Thermal alterations in experimentally-flaked stone tools from Olduvai Gorge and their relevance for identification of fire in the Early Stone Age

The use of fire represents a landmark development in the technological evolution of the genus Homo. However, the earliest use and control of fire is challenging to identify in the archaeological record. Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania presents some of the best preservation and volume of sites in the Oldowan and Acheulean, but has not yet shown any clear indication of the presence of fire in lower or middle Pleistocene deposits. Through the use of visual observation and optical and scanning electron microscopy, this study identified signature features of thermal alteration in experimental stone tools of quartzite, lava and chert collected from Olduvai Gorge to establish how fire-modified rocks may potentially be identified in the archaeological record using a non-destructive methodology that can be replicated in future research

Growing spaces : an evaluation of the mental health recovery programme using mixed methods

Background: Therapeutic horticulture is a nature-based method which includes a range of green activities such as gardening to promote wellbeing. It is believed that therapeutic horticulture provides a person-centred approach that can reduce social isolation for people with mental health problems. Aims: The aim of the project was to evaluate the impact of a mental health recovery programme that used therapeutic horticulture as an intervention to reduce social inclusion and improve engagement for people with mental health problems. Methods: A mixed-methods approach was used and data from four semi-structured focus group interviews, 11 exit interviews and 20 recovery star datasets were collected from September 2015 to October 2017. Qualitative data from the interviews were thematically analysed and quantitative data based on a recovery star outcomes tool were analysed using descriptive statistics to demonstrate trends and progression. The findings were then triangulated to provide a rich picture of the impact of the mental health recovery programme. Results: The recovery star data indicated that participants were working towards self-reliance. Qualitative data from the exit interview and semi-structured focus groups found similar results. The triangulated findings highlight that the mental health recovery programme enabled participant integration into the community through providing a space to grow and build self-confidence while re-engaging with society. The results suggest that using therapeutic horticulture as an intervention within the mental health recovery programme can support people with mental health problems to re-engage socially. Nature-based activities could be used within the ‘social prescribing’ movement to encourage partnership working between the NHS and voluntary sector organisations which can complement existing mental health services

LTHEchat – The Story of a Community of Practice through Twitter

The original idea for an ongoing tweetchat for professional development came from Dr. Chrissi Nerantzi. The idea emerged through the success of the #BYOD4Lchat, a daily feature of the 5-day openly-licensed course Bring Your Own Devices for Learning (BYOD4L), first offered in January 2014 and based on flexible, distance and online learning (FDOL) Offered Monday to Friday from 8-9pm UK time #BYOD4Lchat always created a real buzz. Chrissi saw the potential for a tweetchat on its own, outside a course that would have the potential to develop a community around it. Courses have such a short lifespan, she thought. What about a community approach to professional development? If we want our academics engaged in ongoing professional development could a weekly tweetchat be an attractive option? Could it work? She wanted to give it a go! When the idea matured a little bit in her head, she shared it with Sue Beckingham over a Skype meeting and then with Dr. David Walker and Peter Reed in an email signing as Chrissi and Sue. She wanted the tweetchat to become a truly collaborative project from the outset and therefore creating the conditions for co-ownership were important to her. The Learning and Teaching in Higher Education tweetchat, or #LTHEchat, came to live. The name came from a core module Chrissi led while working at the University of Salford. Chrissi, Sue, David and Peter became the steering group and decided to run a 3-month pilot and see how it went

Simultaneous suppression of tone burst-evoked otoacoustic emissions - effect of level and presentation paradigm

There is conflict in the literature over whether individual frequency components of a transient-evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) are generated within relatively independent “channels” along the basilar membrane (BM), or whether each component may be generated by widespread areas of the BM. Two previous studies on TEOAE suppression are consistent with generation within largely independent channels, but with a degree of interaction between nearby channels. However, both these studies reported significant suppression only at high stimulus levels, at which the “nonlinear” presentation paradigm was used. The present study clarifies the separate influences of stimulus level and presentation paradigm on this type of suppression. TEOAEs were recorded using stimulus tone bursts at 1, 2 and 3 kHz and a complex stimulus consisting of a digital addition of the three tone bursts, over a range of stimulus levels and both “linear” and “nonlinear” presentation paradigms. Responses to the individual tone bursts were combined offline and compared with responses to the complex stimuli. Results clearly demonstrate that TEOAE suppression under these conditions is dependent upon stimulus level, and not upon presentation paradigm. It is further argued that the data support the “local” rather than “widespread” model of TEOAE generation, subject to nonlinear interactions between nearby generation channels. Abbreviations: BM, basilar membrane; OAE, otoacoustic emission; TEOAE, Transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions; I–O, Input–output; 2TS two-tone suppression

Innovative placement allocation model for pre-registration student nurses

Student nurses need a variety of high quality practice placements to prepare them for qualification yet, in reality, this can be difficult to achieve. A practice placement allocation model has enabled one university and its partner healthcare organisations to shift from a traditional, process-led system to a robust, proactive, student-focused approach. The model is based on partnership concepts including advance planning of student placements and clear lines of communication. It has resulted in 100% of first-year students taking part in a new fundamentals of care placement and received positive feedback from students and mentors

A mechanism for simultaneous suppression of tone burst-evoked otoacoustic emissions

Tone burst-evoked otoacoustic emission (TBOAE) components in response to a 1 kHz tone burst are suppressed by the simultaneous presence of tone bursts at higher frequencies. To date, the underlying cause of this “simultaneous suppression” of TBOAEs is unclear. This paper describes a potential mechanism based on local nonlinear interactions between basilar membrane (BM) travelling waves, and tests the extent to which it is able to account for this specific suppression phenomenon. A simple mathematical model based on local nonlinear interactions was developed, and its predictions for a range of tone burst pairs were compared to corresponding TBOAE suppression data recorded from fourteen normally hearing human ears at a level of 60 dB p.e. SPL. Model predictions and mean TBOAE suppression data showed close agreement for all pairs of tone bursts. These results suggest that simultaneous suppression of TBOAEs can be explained solely in terms of the local nonlinear interaction-based mechanism. However, the involvement of other mechanisms, involving components generated at places basal to their characteristic place along the BM, cannot be excluded.<br/