With the rapid development of virtual technologies, there is a growing body of literature investigating the impact of virtual technologies on students’ spatial ability. However, it remains unclear ...whether virtual technologies can effectively improve students’ spatial ability. Therefore, this meta-analysis was conducted to synthesize the findings on the overall effects of virtual-based spatial ability enhancement. We systematically searched literature published from 2010 to 2020 (excluding non-empirical articles) and found 36 experimental peer-reviewed journal articles that met the inclusion criteria. Then, the random-effects model (REM) was used to calculate the pooled effect size. Results showed that virtual technologies have a medium effect on developing spatial ability with an overall effect size of 0.617. The studies were also coded to examine the moderating effects of their characteristics, such as learner stage, virtual technologies, disciplines, experimental design, learning application types, spatial ability, and testing instruments, on the outcome measure. The moderator analysis indicated that the virtual-based spatial ability improvement was more effective (a) for preschool learners, (b) in the fields of natural science and engineering technologies, (c) for all types of spatial ability, and (d) when learning during 3 to 6 months. Furthermore, augmented reality was most conducive to improving learners’ spatial ability compared with other virtual technologies. These findings provided insights for future studies and practices on using virtual technologies to cultivate spatial ability.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Game-based learning refers to establishing learning environments that involve digital or non-digital games to enhance students’ knowledge and skill acquisition. Previous studies indicated that ...game-based learning is superior to the conventional instructional method, but few compared the differences between different game types. This study examined the effects of game-based learning on Chinese middle school students’ learning of science and their self-efficacy. We implemented an experiment to compare the effects between digital and non-digital game-based learning. Our results showed that students in game-based learning groups performed significantly better in the content knowledge assessment and reported higher self-efficacy than the traditional lecture group. No significant difference was found between the digital and non-digital game groups when considering science learning performance, but students of the digital game group showed significantly higher self-efficacy than those of the non-digital game group. Implications of the findings for future research and practice of game-based learning are discussed.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
As a significant factor in urban planning, traffic forecasting and prediction of epidemics, modeling patterns of human mobility draws intensive attention from researchers for decades. Power-law ...distribution and its variations are observed from quite a few real-world human mobility datasets such as the movements of banking notes, trackings of cell phone users’ locations and trajectories of vehicles. In this paper, we build models for 20 million trajectories with fine granularity collected from more than 10 thousand taxis in Beijing. In contrast to most models observed in human mobility data, the taxis’ traveling displacements in urban areas tend to follow an exponential distribution instead of a power-law. Similarly, the elapsed time can also be well approximated by an exponential distribution. Worth mentioning, analysis of the interevent time indicates the bursty nature of human mobility, similar to many other human activities.
► We analyze the trajectories of more than 10 thousand taxis in Beijing. ► The taxis’ traveling displacements tend to follow an exponential distribution. ► The elapsed time can also be well approximated by an exponential distribution. ► The human mobility has characteristic of bursts through analyzing interevent time.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
•Impacts of vegetation restoration on groundwater drought in the Loess Plateau (LP), China were fully explored.•The GWSA-DSI is developed to characterize groundwater drought conditions.•The growth ...rate of vegetation is a dominant factor affecting groundwater drought.•The groundwater consumption rate caused by vegetation dynamics in significant area is higher than non-significant area.•The large-scale vegetation restoration in the LP exerts strong impacts on groundwater drought dynamics.
The Loess Plateau (LP) is a typical water-limited area. Since the revegetation plan started in 1999, the rapid growth of vegetation has not only significantly changed the local water cycle, but also probably affected regional groundwater drought. However, the effect of revegetation on groundwater drought remains largely unexplored. To this end, we isolated the groundwater anomalies from terrestrial water storage of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment satellites and soil moisture of the Global Land Data Assimilation System, and further used the drought severity index to characterize groundwater drought. The evolution characteristics of groundwater drought in the LP were analyzed, and the effect of revegetation plan on groundwater drought were explored. Results indicated that: (1) Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) during 2003 ~ 2015 in the LP was growing rapidly, meanwhile, groundwater storage significantly decreased (p < 0.01) and groundwater drought intensified in terms of its area and intensity; (2) compared with meteorological factors, NDVI is more strikingly correlated (p < 0.05) with groundwater drought on annual, seasonal and monthly scales, especially near the key areas of vegetation restoration; (3) the growth rate of vegetation is a dominant factor affecting groundwater drought in the LP, in which the groundwater consumption rate caused by vegetation dynamics in the significant area is higher than non-significant area. Our research results provide guidance for formulation scientific and sustainable ecological restoration policies in the LP, and also offer new ideas for the study of the relationship between vegetation and groundwater drought.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Appropriate collaborative learning support is necessary for group learning in a flipped classroom setting, especially in the out-of-class learning phase. This study involved a collaborative mind ...mapping strategy to engage learners in group activities in the flipped classroom setting. A pilot experiment was conducted to examine the effect of such a strategy on students’ learning achievement, self-efficacy, motivation, and acceptance of mind mapping in a news photography course. Specifically, this study compared the effects of two mind mapping strategies (collaborative vs. individual) combined with instructional methods (flipped classroom vs. conventional) on students’ learning outcomes. A 2 × 2 mixed-factorial experiment design was used, with the mind mapping strategies as the within-subjects factors and the instructional methods as the between-subjects factors. Ninety-two sophomores enrolled in this course were randomly assigned to either flipped classroom or conventional lecturing. Both method groups used collaborative and individual mind mapping. Results revealed that the combination of a collaborative mind mapping strategy and a flipped classroom significantly improved students’ learning achievement and self-efficacy. In addition, flipped classroom students had a more positive attitude toward accepting and using collaborative mind mapping than those in the individual mind mapping condition. These implications provided instructional designers guidance to apply collaborative mind mapping into a flipped classroom and suggested that designers should focus on improving students’ motivation by integrating other strategies.
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DOBA, EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, IZUM, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
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•Green biomass matrix cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) acted as film units.•MWCNTs and GO cooperated with CNCs to participate in the coordination of Dy(III).•The maximum partition ...coefficient of imprinted films to Dy(III) was 872.266 mL g−1.
Selectively extracting high-value rare earth elements from scrap rare earth products is a measure that combines economic and environmental benefits. In this paper, TEMPO-mediated oxidation of cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) acted as film units, oxidized carbon materials were involved in the cooperative construction of high-performance CNC composite films, and applied them for selective adsorption of Dy(III). The carboxyl groups on multi-walled carbon nanotube and graphene oxide provide additional binding sites with Dy(III), thereby achieving improvement on mechanical properties and adsorption performance. Based on the surface ion-imprinted polymers, stable imprinted structure sites were distributed on the surface of films, which could effectively improve adsorption capacity and selectivity. When pH was 4.0, saturated adsorption capacities of CNC films were in the range of 22.57–34.03 mg g−1. Further, in selective experiments, materials exhibited preferential adsorption for Dy(III) with a partition coefficient of 872.266 mL g−1. Reusability tests revealed film materials have a strong regeneration performance. Overall, the green, highly efficient and non-toxic CNC composite films are expected to provide a novel method for recycling REEs.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Rare earth elements are a treasure trove of new materials in the twenty-first century, however, the similar radii of the lanthanide metals make it difficult for the ionic rare earth elements to be ...selectively separated. Ion-imprinted technology can help to selectively separate rare earth elements, nevertheless, most materials used for ion-imprinted are expensive. Chitosan has a wide range of sources, low cost, and a large quantity of amino and hydroxyl groups, which is advantageous for adsorbing heavy metals. Most scholars have made chitosan into a shape such as microspheres, which does not exert the great value of chitosan and is difficult to recycle, which greatly affects the adsorption rate. There are few studies on increasing the specific surface area of chitosan, so there is still much room for improvement in the adsorption capacity of chitosan. In order to improve the performance of chitosan-based materials, this research reports the preparation of imprinted nanofiber chitosan films (INFCF) by ion-imprinted technique and low-temperature thermal phase separation. These methods not only make the material have a high BET surface area, but also enable the material to have selective adsorption capacity. The BET surface area of the film is 203.6 m
2
g
−1
. The maximum adsorption capacity of INFCF for Gd(III) was 71.00 mg g
−1
at pH 7.0. The adsorption mechanism is summarized as a single layer of chemical adsorption. The excellent selectivity and repeatability of INFCF make it a high-quality material for the selective recovery of rare earth ions in industrial production.
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EMUNI, FIS, FZAB, GEOZS, GIS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, MFDPS, NLZOH, NUK, OBVAL, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, SBMB, SBNM, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK, VKSCE, ZAGLJ
Contemporary society expects learners to synthesize large amounts of available information and take advantage of interdisciplinary knowledge to tackle complex, real-world issues. STEAM education aims ...to cultivate students' ability to solve such problems through interdisciplinary thinking but is often represented by courses that are merely disjointed arrays of school subjects. On the other hand, Maker education harnesses society's enthusiasm for technological innovation and creativity but overlooks the scientific principles that underpin these processes. This research presents a novel elementary school course informed by the interdisciplinary principles of STEAM, integrated with Maker's focus on technology and creativity. The course design also utilized engineering design as a meta-thematic framework. A total of 164 third-grade pupils participated in the research, with responses analyzed using descriptive statistical methods. The findings indicated that the integrated design of the course promoted pupils' learning motivation, self-efficacy, and acquisition of interdisciplinary knowledge. These effects were not gender-specific and demonstrate the potential applicability of a STEAM/Maker integrated approach to curriculum design in other settings.
A pectin/chitosan matrix-loaded curcumin film (PCCF) with a deep eutectic solvent (DES) as the solvent and plasticizer was prepared in this study. Different quantities of curcumin (identified as ...PCCF-0, PCCF-1, PCCF-2. PCCF-3) were loaded on the pectin/chitosan film in order to evaluate their effects on the film properties. Results showed that curcumin could interact with the pectin/chitosan matrix and form a complex three-dimensional network structure. PCCF could promote the thickness, tensile strength, thermal properties, antioxidant and antiseptic capacities, but deteriorate the light transmission and elongation at the same time. The addition of curcumin would change the color of the film, without significantly affecting the moisture content. The tensile strength of PCCF-3 reached the maximum value of 3.75 MPa, while the elongation decreased to 10%. Meanwhile, the water-resistance properties of PCCF-3 were significantly promoted by 8.6% compared with that of PCCF-0. Furthermore, PCCF showed remarkable sustained antioxidant activities in a dose-dependent manner. PCCF-3 could inhibit DPPH and ABTS free radicals by 58.66% and 29.07%, respectively. It also showed antiseptic capacity on fresh pork during storage. Therefore, curcumin addition could improve the barrier, mechanical, antioxidant and antiseptic properties of the polysaccharide-based film and PCCF has the potential to be used as a new kind of food packaging material in the food industry.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
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