An uncommon case of relevance through everyday experiences

Physics education research has probed for the relevance of physics in students' everyday lives. Attitudinal and epistemological surveys have asked students if they think of or use physics in their daily lives. We have previously documented how it is uncommon that our life science students describe using or even seeing physics in their daily life (Nair, 2018). This result was unsurprising and aligns with previous scholarship of students majoring in disciplines outside of physics; we have argued that it is optimistic for scholars to expect students with disciplinary homes outside of physics to see their experiences through a lens of physics. Methodologically, we searched for a contrasting case (Sam). Sam is majoring in the life sciences and articulates moments where she uses physics to reason through everyday phenomena. We explore the ways in which courses can support students like Sam to find physics relevant to their everyday experiences.Comment: pre-prin

Response to the consultation ‘Regulating On-line Gambling in the EU: Recent Developments and Current Challenges from the Internal Market Standpoint'

This is a collaborative submission from a group of academics based in the UK with expertise in information technology law and related areas. The preparation of this response has been funded by the Information Technology Think Tank, which is supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and led by the SCRIPT/AHRC Centre for Research in Intellectual Property and Technology, University of Edinburgh. This response has been prepared by Abhilash Nair and Dinusha Mendis

Conservation genetics of endemic Indirana frogs of the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot

The Western Ghats-Sri Lanka biodiversity hotspot is one of the World s 34 recognized biodiversity hotspots. The current knowledge about amphibian fauna of the Western Ghats is limited, but this region is known to exhibit a high degree of diversity and endemism. Although many species of amphibians are yet to be described from India, about 40% of known amphibian species from this region are threatened by extinction. The Indirana frogs belong to an endemic family, Ranixalidae, and are comprised of ten known species. Studies of this Western Ghats amphibian group are rare, hence the evolutionary relationships, taxonomy and species-level diversity of Indirana frogs have remained unresolved. Furthermore, nothing is known about the extent of genetic variability and differentiation among local populations of a given species. Hence, there is a high degree of uncertainty about the taxonomic status (cf. cryptic species) and potential genetic problems that the Indirana populations are likely to be facing. This study focused on phylogenetic relationships and population genetics of Indirana frogs. Phylogenetic analyses clarified the evolutionary relationships among extant taxa and identified five new cryptic candidate species within the genus. For one of the taxa, Indirana beddomii, detailed population genetic analyses based on novel microsatellite markers represent the first phylogeographic analysis of amphibian differentiation in the Western Ghats. Apart from developing a large number of novel microsatellite loci for I. beddomii, cross-species amplification tests performed with eight other taxa should provide useful genetic tools for studies of other species in this genus. Finally, the first infectious disease (cf. Chytrid and Ranavirus infections) screening of Indian amphibians was performed using samples collected from the Western Ghats. In general, the results of the studies included in this thesis should provide useful information, guidelines and resources for amphibian conservation and biodiversity research in the Western Ghats.Länsi-Ghatsin ja Sri Lankan alueen biodiversiteettikeskittymä kuuluu maailman 34 lajirikkaimman, ja siten myös suojeluarvoltaan kenties tärkeimpien, alueiden merkitykselliseen joukkoon. Tietämyksemme alueen kotoperäisten lajien biologiasta ja monimuotoisuudesta on kuitenkin edelleen varsin puutteellista ja tämä koskee erityisesti sammakkoeläimiä. On kuitenkin arvioitu, että 40%:a Intian-niemimaalta tunnetuista sammakkoeläinlajeista uhkaisi sukupuutto. Länsi-Ghatsille kotoperäisten Indirana-sammakkosuvun 10 tunnettua lajia kuuluvat alueelle kotoperäiseen Ranixalidae-heimoon. Kaikkien suvun lajien biologia mukaan luettuna niiden evolutiiviset suhteet, taksonomia ja lajien todellinen monimuotoisuus - on edelleen selvittämättä. Sama koskee lajien geneettistä monimuotoisuutta ja paikallispopulaatioden erilaistumisen astetta. Tässä väitöskirjatutkimuksessa selvitin Länsi-Ghatsille kotoperäisen Indirana-sammakkosuvun lajistollista ja geneettistä monimuotoisuutta fylo- ja populaatiogeneettisiä menetelmiä soveltaen. Fylogeneettiset analyysit paljastivat viisi uutta kryptistä kandidaattilajia suvun sisällä ja selkeyttivät jo tunnettujen lajien evolutiivisia suhteita. Indirana beddomii -lajin mikrosatelliittimarkkereihin perustuva populaatiogeneettinen selvitys mikä oli myös ensimmäinen Länsi-Ghatsin sammakkoeläimillä koskaan tehty fylogeografinen analyysi antoivat tukea sille olettamukselle, että Länsi-Ghatsin vuoristoaluetta katkovat laaksot ovat olleet merkityksellisiä sammakkopopulaatioiden erilaistumista ja lajiutumista ohjaavina tekijöitä. I. beddomii -lajille kehittämiäni mikrosatelliittimarkkereita testattiin myös suvun kahdeksalla muulla lajilla: niiden osoitettiin tarjoavan työkaluja myös näiden lajien geneettisen monimuotoisuuden tutkimiseen. Väitöskirjaani sisältyy myös ensimmäinen Intian ja erityisesti Länsi-Ghatsin alueen sammakkoeläimille tehty tarttuvien tautien (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis- ja Ranavirus-tartunnat) seulonta. Väitöskirjassa esitettyjen tulosten ja tulkintojen voidaan odottaa tarjoavan hyödyllistä tietoa Länsi-Ghatsin alueen sammakkoeläinten suojelulle ja biodiversiteettitutkimukselle

Innovative Surveillance and Process Control in Water Resource Recovery Facilities

Water Resource Recovery Facilities (WRRF), previously known as Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTP), are getting increasingly complex, with the incorporation of sludge processing and resource recovery technologies. Along with maintaining a stringent effluent water quality standard, the focus is gradually shifting towards energy-efficient operations and recovery of resources. The new objectives of the WRRF demand an economically optimal operation of processes that are subjected to extreme variations in flowrate and composition at the influent. The application of online monitoring, process control, and automation in WRRF has already shown a steady increase in the past decade. However, the advanced model-based optimal control strategies, implemented in most process industries, are less common in WRRF. The complex nature of biological processes, the unavailability of simplified process models, and a lack of cost-effective surveillance infrastructure have often hindered the implementation of advanced control strategies in WRRF. The ambition of this research is to implement and validate cost-efficient monitoring alternatives and advanced control strategies for WRRF by fully utilizing the powerful Internet of Things (IoT) and data science tools. The first step towards implementing an advanced control strategy is to ensure the availability of surveillance infrastructure for monitoring nutrient compositions in WRRF processes. In Paper A, a soft sensor, based on Extended Kalman Filter, is developed for estimating water-quality parameters in a Sequential Batch MBBR process using reliable and inexpensive online sensors. The model used in the soft sensor combines the mechanistic understanding of the nutrient removal process with a statistical correlation between nutrient composition and easy-to-measure parameters. Paper B demonstrates the universality of the soft sensor through validation tests conducted in a Continuous Multistage MBBR pilot plant. The drift in soft-sensor estimation caused by a mismatch between the mathematical model and process behavior is studied in Paper B. The robustness of the soft sensor is assessed by observing estimated nutrient composition values for a period of three months. A systematic method to calibrate the measurement model and update model parameters using data from periodic lab measurements are discussed in Paper B. The term SCADA has been ubiquitous while mentioning online monitoring and control strategy deployment in WRRFs. The present digital world of affordable communication hardware, compact single board processors, and high computational power presents several options for remote monitoring and deployment of soft sensors. In Paper C, a cost-effective IoT strategy is developed by using an open-source programming language and inexpensive hardware. The functionalities of the IoT infrastructure are demonstrated by using it to deploy a soft sensor script in the ContinuousMultistage MBBR pilot plant. A cost-comparison between the commercially available alternatives presented in Paper A and the open-source IoT strategy in Paper B and Paper C highlights the benefits of the new monitoring infrastructure. Lack of reliable control models have often been the cause for the poor performance of advanced control strategies, such as Model Predictive Controls (MPC) when implemented to complex biological nutrient removal processes. Paper D attempts to overcome the inadequacies of the linear prediction model by combining a recursive model parameter estimator with the linear MPC. The new MPC variant, called the adaptive MPC (AMPC), reduces the dependency of MPC on the accuracy of its prediction model. The performance of the AMPC is compared with that of a linear MPC, nonlinear MPC, and the traditional proportional-integral cascade control through simulator-based evaluations conducted on the Benchmark Simulator platform(BSM2). The advantages of AMPC compared to its counterparts, in terms of reducing the aeration energy, curtailing the number of effluent ammonia violations, and the use of computational resources, are highlighted in Paper D. The complex interdependencies between different processes in a WRRF pose a significant challenge in defining constant reference points for WRRFs operations. A strategy that decides control outputs based on economic parameters rather than maintaining a fixed reference set-point is introduced in Paper E. The model-based control strategy presented in Paper D is further improved by including economic parameters in the MPC’s objective function. The control strategy known as Economic MPC (EMPC) is implemented for optimal dosage of magnesium hydroxide in a struvite recovery unit installed in a WRRF. A comparative study performed on the BSM2 platform demonstrates a significant improvement in overall profitability for the EMPC when compared to a constant or a feed-forward flow proportional control strategy. The resilience of the EMPC strategy to variations in the market price of struvite is also presented in Paper E. A combination of cost-effective monitoring infrastructure and advanced control strategies using advanced IoTs and data science tools have been documented to overcome some of the critical problems encountered in WRRFs. The overall improvement in process efficiency, reduction in operating costs, an increase in resource recovery, and a substantial reduction in the price of online monitoring infrastructure contribute to the overall aim of transitioning WRRFs to a self-sustaining facility capable of generating value-added products.Water Resource Recovery Facilities (WRRF), tidligere kjent som avløpsrenseanlegg (WWTP), blir stadig mer komplekse ettersom flere prosess steg tillegges anleggene i form av slambehandling og ressursgjenvinningsteknologi. Foruten hovedmålet om å imøtekomme strenge avløpsvannskvalitetskrav, har anleggenes fokus gradvis skiftet mot energieffektiv drift og gjenvinning av ressurser. Slike nye mål krever økonomisk optimal drift av prosesser som er utsatt for ekstreme variasjoner i volum og sammensetning av tilløp. Bruk av online overvåking, prosesskontroll og automatisering i WRRF har jevnt økt det siste tiåret. Likevel er avanserte modellbaserte kontrollstrategier for optimalisering ikke vanlig i WRRF, i motsetning til de fleste prosessindustrier. Komplekse forhold i biologiske prosesser, mangel på tilgang til pålitelige prosessmodeller og mangel på kostnadseffektiv overvåkingsinfrastruktur har ofte hindret implementeringen av avanserte kontrollstrategier i WRRF. Ambisjonen med denne avhandlingen er å implementere og validere kostnadseffektive overvåkingsalternativer og avanserte kontrollstrategier somutnytter kraftige Internet of Things (IoT) og datavitenskapelige verktøy i WRRF sammenheng. Det første steget mot implementering av en avansert kontrollstrategi er å sørge for tilgjengelighet av overvåkingsinfrastruktur for måling av næringsstoffer i WRRF-prosesser. Paper A demonstrerer en virtuell sensor basert på et utvidet Kalman filter, utviklet for å estimere vannkvalitetsparametere i en sekvensiell batch MBBR prosess ved hjelp av pålitelige og rimelige online sensorer. Modellen som brukes i den virtuelle sensoren kombinerer en mekanistisk forståelse av prosessen for fjerning av næringsstoffer fra avløpsvann med et statistisk sammenheng mellom næringsstoffsammensetning i avløpsvann og parametere som er enkle å måle. Paper B demonstrerer det universale bruksaspektet til den virtuelle sensoren gjennom valideringstester utført i et kontinuerlig flertrinns MBBR pilotanlegg. Feilene i sensorens estimering forårsaket av uoverensstemmelse mellom den matematiske modellen og prosesseatferden er undersøkt i Paper B. Robustheten til den virtuelle sensoren ble vurdert ved å observere estimerte næringssammensetningsverdier i en periode på tre måneder. En systematisk metode for å kalibrere målemodellen og oppdatere modellparametere ved hjelp av data fra periodiske laboratoriemålinger er diskutert i Paper B. Begrepet SCADA har alltid vært til stede når online overvåking og kontrollstrategi innen WRRF er nevnt. Den nåværende digitale verdenen med god tilgjengelighet av rimelig kommunikasjonsmaskinvare, kompakte enkeltkortprosessorer og høy beregningskraft presenterer flere muligheter for fjernovervåking og implementering av virtuelle sensorer. Paper C viser til utvikling av en kostnadseffektiv IoT-strategi ved hjelp av et programmeringsspråk med åpen kildekode og rimelig maskinvare. Funksjonalitetene i IoT-infrastruktur demonstreres gjennom implementering av et virtuelt sensorprogram i et kontinuerlig flertrinns MBBR pilotanlegg. En kostnadssammenligning mellom de kommersielt tilgjengelige alternativene som presenteres i Paper A og åpen kildekode-IoT-strategi i Paper B og Paper C fremhever fordelene med den nye overvåkingsinfrastrukturen. Mangel på pålitelige kontrollmodeller har ofte vært årsaken til svake resultater i avanserte kontrollstrategier, som for eksempel Model Predictive Control (MPC) når de implementeres i komplekse biologiske prosesser for fjerning av næringsstoffer. Paper D prøver å løse manglene i MPC ved å kombinere en rekursiv modellparameterestimator med lineær MPC. Den nye MPC-varianten, kalt Adaptiv MPC (AMPC), reduserer MPCs avhengighet av nøyaktigheten i prediksjonsmodellen. Ytelsen til AMPC sammenlignes med ytelsen til en lineær MPC, ikke-lineær MPC og tradisjonell proportionalintegral kaskadekontroll gjennom simulatorbaserte evalueringer utført på Benchmark Simulator plattformen (BSM2). Fordelene med AMPC sammenlignet med de andre kontrollstrategiene er fremhevet i Paper D og demonstreres i sammenheng redusering av energibruk ved lufting i luftebasseng, samt redusering i antall brudd på utslippskrav for ammoniakk og bruk av beregningsressurser. De komplekse avhengighetene mellom forskjellige prosesser i en WRRF utgjør en betydelig utfordring når man skal definere konstante referansepunkter for WRRF under drift. En strategi som bestemmer kontrollsignaler basert på økonomiske parametere i stedet for å opprettholde et fast referansesettpunkt introduseres i Paper E. Den modellbaserte kontrollstrategien fra PaperDforbedres ytterligere ved å inkludere økonomiske parametere iMPCs objektiv funksjon. Denne kontrollstrategien kalles Economic MPC (EMPC) og er implementert for optimal dosering av magnesiumhydroksid i en struvit utvinningsenhet installert i en WRRF. En sammenligningsstudie utført på BSM2 plattformen viste en betydelig forbedring i den totale lønnsomheten ved bruk av EMPC sammenlignet med en konstant eller en flow proportional kontrollstrategi. Robustheten til EMPC-strategien for variasjoner i markedsprisen på struvit er også demonstrert i Paper E. En kombinasjon av kostnadseffektiv overvåkingsinfrastruktur og avanserte kontrollstrategier ved hjelp av avansert IoT og datavitenskapelige verktøy er brukt for å løse flere kritiske utfordringer i WRRF. Den samlede forbedringen i prosesseffektivitet, reduksjon i operasjonskostnader, økt ressursgjenvinning og en betydelig reduksjon i pris for online overvåkningsinfrastruktur bidrar til det overordnede målet om å gå over til bærekraftige WRRF som er i stand til å generere verdiskapende produkter.DOSCON A

Exploring Mindset's Applicability to Students' Experiences with Challenge in Transformed College Physics Courses

The mindset literature is a longstanding area of psychological research focused on beliefs about intelligence, response to challenge, and goals for learning (Dweck, 2000). However, the mindset literature's applicability to the context of college physics has not been widely studied. In this paper we narrow our focus toward students' descriptions of their responses to challenge in college physics. We ask the research questions, "can we see responses to challenge in college physics that resemble that of the mindset literature?" and "how do students express evidence of challenge and to what extent is such evidence reflective of challenges found in the mindset literature?" To answer these questions, we developed a novel coding scheme for interview dialogue around college physics challenge and students' responses to it. In this paper we present the development process of our coding scheme. We find that it is possible to see student descriptions of challenge that resemble the mindset literature's characterizations. However, college physics challenges are frequently different than those studied in the mindset literature. We show that, in the landscape of college physics challenges, mindset beliefs cannot always be considered to be the dominant factor in how students respond to challenge. Broadly, our coding scheme helps the field move beyond broad Likert-scale survey measures of students' mindset beliefs

Feasibility study of trans-cranial Direct Current Stimulation in presence of Brain tumor

Trans-cranial Direct Current Stimulation has been shown to modulate cortical neuronal activity. Weak constant current is applied to the scalp using electrodes, leading to sub-threshold changes in neuronal membrane potential. Before actual clinical stimulation is performed, such systems are validated by simulating the stimulation and the resulting current flow patterns using finite element solvers. However, the reliability of such models depends upon the accuracy with which the underlying anatomy has been modeled [1]. In earlier studies it has been shown that the current flow patterns within the brain are altered due to the presence of lesioned brain tissues[2]. Here we present the first investigations of the use of tDCS in patients with brain tumors. We created a brain model from MRI scans of a patient who had a left hemisphere Glioblastoma Multiforme tumor, we modeled the resulting brain current flow and also compared the results across different tDCS modalities like conventional, HD-tDCS. Our results demonstrate the effect of tumor on the resulting current flow and the ability to modulate current pattern through the brain. However it is important to understand that tDCS is not being suggested as a treatment modality for brain tumors, but as a tool for management of the co-morbidities associated with brain tumors