In situ determination of nitrogen content in InGaAsN quantum wells

The growth of InGaAsN/GaAs multiple quantum well structures by metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy is monitored by in situ reflectometry. The nitrogen incorporation is found to depend superlinearly on the precursor flow and a threshold value for the flow is observed. By in situmeasurements of the InGaAsN quantum well samples with a fixed indium content, the change in the reflectance during the quantum wellgrowth is found to be linearly dependent on the quantum well nitrogen content. A model to determine the nitrogen content already during the growth is developed. Moreover, the field of application of in situ reflectance monitoring is extended from thick layers to thin layers, including quantum wells.Peer reviewe

Disclosure of type 1 diabetes at work among Finnish workers

© 2016 Diabetes UK.Aims: To determine which self-management factors and psychosocial work factors were associated with disclosing diabetes to colleagues, line managers and occupational health personnel among workers with Type 1 diabetes. Methods: A total of 767 working-aged respondents with Type 1 diabetes completed a Finnish cross-sectional survey named 'People with Type 1 Diabetes in Worklife'. Factor analysis was carried out, followed by logistic regressions to estimate the associations between self-management factors, psychosocial work factors and the likelihood of disclosure separately to colleagues, line managers and occupational health personnel. The models were adjusted for sociodemographic, diabetes-related and work-related variables. Results: A total of 52% of the respondents had disclosed their diabetes to their colleagues, 45% to occupational health personnel and 28% to their line manager. Receiving social support and having good psychosocial work ability were significantly associated with disclosure to colleagues, line managers and occupational health personnel. Relations at work were associated with disclosure to colleagues and the line manager. Furthermore, opportunity to self-manage diabetes at work was associated with disclosure to colleagues. Conclusions: Line managers and colleagues have a remarkable role to play in providing workplace support to workers with Type 1 diabetes. Disclosure of Type 1 diabetes should be encouraged as line managers can provide workers with the right support, implement work adaptations and facilitate job retention. As only half of respondents disclosed their Type 1 diabetes at work, further research is required into the reasons for and consequences of not disclosing a diagnosis

Concealment of type 1 diabetes at work in Finland: a mixed-method study

Objectives To explore the possible reasons for concealing type 1 diabetes (T1D) at work. Methods The main set of data came from a cross-sectional survey (response rate 49.3%), the participants of which were 688 wage earners with T1D. Concealment of T1D was measured by asking respondents have they ever during their working career hidden their diabetes from their (A) colleagues and (B) line manager. Furthermore, semistructured interviews (n=20) were conducted to obtain deeper understanding. Questionnaire data were analysed using logistic regression analyses and qualitative interviews with inductive thematic analysis. Results About 30% of wage earners with T1D had concealed their condition during their working career from their colleagues and almost 20% from their line manager. Individuals aged 18–44 years age were more likely to conceal their T1D from their colleagues than older workers during their working career. Not disclosing T1D to the extended family (OR 5.24 (95% CI 2.06 to 13.35)), feeling an outsider at work (OR 2.47 (95% CI 1.58 to 3.84)), being embarrassed by receiving special attention at work (OR 1.99 (95% CI 1.33 to 2.96)) and neglecting treatment at work (OR 1.59 (95% CI 1.01 to 2.48)) were all associated with concealment of T1D from colleagues. The youngest age group of 18–24 years were more likely to conceal their T1D from their line managers than the older age groups during their working career. Not disclosing T1D to the extended family (OR 4.41 (95% CI 1.72 to 11.32)), feeling like an outsider at work (OR 2.51 (1.52 to 4.14)) and being embarrassed by receiving special attention at work (OR 1.81 (95% CI 1.13 to 2.91)) were associated with concealment of T1D from line managers. From the interviews, five main themes related to concealment emerged, expressing fears related to the consequences of telling: (1) being perceived as weak, (2) job discrimination, (3) unwanted attention, (4) being seen as a person who uses their T1D for seeking advantages and (5) losing privacy. Conclusions A considerable proportion of wage earners with T1D are concealing their diagnosis often because of feelings associated with stigma. Both overemphasis and underestimation of T1D at work by the colleagues or line manager may lead to concealing T1D and may thus be harmful to self-management of T1D. The obstacles in disclosing T1D might be diminished by giving adequate information at the workplace about the condition and its significance

On dimension reduction in Gaussian filters

A priori dimension reduction is a widely adopted technique for reducing the computational complexity of stationary inverse problems. In this setting, the solution of an inverse problem is parameterized by a low-dimensional basis that is often obtained from the truncated Karhunen-Loeve expansion of the prior distribution. For high-dimensional inverse problems equipped with smoothing priors, this technique can lead to drastic reductions in parameter dimension and significant computational savings. In this paper, we extend the concept of a priori dimension reduction to non-stationary inverse problems, in which the goal is to sequentially infer the state of a dynamical system. Our approach proceeds in an offline-online fashion. We first identify a low-dimensional subspace in the state space before solving the inverse problem (the offline phase), using either the method of "snapshots" or regularized covariance estimation. Then this subspace is used to reduce the computational complexity of various filtering algorithms - including the Kalman filter, extended Kalman filter, and ensemble Kalman filter - within a novel subspace-constrained Bayesian prediction-and-update procedure (the online phase). We demonstrate the performance of our new dimension reduction approach on various numerical examples. In some test cases, our approach reduces the dimensionality of the original problem by orders of magnitude and yields up to two orders of magnitude in computational savings

From multiple perspectives to shared understanding

The aim of this study was to explore how learners operating in a small group reach shared understanding as they work out joint research questions and build a theoretical framework and to identify the resources and tools they used in the process. The learners’ own interpretations of their group activities and learning were also taken into account. The data, consisting of group discussions and the documents produced by the group, were subjected to a qualitative content analysis. The group members employed a variety of resources and tools to exchange their individual perspectives and achieve shared understanding. Summaries of relevant literature laid a foundation for the group’s theoretical discussions. Reflective comparisons between their book knowledge and their personal experiences of online interaction and collaboration were frequent, suggesting that such juxtapositions may have enhanced their learning by intertwining the content to be mastered and the activities entailed by this particular content

Food and nutrient intake in relation to mental wellbeing

BACKGROUND: We studied food consumption and nutrient intake in subjects with depressed mood, anxiety and insomnia as indices of compromised mental wellbeing. METHODS: The study population consisted of 29,133 male smokers aged 50 to 69 years who entered the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study in 1985–1988. This was a placebo-controlled trial to test whether supplementation with alpha-tocopherol or beta-carotene prevents lung cancer. At baseline 27,111 men completed a diet history questionnaire from which food and alcohol consumption and nutrient intake were calculated. The questionnaire on background and medical history included three symptoms on mental wellbeing, anxiety, depression and insomnia experienced in the past four months. RESULTS: Energy intake was higher in men who reported anxiety or depressed mood, and those reporting any such symptoms consumed more alcohol. Subjects reporting anxiety or depressed mood had higher intake of omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings conflict with the previous reports of beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids on mood

Implementing virtual collaborative inquiry practises in a middle-school context

The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.The aim of the present study was to investigate the challenges that relate to the implementation of virtual inquiry practises in middle school. The case was a school course in which a group of Finnish students (N = 14) and teachers (N = 7) completed group inquiries through virtual collaboration, using a web-based learning environment. The task was to accomplish a cross-disciplinary inquiry into cultural issues. The students worked mainly at home and took much responsibility for their course achievements. The investigators analysed the pedagogical design of the course and the content of the participants' interaction patterns in the web-based environment, using qualitative content analysis and social network analysis. The findings suggest that the students succeeded in producing distinctive cultural products, and both the students and the teachers adopted novel roles during the inquiry. The web-based learning environment was used more as a coordination tool for organizing the collaborative work than as a forum for epistemic inquiry. The tension between the school curriculum and the inquiry practises was manifest in the participants' discussions of the assessment criteria of the course.Peer reviewe

Novel sample-substrates for the determination of new psychoactive substances in oral fluid by desorption electrospray ionization-high resolution mass spectrometry

A reliable screening and non invasive method based on the use of microextraction by packed sorbent coupled with desorption electrospray ionization-high resolution mass spectrometry was developed and validated for the detection of new psychoactive substances in oral fluid. The role of different sample substrates in enhancing signal intensity and stability was evaluated by testing the performances of two polylactide-based materials, i.e. non-functionalized and functionalized with carbon nanoparticles, and a silica-based material compared to commercially available polytetrafluorethylene supports. The best results were achieved by using the nonfunctionalized polylactide substrates to efficiently ionize compounds in positive ionization mode, whereas the silica coating proved to be the best choice for operating in negative ionization mode. LLOQs in the low μg/L, a good precision with CV% always lower than 16% and RR% in the 83(±4)-120(±2)% range, proved the suitability of the developed method for the determination of the analytes in oral fluid. Finally, the method was applied for screening oral fluid samples for the presence of psychoactive substances during private parties, revealing mephedrone in only one sample out of 40 submitted to analysis

Development of the Liverpool Adverse Drug Reaction Avoidability Assessment Tool

Aim To develop and test a new tool to assess the avoidability of adverse drug reactions that is suitable for use in paediatrics but which is also applicable to a variety of other settings. Methods The study involved multiple phases. Preliminary work involved using the Hallas scale and a modification of the existing Hallas scale, to assess two different sets of adverse drug reaction (ADR) case reports. Phase 1 defined, modified and refined a new tool using multidisciplinary teams. Phase 2 involved the assessment of 50 ADR case reports from a prospective study of paediatric inpatients by individual assessors. Phase 3 compared assessments with the new tool for individuals and groups in comparison to the ‘gold standard’ (the avoidability outcome set by a panel of senior investigators: an experienced clinical pharmacologist, paediatrician and pharmacist). Main Outcome Measures Inter-rater reliability (IRR), measure of disagreement and utilization of avoidability categories. Results Preliminary work—Pilot phase: results for the original Hallas cases were fair and pairwise kappa scores ranged from 0.21 to 0.36. Results for the modified Hallas cases were poor, pairwise kappa scores ranged from 0.06 to 0.16. Phase 1: on initial use of the new tool, agreement between the two multidisciplinary groups was found on 13/20 cases with a kappa score of 0.29 (95% CI -0.04 to 0.62). Phase 2: the assessment of 50 ADR case reports by six individual reviewers yielded pairwise kappa scores ranging from poor to good 0.12 to 0.75 and percentage exact agreement (%EA) ranged from 52–90%. Phase 3: Percentage exact agreement ranged from 35–70%. Overall, individuals had better agreement with the ‘gold standard’. Conclusion Avoidability assessment is feasible but needs careful attention to methods. The Liverpool ADR avoidability assessment tool showed mixed IRR. We have developed and validated a method for assessing the avoidability of ADRs that is transparent, more objective than previous methods and that can be used by individuals or groups

Content analysis: What are they talking about?

Quantitative content analysis is increasingly used to surpass surface level analyses in Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning (e.g., counting messages), but critical reflection on accepted practice has generally not been reported. A review of CSCL conference proceedings revealed a general vagueness in definitions of units of analysis. In general, arguments for choosing a unit were lacking and decisions made while developing the content analysis procedures were not made explicit. In this article, it will be illustrated that the currently accepted practices concerning the ‘unit of meaning’ are not generally applicable to quantitative content analysis of electronic communication. Such analysis is affected by ‘unit boundary overlap’ and contextual constraints having to do with the technology used. The analysis of e-mail communication required a different unit of analysis and segmentation procedure. This procedure proved to be reliable, and the subsequent coding of these units for quantitative analysis yielded satisfactory reliabilities. These findings have implications and recommendations for current content analysis practice in CSCL research