PS Leadership Meets with Congress
APS Past-President Irving Zucker, President-elect Peter Wagner and President Gary Sieck in front of the Capitol Building
On July 7, 2009, APS President Gary Sieck, Past-President Irving Zucker and President-elect Peter Wagner came to Washington, DC to meet with Members of Congress to discuss federal funding for research at the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, NASA and the department of Veterans Affairs.
Drs. Sieck, Zucker and Wagner thanked Members of Congress for their support of federally funded research, particularly in the stimulus legislation passed earlier this year. While the stimulus money will fund many exciting research projects and improve infrastructure over the next two years, they also outlined concerns about what will happen to scientists when the stimulus funding expires in FY 2011. The APS leadership recommended predictable, sustainable growth in research budgets rather than the current pattern of “boom and bust” cycles, where rapid budget growth is followed by periods of flat funding. In addition to the challenges that labs have finding continuous funding sources, they explained that concerns about the sustainability of research funding may discourage young scientists from pursuing careers in academia, leading to the loss of a generation of talented researchers.
In the Senate, Drs. Sieck, Zucker and Wagner met with Senator Mike Johanns (R-NE), and staff in the offices of Senators Daniel Inouye (D-HI) and Ben Nelson (D-NE). In the House of Representatives, they met with staff for Representatives Brian Bilbray (R-CA), Todd Tiahrt (R-KS) and Frank Wolf (R-VA). The meetings took place at a critical point in the appropriations process, as lawmakers will consider funding levels for most government agencies and programs in the next several weeks.
APS Presidents with Senator Mike Johanns (R-
Call for Nominations for the Editorship of AJP-Heart
Call for Nominations for Arthur C. Guyton Physiology Educator of the Year Award
NIH Public Access Policy and Your Manuscript
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Call for Nominations for Arthur C. Guyton Physiology Educator of the Year Award
NIH Public Access Policy and Your Manuscript
Authors: Publish Your Name in Your Native Language
Special Call: Teaching and Learning of Professional Ethics
Special Call: Using Classic Papers to Teach Physiology
Essays on the APS Classic Papers
* Select an Issue from the Archives
Recent: March 2001 - September 2009
Legacy (searchable): June 1989 - December 2000
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my humor
Glass Mosaic Tile Art: Hanging Your Heavy Mosaic Masterpiece
by: ricky lila
Making wonderful glass mosaic tile art is easy! Let me show you how.
You’re so anxious to hang your first masterpiece that it seems like the frame store is taking forever finish the frame. Finally, they call to tell you it’s ready for pickup. Wow, they did a great job and the frame makes your mosaic look even better. You can’t wait to hang it on the wall and show it off.
It weighs a ton and you’re nervous wondering whether a 10-penny nail in flimsy drywall can hold all that weight. You wisely decide that the nail must instead go into a wall stud. The last thing you want is your heavy mosaic crashing down, popping off tesserae, breaking the custom frame, and cracking the ceramic floor tile. You find the exact spot for the nail and poke around hoping to find a stud somewhere close to that spot. Oh, no! The nearest stud is six inches to the left. If you install the nail in that stud, the mosaic won’t be centered on the wall and will look terrible. Good grief, now what? Relax. This is easy. In my eBook, we walk step-by-step through the process of adding a solid support system in the wall that’s plenty strong enough to hold your heavy magnum opus. This isn’t rocket science so don’t panic. You can do it. Yes, you can!
If your masterpiece has any size to it, it’s going to be heavy. For example, one of my projects is only 27”x32” but it weighs a whopping 24-pounds. Always be safety conscious. Never create a safety hazard. You must always ensure the support system is adequately strong enough to bear the load of your heavy mosaic.
Some artists don’t hang their pieces because they don’t want to risk a falling hazard that can harm people or damage the piece. They commonly use free standing easels made of sturdy wood, low to the floor, and well-balanced to minimize the risk of tipping. Typically, these easels are used in galleries, but some people use them in their homes. Personally, I’d rather see my mosaics on the wall. To me, they look better and make the home feel cozier. Besides, who has room for several free-standing easels throughout the house?
The complexity of the support system depends on several factors, such as the mosaic’s weight, location of the lag bolt with respect to a wall stud, and safety concerns for your children. For example, if you find that the lag bolt location is just to the side of a wall stud, you may not need an elaborate support system like the one we install in the eBook. Instead, a small piece of 2x4 attached to the side of the stud may be sufficient.
What we install in the eBook is probably the most complex support system you’ll ever need for a hanging mosaic, so once you learn that method, you should be able to install any simpler support system that you might dream up. Remember, this is easy! You can do it. The eBook walks you through each step of the process as if I’m right there in your living room with you. Relax! Don’t worry about cutting a big hole in your drywall. You’ll learn how easy it is to measure, cut the drywall, install a 2x4 support system to the existing studs, replace the drywall, patch it, and paint it--like a pro! It’s easy. You can do it. Yes, you can! Let me show you how.
Remember, making mosaic art is easy. You can do it. Yes, you can!
About The Author
Bill Enslen has created glass mosaic art and mosaic tables for 30 years. His new eBook gives you step-by-step details for creating your own mosaic masterpieces. Visit him at http://www.glassmosaictileart.com and read the free sample chapters. Let him show you just how easy it is. With Bill's help, you can do it. Yes, you can! See beautiful stained glass mosaic tabletops at http://www.glassmosaictileart.com/mosaic_table_top_furniture.html
The author invites you to visit:
http://www.rickylila.blogspot.com
by: ricky lila
Making wonderful glass mosaic tile art is easy! Let me show you how.
You’re so anxious to hang your first masterpiece that it seems like the frame store is taking forever finish the frame. Finally, they call to tell you it’s ready for pickup. Wow, they did a great job and the frame makes your mosaic look even better. You can’t wait to hang it on the wall and show it off.
It weighs a ton and you’re nervous wondering whether a 10-penny nail in flimsy drywall can hold all that weight. You wisely decide that the nail must instead go into a wall stud. The last thing you want is your heavy mosaic crashing down, popping off tesserae, breaking the custom frame, and cracking the ceramic floor tile. You find the exact spot for the nail and poke around hoping to find a stud somewhere close to that spot. Oh, no! The nearest stud is six inches to the left. If you install the nail in that stud, the mosaic won’t be centered on the wall and will look terrible. Good grief, now what? Relax. This is easy. In my eBook, we walk step-by-step through the process of adding a solid support system in the wall that’s plenty strong enough to hold your heavy magnum opus. This isn’t rocket science so don’t panic. You can do it. Yes, you can!
If your masterpiece has any size to it, it’s going to be heavy. For example, one of my projects is only 27”x32” but it weighs a whopping 24-pounds. Always be safety conscious. Never create a safety hazard. You must always ensure the support system is adequately strong enough to bear the load of your heavy mosaic.
Some artists don’t hang their pieces because they don’t want to risk a falling hazard that can harm people or damage the piece. They commonly use free standing easels made of sturdy wood, low to the floor, and well-balanced to minimize the risk of tipping. Typically, these easels are used in galleries, but some people use them in their homes. Personally, I’d rather see my mosaics on the wall. To me, they look better and make the home feel cozier. Besides, who has room for several free-standing easels throughout the house?
The complexity of the support system depends on several factors, such as the mosaic’s weight, location of the lag bolt with respect to a wall stud, and safety concerns for your children. For example, if you find that the lag bolt location is just to the side of a wall stud, you may not need an elaborate support system like the one we install in the eBook. Instead, a small piece of 2x4 attached to the side of the stud may be sufficient.
What we install in the eBook is probably the most complex support system you’ll ever need for a hanging mosaic, so once you learn that method, you should be able to install any simpler support system that you might dream up. Remember, this is easy! You can do it. The eBook walks you through each step of the process as if I’m right there in your living room with you. Relax! Don’t worry about cutting a big hole in your drywall. You’ll learn how easy it is to measure, cut the drywall, install a 2x4 support system to the existing studs, replace the drywall, patch it, and paint it--like a pro! It’s easy. You can do it. Yes, you can! Let me show you how.
Remember, making mosaic art is easy. You can do it. Yes, you can!
About The Author
Bill Enslen has created glass mosaic art and mosaic tables for 30 years. His new eBook gives you step-by-step details for creating your own mosaic masterpieces. Visit him at http://www.glassmosaictileart.com and read the free sample chapters. Let him show you just how easy it is. With Bill's help, you can do it. Yes, you can! See beautiful stained glass mosaic tabletops at http://www.glassmosaictileart.com/mosaic_table_top_furniture.html
The author invites you to visit:
http://www.rickylila.blogspot.com
Progettazione e costruzione macchine per la lavorazione del vetro
Design and construction of glass tooling machinery
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Design and construction of glass tooling machinery
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E-mail: info@piborace.it
managemen sistem
SCORM and the Learning Management System (LMS)
by: Ricky Lila
i
What actually is SCORM? SCORM, Shareable Content Object Reference Model, is a standard for web-based e-learning that has been developed to define communication between client-side content and a runtime environment. In the context of this article, the client-side content would be the course launched by a student and the runtime environment would be a Learning Management System. The SCORM standard has undergone several version releases from SCORM v1.0 in 1999 to the SCORM 2004 3rd Edition in 2006. The purpose of this article is to look in a little more detail at the communication flow between the LMS and a course that is SCORM v2.1 compliant. The intention is not to review every possible communication but just the main calls. We will look at SCORM in the context of a SCORM course, i.e. a course that has been developed and built to communicate with a Learning Management System using the SCORM standard.
First of all, let me define a few terms that I will use and that you may hear in reference to SCORM courses:
• API (Application Programming Interface)
The SCORM standard has a defined API. The term API is not unique to SCORM but is a well known term in application development. The SCORM API is a documented set of messages that are sent between the course and the LMS. The message may require a response so that the sender of the message is guaranteed that the message has been received and processed appropriately.
• Manifest
The manifest is the master file for the SCORM course that contains references to all other files that make up the complete content of the course.
• Single SCO
A single SCO is the most basic and most common form of a SCORM course. All files that make up the course, regardless of the number of lessons in the course, are packaged as one SCO unit. When the course is launched within the Learning Management System, it communicates with the SCO.
• Multiple SCO
A multiple SCO is where a group of files within the course can be treated as an individual SCO but packaged together with other SCOs to comprise one course. For example, the files that comprise each lesson of a SCORM course can be grouped together so that each lesson is a SCO in its own right and all the SCOs will comprise the one course.
Course Installation
For the course to be available in the Learning Management System, the SCORM package needs to be installed on the system. The method of installation will vary from LMS to LMS but will typically go through the following steps:
1. The manifest file will be located and interpreted.
2. The course identified in the manifest will be created in the Learning Management System and the course properties will be populated with the values defined in the manifest. These properties may include course name, creator, etc.
3. The lessons of the course will be created in the LMS and the lesson properties will be populated with the values defined in the manifest. Lesson properties would include information such as the path to the lesson file, passing grade, etc.
The Learning Management System should provide a facility to overwrite an already existing SCORM course so that if updates are made to the existing course, an installation will deploy those changes.
Course Communication
Initialization
When the course is launched within its run time environment, which for our purposes is the LMS, it will detect the existence of the API and attempt to make initial communication with the Learning Management System. This is a one-time handshake to ensure that communication has been established. The SCORM course is responsible for locating the API in the child browser session that it has launched in from the parent. The API is typically deployed using JavaScript. The API call that the course uses to do this is the LMSInitialize call. When the Learning Management System receives this API message call from the course, the LMS will initialize and respond to inform the course that communication has been established. An object model has been created in memory and the properties have been initialized to default values.
Intermediary Course Communication
Once the course has been launched and initialized with the LMS, the interaction between the two is determined by the course. It will use LMSGetValue and LMSSetValue API message calls to retrieve or populate data in the object model. Bear in mind that the object model exists in memory and has not been sent to the Learning Management System.
When the course needs to write the data so it exists in the database, it will send the API message LMSCommit. The LMSCommit will be received by the Learning Management System and the data stored to the LMS. The course developer will determine when an LMSCommit is required and it will be sent to the LMS when the event is activated. This could be at the end of each lesson or it could be at the end of the course.
The LMSCommit is an optional message and does not require a response from the Learning Management System.
Finalization
When the course is completed, it will send an LMSFinish API message to the LMS. This may be triggered by an event in the course that activates the LMSFinish or it may be on the Unload event of the HTML page when the user closes the browser. The LMSFinish indicates to the LMS that the user has ended the course and any further communication between the two will be rejected. The LMSFinish also initiates the Learning Management System to store any data that has been populated in the object model and complete the unloading of the course.
The key difference between the LMSCommit and LMSFinish API message calls is that the latter will prevent further communication with the course.
The LMSFinish is a mandatory message and does not require a response from the LMS.
Learning Management System Considerations
When the LMSFinish is received by the LMS, there are several scenarios that may need to be taken into account. Some of these may be the product of errors in course development but are scenarios that have been experienced in interfacing with a SCORM compliant course:
1. The SCORM course may indicate the student has failed a lesson but the score passed from the SCO may be greater than the lesson passing grade that was installed from the manifest.
2. The SCORM course may indicate a lesson status for the user and pass the score of the lesson but there has been no passing grade defined for the lesson.
3. It would be advantageous for the Learning Management System to provide API message logging so that a communication history may be recreated for debugging or historical purposes. Consideration should be given to the following:
a. Method of storage, whether it is stored in a database or out to a file.
b. Is logging on all the time or is there a switch to turn logging on or off? (There will be some overhead when logging is switched on, as opposed to being off.)
c. If logging is to file, is there a log file for each course, each user, or one large SCORM log file?
d. How is log data purged? When logging is stored in the database, how often is the table purged? Can the data be deleted or does it need to be archived? If logging is to a file, does the file build in size until it is manually renewed or does the logging mechanism have a trigger that automatically generates a new file? (If the file is left to grow too big, it becomes very impractical to open it in a text editor.)
Conclusions
SCORM has a proven track record in the web based e-learning world and is the accepted standard in the industry. Reputable LMS vendors should support your SCORM course out of the box. The SCORM 2004 version has added much more control and sequencing at a more granular level than SCORM v1.2 however those differences are significant enough to cause the user base to be slower in adopting the SCORM 2004 version.
About The Author
Stuart Campbell is Director of Software Development for SyberWorks, Inc. (http://www.syberworks.com), a privately-held supplier of e-Learning software and training. A native of the United Kingdom, he had previously served as a Principle Software Engineer, Senior Consultant, Senior Software Engineer, and Development Specialist for companies such as Brooks Automation Inc., Digital Equipment, and Honeywell Control Systems. His areas of expertise include Visual Studio.NET, C#, VB.NET, VB6, VBScript, XML, COBOL, WindowsXP, Windows2000, WindowsNT, VAX/VMS, UNIX, Oracle, SQLServer, Oracle Rdb, Oracle DBMS, and Agile Modeling Methodology.
The SyberWorks Learning Management System/Learning Content Management System
SyberWorks Training Center (STC) is a Web-based Learning Management System (LMS)/Learning Content Management System (LCMS) that provides complete solutions for managing and tracking all types of training at your organization — from e-Learning courses to traditional classroom training and self-paced study programs. The STC includes extensive testing and assessment tools, reporting, management, communication and collaboration tools, and quality control capabilities — all in one integrated database application that is highly scalable to precisely meet your organization’s needs. The SyberWorks Training Center LMS/LCMS can be purchased as an enterprise license or hosted application.
About SyberWorks, Inc.
SyberWorks, Inc. (http://www.syberworks.com) is a leader in the custom e-Learning Solutions and Learning Management System/Learning Content Management System (LMS/LCMS) industries for Fortune 1000 corporations, law enforcement, healthcare, and other industries. Located in Waltham, Massachusetts, the company serves the multi-billion-dollar e-Learning market. Since 1995, SyberWorks has developed and delivered unique and economical solutions to create, manage, measure, and improve e-Learning programs at companies and organizations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and around the world.
The author invites you to visit:
http://www.syberworks.com
by: Ricky Lila
i
What actually is SCORM? SCORM, Shareable Content Object Reference Model, is a standard for web-based e-learning that has been developed to define communication between client-side content and a runtime environment. In the context of this article, the client-side content would be the course launched by a student and the runtime environment would be a Learning Management System. The SCORM standard has undergone several version releases from SCORM v1.0 in 1999 to the SCORM 2004 3rd Edition in 2006. The purpose of this article is to look in a little more detail at the communication flow between the LMS and a course that is SCORM v2.1 compliant. The intention is not to review every possible communication but just the main calls. We will look at SCORM in the context of a SCORM course, i.e. a course that has been developed and built to communicate with a Learning Management System using the SCORM standard.
First of all, let me define a few terms that I will use and that you may hear in reference to SCORM courses:
• API (Application Programming Interface)
The SCORM standard has a defined API. The term API is not unique to SCORM but is a well known term in application development. The SCORM API is a documented set of messages that are sent between the course and the LMS. The message may require a response so that the sender of the message is guaranteed that the message has been received and processed appropriately.
• Manifest
The manifest is the master file for the SCORM course that contains references to all other files that make up the complete content of the course.
• Single SCO
A single SCO is the most basic and most common form of a SCORM course. All files that make up the course, regardless of the number of lessons in the course, are packaged as one SCO unit. When the course is launched within the Learning Management System, it communicates with the SCO.
• Multiple SCO
A multiple SCO is where a group of files within the course can be treated as an individual SCO but packaged together with other SCOs to comprise one course. For example, the files that comprise each lesson of a SCORM course can be grouped together so that each lesson is a SCO in its own right and all the SCOs will comprise the one course.
Course Installation
For the course to be available in the Learning Management System, the SCORM package needs to be installed on the system. The method of installation will vary from LMS to LMS but will typically go through the following steps:
1. The manifest file will be located and interpreted.
2. The course identified in the manifest will be created in the Learning Management System and the course properties will be populated with the values defined in the manifest. These properties may include course name, creator, etc.
3. The lessons of the course will be created in the LMS and the lesson properties will be populated with the values defined in the manifest. Lesson properties would include information such as the path to the lesson file, passing grade, etc.
The Learning Management System should provide a facility to overwrite an already existing SCORM course so that if updates are made to the existing course, an installation will deploy those changes.
Course Communication
Initialization
When the course is launched within its run time environment, which for our purposes is the LMS, it will detect the existence of the API and attempt to make initial communication with the Learning Management System. This is a one-time handshake to ensure that communication has been established. The SCORM course is responsible for locating the API in the child browser session that it has launched in from the parent. The API is typically deployed using JavaScript. The API call that the course uses to do this is the LMSInitialize call. When the Learning Management System receives this API message call from the course, the LMS will initialize and respond to inform the course that communication has been established. An object model has been created in memory and the properties have been initialized to default values.
Intermediary Course Communication
Once the course has been launched and initialized with the LMS, the interaction between the two is determined by the course. It will use LMSGetValue and LMSSetValue API message calls to retrieve or populate data in the object model. Bear in mind that the object model exists in memory and has not been sent to the Learning Management System.
When the course needs to write the data so it exists in the database, it will send the API message LMSCommit. The LMSCommit will be received by the Learning Management System and the data stored to the LMS. The course developer will determine when an LMSCommit is required and it will be sent to the LMS when the event is activated. This could be at the end of each lesson or it could be at the end of the course.
The LMSCommit is an optional message and does not require a response from the Learning Management System.
Finalization
When the course is completed, it will send an LMSFinish API message to the LMS. This may be triggered by an event in the course that activates the LMSFinish or it may be on the Unload event of the HTML page when the user closes the browser. The LMSFinish indicates to the LMS that the user has ended the course and any further communication between the two will be rejected. The LMSFinish also initiates the Learning Management System to store any data that has been populated in the object model and complete the unloading of the course.
The key difference between the LMSCommit and LMSFinish API message calls is that the latter will prevent further communication with the course.
The LMSFinish is a mandatory message and does not require a response from the LMS.
Learning Management System Considerations
When the LMSFinish is received by the LMS, there are several scenarios that may need to be taken into account. Some of these may be the product of errors in course development but are scenarios that have been experienced in interfacing with a SCORM compliant course:
1. The SCORM course may indicate the student has failed a lesson but the score passed from the SCO may be greater than the lesson passing grade that was installed from the manifest.
2. The SCORM course may indicate a lesson status for the user and pass the score of the lesson but there has been no passing grade defined for the lesson.
3. It would be advantageous for the Learning Management System to provide API message logging so that a communication history may be recreated for debugging or historical purposes. Consideration should be given to the following:
a. Method of storage, whether it is stored in a database or out to a file.
b. Is logging on all the time or is there a switch to turn logging on or off? (There will be some overhead when logging is switched on, as opposed to being off.)
c. If logging is to file, is there a log file for each course, each user, or one large SCORM log file?
d. How is log data purged? When logging is stored in the database, how often is the table purged? Can the data be deleted or does it need to be archived? If logging is to a file, does the file build in size until it is manually renewed or does the logging mechanism have a trigger that automatically generates a new file? (If the file is left to grow too big, it becomes very impractical to open it in a text editor.)
Conclusions
SCORM has a proven track record in the web based e-learning world and is the accepted standard in the industry. Reputable LMS vendors should support your SCORM course out of the box. The SCORM 2004 version has added much more control and sequencing at a more granular level than SCORM v1.2 however those differences are significant enough to cause the user base to be slower in adopting the SCORM 2004 version.
About The Author
Stuart Campbell is Director of Software Development for SyberWorks, Inc. (http://www.syberworks.com), a privately-held supplier of e-Learning software and training. A native of the United Kingdom, he had previously served as a Principle Software Engineer, Senior Consultant, Senior Software Engineer, and Development Specialist for companies such as Brooks Automation Inc., Digital Equipment, and Honeywell Control Systems. His areas of expertise include Visual Studio.NET, C#, VB.NET, VB6, VBScript, XML, COBOL, WindowsXP, Windows2000, WindowsNT, VAX/VMS, UNIX, Oracle, SQLServer, Oracle Rdb, Oracle DBMS, and Agile Modeling Methodology.
The SyberWorks Learning Management System/Learning Content Management System
SyberWorks Training Center (STC) is a Web-based Learning Management System (LMS)/Learning Content Management System (LCMS) that provides complete solutions for managing and tracking all types of training at your organization — from e-Learning courses to traditional classroom training and self-paced study programs. The STC includes extensive testing and assessment tools, reporting, management, communication and collaboration tools, and quality control capabilities — all in one integrated database application that is highly scalable to precisely meet your organization’s needs. The SyberWorks Training Center LMS/LCMS can be purchased as an enterprise license or hosted application.
About SyberWorks, Inc.
SyberWorks, Inc. (http://www.syberworks.com) is a leader in the custom e-Learning Solutions and Learning Management System/Learning Content Management System (LMS/LCMS) industries for Fortune 1000 corporations, law enforcement, healthcare, and other industries. Located in Waltham, Massachusetts, the company serves the multi-billion-dollar e-Learning market. Since 1995, SyberWorks has developed and delivered unique and economical solutions to create, manage, measure, and improve e-Learning programs at companies and organizations in the United States, Canada, Europe, and around the world.
The author invites you to visit:
http://www.syberworks.com
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