936 research outputs found
Nicolas-Louis de La Caille, James Dunlop and John Herschel: An analysis of the First Three Catalogues of Southern Star Clusters and Nebulae
“If men like [John] Herschel are to spend the best years of their lives in recording for the benefit of a remote posterity the actual state of the heavens…what a galling discovery to find amongst their own contemporaries men [James Dunlop] who … from carelessness and culpable apathy hand down to posterity a mass of errors …[so] that four hundred objects out of six hundred could not be identified in any manner … with a telescope seven times more powerful than that stated to have been used!”4
The denigration of James Dunlop and his catalogue of 629 southern nebulae and clusters produced in 1826 originated with John Herschel and was continued by others of his day. Was this criticism justified? Was James Dunlop guilty of “carelessness and culpable apathy”? Were there “four hundred objects out of six hundred” which could not be identified, and if so, was there an explanation for this large shortfall?
This question led to a search within Dunlop’s 1826 catalogue to rediscover, if possible, some of the missing objects and to reinstate Dunlop, if justified, as a bona fide astronomer. In doing this, Dunlop’s personal background, education and experience became relevant, as did a comparison with the catalogue of 42 southern nebulae and clusters produced by Nicolas-Louis de La Caille in 1751-2, and the 1834-8 catalogue of 1708 southern nebulae and clusters by John Herschel, who found the Dunlop catalogue so galling
Letter: Jacksonville Beaches Chamber of Commerce (Letterhead Stationary)
A letter from W. J. Cozens Jr., Executive Secretary to Mr. R. H. Fitscher in Chicago Illinois regarding a potential winter vacation in the area. December 11, 1941. This letter lists the five beach resort towns considered Jacksonville beaches and their many ammenities: Ponte Vedra Beach, Jacksonville Beach, Neptune Beach, Atlantic Beach, and Mayport Beach. A map is also included
The BaRK (Building Reading Confidence for Kids) Canine Assisted Reading Program: One Child\u27s Experience
This study investigated the effectiveness of the BaRK program for Zack, one disengaged reader. The BaRK program is a canine assisted literacy program in which a child reads one-on-one to a trained therapy dog. The ‘Neale Analysis of Reading Ability’ was used to compare Zack’s reading accuracy and reading comprehension ages before and after the program. His perception of the program and possible correlations with the test results were also assessed. Results indicated dramatic gains in both accuracy and comprehension with greater gains occurring in comprehension. Possible reasons for the successful outcome of this study are discussed, along with its limitations and suggestions for further research
God\u27s Word, Students, and Christian Classrooms: The Why and How
With ready access to God’s Word, it is challenging and disturbing to read research declaring “that only two in ten Aussie Christians read their Bible daily” (Hughes and Pickering, 2010, para. 1) and see census data showing that Christianity is declining in the community, especially among 18-25-year-olds (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2022). Blair (2016) contends that our culture has become biblically illiterate, lacking basic biblical knowledge. Because Christian education is predicated on God’s Word, Christian schools are in a unique position to contribute to efforts to reverse the current trend of biblical illiteracy. In this chapter, we define biblical literacy and discuss why it is important in contemporary Australian society. We then outline why biblical literacy is such an important aspect of a student’s education in a Christian classroom and consider how Christian teachers can be positively engaged in this journey and quest with their students. Finally, we describe practical ideas, scenarios, and examples of biblical literacy programs currently available in Australia and the South Pacific region
Tackling Crime and Fear of Crime Whilst Waiting at Britain's Railway Stations
Crime on the railways in Britain is an increasing concern for train operating companies,the British Transport Police (BTP), passengers, and local residents. Significantly,rail users consistently perceive their risks from crime to be considerably higher thanofficial crime statistics indicate, having a negative affect on levels of patronage. Thisarticle presents an exploratory study of passengers’ fear of crime while waiting atrailway stations using Quick Time Virtual Reality (QTVR) walkthrough scenes. QTVRarguably represents an innovative, dynamic, and interactive environmental stimulusfor gaining insights into passengers’ fear of crime. Visibility at stations was identifiedas a crucial factor in determining levels of fear of crime. The design of the stationshelter is analyzed as an example of how crime prevention through environmentaldesign (CPTED) is being implemented on railway stations by Valley Lines (Wales and Borders Trains) on its network in South Wales (UK)
Managing crime and the fear of crime at railway stations––a case study in South Wales (UK)
Rail users consistently perceive their risks from crime to be significantly higher than official statistics suggest, discouraging many from using rail transport. The aims of the paper include a discussion of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) and current policy initiatives for reducing crime and the fear of crime on the railways. This exploratory study focuses on adult passengers' perceptions of crime and nuisance as they relate to the management, design and maintenance of railway stations and their immediate access routes. The study innovatively utilises interactive virtual reality (VR) scenes of ‘representative' stations as the environmental stimulus and concludes that such an approach provides an analytical and pragmatic framework for managers of railway stations that are unlikely to receive Secure Station accreditation
Development of a sophisticated tool for siting small-scale, embedded wind projects using a geographical information system
The aim of the research is to produce a methodology for the siting of small-scale, embedded wind generators, and implement this within a commercial software package designed to use existing digital data sets. There is a widespread opportunity to exploit smaller size developments, but potentially large numbers of suitable sites means that an automated screening process is essential. Much of the information required for such a siting study is spatial in nature and hence the site identification process can be facilitated using a geographical information system - GIS. The literature has revealed a number of GIS-based assessments, but these have concentrated on large wind farms, and have been undertaken at relatively coarse resolution. In contrast, this research has produced a much more sophisticated tool, allowing analysis at much finer resolution and encompassing a wider range of relevant factors. An attractive site for a wind turbine development requires more than just a suitable wind resource; factors such as environmental acceptability, public safety, physical constraints such as land use and impact on the electricity supply system will all determine the potential of a site. Constraints and parameters have been derived describing these factors and from these algorithms and inference rules have been developed. These have been coded up for use with a proprietary GIS package, producing a tool that can be widely applied. In particular, it has been demonstrated for a test region in Shropshire, UK. A particular emphasis of this study is the consideration of the impact on the electricity network. Relatively, few small installations have been connected to the national electricity grid in the UK; there is a range of reasons for this, a lack of suitable siting tool being one. Connection to the 11 kV network has been assumed given its relevance to smaller scale installations. This can result in a lower grid connection cost than for typical large-scale wind farm arrangements, for which connection usually represents a major element in the overall project costs. Often these low voltage lines are weak (i.e. susceptible to voltage variation), especially in remote rural areas. An appraisal of the impact of such embedded generators is important and is an intrinsic part of the methodology presented and implemented here.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
Organisation of cingulum bundle fibres connecting the anterior thalamic nuclei with the rodent anterior cingulate and retrosplenial cortices
Despite considerable interest in the properties of the cingulum bundle, descriptions of the composition of this major pathway in the rodent brain have not kept pace with advances in tract tracing. Using complementary approaches in rats and mice, this study examined the dense, reciprocal connections the anterior thalamic nuclei have with the cingulate and retrosplenial cortices, connections thought to be major contributors to the rodent cingulum bundle. The rat data came from a mixture of fluorescent and viral tracers, some injected directly into the bundle. The mouse data were collated from the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas. The projections from the three major anterior thalamic nuclei occupied much of the external medullary stratum of the cingulum bundle, where they were concentrated in its more medial portions. These anterior thalamic projections formed a rostral-reaching basket of efferents prior to joining the cingulum bundle, with anteromedial efferents taking the most rostral routes, often reaching the genu of the corpus callosum, while anterodorsal efferents took the least rostral route. In contrast, the return cortico-anterior thalamic projections frequently crossed directly through the bundle or briefly joined the internal stratum of the cingulum bundle, often entering the internal capsule before reaching the anterior thalamus. These analyses confirm that anterior thalamic connections comprise an important component of the rodent cingulum bundle, while also demonstrating the very different routes used by thalamo-cortical and cortico-thalamic projections. This information reveals how the composition of the cingulum bundle alters along its length
Which doctors and with what problems contact a specialist service for doctors? A cross sectional investigation
Background:
In the United Kingdom, specialist treatment and intervention services for doctors are underdeveloped. The MedNet programme, created in 1997 and funded by the London Deanery, aims to fill this gap by providing a self-referral, face-to-face, psychotherapeutic assessment service for doctors in London and South-East England. MedNet was designed to be a low-threshold service, targeting doctors without formal psychiatric problems. The aim of this study was to delineate the characteristics of doctors utilising the service, to describe their psychological morbidity, and to determine if early intervention is achieved.
Methods:
A cross-sectional study including all consecutive self-referred doctors (n = 121, 50% male) presenting in 2002–2004 was conducted. Measures included standardised and bespoke questionnaires both self-report and clinician completed. The multi-dimensional evaluation included: demographics, CORE (CORE-OM, CORE-Workplace and CORE-A) an instrument designed to evaluate the psychological difficulties of patients referred to outpatient services, Brief Symptom Inventory to quantify caseness and formal psychiatric illness, and Maslach Burnout Inventory.
Results:
The most prevalent presenting problems included depression, anxiety, interpersonal, self-esteem and work-related issues. However, only 9% of the cohort were identified as severely distressed psychiatrically using this measure. In approximately 50% of the sample, problems first presented in the preceding year. About 25% were on sick leave at the time of consultation, while 50% took little or no leave in the prior 12 months. A total of 42% were considered to be at some risk of suicide, with more than 25% considered to have a moderate to severe risk. There were no significant gender differences in type of morbidity, severity or days off sick.
Conclusion:
Doctors displayed high levels of distress as reflected in the significant proportion of those who were at some risk of suicide; however, low rates of severe psychiatric illness were detected. These findings suggest that MedNet clients represent both ends of the spectrum of severity, enabling early clinical engagement for a significant proportion of cases that is of importance both in terms of personal health and protecting patient care, and providing a timely intervention for those who are at risk, a group for whom rapid intervention services are in need and an area that requires further investigation in the UK
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