Studies on dorsal fin rot in farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) parr

Aspects of dorsal fin rot in farmed Atlantic salmon parr were investigated and the associated pathology described. Substantial evidence was obtained which suggested that the condition was caused and maintained by repeated bites from other parr. The gross histological and scanning electron microscopic appearance of the lesions were consistent with bite wounds and the typical pathology was reproduced by repeated simulated bites. During behavioural experiments the parr were observed to both bite and damage each others dorsal fins. The typical nodular lesions were more prevalent and took longer to heal at lower temperatures. Dorsal fin rot was found to occur in the absence of damage to the other fins and was more severe in smaller fish. The bacteria associated with the natural lesions and following controlled damage were studied, but not found to play a significant role in the aetiology. They were capable of neither initiating nor maintaining the lesions. The main site of bacterial colonisation appeared to be on exposed fin rays. It was demonstrated that the natural lesions started to resolve as soon as the fish were placed in isolation. A limited study failed to demonstrate a definite relationship between dorsal fin rot and increased susceptibility to Aeromonas salmonicida infection. The implications of all these findings for control of the condition are discussed

Multifunctional

The New Product Development (NPD) process in manufacturing industry, together with the application of multi functional teams in the process, has been well studied in the extant literature. Tools, and techniques used to assist project teams in NPD have also been investigated in detail. However, many of the claims of the effectiveness of 'tools’ such as Rapid Prototyping (RP) and techniques such as Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) are anecdotal in nature, lacking empirical evidence, or promoted by authors with a commercial interest in the subject. Therefore, as part of the objectives of this research to provide more empirical data, case studies were conducted over a period of 12 years in companies such as Flymo, Kenwood, and Domnick Hunter. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) were selected for the case studies to provide a rich source of quantitative and qualitative data from which some of the root causes of NPD problems were identified. A common NPD problem identified was project delays, following late changes to the specification and the product engineering. It was clear however, that not all of the changes had a negative impact on a project, indeed some teamwork studies encourage changes to improve the product value and quality. A 'penalty weighting' model to quantify the 'impact' of changes with respect to any benefits was developed to identify the most cost effective period for teamwork studies and provide an efficiency profile for each project. A strategic business approach for Rapid Prototyping activities was also presented together with a 'sub-group' methodology to encourage innovation and reduce 'front end' delays. Appropriate project management control documentation was developed for the NPD teams to support the control of various KPIs including product deliverables, product costs, capital spends and launch timing

Indirect language therapy for children with persistent language impairment in mainstream primary schools : outcomes from a cohort intervention

A manualized language therapy developed via a randomized controlled trial had proved efficacious in the short-term in developing expressive language for mainstream primary school children with persistent language impairment. This therapy had been delivered to a predetermined schedule by speech and language therapists or speech and language therapy assistants to children individually or in groups. However, this model of service delivery is no longer the most common model in UK schools, where indirect consultancy approaches with intervention delivered by school staff are often used. A cohort study was undertaken to investigate whether the therapy was equally efficacious when delivered to comparable children by school staff, rather than speech and language therapists or speech and language therapy assistants. Children in the cohort study were selected using the same criteria as in the randomized controlled trial, and the same manualized therapy was used, but delivered by mainstream school staff using a consultancy model common in the UK. Outcomes were compared with those of randomized controlled trial participants. The gains in expressive language measured in the randomized controlled trial were not replicated in the cohort study. Less language-learning activity was recorded than had been planned, and less than was delivered in the randomized controlled trial. Implications for 'consultancy' speech and language therapist service delivery models in mainstream schools are outlined

Simplifying the Management of Complexity: as Achieved in Nature

Governance scientists Dr Shann Turnbull and Prof James Guthrie AM use stakeholder firms to illustrate how to simplify the management of complexity and use natural laws to transform corporations into common good enterprises to counter global existential risks

Shame: In Defence of an Essential Moral Emotion

I argue that shame is an essential moral emotion, and that the capacity to feel shame is vital to allow us to pick out certain types of moral value. I do this by sketching out a general role for moral emotions, distinguishing shame from other moral emotions, notably guilt, and then arguing that shame has a distinctive role to play as a moral emotion that cannot be played by guilt. By marking out a key role for the emotions in moral life, I am able to address two key concerns about moral judgement. First, I am able to explain how we overcome frame problems, allowing us to notice and appropriately conceptualise moral concerns, against a backdrop of everyday life. Second, I can give an account of the apparent intrinsically-motivating nature of moral judgements. Shame, in central cases, is based on self-assessments of inadequacy; we judge ourselves to be less than we should be. This is contrasted with guilt, which centres on judgements of transgression against moral norms. It is also contrasted with embarrassment and humiliation, neither of which are primarily moral emotions. Shame has a distinctive role to play as a moral emotion. It is capable of picking out cases of moral value that guilt cannot; in particular, supererogatory value and cases of wrongdoing by collectives, in the absence of individual culpability. Pace the claims of numerous psychologists and philosophers, shame is not necessarily a dangerous emotion; rather, only certain types of shame have the potential to do damage to those experiencing them. Situationist arguments threaten the role of shame as a moral emotion, by suggesting that there are no robust character traits; these claims are mistaken. Therefore, I am able to sustain the conclusion that shame has a vital role to play in moral life

Combining SCADA and vibration data into a single anomaly detection model to predict wind turbine component failure

Reducing downtime through predictive or condition-based maintenance is a promising strategy to help reduce costs associated with wind farm operation and maintenance. To help effectively monitor wind turbine condition, operators now rely on multiply sources of data to make informed operational decisions which can minimise downtime, increasing availability and profitability of any given site. Two of such approaches are SCADA temperature and vibration monitoring, which are typically performed in isolation and compared over time for both fault diagnostics and reliability analysis. Presenting two separate case studies, this paper describes a methodology to bring multiple data sources together to diagnose faults by using a single-class support vector machine classifier to assess normal behaviour model error, with results showing that anomalies can be detected more consistently when compared to more standard approaches of analysing each data source in isolation

Moving on Up

This article shows how a practical approach, developed at Cranfield School of Management, can shift the dials on the numbers of women executives in organizations. We illustrate how we have used our Inclusive Talent Management template to guide our partnership with HSBC’s 80,000-strong global Operations, Services and Technology division (HOST). The HOST Executive Committee (ExCo) established a programme called Accelerating for Difference to create a strong pipeline of female talent and achieve greater female representation, particularly at the most senior levels