The main objective of this study was to influence implicit learning through two different classical manipulations and to inspect whether working memory capacity (WMC) and personality were related to the different measures of learning. With that purpose, in Experiment 1 we asked 172 undergraduate students of psychology to perform a serial reaction time (SRT) task under single- or dual-task conditions and to complete a WMC task and a personality test. In Experiment 2, 164 students performed the SRT task under incidental or intentional conditions and also filled a WMC task and a personality test. In both experiments, WMC influenced learning, but this relation was found only when attention was not loaded (Experiment 1) or when intentional instructions were given (Experiment 2). The pattern of relations with personality, although more varied, also showed a commonality between both experiments: learning under the most implicit conditions correlated positively with extraversion.
Full text via link. In September 2015, a four year project on the working alliance with mandated clients started. The project was facilitated by a RAAK-PRO grant of the Dutch Organisation of Scientific Research (NWO) and carried out by researchers of the University of Applied Sciences Utrecht. The project has been set up throughout several areas of the forensic social field: probation, labor reintegration, debt counseling, social care and youth services. The idea came as a response to the ambivalent feelings professionals in mandated contexts express regarding the combination of controlling and coaching tasks they need to employ. They sometimes struggle with ‘hybrid working’ in one-to-one supervision with clients. Professionals claim they need theory-based knowledge on how to build a working alliance with mandated clients on which they can build their daily practice.
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This article discusses some characteristics of the educational framework of the programme and tries to compare the results of the programme as reported by graduates with the 'professional competencies for Sustainable Development’, as formulated by DHO (the organisation for Sustainable Higher Education in the Netherlands). Because of the strong international character of the programme (students from more than 50 different countries in all continents of the world graduated since 1996), a specific issue of concern is the applicability of the Dutch Sustainable Competences in an international setting, and the implications for the teaching and learning approach. The experiental learning theory and the learning styles as defined by Kolb (1984) and the cultural dimensions as described by Hofstede (2009) are used to check this. Results from short online interviews with graduates all over the world illustrate the results of this comparison.
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Due to the existing pressure for a more rational use of the water, many public managers and industries have to re-think/adapt their processes towards a more circular approach. Such pressure is even more critical in the Rio Doce region, Minas Gerais, due to the large environmental accident occurred in 2015. Cenibra (pulp mill) is an example of such industries due to the fact that it is situated in the river basin and that it has a water demanding process. The current proposal is meant as an academic and engineering study to propose possible solutions to decrease the total water consumption of the mill and, thus, decrease the total stress on the Rio Doce basin. The work will be divided in three working packages, namely: (i) evaluation (modelling) of the mill process and water balance (ii) application and operation of a pilot scale wastewater treatment plant (iii) analysis of the impacts caused by the improvement of the process. The second work package will also be conducted (in parallel) with a lab scale setup in The Netherlands to allow fast adjustments and broaden evaluation of the setup/process performance. The actions will focus on reducing the mill total water consumption in 20%.
Under the umbrella of artistic sustenance, I question the life of materials, subjective value structures, and working conditions underlying exhibition making through three interconnected areas of inquiry: Material Life and Ecological Impact — how to avoid the accumulation of physical materials/storage after exhibitions? I aim to highlight the provenance and afterlife of exhibition materials in my practice, seeking economic and ecological alternatives to traditional practices through sustainable solutions like borrowing, reselling, and alternative storage methods that could transform exhibition material handling and thoughts on material storage and circulation. Value Systems and Economic Conditions —what do we mean when we talk about 'value' in relation to art? By examining the flow of financial value in contemporary art and addressing the subjectivity of worth in art-making and artists' livelihoods, I question traditional notions of sculptural skill while advocating for recognition of conceptual labour. The research considers how artists might be compensated for the elegance of thought rather than just material output. Text as Archive and Speculation— how can text can store, speculate, and circulate the invisible labour and layers of exhibition making? Through titles, material lists, and exhibition texts, I explore writing's potential to uncover latent structures and document invisible labor, considering text both as an archiving method and a tool for speculating about future exhibitions. Using personal practice as a case study, ‘Conditions for Raw Materials’ seeks to question notions of value in contemporary art, develop alternative economic models, and make visible the material, financial, and relational flows within exhibitions. The research will manifest through international exhibitions, a book combining poetic auto-theoretical reflection with exhibition speculation, new teaching formats, and long-term investigations. Following “sticky relations," of intimacy, economy and conditions, each exhibition serves as a case study exploring exhibition making from emotional, ecological, and economic perspectives.
Aiming for a more sustainable future, biobased materials with improved performance are required. For biobased vinyl polymers, enhancing performance can be achieved by nanostructuring the material, i.e. through the use of well-defined (multi-)block, gradient, graft, comb, etc., copolymer made by controlled radical polymerization (CRP). Dispoltec has developed a new generation of alkoxyamines, which suppress termination and display enhanced end group stability compared to state-of-art CRP. Hence, these alkoxyamines are particularly suited to provide access to such biobased nanostructured materials. In order to produce alkoxyamines in a more environmentally benign and efficient manner, a photo-chemical step is beneficial for the final stage in their synthesis. Photo-flow chemistry as a process intensification technology is proposed, as flow chemistry inherently leads to more efficient reactions. In particular, photo-flow offers the benefit of significantly enhancing reactant concentrations and reducing batch times due to highly improved illumination. The aim of this project is to demonstrate at lab scale the feasibility of producing the new generation of alkoxy-amines via a photo-flow process under industrially relevant conditions regarding concentration, duration and efficiency. To this end, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences (Zuyd), CHemelot Innovation and Learning Labs (CHILL) and Dispoltec BV want to enter into a collaboration by combining the expertise of Dispoltec on alkoxyamines for CRP with those of Zuyd and CHILL on microreactor technology and flow chemistry. Improved access to these alkoxyamines is industrially relevant for initiator manufacturers, as well as producers of biobased vinyl polymers and end-users aiming to enhance performance through nanostructuring biobased materials. In addition, access in this manner is a clear demonstration for the high industrial potential of photo-flow chemistry as sustainable manufacturing tool. Further to that, students and professionals working together at CHILL will be trained in this emerging, industrially relevant and sustainable processing tool.
