567 research outputs found
Veterinary practitionersâ selection of diagnostic tests for the primary evaluation of colic in the horse
The aim of this study was to survey veterinary practitionersâ selection of diagnostic tests for horses with clinical signs of abdominal pain. A questionnaire was distributed to veterinary surgeons involved in the primary evaluation of horses with abdominal pain, including the respondent's demographics, selection of diagnostic tests and factors affecting decision-making. Data analysis included descriptive analysis, categorisation of free text and simple univariable correlations to explore the relationships between independent variables and the relative self-estimated frequency that diagnostic tests were performed. A total of 228 responses were analysed. Participants worked in mixed practice (55.7 per cent), first opinion equine (22.8 per cent), first and second opinion equine (17.9 per cent) and referral practice (3.1 per cent). The majority (48.2 per cent, 105/218) were very confident managing a colic case (confidence level 4/5). The most frequently used diagnostic tests were âresponse to analgesiaâ (87.2±24.0 per cent cases), rectal examination (75.9±21.2 per cent) and nasogastric intubation (43.8±27.6 per cent). Approach varied between practitioners, and for all diagnostic tests with frequency of use ranging from 0 to 100 per cent of cases. âRisk to personal safetyâ was the most common reason for not using rectal examination. Practitioner's opinion of their confidence level in managing a colic case was associated with how frequently they used different diagnostic tests. There was marked variation in practitionersâ approaches, highlighting the need for further evidence to support decision-making
Indigenous participation in intercultural education:learning from Mexico and Tanzania
Intercultural education seeks to create a forum for integrating Western scientific knowledge and indigenous knowledge to address local and global challenges such as biocultural diversity conservation, natural resource management, and social justice for indigenous peoples. Intercultural education is based on learning together with, rather than learning about or from, indigenous communities. In the best examples, problem-based learning dissolves the dichotomy between indigenous and nonindigenous, resulting in full partnerships in which participants share expertise to meet mutual needs. With reference to literature and two illustrative examples of intercultural education initiatives in Mexico and Tanzania, we present an original conceptual framework for assessing indigenous participation in intercultural education. This incorporates a new ladder of participation depth (in relation to both curriculum content and decision making) alongside separate considerations of breadth, i.e., stakeholder diversity, and scope, i.e., the number of key project stages in which certain stakeholder groups are participating. The framework can be used to compare intercultural education initiatives in differing contexts and might be adaptable to other intercultural work
Task analysis for error identification: Theory, method and validation
This paper presents the underlying theory of Task Analysis for Error Identification. The aim is to illustrate the development of a method that has been proposed for the evaluation of prototypical designs from the perspective of predicting human error. The paper presents the method applied to representative examples. The methodology is considered in terms of the various validation studies that have been conducted, and is discussed in the light of a specific case study
Victim-offender mediation and social work: focus groups with mediators in Flanders
The role of social work in the restorative justice field remains largely unexplored. This article reports on the findings of focus groups conducted with mediators of juvenile and adult mediation practices in Flanders (Belgium) to gain more insight into how mediators perceive their professional role and to what extent they refer to individual and structural dimensions of social work practice. Implications for future social work involvement and research are made
Enlarging conference learning : at the crossroads of fat studies and conference pedagogies
This article stages an encounter between the field of fat studies and conference pedagogy scholarship. After laying the foundations for a reading of academic conferences as learning spaces, the authors present two examplesâInternational Fat Studies Conferences held in Aotearoa, New Zealand, in 2012 and 2016âto unpack these ideas. The framing of fat studies conferences as pedagogical spaces sparks questions that travel in multiple directions. It calls us to consider possible modifications to the design of fat studies conferences, as well as how discussions about fat pedagogy may have a wider application to academic gatherings
Potential Models for Radiative Rare B Decays
We compute the branching ratios for the radiative rare decays of B into
K-Meson states and compare them to the experimentally determined branching
ratio for inclusive decay b -> s gamma using non relativistic quark model, and
form factor definitions consistent with HQET covariant trace formalism. Such
calculations necessarily involve a potential model. In order to test the
sensitivity of calculations to potential models we have used three different
potentials, namely linear potential, screening confining potential and heavy
quark potential as it stands in QCD.We find the branching ratios relative to
the inclusive b ->s gamma decay to be (16.07\pm 5.2)% for B -> K^* (892)gamma
and (7.25\pm 3.2)% for B -> K_2^* (1430)gamma for linear potential. In the case
of the screening confining potential these values are (19.75\pm 5.3)% and
(4.74\pm 1.2)% while those for the heavy quark potential are (11.18\pm 4.6)%
and (5.09\pm 2.7)% respectively. All these values are consistent with the
corresponding present CLEO experimental values: (16.25\pm 1.21)% and (5.93\pm
0.46)%.Comment: RevTeX, 6 pages, 1 eps figur
Gauge Theories on a 2+2 Anisotropic Lattice
The implementation of gauge theories on a four-dimensional anisotropic
lattice with two distinct lattice spacings is discussed, with special attention
to the case where two axes are finely and two axes are coarsely discretized.
Feynman rules for the Wilson gauge action are derived and the renormalizability
of the theory and the recovery of the continuum limit are analyzed. The
calculation of the gluon propagator and the restoration of Lorentz invariance
in on-shell states is presented to one-loop order in lattice perturbation
theory for on both 2+2 and 3+1 lattices.Comment: 27 pages, uses feynmf. Font compatibility adjuste
Medical graduatesâ preparedness to practice: A comparison of undergraduate medical school training
Background: There is evidence that newly qualified doctors do not feel prepared to start work. This study examined views of first year Foundation doctors (F1s) regarding how prepared they felt by their undergraduate medical education for skills required during the first Foundation training year in relation to their type of training. Method: One-hundred and eighty two F1s completed a questionnaire during their first rotation of Foundation training. Analysis was conducted by type of medical school training: Problem-Based Learning (PBL), Traditional or Reformed. Results: F1s from medical schools with a PBL curriculum felt better prepared for tasks associated with communication and team working, and paperwork than graduates from the other medical school types; but the majority of F1s from all three groups felt well prepared for most areas of practice. Less than half of graduates in all three groups felt well prepared to deal with a patient with neurological/visual problems; write referral letters; understand drug interactions; manage pain; and cope with uncertainty. F1s also indicated that lack of induction or support on starting work was affecting their ability to work in some areas. Conclusions: Whilst F1s from medical schools with a PBL curriculum did feel better prepared in multiple areas compared to graduates from the other medical school types, specific areas of unpreparedness related to undergraduate and postgraduate medical training were identified across all F1s. These areas need attention to ensure F1s are optimally prepared for starting work
Passerine Birds Breeding under Chronic Noise Experience Reduced Fitness
Background
Fitness in birds has been shown to be negatively associated with anthropogenic noise, but the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. It is however crucial to understand the mechanisms of how urban noise impinges on fitness to obtain a better understanding of the role of chronic noise in urban ecology. Here, we examine three hypotheses on how noise might reduce reproductive output in passerine birds: (H1) by impairing mate choice, (H2) by reducing territory quality and (H3) by impeding chick development.
Methodology/Principal Findings
We used long-term data from an island population of house sparrows, Passer domesticus, in which we can precisely estimate fitness. We found that nests in an area affected by the noise from large generators produced fewer young, of lower body mass, and fewer recruits, even when we corrected statistically for parental genetic quality using a cross-fostering set-up, supporting H3. Also, individual females provided their young with food less often when they bred in the noisy area compared to breeding attempts by the same females elsewhere. Furthermore, we show that females reacted flexibly to increased noise levels by adjusting their provisioning rate in the short term, which suggests that noise may be a causal factor that reduces reproductive output. We rejected H1 and H2 because nestbox occupancy, parental body mass, age and reproductive investment did not differ significantly between noisy and quiet areas.
Conclusions/Significance
Our results suggest a previously undescribed mechanism to explain how environmental noise can reduce fitness in passerine birds: by acoustically masking parentâoffspring communication. More importantly, using a cross-fostering set-up, our results demonstrate that birds breeding in a noisy environment experience significant fitness costs. Chronic noise is omnipresent around human habitation and may produces similar fitness consequences in a wide range of urban bird species
QCD Sum Rule Analysis of the Decays and
We use QCD sum rules to calculate the hadronic matrix elements governing the
rare decays and induced by
the flavour changing neutral current transition. We also study
relations among semileptonic and rare decay form factors. The
analysis of the invariant mass distribution of the lepton pair in and of the angular asymmetry in provides us with interesting tests of the Standard Model and its
extensions.Comment: 26 pages REVTEX + 7 figures. Some typos corrected, figure 5 and 7
modified. This version will appear on Physical Review
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