Expenditure-based segmentation and visitor profiling at The Quays in Salford, UK

There is a substantial body of literature relating to tourism’s economic impact at the macro level, but less is known about tourist expenditure at a micro scale. This paper reports findings from a survey of day-visitor expenditure by category at The Quays in Salford, UK. Expenditure is influenced strongly by the visitor’s age, frequency of visitation and visit motivation. Heavy, medium and light expenditure segments and associated profiles are identified. ‘Heavy spenders’ are more likely to be female, in a family group and have shopping as the main motivation for the visit. The implications of the findings are discussed

Education and market development for renewable energy

Renewable energy technology is developing rapidly but there are still substantial social, economic and political barriers which are impeding its wider use. One of these is the perception that it is too expensive, and another is that it is unreliable. Other obstacles include vested interests of fossil fuel producers and traditional practices which favour the use of fossil fuels. The market for renewable energy systems is potentially enormous but it will not develop fully unless prejudice and ignorance about the technology are overcome. Education is a powerful agent of social change and it can contribute substantially to the development of the renewable energy industry. However this will require a substantial investment by companies and Governments in education programs aimed at developing the market and producing the expertise to deliver and maintain high quality renewable energy systems. Flexible, multilevel educational courseware is needed to train energy professionals and to raise consumer awareness. The Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Renewable Energy (ACRE) has recently been established to help develop an internationally competitive Australian renewable energy industry. Part of its task involves the development of educational programs for training engineers, scientists and policy makers in renewable energy technology. It also aims to stimulate demand through the provision of information to schools and the general community. This paper describes the approach, objectives and anticipated outcomes of ACRE's Education Program

Renewable energy education: An essential foundation for market development

Renewable energy technology is developing rapidly but there are still substantial social, economic and political barriers which are impeding its wider use. One of these is the perception that it is too expensive, and another is that it is unreliable. Other obstacles include vested interests and traditional practices which favour the use of fossil fuels. Education is a powerful agent of social change and it can contribute substantially to the development of the renewable energy industry. However this will require a substantial investment by companies and Governments in education programs aimed at producing the expertise to deliver and maintain high quality renewable energy systems. Flexible, multilevel educational courseware is urgently needed to train energy professionals and to raise consumer awareness. The Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Renewable Energy (ACRE) was established to help develop an internationally competitive Australian renewable energy industry. Part of its task involves the development of educational programs for training engineers, scientists and policy makers in renewable energy technology. It also aims to develop the market through the provision of information to schools and the general community. This paper describes the approach, objectives and anticipated outcomes of ACRE’s Education Program

Just hot air?: Teaching about the Greenhouse Effect

The Australian Cooperative Research Centre for Renewable Energy (ACRE) was established by the Commonwealth Government to promote renewable energy and greenhouse gas abatement technologies. As well as research and development programs aimed at realising their widespread implementation ACRE sees itself as having an important role in the communication of information about these technologies to the public and school students. This paper looks at the “Just Hot Air?” program of activities which has been developed and trialed by the School and Community Education project within ACRE to help teachers teach, and students learn, about the Greenhouse Effect

Innovative renewable energy education using the World Wide Web

The World Wide Web is a powerful tool for education. Educators can, with the touch of a few keystrokes, have access to contemporary information and materials to assist them in the teaching and learning process. Yet many teachers find the world wide web a daunting maze full of dead ends and unrealised opportunities despite the best efforts of search engines to locate the most appropriate sites. Most teachers do not have the skills or the time to view and evaluate even a small fraction of the results from search engines, let alone adapt these materials so that they are suitable for classes which they teach. The situation is often worse for school children searching for materials for school projects and science fairs or information to help them with their homework. The students are bombarded by the results of search engines, unaware of the reliability issues of the sites they visit and frustrated by highly technical jargon. To complicate matters further, the needs of teachers and students are rarely the same. Despite these substantial problems, there are many sites that are excellent sources of information and materials for teachers and students. Locating them is often more a case of good fortune than good planning in the selection of key words and phrases. A considerable effort has gone into creating sites to assist renewable energy educators and their students, but there is no overview available to guide beginners to the best sources. It is wasteful of time and resources for energy teachers and students to have to search the whole World Wide Web to find the best sources, although for advanced or esoteric subjects this may still be necessary. One possible solution to this problem is a one-stop shop for teachers and students. This could be single site with an index and links to major World Wide Web resources. The framework for this project already exists within ISES. WIRE, the Worldwide Information system for Renewable Energy could provide the host for this service to ISES members and users. This paper aims to discuss what makes some sites more useful than others and provides examples of the types of information and sites which are most suitable for both teachers and students seeking resources on renewable energy, energy efficiency and global warming. We will also discuss some simple guidelines and strategies, which could be used to create sites and resources, which are suitable for use by educators and students to assist the integration of the World Wide Web into the renewable energy classroom

Career aspirations and employment experience of physics students

Conflicting claims have been made recently about an alleged decline in physical science enrolments in Australian secondary schools, colleges and universities. In a previous paper (Jennings and Carras, 1979) we investigated these claims using Western Australian enrolment figures and found that there was no evidence of a decline in the numbers studying physical science in W .A. However high school enrolments in Biology have grown more rapidly than those in Physics and Chemistry. We attributed this to a number of factors including the perceived difficulty of physical science subjects and the wide range of optional courses now available to upper secondary students

Tertiary education in the Australian CRC for Renewable Energy - Renewable energy studies “on the ground” and “online”

The Australian Co-operative Research Centre for Renewable Energy (ACRE) through its postgraduate training and undergraduate studies projects is seeking to meet the increasing local and worldwide need for more tertiary trained scientists, engineers and policy makers with the knowledge and skills to develop and implement renewable and efficient energy systems and policies. It is doing this by developing a range of University courses in renewable energy technology, energy policy, energy efficiency and greenhouse issues. This includes coursework in several disciplines at the University undergraduate and postgraduate level as well as postgraduate research training with industry placements within ACRE. This paper will focus specifically on the approach and objectives of ACRE in relation to postgraduate training and undergraduate studies. It includes a description of the courses and research opportunities to be made available and the way these courses are to be offered. Examples are provided of the internationally focused, online (internet/CD ROM) based units Energy in Society, Energy Policy and Energy Systems which were developed and trialed this year

Intellectual development and performance in undergraduate physics

In this article we examine the intellectual development of a class of first year physics students at Murdoch University at the beginning of their course and attempt to relate their cognitive level to their performance in this physics course. We also assess the relationship between cognitive level and the difficulty students had in assimilating the course material

Limitations in the use of IR spectra for the determination of hydrogen concentration in a-Si: H films

Infra-red (IR) spectroscopy has been used to monitor hydrogen concentrations in hydrogenated amorphous silicon thin films. Wagging and. stretching modes were used with appropriate correction factors for film thickness and proportionality constants to convert between integrated absorption and hydrogen concentration. Two different types of IR spectra were observed even though in other respects the films appeared to be identical. The values of hydrogen concentration were calculated from wagging and stretching modes. These values are in agreement for one type of IR spectrum but are not the same for the other type. Possible reasons for observed differences are presented as well as a suggestion for an improved procedure which can give more reliable values of the hydrogen concentration

Physics enrolment trends in Australian Tertiary Educational Institutions from 1980 to 1987

This is the sixth survey in a series on enrolment trends in Physics in Australian Universities and Colleges of Advanced Education (CAE's) covering the period 1980 to 1987