Technology-Mediated Active Learning in Information Systems Development Pedagogy: A Case Study

We describe the use of a newsgroup to support an active learning approach for teaching requirements analysis. The newsgroup was used forcommunication between students and a client to elicit requirements for a transaction processing system. The outcomes suggest that this technology is effective in supporting active learning. We offer recommendations for adopters of this approac

Using the Internet to Build Realism in Teaching Requirements Analysis

Educators realize that the Internet has the potential to dramatically change education. There is also a widespread recognition that student learning is enhanced when students are actively engaged in the process of their education. This paper describes a project in which the Internet was used to support active learning in an introductory Information Systems class. A Web forum was used to simulate the interaction of systems analysts (students) and a client in determining the requirements for a system. Students were actively involved in the construction of the system requirements through communications with the client. The exercise was successful in enhancing the realism of requirements analysis activities in a course project, as revealed by the nature of the online discussions with the client, as well as students\u27 evaluation of the project. We describe how the project was designed and implemented, evaluate its successes and limitations from both student and instructor perspectives, and offer advice for instructors interested in carrying out similar projects

Retaining the general practitioner workforce in England : what matters to GPs? A cross-sectional study

Background: The general practice (GP) workforce in England is in crisis, reflected in increasing rates of early retirement and intentions to reduce hours of working. This study aimed to investigate underlying factors and how these might be mitigated. Methods: GPs in central England were invited to participate in an on-line survey exploring career plans and views and experiences of work-related pressures. Quantitative data were analysed using logistic regression analysis and principal components analysis. Qualitative data were analysed using a thematic framework approach. Results: Of 1,192 GPs who participated, 978 (82.0 %) stated that they intend to leave general practice, take a career break and/or reduce clinical hours of work within the next five years. This included 488 (41.9 %) who intend to leave practice, and almost a quarter (279; 23.2 %) intending to take a career break. Only 67 (5.6 %) planned to increase their hours of clinical work. For participants planning to leave practice, the issues that most influenced intentions were volume and intensity of workload, time spent on “unimportant tasks”, introduction of seven-day working and lack of job satisfaction. Four hundred fifty five participants responded to open questions (39128 words in total). The main themes were the cumulative impact of work-related pressures, the changing and growing nature of the workload, and the consequent stress. Reducing workload intensity, workload volume, administrative activities, with increased time for patient care, no out-of-hour commitments, more flexible working conditions and greater clinical autonomy were identified as the most important requirements to address the workforce crisis. In addition, incentive payments, increased pay and protected time for education and training were also rated as important. Conclusions: New models of professionalism and organisational arrangements may be needed to address the issues described here. Without urgent action, the GP workforce crisis in England seems set to worsen

Securing Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) programming exams

Traditional pen and paper exams are inadequate for modern university programming courses as they are misaligned with pedagogies and learning objectives that target practical coding ability. Unfortunately, many institutions lack the resources or space to be able to run assessments in dedicated computer labs. This has motivated the development of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) exam formats, allowing students to program in a similar environment to how they learnt, but presenting instructors with significant additional challenges in preventing plagiarism and cheating. In this paper, we describe a BYOD exam solution based on lockdown browsers, software which temporarily turns students' laptops into secure workstations with limited system or internet access. We combine the use of this technology with a learning management system and cloud-based programming tool to facilitate conceptual and practical programming questions that can be tackled in an interactive but controlled environment. We reflect on our experience of implementing this solution for a major undergraduate programming course, highlighting our principal lesson that policies and support mechanisms are as important to consider as the technology itself.Comment: Accepted by SIGCSE 202

Acceptable Noise Levels for Typical Outdoor Leisure Activities

Throughout the Appalachian Mountain chain, entrepreneurs have capitalized on the outdoor sporting experience.  Both summer and winter sports such as fly fishing, hiking, skiing and snowboarding are very popular. One popular emerging activity is skeet, trap, and sporting clays shooting.  Major tourist enterprises are developing this opportunity for both tourists and the local residents.  To meet the increasing demand, ranges are being constructed throughout the region from Alabama to Maine.  Within North Carolina that are approximately 12 ranges, with an additional 10 in east Tennessee. Although these activities have had few opponents, sporting clays establishments have received an insignificant number of complaints that the noise level is above the noxious level.  A research experiment was designed to test noise levels at one sporting clays course situated near a vacation resort. The first phase of this experiment determined that the noise levels at the source from 12 and 20 gauge shotguns were insignificant. The allowable rounds used are the standard reduced load target load. At the source there was a significant difference between trap (85.85 dBA) and skeet (74.95 dBA). At the closest guest location (second phase) 333 samples were taken between August 2015 and March 2016.  The noise level averaged 53.7 dBA (σ = 7.43dBA). During the third phase (January to March 2016) 44 samples were obtained at the main resort lodging site.  At Site 2 the noise level averaged 31.9 dBA (σ = 5.45).  The fourth and final phase of this study was to determine the noise levels at the closest guest location for each of the 12 sporting clays stations.  Ninety-six samples (8 per station) were collected in October 2016. The average noise level was 53.0 dBA (σ 4.19 dBA). An analysis at the statistical confidence level of 97.5% was conducted.  First all stations were analyzed in a pairwise comparison analysis.  Stations that were not significantly different from one another were combined.  Thus the 12 stations were reduced to three combined stations.  The analysis determined that the noise level from stations 1 through 5 (48.9dBA, σ =1.50 dBA) was significantly lower than from the other stations.  Next loudest was the combinations of stations 6, 7, 10, and 11 (54.1 dBA, σ = 1.69). The last loudest combination was stations 8, 9, and 12 (58.6 dBA, σ = 1.50 dDA).  Thus there was a difference of 9.7 dBA between the lowest and the loudest station.  Since every 5 dBA difference equates to 2 to 3 times louder, depending on frequency, the loudest station is approximately 4 to 6 times louder that the lowest noise level.  However, all stations are below the OSHA Standard.  With an annoyance level (60.0 dBA) for the guest activity, the gunshots are less than the nuisance level and significantly less than the permissible level. The few complaints about the noise levels are not supported by the noise level data. A logical conclusion is that the objection is the act of shooting and not the noise level of the shotgun’s sharp or impact report. Potential solutions might be to examine stations 8, 9, and 12 and considering possible relocation, orientation, or emplacement of a thick tree barrier to absorb the reports. Regression analysis was used to develop a highly significant model to predict noise levels with the variables collected. However, this will not solve the complaints from those who object to reports under any circumstance

Spectroscopic and Microscopic Investigation of the Corrosion of 316/316L Stainless Steel by Lead-Bismuth Eutectic (LBE) at Elevated Temperatures: Importance of Surface Preparation

The corrosion of steel by lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) is an important issue in proposed nuclear transmutation schemes. Russian scientists at the IPPE exposed steel samples to oxygen-controlled LBE at temperatures up to 823 K and exposure times up to 3000 h. We have characterized these post-exposure steel samples and unexposed controls, using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Previous researchers have investigated the corrosion by LBE of steel of varying composition. In the present work, we compared two samples having the same composition (standard nuclear grade 316/316L) but different surface preparation: a cold-rolled sample was compared with an annealed sample. The cold-rolled sample had an order of magnitude less corrosion (i.e., both lower oxidation and less weight change) than the annealed sample. Sputter depth profiling of the exposed annealed sample and cold-rolled sample showed a marked difference in oxide layer composition between the annealed and cold-rolled samples. The annealed sample showed a complex oxide structure (iron oxide over chromium/iron oxide mixtures) of tens of microns thickness, while the cold-rolled sample was covered with a rather simple, primarily chromium oxide layer of ∼1 μm thickness

Quantification of bedform dynamics and bedload sediment flux in sandy braided rivers from airborne and satellite imagery

 This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Wiley via the DOI in this record Images from specially‐commissioned aeroplane sorties (manned aerial vehicle, MAV), repeat unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) surveys, and Planet CubeSat satellites are used to quantify dune and bar dynamics in the sandy braided South Saskatchewan River, Canada. Structure‐from‐Motion (SfM) techniques and application of a depth‐brightness model are used to produce a series of Digital Surface Models (DSMs) at low and near‐bankfull flows. A number of technical and image processing challenges are described that arise from the application of SfM in dry and submerged environments. A model for best practice is outlined and analysis suggests a depth‐brightness model approach can represent the different scales of bedforms present in sandy braided rivers with low‐turbidity and shallow (< 2 m deep) water. The aerial imagery is used to quantify the spatial distribution of unit bar and dune migration rate in an 18 km reach and three ~1 km long reaches respectively. Dune and unit bar migration rates are highly variable in response to local variations in planform morphology. Sediment transport rates for dunes and unit bars, obtained by integrating migration rates (from UAV) with the volume of sediment moved (from DSMs using MAV imagery) show near‐equivalence in sediment flux. Hence, reach‐based sediment transport rate estimates can be derived from unit bar data alone. Moreover, it is shown that reasonable estimates of sediment transport rate can be made using just unit bar migration rates as measured from 2D imagery, including from satellite images, so long as informed assumptions are made regarding average bar shape and height. With recent availability of frequent, repeat satellite imagery, and the ease of undertaking repeat MAV and UAV surveys, for the first time, it may be possible to provide global estimates of bedload sediment flux for large or inaccessible low‐turbidity rivers that currently have sparse information on bedload sediment transport rates.Natural Environment Research Council (NERC

The role of acid ceramidase in the radiotherapy response of an in vitro model of rectal cancer

Abstract The role of acid ceramidase in the radiotherapy response of an in vitro model of rectal cancer N Govindarajah, P Sutton, D Bowden, JL Parsons, D Vimalachandran. Background: Chemo radiotherapy (CRT) is often employed to treat locally advanced rectal cancer with highly variable response, emphasizing the necessity for predictive response biomarkers. Our initial proteomic and immune-histochemical work demonstrated that acid ceramidase (AC) expression correlated with poorer CRT responses in rectal cancer. We described that higher AC expression correlates with radio resistance in colorectal cancer cells and improved radio sensitivity through siRNA inhibition of AC. The mechanisms behind AC expression, radio resistance and apoptosis remain unknown in colorectal cancer. AC is known to affect apoptosis and the enzyme poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) is a DNA repair enzyme that is also cleaved into specific fragments during apoptosis. Aims: To elucidate a potential mechanism linking AC expression with radio resistance in colorectal cancer cells. Methods: Differential AC protein expression of four colorectal cell lines was confirmed by Western blotting. Radio sensitivity of these cell lines was examined using standard clonogenic assays by counting individual colony survival post-exposure to increasing doses of ionizing radiation. siRNA knockdown of AC was performed with further clonogenic assays to establish the impact of AC inhibition on radio sensitivity. HT29 and HCT cells were then treated with non-targeting control siRNA and AC siRNA, irradiated at increased doses of radiation then harvested at specific time points (2,6,24h). Western blotting was then performed to detect and measure for specific PARP-1 cleavage fragments as specific apoptotic markers. Results: Clonogenic assays confirmed that cell lines with greater cellular AC protein expression (LIM1215/MDST8) demonstrated higher colony survival compared to those with lower AC expression (HT29/HCT 116) post irradiation. siRNA AC knockdown improved radio sensitivity by reducing colony formation efficiency (CFE) in three cell lines: HT29(0.52 CFE control vs 0.13 CFE knockdown at 1Gyp=0.00004); HCT116(0.24 CFEcontrolvs0.09 CFE knockdown at 1Gyp=0.026); LIM1215 (0.88 CFE control vs 0.43 CFE knockdown at 0.25Gyp=0.001).Western blotting confirmed that HT29,HCT116 and LIM1215cells treated with AC siRNA displayed significantly higher levels of the 24kD PARP-1 cleavage fragments compared to control therefore indicating increased apoptosis. Conclusion: Higher AC expression correlates with radio resistance in several colorectal cell lines and radio sensitivity was successfully improved through biological (siRNA) inhibition of AC. Initial mechanistic work has confirmed that siRNA inhibition of AC causes increased apoptosi

The effect of high dose antibiotic impregnated cement on rate of surgical site infection after hip hemiarthroplasty for fractured neck of femur : a protocol for a double-blind quasi randomised controlled trial

Background: Mortality following hip hemiarthroplasty is in the range of 10-40% in the first year, with much attributed to post-operative complications. One such complication is surgical site infection (SSI), which at the start of this trial affected 4.68% of patients in the UK having this operation. Compared to SSI rates of elective hip surgery, at less than 1%, this figure is elevated. The aim of this quasi randomised controlled trial (RCT) is to determine if high dose antibiotic impregnated cement can reduce the SSI in patients at 12-months after hemiarthroplasty for intracapsular fractured neck of femur. Methods: 848 patients with an intracapsular fractured neck of femur requiring a hip hemiarthroplasty are been recruited into this two-centre double-blind quasi RCT. Participants were recruited before surgery and quasi randomised to standard care or intervention group. Participants, statistician and outcome assessors were blind to treatment allocation throughout the study. The intervention consisted of high dose antibiotic impregnated cement consisting of 1 gram Clindamycin and 1 gram of Gentamicin. The primary outcome is Health Protection Agency (HPA) defined deep surgical site infection at 12 months. Secondary outcomes include HPA defined superficial surgical site infection at 30 days, 30 and 90-day mortality, length of hospital stay, critical care stay, and complications. Discussion: Large randomised controlled trials assessing the effectiveness of a surgical intervention are uncommon, particularly in the speciality of orthopaedics. The results from this trial will inform evidence-based recommendations for antibiotic impregnated cement in the management of patients with a fractured neck of femur undergoing a hip hemiarthroplasty. If high dose antibiotic impregnated cement is found to be an effective intervention, implementation into clinical practice could improve long-term outcomes for patients undergoing hip hemiarthroplasty