Three Phase Relative Permeability Models for WAG Simulation

Imperial Users onl

Higher-order finite-difference methods for partial differential equations

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.This thesis develops two families of numerical methods, based upon rational approximations having distinct real poles, for solving first- and second-order parabolic/ hyperbolic partial differential equations. These methods are thirdand fourth-order accurate in space and time, and do not require the use of complex arithmetic. In these methods first- and second-order spatial derivatives are approximated by finite-difference approximations which produce systems of ordinary differential equations expressible in vector-matrix forms. Solutions of these systems satisfy recurrence relations which lead to the development of parallel algorithms suitable for computer architectures consisting of three or four processors. Finally, the methods are tested on advection, advection-diffusion and wave equations with constant coefficients

Re-imagining doctor-patient relationships in an African context: a transformative educational perspective

Clinician-patient relationships are central to health care, health systems and medical education. Current educational practice of doctor-patient relationships emerged from an episteme rooted in a biomedical understanding of disease, having epistemic and pedagogical roots in Global North contexts. The thesis offers an analysis of clinician-patient relationships that includes medical ethics, communication skills, and the development of the widely accepted (in Family Medicine) Biopsychosocial model of the clinical consultation. Using a South African clinical postgraduate Family Medicine training programme as a case study, this project answered two central research questions: (i) How do students learn to navigate relationships with patients in this training programme? And (ii) Can we develop an educational model of doctor patient relationships based on local experiences? Mezirow's transformative learning theory, Mbiti's conceptualisation of Ubuntu as an African philosophy, and Foucault's thoughts on structural power provided a conceptual framework. Aim The project aimed to understand the process of student learning about the doctor-patient encounter and to develop a model for teaching about the doctor-patient relationship. Methodology A qualitative longitudinal case study was conducted, drawing data from postgraduate students, educators, and patients. Data was collected from educational, clinical, and reflective activities, and analysed thematically using an inductive approach. Findings The key themes describe students' learning in relation to critical self-awareness, contextual awareness, the dialogic nature of learning, and the impact of transformed perspectives. Patients valued that their patient-hood and personhood were validated, and educators highlighted the theme that vulnerability has pedagogical implications. A new perspective of power dynamics in the clinical encounter is described and an Ubuntu-inspired episteme and pedagogy is synthesised from the findings. Conclusion This decolonial project provides evidence and proposes a model for incorporating an indigenous philosophy (Ubuntu) into mainstream health sciences education. Recommendations are made for educational and clinical practice, as well as future research

BORDERLINE PHYLLODES TUMOUR

We report a case of 40-year-old woman with a painful lump in the left breast. Mammography revealed a suspicious mass ACR BI-RADS category 4a. Excision biopsy revealed borderline phyllodes tumour. Our case highlights the signi cance of multidisciplinary approach in managing benign breast masses such as phyllodes tumours which have malignant potential and a high rate of recurrence. Key words: Breast ultrasound, mammography, phyllodes breast tumour

Requirements Prioritization Techniques for Global Software Engineering

Increase in globalization of the industry of software requires an exploration of requirements engineering (RE) in software development institutes at multiple locations. Requirements engineering task is very complicated when it is performed at single site, but it becomes too much complex when stakeholder groups define well-designed requirements under language, time zone and cultural limits. Requirements prioritization (RP) is considered as an imperative part of software requirements engineering in which requirements are ranked to develop best-quality software. In this research, a comparative study of the requirements prioritization techniques was done to overcome the challenges initiated by the corporal distribution of stakeholders within the organization at multiple locations. The objective of this study was to make a comparison between five techniques for prioritizing software requirements and to discuss the results for global software engineering. The selected techniques were Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Cumulative Voting (CV), Value Oriented Prioritization (VOP), Binary Search Tree (BST), and Numerical Assignment Technique (NAT). At the end of the research a framework for Global Software Engineering (GSE) was proposed to prioritize the requirements for stakeholders at distributed locations