Trainer burnout: Causes and Cures

Burnout among trainers is a pervasive problem that has received little attention. What is causing it? What can trainers do about it? This article discusses the lack of organizational support for training as a major source of stress leading to trainer burnout, ways to prevent trainer burnout, and ways to alleviate its debilitating effects

Effects of Group Composition and Consensus Training on the Assembly Effect

n light of the growing reliance on teams to solve the complex problems faced in organizations, research that demonstrates how team performance can be improved beyond the performance of individuals is warranted. This study investigated whether group performance could be significantly improved by forming groups with members heterogeneous in information-processing preferences, as measured by the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), and by providing those groups with training to facilitate consensus on the group\u27s solution to a complex, multistage decision task. Comparisons of assembly effect occurrences (i.e., solutions of higher quality than those that could be achieved by any individual within the group working alone) among undergraduate student groups (N = 38) differing in composition (homogeneous vs. heterogeneous) and mode of consensual training (trained vs. not trained) were conducted through a nonparametric statistical analysis. The results of the analysis supported only the hypothesis predicting that the proportion of trained groups producing the assembly effect would be significantly greater, statistically, than that of the not-trained groups. However, a statistically significant interaction effect in a nonhypothesized direction was found. Implications and recommendations based on the findings are offered

Experiments in the automatic marking of ER-Diagrams

In this paper we present an approach to the computer understanding of diagrams and show how it can be successfully applied to the automatic marking (grading) of student attempts at drawing entity-relationship (ER) diagrams. The automatic marker has been incorporated into a revision tool to enable students to practice diagramming and obtain feedback on their attempts

Память и мемуары: прошлое как чужая страна

The posthumous publication of Iurii Dmitrievich Rykov’s most important contributions to the study of the writings of Prince Andrei Kurbskii (including for the first time his kandidat dissertation) has inspired this essay as a tribute to Rykov, one of the leading specialists on early Russian manuscripts. Rather than focus on the substance of the Kurbskii material, the emphasis is on Rykov’s own memoir in the book and more generally on memoirs as historical sources, among them ones written by the noted scholars S. V. Zhitomirskaia and A. A. Zimin. Appended to the essay are a number of letters which Rykov wrote to his American colleagues. DOI: 10.31168/2305-6754.2021.11.1.18Посмертное издание важнейших исследований Ю. Д. Рыкова (включая и его неопубликованную кандидатскую диссертацию) о сочинениях кн. А. М. Курбского послужило поводом писать в память выдающегося специалиста в изучении древнерусских рукописей. Статья сосредоточится не на сложные вопросы о Курбском, а на анализ воспоминания Рыкова и источниковедческих вопросов о мемуарах, включая и воспоминания известных ученых С. В. Житомирской и А. А. Зимина. В приложении опубликованы письма Рыкова американским коллегам. DOI: 10.31168/2305-6754.2021.11.1.1

Еще раз о «Вызове великого турка»

Four decades after his monograph on the apocryphal correspondence of the Ottoman sultan was published, the author reviews the previous study of the subject, the origins of his book, its skeptical reception then, and the current acceptance of its main argument that most of the Russian versions of that correspondence are translations from Western European pamphlets and newspapers. Recent scholarship has located additional proof, and the current article presents further information which should help identify the sources for some of the Russian texts. DOI: 10.31168/2305-6754.2019.8.1.6По случаю сорокалетия публикации своей монографии о легендарной переписке турецкого султана автор в настоящей статье рассматривает историю изучения предмета, рассказывает о возникновении своей книги, о ее первоначальном скептическом приеме и о нынешнем согласии ученых с ее главным аргументом о том, что большинство русских текстов переписки являются переводами с западных газет и брошюр. Новые исследования обнаружили дополнительные доказательства этой концепции, и в настоящей статье описываются новые материалы, которые должны содействовать находке источников некоторых русских текстов. DOI: 10.31168/2305-6754.2019.8.1.

Using patterns in the automatic marking of ER-Diagrams

This paper illustrates how the notion of pattern can be used in the automatic analysis and synthesis of diagrams, applied particularly to the automatic marking of ER-diagrams. The paper describes how diagram patterns fit into a general framework for diagram interpretation and provides examples of how patterns can be exploited in other fields. Diagram patterns are defined and specified within the area of ER-diagrams. The paper also shows how patterns are being exploited in a revision tool for understanding ER-diagrams

Systematic review of SGLT2 receptor inhibitors in dual or triple therapy in type 2 diabetes

Background Despite the number of medications for type 2 diabetes, many people with the condition do not achieve good glycaemic control. Some existing glucose-lowering agents have adverse effects such as weight gain or hypoglycaemia. Type 2 diabetes tends to be a progressive disease, and most patients require treatment with combinations of glucose-lowering agents. The sodium glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) receptor inhibitors are a new class of glucose-lowering agents. Objective To assess the clinical effectiveness and safety of the SGLT2 receptor inhibitors in dual or triple therapy in type 2 diabetes. Data sources MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane Library (all sections); Science Citation Index; trial registries; conference abstracts; drug regulatory authorities; bibliographies of retrieved papers. Inclusion criteria Randomised controlled trials of SGLT2 receptor inhibitors compared with placebo or active comparator in type 2 diabetes in dual or combination therapy. Methods Systematic review. Quality assessment used the Cochrane risk of bias score. Results Seven trials, published in full, assessed dapagliflozin and one assessed canagliflozin. Trial quality appeared good. Dapagliflozin 10 mg reduced HbA1c by −0.54% (weighted mean differences (WMD), 95% CI −0.67 to −0.40) compared to placebo, but there was no difference compared to glipizide. Canagliflozin reduced HbA1c slightly more than sitagliptin (up to −0.21% vs sitagliptin). Both dapagliflozin and canagliflozin led to weight loss (dapagliflozin WMD −1.81 kg (95% CI −2.04 to −1.57), canagliflozin up to −2.3 kg compared to placebo). Limitations Long-term trial extensions suggested that effects were maintained over time. Data on canagliflozin are currently available from only one paper. Costs of the drugs are not known so cost-effectiveness cannot be assessed. More data on safety are needed, with the Food and Drug Administration having concerns about breast and bladder cancers. Conclusions Dapagliflozin appears effective in reducing HbA1c and weight in type 2 diabetes, although more safety data are needed