34,304 research outputs found
Concepts for the development of light-weight composite structures for rotor burst containment
A set of hypotheses is established as to what variables might control the design of a weight-efficient protective device. A particular experiment for evaluating the hypotheses and materials was designed. The design and methods for the analysis of results are described
Assessment of the NASA Flight Assurance Review Program
The NASA flight assurance review program to develop minimum standard guidelines for flight assurance reviews was assessed. Documents from NASA centers and NASA headquarters to determine current design review practices and procedures were evaluated. Six reviews were identified for the recommended minimum. The practices and procedures used at the different centers to incorporate the most effective ones into the minimum standard review guidelines were analyzed and guidelines for procedures, personnel and responsibilies, review items/data checklist, and feedback and closeout were defined. The six recommended reviews and the minimum standards guidelines developed for flight assurance reviews are presented. Observations and conclusions for further improving the NASA review and quality assurance process are outlined
Examining and contrasting the cognitive activities engaged in undergraduate research experiences and lab courses
While the positive outcomes of undergraduate research experiences (UREs) have
been extensively categorized, the mechanisms for those outcomes are less
understood. Through lightly structured focus group interviews, we have
extracted the cognitive tasks that students identify as engaging in during
their UREs. We also use their many comparative statements about their
coursework, especially lab courses, to evaluate their experimental
physics-related cognitive tasks in those environments. We find there are a
number of cognitive tasks consistently encountered in physics UREs that are
present in most experimental research. These are seldom encountered in lab or
lecture courses, with some notable exceptions. Having time to reflect and fix
or revise, and having a sense of autonomy, were both repeatedly cited as key
enablers of the benefits of UREs. We also identify tasks encountered in actual
experimental research that are not encountered in UREs. We use these findings
to identify opportunities for better integration of the cognitive tasks in UREs
and lab courses, as well as discussing the barriers that exist. This work
responds to extensive calls for science education to better develop students'
scientific skills and practices, as well as calls to expose more students to
scientific research.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figure
Overview of the Tevatron Collider Complex: Goals, Operations and Performance
For more than two decades the Tevatron proton-antiproton collider was the
centerpiece of the world's high energy physics program. The collider was
arguably one of the most complex research instruments ever to reach the
operation stage and is widely recognized for numerous physics discoveries and
for many technological breakthroughs. In this article we outline the historical
background that led to the construction of the Tevatron Collider, the strategy
applied to evolution of performance goals over the Tevatron's operational
history, and briefly describe operations of each accelerator in the chain and
achieved performance.Comment: Includes modifications suggested by reviewer
Toolboxes and handing students a hammer: The effects of cueing and instruction on getting students to think critically
Developing critical thinking skills is a common goal of an undergraduate
physics curriculum. How do students make sense of evidence and what do they do
with it? In this study, we evaluated students' critical thinking behaviors
through their written notebooks in an introductory physics laboratory course.
We compared student behaviors in the Structured Quantitative Inquiry Labs
(SQILabs) curriculum to a control group and evaluated the fragility of these
behaviors through procedural cueing. We found that the SQILabs were generally
effective at improving the quality of students' reasoning about data and making
decisions from data. These improvements in reasoning and sensemaking were
thwarted, however, by a procedural cue. We describe these changes in behavior
through the lens of epistemological frames and task orientation, invoked by the
instructional moves
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