Equal opportunities in colleges of further education: policy versus practice

This research questions claims made by Colleges of Further Education that they are committed to equal opportunities. Although policies may exist, it is not a guarantee that they are effective. This research explores the realities behind anecdotal evidence that indicates policies figure more prominently prior to inspections and validations. A literature review reveals a dearth of evidence to suggest that any consideration is given to policies in practice. Equal Opportunities, in general, are well documented but research in this field in Further Education is almost non-existent according to Cole (2000) and Wallace (2001). This research identifies a move away from an observable commitment to equal opportunities that colleges need to address to justify their claims. In Phase One colleges provide copies of their policies for analysis that identifies commonalities but also striking differences. In Phase Two a postal questionnaire clarifies how successful colleges have been in addressing equal opportunities and whether this can be attributed to live, working documents. Phases One and Two provide the framework for the debate and in Phase Three the survey results are complemented by in-depth interviews. Detailed questioning compares the commitments expressed with procedures and practices. The research used both qualitative and quantitative approaches with the different sources of evidence presented so as to provide a rich, layered understanding of the dynamic of policies in colleges. The conclusion to this research is that whilst colleges have policies, that are generally devised following accepted guidelines, the real problem lies in ownership and the monitoring process. As a result provision is affected, as the needs of individuals are not always recognised, thereby denying them equal access to the educational opportunities that colleges aim to provide

The UK market for energy service contracts in 2014–2015

This paper provides an overview of the UK market for energy service contracts in 2014 and highlights the growing role of intermediaries. Using information from secondary literature and interviews, it identifies the businesses offering energy service contracts, the sectors and organisations that are purchasing those contracts, the types of contract that are available, the areas of market growth and the reasons for that growth. The paper finds that the UK market is relatively large, highly diverse, concentrated in particular sectors and types of site and overwhelmingly focused upon established technologies with high rates of return. A major driver is the emergence of procurement frameworks for energy service contracts in the public sector. These act as intermediaries between clients and contractors, thereby lowering transaction costs and facilitating learning. The market is struggling to become established in commercial offices, largely as a result of split incentives, and is unlikely to develop further in this sector without different business models, tenancy arrangements and policy initiatives. Overall, the paper concludes that energy service contracts can play an important role in the transition to a low-carbon economy, especially when supported by intermediaries, but their potential is still limited by high transaction costs

The core structure of presolar graphite onions

Of the ``presolar particles'' extracted from carbonaceous chondrite dissolution residues, i.e. of those particles which show isotopic evidence of solidification in the neighborhood of other stars prior to the origin of our solar system, one subset has an interesting concentric graphite-rim/graphene-core structure. We show here that single graphene sheet defects in the onion cores (e.g. cyclopentane loops) may be observable edge-on by HREM. This could allow a closer look at models for their formation, and in particular strengthen the possibility that growth of these assemblages proceeds atom-by-atom with the aid of such in-plane defects, under conditions of growth (e.g. radiation fluxes or grain temperature) which discourage the graphite layering that dominates subsequent formation of the rim.Comment: 4 pages, 7 figures, 11 refs, see also http://www.umsl.edu/~fraundor/isocore.htm

The United Kingdom smart meter rollout through an energy justice lens

The United Kingdom’s Smart Meter Implementation Programme (SMIP) creates the legal framework so that an in-home display unit and a smart gas and electricity meter can be installed in every household by the end of 2020. Intended to reduce household energy consumption, the SMIP is one of the world’s most complex smart meter rollouts. It is also proving to be a challenging one as a series of obstacles has characterised and potentially restricted implementation. This chapter first gives background to the most recent smart meter roll out developments in the UK and second, uses an energy justice framework to explore the emergent challenges under the titles of distributional justice, procedural justice and justice as recognition. Applying this framework to an analysis of the UK SMIP provides opportunities to accurately record, present and expose potential forthcoming injustices. In light of this, we offer a series of policy recommendations

Hollow Fiber Bioreactors for In Vivo-like Mammalian Tissue Culture

Tissue culture has been used for over 100 years to study cells and responses ex vivo. The convention of this technique is the growth of anchorage dependent cells on the 2-dimensional surface of tissue culture plastic. More recently, there is a growing body of data demonstrating more in vivo-like behaviors of cells grown in 3-dimensional culture systems. This manuscript describes in detail the set-up and operation of a hollow fiber bioreactor system for the in vivo-like culture of mammalian cells. The hollow fiber bioreactor system delivers media to the cells in a manner akin to the delivery of blood through the capillary networks in vivo. The system is designed to fit onto the shelf of a standard CO2 incubator and is simple enough to be set-up by any competent cell biologist with a good understanding of aseptic technique. The systems utility is demonstrated by culturing the hepatocarcinoma cell line HepG2/C3A for 7 days. Further to this and in line with other published reports on the functionality of cells grown in 3-dimensional culture systems the cells are shown to possess increased albumin production (an important hepatic function) when compared to standard 2-dimensional tissue culture

Comparing Physician and Nurse Site Search Behavior within the North Carolina AHEC Digital Library

The North Carolina AHEC Digital Library (ADL) is an electronic network of resources for in-state health care providers to easily access select medical and pharmaceutical information. A quick retrieval of subscription-specific content is available through a site search tool on the ADL website. A cursory review of transaction logs for website searching revealed a large number of failed patron search attempts, which prompted a study to learn how the site search tool is being used and what the ADL can do to improve search effectiveness. A comparison between physician and nurse search behavior from 2010 will be performed to see which factors yield successful and unsuccessful results, the average number of queries per subject session, and which resource links are used by patrons. The study outcome will guide menu changes to the ADL website to improve the site search experience for patrons

Who rebounds most? Estimating direct and indirect rebound effects for different UK socioeconomic groups

This study estimates the combined direct and indirect rebound effects from various types of energy efficiency improvement and behavioural change by UK households and explores how these effects vary with total expenditure. The methodology is based upon estimates of the expenditure elasticity and GHG intensity of 16 categories of goods and services, and allows for the capital cost and embodied emissions of the energy efficiency measures themselves. The study finds that rebound effects, in GHG terms, are modest (0-32%) for measures affecting domestic energy use, larger (25-65%) for measures affecting vehicle fuel use and very large (66-106%) for measures that reduce food waste. Furthermore, measures undertaken by low income households are associated with the largest rebound effects, with direct emissions forming a larger proportion of the total rebound effect for those households. Measures that are subsidised or affect highly taxed energy commodities may be less effective in reducing aggregate emissions. These findings highlight the importance of allowing for rebound effects within policy appraisals, as well as reinforcing the case for economy-wide carbon pricing. © 2014 Elsevier B.V

Building governance and energy efficiency: Mapping the interdisciplinary challenge

Improving the energy efficiency of multi-owned properties (MoPs)—commonly known as apartment or condominium buildings—is central to the achievement of European energy targets. However, little work to date has focused on how to facilitate retrofit in this context. Drawing on interdisciplinary Social Sciences and Humanities expertise in academia, policy and practice, this chapter posits that decision-making processes within MoPs might provide a key to the retrofit challenge. Existing theories or models of decision-making, applied in the MoP context, might help to explain how collective retrofit decisions are taken—or overlooked. Insights from case studies and practitioners are also key. Theories of change might then be employed to develop strategies to facilitate positive retrofit decisions. The chapter maps the issues and sets an agenda for further interdisciplinary research in this novel area

Identification of a major IP5 kinase in Cryptococcus neoformans confirms that PP-IP5/IP7, not IP6, is essential for virulence

Fungal inositol polyphosphate (IP) kinases catalyse phosphorylation of IP3 to inositol pyrophosphate, PP-IP5/IP7, which is essential for virulence of Cryptococcus neoformans. Cryptococcal Kcs1 converts IP6 to PP-IP5/IP7, but the kinase converting IP5 to IP6 is unknown. Deletion of a putative IP5 kinase-encoding gene (IPK1) alone (ipk1Δ), and in combination with KCS1 (ipk1Δkcs1Δ), profoundly reduced virulence in mice. However, deletion of KCS1 and IPK1 had a greater impact on virulence attenuation than that of IPK1 alone. ipk1Δkcs1Δ and kcs1Δ lung burdens were also lower than those of ipk1Δ. Unlike ipk1Δ, ipk1Δkcs1Δ and kcs1Δ failed to disseminate to the brain. IP profiling confirmed Ipk1 as the major IP5 kinase in C. neoformans: ipk1Δ produced no IP6 or PP-IP5/IP7 and, in contrast to ipk1Δkcs1Δ, accumulated IP5 and its pyrophosphorylated PP-IP4 derivative. Kcs1 is therefore a dual specificity (IP5 and IP6) kinase producing PP-IP4 and PP-IP5/IP7. All mutants were similarly attenuated in virulence phenotypes including laccase, urease and growth under oxidative/nitrosative stress. Alternative carbon source utilisation was also reduced significantly in all mutants except ipk1Δ, suggesting that PP-IP4 partially compensates for absent PP-IP5/IP7 in ipk1Δ grown under this condition. In conclusion, PP-IP5/IP7, not IP6, is essential for fungal virulence

A new dawn? The Roman Catholic Church and environmental issues

This is a PDF version of an article published in New Blackfriars© 1997. The definitive version is available at www.blackwell-synergy.com.This article discusses the stance of the Roman Catholic Church on environmental issues and argues that the Church tends to stay on the fringe rather than get involved. Some of the ways in which Roman Catholic theologians have incorporated environmental issues into theological reflection is discussed, as are environmental challenges facing the Church in Britain (conservation, resources, biodiversity, animal welfare, biotechnology, cooperate/individual ethics, environmental justice, economics/policy development, and global issues)