Signalling in voice over IP Networks

Voice signalling protocols have evolved, keeping with the prevalent move from circuit to packet switched networks. Standardization bodies have provided solutions for carrying voice traffic over packet networks while the main manufacturers are already providing products in workgroup, enterprise, or operator portfolio. This trend will accrue in next years due to the evolution of UMTS mobile networks to an “all-IP” environment. In this paper we present the various architectures that are proposed for signalling in VoIP, mainly: H.323, SIP and MGCP. We also include a brief summary about signalling in classical telephone networks and, at the end, we give some ideas about the proposed “all-IP” architectures in UMTS 3G mobile networks.Publicad

How do we increase public understanding of the benefits provided by SUDS?

Background to researchRecent Scottish Government policy is to develop Scotland as the world’s first Hydro Nation which places more emphasis on water as central to our national identity. This agenda isincreasing the international profile of Scotland’s skills and experience in supporting the good stewardship of water resources. There is a need to increase awareness among thepublic of the benefits that water provides and how our actions can help protect and improve them. Successful legislative and policy reform have been responsible for sustainable urbandrainage systems (SUDS) becoming commonplace in Scotland. There is a deficit of understanding surrounding the multiple benefits which SUDS can offer communities such as pollutioncontrol, flood prevention, enhancement of biodiversity and wildlife habitats. Conveying an understanding of benefits to those who live within close proximity to SUDS can help lendacceptance to these innovative green technologies that are replacing traditional forms of drainage.Objectives of researchKey CREW objectives are to develop a hydro literacy programme that:(a) increases public understanding of the benefits water provides and issues involved in its management(b) increase science engagement through community outreach/public education(c) support Scottish water policy.This project was a public outreach activity that targeted primary and secondary school children located to the north of Dundee where there are excellent examples of SUDS. The key objective was to raise awareness of the Hydro Nation agenda with a scope that was twofold: explain the urban water cycle; and promote awareness and understanding of the local SUDS and related benefits. To realise these objectives we had to ensure alignment of the science, environmental, engineering and social aspects related to SUDS with the curriculum forexcellence and which contributed to general science experiences and outcomes.Key findings and recommendationsDissemination of the Hydro Nation Agenda and the benefits of SUDS were delivered to a total of 106 children (ages 3-10) and 14 adults. Based on feedback, the outreach programmeto schools was deemed an unquestionable success by the Local Authority, teachers and school children alike. This was due to a strategic approach taken for the development anddelivery of a ‘water and SUDS’ learning package that included a variety of mechanisms and activities to fit the time available and suit the knowledge level of the target audiences. Thisfacilitated engagement, enthusiasm, knowledge retention and empowerment – learning whilst also having fun. Evaluation of feedback, and with hindsight, recommendations for improvingfuture outreach initiatives to school children and local community groups include:• Timing is crucial to ensure alignment with the curriculum, particularly secondary schools.• Hands on sessions including experiments and digital technology related to local real world issues combined with local walks were powerful strategies that provided a direct and personal connection that engaged, promoted and embedded learning concepts and new terminology.• Future roll out of the initiative would be beneficial to integrate the SUDS learning package materials with current lesson plans; specifically delivery of a practical legacy teaching asset that could be up scaled/rolled out across Scotland.• The Community Group session was put together quickly with limited time. This was beneficial for the Group regarding imminent dialogue with Dundee City Council planners however a more organised session and discussion would have enhanced understanding of current best practice SUDS.<br/

From care to uni : looked after children and care leavers in higher education in scotland

The research briefing is presented in the context of Scottish government policy in relation to widening access to higher education, in particular for students from a looked after background. The briefing reports findings from a review of the outcome agreements made between the Scottish Funding Council and Scotland's 19 HEIs in respect of statements about widening access to students from a looked after background. It also reports the findings of requests for information from HEIs made under FOI procedures about applications from students from a looked after background, offers made and enrolments. The conclusions include these: institutional outcome agreements in 2012-13 mostly appear to lack detail, and are arguably limited in ambition; Despite the existence of the UCAS voluntary declaration, not all HEIs have used this to collect data

Affective iconic words benefit from additional sound–meaning integration in the left amygdala

Recent studies have shown that a similarity between sound and meaning of a word (i.e., iconicity) can help more readily access the meaning of that word, but the neural mechanisms underlying this beneficial role of iconicity in semantic processing remain largely unknown. In an fMRI study, we focused on the affective domain and examined whether affective iconic words (e.g., high arousal in both sound and meaning) activate additional brain regions that integrate emotional information from different domains (i.e., sound and meaning). In line with our hypothesis, affective iconic words, compared to their non‐iconic counterparts, elicited additional BOLD responses in the left amygdala known for its role in multimodal representation of emotions. Functional connectivity analyses revealed that the observed amygdalar activity was modulated by an interaction of iconic condition and activations in two hubs representative for processing sound (left superior temporal gyrus) and meaning (left inferior frontal gyrus) of words. These results provide a neural explanation for the facilitative role of iconicity in language processing and indicate that language users are sensitive to the interaction between sound and meaning aspect of words, suggesting the existence of iconicity as a general property of human language

Living with MND: An Evaluation of Care Pathways Available to Adults with, and the Families or Carers of Adults with Motor Neurone Disease in Scotland

Main Findings Motor Neurone Disease (MND) is a progressive condition that damages motor neurones, the cells that control voluntary muscle activity, in both the spinal cord and the brain. It can cause difficulty in walking and movement, talking, swallowing and breathing and many muscles in the body can become affected. To find out what it is like to live with MND from the perspective of those with the condition we carried out a longitudinal study in which we interviewed 40 people with MND and their partners a number of times over a two year period. We found that: Control, or more particularly the lack of it was the overarching theme that occurred throughout the interviews. People wanted to be consulted, informed and involved in decisions about their health and their social care and where this happened people were more likely to report satisfaction with the service. The diagnosis of MND is a long and protracted process, one that was for many a very distressing experience. 45% of those we spoke to took over 12 months for a diagnosis, 19% over 18 months. Participants had difficulty getting professionals to take their symptoms seriously and once they entered the neurology system many people experienced delays and often the diagnosis was not confirmed by a neurologist. Physical access to hospitals was in some cases difficult. Car parking and the location of the clinic often made it hard for people to get to a hospital appointment. Health professionals had an important role. Good professionals were those who took time to create a sense of teamwork with the person with MND and their family. This was less likely to happen with hospital consultants and where this did not people felt insecure and not listened to. There was also some evidence of poor communication between professionals and medical notes were often not shared between different professionals. Where people accessed general wards they were rarely treated well. Informal carers provided much of the social care and support for those with MND, with spouses meeting most of the need. Whilst many people were happy with this arrangement meeting the need placed a great deal of strain on the families. Many people did not want to rely on care supplied by outside agencies as they did not trust the quality or the reliability of the care and neither did they want their home overrun with people. Housing adaptations and the provision of aids to daily living were for many a great cause of stress and strain and many people felt that they were not involved in the decision making process, felt out of control and unable to influence the situation. The rapidly progressive nature of MND can exacerbate this problem. Social Care and support provided by local authorities was very heavily criticised. There were inconsistencies between services, people felt excluded from decisions made about their care and their care needs and people did not have access to the necessary information to make an informed choice about which services to access. Specialist Care Nurses (SCN) played a vital role in the care and support of those with MND. Not only do they provide help and support directly they also help to act as a champion for the family and coordinate services and service provision. This service is however under great strain and there are a significant number of people for whom this service is not working because the service was too stretched and the resources were not available to allow the SCN to meet their needs

Measuring trade in value added in the new industrial economy: statistical implications

Vertical integration of production processes at international level and the resulting fragmentation of the value chains increasingly question the relevance of traditional trade indicators. Intermediate productions are increasingly offshored within these global value chains, giving place to what is known as "trade in tasks". The paper presents some experiences of alternative measures of international trade in terms of the value added generated by this process. The strength with which the concept of value added has imposed itself as the yardstick for the measurement of international trade has very fruitful analytical implications in the context of national accounts. A second part shows how the international statistical system has responded to the obvious risk of obsolescence by launching a series of joint initiatives in order to adapt all the instruments of the statistician’s “tool-box”: classifications, balance of payments and national accounts manuals. Conclusions highlight the remaining challenges, as well as the divergences that persist among the groups of experts in relation to the proposed reforms and their normative and practical impacts.vertical integration; trade in tasks; national accounts

Global leadership for nutrition: the UN's Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN) and its contributions

The UN’s Standing Committee on Nutrition (SCN) has been functioning for more than 30 years. The SCN fulfils many different functions according to those who work within its structure, there having been many formal efforts to define what it does. But since its inauguration in April 1977, taking over from the UN’s Protein Advisory Group, it has provided a forum for debate, sharing of experiences and reaching of consensus on how to reduce undernutrition and other damaging nutrition problems. The SCN is a ‘big tent’ comprising UN agencies, governments, academia and civil society, exchanging information, networking and informal harmonisation of activities. It has provided a valuable series of publications in the work areas of its constituents, as well as the authoritative Reports on the World Nutrition Situation, and its continuing publications of SCN News and Nutrition in Crisis Situation Reports. It has provided a scientific forum to resolve some of the more contentious nutrition issues. Over its 30 plus years of activities, the SCN has sometimes been a contentious body. But nutrition and the actions needed to resolve its problems require a broad range of activities and actions, across different disciplines and types of actors. The main constituents have strongly held and often divergent views. This history records the ups and downs of the SCN and shows where it has been able to proceed with consensus and where it has not. The history also provides an inventory of SCN activities and timeline, its publications and public events. Although the importance of nutrition in development has not been given the prominence it deserves, there is considerable current interest, and it is hoped that this history will help constructively in this current examination of the international nutrition landscape. Keywords: UN agencies; nutrition; policy coordination; bilateral donors; NGOs; reporting of research and field experiences

Advancing Communities of Learning: A Collaborative Project between Local Universities, Funding Agencies, and Nonprofits to Develop a Subsidized Senior-Transportation Plan

The growing population of seniors in the United States poses both interesting and challenging transportation policy issues that demand research on alternatives to current transportation systems. This study was motivated by a local foundation’s interest in senior quality-of-life issues in the communities served. The aim of this study was to assess senior transportation needs and systems as a means to move policy makers and funders closer to providing high-quality senior transportation services. The localized nature of senior transportation needs is best examined as a case study. In this article, one mid-sized Indiana community is examined using focus group interviews and individual surveys of senior citizens. In addition, a survey of the literature on senior-transportation models provided critical information relevant to formulating best-practice recommendations for community-level senior-transportation systems. To design effective senior-transportation systems, five critical factors are evaluated. Finally, the article presents a case study highlighting the importance of multisector collaboration in addressing the challenges and opportunities associated with critical senior-transportation issues in upcoming decades