The role of empathy for learning in complex Science|Environment|Health contexts

This is the final version. Available on open access from Taylor & Francis via the DOI in this recordRecent research on motivation to learn science shows that science teaching usually supports students’ systemising, but not their empathising cognition. In this paper we argue that empathy, with due caution, should be emphasised in science learning more seriously and consistently, particularly in a Science|Environment|Health pedagogy that aims at fostering the mutual benefit between the three interlinked educational fields. After briefly recapitulating research results about the empathising-systemising (E-S) theory and motivation to learn science, the paper describes the science of empathy and then reflects on the opportunities and challenges of introducing empathy into science teaching. Many studies of effective science learning can be found that involve empathising, though this usually is not made explicit. Thus, bringing empathy into play sheds another light on successful science learning and helps in unfolding its full potential. Moreover, considerations about the role of values in science education entail the insight that, when it comes to complex socio-scientific issues, including empathy is not only useful, but actually vital. The concept of reflective equilibrium, taken from applied ethics, provides a framework for the consideration of both systematic and empathic aspects in science teaching. This undervalued approach promises to involve all students and is therefore a genuine science for all approach

Circadian methane oxidation in the root zone of rice plants

In the root zone of rice plants aerobic methanotrophic bacteria catalyze the oxidation of CH4 to CO2, thereby reducing CH4 emissions from paddy soils to the atmosphere. However, methods for in situ quantification of microbial processes in paddy soils are scarce. Here we adapted the push-pull tracer-test (PPT) method to quantify CH4 oxidation in the root zone of potted rice plants. During a PPT, a test solution containing CH4±O2 as reactant(s), Cl− and Ar as nonreactive tracers, and BES as an inhibitor of CH4 production was injected into the root zone at different times throughout the circadian cycle (daytime, early nighttime, late nighttime). After a 2-h incubation phase, the test solution/pore-water mixture was extracted from the same location and rates of CH4 oxidation were calculated from the ratio of measured reactant and nonreactive tracer concentrations. In separate rice pots, O2 concentrations in the vicinity of rice roots were measured throughout the circadian cycle using a fiber-optic sensor. Results indicated highly variable CH4 oxidation rates following a circadian pattern. Mean rates at daytime and early nighttime varied from 62 up to 451μmoll−1h−1, whereas at late nighttime CH4 oxidation rates were low, ranging from 13 to 37μmol l−1h−1. Similarly, daytime O2 concentration in the vicinity of rice roots increased to up to 250% air saturation, while nighttime O2 concentration dropped to below detection (<0.15% air saturation). Our results suggest a functional link between root-zone CH4 oxidation and photosynthetic O2 suppl

Variation in Microbial Community Composition and Culturability in the Rhizosphere of Leucanthemopsis alpina (L.) Heywood and Adjacent Bare Soil Along an Alpine Chronosequence

We compared the size, culturability, diversity, and dominant species similarity of the bacterial communities of Leucanthemopsis alpina (L.) Heywood rhizosphere and adjacent bare soil (interspace) along a chronosequence of soil development time (5, 50, and 70years) in the forefield of the Dammaglacier (Switzerland). We found no evidence that the size of the bacterial community was significantly affected by either soil age or the presence of L. alpina. In contrast, the proportion of the bacterial community that could be cultured on nonselective agars, and which was taken as an indication of the proportion of r-selected populations, was significantly higher in the 50- and 70-year-old soils than in the 5-year-old soil, and was also significantly higher in the rhizosphere of L. alpina at all time points. RDA indicated significant correlations between the increased culturability of the bacterial community over time and increasing concentrations of labile N, and between the increased culturability in the rhizosphere and increased concentrations of labile C and N. HaeIII-amplified ribosomal DNA (rDNA) restriction analysis of a library of 120 clones of 16S rDNA revealed 85 distinct phylotypes. Hurlbert's probability of interspecific encounter (PIE) values derived from this library ranged from 0.95 to 1.0, indicating a very high genetic diversity. There was no significant difference in the PIE values of rhizosphere and interspace communities. Detrended correspondence analysis (DCA) of 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) community profiles clearly distinguished the rhizosphere from the interspace community in the 5-year-old soils and also clearly distinguished between these communities and the rhizosphere and interspace communities of the 50- and 70-year-old soils. However, 16S rRNA DGGE revealed little difference between rhizosphere and interspace communities in the 50- and 70-year-old soils. The relative similarity of the 16S rRNA profiles strongly reflected labile carbon and nitrogen availability. Overall, our results suggest that improved C and N availability in the rhizosphere of L. alpina increases the size of r-selected bacterial species populations, but that the influence of L. alpina depends on soil age, being maximal in the youngest soils and minimal in the oldest. The reduced influence of L. alpina in the older soils may reflect a feedback between improved nutrient availability and reduced rhizodepositio

situ assessment of microbial sulfate reduction in a petroleum-contaminated aquifer using push-pull tests and stable sulfur isotope analyses

Abstract Anaerobic microbial activities such as sulfate reduction are important for the degradation of Ž . petroleum hydrocarbons PHC in contaminated aquifers. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of single-well push-pull tests in combination with stable sulfur isotope analyses for the in situ quantification of microbial sulfate reduction. A series of push-pull tests Ž was performed in an existing monitoring well of a PHC-contaminated aquifer in Studen Switzer-. land . Sulfate transport behavior was evaluated in a first test. In three subsequent tests, we injected Ž . Ž y . anoxic test solutions up to 1000 l , which contained 0.5 mM bromide Br as conservative tracer Ž 2y . and 1 mM sulfate SO as reactant. Ž . PII: S 0 1 6 9 -7 7 2 2 0 1 0 0 1 2 8 -0 Schroth et al.r Journal of Contaminant Hydrology 51 2001 179-195 180 analyses proved useful for the in situ quantification of microbial sulfate reduction in a PHC-contaminated aquifer.