Evaluation of Phase 2 of the early discharge project of the ‘ASSIST’ team at Mansfield District Council

Project Objective: To provide a longer term independent appraisal of the business case for the continuation of the ASSIST early discharge scheme in Mansfiel

Realising the Benefits of Sports and Physical Activity : The Human Capital Model

Despite the fact that physical activity is universally acknowledged to be an important part of healthy functioning and well being, the full scope of its value is rarely appreciated. This paper introduces a novel framework for understanding the relationships between physical activity (and specific forms of activity like sports) and different aspects of human development. It proposes that the outcomes of physical activity can be framed as differential �capitals� that represent investments in domain-specific assets � Emotional, Financial, Individual, Intellectual, Physical, and Social. These investments, especially when made early in the life course, can yield significant rewards, both at that time and for years to come. The paper also outlines some of the conditions necessary for the realization of Human Capital growth through sports and physical activity, focusing on the social factors that influence participation for children and young people.A pesar de que la actividad física es reconocida universalmente como una parte importante del funcionamiento saludable y el bienestar, el alcance total de su valor es raramente apreciado. Este artículo presenta un novedoso marco para la comprensión de las relaciones entre la actividad física (y formas específicas de actividad como los deportes) y diferentes aspectos del desarrollo humano. Propone que los resultados de la actividad física pueden enmarcarse como �capitales� diferenciales que representan inversiones en activos relacionados con ámbitos específicos - emocional, financiero, individual, intelectual, físico y social. Estas inversiones, especialmente cuando se realizan pronto en el curso de la vida, pueden dar ventajas significativas, tanto en ese momento como en los años venideros. En el documento también se describen algunas de las condiciones necesarias para la realización de un crecimiento del capital humano a través del deporte y la actividad física, centrándose en los factores sociales que influyen en la participación de los niños y los jóvene

Effects of radiation on charge-coupled devices

The effects of 1 MeV electron irradiation upon the performance of two phase, polysilicon aluminum gate CCDs are reported. Both n- and p-surface channel and n-buried channel devices are investigated using 64- and 128-stage line arrays. Characteristics measured as a function of radiation dose include: Transfer inefficiency, threshold voltage, field effect mobility, interface state density, full well signal level and dark current. Surface channel devices are found to degrade considerably at less than 10 to the 5th power rads (Si) due to the large increase in fast interface state density caused by radiation. Buried channel devices maintain efficient operation to the highest dose levels used

Management Strategies Of Non-Profit Community Sport Facilities In An Era Of Austerity

Research Question: This qualitative research explores the impact of austerity on community sport facilities across England (United Kingdom), drawing upon resource dependence theory (RDT) embedded within network theory. Research Methods: In-depth semi-structured interview data were collected from 24 stakeholders related to community sport facilities (n=12 facility managers, n=6 regional grant managers, n=6 national funders both third sector and corporate). The qualitative data were thematically analysed to understand the impact of austerity on how community sport facilities managed their organisations and operations. Results and Findings: The findings from this research offer insight into the challenges that community sport facilities are encountering which have resulted from austerity, and a shrinking of the funding from central Government to local public services. Furthermore, different community sport facilities have navigated these challenges to maintain sustainability, essentially through adapting network structure and through income dynamism. In addition, using a network theory approach alongside RDT within a sporting context, has allowed us to address issues on how network flow and structure impact sustainability and operations within and between organisations. Implications: The article offers managerial recommendations for community sport facility managers, practitioners and policy makers who operate in times of fiscal constraint. It recommends that future sport research utilises and applies both RDT and network theory to examine these changes and the subsequent management strategies adopted to overcome the associated challenges of fiscal constraint

Patient-reported outcome measures v. clinician-measured outcomes in community psychiatric practice

Aims and method We examine the feasibility of the routine use of three patient-reported and one clinician-rated outcome measures (patient-identified problem, EuroQol-5D questionnaire, EuroQol Visual Analogue Scale and Health of the Nation Outcome Scales (HoNOS)) in an out-patient community psychiatric service, and discuss the associations between these variables. Results The routine collection of outcome measures was feasible in the out-patient setting. There was a general improvement in the health status from the initial assessment to the first follow-up. Subsequent scores remained stable. Clinical implications The study encourages the practical use of scales in routine community psychiatric practice. As there was correlation between HoNOS and EQ-5D index, both need not be used in routine practice

Generation of folk song melodies using Bayes transforms

The paper introduces the `Bayes transform', a mathematical procedure for putting data into a hierarchical representation. Applicable to any type of data, the procedure yields interesting results when applied to sequences. In this case, the representation obtained implicitly models the repetition hierarchy of the source. There are then natural applications to music. Derivation of Bayes transforms can be the means of determining the repetition hierarchy of note sequences (melodies) in an empirical and domain-general way. The paper investigates application of this approach to Folk Song, examining the results that can be obtained by treating such transforms as generative models

Possibilities for pedagogy in Further Education: Harnessing the abundance of literacy

In this report, it is argued that the most salient factor in the contemporary communicative landscape is the sheer abundance and diversity of possibilities for literacy, and that the extent and nature of students' communicative resources is a central issue in education. The text outlines the conceptual underpinnings of the Literacies for Learning in Further Education project in a social view of literacy, and the associated research design, methodology and analytical framework. It elaborates on the notion of the abundance of literacies in students' everyday lives, and on the potential for harnessing these as resources for the enhancement of learning. It provides case studies of changes in practice that have been undertaken by further education staff in order to draw upon students' everyday literacy practices on Travel and Tourism and Multimedia courses. It ends with some of the broad implications for conceptualising learning that arise from researching through the lens of literacy practices

3D virtual worlds as environments for literacy learning

Background: Although much has been written about the ways in which new technology might transform educational practice, particularly in the area of literacy learning, there is relatively little empirical work that explores the possibilities and problems - or even what such a transformation might look like in the classroom. 3D virtual worlds offer a range of opportunities for children to use digital literacies in school, and suggest one way in which we might explore changing literacy practices in a playful, yet meaningful context. Purpose: This paper identifies some of the key issues that emerged in designing and implementing virtual world work in a small number of primary schools in the UK. It examines the tensions between different discourses about literacy and literacy learning and shows how these were played out by teachers and pupils in classroom settings.Sources of evidence: Case study data are used as a basis for exploring and illustrating key aspects of design and implementation. The case study material includes views from a number of perspectives including classroom observations, chatlogs, in-world avatar interviews with teachers and also pupils, as well as the author’s field notes of the planning process with accompanying minutes and meeting documents.Main argument: From a Foucauldian perspective, the article suggests that social control of pedagogical practice through the regulation of curriculum time, the normalisation of teaching routines and the regimes of individual assessment restricts teachers’ and pupils’ conceptions of what constitutes literacy. The counternarrative, found in recent work in new litearcies (Lankshear & Knobel, 2006) provides an attractive alternative, but a movement in this direction requires a fundamental shift of emphasis and a re-conceptualisation of what counts as learning.Conclusions: This work on 3D virtual worlds questions the notion of how transformative practice can be achieved with the use of new technologies. It suggests that changes in teacher preparation, continuing professional development as well as wider educational reform may be needed

Football, sport and the development of young people’s life skills

© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. The development of life skills has been associated with participation in sport, football and other physical activities. A factor in enabling this ambition to be realized is the actions and behaviours of sports coaches. Drawing on the concept of positive youth development through sport, the first part of this paper considers the types of environments coaches need to create in order for players to develop life skills. The second part of this paper discusses formal coach education and its role in developing coaches’ knowledge of life skills development. The third and final section of this paper offers an alternative explanation of how people’s exposure to certain social contexts results in the development of life skills. A review of literature in these areas reveals that the role sport and football has played in players’ development of life skills is unclear and in need of future research attention