Patterning

How do we change the system(s) we live in ? By essence a system is an inherently complex web of  relationships. Systems thinking researcher Donella Meadows has given us a map of leverage points to act on a system but there is no practical plan as to where to start effectively to trigger systemic change.

Interestingly around the late seventies, two systems thinkers/practitioners developed practical design frameworks for systems transformation.

The first framework, Permaculture, is an integrated approach to designing agro-ecological systems developed by ecological scientist Bill Mollison. Permaculture focussed initially on developing a resilient “permanent-agriculture” but it was expanded to stand also for "permanent culture," as it was seen that social aspects were integral to a truly sustainable system. Although it is still not widely recognized by either the scientific community or the general public, Permaculture has developed a very powerful set of analytical and design tools for whole systems transformation.

The second framework, Pattern Languages, was developed by architect Christopher Alexander to build human settlements and “living” architectural systems. If Alexander’s Pattern Language focusses on built structures, it also encompasses a social dimension. Although Alexander’s work hasn’t taken off in the architectural field it deeply inspired software programming and a growing number of disciplines.

Both frameworks share a common approach to systems design called patterning.

While design builds structures by assembling elements, patterning can be seen as a branch of design that builds systems by weaving relationships.

In this paper we look at the commonalities and differences between the two approaches, discuss how they could be used by systems thinking practitioners and propose Permaculture Patterning as a new framework for systems design and transformation.

Block copolymers (BCPs) and their directed self-assembly (DSA) has emerged as a realizable complementary tool to aid optical patterning of device elements for future integrated circuit advancements. Methods to enhance BCP etch contrast for DSA application and further potential applications of inorganic nanomaterial features (e.g., semiconductor, dielectric, metal and metal oxide) are examined. Strategies to modify, infiltrate and controllably deposit inorganic materials by utilizing neat self-assembled BCP thin films open a rich design space to fabricate functional features in the nanoscale regime. An understanding and overview on innovative ways for the selective inclusion/infiltration or deposition of inorganic moieties in microphase separated BCP nanopatterns is provided. Early initial inclusion methods in the field and exciting contemporary reports to further augment etch contrast in BCPs for pattern transfer application are described. Specifically, the use of evaporation and sputtering methods, atomic layer deposition, sequential infiltration synthesis, metal-salt inclusion and aqueous metal reduction methodologies forming isolated nanofeatures are highlighted in di-BCP systems. Functionalities and newly reported uses for electronic and non-electronic technologies based on the inherent properties of incorporated inorganic nanostructures using di-BCP templates are highlighted. We outline the potential for extension of incorporation methods to triblock copolymer features for more diverse applications. Challenges and emerging areas of interest for inorganic infiltration of BCPs are also discussed.

Disrupted morphogenesis and growth of the embryonic maxillary jaw leads to oral facial clefting in humans (OFC) and results in an incompletely formed secondary mouth and face. A requirement for Wnt signaling and Wnt9b in particular are postulated in the etiology of OFC from association studies in humans and from animal models. Loss of murine Wnt9b leads to reduced upper jaw (maxillary) outgrowth and OFC, though the signaling architecture leading to this phenotype is poorly understood. Previous murine Wnt9b studies largely overlooked cranial neural crest cell (CNCC) patterning events and instead focused on later events during fusion of facial prominences. Using zebrafish and a morpholino-mediated knockdown approach, we demonstrate functional requirements for Wnt9b signaling during two crucial stages of facial development: 1) CNCC patterning into Dorsal-Intermediate-Ventral (D-I-V) domains; and 2) facial outgrowth during the primary to secondary mouth transition (PM to SM). Zebrafish embryos deficient for Wnt9b (Wnt9b morphants) exhibit an open bite with fused jaw joints as well as a flat face. Open bite and jaw joint fusion in Wnt9b morphants phenocopies characteristics of edn1 pathway is mutant zebrafish with disrupted D-I-V patterning of CNCC. Expression studies show Wnt9b morphants exhibit perturbed expression of edn1 signaling targets including dlx2a, jag1b, and msxe, consistent with disrupted CNCC patterning. Wnt9b morphant upper jaws have stunted outgrowth reminiscent of murine Wnt9b mutants and Wnt9b morphant skulls phenocopy the broad class of foreshortened skull zebrafish mutants known as hammerheads. Wnt9b morphants show upregulated expression of pitx2a after the opening of the primary mouth and disrupted expression of Wnt5b which is consistent with disrupted chondrocyte stacking. Strong upregulation of dorsal mesodermal frzb expression in the prechordal plate of Wnt9b morphants suggests a role for Wnt9b in primary mouth induction or maintenance. Collectively these results argue that Wnt9b has a much earlier developmental requirement. This work draws attention to potential vertebrate homologies that pattern CNCC and facial outgrowth and therefore calls for a reexamination of Wnt9b’s role during mammalian craniofacial development.

Important aspects of human cognition are considered in terms of patterning, a key factor in the development of human cognition and culture, which also represents a shift from focusing on what is present to what is absent. We make use of Deacon's (2012) notion of absentials with which he understands the emergence of life and sentience from abiotic matter. Logan and Tandoc's (2018) assertion that the patterning that underscores human cognition is reexamined in terms of Deacon's absentials. Several important aspects of human cognition are considered that represent a shift from focusing on what is present to what is absent, namely, language as representing the transition from percept to concept-based thinking (Logan 2007), mathematical grouping and patterning of items into sets (Logan & Pruska-Oldenhof 2018) that gave rise to verbal language as well as imaginative thinking so critical for the development of the arts, mathematics and science. The connection between information and absence is also examined in which we claim that information is an absential paralleling an idea of Deacon's. There is more here than stuff. There is how this stuff is organized and related to other stuff-Terrence Deacon The spoken word was the first technology by which man was able to let go of his environment in order to grasp it in a new way-Marshall McLuhan

Children’s engagement with algebraic thinking has traditionally commenced in senior primary or secondary school, preceded by primary school curricula that prioritised computation and understandings of number (Kieran, et al., 2016). Increasingly during the latter decades of the 20th century, educators and researchers identified that such an approach may contribute to insurmountable challenges for some children when they first encounter formal algebra, typically after six to eight years of school. In this paper I present the research underpinning the Early Algebra movement that arose from a motivation to address such challenges, and the implications of Early Algebra for the Irish Primary School Mathematics Curriculum (IPSMC). While the 1999 IPSMC included algebra as a content strand, key concepts of Early Algebra, such as generalisation, and exploration of structure, are absent (Twohill, 2013).

Children’s engagement with algebraic thinking has traditionally commenced in senior primary or secondary school, preceded by primary school curricula that prioritised computation and understandings of number (Kieran, et al., 2016). Increasingly during the latter decades of the 20th century, educators and researchers identified that such an approach may contribute to insurmountable challenges for some children when they first encounter formal algebra, typically after six to eight years of school. In this paper I present the research underpinning the Early Algebra movement that arose from a motivation to address such challenges, and the implications of Early Algebra for the Irish Primary School Mathematics Curriculum (IPSMC). While the 1999 IPSMC included algebra as a content strand, key concepts of Early Algebra, such as generalisation, and exploration of structure, are absent (Twohill, 2013).

Patterns are a fundamental component of mathematics, and the patterning ability of
young children has been well researched; however, this research has largely been
conducted with relatively small cohorts (+/- 70) and in an interventionist way (in
laboratory settings or with researchers directly intervening in educational contexts).
The current study examines the patterning skills of approximately3 200 children in a
naturalistic setting. As part of a larger, early years’ STEM engagement program,
children were provided patterning opportunities across one school term. The data
presented here relates to the children’s performance on the tablet-based activities
embedded in the program. Findings indicate that 3   to 4   year old children were
able to copy, extend, insert missing elements, fix, and create patterns, using a range of
two, three or four elements pattern structures. These findings, from a large-scale
naturalistic setting, confirm some aspects of the existing laboratory-based research,
whilst also indicating that some children are more capable in terms of creating patterns
than the existing research suggests. These findings have implications for educators
when they are planning play-based patterning activities with preschool children.

The formation of coffee-ring deposits upon evaporation of sessile droplets containing mixtures of poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDADMAC) and two different anionic surfactants were studied. This process is driven by the Marangoni stresses resulting from the formation of surface-active polyelectrolyte–surfactant complexes in solution and the salt arising from the release of counterions. The morphologies of the deposits appear to be dependent on the surfactant concentration, independent of their chemical nature, and consist of a peripheral coffee ring composed of PDADMAC and PDADMAC–surfactant complexes, and a secondary region of dendrite-like structures of pure NaCl at the interior of the residue formed at the end of the evaporation. This is compatible with a hydrodynamic flow associated with the Marangoni stress from the apex of the drop to the three-phase contact line for those cases in which the concentration of the complexes dominates the surface tension, whereas it is r...