System dynamics shows how the structure and policies in a system produce change through time. System dynamics deals with the internal processes that produce good and bad behavior in social, economic, and environmental...System dynamics shows how the structure and policies in a system produce change through time. System dynamics deals with the internal processes that produce good and bad behavior in social, economic, and environmental systems. In a system dynamics study, one builds a computer model that acts out the behavior of the real system being represented. The computer model is then used to展开更多
Several groups in the USA have been working to de-velop a low chill apricot that would ripen its fruits veryearly in the season. Unfortunately, the cultivatcd apricothas been developed mainly from the high chilling Eu...Several groups in the USA have been working to de-velop a low chill apricot that would ripen its fruits veryearly in the season. Unfortunately, the cultivatcd apricothas been developed mainly from the high chilling Euro-pean group within the species Prunus armeniaca. Amongthe five groups within the apricot species, this is the mostrecently evolved and least variable (Bailey and展开更多
s—This paper generalizes land use development in Liaocheng Prefecture, Shandong Province, China; describes land use changes during different period of time; and analyzes the driving forces of land use change.
A test set-up called hyperbaric unmanned tester has been developed to assess the safety andreliability of deep sea respirator before manned testing. The tester possesses three basic capabili-ties: First, it is to simu...A test set-up called hyperbaric unmanned tester has been developed to assess the safety andreliability of deep sea respirator before manned testing. The tester possesses three basic capabili-ties: First, it is to simulate the operational conditions of underwater breathing apparatus. Thatis, it can reproduce ambient pressure as great as that of 300 meters deep sea water and ambienttemperature ranging between 4℃ and 40℃. It is also capable of reproducing the diver’s posture展开更多
Based on the survey on wild plants in 21 counties( cities) in Yichun Area,89 species of 32 families of wild vegetables were collected. The species,parts,edible parts,distribution and current development and use of wil...Based on the survey on wild plants in 21 counties( cities) in Yichun Area,89 species of 32 families of wild vegetables were collected. The species,parts,edible parts,distribution and current development and use of wild vegetables in Yichun Area were expounded. Then,existing problems of wild vegetables in Yichun Area were discussed. Finally,pertinent recommendations were put forward.展开更多
Background:Land use and development alter mudflat and wetland habitat availability,although mudflats and wetlands provide important stopover habitats for shorebirds during the spring and autumn migrations and support ...Background:Land use and development alter mudflat and wetland habitat availability,although mudflats and wetlands provide important stopover habitats for shorebirds during the spring and autumn migrations and support communities of ducks and geese during the winter months in the Republic of Korea.This study investigated land use changes around Sihwa Lake(Republic of Korea)and evaluated the effect of these changes on waterbird community characteristics.Methods:We conducted a land-use-change analysis at the medium-resolution level using land cover maps for 2001,2007,2009,and 2014.Also,a tidal stream survey was conducted in Sihwa Lake and the surrounding reclaimed mudflats every season for 10 years(2003-2012)to identify the seasonal and interannual variations in waterbird species composition.To determine the total annual waterbird species and population counts,species diversity index,and interspecies variations,a TRIM(trends and indices for monitoring data)analysis was used.Results:Wetland area decreased more than 10%while agricultural land,barren land,and grassland area increased more than 10%due to continuous reclamation activities around Sihwa Lake.Barren land later turned into agricultural land or other land use.Sixty-three species and 566,623 individuals were recorded.The number of species,population size,and species diversity index by year and by species showed decreasing trends that were more marked in spring and summer.Furthermore,seasonal and annual variations in waterbird species composition showed decreasing trends in dabbling ducks,herons,grebes,and shorebirds but diving ducks displayed increasing trends.In particular,shorebirds were reduced to a greater extent than other waterbird species because of the reduction and simplification of the intertidal zone,and shallow waters caused by reclamation and road construction.Conclusions:Increased development and construction around Sihwa Lake has altered migratory shorebird populations with a general decline in species diversity and population size.The greatest decline was observed in wading birds,while diving duck populations showed increasing trends.展开更多
The practice of stimulating follicular develop-ment by Shen-invigorating herbs is directed by tra-ditional Chinese medical theories of“the Shenstores essence of life and governs reproduction”
Mobile TV is growing popular worldwide. It puts new hardware requirements on the handset, requiring a tuner, a demodulator and a decoder to receive and process signals that challenge the power consumption and size of ...Mobile TV is growing popular worldwide. It puts new hardware requirements on the handset, requiring a tuner, a demodulator and a decoder to receive and process signals that challenge the power consumption and size of handsets. These special terminal chips can solve these problems and stand as a prerequisite for broadcasting TV to mobile phones. The commercial mobile TV handsets have been brought to the market, which use the integrated single-chip, the dual/multi mode chip, or the TV receiver integrated in an SD card. These small chips with low power consumption will help popularize mobile TV services.展开更多
In order to compete in the global manufacturing mar ke t, agility is the only possible solution to response to the fragmented market se gments and frequently changed customer requirements. However, manufacturing agil ...In order to compete in the global manufacturing mar ke t, agility is the only possible solution to response to the fragmented market se gments and frequently changed customer requirements. However, manufacturing agil ity can only be attained through the deployment of knowledge. To embed knowledge into a CAD system to form a knowledge intensive CAD (KIC) system is one of way to enhance the design compatibility of a manufacturing company. The most difficu lt phase to develop a KIC system is to capitalize a huge amount of legacy data t o form a knowledge database. In the past, such capitalization process could only be done solely manually or semi-automatic. In this paper, a five step model fo r automatic design knowledge capitalization through the use of data mining is pr oposed whilst details of how to select, verify and performance benchmarking an a ppropriate data mining algorithm for a specific design task will also be discuss ed. A case study concerning the design of a plastic toaster casing was used as an illustration for the proposed methodology and it was found that the avera ge absolute error of the predictions for the most appropriate algorithm is withi n 17%.展开更多
During the underground mining of coal resources,overlying rocks on the roof of excavated tunnels will be destroyed due to ground pressure,and as a result,part of them will break and fall into the tunnels.How to determ...During the underground mining of coal resources,overlying rocks on the roof of excavated tunnels will be destroyed due to ground pressure,and as a result,part of them will break and fall into the tunnels.How to determine the distribution of fractured areas and fissures presents a major problem for preserving the overlying aquifer.展开更多
Punched steel sheets (metal sheets or foils) as thi n as 0.1mm are quite useful in the field of filters and various precision instrume nts. Thus, we have to develop more accurate and speedy techniques for punching t h...Punched steel sheets (metal sheets or foils) as thi n as 0.1mm are quite useful in the field of filters and various precision instrume nts. Thus, we have to develop more accurate and speedy techniques for punching t hin sheets. The traditional punching method uses an up-down pressing motion of a punch or a die on a strip of metal. The efficiency of this method is determine d by the speed of the motion. In the case of punching a sequence of tiny holes w ith a few millimeters’ interval, the speed of feeding a strip of metal to the p unching machine cannot exceed only a couple of meters per minute. We have de veloped a new technique for punching tiny holes with a pair of rotating bodies i n order to increase the feeding speed up to 100 meters per minute. Our proposed technique is shown in Fig.1 where the female tool has a round blade and the male tool has an M-shape boss. In addition, the setting of two tools i s alternating. The interference between them cannot occur because the clearance between the front and the back edge of the male tool and the female tool in the rotating direction becomes infinite in this configuration. An appropriate cleara nce is given for the thickness of the sheet between the side edge of the male to ol and the female tool. The punching itself is done by shearing. The side edge o f the male tool does contact with the female tool, but they cannot be interferin g. Our technique has another advantage to the traditional up-down pressing mach ine where the stamped out chips are hard to be discharged. It is quite easy in o ur proposed technique. Fig.2, 3 show a sample of punched material [TPP116A,+39mm88mm,Y,PZ#]Fig.1 The configuration of the punching parts using the sequential punching system.[TPP116B,+43mm155mm,X,BP#]Fig.2 A sample of punched material using the continuous punch ing lineFig.3 A exterior picture of a piece of punched steel foil(coi l) using the continuous punching For our developed high speed punching system, it is shown for (1) the configurat ion of punching tool and the punching mechanism, (2) the influence of male shape on punched hole quality, (3) the outline of continuous punching system, (4) the relation between punching speed and accuracy of hole pitch and hole dimensi on, (5) the mechanical property of punched metal sheet and (6) capability of hig her punching.展开更多
Eleven recently completed toxicological studies were critically reviewed to identify toxicologically significant endpoints and dose-response information. Dose-response data were compiled and entered into the USEPA's ...Eleven recently completed toxicological studies were critically reviewed to identify toxicologically significant endpoints and dose-response information. Dose-response data were compiled and entered into the USEPA's benchmark dose software (BMDS) for calculation of a benchmark dose (BMD) and a benchmark dose low (BMDL). After assessing 91 endpoints across the nine studies, a total of 23 of these endpoints were identified for BMD modeling, and BMDL estimates corresponding to various dose-response models were compiled for these separate endpoints. Thyroid, neurobehavior and reproductive endpoints for BDE-47, -99, -209 were quantitatively evaluated. According to methods and feature of each study, different uncertainty factor (UF) value was decided and subsequently reference doses (RfDs) were proposed. Consistent with USEPA, the lowest BMDLs of 2.10, 81.77, and 1698 I^g/kg were used to develop RfDs for BDE-47, -99, and -209, respectively. RfDs for BDE-99 and BDE-209 were comparable to EPA results, and however, RfD of BDE-47 was much lower than that of EPA, which may result from that reproductive/developmental proves to be more sensitive than neurobehavior for BDE-47 and the principal study uses very-low-dose exposure.展开更多
The aim of this paper is to sift through examples of outstanding contributions made by Chinese human geography in terms of social applications and explain the basic concepts and theoretical methods explored by human g...The aim of this paper is to sift through examples of outstanding contributions made by Chinese human geography in terms of social applications and explain the basic concepts and theoretical methods explored by human geography that are behind the applications of results with major social influence, so as to be able to summarize the main school that represents developments in contemporary Chinese human geography. Chinese human geography upholds the subject's designation as being integrated and interdisciplinary. Research focuses on interactions between the natural and human spheres of the Earth's surface, and it is guided by the understanding and effects of the processes of regional sustainable development at different spatial scales. Chinese human geography has innovatively established the following development paradigm: "To be guided by application requirements, refine key issues of the discipline in the course of solving major issues of human geography in national and regional development, and by solving those key issues, to enhance its ability to provide scientific and technological support to serve national and local needs while promoting its own development." Results from early Chinese human geography studies on land use and agricultural zoning, recent research results on point-axis system models and T-shaped national spatial development patterns, and current research results on territorial function theory and major function oriented zones have all continued and strengthened the mainstream school of Chinese human geography and have avoided the global tendency for human geography to become rapidly human-oriented, while results have been applied at the highest level of decision-making management. Chinese human geography can provide lessons for developing countries and may play a leading role in the future development of global human geography.展开更多
In this communication we propose a method to implement an all-optical astable multivibrator using the non-linear material based switches and logic gates. The scheme can operate in real time. The delay time can achieve...In this communication we propose a method to implement an all-optical astable multivibrator using the non-linear material based switches and logic gates. The scheme can operate in real time. The delay time can achieve ps(pico-second). The pulse duration can be made very low and may cross the THz easily by selecting proper material and laser source.展开更多
The production-oriented approach (POA) has been developed over a decade. It is driven by the need to improve English classroom instruction for university students in China (Wen, 2016). It is also motivated by the ...The production-oriented approach (POA) has been developed over a decade. It is driven by the need to improve English classroom instruction for university students in China (Wen, 2016). It is also motivated by the aspiration to enhance the quality of foreign language education in other similar pedagogical contexts outside China. A volume of research has been done by Wen Qiufang and her research team, to formulate the theory of POA and to test its effectiveness in classroom pedagogy (e.g. Wen, 2016, 2015; Yang, 2015; Zhang, 2015). At the moment, the POA is still at an early stage of theory building and almost all empirical research is done in the Chinese context. In order to improve the quality of this theory and to make it intelligible to the international academic community, a one-day symposium was held in Beijing Foreign Studies University on May 15, 2017. The symposium was entitled 'The first international forum on innovative foreign language education in China: Appraisal of the POA'. In the forum, leading experts in applied linguistics were invited to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the POA and the directions for its future development. The symposium was the first attempt for the POA research team to discuss its latest work with international scholars. This Viewpoint section collects the responses of four experts who participated in the symposium, listed in alphabetical order. The collection of articles covers three topics related to the POA: its pedagogical application, its use for teacher training, and its research. Alister Cumming is Professor Emeritus and the former Head of the Centre for Educational Research on Languages and Literacies, University of Toronto, Canada. His article focuses primarily on POA research as an exemplary case of design-based research. Rod Ellis is Research Professor in the School of Education at Curtin University, Australia. He discusses POA in terms of pedagogy, teacher training and research, with both critiques and constructive suggestions. Paul Kei Matsuda is Professor of English and Director of Second Language Writing at Arizona State University, the writed states. He responds to POA from the perspective of an expert researcher and teacher of L2 writing. Charlene Polio is Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian & African Languages atMichigan State University, the writed states. She conceptualises POA as a useful method to address some issues in pre-service teacher development. Overall, the articles in this section are insightful and reader-friendly. They are not only useful for the development of POA in particular, but may also be valuable to a broad range of researchers as they touch upon pertaining issues, as well as emerging topics, in the field of applied linguistics. We therefore find it necessary to make them accessible to a wide readership.展开更多
文摘System dynamics shows how the structure and policies in a system produce change through time. System dynamics deals with the internal processes that produce good and bad behavior in social, economic, and environmental systems. In a system dynamics study, one builds a computer model that acts out the behavior of the real system being represented. The computer model is then used to
文摘Several groups in the USA have been working to de-velop a low chill apricot that would ripen its fruits veryearly in the season. Unfortunately, the cultivatcd apricothas been developed mainly from the high chilling Euro-pean group within the species Prunus armeniaca. Amongthe five groups within the apricot species, this is the mostrecently evolved and least variable (Bailey and
文摘s—This paper generalizes land use development in Liaocheng Prefecture, Shandong Province, China; describes land use changes during different period of time; and analyzes the driving forces of land use change.
文摘A test set-up called hyperbaric unmanned tester has been developed to assess the safety andreliability of deep sea respirator before manned testing. The tester possesses three basic capabili-ties: First, it is to simulate the operational conditions of underwater breathing apparatus. Thatis, it can reproduce ambient pressure as great as that of 300 meters deep sea water and ambienttemperature ranging between 4℃ and 40℃. It is also capable of reproducing the diver’s posture
文摘Based on the survey on wild plants in 21 counties( cities) in Yichun Area,89 species of 32 families of wild vegetables were collected. The species,parts,edible parts,distribution and current development and use of wild vegetables in Yichun Area were expounded. Then,existing problems of wild vegetables in Yichun Area were discussed. Finally,pertinent recommendations were put forward.
基金This was supported by 2020 Yeungnam University Research Grant.
文摘Background:Land use and development alter mudflat and wetland habitat availability,although mudflats and wetlands provide important stopover habitats for shorebirds during the spring and autumn migrations and support communities of ducks and geese during the winter months in the Republic of Korea.This study investigated land use changes around Sihwa Lake(Republic of Korea)and evaluated the effect of these changes on waterbird community characteristics.Methods:We conducted a land-use-change analysis at the medium-resolution level using land cover maps for 2001,2007,2009,and 2014.Also,a tidal stream survey was conducted in Sihwa Lake and the surrounding reclaimed mudflats every season for 10 years(2003-2012)to identify the seasonal and interannual variations in waterbird species composition.To determine the total annual waterbird species and population counts,species diversity index,and interspecies variations,a TRIM(trends and indices for monitoring data)analysis was used.Results:Wetland area decreased more than 10%while agricultural land,barren land,and grassland area increased more than 10%due to continuous reclamation activities around Sihwa Lake.Barren land later turned into agricultural land or other land use.Sixty-three species and 566,623 individuals were recorded.The number of species,population size,and species diversity index by year and by species showed decreasing trends that were more marked in spring and summer.Furthermore,seasonal and annual variations in waterbird species composition showed decreasing trends in dabbling ducks,herons,grebes,and shorebirds but diving ducks displayed increasing trends.In particular,shorebirds were reduced to a greater extent than other waterbird species because of the reduction and simplification of the intertidal zone,and shallow waters caused by reclamation and road construction.Conclusions:Increased development and construction around Sihwa Lake has altered migratory shorebird populations with a general decline in species diversity and population size.The greatest decline was observed in wading birds,while diving duck populations showed increasing trends.
文摘The practice of stimulating follicular develop-ment by Shen-invigorating herbs is directed by tra-ditional Chinese medical theories of“the Shenstores essence of life and governs reproduction”
文摘Mobile TV is growing popular worldwide. It puts new hardware requirements on the handset, requiring a tuner, a demodulator and a decoder to receive and process signals that challenge the power consumption and size of handsets. These special terminal chips can solve these problems and stand as a prerequisite for broadcasting TV to mobile phones. The commercial mobile TV handsets have been brought to the market, which use the integrated single-chip, the dual/multi mode chip, or the TV receiver integrated in an SD card. These small chips with low power consumption will help popularize mobile TV services.
文摘In order to compete in the global manufacturing mar ke t, agility is the only possible solution to response to the fragmented market se gments and frequently changed customer requirements. However, manufacturing agil ity can only be attained through the deployment of knowledge. To embed knowledge into a CAD system to form a knowledge intensive CAD (KIC) system is one of way to enhance the design compatibility of a manufacturing company. The most difficu lt phase to develop a KIC system is to capitalize a huge amount of legacy data t o form a knowledge database. In the past, such capitalization process could only be done solely manually or semi-automatic. In this paper, a five step model fo r automatic design knowledge capitalization through the use of data mining is pr oposed whilst details of how to select, verify and performance benchmarking an a ppropriate data mining algorithm for a specific design task will also be discuss ed. A case study concerning the design of a plastic toaster casing was used as an illustration for the proposed methodology and it was found that the avera ge absolute error of the predictions for the most appropriate algorithm is withi n 17%.
基金supported by the State Key Program of National Natural Science of China(Grant No.41130637)
文摘During the underground mining of coal resources,overlying rocks on the roof of excavated tunnels will be destroyed due to ground pressure,and as a result,part of them will break and fall into the tunnels.How to determine the distribution of fractured areas and fissures presents a major problem for preserving the overlying aquifer.
文摘Punched steel sheets (metal sheets or foils) as thi n as 0.1mm are quite useful in the field of filters and various precision instrume nts. Thus, we have to develop more accurate and speedy techniques for punching t hin sheets. The traditional punching method uses an up-down pressing motion of a punch or a die on a strip of metal. The efficiency of this method is determine d by the speed of the motion. In the case of punching a sequence of tiny holes w ith a few millimeters’ interval, the speed of feeding a strip of metal to the p unching machine cannot exceed only a couple of meters per minute. We have de veloped a new technique for punching tiny holes with a pair of rotating bodies i n order to increase the feeding speed up to 100 meters per minute. Our proposed technique is shown in Fig.1 where the female tool has a round blade and the male tool has an M-shape boss. In addition, the setting of two tools i s alternating. The interference between them cannot occur because the clearance between the front and the back edge of the male tool and the female tool in the rotating direction becomes infinite in this configuration. An appropriate cleara nce is given for the thickness of the sheet between the side edge of the male to ol and the female tool. The punching itself is done by shearing. The side edge o f the male tool does contact with the female tool, but they cannot be interferin g. Our technique has another advantage to the traditional up-down pressing mach ine where the stamped out chips are hard to be discharged. It is quite easy in o ur proposed technique. Fig.2, 3 show a sample of punched material [TPP116A,+39mm88mm,Y,PZ#]Fig.1 The configuration of the punching parts using the sequential punching system.[TPP116B,+43mm155mm,X,BP#]Fig.2 A sample of punched material using the continuous punch ing lineFig.3 A exterior picture of a piece of punched steel foil(coi l) using the continuous punching For our developed high speed punching system, it is shown for (1) the configurat ion of punching tool and the punching mechanism, (2) the influence of male shape on punched hole quality, (3) the outline of continuous punching system, (4) the relation between punching speed and accuracy of hole pitch and hole dimensi on, (5) the mechanical property of punched metal sheet and (6) capability of hig her punching.
基金financially supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant 81072263,to Y.Z.)Chun Tsung Scholarship of Fudan University(to D.C.)
文摘Eleven recently completed toxicological studies were critically reviewed to identify toxicologically significant endpoints and dose-response information. Dose-response data were compiled and entered into the USEPA's benchmark dose software (BMDS) for calculation of a benchmark dose (BMD) and a benchmark dose low (BMDL). After assessing 91 endpoints across the nine studies, a total of 23 of these endpoints were identified for BMD modeling, and BMDL estimates corresponding to various dose-response models were compiled for these separate endpoints. Thyroid, neurobehavior and reproductive endpoints for BDE-47, -99, -209 were quantitatively evaluated. According to methods and feature of each study, different uncertainty factor (UF) value was decided and subsequently reference doses (RfDs) were proposed. Consistent with USEPA, the lowest BMDLs of 2.10, 81.77, and 1698 I^g/kg were used to develop RfDs for BDE-47, -99, and -209, respectively. RfDs for BDE-99 and BDE-209 were comparable to EPA results, and however, RfD of BDE-47 was much lower than that of EPA, which may result from that reproductive/developmental proves to be more sensitive than neurobehavior for BDE-47 and the principal study uses very-low-dose exposure.
基金Key Project of National Natural Science Foundation of China,No.40830741 National Key Technology R&D Program,No.2008BAH31B01
文摘The aim of this paper is to sift through examples of outstanding contributions made by Chinese human geography in terms of social applications and explain the basic concepts and theoretical methods explored by human geography that are behind the applications of results with major social influence, so as to be able to summarize the main school that represents developments in contemporary Chinese human geography. Chinese human geography upholds the subject's designation as being integrated and interdisciplinary. Research focuses on interactions between the natural and human spheres of the Earth's surface, and it is guided by the understanding and effects of the processes of regional sustainable development at different spatial scales. Chinese human geography has innovatively established the following development paradigm: "To be guided by application requirements, refine key issues of the discipline in the course of solving major issues of human geography in national and regional development, and by solving those key issues, to enhance its ability to provide scientific and technological support to serve national and local needs while promoting its own development." Results from early Chinese human geography studies on land use and agricultural zoning, recent research results on point-axis system models and T-shaped national spatial development patterns, and current research results on territorial function theory and major function oriented zones have all continued and strengthened the mainstream school of Chinese human geography and have avoided the global tendency for human geography to become rapidly human-oriented, while results have been applied at the highest level of decision-making management. Chinese human geography can provide lessons for developing countries and may play a leading role in the future development of global human geography.
文摘In this communication we propose a method to implement an all-optical astable multivibrator using the non-linear material based switches and logic gates. The scheme can operate in real time. The delay time can achieve ps(pico-second). The pulse duration can be made very low and may cross the THz easily by selecting proper material and laser source.
文摘The production-oriented approach (POA) has been developed over a decade. It is driven by the need to improve English classroom instruction for university students in China (Wen, 2016). It is also motivated by the aspiration to enhance the quality of foreign language education in other similar pedagogical contexts outside China. A volume of research has been done by Wen Qiufang and her research team, to formulate the theory of POA and to test its effectiveness in classroom pedagogy (e.g. Wen, 2016, 2015; Yang, 2015; Zhang, 2015). At the moment, the POA is still at an early stage of theory building and almost all empirical research is done in the Chinese context. In order to improve the quality of this theory and to make it intelligible to the international academic community, a one-day symposium was held in Beijing Foreign Studies University on May 15, 2017. The symposium was entitled 'The first international forum on innovative foreign language education in China: Appraisal of the POA'. In the forum, leading experts in applied linguistics were invited to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the POA and the directions for its future development. The symposium was the first attempt for the POA research team to discuss its latest work with international scholars. This Viewpoint section collects the responses of four experts who participated in the symposium, listed in alphabetical order. The collection of articles covers three topics related to the POA: its pedagogical application, its use for teacher training, and its research. Alister Cumming is Professor Emeritus and the former Head of the Centre for Educational Research on Languages and Literacies, University of Toronto, Canada. His article focuses primarily on POA research as an exemplary case of design-based research. Rod Ellis is Research Professor in the School of Education at Curtin University, Australia. He discusses POA in terms of pedagogy, teacher training and research, with both critiques and constructive suggestions. Paul Kei Matsuda is Professor of English and Director of Second Language Writing at Arizona State University, the writed states. He responds to POA from the perspective of an expert researcher and teacher of L2 writing. Charlene Polio is Professor and Associate Chair in the Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian & African Languages atMichigan State University, the writed states. She conceptualises POA as a useful method to address some issues in pre-service teacher development. Overall, the articles in this section are insightful and reader-friendly. They are not only useful for the development of POA in particular, but may also be valuable to a broad range of researchers as they touch upon pertaining issues, as well as emerging topics, in the field of applied linguistics. We therefore find it necessary to make them accessible to a wide readership.