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Developing highly efficient and stable electrocatalysts for urea electro-oxidation reactions (UORs) will improve wastewater treatment and energy conversion. A low-cost cobalt sulfide-anchored nickel sulfide electrode (CoS/Ni3S2@CP) was synthesized by electrodeposition in DMSO solutions and found to be highly effective and long-lasting. The morphology and composition of catalyst surfaces were examined using comprehensive physicochemical and electrochemical characterization. Specifically, CoS/Ni3S2@CP electrodes require a potential of 1.52 volts for a 50 mA/cm2 current, confirming CoS in the heterointerface CoS/Ni3S2@CP catalyst. Further, the optimized CoS/Ni3S2@CP catalyst shows a decrease of 100 mV in the onset potential (1.32 VRHE) for UORs compared to bare Ni3S2@CP catalysts (1.42 VRHE), demonstrating much greater performance of UORs. As compared to Ni3S2@CP, CoS/Ni3S2@CP exhibits twofold greater UOR efficiency as a result of a larger electroactive surface area. The results obtained indicate that the synthetic CoS/Ni3S2@CP catalyst may be a favorable electrode material for managing urea-rich wastewater and generating H2.

This Special Issue of Catalysts is dedicated to recent advances in the research areas of photocatalysts and photocatalyzed reactions [...]

Catalytic materials exist in several forms and can be prepared using different methodologies and protocols [...]

Herein, I would like to provide an overview of this Special Issue, published in the Organic and Polymer Chemistry Section of Catalysis, comprising contributions from 18 of the journal’s Editorial Board Members [...]

The study and advancement of crank-slide actuating mechanisms based on four-link structural groups are promising for the development of new designs of crank presses and other stamping and forging machines [...]

The academic community has witnessed a notable increase in paper publications, whereby the rapid pace at which modern society seeks information underscores the critical need for literature mapping. This study introduces an innovative automatic model for categorizing articles by subject matter using Machine Learning (ML) algorithms for classification and category labeling, alongside a proposed ranking method called SSS (Scientific Significance Score) and using Z-score to select the finest papers. This paper’s use case concerns industry productivity. The key findings include the following: (1) The Decision Tree model demonstrated superior performance with an accuracy rate of 75% in classifying articles within the productivity and industry theme. (2) Through a ranking methodology based on citation count and publication date, it identified the finest papers. (3) Recent publications with higher citation counts achieved better scores. (4) The model’s sensitivity to outliers underscores the importance of addressing database imbalances, necessitating caution during training by excluding biased categories. These findings not only advance the utilization of ML models for paper classification but also lay a foundation for further research into productivity within the industry, exploring themes such as artificial intelligence, efficiency, industry 4.0, innovation, and sustainability.

Expansive soil exhibits significant swellings and shrinkages, which may result in severe damage or the collapse of structures built upon it. Calcium-based admixtures, such as lime, are commonly used to improve this problematic soil. However, traditional chemical additions can increase significant environmental stress. This paper proposes a sustainable solution, namely, the use of lignin fiber (LF) from the paper industry to partially replace lime as an amendment for expansive soils. Both the macroscopic and microscopic characteristics of the lignin fiber-treated expansive soil are extensively studied. The results show that the mechanical properties of expansive soil are improved by using lignin fiber alone. Under the condition of an optimal dosage of 8%, the compressive strength of lignin fiber-modified soil can reach 193 kPa, the shear strength is increased by 40% compared with the untreated soil, and the water conductivity is also improved with the increase in dosage. In addition, compared with 2% lime-modified soil, the compressive strength of 8% lignin fiber- and 2% lime composite-treated expansive soil increased by 50%, the cohesion increased by 12%, and the water conductivity decreased significantly. The microstructure analysis shows that at an 8% lignin fiber content, lignin fibers interweave into a network in the soil, which effectively enhances the strength and stability of the improved soil. Simultaneously, the fibers can form bridges across the adjacent micropores, leading to the merging of pores and transforming fine, dispersed micropores into larger, connected macropores. Lime promotes the flocculation of soil particles, forming larger aggregates and thus resulting in larger pores. The addition of fibers exerts an inhibitory effect on the flocculation reaction in the composite-improved soil. In conclusion, lignin fibers are an effective addition used to partially replace calcium admixture for the treatment of expansive soil, which provides a sustainable and environmentally friendly treatment scheme for reducing industrial waste.

Success in sustaining food security in the face of global climate change depends on the multi-disciplinary efforts of plant science, physics, mathematics, and computer sciences, whereby each discipline contributes specific concepts, information, and tools [...]

Human cancers are products of multistep processes resulting in abnormal cell growth and differentiation, along with a loss of apoptotic function, leading to the uncontrolled expansion of neoplastic cells and their spread to surrounding tissues and, ultimately, distant parts of the body [...]

Nanoparticles have been in use for centuries [...]

This review analyzes the most influential artificial intelligence (AI) studies in health and life sciences from the past three years, delineating the evolving role of AI in these fields. We identified and analyzed the top 50 cited articles on AI in biomedicine, revealing significant trends and thematic categorizations, including Drug Development, Real-World Clinical Implementation, and Ethical and Regulatory Aspects, among others. Our findings highlight a predominant focus on AIs application in clinical settings, particularly in diagnostics, telemedicine, and medical education, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergence of AlphaFold marked a pivotal moment in protein structure prediction, catalyzing a cascade of related research and signifying a broader shift towards AI-driven approaches in biological research. The review underscores AIs pivotal role in disease subtyping and patient stratification, facilitating a transition towards more personalized medicine strategies. Furthermore, it illustrates AIs impact on biology, particularly in parsing complex genomic and proteomic data, enhancing our capabilities to disentangle complex, interconnected molecular processes. As AI continues to permeate the health and life sciences, balancing its rapid technological advancements with ethical stewardship and regulatory vigilance will be crucial for its sustainable and effective integration into healthcare and research.

The scope of this preliminary study revolves around investigating the effectiveness of experiential learning in upper-year science laboratory courses in a post-pandemic era. In this study we have explored two key questions: 1. Can experiential learning facilitate independent inquiry in an upper-year undergraduate laboratory in a post-pandemic era? 2. Do incoming students feel prepared to carry out an in-person, hands-on, upper-year undergraduate laboratory experiments in a post-pandemic era? By exploring these questions through student reflections and perceptions in an advanced analytical chemistry inquiry-based laboratory course, we hope to acknowledge the impact the pandemic has had on first- and second-year foundational labs, and on the preparation of students for upper-year undergraduate labs. The shift towards virtual learning during the COVID-19 pandemic may have heavily impacted the development of core wet laboratory skills and thus made it challenging for students to build their confidence and skillset and attain success when challenged at a higher level. [Articles in this journal were presented at the University of Calgary Conference on Postsecondary Learning and Teaching.]

Background: Training both pre - and in-service teachers who are capable of planning and enacting engineering design-based science instruction are critical for integrating engineering into K-12 science curricula. Purpose: This study investigates pre-service teachers' efforts to integrate engineering into their lesson plans. Sample: 13 pre-service chemistry teachers, enrolled in a 13-week engineering-infused integrated STEM course, were the participants of the study. Design and Method: Considering the purpose of the study, qualitative design was deemed to be the best fit including qualitative data collected through lesson plans and reflection papers. To assist pre-service teachers' learning, 13-week engineering-infused integrated STEM was started with the information about the engineering profession and how engineers work. Additionally, pre-service teachers engaged in six integrated STEM activities including engineering design cycle. After each activity, the participants were asked to write a reflection paper on what they learned about engineering, the engineering design process, and integrated STEM. Finally, the participants had three chances for analyzing strong and weak integrated STEM lesson plans and planning integrated STEM lesson planning experience with mentors. The pre-and post-course lesson plans (n=26) were analyzed using existing codes from the related literature, which is a deductive coding process. Later, an inductive approach was used to determine the categories of engineering integration into the lesson plans. Four categories (ranging from a complete engineering lesson to a science lesson with no engineering link) were formed. Reflection papers were used to support the findings. Result: The results showed that none of the pre-plans included engineering. However, after participated in a 13-week integrated STEM course, all post-course lesson plans integrated engineering through the use of engineering design processes to some extent. Conclusion: The training with different experiences seems promising for pre-service teachers to learn engineering integration into STEM lesson plans.

This paper aimed to examine the changes in the representations of nature of science (NOS) in Chinese senior high school chemistry textbooks under the influence of the new curriculum ideas. The study was conducted based on an analytical framework in which the aspects of NOS, the approaches to address NOS, and the content relation of NOS aspects were involved. Two series of the new and old chemistry textbooks of required course modules were selected as analysis targets. The results revealed that chemistry textbooks paid more attention to classical views of NOS than contemporary views of NOS. The aspects of NOS were unevenly presented in different chapters of textbooks. The new textbooks covered the NOS aspects more comprehensively and frequently than the old ones. Regarding the approaches, the implicit approach was dominant. Compared with old ones, the proportions of the explicit-reflective and historical-explicit-reflective approaches have increased in new textbooks, but were still not high. Lastly, the content relation of NOS aspects were more of content-embedded than content-generic both in new and in old textbooks. At the end of this paper, the implications of the findings and the suggestions for the further studies were discussed.

GCSE examinations (taken by students aged 16 years in England) are not intended to be speeded (i.e. to be partly a test of how quickly students can answer questions). However, there has been little research exploring this. The aim of this research was to explore the speededness of past GCSE written examinations, using only the data from scored responses to items from a sample of 340 GCSE components. Speededness was calculated as the average (mean) percentage marks lost from the longest string of unanswered items at the end of each student's examination paper. The potential impact of student ability on examination completion patterns was taken into account. The data suggested that most GCSEs analysed were unlikely to have been speeded. This method of exploring the speededness of exams using only scored responses has potential (although there are limitations), and it can flag potentially problematic components for further investigation.

A comprehensive educational framework is provided by the Conceive-Design-Implement-Operate (CDIO) which is particularly relevant to engineering and applied sciences. This paper investigates the application of the CDIO approach in the field of chemistry pedagogy in Vietnam focusing on its adaptability to the current educational demands and its potential to enhance the competency of future teachers. The CDIO approach develops training curricula and outputstandards based on input from teachers,students, alumni and recruitment firms. This study uses the CDIO approach extensively with professional knowledge, social awareness and creative tendencies. The study involved a survey of 240 chemistry teachers and 242 students from various universities across Vietnam. Data were collected through online surveys using Google Forms and processed using SPSS software for statistical analysis. The research analyzed the alignment of practical teaching activities with CDIO standards and developed a framework for experimental practice competency. Findings indicated a robust implementation of the CDIO approach in chemistry pedagogy. In laboratory safety, experimental planning, execution and competence were high. The study shows that the CDIO strategy enhances professional competence and practical abilities in Vietnamese chemistry pedagogy students. It promotes collaboration and personal growth to meet changing educational needs. The CDIO approach could transform chemistry pedagogy in Vietnam suggesting science education reforms and capacity building.

Patients with diabetes often experience blood glucose fluctuations, making monitoring crucial. Traditional blood sampling methods pose risks of infection and pain. An alternative non-invasive approach using urine tests has been explored. Recent studies highlight microfluidic paper-based analytical devices (µPADs) as convenient, simple, and easily fabricated tools for non-invasive glucose measurement. This study aims to develop a concept of measuring glucose in artificial urine using 3D-µPADs in a non-enzymatic manner by utilizing glucose as a reducing agent for silver nanoparticle (AgNPs) formation. Embedding three-dimensional connectors in µPADs links the sample and detection zones to limit reagent mixing and improve glucose detection resolution. The optimal conditions were NaOH 10 M, starch 1%, and AgNO3 30 mM, with sample and detection zone volumes of 10 and 9 µL, respectively. The fifth reaction sequence involved AgNO3 in the detection zone and a solution of glucose, NaOH, and starch in the sample zone at 1:1:1 volume ratio. The reagent drying time was 15 min, with immobilization once and reaction time of 9 min. The method showed excellent linearity (R2 = 0.9905), precision (%RSD = 4.27%), accuracy (77.32–92.58%), and limit of detection (11.11 mg/dL).

This paper explores how the culture within a Danish university study programme affects students' aspirations of becoming a high school chemistry teacher. We draw on ethnographic fieldwork and qualitative interviews to describe and analyse the culture of the programme. In the analysis we foreground the case of two students to understand their identity negotiations and changes in their teacher aspirations over time. By combining a 'domains-of-power framework' with the concept of 'science identity', we show how everyday practices formed a culture of power that positioned research in the centre and teaching as a less attractive career path. By unfolding the subtle mechanisms that together form a culture of power, which works both to include and exclude, we show the ways in which the two student's aspirations for becoming high school chemistry teachers somewhat diminished over time. The study concludes that negotiating a science identity at a research-intensive university programme, makes it almost impossible to develop and keep an aspiration for becoming a high school teacher. To address the current and future shortage of science teachers across Europe, our findings underline the need for a more inclusive culture at the university to support science students' diverse aspirations.

An ammonium chloride–Congo red (NH4Cl-CR) solution is presented as a potential sensing solution for aldehydes. Monofunctional aldehydes such as formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, benzaldehyde, and isobutyraldehyde caused changes in the pH of the sensing solution, producing a color transition from red-orange to violet to blue. This distinguished them from the other compounds, thereby acting as a qualitative test for the functional group. The NH4Cl-CR solution was also employed in making filter paper-based and silica gel-based sensors for formaldehyde and acetaldehyde vapors. These sensors responded positively towards the aldehyde gases through a color transition from pink to blue. The NH4Cl-CR mixture provides a simple and easy-to-handle reagent for the detection of both liquid and gaseous aldehydes which has potential applications in environmental monitoring.

Flotation deinking is one of the most widely used techniques for the separation of ink particles from cellulose fibers during the process of paper recycling. It is a complex process influenced by a variety of factors, and is difficult to represent and usually results in models that are inconvenient to implement and/or interpret. In this paper, a comprehensive study of several machine learning methods for the prediction of flotation deinking performance is carried out, including support vector regression, regression tree ensembles (random forests and boosting) and Gaussian process regression. The prediction relies on the development of a limited dataset that assumes representative data samples obtained under a variety of laboratory conditions, including different reagents, pH values and flotation residence times. The results obtained in this paper confirm that the machine learning methods enable the accurate prediction of flotation deinking performance even when the dataset used for training the model is limited, thus enabling the determination of optimal conditions for the paper recycling process, with only minimal costs and effort. Considering the low complexity of the Gaussian process regression compared to the aforementioned ensemble models, it should be emphasized that the Gaussian process regression gave the best performance in estimating fiber recovery (R2 = 97.77%) and a reasonable performance in estimating the toner recovery (R2 = 86.31%).

Lignin extracted from black liquor in chemical pulp mills can potentially replace fossil carbon feedstocks in fuels and materials, thereby increasing the economic and environmental added values of woody biomass. However, since lignin extraction reduces the electricity generation of the mill, the added value depends on the characteristics of the electricity market in which the mill operates. In this study, a model mill is exposed to two different electricity price profiles: the low and steady prices of south-central Sweden in Year 2019; and the high and volatile prices of the same region in Year 2022. For the model mill, investments in lignin extraction designed to increase pulp production are economically viable and have low levels of sensitivity to electricity price levels and price volatility. The viability of lignin extraction without increased pulp production depends on the relationship between the electricity and lignin prices. With stable electricity prices, or steady mill operation, a rule-of-thumb holds that for lignin extraction to be viable, the lignin price (€/t) must be 1.8-times the average electricity price (€/MWh) plus 40 €/t for the supply of chemicals. With volatile electricity prices and flexible operation of the recovery boiler, the mill can shift the loss in electricity sales to low-price hours, thereby saving 15–70 % of the operational costs of lignin extraction, as compared to steady operation. This effect can be further enhanced by increasing the capacity of the lignin extraction process or extending the size of the black liquor storage tank. The proposed flexibility measures allow the market-integrated pulp mill to export lignin to replace fossil carbon supplies in other sectors, while supporting the electricity system during hours with high demand and low supply.

In the lab experiments, the compressive strength (CS) of cement mortar, three pre-setting water/binder (W/B) ratios, five substitution rates of burned joss paper ash (SR-BJPA), and three curing temperatures (T) were tested for the 45 samples. The results were recorded at 3, 7, 28, 56, 90, and 120 days after curing (#days) for each sample. The correlations between CS and each experimental factor (W/B ratio, SR-BJPA, T, and #days) and the effects of each factor or pair of factors on CS were determined using four univariate and six bivariate regression models. All the models were significant (i.e., the factors and the pairs of factors can be used to predict CS); however, each model had a different ability to fit the data and explain the data variance, making some models not that suitable. The effects on CS of substituting cement with different BJPA proportions and curing the mortar at different temperatures were mainly identified. A knowledge base for predicting the CS was established before any sample is to be made in future practise. Finally, using an SR-BJPA of 5% and raising the curing temperature to 50 °C (or 75 °C, if additional heating energy consumption needs not be considered) while keeping the W/B ratio at 0.4 is recommended to obtain an optimal CS for the full-aged sample (i.e., at #days = 120) in future practise, subject to the aim to consume the BJPA wastes by using it to replace Portland cement, in order to reduce the vast volume of carbon emitted along with the production of the cement material.

Background: Educational board games have been receiving attention from educators in recent years. Designing the rules of board games based on cognitive theory, and further analysing educational board games from more dimensions are important issues that warrant further study. Purpose: The research designed a board game called Chemistry Story to promote students' learning of the concept of element combination in chemical substances. The design of the cognitive mechanism of the board game was based on three cognitive design principles, namely schema connection theory, attention, and cognitive scaffolding. Sample: The participants were 48 eighth-grade students in Taiwan. Their average age was 13.8. Design and methods: A one-group pretest-posttest design was adopted. The research explored students' learning achievement, flow, and acceptance after using this board game for learning. Moreover, this research analysed the differences in students' flow while playing with game components made of different materials (paper, wood, and plastic), and explored the relationship with learning achievement, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use. Results: The results showed that students' concept of element combination in chemical substances improved through playing this board game. In addition, students had considerable engagement and acceptance of the board game's learning activities with the game components made of different materials. The results of the correlation analysis showed that students with low academic achievement were more likely to feel that Chemistry Story was helpful to their studies. It was also found that the wooden material components brought a better sense of engagement and game acceptance. Conclusion: When designing educational board game products, we should not only consider the target knowledge of the board game and the design of the game mechanism, but also consider the students' feelings about the materials used to make the components, and choose materials that can bring students a better learning experience, so as to enhance the positive influence on their learning.

Holism evolution states that although energy, matter, life, consciousness and the human personality are independent and different substances/levels of evolution, they are holistically and intimately related. This paper presents the findings from teaching chemistry to high school science students and post-graduate university science-education students using poetry constructed from physical science ideas embedded in holism evolution. The research findings are based on observations of student behaviour and their written feedback from being taught chemistry using poems on the periodic table and acids and bases. Both poems demonstrate the holism intimacy between various substances/levels of evolution, with the periodic table poem also presenting groups of chemical elements as representing the characteristics of infant, teenager, adult and old age of matter, presenting a holistic relationship between matter and life. The findings indicate that using holism evolution infused content led to a personally meaningful engagement with chemistry even among students with limited previous interest in the subject. Many post-graduate students expressed new levels of engagement with chemistry as well as new insights to enliven their teaching practice.

Understanding the world around us is a growing necessity for the whole public, as citizens are required to make informed decisions in their everyday lives about complex issues. Systems thinking (ST) is a promising approach for developing solutions to various problems that society faces and has been acknowledged as a crosscutting concept that should be integrated across educational science disciplines. However, studies show that engaging students in ST is challenging, especially concerning aspects like change over time and feedback. Using computational system models and a system dynamics approach can support students in overcoming these challenges when making sense of complex phenomena. In this paper, we describe an empirical study that examines how 10th grade students engage in aspects of ST through computational system modeling as part of a Next Generation Science Standards-aligned project-based learning unit on chemical kinetics. We show students' increased capacity to explain the underlying mechanism of the phenomenon in terms of change over time that goes beyond linear causal relationships. However, student models and their accompanying explanations were limited in scope as students did not address feedback mechanisms as part of their modeling and explanations. In addition, we describe specific challenges students encountered when evaluating and revising models. In particular, we show epistemological barriers to fruitful use of real-world data for model revision. Our findings provide insights into the opportunities of a system dynamics approach and the challenges that remain in supporting students to make sense of complex phenomena and nonlinear mechanisms.

Computer-based learning environments (CBLEs) are powerful tools to support student learning. Increasingly of interest is the data that is recorded as learners interact with a CBLE. This "process data" yields opportunities for researchers to examine learners' engagement with a CBLE and explore whether specific interactions are associated with learner variables, with direct implications for improving learning outcomes and CBLE design. As CBLEs increase in number and complexity, researchers continue to seek more effective strategies to analyze process data. While a variety of strategies are in use, from visualizations to predictive modeling, none yet offer the capabilities to both uncover hidden, meaningful interactions and descriptively analyze those interactions rapidly across the complete data set. This paper details a method that addresses current challenges, and then applies the method to existing data from a prior study which investigated the effects of adding a visual scaffold to a chemistry-based CBLE. Using a biochemical coding approach through a cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) framework, the method successfully identified 257 unique, meaningful patterns of interaction that were strategically grouped into nine categories of mediated actions. Though no differences in mediated actions were observed between learners in the experimental (visual scaffolds) and control conditions, three mediated actions were significantly and positively associated with higher learning outcomes in the visual scaffold condition. The results not only provide insight into why the addition of visual scaffolds led to higher learning outcomes among participants but have broader implications for filling a gap in the field of process data analytics for CBLEs in science education.

Purpose: This paper presents two educational gamified virtual labs and investigates different methods of including gamified elements in virtual labs used for teaching. The purpose of this study is to investigate if immersive gamified virtual labs can be used as effective pedagogical tools by properly incorporating them into higher education curricula to assist low-risk active learning and student engagement. Design/methodology/approach: This research design comprises two gamified virtual labs including nine essential experiments of biology and chemistry integrated into the higher education curriculum of the Foundation of Science at an international University. Students filled in a survey after participating in the lab to shed light on appropriate ways of using gamification approaches in virtual labs. Findings: From the predominant findings of the study, gamified virtual labs increase student involvement thereby enhancing knowledge development with active learning and may be a potentially suitable pedagogical tool for low-risk interactive learning. Research limitations/implications: Limitations of the study include findings based on gamified virtual labs but not comparing the gamified virtual labs to simple virtual simulations to further investigate the pedagogical approach and understand the student perceptions in a simple virtual simulation and a gamified virtual lab. Practical implications: The findings of this study will provide evidence that gamified virtual labs integrated into higher education curricula as supplementary tools for laboratory experimentation improve the educational delivery process. Originality/value: This research highlights an appropriate way of integrating 3D virtual labs into practical curricula while discussing the benefits.

As research of benefits and detriments of pesticides and biocides progresses, people's knowledge needs to be updated. This study takes an audience perspective on how practitioners may improve communication. Through online focus group discussions of how and why Danes acquire knowledge of pesticides and biocides, we find that focusing on improving people's knowledge structures, heuristics and self-efficacy may improve people's ability to acquire such knowledge and in turn improve their motivation. This paper provides suggestions for how practitioners may create more effective communication.

Science educators are integrating more and more computational thinking (CT) activities into their curricula. Proponents of CT offer two motivations: familiarizing students with a realistic depiction of the computational nature of modern scientific practices and encouraging more students from underrepresented backgrounds to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. However, some studies show that increasing exposure to computing may not necessarily translate to the hypothesized gains in participation by female students and students of color. Therefore, paying close attention to students' engagement in computationally intense science activities is important to finding more impactful ways to promote equitable science education. In this paper, we present an in-depth analysis of the interactions among a small, racially diverse group of high school students during a chemistry unit with tightly integrated CT activities. We find a salient interaction between the students' engagement with the CT activities and their social identification with publicly recognizable categories such as "enjoys coding" or "finds computing boring." We show that CT activities in science education can lead to numerous rich interactions that could, if leveraged correctly, allow educators to facilitate more inclusive science classrooms. However, we also show that such opportunities would be missed unless teachers are attentive to them. We discuss the implications of our findings on future work to integrate CT across science curricula and teacher education.

In virtual laboratories, various cognitive aids are used to improve students' performance and assist them while completing experimental tasks. However, excessive use of cognitive aids in virtual laboratories can lead to a cognitive load on students which affects their performance. In this paper, we proposed the concept of adaptive aids virtual reality chemistry laboratory. User expertise, quantitatively measured in terms of errors and time spent, is used as an adaptation criterion to dynamically update adaptive aids (arrows, text or animations). The system modifies the contents of such aids for good, average, and weak students to give them the opportunity to improve their performance. In this manner, adaptive aids assist the users to perform an experiment in the proposed system correctly according to the correct procedure with high performance. For evaluation, we conducted a comprehensive user study with 59 participants from various institutions. These students were selected randomly by their teachers and contained different levels of students (i.e., weak, average, and good students). We also conducted a written quiz and based on their scores we divided them into three groups (i.e., good, average, and weak). The participants (students) were classified into three groups G1, G2, and G3 based on their expertise levels (i.e., good, average and low). Then each group conducted an experiment four times. Evaluations revealed that the proposed system consistently improved students' performance in four trials. In particular, weak students' performance greatly improved as compared to that of good and average students in terms of a variety of factors, including time and errors during the performance of experiments.

The evaluation of research to allocate government funding to universities is now common across the globe. "The Research Excellence Framework," introduced in the UK in 2014, marked a major change by extending assessment beyond the 'quality' of published research to include its real-world 'impact'. Impact submissions were a key determinant of the £4 billion allocated to universities following the exercise. The case studies supporting claims for impact are therefore a high stakes genre, with writers keen to make the most persuasive argument for their work. In this paper we examine 800 of these 'impact case studies' from disciplines across the academic spectrum to explore the rhetorical presentation of impact. We do this by analysing authors' use of hyperbolic and promotional language to embroider their presentations, discovering substantial hyping with a strong preference for boosting the novelty and certainty of the claims made. Chemistry and physics, the most abstract and theoretical disciplines of our selection, contained the most hyping items with fewer as we move along the hard/pure - soft/applied continuum as the real-world value of work becomes more apparent. We also show that hyping varies with the "type" of impact, with items targeting technological, economic and cultural areas the most prolific.

Maintaining a commitment to social justice teaching can be especially challenging when navigating the bureaucratic systems and ever-spiraling responsibilities of the education system. To better understand how social-justice-oriented educators navigate these tensions, this paper uses qualitative methods to investigate the social justice problems of practice identified by five chemistry teachers in a year-long professional learning community. By analyzing the challenges described in their problem-posing segments, I identify seven major themes that represent key sources of tension and possibility as teachers move from theory to practice in teaching chemistry for social justice. These findings indicate that the practical considerations of day-to-day teaching practice create the most salient tensions when moving from theoretical ideas of social justice to a deeply integrated enactment of social justice teaching. Through a deeper analysis of two cases, I demonstrate the effects of discussing problems of practice with a group of teachers who had similar disciplinary backgrounds and ideological stances. These discussions shifted the tensions from potential barriers to areas of possibility in which they were able to enact new ideas within the confines of their context. Taken together, these findings indicate that developing social justice educators requires attention to navigating the practical details of teaching from a social justice lens.

Sensemaking is an important way of learning and engaging in science. Research has shown that sensemaking activities, such as questioning, hypothesizing, and model building, are pivotal in developing critical thinking and problem-solving skills in science education. This paper investigates the role of computational simulations in facilitating sensemaking in chemistry education, specifically examining how these simulations can sustain the sensemaking process. Through a detailed case study in a physical chemistry course, we explore the interplay between students' real-world experiences, theoretical knowledge, and computational simulations. This analysis reveals that computational simulations, by providing interactive and visual representations of chemical phenomena, can create a conducive environment for sensemaking, where students actively engage in exploring and resolving conceptual uncertainties. Based on these results, we argue that computational tools, when effectively integrated into educational settings, can facilitate sensemaking in science education.

Members of the Interactive Online Network of Inorganic Chemists (IONiC) report the development and sustained efforts to provide virtual professional development sessions: Supporting Learning with Interactive Teaching: a Hosted, Engaging Roundtable (SLiThEr). SLiThEr's emerged from a community need at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic; since then, SLiThEr's have become a standard event for the IONiC community. SLiThEr's are real- time virtual community events, after which a recording of the SLiThEr is posted on the IONiC YouTube channel. In this paper, an overview of the structure, format, and emergence of SLiThEr's is reported, followed by evaluation of SLiThEr offerings, a plan for future SLiThEr offerings, and a discussion of how SLiThEr's impact teaching practice.

The purpose of this study is to "meta"-analytically evaluate research that used chemical bonding-based interventions to improve academic performance. Through "meta"-analysis, the present study used several keyword patterns (e.g., chemical bonding, experimental, chemistry education, science education) via relevant databases (e.g., ERIC, Springer Link, Taylor & Francis, Wiley Online Library Full Collection, and Scopus) to find chemical bonding-intervention studies. Thus, it included 50 chemical bonding-based intervention papers (15 dissertations, 32 articles, and 3 proceedings). The current "meta"-analysis found that the overall effect-size of chemical bonding-based intervention studies was 1.007, which shows a "large" effect. Findings regarding moderator analysis displayed non-significant differences between educational levels and a statistically significant difference between the intervention types. This "meta"-analysis reveals that the chemical bonding-based intervention studies are effective at improving the participants' academic performance in terms of chemical bonding. Further, it denotes that when the abstract nature of chemical bonding is overlapped with the features of the intervention type, the interventions (e.g., cooperative learning and enriched learning environment with different methods) result in better academic performance. Since this study, like all "meta"-analyses, points out consistent and inconsistent findings among published research, further "meta"-analysis studies should be undertaken to resolve any contradictory findings.

"Introduction:" Teaching and learning are processes that significantly impact one's future. Active participation in school practises serves as a strong foundation for future educators. This paper aims to present the viewpoints and feedback of university students on chemistry lessons conducted in schools by fellow university students as part of their training. The study explores how these prospective teachers perceive lessons while simultaneously playing the roles of both the teacher and an observer. It also investigates their ability to identify areas in need of support and those that require further development during their subsequent pre-service teacher training courses. "Methods:" Quantitative data was collected through formal documents, specifically observation sheets. The study's participants were university students enrolled in pre-service teacher training programs who conducted chemistry lessons in school settings. These participants assumed the dual roles of instructors and observers during the lessons they taught. "Results:" Analysis of the observation sheets revealed that the experience of assuming both teaching and observing roles contributed to the enhancement of the pre-service teachers' reflective attitudes. This finding suggests the positive impact of this dual role on their professional development. "Discussion:" Teaching demands a blend of pedagogical knowledge and the ability to reflect, as evidenced by a study at Jagiellonian University's Faculty of Chemistry. This research, aimed at understanding the effectiveness of trainee teachers, highlighted the importance of creativity, proper communication, and skills in interpersonal relations for educators. While the research provided valuable insights, there's a call for more extensive studies to gain deeper understandings and address challenges such as classroom management and student engagement. "Limitations:" It is important to acknowledge certain limitations within this study. The scope of the investigation was restricted by the size and composition of the sample of participants. Consequently, the outcomes cannot be generalised to the broader population of pre-service teachers. "Conclusions:" The findings of this research highlight the importance of adopting a dual-role methodology in teacher education. By assuming both teaching and observational roles, aspiring teachers acquire a more profound understanding of their pedagogical techniques and recognize potential enhancements. Engaging in such reflective practices promises to enhance their subsequent teaching experiences. This study emphasizes the advantages of weaving hands-on teaching experiences into teacher training, fostering a more introspective and effective teaching methodology.

The laboratory is a complex environment where the three levels of the chemistry triplet coincide. As the laboratory environment places a large demand on the working memory of students, cognitive load theory can address overload which causes barriers to learning. Breaking down barriers requires iterative phases of analysis/exploration, design/construction and evaluation/reflection over multiple cycles which are the hallmarks of design-based research. In a complex setting, managing change and redressing teaching approaches can be difficult to navigate. Design-based research incorporates iterative phases in which theory informs decision making. This paper uses the context of a laboratory exercise of emission spectra to illustrate how the cognitive load theory can be used in tandem with design-based research to support student learning in the exercise. Using this approach, it was possible to show how barriers to student understanding, including task demands and conceptual demands were supported through proposed approaches focusing on extraneous, intrinsic and ultimately germane cognitive load.

Problem solving in chemical kinetics poses substantial challenges for university students since it often involves significant use of mathematics as a tool and language, with challenging translations and transitions between chemical phenomena and mathematical representations. In this paper, we present key findings from a study investigating chemistry students solving tasks centred around the steady-state approximation. Building upon the mathematical modelling cycle (MMC), qualitative analysis of the data collected using a think-aloud protocol led to the development of the extended MMC. This empirically derived extended MMC offers a more detailed account of the processes involved in mathematical modelling of chemical phenomena, highlighting aspects such as the occurrence of deliberation and evaluation throughout the modelling cycle, as well as the varying characteristics, points of activation and roles of extra-mathematical resources during problem solving. We further introduce and use problem-solving trajectories as a tool for visualising and analysing the complex and diverse approaches used by students in their attempts at reaching a solution. Overall, the extended MMC provides a finer-grained model of the cognitive and metacognitive activities that students engage in, offering further insights for research and practice.

The paper presents the design and evaluation of a voluntary online introductory stoichiometry (VOIS) course aimed at facilitating the transition from secondary to higher education. The course utilized simple analogies and adaptive feedback through a formative scaffolding assessment. The study assessed the effectiveness of the VOIS course through pre- and post-knowledge tests, analysis of students' performance in general chemistry, and course evaluation surveys conducted at a Latin American University between 2019 and 2021. A total of 3,995 first-year STEM students enrolled in the course voluntarily, and 358 students successfully completed it. The results showed a statistically significant improvement in stoichiometry-related knowledge, with the pre-post test scores increasing from 4.61 to 6.55 out of 10. The matched sample analysis, which only included students with 100% participation, demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in stoichiometry and related knowledge from 5.31 to 6.61. Furthermore, an analysis comparing the performance of students who completed the VOIS course with those who didn't reveal that the former group outperformed the latter by an average of 10.6 points in the general chemistry course. This statistically significant difference exhibited a large effect size (d = 0.8). In addition, a matching technique was employed to construct a synthetic control group in order to reduce bias in the quasi-experimental design. A successful propensity score analysis was conducted, controlling for variables such as gender, grade in high school, scores in the national test, and student ranking in their high school. The results of this analysis showed a statistically significant improvement of 8.6 points in the general chemistry performance for students who completed the VOIS course compared to those who did not enroll in the course. Furthermore, the feedback from 129 respondents indicated that 80% of the students either liked the VOIS course or liked it very much, with an overall satisfaction rating of 3.1 on a four-point scale. In conclusion, the VOIS course demonstrated positive outcomes in terms of enhanced stoichiometry knowledge, academic performance, and student satisfaction. These findings highlight the potential of online courses like VOIS in facilitating the transition to higher education.

Abstract The growth of liquid biopsy, i. e., the possibility of obtaining health information by analysing circulating species (nucleic acids, cells, proteins, and vesicles) in peripheric biofluids, is pushing the field of sensors and biosensors beyond the limit to provide decentralised solutions for nonspecialists. In particular, among all the circulating species that can be adopted in managing cancer evolution, both for diagnostic and prognostic applications, microRNAs have been highly studied and detected. The development of electrochemical devices is particularly relevant for liquid biopsy purposes, and the screen‐printed electrodes (SPEs) represent one of the building blocks for producing novel portable devices. In this work, we have taken miR‐2115‐3p as model target (it is related to lung cancer), and we have developed a biosensor by exploiting the use of a complementary DNA probe modified with methylene blue as redox mediator. In particular, the chosen sensing architecture was applied to serum measurements of the selected miRNA, obtaining a detection limit within the low nanomolar range; in addition, various platforms were interrogated, namely commercial and hand‐made SPEs, with the aim of providing the reader with some insights about the optimal platform to be used by considering both the cost and the analytical performance.

This article distinguishes the role of hexagonal motifs in close-packed solid-state structures and in graphite and graphene; we then illustrate how hexagonal cells in the nests of honey bees and paper wasps minimize construction materials while optimizing space and achieving a robust architecture from delicate materials

Green roofs (GRs) are a well-established green infrastructure (GI) strategy that have been extensively studied for decades to address a growing array of social and environmental challenges. Research efforts have been continuously made to contribute to the awareness of benefits of GRs and towards their widespread application. The substrate, which is one of the crucial layers of a GR system, plays a major role in the serviceability of GRs. Thus, several studies have been undertaken to alter the substrate characteristics by applying innovative substrate additives. Biochar, a carbon-rich material with a highly porous structure and large specific surface area, has been found advantageous in several areas such as agriculture, water filtration, environmental remediation, construction, and so on. However, the application of biochar in GRs has been insufficiently studied, partially because biochar amendment in GRs is a relatively recent innovation. Furthermore, a comprehensive review of the performance of biochar-amended GR substrates is lacking. This review paper aims to summarize the past performance of GRs enhanced with biochar by considering the various benefits that biochar offers. The results indicate that most of the reviewed studies observed increased retention of runoff and nutrients when utilizing biochar. Additionally, the capabilities of biochar in improving thermal insulation, plant performance, and microbial diversity, as well as its effectiveness in sequestrating carbon and controlling soil erosion, were mostly agreed upon. Notwithstanding, a definitive conclusion cannot yet be confidently made due to the limited research information from biochar–GR systems and the uneven research focus observed in the studies reviewed. The influence of biochar-related variables (including amendment rates, application methods, processed forms, and particle size) on the effectiveness of biochar was also discussed. Opportunities for future research were suggested to fill the research gaps and address challenges restricting the application of biochar in GRs. Detailed information from past research findings could serve as a foundation for further investigations into the large-scale implementation of biochar in GRs.

Aerogels are an excellent alternative to traditional oil absorbents and are designed to remove oil or organic solvents from water. Cellulose-based aerogels can be distinguished as polymers that are non-toxic, environmentally friendly, and biodegradable. The compression measurement properties of aerogels are often evaluated using dry samples. Here, oil-soaked, hydrophobized cellulose aerogel samples were examined in comparison to dry samples with and without additional hemp fibers and various levels of starch for crosslinking. The samples were characterized by compression measurement properties and filmed to evaluate the regeneration of the sorbent with repeated use. Overall, the measurements of the mechanical properties for the dry samples showed good reproducibility. The Young’s modulus of samples with additional hemp fibers is significantly increased and also shows higher strength than samples without hemp fibers. However, samples without hemp fibers showed slightly better relaxation after compression. Oil acts as a weak plasticizer for all aerogel samples. However, it is important to note that the oil does not cause the samples to decompose in the way unmodified cellulose aerogels do in water. Therefore, using hydrophobized cellulose aerogels as sorbents for oil in a sea or harbor with swell means that they can be collected in their entirety even after use.

This paper investigates the effects of different types of adsorbents on the removal of methylene blue dye. Three adsorbent types that will be utilized in this research are black tea, rice husk, and eggshells. Adsorption is the process of removing a substance called adsorbate in any physical state by adhering to the surface of another material called an adsorbent. In this paper, the adsorbate is a methylene blue dye stock solution with a concentration of 0.030 g L-1. To evaluate the effectiveness of the adsorbents their adsorption capacities and removal efficiencies will be computed using Beer-Lamber Law and the absorbance data obtained from a UV-Vis spectrophotometer as the analytical method. It has been concluded that the most effective adsorbent among the three was rice husk, and the least efficient was eggshell powders. Ultimately, possible extensions to enlarge the spectrum of the research were proposed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]