Institutional Challenges in the Data Decade

Throughout the year, the DCC stages regional data management roadshows to present best practice and showcase new tools and resources. This article reports on the second roadshow, organised in conjunction with the White Rose University Consortium and held on 1-3 March 2011 at the University of Sheffield. The goal for Day 1 was to describe the emerging trends and challenges associated with research data management and their potential impact on higher education institutions, and to introduce the Digital Curation Centre (DCC) and its role in supporting research data management. This was achieved through a substantial morning presentation followed by an afternoon of illustrative case studies at both disciplinary and institutional levels, highlighting different models, approaches and working practice. Day 2 was aimed at those in senior management roles and looked at strategic and policy implementation objectives. The Day 3 workshop explored data management requirements from the perspective of the institution and the main UK funding bodies, the different roles and responsibilities involved in effective data management and provided an introduction to data management planning. The portfolio of DCC resources, tools and services was explored in greater detail. The roadshow provided delegates with advice and guidance to support institutional Research Data Management and has helped to facilitate regional networking and the exchange of skills and experience

Institutional Challenges in the Data Decade

Throughout the year, the DCC stages regional data management roadshows to present best practice and showcase new tools and resources. This article reports on the second roadshow, organised in conjunction with the White Rose University Consortium and held on 1-3 March 2011 at the University of Sheffield. The goal for Day 1 was to describe the emerging trends and challenges associated with research data management and their potential impact on higher education institutions, and to introduce the Digital Curation Centre (DCC) and its role in supporting research data management. This was achieved through a substantial morning presentation followed by an afternoon of illustrative case studies at both disciplinary and institutional levels, highlighting different models, approaches and working practice. Day 2 was aimed at those in senior management roles and looked at strategic and policy implementation objectives. The Day 3 workshop explored data management requirements from the perspective of the institution and the main UK funding bodies, the different roles and responsibilities involved in effective data management and provided an introduction to data management planning. The portfolio of DCC resources, tools and services was explored in greater detail. The roadshow provided delegates with advice and guidance to support institutional Research Data Management and has helped to facilitate regional networking and the exchange of skills and experience

A qualitative insight into rural casemix education, CHERE Project Report No 10

NSW, while often regarded as the non- Casemix state, has been using Casemix information to assist planning and funding of hospitals. However, the use of this tool and the necessary education and knowledge about Casemix has not been evenly spread throughout the state, with health service staff in metropolitan areas relatively more familiar with its use then their colleagues in rural NSW. In 1998, both NSW Health and the NSW Casemix Clinical Committee (NCCC) proposed that an effort be made to increase the knowledge and participation of rural clinical and health service staff in Casemix activities. This research was proposed as a means of establishing the current situation regarding Casemix, knowledge in rural areas, providing advice regarding the best methods of implementing Casemix education for rural staff and, if possible, evaluating the success of the education. Casemix is a broad term referring to the tools and information system used to assist in such activities as planning, benchmarking, managing and funding health care services. Casemix is underpinned by classification systems that allow meaningful comparisons of workload or throughput between facilities. In this study, qualitative research methods were used to examine the issues faced by rural health service staff in gaining knowledge of and using Casemix. This information was supplemented by a survey, which assessed the level of knowledge and understanding of Casemix in two rural areas.Casemix, hospital funding

A histochemical study of the green bean pod

As snap bean production continues to grow in economic importance in several areas of the United States, it is essential to determine, and if possible, correct the problems of sloughing and splitting of pods which results in down-grading of the processed product. The acreage of snap beans grown for processing has risen in Tennessee from a 1959-63 average of 9,040 to a 1965 acreage estimate of 13,700 which represents a 51.5 percent increase. The estimated increase for 1965 in acreage for processing is 14 percent over that of 1964 and marks the ninth consecutive year in Tennessee for an increase in acreage for processing (5). The problems of sloughing of the outer skin and splitting of pods in both canned and frozen snap beans have been recognized for some time. Though many research workers have explored the situation, the reason or reasons for sloughing and splitting of the pods have not yet been completely clarified. The objectives of this study were; (1) to determine varietal differences in sloughing and splitting of pods (2) to determine if a relationship exists between amounts of water-soluble pectin in the bean and degree of sloughing and splitting of the pods, and (3) to determine the effects of certain post-harvest treatments on sloughing and splitting of pods

Model extensions and applications in mathematical imaging.

Mathematical imaging consists of many different applications including image segmentation, image classification, and inpainting. This work deals more specifically with image segmentation: the partition of an image into the background and the objects present in the image. The main focus is the active contours without gradient model by Tony Chan and Luminita Vese which deals with fitting a curve imbedded in the plane image. The fitting of the curve comes from an evolutionary partial differential equation. The dissertation contributes three novel ideas: a linearized version of the active contours without gradient model published in [20]; a new procedure using fourth order fitting terms in place of the second order fitting terms which gives faster segmentation and may be used to provide a good initial condition; a novel way of tracking regions present in bulk data in order to gain an understanding of macroscopic details associated with some physical application. Results include images showing the accuracy of the segmentation for the methods, a discussion of the choice of initial condition, and discussion of feasibility for the data tracking. These results compare to those obtained with the nonlinear model and serve as a proof-of-concept for further investigation. The dissertation ends with a discussion of future research

The Evolution Of The Tap Dance

Evolution deals with the development of a certain thing, taking for granted that it originated from other pre-existing types. That is to say, the tap dance has existed in other forms which will be presented and discussed. The tap dance has not come into its own in its present form, there have been a series of other dances which have contributed to the formation of the present Tap Dance. Dancing is defined as rhythmical movement of the body or parts of the body, usually in accord with music. The tap dance conforms with this definition but to be more specific one can say that Tap dancing is a step dance, tapped out audibly with the feet, toes, or heels. It Is a series of complicated rhythms formed by manipulations of the feet. The purpose of treating the evolution of the tap dance is to prove conclusively that Tap Dancing sprang\u27s from other dances and to leave a written record of this for use in educational fields. Since the Tap Dance is a part of education, a written history is necessary for research, planning future dances, and for general information. The need for such a study is great, as there is little or no written history of the Tap Dance. It is needed as a background for modern dancing; a source of research and of general Information, hay subject worth consideration should have a definite written history

Assessing in-kind middle school teachers\u27 concern about & use of SOARS: School Online Assessment Reporting System

In recent years technology has been integrated into every sector of education. Using Student Online Assessment Reporting System (SOARS) to assess score results and design instructional strategies for improved learning is a challenge and will cause concern to teachers. This is a descriptive comparative study designed to measure select Middle School teachers\u27 Stages of Concern and Levels of Use regarding the SOARS assessment tool. SOARS was adopted by Jeffco Public Schools (CO) to chart student progress by presenting Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) score data. This study determined if there was a significant difference between the Stages of Concern and Levels of Use of High Profile and Low Profile Middle School teachers. High Profile Middle Schools have demographic data that show the highest percentile levels of free/reduced lunches, ethnicity rates, and mobility rates and Low Profile Middle Schools have the lowest percentile levels. This study targeted a select group (N=72) of core-subject teachers (Language Arts, Math, and Science) from High and Low Profile Middle Schools. There were three High Profile Middle Schools and three Low Profile Middle Schools that participated in this study. When comparing results of this research, data show there are no significant differences between the two groups of High and Low Profile Middle Schools\u27 teachers regarding their Stages of Concern and Levels of Use of SOARS. Both High and Low Profile Middle School teachers benefit from an equal level of teacher preparation, support, and commitment by all

Evaluation Factors for Multi-Stakeholder Broadband Visual Communication Projects

This paper presents a summary of multifaceted evaluation factors that we have identified through our research with Broadband Visual Communication (BVC) projects involving multiple stakeholders. The main benefit of these evaluation factors is that they provide a general evaluation framework for multiple stakeholder projects. The factors are social infrastructure, technical infrastructure, physical space, interaction style and content