151,260 research outputs found
Prisonersā gang-related activity: the importance of bullying and moral disengagement
Gang-related activity can have a significant impact on the effective management of prisons in the UK, yet little is known about the characteristics of the prisoners involved. I it this study, 141 adult male prisoners' gang-related activity was examined in relation to their bullying behaviour and use of moral disengagement. Results showed that prisoners most involved in gang-related activity were likely to have spent a longer total time in the prison system, be perpetrators of bullying and have high levels of moral disengagement. Findings also show that moral disengagement partially mediates the relationship between bullying and gang-related activity Implications for treatment programmes and the prison estate are discussed
Indicator organisms to determine the use of chilling as a critical point in beef slaughter HACCP
End of project reportDuring chilling, temperatures of carcass surfaces at different sites change over time as do other parameters such as water activity (aw), the structure of the muscle and other tissues, as the carcass enters rigor mortis. Many of these factors are known to have a major effect on cell survival and growth and must be considered in determining the influence of chilling on bacterial survival on carcass surfaces. This study aimed to determine if chilling could be used as a critical control point (CCP) in beef slaughter in relation to pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7 and L. monocytogenes, using E. coli and Listeria innocua as pathogen indicators. The present study was designed to determine the influence of (a) chilling at 10oC for 72 h on the survival of E. coli and (b) chilling at 4oC for 72 h on the survival of L. innocua inoculated at different sites on beef carcasses. Three sites (neck, outside round and brisket) were inoculated (1) immediately after dressing while hot (E. coli and L. innocua) and (2) when cold after chilling (L. innocua). The influence of changes in surface aw was also considered and their relationship to the survival of E. coli and L. innocua over time was assessed. The data are discussed in relation to the use of chilling as a CCP in beef hazard analysis (HACCP) and the monitoring of neck temperature as the most suitable CCP.National Development Pla
Identity development in career-changing beginning teachers : a qualitative study of professional scientists becoming school teachers
This qualitative study provides a critical case to analyse the identity development of professionals who already have a strong sense of identity as scientists and have decided to relinquish their professional careers to become teachers. The study followed a group of professionals who undertook a one-year teacher education course and were assigned to secondary and middle-years schools on graduation. Their experiences were examined through the lens of self-determination theory, which posits that autonomy, confidence and relationships are important in achieving job satisfaction. The findings indicated that those teachers who were able to achieve this sense of autonomy and confidence, and had established strong relationships with colleagues generated a positive professional identity as a teacher. The failure to establish supportive relationships was a decisive event that challenged their capacity to develop a strong sense of identity as a teacher
Mechanical properties and thermomechanical behaviour of poly (ethylene-co-vinyl acetate) based shape memory polymer composites
Shape memory polymers (SMPs) are an emerging class of intelligent material that can program in to a temporary shape and recover to its original by exposing to a particular external stimulus. Poly (ethyleneco-vinyl acetate) (EVA) is one of the commercial polymers, which has been used to produce SMPs activated by heat. However, its low mechanical properties, low recovery stress and flexible behaviour restrict the potential applications under robust conditions. Herein, we developed a series of EVA based shape memory polymer composites (SMPCs) with glass fibre, carbon fibre and multi-walled carbon nanotube reinforcements. The effects of different reinforcements on tensile strength have been investigated. Moreover, the dynamic mechanical analysis has been carried out to characterize the glass transition temperature. The shape memory performance of the neat SMP and SMPCs were examined by measuring the angle recovery of 90Ā° bended strips. Subsequently, the shape fixity and recovery ratios of the samples were calculated. This paper presents the manufacturing methods and performance of the fibre and particle reinforced EVA based SMPCs. The inclusion of reinforcements have enhanced the applicability of EVA based SMPCs in wider range of engineering application. In this paper the applicability of such SMPCs for machine elements are deliberated. Accordingly, a conceptual design of a SMPC made mechanical coupler is presented
Topological inference for EEG and MEG
Neuroimaging produces data that are continuous in one or more dimensions.
This calls for an inference framework that can handle data that approximate
functions of space, for example, anatomical images, time--frequency maps and
distributed source reconstructions of electromagnetic recordings over time.
Statistical parametric mapping (SPM) is the standard framework for whole-brain
inference in neuroimaging: SPM uses random field theory to furnish -values
that are adjusted to control family-wise error or false discovery rates, when
making topological inferences over large volumes of space. Random field theory
regards data as realizations of a continuous process in one or more dimensions.
This contrasts with classical approaches like the Bonferroni correction, which
consider images as collections of discrete samples with no continuity
properties (i.e., the probabilistic behavior at one point in the image does not
depend on other points). Here, we illustrate how random field theory can be
applied to data that vary as a function of time, space or frequency. We
emphasize how topological inference of this sort is invariant to the geometry
of the manifolds on which data are sampled. This is particularly useful in
electromagnetic studies that often deal with very smooth data on scalp or
cortical meshes. This application illustrates the versatility and simplicity of
random field theory and the seminal contributions of Keith Worsley
(1951--2009), a key architect of topological inference.Comment: Published in at http://dx.doi.org/10.1214/10-AOAS337 the Annals of
Applied Statistics (http://www.imstat.org/aoas/) by the Institute of
Mathematical Statistics (http://www.imstat.org
The propagator for the step potential using the path decomposition expansion
We present a direct path integral derivation of the propagator in the
presence of a step potential. The derivation makes use of the Path
Decomposition Expansion (PDX), and also of the definition of the propagator as
a limit of lattice paths.Comment: To appear in DICE 2008 conference proceeding
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