3,252 research outputs found
Visual arguments and meta-arguments
Visual arguments—arguments that appeal to visual elements essentially—are legitimate arguments. To show this, I first consider what I call (perfect) fit arguments—arguments in which the recognition that items fit together suggests that they were once conjoined, perhaps originally. This form of argumentation is a type of abduction or inference to the best explanation (IBE). I then consider mathematical visual meta-arguments—arguments in which the validity or soundness of a mathematical argument is confirmed or refuted by appeal to diagrams
NanoRocks: Design and Performance of an Experiment Studying Planet Formation on the International Space Station
In an effort to better understand the early stages of planet formation, we
have developed a 1.5U payload that flew on the International Space Station
(ISS) in the NanoRacks NanoLab facility between September 2014 and March 2016.
This payload, named NanoRocks, ran a particle collision experiment under
long-term microgravity conditions. The objectives of the experiment were (a) to
observe collisions between mm-sized particles at relative velocities of
1~cm/s, and (b) to study the formation and disruption of particle clusters
for different particle types and collision velocities. Four types of particles
were used: mm-sized acrylic, glass, and copper beads, and 0.75 mm-sized JSC-1
lunar regolith simulant grains. The particles were placed in sample cells
carved out of an aluminum tray. This tray was attached to one side of the
payload casing with three springs. Every 60~s, the tray was agitated and the
resulting collisions between the particles in the sample cells were recorded by
the experiment camera.
During the 18 months the payload stayed on ISS, we obtained 158 videos, thus
recording a great number of collisions. The average particle velocities in the
sample cells after each shaking event were around 1 cm/s. After shaking
stopped, the inter-particle collisions damped the particle kinetic energy in
less than 20~s, reducing the average particle velocity to below 1 mm/s, and
eventually slowing them to below our detection threshold. As the particle
velocity decreased, we observed the transition from bouncing to sticking
collisions. We recorded the formation of particle clusters at the end of each
experiment run. This paper describes the design and performance of the
NanoRocks ISS payload.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figure
Personal learning preferences, perceptions, and multiple intelligence profiles : affect on educators\u27 attitudes about computer usage
The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between teachers\u27 learning preferences, self-perceptions of multiple intelligence profiles, and attitudes toward computer usage, including the incorporation of computer technology into their classrooms. Data for this survey were obtained from a population of teaching and administrative faculty from a small, Midwest, rural public school district. Access and education that results in higher levels of experience were found to be critical variables, in agreement with professional literature to date. These factors, however, did appear to influence personal learning preferences in some instances and the multiple intelligence profiles provided valuable insight into maximizing individual benefits of computer related instruction. Processes and conclusions are of particular interest to school district staff development personnel seeking to integrate contemporary adult education perspectives into computer technology education for district professionals
Washington Consumer Protection Act—Public Interest and the Private Litigant
Under Washington\u27s Consumer Protection Act, a private individual has standing to sue for unfair or deceptive business practices. The private litigant may not, however, use the Act as a vehicle to remedy those wrongs that impact only the private individual, because the Act\u27s declared purpose is to protect the public interest. The public interest requirement thus imposes a restriction on the otherwise liberal construction of the Act. The Washington Supreme Court has established two tests by which the public interest requirement may be met: (1) the per se test and (2) the Anhold v. Daniels test
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Using data visualization in creativity workshops: a new tool in the designer's kit
Creativity workshops have proved effective in drawing out unexpected requirements and giving form to participants' novel ideas. Here, we introduce a new addition to the workshop designer's toolkit: interactive data visualization, used as stimuli to prompt insight and inspire creativity. We first describe a pilot study in which we compare the effectiveness of two different styles of data visualization. Here we found that a less ambiguous style was more effective in supporting idea generation. Following this, we report a case study in which we employ data visualization within a service design workshop, where participants gain insights that are later realized in design ideas
First and second order magnetic and structural transitions in BaFeCoAs
We present here high resolution magnetization measurements on high-quality
BaFeCoAs, 0x0.046 as-grown single crystals.
The results confirm the existence of a magnetic tricritical point in the
(,) plane at x0.022 and reveal the emergence of the
heat capacity anomaly associated with the onset of the structural transition at
x0.0064. We show that the samples with doping near x
do not show superconductivity, but rather superconductivity emerges at a
slightly higher cobalt doping, x0.0315Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Structure determination of disordered materials from diffraction data
We show that the information gained in spectroscopic experiments regarding
the number and distribution of atomic environments can be used as a valuable
constraint in the refinement of the atomic-scale structures of nanostructured
or amorphous materials from pair distribution function (PDF) data. We
illustrate the effectiveness of this approach for three paradigmatic disordered
systems: molecular C60, a-Si, and a-SiO2 . Much improved atomistic models are
attained in each case without any a-priori assumptions regarding coordination
number or local geometry. We propose that this approach may form the basis for
a generalised methodology for structure "solution" from PDF data applicable to
network, nanostructured and molecular systems alike.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, set out as for PR
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