TY - JOUR A1 - Kistner, Saskia A1 - Vollmeyer, Regina A1 - Burns, Bruce D. A1 - Kortenkamp, Ulrich T1 - Model development in scientific discovery learning with a computer-based physics task JF - Computers in human behavior N2 - Based on theories of scientific discovery learning (SDL) and conceptual change, this study explores students' preconceptions in the domain of torques in physics and the development of these conceptions while learning with a computer-based SDL task. As a framework we used a three-space theory of SDL and focused on model space, which is supposed to contain the current conceptualization/model of the learning domain, and on its change through hypothesis testing and experimenting. Three questions were addressed: (1) What are students' preconceptions of torques before learning about this domain? To do this a multiple-choice test for assessing students' models of torques was developed and given to secondary school students (N = 47) who learned about torques using computer simulations. (2) How do students' models of torques develop during SDL? Working with simulations led to replacement of some misconceptions with physically correct conceptions. (3) Are there differential patterns of model development and if so, how do they relate to students’ use of the simulations? By analyzing individual differences in model development, we found that an intensive use of the simulations was associated with the acquisition of correct conceptions. Thus, the three-space theory provided a useful framework for understanding conceptual change in SDL. KW - Scientific discovery learning KW - Multiple problem spaces KW - Computer simulations KW - Physics concepts KW - Misconceptions KW - Conceptual change Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.02.041 SN - 0747-5632 SN - 1873-7692 VL - 59 SP - 446 EP - 455 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sinclair, Nathalie A1 - Bussi, Maria G. Bartolini A1 - de Villiers, Michael A1 - Jones, Keith A1 - Kortenkamp, Ulrich A1 - Leung, Allen A1 - Owens, Kay T1 - Recent research on geometry education: an ICME-13 survey team report JF - ZDM : The International Journal on Mathematics Education N2 - This survey on the theme of Geometry Education (including new technologies) focuses chiefly on the time span since 2008. Based on our review of the research literature published during this time span (in refereed journal articles, conference proceedings and edited books), we have jointly identified seven major threads of contributions that span from the early years of learning (pre-school and primary school) through to post-compulsory education and to the issue of mathematics teacher education for geometry. These threads are as follows: developments and trends in the use of theories; advances in the understanding of visuo spatial reasoning; the use and role of diagrams and gestures; advances in the understanding of the role of digital technologies; advances in the understanding of the teaching and learning of definitions; advances in the understanding of the teaching and learning of the proving process; and, moving beyond traditional Euclidean approaches. Within each theme, we identify relevant research and also offer commentary on future directions. KW - Geometry KW - Technology KW - Diagrams KW - Definitions KW - Gestures KW - Proving KW - Digital technology KW - Visuospatial reasoning Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-016-0796-6 SN - 1863-9690 SN - 1863-9704 VL - 48 SP - 691 EP - 719 PB - Springer CY - Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kistner, Saskia A1 - Burns, Bruce D. A1 - Vollmeyer, Regina A1 - Kortenkamp, Ulrich T1 - The importance of understanding: Model space moderates goal specificity effects JF - The quarterly journal of experimental psychology N2 - The three-space theory of problem solving predicts that the quality of a learner's model and the goal specificity of a task interact on knowledge acquisition. In Experiment 1 participants used a computer simulation of a lever system to learn about torques. They either had to test hypotheses (nonspecific goal), or to produce given values for variables (specific goal). In the good- but not in the poor-model condition they saw torque depicted as an area. Results revealed the predicted interaction. A nonspecific goal only resulted in better learning when a good model of torques was provided. In Experiment 2 participants learned to manipulate the inputs of a system to control its outputs. A nonspecific goal to explore the system helped performance when compared to a specific goal to reach certain values when participants were given a good model, but not when given a poor model that suggested the wrong hypothesis space. Our findings support the three-space theory. They emphasize the importance of understanding for problem solving and stress the need to study underlying processes. KW - Goal specificity KW - Problem solving KW - Three-space theory KW - Scientific discovery learning Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1080/17470218.2015.1076865 SN - 1747-0218 SN - 1747-0226 VL - 69 SP - 1179 EP - 1196 PB - Optical Society of America CY - Abingdon ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Kortenkamp, Ulrich A1 - Monaghan, John A1 - Trouche, Luc T1 - Jonathan M Borwein (1951-2016): exploring, experiencing and experimenting in mathematics - an inspiring journey in mathematics JF - Educational studies in mathematics : an international journal Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10649-016-9729-0 SN - 0013-1954 SN - 1573-0816 VL - 93 SP - 131 EP - 136 PB - Springer CY - Dordrecht ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Soemer, Alexander A1 - Saito, Satoru T1 - Domain-specific processing in short-term serial order memory JF - Journal of memory and language N2 - Recent studies of short-term serial order memory have suggested that the maintenance of order information does not involve domain-specific processes. We carried out two dual task experiments aimed at resolving several ambiguities in those studies. In our experiments, encoding and response of one serial reconstruction task was embedded within encoding and response of a concurrent serial reconstruction task. Order demands in both tasks were independently varied so as to find revealing patterns of interference between the two tasks. In Experiment 1, participants were to maintain and reconstruct the order of a list of verbal materials, while maintaining a list of spatial materials or vice-versa. Increasing the order demands in the outer reconstruction task resulted in small or non reliable performance decrements in the embedded reconstruction task. Experiment 2 sought to compare these results against two same-domain baseline conditions (two verbal lists or two spatial lists). In all conditions, increasing order demands in the outer task resulted in small or non-reliable performance decrements in the embedded task. However, performance in the embedded tasks was generally lower in the same-domain baseline conditions than in the cross-domain conditions. We argue that the main effect of domain in Experiment 2 indicates the contribution of domain-specific processes to short-term serial order maintenance. In addition, we interpret the failure to find consistent cross-list interference irrespective of domain as indicating the involvement of grouping mechanisms in concurrently performed serial order tasks. (C) 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. KW - Serial order memory KW - Verbal memory KW - Spatial memory KW - Domain specificity KW - Working memory Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2015.12.003 SN - 0749-596X SN - 1096-0821 VL - 88 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - Elsevier CY - San Diego ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Soemer, Alexander A1 - Schwan, Stephan T1 - Task-Appropriate Visualizations: Can the Very Same Visualization Format Either Promote or Hinder Learning Depending on the Task Requirements? JF - The journal of educational psychology N2 - In a series of experiments, we tested a recently proposed hypothesis stating that the degree of alignment between the form of a mental representation resulting from learning with a particular visualization format and the specific requirements of a learning task determines learning performance (task-appropriateness). Groups of participants were required to learn the stroke configuration, the stroke order, or the stroke directions of a set of Chinese pseudocharacters. For each learning task, participants were divided into groups receiving dynamic, static-sequential, or static visualizations. An old/new character recognition task was given at test. The results showed that learning both stroke configuration and stroke order was best with static pictures (Experiments 1 and 2), while there was no reliable difference between the groups for learning stroke direction (Experiment 3). An additional experiment, however, revealed that learning with sequential pictures was superior when testing was carried out with sequential pictures, irrespective of the learning task (Experiment 4). The combined evidence from all experiments speaks against task requirements playing a role in determining the effectiveness of a visualization format. Furthermore, the evidence supports the view that a high degree of congruence between information presented during learning and information presented at test results in better learning (study-test congruence). Implications for instructional design are discussed. KW - animations KW - pictures KW - task requirements KW - study-test congruence KW - Chinese characters Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000093 SN - 0022-0663 SN - 1939-2176 VL - 108 SP - 960 EP - 968 PB - American Psychological Association CY - Washington ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ly, Ibrahim A1 - Tarkhanov, Nikolai Nikolaevich T1 - A Rado theorem for p-harmonic functions JF - Boletin de la Sociedad Matemática Mexicana N2 - Let A be a nonlinear differential operator on an open set X subset of R-n and S a closed subset of X. Given a class F of functions in X, the set S is said to be removable for F relative to A if any weak solution of A(u) = 0 in XS of class F satisfies this equation weakly in all of X. For the most extensively studied classes F, we show conditions on S which guarantee that S is removable for F relative to A. KW - Quasilinear equations KW - Removable sets KW - p-Laplace equation Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s40590-016-0109-7 SN - 1405-213X SN - 2296-4495 VL - 22 SP - 461 EP - 472 PB - Springer CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Walter, J. A1 - Hamann, Göran A1 - Lück, Erika A1 - Klingenfuss, C. A1 - Zeitz, Jutta T1 - Stratigraphy and soil properties of fens: Geophysical case studies from northeastern Germany JF - Catena : an interdisciplinary journal of soil science, hydrology, geomorphology focusing on geoecology and landscape evolution N2 - The determination of the total carbon storage of peatlands is of high relevance in the context of climate-change mitigation efforts. This determination relies on data about stratigraphy and peat properties, which are conventionally collected by coring. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and electrical resistivity imaging (ERI) can support these point data by providing subsoil information in two-dimensional cross-sections. In this study, GPR and ERI were conducted at two groundwater-fed fen sites located in the temperate zone in north-east Germany. The fens of this region are embedded in low conductive glacial sand and are characterised by thick layers of gyttja, which can be either mineral or organic. The two study sites are representative of this region with respect to stratigraphy (total thickness, peat and gyttja types) and ecological conditions (pH-value, trophic condition). The aim of this study is to assess the suitability of GPR and ERI to detect stratigraphy and peat properties under these characteristic site conditions. Results show that GPR clearly detects the interfaces between (i) Carex and brown-moss peat, (ii) brown-moss peat and organic gyttja, (iii) organic- and mineral gyttja, and (iv) mineral gyttja and the parent material (glacial sand). These layers differ in bulk density and the related organic matter content. ERI, however, does not delineate these layers; rather it delineates regions of varying properties. At our base-rich site, pore fluid conductivity and cation.exchange capacity are the main factors that determine peat electrical conductivity (reverse of resistivity), whereas organic matter and water content are most influential at the more acidic site. Thus the correlation between peat properties and electrical conductivity are driven by site-specific conditions, which are mainly determined by the solute load in the groundwater at fens. When the total organic deposits exceed a thickness of 5 m, the depth of investigation by GPR is limited due to increasing attenuation. This is not a limiting factor for ERI, where the transition from organic deposits to glacial sand is visible at both sites. Due to these specific sensitivities, a combined application of GPR and ERI meets the demand for up-to-date information on carbon storage of peatlands, which is, moreover, very site-specific because of the inherent variety of ecological conditions and stratigraphy between peatlands in general and between fens and bogs in particular. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. KW - Fen stratigraphy KW - Peat properties KW - Gyttja KW - Ground penetrating radar KW - Electrical conductivity KW - Electrical resistivity imaging Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2016.02.028 SN - 0341-8162 SN - 1872-6887 VL - 142 SP - 112 EP - 125 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Reyes, Anibal M. A1 - Vazquez, Diego S. A1 - Zeida, Ari A1 - Hugo, Martin A1 - Dolores Pineyro, M. A1 - Ines De Armas, Maria A1 - Estrin, Dario A1 - Radi, Rafael A1 - Santos, Javier A1 - Trujillo, Madia T1 - PrxQ B from Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a monomeric, thioredoxin-dependent and highly efficient fatty acid hydroperoxide reductase JF - Free radical biology and medicine : the official journal of the Oxygen Society, a constituent member of the International Society for Free Radical Research N2 - Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tuberculosis) is the intracellular bacterium responsible for tuberculosis disease (TD). Inside the phagosomes of activated macrophages, M. tuberculosis is exposed to cytotoxic hydroperoxides such as hydrogen peroxide, fatty acid hydroperoxides and peroxynitrite. Thus, the characterization of the bacterial antioxidant systems could facilitate novel drug developments. In this work, we characterized the product of the gene Rv1608c from M. tuberculosis, which according to sequence homology had been annotated as a putative peroxiredoxin of the peroxiredoxin Q subfamily (PrxQ B from M. tuberculosis or MtPrxQ B). The protein has been reported to be essential for M. tuberculosis growth in cholesterol-rich medium. We demonstrated the M. tuberculosis thioredoxin B/C-dependent peroxidase activity of MtPrxQ B, which acted as a two-cysteine peroxiredoxin that could function, although less efficiently, using a one-cysteine mechanism. Through steady-state and competition kinetic analysis, we proved that the net forward rate constant of MtPrxQ B reaction was 3 orders of magnitude faster for fatty acid hydroperoxides than for hydrogen peroxide (3x10(6) vs 6x10(3) M-1 s(-1), respectively), while the rate constant of peroxynitrite reduction was (0.6-1.4) x10(6) M-1 s(-1) at pH 7.4. The enzyme lacked activity towards cholesterol hydroperoxides solubilized in sodium deoxycholate. Both thioredoxin B and C rapidly reduced the oxidized form of MtPrxQ B, with rates constants of 0.5x10(6) and 1x10(6) M-1 s(-1), respectively. Our data indicated that MtPrxQ B is monomeric in solution both under reduced and oxidized states. In spite of the similar hydrodynamic behavior the reduced and oxidized forms of the protein showed important structural differences that were reflected in the protein circular dichroism spectra. KW - Mycobacterium tuberculosis KW - Peroxiredoxin KW - Thioredoxin KW - Peroxynitrite KW - Fatty acid hydroperoxides KW - Thiol-dependent peroxidase KW - Peroxidatic and resolving cysteine Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2016.10.005 SN - 0891-5849 SN - 1873-4596 VL - 101 SP - 249 EP - 260 PB - Elsevier CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Höhle, Barbara A1 - Berger, Frauke A1 - Sauermann, Antje T1 - Information structure in first language acquisition JF - The Oxford handbook of information structure Y1 - 2016 SN - 978-0-19-964267-0 SP - 562 EP - 580 PB - Oxford University Press CY - Oxford ER -