Self-Driven Sustainable Oil Separation from Water Surfaces by Biomimetic Adsorbing and Transporting Materials

Oil films on water are an increasingly major contamination problem worldwide. In 2020, we published a novel adsorption and transportation technology for oil–water separation based on biological role models like the floating fern Salvinia. This application provides an unexpected ability for the fast and efficient removal of oil films, particularly in ecologically important freshwater biota. A single small Bionic Oil Adsorber (BOA) with 1 m$^2$ functional textile can collect up to 4 L of oil per hour, which equals about 100 m$^2$ of oil film from a water surface into a collecting vessel. This is a safe, fast, and sustainable solution for the ubiquitous contaminations of, e.g., fuel oil in freshwater environments. Here, we present updated, new experimental data, and a review of the literature published since

Supportive hints in a digital learning environment:Effects on students' motivation

Reading skills are developed across the lifespan. However, little is known about the development of reading comprehension skills and materials in secondary education, where students do not learn to read, but read to learn. When students read informational textbooks, domain knowledge (e.g., about reading strategies) and topic knowledge become increasingly interconnected. Students’ motivation is also of influence on reading achievement. Students need to recognize the task value or decrease the perceived difficulty of a task in order to be motivated to read a text (Guthrie, Klauda & Ho, 2013). Reading motivation is a problem many content area teachers face. Research has shown that incorporating cognitive, metacognitive and motivational support during instruction increases students’ motivation towards learning from text (Souvignier & Mokhlesgerami, 2006). This semesters’ research uses a digital learning environment (DLE) with two types of support for informational text reading: cognitive and metacognitive hints. In a quasi-experimental design, a total of 228 first grade students from 3 secondary schools were able to use cognitive and metacognitive hints during history lessons (school A: N=80), during geography lessons (school B: N=92) or were unable to use hints during these lessons (school C: N=56). Students’ task value and self-efficacy was measured for all groups using the Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ). The effectiveness of available hints on students’ motivation was analyzed using ANOVA, GLM and paired samples t-tests. Results showed a significant increase in the pretest and posttest scores for self-efficacy in geography in the control group. There was also a significant decrease in pretest and posttest scores for task value in history in the experimental group. These findings are not in line with previous research on the effects of reading strategy instruction on students’ motivation: The addition of motivational hints in the next semester might elicit more positive and significant effects

Visuomotor transformation for interception: catching while fixating

Catching a ball involves a dynamic transformation of visual information about ball motion into motor commands for moving the hand to the right place at the right time. We previously formulated a neural model for this transformation to account for the consistent leftward movement biases observed in our catching experiments. According to the model, these biases arise within the representation of target motion as well as within the transformation from a gaze-centered to a body-centered movement command. Here, we examine the validity of the latter aspect of our model in a catching task involving gaze fixation. Gaze fixation should systematically influence biases in catching movements, because in the model movement commands are only generated in the direction perpendicular to the gaze direction. Twelve participants caught balls while gazing at a fixation point positioned either straight ahead or 14° to the right. Four participants were excluded because they could not adequately maintain fixation. We again observed a consistent leftward movement bias, but the catching movements were unaffected by fixation direction. This result refutes our proposal that the leftward bias partly arises within the visuomotor transformation, and suggests instead that the bias predominantly arises within the early representation of target motion, specifically through an imbalance in the represented radial and azimuthal target motion

De behandeling van emotionele problemen bij ernstige dyslexie: Suggesties voor behandelaren in de (vergoede) dyslexiezorg

Met dit artikel hopen wij dyslexiebehandelaren te stimuleren en inspireren om binnen of naast de vergoede dyslexiebehandeling (verdere) invulling te geven aan de emotionele aspecten van het leren lezen en spellen. Het artikel bestaat uit de volgende onderdelen: een casusbeschrijving, een beknopt overzicht van bevindingen uit de literatuur over de impact van dyslexie op het emotioneel functioneren, en een uitwerking van manieren waarop aandacht besteed kan worden aan emotionele problemen in de dyslexiebehandeling. We sluiten af met een aantal aandachtspunten met betrekking tot het vormgeven van de behandeling binnen de huidige beleids- en financieringskaders

Scaffolding expository history text reading:Effects on adolescents' comprehension, self-regulation, and motivation

Reading comprehension is an important predictor for academic success, yet many adolescents in secondary education face difficulties when reading their textbooks. In this quasi-experimental study, we developed a digital learning environment to scaffold students' expository text reading in seventh-grade history classrooms. Students in the experimental condition could use hints comprised of cognitive and metacognitive reading strategy instruction, whereas students in the control condition received no additional support. A comparison of posttest comprehension between conditions showed no significant differences. However, students in the experimental condition who accessed hints during history text reading performed significantly better on the posttest than students who did not use hints at all. We found no differences between conditions regarding students' self-regulated learning or motivation, but students' awareness of problem-solving reading strategies significantly increased in the experimental condition. Finally, a comparison of students with different reading levels showed that below-average readers benefitted most from digital reading practice