Use of Local Natural Materials in Ceramic Processes

Enduring qualities of texture and colors in pottery objects have come about when naturally-occurring minerals where used

Experiences of involuntary childlessness and treatment in the UK: what has changed in 20 years?

This study examined the financial, emotional and relationship impacts of involuntary childlessness and treatment, and satisfaction with support from professionals. 796 participants in the UK completed an online survey based on a survey conducted in 1997. 55% of participants had to pay for at least part of their treatment. High levels of distress were experienced and 42% experienced suicidal feelings at least occasionally. Those most at risk of suffering distress and suicidal feelings at some point had only experienced unsuccessful treatment outcomes, spent longer trying to conceive and experienced some relationship strains. 75% would like to have counselling if it were free but 45% received counselling and 54% of these had to fund some of it themselves. Thus although advances have been made in the availability of funded treatment and psychological support, involuntary childlessness and treatment continue to have financial, emotional and relationship consequences for many people. While counselling was generally reported to be useful, a whole clinic approach involving all fertility clinic staff in the psychosocial care of clients is advisable

Catch 22? Disclosing assisted conception treatment at work

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore factors influencing decision-making about disclosure of Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) use in the workplace. Design: A qualitative study design was used. Thirty-one women and six men who were using or had recently used ART were recruited from British fertility networks and interviewed. Data were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. Findings: Two main strands were identified each encompassing two themes: i) ‘Concerns about disclosure’ covered the very personal nature of disclosing ART treatment and also career concerns and ii) ‘Motives for disclosure’ covered feeling it was necessary to disclose and also the influence of workplace relationships. Research limitations: The relatively small, self-selected sample of participants was recruited from fertility support networks, and lacked some diversity. Practical implications: Clarity about entitlements to workplace support and formal protection against discrimination, along with management training and awareness raising about ART treatment is needed to help normalise requests for support and to make decisions about disclosure within the workplace easier. Originality/ value: The study has highlighted an understudied area of research in ART populations. The data provide insight into the challenging experiences of individuals combining ART with employment and, in particular, the complexity of decisions about whether or not to disclose

Grade Distributions in the Basic Public Speaking Course: Exploring the Differences and Pedagogical Implications of Faculty Rank

This study examines differences in grade distributions in the introductory public speaking course at two American universities based on instructor rank. A sample of 442 sections with 11,381 students over a 2-year period was collected and analyzed using analysis of variance and chi-square analysis. We found significant differences in grade distributions, with instructors assigning lower grades overall than graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) and adjunct faculty. Instructors assigned significantly more D’s and F’s than tenure/track faculty, adjuncts, and GTAs. Chi-square analysis also revealed instructors and tenure/track faculty assign fewer A’s, but tenure/track faculty assign more B’s than the other faculty groups. The results point to pedagogic implications of maintaining a high number of adjuncts and GTAs in teaching the basic course. Implications of the study are discussed including ways to develop a more inclusive instructional community and culture for adjuncts through course standardization, mentoring, assessment, and technology use

Interim Report on Fatigue Characteristics of a Typical Metal Wing

Constant amplitude fatigue tests of seventy-two P-51D "Mustang" wings are reported. The tests were performed by a vibrational loading system and by an hydraulic loading device for conditions with and without varying amounts of pre-load. The results indicate that: (a) the frequency of occurrence of fatigue at any one location is related to the range of the loads applied, (b) the rate of propagation of visible cracks is more or less constant for a large portion of the life of the specimen, (c) the fatigue strength of the structure is similar to that of notched material having a theoretical stress concentration factor of more than 3.0, (d) the frequency distribution of fatigue life is approximately logarithmic normal, (e) the relative increase in fatigue life for a given pre-load depends on the maximum load of the loading cycle only, while the optimum pre-load value is approximately 85 percent of the ultimate failing load, and (f) that normal design procedure will not permit the determination of local stress levels with sufficient accuracy to determine the fatigue strength of an element of a redundant structure

Cytotoxicity assay automation

The design and construction of a system to automatically test HLP antigens are described. Major efforts were made to test and evaluate the performance of such a system, and compare its performance with nonautomatic tissue typing techniques. The system is based on the fluorochromatic cytotoxicity assay. Results show the system will work but is subject to malfunctions after a few samplings, and poses problems in showing correctly the necessary readings