scholarly journals Quantum Physics Literacy Aimed at K12 and the General Public

Universe ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 86
Author(s):  
Caterina Foti ◽  
Daria Anttila ◽  
Sabrina Maniscalco ◽  
Maria Luisa Chiofalo
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Change ◽  
General Public ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Physics Teaching ◽  
Physics Students ◽  
Formidable Challenge ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Quantum Phenomena ◽  
Smart Community ◽  
Quantum Science

Educating K12 students and general public in quantum physics represents an evitable must no longer since quantum technologies are going to revolutionize our lives. Quantum literacy is a formidable challenge and an extraordinary opportunity for a massive cultural uplift, where citizens learn how to engender creativity and practice a new way of thinking, essential for smart community building. Scientific thinking hinges on analyzing facts and creating understanding, and it is then formulated with the dense mathematical language for later fact checking. Within classical physics, learners’ intuition may in principle be educated via classroom demonstrations of everyday-life phenomena. Their understanding can even be framed with the mathematics suited to their instruction degree. For quantum physics, on the contrary, we have no experience of quantum phenomena and the required mathematics is beyond non-expert reach. Therefore, educating intuition needs imagination. Without rooting to experiments and some degree of formal framing, educators face the risk to provide only evanescent tales, often misled, while resorting to familiar analogies. Here, we report on the realization of QPlayLearn, an online platform conceived to explicitly address challenges and opportunities of massive quantum literacy. QPlayLearn’s mission is to provide multilevel education on quantum science and technologies to anyone, regardless of age and background. To this aim, innovative interactive tools enhance the learning process effectiveness, fun, and accessibility, while remaining grounded on scientific correctness. Examples are games for basic quantum physics teaching, on-purpose designed animations, and easy-to-understand explanations on terminology and concepts by global experts. As a strategy for massive cultural change, QPlayLearn offers diversified content for different target groups, from primary school all the way to university physics students. It is addressed also to companies wishing to understand the potential of the emergent quantum industry, journalists, and policymakers needing to seize what quantum technologies are about, as well as all quantum science enthusiasts.

The Necessity of Sufficiency

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce L. Gordon
Keyword(s):  
Recent Work ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Structural Realism ◽  
Sufficient Reason ◽  
Divine Action ◽  
Ontic Structural Realism ◽  
Existence Of God ◽  
Principle Of Sufficient Reason ◽  
Adequate Understanding ◽  
Quantum Phenomena

There is an argument for the existence of God from the incompleteness of nature that is vaguely present in Plantinga’s recent work. This argument, which rests on the metaphysical implications of quantum physics and the philosophical deficiency of necessitarian conceptions of physical law, deserves to be given a clear formulation. The goal is to demonstrate, via a suitably articulated principle of sufficient reason, that divine action in an occasionalist mode is needed (and hence God’s existence is required) to bring causal closure to nature and render it ontologically functional. The best explanation for quantum phenomena and the most adequate understanding of general providence turns out to rest on an ontic structural realism in physics that is grounded in the immaterialist metaphysics of theistic idealism.

E-HRM Challenges and Opportunities

2009 ◽  
pp. 286-292
Author(s):  
Alok Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Cultural Change ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Rapid Development ◽  
Administrative Costs ◽  
Collective Actors ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Increase Productivity ◽  
Cost Efficient

HR executives are looking to technology and the information it provides to help them drive decisions that will lead to success of the organization as a whole (Wilcox, 1997). Snell, Stueber, and Lepak (2002) observe that HR can meet the challenge of simultaneously becoming more strategic, flexible, cost-efficient, and customer-oriented by leveraging information technology (IT). They point out that IT has the potential to lower administrative costs, increase productivity, speed response times, improve decision-making, and enhance customer service all at the same time. The need for cost reduction, higher quality services, and cultural change are the three main forces that drive firms to seek IT-driven HR solutions (Yeung & Brockbank, 1995). The rapid development of the Internet during the last decade has boosted the implementation and application of electronic human resource management (e-HRM) (Strohmeier, 2007). According to Strohmeier (2007) e-HRM is the (planning, implementation and) application of information technology for both networking and supporting at least two individual or collective actors in their shared performing of HR activities. Virtual HR is emerging due to the growing sophistication of IT and increased external structural options (Lepak & Snell, 1998). Surveys of HR consultants suggest that both the number of organizations adopting e-HRM and the depth of applications within the organizations are continually increasing (CedarCrestone, 2005). IT is beginning to enable organizations to deliver state-of the- art HR services. Many experts forecast that the PC will become the central tool for all HR professionals (Kovach & Cathcart, 1999).

A complex nonlinear approach for understanding quantum physics

2020 ◽  
pp. 2050043
Author(s):  
J. R. Croca
Keyword(s):  
Linear Combination ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Linear Method ◽  
Nonlinear Process ◽  
Nonlinear Approach ◽  
Pilot Wave ◽  
Quantum Phenomena ◽  
Ontic Status ◽  
A Minor

To understand quantum phenomena, namely, the particle-wave duality, in a causal relational way, a complex nonlinear process, in which a minor action may, under adequate conditions, give rise to a huge reaction, was proposed by de Broglie. The nonlinear process is mediated by the guiding or pilot wave principle, or as is now named by the principle of eurhythmy. This process rejects the ontic status of the Cartesian linear method in which the whole is assumed to be the simple linear combination of the parts and the action is always presumed to be equal and opposite to the reaction. The constituent parts of the whole are supposed to be naturally expected to maintain their own identity in every conceivable interacting situation.

scholarly journals Pleasure and the Sanctuary Paradox: Experiences of girls and women playing soccer

2019 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 788-806
Author(s):  
Hanya Pielichaty
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Methods ◽  
Cultural Change ◽  
Public Interest ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
General Public ◽  
Safe Space ◽  
Barriers To Participation ◽  
Theoretical Standpoint ◽  
Women's Soccer

Arguably, girls’ and women’s soccer in England is currently experiencing amelioration in terms of participation numbers, media coverage and general public interest. Although, lurking behind these favorable statistics and the pretence of new developmental strategies sits soccer’s cultural millstone, weighing down social progression and limiting the credibility afforded to the game. This paper seeks to unearth how girls and women negotiate their experiences of playing against this backdrop of inferiority by giving them a ‘voice’. The study is explored through a lens of ‘performative pleasure’ as a theoretical standpoint for understanding the basis of activity which involved qualitative methods enagaging with 57 female players aged between 8 and 31 years. The examination uncovered that despite barriers to participation and the management of social stereotyping, girls and women found pleasure through playing. Soccer provided the players with a ‘safe space’ to experience leisure, but ironically this refuge was often needed in response to soccer-based teasing and ‘banter’: conceptualized as the Sanctuary Paradox. The current findings have implications for the management and execution of cultural change within sporting environments.

Ether and Wireless

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 460-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaume Navarro
Keyword(s):  
General Public ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Cultural Exchange ◽  
Wireless Technologies ◽  
Middle Classes ◽  
Radio Broadcasting ◽  
Electrical Engineers ◽  
Commercial Communication ◽  
The Creation

With the creation of the BBC in 1922, wireless sets ceased to be obscure devices for military and commercial communication, and became household goods to entertain the British middle classes. Wireless amateurs, electrical engineers, inventors, and specialized physicists engaged in a cultural exchange among themselves and with the general public to explain and understand the mechanisms and possibilities of the new technology. This created a new arena for discussions on the existence of the ether at a time when highly esoteric physics (mainly relativity, but also quantum physics) had triggered a debate about its very existence. In this paper I explore the ways in which the ether saw its popularity renewed by its link to the modern wireless technologies. I argue that far from being part of an old, outdated physics, radio broadcasting was instrumental for the ether to remain popular, and even an element of modernity, among many wireless amateurs, engineers, and the general public in the 1920s and early 1930s.

scholarly journals Breastfeeding Communication Strategies, Challenges and Opportunities in the Twitter-Verse: Perspectives of Influencers and Social Network Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (12) ◽  
pp. 6181
Author(s):  
Sara Moukarzel ◽  
Anita Caduff ◽  
Martin Rehm ◽  
Miguel del Fresno ◽  
Rafael Pérez-Escamilla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Network Analysis ◽  
Network Analysis ◽  
General Public ◽  
Communication Strategies ◽  
Community Support ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Breast Milk Substitutes

Using social media is one important strategy to communicate research and public health guidelines to the scientific community and general public. Empirical evidence about which communication strategies are effective around breastfeeding messaging is scarce. To fill this gap, we aimed to identify influencers in the largest available Twitter database using social network analysis (n = 10,694 users), inductively analyze tweets, and explore communication strategies, motivations, and challenges via semi-structured interviews. Influencers had diverse backgrounds within and beyond the scientific health community (SHC; 42.7%): 54.7% were from the general public and 3% were companies. SHC contributed to most of the tweets (n = 798 tweets), disseminating guidelines and research findings more frequently than others (p < 0.001). Influencers from the general community mostly tweeted opinions regarding the current state of breastfeeding research and advocacy. Interviewees provided practical strategies (e.g., preferred visuals, tone, and writing style) to achieve personal and societal goals including career opportunities, community support, and improved breastfeeding practices. Complex challenges that need to be addressed were identified. Ideological differences regarding infant feeding may be hampering constructive communication, including differences in influencers’ interpretation of the WHO International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes and in perspectives regarding which social media interactions encompass conflict of interest.

scholarly journals The Learning Object Economy: Implications For Developing Faculty Expertise

2002 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
The COHERE Group
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Change ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Objects ◽  
Learning Technologies ◽  
Learning Object ◽  
Learning Needs ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Sociocultural Change ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Personal Process

The evolving use of learning technologies and systems, such as learning object systems, to support more social learning environments in which learners have more agency than ever before to construct their own learning experiences is an innovation that involves both faculty and learners in a process of difficult sociocultural change. Programs of faculty support that acknowledge that faculty’s learning needs extend beyond the development of technical skills to the development of new pedagogical skills are indicated. This paper argues that the evolving concept of learning objects systems, and the "economy" that is emerging around the idea of sharable, reusable learning objects managed by repositories, presents new challenges and opportunities for our community. Faculty working with these systems may need to be supported through a personal process of reconceptualizing the nature of teaching and learning within these environments. This process of personal transformation has the potential for change in institutional policy and practice, the institutional cultural change of which Tony Bates (2000) and others speak (cf. Advisory Committee for Online Learning, 2000). The Collaboration for Online Higher Education Research (COHERE) is an alliance of eight research-intensive Canadian universities that is examining these challenges through a multi-pronged research program, one focus of which is supporting faculty as they research their own practice related to technology-enhanced teaching innovations. More specifically, this paper is itself a collaboration among the COHERE partners to share our collective belief about the potential for faculty and institutional transformation through participation in these "e-learning evolutions".

scholarly journals Physics knowledge justification: an analysis framework to examine physics content knowledge

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-166
Author(s):  
Karoliina Vuola ◽  
Maija Nousiainen
Keyword(s):  
Content Knowledge ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Quantum Physics ◽  
Tertiary Level ◽  
Strategic Knowledge ◽  
Analysis Framework ◽  
Physics Teachers ◽  
Level Of Education ◽  
Quantum Phenomena ◽  
Physics Knowledge

Argumentation and knowledge justification have been noted as important skills to be learned in secondary and tertiary level of education. These skills are especially crucial in teaching and learning physics because physics knowledge is normative and has hierarchical structure. The purpose of this article is two-fold. First, we propose a framework to analyze pre-service physics teachers’ knowledge justification. Second, we show how this framework can be used to examine pre-service physics teachers’ knowledge justification in the context of quantum physics. The sample consists of 68 knowledge justification schemes on four quantum phenomena (N=17 participants who all produced four schemes). The proposed framework discusses conceptual, relational and strategic knowledge presented in knowledge justification schemes. The results show that analysis framework reveal significant differences between pre-service teachers’ knowledge justification. We conclude that there is need and room for such practical tools, which help future teachers to organize and consider their own knowledge.

scholarly journals An exploration of university physics students’ epistemological mindsets towards the understanding of physics equations

2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Domert ◽  
John Airey ◽  
Cedric Linder ◽  
Rebecca Lippmann Kung
Keyword(s):  
Problem Solving ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Academic Career ◽  
Attitudes And Beliefs ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Physics Teaching ◽  
Physics Students ◽  
Inductive Approach ◽  
University Physics ◽  
Students Attitudes

Students’ attitudes and beliefs about learning have been shown to affect learning outcomes. This study explores how university physics students think about what it means to understand physics equations. The data comes from semi-structured interviews with students from three Swedish universities. The analysis follows a data-based, inductive approach to characterise students’ descriptions of what it means to understand equations in terms of epistemological mindsets (perceived critical attributes of a learning, application, or problem-solving situation that are grounded in epistemology). The results are given in terms of different components of students’ epistemological mindsets. Relations between individuals and sets of components as well as differences across various stages of students’ academic career are then explored. Pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed and tentative suggestions for university physics teaching are made.

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