StrathSat-R : Deploying inflatable CubeSat structures in micro gravity

This paper presents the concepts, objectives and design of a student-led sounding rocket experiment which shall test novel inflatable devices in space conditions. This experiment is envisaged as the first step towards developing a CubeSat programme at the University of Strathclyde, which can exploit the novel concepts developed and the technical skills gained. The experiment itself aims to test novel, student developed, inflatable space structures in micro gravity and reduced pressure conditions. It consists of three distinct sections, the ejection housing on the rocket and the two ejectable modules that are based on CubeSat architecture. Shortly before reaching apogee, the two modules are ejected from the rocket and will deploy their own inflating structure during free flight. After landing, the ejectable modules recovery will rely upon a GPS position relayed to the team from the module by Globalstar transmission and a RF beacon for tracking with the recovery helicopter. The two modules carry two different structures resulting in distinct mission objectives: The aim of FRODO is to deploy an experimental passive de-orbiting system for high altitude spacecraft which will in the future utilise solar radiation pressure for orbit removal. The aim of SAM is to serve as a technology demonstrator for the residual air deployment method of a smart bio-inspired space structure. This paper contains details about the science objectives of the mission and how they will be achieved, its experimental design and the management of the student-led project

Fear and Othering in Delhi

This contribution aims at assessing to what extent does the fact of living in New Delhi influence the Kashmiri Muslims’ sense of a national belonging to India. Non-belongingness is appraised through the study of Kashmiri Muslims’ emotions and perceptions towards New Delhi, that is to say the territory and the inhabitants of the capital city of India. Living in New Delhi nurtures an othering process between Kashmiri Muslims and the non-Kashmiri Muslim Delhiite society. The contribution analyses this process as a two-way dynamic wherein both the groups are at stake. In the same vein, non-belongingness also appears to be an ambiguous process. But ultimately, the feeling of non-belonging prevails among Kashmiri Muslims. Eventually, Kashmiri Muslims’ feelings towards New Delhi coalesced with their feelings regarding the Indian state. Informed by the socialization to state-led violence that they experienced in Indian-Administrated Kashmir as well as their actual experience of New Delhi, Kashmiri Muslims convert their non-belongingness to the city into a perception of national disaffiliation towards what they name ‘India’. The study is based on fieldwork conducted in September and October 2016 in New Delhi among twenty Kashmiri Muslims who had lived in the capital city of India from six months to ten years prior to the interviews

Searching for Control of the Bacillus Subtilis Spore Surface

Proteins are involved in an endless number of biological processes. However, their utility in engineering and medical purposes is limited by their fragility outside of their native environment. One method that scientists have developed to remedy this is by genetically engineering the bacterial spores of Bacillus subtilis to present the proteins of interest on their surface. In summer 2022, with funding from the Research Experience and Apprenticeship Program (REAP) at UNH, I performed research that aimed to improve this technique. Our goal was to further develop a system to control the amount of protein expressed on the surface of the bacterial spore. After receiving unexpected preliminary results, I had to go through a period of extensive troubleshooting to try to find the issue, before eventually concluding I would have to restart my project. But it was through restarting my project that I would come to learn the most. In the end, I gained many new lab skills and knowledge about the nature of genetics and learned how to develop and execute a research plan while overcoming multiple challenges

Intergenerational public and private sector redistribution in Sweden 2003

We describe intergenerational redistribution in Sweden the year 2003. The high Swedish tax ratio of around 50-60 percent of GDP per capita is partly explained by every individual getting a lot back in terms of transfers and part in government consumption. Another reason is that most transfers are taxed, which results in double counting some tax payments. Here we attempt to correct the age profile of net tax payment for these effects and compare these to the gross profiles. On a per capita basis we find, using this netting, that the mean age of tax payers drops from 55 to 48 and that the taxes paid falls by 23.2 percent. We also look at age profiles of private and public consumption, and net private consumption, i.e., the difference between private disposable income and private consumption. We find that private net redistribution flows mainly from middle and old age to young ages, while net public transfers flow to both young and old.Intergenerational; redistribution

Artists as Workers: A Report

This report offers a comprehensive outline of working conditions within the UK's visual arts sector. We foreground an understanding of the 'artist as worker', emphasising the labour in artistic labour, and highlighting the sector's interaction with wider trends, such as the gig economy and marketisation in education. Drawing on extensive interviews with a diverse range of workers within the UK's art industry, it highlights the levels of precarity and inequality endemic within the sector. The Covid pandemic often reinforced many of these trends. We hear powerful testimony about the impact of the crisis from a range of artists, activists and sector representatives. Based on our findings, we identify a range of recommendations to protect artist-as-workers going forward, particularly in the context of a Covid recovery. These include Universal Basic Income, Studio space subsidies, Revitalised artistic education, and Public works programmes

A randomized controlled trial of training in Motivational Interviewing for child protection.

There has been interest in developing more evidence-based approaches to child and family social work in the UK in recent years. This study examines the impact of a skills development package of training and supervision in Motivational Interviewing (MI) on the skills of social workers and the engagement of parents through a randomized controlled trial. All workers in one local authority were randomly assigned to receive the package (n = 28) or control (n = 33). Families were then randomized to trained (n = 67) or untrained (n = 98) workers. Family meetings with the worker shortly after allocation were evaluated for MI skill. Research interviews gathered data including the WAI. Follow-up interviews 20 weeks later repeated the WAI, and other outcome measures including Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS) and rating of family life. Between group analysis found statistically significant difference in MI skills, though these were not substantial (2.49 in control, 2.91 MI trained, p = .049). There was no statistically significant difference between groups in any other outcome measures. The package of training and supervision did not create sufficient increase in MI skills to influence engagement or outcomes. Implications for understanding the relationship between skills, engagement and organizational change are discussed

Universities, Public Research and Regional Innovation Output: An Empirical Study of 19 Technologies in Germany

It has been repeatedly shown that universities and public research institutes contribute to local innovation generation and facilitation. The mechanisms behind this contribution are well discussed in the literature. However, detailed empirical examinations are missing. We analyse the impact of universities and public research on regional innovation output. Thereby we analyse separately 19 technologies and distinguish whether university education and public research are rather innovation generators or innovation facilitators. All analyses are conducted on German data

Workshop on good practices on increased accessibility of research/innovation infrastructure to industry for testing, demonstration and co-creation: Test beds as drivers for EU growth and innovation

From 30 November to 1 December 2017, a workshop discussing the role of test and demonstration facilities to drive innovation and growth was held in Gothenburg, Sweden. The event was co-organised by RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and the Association of Swedish Engineering Industries (Teknikföretagen) in collaboration with Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC) under the JRC/TTO Circle network. The theme of the workshop was: “Good practices on increased accessibility of research/innovation infrastructure to industry for testing, demonstration and co-creation”. Panel debates and presentations took place, during which representatives from business, RTOs, academic institutions, the Swedish Government and the European Commission expressed their views. This brief report summarises the workshop’s main findings and sets out the way forward. The objectives of the workshop were to: Discuss how to develop a strategy for test and demonstration infrastructures at EU level, and how to integrate different kinds of infrastructures into attractive and leading global innovation environments. Review different approaches for business models, quality controls, IPR conditions, funding opportunities, etc., with a view to their potential harmonisation. Explore synergies with the ESFRI network. Look into In-Real-Life (IRL) test and demonstration sites, such as cities. Explore ways of open innovation partnerships, for example, collaboration between SMEs and larger corporations. Identify potential pilot activities within the framework of the Support to the TTO Circle network. Provide guidelines to the JRC on how to make their infrastructures more accessible for external use. The conclusions of the meeting will feed into the broader political debate on how to maximise the use of test and demonstration facilities in Europe in the run up to the next EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. In response to strategies on both regional and national levels, RISE and Teknikföretagen would like to see a comprehensive European strategy towards a “Test bed Europe” in the framework of EU, national and regional programmes. Such a strategy would encourage collaboration between business, the research environment and the public sector. It would also increase innovation and competitiveness and help the EU meet global challenges.JRC.I.4-Intellectual Property and Technology Transfe