Book review: In the Interest of National Security: Civilian Internment in Australian during World War II by Klaus Neumann

Book Review: In the Interest of National Security: Civilian Internment in Australian during World War II by Klaus Neumann Canberra: National Archives of Australia, 2006, 124pp

Machine learning classification of human joint tissue from diffuse reflectance spectroscopy data

Objective: To assess if incorporation of DRS sensing into real-time robotic surgery systems has merit. DRS as a technology is relatively simple, cost-effective and provides a non-contact approach to tissue differentiation. Methods: Supervised machine learning analysis of diffuse reflectance spectra was performed to classify human joint tissue that was collected from surgical procedures. Results: We have used supervised machine learning in the classification of a DRS human joint tissue data set and achieved classification accuracy in excess of 99%. Sensitivity for the various classes were; cartilage 99.7%, subchondral 99.2%, meniscus 100% and cancellous 100%. Full wavelength range is required for maximum classification accuracy. The wavelength resolution must be larger than 8nm. A SNR better than 10:1 was required to achieve a classification accuracy greater than 50%. The 800-900nm wavelength range gave the greatest accuracy amongst those investigated. Conclusion: DRS is a viable method for differentiating human joint tissue and has the potential to be incorporated into robotic orthopaedic surgery

Hirudo Medicinalis and the plastic surgeon

Medicinal leech therapy is an ancient craft that dates back to ancient Egypt and the beginnings of civilisation. The popularity of Hirudo Medicinalis has varied throughout history, reaching such a peak in Europe in the early 19th century that supplies were exhausted. During the latter half of the 19th century, their use fell out of favour, as they did not fit in with the emerging concepts of modern medicine. Leeches have enjoyed a renaissance in the world of reconstructive microsurgery during recent years, and their first reported use in alleviating venous engorgement following flap surgery was reported in this journal [M Derganc, F Zdravic, Venous congestion of flaps treated by application of leeches, Br J Plast Surg 13 (1960) 187]. Contemporary plastic and reconstructive surgeons in units throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland continue to use leeches to aid salvage of failing flaps. We carried out a survey of all 62 plastic surgery units in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland to assess the current extent of use, and to investigate current practice. We have shown that the majority of plastic surgery units in the UK and Ireland use leeches post-operatively and that the average number of patients requiring leech therapy was 10 cases per unit per year. Almost all units use antibiotic prophylaxis, but the type of antibiotic and combination used is variable. We outline current practice and suggest a protocol for the use of leeches. Whilst the use of leeches is widespread, the plastic surgery community has progressed little in defining indications for their use or in achieving an accepted protocol for their application in units throughout the UK and Irelan

Everyday philosophy

My thesis is a work of creative non-fiction, in the form of an introductory, philosophy workbook. The workbook, tentatively named Everyday Philosophy, is intended to appeal to upper secondary students aged sixteen to seventeen, and contains a broad cross-section of information about the philosophy tradition. The workbook is loosely constructed around the new Western Australian Certificate of Education \u27Philosophy and Ethics\u27 curriculum, due to be launched in 2008. The aim of my thesis is to provide an introduction to Philosophy and Ethics that is thought-provoking yet easy to understand, employing examples, analogies and illustrations that are relevant and current to the intended readership. In order to achieve this I have employed a mixture of non-fiction and fictional scenarios to illustrate philosophical themes. The scenarios range from the commonplace to the ridiculous, in order to effectively promote the curiosity and enthusiasm of a sixteen or seventeen year-old high school student. The language and tone are friendly, grounded, conversational and, at times, amusing. I believe this strategy to be a necessary antidote to the perception that the study of philosophy is academic, lofty and inaccessible to mere mortals. The workbook contains: • topical, essay-style discussions of the main themes of philosophy. • historical information regarding key philosophers and their contributions. • creative and anecdotal scenarios to illustrate fundamental tenets. • in-chapter, journal exercises. • recommendations for supplementary reading and viewing material. • interesting quotes by philosophers. • profiles of famous philosophy students, and their impact on the world today. The rationale behind Everyday Philosophy is to create an innovative and interactive introduction to the sometimes daunting discipline of philosophy, in a style that specifically addresses the needs and interests of upper secondary students

The impact of disability on the lives of children; cross-sectional data including 8,900 children with disabilities and 898,834 children without disabilities across 30 countries.

BACKGROUND: Children with disabilities are widely believed to be less likely to attend school or access health care, and more vulnerable to poverty. There is currently little large-scale or internationally comparable evidence to support these claims. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of disability on the lives of children sponsored by Plan International across 30 countries. METHODS AND FINDINGS: We conducted a cross-sectional survey including 907,734 children aged 0-17 participating in the Plan International Sponsorship Programme across 30 countries in 2012. Parents/guardians were interviewed using standardised questionnaires including information on: age, sex, health, education, poverty, and water and sanitation facilities. Disability was assessed through a single question and information was collected on type of impairment. The dataset included 8,900 children with reported disabilities across 30 countries. The prevalence of disability ranged from 0.4%-3.0% and was higher in boys than girls in 22 of the 30 countries assessed - generally in the range of 1.3-1.4 fold higher. Children with disabilities were much less likely to attend formal education in comparison to children without disabilities in each of the 30 countries, with age-sex adjusted odds ratios exceeding 10 for nearly half of the countries. This relationship varied by impairment type. Among those attending school, children with disabilities were at a lower level of schooling for their age compared to children without disabilities. Children with disabilities were more likely to report experiencing a serious illness in the last 12 months, except in Niger. There was no clear relationship between disability and poverty. CONCLUSIONS: Children with disabilities are at risk of not fulfilling their educational potential and are more vulnerable to serious illness. This exclusion is likely to have a long-term deleterious impact on their lives unless services are adapted to promote their inclusion

Oreste Biringucci and Amor Feretrio: A Mantuan barriera for Carnival 1585

Članek obravnava opis turnirja, ki je potekal na dvoru v Mantovi med karnevalom leta 1585. Naročil ga je dedni princ Vincenzo Gonzaga pri dvornem arhitektu Oresteju Biringucciju. Biringuccijevo poročilo, naslovljeno Apparato e barriera del tempio di Amor Feretrio, opisuje gledališko sceno, sodelujoče plemstvo, predstavljene like (večinoma iz klasične mitologije in junaških del avtorjev, kot so Ludovico Ariosto, Bernardo Tasso in Curzio Gonzaga), pa tudi – zelo nenavadno za tisti čas – dvorne pesnike in glasbenike, ki so sodelovali pri dogodku. Glasba ima v opisu vidno vlogo, saj prihod vsakega bojevnika s solističnim spevom (v dveh primerih je bil to madrigal) naznani kateri izmed mitoloških likov. Eden od madrigalov je bil prepoznan kot antifonalna kompozicija dvornega skladatelja Benedetta Pallavicina. Razprava vključuje angleški prevod omenjenega opisa, povzema življenje in delo Oresteja Biringuccija ter razpravlja o vseh drugih zbranih virih o turnirju, ki se nahajajo v arhivu Gonzaga v Mantovi.The article examines a barriera held at Mantua for carnival 1585, commissioned by the hereditary prince Vincenzo Gonzaga from the court architect Oreste Biringucci. Biringucci’s account of the Apparato e barriera del tempio di Amor Feretrio describes the theatrical setting, the nobility who participated, the characters represented (drawn from classical mythology and chivalric romances by Ludovico Ariosto, Bernardo Tasso and Curzio Gonzaga) and also – most unusually for its time – the court poets and musicians who contributed to this event. Music plays a prominent role, since mythological figures introduce each combatant with solo song – or, in two cases, with madrigals. An antiphonal madrigal by the court composer Benedetto Pallavicino has been identified as a component of the music performed on this occasion. The article offers an English translation of the Apparato, and a short study of the life and works of Oreste Biringucci, together with a corpus of documents relating to the barriera found in the Archivio Gonzaga, Mantua

Philosophy for teenagers: Finding new relevence in old concepts

In 2008, the Curriculum Council of Western Australia launched a formal curriculum of philosophy and ethics education for upper secondary students. This thesis is a writing project that provides a new teaching text in support of this course. The thesis is composed of two components, a creative project and an essay. The creative project is a work of non-fiction entitled, Philosophy for Teenagers: Finding New Relevance in Old Concepts, and has been researched and designed employing the Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) Philosophy and Ethics course model. Philosophy for Teenagers aims to provide an innovative introduction to concepts such as the philosophical community of inquiry, formal reasoning and critical thinking, epistemology, free-will and determinism, ethics, political philosophy, aesthetics, society and culture, and conceptions of death. The introductory concepts addressed in the textbook are explored in philosophy classrooms within Australia and abroad, making it suitable for any high school student of philosophy, regardless of their geography. The essay provides some historical background on secondary philosophy education in Western Australia and presents the insights and ideas of five philosophy educators who were involved in the conception, development and launch of the WACE Philosophy and Ethics course. The experiences, opinions and ideals of these people have, in turn, informed the development of the textbook, and their contributions have helped to shape the text. The essay also provides the rationale and research methodology upon which the textbook has been constructed. It includes a discussion of current and classic adolescent literature, the role of science fiction, primary and contemporary philosophy texts, humanities textbooks, and educational resources recommended for the WACE Philosophy and Ethics course. The essay also includes a report on the results of two focus group studies held with Year Eleven students. This action research was implemented for the purpose of collecting direct feedback from Philosophy and Ethics classes