In the context of the distinction between normative and descriptive approaches to the relationship between science and religion, this article discusses the recent work of the sociologist Elaine Ecklund. It reviews four of her published outputs, summarising her data concerning the views of religious people and professional scientists, including…

In the years 2015-2018, the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research and the Italian Ministry of Defense proposed the joint initiative "Space for Your Future. The ISS: Innovatio, Scientia, Sapientia" in partnership with the Italian Space Agency. It was a competition addressed to secondary school students and aimed at…

The need for an effective communication between scientific research and society is widely known to the broadest scientific community, and the sad times we are living in make it even clearer. At the same time, the need of establishing long-term structural connections between the worlds of research and that of education and scientific communication…

At the beginning of the 20th century, there were several women in Italy, who gave pedagogy a new impulse. Among those women, two educationalists, Maria Montessori and Giuseppina Pizzigoni introduced new visions of the school by designing strategies that overcame the barriers to education. The first, with the structuring of a method, arose in Rome…

This article describes the principles, applications and performances of methods to measure gas-phase air pollutants that either utilise passive or active sampling with subsequent laboratory analysis or involve automated "in situ" sampling and analysis. It focuses on air pollutants that have adverse impacts on human health (nitrogen…

This paper offers an integrative approach to the increasingly complex puzzle of autistic spectrum disorders. The author demonstrates how the work of one group of neuroscientists in Parma, on a special class of brain cells called "mirror neurons", and the work of researchers at the University of California in San Diego, applying these…

In 2005 the European particle physics masterclasses attracted 3000 students from 18 European countries to visit one of 58 universities and education centres. The participants worked with data from real high energy particle collisions, learned about particle physics, and experienced research and education environments at European universities. In…

Describes an approach to physics education based on the actual practice of physics research. Uses case studies from history, philosophy, and sociology of science and analysis of original papers, scientific debates, and institutional settings to offer a view of physics closer to the actual scientists' activities and in tune with contemporary…

The results of a survey on Italian university and industry cooperation links are presented, focusing on the ideas both sectors have of a science park, of its compatibility with other similar forms, and of its capability to foster cooperation between universities and firms. (Author/MLW)