Numerical study of the stability of some explicit finite-difference methods for oscillatory advection

This paper is made available with the permission of the Australian Mathematical Society Inc. Copyright © 2005 Australian Mathematical SocietyThe basis for modelling unsteady transport in fluids is the one-dimensional advection equation. When high-order finite-difference methods for constant velocity advection are applied to the variable velocity case, they generally degenerate at least one order. For example, Crowley's formula, which is second order for constant velocity advection, is only first order when used with variable velocities. Modification of Crowley's formula has recently yielded three formulae which are second order in the variable velocity case. Two commonly used local stability analyses have been carried out on these formulae with conflicting results. The resulting stability regions have been studied by means of a series of numerical experiments using an oscillatory advection velocity to determine their applicability in tidal streams.John Noye and David McInerne

High-level synthesis using the Julia language

The growing proliferation of FPGAs and High-level Synthesis (HLS) tools has led to a large interest in designing hardware accelerators for complex operations and algorithms. However, existing HLS toolflows typically require a significant amount of user knowledge or training to be effective in both industrial and research applications. In this paper, we propose using the Julia language as the basis for an HLS tool. The Julia HLS tool aims to decrease the barrier to entry for hardware acceleration by taking advantage of the readability of the Julia language and by allowing the use of the existing large library of standard mathematical functions written in Julia. We present a prototype Julia HLS tool, written in Julia, that transforms Julia code to VHDL. We highlight how features of Julia and its compiler simplified the creation of this tool, and we discuss potential directions for future work

Sequestration of G3BP coupled with efficient translation inhibits stress granules in Semliki Forest virus infection

Dynamic, mRNA-containing stress granules (SGs) form in the cytoplasm of cells under environmental stresses, including viral infection. Many viruses appear to employ mechanisms to disrupt the formation of SGs on their mRNAs, suggesting that they represent a cellular defense against infection. Here, we report that early in Semliki Forest virus infection, the C-terminal domain of the viral nonstructural protein 3 (nsP3) forms a complex with Ras-GAP SH3-domain–binding protein (G3BP) and sequesters it into viral RNA replication complexes in a manner that inhibits the formation of SGs on viral mRNAs. A viral mutant carrying a C-terminal truncation of nsP3 induces more persistent SGs and is attenuated for propagation in cell culture. Of importance, we also show that the efficient translation of viral mRNAs containing a translation enhancer sequence also contributes to the disassembly of SGs in infected cells. Furthermore, we show that the nsP3/G3BP interaction also blocks SGs induced by other stresses than virus infection. This is one of few described viral mechanisms for SG disruption and underlines the role of SGs in antiviral defense

A triangular coastal element developed for use in finite difference tidal models

This paper is made available with the permission of the Australian Mathematical Society Inc. Copyright © Australian Mathematical SocietyIn numerical models of environmental flows it is often necessary to implement impermeable boundaries of complicated shape. For example, when modelling the spread of pollutants in streams, the dispersion of contaminants in lakes and estuaries or the final coastal destination of an oil spill, the land-water boundary is not simply defined. Currently such boundaries are best represented using Finite Element (FE) techniques. However FE techniques are both computationally expensive and difficult to implement. As a result Finite Difference Methods (FDM) on rectangular grids have traditionally been used to model environmental flows. In this paper a triangular boundary element for finite difference models of tidal flows in coastal regions, which improves boundary resolution while maintaining computational efficiency, is developed and tested. Numerical predictions using the new approach are compared with predictions obtained using the traditional stepped boundary and an analytic solution for depth-integrated flow in an idealised estuary.David McInerney and John Noy

Developing and testing a strategy to enhance a palliative approach and care continuity for people who have dementia: Study overview and protocol

Background: Typically, dementia involves progressive cognitive and functional deterioration, leading to death. A palliative approach recognizes the inevitable health decline, focusing on quality of life. The approach is holistic, proactive, supports the client and the family, and can be provided by the client’s usual care team. In the last months of life, distressing symptoms, support needs, and care transitions may escalate. This project trialed a strategy intended to support a consistent, high quality, palliative approach for people with dementia drawing close to death. The strategy was to implement two communities of practice, drawn primarily from service provider organizations across care sectors, supporting them to address practice change. Communities comprised practitioners and other health professionals with a passionate commitment to dementia palliative care and the capacity to drive practice enhancement within partnering organizations. Project aims were to document: (i) changes driven by the communities of practice; (ii) changes in staff/practitioner characteristics during the study (knowledge of a palliative approach and dementia; confidence delivering palliative care; views on death and dying, palliative care, and a palliative approach for dementia); (iii) outcomes from perspectives of family carers, care providers, and community of practice members; (iv) the extent to which changes enhanced practice and care continuity; and (v) barriers to and facilitators of successful community of practice implementation. Methods/design: This action research project was implemented over 14 months in 2010/11 in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia and regional Launceston, Tasmania. Each state based community of practice worked with the researchers to scope existing practice and its outcomes. The research team compiled a report of existing practice recommendations and resources. Findings of these two steps informed community of practice action plans and development of additional resources. Change implementation was recorded and explored in interviews, comparisons being made with practice recommendations. Changes in staff/practitioner characteristics were evaluated using survey data. Findings from semi structured interviews and survey administration established outcomes from perspectives of family carers, care providers, and community of practice members. Consideration of processes and outcomes, across the two state based settings, informed identification of barriers and facilitators. Community of practice reflections also informed study recommendations

Gender and cultural differences in school motivation

The purpose of this research was to explore gender differences and cultural differences in school motivation among students from eight culturally diverse groups from Western and non-Western societies. The selected groups come from Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia, the Netherlands, and Qatar. More than 10,000 secondary school students reported their mastery, performance, social, and extrinsic motivation. Results showed (very) small to moderately large gender differences, which were largely in line with prior research in Western societies. Moreover, significant differences in school motivation across the eight cultural groups were found, however, only the Qatari sample strongly deviated from the other samples. In all cultural groups, females had slightly higher scores on mastery motivation and social motivation (except for Qatari students), and in several Western and non-Western samples, males had slightly higher scores on performance motivation. Gender differences in extrinsic motivation were less straightforward

Revitalising audit and feedback to improve patient care

Healthcare systems face challenges in tackling variations in patient care and outcomes. Audit and feedback aim to improve patient care by reviewing clinical performance against explicit standards and directing action towards areas not meeting those standards. It is a widely used foundational component of quality improvement, included in around 60 national clinical audit programmes in the United Kingdom. Ironically, there is currently a gap between what audit and feedback can achieve and what they actually deliver, whether led locally or nationally. Several national audits have been successful in driving improvement and reducing variations in care, such as for stroke and lung cancer, but progress is also slower than hoped for in other aspects of care (table 1). Audit and feedback have a chequered past.6 Clinicians might feel threatened rather than supported by top-down feedback and rightly question whether rewards outweigh efforts invested in poorly designed audit. Healthcare organisations have limited resources to support and act on audit and feedback. Dysfunctional clinical and managerial relationships undermine effective responses to feedback, particularly when it is not clearly part of an integrated approach to quality assurance and improvement. Unsurprisingly, the full potential of audit and feedback has not been realised

Suited for Success? : Suits, Status, and Hybrid Masculinity

This document is the Accepted Manuscript version. The final, definitive version of this paper has been published in Men and Masculinities, March 2017, doi: https://doi.org/10.1177/1097184X17696193, published by SAGE Publishing, All rights reserved.This article analyzes the sartorial biographies of four Canadian men to explore how the suit is understood and embodied in everyday life. Each of these men varied in their subject positions—body shape, ethnicity, age, and gender identity—which allowed us to look at the influence of men’s intersectional identities on their relationship with their suits. The men in our research all understood the suit according to its most common representation in popular culture: a symbol of hegemonic masculinity. While they wore the suit to embody hegemonic masculine configurations of practice—power, status, and rationality—most of these men were simultaneously marginalized by the gender hierarchy. We explain this disjuncture by using the concept of hybrid masculinity and illustrate that changes in the style of hegemonic masculinity leave its substance intact. Our findings expand thinking about hybrid masculinity by revealing the ways subordinated masculinities appropriate and reinforce hegemonic masculinity.Peer reviewe

Teachers' commitment and psychological well-being : Implications of self-beliefs for teaching in Hong Kong

Despite ample research on commitment in industrial settings, there has been no systematic attempt to investigate outcomes associated with teacher commitment. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the relationship between teacher commitment and psychological well-being in the work place using questionnaires. Hong Kong teachers (N = 857) participated. Hierarchical regression analyses were used to investigate how the three aspects of commitment pertaining to the organisation and occupation predicted relevant outcomes. Results showed that affective and normative commitment positively predicted psychological well-being in the work place: interpersonal fit at work, thriving at work, feeling of competency, perceived recognition at work, desire for involvement at work and job satisfaction. Continuance commitment was a negative predictor of some outcomes. Results of the current study provide support to Meyer’s 3 × 2 factor model of commitment. Findings are discussed in relation to the situation of teachers in the Hong Kong context