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Descriptors:
Music; Mechanics (Physics); Energy Conservation; Optics; Introductory Courses; Science Instruction; Geometry; Scientific Concepts; Acoustics; Scientific Principles; Teaching Methods; Interdisciplinary Approach; Physics

Abstract:
Much of the mathematical reasoning employed in the typical introductory physics course can be traced to Pythagorean roots planted over two thousand years ago. Besides obvious examples involving the Pythagorean theorem, I draw attention to standard physics problems and derivations which often unknowingly rely upon the Pythagoreans' work on proportion, music, geometry, harmony, the golden ratio, and cosmology. Examples are drawn from mechanics, electricity, sound, optics, energy conservation and relativity. An awareness of the primary sources of the mathematical techniques employed in the physics classroom could especially benefit students and educators at schools which encourage integration of their various courses in history, science, philosophy, and the arts. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Computer Uses in Education; Undergraduate Students; College Science; Energy Conservation; STEM Education; Information Technology; Educational Technology; Internet; Conservation (Environment); Laboratories

Abstract:
An undergraduate introductory science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) class can be a jarring disappointment to new students expecting to work with cutting-edge, real-world technology. Their cell phones are often more technically advanced and real-world than the tools used in a class lab. Not surprisingly, many complain that the STEM labs are dull and antiquated. To address these issues, the authors have created an online lab where students can interact via the Internet with tracking solar panels and solar power measurement tools at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Renewable Energy (RE) Lab in Mountain View, CA. The authors evaluate the impact of using real-life, real-time, real-world solar data on student learning. In identical pre- and post-lab quizzes taken before and after students performed the lab, two thirds of errors made on the pre-quiz were corrected on the post-quiz. (Contains 8 figures and 2 tables.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Internet; Textbooks; Educational Technology; Electronic Publishing; Conservation (Environment); Energy Conservation; Undergraduate Study; Student Surveys; Student Behavior; Teacher Behavior

Abstract:
Electronic textbooks, often lauded as a cheaper alternative to hard copies, may also seem like a perfect way for colleges to reduce their greenhouse-gas emissions. Many institutions encourage use of e-books, and one state, California, has required that all textbooks used in college classes be made available electronically by 2020. In a sign of growing campus interest in cutting carbon emissions, nearly 700 institutions have signed the American College & University Presidents' Climate Commitment, pledging to reduce their footprint and to promote education and research on climate change. On the surface, this transition to digital media makes perfect sense: After all, purchased materials of all kinds make up a quarter of most colleges' carbon footprints, and textbooks (in hard-copy form) represent about a quarter of emissions from purchased materials. However, the reality is not so simple. E-textbooks require electricity to operate, and if students print out many pages from them, the resulting carbon footprint may actually be greater than that of the hard-copy textbooks they are replacing. With so much uncertainty, the authors set out to answer the question: Which is more climate friendly--hard-copy textbooks or e-textbooks? They compared the greenhouse-gas emissions of both throughout their life cycles, including creation, distribution, student usage, and disposal, using existing emissions-related data and the results of a survey they conducted of 200 students in six undergraduate classes. They discovered that when they consider all greenhouse-gas emissions over the life cycle of the textbook, from raw-material production to disposal or reuse, the differences between the two types of textbooks are actually quite small. More importantly, they discovered that the ways that hard-copy and digital textbooks are used have a huge effect on emissions. Colleges that are serious about reducing their carbon footprint, then, should realize that the behavior of students, faculty members, and administrators plays a crucial role. Faculty members and administrators should consider educating students on how to print more efficiently, either through classroom instructions or more comprehensive campus-awareness campaigns. They should make sure students understand that opting for an e-textbook and then printing a huge number of pages from it is environmentally unfriendly. Faculty members should also recognize that forcing students who prefer the printed page to buy e-textbooks is unwise. The answer to the question of which is best, then, is that it depends on the behavior of students--and that is something that faculty members and administrators can strongly influence. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Colleges; Campuses; School Space; Space Utilization; Educational Change; Costs; Operating Expenses; Departments; Energy Conservation; College Faculty; Offices (Facilities); Educational Finance; Accountability; Foreign Countries; Politics of Education; Commercialization; Economic Factors; College Administration

Abstract:
The author reports on the reigning economic calculus that helps to drive constant expansion and poor utilization of space on many campuses. The author states that colleges could charge for utilities, which might encourage departments to save energy. Most American colleges do not charge for space--in part because doing so would raise the hackles of faculty members and others on campus. Space is a proxy for status in academe, and it is fiercely guarded. Charging for space is far more common and accepted on campuses in Australia, New Zealand, and England than it is in America. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Elementary Secondary Education; Energy; Role; Science Curriculum; Ecology; Science and Society; Scientific Concepts; Fuels; Botany; Biological Sciences; Environmental Education; Energy Conservation; Intellectual Development; Cognitive Structures

Abstract:
This article reports on our work of developing a learning progression focusing on K-12 students' performances of using energy concept in their accounts of carbon-transforming processes in socio-ecological systems. Carbon-transforming processes--the ecological carbon cycle and the combustion of biomass and fossil fuels--provide all of the energy for living systems and almost 90% of the energy for human economic activities. Energy, as a crosscutting concept across major disciplines, is a "tool for analysis" that uses the principle of energy conservation to constrain and connect accounts of processes and systems. Drawing on ideas from cognitive linguistics, the history of science, and research on students' energy conceptions, we identify two crucial practices that both scientists and students engage in when accounting for carbon-transforming processes: association and tracing. Using association and tracing as progress variables, we analyzed student accounts of carbon-transforming processes in 48 clinical interviews and 3,903 written tests administered to students from fourth grade through high school. Based on our analysis we developed a Learning Progression Framework that describes a progression from accounts that use energy as an ephemeral "force" that enables actors to make events happen to energy as a scientific tool for analysis. Successful students developed a "sense of necessity" with respect to accounts of carbon-transforming processes--a sense that energy MUST be conserved and degraded in every individual process and in the system as a whole. This level of success was achieved by less than 3% of the students in our sample. Implications for science standards, curriculum, and instruction are discussed. (Contains 2 tables, 10 figures and 2 notes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Physics; Energy Conservation; College Science; Science Instruction; Computation; Scientific Principles; Motion; Mechanics (Physics)

Abstract:
In this paper, we revisit, theoretically and experimentally, the fall of a folded U-chain and of a pile-chain. The model calculation implies the division of the whole system into two subsystems of variable mass, allowing us to explore the role of tensional contact forces at the boundary of the subsystems. This justifies, for instance, that the folded U-chain falls faster than the acceleration due to the gravitational force. This result, which matches quite well with the experimental data independently of the type of chain, implies that the falling chain is well described by energy conservation. We verify that these conclusions are not observed for the pile-chain motion. (Contains 3 tables and 6 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Family (Sociological Unit); Climate; Motor Vehicles; Conservation (Environment); Energy Conservation; Interviews; Questionnaires; Behavior Change; Expectation; Money Management; Personal Narratives; Behavioral Science Research

Abstract:
One way to progress toward greenhouse gas reductions is for people to drive plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). Households in this study participated in a 4- to 6-week PHEV driving trial. A narrative of each household's encounter with the PHEV was constructed by the researchers from multiple in-home interviews, questionnaires completed by each household at the start and end of their 4- to 6-week PHEV demonstration period, and quantitative measures of driving and recharging behavior from the data systems onboard the vehicles. Thematic analysis was used to create themes from the narratives. Bridging from the idiosyncratic experience of each household toward a societal narrative, the authors describe the following themes: confusion, recharging habits and etiquette, changing driving behavior, payback analysis, saving money, expectations, and the future. No theme explicitly identified global warming, indicating a gap between lay and expert understandings of both the technology and motivations. The themes lead to suggestions for education, information, marketing, and direct experience. (Contains 1 figure.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Educational Finance; Sustainability; Student Leadership; Student Attitudes; Student Role; Money Management; Case Studies; Energy Conservation; Conservation (Environment); Agriculture; Institutional Characteristics; Financial Support

Abstract:
In recent years, energy- and resource-reduction projects have compelled student leaders to create sustainability projects on campuses across the country. This paper examines the role that students play in green revolving funds, including identification, approval, and management. After speaking with numerous students on a variety of campuses, it is clear that students are more likely to be engaged in the GRF when it allows them to collaborate with campus allies and raise awareness of environmental issues. Active support from faculty, staff, and other campus organizations can help students pursue goals both strategically and collaboratively. Three case studies--St. John's University (MN), Whitman College (WA), and the University of Montana at Missoula--illustrate a number of effective uses of the green revolving fund model and successful strategies employed by these students. Appended are: (1) A Sample of Students-Focused GRFs; and (2) Methodology. (Contains 22 endnotes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Innovation; Sustainability; Colleges; Higher Education; Sustainable Development; Conservation (Environment); Energy Conservation; Curriculum; Planning; Public Support; Social Change; Economic Factors; Gardening; Outreach Programs; Community Programs; Foreign Countries; Indigenous Populations

Abstract:
The Summer 2012 SQR: "Innovations in Campus Sustainability," explores the critical linkages between education, innovation, and sustainability. This issue highlights new and ground-breaking practices within the Innovation (IN) category of STARS, focusing on the unique solutions within higher education that positively impact current and future generations. With 11 institutions highlighted, this issue covers data from reports submitted through June 1, 2012. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Thinking Skills; Academic Libraries; Information Literacy; Management Systems; Organizational Change; Adult Students; Instructional Design; Video Technology; Web Sites; Electronic Publishing; Critical Thinking; Diaries; Shared Resources and Services; Library Services; Marketing; Social Networks; Library Materials; Electronic Libraries; College Libraries; Educational Technology; Technology Uses in Education; Search Strategies; Orientation; Library Instruction; College Students; Nontraditional Education; Reference Materials; Energy Conservation; Teacher Education; Librarian Teacher Cooperation; Online Searching

Abstract:
Twenty scholarly papers and fifteen abstracts comprise the content of the twelfth annual Brick and Click Libraries Symposium, held at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The peer-reviewed proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of librarianship. The 2012 paper and abstract titles include: (1) Brave New World (Laura Heinz and Carrye Syma); (2) Using Blogs to Develop Critical Thinking Skills (Ericka Arvidson Raber); (3) From Overloaded to Opportunity: The Search for a Low-Cost Interlibrary Loan Management System (Ellie Kohler and Danielle Theiss); (4) Thriving in the E-Resource Amusement Park: Using the ADDIE Instructional Design Model as a Management Framework (Galadriel Chilton and Chenwei Zhao); (5) Exposure = Impact: Library Marketing, Promotion and Branding (Rene Erlandson and Teonne Wright); (6) Using Gimlet to Improve Service at the Library (Jessica Tipton, Barry Bailey, and Mark Swails); (7) Tweet Tweet: Using Twitter for Library Marketing and Outreach (Jaleh Fazelian); (8) Library (R)Evolution: Organizational Change and Library Effectiveness (Colleen S. Harris); (9) Caught in the Act (Anne Deutsch and Brooks Doherty); (10) Giving the Users What They Want: Is Patron-Driven Acquisitions the Answer? (Buddy Pennington and Steve Alleman); (11) Streaming Video Acquisitions: Vendors, Models and Workflows (Stephanie Viola); (12) Rediscovering Relevance for the Science & Engineering Library (Patrick "Tod" Colegrove); (13) A Tale of Two Libraries: How Two Universities Prepared for the Future with Ex Libris Alma (John Ross, Heath Bogart, Rebecca Fernandez, and Daniel Winslow); (14) Information in a Dash: Painless & Penniless Statistical Reports (Joyce Neujahr and Emily Kesten); (15) 10 Ways to Google-It BETTER (Kristy Steigerwalt); (16) You've got a Friend: Attracting, Welcoming and Supporting the Adult Learner through Tailored Orientations (MaryAlice Wade and Maggie Denning); (17) Library Outreach through One Book One Community (Melissa Dennis); (18) The Zombie's Guide to Information Literacy: Reaching College Students in Non-traditional Ways (Cynthia Dudenhoffer); (19) A Reference Services Voyage: How a Small Academic Library Doubled its Reference Statistics in One Year (Danielle Theiss); (20) E-book Metadata in ILS and Discovery Tools (Lixia Zhao, Linda Wen, Donna K. Rose, and Maureen James); (21) Streamlined Workflow + McNaughton = Success! (Cheryl L. Blevens); (22) Chasing Green: An Academic Library's In-House Solution to Save Resources and Change Policy about Energy Conservation (Jeff Simpson); (23) Supporting Mobiles: It's More Than a Link and a Click (Robert Hallis); (24) User Side Open Access: The High Stakes of Open Access at Teaching Colleges (Mark Swails); (25) Auto-Populating an ILL form using OpenURL and JavaScript (Sarah G. Park); (26) Librarian-Faculty Collaboration for Student Learning (Carolyn Johnson); (27) Comparative Preferences for eBooks and Paper/Printed Books (Leila June Rod-Welch, Barbara E. Weeg, Jerry V. Caswell, and Thomas L. Kessler); (28) Managing Information: Lessons for the 21st Century (Robert Hallis); (29) Making Your Library (Pin)teresting! Using the Online Pinboard to Promote Library Resources (Marty Miller); (30) Give Them the Gift That Keeps On Giving--Providing Meaningful Tools for Student Employee Success (Joyce Meldrem); (31) We Built It, Why Didn't They Come? (Joelle Pitts, Laura Bonella, and Jason Coleman); (32) Give your Instruction a Boost of Creativity! (Benjamin Oberdick); (33) Size Doesn't Matter: Use Responsive Design to Fit On Any Screen (Roy Degler); (34) If You Build It, They Will Come: A First-Year Assessment of a Newly-Built Academic Library (Megan Donald and Stewart Brower), and (35) Copyright and Intellectual Property: Teaching Creatively (Mason Yang and Gail Flatness). An author/title index is also included. (Individual papers contain references). [Abstract modified to meet ERIC guidelines. For the 2011 proceedings, see ED526899.] Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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