美国教师评估与退出机制的构建及其启示:基于对IMPACT教师评估系统的剖析

为探索我国教师评估与退出机制的建立与运行,采用文本分析方法对美国华盛顿哥伦比亚特区IMPACT评估系统操作指南进行分析,总结IMPACT评估系统的运行体系与特点,为我国教师评估与退出机制提供借鉴。IMPACT评估系统通过覆盖全体的评估对象、专业多元的评估责任主体、丰富具体的评估内容、清晰透明的评估流程以及奖罚分明的评估结果对华盛顿特区公立学校系统教师进行评估,整个系统呈现出评估内容专业化、评估过程公正化、评估结果差异化和评估系统动态化等特点。综观IMPACT评估系统的设计与运行,我国在构建教师评估与退出机制时,应注意在体系建设上强调政府提供制度支持;在评估内容与标准上关注教师能力;在评估责任主体上要兼顾多方利益群体;在系统设计上要因地制宜;最后在系统实施过程中更要注重宽严适度。

废冰箱回收利用环境效益评估——基于IMPACT WORLD+方法

废电器是产生量大且增速快的一类固体废物.我国构建的废电器回收体系是实施碳达峰?碳中和的重要举措,但废电器回收利用体系的环境效益尚不清楚.利用IMPACTWORLD+方法,从不同环境影响类型出发评估废电器回收处理的环境效益,并通过损害类型指标量化评价.结果表明,废冰箱回收利用的损害类型指标“人体健康”和“生态环境质量”的结果分别为-10592.501EUR2015和-8211.357EUR2015,合计为-18803.857EUR2015,即环境收益相当于18803.857EUR2015.据此估算,中国2021年废电器回收处理体系中仅废冰箱回收利用的环境收益可达12.82亿EUR2015.研究结果表明废电器回收处理的环境收益十分可观,有望为废电器回收行业的可持续发展提供新的助力.

The impact of demographic dynamics on food consumption and its environmental outcomes:Evidence from China

With increasing population and changing demographics,food consumption has experienced a significant transition in quantity and quality.However,a dearth of knowledge remains regarding its environmental impacts and how it responds to demographic dynamics,particularly in emerging economies like China.Using the two-stage Quadratic Almost Demand System(QUAIDS)model,this study empirically examines the impact of demographic dynamics on food consumption and its environmental outcomes based on the provincial data from 2000 to 2020 in China.Under various scenarios,according to changes in demographics,we extend our analysis to project the long-term trend of food consumption and its environmental impacts,including greenhouse gas(GHG)emissions,water footprint(WF),and land appropriation(LA).The results reveal that an increase in the proportion of senior people significantly decreases the consumption of grain and livestock meat and increases the consumption of poultry,egg,and aquatic products,particularly for urban residents.Moreover,an increase in the proportion of males in the population leads to higher consumption of poultry and aquatic products.Correspondingly,in the current scenario of an increased aging population and sex ratio,it is anticipated that GHG emissions,WF,and LA are likely to decrease by 1.37,2.52,and 3.56%,respectively.More importantly,in the scenario adhering to the standards of nutritional intake according to the Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents in 2022,GHG emissions,WF,and LA in urban areas would increase by 12.78,20.94,and 18.32%,respectively.Our findings suggest that changing demographics should be considered when designing policies to mitigate the diet-environment-health trilemma and achieve sustainable food consumption.

Enhanced structural damage behavior of liquid-filled tank by reactive material projectile impact

A series of ballistic experiments were performed to investigate the damage behavior of high velocity reactive material projectiles(RMPs) impacting liquid-filled tanks,and the corresponding hydrodynamic ram(HRAM) was studied in detail.PTFE/Al/W RMPs with steel-like and aluminum-like densities were prepared by a pressing/sintering process.The projectiles impacted a liquid-filled steel tank with front aluminum panel at approximately 1250 m/s.The corresponding cavity evolution characteristics and HRAM pressure were recorded by high-speed camera and pressure acquisition system,and further compared to those of steel and aluminum projectiles.Significantly different from the conical cavity formed by the inert metal projectile,the cavity formed by the RMP appeared as an ellipsoid with a conical front.The RMPs were demonstrated to enhance the radial growth velocity of cavity,the global HRAM pressure amplitude and the front panel damage,indicating the enhanced HRAM and structural damage behavior.Furthermore,combining the impact-induced fragmentation and deflagration characteristics,the cavity evolution of RMPs under the combined effect of kinetic energy impact and chemical energy release was analyzed.The mechanism of enhanced HRAM pressure induced by the RMPs was further revealed based on the theoretical model of the initial impact wave and the impulse analysis.Finally,the linear correlation between the deformation-thickness ratio and the non-dimensional impulse for the front panel was obtained and analyzed.It was determined that the enhanced near-field impulse induced by the RMPs was the dominant reason for the enhanced structural damage behavior.

Opportunities to Improve the Quality of Environmental Reports and the Effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment: A Case of Electric Power Transmission Systems in Brazil

A good quality Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is key for the effectiveness of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) processes and consequently to the acceptability of projects subject to EIA. The international literature has contributed to the understanding of the essential aspects to be verified regarding the quality of EIS, offering a wide spectrum of good practice examples related to the content of the studies. Even so, there is a need for empirical studies that allow the identification of specific aspects related to the context of application of the EIS, which could lead to the identification of opportunities to improve both the quality of the reports and also the effectiveness of EIA. Therefore, the present paper is focused on the quality review of a number of EIS submitted to the Brazilian Federal Environmental Agency (Ibama) to instruct the assessment of electric power transmission systems. Based on the application of the EIS quality review package as proposed by Lee and Colley (1992), the outcomes reveal opportunities for improving the scope of EIA, analysis of alternatives, prediction of magnitude and the assessment of impact significance. Finally, the development and/or adaptation of a similar tool for the systematic review of the quality of EIA reports is recommended.

Environmental Impact Assessment Follow-Up of Seismic Survey Offshore Activities in Brazil

Follow-up of environmental impacts is an integral part of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process, closely related to the effectiveness of the instrument. EIA follow-up has been receiving a lot of interest from scientists and practitioners, though it is recognized as one of the weakest points of EIA systems globally. Also, EIA follow-up is influenced by the context, mainly in terms of the types of projects or activities and their related impacts on the environment. Therefore, the present paper is focused on the investigation of the follow-up stage applied to the activity of seismic survey coupled with offshore oil & gas exploitation in Brazil. Research was based on a qualitative approach that included document analysis and semi-structured interviews with analysts involved in EIA processes, and sought to generate evidence of effectiveness of the EIA follow-up as conducted by the Federal Environment Agency (Ibama) in order to situate the practice of follow-up in the broader context of international best practice principles. Based on the findings, it was concluded that, due to the peculiarities of offshore seismic survey, it is necessary to promote adaptations in the procedures for monitoring impacts in order to ensure proper alignment with the principles and conceptual foundations that guide EIA practice. Specifically, the timing of the execution of the activity imposes challenges for its integration into the “conventional” cycle that has guided the monitoring of the impacts in the EIA of projects.

Velocity equation for grenades while impacting on dry sand media

This paper deals with the collision of sphere shape grenades with sand media.The central issue of the article is the establishing of an empirical velocity equation of the grenade while impacting on sand that is used to solve motion equations of the mechanical mechanism inside the impact grenade fuze.The paper focuses on impact velocities that are lower than 5 m s^(-1).An experiment was conducted to study the velocity of the grenade while impacting on dry sand.A high-speed camera video was used to capture the grenade positions.The grenade velocity in the impact process was generated from these video data.Some types of fitting curves are used to regress the velocity equation of the grenade while interacting with the sand media and the best-fitting model is chosen.The result shows the regression curve has a high correlation with the experiment data for grenade velocities below 5 m s^(-1).The received regression equation is useful for analyzing the working ability of the inertial mechanism inside the impact grenade or analyzing and choosing the appropriate parameters of each part in the inertial mechanism to meet the required characteristics of the mechanism.

Instrumented oscillographic study on impact toughness of an axle steel DZ2 with different tempering temperatures

Compared with the conventional Charpy impact test method,the oscillographic impact test can help in the behavioral analysis of materials during the fracture process.In this study,the trade-off relationship between the strength and toughness of a DZ2 axle steel at various tempering temperatures and the cause of the improvement in impact toughness was evaluated.The tempering process dramatically influenced carbide precipitation behavior,which resulted in different aspect ratios of carbides.Impact toughness improved along with the rise in tempering temperature mainly due to the increase in energy required in impact crack propagation.The characteristics of the impact crack propagation process were studied through a comprehensive analysis of stress distribution,oscilloscopic impact statistics,fracture morphology,and carbide morphology.The poor impact toughness of low-tempering-temperature specimens was attributed to the increased number of stress concentration points caused by carbide morphology in the small plastic zone during the propagation process,which resulted in a mixed distribution of brittle and ductile fractures on the fracture surface.

A novel approach to the dynamic response analysis of Euler-Bernoulli beams resting on a Winkler soil model and subjected to impact loads

This work presents a novel approach to the dynamic response analysis of a Euler-Bernoulli beam resting on a Winkler soil model and subjected to an impact loading.The approach considers that damping has much less importance in controlling the maximum response to impulsive loadings because the maximum response is reached in a very short time,before the damping forces can dissipate a significant portion of the energy input into the system.The development of two sine series solutions,relating to different types of impulsive loadings,one involving a single concentrated force and the other a distributed line load,are presented.This study revealed that when a simply supported Euler-Bernoulli beam,resting on a Winkler soil model,is subject to an impact load,the resulting vertical displacements,bending moments and shear forces produced along the span of the beam are considerably affected.In particular,the quantification of this effect is best observed,relative to the corresponding static solution,via an amplification factor.The computed impact amplification factors,for the sub-grade moduli used in this study,were in magnitude greater than 2,thus confirming the multiple-degree-of-freedom nature of the problem.

Nonlinear Impact Damage Evolution of Charpy Type and Analysis of Its Key Influencing Factors

The current research of Charpy impact mainly focuses on obtaining the ductile brittle transition temperature of materials by experiments.Compared with experiments,numerical simulation can study many problems with harsh conditions.However,there are still few studies on the influence of geometric factors such as side grooves.In this paper,the geometry of standard Charpy impact test is designed.Specimens with different widths and side grooves are tested.The finite element model of Charpy impact was established by ABAQUS software.Use test results and simulation results to verify each other.The effects of sample width,side groove depth and side groove bottom fillet on the impact fracture resistance of the sample were studied.The results show that the specimen width is positively correlated with the impact toughness of the specimen.The side groove greatly reduces the impact toughness of the material;the toughness of side groove decreases with the increase of depth;the fracture toughness of side groove decreases with the increase of fillet at the bottom of side groove.The proportion of toughness energy to impact energy of samples was analyzed.The results show that the toughness energy accounts for about 70%of the impact energy of the sample,which has little to do with the geometric characteristics of the sample.This study presents a reliable method for studying Charpy impact tests.The influence of geometric parameters is obtained,which provides a reference method for the study of impact toughness of high toughness materials.

Effects of projectile parameters on the momentum transfer and projectile melting during hypervelocity impact

The effects of projectile/target impedance matching and projectile shape on energy,momentum transfer and projectile melting during collisions are investigated by numerical simulation.By comparing the computation results with the experimental results,the correctness of the calculation and the statistical method of momentum transfer coefficient is verified.Different shapes of aluminum,copper and heavy tungsten alloy projectiles striking aluminum,basalt,and pumice target for impacts up to 10 km/s are simulated.The influence mechanism of the shape of the projectile and projectile/target density on the momentum transfer was obtained.With an increase in projectile density and length-diameter ratio,the energy transfer time between the projectile and targets is prolonged.The projectile decelerates slowly,resulting in a larger cratering depth.The energy consumed by the projectile in the excavation stage increased,resulting in lower mass-velocity of ejecta and momentum transfer coefficient.The numerical simulation results demonstrated that for different projectile/target combinations,the higher the wave impedance of the projectile,the higher the initial phase transition velocity and the smaller the mass of phase transition.The results can provide theoretical guidance for kinetic impactor design and material selection.

Book review:"Impact Engineering:Fundamentals,Experiments and Nonlinear Finite Elements" By Marcilio Alves(2020) Price at Amazon:US$ 85.67.www.impactbook.org

Impact engineering encompasses many events of our lives.Examples include vehicle collisions,catastrophic collapse of infrastructures from explosion,ballistic impact of armour,hitting cricket balls in sports,falling off a bicycle.In such an event,an engineer needs to understand and quantify complex issues like identifying the impact loadings,obtaining material properties at high strain rates and evaluating structural responses and consequences.This engineering field receives great interests from industry and the research community.Several monographs have been published over the decades and related journals,such as the International Journal of Impact Engineering and Defence Technology,have been established and disseminate the latest research findings.

Impact of School Canteens on School Retention and Academic Performance in the Atlantic Department (Benin)

In Benin, obstacles to universal access to primary education persist. In rural areas, enrolment and attendance rates remain low due to several factors. Families living in poverty may not be able to afford to send their children to school;although the government has eliminated primary school fees, parents still have to buy school uniforms and supplies. There is also an opportunity cost associated with sending girls to school, rather than keeping them at home where they can help their mothers with household chores and look after their younger siblings (School canteens in Benin to improve student enrolment and retention in partnership with parents’ associations, 2008). Prior to 2016, the school feeding system was in its infancy, with canteens operated for only three months of the year. However, thanks to determined government reforms, the school canteen system has undergone a profound transformation. The implementation of a USD 79 million has not only not only increased coverage from coverage from 30% to 75% today, but also set the ambitious target ambitious goal of achieving 100% coverage by the end of 2023 [1]. The aim of this study is to assess the impact of canteens on school retention and children’s academic performance. We conducted a descriptive and analytical diagnostic survey using a questionnaire designed for parents of schoolchildren. Canteens increase and maintain the number of children in our schools, especially when the providers start their activities, in this case those traveling long distances. Almost all the parents surveyed believe that the school canteen has had an impact on their children’s motivation to attend school and class, and consequently on their performance. For example, for all parents surveyed, the school canteen has reduced the risk of children dropping out of school, especially girls (97%), although the difference with boys (95%) remains small and is not statistically significant. What’s more, since the advent of the PNASI, in the Atlantic department, the CEP pass rate in schools with canteens far exceeds that of schools without canteens. This shows that canteens play a major and positive role in the retention and success of the schoolchildren who benefit from them.

On the effect of pitch and yaw angles in oblique impacts of smallcaliber projectiles

A terminal ballistic analysis of the effects of 7.62 mm × 51 AP P80 rounds on inclined high-strength armor steel plates is the focus of the presented study.The findings of an instrumented ballistic testing combined with 3D advanced numerical simulations performed using the IMPETUS Afea? software yielded the conclusions.The experimental verification proved that slight differences in the pitch-andyaw angles of a projectile upon an impact caused different damage types to the projectile’s core.The residual velocities predicted numerically were close to the experimental values and the calculated core deviations were in satisfactory agreement with the experimental results.An extended matrix of the core deviation angles with combinations of pitch-and-yaw upon impact angles was subsequently built on the basis of the numerical study.The presented experimental and numerical investigation examined thoroughly the influence of the initial pitch and yaw angles on the after-perforation projectile’s performance.

Tracking direct and indirect impact on technology and policy of transformative research via ego citation network

Purpose:The disseminating of academic knowledge to nonacademic audiences partly relies on the transition of subsequent citing papers.This study aims to investigate direct and indirect impact on technology and policy originating from transformative research based on ego citation network.Design/methodology/approach:Key Nobel Prize-winning publications(NPs)in fields of gene engineering and astrophysics are regarded as a proxy for transformative research.In this contribution,we introduce a network-structural indicator of citing patents to measure technological impact of a target article and use policy citations as a preliminary tool for policy impact.Findings:The results show that the impact on technology and policy of NPs are higher than that of their subsequent citation generations in gene engineering but not in astrophysics.Research limitations:The selection of Nobel Prizes is not balanced and the database used in this study,Dimensions,suffers from incompleteness and inaccuracy of citation links.Practical implications:Our findings provide useful clues to better understand the characteristics of transformative research in technological and policy impact.Originality/value:This study proposes a new framework to explore the direct and indirect impact on technology and policy originating from transformative research.

Extension of Chemoprevention of Seasonal Malaria to Five Cycles and to Children from the Age of 6 to 9 Years in Africa: Analysis of Its Acceptability, Feasibility, Cost and Impact A Systematic Review

Introduction: Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC) aims at preventing malaria in children during the high transmission season. It has been recommended by the WHO since 2013 for children from the age of 3-59 months. However, despite the impact of this intervention, a peak in the prevalence and incidence of malaria is observed in children from the age of 5-9 years. The aim of this study is to determine from the current literature the feasibility, impact and cost-effectiveness of extending SMC to five cycles and to older children. Methods: A litterature search of PubMed/Medline, NCBI and Google scholar identified 1333 articles. After reading the titles and abstracts by two authors, 24 articles were selected and submitted for full reading. Random control studies on the extension of SMC, malaria, feasibility of SMC, impact of SMC and cost-effectiveness of SMC were selected. A total of 16 articles were included for the qualitative synthesis after excluding 8 studies. Results: Following the summary of the evidence, we conclude that the extension is feasible but will be confronted with the unavailability of older children. The intervention period coincides with field work. SMC is effective in reducing the prevalence and incidence of malaria and the parasite density in children. The financial cost of administering SMC is lower than that of treating a child suffering from malaria. Conclusion: After analysing the information, it was found that the majority of the African population supports the extension of the SMC to the number of cycles and the age group in order to alleviate the high mortality and morbidity rates among children due to malaria.

The impact of maternal immune activation on the morphology and electrophysiological properties of postnatally-born neurons in the offspring

Pregnancy comes with a combination of physical changes and physiological immunosuppression that increases the susceptibility of women to pathogens and in turn,rises the prevalence of infectious diseases.

Correction:Impact of Transition Metal Layer Vacancy on the Structure and Performance of P2 Type Layered Sodium Cathode Material

Following publication of the original article[1],the authors reported that the author Hun-Gi Jung should be affiliated as 3,4 and 5 instead of 4 and 5.The author’s name“A.-Yeon Kim”needed to be updated to“A-Yeon Kim”,removing the period.The correct author’s name and affiliation have been provided in this Correction.The original article[1]has been corrected.

The impact of female sex hormones on cardiovascular disease:from mechanisms to hormone therapy

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality in women,yet it has not raised the awareness from the public.The pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease differs significantly between females and males concerning the effect of sex hormones.Estrogen and progestogen impact cardiovascular system through genomic and non-genomic effects.Before menopause,cardiovascular protective effects of estrogens have been well described.Progestogens were often used in combination with estrogens in hormone therapy.Fluctuations in sex hormone levels,particularly estrogen deficiency,were considered the specific risk factor in women’s cardiovascular disease.However,considerable heterogeneity in the impact of hormone therapy was observed in clinical trials.The heterogeneity is likely closely associated with factors such as the initial time,administration route,dosage,and formulation of hormone therapy.This review will delve into the pathogenesis and hormone therapy,summarizing the effect of female sex hormones on hypertension,pre-eclampsia,coronary heart disease,heart failure with preserved ejection fraction,and cardiovascular risk factors specific to women.

Study on damage mechanism and damage distribution of the rear plate under impact of debris cloud

The debris cloud generated by the hypervelocity impact(HVI)of orbiting space debris directly threatens the spacecraft.A full understanding of the damage mechanism of rear plate is useful for the optimal design of protective structures.In this study,the hypervelocity yaw impact of a cylindrical aluminum projectile on a double-layer aluminum plate is simulated by the FE-SPH adaptive method,and the damage process of the rear plate under the impact of the debris cloud is analyzed based on the debris cloud structure.The damage process can be divided into the main impact stage of the debris cloud and the structural response of the rear plate.The main impact stage lasts a short time and is the basis of the rear plate damage.In the stage of structure response,the continuous deformation and inertial motion of the rear plate dominate the perforation of the rear plate.We further analyze the damage mechanism and damage distribution characteristics of the rear plate in detail.Moreover,the connection between velocity space and position space of the debris cloud is established,which promotes the general analysis of the damage law of debris cloud.Based on the relationship,the features of typical damage areas are identified by the localized fine analysis.Both the cumulative effect and structural response cause the perforation of rear plate;in the non-perforated area,cratering by the impact of hazardous fragments is the main damage mode of the rear plate.