671 research outputs found
Using History to Study Information Seeking Behavior
has focused on approaches that provide a snapshot in time of what
is going on in a household. This poster explores the use of history
to examine changes over time in both information questions and
information sources used in the prosecution of everyday life
activities in America. The study is based on identifying
endogenous and exogenous forces to the activity at hand, and
seeing how these forces cause change. A secondary question
raised in this poster is the largely unexamined belief that the
Internet has played an exceptional role in changing the nature of
everyday information seeking behavior in America. The case of
100 years of car buying in America is used as a particular
example, drawn from a larger study of nine everyday American
activities
To establish whether there are differences in performance between 757 (Lloyd Maunders) birds and the Maurice Millard 257 those currently used within the Sheepdrove system
Sheepdrove Organic Farm wanted to know whether the performance of the Lloyd Maunders (757) birds would differ from that of their current breed the Maurice Millard (257) and whether chicks sourced from an organic parent flock would perform differently to those from a conventional parent flock.
An experiment was undertaken using two different sources of day old chicks, 1000 day old Maurice Millard (257) and 1000 day old Lloyd Maunders (757). These chicks were then put through the Sheepdrove (SOF) organic production system and 30 random birds were weighed every week until depletion, at 11 weeks
Developing an agro-forestry system for production of a commercial organic chicken flock focusing on profits on a 'Triple bottom Line'
In most modern free-range poultry systems birds do not fully utilise the range provided. Knowledge of the ancestral history of the domestic chicken, and research observations suggests benefits of agro-forestry systems for chickens. A commercial organic poultry agro-forestry system was developed for Sheepdrove Organic Farm, Berkshire, UK, affording the benefi ts of an agro-forestry system, whilst retaining commercial viability. Five avenues of highly diverse parallel hedges incorporating tree, shrub and herb species were planted. On-going monitoring of the system was put in place to evaluate its development and help assess the types of ‘profits’ the system delivers. Conventionally profits tend to be viewed purely in terms of economic gain. However, in an organic farming system more emphasis is placed on the intrinsic and sustainable qualities it has. Organic farming adopts a holistic approach to profit, viewing it in environmental, social and economic terms. The profits afforded by the system are discussed
Faith, science, and the wager for reality: Meillassoux and Ricœur on post-Kantian realism
This article compares two attempts to return to realism after Kant’s ‘Copernican Revolution’. Quentin Meillassoux, representing the ‘speculative realism’ school, rejects both Kantian and post-Kantian idealism in favour of a materialism based on the epistemology of the modern sciences. But Meillassoux is unaware of the element of choice in his philosophical position, and he does not solve the essential problem posed by idealism which concerns the place of the subject in being. Ricœur, on the other hand, sublates Kant by a deeper embrace of finitude that leads to the self-displacement of the subject, and a ‘Second Copernican Revolution’, one that he freely admits can only be arrived at by Jaspersian ‘Philosophical Faith’. The article concludes by showing how crossing the border into theological faith offers a virtue-ethical perspective on the question of realism and idealism: it is in fact the choice between a childlike humility that receives reality as it is, and an arrogant self-positing that puts the subject in the position of God
Organic Cereal Variety and Variety Mixture Trials 1999 - 2003
The aim of this work was to improve the productivity and stability of organic cereal production by identifying cereal varieties and variety mixtures that are best adapted to organic farming systems.
The scientific question and objective was to evaluate the relative performance of cereal mixtures against single varieties in organic systems, in terms of consistency, robustness of yield and quality.
The project has run over four years on six sites chosen to represent a range of soil types, climatic conditions and organic systems. All sites were located in the south and east of England.
A range of cereal species, varieties, variety mixtures and interspecies mixtures were investigated. This range included winter and spring wheat, winter and spring oats, winter and spring barley and triticale.
Winter oats and triticale performed best under organic conditions followed by winter wheat, spring barley and spring oats. Spring wheat performed poorly. Winter oats and triticale also showed the greatest yield stability across the years and sites
Improved Precision and Efficiency of a Modified ORG0020 Dynamic Respiration Test Setup for Compost Stability Assessment
The ORG0020 dynamic respiration test is effective at distinguishing source segregated organic waste derived composts across a wide range of stabilities when compared to other standard tests; however, using the original diaphragm pump and manifold setup, the test is affected by variability in flow rate with time and across sample replicate vessels. Here, we demonstrate the use of a multichannel peristaltic pump to deliver a more consistent air flow to individual vessels. Using finished and unfinished industry compost samples from different sites with varying stabilities, we provide evidence of greater precision of the modified setup compared to the original. Furthermore, the reduced need for air flow adjustment resulted in improved running cost efficiency with less labour demand. Analysis of compost sample oxygen demand supports the current test air flow rate of 25–75 mL min−1, although the improved air flow control will enable future narrowing of the acceptable range for better inter-laboratory performance
Jesus was a refugee: unpacking the theological implications
This article is an in-depth exploration of the divine purpose for Jesus’ refugeehood (recorded in Matthew 2) and its theological implications. Part One finds three reasons for Jesus’ displacement: (1) to recapitulate the displacement in Israel's story, (2) to recapitulate the exile of Adam and Eve, (3) to point forward to the Church's calling to be ‘aliens and strangers’ in the world. From this basis, Part Two draws two contemporary implications: (1) to transform refugees from ‘other’ to ‘same’ in the eyes of Christian citizens, (2) to reassess the notion of a ‘Christian nation’
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