Integration of Service-Learning into Civil and Environmental Engineering Curriculum

Service-learning is defined as integrating the community service experience of students with their academic study so that learning is enhanced. The level of student participation in community service is at an all time high as students feel the need to confront today\u27s technical and societal problems. However, service-learning is more than community service or volunteerism. Service-learning as defined above, integrates the community service experience with the student’s academic study (note the hyphen in service-learning means that both are considered equal). This enhances learning which is a fundamental goal of colleges and universities. Boyer highlights the need for service-learning stating that At no time in our history has the need been greater for connecting the work of the academy to the social and environmental changes beyond the campus. Service-learning is a campus wide learning pedagogy including a range of disciplines and has been implemented at over 600 institutions; however, not as widely implemented in engineering and science. A noteworthy contribution in the engineering education, is the Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) program at Purdue University (http://epics.ecn.purdue.edu) that partners undergraduate students and local community not-for-profit organizations to solve engineering-based problems in the community

Involving Undergraduate and High School Students in Research: Opportunities, Challenges, and Rewards

Historically student involvement in research at Universities and Colleges has primarily revolved around those in graduate programs. However, the NSF’s Research Experience for Undergraduates program and ABET’s evaluation criteria regarding undergraduate participation in research are examples of efforts and initiatives over the last decade to target and include undergraduate students in research efforts. Going one step further would be including high school students in such efforts. This paper summarizes efforts, experiences, and initiatives over the last six years at the UNLV Transportation Research Center to include undergraduate and high school students in research projects and lessons learned from the same – including examples of potential benefits and concerns. The paper also addresses innovative strategies and opportunities to fund high school students participating in research activities during the summer break

Fano Interference in Microwave Resonator Measurements

Resonator measurements are a simple but powerful tool to characterize a material's microwave response. The losses of a resonant mode are quantified by its internal quality factor $Q_\mathrm{i}$, which can be extracted from the scattering coefficient in a microwave reflection or transmission measurement. Here we show that a systematic error on $Q_\mathrm{i}$ arises from Fano interference of the signal with a background path. Limited knowledge of the interfering paths in a given setup translates into a range of uncertainty for $Q_\mathrm{i}$, which increases with the coupling coefficient. We experimentally illustrate the relevance of Fano interference in typical microwave resonator measurements and the associated pitfalls encountered in extracting $Q_\mathrm{i}$. On the other hand, we also show how to characterize and utilize the Fano interference to eliminate the systematic error

Evaluating the Role of Micronutrients and Hormones in Cognitive Function: A Comparative Study in Children with Learning Disabilities Undergoing Speech Therapy

Children with learning difficulties have significant challenges, affecting their cognitive ability and general development. Recent studies have highlighted the importance of micronutrients and hormonal balances in determining cognitive ability. However, knowledge of the connection between these physiological markers and mental processes in children with learning impairments is still growing. Objectives: The main aim of this research was to assess the concentrations of essential micronutrients (specifically Vitamin D, C, B vitamins, Magnesium, and Zinc) as well as hormones (Thyroxine, Epinephrine, and Norepinephrine) in children who have been identified with learning difficulties. In addition, the research's objective was to compare the aforementioned biochemical levels with those of a control group with comparable age and sex characteristics. One of the study's primary objectives was to investigate the correlation between the aforementioned biochemical parameters and cognitive abilities, as assessed by the Language Proficiency Test (LPT) scores in children undergoing speech treatment. Materials and Methods: 160 children between the ages of 6 and 13 were enrolled in this comparative cross-sectional study, which was structured into control, pre-test, and post-test cohorts. A comprehensive biochemical analysis was gathered from anthropometric measurements, demographic data, and blood samples. The objective of this methodology was to offer a comprehensive comprehension of the possible biochemical elements that impact the cognitive development of children who have learning disabilities. Cognitive functions were assessed using the LPT. The data analysis was conducted using SPSS software, with one-way ANOVA and Pearson's correlation coefficient as principal statistical instruments. Results: The study unveiled significant variations in the concentrations of diverse micronutrients and hormones among the various categories. The control group generally exhibited elevated concentrations of zinc, magnesium, and vitamin D. Significant variability in Thyroxine and Catecholamine levels suggested distinct physiological conditions among the groups. Notably, the post-test group, which underwent speech therapy and received nutritional counseling, demonstrated enhanced scores on the LPT compared to the pre-test group. Conclusion: This study's findings highlight the significant influence of micronutrients and hormones on the cognitive functionality of children with learning disabilities. The positive association observed between improved levels of nutrients and higher LPT scores in the post-test group emphasizes the effectiveness of integrated therapeutic approaches. The study advocates for including nutritional and hormonal evaluations in managing learning disabilities, pointing towards the necessity of comprehensive and holistic treatment methodologies

How dynamic capabilities drive performance in the Indian IT industry : the role of information and co-ordination

This study examines key issues and effects of capability management on a fast-growing area of knowledge-intensive global business services &ndash; IT outsourcing and offshoring. An exploratory study is undertaken of Indian companies providing complex process-oriented offshore IT services to their global customers. The analysis of the data related to the service provider side shows that developing dynamic capabilities is strongly driven by management and top-clients and results in the development of business processes and in establishing a strategic partnership with the client organization. Key findings are that information exchange and coordination are the key to a leveraging firm performance.<br /

Specifying the design for customer learning in the mixed reality experience

Peer reviewe

Understanding fear of opportunism in global prize-based science contests: Evidence for gender and age differences

Global prize-based science contests have great potential for tapping into diverse knowledge on a global scale and overcoming important scientific challenges. A necessary step for knowledge to be utilized in these contests is for that knowledge to be disclosed. Knowledge disclosure, however, is paradoxical in nature: in order for the value of knowledge to be assessed, inventors must disclose their knowledge, but then the person who receives that knowledge does so at no cost and may use it opportunistically. This risk of potential opportunistic behavior in turn makes the inventor fearful of disclosing knowledge, and this is a major psychological barrier to knowledge disclosure. In this project, we investigated this fear of opportunism in global prize-based science contests by surveying 630 contest participants in the InnoCentive online platform for science contests. We found that participants in these science contests experience fear of opportunism to varying degrees, and that women and older participants have significantly less fear of disclosing their scientific knowledge. Our findings highlight the importance of taking differences in such fears into account when designing global prize-based contests so that the potential of the contests for reaching solutions to important and challenging problems can be used more effectively

Design thinking for pre-empting digital disruption

Digital disruption is the phenomenon when established businesses succumb to new business models that exploit emerging technologies. Futurists often make dire predictions when discussing the impact of digital disruption, for instance that 40% of the Fortune 500 companies will disappear within the next decade. The digital disruption phenomenon was already studied two decades ago when Clayton Christensen developed a Theory of Disruptive Innovation, which is a popular theory for describing and explaining disruption due to technology developments that had occurred in the past. However it is still problematic to understand what is necessary to avoid disruption, especially within the context of a sustainable society in the 21st century. A key aspect we identified is the behavior of non-mainstream customers of an emerging technology, which is difficult to predict, especially when an organization is operating in an existing solution space. In this position paper we propose complementing the Theory of Disruptive Innovation with design thinking in order to identify the performance attributes that encourage the unpredictable and unforeseen customer behavior that is a cause for disruption. We employ case-based scenario analysis of higher education as evaluation mechanism for our extended disruptive innovation theory. Our position is that a better understanding of the implicit and unpredictable customer behavior that cause disruption due to additional performance attributes (using design thinking) could assist organizations to pre-empt digital disruption and adapt to support the additional functionality.http://link.springer.combookseries/558hj2020Informatic