-2), estimating, standards application, manual study storage and routing generation. A central access facility allows enquiries to be made of the industrial engineering database created and for the automatic transfer of data to other computer systems, including other TIMELINK installations for networking purposes.TIMELINK is establishing itself as a multi-function system, combining technical computer-aided industrial engineering applicatios with an industrial engineering database and information distribution and enquiry facilities, giving considerable technical and managerial benefits.     

Perspectives on computer aiding in cognitive work domains: toward predictions of effectiveness and use

A two-stage process is proposed for evaluating computer aiding in cognitive work domains. The first stage relies on a taxonomic framework that facilitates assessments regarding the relative strengths and weaknesses of humans and computers for different computer-aiding schemes. The second stage introduces the construct of tension, which addresses the potential implications of the interplay between computer aiding constraints and human tendencies. This approach is intended to provide designers, analysts and managers with greater insight into the nature of computer aiding and ultimately to enhance their ability to predict its effectiveness as well as its prospects for being used.     

Perspectives on computer aiding in cognitive work domains: toward predictions of effectiveness and use

A two-stage process is proposed for evaluating computer aiding in cognitive work domains. The first stage relies on a taxonomic framework that facilitates assessments regarding the relative strengths and weaknesses of humans and computers for different computer-aiding schemes. The second stage introduces the construct of tension, which addresses the potential implications of the interplay between computer aiding constraints and human tendencies. This approach is intended to provide designers, analysts and managers with greater insight into the nature of computer aiding and ultimately to enhance their ability to predict its effectiveness as well as its prospects for being used.     

Parallel programming in computational science: an introductory practical training course for computer science undergraduates at Aachen University

Parallel programming of high-performance computers has emerged as a key technology for the numerical solution of large-scale problems arising in computational science and engineering (CSE). The authors believe that principles and techniques of parallel programming are among the essential ingredients of any CSE as well as computer science curriculum. Today, opinions on the role and importance of parallel programming are diverse. Rather than seeing it as a marginal beneficial skill optionally taught at the graduate level, we understand parallel programming as crucial basic skill that should be taught as an integral part of the undergraduate computer science curriculum. A practical training course developed for computer science undergraduates at Aachen University is described. Its goal is to introduce young computer science students to different parallel programming paradigms for shared and distributed memory computers as well as to give a first exposition to the field of computational science by simple, yet carefully chosen sample problems.     

Integrating science curricula in the middle school: Utilizing historical perspectives

Abstract

Science curriculum outcomes at the middle school level are typically associated with the decontextualized science found in textbooks and teacher resources. However, the typical middle years classroom with a single teacher is an ideal setting for an integrated approach to learning science in the context of social studies, language arts, art, and other subject areas. In this paper, we describe the first phase of a three‐phase integrated curriculum project. The curriculum uses an historical perspective, narratives, and a student‐centred approach to create materials that integrate the Grade 5 Science weather cluster with the Grade 5 Social Studies unit on the Canadian fur trade. Risk factors that contribute to inadequate science teaching and learning are identified and several protective factors that contribute to teacher efficacy are advanced.     

The effects of augmented virtual science laboratories on middle school students' understanding of gas properties

The Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) emphasize authentic scientific practices such as developing models and constructing explanations of phenomena. However, research documents how students struggle to explain observable phenomena with molecular-level behaviors with current classroom experiences. For example, physical laboratory experiences in science enable students to interact with observable scientific phenomena, but students often fail to make connections to underlying molecular-level behaviors. Virtual laboratory experiences and computer-based visualizations enable students to interact with unobservable scientific concepts, but students can have difficulties connecting to actual instantiations of the observed phenomenon. This paper investigates how combining physical and virtual experiences into augmented virtual science laboratories can help students build upon intuitive ideas and develop molecular-level explanations of macroscopic phenomena. Specifically, this study uses the Frame, a sensor-augmented virtual lab that uses sensors as physical inputs to control scientific simulations. Eighth-grade students (N = 45) engaged in a Frame lab focused on the properties of gas. Results demonstrate that students using the Frame lab made progress developing molecular-level explanations of gas behavior and refining alternative and partial ideas into normative ideas about gases. This study offers insights for how augmented virtual labs can be designed to enhance science learning and encourage scientific practices as called for in the NGSS.     

Development of a robot language for hot-line work allowing practical use of the hot-line work robot system 'Phase II'

We are developing the robot system Phase II, which executes various hot-line work for equipment, such as poles and overhead lines, charged at high voltages (AC 6.6 kV/22 kV). The Phase II is designed to be a human-cooperative semi-automatic system which performs tasks through a combination of sensor-based controlled motion and auxiliary operation, facilitated by the operator's use of joysticks. As of the present, seven Phase II prototype units have been developed. Verification of various work and expansion of applied task programs are in progress with the aim of practical utilization in the immediate future. This paper describes the design concept and developmental outline of a recently developed robot language for hot-line work. The language adopts conventional task language used by distribution workers, the users of the system, to make it easily understandable. Regarding series of basic motions which require the system's contact with other objects, it has become necessary to set up special parameters including compliance damping and other factors. We have defined routine motion as a set, making such sets macro-commands. Through their use, task programs may be described with fewer parameters at the task-oriented level. Practical use of the robot system will require end-users to effectively work in both the task planning and the task execution stages. The language was developed with this in mind.     

Non-visual biological effect of lighting and the practical meaning for lighting for work

The effects of good lighting extend much further than we used to think. Recent medical and biological research has consistently shown that light entering the human eyes has, apart from a visual effect, also an important non-visual biological effect on the human body. As a consequence, good lighting has a positive influence on health, well-being, alertness, and even on sleep quality. Our better understanding of the diversity in lighting effects teaches us that new rules governing the design of good and healthy lighting installations are required. Thanks to the recent discovery of a novel photoreceptor in the eye and its probable distribution within the eye we can now begin to define these new rules. These will guide us to dynamic lighting installations: that is to say dynamic in lighting level and dynamic in tint of whiteness of the lighting colour.     

新工科背景下计算机与生命科学专业交叉的实践教学体系研究

健康大数据与数字医疗的出现使得对复合型的新工科专业人才需求更加迫切.要发展新工科的专业建设,必须结合我国发展现代医学的要求,培养服务于现代医学的专业技术人才.利用先进的人工智能和大数据技术改造传统的生命科学,有助于探索疾病发病机制,药物快速研发,疾病防疫等.文章讨论了发展生物医学信息化技术的新内涵,研究了建设生命科学与...     

Exploration of an e-learning model to foster critical thinking on basic science concepts during work placements

We designed an e-learning model to promote critical thinking about basic science topics in online communities of students during work placements in higher education. To determine the effectiveness and efficiency of the model we explored the online discussions in two case studies. We evaluated the quantity of the interactions by looking at quantitative data of the discussion ‘threads’ and we evaluated the quality of the discussion by content analysis of the individual messages. Both the procedural facilitation of the discussion and the instrument for content analysis were based on Garrison’s ‘Practical Inquiry model of Cognitive Presence’. Furthermore, we explored the experiences of the students and moderators by interviewing them and we organised their perceptions using the framework of an activity system. On the basis of the quantitative and qualitative data we conclude that the e-learning model was successful in establishing a dialogue among a group of students and an expert during work placements at different locations. The ‘Practical Inquiry model’ was useful in facilitating a sustained on-topic discourse involving critical thinking. Although the amount of critical thinking was moderate, the results suggest ways to increase integration and resolution activities in the online discussions.     

A study on learning effect among different learning styles in a Web-based lab of science for elementary school students

The purpose of this study is to explore the learning effect related to different learning styles in a Web-based virtual science laboratory for elementary school students. The online virtual lab allows teachers to integrate information and communication technology (ICT) into science lessons. The results of this experimental teaching method demonstrate that: (a) students in the experimental group using the online virtual lab achieved better grades than those in the control group under traditional class instruction, (b) in the experimental group, grade achievements of students having different learning styles were not significantly different from each other leading us to conclude that the Web-based virtual learning environment is suitable for various learning styles, (c) students with the “accommodator” learning style made the most significant achievements in this study, the scores obtained by the experimental group being remarkably better than those in the control group, and (d) up to 75% of the students surveyed indicated that they preferred using the Web-based virtual lab to reading textbooks only. The results of the experimental teaching and the survey show the feasibility and effectiveness of the Web-based learning environment being studied. It encourages further development of the Web-based virtual lab.     

信息与计算科学专业实施大工程教育的理论与实践探索——EDC-CDIO工程教育培养模式

分析了大工程观教育的背景、内涵,阐述了在大工程观指导的信息与计算科学专业EDC-CDIO工程教育培养模式改革的主要内容。