237 research outputs found
Work-based skills development: A context-engaged approach
Purpose â The purpose of this paper is to give a successful example of how universities can work with business to identify and address skills needs through a context-engaged approach to developing learning to meet the needs identified. Design/methodology/approach â Using a case study approach the business-university collaboration to introduce work-based learning programmes is explained. The paper sets out how learning interventions were researched, designed and introduced to meet identified skills needs throughout the organisation. It highlights the practicalities of the management approach adopted and the benefits achieved through partnership working. Findings â Key to the success of the collaboration was the recruitment of a âTraining Centre Facilitatorâ (TCF) who was co-managed by the company and the university and who was located within the company. The TCF was able to fully understand the companyâs and learnersâ requirements and thus propose a context-engaged solution that met the needs of the individuals and the organisation. The work-based learning programmes introduced reflected the organisational requirements, individualsâ needs and took into account constraints and restraints on their design and implementation. Originality/value â The paper presents a case study that investigates an innovative approach to partnership working between HE, FE and a private business organisation. The appointment of a TCF, employed within the company to undertake research and implement identified training interventions is an unusual and original approach to bringing together the three organisations to achieve the planned business improvements. The process used and the key principles for achieving a successful partnership are presented and could be applied in other business-education collaborations to develop in-company work-based learning
Gold standard or fool's gold: the pursuit of certainty in experimental criminology
This article assesses some of the claims made for experimental research in the field of rehabilitation of offenders. It suggests that both policy officials and evaluators have tended to over-invest financially and intellectually in a technocratic model of reducing reoffending that emphasizes programmes for offenders, and to under-invest in models that see the process as a complex âpeople changingâ skill. It argues that the complexity of this process renders it hard to evaluate using experimental methods of evaluation such as randomized controlled trials (RCTs). RCTs provide strong internal validity, but in complex settings offer weak external validity, making it hard to generalize from the experimental setting to other settings. The article suggests that the proper role for evaluative research in this field should be seen as building and testing middle-level theories about how best to change offendersâ behaviour
Indefinite Causal Orders from Superpositions in Time
Treating the time of an event as a quantum variable, we derive a scheme in
which superpositions in time are used to perform operations in an indefinite
causal order. We use some aspects of a recently developed space-time-symmetric
formalism of events. We propose a specific implementation of the scheme and
recover the Quantum SWITCH, where quantum operations are performed in an order
which is entangled with the state of a control qubit. Our scheme does not rely
on any exotic quantum gravitational effect, but instead on phenomena which are
naturally fuzzy in time, such as the decay of an excited atom.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures, comments and emails welcome (v2: minor address
amendments and corrections
Change over a 16-month period in the psychological well-being of mothers of girls and women with Rett syndrome
PURPOSE:
There is an emerging research literature on the experiences of family members of girls and women with Rett syndrome (RTT), but a lack of longitudinal data.
METHODS:
Fifty mothers whose daughters had RTT were surveyed 16-17 months after an earlier cross-sectional study. Measures completed at both time points focused on maternal positive and negative psychological well-being and their daughters' behavioral and emotional problems and RTT behavioral phenotype severity.
RESULTS:
Maternal stress, anxiety, and depression demonstrated at least moderate levels of stability. Maternal positive perceptions were also moderately stable over 16-17 months. Longitudinal analyses suggested that their daughters' behavioral and emotional problems rather than RTT behavioral phenotype severity predicted later maternal well-being.
CONCLUSION:
Mothers with RTT daughters experience chronic stress (persisting over time) but also ongoing positive perceptions. Practitioners should recognize positive perceptions and also consider targeted behavioral parent training to reduce behavior problems in individuals with RTT
A Photonic Topological Mode Bound to a Vortex
Topological photonics sheds light on some of the surprising phenomena seen in
condensed matter physics that arise with the appearance of topological
invariants. Optical waveguides provide a well-controlled platform to
investigate effects that relate to different topological phases of matter,
providing insight into phenomena such as topological insulators and
superconductors by direct simulation of the states that are protected by the
topology of the system. Here, we observe a mode associated with a topological
defect in the bulk of a 2D photonic material by introducing a vortex distortion
to an hexagonal lattice and analogous to graphene. These observations are made
possible by advances in our experimental methods. We were able to manufacture
uniform large two-dimensional photonic crystal structures, containing thousands
of identical waveguides arranged in two dimensions, and we developed a new
method to excite multiples of these waveguides with a well-defined light field.
This allows us to probe the detailed spatial features of topological defect
modes for the first time. The observed modes lie mid-gap at zero energy and are
closely related to Majorana bound states in superconducting vortices. This is
the first experimental demonstration of a mode that is a solution to the Dirac
equation in the presence of a vortex, as proposed by Jackiw and Rossi
Effectiveness of active support for adults with intellectual disability in residential settings : systematic review and meta-analysis
Background
The review examined the effectiveness of Active Support (RQ1) and stakeholdersâ experiences of the model (RQ2).
Method
Data were meta-analysed (RQ1; Studies=14) and synthesised narratively (RQ2; Studies=10).
Results
By follow-up (six-months post-training), effect sizes (RQ1) for resident total activity engagement were significant and ranged from small (d=0.33, 95% CIs: 0.10, 0.50) to large (Tau-U=0.95, 95% CIs: 0.64, 1.25) depending on study design. Follow-up changes in staff assistance were moderate (d=0.56, 95% CIs: 0.23, 0.89; Tau-U 0.63, 95% CIs: 0.32 to 0.93) and large for quality of support (d=1.03, 95% CIs: 0.61, 1.44). Other outcomes did not change.
Conclusions
Active Support was more effective following complete staff training, in larger settings, at lower staff-to-resident ratios, and with less experienced staff. Active Support training and outcomes were valued by staff and residents (RQ2), and staff experienced increased job satisfaction. Lower staff turnover and organisational readiness appear crucial for maintaining implementation
Prevalence and associated features of depression in women with Rett Syndrome
Background
Little is known about depression among women with Rett syndrome (RTT) despite recent advances in knowledge about RTT. In this study, we aimed to establish the prevalence of depression among women with RTT as identified by a screening telephone interview and to explore the clinical factors associated with this.
Methods
The study employed the cross-sectional analysis of data from telephone interviews with carers of 56 women with RTT, using validated questionnaires for assessing mental health problems, challenging behaviour and RTT severity.
Results
Scores on the mental health assessment reached the affective/neurotic threshold in eight cases (14.3%). No significant differences were found between those reaching the threshold and those who did not in terms of severity of RTT phenotype, health problems or social circumstances. There was a significant association between screening identified depression and higher lethargy and social withdrawal.
Conclusions
Screening identified depression was found among a sizeable minority of women with RTT. Further investigation is needed to establish a clinically validated prevalence of depression among this group and to identify behavioural features that would lead to prompt psychiatric assessment
Referenced Single-Molecule Measurements Differentiate between GPCR Oligomerization States.
The extent to which Rhodopsin family G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) form invariant oligomers is contentious. Recent single-molecule fluorescence imaging studies mostly argue against the existence of constitutive receptor dimers and instead suggest that GPCRs only dimerize transiently, if at all. However, whether or not even transient dimers exist is not always clear due to difficulties in unambiguously distinguishing genuine interactions from chance colocalizations, particularly with respect to short-lived events. Previous single-molecule studies have depended critically on calculations of chance colocalization rates and/or comparison with unfixed control proteins whose diffusional behavior may or may not differ from that of the test receptor. Here, we describe a single-molecule imaging assay that 1) utilizes comparisons with well-characterized control proteins, i.e., the monomer CD86 and the homodimer CD28, and 2) relies on cell fixation to limit artifacts arising from differences in the distribution and diffusion of test proteins versus these controls. The improved assay reliably reports the stoichiometry of the Glutamate-family GPCR dimer, γ-amino butyric acid receptor b2, whereas two Rhodopsin-family GPCRs, β2-adrenergic receptor and mCannR2, exhibit colocalization levels comparable to those of CD86 monomers, strengthening the case against invariant GPCR oligomerization.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Elsevier via http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2015.09.00
Single-Molecule Analysis of G Protein-Coupled Receptor Stoichiometry: Approaches and Limitations.
How G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are organized at the cell surface remains highly contentious. Single-molecule (SM) imaging is starting to inform this debate as receptor behavior can now be visualized directly, without the need for interpreting ensemble data. The limited number of SM studies of GPCRs undertaken to date have strongly suggested that dimerization is at most transient, and that most receptors are monomeric at any given time. However, even SM data has its caveats and needs to be interpreted carefully. Here, we discuss the types of SM imaging strategies used to examine GPCR stoichiometry and consider some of these caveats. We also emphasize that attempts to resolve the debate ought to rely on orthogonal approaches to measuring receptor stoichiometry
Receptor Quaternary Organization Explains GÂ Protein-Coupled Receptor Family Structure.
The organization of Rhodopsin-family G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) at the cell surface is controversial. Support both for and against the existence of dimers has been obtained in studies of mostly individual receptors. Here, we use a large-scale comparative study to examine the stoichiometric signatures of 60 receptors expressed by a single human cell line. Using bioluminescence resonance energy transfer- and single-molecule microscopy-based assays, we found that a relatively small fraction of Rhodopsin-family GPCRs behaved as dimers and that these receptors otherwise appear to be monomeric. Overall, the analysis predicted that fewer than 20% of âź700 Rhodopsin-family receptors form dimers. The clustered distribution of the dimers in our sample and a striking correlation between receptor organization and GPCR family size that we also uncover each suggest that receptor stoichiometry might have profoundly influenced GPCR expansion and diversification
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