37 research outputs found
âShared intelligibilityâ and two reflexive strategies as methods of supporting âresponsible decisionsâ in a hermeneutic phenomenological study
Hermeneutic phenomenologists propose that researchers inescapably bring themselves into their research because interpretation must inevitably be influenced by their contexts and pre-understandings. They propose that interpretation is a dynamic and active part of the construction of a textâs meaning, and involvement in this construction process leads to deep empathic understanding of othersâ experience, reappraisal of accepted social and cultural systems, and a level of self-enlightenment. The strengths of the hermeneutic methodological approach have led to its use in a number of disciplines, however, there remains concerns about interpretative validity. It is widely acknowledged that in order to support rigour and validity in hermeneutic studies, researchers are required to develop and integrate strategies within the research process to promote awareness of the interplay between their pre-understandings and interpretation. This paper discusses how episodic interviewing which capitalises on âshared intelligibilityâ, and the reflexive strategies of âoppositional arrangement of perspectivesâ and âbackgroundingâ were used to shed light on data from a study of the experiences and views of nursing home nurses regarding their occupational role and status, and work identity
Structural and Electronic Decoupling of C_(60) from Epitaxial Graphene on SiC
We have investigated the initial stages of growth and the electronic structure of C_(60) molecules on graphene grown epitaxially on SiC(0001) at the single-molecule level using cryogenic ultrahigh vacuum scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. We observe that the first layer of C_(60) molecules self-assembles into a well-ordered, close-packed arrangement on graphene upon molecular deposition at room temperature while exhibiting a subtle C_(60) superlattice. We measure a highest occupied molecular orbitalâlowest unoccupied molecular orbital gap of ~ 3.5 eV for the C_(60) molecules on graphene in submonolayer regime, indicating a significantly smaller amount of charge transfer from the graphene to C_(60) and substrate-induced screening as compared to C_(60) adsorbed on metallic substrates. Our results have important implications for the use of graphene for future device applications that require electronic decoupling between functional molecular adsorbates and substrates
Analysis of Clonal Type-Specific Antibody Reactions in Toxoplasma gondii Seropositive Humans from Germany by Peptide-Microarray
BACKGROUND: Different clonal types of Toxoplasma gondii are thought to be associated with distinct clinical manifestations of infections. Serotyping is a novel technique which may allow to determine the clonal type of T. gondii humans are infected with and to extend typing studies to larger populations which include infected but non-diseased individuals. METHODOLOGY: A peptide-microarray test for T. gondii serotyping was established with 54 previously published synthetic peptides, which mimic clonal type-specific epitopes. The test was applied to human sera (nâ=â174) collected from individuals with an acute T. gondii infection (nâ=â21), a latent T. gondii infection (nâ=â53) and from T. gondii-seropositive forest workers (nâ=â100). FINDINGS: The majority (nâ=â124; 71%) of all T. gondii seropositive human sera showed reactions against synthetic peptides with sequences specific for clonal type II (type II peptides). Type I and type III peptides were recognized by 42% (nâ=â73) or 16% (nâ=â28) of the human sera, respectively, while type II-III, type I-III or type I-II peptides were recognized by 49% (nâ=â85), 36% (nâ=â62) or 14% (nâ=â25) of the sera, respectively. Highest reaction intensities were observed with synthetic peptides mimicking type II-specific epitopes. A proportion of the sera (nâ=â22; 13%) showed no reaction with type-specific peptides. Individuals with acute toxoplasmosis reacted with a statistically significantly higher number of peptides as compared to individuals with latent T. gondii infection or seropositive forest workers. CONCLUSIONS: Type II-specific reactions were overrepresented and higher in intensity in the study population, which was in accord with genotyping studies on T. gondii oocysts previously conducted in the same area. There were also individuals with type I- or type III-specific reactions. Well-characterized reference sera and further specific peptide markers are needed to establish and to perform future serotyping approaches with higher resolution
Korrosionsschutzgerechte Konstruktion Merkblaetter zur Verhuetung von Korrosion durch konstruktive und fertigungstechnische Massnahmen
SIGLETechnische Informationsbibliothek Hannover: AC 6183. / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekDEGerman
Open loop Kelvin probe force microscopy with single and multi-frequency excitation
Conventional Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) relies on
closed loop (CL) bias feedback for the determination of surface
potential (SP). However, SP measured by CL-KPFM has been shown to be
strongly influenced by the choice of measurement parameters due to
non-electrostatic contributions to the input signal of the bias feedback
loop. This often leads to systematic errors of several hundred mV and
can also result in topographical crosstalk. Here, open loop (OL)-KPFM
modes are investigated as a means of obtaining a quantitative, crosstalk
free measurement of the SP of graphene grown on Cu foil, and are
directly contrasted with CL-KPFM. OL-KPFM operation is demonstrated in
both single and multi-frequency excitation regimes, yielding
quantitative SP measurements. The SP difference between single and
multilayer graphene structures using OL-KPFM was found to be 63 ± 11 mV,
consistent with values previously reported by CL-KPFM. Furthermore, the
same relative potential difference between Al2O3-coated graphene and Al2O3-coated
Cu was observed using both CL and OL techniques. We observed an offset
of 55Â mV between absolute SP values obtained by OL and CL techniques,
which is attributed to the influence of non-electrostatic contributions
to the input of the bias feedback used in CL-KPFM.Science Foundation IrelandUCD ResearchProgramme for Research in Third Level Institutions Cycle 5European Regional Development FundAlexander von Humboldt FoundationZurich Instruments13/11/27 R