463 research outputs found
Creating a New Learning Model to Avoid Skills Gaps and to Fulfil the Future Needs of the Knowledge Society
In: A.J. Kallenberg and M.J.J.M. van de Ven (Eds), 2002, The New Educational Benefits of ICT in Higher Education: Proceedings. Rotterdam: Erasmus Plus BV, OECR
ISBN 90-9016127-9The situation in the education institutions and the challenges for human resources activities inside companies changed rapidly the last years. It is not (only) because of the integration and use of new technologies. It is due to a general need to change the paradigm of new learning models (and theories) in accordance with new demands in the knowledge society.
Strategic blended eLearning is an opportunity for institutions, universities and companies to utilise the “power” of technology for real social and educational change bringing benefits to all its users.
Online education and learning can make a huge impact on the way companies and educational institutions do business. The Web can increase their potential significantly, giving them awareness on a larger scale and increasing or even creating revenue. From a corporate point of view it is recognised that in this day and age where use of technology and business methodologies are all relatively similar organisations need something more unusual to be considered “leading edge”.
Creating a corporate university or online learning environment, can educate the people who work on the frontlines of a business. If they are well informed, impart a consistent message and feel valued they become positive ambassadors for the organisation, giving them a competitive advantage, increased productivity and an enhanced knowledge capital.
Therefore it is in any case useful to be aware more clearly what the effects of strategic blended eLearning and the IT-integration can offer.
The speech/workshop will highlight some of these effects looking at promising examples and methods and discuss the need of the creation of a new learning model. Furthermore the speech/workshop will argue, how this change can influence the requirements to all actors inside the “old” and “new” learning model
Multifaceted contributions : health workers and smallpox eradication in India
Smallpox eradication in South Asia was a result of the efforts of many grades of health-workers. Working from within the confines of international organisations and government structures, the role of the field officials, who were of various nationalities and also drawn from the cities and rural enclaves of the countries in these regions, was crucial to the development and deployment of policies. However, the role of these personnel is often downplayed in official histories and academic histories, which highlight instead the roles played by a handful of senior officials within the World Health Organization and the federal governments in the sub-continent. This article attempts to provide a more rounded assessment of the complex situation in the field. In this regard, an effort is made to underline the great usefulness of the operational flexibility displayed by field officers, wherein lessons learnt in the field were made an integral part of deploying local campaigns; careful engagement with the communities being targeted, as well as the employment of short term workers from amongst them, was an important feature of this work
Three Possible Origins for the Gas Layer on GJ 1214b
We present an analysis of the bulk composition of the MEarth transiting super
Earth exoplanet GJ 1214b using planet interior structure models. We consider
three possible origins for the gas layer on GJ 1214b: direct accretion of gas
from the protoplanetary nebula, sublimation of ices, and outgassing from rocky
material. Armed only with measurements of the planet mass (M_p=6.55+/-0.98
M_{earth}), radius (R_p=2.678+/-0.13 R_{earth}), and stellar irradiation level,
our main conclusion is that we cannot infer a unique composition. A diverse
range of planet interiors fits the measured planet properties. Nonetheless, GJ
1214b's relatively low average density (rho_p=1870+/-400 kg m^{-3}) means that
it almost certainly has a significant gas component. Our second major
conclusion is that under most conditions we consider GJ 1214b would not have
liquid water. Even if the outer envelope is predominantly sublimated water ice,
the envelope will likely consist of a super-fluid layer sandwiched between
vapor above and plasma (electrically conductive fluid) below at greater depths.
In our models, a low intrinsic planet luminosity (<~2TW) is needed for a water
envelope on GJ 1214b to pass through the liquid phase.Comment: 10 pages, 5 figures, published in Ap
Crossing the ballistic-ohmic transition via high energy electron irradiation
P.H.M. and M.D.B. received PhD studentship support from the UK Engineering and Physical Science Research Council via Grant No. EP/L015110/1. C.P. and P.J.W.M. are supported by the European Research Council under the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (Microstructured Topological Materials Grant No. 715730). E. Z. acknowledges support from the International Max Planck Research School for Chemistry and Physics of Quantum Materials (IMPRS-CPQM). Irradiation experiments performed on the SIRIUS platform were supported by the French National Network of Accelerators for Irradiation and Analysis of Molecules and Materials (EMIR&A) under Project No. EMIR 2019 18-7099.The delafossite metal PtCoO2 is among the highest-purity materials known, with low-temperature mean free path up to 5 μm in the best as-grown single crystals. It exhibits a strongly faceted, nearly hexagonal Fermi surface. This property has profound consequences for nonlocal transport within this material, such as in the classic ballistic-regime measurement of bend resistance in mesoscopic squares. Here, we report the results of experiments in which high-energy electron irradiation was used to introduce pointlike disorder into such squares, reducing the mean free path and therefore the strength of the ballistic-regime transport phenomena. We demonstrate that high-energy electron irradiation is a well-controlled technique to cross from nonlocal to local transport behavior and therefore determine the nature and extent of unconventional transport regimes. Using this technique, we confirm the origins of the directional ballistic effects observed in delafossite metals and demonstrate how the strongly faceted Fermi surface both leads to unconventional transport behavior and enhances the length scale over which such effects are important. © 2023 authors. Published by the American Physical Society. Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI. Open access publication funded by the Max Planck Society.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe
Mass-radius relationships for exoplanets
For planets other than Earth, interpretation of the composition and structure
depends largely on comparing the mass and radius with the composition expected
given their distance from the parent star. The composition implies a
mass-radius relation which relies heavily on equations of state calculated from
electronic structure theory and measured experimentally on Earth. We lay out a
method for deriving and testing equations of state, and deduce mass-radius and
mass-pressure relations for key materials whose equation of state is reasonably
well established, and for differentiated Fe/rock. We find that variations in
the equation of state, such as may arise when extrapolating from low pressure
data, can have significant effects on predicted mass- radius relations, and on
planetary pressure profiles. The relations are compared with the observed
masses and radii of planets and exoplanets. Kepler-10b is apparently 'Earth-
like,' likely with a proportionately larger core than Earth's, nominally 2/3 of
the mass of the planet. CoRoT-7b is consistent with a rocky mantle over an
Fe-based core which is likely to be proportionately smaller than Earth's. GJ
1214b lies between the mass-radius curves for H2O and CH4, suggesting an 'icy'
composition with a relatively large core or a relatively large proportion of
H2O. CoRoT-2b is less dense than the hydrogen relation, which could be
explained by an anomalously high degree of heating or by higher than assumed
atmospheric opacity. HAT-P-2b is slightly denser than the mass-radius relation
for hydrogen, suggesting the presence of a significant amount of matter of
higher atomic number. CoRoT-3b lies close to the hydrogen relation. The
pressure at the center of Kepler-10b is 1.5+1.2-1.0 TPa. The central pressure
in CoRoT-7b is probably close to 0.8TPa, though may be up to 2TPa.Comment: Added more recent exoplanets. Tidied text and references. Added extra
"rock" compositions. Responded to referee comment
A primordial origin for the atmospheric methane of Saturn's moon Titan
The origin of Titan's atmospheric methane is a key issue for understanding
the origin of the Saturnian satellite system. It has been proposed that
serpentinization reactions in Titan's interior could lead to the formation of
the observed methane. Meanwhile, alternative scenarios suggest that methane was
incorporated in Titan's planetesimals before its formation. Here, we point out
that serpentinization reactions in Titan's interior are not able to reproduce
the deuterium over hydrogen (D/H) ratio observed at present in methane in its
atmosphere, and would require a maximum D/H ratio in Titan's water ice 30%
lower than the value likely acquired by the satellite during its formation,
based on Cassini observations at Enceladus. Alternatively, production of
methane in Titan's interior via radiolytic reactions with water can be
envisaged but the associated production rates remain uncertain. On the other
hand, a mechanism that easily explains the presence of large amounts of methane
trapped in Titan in a way consistent with its measured atmospheric D/H ratio is
its direct capture in the satellite's planetesimals at the time of their
formation in the solar nebula. In this case, the mass of methane trapped in
Titan's interior can be up to 1,300 times the current mass of atmospheric
methane.Comment: Accepted for publication in Icaru
Sex-Biased Control of Inflammation and Metabolism by a Mitochondrial Nod-Like Receptor.
Mitochondria regulate steroid hormone synthesis, and in turn sex hormones regulate mitochondrial function for maintaining cellular homeostasis and controlling inflammation. This crosstalk can explain sex differences observed in several pathologies such as in metabolic or inflammatory disorders. Nod-like receptor X1 (NLRX1) is a mitochondria-associated innate receptor that could modulate metabolic functions and attenuates inflammatory responses. Here, we showed that in an infectious model with the human protozoan parasite, Leishmania guyanensis, NLRX1 attenuated inflammation in females but not in male mice. Analysis of infected female and male bone marrow derived macrophages showed both sex- and genotype-specific differences in both inflammatory and metabolic profiles with increased type I interferon production, mitochondrial respiration, and glycolytic rate in Nlrx1-deficient female BMDMs in comparison to wild-type cells, while no differences were observed between males. Transcriptomics of female and male BMDMs revealed an altered steroid hormone signaling in Nlrx1-deficient cells, and a "masculinization" of Nlrx1-deficient female BMDMs. Thus, our findings suggest that NLRX1 prevents uncontrolled inflammation and metabolism in females and therefore may contribute to the sex differences observed in infectious and inflammatory diseases
Equation of state and phonon frequency calculations of diamond at high pressures
The pressure-volume relationship and the zone-center optical phonon frequency
of cubic diamond at pressures up to 600 GPa have been calculated based on
Density Functional Theory within the Local Density Approximation and the
Generalized Gradient Approximation. Three different approaches, viz. a
pseudopotential method applied in the basis of plane waves, an all-electron
method relying on Augmented Plane Waves plus Local Orbitals, and an
intermediate approach implemented in the basis of Projector Augmented Waves
have been used. All these methods and approximations yield consistent results
for the pressure derivative of the bulk modulus and the volume dependence of
the mode Grueneisen parameter of diamond. The results are at variance with
recent precise measurements up to 140 GPa. Possible implications for the
experimental pressure determination based on the ruby luminescence method are
discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
DNA Nucleobase Synthesis at Titan Atmosphere Analog by Soft X-rays
Titan, the largest satellite of Saturn, has an atmosphere chiefly made up of
N2 and CH4 and includes traces of many simple organic compounds. This
atmosphere also partly consists of haze and aerosol particles which during the
last 4.5 gigayears have been processed by electric discharges, ions, and
ionizing photons, being slowly deposited over the Titan surface. In this work,
we investigate the possible effects produced by soft X-rays (and secondary
electrons) on Titan aerosol analogs in an attempt to simulate some prebiotic
photochemistry. The experiments have been performed inside a high vacuum
chamber coupled to the soft X-ray spectroscopy beamline at the Brazilian
Synchrotron Light Source, Campinas, Brazil. In-situ sample analyses were
performed by a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. The infrared spectra
have presented several organic molecules, including nitriles and aromatic CN
compounds. After the irradiation, the brownish-orange organic residue (tholin)
was analyzed ex-situ by gas chromatographic (GC/MS) and nuclear magnetic
resonance (1H NMR) techniques, revealing the presence of adenine (C5H5N5), one
of the constituents of the DNA molecule. This confirms previous results which
showed that the organic chemistry on the Titan surface can be very complex and
extremely rich in prebiotic compounds. Molecules like these on the early Earth
have found a place to allow life (as we know) to flourish.Comment: To appear in Journal of Physical Chemistry A.; Number of pages: 6;
Number of Figures: 5; Number of Tables: 1; Number of references:49; Full
paper at http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/jp902824
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