Evidence-Based Professional Development of Science Teachers in Two Countries

The focus of this collaborative research project of King?s College London, and the Weizmann Institute, Israel. project is on investigating the ways in which teachers can demonstrate accomplished teaching in a specific domain of science and on the teacher learning that is generated through continuing professional development programs (CPD) that lead towards such practice. The interest lies in what processes and inputs are required to help secondary school science teachers develop expertise in a specific aspect of science teaching. `It focuses on the design of the CPD programmes and examines the importance of an evidence-based approach through portfolioconstruction in which professional dialogue pathes the way for teacher learning. The set of papers highlight the need to set professional challenge while tailoring CPD to teachers? needs to create the environment in which teachers can advance and transform their practice. The cross-culture perspective added to the richness of the development and enabled the researchers to examine which aspects were fundamental to the design by considering similarities and differences between the domains

Optical properties of carbon nanofiber photonic crystals

Carbon nanofibers (CNF) are used as components of planar photonic crystals. Square and rectangular lattices and random patterns of vertically aligned CNF were fabricated and their properties studied using ellipsometry. We show that detailed information such as symmetry directions and the band structure of these novel materials can be extracted from considerations of the polarization state in the specular beam. The refractive index of the individual nanofibers was found to be n_CNF = 4.1.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figure

Weight gain and smoking: Perceptions and experiences of obese quitline participants

Background: Weight gain that commonly accompanies smoking cessation can undermine a person's attempt to quit and increase the risk for metabolic disorders. Research indicates that obese smokers have more weight concerns and gain more weight after quitting than non-obese smokers, yet little is known about possible reasons for these outcomes. We sought to gain an understanding of obese smokers' experiences of quitting and their attitudes and beliefs about the association between smoking and weight gain. Methods: In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with obese smokers who called a state tobacco quitline. Interviewers elicited discussion of obese smokers' thoughts about smoking, the effects of quitting on change in weight, challenges they faced with quitting, and how quitlines might better serve their needs. Results: Participants (n = 29) discussed their fear of gaining weight after quitting, their beliefs about smoking and their weight and significant experiences related to quitting. Participants' awareness of weight gain associated with quitting was based on prior experience or observation of others who quit. Most viewed cessation as their primary goal and discussed other challenges as being more important than their weight, such as managing stress or coping with a chronic health condition. Although weight gain was viewed as less important than quitting, many talked about changes they had made to mitigate the anticipated weight gain. Conclusions: Weight gain is a concern for obese smokers interested in quitting. Understanding the relative importance of body weight and other challenges related to smoking cessation can help tailor interventions for the specific group of smokers who are obese and interested in smoking cessation

Damage modelling: the current state and the latest progress on the development of creep damage constitutive equations for high Cr steels

This paper reviews the fundamentals of the development of creep damage constitutive equations for high Cr steels including (1) a concise summary of the characteristics of creep deformation and creep damage evolution and their dependence on the stress level and the importance of cavitation for the final fracture; (2) a critical review of the state of art of creep damage equation for high Cr steels; (3) some discussion and comments on the various approaches; (4) consideration and suggestion for future work. It emphasises the need for better understanding the nucleation, cavity growth and coalesces and the theory for coupling method between creep cavity damage and brittle fracture and generalisatio

Langtidsovervåking av miljøkvaliteten i kystområdene av Norge. Årsrapport 1996

Kystovervåkingsprogrammet skal gi en oversikt over miljøtilstanden m.h.t. næringssalter og effektene av disse på alge- og dyresamfunn fra svenskegrensen til Fedje. Utvikling over tid overvåkes innen fagdisiplinene hydrografi, hydrokjemi, planteplankton, bløtbunnsfauna og hardbunnsflora og -fauna. Året 1996 ble innledet med en kald vinter og vår. Vanntemperaturen i Skagerrak ned til ca. 25 m var i januar - februar kaldere enn gjennomsnittet for 1980-1990, mens samme periode i 1995 var uvanlig varm. Til forskjell fra 1995 var det ingen flom på kontinentet eller på Østlandet i 1996, og det resulterte i små tilførsler av næringssalter fra land. Sammenlignet med langtidsobservasjoner fra Arendalstasjonene (1980-90) var 1996 et år med lavere næringssaltkonsentrasjoner i de øvre vannmasser vinter og vår og for de løste næringssaltene også tildels sommeren og høsten. C/N-forholdet i stortare fra Sørlandskysten var meget høyt og kan indikere næringsbegrenset algevekst på Sørlandskysten sommeren 1996. Utbredelse og forekomst av fastsittende alger var generelt sett noe redusert i 1996 i forhold til 1995 og mer lik hva som ble funnet i 1993/94. Variasjonene kan sees i sammenheng med vinter/vår temperaturene. Fortsatt tilvekst av tareskog i Skagerrak gjør stasjonene mer homogene. Forekomst av organismer på bløt- og hardbunn viste en normal øst-vest gradient, med økende artsantall og diversitet mot vest. Bløtbunnsfaunaen viste ingen større endringer fra 1995 til 1996. For enkelte stasjoner ble det funnet en nedgang i individtall, mens det ble funnet en økning for andre stasjoner, uten at det er noen klar årsakssammenheng eller tendens i variasjonene

Protein crystals in adenovirus type 5-infected cells: requirements for intranuclear crystallogenesis, structural and functional analysis

Intranuclear crystalline inclusions have been observed in the nucleus of epithelial cells infected with Adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) at late steps of the virus life cycle. Using immuno-electron microscopy and confocal microscopy of cells infected with various Ad5 recombinants modified in their penton base or fiber domains, we found that these inclusions represented crystals of penton capsomers, the heteromeric capsid protein formed of penton base and fiber subunits. The occurrence of protein crystals within the nucleus of infected cells required the integrity of the fiber knob and part of the shaft domain. In the knob domain, the region overlapping residues 489–492 in the FG loop was found to be essential for crystal formation. In the shaft, a large deletion of repeats 4 to 16 had no detrimental effect on crystal inclusions, whereas deletion of repeats 8 to 21 abolished crystal formation without altering the level of fiber protein expression. This suggested a crucial role of the five penultimate repeats in the crystallisation process. Chimeric pentons made of Ad5 penton base and fiber domains from different serotypes were analyzed with respect to crystal formation. No crystal was found when fiber consisted of shaft (S) from Ad5 and knob (K) from Ad3 (heterotypic S5-K3 fiber), but occurred with homotypic S3K3 fiber. However, less regular crystals were observed with homotypic S35-K35 fiber. TB5, a monoclonal antibody directed against the Ad5 fiber knob was found by immunofluorescence microscopy to react with high efficiency with the intranuclear protein crystals in situ. Data obtained with Ad fiber mutants indicated that the absence of crystalline inclusions correlated with a lower infectivity and/or lower yields of virus progeny, suggesting that the protein crystals might be involved in virion assembly. Thus, we propose that TB5 staining of Ad-infected 293 cells can be used as a prognostic assay for the viability and productivity of fiber-modified Ad5 vectors

Obesity: should there be a law against it? Introduction to a symposium

The rapid rise in rates of overweight and obesity among adults and children in Australia and New Zealand has intensified debate about the most effective policies for obesity prevention. Law has much to contribute to this policy discussion, although its role is often misunderstood. The articles in this symposium follow on from a conference hosted in September 2006 by the Centre for Health Governance, Law & Ethics in the Faculty of Law, University of Sydney, titled: Obesity: should there be a law against it? In different ways, these articles provide a variety of perspectives on regulatory responses to obesity, including theoretical justifications for a legal approach, conceptual models that assist in making sense of law's role, as well as specific legal strategies for obesity prevention in various settings