Prospects for asteroseismology

The observational basis for asteroseismology is being dramatically strengthened, through more than two years of data from the CoRoT satellite, the flood of data coming from the Kepler mission and, in the slightly longer term, from dedicated ground-based facilities. Our ability to utilize these data depends on further development of techniques for basic data analysis, as well as on an improved understanding of the relation between the observed frequencies and the underlying properties of the stars. Also, stellar modelling must be further developed, to match the increasing diagnostic potential of the data. Here we discuss some aspects of data interpretation and modelling, focussing on the important case of stars with solar-like oscillations.Comment: Proc. HELAS Workshop on 'Synergies between solar and stellar modelling', eds M. Marconi, D. Cardini & M. P. Di Mauro, Astrophys. Space Sci., in the press Revision: correcting abscissa labels on Figs 1 and

Learning from multimedia and hypermedia

Computer-based multimedia and hypermedia resources (e.g., the world wide web) have become one of the primary sources of academic information for a majority of pupils and students. In line with this expansion in the field of education, the scientific study of learning from multimedia and hypermedia has become a very active field of research. In this chapter we provide a short overview with regard to research on learning with multimedia and hypermedia. In two review sections, we describe the educational benefits of multiple representations and of learner control, as these are the two defining characteristics of hypermedia. In a third review section we describe recent scientific trends in the field of multimedia/hypermedia learning. In all three review sections we will point to relevant European work on multimedia/hypermedia carried out within the last 5 years, and often carried out within the Kaleidoscope Network of Excellence. According to the interdisciplinary nature of the field this work might come not only from psychology, but also from technology or pedagogy. Comparing the different research activities on multimedia and hypermedia that have dominated the international scientific discourse in the last decade reveals some important differences. Most important, a gap seems to exist between researchers mainly interested in a “serious” educational use of multimedia/ hypermedia and researchers mainly interested in “serious” experimental research on learning with multimedia/hypermedia. Recent discussions about the pros and cons of “design-based research” or “use-inspired basic research” can be seen as a direct consequence of an increasing awareness of the tensions within these two different cultures of research on education

Results of mobile gamma scanning activities in Tonawanda, New York

During the 1940s, the Linde Air Products Division of Union Carbide operated a plant in Tonawanda, New York, for the Manhattan Engineer District (MED) and the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). Uranium production and some nickel processing were conducted at the site. It is the policy of the US Department of Energy (DOE) to verify that radiological conditions at such sites or facilities comply with current DOE guidelines. Guidelines for release and use of such sites have become more stringent as research has provided more information since previous cleanups. The Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) was established as part of that effort to confirm the closeout status of facilities under contract to agencies preceding DOE during early nuclear energy development. Under the FUSRAP program, the Linde site itself has been previously investigated to determine the extent of on-site radiological contamination. As a precaution to insure that no residual radioactive materials were transported off-site, the Department of Energy requested that ORNL survey the area in the vicinity of the Linde Plant, the waste water treatment facility on Tower Road, the Sheridan Park Fire Station (District 4), and the Tonawanda Landfill to assess whether any residual radioactive material could be detected. The survey was conducted the week of April 3, 1990. Results of analysis of soil samples from the Tonawanda Landfill revealed slightly elevated concentrations of {sup 238}U and {sup 226}Ra suggestive of residuals from former Linde Plant operations. Therefore, it is recommended that additional surveying of the landfill property and of Sheridan Creek from south of the Linde property to its confluence with the Niagara River be conducted. The survey should include the measurement of gamma radiation levels and radionuclide analysis of silt samples. 6 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab

An experimental investigation of fixed and fluidized beds as adsorbers in compact thermal energy storage systems

A bench-scale adsorption thermal energy storage system based on fixed and fluidized beds of zeolite 13X was developed and its performance experimentally investigated. Few studies of moving-bed adsorbers have been conducted compared to fixed-bed types, which many high-powered prototypes have been based on. The novelty of this research lies in the adsorption breakthrough and temperature data produced for zeolite – water vapour adsorption in a fluidized bed, providing an empirical assessment of fluidization as a method of solid-gas contacting for the application of low-temperature thermochemical energy storage. This study provides further insight on the effects of air flow rate and relative humidity on the adsorption breakthrough, temperature lift, and thermal energy storage potential of 8 × 12 and 60 × 65 mesh zeolite 13X adsorbents in fixed and fluidized beds, respectively. The results show that the developed bench-scale system could deliver 190 – 253 watt-hours of space heat per kilogram of zeolite at peak temperatures of 35 – 58 °C