The covariant Maxwell equations are derived from the continuity equation for the electric charge. This result provides an axiomatic approach to Maxwell's equations in which charge conservation is emphasized as the fundamental axiom underlying these equations.

Each year at Utica College, a tiny pot of money stands as a kind of symbol of where the college hopes to go and how close it sits to the edge. In a $55-million budget, after the college has paid its employees, heating bills, and other expenses, about $150,000 is left over for what the college calls its initiative fund. Todd S. Hutton, the…

School districts' ongoing efforts to promote sustainability in America's education facilities are helping raise awareness of social responsibility and promoting the positive effects that greening their learning environments has on the general health and productivity of students. One institution that's taking the lead in this movement is Chandler…

Higher education institutions must be resilient as they face vastly increased expectations for sustainable environments, global focus, and technological support. Speed of response to these expectations ultimately depends on shared vision, shared agreement, and shared accountability. In this article, the authors challenge all those engaged with…

When the subject of buildings and daylighting arises, most people's thoughts will turn first to windows. To the uninitiated, it seems a simple formula: more windows, more daylight; fewer windows, less daylight. But designers know that effective use of daylighting in a building design involves more than just letting in light to otherwise darkened…

Managers of university endowment funds are paying closer attention to investing in "green" industries, commonly bundled under the umbrella "cleantech." Cleantech offers the possibility of buying in while prices are low "and" making a "green" investment play, but it also harbors the risks inherent in any emerging industry. Cleantech has varying…

The purpose of this mixed methods research study was to examine the environmental sustainability practices used at publicly supported community, junior, and technical college campuses in the eleven states accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools' Commission on Colleges. The Sustainability Assessment Questionnaire was emailed…

This paper reports some findings from an investigation of educational practice in ten (formal and informal) education for sustainability (EfS) initiatives, to characterise exemplary practice in school and community education for sustainability, considered crucial to Australia's future. The study focused on rural/regional Australia, specifically…

Intent on building inquiry-based digital science learning experiences for K-5 students, this research study began with the formation of a tight partnership between state and local educational agencies, higher education, and university scientists and researchers. The primary focus of this partnership was to deliver high-quality, inquiry-based…

This article recommends approaches to take in designing sustainable educational environments. The authors present recent examples of UK school buildings that reduce carbon emissions and capitalise on renewable energy sources, and predict how schools will respond to energy needs in the future. (Contains 1 footnote.)

With this review of campus sustainability efforts in 2010, the editors aim to give readers--those who are often immersed in the day-to-day particulars of sustainability efforts--the same chance to take a step back and take a broader look at where they stand with sustainability in higher education. This inaugural 2010 Campus Sustainability Review…

We study some mechanical problems in which a friction force is acting on a system. Using the fundamental concepts of state, time evolution and energy conservation, we explain how to extend Newtonian mechanics to thermodynamics. We arrive at the two laws of thermodynamics and then apply them to investigate the time evolution and heat transfer of…

The Math-Science-Engineering Technology in Iowa on Applied Renewable Energy Areas (MSETI-AREA) projects are aimed at providing area school teachers with an applied mathematics and science curriculum package based on photovoltaic (PV) power, wind power, human power and hydrogen fuel-cell fundamentals. The MSETI-AREA project has established a…

Deferred maintenance has been one of the great failings of many of the nation's education institutions, and roofs--out of sight, out of mind--are one of the easiest elements of maintenance to neglect. Of course, as many administrators have learned through the years, the cost of putting off routine inspections and preventive maintenance can be…

It can be argued that the environmental behaviors of conservation and natural resources professionals' may well serve as exemplars for the general public to emulate. Understanding the experiences and influences that shape the behaviors of individuals with contextual and empirical knowledge about desirable and beneficial conservation practices can…