Topics and Trends in Current Science Education


Book Description

This book features 35 of best papers from the 9th European Science Education Research Association Conference, ESERA 2011, held in Lyon, France, September 5th-9th 2011. The ESERA international conference featured some 1,200 participants from Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe as well as North and South America offering insight into the field at the end of the first decade of the 21st century. This book presents studies that represent the current orientations of research in science education and includes studies in different educational traditions from around the world. It is organized into six parts around the three poles (content, students, teachers) and their interrelations of science education: after a general presentation of the volume (first part), the second part concerns SSI (Socio-Scientific Issues) dealing with new types of content, the third the teachers, the fourth the students, the fifth the relationships between teaching and learning, and the sixth the teaching resources and the curricula.




Contemporary Perspectives on Science and Technology in Early Childhood Education


Book Description

For decades, politicians, businessmen and other leaders have been concerned with the quality of education, including early childhood education, in the United States. While more than 50% of the children between the ages of three and five are enrolled in preschool and kindergarten programs in the United States, no state, federal, or national standards exist for science or technology education in preschool or kindergarten programs. Knowledge about science and technology is an important requirement for all in contemporary society. An increasing number of professions require the use of scientific concepts and technological skills and society as a whole depends on scientific knowledge. Scientific and technological knowledge should be a part of every individual’s education. There are many ways to enhance young children’s scientific thinking and problem-solving skills as well as their technological abilities. The purpose of this volume is to present a critical analysis of reviews of research on science and technology education in early childhood education. The first part of the volume includes contributions by leading scholars in science, while the second part includes contributions by leading scholars in technology.




Science under Fire


Book Description

Americans have long been suspicious of experts and elites. This new history explains why so many have believed that science has the power to corrupt American culture. Americans today are often skeptical of scientific authority. Many conservatives dismiss climate change and Darwinism as liberal fictions, arguing that “tenured radicals” have coopted the sciences and other disciplines. Some progressives, especially in the universities, worry that science’s celebration of objectivity and neutrality masks its attachment to Eurocentric and patriarchal values. As we grapple with the implications of climate change and revolutions in fields from biotechnology to robotics to computing, it is crucial to understand how scientific authority functions—and where it has run up against political and cultural barriers. Science under Fire reconstructs a century of battles over the cultural implications of science in the United States. Andrew Jewett reveals a persistent current of criticism which maintains that scientists have injected faulty social philosophies into the nation’s bloodstream under the cover of neutrality. This charge of corruption has taken many forms and appeared among critics with a wide range of social, political, and theological views, but common to all is the argument that an ideologically compromised science has produced an array of social ills. Jewett shows that this suspicion of science has been a major force in American politics and culture by tracking its development, varied expressions, and potent consequences since the 1920s. Looking at today’s battles over science, Jewett argues that citizens and leaders must steer a course between, on the one hand, the naïve image of science as a pristine, value-neutral form of knowledge, and, on the other, the assumption that scientists’ claims are merely ideologies masquerading as truths.




The Design and Development of Novel Drugs and Vaccines


Book Description

The Design and Development of Novel Drugs and Vaccines: Principles and Protocols presents both in silico methods and experimental protocols for vaccine and drug design and development, critically reviewing the most current research and emphasizing approaches and technologies that accelerate and lower the cost of product development. Sections review the technologies and approaches used to identify, characterize and establish a protein as a new drug and vaccine target, cover several molecular methods for in vitro studies of the desired target, and present various physiological parameters for in vivo studies. The book includes preclinical trials and research, along with information on FDA approval. Covers both in silico methods and experimental protocols for vaccine and drug development in a single, accessible volume Offers a holistic accounting of how developments in bioinformatics and large experimental datasets can be used in the development of vaccines and drugs Shows researchers the entire gamut of current therapies, ranging from computational inputs to animal studies Reviews the most current, cutting-edge research available on vaccine and drug design and development




Making Modern Science


Book Description

The development of science, according to respected scholars Peter J. Bowler and Iwan Rhys Morus, expands our knowledge and control of the world in ways that affect-but are also affected by-society and culture. In Making Modern Science, a text designed for introductory college courses in the history of science and as a single-volume introduction for the general reader, Bowler and Morus explore both the history of science itself and its influence on modern thought. Opening with an introduction that explains developments in the history of science over the last three decades and the controversies these initiatives have engendered, the book then proceeds in two parts. The first section considers key episodes in the development of modern science, including the Scientific Revolution and individual accomplishments in geology, physics, and biology. The second section is an analysis of the most important themes stemming from the social relations of science-the discoveries that force society to rethink its religious, moral, or philosophical values. Making Modern Science thus chronicles all major developments in scientific thinking, from the revolutionary ideas of the seventeenth century to the contemporary issues of evolutionism, genetics, nuclear physics, and modern cosmology. Written by seasoned historians, this book will encourage students to see the history of science not as a series of names and dates but as an interconnected and complex web of relationships between science and modern society. The first survey of its kind, Making Modern Science is a much-needed and accessible introduction to the history of science, engagingly written for undergraduates and curious readers alike.




The Knowledge Machine: How Irrationality Created Modern Science


Book Description

“The Knowledge Machine is the most stunningly illuminating book of the last several decades regarding the all-important scientific enterprise.” —Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, author of Plato at the Googleplex A paradigm-shifting work, The Knowledge Machine revolutionizes our understanding of the origins and structure of science. • Why is science so powerful? • Why did it take so long—two thousand years after the invention of philosophy and mathematics—for the human race to start using science to learn the secrets of the universe? In a groundbreaking work that blends science, philosophy, and history, leading philosopher of science Michael Strevens answers these challenging questions, showing how science came about only once thinkers stumbled upon the astonishing idea that scientific breakthroughs could be accomplished by breaking the rules of logical argument. Like such classic works as Karl Popper’s The Logic of Scientific Discovery and Thomas Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, The Knowledge Machine grapples with the meaning and origins of science, using a plethora of vivid historical examples to demonstrate that scientists willfully ignore religion, theoretical beauty, and even philosophy to embrace a constricted code of argument whose very narrowness channels unprecedented energy into empirical observation and experimentation. Strevens calls this scientific code the iron rule of explanation, and reveals the way in which the rule, precisely because it is unreasonably close-minded, overcomes individual prejudices to lead humanity inexorably toward the secrets of nature. “With a mixture of philosophical and historical argument, and written in an engrossing style” (Alan Ryan), The Knowledge Machine provides captivating portraits of some of the greatest luminaries in science’s history, including Isaac Newton, the chief architect of modern science and its foundational theories of motion and gravitation; William Whewell, perhaps the greatest philosopher-scientist of the early nineteenth century; and Murray Gell-Mann, discoverer of the quark. Today, Strevens argues, in the face of threats from a changing climate and global pandemics, the idiosyncratic but highly effective scientific knowledge machine must be protected from politicians, commercial interests, and even scientists themselves who seek to open it up, to make it less narrow and more rational—and thus to undermine its devotedly empirical search for truth. Rich with illuminating and often delightfully quirky illustrations, The Knowledge Machine, written in a winningly accessible style that belies the import of its revisionist and groundbreaking concepts, radically reframes much of what we thought we knew about the origins of the modern world.




Wondrous Truths


Book Description

A fresh, daring, and genuine alternative to the traditional story of scientific progress Explaining the world around us, and the life within it, is one of the most uniquely human drives, and the most celebrated activity of science. Good explanations are what provide accurate causal accounts of the things we wonder at, but explanation's earthly origins haven't grounded it: we have used it to account for the grandest and most wondrous mysteries in the natural world. Explanations give us a sense of understanding, but an explanation that feels right doesn't mean it is true. For every true explanation, there is a false one that feels just as good. A good theory's explanations, though, have a much easier path to truth. This push for good explanations elevated science from medieval alchemy to electro-chemistry, or a pre-inertial physics to the forces underlying nanoparticles. And though the attempt to explain has existed as long as we have been able to wonder, a science timeline from pre-history to the present will reveal a steep curve of theoretical discovery that explodes around 1600, primarily in the West. Ranging over neuroscience, psychology, history, and policy, Wondrous Truths answers two fundamental questions-Why did science progress in the West? And why so quickly? J.D. Trout's answers are surprising. His central idea is that Western science rose above all others because it hit upon successive theories that were approximately true through an awkward assortment of accident and luck, geography and personal idiosyncrasy. Of course, intellectual ingenuity partially accounts for this persistent drive forward. But so too does the persistence of the objects of wonder. Wondrous Truths recovers the majesty of science, and provides a startling new look at the grand sweep of its biggest ideas.




The Oxford Book of Modern Science Writing


Book Description

Selected and introduced by Richard Dawkins, The Oxford Book of Modern Science Writing is a celebration of the finest writing by scientists for a wider audience - revealing that many of the best scientists have displayed as much imagination and skill with the pen as they have in the laboratory.This is a rich and vibrant collection that captures the poetry and excitement of communicating scientific understanding and scientific effort from 1900 to the present day. Professor Dawkins has included writing from a diverse range of scientists, some of whom need no introduction, and some of whoseworks have become modern classics, while others may be less familiar - but all convey the passion of great scientists writing about their science.




Science of Strength Training


Book Description

Is it time to lose weight, gain muscle, and speed up your metabolism? Discover the hard science needed to perfect each exercise and build your strongest body – at home or in the gym Packed with research that supports the notion that bodyweight exercises help you reach your weight and fitness goals, this simple to follow guide also gives you valuable insight into how nutrition and exercise can improve your health. Inside the pages of this strength training book, you’ll discover: • The physiology and benefits of strength training • Workout plans for beginners, enthusiasts, and personal trainers • The hard dietary science that debunks common myths and important information to properly fuel your body • Depictions of 33 exercises: how to do them, common mistakes, and the benefits of each Work towards your strength goals In this book, Author Austin Current takes readers through the science of strength training, weight loss, nutrition, and overall health. The book looks at why many people fear strength training, why they shouldn’t, and how they can incorporate it into their daily lives. Filled with CGI artwork and science-backed information, this exercise book will help you transform your body and improve your well-being. Not only that, but this title also includes full workout plans and over 100 individual exercises. You’ll learn how your muscles engage at each stage, how to do movements properly and without injury, and it shows you different variations for home and gym. This book is also packed with nutritional information and includes dietary advice for vegans and vegetarians. Discover more in the series DK's Science of series dives into the science of various types of exercises such as weight training, running, and yoga. Each book discusses the benefits of the specific type of workout and how you can transform your outlook about health and fitness. How The Book Works The first section — human physiology — introduces you to the wonder that is skeletal muscle and the mechanisms that underpin strength training’s demands on the body. It will help you understand how muscles work and grow, and how the resistance work stimulates muscles to develop strength and size, alongside its positive impacts on bones and connective tissue. It also explains how the body powers muscular work and shows you how to calculate your own daily macronutrient requirements. Lastly, you’re given an overview of the benefits to the brain, and the crucial role it plays in attitude and mental health. The second section — strength exercises — is devoted to a comprehensive collection of strength training exercises to perform, along with many variations offered to compliment your available training equipment, personal preferences, and level of challenge — at home or in the gym. Each exercise displays the muscles being used throughout the movement with detailed instruction on how to achieve proper form and technique; common mistakes are covered, too. The third section — preventing injury — explores common injuries related to resistance training, with explanations on how to avoid them and how to return to training if you do suffer an injury. A consistent and structured routine, including a proper warm-up, prepares the body for work, and the various mobility exercises and stretches given will help you tune in to how your body is responding to the training. The final section — how to train — outlines everything you need to know about the variables of effective strength training, such as training volume and fatigue management. Whether you want to build muscle, strength, or endurance, you’ll find an easy-to-follow program to suit, as well as alternatives for those wanting to workout more often. Then programs form the base of your training and can be adjusted in the months and years to come.




To Explain the World


Book Description

A masterful commentary on the history of science from the Greeks to modern times, by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg—a thought-provoking and important book by one of the most distinguished scientists and intellectuals of our time. In this rich, irreverent, and compelling history, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg takes us across centuries from ancient Miletus to medieval Baghdad and Oxford, from Plato’s Academy and the Museum of Alexandria to the cathedral school of Chartres and the Royal Society of London. He shows that the scientists of ancient and medieval times not only did not understand what we understand about the world—they did not understand what there is to understand, or how to understand it. Yet over the centuries, through the struggle to solve such mysteries as the curious backward movement of the planets and the rise and fall of the tides, the modern discipline of science eventually emerged. Along the way, Weinberg examines historic clashes and collaborations between science and the competing spheres of religion, technology, poetry, mathematics, and philosophy. An illuminating exploration of the way we consider and analyze the world around us, To Explain the World is a sweeping, ambitious account of how difficult it was to discover the goals and methods of modern science, and the impact of this discovery on human knowledge and development.