An improved robust stabilization method for discrete-time fuzzy systems with time-varying delays

This note focuses on the robust stabilization of discrete-time fuzzy uncertain systems with time-varying delays under a delayed nonparallel distributed compensation scheme. The key idea is twofold: first, the linear matrix inequalities (LMI) proposed here are shown to generalize some previous similar results available in recent literature, and second, the design of control parameters is decoupled from the proposed fuzzy-basis dependent Lyapunov–Krasovskii functional (FBDLKF) by means of Finsler?s lemma. Finally, a numerical example is provided to illustrate the effectiveness of this method.     

Lay perceptions of collectives at the outbreak of the H1N1 epidemic: heroes, villains and victims

Lay perceptions of collectives (e.g., groups, organizations, countries) implicated in the 2009 H1N1 outbreak were studied. Collectives serve symbolic functions to help laypersons make sense of the uncertainty involved in a disease outbreak. We argue that lay representations are dramatized, featuring characters like heroes, villains and victims. In interviews conducted soon after the outbreak, 47 Swiss respondents discussed the risk posed by H1N1, its origins and effects, and protective measures. Countries were the most frequent collectives mentioned. Poor, underdeveloped countries were depicted as victims, albeit ambivalently, as they were viewed as partly responsible for their own plight. Experts (physicians, researchers) and political and health authorities were depicted as heroes. Two villains emerged: the media (viewed as fear mongering or as a puppet serving powerful interests) and private corporations (e.g., the pharmaceutical industry). Laypersons' framing of disease threat diverges substantially from official perspectives.     

Boundary crossing between higher education and the world of work: a case study in post-1994 Rwanda

Workplaces abound with knowledge that is different from the knowledge students gain at universities. Crossing the boundary from a university to a workplace can, therefore, be difficult for students. To compensate for the dearth of knowledge on how these issues play out in an African context, this study investigates how knowledge and experiences gained during academic studies were useful in the workplace by interviewing employers from sectors commonly open to university graduates and student representatives from all faculties at a Rwandan University. Open questionnaires were used to ascertain what kinds of changes might lead to more successful boundary crossing. The findings suggest that while domain-specific knowledge is an essential part of a university qualification, a stronger focus on generic skills is needed in order to help students cross the boundary and succeed in the workplace.     

Pushing Comfort Zones: Promoting Social Justice Through the Teaching of Aboriginal Canadian Literature

In this paper we highlight findings from a teacher inquiry group study designed to explore possibilities for teaching contemporary Canadian literature to promote issues of social justice in secondary classrooms. Drawing on Boler and Zembylas’s notion of a ‘pedagogy of discomfort’, our paper will focus on the experiences of two teachers in the group who, through the selection and teaching of two Aboriginal Canadian texts, moved away from well-established pedagogical practices. We explore the role of the inquiry group in supporting teachers in their attempts to problematize unquestioned assumptions and address the absences in their curricular practices and examine the potential of using Canadian literature to enhance students’ understanding of historical marginalizations and structural inequalities. In conclusion, we discuss the implications of our research for pre-service and in-service educators who face the challenges of teaching in increasingly diverse schools.     

Tora und Vernunft

Unter Verwendung neuen Quellenmaterials wird in ideen-und sozialgeschichtlicher Perspektive der Prozess bürgerlicher Modernisierung in der preu?ischen Judenschaft zur Zeit der Sp?taufkl?rung in Berlin beleuchtet. Im Zentrum der Darstellung stehen zun?chst die durch ?nderung des Rechtsstatus entstandene, neue ?konomische Elite als Tr?ger der jüdischen Aufkl?rung sowie Aspekte der um 1800 zu verzeichnenden S?kularisierungskrise. Sodann werden die zeitgen?ssischen ideologischen Auseinandersetzungen um die Interpretation der heiligen Schriften und die richtige Art der religi?sen Unterweisung umrissen, ferner die Akzentverschiebungen aufgezeigt, die jüdische Aufkl?rer hier im Sinne einer P?dagogisierung bewirkten. Dabei bezieht sich die Darstellung verschiedentlich auf den Schulkampf, der zwischen etwa 1780 und 1830 Schauplatz für und wider Modernisierung und S?kularisierung war.     

Better science through rhetoric: A new model and pilot program for training graduate student science writers

Graduate programs in the sciences offer minimal support for writing, yet there is an increasing need for scientists to engage with the public and policy makers. To address this need, the authors describe an innovative, cross-disciplinary, National Science Foundation (NSF)–funded training program in rhetoric and writing for science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) graduate students and faculty at the University of Rhode Island. The program offers a theory-driven, flexible, scalable model that could be adopted in a variety of institutional contexts.     

Writing expository essays from social studies texts: a self-regulated strategy development study

Reading and Writing - This study examined the effectiveness of Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) to improve students’ ability to write expository essays after reading social studies...     

History of Science in Physics Teaching

Science educators are increasingly using a historical approach to pedagogy as a way to enable students to understand the process of the construction of science in a more contextualized manner. Considering the meaning of context in a broader sense, this article has two objectives. First, it aims to explore how physics lessons using a Cultural History of Science approach allowed the development of activities that encouraged students to have discussions about science where their own socio-cultural context was considered, referring to Brazilian scientific production. Second, the article to investigate which understandings about scientific practices could be developed by students from in-class discussions inspired by the Cultural History of Science approach focusing on a historical and students’ own social contexts. The historical episode selected to be introduced in their physics lessons was the development of the Leiden jar in Europe, in the eighteenth century, focusing on the quotidian practices and habits that enabled the construction and use of this artifact. The lessons developed from the Cultural History approach seemed to allow the students to understand that science was developed by many different social actors, in sites that exceed the laboratory and by actions performed in various dimensions. The findings suggest that this approach in science teaching can be a strategy to historically contextualize the development of science while allowing students to reflect about the scientific production in their social context.