You and your development: Research managers and administrators

This presentation was given by Dr Lorna Lines, the Head of Staff Development at Brunel University, at the BRAM-NET meeting held on the 19th March 2012. The event was organised by Dr Rosa Scoble and hosted at Brunel University. BRAM-NET (The Brunel Research Administrators & Managers Network) is a forum to share best practice and information on new initiatives between colleagues supporting research in the centre and academic areas at Brunel University

The Concordat: supporting the development of contract research staff

This presentation was given by Dr Lorna Lines, the Head of Staff Development at Brunel University, at the BRAM-NET meeting held on the 4th July 2011. The event was organised by Dr Rosa Scoble and hosted at Brunel University. BRAM-NET (The Brunel Research Administrators & Managers Network) is a forum to share best practice and information on new initiatives between colleagues supporting research in the centre and academic areas at Brunel University

Rapid prototyping and fast user trial of multimedia broadcast and cellular services

This paper presents the results of fast user trial of multimedia services that are enabled when a mobile terminal has access to converged services over digital broadcast and mobile telecommunications networks. It first describes the motivations behind developing this system and describes the service scenarios that benefit most from it. It then provides an overview of the service components of the test case scenario. Finally, it presents the results of fast user trials on end users of the services that were developed. This work was conducted as part of the EU-funded CISMUNDUS project

Sinuosity and the affect grid: A method for adjusting repeated mood scores

Copyright @ 2012 Ammons Scientific. The article can be accessed from the links below.This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Sinuosity is a measure of how much a travelled pathway deviates from a straight line. In this paper, sinuosity is applied to the measurement of mood. The Affect Grid is a mood scale that requires participants to place a mark on a 9 x 9 grid to indicate their current mood. The grid has two dimensions: pleasure-displeasure (horizontal) and arousal-sleepiness (vertical). In studies where repeated measurements are required, some participants may exaggerate their mood shifts due to faulty interpretation of the scale or a feeling of social obligation to the experimenter. A new equation is proposed, based on the sinuosity measure in hydrology, a measure of the meandering of rivers. The equation takes into account an individual's presumed tendency to exaggerate and meander to correct the score and reduce outliers. The usefulness of the equation is demonstrated by applying it to Affect Grid data from another study.This article is made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund

Evaluating health information system projects using analytical and modeling methods

In recent years the value of the use of evaluation methods in all aspects of economic sectors, including the field of health care, has been increasingly recognized. The thrust of this paper is to explore the potential use of a) Cost-Benefit Analysis and b) Simulation and Modeling methods in estimating the value of Health Information System (HIS) projects. These methods were chosen for consideration as the most appropriate, primarily because CBA can measure delivered value of HIS interventions by weighting cost and benefits and identifying what is more socially desirable, while Simulation and Modeling tools can be used to estimate the future value of health care changes concerning HIS. The paper discusses these two families of methods, their evaluation potential is analyzed, and arguments for and against the use of each method are presented. Finally, methodological considerations and limitations are discussed and areas for future research are suggested

Inclusive design for air travel

(Inclusive design in air travel by baird L and Dong H) This paper addresses the issue of inclusive design in air travel. Firstly the scale of the problem is defined with reference to passenger demographics, and the different stages of a typical commercial air travel. The relevant government legislation is described, with particular emphasis on the new EU Regulation that requires special assistance to be provided to any passenger who requests it. An assessment of current practices in the air travel industry indicates that existing guidelines are having little impact on design practice. Similarly, an analysis of the major stakeholders in the air travel industry illustrates that a number of different parties are involved in the design and management of a typical journey. The study identifies the needs to reduce the number of passengers who require special assistance through inclusive design. The future directions, which include empirical work, case studies and the possible development of an information tool aimed at the industry are described

Psychological effects of music tempi during exercise

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of music tempi on intrinsic motivation, flow, and music tempo preference during longduration exercise (~ 26 min). Subjects (n = 29) selected the music of a single artist then walked at 70% of maximum heart rate reserve (maxHRR) on a treadmill under three experimental conditions (medium tempi, fast tempi, and mixed tempi) and a no-music control. A tempo preference item, the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory, and Flow State Scale-2 were completed after each trial. Data were analyzed using a mixed-model (Gender × Condition) ANOVA and MANOVA. The Gender × Condition interaction was nonsignificant in both analyses (p > 0.05). Contrary to expectations, higher preference scores were recorded for medium tempi than for mixed tempi (means: 7.8 ± 1.3 vs. 7.1 ± 1.1). The medium tempi music also yielded the highest levels of intrinsic motivation (p < 0.001). Pairwise comparisons showed that interest-enjoyment was higher for medium tempi when compared to mixed tempi, 95% CI = 1.80–8.48, p = 0.001, and that each of the experimental conditions yielded higher scores than the no-music control. Also, pressure-tension was lower for medium tempi compared to fast tempi, 95% CI = – 3.44–0.19, p = 0.022, and for both medium and mixed tempi compared to control (95% CI = – 5.33–2.89, p = 0.000; 95% CI = – 4.24–0.64, p = 0.004). A main effect was found for global flow (p = 0.000) with the highest mean score evident in the medium tempi condition (14.6 ± 1.5). Follow-up comparisons indicated that the medium tempi condition yielded higher flow scores than the control, 95% CI = 1.25–3.60, p = .000, as did fast tempi, 95% CI = 0.89–3.14, p = 0.000, and mixed tempi, 95% CI = 1.36–3.76, p = 0.000. It was concluded that a medium tempi music program was the most appropriate for an exercise intensity of 70%maxHRR

Electroluminescent light sources via soft lithography

Purpose: Microcontact printing is a process used to print high resolution protein arrays for biosensors. We investigate using these techniques to print electrically conductive fine line structures for electroluminescent (E/L) light sources. Approach: The viability of using microcontact printing as a process for electronics fabrication is investigated. Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) stamps inked with alkanethiol compounds form Self Assembled Monolayers (SAM) on substrate surfaces, acting as the resist to subsequent etching processes. The printed lines are characterized with regard to their performance as high electric field generators in electroluminescent displays. Findings: It has been demonstrated that microcontact printing is a cheap, repeatable process for fabricating electronic devices. The results demonstrate the viability of the process to fabricate electric field generator structures for E/L light sources with reduced driving voltages. Value: It has been demonstrated that microcontact printing can produce electrically conductive fine-line structures with high resolution, confirming its viability in printed electronics manufacture

Horizontal and vertical relations: Interrogating "in/dividualism" among Christian Bidayuhs

This article addresses aspects of the dividual/individualist debate by thinking through an analogous set of ideas and practices among the Bidayuh, an indigenous group of Malaysian Borneo. When Bidayuhs began converting to Christianity in the 1950s, some missionaries contrasted their communal way of life with the “individualism” of the new religion. Drawing on contemporaneous ethnography and my own research, I sketch a more complex picture, showing how both pre-Christian and Christian sociality have been shaped by the shifting intersection of “in/dividual” impulses that derive from the “horizontal” and “vertical” relations in which persons are enmeshed. Tracing the trajectories of these impulses and relations from life to death and beyond, this article attempts to detach questions of in/dividualism from personhood, while arguing for the need to take seriously the variegations and affinities between different strains of Christianity and Western and non-Western socialities.Fieldwork was supported by the William Wyse, Evans, Smuts Memorial, and the Bartle Frere Memorial Funds at the University of Cambridge and a Royal Anthropological Institute Horniman/Sutasoma Award