A DGS gesture dictionary for modelling on mobile devices

Interactive or Dynamic Geometry System (DGS) is a tool that help to teach and learn geometry using a computer-based interactive environment. Traditionally, the interaction with DGS is based on keyboard and mouse events where the functionalities are accessed using a menu of icons. Nevertheless, recent findings suggest that such a traditional model of interaction has a steep learning curve and is inadequate to develop DGS for devices with multi-touch screens. Thus, we propose a new interaction model for DGS based on a gesture dictionary which enables the construction and manipulation of geometric objects without the need of accessing a menu of icons. The dictionary is divided into three types: (i) kernel gestures: which are the basis for defining gestures; (ii) navigation gestures: related to the manipulation and editing of geometric objects; and (iii) basic gestures of construction: to construct geometric objects. To validate our interaction model, a DGS for mobile device, GeoTouch, has been developed using the proposed dictionary. Usability tests were performed comparing GeoTouch with three other DGS for mobile devices. The results indicate that the GeoTouch interface has fewer usability problems than the other three DGS software and it is easier to learn and interact with.     

A technique for group screening of dyslexia among adults

This paper reports on the development of a battery of phonological processing tasks to screen adults with dyslexia. The battery consisted of tasks tapping reversed spoonerism, phonological choice, working memory, and vocabulary with confusable alternatives. A self-report questionnaire consisting of two scales, one examining symptoms of dyslexia and the other reading interests, was also constructed. All these tasks showed high discrimination between a group of adults with dyslexia and a control group, all recruited from adult education centers. The tasks also correlated highly with word recognition. The results of the study show that it is possible to develop a sensitive battery of “nonvocalized” tasks to screen adults with dyslexia on a group basis and that self-reports add to the screening. The group administration is both time-saving and cost-effective.     

Why Portuguese Students Go Abroad to Do Their PhDs1

The objective of this article based on interview data is focused on the mobility of Portuguese PhD students, mainly pointing to (i) their motivation for studying abroad and tackling with different foreign cultural environments; (ii) personal and professional interests; and (iii) their ability to face the mobility consequences encountered during both private lives and professional development processes. In addition, the author of this article attempts to put forward ideas on policy making and launching effective programmes that would enhance students' lives and scientific development as possible responses to current contradictory European political agendas in the field.     

Microscopic Analysis of Wall Painting Techniques: Laboratory Replicas and Romanesque Case Studies in Southern Switzerland

The identification of painting techniques is an important aspect of any research related to historical, artistic, and conservation issues in the field of wall paintings conservation. There are a variety of different methodological approaches that can be used to identify wall painting techniques. In this study, the application of optical (PLM) and electron (SEM-EDX) microscopy was explored as they are complementary analytical techniques commonly used for micro-stratigraphic analysis of painted surfaces. Five replicas were prepared according to the technical procedures reported in medieval historical treatises, and the pigment was applied at different time intervals in order to monitor the modifications at the interface between the ground and pictorial layer. The comparison of data from the replicas with samples from Romanesque wall paintings in churches in Southern Switzerland and Northern Lombardy (Italy) allowed for an evaluation of the reliability of the proposed methodology and for the interpretation of the painting techniques.     

Problem‐based learning and action research in postgraduate teaching: the interdisciplinary core

Rapid changes in the world due to the emergence of an information society, scientific and technological developments, and a growing capitalist global economy have made intercultural and inter-ethnic contacts a fairly ordinary phenomenon. However, paradoxically, cultural diversity has had to cope with powerful homogenising instruments of a globalised planet; consequently, cultural issues cannot be considered apart from power relations. In education, a recent phenomenon – the teacher research movement – has tried to fight against conservative and dominant forms of teaching and teacher education. In this article, it is argued that teacher research, as an international movement, has the potential to become a counter-hegemonic strategy to construct critical teacher education approaches in a globalised world.     

Deleuze’s rhizomatic analysis of Foucault: Resources for a new sociology?

This paper analyses and examines Deleuze’s Foucault as a means of investigating intellectual resources for a new sociology – one that, in Foucault’s name, is neither foundationalist nor representationalist but genuinely other than the modernist discourse with which the discipline began and grew up. The paper begins with a brief historiography of sociology in order to broach the relationship between Deleuze and Foucault, and then focuses on Deleuze’s book on Foucault as a means of moving ‘from the archive to the diagram’ and to a topology of ‘thinking otherwise’. Finally, the paper moves to reformulate a new vocabulary no longer anchored in modernist categories to a non-dialectical reconfiguration of explanation and comprehension.     

Advocating for transgender and nonbinary affirmative spaces in graduate education

Higher Education - Nearly 50% of graduate students report experiencing emotional or psychological distress during their enrollment in graduate school. Levels of distress are particularly high for...     

Polyester μ-assay chip for stem cell studies

The application of microfluidic technologies to stem cell research is of great interest to biologists and bioengineers. This is chiefly due to the intricate ability to control the cellular environment, the reduction of reagent volume, experimentation time and cost, and the high-throughput screening capabilities of microscale devices. Despite this importance, a simple-to-use microfluidic platform for studying the effects of growth factors on stem cell differentiation has not yet emerged. With this consideration, we have designed and characterized a microfluidic device that is easy to fabricate and operate, yet contains several functional elements. Our device is a simple polyester-based microfluidic chip capable of simultaneously screening multiple independent stem cell culture conditions. Generated by laser ablation and stacking of multiple layers of polyester film, this device integrates a 10 × 10 microwell array for cell culture with a continuous perfusion system and a non-linear concentration gradient generator. We performed numerical calculations to predict the gradient formation and calculate the shear stress acting on the cells inside the device. The device operation was validated by culturing murine embryonic stem cells inside the microwells for 5 days. Furthermore, we showed the ability to maintain the pluripotency of stem cell aggregates in response to concentrations of leukemia inhibitory factor ranging from 0 to ∼1000 U/ml. Given its simplicity, fast manufacturing method, scalability, and the cell-compatible nature of the device, it may be a useful platform for long-term stem cell culture and studies.     

Buddhism as a second-order change psychotherapy

This article presents a brief introduction to the principles of Buddhism and notes the similarities between Buddhism and Western psychotherapy. Citing the work of Watzlawick, Weakland & Fisch (1974) it is argued that a second-order change model could be constructed based upon Buddhist principles.     

On “an improved approach for nonlinear system identification using neural networks”

Nonlinear system identification and prediction is a complex task, and often non-parametric models such as neural networks are used in place of intricate mathematics. To that cause, recently an improved approach to nonlinear system identification using neural networks was presented in Gupta and Sinha (J. Franklin Inst. 336 (1999) 721). Therein a learning algorithm was proposed in which both the slope of the activation function at a neuron, β, and the learning rate, η, were made adaptive. The proposed algorithm assumes that η and β are independent variables. Here, we show that the slope and the learning rate are not independent in a general dynamical neural nétwork, and this should be taken into account when designing a learning algorithm. Further, relationships between η and β are developed which helps reduce the number of degrees of freedom and computational complexity in an optimisation task of training a fully adaptive neural network. Simulation results based on Gupta and Sinha (1999) and the proposed approach support the analysis.