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Promoting Sustainable Design in Science and Technology Museums
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Evidence suggests numerous negative health impacts stemming from unsustainable lifestyles. While sustainable choices have grown in awareness and recognition, public perception continues to emphasize their upfront costs over long-term benefits. Museums, due to their educational mission, are in a position to enhance the quality of conversation surrounding civic issues, by providing a voice of reason and authority; thus, they may be effective advocates for sustainable lifestyle choices. However, changing human behaviors is a monumental undertaking. Focusing behavioral modification efforts on the next generation of consumers that have the potential to yield cumulative long-lasting effects could provide a more successful outcome. This research explored how exhibition design in science and technology museums can persuade and educate middle-school-aged children on sustainable lifestyles for long-term behavioral change. More specifically, the purpose of the study was to explore how exhibition design can teach and persuade middle-school-aged children to achieve sustainable lifestyles by promoting a sustainable design message, implementing learning and persuasion theories, and employing interactive exhibit types. Data was collected through visual documentation, behavioral mapping, and interviews with museum staff at two science and technology museums. Observations and interviews revealed the use of constructivist learning tactics such as active learning and scaffolding. During the observations, visitors lingered at those exhibits employing features that were haptic and poly-sensorial in nature. Additionally, both museums strive to make personal connections through demonstrations, discussions, hands-on activities, and scavenger hunts in their exhibits. These findings suggest museums should incorporate a more multi-sensory environment to motivate, engage, and educate diverse learning styles through physical stimuli or virtual stimuli. The interviews, behavioral mapping, and visual documentation data offer insight into how museums can convey a sustainable message to engage middle-school-aged children. Recommendations for museum staff and educators are made to serve as guidance for exhibiting sustainable topics and educating middle-school-aged children on how to incorporate sustainable lifestyles in their daily lives for long-lasting change., A Thesis submitted to the Department of Interior Architecture and Design in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science., 2019, October 21, 2019., education, exhibition design, interior design, middle school children, museum, sustainability, Includes bibliographical references., Amy Huber, Professor Co-Directing Thesis; Lisa Waxman, Professor Co-Directing Thesis; Jim Dawkins, Committee Member; Yelena McLane, Committee Member.
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Water And Ion Transport Through The Glass Transition In Polyelectrolyte Complexes
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Polyelectrolyte complexes or coacervates, PECs, represent one of the many families of ion-containing polymers proposed or in use for applications requiring mobile ions, including fuel cells, water purification, and rechargeable batteries. Interest in these materials has focused on how ion transport is coupled to, and limited by, polymer dynamics, which slow considerably below the glass transition, T-g. Unlike many other polymer systems, ion conductivity in hydrated PECs remains high above and below T-g. In this work, we investigate the transport of water and ions within a PEC as the polymer host passes through T-g. We find no evidence of a response in the transport of water and small univalent ions, such as Na+ and Cl-, as the hydrated PEC goes through T-g. In contrast, triple-charged ions ferricyanide and ruthenium hexamine experience a second-order change in transport rate at T-g. This response is interpreted to show that these ions engage enough polyelectrolyte repeat units to experience the highly localized cooperative rearrangement thought to be responsible for the glass transition., temperature, diffusion, hydration, membranes, multilayer films, polymers, relaxation, salt, The publisher's version of record is availible at https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.0c01217
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Wright Family Interview Clip
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Includes discussion of segregation and racism in Mississippi and Chicago, social life in Money, and Willie leaving Mississippi., Footage from Canon Camera focuses on one or more of the interviewees, with interviewer's hands occasionally in frame. Low volume throughout. Video was processed down to 720p for access purposes.
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