Solar cell research, phase 2 Semiannual report

Radiation effects on properties of lithium solar cell

Investigating educative mentoring for provisionally certificated teachers in the New Zealand primary school

The Guidelines for Induction and Mentoring and Mentor Teachers were published in 2011 by the New Zealand Teachers Council. The Guidelines signalled a shift from what had been an induction programme based on advice and guidance to one that involved educative mentoring. These guidelines were developed to support the provision of nationally consistent, high quality, and comprehensive support for provisionally certificated teachers (PCTs). This qualitative investigation used an interpretative case study approach to describe what educative mentoring looked like in three New Zealand primary schools. Data were gathered using an online survey, interviews, recorded meeting and analysis of documents. The findings were that mentors and provisionally registered teachers had differing levels of understanding of educative mentoring. While mentors espoused using educative mentoring components (Education Council of Aotearoa New Zealand, 2015a, pp. 25-26) this did not appear to be happening in practice. This suggests the need for mentor training if educative mentoring is to become embedded. Mentors need training to understand what educative mentoring really means. In particular the elements of deconstruction (describing, analysing, and discussing evidence) and co-construction (setting new personal goals) were missing to some degree in each relationship investigated. The process of induction and mentoring is to develop practice and ultimately for the provisionally registered teacher to attain the Practising Teacher Criteria. However this study revealed that the developmental process of practice appears to be more focused on meeting the Practising Teacher Criteria than developing understanding through the setting of personal goals

Additional application of the NASCAP code. Volume 1: NASCAP extension

The NASCAP computer program comprehensively analyzes problems of spacecraft charging. Using a fully three dimensional approach, it can accurately predict spacecraft potentials under a variety of conditions. Several changes were made to NASCAP, and a new code, NASCAP/LEO, was developed. In addition, detailed studies of several spacecraft-environmental interactions and of the SCATHA spacecraft were performed. The NASCAP/LEO program handles situations of relatively short Debye length encountered by large space structures or by any satellite in low earth orbit (LEO)

Additional application of the NASCAP code. Volume 2: SEPS, ion thruster neutralization and electrostatic antenna model

The interactions of spacecraft systems with the surrounding plasma environment were studied analytically for three cases of current interest: calculating the impact of spacecraft generated plasmas on the main power system of a baseline solar electric propulsion stage (SEPS), modeling the physics of the neutralization of an ion thruster beam by a plasma bridge, and examining the physical and electrical effects of orbital ambient plasmas on the operation of an electrostatically controlled membrane mirror. In order to perform these studies, the NASA charging analyzer program (NASCAP) was used as well as several other computer models and analytical estimates. The main result of the SEPS study was to show how charge exchange ion expansion can create a conducting channel between the thrusters and the solar arrays. A fluid-like model was able to predict plasma potentials and temperatures measured near the main beam of an ion thruster and in the vicinity of a hollow cathode neutralizer. Power losses due to plasma currents were shown to be substantial for several proposed electrostatic antenna designs

Reported livestock guarding dog-wildlife interactions: implications for conservation and animal welfare

Livestock depredation by carnivores is a key cause of human-wildlife conflict around the world. Recently, the use of livestock-guarding dogs (LGDs) to reduce livestock depredation has been challenged in terms of their impact on wild animal welfare and survival, but the prevalence of LGD-wildlife interactions is poorly understood. Using data for 225 LGDs on South African farms, we determined the prevalence of farmer-reported LGD-wildlife interactions to contextualise the potential concerns. Wildlife interactions were reported for a total of 71 dogs (32%); McNemar’s tests revealed non-lethal herbivore interactions (8%) were significantly lower than non-lethal predator interactions (17%; p < 0.01), but no significant difference was detectable in the proportion of lethal interactions according to type of wildlife (9% for herbivores and 10% for predators). All reported predator interactions were defensive, compared to only 25% of reported herbivore interactions (p = 0.016). Of the dogs for which data on corrective measures were available, 44% were successfully corrected following intervention. Of the remainder, 42% had ceased exhibiting this behaviour independently or were acting defensively, 21% were removed from the programme, and 11% had died. Reported interactions with predators were rare, entirely defensive, and predominantly non-lethal. However, interactions with non-target species (herbivores) were more prevalent, necessitating remedial interventions. Overall, the conservation benefit of LGDs does not appear to be outweighed by ethical implications of their use; LGDs were shown to be highly targeted and discriminatory towards predators attempting to predate on livestock

Please mind the gap: students’ perspectives of the transition in academic skills between A-level and degree level geography

This paper explores first-year undergraduates’ perceptions of the transition from studying geography at pre-university level to studying for a degree. This move is the largest step students make in their education, and the debate about it in the UK has been reignited due to the government’s planned changes to A-level geography. However, missing from most of this debate is an appreciation of the way in which geography students themselves perceive their transition to university. This paper begins to rectify this absence. Using student insights, we show that their main concern is acquiring the higher level skills required for university learning