Gas dynamics in whole galaxies: SPH

I review the progress of SPH calculations for modelling galaxies, and resolving gas dynamics on GMC scales. SPH calculations first investigated the response of isothermal gas to a spiral potential, in the absence of self gravity and magnetic fields. Surprisingly though, even these simple calculations displayed substructure along the spiral arms. Numerical tests indicate that this substructure is still present at high resolution (100 million particles, ~10 pc), and is independent of the initial particle distribution. One interpretation of the formation of substructure is that smaller clouds can agglomerate into more massive GMCs via dissipative collisions. More recent calculations have investigated how other processes, such as the thermodynamics of the ISM, and self gravity affect this simple picture. Further research has focused on developing models with a more realistic spiral structure, either by including stars, or incorporating a tidal interaction.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, review talk for IAU 270 symposium 'Computational star formation

The influence of serial carbohydrate mouth rinsing on power output during a cycle sprint

The objective of the study was to investigate the influence of serial administration of a carbohydrate (CHO) mouth rinse on performance, metabolic and perceptual responses during a cycle sprint. Twelve physically active males (mean (± SD) age: 23.1 (3.0) years, height: 1.83 (0.07) m, body mass (BM): 86.3 (13.5) kg) completed the following mouth rinse trials in a randomized, counterbalanced, double-blind fashion; 1. 8 x 5 second rinses with a 25 ml CHO (6% w/v maltodextrin) solution, 2. 8 x 5 second rinses with a 25 ml placebo (PLA) solution. Following mouth rinse administration, participants completed a 30 second sprint on a cycle ergometer against a 0.075 g·kg-1 BM resistance. Eight participants achieved a greater peak power output (PPO) in the CHO trial, resulting in a significantly greater PPO compared with PLA (13.51 ± 2.19 vs. 13.20 ± 2. 14 W·kg-1, p < 0.05). Magnitude inference analysis reported a likely benefit (81% likelihood) of the CHO mouth rinse on PPO. In the CHO trial, mean power output (MPO) showed a trend for being greater in the first 5 seconds of the sprint and lower for the remainder of the sprint compared with the PLA trial (p > 0.05). No significant between-trials difference was reported for fatigue index, perceived exertion, arousal and nausea levels, or blood lactate and glucose concentrations. Serial administration of a CHO mouth rinse may significantly improve PPO during a cycle sprint. This improvement appears confined to the first 5 seconds of the sprint, and may come at a greater relative cost for the remainder of the sprint

Anger, Quality of Life and Mood in Multiple Sclerosis

This research was funded by The Multiple Sclerosis Society (UK).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Emotion processing and social participation following stroke : study protocol

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Effect of Different Types of Physical Activity on Activities of Daily Living in Older Adults : Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Peer reviewedPostprin

Teaching Soft Skills in Healthcare and Higher Education: A Scoping Review Protocol

Background: Soft skills and the need for their development have been discussed across industries for many years, predominantly in engineering, hospitality, and IT sectors. The importance of soft skills to career success has been well-documented, but gaps exist on how to teach them. Inter-industry variability and a lack of consensus in identifying and defining important soft skills adds to the problem. New research in teaching soft skills needs to be formally incorporated into training curricula, especially within healthcare and education sectors. This scoping review will answer these research questions: How are soft skills conceptualised, taught and assessed in healthcare and higher education?   Methods/Design: A search of health, education, and social science databases will be conducted including peer-reviewed and grey literature. Data will be extracted using a combination of the PRISMA ScR and PAGER framework. Analysis will be carried out utilising the PAGER framework and will yield descriptive summaries. Discussion: The review will collate literature on teaching and assessing soft skills in healthcare and higher education. It will map evidence in relation to current practices and research, gaps, evidence for practice, and research recommendations. The findings will be discussed in the full Scoping Review along with implications for teaching. &nbsp

Teaching Soft Skills in Healthcare and Higher Education: A Scoping Review Protocol

Background: Soft skills and the need for their development have been discussed across industries for many years, predominantly in engineering, hospitality, and IT sectors. The importance of soft skills to career success has been well-documented, but gaps exist on how to teach them. Inter-industry variability and a lack of consensus in identifying and defining important soft skills adds to the problem. New research in teaching soft skills needs to be formally incorporated into training curricula, especially within healthcare and education sectors. This scoping review will answer these research questions: How are soft skills conceptualised, taught and assessed in healthcare and higher education?   Methods/Design: A search of health, education, and social science databases will be conducted including peer-reviewed and grey literature. Data will be extracted using a combination of the PRISMA ScR and PAGER framework. Analysis will be carried out utilising the PAGER framework and will yield descriptive summaries. Discussion: The review will collate literature on teaching and assessing soft skills in healthcare and higher education. It will map evidence in relation to current practices and research, gaps, evidence for practice, and research recommendations. The findings will be discussed in the full Scoping Review along with implications for teaching. &nbsp

Teaching and Assessing Soft Skills for Health and Education Professionals: A Scoping Review

Soft skills are a collection of abilities instrumental to one being a successful professional. Soft skills are knowing why, what, when, and where to perform specific technical, hard skills. Traditionally, universities and other professional training providers have focused on teaching hard skills, relying on graduates to learn necessary soft skills on the job or through personal experiences. With more professional training requiring tertiary education and less work experience, a skills gap has developed between labour markets and professional training providers. A scoping review was conducted to answer two research questions: How are soft skills conceptualised and taught to health and education professionals? How are soft skills assessed for health and education professionals? The PAGER framework was utilised to present and synthesise the scoping review results. Eight themes emerged from the patterning analysis and data synthesis: Lack of definitions of soft skills; What soft skills are taught; Methods of teaching soft skills; Curriculum: Embedded vs. stand-alone courses; Use of digital tools; Assessment of soft skills; Variation of assessment tools; Limited regard for cultural competency, diversity, equality, and inclusion. These themes are discussed in relation to advances, gaps, evidence for practice, and research recommendations

Are We Approaching Peak Meat Consumption? Analysis of Meat Consumption from 2000 to 2019 in 35 Countries and Its Relationship to Gross Domestic Product

Growing prosperity, but also disease outbreaks, natural disasters, and consumer preferences are changing global meat consumption. We investigated the 2000–2019 trends in 35 countries monitored by the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. We also tested relationships with Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Several countries appeared to be reaching peak consumption of some meats, and three (New Zealand, Canada, and Switzerland) have reached this. Poultry consumption increased over time in most countries, and beef and mutton/lamb consumption decreased in many. Using cluster analysis, we divided countries into two clusters: one in which increases in GDP per capita matched increases in meat consumption; and a second one of nine countries, for which there was no association between per capita change in GDP and meat consumption. There was evidence of a tipping point around USD 40,000 of GDP per capita, after which increases in economic well-being do not lead to increased meat consumption

Multiple sclerosis, emotion perception and social functioning

Funding Information: This research was supported by a PhD studentship funded by the Economic and Social Research Council through the Scottish Graduate School for Social Sciences, and a grant from the UK MS Society.Peer reviewedPostprin