Critical media education : youth media production as a space of creativity for lifelong learning

This thesis is a theoretically based critical analysis that aims to explore the effects of media on young people and provide a deeper understanding of the processes of media education associated with critical thinking, creativity, and identity formation through active engagement of youth in digital media production. This critical analysis is informed by the insights from critical social theory (including Frankfurt School’s critical theory and postmodernist thought), and a Whiteheadian perspective in process philosophy for lifelong learning. This research explores the argument towards different views from different assumptions about media effects on young viewers and alternative approaches to media education. This thesis offers a basis upon which to synthesize positive insights from all current media pedagogical approaches into a more cohesive, critical, exploratory, and creative practices of media education. It can potentially offer possibilities in developing critical thinking, critical creativity, and a sense of fulfillment for lifelong learning. The synthesis of this thesis is towards rethinking the creativity as having a vital role in lifelong learning through the creative process of youth media production

Non-Pilot Protection of the Inverter-Dominated AC Microgrid

The main objective of this research is to develop reliable non-pilot protection and control strategies for the inverter-dominated microgrid. First, an improved Proportional-Derivative (PD) droop control strategy is proposed for enhanced disturbance response of the inverter-dominated AC microgrid. The proposed strategy significantly improves microgrid dynamic response and stability without requiring communication between distributed energy resources. Moreover, the impacts of large startup currents of induction motors on the stability and power quality of the inverter-dominated microgrid are investigates and recommendations for minimizing the associated adverse effects are made. Subsequently, a fast, selective, and reliable protection strategy for the inverter-dominated microgrid is introduced. The proposed protection strategy utilizes phase- and sequence-domain protective elements for reliable detection of symmetrical and asymmetrical faults without the need for communication signals or adaptive relays settings. The protection strategy is robust against the grid-connection mode of the microgrid and enables fuse protection of laterals. It can also be implemented on the existing commercially available relays. The acceptable performance of the proposed protection and control strategies is verified through numerous fault studies conducted on a realistic study system in the PSCAD/EMTDC software environment. Additionally, the proposed protection strategy is implemented in a SEL-351 relay and evaluated using the SEL-AMS industrial relay testing platform

Teachers’ Perspectives on Media Educational Practices in Elementary School Classrooms

This thesis reports on a qualitative case study that explores the perceptions of seven elementary school teachers on the concept of media educational practices in the classroom. This study explores the opinions of selected elementary school teachers concerning media educational practices in the elementary classrooms. These perspectives may assist learners to explore their self-identities, develop critical thinking, express and practice creativity, represent their social position, and foster critical consciousness. The study participants included seven elementary school teachers who have adopted various modes of media educational practices in their teaching praxis utilizing technology and their conceptualizations of media education. One primary research question was addressed: What are elementary school teachers’ understandings of critical media education in the classroom? Three sub-questions have been used to inform the primary research question in three categories of contexts, processes, and outcomes. Through data collected by a semi-structured interviewing method, this study describes and analyzes personal teaching experiences of elementary teachers to provide a deeper understanding of the context of media education, the instructional process for developing critical thinking and creative expression, and the criteria for measuring competencies in media education outcomes. This research highlights teachers’ perspectives on the successes and challenges associated with their efforts to implement media literacy into school curricula; and on the importance of cross-curricular integration of media educational practices in elementary classrooms. The findings of this study provide insights into the importance of cross-curricular integration of media educational practices associated with critical thinking and creative expressions in elementary classrooms. These practices play a significant role for both students and teachers in becoming change agents in a dynamic teaching and learning environment that promotes critical thinking, creativity, and positive transformation for self and community

Assessing the transfer of video game play versus attention training using 3D-Multiple Object Tracking

Durant la dernière décennie, la recherche sur les jeux vidéo et leur implication sur les habiletés perceptivo-cognitives a gagné en intérêt. Plusieurs études ont démontré que les jeux vidéo (particulièrement les jeux d’action) possèdent la capacité d’influencer et d’améliorer différentes aptitudes perceptives et cognitives telles que l’attention visuo-spatiale, la vitesse de traitement de l’information, la mémoire visuelle à court terme ainsi que la poursuite d’objets en mouvement. Cependant, plusieurs autres études n’ont pas réussi à reproduire les mêmes résultats. D’un autre côté, un nouveau type d’entraînement perceptivo-cognitif, nommé 3-Dimensional Multiple-Object Tracking (3D-MOT), et qui consiste à traiter des scènes visuelles dynamiques dénuées de contexte, a démontré son implication sur différents types d’attention, la mémoire de travail ainsi que la vitesse de traitement de l’information. L’étude actuelle a examiné quatre groupes de joueurs inexpérimentés qui s’entrainaient durant 10 séances à l’aide d’un exercice perceptivo-cognitif (3D-MOT), ou d’un jeu de haut niveau visuel (jeu vidéo d’action : Call of Duty), de bas niveau visuel (Tetris) ou d’un jeu non-visuel (Sudoku). Des mesures d’électroencéphalographie quantitative et des tests neuropsychologiques effectués avant et après l’entraînement ont démontré que le 3D-MOT, par comparaison aux autres jeux testés, améliorait de façon plus efficace les fonctions reliées à l’attention, la mémoire de travail ainsi que la vitesse de traitement de l’information. Pour la première fois, cette étude démontre que l’entraînement non-contextuel de 3D-MOT améliore les habiletés perceptivo-cognitives plus efficacement que l’entraînement à des jeux de divertissement tels que les jeux vidéo.In the past decade, research on video games and their implications on cognitive abilities have gained significant interest. Various studies suggest that video games (in particular action video games) have the inherent ability to influence and improve attentional abilities such as visual spatial attention, processing speed, visual short-term memory and multiple-object tracking. However, many other studies have been unable to replicate similar results. On the other hand, a recent cognitive enhancement tool that is visually dynamic and void of context called 3-Dimensional Multiple-Object tracking (3D-MOT), has demonstrated robust effects on cognitive-perceptual abilities such as divided, selective, and sustained attention as well as working memory and information processing speed. The current study examines four groups of non-video game players that train for 10 sessions on the cognitive enhancing technique (3D-MOT) or on one of three different visually stimulating games: highly visually stimulating game (Call of Duty), lowly visually stimulating game (Tetris), or non-visually stimulating puzzle (Sudoku). A battery of cognitive tests and quantitative electroencephalography preformed before and after training, demonstrated that training on 3D-MOT improved cognitive functions related to attention, working memory, and visual information processing compared to video games. For the first time, this study demonstrated that non-contextual training with 3D-MOT improves perceptual-cognitive abilities more efficiently than video game playing

Numerical Solution for Kawahara Equation by Using Spectral Methods

AbstractSome nonlinear wave equations are more difficult to investigate mathematically, as no general analytical method for their solutions exists. The Exponential Time Differencing (ETD) technique requires minimum stages to obtain the requiredaccurateness, which suggests an efficient technique relatingto computational duration thatensures remarkable stability characteristicsupon resolving nonlinear wave equations. This article solves the diagonal example of Kawahara equation via the ETD Runge-Kutta 4 technique. Implementation of this technique is proposed by short Matlab programs

Effect of shortening type on the rheological characteristics of cookie dough

The effect of four types of shortening including a commercially vegetable oil (as control), palm olein (PO), palm stearin (PS), and a blend of the latter two oils with rapeseed oil (BF) on the rheological properties of cookie dough was determined by using dynamic oscillatory measurement testing. All of the obtained dough treatments showed weak liquid viscoelastic behavior. Their storage (G) and loss (G) moduli were almost the same with a loss tangent (tan δ) value of about 1. G was greater than G in most of the measured frequency range. Both G and G were frequency dependent and decreased with increasing of frequency. Differing oil compositions were found to differently affect on the overall strength of the doughs. The control dough showed the lowest frequency dependence. At lower frequencies, PO dough had the same consistency as the control, but at higher frequencies, its interaction was reduced leading to a weaker system. PS and BF doughs had stronger systems with higher values of G and G at low frequencies; both showed a dramatic drop in the values of G and G at about 1 Hz. After this frequency, they showed similar rheological profile to the control. Baking test showed that the final quality of the baked products was significantly different in both appearance and internal texture

The Influence of Freeze-Thaw Cycles on CBR Values of Silty Soils Stabilized With Lime and Microsilica

The use of byproducts of industrial materials is one the most interesting areas in geotechnical engineering in recent years. Microsilica is one of these harmful byproducts that obtained from silicon or silicon alloy metal factories. On the other hand, silty soils are not considered as suitable soils due to their low strength characteristics. In this research, the effects of lime and microsilica on stabilization of silty bed soil of a region of Karaj railway are investigated and its efficiency as a subgrade material is evaluated. To determine the best combination of the stabilizer, various contents of lime and microsilica are mixed with the soil at the optimum moisture content. Then CBR tests have been conducted on the stabilized samples after 28 days of curing time in saturated condition. For next stage, the content which is the optimum CBR value (from an economic and resistant viewpoint) has been chosen. The sample stabilized with 5% lime and 12% microsilica was indicated the maximum CBR values. Additionally, in order to observe the influence of freeze- thaw cycles on CBR values of stabilized soil, several specimens, rebuilt in similar condition. After that, the samples are exposed to freezing- thawing cycles and results are compared. Results show a reduction in CBR values by freezing- thawing cycles; but almost 90 percent of this reduction was occurred in the first cycle and there were no significant decrease happened on the CBR values of the next cycles

Earthquake risk modeling for the evaluation of losses to property owners in the metropolitan area of Shiraz

Natural disasters can cause huge human and economic losses, and subsequent operation efforts in disaster relief, recovery and construction by the government, the private sector stakeholders as well as international donors can significantly drain their resources from other non-disaster related pre-planned investments. As a consequence, there is now a paradigm shift for dealing with extremes from after the event approaches to more pro-active ones, the later one including risk reduction and risk financing options. However, reliable and quantitative up-to-date estimation of the underlying risks is of outmost importance towards developing effective risk management strategies as well as risk reduction activities. This is even more so the case for countries that are highly exposed to natural hazards, such as earthquake risk in Iran. This paper focuses on earthquake risk for Shiraz, the 4th largest city in Iran located in a high seismic active hazard zone with high socio-economic and historical importance for the country. It is for the first time that such an assessment for the region is performed and therefore the results should shed some light on potential risks with a probability based setting which could guide current earthquake related policy processes in the region. A catastrophe modeling approach is adopted to assess risk and a detailed analysis of potential economic losses as well as vulnerability assessments for assets within district 1 is performed. Via combining the hazard, exposure and vulnerability an Exceedance Probability (EP) curve for assets as well as human losses are constructed. The EP curve represents a powerful tool for the assessment of feasible risk reduction strategies as well as cost-benefit analysis for these strategies. An approach is suggested how this could be achieved within an integrative framework

Risk management strategies for managing natural disaster risks: A case study in Shiraz City, Iran

Almost all parts of Iran are seismic hazard prone areas and due to the low quality of constructions as well the increase of exposure in urban areas, recent earthquake events caused unacceptable huge losses, both in human and economic terms. To assess the resilience of various risk bearers, including the government as well as private sector entities, the resources to cope with potential future events as well as possible interdependencies during the occurrence have to be analyzed in detail. Furthermore, to pro-actively act against possible future extremes with risk hedging instruments such as insurance, the underlying risk has to be determined in quantitative manner. This paper suggest how to combine both, the coping dimension as well as the risk dimension, to determine possible risk management strategies which may be feasible in the Iranian context. The focus is specifically on risk instruments, such as insurance, for the Shiraz region in Iran, where the newly produced probabilistic loss estimates are available which are subsequently used to analyze possible insurance schemes and for determining corresponding premium payments as well as affordability. The paper discusses how such risk instruments can be embedded within an integrated framework and which additional options, such as risk reduction or risk pooling, would be beneficial to lower premiums to affordable levels