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Focus Highlight in VPET: Governance and performance
Get PDFThis presentation will consider various evolving models for vocational education and training (VET) system governance and their relationship to VET system performance. Governance is defined broadly to include how power is exercised, who exercises the power and governance models relevant to VET, including co-governance with industry, governance in federal systems such as Australia and Germany, and devolved governance (such as the various levels of autonomy of training providers and institutions). The differences in planned versus market-based systems and the intersection between governance in VET and other systems (schools and higher education) will also be considered. System performance will then be considered in terms of the purposes of VET systems, using a case study of Australia, which has a long history of VET system performance assessment and performance measures. The presentation will also highlight the limitations of system-level performance measures and argue for a greater emphasis on provider or institutional performance, particularly in countries that have adopted market-based approaches to VET, such as Australia, where information on provider performance is essential to the effective functioning of VET markets. The presentation will conclude by considering the benefits and feasibility of international benchmarking of VET system performance, such as system benchmarking projects currently underway in the higher education sector
Innovation brick cutting machine 創新切磚機械
Get PDF...The ‘innovative brick cutting machine’ operates automatically, provides bricks that are accurately cut to specified sizes, and gives with additional protection for machine operators. The machine reduces the manual labour involved and yields a more accurate product in terms of brick size.
「創新切磚機械」屬全自動運作，能把磚塊準確切割成指定大小，並為操作人員提供額外保護。這部機械能夠減少作業所需人力，並製成大小規格更統一、更準確的磚塊。
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Highly stable Nb2O5–Al2O3 composites supported pt catalysts for hydrodeoxygenation of diphenyl ether
No full textVarious TiO2, SiO2, Al2O3, and Nb2O5–Al2O3 supported Pt catalysts have been prepared by urea precipitation method for catalytic hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of diphenyl ether (DPE) as a 4-O-5 aryl-ether lignin model compound. The selectivity toward deoxygenated product cyclohexane increased obviously with Nb2O5·nH2O decorated, owing to the significant promotion effect of NbOx species and acid sites on C–O bond cleavage. At higher pressure (3.0 MPa H2), DPE underwent a HYD route, while direct hydrogenolysis route occurred at low pressure (0.1 MPa H2). In addition, the reaction rate constants and activation energies were obtained in the temperature range from 160 to 220 °C. Based on the Arrhenius law, the activation energy for the cleavage of the C–O bond in DPE was calculated to be 91.22 kJ/mol. It was noteworthy that the Pt/20Nb–Al2O3 showed higher stability than Pt/Al2O3 for hydrodeoxygenation of diphenyl ether, which can be attributed to its water-tolerant Lewis acid sites
Wood waste valorization: sustainable conversion of lignin-derived model compounds by ni-based nano-catalysts
No full textCatalytic Conversion of lignocellulosic biomass provides a way to treat both fossil fuels shortage as well as ever-increasing wood waste problem. To depolymerize lignin structure, the cleavages of C-O bonds in 5-O-4’ and β-O-4 linkages are challenging due to the high bond dissociation energies. We devised two types of Ni-based catalytic system for the C-O cleavages on lignin-derived model compounds. Due to interaction between acid sites and metal sites, Ni on mesoporous Zr-doped NbPO4 demonstrated excellent conversion (84%) of diaryl ether to cleavage products and good hydrodeoxygenation selectivity (92%) at 220oC and 0.5 MPa. Nb promoted bulk Ni nano-catalysts have been found to convert anisole to hydrodeoxygenated products efficiently. Selectivity to deoxygenated products increases 2.5 folds over Ni0.92Nb0.08 than over bulk Ni catalyst, which is mainly attributed to the catalytic synergistic effect between amorphous Nb2O5 species and metal Ni active sites
Age composition and survival of public housing stock in Hong Kong
Get PDFEmerging notably in more developed regions, building stock ageing which is characterised by shrinking new completions and falling “mortality” has been posing challenges to various stakeholders in built environment. To find way out of this transition, we need to know how long buildings will last these days and the factors leading to their “mortality”. By using data from 1950s till to date, a comprehensive investigation is conducted to analyse the age composition and life expectancy of public housing stock in Hong Kong. What comes after are survival analysis and empirical analysis of those demolished to identify the key factors leading to demolition. Presented in this paper are the preliminary findings as well as the research agenda on the theme to model age composition and survival of both private and public building stocks in Hong Kong and other similar cities in Asia Pacific Rim such as Adelaide and Singapore, together with research activities to formulate policies for sustainable urban management
Endocytic recycling vesicles function in root development
No full textRecycling of internalized endocytic proteins to the plasma membrane (PM) occurs at the trans-Golgi network (TGN) in plant cells where the secretory and endocytic protein trafficking pathways converge. Little is known about the nature and identity of PM-recycling vesicles in plants. A family of proteins containing the Epidermal growth factor receptor substrate 15-Homology Domain (EHD) are markers of recycling, and EHD bearing tubules function in slow-recycling of internalized proteins from sorting endosome to the PM in animal cells. To define the PM-recycling pathway in plants, we cloned the Arabidopsis homolog of mammalian EHD1 and generated a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-fusion and expressed it in tobacco BY-2 cells and Arabidopsis plants. Cytosolic punctate structures labeled by GFPEHD1 fusion or endogenous EHD1 are distinct from the Golgi apparatus and prevacuolar compartment (PVC), but partially colocalize with a TGN marker. Immunogold electron microscopy of high-pressure frozen/freeze-substituted samples identified the EHD1-labeled compartment as a population of vesicles in close proximity to the TGN. These are morphologically similar but biochemically distinct to TGN-derived vesicles. Using an inducible RNA interference (RNAi) approach, we showed that EHD1 knockdown by RNAi could hamper root development and cell plate formation in Arabidopsis
Encouraging deep learning through collaborative projects and publicexhibition
No full textThis paper will present the advantages in the use of methodologies and tools of project based learning (PBL) in the teaching of a group of year one product design students in the Hong Kong context. The use of projects within the curriculum is not a revolutionary idea in design education nor education in general. In fact, PBL within design education at the tertiary level is common practice because its content is similar to real world jobs, in which tasks and projects are encountered by workers in their everyday jobs. Through PBL students can investigate things and explore some new insights within a working environment, in which over a period of time they can produce some realistic outputs (Kumari & Nandal.) It has also been noted by educators that long projects within PBL, where students work together, can promote deep learning (Prenuel et al.)This paper focuses on one project within a particular first year module taken by product design students in the first semester as part of their four-year degree programme. The research will look at how student learning can be enhanced by the use of PBL and how it can be further strengthened by collaboration with external organizations with the incentive of having selected students’ work exhibited in a major cultural event.A simple questionnaire was used to gauge the receptiveness of the students taking part in the module to this mode of collaboration to see whether this had any effect on their learning and outcome of the project.The findings are expected to show that collaborating with external parties will enhance the learning experience for the students and that the works from the project will demonstrate the link between the desire to perform well (i.e. to have one’s work exhibited) as a catalyst for deep learning. Article DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.20319/pijss.2018.33.11081124 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non-commercial 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA
