Multimodal freight transportation: sustainability challenges

Due to globalization in trade, the development of multimodal cargo shipments and the related transport needs have created a range of challenges. Interestingly, sustainability of multimodal freight transportation is still subject to minor consideration, on the grounds that economic interests are frequently positioned much higher than social or environmental objectives. This proposed research plan is needed to assess whether and to what extent the multimodal freight system is achieving the results in the sustainability dimensions: economic, social and environmental. Thus, it will carry out a critical appraisal of the multimodal freight transportation sector to provide an up-to-date knowledge on the sustainability challenges and the potential solutions through doctoral research. This paper structured to present a review of existing literature on freight transportation and multimodal freight transport highlighting the sustainability concerns with multimodal freight transport systems. It also highlights the gaps in knowledge with a justification on the need to address these gaps for the system to function optimally. It also covers the methodology that would be applied and the sources of data that would be reviewed to ensure the aim and objectives are clearly addressed. The paper concludes by discussing the significance of the expected findings in the light of sustainability in multimodal freight transport to the academia, policy makers and the freight transportation industry

Problem based learning application to teach IT skills to prospective teachers in a faculty of education

To be able to go in parallel with the development of IT we must apply it first to the educational community. The important players of two sites of this community - teachers and learners - must be equipped with IT literacy as soon as possible; especially students at Colleges of Education are more important than others because today's students are educators of the future. As the use of IT receives wider acceptance in education, computer anxiety remains to be challenging concern. Beyond any doubt, teachers need to have necessary training and support to properly integrate computers into their practices: The attitudes of teachers can be influenced and changed positively during their training. Therefore, new teaching and learning environments (such as Rich Environments for Active Learning-REALs) that increase students activity in educational process and reduce computer anxiety even during their training in the universities should be designed and this would help them integrate new technology into their profession. At the government schools and universities in Turkey, technological facilities and manpower are not enough to create flexible environments for active learning. So, if we can motivate students to learn through Problem Based Learning (PBL) method, it will be easier to create a REAL and to promote from conventional learning to active learning. Problem Based Learning (PBL) is considered to be one of the best examples of a constructivist learning environment. PBL has been among the curricular innovations most discussed in higher education over the last 30 years. This paper presents a case study of application of PBL method in order to create a REAL in a basic IT course given to second grade students at the Faculty of Education in Istanbul University

Study to install an information system at the University of the Istanbul Astronomy and Space Sciences Department

University of Istanbul Astronomy and Space Sciences Department's current computing system which no longer adequately meets the needs of its users-astronomers-has to be re-designed to operate like an Information System. Other major factors that have convinced us to design a new system were the establishment of the National Observatory of Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkey and an urgent need for on-site scientific data analysis systems. Installation of an Information System started with Initial Investigation and Feasibility Study phases. The needs of users, the scope of the problem, the priority assigned to the project and the resources needed to modify the existing system were accurately estimated through a number of questionnaires. The major modification made was increasing the computing power of the system with two new workstations: DEC Alpha and HP PW. The General and Detailed Design phases determined the technical design of the system. The system is now in its implementation phase

UBV photometry of the massive eclipsing binary TT Aur

UBV observations of the massive binary system TT Aur were carried out mainly at the Turkish National Observatory (TUG). These observations, together with IUE spectra and times of eclipse minima collected from the literature, were used to study the system parameters

Kidney allocation expert system with case-based reasoning

Experts in fields of organ transplantation have to make crucial decisions based on medical, social, moral and ethical factors. The paper describes the kidney allocation expert system KARES-CBR. Our system consists of two main components. Traditional expert system part uses rule-based knowledge. These rules contain general medical knowledge, such as blood group and antigens matching rules. Another group of rules contains decision making rules related to social and ethical information about organ transplantation. After decision making, the expert system component generates the list of medically suitable patients for the transplantation of an available organ

Objectives of the Georgian-Turkish joint group at solar eclipse in Elazig

Georgian and Turkish colleagues have started a collaborative work for the last total solar eclipse of the millennium. In this expedition we intend to carry out six experiments associated with white light corona, coronal polarization, ionic corona, chromospheric flash spectrum, solar diameter measurements, and high resolution CCD imaging of coronal plumes. Here, we will present some general information concerning these experiments and their aims, while results of these observations will be given in a forthcoming paper