Heterotopia in Networked Learning: Beyond the Shadow Side of Participation in Learning Communities

As it has evolved, networked learning (NL) has come to emphasise the importance of the collaborative learning aspects and possibilities of online learning. The importance assumed for 'collaboration based' forms of participation within NL has almost become ubiquitous and is frequently seen as an unquestionable good aspect - a utopian view of participation which does not acknowledge the 'shadow side' of participation in learning. In the paper we examine some of the darker sides of collaborative participation which in its extreme manifestations can be experienced as normative and, we suggest, a form of tyranny of the dominant and which instead of having a liberating effect, reinforces a form of oppression and control. We argue this is most likely to be the case in the absence of reflexivity and understanding of different ways and approaches to participation. We go on to suggest an alternative and potentially more productive perspective which, after Foucault, is a heterotopian one. A perspective that acknowledges and assumes disruption and which disturbs our customary notion of ourselves. Participation in heterotopian spaces is disturbing and ambiguous, but it offers a space in which to imagine, to desire and act differently

Identification of volatile contaminants of space cabin materials Final report, Jan. 1967 - Feb. 1968

Screening tests on candidate construction materials for spacecraft cabins to determine gas-off and oxidation product

Leprosy and tuberculosis concomitant infection: a poorly understood, age-old relationship

Historically, archaeological evidence, post-mortem findings and retro- spective analysis of leprosy institutions’ data demonstrates a high observed incidence of concomitant infection with leprosy and tuberculosis (TB). However, reports of concomitant infection in the modern literature remain scarce, with estimates of annual new case detection rates of concomitant infection at approximately 0·02 cases per 100,000 population. Whilst the mechanism for this apparent decline in concomitant infections remains unclear, further research on this topic has remained relatively neglected. Modelling of the interaction of the two organisms has suggested that the apparent decline in observations of concomitant infection may be due to the protective effects of cross immunity, whilst more recently others have questioned whether it is a more harmful relationship, predisposing towards increased host mortality. We review recent evidence, comparing it to previously held understanding on the epidemiological relationship and our own experience of concomitant infection. From this discussion, we highlight several under-investigated areas, which may lead to improvements in the future delivery of leprosy management and services, as well as enhance understanding in other fields of infection management. These include, a) highlighting the need for greater understanding of host immunogenetics involved in concomitant infection, b) whether prolonged courses of high dose steroids pre-dispose to TB infection? and, c) whether there is a risk of rifampicin resistance developing in leprosy patients treated in the face of undiagnosed TB and other infections? Longitudinal work is still required to characterise these temporal relationships further and add to the current paucity of literature on this subject matter

Identification of volatile contaminants of space cabin materials Technical report, Nov. 1965 - Feb. 1967

Volatile contaminants of space cabin material

The Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster: distribution of hospital damage in Miyagi prefecture.

Copyright © 2014 World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine.Introduction: In catastrophic events, a key to reducing health risks is to maintain functioning of local health facilities. However, little research has been conducted on what types and levels of care are the most likely to be affected by catastrophic events.Problem: The Great East Japan Earthquake Disaster (GEJED) was one of a few megadisasters that have occurred in an industrialized society. This research aimed to develop an analytical framework for the holistic understanding of hospital damage due to the disaster.Methods: Hospital damage data in Miyagi Prefecture at the time of the GEJED were collected retrospectively. Due to the low response rate of questionnaire-based surveillance (7.7%), publications of the national and local governments, medical associations, other nonprofit organizations, and home web pages of hospitals were used, as well as literature and news sources. The data included information on building damage, electricity and water supply, and functional status after the earthquake. Geographical data for hospitals, coastline, local boundaries, and the inundated areas, as well as population size and seismic intensity were collected from public databases. Logistic regression was conducted to identify the risk factors for hospitals ceasing inpatient and outpatient services. The impact was displayed on maps to show the geographical distribution of damage.Results: Data for 143 out of 147 hospitals in Miyagi Prefecture (97%) were obtained. Building damage was significantly associated with closure of both inpatient and outpatient wards. Hospitals offering tertiary care were more resistant to damage than those offering primary care, while those with a higher proportion of psychiatric care beds were more likely to cease functioning, even after controlling for hospital size, seismic intensity, and distance from the coastline.Conclusions: Implementation of building regulations is vital for all health care facilities, irrespective of function. Additionally, securing electricity and water supplies is vital for hospitals at risk for similar events in the future. Improved data sharing on hospital viability in a future event is essential for disaster preparedness

Fast nucleon emission as a probe of the isospin momentum dependence

In this article we investigate the structure of the non-local part of the symmetry term, that leads to a splitting of the effective masses of protons and neutrons in asymmetric matter. Based on microscopic transport simulations we suggest some rather sensitive observables in collisions of neutron-rich (unstable) ions at intermediate ($RIA$) energies. In particular we focus the attention on pre-equilibrium nucleon emissions. We discuss interesting correlations between the N/Z content of the fast emitted particles and their rapidity or transverse momentum, that show a nice dependence on the prescription used for the effective mass splitting.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, revtex

Effects of maternal separation on brain stress systems: Modulation by voluntary exercise in male rats

Early life stress (ELS) has been shown to predispose animals to anxiety- and depression-like behaviour in adulthood. Recent evidence suggests that repeated stress in adulthood dysregulates the hypothalamic orexin/hypocretin system. The current study examined the effects of maternal separation (MS), a well validated rodent model of ELS, on the expression of anxiety-like behaviour following the re-exposure to stress in adulthood. The pattern of Fos-expression in hypothalamic orexin neurons and stress sensitive brain regions was also characterised. Finally, this study examined whether the effects of this double-hit of stress could be reversed using a voluntary exercise intervention during early adulthood. Male rat pups (n=25) were removed from dams for 3hrs on postnatal days (PND) 2-14 (MS). Controls (C; n=25) remained undisturbed during this period except for weekly weighing. On PND 75, animals were randomly allocated to either a ‘stress’ (30min restraint stress) or ‘no stress’ condition (S or NS). A subset of MS animals (n=6) was allowed access to exercise wheels for 1hr/day from PND 40-70. Following this, all animals were behaviourally tested in the open field apparatus for 10mins. Two hours after initiation of restraint, animals were perfused and brains were processed for Fos-protein immunohistochemistry and co-labelled for orexin or tyrosine-hydroxylase (TH). Counts of Fos-positive neurons were made in the hypothalamus, paraventricular nucleus (PVN), paraventricular thalamus (PVT) and ventral tegmental area (VTA). MS-NS rats exhibited behaviour that was indistinguishable from C-NS rats. However, male MS-S rats exhibited decreased exploratory behaviour in the open field task compared to C-S rats. This was associated with a decrease in the percentage of Fos-positive orexin cells in the hypothalamus and reduced Fos-protein in the PVN, PVT and TH-positive VTA cells compared to C-S rats. Interestingly, the exercise intervention reversed the behavioural effects of MS following stress and normalized orexin cell and VTA-TH cell Fos-expression. In conclusion, MS resulted in altered open field behaviour and hypoactivation of the orexin system in response to adult stress. The current study indicates that changes in orexin system function may involve altered activity in stress-sensitive brain regions such as the VTA, PVN and PVT. Importantly, the behavioural and neural changes observed were reversed by voluntary exercise in early adulthood. These findings highlight the importance of non-pharmacological interventions in the treatment of stress-related disorders

Learning From Early Attempts to Generalize Darwinian Principles to Social Evolution

Copyright University of Hertfordshire & author.Evolutionary psychology places the human psyche in the context of evolution, and addresses the Darwinian processes involved, particularly at the level of genetic evolution. A logically separate and potentially complementary argument is to consider the application of Darwinian principles not only to genes but also to social entities and processes. This idea of extending Darwinian principles was suggested by Darwin himself. Attempts to do this appeared as early as the 1870s and proliferated until the early twentieth century. But such ideas remained dormant in the social sciences from the 1920s until after the Second World War. Some lessons can be learned from this earlier period, particularly concerning the problem of specifying the social units of selection or replication

Identification of volatile contaminants of space cabin materials Final report, Jan. - Jun. 1969

Identification of volatile contaminants of space cabin material

Recruitment of hypothalamic orexin neurons after formalin injections in adult male rats exposed to a neonatal immune challenge

Exposure to early life physiological stressors, such as infection, is thought to contribute to the onset of psychopathology in adulthood. In animal models, injections of the bacterial immune challenge, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), during the neonatal period has been shown to alter both neuroendocrine function and behavioural pain responses in adulthood. Interestingly, recent evidence suggests a role for the lateral hypothalamic peptide orexin in stress and nociceptive processing. However, whether neonatal LPS exposure affects the reactivity of the orexin system to formalin-induced inflammatory pain in later life remains to be determined. Male Wistar rats (n=13) were exposed to either LPS or saline (0.05mg/kg, i.p) on postnatal days (PND) 3 and 5. On PND 80-97, all rats were exposed to a subcutaneous hindpaw injection of 2.25% formalin. Following behavioural testing, animals were perfused and brains processed for Fos-protein and orexin immunohistochemistry. Rats treated with LPS during the neonatal period exhibited decreased licking behaviours during the interphase of the formalin test, the period typically associated with the active inhibition of pain, and increased grooming responses to formalin in adulthood. Interestingly, these behavioural changes were accompanied by an increase in the percentage of Fos-positive orexin cells in the dorsomedial and perifornical hypothalamus in LPS-exposed animals. Similar increases in Fos-protein were also observed in stress and pain sensitive brain regions that receive orexinergic inputs. These findings highlight a potential role for orexin in the behavioural responses to pain and provide further evidence that early life stress can prime the circuitry responsible for these responses in adulthood