Prediction of crushing stress in composite materials

A simple mathematical model for predicting the crushing stress of composite materials was derived and presented in this paper. The present knowledge of fracture mechanics and strength of materials are used as the basis for the model. The fracture mechanics part of the analysis was based on energy release rate approach; the energy release rate, G, of the proposed model was determined by this approach. This energy release rate was based on the Mode I (opening or tensile mode) failure. As for the strength of materials part analysis, buckling theory was used to determine the critical load of the fibre beams. These two engineering concepts were combined to form the equation for the proposed model. The derived equation is a function of the materials properties, geometric and physical parameters of the composite materials. The calculated stresses from the derived equation were compared with experimental data from technical and research papers. Good agreements shown in the results are encouraging and recommendations for future analysis with different modes of failure were also presented. This paper enables engineering designers to predict crushing stress in composite materials with confidence and makes their work more efficient and reliable

Trace element concentration in mango (Mangifera indica L.), seedless guava (Psidium guajava L.) and papaya (Carica papaya L.) grown on agricultural and ex-mining lands of Bidor, Perak

Fruits namely mango, papaya, and seedless guava grown on agricultural and ex-mining lands in Bidor were sampled for analyse of heavy metal contamination. The concentration of mercury (Hg), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), nickel (Ni), arsenic (As) and cadmium (Cd) in the fruits were analysed. The results showed that, with the exception of Hg in mango and Pb in guava, fruits grown on agricultural land have higher levels of heavy metals than those grown on ex-mining land. The concentration of heavy metal in all fruits of both soil types ranged from 0.06 to 0.55 mg kgI for Cd, 0.02 to 0.78 mg kgI for Hg, 0.63 to 8.71 mg kgI for Pb, 5.20 to 12.22 mg kgI for Zn, and 2.01 to 5.74 mg kgI for Cu. Both Cr and Ni were not detected in papaya grown on mine spoils, whilst As was not detected in all fruits grown on both types of soils. The findings indicate that all fruits contained unacceptably high levels of Hg and Pb. The probable causes of contamination are discussed. Further studies are required to investigate the cause of heavy metal contamination in these fruits

Early childhood curriculum policies and practices in Singapore: The case of glocalisation

Globalisation has been transforming early childhood care and education worldwide since the turn of this millennium. The early childhood sector in Singapore is no exception. Its early childhood curriculum has inevitably been influenced by Eastern and Western cultures and has developed into a unique hybrid over the years. This special issue collects six articles covering topics on inclusive education, curriculum frameworks, infant–toddler care, curriculum-based teacher research, social-emotional learning, and bilingual language and literacy. A book review about early childhood curriculum in Chinese societies is also included. All these articles have jointly presented a snapshot of the ‘glocal’ situation of early childhood curriculum in Singapore, with a focus on the challenges and suggestions for policy and practical improvements

An update of the JPL program to develop Li-SOCl2 cells

The goal of producing spiral wound D cell was met. The cell design and electrodes, particularly the carbon cathodes were produced in-house. Also all parts were assembled, the welding performed, the electrolyte aided and the cells sealed in-house. The lithium capacity (theoretical) was 19.3 Ah and that of the SOCl2 in the 1.8 m LiAlCl4 electrolyte, 16.4 Ah (a greater excess of SOCl2 is necessary for safe high rate operation). The electrode surface area was 452 sq cm. The carbon electrode comprised Shawinigen Black/Teflon -30 (90/10 by weight) mixture 0.020 inches thick on an expanded metal screen prepared in the JPL laboratory. There were two tab connections to the cathode. The 0.0078 inch thick lithium foil was rolled into an expanded nickel screen. The separator was Mead 934-5 fiberglass material

\u27Kids in design\u27: designing creative schools with children

There is a consensus that children should be involved in the planning and design process of their schools, and attempts have been made throughout the world. This paper introduces a \u27Kids in Design\u27 project, through which primary school children worked with university architecture students to design a school playground. The aim of the project was to encourage the full potential of children\u27s creativity and generate creative school design outcomes. From October to December 2011, the \u27Kids in Design\u27 project was conducted in Roslyn Road Primary School (Geelong, Australia). Through eight weeks of workshops, children in Year 5 & 6 worked with architecture students from Deakin University (Geelong, Australia) to design a school playground. Assessing the design outcomes of this project, assertions are made that creative design outcomes have been achieved. Deakin University is currently working with another primary school to replicate the \u27Kids in Design\u27 project in 2012

Analysis of laser absorption on a rough metal surface

We have developed a simple model to estimate the cumulative absorption coefficient of an ultraviolet laser pulse impinging on a pure metal, including the effects of surface roughness whose scale is much larger than the laser wavelength λ. The multiple reflections from the rough surface may increase the absorption coefficient over a pristine, flat surface by an order of magnitude. Thus, as much as 16% (at room temperature) of the power of a 248 nm KrF excimer laser pulse may be absorbed by an aluminum target. A comparison with experimental data is given. © 1997 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/71289/2/APPLAB-70-6-696-1.pd

The role of early childhood development and education (ECDE) in supporting learning and well-being in rural early childhood and primary schools in South Africa

This paper examines how early childhood and primary schools can be constructed as enabling spaces to improve the learning and well-being of children aged six to nine who live in multidimensionally poor, low-resourced rural communities in South Africa. Quality early childhood development and education (ECDE) can be the catalyst to break the cycle of poverty for many young children in rural areas. A systematic review was conducted based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses flowchart. A comprehensive search strategy using electronic databases and hand searches systematically whittled down an initial database of 30,080 articles to 16 articles for this study. A thematic analysis identified enablers and constraints for supporting children’s learning and well-being across three themes: (1) infrastructure, educational resources and child agency (2) initial teacher education (ITE) and (3) socioeconomic status. The findings and discussion highlight child agency as an enabler to learning and well-being and the structural and pedagogical challenges of implementing ITE curricula specific to rural educational contexts

A hybrid systematic narrative review of instruments measuring home-based care nurses\u27 competency

Aim: The aim of the study was to identify and synthesize the contents and the psychometric properties of the existing instruments measuring home-based care (HBC) nurses\u27 competencies. Design: A hybrid systematic narrative review was performed. Review Methods: The eligible studies were reviewed to identify the competencies measured by the instruments for HBC nurses. The psychometric properties of instruments in development and psychometric testing design studies were also examined. The methodological quality of the studies was evaluated using the Medical Education Research Study Quality Instrument and COSMIN checklist accordingly. Data Sources: Relevant studies were searched on CINAHL, MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, PsychINFO and Scopus from 2000 to 2022. The search was limited to full-text items in the English language. Results: A total of 23 studies reporting 24 instruments were included. 12 instruments were adopted or modified by the studies while the other 12 were developed and psychometrically tested by the studies. None of the instruments encompassed all of the 10 home-based nursing care competencies identified in an earlier study. The two most frequently measured competencies were the management of health conditions, and critical thinking and problem-solving skills, while the two least measured competencies were quality and safety, and technological literacy. The content and structural validity of most instruments were inadequate since the adopted instruments were not initially designed or tested among HBC nurses. Conclusion: This review provides a consolidation of existing instruments that were used to assess HBC nurses\u27 competencies. The instruments were generally not comprehensive, and the content and structural validity were limited. Nonetheless, the domains, items and approaches to instrument development could be adopted to develop and test a comprehensive competency instrument for home-based nursing care practice in the future. Impact: This review consolidated instruments used to measure home-based care nurses\u27 competency. The instruments were often designed for ward-based care nurses hence a comprehensive and validated home-based nursing care competency instrument is needed. Nurses, researchers and nursing leaders could consider the competency instruments identified in this review to measure nurses\u27 competencies, while a home-based nursing care competency scale is being developed. Patient or Public Contribution: No patient or public contribution was required in this review