Models of controversy: reflections on cultural theory and the GM crop debate

In the 1990s social scientists researching public perceptions of GM foods recommended the introduction of new modes of public participation to make decision-making more inclusive. This research utilises categories and concepts from cultural theory (as developed by anthropologists Mary Douglas, Michael Thompson and Steve Rayner, and political scientists Aaron Wildavsky and Richard Ellis) as tools to consider how a range of opinions, illustrated by cultural theory's ideal types, were represented within the GM crop debate. By doing so, it considers whether this approach supports the notion that greater public participation would improve inclusiveness. Furthermore, it considers how best to model the ways that individuals utilised the discourse of cultural theory's ideal types, and whether this has implications for seeking greater inclusiveness. The research is based upon 55 one-to-one interviews that were conducted with various individuals engaged in the GM crop debate in 2000, and secondary sources of data such as media coverage, electronic mailing lists and public meetings between 1996 and 2002. It was determined that the discourses of cultural theory's ideal types were best presented along a continuum, with the hierarchists in the centre and the egalitarians and individualists at either extreme. Within the wider public debate, the media and public reflected the concerns of egalitarians, while government discourse reflected the concerns of hicrarchists. By enabling the public to have a greater say in decision-making,it is asserted that decisions will favour the egalitarian outlook and will ignore the wisdom of cultural theory's other ideal types. Furthermore, since the discourse of those engaged in the debate included all but the most fatalistic comments made by members of the public, it is argued that public participation is unlikely to bring any new voices to the debate. Rather than introducing new modes of public participation,t his research recommends that the government actively consults with individuals already engaged in the GM crop debate on all issues, including those of a more political nature. The aim of such an exercise would be to identify, communicate and consider the full range of opinions available so that decisions can become more fully informed, transparent and trusted

The Open University Advanced Diploma in Educational Management (DO2): A Study of the Effectiveness of the Course in Preparing Senior Managers in Schools for their Role in the 1990s

The study investigates the motivation of a small group of students from the Greater London area in undertaking the Open University Advanced Diploma in Educational Management. Four questions are posed: a. Why some middle and senior managers in schools chose this course at a time when the demands made of senior managers were increasing. b. Why they persevered with the course in a contracting market for promotion. c. How successful the course was in preparing them for promotion. d. Whether, and is so how, the course had improved their effectiveness as senior managers. The research was conducted over a period of intense educational change, both locally and nationally, as the Education Reform Act (1988) heralded unprecedented changes in the nature of senior management and in the relationships between schools, parents, local and central government, in its quest to raise standards and increase accountability. Whilst the initial focus of the study was on the career development of individuals, the evolving political context was to redirect attention towards the role of senior staff in managing these changes and enhancing the quality of learning. The value of the Advanced Diploma emerged to be its effectiveness in preparing senior managers for this role, enabling them to cope with the stresses of an ever-changing situation, and developing vital analytical and communicative skills. Students are found to be motivated by a sense of professionalism. They choose distance learning as a means of acquiring new skills and knowledge which hold the promise of meeting their immediate, higher order, needs for self-actualisation, as well as offering the longer-term possibility of career development. Whilst most students do achieve promoted positions during or after their studies, this is not their prime expectation, and their success cannot be attributed definitively to the course. The value of the Advanced Diploma lies primarily in promoting a sense of achievement and recognition. This is found to sustain students when career aspirations are blocked by institutional or personal circumstances, and when they might otherwise fall into a state of professional stagnation. By developing more effective individuals, the Advanced Diploma thus achieves the Open University's aims of improving the quality of school management, yet simultaneously satisfying students. The compatibility of meeting personal and individual needs is thereby demonstrated. Recommendations are made which recognise the value of distance learning and its ability to appeal to teachers' professionalism without any need to resort to more formal means of accountability or inducement to undertake training for the changig role of senior managers in schools

An Energy-Efficient and Reliable Data Transmission Scheme for Transmitter-based Energy Harvesting Networks

Energy harvesting technology has been studied to overcome a limited power resource problem for a sensor network. This paper proposes a new data transmission period control and reliable data transmission algorithm for energy harvesting based sensor networks. Although previous studies proposed a communication protocol for energy harvesting based sensor networks, it still needs additional discussion. Proposed algorithm control a data transmission period and the number of data transmission dynamically based on environment information. Through this, energy consumption is reduced and transmission reliability is improved. The simulation result shows that the proposed algorithm is more efficient when compared with previous energy harvesting based communication standard, Enocean in terms of transmission success rate and residual energy.This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation by Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology(2012R1A1A3012227)

Fourth Annual Workshop on Space Operations Applications and Research (SOAR 90)

The proceedings of the SOAR workshop are presented. The technical areas included are as follows: Automation and Robotics; Environmental Interactions; Human Factors; Intelligent Systems; and Life Sciences. NASA and Air Force programmatic overviews and panel sessions were also held in each technical area

Factors Influencing Customer Satisfaction towards E-shopping in Malaysia

Online shopping or e-shopping has changed the world of business and quite a few people have decided to work with these features. What their primary concerns precisely and the responses from the globalisation are the competency of incorporation while doing their businesses. E-shopping has also increased substantially in Malaysia in recent years. The rapid increase in the e-commerce industry in Malaysia has created the demand to emphasize on how to increase customer satisfaction while operating in the e-retailing environment. It is very important that customers are satisfied with the website, or else, they would not return. Therefore, a crucial fact to look into is that companies must ensure that their customers are satisfied with their purchases that are really essential from the ecommerce’s point of view. With is in mind, this study aimed at investigating customer satisfaction towards e-shopping in Malaysia. A total of 400 questionnaires were distributed among students randomly selected from various public and private universities located within Klang valley area. Total 369 questionnaires were returned, out of which 341 questionnaires were found usable for further analysis. Finally, SEM was employed to test the hypotheses. This study found that customer satisfaction towards e-shopping in Malaysia is to a great extent influenced by ease of use, trust, design of the website, online security and e-service quality. Finally, recommendations and future study direction is provided. Keywords: E-shopping, Customer satisfaction, Trust, Online security, E-service quality, Malaysia

Preclinical MRI of the Kidney

This Open Access volume provides readers with an open access protocol collection and wide-ranging recommendations for preclinical renal MRI used in translational research. The chapters in this book are interdisciplinary in nature and bridge the gaps between physics, physiology, and medicine. They are designed to enhance training in renal MRI sciences and improve the reproducibility of renal imaging research. Chapters provide guidance for exploring, using and developing small animal renal MRI in your laboratory as a unique tool for advanced in vivo phenotyping, diagnostic imaging, and research into potential new therapies. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Cutting-edge and thorough, Preclinical MRI of the Kidney: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource and will be of importance to anyone interested in the preclinical aspect of renal and cardiorenal diseases in the fields of physiology, nephrology, radiology, and cardiology. This publication is based upon work from COST Action PARENCHIMA, supported by European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST). COST (www.cost.eu) is a funding agency for research and innovation networks. COST Actions help connect research initiatives across Europe and enable scientists to grow their ideas by sharing them with their peers. This boosts their research, career and innovation. PARENCHIMA (renalmri.org) is a community-driven Action in the COST program of the European Union, which unites more than 200 experts in renal MRI from 30 countries with the aim to improve the reproducibility and standardization of renal MRI biomarkers

Advances in Information Security and Privacy

With the recent pandemic emergency, many people are spending their days in smart working and have increased their use of digital resources for both work and entertainment. The result is that the amount of digital information handled online is dramatically increased, and we can observe a significant increase in the number of attacks, breaches, and hacks. This Special Issue aims to establish the state of the art in protecting information by mitigating information risks. This objective is reached by presenting both surveys on specific topics and original approaches and solutions to specific problems. In total, 16 papers have been published in this Special Issue

Gender, human rights and activisms: proceedings of the Fifth International Congress in Cultural Studies

ISBN 978-­989­-99682-­0­-2It is becoming increasingly necessary in contemporary societies to build bridges between activism and academia in both theory and practice regarding gender inequality. From femicide to transphobia, from equal marriage to the adoption of children by same-sex couples and assisted reproduction, the recognition of gender identity of transgender people, the right to pleasure and free expression of affection, gender issues multiply , intersect and, of course, overlap, but without losing their specificities

Trust and transparency in an age of surveillance

Investigating the theoretical and empirical relationships between transparency and trust in the context of surveillance, this volume argues that neither transparency nor trust provides a simple and self-evident path for mitigating the negative political and social consequences of state surveillance practices. Dominant in both the scholarly literature and public debate is the conviction that transparency can promote better-informed decisions, provide greater oversight, and restore trust damaged by the secrecy of surveillance. The contributions to this volume challenge this conventional wisdom by considering how relations of trust and policies of transparency are modulated by underlying power asymmetries, sociohistorical legacies, economic structures, and institutional constraints. They study trust and transparency as embedded in specific sociopolitical contexts to show how, under certain conditions, transparency can become a tool of social control that erodes trust, while mistrust - rather than trust - can sometimes offer the most promising approach to safeguarding rights and freedom in an age of surveillance. The first book addressing the interrelationship of trust, transparency, and surveillance practices, this volume will be of interest to scholars and students of surveillance studies as well as appeal to an interdisciplinary audience given the contributions from political science, sociology, philosophy, law, and civil society