Final report for secure camera capture system (April 2016)

This report provides an overview of the Secure Camera Capture system produced by Team 6 in Spring 2016�s Senior Design 2 class. The project encompassed a three-part hardware and software system, used to capture, securely store, and retrieve photographs taken by an internet-equipped camera on a sixty-second timer. In the report, the project is outlined in both technical and nontechnical terms, the AES encryption method used, the Raspberry Pi microcontroller hardware, and the software used to tie them together. Specifications (both hardware and software) and how they were addressed are detailed, and a guide is provided to reconstruct the project using provided code. Finally, it provides the team�s perspective on the final product and possible improvements that could be made on the design

Unsettling boundaries in making a space for research

In engaging in research we draw upon and develop meanings and concepts that help to frame what we do, how we do it and the meaning we make of it. In the process of framing, we exclude other possibilities from our research practices. To do research then is to engage in the fashioning of conceptual boundaries. This article explores the dilemmas of boundary-making in the context of a research project aimed at exploring the border literacy practices of students in UK further education, those boundary crossing practices which relate to the everyday and more formal demands of the curriculum. This discussion is related to wider debates in the social sciences on the significance of boundaries and borders and their powerful effects on identities and actions

Trust into mistrust: the uncertain marriage between public and private sector practice for middle managers in education

The role of the middle manager has proved to be a difficult one to define due to the fluid nature of the tasks performed and the heterogeneity of understanding that exists for the term. This is further complicated by the differences associated with the context in which individual manager’s work. This research, which explores the drive towards neo-liberalism and the subsequent adoption of leadership and management practice from the private sector, makes a comparison between the roles of managers in English education with those in other settings. Using a questionnaire with 252 responses and interviews with 6 managers in the private and public sector, the role of middle managers was compared to identify the similarities and differences between organisations driven by social policy as opposed to profit. Participants surveyed were based in primary, secondary and further education and the interview respondents were employed in non-education contexts. The findings suggest that the initial reforms, which required higher levels of accountability through the introduction of key performance indicators, appear to be fully embedded within the education manager’s role and there is a high degree of convergence in relation to the expectation of managers at this level in all the settings. The findings also highlighted a fundamental difference in relation to how middle managers were expected to carry out their duties, the autonomy they had to do so and the authority that was bestowed upon them. © 2018 Association for Research in Post-Compulsory Education (ARPCE)

QuantCrit: education, policy, ‘Big Data’ and principles for a critical race theory of statistics

Quantitative research enjoys heightened esteem among policy-makers, media and the general public. Whereas qualitative research is frequently dismissed as subjective and impressionistic, statistics are often assumed to be objective and factual. We argue that these distinctions are wholly false; quantitative data is no less socially constructed than any other form of research material. The first part of the paper presents a conceptual critique of the field with empirical examples that expose and challenge hidden assumptions that frequently encode racist perspectives beneath the façade of supposed quantitative objectivity. The second part of the paper draws on the tenets of Critical Race Theory (CRT) to set out some principles to guide the future use and analysis of quantitative data. These ‘QuantCrit’ ideas concern (1) the centrality of racism as a complex and deeply-rooted aspect of society that is not readily amenable to quantification; (2) numbers are not neutral and should be interrogated for their role in promoting deficit analyses that serve White racial interests; (3) categories are neither ‘natural’ nor given and so the units and forms of analysis must be critically evaluated; (4) voice and insight are vital: data cannot ‘speak for itself’ and critical analyses should be informed by the experiential knowledge of marginalized groups; (5) statistical analyses have no inherent value but can play a role in struggles for social justice

Soluble Rhesus Lymphocryptovirus gp350 Protects against Infection and Reduces Viral Loads in Animals that Become Infected with Virus after Challenge

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a human lymphocryptovirus that is associated with several malignancies. Elevated EBV DNA in the blood is observed in transplant recipients prior to, and at the time of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease; thus, a vaccine that either prevents EBV infection or lowers the viral load might reduce certain EBV malignancies. Two major approaches have been suggested for an EBV vaccine- immunization with either EBV glycoprotein 350 (gp350) or EBV latency proteins (e.g. EBV nuclear antigens [EBNAs]). No comparative trials, however, have been performed. Rhesus lymphocryptovirus (LCV) encodes a homolog for each gene in EBV and infection of monkeys reproduces the clinical, immunologic, and virologic features of both acute and latent EBV infection. We vaccinated rhesus monkeys at 0, 4 and 12 weeks with (a) soluble rhesus LCV gp350, (b) virus-like replicon particles (VRPs) expressing rhesus LCV gp350, (c) VRPs expressing rhesus LCV gp350, EBNA-3A, and EBNA-3B, or (d) PBS. Animals vaccinated with soluble gp350 produced higher levels of antibody to the glycoprotein than those vaccinated with VRPs expressing gp350. Animals vaccinated with VRPs expressing EBNA-3A and EBNA-3B developed LCV-specific CD4 and CD8 T cell immunity to these proteins, while VRPs expressing gp350 did not induce detectable T cell immunity to gp350. After challenge with rhesus LCV, animals vaccinated with soluble rhesus LCV gp350 had the best level of protection against infection based on seroconversion, viral DNA, and viral RNA in the blood after challenge. Surprisingly, animals vaccinated with gp350 that became infected had the lowest LCV DNA loads in the blood at 23 months after challenge. These studies indicate that gp350 is critical for both protection against infection with rhesus LCV and for reducing the viral load in animals that become infected after challenge. Our results suggest that additional trials with soluble EBV gp350 alone, or in combination with other EBV proteins, should be considered to reduce EBV infection or virus-associated malignancies in humans

Teaching the science of learning

The science of learning has made a considerable contribution to our understanding of effective teaching and learning strategies. However, few instructors outside of the field are privy to this research. In this Tutorial Review, we focus on six specific cognitive strategies that have received robust support from decades of research: spaced practice, interleaving, retrieval practice, elaboration, concrete examples, and dual coding. We describe the basic research behind each strategy and relevant applied research, present examples of existing and suggested implementation, and make recommendations for further research that would broaden the reach of these strategies