Science and Engineering Education: Europe?U.S.A.

A definition of basic philosophy for our future education is given, and the implications with regard to our future teaching system are analyzed. Then the European primary and secondary education, and automatic selection in the precollege year are discussed. The teaching system in a European engineering school is explained, and a discussion of the main results of the 1957 International Conference on Engineering Education and Training, in Paris, is included. Finally, it is explained why, in many fields of science and engineering, the European university education appears superior to ours.     

The Return of the Nervous Liberals: Market Fundamentalism,Policy Failure,and Recurring Journalism Crises

By providing historical context for the recurring regulatory retreat in the face of structural problems in the news media, this study examines the policy discourse that continues to define the US journalism crisis and government’s inability to confront it. To contextualize this pattern, I compare two historical junctures, the first occurring in the 1940s, exemplified by the Hutchins Commission, and the second occurring in the more recent policy debates during the years 2009–2011, exemplified by the Waldman Report. Both of these historical moments represented a societal response to a journalism crisis, and both entailed deeply normative discussions about the role of media in a democratic society and government’s role in managing that relationship. A comparison of these historical case studies brings into focus recurring weaknesses in liberal reform efforts. Specifically, it highlights what I refer to as the “discursive capture” reflected in common assumptions about the proper relationship between media and government, and how this American paradigm is constrained by an implicit market fundamentalism.     

Discriminatory power of water polo game-related statistics at the 2008 Olympic Games

The aims of this study were (1) to compare water polo game-related statistics by context (winning and losing teams) and sex (men and women), and (2) to identify characteristics discriminating the performances for each sex. The game-related statistics of the 64 matches (44 men's and 20 women's) played in the final phase of the Olympic Games held in Beijing in 2008 were analysed. Unpaired t-tests compared winners and losers and men and women, and confidence intervals and effect sizes of the differences were calculated. The results were subjected to a discriminant analysis to identify the differentiating game-related statistics of the winning and losing teams. The results showed the differences between winning and losing men's teams to be in both defence and offence, whereas in women's teams they were only in offence. In men's games, passing (assists), aggressive play (exclusions), centre position effectiveness (centre shots), and goalkeeper defence (goalkeeper-blocked 5-m shots) predominated, whereas in women's games the play was more dynamic (possessions). The variable that most discriminated performance in men was goalkeeper-blocked shots, and in women shooting effectiveness (shots). These results should help coaches when planning training and competition.     

Two novel ways of averaging waveforms by fourier analysis: the representative and the synchronous averages

Two algorithms are provided which define two new ways of averaging waveforms. The representative average maintains shape, has average d.c. offset, average amplitude and average position of noise-free input signals whose onset varies in time after a trigger pulse. The synchronous average removes random bipolar noise, the amplitude of which is below a critical threshhold, from a randomly occuring waveform. The latter does not require a trigger pulse, maintains its shape, has an average d.c. offset and average amplitude. Its position in the output field is such that the centroid of the waveform is placed in the center of the field. Both methods involve the definition of average phase angle and a quantity called the angular standard deviation.     

Relationship of socioeconomic status and ethnicity to primary grade children's self-concept

This study provides evidence regarding the controversy about the relationship of socioeconomic status (SES) and ethnicity to self-concept. Subjects were 345 first-, second-, and third-grade children of low SES (180 were black) attending inner city schools in a large metropolitan area. The Purdue Self Concept Scale was the measure of self-concept. There was a decline in self-concept with grade level (p < .01), and blacks scored higher than whites (p < .01). An analysis of black second-grade children's scores indicated that the race difference was due to the high scores of those with welfare status. Low expectations resulting from SES and ethnic segregation, effects of the black pride movement, and defensiveness are considered as possible explantions.