The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of activity-based nanoscience and nanotechnology education (ABNNE) on pre-service science teachers’ (PST’) conceptual understanding of nanoscience and nanotechnology. Within this context, the study was conducted according to mixed methods research with the use of both quantitative and qualitative methods. The participants were 32 PST who were determined by using criterion sampling that is one of the purposive sampling methods. ABNNE was carried out during 7 weeks as 2 h per week in special issues at physics course. Design and implementation of ABNNE were based on “Big Ideas” which was found in literature and provided guidance for teaching nanoscience and nanotechnology. All activities implemented during ABNNE were selected from literature. “Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Concept Test (NN-CT)” and “Activity-Based Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Education Assessment Form (ABNNE-AF)” were used as data collection tools in research. Findings obtained with data collection tools were discussed with coverage of literature. The findings revealed that PST conceptual understanding developed following ABNNE. Various suggestions for increasing PST conceptual understanding of nanoscience and nanotechnology were presented according to the results of the study.

The effect of activity-based nanoscience and nanotechnology education on pre-service science teachers’ conceptual understanding

Joining process: 'exploiting the diffusion of atoms present between the surfaces being bonded, involving base metals being brought into close contact and pressure being applied to a degree as far as possible avoiding plastic deformation under temperature conditions below the base metal melting point ' (from JIS Z 3001 'Welding terminology'). Diffusion bonding of aluminium has been well documented in papers presented at symposia and other conferences held by the Journal of Light Metal Welding and Construction. Figure I shows the process of increase in the bond area reflecting the degree to which diffusion bonding progresses.

Recent advances in solid-state bonding of aluminium alloys (Report 4)

Two series of nickel-coated aluminum (Al-Ni) powder compositions were consolidated to full or near-full density by a hot-explosive-compaction (HEC) technique. Mixtures of 78Al-22Ni at. pct (63Al-37Ni wt pct) or 39Al-61Ni at. pct (23Al-77Ni wt pct) were placed in cylindrical containers, preheated to a range of temperatures from ambient to 1000 °C, and once at a uniform temperature, explosively compacted into a 150-mm-long and 15-mm-diameter rod-shaped billet using a cylindrical detonation arrangement. The resultant billets were sectioned and prepared for examination by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and microhardness measurements were used to characterize the billet morphology, structure, and chemical composition. Analysis revealed that depending on the preheating temperature, the initial Al-Ni composition transformed into several aluminum nickelide (Al-Ni) intermetallics. The onset and nature of the shock-induced transformation from the precursors into the products are discussed.

Hot explosive compaction of aluminum-nickelide composites

We report on a two-week professional development workshop for middle and high school science teachers offered as part of a three-year Indiana Department of Education Math-Science Partnership grant awarded to Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (RHIT) and Vigo County School Corporation (VCSC).

Work in progress — Merging science inquiry and engineering design: A summer workshop series for middle and high school science teachers

Implementação e avaliação de um curso sobre matéria e suas transformações baseado na teoria da Aprendizagem Significativa: uma análise a partir de mapas conceituais Implementation and evaluation of a course on material and its transformations based on Meaningful Learning Theory: an analysis based on conceptual maps

The importance of the pre-college level materials science and technology education in the United States is discussed. A description of materials science based educational curricula program under development at Northwestern University is given. Preliminary results show that materials science is of considerable interest to both the high school science teachers and students. Such a program will not only provide an interdisciplinary approach to the study of science and mathematics, but it will also enhance the awareness of students of the contributions of science and technology to society and their surrounding environment.

Materials education at the pre-college level

In response to the need to create a skilled workforce in nanotechnology and to excite young students with the wonders and potentials of science, the National Center for Learning and Teaching in Nanoscale Science and Engineering, is developing educational materials for grades 7 – 16. Learning theory and cutting­edge research are used in the development of modules on nanoscience and nanotechnology. This paper describes the rationale for such materials and describes an introductory module in which students are lead through a series of inquiry­based and hands­on activities, which lead to a design project. Its goal is to teach an underlying principle in nanoscience and nanotechnology—the significance of the surface­area­to­volume ratio as objects get very small. The first section of the module investigates how the physical form of a material can influence the degree to which an object interacts with its environment. Different forms of different materials (steel, superabsorbent polymer, and sugar) are investigated as a function of dimensionality and size. The second section is centered on math tools needed to express very small quantities, viz., powers of 10 and scaling, and we intend that students get a feel for how small “nano” is. Shape and size effects on surface areas and volumes are explored in the third section. Graphs illustrate how the surface area to volume ratio changes with size. Consequences of such a trend are discussed in readings about nature and new technologies. The culminating event is an open­ended design project that incorporates the concepts from the previous activities and facilitates engineering design skills. Preliminary field testing has yielded both qualitative and statistical results. Introduction To the Science & Technology A seed was planted in 1959 by Richard Feynman when he postulated that it was possible to write “the entire 24 volumes of the Encyclopedia Brittanica on the head of a pin.” The idea lay dormant until the early 1980s, when technology made it practical to visualize and even manipulate individual atoms on surfaces. The result was a new realm of science and technology—the nano­realm. The nanoscale is between the microscale and the atomic scale. With respect to lengths, the nanoscale ranges between about 1 and 100 nanometers; it may extend into the hundreds of nanometers. Being able to understand and manipulate objects and functions at this scale has extraordinary potential for two general reasons. The first may be obvious. Feynman’s proposal is an example. Just being small—very small—is sometimes a big advantage, as in information storage, and as in interacting with other small things. For example, the building blocks of life are nanoscale objects. The medical area is expected to be especially impacted by nanotechnology. The second reason is not so obvious. It may seem surprising that a scale larger than the atomic scale is a new area of science and technology. Nevertheless, it is true that scientists understand the atomic scale much better than the nanoscale. This is because the nanoscale does not “play by the rules”. The “rules” that are relevant for the microscale (and larger), Newtonian mechanics, and those for the atomic scale, quantum mechanics, are well understood. It is somewhere in the nanoscale—in the transition from the dominance of one set of rules to the other—where surprising behaviors are opening doors to possibilities where we did not know that doors even existed, such as a piece of tape 1 cm that can hold up 20 kg—and then be removed as easily as a

/pdf/laying-the-foundation-for-nanoscience-and-nanotechnology-2ip999g1q7.pdf

Laying the Foundation for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology with an Introductory Module for High School Students

A variety of ceramic materials have been heated in various microwave excited plasmas at reduced pressures. Temperatures were measured by optical fiber thermometry. Specimen heating was accomplished by direct contact with the plasma, as well as direct coupling with the microwave energy, although the latter was screened heavily by the plasma. Higher specimen temperatures were achieved in polyatomic gases which have greater reactional enthalpy. In general, insulating materials achieved higher temperatures than semiconducting or covalently bonded materials.

Thermal Effects During Microwave Plasma Sintering of Ceramics

Incorporating technology in pre-college education is an important goal. There is a clear mandate from the national education standards movement to address the issues of scientific and technologically literate citizenship. The Materials World Modules (MWM) Program uses a unique approach based upon design and inquiry to unite the abstract, quantitative methods of scientific inquiry with the concrete methods of technological design to help students develop and integrate these complementary skills. By experiencing MWM, students learn science by doing science. Using the MWM modules, students will be doing what scientists and engineers do: integrating the design process of propose, build, test and evaluate with the inquiry process of question, predict, experiment, reflect, and communicate. This kind of active application of learning leads to mastery of scientific concepts and greater retention.

Matthew Hsu

Papers

Materials education at the pre-college level

Laying the Foundation for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology with an Introductory Module for High School Students

Thermal Effects During Microwave Plasma Sintering of Ceramics

The Materials World Modules Program: Incorporating Technology in Pre-College Education

Reconceptualization of Education.