DCC Digital Curation Manual: Instalment on Investment in an Intangible Asset

Instalment on the role of digital information as an intangible asset. From an economist’s point of view, this instalment explores some key properties of digital assets and digital preservation and argues the case that digital information should be classified as an intangible asset. Intangible assets (and investment) have recently been the subject of increased attention from economists, business analysts and accountancy and financial experts. This reflects the recognition that contemporary businesses owe much more of their market value to intangible assets than was formerly the case

A Trend Analysis of the Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Application, 1960-2010

It is well known that mathematics is a unique field, somewhere between the sciences and humanities. It is not well known, however, how researchers within the mathematics community use mathematical literature. In this study, I have examined 450 articles from the Journal of Mathematical Analysis and Application from 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000 and 2010 in order to discover how publishing has changed over time as well as country, institution, author and topic representation within the journal. From the data gathered, I have found that there has been a large amount of growth in the number of published articles as well as the number of countries represented. It was also seen that this journal follows Lotka;s law: a small number of authors publish the most papers while a large group of authors publish few papers. This work has provided insight and inspiration for future research in mathematical publishing and literature

A Digital Divide? Assessing Self-Perceived Communication Competency in an Online and Face-to-Face Basic Public Speaking Course

Previous research has documented an inverse relationship between speaking anxiety and self-perceived communication competence (SPCC). However, a recent assessment case study of an online basic public speaking course revealed that while the course decreased students’ speaking anxiety, it failed to increase their SPCC. Prompted by this surprising discrepancy and bolstered by continuing calls for increased exploration of educational quality of online public speaking courses, the current study compared SPCC between online (n = 147) and face-to-face (F2F) (n = 544) delivery of the large, standardized, multi-section basic public speaking course at our institution. Pretest scores of students’ overall SPCC were not significantly different between learning modalities. By the end of the F2F course, students perceived significant increases in SPCC. In stark contrast, however, the online sections failed to produce significant changes in SPCC. These findings suggest that the online basic public speaking course at our institution may not be designed in a way which promotes the development of SPCC—an important marker of our programmatic assessment. These results also draw attention to the need for further research assessing the comparison of delivery methods of the basic communication course and further discussion of best practices for online delivery of the course

Shaking in Their Digital Boots: Anxiety and Competence in the Online Basic Public Speaking Course

In response to a call for increased research on educational quality of online public speaking courses, this study assessed online course impacts on students’ (N = 147) speaker anxiety and self-perceived communication competence. A significant decrease in speaking anxiety occurred over the course of the semester, supporting efficacy of the online basic speech course at the university level. However, the predicted significant increase in self-perceived communication competence was not found, warranting additional considerations in online course designs. The significant reduction in speaking anxiety within the online course is promising and suggests that this learning goal can be met in this instructional setting. However, since enhancing students’ self-perceived communication competence remains a critical learning outcome of the basic communication course, these findings suggest that online course development heighten focus on related interventions

New and improved proteomics technologies for understanding complex biological systems: Addressing a grand challenge in the life sciences

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/93688/1/pmic7183.pd

Exploring Measurement Tools Used To Assess Knowledge, Attitudes, and Perceptions of Pregnant Women Toward Prenatal Screening: A Systematic Review

There is a lack of standardized measurement tools globally to assess knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of expecting women toward prenatal screening. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify reasons women pursue or decline prenatal screening and compare the strengths and limitations of available measurement tools used to assess pregnant women\u27s perceptions, knowledge, and attitudes toward prenatal screening. This review followed the five-step York methodology by Arksey and O\u27Malley and incorporated recommendations from the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis checklist for the extraction, analysis, and presentation of results. The five steps consisted of: (1) identification of the research questions; (2) searching for relevant studies; (3) selection of studies relevant to the research questions; (4) data charting; and (5) collation, summarization, and reporting of results. Four online databases (PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library) were selected after the librarian\u27s development of a detailed search strategy. The Rayyan platform was used between June 2023 and August 2023 to epitomize the articles produced from our search. A total of 68 eligible studies were included in the analysis. The top five major reasons for declining prenatal screening uptake included (1) being unsure of the risk of prenatal screening and harm to the baby or miscarriage

A psychosocial goal-setting and manualised support intervention for independence in dementia (NIDUS-Family) versus goal setting and routine care: a single-masked, phase 3, superiority, randomised controlled trial

BACKGROUND: Although national guidelines recommend that everyone with dementia receives personalised post-diagnostic support, few do. Unlike previous interventions that improved personalised outcomes in people with dementia, the NIDUS-Family intervention is fully manualised and deliverable by trained and supervised, non-clinical facilitators. We aimed to investigate the effectiveness of home-based goal setting plus NIDUS-Family in supporting the attainment of personalised goals set by people with dementia and their carers. METHODS: We did a two-arm, single-masked, multi-site, randomised, clinical trial recruiting patient-carer dyads from community settings. We randomly assigned dyads to either home-based goal setting plus NIDUS-Family or goal setting and routine care (control). Randomisation was blocked and stratified by site (2:1; intervention to control), with allocations assigned via a remote web-based system. NIDUS-Family is tailored to goals set by dyads by selecting modules involving behavioural interventions, carer support, psychoeducation, communication and coping skills, enablement, and environmental adaptations. The intervention involved six to eight video-call or telephone sessions (or in person when COVID-19-related restrictions allowed) over 6 months, then telephone follow-ups every 2-3 months for 6 months. The primary outcome was carer-rated goal attainment scaling (GAS) score at 12 months. Analyses were done by intention to treat. This trial is registered with the ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN11425138. FINDINGS: Between April 30, 2020, and May 9, 2021, we assessed 1083 potential dyads for eligibility, 781 (72·1%) of whom were excluded. Of 302 eligible dyads, we randomly assigned 98 (32·4%) to the control group and 204 (67·5%) to the intervention group. The mean age of participants with dementia was 79·9 years (SD 8·2), 169 (56%) were women, and 133 (44%) were men. 247 (82%) dyads completed the primary outcome, which favoured the intervention (mean GAS score at 12 months 58·7 [SD 13·0; n=163] vs 49·0 [14·1; n=84]; adjusted difference in means 10·23 [95% CI 5·75-14·71]; p<0·001). 31 (15·2%) participants in the intervention group and 14 (14·3%) in the control group experienced serious adverse events. INTERPRETATION: To our knowledge, NIDUS-Family is the first readily scalable intervention for people with dementia and their family carers that improves attainment of personalised goals. We therefore recommend that it be implemented in health and care services. FUNDING: UK Alzheimer's Society