Chemistry and metabolism of glycyrrhetic acid and some of its derivatives

Imperial Users onl

My research journey from MSc dissertation to published journal article

I studied for the MSc Social Research Methods in 2012. My dissertation was a qualitative study of the impact of educational and vocational activities on homeless people’s everyday lives. I conducted semi-structured interviews and small scale participant observation at three homeless centres in London and I used thematic analysis to analyse my data. The findings highlight the importance of these activities in helping to restore homeless people’s self-efficacy, self-confidence and agency

Task-based language teaching frameworks in technology enhanced learning contexts

Task-based language teaching (TBLT) continues to be more widely applied as an approach in second language education. Benefits and challenges of TBLT have been debated over the past thirty years. The advent of technology enhanced learning (TEL) and the use of TBLT in such contexts have revealed further benefits and challenges within this approach. This study summarises TBLT history, before reviewing recent literature relating to TBLT and TEL with specific reference to such challenges as student participation, error correction, fluency, accuracy and the role of feedback. Literature that addresses the conceptualisation of the TBLT approach in TEL contexts is somewhat scant. This qualitative study, situated in the ESOL department of a Canadian higher education institution addresses this gap through phenomenographic analysis of teacher and student interview transcripts. Findings are analysed with reference to established TBLT frameworks that have been broadly used in classroombased settings. The outcome space reveals six categories of description in hierarchical sequence of complexity. These categories of description fit within three structural aspects, in which the phenomenon is experienced in three qualitatively different ways. These involve a shift from the enabling factors of the context, to needs-related skills of the individual, and to the facilitation of language acquisition in a collaborative and reflective technology-mediated environment. Findings are then discussed in terms of a wide range of recommended adaptations to existing TBLT frameworks for more effective use in online and blended contexts, and in terms of associated benefits and challenges. Key contributions to new understanding concern access to digital resources during on-task stages, further opportunities for learner choice and peer training, the incorporation of soft skills training, and the refining of task-related documentation and procedures. Findings are also applied to recommended changes to initial teacher training programmes in ELT and to ongoing aspects of professional development

Leaving No Footprints

In this paper, clients’ experiences of therapy are used to examine two essential paradoxes: neutrality and influence, in the minimalist version of Solution Focused Brief Therapy developed by the author and his colleagues at BRIEF. Both concepts are linked to trust, a radical trust in each client to know what is best for their future, and a trust that decisions about this future are solely the business of the client. Maintaining this trust in the face of our own ideas and good wishes towards our clients requires a discipline which may not suit all Solution Focused practitioners

Using evidence to improve Psychological Therapies Services

Psychological therapy services offer help to clients with many different sorts of mental health problems using a variety of therapies provided by a range of different professional groups and are supported by a large amount of research evidence. However, applying evidence-based practice in routine clinical settings presents particular challenges. This paper outlines some of the difficulties applying research findings to routine settings and argues for a more inclusive approach to linking evidence with practice. It describes a systematic approach to service evaluation and practice based evidence within a large psychological therapies service. This approach is integrated into the service delivery. It enables clinicians to become engaged in the process of reflecting on evidence in a non-threatening way and allows innovative ways of enhancing reflective practice by linking evidence with practice in routine settings

Investment status of railroad securities

Thesis (M.B.A.)--Boston University This item was digitized by the Internet Archive

The Effect of Air Knife Geometry on Coated Board Properties

The purpose of this thesis was to determine the effect of air knife angle and the distance between the air knife blades and backing-roll on coated board properties. Results of the experiment indicated that increasing the angle resulted in more uniform and smaller coated pore size. Increasing the distance resulted in more uniform pores with no effect on size. The optimum angle of operation was found to be between 17 and 20 degrees (approximate impingement angle) and optimum distance was determined to be between 80 and 90 mils. Further work that can be completed as a result of this thesis include; jet patterns of air knife isobars, locating exact optimization of angle and distance, determination of exact air jet angle, and the effect of orifice opening