An Examination of the Interaction Between Modelling and Its Relationship with Construction Kits: Lessons from the Past and for the Future

Construction kits have played a significant part in nurturing the growth and development of the minds and manipulation-based skills of children (and adults) in formal and non-formal education settings. These kits have origins rooted in the representation of the built world and now have a diversity of form and function, including technical versions with moving parts. This article examines some of the historically based ideas that lie behind the role that kits may have in terms of physical modelling. The article traces the transformation of kits from simple bricks and blocks into more complicated pieces for space-filling and achieving the transfer of forces and motion. This transformation occurred during the Victorian era when the influence of the ideas of educationalists and, perhaps rather strangely, exponents of early aviation, played major roles in determining the diversity of forms of construction kit and modelled possibilities that are now to be seen in classrooms and homes. The article ends with a review of some of the lessons from the past and present that will need to be considered in relation to concrete modelling in schools for the future. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

The Impact of the Implementation of Technology Education on In-Service Teacher Education in South Africa (Impact of Technology Education in the RSA)

In this article the impact of technology education, as a new learning area (subject) in the curriculum, on in-service teacher education in South Africa is described in order to ascertain the extent of the impact. The research on which this article is based draws on a variety of experiences and observations in the field at grassroots level (in particular an outreach project in rural communities). The envisaged impact of technology education on South African schools, communities, teacher educators and teachers, the range of in-service teacher education that is required, and the impacts in urban and rural areas are discussed. Finally a number of concluding remarks are made about the extent of the impact of the inclusion of technology education in the new National Curriculum Statement and whether the situation has changed since the implementation of a pilot technology education project in 1998. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

关于我国都市经济圈发展的几个问题

都市经济圈,通常是指由若干城市集聚而成的高密度经济区域,在空间上表现为由大运量的高速通道相联结的、庞大的、多核心、多层次的城市群.在这个空间里,由于集聚形成的规模经济和范围经济,加之高速通道缩短了城市间的空间距离和经济距离,生产和服务的交易成本、运营成本和管理成本大大降低,投资回报率和要素收益率明显提高.     

金融效率视角的中国农村金融体制创新研究

当前农村金融效率低下已经成为中国金融体制的“软肋”和解决“三农”问题的重要障碍, 因此必须从金融产权、金融结构、金融价格、金融业务、金融业内部管理、外部环境等方面入手, 全面推动农村金融创新, 才能从根本上提高中国农村金融的运行效率。     

对群众体育锻炼中，如何合理安排运动量的探讨

本文在体育锻炼能够增强体质，提高健康水平的生物学基础上和群众体育锻炼与专业训练的区别上，提出群众体育锻炼中如何合理安排运动量。     

拓宽我国体育产业融资渠道的对策研究

本文采用文献研究法,结合我国体育产业发展的现状,提出吸引风险投资、设立体育产业投资基金和体育彩票融资是目前我国体育产业较为理想的融资渠道。     

我国废旧金属的回收再生与利用

介绍了我国废旧金属的回收利用现状,分析了我国再生金属企业存在的潜力及不足之处,我国对废钢和废铜的回收利用工作做的相对较好,而废铝、铅和锌的回收利用水平还较低.