Learning conversions in science: The case of vocational students in the UK

The paper describes two aspects of a research project that focused on vocational science students. The paper begins with a general description of vocational science in the UK, to put the work in context. It then outlines an analysis of the ways in which these students approach problems involving converting between units of measurement. Finally the development and evaluation of computer‐based activities designed to support students in learning about unit conversion are described

Promoting Industrial Clusters: Evidence from Ireland

This paper analyses the spatial concentration and sectoral specialisation of local enterprises (LEs) and multinational enterprises (MNEs) in Ireland. Entropy indices are used as indicators of spatial and sectoral clustering in Irish manufacturing. Correlation coefficients are calculated to estimate the co-location patterns of LEs and MNEs, allowing an investigation of the overall impact of stated industrial and regional policy goals on the Irish manufacturing sector. The pattern of spatial changes found suggests that market forces were already driving enterprises out of more concentrated locations prior to the introduction of policies to promote greater spatial dispersion in the late 1990s. MNEs have become more sectorally specialised over the period, which is not surprising as policy is deliberately selective in attracting MNEs to key high tech manufacturing sectors. The less concentrated sectoral pattern amongst LEs enterprises is consistent with general restructuring in Irish manufacturing from lower- to higher-tech sectors, and the high sectoral correlation for high-tech MNEs and LEs suggests that LEs are following MNEs into the same sectors.geographic concentration, sectoral specialisation, entropy indices, MNEs, LEs, public policy

Monetary Union, Entry Conditions and Economic Reform.

This paper models the behaviour of a potential entrant into a monetary union where there is an inflation entry condition. In addition to making a monetary policy decision during a qualifying period, the potential entrant must make a decision about structural reform. The paper shows that the entry condition can have two undesirable effects. First, it can lead to multiple equilibria because inflationary expectations acquire a self-fulfilling property. Second, the entry condition can lead to a reduction in the amount of reform. This is because the entry condition reduces inflationary expectations and thus reduces the incentive to reform.

Reading strategy for the MBA: informing effective use of learner time for critical reading.

This paper is motivated by the development of a reading strategy for the MBA at RGU. It provides an overview of current views on the importance of reading to inform significant learner hours on directed and self-directed study and quantifies the extent of reading on the course, providing a leaner perspective on the scope and scale of reading across modules. Exploration of learner motivation for reading and learner engagement with reading at this postgraduate level is used to establish the essence of a reading strategy. We argue that an important role for educators and the wider educational system experienced by the learner both recognises and positively supports learners as active readers. The opportunity for academic staff to assist learners with their engagement in their reading activity and to identify mechanisms to purposively link these actions to pedagogical principles is set out

The Importance and Value of Older Employees

This open access book makes a contribution to our understanding of one of the social challenges facing many western nations i.e. the challenge of an ageing population. It specifically addresses the issue of competence among older employees. Others have studied ageing populations in terms of the economic burden or the pressure on healthcare services and generally view the rising numbers of seniors more as a challenge than an opportunity. In this book, authors discuss ways of gaining positive benefits from our ageing and more experienced work force

Host-specific symbioses and the microbial prey of a pelagic tunicate (Pyrosoma atlanticum)

Pyrosomes are widely distributed pelagic tunicates that have the potential to reshape marine food webs when they bloom. However, their grazing preferences and interactions with the background microbial community are poorly understood. This is the first study of the marine microorganisms associated with pyrosomes undertaken to improve the understanding of pyrosome biology, the impact of pyrosome blooms on marine microbial systems, and microbial symbioses with marine animals. The diversity, relative abundance, and taxonomy of pyrosome-associated microorganisms were compared to seawater during a Pyrosoma atlanticum bloom in the Northern California Current System using high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, microscopy, and flow cytometry. We found that pyrosomes harbor a microbiome distinct from the surrounding seawater, which was dominated by a few novel taxa. In addition to the dominant taxa, numerous more rare pyrosome-specific microbial taxa were recovered. Multiple bioluminescent taxa were present in pyrosomes, which may be a source of the iconic pyrosome luminescence. We also discovered free-living marine microorganisms in association with pyrosomes, suggesting that pyrosome feeding impacts all microbial size classes but preferentially removes larger eukaryotic taxa. This study demonstrates that microbial symbionts and microbial prey are central to pyrosome biology. In addition to pyrosome impacts on higher trophic level marine food webs, the work suggests that pyrosomes also alter marine food webs at the microbial level through feeding and seeding of the marine microbial communities with their symbionts. Future efforts to predict pyrosome blooms, and account for their ecosystem impacts, should consider pyrosome interactions with marine microbial communities

The Milgaard inquiry : power, discourse and public truth in a wrongful conviction

v, 157 leaves ; 29 cm.Includes abstract and appendix.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 140-153).This thesis represents a qualitative content analysis of the final report of the Commission of Inquiry into the Wrongful Conviction of David Milgaard, also known as the Milgaard Inquiry. Influenced by Michel Foucault’s concepts of power, truth, discourse, resistance and truth-telling, as well as Howard Becker’s concept of a hierarchy of credibility, this thesis examines the political nature of the public inquiry process as a tool for producing truths and discourses about a wrongful conviction. I examine how multiple truth claims were gathered, assessed, and ordered to create official discourses about the case, how certain groups resisted exercises of power at the Inquiry, and how the Commission attempted to restore confidence and legitimacy to the criminal justice system in the wake of the miscarriage of justice

Selective and Differential Feeding on Marine Prokaryotes by Mucous Mesh Feeders

Microbial mortality impacts the structure of food webs, carbon flow, and the interactions that create dynamic patterns of abundance across gradients in space and time in diverse ecosystems. In the oceans, estimates of microbial mortality by viruses, protists, and small zooplankton do not account fully for observations of loss, suggesting the existence of underappreciated mortality sources. We examined how ubiquitous mucous mesh feeders (i.e. gelatinous zooplankton) could contribute to microbial mortality in the open ocean. We coupled capture of live animals by blue-water diving to sequence-based approaches to measure the enrichment and selectivity of feeding by two coexisting mucous grazer taxa (pteropods and salps) on numerically dominant marine prokaryotes. We show that mucous mesh grazers consume a variety of marine prokaryotes and select between coexisting lineages and similar cell sizes. We show that Prochlorococcus may evade filtration more than other cells and that planktonic archaea are consumed by macrozooplanktonic grazers. Discovery of these feeding relationships identifies a new source of mortality for Earth\u27s dominant marine microbes and alters our understanding of how top-down processes shape microbial community and function

The Economics of Political Participation and Distribution in Fisheries Management

Economists have characterized efficient policy remedies for market failures, but inefficient institutions persist. When changes in policy also result in a change in distribution of wealth, even the most efficient policies can be politically infeasible. In many settings, successful policy adoption requires a trade-off between efficiency and distribution. In a common pool resource setting, the transition to secure, tradeable property rights can be economically beneficial and improve the health of the resource, but is often met with resistance. Individual transferrable quotas (ITQ), have encountered a considerable amount political opposition despite their well-documented improvements of harvesting efficiency and fishery health. This paper provides an empirical examination of the role of distributional concerns that influence an agent's preference for a proposed change in the Alaskan sablefish (blackcod) and halibut fisheries. I construct a data set of consisting of nearly 4,000 public political participation records regarding ITQ implementation in the Alaska halibut and sablefish fisheries. I use a novel individual level dataset of public comments and catch data to test whether fishers who show that the allocation of catch influences whether a person or entity is in favor of the policy