Public Attitudes to Overseas Giving: Does Government Make a Difference?

To what extent does the UK government influence public attitudes to overseas giving? This question is addressed with qualitative research based on focus group discussions. Knowledge of government involvement in overseas aid was found to be low. The majority of donors and non-donors to overseas causes were cynical about government messages and policies on overseas aid. There were consistent doubts about the effectiveness of development assistance. Existing attitudes towards development are reasonably ‘hardened’ or engrained. Positive influences on overseas giving – all of which seemed more influential than that of the government – included travel, the interventions of well known non-political figures, and the discovery of more direct and concrete ways of giving (e.g. ‘virtual gifts’). Future steps for government involvement in promoting overseas giving more effectively are discussed

The production of a Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus diagnostic antigen in plants

Crimean-­Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) is a highly infectious, life threatening disease, caused by the Crimean-­Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV), a nairovirus that forms part of the Bunyaviridae family. CCHFV has a case fatality rate of approximately 40%. Current diagnostic methods for CCHFV involve the use of live virus antigen, requiring biosafety level 4 (BSL4) conditions for safe handling. The development of a safer diagnostic reagent for detection of this disease is therefore desirable. This project involves the development of a recombinant CCHFV nucleocapsid protein (NP). The nucleocapsid (NP) protein was expressed in Nicotiana benthamiana and purified using a 6x histidine-­tag. The protein was then reacted against serum samples collected from confirmed CCHFV patients to determine its ability to detect IgG antibodies against CCHFV in human sera

Predictive monitoring research: Summary of the PREMON system

Traditional approaches to monitoring are proving inadequate in the face of two important issues: the dynamic adjustment of expectations about sensor values when the behavior of the device is too complex to enumerate beforehand, and the selective but effective interpretation of sensor readings when the number of sensors becomes overwhelming. This system addresses these issues by building an explicit model of a device and applying common-sense theories of physics to model causality in the device. The resulting causal simulation of the device supports planning decisions about how to efficiently yet reliably utilize a limited number of sensors to verify correct operation of the device

Development of heat flux sensors for turbine airfoils

The objectives of this program are to develop heat flux sensors suitable for installation in hot section airfoils of advanced aircraft turbine engines and to experimentally verify the operation of these heat flux sensors in a cylinder in a cross flow experiment. Embedded thermocouple and Gardon gauge sensors were developed and fabricated into both blades and vanes. These were then calibrated using a quartz lamp bank heat source and finally subjected to thermal cycle and thermal soak testing. These sensors were also fabricated into cylindrical test pieces and tested in a burner exhaust to verify heat flux measurements produced by these sensors. The results of the cylinder in cross flow tests are given

Dramatic Copyright in Australia to 1912

Australian colonial playwrights had great difficulty protecting their work from unauthorised theatrical productions. The whole question of the legal defence of dramatic creative effort was uncertain. Dramatists in colonial Australasia often sold their scripts outright to theatrical managers, and managers, instead of relying on copyright protection, attempted to restrict the making of copies