Exact and approximate boundary data interpolation in the finite element method

Matching boundary data exactly in an elliptic problem avoids one of Strang's "variational crimes". (Strang and Fix (1973)). Supporting numerical evidence for this procedure is given by Marshall and Mitchell (1973), who considered the solution of Laplace's equation with Dirichlet boundary data by bilinear elements over squares and measured the errors in the L2 norm. Then Marshall and Mitchell (1978) obtained some surprising results: for certain triangular elements, matching the boundary data exactly produced worse results than the usual procedure of interpolating the boundary data

A qualitative exploration of whether lesbian and bisexual women are 'protected' from sociocultural pressure to be thin

Heterosexual women in Western cultures are known to experience body image concerns, dieting and disordered eating as a result of intense social pressures to be thin. However, it is theorised that lesbian and bisexual women belong to a subculture that is ‘protective’ of such demands. Fifteen non-heterosexual women were interviewed about their experiences of social pressure. Thematic analysis of their accounts suggests that such theorising may be inaccurate, because these lesbian and bisexual women did not feel ‘protected’ from social pressures and experienced body dissatisfaction. While they might attempt to resist thin idealisation, resistance is not centred around their sexuality

Gender differences in the association between attachment style and adulthood relationship satisfaction (brief report)

In general, the quality of the caregiver-child attachment formed in early childhood will influence the quality of relationships in adulthood. Our survey of 217 adults aimed to assess to what extent relationship satisfaction in adults is accounted for by attachment style. After controlling for demographic variables, we found that an increase in attachment problems predicted a reduction in adulthood relationship satisfaction. The effect of attachment on adulthood relationships was stronger in women than men for avoidant attachment (β = -5.67, p < .00000005, and β = -4.60, p <.001 respectively), and weaker for women than men for anxious attachment (β = -2.21, p < .05, and β = -4.33, p <.01 respectively). Implications for child rearing and adult therapy are discussed

Barriers to academic help-seeking: the relationship with gender-typed attitudes

In recent years, male students at UK schools and universities have been falling behind their female peers in academic achievement. Previous studies have shown that male students are less likely than female students to seek academic help, but have not investigated the relationship between gender-typical attitudes and reluctance to seek academic help. In the present study, 162 students at six UK universities completed the Help-Seeking Scales and the Traditional Gender Script Questionnaire. Data from this survey were analysed using MANOVA and multilple linear regression. The main findings were that reluctance to seek help was predicted by higher scores on the masculine gender script subscale Mastery and Control of feelings for both male (β =.448, p <.01) and female students (β = .497, p < .001). For male participants, being a Fighter and a Winner also predicted reluctance to seek help (β = −.322, p < .05) whereas, for female students, greater help-seeking was associated with more interest in creating Family Harmony (β = −.272, p < .05). These findings suggest that the help-seeking behaviour of both male and female students is related to specific gender-typical attitudes. We suggest that awareness of these attitudes can serve to inform educational practice by facilitating access to academic assistance and encouraging all students to seek academic help

‘ An investigation of the nervous control of defecation ’ by Denny-Brown and Robertson: a classic paper revisited

In 1935 two young neurologists, Derek Denny-Brown and E. Graeme Robertson, published an article explaining the mechanisms underlying human defaecation based on a manometric study in patients with sacral root and spinal cord lesions, and normal subjects. This article is still routinely cited in studies of rectal and sphincter ani function. Unfortunately, however, the article itself is not written well, being composed of long convoluted sentences and containing 79 often indecipherable figures. Difficult-to-understand articles were common to the publications of Denny-Brown, who became one of the most prominent neurologists of the twentieth century. In accord with our prior work explaining Denny-Brown and Robertson's earlier paper on micturition, we provide here what we hope is a clear explanation of the methods and results in their study on defaecation.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73905/1/j.1463-1318.2004.00636.x.pd

Vascular perfusion chilling of red meat carcasses - A feasibility study.

Meat carcasses must be chilled to below 7°C before leaving the slaughterhouse. Typically this is done by passing cold air over the surfaces of eviscerated and de-hided carcasses. This surface cooling can take many hours to reduce centre temperatures to below 7°C. In vascular perfusion chilling (VPC), a cold fluid is circulated through the intact vascular system, offering significant reductions in cooling time. This paper describes a small feasibility study to evaluate vascular perfusion techniques for rapid chilling of lamb carcasses using a proprietary Flo-ice(™) system. This produces pumpable ice slurries containing very fine ice particles, suitable for circulating through vascular systems. VPC was found to be capable of rapid initial reduction of carcass temperatures in comparison with air chilling (mean times to 20°C in deep legs were reduced from 2.6 to 1.3h, which was significantly different at P<0.05). In all cases however, uptake of perfusate into the carcasses occurred. This limited the duration of the perfusion treatment and as a result restricted the period of enhanced cooling. Samples from carcasses treated with VPC were lighter (P<0.05, with mean measured L value increasing from 43.4 to 46.8) and more yellow (P<0.05, with mean measured b value increasing from 6.7 to 7.9) than samples from conventionally chilled carcasses, and had lower shear force values when cooked (P<0.05, with mean force reducing from 10.0 to 6.8kg). This was most probably due to the added water in the meat. Microbial quality of the meat was not significantly affected by the perfusion treatments

Feasibility Of Using Vascular Perfusion Chilling For Red Meat Carcasses

Meat carcasses must be chilled to below 7°C before leaving the slaughterhouse. Typically cold air is circulated over the surfaces of the carcasses, which can take many hours to reduce centre temperatures to below 7°C. In vascular perfusion chilling (VPC), a cold fluid is circulated through the intact vascular system, offering significant reductions in cooling time. This paper describes a small feasibility study to evaluate VPC for rapid chilling of lamb carcasses. VPC was found to be capable of rapid initial reduction of carcass temperatures, but uptake of perfusate into the carcasses limited the time for which perfusion treatment could be applied. Samples from carcasses treated with VPC were lighter and more yellow than samples from conventionally chilled carcasses, and had lower shear force values when cooked. This was most probably due to the added water in the meat. Microbial quality of the meat was not significantly affected

Laos's peripheral centrality in Southeast Asia: Mobility, labour and regional integration

© 2018 Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden. Laos's position at the centre of the Southeast Asian mainland has entailed peripherality to regional loci of power. Its geography of peripheral centrality has however resulted in Laos becoming a realm of contestation between powerful neighbours. The analysis traces the construction of Laos within a regional space from pre-colonial times to contemporary special economic zones. Laos has been produced through mobility, foreign actors' attempts to reorient space to their sphere of influence, and transnational class relations incorporating Lao workers and peasants, Lao elites and foreign powers. These elements manifest within current special economic zone projects