1,842 research outputs found
Work-ready wiki: Supporting the learning and teaching of professional graduate attributes
The paper presents the background, design and formative evaluation of a wiki of workready learning activities and teaching support resources to improve the learning of professional graduate attributes. The 'Improving graduate work-readiness' project is a University of Technology Sydney curriculum renewal project involving five Faculties. The project aims to improve graduates' professional attributes and employability skills by designing new subjects, new subject modules and integrating short well-designed contextualised work-ready learning activities into existing subjects. The authors inquired of relevant professional societies their understandings of the key professional attributes required of a graduate in the contemporary workplace. These findings informed the design of a matrix of 11 professional attributes and associated sub-attributes and aligned understandings and skills that can be learnt. The work-ready wiki gives access to a matrix of generic work-ready learning activities and 16 matrixes of learning activities contextualised for each professional area of study involved in the project to-date. Workready activities contextualised for each profession maximises student relevance and motivation to learn. Maximising the ease of integration of work-ready activities into existing subjects has guided the design of the wiki-based learning activities. From the wiki practical teaching support resources can be downloaded to enable easier integration of the work-ready learning activities. The beginning of collections of work-ready learning activities can be found at . Β© 2008 Andrew Litchfield and Skye Nettleton
Multi-Wavelength Variability of the Synchrotron Self-Compton Model for Blazar Emission
Motivated by recent reports of strongly correlated radio and X-ray
variability in 3C279 (Grandi, etal 1995), we have computed the relative
amplitudes of variations in the synchrotron flux at and the self-Compton
X-ray flux at 1 keV () for a homogeneous sphere of relativistic
electrons orbiting in a tangled magnetic field. Relative to synchrotron
self-Compton scattering without induced Compton scattering, stimulated
scattering reduces the amplitude of by as much as an order of
magnitude when \tau_T \gtwid 1. When varies in a fixed magnetic
field, increases monotonically from 0.01 at , the
self-absorption turnover frequency, to at . The relative
amplitudes of the correlated fluctuations in the radio-mm and X-ray fluxes from
3C279 are consistent with the synchrotron self-Compton model if varies
in a fixed magnetic field and induced Compton scattering is the dominant source
of radio opacity. The variation amplitudes are are too small to be produced by
the passage of a shock through the synchrotron emission region unless the
magnetic field is perpendicular to the shock front.Comment: 21 pages, 4 fig
Surface cleaning technologies for the removal of crosslinked epoxide resin
This study provides details of the use of laser ablation and sodium hydride cleaning processes for
the removal of crosslinked epoxide and other residues from resin transfer moulding (RTM) tool
substrates, as used in the aerospace industry. The requirement for removal of such contamination is
so that the mould can be re-used, following the subsequent application of an external release agent.
These tools are, typically, fabricated from steel, nickel or CFRP composite materials; this paper
focuses on the use of nickel substrates. The requirement to clean large surface areas quickly to
satisfy commercial restraints, compromises the degree of absolute cleanliness that can be obtained.
However, in applications where cleaning time is not a constraint, laser cleaning can be a very gentle
and efficient process; typically Nd:YAG lasers find application in this area. In contrast, high power
lasers are desirable for industrial scale applications where large areas need to be cleaned quickly. In
this instance pulsed CO2 lasers can be used. The use of sodium hydride was also found to be highly
successful in removing crosslinked organic contamination providing that suitable hard rinse and
drying operations were also carried out
Rapid and substantial increases in anticoagulant use and expenditure in Australia following the introduction of new types of oral anticoagulants
Β© 2018 Morgan et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Objectives To quantify changes in anticoagulant use in Australia since the introduction of Non-vitamin K antagonist anticoagulants (NOACs) and to estimate government expenditure. Design Interrupted-time-series analysis quantifying anticoagulant dispensing, before and after first Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) NOAC listing in August 2009 for venous thromboembolism prevention; and expanded listing for stroke prevention in non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF) in August 2013, up to June 2016. Estimated government expenditure on PBS-listed anticoagulants. Setting and participants PBS dispensing in 10% random sample of Australians, restricted to continuous concessional beneficiaries dispensed oral anticoagulants from July 2005 to June 2016. Total PBS anticoagulant expenditure was calculated using Medicare Australia statistics. Main outcome measures Monthly dispensing and initiation of oral anticoagulants (warfarin, rivaroxaban, dabigatran or apixaban). Annual PBS anticoagulant expenditure. Results An estimated 149,180 concessional beneficiaries were dispensed anticoagulants (100% warfarin) during July 2005. This increased to 292,550 during June 2016, of whom 47.0%, 27.1%, 18.7% and 7.2% were dispensed warfarin, rivaroxaban, apixaban and dabigatran, respectively. Of 16,500 initiated on anticoagulants in June 2016, 24.3%, 38.2%, 30.0% and 7.5% were initiated on warfarin, rivaroxaban, apixaban, and dabigatran, respectively. Compared to July 2005-July 2013, from August 2013-June 2016, dispensings for all anticoagulants increased by 2,303 dispensings/month (p<0.001, 95%CI = [1,229 3,376]); warfarin dispensing decreased by 1,803 dispensings/month (p<0.001, 95%CI = [β2,606, β1,000]). Total PBS anticoagulant expenditure was 203.3 million (86.2% concessional) in 2015/16, of which 11.2% was warfarin. Conclusions The introduction of the NOACs led to substantial increases in anticoagulant use and expenditure in Australia
A review and comparative study of release coatings for optimised abhesion in resin transfer moulding applications
In this study, a number of abhesion promoting coatings were considered in terms of their physicochemical and release properties. The techniques used to further this study include; FEGSEM, AFM, profilometry, AFM, XPS, AES, SSIMS, FTIR and contact angle analysis for coating physical and chemical characterisation along with PF-AFM and other adhesion and mechanical tests to determine surface release properties. These coatings were applied to metal substrates and were based upon silicone, fluoropolymer or metal-PTFE composite chemistry, all being potentially useful as release films for resin transfer moulding (RTM) applications. The semi-permanent Frekote B15/710 NC mould release coating system, which is based on PDMS, proved extremely effective in terms of release against a cured epoxide applied under pressure. Although fluoroalkylsilane coatings offer a number of technological advantages for release applications they generally produce very thin coatings which conform any existing surface topography and adhesion through mechanical interlocking occurs. The commercial PTFE-based coatings were found to provide poor release properties due to the presence of surface microcracks which allowed epoxide penetration when cured under elevated pressure and temperature. Electroless Ni/PTFE composite coatings comprise hard nickel-phosphorus matrix containing a very fine dispersion of PTFE particles. The matrix proved sufficiently robust for industrial applications and the low friction and surface energy provided by the embedded PTFE combined with macroscopic scale surface roughness provided efficient mould release
On the Reliability of Cross Correlation Function Lag Determinations in Active Galactic Nuclei
Many AGN exhibit a highly variable luminosity. Some AGN also show a
pronounced time delay between variations seen in their optical continuum and in
their emission lines. In effect, the emission lines are light echoes of the
continuum. This light travel-time delay provides a characteristic radius of the
region producing the emission lines. The cross correlation function (CCF) is
the standard tool used to measure the time lag between the continuum and line
variations. For the few well-sampled AGN, the lag ranges from 1-100 days,
depending upon which line is used and the luminosity of the AGN. In the best
sampled AGN, NGC 5548, the H_beta lag shows year-to-year changes, ranging from
about 8.7 days to about 22.9 days over a span of 8 years. In this paper it is
demonstrated that, in the context of AGN variability studies, the lag estimate
using the CCF is biased too low and subject to a large variance. Thus the
year-to-year changes of the measured lag in NGC 5548 do not necessarily imply
changes in the AGN structure. The bias and large variance are consequences of
finite duration sampling and the dominance of long timescale trends in the
light curves, not due to noise or irregular sampling. Lag estimates can be
substantially improved by removing low frequency power from the light curves
prior to computing the CCF.Comment: To appear in the PASP, vol 111, 1999 Nov; 37 pages; 10 figure
Tracking Cancer Evolution through the Disease Course.
During cancer evolution, constituent tumor cells compete under dynamic selection pressures. Phenotypic variation can be observed as intratumor heterogeneity, which is propagated by genome instability leading to mutations, somatic copy-number alterations, and epigenomic changes. TRACERx was set up in 2014 to observe the relationship between intratumor heterogeneity and patient outcome. By integrating multiregion sequencing of primary tumors with longitudinal sampling of a prospectively recruited patient cohort, cancer evolution can be tracked from early- to late-stage disease and through therapy. Here we review some of the key features of the studies and look to the future of the field. SIGNIFICANCE: Cancers evolve and adapt to environmental challenges such as immune surveillance and treatment pressures. The TRACERx studies track cancer evolution in a clinical setting, through primary disease to recurrence. Through multiregion and longitudinal sampling, evolutionary processes have been detailed in the tumor and the immune microenvironment in non-small cell lung cancer and clear-cell renal cell carcinoma. TRACERx has revealed the potential therapeutic utility of targeting clonal neoantigens and ctDNA detection in the adjuvant setting as a minimal residual disease detection tool primed for translation into clinical trials
PI3Kgamma drives priming and survival of autoreactive CD4(+) T cells during experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis
The class IB phosphoinositide 3-kinase Ξ³ enzyme complex (PI3Kc) functions in multiple signaling pathways involved in leukocyte activation and migration, making it an attractive target in complex human inflammatory diseases including MS. Here, using pik3cg2/2 mice and a selective PI3Kc inhibitor, we show that PI3Kc promotes development of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). In pik3cg2/2 mice, EAE is markedly suppressed and fewer leukocytes including CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, granulocytes and mononuclear phagocytes infiltrate the CNS. CD4+ T cell priming in secondary lymphoid organs is reduced in pik3cg2/2 mice following immunisation. This is attributable to defects in DC migration concomitant with a failure of full T cell activation following TCR ligation in the absence of p110c. Together, this results in suppressed autoreactive T cell responses in pik3cg2/2 mice, with more CD4+ T cells undergoing apoptosis and fewer cytokineproducing Th1 and Th17 cells in lymphoid organs and the CNS. When administered from onset of EAE, the orally active PI3Kc inhibitor AS605240 caused inhibition and reversal of clinical disease, and demyelination and cellular pathology in the CNS was reduced. These results strongly suggest that inhibitors of PI3Kc may be useful therapeutics for MS.Iain Comerford, Wendel Litchfield, Ervin Kara and Shaun R. McCol
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