Toward Detecting Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons on Planetary Objects with ORIGIN

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are found on various planetary surfaces in the solar system. They are proposed to play a role in the emergence of life, as molecules that are important for biological processes could be derived from them. In this work, four PAHs (pyrene, perylene, anthracene, and coronene) were measured using the ORganics Information Gathering INstrument system (ORIGIN), a lightweight laser desorption ionization-mass spectrometer designed for space exploration missions. In this contribution, we demonstrate the current measurement capabilities of ORIGIN in detecting PAHs at different concentrations and applied laser pulse energies. Furthermore, we show that chemical processing of the PAHs during measurement is limited and that the parent mass can be detected in the majority of cases. The instrument achieves a 3σ detection limit in the order of femtomol mm−2 for all four PAHs, with the possibility of further increasing this sensitivity. This work illustrates the potential of ORIGIN as an instrument for the detection of molecules important for the emergence or presence of life, especially when viewed in combination with previous results by the instrument, such as the identification of amino acids. ORIGIN could be used on a lander or rover platform for future in situ missions to targets in the solar system, such as the icy moons of Jupiter or Saturn

The methodological underdog:A review of quantitative research in the key adult education journals

An examination of articles published in leading adult education journals demonstrates that qualitative research dominates. To better understand this situation, a review of journal articles reporting on quantitative research has been undertaken by the author of this article. Differences in methodological strengths and weaknesses between quantitative and qualitative research are discussed, followed by a data mining exercise on 1,089 journal articles published in Adult Education Quarterly, Studies in Continuing Education, and International Journal of Lifelong Learning. A categorization of quantitative adult education research is presented, as well as a critical discussion on why quantitative adult education does not seem to be widespread in the key adult education journals

Internationale Erfahrungen der Herangehensweise an die Erfassung, Erkundung, Bewertung und Sanierung Militaerischer Altlasten

Also published in english UBA-FB--97-012/eAvailable from TIB Hannover: RN 8908(97-012) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEUmweltbundesamt, Berlin (Germany); Bundesministerium fuer Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit, Bonn (Germany)DEGerman

Gaining legitimacy: mentoring as an avenue to navigate the transition into a new academic workplace [Conseguir legitimidad: las mentorías como medio para gestionar la transición a un puesto académico distinto]

This paper discusses the learning and development experiences of academics who make transitions between higher education institutions involving multiple communities. In these communities, they may act on the periphery as both newcomers and academics with established credentials that may have a significant impact on their participation. In acknowledging this, this paper uses Lave and Wenger’s concept of Community of Practice to better understand how these academics gain their legitimacy, and whether mentoring has a specific role to play in their development into full members of communities. Based on the analysis of the themes generated from 12 in-depth semi-structured interviews with academics who have experienced transitions between higher education institutions, this paper suggests that restricted access to a mentoring programme may lead these academics to question their status benefits and their development into full participants of communities. Referring to the examples of mentoring programmes used in other universities, this paper shows that among experienced academics, mentoring can contribute to their development and provide a range of psychosocial benefits from the increased level of support

Supporting active citizenship among young people at risk of social exclusion: the role of adult education

This chapter examines different conceptualizations and perspectives from the literature and reflects on findings from a recent European research project while considering the role of adult education in promoting active and participatory citizenship among young people considered at risk of social exclusion. Promoting active citizenship (alongside equity and social cohesion) is an objective of the European Union’s lifelong learning strategy, but the concept is not clearly defined, and there are a range of different interpretations, framings, and discourses associated with it. Critical analyses suggest that contemporary contexts of neoliberalism support limited versions of active citizenship which focus on adaptation and accommodation to economic imperatives, casting adult education mainly in the role of promoting skills and knowledge for “employability.” The chapter explores the links between discourse types of social exclusion suggested by Levitas (The inclusive society? Social exclusion and new labour. Palgrave, Basingstoke, 1998) and framings of active citizenship, as well as considering implications for the role of adult education. Selected findings from a recent EU-funded international research collaboration which involved educational programs in 20 European countries are analyzed, identifying instances of how promoting active participation may be framed differently, for example, as focusing on the responsibility to make contributions or as emphasizing equality and rights

Quantitative research in research on the education and learning of adults

This chapter starts from the observation that there is a limited presence of quantitative research published in leading adult education journals such as Adult Education Quarterly, Studies in Continuing Education and International Journal of Lifelong Learning. This observation was also discussed by Fejes and Nylander (2015, see also Chap. 7). As an adult education scholar mainly working with large quantitative datasets, I aim to provide more insight on what quantitative methods have to offer to the field. I will do this through a brief discussion of the role of methodologies and methods in empirical research, but also by engaging with examples of quantitative research available in the scholarly literature, including a range of existing quantitative scales, and how these can be taken forward in new research as tools to generate the construction of new knowledge. I will first explore potential reasons why the presence of quantitative research in the leading generic adult education journals is so limited