Benchmarking EAP written assessment with the CEFR

In the Australian higher education sector, there is often debate about the English language proficiency standards of our international students.This paper presents a brief overview of a nation-wide initiative assessing the language standards of Direct Entry and ELICOS pathway programs. The presentation shares learnings from UECA’s Benchmarking Project involving some 60 assessors from 20 Australian University Centres using the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) to externally validate university partners’ writing assessments and international student work samples. The session will explore the advantages and challenges of using the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) as a tool for benchmarking samples of students’ EAP written work. The session will also provide the opportunity for participants to engage in an exercise of assessing written work sample using the CEFR

Implementing same day discharge following percutaneous coronary intervention: a process evaluation

Background:The safety and effectiveness of same day discharge (SDD) following percutaneous coronary intervention are well demonstrated; however, the uptake of this model of care is low. Purpose:The aim was to examine the effectiveness of implementing SDD using a process evaluation methodology. Methods:This study was undertaken in a cardiac services department of a tertiary teaching hospital in southeast Queensland, Australia. It was anticipated before the implementation that 120 patients could be discharged the same day in a 6 months\u27 time period. Patient selection process and guideline adherence were assessed along with patients\u27 and relatives\u27 satisfaction. Results:During implementation, 22 patients were discharged home the same day. It was found that staff did not follow the guideline consistently, with an overall adherence of 77.3%. Conclusion:The uptake of SDD was low in this implementation. The study is important as it provides direction for future improvement both in the criteria and the implementation process

The impact of rice protein and lipid on \u3cem\u3ein vitro\u3c/em\u3e rice starch digestibility

The influence of rice proteins and lipids on rice starch digestibility is studied in this thesis. An in vitro starch digestibility assay was optimised using rat intestinal acetone powder and blood glucose meter. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS) were used to estimate individual proteins and lipids. Addition of rice albumin, globulin, glutelin, prolamin, triacylglycerol and lysophospholipid to rice flour decreased in vitro starch digestibility. Parboiling altered in vitro starch digestibility, protein extractability, lipid content and amylose-lipid interaction. This study suggests rice proteins and lipids have significant effects on in vitro starch digestibility

Resistance in colonial and communist China, 1950-1963: anatomy of a riot

The history of colonial East Asia is a human anatomy describing beneficial organs of foreign rule. Proclaiming itself a schematic diagram open to inspection, the anatomy of the late British Empire nevertheless obscured much more than it revealed. This analogy in Price’s provocative Cold War history is not presented only as an insight on imperialism but deciphers competing nationalist ideologies, too. The Kuomintang contended vigorously against communist rule in southern China for a decade after the end of the civil war in 1949 and Chinese communists disparaged British colonialism in Hong Kong in a war of words peaking in 1956–1957. These clashes of will did not produce new rulers in either place. They informed a period of Sino-British strategic partnership based on recognition that a capitalist enclave in southern China had its uses. By focusing on the Hong Kong region, Resistance in Colonial and Communist China compares anatomies of the British colonial government, the Chinese communists and stateless members of the remnant Kuomintang (1950–1963). Price asserts that after 1949, the colonial government of Hong Kong politically favoured the Kuomintang organised crime societies over their communist nationalist adversaries despite historiographical explanation that it favoured neither. This book challenges traditional concepts of the British colonial government and its attitude towards communist China. It engages in current debates surrounding Britain’s past by presenting a particularly devious episode of late colonial history

Improving efficiency of piezoelectric based energy harvesting from human motions using double pendulum system

Harvesting electrical energy from various human motions using piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEH) is gaining research attention in recent years. The energy harvested could potentially power hand held electronic devices and medical devices without the need of external power source for recharging batteries. In this study, an attempt is made to improve the efficiency of PEH to harvest energy from human motions by adopting a double pendulum system coupled with magnetic force interactions. For the purpose of comparison, three configurations of PEH which includes the conventional PEH with cantilever beam (PEHCB), the PEH with single pendulum system (PEHSP) and the PEH with double pendulum system (PEHDP) are experimentally studied. Excitations by both mechanical shaker and major human body parts during walking and jogging motions are investigated. The performance of each configuration, in terms of voltage and power produced as well as the idle time between each cycle, are analysed, compared and discussed. ANSYS© software is used to analyse the proposed model and MATLAB© software is used to calculate the output power. The results demonstrate that, with the use of the proposed double pendulum system, multiple impacts in each motion cycle is generated, thus producing higher voltage and power as compared to the conventional PEHCB. The idle time between each motion cycle is also effectively reduced. The efficiency of the PEH is thus significantly increased

Beyond the third moment? Mapping the state of qualitative tourism research

This paper poses a central question: what is the present moment in qualitative tourism research? To answer this, the authors review the state of contemporary qualitative tourism research over the past decade (2007–2017), against current progress in the social sciences. Specifically, a systematic bibliometric analysis of tourism journals was undertaken to determine how tourism scholarship maps against Denzin and Lincoln’s social science ‘moments’. These moments prove useful in heuristically framing the development of qualitative social research and thinking; from early moments characterized by positivist ways of knowing, through to later moments where scholars struggle through and beyond the crisis of representation. Using an adapted moments-based framework, our analysis of 1541 qualitative papers across 51 tourism journals indicates that the majority of papers are emblematic of ‘early moment’ thinking. Despite clear evidence of a crisis of representation in some areas, and an increase in the number of qualitative papers published, there is a lack of ‘later moment’ thinking, methodology and/or approach. The political, social and philosophical constraints and opportunities presented by these findings are discussed

What values do tourists place on a marine protected area? White shark cage-dive tourists and the Neptune Islands

Management of protected areas is as much about understanding how society values these resources as it is about understanding ecological processes. Yet, in comparison to standard ecosystem monitoring and economic evaluation, social values are frequently overlooked because of the challenge to measure and define them. As marine protected areas are currently the fastest growing protected area type, this article argues the need to incorporate social value assessment in planning and policy decisions to improve ecological and social outcomes. This study surveyed 675 white shark (Carcharodon carcharias) cage-dive participants to investigate how tourists’ value the Neptune Islands group (Ron and Valerie Taylor) Marine Park. Applying a value typology previously used in forests, respondents were able to identify with 13 distinct values. Results demonstrate that tourists hold biocentric, indirect use, and nonconsumptive values of the marine park as most important. The relevance of these results as an indicator of tourists’ preference for management decisions is discussed

Preparedness for advancing future health: a national qualitative exploration of dietetics graduates\u27 experiences

Effective health workforce preparation is critical to the health of those who stand to benefit from its services. Emerging dietitians can provide important insights on an evolving workforce that is well-placed to advance future global health. This study aimed to explore a national sample of dietetics graduates\u27 experiences of, and challenges faced in, dietetics workforce preparation and preparedness in Australia. An interpretive description methodology guided this study whereby researchers interpreted the meanings that participants attributed to their experiences. Twenty dietitians (graduated within the last 2 years) were purposively sampled from across Australia and detailed insights were obtained through semi-structured interviews. A multi-analyst approach employing thematic and template analysis, enabled five themes to be identified across the data set. These included: (1) being held back; (2) chasing the prize; (3) valuing real learning; (4) easing the transition; and (5) encountering influencers. While graduates appreciated their preparation, they were not empowered or equipped to embrace opportunities in diverse and emerging areas of dietetics practice. Graduates were challenged by the competitive landscape of securing obvious job opportunities and by a lack of support in transitioning into the workforce. Practice exposures and encounters with influential dietitians were highly valued. Research on role-emerging dietetics placements along with enhanced support mechanisms for novice dietitians is urgently required to ensure appropriate alignment between future dietetics preparation and practice. Obtaining insights into health professional graduates\u27 experiences of their education can be used to ensure that emerging health workforces are relevant and responsive to future market needs

Antimony speciation and mobility during Fe(II)-induced transformation of humic acid-antimony(V)-iron(III) coprecipitates*

Antimony, as the Sb(V) species, often occurs in oxic soils and sediments as coprecipitates with poorly-crystalline Fe(III)-bearing minerals. It is common for these Sb(V)-Fe(III) coprecipitates to also contain varying quantities of co-occurring humic acid (HA). When exposed to reducing conditions, the production of Fe(II) may cause the initial metastable HA-Sb(V)-Fe(III) phases to undergo rapid transformations to more stable phases, thereby potentially influencing the geochemical behavior of coprecipitated Sb(V). However, little is known about the impacts of this transformation on the mobility and speciation of Sb. In this study, we reacted synthetic HA-Sb(V)-Fe(III) coprecipitates (Fe:Sb ratio = 4, and C:Fe molar ratios = 0, 0.3, 0.8 and 1.3) with 0, 1 or 10 mM Fe(II) under O2-free conditions at pH 7.0 for 15 days. Fe K-edge EXAFS spectroscopy revealed that solid-phase Fe(III) in the initial coprecipitates contained a mixture of ∼4/5 ferrihydrite (Fe10O14(OH)2) and ∼1/5 tripuhyite (FeSbO4), regardless of the corresponding amount of coprecipitated HA. Tripuhyite persisted throughout the full experiment duration, while ferrihydrite was partially replaced by goethite (FeOOH) when either 1 or 10 mM Fe(II)aq was added to the coprecipitates. The greatest level of goethite formation (∼55% of solid-phase Fe) was observed in the HA-free/10 mM Fe(II)aq treatment, with ferrihydrite transformation being partially attenuated at higher levels of HA. Mobilisation of aqueous Sb was the greatest for 1 mM Fe(II) treatments at high HA:Fe ratios. Sb K-edge XANES spectroscopy showed that the largest reduction of Sb(V) to Sb(III) (∼37%) and the greatest repartitioning of Sb to the mineral surface (∼7.9–9.8%) occurred in the coprecipitates with the highest HA contents in the presence of 10 mM Fe(II). The results indicate that the amount of HA in HA-Sb(V)-Fe(III) coprecipitates can greatly influence mobility and speciation of Sb in Fe(II)-rich conditions. The results of this study provide new insights into alterations in Sb mobility and retention in response to Fe cycling under organic matter-rich reducing conditions