Impact of arithmetic automaticity on students' success in second-semester general chemistry

Completion of a first-semester chemistry (Chem I) course lays the foundation for understanding second-semester chemistry (Chem II) topics. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of basic arithmetic skills on students’ Chem II success in understanding mathematics-grounded concepts (e.g., solutions and aqueous reactions, kinetics, equilibrium, acids and bases, solubility and equilibria, thermodynamics, electrochemistry, and nuclear chemistry). Previous studies suggest a strong correlation between arithmetic preparation and performance in general chemistry courses, though few have focused on the second-semester course. In this investigation, researchers from six higher-education institutions in Texas, USA of different sizes and with student bodies of different diversities have collaborated to determine whether the Math-Up Skills Test (MUST) is able to reliably identify at-risk students from a population of n = 1599 at the beginning of a Chem II course.

Improved expertise in radiation protection, nuclear chemistry and geological disposal

In the past 5 years several projects were launched in FP7 and H2020 with the aim to support competence building in nuclear by fostering education and training (E&T) initiatives. ENETRAP III, CONCERT, CINCH II, MEET-CINCH, PETRUS and EAGLE deal with advanced E&T in the fields of radiation protection, nuclear chemistry and geological disposal and the transfer of basic knowledge about ionising radiation, its benefits and risks, to the general public. They were launched with the overall objective of maintaining and extending nuclear know-how and competences in Europe and ensuring sustainable knowledge transfer to current and future generations. This paper describes the aims and achievements of these projects and, based on insights and experiences from these projects, provides some recommendations for future policy support regarding maintaining competences in nuclear industry and research.

DETERMINATION OF THE AVERAGE ABSORBED ENERGY OF ELECTRONS BEAM IN OBJECTS AT RADIATION PROCESSING

A new conservative computational procedure is proposed for calculating the average absorbed energy of electron radiation in objects undergoing radiation processing. Semi-empirical relationships were obtained and software for dosimetry of electron radiation was developed. A comparison was made of the results obtained using the proposed method with the results of known and traditional methods of electron radiation dosimetry as well as with the results of measurements performed at the sterilization center of the Institute of Nuclear Chemistry and Technology, Warsaw, Poland was carried out.