SPDY vs HTTP/1.1: An Empirical Evaluation of Network Protocol Performance

As the Internet evolves, the reduction of page load time has an increased importance. Additionally, the application layer is an ideal place to change as it avoids altering existing implementations. HTTP was designed not realizing what the Internet would look like at the present, and is thus outdated. Google has developed a protocol as a replacement for HTTP called SPDY. The major improvements are header compression to avoid network congestion, multiplexing to maximize throughput, and allowing the server to suggest or even push unsolicited data. My research aims to measure throughput of the two protocols by varying both the latency and packet loss of a network

Why the Economic Aspects of Healthcare are not Unique

Frequent claims suggest that healthcare and its production are not only different from other goods, but that they differ to such an extent that healthcare should be viewed as unique. Various features of healthcare, such as the lack of a perfect market and the existence of information asymmetry, are cited as evidence of this claim. However, such a view results from unduly emphasising the characteristics of healthcare as being atypical. This article redresses this imbalance by taking an alternative approach and examines the ways in which the economic aspects of healthcare are similar to those of other goods. It was found that the differential aspects are less distinctive than claimed and the economic aspects of healthcare are not unique.Keywords: Healthcare Sector; Medical Economics; Economic Competition; Competitive Behavior; State Medicine; Insurance Selection Bias; Patient Participation; Health Services Research

Table builder problem - confidentiality for linked tables

The aim of this project is to investigate solutions to the problem of improving access to detailed survey data, while ensuring no person or organisation is likely to be identified, or otherwise put at risk of having their data disclosed, and to link general findings back to the ABS Table Builder problem. We focussed on making contributions in two main areas, namely: 1. Identification of sensitive cells in a table, 2. Maximizing data utility and minimising information loss - ensuring the table provides useful information

The production, purification and catalytic utility of lignin peroxidase from "sporotrichum pulverulentum"

Production, purification and catalytic utility of lignin peroxidase (LiP) from Sporotrichum pulverulentum. The study of Lip has been hampered by the difficulty in producing this enzyme in sufficient quantities. Several strains of Phanerochaete chrvsosporium and Sporotrichum Pulverulentum were screened for LiP expression under different culture conditions to find a method of producing adequate supplies of the enzyme for the proceeding work in this thesis. A reliable method of Lip production was achieved using 750m1 agitated cultures of S. pulverulentum containing the detergent tween 80. Lip from S. pulverulentum was purified by HPLC and was found to consist of up to 14 isozymes which varied in molecular weight, pH optimum and specific activity for veratryl alcohol. However, their catalytic spectra were similar. The isozymes from S. pulverulentum had higher molecular weights and lower pI values than those published for LiP from P. chrvsosporium, which suggested that they were not as closely related as had been assumed. Lip from S. pulverulentum was able to oxidise a range of methoxy-substituted benzyl alcohols to their respective aldehydes. The susceptibility of benzyl alcohol oxidation by LiP depended upon the amount and position of methoxyl group substitution. LiP oxidation of these substrates was dependent upon how electron-rich the molecular π-orbitals of the substrates were, but steric effects may also have been important. LiP oxidation of benzyl alcohols under aerobic conditions led to additional products such as quinones, ring-cleavage products and chloro-substituted aromatics. These latter products provided evidence for the existence of LiP-derived aryl radical cations for a range of benzyl alcohol substrates, which is consistent with the peroxidative one-electron oxidation theory of Lip degradation of lignin. In addition LiP was shown to catalyse the peroxidative oneelectron oxidation of phenolics such as p-cresol and catechol to produce dimers and polymers. Lyophilised LiP was shown to be catalytically active in organic solvents such as ether and propyl acetate. An increase in enzyme stability of up to 30 times of that in water and a broadening of its catalytic spectrum was observed. Lip was also found in C. versicolor demonstrating that LiP may be a common constituent of ligninolytic white-rot fungi. In addition, other. extracellular peroxidases were present in this fungus. These peroxidases were novel compared to the extracellular peroxidases from P. chrysosporium since at least one of these could not oxidise veratryl alcohol and neither of these peroxidases were manganese-dependent

The role of ultrasound in breast screening

Ultrasound is a valuable diagnostic tool commonly used by Radiologists in breast screening. The current paper outlines the main functions that Ultrasound performs, differences between mammography and Ultrasound and why it is a topic worthy of ergonomic and psychological research. Finally, a summary of the various methodological approaches to studying Ultrasound usage and interpretation are outlined which will be used to inform the development of a new Ultrasound training application to be used by trainee radiologists

NW UK continental margin : chronology and isotope geochemistry

Until recently, a significant proportion of the crystalline basement from the NW UK continental shelf was virtually terra incognita in comparison with similar rocks on the mainland. A significant increase in the geological understanding of this region’s crystalline rocks is provided by new data from 42 boreholes, some of which were only drilled in 2001. The samples are from a ~550 km long transect of the UK continental shelf, extending from ~50 km west of Shetland in the northeast to Stanton High, south of the Outer Hebrides and westward to include Rockall High. Petrography and geochemistry show the main lithologies are amphibolite to granulite facies amphibolites and gneisses, and include classic Archaean TTG’s, metabasic rocks, granite (s.s), and granitic pegmatites. A long history of crustal growth is indicated by U-Pb zircon ages and Nd model ages. Archaean gneisses that developed in two main episodes dominate much of the study area. The older gneisses (c. 2.8 Ga) represent new continental crust while genesis of the later gneisses (c. 2.74-2.70 Ga) involved crustal recycling. Both groups are very similar to onshore Lewisian gneisses. Important areas of known Proterozoic crust were also characterized, confirming the results of previous studies. Geochemistry and Nd isotope systematics of Stanton High documents extensive Archaean crust re-working in the Proterozoic, as well as addition of new continental crust. Stanton High U-Pb zircon ages (1799-1791.5 Ma) are similar to the Rhinns terrane (c. 1800 Ma). Westward, Rockall High borehole samples yield a 1744.9 Ma U-Pb age, distinct from Stanton High – Rhinns rocks. Nd data indicate addition of mantle-derived juvenile crust, as previously noted elsewhere on Rockall High. An isolated granulite facies metabasic rock on the NE portion of the Hebrides shelf was dated at 1633.5 Ma, also representing a new addition of crust. The new data provide important constraints for regional correlations and palaeotectonic reconstructions. The Archaean rocks are almost certainly related to the Lewisian: given current models, they probably also correlate to the Nagssugtoquidian in Greenland, while the Rockall and Stanton Highs, together with the Rhinns terrane, have affinities to the Ketilidian of Greenland and the Svecofennian of Scandinavia

Austronesian prehistory and Polynesian genetics

The migration into and settlement of remote Oceania by the modern Polynesian and Māori peoples is a major achievement, which has been the subject of extensive research and scholarship. The routes taken by the Austronesian peoples and the origins of the migrations are subject to ongoing debate. We present a range of findings from molecular genetic studies of Polynesian and New Zealand Māori populations and a ‘synthetic total evidence theory’ that we suggest can account for key elements of the migrations

Science-teacher education advanced methods national workshop for Scotland report

The first phase of the S-TEAM project at the University of Strathclyde - evaluating the state of the art of inquiry-based science teaching and education in teacher education institutions and schools in Scotland - is now well advanced. Phase one identifies the opportunities for and the constraints facing either the implementation or increase of inquiry-based science teaching activity in schools, in the process investigating impressions from current practice in classrooms, from teacher education courses, the policymaking context, as well as the implications for the S-TEAM project itself. All teacher education institutions within Scotland were invited to take part in a one-day workshop at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow; representatives from the Scottish Government, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of education, a leading science centre, the Early Professional Learning project, and of course the teaching profession itself were also in attendance, giving a total of 19 participants. Key Findings The curriculum and assessment background to promoting advanced methods in science education in Scotland comprises the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE) initiative. The conference participants generally framed their contributions with this in mind. The findings suggested that the CfE, while still in its infancy, is generally supportive and encouraging of investigative science lessons, the range of possible activities that could count as investigative, and in the diversity of the ways in which scientists work. There was however some concern about the relationship between the CfE and Scotland's portfolio of upper-secondary school examinations, as yet unspecified in policy, and thus leaving open to question the degree to which the new curriculum will continue to support investigations as it currently is. Over emphasis on summative assessment through grading and examinations tend to work against the spirit of investigative activity in the science classroom, a practice that depends on a more sophisticated formative approach. There is the associated danger that schools may continue to garner exam success with more traditional teaching methods with the consequence that CfE, though clear enough in its intention to promote investigation / inquiry and creativity, could 'crystallise' into typical assessment styles. Teaching would then be guided by this and genuine investigative activity would be unlikely to develop in the face of the relative certainty (for teachers) of more 'direct' methods. The experience of the workshop delegates suggests that there are current examples of investigative science work in schools, and that these tend to be enjoyable for learners - exciting, good fun, etc. This affective dimension of learning is important and points to the need for S-TEAM to develop indicators that can accommodate affective engagement. Other 'harder' indicators could also be developed as discussion revealed that examination results and pupil uptake of science (girls in this case, helping to change possible preconceptions) could benefit from inquiry based activity. The efficacy of investigative activity in the classroom, however, is unlikely to be fully caught by the strictly quantitative. A further consideration is that S-TEAM could develop indicators that go beyond an immediate research function to operate in such a way as to contribute to the learning of teachers in the classroom through the capacity for practitioner self-evaluation. For example, the critical evaluation of investigative activity that a cohort of initial science-teacher education students have already completed for the project, as part of their professional portfolios, has since been commended by teacher educators as being an effective intervention in its own right. The early results from this indicator confirm the existence of a number of implicit components of developing confidence in undertaking investigative activity - for example, knowledge of the subject curriculum, class, resources, and so on - and teaching methods, from structured additions to the more opportunistic and ad hoc, that practitioners employ. While arguing that teachers could and ought to accommodate a degree of inquiry in their teaching, a critical caveat is that beginners benefit from protected exploratory practice prior to their full teaching post and need space themselves to investigate and explore; it is reasonable for them to exercise restraint in their first year until their confidence is fairly secure. Implications 1. Promote inquiry in teaching by using examples of existing good practice and by working with experienced teachers in order to take lessons back from them to beginners. 2. Develop purpose specific indicators of inquiry and reflection that go beyond an immediate research function to contribute to the learning of (new) teachers through a capacity for the self-evaluation of the use of innovative methods in the classroom. 3. Collate video examples of inquiry as it happens in the classrooms of student and practising teachers, as well as stories and reflective discussion about how it happened, so as to learn how teachers solve the problems of introducing more investigative approaches into lessons. 4. For the development of teachers' knowledge base in science, create a typology of investigative knowledge and experience, upon which the project's activities might draw, of the following levels of scientific perspective: The socio-historical nature of science. Contemporary research activity in science. Initial teacher education in science. Experienced teaching of science. Beginning teaching of science. The child's classroom experience of science. 5. For the ongoing practical application of inquiry-based research, S-TEAM will continue to pursue, interrogate and engage with existing examples of inquiry and resources in the months ahead

Fit’n Bits: Evaluation of the FitBit’s User Friendliness and Motivation

poster abstractWearable computing devices create new opportunities for people to collect data about themselves and interact unobtrusively with a wide variety of information sources. However, these devices also compete for a wearer’s limited attention and have the potential for worsening the problem of information overload. Our study focuses on people’s day-to-day experiences using wearable activity tracking devices, both solo and in motivational groups of 3–4 persons. We are currently collecting a variety of data to understand how differences in the information displayed on the device (and the associated, web-based “dashboard”) affect users’ behavior and attainment/motivation of physical activity goals, influence users’ perception of the usefulness and intrusiveness of the device, and encourage/discourage device use. In addition, we hope to further explore whether or not participation in a group provided additional motivation or simply introduced another type of information overload. A total of 36 participants will be recruited from the IUPUI campus and nearby areas of downtown Indianapolis and will be divided into one of two conditions, working solo or in a squad (group of three of more people). ANOVAs will be conducted to analyze and interpret the data. In particular, we will look for any significant differences in the number of steps taken and in the subjective preference ratings across all conditions. All qualitative responses will be collaboratively coded by a team of investigators. This research effort is currently ongoing, and we are aiming to present initial data analyses based on a large subset of our total participant population at this year’s IUPUI Research Day