Community College Perspectives on Teacher Preparation in Virginia

The need for future teachers who are well versed in mathematics and science will not be provided by Virginia’s four-year institutions alone. A large portion of those students who complete their K-8 teacher preparation programs at Virginia’s four-year institutions have studied a significant portion, if not all, of their mathematics and science at community colleges. Therefore, if future teachers are to have completed appropriate mathematics and science courses these must be provided by the community colleges. In addition, community colleges can play a critical role in attracting people with a high potential for becoming excellent teachers. Two-year colleges are located in urban and rural areas, enroll a large portion of Virginia’s minority students, and welcome returning adults. We need to attract students from this source if we are to produce sufficient numbers of well prepared teachers in Virginia. A recent National Science Foundation workshop developed detailed recommendations conceming the role of two-year colleges. This paper will focus on these recommendations

Experiencing Science, An Introduction to Real Methods of Science for the Preservice Teacher

The scientific method presented in the middle school classroom introduces the experimental approach of science in a way that may actually bear little resemblance to the processes actually used by working scientists. Teachers equipped with an insight into the motivations, philosophy, tools, and culture of science will better convey an accurate and positive picture of science as a critically important human endeavor. The Experiencing Science course was designed to answer the challenge of giving the pre-service teacher and decision-maker better insight into actual processes used by scientists, in the context of each of the major disciplines

Research Opportunities in Nutrition and Metabolism in Space

The objectives of the Life Sciences Research Office (LSRO) study on nutrient requirements for meeting metabolic needs in manned space flights are as follows: review extant knowledge on the subject; identify significant gaps in knowledge; formulate suggestions for possible research; and produce a documented report of the foregoing items that can be used for program planning. In accordance with NASA's request for this study, the report focuses on issues of nutrition and metabolism that relate primarily to the contemplated United States Space Station, secondarily to the Shuttle Program as an orbital test bed for operational studies, and incidentally to scenarios for future long-term space flights. Members of the LSRO ad hoc Working Group on Nutrition and Metabolism were provided with pertinent articles and summaries on the subject. At the meeting of the Working Group, presentations were made by NASA Headquarters program staff on past experiences relative to space-flight nutrition and metabolism, as well as scenarios for future flights. The discussions of the ad hoc Working Group focused on the following: (1) metabolic needs related to work and exercise; (2) nutrients required to meet such needs; (3) food types, management, and records; and (4) nutritional amelioration or prevention of space-related physiological and behavioral changes

Fluctuating loops and glassy dynamics of a pinned line in two dimensions

We represent the slow, glassy equilibrium dynamics of a line in a two-dimensional random potential landscape as driven by an array of asymptotically independent two-state systems, or loops, fluctuating on all length scales. The assumption of independence enables a fairly complete analytic description. We obtain good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations when the free energy barriers separating the two sides of a loop of size L are drawn from a distribution whose width and mean scale as L^(1/3), in agreement with recent results for scaling of such barriers.Comment: 11 pages, 4 Postscript figure

Summary of flight tests of an airborne lighting locator system and comparison with ground-based measurements of precipitation and turbulence

Data from an airborne lightning locator system and data relating to storm intensity obtained by ground-based Doppler radars and the S-band research radar are presented. When comparing lightning locations from the airborne lightning locator system with ground-based Doppler radar measurements of reflectivity and spectrum width, the lightning locations tended to be further from the aircraft position than the Doppler radar contours, but at the same relative bearing from the aircraft as the Doppler contours. The results also show that convective storms generate little or no lightning for a significant part of their life cycle, but can produce at least moderate turbulence. Therefore, it is concluded that a lack of lightning activity cannot be accepted as an inference of a corresponding lack of other hazards to the flight of aircraft through convective storms

Flight and wind-tunnel correlation of boundary-layer transition on the AEDC transition cone

Transition and fluctuating surface pressure data were acquired on a 10 deg included angle cone, using the same instrumentation and technique over a wide range of Mach and Reynolds numbers in 23 wind tunnels and in flight. Transition was detected with a traversing pitot-pressure probe in contact with the surface. The surface pressure fluctuations were measured with microphones set flush in the cone surface. Good correlation of end of transition Reynolds number RE(T) was obtained between data from the lower disturbance wind tunnels and flight up to a boundary layer edge Mach number, M(e) = 1.2. Above M(e) = 1.2, however, this correlation deteriorates, with the flight Re(T) being 25 to 30% higher than the wind tunnel Re(T) at M(e) = 1.6. The end of transition Reynolds number correlated within + or - 20% with the surface pressure fluctuations, according to the equation used. Broad peaks in the power spectral density distributions indicated that Tollmien-Schlichting waves were the probable cause of transition in flight and in some of the wind tunnels

Thunderstorm hazards flight research: Storm hazards 1980 overview

A highly instrumented NASA F-106B aircraft, modified for the storm hazards mission and protected against direct lightning strikes, was used in conjunction with various ground based radar and lightning measurement systems to collect data during thunderstorm penetration flights. During 69 thunderstorm penetrations, there were 10 direct lightning strikes to the aircraft. No problems were encountered with any of the aircraft's systems as a result of the strikes and the research instrumentation performed as designed. Electromagnetic characteristics of nine strikes were recorded, and the results of other experiments confirm the theory that X-ray radiation and nitrous oxide gas are being produced by processes associated directly with thunderstorm electric fields and lightning discharges. A better understanding of aircraft lightning attachment mechanisms and strike zones is being accomplished by careful inspection, identification, and documentation of lightning attachment points and swept stroke paths following each strike to the aircraft

Flight investigation of the VFR and IFR landing approach characteristics and terminal area airspace requirements for a light STOL airplane

A flight research program was conducted to determine the terminal area instrument flight capabilities of a light STOL airplane. Simulated (hooded) instrument landing approaches were made using steep single-segment and two-segment glide slopes. A brief investigation was also made of the visual flight terminal area capabilities of the aircraft. The results indicated that the airplane could be flown on a 7 deg glide-slope ILS-type approach in still air with an adequate 3 deg margin for downward correction

The application of the global isomorphism to the surface tension of the liquid-vapor interface of the Lennard-Jones fluids

In this communication we show that the surface tension of the real fluids of the Lennard-Jones type can be obtained from the surface tension of the lattice gas (Ising model) on the basis of the global isomorphism approach developed earlier for the bulk properties.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figure