title: Electronics and control technology

authors: Forret, Michael

abstract: Until recently, there was no requirement to learn electronics and control technology in the New Zealand school curriculum. Apart from isolated pockets of teaching based on the enthusiasm of individual teachers, there is very little direct learning of electronics in New Zealand primary or secondary schools. The learning of electronics is located in tertiary vocational training programmes. Thus, few school students learn about electronics and few school teachers have experience in teaching it.
Lack of experience with electronics (other than using its products) has contributed to a commonly held view of electronics as out of the control and intellectual grasp of the average person; the domain of the engineer, programmer and enthusiast with his or her special aptitude. This need not be true, but teachers' and parents' lack of experience with electronics is in danger of denying young learners access to the mainstream of modern technology.

text: Electronics and control technology Until recently, there was no requirement to learn electronics and control technology in the New Zealand school curriculum. Apart from isolated pockets of teaching based on the enthusiasm of individual teachers, there is very little direct learning of electronics in New Zealand primary or secondary schools. The learning of electronics is located in tertiary vocational training programmes. Thus, few school students learn about electronics and few school teachers have experience in teaching it.
Lack of experience with electronics (other than using its products) has contributed to a commonly held view of electronics as out of the control and intellectual grasp of the average person; the domain of the engineer, programmer and enthusiast with his or her special aptitude. This need not be true, but teachers' and parents' lack of experience with electronics is in danger of denying young learners access to the mainstream of modern technology.

year: 1997

title: Behavior-based assessment of the auditory abilities of brushtail possums

authors: Osugi, Mizuho

subjects: signal detection

abstract: Brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) were trained to press a right lever when a tone was presented (a tone-on trial) and a left lever when a tone was not presented (a tone-off trial) to gain access to food. During training the tone was set at 80 dB(A), with a frequency of 0.88 kH for 3 possums and of 4 kH for the other 2. Once accuracy was over 90% correct across five consecutive sessions, a test session was conducted where the intensity of the tone was reduced by 8 dB(A) over blocks of 20 trials until accuracy over a block fell below 60%. After each test session, training sessions were reintroduced and continued until accuracy was again over 90%, when another test session was conducted. This process continued until there were at least five test sessions at that tone frequency. The same procedure was then used with frequencies of 0.20, 0.88, 2, 4, 10, 12.5, 15, 20, 30, and 35 kHz. Percentage correct and d9 decreased approximately linearly for all possums as tone intensity reduced. Both sets of lines were shallowest at the higher frequencies and steepest at the lower frequencies. Hit and false alarm rates mirrored each other at high frequencies but were asymmetric at lower frequencies. Equal d9 contours showed that sensitivity increased from 2 to 15 kHz and continued to be high over 20 to 35 kHz. The possums remained sensitive to the 20 to 35 kHz tones even at low intensities. The present study is the first to report the abilities of possum to detect tones over this range of frequencies and its results support the findings of a microelectrode mapping survey of possums’ auditory cortex.

text: Behavior-based assessment of the auditory abilities of brushtail possums Brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) were trained to press a right lever when a tone was presented (a tone-on trial) and a left lever when a tone was not presented (a tone-off trial) to gain access to food. During training the tone was set at 80 dB(A), with a frequency of 0.88 kH for 3 possums and of 4 kH for the other 2. Once accuracy was over 90% correct across five consecutive sessions, a test session was conducted where the intensity of the tone was reduced by 8 dB(A) over blocks of 20 trials until accuracy over a block fell below 60%. After each test session, training sessions were reintroduced and continued until accuracy was again over 90%, when another test session was conducted. This process continued until there were at least five test sessions at that tone frequency. The same procedure was then used with frequencies of 0.20, 0.88, 2, 4, 10, 12.5, 15, 20, 30, and 35 kHz. Percentage correct and d9 decreased approximately linearly for all possums as tone intensity reduced. Both sets of lines were shallowest at the higher frequencies and steepest at the lower frequencies. Hit and false alarm rates mirrored each other at high frequencies but were asymmetric at lower frequencies. Equal d9 contours showed that sensitivity increased from 2 to 15 kHz and continued to be high over 20 to 35 kHz. The possums remained sensitive to the 20 to 35 kHz tones even at low intensities. The present study is the first to report the abilities of possum to detect tones over this range of frequencies and its results support the findings of a microelectrode mapping survey of possums’ auditory cortex.

year: 2011

title: Defining indigenous trade: A working paper incorporating Māori and indigenous perspectives

authors: McLellan, Georgia

abstract: This working paper is part of a New Zealand Government–funded research project titled ‘Tauhokohoko: Enabling mana motuhake through Indigenous trade’ (Tauhokohoko), which was developed by the University of Waikato and Te Rōpū Taumata Charitable Trust (Te Taumata). The paper was prepared by the Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team and sets out a working definition of ‘Indigenous trade’.

The Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team acknowledges that the term ‘Indigenous’ can be problematic, since it collectivises the experiences of all Indigenous peoples. The project acknowledges the diverse realities of Indigenous peoples and strives to use the term in an inclusive way. Despite the existence of fraught relations between Indigenous peoples and postcolonial trade practices, Indigenous peoples have always had their own trade practices and relations grounded in Indigenous ways of being, knowing and doing. Within contemporary economies, Indigenous peoples are increasingly turning to international trade to meet their economic, social and cultural aspirations.

The Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team believes that Indigenous trade, when practiced in the right way, can be used as a tool for enhancing Indigenous self-determination and collective wellbeing. This paper outlines a tentative definition of ‘Indigenous trade’ for research purposes and provides grounded examples of Indigenous trade that fit within that tentative definition. The Tauhokohoko project is concerned primarily with the involvement of Indigenous peoples in international trade as a financial activity; however, the tentative definition encompasses financial, non financial, tangible and non-tangible forms of exchange. The paper ends by outlining the key literature that informs the working definition of ‘Indigenous trade’, including perspectives on the origins of international trade and Indigenous trade, international business and entrepreneurship, and Indigenous economies.

text: Defining indigenous trade: A working paper incorporating Māori and indigenous perspectives This working paper is part of a New Zealand Government–funded research project titled ‘Tauhokohoko: Enabling mana motuhake through Indigenous trade’ (Tauhokohoko), which was developed by the University of Waikato and Te Rōpū Taumata Charitable Trust (Te Taumata). The paper was prepared by the Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team and sets out a working definition of ‘Indigenous trade’.

The Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team acknowledges that the term ‘Indigenous’ can be problematic, since it collectivises the experiences of all Indigenous peoples. The project acknowledges the diverse realities of Indigenous peoples and strives to use the term in an inclusive way. Despite the existence of fraught relations between Indigenous peoples and postcolonial trade practices, Indigenous peoples have always had their own trade practices and relations grounded in Indigenous ways of being, knowing and doing. Within contemporary economies, Indigenous peoples are increasingly turning to international trade to meet their economic, social and cultural aspirations.

The Tauhokohoko Research Aim 1.3 team believes that Indigenous trade, when practiced in the right way, can be used as a tool for enhancing Indigenous self-determination and collective wellbeing. This paper outlines a tentative definition of ‘Indigenous trade’ for research purposes and provides grounded examples of Indigenous trade that fit within that tentative definition. The Tauhokohoko project is concerned primarily with the involvement of Indigenous peoples in international trade as a financial activity; however, the tentative definition encompasses financial, non financial, tangible and non-tangible forms of exchange. The paper ends by outlining the key literature that informs the working definition of ‘Indigenous trade’, including perspectives on the origins of international trade and Indigenous trade, international business and entrepreneurship, and Indigenous economies.

year: 2025-12-10