Communication is key: a study of the development of communication key skills in China

Different countries offer alternative curricula around what might be designated language, literacy and/or communication. This paper focuses on the latter which has typically been associated with vocational education and often labelled a ‘key’ or ‘core’ skill that forms part of a wider set of life and employability skills. In recent years, as China has emerged as a global economy, education has been significant in its policy and development. This research explores staff and student responses to the introduction of a key skills communication course in three Chinese further education vocational colleges. The initiative was prompted by research in China which had suggested that communication is important not just for education (Ye and Li 2007) but also for employability, and that the ability to communicate effectively could be instrumental in individuals’ success and development (Tong and Zhong 2008). It explores what communication key skills might mean in a Chinese context and questions notions of transferability and of competence and performance in communication. It analyses how motivation could affect learner success and the relationship of pedagogy to curriculum and, finally, it considers how communication might be an element in the longer-term social and political development of critical literacies

Synchronous communication in PLM environments using annotated CAD models

The connection of resources, data, and knowledge through communication technology plays a vital role in current collaborative design methodologies and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) systems, as these elements act as channels for information and meaning. Despite significant advances in the area of PLM, most communication tools are used as separate services that are disconnected from existing development environments. Consequently, during a communication session, the specific elements being discussed are usually not linked to the context of the discussion, which may result in important information getting lost or becoming difficult to access. In this paper, we present a method to add synchronous communication functionality to a PLM system based on annotated information embedded in the CAD model. 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10,000 Miles across the room? Emergent coordination in multiparty collaboration

This paper addresses cross-boundary coordination in a multiparty collaboration. So far, collaboration among among multiple dispersed parties has received scant attention in research on cross-boundary coordination. Building on this gap, this study analyzes an extreme case of inter-organizational collaboration between four geographically dispersed groups of engineers from subsidiaries of a Japanese multinational and an American engineering contractor. We explain how coordination is achieved among multiple parties. In our study, diverse boundaries posed challenges to the execution of work tasks being performed. In response, collaborating parties developed four organizing processes for coordinating their task-related activities, comprising information sharing, task negotiation, task execution and task integration. We suggest that together, these processes constitute a dynamic coordinating structure that is developed and enacted in parties' everyday collaborating and coordinating activities, which may enable but can also impede the successful execution of joint work tasks. © 2014 Authors

Show me your living room

The study reported here investigates AR based support for remote consultations, in which an on-site user is supported by a remote helper. In such situations, it is important for the remote helper (or, in our case, the consultant) to see the environment of the person asking for support in order to relate to it. Based on literature, we created and tested different mechanisms using a 2D video stream with a captured 2D/3D texturized virtual model of the room. In addition, we compared the often-used way of fixing the remote helper’s view to the view of the on-site user with the possibility to move around freely in the 2D/3D model. The aim of the study was evaluating how to support an on-site user wearing an AR HMD. The study tested four conditions composed from these differences and with nine real furniture consultants. In the study, we compared four mechanisms in which the consultants were able to place furniture in the living room of a customer and advise the customer on their purchase. We found that there were hardly any differences in task load, social presence or perceived support between the four different conditions. However, participants had clear preferences for certain conditions and aspects of them. From our analysis, we provide recommendations for the design of mixed reality support for remote consultations.https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3404983.340552

SIX WEEKS OF DAILY BLUEBERRY CONSUMPTION DOES NOT ALTER AGED SKELETAL MUSCLE INFLAMMATION PROFILE OR INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE TO ECCENTRIC-EXERCISE

Muscles of old adults respond to stress with heightened inflammatory signaling that disrupts the regenerative process. This muscle inflammation susceptibility could contribute to the age-related decline in muscle mass, as anti-inflammatory medications taken concurrently with exercise training, have proven beneficial in attenuating age-related loss of muscle mass. With antioxidants and anti-inflammatory potential, blueberries (BB) are a natural alternative that might regulate aged muscle inflammation susceptibility. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of BB consumption on the muscle inflammatory profile of older adults, and to determine the subsequent muscle inflammatory response to exercise. We hypothesized that BB would lower the inflammatory profile of muscle and attenuate the inflammatory response after resistance exercise. Design: Subjects were randomized to receive daily BB or placebo supplements, which were blind to subjects and researchers. All subjects underwent baseline functional testing, post-supplementation testing, and testing post-muscle stress stimulus. Setting: Volunteers were recruited from Western North Carolina region, USA. Participants: Healthy, non-resistance trained adults over 60 years old (n=22) were recruited. Measurements: Profiles of inflammation pathways known to affect muscle mass were established prior to and after 6-weeks of daily consumption of BB. Post-supplementation, subjects performed an exercise protocol to induce inflammation and returned 24 hours post-exercise to determine the muscle inflammatory profiles. Results: Muscle cytokine and soluble cytokine receptor levels were similar between groups and within groups before and after BB consumption. Cytokine and cytokine receptor levels post-muscle stress changed similarly in the BB and placebo group, indicating BB had no effect on the muscle’s inflammatory response. Total plasma antioxidant capacity was 22% higher in the BB group 24-hours post-muscle stress, however, plasma oxidative stress was not different between groups or within groups. Conclusion: While BB consumption did not affect inflammatory signaling pathways within the muscle nor affect inflammation after a regenerative stimulus, a higher plasma antioxidant capacity could contribute to a better long-term regenerative response.</jats:p