Science Content Research Articles

Deep learning detection method for large language models-generated scientific content

Deep learning detection method for large language models-generated scientific content

Legal and scientific deficiencies of drug advertisements on German television.

Drug advertising primarily serves to publicize the product and increase sales. The legal requirements in the Therapeutic Products Advertising Act (Heilmittelwerbegesetz, HWG) in Germanyare intended to protect consumers. However, a lack of information about the potentialnegative aspects of drugs represents a risk for viewers. In this study, we analyzed a total of 52 advertising clips for drugs, food supplements, and medical products on public and private German television. These short films in the commercial breaks between the TV programs serve to publicize and advertise products. Furthermore, the corresponding package inserts for the drugs and the content and structure of the advertising clips were analyzed. The clips were compared with each other as well as about the mandatory information according to §4 of the HWG and §11 of the Medicinal Products Act (Arzneimittelgesetz, AMG). The study revealed that a large proportion of the mandatory information was not included in the advertising clips analyzed. Not all legal requirements were met in the package inserts either. Alarmingly, the advertising clips consistently contained only one of the mandatory information pieces, namely, the name of the product. Adverse effects were not mentioned in any advertising clip, and the effects of drugs were only poorly explained, if at all. Overall, scientific content of the advertisements was minimal if at all present. Instead, the airtime was dominated by emotional and attention-grabbing content in the form of a frame story, whereas the potential to educate people about medicines and raise public awareness remains mostly unused. Thus, drug advertisements on German television exhibit substantial scientific and legal deficiencies. In addition, we noted several legal gray zones in advertisements. The deficiencies in drug advertisement quality on television are, unfortunately, in line with quality deficiencies on drug advertisements in various other platforms (see., e.g., https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37792047/ ; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38430230/ ). Thus, the lack of rigorous implementation of the HWG is a general problem in Germany. We make specific suggestions on what actions should be taken to improve the implementation of the HWG in television advertisements to improve drug safety and consumer safety.

Assistive Technology Integration for Students with Speech and Language Impairments: A Mixed Methods Study

This study examines a large urban public school (UPS) district in the Midwest USA that has faced bankruptcy, state takeover of public education, and financial scams. As a result, UPS's capacity to integrate assistive technologies (AT) has been limited and is declining. This study investigates the UPS teachers' technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) and how the UPS teachers integrate AT for students with speech and language impairments (SLI). This article details the UPS special education and general education teachers' TPACK across grade levels, content, and classroom settings. This article reports the UPS teachers' current integration of AT, instructional practices, implementation, and experiences integrating AT in the classroom for students with SLI. 94 UPS teachers participated in the online survey. The study found no significant differences in the UPS teachers' TPACK across classroom settings or grade levels. Results show no significant differences between the UPS teachers' TPACK in mathematics, social studies, science, or literacy content knowledge. The study revealed that UPS teachers utilize various AT tools, from basic tools like [calculators, audio/video recording devices, and voice amplifiers] to more advanced tools like [iPads, SmartBoards, and computers], for diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments. Results indicate that the UPS teachers utilize similar instructional methods across content and express mostly positive experiences integrating AT for SLI students.

Analysis of Gender Issues in Computational Thinking Approach in Science and Mathematics Learning in Higher Education

In the contemporary era, Computational Thinking has emerged as a crucial skill for individuals to possess in order to thrive in the 21st century. In this context, there is a need to develop a methodology for cultivating these skills within a science and mathematics content education framework, particularly among pre-service teachers. This study aimed to investigate the impact of Educational Robotics on the development of Computational Thinking skills, with a particular focus on the role of gender, through a scientific and mathematical content teaching approach. A pre-experimental design with a quantitative approach was employed, and it was implemented with a total of 116 pre-service teachers, 38 males and 78 females. The results demonstrated a notable enhancement between the pre-test (8.11) and post-test (9.63) scores, emphasising specific concepts such as simple functions, while, and compound conditional. With respect to gender, statistically significant differences were identified prior to the intervention, but not following its implementation. The high level of Computational Thinking exhibited by both genders was comparable (53.85% in females and 55.26% in males) following the intervention. This indicates that the intervention is a promising approach for enhancing Computational Thinking proficiency, independent of gender and initial proficiency levels. The implementation of Educational Robotics in the teaching of science and mathematics enables the enhancement of Computational Thinking abilities among pre-service teachers, while reducing the observed gender disparity in this area of skill development.

Evaluating the Development of Pre-Service Primary School Teachers’ Competences in the Context of a Student-Centred Science Visits Course

The student-centred approach emphasises active learning, where students take responsibility for their own learning process, in which they are actively involved and integrate new information into their existing knowledge framework. Combining this approach with outdoor learning provides an even more effective teaching strategy. When combining these approaches, the individual needs and interests of the students must be taken into account. The research was conducted as part of The Science Visits Course among 30 prospective primary school teachers in their final years of study. The focus of the study was on the students’ self-assessment of their competences in science education and on the implementation of a student-centred teaching process, including outdoor teaching. Data were collected using online questionnaires and a structured evaluation form to assess students’ plans for a science visit. The research findings suggest that students find this type of work engaging and that it encourages their self-engagement, taking responsibility and working together in a group through sharing ideas and opinions. On the other hand, the student competences important for outdoor education have come to the fore to some extent, but there are still areas that can be improved, especially in the area of science content knowledge.

Enhancing multimodal output in CLIL education: the impact of VR games on fourth-grade students’ English poster designs and presentations in Taiwan

Despite the growing recognition of the importance of multimodal input and digital virtual reality (VR) games in enhancing EFL learners’ productive language skills, a significant gap remains in empirical research examining their impact on multimodal output—particularly writing and speaking—within content and language integrated learning (CLIL) science education. This quasi-experimental study addresses this gap by investigating the potential benefits of using VR games to enhance fourth-grade CLIL students’ productive language skills, specifically writing and speaking, through the analysis of their ability to convey scientific concepts in multimodal output. Grounded in self-regulated learning (SRL) theory, the study compares the effects of multimodal input embedded in VR games with those of traditional PowerPoint (PPT)-led games on students’ English poster designs (writing) and oral presentations (speaking), using the 4Cs (Content, Communication, Cognition, and Culture) framework in multimodal assessments. The study involved 81 fourth-grade students from three Taiwanese public elementary schools, divided into an experimental group (EG = 40) using VR-based games and a control group (CG = 41) using PPT-led games for content review. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining quantitative evaluations with rubrics based on the 4Cs framework and qualitative rater reflections to provide a comprehensive understanding of how different review methods influenced student performance and creative output. Quantitative findings revealed that students using VR review games significantly outperformed those using traditional PPT games in aspects of Content and Cognition for both poster designs and presentations, demonstrating greater depth, accuracy, and application of scientific concepts and higher-order cognitive skills. In terms of Communication, the EG showed higher target vocabulary usage and sentence complexity in presentations, but no significant differences were found in Culture outcomes between the groups or in Communication in posters. Expert raters’ reflections further highlighted that students using VR games exhibited more innovative and integrated use of scientific content, critical thinking, and multimodal expressions, reflecting deeper engagement with the material. This study empirically demonstrates that game-based virtual reality learning environments (VRLEs) significantly enhance students’ multimodal output in content and cognitive skills. Theoretically, it extends the application of SRL in CLIL contexts by highlighting the potential of VRLEs to foster advanced cognitive skills and emphasizes the importance of multimodal assessments in capturing comprehensive student learning outcomes. Future research should explore integrating cultural content into VR environments to enhance students’ cultural awareness and sensitivity.

Educational robotics for science and mathematics teaching: Analysis of pre-service teachers' perceptions and self-confidence

Educational Robotics has had an important impact in recent years as it offers a number of advantages for students. The inclusion of robotics in any educational stage requires teachers with adequate predisposition and training, making it necessary to know the opinions of pre-service teachers. The aim of our study is to analyze the perceptions and self-confidence of 109 pre-service primary education teachers before and after an intervention based on educational robotics and challenge-based learning to teach scientific and mathematical content, in their third academic year. A quasi-experimental design was used involving pretest and posttest, using the nonparametric Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon U tests. The results showed a significant improvement in the overall mean self-confidence. In addition, the intervention led to a more positive perception of the benefits and possibilities of robotics for teaching of scientific and mathematical content, although it also increased the difficulties of implementation due to the lack of training in this digital resource. It is concluded that interventions are required based on educational robotics that allow pre-service teachers to gain the necessary self-confidence and perception to facilitate its introduction for the teaching of scientific and mathematical content.

Scientometric Analysis: An Emerging Tool in Veterinary and Animal Scientific Research.

The present study is an evaluation of published papers in the field of scientometrics-bibliometrics in veterinary or animal studies. The objective was the quantitative evaluation of the scientific content and the bibliometric details of papers that had used scientometrics as a methodological approach to assess various topics within the broad field of veterinary or animal studies. For the search of published papers, the Web of Science database was used; the search string {ALL FIELDS = [scientometric* OR bibliometric*]} AND {ALL FIELDS = [veterinary OR animal*]} was employed. In all, 163 papers were evaluated individually. There was a progressive increase in the number of papers published annually (slope 0.314 ± 0.063) which originated from 58 countries, mostly from the United States of America (n = 24) and 306 organizations. The databases employed most frequently for record search were the Web of Science, Scopus and PubMed (in 105, 60 and 21 papers, respectively); the median timespan of the searches was 25 years (interquartile range (IQR): 31) and the median number of records was 1082.5 (IQR: 4708) (min.: 14, max.: 207,894). The papers were published in 106 journals (Animals (n = 21), Scientometrics (n = 8)), classified into 56 Web of Science categories ('veterinary sciences' (n = 26 journals)). Searches related to 88 different topics. There were 517 unique keywords in the papers, among which 'bibliometric(s)' (n = 45) occurred most often. The median number of co-authors per paper was 4 (IQR: 3) (min.: 1, max.: 17), with a total of 689 individual authors. Most papers (n = 110 (67.5%)) were published under open access. The median number of citations received per paper was 4 (IQR: 9) (max.: 68) and the h-index was 21. In multivariable analysis, the higher number of cited references in papers and the inclusion of specific animal species in the record search emerged as significant for the number of citations received per paper yearly.

Narratives of growth of formative technological innovation systems based on a knowledge perspective: the case of medical devices

Purpose This study aims to analyze the narratives of growth during the initial stages of development of the medical device technological innovation system (TIS). This paper used micro/nanofluidic-based point-of-care testing (mnPOCT), a breakthrough technology in the health-care sector. Design/methodology/approach This study presents a framework that includes measures of knowledge breadth and sharing mechanisms based on cognitive and actor-based networks. The framework integrates bibliometric, network and statistics-based approaches with a focus on the first decade of mnPOCT development. Findings In addition to the typical patterns of technological emergence, the mnPOCT sector exhibits distinctive characteristics. This paper observed significant scientific content and a high geographic concentration. Although small- and medium-sized enterprises, particularly startups, detonate knowledge development, large companies play a subtle yet impactful role as innovation mediators. Interfirm alliances are sparse, reflecting the complementarities between startups and large firms throughout the innovation value chain. These alliances show a significant correlation with SME knowledge creation. Research limitations/implications This study provides researchers and practitioners with guidelines for assessing the dynamics of the growth of technologies in the earliest stages of growth through knowledge and implications for research strategy toward the development and deployment of effective system interventions. Originality/value The study of formative TISs presents challenges because of the nascent characteristics and uncertainties surrounding emerging technologies. Current discussions on the narratives of growth of emerging TISs are limited to broad descriptions, which hinder understanding of these formative stages. This study offers a unique approach to assessing the initial stages of technological evolution. Moreover, it contributes to the existing literature by providing guidelines for managing new technologies for R&D researchers and practitioners.

Integrating Single-Case and Qualitative Approaches: A Mixed-Methods Analysis of a Science Comprehension Intervention for Students with Extensive Support Needs

Despite advances in inclusion and access to the general curriculum for students with disabilities at large, students with extensive support needs (ESN) continue to receive instruction that is disconnected from the general curriculum and general education peers. One area of the general curriculum that students with ESN have historically lacked access to is science. However, ongoing research in this area has identified several evidence-based and promising practices that support the science learning of students with ESN. This project used a convergent mixed-methods single-case research design, specifically a single case adapted alternating treatments design paired with qualitative methods, to explore how an intervention to support comprehension of science content supported student learning and engagement for four middle school students with ESN. Implications of the study findings, as well as the value added from the mixed-methods approach, will be discussed.

Increasing Scientific Literacy using a Guided Inquiry Approach assisted by PhET Simulations in Wave Material

This research was conducted to assess the growth of students' scientific literacy skills using the Guided Inquiry learning model assisted by PhET Simulation on Wave material. The method used in this research is Penelitian Tindakan Kelas (PTK) or Action Research with the research subjects were 39 students of SMA Negeri 6 Kabupaten Tangerang class XI MIPA 3. This research design consists of three cycles with each cycle consisting of four stages: planning (plan), implementation (action), observation (observe), and reflection (reflect). The results of the research show that the application of the Guided Inquiry learning model assisted by PhET Simulation can improve students' scientific literacy abilities with the average percentage value of scientific literacy abilities in the "good" category, this can be seen in the greatest increase that occurred in cycle III, which was found The average percentage increase in the science content indicator was 68.7%, the science context indicator was 63.7%, and the science process indicator was 65.5%. From the results of observations from this research, it can be seen that through the Guided Inquiry learning model assisted by PhET Simulation, students are more active in the learning process.

TEACHING COMPUTATIONAL THINKING IN LEARNING COMMUNITY: A CASE STUDY OF SOLKAN PRIMARY SCHOOL

Slovene kindergartens and schools have introduced a learning community where teachers learn from and with each other, acquire knowledge, and strengthen students' skills. The success of such connections depends on shared values, attitudes, beliefs, and supportive mutual relationships. Teachers are essential when Slovene school participates in development projects B-RIN, aimed at introducing fundamental computer science and informatics content and computational thinking into kindergarten groups and school classes. When selecting members of the development team, the participants were guided by the criterion that the selected educators and teachers are open to exploring their teaching practices, capable of continuously upgrading and evaluating their pedagogical work, and developing and improving their teaching approaches based on the study of their practice, emphasizing student-centred approaches. The purpose of this contribution is to highlight the implicit theories and attitudes of the development team and school staff regarding the understanding and importance of introducing fundamental B-RIN content and computational thinking into teaching, not only in the STEM field but also in other subject areas, and to present the approaches with which participants have influenced the implicit theories and attitudes of teachers and educators within our VI organization. This is also because training students in computational thinking and fundamental computer science and informatics content significantly impacts the development of metacognitive strategies, such as problem-solving skills, especially for open-ended problems, self-regulation learning skills, perseverance in facing failure, consequently greater resilience, and encouraging creativity. Therefore, it also broadly impacts the mental health of students. Keywords: computational thinking, implicit theories and attitudes, learning community, metacognitive strategies, development team

How much digital public health is taught in German public health programs? A qualitative analysis

Abstract Background Digital public health (DiPH) professionals are crucial for a successful digital transformation in social and health care. However, the extent to which academic professionals are taught DiPH-related content in their public health studies in Germany remains unclear. Methods We used a systematic module handbook analysis to assess accredited full-time public health-oriented degree programs at German Universities for DiPH-related modules. Programs were identified through the Hochschulkompass platform and among the German Public Health Association member programs. We used MAXQDA for the content analysis of the included module handbooks. Results We identified 79 public health programs. Of these, 10 Bachelor’s and 6 Master’s offered at least one DiPH module, all being highly heterogeneous in their overall addressed public health subfields. Regarding DiPH, 6 programs lectured on the ethics of digitalizing health and data protection, 5 programs each offered modules on DiPH in health policy, on data science in healthcare and software used for eHealth, or on the digital determinants of health. 4 programs each included modules on digital health promotion and alternative evaluation methods. 3 programs each addressed digital science communication and health technology assessment. Finally, 2 programs had modules on digital epidemiology. We found differences between the common understanding of DiPH in academia and the content in the module handbooks. The content identified in the analysis focused mainly on technical areas. Social and health science content was only marginally present. Conclusions The diverse DiPH study programs allow academic public health specialists in Germany to develop specific profiles. There is a need for further development of modules with relevance to the respective degree program to achieve comprehensive competencies in DiPH. We encourage the uptake of our analysis to develop a core curriculum in DiPH among European public health programs. Key messages • Digitalization affects all areas of life, including healthcare systems and public health. Preparing the future workforce already during their training is crucial to enable them to lead the change. • German public health programs are not fit to prepare students for their professions. Developing DiPH curricula with pre-defined and updated competencies will strengthen programs in Germany and beyond.

Exploring Chemists’ Understandings of the Nature of Science with their Levels of Expertise

Several Nature of Science (NOS) studies have been conducted on different categories of professionals and different age groups. Even though NOS is considered a structural facet of scientific literacy, not much research has been conducted on the NOS ideas of scientists and science professionals. This cross-sectional study investigated the nature of science (NOS) views of 40 participants who have or had exposure to chemistry research using a qualitative comparative analysis approach, in one chemistry department in a large Midwest R-1 university. The participants' chemistry research exposure varied from no research to 31 years of experience. Undergraduates, graduate students, postgraduate researchers, faculty, and scientists were recruited for this study to examine how their NOS understanding develops in relationship to their research exposure. These categories of participants demonstrated different and unique patterns of answers related to aspects of NOS. Science content knowledge and research exposure indeed enhanced science learners'/researchers’ NOS understanding, but NOS understanding is not developed in direct proportion to the amount of science content knowledge or research experience that an individual gained. It was observed that professionals with the same expertise level responded to NOS questions similarly, and professionals with different levels of expertise answered NOS questions in significantly different ways.

Instrumentation of students’ experience through the active content of science: from epistemic contact to idealizations and back again in school classrooms

ABSTRACT The paper presents an in-depth exploration of the process of the instrumentation of experience within the context of teaching and learning in schools. We focus on the role of cultural instruments, such as scientific tools and practices, in mediating human cognition and transforming students´ experience into active scientific content. The study draws on the concepts of dual mediation and the interplay between denotative and expressive aspects of cognition. We aim to (1) characterise the process of instrumentalizing students’ experience into active scientific content within the classroom and (2) propose a theoretically consistent model of instrumentation of experience for micro-level analysis of teaching and learning based on the construct of content transformation. We propose a micro-level model for analyzing the instrumentation of experience in educational settings, highlighting the interaction between the subjective, intersubjective, and objective content modalities, Kvasz's typology of cultural genesis in science and its operationalisation through five epistemic categories (e.g. cognitive penetrability of imagination). The operational grounding of these categories is illustrated through case study examples. This model serves for micro-analysis of content transformations during teaching and learning and thus to contribute to the enhancement of teaching and learning quality through classroom observations and analytical reflection.

Эпистемологический статус харизмы в исторической макросоциологии

The uncertain epistemological status of charisma is largely due to its polysemy and polymorphism. Max Weber thematizes it in a variety of contexts and meanings — distinguishing between magical, religious charisma and the charisma of reason, highlighting the trajectories of routinization and objectification of charisma, typologizing different types of prophecies. In turn, the multiple (re)actualizations of this “brilliant concept” [Rose] as reinforcements of their own theories in the form of varieties of symbolic capital, resonance, the everyday, the re-personalized, or the risky charisma lead to either semantic compression or the blurring of meaning, both within sociological theory and in interdisciplinary discourse. To define the scientific content of charisma, the authors propose to thematize it in historical macrosociology. The key question is addressed to the interdisciplinary connections in Weber's intellectual heritage — is the category “charisma” attributable to Weber the historian or Weber the sociologist? The clarification of the epistemological status of charisma, expressed in its dual character (phenomenon vs. ideal type), becomes possible thanks to the discussion of a corpus of the classic texts by two prominent German Weberologists - W. Schlüchter and F. Tenbruck. In its turn, the reconstruction and systematization of approaches of Weberian historical macrosociology allows us to clarify the boundaries and possibilities of the category's application. Thus, the evolutionary-theoretical perspective defines the heuristic potential of charisma in terms of reflecting the dynamics of cultural and value orientations in the process of emergence and consolidation of social order and institutional structures. The comparative-historical approach, in turn, defines the relationship between the analytical and empirical levels of Weber's sociology through the “immersion” of an ideal-typical construct in a real historical narrative. In this way, historical macrosociology overcomes the most valid criticisms (S. Turner) of the category's failure, heterogeneity, and its residual character.

Supporting elementary preservice teachers' content knowledge for teaching about matter and its interactions

AbstractKnowledge of science content and the ability to translate knowledge into effective teaching is known as teachers' content knowledge for teaching (CKT). Teachers with developed CKT are able to more effectively determine instructional and assessment activities that will deepen K‐12 students' scientific literacy. However, preservice teachers (PSTs) can have limited opportunities to develop CKT, and little is known about how to support PST CKT development in elementary science teacher preparation. In our work, we developed instructional materials (i.e., “CKT Packets”) intended to support teacher educators (TEs) in developing elementary PSTs' CKT for one content area—matter and its interactions. We facilitated a professional learning community for TEs to support their learning how to implement the materials in their courses. We report on results from a mixed‐methods study using a quasi‐experimental cohort control design with a pretest and posttest to understand differences in PSTs' CKT (N = 250) in eight TEs' science classrooms. Nesting PSTs within their TEs' courses, and controlling for PSTs' prior CKT, engagement time on the assessments, prior coursework, and TE time‐invariant effects, we found preliminary evidence that PSTs achieved greater CKT when TEs implemented more CKT Packets. Salient factors that we hypothesize influenced TEs' productive uses of CKT Packets included disruptions to courses/contexts, TEs' sources of motivation for implementing Packets, TEs' entry points for the alignment of curricular materials with existing topics and pedagogical course emphases, TEs' approaches for first‐time use of curricular materials, and TEs' experiences with the instructional routines of the Packets. We bound our interpretation of results within limitations (e.g., small sample size, quasi‐experimental design) and suggest avenues for new research. Throughout this article, we include implications for TEs, PSTs, educative curricula developers, and researchers working to improve science teaching and learning for students.

Automatic Detection and Extraction of Key Resources from Tables in Biomedical Papers.

Tables are useful information artifacts that allow for easy detection of data "missingness" by humans and have been implemented by several publishers to improve the amount of information present for key resources and reagents such as antibodies, cell lines, and other tools that constitute the inputs to a study. To improve the availability of these tables in the broader biomedical literature, we introduced four pipelines for key resource table extraction from biomedical documents in PDF format. Our approach reconstructs key resource tables using image level table detection and structure detection generated table boundary, column (and row) bounding box information together with PDF text alignment. To remedy row over-segmentation resulting from overflowing table cell contents, we introduced a language modeling (LM) based row merging solution where a character-level generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) model was pre-trained on more than 11 million scientific table contents from PubMed Central Open Access Subset (PMC OAS). All introduced pipelines significantly outperformed GROBID baseline while our Table LM based row merging based pipeline, significantly outperformed all other pipelines including our OCR based pipeline.

Unpacking social media `engagement': a practice theory approach to science on social media

Social media engagement is typically associated with actions such as sharing, liking, or commenting, and is often measured as such in quantitative analyses. This essay explores what is being captured through these methods by `unpacking' such engagement, arguing for a practice-oriented approach that takes into account the mundane ways in which non-scientists may encounter and use scientific content. We describe practice theory in the context of media production and use, before illustrating the approach with material from comments on Facebook posts produced by science-related sources. In showing the uses of science content in maintaining social bonds or performing particular identities (for instance), we argue that science communication research needs to study the wider contexts of how and why users encounter science online, and that the notion of social media practices can help us to do so.

Co-constructing novel science stories or reciting epic narratives?

Although research findings have emphasized the importance of students being engaged in dialogue and co-construction of science knowledge, implementing the teaching required to promote such engagement is challenging for teachers. Co-construction is crucial not only for students' understanding of science content but also for their familiarity with some of the attributes associated with the nature of science (NOS). Inquiry-based science classroom discourses could facilitate NOS familiarization processes by promoting creativity and collaboration in upper primary school. This article presents findings from a case study of how one teacher created and navigated opportunities for students’ co-construction of science stories in a grade 6 class (age 12) working on the topic “Substances around us”. To examine the classroom dialogue and the teacher’s enablement of students’ co-construction in class, observation data were gathered over seven weeks and analysed using principles indicative of classroom dialogue. Findings show that while opportunities for co-construction were created in science class through for example open-ended questions, the teacher’s use of IRE, complemented with boosted communication for evaluation of student answers, often hampered dialogue and co-construction of novel science stories regardless of how the teaching was organized.