OERs Summary September 2014

A selection of the open educational resources that have been released from the School of Science and Technology at the University of Northampton. This post shows the number of views and downloads of these resources.

Pollution And Pollutants

Authors: Paul Cox and Nigel Freestone

http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/18529

Details

Pollution is the undesirable introduction of pollutants (contaminants) into the natural environment (land, air and water) and can have an adverse affect on human health. This resource provides an introduction to pollution and pollutants. The classification and distribution of pollutants is also considered. A number of self-assessment questions are provided to allow you to check your new knowledge. The material comes in Word format and its HTML equivalent. The pollutants.htm file includes two images (poll.gif and ld50.gif) and an answers page (SAQ_Answers.htm) related to it that need to be put in the same folder as the pollutants.htm file.

Keywords: UKOER, Environmental Science, Waste Management, Pollution, Pollutants, Environment, Air Pollution, Water Pollution, Pollution Pathways, Toxicity 

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported

The resource found on Jorum at: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/18529 

Properties of Ultrasonic Waves

Author: Phil Picton 

http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/18755

Details

This material gives the description of the physical processes involved in the propagation of ultrasonic pressure waves as they pass through a material. It includes a mathematical derivation of the amplitude of the transmitted and reflected pressure waves, and an explanation is given for the differences between the near and far zones. This material has been used in the Advanced Inspection Methods and Techniques module as part of the BSc programme in Non-Destructive Testing at the University of Northampton.

Published:  School of Science and Technology, University of Northampton

Keywords: UKOER, Ultrasonic waves, Inspection and testing, Non-destructive testing 

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International

Summary of Evolutionary Algorithms

Click here for the resource: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19204

Author: Dr Scott Turner 

These slides are intended for undergraduate computing students, providing an overview of Genetic Algorithms, a concept of in artificial intelligence. As well providing an overview the material also include links to applications via web resources. The slides are taken from an undergraduate artificial intelligence module on the BSc Computing Programme at the University of Northampton. Possible uses of these including support material for second year, third year or masters level course on artificial intelligence.

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Click here for the resource: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19204

C Programming

Click here for the resource: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19192

Author: Dr Scott Turner
In this material you will be introduced to some of the principles of programming, and specifically learn to write fairly simple programs using a programming language called C. An idea central to this material is that programming is about problem solving; you write a program to solve a particular problem. It is hoped that at the end of the material you should see that there is nothing magical or mysterious about programming. One of the features some people like about programming is you are making the computer do what you want. During the programming exercises, do not worry about making mistakes. In this material you will be expected to try out programs and eventually write your own. The target audience is anyone who wants to learn a programming language or is looking for some assessment questions around programming. The material was originally aimed at second year engineering students at the University of Northampton.

Click here for the resource: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19192

Problem-Solving

Author: Dr Scott Turner

http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19001

These mini lectures are intended for undergraduate computing students, for providing simple steps in problem solving before the students learn a programming language. Problem-Solving and Programming is a common first year undergraduate module on the BSc Computing Programme at the University of Northampton. This material was taken from the problem solving part of the module and provides an introduction to five topics in problem-solving.

The resource can be found at: http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19001

Sustainability: Environmental Business Imperatives

http://find.jorum.ac.uk/resources/19120

Author: Professor Margaret Bates
Created: 7 July 2014, by School of Science & Technology and Northampton Business School, The University of Northampton

This video outlines the drivers for resource efficiency for business including raw materials scarcity and economic imperatives. The savings that can be made by more efficient use of raw materials, energy and waste are highlighted. Case study examples are given to show how different sectors have achieved resource efficiency and moved towards a circular model of resource use.

Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International

All views are the authors, and may not reflect the views of any organisation the author is connected with in any way.

Sixth Form students working with professional scientists at the University of Northampton

Taken from: http://www.northampton.ac.uk/news/sixth-form-students-spend-their-summer-holidays-working-with-professional-scientists-at-the-university-of-northampton

Sixth Form students spend their summer holidays working with professional scientists at the University of Northampton

• Thursday 22nd August 2013
  
  Sixth Form students have had the opportunity to work alongside professional scientists at the University of Northampton on a research project as part of the Nuffield Research Placements programme.  
  
  
  The six students were from schools across the county and spent six weeks at the University’s School of Science and Technology, gaining hands-on experience and a valuable insight into a professional research environment. The University has been actively involved with this programme for several years and it is part of the School of Science and Technology’s larger commitment to outreach.
  
  
  The participants included Sheldon Kawonga from Kettering Science Academy, Emmanuel Hlouverakis and Hafiz Alaraf both from The Duston School, Agota Geciauskaite from Malcolm Arnold Academy, James Adams from The Northampton Academy and Phillipa Hawkley from Brooke Weston Academy. All were invited to give presentations on their individual projects, which varied from building a mobile device app to investigating the sensitivity of magnetic particle inspection technique.
  
  
  Nuffield Research Placements provides 1,000 students each year with the opportunity to work alongside professionals in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) sector. The programme is open to students on the first year of a post-16 STEM course and placements are available across the UK in universities, commercial companies, voluntary organisations and research institutions.
  
  
  One of the students, Phillipa Hawkley, said:  “I found this experience to be really good as we got to use facilities that we don’t have at school and the chance to use this software puts us above others our age and will really help with university applications.”
  
  
  James Adams said: “It’s been a good experience, especially from a software developer’s point of view, as I’ve never had the experience of developing something based on someone else’s specifications.”
  
  
  Dr Abdeldjalil Bennecer, Senior Lecturer in Engineering at the University of Northampton commented: “The sixth form students are about to enter the second year of their A-levels and have spent six weeks over the summer with us working on individual projects.
  
  
  We held interviews with each student and the ones we offered places to were the brightest in their class and expressed an interest in STEM subjects at university level. We tailored the project briefs to suit their interests.
  
  
  It's been a beneficial few weeks for these students and we have thoroughly enjoyed working with them and giving them the ultimate experience of working with professional scientists."

The University of Northampton opens a new state-of-the-art thermo-fluids laboratory

Taken from: http://www.northampton.ac.uk/news/article/551/the-university-of-northampton-opens-a-new-state-of-the-art-thermo-fluids-laboratory

The School of Science & Technology is delighted to announce the opening of a new state-of-the-art thermo-fluid laboratory, at a cost of nearly a quarter of a million pounds.

Equipped with a range of specialist and modern equipment and experiments to allow students to explore thermodynamics, fluid flow, sustainable engineering and alternative energy, the new laboratory adds to an expanding resource facility in engineering at the University.

Dr Jonathan Adams, Head of Department, said: “The new laboratory adds vital practical resources to enable students studying our HNC, HND and BSc Engineering courses and our recently validated BEng/MEng in Electromechanical Engineering to explore and reinforce practically the engineering principles which are learnt theoretically in class.” 

Professor Kamal Bechkoum, Executive Dean of the School of Science and Technology, commented: “The new thermo-fluids laboratory is part of the University’s commitment to providing our students with a vibrant and business-relevant learning environment. The student experience is at the heart of what we do, and we strongly believe that this kind of investment is crucial for a high quality student experience and for better preparing our graduates for tomorrow’s jobs in the engineering sector.”

The new laboratory further adds to the expanding research capability of the Department for local, national and international engineering companies.  The Department currently has contract research projects for international companies; knowledge transfer partnerships and a number of sponsored research students.

Girls into Physics and Engineering – Northamptonshire

The following is reposted from The Royal Aeronautical Society - news blog: http://media.aerosociety.com/news/2013/02/27/girls-into-physics-and-engineering-northamptonshire/8060/

Radio 4 has just released a list of the 100 most powerful women in the UK . However, the list highlights gaps, for example in the military, and it also seemed lacking in the fields of physics and engineering. This under-representation is not new and the fact that it is reflected across the aviation and aerospace sectors, at all levels, has been recognised by the RAeS for some time. So in 2009, the RAeS Women in Aerospace Committee (WAAC) was formed, with a remit to start looking at and addressing this issue.

Women offer a wealth of skills that would help address the major challenges that the aviation and aerospace sectors face and so, increasing female representation in aviation and aerospace would not only be good for women, but for business. Hence part of the RAeS WAAC’s Mission is ‘To work to increase the number of women choosing a career in all sectors of aviation and aerospace…’  The difficulty in attracting women into aviation and aerospace is a complex issue which begins early in life, with girls’ perception of their role . This influences which subjects they choose to pursue at school, which in-turn influences the career paths they eventually take. So when the WAAC were approached to help at an event titled ‘Physics and Engineering – A New Perspective’, it seemed an ideal opportunity to help encourage more young women to consider the worthwhile and exciting careers available within aviation and aerospace.

This event was created and organised by Tricia Goodchild who is STEM Diversity Coordinator/Placement Manager, Northants Engineering Training Group. It was in response to concerns raised by teachers in Northamptonshire about the lack of girls choosing to take A level Physics. The decision of many girls to drop physics has been attributed to the image of the subject and misconstrued perceptions of limited or unattractive opportunities that would follow. The event aimed to inspire, enthuse and challenge these perceptions; to make these girls think twice before dismissing physics and engineering as too hard, or boring, or just for boys.

The WAAC contacted Squadron Leader Christine Matthews BEng (Hons) MRAeS , hoping that as a female engineer, she would be able help to do this job! Christine presented a ‘personal perspective’ on physics and engineering, based on the opportunities that her physics A level had provided: From working on numerous RAF aircraft, from locations all over the UK and abroad, to setting up local radio station networks in Afghanistan, to indulging in adventurous expeditions and sports. Along with the other presenters drawn from a range of physics and engineering based careers, Christine certainly seemed to get the girls attention. The day also included practical workshops and concluded with a Q&A plenary, during which the girls, all aged 13 to 14, had plenty to ask. They appeared to have got a lot from the event and Tricia reported much positive feedback from both students and staff. Who knows, maybe one of those girls will make a future top 100 list as a top ranking military engineer, groundbreaking physicist or CEO of a major aviation company! But if at least one or two are inspired to continue to study physics and consider a career in aerospace or engineering, then that would be another small step towards addressing the imbalance of women working in aviation and aerospace.

Find out more about WAAC’s research:

To read the 2009 WAAC Specialist Paper click here

NORTHANTS ENGINEERING TRAINING PARTNERSHIP (NETP), A MODEL FOR SUSTAINABLE, INDUSTRY – UNIVERSITY ENGAGEMENT

Recent paper published by Dan Bailey and Dr Jonathan Adams at The International Conference on Engineering Education 2012 Turku Finland July 30 – August 3, 2012

Proceedings can be found at: julkaisut.turkuamk.fi/isbn9789522162946.pdf

Daniel C. M. Bailey, daniel.bailey@northampton.ac.uk
Jonathan P. Adams, jonathan.adams@northampton.ac.uk
Twenty-three years ago the University of Northampton along with a number or local engineering companies including British Timkin, Cosworth, Cummins, Express Lifts and KAB Seating formed a partnership to provide industry experience for undergraduate students. The founding aim of the NETP was: “to create a pool of ‘industry ready’ Engineers to support the Northamptonshire area”.
The NETP set up a paid placement scheme where students would spend a year split between three companies, attending University one day per week to continue with their academic studies. It is estimated that the NETP has offered over 500 placement opportunities since its inception.
In recent years the NETP has developed to meet the changing needs of both industry and Higher Education (HE). Changes have included the expansion in the level and range of methods of engagement with the University and other stakeholders, including; schools, colleges, local government and support organisations. To reflect this wider remit new mission and vision statements were recently formulated.
Mission: To create a pool of industry ready engineers of the highest calibre and position the NETP as a unique example of good practice and collaboration between Academia and Industry adding value to all stakeholders.
Vision: Aspire to increase membership and diversity by providing a platform for full student placements, formal and informal networking, sharing of good practice and inspiring students and Partners alike.
This paper will evaluate why the NETP has been sustainable and how it has developed to meet the changing needs of educators, employers and students. Particular areas of focus will be; how the NETP has input into skills and knowledge and course / curriculum development; how it has supported graduate recruitment, enterprise and professional skills development; and how the NETP has supported research and local economic development. 

TEACHING ULTRASONICS USING SPREADSHEETS

Recent paper published by Professor Phil Picton at The International Conference on Engineering Education 2012 Turku Finland July 30 – August 3, 2012

Proceedings can be found at: julkaisut.turkuamk.fi/isbn9789522162946.pdf

The University of Northampton, phil.picton@northampton.ac.uk

Whenever an ultrasonic wave encounters a boundary between two media it is partially reflected and refracted, as any acoustic wave would be. Unlike light, the wave also undergoes mode conversion so that in the general case a single incident wave could produce two reflected waves and two refracted waves. The angles which define the path of the wave are determined by Snell’s law and are easily calculated. The relative amplitudes, on the other hand, require quite complicated formula when the angle of incidence is anything other than 0 degrees. This problem gets compounded when the angle of the incident wave goes beyond the first critical angle. At this point the angle of the refracted wave becomes imaginary and the equations to calculate the relative amplitudes become complex. This paper describes a tool that has been developed, using a spreadsheet, which performs the calculations for all incident angles. The user selects the media and the type of incident wave and the resulting waves are shown graphically as well as numerically. The tool was developed primarily as part of an undergraduate course on ultrasonic testing, but could be used more widely. 

STEM conference: Engineering

STEM Annual Conference 2012

• Date: 12 Apr 2012 - 13 Apr 2012
• Location/venue: Imperial College and The Royal Geographical Society London , England, SW7 2AZ Proceedings - ISBN 978-1-907207-45-7

All papers can be found at: http://www.heacademy.ac.uk/events/detail/2012/academyevents/STEM_annual_conf

Papers relating to engineering

Practices and Approaches for the Integration of Teaching and Research Dr Esat Alpay & Mr R. Verschoor

The role of practice-based doctorates for developing professional practice within science and engineering. Prof Peter Smith
[For presentation slides click here (pptx, 902 KB)]

Innovative Curriculum Partnerships for progression and success: Aston University Engineering Academy Prof Alison Halstead

Employer Involvement in Undergraduate Projects: Staff and Students' Perspectives Dr Abel Nyamapfene
[For presentation slides click here (pptx, 5.60 KB)]

Experience with an integrated work-based learning route to an Engineering MSc and CEng for engineers working full time. Mr Mike Hope

Student-led Symposiums: harnessing the "wow" factor and emphasising employability Ms Alison Ahearn

Use of six hats in STEM subjects Prof Peter Childs
[For presentation slides click here (PDF, 251 KB)]

Understanding the learning and teaching expectations of taught postgraduate students across science, engineering and computing subjects at Kingston University (KU) Ms Michelle Morgan
[For presentation slides click here (ppt, 787 KB)]

Digital game based learning for supporting engineering learning in 3 different universities Dr Richard Joiner
[For presentation slides click here (ppt, 2.05 MB)]

International Students: One size fits does not fit ALL. Mr Phillip Lewis
[For presentation slides click here (ppt, 323 KB)]

Evaluating the Case for Employing E-Portfolio Tools as Part of the Final Year Engineering Project Experience Prof Ray Sheriff
[For presentation slides click here (pptx, 2.11 MB)]

Inspiring global employability skills in a 1-week project Dr Rachel Horn
[For presentation slides click here (PDF, 425 KB)]

Innovative use of peer-assessment in final year design projects Dr Eva Sorensen

Facilitating the transition to HE for engineering students with non-typical backgrounds in mathematics using a proactive intervention. Dr Tom Cross

Integrating multi-module learning outcomes into an access module: practical implications Dr Christopher Smith

The Bloodhound Effect: Driving HE STEM Subjects with a Supersonic Car and the World Land Speed Record Workshop by Dr Michael McCabe

General teaching and learning in STEM subjects papers:

• Learning & Teaching Issues Academic Papers 1
• Learning & Teaching Issues Academic Papers 2

Live project example

As a part of working with Knights of Old, to model fuel efficient trailers and sustainable fuels as an alternative to standard diesel engines, an assignment has been designed for measuring and modeling the SCANIA R440, in Solidworks 2011, for ENG1004 students in December 2011. 


The measurement has been done on 14 Feb at their site, which is based in Gladstone Close. We have successfully managed to present the first draft of this model on the industrial week in nVision the 3D system at Northampton University. 

The final model would be ready by end of April 2012 for calculating the turbulent flow field around the geometry using the CFD Module’s Turbulent Flow, k-ε interface.


By  Seyed Mirhadizadeh 

Girls into Engineering @UniNorthants

 A recent presentation on work done to encourage Girls into Engineering

To see more of the projects go to:  http://www.northampton.ac.uk/info/200284/widening-participation/1132/projects

Best Engineering Event Award.

The school was received a national award by Engineering UK and the British Science Association for an event during National Science and Engineering week – Best Engineering Event Award. 

The event Girls can do it too on Wednesday 16th March, had more than girls from schools across the county spent a day at Avenue Campus exploring science and engineering  through 

• drama, 
• workshops
•  keynote speakers.

The credit goes to Tricia Goodchild,  Champion for Girls in Engineering.in the school who also recently won the WISE outreach award.

Some of these activities were supported by internal Widening Participation fund provided by DELTAE:

-Engineering and Science - You can do it too! For Primary 

School Children 8 year olds

- Girls into Engineering - During National Science Week

"It also illustrates how Widening Participation project funding can  support innovative activity   and enhance collaboration  between various WP projects  led by different Schools.( eg, the Girls into Engineering event and the Act Out theatre group) "- Rohini Corfield (Widening Participation Co-ordinator, DELTAE, University of Northampton)


This work forms part of the continued commitment from the School to Outreach activities.


For more details contact: Tricia Goodchild Champion for Girls into Engineering (Tricia.Goodchild@northampton.ac.uk) or for other Widening Participation activities Dr Scott Turner (scott.turner@northampton.ac.uk) Widening Participation Co-ordinator, School of Science and Technology).

.

Mind the Gender Gap – Reflections on addressing gender diversity in Computing and Engineering

Members of the school are to present a paper at the Learning Global Conference, Northampton 11th May 2011 on the work done within the school on addressing the gender gap in engineering and computer-engineering.


Presenter: Tricia Goodchild, Rashmi Dravid and Scott Turner


Summary

Worldwide, many studies have shown that numbers of women choosing to study and work in the respective industries is low in  both Computing  (for example Wilson, 2003; Tillberg and McGrath 2005) and Engineering (only 9% of UK engineering professionals are women (IET 2010)). Figures from EngineeringUK (2010) show the UK lags behind the rest of Europe for the percentage of females students obtaining first degrees in Mathematics/Computer Science (UK [27%] compared with Europe [32%],and Engineering (UK[15%], compared with Europe [20%]). 

This presentation is a reflective account of the range of activities (including some which are award winning (see http://www.stemnet.org.uk/news/view/1232149)), which the School of Science and Technology  has put in places to raise the aspirations of potential future women engineers and computer scientists in  both primary and secondary education.  The work reported has been heavily supported by contributions from our own UK and overseas students.

References:

EngineeringUK (2010) Women in Engineering and Technology [online]. Available from: URL:http://www.engineeringuk.com/_db/_documents/Women_in_Engineering_and_Technology_FINAL.pdf [7/2/2011].

IET (2010) Mind the Gender Gap IET Member News 14^th June 2010.

Tillberg,HK, McGrath CJ (2005). Attaching Women to the CS Major Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies - Volume 26, Number 1, 2005, pp. 126-140

Wilson F (2003) New Technology, Work and Employment 18:2 ISSN 0268-107