Digital Commons Network^™

Computational Models As Tools For Supporting Responsive Teaching, Hillary Swanson, Luettamae Lawrence, Jared Arnell, Bonni Jones, Bruce Sherin, Uri Wilensky

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

It is widely agreed that science instruction should help students build new knowledge on the foundation of their prior knowledge. Responsive teaching refers to a family of teaching strategies that pursue and build on student ideas. We introduce a particular approach to responsive teaching and examine how it can be supported by the use of computational models. We analyze an 8^th grade science teacher's facilitation of a class discussion near the end of a lesson on sound. We present a moment-by-moment characterization of her responsive teaching moves, highlighting the ways she used a computational model to help students articulate …

Children's Mathematical Engagement Based On Their Awareness Of Coding Toy Design Features, Joseph Kozlowski, Jessica Shumway, Patricia Moyer-Packenham, Jody Clarke-Midura, Victor Lee

Teacher Education and Leadership Faculty Publications

Tangible coding toys are designed to make coding accessible to young children, and because of their tangible and spatial nature, they are also viewed as tools for engaging children in mathematics. Research is needed to understand children's awareness of toys' design features and how they afford mathematical engagement. We conducted a qualitative study of 106 5-to-6-year-old children completing coding tasks (42 hours of video). Our research questions focused on children's perceptions of design features, mathematical engagement, and how different design features afforded mathematics engagement. Results indicated (a) children perceived a variety of design features across coding toys; (b) children engaged …

Storing And Managing Water For The Environment Is More Efficient Than Mimicking Natural Flows, Sarah E. Null, Harrison Zeff, Jeffrey Mount, Brian Gray, Anna M. Sturrock, Gokce Sencan, Kristen Dybala, Barton Thompson

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Dams and reservoirs are often needed to provide environmental water and maintain suitable water temperatures for downstream ecosystems. Here, we evaluate if water allocated to the environment, with storage to maintain it, might allow environmental water to more reliably meet ecosystem objectives than a proportion of natural flow. We use a priority-based water balance operations model and a reservoir temperature model to evaluate 1) pass-through of a portion of reservoir inflow versus 2) allocating a portion of storage capacity and inflow for downstream flow and stream temperature objectives. We compare trade-offs to other senior and junior priority water demands. In …

Gamification In Retail: Enhancing Grocery Customer Experience With Location-Based Strategies, Alireza Zandi, Yoones A. Sekhavat

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Student Research

This study explores how gamification impacts retail customer experience, emphasizing the need for businesses to differentiate in competitive markets. Gamification involves using game design elements in non-game contexts. The research presents a unique gamified shopping system using location-based (Beacon) technologies with a mobile application. This system engages customers through interactive games and challenges in specific store locations. With a sample size of 25, this study aimed to address the following research questions: What gamifying methods could be applied in a real store? What impact does gamification have on customer experience in a real-store shopping context? What role could gamification play …

Modified (N + 1) D Laplacian For Smooth Pressure Reconstruction Based On Time-Resolved Velocimetry (1): Analysis And Numerics, Junrong Zhang, Nazmus Sakib, Zhao Pan

Electrical and Computer Engineering Student Research

We analyze a smooth pressure solver based on the ‘modified Poisson equation’: ∇²p + ξ² ∂²p/∂t² = f(u(t)), where p is the pressure field, u(t) is the velocity field measured by time-resolved image velocimetry, and ξ² is a tunable parameter to control the solver’s diffusive behaviour in time. This modified Poisson equation aims at obtaining smooth pressure fields from potentially noisy image velocimetry measurements, and is a part of the current four-dimensional (4D) pressure solver (implemented in, for example, DaVis 10.2) by LaVision. This work focuses on investigating three aspects …

Meta-Theoretic Competence For Computational Agent-Based Modeling, Hillary Swanson, Uri Wilensky

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

In the U.S. context, science standards encourage educators to engage students in modeling practices, including computational modeling. While much work has investigated the productivity of computational modeling with respect to students' development of scientific content knowledge, less work has focused on students' development of knowledge and skills for participation in computational modeling practices. A first step in understanding how these practices develop is examining students' activity in the context of computational modeling environments with attention to the productive moves they make. These moves can provide insight into the knowledge they bring to their learning, which may be foundational to the …

The Role Of Generative Ai In Qualitative Research: Gpt-4'S Contributions To A Grounded Theory Analysis, Ravi Sinha, Idris Solola, Ha Nguyen, Hillary Swanson, Luettamae Lawrence

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

We present reflections on our experience using a generative AI model in qualitative research, to illuminate the AI's contributions to our analytic process. Our analytic focus was a segment of classroom transcript, which captured a teacher introducing scientific theory-building practices to middle school students. We used a grounded theory approach to produce a fine-grained characterization of the teacher's talk moves during the lesson implementation. Our eventual goal is to build a more nuanced conceptualization of responsive teaching in the context of theory-building activities. We involved GPT-4 during the initial exploratory and later focused coding stages. For our analysis of GPT-4's …

What Happened To The Geometry? Examining Spatial And Mathematical Concepts In Computational Toys And Kits For Young Children, Jody Clarke-Midura, Jessica F. Shumway, Anahita Ashineh, Alireza Zandi, Whitney Clawson

Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences Faculty Publications

This paper explores the design of computational toys and kits for young children (ages 4-7) as tools for learning integrated mathematical, spatial, and computational thinking concepts. Specifically, we examine how the design features of the toys and kits represent the concepts of rotation on a point and spatial orientation of the agent. We examine toys and kits sold commercially, developed through research, and used in early childhood classrooms. Our findings indicate that the mathematical and spatial concepts are overlooked in some designs. Prior research examined toys for their affordances related to computational thinking, the present study contributes to understanding of …

Supplementary Files For "Using Digitized Building And Weather Records To Improve The Accuracy Of Ground To Roof Snow Load Ratio Estimations", Gideon Parry, Brennan Bean

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Reliability targeted snow loads (RTLs) measure the weight in accumulated snow (i.e. snow load) that a roof is required to support to ensure the probability of failure is suf- ficiently low. This calculation has historically relied upon a probability distribution that characterizes the ratio between the annual maximum ground snow load to the annual max- imum roof snow load, a quantity referred to as Gr. The best available data for estimating Gr comes from Canadian case studies from the 1950s and 1960s. However, much of the data was never digitized, with only approximations of data being made available in scanned …

Effects Of Differing Radiation Methods On Charge Transport In Polymers, Zachary Gibson, Jr Dennison, Virginie Griseri

Presentations

The mitigation of deleterious arcing and sparking onboard spacecraft depends upon a thorough understanding of the electrical properties of the materials involved. This includes not only understanding steady-state parameters such as dark conductivity, but responses to the space environment as well. For example, radiation-induced conductivity drastically changes the conductivity of a material due to the presence of radiation. However, this change in conductivity diminishes away once the radiation is no longer present. There may also be permanent changes, or aging, in the material properties. The physical processes of aging can be complicated and are often difficult to model. Therefore, empirical …

Supplementary Files For: "Interactive Modeling Of Bear Lake Elevations In A Future Climate", Benjamin D. Shaw, Scout Jarman, Brennan Bean, Kevin R. Moon, Wei Zhang, Nathan Butler, Tommy Bolton, April Knight, Emeline Haroldsen, Abby Funk, Rebecca Higbee

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The water level, or elevation, of Bear Lake has a significant impact on agriculture, power, infrastructure, and recreation for communities around the lake. Climatological variables, such as precipitation, temperature, and snowfall, all have an impact on the elevation of Bear Lake. As the climate changes due to greenhouse gas emissions, the typical behaviors of these climate variables change, leading to new behaviors in Bear Lake elevation. Because of the importance of Bear Lake, it is vital to be able to model and understand how Bear Lake's elevation may change in the face of different climate scenarios and to gain further …

Wildfire Smoke Impacts Lake Ecosystems, Mary Jade Farruggia, Janice Brahney, Andrew J. Tanentzap, Jennifer A. Bentrup, Ludmila S. Brighenti, Sudeep Chandra, Alicia Cortés, Rocio L. Fernandez, Janet M. Fischer, Alexander L. Forrest, Yufang Jin, Kenneth Larrieu, Ian M. Mccullough, Isabella A. Oleksy, Rachel M. Pilla, James A. Rusak, Facundo Scordo, Adrianne P. Smits, Celia C. Symons, Minmeng Tang, Samuel G. Woodman, Steven Sadro

Watershed Sciences Faculty Publications

Wildfire activity is increasing globally. The resulting smoke plumes can travel hundreds to thousands of kilometers, reflecting or scattering sunlight and depositing particles within ecosystems. Several key physical, chemical, and biological processes in lakes are controlled by factors affected by smoke. The spatial and temporal scales of lake exposure to smoke are extensive and under-recognized. We introduce the concept of the lake smoke-day, or the number of days any given lake is exposed to smoke in any given fire season, and quantify the total lake smoke-day exposure in North America from 2019 to 2021. Because smoke can be transported at …

Effects Of Periodic Sequential Arrangement Of Subscale Miura-Foldcore Under Quasi-Static Compression, Chase Mortensen, Devin Nielsen, S. Z.H. Shah, Juhyeong Lee

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

This study presents experimental and numerical investigations on the quasi-static compressive responses of various subscale Miura-foldcore composites. A series of quasi-static compression tests were conducted on standard Miura foldcore specimens fabricated using carbon/epoxy woven fabric prepregs. Representative volume element (RVE) models, incorporating periodic boundary conditions (PBCs), were developed to predict the size-dependent compressive response of subscale Miura foldcores. The effective properties of the carbon/epoxy woven fabric composite used in this study were calculated using the NASA multiscale analysis tool (NASMAT) via two-step homogenization process. The FE model exhibited comparable agreement with experimental results, showcasing variations of less than 7% and …

Rock Glaciers In Utah, Scott Hotaling, Kendall Becker, Matthew Morriss

All Current Publications

Utah’s primary water supply––winter snowpack––is in decline due to climate warming coupled with more precipitation falling as rain instead of snow. As snowpack dwindles, other sources of cold stream water, such as rock glaciers, will become more important. Rock glaciers contain significant volumes of internal ice covered by debris. This internal ice provides cold meltwater to mountain streams, sustaining flows in summer and supporting biodiversity. Rock glaciers are common in Utah’s mountains and are projected to be more stable under climate change than Utah’s snowpack. Thus, rock glaciers are likely to persist in their current form even as snowpack volumes …

Sensitivity Of Ocean Circulation To Warming During The Early Eocene Greenhouse, Sandra Kirtland Turner, Andy Ridgwell, Allison L. Keller, Maximilian Vahlenkamp, Adam K. Aleksinski, Philip F. Sexton, Donald E. Penman, Pincelli M. Hull, Richard D. Norris

Geosciences Faculty Publications

Multiple abrupt warming events ("hyperthermals") punctuated the Early Eocene and were associated with deep-sea temperature increases of 2 to 4 °C, seafloor carbonate dissolution, and negative carbon isotope (δ¹³C) excursions. Whether hyperthermals were associated with changes in the global ocean overturning circulation is important for understanding their driving mechanisms and feedbacks and for gaining insight into the circulation's sensitivity to climatic warming. Here, we present high-resolution benthic foraminiferal stable isotope records (δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O) throughout the Early Eocene Climate Optimum (~53.26 to 49.14 Ma) from the deep equatorial and North Atlantic. Combined with existing …

Radiation Induced Conductivity Of Peek: Effects Of Temperature And Total Ionizing Dose, Joshua Boman, Brian Wood, Jordan Lee, Jr Dennison, Kim M. Aaron, Wousik Kim

Conference Proceedings

Radiation induced conductivity (RIC) plays a critical role in space charge dissipation with insulating materials used in spacecraft. Ionizing radiation present in harsh space plasma environments deposits energy into materials via inelastic scatter, exciting electrons into the conduction band without depositing charge for penetration radiation. RIC is expected to be affected by temperature and total ionizing dose (TID); temperature primarily affects the rate of promotion of electrons in localized trap states within the band gap to the conduction band, while TID can create additional traps states thereby increasing trap density and reducing mean trap separation.

RIC was measured in a …

Temperature Dependent Radiation Induced Conductivity Of Polymeric Spacecraft Materials, Jodie Corbridge Gillespie, Jr Dennison

Conference Proceedings

Temperature dependent radiation induced conductivity (RIC) data applicable to conditions experienced by spacecraft are presented for low density polyethylene (LDPE) and poylimide (PI, Kapton^HN, along with summaries for five other common polymeric spacecraft mateials: polyimide (PI; Kapton HN^TM, and Kapton E^TM), polytetraflouroethylene (PTFE; Teflon^TM), expanded PTFE (ePTFE), ethylene-tetrafluoroethylene and (ETFE; Tefzel^TM). Data were measured over approximately 105 K to 330 K and incident dose rates, D, of 10^-4 Gy/s to 10^-1Gy/s. Theoretical expressions proposed by Rose/Fowler/Vissenberg predict equilibrium RIC behavior according to a general expression σ …

Time-Dependent Behavior Of Radiation Induced Conductivity In Polymers, Tyler Heggenes, Jenny R. Whiteley, Jodie Corbridge Gillespie, Joshua Boman, Jr Dennison

Conference Proceedings

Ionizing radiation can induce conductivity in polymers via inelastic scattering which imparts energy to electrons in the valence band and trapped states, exciting them into the conduction band without depositing charge into the material. This radiation-induced conductivity (RIC) can impact space charge dissipation within highly insulating materials used in spacecraft in harsh space plasma environments. Previous USU research analyzed only the equilibrium portions of an extensive RIC database for polymeric materials, including Kapton HN^TM. This confirmed that equilibrium RIC follows a standard theoretical model that is temperature and dose-dependent. The current study provides a new analysis of RIC's …

Comparison Of Absolute Electron Emission Yields Of Extreme Insulators: Round Robin Tests Of Polyimide And Low Density Polyethylene, Jr Dennison, Matthew Robertson, Christopher Vega, Mohamed Belhaj, Juste Sarah Dadouch, Isabel Montero, María E. Dávila, Kazuhiro Toyoda

Posters

No abstract provided.

Temperature Dependent Radiation Induced Conductivity Of Polymeric Spacecraft Materials, Jodie Corbridge Gillespie, Jr Dennison

Posters

No abstract provided.

Analysis Of The Effects Of Surface Modifications And Other Extrinsic Factors On Electron Yield With A “Patch” Model, Matthew Robertson, Christopher Vega, Trace Taylor, Jr Dennison

Presentations

Electron yield (EY) is a material attribute of central importance to understanding and modeling spacecraft charging. EY is defined as the ratio of emitted electrons to incident electrons, when irradiated with an electron beam. It depends on incident energy and is unique for each material as determined by its chemical composition, crystal structure, and electronic configurations. Dynamic surface modifications and other extrinsic factors—including surface morphology, composition, contamination, oxidation, and charging— can significantly affect EY and consequently spacecraft charging. This research proposes a “patch” model to provide a simple theoretical framework to model more complex materials comprised of any number of …

Time-Dependent Behavior Of Radiation Induced Conductivity Of Polymers, Tyler Heggenes, Jenny R. Whiteley, Jodie Corbridge Gillespie, Joshua Boman, Jr Dennison

Presentations

The conductivity of insulating materials can be enhanced above the baseline dark conductivity by incident radiation via inelastic scattering that imparts energy to electrons in trapped states and excites them into the conduction band, without depositing charge. Such radiation-induced conductivity (RIC), caused by ionizing radiation present in harsh space plasma environments, can play a critical role in space charge dissipation within highly insulating materials used in spacecraft. An equilibrium value for RIC, 𝜎_RIC, is attained after prolonged exposure to an incident dose rate; this follows a standard theoretical power law model proposed by Rose/Fowler/Vissenberg, 𝜎_RIC(T …

Analysis Of The Effects Of Surface Modifications And Other Extrinsic Factors On Electron Yield With A “Patch” Model, Matthew Robertson, Christopher Vega, Trace Taylor, Jr Dennison

Conference Proceedings

Electron yield (EY) is a material property of central importance to understanding and modeling spacecraft charging. It depends on incident energy and is unique for each material. Dynamic surface modifications and other extrinsic factors—including composition, surface morphology, contamination, oxidation, and charging— can significantly affect EY and consequently spacecraft charging. This research proposes a “patch” model to provide a simple theoretical framework to model more complex materials comprised of any number of different types of constituent materials in terms of the EY contribution of each constituent material or extrinsic factor. The “patch” model merges the unique EY curve contribution of each …

Effects Of Differing Radiation Methods On Charge Transport In Polymers, Zachary J. Gibson, Jr Dennison, Virginie Griseri

Conference Proceedings

Spacecraft charging issues are understood and mitigated through an understanding of material properties. Material properties are dynamic in the harsh environment of space. Approximations must be made to simulate the space environment in the laboratory. This paper reports on the investigation of the approximation that energy deposition causes the same aging effects in the materials regardless of the radiation source. Samples of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) and polyether-etherketone (PEEK) were irradiated with x-rays, γ-rays, or electrons at total ionizing dose (TID) of either 2 x 10⁴, 2 x 10⁵, or 2 x 10⁶ rad. Charge was then …

A Consideration Of Racial/Ethnic Diversity Conceptualization And Measurement: Clarifying Ambiguities And Advancing Scholarship, Mei-Ki Chan, Aprile D. Benner

Psychology Faculty Publications

There has been little discussion of racial/ethnic diversity conceptualization and measurement in educational and psychological research. With the surge of research on school diversity and its significant social meaning, the lack of clarity on how diversity is conceptualized and operationalized warrants a systematic review. This article 1) reviews diversity concepts in the literature, 2) describes potential conceptual and methodological concerns, 3) proposes an alternative method to measure two specific types of diversity, and 4) highlights considerations for future research and methodology when studying diversity. More specifically, we conducted a systematic review to summarize the available measures that quantify diversity, mapped …

Trace Element Contamination In Urban Soils: Testing And Management, Melissa Chilinski, Melanie Stock, Paul R. Grossl, Eli Oliver

All Current Publications

Trace elements, often referred to as heavy metals, naturally occur in the soil at low levels. Certain land use histories can elevate the concentrations of trace elements to levels that present health risks. Understanding which elements and soil test values may impact human or crop health is an important aspect of gardening and micro-farming, particularly in urban environments that are at increased risk of soil contamination. This fact sheet provides instructions on interpreting soil test results for trace elements through the Total Element Composition EPA 3050B Soil Test (#S19) at Utah State University Analytical Laboratory.

Graph-Based Modeling And Optimization Of Wpt Systems For Evs, Matthew J. Hansen, Greg Droge, Abhilash Kamineni

Electrical and Computer Engineering Student Research

A model of a system of wireless power transfer (WPT) pads is developed, where each WPT pad is modeled as a node and the coupling between pads is modeled as graph edges. This modeling approach is generalized to admit primary, secondary, and booster coils, where power can flow among the pads and a pad can fill multiple roles. An excitation in one pad induces voltage and current in all neighboring pads, causing each pad to act as both a booster coil and either a transmitter or a receiver. Power flow through the entire system can be modeled with the graph …

Production, Utilization And Quality Of Irrigated Grasses And Legumes In The Mountain West Usa Under Mob Stocking Or Clipping, Jennifer W. Macadam, Brody Maughan, Xin Dai

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Feed is the most costly input for US ruminant livestock production systems, and increasing the utilization efficiency of irrigated forage systems can improve system profitability. This study assessed the production, utilization and quality of 22 intensively managed perennial grasses and legumes. Forages were cultivated as monocultures under irrigation and subjected to similarly intense clipping or mob stocking for two years at six-week intervals between May and September. Grasses and legumes were randomly assigned to 22 adjacent 1.5-m-wide by 9-m-long subplots within each whole plot, and pairs of whole plots were randomly assigned to grazing or clipping management. Seven grasses did …

Temporal Json Keyword Search, Curtis Dyreson, Amani Shatnawi, Sourav S. Bhowmick, Vishal Sharma

Computer Science Faculty and Staff Publications

JSON keyword search searches the current versions of documents in a collection. However, JSON documents change over time due to edits. Some applications, such as data forensics and auditing, need to search past versions of documents and for changes to documents. This paper introduces a system called Temporal JSON Keyword Search (Tjks) for search in a collection of JSON documents that vary over time. Tjks lets users control which temporal slice, or part of the history, can be searched using a temporal search semantics; we support both of the major temporal semantics: sequenced and nonsequenced search. This paper …

Insect Abundance And Richness Response To Ecological Reclamation On Well Pads 5–12 Years Into Succession In A Semi-Arid Natural Gas Field, Michael F. Curran, Jasmine Allison, Timothy J. Robinson, Blair L. Robertson, Alexander H. Knudson, Bee M. M. Bott, Steven Bower, Bobby M. Saleh

Extension Research

Natural gas extraction is a critical driver of the economy in western North America. Ecological reclamation is important to ensure surface disturbance impacts associated with natural gas development are not permanent and to assist native biota. Previous studies in semi-arid natural gas fields within Sublette County, Wyoming, USA have shown insects respond favorably to 1–3-year-old well pads undergoing reclamation compared to older successional reference vegetation communities dominated by Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata spp. Wyomingensis). Here, we examined well pads which were initially seed 5, 8, 10, 11, and 12 years prior to our study. We used a free, image-based …