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Arts element in engineering teaching
No full textIn the first few years, I was an instructor of civil engineering courses at a university in Northwest China, my teaching focused on how to deliver the disciplinary-specific content, which could be perceived as a result of disciplinary egocentrism. With my professional development, I realized that in order to motivate my engineering students, focusing on the specific disciplinary content is not adequate, and inspired by the notion of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education, which integrates an “Arts†element into the teaching and learning of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) education. I started to explore ways to have arts-related items, such as drawings, models, sculptures, pictures, as an integral part of the civil engineering courses. In my bridge design courses, I started with artistic appreciation of images of selected famous bridges around the world, followed by group discussions on the features of those bridges. In the next step, each group was asked to design their “ideal†bridge, and then use a special software program to analyze the mechanical property of their design, supported by relevant theories. Through this exercise, students learn how to keep a balance between the aesthetic and scientific components of a bridge model. During the practice, I found a significant rising attendance during the courses and with the interviews of some of my voluntary students, the positive feedback has also been reported, particularly in their interest's improvement. This teaching approach, which creates a "fertile ground", significantly improved student motivation and their learning achievement
Are the Rights of Pre-Trial Detainees in Ghana a Hollow Hope?
Get PDFThe propensity of pre-trial detention to violate human rights has generated significant calls for its use as a measure of last resort- an ultima ratio. This notwithstanding research reveals that it is used excessively and arbitrarily globally. Ghana’s pre-trial detention regime reflects this concerning trend, even though there exists a seemingly robust human rights legal framework enshrined in chapter 5 of the 1992 constitution and fortified by international human rights treaties it has signed and ratified. While considerable attention has been given to Ghana’s pre-trial detention regime in recent years, the judiciary's role in interpreting and enforcing these rights remains underexplored. This thesis aims to bridge the gap by examining how the Ghanaian courts have interpreted and analyzed the human rights legal framework to safeguard the rights of pre-trial detainees. Utilizing the doctrinal methodology, the thesis employs statutes, case law and scholarly literature to analyze the practical effectiveness of these human rights protections The findings of this thesis highlight gaps including the need for a presumptive ceiling in pretrial detention in order to give effect to the constitutional provision of “reasonable time”. It also argues for a higher standard in determining when pre-trial detention is justified as well as the establishment of a constitutionally acceptable standard of detention conditions. Ultimately the research calls for judicial proactivism to ensure that the gap between the ideals of pre-trial rights and their practical effectiveness are bridged
Inexpensive DIY Pressure Transducer for Monitoring Waves in Coastal Systems
No full text['UNSDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure (https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal9)', 'UNSDG 13: Climate Action (https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal13)']Viable, Healthy and Safe CommunitiesIn order to learn more about the natural world, there is a growing need to conduct research of increasing scale and resolution. During field work, this often necessitates the use of high accuracy equipment, which can be expensive and can be lost or damaged during deployment. Consequently, there is growing interest in do it yourself (DIY) equipment that is affordable and easy to build without sacrificing performance. The DIY Pressure Transducer provides coastal researchers with a more affordable alternative for monitoring water level fluctuations such as wave height and period. Combining ideas from existing designs, the DIY device built for this study consisted of an ESP32 microcontroller, a pressure sensor module, components from the Arduino ecosystem and a waterproof housing made from polyvinyl chloride. In contrast to commercial pressure transducers which can cost thousands of dollars, a DIY transducer can be assembled for under $200. To determine accuracy, DIY transducers were tested against a commercial instrument in both still and turbulent water, where pressure readings from each DIY device varied by a constant offset from the commercial instrument. After adjusting the data accordingly, it was agreeable to the commercial transducer by 1cm of water depth. Given the affordability and performance of the DIY sensors tested in this study, future works are planned to deploy dense sensor arrays to monitor the impact of waves on coastal erosion at scales previously not possible. Additionally, future improvements will utilize the wireless capabilities of the ESP32 to provide wireless configurability and remote data collection
Identity Formations in the Sinhala Transnational Community in Canada
No full textIdentity Formations in the Sinhala Transnational Community in Canada In this paper, I will provide an overview of the Sinhala transnational community in Canada from a historical perspective. Thereafter, I will discuss the formations of transnational identities in the context of social, cultural and political life of the Sinhala community. The issue of racism experienced in the Canadian labor market is also addressed. The discussion is framed within the notion of nation as an ideological construct. Participant observation, in-depth interviewing, and document analysis were used to collect data. Ethnographic research was mainly carried out in Toronto
Yoga for Research Administrators
No full textThis 30-minute yoga session is perfect for all experience levels, and will provide a positive, energizing start to your day and conference! We will begin with a light warm-up, followed by sun salutations and core exercises, and finish with full-body stretching. (Given the conference theme, there could even be a bridge pose or two…) Bring water, a yoga mat or towel, and wear comfortable clothing. Instructor Michelle Nevett is a Can-Fit-Pro certified Group Fitness Instructor with 8+ years of experience teaching a variety of group fitness classes and small group training. She is also a Research Program Manager at St. Clair College
An Introduction to the Importance and Implementations of Liquid Cooling in Electric Motors
Get PDFSustainable IndustryElectric Vehicles (EVs) are currently growing as the leading viable, efficient and consumer focused vehicle. Although with electric vehicles, the fear of range coverage on a single charge, longer charging times and lack of easy availability of charging stations looming over potential customers can slow and even halt wide spread adoption of EVs in the global market. In order to meet this demand, a higher efficient powertrain is required accompanied by an increase in operational time. However, the extended use of a motor will cause a larger generation of heat inside the motor, which requires detailed thermal management. In order to efficiently extend the EV range, better cooling techniques for traction motors are mandatory. From literature review, air cooling was found inefficient and ineffective, while liquid cooling is the primary cooling method for traction motors as it provides proper thermal management [1-3]. Therefore, this research will be based on a 2-step methodology. Firstly, Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is used to determine the highest concentration of heat for a prototyped induction motor traction motor. Secondly, Computational Fluid Analysis (CFD) will be implemented to determine the cooling results of a variation of liquid cooling options to identify and determine the most efficient cooling method for the prototype traction motor. The preliminary results have indicated the inflexion of heat in specific areas of the motor's rotor and stator. Using CFD analysis while changing the coolants properties, fluid path and flow speed, expected efficiency improvements can be estimated at 6.9% in some cases [4]. Through this investigation, an efficient cooling system for the prototype motor can be implemented, and should advance all motors of an identical drive system, thereby improving the EV motor's efficiency
Investigating Office Workers’ Performance and Physiological Responses in Virtual Reality Work Environments.
Get PDFTechnological advancements have reshaped people's perception of the office, transforming it from a fixed physical location into a dynamic concept where employees can work from virtually anywhere. As businesses expand, a growing number of workers now spend substantial portions of their work hours outside physical office spaces such airport lounges, hotels, cafeterias while traveling for meetings, office assignments, conferences, visiting clients or other offices of the firm across geographical boundaries. These workers rely heavily on portable devices, such as smartphones, laptops, and tablets, to remain productive in these settings. However, because these settings are not optimized for productivity, they potentially impact on cognitive performance, productivity, and the overall well-being of office workers. Virtual reality (VR) presents a potential solution to these challenges. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the usability of VR work environments and their effects on office workers cognitive performance (speed and accuracy), physiological responses such as electroencephalogram (EEG), electrocardiography (ECG), electrodermal Activity (EDA), and subjective ratings. A within-subject, fully randomized experiment (n=20) was conducted, during which participants performed four sets of cognitive tasks designed to assess perception, working memory and reaction aspects of the human information processing in both VR and physical environment (PE). Results showed no significant differences in cognitive performance between environments across most tasks, except for reaction tasks, which were slightly better in the PE. Significant differences were observed in EEG and subjective measures, with better outcomes in VR across all tasks, and no gender effect observed. ECG and EDA measures showed no environmental effects, though gender differences were observed for certain heart rate variability parameters during specific tasks. These findings suggest that VR has the potential to support office work in non-traditional office environments, offering comparable or improved outcomes in specific measures of productivity and well-being
Islamophobia: American and Canadian Media News Coverage of Muslims, Arabs, and Middle-Easterners
No full textABSTRACT This paper seeks to examine the topic of Islamophobia; how are Muslims/Islam portrayed in North American news outlets? How do depictions/portrayals of Muslims/Islam compare between American news and Canadian news? The literature review covers the following: sources of influence on the Western media and its connection to media's portrayal of Islam; Western geopolitical and economic interests in the Middle East; ideological violence by Muslim versus non-Muslim perpetrators; and Western media portrayals of Muslim women. Islamophobia is defined as the fear, hatred of, or prejudice against the Islamic religion or Muslims, especially when seen as a geopolitical force or the source of terrorism. The meaning of the term continues to be debated, and some view it as problematic. Anti-Muslim sentiment can be found in almost any mainstream media outlet post-September 11. For the purpose of this paper, examples are drawn from two Canadian and two American print media within the framework of a new Orientalism that targets and demonizes Muslims and Islam. The case study includes the analysis of 20 articles, 10 from Canadian print media and 10 from American print media. The articles revolve around the Quebec mosque shooting which took place on January 29, 2017. Critical Discourse Analysis and Content Analysis are the methods used in the analysis. The findings support the idea that through the Western media there has been a new revival of Orientalism, defined as historical depictions of the 'other', and in this case of Islam and Muslims, in order to re-create the binary between 'us' and 'them'. Key words: Islamophobia, Orientalism, Quebec Mosque Shooting, Western Media, Critical Discourse Analysis