To what extent is behaviour a problem in English schools?:Exploring the scale and prevalence of deficits in classroom climate

The working atmosphere in the classroom is an important variable in the process of education in schools, with several studies suggesting that classroom climate is an important influence on pupil attainment. There are wide differences in the extent to which classroom climate is considered to be a problem in English schools. Some ‘official’ reports suggest that behaviour in schools is ‘satisfactory or better’ in the vast majority of schools; other sources have pointed to behaviour being a serious and widespread problem. The paper details four studies conducted over the past decade which aimed to explore these disparities. The aim of the research was to gain a more accurate insight into the extent to which deficits in classroom climate limit educational attainment and equality of educational opportunity in English schools. The findings question the suggestion that behaviour is satisfactory or better in 99.7% of English schools and the concluding section suggests ways in which deficits in classroom climate might be addressed. Although the study is limited to classrooms in England, OECD studies suggest that deficits in the working atmosphere in classrooms occur in many countries. The study therefore has potential relevance for education systems in other countries

Specimen preparation methods for elemental characterisation of grain boundaries and isolated dislocations in multicrystalline silicon using atom probe tomography

Multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) is a cost effective feedstock for solar photovoltaic devices but is limited by the presence of defects and impurities. Imaging impurities segregated to nanometre-scale dislocations and grain boundaries is a challenge that few materials characterisation techniques can achieve. Atom Probe Tomography (APT) is a 3-dimensional time-of-flight microscopy technique that can image the distribution of elements at the atomic scale, however one of the most challenging factors when using APT is the complexity of specimen preparation for specific regions of interest. Atom probe specimen preparation methods have been developed in a dual FIB/SEM system that enable a specific extended defect such as an isolated dislocation or a section of a grain boundary to be selected for APT analysis. The methods were used to fabricate APT specimens from an isolated dislocation and a grain boundary in mc-Si samples. Complementary TEM images confirm the presence of the defects in both specimens, whilst APT analyses also reveal segregation of impurities to the defects

Macrophages mediate the anti-tumor effects of the oncolytic virus HSV1716 in mammary tumors

Oncolytic viruses (OV) have been shown to activate the anti-tumor functions of specific immune cells like T cells. Here, we show OV can also reprogram TAMs to a less immunosuppressive phenotype. Syngeneic, immunocompetent mouse models of primary breast cancer were established using PyMT-TS1, 4T1 and E0771 cell lines and a metastatic model of breast cancer was established using the 4T1 cell line. Tumor growth and overall survival was assessed following intravenous administration of the OV, HSV1716 (a modified herpes simplex virus). Infiltration and function of various immune effector cells was assessed by NanoString, flow cytometry of dispersed tumors and immunofluorescence analysis of tumor sections. HSV1716 administration led to marked tumor shrinkage in primary mammary tumors and a decrease in metastases. This was associated with a significant increase in the recruitment/activation of cytotoxic T cells, a reduction in the presence of regulatory T cells and the reprograming of TAMs towards a pro-inflammatory, less immunosuppressive phenotype. These findings were supported by in vitro data demonstrating that human monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) host HSV1716 replication, and that this led to immunogenic macrophage lysis. These events were dependent on macrophage expression of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). Finally, the anti-tumor effect of OV was markedly diminished when TAMs were depleted using clodronate liposomes. Together, our results show that TAMs play an essential role in support of the tumoricidal effect of the OV, HSV1716 - they both host viral replication via a novel, PCNA-dependent mechanism and are reprogramed to express a less immunosuppressive phenotype

Electrical characteristics of flash sintering: thermal runaway of Joule heating

Flash sintering occurs when an electric field is applied to a heated ceramic powder compact. At a critical combination of field and temperature, a power surge occurs (the "flash event") and sintering takes place in a few seconds. This paper investigates the possibility that this surge occurs by runaway Joule heating. The resistivity of 3YSZ was measured under the relevant conditions. To a good approximation, resistivity was found to be history-independent and to have the same temperature dependence before and after the flash event. These data were used to model the thermal and electrical response of 3YSZ to an applied electric field. All electrical characteristics of the flash event observed experimentally were predicted with a high degree of accuracy. It is concluded that the thermal and electric characteristics of flash sintering are a classical consequence of the negative temperature coefficient of resistivity leading to runaway Joule heating at constant voltage