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The game-based learning approach to developing students' computational thinking (CT) current has received attention from researchers. However, the compatibility between games and instruction is often insufficient to accommodate the entertaining and educational nature of the curriculum entirely, and the benefits of game-based learning could be compromised. Therefore, this study proposed a role-playing-based micro-game strategy for developing students' CT in a Python programming course, and designed a quasi-experiment to verify the effectiveness of the role-playing-based micro-game strategy. A total of 133 eighth-grade students from schools in eastern China were randomly divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group used a role-playing-based micro-game strategy, and the control group used a traditional instructional strategy. The results showed that the experimental group scored significantly higher than the control group on the CT test, especially in the dimensions of computational concepts and computational practices. The learning engagement of the experimental group was significantly higher than that of the control group, and the learning motivation of the experimental group was significantly improved before and after the experiment. In addition, qualitative analysis of the interview data indicated that micro-game strategy on role-playing could promote classroom learning and meet the needs of the course knowledge system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A simple fiber-optic sensor based on Fabry-Perot interference for refractive index measurement of optical glass is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. A broadband light source is coupled into an extrinsic fiber Fabry--Perot cavity formed by the surfaces of a sensing fiber end and the measured sample. The interference signals from the cavity are reflected back into the same fiber. The refractive index of the sample can be obtained by measuring the contrast of the interference fringes. The experimental data meet with the theoretical values very well. The proposed technique is a new method for glass refractive index measurement with a simple, solid, and compact structure. [c] 2010 Optical Society of America OCIS codes: 060.2300, 060.2370, 120.2230, 120.3180, 120.4530, 160.2750.

We present a quasidistributed fiber sensor for simultaneous measurement of liquid concentration and temperature based on Fresnel reflection. Thin-film filters combined with an arrayed waveguide grating are utilized to achieve wavelength-division-multiplexing distributed sensing. By measuring the Fresnel-reflection signals from the sensing heads, each of which consists of two fiber sensing tips, simultaneous measurement of liquid concentration and temperature is obtained. The experimental results reveal that the sensing system can discriminate the concentration and temperature of a NaCl–H2O liquid with high concentration and temperature accuracies of ±0.07 % and ±0.35 °C, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]