A case study of effective practice in mathematics teaching and learning informed by Valsiner’s zone theory

The characteristics that typify an effective teacher of mathematics and the environments that support effective teaching practices have been a long-term focus of educational research. In this article we report on an aspect of a larger study that investigated ‘best practice’ in mathematics teaching and learning across all Australian states and territories. A case study from one Australian state was developed from data collected via classroom observations and semi-structured interviews with school leaders and teachers and analysed using Valsiner’s zone theory. A finding of the study is that ‘successful’ practice is strongly tied to school context and the cultural practices that have been developed by school leaders and teachers to optimise student learning opportunities. We illustrate such an alignment of school culture and practice through a vignette based on a case of one ‘successful’ school

High-temperature bearing-cage materials

Evaluation tests conducted at temperatures of 500 and 700 degrees F reveal that S-Monel and AISI M-1 steel are suitable as high temperature cage materials for precision bearings. The area of the wear scar in the cage pocket that developed during the test was used as the measure of wear

Heat-transfer thermal switch

Thermal switch maintains temperature of planetary lander, within definite range, by transferring heat. Switch produces relatively large stroke and force, uses minimum electrical power, is lightweight, is vapor pressure actuated, and withstands sterilization temperatures without damage

Cellular solid behaviour of liquid crystal colloids. 2. Mechanical properties

This paper presents the results of a rheological study of thermotropic nematic colloids aggregated into cellular structures. Small sterically stabilised PMMA particles dispersed in a liquid crystal matrix densely pack on cell interfaces, but reversibly mix with the matrix when the system is heated above Tni. We obtain a remarkably high elastic modulus, G'~10^5 Pa, which is a nearly linear function of particle concentration. A characteristic yield stress is required to disrupt the continuity of cellular structure and liquify the response. The colloid aggregation in a ``poor nematic'' MBBA has the same cellular morphology as in the ``good nematic'' 5CB, but the elastic strength is at least an order of magnitude lower. These findings are supported by theoretical arguments based on the high surface tension interfaces of a foam-like cellular system, taking into account the local melting of nematic liquid and the depletion locking of packed particles on interfaces.Comment: Latex 2e (EPJ style) EPS figures included (poor quality to comply with space limitations

High-temperature bearing lubricants

Synthetic paraffinic oil lubricates ball bearings at temperatures in the 600 degrees F range. The lubricant contains antiwear and antifoam additives, is thermally stable in the high temperature range, but requires protection from oxygen

Space shuttle exhaust cloud properties

A data base describing the properties of the exhaust cloud produced by the launch of the Space Transportation System and the acidic fallout observed after each of the first four launches was assembled from a series of ground and aircraft based measurements made during the launches of STS 2, 3, and 4. Additional data were obtained from ground-based measurements during firings of the 6.4 percent model of the Solid Rocket Booster at the Marshall Center. Analysis indicates that the acidic fallout is produced by atomization of the deluge water spray by the rocket exhaust on the pad followed by rapid scavening of hydrogen chloride gas aluminum oxide particles from the Solid Rocket Boosters. The atomized spray is carried aloft by updrafts created by the hot exhaust and deposited down wind. Aircraft measurements in the STS-3 ground cloud showed an insignificant number of ice nuclei. Although no measurements were made in the column cloud, the possibility of inadvertent weather modification caused by the interaction of ice nuclei with natural clouds appears remote

Rolling-element bearings: A review of the state of the art

Some of the research conducted which has brought rolling-element technology to its present state is discussed. Areas touched upon are material effects, processing variables, operating variables, design optimization, lubricant effects and lubrication methods. Finally, problem areas are discussed in relation to the present state-of-the-art and anticipated requirements

Advantages of ice crystal growth experiments in a low gravity environment

The effects of convective fluid motions and mechanical supports on ice crystal growth in experiments conducted on earth can be inferred from studies conducted in their absence in a low-gravity environment. Current experimental results indicate the effects may be significant

Theory of doped Mott insulators: duality between pairing and magnetism

By bosonizing the electronic t-J model exactly on any two-dimensional (2D) lattices, and integrating out the gauge fluctuations combined to slave particles beyond mean fields, we get a theory in terms of physical Cooper pair and spin condensates. In the sense of mutual Berry phase they turns out to be dual to each other. The mutual-duality is the missing key in the resonant-valance-bond idea\cite{rvb} to work as a paradigm of doped 2D Mott insulators. We argue that essential aspects of high-$T_c$ phenomenology find natural solutions in the theory. We also provide interesting predictions for systems on hexagonal lattices.Comment: 4 pages, no figures, Submitted to Phys. Rev. Let

Emergent Semiclassical Time in Quantum Gravity. Full Geometrodynamics and Minisuperspace Examples

I apply the preceding paper's semiclassical treatment to geometrodynamics. The analogy between the two papers is quite useful at the level of the quadratic constraints, while I document the differences between the two due to the underlying differences in their linear constraints. I provide a specific minisuperspace example for my emergent semiclassical time scheme and compare it with the hidden York time scheme. Overall, interesting connections are shown between Newtonian, Leibniz--Mach--Barbour, WKB and cosmic times, while the Euler and York hidden dilational times are argued to be somewhat different from these.Comment: References Update