Evaluation of a Community-Based Aging Intervention Program

This study evaluated the outcome and process of a community-based aging intervention program for the elderly in Taiwan. The program included education on nutrition and dietary behavior and on physical activities. Outcome and process evaluations were conducted. The program may have had some effects on decreasing some dietary behavioral problems and increasing regular exercise, but the effect on health outcome was not proved. The strength of this program was its proper design, dosage, and implementation; the weaknesses included a low participation rate, low commitment and continuity, and selection bias for the nonparticipants who might be frailer than the actual participants.     

Physical Self-Concept,Possible Selves,and Well-Being Among Older Adults in Taiwan

Possible selves is an important self-related construct for older adults' health behaviors and well-being. This study examines the relationships among older adults' current physical self-concept, possible selves, and physical activity participation, and it examines the mediating effect of possible selves on the relationships between physical self-concept and well-being. One hundred and sixty-three community-dwelling older adults (M _age = 70.91, SD = 6.39) in Taiwan completed the survey packet assessing physical self concept, possible selves, health-related qualities of life, and life satisfaction. Bivariate correlation analyses showed that older adults' possible selves were positively related to physical self-concept and moderate physical activity participation. In addition, the link between older adults' physical self-concept and psychological well-being was mediated partially by possible selves. The results show the significance of using the construct of possible selves to examine and promote older adults' physical activity/exercise behaviors and psychological well-being.     

Gain-scheduled control of PVTOL aircraft dynamics with parameter-dependent disturbance

This paper presents a gain-scheduled control approach for the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. The non-linear aircraft dynamics are formulated as a linear parameter varying (LPV) system with external parameter-dependent disturbance, which arisen from the equilibrating between gravity force and nozzles thrust. The disturbance is dependent on the system varying parameter, roll angle, and a constant parameter denoting the normalized gravity force. The controllers are designed in terms of mixed optimization of H^∞ performance for disturbance attenuation and relative stability for tracking position command in pitch-yaw plane. The characteristics of the parameter-dependent disturbance are described by an equality condition with a defined annihilation matrix. By exploring the parameter-dependence condition on disturbance into the controller design algorithms based on linear matrix inequalities (LMIs), it is showed that a better performance can be achieved than simply considering it as an external disturbance. The design results are demonstrated by time response simulations.     

Eye movement patterns of captioned television viewers

Eye movement of six subjects was recorded as they watched video segments with and without captions. It was found that the addition of captions to a video resulted in major changes in eye movement patterns, with the viewing process becoming primarily a reading process. Further, although people viewing a specific video segment are likely to have similar eye movement patterns, there are also distinct individual differences present in these patterns. For example, someone accustomed to speechreading may spend more time looking at an actor's lips, while someone with poor English skills may spend more time reading the captions. Finally, there is some preliminary evidence to suggest that higher captioning speed results in more time spent reading captions on a video segment.     

Space,relations, and the learning of science

In the literature on the situated and distributed nature of cognition, the coordination of spatial organization and the structure of human practices and relations is accepted as a fact. To date, science educators have yet to build on such research. Drawing on an ethnographic study of high school students during an internship in a scientific research laboratory, which we understand as a “perspicuous setting” and a “smart setting,” in which otherwise invisible dimensions of human practices become evident, we analyze the relationship between spatial configurations of the setting and the nature and temporal organization of knowing and learning in science. Our analyses show that spatial aspects of the laboratory projectively organize how participants act and can serve as resources to help the novices to participate in difficult and unfamiliar tasks. First, existing spatial relations projectively organize the language involving interns and lab members. In particular, spatial relations projectively organize where and when pedagogical language should happen; and there are specific discursive mechanisms that produce cohesion in language across different places in the laboratory. Second, the spatial arrangements projectively organize the temporal dimensions of action. These findings allow science educators to think explicitly about organizing “smart contexts” that help learners participate in and learn complex scientific laboratory practices.     

Learning through Making and Maker Education

In this paper, we provide an overview of the current efforts in maker education, supported by a review of empirical studies. Our synthesis will inform the community about learning outcomes, potential and common issues, challenges, resources, and future research direction regarding maker education.     

Investigating Coherence About Nature of Science in Science Curriculum Documents

Science & Education - The article focuses on the analysis of curriculum documents from Taiwan to investigate how benchmarks for learning nature of science (NOS) are positioned in different...