Time for "justice" : Research to inform the development of a human rights framework for the design and implementation of an "acknowledgement and accountability forum" on historic abuse of children in Scotland

In 2002, Chris Daly raised a petition to the Scottish Executive (PE535) calling for an independent inquiry into the historic abuse of children in Scotland. This led to the setting up of a reference group in 2003, in order to explore the role of a truth and reconciliation process that was identified as an important step in dealing with historic abuse. In 2004, there was an apology for such abuse by the then First Minister, Jack McConnell. In 2005, Tom Shaw led the Historic Abuse Systemic Review. This covered the period 1950 – 1995 and was completed in 2007. In 2006, a sub-group of the reference group that was set up in 2003 identified the need for a service for survivors. This led to the funding of ‘In Care Survivor Scotland’ in 2008, under the umbrella of ‘Open Secret’. It is important to see this current report in this context. Eight years on from the initial petition, it is clear that this process has been seen by many as a long road to acknowledging the need to address outstanding human rights issues in relation to the historic abuse of children in care in Scotland

Macrophage-sensory neuronal interaction in HIV-1 gp120-induced neurotoxicity

Acknowledgements We thank Dr Jim Perkins of University College London for his help with the statistical analysis of our gene array data. We thank Prof. Maria Papathanasopoulos from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, for the gift of gp120Bal.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Precise Model for Small-Body Thermal Radiation Pressure Acting on Spacecraft

A precise representation of small-body surface thermal radiation pressure effects acting on orbiting spacecraft is discussed. The proposed framework takes advantage of a general Fourier series expansion to compute small-body surface thermal radiation pressure. Fourier series expansion has been used before for the precise representation of solar radiation pressure effects on spacecraft orbiting small bodies. This framework takes into account the geometric relationship of orbiting spacecraft with the small-body surface, surface thermal parameters of the small body, and the shape and surface properties of spacecraft allowing for the computation of thermal radiation pressure, which may also be used for the generation of precise orbit determination solutions. After presenting the general model, an example application of the model for the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft in orbit about Asteroid (101955) Bennu is provided. Simulation studies were used to evaluate the effect of mismodeling of thermal radiation pressure on the spacecraft and study the use of the proposed method for generating precise orbit determination solutions

The external benefits of higher education

The private market benefits of education are widely studied at the micro level, although the magnitude of their macroeconomic impact is disputed. However, there are additional benefits of education, which are less well understood. In this paper the macroeconomic effects of external benefits of higher education are estimated using the “micro-to-macro” simulation approach. Two types of externalities are explored: technology spillovers and productivity spillovers in the labour market. These links are illustrated and the results suggest they could be very large. However, this is qualified by the dearth of microeconomic evidence, for which we hope to encourage further work

Teacher Educators and Expansive Learning in the Workplace and Beyond

Research on the professional learning of teacher educators is a relatively young and under-researched area, despite the importance of this occupational group in the fast-changing area of teacher education internationally. Past provision for learning has often focused on either one-off professional development events or workplace learning. Aiming to develop new knowledge and understanding of professional learning for teacher educators, this article attempts firstly, to analyse the impact of a one-off learning event, offered by the European InFo-TED group, on its participants, and secondly, to look at where and how the learning generated there developed further learning back in the workplace. Deploying a conceptual framework emphasising participatory professional learning and Engestrom’s concept of expansive learning, we explore how these two forms of learning might be planned and implemented in order to provide integrated, professionally relevant and enduring forms of learning

EOS image data processing system definition study

The Image Processing System (IPS) requirements and configuration are defined for NASA-sponsored advanced technology Earth Observatory System (EOS). The scope included investigation and definition of IPS operational, functional, and product requirements considering overall system constraints and interfaces (sensor, etc.) The scope also included investigation of the technical feasibility and definition of a point design reflecting system requirements. The design phase required a survey of present and projected technology related to general and special-purpose processors, high-density digital tape recorders, and image recorders

Electromechanical rotary actuator

An electromechanical rotary actuator has been developed as the prime mover for a liquid oxygen modulation valve on the Centaur Vehicle Rocket Engine. The rotary actuator requirements, design, test, and associated problems and their solutions are discussed in this paper