Experimental and Numerical Analysis of a Novel Display Case Design: Case Study of the Renovated Anne Frank House

ABSTRACT

Many museums are housed in historic buildings, sometimes the building itself is part of the museum collection. Creating a stable environment by providing a nearly constant temperature and relative humidity at correct levels decreases the risk of object degradation. Maintaining this steady indoor environment, however, increases energy consumption and risks to the historic building. Museum display cases offer a solution to the mitigation of risks to which valuable objects may be subjected by providing an extra layer of protection to indoor climate fluctuations. The Anne Frank House is a historic house museum located in Amsterdam. The museum has undergone several renovations in the last years to deal with an increase in the number of visitors to over 1.2 million a year. The original diaries and other documents of Anne Frank are permanently on display in the Anne Frank House. With the recent refurbishment the possibility arose to design a new state-of-the-art display case. This study presents the results of the experimental research related to the design, performed in-situ. The temperature and relative humidity in the new exhibition space and inside the new display cases were monitored to gain insight into the hygrothermal behavior of these controlled environments. A complementary numerical study was performed to investigate effects of dynamic climate control of the exhibition gallery and climate conditions in the display case under various circumstances. Four main conclusions are presented in this paper. The investigated display case design is able to provide a stable relative humidity environment by means of silica gel, while using an active box-in-box climate control system to create stable temperature conditions. The inner case temperature depends on the temperature supplied by the display case air handling unit. Protocols must be in place in case of malfunction or failure of the climate control system of the display case. The air handling unit of the case needs to be shut off to create a passive environment for the objects on display until necessary actions are taken. Exhibition gallery set points can be less stringent when susceptible museum objects are on display in the display case. The environments are separated and provide an opportunity for energy saving set point strategies. The last conclusion drawn is that the numerical study provides valuable insight into imposing dynamic control of set points for temperature and relative humidity in the exhibition gallery and the effect on the display case environment.     

The relations among child negative interactive behavior,child temperament,and maternal behavior

Negative behavior toward the mother during toddlerhood might be a marker of increased risk for maladjustment. The aim of the present study was to examine the possible antecedents of toddler boys’ negative behavior observed in interaction with the mother: child temperament, and maternal behavior toward the child. We studied the moderating and mediating role of two dimensions of maternal behavior, sensitivity and intrusiveness, in the relationship between children's temperamental traits (frustration, soothability and activity level), on the one hand, and child negative behavior, on the other hand. The sample consisted of 112 mother–son dyads observed when the child was 17 months old. A temperament questionnaire was completed by the mothers. Child negative interactive behavior, maternal sensitivity and intrusiveness were observed at home during a 13-min play session. Maternal sensitivity was negatively related to child negative interactive behavior regardless of child temperament. Maternal intrusiveness, however, moderated the relation between activity level and negative behavior, i.e., children with high activity level showed higher levels of negative behavior especially when the mother was highly intrusive. Furthermore, maternal intrusiveness acted as a mediator in the relation between soothability and negative behavior, i.e., low soothability was linked to higher maternal intrusiveness, which in turn was associated with higher negative behavior.     

Validity of Holland’s theory in adolescence: evidence from a Slovak sample

The underlying calculus assumption of Holland’s theory was tested in two samples of primary school students (N₁ = 400 and N₂ = 250) with an average age of 13.86 and 14.14 years, respectively. Both exploratory and confirmatory multidimensional scaling and Hubert and Arabie’s randomization test of hypothesized order relations were calculated. The circular spatial arrangement of RIASEC types was not confirmed in either of the two samples. The study discusses possible causes of the inappropriateness of using Holland’s model in an adolescent sample.

     

Implementation Effects of a Pre‐service Training Course for Secondary Education Teachers

A quasi‐experimental, treatment‐control group investigation was designed to test the effects of a pre‐service training course for secondary education teachers. Previous findings from teacher effects research and cognitive strategy instruction were translated into two direct instructional models: a model of executive acting directed at well‐structured skills and a model of strategic acting directed at higher‐level thinking strategies. Pre‐ and post‐training comparison of classroom observations by trained observers revealed significantly more effective instruction by the student teachers after training. No treatment effect was found for pupil engagement rates. The ratings from the supervising teachers did not show significantly better use of the recommended instructional skills by the trained student teachers than by the untrained student teachers.     

Change Management: A Classification

Higher education systems, like others, experience a proliferation of management approaches including tools designed to induce and manage change: strategic planning and reporting, planning and budgeting systems, peer review and self-evaluation, total quality management, reengineering, the art and practice of learning organisations, etc. While these approaches may differ in their specific focus and the type of professionals they address, they also have much in common and can complement each other. The present paper addresses the spectrum of change processes and proposes taxonomies to guide their use.     

Spatial abilities in an elective course of applied anatomy after a problem‐based learning curriculum

A concern on the level of anatomy knowledge reached after a problem‐based learning curriculum has been documented in the literature. Spatial anatomy, arguably the highest level in anatomy knowledge, has been related to spatial abilities. Our first objective was to test the hypothesis that residents are interested in a course of applied anatomy after a problem‐based learning curriculum. Our second objective was to test the hypothesis that the interest of residents is driven by innate higher spatial abilities. Fifty‐nine residents were invited to take an elective applied anatomy course in a prospective study. Spatial abilities were measured with a redrawn Vandenberg and Kuse Mental Rotations Test in two (MRT A) and three (MRT C) dimensions. A need for a greater knowledge in anatomy was expressed by 25 residents after a problem‐based learning curriculum. MRT A and C scores obtained by those choosing (n = 25) and not choosing (n = 34) applied anatomy was not different (P = 0.46 and P = 0.38, respectively). Percentage of residents in each residency program choosing applied anatomy was different [23 vs. 31 vs. 100 vs. 100% in Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Surgery, and Anesthesia, respectively; P < 0.0001]. The interest of residents in applied anatomy was not driven by innate higher spatial abilities. Our applied anatomy course was chosen by many residents because of training needs rather than innate spatial abilities. Future research will need to assess the relationship of individual differences in spatial abilities to learning spatial anatomy. Anat Sci Ed 2:107–112, 2009. © 2009 American Association of Anatomists.     

Performance Enhancement and Politicisation of High-Performance Sport: The West German ‘air clyster’ Affair of 1976

While the politicisation of high-performance sport is perceived to represent one of the driving forces behind doping, we know not much how exactly the cold war in sports has affected sporting misconduct in western societies. Therefore, we propose here to distinguish between ideological and institutional politicisation and explicit and implicit acceptance of dubious practices. We apply our framework to analyse the West German ‘air clyster’ affair of 1976 in order to examine to what extent the politicisation of high-performance sport during the cold war affected the search for innovation in performance enhancement. We find that political pressure for improved competitiveness in West German sport had served to create a semi-autonomous high-performance sport sector in West Germany where blurred lines of accountability allowed questionable practices to prosper. While the public despised the use of questionable methods, sportive nationalism served to eclipse dubious practices. West German sport leaders adopted insofar a permissive attitude towards questionable practices as sporting misconduct was not sanctioned. Thus, our results strongly suggest that sport's politicisation during the cold war facilitated the search for performance-increasing methods in western societies.     

Metacognitive skills and intellectual ability of young adolescents: a longitudinal study from a developmental perspective

In the last decades, students increasingly have been placed in the role of active learners with responsibilities for their own learning. Students have to be able to plan their learning activities and execute them in a systematic and orderly way and to monitor and to evaluate their learning and to reflect on it. All aforementioned skills are components of metacognitive skillfulness. The first objective was to gain insight in the development of both quantity and quality of metacognitive skills in young adolescents (aged 12–15 years). The second objective was to establish whether development of metacognitive skills is intelligence related or relatively intelligence independent. Finally, the generality vs. domain specificity of developing metacognitive skills was investigated. In a 3-year longitudinal study, participants performed two different tasks (text studying and problem solving) in two different domains (history and math), while thinking aloud. Results show that between the age of 12 and 15 years, metacognitive skills do not develop linearly or at the same pace. Furthermore, metacognitive skills contribute to learning performance, partly independent of intellectual ability. Finally, the results show that metacognitive skills appear to be predominantly general by nature over the years. Although a smaller domain-specific component was found as well in the first 2 years, this component disintegrated in the third year. The age around 15 years appears to be a relevant point in time during the developmental trajectory of metacognitive skills: Growth is (temporarily) put on hold, while the nature of these skills becomes fully general.     

Innovative product and customer retention: Strategies in the music business ‐ An analysis of Santana's enhanced album “Shaman”;

Abstract

The music business is facing hard times with declining CD sales and increasing piracy. Whereas the economic downturn is one reason for lower sales, the industry has decided to target the second factor, the fast diffusion of technologies such as CD burners and peer‐to‐peer networks like KaZaA allowing massive illegal distribution of music. Some labels focused on an offensive strategy to promote their artists. New services are being added to so called Enhanced CDs that create a new user experience. These CDs offer bonus content (i.e. videos, additional songs, pictures, or lyrics) stored directly on the CD that can be accessed on the PC. Other CDs offer (additionally) online access to actual bonus content or services (i.e. tour dates or news) if the CD is entered in the FC. The impact of these services on consumer experience has not yet been researched in depth and it remains unclear if consumers actually use the offered services on Enhanced CDs. The music label Arista has introduced several new albums on Enhanced CDs to the market providing more value to the user instead of reducing the utility by focusing only on copy protection. This article analyzes the usage of such services provided by Arista and focuses on Santana's new album “Shaman”;. Using a unique data set provided byfavakitty Media (Bandlirik) and Arista, we show for the first time what services are actually used by Santana fans and compare the results to albums of other artists such as TIC or Toni Braxton. Our results indicate that Enhanced CDs are used frequently by a relatively small group of fans, providing more value to the customer and creating a stronger relation between fans and artists.