Wear effects and mechanisms of soot-contaminated automotive lubricants

A study has been carried out to investigate the influence of soot-contaminated automotive lubricants in the wear process of a simulated engine valve train contact. Previous research on this topic has been mainly performed from a chemical point of view in fundamental studies, with insufficient relevance to real engine conditions, i.e. load and geometry. This study investigates the conditions under which wear occurs through specimen testing. The objective of the work was to understand the wear mechanisms that occur within the contaminated contact zone, to help in future development of a predictive wear model to assist in the valve-train design process. The effects of soot in lubricants have been tested using a reciprocating test-rig specifically designed for this application, where a steel disc is held in a bath of oil and a steel ball (replicating a valve train contact) is attached to a reciprocating arm. The materials, contact geometry and loading conditions are all related to specific conditions experienced within an engine's valve train. The testing was carried out under various contact conditions, using carbon black as a soot simulant. Wear measurements were taken during the tests and wear scar morphology was studied. The results have revealed how varying lubrication conditions changes the wear rate of engine components and determines the wear mechanism that dominates for specific situations

Missing out or singling out? Parents’ views on how health professionals should work with them now to get the best for their child in the future

Aim To investigate parents’ views about how health professionals should identify and work with families who may benefit from additional input to maximise their children’s future health and well-being. Methods A qualitative study was conducted. Eleven focus group interviews were carried out with 54 parents living in the north of England. Comparative analysis was carried out to highlight similarities and differences across key concepts. Results The idea of preventive services was welcomed by all parents. They strongly believed that everyone should have access to services aiming to enhance child well-being. Parents recognised that some families need additional support but were concerned that targeted services could result in missing out on some services. They were also concerned that if certain services were offered because they belonged to a group with an increased likelihood of poor child outcomes this could lead to feelings of being assessed, stereotyped and judged and that their abilities as parents were being questioned. Parents projected a belief in themselves as ‘good parents’ even in adverse circumstances. Targeted services could be acceptable if health professionals introduced them sensitively, for example, encouraging attendance at groups to provide support was considered to be helpful. Conclusions Targeted additional preventive services can be acceptable and welcome if health professionals introduce them sensitively, in the context of an existing relationship, providing parents are active participants

E-fulfilment Systems for Quality Healthcare Delivery: A New Construct for Visualising and Designing

Electronically delivered information and funds transaction systems do offer such organisations great potential for efficiency and effectiveness, but many large integrated ICT systems, particularly in public service projects, have notoriously underperformed and disappointed. To ensure that quality is ‘engineered in’ a holistic, integrated and quality approach is required, and Total Quality Management (TQM) principles are the obvious foundations for this. TQM is a business philosophy that encourages an over-arching responsibility - both individual and collective - to quality and customer satisfaction. This paper describes a novel approach to viewing the operations of a healthcare provider where electronic means could be used to distribute information and facilitate electronic fund settlements, building around the Full Service Provider core. Specifically, an approach called the “triple pair flow” model is used to provide a view of healthcare delivery that is integrated, yet detailed, and that combines the strategic enterprise view with a business process view

Canadian Children’s Literature: An Alberta Survey

This article presents the findings of an online survey administered to Alberta elementary school teachers in 2000-2001. The survey explored the teachers’ knowledge and use of Canadian children’s literature and their thoughts about the role of Canadian literature in elementary school classrooms. Canadian children’s trade books espouse particular images and values that assist young Canadians in developing a sense of their national and personal identities. Respondents expressed their thoughts about the advantages and disadvantages of using Canadian literature. Overall, most teachers appeared to be unfamiliar with contemporary Canadian books and included Canadian materials in their classroom instruction only for specific Canadian content.Cet article présente les résultats d’une enquête en ligne effectuée auprès d’enseignants à l’élémentaire en Alberta, en 2000-2001. L’enquête portait sur les connaissances des enseignants au sujet de la littérature canadienne pour jeunes, l’usage qu’ils en faisaient et leurs avis sur le rôle de la littérature canadienne à l’élémentaire. Les ouvrages canadiens d’intérêt général publiés pour les jeunes transmettent des images et des valeurs qui aident les jeunes Canadiens à se développer une identité nationale et personnelle. Les répondants se sont exprimés sur les bienfaits et les désavantages d’employer la littérature canadienne. De façon générale, la majorité des enseignants semblent ne pas bien connaître les livres canadiens contemporains et n’avaient recours à la littérature canadienne que pour son contenu spécifiquement canadien

The development of peer coaching skills in primary school children in years 5 and 6

Can peer coaching skills be developed through ‘non academic’ tasks? The enquiry also aims to answer the following question: Can children give and receive feedback? The research methods reported are ethnographic combined with pre- and post- responses to the drawing task. The categorisation of the children’s drawings and their use of feedback were analysed and for the majority of children the quality of the feedback did not affect their choice of accepting the feedback or ignoring the suggestions made, which appeared counter to our initial hypothesis

Modeling Regional Recycling and Remanufacturing Processes: From Micro to Macro

This paper reports progress in modeling recycling and remanufacturing processes within metropolitan regional economies at the micro and macro levels. The paper presents interim results from a multi-year, inter-institutional research project funded by the National Science Foundation. We identify a number of issues that have arisen from an in-depth industry level analysis of obsolete and waste products generated in the Seattle, WA and Atlanta, GA metro regions from waste electronics (e-waste) and carpet production and consumption. The two metro regions were selected for comparative analysis because Seattle is a recognized leader in e-waste recycling and sustainable development programs, while Atlanta has been slow to embrace recycling but is only 70 miles from the center of US carpet manufacturing (Dalton) and has an industry trade association that has set aggressive targets for carpet recycling and remanufacturing, e-waste forms the focus of this paper. We provide a detailed elaboration of processes at the micro-level, along with an enumeration of problems and solutions in characterizing these new industries, including an integration with environmental Life Cycle Assessment, and embedding the results in a macro-economic modeling framework

Parto domiciliar planejado assistido por enfermeiras

Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Enfermagem, Florianópolis, 2010O número de atendimentos ao parto domiciliar planejado vem crescendo nos últimos anos. A Organização Mundial da Saúde recomenda o domicílio como local de parto, desde que atendido por profissional qualificado e com um plano de transferência. OBJETIVO: avaliar os resultados da assistência obstétrica e neonatal do trabalho de parto, parto e puerpério imediato domiciliares, planejados, assistidos por enfermeiras. MÉTODO: trata-se de um estudo transversal com amostra composta por todos os partos das mulheres assistidas por enfermeiras no domicílio, de forma planejada, incluindo as transferidas para uma instituição de saúde, e seus recémnascidos, no período de janeiro de 2005 a dezembro de 2009. Os dados foram coletados dos prontuários e das gravações audiovisuais arquivados pelas enfermeiras da Equipe Hanami e da Caderneta de Saúde do recém-nascido, com base em formulário padronizado. Realizou-se análise estatística descritiva, teste qui-quadrado ou exato de Fisher, teste t de Student e teste de Mann-Whitney. O nível de significância adotado foi de 5%. RESULTADOS: foram apresentados em dois artigos. No artigo 1, do total de 100 mulheres assistidas no domicílio a maioria era primípara (73,0%), com ensino superior completo (53,0%), teve acompanhante (99,0%), apresentou batimentos cardíacos fetais sem alteração (94,0%), com traçado do partograma sem alteração na curva de alerta (61,0%) e não apresentou distocia funcional (70,0%). A taxa de amniotomia foi de 9,0% e de líquido amniótico meconial de 7,0%. O tempo entre a primeira avaliação no domicílio e o parto foi < 5 horas em 46,1% dos casos, sendo mais frequente nas multíparas do que nas primíparas (p=0,0402). O parto de cócoras na água foi o mais escolhido (66,3%), e em especial pelas primíparas (p=0,0030). Praticamente metade das mulheres (49,4%) não necessitou de sutura perineal e apenas em 1,1% foi indicada a episiotomia. A 12 maioria dos recém-nascidos (96,6%) recebeu escore de Apgar do 1° minuto = 7, 100,0% tiveram contato pele a pele e 70,8% sucção efetiva. A icterícia neonatal foi a intercorrência mais comum (44,3%). O artigo 2 apresenta os resultados das transferências maternas e neonatais de um recém-nascido e 11 parturientes. A maioria era primípara (63,6%), 100,0% foram transferidas no período de dilatação, sendo que parada da dilatação cervical e da descida do feto foram as indicações mais frequentes. A única transferência neonatal foi por anomalia congênita. Dos neonatos nascidos no hospital, 81,8% receberam escore de Apgar do 1° e 5° minuto = 7 e não houve internação em Unidade de Terapia Intensiva. CONCLUSÕES: Os resultados obstétricos e neonatais indicam que é seguro o parto domiciliar planejado, assistido por enfermeira obstétrica, sob rigoroso protocolo assistencial e planejamento para as transferências. Os achados são semelhantes aos de pesquisas realizadas em países em que essa prática é consolidada e reconhecida pelo sistema de saúde. A comparação das características sociodemográficas e dos desfechos obstétricos e neonatais com a paridade, não mostrou diferença estatisticamente significativa na maioria das variáveis. Sugerem-se estudos com maior amostragem para verificar associações ou identificar variáveis preditoras de alguns desfechos e de transferências maternas.BACKGROUND: planned home birth assistance is growing despite hospital#s one. The World Health Organization recommends homebirth as safe if assisted by qualified professional and with a plan for access to a referral centre. OBJECTIVE: to evaluate outcomes from obstetrics and newborn assistance of planned labor, delivery and post partum by obstetric nurses. METHODS: cross-sectional analysis of retrospective data, of all planned labors of women assisted at home and transferred to health centre and their newborn from January 2005 to December 2009. Data were collected from standardized form and recorded video held by the nurses of Hanami Team and from Health Document of Newborn. Statistics descriptive analysis and Chi-Square Test or Fisher#s Exact Test, Student#s t-test and Mann-Whitney Test were under taken. The level of significance was established at 5%. RESULTS: outcomes were presented in two articles. In the first article, from a total of 100 women assisted at home, the majority was primiparous (73.0%), completed university graduation (53.0%), had a companion (99.0%), had normal fetal heart beat (94.0), normal partogram (61.0%) and had no function distocia (70.0%). Membranes were ruptured artificially in 9.0% and meconium stain in 7.0%. Time between first evaluation and delivery was < 5 hours in 46.1% being more frequent in multiparous than primiparous (p=0.0402). Water vertical (squatting) delivery was the most chosen position (66.3%), especially by primiparous (p=0.0030). Nearly half of women (49.4%) didn#t need perineal suture and in only 1.1% was indicated episiotomy. The majority of the newborn (96.6%) received Apgar score = 7 at one minute, 100.0% had long skin to skin contact with their mother and 70.8% breastfed successfully. Jaundice was the most common neonatal problem (44.3%). The second article presents outcomes of maternal and neonatal transfers of one newborn and 11 woman. Most of women were primiparous (63.6%) and 100.0% 14 were transferred in first labor stage. The main reasons for transfer were slow progress of the first or in the second stage of labour. The only newborn transfer was by congenital anomalies. Of neonatal born at hospital 81.8% received Apgar score = 7 at one and five minute and there were no admission in the neonatal intensive care unit. CONCLUSIONS: obstetrics and neonatal outcomes point out that planned home birth is safe, when assisted by obstetric nurse, with rigorous eligibility requirements and a good transportation and referral system when needed. Outcomes were similar to international papers where this practice is well integrated into the health system. There were no significant statistics difference in the majority of the variables when comparing women characteristics and neonatal and obstetrics outcomes to parity. Studies with bigger number of participants are suggested to verify associations or to identify predictor variable to some outcomes and maternal transfers

Imagining Oklahoma: Contemporary Women Writing Place

Place is constantly being reconstituted, yet few studies look at how that change occurs over time. This dissertation analyzes portrayals of Oklahoma in fiction to explore how the representation of place in Oklahoma evolved. My primary question is whether contemporary literary works perpetuate formative narratives established by Edna Ferber and John Steinbeck, or seek to supplant them with alternative versions of the formative stories of Oklahoma. I analyze eleven contemporary novels by seven award-winning Oklahoma women authors and compare them with Ferber's Cimarron and Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath, both of which are characterized as place-defining in geographic literature. My finding is that place images of rural settings, poverty, violence, racism, Christianity, self-reliance, family and community are portrayed by writers in both time periods. The theme of displacement replaced mobility in the contemporary novels. Books in the contemporary time period also frequently feature characters engaging in art. These findings indicate that place images evolve slowly with much overlap between the two time periods

Characterization of the Zona Incerta

Parkinson\u27s Disease affects more than 1 million people in the United States with 60,000 new cases being diagnosed each year. Currently, there is no cure for Parkinson\u27s Disease, but there are several treatment options available. Currently the most popular surgical option is Deep Brain Stimulation. Microelectrode recording helps identify nuclei as the microelectrode passes through them. While the firing frequencies of the target nuclei are well defined, other nuclei are not. This study will attempt to characterize the Zona Incerta, which is the structure directly above the Subthalamic Nucleus, a target nucleus. Characterization of the firing frequency of the Zona Incerta will help aid Deep Brain Stimulation procedures. Looking at the Interspike Intervals for 25 files showed that the average firing frequency is 11.6Hz. A file recorded in the STN was used for comparison and to validate the methods used. This yielded an average firing frequency of 37.5Hz