Comparison of the cost‐effectiveness of a computer‐assisted learning program with a tutored demonstration to teach intestinal motility to medical students

Computer‐based simulations of undergraduate experiments in pharmacology and physiology may offer a cost‐effective alternative to the traditional live laboratory for some students, for whom laboratory skills are less important. Here we describe a study which compares two approaches to teaching preclinical medical students the pharmacology of colonic motility. Half of one cohort received a tutored live demonstration of an isolated tissue laboratory, while the other half used a computer simulation program covering the same subject. The study demonstrated that student learning was comparable for both groups, that many students found the computer simulation an acceptable alternative and that the latter required significantly less resource

Better Be Convincing or Better Be Stylish? a Theory Based Multi-Agent Simulation to Explain Minority Influence in Groups Via Arguments or Via Peripheral Cues

Very often in the history of mankind, social changes took place because a minority was successful in persuading the dominant majority of a new idea. Social psychology provides empirically well-founded theories of social influence that can explain the power of minorities at individual level. In this contribution, we present an agent-based computer simulation of one such theory, the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM). After introducing the theoretical background and our agent model, we present three simulation experiments that confirm past laboratory research but also go beyond its findings by adopting the method of computer simulation. First, we found that even a minority with low argument quality can be successful as long as it has positive peripheral cues. Second, our results suggest that a higher personal relevance of a topic for the majority led it to be more receptive to minority influence only when the minority showed neutral peripheral cues and very good arguments. Third, we found evidence that a neutral or only slightly biased majority is influenced more easily than a strongly biased one. To sum up, we consider these results to illustrate the notion that a well-presented, comprehensible and valid computer simulation provides a useful tool for theory development and application in an exploratory manner as long as it is well founded in terms of the model and theory.Social Influences, Persuasion Processes, Group Processes, Minority Influence, Computer Simulation, Modelling, Theory Verification, Simulation Experiments

Heat and Smoke Transport in a Residential-Scale Live Fire Training Facility: Experiments and Modeling

Understanding fire behavior is critical to effective tactical decision making on the fireground, particularly since fireground operations significantly impact the growth and spread of the fire. Computer-based simulation is a flexible, low-cost training methodology with proven success in fields such as pilot training, space, and military applications. Computer-based simulation may enhance fire behavior training and promote effective fireground decision making. This study evaluates the potential of the NIST Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) and Smokeview to be utilized as a part of a computer-based fire fighter trainer. Laboratory compartment fire experiments and full-scale fire experiments in a live-fire training facility were both conducted as part of the NIST Multiphase Study on Fire Fighter Safety and the Deployment of Resources. The laboratory experiments characterized the burning behavior of wood pallets to design a repeatable fire for use in the field experiments. The field experiments observed the effects of varying fire fighter deployment configurations on the performance times of fire fighter actions at a live fire training facility. These actions included opening the front door and fire suppression. Because the field experiments simulated numerous fire department responses to a repeatable fire, data were available to evaluate FDS simulation of heat and smoke spread, and changes in the thermal environment after the front door is opened and fire suppressed. In simulating the field experiments, the laboratory-measured heat release rate was used as an input. Given this assumption, this study has two objectives: 1) to determine if simulations accurately spread heat and smoke through a multi-level, multi-compartment live fire training facility 2) to determine if the simulations properly reproduce changes in the thermal environment that result from two typical fire fighter actions: opening the front door and fire suppression. In simulation, heat and smoke spread to measurement locations throughout the test structure at times closely matching experimentally measured times. Predictions of peak temperatures near the ceiling were within approximately 20% for all measurement locations. Hot gas layer temperature and depth were both predicted within 10% of the floor to ceiling height. After the front door was opened, temperature changes near the door at the highest and lowest measurement locations matched with temperature changes in the experiments. After fire suppression, FDS simulated temperature decay at a rate within the range measured in the field experiments and approximated the total rise of the hot gas layer interface in the burn compartment 250 seconds after suppression

The Development of an Interactive Virtual Laboratory Simulation Software: A Case Study of Basic Physics Experiments

This paper presents the techniques for the development of a web-based interactive virtual laboratory simulation software with a case study of basic Physics experiments to determine the acceleration due to gravity. The virtual learning environment has been developed in the following manner, namely: 1). Determine the computer programs and applications to be used in the software using the hyper text mark-up language (html); 2). Design software content Based on java applets; 3). Model the laboratory interface, experimental materials, equipment and characters necessary for the virtual Physics laboratory; 4). Develop the virtual   laboratory; 5). Collect expert opinions about the virtual laboratory; 6). Finalize and test the virtual laboratory for simulation; and 7). Deployment of the virtual laboratory software for use by clients. The paper also presents the attributes related to the interface of the software and attributes related to the use of the virtual laboratory software as a material in education. The effectiveness of the proposed interactive virtual laboratory software is justified by its deployment for use by secondary school students with positive responses through interactions and questionnaires. Comprehensive techniques on how to compute the acceleration due to gravity and generate the corresponding predictive mathematical models for the experiments have also been presented together with the associated programs written in MATLAB. The limitations of the virtual laboratory simulation software and directions for further improvements are briefly highlighted. Keywords: Hyper text mark-up language (html), interactive virtual laboratory, Java® Applets®, Physics experiment

Event-by-event simulation of Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen-Bohm experiments

We construct an event-based computer simulation model of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen-Bohm experiments with photons. The algorithm is a one-to-one copy of the data gathering and analysis procedures used in real laboratory experiments. We consider two types of experiments, those with a source emitting photons with opposite but otherwise unpredictable polarization and those with a source emitting photons with fixed polarization. In the simulation, the choice of the direction of polarization measurement for each detection event is arbitrary. We use three different procedures to identify pairs of photons and compute the frequency of coincidences by analyzing experimental data and simulation data. The model strictly satisfies Einstein's criteria of local causality, does not rely on any concept of quantum theory and reproduces the results of quantum theory for both types of experiments. We give a rigorous proof that the probabilistic description of the simulation model yields the quantum theoretical expressions for the single- and two-particle expectation values.Comment: Found. of Phys. (in press

A comparison of computer assisted learning and practical animal experiment for undergraduate medical students in pharmacology curriculum - a questionnaire based study conducted in a medical college of North India

Background: The practical sessions in pharmacology training involving animal experiments were perceived to be unnecessary as the learning objectives of these practical sessions primarily focus on observational, analytical and interpretative skills. A number of computer simulation and other models have been recommended for use as alternatives to use of animals for medical education. In this study, we compared Computer Assisted Learning (CAL) with practical animal experiments for medical undergraduates based on questionnaire. The objective of the study was to compare Computer Assisted Learning and practical animal experiments for medical undergraduates in pharmacology curriculum.Methods: This was a questionnaire based observational study involving 300 medical undergraduates and eighteen faculty members. It included two systems i.e. CAL and conventional animal experiments. A separate questionnaire was prepared for the faculty members.Results: Results showed that CAL has nearly replaced the practical laboratory experiments as far as the medical undergraduate training is concerned. All the students and teachers believed that CAL is better and more understandable than animal experiments done practically.Conclusions: It is concluded that CAL is a better source of experimentation at the undergraduate level and provides dependable outcomes